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Monderyn almost interrupted Ahnasha on a couple of occasions, but Fendros pressed against him to the point of causing him pain and silence. Only when Ahnasha was done did he allow him to speak. "I looked up to you Fendros. We were brothers." Monderyn's tone wasn't shifted by Ahnasha, "You protected me against father, and against the idiots in the town who didn't like Dunmer. We loved you...then you ran! You ran like a coward!" "I ran because I knew I would have killed someone! Didn't you read my letter!?" Fendros' teeth glinted in the light from the door menacingly, "Didn't you understand!?" "Sometimes I wish that you had just died, Fendros! Then I wouldn't have to feel as if we weren't worth your time!" "This was all for your sake! Would you rather that I would have come home and put everyone at risk!? I have nightmares every other night of that possibility. Of seeing everyone maimed and torn on the floor! I cannot let that happen!" Monderyn breathed for a short while, frowning. All it took was a darting of his eyes from Fendros to Ahnasha, then back to his brother. "I can't believe that excuse while you're bewitched by that disgusting walking fur coat and that noisy abomination." "DO NOT TALK OF AHNASHA AND MY SON!" Fendros' eyes went wild and wide as he recoiled one arm with intent to rake across Monderyn's neck. He gave no thought to the ramifications of such an act, both against the brother he once loved and in the middle of the biggest city in the Empire. There was a moment to stop him, however. Other members of the pack had reached the open door now. Llarasa was still sobbing in her room with her face in her hands.

The face that Ahnasha beheld was held forward. Even Monderyn's dark Dunmer skin did not hide the fury in his complexion. He had a rounder face than Fendros, but the same eyes and hair, save for a clean shaven face, as well as a similar height. His fists were clenched at his sides. His standing position only lasted for a fraction of a second. He didn't let Ahnasha finish her sentence before he rushed forward to the gap in the door and forced his way through. His speed and momentum threw Ahnasha off balance before she could react. She could barely but keep her balance by hanging onto the doorknob before Monderyn threatened her throat with a shiny dagger and forced her against a wall. It was unmistakably silver. "So you're the one who took-ulk!" Monderyn wasn't able to finish either. In the dim light it was hard to spot, but the furred silhouette was unmistakable as it picked Monderyn up and pinned him against another wall. Fendros forced Monderyn's weapon arm against the stone with one clawed arm, and pinned his other shoulder with an elbow, letting him get close enough that Monderyn could feel his brother's breath on his face. Fendros' slow growl formed words that were understandable even if they were spoken in a different language, "Drop the blade." Monderyn bared his teeth and struggled, his movements separated by fearful whimpers. Even so, it was clear that he was just as angry as he was afraid. He meekly kicked at Fendros' torso, but he didn't have the space or leverage to have any affect. "Drop. The. Blade." Fendros repeated, hesitating before adding, "...Brother." Monderyn's struggles halted, but he kept breathing fast and his expression remained the same. The tings of the silver dagger were heard on the ground as he released it. "You attacked my love, you hurt Llarasa, you abandoned the family to look for me when I told you not to come looking." Fendros was struggling to make out the words past his own fury. "You abandoned us!" Monderyn hissed back, spitting out the next word, "Brother. You and that whore cat wrecked the famil-aaah!" Fendros squeezed Monderyn against the wall for his words. "I should kill you now. You have caused too much suffering." One of Fendros' flat ears turned involuntarily as Rhazii began to cry again. He was in such a blind rage that the sound brought him briefly back to reality. It caused him to hesitate before acting further.

Fendros sat down by Ahnasha and removed his shoes. It didn't seem like he would be walking around the city today after all. That would have to wait. "I think she may have been more excited than she let on about being an aunt. Honestly I'm glad it was her that we ran into and not mother or father." Fendros laid down as well and put his hands behind his head, "...Or Monderyn, now with what he's become." Though he wasn't especially tired as Ahnasha was, Fendros got up and drew the drapes at the window closed to stop some of the light. "You can take a nap if you like. Rhazii's just had a sleep, but I can keep him occupied. Its not as if I can do much else today." --- As the day progressed, Sabine asked more questions of Meesei as they arose. She ended the day feeling a bit less worried about cities than she had been, though it was sad to hear about all the dishonest types that she would have to keep an eye out for. To say that she was streetwise was a lie, but she could at least handle herself as if she wasn't born yesterday. Without much gold, there really wasn't much else to do in the city, but Janius was still willing to guide the pack around to the unexplored parts and lead Meesei to the university for the afternoon. Fendros was true to his word and stayed in his room for the rest of the day. Any disappointment he had was offset my a determination not to put Llarasa in any danger. His presence at the rooms at least meant that he could keep an eye on Leaps and Rhazii, where Rhazii was not being carried by Ahnasha. Dinner was light for the pack that night. Despite the savings gained by the haggling for Sabine's ingredients, their shoestring budget could only afford them basic meals. To Fendros, though, it was worth it, as Sabine was able to refill their empty remedy bottle with a new batch that night, and they could both sleep soundly. For the most part. During their secluded dinner, Fendros shared everything about their encounter with Llarasa with Meesei, being sure to let her know that Llarasa does not know of the pack's travel plans. Fendros and Ahnasha were woken up during the night by Rhazii's small cries, but this time it was different. It was not especially late. He wasn't hungry or in need of burping, he was disturbed by sounds that both Ahnasha and Fendros could both hear now. A muffled pair of shouting voices was sounding from another room. It was made intermittent by the sound of feet stomping. Fendros and Ahnasha awoke enough to soothe Rhazii, but eventually, Fendros rose to his elbows. The voices were familiar. "Ahna," Fendros whispered with some concern, "I think that's Llarasa and Monderyn." They barely had a chance to discuss their next course of action before a door in the hallway slammed open and sure footsteps approached their door. There were three solid knocks on their door that prompted them to rise. Fendros decided to get up and obscure himself behind the door in a corner, out of sight of what was probably Monderyn. Fendros whispered again, "If he doesn't go away, try to talk him away." There were three more knocks. "Fendros. Open the door." A low voice demanded.

"Victor? Are you still alive?"

So, core events are done for this scene. We can end it whenever you like so I can skip to the next one.

After one last nod and smile, Llarasa rose from her seat and proceeded to the door. Fendros and Ahnasha followed suit, as it was not their room. Before she left through the door, though, Llarasa turned to the couple one last time. "What time are you leaving tomorrow? "Sunrise," Fendros answered plainly. Llarasa was cautious in asking her next question, "If I got up before then and waited by the main gate, might I see you off?" Fendros smiled. "I would like that. See you then." "See you," Llarasa hesitated, and then resumed her walk down the stairs to get back to where Monderyn was. Fendros stood and watched Llarasa leave with a smile, but his face faded into a frown once she rounded a corner. It was only then that a brief crackling sounded as he clenched his fists and hung his head. "I can't believe he would do that. He would never hurt Llarasa." Fendros bared his teeth and sucked in a frustrated breath, "I wish there was a way to solve this." Whether Ahnasha answered or not, Fendros walked back into their room and turned to address her. "Ahna, thanks for being there. I'm not sure that I would have been able to face her if not for you." Fendros said, lightly taking Ahnasha's arm and pulling her into a hug with Rhazii between them. --- "They would call you a child?" Sabine repeated with an astounded expression. Meesei was a lot of things, but it was hard to fathom her being a child at all. Nevertheless, Sabine tried to think of things to ask. She started with what Meesei had mentioned to her as advice beforehand. "You said that I could speak to guards to ask where to go if I get lost, but you said some were corrupt. How do I tell which ones are corrupt? What will they do?"

"He has been fine for the past three months. He gets angry quickly, but he doesn't get violent anymore." Llarasa's tone tried to play off her fear, but her demeanour gave it away, "I'm just worried that he'll get angry again if he finds out that you're here, Fendros." Llarasa looked at Fendros solemnly, "Just stay away from him, find another place to stay, or just stay in your room out of sight, I don't care, but just don't let him find out." Fendros looked forward and down sternly. At times, Monderyn and him were inseparable. Even if they weren't brothers by blood, they shared a sibling bond. Monderyn may have been rash and followed along with Fendros' plans too much, but it was hard to imagine him getting so angry that he would hurt Llarasa. "I can't let him continue to hurt you, Llarasa. Let me talk to him-" "No, please." Llarasa interrupted surprisingly calmly. She squeezed Fendros' arm and pleaded, "He's finally accepted that you're gone. He was upset and angry because he always looked up to you. I remember hearing him muttering that you abandoned him forever. If he knows why you left, it makes more sense that he would be angry for longer." Llarasa looked at Rhazii's smile as the cub tugged at a lock of her hair, "And you know how he is about beast races. He was worse than you. All this at once would make him explode, I know it. If we leave it, he can live in peace." Llarasa's stare bore into Fendros' eyes, desperately halting the anger that was building within him. "Please..." Llarasa whispered. As much as he tried, Fendros couldn't see any other way about it that wouldn't put Llarasa or the pack at risk. He pursed his lips and swallowed his anger, then responded. "Very well. I'll stay in my room, out of sight. He won't recognise the rest of the pack." Llarasa smiled gratefully, "Thank you." Fendros couldn't help but look disappointed that the situation couldn't be resolved ideally. "How much time do you have to catch up today, then?" Fendros asked Llarasa. "Actually, I should head back, otherwise Monderyn will come and find me." Llarasa slowly lifted Rhazii back onto Ahnasha's lap, "I'm sorry that I don't have more time..." Llarasa pinched at the end of her index finger with her hands in her lap and looked down sadly again. Fendros was understanding and put his arms around Llarasa again. There was no loud sobbing this time, but she was silently weeping again as she returned the hug. "I'm sorry, sister," Fendros said, "I'm sorry I put you and everyone else through this. I'm glad we could talk, though. I'm glad I could explain." Fendros angled his head to one side, "Are you sure there's nothing we can do about Monderyn?" Llarasa nodded, "I think it is for the best." When they separated, Llarasa wiped one eye and turned to Ahnasha. Even though they were fairly unfamiliar, Llarasa reached a hand to Ahnasha's shoulder. "I hope all goes well with you both..." --- Sabine's mouth twitched and she took a moment to form the words before she spoke. "Meesei, ever since the ritual, not much has scared me anymore. But, more and more things are making me worried again. I feel like I should be old enough not to be a child, but if I keep doing stupid things like getting lost..." Sabine kicked a loose stone along the pavement "...how will I be able to take care of myself without others?"

Rhazii's presence seemed to put a permanent endearing grin across Llarasa's face. She lent Rhazii her hand under the cub's grasp and he promptly stuck her fingers into his mouth, but she just giggled. "I'm not experienced with children at all, really. You've probably heard what Dunmer are like, I wasn't expecting to become an aunt this century, and I doubt I'll become a mother in that time, either." Llarasa craned her head down to Rhazii and pouted, "Aren't you just the cutest little thing." She close her eyes and pulled her head back when Rhazii ran his fingers down her face, but she didn't seem to mind too much. "He is probably the thing I expected to see the least after Fendros left, but he is beautiful. Oh, I wish I had the time to sketch him." "Oh? You started a sketch book again?" Fendros asked. Llarasa nodded and pointed to the book on her bedside. "Mhm, it's right there. I started again shortly after you left. With how everyone was behaving, it kept me sane, really." The book she pointed to was the same as she was grasping when she knocked on Fendros and Ahnasha's door. Fendros leaned over and picked it up. She flipped through it in the view of both Ahnasha and Llarasa. There were a lot of skilled sketches in the book, mainly of little plants or small landscapes, but also of people. It was clear that she was more skilled than Ahnasha, but Fendros wasn't going to rudely point that out. Llarasa had a ten year head start after all. "Well, we're here for the rest of the night and leaving in the morning, you could knock on our door again, if you liked. I'm sure if we could sort this out, Monderyn might like to know everything as well." Fendros didn't notice how optimistic he had become. With that, Llarasa's face darkened. "No, I don't think...no, that's not a good idea. Monderyn, he...he is still incredibly angry." Llarasa's lips tightened. "He has become more hateful of everything, really. But especially you. I don't know what he would do if he found out but..." Llarasa's shoulders began to hunch in fear, "He's prone to violent outbursts these days. I don't want him to break anything or hurt anyone. I think we should keep this from him and you should leave early in the morning. Just stay in your rooms for a while, I think that would be safest." Fendros placed a hand on Llarasa's back and looked down to see her eyes. "He didn't hurt you, did he?" "On a couple of occasions, yes. He was remorseful afterwards, but he...he scares me now..." Looking up at Ahnasha, Fendros didn't really know what to do. They couldn't afford to get a room in another inn. He considered perhaps for Llarasa's safety that they venture out of the city to find a place in the wilds, but that would take a long time and leave the pack far from any carriages in the morning. Perhaps they should just stay in their room for the rest of the day. --- "Okay," Sabine agreed quietly. Though, she didn't have to be asked after the stress of today. She would likely not stray from Meesei's side until further notice. Underneath it all, Sabine felt a tiny pang of annoyance at being referred to as a child underhandedly. She was fifteen, didn't that mean she could take care of herself? It made her put on a glum expression while she walked out with Meesei.

The story was heart warming enough that Llarasa actually smiled near the end of it. She let out a high pitched titter along with Ahnasha's chuckle and glanced at Fendros knowingly. "Was it drink?" Fendros looked away, took a deep breath, and lifted his eyebrows as far as he could. "Drink may or may not have been involved." Llarasa smiled through false bemusement and hit Fendros in the back of the shoulder with her palm, chastising him. "I should have known. At least it seems to have worked out. That doesn't explain how you changed your opinion of Khajiits, though." "Well, it's just as Ahnasha said, we enjoyed each others' company. Also, once I found out that she was pregnant, well, I couldn't just pretend that it wasn't my responsibility." Fendros looked up at Ahnasha, "And it's hard to see race as an issue when you're in love." "That's adorable, brother." Llarasa laughed. She sniffed the last of the fluid form her nose and kept glancing at Rhazii. After a few seconds, Fendros noticed Llarasa's looks. "Would you like to hold him?" "Could I?" Llarasa asked quietly, looking between Fendros and Ahnasha's faces. --- Sabine was a little nervous. The Nord woman was a stranger and she didn't know why she would want to know what exactly happened. Meesei said that the guards were okay to talk to, though, so Sabine eventually began after holding her forearm in her other hand. "I was in the Arboretum with the others and went to see an interesting mushroom. When I got up, I couldn't see Meesei or the others anywhere. I thought they had gone in the same direction we had been going, but I couldn't find them." Sabine looked at the guard's inkwell idly, "I found the Temple District, and I had seen that before, so I just tried to find the inn. I took a wrong turn, though, and ended up in a crowd and couldn't find anything familiar. After a while, a Dunmer woman saw me crying and helped me." Sabine scuffed a her shoe, "I'm sorry that I made everyone look for me."

Llarasa nodded blankly at all Ahnasha had to say. Despite Fendros' predictions that she wouldn't be angry, a confused whirlwind of emotion was whirring in her head, trying to make sense of it all. Her high emotions at the time didn't help matters at all. She responded slowly as her thoughts tried to keep up, "Well, I suppose if it is like that, then you can't come home. I mean...father is going to kill you." Llarasa took her eyes of Rhazii and faced Fendros again, "Really, he might run you through for this." Fendros grinned and almost laughed, "Are you angry?" Llarasa raised her brow and shook her head. "I'm not angry, but I'm not sure how I should feel. I feel like I should still be angry for you disappearing, but I think it should be romantic and warm that you found someone. As well, I should be happy that you don't feel that Khajiit should be picked on anymore, but it's just...I think I'm mostly surprised." Llarasa looked to Ahnasha, "You're going to have to tell me how you two fell in love at some point, because I'm having trouble." Llarasa rubbed the back of her head, "I guess you don't want me to tell Mother, Father, and Monderyn, then." "I think it would be best if you kept it from them, yes. All of what I have told you, in fact." Fendros nodded, "Are any of them here?" "It's just me and Monderyn. We're here to market the new vintage. He's out trading right now. I was with him until I found your friend, the Breton girl. Sabine, she said she was." Llarasa looked sideways at Fendros, "Is she a part of your...pack, as you said? She's a werewolf as well?" "That's right. I think she was separated from the rest of the group while they were walking around the city. She's not used to cities." "I thought so." Bringing her mind back to the original issue, Llarasa faced Fendros properly. "Where have you been all this time? Still in the forest outside Cheydinhal?" Fendros blinked and shook his head. "No. We have been travelling a lot. There are a variety of reasons why, but it is best that you do not know. Trust me. I will say that we have been to Vvardenfell in Morrowind and the northern half of Black Marsh." "Azura blind me...that's...you must have been moving the entire time." Llarasa seemed so overwhelmed by it all that she might faint, "No wonder Monderyn couldn't find you." Llarasa shook her head as if trying to shake the thought out of her head, "Never mind that, I would like to hear of the good things. How did you two fall in love?" With an uneasy combination of exhaling and laughing, Fendros looked away and considered. It still didn't feel like the most flattering tale. He looked at Ahnasha with a pleading smile, perhaps she could recount it, or at least start the story off. --- Though she didn't show it, Sabine was glad that she could get some advice about cities. She didn't hesitate to agreeing to go with Meesei to inform the guards to stop looking. As they walked, Sabine wondered if the guards had something to enhance their scent and help to find things in the city, but she was swiftly doubtful. Non-lycans didn't have that sense of smell normally. She had almost forgotten what it was like to not have such a sense of smell.