Surprise little starter for @eclipsedevune
Few things could leave Jaheira speechless. One of them had happened at Last Light Inn, when a strange band of tadpoled-yet-not-enthralled people barged in, and she locked eyes with Rowan for the first time, and saw...
The name slipped from her lips in a whisper, like a prayer. Her heart lurched, a tight knot forming in her throat, and for a brief, dangerous moment, the vines she had just conjured nearly withered from her distress. But she was quick to recover, quick to school her expression. The High Harper, the Commander — those were the mantles she wore, and she could not falter.
But now… now, she was simply Jaheira.
Perched as a crow atop the Inn’s roof, she watched as that same band set up camp near the lake, right at the edge of the moon barrier. Did the Shadow Curse have taken its toll on her mind? Or age has caught up and she was finally losing her grip? Rowan and Evune were nothing alike. She knew that. So where had that foolish thought even come from?
With a sigh, the crow took flight, descending toward Rowan before shifting back into her humanoid form.
"Don't use water from the lake."
Ah, brilliant. A fantastic way to start a conversation — stating the obvious. Just excellent, Jaheira.
She pressed on, voice firm, composed, detached. "Have your cleric create fresh water, or provide me with enough containers, and I’ll fill them for you. If your group needs soap, towels, or anything of the sort, there’s a dispenser beneath the stairs."
All business. All control. As if she wasn’t quietly unraveling over emotions she couldn’t even name.
She needed more information about this one. And with no Harper's Hold network to rely on, she would have to dig the old-fashioned way. And pray for it to work.
"One of your friends mentioned they were in Baldur’s Gate when the nautiloid took them. Was it the same for you?"
It was a simple question. An innocent enough probe. But depending on Rowan’s answer, Jaheira might just get a clue — a birthplace, a history, anything to quell this gnawing feeling inside her. Or stir it even more.
