A Matter of Faith

Will inches forward, as quietly as he can, trailing closely behind the mouse. But there's no real cover he could take, and all the mouse has to do is turn its head to notice him. And it does.

It pauses, whiskers twitching, and then slowly swivels to face you, staring, unblinking, for a long moment.
Then, without warning, its form ripples. Fur shrinks back into skin. Limbs lengthen. Bones twist. The tiny creature stretches upward, reshaping into the frame of a naked old man

"Good afternoon. Are you following the same animal trail I am?"

"Milosh" the old man gives his own name in return "Yes, I've been trying to find out what happened too. This is highly unusual" he looks at the animal trail, and back to you "It looks like the animals have started to disperse back into the forest the longer I follow the trail, but I'm thinking of tracking the bear. I know the tracks of every animal in this area of the forest, and I have never seen this one around. I wouldn't mind the company, if you'd like to join me"

You follow Milosh through the soft rain, the druid’s bare feet squelching in the mud as he pads ahead, unbothered by the cold or wet. "I don’t know what this is about either," he mutters to Will, without looking back at him, "but I have ...theories"

He doesn’t elaborate.

You press on, and the day fades into twilight, and eventually, you are surrounded by darkness. The rain tapers to a mist when the clouds part, and the silvery light of the moon spills through the canopy.

There is a small clearing ahead of you, and this is where you meet her. An eleven woman with a cascade of red hair falling past her waist in tangled waves. Her clothes consist of nothing but leaves and moss and mud; clinging to her skin with sticky sap. It is clothing, in the loosest sense of the word, since it barely covers her body. By her side is a massive elk, bigger than a warhorse, which watches you directly as you step into the clearing. You are pretty sure there are other animals, too, nearby, maybe just beyond the edge of the forest; there is certainly some movement you can see. A rustle of leaves.

What do you do?

"Sort of. From a distance" he scratches his beard, looking a bit uncomfortable "Her name is Velassilirilwyn in elvish, but you can call her 'Vela'. She doesn't like company. Keeps to herself"

He hesitates, before starting to walk toward the clearing.

The woman straightens when Milosh starts to approach. She speaks in elvish*, but her voice is sharp, and with a whip to it. The elk besides her lifts its antlered head and stamps once. Then there's movement in the trees as two large wolves emerge from the underbrush and flank her silently.

"Umm..sorry. No? Should I?" The druid looks at you, quite confused.
The elf, of course, doesn't answer. If she understands you at all, then she would prefer to keep her silence.

Velassilirilwyn regarded Boudica with a flat, unreadable expression.
"There is nothing to investigate. The forest does as it must to protect itself"

She glanced briefly at the others

"You may return to your villages. Your presence here is neither needed nor wanted."