“Jase, Mohe’s name and those of his family are traditional Cherokee names. Their names have meanings too,” Lily informed me as I followed the village chief and family. They were leading me to the house that Stonecroft had available for me.

“Oh?” I asked in a whisper. None of them had asked about my familiar, so I decided not to just give that information away.

“Woya means dove, Ama means water, and Mohe means elk.”

“That’s interesting.”

“Yeah, I thought you might like it.”

“You know me well.”

“Yep.”

“So, what’s a Cherokee?” I asked.

“D’oh! The lack of an education system strikes again. The Cherokees are a tribe of the people that your ancestors called Indians and Native Americans. Those two terms are not important other than both are incorrect. A better term would be First Peoples since their ancestors arrived on this continent long before others. There were many such tribes and nations. Your ancestors drove most off their land and claimed it for themselves.”

“My ancestors were sort greedy, weren’t they?”

“Yep. Anyway, some of Mohe’s ancestors hid deep in the mountains and were able to keep part of their ancestral lands. Evidently, they were able to expand back out sometime in the past and are living with others of the different peoples that settled these lands, which are mostly or Irish and Scottish descent.”

“Answers lead to questions,” I whispered. “But I’ll worry about them later. Do they not have familiars?”

“Ama’s hawk is flying above us and Mohe’s bobcat is following in the bushes to our left.” Lily answered in a whisper. “Woya does not have a familiar yet and is a year younger than you.”

“How do you know that?”

“I’ve talked to the other familiars.”

“When?”

“A girl has to have her secrets,” Lily answered and then giggled out loud.

“What was that?” Ama asked as the trio came to a stop. I stopped as well.

“What noise?” I asked.

“The noise that sounded like laughter,” Woya answered.

Mohe glanced at me suspiciously. “Did you not hear it?”

“I did.”

“Then why did you ask what noise?” Mohe asked.

“I was hoping to distract you.”

“From what?” the chieftain asked. I could tell he was not happy.

“Better fess up,” Lily suggested.

“The giggle was Lily, my familiar,” I answered. Woya perked up at my answer.

“I’m assuming your familiar is a female because of the name, but what is she? I’ve never heard of a familiar that can laugh before,” Woya said.

“Neither have I,” Ama said. Mohe nodded in agreement.

“No animals giggle,” the chieftain added.

“Lily, is not an animal.”

“What do you mean?” Woya asked. Her curiosity was getting the better of her.

Lily stood up in my shirt pocket and waved at the trio. Mohe’s eyes widened in shock while his wife’s eyes narrowed. Their daughter looked amused.

“A pixie?” Mohe asked. “You bonded with a pixie?”

“Yes sir, we did,” I answered.

“That is not possible,” Ama said.

“It is possible ma’am. Lily and I are proof.”

“Please explain,” Mohe quickly said after glancing at his wife’s expression. I spent several minutes explaining how Lily and I bonded.

“You’ve been cursed,” Ama hissed.

“No ma’am, I’ve been blessed,” I replied looking down and smiling at my pixie as she looked up and smiled at me.

Mohe shrugged. “I don’t see why people can’t bond with pixies. We can bond with nearly anything else. Besides, unto each their own.”

“Hmph. I don’t like the pests, so keep it away from me,” Ama replied. “In fact, I think we should give our young alchemist the stone house instead of the wood one beside ours we were going to.”

“Stone house?” I asked. I sort of liked the sound of that, but also wondered how cold it would be.

“Mother no!” Woya exclaimed.

“Honey, I don’t think that is a good idea,” Mohe said.

“Why not? It has a lot of room for him to grow herbs and other plants as well. Besides, it was the home of Stonecroft’s alchemists and herbalists before mother moved further into the village.”

“This does not sound good,” Lily said through our connection.

“No kidding,” I sent back.

Mohe seemed to make a decision and one he wasn’t happy with. Mohe and Woya frowned as Ama grinned. She knew she had given a reason the chieftain couldn’t refused. He looked at me, gave a sad smile, and shrugged. “Come Jase, I will show you the stone house. Ama, take our daughter home.”

“Yes dear,” a smug Ama replied. She took a scowling Woya’s arm and led the girl away.

*

The dirt and gravel path were a far cry from the broken blacktop we traveled on to the village. It led outside the village walls through a smaller gate and was lined on each side by an old, rotted, wood fence that was broken in several places. Mohe explained a few things to me while we walked.

“The people here are traditionally very independent. You’ll be expected to be the same. A lot of families have lived here for generations farming and family is very important to us.”

“I understand.”

“Good. We are a proud, yet polite people that see others for the individuals they are.”

“Your wife changed her tune quick enough when she found out about Lily,” I observed. She was openly riding on my left shoulder and smiled at me.

“I apologize for that. Ama has not liked pixies since she was a child.”

“We’ll avoid her as much as we can then.”

“Give her time. Maybe she’ll come around. But back to the subject at hand, most of us also are suspicious of strangers.”

“I’ve noticed some looks,” I said. Mohe nodded in agreement.

“You’ll see in time that we will accept and treat you almost like family once we get to know you.”

“That’s good,” I replied. We fell into silence and walked for ten more minutes passing through a forested section into a mostly cleared area.

The stone house sat on a ledge of a modest drop. I could tell that by looking at the back right corner and seeing nothing but sky beyond the wall. The gravel and dirt path led right up to the front of the house. There was a small chimney at the front, and I could see a larger one peaking over the very steep roof.

The house appeared to be two stories with no glass or even shutters over the windows. Several of the stone shingles were missing as well as the front door. A tree was laying partially against the porch roof. I frowned.

“It’s a bit of a fixer upper,” Mohe told me.