For what had to have been the tenth time that day, Annelie had studied the letter in her hand. The edges had become worn and a line was visible from where it had been folded and refolded repeatedly. She squinted her eyes into a glare, hoping against hope that it would crumble and reveal it's secrets if she just stared at it hard enough. But no, nothing.
She sighed, folding it again and neatly placing it back into her belt pouch. It had to have been some kind of mistake. She'd received the letter at the same time as she had been given back a book she'd lent to an acquaintance. It had been hidden between two of the pages, and chances were she'd missed it if it hadn't fallen out as she was putting the book back in it's proper place among her meager belongings. Assuming it belonged to her colleague, she's sought her out to hand it back. She'd known nothing of it, however, claiming she'd never seen it before.

Annelie had considered just ignoring it. She was busy with her work as a guard - this town really was a handful and they were short handed even after receiving new recruits. Besides, she suspected it was just some kind of joke. She had few friends, and those she had wouldn't mess around like this. But curiosity had gotten the better of her, so after finishing her shift, she'd changed from her guard armor to her own one and headed out. If there was anyone there to meet her at all, she'd simply hand the letter back and tell them to stop bothering her with cryptic messages.

'The Drunken Dragon'. Annelie read the sign with a frown. She'd only been in town for a short while, but already she knew it was a seedy place. But as the rain pattered against her pauldrons and she was in no hurry to get more soaked than she already was, she put a hand to the hilt of her sword and went inside. The place wasn't packed, but filled with enough people for the place to receive a decent profit from it. Thinking it best to get it over with quickly, she headed for the bar.

"...-can't let me begin again."

Annelie stilled, having caught the last bit of a conversation between the bartender and a guest. It could have been a pure coincident, but still...
Trying to be discreet, she observed the conversation, hoping they wouldn't notice her scrutiny.