"Whew! Morning sleepy head! I thought you were gone for good there for a second." Arianna gave Ersehk a reassuring smile. "And, yes, I am the apple thief." She rose to her feet and extended a hand to help him out of the wooden chair. "You passed out after-" she stopped herself, not wanting him to pass out again. Arianna didn't want to have to slap him again. "After you saved someone from a bandit. Good job, by the way." Her stomach decided it would be a good time to turn. She tried to hide a shiver as she remembered the alleyway.

She noticed that the mage's hand was searching for something. [I]Oh Gods, I hope that wasn't important,[/I] she thought to herself. "Uhm, Erksh... You wouldn't happen to be looking for that old book of yours right now, are you?" She laughed nervously and rubbed her arm up and down. "I sort of left it in the alleyway... But I've seen plenty of books like yours in the marketplace. I'm sure you can buy another one, right?"