Page 6 - IBP2004LL OSS1 The Noh-Cha Classbook

the noh-cha classbook
of food and water, and unable to call upon Noh for such things like more powerful Shamans, he became very tired and hungry and thirsty.
“Oh, bother,” said Angry-Never-Smiles, “This may not have been a very good idea.”
No sooner had he uttered those words than a sharp gust of wind blew across the verdant moors he stood upon, caressing the whiskers on his face as it passed him by. This was strange as there had been no wind there before.
“It is Noh,” said Angry-Never-Smiles, “She is speaking to me.”
Angry-Never Smiles listened. He heard nothing more. The wind blew no more. The Shaman sighed then continued walking, his stomach cramping from emptiness, his body from weariness and lack of water. As the day drew on and the sun lowered in the sky, he found himself nearing a small copse of trees on the moors. He decided that he would rest there for the evening. He set up camp and made a
fire, all the while feeling the gnawing of hunger in his stomach and the dryness in his mouth. As the darkness fell and the moon above watched over him, his eyes became heavy and he slept, falling quickly into a dream where he was not only on the tribal Council, but was well-respected and loved by all of the others in the tribe.
A sudden noise startled him awake and he pulled his staff close to him. The low light of the fire made him easy to see against the dark, so he moved stealthily away from it. He did not like leaving his things at the fire, but if something was out there, it would head to the fire and then he could attack it instead of the other way around. He could use the moonlight to see it, and the fire.
As Angry-Never-Smiles watched, something approached the fire. It was a strange creature, small and almost triangle shaped but with what seemed to be arms near the top where its head was. The creature walked without ceremony towards the fire and sat down next to it, wrapping its arms around its lower body which changed into a strange awkward shape.
“You can come back to the fire,” said the strange creature, without turning its head.
Angry-Never-Smiles was astounded. The audacity of this creature, whatever it was! How dare it walk up to his fire and lay claim to it. The Shaman stepped for- ward, his staff levelled towards the creature.
“You don’t need that,” the creature said, “You’re not going to harm me.”
“How do you know what I am or am not going to do?” demanded the Shaman. “I don’t,” replied the creature. “But I’d rather believe that you weren’t going
to harm me than you were going to harm me. Why not come to the fire where it’s warm?”
The creature shifted, and Angry-Never-Smiles could see that it wasn’t a triangular creature at all, but a tall and gangly creature wearing some sort of long dress that covered its body. Slowly, he approached, all the time keeping his staff
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