Disclaimer: DreamWorks owns RotG, not me.

Jack didn't really know how he got there. He had been invited to eat with Nick and the rest of his strange group, that much he knew. What he didn't know was how he hadn't managed to come up with a quick lie that would have fooled the man.

Nick had brushed off the fact that Jack's lunch would be over soon, saying "Bah! You still have half hour!" How he knew this, Jack wasn't sure, and he decided it was best not to know.

Jack tried to tell him that he had plans to eat with his sister. Nick just grinned. "Sister has run off with Sandy! Will see her soon anyway."

Dang, this guy was good. Almost like he had a lot of practice telling lies apart from truth. Or Jack was being dumb in his haste to decline the offer, which was likely.

That was how Jack found himself sitting inside Burgess's eatery, one of three places to buy a full meal, including the Inn. He was surrounded by Nick, Sandy, Tiana, and the still-grumpy Aster. Emma had also gotten roped into eating with them, though she didn't seem upset. On the contrary, she seemed rather pleased with the turn of events.

It was Emma who said something first. "So, I met Sandy this morning, but I don't actually know the rest of you." She put a spoonful of soup in her mouth, gazing in obvious wonder at travelers around her.

Sandy scribbled something on a piece of paper, and handed it to her.

She read it over, then studied the other members of the group. She pointed her spoon at Tiana. "You're Tiana then." She consulted the paper again. "No offense, Sandy, but these descriptions are terrible." She looked between Nick and Aster. "Which of you is Aster?"

The grouchy man just waved, apparently not willing to partake in conversation.

Emma beamed at the larger man. "So you must be Nick! It's nice to meet you, mom said not to pester you, but I ran into Sandy and he asked me to talk, so it doesn't count! Sandy said you guys have been everywhere, but where are you from?"

Jack leaned forward, interested in this. It was obvious how diverse the group was, the differing cultures showing in the heavy coat Nick wore, the flowing style of clothing that Sandy was prone to wearing, the bangles that adorned Tiana's arms, and the tattoo visible on Aster's forehead. Jack hadn't been outside of Burgess in a very long time, and Emma never had left, so there was no way either of them could know where they hailed from.

"Ah, good question! But all of us are from very far, few cartographers would have brought maps of our lands to yours, you would not know. For now, just say that I am from north of here."

"I'm from, well, it's sort of south-east of here." Tiana added her statement to Nick's.

"Sandy's from west, and I'm from down south too." The only other time Jack had heard Aster say something was when he had ordered breakfast the first morning. He now remembered how laughable the man's accent was. He stifled a snicker.

He must have failed to properly conceal his amusement, though, because the gray-haired man glared at him. "Alright mate, what's so funny?"

Jack struggled between trying to remain inconspicuous in the eyes of these people he didn't trust, or teasing the man. In the end, teasing won. "Oh, nothing." He smothered another laugh. "Mate."

Aster looked furious, and might even have started a fight, but Sandy intervened. He waved his arms around, and when he was sure he had Aster's attention, he made signs with his hands.

"What's that?" Emma asked curiously, leaning forwards to peer at Sandy's hands. "Does that mean something?"

Sandy paused in moving his hands and nodded at her. Tiana cleared her throat and explained, "Often it's much easier for him to sign," she gestured to Sandy's hands. "than to write everything down."

Emma seemed satisfied with that answer, but Jack still had a question. "What was he saying to Aster?" He tried to keep the suspicion out of his tone.

Too busy scooping more soup into her mouth, Emma didn't notice the way all four of their faces froze for a second. But the moment was there and gone so quick Jack wondered if he had imagined it. His paranoia was probably just getting to him.

"Was just telling Bunny here not to fight. Would not want to make a scene, no?" Nick answered, glancing at Sandy.

"Who's Bunny?" Emma giggled.

"He means Aster. Bunny is just a nickname." Tiana smiled gently at Emma, but Jack could have sworn a flash of panic crossed her face.

Jack filed that away, but focused on something he deemed more pressing at the moment. He smirked. "Your nickname is Bunny? How did that happen?" He did his best to look innocent under the glare of the grumpy man.

"None o' your business." Aster grumbled.

"What he means is, it's a long story." Nick looked curiously at Jack. "What about you, have you two lived here long?"

Emma waved her spoon in the air. "We were both born here! Mom does a lot of sewing and Jack works at the Inn and sometimes watches sheep for Mr. Williams, which is how we got some extra wool and now we have extra blankets Mom sometimes sells! And I get lessons with-"

"Emma." Jack said, exasperation in his voice. When he was certain she wasn't going to say much else (which meant no personal details spilled to these people) for now, he took a swig from his flask and turned to Tiana. "You guys seem like you've been all over, surely you have some interesting stories?"

The four companions exchanged glances at the not-so-subtle change of topic. "Well," Tiana said. "We've been to-"

"Jack!" Nick said, louder than necessary. "Your lunch break is coming to end, no? Must be getting back to Inn, I am sure. And friends!" the large man turned to the others, not including Emma. "We wanted to look around town more today, we must be going."

The whole group left before Jack had a chance to collect his things. Jack noticed a small bag, probably with money in it on top of the bill that had been left on the table.

"Well Em," Jack glanced at Emma, who had finally finished her soup. "I have enough time to take you as far as the market place. You can meet up with your friends after, how's that sound?"

"Only if you give me a piggyback." She gave him a pleading look, and he relented. He bent down, allowing her to hop on his back over his cloak. She giggled from her new vantage point. "Go Jack!"

He laughed, pushing the group's quick exit out of his mind.

For now.

A/N: Hey, got back from a trip to the States, and if I hadn't left I would have had time to work on the story and would have updated sooner. Anyways, I'm a little unsure about this chapter, so constructive criticism to help catch mistakes would be wonderful! So, reviews!

Brenne: Well, small town is small and foreigners are interesting. That said, I think she, like Jack, is rather sociable and likes to talk to all sorts or people.

The purple hippocampus: Well, I sort of need to work on a smoother ending that doesn't jerk the reader into an uneasy, cliff-hanger sort of feeling. I'll sort myself out and manage to not end on a cliff-hanger someday.

Until next time!