Comforts of Civilization…

Author’s Note: Again big thanks goes to Rebelrsr for the awesome betaing!

Comforts of Civilization…

The first thing Lhyra noticed after leaving the armor shop with Willow was that night had fallen. A light, misty rain had moved in as well, and the market seemed to have closed up. Something caught her eye as she scanned the area. There were lanterns with, if she judged things correctly, a continue flame spell burning within them, illuminating the darkness like a torch would - without burning out.

Turning away, Lhyra led Willow toward Waukeen’s Rest main gate. As they walked, Lhyra again looked down at the piece of paper in her hand, shielding it with her head from the rain. “You are saying that this paper, this receipt,” Lhyra used the Common tongue word, “says that we paid for the armor?”

Willow nodded her deer-hood covered head as she replied, “Yes, and it also says that for the week after we pick up the armor they will make any adjustments for free. We just need to have it with us when we go get the armor and if we go back for the adjustments.”

Lhyra gave out a slight, “Harrumph.” Before handing the receiptto Willow, she muttered, “You keep it then since you are keeping track of the money.”

“OK,” Willow replied. Taking the receipt, she quickly rolled up the stiff paper, tied it shut with a piece of twine, and stored it in one of the side pockets on her backpack. Lhyra saw that the pocket held similarly rolled pieces of paper. Willow noticed Lhyra watching. “I need to find something to keep the papers and stuff organized.” She raised her eyes toward the sky. “And waterproof, too.”

Rolling her eyes heavenward, Lhyra said with a hint of sarcasm, “It seems being organized requires one to have many weighty things to carry around.”

Willow shot her a mildly affronted look. “Good order is the foundation of all things.”

Lhyra gave her a fang fill grin. “Ohhh, you are not going start babbling again, are you? I think you scared the armor smiths more than I did with your babble attack back there.” Lhyra jerked a thumb over her shoulder.

Willow immediately protested. “Hey, I said I was sorry.” Waving her arms, Willow went on. “It’s just…when you told me it would take a little over three weeks to make the armor, I kind of spazzed out.”

“No,” Lhyra interrupted, “you spazzed out when I explained that a week is ten days, not seven like it is where you are from.”

Before Willow could reply, they reached the gates - only to find them closed up tightly with a small group of the town watch standing guard. The guard spread out as Lhyra and Willow drew close, with several actually raising and cocking their loaded crossbows. Although, the guardsmen didn’t point them directly at them, the threat was clear to Lhyra.

One of the guards, who Lhyra presumed to be the leader since he wore the best armor, held a hand up, palm forward. “That’s close enough, gnoll. The gate is closed for the night.”

“We wish to leave.” Speaking Common Lhyra kept her voice matter-of-fact.

Lhyra watched has a wave of anticipation rippled through the group of guards as their leader replied, “Well, you’re going have to wait till morning because that gate…” The guardsman jerked his head in the direction of the gate behind him. “…and the other stays closed. My recommendation is to find someplace to bed down for the night.” He gave Lhyra an unfriendly smirk before continuing. “By the way, Waukeen’s Rest has a rule: if you aren’t a resident or you can’t provide proof that you are renting a room from one of the inns and are caught after sunset, you will be arrested and fined.”

This time Lhyra didn’t even try to keep the growl out of her voice as she flexed her clawed hands where they hovered close to her weapons. “I take it you are going to attempt to arrest me?”

Still smirking, the guardsman replied, “Not yet. First time visitors get one candle to find a room. Good luck with that. This is the busiest time of year, you know.”

“Come,” Lhyra barked to Willow in Gnoll as she spun and stalked away with her head swinging from side to side as she looked for pursuers. She expected they would be shadowing them, waiting for the right time to strike. Though she had never been to or even seen an inn, Lhyra understood what they were. More importantly, she understood what the guardsman was getting at by his last statement.

A small hand grabbing her arm caused her to look down into Willow’s confused and worried face, reminding Lhyra that Willow hadn’t mastered more than a handful of words of the Common tongue.

“Why won’t they let us leave?” Willow asked in gnoll after listening to Lhyra’s explanation. Brow furrowed in thought, she slowly and unconsciously stroked the fur on Lhyra’s arm in a calming gesture.

After taking a deep breath, forcing herself to relax a little, Lhyra answered, “They close the gates at night and won’t open them till dawn. I was told we have one candle to find a place to stay or we will be arrested and fined.”

“OK.” Willow brightened. “You know this might actually be an opportunity for you to get use to being in a town.” She must have seen the look of disbelief Lhyra shot her because she hurried on to explain. “If I understand you correctly, when we leave the High Forest for good, we will be traveling through more and more civilized areas. You’ll have to be comfortable with town then.” Facing Lhyra, she said cajolingly, “Why don’t we see how much it cost to rent a room and stay for as long as we can afford it while we wait for our armor to be made? That way, you can still train me out there,” Willow gestured in the general direction of the main gate, “but come back here to spend the night. This way, we will be getting you exposure to what living in a town is like.”

Lhyra stared at her a moment before letting out a snort of amusement. “You just want to sleep in a bed.” Secretly, Lhyra thought Willow’s idea was sound; she simply didn’t want to seem too give in to easily.

Willow tried to look shocked at the accusation, failing miserably at the attempt (much to Lhyra’s amusement). “Oh… ahh… well yeah, kind of, but it really is a good opportunity for you and well me, too, I guess.” She flushed uncomfortably.

Waving her hand in the air in a brushing away gesture, Lhyra said, “Fine then. If you can find us a room, you can rent it for however long we have money for.”

Willow’s face immediately cleared at Lhyra’s words. “Really? You mean that?”

“Yes, yes… now tell me what words of Common I will need to teach you and make it quick. We are running out of time,” Lhyra replied.

“Oh thank you! I saw a place earlier that I’m sure is a good size inn. It caught my eye because the building looked Oriental and…” Willow stopped at the impatient expression on Lhyra’s face. “Time limit. Right,” she said sheepishly. “Well, I need to know…”


The House of Gentle Repose…


Standing up from her desk, Shu Fang let out a groan as she stretched her arms above her head and arched her back, causing a series of soft ‘pops’ to sound along her spine. She had been stuck at her desk all day long getting caught up with her inn’s ledgers. Shu Fang smiled to herself as she fondly remembered the reason for her falling behind on her paper work.

His name was Wilamros, a strapping young lad of fifteen summers from the Tree Ghost tribe, one of many Uthgardt barbarians who had come to Waukeen’s Rest when it first opened its gates several years ago to protect the giant magical oak called the Grandfather Tree within the High Forest.

Shu Fang’s exotic looks, even by half-elven standards, had attracted the young barbarian’s attention right from the start. Shu Fang’s mother was from the far eastern kingdom of Shou Lung; her mother barely stood five feet tall and had the pale golden skin and coal black hair of her people. Shu Fang’s father was a Wood Elf from Silverymoon, with copper skin and black hair. Shu Fang had inherited her parents’ black hair (though with blue highlights) and their short stature (she stood an inch above five feet). Her eyes were a bright jade green and had a ‘sleepy look’ about them. And her skin was pale with a sight blush of copper, depending on the lighting.

For the last year, her barbarian had been officially courting her. Last month, he had reached the age of adulthood, thus allowing them to consummate their feelings for one another. Where he lacked in experience, he readily made up for it in enthusiasm and endurance. Lots and lots of endurance.

Still smiling, she straightened her robes, a mixture of Elven and Eastern design, and left her office. She passed the entrance to the kitchens, following the hallway to where it entered the large common room where people came to drink and eat. If they were lucky, they also got to listen to a bard sing a song or tell a tale as well.

As she made her way along the edge of the large room toward the archway leading to the inn’s foyer, Shu Fang was pleased to see it had gotten quite crowded. Passing through the archway, Shu Fang saw that Allison, who acted as one of her main hostesses, manned the front desk. “Busy, I see.”

Giving a tired sigh Allison replied, “Two trade barges from Daggerford arrived today. One came in so late it barely got the cargo unloaded before nightfall.”

“Ahh… that would explain it. So tell me, any rooms left open?” Shu Fang asked. When they got such a large crew into town, her rooms usually filled up fast. Unlike the other inn that shared business in Waukeen’s Rest, her rooms were above the standard one would expect to find in a frontier town. Something Shu Fang’s mother had taught, offer a person a soft bed and clean sheets to sleep in, plus good food and a hot bath and they’ll pay extra for such refinements on the edge of civilization.

“Just one of the single bedrooms and the Master suite.” Allison gave her a weary grin. “I won’t be surprise if the Captain there,” Allison tilted her head slighting towards table in the far corner of the common room, “chooses to stay in the Master suite.”

Allowing her gaze to casually slide in the direction indicated, Shu Fang had to agree with Allison’s assessment. An attractive human male of about eighteen summers sat in the corner. His outfit was appalling. The man wore what would be describe as a bard’s version of a sea captain’s uniform in a rich blend of very fine cotton and silk dyed in various shades of blue. He even had a gold hoop earring dangling from one ear. Shu Fang could tell that his blond goatee and shoulder length hair were oiled to give it added luster.

She hoped he didn’t get too close to an open flame.

Perched on the edge of a chair beside him, most of her lithe body draped against him, was a dark brown-haired half-elven woman, dress in idealized pirates clothing that matched the “Captain’s”. Though finely made, the clothes had rips and tears in places calculated to show tantalizing glimpses of smooth and silky flesh beneath them. Resting between her up thrust breasts and the miniscule leather jerkin she wore was a holy symbol of Sune.

Shifting her gaze back to Allison, Shu Fang asked, “Know the story there?”

Allison shrugged. “So far, all I’ve learn is he’s the youngest son of one of the larger Waterdeep merchant families. He’s been given the great honor,” Allison said the last word with derision, “of Captaining a trading ship from Waterdeep to Daggerford. From there he oversaw the transport of the precious cargo to here - where he is going to take part for the next month or so in some very sensitive trade negations.”

Shu Fang couldn’t help chuckling. “Let me, guess he told you all of that himself?” Receiving an eye roll and a nod from Allison, Shu Fang said, “I do believe… how do they say it in Daggerford… ahh yes… someone has dipped their wick in someone else’s oil lamp.”

Her remark earned a quiet laugh from Allison.

Once the laughter died away, Shu Fang said, “Why don’t you take the rest of the night and tomorrow off? I really appreciate you covering for me the past few days.”

Allison winked. “I bet you appreciated the time off. But seriously, it was my pleasure. Thanks, though. I’m gone.” Putting her words to action, Allison gave a small nod of farewell and left to return to her small but comfortable room in the servants’ quarters located in the very back of the inn.

Positioning herself behind the counter, Shu Fang ran her eyes over the foyer; she was pleased to see everything was clean and in order. She continued to examine the inn. Her inn.

The main entrance was both beautiful and functional. A heavy door made of duskwood, known for being both flame resistant and as hard as iron, guarded the foyer. Thanks to a Lantanna gnome Artificer and his ingeniously made door-closer system, a mechanical hinged arm allowed the heavy door to swing easily open and then slowly close on its own.

Newcomers entering through the door would find themselves in a fair-sized room. On the left was the common room Shu Fang had just passed through. To their right was a door leading to a private dining room that customers could rent. Directly across from the front door, the newcomers were greeted by Shu Fang or one of her hostesses, standing behind the beautifully carved maplewood front desk.

The sound of musical chimes above the front door drew Shu Fang from her thoughts. Looking up, she blinked in surprise at the odd figure entering the inn. At first, Shu Fang thought it was a young woman from one of the Uthgardt tribes, but then the girl pulled back her deer head hood, letting loose a cascade of coppery red hair that surrounded a pale face with large green eyes.

Shu Fang felt her breath catch. There was only one race of humans that bore such striking features. A human from the island of Lantan. No wonder she gave both the door chime and the door-closer only a cursory glance; such things must be completely normal to her.

Stepping from behind the front desk, Shu Fang lightly touched her fingertips together and gave the young woman a small bow. Speaking in Common, she said, “Welcome to The House of Gentle Repose. My name is Shu Fang; how may we be of service?”

Her words garnered a mild look of incomprehension from the young woman. Before Shu Fang could try any of the other languages she knew, though, the red head returned her small bow and replied in stilted Common, “Name Willow. Need room for two.”

Shu Fang kept the surprise from showing on her face with effort; the girl must only speak Lantanesse, which actually didn’t surprise her that much. From what she had heard about the Lantana humans, they rarely left their island nation - and then only as traders on their ships. To see one this far inland was truly a mystery. Shu Fang wondered, with the girl’s exotic looks and beauty, if perhaps she was an escaped captive or even slave. Though, making a closer examination of the girl’s dirty, yet well fed, appearance and general expression of happiness, she doubted the latter idea.

Speaking slowly and using her hands in pantomime to help the girl understand, Shu Fang said, “We have one room for one person.”

The girl Willow gave her small frown. “Go see?”

Gesturing for her to follow, Shu Fang said, “Please come with me.”

Shu Fang led Willow upstairs to the single occupant room that was available. Unlocking the door with her master key, Shu Fang turned the knob on a Lantanesse lamp mounted on the wall by the door. Instead of a wick rising up, a small rod was uncovered that had a continue flame spell cast on it. Having continue flame replace the torches and lanterns throughout her inn was something Shu Lang had planned from the very start. She had witnessed several inns go up in flames thanks to a drunkard knocking over a lantern. A continue flame burned and looked like a normal torch flame, but it gave off no heat and wouldn’t catch anything on fire. She was lucky enough that her Uncle, a very high ranking Wizard in Silverymoon, decided to gift her with multiple castings for free to help with starting the inn. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been able to afford the hundred and ten gold piece charged for casting each continue flame.

The magical flame revealed a small room with a single narrow bed and a tiny chest. Turning to Willow, Shu Fang said, “This cost twelve silver pieces a night. Meals,” Shu Fang mimed eating, “are an extra two silver pieces, and a bath,” again she mimed scrubbing herself, “is one silver piece.” Unlike the large tub in the Master suite, the inn provided smaller portable tubs a person could sit down in; though, they wouldn’t be able to stretch their legs out.

Willow appeared dismayed at the accommodations; pointing at the bed, Willow shook her head as she used a flurry of gestures to illustrate to Shu Fang that the second person was very tall.

Frowning to herself, Shu Fang let her eyes wander over Willow again. This time, she noticed that Willow’s backpack was brand new and that it easily cost three times as much as a normal pack. Shu Fang carefully asked, “Willow, do you have five gold pieces?”

After receiving a nod, Shu Fang gestured for Willow to once again follow her. They trotted down the first set of steps and then up a second set of steps. Shu Fang opened the double set of doors and escorted Willow into the Master Suite. With pride Shu Fang showed Willow around. The suite filled the center front of the inn, with several tall and wide windows allowing a person to look over the bazaar. The main room was for rest and relaxation, with a small fireplace for added comfort. There was a master bedroom with a large king-size bed, a much smaller bedroom for a servant - and the renter’s most favorite room, the master bath. The large circular wooden bathtub was something Shu Fang’s mother had described to her. The large bath tub was built much like a section of a giant barrel. It was large enough for several people to fit comfortably within. Hand pumps brought heated water from the kitchen located directly below the bathroom.

All the furnishings within the suite, though soft and very comfortable, were also very sturdily built. Even though many high ranking members of the merchant houses and temples liked to rent the Master Suite, adventurers loaded with treasure from within the High Forest also liked to stay there, and some of them could be quite hefty in girth.

On entering Willow had immediately started making approving noises at the rooms and furniture, especially the king-sized bed. She did seem slightly sadden at the servant’s bed, and Shu Fang guessed that was where she would be sleeping.

Willow actually let out a high pitch squeal of joy at the bathing facilities.

Shu Fang couldn’t help smiling fondly at the sheer exuberance Willow displayed as she scampered around the tub, even going up the few steps that circled either side of the tub to peer inside.

Finally, Willow turned and held up one hand with her fingers and thumb spread wide. “Five gold pieces night?”

Nodding, Shu Fang replied, “Yes. That includes,” once again she pantomimed as she talked, “bath, three meals for each of you, and laundry.”

Willow pointed at the tub and mimed pouring something in the palm of her hand then scrubbing her hair. Shu Fang instantly knew what Willow was asking. Going to a large cabinet, she opened the twin doors to reveal jars of body oils and soaps, plus large bath towels for drying. She quickly explained their uses to Willow, who, with an embarrassed expression on her face, waved at the jars and then acted out itching and then plucking a flea and killing it. With a smile of understanding, Shu Fang showed Willow what jar held the special soap for such use. Raising an eyebrow in question, Shu Fang asked, “Do you want the room?”

With a huge smile on her face, Willow said, “Yes.”

Returning the smile, Shu Fang asked, “Will you be staying just one night?”

Shu Fang watched in amusement as Willow seemed to have an internal argument with herself, making small hand gestures while she stared intently at the floor and mumbled to herself. “Thirty nights,” she announced after a few minutes.

This time, Shu Fang felt both eyebrows rise up in surprise. Rubbing her index finger and thumb together in anticipation of the gold, she wondered if the young girl truly understood the cost of the room.

Before she could say anything, though, Willow said, “One five zero gold.” She then patted the backpack that she wore.

Willow wasn’t confused. Shu Fang smiled and showed Willow how to alert the servants downstairs to start warming the bath water by pulling on a rope by the tub and how to read the small hourglass that would let her know how long before the water was ready. A second rope by the entrance summoned a servant to take any dirty laundry.

When Shu Fang noticed Willow growing agitated she asked what was wrong, and Willow replied, “One candle then…” She crossed her wrist in front of her.

Instantly understanding, Shu Fang said, “You should have said something. Please follow me.”

She took Willow to the front desk. While Willow counted out the gold, Shu Fang filled out two permits showing that Willow and Lhyra (she had to ask Willow for her friend’s name), were staying at the inn and for how long. After blowing on the ink to dry it, Shu Fang dripped a small splash of sky blue wax onto each piece and pressed the inn’s seal into the wax.

“There you go. Here are two keys, one for you and one for your friend.” Shu Fang handed over the items after verifying the fifteen neat stacks of ten gold pieces Willow had laid out in a small grouping on the front desk.

Snatching the paper and keys, Willow spun and hurried toward the door just as a group of townspeople came through. One of them politely held the door open for Willow, who touched the hand clutching the keys to her chest. “May the whore Goddess grant you great sex!” she called out as she exited the inn.

Shu Fang and the gentleman shared a laugh at the odd parting. What was that about? Shu Fang had just finished putting the gold away when the front door slowly opened. Over the musical chiming of the bell, Shu Fang heard high pitched barks and whines. Looking up, she first saw Willow backing through the partially open door. Shu Fang could tell that the girl was leading someone by the hand, but Shu Fang couldn’t understand why Willow made dog noises.

Then, to her horror, the reason became very clear.

The large gnoll trailing Willow had to bend its head to clear the top of the doorway. Then it stood to its full height as it looked around with a cool - and yet menacing - casualness. Shu Fang heard the conversation in the common room fall suddenly silent and the sounds of a few chairs being pushed back came to her.

The gnoll simply looked into the common room and gave a husky laugh filled with derision before turning its gaze onto her. The sinister, slitted yellow eyes made Shu Fang’s legs quiver with fear. She had to press her hands onto the countertop to keep herself from collapsing from lightheadedness as the implications of to what she had rented her best rooms sunk in.

Willow gave Shu Fang a nervous grin (more a grimace, really) before tugging on the gnoll’s hand. The gnoll growled something in reply that, to Shu Fang’s ears, sounded ominous. However, it quietly allowed Willow to lead it up the steps leading to the Master Suite.

As several of her patrons peered in from the common room, Shu Fang tried to give them a reassuring smile. Inside, though, she was desperately praying to her god, Hsing Yong, the god of fortune and prosperity, for divine help.

To be continued…