Bramble has been wanting to talk to Essie for some time. Her innate ability to heal is fascinating and, of course, her celestial heritage is remarkable. As Morak was preparing the meal and folks were coming by to express their gratitude, Bramble will approach Essie.

”Hail. Great work today. I know we’re all exhausted but if I might visit with you for a time, I would be in your debt.”

Even with her muscles aching, Essie stays upbeat and smiling throughout the return journey and subsequent meal. She takes special care to talk with the kids, especially the two who have nowhere to go. Just calm soothing words, like the ones she knows helped her when she'd lost her parents all those years ago. It's not much, but it's all she can offer for the moment.

She looks up as Bramble approaches and fixes him with a happy smile. "You did quite the job yourself. I've heard stories of people able to shift into animals, but seeing it myself was amazing." She drums her fingers against her holy symbol, merely just in thought. "Of course we can visit - I have some alertness left in me, of course, so long as you don't require any magic. That, I'm afraid I'm plum out of at the moment, past the easy spells. Here or elsewhere?"

Pausing in her conversation with Bramble, she leans forward and holds up a hand, interjecting into the sleeping arrangement conversation. "If no one else has any opposition, I think I'd like to take one of the beds," Essie says. "I haven't slept in a bed in ages, and they're quite nice, if I'm remembering correctly."

"Here is fine." Bramble says as he pulls a chair around and sits down.

He scoots his chair a little closer and leans in conspiratorially. In a softened voice he begins,

"I feel like I am approaching a crossroads. Most of my life I have been self sufficient and not in need of company, short of woodland creatures. But I feel that time is catching up on me. I am finding I enjoy the company of others. Depending on them, and here is my dilemma. I want them to be able to depend on me. Yet, short of my "trick" to turn into a beast, I feel like I bring precious little to the table. My strength, intellect, wisdom and such fall quite short of all of you. And at my age there is not much chance of that ever changing."

"I guess what I'm getting at is that I know I'll never attain the mastery of healing that you will, but I feel that I could be a good back-up. Now, I don't want to step on your toes or steal your thunder but as I said, there's not that much that I am good at. And I do want to bring more than one thing to the table. To be worthy of being in the company of such formidable adventurers."

"Say the word and I will endeavor to follow a different path than healing. I hope that you won't because I believe I can learn a lot from you."

Bramble finishes having never broken eye contact.

In fact, Sphyboe had a long list of chores to perform when she reached the entrance of the Nightstone. At first, she asked the party members if anyone would like to keep something from the pile of weapons and shields. Then, she would attempt to search for Alara and the Towns guard so that she could return these reinforcements.

She would stay there for a while to ask them about the possibility of the arrival of the Nandar Representatives, when she kept asking them about the condition of the mortal remains of Lady Nandar. Moreover, she would deliver the message of friendship on behalf of the new goblin boss.

Besides, she would attempt to join the party for dinner and she had kept the Smoking Pipe and Teddy Bear in front of the table in order to let the actual owners to claim their personal possessions. Finally, she attempted to write a letter to the Harpers in order to inform them about the recent developments when she gradually drifted off to sleep.

Essie stays quiet as Bramble talks, studying him with a small tilt to her head. Her expression has smoothed, almost as if she can read the more serious note of this conversation. But when Bramble finishes, she can't help but smile again.

"I know what you mean about the company. I haven't been around people in years, and everyone here is so interesting! I've never met an elf before, let alone a tiefling or goblins. But I don't think you need to worry?" She wrinkles her nose a little, trying to find the right words. "We all have different strengths, you know. And there are many ways to be useful to people than just strength in battle. I think you've more than proven your worth, but if you feel like you must continue, then I won't turn down more magic. Especially healing."

She leans a little closer and lowers her voice to a whisper. "Because, from what I've seen thus far? This group will need as much healing as we can possibly afford." Then she straightens back up and wraps a hand around her holy symbol. "I've never used as much magic as I had today, so any and all aid in keeping everyone together is greatly appreciated. I'm not exactly sure how much I can teach, but if we're both willing to learn, I think it'll be a fun adventure. So, yes, thank you."

Bramble smiles in relief and pushes himself away from the table.

”Thank you, Essie. I believe I will retire for the evening. If you dream, I wish you ones of the most pleasant sort.”

Bramble will seek out each member to bid them good night and will make his way to the stables. The rain is refreshing and, if he wasn’t so tired, he would take some time to splash in the puddles like a child. He will announce himself before opening the stable door so as not to spook the horses. He will grab a pitchfork and add some hay to each stall and if the animals allow it, he will stroke each of their necks while softly singing a Druidic melody.

Finally, he will climb into the attic for meditation, re-ordering of his spells, a fresh cast of goodberry, and eventual sleep as the sound of the rain on the roof drones on.

Sphyboe wakes up in the middle of her nap and finds her body aching because of the uncomfortable sleeping position. She will rub her neck to reduce the soreness when she moves towards the rooms that can offer comfortable accommodation and facilities. On her way she finds Bramble having conversation with Essie about something that she can not hear, but she decides not to interrupt the exchange of words. A half smirk appears on her face, then she dreamily walks into one of the cabins.

Alara and other members of the guard are amongst the village folk who stop to talk with you all. They are glad to have their spears and shields back. Morak claims one of the daggers and a club and the others are accepted gratefully by other townsfolk. Alara thanks all of you for freeing the villagers. In response to Sphyboe’s inquiries, she says, “Unfortunately, we haven’t even been able to send a messenger yet. Now that the villagers and more of our guards are back, we’ll have to send someone to the Nandars in Waterdeep tomorrow. And regarding Lady Nandar, Sydiri has prepared her body and we will likely bury her tomorrow as well. I’m afraid we have quite a few members of the community who will need to be given funerals or memorials.” She gives a great sigh.

Morak, Destiny, and Alara are all interested in what Sphyboe reports regarding the new goblin leadership. There is a heated discussion of what to do amongst the townsfolk. Some favor gathering their weapons and clearing out all the goblins, arguing that none of them are to be trusted. Others contend that you can’t judge all members of a species by the actions of a few or even several. No consensus is reached tonight, and you get the feeling that this is a conversation that will be continued.

When Sphyboe sets out the pipe and teddy bear, the Nesper kids run up to claim them. Sarvin, the younger one, grabs the teddy bear, hugs it, thanks you, and turns to his older sister Yondra and begins the cry. Yondra picks up the pipe carefully, saying, “It was Pa’s pipe. I can’t thank you enough.” They find a quiet corner to sit and reflect on these treasures. When Essie speaks to them a little later, they nod quietly at her reassurances, clearly a bit in awe of the tall woman with white hair and eyes. Essie does notice that a few others of the village stop to talk to them as well, including Destiny Agganor and the Osstras. She gets the sense that there are those in the village who will look out for them.

Daerthe moves off to find a chair to sit in, using this as her place to go into her trance for the next four hours. The only way to show that she is resting is the hood of her cloak being pulled down over her face. "Let me know if anything happens."

Sphyboe had agreed to pay a visit to the Waterdeep but she decided to postpone the matter to buy herself some time for a group consultation. Then, she had collected the identities of the various family members of Nightstone in a written format on a sheet of paper. She would attempt to observe their appearance, their unique speech patterns, quirks or certain physical characteristics that could distinguish them from each other..... often doodling on the paper to sketch their draft portraits without their knowledge to study their appearance later. She had suggested the Nesper kids to stay strong and confident by saying,

"One day, you'll get the opportunity to avenge the murder of your parents, prepare yourselves for that day. Don't feel bad about the fact that you couldn't save them. Weakness and cowardice are not always detrimental to the survival of people, remember to use these traits to your advantage."

The half-elf recalls these events when she prepares herself to call it a night. The cold damp breeze brushes her skin and hair when she settles herself in a fetal position. Indeed, she is reconsidering the fact that cuddling an oversized teddy bear for warmth could not have been a bad concept at all.

Feeling a little better at the adults who stop to talk with the kids, Essie fights back a yawn and decides that, yeah, it's probably time to rest. Her shoulder is starting to ache again from that crossbow bolt, and her magic is almost frighteningly low. So she pushes herself up to her feet and nods at everyone before heading up the stairs of the inn. She's a little confused about why no one else seems to want to claim a bed. But maybe that's just how these folks enjoy sleeping. She doesn't quite get people yet; maybe most people don't like their beds. How strange.

But Essie pushes into the first room available to them and claims one of the beds. She removes her armor and weapons carefully, storing them right beside the bed. Then she crawls into the bed. Oh, how nice. It's rather more comfortable than the ground she's been sleeping on while traveling. A quiet prayer up to her god, and then she's fast asleep, the day catching up to her quick.

The night is peaceful, whether you rest in the straw above quietly snoring horses, in a comfortable bed, in meditation in a chair, or otherwise. The rain taps gently on the rooftops and the air is fresh as it whispers through the holes made by the giants’ boulders.

A soft gray light of morning greets you all. Looking out you see that the rain has stopped but clouds still blanket the sky. You feel stronger this morning, perhaps from a combination of your exertions the previous day, followed by restful sleep or trance. As you gather one by one in the common room of the inn, Morak greets you warmly and offers bread, oatmeal, baked apples, and hot tea. “I hope you all rested well! I know I felt much better curled up in my kitchen than the last couple of nights in a cave with goblins. Once you have eaten, I’d like to discuss a bit of business with you.”

(In case you missed it, you leveled up in the night to Level 4! Feel free to narrate how this manifests, if you like.)

“Top o’ the morning, all!” Bramble exuberantly proclaims to all within earshot as he enters the inn.

”I’m feeling great this morning. Like I was five years younger, I’d say. How did everyone else sleep?”

By the time most of the others have woken up Daerthe has already long since eaten her breakfast, leaving the inn to go outside before the sun rises in the sky. Using the rubble of the town she builds herself a makeshift target. She spends the a few hours using her knew abilities to practice throwing the blades of psychic energy she had been manifesting.

Ryndar wake before the sun, and as if out of habit takes a walk around the village patrolling the wall. He confers with any guards he encounters, and takes note of any weaknesses to the defenses of the city caused by the cloud giant attack.

After his patrol, he finds a target to practice his bowcraft. Spending at least an hour or two as the sun crests the horizon loosing dozens of arrows into haybales at varying ranges and angles. 

Returning to the inn for a meal, he nods to Bramble, "The peace was certainly a welcomed respite compared to our past few days."

Helena is a bit slower than the others to come down that morning, having made some breakthroughs on some more powerful spells she had been working on. When she does appear she nods to the others with a friendly smile, and takes a spot at the table, eating frely of the food provided.

"I would like to hear what you wish to speak to us about." She says to the dwarf after she has finished eating.

Essie sleeps as long as she can, though it's mostly a half-dozing state once the sun rises. Finally she sighs and rolls out of bed. "Yes, yes, I'll quit lazing around..." she mumbles with a yawn, starting to pull on her armor. Her amulet bounces against the scale mail as she twists around to slot all of her various weapons and storage pouches into place.

She's just finishing twisting her hair back into a rather complicated braid as she comes down the stairs to join everyone. There's a faint smile on her face as usual as she finds a seat around the table. "Morning, all," she greets as she reaches for the bread. She takes a bite and hums around it. "I feel much better after sleeping. Like everything's resettled within me."

When she hears the dwarf mention business, she scoots her chair a little closer. "Is it more adventuring? This has all been quite exciting so far!"

Sphyboe can not resist the urge to over-sleep since the bedding is really comfortable to sleep in. The fresh breeze with a lingering scent of rain reminds her of the happiest days of childhood when she smiles subconsciously. But, her dream is interrupted by the shocking appearance of Xolkin who attacks repeatedly by hurling colorful gemstones at Sphyboe, but she fails to dodge the strikes. 

When she wakes up, she feels relieved to get rid of the nightmare. She decides to join the party for Brunch since she's possibly the last one to reach the room. She vows to be careful about her health and remembers to consume the foods and drinks so that she can gain more energy.

When Morak mentions the word 'Business', she will attempt to mimic his voice (Minor Illusion) by saying:

"Business? What kind of business are you talking about?"

Morak smiles at your interest in hearing more, but waits for you to have a chance to eat before explaining. “Now you know that several townsfolk were killed in the giant attack. You may not have realized how many were killed by the ogres, goblins, and giant rats in the caves. One of my friends was amongst that number, Darthag Ulgar--may his spirit haunt those caves until we avenge him…” Morak bows his head for a moment, remembering his friend and then reining in his emotions. “Darthag ran the Lionshield Coster here, our trading post. I’m not sure if you are aware that this is just one of a few trading posts in the Lionshield business. The main one is up in Yartar and another is in Triboar. That second one is operated by Darthag’s ex-wife, Alaestra Ulgar. She should be notified of Darthag’s passing and the Lionshield company be informed as well.”

Morak looks around at each of you for a moment and then continues, “You all have served Nightstone with great generosity and little reward. On the one hand, this makes me hesitate to ask more of you. On the other hand, you have shown admirable willingness to help our community and your ability to handle danger. So I will ask and you can accept or decline my task as you feel is right. Would you consider traveling to Triboar to speak with Alaestra Ulgar? It is not a short or safe journey--longer than a tenday. You would very likely run across adventures on the way.”

Spoiler for Sphyboe:

 Spoiler for Daerthe:

 Spoiler for Helena:

 Spoiler for Ryndar, Essie, and Bramble:

"That could actually prove of use to me." Helena speaks up, her eyes thoughtful. "If others will agree to this, then I would be willing to go along." She glances to the others for their responses.