1. Rainy Mornings

The sound of the heavy rain pelting the inn's window bought her a slight comfort against her cheek. It had been an incredibly busy night the night before; what with all the sneaking and running from a group of angry humans who had seen through her disguise. Removing herself from the window the seventeen year old rolls over to her small cot and picks up a small burlap sack, emptying its contents on the rough sheets.

"Only six coins left huh." She muttered to herself while running them through her fingers. She had barely been able to afford the small attic for the night alone.

Cramped and cold she grabs her cloak and climbs down the attic ladder; making her way towards the inn's hearth. Along the way she notices the many different kinds of stuffed animal heads on the walls, ranging from toriff bears to milk deer. Judging from the decorations of the faintly lit hallway, with the exception of a small amount sunlight from the early morning sun, she safely assumes the owners of the inn are hunters of a sort. Rounding the corner she spots a figure on a chair huddled up next to the fireplace, wrapped in several blankets stitched together from all kinds of assorted fabrics.

She quickly pulls up the hood of her cloak and sits near the fire trying not to draw attention to herself. She extends her arms closer to the flames in hopes of warming up before the figure notices her. As if reading her thoughts the figure slowly raises his head from the blanket and begins to speak.

"Rainy mornings are always the coldest in Alveros." His voice is raspy and contains hints of age. He sits up straight before reaching out a piece of bread towards her.

"Fancy a bite youngin?" She feels a chill run down her spine and freezes for a second before slowly turning towards the voice.

"Uhh...umm.. no, no thank you" she barely manages to say, immediately regretting her choice of words; it had been such a long time since she had eaten something besides leftover food found at mess halls. Unmoved the man retracts his hand and takes a small bite from the bread and a swig from a small goblet beside him, which reeks of wine.

After finishing he looks to her once again with a small smile and asks.

"So what's a elf like yourself doing in Alveros?" Immediately she tenses up and want to sprint out the inn but fear kicks in and her body freezes. The man let's out a soft chuckle which just incites her feelings even more.

"You can relax youngin, I'm no threat to you." Confused, but somewhat relieved she somehow lets out a few words.

"You're not... gonna.. attack me?" The man tilts his head and laughs.

"Let me tell you something youngin. I lived out my best years with an elf; as a matter of fact we grew up together long before the eruption or any of this racist shit started. Now tell me, what's your name?"

"Shiro." she says as she pulls down her hood revealing long white hair that extends outwards all the way down to her lower back. Atop her snow white hair two small curved grey horns can be seen that start close to the head then slowly extend upwards, like the body of a snake. Her skin extremely pale with hints of light purple and smooth as if shes never know the sunlight. Her eyes as red as blood; but not from lack of sleep as her scleras were as white as clouds, the ends of her ears ever so pointy and adorned with several rings. Now sitting closer to the light of the hearth the man can see her dark red cloak tattered in several places and covered in multiple stitches as if someone had sewed it up several times over the years. Her teal tunic weathered and covered in what can only be described as dirt and grass stains, sat beneath a small leather satchel that slung over her shoulder. The light brown shorts she was wearing looked incredibly chilly to be wearing in such cold weather which was accompanied by dark black sock that reached just over her knees. Her brown boots had not faired any better as the leather binding which held them together was starting to fall apart.

"Let me guess, Lunaborn? The old man asked. She nods before standing up.

"How did you know?" A puzzled look across her face.

"My friend was a Lunaborn elf. He told me many things about elves including that only Lunaborn have white hair. He was a good man, but an even greater friend."

He says with a heavy voice as he slowly grips the arms of the chair. Reading his body language she determines that somewhere along the way he must of lost his elven friend. Curious she asks.

"What happen to your elven friend?" He snaps out of his lonely trace and slowly turns to her.

"Othrax hunt gone bad. We were hunting one for the inn here in fact." He says as he turned towards the many prized heads mounting the walls.

She had read all about othraxs from a book her parents had given her. They were vicious creatures, covered in brown and green colored fur, which could grow up to twenty feet tall and ate a strict diet of meat. Bearing razor sharp claws on all four appendages these animals live atop massive trees found all over Sidorica.

"I'm sorry about your friend, I would've like to meet him. I've never met another elf before."

Not expecting to hear those last words, the man leans in closer and is about to ask her to elaborate when the door to the inn swings opens and three human guards walk in. Quickly, the elf pulls up her hood as she begins to hear them whisper between one another. Avoiding eye contact she starts walking towards the opposite end of the inn away from the guards. Sweat starts to profoundly escape her body as she nears the back door when an arm grabs her shoulder, pulling down her hood in the process.

"Captain you were right! She bears the horns of a bloody demon! An elf!"

The guard yells as he tightens his grip on her shoulder. Panic starts to seep in her mind as she contemplate her options. She grips her makeshift knife and begins to unsheathe it when the man from the fireplace chair grabs her attacker and flings him towards the other two guards, knocking them down in the process.

"Go I'll hold them back. Run child!" The burly man says as he plants his feet firmly to the ground in anticipation of the guards as they rose back up.

"Thank you mister, but I never got your name." She asks.

"Draymen." He smirks.

"Now Go!"

Content she opens the door and escapes down the muddy road.