Her heart fluttered in her chest, unnerved by the Devil's wicked smile, fangs shamelessly on full display.

"So this is where you've been hiding?"

She blinked "do I.. know you?"

He pointed to her horns "don't we all know each other?" His voice laze as he toyed with her.

Mavrik stepped closer to her defensively, feeling Grim'gi and Ellie press in behind them. This only seemed to amuse the devil further "what a happy, little family" clasping his hands together in bemusement.

"Oh, don't worry" eyes darting to Mavrik's offensive stance.

"I'm not collecting just yet."

She felt her mouth go dry "Collecting what?"

"You, my dear." Tail lashing around him "you see, I was told you were killed. My pact should have broken, but here you are and now, no delectable soul for me." He pouted slightly.

She felt Mavrik tense alongside her.

"Oh, relax. You should be thanking me. My contractor, ambitious woman she is. Made a pact with another to try and get out of her pact with me" waving his hand "anyway, yes yes, all very complicated. Point is. I've been keep the other one running circles. See? Now, friends?"

His words only confused her further, missing the context to what he was saying. Who was his contractor and what were they to her?

"That said, my boss won't be happy about this little cult mishap" Shrugging "Ah well, suppose it doesn't matter, you're all destined to die eventually." Tracing a ring of fire in the air in front of him with his finger, black stretching across it once he closed the loop. "Anyway, the show was fun! We'll be seeing each other again soon. Ta ta!" coat tails flicking with dramatic flair as he stepped through the portal and vanished into thin air.

"Eh, he was a weird un" Grim'gi rubbed his head, causing the tension in the room to ease slightly. Ellie giggled, holding her arms up to him to be able to return to his shoulder. Algernon taking a spot atop his head again.

Mavrik walked towards the leader's body, searching his clothes and pulling a book from his robes with curved symbols on it's cover.

"Oh, this is Ellie and Grim'gi. And this is Mavrik" putting a pin in the strange Devil's appearance. Fearing how much Ellie could handle, her eyes were wide with fear.

"Can Algernon take us to the prisoners?" She tried to stir Ellie from her thoughts "and give me my scarf back" earning a giggle from the child.

Mavrik and Grim'gi exchanged a hand shake "you fight good" the orc observed.

Laughing at the two lightly and taking her scarf back when Ellie held it out to her, Algernon took flight, guiding the weary group.

They moved through a few more corridors until bars blocked their path, hands appearing from the gloom to wrap around the cold, rusted metal. Broken, lost faces stared back at them, cheeks hollow from malnutrition.

"We're here to help you." Delilah whispered, stepping back for Mavrik to unlock the door. It begrudgingly swung open, revealing three frightened elves.

She beckoned them towards her, knowing the sight of orcs and tieflings likely didn't offer much comfort. Her eyes landing on a deep laceration on one of their arms, carefully she stepped into the sell, watching them shrink back from her.

"May I see your arm?" Inching closer as the frightened woman looked defeated, slowly raising her arm up.

Willing Lira's presence to flow through her, lantern on her hip turning hot. Familiar glow emitting from her finger tips, reaching forward to catch the woman's bruised wrist. The light crept over her skin, leaving into the gash and vanishing. Skin threading back to itself slowly in response, leaving a thin line in it's place.

"It's gone?"

She gently pulled on the woman's wrist "Please, come with us. We mean you no harm."

Finally getting through to the three as they stepped out after her, Algernon circled above their heads for a moment before swooping back the way they came.

"Follow Algernon" Ellie called from her vantage point.

The group followed after the tattered bird, twisting and turning and cutting down the occasional cultist that they ran into. Finally breaking the surface of the concealed top of the passage. Throwing closed the door disguised as a large painting depicting a saint behind them. The cathedral around them may as well have been inhabited by ghosts, neglected and forgotten by all but the cultists who laid in pools of crimson through out the catacombs.

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One of the elven men turned to them, taking a shallow bow in respect. "You have our thanks, we'd been trapped in there for weeks."

"What did they need elves for?" Ellie spoke up.

"Our blood." One of the ladies shuddered.

Recalling the bloody pentagram, Delilah nodded slowly with a frown at the barbaric practice. "I need ale" Grim'gi groaned, Ellie lightly pet his shoulder "Will you join us?" She addressed the group.

The elves shook their head, the man exchanging a glance with them "we really should return to our clan" his face apologetic.

"Of course, take care." Delilah smiled, accepting the outstretched hand of the woman she'd healed. Surprised as she grasped the inside of her elbow in a strange type of hand shake, mirroring the exchange with the other two as the murmured their thanks and offered the same exchange to Mavrik and Grim'gi.

"Well, since dinner was apparently stolen by cultists. I'll take you up on that Ale."

Delilah grinned sheepishly, pulling her hood back up, noticing as Ellie did the same. The group set out, leaving the cursed ground in search of the nearest tavern.

"Milk please" Ellie chimed, leaping up onto a bar stool, making it rock wildly until Grim'gi steadied it.

Delilah smiled softly "I have a friend who loves milk too"

"Really? Is she like us?"

"No, she's a tabaxi which is kind of like a cat version of us." Delilah explained.

"Oh! Grim'gi's friend Brimbore knows a cat lady. I wonder if its the same one!"

"Maybe" she smiled.

The two males who sat on either side of them continued to sip at their large pitchers quietly.

"How did you and Grim'gi end up together?"

"He used to travel with my mum and dad, they're not here any more. So now he looks after me."

"My mum isn't around anymore either." Delilah empathised.

Time trickled by as they continued to chat until Ellie yawned and rubbed her eyes, getting scooped up by Grim'gi as he threw her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

"Come on Ellie, ts past your bed time." He stated, finishing his drink.

"Got a job fur you lot tomorrow, if your interested?"

Mavrik tilted his head to glance at the child already drifting off to sleep.

"We'll talk more about it tomorrow." Satisfied with the answer he made his way towards the rooms of the inn down the hall.

Delilah rubbed her hands nervously "what was that devil talking about?" Comfortable to speak now they were alone save a few patrons out of ear shot.

He tentatively slid the witch hunter journal across the counter to her. "This has all the answers I could give you. Come on, we should get some rest."

She stared down at the worn leather bound book, pages stained yellow and smudged brown with dried blood in places. Sliding to her feet and trailing after him, he'd been with holding information from her? Feeling a slight sting at that knowledge.

He sat across from her on opposite bed, eyeing her carefully as she skimmed over the passage that had a dog eared page.

"I was trying to figure out more before I told you. It gives more questions rather than answers."

Mind running wild at the glimpse of her origins, trying to rationalise his words and dispel the hurt she felt. Tussling with the knee jerk anger she felt.

"I'm sorry." His tone thick with regret.

Heart aching at his ashen face, placing the book on the side of the table and taking a step towards him. Placing a hand on his pauldron "I forgive you." Gently pulling at his armour, helping him take off the heavy plate, letting the topic vanish into the night air.

Inside her feelings were still conflicted, if he hid her heritage from her, what else could he be hiding? Forcing her mind to not tow that dangerous line, no, she trusted him and he would never hurt her. Even when under a hag's hex, that was proof enough. Once they were settled she snuffed out the light, the long day running after their previous conversation.

*******

Delilah watched the fluffy white clouds from where she sat with Ellie who was ravenously demolishing an apple. Left to watch over her as the two set out to handle a kobold problem for a farmer that had hired Grim'gi.

The town moved around them from where they sat by the river that cut through it, crumpling a chunk of her bread and throwing it out to a few ducks that bobbed in the water.

"How did you summon Algernon?" Watching the bird preening over head on a tree branch.

"Oh, I read about it in one of my dad's books. Algernon used to be his, when he died Algernon chose to become mine."

"Can anyone summon a familiar?"

"I'm not sure, but I can try to teach you if you'd like?" Clapping her hands together in excitement.

"Can you teach me how you healed those people?"

Delilah thought for a moment, eyes landing on the lantern "I don't think so, I think I'm only able to do that because of the god I follow" tone apologetic "Oh, but I could teach you lightning and fire!"

Ellie grinned, pulling a pendant from under her robes it was a gold locket with a humming bird etched into the metal. "That makes sense, its like this. It's from my dad and how I can transport small distances. So I don't think I could teach you that."

The girls settled on their stomachs in the grass, propping on their elbows as they sketched symbols in the dirt. Laughing at the mispronunciations of the other.

"The fae creature has to accept becoming your familiar." Ellie explained, looking up from where she sketched the same sigil she had drawn to summon Algernon in the back of the beast master's journal Delilah had passed her.

Delilah sketched the rune she drew, writing the incantation under it, tearing out the page for Ellie to take. "And for fire, you just say this" Writing it on the other side of the page.

Looking up at the sun's position "They should be back by now, come on." Helping the young girl onto her feet. Finding Grim'gi and Mavrik trading beast slaying stories behind mugs of ale at the bar.

"Have fun Ellie?"

"I did!" She beamed, rambling about the spells and incantations that clearly went over Grim'gi's head but to his credit he continued to look engaged.

"How was Kobold hunting?" She asked her quiet companion, settling beside him.

"Successful." was all he offered, earning an eye roll and weary smile.

"Thrilling." She teased back, finding the small smile she was seeking as the four settled into the buzz of the bar around them.