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I head outside where Zander was waiting by the post where we place all court and council decisions. He was reading the current listing of goods' prices when I lightly pat his Dun colored rump and he turns his head to me. "Hey now be glad I like you or I'd have to kick you for that Gwen," he jokingly says to me then gives me a hug.

I had met the centaur leader a month after arriving at Hope Point, he had been trading with Defeck's city across the bay and had heard that we now had a population and had been curious. After meeting with everyone and hearing what we were planing he told us he was considering joining with his herd. He had told us they were tired of trying to avoid the slavers and the hunters who preyed on nonhumans. I hope he has made a decision finally, we became quick friends as he saw how I was holding everyone up and felt I needed a friend who wasn't bonded to me like my guardians were. I hear a snort in my head from Cheshire, {if he thinks he doesn't have the start of a guardian bond he's nuts Gwen.} I admonish Cheshire, who had previously complained at Alberich for commenting on my personal thoughts and he chuckles then leaves me to myself.

Zander points to a line on the price list, "I see Harriet has some black pepper available based on these listings. Should I pass that along when I head back to my herd?" The centaurs use a mixture of human and equine terms when referencing themselves. I look at the page a moment trying to recall how much Harriet said she had available for trade.

"Yes you could, just make a point to remind people that there is a limited quantity. She only has a single bushel of peppercorns for trade, so they will be a pricey item for anyone wanting it." I see Samuel heading towards the Hunter area, probably to check on Timothy and Flower. "Hey Samuel, tell the patrols to watch out for people stealing pepper this trading season. Harriet only has a single bushel for trade and the restaurants and inns might get people robbing them of pepper instead of buying it." Samuel pauses and nods his head, then keeps on going.

Zander extends his hand, "so Gwen shall we head to Ariawyn's restaurant my treat?" I chuckle as the restaurant "A Pleasant Plate" was the most expensive restaurant in town, the middle aged elf who runs it has issued herself a challenge to be able to feed any intelligent being who came to dine at her establishment. While she charges a lot for a meal, once a year she closes down her business and opens a free food court in the market so that everyone can try her foods, and twice a year she sends lunches to the children in the school as well as two dinners to the orphanage. These public service acts give her no taxes for the following year as she did petition the council for that right, yet she still pays in coin half of what she should in addition. She also pays the taxes for all of her employees, making her employees very loyal to her.

I take his arm, which requires reaching up and agree to the suggestion. I rarely eat there not due to the cost, but because I'd rather help out a street vendor if I don't wish to cook for myself. As we walk the short distance to the restaurant, I hear some of the market stall keepers talking about the most recent bandit raid 'attempt'. I say attempt because they have yet to breach the walls of the city, or even be able to charge the gates.

Granted, it did seem like it was happening fairly regularly in the last six months. However, this last attempt was most amusing; especially to the guards that were walking the outer wall at the time. Seems this group of bandits had been finding Old World weapons, and had lobbed a grenade at the dwarven made walls. After the explosion there was a stain on the walls from the chemicals used in the grenade's explosives. The bandit ran off after seeing no actual marks on the wall and our dwarven mason was swearing over the discoloration of his walls. The guards had laughed at the bandit before they had run off. It had been Tammy and Samuel's suggestion to leave this group alone as long as they weren't causing any harm. As it might deter other groups from making any attempts.

Zander heard the tale told by the stall keepers as we passed and started laughing, "they tried a grenade and it only left a smudge." He slaps his foreleg, "gods I wish I had seen their faces after that; I imagine the mason was upset?" I look up at his face grinning, "oh yes. The whole time he was washing the wall he was cursing the bandits back to their great grandmothers." He stopped walking he was laughing so hard, "well lets hope they don't find a working tank. They might try to use it and we wouldn't want to embarrass them horribly." I shrug my shoulders, "well if they do we'll just have to 'convince' one of the dwarven weapons smiths (different from blacksmith), to give us some exploding arrows that can kill a tank. Now which would be more embarrassing? Having the tank not scratch the walls or have a single arrow blow up your tank?" He slaps me on the back, "yes Gods woman I am glad I am on your side. The arrow would certainly be more embarrassing, and I am fairly sure they could make them too."

We arrive at "A Pleasant Plate", which while it is built like a standard restaurant the owner paid the masons to build her a patio for people to dine in during good weather. It has a wall that reaches my knees with seasonal plants growing in them, as well as fire fly lanterns. These are special built lanterns that when a fire fly is placed in one will allow the light from the fire fly to be increased so much you could read by one. There were also different plates you could apply to the outside to change the color of the light and the intensity of them. The ones here produce light akin to light from a full moon but dimmed enough so that at night you could dine outside even on the darkest nights and have enough light to see by.

Ariawyn herself met us at the entrance, "ahh Hunter Gwen and Trader Zander. Welcome to my establishment, I suggest eating on the patio with the weather as nice as it is." We both nod our heads and she walks us around to the patio as a couple of her employees rush to set up a table me and Zander could both eat at. Ariawyn pauses as her people shuffle some seats around, "I do hope you bring your herd here Zander. I am looking forward to feeding more of your people, having a table you can eat at while allowing the Hunter or other humanoids to be able to have a pleasant meal with you will be a fun challenge."

Zander chuckles as the people find a table designed for unicorns and set some bricks under it so that the table stood higher. Then they found a chair designed like a bar stool with a back on it that had a lever on it. Ariawyn bows and waves at the seat to me, when I sit on it she shows Zander how to use the lever to raise the seat height so it could be eye level with him. After which he gently pushes the chair in for me, as I certainly couldn't as the floor was two feet below my feet. Ariawyn chuckles, "such a gentleman you are Trader." I laugh slightly embarrassed, "yeah like it was possible for me to do it myself. I feel like you arranged this so I couldn't sneak off Ariawyn." She laughs smiling, "maybe I did. People are worried that you don't relax enough Hunter Gwen, I for one think you need some time to yourself. Now what can I get for you two to drink? Also I have a wonderful fruit plate as a starter to your meal."

I smile at the saleswoman she is, "well Ariawyn. Since I shall have to wait on a decent strawberry wine till Ullothsell can make one how about one of Hekkogar's fruitier ales?" Zander thinks a moment, "a stout please; darker if you have it. I will probably drink about three over the course of the meal." He winks an eye at me, "maybe you need to have one of the crafter's make you a centaur sized mug?" She nods her head after we tell her our drink choices, "perhaps I will; then I can price based on the size of the mug. Would you two like the fruit while you decide on your meal?" We nod our heads in unison and she looks at something on the other side of the market from her restaurant, before smiling and then excusing herself to have our drinks and the fruit brought to us.

After she went inside I look to where she had been looking and spy Gilorndir walking down one of the streets in a hurry, I look to Zander and he shrugs. He then looks towards where Ariawyn went and chuckles, "she does know I was kidding right?" I smile, "well you just gave her some ideas Zander. She literally wants to be able to cater to anyone, I hear she had the elves and dwarves work together to made a device to keep blood 'fresh' in case we run across a decent vampire." I shudder and so does he, then he looks about and notices a partition with a sign saying "carnivores only". He points at it with a questioning look on his face. "Ahh that area is for like the gryphons who wish to dine here as Ariawyn does acquire some odd ingredients. Starburst, after making the arrangements before hand; has had a few meals here. She about once a month gets a whole elephant for him to dine on. He pays her with a handful of her favorite gemstones, his handful." He smiles shaking his head, "well if Starburst thinks she is a good business woman than I shall have to agree, he has very high class tastes."

A young woman with damp hair and stormy gray eyes brings our drinks and the fruit plate. She sets the plate between us having to use a step to reach the table top, after setting my ale down she says, "the Lady says this ale was a blueberry and wheat made last fall by Hekkogar using dried blueberries and the best of the wheat harvest." I nod my head and take a sip, tasting the blueberries very strongly in the ale. It was like Hekkogar had distilled the best flavors of summer into this batch.

The woman then stood with her hands behind her back and asks, "are you two ready to place an order or shall I give you some more time?" I tilt my head, "well we're ready to order if you can answer some questions?" The woman nods her wet head and I ask, "so I love strawberries and I know we've started getting some; and I love fish. Do you have any recommendations?" The woman smiles, "of course Hunter Gwen. For fish I would recommend a piece of lightly grilled tuna, my brother brought in two large ones this morning and the Lady bought one from my family. So it is very fresh, and as to strawberries; how about a wild green salad with some chopped strawberries and a strawberry vinaigrette?" I think for a minute and agree, the Selkie woman then turning to Zander; who says. "I'll have the same, only give me two pieces of fish and a salad three times the size of hers please." The woman bows and heads inside and I raise my eyebrow at Zander.

He smiles, "what? They sounded very good and while I have heard that Ariawyn can get almost anything for you to eat, I'd rather go with something safe." He points at the retreating woman, "and if her brother caught the tuna this morning; it should be at peak freshness. Not many people can say they got to eat Selkie caught tuna, though I hear this isn't your first time?" I shake my head, "no. The pod living here are the ones who followed us along the Land Bridge."

He nods his head picking up a slice of banana, "I see Harriet has gotten some of those trees I sent up to take root." I nod my head grinning and taking an orange slice, "oh yes. She had heard that you traded for a field of wheat as long as what you sent as payment would go to the green house. Then when the fruit trees arrived she was overjoyed." He smiles nibbling on another banana, "good; I like seeing people happy. Especially if I plan on living near them." I blink the slice of orange half eaten, "does that mean you're bringing the herd here?" He smiles and nods his head, "yep once I leave I will head back and bring everyone here. I have spent the day talking with the builders about modifying some of the homes to accommodate my people, until then we'll be staying at Hekkogar's inn. She's already gotten them to adjust enough rooms for my people there." I nod my head, "good it'll be nice to see you around more often."

He laughs, "well it's good to have a friend who thinks along the lines of a human yes? I know you are friends with your guardians Gwen, but aside from Shadow they aren't even part human. Sometimes it's just nice to communicate with someone who at least looks kind of like you."

The Selkie woman comes out with two teen-aged humans helping her carry the plates. My food only covered one plate, with a piece of flatbread on the side still warm from the oven and some softened butter if I wanted it to go on it. I guess it had gotten around that I preferred it to regular breads. Zander's food took four plates, one just for the fish; which were also cut thicker than mine. Two plates of salad and a plate full of flat breads, the woman bows after arranging everything on the table. "We were not sure exactly how much to give you Sir Trader, so we included a full plate of the flat breads. Ma'am Hunter, Ariawyn wishes for me to tell you she has a strawberry cake if you wish a dessert with some tea after your meal." I nod my head and the woman leaves.

The tuna was just seared on the outside with a dollop of butter on top with some dill in it for some added flavor. The salad was mostly cleaned dandelion greens, with a few of the more bitter cultivated lettuces and some spinach. There was some thin slices of strawberry as well as some diced into the dressing. Zander takes a few careful forkfuls of the tuna, "very nice job on this; I am impressed with it. I hope the salad is as good." After trying a few bites of salad he nods his head, "it will be good to have a place my people could eat if we chose to and get such a good meal as well." I nod my head and eat my wonderful meal enjoying every bite. I would probably come more often, but not on a regular basis; something more of a treat now and again.

When the Selkie server came back to start clearing plates away, Zander was still eating; I requested a second ale and the dessert and tea once Zander had finished with his. While he is in the middle of his second plate of salad Zander asks me an odd question. "Ever think you'll find a partner and get married Gwen?" I blink in surprise as he sits there chewing on his salad reaching for a piece of flat bread. He continues, "I don't mean me; if we were compatible species wise. Then I would in a heart beat you know." He puts a thin layer of butter on the flat bread before eating it.

I sigh, "I doubt that will ever happen Zander. I am responsible for to many things to even consider a relationship." He chews a minute thinking before answering, "isn't that why you made the council Gwen? To make sure you aren't solely responsible for everyone?" I think a minute, "well yes I did; yet I am still the person everyone goes to. Maybe when the children are older I could -consider- a relationship, but that is provided there was someone out there who likes me as a person and not because I am a Hunter. I doubt I will find someone like that," I sigh and Zander says. "I'm not so sure on that, but time will tell of course Gwen;" he touches my chin. "Don't sell yourself short alright?" I see some scuffling going on in the market and Starburst's scaled fore leg reach into the market from a roof top and then glide off away.

I wonder if Zander was hiding something as I waited for my dessert while enjoying the blueberry ale.