Opportunity part 4

Elmo couldn't understand why he had to deal with the bandages. He really wasn't sure what to do with them in the first place. Although, he was sure that he was expected to take care of them in a way that they wouldn't be found. Not that he knew what he could do about it with what he had on hand.

He could use his magic, but he suspected that his Brimstone Fire would work, but it would also probably set the inn on fire and he had a feeling that if he did that then they'd be not only out of a place to stay for at least part of the day, but also however much it would cost for the damages.

Which Elmo was sure would be more than they still have on hand.

Sighing, he eventually just put them in a corner of the room that wasn't visible from the door and made his way downstairs to the common area. He was a little surprised to hear a significant amount of talking, though he didn't try to think of reasons why. He was just curious as to what was going on.

After all, it wasn't usual for this time of day to have a large group in the common area. Or at least what he'd experienced about it so far. Maybe it was different in a city in this world.

As Elmo started heading down to the first floor, he couldn't help but yawn as he was rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He wouldn't mind some breakfast, even though he wasn't that hungry for whatever reason. He usually didn't get like that, but when he did, it usually meant that he wouldn't be able to eat much.

Not only that, but he'd also be unlikely to have much of an appetite throughout the day. It wasn't a big deal for him, it was just how he was. Not that he had any idea why it happened at any time.

Although, as he reached the bottom of the stairs, he felt a hand put on his shoulder, stopping him from moving forwards. He looked up in confusion, not really sure what was going on. Though, it took him a few minutes before his vision would focus.

He jump back in surprise when he saw it was a soldier. He then looked around, feeling a momentary sense of panic as he saw five other soldiers around the room, each standing and looking rather alert. Jonas was sitting around a group of men who looked to be roughly Elmo's age, though he couldn't understand what was going on.

Fortunately, he saw Elin and Kim father in the inn, so he made his way around the soldiers, afraid of what might happen if he even merely brushed against one of them as he passed by.

The soldiers being quiet even made Elmo feel even more unsettled. He wished that he knew what was going on with tall the soldiers.

"What's going on?" he asked as he sat next to Elin.

"Apparently Jonas made some new friends who the city watch suspect they escaped from a jail earlier this morning," Kim replied casually, as if this sort of thing happened all the time.

Elmo blinked as he stared at Kim. Then he looked towards Elin and hoped she might tell him something that told him that would connect what he saw in the common area with what Kim said.

"Oh no," Kim said, looking only slightly alarmed, but also a little amused.

"What?" Elmo asked, surprised at Kim's sudden statement.

"Oh nothing," Kim laughed. "Just thought I'd mess with you a bit."

"What do you mean 'mess?'" Elin asked, sounding a little confused.

"Just that she was joking with me, trying to get me confused," Elmo answered.

"Oh."

"Anyway, how did this start?" Elmo asked Elin, hoping Kim wouldn't add her two cents again.

"Uh, I'm not sure," Elin admitted. "When I got up they were all here first. Then after a little bit, the soldiers came in and started trying to arrest them, but it's not clear if what Jonas said will turn out in his favor or not."

"Okay, what did Jonas say to get things to this point then?" Elmo asked, a little annoyed at having to ask a question at each step of the way in this conversation.

"To sum it up, Jonas told the watch that these people were here all night and that they weren't the ones who broke out of the jail. Right now they sent someone to ask nearby healers to see if they were called to this inn recently to heal these men," Kim explained.

Elmo was opening his mouth to ask about Elin, but stopped when he caught the glint in Kim's eyes, making it clear that he better stay quiet. Not that he needed much encouragement. Or at least from Kim. He didn't understand what was going on, but had to accept that he probably wasn't going to until things started to die down.

Elmo couldn't help but sigh. He looked at the men who were still chained, but were still being patient while waiting. Elmo wasn't sure he'd be able to be that patient, even if he knew for a fact that he was innocent or couldn't be found out. Just the thought of sitting there waiting like that made him itch.

Elmo was about to ask Kim something else, but when the door to the inn opened, the thought left his mind altogether.

"Did you check with all the healers?" one of the soldiers asked.

The man who just entered nodded. "Yes, I got them all to talk," he said. "None of them were called and none of their assistants and apprentices were called. I couldn't find any healer who could possibly have come here this morning."

The soldier who had asked the question sighed as he looked at the men still sitting patiently. "Looks like we have no choice other than to believe them, it looks like," the man sighed. "What a pain."

"Indeed sir," the soldier who'd recently entered the inn said.

"Let's go back upstairs," Kim said suddenly. "We were only staying a night, so we should get our things ready to go. I can't say when the innkeeper would expect check-out time to be, so it might be better to get the room emptied earlier rather than later."

"Can't we stay any longer?" Elin asked, her gaze centered on the men that were now being unchained.

"Sorry, but I let you watch the show while it lasted," Kim replied, sounding to Elmo like something a mother would say to a willful child, which made him feel weird.

"Alright," Elin sighed, dragging out her sigh like she was being forced to do something unreasonable.

Elmo didn't say anything as they started towards the stairs, though, as they reached the stairs, one fo the men intercepted them, although, Kim was quick to put herself between Elin and the man.

"My apologies, but I wanted to see if there was anything we could offer to Lady Elin with her troubles," the man said respectfully.

"We got it covered," Kim replied, her tone indicating the man could go.

"Also, my father is having a party tonight. I would be grateful if Lady Elin would attend as my guest," the man continued, as if Kim hadn't said anything. "Her bodyguard and servants would also be welcome."

"We'll think about it, Lance," Elin said, smiling pleasantly.

Lance returned the smile, nodded, and walked back to the group. Though, he paused and turned back to them. "If you are interested in attending, but don't have anything appropriate for the occasion, I'd would be pleased if you came and allowed my family to assist in that respect," he said.

"No fair!" one of the other men cried playfully. "Why do you get to be the one who helps her like that?"

"My family has plenty of young women like her! We'd have more of a selection than your family would have!" another called out.

"I thank you for your offers," Elin interrupted, speaking calmly, but loudly enough that it cut through the attempts to one-up each other. "If you give your information to Jonas, I'll make a decision based on all offers, should I choose to attend."

Elmo couldn't help but feel confused as to what happened. It felt like he'd blinked and lost a bit of time. Not only that but he was sure that he'd been confused with as a servant. What was that about? Also, those men seemed more like they were fan boys and trying to get Elin to so much as smile at them.

Elin didn't say anything more, but rather turned and walked up the stairs, moving more gracefully than Elmo could remember her having done before.

He glanced at Kim who merely shook her head with a wry grin. Elmo wanted to ask what she thought happened, but thought better of it. He was quite sure he didn't want Kim to focus on him any more than she already had. Especially right after all those men seemed to be fighting over Elin's attention.

At the moment he decided to treat Kim as a wolf who's mate someone was trying to lure away or something. Not something Elmo wanted to get in-between at the moment. It felt like it could get messy and painful for anyone involved who wasn't Kim or Elin.