“May I help you, sir?” Jadae asked as the storyteller made his way into the shop. Jadae eyed the old man as she debated what to say. What was he doing in her shop? Surely someone who made no effort to make money other than the coins tossed by children would not need her services.
“You listen to my stories whenever I tell them on this corner. This man,” the storyteller motioned towards Arethin with his left hand. “He listens often, whenever he has a break from work…”
“Sir, did you make up that story?” Jack asked impatiently.
“No! Of course not! I am a storyteller, not a story weaver,” the old man looked horrified that Jack would even suggest such a thing. “A very dignified and reliable elf told me the story a long time ago. Said he was making his was making his way back from a village near the Iron Hills. Said that it was a popular and believed story. Of course, I changed one or two little details but…”
Arethin and Jadae exchanged glances as the storyteller spoke. For Jadae, any proof, be it valid or not, seemed enough to get her believing in something. She wasn’t sure about Arethin though. He seemed the type who had to see something to believe it. Jadae looked closely at the storyteller. His one blind eye was a hazy and pale blue color. The other was a truthful, dark blue eye that seemed to have seen more things than he liked to remember.
“Sir, if there is nothing I can help you with, I think I’m going to close up shop early today,” Jadae spoke out of the silence that had unknowingly taken over the smith’s forge. The storyteller nodded gravely, and slowly made his way out of the shop. Jadae sighed out of relief, glad to have the strange storyteller out of view. He told wondrous stories, but in person he seemed less kindly than when telling the children tales of faeries and dragons and books.
“Miss? Are you the smith here?” A man standing behind the entryway to her smithy had gone by unnoticed during the conversation with the storyteller.
“Yes, I am. May I help you?”
“I know you said you were closing shop, but would you mind sharpening an axe and a sword?”
“Certainly. Lets see them then,” Jadae was handed the axe and the light elven knife carefully. The axe was pretty dull, but would be fairly easy to sharpen. The knife however, she feared to sharpen. Jadae noted the near perfection glowing in the blade, and Jadae would have to be careful when sharpening it.
“Forgive me, I couldn’t help but listen in on your conversation with the storyteller. Would you mind telling me what it was all about? Not often is a storyteller found in a smith’s forge,” the man looked at the three, wondering if he would receive an answer. Jadae sighed and looked to Jack and Arethin, hoping one of them could tell, while she sharpened the blades and gave the slightly dusty knife a polishing.
[ January 28, 2003: Message edited by: Aylwen Dreamsong ]
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...Come down now, they'll say. But everything looks perfect from far away - Come down now! But we'll stay.
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