Corvayne left Wick's warm, and only sometimes rough, embrace to check in with the group for dinner. He was also going to bring some up for her as at the moment she looked pretty comfortable on the bed. While putting on clothes he wondered how the innkeeper knew which keys to give to everyone to match how their rooms were arranged. Corvayne stopped as he pulled his shirt over his head: who was rooming with who? He was now fully clothed but felt a little naked without his spear and his leather holster. He really didn't go places without them often.

Walking into the common room he saw that Mosh and Mister I both looked equally tired and pleased as he had felt. They were sitting at the bar with the junior adventurers laughing it up. Mosh had picked up a goblin sized golden-yellow tunic, red vest, and leather shorts that all together made him look like a proper adventurer as he made hand motions that were obviously related to the afternoon's activities. He saw Grunt had found a seat with the drunk man who had been in the bar since they arrived. Grunt's huge form was half leaning in to listening to the man ramble while drinking beer from a wooden tankard and half shifting his gaze about to watch the crowded inn. Hari had found a dark green and olive barmaid's dress and was dancing with a young woman who was also flush and giggling. The elf caught Corvayne's arm as he was heading past her to the bar, and he could feel her balance wasn't quite as steady.

“Corvayne! Here!” Hari said with a laugh.

She pushed a satchel into his hands. He took a moment to peek under the closed pouch and saw the potion, the sun dial, and her shroud as well as feeling her book on the bottom. Well, it would be good to not have to lug it around if she decided to have a nice evening with the lady there, or one of the lads who were watching them.

“Wait!” She hooked his arm and tugged him to form a trio with them while laughing. He didn't know the dance and spent the first few moments freezed up and looking between his unasked for dance partners. They didn't put up with him standing there, with Hari urging him, “Dance!”

It had been a long time since he felt as physically clumsy as when he was he was trying not to elbow Hari in her chest or step on the other girl's feet while being pulled this way and that by both of them. It was only a minute of stumbling before he could extract himself with Hari's bounty of items, both girls expressing laughing disappointment. Maybe if he didn't have Wick and a warm bed waiting he'd have found more enthusiasm. Either way, he went up to the bar to go pay for his dinner as well as a bowl up to Wick. The innkeeper, Banner, waved away his silver and gave him two bowls of stew.

“Your friends paid in fish and game already.” Banner said and smirked a little, about as much as Corvayne expected out of the man.

Corvayne thanked him and picked up the warm wooden bowls. He picked a path along the outside of the room to head to the stairs, but Hari had started following him with two mugs of beer.

“Here I got some for Wick and you!” She was a little too loud. Corvayne showed her that he was already managing two wooden bowls. “Ok I'll bring them up for you! Don't I look like a bar maiden?”

She was standing on the stairs down from him, meaning he saw a face and her ample cleavage with just a thin line of olive.

Corvayne gave her a guarded nod. “It works on you.”

“May I stay in your room tonight? Miss June was going to go with our goblin again. I would prefer not to have to listen to Mosh and her all night.” She didn't look to Corvayne that drunk, but he motioned with his eyes back at the door.

“I would have to ask Wick. I fear you might be trading rooms for a... similar problem.”

Hari didn't hide she was looking Corvayne up and down. She teased, “You two are not done yet? Wow you really love her don't you?”

“I haven't... I mean I... “ Corvayne didn't want to just blurt it out to everyone.

Hari just laughed and kept going. “It's ok! She's seen me naked. What's fair for the wyrm is fair for the wyvern.”

“How many drinks did you have?”

“Two? I always limit myself to two.” Hari insisted as she got a little closer and Corvayne wondered what her math looked like on that. The first two, the middle two, and then the last two?

He warded her off with the bowls in his hand. “Ok, let me take this in and see if she's up to talk.”

He tapped the door with his foot while cradling one bowl in his elbow to open it, then went into the room. Wick was sitting with the blanket on the bed pulled up to her chest and her glasses off and hair down. Corvayne enjoyed seeing her for a moment then remembered he was standing with his back to the hall. He closed the door with his foot and offered her a bowl of stew. She accepted with one hand, then patted the bed next to her with her other.

He sat with his bowl. “I got bad news: Hari is asking to bunk with us.”

“Did you explain to her we are fucking?” She scooted over so she could lean against him.

“Oh she got that. It's just that nobody wants to bunk with Mosh, because he's got another loud session with June.” Corvayne had a desire to try feeding each-other but tapped it down until he could ask her if that was too mushy. It probably was, she didn't like holding hands.

“Those fuckers Grunt and Icariii really won't offer their beds up for the elven maiden?”

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Corvayne blew on his spoon and took a sip. The hot spicy stew packed flavors that made him suspect that it had been packed with monster meat. He stirred his bowl then responded to Wick's possibly retorical question. “I think our assumption was that the guys would take two rooms, and you and her would take the other.”

“I thought we'd put her with Grunt. Mostly because I thought Mosh and Icariii would keep people up talking about the meaning of rituals or whatever they were going on about today. Hari in here though? Didn't think she'd be into watching but sure.” Wick made herself a robe from the top quilt and went over to the door. Corvayne followed her.

Wick opened the door and Corvayne could hear her half of the conversation. “Hey Hari. You don't need to whisper, we both know you're there.” Corvayne saw Wick realize talking was pointless and step aside to let the woman speak to Corvayne through the door.

“Tell Wick her hair is pretty.” Hari's ears gave a little flick. True.

Corvayne told Wick that and she laughed once before responding.

“Tell Hari she's got a great pair of tits.” True.

“I'm not telling her that Wick.”

“Tell me what?” Hari asked, swaying a little and leaning on the door frame.

“She's impressed with your chest.” Corvayne paraphrased a little.

Hari giggled and shook her bossom back and forth then offered Wick the mugs. The elf finally blew someone in the room a kiss before turning to carefully walk down the stairs.

“She's as drunk as a skunk.” Wick laughed as she took a sip from the wooden tankard.

“Do we need to go down and chaperone her?”

“She's an elf, she's probably older then both us put together.” She finished her stew then prodded his side with a finger as he ate. That and the gleam in her eye prompting him to eat faster. He felt like he was starting to understand Wick better and the message her smirk was sending loud and clear.

The next knock on the door came when Corvayne had Wick comfortable enough to be gently kissing after the fact. Corvanye was tempted to just ignore the interruption but settled for stealing one more kiss. He felt Wick rummage around under the covers and hand him his pants.

She pushed the pants at him after looking at him and giggling a little.“Go. It might be important.”

Corvayne was annoyed as pulled his pants up while hopping across the cold hardwood floor. He opened the door ready to try his hand at being rude but was greeted with Hari sobbing. She followed the door opening to end up crying into his chest.

“It's my fault they are dead!” She wailed.

He looked back at Wick, who held her hands up in the air to say either 'I can't understand her' or 'not my department'.

He must have been waiting too long with Hari crying hot tears all over his bare chest because Wick hissed at him, “Bring her in you dolt!”

“Can we ask Mosh to...” Corvayne trailed off as noises of a woman very loudly enjoying Mosh's company filled the hall. Hari was once again his problem, and perhaps Wick's too. They helped the woman inside and she started crying and apologizing as she flopped on the bed next to Wick, who looked supremely embarrassed by the elf crying on her shoulder.

“Corvayne what's she saying?” Wick said, her hands hovering as if they didn't know what to do.

Corvayne kelt before the woman and tried to find his most reassuring voice. “Hari, I know it feels overwhelming. Don't worry about what you need to do. Come here... we'll get you into a nice warm bed, okay yep, there goes your dress. Wick? Uhh, can you help?” He had gone from trying to support her emotionally to doing so literally as a crying drunk elf maiden latched onto him.

He was deeply embarrassed as Hari was wiggling trying to get her dress the rest of the way off her butt with one hand and also bawling into his armpit, and he could see Wick was biting her lip with jealousy... no she was just trying not to let her laughter spill out. She did however relent and grab his shirt to get out of bed to help peel her off him. 'Well Grunt,' he thought as Wick rolled her eyes while Hari hugged her and bawled, 'behold the majesty of my harem.'”

Hari hiccuped as she spoke, “I'm so sorry, Wick, Corvayne, I'm a mess, I'll sleep in the hall...”

Wick looked up at Corvayne as the girl half-heartedly tried to pull herself away from Wick. “Why's she trying to get away? Does she have to pee?”

Corvayne shook his head and Wick held Hari tighter and tried to sooth her. “It's okay Hari. Good girl.” She's not a dog Wick!

Hari calmed down as Wick pet her. Wait, it worked?

“I gotta pee.” The elf announced, waterworks vanishing as she stood up and half knocked Wick to the other bed.

Corvayne gestured at Hari as Wick looked between them. Corvayne took what he thought of as an instructive tone as he spoke, “Wick: We talked about the rule of saying things out loud. Now she has to pee.”

Wick helped her get dressed then gave Corvayne his shirt back then spun him to face her and help her down the stairs and out the side door to the outhouse. Corvanye made eye contact with Grunt as he used an arm to stop Hari from stumbling into a table: This is your fault Grunt. Grunt looked back and waggled his fingers with an innocent smile: Sleep well tonight buddy!

The morning Corvayne and Wick joined everyone else around a table for breakfast. Corvayne had, despite everything, slept very well after getting Hari into her bed where she had fallen asleep and started gently snoring after about five seconds. The aroma of eggs mixed with the fresh cedar sawdust the innkeeper had swept with, leaving only a little lingering hint of spilled beer. Wick was sitting beside him and had put her boot next to his under the table while decidedly not looking at him over it. Corvayne felt he under stood the warmth of that little gesture from her, like he was starting to get how Wick moved from wanting to be close to him to a more distant partnership then back again. On his other side, Hari's hair was messed up and she looked a little green as she stared down at her untouched eggs.

“Corvayne.” She croaked, not looking him in the face. “I didn't do anything stupid when I drank, right?”

“I think you were dancing with another girl when I went upstairs.” He said, avoiding the question like it was a spear thrust at his neck.

Grunt tapped the table for her attention, mimed dancing, then mimed pulling a blouse down.

“Wait... what?” She shook her head. “You're joking. Ha ha ha.” She mimed laughing with not a trace of humor on her face. “Joking, right?”

Grunt mimed two drinks from a mug. Gave a thumbs up. Mimed three drinks. Made a little X. Then started miming more drinks. Corvayne was enjoying breakfast too much to watch how many times he repeated it. Did the eggs have sky blue swirls cutting through them because they were monster eggs? Maybe Mister I had the right idea: the food sometimes felt like the real reason to explore the Tower.

Mosh had finished his eggs quickly and had pushed his chair a little back from the table to see everyone. “Oh yeah Boss, Hari also started kissing both June and July last night!”

The elf in question had buried her face in her hands. Perhaps her memory was returning?

Mister I nodded while focusing intently on cutting his own scrambled eggs up. “Corvayne if you could advise her to temperance. We had to ask July to try to tell her to go upstairs and lay down. I'm sorry, if I could talk to her I'd have intervened myself.” Corvayne noticed the monk sounded particularly clear-headed this morning.

“It's all right. Sometimes we all need help.” Corvayne ate his eggs while pointedly not looking over at Hari.

Banner's wife, May, brought them steaming sausages and a pitcher of watered down blood-apple wine and asked if they all slept well.

Wick smiled. “My bed was VERY comfortable, thank you.” Wick took a sip from her cup and looked over. “So today, do we want to push upwards, try to find the other town, or just bumble around on this floor?”

Corvayne looked at the others. He recapped for Hari “Upwards, to the other town, or keep exploring this one. I want to see other floors, to be honest. If we are going to take time to explore a floor...”

Mister I laughs. “I like this floor the best. Lots of game to be had! Only a few monsters and they are delicious.” Corvayne caught that as Mister I was talking Grunt looked a little annoyed at him.

Corvayne took another sip of his breakfeast wine. It was pretty much juice and tasted good but he wondered if he could get a portable coffee maker. He let his mind wander about living on the third floor. Would Banner help him build a log cabin near town for gold? “I'm fine with that, exploring on this floor while we figure out tactics and get everyone equipped.”

Wick finished chewing on a sausage before she spoke. “I think we're going to run out of room carrying stuff soon. Grunt's going to have to ditch his bats and have to use an actual weapon.” Wick elbowed her friend, who grunted agreement while eating.

Mosh, who was sitting next to Grunt, started using the fork to clean his teeth. Then the goblin spoke, “Well, you know my vote is up and out. A little less now that I'm having a pretty good time, so I guess it's a vote for eventually getting out.”

Hari spoke while rubbing her head. “Let's spend another day on this floor. Maybe take it easy today.”

Corvayne looked at everyone. “Would you all be okay with another night here, at the inn?”

Grunt nodded his agreement, and Wick gave Corvayne a thumbs up as she took a sip of her wine. With Mosh nodding and Mister I smiling, Corvayne stood and asked Banner if the rooms would be open again tonight.

The big man laughed. “Are you kidding? The only person who used them before is the trader. This is the busiest I've ever been!”