Ewan decided not to protest. He was happy they were leaving the well. The boy didn't hesitate to grab hold of Angel's neck and waist, hugging her fiercely during their ascent. Luckily, he was small and weighed no more than a camping pack. It was dark when they reached the surface.

"Sorry," Ewan said in a small voice, dropping to the grass.The boy's face was hot with embarrassment. He felt stupid hanging there and whimpering. "We can try again tomorrow. I'll do better. I-I promise...."

Old Mara's cottage was up the hill. Her silhouette sat on the porch, star-gazing.

He probed for the next foothold. He counted silently. One. Two. Three. And descended another rung. "I just don't want to go. Its gonna be harder going up," he called down. His voice was quivering and plaintive, like a child trying to avoid school. "Can't we just do something else for her. Please?"

Angel's glow worm illuminated the bottom of the well, but failed to pierce the murky depths. Fire would have been much friendlier than the alien light. A tunnel wreathed in tree roots and wisps of silk branched off from the well-proper.

"I don't do fire. I do plant and animal magic and stuff. Its called animancy. And you're not older- and I wasn't-!" Ewan huffed, scrambling down the well after her.

It was slow going down the rough hewn ladder. Being barefoot didn't help. Each slit was either jagged, or slick with moss and lichen. He didn't even want to know what sorts of crawling things lived inside. By the time Ewan was half-way down, Angel was already nearing the large pool at the very bottom. That's when the trouble started.

Something crawled over his foot. With a shriek, Ewan lost his footing and was left hanging by his arms. His muscles burned as he hung there for what felt like hours, before his probing toes found the ladder again. His heart was pounding. "Angel I don't know If I can do this..." he called down weakly. Ewan was stuck. He was afraid to go any further for fear of slipping, and he didn't think he was strong enough to make the climb-back.

He rubbed the back of his neck, sheepishly. "Oh. Right. We will need to see, huh? Actually, wait!" And with that he dropped to his knees and made a shrill chittering noise. Moments later a pair of big, green, phosphorescent worms wriggled their way from the tall grass. The feel of magic stirring within his chest felt good. He picked them up, letting them crawl up his hand with some trepidation, and held one out with a proud smile. "There! They'll grow in the dark for us. The slimier one's yours, for kickin' me."

He gently shifted the glowworm to his shoulder and approached the makeshift ladder. The worms' pale glow already dispelled some of the darkness. They were sure to be enough. "So whose first?"

Shaggy cheered up when they brought him a mutton haunch for breakfast, but still more sullen than usual.

Despite slick coat of moss growing on the masonry, the well looked sturdy enough. It had a little thatch roof and was mostly obscured by the tall brush growing around it. Without Mara's directions they'd have been lost. "You really didn't notice about the clothes, how they dress you and stuff?" He turned to face her, unbuttoning his vest as a demonstration. In a matter of moments the vest crept back over his belly, buttons dutifully finding their holes. He let out a small laugh, "See? I don't know a whole lot about enchanting garments but I bet she'd make us something real nice if we helped. Like... shoes to walk on air? A backpack that can hold a house?"

Ewan leaned on the mossy stonework and peered into the blackness of the well. He couldn't see the bottom. Despite its age the thatch roof was in good repair, and the winch and bucket were still sturdy."I've never gone down a well before. Do you just climb the rope? Oh! And the spider..." The boy tried to take stock of what else they'd need to do this. It was hard to keep focused. He was excited and it all sounded so easy.

"And sure we'll help! What sorta trinket is it?" he perked up. He was expecting a boring and exhausting chore like woodcutting or fruit picking. But a forgotten trinket sounded good. Especially if a magical seamstress wanted it. Not that dresses concerned him much.

"I suppose ya noticed yer clothes are charmed? Its all the loom. Now when I was young I had a pair of shears to match. A loom to weave anything and shears to cut anything. Traded them to the spider down my well for her silk, ya see."

Ewan gave her a nod. It all seemed very sensible. Sapient spiders hardly seemed scary anyway. He was a magician! It did sound a bit dubious. A loom that could make anything? It was probably just magic clothes, but his curiosity was piqued. "Why'd you give them up? And why do you want them?"

"Young and foolish. Didn't think I needed em if I could weave anything. But magic don't just let you run amuck, as you well know. The loom 'n shears need each-other to work proper."

"Guess all magic has a price, huh? But we'll help!" Ewan wondered if something else in the world had aged hideously because he had gotten so young. Or maybe the price was how he had to learn stuff again, like the word adult? He frowned at the thought. "And could I have seconds?" he looked sheepish, adding "-please?" Bland as the stew was his boy's palette was more than satisfied with generous helpings of meat, fat, and salt.

(OOC: Hope the deviation from the tinderbox is okay! Thought it might match the whole seamstress theme.)

Why can't he answer? And who was she to be kicking him! Ewan gave Angel a kick back, but wound up slamming his foot against her chair-leg instead. There was a thump and he shot a glare at his nagging companion. "Sorry! I slipped..." he apologized and turned red.

Old Mara set one bowl down after the other, gently sliding them across the table to her guests."Have me a daughter. Headstrong girl and out on the world now. Didn't want the farm or the loom, I'm afraid," she gave a wistful smile and looked just a bit sad, but not pitiful. "Visits from time to time of course. So don't you go feelin' sorry."

Of course Ewan did feel a little bad for the lonely old woman, regardless of her apparent feelings on children being seen and not heard.

"Thank you, um, m'am," Ewan gave her a grateful smile, and began gulping down the stew almost immediately as it was set in front of him. The old woman had meanwhile started to root in the cupboard for drinking cups. "So... what sortsa chores could we help with?" he piped in again, trying to sound helpful.

Ewan gave Angel a snicker as he passed her, pausing in front of his reflection to preen. They found the woman seated at the hearth and smiling contentedly. She motioned for them to sit. "Thank you Mara, uh, m'am... it smells real good," he greeted her earnestly. And it certainly did; his mouth was beginning to water. Shaggy had caught rabbits on the road but he didn't know how to cook them, so they were usually charred and dry.

Old Mara ladled out the stew for her guests. "So, lass, now that you've escaped your groom where are you two headed? Could use a pair of young hands if you're looking for a roof..." she added sweetly.

He didn't want to be volunteered to stay at this bumpkin's cottage! "We uh, we're actually going to La'marri," he interrupted. At that Old Mara gave him a scolding look that made him want to be quiet.

Ewan stamped his foot, trapped behind the barrier. It seemed he couldn't win. "Its why I asked! And what's takin' so long anyway? I thought you were the wearing pants and playing in the mud type. Not the hair-combing and make-up type," an impish smirk crossing his face, "maybe your groom got lucky."

***

Meanwhile Old Mara dipped a ladle into her mutton stew, savoring the test, before fishing out the lamb haunch. She could hear the children bickering in the washroom but she was careful. She gently sprinkled powdered valerian root onto the bone. The dog didn't like her, but he'd take food from the boy, surely. She'd offer the bone. The dog would gnaw it and be fast asleep. She'd tie him later when things were under control.

She turned back to her reagent jars thoughtfully. The dress and litle suit would keep them in line. The girl was meant for the loom, but what use the boy would be remained to be seen...

"Children, stew's ready!" she called out sweetly when her work was through.

Ewan climbed from the tub and dried off, dog-shaking his mop of hair which remained in tangles. The shirt-sleeves wriggled down his arms, and his vest dutifully buttoned itself after he'd donned the short-pants. It wasn't as stuffy as he'd imagined, at least.

"How come you got magic clothes and everything in this country, but kids don't wear shoes? My feet are like shoe-leather..." he complained. It took forever to scrub himself into presentable condition. The boy paused mid-step as he was about to round the barrier. Ewan's heart jumped and he stopped. He'd never hear the end of it if he didn't. "Okay. I'm dressed and I'm coming through," he called softly, "And if you laugh at me I'll laugh at you. So let's not hurt her feelings..."

"You tell me not to dawdle?" Ewan stuck his tongue our at Angel, holding up his ridiculous outfit in bemusement. "So what'd she give you?"

As Angel prepared to dress, if she looked closely enough, she might have noticed her new garment eagerly twitching in anticipation. The laces quivered, seams shivered, and buttons twitched in anticipating of a wearer.

Ewan stripped down and and sliding into the tub once he was safely behind the partition. A sigh escaped his lips as he sunk into the hot water, pushing wet bangs from his eyes. It wasn't until Ewan started scrubbing that he noticed how tan he'd gotten from travel. He took his sweet time bathing. He hadn't had one in a long time.

(OOC: I figure the witch can exercise power over whomever wears them?)

"I think you ran before you even met him you got so scared. And I've... I've kissed girls prettier than you too! ...when I was big," he could have put that much better. "Keep it up 'n I'll make you a frog. A slimy one."

Old Mara gave a hoarse shout from the kitchen. "Reckon the stew will be ready in a quarter bell, kiddies! All scrubbed I hope?"

"Come on I haven't got a bath in weeks!" he pleaded.

"Hey!" Ewan was suddenly trapped in a net of gossamer, which took more than a few moments to untangle. The boy tried not to blush at her insinuation. So self-absorbed! Well, maybe it be normal for a real kid on the cusp of adolescence to be curious. But he TOLD her his story!

"As if I'd want that! I just want some hot water left! And I ain't some overcurious snot-nosed brat. I wasn't lyin' before and I'm NOT gonna look!"

He looked at the garment Mara left him. A shirt, a vest, britches with suspenders and a cap to top it off. There were too many buttons and clasps. But... a lot of work had probably gone into making the little outfit and he didn't want to offend his host. There was something almost too perfect, too saccharine,  about the entire thing. Magic? But this was Serendipity.

"Still never told me about the guy you were gonna marry. Did you even meet him?"

"Sorry. He was in bad shape when I found him. You might just remind him of someone- hey!" Ewan was cut off as the dog began circling him like a herder, determined the boy shouldn't go any further. Just being clingy, probably. "Shaggy I'm NOT leaving you. I promise. We'll bring you a bone after dinner, alright?" It took some coaxing but the dog finally settled into the stable with suspicious whine. Ewan felt a pang of guilt, eager as he was for a warm bed he wouldn't be sharing with a dog.

The cottage was nicely furnished, for a farmer, and the mouth-watering aroma of stewed meat was in the air. She took them to a back room with a wash basin, putting the fire on. "Worked the loom a bit in my youth, orchard was the husband's business. I'll see if I can't scrounge something proper for a travelling girl. As for you, lad, I don't reckon you can get some more firewood from around back while we wait?"

Rolling his eyes when his back was turned, Ewan trudged outside to fetch the firewood while Mara returned to the kitchens. Angel was left alone to bathe. To fetch several logs while Mara tended the kitchens, leaving Angel to bathe. "How come I don't get the first bath with the nice hot water? It's hardly fair that damsels in distress outrank scruffy urchins when it comes to sympathy," he took a seat on the other side of the partition.

Meanwhile old Mara brooded in her kitchen. Only a virtuous maid could work the loom, and any innocence old Mara had was long gone. A girl fleeing a wedding was just what she needed. As for the boy? She thought she smelled the spark of magic in him. And if he didn't make a fine meal, she could always use a young back around the cottage...

He scrunched his nose emphatically at her teasing. It was kind of worrying that his taller and stronger traveling companion, who had the horse, and jewelry to barter was so... so.. aimless? But that wasn't really so bad. She probably never strayed more than 5 miles from parents in her whole lifetime.  It could be worse if she were going in the opposite direction.

"How 'bout there?" he pointed as they neared the cottage. Shaggy gave a staccato yip of approval. Ewan was tired and he'd only been riding the past few hours.

A path cut through an unkempt mess of apple trees, marked by a sign reading "Cathwain Orchards." Literate farmers were a novelty elsewhere, but not so much in Serendipity. Up the path a woman was pulling clothes from a line. Middle-aged, tanned, and robust from a life of farm work. She lifted a hand in greeting to the strange pair. "Bit far from a church yard, ain't you lass?" her smile faded at the tatters of Angel's gown, "are you alright, dear?"

"H-hi," Ewan piped up from behind Angel. "We was were wondering if you might..." he trailed off. Whatever they had to trade was Angel's business. He had pants and a dog.

(OOC: Feel free to control her of course. I was thinking anything from a kindly couple of old farmers past their prime; or a witch who wants something -more-)

"I guess you're right. Its just I used to know lots more about everything. And I didn't get talked down to by girls as much" he muttered thoughtfully with a small smile. It was a good point on her part. A strange gift.

"Well you're not so old either. What are you gonna be and do with your youth 'n freedom? You got a place in mind other than La'marri?"

The sky had turned from blue to purple and the stars made themselves plain. Arca was beautiful behind them, illuminated by thousands of torches and candles both mundane and magical. Ewan's stomach rumbled. He thought about a rabbit Shaggy brought him once, crisped over a campfire. He gave the dog a smile.

Soon a tiny cottage was visible across a field with puffs of smoke rising from the chimney.

"I meant adult," he blushed. He felt enough like a kid at this point he couldn't really argue further. "We could go to La'marri. I got a little- a sister there. That's if you've really got a mind to run away and not look back."

"But really we'd ought to get you changed and rid of the horse. I bet the guard's healing all sorts of stories about a deranged looking bride riding down this way," he couldn't help but giggle, realizing how bad off they were. He started scanning the road for farmhouses. "What do you think they'll do if they catch us, anyways?"

"Well I'm GONNA be sour if you don't believe me!" Ewan pouted in reply as she started laughing. It was a dumb idea to tell her anything about his problems. But she was right, he didn't have anyone but her at the moment, and wasn't going anywhere without her.

"How bout I do another spell? I'll- I'll grow a flower for you," the boy splayed fingers, tongue jutting from his mouth and concentrating on stamens and stepas, and were carpels just another name for pettles...? Soon enough a foul-smelling blob of moss, root, and detritus formed in his palm. It was supposed to be a tulip.

"Ugh!" he threw the slimey glob over a hedge with a sheepish expression. "Well, look! I AM a grown-up, and a wizard, and I ain't changing my story. Now where are we gonna go?"

He cracked a tired smile at her teasing. "I SAID I was a wizard!" Ewan replied as haughtily as a small child could. "It was supposed to bees, anyway, but its a spell I learned in La'marri to call animal spirits 'n stuff." He looked down at the wolfhound trotting beside them; he must have some magic left to summon bugs and attract strange dogs. That was a good sign. Being a kid might not be so bad. Being an ordinary kid with no money and a dog as his only friend was what scared him.

"I'm not a kid. Well I guess I am one now" he sighed faintly "But I was a grown-up before I had an... accident. I wanna get to La'marri to see if my friends can fix me." He let that hang in the air as they walked. There was nothing but fields and scarecrows for miles and the odd raft drifting down stream.

The pair certainly turned the heads of more than a few teamsters drifting goods to the city... well, maybe not the boy.

The world went black as the girl clapped her fingers over his eyes, probably straightening her dress. "I wasn't gonna  peak! And what would I wanna look at YOU for, anyway?" he pouted indignantly, blushing. Being treated like a brat trying to catch glimpses of her naked was just humiliating. But he probably shouldn't have insulted her! "And sorry! I meant- I just meant you startled me. Sorry the bugs, also."

They'd made their way down a bumpy cobbled road along a stream, green with scum and algae from the rainy seasons. It hopefully wasn't well traveled. Tall grass and scrubby hedges obscured them from view. "I've never met an angel before. Maybe some DO steal horses?" he gave her an impish smirk "And now that we've stole one together I don't suppose you can tell me what sort of awful husband you're running from and where you're goin? I don't even know where we are now."