The Egg Thief of Alungar, ch 3

The door banged open as Tanis barged into the pub, shaking the snow from his hair and drawing a few looks of irritation as he shrugged out of his thick coat. Rell and Ariella were next, with Barris closing the door behind them. The blacksmith’s apprentice was coated in snow but seemed unconcerned by the cold while Rell shivered and dashed through the pub, angling for a table by the fire. He slipped into a seat moments after the previous occupant had only just got up, beating another group to it. Ignoring their complaints, he pointed to Barris as if the big man was the only defence he required.

Ariella slid in next to the window, sitting opposite her brother. The snow was building up on the squares of glass, obscuring the closed shops across the narrow street. She stared out of the window, only glancing over as Barris took the seat next to her, the bench creaking under his weight. Tanis caught the barmaid’s eye and called out for four ales before sitting down with a heavy sigh. “Do you want to swap places, Ari? You’d be warmer next to the fire.” Rell’s concern for his sister’s sombre mood had been growing ever since they’d found her pacing in an alleyway just beyond the square. She’d fallen in behind them without a word, and followed them to the pub. Meeting his concerned look, she gave a slight shake of her head, disturbing a lock of damp hair draped across her forehead. “Seated here should warm a person up soon enough. You have to be careful not to raise the body heat too quickly,” Barris said knowingly. The big man leant over the table and Ariella seemed to shrink in beside him, hiding from the rest of the inn. “Do you remember the boy that fell in the lake?” Tanis asked while he turned to peer through the gaps to the upper floor of the inn. With the ceremony over, people were filing in, with many heading directly to the upstairs room. “There’s a bit of a party going on up there.”

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