Night was beginning to fall on the town of Hoffen, and a cold one at that – winter was approaching too fast for the townspeople’s liking. The few people that were still outside didn’t walk around without holding their torches, and burning fires could be seen through people’s windows. Rhiara’s destination was on the other end of the town, though it was really only a few minutes’ walk away from the tavern. One of the main advantages of living in a small town like Hoffen was that [i]everything[/i] was within walking distance, no matter where you were.

Athaliah’s house was one of the smaller homes in the town, but she insisted that it was a feature rather than a downside. The house did have a small fenced patio at the front, though. Rhiara knocked on the wooden door, using the heavy iron knocker that was shaped like a ring inside a lion’s mouth. She could hear the door being unlocked, and a few seconds later she was met with Athaliah’s face from behind the edge of the door. Athaliah was nearly a year older than Rhiara – not that anyone would have noticed. Her normally neat black hair was in a curly mess going down to her shoulders and there was a little hint of tiredness in her bright blue eyes.

She seemed quite surprised to see Rhiara at that time in the evening, but happy at the same time. “Weiss!” she shouted gleefully, pulling her in for a big, friendly hug. “You’re alive, so that’s a great sign. Did you kill the basilisk?” 
“Easy, easy!” Rhiara replied with a laugh, hugging her back. “Me and the strange man killed it, yes; we had a little party at the tavern that I was going to tell you about, but you were out of town, apparently.”
“Militia stuff.” She replied nonchalantly. “Anyway, you didn’t come here just so you could stand out in the cold, did you now?” She led Rhiara inside, showing her the way to the front room. Athaliah wondered what Rhiara could have wanted; neither of them went to each other’s houses all too often – their work hours and other commitments saw to that. “So,” she began as she lit another candle to light up the room a bit more. “to what do I owe this rare pleasure?”

Rhiara sighed, still thinking of a way to tell Athaliah about their possible journey across the country. “Well… while we were celebrating in the tavern – Me and Herbert, that is – this group of well-armed and armoured people walked up to our table, and they claimed to be from the Knights Solanian – you know, that holy order from the south?”
Athaliah raised an eyebrow. She had never heard of the Order coming north that often. She wasn’t a fan of the Order by any means either – she always found religious militants untrustworthy at the best of times. “What are they in Hoffen for? I thought they hung around their fancy castle and never did anything unless it involved those fire folks.”

“They said that they intended to claim the bounty on the basilisk for themselves.” Rhi answered. “They seemed to take the news that we got to it first rather well. Now speaking of their fancy castle, they invited Herbert and I to Mirador, and they said we could bring friends. We have thought about it being a trap, but I’m travelling with Herbert to Viarosa first, to get his friend. We figured we’d be safer travelling in a group if they are bandits.”
Athaliah listened intently as Rhi told her story, and a little smile slowly appeared at her lips. “And you want us to go together? I’m not opposed to going anywhere with you, that’s for sure.” Athaliah bit her lip in thought. “Okay, I’m in, if only for the adventure.” 
Rhiara jumped up with joy and gave her friend a tight hug. “We’ll be meeting Herbert back at the tavern in about twenty minutes.”
“Okay, okay!” Athaliah replied, ruffling Rhi’s snowy hair. “I’ll meet you back at the tavern then; I need to, y’know, get changed.”
“Me too. Oh, by the way - travelling to Viarosa will take about three days; I have a tent laying around that should be big enough to share.”

With everything said, Athaliah showed her friend to the door in the politest way possible. They both had a trek to prepare for.