A/N: Literally everything in this story is mine. There are some Twilight characters, but not many.
Posted: May 13th, 2016
Chapter 2
"She wants to do what?" Irina and Kate asked at the same time later that night at their campsite. When Tanya returned, the two were still gone, most likely skulking around town chasing down leads as to the situation down south and hopefully getting their evening meal. The two returned a short while later with shepherd's pie from the tavern and Kate regaling Tanya with stories of Irina's failed attempts to flirt with the tavern owner.
"I didn't think that the tavern owner's wife would take too kindly to you flirting with her husband," Tanya mused as she bit into her meat filled pie.
"She wasn't until Irina got a good look at her and started to flirt with her instead," Kate chuckled, slapping her dirty-blonde sister on the back. "Ol' Cane wasn't too happy when her attentions shifted, or when it looked like his wife was happy about her attentions. Tossed Irina out on her arse."
"For an older, hairy guy, he is deceptively strong," Irina murmured, wincing as she shifted slightly on the ground. "But back to Bella, she wants to do what exactly?"
"She wants to travel south to gather ingredients for her store," Tanya repeated.
"Where south exactly?" Kate mumbled, downing a pint of ale she nicked on her way out of the tavern. "River Forge is one of the North Eastern settlements of Eleguard, so she could mean anywhere south, not specifically the troublesome areas."
"I don't know," the strawberry blonde grumbled out. "Her list was pretty long, but I didn't get a good look at it."
Irina snickered, "Well what are you going to do about it? She's a potions mistress, I'm sure she's done this before and is used to it."
Tanya perked up, "I'll go with her, like an escort, make sure she's okay and all that."
Kate spat out a mouthful of ale, "Whoa, hey, wait a tick, what? What do you mean you'll go with her? Do you not remember that we are rogues? Professional bounty hunters, basically nomads as we travel from settlement to settlement."
"Yes Kate I know…"
"And we're the best damn rogues in all of Eleguard, we're a team, sisters, though I would gut either of you for a cheesecake and a good roll in the hay," the platinum blonde's voice trailed off as her eyes took on a faraway look. She shook herself out of it and glanced around, "Where was I, never mind, how do you expect to manage to keep catching bounties if you're running all over the place making sure your lady-love is safe?"
"I'm sure that I could catch bounties on the way, return them to local towns, even find work along the way," Tanya mused. "Ravenskeep always has problems with trolls being next to the Black Forest and Lochlorn has a witch problem."
"And Draveden is a teeming will all kinds of criminals and other problems," Irina suggested, ignoring the glare Kate sent her way. "What? It seems like a good idea."
"Okay, fine, so you can catch bounties on the way," Kate admitted grudgingly. "Beat up low-life thugs, fight trolls, witches, all kinds of dirt bags all over Eleguard."
"We should go with them," Irina suggested, looking between her two sisters.
Kate hissed out, "You can't be serious? You want to be front row to all the lovesick mooning that will be going on?"
"Kinda, yeah," the dirty blonde nodded, stealing some of Kate's ale. "But really, we wouldn't be with them the whole time. We travel with them and if we reach a city that has a persistent problem, we stay and take care of it while Tanya keeps going with Bella. Then we meet up further south at another town, because, let's face it, your little shopkeeper, Tanya, is definitely going to be going to the problematic regions in the south. She seems like that kind of person."
"You're probably right," Tanya sighed, "And I would appreciate the company of you two for part of the trip. What is going on in the south anyway?"
Kate snorted, "What isn't going on down south would be easier to answer. The neighboring kingdom, Thraine, has invaded the southern region of Eleguard, after years of tension and disputes over the region. Fire dragons are burning the southwest, armies are attacking the central southern areas and pirates employed by Thraine are attacking the coast in the southeast." The platinum blonde scratched at her scalp, "And I also heard rumors of giants and wraiths emerging from the southern edge of the black forest."
"What is going on? This seems all too much of a coincidence to be happening at the same time," Irina commented, leaning back against the log behind her.
"Then it might be a good thing for us to make our way south, maybe travel different paths along the way. I'll talk to Bella about going with her tomorrow and see if she has a route that she follows. We can travel part way and then separate, meeting up in different cities if possible," Tanya stated, glancing at her sisters. "Besides, Sir Eddiekins is going to be fighting in the south. It would be rude of us if we didn't offer our help."
"I wondered if he managed to learn how to use his sword properly?" Kate snickered, "He did like to polish it, must not have had the chance to learn."
"And his armor," Irina giggled, standing up and bowing clumsily, "Oh how sparkly you are your lordship, you practically glitter in the sunlight."
The three cackled and laughed, mocking the puffed up knight, as the embers of their fire grew dim and night settled around them, a comforting blanket to rogues who lived and worked best in darkness.
A thoughtful look crossed Bella's face as she grabbed some things off of the shelves in her shop that she would need for her journey: rope, potions, bandages, cleaning powder, knife, grappling hook. Bella paused at that last one, and looked at the device curiously. She couldn't remember when she had acquired said item, but she did know it looked like it would be fun to try, so tossed it in her pack along with a small sized crossbow.
"Bella." Tanya's voice came from behind her, startling her.
"Aaah, oh, um, right, forgot you were here, what?" The brunette said rapidly, turning to look at the blonde.
"I asked if you would be alright with my sisters and I tagging along with you on your quest," the rogue stated again, still amazed at how absentminded the potions mistress was.
"It's alright with me if you guys tag along, but it's not very interesting gathering ingredients," Bella shrugged as she finished packing her bag. "I mean, sometimes there's some excitement if there are other mages sniffing around my collecting grounds." The brunette crossed her eyes at the though, "Maybe I should pack some more frog changing potion just in case." She grabbed the potion off the shelf, packing it in her bag before she moved back to the backroom of her store.
"I'm sure we'll be able to find something to amuse ourselves with on the way," Tanya said, following the other woman. "And Irina and Kate aren't going to be with us the whole time, they're going to branch off and meet up with us at a later date." She watched as the brunette puttered around her backroom, checking on the different cauldrons simmering in the room. "They wanted me to inquire as to the route you take on these expeditions."
"Mhm, oh, right, yes, I have map around here somewhere, thanks for reminding me," Bella said, shuffling through a drawer before pulling out a large folded piece of age animal skin. She tossed it at Tanya who caught it and unfolded it, seeing a map of the kingdom with particular areas and times marked on a ridiculous road through the entire land, eventually traveling south.
"You're going to Drar first?" Tanya asked incredulously, noticing the first part of the line lead slightly northwest from Riverforge to the small city of Drar, located on a small plateau in the northern mountains. It was the coldest settlement in Eleguard, a far different climate than in the temperate weathers of Riverforge or the warmer parts of the southern regions. Only the Black Forest could be considered as cold as Drar, but that cold was one that affected the soul, not the body.
"I've got a friend in Drar," Bella stated, bottling some of the potions in the cauldrons. "He has a cousin further south in Durr. I usually stop in to see him first and he gives me stuff to give his cousin as trade for some supplies and things."
"Of course you're planning on going to Durr as well, why wouldn't you?" Tanya muttered to herself as she looked at the map. If Drar was the coldest city, Durr was the hottest being next to a volcano and a lava field.
"Where else do you get lava rock and volcanic ash?" Bella scoffed before a thoughtful look appeared on her face. "Well, I did run into a Mage that tried to negotiate a trade for volcanic ash from underwater volcanoes. He tried talking to the water sprites first, which was a mistake; sirens are much easier to deal with than water sprites, sirens or mermaids. All they usually want is something shiny, or if you have a potion that allows them to grow legs for a time." The brunette explained as she poured a deep bluish potion into a few small vials. "Which is why these will come in handy."
"What happened to the mage?" Tanya asked curiously, not sure if she really wanted to know truthfully.
"Water sprites are notorious pranksters, they spelled the volcanic ash they gave him, and trapped him in a giant bubble. I met him when he was trying to get out of the bubble. He told me what happened and asked if I had any advice for his situation."
"And did you?"
"Of course, I told him never to trust water sprites and to know better than to use volcanic ash from an underwater volcano, it doesn't have the same consistency as ash from an above ground volcano," she huffed out before pausing. "Oh, I wonder if he meant advice on how to get out of the bubble… Oh well, no matter, I'm sure he'd have figured it out by now."
Tanya decided to ignore that last comment and focus her attention on the map in front of her or she'd end up staring at the girl again in either confusion or helpless admiration, both equally embarrassing for her at the moment. The map was old, very old, with markings and notations she had never seen before. "Bella, there are markings on this map that don't make any sense, and towns I've never heard of before. How old is this map?"
"It was one of the last things I got from my dad before he died," Bella smiled sadly, glancing back at the thin animal skin.
"Some of these towns don't exist…" Tanya said gently, glancing down at the map. "I mean this says there are towns in the middle of the Black Forest and then the southern desert, there aren't any towns there."
Bella looked at Tanya in confusion before realization dawned in her eyes, "Oh right, the hidden places, you wouldn't know about those, well I guess you'll find out." The brunette continued to rifle through her things while the strawberry blonde looked at the map, puzzled. "Aha, found it," Bella yelled, pulling out a small box from underneath a pile of junk. "Okay, I just need to finish brewing these potions, talk to Heidi and then I'll be ready to go early tomorrow morning."
"Don't you need a tent? Bedroll?" The rogue asked, looking at the collected supplies Bella had.
"That's what this is for," Bella replied, waving around her box. "I need to go talk to Heidi, so you stay here and watch the shop, I'll be back in like an hour or so."
"But, what? Hey, come back," Tanya called after Bella as the brunette skipped out the front door. She headed down the street towards the stables on the edge of town next to the tavern, looking for her mahogany haired friend. "Heidi?" She called once she entered the barn, glancing in the first few stalls.
"Back here," a tired voice came from the very back of the building and Bella found Heidi sprawled out on top of a few stacks of hay.
"Tired of mucking out stalls?" Bella asked, taking in the dirt and horseshit covering her friend's boots.
"So fucking tired," Heidi muttered, propping herself up on her elbows. "Dad won't let me back in the forge yet, so I'm stuck out here for another month at least."
"How about you watch my store instead," Bella suggested, sitting down on one of the hay bales. "You could stay in my room above the store."
Heidi sits up on the bale, "You serious?"
"It's that time of year again, so I need someone to watch the shop, can't have these people go without their health potions and stuff while I'm out of town," Bella said, staring expectantly at her friend. "So I need you to take on the boring job of a shopkeeper until I get back in a month, maybe a little over a month."
"I forgot that it was getting close to that time, sure I'll watch the shop for you. I'll have to let Dad know, when are you leaving?"
"Tomorrow, everything is brewed and, barring any kind of natural disaster or wayward cavalrymen-"
"Who were super fun by the way."
"- you should have enough to last the whole month," Bella finished, smiling at her friend.
"So business as usual?"
Bella stared off into air for a moment, thinking. "I don't think the Unseens will be visiting while I'm away, so you won't have to worry about them."
"Good to know," Heidi replied easily, used to her friend's strange sayings and odd behavior. "Are you taking your usual route?"
"West to Drar, then south to Lochlorn, then back east to the Black Forest before continuing further south," Bella confirmed, "I have to pick up stuff from Icar to-"
"Take down to Durr to his cousin, I know I know," Heidi waved off the rest of the other brunette's explanation. "But are you sure it's safe to be heading south? I've heard there's a lot of trouble going on down south."
"Mhm, that must be why Tanya asked if she and her sisters could come with me," Bella mused. "I'll be fine though."
"Tall, blonde and extremely sexy is going to be going with you on your expedition? You must tell me everything, especially how she looks when she's taking down monsters."
"Why is that important?"
Heidi sighed, "Sometimes I find the way your mind works delightfully cute, other times impossibly irritating." Bella tilted her head and stared at her friend, a puzzled look on her face. "Nothing, you better get back to your store to finish getting ready, I'll be over first thing in the morning before you leave." The taller woman turned Bella around and pushed her out of the stables. "I'm going back to the forge to let my Dad know."
"Thanks Heidi, I'll see you tomorrow."
Bella walked back to her store and got there in time to see a giant, yellow puffball exiting her store, angry quacks resounding from its mouth as it wandered up the street away from her. She titled her head and hummed at the sight before shrugging and continuing into her store, she had seen weirder things.
When she walked through the door, Belle saw Irina and Kate arguing over a broken vial on the floor and Tanya leaning on the counter, her face buried in her hands. "Bella," Kate cried on seeing her, rushing over to the girl. "Irina and I are having a disagreement as to what this potion did, perhaps you can assist us."
"Well, I'm guessing it broke," Bella replied, "Though I can't be sure, it could've also escaped, but that depends on what potion you ask. Many of them don't like the word broke, rather they changed locations from one place to another…"
"You're hilarious," Kate continued, "But we really need to settle this dispute. We came in to find dear old Tanya watching the store, so we decided to poke around. We found this sunshine yellow potion and it somehow slipped out of our- I mean, slipped off the shelf, this yellow gas came out of the liquid and then a giant human, duck thing appeared, clearly summoned."
"A potion can't summon beings Kate," Irina retorted, glaring at her sister.
The two continued bicker while Bella just stared at the broken glass thoughtfully. "Tanya, did anyone enter the store before the potion escaped?" Bella asked the strawberry blonde.
Tanya lifted her face up out of her hands and looked at the brunette, "I don't think so- oh wait, that one baker kid came in. Huh, not sure where he went."
"Ah, that was the duck changing potion then, supposed to give you the abilities of a duck, not turn you into a duck, poor Jake," Bella looked down mournfully before her head popped up gleefully. "With Heidi watching the store, she'll be able to see how long this one lasts as well, wonderful."
"Why do you have a potion that gives people the abilities of a duck?" Irina asked, looking at the shopkeeper in disbelief.
"Why not? Besides, ducks are scary," the brunette shivered, "Have you seen a duck, all the feathers and cute faces, so scary."
Kate and Irina stared at Bella in amusement while Tanya just sighed, a dreamy expression on her face. "So, Bella," Kate started again, moving towards the brunette, "Tanya showed us the map that you're using for your adventure, and I have to agree with my sister, some of the places on it don't exist. I mean, we've been all over this kingdom, and a couple others, and I've never even heard of these places."
"They are the hidden places for a reason," Bella replied, glancing around her store. When the girl didn't offer any more explanation, the three sisters sighed.
"Speaking with her gives me a headache," Irina said, walking out of the door. "I'll be at the tavern if you guys need me, you can find me in a pint."
Kate started running towards the door, "Wait for me Irina, if we're going to be wandering around again, I want to be properly hung over in the morning."
"You can go with them if you want," Bella told the strawberry blonde when she lingered. "I'm going to close up early anyway to finish getting ready."
Tanya hesitated to leave the store, "Are you sure?"
Bella sighed and calmly pushed the rogue out of her store. "Let me repeat, you need to go keep an eye on them, Cane wasn't too happy with Irina flirting with Delilah, so you need to make sure they behave themselves. We don't need a big hairy guy, who is most likely part troll rampaging around town again."
With that, the brunette shut the door and Tanya glanced at it with a sigh. "Why does this keep happening?"
"Just be glad that you two morons did end up in the town jail," Tanya muttered as she took in the sight of her sisters groaning, holding their heads and limping as they walked into town early the next morning. "You guys should know better than to drink that much. We are no longer allowed in some towns in Thraine because of your terrible drinking habits."
"I didn't know Cane could punched that hard," Irina moaned, holding onto her black eye while Kate answered with a groan of her own, rubbing the growing bruise on her left shoulder.
A thoughtful look crossed Tanya's face, "Bella did mention that he might be part forest troll."
"Would've been nice to know yesterday," Kate grumbled. The three made their way to Bella's shop, large packs strapped to their backs. They found the brunette shopkeeper saying farewell to her friend who disappeared into the shop while Bella skipped towards them.
"Hi guys," the shopkeeper greeted. "Ready to go?"
"Reluctantly," Kate continued to grumble, "Shouldn't you get your stuff so we can leave?"
"Already have everything," the brunette replied, pointing to the satchel she had strapped around her shoulders.
The platinum blonde scoffed, "No way you have everything in there, what about a tent? Bedroll?"
"Everything is in here," Bella chuckled as she started walking west out of town to cross the river and start the trek towards Drar.
Kate moved to question the girl again when Tanya put a hand on her arm to stop her. "It'll just give you a headache, she can share my tent if she needs one when we get to a stopping place tonight," the strawberry blonde told her as they followed after the skipping brunette.
"You just want to get our lovely shopkeeper into your bedroll, share some heat," Irina snickered.
Heat flooded Tanya's face but she ignored it in favor of catching up with the brunette. "How long does it normally take you to get to Drar? We don't usually head up that way, too cold."
"A few days," Bella replied, "About fifteen miles a day, depending on the weather, I can get there in three days. I don't normally collect any ingredients along the way. I pick up some in Drar from my friend Icar, and then Lochlorn, but most everything I get in the Black Forest."
"And you do this trip every year?" Irina asked once she and Kate had caught up with the other two.
"Pretty much."
"How long does it take you?"
"Some where between 6 to 8 weeks, depends on how long I stay in the Black Forest and the Hidden Places."
"Why don't you collect ingredients to last longer than a year? It can't be good for your store to leave it for two months out of the annual?" Kate asked, trying to understand this strange storekeeper her oldest sister was enamored with.
Bella glanced back at the platinum blonde out of the corner of her eye, studying her briefly before looking ahead to watch as the landscape slowly inclined into the foothills leading to the mountains. She hummed as she thought about the climb up those mountains the next day, and the little known trail she takes up to the icy city of Drar. "Some of the ingredients I get are only available at certain times of the year, some of the more time sensitive ones. Plus I get to visit with some friends during this trek, take a nice stroll through the realm, a vacation from the townspeople and crazy farmers of Riverforge…" The brunette's voice trailed off at the end, thinking about the different characters that lived in or around the settlement where she made her home.
Thinking about the farmers living around Riverforge sparked Bella's memory of another interesting person that lived in the mountains and foothills around the river. She stopped in her tracks and turned to the three rouges, a wary look on her face. "You three knew Grimsley right?"
"Ornery old Grimsley?" Kate snorted, "Yeah, we knew him, dealing with him to purchase potions and other supplies was a… delight every time we made it this far north."
"Did you know his cousin Grumpy?" The brunette asked.
The three rouges gave her a blank look before bursting out laughing, leaning forward slightly so that the riotous laughter combined with the large packs on their backs don't knock them off balance. "You're kidding," Tanya finally breathed out, "Old Grimsley had a cousin named Grumpy?"
Bella shrugged, "His name is Grimsley too actually, but as far as I know, everyone has called him Grumpy his entire life. Grimsley was actually the pleasant one out of the two of them."
That caused the three to regain their composure. Grimsley, cantankery old Grimsley who'd rather swallow a wasp's nest than smile, was the nice one of the two? "Why uh, why are you telling us about this Grumpy person?" Irina questioned, not really wanting to know the answer.
The shopkeeper sighed, "Well, Grumpy is a farmer in this area. Not really a farmer, he raises sheep, goats, llamas. It's easy for them to walk up the steep sections of these hills, and he's close enough to come into town for a pint every now and then. He's pleasant enough to me since I took over Grimsley's shop, but the closest person he calls a friend would be Cane and even then he still glares at him." Bella tapped her chin thoughtfully, "I guess you could describe Grumpy as like Billy Goat Gruff, or maybe a bridge troll."
Tanya gulped slightly, "Meaning…"
"Well, he might start throwing rocks at us if he sees us, just don't piss him off or he'll start singing," Bella replied simply before turning back around and heading back up the path into the mountains.
"How is singing worse than getting rocks thrown at us?" Kate grumbled as she and Irina followed after the bizarre shopkeeper and her recently ever present shadow that was right on her heels.
"You've never heard him sing," came Bella's reply as they continued into the hills. They continued on the path up and down placid hills that steadily grew in size the further west they walked. The wind rustled through the trees and foliage, bringing the smell of rain and lightning from No Man's land to the north. Leaves were turning a healthy green and blossoms appearing on the trees and flowers as spring entered full season, shaking off the last remnants of winter with blowing away the old, dead leaves of the previous autumn.
Around midday, they started to hear the loud rushing of water as it tumbled down rocks and rapids, heading further south. "We're getting close to the river," Irina murmured.
Tanya hummed and continued to follow after the brunette, wondering what the crossover in this region was like. There was a large bridge further down stream, closer to the Black Forest as the main crossing point heading north from the capital city to the northeastern farming region of Riverforge and the surrounding area. It was the most trafficked route of the region, used highly for trade and travel. They knew that there was another crossing point further north leading from Riverforge to Drar but had never traveled that road.
Just as the four travelers reached the top of the hill, the noise of the rushing water growing in strength, a small rock hit the ground just next to Irina's feet. The three rouges paused, glancing at the stone while Bella continued on, knowing what the rock meant. More rocks started raining down on them and they glanced up, seeing a diminutive man with a scraggly white beard and dirty grey robe jumping around, launching small rocks at them.
"What the fuck dude," Kate yelled up at the old man. "Cut it out!"
"I don't think so," the man sang back at them, still dancing around as he chucked rocks. His voice was like claws scratching at rocks, changing from high to low pitch at an infrequent pace.
"Oh gods, that was terrible," Irina moaned, clutching at her ears as she tried to dodge the rocks. "Please don't make him sing again."
"I told you, hi Grumpy," Bella greeted as she waved to the man. She pulled a small cloth sack out of her bag and threw it towards the old man.
Grumpy caught the bag and opened it, revealing a loaf of bread. "Thanks Bella," he sang, ignoring the wincing of the other three women. "Have a good trip this year!" He took a bite of the loaf of bread and continued to throw rocks at the rouges. "Get lost! Get off of my road, you're ruining the view!"
"That's it," Kate growled and she started to lunge up the hill, but Tanya and Irina grabbed her before she could get too far up the hill.
"I can see his relation to Grimsley, and also his nickname Grumpy," Tanya sighed.
"Crazy might've been a better name," Irina added.
"Are you guys coming?" Bella called, and they turned to see the brunette at the top of the road on the crest of the hill.
The three made their way up the hill, hearing the sound of rushing water getting louder with every step. When they reached the top, they found a rickety wooden bridge held together by old ropes spreading across rushing rapids.
"Um, Bella, is this completely safe?" Tanya asked, looking at the bridge hesitantly.
"No," the brunette replied as she started crossing, stepping lightly to avoid warped or damaged boards.
"Wha-Bella wait, what do you mean it's not safe?" The strawberry blonde yelled out, rushing to the edge of the bridge.
Bella turned back to look at the three in confusion, "I never said that, you asked if this was completely safe. Nothing is completely safe, now hurry up slow pokes, we're burning daylight. You guys were the ones that wanted to come."
"I swear Tanya, you're betrothed is completely bonkers," Kate growled out as she and Irina followed behind their sister onto the old bridge. "Good thing I'm not going with her the whole way, or one of us would've ended up dead."
"Stop saying stupid stuff Kate," Tanya chastised her sister, her cheeks red at the thought of Bella being her betrothed.
"I'm just glad that it's going to be you and not us," Irina said, urging her sisters forward on the bridge faster.
Tanya continued walking, stepping gingerly on the boards until she heard a loud crack on the one beneath her feet. "Maybe this wasn't such a good idea…"
A/N: So I'm amazed by the positive reactions for this story. If you guys can manage 40-50 reviews a chapter it really keeps me going. Keep leaving reviews, sending messages about how you like the story, maybe even what type of creatures you would like to see in the story. I'm adapting a lot of supernatural creatures and legends, and as y'all know, I know many. The characters will grow as the story progresses, and Bella might not be as oblivious as she has been. The only reason she is oblivious is because she has alot of other things going on in her mind
I made up the names for the towns, they're pronounced exactly as they're spelt.
