Following the servant, Katriana and I wove our way around uniformed serving girls and chattering guests enjoying their dinners. The scrawny older man led us to the back of the inn, where there were private dining rooms for more exclusive and richer guests all along against the back wall, most of them barely large enough for the table and chairs they contained. He opened one of the polished wooden doors for us, holding it so we could duck into the more intimate space.
A glowing fireplace lit the small room, which was dominated by a round table. A mountain landscape decorated the back wall, drawing the eye, but I put my focus on the eclectic group that were sitting for their meal. Seated in a semicircle at the back of the room were three other people- a pretty, pale-haired elf woman in flowing white and silver robes, a dwarf in furs and leathers with a big, bright red mohawk, and an older man in a finely tailored silver and green coat, a shirt with a ruffle of lace at his throat, and riding leathers.
The servant brushed by me to stand next to the human man. "May I present my lord, Ricard Parett," he said with a small bow in our direction, "And his lifelong companions, Abbess Mariska of the Starlit Order and Lord Gogol the Giant-Slayer."
The elf gave us a serene nod, but even that was enough to make my cheeks feel a little hot. She was soft-featured and pale, with a small, pouty mouth, giving the overall impression of a porcelain doll come to life. The dwarf, coarse-featured and rumpled like he just got out of bed, gave a brief grunt and went back to tearing apart the whole chicken he was in the middle of devouring. Only the human man, Lord Ricard, stood and greeted us with open arms.
"Welcome, welcome!" he said cheerily. The man was old enough to be cresting the hill if not already over it, his close-cropped beard more salt than pepper, though he still had all his hair. With the wings of white at his temples, the fine lines of his face and a strong jaw, it was enough to make me worry if Katriana was into "silver foxes". "Although I suppose it's not my room to welcome you to," the man corrected himself as he went on, giving a good-natured laugh, "All the same, I am glad you accepted my invitation. Ignore what my servant says, I'm no real lord. Please, just call me Ricard. I am something of a vagabond and adventurer, you see, just like you."
A silence feel over the table, stretching long enough for it become awkward. I realized with a start that they were waiting for us to introduce ourselves, and Katriana was automatically deferring to me for that. I was the prince-in-exile, after all.
"Uh, right. I'm Theodore, and this is my partner, Katriana," I said, keeping it simple. I doubted they were all that interested in our backstory. "We're adventurers, too, although we're just starting out. Uh, nice to meet you." Silently, I cursed myself for being so awkward and lame. So much for that Etiquette skill sharpening my social abilities.
"Of course, of course, just the adventurers I need!" Ricard went on, gesturing expansively, as if he was on stage, "You see, I'm in town for the tournament. One last hurrah for me with the old party before I settle down to run my vineyard and enjoy my retirement with my wife." My eyes went over to the elven woman, who was simply staring dispassionately back. Was she the wife he was referring to? "However, during our travels, a very important item belonging to me went missing, shortly before we arrived in Tresens. I would seek it out myself, but unfortunately, I am booked solid with appearances at parties, visiting old friends, and preparing for the tilt, all the way up to the beginning of the tournament. I can't spare hours, nevermind the days it might take to follow our backtrail and search."
There was another long pause. The elven woman's gaze was beginning to make me uncomfortable, and I shifted my feet. Something felt odd about this group of old friends. Only Ricard seemed to be the kind of person to hang out with, well, anyone. The silent, watchful elf and the grumpy-looking dwarf chowing down appeared to be entirely disengaged with the genial old man speaking to us.
"What I'd like out of you and your partner," Ricard continued, pulling my attention back to him, "Is to journey back into the mountain pass that we traversed to get here from my home in the Lakelands, and search for this item. Find it and bring it back to me, and you will be suitably rewarded."
I paused in thought a moment, gathering myself in the face of the elf's unsettling eyes. "Alright, that's doable for us," I replied carefully, "Although we will need more information. What kind of a reward, what item are we looking for, and where do you think you lost it?"
Ricard barked another laugh. Again, in contrast to his companions he seemed pretty genuine, and his manner put me at ease. "Straight to the point, eh? That's a good quality in a party leader, being able to cut through the bullshit of old windbags like me," he said, coming over to clap me on the shoulder, "Well, my boy, I can offer you one hundred gold pieces if you find and return the item to me. It's extremely important that I have it back before the tournament begins in three day's time."
I considered it. It must be pretty important if we was willing to pay that much. Maybe some kind of minor magic item? "Alright, we can do that," I replied, taking a half-step back so I was out of his grip. As much as I was slowly warming up to Ricard, I still didn't like a stranger suddenly coming into my personal space like that. "Uh, so, what can you tell me about the item, and where did you last remember having it?" I asked.
"It's a magical ring," the older man replied as he resumed his seat, confirming my suspicions, "Sized for a man's hand. The band is made of gold, and it's set with a few stones. I'm sure, as a magic-user, you can detect it's presence, can't you?"
As it stood, I couldn't, or at least I didn't think so, but I held my tongue. Without that gold, Katriana and I had one more night's stay in the inn between us. We couldn't afford to lose this job because I was overly honest about my capabilities as a mage.
"I know I had it on my person before going to sleep the previous night, before we arrived in the city," Ricard explained as he meandered on, "It had gotten dark on us before we could make it to Tresens, and rather than risk our horses on the descent with only lantern-light, we chose to camp in the pass. When I awoke, the ring was gone. We searched the camp for over an hour, and couldn't find a trace."
I glanced over at Katriana, who shrugged at me with a small smile. I appreciated her confidence in my ability to choose quests and question questgivers, but some indication of what she thought about the job would have been nice. "A thief of some kind took it, then?" I asked, frowning as I turned back to Ricard, "It's hard to imagine a cat burglar in a mountain pass."
Finally the elf spoke up, her voice breathy and ethereal. "We were not foolish enough to rest without a guard rotation," she explained with some amount of disdain, which I guess I earned with my doubt about the possibility of a thief, "However, my divinations lead me to believe that we had been visited by a pictsy. One had been following us for some of the previous day, staying out of sight but peering at us from behind rocks and bushes. It may have infiltrated into our camp at night when one of my more mundane companions was on watch, and was simply drawn to something shiny it could take for it's nest."
The difference in pronunciation wasn't lost on me, although I didn't know the difference between a pixie and pictsy. I tried to "remember" what I already knew about pictsies from magical school, but I could come up with almost nothing. They're flying, mischievous humanoid fae creatures of some kind. They have some illusion magic and like playing pranks. Useful, but I was hardly an expert on the creatures.
