Bright morning sunlight streamed in through the curtained window, bathing the sleeping elf and redheaded woman in light and warmth. Birds sang outside the window, and the ears of the white wolf sleeping next to the couple twitched. The wolf's eyes snapped open. Anju yawned, stretched, and stood up. Beside him, Althea stirred and opened her eyes.
The first thing she saw noticed was the sunlight coming in through the window. Then she noticed that she was on the floor instead of in her bed, and that she was being held by Loren, who was still asleep despite the bright sunlight shining in his face.
She was about to jump up and start yelling at him when she suddenly remembered her nightmare from the night before. She also remembered that Loren had been there to comfort her and that she had asked him to stay with her before she had fallen asleep again. She smiled as she realized that he had stayed with her and that she had had no more nightmares.
Althea gently extricated herself from the elf's arms and headed downstairs to fix some breakfast. Anju followed on her heels.
As she entered the dining room, she noticed the plates and mugs from dinner were still sitting on the table, the plate Loren had given to Anju was still on the floor, and a mug had been left sitting out on the bar.
Althea shook her head. “Can't that lazy elf even clear away the dirty dishes after a meal?” she muttered as she gathered the dishes together.
She took the dishes with her through the doorway behind the bar into the kitchen area so she could clean them, then get something together for breakfast. Anju followed her, hoping he might get some tasty scrap of food while they were in there.
Unnoticed, a raven sitting up in the rafters of the ceiling woke up at the sound of Althea's voice, stretched its wings, and started watching the dining room intently.
Althea and the wolf returned to the dining room a few minutes later with some plates and some sliced beef, cheese, and bread. Althea was just setting them down on a table when Tarn and Loren came downstairs.
“Good morning,” Tarn said as he and Loren took seats at the table. Anju settled down on the floor by Loren's side. “Did you sleep well?”
“Yes, thank you,” Althea replied, deciding not to mention her nightmare to the priest since she was not sure it had anything to do with Aerith. She turned to Loren. “And thank you, too, Loren, for taking care of me. But couldn't you have at least cleared the dinner dishes away before you went to bed last night?”
“Sorry,” the elf replied. “I had a lot on my mind when I went upstairs last night.”
“Oh? Are you sure you just didn't have one drink too many instead? Along with the dinner dishes, I also found a mug left sitting on the bar.”
Loren shook his head. “No, I didn't. After I took you upstairs and put you to bed, Tarn and I talked for a bit. I didn't have anything to drink after dinner. Just ask Tarn.”
Althea looked at the priest, who nodded. “It's true ,” Tarn said. “Neither of us went near the bar last night.”
Althea turned to the bar with a perplexed look in her jade-green eyes. “Then how...” she started to ask, then shook her head. She turned back to the elf and priest. “So, what did the two of you talk about last night?” she asked them.
“What else?” Loren replied. “We discussed finding a way to help you, of course.”
“Did you figure anything out?”
“Possibly,” said Tarn. “We wanted to talk it over with you first, before we made any decisions.”
Althea nodded. “Alright. But let's eat first. I'm getting hungry, and I”m sure Loren already is.”
The trio filled their plates and Anju sat up and started whinning. Loren gave him a slice of beef while Althea rolled her eyes. She would have said something to him again about feeding the wolf at the table, but she knew it would do no good.
Once they were done eating, Tarn began explaining to Althea what he had proposed to Loren the night before.
“I think I should begin by giving you a warning before you agree to anything, Althea. So the first thing I will tell you will be the same thing I first told Loren last night, and that is that there is no guarantee of success, should you attempt the undertaking I propose. There is only a slight chance at best.”
“Fair enough,” Althea said. “But a slight chance is better than no chance at all. So I will hear you out, Tarn. Continue.”
Tarn nodded. “I should also warn you that my idea will also be a bit difficult to accomplish, as well as dangerous. For one, I am not the only one who has been searching for you. I just happened to find you first. Aerith will have sent out her own search parties of priests and soldiers, though they won't be trying to kill you. They will want to capture you, because Aerith will need you alive in order to take over your body. So that is one problem you will have to contend with if you agree to my suggestion.”
Althea nodded in understanding. “Alright. It makes sense, I suppose. But I think Loren and I will be able to handle it.”
Tarn gave a small nod. “Yes, I am sure you will. But that is not the truly difficult part of my proposal.”
“Oh? Then what is?”
“As I told Loren, the crux of my idea involves the two items needed to perform the ritual that allows Aerith to enter the body of her chosen avatar – you, Althea. What we would need to do is find the items and destroy them before Aerith's people can get hold of them – and of you.”
“That doesn't sound all that difficult.”
“The items haven't been seen since Aerith's last attempt.”
“Oh. That could raise the difficulty factor a bit.”
“That's what I said,” Loren quipped.
Tarn ignored him. “That's really about as far as we got last night. We felt it best to bring you into the discussion, since it concerns you directly, although Loren seemed pretty much ready to go along with my idea at the time. However, because it concerns you directly, the decision is ultimately yours. If you agree to my proposal, then we can discuss it in more detail.”
Althea sat quietly for a moment, thinking over what Tarn had told her. When she was done, she looked him straight in the eye, her jade-green eyes full of firm determination. “I really don't see that there's much to decide. I either go along with your plan or let you kill me, right? Well, seeing as how I really don't want to die just yet, I say we go on a treasure hunt.”
Loren gave her an approving smile and nodded in agreement.
“Very well,” Tarn said. “I - ”
A knock on the front door of the tavern interrupted the priest before he could go into any further details of his plan. Althea got up and answered the door.
A tall, thin man stood in the doorway. He had stringy, dark hair and a beard, and wore a white cotton shirt over slightly ragged brown pants. On the street behind him was a horse-drawn cart laden with wooden crates and barrels. A young boy with tussled black hair sat at the front of the cart, head turned so he could catch a glimpse of the famous monster hunter as his father talked to her.
“Good morning, Miss Althea,” the man said in a deep, husky voice that didn't seem to fit his body.
“Good morning, Horaas,” Althea replied with a smile. “Are you bringing our deliveries already?”
“That's right. I knew you were eager to get this place up and running again, so I thought I'd bring your stuff over first thing this morning.”
“Thank you, Horaas. I really appreciate it. There's a door on the side, to your left, that leads to the kitchen area. You can unload the stuff there. I'll get Loren to help you.” She lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper as she added with a wink, “It'll give the lazy elf something to do.”
“I heard that!” Loren called to her indignantly.
Horaas smiled and gave Althea a small nod, then returned to his cart. Althea closed the door and turned around. Loren still sat at the table with Tarn. She walked over and frowned down at him. “If you heard me, Loren,” she said tartly, “then why are you still sitting here?”
“I was just about to get up,” he replied in kind.
“Then do it already. Don't let Horaas unload everything by himself. He won't know where to put it all.”
“I'm going. I'm going.” He pushed his chair back and stood up. “Come on, Anju. Let's go restock the kitchen.”
As Loren and the wolf headed for the kitchen, Althea sat down in the newly vacated chair.
“Are you sure this is wise?” Tarn asked her.
“What? Accepting the deliveries?”
“Yes.”
“Well, they're already paid for, so I can't very well turn them away.”
“I can understand that. But that's not what I meant.”
“I know. And I've already thought about that. I know we need to start looking for those items soon, but we still need to come up with a plan since we don't know where they are yet. So I'm going to play tavern owner for a couple of days until we get something figured out. Besides which, I'd like to enjoy my dream for at least a little while, since I don't know if I'll have a chance to later.”
“Fair enough. When do you intend to open for business, then?”
“Tomorrow, I think. Horaas has brought fresh food and drink, so I think we can at least offer customers that much once we finish cleaning up enough to open. I won't bother with any major repair work yet. It shouldn't take us long to clean up and make sure everything is ready for us open. Once we've gotten that taken care of, we can discuss a plan of action.”
Tarn gave her a short nod. “Alright. Is there anything I can do to help?”
Althea gave him an appraising look. “How are you with a broom?”
* * *
Once she had Tarn sweeping the dining room with a broom she had found behind the bar, Althea headed to the kitchen to check on how the restocking was coming along – and to make sure Loren and Anju hadn't helped themselves to some of the food.
She entered the kitchen, closing the door behind her, just as Loren was thanking Horaas and shaking hands with him by the door leading outside. Anju was play-wrestling with Horaas's son in a far corner of the room. Some crates had been placed by the pantry, waiting to be emptied. Barrels had been placed by the door to the pub, so they could be easily taken up to the bar when needed. Other crates had been set by the stove. Not bad, Althea thought. Loren and I can get it all straightened out later.
Althea walked over to where Loren and Horaas stood. “Good work,” she told them. “And thank you again, Horaas.”
“You're welcome, Miss Althea,” the dark-haired man said.
“Oh, I'm thinking of opening for business tomorrow, if you could spread the word. We won't be able to offer much, though, and it'd only be for a couple of days or so since some business has suddenly come up that we need to leave to take care of soon. But we'll be back as soon as we can.” Hopefully, she added silently.
“I'll get the word out,” Horaas promised. “Good luck with the pub, and the business you need to take care of.” He turned to leave, but then turned back around. “Oh, if you need some help around here, and need someone to look after the place while you're gone, my daughter is available. She just turned sixteen and so is able to work now. I'm sure she'd be thrilled to work for someone famous like you.”
“That'd be great!” Althea said. “An extra hand around here would be a big help. And I'd love to have someone keep an eye on this place while we're away. There's an extra room she can stay in if she'd like to stay here while she's watching the pub for us. I don't know if we can pay her much to start, but...”
“That's no problem,” Horaas said. “I'll send her around tomorrow morning, then. Her name is Dani. And thank you, Miss Althea.”
“Thank you, Horaas. I'm sure she'll be a great asset to us. And I look forward to meeting her.”
Horaas nodded. “Good day, now, Miss Althea.” He turned to leave. “Come along, Nico,” he called to the boy playing with Anju.
The boy groaned in disappointment but got up off the floor, gave Anju a final pat good-bye, and followed his father outside.
Althea closed the door behind them and turned to Loren. “Come on,” she said. “Let's get some of this stuff unpacked.”
He looked at her with a surprised look in his eyes, as if he couldn't believe what he had heard her tell Horaas. “You're really going to do this?” he asked. “Even though we need to hurry and stop Aerith from using you?”
She nodded. “Yes, Loren. I am. And I've already talked with Tarn about it. It'll only be for a couple of days, while we come up with a plan. Besides, I'd like to take the chance to live my dream while I still can, even if it's only for a couple of days.”
Loren stared at her for a moment, then gave a small nod. “Alright,” he said. “Where do you want to start first?”
* * *
Tarn swept the floor in front of the bar as Althea went into the kitchen. As the door closed behind her, Tarn paused in his work and leaned back against the counter. “I can't believe I'm doing this,” he muttered.
“Well, you did offer to help,” said a female voice.
“I know. I know.” Tarn paused and looked around for the souce of the voice. He spotted a big black bird sitting up in the rafters, looking at him. “Raven?” he asked. “Is that you?”
“Of course, silly,” the female voice replied. The black bird glided down from the rafters and landed on the floor in front of the priest. There was a bright flash of light, then a beautiful black-haired woman in black robes stood where the bird had been. She smiled and stepped up close to Tarn. “I didn't know you were so handy with a broom,” she teased.
Tarn inhaled sharply, and the broom fell from his hands. He tried to take a step back, but could not, so he stepped aside instead. “Yes, well, all us priests had to help keep the temple clean when we were acolytes,” he said as he continued to step away from Raven. He wanted to put as much distance between himself as the enchanting mage as he could, so he would not be tempted to do something he would most likely regret later. But for every step away from her that he took, she took a steps towards him with an amused smile on her rosy lips. Eventually, Tarn backed up into a far corner of the dining room and could go no further.
“We could keep this up all day, Tarn,” she said as she stood in front of the cornered priest and smiled playfully at him. “Or I could, at any rate. But I believe you have some important work to do. And I don't mean just sweeping the tavern floor.”
“What do you want, Raven?” Tarn asked with a hint of annoyance.
“You know what I want, Tarn. But for now, I'll settle for offering to help you. I've been listening to your discussions with that woman and the elf, and I think I can be of some help.”
“Why?”
“Why am I offering to help? Because I can. And because it's getting boring just watching you all talk. So I thought I'd offer to help.”
“And what's in it for you?”
“Me? Excitement. Adventure. A chance to cause mischief. And you – maybe.”
Tarn sighed. “And just how do you propose to help us?” he reluctantly asked.
She shook her head slightly. “Sorry. You have to promise to let me help you first.”
“Huh?”
“Promise to let me help you, then I'll tell you.”
“That doesn't make any sense, Raven. How am I supposed to agree to let you help me if I don't know how you intend to do so?”
“That's my condition.”
He sighed. “Fine. I promise. Now, will you tell me?”
“Seal it with a kiss first.”
“What?!”
“Seal your promise with a kiss, then I'll tell you. Otherwise, I'll recind my offer.”
Though he knew better than to agree to her demand, Tarn heaved a sigh of resignation. “Alright.”
He took Raven's slender hands in his, pulled her to him, and pressed his lips against her lush ones. He only intended for it to be a quick kiss, but Raven took control as soon as their lips met and turned the kiss into a long, passionate one that stirred up memories and long-buried feelings in the priest. Before he could stop himself, Tarn's arms wrapped around the mage. He held her tight against him and returned the kiss.
The door to the kitchen opened then, and Althea, Loren, and Anju entered the dining room. The sight of the priest in an intimate embrace with a strange woman brought the trio to a halt.
“What in the world?” Loren asked, his white-blonde eyebrows raised in surprise.
“What's going on here?!” Althea called out.
The priest and magic-user jumped apart at the sound of her voice and turned to face the swordswoman.
“Tarn, you're supposed to be sweeping the floor!” Althea said angrily as she walked to the couple, with Loren and Anju following right behind her.
At least it's him this time, Loren thought with a wry grin.
“Sorry,” the priest said sheepishly as the trio stopped beside them. Anju began circling and sniffing Raven, who watched the white wolf warily.
Althea turned to the black-haired woman. “And just who are you?” she asked.
Raven looked from the wolf to the redheaded woman. “My name is Raven,” she said. “I'm a mage and an old friend of Tarn's.”
“Looks like more than friends to me,” said Loren.
“At one time, we were,” Tarn replied.
“So, what is she doing here?”
“She followed me here to Maarkess,” Tarn said, keeping the explanation simple. “She's aware of our situation and has offered to help us.”
“Really?” Althea asked happily.
“That's great!” said Loren. “How?”
Tarn turned to Raven. “Yes, Raven. How?”
The two humans and the elf looked expectantly at the magic-user, eagerly awaiting her answer.
Excellent way to end a chapter ...... leaving the reader hanging is the perfect way to keep them reading on into the next chapter. I hope you have much success with your book. It sounds very interesting.
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