The wizard would then extend her magic out 30ft to check for any presence of prying minds that she couldn't see. When feeling confident that there were no hidden hostilities, she'd dismiss her spell.

Fae's expression would be calm, thumb brushing against Zeke's forearm to assure him. "I feel safe." Her eyes were warm with appreciation for his enthusiasm. "You're welcome to stay for tea, or continue with Elra and Ethan." She'd give him an encouraging smile, thinking he'd choose the latter. "Please send Tarja when you see her?". Her head would tilt as it did.

Turning back to Reidoth, Fae would place a hand over her chest and bow once again to the druid. "Please excuse the intrusion, but we choose to take all precautions considering the string of events." She'd explain, standing upright. "I would love some tea." She'd offer a small smile before adding, "Tarja, a friend of ours has been eager to speak with you as well, I hope you'd welcome it."

The raven haired scholar would look to the seat briefly before looking to sister Garaele. "Can I assist with the tea?" She'd offer before accepting the chair.

At the inn, Tarja gets caught up in conversation with the patrons. She tells them they haven't found Arvel yet, though they have a promising lead and will return to keep searching. She asks about how Gundren's been doing - she was worried they'd left him too long.

Tarja finds the familiar townsfolk still buzzing about all of the recent events, most recently the arrival of the strange druid who apparently paid Gundren a visit.

Sildar greets Tarja and then also Elra and Ethan with a wide smile.  "Would you like to go see him?  He'll be quite pleased to see you."

Fae finds no hidden minds lurking around Sister Garaele's house and settles in for some tea, Sister Garaele appreciative of an extra helping hand putting more water on over the fire.

"Tarja?  Tarha... Tarja!  Yes, Tarja..." replies Reidoth with a smile.  Sister Garaele speaks up, perhaps sparing Fae and Zeke some time of trying to communicate with the strange druid, a man of few words.  "Reidoth was telling me that he met Rizen, I believe just before you all came to town, and promised him that he'd bring any noteworthy news to us here in town."

Elra nods, "Yes please!"

Zeke nods solemnly at Fae's assurance of her safety, turning to apologize to the Sister 'My apologies good Sister, strange things walk the land these days.' Turning to the guant man, ''Sir". 

The tiefling turns back to the wizard one last time 'I'll be right outside if you need me' 

Taking up a post outside, he plants the butt of his halberd on the ground and keeps an eye on anyone approaching the Sister's home.

Silda's smile, reassures Ethan about Gundren's condition and he smiles back.

"Yes please."

Yes, we really should check up on him!

Sister Garaele smiles sincerely at Zeke, knowing his good intentions, and says "indeed they do Zeke."  "Thank you."

"Let's go" encourages a very happy Sildar, ushering the others upstairs ahead of him.  Gundren's door is open and Trilena Stonehill can be heard gently arguing with the dwarf whose overzealous nature seems to have returned.  She seems to be pleading with him to rest a bit more, wait for the others to return and assist him, etc.  As you all reach his doorway, a healthy Gundren can be seen eagerly packing up a plethora of adventuring items including rope, rations, a pickaxe, etc.  He is excited to see half of the party he had originally hired back in Neverwinter.

"AH!  Ms. Skylash!  Ms. Bloodcrash!  Mr. Ethan!  I was just telling Mrs. Stonehill here that we must make haste to catch up with Tharden and Nundro in our pursuit of the mine!  Shall we leave now, or perhaps in the morning?  No later than that I'm sure you'd agree!  If you need time to pack, we can just set out early tomorrow, which will leave time for you to have an ale or three with ol' Gundren too, eh?!"

Without delay, Fae would sweep over to give Garaele a hand with preparing the tea. “Ah, so that must mean there’s some noteworthy news?” She’d smile softly, serving Reidoth with a bow of her head before returning to prepare another cup.

Instead of sitting down, the wizard would excuse herself for a moment. Walking carefully over to the door, violet eyes would peak out. Sure enough, there sat their vigilant tiefling, keeping watch. A part of her felt guilty if her assumption was wrong and if he felt unwelcome for any reason. Fae would take her couple steps out the door, reaching some fresh tea and one of Garaele’s home made baked goods tucked on the side, down to Zeke. “I’d have enjoyed your company inside.“ She’d start quietly. “Please.” She’d insist gently with a timid smile. “At least enjoy some tea while you keep watch.”

Giving him a moment to accept the offering, Fae waited and watched for his expressions. She’d reach a hand out to his shoulder as she’d bend her knees a little to level her eyes with his. “Would you like to go visit and check on the children after this?” She’d ask before adding. “And fly a perimeter check before retiring this evening?” The wizards expression was soft and her smile warm. She imagined the anxiety she was feeling about the situation was only a fraction of what their protector was feeling, so she was offering what she could to put him at ease until they could return. “I’ll be inside if you need me.” With a light nod accompanying her smile, Fae would leave him to give it some thought. 

Slipping back inside Garaele’s, Fae would finally help herself to her own tea and take a seat with Garaele and Reidoth. “Now where were we...” She’d smile politely, ready to hear what the Druid and Sister Garaele had to share.

Zeke gladly accepted the tea from Fae and smiled as she spoke 'I'm outside no because I felt unwelcome, but because I'm not needed there.  Here I can keep watch....and keep you safe while you learn what there is to be learned.'  

He nods and smiles at the mention of the children 'Yes, i would most certainly like to check in on them, but only if we can spare the time.  There is much to be done and we need to be back on the trail to Arvel as soon as possible.'

As Fae brings up flying again, his wings twitch involuntarily and his smile creeps towards his eyes.  Quickly composing himself the barbarian nods seriously 'A quick ariel scout would be prudent before the light drops. I still have an uneasy feeling about all of this.  But for now, you tend to the Sister and her new visitor, I have a feeling he has a tale to tell us'

Ethan smiles broadly at the sight and sound of Gundren, back to his old self. His expression loses a little or its mirth at the mention of heading out.

"Um, we lost Arvel. The bad ones, who have been causing all the trouble around this area, captured him."

Ethan points to Tarja.

"But we did manage to track them to the nearby mountains."

Ethan looks between Tarja and Elra.

"We were planning to pick-up the trail tomorrow...If you wanted to come with us, once we have found Arvel, we can help you find Tharden and Nundro."

Gundren! Great to see you up and about! So glad you're feeling better!

We've unfortunately got a lot of people to find - Arvel was taken from us and replaced with a shapeshifter. We've got to find him, and Tharden and Nundro too! We tracked Arvel to a fork in a river with a dwarf statue, but then returned here to find you since we heard you were doing better.

But we shouldn't overburden you. You were in pretty bad shape for a long time, you barely spoke for days.

An excited Gundren responds regarding the darker days, simply saying "ah, yes well, sometimes even ol' Gundren just needs a bit of rest, eh?"

Regarding Arvel he replies "ah yes, those nasty goblins, eh?"  "They even got the best of Sildar!  Not to worry, that's why I hired all of you, and here we are now that you've dealt with many of them!"  "Not to worry, we can pick up Mr. Arvel on our way to the mine!"

When Tarja mentions a dwarf statue, Gundren raises an eyebrow.  "Ah, you've already found the first statue?  Even without a map?"  He chuckles.  "Well well, I knew I hired the right sort of folk!  Surely that will save us some time tomorrow!  We can set off first thing!"

------------------

Meanwhile, Sister Garaele begins telling Fae the news that Reidoth has brought.  Fae guesses it is to save everyone time, as Reidoth seems to be a man of few words, and just a bit odd.  Reidoth reports that the green dragon who seems to have taken up this region as its new territory makes its lair up in the abandoned town of Thundertree.  Furthermore there are apparently dragon cultists there, and they meet with the dragon regularly.  They seem to be trying to teach it magic.  Reidoth believes that the dragon is fairly young despite being almost fully grown, and has yet to fully master spellcasting.  He has not surmised if there is more to their goals beyond winning the good will of the dragon.

Ethan's smile broadens again at Gundren's enthusiasm. Putting two and two together, Ethan remarks.

"Oh so Arvel might be near, or even already in, the mine then? This is great. Oh, hhmmm..."

Ethan stops and thinks for a moment.

"But that could mean the bad ones are there as well, The Spider and The Glassstaff and any of their allies. This could be dangerous, we will have to be on top alert and make sure we don't rush into anything."

Thinking about keeping watch, reminds Ethan.

"Quinn, I've not introduced you to Gundren yet, come around and say hello."

Quinn detaches from Ethan's back, his arms and legs unfolding from their box-like configuration. Quinn peeks over Ethan shoulder to look at Gundren.

"Το έχω δει αυτό πριν από τον πλοίαρχο, χθες. Φαίνεται πολύ λιγότερο συγκρατημένο από χθες. Δεν μου αρέσει, θα πρέπει να είμαστε προσεκτικοί αφέντης, μπορεί να επιτεθεί." 

"Oh pfft, stop that Quinn. This is Gundren, he is a friend and you will be nice to him, ok? Oh and this is Mrs Stonehill, she owns the inn, right? Gundren, Mrs Stonehill, this is Quinn, he's my homunculus, I created him yesterday, well to be more accurate, I finished the design and the inscribing and infusing yesterday and then activated him."

Ethan looks to Elra and Tarja.

"Should one of us go and tell Fae and Zeke about how Arvel might be at or near the mine, and that Gundren is all better and is coming with us?"

The FIRST statue? I knew the statue had to lead us to something important... but if it's the first clue, then we might already be late - Arvel's captors took him past there, so maybe they're already there!

What else can you tell us about the mine? Why would they want to take Arvel there?

Fae settled in her seat with rosier cheeks and notebook open on her lap. She'd sip on her tea listening intently to what Garaele had to share, occasionally exchanging a look towards Reidoth to see if there are any specific points he may wish to emphasize.

Though, it didn't take long for Fae to have a name on the tip of her tongue. "Would this green dragon be Venomfang?" She'd flip to a section and specific encounter in which she sketched in great detail. The pages following were filled with notes

The divination's violet eyes would scan over the notes as she shared them, refreshing her own memory at the same time. Reading over them, Fae's eyes would ink over black in flashbacks. She'd have to hold back gasp, placing her tea down.

"Spider?" asks Gundren, not understanding the reference.

"Oh, well very nice to meet you, Mr. Quinn, ah, sir."

To Tarja Gundren replies "yes, of course."  "Four statues, the Sentinel, the Trickster, the Smith and the Stonemason.  Did I not show you the map?"

-------------------------

When Fae mentions the name Venomfang, Reidoth looks up from his tea with a smile, pointing at Fae.  "Yes, yes, Venomfang!"  He then looks at Sister Garaele with a smile and a nod in Fae's direction, likely in approval of the young wizard.

(Nice notes, Ixi!)

"The Spider and The Glassstaff are two powerful spell casters we have had run ins with. They seem to be behind a lot of the trouble in the area, the various goblins and the Red Brand. We think they are working together and are the ones who have Arvel."

Fae would blink, her violet eyes presenting themselves once more. They were dart side to side as if reviewing a distant memory. She'd finally look up with focused eyes. "We've had an encounter with Venomfang. This information you share is very helpful. Thank you." She'd nod her head, taking a moment to update her notes to include the information Garaele shared.

The scholar would then reach for her tea again to sip on it. Gathering her thoughts, she'd eventually share her update. "We managed to find the first dwarven statue, but not Arvel." Fae would explain. "We believe he's been captured by the Spider and they may have found the mine."

No, you hadn't shown us the map yet... it was all so mysterious! It was even a bit exciting, until the goblins (and the Spider, and Glassstaff) interfered...