Esnell

You skip down the hall, eager to see what these "Syninks" are. At the end of the corridor is a heavy stone door. Quickly becoming familiar with Kiesst's customs, you automatically reach for the smooth amethyst in the center of the door and push it in.
The moment the entryway opens, you feel like you're in another world. You step forward, feasting your eyes on the beautiful terrain- miles of trees, grassland, and fields of flowers as far as you can see. Not far in front of you runs a clear, sparkling river. Examinging it closer, you realize that the stream is man-made (or elf-made, according to Jesse). It's bottom and sides are made of smooth marble and lacking the usual algea and underwater plants that you would normally expect to find.
Giving in to the hot sun on your back, you take off your socks and shoes and dip your hot feet into the cool water. The refreshing stream feels so good, in fact, that, though you resist it, you find yourself plunging into its depths. You don't hesitate to open your eyes under the clear water, not having to fear for pond scum or clorene. Swimming to the surface, you take in a deep breath of air and, padding ashore, fall asleep under a tree.
You awake some time later to the sound of Jesse's voice. Standing up in your still-damp clothes, you get a running headstart and leap across the stream to your socks and shoes. Slipping them onto your feet, you head in the direction of Jesse's voice.
Turning a corner, you find yourself only a few feet away from a beautiful, winged creature.

"You're awake!" Jesse says happily, her hair still wet from her recent shower, "Meet Alestreal, a female Synink." She gives you a wink and turns back to stroke the creature's soft neck. Before you can spurt your sudden flood of questions, a creature much smaller than the first but no less beautiful leaps between you and Alestreal.

You jump back, startled.
"Don't move," Jesse warns you, "He's just checking you out." She smiles. "This is Nocc. He's Alestreal's very protective mate. That's instinctual for males, though. They might be half the size of the females, but underestimating them because of their size might be the last mistake you make. Aside from his obviously dangerous horn, those two stingers on his tail are extremely poisonous."
She looks at him hard, examing his stance.
"I don't think he's going to hurt you, though," she adds after a few moments, "Yeah, you're okay." You let out your breath, forcing your muscles to relax.
"Why are their wings so small?" you ask.
"Oh, they used to be bigger," she explains, walking over to you, "Back when Syninks roamed the high mountains. But they no longer need to fly, so their species outgrew them." You frown.
"So they don't work?" you ask, trying not to sound sad.
"Nah," she replies, stroking Nocc's muzzle, "But they don't seem to mind... and I certainly don't. Keeps them in the compound." You watch her thoughtfully, then look back at the two Syninks.
"Jesse," you say after a moment, "Why did North bring me here?"
"To see these guys," she answers, twiddling her fingers, "And... maybe make a decision."
You keep quiet, waiting.
"Well," she explains, "Um... Syninks are extremely endangered- there's very few outside of this reserve. So we need to find them new homes; we can't just raise their entire population here."
She takes a deep breath.
"Anyways," she concludes, "Point being... do you want one?"