[crow]

Cecil checked his bag to make sure he had everything he needed. He'd already checked twice, once in the room where he kept all his supplies, and once after he put on his shoes, but better to be safe than sorry. It seemed like he was good to go though, so he stepped out of his house.

He took a deep breath. He could do this.

He felt nervous, but there was also a thrill coursing through his veins. He didn't technically have permission to do this--- he was just a lowly research assistant right now--- but he wanted to look into this phenomenon too! He just... had to do it on his own time. Yeah.

[Freezair]

Cecil was not entirely alone, however.

From overhead, a figure watched. At the moment, the figure resembled a tiny deer, with a gray pelt with rainbow splotches and an unusual yellow mane. But it was not merely an unusually small deer, nor an offshoot species of the Hippofly. It was a fairy named Boris--and he was watching and waiting for the right time to reveal himself.

He too was deeply curious about the black mist. Despite being a fairy of nature, he was as baffled by the stuff as humans were. He wished to speak with those who called themselves "scientists" about it, but most of them seemed too tied up in their studies to speak with him. But here was one who seemed to be a "scientist" and was as yet unoccupied...

[crow]

Of course, getting up the nerve to do anything was only half the battle. Maybe even one quarter of the battle. It didn't feel like very much, regardless, now that he was faced with the prospect of having to find a starting point.

Fortunately, he didn't have to guess at the entire thing. Working in a lab had its advantages. He dug out a small machine with a screen built into the top and flipped it on. It scanned the local area and emitted a single beep.

"Hmm, I guess there isn't any around here, huh?" he muttered to himself. That meant he had to get moving and cover some more ground.

[Freezair]

Ah! It was some kind of device! Boris knew those devices were used by mortals to discern all kinds of things--air pressure, moisture, even radioactivity. Maybe now was a good time!

He didn't want to appear in his full form yet. Giant, mystical Paragon were a lot more intimidating than little Reindoe. So he poked his head out of the bushes, brought himself into view, and said softly:

"Excuse me. Are you a scientist? I... I could use your help with something."

[crow]

Cecil was just about to try and see if he could get the device to at least give him a directional indicator of where to go when a head popped out of a bush. "Oh my goodness!" he said, startling--- and fumbled the device. It was just one little heart attack after another. Fortunately he managed to catch it, but he could feel his pulse spiking with the momentary panic it had caused.

Once he calmed down though, he realized that the creature in the bush didn't look all that threatening. "Oh, er... Are you talking to me?"

[Freezair]

Are you talking to me? Boris had not interacted much with mortals, and he had to admit... he was a bit taken aback by the question. There did not appear to be anyone else around. He couldn't sense any other spirits lurking behind the bushes, and there were no other mortals about. Who else would he be talking to?

"Ah... well, yes! There's no one else here, as far as I can tell. I was looking for a scientist, you see. I saw that you have a... a device there. And am I correct in assuming that those who usually possess Devices are typically Scientists?"

[crow]

Oh. As soon as the dragon pointed it out, Cecil felt a bit embarrassed. It was right; there really wasn't anyone else around. Cecil even looked behind him to be absolutely sure, but he was alone. It was just that he hadn't expected anything--- or anyone--- to pop out of a bush and start addressing him.

It couldn't compete, however, with the pleasure of being called a scientist... "That... That's right," he said. And technically, it was, wasn't it? Even a research assistant was a scientist... right? "I, er, was looking into that strange black mist with this..."

[Freezair]

((Gaah. As soon as I say, "Yeah, my schedule's totally open for a point-grinding RP!", what happens? I get busy. Sorry this hasn't been as spam-tacular as I promised.))

"Oh, you WERE! Good! Very good! Have you learned anything yet?" the tiny, deer-like creature said. "Because I am so dearly in need of knowledge!"

He didn't want to reveal his true identity yet. He suspected a Scientist might not fully understand. "I am something of a caretaker for nature, you see. A... what might you call it... an Environmentalist, perhaps. And I am deeply concerned with this black mist, but nothing I have done so far has told me anything about it! I was looking for assistance..."

[crow]

((no worries, I'm probs only gonna be able to manage once a day myself with school and all XD))

Cecil was taken aback by the creature's enthusiasm, but then its question registered and he faltered, wilting under its gaze. "W-Well... Not exactly," he said. "I... I'd just stepped out. I hadn't actually had a chance to find anything yet..." It was too early for his research to bear fruit considering he'd basically just started, but he still didn't like the idea of disappointing someone who was counting on him as a real scientist.

He was a bit confused by the creature's explanation, but it didn't seem unfriendly. And, well, he was pretty used to being an assistant. "Um, if you like, we could go together," he offered.

[Freezair]

"Ah. You mean... you don't know either yet? Hmm. Disappointing." Boris twitched the little tuft of a tail he had in this body. Perhaps he had been too enthusiastic. If he, a great Fairy of Nature, hadn't yet been able to determine what the black mist was or where it had come from, why would he assume a mortal had?

And yet, to think otherwise seems rather speciesist of me. Mortals have many wonderful tools that we fairies do not possess. They are not necessarily weaker than we... just different.

So it excited him greatly when the mortal suggested they travel together! "Why, that sounds wonderful! I think I shall accompany you. I dearly wish to know what you might find out!"

[crow]

The little creature's casual words were like another crushing blow to Cecil's confidence. He tried not to look as though it was bothering him too much, but it really was hard not to feel disheartened. "Um, if you don't mind me asking... What is it that you do as a caretaker for nature?"

He had never encountered a creature of this sort before, and no one had ever introduced themselves to him that way. Well, no, that wasn't entirely correct; some of the non-profit group activists that sometimes lobbied outside the pharmaceutical department offices might have answered to that kind of moniker... But he'd never met anyone at a protest who looked like this either.

[Freezair]

This young researcher was asking the hard-hitting questions right off the bat! "There's no fooling a true Scientist, is there?" he asked with a chuckle. "Very well. I suppose I shall tell you the truth!"

He gave a little nod with his antlered head. "My name is Boris, and I am what you might call a fairy. Yes, the kind you see in picture books, though we're not all tiny humans with butterfly wings." He smiled. "Specifically, I am a fairy of the Aurora Borealis, tasked with helping to protect this world from electromagnetic radiation. But even with my ties to nature, I have no idea what's going on with this black mist..."

[crow]

Cecil's first thought was that the creature seemed to be rather theatrical. Then again, maybe if Cecil was magical, he'd be like that too.

The thought was merely a distraction, of course, from how strange everything sounded. Well, except for the part about the electromagnetic radiation, but he'd never thought a fairy would be involved with that sort of thing.

"That... sounds like it's a tough job," he said. As for the mist, Cecil presented his device again. "I don't know much about it either myself, but I created this to detect the presence of the mist..." He was pretty sure it would work, anyway. He hadn't had a chance to test it out.

[Freezair]

"Oh! You made it yourself? I must say I am impressed. You're quite clever to have built a whole Device yourself." And it wasn't a lie--Boris really was impressed. He was always impressed with those who could devise their own solutions to problems. He had to admit, he'd never been as good at that sort of thing as others.

"So, you'll have to tell me how this Device works. And what has it detected so far, if anything? All I've been able to discern is that it's not... natural. If it was, I think I'd be able to get some sort of read on it, but it's a blank, impervious wall to me..."

[crow]

Cecil hadn't expected to be flattered so much right off the bat. "Er, I... Thank you, but it really isn't much..." He wasn't just being modest either. He felt a little dismayed now at how much faith this fairy seemed to be putting in him, when it was really just something he had thrown together. He didn't even know if it would work.

But the fairy had called on him to explain, so he did. "We had a small sample of the stuff at the place where I worked... This is designed to pick up the presence of that type of particle," he said. "All it does is tell us if we're getting any closer, and I haven't tested it out, but if it works, it should at least help us find this mist..."