Elfie, P2

This is how I imagine Elfie waking Jasmine up.

"Hey, Jasmine."

I groaned.

"Jaaaaaaasmiiiiiiiine."

I groaned once more, tossing my pillow over my head.

"Wake up!" a small voice shouted in my ear, my covers being ripped from my body accompanied by a little chirp.

"I don't want to work the mill today..." I mumbled. "It's boring..."

"Mill? Oh, wake up!" the voice yelled louder, flicking my nose. I bolted up.

"I'm awake! Don't flick my nose!" I shouted. I rubbed my eyes to get the sleep out of them then looked at my talking alarm clock. It was Elfie. I thought I had dreamed her.

"Come on, we have a long day ahead of us!" Elfie said. "You were supposed to come back to my cave this morning and you ended up sleeping through it!"

"Ooh," I said, remembering last night. "Sorry."

"Hmph. Well, apology accepted," Elfie responded. "I got some supplies before I got here. Look through them. I know you know this place better than me so if there's anything we're missing we can go pick it up."

"Okay..." I yawned. I peered into her little knapsack. It had a small amount of food and water along with her orb and a small journal. There wasn't much room for anything.

"No map, compass... You know we need more than just scraps of food and water, right?" I muttered.

Elfie scoffed. "Do I look like I have room for stupid things?" I nodded in response, digging through my drawers of my tiny hut.

"I have a bag I can put stuff in. I'll put my compass and map in. Then let's hit up the market and get some rope and rent some horses," I commented.

"Horses?" Elfie tilted her little head. I nodded. I got dressed, gathered the rest of my things, slipped on my spectacles, and we were off to the market. Despite her old age, Elfie looked just like a little kid in amazement. She was staring wide-eyed at some of the animals and people.

"Jasmine, do all your people have odd appearances?" she asked.

"How do you mean?"

"Well, you have ears and a tail like a feline and that man over there has scales! That child has the ears and tail of a rabbit!"

"Yeah, that's a part of our race. We all have animal parts. We got them as a gift so we could be more friendly with animals." Elfie nodded in understanding, making a note in her little journal. The sky was a bright blue, pale wispy clouds floating by. Pigs and chickens wandered around freely, oinking and clucking at passerby. A little boy with bandages on his knees stopped to pet a pig and it squealed in glee. His mother was sitting nearby talking with an old woman who ran a sewing shop. The further into the little village we got, the closer to the liveliness of the market we got. Bustling and brilliant, deals were being made all around us. A man bought a goat at a nearby stall while across the way children bartered for candy and sweets. Elfie seemed even more amazed, but suddenly cautious.

"I need to be careful. I could easily break my orb here," she said. As she said this, a kid bumped into her and nearly knocked her over while I dodged around people seamlessly. I heard Elfie cry out as another person bumped her and I made my way back to her, grabbing her hand then lifting her to my shoulders. She pouted.

"What's wrong?" I inquired.

"This is absolutely embarrassing for a woman of my standing!" she cried.

"Elfie, to everyone here you look like a weird little girl. I only say weird because you don't have any animal parts on you," I added quickly. She made a 'hmph' sound and continued to pout. She said she was one hundred whatever years old, but she acted like a child sometimes. It was honestly adorable. I made my way to a stall that sold supplies for traveling, purchasing rope and other amenities. Once I made my way out of the market and to the stable that was on the edge of town, I put Elfie down and rented a pair of horses. Elfie got a smaller one and I got a sweet brown mare.

"Be careful with Judith and Maston," the stable hand said, ducking to avoid catching an antelope horn on a tree. "They're hardy but they need a break too. Be safe on your travels, Jasmine, and young lady!"

We set out on our horses, and as we trotted along Elfie giggled. "Now that is how you treat a guardian properly! That man knows how to treat a woman."

"You're only saying that because people keep calling you a little girl."

"Shush. We need to head to that mountain over there into a cave around the base of it," Elfie said, pointing to the base of a mountain in the distance.

"Well, it's doable. We can just hop from village to village. I'm sure there's one there too so we can rest before we head in," I reasoned. Elfie nodded, Maston whinnying beneath her.