[Freezair]

"Oooh, a LABORATORY! I would truly love to see that!" And the millenia-old, wise fairy truly was giddy at the prospect of seeing something as simple as a science lab. It was something truly unknown to him; most mortal ways were. And he did love collecting knowledge!

"Erm. But I suppose going there wouldn't help us much right now. Lead the way, then!" He turned and faced in the same direction as Cecil. "Perhaps if I find a greater concentration of it, we'll be able to learn more about it. But this mist is so... other, in small amounts, I can't learn anything from it."

[crow]

"Ah--- You want to see the lab?" This time, Cecil was truly at a loss. Under better circumstances, he could have appreciated Boris's enthusiasm for his workplace, but... "I really don't... That is, we're not allowed in after hours..." There were portions of it that ran all hours of the day, but even then, only the people who worked in those departments were supposed to be there.

Fortunately, Boris didn't pursue the topic too closely. "Alright. Oh, I think I forgot to mention... My name's Cecil," Cecil said. "Do you, er... Do you fly? Would you like to ride on me...?"

[Freezair]

Boris got the impression that he was overwhelming this fellow--Cecil?--a bit much. He bowed his antlered head sheepishly. "Goodness. I came here seeking your help out of nowhere, and I've just been a font of questions and battery. I apologize, my good sir. Cecil, is it? Well, Cecil, it's a pleasure to meet you--you have the blessings of Boris, the Aurora Fairy."

"And as a matter of fact... I do fly." He leapt into the sky and began to hover to prove his point. "Now. Where does your Detector say the mist is now?

[crow]

Rather than setting poor Cecil at ease, Boris's apology just embarrassed him. Cecil blushed and stammered. "Oh, it's--- It's alright, I didn't... I really don't mind," he said. Whether he actually did or didn't mind wasn't even a matter that crossed his mind, so eager was he to set Boris at ease.

The change of topic did more good for him than anything else. Cecil looked on, fascinated, as Boris leaped into the air. Only upon being reminded of his device did his attention hurriedly return there. "Ah, that's right... Um, well, I just point it as it takes a sample of the air around us. You could say it works a little like a snake's tongue..." To demonstrate his point, he held it up, and it made a few beeps, spaced fairly widely apart. "This direction doesn't seem too good," Cecil concluded.

[Freezair]

The nature-based analogy was just about the perfect one Cecil could have chosen to help Boris understand. As someone who understood nature, a perfect, clear picture of what was going on jumped into Boris's head. "I see! How very clever. I didn't know mortals could replicate such things." Thinking of snakes and the way they "tasted" the air, he even reflexively flicked out his own tongue.

He closed his eyes to sense what he could in his own fashion. "Hmm.. Ah! I think I detect an anomaly. I think it's just... this way." He pointed off a little ways to the east. "Does your detector also taste a little bit of the mist in that direction?"

[crow]

"Oh, well, it wouldn't have been possible if the senior researcher hadn't brought that sample in..." Cecil demured, though Boris hadn't actually complimented him directly. He was just about to start wondering if he'd gotten ahead of himself when Boris flicked his tongue out. Cecil blinked, not sure as to whether he should expect anything, before Boris came out with his verdict.

Hurriedly, he checked his device, pointing it in the direction Boris had indicated. "... Actually, it looks like it does," said Cecil, as the machine let out a more rapid set of beeps. "I guess we're going that way then, aren't we?"

[Freezair]

The detector had made its choice, and so had Boris. With a nod at his companion, Boris ambled off in the direction the machine (and his own senses) indicated.

Sure enough, there was a small, thin patch of black mist on the ground, just behind the trees. Boris tilted his head at it. "Hmm! We should use the... what is it called? Ah, yes! The Scientific Method on it. So I suppose I shouldn't touch it, then, since that might ruin any experiments we do."

He looked down at it. "I will say that the parts of my skin closest to it do seem to tingle a bit... though that could all just be in my head."

[crow]

"Use... the scientific method?" said Cecil. That... He was pretty sure that didn't mean what Boris was hoping it would mean. The scientific method could be used, yes, but it wasn't really a matter of using it on something, so much as it was supposed to be used to answer a specific question...

He'd been about to explain this when Boris mentioned the tingling. Cecil frowned. He himself didn't feel anything, but then Cecil wasn't exactly magical in nature. "M-Maybe that means we shouldn't try any direct contact with it," he said. "At least until we understand what it does..." He produced a little vial. "If we could just get a sample, maybe..."

[Event posts end here]