Gru was not put off by the contents of the stew because he had eaten far less during his trip down from the north. In fact, the worgen really enjoyed the meal and his stomach was equally satisfied. The stares he and Ivy were receiving failed to phase Gru. He merely laughed lightly at Margaret's way of dealing with them. He wondered if he had been just as curious as a pup when travelers had passed through the Frostlands.
Once they were done eating, the Summer wolf picked up his staff and followed the old woman and Ivy up the stairs to their room for the night. Catching a glimpse of hope in Margaret's eyes lead the worgen to believe that beneath that seemingly hard exterior was a caring soul. But he wouldn't say that out loud.
Ivy ate quickly, feeling the stares but not caring, as she had never had a problem with that kind of thing. She was glad she and Gru would be able to do something for these people. She walked quickly behind the woman and hoping she would be able to get some sleep sharing a room. She had never shared a room before, and was unsure how to feel about it. Putting aside those thoughts for the moment, she turned her attention to the woman leading them upstairs. "If possible, could you send someone to wake us in the morning? A bit early, I want to get started as soon as I can." she wasnt sure about Gru, so she only spoke about herself for the moment, to allow him to speak up about himself.
"That we can do, child. I'll be sure to send someone as soon as the sun rises.
Used to be the roosters would have done it for us, but we have yet to afford new stock after the raid..."
::At the top of the stairs, Margaret opened the door to a room that was barely big enough for the bed within it. The mattress was stuffed with straw. Not the most comfortable, but better than the hard ground or floor. It would be big enough to sleep them both, should they wish, but it would be close. There was a thin blanket as well that showed singe marks and the smell of smoke still lingered in the air up here. There was enough floor space for another person, should they not want to share a bed...::
"It's not much, I'm afraid, but it will have to do."
::She turned to leave, but stopped before going far to look back at them.::
Gru had not expected the room to be anything fancy, so when the door was pushed open the wolf injected some optimism into his reaction.
"It looks good to me."
They had a roof over their heads for the night and were in and away from the elements, so his cheerful response wasn't a far cry from the truth.
"And I wouldn't accept a single penny in return for helping you folks out. I consider it an honor and my duty to do everything in my power to rid you of your orc invaders."
Gru looked down at Ivy, instinctively knowing that she was probably dreading the thought of sharing the bed, whether she spoke her mind or not. That wasn't going to be a problem, of course, because the wolf had already decided to sleep on the floor.
But that didn't mean he couldn't have some fun before bed.
"You're ok taking the floor, right? I have this thing with my back..." Gru rubbed his lower back and winced as if in pain. "Unless you want to share."
The Summer wolf began laughing and slapped Ivy on the shoulder.
"Just yanking your chain. Go ahead, you take the bed. I'll find a comfortable spot on the floor. I've slept on far worse."
Ivy gave the woman a smile. "Getting rid of the orcs will be payment enough. And the room is fine." She assured the woman. She frowned at the bed, turning her head so the woman wouldnt see. There was no way she was going to share a bed with anyone, Sera being an exception, as she was Ivys best friend. She was going to go right to the floor, to be nice and let Gru have the bed when he spoke up. Her shoulders stiffened and she scowled at the wolf, eyes worried. She stumbled a step forward when Gru slapped her shoulder, not because it was hard, but because she wasnt expecting it. She didnt fall though, and turned to look at Gru with a frown. "I can take the floor. Its not a big deal." she told him.
::Margaret gave a smile and a nod and turned to go back downstairs as the two adventurers entered the room. They could hear her more usual tone floating up the stairs as she yelled at someone for making a mess on the table and started barking more orders to the rest of the people that had been gathered there to set a watch, clean up, or go to bed.::
"Why do you have to be so stubborn?" Gru replied to Ivy's frown with a smile. "Take the bed. Get some sleep."
The Wolf closed the door and settled down on the floor, sitting at first then sliding onto his back. The wooden floor boards were comfortable enough and within seconds Gru was quietly snoring.
Ivy sighed and turned to the bed as Gru went to the floor. She really wouldnt have minded taking the floor, but at the moment she was too tired to argue with the wolf. She crawled into the bed and flopped onto her back, falling asleep quickly despite the fact she was sharing a room.
::The two slept soundly without interruption until the first light of dawn began to illuminate the small window in the room, shining through the wispy curtains.
This was soon followed by a heavy knocking on the door and the sound of Margartets voice from the other side.::
"Time to get up, sleepy heads. You wanted an early start. Breakfast is ready once you're dressed and downstairs."
Ivy groaned and blinked herself awake. She pushed herself up into a sitting position and swung her feet off the side of the bed. She rubbed her eyes and yawned, brushing her fingers through her hair quickly. This all took less then five seconds, and when she was combing out her hair, turned to Margarete and smiled. "Thank you. Im already dressed, so Ill be down in a moment." she was already eager to begin helping these people rid themselves of the orcs that were causing so much trouble.
((Ivy would like to continue this thread, so looking to write Gru out. If anyone else is interested in joining it, shoot me a PM and we can discuss ways to write you in.))
::You wake to find Gru not in the room. And when you get ready and head downstairs, you find he is not there either. The townspeople from the night before are though and they are busy with preparing a communal morning meal for everyone.
In sharp contrast to the night before and windows are open along with the door. People seem to be in better spirits with the light of the sun shining to keep away the unknown. Children bustle about underfoot as the elderly go about the work. There is no sign of anyone older than young teens nor any younger than what could be grandparents. It seems all the people of what could be considered working age are missing.::
Ivy frowned, wondering where Gru could have gone and why. Her thoughts quickly went to the people around her as she stood looking around. There was no one who looked to be around her age, and she found it nice. She didnt really get along with others her age anyways. Ivy was also glad everyone seemed to be happier today then last night. "Can you point me in the direction I need to go?" she asked anyone who would answer her.
::Margaret steps over with a bowl of oaten meal. She doesn't look to have slept much last night.::
"Near as we can tell, they headed west of here. Though we think they may have hooked north at some point, since Orcs seem to like the caves up around there.
Honey...
I don't know how to tell you this, but I think your friend may be in trouble. He slipped out in the night on his own. I tried to stop him, but he said he just couldn't imagine taking you into danger and he was going to handle it on his own.
I'm going to give you the same advice I gave him...
Ain't no way one person could handle all those orcs and get our people back safely.
As much as we'd appreciate your help, I can't ask you to do this alone. But if you do, then likely as not you may want to prepare yourself for what you may find along the way."