"[i]Me?[/i] Bother the [i]thief?[/i]" Maucolyn scoffed, "As a merchant, I can honestly say that is the last thing I wish to do, young miss. I agree to your terms on the condition that this boy not shoplift my wares again." 

He glanced at the boy as [color=00FFFF]Raine[/color] went to place the coins in his open palm, "I'll be more than happy to leave him alone if that so be the case."

"Agh!" Maucolyn cried. He scrambled to catch the coins as they fell, his brow furrowing in a less-than-pleased manner. His love for money being much stronger than his irritation with Raine, however, he hurried to collect the coins without complaint and quickly counted them before motioning for [color=E6FFCC]Leon[/color] to let the boy go. Leon set the boy on the ground and untied him, clearly disgusted by the corruption of justice he had witnessed. He was given 5 silver pieces as payment for catching the boy. 

With that, the party dispersed, leaving only the boy and Raine once more. The orcs sighed irritably as they left, muttering complaints to each other in their orcish tongue. The boy, from his position on the ground after being untied, shot her a baffled look before diving for the broken table, obviously looking for the object he'd dropped. 

[hr]

[color=B8D945]Elspeth[/color]'s eyes lit up, evidently recognizing Rowena's voice now, "[color=B8D945]You! [i]You're[/i] the one that's been botherin' me in my dreams.[/color]"

Rowena's smile quickly faded into a frown, "[color=6D7B8D]Bothering? Ah... I'm sorry if you found them unpleasant. But there's a good explanation-- I promise. There are a few others like you, though-- they should be here so--[/color]"

Rowena stopped suddenly, lifting her head to look past Elspeth and down the hallway where two girls stood-- almost as if she sensed them rather than heard or saw them. The [color=F7941D]closest[/color] had long red hair pulled back into a braid. She seemed to be much shorter than [color=F9AD81]the woman who lingered behind her[/color] with short brown hair pulled up into a loose bun. Their manner of dress seemed quite similar, a detail that Rowena quietly took note of as she called out to them. 

"[color=6D7B8D]Oh, good. Two more,[/color]" she smiled with relief. Her gold irises drifted between them with an otherworldly sheen. With her hood still lowered, she appeared to be human, albeit somewhat foreign. "[color=6D7B8D]I believe the others will be here soon. But... until then, please come with me.[/color]" 

[hr]

The inside of the shack was very worse for wear. Rusty shovels, hoes, and an old axe were stacked in a cobweb covered corner. Dusty wooden crates lined the room in disarray-- it was too dim to read their faded labels. Two broken flower pots lay shattered on the ground; the shards of clay rested on the scattered soil. A few pairs of gloves, a mud caked coat, and some filthy looking cloth cluttered the workbench that was placed beneath the grimy light-shunning window. 

"Z-zanna," the girl seemed to choke on her words as she continued trying to catch her breath. She turned away from [color=DC381F]Brande[/color] suddenly and coughed hard into her palm. 

"Oh," she muttered with frustration. Turning back around, she held open her hand to reveal a good amount of blood. She apologetically began to wipe it on her dress while stifling another cough with her clean hand. "Sorry-- I... I need to sit down for a sec."