Sorry!! Again I've taken ages to update... hope this isn't a disappointment!!
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"We should not have left the encampment." Jaheira stated firmly "We've gone in the opposite direction from Raeyan! Your tracking skills leave much to be desired!"Minsc stopped looking at the ground and looked momentarily offended, then shrugged and nodded slightly, conceding that following people was not his forte... or he would have, had he been the type of person to use the word forte.
Aerie, however, was more upset by the remark. She turned to Jaheira sharply
"Why are you taking it out on Minsc! We couldn't have just stayed there! they could have been dying... and we decided fairly to do the right thing. And Minsc is a great tracker!"
Minsc beamed at Aerie proudly, then his head snapped about as Jaheira began her tirade.
"fairly! I do not call childish rhymes and pointing a good way to decide to strand your friends in the middle of unknown territory. Call it the right thing if you like, but they are more likely dead from our actions than saved by them, since we have been walking for seven hours and have found nothing." She snapped.
Aerie couldn't bare the thought of her friends in trouble, let alone dying, from her actions. Her lip quivered as she thought of Haer'Dalis being stuck down by a foe when he needed her and she wasn't there. Jaheira saw the tears welling in Aerie's eyes
"For goodness sake, child! Control yourself!"
Aerie was about to snap a reply, despite the building tears, when Minsc turned quickly from another inspection of the ground.
"Wait!" Minsc suddenly called, glee edging his voice "methinks I have picked up the trail again! Boo says: go this way!"
Both women glared momentarily at one another before resigning themselves to silence and turning wearily to follow Minsc as he began to follow a fairly clear trail. Aerie wiped her eyes before tears could form properly as Jaheira muttered under her breath:
"I don't believe I'm following a rodent and a man who gladly follows a rodent because it has more brains than he does!"
But as they progressed through the dense wood, sounds of a struggle could be heard and Minsc began to rush forwards pulling out his weapons as he ran... he hadn't killed anything in over seven hours, after all.
As he burst into the clearing he saw a young man suffering a serious attack from several wolf-like creatures. The young man was not faring well: he was coping reasonably well with the beast in front of him, but two others were threatening his back ferociously. Minsc raised his sword and brought it down towards the first beast's head. It moved quickly, with lightning reflexes and the sword only scraped its foreleg. It turned on Minsc and began it's attack upon him. Minsc was surprised, but clearly delighted an interesting fight at last!
Jaheira muttered a healing spell the second she arrived on the scene, which alerted the young man to their presence. He called his thanks, but did not turn to see who his potential rescuers were.
Aerie began casting upon the wolves and a glorious and heavenly bolt on lightning burst through the trees and struck one of the strange wolves; it howled and turned quickly towards the Avariel . Jaheira quickly muttered a spell under her breath and before the strong beast reach the fragile girl, roots sprang up from the ground and wound themselves around the creature's legs holding it firmly in place. It snarled viciously and Jaheira began to cast again; this time insects flew in a great cloud, enveloping the creature, biting and stinging it. the creature howled and snapped ineffectually at the bugs.
Minsc was hacking at the first creature and had caused considerable damage: he finished it with one last blow to the head and it keeled over in the already growing pool of dark blood. Minsc rushed towards the youth and aided him against the growling creature which was attacking him so ferociously.
Aerie began healing both men while Jaheira approached the rooted creature and, sword in hand, shield on arm, began to hack and slash at the struggling wolf.
The battle was drawing to a close as Minsc turned on the last wolf with fervour: the roots had sunk away into the ground and it was still fiercely attacking Jaheira when he forcefully separated it's head from it's body. Blood splattered all over Minsc, the youth and Jaheira: the latter looked most unimpressed.
"Do you always have to be so... bloody!" She scolded as Aerie rushed to Minsc making sure his wounds were not serious. And as Aerie began muttering a minor healing charm to take away some "scratches" as Minsc would have called them, Jaheira turned to the young man who seemed to be waiting for eye contact before speaking.
"Thank you all so much, I would never have survived that, had you not intervened." He said softly as he looked upon the blood-splattered half- elf. Jaheira felt his gaze sweep over her face and she urged to wipe away the blood or fix her tousled hair. Then she felt stupid and a little guilty for such thoughts, after all she was not Aerie, and so she left the blood and her messy hair alone to mar her features.
He smiled warmly when she didn't reply. This stirred from her stupor and shaking her tangled head she began a hasty reply:
"Minsc needed to kill something: it's been hours and that's days for him..." she indicated the tall barbarian with a small nod "and we were heading in this direction anyway... looking for friends: you haven't seen anyone on your travels have you... a female elf ranger and a blue-haired idio...Bard?" Jaheira corrected herself, for Aerie's sake, as the blonde shot her a fiery look which clearly had tears behind it.
The man stifled a laugh "I'm afraid to say I have not seen anyone in days... not even a blue-haired idiot!"
Jaheira smiled broadly and Aerie let out a small sob at the thought of her poor Haer'Dalis and of meeting someone else as heartless as Jaheira.
"He's not an idiot Jaheira!" she whimpered
"I never said he was, child" Jaheira snapped glaring at the petite blonde pointedly. Then her gaze moved back to the sharp, amber eyes of the traveller; they were extraordinary eyes, they held her undivided attention. "what are you doing so far from anything in this godforsaken forest anyhow?" she said suspiciously.
"Nice to meet you... Jaheira, wasn't it?" The man said grinning
"Sorry to be so forward... I just wondered... you can't trust strange folk you meet in forests in my experience..." Aerie cut in before she could finish.
"You get used to her rudeness after a while.... I'm Aerie" she smiled at the youth in what she hoped was a charming manner. He turned to her, looking upon her for the first time: his black hair fell in his eyes and he shook his head slightly to remove it from his vision as he said "I'm Garret." And with a small smile he knew Aerie would accept him without a problem.
Jaheira felt a small stab of jealousy: another man falling for the dappy blonde! And an attractive man at that. She pouted moodily, as Aerie swooned before the stranger... honestly! Haer'Dalis had been missing, presumed dead, for a matter of hours! But she reasoned that Aerie wasn't a bad person... she was just attractive and well... she needed looking after. Jaheira didn't need looking after: she didn't need anything... or at least she believed she didn't and so that was that.
Meanwhile Minsc stood watching the exchange until the man turned to thank him.
"Minsc, I presume. You are the one responsible for my rescue: I thank you." the man bowed deeply and Minsc grinned.
"Boo said there was danger this way and we killed the danger!" Minsc exclaimed proudly.
The man frowned and looked back at Jaheira, who's face had gone a little pink and was contorted into a slightly pained expression. She gave a look of pure compassion to the man and he nodded kindly and then beamed a smile at Minsc.
"Who is this Boo of which you speak, for I would like to thank him too" he hope it wasn't an imaginary friend: he didn't fancy miming his thanks to the air.
Jaheira winced, awaiting the Barbarian's reply.
"Boo is the most clever miniature giant space hamster in the land!" Minsc pulled a small sandy hamster from a pocket and held it out for Garret to thank.
Garret stared in bewilderment at the hamster, looked briefly at Jaheira who nodded slightly despite being a deep shade of crimson. Garret smiled and indulged the barbarian by thanking Boo most profusely, at which Jaheira and Aerie both stifled giggles: they had never witnessed anyone humour Minsc before.
Sorry there is nothing in this chapter on how Raeyan and Haer'Dalis are faring... it'll be in the next one (which I promise will be sooner) hope you enjoyed it so far!