Open A Tale of Frostfawn

[Nikomas]

Nikomas watched as the young girl first excused herself and then skipped off. She seemed nice enough. Probably someone he could befriend - probably should befriend, seeing that he didn't have many positive influences in his life - but that would take time and effort. Turning back to Kent, he leaned in and whispered, "Okay, now that she's gone, tell me more about those adventures of yours. They're probably really violent...and bloody! That's why you held back while she was here. They are, aren't they? That's how your saddle was broken. Wasn't it? You were defending yourself, your very life, and, somehow, your saddle was struck in the heat of a great battle! I can almost picture it in my mind." The young Vantha grew silent now, wanting to give the man a moment to reply. He knew he had stories to tell, it was just a matter of time before he told them. If he had to, Nikomas would stretch the repair by a bell or two, just to see if he would spill some details. Great stories - truly great stories - were hard to come by in the frigid wastelands of Avanthal. Tall tales, sure, there were many of those, some even he had crafted himself, but epic stories of pure bravery were rare.

[Kent]

"Oh?" Kent's great blue eyes saddened when Spirit said she had to leave. Such a kind person, he had hoped to spend more time with such good company. "Take care of yourself, friend." He nodded his head at her in a sad goodbye, and turned to continue his walk with Nikomas.

He was almost overwhelmed by all of the questions.

This man not only wanted to hear the stories of Kent's profession, but he wanted every bloody, gory detail. He wanted to hear the everything from the bone crushing first strike to the picture of the blood on the snow--everything. It was something Kent could relate to, however. He was always fascinated by stories and tales of great peril and bravery. 'Twas what inspired his choice of living. But by now he had separated what was fantasy from what was real....and he didn't know if this lad wanted to hear the real deal.

But he would tell him.

"I tell you what, Nikomas," Kent began, "As soon as we get to your place and I get myself situated, I'll tell you a tale of one of my recent expeditions over a drink. And I won't spare any detail. I swear it. Sound fair?"

[Ruby Majalenka]

Today the doctor had been lenient. He sent Ruby off for some home visits and allowed a break for the rest of the evening, though she would've preferred slaving away in the hospital's warmth rather than back to her drafty tent. Bent on strolling the night away, she noticed a spot of platinum blonde amongst the crowds coming into her direction. With the blonde was a Vantha woman and man, though the woman left their company not far from where Ruby stood.

Out of whim, she pretended she was a spy eavesdropping in a classified talk. Not that she was a professional to start with, but an imaginary adventure won't hurt. However the two men were talking about something actually interesting. The blacksmith seemed to have a slight obsession for stories, while the blonde wasn't the best in concealing his past either.

"Excuse me." Ruby greeted in undertone as she followed from behind, eyes fixated at front, as if purposely avoiding eye contact with both men. "If it's a story you're interested in, would you buy mine ?" she smiled.

[Kent]

Kent heard a woman's voice drift from out of nowhere. He frowned at Niko. "I'm sorry did you say something?" He hoped to God not, because that was a feminine sounding voice. But he heard a crunch of snow between them, and looked down to see a young woman walking with them.

He was totally surprised for 2 main reasons. The first was how boldly she had asserted herself into the conversation. It was rude, but he was more confused than upset. She even knew exactly what they had been talking about. The second reason was how pale she was. She obviously wasn't Vantha. She looked like a human but it was hard to tell. She stood a little bit behind them, so he had to awkwardly turn around to face her, even though she was centered in between them.

"Um, excuse me?" Kent rubbed the snow from his white head, frowning. "You want to...sell us your story? Is that what you said?"