Ridahne led Tsura to the nearest stable as she whispered promises of cool water and crunchy apples to her steed in her own jagged language. At the stables, a young human boy of about thirteen was in the middle of mucking out the stalls when he noticed someone come in. 

“Hullo!” He said brightly, dropping his rake to go and greet her. He noted the horse first and, knowing a bit about horses, realized just how fine an animal he was. His creamy tan coat the color of sandstone was trail-worn but still sleek and smooth under the road dust. His black mane and tail harbored no knots or snarls, and his shoes, though dirtied, looked to be in great condition. He was about to marvel aloud at him when he noticed Ridahne herself. His mouth gaped. Ridahne guessed he had never seen an elf before, least of all one from Azurei. She towered over him, her eyes gleaming and her silver piercings glinting off the sunlight. There was a definite beauty and grace to her, though nothing so soft as the sort found among human women. Everything about her was hardened, jaded, and she screamed “dangerous” Not evil, perhaps. One admires a wolf and yet doesn’t approach, after all. The poor lad nearly bolted when Mitaja trotted up next to her handler. 

Ridahne let him flounder for a moment before she smoothly said, “I need to stable my horse for the night. My cat will sleep with him—don’t worry, she won’t bite you. See to it he’s cleaned, fed, brushed, and well watered.”
Remembering himself, the lad nodded. “Yes ma’am.” He took the horse’s reins hesitantly and led him into a stable. 
“Oh, and if he comes to any harm on your account, I’ll see to it you lose one of those hands of yours.” She gave a curt smile and, leaving both her animals in his care, she strode away as gracefully as a breath of wind. The boy thought for a moment she might be joking, but as she turned he saw her sword across her back and decided it was best to assume she wasn’t.

Ridahne went to the inn next. Right as she reached the door, Darin bolted up to her with wide, panicked eyes, explaining that whatever they’d encountered in the woods had indeed followed them. For a moment, Ridahne looked Darin over as if to say ‘What aren’t you telling me?’ Before she looked out over Darin’s shoulders. The elf towered over Darin too, as she was taller than most men. Up close and with Ridahne’s hair now tied back in a half ponytail, more of her unique features could be seen. For example, she had a very odd piercing in each ear—a little engraved silver plate that looked riveted into the flat, upper part of her ears where they slanted to points. She also had a very large dangling earring in her right ear made of carved and scrimshawed bone. In order for the jewelry to fit into her earlobe, the original hole would have had to been stretched slowly over time.  Her facial tattoos, too, appeared to have even more detail in the full sunlight. Black, blue, and a little bit of white made chaotic and yet very intentional patterns on her face as the lines blossomed out from her right ear. Some of the markings looked ancient and faded. Others, like the black one down the bridge of her nose, seemed much more recent.

“It...?” That gave her some pause. But she thought, and then a dark smile spread onto her lips. “Do?” She chuckled. “We do nothing. If this hunter decides to be so bold as to attack us inside a tavern, then we’ll sit patiently and let our prey come to us. It might think itself clever and dangerous, but it has never met the likes of ME. All you need to do is stay close to me, and quietly tell me if you see it. I will make it rethink everything it has ever done.” There was something...almost sinister about her tone and the hungry gleam in her eyes. The truth was, she hadn’t had a good hunt in a while. “Tell me, what is this...thing? Is it man? Beast? Or something in between?”

Giving another scan of the horizon, Ridahne pushes open the tavern door. She smiled. “Come. I owe you a drink.” The tavern was near empty this time of day, though by evening it would undoubtedly be packed to the brim. That suited Ridahne just fine. Being elvish and therefore rare in these parts, she tended to attract a lot of attention in crowded places, which she didn’t really like. 

The barman looked up with a little bit of surprise. "Afternoon, miss, lad." He gave a polite nod. "Can I get ya something?" His eyes were on her sword hilt poking up behind her head, hoping she wasn't going to be trouble.
"Two drinks, and two servings of whatever you've got in the kitchen." Ridahne fished out some coins and slid them across the bar, then found a table against one wall for the two of them to sit.