"Who is it?" Keisin walked over to the window, seeing a dark man stop in front of the inn, the woman outside brushing the steps clean. He talked with her for a minute before she shrugged and answered, watching him leave before dropping her broom and rushing inside. Rynu stood behind Lir to hide his lack of clothing as a loud knock sounded at the door.
Keisin walked over to the door, opening it cautiously before the woman barged into the room, looking at them all in panic. "That was Dustin- what do you people have to do with him? Why is he asking for you?"
"Who's Dustin?" Keisin asked in confusion as Rynu blanched.
"Does he know we're here?" Rynu said from behind Lir.
The woman looked confused, wondering where the new voice had come from, but was too scared to care. "No, thank goodness he believed me. I told him you couldn't afford the price for the rooms when you got here."
Rynu scoffed. "Yeah, he would believe that. We'll leave as soon as possible." Rynu looked around Lir's broad chest to the woman, his face serious. "Sorry to cause you trouble."
"Oh, it's no problem dear, that man always hassles people around the village. I was more worried about you folk. Out of curiosity, where did he come from?" The woman pointed to Rynu.
"I was the tienko." Rynu shrugged simply. The woman stared at him for a minute before letting out a stressful sigh.
"I won't get into your affairs. Thank you for leaving before Dustin comes back." She said, shaking her head and walking slowly back down the stairs.
"Well we're not going anywhere until we get you clothes." Keisin said, looking at Rynu with the blanket tied around his waist. "I have a feeling the cold wouldn't be kind to you in that get-up."
Rynu rolled his eyes with a sigh. "Well, where are we supposed to get clothes?"
Keisin looked thoughtful for a minute before holding his amulet in his palm for a minute. "Yeah, I have enough magic. Take that blanket off."
"What?" Pheona squeaked.
"Fine, turn around if you want, Pheona. I can't do it while it's still tied on him, though." Keisin said, grinning at her in amusement.
Pheona turned around, holding her hands over her eyes for good measure as Rynu sighed, untying the blanket and dropping it to the floor. Keisin waved his hands, the cloth floating into the air and unweaving, until just a ball of string was left. He then re-wove the cloth into a new shirt and pantsfor Rynu.
"I hope you like the color brown." Keisin laughed, handing him the new clothing made from the brown blanket.
"Better than nothing." Rynu sighed, putting on the loose fitting clothes. He looked over at Lir, who was grinning with amusement. "Don't look too happy. I'm going to want my clothes back later."
Lir's smile fell. "Not while I'm human."
"This isn't the time." Keisin said, suddenly serious as he looked outside, seeing Dustin talking to another villager. "We have to get out of here before that guy finds us. He seems like he's a lot of trouble."
Rynu glanced at him uneasily. "You really don't know, then?"
Keisin huffed in annoyance, looking at him. "Of course I don't- you do though. So Rynu, tell us who this stranger is, and why he's searching for us."
Rynu sighed, his shoulders slumping with guilt. "He's probably looking for me." He lifted up the sleeve of his arm, revealing the winding serpent tattoo along his bicep. "This is the mark of the Brotherhood. While I wear this tattoo, they'll always search for me. I can never remove it- it will always be a reminder of my mistakes." Rynu said bitterly, letting the sleeve fall back down. "I was so stupid."
Pheona looked over at Rynu sheepishly, knowing what she had abandoned him once he had joined the brotherhood. "I shouldn't have been so harsh on you, Rynu."
He looked over at her and smiled softly. "No, you should have. I did some horrible things, some of which I'll never be able to redeem myself for. I know things I shouldn't- and that's why they're after me."
"What do you know?" Keisin said cautiously.
"Well, I know that Demetre is up to something, and I know it has something to do with one of those." Rynu pointed to the amulet at Keisin's neck.
Keisin grabbed his amulet protectively. "A sorcerer's amulet? Where did he manage to get one of those?"
"Heck if I know. All I do know is that he keeps it on him at all times. I've only seen him a few times, but when I do, he's always wearing it."
"We'll figure this out later- for now, it's time to go." Pheona said, grabbing their things and packing them up to leave.
"I agree. The innkeeper was nice enough to take us in, let's not let her get mixed in with those guys." Rynu said, opening the door for Pheona as they walked out, stealthily creeping out of the inn while Dustin was distracted.