Snippet #2473982

“Did you see those guy’s faces?They didn’t know what to do with themselves..” Essence laughed, reminiscing about Irvin’s and her day in utter delight. She had been giggling the entire walk from Newhaven and now as they reached the border of the Nest, a familiar whistle sounded which Ess repeated, signalling the trees, Tala and Beo running at full speed forward to greet Ward past the tree line. As they passed down the path, Ess was still talking about nothing of real importance when she fell silent. It was quiet, the crickets chorusing in rapid cannon instead of in unison. She was use to the dead spots of where there was activity, causing the buzz of life to be silent, their song continued in the quieter areas of the Nest. It dawned on her, pacing through the shadows of purples and reds as the sun descended past the horizon, how quiet it had become. It had startled her so, that she quietly set down her packages beside one of the small houses (if one could call them that) and drew her sword ever so quietly, only a soft ting of metal jingled when the sword left it’s sheath.

As the Sun started to lower in the sky everyone started to prepare for when Ess and Irvin would return from Newhaven. There was a small discussion on whether they would make the camp dark for this or not. Jake wasn’t personally sure whether that would be the smartest thing, he didn’t want Ess to think something bad had happened or something, but eventually it was agreed that they would risk it. She wouldn’t be wondering what was happening for too long. It was at this point that Dastan gave the idea for the fireworks, the Crimson made it so they could set them all off by lighting one single wick. Jake wasn’t too confident, and Ali even less, but it was done. Once everything was set up all there was left to do was wait. People crouched in the dark, hiding behind trees, and the only sounds were of the wolves moving around and occasional whispers from the children. The wolves were the first to arrive, immediately met by the rest of the pack, and then suddenly a voice sounded in Jake’s ear. “Ten seconds.” It was Irvin.
Jake startled a bit as he didn’t hear the kid sneak up on him and it was dead silent, but he managed to not raise his voice at Irvin. “Bloody hell, kid!” He whispered at Irvin, a bit amused though at the fact he had probably just randomly disappeared on Ess without warning. If Jake had counted from Irvin’s warning he would have counted exactly ten seconds before all the wolves shattered the silence of the encampment, the howls sounding on their own for a few long moments before all the people jumped out of hiding with one big shout of “SURPRISE!”, the fireworks lit mere seconds later, shooting off into the sky and exploding in small bursts of sparkles. All except for one, a larger one, that simply exploded on the ground sending some of the nearby people running off to take cover, laughing as two of the mercenaries struggled to contain a few small explosions still coming from the failed device.

Essence didn’t notice Irvin was gone at first, not until she heard the wolves howl in unison which caused her to retrieve her dagger and left to wonder if it was an alarm or something else. “Irv…?” The moment she whispered the kids name, numerous figures leapt out from hiding, shouting in unison, together as one, “SURPRISE!” Ess looked like she was about to kill someone and yet at the same time was too startled by the explosions that followed that she actually screamed and ducked as if she were under attack. Hearing laughter as the bright explosions continued, she opened one eye and glanced upwards curiously. Her eyes widened in pure awe at how the stars seemed to come to life and fall towards the land only to fade away. Ess screamed a bit more as another explosion went off but never left the ground. Once she saw the men struggling to contain more of the colorful delights, she couldn’t help but laugh too. Each of the fireworks, as they went off, lit up the darkness around her so that she noticed one by one, all the familiar faces of her friends and of the Guard. When the fireworks got a bit less consistent, lanterns and torches were lit to reveal every square foot of the camp decorated in colorful flags.

If it wasn’t for the noisy display in the sky to distract Ess from herself, she would have already tried to sneak away. The uneasy and awkward feeling eventually caught up to her, released with a shaky laugh. Half smiling, she placed her sword and dagger in their resting places at her hips and tried to scowl when she saw Irvin. “Scared the living….Tears of the Twins...Ooh I’m going to get you kid...just you wait…” She turned her gaze to eye Jake in a fake sternness. “This is your fault I know it.”

In the short time before the torches started being lit Jake had tried his best to put on a straight face, or at least to stop laughing as much, but that was a difficult thing to do when he could clearly hear Dastan’s men still cursing at the fallen firework that somehow just kept on constantly going off with no signs of completely stopping. Jake was still fighting through a bit of laughter as he finally spoke up. “Happy birthday, sis! Heh... Well, I don’t know if you can tell that the fireworks were a last minute addition, but yeah...” He snickered, glancing at the mercenaries trying to solve the problem, his tone a bit more calm as he walked towards Ess and gave a light shrug. “I know this isn’t what you wanted, but uh... We all took a vote and I was severely outnumbered.” Jake stated, trying to sound innocent, but failing miserably. “I promise you can sneak away in a bit if you want, but you know... Crys brought a lot of booze and if she drinks everything she’s going to start singing and....” Jake was cut off as he was forced to dodge a flying apple aimed perfectly at his head, but continued as if there had been no interruption. “... And you don’t want to miss that.”
“That’s not going to happen, Jacob.” Crys stated simply, not sounding too amused by the provocation. “Not again at least.” She added in an annoyed mumble, as she helped a couple of the Crimson Shadows sort through a few of the boxes she had brought, the mercenaries seeming quite impatient to start with the drinking. A few other mercenaries had brought drums of different shapes and sizes and a couple of them had flutes and violins as well. Random bits and pieces of music escaping amongst the sound of their chatter. Improvised tables were being set up with food and pitchers of water, and a small pile of presents had formed itself at some point, sitting beside the pile of packages there was a wooden crate painted in red letters that warned of its contents being explosive and to keep away from fire.

Ess crossed her arms, chuckling at Jake and Crys’ exchange. Glancing around she slowly took in her surrounding, noticing and quietly appreciating all the work everyone had put in to throw such a party. “Food...booze...fire...I guess you know me pretty well Jacob.” She snorted in amusement, her eyes widening as Beo and Sora came galloping towards her, both had one of the kids saddled onto their backs. “Oh that is low Jake! Bribing me with cuteness?!”

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY MISS ESS!” Both Lily and Clayton yelled as the wolves came to a hault.
“...Aren’t we forgetting something, kids?” A woman hinted from behind Ess. It was Jess, one of the women who had taken up bunking with the Captain and the kids, only just recently in the past six months, giving birth to a baby boy. She was cradling the baby in her arms, trying to block out the noise from the fireworks but he didn’t seem to mind it one bit, his brown eyes fixated upon the sky.

“Oh, right. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MR JAKE!” The children chimed in and as they mumbled something else Ess couldn’t understand, the wolves decided they were going to visit the food table and began leading the kids, who were still on their back, towards the goodies.

“Uh..maybe you guys should have made those tables a bit higher…” Essence joked, pointing at Ward who already was sniffing dangerously close to the food. Ess approached Jake and smiled. “Guess the party is kind of like for everyone, in a way, huh? I think I may just stick around for a bit..” Wrapping her arms gently around Jake she stood on her tippy toes to hug him, not noticing that she was shaking until that moment as she whispered to him sweetly. “Happy Birthday Brother. You’re lucky you’re loved..”

Pulling away she spotted a bottle Crys was holding and she perked up. “Oh, wait! I call that bottle. It’s mine. It’s my favorite..please..” She mumbled dashing forward to half hug Crys and steal the bottle. “I’m glad you came. Those aren’t for me, are they?” Ess pointed at the present pile and a box of explosives, her eyebrows in a fake look of disagreement.

Jake gave Ess a firm hug, not hesitating to whisper back at her. “Well, so are you, sis.” The moment Ess let go of him however a group of five or six Crimson Shadows collided with him, shouting “HAPPY BIRTHDAY MR. JAKE!”, lifting him up and carrying him for a fairly good distance before he manage to set himself free. “Knock it off!” He muttered at the men as they dropped him on his ass and wandered off laughing. Jake seemed a bit annoyed for a moment, but at the same time he was also laughing, as if it was just impossible not to do so. As he got on his feet he shouted out to Ali. “See, I told you about the tables.”
“Well, I did the best I could. I didn’t have days to plan, like some people.” She retorted, giving him a fake look of annoyance. “Be happy they haven’t fallen apart yet.”
“I think ‘yet’ seems to be the key word here.” Jake laughed, eyeing the wolves with suspicion, but shrugging it off. Not like that would actually ruin anything.

Crys heard Ess’ call just in time to pull the bottle she was holding out of the reach of one of Dastan’s guys. Not like that was the only one, but she still slapped the guy’s hand away from it all the same, laughing as the mercenary responded by whining at her like a puppy. “Just open the other boxes, I’m not going to be waiting on you people all night.” She stated in the best severe tone she could manage, turning away from the mercenaries as they started to finally pass bottles around to the rest of the group and not just amongst themselves, releasing the bottle of liquor to Ess with a cheery smile. “Well, I had to help Jakey, you can’t let boys plan a party.” She joked, casually taking a bottle from a nearby mercenary for herself. “You mean the presents? Yeah, they are. To be fair though, that part wasn’t exactly Jake’s idea, people just decided for themselves to bring them. Dastan brought you the big box of fireworks, it’s the first sort of successful batch the Crimson have managed in a few years. They’re very excited about them as you might have noticed.” She snickered. “I hear they’re quite impressive, even if a bit unstable at times.”
“Hey, wait, wait....” Ali came running, nearly tripping over herself as she halted beside Ess. “You can’t touch the presents until you open mine.” She stated.
“Where is it, Ali?” Crys asked, in a tone of utter amusement.
“Uhm... Wait, I left it in Jake’s camp... I’ll go get it... Don’t go anywhere!”
Crys snorted a laugh as Ali ran off in a hurry to where she had left her gift. “She seems really happy with it, that’s a good sign.” She pointed out, opening her bottle of liquor and taking a sip. “It’s nice to have nearly all friends in one place for once. Don’t think that’s happened since Blackpond, and that was bit of a... I don’t know what that was, really.”
Not even a minute had passed and Ali was back, a bit short on breath, but not seeming to mind it too much as she silently handed Ess the wrapped bow. Taking a long deep breath she finally managed to blurt out a “Happy birthday.”

Darren had been trying to cross the crowd since they all jumped out and gave Ess practically a heart attack. Between the malfunctioning fireworks to the rush on alcohol, he managed to catch the apple meant for Jake’s head, quietly munching on it and trying not to choke on his food simply absorbing the festivities around him. As Ali handed Ess the bow he poked his head between Crys and Ess, smiling brightly and swallowing his apple bit before speaking, “I see Crys brought the apples. Lovely to see you as always.” He bit into the apple with a crisp crunch, using Ess’ forehead to raise his hat above his eyes. “Hi ..Mother…” He dragged out, kissing her forehead. “Happy Birthday.”

“Darren!” Ess beamed, wrapping her free hand around his goatee and giving a slight tug. “Thank you…..where have you been?”

“Ow..” Darren played, pulling himself free from his mother’s grasp. “Oh, you know me...keeping Uncle Jakey on his toes..” He glanced over his shoulder as if half expecting the man behind him.

Ess looked at Ali, a genuine smile painting her lips but yet she was nervous by the simple gesture. “I missed you girl. I’m so happy you’re here! Is this…” She inhaled quickly, her eyes glowing slightly in excitement. “I was afraid to ask about it...thought maybe if I did I wouldn’t get it.” Essence smiled, slowly unwrapping the paper as if to drag out the moment of anticipation. Apparently it was too much for Darren.

“You are going to throw away the paper anyways...just tear it open already!” Darren complained with an adorable pout peeking out from beneath his favored hat. Without looking Ess swung her hand as if to smack Darren across the mouth but he easily dodged the ‘attack’. Ess froze when she saw just the tip of the bow, her fingers skimming over the belly of the bow as the paper fell to the ground. It was smooth, a similar feeling to a polished stone from the river with no rough edges. The yew was a dark honey and above each nock, a scaled down carving of an Oak tree accented the weapon, stained in golden dye or paint of sorts that caught a soft shimmer from the candlelight. It was what stood out the most and as her eyes grazed down the limb she smiled at the vine carving that was extremely detailed. Every aspect of the weapon screamed patience and sweat put into the creation. Ess finally tore her gaze away from the bow and looked up at Ali, a childlike awe flashing in her violet eyes. “You...made it like yours…” She breathed, her finger lightly tapping a notch like part of the grip. “For the arrow…” Ess held the bow in one and, the other still holding the bottle of liquor as she leaped at the girl in excitement and hugged her with a bit more force than she intended. “It’s PERFECT! I love it!! Thaaank you!”

Darren chuckled, removing his hat to itch the back of his head. “You sure you can string that thing now?”

“Hush! Ali taught me how.” Ess snickered, releasing the girl and turning towards Darren.

“I have a gift for you too...but eh..” Darren dipped his head down to fit his loose strands of hair into the hat before flipping his head back and tugging down the hat behind his ears. “It’s not ready yet...may not be for some time..”

“Oooh. Is it shiny?” Ess asked curiously, her attention suddenly drawn to the sky as another firework went off. She wondered how many of those were to randomly go off during the night and thought about moving her box of explosives somewhere..safer. “Speaking of ambiance...where is Dastan…” Ess mumbled half to herself moving to relocate the bow with her towards the table of gifts. Immediately she found the biggest explosive she could and quietly examined it taking the cap off the bottle of liquor finally.

Ali laughed, stumbling a bit at Ess’ hug but managing to keep her balance. “I’m glad you liked it. I really took a ridiculous amount of time to finish it, but I think it’s my best work yet.” She stated proudly. “Oh, I also got some arrows for you, have to remember to get them later. Twenty should be enough to get you started, right?” She asked, a playful smirk crossing her features. Ali’s eyes skimmed the pile of presents and smiled curiously as Ess inspected the explosives. Two seconds hadn’t passed since Ess had wondered about Dastan and the man just came out of nowhere and jumped Ali. “Am I late for the group hug again?” He asked playfully, laughing as he was forced to let go of Ali once she elbowed him hard on the ribs. “You need to stop doing that to people!” She scolded.
“Friends aren’t people!” Dastan protested in a fake childish tone. “Deal with it!” He added sticking out his tongue at Ali before turning to Ess with a charming smile. “And you, little lady... You... Have something I want.”

Jake had somewhat entertained with the kids and the wolves, patiently listening to Lily’s arguments as to why they should be allowed to stay up at the party all night like everyone else and when he was finding it difficult to reason against the girl’s pleas he said it was up to Jess to decide, which earned him a severe glare from the woman. Just the other day she had given him a bit of a scolding for not showing the kids any discipline and letting them have their way, especially Lily. Jake smiled a bit apologetically at the woman as he began to sneak away towards the others, noticing that Ess was already in possession of the bow Ali had made and he wanted to take a closer look at it. Making his way to the little group that had formed itself near the pile of presents, Jake reached it just in time to hear Dastan’s words, raising an eyebrow at the mercenary as he casually put one arm around Crys, stealing her liquor bottle for one sip and handing it back to her. “And what, if I may ask, could you possibly want from my sister?”
“Are you sure you want to hear my answer to that, mate?” Dastan questioned, seeming quite amused, at least as far he was showing.
“Are you sure you want to answer? I’m sure you remember the last conversation we had on the subject of sisters.” Jake retorted, not quite waiting on an answer from Dastan and turning to Ali with a smile. “Can I look at it now?”
“Yes, but look with your eyes, yes?” She answered, shooting him a rather severe glare for a moment.
“Oh, fine... You know... It’s been at least six years since I broke that bow... You’re never going to get over it, are you?”
“I’m over it, I’m just not going to let you put your hands on anything that took me months to create. I mean, look at it, it’s so pretty.”
Dastan chuckled. “Don’t feel bad, mate. Not everyone is good at caring for pretty things.”
“Dastan...” Crys mumbled in a tone of warning.
“What, I’m just playing. He did wonder how well I remember our conversation, I think that’s a valid answer, isn’t it?”

“And you...little lady...You have something I want.”

Essence quirked a brow, turning to meet Dastan’s smile. She tried to stare at him with a straight face, attempting to act annoyed but found that his smile was contagious. It didn’t help with Jake’s little entrance, adding to the ever growing circle Ess noticed before her. Giggling a bit at his comment, she began playing with a few loose curls that were gradually falling out of her braid. “..I bet I do…” Essence smiled, winking at Dastan coyly. Clinging onto her bottle knowingly she nodded. “I have a few things you want…” She poked Jake’s side, her tone matter of fact yet her expression was amused. “Oh Jake...I still have his cloak. What’s wrong with a woman having possession of a man’s cloak?” Ess glanced at Crys and smirked. “...And I owe him a drink..I’ll go get your stuff in a minute, hun, but first…” Ess paused to take her first swig of liquor passing the bottle towards Dastan to share. “..Share my first drink of the night with me...even if it’s not yours..” She played. When he handed it back to her she teasingly pulled the bow out of arm’s reach from Jake and started towards her camp. “Be right back.”

Essence returned a few moments later with Tala by her side. The wolf had not been with her offspring for the surprise, which was odd but when Ess had arrived to her campsite she was amazed to find Tala waiting patiently for her, surrounded by six or seven rabbit carcasses. All were untouched, except for where she had broken their necks. Ess had been hoping she would unload a few things for safe keeping at her tent but found she had her arms full for the walk back. She had all the rabbits tied to a rope and slung over her shoulder, the bottle of booze Crys had passed to her/stolen, and one large odd shaped package. Casually she greeted Aiden who approached when she returned to the small group and offered Dastan the package. Inside was his cloak he had loaned her from the Ball, clean, free from any of Ebony’s blood (which she had spent days being so uptight about her fingers were raw for a week) and any tears or patches that may or may not have been there, there was practically no trace of wear. “I took it upon myself to clean this and fix the tear and such. And the drink I owe you...there...is a bottle from the year I was born: 2526. I was surprised to find it actually. A very good year, might I say.” Unexpectedly Ess approached Dastan wrapping one arm around his neck with a firm squeeze. She was taken back a bit with how normal and good this was starting to feel, but Ess was still shaking some. For a moment she felt warm...safe. And it wasn’t just because she was a tiny woman hugging a quite noticeably taller man. “Thank you for the fireworks. Fire. You were paying attention.”

Ess stepped away and handed Tala’s kill over to one of the guard who went towards the fire they were building to being the ritual of preparing the rabbits. “Tala brought us food it seem..I am beginning to think..she thinks she has to feed the entire Nest.”

Darren smiled, playfully jabbing at Aiden’s arm as he walked by in a friendly and yet challenging manner. Aiden laughed. “You already want a rematch, huh kid?”

“I was going easy on you, Old Man..” Darren teased. “I still say you didn’t win arm wrestling..”

Ess glanced over at Aiden and her son, a questioning glow sneaking from her smile. Her thoughts weren’t on the conversation between her friend and her kid, but thinking everyone just about was indeed together. Which was nice for a change. Still, there was something missing.

Darren turned to start poking at the box of explosives on the table, casually stirring up conversation with Dastan on which components he favored and why, to create the glittery displays raining down still here and there, over their heads.

Ess hopped over to her table of presents and began picking them up one by one and lightly shaking the boxes. One was particularly heavier than she expected, which was apparently the tie breaker for what she was going to open next. “Darren..turn around….can you see the packages I left over there? Will you please retrieve them for me?”
Darren kept talking as he nodded and obeyed, retrieving said packages and placing them on the table beside the other gifts. “Jakey. Those are for you.” Essence smiled, still staring at the box before her.

What’s wrong with a woman having possession of a man’s cloak?

Jake snorted, but kept silent at Ess’ words as if he had a response but knew exactly what would happen if he spoke up, instead he quietly stole another sip off of Crys’ bottle.
“You know, if you wanted to see me drunk, this is not the way to do it.” She complained, snatching the bottle out of his hands. “Go get your own.”
“Aaw.” Jake whined. “I don’t wanna. The booze is all the way over there.”
“I’ll go get it.” Ali offered. “You guys are being too adorable for my liking right now. I kind of miss it when you were shouting at each other all the time.” She teased, wandering off to where the bottles of liquor were being kept.
“Yeah, well, it’s still early... I’m sure I’ll piss her off sooner or later.” Jake replied with a chuckle watching as Ali calmly dodged a few of the Crimson trying to dance away with her as she walked past them. The group of mercenaries with the instruments seemed to have organized somewhat and music was now flowing freely from the ‘band’ creating a carefree and joyful atmosphere in the encampment. Everyone seemed happy and relaxed like they hadn’t been in a long time.
“Jakey... Hello..” Crys snicker, poking him with her elbow. “Are you listening?”
“Hm?” Jake mumbled, averting his eyes from the rest of the party and turning his attention back to the group. “I’m sorry, did I miss something important?”
“A little bit, yeah. Ess got you gifts.” Crys replied, staring at him curiously. “What were you thinking there?”
“Oooh, gifts!” Jake exclaimed excitedly, immediately spotting the packages that weren’t there just a moment ago. “I... Uhm... Nothing in particular. Just enjoying the moment.” He stated simply, giving Crys a light squeeze before stepping away from her and inspecting the packages, opening the smallest one first and smiling as he spotted a small cluster of familiar black raven feathers tied together with a few silver and golden beads in a simple ornament. It had become somewhat customary amongst the Ravens to wear the black feathers in one manner or another, but it wasn’t something that had really occurred to Jake until just then. He just examined the gift silently until Crys took it out of his hands in a curious excitement. “Come on, what is it?” She asked.
“Hey, hey, careful with the feathers.” Jake complained.
“Well, don’t worry I know how to handle pretty things.” She teased. “Aw, it’s lovely. And you could wear it on your hair, like in a little braid.”
Jake laughed, shaking his head at the provocation. “I was thinking more like in the hilt of my sword, Crys... You know, it’s my favorite weapon; even if I rarely use it... And my hair is not long enough to braid.” He protested.
“Pffft... Sure it is.” Crys replied, returning the gift to him and playfully tugging on a strand of his hair. “I could totally braid it.”
“It’s not too long.” Jake protested, rolling his eyes. “It’s how I like it, okay? Ess agrees with me.”
“Is that so?” She asked calmly. “Okay then.”
“It’s not okay, is it?” Jake sighed.
“No, it isn’t.” She confirmed.
Jake snorted, noting that he wasn’t carrying his sword with him, and carefully attaching the feathers to his belt for the time being. “I like my hair longer.” He muttered.
“You could at least shave.” She insisted, letting her fingers graze the scratchy stubble that had formed itself on his face during the past couple of weeks. “Your face is starting to feel like a porcupine.” She added playfully.
“Well, I’m pretty sure porcupines don’t even have spikes on their faces, Crys.” Jake retorted, picking another one of the packages only to have it yanked out of his hands.
“You should open this one last.” Crys told him. “And fine, so your face feels like a porcupine’s ass. Is that more accurate of a comparison?”
“Why, yes, yes it is. Why can’t I open that now?” He asked curiously.
“Trust me, you want to open this one last.” She repeated with a smirk.
“Fiinee...” Jake chuckled, picking up the other package and starting to work his way through the wrapping, his eyes lighting up as he saw the pair of shiny new boots. “Niiice!” He exclaimed, inspecting the shoes further and mumbling. “Poisoned blades... Yeah...” a devious smile crossing his expression as he noticed the little red vials hidden within and the mechanism for a blade. “I’m going to have some fun with these.” he declared. “Definitely fun.” Putting the vials away in his pocket, Jake carefully placed the boots on the table and took the last package from Crys. “Can I?” He asked her playfully, not waiting for her to give him an answer and tearing at the package. Jake froze for a moment, the smell of cinnamon reaching him before he was even through unwrapping the plate of cookies, the look in his eyes momentarily distant before lighting up with joy as he immediately grabbed one and stuffed it into his mouth. “They’re perfect.” He stated.

“I’m not cheating, I’m saying you didn’t win.” Ali exclaimed, returning to the group followed closely by Irvin, seeming quite amused at the boy.
“I guessed it right!” He protested.
“The Ruins is not an acceptable answer, kid. Not to mention they weren’t ruins when I was born. I was born in a village. Not ruins.”
“You asked where, and not when!” Irvin exclaimed. “That’s not fair.”
“Alright, but still... The Ruins, by itself, as an answer is unacceptable. It’s a large territory.”
“And again that’s not fair. No one remembers the name of all the villages.”
Ali frowned, as if that particular fact had never really occurred to her, not quite answering Irvin and simply mumbling something under her breath.
Irv flinched seeing that he seemed to have upset her. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it like that.” He mumbled.
Ali sighed, shaking her head and handing Jake his drink. “It’s alright. Don’t worry about it.”
“Still say I win.” The boy mumbled.

While listening to Jake and Crys banter on about Jake’s hair, Ess’ smile faded for a second, staring idly at the box still between her hands as she was reminded of the same argument Jake would have with his sister. It looked like she wasn’t even paying attention to what was going on around her, until Jake finished opening his last gift of cookies. Without blinking she shyly commented on her gifts to her brother. “You are the only one in camp without the feathers...so we all agreed it was long overdue. Then I thought the boots would be practical, so I’m glad you like them both. The cookies...Jessica gave me her recipe a long time ago and even though I didn’t have the real means to bake them here..I had a part in it..” Essence sighed, glancing over as Ali and Irv approached the circle. There was a moment of silence and Ess moved to rest a hand on Ali’s shoulder. “I remember...a few…” Ess began, catching Lily out of the corner of her eye as she crawled from out between two tables.

“Tell the story again, Miss Ess.” Lily smiled up at her, reaching for her hand to give a small squeeze.

Darren perked up at the girl’s words and turned from Dastan to focus on the group, glancing from one person to the next. “What story?”

Twenty Six Years ago...Whirlwind..

“Da?” Ess whined, rubbing at her sleepy eyes and dragging her sheep’s blanket behind her. “Da...” She continued, not finding her father in his room but in the living area before the fireplace.

“Essy...it’s late...what’s wrong Sweetness?” Dirk whispered, putting down his pen, kind blue eyes looking over the tiny four year old with concern. “Did you have another bad dream?”

Ess answered only by squirming her way onto her father’s lap and covering both him and herself with her blanket. “I dunno..” She muttered, bouncing her feet that hung off of Dirks knees. “I didn’t know where you were..”

“Aww, sweetie..I’m always Here.”

“What you doing?” Ess asked, staring down at the table where Dirk had left his pen beside a small leather book, torn pages sticking out from beneath the journal.

“Writing stories, Essy.” Her father smiled leaning in and kissing the top of her head.

“What kind of stories? Are you going to read to me?” Ess’ eyes widened in interest as she looked up at her father.

“Maybe when you’re older Essy. Some of them are scary.” Dirk half played, suddenly hugging his daughter tight and pretending to shiver in fright.

Ess giggled, tiny dimples appearing at her cheeks. “Don’t worry Da...I’ll keep the monsters away..” She stated proudly and wrapped her arms around her father’s neck. “I won’t be scared, promise.”

“My brave little girl, so sweet that she would put herself first for her old man.” Dirk winked, absently tugging on Ess’ curls and running his fingers through her hair to loosen a few snarls. “It’s ok to be scared though, Ess. You being brave just shows that there is something more important out there than your fear. But it’s late and you’ll have nightmares, so how about I tell you a story about your Mother, hmm?”

Ess started to protest, glancing down at the journal as she began chewing on her bottom lip.
“Ok, Da...you tell me scary stuff when sun is out..and...” She sighed, snuggling up as close as humanly possible to her father, closing her eyes to listen. “I want to hear about mommy being little...” Ess commanded with a tired nod.

Dirk chuckled at his daughter, leaning back with her close against his chest. “Yes, M’am..”

“Let’s see.....when I was around your brother’s age, I first visited this town with my father. Your mother was born here in Whirlwind but I was born...”

Ess chimed in, “Oakstone!”

Dirk chuckled, patting the girl on the back. “Yes, very good Essy. My father was what we call a peddler but he wasn’t any ordinary tradesman because he acquired rare items for people besides the normal everyday stuff we need to live.”

“Like food and fur, but what are rare items?”

Dirk nodded. “Don’t forget the little wooden figurines my mother would carve.”

“Like the dragon!! But if grandma had never seen one, how did she know what a dragon looks like?”

“Now you are distracting me, Sweetness..patience. Daddy will get to that...”

Ess pulled the blanket up to her neck and closed her eyes as Dirk backtracked a bit. “I was not sure what was meant by ‘Rare items’ as they were always kept a secret from me because my Da said it was dangerous to speak outloud of such beauties. If everyone knew about them then everyone would want them and when that happens people fight and destroy those beauties.”

“Why?...If they break them and make them go away, then no one can have em’.”

Dirk leaned in and kissed the top of his daughter’s head. “You are very right. How did u get so smart?”

Ess peeked through slit eyelids and gave a tired smile and shrugged. “Ok, Da. Was this where you met Mommy? How old was she?”

“Oh, right right...Yes, this was when I met your mother. She had to have been a few years younger, so maybe around ten. I didn’t know it then, but your mom had a very special gift and it had just started to show itself. See, my Da set up shop for the day by the Cherry Blossom trees where your mom was playing in the fallen petals.”

Dirk took a slow breath, closing his eyes a moment as if to get a clearer picture, his smile fading as he fought to remain upbeat. “Symphony was the most beautiful girl I had ever seen.” He opened his eyes again and nodded. “That is saying a lot too because my Da and I had been all over Valcrest. She was dressed in white, small pink blossoms embroidered along the sleeves of her gown, the folds of material flowing in the summer breeze. Her hair wasn’t as long as it was when she had you, but it was past her shoulders; straight, dark red hair. Your mom was singing as she danced beneath the blossoms and it looked as if they moved to her voice. It seemed like she was controlling them with her song.”

“Was she?” Essence opened her eyes to look up at her father.

“No, Sweetness. As I got closer I found that I couldn’t take my eyes off of her...and now that I think on it, I can’t remember the words of her song.” Dirk fell silent, quirking a brow as he thought, his handsome smile returning. “It could have to do with what I found out years later from your mother. Symphony believed that everything happens for a reason. Some things are within our control and some are not, but we always have a choice..even if the choice is one we don’t like to think about.”

Ess sighed, shaking her head in a bit of confusion. “Da..I don’t get it..”

“ What I mean Essy, is in my case, I had caught her eye one of the times I visited town but I had never seen her before this day. She chose to invite me into her life, even if in the most not obvious way. Her song was about me..so she said and it..brought me to her.”

Essence’s brows furrowed, a somewhat cranky look in her eye. “You saying, mommy’s song made you love her?”

Dirk chuckled, reaching down to lift his daughter’s chin to look directly into her eyes. “Your mother, only made me notice her. No one made me love her because that isn’t something that can be forced. It just...happens. We can’t control it but...we can control what we do with it.”

“..I still don’t get it..” Ess pouted, causing her father to laugh louder.

“You will..but there you go distracting me again..where was I..?”

“You just met Mommy...”

“Right, right. Your Grandpa, my father had been watching me with your Mother and tapped me on the shoulder to get my attention and passed over to me discreetly a couple small Iris flowers...the color of her eyes...of your eyes, Essy. She allowed me to place them in her hair and that was the moment I really first saw her eyes. It wasn’t just the color, but the way they flashed brightly when she laughed. It brought out an intricate pattern...I mean you know with lots of lines and zig zags...like the veins of that Birch Tree you watched me cut down yesterday.”

Ess nodded, once again closing her eyes as if she were trying to picture her Mom in her head. She listened for some time as she stayed quiet and her Father went off on the fine lines of her smile and the kindness in her touch when he held her hand. It was soothing to listen to the description, making it almost as if her Mother was there with them in that moment.

“Da..You miss Mommy a lot...” She whispered sleepily.

“Yes, Baby girl, I do..She was...the strongest woman I have ever known.” He answered, an obvious tone of sadness in his voice.

“So, what happened next? When did you move to Whirlwind?”

“Aren’t you getting tired yet?” Dirk poked his daughter in the side playfully.

“No..” Ess giggled through a yawn.

“Well..just as my Father was closing up shop and packing away the wagon, a stranger came riding on his horse. He was dressed in black and was carrying a curious package under his arm that he was looking to trade with my Father. Your Mother and I watched as the man revealed a large rock like object, rough to the touch but sparkled as if covered in gems and sapphires. My Da’s eyes lit up instantly, weighing the object in his hands, clearly stressing some under the heaviness before placing upon a table. Without a word he went into the wagon and retrieved what I saw as a dagger. It didn’t seem special but the stranger looked quite excited to trade his object for the dagger. After he left I asked my Da what he had traded the dagger for and he said..it was a Dragon egg.”

“Really? Did it hatch? Was there anything in it? How heavy was it?!” Ess sat up, spewing forth an array of questions.

Dirk leaned in close as if he was about to tell a secret, exaggerating his smile as he continued. “Well...I never found that out. See, I didn’t really believe it was a real Dragon egg, but not that whatever it was, wasn’t valuable. Yet, your Mother looked scared.. She said, ‘Get rid of it..Dragon eggs only bring death..’” Dirk whispered, clutching Ess tight as if he were afraid, but Essence’s eyes widened, jaw dropping in awe.

“So, I tried to get my Father to listen to her but naturally why would he indulge someone’s fears based on stories alone and no real facts. We can’t go by Myth alone..”

“What about the Twins? They are Myth..” Ess objected.

Dirk nodded. “Yes, Baby girl but they are also a guide. I want you to learn from life and make your own decisions and not just fear something because someone tells you to..”

“But, was it really a Dragon egg? Why haven’t I seen it?”

“..That night, after we had returned to our home, my Mother and Father and I were sitting down to dinner when the screams began. Outside, the town was burning in bright flames that seemed to spread from nowhere.”

“Was it a dragon?! Did it come for the egg?”

“That’s what I thought, Essy. My Father and I never saw what was causing the fires but we didn’t stay to find out. We escaped, leaving the egg in fear of taking it with us. My Ma swore the fires came from the sky and she kept telling my Da over and over she saw large shadows that resembled a winged creature but my Da would never admit to believing it.”

“That’s when Grandma made the wooden dragon.” Ess added, Dirk confirming with a nod. “Why did you leave? Why not build a new house?”

Dirk hesitated, finally stretching back and propping his feet upon the table and snuggled Ess closer. “We were all afraid. Many people died Ess and there were rumors. Rumors of what had happened to the town and who had caused the fires. The few who survived, after that, slowly disappeared. Or so I heard.”

Ess’ eyes widened again. “Did someone kill them? Steal them?”

“I don’t know, Sweetness. But that’s why we went to Whirlwind and made it our home. Wasn’t so bad because then I got to be with your Ma all the time.” Dirk sighed, “But now, little Miss, it is off to bed before all this talk of dragons gives you nightmares.” He stated, rising to his feet with his daughter in his arms, carrying her to her bed with little to no effort. Moving to leave after tucking her in and giving her a goodnight kiss, Ess cried out to her father.

“Da..can you stay in my room?” Essence asked sweetly, somewhat half asleep. “I miss you already...”

Dirk was silent in the darkness, an adoring smile crossing over an amused expression. “If that is what you want, Essy. I’m going to get a blanket, ok?” He shuffled out and back in the room in seconds, only taking the time to put away the book and torn pages first. He settled beside her bed, in an upright position upon the floor.


“I like it better when you’re here...” Essence mumbled almost incoherently.


Dirk rested his head next to her hand and watched her for a bit before falling asleep to the sound of Ess’ soft snores. “I will never leave you..

When Essence had finished, she had the biggest grin on her face, thinking that she had told more of the story this time than she had to the kids in the past. Both Lily and Darren spoke at the same time once Ess was silent. “Was it a dragon’s egg?”

Ess laughed. “I do not know. Could have been a metaphor.” Casually she wiped a stray tear aside, moving back to the distraction of her Gifts. “Darren, don’t forget to give Uncle Jakey your gift…” She snickered, her smile fading to a look of awe, once again surprised at what she found. Inside the box two silver chains were coiled, each double her arm length with a couple of her silver daggers nestled at the ends. Aiden approached from behind her and smiled. “I’m going to have to show you how to use those...probably best we practice without your daggers. There’s also a release...here...when enough tension is exerted, the daggers will release from the chain after it meets its target.”

Ess was so excited she didn’t wait to open her other gifts and began tearing the boxes and paper to shreds until almost every gift was open. Some of the guard had pooled their coin into a new punching bag, making snide remarks on how she would probably need one every few months at the rate she was going. In addition they had given her a new set of bone needles and a fresh assortment of dyes for her new found hobby. Deidra had appeared besides Dastan, taking a drink from a bottle she was given by some random mercenary. “I was thinking..maybe you could tattoo that idea I had of the feathers along my temple to ear..”

Aiden nodded along with Deidra’s words. “Also..we have something in the works...for the wolves. Since they are still growing we haven’t started on it yet, but we thought they deserve some sort of armor of their own, no?”

“That’s not true Aiden.” Deidra pipped in. “You had one made for Tala. A prototype of sorts.”

Darren smirked, poking Ali in the side and pointing over by the large fire that was behind the tables. “Look..”

“Puppy needs one too!” Lily whined slightly. Jess shushing the girl quietly and giggling as Beo came over to sniff her baby boy, the child giggling and reaching out towards the wolf.

Tala was sitting quietly, panting by the fire, her form endowed similar to what a Black Knight’s armor would entail. With a few modifications of course. Her tail, legs, ears and snout were free from the thin plating, while along her back, sides and underbelly several layered sheets protected flesh and fur. She even had a tiny helmet of sorts.

“No way…” Essence whispered. “Can she move in all that? Isn’t that heavy?”

Aiden nodded. “Tala..come..” He smiled as Tala stood and meandered her way through the circle to sit proudly in the center. “It is a bit heavier than we’d like, but we are working on it. As you can see, she can move pretty easily. The layers are molded to how she moves and bends.”

Lily was being held by the hand by Jess to give the adults some room, but she pulled away towards Tala and clipped something small and black to the wolf. Three, long, black feathers.
“We made some for all of them. And Puppy!”

Aiden cleared his throat and nudged Ess’ arm, motioning towards the table. “There’s still a few more gifts with your name on them over there.”

“I think it was.” Jake stated casually, taking a drink from the bottle Ali had brought him. “A dragon egg.”
“Sure you do.” Crys nodded. “Can I have one of those cookies?”
“Well, they existed!” Jake retorted, hesitating for a moment before letting Crys take one of the cookies. “I mean really, we’ve seen plenty, just between us here, are dragons that fantastical that they couldn’t have been real?”
“I guess not, but I don’t know.”She replied. “In the context, I believe it’s more likely the dragon egg stands for something else. It’s just the impression I get, but if they did or not exist... that’s a whole different matter Jakey.”
“Well...” Dastan started. “As much as it pains me, I have to side with Jake on this one... I mean... There are accounts of people seeing dragons in ancient times, and there are actually more recent accounts than that if you count those outside of Valcrest. I think it’s possible they existed and maybe still exist somewhere.” He spoke, very matter of fact like as he fiddled with the cloak that he was now wearing. “Don’t think I remember this ever looking so clean.” He mumbled.
“Well, it might if you had a wife.” Crys teased, smirking at him. “I’m just saying, you’re not getting any younger.”
Dastan stared at Crys in silence for a few seconds then shrugged. “You know, Red, maybe you do have a point.” He conceded. At which point he turned towards Deidra with a pleasant smile. “Hello, I’m Dastan.”
“Seriously?” Crys chuckled.
While the whole dragon debate was going on, Ali was taking a closer look on the armor Tala was wearing, seeming quite impressed with it. “Hey, Crys... Come check this out for a moment.” She called.
Crys left Jake’s side to kneel down by Tala, reaching out to feel the material that her protective gear was made of. “Hmm... You know... Blackwell would get a kick out of this. Maybe I should take Kaya to see him when I go home.”
“You’re taking Kaya to Blackwell?” Jake asked. “Oh please let me be there to see it.”
“Hush.” Crys snickered. “It’ll be fine. I think he’d be interested.” She stated, standing up straight and stopping as if trying to hear something beyond the music and chatter of the party around them. “Where is Kaya?”
“Hmmm....” Jake mumbled, looking around. “If she’s not around here, then my best guess is she’s going through my stuff.” He said, still looking around for the wolf even so. “She was with me up until I came over here.”
“I saw her when I went to get your drink, she was poking her nose at the musical instruments, but she’s not there now.” Ali stated. “You’re probably right and she’s at your camp.”
“Probably.” He agreed, taking another drink and suddenly taking notice of the fact he hadn’t seen Stalker anywhere. That wasn’t all too odd, considering that the wolf usually stayed out of sight, but he did have a habit to show himself when Aiden was around almost immediately. If anything Jake had to admit one thing about Luckas; he did a fantastic job of training the wolf.

Luckas’ mood had not improved much on the way to the Nest. He tried his best not to, but he couldn’t really stop thinking of some things Sam had said to him. He was mad at himself for getting the cut on his face healed like she wanted, he didn’t really think about it until it was already taken care of. He annoyed the woman in blue again by storming out of the medic ward without letting her examine him further; which he also regretted because now he was sore, and he still didn’t understand why Stalker was so agitated. It seemed like the wolf was frustrated with Luckas for being slow to reach the camp, even though he thought he was doing good time considering how bloody tired he was. Honestly, the last thing Luckas wanted to come across was a party, but it seemed like he was being dragged right into one. Before he even reached the camp he had already spotted the fireworks, and although they were quite impressive to look at Luckas had to wonder what was the point of hiding a camp so well if you’re going to shoot explosives into the sky right above it for everyone to see. “Seriously, Stalker? This is what was so important?” He muttered under his breath. Luckas’ first instinct was to go sit by the oak and wait there for whatever commotion that was to end, but the wolf kept pushing him whenever he stopped or tried to stray from the path he wanted him to follow. Eventually Luke just gave in and followed Stalker without any more resistance until the wolf led him straight to a group of people. Luckas stood there, just out of sight of the group, quietly for a little bit just trying to make sense of the context of why Ess was opening presents and why Tala was wearing armor, and who some of those people even were, because they weren’t part of the Guard. He recognized everyone from the small group he’d been led to, however. He didn’t know all of them; he didn’t know the man in the red cape or the blonde woman standing next to Crys, but he remembered seeing them at the Ball. He didn’t know why they were all there however and quite honestly the whole thing just made him a bit awkward, as though he had stumbled into something he wasn’t meant to be a part of really. He felt like walking away and if he was completely honest with himself he would admit the the only reason he didn’t was because Aiden was there as well. As if deciding that Luckas was waiting too long to show himself, Stalker took initiative rushing into the little circle of people rather abruptly and casually putting himself between Ess and Aiden.

Luckas chuckled at the wolf’s ‘entrance’ as he stepped out of hiding, one hand awkwardly scratching at the back of his head, the other holding onto two boxes, bound to one another with string. “What... Am I walking into, I wonder...” He mumbled in a half playful half confused tone.

“I’d like to think dragons are real but then again, do we really know if that’s as great of an idea as we dream?” Essence smiled, fiddling with a string that tied this particular package she held. “However..” Her smile faltered some as she pondered her next words. “I don’t think my town was burned down by a dragon...at least in this sense..” Ess turned towards Darren, catching his gaze a moment as they shared a silent understanding. It was subtle, but Deidra noticed it all the same.

“Lets just not talk about that right now, Ess..” She whispered encouragingly to the woman, knowing full well what Ess was thinking. Deidra politely turned to receive Dastan’s greeting, amber eyes looking over him from head to toe. “I know who you are..” She nodded, a half smile appearing. “Not the kind of impression you want to give a woman you just met. Besides.. marriage I think is overrated.” Deidra moved to stand beside Ess as the woman unwrapped her next gift. She turned as if to ignore Dastan, yet her hand gently brushed against his arm, her fingers lingering a moment before she playfully nudged Ess. “Well, what do you think?”

Essence was holding to what appeared to be purple silk, folded perfectly in a square. Her face went blank so it was unclear whether she was so happy for the gift that it took her breath away; rendering her speechless, or, she was trying to think of a polite response so not to offend anyone. Her fingers moved through an opening in the fabric and held it above her head so that it gracefully unravelled to reveal a sleeveless dress, simple and modest with little accents of the ruffles at all the right places to draw attention and leave much to the imagination. “It’s..the color of my eyes…” Finally she opened a smile.

“Who is it from?” Darren played, knowingly.

Essence was silent, glancing from Deidra to Aiden curiously. “This is too much..”

“No it’s not.” Aiden smiled, nodding towards Deidra. “A few of us chipped in and Deidra made it.”

Ess’ eyes widened, glittering with an intrigued sparkle. “You made this?”

“It wasn’t that hard..” Deidra shrugged, trying to play it off as not a big deal. “Aiden said you like pretty things. It was a joint effort...even if he did cover most of the cost.”

“Remember that bet we all had going? You know, on how long you’d last in training and such. I mean, even the Captain was in on it. Well the Captain won. But, so did I. So we split the pot.” Aiden snickered. “Think of this..as your share.”

Essence shivered, feeling slightly awkward, but gave in to Aiden’s reasoning by giving Deidra a long squeeze. “Thank you guys..” As she turned to give Aiden a hug as well, Stalker conveniently appeared between them, causing Aiden to twitch, sighing a bit frustrated at the wolf. Aiden’s brows narrowed, shooting a gaze over at Jake in a silent complaint.

“Aw, Stalker. There you are sweetie..” Ess cooed over the wolf, reaching over to run her fingers through his fur. She squatted down so that the wolf and her were at the same level. Well almost. Ess thought he was a bit taller than her like this. She laughed softly when he started licking her face in greeting, but only for a moment before Beo apparently grew jealous and shoved his brother aside in a sort of greeting as well and yet to block him from Ess.

“I was wondering when you were going to show up, Luckas.” Essence pushed through her chuckles, standing back on her feet. Turning to face him fully she quirked an eyebrow at him and what he was holding in his arms. There was something she caught in the man’s stare that shook her smile. “How are you?” She asked softly unsure of what was beneath the surface of his gaze.

Darren turned to see Luckas behind him and clapped. “Well now everyone just about, is here, huh? How do you do that….How did...eh...whatever you two are just weird.”

Ess just laughed, tossing an empty box at her son. “Weirdness runs in the family too.”

Darren playfully gawked, turning his back on Ess in fake resentment to her comment. “I can’t believe you would suggest such a thing about me.” Ess shook her head, reaching back towards her bottle to guzzle a quarter of the liquor before offering it to Luckas, a sweet and charming smile curling her lips. “Look! We got more fireworks too. You should set some off with me..”

“Not yet!” Darren yelled slightly, nodding towards the last gift on the table. “You have to open that one from Annie. And..where..did...Ugh..Beo. You knocked over a gift you big, bumbling fool.” Darren bent over to pick up a small package, which was unscathed, and placed it back on the table.

“Annie? I haven’t even met her…” Ess glanced over her shoulder, shifting to an awkward stance. “Why would she…” She whispered to herself in slight confusion.

Dastan was honestly taken by surprise at Deidra’s response and he flinched not really saying anything to the woman and simply shaking his head seeming quite amused, if not impressed. It was when he heard Irvin mumble something beside him that he seemed to snap out of his momentary stupor.
“Are women always confusing like this?” The kid questioned.
Dastan snorted a laugh, patting the kid’s shoulder. “Not all of them, no.” Dastan stated simply. “Besides, once you’ve lived a little, you’ll find that even confusing can be pretty simple, if you don’t worry too much about it. Know what I mean?”
“No, I really don’t.” Irvin mumbled, sounding really confused.
Dastan chuckled softly, pulling Irvin a couple of steps away from the bunch. “How old are you, boy? About sixteen?”
“Fifteen.” Irvin replied.
“Fifteen. Alright, Irvin, is it? When you talk to a girl don’t worry about the confusing stuff, don’t even worry about getting a ‘yes’ from her... You probably won’t. Just try to get a smile. If she smiles; even if she walks away, it means you’re allowed to talk to her again. Keep that in mind and it takes away a bit of the fear, a ‘no’ is not necessarily the end.”
“How do you get a smile, then?” Irvin asked, his tone making clear he didn’t think that really made things easier.
“For the first time you talk to a girl, you want to be simple. As an example: In a party, like this one... If a girl catches your eye, and you want to talk to her, it’s for a reason, yes? Walk up to her, say hi, give your name, and tell her the reason. If she smiles, if she gives her name when you give yours without you having to ask for it, if she blushes when you pay her a compliment, these are all good signs.” Dastan explained. “Look her in the eyes, and be respectful of her personal boundaries. If she wants you in her personal space she’ll let you know somehow.”
“Says the guy who just tackled a woman moments ago.” Irvin pointed out.
“I’m not interested in her that way, nor would she ever be interested in me, and if I had truly been inconvenient with her; believe me kid, I would have been stabbed in the gut. Actually I kind of was once, a little bit, a few years ago, so... Yeah, just don’t ever do that if you want to live.” Dastan chuckled.
“Noted.” Irvin snickered. “So, that means you’re going to talk to Dee again, then?”

Jake snorted, trying to contain his usual response to the sight of Luckas, not wanting to spoil the evening with hostilities; he couldn’t say he was surprised to see the guy there even if he had made no effort whatsoever to let him know of the party, after all, when had Luckas ever needed an invitation really? It still bothered him somewhat that he was there and no matter how well he masked that feeling, he could never really hide from one person.
“You didn’t invite Luckas, did you?” Crys whispered to him.
“No. Even if I wanted him here, which I never do, the only way I know to maybe reach him is through Ess... And that would kind of kill the surprise.”
“I saw him a few days ago, I could’ve told him, but I thought he already knew.” She scolded. “He visits Annie regularly; which is about three times as frequently as you, and she could have told him also.”
“Yes, well... You know what I think of that.” Jake muttered. “And I’m going to visit, alright? It’s just that I’m a lot further away than I have been the past couple of years. How do you even know how often he goes there?”
“If you can keep drinking in Newhaven, then Luckas can keep drinking in my bar, yes?” Crys replied simply. “And I know because I asked him instead of immediately punching him in the face, which is what you do.”
“So you’re friends with the psycho now too?”
“He’s given me no reason to dislike him, yet. So I’m neutral in regards to the psycho, Jacob. I am glad he’s here though... The party is for Ess after all, isn’t it?” She snickered, poking him in the ribs and stealing another cookie.
“Heey, that’s enough, those are for me.” He complained, with a chuckle. “My cookies.”
“Fine, your cookies.” Crys agreed, ruffling up his hair. “You big baby.”

Luckas was still a bit confused at what was happening exactly, not answering the question of how he was and silently drinking from the bottle Ess offered him, eyes inspecting his surroundings as if trying to decide on what questions to ask exactly. “Alright...” He mumbled. “So we are having a party, which I suppose explains why Tala is dressed all fancy, but why are we opening presents exactly?” He questioned, a hint of amusement in his voice as he looked over the box of fireworks. “I didn’t bring anything... Well... I did, but...” He pointed at one of the boxes. “This is for the kids, actually, and the other one is mine.” He dropped the packages on the table, starting to fiddle with the fireworks. “These look quite unsafe... Lovely.”

“Just great, give the psycho some unsafe explosives.” Jake noted sarcastically approaching the gifts and curiously glancing at Annie’s package. “Yeah, I invited Annie to come for the party, but she couldn’t leave her camp right now... So she sent a gift instead. And the little one is from me. Just something I wanted you to have.” He mumbled, scratching the back of his head, his attention drawn from the gifts when Kaya showed up dropping something at Crys’ feet that caused him to wince slightly.
Crys crouched down to retrieve the object, seeming quite intrigued. “What the... It’s a plush... Dog... Of some sort?” She mumbled.
“It’s a dragon, alright? Drakey is a dragon.” Jake protested, snatching the toy from Crys’ hands looking a bit upset for a moment.
“Sorry, I was taking a guess.” Crys mumbled, honestly not sure whether or not Jake was genuinely angry at her. “You have a bedtime buddy, Jake?”
“No... Yes... No... It’s... A long story, alright? Shut up!” He muttered as Luckas started to laugh quite loudly.
“Hey, I’m not judging you, Jakey Bear... Admittedly there are more embarrassing things a guy might keep under his pillow then a stuffed... uhm... Dragon...” Luckas snickered.
“Very funny, freak... My sister made him for me, and I... Kaya...” He mumbled, leaving his sentence unfinished and staring blankly for a moment as the wolf sniffed at the plushie excitedly rubbing up against it persistently.
“Crys... I think Jake broke your wolf.” Irvin played.
Jake shook his head slightly, kneeling down to the wolf’s level and scratching behind Kaya’s ears lovingly. “Here, girl, do you want to keep him? Hm?” He asked, setting Drake down on the ground. “Here, take it.”
Kaya took a moment to sniff Jake and lick his face before snatching the toy dragon and running off with it. Jake snickered, getting on his feet and shrugging. “Maybe that’ll keep her from stealing my boots now.”
“Drakey?” Dastan asked.
“Jess named him, alright?” Jake snorted. “Drake was a big black dragon from this story my mom used to tell, but... Jess could never remember the story exactly, she’d change it every time she told it.... So I can’t quite remember it anymore either.”
“That’s interesting.... Another dragon story...” Ali pointed out casually.