Ol' Flint the Crow

Aerris's Song

Samuel, who had been painstakingly jotting notes of the heart wrenching story in secret, became to sadden by the end of Flint's grim tale to write down another sentence. His balled up hand, clenching the pen, hovered over the pages. It was like hearing Aerris's sorrowful song again; Samuel could not help but cry like a child.

All the horrible things that Flint had gone through and what he regretted doing pierced at the flute player's heart. Samuel had never experience so much empathy for someone. The agonizing pity Samuel had was so strong in fact that he had to fight off the urge to leap out of his chair and immediately barrel towards the crow to cradle the whimpering animal in his arms. Thankfully, he didn't since it would had given away the fact that he was copying Flint's tale without the birds expressed permission.

Flushing with guilt, Samuel was happy to see the barmaid, although reluctant, reached out her hand and stroke the bird's head. Flint flinched but quickly grasp at his companion's hand. Squeezing it tight, Flint would not let it go. It was like he feared he would lose her like he had lost his old friend Edvrick.

"I'm sorry, Bleak!" the crow wailed. "I'm sorry for always harping on you on this issue! I-I just want... you t-to... not become like... me! Oh gods!!! Edvrick! Forgive me..."

Composed, Master Rivlit calmly lifted himself away from the table and stood behind the bird. The elf carefully carried Flint in his arms, cradling him like you would a crying baby. Fixing her eyes at Rivlit, Bleak made sure to keep a heavy watch over the elf holding her friend. In Samuel's opinion, the barmaid's uneasy expression was a bit too aggressive and showed that she still had ill feelings towards those of the elven race.

"Hush, shh," Rivlit stated without any pity in his voice since he could not show any. "No more tears, Flint. Forget about the past. Go to sleep... rest. Only dream sweet dreams of the good times you had with your friend. Not the bad ones."

On the bird's forehead, the elf pressed a stone similar in shape to the necklets used to hamper the elves' emotions. This action caused Flint's body to go limp in Rivlit's grasp. A few moments later, the crow loudly snored with his beak thrown up and twitching while the elf placed Flint's body on a pile of soft leaves shaped into a miniature bed. It was the perfect size for the shivering animal in need of rest. There Flint slumbered, folding his wings around his head.

After letting the bird rest, Rivlit tip-toed back to the table while Bleak watched him with a much friendlier expression. Bleak then turned to the other elves and noticed that only a small number showed any sadness for the bird, and none of them that did wore a necklet. Sipping lightly on a glass of Bleak's family wine, Lori was one of the least emotional of the lot. Not a hint of sorrow creased her rigid face.

"A rather sad story... I guess," Lori heartlessly muttered.

This lack of pity sure made Miss Bleak agitated. Mumbling under her breath, the bartender sporadically pounded her knuckles against the table. She moved her gaze from the 'stuck up' elf back to her sleeping friend huddled in a fetal position.

Seeing the large woman's frustration bubbling up inside of her, Samuel, who had already buried his pen and paper back into his pockets, slipped his flute out in the hopes of smoothing out the barmaid's mood through the beauty of music. He also hoped to gain the interest of the elves in the process.

To Samuels delight, Eleanora glanced over at him and immediately inquired about his instrument, "Is that a flute you have, Mr. Samuel?"

"Yes!" the flute player wagged his head up and down. "That it is, High Elf Eleanora. I'm a flutist by trade, if you consider being a musician a job in the first place. You'd be surprised at how many don't. Hm... Of course they do have a point. Haha!" Samuel chuckled loudly at his remarks, but none of the elves joined in. Swallowing, he uneasily began again, "I'm only a poor flutist. Not at all professional like the great Galahad, who I strive to one day emulate. Speaking of which, I've heard that the good bard once visited your domain. Might that be true?"