If the noise Mitaja made could be considered a meow, then it was deep, and not at all the cute mew of barnyard tabbies. It could be a very menacing [I]MOW[/I] sound, but to the two women who knew her and at the current moment, it was a very pleased noise. The dun colored cat hooked one big, black-ringed paw around Ridahne's nearest arm and pulled, while at the same time butting her head into the elf's shoulder.
"Ai! Alright, alright," she mock-grumbled, and scratched the velvety spot between the cat's eyes. Watching Darin get up, she added in the same sort of falsely miffed tone, "Good morning to you too, Darin." Honestly though, it was just good to see her in one piece. Mostly one piece anyway, she noted from all the blood on her shirt. She looked down at her own and realized that she must have bled more than she initially guessed, because she was dressed in her very simple underclothes and even those were stained red. Maybe at some point she'd ask to borrow a robe or something and get all her clothes washed--goodness knows they needed it, even the ones that weren't bloodied. 

Talyn called after Darin as she left, "Don't be gone too long. I'll be making breakfast soon." 
"Don't hold your breath," Ridahne said with a tired smile. "She does what she pleases." She said this with pride, not with disdain. "Ought to name her Isfahan too." 
"That means erm...fireheart, right?" 
"Aye."
"Have you known each other long?"
Ridahne very slowly and gently shook her head. "No, only...ah..." She frowned. She knew how long, but the exact figure seemed just out of reach. Maybe she wasn't as clear headed as she thought she was. "Well, not long."
Talyn caught the stumble and studied her with a trained eye. "You really ought to rest more. We'll get some food in you, and more water, and then its back to bed with you. I mean it."
Ridahne gave a mock-salute--a turned-out fist to her chest. "Yes sir." 

--

In the stables, two hands were already going about the daily chores, including feeding and watering the animals. Tsura was behaved, but a little on edge and the reason why became quickly apparent. The younger Azurei, the apprentice, was already at Tsura's stall, seated on an upturned bucket holding Ridahne's sword in both hands. Her knives were beside him. He saw Darin and seemed to know who she was immediately, or at least guessed. At first, he was obviously startled, but seemed to remember his training and sat firm with his chin up. He did hold out one hand in a placating gesture, and pinched  between two knuckles was a polishing cloth, stained pinkish red. 

"My master asked me to inspect the Azurei traveler's horse since we were told not to bother the rider. But we have many questions. So she sent me here, and I saw that her blades were still bloody from the fight. Blades of quality should not lie soiled, and especially not ones that belong to one of our order. So I am cleaning them. I will put them back in the saddlebags when I am finished, you have my word." He bowed slightly. It was unclear exactly how he knew Ridahne was eija, but he seemed to count her among himself and his companions. He was silent for a moment before he added, "We found the bodies last night. The last of them, the one with no hand, he is dead also. We did not get to interrogate him. Do you...have rituals you would perform on the dead?" He seemed unsure of this question, as if he had heard strange and possibly untrue rumors of human customs but had never really encountered them for himself. 

He was young, easily half Ridahne's age or less, and though he did not have the keen awareness of Ridahne or his master, his light brown eyes were sharp and attentive, and always reading her as best he could. His common Astran was a little halting, and his accent was extremely thick. In his right ear was a large stone earring with a symbol carved in it like Ridahne's bone one, except his [I]ku'o[/I] was a flat disc that sat in his earlobe rather than something that hooked through it and dangled, and it was made from what looked like white marble or howlite.