With a soft sigh of relief, Etain slid down from the saddle, barely keeping her feet under her as she landed. She’d been on the road too long this time and both she and the broad-chested warhorse beside her looked rather the worse for wear.
“Go ahead, Dahg me boy, drink your fill,” she crooned to her mount, who eagerly did as he was told, slurping greedily from the fountain.
Though she knew he was too tired to put up much of a fight if any should bother him, Etain didn’t want to take the chance and so she slumped down beside him on the stone edge of the fountain, one hand loosely holding onto his bridle. The other hand she used to brush back the brown bangs that were hanging in her eyes, slightly obscuring her vision.
“Right, first thing we need to do is find someone who can tell us were the closest inn is. Then we can both relax and I can change into something a bit cleaner,” she mumbled to herself, casting a glance down at her dirty and torn tunic and pants. Luckily she had spare clothes in the pack on Dahg’s saddle and she couldn’t wait to get into them.

{ooc- so it isn't the best post, but I haven't rped in FOREVER so forgive me ^.^; }

Soon, the figure of a man draped in ebon raiment would cast a shadow upon the weary female traveler as the light of the high noon seemed to have lent its curse of a foul, dry weather into the bare and worn path of Lomendor. The bearer of the pitch yet highlighted silhouette was Melandro Von Mortem enroute to the city's crowded marketplace, only his attentions were stolen by the sight of the central fountain. It was there that by chance he stumbled upon the resting form of a stranger. Whether she be a foreigner to the lands of Arda, he would be unable to tell for he himself had not been a resident for the longest time either.

Now ungloved, he cast a smile to the lady in polite greeting in the midst of the sun's punishing rays that brought a clarity to the few stitches that had marked his right cheek. Aye, even the Captain of the Blades had his weaknesses. Twas both fortunate and unfortunate that this weakness revolved around a certain woman who had a way with both sword and dagger. Truly, could Phedre not find fondness in another trade? Animal husbandry perhaps? (pun intended) Being a washwoman? A milk maid like the other meek females of common interest? So many other occupations that wouldn't have cost him a third of a ravishing appearance.

Crouching that he may use his arm in order to lean upon the fountain's rim, he cupped his palm in order to collect but a handful of water. The wound he had acquired but a few hours before was still in a state of bleeding and still required much tending.

The soothing feel of the water's rejuvinating properties brushed against the side of his cheek, inciting a brief insignificant amount of pain that had caused him to cringe only to be followed by yet another attempt to wash the weariness from his visage. It was only when Melandro had felt the stamina return to him once again that he had found the moment to harness a more sociable form of dialogue.

" You look terrible..."

He teased with a smirk only to revert to a more serious suggestion.

" I believe an inn would be a far more entertaining place for relaxation in comparison to this fountain."

Wolfang stumbled out of a nearby pub, well got thrown out would be a more fitting expression. His face was flushed from some drinking, but also from singing loudly and dancing on top of the tables scattering cheap pewter cutlery and plates in all directions as only a rowdy, drunk barbarian could. Muttering some empty threats to the pub's owner, he walked over none too gracefully to his black warhorse and barely managed to climb on top of the beast.

Still in a state of rowdiness, Wolfang heavily spurred the horse, making it race through the somewhat crowded streets and scattering commoners to the sides of the road. He was shouting gleefully the whole time. His slightly blurred vision noticed a fountain nearby, so he directed his horse over to it. All this merrymaking really made him quite hot and a nice cool fountain would do the trick perfectly. He dismounted his horse, not even bothering to tie it up, and tried to hop in the fountain, only to fail miserably by getting his foot caught on the ledge. He fell in, face-first, sening huge amounts of water in every direction.

He stood up, water dripping from his hair,beard, and clothes with a gleeful smile on his face. He noticed two people nearby so he said rather insincerly, "Hope I didn't get ya two wet,"

Etain looked up as a figure obscured the sun, her brown eyes struggling to focus on the other. Though the bright light caused him to look more like a silhouette, she could discern a few features, including the lovely set of scratches he carried on his cheek. A fine looking man he was, a warrior she could see but there was something about him that just seemed to scream ‘I’m not human’ and that put her a bit on edge.
She shifted closer to Dahg, giving the man more room to maneuver but he seemed not to notice, merely crouching down and scooping up water to wash his face. ‘It probably wouldn’t hurt if I did that too,’ she thought to herself, absently picking at the dirt under one nail.
“Terrible is an understatement, I would think,” she replied with a chuckle. “Being on the road tends to do that too you.. And if I happened to know where said inn was, I would currently be there not here, good sir. Might you know of one near by?” She was about to add more when the bath she wished for was suddenly delivered.
Annoyance was visible for only a moment before she wiped it and the excess water from her face, pushing back those pesky bangs once more. Though not as soaked at the rather drunk man, she was at least a little wet, water dripping from her hair and tunic, a small muddy puddle collecting at her feet.
"It was for the better, I would think,” she replied to the second man, a smile quirking the corners of her mouth upwards. “It helped to cut down on my smell.”

It did seem that she was in true need of an inn basing from her garb that appeared to be rather soiled from her travels. She was an attractive young woman in the midst of her weariness. Mayhap if she did receive the rest and the change of clothing she required, she may have been a far more radiant sight? He smiled. Melandro was in the verge of a reply when a certain turn of events led to a more drenched outcome. Though Melandro had taught himself to be eternally prepared for any sort of conflict, this was one that had slipped his occassionally lax judgement. A barbarian, fresh from hours of merry-making simply had to cut down on bathing costs by taking an interest to this particular city fountain. Von Mortem would have found it peculiar though it would have been forgiven considering the man's rowdy state but for heaven's sake, couldn't he do it right? The man tripped, fell and the evidences of his attempt to be more sober spilled in a wave of disastrous proportions.

A second bath arrived to greet Landro's midday walk. Beads of water dripped throughout his features, more across his garments in a visibly darker stain of dampness. A situation highly not required for one whose day was meant to impress than to be like a dog in the rain. Had the barbarian been less drenched that he appeared, Melandro would have considered relieving the man of drunkeness with a bucket full of watery vengeance.

" Well, I didn't think another bath was necessary but aye, I agree with the woman. It would have been far more wonderful if the bulk of the bathing was directed towards her instead. I would have captured her foul stench as far as Estolad!"

He smirked once again, his initial reply to Etain now slipping his mind as he cupped yet another handful of water, directing the liquid to her path if only to make the distribution of misfortune more equal than it had been in light-hearted playfulness.

"Smell? Ha! That's nothing. Why, I remember not bathing for at least three months while I was on this journey to...somewhere," he boasted as if it was something to be proud of. Of course, in this slightly drunken state Wolfang was prone to boasting of his past deeds, but the alcohol also made him forget some of the details, so he just made them up from the top of his head every once in a while.

"'Course I'm much cleaner nowadays. This city living's made me a little soft, but I'll be moving on soon anyway. What about you two? You city dwellers?" he asked. He guessed that the woman wasn't because her attire was quite dirty, meaning she probably just arrived in the city. But hey, one never knew, maybe she was a common laborer that had to get dirty like that every day. The man, on the other hand, well he was odd and could have been anything really, from a warrior to some kind of strange monk that wears black clothing.

He decided that that was enough time spent in the fountain, and as the day was quite cool and nice he decided to take off his short sleeved dark green shirt, revealing a heavily scarred, highly muscular, and somewhat hair chest. He wrang it out as best he could and threw it on the ledge of the fountain to dry. Then he sat down next to the woman that he had gotten wet moments earlier.

"Did I hear talk of inns right before I landed in the fountain?" he asked both people hesitantly, not wanting to believe it right away and become dissapointed. "Because as it is, I don't know much of inns. I prefer taverns myself, the drinks there are always better. "Oh, how I could use a nice, cold mug of mead right now," he said longingly.

“I seek an inn rather than a tavern because, as you can see, I’m not in the best of shape and a bath would be divine.. Though you seemed to have aided me somewhat in the cleaning process,” she said with a laugh.
“And in answer to your question, sir, no. I’m definitely not a city dweller, for I’m prone to wandering about. I have been here on occasion enough to remember that quite a few of the inns here also boast a bar.” This made Etain happy since she wasn’t one to turn up a good drink.. Never had been, especially when she was in a condition such as this.
“The good sir here,” she added, nodding towards Melandro, “had been about to tell me where one was, perhaps, just before your arrival.. Now, he seems more inclined to insult my body odor.” She splashed Melandro as she teased him, and splashed Hlormar too just for good measure.
“Now, if you could be ever so kind as to tell us of this inn, I might just be nice enough to go and bathe and rid myself of said bad smell.”

{ooc- ew, sorry for the suckiness of the post, I lost my train of thought because I started the post earlier then had to leave.. So forgive me? *puppy eyes* }

(apologies also... a robbery occurred two days ago which involved the taking of my CPU... hence my inability to reply sooner combined with the messed up phone line. Short post, I know... but I have little time to spare =\)

Melandro, after watching the woman take her turn in taking measures to exaggerate further the dampness of his garb, turned to the side whilst lifting his hand to deflect the fountain water aimed towards his direction. Thank the gods that the structure, being at the center of one of the largest cities, had not been tainted by scum unlike the ponds that had formed in the more rural districts of Lomendor. However if the fountain had indeed been equally plagued by the wastes of the earth, it might have been more interesting to imagine such a woman and this barbarian mischievously pushed as a sign of welcome. Of course the thought was merely confined in Melandro's devious mind to be locked there for all time. At this point, he found the best greeting to come in the form of finally being able to reply to the questions posed by the two individuals before him.

Slipping his gloved hand into the confines of his cloak, he took into his grasp a piece of cloth that had still managed to remain dry in spite of the turn of events. It was at this time that he finally related the directions of the establishment that he himself had visited in the past.

"There is one where a few of my companions and I have gathered. Wilwarin, which might be an interest to both of you, is an inn and a tavern. It is not far from here should you take the northern route."

He motioned with a nod towards a long stretch of cobblestones that formed a wide road brimming with merchants and horsemen. After which, he tossed the folded sheet towards the young woman's cheek with teasing vengeance.

" That is for wiping off the beaded remnants of water from your features. Mayhap you might find it useful for future endeavors?"

He smiled.

"Wilwarin," Wolfang repeated thoughtfully, trying to remember if he was banned from that inn/tavern. After a few moments of refelction he decided that he wasn't, or at least he hoped not. His memory wasn't exactly the sharpest sword in the armory, so to speak.

"Aye, I think I've been there before. They got good mead there, and nice beds too for when you pass out," he explained to the two. "I wonder if that pretty lass with the nice singing voice is still there?" Wolfang asked as an after-thought. "I'm ready when you two are," he said rather hesitantly, not really wanting to stand up and make the long walk back to his horse.

It was at this moment when Wolfang got splashed a bit by Etain, well it looked like she was in a playful mood. He chuckled at the somewhat childish behavior and followed up with a rather flirty joke of his own, encouraged by the alcohol running through his veins, "Well if I aided you in the cleaning process, maybe I could help you out some more with the bath taking process, and if you're still feeling weary after that I could assist you with the bedroom process." He laughed at his own joke, knowing full well he was making an idiot out of himself, but that was drunk Hlormar, always keeping a sexual joke somewhere in the wings. Suddenly, Wolfang thought that he lacked even a scarcity of seriousness in his tone and manner. Maybe he should have been more serious?

Etain picked up the square of cloth from where it had fallen after hitting her cheek, sticking her tongue out at Melandro in the process. Yes, it was quite a childish act but she didn't quite care. For the first time in many moons, she was at ease and enjoying herself with company other than just Dahg.
At the thought of her beloved stallion, she cast a glance over to him only to find him gone.
"Oh I swear," she muttered, hurriedly getting to her feet and looking around. It took her a moment but she did find the large chestnut warhorse on the opposite side of the fountain. He'd moved there right before Wolfang had hit the water, not wanting to get wet himself.
"Get yer arse back over here, you big old feabag!" She growled at him and when he only snorted in reply, she stalked over and grabbed the reins. Dahg seemed to roll his eyes but obediently followed her back around the fountain to where Wolfang and Melandro waited.
"Anyway..." She started after sending a glare back at her mount. "The Wilwarin you said? Sounds good to me... Though, I must admit, any place where I can get that needed bath and drink would be good," she added with a laugh. "And no thank you sir, I do believe I'm capiable of taking said bath on my own."
A thought struck her and she had to resist the urge to smack her forehead.
"I should be ashamed of my manners... I'm Etain Lanor, my good sirs, and it's a pleasure to meet you both."

Melandro nearly broke into laughter as soon as his ear had caught Hlormar's remark in joining Etain in a bath. Has the man not found satisfaction in his untimely bathing at the city fountain or was the comment in sheer drunken humor? Nonetheless he was amused. A sly smirk crept into his visage as a reply was unraveled in his mind.

" I am jealous, good sir. When are you to offer me bathing privileges as well? Surely I deserve equal treatment."

His eyes darted to Etain, deep azure like the ocean's brilliant depths. He merely watched her in her short travel around the structure whose center was adorned by three angels crafted in marble. Beautiful, but not uncommon as it seemed like a renaissance had washed upon the realm of arda where craftsmen had the taste of reviving the unclothed radiance of the body that found its glory in a previous age.

Their hands, white like alabaster, held jugs that endlessly spilled fountains of crystalline water and it was through these untainted liquid barriers that he watched the woman retrieve her mount. She was familiar somehow, yet it was a familiarity he could not place. He was certain however that he had not met her prior to this day else he would have remembered the figure behind the muddy filth. It was only when she had introduced herself that his memory was jolted to the days when he had last seen the guild's listing.

" Etain Lanor... a Syndicate?"

Wolfang laughed hysterically when he heard the man's comment on his joke. So hysterically, in fact that as he tried to slap his thighs in the midst of a fit of laughter he lost his balance on the edge of the fountain, and unfortunately fell in once more.

Wow, this is the cleanest my hair has been in months...

He climbed back out, soaking wet again as he heard the woman introduce herself. "Manners? Fugghetabouit. Your manners are no good here," he said sitting down carefully on the ledge again. "Oh, and since we're introducing each other here. I'm Hlormar, of the Wolfang clan. Yes, yes, I'm a barbarian and not those brid-man things. Just to avoid confusion there," he explained, and although it made sense in his head, when he said the words, they probably didn't.

"And as far as your bathing privileges go, they are denied, because unfortunately for you my sword doesn't swing in that direction if you know what I mean," he said, grinning stupidly at his own joke. From the sound of things it sounded like they were ready to go, he just hoped he wouldn't be left behind, "Uh, damn...what was her name..." he muttered under his breath. "Elanor and sir!" he cried out, suddenly deciding that was most likely her name. "Would you two mind giving me a hand here when it will be time to go to the uh..pub?" he asked as politely as he could.

At Melandro's question, Etain burst out laughing. She just couldn't help it. Oh, it was obvious that he had spoken in jest but that hadn't made it any less amusing.
"Well, if that's the case, we might as well have a group bathing session, to save Hlormar some time," she said with a grin.
A grin that she had to struggle to maintain when Melandro addressed her. For some reason, she had thought he would connect her to the house of Bi-Lanor but, as always, that only brought back grusome memories. No, for now she would associate herself with that guild she'd joined some time back just for the hell of it.
"Aye, good sir, I'm indeed a member of the Syndicate," she replied after a moment's pause. "Obviously yer a member, but a name is always helpful," she added on, trying to ask his name without actually having to ask for it again.
"Elanor?" She asked, an eyebrow arching up. Ah well, Elanor isn't too bad, might as well let him stick with that name. She'd just have to correct him when he was a little less drunk and a little more sober. "Why, of course my good barbarian! As soon as he," she said with a nod to Melandro, " is ready, I believe we'll start off."

"Ahh now you see, Hlormar. It now seems that the situation is advantageous to all involved."

He would have proceeded further with the common joke yet the heat of the midday sun had made him further aware of the time. Melandro was running late for an engagement he had arranged the previous night which caused the bloodied stitches upon his temple that had patched a fresh wound from a dagger's iron hilt.

He merely cast a playful smile upon the two others who both seemed eager to proceed with their cheerful banter. He was as well, but the golden heavenly star had begun to descend upon its cradle in a pace far quicker than he had expected.

"It would be an honor for me to serve as a guide to the inn that you wish to visit, however, another is awaiting my presence at the Lomendor market. I could merely direct you. One can never tell if you might find yourself in quite an adventure whilst venturing through the labyrinth of the city streets. As a tip on the other hand, you can proceed north..."

Melandro continued with a set of detailed landmarks that the two would hopefully be able to follow--- that is if they were sober enough to capture the gist of his pointers. Only when he had finished relating the mental blueprint of Lomendor did he bid Etain and Hlormar farewell with a nod. A smirk marked his lips as he turned to the lady.

" It has been a pleasure meeting you, a fine member of the Syndicates. Forgive me if I would have to deny you bathing privileges with myself for now as someone might get jealous."

He cast a short glance at the barbarian, clearly referring to the drunk in a tease. Part true and part false, someone would indeed be jealous nonetheless if they were here to witness his toying remarks.

"You may find me in the halls as Melandro Von Mortem if in the near future, you decide to visit. Good day, Etain, Hlormar"

He turned to both before proceeding on his way, shaking off the beaded remnants of water that had left the most of his form damp and mayhap not so presentable as he would prefer.