As we descended the mountainside, the village came into view. A multitude of log houses of all shapes and sizes. They looked quite quaint with their snow-covered roofs and smoking chimneys. Another part, closest to us, was dominated by massive bioluminescent mushroom houses. The doors leading inside the massive teal mushrooms were twice my size. The final third mixed both, but in miniature size, houses meant for pixies and the like.

  The village was O-shaped and circled a large village square. Already I could see the preparations for the feast in full swing. Rathina hugged me from behind. “This place is beautiful, honey. Cold, for sure, but beautiful.” I turned to her as I brought us in for our landing in the large square. “Oh, they are just as cozy as they look, especially the inn we’re staying at, a quaint little place.” Soot gave me a playful peck on the cheek. “Harr de harr, Mistress, absolutely hilarious.”

  The others gave him an inquisitive look as we hopped off and I rolled up and stored the carpet. “Oh, you’ll see soon enough.” I led them from the square and through the small crowd. Nettle flew up beside me as we walked. “Given how late it is it would probably be better if we went to the inn and waited with introductions until tomorrow.”

  I nodded. “That was the general idea.” As I spoke, a gust of wind showered us in powdered snow. Jaira looked over the place. “The architecture is interesting, the logging method is that of a Northlands house, but we are definitely in the midlands still. I nodded. “The Fae court that is in this valley here moved from the Northlands long ago. I’m not aware of why, and Nettle told me not to pry, so… yeah.”

  As we talked, we moved into the section of miniature houses, towards a house that was much larger than the other ones, but still sized for pixies. “Ah, here we are, The Sleepy Snowman. Best beds outside of home, hands down.” I paused and turned towards the others. Meleri was looking at me with an expression as if she expected me to be joking. Jaira and Rathina seemed to catch on. Jaira knew a lot about pixies, while Rathina must have been taught by the same person who taught her how to speak Sylphi. Winter and Midnight weren't part of the family yet the first time I was here, however, they were familiar enough with Nettledale to know where this was going. As for Irane and Irenji, considering their wagging tails they knew. I gave the gang a smile.

  Nettle just flew over to the entrance. “Are we just going to stand here all night?” I gave the others a wide grin. “Not at all.” I crouched down and reached out to touch the door of the small building with a finger. A bright flash later and I was standing beside Nettle, now just as small as she was, with a now gnat-sized Soot sitting on my shoulder. He ruffled his feathers. “I’ll never get used to that.”

  I looked up at the others. “Just poke the door with an appropriate appendage and you’ll shrink down to a proportionate size.” Rathina was the first to approach, a beautiful giant from my current perspective as she reached down. A bright flash later, she and Winter, who was sitting on her shoulders, joined us next to the doorway. She looked closer at the small house. It was painted bright red, and the small logs that it was built from were made from shrunken logs so they kept their weight and durability despite their small size. “A beautiful construction, and well made by the looks of it. Quite an interesting sight.” Winter gave her a soft hoot of agreement.

  Another flash and Meleri, along with Irane and Irenji joined us. Irenji shook his fur. “That differed from our change-changing spell, this one’s left me all tingly. Irane sneezed beside him. “Fae magic is almost like the pollen of magic.” She shook herself as well, as if trying to shake the magic itself.

  A giant Midnight padded over. “Hmm, you are all so tiny, almost like mice.” She put her paw to the door. “Hmm, you’re right, Irenji. That does tingle.” Bahruun and Millid approached next. “Mind spreading out a bit? You might get hit by my cloak.” We stepped aside as both of them reached out to the door. Bahruun was no worse for wear, but the magic caused Millid’s short hair to stand out like small spines for a few moments before it softened again. “Trippy.” She shook her head for a few moments before she too looked closer at the now much bigger three-story log house.

  Jaira was the last to step closer as she bent down and touched the door. “I take it this will stick until we leave the inn tomorrow?” I shook my head. “We won’t leave this size until we leave the village itself, and all the inhabitants will take part in a shrunken-down version, its standard fare here and since we are guests, we will follow local traditions.” Meleri looked surprised but then grinned. “Alright, sounds good.” Nettle cleared her throat. “Shall we?” Right. “Lead on.” Nettle nodded and opened the door inside.

  The door opened, causing a small bell to ring, and revealed a large and brightly lit common room. The inner walls were covered in well-made planks, and along the walls were various pictures and other decorations. In the windows hang small decorative paper lanterns that lit up the red curtains, casting a warm glow out into the deepening night through the windows.

  There were multiple tables for groups of various numbers of customers scattered around the room. Sitting along the various tables were all kinds of people. Pixies in darker, more muted colors like Nettle, Goblins, Hobgoblins, in a corner was a pair of Pookah, The bartender was a jovial Hob, she was dressed in a dress woven from a leaf of some kind while her long auburn hair was tied up in a ponytail. She looked towards us as we entered with a bright smile. “Welcome, welcome. Oh my, there’s a lot of you. Well, we have room for all of you, so have no fear.” She gave us a warm smile before she called over her shoulder. “Jenn! Show our latest guests to a long table.”

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  The door behind her opened, and a young Hob, maybe the proprietress’ own kid, arrived with a tray under her arm. “Ah, more guests and a varied bunch as well. Well, no matter, we have a perfect table for a party as large as yours. This way, please, honored guests.” She led the way to a long table at the far end of the room, away from the other tables so our large group wouldn’t disturb, or be disturbed, by others.

  “Here you are, I take it you will be staying with us?” Nettle gave her a nod. “Yes, we require…” she hesitated as she looked at our group. Meleri met her gaze. “I’ll take a room with Irenji and Irane. It would be cramped if the three of us shared with others.” Bahruun lifted Millid onto his lap. “The two of us will room together as well.” He gave her a soft smile, Millid gave him one in return as well before the two of them refocused on Jenn.

  I was about to speak up when Jaira butted in. “I’ll room with Winter, Soot and Midnight.” She gave me and Rathina a coy smile. How droll. Rathina gave her a bright smile in response. “Why, thank you for volunteering, Jaira. It is most kind of you.” Jaira gave her a nod in return. “Don’t mention it, the two of you deserve some alone time.” Nettle Nodded. "And I'll take a pixie room, since I need some more specialized bedding." Jen took out a notebook and began to take notes. "That means five rooms. Alright, that’s that taken care of, do you want something to eat?”

  I glanced over at everyone for a moment before I gave my response. “That would be lovely, I will take the cranberry steak.” Jenn looked confused for a moment. “Have you stayed with us before?” I leaned back in my chair and reached up to scratch Soot. “That I have, the last time the Feast was in town, so was my compatriot over here.” I gave a nod towards Nettle. Jenn was quiet for a moment. “Alright then, a Cranberry steak. Just a moment and I’ll fetch menus for the rest of you. Do you want something to drink with the steak Ma’am?”

  That was an easy one. “The fruit juice, the non-alcoholic, I have a meet-and-greet with the Elder and the Monarchs tomorrow and I do not want a hangover.” Jenn looked confused for a second, then glanced over at Nettle again, then at her Needle. “Oh! You’re the representatives from Sirdis Fae Court. The elder came to look for you earlier.”

  Ah, well this was awkward. “I see, quite unfortunate but not unexpected. We were delayed as we were caught in an ice storm as we crossed the Three Teeth. And since it’s after sunset and the court has adjourned for today, it would be quite rude to insist on meeting them this late.” Jenn nodded slowly. “That makes sense. Now where was I? Oh, right! Menus!” Jenn turned around and hurried back to the counter and pulled out a bunch of menus and handed them out to the others.

  The meal itself was as great as I remembered from my last visit, and I could see Meleri glance towards the kitchen. “Want the recipes, eh?” Meleri gave me a shrug as she began to eat again. “You know me, I always want to improve. This is delicious, though.” She turned back to her dish, a local one, a salad with some kind of soup and bread on the side.

  I finished my steak and took another sip of the berry juice, marveling at the sweet mellow flavor of the beverage. Midnight hopped down from where she was sitting and into my lap. I got the hint and began to give her the scratches she wanted. “That’s nice, thanks Meowstress.” Her words dissolved into a lazy purr. Jaira, who just finished her bowl of meaty stew picked up her own glass. “So what’s the plan for tomorrow?”

  Nettle’s antenna tingled softly before she answered. “First, both Morgana and I need to appear at the court. Given the circumstances, they’ll likely not be too annoyed at our tardiness, but you never know. Either way, that will take a while. Once that’s done, we will have the rest of the day to use as we see fit. As for the rest of you, there are a bunch of activities to do tied with the feast, so have fun exploring and walking around.”

  She took a sip of her own cup. “Once the sun sets, the feast itself begins at the center of the large square we landed at yesterday, with a bonfire and large tables being set up so people can enjoy their time together. It’s supposed to be a time of quiet conversation and bonding, not merrymaking. Which means no loud outbursts, singing or the like. It’s not to say you can’t enjoy yourselves, but keep it quiet. After the feast itself is done, there are still some late-night activities that can be done for those that feel like it. And then, after a good night’s sleep we’re going back home.”

  Jaira leaned back against the wall behind her. “Sounds nice. What activities are those?” I gestured towards the counter to a stack of neatly folded leaves. “Those leaves lying on the edge of the counter will have the full program if you’re curious. So you can read it over before we go to bed.” Jaira looked at them. “Don’t mind if I do.” She reached out to Winter, who was eating beside her.

  Winter turned her head towards Jaira as she noticed the hand approaching and cooed as Jaira found her favorite spot and began to scratch her. “Mmm, that’s a nice way to end a delightful meal.” She hopped closer to Jaira. Millid let out a yawn and leaned onto Bahruun. I looked over the group. “I think that’s our cue to call the meal over and call it a night, its been a long day, after all.” Bahruun picked up Milled. “I agree, see you tomorrow everyone.” Jaira picked up Winter, while Soot hopped onto her shoulder. Seeing them ready to leave, Midnight begrudgingly got to her feet. “Alright, alright, I’m coming. See you tomorrow, Meowstress.”

  I got to my feet as well. “See you tomorrow, you three.” Rathina followed beside me as I walked past the counter and grabbed a leaflet on the way up. “I’ll see if I can find something for us to do after meeting with the court tomorrow.” She wrapped an arm around me. “Sounds good?” I reached an arm around her as well. “Sounds perfect.”