Faun and Games (16 page)

She shrugged her shoulders, an interesting maneuver.
 
"It doesn't hurt.

As long as you can see me and hear me, it's all right."

"I wonder-if you don't mind-could you become all the way solid, here? If

you assumed a smaller form?
 
So you could use your mouth to speak?"

"Certainly, if you prefer." She shrank, becoming a small human woman or

girl, in a close black dress.
 
"Will this do?" she asked, using her

mouth.
 
"I have only about half your mass, so I can't be any larger

without diffusing."

"That's fine.
 
You look great." He meant that her form was satisfactory

in the solid sense, but actually it was more than satisfactory. She

looked just like a rather pretty girl, or a nymph, with lustrous black

hair.
 
Except for the slightly equine set of her nose, which was

understandable.
 
She was, after all, a type of horse.

Imbri took a step-and tripped, falling on her face.
 
"Neigh!" she

exclaimed, chagrined.
 
"I'm not used to being physical."

Forrest realized that that made sense.
 
She had been a half soul,

seemingly without substance, for thirty years, and when she had been a

night mare before that, she had had four feet.
 
She wasn't used to

handling a real human body.
 
"My fault," he said.
 
"Maybe you had better

return to mare form."

"But I don't want to make you feel awkward because I don't talk with my

mouth," she said.
 
"I'm sure I can learn to handle this form, if I

concentrate."

But she had a scratch on her cheek, from a shell on the beach.
 
That

made him feel guilty.
 
"I would rather feel awkward, than have you

falling and scratching your face."

She looked alarmed.
 
"Oh!
 
Did I do that?"

He dug into his knapsack and pulled out a mirror.
 
He gave it to her,

and she held it up so she could see her face.
 
"I did!
 
Oh, that's

embarrassing." She brushed her fingers across the scratch, wiping it

out, so that her face was smooth again.
 
That surprised him, but he

realized that since she had shaped the body to begin with, she could

readily re-shape it to eliminate an imperfection.
 
Like most females,

she was sensitive about her appearance, even in a form that was

unnatural for her.

She returned the mirror, and he put it back into the knapsack.
 
It

banged into something, and he realized that it was his spare pair of

sandals.
 
That gave him an idea.
 
"You can wear my other sandals!

They'll protect you from tripping!" He dug them out and offered them to

her.

"They will?" She looked dubious.

"Yes.
 
They are magic.
 
They protect the feet.
 
They won't let you

misstep."

"But those are faun sandals.
 
I'm having enough trouble balancing on

these human feet; I don't think I could do it at all with hoofs.
 
Of

course I'm used to hoofs, but only when I have four of them."

"Sandals from my tree fit anyone.
 
That's their nature.
 
Try them."

So she sat down and lifted her knees so she could reach her feet. In the

process she showed a very nymphly pair of legs almost up to the panty

line, in much the way the Demoness Sire would have done on purpose.
 
He

wondered if he should mention that, because it was clear that Imbri was

not accustomed to the ways of a physical human body.
 
Then she got the

sandals on, discovering that they did indeed fit her human feet-and the

position of her legs shifted so that much less showed.
 
He realized that

the sandals were now protecting her feet from harming the rest of her

legs by undue exposure.
 
Because the legs connected to the feet, and

missteps were not merely of the ground.
 
So he didn't have to say

anything.

She stood.
 
"Oh, I feel far more secure!
 
These sandals are helping even

now."

He had already come to that conclusion.
 
"I'm glad." Actually he could

have lived with the exposure of her legs, but there didn't geem to be

much point in saying that.

She looked around.
 
"I'm supposed to guide you, and I haven't done a

good job.
 
Maybe we can ask someone."

That seemed like a fair idea.
 
"All right.
 
Is there anyone to ask?"

"There are countless slews of folk here.
 
I'm sure one of them must be

close by.
 
Let's walk along the beach and see."

So they walked along.
 
After a time Forrest noticed that there was

something odd about the air.
 
It smelled all right, but it had colors.

It seemed to be green ahead, and blue to their right.
 
But there didn't

seem to be any source.

He paused, turning around.
 
"Do you see colors?" he asked.

"Yes," Imbri said, surprised.
 
"It is yellow behind us, and red over the

sea."

"Do you think it means anything?"

"It must.
 
But I don't know what."

"And there just doesn't seem to be anyone to ask," he said, frustrated.

"If there are so many folk here, where are they all?"

linbri pondered, then brightened.
 
"I think I remember, from one of the

dreamers: folk have to be requested.
 
Otherwise they stay away. If they

are courteous.
 
So that no one gets crowded."

"But how do we request someone, when there's no one to ask?"

"I think you just do it."

He shrugged.
 
"Okay." He stood straight.
 
"I hereby request the company

of someone."

There was a sound, and in a moment a large figure appeared, flying over

the trees.
 
It came to a solid landing on the sand before him.

"Yes?" It was a winged unicorn.

Taken aback, Forrest looked at Imbri.
 
She looked as baffled as he.

So he turned to the unicorn.
 
"Hello.
 
I was just wondering-"

"With no introduction?" the unicorn asked.
 
He spoke without moving his

mouth.

"Uh, I am Forrest Faun."

"I am Kero Unicorn."

"I was just wondering-"

"What service do you have to trade?"

"What'?"

"You are impaired of hearing?"

"No.
 
I just don't understand.
 
What service?"

"Precisely."

"I don't understand."

The unicorn looked more closely at him.
 
"You are impaired of

intellect?"

Forrest was getting frustrated.
 
"I am just new to this region.
 
I don't

know what you mean."

"Oh.
 
You must have traveled far, to be so out of touch."

"Very far," Forrest agreed.

"I suppose I can explain that much without violating protocol.
 
In this

region we trade services.
 
So if you want to know something I can tell

you, you must trade me a service for my service in abating your

ignorance.
 
What service do you offer?"

This was new to him.
 
"What service do you want?"

"I have no idea.
 
You summoned me, so I assumed you had something in

mind."

"I had a question in mind."

"That's not a service.
 
My answer is a service.
 
What other service will

you trade for it?"

This wasn't getting anywhere very rapidly, so he tried something silly.

"An entertaining jig."

"Done.
 
What is your question?"

"What do the colors of the air mean?"

"They indicate direction, since we have no sun or moon or stars to mark

it.
 
Blue is north, because it is cold; red is south, because it is hot;

green is To; and yellow is From."

Forrest waited, but that appeared to be the extent of the answer. So he

brought his panpipe from his knapsack, played a lively melody, and

proceeded to dance his jig.
 
Fauns were good at jigs, so he knew it was

competent.
 
The unicorn watched with seeming interest.

When he thought he had jigged enough, he stopped.
 
Kero nodded,

satisfied, then spread his wings and flew back over the forest.

"I guess we learned something," Forrest said, watching the creature

disappear.

"Yes," Imbri agreed.
 
"We learned two things: that colors indicate

directions, and that it is necessary to trade services on Ptero.
 
So we

got the better bargain."

"Maybe so.
 
But what is this To and From business?"

"I suppose we could trade for that information.
 
But maybe we'll figure

it out for ourselves, soon.
 
Let me see if I can trade for useful

information."

Forrest shrugged.
 
"I hope you can."

Imbri faced the air.
 
"I request someone to trade with."

A dark creature faded into view.
 
It was a black centaur mare. "Yes?"

What startled Forrest was that she spoke both physically and mentally.

Imbri's delicate jaw dropped.
 
"You're a night mare!"