Goblin Town -- Logs

It's less than an hour later that the foursome are at a large general clothing store called Farmer's Market. Cinnamon is almost bubbly with happiness -- it only took one try to shift back to human; the bus trip was fast and quite easy despite the darkness; the asphalt on the attractive, pedestrians-only street is painted in bright rainbow colors; the buildings are a wonderful melange of various architectures; and she's here with good (and startlingly pretty!) friends. She's momentarily distracted by Omnom chocolates -- both the name and the packaging make her giggle! Shane grins and laughs with Cinnamon at the chocolates, picking out Sea Salted Toffee, Caramel, and Lakkr�s & Sea Salt. He gets three of each, explaining, "One of each for me, me mum, and Quinn. They'll both love the flavors, and the swans remind me of them." Cinnamon giggles at that, blushing a bit -- she thinks that's such a beautiful idea! After purchasing several of those for gifts (as well as a few for herself), she heads off for robe-shopping.

Once the group reaches the Farmer's Market store, both Marcus and Shane look at clothing with Cinnamon. The little dragon is thrilled: the robes are incredibly warm, thick, colorful, and beautiful. Her main difficulty is picking which one she wants -- because they even have a selection in her size! Shane slides an arm around her shoulder from time to time, and Marcus even puts a hand on the small of her back, in an almost courtly gesture. As she browses, Cinnamon asks her friends: which color robe do they think is nicest? Oddly, both Shane and Marcus seem to like a deep, rich red robe. Cinnamon studies the robe a bit doubtfully, "I really like it too, but... are you sure it doesn't look funny with my hair color?"

Thorn smiles, "I think the red goes well with it, actually. Very complimentary!"

Cinnamon looks hopeful, "Really? You think so? Hmm..." She ponders for a few seconds more -- then grins excitedly, "Well, okay -- I'll do it!" She happily purchases the robe, adding it to her small collection of bags. Once the little group exit the clothing store, they next go to stroll relaxedly along Laugavegur Street. Cinnamon happily explains that Hilde says this is the coolest and funnest street in Iceland, and the group should totally stroll slowly along it and admire all the shops, painted asphalt, pedestrian street organization, and lovely decorations! Cinnamon giggles as she notices a bright, wavy-rainbow-painted building with a sign that says only 'Bravo!' over the inset, first floor corner door... which appears to be a very tiny, eclectic bar. The round, lit, flamingo-enhanced sign hanging by another wide, sturdy door around the corner, though, announces the building's second floor is Kiki Queer Bar. The little dragon tries to peer inside, then blinks at the calendar-sign by the door, "Wow, they have... karaoke, a drag show, a thrash band... all in one week!" She grins up at her friends, "How cool that they can be so open, too!"

Marcus smiles down at Cinnamon, "It's gorgeous here." He adds in an almost teasing fashion, "You'll have to be my Leibwachterin; they've got a lot of naked iron here." The little dragon blinks as she translates 'bodyguard' in her head... then laughs! She gives Marcus a one-armed hug -- the other hand is full of bags -- as she cheerfully promises, "Don't worry, I'll warn you in time!" Shane definitely does not like Marcus teasing Cinnamon. It's sounding entirely too much like flirting for his comfort -- but then he takes a deep, calming breath. People are allowed to flirt. People are even allowed to flirt with Cinnamon. She's his friend. She is not his girlfriend. Heck, as far as he can tell, she may not even be... into that kind of thing. He waits until the others get a step or two ahead of him and rubs his face with both hands. What the hell is wrong with him lately? If Hilde could see this, she'd be giggling her head off.

Cinnamon is excited and enjoying her exploration with friends, so she (unfortunately?) entirely misses Shane's consternation! Marcus does catch some of Shane's glowering -- but he also has a good poker face, so doesn't let it be known that he caught Shane's reaction. Instead, the elf simply grins at Cinnamon's assurance that she'll be sure to warn him about the iron. He's noticed she likes being useful, after all. A few moments later she pauses next to another store called Sp��tnik, her eyes brightening, "Ooh, gotta tell Spicy about this place -- it's all vintage stuff!"

Moments later, Cinnamon giggles as she glances across the road at another store, titled simply 'The Viking'... and sporting two small, fake, stuffed polar bears outside! "Okay, I'm pretty sure the horned helmet's not original!" She grins as she adds, "It's a souvenir shop! Right, I can see why they'd call it that..." A few moments later she stops in front of what is clearly a book store, "Here we are! Hilde said we should absolutely check out M�l og Menning." She beams at her friends as she adds, "Apparently it's traditional in Iceland to give books as Christmas gifts... and folks here take book recommendations as seriously as matchmaking, Hilde said!" As she opens the door, Cinnamon cheerfully adds, "Plus she said there's a nice big English language section!"

Thorn is happy to follow along and go with the group as they window-shop and actually-shop. He's not in need of anything in particular, though some of those Omnom chocolates are sufficiently tempting. He brightens as they get to the bookstore -- he hasn't seen an actual bookstore in some time, so this is a treat! He's happy to go in and browse. Marcus nods to Cinnamon, "She's told me that same thing, and she gives a lot of books at Jul." He chuckles, "Last year she gave me a picture book, actually. I... think she was hinting at her disagreement with my stance on revelation."

Cinnamon glances interestedly over her shoulder at Marcus as she weaves carefully through the store towards the English section, "Really? Huh, cool! What was it a picture book of?"

Marcus smiles, "It's called 'Golem.' The illustrations were quite beautiful."

Cinnamon considers that for a moment... then grins curiously up at Marcus, "What was it -- don't touch that display stand, please -- what was it about?"

Marcus executes a very graceful shift out of the way of the display, unnecessarily putting a hand on Cinnamon's back to steady himself as he does so, "It's a Jewish folk story about the Golem of Prague. Do you know this story?"

Thorn is not unaware of Shane's discomfort -- Shane is keeping his distance from Marcus and is trying not to glower. He does murmur to Shane, when Cinnamon and Marcus are somewhat deeper into the bookstore, "You okay?"

Shane chuckles and rolls his eyes at himself, "I don't trust Marcus... and I find myself wanting to warn him off Cinnamon... who is a big girl and capable of taking care of herself! Except..." he rolls his eyes, realizing he's transparent to everydamnbody else, "except with how I feel about her, I don't like him flirting with her. Which is fucked up because I don't give a damn who else flirts with her. I mean, for fuck's sake, Quinn flirted with her, and I was all sanguine about it. But Marcus even breathes in her direction, and my fists start to itch."

Thorn hms, "I understand. You don't trust Marcus because you don't know his motivations, I guess?" He sighs, adding, "I don't trust Marcus either, but I don't have any solid suggestions to make, I'm afraid."

Shane actually grins at his friend, "Other than 'Don't punch the global councilor for smiling at the girl you have a crush on?'" He sighs then, and rubs his face with both hands again.

Thorn grins wryly, "Ehn... I'm afraid that has to go without saying. Look, I'm not exactly in a... conventional? -normal? ...relationship, so I can't really give any good advice. But you know Cinnamon as well as anyone. You were one of the first people she met on Coblyn Street."

Shane smiles, "The very first, unless you count Ivan saying something to her and scaring her out of her skin." He chuckles, "It's fine. I just need to stop being overprotective. Quinn says it's one of my weaknesses as a guardian -- I overprotect."

"Well, there is such a thing as being too protective. It's a fine balance," Thorn muses, then adds, "I really, really wish I knew what Marcus was up to, too, though."

Further into the bookstore, Cinnamon smiles at Marcus as he smoothly dodges the display stand -- then considers for a moment before slowly replying, "Wasn't it... wasn't there a rabbi or something, who made the golem to defend the Jewish ghetto in... was it Poland? -- during the Second World War? But... either he died, or he wasn't strong enough, or something -- and the golem got out of control and rampaged through the Jews as well as everyone else in the city? Or... something like that?" Apologetically she adds, "I read it before I learned I was a dragon, sorry. My memory's not as good, then." Then she snorts in amusement at herself, "Wait -- Golem of Prague, duh! Right, that was the city!"

Marcus smiles and nods, "Yes. He created it and couldn't control it. It was during the pogroms..." He frowns slightly, "It... was a terrible story. I mean, the story was well-told, but the thing it tells about is horrible."

Cinnamon nods gravely, "It was... and it wasn't one of my favorite stories." Slightly sheepishly, she adds, "I'm a huge fan of happy endings! I mean, I don't mind lots of difficulties in the story, right? But at the end? I want the good guys to win!" She pauses in front of a ceiling-high wooden rack of books and considers for a moment... then looks up at Marcus and adds thoughtfully, "Good choice, from Hilde, I think... because I can totally see something like that happening if we revealed." She smiles as she adds, "Though you can totally feel free to agree to disagree with me if you want!"

Marcus smiles down at Cinnamon, "I vote we avoid arguing today, ja?" He looks up at the rack of books, eyes scanning the titles.

Cinnamon laughs at that, her eyes dancing with amusement! "Agreed!" With that, still smiling to herself, the little dragon starts browsing along the racks. She's searching for books on positive reinforcement-based animal training. While there aren't many books here in that niche, she uses the few she finds to research other books she might check out -- as in, she flips to their bibliographies and scribbles notes in her little notebook when she finds titles that appear repeatedly. She absolutely loves bookstores, too, so it's easy for time to slip away from her here! Marcus stays near Cinnamon, while Shane tries to not get too much the way. However, the beansidhe knows Cinnamon's timeline, and he knows her body language... so he seems to be right there any time she needs a book reached down from a tall shelf. Cinnamon is getting lost in her beloved research mental fugue, so her thanks are both sincere... and slightly absent sounding! The little dragon eventually ends up in a comfy armchair with a small pile of books around herself... though by that point she's got not only the animal behavior books, but also several urban fantasy paperbacks, an Icelandic-English dictionary, a picture book on Icelandic mythological creatures and another on the beautiful lopapeysur, several cookbooks -- including Icelandic food as well as both Joy of Cooking and Julia Childs' Mastering the Art of French Cooking -- a tourist's guide to Greenland and another for Iceland, and a book on Icelandic volcanoes!

Thorn stays back a bit, watching the interactions between the three. He doesn't trust Marcus either; he knows full well what Marcus asked him to do when the healer first arrived at Coblyn. He's glad that unpleasantness is long in the past; he didn't like it at all, now that he reflects on it. Even so, he has to admit he doesn't trust Marcus's motivations... but it's possible that Marcus really has become smitten with Cinnamon. If not, and Marcus is just toying with her... well, Thorn is under the Hippocratic Oath, but Shane isn't! ...and Thorn knows Marcus would wish that was the other way around. Marcus glares across Cinnamon's head at one point, and when the little dragon meanders away, he murmurs to the half-beansidhe, "You don't have to loom over her all the time, you know. Perhaps if you'd give her some space, she would be less likely to feel like she has to placate you."

Shane looks at Marcus like the Germanic elf has lost his ever-loving mind, "Placate me? Placate me? What the fuck are you talking about -- placate me? What the actual hell do you think I've done to her that she'd need to placate me?" He's starting to really get agitated -- because it certainly sounds to him like he's just been accused of being abusive and bullying.

Thorn is keeping track of time, since Marcus and Shane are both focused on Cinnamon and seem like they would gladly let her browse until sundown... in September of next year! The healer freezes a little when he sees Marcus and Shane talking heatedly to each other, though. He takes a quick glance around, makes a few mental estimates, realizes the council probably couldn't remunerate the bookstore for any of the damages that Thorn expects would happen... so he checks the time again -- is it maybe lunchtime yet? Perhaps a nice sit-down at a restaurant will -- oh, dear: voices are rising. He starts to make his way to the two men, hoping to stave off unpleasantness -- but then adjusts his course towards Cinnamon. She's the one person he's certain both men will be on their best behavior in front of... far more than simply he himself! "Oh, Cinnamon? Did we want to go to lunch too? It's getting along, after all, right?" He's not at all sure if this is the right time for lunch, but Cinnamon has been in her research state for a while -- so he'll assume it is. Further, if Shane and Marcus suspect that he's trying to stave off a louder argument... well, they'd be right!

Cinnamon lifts her fascinated gaze from the book in her lap and blinks absently up at Thorn -- then pushes up her glasses, "Hm? Lunch? Oh, absolutely -- there's this yummy little noodle shop Hilde told me about, and it's right on this street! Though, um... what time is it?" She glances at a clock hung on the wall, and almost yelps, "Almost two-thirty!? Ohmygosh, guys, I'm so sorry!" The little dragon hops to her feet, flusteredly apologizing and searching through the books stacked around her, "I'm a dope -- so, so sorry! I d-didn't mean to keep you all so long, I just... uhmm, this one, and these three cookbooks, and, um... oh, drat! I should have known better than to not set an alarm for myself or something! I, uh, tell you what, guys -- can I buy you all lunch to apologize for keeping you all here for like over two hours, maybe? Sorry!"

Thorn smiles, "It's fine, Cinnamon! Nobody minds at all!" He knows stories say that dragons hoard gold and treasure. He wonders if that trait has been picked up by Cinnamon as wanting to acquire knowledge.

Elsewhere in the bookstore, Marcus keeps his voice low, "I mean when we were getting ready to leave, whatever you said to her certainly had her stammering and flushing and changing the subject very quickly -- so perhaps you might want to give her some space!" He's doing a very good job of sounding calm, "Especially after... last night." He looks Shane up and down, with an arched brow, "Or is there something you're feeling... insecure about, regarding then?" Shane takes a deep, calming breath (which can look from the outside like the prelude to a shout), when Cinnamon unwittingly interrupts -- and that snaps him immediately back to earth! He smiles over at her, "Of course, acushla. Lunch would be great," -- even as he's thinking to himself, ['Placate' me? What the actual fuck?!]

Cinnamon beams worriedly at her friends as she finally straightens. She's got several books in one arm, and a few more in the other, as she awkwardly reaches around them to push her glasses up again, "Is, um... are you all okay with, er, Thai-style noodle soups for lunch? Hilde says they're very warming -- especially if you ask for the spicy?" She sighs in relief at the general agreement, and ends up purchasing one of the animal behavior books, three of the urban fantasies, both the Joy of Cooking and Julia Childs' Mastering the Art of French Cooking (as well as a cookbook on Icelandic food), the tourist's guide to Greenland, and the book on Icelandic volcanoes. As she happily notes to her friends, that last one will hopefully be a lovely Solstice gift for Jalil, since he was so unfamiliar with ice and fire together!

Marcus smiles as he looks at her bulging bag of books, "You've got quite a load there! That's got to be awkward to lug around. Can I carry a few?" Shane was just opening his mouth to make that same offer -- but instead he takes a deep breath and sighs it back out. Other people can be helpful to her too! Instead he smiles, "I love noodles... and I'd tell you to be careful about asking for spicy things in Thai restaurants, but somehow I don't think that'll be a problem for you, acushla." He does manage his normal affectionate grin at that.

Cinnamon thanks Marcus with relief, handing him some of her bags -- she's got enough now that it's getting a little unwieldy for her to carry, even though they're not too heavy for her! She giggles happily at Shane, pushing up her glasses as she replies, "Oh, you already taught me that, remember? At Little India? That's when I found out how nice spicy things taste to me, too -- like my inner fire is stoked up a bit or something!" Since she's quite strong, however, she misses entirely that she might have handed something a little heavy to Marcus!

The Germanic elf, of course, absolutely refuses to behave as if the bag of books is too heavy for him -- even though it requires quick and careful redistribution of his bodily stance. He chuckles at Cinnamon's comment, "As the fire of the volcano did?"

Cinnamon blinks interestedly at Marcus, "The fire of... oh, you mean while I was walking over the lava? No, that was more..." She pauses, blinking thoughtfully as she patters along between her friends... then adds in intrigued tones, "You know, actually... you're probably right! Breathing in all that heat... it was really kinda nice!"

By now, of course, the sky is darkening and the wind is picking up -- and bright, cheery lights are lit up all along Laugavegur. The currently-leafless trees are wound about with sparkly little strings of white lights, while longer strings of lights crisscross-cross over the road -- along with a few colorful early Christmas decorations. Several store fronts sport long strings of colored lights along eaves, doorframes, and roofs as well. The overall effect is very cheery despite the cold, blustery wind. Shane rests his arm around Cinnamon's shoulders as they walk; it's really an automatic thing with him now. Just as people notice the way he gravitates, they notice that he tends to put his arm around her. To anyone that didn't know the two of them, they already look like a couple when they walk together. He looks around, then down at her, "Hey, is Fraser going to be okay tonight?"

Cinnamon smiles up at Shane, though there's a hint of steel in her voice, "He better be -- or he's going to spend the third night alone! I am absolutely not putting up any more with his destroying stuff when I'm around!" Waving towards the bag of books Marcus is carrying, she adds, "That's why I was doing all that research into positive reinforcement animal training, in fact -- I want to figure out how to motivate him to behave himself, because we all already know he just loves being able to defy authority!" She absently adds, as they all stroll along, "Sure am glad they keep the street well-shoveled -- trudging through snow would be a pain in the patootie here!" In one of her usual mental super-leaps, she happily adds, "Hey, I found out what Reykjavik means -- Smoky Bay! Apparently the winds come and go really fast here, but they're always cool... and often full of almost horizontal rain!" She laughs as she looks down at the street, adding, "Love the pretty hopscotch pattern on the road -- but wow, I would totally fall over if I tried to hop all... what is it, like one hundred squares long?"

Marcus blinks -- then says, "Wait... Fraser... was it Fraser that destroyed your robe?" He's finally, perhaps, starting to undo the bad math of the last few days.

Cinnamon glances at Marcus and nods, a wry smile on her face, "Yeah... the jerk-face! I was so mad I spanked him..." a bit guiltily she adds, "possibly harder than I should have..."

Shane glances over at Marcus and tips his head. He has no idea of the record scratch going on in Marcus' head, at the comment about spanking -- because the Germanic elf assumes this spanking took place after the change back to human! But all Marcus says is, "Ah, I see. I remember he was... quite a handful on the ship." Thorn blinks as well, looking at Marcus. The healer, of course, has no insight into what calculus Marcus has made; Thorn just assumes Marcus is remembering what a handful Fraser was on the full moon in Basque country.

Cinnamon adds in explanation, "Fraser-wolf is a real pain sometimes! Problem is that he can really hurt folks if he's not, um... corralled? But we don't want to let him hurt anyone because real-Fraser would feel horrible once he found out -- because he can't remember anything that happens while he's Fraser-wolf during the full moon." She adds thoughtfully, "So... I guess overall it was a win? Because I'd totally rather he gnaw on my bathrobe rather than a friend!"

Marcus nods slowly. He's gentleman enough not to go any further into this, in public, "Well, I'm glad you were able to replace it with something so lovely. I hope he appreciates everything you've done for him... including keeping him company at night. He's quite lucky."

Cinnamon snorts in amusement, "Lucky? Yeah, full-moon Fraser told me that too!" She grins wryly, shaking her head, "He's... what'd you call it, Shane? He's all id at that time of the month!" She grins at Marcus as she adds, "Oh! Also, Hilde says I should absolutely point out that store there to you, Marcus! She says it's the ultimate gentleman's store. Apparently the staff really take care of you -- they even have musicians inside! -- though you also pay for what you get there." The sign over the simple storefront reads: 'Herrafataverzlun Korm�ks og Skjaldar.' She adds thoughtfully, "I don't know Icelandic, though, so... I can't translate it for you guys."

Marcus nods slowly, "I'll keep that in mind. I do like knowing about a good tailor."

Shane snorts, "He's definitely all Id. He's a little more aware when he's human, but I've found out he also loses some of what he says and does in his human form on those days as well. He apparently said some rather... salacious things to Aisling too... and apologized profusely later for them."

Cinnamon giggles at that, cheerfully adding, "Well, she did seem interested in what he looked like, naked!" She blushes a bit at her rather naughty phrasing, hastily adding, "Oh, here we are -- the Noodle Station! C'mon, let's go get some food!" She steps inside and glances around. It's a long countertop, which she runs her hand over... then glances back at her friends, "Let's get food and eat outside, at the picnic tables, okay?" More softly she adds, "Don't touch the stools at all, please, Marcus?"

Marcus glances at the stools and puts his hands in his pockets to avoid brushing against them accidentally, "Thank you, Cinnamon. It's good to know." He smiles warmly at her, "You've been a goddess-send."

Cinnamon giggles and blushes a bit at Marcus' effusive-sounding (to her) thanks! She's more relaxed about getting the food, however. The menu is very simple: beef, chicken, or veggie noodle bowl options, along with water from a communal pitcher. Cinnamon checks: would Marcus like to wait outside at the table, with all her bags and stuff, once he's ordered? She adds, "I can bring yours out too, if you'd like?" She also happily grabs one of the free indie magazines too: The Reykjavik Grapevine.

Marcus smiles, "That would be lovely... but I'd like to treat you as thanks for keeping me unburned."

Cinnamon laughs! "Nono, I kept everyone late at the bookstore -- remember I said I'd get lunch for everyone to say sorry?" She adds with unselfconscious honesty, as she peruses the menu, "Besides, it's just basic good manners to warn friends of something that might hurt them, right?"

Marcus smiles and kisses Cinnamon's temple, "Then many thanks. I'd like the chicken. Medium spice. I'll be outside with the bags."

Cinnamon blushes startledly at the kiss! She smiles uncertainly at Marcus -- then hastily turns to place her order as well, asking for her two bowls to be spicy. After that she trots outside to set her bags next to Marcus, on one of the big picnic tables, then heads back into the restaurant -- she wants to pay right after Thorn and Shane order too. It hasn't occurred to her at all that there might be any jockeying for who will sit next to her, though. She's never been someone others actually wanted to sit next to! Thorn is not a big spice person, but he gets a medium spicy bowl of veggies and noodles since Cinnamon recommended it... and it is chilly out.

Cinnamon patters out of the restaurant a few minutes later, a bowl in each hand as she grins up at Shane, thanking him for holding the door for her! She inhales the scent of one of the steaming bowls, beaming with pleasure... then hands the other to Marcus, "Here you go -- enjoy!" The bowls are hot to the touch, and heaped with deliciousness -- chopped scallions, bean sprouts, cilantro, thin-sliced peppers, chopped peanuts, flat noodles, and slices of meat, all floating in a dark, delicious-smelling broth. Once she's set her bowl down, Cinnamon pulls four sets of chopsticks out of her pocket (three steel sets, and one wooden) and carefully hands only the wooden set to Marcus. After that, she heads back into the restaurant with Shane... and emerges with him moments later, carrying tall glasses of water for everyone.

After getting his noodles, Thorn emerges from the shop and realizes he's in a position he doesn't want to be in, and hasn't been in since, oh... probably high school: where does he sit for lunch? He mentally sighs; no matter where he picks, there's going to be Drama™. As first out, though, he has to make a choice before Shane and Cinnamon emerge. He finally decides to sit opposite Marcus. Shane, being the one to come out next, gets to make the next-least-enviable choice: either let Cinnamon sit next to Marcus or... do it himself. Being who he is, he metaphorically throws himself on that grenade -- he sits next to Marcus, even though he has to (with a polite murmur) move boxes and bags and such, to do so... since Marcus has absolutely unsubtly put them in the seat next to himself. With this social chess move, Shane puts Cinnamon's seat across from himself. Marcus -- who would never in a million years have considered simply... moving the bags... blinks at Shane -- but since Shane was polite about it, the Germanic elf finds he can't say a damned word!

Cinnamon completely misses this, due to having to trot in and out of the restaurant a few times to bring out everything that was ordered -- she's got two bowls, after all, since she's getting quite hungry by now. She settles into her seat and sighs happily, "This smells wonderful -- I'm going to have to thank Hilde for her awesome advice!" She has a few delicious mouthfuls of the noodle soup... then beams delightedly when she looks up and realizes she's seated facing Shane -- how nice! -- and Marcus too! After a few more mouthfuls to assuage her rumbling hunger, she looks up at her friends again and happily says, "Hey, guys? Have I told you how nice today was? I really enjoyed getting to be all touristy with you!" A bit more shyly she adds, "I hope you all had fun too...?"

Shane can honestly say he enjoyed himself -- despite feeling like he's spent some time hopping from ice floe to ice floe in the weird logic of Marcus' stream of consciousness! "I did... and Mum and Quinn are going to love the chocolate. I was hoping one of them had a dragon on the label. Mum could eat the chocolate and then add the cover to her collection." He can't help a mischievous grin, "Did I show you the last one I sent her?"

Cinnamon blinks interestedly, "No! Or wait... was it the little unicorn colt you got from my place? Er, my old place, I mean?"

Shane grins and shakes his head, "No. I kept that one. I told you: she specializes; I'm a generalist." He pulls out his phone and flicks through pictures until he finds one, then turns it around to show Cinnamon. His eyes twinkle -- because he knows exactly who the little figurine looks like!

Cinnamon glances at the photo of the adorable little scarlet dragonling -- then abruptly turns bright pink and squeaks, "Oh! Oh, how, um, wow -- uh, c-cute?" She's a little wide-eyed when she looks up at Shane, adding, "Wh-what, uhh... what made you p-pick that one?!"

Marcus is curious as well, though he doesn't tip his head to look fast enough to see the photo. Before he can help himself, he asks, "Unicorn fawn?"

The (both embarrassed and delighted) little dragon hastily turns her attention to Marcus, pushing her glasses up as she almost gabbles, "Oh! Oh it w-was a gift from a guy who wanted to impress Candi so I didn't really want it so Shane was w-welcome to it w-when he helped me clear out m-my old apartment! Er, p-pre-dragon, I mean?" She's desperately hoping Shane's reason is a nice one for sending his mom the adorable and gorgeous little scarlet dragon... and not something stomach-dropping (to her, at least) like having had the dragon gifted to him but he didn't want or like it!

Shane grins at the reaction, "It's absolutely adorable, yeah? Well, it kinda reminded me of someone when I saw it -- even though it's not half so cute as the inspiration -- so I got it for Mum. She loves it." Cinnamon blinks slowly at Shane -- then turns bright red again! She hastily ducks her head to eat more soup... though there's a small, happy singing inside her: does Shane actually maybe think she's, er... cute? A bit? Eeeeee! That's so cool, if so! Shane rolls his eyes and nods to Marcus, "Her sister's a real piece of work. But the fawn is cute, so I put it with my collection." He chuckles, "It's sitting next to this little 'Last Unicorn' figurine Mum got me for a graduation present."

Marcus gets a glimpse of the dragon figurine as Shane takes his phone back; the elf murmurs thoughtfully, "You... collect unicorns and your mother collects... dragons?" Shane shakes his head, "Mum collects dragons. I collect lots of different things. It's a joke between us now." Marcus nods slowly -- the mental ice-floe-jumping is now his problem!

Cinnamon blinks slowly down at her soup as an abrupt realization hits her: she's getting in really deep! Seeing Shane and Marcus seated side by side like this, and spending a gloriously fun day with them and Thorn, all relaxed and touristing together... the little dragon's eyes widen a bit as she suddenly understands what that curiously lovely/warm/cozy feeling inside her means: she's falling into another huge crush again, eeeek! Okay... okay, don't panic -- she can handle this! She's just... she's got to be really careful it doesn't show at all, right -- don't want to drive anyone away in disgust. She takes a few deep breaths... then has a careful mouthful of soup. There she goes... she's back in self-control again... whew. Being in love is really dangerous! She can't help the faint smile, though, as her small internal voice rebelliously notes that it still hopes they all had fun, even if it is dangerous! She wonders a little wistfully if she can safely find that little dragon figurine, too... it's so cute! She'd love to have something like that to inspire her when she's feeling down.

Marcus finally remembers to answer Cinnamon's question, "Yes, I enjoyed myself. I rarely get time to just... wander... somewhere new. It's not always safe for an elf to do so."

Cinnamon brightens and smiles at Marcus, "Oh, good! I'm glad I could help, then!"

Thorn smiles quietly, though he's acutely aware of how things are teetering on some sort of three- or four-way balance. "Oh, I enjoyed the day as well," he says, "and thank you again for the noodles! They're very tasty."

Cinnamon beams in relief at Thorn, "Yay! I'm so glad everyone had fun!" She laughs, adding, "I really am sorry about losing track of time at the bookstore, you guys -- ordinarily I know to either set an alarm on my phone, or to only read as long as one cup of tea, you know?"

Shane glances sideways at Marcus. The two of them, he thinks, need to have a conversation... later. This 'placating' thing needs to get cleared up! He emphatically doesn't like the implication that he's a bully. But Cinnamon seems happy right now, and he's not going to mess that up since, in his opinion, that is the important thing. Marcus laughs quietly, "Yes. I can be that way with certain poets. Or with some music."

Shane smiles wryly, "Yeah. Time blindness, I think they call it... or hyperfocus." He laughs, "Or, 'J... uuust get your nose out of that book and do your math, young man!' -- according to my third grade teacher." The beansidhe is very glad for a moment that his penchant for catching himself before swearing in front of women could explain away what he just did. He could have been stopping himself from saying, 'Jesus! Put away that book!' -- instead of nearly screwing up and giving away his actual name. What the hell?

Cinnamon giggles at Shane, nodding happily, "Yeah, I've gotten that hyperfocus during accounting, when it's a really interesting and convoluted problem!" She finishes her soup, then looks up at the darkening sky, "Awesome! It's almost four, so it'll likely be dark by the time we get out of town -- which means I can shift with no worries! Everyone ready to go?" She neatly stuffs her bulging leather handbag with as much as she can of her purchases, then organizes everything else into the sturdiest shopping bags, "There we go... that'll make sure nothing goes flying off at a bad time!"

Thorn relaxes a little; there seems to currently be an unspoken truce between Marcus and Shane. Maybe because they're sitting together? Should he get them a Get-Together Sweater? Silliness aside, he wants to see Cinnamon with Shane, of course. He trusts Shane, and he doesn't trust Marcus -- it really is as simple as that. But he also doesn't have a leg to stand on, considering what Marcus had him doing when he first came to Coblyn. Still, for the moment the two young men seem to be content to enjoy the day with Cinnamon... and so is Thorn.

Shortly thereafter, Cinnamon strolls through Reykjavik with the three young men, happily chattering about their beautiful environment, her wonderfully fun purchases, her planned Solstice gifts for friends, her recent research, her excitement at perhaps having found a means of dealing with Fraser-wolf... she's simply in a gloriously good mood, even as they watch the sun swiftly setting in a blaze of color. Once they get off at the bus stop outside of the city, they walk only until they've left the nearby lighting... and then the little dragon shifts shape. She waits patiently, humming happily to herself, while Shane lashes everything securely onto the harness... and then, once everyone's tied on, she takes off to swiftly wing them all back to Drangurinn in Drangshl��.

Cinnamon chatters happily about Iceland as she flies through the winter darkness. Apparently, the day after the Council meeting she'd asked Hilde for some fun and quintessentially Icelandic things that the little dragon could try, and Hilde had recommended either a Golden Circle bus tour, or a Reykjavik walking foodie tour. Cinnamon had decided to keep the shorter, two to three hour foodie tour for one of the days of the full moon, so she can be back in time to help keep Fraser calm. For the next day, therefore, Josie, Spice, and Cinnamon took the all-day Golden Circle bus tour out of Reykjavik, along with a small tour group.

The scarlet dragon happily burbles about the trip: how they started well before the 10:30-ish am sunrise so they'd have sunlight for all the stops... how instead of streetlights, there were multiple roundabouts on the road across Iceland, but they all seemed to work really well... how the bus had to pause several times to allow small herds of reindeer to cross the road... how there were hotels, restaurants, and other touristy businesses around all the areas the tour visited, but the Icelanders had made sure to make all the buildings pleasant and matching to the environment -- which meant that the tour group was able to wander, rest, eat delicious food, explore, and relax at each stop. It's also clear Cinnamon is unwittingly starting to pick up the local accent, since her pronunciation of the Icelandic words is fluent and easy.

The tour's first stop was �ingvellir National Park, which Cinnamon excitedly tells them is effectively the national shrine of Iceland -- due to being both its most historic site, and one of its most beautiful places. That location, she relates, is where the Republic of Iceland declared its independence in 1944 -- and they chose to do so because this was also the location of the Al�ingi, one of the oldest parliamentary institutions of the world, founded in 930 CE. It was made a national park in the late 1920s because of the remarkable tectonic and volcanic environment -- including cracks and faults traversing the park due to continental drift.

Cinnamon adds, "Also there was a church and a drowning pool for mothers of illegitimate children, which made us all sad so we didn't go to it. Instead we walked over the Peningagj� -- that's the Money Chasm -- which is a volcanic fault that's filled with crystal clear water! It's wide enough that people go snorkeling and scuba diving there in the summer, in wet suits... and people stand on the bridge and toss a coin over, and because the water's so clear it sparkles the whole way down! -and nearby is �ingvallavatn, which is the largest lake in Iceland and the families that live there still fish there and have for centuries, but you have to really keep an eye on the weather since the lake turns into a boiling pot, they said, when the wind starts blowing. Also it's mostly brown trout and char there, which are both really, really big, due to evolution in a land-locked lake with only one river for egress, and they tasted really good when we had some lunch there...!"

The little dragon next wistfully recounts how gorgeous Gullfoss waterfall seemed despite the lower trails being closed for winter, and the upper trails being limited due to ice... "but the coolest part was that we got there while the sun was still out, and you could see rainbows twinkling all over the place, even despite all the ice crusting up the falls! The roar is immense, too -- so impressive! But the final stop was the most unique, I thought -- Geysir geothermal area, which is like totally alien looking! There's, like, these belching sulfur mud pots all in weird, non-nature-like colors, and steam vents hissing all the time, and hot and cold springs -- right next to warm streams, sometimes! -and the old geyser, the Great Geysir? It doesn't erupt any more -- not regularly, not since like the late 1910s, but it used to be really regular and that's where we got the word 'geyser' from, in fact! But now the new dependable geyser is called Strokkur, which means the Churn, and it's really quite close to the Great Geysir, and it erupts like every 10 minutes or so! It's so gorgeous and weird! The whole area is literally like a geothermal park sitting on top of this enormous boiling cauldron underneath it!"

Cinnamon takes a deep breath after that word-blurt, then enthusiastically adds, "So, that's why I was hoping... maybe you guys might like to do the foodie walking tour of Reykjavik with me, tomorrow? I could fly us in and out with plenty of time, and if the projected snowfall starts before sunset I could perhaps even get us back here before dark! So... if you peeps are interested, maybe I could make reservations tonight?"

Thorn beams at the invitation, "I'd love to! That sounds fun... and delicious, actually." He conveniently forgets about lutefisk for the moment, "Let me check in with the infirmary here to see if they need any more help from me, first."

Cinnamon beams, "Yay! Okay, Thorn, we'll definitely include you! Shaney, Marcus? Any thoughts?"

Shane is immediately in to do a foodie tour, "I'm always up to try something new to eat! Mum loved that kind of thing when I was little."

Marcus considers, "As long as you're willing to play iron shield again, I'm in."

Cinnamon laughs delightedly, "Iron Shield? Is that my new movie-dragon name or something?!" She giggles, then cheerfully adds, "Awesome! Okay, I'll get reservations for all of us!" Shortly thereafter, she lands neatly and with a minimum of flying snow clouds, next to the great Drangurinn boulder. As she's being unloaded, the group see the Havvarger emerging, with all the wolves changing shape to go for their run. The scarlet dragon is wide-eyed with delight -- so many beautiful wolves! A bit wistfully she rumbles, "Aren't they all amazing, all together? Bet if they were pulling something like a sleigh or something, it'd go faster than any dogs -- or horses, even! -- could ever take it!"

Fraser-wolf -- of course -- refuses to be intimidated by something so large! Consequently, the next time Cinnamon lowers her head to thank Shane for unpacking her harness... he dodges away from Bjarke, and charges the dragon with a roar! Shane smiles as they watch the wolves all change. Some of them slide easily into their four-legged forms. Some of them seem to have a slower or more painful change. Bjarke is enormous, even for a wolf, and he comes bounding toward Fraser and Cinnamon, trying to overtake the auburn-coated curse-wolf. Cinnamon jerks her head back and up in surprise... then blinks, almost cross-eyed, down her nose at the thrashing red wolf clinging to the end of her muzzle -- which is currently only some 15 feet above the ground -- and gnawing fruitlessly on her scaly hide. Everyone has to smother laughter, since she looks sort of like she's sporting a short, wind-tossed red beard!

Thorn blinks at the sight and sighs, smiling. "Fraser..." he says in an almost exhausted tone. "What a handful he is, it seems!" He's safely out of the way, fortunately.

Shane puts a hand on Marcus' shoulder and murmurs, "We should... well... get the fuck outta Dodge for a moment..."

Marcus blinks and lets Shane pull him out of the way, "Uhm... why...?"

Shane chuckles, "Just in case Fraser barrels into one of us and accidentally bites or claws us. He'd feel like shit when he found out about it later."

Cinnamon snorts amusedly... then gently tosses her head! Fraser-wolf can't hold on to that -- he goes flying about 20' away, into a snowbank, with a great flumpf! and a blinding flurry of flying snow. Naturally, the curse-wolf scrabbles instantly to his feet and charges back out with a snarl, shaking snow vigorously out of his fur... and Cinnamon raises an amused, scaly eyebrow, "Oh, it's like that, is it?" She lowers her head again and cheerfully snarls right back at him -- but louder, and with all her teeth bared! Fraser-wolf skids to an abrupt halt -- at sight of all those teeth! Some of them are as tall as he is, now... so he kind of grumbles a bit and settles to the snowy ground. Cinnamon giggles, then checks with Arvid: is it okay if she maybe plays a bit with Fraser, to calm him down so he's not scared of her, and maybe to tire him out a bit?

Of course, Arvid knows canid body language far better than Cinnamon -- so he knows Fraser isn't afraid, so much as realizing he can't do anything against Cinnamon as a dragon, either! But the captain smiles and nods to the cheerful, eager dragon. Anything that can help settle Fraser-wolf is a good thing, in his book! Cinnamon glances back to make sure she's completely unpacked, then unbuckles her harness and slips out of it, holding it out towards the half-beansidhe, "Shaney? Would you be willing to hold this for me for a bit, please?"

Shane takes the harness, nodding and starting to fold it into its compact storage configuration, "Of course, acushla."

Cinnamon beams, "Thank you!" After that, the handful of warriors of the holt -- as well as Shane, Marcus, Thorn, and anyone else who happens to be standing outside at that time -- get to see the startling and unmitigatedly cute behavior of a young dragon in play! The full moon lights the big field well, as they watch. Cinnamon's tail waves much like a hunting cat's as she crouches a little... then pounces (with a delighted chirp) at Fraser-wolf! At first he's just dodging out of self-preservation... but relatively rapidly it becomes a game of chase -- and then Rafe happily joins in -- and soon thereafter, the entire pack is playing chase with Cinnamon!

Shane grins at this, murmuring, "I always did think dragons had to have something cattish about them..." Thorn blinks again, and can't help but laugh at the sight, especially with Cinnamon being so feline-like.

Marcus at first is stunned, then finds himself laughing as well. He grins at Shane, "She reminds me of the trod cats -- the ones some folk keep as familiars -- when they're kittens, and playing pounce as they're learning to hunt."

There's something weirdly wonderful in seeing such huge, dangerous beasts all unselfconsciously engaging in play... and it's hard not to laugh when Cinnamon folds her wings tightly, then goes rolling over and over in the snow, a wiggly and laughing wolf carefully caught between her paw-hands and -feet as she play-gnaws at him! Sometimes the wolves play 'king of the mountain' on and off the big dragon as she bounds around the field -- though they also have to dodge Cinnamon herself occasionally laughing and nudging off whoever has held on the longest, so that others can try too. Other times she cheerfully gallops around with them through the blinding clouds of snow they're kicking up -- and it's hard to tell who's 'it,' since it seems to change so rapidly -- or even if 'it' is the entity chasing everyone else, or the one who is being chased!

By the time Cinnamon finally slows and trots back to the huge boulder, panting like a bellows, she's got a few of the tired wolves flopped over her back, while the others snowplow at a run through the snow to keep up with her, looking wonderfully like dark, furry porpoises in a brilliantly pale ocean of snow. The scarlet dragon grins happily at her humanoid friends, "That was awesome-sauce! I think maybe I might be immune to cold too, 'cause this was so much fun! -and I don't feel cold at all! -though I think I'm ready to go inside now and have a real big dinner, please!"

Shane grins and pets Cinnamon's nose, "Well, you certainly aren't shivering, and your hide feels warm. I think you may be right."

Cinnamon beams at that -- then impulsively flickers her tongue in an affectionate dragon-kiss on the top of his head! A moment later she adds, "Oh! Can you, um... hmm, your hands are full. Well, tell you what: I'll just run around Drangurinn till I'm out of sight -- and then change!" She nearly bounces off, calling over her shoulder, "Be right back!" Marcus starts to offer to do the 'blanket thing' that Shane usually does -- but then Cinnamon is off around Drangurinn before he can get the words out. She comes trudging back through the snow a moment later, still beaming as she waves, "Hi, guys! Oh, wait, that was dumb of me... should have put the harness back on! Hmm... well, no worries! I'll put it on tomorrow morning, okay?"

Shane nods and smiles, "No problem." He hefts it over a shoulder and puts the other arm around Cinnamon, "That looked like a lot of fun. I wonder if it actually wore him out any, though?"

Cinnamon laughs happily as she patters back inside with the three men, "It really was fun! -and I hope it helped some... maybe just a little bit? With the sun down already, they've got until ten or ten-thirty to run around, after all, and that's, um..." she checks her cell phone, "-still another... five or so hours!"

Thorn says wryly, "I have a feeling Fraser somehow gets his energy from some eternally-replenishing source...." Cinnamon giggles at that!

Shane snorts, "Fraser's energy, if I understand correctly, actually comes from the moon itself. The curse is tied to it. So, yeah: sort of eternally-replenishing."

Cinnamon blinks up at Shane, intrigued, "Oh! Did he tell you that, or something?" She pushes her glasses up and grins interestedly, "How cool, if so!"

Shane smiles crookedly, "Yeah. He did. I'm nosy. I asked him a few questions about it one night when I was standing a watch with him. He did some research on the curse itself. At one point, he thought he wanted it lifted. But now... not so much. He seems to think the downsides overcome the up-sides."

Cinnamon nods in understanding, "Right -- the pack is his family now. Totally get that!" She grins a bit wryly herself, "He's apparently had a lot of time to read and learn stuff, he told me once." She considers that for a moment, then adds more happily, "I'm looking forward to getting to do that too, actually!"

Shane nods, "There's a lot of downtime on a ship, apparently. I mean, not every moment is move-move-move, and he's... old. He doesn't seem that old. He's done a good job keeping up to modern attitudes, unlike some of the older folk I've known. But he does read a lot. Doesn't seem the type at first, does he?"

Marcus also seems intrigued, "No, he doesn't. In fact, he seems almost like the sort that would disdain it."

Cinnamon laughs and gently bumps her shoulder against Marcus, "Disdain? Oh, gosh, no! He's gotten me hooked on some research subjects as well, in fact!" Marcus smiles at the shoulder-bump. That's about the most unguardedly friendly gesture he's gotten from Cinnamon since the masquerade.

Shane nods, "I think it's a... defense mechanism, maybe? Or maybe that's the wrong term. Protective coloration. Fraser's persona is 'bluff and hearty Scotsman sailor.' Most of their trade (outside of us) are tour groups, Boy Scouts, and outward bound groups. Someone who seems to have the kind of breadth of knowledge he has would seem... almost suspicious, I think."

Cinnamon tilts her head thoughtfully... then nods after a moment, "That... actually makes really good sense, Shaney!"

Cinnamon has a lovely and large dinner once they all arrive at the dining hall, where she chatters with cheerful excitement about the books she purchased, her lovely new robe, her hopes for positive reinforcement training with Fraser-wolf, the lovely day they had... anything that crosses her mind, in fact, that others seem interested in! She's also inordinately delighted that, for some reason, both Shane and Marcus seem willing to eat dinner with her as well. Having one of them seated on each side of her makes her feel wonderfully tingly inside! She hops up and hugs Hilde ebulliently, though, when the ljosaelf walks in -- to thank her for the wonderful suggestions on what to do in Reykjavik.

The infirmary here is a clean and airy chamber. There are a few people moving around in it. The one person the chirurgeon is a bit concerned about is an expectant mother. The gealsidhe is not very far along, but sidhe children are somewhat rare to start with and the births aren't always easy. "If you'd be so kind as to look over her when you return? It would be much appreciated." Thorn returns to the trod's infirmary, and asks the chirurgeon if there's anything needed. He's more than happy to have a look at the pregnant gealsidhe that evening. It shouldn't take long, and as he visualizes her in his mind, while holding her hand, he pays especial attention to any details which might complicate the birth. He'll be certain to have the chirurgeon on hand, because there is likely a lot of things he still has to learn about gealsidhe anatomy.

The gealsidhe mother is a little wan and pale, even for a gealsidhe, and she laughs tiredly as Thorn checks her out. "I've been very tired for the last month or so." The outward anatomy of most sidhe is very similar to human, but he's getting a feeling that there's some sort of imbalance going on.

Thorn hrms quietly, his brow furrowing. Something is... not right. He takes in a breath and does a "deeper dive," trying to visualize her body in full, detail in depth and in breadth, trying to sense what is wrong. Thorn's brow becomes beaded with sweat. This isn't the sort of thing that a simple examination would tell him; there are massive batteries of tests even in modern medicine that are used to determine what's wrong. And that's just with humans. He needs to know what's normal for non-humans, to really understand what he's seeing. He concentrates, wanting this to work, as if asking some sort of Akashic repository for the information he needs to understand what is ailing the mother-to-be.

The magic Thorn reaches for slides through the mother-to-be and finds that the endocrine system works slightly differently in the gealsidhe than it seems to work in humans. Which might account for the lack of diabetes in sidhe. But there is something off in hers. It is not diabetes, but it is an issue with a hormone akin to insulin and her body is not producing it correctly. It doesn't regulate sugar. Instead, it seems to regular something having to do with an immunity to iron. That may be when he realizes that the mother isn't actually gealsidhe, but more likely ljosaelf.

Thorn blinks rapidly, his eyes flying open. "Excuse me a moment," he murmurs, pulling out a notebook. He needs to get into this habit -- moreover, he needs to get into the habit of writing down these notes in code; he's pretty sure there isn't a HIPAA for supernaturals, but he doesn't want his notes to be used for ill. More importantly, though, he thinks he has an idea as to what might be going on. He looks around, wondering if he can talk to her in private without the chirurgeon there, which will be awkward since he asked the chirurgeon to be there. "Could you excuse us for a few minutes?" he asks the chirurgeon. "I'd like to ask her about her medical history."

The chirurgeon nods and leaves the two of them alone. The mother-to-be seems a bit curious about Thorn asking him to leave, but she doesn't seem worried about being left alone with what she thinks is a human healer-magus. Thorn lets out a breath, and smiles to the mother-to-be. "Okay," he says. "In the... visualization I did, it looks like there's a hormonal imbalance -- not unusual in mothers-to-be, but in this case it has to do with a hormone that regulates an immunity to iron, so I have to ask: are you ljosaelfar?"

The mother is still smiling tiredly as she's told there's a hormonal imbalance. She chuckles a bit as if she's not surprised to hear that. But that last question makes her go very, very still, "I... am... but why do you ask?" Now she's getting nervous.

Thorn nods to the woman, feeling his heart start to clench, "Okay. You're supposed to be naturally -- well, supernaturally, immune to iron, unlike the sidhe. But something is interfering with that. It's something either with the imbalance of the hormones -- which may be natural -- or the Rh factor of your blood. Who is the sire, please? Are they sidhe or aelfar?"

The mother nods slowly and puts a hand on her stomach, going slowly paler than normal, "He's... he's gealsidhe. Someone I see sometimes when I travel. It was a shock to both of us that I kindled." She closes her eyes and mutters, "Their bodies... there's... they can't handle iron, but there's mutated homeogoblins? I don't know the real word."

Thorn smiles gently, "Hemoglobin, yes. Don't worry. This causes complications in human parents, but it's not insurmountable. Is it all right if I tell the chirurgeon who the sire is? Also, is this your first pregnancy?"

The mother nods, "It's okay. The chirurgeon is ljosaelfar. He understands the iron immunity..." She looks nervous, "Most of the others... the other sidhe don't know that about us. Not even the baby's sire."

Thorn is certain it's more complex and magical than 'Rh incompatibility' or 'iron intolerance.' At best those are going to be virtually metaphorical in relation to supernatural biology. "Well, as I said, at least in humans, this sort of complication isn't insurmountable when caught early enough, and in the first pregnancy." But... he tilts his head to the side. "Why are you nervous about the iron immunity being known?" he asks.

The mother, whose name is apparently Lise, takes a deep breath, "I think it's something of a holdover from a time where it was an... what's the term... ace in the hole? For a while, it was open knowledge. And then it became widely assumed that all elven races were sensitive to it. So it could stand us in good stead in battle. It could still mean that someone can think a weapon they have will do more damage than it actually can. Or that imprisoning us in iron will be more harmful than it is. We can travel more freely as well..." She looks around as if to make sure they aren't observed, "Which makes us very good at... let us say intelligence gathering."

Thorn ahs quietly. "I'm surprised it's been kept such a good secret for so long! But don't worry, I won't be telling others. The important thing is that we now know why you're not doing great, and what to do about it. I'll work with the chirurgeon, who probably knows more about this than I do. For now, keep getting rest, fluids, and don't worry: we'll make sure your pregnancy is without any further issues!"

Lise takes a deep breath and relaxes, "Just knowing what might be the problem is good! Very good." She tips her head, "I would ask how you could tell, but... I don't know if you could explain it. It is enough that you know."

Thorn smiles quietly. "I've inherited some very good healing abilities, it seems." Best to leave it at that; he doesn't know what peoples' reactions to someone being part tuatha would be, after all. [Looks like we're still a society of secrets], he thinks glumly. Still, better safe than sorry. He smiles and nods to the woman, before going to confer with the chirurgeon. He must know something about these sorts of pregnancy issues. The chirurgeon listens and ahhs, "I see. We've seen it, but not often. It can be treated. She'll be... uncomfortable for a while." He chuckles a bit wryly, "Something like what I understand human mothers call 'morning sickness.' But it will keep the child safe."

Thorn nods, scribbling coded notes in his notebook. "Good. Good! I'm glad to hear that! Without knowing more I didn't want to make a mistake or try to do more. A more natural path to healing would be better." Meanwhile his mind is chewing over the problem: how could his magic be used for a case like this? He doesn't even know the mechanisms of the imbalance, for starters; maybe in a few years? A decade? Well, he thinks wryly, it's good to know that he can't just snap his fingers and make people all healed! There's something grounding about knowing his limitation.

As she's heading off to get ready for bed, Cinnamon meets Marcus in the hallways. The Germanic elf wishes Cinnamon a pleasant night, and smiles, "Good luck with keeping all of your clothes intact this time."

Cinnamon giggles at that, giving Marcus a quick hug before she steps back and pushes her glasses up, beaming sunnily at him, "Hope to! I'm going to try my new learning on positive reinforcement, and see if that works. Have a good night!" With that, she patters off towards her room, to get ready. Marcus chuckles and returns the hug, actually smiling at having made her laugh... and having managed to do so with Shane conveniently nowhere to be found. Positive reinforcement, indeed!

Cinnamon wears her nice new red robe, when she comes pattering along the hallway to the soundproofed room. She wonders, with a small, excited grin to herself, who'll be waiting there for her tonight! It's Shane and Arvid at the door again, with Fraser. Shane really, truly knows Fraser is a good guy 25 days out of the lunar month. He also knows that three days out of it, Fraser is pure id. Cinnamon can handle Fraser physically, but it's the psychological bits Shane sometimes has worries about. The little dragon beams and hugs both Shane and Arvid when she arrives... then applies the research she'd read up on earlier in the day. She calmly informs Fraser that she's not going to put up with him destroying anything else, or hurting anyone else, while she's around. So he has a choice: he can behave, and he'll get a (well-behaved, darnit!) hug in the morning... or he can tear something up again -- and she'll simply refuse to have anything more to do with him in wolf form during the full moon. His choice!

Shane puts his hand over his mouth to keep Cinnamon from seeing the grin... and to keep himself from asking if well-behaved hugs precluded Fraser being naked at her! He still can't quite get over that turn of phrase. While talking to Fraser, Cinnamon carefully does not mention aloud, of course, that she knows the big curse-wolf is both cunning, and acting out. Therefore, presenting him with a desired reward for good behavior should hopefully encourage him to want to earn it. Merely punishing him for bad behavior, on the other hand, simply encourages him to act out more defiantly each time. So after that, she patters into the little room with the big, grumbling red wolf, waving a cheerful goodnight to the two men. Once the door is locked, she gives Fraser-wolf a nice hug about his furry neck -- a bit of positive reinforcement to remind him to be nice can't hurt! Then she climbs into bed, just like the night before... and internally crosses her fingers that this will work. Cinnamon rather likes her new red robe, after all!

Plus, though the little dragon didn't tell anyone else, she brought the tattered remains of the old robe as well. She lays that on the floor next to the bed, for Fraser-wolf to sleep on if he wants. She knows, from her research earlier in the day, that having the pack leader's scent around is apparently calming to dogs... and touch is really important to them! She's hoping that a) the playful exercise they all had together was maybe a little tiring -- or reassuring? -- to Fraser-wolf, and b) the old robe will be a nice, calming scent for him. Fraser grumbles and growls and has some very bristly body language. But he also knows spending full-moon nights alone, if he's truly locked up, is miserable! Also, this small one can hurt him... which means he has someone who can impose limits... which, to a lupine brain, is a good thing. He flumps down on the tattered robe, puts his chin on his paws, and (with a put-upon sigh) sleeps. He's shockingly well-behaved.

Consequently, the next morning when the door is opened, Fraser-wolf gets a big hug... and even some ear scritchies! Cinnamon is absolutely delighted, and happy to share her pleasure with the big, grouchy wolf. Fraser leans his whole big body into the hug, tail thumping. He tries to act like he's grumpy, but... but ear scritches...! When the door is opened the next morning, it's Shane and Bjarke. Shane actually brought his own robe this time, though what he sees is Cinnamon beaming up at the folks at the door, nearly caroling, "Good morning!" She's curled up next to Fraser-wolf, leaning on him as she hugs him and scritches his ears. It's... oddly adorable looking!

Shane smiles, "Good morning, acushla. I see there's no need for you borrowing my robe. I'm almost disappointed." His eyes twinkle, though he doesn't try to approach too quickly -- Fraser might still growl at him.

Cinnamon scrambles to her slippered feet, leaning to hug Fraser once more as she cheerfully adds to him, "See you tonight, Frasey-wuffie!" She beams at both men as she patters on out, "Oh, no problem -- Fraser-wuff's very smart!" She giggles as she winks at the big wolf and adds, "And good looking, right?" She's beaming as she heads down the hallway, though she calls over her shoulder to Shane, "Don't forget, we're leaving soon for Reykjavik, Shaney!"

Shane grins and looks in the room at Fraser, brow arched, "Smart or sly, one." He calls back to Cinnamon, "I haven't forgotten!" -- then turns and heads for his room, muttering, "Maybe Marcus has, though."

It's just under an hour later that Cinnamon-dragon lands at the Reykjavik bus stop. It's not quite dawn yet -- that's due to occur at about 10:30ish am -- so the dragon shifts shape before walking into the station. She's still chattering happily as they go, "-and then we can stop at the jerky store before we go on to the meeting place for the walking tour, okay?" She giggles as she adds, "The store is called 'Feed the Viking,' too! Isn't that funny?"

Once they arrive, the little dragon is absolutely delighted with the jerky store, happily pattering around and sniffing enthusiastically at all the wonderful smells. She ends up purchasing four each of the three jerky flavors, as they all smell delicious to her... which isn't really surprising, considering the contents are either fish, beef, or lamb! After some dithering, she decides to also purchase two each of the 'soup in a bag' products too, since they sound really easy to make: just add boiling water, wait ten minutes, stir, and enjoy! It makes her happy that all the products are all apparently also locally and sustainably produced... so when she's done shopping, she beams up at her companions, "That was fun! Okay, shall we head for the meeting place for the tour now?"

Due to Hilde's and Spice's subtle (and delighted!) machinations, Cinnamon has again ended up going to Reykjavik for the foodie walking tour with just herself, Shane, Marcus, and Thorn. The scarlet dragon flew in easily enough, despite it being a very overcast, lowering, breezy day with heavy snow forecast for the evening. Consequently Cinnamon warned everyone to layer up quite thoroughly, so they stay warm while walking between restaurant stops in the city. She also cheerfully offered some of her pretty, recently-purchased woolen mittens and/or socks to all three young men -- they all have already accepted beanies from her, after all. Shane considers a moment, then says, "I'd like to pick up some mittens and socks for me mum. I think she'd love them." He grins a bit, "Actually, I'd like to get matching, or at least complementary ones, for her and da."

Cinnamon laughs and thinks that's a lovely idea, "We can stop at a shop after the food tour -- how's that?"

Shane nods, "Good idea. My stomach's starting to think my throat's been cut, anyway." Marcus arches a brow as if he's not heard that idiom before... then adds, "I'm a bit peckish myself."

Cinnamon giggles, then chatters cheerfully to her friends as she leads the little group westwards across the city towards downtown Reykjavik and the beautiful Harpa concert hall and conference center, which is where their tour guide awaits them. "The folks that run the tours are really nice, you guys! I told them that our group had someone who worked really closely with horses, and another with an allergy to certain steel compounds, so could we please avoid horsemeat and get a warning if there was any steel around... and they told me no problem, and most of the restaurants can also provide wooden utensils too!"

Thorn nods, "Oh, that's good! I'm glad they'll be able to do that."

Marcus murmurs quietly, "I don't think any of us would feel exactly comfortable with horsemeat. All of us have spent time around Iason at some point or another. Or other centaurs."

Shane nods and smiles wryly speaking just as quietly, "I've got the same issue with goat now. I've met a couple satyrs and just..." He shrugs. "Lamb, on the other hand? I will eat all the lamb you'll give me."

Cinnamon grins and nods fervently to Shane, "Yeah, me too! I can't even joke any more about being hungry enough to eat a horse without feeling a bit guilty -- so I just don't use that term any more." A moment later she beams as she spots a slender, enthusiastic young blonde man who's wearing a blue 'Reykjav�k Food Walk' backpack. He waves at them and Cinnamon waves back as she happily adds, "That must be our guide -- Jokull!" The young man introduces himself to them, gets everyone's names, then congratulates them on deciding to come out despite the weather -- apparently the party of six which had been going to join this group decided to cancel at the last minute.

Jokull, as it turns out, was born in the city... and is both entertaining and knowledgeable. As the little group strolls together, they pass a statue which Jokull explains commemorates Ingolf Arnarson, a Norwegian traditionally considered the first settler of Iceland, around 870 CE. The first stop is at the local flea market for some small samples from different folks there -- dried fish snacks at one table, and anise chocolate at another. Jokull is clearly friends with several of the folks at the flea market, too. When Cinnamon asks how much the samples cost, he laughs and shakes his head, "Nono, you've paid for the tour! This is just part of it. Don't eat too much, though -- we'll be stopping next at the first restaurant!"

Shane is quite happy to nibble the samples. Marcus is careful to make sure there's no steel or iron on the sample tables, before he nibbles as well. Cinnamon whispers quietly to Marcus, "It's all good! I checked!"

Marcus leans down so his lips almost touch Cinnamon's ear to whisper back, "I know, but it's always good to double-check." Cinnamon blinks and manages to swallow the squeak -- mostly because her mouth is full -- but the hot blush spreads instantly across her face! Fortunately, Shane does not bite through his tongue... though he does find he has to quietly remind himself about what it means to be in the moment -- and that Cinnamon is an adult. But it keeps coming back to asking himself yet again: is he jealous? No... he doesn't feel jealous of Marcus -- he just doesn't trust Marcus not to hurt the little dragon. Thorn's own thoughts unwittingly somewhat mirror Shane's, though without the concern that he might jealous. While the healer doesn't trust Marcus all that much, his personal views are softened by the fact that he's been accepted by Cinnamon and her circle of friends despite the circumstances surrounding their first meeting.

The next stop is along Laugavegur Street, at a restaurant called Sj�rvargrilli�, which Jokull translates for his group as 'sea barbeque.' Inside, they're served some delicious little 'small bites,' which look like tiny tacos with food heaped on top. The guide cheerfully answers any questions, and when Cinnamon interestedly asks, he explains what they're eating. Of the two small bites everyone receives, one is of fried breaded lobster, shaved beets, shredded white cheese, and a few baby spinach leaves on a buckwheat blini... while the other is a small portion of tender arctic char topped with salmon caviar and served on a chickpea blini. Cinnamon looks a bit dubious... but then gets a determined look on her face and tries them both! She has much the same reaction to both, too: after thoughtfully chewing, then swallowing, she gets a faintly surprised look and brightens, "Wow, yummy!" -- then devours the rest with pleasure.

Shane comments on the chickpea blini, "Mum says that a lot of people that can't have gluten eat chickpea pasta, actually."

Thorn realizes there's an awful lot of fish in the menus -- not that he minds, and it makes sense. There's just a lot of fish! He's quite content to nibble and try out the unusual fare. He nods to Shane, "That's one of the main ingredients in gluten-free pasta and pizza. Chickpea, I mean."

Jokull nods and cheerfully agrees, "J�! This is one of the reasons we enjoy this restaurant -- they are quite reasonable about accommodating requests. Look -- the platters are pretty glazed ceramics, and even the tables are of wood! No steel or horsemeat." He smiles at Cinnamon and the entire group, "We want everyone to be able to enjoy our city!"

The group exits the little restaurant a short while later, and Jokull leads them along the street. He cheerfully points out local landmarks, tells a bit about their history... and on occasion has amusing personal stories to tell about them too. He grins as he tells about his father getting in trouble, many years ago as a young man, for climbing on that statue over there... and proudly relates how some of his grandmother's recipes have been passed down in the family, and influenced the food served in one of the restaurants they'll be visiting. The Reykjavik City Hall is discussed as they pass it... and then Jokull pauses in front of another little restaurant -- the Hressingarsk�linn, or Refreshment Bowl. "We'll get a traditional farmer's breakfast here!"

That apparently consists of a deliciously delicate lamb and veggie stew, served with thin-sliced roast beef on flatbread, strawberries and blueberries in yogurt -- and bottomless coffee! Marcus may also notice that once again the tables are heavy wood, while the dishware is pretty crockery... but this time there are utensils -- all of which are made of carved wood. Cinnamon ahs when she sees the roast beef, whispering to her friends, "I was told that often it's horse meat instead of beef... but I chose the beef option for us all!"

Thorn huhs, and whispers back, "Being American, I'm really not used to meat other than beef, poultry, pork, and fish. I'm not eager to try horse, mind... just surprised that would be an option. Thank you for asking them to choose the beef!"

Cinnamon nodnods in wry amusement, "Surprised me too, when I read about it! I'm really glad I did some research first, y'know?" She devours her food, and sighs happily after finishing the fruit, "Mmm, that was just delicious... and just right! Not too heavy, not too light."

Shane looks beyond happy when they sit down for an actual full meal. He grins, "Mum says I get my metabolism from Quinn. She says when they were living together, he could eat six full meals a day if left to his own devices."

Marcus nods and says, "She's likely right. Our..." he glances around the room before continuing, "family metabolism does tend to be quite fast, despite the tendency to be long-lived." He's pleased at the wooden utensils.

Cinnamon grins shyly, "Um... that's good, then, since if I read the tour description right, we've still got three more stops!"

Jokull turns up from talking to the restaurant owner, and overhears Cinnamon -- and laughs, "Oh, yes! One streetside stop, one fine restaurant, and then a really nice cafe are all still to go!" He waves a hand as he adds, "But plenty of walking to settle your stomachs, so do not worry on that account, j�?"

Thorn blinks and looks at the portions. This is a lot of food! But very, very delicious! He grins at Jokull's comment about settling the stomach, "That, or work up an appetite...."

The guide cheerfully replies, "Oh, j� -- that's definitely the goal!"

Shane grins at Jokull, "Oh, I'm good with a lot of walking. When I graduated high school, I basically hiked over half of England and most of the way across Ireland and I spend most of my day walking." Jokull brightens a bit at that, and for much of the rest of the meal he chats happily with Shane about hiking in the British Isles -- apparently he took one summer between college semesters and did much the same!

After that stop there is indeed rather a bit of walking, though it's obvious there's no pressure at all for anyone to rush. Further, Jokull's clearly genuine love of his city helps pass the time as he relates historical information about that building, or pauses to tell a story regarding the creation of this park, and so on. His management of the group is very subtle, to the point that Cinnamon manages to keep up easily, and isn't winded at all -- she's quite pleased! It's about 15 or 20 minutes later that the guide leads them up to a little red sort of streetcar-looking thing with signage declaring it to be B�jarins Beztu Pylsur, or 'The Town's Best Hot Dogs!' Jokull explains that these are foot-long hot dogs made of lamb, and can be ordered with a variety of toppings. He grins as he relates why the mustard-only option is called the Clinton: apparently the vendor recognized Bill Clinton while he was here for some conference. She called him over to try her hot dogs, but since he was on a diet, he had mustard only -- so she renamed that style for him!

Thorn laughs at the anecdote, and is fascinated that 'hot dogs' -- and called as such -- managed to establish themselves in Reykjavik. But lamb sounds fascinating... and delicious! Marcus chuckles, "I remember my father speaking about that president... that it was somewhat sad that Americans were so uptight about their leaders having lovers. But then someone... perhaps Josie's father? -explained that it wasn't so much that they were uptight about that, but that he lied and broke a vow."

Cinnamon nods to Marcus, "If I understand it correctly, um..." she blushes slightly, "p-p-poly- uhh... polypamory? -er, something like that -- uh, th-that it's important t-to tell your p-partner about other lovers? Uh, a-and he... didn't?" She hastily adds, "Also, um -- oh! Uh, m-maybe d-don't touch the building box, okay?" She's blushing hotly as she hastily turns to Jokull and asks what he recommends for toppings. He smiles and suggests one with everything on it, if she's still feeling hungry? She nods in relief, and gives that order... and when she picks it up, she discovers her foot-long is slathered with Icelandic ketchup, Icelandic mustard, remoulade sauce, deep fried onion, and raw onion! She blinks at it in some surprise... then grins gamely, "Okay then!"

Thorn blinks at Cinnamon's, as he gets one only with fried onion and Icelandic mustard, "All that's missing is chili, it seems!"

Cinnamon grins at Thorn after finishing a tasty, messy mouthful, "Maybe they have chili and we just didn't know how to ask for it?" She laughs, adding, "I like that it's a family business, and has been here since 1937, too!"

Shane puts a hand on Cinnamon's shoulder and smiles, "Yes. Polyamory only works if everyone knows what's going on. They were upset because he was cheating... even if Americans are rather uptight about... romantic arrangements." Had it been anyone else, he'd have just said sex. Cinnamon smiles up at Shane and nods -- in her nervousness, she missed her mispronunciation of the word!

Marcus ahhhs, "That's right. I forget."

The next stop is once again a fair walk's distance away. This time it's the fine restaurant, which is called Messinn Seafood Restaurant. Interestingly, the building's interior has the same rough-hewn rafters and sturdy wooden tables... but the dishware all matches, and bears the elegantly cursive M which is the restaurant's logo. There are actual logo'd glasses as well, while the utensils are of pewter or carved wood. Jokull tells them they can order beer here, if they wish, though that will have to be paid for separately from the tour... and also that the food will be served in pans, family style! Thorn brightens. He's always been fond of family-style served food. Cinnamon decides (a little nervously) to stick with water for now, thanks!

While they wait for the food to be cooked, the cheerfully efficient waitress brings out a large plate of hot molasses bread and fresh-whipped butter... and when the pans arrive a short while later, she deftly serves them while explaining what each one is, in pleasantly accented English. The first pan is full of deliciously bubbly Arctic char baked in honey, butter, & lemon, with slivered almonds scattered over the top. On the side of the pan are a generous pile of baby potatoes, cherry tomatoes, and lightly braised spinach leaves. The other pan contains plokkfiskur stew: shredded cod mixed with mashed potatoes and cheese, and generously dolloped with bernaise sauce.

Cinnamon excitedly tries a little bit of everything -- and then grins as she asks for seconds, please? Fortunately the pans are quite well-sized, and there's enough for everyone to eat their fill. Jokull cheerfully reminds them to not forget, though: one more stop, for dessert, after this! Thorn is really not surprised at Cinnamon's boundless appetite. She's a growing dragon, after all, and she's been exerting herself quite a bit lately, what with flying and heat absorption... though he (of course) doesn't say that. He's very pleasantly surprised by the size of the portions, and how tasty it all is.

The waitress also offers the option of a shot of brenniv�n instead of beer, should anyone prefer that. Jokull explains what the drink is: Iceland's signature distilled beverage, and the traditional drink for the mid-winter feast of �orrabl�t! Apparently the word means 'burning wine,' and is made with fermented grain mash, water, and caraway flavoring. Between Jokull and the waitress, they describe the drink as being 80 proof, clear, savory, and herbal tasting... almost sort of like rye bread might taste as a drink? Thorn relishes the panoply and intensity of the flavors, especially being out of the trod -- so he decides he will try the brenniv�n. Shane does have a beer... and a shot of the drink as well! ...but again, he's got rather a good metabolism. Marcus foregoes the beer, but does have the brenniv�n. He muses, after a taste, "I've had something similar to this... but I can't quite remember what it was called."

Cinnamon watches with interest, and asks for a sniff of Shane's shot of brenniv�n -- but at the nose-numbingly strong alcohol scent she eeps! -- then hastily hands it back to Shane, her own small nose wrinkling up a bit in reaction. Shane giggles quietly and kisses Cinnamon's temple, "Have just a tiny little nip if you want and I'll drink the rest."

Cinnamon grins shyly, blushing as she shakes her head, "I'm afraid it'd numb my tongue -- and then I'd be even more stuttery and stupid sounding than usual when I'm nervous!"

Shane looks very seriously at Cinnamon for a moment... then says quietly, gently, but firmly, "You are not stuttery and stupid, acushla. Everyone gets nervous and trips over their words sometimes."

Cinnamon blinks at Shane... then turns slightly pink. Hesitantly she says, "W-well, umm, okay -- b-but..." she takes a deep breath, "y-you weren't there when I totally froze up with Caradog, at that tea!" She sighs resignedly, "I'm surprised he didn't write me off right then and there, honestly!"

Marcus snorts at that, "That's different. That's tea with a monarch. I was eight years old the first time I had to go to some sort of official function, and I think I said three words total." Thorn listens to the conversation for the nonce; he's curious about the interactions between the three, especially since there's still the whole trust thing with Marcus. He carefully sips the brenniv�n as he listens.

Cinnamon smiles shyly at Marcus, "Th-thank you for the, er... encouragement, Marcus! But, um..." her face turns a brighter red, "I -- I b-bet you didn't nearly tip over the cream, or accidentally flip the sugar cubes onto the floor... or trip on one of the darned things while nearly fleeing, once you'd been excused!" She sighs ruefully, still smiling as she adds, "Or tear the lovely dress which Aisling was so sweet as to loan to me... I am so lucky she wasn't upset about that!"

Right about then the waitress and Jokull return with a glass jar containing several small cubes of something whitish... and Jokull grins broadly, "Ah! Here: bragging rights for when you return home!" He flourishes the jar once it's handed to him, "An Icelandic tradition: h�karl! This is cubed fermented shark -- try some!" The waitress grins and sets a small dish of toothpicks on the table before departing.

Cinnamon blinks interestedly, leaning to sniff at the jar once Jokull sets it down -- then jerking her head back in startlement as she nearly squeals, "Eeek, stinky!" The guide laughs warmly, "It is strong-smelling, yes -- that's due to the fermentation process, which helps it stay good for the long winters!"

Shane ahhhs, "This would be why we want the brenniv�n -- to numb your tastebuds and sense of smell!" He grins and tosses back his shot of the liquor, takes a deep breath, and then takes a bite of the fermented shark, one eye kind of squinted as he chews it.

Cinnamon blinks at Shane -- then laughs delightedly! She too decides to eagerly try a piece, though her preparation is to heavily butter a large piece of the bread first. She neatly nips the cube of shark off the end of the toothpick, chewing with an interested expression -- though that lasts only for seconds! Her eyes get a little wide behind her glasses, and her small nose wrinkles up again... then she glances around hastily. Seizing the piece of bread, she has a huge bite, chewing it madly and swallowing as soon as she can -- then follows that down with a long draught of the water! Once that's done she 'whew!'s softly... then grins apologetically at Jokull, "Sorry! Sorry, I d-don't mean to be mean about one of your country's traditional foods... but, um... w-well, is it okay to have bragging rights, but still not really care for it?"

Jokull laughs again, his eyes dancing, "Of course!" More confidentially he adds, "Can't stand the stuff, myself... but my granny would skin me alive if we left it off the tour, j�?"

Thorn is a little wary of the fermented shark meat. It sounds a bit too much like his nemesis, lutefisk. He's had the brenniv�n, though, so maybe Shane is right in that it'll help? He drinks the last of his own brenniv�n, then eats the cube -- and promptly realizes: no, the brenniv�n doesn't help. He quickly follows Cinnamon's lead with the bread. "It... seems like an acquired taste," he manages to say.

Cinnamon giggles at that, pushing up her glasses as she nods fervently in agreement! She giggles again as she teasingly asks, "Gonna try it too, Marcus?"

Marcus eyes the stuff warily -- at this point, everyone except him has tried it! He considers, looks around and sighs, "Ah... well, I've had Gerauchter Aal, Milbenkase, and Handkas mit Musik... why not?" He takes a deep breath, literally holds his nose, and eats the shark.

Cinnamon giggles again as she watches! "So-ooo... what are those things you mentioned?"

Marcus chews slowly. Holding his nose actually makes some of the ammonia smell null and void. He swallows and breathes through his mouth as he muses, "It's... milder than I thought..." He takes a deep breath, then smiles wryly at Cinnamon, "A type of smoked eel that's... quite strong, mite cheese, and cheese that's made with vinegar and onions. They're all traditional German foods."

"Ooh!" Cinnamon nods sagely, "Like blood sausage, right -- you don't really want to know before you've tried it!" She grins as she gently nudges the plate of remaining bread in Marcus' direction, "Yay! Now we all have h�karl bragging rights!" Jokull laughingly cheers them all, and everyone ends up raising their glasses (whether of water, beer, or brenniv�n) in shared, light-hearted enthusiasm. Then, after the shared cheers of "Skol!" -- Jokull offers to take a photo of them all. Cinnamon eagerly hands over her phone, beaming and leaning so they're all close together, "Yay! Let's keep a memory together, okay?" Shane puts an arm around Cinnamon and leans in against her. Marcus takes a moment to fuss with his hair. It's not out of any sense of vanity, but instead to make sure his ears are well-covered. He's been doing this all day.

Cinnamon thanks Jokull as she accepts her phone back a moment later, checking the photo... and gleeing happily as she shares it with her friends, "Oh, look! Came out really nice, you guys!" The four of them are smiling, comfortable, appear glowingly healthy... and both Marcus and Shane, of course, are truly lovely. Thorn's smile is relaxed, and in the slightly dim light, even mousy little Cinnamon is bright-eyed and beaming! It's a warm, cozy sort of shot... which makes the little dragon feel kind of meltingly happy inside. She's so lucky to have such good friends! She would never have thought Marcus (of all folks) would be one of them... but he's been really, surprisingly nice! Thorn and Shane, of course, just make her feel all huggy and safe, too.

Thorn thanks Jokull for taking the photo, and is glad Marcus's ears are hidden. It's a very good picture, he has to admit, and they all look great in it. One could never guess what they all really are. Shane smiles at the picture and, once they're outside, grins, "And they've got no idea that they just took a photo of a bunch of fairy tales." Cinnamon giggles at that, hugging Shane after pulling on her mittens and beanie again -- the wind has picked up, and small snow flurries can be occasionally seen.

After that delicious and filling meal, Jokull heads the group towards their final stop... though he is kind enough to pause when Shane asks for a moment while passing a shop that sells lovely knitted goods. Shane goes in and comes back out with a big grin. He found matching sets of knitted goods in two different sizes, for his parents! He's been absolutely ecstatic to be able to pass more information back and forth between Janet and Quinn, since they're using Coblyn as a go-between, so things don't get lost in the mortal mail. Cinnamon giggles and excitedly hugs Shane again -- she thinks it is so wonderful that his parents are able to be closer like this!

The last stop turns out to be a cute little place called Icelandic Caf� Loki. On the way to the cafe, Jokull proudly points out the Reykjavik Parliament House, or Althingishus -- the oldest still-standing Parliament in the world. Next to it is an equally ancient church, though it obviously has been rebuilt and/or repaired more often than the sturdy stone Althingishus. Thorn verbally appreciates the design of the church, but it reminds him that his magic goes away when he hears church bells, and the Scandinavian countries are (in)famously religious. He hopes his abilities won't be needed, though using them in the city would be hazardous. Marcus is also a little... hesitant about the bells; Shane: less so. But he's an odd mix. He's not mentioned to anyone if he's got any sort of the fae-bound weaknesses. He handles iron just fine. He's not seemed to react to church bells, that anyone's seen. But he can't be invincible, can he? Cinnamon, of course, is certainly not going to mention Shane's comment about the church bells always giving him headaches! What he's not mentioned is that the bells don't make him flee, like they do for most fae... and he can do a fairly good job of looking like he's just fine and dandy even when they do ring. Hmm, he wonders... has he said something to Thorn about that?

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Last modified: 2019-Jun-12 19:53:32

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