And so comes tomorrow.
A thin sheet of normalcy coats the day and Lann cannot help but anticipate the shatter.
(What's a good breakfast without some good drama?)
Vella is no longer the pitiful wreck she was the day before and continues to carry herself with the usual pompousness.
(Although the remnants of a beaten warrior lay in her bleary red eyes)
Karaok, having been absent during to the entire situation remains in a jovial mood.
(But he's not as oblivious as one would think)
Fiona dons her usual serene composure like a mask.
(But underneath the facade a storm is brewing)
Only Evie, poor Evie who spent the entire night consoling Vella looks out of place. Her eyes are wide and she is inspecting everyone, waiting to see who would be the first to crack. However after a successful hour of nothing she turns towards Lann and whispers to him,
"Did last night really happen?"
Lann tries to stifle a yawn and shrugs his shoulders. He's reaching for another pancake because it's too early in the morning for all this drama. But he couldn't deny that he thought the exact same thing.
And then Kai walks through the door and the room goes silent because his eyes are haggard a bit of blood is splattered across his chest plate -it's too dark to be fomor blood, and the dried streak that runs down his nose and the black eye suggests it's his own- and it's 6AM in the morning, exactly where did Kai go?
The sound of a chair scraping the floor breaks the silence and Lann looks up to see Fiona standing. The entire room freezes (Even Karaok understands something is wrong) and all eyes are on her.
She walks towards the inn door where Kai is standing still (holding his breath) and she does not pause but roughly brushes her small shoulders against his body as she walks by. Kai's eyes widen for a split second and that's all Lann needs to understand that Fiona probably beat Kai to a pulp last night and left him out to dry.
Vella is the first to say something.
"Did you sleep well, Kai?" The words are sickly sweet but the stench of vehemence is too thick.
Silence.
Karaok remains silent as he slips past Kai and heads out the door, doing his best to avoid any drama.
Evie remains silent as Kai slowly strides towards the breakfast table, she doesn't want to interrupt this interesting and uncharacteristic display of theatrics
Lann remains silent as Kai stands before Vella, for Lann does not want to be a part of this but at the same time he does because he feels some sort of obligatory duty to these other mercenaries.
Kai remains silent as he aims his insult for the place where it would wound Vella the most.
"It was much better than sleeping with someone like you." Kai responds truthfully.
Tears start to well in Vella's eyes and anger wells in Lann's kind of deserved it in a sense, but still. Lann is in the process of standing up but a hand presses against his chest. Ka pushes Lann back into his seat and hei has such a fearsome look that Lann can't believe Fiona stood up against him.
(Hatred. It's as if something important had been stolen from Kai and Vella was to blame)
"Don't defend what you don't know" Kai warns.
He pushes Lann into his seat, pivots on his heel and walks away.
Lann turns to the tear stricken Vella and wonders just what she's hiding.