Chapter 9: The Trip North

Nimbrethil stood silently in the shadows of the trees as she kept first watch. They were camped just outside the Luskan border and she tried to recall everything her father had told her about Luskans. He hadn't wanted to give her details but he had hinted at their brutality and she knew that they would have to avoid the patrols at all costs, even if it meant going out of their way a little. The trail the githyanki had left was all too obvious and it made her wonder what exactly they had in mind. At the very least, it was designed to make sure that she ran into a Luskan patrol and at worst they planned an ambush somewhere. She looked over at the paladin and the dwarf wishing that they didn't make so much noise in their armor when they moved. Casavir wasn't that bad, for despite his size and plate mail he could move quickly and quietly when necessary. However, Khelgar was a different story all together. The dwarf felt that the only way to approach an enemy was head on in a roaring charge. That was fine when you were dealing with dumb creatures like orcs, but a different story entirely when going up against a smart enemy like the gith. The dwarf was too hot headed and battle eager for her liking. Fortunately he had learned to listen to her words of caution before going into battle. Casavir was almost the complete opposite of Khelgar, approaching every battle with almost undue caution. It was all fine and dandy to plan for different outcomes when you had plenty of time to think it over. In situations such as this, where one might have to make a split second decision, thinking too much could cause disaster. Perhaps he wasn't the best choice for this little jaunt, but she needed the bulk he provided. With him and Khelgar upfront, she had the ability to let her bow do the damage, something she was far better at than sword fighting. Bishop she was still trying to figure out. He was excellent with a bow, but he carried two swords with ease and greater comfort than she did, indicating a familiarity with the weapons that she lacked. He wore light armor like her, but if his skill with the blades was equal to his skill with a bow, then he was far better equipped for hand to hand than she was. Lighter armor made you better able to move and dodge potentially lethal blows. Perhaps he could teach her something about sword fighting, something beyond the basic knowledge imparted by Georg and her father. She would have plenty of opportunity to observe him before deciding if he could be of use in that capacity. For other than that, she could see no other reason to have him around. His skills and hers overlapped, not exactly ideal when going into battle. Despite that, she had found herself enjoying his company far more than she had thought. She had seldom given the humans she lived amongst a second thought, for most of them weren't worth her time. Noisy, quarrelsome, and often unfathomable in their actions, she had had little use for them. Bishop was showing her a whole new side of them she hadn't seen before. Was that a good thing? She wasn't sure, but she was looking forward to finding out.

Turning back around she bit back a hiss of surprise at seeing Bishop standing in front of her, for she hadn't heard him coming. This was not the first time he had managed to come up on her unawares, and against her will she found herself admiring that about him. He was the first human she encountered that was almost as good in the wilds as she was. She had watched him as he walked and noticed that he was completely at home out here. He moved with the stealth and grace of a panther and his eyes missed nothing. She wouldn't tell him that though, for he had enough of an ego and didn't need anything to make it bigger. He also didn't treat her like some helpless female like the others tended to do and she liked that.

"You know, you have to admit now that I have proven you wrong about human rangers," Bishop smirked at the elf. He had seen her look of surprise that she couldn't quite hide when she saw he had snuck up on her once again.

"Oh really," Nimbrethil arched an eyebrow at him. "Well, I suppose you are the exception to the rule, I'll give you that."

"If you dislike humans so much why did you bring the paladin along for the ride? The man definately has some issues to work through and could be trouble," Bishop sneered.

"You seem to be bright enough, figure it out for yourself," she snipped back at him. She was coming to enjoy their little verbal spats even though it seemed to annoy their other two companions to no end. They acted like they expected her and Bishop to try and kill each other any day now.

"Well I would have to say that the way you handle your bow that you're far better with it than with those swords you carry," Bishop thoughtfully looked her up and down. "So you need him as a walking shield between you and your enemy." As he eyed her, his thoughts flew back to that day at the lake when he had seen her naked. Her body was well muscled and toned and he wondered what it would be like to run his hands and mouth over it.

"That's your answer then," she shrugged and went to sit on a rock to finish cleaning her bow. She saw that Bishop's eyes were following the movements of her hands and smirked a little at the look in them. She knew that look and found herself amused by it.

"You know, if you want to be more effective in close combat you should use a longsword paired with a short sword instead. I know you have the strength to wield one and I'm curious why you don't."

"These are what I trained with and I never had the need to use anything else. Very rarely was I ever in a position to have to use my swords."

"Who taught you?" Bishop came and sat down beside her on the rock and waited for her reaction. When she merely looked at him but didn't say anything he bit back a smile. Maybe she didn't dislike humans as much as she claimed.

"First my foster father Daeghun and then the head of the West Harbor militia, a man named Georg." Nimbrethil paused in her cleaning to look off into the distance. "I remember asking father once why I needed to learn how to wield two weapons, but all he said was that it was something that might come in handy. Now I wonder if he knew that one day I would have to leave West Harbor like I did."

"Duncan told me about the attack and he said you were unhappy about leaving your village," Bishop stated nonchalantly, trying to draw more details out of her.

"Unhappy only in the fact that it forced me to come to Neverwinter where I got drafted to work for the watch," Nimbrethil snorted in derision. "I was perfectly content to spend my days hunting and trapping, then the gith show up and my father sends me off to that wretched place."

"Why did you join the watch? You don't strike me as the type to care for law and order."

"I needed access to Blacklake and it was the only way to get in. The problem was that Brelaina kept finding things for me to do that the rest of the watch was too incompetent to handle."

Bishop couldn't repress a snicker for he had thought the same thing many times. Looking over at her he saw her smiling a little at his amusement over what she said. He had thought that the little journey he had been forced into agreeing to was going to be a tedious one, but now he found he was starting to enjoy himself. Her no nonsense, don't give me any crap attitude was so different from what he expected that he actually found himself looking forward to more days with her. Maybe he should introduce her to Karnwyr and see what his companion thought of her. She had introduced him to her falcon Thorondor when the bird had shown up the first afternoon after they had left the city. He had asked her how she ended up with him as a companion but a dark look had crossed her face and she refused to answer, earning him a hiss from the bird for upsetting her.

"If you want to get better with those blades I can help you with that," Bishop told her and saw her stop and look at him in puzzlement.

"Are you offering your help because you think it will make Duncan happy? Because if that's the reason then forget it," Nimbrethil said sharply. "Besides we hardly have the time now to do it, for we have to go save that girl, again."

"Why are we saving her anyway? I didn't catch all of your conversation at the inn the day you brought her back."

"She has information I need, and until I get it I need her alive and well. That's all I'm going to tell you about it too because I don't know you well enough yet to trust you with any more information," Nimbrethil warned him in a cool voice.

Bishop smirked as he thought to himself, smart girl. She knew better than to let someone's friendly attitude to cause her to drop her guard. She was very much like him but knew she'd never admit it. The more he watched her and the more he talked with her, the more he wanted to get to know her better. It had been a long time since he had met someone like her and he was reluctant to let her go just yet.

He rose to his feet and looked down at her. "When all of this is over, if you want a sparring partner to hone your skills just ask." Turning he slipped off into the woods leaving the elf to finish her watch.

Nimbrethil watched the man go and found herself wondering what it would be like to have him around. They had a lot in common, more so than any of the others, even Elanee. They had similar outlooks and they shared a love of nature. She felt more comfortable with him than any human male since Bevil. Bevil had been sweet and kind, and she realized now that if they had run off together she would have been bored with him in six months. She had a feeling that Bishop would never be boring, and he certainly wasn't sweet or kind. He also wasn't likely to want to hang around for too long of a time so she wouldn't have to worry about getting tied down by him. When it was time, she went and woke Khelgar up for his watch, and then stretched on her bedroll, wrapping her cloak around herself. Bishop would be fun to have around for a while so she gave serious thought to his offer. She knew she needed to practice more with her blades, for she had already had a couple of close calls when she had to use them. She didn't like having to rely on others for knew she could take care of herself. With his help she could become truly self sufficient. Having made up her mind about it, she closed her eyes and let mind drift before falling asleep.