The Lone Kirin

A friendly snake

Now now. Don't panic.

That's only the biggest thing that ever entered my reach, excluding a giant fucking dragon.
Val, too, is just looking, wide-eyed, at the spot behind me where the creature sits. How the hells did it get there, without me noticing? If it was teleporting, we're fucked. Royally. Val already told me about how the Aranids of Rairza are able to invoke arcane space-distorting magic, just because the goods felt like it. But even their arcanists either need to work together to make such a thing happen, or they shift for a few meters only.
Spatial magic seems to be one of the most unstable and dangerous sorts to cast.

So if that thing can invoke such a spell, just because it wants to get near us, without even using the moment of surprise, it doesn't need one of the most potent faculties of magic to kill us.

"Why hello there."

Ok. It spoke. Nothing to worry about. If it talks, it hasn't decided to kill us. Yet.

I turn around, and not unlike my feathered friend, a several meters long and bulky as all hells snake looks down at us, with its skin flaps on its neck slowly flapping. Its mouth wide open, as if to grin at us. The brown-grey pattern on its scales really messes with my eyes, and it isn't even moving...

"Don't you want to tell me why you are picking the fungi, the elder has planted for the court? Do you mean to disrespect the revered elder, which sends us, his loyal minions, to keep things clean and growing around here? You even have a dragon pseud with you, which you should know, angers the elder to the highest degree.
So what say you, haughty nymph whose actions do not seem too thought through for your disposition as a Fey of the kingdom?"

Ok. Wasn't Val just praying to please the protector of the forest?
And dragon pseud? What does pseud even mean? Well, "pseudodragon," I understand, so maybe something along the lines of...

"Excuse us, righteous guardian of the elder, but I just paid my respects to the one you call master. I do not quite understand why a situation as this one did occur. I followed the procedure, as declared by the protector himself."

The snake didn't seem to be too agitated, up to this point, but now it lowered its head down to the height of my head and put its right beside mine, blinking as our eyes are only centimeters away from each other, its skin flaps brushing my mane.

"Well, well. Isn't that something I never heard? But for the sake of it, I'm still going to ask. How long was it since you visited the kingdom, then?"

I don't know what kind of expression she's making right now, but I can definitely feel bewilderment coming from her end.

"If you want to be technical about it, I established a link to it only a few days ago. But it has been a good three years since I kept up with any traditions or court rulings, so if anything has changed, I am not aware of it. And I seem to understand the situation now. Picking ingredients is forbidden, yes? As this accident stems from my own ignorance, tell me please how to right this wrong."

This sounds pretty bad if you ask me... And why exactly does this Fieri guy hate dragons? I am unaware of any feuds between dragonkind and Feys.

"You're a quick one, eh? I like that. Really do. There are a lot of pretentious bastards invading these woods, who would speak themselves free of any wrongdoing, as their ignorance makes them innocent in their eyes. Despicable. But still. I will bring you to the elder, right now, for he may decide how to deal with you.
And again. I appreciate the cooperation. I do hate both the taste of horses and nymphs. So it would've ended badly for both of us if you'd have crossed the line."

Well. Not that I despise the authorities, despite them doing me essentially only wrong, since the day I was born, but I could really do without meeting that tree.

"We comply, of course. Please lead on."

"I wasn't talking about your steed. But if you want to deliberately anger the protector, then be my guest."

Ehh... Ok? That reaction implies that my mere existence is unwanted, right? That's an excellent opportunity to find out why that is!

"Prophet. I believe that the guardian is right. You should just wait at the edge of the forest."

[Nope. I already decided to meet that gramps that seemingly hates me. Best way to find out why. Or do you know the answer, and just didn't tell me?]

...

"Not really, no."

[Welp. Then let's go!]

I am kind of sorry for causing trouble again, but I wouldn't have denied so bluntly if I wasn't this intrigued.
First off, he doesn't know me, so maybe a feud of blood between him and my folk? Who knows?
And even though I believe that that guy could quickly kill us with this one minion alone, I won't waver to step up and parade before him.
At least as to not show myself as a coward.

"If you two are ready, I'd like you to follow me."

Val nods and steps up. I'm going to follow her. I think, that being the last to be seen will have some sort of diminishing effect on me being an unwanted person.

Now here I'd like to say that it takes little to no time to traverse a forest, but the following two hours are spent walking or in the snake's stead, slithering. I was quite sure that these woods were rather small on the map...

[Val? Do you know why we're able to keep on walking without reaching the wood's end?]

"Fey magic. Most Feys are either born with the skill of illusion or learn how to use it when we are only babies. I don't even remember the teachings of my mother. I am quite sure that Fieri implies high-level illusions to expand the space around these parts."

[Wouldn't that imply that it isn't just an illusion, though?]

"While you're not wrong, the art of creating and maintaining illusions becomes somewhat crazy when one learns how to master them.
Our kingdom, for example, technically exists on the same plane as these continents. Still, the barrier surrounding it is an illusion of such exceptional craftsmanship, that it becomes isolated from the area around it. At some point, illusions can alter reality in a small way, but only if the gods are up to it. I kinda read into it, as I want to be as good an Illusionist I can get. Some arrogant Fey and their fellowship once thought of creating their own little kingdom, within the original. As this kind of tomfuckery is strictly forbidden, the gods shunted both places to where they belonged, which both resulted in the kingdom to be exposed to all sorts of dangers and assailants, as well as the implosion of the mini-kingdom. Around a thousand people were "deleted" instantly and a couple thousand more, from the resulting attacks of dragons and other mythical creatures that wanted to benefit from the kingdom's misfortune."

[Thanks for the history lesson.]

"No problem."

Ok. That's a thing. So Illusionists can make small alterations to space as well. Could the snake be some kind of Illusionist, then?

"I have to give you my thanks, as well. It's not often that I can interact with the creatures I contain, and being this old, I crave nothing more than knowledge."

"Be my guest, then. If you'd allow it, I can tell you some more, before we reach the elder."

Ok. I like to gather some knowledge myself, but taking in more than that story is a little much.

Not that I'd voice that, but for the next half an hour, Valeria seemingly didn't even catch a breath, while she elaborated on the intricacies of Illusions.
I might have understood a quarter of it, but it was interesting... I guess.

"If I may interrupt you, we have just entered the lair of the revered protector, Fieri Barantolan Firtred Junior. I am going to let you go the last few steps yourself, as I myself am not allowed to tread beyond this line, for the sake of the elder's safety. May Zyhir's rattle bring you the focus to endure the anger of the elder."

Once we are out of earshot, I'll have to ask Val, who this "Seeheer" is.

...

[Do you know who Seeheer is?]

"Probably a snake related deity? Not of any pantheon, I'd know of."

Hmm. I could have thought of that myself.