Snippet #1308493

Esther watched the entire affair, eventually giving up and coming to sit at the table as well, even calling a few dice rolls that she thought may have been a bit too calculated. In the end, everyone who participated wound up fairly knockered, and she grabbed Hilde's elbow to steady the woman as she rose, letting go when it became apparent that she could still move under her own power.

Not so for Julius, it would seem. Though her impassive expression never really changed, she was somewhat amused to see the leader of their merry little bloodsucker-slaying band pass out on the floor. She considered trying to help him out, but their comparative body weights would likely make any such efforts in vain anyway. Instead, she spared the still-conscious a brief nod, and followed her teacher upstairs. A hot bath and some woolen blankets later, and she was well away from the waking world.

The next morning, she was up before Hilde was, though she had left an herbal hangover remedy on the woman's bedside table, just in case. She passed Julius, still apparently unconscious, wincing as she considered that this was likely not an ideal position to be sleeping in. Perhaps the rest of them might need some help waking up, too. She checked on everyone's horses and equipment, making sure nothing was fraying at the edges, and then tossed the stableboy leaning against the wall a coin, promising another if he had all the beasts ready to go in the next half-hour. A rather large task for one person, perhaps, but possible with the right motivation.

That accomplished, then, she headed back inside to see about breakfast. Julius was gone, but the innkeeper was up and about, and gave her a nod as she walked up to his counter. "Any chance our fee includes breakfast?" she asked, trying to infuse her tone with more pleasantness than was usually present. Esther wasn't what anyone would call terribly expressive.

The man contemplated for a second, then glanced at the table they'd occupied last night and shook his head, chuckling. "Why not? It seems as though your friends are going to need it." Esther knew that they had paid more than enough in alcohol the previous night to more than cover the cost of breakfast, but she was at least glad he wasn't going to insist otherwise.