A Different Capture

Kitsune

I like capturing goodbeasts.  It's a fun way to pass the time and good way to earn points with Lady Bloodbane.  But, well, capturing them the same way all the time gets boring after a while.  So as I was debating capturing the squirrel Riala, I decided to capture her in a unique way.  At least, unique from everyone else.  Besides which, I was still smarting from wounds delivered by Drizzt and Caragreen and had no desire to be beaten up again.

And that was why I was inside a tavern one day, dressed in loose black-and-white clothes and busily wiping a table.  Riala supposedly frequented this place often, known for its good food and even better drinks.  So I played the role of one of the waiters.

"Hey, you new here?" Riala asked, tapping her roce idly against one of the stools.

"Ah, yes," I said as un-verminlike as possible.  I had changed out of my ninja garb and had adopted the clothes of an ordinary waiter, so I hoped that I didn't really look like vermin at all.

"Hmph.  Well, I was going to tell you that I wanted the usual, but I guess you wouldn't know it.  I'll just have some pear cordial and a slice of apple pie, then."

"Coming right up," I said earnestly, and called the order back to the kitchen where the cooks were working hard, afraid of me.  They wouldn't mess up the order, I knew; they're terrified of the consequences.

The food came right away.  I shooed away the waiter that appeared to take the food to the golden-tailed squirrel so that I could take it to her myself.  A half-vial of powder in the drink and a light dusting on the pie, and the food was ready.

"Here's your order!" I said pleasantly, setting the plate and mug in front of her.

Riala smiled and began to dig into her pie.  "It's a pity there aren't more vermin like you," she commented.

I nodded feverishly.  "H'oh yes, those other foxes are so nasty!  The other day one came in here and started up a brawl and everything and was insulting the workers and all!  He was really strong, too!  It took four of us to throw him out!"

"Hmm," Riala said distractedly.  "Sounds like someone I know."  She took a sip of her cordial.  I gulped and hoped she hadn't noticed anything odd.  But then, the powder had been one of my own, undetectable by taste or smell.

"How's the food?" I asked, trying to make conversation long enough for the drug to take effect.

"It's very good, actually.  Same as always."  The squirrel's eyes began to droop and she yawned.  "Mmm, I feel tired all of a sudden."  Her falling eyelids flashed open for a second.  "Hey, wait a--!" But it was too late, she slumped over on the table asleep.

I breathed a sigh of relief.  "Well, it looks like someone here had a little too much to drink," I said cheerfully to deter questions.  "I had better take her somewhere to lie down."  I draped her over my shoulders and secured the strap of the roce around my arm so that I could carry her into the back.

But instead of heading for one of the beds, I made my way out a back door and into the woods. "Heh heh heh," I chuckled to myself.  "Another successful capture!  And I got a free waiter disguise, too!"