Priscilla woke up because she felt a pressure on her bed. Her eyes flew open, Asha immediately responded to Priscilla's alarm as she twisted, spikes forming along her knuckles. But the source of the pressure was Perry sitting on the bed, paws paused in mid-step. His dark eyes were intent, focused on her right hand, which had been raised to fight off a potential intruder.

"What's up, little bastard?" Priscilla said, sitting up as she dismissed the spikes on Asha.

Perry cocked his head, the nosy platypus tracking Asha until the artifact was out of sight, and then met Priscilla's glare. He let out a low chirping nose that was strangely judgemental before trotting off the edge of the bed onto the dresser and then onto Illnyea's bed. Perry turned three times in place and then put his ass to bed.

Priscilla rubbed her eyes, cursing the platypus for waking her up. Once she was awake, there was no going back to sleep, so reluctantly Priscilla left her soft cozy bed.

It was just barely sunrise and they had agreed to leave two hours after that, so once her bag and Illnyea's were packed, Priscilla killed time with sewing. She itched to talk with Asha, but refrained because Illnyea was in the room and because she had no idea what Perry was trying to do Asha before Priscilla woke up. The platypus was up to something but it wasn't like Priscilla could demand answers from the eldritch beast without risking being smited.

With nothing else to focus on, Priscilla was able to finish all four bags before Illnyea even began stirring. Priscilla carefully filled each bag with a blend of dried flower petals and laid them out in front of her pack, pleased with how they turned out.

Kavil's was made of purple fabric with a sleeping, fawn curled up peacefully stitched with gold thread, Illnyea's was green with a bright puppy holding a bundle of daisies in its mouth, Sulaiman's blue with a wonderfully judgy cat, and Priscilla's was silver with a mischievous red fox.

Illnyea was delighted with her gift, lifting it up to her nose and breathing in deeply.

"I love it," Illnyea said, immediately tying it to her belt and Priscilla tried to not get a big head about it.

Kavil was similarly overjoyed with his gift, holding it up to the light so he could better see the details. Sulaiman looked at the cat for a long moment before looking at Priscilla with a, "Really?" look.

Priscilla grinned at him, he had known this was coming because she had embroidered the cat right next to him.

"What?" Priscilla asked with mock ignorance. "You don't like that I put your little mini-me on the pouch?"

Sulaiman glared, matching the cat's expression perfectly.

"Does that mean you think I'm a deer?" Kavil asked, cocking his head.

"Yeah," Priscilla said with a shrug. "Gentle and regal for the most part unless someone fucks with you, and then you'll stamp them to death with your hooves."

Kavil looked like he didn't know if he should be pleased or horrified by the comparison, but Illnyea leaned forward to loop her arm with Priscilla's.

"What makes you think I'm a puppy?" Illnyea laughed.

"You're excitable," Priscilla said, putting up a finger, "loyal, and prone to getting into trouble if you let them out of your sight."

Sulaiman snorted. "Well, you at least got that right."

Illnyea's jaw dropped open in offense, looking between Priscilla and Sulaiman like they had betrayed her.

"You did end up getting attacked by an elemental the one time you took a walk alone," Kavil pointed out, staring back unapologetically as Illnyea turned her angry glare to him.

Illnyea huffed, but didn't detangle herself from Priscilla, so she couldn't be that mad.

As much as no one wanted to, they left the city of Roydorn behind and joined the main road that led to the capital of Kavendash. They were about three weeks out from the Equinarial Tournament, but only a week and a half from the capital, and based on what Priscilla knew, people could sign up for the tournament up to the day it started. Even if they got caught up in shenanigans (as Illnyea's luck was horrendous), Priscilla thought she had just enough time to start making inroads into the noble circles in the capital.

Now, Priscilla wasn't sure how exactly she was going to make those inroads. At the moment, her main plan of attack was to go to high end boutiques in hope of having a fortuitous encounter and going from there. If nothing else, Priscilla would be able to learn where the well-to-do shopped at and shop at those places until she encountered someone with connections.

Asha's words from the bath lingered with Priscilla, so while the old men were quietly talking and her and Kavil laid tired on the ground after endurance training, Priscilla took a deep breath and sat up even though her body wanted nothing more than to melt.

"So," Priscilla said, and her friends turned to look at her, "I'd like to discuss our plans for the capital."

Sulaiman raised an eyebrow, pausing where he had been sharpening his sword. "Was there a plan?"

"I'm joining the tournament," Illnyea said, plopping down next to Kavil, "and Arnold's mentioned that he knows an artificer shop in the capital he'd be able to show me around, so I might spend time there."

"I want to visit the temple district," Kavil said, tiredly pushing himself up, "as I've never actually been in a main temple of Gaelea. Auntie says some of them are incredible to behold, though she's never mentioned the one in the capital specifically."

Priscilla nodded, and then looked at Sulaiman. His eyes were narrowed now, as if he sensed there was more to her question.

"I have no plans besides making sure Illnyea doesn't get into trouble. What are your plans, Priscilla?" Sulaiman asked, ignoring Illnyea's indignant squawk of protest.

Asha filled their bond with comfort and encouragement, and Priscilla took a deep breath.

"I think I'm going to get tangled up with nobility," Priscilla said bluntly, like ripping off a bandaid.

There was a spray of water as Mr. Ordan choked on his drink, as he had finished his conversation with Arnold and had wandered closer.

"Why on earth would you do that?" Mr. Ordan asked in a scratchy voice, and her friends' faces reflected that curiosity.

Mr. Ordan joining the conversation was an unexpected complication, but perhaps Priscilla could use it to her advantage. Time to weave a tale of truth to hide her true intentions.

"Something not right is happening in Kavendash," Priscilla said, meeting her friend's eyes one by one, letting them pick up on the implication before looking at Mr. Ordan.

"We've come across two separate towns miles from each other that have been attacked by monsters," Priscilla continued. "They were two different types of monsters super powered through unnatural means, with a gem that mind controls any sorry fuck unlucky enough to touch i, and I'll bet those damn deer besieging the capital are somehow connected to all this fuckery going on as it follows the pattern."

Priscilla let some of her anger towards the cult leak into her voice as she leaned forward, lacing her fingers together to keep them from shaking.

"I want to try to talk with the assholes in power," Priscilla said, voice deadly serious, "to figure out exactly what the fuck is going on and why the hell they aren't trying to fix it. People are dying and they're sitting on their asses getting drunk and wasting gold that could be used to help people. If they do not care about what is happening to the people their position requires them to protect, then I intend to make them care."

The camp was quiet save for the crackle of the fire and Priscilla focused on keeping her breathing steady, so very grateful that the curse didn't threaten to stop her talking.

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"Damn kid," Arnold said, breaking the silence without a care. He looked at Priscilla with newfound respect in his eyes. "You really like to cause problems on purpose."

The side of Priscilla's mouth quirked up into something not quite a smile.

"What can I say?" Priscilla said with a lightness she didn't feel. "I'm a habitual and unrepentant shit-stirrer."

Mr. Ordan had a thoughtful expression on his face, his head tilted as he regarded Priscilla.

"If that is your intention," Mr. Ordan said softly, "then I may be able to help. I have some acquaintances within the scribe's guild that I can contact who should give me accurate information about the capital's current affairs."

"That would be great," Priscilla said, some of the tension draining from her shoulders. Information was the currency she was poorest in at the moment and it would be dangerous to try and enter the political arena unarmed. Priscilla only knew the dirty details about the biggest political players on the continent since the story hadn't gotten into the nitty-gritty of each country's ruling classes, and even that information might not be helpful as it was from years in the future.

"I won't be able to help," Sulaiman said, his frown deep and mouth slanted unhappily. "If anyone knows you're associated with me, you'll likely get tossed out on your ass."

Priscilla wanted to say that wasn't true, but he did have a point because the Kavenash Kingdom was incredibly prejudiced against Muloians.

"I won't hide my connections to you or pretend I don't know or care about you to get closer to them," Priscilla said. That was a line she would not cross, even in the pursuit of saving a life. It felt wrong, left her mind feeling dirty just thinking about it.

Sulaiman's dark eyes were inscrutable as he looked at Priscilla. "You may have to to achieve your goal."

"And I refuse to even consider that," Priscilla said simply. "I'll figure out a different way to convince those racist fuckwads to use their conscience."

Sulaiman held her gaze for a moment longer and whatever he saw there had him glancing away, dipping his head into a nod.

"I don't know if I can help," Illnyea said, chewing on her cheek. "I don't really know how to talk to those sorts of people as I, uh, well I don't keep my cool when people are being cruel."

"I know you'll be busy preparing for the tournament," Priscilla said. Part of Priscilla was glad to have an excuse to keep Illnyea out of it because that girl always ended up getting into the stickiest situations by accident.

Illnyea's expression grew determined.

"I'll win the tournament then," Illnyea said decisively with an intense gleam to her eyes, "and I'll use my boon to force them to acknowledge the problem."

Priscilla cracked a real smile at the confidence in her sister's voice. Illnyea glanced at Sulaiman, but he was looking away, so she just frowned in his direction.

"Sounds like it'll be you and me then," Kavil said, leaning back on his palms with a contemplative expression, "as I think Sulaiman will have a heart attack if we unleash you unsupervised upon the populace without anyone to keep you in check."

That startled a laugh out of Priscilla, and she saw Sulaiman send Kavil a bewildered glance. Kavil smiled cheekily at Sulaiman, saying, "Don't give me that look — we all know Priscilla needs a minder and I gladly sacrifice my free time to make sure she doesn't get arrested."

"I won't get arrested," Priscilla protested and then all her friends and even the old men gave her a dubious look. She shook her head, crossing her arms in mock offense. "I can't believe that you guys think I'm so stupid as to get caught if I break the law."

Sulaiman rolled his eyes and stared at the sky like he was begging for patience and Illnyea just blinked twice before sighing heavily.

"See?" Kavil said, shaking his head. "Someone has to keep an eye on this troublemaker — or at least give her an alibi."

Kavil winked at her, a sly little smirk on his face and Priscilla returned his smile, though her throat was a little dry from his proximity.

"Please don't help Priscilla commit crimes Kavil," Sulaiman said, his voice strained. "I don't want to bail both of you out of jail."

The conversation moved from there to Kavil confidently claiming that he could break him and Priscilla out of jail if he had to, and then Mr. Ordan said it was technically possible if Kavil froze ice in the lock. Everyone wondered what the hell Mr. Ordan had done to see the inside of the capital's prison cell and he shut his mouth as Arnold cackled in the background.

Priscilla felt lighter now that she had talked to her friends. She couldn't tell them the whole truth, but it was comforting to have them on her side, ready and willing to help the moment she asked for it. Sulaiman was the only person who didn't have a clear goal of what he wanted to accomplish in the capital, and Priscilla worried he may just hole himself inside the house. She'd have to check with him later, or maybe ask Illnyea to.

For now, however, Priscilla would enjoy the chatter of her friends while eating the grilled cheese Mr. Ordan had cooked up.

A few days after the conversation about nobles, they encountered the first evidence of the dire deer attacks. It was a cool day, cool enough that Priscilla had put on gloves that covered her entire hand and wrapped a scarf around her neck.

They arrived at a waystation in hopes of sleeping in a real bed but found that it was in the midst of rebuilding itself. It was a small settlement, really not much more than a few taverns and maybe twenty homes. Splintered piles of wood was all that remained of a few buildings, and several of the ones that remained standing had walls caved in. People huddled under tents that had been propped up nearby, blankets wrapped around shell-shocked shoulders as people huddled around fires. Several stations had been set up for food, water, and clothing.

"We have to help them," Illnyea said as they drew near enough to see the state of the waystation, her eyes roving over the devastation.

Priscilla knew there was no arguing when Kavil nodded, saying, "I'll see if anyone needs their injuries healed."

"I'll help you," Sulaiman said quietly, and the boys were off, Kavil leading the way towards the people huddled around a soup pot.

Mr. Ordan glanced at Arnold with a raised eyebrow and the enchanter sighed heavily like Mr. Ordan had just badgered him.

Arnold grumbled, "Don't expect me to use any of my materials," and the old men were wandering towards where people were moving wood. Illnyea followed after them, muttering something about there being stone below them, leaving Priscilla alone.

Priscilla didn't have any experience building houses, cooking, or healing, so she drifted towards where a small army of women and children were furiously sewing what looked to be blankets and long underwear. The women watched her with trepidation but didn't stop her approach.

"What type of stitch are you using?" Priscilla asked as she plopped down and pulled out her sewing kit.

"Who are you?" a boy with lanky black hair asked. He couldn't have been more than six and the open curiosity in his eyes despite his home being destroyed made Priscilla feel a little less irritated that she wouldn't sleep in a real bed.

"My name's Priscilla Sunscarre," she said easily. "My party and I planned to stay here the night, but it looks like you guys could use the help, so I thought I'd offer it. I'm a deft hand with a needle, so I won't be useless."

"Can you darn?" a woman who looked just like the boy asked.

Priscilla pulled out her embroidery hoop. "How big of a rip are we looking at?"

She was quickly put to work fixing up a cloak, taking care to color match her thread with the fabric so the fix would be less noticeable. Since it wasn't something that needed to retain a curve, she could stretch the cloak within her hoop to keep it taut as she worked. You had to be meticulous when you darned, otherwise the end product would look messy and unprofessional, but the rhythm of darning was easy to fall into. Thread the needle to make a grid of parallel stitches across the hole without pulling too tight and make the fabric pucker, then weave over and under again and again until the hole was fully repaired, and finish it off by tying a knot to secure the thread.

When Priscilla held up the cloak for inspection, the league of women made appreciative noises and gave her a pile of cloaks. Priscilla lost herself in repairing clothing because it was something real she could do to help, not noticing how much time had passed until someone said, "Priscilla."

She glanced up and saw that Kavil was staring at her with a fond expression. He looked sweaty and tired, but in a way that suggested he was pleased with everything he had accomplished.

"You have to come eat dinner," Kavil said as he stepped closer, glancing at what she was working on.

"Give me half a minute to finish this," Priscilla said.

Kavil didn't try to cajole her into leaving, just sitting next to her and watching her sew. Priscilla glanced up only once, and saw that his eyes were soft as he rested his elbows on his knees, a content smile on his face. He noticed her glance and quirked his eyebrows in question, and Priscilla looked away, ignoring her suddenly dry throat as she focused entirely on the cloak in hand.

Dinner was soup, and they donated some cheese to make flatbread. The residents of the waystation morale had lifted once her party joined the rebuilding efforts, and they were happy to share what little they did have. It turned out that Illnyea had helped them establish stone foundations for their buildings, with Arnold etching some enchantments into the framework.

"No stupid deer should be able to knock it down now," Arnold said with smug pride.

Over dinner, the sorry tale was relayed. Three nights ago, while the tavern was fit to bursting with travelers to the capital, a horde of dire deer swarmed through the area. It had been in the middle of the night and this was normally a safe area, so they had all been caught off guard. The visitor's guards were able to muster up a defense to run off the deer, but they had quickly escorted their employers away. Which left the poor people who lived at the waystation left to pick through the rubble of their livelihoods with winter just a few months away.

"But with your help," an excitable old man whose broken leg Kavil had healed said, "we should be done with it two, three weeks from now, long before the first snowfall."

"It's our honor to help," Illnyea said, smiling in a way that promised that everything was going to be alright.

As Priscilla laid in her sleeping roll that night, her mind drifted to the problem of the dire deer. To her, it felt like it was all but confirmed that the deer were being controlled by the cult somehow because dire deer weren't normally this aggressive towards human settlements.

The people here hadn't known who their visitors were, as they didn't require identification verification to rent out rooms as long as you didn't look like a bandit, but Priscilla wondered who they were. They were only a few days' travel behind what sounded like a large traveling party, and Priscilla knew that they traveled much faster since they were a smaller group.

Perhaps they'd catch up to them and Priscilla would find out who exactly the cult wanted dead.

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