[hr][hr][h1][b][i][color=00aeef][center]Drops of Rain[/center][/color][/i][/b][/h1][hr][hr]

“Of course, Miss. Ain’t no bother at all.” He shrugged and smiled. “I’ll warn ya; it’s a cargo wagon so if you’re riding in back best bring a blanket or something.”

“We could maybe fit one or two more depending on how much you’re bringing. Right?”
He aimed the question at Thunder to double check.

“But we can discuss that after you’ve seen the wagon of course. I dont make no deals without letting a customer see what they’re buying.”

The sofa squeaked again when he rose and stretched out his legs.

“If it’s alright with you Mr. Garrick, I’ll head over to the stables now to check in on the live stock and Delilah as well.”
“An’ you’re welcome to join me, Miss. If you wanted to. Same goes for anyone else looking to hitch a ride.”

He too lined up with the others heading out of the office. From the sounds of it most were looking to head out until dinner  to make some extra preparations. Rain supposed he should be doing the same thing but having never seen a Hippogriff in the flesh, let alone a Phoenix, he couldn’t wait to see them.

Cash. Gold. Money. Moolah. Dosh. Dough.

It clinked and jingled merrily in the bag Mr. Garrick handed him with little more importance than a parent handing lunch to their child.

Rain picked up the little bag with a thank you and a nod, just as his mother raised him, and was almost startled with how light it was. But be kept his composure until he had left the room before quickly opening the little bag.

Inside he found a surprisingly small amount of actual coinage; a healthy mix of copper, silver, gold, and even (stars above) platinum. But it was the bars which confused him. Walking down the stairs he examined one which looked to be made of gold with a number beneath an insignia.

“A Trade Bar?” Rain commented either to himself or anyone else nearby.

Rain followed the thankfully simple instructions to the stables the butler gave him.

“Out the door and follow the pathway to your right from the driveway. Just follow it around and the stable buildings will be at the end of the pathway on the left.” He had said with much less snark than before. “I’ll let them know you’re on your way.”

The path he followed was much like the one at the front of the estate; made of pink gravel bleached almost white from the sun and lined with pots, shrubbery, and all sorts of lovely delights to the senses. It was wide enough to comfortably fit two wagons. Not too far away he could see the hedgerows and bushes of the garden directly behind the house as he passed by, chopped and shaped into beautiful sculptures and animals and all looking as neat as a pin. But as he moved away from the path the house the path became more and more made of dirt rather than gravel, and whatever pots were still standing were either empty or just filled with barren dirt. Even the grass looked less lush going from a beautiful green to a baked yellow.

Back here it was clear there was no time or care for fancy flowers or well-trimmed grass, so long as everything worked and wasn’t about to break it could look as it liked. That and it was just out of view of the estate and any fancy visitors.
This was much more Rains style.

Rain could smell the stables before he saw them and were just where the Butler had said they’d be. Attached to a field ringed by a wooden field sat a cluster of buildings sitting low, surrounding a courtyard in a frenzy of activity. People ran to-and-fro carrying bags, boxes, and all other manner of supplies at such dizzying speeds it made Rains head spin. And at the centre of it all, atop a stack of create, stood a dwarf shouting at and over the top of people who would run up to him and promptly sent off in another direction. Rain waited for a quiet moment before he approached to introduce himself.

“Aye. Was told you’d turn up. Got your horse and wagon out back, and the Hippogriffs in the barn. Jerem.” A young lad nearby jumped to attention when the dwarf called. “This is the gentleman who owns the old mare, and wants to check over the Hippogriffs. Take care of him and keep him out the way.”

Rain had no idea how the butler got the message over so fast. As Rain was lead away by the lad he swore the dwarf shouted something about a dragon.

The first stop was Delilah. The old girl had been tucked away into a clean and cosy stall. Rain was happy to see she had had her harness removed and hung up on the opposite wall and looked to have been given a very quick groom. The greying mare let Rain say hello and fuss over her for a few minutes before she went back to the tasty bag of oats she’d been given. She gave any visitors a courteous sniff looking for treats and maybe a little pat on the nose.

The second, was the old wagon. It had been parked just outside the stable building Delilah was in, in a quite spot out the way. While Rain had mostly gone to check over his and Thunders belongings, he would also show off the wagon to anyone who had wanted to check it out. It was a small cart, there was no denying it, designed to be pulled by a single horse, but even so it was as wide as three human men and twice as long. It looked sturdy and well used but the worn side panels and mismatched spokes on the high thing wheels showed its age. But even so, the little cart could hold either the party’s belongings or two extra passengers, so four in total with two sitting on the front bench.

Finally. The Hippogriffs. The Barn was the largest building also the busiest. Inside Rain counted all 40 of the Hippogriffs they’d be transporting, along with a few other animals just as rare, each in their own separate paddocks into four lines of ten. A few of the hippogriffs stood in the corridors between the paddocks tied to the posts and Rain could see a few farm hands clearing out a few of the paddocks or tending to the animals inside. He couldn’t see the Pheonix anywhere though so assumed it was being kept somewhere else.

Rain asked to see the Handlers hoping they’d be around for him to ask some questions.
Namely, what do they eat? Any care routines? Temperaments? General plans to move them? And, if he would be allowed to speak to them…