The peacock let out a long plaintive caw and Josephine reached up and gently stroked its head. "You're right my love. If I'd known we were getting this many I would have insisted on examination beforehand. Now if I start there would be a long delay." She'd been planning to give each person in the party a thought checkup before setting out. It would have made her job easier to have proper medical histories for these people, but for now it looked like she'd just have to eyeball it. It wasn't that bad. She was extremely good at eyeballing it, though that couldn't tell you much about what was going on inside. 

"Why the secrecy?" She asked, uncontiously shifting her pack this way and that. "I could have better prepared for the journey had I known who my companions would be."