Aethel wandered among the herd, her presence seemed to cause a curious stiramong the horned heads of the wooly rams, who had been on edge overthe last week due to the approaching vernal equinox, but just herbeing there seemed to calm them down a good deal. Instead of the worried sparring that they would do with another, or the sometimes more serious altercations between a few of the more hormonal male rams, they were too preoccupied with following the new person around, sniffing at the flowing hem of her cloak that fluttered as she walked like the single wing of a great bird.

“Wooly Rams, eh?” She had said when they first got to the herd after they descended from the the top of the hill, “Have you ever seen one in the wild?”

"I have not," he said, shaking his head. 

“They're  ctually a lot less wooly than you'd expect.” She said.

“Oh? Have you ever seen one?” He asked, “Where?”

“Uh,” She ran a hand through her feathers, and a tinge of red spread beneath the freckles on her cheek. “Not really. There was a drawing of one in a book I read, though. Did you know that they can summon bolts of lightning, though?” She said in a hurried attempt to change the subject. “They use that in the wild to drive away predators at the top of the Boreals.”

“I did.” He said, “Though mine can't.” He said. “When my ancestors first started breeding Woolies, they bred that specific trait out of them.”

“Really? Why Wouldn't it be useful?”

Just as she finished asking an adolescent ram pranced up to the two of them, lowered its two pointed horns and thumped against Johnathan's thigh.

“Do you know how painful this would be if they still could?”

“Ah. ”She intonated and looked down to the adolescent.

The ram turned its attention to her and lowered it's horns and began tocharge, only to be stopped by Johnathan's hand on it's forehead.

Herheart that was about to leap out of her throat and the reaction inher body telling her to leap out of the way were quelled and replacedby a curious expression as she looked to the horns of the animal.

“Why are this one's horns spiraled and pointed, when this one's,” she motioned to Dolly behind them, “Are curled?”

“This one's a male.” He motioned to the one currently ramming into his hand, “and that one's a female.”

“I see...” She turned around and lifted her arm to run her hand through the aged, fluffy head of Dolly. “So, what do you need me to do for now?” She asked after a moment of silence had passed between the two of them.

“For now, let the rams get used to you.” He answered, “If they don't,t hey'll only be further on edge. After that can you keep guard over the west? My cousin's overseeing the east.”

And so that's what she was doing. Overall, most of the herd seemed pleased to have her there with them, as if another presence larger than them, even slightly, made them feel safer.

The gray veil of clouds cleared around noon, and when dusk began to tingethe sky, and Aethel was out of earshot, Arthur made his way towardsthe center of the herd where Johnathan stayed.

“Are you sure we could trust her?” Arthur asked, peeking over hisshoulder in a hushed whisper.

“Pretty sure.” Johnathan answered, turning his head to face his cousin. “She seems trustworthy enough. Besides, what am I going to do? Leave a person out to deal with the Equinox by themselves?”

“I'mjust saying. My dad told me nowt to trust anything to do with thespirits. Bunch of tricksters, he says.” Arthur responded.

“Mydad told me that the spirits were guides from Auriel.” Johnathansaid, “Is that not true?”

“Sure, some are.” Arthur said. His hushed whisper rising. “Like the wind spirits that bring the needed mana to the Sea. But that?” He made a wide motion in the general direction ofwhere Aethel had last wandered off to, “That's not natural. It's not natural. Humans and spirits shouldn't...” Arthur's tanned cheeks took on a notably redder tint, “You know!” His shoulders heaved and his cheeks returned to their normal bronze color after a moment had passed, “Just...” he sighed, “just be careful alright? You and my parents are the only family I have left. I'm worried about you, little cousin.”

“Thank you, Art.” Johnathan said, “I do believe we could trust her, however.”

“If you say so, it's your herd.”

“Speaking of; are you taking a liking to any of them?” Johnathan asked, in a naked attempt to change the subject.

“A few. Thank you.” Arthur sighed, “I'm sorry about that, John.Just...being near that,” he made another wide motion towards thefae-kin, “makes my skin crawl.”

“It'salright just...” Johnathan paused to try to find the right wordsfor a moment, “ Just talk to her is all I can ask. She seems like agood enough person.”

“Areyou sure? What if she's effected by the Days just like the otheranimals are?”

“That'sridiculous.” He said.

“Howcould you be sure?”

“Why would she be afraid of the coming equinox if she was?”

“I...I don't know.” He sighed again and cast a gaze to the setting sky,and running his hand through his curly, auburn hair. “I'm going to go set up camp for the night. Good night.”

“Good night.” Johnathan responded.

Arthur weaved back through the herd and towards his post in the east. Johnathan let out a long and heavy sigh.

“Well ,it's getting late.” He said.

He pulled his crook in front of him and closed his eyes. Wordlessly he sent out a command through the crook. A seamless stream of pale yellow light, bright enough to challenge the dimness of the setting day, began to pour from the curved iron head and spinning around him like the procession of stars in the sky spinning around the world. As he opened his eyes, the spinning of the lights stopped, and the seemingly stream of lights split into a countless array of pale yellow balls of light that hung in the middle of the air for a brief moment beforedarting out in all directions.

Each wisp fell towards the ground and found its way towards the horned head of each individual ram in the herd and sank into them. The herd slowed to a stop just as the last of the orbs of lights found itsram. Night was quickly falling. It would be a new moon that night, so the light would be limited to starlight.

“What was that?” A soprano voice warbled to his left just as he began to contemplate where a good spot to set up camp for  would be. His heart tried to escape through his throat at the sudden noise.

“Huh? ”He turned to face the voice.

Throughthe dimming of the day he could barely make out the burning inAethel's sapphire eyes.

“Those lights, what were they?” She asked, stepping forward quicklythrough the grass. She found it much easier to move within the herdas most of the grass that normally stretched to above her head hadalready been trampled low or grazed away. “It was so pretty.”

“That was a command.” He answered.

“Howdid you do it?” Her eyes darted across his robes.

Itwas an odd feeling. Never before had he felt that someone's gaze hadphysical weight behind it.

“Areyou carrying some sort of magic item?” Her eyes rested on hiswaist, “Is it that dagger there?” She motioned to the onyx blackdagger in its leather sheathed hanging on his robe's tie.

“No.It's this.” He shook the crook in his hand. “With this I'm ableto quickly bring my herd to a stop, or bring it to a move. It caneven pick up if one of my herd is in danger.”He said.

Hereyes darted from his dagger to the crook.

“Ohhh, kind of like divination?” Unconsciously, she moved closerand her hand reached forward. Johnathan held it out of her reach. Sh epulled her hand back, and red tinged her face, “Ah, sorry. I just really like magic items.” She said.

“It's alright." He said, holding the crook so that it was behind him, " A Shepherd's crook is their most important object.” He said, “I'd rather lose everything in my pack,” he motioned to the pack he wore, hidden beneath the folds of his flowing robes, “Than my crook.”

“So how does it work?” She asked, “That danger thing, I mean.”

“It gets hot to the touch.” He said simply, “Like you're touching an ember pulled from a dead campfire. Then I get flashes of images in my head to letme know what's going on, and a vague sense of where to go.”

“Is it useful?”

“Sometimes.” He said. “Though a lot of the time it's just like, images of the scenery and a general sense of panic. It's how I know how a ram is about to give birth so I know where to go.” He looked to the sky, “The light's getting pretty low and I need to set up before it getscompletely dark, or I'll be stuck sleeping outside.” He shivered while thinking about it. The day had been chily and he wasn't looking forward to the possibility of sleeping outside. 

“Do you have somewhere in mind?” She asked.

“I do. There's a hill near the back of the herd. Perfect location to setup. Not too high of a climb, either, for Dolly here.” He scratched that spot right behind her left horn that she could never quite reach. “It's not too far.”

“Lead the way.” She said, trailing after him as he began to step off.. After a few moments ofsilence as they weaved their way through the herd she spoke again. “I want to know more about the crook— does every Shepherd have one?” She asked as she watched the ground where he stepped, making sure not to leave the trail less she lose him in the grass that had begun to spring back up.

“Every shepherd with a flock.” He answered, glancing back to the hooded fae-kinbehind him, barely visible through the pointed grass and dimminglight. “It's passed down from generation to generation.”

“How does it do that light thing? How does it know which rams to focus on? Magic needs a focal-point, after all.” She stated matter of factly; smugness tinging her warble.

“Well, whenever a ram is born,” He began his answer, his hand helping the aged ram up the small incline as they climbed. “We take the placenta and the after-birth---”

“Okay, okay.” She said, “That's more than enough.” Her stomach churned.

He chuckled.

“Are you really an adventurer?”

“You're really rude, you know that?” Even through the dim light he could tell she was fuming.

“I'm kidding.” He said with a laugh as they reached the top of the hill.

By the time they reached they crested the top darkness had fully descended over the Sea of Grass. The milky pin-points of stars in their multitudes was scarcely enough to make up for the absence ofthe moon that night. Johnathan couldn't see more than a foot in front of him without it falling off into complete dark. 

“Damnit.” He muttered. “I wish there was even a little bit of light.”

“Do you need help?” Aethel asked.

“Canyou bring the day back?” He jokingly retorted, whipping his pack off of his back and digging in the bottom compartment where he kept his tent stowed.

“No, but I can do this.” She said. Her blue orbs — still visible even through the darkness, faded. After a couple of seconds passed a faint orange halo began to form around her. “See?”

“Oh! That's a neat trick!” Even with the dim light he could fish aroundand pull out what he needed — a single collapsible pole, some twine and a single peace of heavy leather cut down the middle.

“See! I'm useful!” She stated proudly.

“How do you do it?” He picked up a stone and found a spot to set up and begun to hammer in the fully extended pole that was now about the height of Aethel.

“I told you I'm a heat novice, right? I just heat the air around me .This and boiling some water is all I'm really capable of.” She said.

“So. I have a question.” He looked at her after he finished driving in the pole, and had begun fiddling with the ties and the leather.

“What is it?”

Aethel sat down besides the aged ewe who mewled happily at the new source of warmth radiating from around the fae-kins body.

“Is Birdsong really yourlast name?” He asked, finishing up with one side of the leather tent, “Isn't that a bit too on the nose?”

She laughed.

“I guess it is, isn't it?” She leaned back into the thick wool of the ewe, “My dad chose it.”

“Wa syour dad, the....the uh.” He finished up with the other side and pulled a pair of stakes out of a rolled up piece of leather by his pack.

“The fairy? No. That was my mom.” Her faint smile was almost as bright as the air around her. “She was an osprey that my dad had nursed back to health when he was younger. She fell for his kindness and wished for the remainder of her life that she'd be able to tell him how thankful she was. And when she passed she got her wish in the form of a human body.” Dolly curled into the fae-kin and laid her head on Aethel's bony knee, “To make a long story short; they met, my dad fell in love with her and,” She made a grand gesture around her, “here I am!” The warble ofher voice took on a distinctly sadder tone, “When I was born my dad's family disowned him and stripped him of his name andinheritance and exiled him from their land.”

“Are your parents still around?” He asked, wincing as he struck his thumb with the rock he had been using as a hammer.

Aethel curled back into Dolly, and placed her folded hands underneath her head for a bit of support.

“My dad is.” She said, “I barely knew my mother. Fairy aren't known for their long lives, afterall.” She stretched out her long birdlegs, “In fact, he's the reason I started adventuring. I want to earn enough money so he can finally settle down and live the life he deserves.”

He rwarbling voice trailed off and was soon replaced by a series of rhythmic breaths. The halo of light around her grew dimmer and dimmer like a wic on a candle that had reached its end. It lasted long enough for him tohammer in the last stake and roll out his sleeping roll, however, andthat's all that mattered. His head poked out of the end of the tent ,and he fell into sleep as he watched the  stars dance their endless dance in the heavens around the earth, the crook resting at his side.