Snatching Second Chances

Irene rubbed her head as the client, Jessica Gretchen, bride-to-be and pain-in-the-ass-now looked over the list of wines.

"I want something sweet, but not bubbly. And a nice red color for the portraits. Yellow never looks good." She twirled her blonde hair with her finger, sucking loudly on her teeth. An empty but slightly damp wine bottle sat in front of her that Irene really wished was her glass right about now.

Irene nodded. "For that, I would recommend an asconi. Very dark red and luxurious. You should love it." She had to fight hard to keep a smile. She thought being a sommlier would mean giving recommendations and easy money. But no, it meant stupid people giving you every consideration under the sun that would never work out.

The guest pursed her lips. "Can I sample it?"

Irene stood up and nodded, glad that was an invintation to leave because she was feeling violent. "Let me get you a glass." She walked into the storeroom, looking at all of the barrels. Most of the labels were old and faded, but Irene knew most of them by memory.

In the corner, where she'd left him, Big had fallen asleep, leaning against a pile of barrels as he sat on a heavy crate. With both of his massive horns propped up on tall barrels, his head hung a little limply as he leaned back.

His steady snoring made the room rumble.

Irene smirked. "Planning on staying here all day, Big?"

Big jumped with a snort, his eyes fluttering open as his horns clattered against the barrels and thumped against the low ceiling.

"Hm? What?" he muttered. "No."

"Really? You look very comfortable."

Big sat up straighter, careful not to turn his head in the barrel-filled room and whack her, since they were about eye level with him sitting.

"Did you get the deal?" Big asked instead. "With um. That client."

"She wants to try our asconi. But if it goes as well as our champagne, chardonnay, and riesling, she's not going to like it." Irene sighed.

"Oh, right," Big murmured, inching off the crate he was on. He stood up straighter, slowly and methodically turning in a circle to make sure his horns went over everything as he turned and ripped off the lid of the crate he was sitting on.

"Asconi," Big said, pulling out a bottle.

He did the same shimmying little dance to turn back around before handing it to her.

"Maybe she's got better taste," Big offered with a small shrug.

Irene let out a dry chuckle. "I hope so. I guarentee it, by the end of the night she's going to order our cheapest dry red. I just don't get it. She's sampling all these wines she doesn't like for what? Waste of time for both of us."

"Maybe start charging her by the bottle," Big suggested.

"Please. Like I give her the whole bottle. She gets three sips from a fancy glass and spits it out." Irene eyed the bottle. "You did hand me the sample bottle, right?"

"Yeah," Big answered. "Maybe charge for the sips?"

Not that they were losing any money by doing so. It was more on principle. Irene and Big had had this gig going for a few months now: Big would haul in large supplies of water, they would divvy it out into different barrels and bottles, and Irene would turn it into varied wines.

No one needed to know how they got a hold of all of this wine, anyway. Wine was wine, and after you got so far into a bottle, no one cared too much about the taste. And even the best sommelier couldn't tell the difference between Irene's magic wine and fremented grape juice. Unfortunately, the problems were more from how unpredictable Irene's magic was. She could weakly influence it with her mood, but it was hard to change it enough to heavily influence the wine she made in the day. So, some wines were always low stock with no idea of when they would be restocked. Maybe Big and her should invest in some emotion-shifting potions. They could pricey, but so was their wine. And if it helped production, it would even out in the long run, yeah?

Irene sighed. "Maybe I should charge her for the asconi. Sweet wines are so hard to make."

"See what she thinks first," Big said, glancing at the door behind them. "You shouldn't keep her waiting long."

"Yeah, I'll get back out there." She raised the bottle before heading back out.

"Hello! I have a fine bottle of asconi here." Irene set the bottle down on the meeting table. "I'll grab us fresh glasses-"

"I have this one. You've gone through three glasses already." Gretchen sneered. "Seems a little... wasteful."

Irene wasn't going to yell at her. Irene wasn't going to yell at her. Irene was not going to risk her and Big's job by reaching over the table and strangling her. She just needed a stiff, stiff drink.

"Against company policy." Irene was wearing the fakest smile in the world while she grabbed another glass and set it in front of her. She opened the asconi and gave her a frugal pour. She didn't deserve more. "While you think on it, I'll take your old glass." She snatched it up before Gretchen could argue and walked back into the storage room.

"Big, do we have a clean glass in here?"

"Yeah, one second," Big said, reaching behind him without turning. After pawing around for a second, he brought a clean glass around and offered it to her.

"Thanks." Irene took it and walked to the sink, gently setting the clean one down and rinsing out the old one before setting it down in the sink to wash. She then filled the new one to the brim with water before cradling it and turning it into a rosé. She lifted it up and took a long drink. "Finally."

Big only hummed, watching.

"Don't judge me. She's annoying." Irene downed the rest of it.

"Didn't say 'nothin," Big murmured.

Irene sat the glass down. "Okay." She wiped her forehead. "Let's go see if she likes the asconi."

"Good luck," Big said with a wave of his hand.

"Thanks. I'll need it." She walked back outside.

Gretchen was wiping her mouth with the napkin, glass empty. "Where were you? That was horrific. I've never had anything that mad in my life. It was too sweet!"

"It was a dessert wine." Irene frowned.

"Well I don't want it! Give me something bitter and real. A bitter red wine."

Irene just grabbed the bottle. "Okay. But it's three gold pieces for the next sample."

Gretchen's mouth fell open. "What? I didn't know you charged for samples."

"We do when you have over three. Sorry, I forgot to warn you about the asconi. So, six gold pieces."

Gretchen took a big deep breath. "Fine. I'll pay, but this one better be good."

Irene nodded and walked back to Big. "Did you hear the new order, Bigshot?"

"That I did," Big said from behind the half-closed door in the storeroom.

"Give me a Cabernet Franc. She likes her mouth to pucker."

Heavy movements were heard as Big shuffled around, and eventually pushed the door open with his left horn coming out first. He was hunched, to fit through, but he managed to hold the barrel of Cabernet under his arm without trouble.

Entering into the higher-ceilinged room, Big stood up straight once more and heaved the barrel onto the ground beside the client.

"I can carry this to your wagon for you," he offered.

Gretchen gasped. "They've been keeping you in the storage room? Who needs sweet wine whem you have this sweet hunk of meat?" She walked over and squeezed Big's arm.

Big blinked slowly, then turned his stare to Irene. His expression was blank, but Irene could read what he wasn't saying.

'Help me,' was all over his face.

"I'll take this to your wagon, then," he said neutrally.

"Want me to-"

"Stay out of this, wine girl. You can't keep eye candy all to yourself. It's meant to be..." Gretchen winked. "Shared."

Saying nothing, Big reached down to lift the barrel again, walking steadily but quickly out the door.

"I'll charge your card!" Irene yelled out the door.

Irene sighed and slumped back at the table, rubbing her nose. At least it was a sell. All good things ended in payment. Hopefully Big would survive the Gretchen storm, though.

Big was just glad they got another sale. Money had been tight the past few months, and the little shop he and Irene managed to rent was due for some repairs.

They had a few steady buyers, each with their own tavern or restaurant in the nicer parts of Hildirun. But it was hard to keep them when the supply wasn't dependable. Thus, they often resorted to novelty advertising: sales on what they had in excess, to draw in new buyers who bought into the appeal of a one-time deal. Gretchen was one of those clients, but this was their first time handling her.

Hence, it was their first time meeting. And Big honestly wished he'd met her before she'd consumed three glasses of wine.

The trip to her wagon was plagued by heckling.

Big heaved the barrel onto the back of her wagon, using the ropes she had back there to tie it down.

Gretchen fanned herself off. "It is hot out here. Want to head inside my wagon?"

"It is summer, Ms. Gretchen," Big said matter-of-factly.

"Perfect weather to go shirtless," she lilted.

Big let out a small sigh, tightening the ropes before he closed the back of the wagon.

"It's been a pleasure doing business with you," Big said, deciding it was probably for the best not to entertain her interest. For all he knew, it was the wine talking. "Do you need help getting up into the front?"

She probably didn't, and Big realized too late that she was going to be overeager to take him up on his offer. Such was the result of being polite, at his own expense.

Having to ward off her sloppy advance, he offered her a hand for her to take, steadying her as she jumped up into the driver's seat.

"Wait! Before we part." She reached into her bag and pulled out a runestone, and set it in Big's hand. "Call me?"

Big managed a nod, though it wasn't quite an answer. Not wanting to burn this bridge, since Gretchen was paying them well, he simply took the runestone, planning on... probably giving it to Irene, later. In case they needed to reach out to Gretchen for another deal, he supposed.

"You take care, Ms. Gretchen," Big said, handing her the reins and then patting the rear of her horse.

That was, fortunately, enough to get the wagon moving.

Gretchen rode off with a pleading glance over her shoulder, but Big pretended he didn't see it. He turned away and let out a sigh, looking down the cobblestone street at the other people walking about. This was one of the less desired districts in Hildirun: it was older, run down, and that was why rent was so cheap.

Still, the people in it were just people, and he recognized a few of their neighbors who had similar shop set-ups, with small apartments on the upper floor. He glanced up at the clear blue sky, taking in a deep breath under the summer heat.

This was nothing like the desert. Here in Hildirun, there was humidity. And that was worse.

Just before Big turned back in, he spotted a shadow flying overhead, backed by the sun. He had to squint to make it out, but it looked like a messenger bird: and it was dropping flyers all over the street.

He was several flutter down up ahead before the bird passed over him, and a piece of paper floated down in a neat spiral, hitting his face.

Picking it up, he looked down at the paper with a huff, expecting to see an ad. Instead, what he saw was an announcement:

Greetings powerful mercenaries!

You have been invited the annual Tournament of Mercenaries. Your skills, valor, and overall finnese has given you a spot to prove yourself to the world stage. We would be pleased if you joined us in the center of Hilidrun on the high moon.

If you believe recieving this was a mistake, please place your thumb on the seal.

Eyes widening, Big hurried over to the shop door, knocking on the glass and opening it.

"Irene," he called. "Come see this."

Irene was already nursing a tall glass of wine, her cheeks pink. "Huh? Is Gretchen still here?"

"No, not that," Big said, handing her the flyer. "This."

Irene took it and frowned. "This is a joke, right? We touch the seal and get a wedgie or something?"

Big hadn't thought of that.

"I could do it for you?" he offered. "But I think you only do that if your answer's no."

"It said if you think it's a mistake. So maybe for like... wrong addresses."

Big hummed for a moment, taking the flyer back from her to re-read exactly what it said. Then he looked back at her.

"Do you think it was a mistake?" he asked.

"I seriously doubt someone meant to send us this. But if they did..." She swirled her glass. "It could be fun."

Big stared at the flyer again, thinking back on the last year.

Their failure of a team had become the laughing-stock of Hildirun. Everyone once in a while, people would come by Irene and Big's shop just to see if it was really them. They were infamous in all of the ways they didn't want to be, and they'd agreed a long time ago to give up on any chance of redemption. Honestly, Big never thought they'd get one again.

What he had now with Irene was a patch-work business, but he had a gut feeling it wasn't going to last. They were barely breaking even, as it was.

Maybe this was their second chance.

"You think so?" he asked after a beat.

Before they'd disbanded, he and Irene had come up with a way to stay in touch with everybody. Back then, it'd been with the intention to keep up with each other. To reach out, if anyone needed anything. After two years of working together, they'd become friends, even if they hadn't become a functional team.

Yet.

"I mean, I guess it really depends on everyone else too. But I know Echo is still sort of in the business. I'm sure a couple others will join for old time's sake."

"I guess it doesn't hurt to ask," Big murmured, looking down at the runestone he still held in his hand.

He pocketed it away.

"You still have that sending stone somewhere?" he asked. "Maybe we should give everybody a call."

"Of course I have it."

"Guess there's no excuses, then," Big said. "Let's see if the gang wants to get back together."

Irene lifted her wine glass. "To second chances!"

Sophie Hooper was focused on the Lady Cordelia Agatha Bazir the Fourth. Well, she was actually always focused on the Lady Cordelia Agatha Bazir the Fourth, but this time, she was focused on the Lady Cordelia Agatha Bazir the Fourth in a panicked way, which was not normal, and Sophie did not like the feeling at all. That is to say, she had lost her.

She'd set her down next to the pond and laid back to look up at the sky, and then she'd looked up again, and the Lady had disappeared. The Lady, of course, had every right to do so--she was a frog princess, after all--so the trouble wasn't in the Lady choosing to go somewhere new, so much as in the fact that Sophie had not been paying attention when she had chosen to do so, and now was completely and utterly lost. "My Lady Cordelia?" Sophie called, eyes frantically searching the pond for any sign of her. She spotted several other frogs, but she could tell they were ordinary citizen frogs, not frog princess frogs, so she ignored them. "My Lady?" She called again.

How had she done this? Her entire job was to follow the Lady's every wish! And one of those wishes, inherently, was to be protected, and Sophie had failed! She almost sobbed, but caught herself. She needed to keep herself together. Crying could always wait. Besides, it was easier to build it up for several weeks and then just let it all out at one time, instead of having different crying sessions spread out. It was way more efficient to save her tears for later. Which, if things kept going in this direction, would be a lot of tears.

Behind her, a branch broke, and she whirled around, mind racing. What if the Lady had gone into the forest in search of her homeland, and some animal like a fox, or a wolf, or an owl got to her? Sophie shuddered. She didn't think she'd ever be able to forgive herself if the Lady died on her watch, much less to an owl. How humiliating would that be? "Hey, everybody! Yeah, sorry, I know that you all only know me as the frog paladin, but she died, so now I'm just like. Nobody, I guess. Oh, how did she die? An owl." She cringed at the thought of it.

Ribbit!

Sophie spun in a circle again. "My Lady!" She cried, running towards the noise and slipping in the mud in the process, landing herself in the pond, half-soaked and panting but relieved. "My Lady, there you are!" She said. "I didn't know where you had gone."

Ribbit!

"I'm sorry, I must not have heard you, or I would've followed," Sophie said. "I always follow you," she added.

Ribbit!

Sophie smiled a little. "I know you know, I was just saying it anyway."

She exhaled slowly, trying to calm her racing heart as she pushed herself out of the pond water and back onto the land. Gingerly, she placed the Lady next to her and looked down at her sopping wet clothes. She had an extra pair in her bag, but they were dirty and she hadn't had a chance to wash them yet. It looked like both her pairs needed a wash now though. She was going to have to buy more soap, once she found another way to make money.

"This is a predicament," she mused, then felt her hair. Half of it had gotten into the dirty water and had leaves and algae sticking to it--though that was her fault, she guessed, since she'd left it down instead of tying it up. Ribbit! She glanced up at the Lady. "They're dirty," she explained. "No, no, you're right, I guess it would be better to be in dirty clothes than wet ones. Hmm..."

Sophie froze suddenly, her head shooting up and looking out over the water. She could feel something almost tickling the back of her neck, and she blinked a couple times, unsure what was causing the sudden sensation. She turned to see if there was a branch brushing against her, but the feeling continued. Spider? No, she felt the back of her neck and there was no spider. Lady Cordelia Agatha Bazir the Fourth ribbited, then hopped off of her hand and onto a lily pad at the edge of the water, watching Sophie coolly--regally. Sophie sighed and sank her head dramatically into her hand, watching the Lady. She was so perfect. Sophie had no idea what she had done to deserve her.

"I don't know," she said. "It's not a spider."

The Lady ribbited again.

"No." Sophie shook her head solemnly. "I don't think so."

This time, the Lady blinked several times at Sophie. She nearly fell over from the force of her own face-palm. "Of course!" She cried. "You're a genius." She turned around and dug in her bag, pulling out a small wooden box that she kept her most prized possessions in. "Where is it?" She muttered frantically, before finally pulling out the stone. "Aha!" She exclaimed triumphantly. "Yes!"

It was, indeed, the stone that was buzzing, and probably also causing the tickling at the back of her neck. She wasn't sure what that could be if it wasn't the stone. How did she use this thing again? After several seconds of messing around with the stone, she turned helplessly towards the Lady Cordelia Agatha Bazir the Fourth, who hopped off her lily pad and onto the stone. It beeped.

"Hello, Ms. Sophie," Big greeted. "Do you have time to talk?"

Sophie broke out into a huge grin. "Big!" She said excitedly. "Hello! Hi! Yes, I do!"

There was a second of silence. Maybe the connection was bad.

"Great," Big replied. "Miss Sophie, I am calling to ask if you are interested in a chance to bring our team back together again."

Sophie felt her heart flutter. "Really? You want me back?" She exclaimed. "Where do you need me? I can be there tonight!"

"Woah, woah," Big said calmly. "It's great to hear your enthusiasm. But I want to be sure you know what you're signing up for, though it would be good to see you again either way. We haven't caught up in some time."

"I know." Sophie nodded seriously. "I haven't talked to another person in weeks."

There was another few seconds of silence. Wow, this connection really was spotty!

"Well, then you should come meet us in Hildirun," Big said gently. "Irene and I have set up shop on the south end of the city. The sign reads: Big Wine. Irene chose the name. Shouldn't be too hard to find."

"Great! Awesome! Hey, Big? Do you think we'll get some time to hang out too? Outside of the job, I mean?"

"We certainly can, Miss Sophie," Big answered.

Sophie grinned. "That's great," she said. She glanced over at the Lady, formally nicknamed La'Cabuf, who hopped off the stone onto her hand. "The Lady Cordelia Agatha Bazir the Fourth says to tell you hello, and that she's missed you," Sophie said.

"You can tell Lady Cordelia Agatha Bazir..." Big said slowly, like he was working through each name with effort. "...the Fourth. That I missed her too."

"She can hear you," Sophie said, then added helpfully, "We're in the middle of the woods and you're talking through a rock, so your voice is pretty loud right now."

"Oh," Big said. "Sorry about that."

"It's okay," Sophie said brightly. "I bet you made some rabbits' day."

Another delay. Sophie shook the rock, wondering if it just needed a little extra help. She hadn't realized rocks could have delayed responses, but then again, it was a type of magic she wasn't familiar with, so she didn't really know anything about it.

"I hope your day is fine as well," Big said.

Sophie nodded. "I had a little freak-out because I couldn't find the Lady Cordelia, but then I found her. I tripped into the pond trying to get to her though, so now my clothes are wet. It's a good day though hearing from you." She smiled widely, absent-mindedly pulling her wet clothes away from her skin where they had begun to stick.

"I'm sorry you fell into the pond," Big said. "But it sounds like you weren't hurt, I hope? How far are you from Hildirun?"

"No, not hurt at all!" Sophie considered for a moment, thinking through the path she'd need to take to get to Hildirun. "That's a really good question," she said. "Probably about a twenty minute walk."

"Really?" Big asked.

"Yep. I'm just outside the city limits," she said. "La'Cabuf wanted to go to the pond, but I wanted to be close enough for the parties."

"I see," Big said. "When should I be expecting you, then?"

Sophie tilted her head. "Probably about twenty-five minutes. I don't want to rush the Lady Cordelia's goodbyes."

"Well, there's no need to rush," Big said. "I'll be at the shop all day. Take your time, Miss Sophie. I look forward to seeing you soon."

Sophie smiled. "Thank you! I'm so happy to see you again."

"Good," Big said, and Sophie could hear the smile in his voice. "Call if you need anything."

"I don't know how to do that," Sophie said cheerfully. "But I will see you in a little bit!"

"Alright," Big said. "See you then."

"Okay!" Sophie said, then put the rock down, staring at it for several seconds with her head tilted to see if it would do anything. Did it make any type of noise or signal to show they had been disconnected? Much to her disappointment, the rock did nothing because it was just a rock. She sighed. "I don't know how this thing works," she mumbled to herself, placing it carefully--reverently--back into the box before re-placing the box into her bag.

She looked up at the Lady Cordelia Agatha Bazir the Fourth, with her little purple cape, and her tiny crown made of sticks Sophie had glued together that only managed to stay on by the sticky layer of coating on her body. Big had been the one to make the cape--he'd even asked what Sophie's favorite color was, and what color the Lady Cordelia liked, and it was actually rather simple because they both really loved the color purple. He'd stitched it together and handed it to her and said, "Here. In case the La'Cabuf gets cold. I decided to do a cape so she can still breathe through her skin easily."

Sophie had almost teared up at that one, but she'd managed to hold it together long enough to nod solemnly and say, "Thank you for your respect of the Lady's frogly anatomy." When she'd left the tavern that night, she'd wiped away tears with the edge of her shirt, and La'Cabuf had ribbited her approval and comfort. She was amazing that way--she could communicate two completely different things in one single ribbit. Sophie loved her. She loved Big too, which made another big smile form as she thought about how she was going to get to see him so soon. She always hated the idea of bothering people, but he had asked to see her! Wow.

She stared down at the Lady Cordelia, with Big's little cape and her little crown and her complete air of regalness. The Lady stared back, eyes wide. They stayed like that for a moment, staring at each other. Then, the Lady blinked, ribbited, and hopped off of Sophie and onto the ground, breaking the trance.

Sophie nodded, dazed for a few seconds. "You're right. We should get going." She pushed herself to her feet, holding her palm to the ground for the Lady to jump on. Once she did, she placed her on her shoulder and began to walk away from the pond, towards the dirt road that would lead her back to Hildirun. This was so exciting! She'd get to see old friends, and they'd get to see her, and she'd talk to people for the first time in a little while, which was actually pretty daunting, but still! Exciting.

She hummed to herself as she walked along. The Lady ribbited. "You're right," Sophie responded with a smile. "It's good to be back."

2,070 words

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Selena rolled her eyes at another set of rejection letters. The last one where they'd sent her back a red baby blanket was definitely at least a little over the top. She wondered if that could count as libel or something. Enough to force them to hire her or at least pay here something. She probably needed some kind of lawyer for that. Lawyers were expensive.

She groaned. Not for the first time that day and almost definitely not for the last. This was becoming too much of daily occurrence now. How was she this bad at fighting? Weren't people supposed to be scared of vampires? Especially ones that were multiple millennia old. Granted those didn't generally turn into a bab...

She realized her mistake a little too late.

In a flash of black fabric and faint rainbow light, she found herself transforming. Her legs grew stubby and short, her arms, small and hanging practically uselessly at her sides, her entire body shrinking and shrinking, until she was buried in the fabric of her own cloak. Her vision dimmed a bit and she felt the familiar humiliation of small bat wings starting to grow out of her back.

Well she did moonlight as a two year old baby. That would explain the humiliation.

She let loose an unrestrained pout of adorableness to express her anger, crawling expertly out of her cavernous cloak. She hastily hiked up everything to fit her body properly, thankful for the magic nappy she'd acquired for problems like this. It was much easier to hide the suspicious looking bulge of a nappy as an adult vampire than dealing with the humiliation of ending up as a baby with nothing on.

Dealing with that, she navigated her way to the little collection of stools she'd put together to be able to clamber up to the tab. If only her stupid baby form could at least fly, that would give her some use, but no, of course it was only powerful enough to carry a baby bat. A human baby and a baby bat were sadly nowhere close in terms of weight.

Clambering up to the top, she pushed the letters into the two neat piles she'd set up. Well, she was kidding herself about the two piles. None of them would be going anywhere near the accepted pile. Stubbornly pushing them to the sides, Selena huffed and puffed her way back down from the table.

Her plans had involved sneaking out once it got a little darker to get some groceries but given her current predicament it was probably going to take a bit more than a couple of hours. She tiptoed to the nearest window she could reasonably see out of.

There wasn't a ton of light left in the day from the looks of it, she wasn't going to be able to get groceries until much much later in the day. Or well the wee hours of the next day. If she was very lucky she'd be able to visit the earliest open stalls but that was a long shot at best and she'd rather not be out at dark. She'd have to endure one more day of not really being able to get anything except the...horror of the blood she'd got stored. She shuddered. At least she didn't have to get meals like the rest of the people. She'd never get outside enough to eat reasonably then.

She huffed and pouted once more for good measure before she waddled off towards the bed. That was really the only thing she could do at the moment and maybe a little lie in would do her good after the news. She didn't much feel like finding new fliers at this point. It had been three weeks of rejection after rejection ever since tomato soup gate.

Finally making it to the bed, she clambered into it, cuddling up to the little pillow that was a tiny bit extra fluffy. It wasn't often she could afford nice things, but she'd gotten the one nice thing, specially for the moments like this in which she felt the most terrible.

She lay down, letting her thoughts slowly drift only for a strange buzzing to interupt her. It was coming from under her big pillow. She frowned. Who would call her?

She didn't wate too long thinking about who it might be scrambling to pick it up. Whoever it was had to be work. She didn't have friends. Well not anymore anyway and getting any work was good.

She quickly picked it up and held it up to her ear.

"Is this Selena?" Bigs voice asked, low and familiar.

She squealed with happiness, coming out much more naturally with her current vocal cords than the indignation and horror from earlier. "Biiiggg. Its meee."

"Hello, Selena," Big said, more fondly. "Its good to hear your voice. Is now a good time to talk?"

"Hiiiii," she nodded enthusiastically before remembering Big would have no way to see her. She really hoped her voice wasn't too high pitched and annoying at the moment.

"I assume that's a yes," Big said with a huff.

She nodded again but managed to squeak out, "Yesss. 'orrryyy. Goodd. Hearrr youuu. Missedd youuu alll."

"I missed you, too, Selena," Big said. "I'm calling you to see if you're interested in getting back into mercenary work.We want to get our crew back together to enter the Tournament of Mercenaries."

She squealed even louder. "YESSS. Lookss Workkk. Alll monthhh. Goottt nonee. Misseddd ussss. Would lovee tooo doo moreee. Ifff I goood enoughhh. Everyoneee sayyy. Selenaa youuu onlyyy slayyy yourr selfff. Selenaaa youuu suckkk."

"Well, I'm hoping that this time, we'll get to prove everyone wrong," Big said. "And then, maybe, people will say Selena Slay lives up to her name, like they ought to."

"Yeee. Provee wronggg. I likeees thattt." She grinned, giggling to herself. For once she didn't feel ashamed at the adorable giggle she possessed in this form. "Thankk youu. Youu tooo. I meannn youu allreadyy Biggg. Biggg offf hearttt."

Big let out a short laugh. "Are you close to Hildirun?" he asked.

"I...ummm. Thinkkk. Yesss. I Kendryyy. Onlyyyy dayss ridee."

"Will you be able to make it in that time?" Big asked.

"Ummmm. Iffff. MOneyyy havee. Otherwisee gotsss walkkk. Butt can't checkk noww. Won't beee biggg till morninggg. Justt turnedd noww."

"I can call back in the morning to check in with you. If you need me to head in, I could pick you up and bring you in," he said.

"Youuu wouldd doo thattt forr meee?" Selena felt genuinely surprised. Maybe she shouldn't be. This was how Big was. But it was hard to believe anyone wanted to do anything for her after the past month.

"Of course," Big said. "We'll assess your situtation in the morning for what would be best, alright? We want you to get here safe."

"Thattt seemsss amazinggg. Muchh likee youu. Thank youuu." Selena had the biggest grin on her face.

"You're welcome, Selena." Big said. "It will be great to catch up again. You take care, now, okay?"

"I willl. Gonnaa resttt carefullyyy. Mee byy myy speciall pilloww. Wass gonna be sadd restt. Now happyyy resttt."

"Happy to hear that," Big said with a smile in his voice. "I'll see you soon, then."

"Sees youuu soonnnn. Happyyy to hearr youuu."

"And you," Big said, before the connection ended, and the call was over. Selena grinned as she put it away carefully under her special pillow. It belonged there now, in case Big called again before she was big. Selena snuggled up closer to it, much more content than she'd been this entire month. Maybe this month would not be so bad. All that bad had been training her up for the tournament. Yup. That was it. She could do this. Selena would SLAY.

Hildirun was a lot different than Saffron. Less gambling, for a start. And it was bigger. More people. Way too many people... Theren squinted at nothing in particular, fiddling with his lyre. He wasn't playing it yet, but he was considering it. Cities were noisy and messy, and Theren wasn't sure he liked it. He sighed, absently spinnig the lyre between his hands, tilting his head as his gaze drifted towards the bar. The elf there looked bored, and he couldn't blame her. The tavern was pretty empty and those who were already in there were starting to get....rowdy. They were clearly well on their way to drunk, if not already well beyond that stage.

"Play something happy!" a dwarf said, throwing a copper coin at Theren.

Theren tugged his hood a little lower, flinching when the coin bounced off his head. He turned to look down at the coin, then up at the dwarf and grimaced. Gods, the man was drunk. Theren wasn't even playing anything.

"I'm not performing today," he said, a little softly, moving his foot to cover the coin and subtly slide it towards his chair.

"Then why are you sitting with a performing lute?" the dwarf asked, pointing to Theren, up and down, but particularly to his lyre. "If you ain't gonna play me a song, I'll take my money back!"

Theren stared at the dwarf for a moment, glanced about at the darkish corner he was sitting in, then blinked down at his lyre. He stared at his lyre for a moment, then raised it up a little bit, one eyebrow lifting incredulously. "This?" he asked, sounding confused. "It's a lyre..." He pointedly looked at the floor, head cocked. "And what money?"

The dwarf hopped off his stool, stomping across the room to close the distance. With a pointed motion, he reached down to pluck his copper piece off the floor. But when the dwarf's hand hit empty space, he stumbled forward, patting the ground in confusion.

"You little..." the dwarf muttered, getting to his feet again. "Give me my money back! Ain't no freebies for no service!"

"What money?" Theren gave the dwarf a severely confusion look. "Didn't you throw a peanut at me?"

"Robber!" the dwarf accused, pointing at Theren. "This man robbed me!"

The bartender looked up over at them, mid-way through cleaning a glass. She raised a brow. Theren didn't look at her--he stayed focused on the dwarf, who was clearly getting angrier by the second. Time for Theren to double down on the peanut story.

"You tossed a peanut at me!"

"You two aren't going to cause a tussle in my tavern, are you?" the barkeep asked.

Theren finally glanced over at her. "You know me! I've been here all week!" He gestured vaguely at the elf, then the dwarf. "At least I pay my tab."

The woman sighed, rolled her eyes. "Lawrence, calm your yapper," she said.

With a huff, the dwarf backed off, grumbling unintelligibly as he swayed in his steps, returning to his stool at the bar. When he sat down with a grunt, the barkeep kept him occupied in conversation in soft mutters.

Theren smirked and shifted his foot off the coin. He cast a glance towards the bar, then quickly dipped down to pick up the coin and tuck it into his pocket. He settled into the chair again and kicked his feet up onto the table in front of him, fiddling with his lyre again. Still didn't plan on playing it, but he was bored. Maybe he should play something. Might shut the dwarf up. What'd the bartender call him? Lawrence? Meh. That was a stupid name for a dwarf. Theren snorted, settling his lyre into his lap so he could reach over and pick up the tankard that was sitting on the table to the left of his feet.

He cast a glance towards the bar again, hiding behind the tankard. And suddenly grimaced, pulling away from the alcohol inside. What the hell was the tavern serving? It smelled quite foul. It looked like it was supposed to be mead, but mead definitely should not be smelling like a corpse. Theren grimaced and put the tankard down again, scowling. Shitty mead, he thought, eyeing the oversized wooden mug.

"Gross," he muttered, picking up the lyre again with one hand while he patted at his pockets with the other. Theren avoided the one with the stolen copper coin and blinked when he felt the stone in his pocket. He pulled it out, smoothing a thumb over the slightly rough surface. A guy he used to go drinking with had given it to him. Dramatic asshole, that one. He sighed, leaning back in his seat and twitching one foot absently. How bored did one have to be before they decided to do something stupid? Theren knew that pretty well--pretty freaking bored.

Suddenly, there was a chime in the back of his head right as the stone in his hand started vibrating. Theren jumped a little, glancing about to see if anyone else head the noise. No one was looking in his direction. Alright, appparently no one had heard it apart from him. The chime came again and the stone vibrated harder. He stared down at it for a moment before touching the glowing symbol on it.

"....hello?"

"Connery!" a slurred, feminine voice called over the other end of the sending stone. "Satan's arse, it's been ages." A high-pitched giggle interrupted her, "What have you been up to-- you know what, nevermind that, actually. But you'll never believe what happened. You'll never guess."

A beat.

"See? Told you. We got invited to the The Mercenary of Tournaments. The... Mercenary Tourny... Torment of Mercs... you know the damn thing!," the voice finished. "I bet you've seen the flyers all around the city, right? The one with all the stupid looking rich people? You didn't press your thumb on the 'you got the wrong guy' part, I hope. If you do you hear a fart noise in your head--"

"Uuuuh," Theren said, cutting her off as he glanced towards the bar, and the elf and the dwarf---neither of which were paying him any attention whatsoever, so that was good. "No? And no?"

"Good to hear! So you coming to Hildirun then?" she asked. "We really need a fully team here if we're gonna have a chance against the Saurclaws. Those creeps. They're so stupid."

He blinked stupidly at the stone for a long, long moment. While yes, fuck the Saurclaws.... Who the fuck was Connery? Wait, was that the arrogant ass who just handed him a stone and told him to attune to it? He blinked again, and then again.

"While yes, I don't like the Saurclaws...." He trailed off, trying to figure out how to phrase it, and then went fuck it and just. Said it. "I don't think I'm who you think I am?"

"Connneerrrrryyyyyy~ I know you're a jokester, a funny guy, but don't bail on us now you bastard."

"Um," Theren said softly, correcting her. "Not Connery?"

"Connery, what the fuck?" she asked with a scoff. "Everbody and their pet termite knows this is your stone. Stop playing dumb with me. If you don't want to join just say so. We're friends, I won't kill you too gruesomely."

Theren stared at the stone, then glanced towards the bar. Still not paying attention to him. He nodded and returned his attention to the stone, half-listening to whatever tirade the lady was going on. "I think this Connery gave me this sending stone..." He paused, then said with a resigned sigh; "Dramatic asshole? Kinda arrogant? Blonde, floppy hair? Stupid puffy clothes? That him?"

"Okay, no way you're Connery," the woman muttered. "He would never be that self aware. Who the fuck is this?"

"His drinking buddy? Theren?"

"Theren... Theren," the woman repeated. "Big, I don't know a Theren."

"Hang up?" a man's deep voice suggested.

Theren blinked, then decided fuck it. "Wait, wait, wait! Don't hang up!"

"What? We need a full team. We can't have just lost one because Connery's a moron." the woman asked, sounding impatient, now.

"There's a competition?" he asked, half-turning towards the wall.

"Yeah, the whole city knows about it, dumbass," the woman said. "Look outside. There's flyers everywhere."

"Well, excuuuuuse me for not leaving the tavern all day," he muttered, rolling his eyes.

"God, he's a bad drunkard. Knows nothing of tavern-hopping." the woman said, softer, clearly talking to the man somewhere on the other end.

"Some people are tavern squatters," the man said simply.

"Only the bad ones," the woman said.

Theren scowled, listening to them for a moment before he huffed. "Is the plan to fuck with the Saurclaws with this competition?"

There was a longer silence.

"Yes. That's the only plan," the woman finally said, firmly. "Why?"

"I want to have words with a certain useless flirt."

"You've got beef with Zaine too?" the woman asked.

"Yep," he said, popping the p in that. "He's an ass."

"And that's enough to get you to join an old crew of mercenaries as we compete in the Tournament for Mercenaries with little to no other information in the hopes you'll at least get to give Zaine a good little slap on the face in the process?" she asked.

"Abso-fucking-lutely," he said, no hesitation.

"Show up at Big Wine on 4th street in two hours," the woman said quickly.

"This better be real," he muttered, a little sourly. He had been caught out by weird invites before, but he'd give this one a shot 'cause why the fuck not.

"It's real," the man interjected.

"Good," Theren said sternly. "See you in a couple hours."

"If you show up," was the last thing the woman said before a single-pitch tone rang out for a second, and there was no more connection with the sending stone.

Theren stared down at the sending stone for a long moment, then smiled to himself. Huh, so he'd inherited a freaking sending stone. To a merc group that the blonde flop used to hang out with. Theren chuckled and moved to drop his feet off the table. He had a place to go find. He left the tankard of foul-smelling mead on the table and sauntered towards the door, lyre hanging loosely from his fingers.

"Seeya, Presgella!" he called as he reached the door, raising a hand.

"See you," the barkeep said, giving him a weird look. Theren didn't see it--he was already out the door and heading down the street. Now he had to find Big Wine and he had two hours to do it in. Great. He should've asked for directions...

Echo hummed as fae skipped through the forest. The birds sang their choruses, the plants chattered amongst each other. The forest was alive. Echo was alive with it.

"Dagon? Dagon where'd you go?"

There was an indignant squak somewhere too far for faer to place it. "Fine!" Fae giggled. "I'll pick these mushroom myself."

She knelt in the twigs and clay, pushing aside the debris to find a patch of perfect button mushrooms. They had a light coating of dirt, making their white flesh look almost grey. Fae rubbed the tops of faer heads. "Sorry, friends. Thank you for doing so much for us. But we need you to do one last thing." Fae gently pulled it from the earth, before setting it in her basket. Fae could only stomach picking three before fae had to stop. Placing a hand to the dirt, fae closed faer eyes.

"Soil of dark brown
replenish the fallen ones
so they may grow strong."

Small button mushrooms pushed through the dirt. If anyone asked, it did not bring a tear to Echo's eyes.

Dagon swooped in. "Echo! Echo! It's ringing!"

"What's ringing, Dagon?" As Echo wiped the dirt off of faer pants, faer familar came to rest on faer shoulder, his beady crow's eyes darting around the forest.

"The rock! The rock from your friends you like more than me!"

"The rock..." Echo's eyes widened. "The rock! We have to go!"

Dagon chirped in annoyance. "Of course you have to hurry for your precious rock."

"Dagon, think of all the head scratches you'll get if the team gets back together."

Dagon humphed and settled in. "Fine. Only for my head scratches."

Echo grinned and ran back. Her bare feet having memorized the path over the roots and fallen branches, around the thorn bushes, through the tall weeds. Dagon had disembarked and took the skies, gliding above faer, It didn't take long to spot the cabin fae called home. Faer mother, Nemesis, was outside hanging laundry on the line.

"Echo! Your rock has been ringing non-stop."

"Sorry, Mama! I was getting the mushrooms for the stew. Dagon just fetched me." Echo gingerly opened the gate into the garden and latched it shut behind faer.

"Well, set them on the table before you answer your call."

"Yes, Mama!" Echo entered the cabin. A cauldron bubbled pleasantly over the stove, smelling like nutmeg and pine nuts. Echo took a moment to take a deep breath before setting the basket on the counter, taking out the mushrooms and rinsing them. The stone kept ringing, so fae left them to dry on the cutting board before dashing into faer room to get the stone. Dagon rode on faer shoulder, an indignant pout on his face. Well, as close as a crow could get to that, anyways.

A vine that was usually dormant around Echo's bedpost came to life, picking up the stone from faer windowsill and handing it to faer. "Thanks!" Fae took the stone answered the call. "Hello? Echo speaking!"

"Hello, Echo," Big greeted on the other end. "This is Big. Do you have time to talk?"

"Big! I was hoping it was you. Or anyone else from the team. Of course I have time to talk."

Dagon screeched. "Of course Echo has time for you!"

Echo gave him a warning look. "Dagon says hi and that it's nice to hear from you again."

"Hello to you, too, Dagon," Big said fondly. "I'm calling about the Tournament of Mercenaries. There's an opportunity to enter, and I think it could be a good second chance for all of us - not only to prove ourselves. I know we'll need a lot of training, but I think this could be worth it if we can get our full team back."

Echo gasped. "What? Isn't it by invite only?"

"We were invited," Big said.

Echo laughed. "Oh dear, that's... impossible? Crazy? Who thinks we're still operating?"

"Not sure," Big said. "But I have a feeling an opportunity like this won't fall into our laps again."

"Of course I want to come! Who's said yes so far?"

"So far," Big said. "Sophie and Selena. Irene is getting a hold of Sally right now."

"Sophie and Selena! That would be great. The team getting back together!" Fae squealed. "When do I need to be there? Where do I need to be?"

"We're meeting in Hildirun," Big said. "Irene and I have a business in the south district called Big Wine - the name was her idea. We're going to use it as a home base for the time being until everyone gets into town. We'll be able to house you, if you're okay with things being a little cozy while we get things settled."

"I love cosy! I can turn into a bug to give more room. Or a bat. Not, that would turn Serena into a baby. Hmm..."

"I don't think that will be necessary, but that's very considerate of you," Big said. "If I can make it work in here, so can you."

"Okay! I can also sleep outside too. But I know you'll say no to that. I can make hammocks though!" Echo sat on faer bed.

Dagon rolled his eyes. "You never put that much effort into me." He grumbled as he settled into his handmade nest on Echo's dresser.

"We'll set out some sleeping mats," Big said. "Will that do?"

"Sure! I'll just be happy to be there." Echo grinned. "Can Dagon stay inside? If he has to find his own place he's going to whine the whole time."

"We can make space for him," Big said. "He, er -- nests, right?"

"Yeah! I can make something with some twigs."

"Alright," Big said. "We've got some hay, too, in storage."

"Perfect! Keep him nice and toasty." Echo sighed softly. "You're so sweet, Big."

"Are you far from Hildirun right now?" Big asked.

"Oh, a two day's walk. But Dagon and I'll fly, so it should be faster."

"Do you need anything?" Big asked. "You can always call back on this sending stone if you think of anything. It will only call me."

"No, I'm good. I'll leave first thing tomorrow! I'll bring dinner!"

"That's very kind of you," Big said with a smile in his voice. "I'll plan to check in with you tomorrow morning, then, just to be sure you're safe and on your way. Sound like a plan?"

"Depending on when you call, I might already be in the air. Little dangerous to call and fly."

"Maybe I will wait until the evening, then," Big said. "Before you sleep for the night."

"That sounds good!"

"I'll see you soon, then, Echo," Big said. "Travel safely."

"Thank you! I look foward to seeing you." Echo cut the call.

Fae stood up and squealed. "Dagon! We're back on the team!"

Dagon did a little hop. "More headscratches for me!"

Echo kissed his head. "I have to tell Mama. She's going to be so proud! It's going to be great!"

Sally let out her fifth yawn for the day. This was turning out to be a boring one, well even more boring that usual. It wasn't like her days were exciting on a regular basis. Trying not to think too far down the road of exactly why her days turned out so boring, she soldiered on with her current task, attempting to make coffee, preferably to stop the yawning. It was the only solution to get her up and running for the day when she got up as early as she did. Cold showers were completely out of the question because well...that was another she didn't like to think about too much.

Sally stirred her coffee a little more, giving it an cautious sniff as she debated on the merits of sugar vs no sugar. After a few seconds, she decided to go ahead with the sugar. That would at least give here some extra energy to use on this extra boring day. Going through with it Sally gave her coffee another quick stir as she them dumped everything she'd just used in the sink nearby. Giving her coffee an experimental sip, she managed not to gag. That was a massive improvement from her last attempt. Maybe she was on her way to being less of a failure at least in one department.

Grabbing her mug, she walked off towards her room. As much a she always wanted to wash up after herself, the reason that must be named loomed large in the background. As she passed the living room she spotted her aunt having woken up already. She gave the best wave she could muster without spilling her coffee and murmured a "Good Morning"

"Morning Sally, expecting a lazy day?" said her aunt, eyebrows raised.

"Yes..." said Sally, producing a confused expression.

"Coffee," supplied her aunt, answering her unanswered question.

Sally managed a smile at that. Her aunt knew her too well sometimes. She continued on her trek to her room, plopping herself down on her bed as soon as she was inside. Today was definitely going to end up being boring if even her aunt could tell so easily. She really needed to find some sort of pastime to do. Holding out on mercenary work was becoming more and more unrealistic since the tournament that must not be named. Maybe she should practice doing something for a bit if she was going to actually look for something new.

With that thought in mind, Sally downed the rest of her coffee a shade to quickly, almost burning her throat. After scolding herself for several seconds for not even drinking coffee right (and she'd been doing so well actually making it), Sally managed to peel herself off of the bed and out of her room.

She made it to the living room.

"I'll go out for a bit, maybe get the mail," she said as she walked past her aunt.

"Alright be careful, I'll have breakfast on in a minute when your uncle decides its morning," said her aunt.

Sally chuckled. Her uncle always slept in on days like this. Watching the two of them argue about it was always hilarious.

With a final smile at her aunt, Sally stepped out of the house, taking a deep breath. There wasn't even a hint of rain to come. That was good, or her little plan was going to be down the drain before it could even begin. As much as she didn't like the sun beating down on her, it was at least better than the alternative. She skipped off down their little path, passing the mail box, she'll be back for that soon, and went off in the direction of the large puddle in the road she practiced her magic at. She'd have picked a pond, or maybe the sea that was really not far away, but the puddle was the safest one given the current amount of control she had over her magic.

It didn't take her long to find Mr. Lake Junior. Had she named it that? Yes. Had she been very young when she did that? Probably not young enough to use as an excuse but she stood by that name it was accurate after all. For a puddle it was definitely on the larger side. If she fell into it, it would be about half her height in diameter.

Trying not to think too much on the falling in part which would also ruin her plans, and had ruined her plans more than once in the past, she made her way to side of the road to avoid being accidentally bowled over by someone and began to concentrate.

Through a lot of trail and error she'd realized that closing her eyes for this and kneeling down were bad ideas. Both resulted in falling into the puddle. So now she just stood and stared at it like it had done her a personal offense, trying to get a feel for the water. When she'd asked them about it her sisters had gone on and on about this tingly feeling they get and how the water became one with them and blah blah. It was proving to be useless advice, mostly because their thing relied on imagining the water against one's skin and that was absolutely the last thing Sally wanted to do, thank you very much.

So she settled for basically trying to force the water to do what she wanted. The result was like trying to turn a kettle off by using the neighbors dog as a button. The water sometime almost by accident spluttered and hissed and jumped around a bit but it absolutely refused to do what she wanted it to.

Today she wasn't having too much extra luck. Her first attempt did absolutely nothing. The water just displayed her rapidly reddening face back at her almost like it was taunting her about her lack of ability to do anything.

Her second try did manage to agitate, although if that was her or the breeze, there was no telling for certain. She gritted her teeth and tried again, this time a few drops of water seemed to rise in a pattern that was a little too ordered to dismiss as just the wind.

By the end of it, she had a big smile on her face. She actually managed to make a head size bubble of water move in a pattern. It had been very wobbly and had completely missed its mark, but that was progress. Deciding she should quit while she was ahead on the water, she got up to leave. Just before she did, she snapped her fingers, just to make sure the one trick she was actually okay with could still work.

Mr. Lake Junior froze up in seconds. She smiled. She was getting good enough at that to maybe think about moving little chunks of ice soon. Maybe tomorrow would be a good time for that. Head full of good idea for the day, Sally skipped back down the road, quickly grabbing the mail blindly as she made her way back into the house.

Judging by the sounds that greeted her as she made her way in, her aunt had in fact headed off to make breakfast. She sifted through the letters, checking if any were for her. It was becoming a bit of a dream these days to actually receive one but she wasn't ready to stop trying today. Just as she was about to give up and throw the lot on the living room table for her aunt to go through later, she heard the stone in her pocket buzz. She nearly screamed. It was the team. Only they would call that. Had they gotten work? Did they want to start another business? Did they want to hang out? Either of these things sounded so much better than what she had planned for the door. She practically throw the mail at the table and ran for her bedroom, diving onto the bed and picking up the stone.

"Helloo!!" she did her best not to yell too loudly and startle the other person.

"Sally. Sally-lassie. This is still Sally, right?" Irene's very drunk voice came through the stone.

"Yesss Irenee! Helloo! Its mee Silly Sally. Sally-lassie and of course Sally!" She was beside herself with excitement.

"Good, good. Do you have any plans for like the next... month?"

"I have no plans period. Like ever. I need things to do. Like badly. Really badly." Sally groaned at the fresh reminder of how bored she was at the moment.

"Well, not-water girl but sometimes ice-girl, you got plans now. We've been invited to the Tournament. The Tournament of Mysteries."

Sally blushed slightly. Water girl and ice girl were far better than Stinky Sally or Silly Sally. "Oh my gooddd. They'll have us backkk?"

"They willl. We're like VIPs now." Irene hiccuped.

"Reallyyy? VIP like Very Important Person or Very Inebriated Person?"

"Can't you be both?"

"Ummm not the second one unfortunately. I avoid being inebriated if I can help it. Bit of a hazard for me."

"Yeahhh, guess it would be. Shame. It's fun." Irene giggled.

Sally wasn't super sure about that given what she'd seen but she didn't want to make Irene mad. "Yup. I am sure it can bee."

"Wellll. When can you be in Hildirun?"

"Uhhhh. It would takee three ishh days. I can borrow some money from my aunt for a carriage!" Sally grinned wider.

"Yayyy. Perfect. We have like... a week to get the gang back together." Irene hiccuped again. "So you'll be here?"

"I'm gladd. And of courseeee. I wouldn't miss it for the world!" Sally fully meant that. She'd give up her useless mermaid tail to be in another tournament.

"Yayy! I'll tell Big you'll be coming then. You gotta come to our store, Big Wine. Get it? Because he's Big and I'm wine? No, because he makes Big and I make wine. No..."

"I think I get the gisttt Irene. Big Wine shop. Come as soon as I can?"

"Yep! You got it, smartie. I'll see you thennnn."

"Thank youuu. See you thennn!"

"Of courseee."

Sally grinned happily. "Love youu. Byeee."

"Love you too, sis!" Irene hung up.

Sally grinned happily to herself, letting herself fall back into bed. Oh this was absolutely a golden opportunity. She grinned and leapt right out of bad. No time to spent lazing about. She had to borrow some money and then get packed. She was going to meet up with the team again. For once she didn't care if they all lost. I mean its not like they stood much of a chance but they'd at least all be back together. She'd missed it terribly, being that understood here. This was the best. Day. EVER.

Collabed with @soundofmind (song credit all to sound!! it's so good :0 )

Amber propped her lute on her right leg and tried to tune out the crowd and the cows. A couple of bovines crossed the dusty street leading away from Ladon's town square, and Amber winced at how their moos clashed-- one sounded a little flat. But she wasn't here to pick a fight with cows; she was here to perform.

Taking a deep breath, Amber tuned her lute. As she plucked each string and made sure the pitch was correct, she couldn't help but regret the waste of her talent. She was Amber, a talented wandering bard, blessed with perfect pitch and a passion for music! And she was performing here, in a sleepy town with as many cows as people. Ugh. If only the mercenary thing had worked out... then maybe she would've gotten some fame and renown and been able to perform in front of more prestigious audiences... She sighed as she finished tuning her instrument. Well, there was no point in dwelling on the past. At least there were some farmers and townspeople who could be blessed with her music.

Amber nudged her donations hat into place on the ground and got comfortable on the bench, then gently ran her hand over her lute's strings. "Alright, Resonance, ready to play?"

She took another deep breath, then strummed a bright chord. With a clear voice, she launched into a song with, "Ohh~ once there was an elf and a halfling..." As Amber continued singing and playing, a couple of farmers, children, and cows wandered over. By the end of the song, there was a ragged crowd in front of her, seemingly spellbound by her music. Amber reminded them sweetly to toss in some donations if they could, then launched right into her next song with an internal smirk. I'm gonna give them a performance they'll remember for the rest of their lives. Ha! Unknown bard who?

The crowd kept growing as Amber played "Where You've Been," "Letters in the Sky," and "Grandma Got Eaten by an Owlbear." She smiled and performed with even more vigor for her audience. Even some of the cows stopped mooing for a moment as she reached the climax of her songs, and she could see a pickpocket out of the corner of her eye, taking advantage of the townspeople who were standing still and listening to her music, oblivious to their surroundings.

Alas, not even Amber had the skill to entrance a gaggle of children for more than a few hours, at least not without magic... After "The Crown on the Head and the Crown on the Heart," Amber could sense the crowd becoming restless. So when she strummed the final chord of "Behind Blue Scales," she took a sip of water, then offered a grin at the audience. "Many thanks for listening to my music! Now, I have something exciting for you all: a chance to request a song! Raise your hand if you have a suggestion."

Amber adjusted her grip on her lute and briefly wondered whether these country people would know any popular songs at all. Worst case, someone would request something overly sentimental and outdated like "To The Death"... She winced at that and quickly called on a young lady who seemed likely to request something more interesting.

"Could you please play 'The Mercenaries of Jerant?'" the girl asked with bright eyes.

"Oh." Amber barely managed to hide a frown. That was even more painful than "To The Death," except instead of beeing outdated, the trouble was that it was too recent for her tastes... "Er. Does anyone have any other suggestions?"

"What wrong? You don't know that song?"

"No, I-I do." Oh, great. I'm stuttering now. Amber took a deep breath and got a grip on herself. "Well, if you insist, milady, I shall now regale you all with 'The Mercenaries of Jerant.'"

The lady stepped back happily and the audience watched in anticipation.



Amber held the last note for a couple of beats then trailed off. The young lady was grinning in delight. Amber took a moment to compose herself, then faked a smile and asked, "Any more requests?"

After taking a few more requests (which, thankfully, had no personal relation to Amber whatsoever), Amber finished off her performance with a couple of songs that had the whole crowd dancing. When she finally stood up and took a bow, there was a round of applause, and a round of coins being tossed into the hat, which was even better. "Thank you all! And remember, the name is Amber! The best bard you'll meet in your life, I bet." She winked at the audience as they started to disperse, then hummed to herself as she set her lute down in its case and started counting up the donations.

It was enough for a few meals, but not much more. Oh well, she hadn't expected much from this sleepy town anyways. Maybe she could try Medes next, if that rude bard had cleared out by then. Like, seriously. Loosen up a little, kid! It's not like we bards are dogs marking our territory or anything. So what if I performed near you for a while? I earned my audience, fair and square. You have no one to blame but yourself for losing three quarters of your audience. No need to go chasing me with a barnacle-encrusted anchor, hmph.

Suddenly, Amber was shaken out of her thoughts by an off-key performance of the first lines of "The Green Eyes of Mallistari," the wooing song of a huntsman for a half-elven maiden. Amber swiveled around and said, "Who dares-- ahh!"

She stumbled back in shock at the guy in front of her. He was on one knee, hand on heart and clearly passionate about his song. When he realized he'd gotten Amber's attention, he produced a bouquet of flowers and presented them to her, all while warbling out the next lines of the song.

"Please, stop." Amber winced and tried to cover her ears. She ignored the flowers.

The man continued singing. "Those green eyes of my dreams..."

"Sir, I'm serious. Your singing is an affront to my ears." Amber scowled. "Kindly cease your caterwauling, or I'll be forced to cease it for you."

He blinked, a note trailing off. "O-oh! I'm sorry, was I too sudden? The truth is, I fell in love with you and your singing when you performed just now..." The guy blushed. "You have inspired me to profess my love through song."

"No-- don't--"

The man launched energetically into the next part of the song, accentuating the lyrics with passionate flourishes of his arms. Amber grimaced. Unfortunately, the guy was too caught up in his serenade to notice her less-than-enthusiastic reaction to his off-key singing.

"Really, no--" Ugh. Amber picked up her lute and strummed a chord. "Silence."

The serenade was abruptly cut off, and the man's eyes widened in panic. He clutched at his throat, mouthed words, and tried to stomp his feet, but nothing made a sound. His movements grew increasingly erratic as he tried frantically to regain his voice.

A child walked by and asked curiously, "Mother... what is that person doing?" Her mother glanced at the silenced man, then at Amber, who was glaring at him. She shook her head and eyed Amber.

"Dwarven bards... never a good idea. Come along now." She led the child away.

Amber shifted her glare to the woman's back (no one had complained when she was performing, yet the moment she used magic to defend herself and her ears, people complained?), then fixed the man with a final look. "Don't go serenading people with your awful voice now, you hear?"

The man looked at her in fearful confusion, and Amber sighed. "Right. No sounds travel there." She scribbled her message on a scrap of paper and slapped it into the man's hands. As the guy read the message, his expression changed from panic to dismay. He gestured at his mouth and raised his hands in a "really?" expression.

Amber took the paper and scribbled, "Yes. Your singing is really quite terrible." She handed it back to him.

His face crumpled, and clutching the piece of paper, the man slowly turned and walked off. Amber felt a pang of regret, but shrugged it off. It was his own fault for trying to flaunt his clearly horrible singing. And sound would return to him soon, anyways.

Now that the disturbance was taken care of, Amber resumed packing up her lute and the coins she'd earned. She was in the middle of trying to determine how long it would take to get to Medes when a loud voice called out, "Hey! Dwarf!"

She glanced up and frowned. A human and a gnome were striding towards her, the serenade guy in tow. "Don't you know it's rude to refer to people by their species? Like, hey, human!"

The human frowned. "That's not the issue. Why'd you break our friend's heart?" She gestured towards the man, who was clutching his flowers from earlier with an expression like a kicked puppy.

Amber raised an eyebrow. "I literally don't even know his name. It's his own fault for being so dramatic about serenading me. And he's ridiculously off-key."

"Hey! No need to be so rude." The gnome crossed their arms.

"I'm just being honest. Now, if you'll excuse me--"

"Not so fast." The human patted the serenade guy's shoulder. "We challenge you to a battle to regain our friend Flyn's honor! See, he's absolutely devastated. And it's your fault."

"What?" Amber glanced at Flyn, who was still sobbing into his flowers. He looked completely unaware of his friends' attempt to "regain his honor."

The gnome said, "You heard Gelenda. If we win, you apologize and at least accept Flyn's flowers. If you win, we won't bother you anymore."

Amber groaned and put her head in her hands. Time to bluff her way out of this. "I don't want to make a scene... but if you insist. Fair warning-- I fight even better than I play music. And if you heard my concert just now, you'll know just how well that is. Hint, I'm a pro."

Gelenda and the gnome exchanged a glance, then shrugged. "We're Flyn, Isa, and Gelenda! The famous fighting trio!"

If bluffing didn't have the right effect, perhaps some well-placed insults would shake their confidence. "F... I... G... Your trio's acronym is a fruit?" Amber arched an eyebrow. "And where exactly are you all famous? I've heard absolutely nothing about you."

Isa blushed. "Figs are delicious... and we're very well known in Ladon."

"Ugh. Who have you all fought against? Cows?" Amber scoffed. "I'd feel positively guilty about fighting you guys; you have no chance against a bard of my skill. And look at Flyn. I bet he doesn't even care about his 'honor' or whatever."

Gelenda shook Flyn's shoulder, and he looked up from the flowers. She pantomimed fighting Amber, and Flyn's eyes widened. He quickly shook his head, although he avoided Amber's gaze. Gelenda frowned, but Flyn made an X with his arms and shook his head again.

"See?" Amber crossed her arms. "Flyn has some sense at least. Fighting me would just cause you a heap of trouble and embarrassment. Now then, if you all have no further problems, I'll be on my way." She strode confidently to her lute's case.

Isa backed away hesitantly and glanced at Gelenda for support. Gelenda shrugged. "I-I guess you can go..."

Isa looked around uncertainly for a moment, then patted Flyn on the back. "Alright, old chap, how about we go get some pie? That oughta cheer you up." The trio walked away across the square.

Amber breathed a deep sigh, then closed Resonance's case. I'm glad I could talk my way out of that one... Words can be far superior to swords sometimes. She lifted her lute case. At least she'd gotten some song ideas out of that encounter. Amber started humming a possible tune as she walked through Ladon.

Ah, life as a wandering bard was good. Amber smiled as she walked through the marketplace of Ladon, soaking in the chatter of people around her. A particularly rowdy group-- likely adventurers or mercenaries-- stumbled out of a tavern, laughing uproariously. It reminded Amber of her own mercenary days. Those had been chaotic and, frankly, frequently disastrous... but despite all their mishaps, maybe, sometimes, hanging out with the group had been a tad bit enjoyable. Nostalgia struck Amber like a punch to the gut, and she stubbornly tried to shake it out of her head. N-no, she wasn't lonely! Life on her own suited her just fine. Hah...

She picked up her pace, trying not to dwell on any regrets. Amber was a wandering bard now, like she'd always wanted to be, and that meant she was finally free, and--

The sending stone she'd long since forgotten about began to hum in her bag, and the chiming of bells rung in the back of her mind.

"Oh!" She dug out the sending stone. "Hello?" It had been a long, long time.

"Miss Amber, that you?" Big's low, rough voice carried through.

"Big? Yeah, it's me, Amber Flintstone, famed dwarven bard." She strolled through the streets. Why would Big be contacting her now? What about the others?

"I thought I recognized your voice," he said fondly. "I know you probably already have questions, so I'll cut to the chase: our mercenary crew has been invited to participate in the Tournament of Mercenaries. I don't think they were aware we'd disbanded, but I think this could be a good opportunity. Would you be interested in donning the mercenary hat once more?"

Amber nearly chucked the sunstone at a pigeon in surprise. "No way? Is this a scam?"

"Not so, Miss Amber," Big answered. "It's real."

The Tournament. A huge event. So many people, so many stories, so many potential donors to her wealth- Ahem. She meant, it'd all be very exciting. "Yes. Yes!"

"I'm glad to hear your enthusiasm," Big said. "It will be good to see you again. So far, most of our crew has agreed to return. I look forward to the reunion."

"So do I! See ya soon, Big." Amber started planning.

"Wait -- I've yet to tell you where to meet, Miss Amber," Big said.

"Oh. Right. Where?"

"We're going to meet in Hildirun, southside. If you ask around for directions to Big Wine, that's where Irene and I are settled."

She revised her plans. "Got it. Is Big Wine hiring performers?"

Big chuckled. "Not performers. But there's room for old friends."

Well, maybe that was for the better. If she was performing, it'd be more difficult to converse (especially while juggling flaming wine bottles one-handed and playing a lute. It was a trick she was learning lately). "Alright. Anything else?"

"No, Miss Amber. Thanks for your time," Big answered.

"And thank you for informing me of this wonderful opportunity!"

"Of course. See you soon," Big said.

Amber hung up and put the sunstone back in her bag. Then she did a skip along the street. More adventures! More stories! More things to perform! Oh, she was looking forward to this.

Sylpharielle loved sourdough. She'd spent so much of her life, aside from her hobby, learning how to make the most delectable loaf-- perfecting it just so she could impress her mother. The birds chirped outside of the old family bakery in Ladon, and the early start of rain tapped the windowsills, causing her to abrubtly turn her head. Her mother's voice echoed from the shed out back.

"Sylpharielle! It's about to pour, bring the cows in!"

Sylpharielle wiped her flour-dusted hands on her apron and sighed, glancing wistfully at the dough she had just kneaded to perfection. She had been on the cusp of shaping it, feeling the familiar comfort of the smooth texture beneath her fingers.

But, the rain was coming faster than expected. Sylph quickly untied her apron, tossing it over a chair before heading out the door. The earthy scent of rain mixed with the aroma of yeast as she dashed across the yard to the shed.

The cows, huddled together under the large, brown overhang mooed at her, causing Sylph to smile faintly. She hurried to open the gate, guiding them inside just as the rain began to fall. Her mother's voice, filled with a mix of concern and urgency, called out again,

"Did you finish the bread?!"

Sylph covered her face the best she could when as she ran back into the bakery, ringing out her creamy white hair when she reached the door, "No, Ma! I was in the middle of doing that when you called me outside."

"Well, hurry up! We have many orders this week, and the money won't wait!"

Sylph sighed and pushed the door open to reveal her mother, kneading the dough she so carefully prepared. Her mother threw her a new apron, "Come on, now. Start kneading this dough. We have to finish four more loaves by sundown."

Sure, Sylph wishe'd she'd been as successful as her sisters, if not more successful. Sylph didn't have a team anymore; people that she could make a difference with. She missed her old team of mercanaries. But she also liked working in the bakery. She liked waking up to the mooing of her cows, or the croaking of the toads that always studied her on her windowsill. Her parents weren't rich, at all, but they made do with what they had. Birthdays were usually bonfire gatherings and postcards from her sisters in Hildirun. Sylph wondered when she would get invited out there; when she would be able to say she'd made it. Needless to say, it didn't seem like it'd be anytime soon.

Sylpharielle took the dough her mother handed her and began kneading it. The repetitive motion usually brought her comfort, a rhythm she could lose herself in, but today, her mind wandered.

Her sisters were always on her mind these days. They had left Ladon years ago, each one finding success in Hildirun, the bustling city where opportunities were plentiful and dreams were big. Sylpharielle had heard the stories—her oldest sister, Stellaraine, married Kane Saurclaw, the appointed knight for the King. Aeileana, who was only a few years younger than Stella, became the head guard for the King himself. Caelia-- only a year and a half older than Sylph-- became one of Hildirun's most esteemed Warriors.

Stellaraine's marriage to Kane Saurclaw had been the talk of the town for months. Sylpharielle could still remember the day the letter arrived, bearing the news of the grand wedding in Hildirun. The bakery had been full of customers that day, all eager to catch a glimpse of the letter and hear about the festivities. Sylpharielle had read the words over and over, picturing the scene in her mind—the lavish ceremony, the gleaming armor of the knights, the shimmering gowns, and the radiant smile on Stellaraine's face as she began her new life as the wife of a knight.

Aeileana’s rise to the position of guard had been no less impressive. She was known for her unmatched skill with a blade. Her reputation as the King's most trusted protector spread far and wide, and it wasn’t uncommon for travelers passing through Ladon to mention her name with a mix of awe and respect. Sylpharielle often wondered how Aeileana had managed to balance her duties with the demands of the city, yet somehow she had thrived.

Then there was Caelia, the closest to Sylpharielle in age and perhaps the one she felt most connected to. Caelia had always been the adventurous one, never content to stay in one place for too long. It was no surprise when she joined Hildirun’s elite mercanaries. Stories of her bravery in battle and her strategic mind were always mentioned within the family bakery. Sylpharielle missed her sister’s presence, the way Caelia had always encouraged her to dream big and never settle for anything less than greatness.

Just as Sylph was about to put the dough in the oven, her runestone rang. She wiped her hands on her apron and rushed over to it, "Hello?"

"Sylph! Slipper Sylph the Selkie Silk." There was a loud yawn. "How are ya? Still shaking and baking?"

"Irene," Sylph glanced at her mother before sneakily drifting into the back room.

"One of many, but best of all! I'm glad you keep your runestone." She hiccuped. "Conroy gave his away... like a dunce. Stupid Conroy."

Conroy?

Sylph raised an eyebrow and leaned against the wall, "Is everything okay? Are my sisters alright? Oh god, don't tell me one of them died. Did they die?"

"Girl, I have no clue. This is good news! Have you ever hoped we would get back together and kick the Saurclaws so hard they never showed their faces again?"

Sylph didn't even need to think about it, "Uh, yes... why? Are we back together?"

"Hell yes, we are!" Irene giggled madly. "We got invited to the Mercenary Tournament! We're state appoved."

Sylph smiled gooffily, "That's amazing! Truly! Only thing is... if I left now, my mom would probably kill me. Ever since Stella got married, the shop has been so hectic. What's the prize for the tournament?"

"Nothing big. Only like fame and respect and all the best jobs and a shipload of money."

And I could move to Hildirun, and finally show my sisters what I can do.

Sylph hesitated for a second and glanced out at the kitchen, "Count me in. When do we leave?"

"You need to be in Hildirun in Big and I's best-selling wine shop, Big Wine, by next week. No latesies."

"Latesies will not be happening on my end," Sylph felt up her pockets, "D-Do I need an ID or something? Because I lost that the last time we met up."

Irene hiccuped again. "Do we need an ID, Big?" There was a small pause. "Nah, we have the letter. It's magic~"

"Oooh! Magic," Sylph thought back to her roots. She wished she was better versed in magic, "Sounds good to me. And uh... Irene?"

"Yes, ma'am?"

"I'm bringing you some sourdough. I heard it helps wonders for hangovers," Sylph chuckled.

"Oh, sweetie. You have to stop drinking to get hungover. But I will take the sourdough anyway."

"Alright, then. You haven't changed a bit. See you soon!"

"Why change when I'm perfect? But yes, see you soon. One week. Big Wine. Buh-bye!" The call dropped.

Sylph smiled to herself and shoved her runestone in her pocket. She put her hands together. Now, all she had to do was break the news to her mother. Maybe, just maybe, this could be her only chance for redemption.

Sylenis rubbed his eyes. He really didn't want to go out today. It was too sunny, the air was sticky, and it was cicada season. He picked himself up and rubbed his forehead as he looked out the window. The forest was peaceful aside from the abundance of cicadas. Birds were flying about, and butterflies flapped their wings gracefully above the flowers.

He shook his head as he put on some gloves and grabbed an axe. He wearily stepped out into the forest, squinting as he adjusted to the sun. As he dragged the axe across the forest floor, he wiped the sweat from his forhead.

The cicadas were loud, almost like shrieks, droning on and on and getting louder by the minute. His head pounded, almost feeling as if someone had struck it with a stick or something.

Regardless, he tried to push through it, lugging his axe on the forest floor as it left an indent with each tug. The cicadas, indifferent to whether or not Sylenis' head hurt, continued making sound.

Sylenis felt his breathing hasten, but he tried to ignore it, and all of the loud, annoying, and stupid cicadas. He continued dragging his axe along the dirt and grass, but he couldn't shake this headache.

It was, arguably, worse than normal. It made him feel sticky, no thanks to the weather, his head hurt more than normal, and his thoughts kept going back to what it was like to be... "home".

It was the same loudness, the same ache in his head and same stickiness. It felt all too familiar. He started looking around, trying to at least ground himself a little. His heartbeat echoing through his head like a bell.

He'd have to skip work today. It was far too loud and hot for him to even go outside, let alone work. He'd just have to claim that he's sick, or one of his family members died. Actually, he wouldn't mind if anyone from his family died, so it probably wouldn't work. He'd be too happy.

He smiled a little, but then turned around. He'd barely gotten away from his house, only having taken 10 or so steps. Walking back, he almost too gruelingly put his axe next to the door and went inside, glad to have the grace of shade.

He picked up his broom and started sweeping, the dust making tall cloud-like shapes. As he swept, a sense of calm washed over him. It was nice to have control over something.

As he finished cleaning, he wiped a bit of sweat off his forhead. It was still hot and disgusting. He, quite literally, fell into his bed, face first. The cushion of the fabric, if anything, made him sweat more profusely.

As he laid there, his sweat slowly soaking into the fabric, making him more uncomfortobale by the second, he heard a ever-so familiar chime in the back of his head.

He was not amused at the call, nor did he want to respond to it. He continued to let the sweat awkwardly soak into the cloth as he laid face down into the mattress. He waited for it to stop as the sweat, relentlessly, made him increasingly uncomfortable.

He continued laying there, for a good 10 or so minutes, the sweat practically drenching his poor mattress. Then, the chime played again. Irritated and still very uncomfortable, he decided to respond.

"Why are you calling me?" Sylenis said, voice ever so slightly muffled from laying down face flat into his matress.

"I'm sorry," Big's voice carried through the sending stone. "Have I caught you at a bad time?"

"I'm always having a bad time. So yes. I was very busy laying in my bed," Sylenis rolled over. "Now answer my question."

"Apologies. I'm calling because there's an opportunity to get our team back together for the Tournament of Mercenaries."

Sylenis groaned. Clearly either upset or tired. Maybe both. "And you had to call me? Couldn't have sent someone to, I don't know, give a message?"

"It's been some time since we fell out of touch," Big said. "I wasn't sure where you were at these days."

"Well, you can also imagine that when one is rotting away in their bed they don't exactly enjoy the sound of chimes in the back of their mind." Sylenis huffed.

"I'm sorry to have bothered you," Big said.

A beat.

"If you have any interest in meeting again, even if it's not for the tournament, it would be great to see you," Big added.

A loud thump noise could be heard. Sylenis may or may not have accidentally fell out of his bed. He rubbed his head and took a sharp inhale.

"Fine. Yes. Whatever, I'll come meet you. Just don't call me again."

"Alright. Let me know if you need anything. We're meeting in Hildirun. Find the shop called
Big Wine. There's signage, so it shouldn't be too hard to find," Big instructed. "We plan to regroup before the week's end."

"Okay, okay. I'll come. I'm not too far outside of Hildirun, I think. I don't know. I barely go out of my house." Sylenis stretched.

"Sure," Big said. "Um."

A pause.

"Are you alright, Sylenius?" Big asked.

"No, not really. Then again, I'm not any worse than I was before." Sylenis sighed. "Why? Did something sound wrong?'

"Nothing unusual," Big said. "I look forward to seeing you soon."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. I'll be coming." Sylenis said, with a really faint hint of kindness. But only the faintest hint. A smidge. A pinch, even.

"Alright. I will see you then," Big said.

And the call was over.

In a few days, the small living space above Big Wine was going to be crowded with party members coming in from far and wide. Calls had been sent out, and to Big's pleasant surprise, almost would make it before the end of the week, and hopefully before their deadline. It would be a first, then, for them to be ahead of the game, if only by a few days.

The first to arrive was Sophie. Ever-punctual, Sophie was true to her word when she said she would be there in 25 minutes. On the dot, Big had just finished making his last call when there was a knock on the door. Irene was still upstairs working through the other half of the list, recruiting their old party members back when he welcomed Sophie in. She tackled him first with a hug and then bumbled in with her sack over her shoulder.

With bright eyes, Sophie skipped into the wine shop and spun around the crates and barrels.

There wasn't much to see. Insofar as decor went, their shop was pretty bare-bones.

Still, Sophie looked around in awe.

"This place is yours?" she asked with a broad smile, eyes wide and excited.

"Ours," Big said. "Between Irene and I."

"That's so amazing!" she said. "This is such a nice place! Oh, it's so good to see you!"

Lady Cordelia, the frog atop her head, croaked. Perhaps it was in greeting. Big could never speak frog.

"Lady Cordelia agrees!" Sophie translated, picking up the creature and offering her to Big in both hands. "Would you like to say hello as well?"

Lady Cordelia managed to stare in two opposite directions as she fell to silence. Big patted her head once.

"Good to see you, too," he said. "You can set your things upstairs."

He pointed behind him, knowing the swirling staircase was there. He didn't dare turn his head to look, though. He knew he'd end up clotheslining Sophie. Or, more likely, knocking her out with one sweep of his horn.

"Where's Irene?" Sophie asked as she danced in that direction.

"Calling the rest of the crew," Big answered. "Upstairs."

"Oh, I've got to go give her a hug, too!" Sophie said, hurrying away. Big listened to the patter of her feet up the steps until he heard Sophie and Irene's cheerful voices intermingling through the thin walls and flooring. He couldn't quite make out the conversation, but Sophie's energy was spilling over.

It might take a little longer for Irene to finish the calls at this rate...

Big let out a heavy sigh as he sat back down on a low crate. With nothing more to do, he found himself dozing off the moment he remained still. His head bobbed a few times before he felt it slump forward, and the only thing that brought him back to wakefulness was a tap on the front door.

Grunting as his eyes opened and his head snapped up, he felt his horn chafe the side of the wall with some discomfort. Wincing, he cleared his throat.

"Door's open," he called.

The little bell above the door jingled as it opened and a pale, redheaded elf stepped inside. He turned his head and Big caught a glimpse of tiny horns. Oh, not elf. Something else. Fey'ri, maybe?

This must've been Theren. He was the only stranger Big wouldn't recognize in place of Connery.

"Theren?" Big asked.

The elf blinked and glanced over, looking a little surprised. "Er.....yes?"

"I'm Big," he said.

Another blink. "Ah, yes. I knew I recognized your voice..."

"Nice to meet you," Big said, extending a hand.

Theren smiled a little shyly. "Nice to meet you, too."

"You spoke to Irene over the sending stone," Big said. "She's the better half of the leadership for our team, but she's upstairs at the moment."

Speaking of, Big could still hear Sophie's excited voice punctuating the muffled conversation overhead. Theren's gaze flickered away from him and then back.

"You're welcome to bunk here if needed," Big said. "We've got a few coming in from out of town, so it'll be a few days before we're all together."

The fey'ri inclined his head. "Thanks. I needed a new place anyway."

"Can I ask why you're so quick to hop on this opportunity?" Big asked.

"The chance to make Zaine regret fucking with me?" he suggested with a wry grin. "Anything to wipe that stupid smirk off his face."

Big hummed. Revenge was a powerful motivator, but... their team was going to need a lot of work. Surely, Theren had heard the rumors of them, right? They were infamous, even after disbanding. Did Theren know what he was signing up for?

"Have you done any mercenary work in the past?" Big asked.

Theren shrugged. "A bit. I make for a good distraction." He grinned. "And I'm good with locks."

"Roguish, then," Big said.

The fey'ri produced a lyre, fiddling with it as he glanced about. It looked pretty ratty; making it ill-used or overused. Hard to say. Theren hummed a little. "Bit more than that, but essentially, yes."

"Another musician," Big said. "You and Amber might get along. She plays the lute."

That made him raise an eyebrow, humming again. "Two distractions, then."

"Perhaps there could be some... collaboration," Big suggested.

"Collaboration sounds good to me," Theren said and tilted his head. It made his hair shift and catch on those tiny little horns. "I'm...just gonna go find somewhere to sit down, shall I?"

Big pursed his lips and nodded once.

"Do so."

Theren nodded and turned to wander off, and the day passed by slowly. No one else showed by nightfall, but the next morning was more eventful. It didn't start with more welcomes as hoped: instead, they got a call. Big was the first to receive the message on the sending stone because it woke him in the dead of his sleep. Irene was too hungover to wake to the beeping notification in the back of her head, but for Big, any noise was enough to stir him. As quickly as he fell asleep, he was woken up.

When he picked up, he expected it to be Selena -- hopefully, transformed back to her normal state at this hour. Instead, it was the distressed voice of Sally. She'd left a message.

"Irene. Big. I'm so sorry, but I won't be able to make it into Hildirun. I was so desperately hoping to come in and join you but as I was packing up the wagon with my aunt to prepare for the morning, she had a bad fall. I had to rush her to the doctor and they're saying she's broken her hip -- spells can only do so much for recovery. I'm going to stay home and take care of her. Please don't feel held back by me, though. Even if I can't make it in, I will happily be at the tournament, cheering you on in the stands. So -- well, you better make it there so I can see you then!"

Sally's voice cracked with disappointment and heartache in her final wish, but Big knew she would never abandon her aunt who raised her -- nor should she. It was one thing to join Irene and Big's proposal on a whim if Sally had no other responsibilities at hand. That was easy, and the cost was only to herself. But family came first. They all knew that; especially when all of them had so little family left.

Sally's aunt was all she had.

Big peeled his eyes open to pull his sending stone from his pocket. It was the dead of night, and he couldn't tell the exact hour, but it had to be somewhere between 1 and 3. The entire building - for all its creaks and hums - was finally silent, and everyone else was hopefully asleep. The only thing left to fill the space was the faint breeze passing through the window Big had left cracked open for some airflow.

Irene, Sophie, and Theren had made space upstairs to sleep. Big had laid out a mat among the crates down below, hoping that at least some separation between the bottom and top floor would spare them from the worst of his snoring. There was only so much he could do to stifle it when he was asleep, but he knew how much it could reverberate throughout a room.

The poor kids... he hoped he hadn't kept them up.

Staying prone to avoid swinging his horns around in the dark, he lifted the sending stone to his face in hopes of leaving a quiet message in reply.

"I'm so sorry your Aunt was hurt," Big said softly. "Let us know if we can help with the payment for her recovery, or if there is anything else we can do to help. I know it's been some time, but we still care about you, Sally. Do stay well. We'll keep in touch."

It felt impolite to say more than was necessary, and he knew that Sally and Irene had always been the closer duo in the bunch. This would hit Irene harder than anyone - though Sophie, too, would be concerned.

There wasn't too much they could do, though. Big didn't even know where Sally was staying. Was it still at her aunt's old place? It would be too presumptuous to impose, but he decided to wait on making any last-minute decisions. They'd already committed to gathering their crew: if Sally couldn't make it, he still had to keep his word to everyone else. And Sally wanted them to go for it, even if she couldn't be a part.

Well. That was motivation to truly try, then.

Letting out a sigh, Big closed his eyes once more and quickly drifted off. He lost track of time until a sudden slimy splat landed on his forehead.

In any other context, Big might have questioned the sensation. But now that Sophie was around, he was already quite familiar with Lady Cordelia's fascination with his head and sitting upon his horns. Especially the crown of them.

Big's eyes fluttered open to see the base of the frog's wet toes hanging over his eyes.

Good to see the Lady was already comfortable again. For a frog, that is.

Big plucked Ms. Cordelia off his head, soon to be met by the strange scent of savory eggs and meats and a sudden gust of apologies from Miss Sophie herself, standing over him.

"Hi!" Sophie said, giving a large, beaming smile as she saw Big open his eyes. Her hair was crazed and frizzy, sticking out in different directions, and she had somehow managed to get flour across most of her face, but she didn't seem to notice it at all. "I'm so sorry for that," she said, leaning over him and delicately pulling the frog out of his hand. "She likes you a lot. She talks about the cape you made her all the time."

Big supposed if anyone ever made a cape for him, he was likely to speak of it often as well. Big grunted as he carefully sat up, giving Sophie plenty of time to duck out of the way just in case.

Anyone who had spent enough time with him had gotten into the habit. Even though it had been some time since, Sophie was catching on again.

"It smells like your cooking," Big remarked as he brushed himself off and let his eyes drift to door to the kitchen. It was a small kitchen: one he had only been half in once. It had been chaos trying to get in and out, so he left that to Irene. His horns wouldn't fit the full length if he tried.

"It would be weird if it didn't!" She said cheerfully, then stopped, frowning slightly. "I mean, I'm the only one that's been cooking that I know about." She turned back to him. "Does it smell like my cooking because my cooking smells bad, or does it smell like my cooking because my cooking smells good?"

"Smells good," Big answered, reaching down to pat the frog. In turn, he then patted Sophie's head twice.

Early morning sunlight was pouring in through the east-facing windows at the front of the shop. It warmed the air inside, making the hearty aroma all the more potent and enticing. Big couldn't remember the last time he'd had good cooking -- with no offense to Irene, either.

The shop's wooden flood creaked under Big's weight as he shifted around in a careful shimmy.

If Big was honest, he hardly went upstairs, either, because of having to travel horizontally. It was too troublesome.

"Did you sleep?" Big asked, glancing Sophie's way.

Sophie laughed good-naturedly, walking through the kitchen's open door to the stovetop and continuing her work on what looked like eggs. Big waited for her to elaborate, but it seemed like the laugh was her response.

That told him what he suspected: she'd hardly slept a wink. He hoped it wasn't because of his snoring, but he also knew it was just as likely because Sophie and Irene had stayed up late catching up with one another -- and for all he knew, catching Theren up to speed. With a sigh, he sat back on the nearest crate, rubbing his brow to free it of the froggy residue left behind.

Another glance at the window told him it was probably almost 9. It was late enough in the morning that their street of many shops was starting to bustle with energy as other shopkeepers were opening and putting out their displays.

Big Wine was a bit of a sore thumb, in that respect. They didn't always have regular hours.

Heavy footfalls indicated the wakening of Irene, who was hungover, as expected. The moment she came into view, she was also already nursing a new glass of wine: as expected. It was a sight that used to make Big wince, but now it was more of a dull ache. The worry was diluted with time, and he didn't expect her to break any habits now.

Theren followed shortly behind her, looking nearly as hungover as she, but less well-off for it. He couldn't be expected to compete, though, with a functional alcoholic.

With a huff, Big found himself itching for a smoke.

"Woah, what's all this?" Irene said with a drunken squint into the kitchen.

It wasn't long before she hovered over Sophie's shoulders, demanding to be involved in something while simultaneously commenting on the impossibility of Sophie's production.

"I didn't even know we had this many eggs," Irene kept muttering as she gathered plates and utensils.

"You'd be surprised how much milk and cheese can make eggs stretch really far!" Sophie responded, ever so chipper.

Theren seemed glad to be left out of it, though, and he remained in the main room, visibly fighting off a headache as he sat on a crate across the way. When breakfast came, it was just as shocking to Big when they all received full plates and full stomachs.

Somewhere in the time that had passed, Sophie must have learned some magic in the kitchen.



Amber made it. The short, red-headed dwarf arrived full of bright-eyed optimism, and naturally, between Amber and Sophie, no one could compete with their gleeful reunion. Amber, of course, was just as thrilled to meet another bard and dragged Theren into playing with her before he had a chance to talk his way out of it. It was almost comedic, how seamless Theren's inclusion was becoming; but it was more a testament to the hospitality of his crew.

Before they knew it, Amber was egging Theren into writing a drinking song, and Irene's drunken contributions could all be heard upstairs.

It wasn't that Irene was a bad singer. She was just loud, in this state. Every time there was a thump from dancing, Lady Cordelia would hop in Sophie's hands.

"Are you sure you don't want to join them?" Big asked, looking over to Sophie, who had taken a seat across from him.

The crates really did nothing to make this place feel homey, but it wasn't intended to be a home. This was their first time hosting anyone here, and it was only now that Big realized how much of a warehouse it felt like.

Sophie shook her head, though she smiled while listening to everyone. "No," she said, so softly that it startled Big a little, because her voice was rarely below what met the criteria for shouting. Logically, he knew it was really just a normal speaking voice, but still, for her, it was unexpected. "I wanted to see you! Well... I mean, you said you wanted to see me, and I had already wanted to see you." She glanced at him, then added quickly, "I can go if you wanna be alone though."

Big offered her a small smile.

"I like your company," he said. "I'm just not good at entertaining. You know that."

Sophie laughed. "You don't have to be entertaining. I like hanging out with you because you actually like talking to me." She rested her hands on the crate she was seated on and swung her legs a little. She seemed content and calmer, like the day had finally caught up to her.

Big's brows twitched together in concern, though. Now that she was at rest and her smile began to fade, her last comment was twinged with a subtle sadness-- one that he suspected even Sophie didn't fully recognize.

Did Sophie not know she was one of the most pleasant people among them?

Just then, a quick knock on the door could be heard, and the handle on the door jostled. After a few seconds, it burst open to reveal Sylenis. "Stupid door. Push, not pull. Stupid."

"Sylenius," Big said, greeting their raven-haired satyr friend with a small smile. The poor guy looked wearied from the hot summer day's travel. "Good to see you."

Sylenis made a disgruntled huff in response. Clearly, he was not enthused by having to be outside. His ears perked. "What is that racket...?"

"A new member of our party," Big said. "Theren, another bard, also a rogue. He and Amber are hitting it off."

Sylenis groaned. "I'm not dealing with that. Do you have a quiet space in here? Preferably somewhere I can clean?"

"Might just be best if we step out back for now," Big said. "We have a small patio that could use sweeping if that suits you."

Sylenis' lips twitched. "That works. I guess."

"Wait!" Sophie piped in, hopping off her box with a force and moving towards him, before freezing in her tracks. "Have you eaten yet, today? I made breakfast and we have some leftovers that are still warm! You've probably had a long day's travel!" It was clear that Sophie was practically vibrating trying to stop herself from invading his personal space. That was a lesson she had learned the hard way when all of them had been together the last time.

"Fine. Sounds... promising. Just as long as I can put my mind off those noisemakers."

"Why don't you get him a plate, Sophie?" Big asked.

And, ever eager to serve, Sophie was quick to run off into the kitchen. Lady Cordelia hopped on her shoulder to look at Sylenius, but said not a ribbit.

There was a moment of shared silence between Sylenius and Big that went uninterrupted for a total of ten seconds as Sophie clattered around the kitchen grabbing food. Big would've gone himself, but, as already established: he couldn't fit in the kitchen.

The silence was broken by another knock on the door, but it was barely heard under the singing and the clang of a plate. This knock was louder, heavier, and more deliberate. Big's eyes darted to the door, more alert. The sound of the knock grew even louder the longer it went on, until--

"Come on in!" Big called.

The door swung open, and in stepped Sylpharielle, Sylph, or Elle as most people called her nowadays. She paused in the doorway, swallowed by the weight of the satchel slung over her boney shoulder. Her icy blue eyes darted around the shop, scanning the barrels, crates, and shelves as though searching for some unseen threat.

"Elle," Big said with a little grin. "You made it."

"Yes," Sylph murmured, her voice barely above a mere whisper. She hesitated a moment longer stepping fully inside, her footsteps so quiet they were almost inaudible against the wooden floor.

Sylenis stared at Sylph for just enough time to make it awkward. Big nudged his shoulder lightly. "Oh. Um." He coughed loudly. "Hi, Elle."

Sylph's lips curled into a small, shy smile as she met Sylenis' gaze for a moment, "Hi, Sylenis," she said softly, "Nice seeing you, friend." She nervously twisted at the edge of her silk sleeve.

For being well-established childhood friends, they still managed to treat each other like strangers, sometimes. It was oddly endearing.

Another clatter from the kitchen. "Another plate!" he heard Sophie declare to herself as she scrambled to prepare more food for Elle as well.

"No rush!" Big called back to her to dissuade her from tearing apart the kitchen in an energized flurry. "I hope you're hungry, Elle. Because you're about to eat."

"Oh, um," Elle pulled a mini baguette out of her satchel and placed it on the table in front of her, "I brought a baguette. Momma made it this morning before I left. I can eat this, no worries," she scratched at her arm.

Big tried not to smile in amusement at Elle's undying sincerity. In what felt like a concerningly noticeable halt, all the sound from the kitchen stopped at once. After a second, Sophie's head popped out from the doorway. "You don't want my food?" Her whole body followed soon after. In her short time in the kitchen, the flour had smudged her entire body and clothes. What was she even using flour for? "I mean, you don't have to if you don't want it," Sophie added.

Elle was now noticeably shaking. It seemed as though, regardless of how small she already was, she was still trying to make herself look smaller. "I uh... no. I mean--yes. I do. I'm sorry. I would be delighted," she said quickly.

"You really don't have to if you're not hungry," Big said gently. "I'll happily eat any extra portions Sophie's made."

Elle glanced at Sophie. "I'm actually starving. Parched, actually. I mean, after all, what am I going to do with this little baguette?"

"It's settled, then," Big said with a grin.

After some more fussing in the kitchen, Sophie came out with three full plates of food: one for Elle, one for Sy, and one for Big. She took his comment as an indication of his hunger. To be true, he always had an appetite, but he knew he shouldn't always eat if he was trying to watch his weight.

Then, they were about to start training again. One extra meal wouldn't hurt.

They sat down and enjoyed the food. For Sylenius, it took his mind off the noise overhead long enough for their songs to die down. When Irene, Theren, and Amber came downstairs, they all got reintroductions out of the way. It was, of course, easier for everyone to remember Theren's name as opposed to the several Theren had to learn, but no one expected him to get it immediately.

The rest of the day went on smoothly as everyone got settled in. The upstairs loft was getting a little crowded - or so he heard - but not unlivable. Big opted to stay downstairs to spare everyone his snoring, but in truth, he didn't mind the space to himself either. Everyone in his crew was content with one another, and he was never good at holding a conversation for very long.

It was better to let the young kids find enjoyment in each other. He was fine to simply... manage.

There were, however, some things still outside of his control. What worried his most as the day went on was that he'd heard nothing from Selena.

He was expecting her to make it in the day following like she'd estimated, so by the time night fell, he found himself anxious. Echo and Dagon had checked in, saying they were on their way and only a day out.

But Selena? She hadn't replied to any of his messages.

Irene had the idea to take everyone out for drinks that night, but Big chose to stay back in case Selena showed up. Irene only pushed back a tad, but everyone agreed that if Selena did turn up, someone should be there to meet her. So Big waved off Irene, Sophie, Amber, Sylenius, Elle, and Theren as he stood outside the shop -- and when they had gone, he pulled out a cigar.

Best to smoke when Irene wasn't around to chide him. She still did, even though he'd given up on chiding her.

He struck a match and lit the cigar, letting it burn a little before he took a puff. The hit to his senses was a relief, as his nerves were getting to him again. It helped to take the edge off as he waited, watching the shops on his street close down for the day. One by one, another light would go out. On a summer night like this one, the air was finally cooling after sunset.

It was finally tolerable.

Big felt he'd watched the whole city fall asleep while he smoked through half his cigar. It wasn't until midnight that he finally heard back from the cursed vampire.

"I don't think I can do this," he heard Selena's voice come through the call.

There was a heavy resignation in her tone. One that Big recognized from when they broke things off two years ago.

Big sighed for a moment in weighty silence.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

Another long pause.

"I want to see the Saurclaws eat their words and our dust," she said. "But I don't think it can be me. I... I don't think I can take more humiliation like this, Big. It's one thing to bear it like this, in the day-to-day. But putting it on display at the largest public tournament..."

She wasn't saying it, but he could tell something had happened in her journey. In whatever attempts she's made to get to Hildirun, some part of it had been too much and pushed her to the edge again.

He didn't want her to break.

He remembered the last time he was with her when she spontaneously transformed into a baby. Even he didn't like remembering it. The second-hand embarrassment had been too overwhelming; he could only imagine how it felt to be her.

"You know you don't have to do this, Selena," Big said, more gently. "It'd be just as honorable to go about living your life in quiet; peaceably, and hidden. If you join us you'd only be subjecting yourself to more ridicule."

But he knew she knew that.

This was going to be challenging not just because of their fight to become competent and improve. They had a reputation that would be incredibly difficult to rewrite, and Big knew that the moment they stepped back into the spotlight, they would be the laughingstock of the tournament until they could prove themselves otherwise.

He didn't want that to be Selena's undoing. Not everyone was built to bear that kind of self-imposed suffering.

"I don't think I can do it," she said again, her voice tight with tears.

Big wished he could be there, to hug her.

"Are you sure you don't want to... stop by? Just to visit?" he asked.

"I'm afraid I'd be tempted to join you again," she said. "In seeing you, I'd miss you too sorely, and I don't think I'd be strong enough to walk away when I know I should."

It hurt to hear, but Big understood her well enough. Selena was used to drawing away and staying low - and she was good at it. It was one of her strengths, but the other side of the coin was that she had little by way of friends, and the only real ones she'd made were Big and their crew.

She wanted to see them again, but she couldn't go through with the tournament. If she was around it, there was no way she'd be able to stay on the fringes.

She'd want to help. But she didn't have to do that to herself.

"You can always call," Big said. "You don't have to wait for me to reach out with an opportunity like this. You still have your sending stone."

He heard her sniffled hum in reply.

"Hold onto your dignity, Selena," Big said softly. "You deserve to."

"You too, Big," Selena said quietly.

"I'll be more intentional to reach out again," he said. "You take care of yourself, alright?"

After another hum from her, Big added: "Is there anything I can do to--?"

"You already do so much, Big," Selena interrupted. "And I know you'll be taking care of the others. I want you to focus on that. And maybe take care of yourself for a change."

Big huffed through his nose, glancing at the cigar between his fingers. Were Selena here, she'd probably snatch it from him.

"Sure," he said faintly.

"Tell the others I'm rooting for you guys," Selena added, a little more hopeful. "If anyone can kick ass, it's you guys. I believe that."

Big let out another laugh through his nose.

"Will do."

And as he tucked his sending stone away, he leaned his head back against the outer wall, taking a long drag. With a heavy sigh, he watched as the trail of smoke left his lips and spun in a lazy trail down the cobblestone hill, where the taverns of the city were alive, and his other companions were hopefully drinking away their worries, if only for a night. Not everyone in their former crew could afford to.

As faint music drifted up his way, he felt a strange sense of calm: like a calm before a storm.

In the distance, he spotted a familiar shadow of a bird sweeping over the rooftops.

Echo's pet raven, Dagon.

Theren was hungover. So hungover. He groaned and covered his face. There was no way he could keep up with Irene. She was a beast when it came to drinking and drank him under the table the night before. He'd called it quits rather quickly, especially once he watched her down a whole barrel of liqour. He could hear someone in the kitchen again. Probably Sophie. Wait, was her name Sophie or was it Sally? Or Selphie? He couldn't keep them straight anymore. At least he could tell Amber and Irene apart...

"Theren~"

Speaking of Irene... He sighed, peeking through his fingers at her. "Mornin' Irene...."

She squinted at him. "Are you hungover?"

Theren grunted. "No."

She grinned at him. "Yeah, you are~"

"Irene--"

"You're hungover. Soooo hungover."

"I would bet my lute on it," Amber chimed in, russet braids swinging as she leaned over him. He groaned and covered his face again.

"Not you, too," he muttered. "How are you not hungover?"

"Drinking too much messes with my vocal cords. And music is much more important to me than forgetting the embarrassments and failures of the past and that one time we destroyed that town..." she frowned and cut herself off. "Anyways. Rise and shine!"

At least he was still in bed at the moment. He sighed and shifted to laying his arm over his eyes, moaning pitifully. "Noooo," he complained, half-joking. "It's too earlyyyyyy...."

He caught Amber and Irene exchanging a look when he peeked at them. Uh oh. They each grabbed an arm and hoisted Theren out of the bed. He yelped as they did so, especially when the room span for a second. They kept a grip on his arms until he stopped visibly wobbling.

"It's time to register, mister~" Amber sang. "So let's go like we're being chased by a twister."

Theren groaned at the horrible rhyme and wriggled free. He glowered for a moment then shoved a hand over his face and back into his hair, sighing. "That was terrible..."

"Terrible, berrible, merrible." Amber laughed. "Next time I'll put in more effort, perhaps into an ear-piercing rendition of 'Grandma Got Eaten by an Owlbear.'"

Theren swallowed at that and winced. He'd had to listen to Irene belting that out at the top of her lungs, words slurred. Oh, no, not that again. He shook his head and then glanced down, flushing. Who--what--when. He was half-undressed. No boots, no jacket, shirt half-way undone. He stared down at himself for a long moment, mortified. He was just glad his pants weren't also undone.

"Uh. Can I get dressed properly first?"

"Right. Another reason I don't drink to excess... I'll be outdoors." Amber walked out of the room humming. Theren watched her go before turning on Irene and raising an eyebrow.

"You, too, Irene." She didn't move and he scowled at her. "Out!"

She smirked at him. "What? Something you don't want me to see? Don't worry, I've seen it all already~"

Theren flushed and then pointed at the door. "No. Nope. OUT! Get out!"

She went, but she wasn't happy about it. He waited until she was out before he made sure the door was closed. Theren straightened out his clothes and went digging for the rest of his effects before he joined them outside. It took a few minutes--maybe a few too many if the look on their faces was anything to go by. He offered them a shy smile.

"Soooo. Registration?"

"Yep. Not like we can tournament-crash, fun as that would be." Amber started striding down the street.

"Now that would be fun," he muttered, following after Amber. Irene trailed behind them. He tried to ignore the way she was staring at them, specifically him. "I've always wanted to gatecrash something important."

"Me too. Wouldn't it be fun to gatecrash a concert and completely upstage the performers?" As Jerant's capital, Hildirun boasted sections of densely packed buildings. Some leaned together and almost touched, while others were crammed in between other, clearly older buildings. A few people they passed did a double-take, possibly recognizing Irene and Amber. But they sped past before anyone could approach them. At least they didn't recognise him. Theren was glad for that.

Theren chuckled. "Oh, that could be fun."

As they approached the registration area for the Tournament of Mercenaries, the buildings began to show more signs of upkeep. The road was more newly-paved and the taller buildings had pointed roofs, smoothly paneled sides, and were freshly painted with warm colors. Theren glanced about as they walked, making sure they weren't be followed or being watched too closely. Thankfully, no one was. But it didn't hurt to be careful.

They spotted the registration building from a block away. There was already a line of people out the door, some clutching sheafs of papers. Theren tilted his head, eyeing the line for a moment before glanced towards his companions.

Amber groaned. "Filling out paperwork? I call not it."

"Also not it." He turned to look at Irene, who groaned. "Yeah, you're filling it out."

Irene pouted. "Of course you two would make me do it..."

"Don't worry, we'll be doing useful things too." Amber grinned. "Who knows what fun information might be hiding in that building?"

Theren grinned. "Oh, that could be fun, Amber."

Irene joined the line, which moved at the pace of a Bedisan tortise. He'd seen one once. It was several centuries old and moved maybe an inch every hour. While he was distracted, Amber hefted her lute and strolled towards the front doors. Theren only noticed she was moving when he turned to say something to her and found her missing from his side. He blinked and tilted his head to find her several paces away. She waved impatiently. He groaned and hefted his lyre, moving to join her. Right, then. Time for distraction tactics.

Amber glanced at Theren as he caught up and lowered her voice. "So, quick story from our crew's, er, misadventures. One time we were tasked with infiltrating a crime ring and rescuing someone, but unfortunately for everyone, somehow I ended up being assigned the task of infiltration." They passed people scribbling on papers while waiting in line. "I... Well, suffice it to say that most criminal dwarves don't have entire ballads memorized, nor do they insult other criminals in rhyme... All that to say, do you happen to be skilled in sneaking around?"

Theren hummed as his listened to her, then snorted at the last question. "Am I skilled in sneaking around?" he asked, cocking his head to give Amber a tiny smirk. "Of course I am."

She grinned. "Good. Otherwise this would've gone very badly. One thing I can do excellently, however, is be a distraction."

The interior of the building was an office in a state of mildly organized chaos. To describe it in a word, it was crowded. With both people and paper. A few officials were at a desk directly in front of the doors, and there was another door to the right, partially hidden behind a potted plant. Amber positioned herself to the left of the entrance. She nodded to him and Theren carefully positioned himself closer to the potted plant. He'd wait for her cue.

Amber took a deep breath, then strummed her lute loudly and belted out a line of a popular questing song, except she changed occasional words to "paper" and "paperwork." Most eyes in the room turned to her in surprise. She sang even more loudly to capture the attention of those folks who were particularly absorbed in their paperwork.

Aaaand that was his cue. Theren slipped over to the door as soon as they were all--mostly--looking at her. He pulled his lockpicks out and knelt before the door, glancing towards the nearest person who would see him if they bothered looking his way. He had to be quick, then. Amber's distraction might not last very long and the door he was at had to lead to the back offices.

Amber sang something about fighting paper with both pens and swords. Theren quickly tuned her out as he picked the lock, panicking internally when he realised he was taking too long. Hurry up, Theren! Before someone spots you! He could use his illusion magic, but he might need that for later. He wasn't particularly stong, magic-wise. He wet his lips, glancing towards the others again. Shit, shit, faster, come on, got to do it faster...

When he glanced back to check on her, Amber had started to juggle paperweights, still singing at the top of her lungs. In the span of that glance, he saw her swipe another paperweight from an official, forcing them to focus on her. He cursed and turned his attention back to the lock, eyes narrowing. Theren had to pay attention to his lockpicking now. He had to listen for the clicks of the tumblers as he was adjusting the angle and depth of his picks.

One click. Two.

Theren swallowed and glanced back again, finding Amber dancing around the room, evading the grasps of officials pleading with her to leave the premises. She scattered papers everywhere. He chuckled and turned back to picking the lock, hearing a third click and then a fourth. Theren tried the handle and grinned when it turned and the door creaked open. He glanced back and met Amber's eyes, then slipped through the door. As he did so, he simulataneously made an Amber copy and made the original Amber invisible. He gestured her over, holding the door for her. He stumbled when an invisible Irene joined him first.

Invisible Amber's eyes widened as she followed Irene. She glanced back at her copy and raised her eyebrows, looking impressed. Theren shrugged, watching Copy Amber for a moment before closing the door behind him. He grinned and leaned back against it. "Just a little illusion magic," he said, locking the door. "Come on, let's go."

"Sally and Selena won't be joining us for the tournament," Big said. Irene, Theren, and Amber had left to go sort out some final business regarding the tournament entries, and everyone had just finished eating, including Sophie, who had finally sat down to eat her first meal of the day. The smell of the food in the air had been tempting her the whole time she cooked, but she hadn't wanted to take away food-- what if there wasn't enough, and by eating, she accidentally took away food from someone else? Now though, everyone was sitting contentedly, each person sitting on a different crate of varying sizes. Sophie sat on one that was taller than most in the room-- tall enough for her feet to not touch the ground-- but suddenly, she felt a little bit smaller, hearing Big's words.

On her shoulder, La'Cabuf let out a sad ribbit!. Sophie felt a lump rise in her throat. Sally and Selena were both pretty nice, but it was Sally who Sophie had spent the most time with, the previous time they'd all done this. It had felt like some sort of neverending push against the tide, trying to get Sally to even talk to Sophie at first. She was friendly, of course, but there had always been this air of-- tension, almost, like Sally was keeping her guard up. Until one day, suddenly and out of the blue, when Sophie suggested checking out some parties the night before their first big tournament event, the walls just... tumbled.

"You're being like, for real, aren't you?" She'd said to Sophie when everyone else had left the room. "It's the night before this huuuge thing that we're all doing, and you're not even like, kidding? Or exaggerating? You wanna go visit house parties?"

Sophie had smiled, but hadn't quite understood where the confusion laid. She'd just stood there, a little confused, watching Sally and trying to understand what she'd meant. And then, without any elaboration, Sally had hopped up from the sunken, stained sofa and smiled suddenly and looped her arm through. "Let's go!" She'd said decidedly. "I bet you know the best places in town."

"Which one's Sally?" Elle asked, picking at her fingernails. Sophie glanced at her, sitting on a box lower to the ground. She didn't realize she was holding the crate below her tighter until La'Cabuf croaked again.

"Right," Sophie said in a small voice, loosening her grip. "No, I wouldn't want to..."

"What difference does it make? Sally, Selena, same name." Sylenis said, dusting the crumbs on his pants off absentmindedly.

"Sally was one of our magic users. She controls water," Big said. "Selena is a vampire, and she used those inherent skills on our jobs."

Elle dropped her hands into her lap and made direct eye contact with Big, "Wait, is that a real thing? I thought vampires were... a folktale or something."

"Also, wasn't Sally like... a fish, or something?" Sylenis quipped.

"Mermaid," Big corrected, his expression dampening.

"Those don't exist."

"Putting your ignorance aside," Big said. "I just wanted to let you all know, in case anyone was expecting them. In Sally's case, she had a family emergency and had to stay home."

His eyes landed on Sophie, who squirmed a little without meaning to. "Her Aunt had an accident. Sally's taking care of her right now."

Sophie nodded quickly, pulling her eyes away from Big's and blinking several times. "Yeah, that makes sense," she said enthusiastically. "That's great, actually, because her aunt probably really needs her there, so that's a pretty good thing for her to do."

"You know, Sally had said one time to Sophie, pulling her aside, both of them half-a-bottle-of-wine deep, "I actually like, didn't really trust you when we first met?" She'd giggled. "I just-- like, who actually acts happy all the time, you know? It felt like some sort of-- act or something, like something you were putting on, or... something." She'd trailed off a bit, then said thoughtfully, "That night, when we went to all those parties, it just like-- finally hit me. That you weren't acting crazy or anything for..." She'd paused and winced. "I didn't mean like, crazy. Just like. You know. Oh, I'm a klutz with these things, sorry."

"It's okay,"" Sophie had said, tilting her head a little as she watched her. "Most people think I'm crazy."

"Well-- I mean yes," Sally had said frustratedly. "But like, that's my point! I just, I thought that you were doing one thing, but really you were just being you, and I just shouldn't have judged you like that, because when someone is just being them and then you act really rude to them because of it, then it's like-- you're attacking them. Even if you're only doing it because you're worried about someone hurting you or letting people in, because you're dealing with your OWN problems, but then you're making someone else into this thing they're not and just--" She'd talked herself into a frenzy, her hands flying everywhere as if she could find the point she was trying to make somewhere in the air.

Sophie had taken her hands and smiled widely. "It's really okay!" she'd said reassuringly. "I'm used to it."

Elle seemed visibly uncomfortable, "Oh. That sounds terrible. I hope her aunt is okay, it can be crazy out there, y'know." She glanced at Sophie, shooting her an empathetic but subtle glare.

Sy huffed. "I should have stayed home. I could have been sitting in my bed right now, doing nothing. Instead, we're here. I'm overheating."

"If you want to reach out to Sally, you all still can by way of your sending stones," Big said with a sigh, breezing over Sy's comment. "I'm sure she'd appreciate it."

Sophie didn't know how to even use the sending stone. For some reason, that was the thought that completely broke the confusing overlay of numbness, because her breath hitched in her throat suddenly--unexpectedly. She hopped off the box and said hurriedly, "I should go find some food for the Lady Cordelia Agatha Bazir the Fourth." She sped through the words like lightning, each name so seared into her tongue and memory that it had become more of a reaction than a thought for her. "She hasn't eaten at all!" She laughed. "Silly me. I made food for everybody but the one I'm pledged to!" She laughed again, and desperately pushed all the other emotions down as she moved decisively towards the front door. In truth, she wasn't sure where she was going to go, but she knew she needed to get out of here.

Big's expression flashed with concern, but he made no sudden movements to follow.

"Um, excuse me," Elle struggled with something beneath the table, before pulling out the baguette from earlier. She smiled faintly and shrugged lightly, "I know it's not much, but fresh baked goods always make me feel better. You can take it if you want, and if not-- I'm sure the Lady Cordelia Agatha Bazir the Fourth would enjoy it."

Sophie stared at the bread blankly. "I don't... uh..." Her brain was racing with too many things to fully process--not when she was putting all her energy towards not breaking down in front of anyone. "She can't eat bread, I have to-- go." She opened the front door.

Elle hesitated before standing, her chair making a loud screeching noise that seemed to fill the awkwardness in the room. Sophie hurried out the door, but she could hear from Elle's footsteps that she wasn't far behind.

"Hey," her light, airy voice broke the silence as she sped to catch up with Sophie, who was practically barreling down the street, "I uh... are--are you okay?"

"Yep!" Sophie said. "I'm doing great! I'm so fantastic." She turned a corner, hoping to find somewhere to actually get La'Cabuf food or maybe lose Elle. She really should be happy for Sally that her aunt hadn't died, and that Sally was able to be there to help with everything! Why was she feeling this way? This wasn't normal for her! That sent another flare of panic through her system, and she turned another corner.

"Can we stop for a second and talk? You... you're not okay. You do what I do when I want to avoid a manic breakdown." Elle struggled to catch up to her.

Sophie laughed a little. "Nope! No, I'm doing really great, actually."

"Sophie!" It had been after a tournament. They'd lost badly-- badly enough that everyone watching had laughed them out of the arena. Sophie had felt this kind of overwhelming sensation too--one she wasn't familiar with. She didn't care what those people thought! She didn't know them! Still, the feeling had been red-hot and had sat firmly at the bottom of her stomach, dragging her down.

"Mhm?" she'd said. "What's up?"

"Will you just--" Sophie had begun packing her things into her small bag, checking to make sure she had each item carefully stowed away. She had to figure out where she was going to go next, what she was going to do-- "SOPHIE, STOP IT!" Sally had yelled angrily. "Just stop it, just stop for a moment!"

Sophie had frozen, felt everything in her body jolt. Sally had raised her voice. Sally never did that.

"Stop it for just a moment!" Sally said, then lowered her voice into a whisper. "Please, just... for a moment?" She'd sighed as she lowered herself to the ground, wrapping her arms around her knees. "It's not good for you to just, like-- to just do that! You can't just say, 'Oh, I'm not gonna feel anything' and then DO that! That's reallyyyy bad for you!"

"I'm not--"

"Yes, you are!" Sally had exclaimed, exasperated. "Look, I'm not-- I'm not trying to be mean or anything, but you doing stuff like that is the reason that people feel weird around you!"

Sophie had felt her heart stop. She'd felt sick. She felt sick now, even thinking about it.

"I didn't... I didn't mean it like that." Sally had fidgeted nervously, biting on her bottom lip. "I just mean that-- it's not natural for people to only feel happy. You're SUPPOSED to feel all these other things, so then when you don't it just, it just feels weird! It feels weird to be around you! And I'm not trying to say it's weird to be around you, I looove being around you, it's just like... it's just not natural. You're supposed to actually FEEL things, Soph," she'd snapped. "You're supposed to FEEL them, not just pretend to be happy all the time."

Elle quickly stepped in front of her, stopping Sophie in her tracks. She stared at Elle, taking her in fully for the first time since she'd arrived. She'd been in the kitchen, and then she'd been cooking, and then she'd been eating, and then she'd been preoccupied by her own thoughts. She hadn't actually fully processed the fact that Elle, who she hadn't seen in-- months at the very least, right?-- was standing directly in front of her. It halted her, and she blinked a few times, feeling the tears she was trying to avoid well up in her eyes.

Elle immediately pulled her into a hug. She sighed, "I get it. Just let it out, if you feel comfortable enough."

Sophie's eyes flickered from building to building, each one blurry and indistinct. None of them were able to help her right now. None of them were going to bring her friend here. She blinked hard to push the tears back, but her heart hammered against her ribcage, fast like a hummingbird.

"Come on." Elle led her into a private area, away from all the storefronts. "We don't want anyone seeing you like this. We're warriors, remember?"

"Seeing me like what?" Sophie tried to laugh, but it got caught in her throat. She glanced away, distressed.

"Exactly." Elle gestured for her to sit on a nearby bench. "That-a-girl. How are you feeling now?"

Sophie forced a wry smile, but turned her face away. "I feel great," she repeated, forcing a cheery tone. "Really, I don't really care. Actually, I wasn't expecting them to come at all! I wasn't even thinking about them."

Elle smirked but sat next to her. She didn't look at Sophie. Instead, she looked down at her hands. She started picking on her fingernails again. "I feel great too. I don't like being here. I came for my family. To see my sisters. Do you wanna tell me what's making you feel great?"

Sophie shook her head silently. She shouldn't be this upset. She felt like this reaction was uncalled for. It wasn't as if Sally had died.

But she had, in a way. When they'd said goodbye for the final time, Sally had waved and given a small, sad smile, and then turned her back to Sophie and just... walked away. She'd said they would see each other again sometime, but Sophie had known even then that Sally wasn't going to initiate it. Sally was going to hole herself back up in her house with her aunt and never go anywhere. She wasn't the type of girl who went to house parties; she'd only gone because Sophie had wanted to go.

And Sophie sure as hell wasn't going to reach out to her. She wasn't going to put the pressure of Sophie onto someone else, not when they didn't ask for it. No. In a way, Sally had died the day they'd said goodbye, because Sophie had just... felt it. The fact that they'd never speak again. She'd even gotten used to it, in the long time it had been since everyone had been together. Really, she was better on her own. She didn't need anyone besides La'Cabuf! She could manage alone, and go to parties where everyone recognized and loved her because they were drunk and found her interesting and cool and wild, and then she'd go back alone to the woods and sleep in the dark that wasn't ever really dark, because the moon and the stars were always there. And she'd be alone again, with no one ever knowing her. That was how she'd always lived. Really, it had just been a blip, this-- real, actual connection with someone. It hadn't been the norm-- and Sophie knew it was rare enough that she shouldn't count on it happening again.

Still... for a brief, brief period, Sophie had thought that maybe they would speak again.

"That's okay. Sometimes it's better not to talk," Elle sat back a bit and dropped her hands, taking a deep breath. For a few minutes, they sat in complete and utter silence, despite the thoughts racing through Sophie's head, circular, neverending. Really, it just meant they hadn't been very good friends to begin with, if Sally hadn't reached out for all this time. She knew she was just trying to logic it away to herself. She hadn't reached out either. They had both known it was that kind of thing though, hadn't they? It was why, when they'd left, Sally had said, "Goodbye," instead of "See you soon," or even "See you sometime." They'd both known each other well enough to know that there wouldn't be a "sometime"-- and they'd walked away anyway.

On her shoulder, The Lady Cordelia Agatha Bazir the Fourth let out a deep, solid, ribbit! Wow. For a lady, that response was practically undignified.

Elle jumped and glanced at the Lady, "Oh. I haven't seen the Lady... since I've seen you," she hesitated, her tone low and cautious, "I-I'm sorry for offering the bread earlier. I know that didn't really help in the moment."

"It's alright," Sophie said bleakly. "I like bread, and I know you're good at making bread. It's just that I stuffed my face with eggs and tomatoes thirty minutes ago so I'm not feeling hungry."

Elle's smirk grew wider, "Wow, a compliment on my baking skills from you means a lot. The meal was fabulous. Where'd you learn to cook like that?"

Sophie shrugged, feeling particularly depressed. "I just make a lot of eggs."

Elle shrugged with her, hesistating, "You were really close with Sally, weren't you?" she whispered, as if treading thin ice.

Sophie stared off in the distance for a moment, before she blinked and shook her head. "Not really. I mean, how close to someone can you actually get, right?" She chuckled, then followed it up quickly with another remark because the bare second's pause felt deafening. "I don't really get close to people, and people don't really get close to me. And even if I think I got close to someone, we usually didn't."

"Pardon my manners," Elle looked at her, a concerned look forming on her face, "but your reaction... I don't believe that. I believe that you're looking for a way to cope. And that's okay. I'm sorry that she won't be here."

Sophie stood. "I need to find food for the Lady Cordelia Agatha Bazir the Fourth, now." She couldn't say it, but it was clear what she was communicating: I would like to be alone now.

Elle didn't respond and instead nodded,anxiously playing with her fingernails again. She didn't move, though, as if she wanted to stay there for a while anyway.

Sophie watched her anxiously, fidgeting a little before she said, "I'm gonna go find food now. I'll see you at Big and Irene's shop."

"Okay," Elle responded, glancing back at her, "I'm going to stay here for a bit. Away from all the noise."

Sophie nodded then turned away. "Mhm. Okay. Goodbye."

Elle forced a smile and waved, "I hope you find something for Lady Cordelia Agatha Bazir the Fourth. I'll meet you back over there."

Sophie began walking away. She didn't know where she was going, or if she had any place in mind at all. In the end, the found herself back at the pond she'd been staying at before she'd gotten the call from Big. She set La'Cabuf down gently on the ground. She wanted to push Sally out of her mind, but it was as if she wouldn't leave. She'd been there for a while, after they'd parted ways initially. Now, she hadn't even seen her again, but she was feeling the same weird flurry of emotions! It was exhausting.

Sophie laid out on the ground and stared up at the trees far above her. She could hear Sally's voice-- or her memory of Sally's voice. She didn't even know if that's what she sounded like anymore. She would never know, in the end.

"Oh my gods, I just HATE you sometimes!" Sophie could still hear the sound of the glass hitting the floor and shattering. Sally had collapsed to the floor, sobbing. She'd been heavily drunk at the time. "You just don't ever feel anything," she'd hiccuped. "Oh my gods, you don't ever feel anything and it's INFURIATING!"

Sophie was feeling things now. Sally wasn't around to see it though. At the time, the words had stung, but all Sophie could focus on was the slivers of glass underneath Sally's hands. "You need to clean that up," she'd said. What she had meant was, "You're going to hurt yourself."

Sally had laughed hysterically, but it had turned into another sob towards the end. "That's what you're worried about. The fucking glass. No emotions, no feelings, no nothing, you don't care about me at all!" She had continued on rambling. Sophie had cared though, hadn't she? That's why she had said she needed to clean it up. She needed to not cut herself.

That night had been the night before they said goodbye forever. Only an hour earlier, Sally had laid next to Sophie, snuggled against her, drinking straight from the bottle as she said, "I love you SO much. I mean, I just love you soooo much, you don't even understand. Like, if my love were as big as something, we wouldn't even be able to see it. It would be everything. That's how big."

"I... uh..." Sophie hadn't been able to say it. She hadn't known why. Those just weren't words that came to her naturally. They weren't words she was used to hearing. How did she know what that really felt like? Still, she cared. She knew she cared. Still, she hadn't been able to say it. It had all spiraled from there.

Sally had apologized in the morning. Sophie had accepted it. That was as close as it got. She apologized just before she said goodbye and walked away. Sophie didn't know how to feel about it. She felt devastated that she wasn't here, but it was probably good, in a way. She had enough problems without being told over and over again that she never felt anything.

Sophie stayed there next to the pond until the sun began to set--and then after it went away, and it was just the moon. And then she waited a little while more before she begrudgedly rose, offered her hand as a seat for La'Cabuf, and began the twenty minute walk back. She hadn't really noticed her hunger until she began passing houses with the smell of freshly baked bread and grilled meat wafting out. She'd just felt empty and drained. She'd managed to stuff all the odd feelings inside again, where they needed to be. Where they wouldn't cause her any more trouble.

The embarrassment of rushing out was beginning to wash over her as she stood in front of the door. She was hoping that maybe, most people were asleep or out for the night. When she finally managed to gather the energy to put on her cheeriest smile, she raised her hand and knocked on the door.

Big answered, looking haggard and half-awake. He was still in his day clothes, but she knew he was prone to falling asleep in any state.

"Ah, Sophie," he said, sounding relieved. "It's good to see you."

"Great to see you," she said cheerfully. It was like she could feel the energy draining with every word she pushed out enthusiastically. She pushed past him, moving past the barrels and straight into the small kitchen. She needed to eat before going out to party the night away until she couldn't remember anything anymore.

"You feelin' alright?" Big asked, slow to turn and follow.

"I'm doing so great," Sophie said. "I think I might be the greatest I've ever been actually."

Big's expression saddened, but he pushed no more. Instead, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small brown paper bag.

"I saved you dinner," he said.

Sophie paused, feeling the tears suddenly and forcefully come back, threatening to spill. "I... uh..." She faltered. She didn't even know what to say.

"Oh my gods, I just HATE you sometimes!"

She felt a single tear slip out, and she wiped it quickly and turned away, wiping her whole face along her sleeve before she turned back. "Thank you. Dinner is always nicer when--" She took a deep breath to steady herself. "--when someone saves it for you," she finished. She wasn't quite sure what that meant, but it felt like it meant something she was trying to say.

"Could I have a hug?" Big asked.

Sophie's breath shuddered as she drew it in. "Yeah, of-- of course." She moved forward, but wasn't quite sure what to do next. She knew what a hug was, of course. She had hugged people. What was happening in her brain right now? She held her arms out awkwardly, and Big's strong arms pulled her in and held her tight.

"I miss them too," he said softly.

Sophie's eyes drifted closed. Several more tears traced their way gently down her face before she said, "I don't... I miss them," she said confusedly, "but I don't."

Big hummed, and Sophie could feel it vibrating through his chest. Neither of them said anything else. Big didn't ask Sophie to explain, which was good, because she didn't think she would've been able to if he had. Finally, Sophie let go just a little bit--and Big let go too. He held out the lunch sack to her silently, and she took it.

When they parted ways--Sophie for the stairs, and Big for wherever he was currently sleeping--they didn't need to say goodbye. Sophie knew she would see him again.

Collabed with @ScarlettFire

The back room was about half the size of the office. It was filled with filing cabinets, some with papers spilling out of them haphazardly. Amber idly strummed her lute before realizing that might not be the best idea. She silenced it.

"So... anyone fluent in paperwork? What seems the most important?" she whispered. She wasn't much for paperwork herself. More of an outdoorsy, skipping through the meadow, singing and dancing kind of dwarf. This space wasn't particularly small, but she already felt the itch to be outside.

Theren shook his head. "Not me. I'm terrible at it."

She examined the labels on some cabinets. "Competition logistics. Food. Events. Competitors. Oh?" She pulled out the drawer of the one labeled "Competitors" and coughed at the cloud of dust that puffed out.

The first papers seemed to refer to a date about a decade ago. The Saurclaws hadn't even won that one; their disgusting winning streak had begun five years ago. "Ugh. Ancient history." Amber closed the drawer again. "Divide and conquer?" she suggested.

They exchanged glances and nodded. Theren went left while Irene went right.

For a few minutes, Amber dove deep into the history of the Tournament. She learned interesting tidbits such as the middle names of the winners of seven years ago, but nothing particularly relevant. She felt as if she were slogging through a cliche old-fashioned ballad with how dry the work was. And here she'd thought they'd find something interesting back here.

"Of course they'd be registered already," Irene huffed. Amber walked over to where Irene was staring at some forms. Ah. The Saurclaws.

Irene passed the forms around, and Amber frowned at Fred's. "Annoying child. His squeaks haunt my nightmares."

"At least he didn't mistake for you a girl," Theren muttered, sounding sour. "Zaine's a moron. I get that I'm pretty, but come on..."

Amber stifled a laugh. "Maybe we should make moron his middle name then. Same for Fred..."

Theren chuckled. "Oh, my...do it, Amber."

Amber produced a pen she'd swiped from someone in line and scribbled "Mouse" onto Fred Saurclaw's sheet.

"...The Saurclaws will probably notice and get it straightened out. But oh, that feels satisfying." Amber handed the pen to Theren. "Go wild."

"That's if they notice," he said, accepting the pen and adding "moron" to Zaine's form. "I can add a little magic so they can't see the changes."

"That's a thing magic can do?"

Theren smiled mischeivously. "Perhaps."

"That's pretty powerful. And perfect for this."

He shrugged, handing the pen off to Irene. "It's not that powerful." He sighed. "It just intially takes some concentration."

Amber thought for a moment. "That's more than I can do. I know some basics, like a silencing spell, but complex illusions are beyond requiring just 'a little concentration.' If they were easy, I'd be making illusions of dragons and castles left and right to complement my performances."

He gave her a blank look. "It's not like I'm making illusionary dragons, Amber. It's just hiding something on paperwork. It's not that easy..."

"You did make an illusory version of me, though."

He gave her another blank look. "That was harder."

If Amber were him, she'd be flaunting her illusions all over the place, not making it seem like they were nothing special. But hey, it wasn't really her place to say more, was it? They were still practically strangers, after all, and chances were he'd never want to spend time with them again if they failed in this tournament, like in all the other ones before and... she didn't want to think about that.

"Alright," she said, changing the subject. "We should probably go before someone finds us in here."

"Irene. Are our papers done?"

"Yep~"

"Perfect." Amber reached the door, then hesitated. "Theren, any chance you could work your illusions on us so people assume we're employees with a very innocent, not-suspicious-at-all reason to be leaving the back room?"

He grinned. "Of course."

"If your magic keeps being this useful, I might have to hire you to help out with performances. Just imagine... music plus images in the air? Truly an immersive experience."

Theren's eyes narrowed. "How much are we talking?"

"...Depends on how successful we are? If it works out, I'm not opposed to a 50-50 split." She pushed open the door. The line had moved, but it didn't seem any shorter.

"Hmm, sounds good to me," Theren said, squeezing in next to her. "Give me a moment."

Amber tried to observe him and see if she could gather any clues on the process of creating illusions. All she got was a narrowing of his eyes and then a grin flashed at her.

"All set."

Amber nodded and strutted confidently out of the room. Sure enough, after a glance at them, people lost interest. She whistled under her breath. That illusion magic really was something. She'd ask him to teach her, but... well, to be honest, she wasn't certain how long this group would last. Yes, she'd been excited to re-form the band and gain inspiration for songs, but based on history? ...Amber didn't want to have to sing another "Mercenaries of Jerant."

If training went well, maybe. If she could get some reassurance that they wouldn't dissolve and have no contact with each other for as long as the last time.

She took a deep breath and pushed open the door out of the building, relishing the feeling of fresh air on her face. Happier thoughts. "Now, I heard you and Irene were working on a drinking song?"

Theren groaned. "Please don't encourage her."

"OH~ We absolutely areeee~"

Amber smiled. "Sounds like a delightful project. Mind if I join?"

"If you---ugh, now she's never gonna stop!"

She laughed, and for a moment she felt something like hope, warm as the late morning sun.