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Chapter 5

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“So,” Glenn said to the leprechaun, “all we have to do is get the gold coin stolen from you by a dwarf named Benxcob, who arrived in Three Hills City two days ago from Shatt.”

“And bring it back here,” Stephi said while sitting on Kirby’s shoulder, like a porcelain doll with shiny wings. She was no longer naked.

Shortly after being released, Kirby cut up Stephi’s linen blouse to make a long sarape with a strap tied around her waist. She’d decided to keep the soul gem beneath the garment.  At first she secured it across her shoulder like a bandoleer, but wearing it as a belt with the gem hanging as a fancy ornament worked better. Making slits in the sarape for the wings with the ends tied together around the neck had been tricky. It took two tries, and the second effort probably wouldn’t last. But it was better than a 19.5 Appearance-score fairy standing naked in front of three men as they hammered out an agreement. More than once, Glenn missed having Ron’s logical mind and steady emotions on hand.

Maybe it would’ve been better if Stephi’d stayed undressed, Glenn thought. If she would’ve done all of the negotiating, he could’ve just watched. But he knew that was wrong in so many ways. Beyond that, as much as her bare body would’ve been a distraction for the leprechaun, it would have been doubly so for Glenn and Kirby. She needed their help. She needed Kirby’s cunning brain to fashion an agreement where they—Stephi—wouldn’t get screwed over.

“And you’ll change me back to an elf,” Stephi continued. “My original size and everything. No twisting the intent of the agreement or funny business interpreting it. Then, immediately afterwards, we will give you the coin that the dwarf took.”

The leprechaun scowled, but nodded. “Pan accursed me luck, an elf arrived first.” After muttering that, he stood up straight. “I agree. To obtain the return of me stolen gold coin, I shall undo the enchantment, where you, Miss Marigold, will revert to your original form.”

Stephi raised an eyebrow, and the leprechaun cleared his throat before clarifying, “Back to an elf maiden, original size, appearance and everything. No twisting the intent of the agreement or funny business interpreting it. And then I get me coin.”

Stephi and Glenn had openly consulted with Kirby while arranging the verbal agreement, but they did all of the direct talking to the leprechaun. It seemed some fae, or sylvan, or nature-based connection between gnomes, elves and, presumably, leprechauns called for a higher level of honesty. Like they were all cousins of some sort.

“How will we know it’s the right coin?” Glenn asked. “We don’t want to miss an opportunity to get it, or call you back here—you’ll know we’re here, right?”

“Yes, call for me right here, under these fine and healthy yews.” He paused and seemed to stare off into space, listening? Glenn was about to ask exactly how to call, but the leprechaun snapped out of his mini-trance.

“Say Bata Fidil, and me rainbow and me will arrive shortly.” The leprechaun’s bushy eyebrows drew together and he clenched his teeth before leaning forward and saying, “And no false callings or funny business on your end, or it’ll go badly for each and every one of ye.”

“Understood,” Glenn said. “And the coin?” The gnome gestured to the kettle still sitting behind the leprechaun, its gold coins still glittering. “How do we make sure it’s the coin from your kettle? I mean there’s a lot of gold coins out there. Some might glow, or the dwarf might’ve had one crafted to throw off people looking for it.”

“That’s a pot, Jax the gnome. Not a kettle. And of course, I won’t give ye one of mine from it to compare.” His eyes looked up to the right, then left, in thought. “Give me a copper coin, if ye have one.”

Gurk pulled a coin from his pocket and tossed it to the leprechaun.

The little man deftly snatched it from the air and walked over to his pot. Holding the copper coin in his right hand, he slapped it against the side of the cast iron kettle—or pot—and mumbled a few arcane words.

Then he strode back, inspecting both sides of the coin. He nodded once in satisfaction, then flicked it with his thumb up to Stephi.

Catching it threw her a little off balance, but fluttering her wings kept her from falling. In her hands the copper coin was about the size of a teacup saucer.

“That coin is identical in appearance to all of me gold coins, including the one stolen.” The leprechaun rubbed a finger under his nose. “Put it within five inches of me gold coin and the copper one ye have will act as a lodestone.”

He balled his fists and put his hands on his hips. “Should be proof enough?”

Glenn thought it was, but looked to Kirby for affirmation. The half-goblin thief nodded.

“I’ll be going then.” The leprechaun’s shillelagh flew from the ground into his hand and he strode toward his pot of gold. “Ye might be thinking on departing swiftly before the duke’s men, ye call them, arrive.”

While Glenn, Stephi and Kirby stared at each other for a second, wondering what to do, a scything of brilliant colors erupted upwards, forming a rainbow. Without a word or a sound, the rainbow faded, and Bata Fidil, the leprechaun, and his pot of gold were gone.

Glenn ran and picked up his shield lying on the meadow grass. After slinging it across his back, he spread Stephi’s cloak out on the ground. Then he tossed her boots, pants, undergarments, what remained of her blouse, straw hat and everything else, except her belt with the scabbarded rapier, onto the cloak.

Stephi stood on the ground, her eyes closed. Glenn knew that meant she was looking through her familiar’s eyes.

Kirby picked up her rapier and belted it across his back. “You gather that stuff up like a sack, dude.” Then the half-goblin thief gestured to Stephi. “She’ll be able to get away, no problem. Me and you are gonna have to make a run for it.”

“There’s like twenty soldiers coming this way,” Stephi said. Her eyes snapped open. “They have spears and crossbows. Two are on horses ahead of them.”

Finding the dart he threw at the leprechaun and missed, Kirby asked, “Which direction?”

“From the city,” she said impatiently. “They’re in two lines now, but I bet they’ll spread out or something.”

Glenn looked at the stirred up needles and wondered: Were they coming because of the rainbow? Or because someone saw us coming in here? “They’ll know we were here,” he said.

“They’ll know someone was here,” Kirby said. “If they find this spot. We got everything?”

“I’ll distract them, Gurk,” Stephi said, fluttering into the air, “so you and Jax can get away.”

“How you gonna do that, Marigold?” Kirby peered into the trees, as if expecting the duke’s soldiers to be surrounding them any second. “No offense, but you don’t look too steady flying.”

“I’ve been bonded with Petie for a couple months. Experiencing things through him. That’s helped me a lot already,” she assured him.

“What’re ya gonna do to distract them?”

“Flash my boobs at them if I have to,” Stephi said, growing impatient. “Stop wasting time so I don’t have to.”

“Where do we meet?” Glenn asked. He shouldered the bundled cloak like a sack. “The willow tree?”

Kirby shook his head. “That’s too close. We’ll stand out like a couple of cosplayers at a Baptist convention.”

Stephi looked at the thief, not comprehending what he’d said.

“How about the dockyard?” Glenn asked. “It’s about a quarter mile beyond the willow tree.”

“Good idea, Jax,” Kirby said. “Different people are always hanging around there.” He turned to Stephi. “We’re gonna keep low along the river bank. Do what you can to keep them away from there. We only need a few minutes, and then you come find us at the docks.”

Stephi nodded, a little wide eyed. Her iridescent wings fluttered a little more quickly. The muscle action in her back pulled at her chest, making it bounce up and down like someone shaking a miniature pair of maracas.

Glenn looked away, pretending he was trying to spot danger. He couldn’t shake the vision from his mind. Sure it was arousing, but confusing. With her wings flapping, shouldn’t her breasts be bouncing sideways and back, not up and down?

Kirby gripped Glenn’s shoulder, snapping him back into the moment. “Dude, you okay?”

“Uhh, yeah,” Glenn said.

“We got this,” Kirby said. He winked a yellow eye at Glenn. “Come on. If we each roll far enough beneath our Stealth Check, we might even get to grab our fishing poles along the way.”