"So, uh, why'd you get kinda small like this?" Todd asks me, letting his legs flop to and fro to get more comfortable. It seems that since Mal is wearing a big old robe he has to sit with both legs on one side like a girl, so he might just fall off. Well, I'll make sure he doesn't, but we'll see.

Twisting my upper body just slightly, I establish some eye-contact with Todd. "-Hold on tight," I warn, readying myself to actually sprint for the first time in... A good while. As fast as I've gone while flying, I haven't ran as fast as I could yet. Hm? What's that? I should try flying? With a pair of people on my back-? Squishy, meaty people with no fall resistance? Nu-uh.

Run it is!

I can feel Todd stumble about a bit, trying to find someplace to put his hands to hold on, but only my soft human upper body is right in front of him and I would rather that he didn't hold onto my antennae, so instead of just running straight off the bat, I gently place his hands around my waist. That's the way you ride stuff two at once. 

"What is-," is all Mal has time to say before I shift into high gear and get going. The previously stationary forest becomes a blur within seconds. The wind rushes through my ears. A pair of arms clasp around my upper body. I can't feel it. I have never gone this fast in my life, I don't think. I experience every part of it. My body. It yearns for more. It can go faster yet. If I just go-,

"Dddddddduudddeeee chillaaaxxxxxxxxxxx----,,," someone groans from my back, and I realize that yes, I do need to take it just a little slower. As I have that thought, I notice something rapidly approaching, something not quite alike the forest.

-House! 

My attempt to stop on the spot fails somewhat and I slide across the road, my feetsies prodded deep into the ground. A pair of bodies press into my back, and I'm reminded of that time my father told me about the "elephant in the backseat" or something. 

Still, after one second too many of just skidding to a stop, we actually come to a complete stop. Somehow, by some miraculous stroke of luck, we are standing on the very spot in front of the house. Ah, what luck. With some excitement, maybe a little more than necessary, I turn around to take a look at my passengers. 

...Todd seems just about ready to hurl, and I'm pretty sure Mal has passed out. Either that, or he's dead. 

"...You two okay back there?" I ask, poking Todd on the shoulder. He is unresponsive. Right. Let's get him off my back for a start. Oh, and Mal as well. 

A few seconds later, and they're both lying on the road, Todd lying on his side so that he won't choke if he happens to start puking. Hrm. Not sure what to do now. I don't have anything to help them with, but leaving them here on the road feels a bit queer... Alright, let's ask the person/s in the house if they can help! I'm sure they have a bed or something to put them on!

I knock on their door. No answer. Awh. Anxious to find someone, (after all, lunch is a necessity) I start pacing around the house, checking the windows. The house isn't too big, seems just enough for one or two people, but it's well-furnished with plenty of little trinkets and accessories that make it abundantly clear that someone actually lives here. But, other than all of that, there's nobody in there. Hrm. 

I don't really want to leave these guys in the middle of the road, but if the guy is in the woods, then-,

"...Who are you?" someone asks, and I whip my head around to the side. Indeed, someone has emerged from the woods. Old and wrinkly, dressed in dark green and brown attire. 

Skill (System Recon Interference) has been used, information will now be shown

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Human "Johan Tjärkerent", Lv.47, (Race)

A human living alone in the Great Forest of Toum. Enjoys quiet walks in the forest as well as hunting the odd monster or two. Although he used to serve as a butler inside the Blue Castle, he has now thrown this life aside, fancying the simpler pleasures he grew up with. 

I turn to the man, only barely glancing at the information shown. It isn't very polite to pry at someones information like this, probably. 

Hm. Only now do I notice he has a fairly ornate bow at his side. Well, as long as he doesn't attack me, it doesn't matter. I bow slightly in greeting. 

"-A pleasure meeting you. My name is John. As rude as it is, I would like to infringe on your hospitality. My friends have grown sick due to a quick lapse in judgement. If you may spare a bed and some food, we will be out of your hair before noon rolls around," I say, keeping my head down. 

"Quite polite of ya, considering ye hardly seem human," the man states, but he doesn't sound very ill-meaning, so I raise my head. Yes, now that I can see his face, he actually seems to be smiling, if only slightly. "Eh, human or na, I always appreciate a man tryin' ta speak well even ta strangers. Ya need any help carryin' those poor buggers?"

"No, that won't be necessary, but I thank you for the offer and hospitality," I say, stepping over to pick the both of them up. Light as cats. Cats or not, I carry the both of them like a pair of barrels under my arms. The man doesn't seem to mind me at all, and walks over to the door to unlock it. Polite as he is, he even holds the door open as I squeeze myself and my friends inside. Being horse-sized has its ups and downs, and this is a down. Well inside, I make the decision to decrease my insect-size just the tiniest bit to make myself more manageable. 

"...Wasn't ya bigger outside?" the man asks in that odd accent of his. I nod, but don't explain anything further. Well inside, I don't really know what to do with the two of them. "Ah, just put tha lil' one on the couch and th... tha returner-? That a returner ya got ther-?"

Hmm, oh, yeah, Todd's a returner, right? 

"Indeed, he is," I answer, hoping he won't ask anything else since I really don't have any answers about any of this. The man nods. 

"Well, arrite, just put 'im on the bed, rite in there," the man replies, pointing to a room I can only assume is the bedroom. After placing Mal on the little wooden sofa, I head into the bedroom and place him on the oddly-large bed inside. It really seems too large for one, but I'm not one to make assumptions.

Just beside the bed, there's a seemingly crude painting of a man and a woman, their smiles accentuated into what almost seems like grimaces. 

...I may not make assumptions, but in the face of overwhelming evidence, I can only accept fact. 

I head back out into the main area, where the man seems to be brewing up some sort of drink. This would be the perfect moment to sit down and wait for him to do his thing, but I don't really have any chair to sit on. There are chairs, yes, but none that I can sit on. 

So, instead, I fold my insect body just a little bit so that it almost seems like I'm sitting down, or like I'm the level that I would be if I were sitting on a chair. The man glances at me from where he stands, but doesn't say anything. As per what I know is polite (since my father hammered it into me at a young age), I shall now sit silent and still, looking around as if his decision to not speak was on behalf of both of us.

The house is almost completely full of small wooden figurines. Some depicting animals like wolves or horses, others people and what I can only assume are monsters. Some are grand in scope and design, others small and quaint. Whoever made them was surely a master of their craft. Many seem almost crude, but the strokes are intentional and soft. 

"-Feel free ta touch one if ya'd like," the man mumbled from his place by the stove. I don't reply, but I do stand up to go pick one down from one of the many shelves. The one I picked seemed to depict a large wolf, standing on his hind legs, roaring ferociously. Even though the fur and teeth and claws were made to look sharp and threatening, they felt soft when I touched them. This one was hand-painted, too. Not many were, but those that were hand-painted were done with a strong, sure stroke. This wolf-man was grey, but his eyes and mouth were red. Very spooky.

"Ma wife made 'em, lovely lady. Never should'a settled for me. I only painted them cos' she told me, she told me they were prettier painted than not, but I always had ta disagree," he said, grabbing the thing he had been boiling from the stovetop and bringing it over to where I had sat by the blue wooden table next to the couch. 

I examined the statuette for a moment longer before putting it back on the shelf and setting myself down by the table. Once the kettle stood proud and tall on the table, he walked back over to the kitchen area and grabbed two cups from the cupboards, soon setting them down on the table alongside the kettle. 

"-It's thistle-drink. Momma used ta make it all the time back home, before I left 'n came here. Still unsure if this was any good idea, but it did let me meet tha prettiest lassie I ever saw," he said, pouring both him and myself a drink. It was warm, and smelt almost sweet. Grasping the cup in both hands, I brought it to my lips, and took a sip. It slinked down nice and easy. It was a taste I'd never had before. Tangy and sweet, but only slightly. As if the sea had decided to become just a bit sweet, and not salty at all. 

The man stared me up and down, eyes full of deepness and just the tiniest shining glimmer of curiosity. 

"What kinda monster are ya?" he asked fearlessly. Now that I recall it, he had left his bow by the door. There was no scorn, not even a hint of doubt in his voice. Just a child-like wonder about what exactly I was.

"-I'm called a Moonlight Faerie. I'm not quite sure what that entails myself, but I bear no monstrous urges," I say, taking another sip of the warm drink. It soothes something in me, something that needed soothing. 

"-Think my old lady used ta have a book on those, those little folk," the old man says, standing up without ever having touched his drink. He walks down the hall, rummages for something, and soon reappears with a large book in hand. The picture on the front seems to be of a bunch of people holding hands, all dancing in a ring under the moon. Very odd picture. "Right, right, let me see here... Moonlight Faerie... Ah, here it is, under the Faerie subspecies chapter."

I lean back. This'll be... interesting.