The group sat down around the weathered, old table and ordered several pints of beer to be brought to them. Dandelion, Zoltan and Roshe sat on one side, while Vensa and Triss opted to take the bench on the other side of the table. Geralt was the only one that was standing but Vensa supposed that it was to allow his pacing, a nasty habit which he often showed when talking about subjects he didn't particularly enjoy.

"Vensa, this is Vernon Roshe the leader of the Blue Stripes and Triss Merigold, the former advisor to king Foltest. You've already met Zoltan and Dandelion. Everybody, this is Vensa. I met her a long time ago and even I don't know everything that she's hiding."

"Introductions aside Geralt, you have some explaining to do. What is this we've been hearing about you murdering Foltest? Tell me that it's only rumours."

"Unfortunately Foltest is really dead but I'm not the one that killed was another witcher there dressed as a blind monk. I didn't realise the truth until it was too late."

"Did you at least catch him?"

"No."

"How in the world did he escape a castle full of soldiers? Even you can't do that without help!"

"He did have help, the Scoia'tael."

"Those ********."

"So he's here then? In Flotsam?"

"Yeah we met him on the way here along with Iorveth, the leader of the Scoia'tael. It seems that the're working together."

"That's not good Geralt. It means they have the whole forest to hide and that thing's massive."

The subject of the conversation was gradually growing darker and darker which seemed to greatly annoy Zoltan. Dwarves were more suited to conversations concerning alcohol and fighting so it wasn't a surprise to anyone that he quickly changed the direction the conversation was going, though in Vensa's opinion he lasted much longer than most dwarves would.

"Now, now gentlemen. There's going to be enough talking about this when the two of you have a chat with Loredo. I came here to drink and relax so let's do just that. Cheers!"

The group responded to Zoltan in turn and drank to the bottom of their glasses. Only Vensa seemed to be holding herself back as it seemed that even Triss was taking sips from her own drink. It was clear to see that her lack of drinking surprised the others gathered around the table.

"Why aren't you drinking lass? Was it something I said?"

"No, nothing like that. I have a low tolerance for alcohol and I would prefer not to make myself look like a fool in front of the entire village. Besides I had a tiring day, and I need to rest. I'll see you later. Oh and Geralt?"

"Yeah?"

"If you're looking for some extra work, there's a notice board outside the doors. There should be one or two tasks on there to keep you busy while you investigate the kingslayer."

"I'll think about it."

Smirking slightly at the witcher's lazy attitude she made her way outside the tavern and up the stairs outside to the second floor. Her room was the first of the three and she had to admit that it was very suited to her needs. The room itself was spacious and had plenty of space to store her belongings ranging from the stacks of books she brought to the daggers and staff she carried with her. Putting them away in the bedside chest, Vensa collapsed on the dark green silk sheets. They were originally bright pink but that kind of colour only hurt the eyes. Thinking about the day's events she decided that she would explore the forest tomorrow. She had been here for three weeks after all and hadn't set foot in it once. It was about time to do just that.

When Vensa woke up it was barely day break. Most of the town's citizens were still asleep and even the local birds were unwilling to wake up yet. It was the perfect time though to go exploring. No one would question her as to where she was going or even see her which would prove useful when confronting Geralt. She was more that capable of taking care of herself but he often seemed almost overprotective, like an older brother.

Walking outside, Vensa stretched before heading towards the same gate the elf used to escape the city yesterday. It was the furthest away from her goal but it would ensure that she remained unseen. Her target was the fabled elf rose garden that was rumoured to grow somewhere in this forest. She was after the rose of remembrance or more specifically it's seeds. She had hoped to settle down one day and buy a house far away from all the conflict in this world. Her bloodline ensured that she would live much longer than any normal human would, and growing the rarest rose would be an interesting task to accomplish. So far only elves managed to cultivate it and she wanted to see if she could complete a deed like that as well.

She made her way through the forest, enjoying the feeling of the cool wind on her face. Everything around her was just waking up, and even the trees still seemed sleepy. Using the rough directions she received she traveled the little used paths, constantly being out on the lookout for the massive array of monsters that the locals warned her about. Not a single glance of anything even remotely hostile could be seen though, a fact quite surprising to Vensa. She suspected however that it was all because of the presence that had been following her for some time now. She couldn't quite sense what it was that was following her, but there was definitely something there. Normally she would have insisted that the presence revealed itself, but she was perfectly happy with a road empty of monsters so she let it be for now. It wasn't doing any harm.

Eventually she reached a waterfall, tons of sparkling water cascading down and creating a flurry of beautiful colours. It almost made her want to submerge herself in the water, but she knew that the chances of her coming back out of it would be slim to none. A small, almost unnoticeable path up the side of the waterfall and high into the cliff above. It was marked with an enormous stone, portraying a green god like creature guarding it. It looked just as the villagers described it, though none of them knew what dangers lay further on. It was just too dangerous for them to wander up there. Vensa turned to the path and walked towards the stone monument, touching it for a single moment. It was one of the rare remaining pieces of what was once a proud elvish town, now only reduced to rubble. She stepped onto the path and was about to follow it when two things stopped her. The first was the presence that was following her since the beginning of the forest. It had now seemed to grow in hostility the closest she got to her chosen path, and she had no doubt in her mind that it would attack if she went any further.

The second thing was a slight whine that echoed off the ancient trees. The whine couldn't have either come from a monster or a human, but sounded rather like an animal. Vensa's curiosity got the better of her and with one last look at the hidden path, she followed the soft whine. She pushed through the scraggly bushes and walked around the giant trees looking for the source of the sound, all while being very aware that the presence behind her still refused to leave. Reaching a small, dark clearing within the woods, she looked around yet nothing seemed to stand out to her. It was only a moment later that a flash of white caught her attention in the far side of the clearing. Looking closer she noticed that the flash of white was a small white wolf cub, not a normal colour for this type of animal. Wolves were generally cautious creatures that ran in packs, but it seems that the prospect of warmth and food overcame the natural instincts of

this certain cub. Sensing someone's presence in it's hiding spot, the cub sniffed the air before stumbling towards Vensa yipping softly. The cub only managed to walk a couple of steps before collapsing into the tall grass. It was clearly very weak.

Walking towards the cub, Vensa knelt and picked it up. The new source of warmth and security quieted down the soft yips as the wolf cuddled up to her breast. She stood up slowly as to not startle the small creature in her arms and started making her way back to the town of Flotsam. The roses could wait while the cub could not. It would not survive the next couple of hours alone judging from it's condition, and she wasn't about to leave a defenceless creature all alone in the forest. Besides, she couldn't wait to see Geralt's reaction when he saw the little cub.

Iorveth pulled back his bow as he watched the woman make her way back towards the town walls. He was following her from the start, the Scoia'tael spies in the city warning him of the very place she was searching for. The rose garden was a deeply historical and sacred place for his kind and he wasn't about to let her touch it, not even considering taking the rose's seeds. It didn't help that one of the Scoia'tael's hiding spots was behind the waterfall, mere steps from where she was just moments ago.

His arrow was pulled back ready to strike her heart, swiftly enough to disable any possibility of protective spells, but he was interrupted by a small whine. He could immediately tell that it was a wolf cub. A she-wolf had given birth a couple of days ago and he assumed that it was one of her cubs, but he couldn't risk the woman carrying on while he looked for it. Luckily for him though, the small whine seemed to distract her enough for her to change the course of her path and head in that direction instead. He watched as she looked for the cub and cuddled it to her full breasts. Most humans would have either killed the cub or only see profit in it's fur, although her train of thoughts seemed to be very different. She truly seemed to care for the cub and the forest around her and everything around her seemed to be able to sense it. It was like she naturally belonged in it, an aspect that he had only seen in elves before.

This was only further proved by the way she maneuvered herself within the green foliage. Somehow she had managed to instinctively avoid every single monster that stood in her path, and he doubted that she was even aware that she was doing it. A sorceress that looked human and yet acted like an elf. It was quite puzzling to say the least, especially since she seemed to be in the company of the famous witcher Geralt the white wolf, not someone you meet often. Shaking the thoughts out of his head, Iorveth threw one last look at the retreating figure before making his way back to his men. It didn't matter how the woman behaved or how beautiful she may have looked. The next time she would enter the forest, he wouldn't hesitate to puncture her with his arrows.