Chapter 1
Tas's Childhood
Tasslehoff was born in Kendermore. He was the older of two children born to Kalin and Lyena Burrfoot. The Burrfoot’s were in the mapping profession. They made their living wandering and making maps. Kalin was renown for his cartography skills, which were far more accurate and detailed than most kender maps. Kalin and Lyena were on the road when Lyena discovered she was with child. Although the couple was newly settled, they had been working on mapping the Laughing Lands to the east of the Kenderwoods and returned home to prepare for their child’s birth.
On Blessings 2nd 325 A.C. Tasslehoff was born. It was a relatively simple birth. Tasslehoff arrived early, a sign of good luck among kender, and was a pleasant baby. He was named Tasslehoff after his parents took one look at the head full of hair their new baby had. He weighed 5 lbs 7 ounces and was 16 inches in length. He had his father’s smile and his mother’s eyes.
During these first couple years Kalin continued to work. Leaving his wife and child at home. Lyena Burrfoot raised Tasslehoff with the help of her brother and sisters. Tasslehoff was like most kender babies, he was curious, fearless, and a little troublemaker. Around one and a half Tasslehoff began to walk and over the next year he was quite adept at losing his caregivers, something the two year old seem to take a sort of pride in.
From time to time in Tas’s early childhood, Tasslehoff’s father, Kalin would come home from his travels. These were very special times for the young kender. He immensely enjoyed the short time he had with his father playing with him for days at a time. When in town Kalin was sure to take Tas with him everywhere he went. This began Tas’s fascination with maps. His father had many maps, and dealt with them day in and day out. He would tell Tas about the wonderful adventures he had when visiting Neraka, or the bit of trouble he ran into while in Sanction. For years Tas dreamed of the day he would get to go with his father and see the world. But he was happy for the time he did get to spend with his father.
Lyena, Tasslehoff’s mother, spent a good deal of time baking and cooking. She was one of the best cooks in Kendermore, specializing in mongoose pies that were so good they could cause riots in their neighborhood. Kalin was fond of saying that “Lyena could turn a week-old loaf of bread into a feast”. Tas picked up his cooking skills from his mother.
When Tas turned four Lyena joined her husband on his journeys and Tasslehoff was left with his Aunt Feathertail in Kendermore. Tasslehoff lived and played as many kender do at this time in their life. He spent most of his time with other kender his age, playing kender games and learning about what it means to be a kender. A year later his parents returned with a surprise for him. They brought home a new sister. He wasn’t sure where they found her, but was happy to have a new sibling. Lyena once again stayed home for the next couple years to watch over Fillina, Tasslehoff’s sister. So Tas was able to spend more time with his mother and his new sister, which was a treat for the kender.
At the age of seven Kalin decided that Tasslehoff was old enough to accompany him on his expeditions and took the young kender on is first real journey outside of the Kenderwood. Kalin took his son to map the region between Floatsom and Khuri-khan, and just as Tas thought, it was very exciting. They were taken in by exotic barbarian type bandits and given a place to stay for a couple days. It did resemble a cage, but at least they were fed and given a chance to rest. When the time was right Kalin decided to open the locked door on their accommodations and the father and sun left quietly. They also discovered an ancient burial complex that they explored and mapped thoroughly, and even had a chance to see if they were faster than a mad wyvern, it was the most excitement Tasslehoff had ever experienced.
Over the next couple years Tasslehoff spent his time between living in Kendermore and living on the road with his parents. The Burrfoots spent many enjoyable days on the road together experiencing the world as only kender can. Before long Tas was eleven and his sister began to join them. Filli was ever the prankster, always looking for a new trick to pull on her brother. She even gave him a hot foot once, burning the new shoes he had just borrowed. Unfortunately they were still in the market place next to the stall that Tas had taken the shoes from to try on. The owner of the shoes had caught the kender and threatened them with jail or worse, saying that kender were nothing but a type of vermin that need to be exterminated. This hurt Tas deeply who swore he had only been trying the on the shoes to make sure they fit before he paid for them. Kalin rescued his children and had a talk with Tas who had fallen into an unusual funk since the incident. Tas asked his father if the vendor was right. He asked why he was so small and defenseless. He told his father he wanted to be big like the humans and elves and do great things. His father told him that kender were small because they were meant to do small things. “If you look at the world closely” he said ,“ you’ll see that they are really made up of small things joined together and it’s the small things that make a difference in the end.”
Tasslehoff continued to travel with his parents and learned many things on his journeys. His father showed him the art of mapmaking and how to use a hoopak. His mother taught him how to speak goblin and a little Troglodyte. He learned many skills and visited more places than most kender his age would have. In the fall of 339 A.C, when Tas was 14, the Burrfoots returned to Kendermore for an extended stay. Tasslehoff had noticed his parents were remaining long and longer each visit back to his hometown. But there was something different this time. All winter the young kender felt trapped. He felt as if there was somewhere he needed to be and it showed. For his fifteenth birthday Kalin gave Tas a collections of maps, his mother gave him a set of new walking shoes, and his sister gave him a new sling for his hoopak. Tas thanked them all and the next day he set out on the road. Wanderlust had finally kicked in.
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