As I was leaving Silverymoon to begin my travels to the desert of Calim, I told my cousin, Peren, that I would be going on a long journey. He told me that if I passed through Waterdeep there was a particular tavern called the Flaming Dragon, which I had to stay at in order to sample their house wine. I, personally, am not a connoisseur of wine; unlike Peren, who is famous for his excess, but I have known the joy and comfort a good glass of wine can bring along the road. I made a note of Peren's recommendation and upon arriving at Waterdeep I looked up the Flaming Dragon.

The tavern was a little rowdy, filled with all matter of traveler, adventurer, local and other likely dangerous characters. The live entertainment was also boisterous and matched the tavern well. This was not the quiet establishment I would have sought out. However, I should not have been surprised, as Peren is the sort of elf that prefers his wine of one quality, and his women of another.

The Tavern was below an inn, so I made arrangements to stay at the inn. I went up to my room, which was unexpectedly of better quality than the tavern's condition would have led me to believe. My only complaint with my room was that it was stuffy, but this was easily remedied by opening the windows. Once this was accomplished I left my belongings on the bed and returned to tavern.

Upon returning to the tavern, I took in my surroundings, and searched for a quiet corner to enjoy my wine and a hot meal. I had thought to retire to my room to further study my uncle's journal. I noticed that an elf was playing for the tavern and she was as skillful as she was attractive. I did not think long on her, as I am a man of research and science and am not prone to such fanciful
However, there appeared to be several men in the tavern who did think long and much of her, since they had given up their seats to gather around the dais.

Because of their distraction, I spied a choice seat by the hearth. I ordered the wine and a plate of the tavern's special for that evening from the bar and began to weave through the crowd towards the seat that had caught my eye.

I must confess that I was a little annoyed as I was pushed and jostled with the movement of the tavern's patrons as I struggled to get to my seat. Someone bumped me and caused me to spill wine on the new traveling cloak that my mother had given me for this journey. I had hoped that once I was seated the food and drink, which my cousin had so boasted about, would make this irritation fade from my mind. Sadly, after sampling the wine, I learned my cousin's taste in wine was similar to his taste in women. To add insult to injury, the quality of the food matched the abysmal quality of the wine.

About this time, the bard finished her last song and made some pronouncement about this being her last performance for a few seasons. As she rose to take her leave, she was approached by a member of the audience. At first he seemed to have a familiarity with her, but then it became obvious that whatever his sense of their relationship was, it was one sided. She backed up in a curious way and told him she wanted to be left alone. There was something odd in her posture, like she was ready if help didn't come. From a table near, her a hooded man rose, and he decided he would be the hero of the evening and with a crude, albeit effective, display of martial skill, put her admirer on floor. Then the hooded man put his arm around the elf and began to take her to the stairs to the inn's rooms. Again her body language implied something was wrong and as they passed by a table of tieflings she made some comment that offended the tiefling, as one of the tieflings threw the table onto its side and they all attacked the hooded man.

When this occurred, the entire bar erupted into a brawl. As I stood to leave, a flagon of ale came flying in my direction and spilled the tavern's obnoxious swill all over my traveling cloak. I feel the need to mention again, that this was a gift from my mother. She had personally selected it for me, and then paid extra to have it neatly embroidered. I was enraged, and without thinking, I sent magic missiles flying in the direction that the flagon had come. I saw the missiles hit two people, and the third missile destroyed a window near the stairs. I watched as the source of the chaos made eye contact with me, gave me a curious nod and then acrobatically flipped through the broken window.

Near the bar I heard someone yell something about a wizard, and again without thinking I sent a firebolt in that direction. Once again, my bolt missed, but this time it struck a large vat of what must have been a potent liquor as the whole bar seemed to explode. Just then, one of the bar's regulars, likely a barbarian, lifted me up and threw me through the window I had just destroyed. As I rolled to a stop I found myself at the feet of the bard, who I was starting to suspect, and would indeed later learn, was no stranger to evenings such as this.

She quickly helped me to my feet, grabbed me by the arm and drug me into the alley behind the inn. In spite of my instinctive protest, she began to kiss me. Deeply. Her kisses were so impassioned that I almost began to rethink my role as a scholar. Behind me I heard the feet of the town guard rushing to the tavern.

Just as I realized she was using me for a convenient alibi in case the town guard searched the alley, she pushed me away and said, "Well, kind sir, I thank you for your assistance, but I must be off".

Before she could go I grabbed her arm. "Wait a moment". I told her, "I need you to go to my room.

I was generally certain that my room looked over this alley, it took me a moment to get my bearings, but I was able to ascertain which room was mine, seeing as I was the only one who had opened their window. It also occurred to me that perhaps opening my window and leaving my things in the open might have been a foolish thing to do.

"Listen, clearly you're a thief, and they will never let me enter this establishment again, perhaps you would do me a favor and slip into my room and collect my belongings?"

I turned back to look at her, and she was looking over me in the most curious way, like she was appraising a precious jewel.

"Is there something of value in your belongings?"

"Nothing a thief would like, just the work of my dead uncle about a machine in the Calim desert, really it is some ancient and esoteric knowledge only valuable to scholars, and sentimental nephews. Though I have some money if you require it."

Her looks softened, and she leaned in like she was going to kiss me again. "I'm not really a thief, and I like knowledge. I'll get your things, but I would like to know more about this machine. My name is Su'riel, by the way."

Between the previous show of affection and her sudden desire to help, I was a little taken aback. I almost was unsure what to say, but then I remembered my manners. "Rolan. It is a pleasure. Now if you would kindly…"

She looked over at her arm which I had forgotten that I still held. I quickly apologized and thanked the gods that we were in a dark alley on a dark evening, so that she couldn't see me blush.

She handed me her lute, and with a speed and stealth that challenged reason, she climbed into my window and before I knew what had happened she had returned with my pack. I returned the lute to her, and mumbled thanks, this time embarrassed about the ease at which my things could have been stolen. I searched for my uncle's journal. Once I knew everything was accounted for I looked up half expecting her to have disappeared but there she was politely waiting.

"Come on, I have a place where we can stay tonight and you can tell me more about this machine in the desert. Tomorrow we can figure out what to do next".

Now she had me by the hand and before I could question what she meant by "we" or raise any form of protest, she was leading me down dark alleys at a break neck speed, and before I could get my bearings we had arrived at some apartments in the a much finer district of town.

I had no way of knowing it at the time but this bard would become my traveling companion, and no matter how much it seemed like I had some choice in the matter she always got exactly what she wanted. I was a man who preferred a quiet life of study and intellectual pursuits but from the time I entered her presence my life was the opposite, and yet I enjoyed nearly every moment of it.