Acanthio was pushed to the side as Eletheria ran across the gangplank towards her family. He knew that she missed her family but was surprised by this sudden expression from her. Sal laughed a little as he watched Ele run to her family. Once Sal took a step forward, Thio followed a pace behind him. All of the family were focused upon Ele and no one was looking at Sal or Thio. Thankful he wasn’t the center of attention, Thio missed a step and fell behind Sal a few more paces. When Sal noticed he paused waiting for Thio to catch up.

“Nervous?” Sal muttered softly.

“A little,” Thio replied in the same soft tone. His face betrayed his confusion but Sal was still watching the family.

“First time in Ascalon?”

“Was here for a week before I got on the Vol Mortem.”

“Ah, first time, then rubbing elbows with society?” Sal said in a fake haughty accent.

“Yes, any advice?” Thio smiled as he replied. The more he interacted with Sal, the more he liked him. Other Windmasters, aside from Ele and Sal, never spoke or acknowledged his presence.

Sal switched to the soft tone as they got closer to Ele’s family. “The best advice I can give is this. They are all vipers. Treat them accordingly.”People were untangling themselves from hugging and kissing the returned missing daughter and starting to notice Sal and Thio.

“Where is this hero who leapt off an airship to save my daughter?” A deep voice shouted across the last twenty feet of the walkway. An older man in his fifth decade stepped forward from the welcoming committee and onto the walkway. His many shades of grey and black beard trembled as and after he finished speaking.

“Here,” Sal replied, and with a step back, he was behind Thio. Sal placed his hand in the middle of Thio’s back and gently pushed him forward towards the older man. Thio reluctantly moved forward to greet who he guessed was Ele’s father. Thio also thought he heard a repeated warning from Sal but wasn’t sure if it was his mind reminding him, “Vipers.”

“My name is Acanthio, good sir. My friends call me Thio,” Thio said once he got close enough to offer a respectable bow and not have to shout to be heard.

“Acanthio, I hope to earn the pleasure of calling you Thio. Words do not exist to express my gratitude for you risking your life to save my daughter,” the old man said, and instead of taking an offered hand that Thio presented once he finished his bow, he pulled Thio into a brief hug. “I have already lost two sons to the skies and…” the old man started to say but was interrupted by Sal.

“Words are for bards to quibble over,” Sal said as he stepped forward, the older man hugged him briefly as well before turning back towards the group of people.

Thio counted eleven people looking back toward him. All with the same dark shade of skin and light brown hair just like Ele. He tried to put a smile on his face to hide his nervousness. There was Ele in the middle and a little girl next to her holding onto a hand. Thio guessed that she was Germana or Jerry as Ele said she liked to be called. The older woman holding Ele by the shoulders and standing behind her must be her mother, and the much older-looking lady standing a little bit off of the group must be her Aunt Ventus Praestes. The two ladies looked like the same person just at different years of life. Ele’s mother still had some shades of brown in her hair. The aunt was all white and grey-haired. The eyes and cheekbones matched but Ele had the plumpness that her father had.

There was also a young gentleman who was almost as tall as Sal and dressed in possibly the finest-looking clothing Thio had ever seen. There were so many pieces of clothing, too; he could see the shirt, vest, jacket, waistband, a kerchief around a neck, and a tie. This gentleman had a casually held cane and appeared to be watching the ship more than anyone else. Sal and the finely dressed young man shared a stiff nod, and Sal went off towards Aunt Praestes.

“And poor Lex was worried you were missing, he missed the yearly races because he was distraught,” Momma Zephyr said and Thio could see a smile appear on Ele’s face as she looked at the gentleman. Ele broke away from her family and went to stand in front of Lex. Suddenly, as if he saw her for the first time, Lex smiled and hugged Ele. For a moment, Thio’s ears burned, and he would have clenched his hands, but they were being used as people shook them and congratulated him on a job well done. When Thio was able to break his gaze away from Lex and Ele hugging he turned to look at others in the group. He saw Aunt Praestes briefly hug Sal, and that worried Thio.

“Sorry for making you go get her; I just wanted to be sure it wasn’t some impostor,” Ventus said to Sal. “The communication from Bruno concerned me greatly.”

“My pleasure, mother, I felt responsible. This happened on my shift. I am reviewing with the other Windmasters and the captain on what I can do to prevent this from occurring again,” Sal replied seriously. For a moment Sal, and Thio’s gazes met and Thio’s mind replayed what Sal told him, “They are all vipers.” Sal nodded a little and Thio imagined Sal knew what he was thinking.

As the nest of vipers surrounded Thio, he wondered if there was anyone he could trust. He looked at Ele and worried about what she might tell them and if any of his actions would be seen as harming her instead of saving her. Thio almost laughed out loud as the thought crossed his mind. He was in a crowd of people and felt more alone than when he and Ele were in the woods. There was only a few other people that were around him but his attention was on Ele. Since he wasn’t as tall as most of the people, he had to catch glimpses between people and limbs. He could move a little bit forward towards her so he could try to ask a question in private but wasn’t able to get close enough.

Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

He was near enough to Ele’s group to hear the conversation. The desire to shout her name filled him, but he knew that would just draw more attention to himself. For a moment, he could hear Ele clearly.

“He does not have any family here. Can he stay with us for a bit?” Ele asked her mother.

“My dear, while everyone will be overjoyed that you are safe, there is propriety. There will be enough scandal about you camping with a young man alone,” her mother said, and behind her, Ventus was nodding her head as if she agreed with the statement.

“Nothing happened, nor will happen,” Ele said, and oddly, this statement hurt Thio a little bit.

“I have a compromise,” her mother started to say. Ele looked at her in disbelief, but her mother continued. We find an inn near our estates and get him a room there for a few days. This way, we respect society and can have him nearby for a celebration in his honor.”

“That sounds reasonable,” Ele replied and she looked over in Thio’s direction but must not have been able to see him through the small throng of people. Lex moved between them, blocking Thio’s view of Ele, leaving him only the view of the back of Lex’s fine jacket.

“It has been an exciting day. Please, Ele, join me in my carriage and I'll give you a ride home. I would love to hear all about…” Lex said, but Thio got turned around as the various people around him vied for his attention, and he wasn’t able to hear more.

The little group around him had gotten tired of him ignoring their questions. Soon Thio was again answering the same few questions over and over; “How did they survive?”, “Was he scared?”, “Did he know Eletheria previously?”, and the scandal-prompting “Did anything happen between him and Ele?” Thio briefly tried answering every question he could and ensured they understood which answer went to each question. He learned quickly, after someone gasped in shock, that if he were asked two questions simultaneously, an answer of Yes would be mistaken for the more scandalous answer.

Thio had long lost sight of Ele and the crowd around him started to thin. Ele’s family, except for her mother, had all gone back to their estate. Ms. Zephyr pushed her way through the small crowd still around Thio until she stood in front of him.

“Acanthio, it is late and the family has gone home to retire,” Ms. Zephyr said loudly almost as if she was putting on a show for everyone else. “It would honor us if we could have you stay at an Inn near our estate for a week while we celebrate your heroic act which saved our beloved daughter.” There was a silence after she finished as everyone nearby went quiet in order to hear Thio’s reply. Thio knew it would be considered an insult if he did not accept. Also, staying in an inn sounded much better than staying at the family home where he would be surrounded constantly by people. He also considered what Sal had told him. Staying at the inn seemed like a great way to avoid cohabitation, a nest of vipers. The waiting look on Ms. Zephyr’s face told him he was taking a long time to answer.

“Yes, Yes, Yes. I will accept your generous offer. I apologize for I could not believe my ears and had to make sure I heard you correctly.” Thio thought quickly what else he could say to remove any doubt that he was thankful. “I had not actually thought that far and you are most generous!”

“Excellent, the Queen Astoria is near our estates and we will check you in there,” Ms. Zephyr informed him, then she pulled a pouch out from her bag. It jingled with the sound of heavy coins inside of it. She handed the bag to Thio. “This is no small amount, and I assure you more will be forthcoming. This is so you may acquire suitable attire for the party we will throw in your honor.” The weight in the bag and the feeling of how many coins were in it surprised Thio. Even if they were the scrimps, the lowest denomination, there was enough to feed him for a week.

“The Zephyr family is too kind. I cannot take this money, for it was my honor to serve,” Thio said, wondering if he was playing it a little too much. Ms. Zephyr did not look like she was buying it, but she smiled and beckoned him to a carriage. Soon, they were on their way to the Queen Astoria Inn.

Only a few minutes later, the carriage carrying Thio and Ms. Zephyr and a few bodyguards arrived in front of the Queen Astoria Inn, a beautiful wood and stone building going up three floors. It was surrounded by smaller shops so the top floor of the Inn was presented a view of the area. On the two front corners, Thio could see a beautiful carving of an elegant lady. The carving also included a tree that ran up the top of the building. The first and second floor met branches extended out from the tree and various animals were carved onto the branches. The street lights only lit up to the second floor so he could not see what the third floor had or if anything it went all the way to the roof.

The coachman interrupted Thio’s survey of the building by tapping on the door to announce they were there. Thio moved his head out of the window so the door could be opened. He almost jumped out but the coachman immediately offered a hand towards Ms. Zephyr first. She took the hand and elegantly stepped from the carriage. Thio followed behind her and leapt out. The coachman looked at him sternly, as if disappointed Thio did not wait for his assistance to exit the carriage.

The entrance to the inn had two large wooden doors bound in metal, each with a large window inset within them. As Thio got closer he saw the windows had actual glass inside of them. It was clear and clean enough he could easily see into the inn. Thio remembered briefly his first night being homeless and walking the streets of Eboracum. That night, he passed many buildings looking for a place to sneak in and sleep. There was a fancy inn that he tried sneaking into but was caught before he stepped in. That night, he had been mesmerized by the little glass panes inside the door. The doors and the inn in front of him now not only had much larger and better-quality glass, but they were not going to drag him back into the street.

“It is the third best inn in town. I apologize we are not using the Boni Aeri, but they are on the other side of town, among other things,” Ms. Zephyr said as she watched Thio peer through the door. “If you desire, we can visit the other inns now or tomorrow and acquire…”

“This is excellent! It looks like a King would stay here.” Thio turned away from the glass to look at her and stop making a fool of himself. Some of the patrons inside the common room noticed him looking in and stared back. “It is too much. I can stay elsewhere and save you the expense…”

“Never!” Ms. Zephyr said, almost as if insulted. “I can imagine what the other families would say if I put you up in anything less than deserving of your status.”

“I apologize. I meant no disrespect. This is just much more than what I am used to,” Thio quickly replied, hoping to avoid angering her.

“My dear Acanthio, you brought my daughter home to me. She is a prize worth more than a hundred of these inns.” That said, she pushed the doors inward and strolled through the common area. A few brief words with the innkeeper and a pouch of money later, she then called to Thio, who was looking everywhere at once, trying to take in the place. The common room was almost the size of the deck on the ship, with two fireplaces on the starboard and port side. The tables were clustered near the fireplaces, which left a nice walkway in the middle for people to pass by. While Thio did not realize it from the view in the front, there were two large windows next to the doors, but they were a little higher up and gave a view of the buildings and the street.

“Acanthio!” she called out again and Thio hurried towards the part of the bar that functioned as the innkeeper’s station. Once Thio was there she introduced him to the innkeeper, “Acanthio, this is Henricus. He is the owner of the Queen Astoria. If you need anything at all, let him know.” Once she finished the introduction, Henricus held out a key for Thio.

“Acanthio, your room is on the third floor facing the sea. Breakfast is at sunrise and dinner at sundown. If you need something cleaned bring it down and I will have one of my girls take care of it.” Henricus stepped from behind the counter and started towards the stairs where he paused. “Now if you follow me I will take you to your room.”

“Either I or someone else will be back in the morning to pick you up and take you to a tailor for some new clothes,” Ms. Zephyr informed Thio.

“You…” Thio started to say, but a quick look from Ms. Zephyr made him stop and say something else instead, “Thank you for all you have done.” This got him a slight smile and nod from her, then she turned around and walked towards the door. Thio was alone with Henricus as they went upstairs.