The Road Home

[Grand Fromage]

<<Further posts will be in the same thread as stuff is played out--comments welcome, spam will be pwnd .>>

Velyn's eyes continued roaming over the walls of the Green Leaves Inn. The others were talking--about what, he hadn't paid attention to. He held his hands together, rubbing them gently and idly as he attempted to steady his breathing.

He shook his head slightly and looked at Arien. "Excuse me a minute." He turned before she responded and pushed out the door, inhaling the night air deeply. He moved under the inn's overhang to protect himself from the rain and produced a tinderbox, pipe, and pouch of Nexalan tobacco. There was a spark and he inhaled the smoke deeply, closing his eyes and sighing. He put the tinderbox and pouch away again with slightly trembling fingers and stared into the distance.

The first time he had visited Daggersprings, a Zhent wizard cast a fireball at him. Velyn's quick feet got him behind a thick tree before the spell exploded, saving his life. On his way home from that visit, a hobgoblin put an axe in his arm and nearly took it off. On his second visit, he was stuck by goblins and orcs, and drow attacked his home while he was away.

Now it was his third time in Daggersprings. They had encountered eight corpses on the road, filled with arrows, hacked to bit and set aflame. He almost dropped the pipe, nimble fingers shooting out to grab it before it hit the ground. Another inhale and he clasped his hands together, trying to stop the shaking. It would only be a matter of time before the next horrible thing occured. Every time before, he had decided Daggerdale was a nasty little hellhole and he wouldn't return. This time... this time there was no choice. The dale may be a hellhole, but it was his love's hellhole, and he had to come with her. The things I do for her.

The trembling had stopped. He was still tense, a spring wound too tightly. The inn's door opened and the other elf, the Night Hunter emerged, and Arien followed him. He almost smiled, looking at the raven's feather he had twisted into her golden hair earlier, but the smile didn't come.

"Now you look more relaxed," she said. He loved the sound of her voice, especially in elven.

He wasn't relaxed at all. Even though the outer trembling had stopped, the inner was strong as ever. Velyn was uncomfortable, afraid, wanting nothing more than to go home and leave the village behind. "A little."

"Why so nervous?"

He almost began listing the reasons. Every time I come here, I almost die. We're right next to Anauroch. There are drow about. Orcs in the mountains. Zhents. You told me about some giant badger beast that almost killed you around here. I left my home. I may never see any of my family again. What are these people going to think of me? Your children are going to hate me. I can never live up to Arakiel. I'm in an unfamiliar place surrounded by people I don't trust. He shook his head slightly, pushing the thoughts aside. "I'm fine."

"I am going to rest. Would you care to come with me?"

He nodded and tapped the ashes out of the pipe, grinding them into the wet grass until the heat was fully out of them. "Yes."

Arien smiled at him. No sight was more beautiful or welcome. Normally one of her smiles would cause his troubles to melt away, he would be happy no matter what. Now he just felt numb. "I told you this was a good place."

He nodded slightly. "I can think of worse places." He could also think of much better, but she had enough on her mind already. She already felt guilty for bringing him with her--the last thing she needed was to know how badly he wanted to leave.

"Night Hunters and muses... who could ask for more?"

"Someone very unappreciative." He forced a bit of a grin.

One of the local rangers smiled and welcomed her home. She thanked him and turned back to Velyn.

"Feeling welcomed yet?"

"I think I was missed," she said.

No. He couldn't let on his discomfort. It didn't matter that he didn't care for the place--it was her home, she had been away for a long time, and she needed this time here. He owed it to her. She knew a good spot to camp, on a small ridge overlooking the entrance to the village. She settled against him there, closing her eyes, content in his arms. Velyn kissed her cheek and whispered in her ear. "I love you." She barely managed a reply before slipping into reverie.

It took some time before he was able to relax enough to enter the reverie with her. Despite his best efforts, his dreams were troubled--always the same dream when he felt as he did. Arien would know something was wrong now. Decades before he had killed his lover when she betrayed them all to the drow, helped the traitors enter the High Forest and do their work there. Again and again in his dreams he heard her strangled gasp of his name, her eyes staring into his with disbelief, and watched him sink his dagger through her chest, into her heart, hot blood covering his hands. "Betrayer," he watched himself say, barely a whisper, the last word his former love ever heard.

[Grand Fromage]

We return to your regularly scheduled lengthy posts another day, but not this day...





Velyn was silent as ever. Kemeras again. Arien and he had decided to just get it over with, and she was relating the story of Keriwen's life to Kemeras. Velyn had nothing to say, so he sat with her, arms around her in comfort, listening to a more detailed version of the story he had heard before.

"One thing I want to tell you privately before you go, Kemeras." Velyn stood up and walked away from the fire, motioning for the half-elf to follow. He looked around a bit to make sure none were close enough to overhear.

"She explained the ritual to me, and I know it was not your fault. She also forgave you, so I'm willing to let it lie," he whispered.

Kemeras sighed with relief. "My thanks Velyn, it was drawing heavy on my heart."

Velyn interrupted him. "However." His eyes grew hard and he stared at Kemeras. "If you ever hurt her again, you will never see me coming, and no one will ever find your body."