Unfortunately, Saewin and Tala didn't see everything that happened. They were only five feet through the gates when they heard Arkaedii's shriek of anger and went dashing for the courtyard, only to witness her grabbing a hold of Quinton and biting him. When he saw Arkaedii's pride in what she did, that was when Saewin shouted her name at the top of his lungs in fury. Even though part of his face was concealed by his hood, Tala could tell that he was livid. It shocked her almost as much as it did the children; he'd been so laid back and stoic that she never really thought he could get that emotional. And when his daughter kept her back to him, Tala watched him take two inhales- with no exhale- and clench his teeth.
"Look. At. Me." He growled.
Arkaedii slowly turned around to face him as he walked over to her. Her eyes started to water with unshed tears while she bore the deepest frown on her face.
"We've talked about this. We have talked about this!" He yelled. "How many times do I have to- do we have to-" When she just continued to stare at him and say nothing, he opened his mouth to try and finish his sentence, but ended up tightly clenching his jaw and rubbing his hand across his face as he let out a loud, frustrated sigh.
As he tried to calm down, Tala looked to see Olana and Faustin coming to inspect the commotion. She also noticed Marten with the other girls just watching the spectacle, though her son looked ill. She quickly made her way over to him to see what was going on.
"What happened?" Tala asked.
When the girls sheepishly shuffled in place, Marten very carefully started talking. "Quinton was... he was being m-mea... uh... M-Mama, I'm gonna be sick-" He then dropped to his knees and wavered side to side as he held his head.
Tala instantly panicked and knelt down beside him. "By the Gods! What's going on here?!"
"Marten hit his head on the back of this." Fenja finally said as she pointed to the base of the statue beside them.
Tala's eyes widened as she realized that he was nauseas from a concussion. She cast her Superior Convalescence spell and quickly placed her hands on his head. As she let the magic do its work, she listened to the other conversation happening ten feet away.
"A-Arkaed-dii b-bit me-e a-again!" Quinton sobbed to Olana as he clung to her skirting.
Instantly, the older Imperial woman grew angry. "Saewin, I appreciate everything you've done for our city, but if your daughter continues to torment these poor children, I don't know if she can be allowed to stay here anymore."
Saewin dropped his head in shame. "I'm terribly sorry, Olana." He calmly said. "I keep trying to have this discussion with her and I do discipline her. I understand she and Quinton don't get along, but I know that's no excuse-"
"No. It's not. These poor children have suffered enough, especially Quinton. They don't need a bully injuring them."
As the two adults went back and forth, Arkaedii still kept silent. She continued to sheepishly stand between them while a tear or two finally ran down her face. Periodically, she glanced at Quinton, whom was clutching his hand and leaning against Olana while the headmistress had a protective arm wrapped around him- though he did briefly stick out his tongue at her before returning to sniveling. As Tala's magicka helped let up the dizziness and nausea, Marten finally looked up and noticed her just standing there accepting the punishment.
'Why isn't she telling them she didn't start it?' He bewilderedly thought.
Tala noticed the expression of surprise on Marten's face and glanced at the scene in front of them for a moment before looking back at him. "Sweetheart? What's wrong?"
"A-Arkaedii wasn't the one... to start the fight." He managed to say out loud. "Quinton started it."
His words caught the attention of the arguing adults. While Saewin's interest peaked, Olana seemed miffed at the accusation. "What do you mean?" She asked. "Arkaedii always starts the fights."
"Quinton was the bully, not Arkaedii." Marten started to explain. "He called Arkaedii a freak and pulled on her ear and made her scream. When I tried to make him stop, he called my mom a freak for having blue hair, and when I told him to back off, he called me a Mama's boy and shoved me into the statue."
While Saewin's and Olana's eyes grew wide with surprise, Tala grew quiet. She was used to hearing people call her names, and despite having friends and family who loved her- blue hair and all- hearing others mock her was still an upsetting reminder of how different she looked. Today, the thing she was most upset about was that her young son tried to defend her honor and got hurt for it. She instantly felt regret for leaving him unattended and causing this drama.
"That's not true!" Quinton suddenly barked. "You tripped when I pushed you away! I was mad at you because you said you had parents and I didn't!"
While Olana instantly gasped in horror, Marten gasped out of surprise that Quinton just tried to skew the truth. "That's not what happened!"
"Yes it is!" Quinton argued.
"I told Quinton that I was sorry if us having parents made him upset and it was no reason to be mean to us!" Marten corrected. "That was mean to say, and I'm sorry for saying it. But he pushed me and made me hit my head on the statue and I was hurt and angry and I just wanted him to stop. He wouldn't stop bullying us."
"Nuh-uh!" Quinton retorted, hoping the adults would believe his quick denial.
"Even Fenja told him to stop and he just called her 'Plant Girl' and told her 'what are you going to do about it?'." Marten continued to explain. "And he threw a rock at Arkaedii and it hit her in the head. That's why she chased after him and bit him. She was just trying to make him leave her alone too. She told me he pushed her up against a wall earlier today and that's why she bit him the first time. She said she couldn't breathe so she did it to make him let go of her."
"She started it by taunting me!" Quinton spat.
"You started it by calling her names and pushing her around." Marten countered.
"You and Arkaedii ganged up on me!" Quinton tried to cry again.
"That's NOT what happened!"
"ENOUGH!" Olana shouted, settling the boys down. "Speak up. Who's telling the truth?"
"I have no reason to lie, Miss Olana." Marten started.
"I wasn't talking to you." Olana snipped. She then looked to Fenja and Faela beside him and repeated her question. "Girls, who's telling the truth? Speak up now."
While Faela seemed petrified at the idea of saying anything, Fenja nervously hesitated before answering. "M-Marten was telling the truth. Quinton started it... and he did call Marten's mom a freak and pushed him. He called Arkaedii a freak and pulled on her ears. He calls her names and pulls on her hair or ears and pushes her down a lot."
"N-no I didn't!" Quinton instantly rebuked. "She's lying!"
"See, miss Olana?" Faustin suddenly piped up. "I told you it's not Arkaedii starting the trouble."
"You tattletale!" Quinton hissed at the older Breton boy.
"Quinton, enough!" Olana scolded.
Saewin then looked down at his daughter. "Arkaedii," He calmly addressed, "is that all true?" When she looked up at her father and very subtly nodded, he added, "Why haven't you said that he was the one bullying you?"
"...'Cause when I bite him... miss Olana gets mad and I get in trou'le for it." She softly said.
Saewin blinked his eyes hard and opened them wide at Olana as he stared at her with a bewildered expression.
"I... I've never seen Quinton being the accuser..." Olana started to explain. "Every time there's a fight, she's the one shouting and kicking and biting. Quinton says she starts it. He... he's always been so good with me."
"He's good around you, miss Olana." Faustin corrected. "That's what I've been trying to tell you. He acts good around you and torments the girls when no adults are looking. Dalia and Faela he picks on every once in a while, but Arkaedii and Fenja are the biggest ones. Arkaedii doesn't know how to explain herself when she gets in trouble and Quinton can lie without her arguing. So he's good at making you believe she's the guilty one."
The headmistress's face was contorted with a mix of emotions. She didn't know who to believe. She then looked at Quinton, who's expression slowly went from meek and helpless to irritable and petulant. "I... I don't know what to day."
Once Tala's magicka reserves started to dwindle, she ceased her healing spell and stood up. She then looked to Quinton and decided to say something. "I think you owe my son an apology for pushing him." She very gently said to him. "And you owe Arkaedii and apology for being mean to her."
The Imperial boy scowled at her. "Stupid freaks." He sourly muttered under his breath. When Olana heard it and reacted with shock, he sardonically added, "Alright, I'm sorry, ok?!"
Tala narrowed her eyes at the boy. Clearly he wasn't sorry at all. "Well, I think you have your answer here."
The headmistress stared at Quinton as he crossed his arms and glowered at everyone. She was clearly beside herself. "I'm at a loss for words. I don't know where to even start."
Saewin gently set his hand on Arkaedii's shoulder. "You can start by forcing punishment on the right perpetrator. Clearly my daughter is not the troublemaker you think she is."
"Y-you're right. Consequences will be enforced."
Upon hearing this, Quinton let out an inaudible roar of anger and stomped off towards the orphanage. Faustin simply rolled his eyes and shook his head as he watched.
"I am deeply sorry for the trouble Quinton has caused to all of you." Olana spoke as she tried to compose her thoughts. "I knew his parents. They were very kind and generous people. When they passed away a couple of years ago, there wasn't any family to take Quinton in, so he came here. I could tell he was struggling with the idea of being in a strange place and feeling abandoned. I wanted to show him compassion. He's been such a good boy around me. I guess... I didn't notice his behavior towards the other children. I just thought they were ones picking on him... or at least that's what he had me believing. Forgive me for my blind ignorance."
Tala could sympathize with where Olana was coming from. She was somewhat of a bleeding heart herself, despite being harshly judged and bullied by people just like Quinton for as long as she could remember. Even though she wasn't happy that Marten had gotten hurt today, she was still grateful that someone as kind and caring as Olana was looking after these children when no one else did.
"Lady Tala," the older Imperial started, "I am more than happy to give you some coin to take to the chapel healer and have Marten's injury looked at. Consider it another apology on my behalf."
"That's not necessary." Tala replied with a soft shake of her head. "I'm well skilled in restoration magic. We're going to head to our room at the inn and get some rest." She then looked to Marten to silently ask if that was okay with him; he understood what she was looking for and nodded in agreement.
"I... I understand." Olana sadly said. She then looked to the other parent-child duo next to her and added, "Arkaedii, I'm sorry I was so harsh on you, my dear. If Quinton does anything to you again, please come to me. Don't bite anyone who's bullying you- you will still be punished if you bite. Tell me first, and I will handle it appropriately, understand?"
Arkaedii's eyes brightened up a little as she nodded. Seeing the little girl look less defeated and more hopeful made Marten smile and feel better than he spoke up and held his ground... and that the right adult had listened.
"I'm going to go in and figure out what to do about Quinton. Blessings of Akatosh to you." She then politely bowed her head as a parting gesture before turning around and heading back to the orphanage with Faustin and Faela in tow.
"I'm going to find Dalia and let her know we're not playing anymore." Fenja told Marten. "I hope your head feels better." She then ran towards the city district and started shouting for her friend.
Tala looked to Arkaedii and put her hands on her thighs to get a little closer to the girl's level. "Did you want me to take a look at your head?"
Arkaedii stared at her with uncertainty before she looked up at her father for reassurance.
"Does your head hurt from getting a stone thrown at you?" Saewin asked. She merely shrugged her shoulders with indifference. "Let her take a look anyway, just to make sure there isn't a bruise that will hurt tomorrow."
She shuffled over towards Tala and turned around to show her where the impact area was. Tala then cast her convalescence spell again and placed her hands above the spot. She took her time and did her best to slowly heal the injury, all while Arkaedii stared at her from the corner of her eyes... or more specifically, at her hair. Tala didn't mind; at least Arkaedii was silently staring and not being rude like Quinton. When Tala was done, she brushed her hand along the spot to see if the little girl would flinch from pain; when she didn't, Tala gave her the okay to go back to Saewin.
"It's nice to meet you, Arkaedii." Tala decided to say. "I'm Tala. I'm Marten's mom."
When Arkaedii shyly waved, her father looked to Marten and introduced himself as well. "I'm Arkaedii's father, Saewin. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Marten."
"That's a neat way to say 'nice to meet you'. I like it." Marten said with a smile. "It's a pleasure to make your ac-quaint-ance, too."
Saewin softly chuckled. "You're a very smart young boy. And you have a very kind heart like your mother. I appreciate you defending Arkaedii. Though, my sincerest apologies to hear about the bump on the head you sustained in the process."
"It's okay." Marten replied. "It feels better now that my mom helped. My... my head still hurts a little, but at least I don't feel sick anymore."
"That's good. You really should listen to your mother and lie down for the rest of the day. It will help with the head pain."
Marten nodded, though his eyes held a bit of dullness to them. "I'm kinda hungry though. Could I eat some dinner before I lay down?"
"Yes, of course, sweetheart." Tala replied. "Let's head to the inn. Saewin, Arkaedii, would you like to accompany us?"
Saewin looked to his daughter, who in turn looked back at him with pleading eyes. Clearly that was a yes. "We would love to join." He concurred.
"Terrific! Let's go then." She then turned to head to the inn with Marten at her side and their new friends trailing behind.
Upon entering the inn, Athrelor cheerfully greeted, "Welcome back, great Hero of Kvatch! It's always a pleasure to be graced with your presence!"
'Uhg, again with the loud praising.' Tala silently groused.
Athrelor spotted Saewin behind her and then commented, "Ah, Saewin! Delighted to see you as well! I'll be with you in a minute."
"Actually, the Hero of Kvatch and I are together." Saewin commented. "We are treating our children to dinner. Arkaedii will have her usual cheese bread and blackberry juice, and I'll take the corn beef and a bottle of mead."
"Oh! Splendid! And how about you, valiant Hero?"
"Tala, please." The blunette slightly begged. "And, if it's all possible, I'd love to know what kind of meals and drinks are available?"
"We have corn beef, obviously." Athrelor happily answered. "There's also cooked crab, or vegetable soup, or venison stew. For drinks, we have wine and mead. And for the children, we have blackberry juice, or warmed spiced milk. And for dessert, we have a very nice apple dumpling or pumpkin fritter!"
"A bowl of venison stew sounds good. As does a glass of wine. Tamika's or Surilie Brothers?"
"Tamika's." Athrelor simply replied.
"Perfect. Thank you very much. Marten, what would you like?"
"Venison stew, too... and warm spice milk. Could... could I get the pumpkin fritter for dessert?"
"You may." Tala replied, emphasizing the correct word to simply remind him of proper phrasing. He quickly made an embarrassed wince, indicating that he remembered and realized what he said.
"Splendid!" Athrelor repeated. "I'll have those to you at your table in a few minutes. I also want to let you know that I had your room rearranged to accommodate what you were asking. The two beds are separated for you and your young guest here."
"Thank you again." She replied. She then turned to Saewin. "I think Marten and I should get out of our armor and into some more common clothing for the rest of the day. We'll head upstairs real quick and find a table."
Saewin simply nodded. Tala then gestured to Marten to follow her upstairs to find their room. While they waited, the Scout decided to take care of his business.
"I've found some Tamika's vintage wine while I was on my travels." Saewin remarked to the innkeeper. "Some from the four-fifteen selection."
Athrelor's eyes widened with delight. "Oh! I'm interested in any bottles you've found! How many?"
"Just two." He simply replied.
Saewin then dropped his large bag and pulled out a smaller bag from the top of the pile inside. He removed two wine bottles wrapped thickly in cloth and unwound them to show to the innkeeper. When the Bosmer was delighted with the condition, they conducted their monetary business. After he tucked his coin purse away, Saewin turned to his daughter.
"When Tala and Marten come down, follow them to a table. I've got to take some things to Batul before she closes shop. I'll be back in a few minutes." He instructed. Arkaedii simply nodded in response.
"I've got an eye on her, Saewin." Athrelor assured.
The hooded mer nodded once in gratitude before stepping out of the inn. Shortly after, Tala and Marten came down in their civilian attire: Tala in her Warlock outfit, and Marten in his "town appropriate" outfit consisting of rough leather shoes and black wide pants; his shirt was a clean blue tunic with gold patterned trim on the v-neck collar, short sleeves, and bottom, with a black leather belt tied snugly around his waist. When Arkaedii saw them, she very slowly followed behind Marten into the dining area.
Tala led the kids to a large table in the back of the room near the fireplace, figuring it had plenty of seating for four. While Marten sat on the right of his mother, Arkaedii took the chair directly across from her chaperone without saying a word. While they waited, Marten focused on admiring the large talon from the Great Gate that was now mounted against the wall beside the fireplace, and a part of her couldn't help but stare at it as well. It did remind Tala of when she first came to Kvatch... as well as all the memories that came after it. Over the years, she still couldn't help but look back on those days and wonder how she ever managed to survive as a simple little Nightblade who became the Champion of Cyrodiil. And other days, she knew everything that led her down that path of fate was all part of Akatosh's plan, and then she'd wonder what He saw in her to choose her as His agent of justice against Mehrunes Dagon. And in thinking of the pending doom that has fallen on Cyrodiil now, she wondered if she was truly worthy to be His agent again.
She was suddenly broken out of her memory trance when Arkaedii finally said something. "Why is your hair blue?"
Tala looked at her and smiled. "I was born with blue hair."
"Did your mommy or daddy have blue hair?"
"No. Just me."
"...Why?"
"I don't know. Neither did my mom or dad. My dad was an alchemist... like Fenja's mom. He thought that maybe my hair was blue because of something he mixed together before I was born."
"...Oh." She softly commented. Then she added, "Your eyes are blue like your hair."
"Yes, they are." Tala concurred as her faint smile grew a little wider.
"You both have the same eyes." She said, referring to both mother and son sitting across from her.
"Yes, we do." Tala replied with a soft, warm chuckle.
"They're pretty."
"Aww, thank you." Tala sweetly said.
"Daddy says I have my mommy's eyes too."
Tala's smile faltered a little. Hearing that made her realize how difficult that must be for Saewin. To see his wife's eyes in their daughter... it had to be both a comfort and a torture. She struggled with that same pain. As Marten was getting older, she could see that Jauffre had been right when he told her that her son was going to look exactly like his father. He would softly smile and she'd feel as if Martin was looking back at her. Some days it was a blessing to know that she could see him through their son. Other days it was a painful reminder that he wasn't here anymore. She was sure that if she struggled with that inner turmoil, Saewin probably went through the same thing.
Before Tala could say anything else, Athrelor came to the table with a tray of food and all of their drinks. He set down a small loaf of bread top-sliced with melted cheese inside in front of Arkaedii, and then he set down her juice and Marten's warmed spice milk. Next, he placed a bottle of mead and the Tamika's 415 vintage in front of Tala.
"Your venison stew will be ready in a moment." He gleefully said as he pulled out two empty glasses from his back pockets and set them down. "Saewin's meal will be brought out when he returns. That vintage wine was purchased from Saewin, but I am giving it to you as your wine selection for the night. Compliments on the house!"
"Thank you." Tala graciously said. Marten repeated the phrase of gratitude as well.
While Arkaedii enjoyed her food, Tala and Marten just sipped on their drinks. After a couple of minutes of silence, Tala noticed that her boy was staring rather dolefully into his cup.
"Are you okay, sweetheart?" She asked him.
He hesitated for the longest moment before he wistfully responded. "I feel bad that I said that mean thing to Quinton. I don't know what made me think to say something like that. But when he pushed me and I hit my head on the statue, it hurt really bad... worse than when I fell out of the tree last year. And I was so mad at him that I just wanted him to stop. I... I don't know what's wrong with me."
Tala sorrowfully frowned. "Oh, Marten. Nothing's wrong with you." She tried to console. "It's like you said, you were hurt and you wanted him to stop. Sometimes we say things we don't mean when we're hurt."
"But... I... I did mean it. That's what makes me feel bad. Fenja said that Faustin told her Quinton was being mean and 'acting out' because he missed his parents. And when Fenja or Faela didn't want to tell anyone or stand up to him for being mean and were going to not let Arkaedii play because he said so... and then he started saying all those mean things and shoved me... I suddenly knew that if I mentioned it, he would leave us alone. That was so mean to do... but I didn't know what else to do. I'm used to an adult telling a mean kid to behave. But I didn't want to say nothing, and Arkaedii not play with us because a bully said so. But I... I just feel like a bad person." He then grew quiet as the depressed look on his face just got more intense.
Tala placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry that happened to you. But you're not a bad person for trying to get a bully to leave you alone. It was just handled poorly, but at least you're seeing your mistakes and you know you won't do it again. There are other behaviors that make someone bad. Those bandits we met after leaving Skingrad? Those were bad people. You know how your Dad and I are always telling you not to get too close to Hackdirt? That's because the people there say and do mean things to others and they don't care if it hurts someone. Those are bad people, too."
They both grew quiet when Athrelor brought two bowls of venison stew to their table. Neither one of them touched their spoons as they contemplated what was said. Arkaedii continued to rip bites of cheesy bread and eat it with her bare hands as she intently watched them from the other side of the table. Tala noticed her fingers and face were covered in cheese; she then took her napkin and leaned over the table and proceeded to wipe Arkaedii's chin in an attempt to clean off the cheese before it got too sticky.
Eventually, Marten asked another question. "Bad people don't pretend to be good people to hurt others, do they?"
Tala quickly took her eyes off of Arkaedii to stare at him in surprise. She wasn't expecting to hear that out of him, at least not at seven years old. 'Wow. That's a pretty loaded question. But I guess I should give him an honest response.' "Well... yes. Some do."
"How can you tell if they're bad people?"
Again, a loaded question. Tala struggled to find the right words to say that were easy for him to understand. Although at this point, if he was smart enough to ask the question, he could be able to understand the answer. "It's difficult to learn. Usually it's trial and error. Sometimes you're not always able to notice a person with ill intensions, and you still get hurt. But you learn from your mistakes, and you learn to see a bad person when they try to pretend to be good."
Marten furrowed his brow at her. She could tell he didn't quite follow. She figured she wasn't doing a good job of answering the question.
"It's tricky to explain, sweetheart. But I can say I've definitely been hurt by bad people many times. As has your Dad, and Uncle Reynald and Aunt Jena, and even Aunt Eyja. We all have. But just because there are a few bad apples, that doesn't mean there aren't plenty of sweet ones out there. You've bitten into your fair share of rotting apples off an apple tree, right?" Marten nodded. "So even if you have bitten into a few rotten apples, that doesn't mean the whole tree is rotten. It just means you need to get better at looking for the sweet ones so you don't bite another bad apple again. Does that make sense?"
Marten looked away from her for a moment as he tried to let her analogy sink in; it took him a solid minute before he conclusively nodded. Whether he fully understood or not, she wasn't sure. But this was definitely a lesson for another day.
"I don't like apples." Arkaedii commented. "They taste funny when they're yellow, and they have worms in them."
Tala chuckled. "Not every apple has worms in them. And that's another good example to use. Apples with worms are easy to look for. You just have to see the holes in the apple to know not to eat it. And yellow apples mean they're not ready yet. People can be like yellow, unripened apples. If you give them the right environment to grow and give them time, then someday they'll be red and sweet. But in the wrong soil and not enough nurturing, and the apple can become rotten. Does that make sense?"
"I think I get it." Marten said.
"I don't." Arkaedii grumbled. "Apples just taste funny and Quinton's just a meanie."
Tala chuckled at the girl's comment. In thinking of the analogy, she had her moments where she felt like Arkaedii and thought apples were indeed 'funny-tasting' and should just be avoided altogether. As the years have gone by and life has worn her down, Tala's apathy started to grow. It took work for her to continue to practice her mother's motto of 'Good deeds lead to good things.' While her kind heart and sense of morality still felt compelled to help where help was needed, she couldn't resist having fleeting thoughts of wanting to quit the Fighters Guild and stay home with her family until the end of her days. She was sure an attitude like that wasn't endearing to the Nine while she was on this pilgrimage, but those feelings of burn-out were one of the many reasons that made Tala not want to dedicate her every waking hour to visiting the wayshrines to begin with. If she was meant to be some sort of 'Divine Crusader', then the Gods will accept that she had to do what was asked on her own time.
"I know that wasn't a very fun experience for the both of you," Tala decided to say, "but remember you were having a little fun before it happened. And we can still have more fun for the rest of the day. Fun times can outweigh the bad times."
She then patted Marten's shoulder before grabbing her spoon and taking a few bites of her stew, to which Marten did the same. After another couple of minutes of eating in silence, Athrelor returned to their table shortly after and made a point to chat.
"How's everything tasting so far?" He asked.
"It's delightful." Tala replied.
"Splendid! I just wanted to let you know that your dinner has been paid for and you do not owe me anything when you are done."
Tala's friendly smile faded. "Please, let me pay you. You do not have to give us a free meal."
"Oh no-no! I mean your tab was paid by someone else! Compliments of an admirer."
Tala's sapphire eyes rapidly blinked in disbelief. "An admirer?" When Athrelor nodded, she added, "So the whole tab was paid? Including Saewin's and Arkaedii's meals? And the pumpkin fritter for the kids?"
"Yes." The innkeeper delightfully said. "And should you need anything else, don't hesitate to ask!"
"T-thank you." Tala absentmindedly said, concluding the conversation.
After Athrelor walked away and returned to his counter, she looked around the room at the other people dining. Just who was the mystery admirer? The older Imperial man from earlier was still there, but he seemed disinterested in anything beyond his drink. The Altmer was gone, but there was an older Breton gentleman with sandy blond hair eating some cooked crab at the next table. Then the black-haired Nord from earlier came down the stairs; he glanced her way for a second before walking over to Athrelor at the counter. Any of them could be the person responsible for paying for their meals. Or perhaps Saewin paid for everything when he conducted his business with Athrelor and asked him to keep it private? It started to consume her thoughts as she took more bites of her stew. By the time her bowl was halfway down, Tala started to let it go and accept the idea that she'll probably never know.
And then, she felt a tap on her shoulder.
.
.
.
A/N 8-7-2022: And another chapter done in time for the new month! I know it was long and filled with a lot of talk, but we're in a slow period while Tala and Marten are in Kvatch, so I figured better to have one long chapter with almost all of the conversations rather than short chapters of nothing but talk. The action will continue in due time. Hope everyone enjoyed the chapter, even if I did end it on a cliff hanger! x3