Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 5

The friendly neighbourhood

"Keep your hood up," Khalid told Elene as they walked. "The inn we're headed for is the most affordable in Beregost, decent service…but can be a little rough around the edges."

"What does that mean?" The girl wanted to know.

"It's a dive," Kivan grunted.

"Er, well. In not so many words, I suppose."

Elene wrinkled her nose. "Why are we staying at a dive?"

"Plenty of people frequent such places, especially travellers. Easier for us to blend in," answered Khalid.

They reached a building with signage showing a sheaf of red-coloured grain. From the outside, the Red Sheaf seemed like a sizeable establishment with plain white walls surrounded by a narrow veranda, all covered with brown roofing. Blue banisters framing the veranda added a pop of colour to the otherwise drab exterior. Despite it being late afternoon, there was ample noise coming from the inside the tavern within, indicating a boisterous clientele, if nothing else.

Khalid hesitated for a moment before leading them inside.

The lighting inside was dim, and the air smelled strongly of tobacco and stale beer. Despite the disquieting ambiance, the inn's tavern was packed with people. In terms of clientele, the Red Sheaf differed from the rest of Beregost in that the establishment hosted a fair share of dwarves and halflings as opposed to being almost exclusively human. Many of the patrons were dressed for travel and nearly all of them looked downright unfriendly. Elene schooled her face to remain neutral, making a mental note to avoid any form of eye contact.

With a nod to his companions, Khalid headed for the bar. Kivan surreptitiously pulled Elene to walk close behind him, hiding her from view with his broader and taller frame. She kept in lockstep with her fellow elf, resisting the urge to pull her hood down further as she felt eyes in the room linger on her.

Yes, make yourself look even more suspicious, why don't you.

"Three rooms, if you please?" Khalid was already speaking to the innkeep, a ratty-looking man with wrinkles and scars warring to conquer his face.

Instead of hovering behind Khalid, Kivan led her to one of the tables near the stairwell heading up to the rooms. It seemed to be his port of choice at inns. He gestured for her to take the seat facing the stairwell, so that her back was turned to the rest of the room. He took the opposite seat and in his usual quiet manner, requested water and two ales from the tavern wench nearby. Elene pursed her lips slightly that the ranger felt it inappropriate to order booze for her. She was not a child, after all.

"I can take some ale, too," she tried and failed to say without sounding petulant.

Kivan flicked her with an expressionless look. "Ale here is water with dregs."

"Oh. Well." She pulled her mug closer. "That's alright then."

Khalid joined them, his plate mail armour clanking as he settled down on a chair next to Kivan. Elene winced at the ominous creaking the wood made. Within a minute, the tavern wench returned with three mugs and set them none-too-gently on the table. Elene sipped tentatively on her water and tried to ignore the musty odour on the rim of the mug. So far, this place was a completely different experience from Candlekeep and the Friendly Arm - she couldn't believe all three places were in the same plane, much less the same region.

"We have the rooms we need," Khalid said, grimacing after he swallowed a mouthful of ale. "Ours will be next to each other, Elene, we can head up together later. Kivan, your room is on the first floor." He slid a set of keys on the table towards the ranger, who took them without comment.

"Can we retire to our rooms soon?" Elene was already looking forward to soaking her feet in warm water.

"Perhaps better if we wait for the rest. I don't think they will take that long," said Khalid.

"Oh, Imoen can surprise you," she muttered under her breath.

Khalid smiled apologetically but said nothing. Both her companions appeared relaxed, yet she could see that their eyes were subtly scanning over her shoulders for potential threats. Perhaps this was how one should behave in seedy, hostile taverns. This was all new territory for her, but she took note of certain things.

She was never one for sitting around taverns. In Candlekeep, her time was spent almost exclusively within the library. She never wanted for anything, all her needs had been looked after, and she could travel to any part of Faerun or beyond just by flipping open a tome or book. She could spend hours mulling over the intricacies of an astrolabe or the moral implications of civil war in Neverwinter. Over the years, her organised cataloguing of information, observation skills and resourcefulness made her a good assistant for many of the Readers.

When she informed Gorion that she wished to become a Reader herself one day, he had reacted with pleasure and surprisingly, some measure of concern. He had told her that a Reader's lifestyle would make her unsuited for a life outside Candlekeep.

"Why would I want a life outside of Candlekeep?" she had asked in confusion.

Clearly, even then, Gorion guessed at what was coming. Now she was left to play catch up.

She tensed at the sound of raised voices from the table nearby. The occupants were playing cards but from the sound of it, the last round hadn't ended in someone's favour. Khalid leaned forward in his seat, closely following the happenings behind her. She almost turned around to look as well, but Kivan stopped her with a shake of his head.

Things kicked off when the men started shoving at each other, each accusing the other of cheating. Before anyone could react, one of them was shoved violently backwards, straight towards Elene's back. She sensed him before he collided with her, so she quickly slid out of her chair and twisted out of harms' way. The man crashed into her chair instead, before sprawling onto the floor on his front sputtering curses.

"You'll pay for that, you bastard!" The man picked himself up and lunged for his assailant.

Elene watched in curious horror as the men started wailing at each other with punches. The innkeep and the tavern wenches were all shouting at the men to take the fight outside. As she stepped back, though, she realised that in the excitement, her hood had fallen back. Her eyes widened as her gaze swept through the room, checking to see who noticed.

"Pull it up," Kivan hissed at her.

She hurriedly tugged up the cloth to cover her face but as she did, she saw a grizzled dwarf sat by the bar looking straight at her. After a beat, he stood up and began to approach, a hand resting on the haft of a large axe. Khalid spotted the threat immediately and moved to stand. The rest of the tavern had descended into a full-on brawl as the fight from the nearby table had spilled over to its neighbours for no apparent reason, causing an almighty furore. It was the perfect cover for a bounty hunter to make his move.

"You're at the end of your rope, I'll wager. Not that it's anything personal, but I'm afraid your time on this here ball of mud is just about done," the dwarf said as he drew close, hefting his axe in a two handed grip.

"Why are you doing this? I have done nothing to you," cried Elene.

"You've done nothing to anyone, as far as I know," the dwarf shrugged. "Don't matter one whit to me. A price is a price. Like I said, it's nothing personal."

With that, he lunged forward with a swing. Khalid intercepted him with his own blade while Kivan sought room to draw his bow. The ranger cursed as he would have a difficult shot to make to avoid hitting Khalid. Elene cast about for moment before reaching over to the next table and tossing a full tankard of watered-down ale at an arc, which landed abruptly on the dwarf. The move was surprising enough to make their assailant step back, sputtering as the ale drenched him. Khalid capitalised on his surprise by slashing at the dwarf's fingers grasping the axe. The dwarf roared as one of his fingers fell off, forcing him to adjust his hold on the weapon.

Elene proceeded to pick up another tankard to throw even as she stepped away from Kivan's line of fire. Her sword was already in hand, but she surmised that she would just get in Khalid's way – the chaos and tight space actually made a three-on-one fight disadvantageous. The best thing she could do was to keep the dwarf off balance, enough so that Khalid can move in for the kill.

It was easier said than done, however. Despite his injury, the dwarf still packed a punch. In quick succession, Khalid took a denting blow to his chest plate and a vicious punch to the face, sending him reeling back into a table. Kivan quickly loosed an arrow which lodged itself in the dwarf's collarbone. Elene ducked in and slashed at his unprotected underarm when he reflexively raised a hand to staunch the arrow wound. Bleeding from three wounds now, the dwarf moved to engage her instead of advancing on Khalid.

Great plan, now what?

The dwarf made a one-handed swing at her head, making her duck and sidestep to keep out of range. With that movement, she bumped into another tavern brawler, a gangly local man. Thinking himself attacked, he shoulder-checked her away, right back into the path of the now-grinning dwarf.

A quick slash sliced through her front, the layer of leather she wore over her clothes barely enough to protect her from the strike. Gasping from the sudden pain, she reeled backward, hand finding purchase on a table behind her. Warmth began spreading across her front. She shakily raised her sword as the dwarf moved to follow-up on the slash.

"Get back!"

There was no trace of stammer in Khalid's words as he rained blows with his swords on the dwarf, forcing his foe into the defensive. In adjusting his stance, the dwarf slipped on wet patch on the floor, making him stumble. Khalid swiftly kicked his knee out from under him and planted his sword through the dwarf's neck when he landed on the floor. Just as abruptly as it started, the fight was over.

Khalid stepped away, breathing heavily. He favoured his charge with a concerned look. Elene tugged at her hood, which had come loose again in the fighting. She would need a better put-together disguise to continue breathing at this rate.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

He winced, wiping blood from his mouth. "Jaheira can take a look later. Are you alright?"

She pressed a hand to her chest, suddenly feeling faint realising how soaked her attire was with blood. Her own blood. Despite the queasiness, she found herself nodding.

"We can't stay here," Kivan was already stripping the dwarf of his belt pouch and satchel. Suddenly they realised that the brawling was simmering down, and it was a matter of time before patrons realised there was a corpse cooling on the floorboards. Kivan tossed Khalid his set of keys and pulled Elene with him to head for the exit. Khalid marched to the bar to return the room keys – they were definitely not staying the night.

Once they were outside, Kivan undid his cloak and wrapped it around Elene to hide the blood - it would attract too much attention. He kept an arm tightly around her as they walked. Within a dozen paces or so, Khalid caught up with them, still looking winded from the fight. They headed south, towards an inn called the Jovial Juggler. A pricier place to put one's feet up but less likely to run into the types who chased bounties for a living. For this inn, Khalid entered alone to secure the rooms.

"How is it?" Kivan asked as they waited for the half-elf's all-clear.

"Hurting." Elene grimaced, mulling it over. "But I think I'll live."

"Keep pressure on it."

Swallowing, she nodded.

Within minutes, Khalid opened the tavern door for them, room keys already in hand. They went straight up to the rooms without nary a glance at the interior of the tavern or the patrons in it. The ascent to the rooms on the second floor was mercifully uneventful.

Upon depositing Elene into one of their rooms, Khalid grasped Kivan by the shoulder. "I'm going to find Jaheira. Can you watch her?"

Kivan glanced at the girl in question, then nodded. Khalid slipped out of the room without another word.

Kivan set about lighting all the lamps in the room, letting warm light envelop the space. Elene set herself on the couch, looking around and trying her best not to get blood all over the upholstery. The room was bigger and finer than the one they had stayed in at the Friendly Arm Inn, all tasteful wall coverings and colour-coordinated furnishings. She briefly wondered if they could afford three of such rooms. Wrapping the cloak tighter around herself, she gave Kivan an apologetic look.

"I'm sorry I got blood all over your cloak."

Kivan waved her off. "We have bigger things to worry about."

He dumped the dead dwarf's satchel onto the plush carpet. Elene watched as he started to go through the contents, wondering if this was going to be a normal activity for them, rifling through the belongings of dead bounty hunters. Like the previous hunter, this one did not carry many worldly possessions – some coin, travel rations, a pipe with tobacco and a rolled-up parchment. Kivan shot her a grim look as he unfurled the parchment.

"What does it say?" Elene asked, even though she knew the answer.

"Bounty notice. Three hundred gold." Kivan tossed the parchment onto the table between them. She stared at it but made no move to pick it up. Seemed like the same notice that Tarnesh had in both make and content. They were right to be wary coming into Beregost.

"You…are very efficient at that."

Kivan glanced at her. "At what?"

She waved her hand vaguely. "The checking valuables from dead people thing."

He paused. He hadn't realised that. Months of hunting bandits and picking them clean after night ambushes made him inured to the act. But he wasn't about to admit that to someone who was, for all intents and purposes, a child. Instead, he strode to the corner of the room, fetching a basin with a jug of water.

She observed him filling the basin with water and soaking a pristine decorative cloth from one of the tables in it. After a moment, he held the wet cloth in his hand and looked at her expectantly.

"We need to clean the wound," he told her.

She stared at him. "With that?"

The answering look that he gave her was unimpressed, to say the least.

Hesitantly, she lowered the cloak onto the floor. Looking down at her own torso, the axe wound was bleeding but at a slower rate. If she hadn't pivoted on her heel at the last second, the blow would have been more ruinous. Fortunate that what she lacked for in skill, she made up for with speed and raw survival instinct. She gritted her teeth, realising that it would not be enough to save her at each turn. She could not keep relying on others to come to her rescue.

As her fingers hovered over the clasps of her gambeson, however, she paused. Her companion was already kneeling in front of her, critically appraising the wound. As silly as it was, in that moment she suddenly felt self-conscious. Should she really be undressing in front of a man she'd known for barely a day?

"Uh, should we wait for Jaheira?"

Kivan's eyes flicked up to hers, his amber eyes almost aflame in the warm light. Up close, the markings on his face made him look even more fearsome, especially when coupled with his serious expression. "And let it pool with blood while we wait?"

Huffing, she took off the outer layer of her garb, cringing as cloth rubbed against the raw wound. His knees made a slight popping sound as he rose to sit with her on the couch. The following ten minutes then went by in silence. Kivan was no healer but he had dressed enough wounds to know what he was doing. Elene, for the most part, let go of her childish embarrassment and trusted him to do what was necessary. After all, he had demonstrated zero interest in her femaleness from the very beginning and she doubted that would ever change. The water grew redder with each dip of cloth into the basin. But at least now, the wound was cleaned enough for proper inspection.

"It's not too bad," he concluded, pressing the no longer pristine cloth into her hand. "Keep pressure on it."

"Thank you," she replied quietly and did as she was told.

They sat in silence for a stretch, gazing out the window. Big globs of rainwater were steadily pattering against the glass. The cloudy skies had finally delivered on the promise of rain while she was being tended to.

Kivan studied her after a long moment. "You did well in that fight."

She spluttered a short laugh in surprise. "I'm sorry, were we in the same fight?"

"You observed. Reacted quickly, sensibly. Used the tools around you." He jerked his shoulder, a half-shrug. "Unlucky with the outcome."

"Well. Gorion would say, the smart ones make their own luck," she grumbled, remembering a game of chess she had played with her father. She had been so fixated on winning the game, she had not noticed the rook he positioned until it was too late. It was a valuable lesson on awareness, and how the greatest danger is not always the most obvious.

Kivan hummed noncommittally. "You really don't know why hunters are after you?"

"No," she sighed. "Hopefully disappearing into a mine would throw them off."

He favoured her with a shrewd look. "Is that why you agreed to go with the Cha'Tel'Quessir?"

She frowned at the use of the elven term for her would-be guardians' race, the word sounding foreign to her when it shouldn't be. "What choice do I have?" Unconsciously, she hunched over, drawing further into herself. "I wouldn't survive a day on my own."

Kivan leaned back against the couch, closing his eyes. "Then get better."

Flummoxed, she glanced at him, wondering how she could achieve that in a short time. He, Jaheira and Khalid seemed to have everything figured out while she was still flailing about trying to learn how the real world functioned. Imoen was better suited to the Life than she was.

Before she could say anything, however, she heard footsteps coming to a halt outside their door. She tensed and whipped her eyes to the door while Kivan stood up. Fortunately, it was Jaheira who stepped into the room, dripping water as she walked, wet hair plastered onto her face. Despite her waterlogged appearance, she still managed to project a formidable presence.

"How bad is it?" the druid demanded immediately.

Imoen and Khalid filed in after her, the man closing the door behind him once they were all inside. They were soaked and breathless after what must have been a dash through the rain.

"I'm alright," Elene waved the cloth-turned-gauze in her hand to demonstrate.

Kivan made way for Jaheira to perch on the couch, then joined Khalid and Imoen near the door. The three of them began a hushed conversation while the druid cast healing spells to seal Elene's wounds. Jaheira's hands were clinical yet gentle. Despite how much the strike had hurt, it would barely leave a scar thanks to her quick work.

In the end, it was decided that Jaheira would stay with the girls while Khalid and Kivan would room together for that night. Jaheira and Kivan then left to complete the procurement of supplies. Whatever happened, they had to leave Beregost at first light the next day. As dangerous as the roads were, they were now safer for the group for as long as the bounty notices were still being distributed.

As Elene lay in bed that night, she thought of the last moments of the dwarf bounty hunter, of his blood slowly spreading through the floorboards. She thought of how easily it could have been her on the floor instead of him. From now on, she must learn to kill to survive.

Better their blood than hers.