Hexes are a thing that can be done with my kind of magic, except the Valar are going to make it so that they can't be done here. Remember when I said why I wasn't going to teach you, there were three reasons, and one was that you could be dangerous to other people with it and so we needed to get their permission? Hexes are why.

The way my magic works, I can cast spells on things, but I can also cast spells on people. The reason I don't need a pendant to teleport wherever I want to is that I can just cast the spell on myself, instead. But I could also cast the spell on another person, and when I do that I can cast it however I want - if I want them to be able to choose when and where to teleport, I can do that. If I want them not to be able to choose when or where to teleport, I can do that, too, and that's a hex, because they don't get to control it - and spells on people don't break, not ever, so if I cast a hex on someone, they have to live with whatever mean thing I decided to do to them for the rest of their life. And, I only know teleportation magic, but there are other forms, too, that do different things; the kind of magic my tribe was worried about was fire magic, which wouldn't just be dangerous to me, it'd be dangerous to all of them, too, if there was suddenly a huge fire in the middle of the camp in the middle of the night some night.

That's horrible. Who would be mean and awful enough to do something like that? And why? That's evil like the Enemy, just pointlessly. 

Are you sure you want to know? It's pretty awful, my world isn't very nice at all sometimes.

I want to know everything but especially things that are hurting people.

Hug, then continuing with both the hug and the story.

Okay. This isn't hurting anyone now, though, there hasn't been a hex like that in more than twenty-five years. But back before I hatched, someone stole something from the elves - one of the kinds of people that live near where I used to live - and they got really, really angry about it; we don't know why. But they got so angry that they decided they didn't want any kobolds living near them any more, and they tried to kill us all. Kobold tribes are very good at hiding, so they had a hard time doing it, but eventually they figured out that even though magic traps don't work on us, really good mundane ones do, and they managed to trap some kobolds from different tribes, and hexed them, and then let them escape and go home. The first three tribes all burned up and nobody could figure out why, hug, very hug, but the fourth one, the Speaker had been away bringing a message to another tribe, and got back late, and was still awake to see what happened and get away and tell the other tribe, and they told all the other tribes. The elves tried the same thing a few more times after that, and it was so so hard to turn the hexed kobolds away, but they had to, and eventually the elves figured out that it wasn't working any more and stopped.

Elves must be like orcs. That's so evil I - I can't even think straight. How could they. 

Yeah. Hug. They stopped, after a while. Just... stopped, one day. We don't know why; all the Speakers who knew the elves' language were dead by then. Elves are very confusing and we stay very far away from them now.

And you don't want to - make sure they can never ever do that again to anyone?

She cocks her head and thinks about that. I guess, if I could? I don't think I could; I think if I tried they'd start trying to kill us again, and probably actually do it this time. Not worth the risk, not even a little bit; there are grown-up kobolds now who've never lived through that kind of trouble, and I'd like to keep it that way.

I want to try. I won't tell anyone you sent me so they won't hurt kobolds.

Hug. That is really sweet and a really awful idea. My world doesn't have Valar to fix you if you eat something poisonous or upset a dangerous wild animal, even before you go picking a fight with a village full of elves with fire magic and big scary fighting animals and weapons - you're too used to thinking of everything as safe, you don't know how to be careful.

I'll wait until I'm big and take a Vala, if needed.

Even most big Quendi aren't very good at being careful, I think I'd have to teach you. If you want. Hug.

I definitely want. I am sad that there are places things like that can happen and it is really important to fix them. So important. 

Nod. I think it's more important to be okay, even if you can't fix things to be perfect, and the kobolds are okay, pretty much. But I'll teach you - I'll need to think about how, first - and see if I can help you figure out a plan. I don't know a whole lot about elves, though. She pauses, then grins fondly. You remind me of myself, you know, with the tigerfolk. And I wasn't able to make that perfect - I wasn't really trying to, I'm not sure trying to make that perfect would have gone well at all - but I definitely helped things.

Of course you did. And some kobolds are dead. Whole tribes of kobolds. That's not just not perfect, it's not at all okay.

Nod. I'm not saying it's okay, and I'm not saying not to make things perfect if you can. I'm saying, if you can't, or if it's too risky or would hurt too many things, it's okay to just help. It's... she pauses to think. Ohhh. That's what this is, I bet. I bet. You haven't really had a tribe, not the way kobolds do, not even a little bit. You're not used to having other people around to help do things, you think it has to all be you. It doesn't, Fëanáro, really. I know you're used to being alone, but that's not... well, maybe for Quendi it's normal, I don't know, I don't think so, but even if it is it doesn't have to be. It's not for kobolds, not at all. It's okay to help. It's okay to be the one supporting other people to do things, it's important to have people like that. I couldn't've done what I did with the tigerfolk without my whole tribe behind me; it was their accomplishment just as much as it was mine. It was my parents' accomplishment, too, even the one who died before I ever even had the idea, because they taught me the skills I needed to know to do it. And the older generations of my tribe, who kept it strong so it could be strong for me, and everybody who kept us safe during the war with the elves when I was a baby - it's okay to be in a position like that, keeping things good and strong and whole so that when someone can really make things perfect, even if that person isn't you, they have what they need to do it. Got it?

Well, my father's King so when I'm grown I can convince him that our tribe should go stop elves from hurting kobolds and then we can all do it together. 

You, hug, are a sweetheart. And we can think about that plan later. I should go get Alamande, I kind of disappeared on them at the lingusitics guild, I hope they're not too upset.

They might not even have noticed you're gone, is it a big place?

It is big! But they were right there when I teleported, I don't think they could have thought I just wandered off or anything.

Ah, okay. Then they might be scared and mad. Hugs. You could just avoid them forever. 

Hug. I think it'll be okay if I just explain to them that I was homesick and didn't want to cry in front of a bunch of strangers. Do you want to come with me and see?

Yeah!!

Okay. We've got to tell your parent first, though, and - here's a chance to practice being careful. What do you think will happen if they find out you want to go to my world, where it's dangerous, and go where there's elves, who are extra dangerous?