When the storm began, Vaeri pulled up the cloak of her robe over her head. As the rain fell, her desire for conversation was suppressed, just as the soft mud beneath of the wheels of the wagon were. The water would ruin any book she attempted to read, so she spent her time looking through the trees of the forest. She did know what exactly she was searching for. Possible threats, passing wildlife, the scouting party, something out of the ordinary. No, nothing like that. Perhaps observing was enough. It didn't matter what she observed, for she knew instinctively that everything see saw now, all that the rain touched would disappear in an instant. The trees, the horses, the wagon, her companions. All these things would be gone before she could finish blinking. Perhaps if she was lucky she would be able to stick around long enough for a few more blinks, but then she too would vanish.

A drop of frigid rain fell directly onto Vaeri's eye, the sharp cold sensation returned her back to the present. The drop was a small thing, but a reminder that right now she could enjoy the small pleasures and be irritated by the little pricks. She looked up and saw the pillar of golden light and heard Sana's voice. It appeared that they had found some measure of protection from the elements, which would be a good things since she noticed that her clothes and armor were almost entirely soaked through. Today was not the right day to wear a shirt that was nearly white.

Hugh nodded to Fiona, his attention being diverted towards the sky, observing the thick bulbous clouds forming, all a dark gray that made the day turn darker. The light was slowly fading and drops began to fall overhead.

Hugh felt them slowly picking up the pace, as the downpour began to get stronger and stronger. Their vision was soon hindered by the rain as it became so thick, that everyone was sopping wet within minutes. Hugh simply stared at the ground, watching the path as they journeyed further ahead.

He always felt it strangely therapeutic to stand in the rain as it washed over him. Their journey was soon aided by a song and then a beam of light ahead of them. It was causing Hugh to develop tunnel vision, as he felt slightly warmer at the thought that Sana would be there waiting for them all.

He was starting to care less and less about the fact that they were having a little bit of trouble speaking to each other, or whatever this distant feeling was. He just wanted to look on her face again and smile. He just wanted to take in her features and listen to her voice as she spoke and sang.

As their journey towards the light grew shorter, Hugh could make out the form guiding them. His features seemed to relax the closer they got, he pushing forward at a steady pace. He felt a little nip and a shiver from the cold every now and then, but he would just shake it off and it wouldn't bother him until the next slight shiver.

Finally, they came to a halt as so did the singing and the light, and Sana spoke, her words comforting to them all.

There Hugh sat upright on Rodger, the rain soaking both of them. He kept his gaze on Sana as she gave him a smile that made him happier. This was the sincere smile he liked. He never could take a fake smile, and this was no fake smile.

Hugh patted Rodger's neck, "Thank you again, Rodger." He slipped off the horse, landing with a splash and a thud, slightly bending his knees. He turned away from his horse to face Sana, a calm look on his face.

For a moment he smiled, but it faded as he started to think on the pain she was going through. She had lost everything; Hugh knew the feeling far too well. He would never wish that on anyone.

He had never known his parents, or even if he had them. He only knew the comradeship of the order, but it had been taken from him in an instant. His only family. When he thought he found refuge and a peaceful life somewhere else, that was also taken from him.

He knew pain and desperation more than the average person should, and had lived a life that felt like a curse; a curse to relive all the pain over and over again, like some benevolent god's sick joke.

He didn't want Sana to feel that. He didn't want her to go through that, but it was too late. There she was, standing before him, showing him a sincere smile and just how strong she was.

"I..." He stopped, his heart slightly pounding as he was so unsure how to go about this. "I'm sorry..." He started, pausing to gather more words. "I'm so sorry you had to go through losing everything." Sighing, a sullen glum look across his face as he reflected on how he had completely missed how she had told him yesterday about her family dying. "I'm so sorry I said nothing yesterday. That's unforgivable and I should have known better than to have left it in the dust, and just..." Pausing, his face turning more sullen and depressed looking, "...ignored your pain."

Hugh stepped forward, putting his hand to her face and gently tracing the scars across her cheek and neck. "You're beautiful." He said, a content smile suddenly appearing on his face.

Sana watched as the group approached, grateful that they had arrived and that it seemed their day had been much more peaceful than the day before. Watching Hugh her hands clasped together beneath her cloak, knuckles white from the pressure as clutched together. She perked a brow as he dismounted Rodger and came over to her, thinking he would rather move out of the rain and into shelter before they spoke; both of them standing there soaking wet as the rain poured down and the chill in the air was most likely not pleasant to anyone but Sana at that time. The cool air was the only thing that brought relief from the burns.

Seeing him smile brought both relief and anxiety. Relief because she never took joy in seeing anything but a smile on his lips but the anxiety was there; fearful that he still was oblivious to her pains and fears. Then the smile faded and she became worried for reason she did not know, other than the unknown. Her breath caught as he spoke, not sure what was happening at first but as his words continued she was finally able to breath again. It wasn't everything she was upset and worried about but it was a start.

"Thank you," she said in a soft voice with a gentle smile on her lips. As he reached forward and touched her scars she pulled back quickly, cringing in pain from his fingers on the burns. Her hand came up and grabbed his wrist, shaking her head. "Please don't, that hurts," she admitted. Reaching out she took his other hand and placed it to the other side of her face and neck where there were no scars. "This side," she said with a pained chuckle. She wasn't mad at him for touching her, it was a simple mistake and something they would both need to remember to be careful about from now on.

"And as far as being beautiful, well duh, I know I'm hot. More now than ever and don't you forget it," she taunted like she did on many occasions with him. Reaching up she cupped the side of his cheek and sighed. "I'm scared," she whispered as she gazed into his eyes. It wasn't something that was easy for her to admit because it was not something she felt often. She tended to run towards danger and fear never hindered her but then it felt crippling. "Of you," she added. She wanted to explain but she waited to see if he would understand why because it was not something she was sure she could put into words.

Fiona was no stranger to the cold or the rain, but she enjoyed neither, and soon found herself completely soaked, her red hair darkened and dripping down onto her. It wasn't too long, though, before Sana's impressive beacon of light, created from her song, guided them to their resting point for the night. A useful power, to be sure; Fiona had been worried that they might lose their scouts, with how terrible the visibility became at one point. Seeing Sana, she waved in greeting.

She smiled as Sana and Hugh reunited, seemingly with more success than they split up with that morning. Fiona had been about to compliment Sana on her new found magical talent, but decided it was best not to interrupt the moment she seemed to be having with Hugh. Trying to catch Tobias's gaze, she gestured with her head down the path they were supposed to take the wagon.

"Come on, let's get out of the rain," she suggested, leading the way for the wagon. It would be a tight fit in places, but if Tobias was an adequate driver he could avoid getting stuck on anything. At the mouth of the cave, she greeted Derrix with a wave, walking her horse until she no longer felt drops of rain hitting her head, at which point she dismounted. It was an excellent shelter, as far as she could see. A good find on the part of their scouts.

Untying her bedroll from the saddle, she picked a suitable spot and laid it out so that it could dry. It wasn't entirely soaked through, but would need some time. The blankets in her saddlebags were entirely dry, thankfully. Fiona's hands were shaking slightly from the cold as they fumbled with the straps holding her armor to her. In short order she had it off and laid out neatly next to her bed roll. Her jacket was next to be unlaced and laid aside; the shirt underneath was drenched, but she kept that on, pulling a blanket from her bags and wrapping it around herself.

The rain was so heavy, that Hugh kept having to blink his eyes to get it out. He would feel a small shiver creep up his spine every now and then, causing him to shudder a small bit. He would only shake off the cold and go back to normal as though the cold didn't affect him. The trick to mastering the cold was to understand that you would never feel comfortable with it, especially when wet. Hugh learned a long time ago to embrace discomfort.

Hugh's smile suddenly turned to a look of worry as Sana cringed in pain at his touch. He felt stupid, "No, I didn't-" Before he could say anything, she had grabbed his hand and placed it on the other side of her face, bringing the smile back to grace his features.

Her words made him laugh, slightly squinting his eyes as he chuckled. His laughter ceased when he felt the soothing touch of her hand against his face. He would have formed a smile, if not for her words "I'm scared". "What?" He said, a look of concern on his face. His face soon became very glum and his attitude sullen, as he took in her answer.

"Of you."

It made him feel like he got kicked in the stomach. It was also confusing. There she was, not shying from his touch, and even cupping his face with her hand, but she said he scared her.

His eyes trailed downwards as he thought on this concept, thinking back to the previous days. He was confused on what had brought about this. He knew she had seen his moment of terror during the fight that had taken so much of his blood. Perhaps that was it. Perhaps it was for the child Arianna's sake, that he would not be good to her. He didn't understand, because he would take care of the little one with the tender loving care of a father whenever they returned to her.

"How do I frighten you?" He said, stepping closer to her, a hair's touch from her. All he knew was that he needed to understand this and listening was the answer.

Vaeri hopped off the wagon as Tobias approached the entrance of the cave, preferring to walk in herself. She looked in, taking it a lungful of the pleasant smoke. The contrast of the warmth of the cave and the rain outside only furthered to make this place feel far more welcoming than the storm outside. The first thing Vaeri did was wring out all the water in her long hair, splattering all over the floor. She then found a nice spot of cave by the fire and looked in her bag to find that all her other changes of clothes soaked as well.

Of course.

Vaeri removed her cloak and laid it out on the cave floor. Then she set about removing her armor and giving them their own spot to dry. Last, with some hesitance, she removed her shirt and laid it out closer to the fire than the rest of her gear. Vaeri's beasts were not large, only being slight protrusions from her chest that could be missed if you weren't paying attention. More notable was the characteristics of her body. Every part of it looked hard and rough, like an oak tree taken womanly form. With every move she made, a hint of muscle popped out somewhere not quite congruent of where it would be on a human. There were scars on her torso, but they were larger, and significantly fewer than anywhere else on her body, perhaps 5 in total. In irritable, wet, half-nakedness she sat by the fire, one arm draped across her chest, trying to dry off as quickly as possible.

Sana gazed up into his eyes as she watched the confusion set in and the knot returned to the pit of her stomach; he truly didn't know what her biggest fear was, that or it just had not dawned on him yet. She stood there, her heart pounding in her chest as he stepped closer and she tried to form the words to help him understand. She wasn't sure how to go about it. Sana was not a particularly delicate woman and when frustration set in she had a tendency to snap or ramble or both. She didn't want to hurt him with her words but there was no way to put it delicately so she opted for the most direct route. It was perhaps the most painful but at lesst it would be over with quickly, at least she hoped it would.

"I..." she started and felt herself begin to stumble over her words. Taking a deep breath she just let it all out as quickly as possible. "I am afraid, after seeing how you acted around Ariana and seemed to block everything out, including my pain and my change, which to be honest is pretty obvious considering I can cast magic now and you know very well that is something I have never been able to do. But yeah, I am scared of you. You had a wife and a family before and well, I was supposed to be a courtesan. Well, duh, you know that, why I am repeating it now it beyond me. I dunno, effect? Well yeah, you know I never wanted to be a replacement to your wife and that's a fear I live with every day... Cause, well if she hadn't died we wouldn't be here today. So damn it, I always feel like I was a fluke, you know. That, be alone if this horrific event hadn't happened. But yeah, now Ariana is here and you're acting like this whole fuzzy warm and cozy family. Which is sweet, but it scares the fuck out of me. I mean well damn it, we never spoke marriage or kids or anything, hell you've never asked me to marry you or even said you loved me. I mean I think you love me but even a brute woman like me wants to hear it. I mean hell, you're the love of my life and I'm maybe runner up? Yeah, that's right, I love your stubborn thickheaded ass. Deal with it. And I'm scared now that Ariana is here, well that this whole family scenario is going to play out and I'll never know if it is because you truly love me or it is just because I am some fucking replacement and you are just tying to get back what you lost and live in the past. So yeah, I'm scared, petrified. Well not petrified cause I am standing here rambling in the rain but terrified. That's why I am scared of you, I'm scared in the end I will just truly end up being the courtesan I have been trying to never be. The second choice, the fill in. The replacement."

Sana rambled everything off so quickly, stumbling over words here and there but she managed to get it out. Perhaps there was more, perhaps not but that what was forefront in her mind and what needed to be dealt with first. She braced herself for the retort, what he would say or do. She was afraid he would yell, or be angry but most of all she was afraid he would walk away or confirm her fears. She stood there though as the rain poured down, ready to take what ever was thrown at her.

“They worshipped the bitch of the moon,” a scratchy voice echoed in the ear of the youth.

The young teenager, not yet old enough to grow even his chin hairs looked up at the ragged soldier who spoke, his young blue eyes studying his master of arms. The gruff man had long pepper hair and a beard to match, and yet despite his elder age, thick corded arms of muscle protruded from a cape fashioned out of the hide of a bear.

The boy pointed to what the man was studying, a mess of crimson and flashes of pearly bones, “cold blooded?”

“Warm,” The man corrected, “it was in honor, despite their dishonorable nature.”

“No name,” the man continued, snapping the boy’s attention back to him, “wipe off your blade, it’s better no one questions us.”

The unnamed boy looked down at his shaking hand that held a long thin blade, dripping with scarlet. He brought up the fringe of his tunic and slowly wiped one side of the blade before flipping it over.

As he did this rhythmically, his curious eyes began to wander around the dark room. A statue of a woman holding a crescent caught his eye. Her form was wrapped in a stone robe, and only visible by the light of the stars breaking through the shattered glass windows and illuminating the dust motes.

“This was a church,” the boy murmured.

“A den of liars and heathens, bitch worshipers,” the bearded man nearly laughed as he spoke his final words.

The statue’s eyes blinked, and a cold horror split the head of the boy as he watched it raise it’s arm from its resting place. Slowly the stone figure started to wave.

Derrix blinked, and the stony hand turned to Fiona’s. The man inhaled sharply, as he remembered he sat in a cave. The chill of the stone under the clovers cooled his bum, and with his armor safely put away in its own packs on Charroux, the cold air of the storm nipped his bare arms and through his thin tunic, spreading goosebumps across his scarred body.

He looked down to the thin knife he held in his hand that hovered over the half skinned boar, a gaping hole in its neck from a firm arrow shot. The beast glistened with wet blood as he had been preparing it. He took the fringe of his tunic and wiped one side of the knife before flipping it over in his hand, “hello.” he said in a hollow tone to the swarming group of travelers.

The man looked over at Vaeri set up by the fire and acknowledged her nudity with a blink. His eyes then snapped to the soaked Fiona. He shook his head and slowly rose from his spot by the boar, and disappeared into the shimmering shower of the storm.

He returned quickly, shaking off the water from his broad shoulders, and holding folded fabric under his arms protectively. With a small curved smile, he knelt by Fiona and handed one of the light green fabrics to her, revealing it to be a spare tunic of his.

With a curt nod, he left it by her before wandering over to Vaeri. He respectfully kept his eyes level with hers as he knelt by her, extending his arm and holding out a dry shirt.

---

For a long time, Drizzak had simply been mulling over his own thoughts and debating internally after speaking with Sister Agnes in the dead of the night, away from the judging ears of the others. What was with these beads that she gave him? They were warm, and soothing. They tasted terrible, and for the longest time he thought they were a circlet, but he eventually settled for wrapping them around his arm and tying them there. They looked nice enough. Not enough teeth, or steel for his liking, but they would do for now. They made him feel a bit better.

The rest of his time had been spent scratching at his wounds as they healed over, the same flecks of gold showing through from the peculiar healing potion. These tall ones brewed their potions different to goblins. No rat in them at all, or any of the mixer's spit. How strange. He liked it. What he didn't like was the ragged wetness of his clothing and furs. The rain had not been kind to him on the trip to the cave. He was so caught up in thought that he hadn't noticed the chill of the wind and rain until it was practically biting at his bones. He sneezed rather loud as he plodded over to the fire and simply fell into a laying down position. He was tired. Worn out. There were others here, holy priest Vaeri, fighter Fiona and another man named Derrix that Drizzak had not been introduced to, but had heard the name of in passing. They had similar names, perhaps they could be friends.

Vaeri's nudity passed through his mind from one ear and out the other, paying it no moment of deliberation. The same for Fiona. People were naked all the time, Goblins even more so. Back in his clan, others barely even wore loincloths around the huts and food-pits. It explained why when he eventually began to strip himself of the water-heavy furs, he did not hesitate in leaving himself in nothing but a loincloth. Then he fell back into laying down. He stunk of smoke and blood. His skin was clammy and damp where it was normally craggy and tough, but inside he felt warm. He was riddled with cut, stab and scrape scars, some on his face and shoulders a bit more fresh than the others. But that didn't matter to him right now. Just a matter of time before he was warm all over.

Drizzak turned to the others.

"All people okay?"

Fiona was quickly realizing that she didn't have to deal with this sort of thing while traveling alone. Even in the week or so she'd spent with Tobias they hadn't been caught in any rainstorms, and always found a place that allowed her some privacy to change when she needed to. A tree, if nothing else. Here there was just the cave, warm and dry, and the storm outside. Apparently Vaeri wasn't bothered by the company.

Derrix must have noticed her shivering, as he brought her a fresh tunic, of a light green color. "Thank you," she said quietly to him, smiling as he nodded and went over to Vaeri. Fiona had spare clothes of her own in her saddlebags, but thought that the heat of the fire and the lack of rain in the cave would dry her off quickly enough. Not in the habit of refusing generosity, though, she took the tunic, and laid it where she could easily reach.

"I'm alright, Drizzak. Thank you for asking." She smiled encouragingly at the goblin. In all honesty, she'd expected a much more unpleasant experience from traveling with him, but he seemed to be making an effort to be quite well mannered around them. It was surprising, and not at all in a bad way. Keeping the blanket around her, Fiona methodically unlaced her drenched tunic and slipped out of it, the garment emerging from underneath the blanket and dropping to the ground, where Fiona grabbed the fresh one and pulled it in. It was a little big for her, naturally, but it was dry, and that was the important part.

When she was done, there was the lower half to deal with. Her boots she untied quickly enough, tossing them off to the side. The cave floor was soft enough for her bare feet, thankfully. After that she stood and pulled off the blanket, setting it down neatly. There was no real effective way to do this, so she decided it was best to just get it over with. She unbuckled her belt and let set it down, then tugged off her soaked leggings, which clung to her skin. Her smallclothes at least prevented her from being entirely nude for the brief moment. That done, she laid them out with the rest of her clothes, and threw the blanket back on for warmth. Bare legs protruding from beneath it, Fiona made her way over to the fireside, and sat down, enjoying the warmth.

Vaeri accepted the shirt from Derrix with her free hand, she nodded at him in silent appreciation of the gesture. With one hand she fumbled to get the shirt on, but managed to get it on in less than a minute. The last thing she did as she adjusted the shirt was pull out her necklace from underneath the shirt. Even while topless she had kept on her holy symbol. Derrix's shirt was large on her. It may have even been possible to fit another one of her in this shirt and the neck line was designed for a large man lead to it hanging down to show off a bit more of her chest than Vaeri would normally (none at all). However, it was dry and warm, which is all that mattered.

Vaeri reclined back to allow her pants and feet to better dry as she pondered Drizzak's question. While there certainly evil and unholy people in the world, most of them probably did not think of themselves as such. And they almost certainly would have some measure in good in them, affection for loved ones, an ideal they held dear, but did that make them good? And were they irredeemably evil? Are some people simply born evil, or did the circumstances surrounding them drive them to it? These questions were cut off when Fiona replied she was fine.

"Oh. That is what you meant. I am feeling sufficiently well. I've been better."

Hugh nodded along with everything Sana said, uncertain how to respond, but letting her know constantly that he was listening. He was hard focusing his mind on everything she said, so much so that when she finally was finished he was slightly tongue tied. He couldn't help but grin at when she told him she loved him, as he was hoping to say the words first. The pleasure had been swiftly taken from him, but he was by no means angry. On the contrary, he felt pride.

However, at her other words, pertaining to her fears his facial expressions sunk to be more sullen. It was a roller coaster of facial expressions for him.

It's never easy to move on from a love of the past, like a wife one raised children with, but Hugh had done it long ago. However, there was something people never truly understood if they hadn't someone like that of their own before. Hugh would always love his former wife, but it was hard to explain to someone that took it as them being a second love. He had grown at peace with the fact that he had lost her and didn't wish her back in his arms again, choosing instead to live and move forward.

What could it be said of a man whom did not love their wife after she passed on? Only ill things could be presumed from a man such as that, and Hugh was not that man. Hugh had always loved his former wife, but love was not a finite resource. There was no limit to how much Hugh could love. It might be said that he still loved his wife but let her go and allowed her memory to be at rest. He wasn't holding on to her, only leaving it be, better having lost and loved than to have never loved at all.

He had never sought out a replacement or a new flavor, nor did he ever expect to find a girl like Sana. All he sought was to live, to heal, and even preserve by his very existence those he had lost. He was the memory of another time and he was what kept them all alive.

"I love you." He finally said, breaking his silence. "You're not a replacement. I'm not holding you to any standard." With a smile coming across his face, he finally said, "I love you for you, as you are. Not for what someone else was or someone else means to me. I love you for you."

Finally a more serious look came across his face as he put his hand to the back of his own head and scratched it, looking downward. "No one can replace my wife, no one ever will." He looked into her eyes, "I'm never going to ask that of you. I've never, and never will ask that of anyone to replace her." Giving a sigh, Hugh said "You're irreplaceable. You could never be a replacement. You're so beautifully unique."

"We don't need to get a family and settle down to a peaceful existence. We might even die adventuring. Maybe Ariana will grow up dropping bodies and kicking ass." He sighed, a small sheepish smile appearing across his face. "I'm glad I'm here with you. I wouldn't have it any other way." He didn't know what else to say. He couldn't respond to her every concern, he could just hope that showing his love and affection for her everyday was enough.

The rain poured down around them, the only break from the squall was the canopy above them as the storm continued; the thunder rolling through the trees as the ground shook when lightning would strike off in the distance. Sana stood there, frozen in place as she looked at Hugh, more afraid of what he would say and how he would react to her words than anything the heavens could throw at her right then. Droplets of water rolling down her features, clinging to her lashes and lips as she slowly pulled her hand back from his cheek. What she had said had not been kind, nor had it been cruel. It was simply her voicing what had been fighting within her for so long, a pain she had lived with since she learned of his past. When she had originally she was taken back, but he had helped with that fear then a little and she had decided to see what would happen over time.

It seemed like an eternity passed before he finally spoke and she was not sure what to think about the expressions that had crossed his face. Worry was plastered on her features as she stood there, shivering not from the cold but from anticipation. As he spoke the worry faded and a small smile broke across her lips; though not all the worry was gone from her eyes. It was still clear that even with what he had said she was still very concerned. She wished his words bought her peace and quelled all her fears but she knew that would not happen, not in one small conversation, perhaps never. She was not sure. There was still so much she was worried about and she would give anything to just have it fade away but with everything else going on and what had happened it seemed to be plaguing her like a sickness there may be no cure for. Sighing deeply she lowered her head, feeling horrible as the knot returned to the pit of her stomach. She felt so guilty for feeling the way she did.

“I wish I didn’t feel this fear,” she whispered as she gripped her midsection, her fingers clenching to the laces of her corset. “And what you said… It does help but I am still so terrified that you are still living in the past at times,” she said as her eyes trailed up his form and met his own. “Your flashbacks, I know they are not something you can help. You have had them longer than I may ever know and for all I know you will have them until the day you die. It is something that can’t be helped,” she said in a soft voice filled with sympathy.

“But every time you have one I feel like I am fighting with the past; fighting with a memory stealing you away from me. Battling ghosts to pull you back to me. It hurts to see you in such pain when they come and it hurts to think I may have to fight with that until the day I die,” she admitted remorsefully.

“Not that I wouldn’t. I am willing to spend a life time healing you no matter the pain it causes me,” she said with a sad smile on her lips as she reached out and placed her hand against his chest. “You’re worth any tears that fall, any pain but you have to know that it does hurt. It hurts like hell to know part of you is still in the past, even for a moment here and there. I don’t know, perhaps I will forever live in the shadow of your past. I hope not,” she said gently as she leaned forward and rested against him, one hand slipping around to his back.

“You have all of me, it just frightens me to think that I will never have all of you,” she whispered as she closed her eyes. “I know you cannot help that but please know that with as much as you cannot help it, I cannot help that it hurts.’

She hoped he would understand her fears. She felt that perhaps she may never be a replacement that she was a bandage trying to tend to the wounds of his past. Him mentioning Ariana did not help, her mind floating back to what she had learned back at the inn. Sighing she looked up at him, it was something he needed to know.

“As far as Ariana goes, she will never be a daughter, to either of us,” Sana said as she gazed into his eyes, the rain that clung to her lashes falling and streaming down her cheeks. “She is already a Rawn, a cousin perhaps or perhaps even my niece,” she said before stepping back and taking a moment to explain what had happened at breakfast while he was upstairs getting ready. About the talk she had had with Ariana, about the song, all of it. “I will no more subject her to look at us as parents than you would to ask me to replace your lost life. I will take care of her as family but never as a mother. I couldn’t do that to her.”

“I hope you and I could speak more of religion soon,” Derrix smiled a friendly grin at Vaeri as she took his shirt. He scratched one of the horned tattoos on his cheeks before his eyes lit up in remembrance. He nodded as he dismissed himself from the smoky pocket that Vaeri sat by.

Derrix lifted himself back to his feet and wandered back to the bleeding boar. He plopped into the bed of clover by the carcass and took up his knife once more, slicing a chunk out of the beast's slowly cooling flank. He sucked in a breath, taking in the metallic stench of the raw meat, as well as the thick musk of the wet storm.

He scraped a tiny stick across the stony floor under the clovers and lifted it to spear the meat through. Derrix turned towards the crackling fire, testing the sticks ability to hold the thick chunk by waving it gently a few times before levitating it about the licking orange flame.

Hovering the speared flesh over the fire, the fluids of the meat dripped into the flames with a hot sizzling sound. He turned his attention to the small greenish creature that had accompanied the group while the meat began to heat up.

“Little one,” Derrix announced plainly over the hard plummeting rain outside, “would you like the first bite?”

Tobias sighed inwardly as he felt the first raindrop. Of course.

By the time the party had reached their campsite, it was pouring. Being wholly unprepared for this kind of inclement weather, the rogue was quickly soaked to the bone. At Fiona's direction, he directed the wagon to the cave, taking great care to avoid snagging the wheels on anything. Before long, the party had a fire going.

Tobias's stolen clothes were soaked, and clung to him tightly. Overall, he imagined he had the appearance of a drowned city rat, which he supposed he sort of was. The thief held his hands over the fire, teeth chattering. Vaguely, he saw Hugh and Sana a short ways off, having some sort of intense conversation. ... Good?

The rogue was still glancing around, idly contemplating his misery, when he looked to the side and beheld Vaeri, as nude as the day she was born. Quickly, Tobias turned away - it was never a good idea to ogle women who could break him in half.

Suffice it to say, he was more than a little surprised when he looked to the other side and saw Fiona stripping down to her smallclothes. The thief looked back to the fire, his cheeks coloring slightly, and managed with great force of will to clamp down on the urge to make a crude joke at the situation. The women did, however, have the right idea - getting out of the wet clothes wouldn't be terrible. Tobias settled for pulling off his stolen shirt and tossing it aside, revealing the tapestry of angry whipping scars that covered his back as he did so.

The goblin - Drizzak - had asked how they were. "Well, can't complain. I could do with a hot meal, a bed, and a few naked..." he glanced around. "Well, a hot meal and a bed, at any rate."

As if on cue, Derrix the horseman returned and began roasting a healthy portion of meat over the fire. Tobias blinked slightly and raised his hands up to the sky dramatically. "Still waiting on that bed!"

Mortosh sat with the others around the fire and like most of the other he too had removed some articular of clothing that being his chest plate and hood. Not due to warmth or discomfort actually he just didn't fell at ease wearing his hood when it was just him and his companions so he liked using every opportunity to not wearing it he wished to help in someway he has been feeling useless but he realized the others weren't undead like him so things like warmth, sleep and food where necessary to them but not to him. He rose up a hmm came from Zam as she noticed him walking towards the mouth of the cave "Where are you going Mortosh?"

"I Am Going To Keep Watch" Answered Mortosh "Tell The Other They Are Free To Join Me If They Wish" and when Zam Was asked she told them of what Mortosh was doing

Hugh felt the rain making his skin tender to the touch, turning it pink and wrinkly. He felt the drips of water collecting in his hair and dripping down on his face. The water no longer caused him to shiver, as he stood there with Sana. He felt the desperation of having to deal with these visions he would suffer, putting just that much of a distance from Sana and him. He remembered the trouble of waking up in night sweats from nightmares he could not escape fast enough.

He would have done anything to be free from his burdened mind just to have a full relationship with Sana and live as if so much bad hadn't happened. He might always feel this separation, but it was something he would never stop fighting to make sure him and Sana were together.

It was one thing to fight the demons that came to cause physical harm, but when they came from Hugh's mind and put him in his own hell, it was not such a straightforward battle.

Her words would sting him like thousands of needles. He just wished that they didn't have to fight through this void. He didn't want her to live in the shadow of his past, but he hadn't chosen everything that had happened to him; it had just all happened whether or not he wanted it. All he could do was decide what to do with the time that was given.

It wouldn't take much deliberation to figure out what to do with that time; he wanted to spend it with Sana, even if there was this burden he brought. He would continue to fight it off. Though it affected his habits; heavy drinking, to the point where it didn't affect him anymore and he didn't even feel a buzz from amounts of alcohol that would knock out other people. That in itself was a strange blessing. He had taken up drinking a long time ago, before suffering from his downfalls.

Smoking had been another habit that helped him cope, but he smoked for the enjoyment, not just to blot out the stress. If he did more things to blot out the pain, he would be weak. He needed to deal with it and face it head on.

Hugh squeezed her body tight against his own, absorbing everything she said. All that she said was true, but he loved her deeply and cared for her. He wasn't going to let a stupid thing like nightmares from the past keep him from her side.

There was nothing more he could say as she held herself against him. He wanted her to know just by his actions that he loved her and that he would do what ever it took to fight past his demons. In that moment, there was a pain in Sana that Hugh didn't know how to heal.

When she pulled herself away, she dropped a huge surprise on him; the news that Ariana was actually related to her. He couldn't help but agree with her about how they couldn't force Ariana to look at them as parents. He didn't want her to see them as parents either, as it was cruel to her.

"I'm with you on that. She should know who you are to her." He said, nodding, and showing his agreement.

The rain continued to fall around them and the chill in the air threatened to cut to the bone but standing there against Hugh, his arms encircling her helped to ward off the cold. She waited for him to say something, anything; to scream, cry, whisper, it didn't matter. The silence was deafening; ringing through her heart as if it was a thousand confirmations that she was truly now what she had been trying to avoid ever since that day so long ago.

Steeling her features she kept as silent about the ache in her chest as he had been to her words. There was nothing more she could say at this point without turning into the volatile archer she was known to be in times of distress. Though she had seen numerous times a look of pride in Hughs features when she would blow up at someone, she doubted he would acquire such a look if it was directed towards him. She had voiced her fears and now been met with silence. She could not know what went through his mind, so she had no way to know what he was attempting and right then, after everything, she was too tired and in far too much pain to want to continue.

Leaning back and listening to what he had to say about Ariana she nodded and a small smile broke over her features; the smile was true but it was evident by the chill in her eyes there was something much deeper going on. Taking a breath and glancing up towards the heavens the storm seemed to begin to break.

"The storm is dying," she said as she reached up with both hands and smoothed her dripping hair back and down her neck. Stepping back over to Hugh, she rested her hand on his chest and gazed up to his eyes.

"We should take shelter and dry off," she said quietly before brushing past him and wandering down the path and towards the cave, her hand gripping her shirt above the corset. She was glad for the rain as a few tears pushed through the emotional wall she was creating to protect herself.

Sana drew a deep breath as she entered the cave and stepped over to Epona; glad her horse had enough sense to come out of the rain. Pulling the tie to her cloak she let it fall into a soggy heap at her feet before digging out some dry clothing she could wear until morning and setting it on Eponas saddle. Stepping around her horse so that she would only be seen from the thighs down and the shoulders up she began to peel the clothing that clung to her from her form; launching each piece over her horse and onto her cloak that lay on the ground.

After a few minutes she emerged dressed, if one could call it that. Her bare feet fell onto the clovered floor of the cave. She had what looked to be a dark linen scarf of sorts wrapped around her breasts and tied in the back. Around her waist she had a matching piece of linen wrapped around her hips like a sarong. It wasn't much but it covered intimate areas and that fabric was easy enough to pack away when not in use and took up very little space in her pack.

Reaching down she began to pick up each piece of clothing she had discarded and wrung as much water out of them as she could. Standing there the full damage of her injuries from the previous day could be seen. The burn that had peeked through up her neck was not just there but ran the full length of her neck, covering one full side of it. From there it extended down her chest to the top of where her corset usually rested, running down the center of her breast plate, over her chest, under her arm and stretched to the center of her back. It flowed up her shoulder and completely wrapped around one arm, ending at her elbow. It the burn wasn't bad enough, there were clear puncture marks on the same shoulder from the fangs of the dog that had attacked her as well as a nasty set of bite marks on the back of one calf.

Sighing to herself she began to toss the clothing over her good shoulder before walking over to the wall of the cave, it a jagged rock face with plenty of holds. A quick rush of breath passed her lips before she place s a bare foot on the wall and began to ascend up the wall quickly until she was able to grab a low hanging root and seat herself on it. Thankfully due to the way she had wrapped the sarong like skirt she was able to maintain her modesty as she climbed.

Taking a few minutes she hung her clothing up from various roots around her before looking down at the group. "So, any one else want their shit hung up to dry before I jump down?" she asked as she looked at them.

"I would be glad to converse with you, Derrix. I rarely have a chance to speak about such things. Most I try to bring it up with believe me to be an evangelist." Vaeri leaned back and watched the meat cook. As great as the food smelled, it did not serve to make Vaeri feel famished, but made the cave feel cozy and inviting. She had guessed she wouldn't feel tired until dusk, but the bitter cold of the rain made one feel weary down to her bones. As she watched the meat cook, she found it harder and harder to keep her eyes open. Vaeri never got the chance to tell Sana that she had clothes that could use hanging, because by the time the gypsy asked, she was already lying out on the ground, unconscious and breathing softly.

The cave was cold, humid, warm, wet and dry. Quite the slew of different things used to describe the same thing simultaneously. Melvus seemed to have picked the worst time to fall asleep, seemingly ignoring the fact that it was about to rain. There was a fire and the cart had been taken into the cave. Melvus didn't move, his clothing clung to him and were heavy to bear. He was tired and so, chose not to move for a time as the rest of everyone dried off, chattered and generally slowed down for the latter half of the day. They couldn't travel in the heavy rain which made the loud sound of the world falling outside of the mouth of the cave.

Melvus cast his Arm of the Heavens, removed his cloak and most of his robe. He took them in the arm and held them above the fire as he sprawled out in the wagon, in the long sleeved shirt and pants he wore under his outfit. His clothing still soaked, he lay there waiting for them to dry or for something interesting to take his attention.