Once the group had made it past the fence where Alice's old acquaintances were passing the time, the second day of travel was much like the first, with the exception of a group of Snuddites who had caught word that persons from Marmoreal were passing through and were excited to see this for themselves. Lining themselves up along the sides of the road for a good distance, they waved and cheered and threw flower petals and pages of books and feathers at the travelers.
This was all a bit like the parades after she had killed the Jabberwock, Alice thought, except for the strange things the Snuddites tossed in their honor. She had to admit it was quite fun to be honored in such a way, even if part of her still wondered if she really deserved it. Ilosovic, for his part, was bemused. Joyful crowds cheering his passage were certainly not part of his past experience.
Tarrant and Casiphia were accustomed to such events from their years at court, but they enjoyed the attention as well, waving and smiling back at the jubilant crowd.
Then they were past the inhabited parts of Snud, where farmland gradually gave way to tufted meadows and overgrown fields. Clearly even sheep did not venture here, which had the benefit of leaving hundreds of colorful wildflowers intact.
As the sun grew lower, they entered a small forest, surprisingly dark for the number of trees it contained. And there in a clearing, they found the second tavern of Snud.
No one was in attendance at the stables, but the four took the liberty of getting their horses settled for the night and feeding them from the supply of oats and hay they found there. Quill sighed—she had been hoping for an apple or two—but she determined to make the best of the situation.
The humans were looking forward to getting settled themselves, and thus approached the tavern with anticipation.
This one was much smaller than the previous, and very few lights shone from its windows. Ilosovic looked at the others, and then knocked on the iron-barred door. No one answered, and he knocked again, and yet again. Finally the door opened a crack and a suspicious eye peered out. "Whadda ye want?" a voice whined.
"Rooms for the night. Two of them," Ilosovic said, trying to hold on to his what little patience he still had.
"Two rooms and dinner and breakfast." Alice stepped up to the door,, in hopes that reinforcing Stayne's request would speed matters along.
"Alice? Are ye the Alice? It's Alice!" the old man asked. "Are you here because there is danger nearby?"
"No, not at all," Alice said. "We're on, er, an adventure. Can you help us?"
"Hrmmm...I suppose," the old man said, stepping back and opening the door enough for the traveling party to enter.
The tavern's great hall was empty save for one man, a pedlar by the pack next to him, and the only light was a lantern lit near him as he hunched over a plate.
"You have a great deal of room tonight," Casiphia said.
"I have a lot of room every night," the old man said. "Except when there is trouble. Are ye certain there is no trouble about?"
"No trouble," Alice said. "We are merely rescuing a, er, friend of mine who has wandered into the Outlands."
"Wandered into the Outlands?" the man cackled. "Well then, I wish ye luck."
And with that he vanished into the kitchen at the back of the room, without an introduction or any instructions, leaving the travelers standing there helplessly with their packs.
"Have a seat," Ilosovic said. "Pretend that you have had a formal invitation to do so from the owner, whatever his name may be. I will step into the kitchen for a moment and see if I can rouse some hospitality."
He strode across the room as the other three tentatively took their seats on one of the long wooden benches. "I see more and more why his company is useful," Alice said in a quiet voice to Casiphia.
"There's more to him than that," Casiphia protested. "But yes, I suppose there are some benefits to his reputation, curiously enough."
In a moment Stayne was back, looking satisfied, and a moment after that a young woman scuttled out of the kitchen bearing a tray, which she deposited almost gently before darting back to her refuge.
"I must say, this looks surprisingly edible," Tarrant said, sorting through the items on the tray. "Fresh fruit, decent-enough bread, a cheese of impressive provenance."
"Now if we could get something to drink," Casiphia said. "Like tea. I don't want beer or wine here, I want to keep all my wits about me."
"Someone should." Ilosovic smirked at the Hatter, who rolled his eyes in response.
The travelers ate quickly and silently for a bit, still alone in the room but for the pedlar, who seemed to have fallen asleep at his table. Ilosovic shrugged and got up again to visit the kitchen. He returned dragging the reluctant landlord with him by the sleeve, and managed to convince the man to let them two rooms for the night, handing over the keys to them on the spot.
The rooms were small and dark, with few gaslights, but the bed seemed reasonably comfortable and the linens clean. "Keeping up the inn must keep those two busy while they refuse to take customers," Ilosovic said.
Casiphia was already lying down on the bed with only her boots removed.
"Milady?" Ilosovic asked, bemused.
"While I may have been hoping for one last romantic evening before we reach the Outlands, after arriving here I do not want to be any more vulnerable than is strictly necessary," she said.
"Understandable," Stayne said, sitting down on the bed and pulling off his own boots. "However...would I be right to guess that you've got your sword under your bed and Henrietta in her customary place?"
"You would be correct," she said.
"My dear, forgive me, but I am not lying down in a bed next to a woman with a loaded gun in a thigh holster. You can put her under your pillow—hell, you can put her under mine—but I hope you can see my point."
Abashed, Casiphia grumbled but agreed that he might be right, and slipped Henrietta just under the edge of the bed, next to her sword.
"My sword is under my side of the bed, by the way, my love," Ilosovic said. "Because I do not think your precautions are unreasonable." With that, he pulled her against him, her back against his chest, and the two did their best to get a refreshing night of sleep.
This action was complicated by a series of noises throughout the night—a rattling in the walls, the sound of rain when they knew the skies were clear, footsteps moving up and down the stairs.
"Rats," Casiphia said. "I am going to believe all of these sounds are made by rats." She did not add whether she thought the rats to be friendly or malevolent.
Alice and Tarrant had heard the same noises, it turned out when they met at the stables the next morning. Casiphia was glad to know none of them were any madder than usual, but it was unsettling to wonder what might have been prowling the tavern.
"An almost complete lack of service, so little lighting one must stumble everywhere one goes, and now the ruddy place is haunted," Stayne grumbled. "I will be more than glad to get back on the road, regardless of the mission we have been sent on."
Tarrant, who had clearly dressed hurriedly if his mismatched stockings were any indication, was unrolling his ornate map, and held it up for the party to see. "We are almost to the border," he said. "See? In a few hours we should reach Grampus Bluffs and cross over into Outland. And from there, I suppose we search."
Alice heaved a sigh. "Only Hamish. But I have enjoyed seeing more of Underland, and I'm sure this will be interesting as well."
"Depends on what you consider interesting," Stayne muttered, looking a bit green at the prospect of seeing his former place of exile.
"We will be home before you know it," Casiphia promised him. "You will be teaching boys how not to mangle themselves with swords, and complaining about them to me, and I will sit in your lap and kiss your annoyances away."
Ilosovic gave her a look that could almost be construed as grateful, then mounted Brautigan and wheeled the horse towards the west and Grampus Bluffs, the others following suit.