Chapter Five: The Tunnels

Sigurd rolling in the moss and Zane washing his face is all the encouragement she needs. Giggling aloud, Lo flicks a few drops of water into the air. "Vai ole ola." It's her first time trying the spell, and it could have gone better...but the moisture in the air seems to condense into droplets that grow into raindrops. It's short lived, but the patter of rain adds a bit more water to the shallow pool.
(Spell Create Water: Create up to 10 gallons of clean water within range in an open container. Alternatively, the water falls as rain in a 30-foot cube within range. Rolled a 7...pretty dismal, guess I should have conferred with GM for success/fail criteria...GM rule on this one)

Watching Ashwyn and Sigurd removing armor makes her wet clothes itch. The bindings holding her robes tight have long since been repurposed for other needs, but even loose robes get sweaty and smelly and a proper wash is desperately needed. Keeping half an eye on Cirro and the rest on Zane, Lo tries to discreetly undress and wash a portion at a time. As badly as she wants to strip completely and bathe her body in water and moonlight, she's at least trying to keep the peace and sensitivities of her companions in mind. Focused on her task, Lo isn't really paying attention to the others until Ashwyn stops moving and gasps...

Ashwyn didn't even scream, but it looked like she was being burned alive by an invisible force! Should have known the spring was too good to be true, it's a magical trap! And Ashwyn is caught in it! Forgetting all about washing, forgetting everything except for helping her friend Lo turns around quickly, searching for whoever was casting this torturous spell.  Nothing, no one! Maybe the caster is hidden, like that day in the woods with the bear...searching even more frantically, Lo grabs handfuls of water, splashing about, trying to see if the droplets scatter around the invisible force...when something makes her stop.  Turning to look at Ashwyn, Lo is shocked beyond words as Ashwyn slowly, painfully transforms into a beautiful auburn furred Spellwolf. Staring at her transformation with mouth open, glancing at Sigurd...he's taking this rather well, did he maybe expect this?!...looking back at Ashwyn...actually other than the obvious pain she's taking this rather well too...until the transformation is complete and Sigurd calmly, lovingly helps her with her armor and the tatters of her clothing. Still staring in shock, straining to hear what Sigurd is saying...first moon? But they were all in the moonlight together last month and that didn't happen! First...moon...first. Oh. Heartrate starting to calm down, Lo glares incredulously at the two of them embracing in the moonlight.  "So when did this happen?! Were you thinking about maybe telling the rest of us?!!!"

It took Ashwyn a few moments to acclimate to her surroundings again. She barely noticed Sigurd removing her armor and it wasn't until he nuzzled her face that she was able to think clearly again. She smiled at him and chuckled at his comment.

"Well... that was... different..." She said softly. Her body was still shaky from the intensity of the pain and she wasn't sure she'd be able to stand just yet without being wobbly. Her new body was very different from the one she'd had until only a few minutes ago. She was wider - that was obvious by how restrictive her clothing had become. She felt better once Sigurd had sliced through the seams - though part of her was now thinking about how she'd have to mend them once the full moon was gone.

She was so distracted by her new existence that she didn't notice Lopiena splashing about for some unseen attacker. It wasn't until she shouted that Ashwyn finally looked up at her.

Zane, for his part, was staring at the whole thing enthralled. He was amazed by what he was privileged to witness and his brain was working wildly with questions.

Cirro was wide eyed as the whole thing happened. It happened so fast! One minute stood a half-elf woman, and now... a fur colored beast of a woman! Amazing! Seeing her next to Sigurd it was clear she was still smaller in stature to him, but much larger and stronger looking than she had been before.

Ashwyn's eyes focused on Lopeina as she processed her question. Then she turned back to Sigurd. "We... didn't know. I mean... not really...." She said. "I knew it would happen... eventually... I just hadn't thought about it much since."

"Since....?" Zane asked and then blushed furiously as his brain worked it out. "Oh!" He gasped. He was torn between his embarrassment and his curiosity. "The Full Moon Ceremony!" He exclaimed.

Cirro also blushed at Zane's revelation, remembering that very odd and intimate night. "It... It can happen like that?"

Sigurd nodded, "it hadn't happened like I intended it to. Throws of passion can do that to even the most civilized beast. The only way to be turned is by interacting with a SpellWolf's bodily fluids. Blood, Saliva, other things. You can guess which is the most popular. During the last full moon when we were all.. experiencing one another was the first time Ashwyn had taken advantage of me in this form. It's not guaranteed to work every time but I'm happy it did." He leaned to the side and licked her behind the ear. "Lopiena won't turn because a god is blocking her natural form anyway." That point still bothered him and he knew he'd find a way to fix her someday.

Sigurd couldn't help staring at Ashwyn's new body. He had seen many SpellWolves in his, all different shapes and shades but he knew that there would be no other one for him but her. "The first moon, if it's not obvious is the first transformation of a new SpellWolf and as I said. Usually there's a big celebration welcoming them to the fold but we're far from home so we'll make due."

"Far from home..." Ashwyn repeated with a fondness she hadn't experienced before. Thunderknoll really was her home now. She belonged there. She'd always wanted to belong there, but now they were her people. It was a strange concept for her, being alone for so long.

She looked down at her discarded armor. "Well.... That's unfortunate. I think I'll be needing new armor now." She said with a smirk, looking back up at Sigurd. She pushed up from the ground, still a bit wobbly, lost her footing - wow these wolfy feet are different! - and fell to the side. She grabbed the wall nearby for support and the rock cracked under her weight. She jerked back in shock. She'd never been strong enough to crack rock before. She looked down at her wolfy hands and suddenly found herself nervous to touch anything for fear of breaking it.

"Wow... that'll take some getting used to..." She glanced over to her bow, suddenly unsure if she'd be able to use it without breaking it.

He couldn't help but laugh, he never knew what it was like to struggle with this side of his body so he was always amused with new members. Stepping in to catch her he wrapped an arm around her waist and steadied her. "Your feet aren't the problem, you're not used to how your legs bend now. Balance like your walking on the balls of your feet, you don't really need to balance, your tail will do most of the work" he said giving the base of her tail a gentle squeeze. "You're going to feel and smell a bunch of things you never have before so just take a deep breath and try not to focus on one thing at a time."

This would be only the second transformation he'd have tutored in his life. One of the females of his village had taken a dwarven barbarian as a mate and he had a hard time adjusting to his new stumpy wolf form. There was a saying that developed.. 'if you can teach a dwarf, you can teach anyone'. Remembering this Sigurd smiled.

Still breathing heavily from her frantic attempts to find the unknown attacker...now clearly just a figment of her imagination, maybe she truly had gone insane...Lopiena takes several deep calming breaths while listening to the conversation, watching Ashwyn adjust to her new body. Zane figuring when the change had happened was very interesting, and brought back several wonderful memories of things Lo wished could happen again...and also made her want to stick her arm in the moonlight just to see what would happen. She already knew the answer would be nothing, and Sigurd doubly confirmed what she already knew...but it was a matter of idle curiosity. Looking around, she realized part of her was already standing in the moonlight...well, that answered that question. Sigh.

Sigurd talking about celebrations made her a little sad; after weeks of nothing to something this dramatic Lopiena wanted to celebrate this special occasion with her friends but couldn't even think of what could be done to celebrate. Looking back up when Ashwyn broke her first rock, Lo grins to herself as Sigurd teaches his newest pupil how to balance with a tail. Funny...when she went into her Wild Shape it felt like her body already knew what to do; then again, it took so much concentration to think of the form she wanted that there wasn't room to think about anything else, and movement just happened naturally without thinking about it. Clearly not so with a new body in this manner; Ashwyn has never had a tail before, and learning to balance with it is going to be quite the feat! Pun intended. Smirking, Lo glances from Sigurd and Ashwyn to Cirro and Zane watching her so intently. "Well, if a celebration is in the works then celebrate is what we shall do. Zane, let's check that Bag of Holding...I remember there being some casks of ale in there, and maybe something else?" Looking back at the Spellwolf couple, Lo grins. "And congratulations, Ashwyn and Sigurd. I don't think your joyous union was ever really celebrated either, so I think now is as good a time as any."

Ashwyn did Sigurd suggested and balanced as though she were on the balls of her feet. That was easier. She swished her tail back and forth a few times. It felt odd to have a tail. It almost felt like an extra arm, but it didn't quite move the same way and it didn't grasp like she was used to. She was amused to note that her tail appeared fuller than Sigurds and had blond strands in it. The color reminded her of the golden strands of her mother's hair and it made her smile.

It would be a very different thing to get used to. She bent her knees a few times, testing the balance. Yes, that was better. Though still very odd. When he spoke about feeling and smelling things she nodded and closed her eyes. She took a few steadying breaths and now that she wasn't distracted from all the other new sensations she started to notice things. The strength of the smells had increased ten fold, enough that it actually tickled her nose and made her sneeze. Things she'd smelled all her life suddenly seemed to be directly in front of her nose. She could smell the water on the rocks. The sparce greenery. The sand from the tunnels. And the.... moonlight? Did moonlight have a smell? She never remembered smelling that before but it was the closest thing her brain could identify with. It was the smell of night and cold and dark.

Then she focused in on the smells and started to identify people. The scent of Sigurd came first because he was closest. It was a smell she'd become familiar with but before she could only smell it when they were curled up together and her face was in his chest. Next she found Lopiena. Damp skin and the distinct smell of her hair as though she was standing right next to her. She picked out Cirro, despite his size, and Zane further off. She began committing the smells to memory so she'd regognize them in the future.

She was so focused on her task that she didn't hear Lo speak of a celebration until Zane had responded.

Zane, upon hearing his name called by Lopina, perked up. "Hm? Oh, yes! I believe we do still have that." He said, reaching to his belt and pulling out the bag of holding, rooting around inside.

Cirro flew over to the group and changed back to his human form. "This really is quite a momentous occasion. I recall similar celebrations taking place in Eventide among the Lythari when one joins their ranks. Of course, that's usually in the case of a marriage.... Wait... does this mean you two are...?" He asked, pointing back and forth between them.

Though it was no secret by this point that Ashwyn and Sigurd had joined together, for some reason the talk of marriage made Ashwyn blush. She was suddenly very glad that fur covered her body and no one would be able to see it.... then again, with her newfound senses she couldn't be sure that her scent didn't change when she blushed... in which case she was an open book to Sigurd right now.*I really MUST get used to this sense of smell...* she thought.

"Not yet... Not properly" he replied to Cirro. "With everything, there's a ritual. Once we get back to ThunderKnoll, then we'll be married" the thought warmed him to the core. His focus had always been on training, leading, and battle. Never love, that was always a far off feeling despite his mother constantly playing match maker. There was a sudden jolt of panic as the reminder of her condition hit him like a bolt of lightning. He pushed it down, nothing to be done about it here. Not now.

Smiling he turned his attention back to Ashwyn, "how's your hearing, as good or better than before?" He asked "I always forget to ask this stuff back home. How do you feel now?" His tail wagged slightly as he was excited for her to experience this new life. Her armor and weapons weren't important right now. Tonight was the perfect opportunity to get her accustomed to this new form.

The talk of marriage was turning Ashwyn into a ripe tomato under all her new fur. They'd never actually discussed marriage. It was always just... Implied. She knew when she and Sigurd declared their intention to be mates that it meant forever. But marriage. It just seemed.... Different somehow? She wasn't sure why.

She was glad for the distraction of another question. When Sig asked about her hearing she concentrated for a bit. "I'm... Not sure? I'm sure I'll notice when there's more to listen to. At the moment it's the same. But all the scents... It's confusing. It almost makes it hard to focus." she shook her head a bit.

Zane nodded. "I can't even imagine when you're going through. It's truly fascinating! Do you feel stronger? You're so much taller!"

Ash nodded, looking around. "That's odd too... I'm going to have to remind myself of that when walking through shorter hallways..." she smirked.

Helping Zane find things in the Bag of Holding, Lo pulls out some of the ale and the last of the cheese. Not much food left, but there's still some spices to give Cirro's food more flavor. Lo had never stopped regretting her lack of supplies; not just food and medicine, but other things that might have been useful these past couple of weeks. Oh well, can't be helped....but...

"Hey! I forgot about this! We never did sell this lyre after we found it back in Eventide." Grinning excitedly, Lo gives the instrument an experimental strum and starts retuning it. "Does anyone know how to play? I learned a couple of chords when I was a child, but nothing much. I think most celebrations are supposed to have music." Looking up at Sigurd and Ashwyn, Lo grins. "It's not going to be the full proper ceremony, but I think we can put something together. You know, make it formal before you get home."

Cirro walked over to Lo to look at the instrument. "Hmm... I've never played this exact thing before but...." He took it and strummed it a few times. "It's not much different from fairy instruments I've played." He began plucking a tune and the cave filled with pleasent music.

Zane began pulling various containers out of the bag with which to hold the ale and passed it out.

Ashwyn barely noticed all of this. She was still focusing on all of the strangeness that was now available to her. She was still clutching onto Sigurd's arms also. Almost as if letting go would mean she'd fall again. Well, she very well might. It was all very overwhelming. "I can't believe this is what you were experiencing the whole time. How to keep it all straight?" She asked. Mostly reffering to the smells, but also the added strength and balance issues.

"Well, I've been dealing with it my entire life, so I don't know anything else" he winked. Stepping away from her he paused to see if she could stand on her own. "Try this first, because our arms are ever so slightly longer than our legs we can do this..." Sigurd got down on all fours and stalked around. "you'll be more stable at first and then once you're comfortable with this form, and shifting to it we'll try shifting into your dire wolf form later" Sigurd said with a smile.

The music was calming and it echoed pleasantly throughout the cavern and the smell of ale wafted around. It already started to feel like a celebration of sorts and that made him happy. Sigurd squatted down and grabbed a tankard from Zane as he watched Ashwyn intently, studying her body, and making sure he was ready to pounce if she was going to fall again.

Ashwyn did as Sigurd suggested. He was right. It was more stable. But she also felt.... somewhat silly. Eventually she got frustrated and stopped. She turned her head to look over at her friends. Zane and Lo were already getting well into the ale and even Cirro was looking a little red faced. How long had they been drinking while she was learning? She found that her feet had a bit more traction than her boots did... that thought made her look over to her tattered clothing and she frowned. It would take a lot of work to repair them. She began making her way back over to them.

She was so focused on the way her body moved that she didn't notice the puddle underfoot. She landed on it and slipped, falling backwards with a squeal that sounded more like a small bark.

Slowly sipping her ale, Lo smiles at Cirro's previously unknown skills with the instrument. At first watching his hands intently in hopes of learning something, she starts to relax with the pleasant tune (and the ale).  With Zane handing out the ale and food, Cirro playing music, Sigurd coaching Ashwyn on how to use her new body...Lo isn't quite sure what to do with herself, so she had a bit more ale. Ok probably more than a bit, but who's counting.

Looking up when Ashwyn starts heading in their direction, Lo grabs a cup of ale for her...which means her hands were full when Ashwyn fell. Uhm...oops? The ale working through her system make her a little less concerned about Ashwyn's physical state...in that form she'll probably heal as fast as Sigurd...but at least she can maybe help her up. Putting down the cup of ale, Lo reaches for Ashwyn's arm...which is much longer than it was before...that and the ale made Lo competency misjudge the balance required to help someone up, and in a moment she joined Ashwyn in the puddle, laughing .

Sigurd nearly spit out his ale when Ashwyn fell, he felt bad but her little yelp was adorable. About to get up to help her he watched Lopiena toddle over to her with two cups but then set one down to assist his mate, only to find herself downed in the puddle as well "Do I need to teach you both how to balance?" he snickered.

Getting up from his squat, he walked over to the pair in the puddle. Picking Lopiena up by the back of her shirt he smiled "alright sprout, swim time is over" he put her back down near the others. The warmth of the ale was one thing, but he felt that the others would be cold soon. Putting his arm into the bag of holding, Sigurd pulled out three dried logs and threw them in a pile before casting firebolt at them, quickly igniting them. Blinking, hoping to adjust to the new light source, he walked back over to Ashwyn and helped her stand. "shake off and sit by the fire, but not too close, burnt wet fur isn't the most pleasant smell, and you have a new nose.."

Ash smirked at Sigurd's comment about singing her fur and then chuckled. "I'll keep that in mind." She shook, surpizing herself at how easy the motion was to her considering she'd never moved like that before. She sat by the fire once Sigurd had ignited it, but quickly found that it was too warm. Her newfound fur covering was much warmer than she was used to. She pushed herself back against the cave wall. The residual heat was more than enough for her.

The smell of the fire was a whole new thing for her too. It was unlike anything she'd experienced, having never been all that close to a fire. It tickled her nose and she shook her head involuntarily. "I never thought a fire in a cold place would ever make me regret having it." She joked, feeling strangly overheated even though she was further back from the flames.

She looked over at the group, sitting closer to the fire, then back to Sigurd. "I see now why you never sit close to the fire." She smirked. "I mean... I knew why... but knowing and experiencing... well... I'm finding that things make a lot more sense now." She smiled at him, leaning over to snuggle into his fur. It felt different now. Usually it was her bare cheek agaisnt his soft fur. But now her cheek was covered in fur too. It was like adding padding. It wasn't unpleasent but... very different. It would take a great deal of getting used to.

Sigurd smiled, his tail beating against the stone as she cuddled into him. "You'll get the hang of all of this by your next moon" he said simply, licking her just behind the ear. He found himself extremely thankful for this moment. The cave was wonderful, after weeks of walking in the dark and wondering if they'd ever experience anything that wasn't a long cold hallway. Being able to sit here, bask in the glow of the fire, with gentile music in the background and cold ale to drink. It was a well deserved break.

Having emptied his tenth or eleventh tankard of ale, Sigurd could finally feel the effects starting to kick in. He felt it in the tips of his ears first, so he wiggled them, almost to confirm that they were still there there was the lingering issue of how much longer they'd be stuck in this tunnel and how much food they had left, but it didn't matter. This was a light celebration and he was enjoying himself.

Cirro, not being accustomed to elven ale, was not taking the resulting tingle nearly as well as Sigurd. He'd been reduced to little more than a giggling fool, laughing at everything he saw, no matter how unfunny it was. Eventually he was giggling so much that his playing had become little better than a child making noise.

Zane, older and much more used to alcohol, was pacing himself much better than the fairy had been. But even he was starting to act differently. He would start telling a story of his travels, get lost in the retelling, and the begin at the very beginning... Of a whole new story.

Ashwyn had drank a few pints herself before she realized she'd drank much more than she'd ever been able to before. And she'd never been much of a drinker. The higher constitution was definitely handy. She looked over at Cirro and Zane, both in their own worlds at this point, and then sighed.

"This is a nice break." she looked over to Pip, who had been sleeping since before they found the cave. She was still curled up in her pack against the sandstone wall. She was suddenly worried that she'd scare him in this form. Or at least confuse him.

"Sig? Do I smell different to you? I mean... Do I still smell like me?"

Sigurd suggesting that Lo needs lessons in balance only makes her laugh harder, and she offers no resistance when he picks her up and deposits her next to Cirro and Zane. Still giggling, Lo watches in fascination when Sigurd pulls out three logs and ignites them. For some reason, seeing him light the fire is remarkably impressive! Musty be the ale talking again....not trusting herself to say anything intelligible, Lopiena lands against the cave wall and closes her eyes. So comfortable by the fire, with friends and music...the whispers of Sigurd and Ashwyn talking together barely register as she slowly lapses into sleep. Never could hold her alcohol.

Sigurd turned to Ashwyn at her question "Of course, well. you smell like you plus your wolf parts now" he takes a long slow inhale "so the only thing different about your smell is the obvious, damp fur and the evaporation of moisture from your undercoat. As far as YOUR scent. well.. that comes from your body odor, your sweat and whatnot, but it's the whatnots that make up the bulk of your scent if that makes sense, I mean, you're probably used to the smell of my fur, but you'll smell other things now." he nodded to himself matter-of-factly "But to me you smell as you've always smelled, beautiful"

Sigurd reached around to the back of Ashwyn's head and gently pulled her close to him, resting his forehead against hers "is it bothering you that much?"

Ashwyn nodded along as Sigurd explained, but when he pulled her into him she smiled warmly and chuckled. "No, it's not that." she glanced over to Pip, indicating him with her new snout. "I just didn't want to frighten Pip when he wakes." she explained.

She nuzzled against Sigurd's forehead. "But if I still smell like me, then it'll all be okay." hearing Lo's gentle drunken snoring as she passed out and Zane and Cirro slowly babbling themselves into unconsciousness made her chuckle. "I guess that means we're on first watch." she smirked.

Sigurd turned to the sleeping Pip "Oh, you'll like this part, he'll have a lot to say to you when you're in your dire wolf form" he said with a toothy grin. as the two watched their companions essentially drink themselves into unconsciousness one by one, he agreed with his mate "Seems so, I haven't heard anything move in this place for a while so I think we'll be alright tonight, you would think they'd have rolled out bedrolls or something" he chuckled to himself.

The fire was slowly dying so Sigurd turned his back to it and started to fan the flames with his tail, this kicked up the flames again and send a new wave of warmth over the party. This coupled with the ale sent a comfortable shiver through his body.

Ashwyn shook her head. "I suppose.... I don't like the idea of just going to sleep without a watch though. If this tunnel system is heading in the direction we need to go, we have no idea how close we are to the enemy. I'd rather not be caught unawares..."

When he got up to fan the flames she couldn't help but smile. This was a strange new experience for her, but she was glad he was here to help her through it. She pushed herself to a standing position and tested her legs a bit. It was easier now, but she wasn't sure she'd be able to move quickly if needed. She moved to Sigurd's side and wrapped her arms around him.

"So... the others weren't wrong. We've never actually discussed what will happen when we return to Thunderknoll...."

Pausing to think as he stared into the fire, Sigurd smiled at the thought of going home with her. "Well first and foremost we'll fix my mother. After that we'll be officially married and you'll technically be the next alpha female, so you'll have to be groomed for the responsibility like I've been my entire life." Visions of possible futures for them kept flashing around in his mind. "And.. if we're not called away to adventure again.. we can think about trying to have children?" he wasn't sure if it was still a touchy issue for her. The scar on her abdomen was gone so Sigurd wondered if she was able to have children again.

He paused trying to gauge her reaction but continued. "I'm sorry, I'm speaking about what I want to do.. What would you like to happen when we get home, love?" he asked with a smile. It was nice to just sit in the quiet of the cave together with another of his kind. Ashwyn was home to him, but even more so now. He didn't think it was possible to love her any more than before, but wonders about her never ceased to amaze him.

Ashwyn thought about the picture that Sigurd was painting. Married. She never thought that would happen for her. She's always been envious of the happiness her parents had, but thought it was a distant impossibility for her. Especially after Lucas. Being the next Alpha female... that was a bit more daunting. She wasn't sure what the villagers would think about that. She knew that there were others like her, that had joined the Thunderknoll later in life, but she'd known a great deal of them before her change and... well, the reception of a Half-Elven scout bringing stuck up dignitaries into their village was... mixed. She wasn't sure if she was worthy of such an honor.

She was so worried and focused on that side of their union that she almost missed his comment about children. She blinked and her eyes instinctively went down to her stomach. Sigurd was right. The scar had disappeared, though now it would be covered in fur anyway. But was that Lythari woman correct? Was she healed now?

At his question, she smiled. "I... don't know, to be honest. It's been many years since I've had any real expectations for my life. I've always just.... floated along. Everytime I started thinking about the future something would happen to take those thoughts away. First my parents... then Lucas..." She shook her head. "I've never allowed myself to think about it." Then she smirked. "I'm mostly just worried about what you're father will think...." She chuckled.