From the masking shade of the mid afternoon sun against the forest's canopy, Quinn observed the old hunting cabin that had once served as his and his sibling's refuge in the wild. It seemed, as recent times would show, that it would be appointed for that purpose once again. Quick elven eyes scanned the trees surrounding the structure, searching for any obvious signs of prior approach or departure. It was a well hidden sanctuary, only known to Brand's children and a select few others outside the family, the path leading to it a jumble to confused hunting trails and a maze of dead end walkways only someone who'd been there before could hope to navigate. The flight from the Scuffed Boots proved to be a lengthy affair, the armed response by the remaining Guards was sluggish but surprisingly organized and dogged. In the end, the archer was forced to wing a couple with some green feathered shafts to convince his pursuers of a different path. 

A sigh escaped the hooded elf's face; it had been a long day. However, even with aches from the road and sleep now starting to call to his eyelids, he stuck to the hard taught discipline to remain vigilant. Quinn still had an arrow knocked to the composite shortbow, ready to draw back the weapon at a moment's notice. He now wore his full ranger garb, having changed into it before bidding his siblings and Emma farewell. Being in the outfit and the familiar landscape comforted him, despite the circumstances surrounding the return. [i]How often is it that all of us would be back together like this?[/i] His mouth upturned in a wry frown, gaze momentarily dropping down to the forest floor. [i]I should have stayed with him longer...[/i] A slight pang of guilt stabbed through his abdomen. Though master and apprentice, father and son, parted on the best of terms, would have it been too difficult to have visited more often? 

Quinn pushed the thought from his head. Now was not the time to regret or mourn even - that would come later, with reminiscing and alcohol...a lot of alcohol. The archer gave his immediate area another scan. He gave his tail of guards the slip over an hour ago at Fool's Lake in the confusion of tagging one of them with an arrow to the right shoulder, just under the iron pauldron. Still, he ventured out even farther in the Vendland wild, letting his pursuers track his obvious path into a dead end before circling back to the cabin. This time, he made sure to mask his movements, ensuring that any tracker short of Brand himself or one of the champion's other children would have a difficult or improbable time catching up much less finding the elf. 

A grin played across Quinn's features as he mused over how his brothers and sister would make their way over. Given how many guards followed him, the elf guessed his reputation for an easy going individual was still intact. [i]Good, let them think I'm the easiest to find and capture,[/i] soft leather boots started padding slowly towards the cabin, [i]while they're chasing me, the others gain an even greater lead.[/i] As he made the final approach, Quinn noted the old stump was still as it was when he and Brand last left it, an old rusted axe with its handle almost rotted away leaning against it. [i]Looks like I'm the first to make it...[/i] He skirted the cabin's perimeter and located the old well on the far side. Gauntleted hands picked up the wooden pail laid unceremoniously next to the well and laid it down, bottom up, on the well's ledge. Satisfied that he still remembered their sign for 'someone is home,' he turned and made for the cabin's main door. 

The door remained locked as it always had been but Quinn still swept the interior with bow half drawn. Convinced that the cabin was secure, the archer closed the front door and set about taking a silent inventory of the cabin's supplies. He decided against a fire or anything overt for the time being. There would be time enough for that when the rest of Brand's children arrived. For now, the telltale sign out front would have to do.