Strange Meetings and Stranger Company

[Alegretto]

((OOC: Here you go @Klezmer Gryphon))

The Draconi forest breathed with life as a soft, misting rain permeated through is branches and boughs. The still air hummed with animal and plant activity as various creatures went about their business among the trees.

One of those creatures, and one of the more miserable among them, was the monk Turnrin Wist. The Serenian man sighed as he trudged along muddy road. The Draconi forest in the rain, while full of new and exciting species, was not a comfortable place, even among it's more well-established paths. His damp robe weighted heavily on him, and he was starting to worry that he would get a chill.

The monk couldn't even take notes of his surroundings, for fear of his notebook getting wet. Turnrin looked around mournfully. None of the other travelers on the road today seemed to mind the weather, but as far as the monk could see none of them where wearing heavy and damp robes.

With a sigh, Turnrin continued walking. He was considering whether or not to ask one of the passerby if there was a nearby town when he noticed something, or maybe someone, that he couldn't recognize. A species he had never seen before! Actively excited, Turnrin hurried over to the object of his fascination. "Um, excuse me!" the monk called out as he went. "Excuse me, but could I ask you some questions?

[Klezmer Gryphon]

((OoC: I know Helvechar wasn't the character we originally paired Turnrin with, but I felt that there would be a bit more of an interesting thread with Helvechar))

Helvechar wasn't in a very good mood as he paced in front of the tree. The yente innkeeper in the town a few miles back scooted the gryphon out the door with a broom like he was little more than some pest, and then took his fiddle so she could "find it's rightful owner"... And then had the guards throw him out of town when he started protesting. What had he done wrong?!

Pausing for a moment, Helvechar took in a deep breath. Cursing the tree won't solve anything... he thought to himself. The forest did nothing to deserve his anger, even if the rain and mud were unpleasant. However, his thoughts and pondering were aptly disturbed by the sound of someone calling to him....

"Um, excuse me!" a voice called"Excuse me, but could I ask you some questions?"

Helvechar craned his neck in the direction of the voice, and almost immediately started chuckling at the sight. An older man, probably a monk from what the gryphon could tell, almost tripping over his own rain soaked robe to ask him some questions. I guess the fiddle can wait a few hours.

"Ah... Brider, vi ken ikh dikh oyfshelfn?" the gryphon asked, tipping his hat up to allow the monk a better view of his face.

[Alegretto]

Upon coming closer to the target of his interest, several thing struck Turnrin. First of all, the someone, or something, appeared to be a gryphon, but smaller and with some slightly different traits then he had seen before. Also, it spoke. Turnrin had never heard of a gryphon doing that before. And in a language he didn't know to boot!

This of course left the monk with a problem, how could he communicate what he wanted with this gryphon? Well, best to start with basics. "Hello. There. Do. you. know. Any. Common?" the monk asked him, or her, in long and exaggerated words.

[Klezmer Gryphon]

((OoC: if you need me to translate some phrases or unfamiliar terms, just ask ^_^))

"Hello. There. Do. you. know. Any. Common?" The words struck a wrong note in Helvechar's mind as he listened, a vague hint of anger creeping into his thoughts. The helpful smile across his beak quickly turned to a frown as he began forming his reply

"Nayne, ikh nor redn mayn loshn!" he quipped sarcastically, "Of course I speak Common! What kind question is that?!" Clearly, his morning tsores weren't completely behind him. Realising he might have offended the monk, he tipped his hat down in remorse to avoid eye contact.

"Zay mokhl, brider, I meant no offence, or to imply that you were  of low intelligence." the gryphon said, idly scratching the ground while thinking of something else to say, "Ikh heys Helvechar, vi heystu?

[Alegretto]

Turnrin took a step back from the heat in the gryphon's voice. Even the monk, who had a hard time understanding people of his own species, could tell that he'd angered the creature. "My apologies, I also meant no offense. However, it appears that you have the advantage over me because I do not speak your language. Could we converse in common so that we may understand each other?"

The monk paused for a split second. "Please, give me one moment before we commence our conversation." Turnrin slipped his hands into his robe and pulled out his notebook and a piece of charcoal. Trying to use a quill in this situation would have been impossible. He stepped closer into the shade of a nearby tree in an attempt to keep most of the rain off, and he leaned as far as he could over the notebook.

"Alright then. My name is Turnrin, and I am a monk from Serendipity. Would you be so kind as to introduce yourself, my good fellow?"

[Klezmer Gryphon]

Helvechar could tell he was going to get almost nowhere if he kept slipping back into his native tongue, because even after he introduced himself with Ikh heys Helvechar, the monk evidently didn't understand what he meant. Looking down at the ground for a moment, the gryphon sighed.

"I call myself Helvechar Warszawski, reb," he said, sitting up so he could get a better look at the monk in front of him as he pulled out some parchment and what appeared to be a piece of charcoal. Oy... One of those people.... he thought, with a polite grin across his beak.