I yawned and stretched, than gasped. A sharp pain exploded in my side, making me collapse into the bed again. Wait. The bed? My eyes flew around the room, taking in the white walls, the sheets, the thick white quilts that covered me. Then the door opened.
An elf walked in, tall and lithe with two ears piercing through her long blond hair. She wore flowing clothes that shuffled when she walked.
Then I saw her face.
"Helen!" Jared followed close behind, leading a ruffled Fallie through the door. They were so clean I barely recognized them.
For once Jared seemed to have combed his hair, and wore pants without holes. A white tunic(why was everything so white here?) that looked too big hung on his shoulders. Then I realized I was wearing one too.
Helen smiled.
"Isn't it wonderful? They are so happy you killed the troll, you know. You should see the water now. Come on!" She dragged me to the door, and I lurched. The pain in my side struck harder than before. I collapsed to the ground, panting.
I expected Helen to start screaming any second now, but she only looked startled. Then she looked relaxed and said,
"Oh, whoops. I forgot to tell you when you woke up, when that troll fell on you, you broke a rib." I winced at her painfully.
"You forgot?" She gave a wan smile.
"Sorry." Fallie bowed her head down to give me support.
"Andon!" Helen squealed. A lithe figure was walking up the stairs, and saw us. He smiled and shook the locks of bronze hair out of his eyes. Very bright, green eyes...like two slices of a lime.
"Thank you, Samuel, for...disposing of the troll. We offer our deepest thanks and apologies for the broken rib." He sounded like a robot, every word monotonous and every movement smooth, like water.
"You're welcome." My voice sounded rough and out of place, like a stone in a bucket of water. I cleared my throat, frowning. Then my tummy emitted a liquid roar so loud my ears flushed scarlet. Andon only laughed(would he stop doing that!).
"Come with us. We can get you some food to tame your hunger." Then I realized the "us" and "we" was Helen. Another wave of scarlet flew up my neck. Heck, he made me sound obese.
And, compared to him, I was.

He(no, wait, they) took us(Jared and me, Fallie possibly) outside, saying, "My house is not far from here: I hope you don't mind walking." Ha! Now he made us sound lazy as well. As if it wouldn't kill him to use contractions...
Turns out Andon has two brothers: Endon and Undon. And it also turns out they pretty much all look the same: pale blue eyes and golden wind-blown hair.
His mother welcomed us into their house, a white cemented structure with violet shingles. The door glided open, revealing a foyer with mahogany flooring and gilded furniture. The dining room was in the process of being readied: a display of fruit, cut into different kinds of animals was being laid out.
There were melon owls and orange pigeons and strawberry mice.
I tried to hold in a tummy growl.
Andon's mother, smiling, drifted into the room. She wore a long flowing dress, with a long skirt shaped like flower petals. Her top was a vest outlined in a blue Celtic design. Still grinning, she shoved a plate of grapes towards me, each one delicately carved to resemble a fish.
When I came out of that house, I weighed several pounds heavier. They say eating makes you comfortable. More like uncomfortable. My stomach felt tight and strained, and I wanted to collapse and start snoring. But I could barely manage the fluid nonchalance that Andon made out with. Heck, he ate twice as much as I did.
"Eat too much?" Fallie whickered in my ear. I nodded, clutching my stomach.
Then a horn sounded: low and plaintive, like a trembling whine. Helen perked upright, her pointy ears standing up. Jared's eyes grew wide, each feather on his arm going rigid.
"Goblins," whispered Andon. He pushed us to the end of the street. "Stay here--"
"No." Helen stood up, crossing her arms. "I know why they're here. I know who sent them. I'm sorry, Andon, but we must go. No one we come across can ever be safe. We need to leave, now." Andon looked at the ground.
Then the horn sounded again. People streamed into the streets, carrying long pale bows and quivers filled with swan-feathered arrows. Long swords were belted to their sides as elven men and women lunged against the heavy gate, struggling to keep it closed.
Outside, an ominous thundering shook the ground as thousands of sinewy feet made the earth tremble. Another sharp pain racked through my side. My hands ran over the thin bandage strapped over it and I leaped onto Fallie's side, another explosive jab stabbing my side. She flew down the road, and I straightened on he back. I felt the sword by my side and took a deep breath. Jared and Helen jumped on Fallie behind me, pupils dilated with fear.
Then a hand clutched my leg.
"Wait!" shouted Andon. He held a long cloak in his hand that shimmered and swirled. Then Andon shoved the black cloth into Jared's hands. "A goodbye gift, since some do not take the fact lightly that a living avian walks within their midst." Jared shouted back a thank you and shoved his arms into the cloak.
The last thing I saw before Fallie plunged through the opening gate was Andon's figure, getting smaller and smaller...