The Storyteller Inn

~safe and sound~

 Welcome to the Storyteller Inn again dear Traveler! Do you want a tea? Or hear another story? Maybe a local one? Oh my are you like these stories? Then I have one for you!  

Have you ever heard of a peaceful snake shifter? What? You don't know what a shifter is? Where were you traveling? Under the earth?! Oh my, let me tell you. A shifter is a human with animal characteristics. But thats not the whole shifter thing, because just like with animals there are many types, and they can alter the shifting. Fully human, half animal-half human, and full animal. The prey, the predator, the animal inside you have insticts...... Well, almost always, this is why peaceful snakes are rare! 

   But sit down Traveler! Drink your tea and let me tell you the story af a peaceful snake, a flowery snake, called Thaisa.No, they arent a he, they're a she! But her story is very long traveller, so what do you want to hear about? Her parents? Her whereabouts? How does she looks like? How she became an excellent potions master and healer? Or her love life?

   Ooooh her love life~ Aren't you a curious one? Let me tell you one thing: be prepared, this story isn't a walking in the backyard, it's sad in some ways, with a happy ending. But her love was mostly for children. Why? You will see.

~

So Thaisa was a beautiful teen snakelet with long dark black hair, wich was like a starless night. Her eyes we're like the full moon. She had a flower crown made out of cherry blossom and lotus. So she was very beautiful. Of course she would have many snake shifters around her right? Normally, yes, but she was weird and different in the others eyes. How do you picture a snake?

   Green, brown or black scales with some pattern? Yeah, you're right. but she had white and light grey and green scales with some opal colour. From wich parent she got it? Who knows, they we're looking normal, not like their daughter. Aside rom that Taisha's parents really loved her, so is the family.

   But there was one problem. The young snakes, when they became 18 needed to participate in a hunt. What they hunted? You maybe have an answer for that. They were chasing the prey animals. And there is the problem. Taisha even refused to hurt a fly or eat meat. She only consumed fruits, vegetables and mushrooms.

  So just like everyone predicted it the chief of their tribe forced Taisha to choose: Kill something, or she would be exiled. To everyones suprise, she choose the exile. Let's just say her parents we're horrorified. Their only daughter is sent away because some difference. But what could they do? Lets's be honest probably nothing.

  And with that Thaisa started her journey.

~

   Well dear Traveler let's skip like 5 years, how she became a healer and a potions master, shall we? Because you were interested in her love life. I almost forgot! In the world of shapeshifters, mates exist. They can be any gender, but from the same type of animal, and all of them has a mark when they met. Don't forgot this!

~

   You can imagine Taisha's suprise when she realized her mate is a bard. What's that suprising right? Well, he wasn't a snake shapeshifter. He was a deer one. Plot twist am I right? But the funny thing is how they met. Because said deer shapeshifter was drunk, and no his name isn't Venti. It's Ryota. He's just like Taisha. Why? He isn't like other deer shapeshifters and not because he's a bard. Its's because he's a white one, just like her. So when their mate mark appeared in the form of a snake napping on some antlers, surrounded by roses they we're very happy. Even if one of them was almost blackout drunk.

   But they we're also very sad because of the difference of their species. Our happy pair couldn't have kids. But they were able to compensate that problem. How? Orphans! There were many of them because of the battles, and conflict of other tribes, and the massacre of the prey shifters.

   So they opened an orphanage in the forest. Soon the voice of the chilren filled the once empty hallways. And because Ryota was a bard the nights were filled with singing and happy laughing. There was a favourite. The one that Taisha and Ryota made. It was a lullaby sort of, writtem by the deer to the love of his life. The song was safe and sound, and every night, at curfew, they would sing it tho the children.

 But of course, there were some people who didn't like the predator-prey pair, even tho they didn't harmed anyone. And they wanted to do something about it. In the eyes of the townspeople they defied the laws of nature, and because of Thaisa's exellent potions and medicines, the first tought in their little mind was witchery.

   And what they did about it? Dear traveler brace yourself, because this gonna be disturbing. They tried to burn down the orpanage. What a bunch of fools am I right? And there were sadly a few casualities. And sadly they were all children. After many months of grieving, they built a new orpanage far away from there, and made a little altar for the dead children.

~

   And that's the story. Sad, right dear Traveler that some people would go this far to hurt someone. And if you want to see the ruins of the orpanage and the altar, I can show you, it's not that far from this inn. How I know where it is, you ask? Why wouldn't I remember the place where I spent my childhood, and of course the womanwith her mate who saw me grow up.

   And Traveler I tell you a secret. Every night when the stars are shining in the ruins you can hear the forest singing:

I remember tears streaming down your face
when I said I'll never let you go

When all those shadows almost killed your light
I remember you said don't leave me here alone
But all that's dead and gone
and passed tonight

Just close your eyes, the sun is going down

You'll be alright, no one can hurt you now
Come morning light,
you and I'll be safe and sound

Don't you dare look out your window,
darling everything's on fire

The war outside our door keeps raging on
Hold onto this lullaby
even when the musics gone,
gone

Just close your eyes, the sun is going down

You'll be alright, no one can hurt you now
Come morning light,
you and I'll be safe and sound

Just close your eyes, you'll be alright

Come morning light,
you and I'll be safe and sound

See you until the next story Traveler! Be the road under your feet infinite!

Rowan Castillo