Oz Killing Time

Quizzically Oz watched the spectacle unfold as he nursed a potent spirit recently liberated from a locals’ still. Of all the rag tag members of their collective troupe, Raven was the closest in kinship as a fellow tiefling and perhaps more importantly, attractiveness. He found him behind the tent, out of sight of the potentially prying eyes of their fellow carnival folk, shirtless, standing in the moonlight, carefully inspecting the latest of recently acquired scars.

Hesitant to interrupt what was clearly a profound moment of self-reflection, Oz simply decided he was bored and a conversation was just the thing he needed.

“Fancy a nip my friend?” His words were unexpected as was his presence but Raven barely showed a surprised reaction. Calmly he lifted his eye up to meet Oz’s offering, a silver flask. Wordlessly he took the vessel and took a measured pull. When he winced, Oz offered a word or two” Yes that first taste can have a bite, the second makes you wonder why you’d put yourself through it again, the third has a numbing effect…..by the fourth…well who cares at that point eh?” followed by a pointed smile.

Raven smirked as he handed back the container, “Thanks Oz…I could do with a little numbing, though you may be surprised to hear, not because of these” His hand lightly brushed a recently cut rune radiating from his shoulder. “Haven’t seen much of you lately. Where have you been hiding yourself?“ 

“Well not hiding so much as ….well exploring I guess is the best way to put it” taking another pull of the spirit, ”As you know the locals are enamored with the denizens of the Carnival….so long as they stay in their canvased domiciles and away from the ‘proper folk’ of the town” carefully finding a barrel to hop upon and sit regally. “A blue skinned tiefling walks into a bar…wait, that’s either the beginning to a terrific joke or a hate crime…possibly both, in this case I let past events curb my need to wet my whistle at the local watering hole …pun intended and find distractions more suitable to our heavily outnumbered surroundings.”

With an uncharacteristically curious expression, Raven took a seat on the edge of a stump, mildly intrigued and uncommonly amused by what was undoubtedly going to be a tale of some sort. “Better to be aware of the crimes he committed now, than to be surprised later.” He rationalized. Bex rolled her eyes and fluttered over to a nearby fire Raven had built to heat the blade she had been using, curling up in the flames.

“Well, I thought it best to learn about our new neighborhood, so I set out on that first night. I found this little farmhouse, well on the opposite side of the town, nowhere near the Carnival. Quite  a charming place really, some might call it a fixer upper, but I digress, what first drew my attention was a lovely aroma on the air, the lady of the house was an accomplished cook as it turns out, and after a quick peek , none too hard on the eyes neither…sadly her husband was absent…off on a project I’ll explain in a moment.” Taking another nip and again offering it to Raven who decided he had more than enough, motioned no thanks. “She was startled first by a knock at the door and moreover by yours truly on the other side. I quickly assured her I was no threat, in fact I needed her assistance, being lost and hungry, that it was becoming dark and all. And yes, I admit I laid it on pretty thick. A few compliments, a casual comment here and there and next, I’m asking her to pass the biscuits “

“You talked your way into a meal and sat with another man’s woman…eating his food not knowing when he would walk through the door?” Raven asked with a raised eyebrow.

 “I’ve talked my way into far worse, but I digress. Your concerns are of course valid, but she had alleviated me of them with the nugget of knowledge, her husband is…or should I say, was, the producer of such potent brew”

The prospect that Oz may have brought an early demise to a local sat heavily, it could bring an angry mob and unwanted attention, but Raven held his tongue for now.

“My hostess , Reena, shared that when her spouse didn’t drink it all, he could make a small profit by parting with this Shine, and that his still was hidden over the next hill” adding with a toothy grin “ and that if he hasn’t shown up for dinner by now, that he is likely passed out in that shed and wouldn’t be back until morning.”

Raven tilted his head “Oz…”

“Relax, I am not about to share details that are not pertinent to the tale, now where was I….oh yes, So after…umm…dessert….I bid the fair lady a good night and promptly made my way up the hill.”

“Up the hill?”

“To the still Raven, “giving his audience an incredulous look “ keep up man, here’s where it gets interesting.” Flashing a mischievous grin, ”I did find it, rather easily to my credit, never have been one for the great outdoors, and as suspected our farmer friend was fast asleep, with a jug in his hand. Cautiously I filled several flasks and bottles while he snoozed.”

Oz stopped and carefully studied the expression on Raven’s face fading from mild interest to feigned disappointment, “Is that it? You bedded the wife and stole some booze?”

Chuckling softly “Of course not, far from it actually, you see, I returned a few nights later, for   a…”

“Encore performance?” Raven suggested with a smirk.

“Precisely, however while the evening transpired in a comparable manner with similar results, when I found my way back to the shed, Hubby was awake, tipsy for sure, but alert, so when he saw me he screamed something about “a Demon!” and then ran headlong into the doorjamb and knocked himself unconscious ,”

“Oof…..and then”

“Well as I woke him, I had a thought formulating” Attempting to take another pull, only to discover the flask empty “mores the pity”, deftly drawing a spare “Demon I shall be, thought I, So as I perched over his form and became his focus, he began his yammering and pleading and then my favorite part…”

“The bargaining…” Raven finished.

The moonlight helped illuminate his grin ‘Exactly!. Using his skill of mimicry ‘What do you want? I’ll give you anything, just don’t hurt me!’ No, no my new friend, I won’t hurt you, I need you, I need your skill, your talent…I need this .” Again holding up the second flask “ So in exchange for several bottles of this punch, I promised to leave his homestead alone.”

“You Needed the Shine?”

“Well yes and no, you see I promised the Vistani.” Oz said as nonchalantly as possible, given the situation..

“Wait! What?!” that famously stoic demeanor evaporated for a moment, far more than ever before, and Oz relished in it “ Ozaxius do you mean to tell me that you…”

“Now now, don’t get yer knickers in a bunch, I’m getting there” Standing on the barrel and easily teetering on the rim. “During the evenings that followed my first interlude with the Fair Reena, I continued my exploration and found the delightful sounds of the music and song, a language near and dear to my heart.” With a dramatic leap and dexterous skill, he plants his feet firmly on terra firma once more and began to slink and saunter, relaying his tale.” The language was unknown, but the meaning was clear enough, the music was like fire, raging and passionate. It moved me in a manner that was once long forgotten. Vistani music is like no other, one can not just hear it, one is enveloped by it, it surrounds you and fills you…it….” the demon  paused as his mind stepped off a cliff before the closest thing to reality brought him back” It can consume you in place….if you allow it. So raw and powerful, seductive, sensual … .and perhaps the greatest of its characteristics, it is chaotic and it will show you the truth, whether you want it too or not…. So naturally I had to learn it.”

Again, rolling his eyes and muttering “Naturally”. Raven began to piece together the lunatics’ actions in hopes to assemble a possible end to this tale which did not lead to a very hasty withdrawal of the area or at the very least the location of a shovel, for the grave Oz seems to be rushing towards.

“Well as you might imagine the Vistani, a cautious people, a people of tradition ,a people of pride , would hardly just give away something as precious as a song, or two with a total stranger, especially one who looks like This “striking a pose with his tail sweeping to and fro lazily. “So I had to endear myself upon them and try to gather their trust, no easy task I assure you, I really had to pull out the big guns…. Swift, Perry, Adele, it was a playlist I dare not attempt again in this realm lest I invoke truly dark spirits. More appropriately their agents” Carefully dabbing his forehead with a handkerchief before continuing, not permitting his somewhat dumbstruck audience to ask a question. “Having shown myself to them as an entertainer extraordinaire and moreover a keeper of tales, tunes and secrets, I offered my services such as they are, in exchange for but a single song. They exchanged glances and looks to each other silently, as if they could read the thoughts of one another. In their company was this venerable elderly woman, who assuredly held a great deal of respect and influence….plus if we’re being honest I would have hit that if given the chance but let me not travel down that path at this time. Her name is Valenteena, she continued to spout off her lineage for a few moments, and of course I pretended to listen, and she followed up with the woes of her people, how they are not trusted , nor welcomed, how all think that the Vistani could enthrall others and cast curses…I distinctly remember her winking at me when she said that, this went on for a while until she got to the thing I was waiting to here ‘ …If you wish for us to teach you the song and the tune you must first provide a boon.’”

Lowering his face into his palm Raven cringed, “Please tell me that’s not true?”

Unfazed, he stared back at Raven. “It is true, I couldn’t believe it either, I mean that cheesy rhyme almost made me wretch.“ Shaking his head slowly.

The sudden outburst was as equally surprising to Oz as it was Raven, far from his normal calm demeanor. “”You’re a fool to enter into a gypsy bargain. Do you have any idea what you’ve done? Idiot!” He chastised his friend. Bex allowed a sardonic chuckle to escape as she repositioned herself in the flames as Raven stood and paced..

A small smile formed “I have a fairly good inkling as to the situation, but again I implore you to listen, for my tale has a happy ending….well perhaps that is the wrong phrase….although, no no no, permit me to share with you that the task they bestowed upon me…a simple retrieval of an item recently removed from one of the caravans  by a member of another encampment…so you see, easy peasy.”

Raven mouthed some unkind words in Infernal. “Faad! Uvuaz!….Hikurviwmyrw LUQMZPIRY!

“Careful cousin, don’t say anything you can’t take back.” Raising both hand up in a placating gesture….Look I know you’re concerned, so you don’t mean that…well not all of it for sure, but be at peace I’m getting to the good part” 

Raven shook his head in exasperation but relented. He found his seat again but his fixated gaze told Oz he should choose his next words carefully.

The only other encampment in proximity of the Carnival is Litwick Market, hence any mention of the folk from the other side would put any rational individual on edge.

“The Vistani charged me with the retrieval of a bow….”

“A bow?”

“Yes, Violin bow…made of gold…. that the Fey…. umm let’s say found….don’t look at me like that , I didn’t choose this task, I just wanted to learn the damn song, so off I went and before you say anything, no I didn’t go charging in there, nor did I try to sneak in, I am somewhat familiar with the rules, no invite no entry, entry with no invite, no leave….so I had to entice someone to meet me on the edge of their camp….so that’s why I needed the booze.” Raising both hands in a manner that suggested that it was obvious and hardly needed further explanation. 

Raven’s expression advocated that it did. 

”Okay so I placed a thimble out on a flat stone and added a few drops of the hooch to entice them to approach and parley. “

With a very steady, calm tone Raven asked “ Did you serve them that swill you’ve been sipping on all this time?”

“No of course not , I gave them this…” with a practiced flick of his wrist sent a silver flask of inestimable value in a delicate arc, easily snatched from the air by Raven’s nimble fingers. Cautiously the tielfing removed the cap and took heedful sniff before sampling a drop or two.

An incredulous expression formed before taking a second pull as if to make sure. “Lemon…it tastes like…. Where in the Nine Hells did you find lemons all the way out here?”

“Oh, you like that do you? Well it was simple really, in fact I have several liters in a few flavors that won’t burn a hole in your belly, it can become very popular I’m telling you.”

“Oz… focus…lemons?”

“Not lemons my friend, lemon drops, you know the candy? I put half a dozen into the flask, let them dissolve and whammo a faux limoncello , and our little winged friends were more than anxious to talk…they also seem to like the peppermint and sour apple, but the lemon was their favorite by a long shot, and where as they can command a great deal of raw magic, they are light weights when it comes to drinking…happily they did not exhibit the lesser desirable traits of inebriation , so no sloppy drunks nor angry…mostly sleepy drunks”

The oddest sensation of relief began to rise, with a modicum of respect for his fellow tiefling. There was also a moment of hesitation before asking the next question, hoping desperately for a resolution, “so you traded the booze for the bow then?”

With head tilted back Oz bellowed out a warm and heart felt laugh, before going on with his recount of the event “Don’t be ridiculous “ again shaking his head, ”that was just to get them out there so we could exchange niceties, I mean I’m all for moving up to the third date as much as the next bloke but they can be rather particular. So since we are all good friends now, I says to them,” He smiled and continued, “I then  asked if they knew about the whereabout of the intended item, that the owner is so clumsy and so forgetful that he assuredly misplaced it, but without it he can’t teach me the special song. Happily they share that they Might know something, but  an exchange would be in order” As the words came out he watched Ravens head nod as if he knew the drill. “So of course I tell them I would be happy to however I was currently a little short on funds, to which they scoffed saying they had no need for coin, they wanted a competition….a riddle contest, “ Hearing the groan, Oz didn’t pause for a moment, “fear not I had no intention spending my evening trying to guess and lose so I upped the ante and offered them something better….I told them a knock-knock joke”

“A what?”

“It’s a jape…a joke…a funny….it is of no consequence, suffice it to say, where as they can be amusing, and a few even funny….to a fey…no no, my mistake, to a heavily inebriated fey it was downright hysterical….one of the little buggers laughed so hard he ….umm got pixie dust everywhere….after they calmed down, and I must stress that it was sometime, because they felt the need to repeat it as more and more of their brethren arrived, was I rewarded with the bow, now as an act of good will I went a step further and carefully scribbled down on separate scraps of paper a total of thirteen knock-knock jokes which I folded and gave to the thirteen fey that were present as individual gifts, they, and they alone might share and tell at their discretion.”

Raven arched a brow and smirked. “Generous as that might have been, you do realize that they might feel the need to reciprocate, are you prepared for that?”

“When it comes to the Fey, that is pretty much a given, nothing is ever simple with them, so I felt the need to suggest a small task of mine own so that everyone could be on level ground as it were.” Pausing for a moment to look up at the clear sky, and marveling at the stars burning so far away in yet another world, Oz sighed.

“Wait, that’s it? That’s your tale? That ending hardly has the climax one might expect from one of your adventures…and yes pun intended…not to mention the fact you haven’t answered a number of questions, Such as ‘Where did you get the candy?”

“Oh come now my dear cousin, surely you are familiar with the idiom ‘like taking candy from a baby’ have you not? Well, I assure you it is far from easy and often quite loud.”

“You stole candy from babies?”

“Hardly, but I was able to gather the goods from some of the local youths, who quickly traded with me by observing an ancient and time-honored tradition known as ‘Tricks for Treats’ with a minor modification by removing an ‘f’. A cantrip here, a sleight of hand there and in no time, I was on my way to add some flavor to the more than potent potable.”

Raven began to count off on his fingers as to insure he relayed the points of the tale .“So you used the candy, acquired from the children of the village in exchange for minor magics, to flavor the shine, which you extorted from a farmers, whose wife you bedded, apparently several times,  so as to make the Fey grant you an audience that would allow you the chance to trade a number of japes for a bow that you then would give the Vistani,  who would then teach you a song, the likes you’ve never heard before, Have I got that right so far?” The entirety of the statement was made with an unbroken stare the blue would be demon.

“Well when you put it like that, so succinctly I might add, it might be construed as overly complicated, when in fact it was merely a series of interwoven transactions and deals, with a couple of promises thrown in.” Oz explained while holding his arm out, inspecting his nails.

“I will ask you only two more questions, for the sake of clarity, and believe me, both are important, first you spoke of the husband in the past tense, he Was the producer of the liquor, is he no longer making the shine, or is he just no longer?”

Evasive as ever Oz quipped “And the second question?”

With patience quickly evaporating, Raven asked evenly ”What was the task you gave the Fey in order to maintain a balance and lack of debt on either side?”

Cocking his head and giving the biggest ‘Oh you noticed that did you?’ grin Oz could muster “Well I will answer both at the same time, the task I gave was a simple one, since the Fey gave back something that they had…borrowed from the Vistani and now had to return it, it only seemed fair that they should be able to borrow something else to replace it…it’s Fey logic, try not to figure it out, So I suggested that since they found the bow, it only seemed fair to take the violin this time and to insure that they wouldn’t  be able to return  it this time, that they should gift the violin to the very nice person who made the delicious drinks they enjoyed so much, in this case I explained it was the lady of the house, so a few days later Reena found a violin of gold upon her doorstep….naturally she grabbed it as well as a few other possessions  and left, hence he is no longer her husband…past tense ….The Fey still have their prank, the Vistani received what they asked for, The farmer is no longer haunted by the blue skinned demon and the bard got the girl, the booze and the song!” Oz took an exaggerated bow, upon completion, he flicked a small piece of candy at Raven “Lemondrop?”

Raven found himself smirking, no actually, he found himself  smiling as popped the sweet into his mouth.

“Now I’ve told you my tale, at least a recent one, so I’d say that maybe You might share one with me?”

“I’m no story teller Oz.”

“No you’re not, rather tightlipped to be fair, always watching and gathering, a talent to be sure and it has its uses, however, if you’ll indulge me a query?”

Raven took a moment, carefully weighing his options for a response before nodding evenly.

“Your adornments…why? I mean I understand the aesthetic draw to it, chicks dig scars, but you were given a gift of a clean slate, unblemished and pure, a fresh start as it were, so why do this, or more aptly have this done to you, yet again? And let me be clear, I cast no judgement in any way, you do you and all.”

His response was sincere “I’m not sure you could ever understand, I’m not sure I entirely do. It’s just…” Raven paused to collect his thoughts. “These scars are more me than the skin they cover…They’re my legacy, my history, my honor and more so a reminder of who I am, where I came from and all that I fought for and earned, without them I’m not…well me.”

Oz took another drink before putting the flask away,” Well you’ll pardon me for saying so….but you’re wrong.” Instinctually he raised a hand to prevent any protest and to continue his statement “ hear me out my troubled but goodlooking chum…these scars…these are not…the  scars you once wore….they are self induced….a recopying of a history which if written or not does not change the facts, you, my friend , will be you, scars or no…now one might ask’ Oz if you knew this why not say something sooner, spare him from the pain, the sanguine stain of flesh and earth?’ Simply put, it’s not my place, one should never ever challenge another’s motives, wise or misguided as they might be perceived. With your project well past the point of no return I can now make polite inquiries, for it is unlikely that you’ll be given a third chance for another blank canvas.”

With that Oz offered his hand in friendship to his would-be cousin. “The hour is late and the drink has been strong, and the company most excellent, allow me to retire for the impending hangover will be grave.”

Raven stared at the extended hand, as he weighed the words, before accepting it. “You’re more complex than you let on Oz. Frivolous , foppish, deviant and dubious, you act like you don’t care and yet you take the time to insure a balance amongst others,  you see more than most and your actions , while overtly self-serving, generally are for the benefit of others.”

“You take that back! “Oz barked, before chuckling,” Promise you’ll keep my secret, I do have a reputation to protect after all?….good, now I really must get some sleep” Turning away and strolling towards the tents, he called out over his shoulder “…tomorrow night if you like, I can tell you about the time I bedded the dreaded chupacabra and her uglier sister…now what was her name again….”