Ariana smiled with a mouth full of food towards Fiona and giggled, shaking her head slightly before wiping her mouth with the back of her sleeve. “So yummy, want more!” she said enthusiastically before she stole some food off of Sanas plate and gobbled it down greedily. Sana shook her head some and pushed another piece of food over to the edge of the plate, readying it for the little one just in case she wanted to snatch another bite. Sana placed her fork down, having eaten all that she could stomach for the time being. She had been feeling off since yesterday evening after the last fight but chalked it up to stress and casting for the first time. She figured she would just have to get accustomed to the feeling.

“Yup yup, so yummy!” Ariana replied to Tobias as he spoke to her before she picked up a large sweet roll and took a bite, the icing dribbling down the side of her face as she pulled the remainder of the roll away from herself and placed it back on the plate. Sana rolled her eyes slightly as she dipped her napkin into her glass of water and proceeded to try to clean the little ones mouth up before even more spilt onto her outfit.

“So, Ariana,” Sana said with a soft voice. “Derrix there asked you last night how old are you, do you know?” Sana inquired, wanting to figure out more about the child before they left. Ariana nodded and held up her hand, counting off on her fingers as she did.

“One, two, three, four,” she said before stopping. “Four! Almost five!” she exclaimed proudly as she held her fingers out to show everyone.

“Okay, big girl then. When do you turn five?” Sana asked, wondering if the child would know.

“Snow time,” Ariana said as she bounced slightly in her chair. Sana taking that to mean winter and figured that was as good as they were going to get when it came to her age.

“Do you know your parents name?” Sana asked as she sat there, reaching over to tuck Arianas hair behind her ear.

“Mama and papa,” Ariana said before snatching a strawberry off Sanas plate and popping it into her mouth. Sana pursed her lips slightly, that answer wasn’t much help but could she really expect much more from someone so young? Thinking for a moment she tilted her head to the side.

“Do you know your family name?” Sana asked but really wasn’t expecting an answer. Ariana grinned and held her hands up, bending her fingers like claws.

“Rawr!” Ariana exclaimed, Sana sighed and reached out, taking her hands.

“Ariana, not time to play like you are a cat sweetie,” Sana said and Ariana shook her head.

“Yes! Rawr! Ariana Rawr! Like big family cat!” she exclaimed once again and held her hands back up. Sana froze in her place like she had seen a ghost as her hand dropped from trying to get Ariana to stop. She swallowed hard and rested her elbow on the table, her forehead rested in the palm of her hand. Taking a deep and slow breath she looked back over towards Ariana after glancing around for a moment.

“Ariana,” Sana said in a soft voice that was shaking slightly. “Do you mean the big black cat?”

“Yup yup, moves at night and pounces! Rawr!” she said trying to get Sana to play with her. Sana nodded slowly and held her hand out to the little one, mimicking her claws.

“Yes little one. Rawr like the panther, move through the night,” Sana sung in a low voice.

“Pounce and be gone by daylight!” Ariana sung excitedly.

“We’re the Rawn that walk through shadows of night,” the sung together.

“You know the song!” Ariana cheered before wrapping her arms around Sana, resting her head on the archers shoulder. Sana held the little one but the look on her face was that of being completely stunned.

“Yes little one, I know the song,” Sana forced out, her voice cracking some.

Vaeri walked down the stairs, room key in hand. She looked much the same as she had yesterday, mostly obscured by cloak, but the flashes of armor that could be caught showed that at the very least she had cleaned off the blood that had accumulated in the 3 battles for the day before. She walked over to the innkeeper and handed him her key before addressing anyone else. She walked up to Derrix, remembering she owed him a debt.

"My name is Vaeri Dryearurdrenn, pleased to make your acquaintance, Sir Derrix Nightbane." Derrix basically came with his own keyword. Less mental work for Vaeri. With that debt resolved, she looked at the rest of the people who had eaten breakfast. Sana and the child were singing something about panthers, Tobias had relocated away from the skeleton and next to Fiona, and Hanzo was keeping to himself. And then it occurred to her that Fiona had just addressed the man before she spoke herself. "Sorry Fiona, did I interrupt? Last I spoke to Derrix, I neglected to give him my name. I had completely missed that you had been speaking with him."

"No, no," Fiona answered, blinking. "You didn't interrupt. Just making introductions is all." She was looking at Sana and Ariana instead, the girl hugging her new protector. Through the course of searching for the girl's family, or at least a name, Sana had stumbled across something quite remarkable. It would've been hard to believe if Fiona didn't already know Sana had found a family member among the enslaved, and heard of others being slaughtered.

"I don't suppose you had any brothers or sisters, Sana?" the question was asked gently, because Fiona knew well enough not to intrude too boldly on family matters of those she wasn't entirely familiar with yet. The resemblance was clear enough, now that Fiona was looking for it, which made it seem all too likely that Sana had stumbled across a niece in Ariana. Fiona couldn't imagine what the woman was going through, especially since they were going to be leaving the child behind.

Seeing that Vaeri and some of the others were geared up already, Fiona took it as her turn, and having finished her plate, stood from the bench. "I should be getting ready, I suppose. We'll be on the road soon."

After returning her plate, Fiona made her way upstairs and began preparing to leave. Over her tunic she laced up her jacket, having cleaned it of the hell hound's blood as best she could the night before. After that she buckled on her armor pieces, and secured her belt around her hips. Untying and shaking out her hair, she ran several fingers through it while making one last check of the room. It would be good to get on the road. They'd done a lot of good work yesterday, but there was much more to go before the job would be complete.

Satisfied, Fiona exited the room, locking the door behind her, and starting back down the stairs.

“Yes, nice to meet you,” Derrix approved as he shook Fiona’s hand, “and anything to help.”

Suddenly the woman Derrix had conversed with all night appeared to fulfill her debt. A smile crossed his tattooed cheeks and he nodded, “a good name. You remind me of someone I used to know.”

He snapped his fingers as his eyes flickered from Vaeri’s ears to her eyes. Derrix opened his mouth to say something, but then closed it into a polite smile, choosing silence.

A small bit of relief overcame Vaeri that she didn't barge into a conversation that she was not apart of like an inebriated family member during the holidays (a quirk that she noticed humans had to deal with too). Fiona did not seem particularly interest with continuing conversation with either Derrix or her, deciding to inquire about Sana's family before leaving to don equipment of her own.

Vaeri caught the movement of Derrix's eyes as his gaze jumped around. It wasn't a reaction she was unused to, but usually it did not come from somebody she had spent hours talking to. Then again, human vision was rather poor in dim lighting and he did wear that restricting helmet. He probably did not realize before.

"So you noticed?" Vaeri asked, rubbing the tip of her left ear as if to accentuate its inhuman length and pointedness. "Is this your first time meeting an elf?" He obviously wanted to say something. Perhaps he did not wish to offend or appear ignorant.

“I’m not sure what an elf even is,” Derrix admitted plainly. He watched her play with her ears and he lifted his own hand as if to test out his own ear.

“What land does an elf come from?”

"We're like you humans, but different. Longer ears, different facial structure, leaner builds, slightly different skeletal system and musculature, and a significantly longer lifespan are some of the more obvious physical differences between us." Vaeri spoke as one who had to give this explanation to many people. Most people in the area had at least a passing knowledge of elves, but in many of the smaller villages she had been to, they had not any experience with her kind and would assume she was deformed or some kind of fairy. A couple of times she had been mistaken as some kind of devil, an accusation she did not take well in either case. The trick was to give the proper expression of being different without coming off as self-righteous or overly self-involved.

A lot of people had gotten the notion that elves thought themselves above humans, and while she knew plenty of elves who were stuck up, it wasn't something intrinsic with the race. More puzzling were a separate category of people she met who seemed to believe that since she was an elf, she would somehow be supernaturally wise/graceful/beautiful. Perhaps what tales of her people pervaded the world were exaggerated.

"We tend to seclude ourselves in villages generally comprised entirely of our own, although you'll find elves distributed here and there in human settlements. I come from a forest village maybe 100 miles from here known as Lianyu."

Derrix’s small smile didn’t leave his face as he listened carefully to Vaeri. At the end of her rehearsed speech the man put her hand on her elbow and spoke gently, yet naturally commanding, “in my eyes, we are one and the same. You will have to tell me the ways of your people, the elves, and I will tell you of the Charlinites and the Karkarthians.”

There was a humble look in his golden eyes, as well as a look of understanding of a possible different interpretation.

Zam was enjoying herself immensely as she flew around the table observing everyone at feast and it seemed that she wasn't the only one it seemed that everyone that was awake was having a good time. hell even Vaeri seemed to be enjoying herself then there was the stranger whose she name learned was Derrix appeared to be talk of the table.

she flew to Derrix Zam stopped just in front of his face and introduced herself "Hello i am Zam Mano and I travel with Mortosh Celjust" Mortosh who was meditating stopped when he heard Zam speak of him, turned his head to look at where she was and noticed she was talking to Derrix so he just gave them a quick wave then returned to his mediation.

Vaeri wasn't exactly sure how to reply to Derrix. Out of all the people she had to explain this to, he was the first to demand something of this nature. A lot of humans wrote it off, but a statement of cultural exchange was difficult to reply to.

"Perhaps I will tell you about 'my people' later." She felt uncomfortable using the term her people. Vaeri had limited experience with elves outside of her village. She had been told about some of the others growing up, and once every decade or so, a wandering trader from another land would arrive bearing exotic goods and requesting news of the local area, but otherwise she just knew what she had learned from her own childhood and in books.

It was then that the fairy that she had seen hanging around suddenly pop in, introduce itself and the skeleton before leaving. For several seconds she stared at the space where the little thing had been, unsure of what to make of what had just happened.

Before Derrix could agree with Vaeri, a large bug whizzed by his face. Instinctively he went to swat it away, but as soon as it started to speak, Derrix paused. As his eyes adjusted on the talking figure he realized it was not a bug, or one he was familiar with at least.

It introduced itself and motioned over to a sitting skeleton. Derrix’s eyebrows furrowed at the sight of the living dead being, as he tried to hide the grimace that wanted to form on his lips. He had seen worse, sure, but it doesn’t mean it’s a pleasant sight.

“I think your friend could use some sun,” Derrix replied, trying to erase his disgust, “he looks a little pale.”

Sana looked over to Fiona, having been slowly brought out of the daze she was in by her words. She could only nod slowly to answer her question, a bit too much in shock to form any coherent words right then. Sana had one sister but the woman that the child could not have been her. The woman had dark hair, which was not a trait of those born into the family. If that had been Arianas mother, she must have married into the troop from another group. The Rawn family though had been large, so the best Sana could conclude was that Ariana was a cousin in some form. Either way, the child was blood, most likely the last living relative she had. Sighing slightly she took a long breath and pulled back from the childs embrace.

"Well, I think you need a few things," Sana said in a shaky voice. "Done eating?"

"Yup, yup," Ariana said joyfully as she rubbed her belly. Sana nodded and rose from her place, taking the little ones hand and walking silently out of the inn towards the general store. Sana had told the sister she had wanted to get the child some clothing before they left but right then, what she needed the most was some fresh air. She figured the walk to the general store was as good an excuse as any. She had told Hugh that if they were not still eating when he came down where they would be. She groaned inwardly as Ariana skipped next to her thinking about everything she needed to tell Hugh. This could turn out to be a rather awkward conversation.

Sister Agnes watched the events unfold from her seat in silence, wondering to herself what was going to happen now. Hearing a door shut upstairs she glanced towards the stairs to see Fiona descending from upstairs. Rising from her spot she walked over to the fiery haired woman and smiled.

"Fiona, a word?" she said in a kind voice from the bottom of the stairs. "I have spoken with the people of the village. Well those that had influence as it were. Yesterday morning some asked what all we could provide and well, there was nothing but now after the events of rest of the day we would like you all to take the horses that were the slavers as well as the wagon you brought the freed back in. I hope that is okay, I figured it would help make the quest go faster being able to either have everyone on horseback or in the wagon instead of having to walk constantly. Is that alright?"

Fiona greeted Sister Agnes with a smile as she reached the ground floor of the inn, and listened to what she had to say. "That should prove very useful, if the village has no need of the horses or the wagon." There were at least several in the party who had arrived on foot, and with the wagon even if they didn't know how to ride they could keep up with the rest of the group's increased pace. Fiona nodded agreeably. "Thank you, Sister. I'll see that they're cared for well."

She didn't know if it was appropriate or welcome, but Fiona ventured a gentle hug, briefly squeezing Agnes before releasing her again. "Thank you for all the help, you've been working tirelessly since we arrived. We'll be back with those ingredients as soon as we can." Exhaling, she nodded to herself, and gave Agnes one last pat on the shoulder. "Now, I should be going, make sure those horses are ready to leave."

Stepping out of the inn, she made her way to the stables, where the five horses they had recovered from the slavers awaited her. Most were in good condition, certainly better than the dogs they'd found. It made sense, considering that these mounts were their most reliable escape method. She checked over each one in turn, making sure they were properly fed and equipped to ride out. After that it was time to prepare the wagon, which first needed some cleaning.

While she was clearing it out, Fiona found a folded parchment under the main bench, which proved to be a map when she took a closer look. Taking a seat on the bench, Fiona studied it. It was quite detailed, trails marked out clearly, as well as certain locations the slavers avoided due to monster concentrations. One such marking was a cave northeast of their current location, apparently filled with eyewings. It was some ways past the next village they would pass through along the road. No doubt all this information would prove useful to them.

Folding the map back up and tucking it under her belt, Fiona finished clearing out the wagon and readying it for transport, hooking up two of the newly acquired horses to the front, and leading them out of the stables. When she had all the horses, including her own, out in front of the inn and ready to leave, Fiona switched back to her own horse, and spent some time studying the map more, while she waited for the others to finish readying up.

Hugh waved, a cheerful smile on his face as he lied in bed, observing Sana and Arianna departing from the room. With the room suddenly vacant, Hugh wasted no time in sitting up at the edge of his bed. He reached for his pants, pulling them on, slowly as he went. He wasn't particularly determined to be downstairs in a rush, as today they seemed to be heading out for parts they hadn't traveled before.

Hugh pulled his shirt on, and the rest of his garments, ending with him throwing on his armor; the chain mail and his pauldrons. He strapped his new found sword to his back, and rotated his neck from side to side. He stood tall and stretched his arms out, trying to be rid of the achy muscle sensation. It was a little routine that ended with him feeling much better than during.

After this little binge of activity, he sat back down and grabbed the bag containing his pipe. He took out the tobacco and crushed it inside, packing it with his dowel. He fetched his little bow from his bag and began using it to spin the dowel, eventually causing a coal to build up enough to stoke it till it smoked. After this painstaking process, he puffed away at the pipe and headed for the door, laying the saddle bag over his shoulder.

He swung it open, with a little bit of a bang as it smacked the wall that stopped it from going further. He stepped out, taking a moment to look around before stepping towards the stairs.

He trudged down, paying more attention to his pipe, but merely walking out of habit. He came to the bottom of the steps and stopped, his gaze looking over the Inn for his party. He observed the stranger whom had saved them the day before conversing with the elvish woman, with the company of the thief.

Hugh strode over, his feet falling heavily what with the weight he wore. Hugh felt slightly sluggish from the strenuous activity of the day before as he walked, taking up a plate and arranged food items on them. He clenched his teeth holding the pipe with them, as both his hands were preoccupied with the food and a cup.

Claiming a seat next to the thief, Hugh laid his consumable items out in front of the chair on the table. He sat down, taking his pipe from his mouth and laying it upright on the table right behind his plate. With that done, he shouted "Good morning! Everyone!" and actually turned around to look to everyone in the Inn, starting with any strangers and looking from each party member to another, giving them all a nod and friendly smile of acknowledgement.

With that done, he proceeded to politely eat his food, not in any particular hurry as he fueled his body for the day to come.

Hanzo looked around at the going-ons as he continued to eat. Sana brought the child she rescued down to eat, looking for all the world like a parent with their daughter. It was a bit heartwarming to see, even if Hanzo didn't try to think too deeply of it due to his own experiences. Mortosh was off in one corner, seeming to be asleep, but probably more accurately meditating - he actually didn't even notice the skeleton until Zam came up and pointed him out to the newcomer.

Speaking of, that knight from yesterday was making himself known to the party, introducing himself as Derrix; he apparently heard of the recent blight of Cinder Sickness and wished to help Sister Agnes, and by proxy this band of adventurers. Soon thereafter, he wound up in a conversation with the elf, Vaeri. So it would seem that they had yet another ally in this quest... what a group!

Hanzo finished eating shortly after Fiona went upstairs. He returned the dishes politely and, following Fiona's instance, returned to his room to pack up whatever he had. Luckily, it wasn't much to begin with - just his wallet, clothes, and that one magical scroll he found. The monk had been slightly out of it last night, so he's probably go an offer this to the rest of the group properly before they all set out. Or, possibly, Hanzo could use it on himself. The scarring from the battle with the mage still ached on his chest, showing a scar with a minor seal of deep red around it...

Again acting on some indeterminate impulse, Hanzo pulled open the scroll- and then realezed he had no idea how to read magic properly. What a foolish gesture. Still, it knocked him back into sense, to at least offer the others before taking up the offer for himself.

He returned back downstairs quickly, seeing how most everyone had left to prepare for their departure (or was already mostly so). In that case, the monk decided to lounge outside for a bit, to take in the morning air still fresh with the dew of the deciduous climate. He would simply stand outside of the inn, occasionally leaning on the wall of inn. Out of curiosity, he glanced south. The fire was long gone, the pillar of smoke that hailed it before being no more. He sighed. So many lives still taken unjustly- though perhaps he could say the same about those whom were killed, those slavers.

Hanzo turned back, and noted Fiona taking out five horses and a cart from the slavers. His memory was foggy from last night, but he seemed to recall the cart, and some of those horses looked like the mounts from the slavers. Of course, the best way to find out was to ask. The monk walked up near to where Fiona was setting up everything; she was currently studying some sort of map. "Are these the same things procured from the slavers?"

Sister Anges returned the hug that Fiona gave her with a bright smile coming across her features as she did. "It has been my pleasure to help," she said in a kind old voice. "And we will be just fine without them, they will provide you far more use than us," she said before nodding as Fiona left. Turning she stepped aside and glanced at the group that had come together, some were still not awake it seemed but after the previous day she could not fault any for sleeping in some.

Turning she walked back over to the seat she had at the lone table earlier when she spoke to Sana in private and rested her old bones down. It looked as if they would be leaving soon, hopefully they would be able to take care of matters quickly. Seeing Hugh join the group at the other table she smiled and wondered about her and Sanas discussion, what would be the decision. Though from looking around Sana and Ariana were not in the inn currently. Perhaps it would be discussed during the trip.

Sana came out of the general store a little while later with Ariana in tow; the child nibbling on a piece of rock candy that Sana had purchased her and wearing a simple new peasant dress and boots. Sana carried a few packages that were wrapped in brown paper and twine securing them shut. Sana seemed to be in a bit of a daze as she walked, not really paying much attention to anything but making sure Ariana crossed the street back to the inn safely.

Walking into the inn Sana saw Hugh sitting there eating breakfast and the color faded from her cheeks. Ariana on the other hand smiled brightly and ran over to him quickly, tugging on his sleeve to get his attention and then spinning around to show off her new dress. "Look!" she exclaimed with a laugh before holding her foot out to point at her boots. "No more dirty feet!" she exclaimed excitedly.

Sana let out a slightly depressed huff from her lips as she blew the hair out of her eyes. Sana moved quickly, brushing passed the table where Hugh was seated without a word and bee lined to Sister Agnes, placing the parcels on the table next to the nun. "These are for Ariana," she said in an unemotional tone. The sister looked at her quizically and leaned forward; placing a delicate hand over Sanas.

"Are you alright?" the nun asked in a gentle tone.

"Make sure she stays safe," was all Sana said before turning on her heels. "Ariana, I will be right back. Stay with the sister," Sana said quickly before heading towards the staircase and taking the steps two at a time to go back to her room to retrieve her things. Sister Agnes rose from her place and walked over to the table where Ariana was showing off her new clothing to Hugh.

It seemed odd, even to Sister Agnes, that Sana would dart off the way she did. Every other time she had seen Sana around Hugh she was very affectionate towards him and now she had passed him without so much as a glance. Resting her hand on Hughs shoulder she looked at him. "I think you two need to talk," she said quietly before looking over towards Ariana. "Well don't you look pretty."

"Yup yup!" Ariana exclaimed proudly as she rocked back and forth on her heels.

Fiona's attention was drawn away from the map by the voice of Hanzo, who had appeared out in front of the inn, looking ready to depart. She nodded in response to his question. "Yeah, we found these at the camp. Sister Agnes let me know that the horses and the wagon are ours to use, to help speed things along." Her own horse stamped his foot lightly a few times beneath her, and Fiona reached down to pat the side of his neck. "Except Liam here, he's mine."

She looked back to the other horses, awaiting riders, if anyone wanted one. "They're good animals; not like they knew what they were being used for. As for the wagon, we can always use it to carry those that don't want to ride, as well as any excess supplies we gather, or other things we want to bring along with us."

Vaeri noticed the movement outside and left the inn to see what the commotion was about. As she left, she greeted Hugh a good morning and gave Derrix a brief farewell. It was awkward enough with the silence that came about from the interruption of the fae whose name she had forgotten, leaving without a goodbye would feel even odder.

She arrived outside to find the horses the slavers had previously used and the wagon that had been used to transport the former captives. Luckily, her ride with Sana had been short, so she did not experience the riding soreness that she had heard about, but she was not keen to experience it firsthand. Not to mention that she preferred traveling through the wilds on foot. It was easier to maneuver. Horses were designed for plains and cumbersome in dense underbrush, so if she had to choose one of the transportation options blatantly presented before her, it would be the wagon every time. For the time being she would hang around in the general area of Fiona and wait. She seemed to be on top of things.

With little more to say, Derrix decided to quietly follow suit with the others. As he exited the tavern, he slid his helmet back on, watching the rays of the morning sun dim behind its restriction. He took in a great huff of lavender and turned to his massive white destrier. the morning dew glistened in his silver fur and the icing of a roll crusted along his lips, but an overall content smile dazed the horse’s eye.

“Charroux,” Derrix smiled warmly behind his mask, and the stallion nuzzled him in greeting.

The two butted heads for a moment before Derrix slipped to the horses side. He snatched the tied lance and quickly released the knot before swinging himself up unto the tall war horse saddle.

He booted the stirrups and raised his lance under his armpit like a flag, the sharp point spearing far above him. Derrix armed his free hand with a cavaliers shield that was tied to the saddlebags of Charroux, and after a quick look around, he was sure he had everything he had brought to this town.

Charroux stamped his hoof and Derrix looked ahead, all was ready.

Sana sighed deeply as the door closed heavily behind her once she entered the room. Glancing around she found her things and quickly began to finish getting ready; it didn't take long and once she was finish she slung her bow into place and grabbed her bag before heading back out. Moving quickly she brushed passed those in the inn silently and made her way over towards Ariana, kneeling down before the little one who had been enjoying herself by spinning around and twirling in her new dress.

"Okay, remember what I told you?" she asked the child as she took her hands and Ariana smiled, nodding her head vigorously.

"Yup, yup! Stay with Sister Agnes," she said as rocked back and forth on her heels.

"And?" Sana asked as she reached up and brushed the child's hair out of her face, tucking it behind her ear.

"You'll be back," Ariana giggled. Sana forced a smile and pulled the little one close, hugging her tight.

"That's right," Sana whispered before standing back up and looking over towards Sister Agnes. "Keep her safe," she said before shaking the old woman's hand.

"I will," the sister said gently. With that Sana turned, walking out of the inn quickly without saying another word. Glancing around a moment she headed away from the inn and the stables and walked towards the south end of town; wanting to check out the pyre to ensure things were taken care of before they headed out.

Getting there she noticed the villagers had relit it overnight and now it had died out, nothing but bones, metal and ash remained. Kicking the armor pile of the former being that had demanded the child she perked a brow as something shown through the ashes, a ring lay there peeking out at her and shining in the sunlight. Reaching down she picked it up, looking it over and then tossing it into her belt pouch; figuring she would deal with it later.

Satisfied that things had been taken care of Sana turned and began to make her way back towards the stables; wanting to get this underway as quickly as possible and still trying to figure out just how to speak to Hugh about everything going on with Ariana.