The Dragon Rune

[Morigan]

Tala rolled her eyes and shut her door for the night. As she lay in the bed, drifting off to sleep, her mind was on the stranger from the bar. What would it be like to be with someone for longer than one night? She had no idea- whether she wanted to find out or not, she'd have to wait and see.


In the morning she rose early, taking a little extra care with her appearance. When she was just with her brother it didn't matter if her hair was messy and her clothes disheveled. This morning was different however, and she headed out the door with a smile on her lips. She made it the tavern main room once more, awaiting the arrival of the two men.

 

[Kurokat]

Keal rolled out of bed the next morning. He changed his clothes and grabbed his stuff before leaving the room. His hair was always messy and he needed a haircut but he didn't really care. He walked downstairs to be greeted by his sister. "Good morning. Someone looks like they tried today.."


A few moments later Oxon walked down the steps with his bags all packed and ready to go. He smiled at the two when he greeted them. "Good morning! We should probably start moving as soon as possible. Where are you guys headed?"

 

[Morigan]

"Hush," Tala hissed, elbowing Keal in the ribs. "Good morning Oxon," Tala said happily. "We're heading to Traveler's Rest in the foothills before we continue on to the Grey Ridge mountains, and then after that..." she trailed off, not wanting to reveal their final destination or reason for traveling just yet. She hardly knew this man, despite how much she liked him already. "Well after that, we will be continuing on."

 

[Kurokat]

Keal hissed in pain and scooted away to let his sister talk to Oxon.


Oxon nodded. "Ok! That sounds like a good plan. If we leave now we should be able to get there in two days time. You definitely want to get a good rest before heading into the mountains."

 

[Morigan]

"I agree," she said slinging her pack over her shoulder. "Let's get going then." She headed out the door, not waiting for the two men to follow her. The sun was just burning off the mist from the night and the chill in the air had Tala wrapping her cloak closer about her shoulders.

 

[Kurokat]

Both men quickly followed after Tala. Oxon smiled at Keal, who returned the smile with a smile. It was no use to be mean to the man that was going to help them. Keal put his hands in his pockets to keep them warm. It really was a brisk day.


Oxon noticed that Tala was cold so he did the gentlemanly thing to do and handed her one of his extra fur cloaks. "It's very could out today.. Be careful."


Keal frowned at the action. This guy was good.. What the heck he was still freezing too. But he must prove to this man he is equally as manly despite being half his size.

 

[Morigan]

Tala took the fur gratefully. "Thank you Oxon," she said shyly. She couldn't believe the way she acted around him; no man had ever made her feel so shy. Keal was going to tease her endlessly she knew, but she couldn't help it. She slowed her pace a bit to walk beside Oxon, noticing how much taller he was than her. She wrapped the fur tighter around her shoulders, and smiled into it.


As she walked along she realized she had begun to daydream about what it would be like to live a settled life, no more jobs and dangerous trips. But she shook her head, she could never do that, never settle down until Keal did. They were a team after all.

 

[Kurokat]

Oxon smiled at Tala. "No problem I had an extra. Wasn't doing anything sitting in my bag." He was now walking Next to Tala while Keal trailed behind.


This trip was going to suck. Now that Tala found a guy to go with them he was going to be bored and lonely the whole trip.

 

[Morigan]

Tala walked with Oxon, occasionally glancing back at Keal. He looked a bit sullen and she felt guilty. She dropped back to talk to him for a moment.


"If you don't like Oxon we don't have to go with him. We always did fine by ourselves, you know? I don't want to make you unhappy." she whispered, keeping her voice low for only Keal to hear.

 

[Kurokat]

Keal frowned. "No no. It's fine you don't have to! I was just thinking about some other stuff. Like that horse.. He can stay I don't mind. Go have fun."


He appreciated her concern but he didn't want to spoil the fun they were having so he smiled and waved Tala off to go join Oxon again. Maybe Tala would let him pick up a friend on their next stop.

 

[Morigan]

Tala frowned a bit but picked up her pace to rejoin Oxon once more. Soon it was midday and the sun rose high above them. Tala looked up into the clear sky, watching some of the last summer birds make their way south.


"They have the right idea, I think," she said with a small laugh. The day had not warmed up much from the cool morning- another sign that winter was not far off.

 

[Kurokat]

Oxon laughed. "Your right it is quite chilly, and it's only going to get colder. Once we head into the mountains it can be very dangerously cold. You have to make sure you are covered so your pretty face doesn't get frost bite." He smiled.

 

[Morigan]

Tala laughed a bit. "Do not worry about that," she said. "We are well supplied, even for the bite of winter in the Peaks."

 

[Kurokat]

"Well that is good to know." Oxon smiled while walking with her.


Keal was glad they day was going by pretty fast once he became lost in his mind time could fly. He thought about the mountains and the mysterious rune, and all the fun they were going to have.

 

[Morigan]

Night was almost upon them when Tala turned to Keal and Oxon.


"Have you thought about us making camp for the night?" she asked. "It will be fully dark soon, and difficult to move on."

 

[Kurokat]

Oxon frowned. "I know it is almost dark but we are no more than a little while from the village. I think It would be better to keep going and then have two nights to sleep in before heading into the mountains. "


Keal nodded in agreement, and yawned. "Yea I'm tired but I agree with Oxon. if we keep going we can have a full day of rest."

 

[Morigan]

"Alright, then- two beats one. Let's keep going," she shrugged her shoulders and rubbed her neck, working a bit of the stiffness out. With the arrival of night the temperatures had plummeted again and once more Tala was grateful for the extra fur Oxon had lent her.

 

[Kurokat]

Keal nodded and kept on trekking along the path. The sky only held on to a small sliver of orange before the sun vanished for the night a few minutes later. It was cold and he could feel the crisp winter winds blowing down from the mountains. He was excited but still tired. They probably had only a little while longer to go so he pushed on.


Oxon was now walking closer to Tala making sure she was warm and still wanted to continue going on.

 

[Morigan]

Tala smiled up at Oxon as they continued into the evening. He had been making sure she stayed warm and she was enjoying being taken care of for a little while.


After a while of walking through the dark, the soft glow of a town could be seen on the horizon. They were coming up on their destination: Traveler's Rest. In the darkness the foothills of the Gray Ridge were obscured, but the morning would illuminate the massive mountain range beyond the town.

 

[Kurokat]

Keal Sighed in relief when he saw that the town was nearby. They had been walking for a long time and he was so tired and sore.


Oxon quickened his pace. He knew it would be a good idea to keep going. Now they could stay two nights in the tavern.


Before the knew it they entered the mostly asleep village.

 

[Morigan]

"Let's find a place for the night, I'm exhausted," Tala said wearily. They moved slowly through town, looking for an inn or tavern to pass the night in. Eventually Tala found one, tucked back away from the main road.


"Let's try there," she suggested.

 

[Kurokat]

Oxon nodded following along. This tavern seemed slightly shady but it was the only one open this late so it was their only option. He entered cautiously scanning the tavern for anything off putting but it seemed to be fine. He booked three rooms from the clerk. "I'm going to head to bed now goodnight guys!"


Keal decided the place wasn't too bad. After he got his room key he decided he wanted a drink even though he was tired. "Goodnight then I think I'm gonna stay down here and get a quick drink." He gestured over to the bar.

 

[Morigan]

Tala shrugged. They were going to spend a day here to rest anyway, so she didn't worry if he stayed up late drinking. "Okay, just don't get in to too much trouble," she said with a small smile before heading up to her own room for the night.

 

[Kurokat]

Keal smiled. "Don't worry I'm not as troublesome as you think." He then made his way to the bar as he saw his company go up for the night. He ordered an ale and sat there sipping it slowly. It had been a long day.