"And that's why we're going to Llyn." I shoved a muffin into my mouth as Tristan and Vral looked at one another.

  "That sounds like you," Vral's ears fluttered a little, and her eyebrows were drawn together in a look that was half concentration and half confusion. "You're sure about this, Alex? This might be above our pay grade."

  "I know. I was going to ask for help, but Renard, Ro, and Na-Ya left early this morning for a pilgrimage to Rhothas. With everything going on, I don't think we can wait for them to return."

  Tristan seemed to be searching for something in the scraps of her empty plate. "I wish we could stay longer. I feel like we just started finding a groove. We've barely been able to train as a team, too." Her sapphire eyes met mine. She had more she wanted to say.

  I could hear the unspoken words. We'd hardly seen one another in the past few months. Between her extra work, our training, and the watchful eyes of the other priests, we hadn't had much of a chance to connect. We always said we would, but something always came up. "I hear you. I wish we could have done more."

  "It's not forever, you two. We'll head north, kick some ass, and be back in time for the harvest at the latest." Vral spun the butter knife between her fingers deftly, like an experienced street performer. "Don't be such downers. I like you both better when you're all 'let's save the beautiful maiden and be heroes!' Leave the moping to Farvad." She puffed up her chest and deepened her voice in a poor facsimile of my own.

  I couldn't help but laugh. "You're right, Vral. I'll make sure to save all the maidens we find."

  "And we'll definitely be heroes," Tristan added.

  The goblin bared her teeth. "No!" She shouted and held up her arms. Shaking her head, she lowered them just as fast. "I mean, do what you have to. Let's just not pick up any more strays."

  "Says the stray."

  Vral smacked Tristan's thigh.

  "She's not wrong. I even found you in an alley."

  That got me a kick to the knee.

  I rubbed my knee as Tristan spoke. "So when are we leaving?"

  "We should leave as soon as possible. Farvad didn't think they knew about his daughter, but it's only a matter of time. Plus, Llyn is a few weeks away from what I heard."

  "We can make it in two weeks and three days, if we keep a good pace." Tristan sounded confident, so I trusted her assessment.

  "Then we'll make it in two weeks flat." I didn't trust Vral's assessment.

  "Once we get there and grab Elna, and if things are safe, do you want to visit your home, Tristan?"

  Tristan's face lit up. "Yeah, actually. I'd love to see my mom and aunt. They'll be so happy to learn that I've met my... friends." Whatever that final word was made her face turn beet red.

  Vral giggled. "Good save."

  Tristan glared at her, then looked at me. I could see the insecurity in her eyes. I didn't know exactly what she was thinking, but I knew the right words this time. "I'd love to meet them."

  The woman's entire aura relaxed. "Good. And you too, Vral."

  "Well, obviously. We're a package deal." Vral leaned back in her seat and threw her arms behind her head. "But first, we need to gear up. Get some supplies, and check out some weapons."

  "The temple has supplies for pilgrims and adventurers. I'm sure they won't mind if we take some again." Tristan stood up. "But before we go, I need to talk to Lady Varga. She'll want to know where we're going."

  "And I need to talk to Farvad. He said he's got some potions for us." I hoped whatever he had brewing would be as potent as what he gave me before.

  "And I need to eat another plate of food. I'm hungry today."

  "Ready by noon?"

  "Sounds good."

  "Deal."

  We all nodded and broke off to complete our tasks.

  ***

  A group of recruits was under the Goddess's statue as I left the east wing of the temple. Of the five, four of them payed me no mind as I stepped out into the great hall, but one's face lit up when he saw me. He hustled up to me with a big smile on his face. The young man was short, with sandy blonde hair and the thin, patchy beard of a young man trying to look older than he was.

  "Alex!" He said with his characteristic drawl. I'd gotten good enough at the common tongue to figure out which dialects were associated with where. His accent marked him as someone from the Western Reach. I knew from conversation that he was from a village near the wall. "Well met!"

  "Ennel." I took his hand in mine. "Well met."

  Ennel had joined the temple after Tristan and I had left for our quest. When we'd returned with Vral, Ennel had become one of her favorite punching bags. We told her to lighten up on him, but she never listened, and he insisted he was fine. In truth, the three of us knew he had a massive crush on Tristan and wanted to show off to her. Since we were keeping things private, he still thought he had a chance, and the priestess didn't have the heart to shoot him down.

  Shaking my hand vigorously, his smile grew. His shield, which I'd heard had been passed down in his family, rattled against his armor. Tristan told me he was from a family of adventurers, which made sense. He'd unlocked his base class faster than everyone else. He was kind of a prodigy. "I heard you made a big decision!"

  I didn't realize that word would spread so quickly about us leaving. Who had we even told? "Yeah, we'll be gone for a while. We got another quest."

  If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  His brows scrunched together. "Wait, you're leaving?"

  "You didn't know?"

  "Not at all."

  Then what was he talking about? I started walking toward the large double doors at the front of the temple. "We are. We'll be heading to Llyn, then we'll be back."

  He followed me. "Um... who is we?"

  "Vral, Tristan, and I are taking a job."

  He stopped in his tracks. When I didn't stop, he jogged to catch back up. "How long will you be gone?"

  I actually didn't exactly know the answer to that question. "Oh, probably two months." I figured that was enough time to account for any hiccups.

  "Ah... Okay." He sounded deflated. "Well, tell me about the big day. Are you two doing a ceremony?"

  Big day? "What do you mean?" I opened the large double doors. I immediately felt sweat on my brow as the balmy heat of the afternoon struck me.

  "You offered Vral your hand. Everyone's been talking about it. That's kind of a big deal, don't you think?"

  That made me stop in my tracks. "Wait, does everyone know about that?"

  He shook his head. "Of course! You did it right in the open." He got closer to me. "To be honest, I was kind of relieved. I thought you and Tristan were..." He blushed a little when he said her name, "... a thing. When you proposed to Vral, I realized I might still have a shot with Tris. She's beautiful."

  I laughed and continued on to Farvad's. "Tristan and I a thing. It's just that we've been so busy since we got back that we haven't found the right time to tell everyone. But, with us heading out again, I don't really mind if everyone knows when we get back. I don't want to hide it anymore." It was true. Ro-Saleh and Na-Ya were openly a couple, and many of the others were too. Why shouldn't we?

  This time, Ennel froze completely. I walked a few steps forward, but even my oblivious ass could feel the wave of emotions rolling off the young man. Turning, I saw the most dejected face I'd ever seen in my twenty-seven years.

  "Ennel?"

  The guy shuddered as if he'd been pulled from a trance. His eyes slowly trailed from the ground upward, until his hazel orbs met mine. "But... What about Vral?"

  I shrugged. "I don't know yet. I didn't really mean to do what I did, but I can't say I'd take it back if I could. She's great. I care about her a lot."

  "Then... the three of you...?" I could have sworn his lip quivered.

  "I don't really know. It's complicated, this kind of thing isn't normal where I'm from, and I don't want to hurt anyone, but what's done is done. I'm sure we'll figure it all out as we travel." I spun on my heel and continued toward Farvad's. Shouting over my shoulder, I added, "Plus, I heard goblins don't do divorce, so I guess this is my life now!"

  This time, Ennel didn't follow.

  ***

  "Lad, I can't tell you how grateful I am that you're taking this quest on. And I hate to put this on your shoulders. It ain't right to saddle others with burdens like this, but I'm too old to be running around anymore, and I wouldn't trust my mind even if I were." The gnome's lips curled downward, and he fiddled with the vials in his hands as he spoke.

  "It's not a problem at all, Farvad. We're happy to help." Farvad had come a long way over the past few months. He didn't have his episodes nearly as often, and he kept the general thread of events even when he did lose it. The priests had helped him every way they knew how. It was nice to see. The gnome had grown on me.

  "Well, I'm grateful all the same. You've been a good friend to me, and I know you'll take good care of my girl." He twisted his hands until the skin grew pale and set the vials onto the counter in front of him. "Just make sure she's safe, yeah?"

  "We will."

  He threw the vials into a belt pouch and handed them to me. "Now, do you remember what they all do?"

  "Four [Healing Potions][Rejuvenation Tonics][Elixir][Strength Potion]

  "Good. I also added a [Dust of Disappearance][Tanglefoot Bags]

  I put the chain around my neck. "Anything else?"

  The gnome stumbled around his shop for a minute, looking aimless. Something occurred to him, and he rushed to his cabinet and withdrew another vial. Returning to me, he put it in the pouch and said, "You may want to avoid that one if you can, but if you ever get in a pinch, drink it."

  "What is it?"

  "A [Polymorph Potion]

  I held the potion up to the light. It looked different than the one he used on the rat. "This won't turn me into a rat or a gnome or something, will it?"

  The gnome chuckled. "No, lad. That's one of my good ones. It's got a few different critters inside it. That'll let you control the polymorph. When you drink it, you'll get a sense of the possibilities. Just picture the one you want, and you'll assume the form you've focused on. But be warned, the larger the thing you imagine, the faster the potion runs out."

  Nodding, I put the potion into the belt pouch and tied it around my waist. "Thank you."

  The gnome sat down on his stool and looked me over. "You know, you're looking more an adventurer every day. It's uncanny. I never would've expected that when I first laid eyes on you. Never imagined you'd amount to more'n a wannabe. But here you are, geared up and looking the part. You should be proud of yourself."

  I smiled. My final conversation with Devon come back to me. She told me I needed to learn to like myself. I think I finally did. "You know, I think I am. Thanks, Farvad. For the gear and the pep talk."

  The gnome grabbed my hand with both of his. "I'll be prayin' for ya, lad. Now go out there and bring my baby girl home to me."

  ***

  The girls were almost done gearing up by the time I got back to my room. Tristan was in a loose-fitting tunic and was readying her breastplate, and Vral was just buckling her leathers on when I walked in. I could just make out the toned muscle underneath as she cinched her armor shut. Tristan's corset was untied, revealing enough of her bust to make me blush.

  Don't be weird, Alex.

  Both women turned when I entered the room.

  "Took you long enough," Vral chided as she tied a pouch around her narrow waist. "Everything work out with the old man?"

  "Yeah, he made a variety of potions for us and wished us good luck." I was trying and failing to look away from the girls.

  Noticing my eyes lingering, Tristan grinned and asked, "See something you like?"

  Vral smirked, but I could see something hiding behind her eyes. "Can you blame him?"

  Tristan blushed. "I guess not."

  Vral clicked her tongue. "Girl, stop guessing. You're hot as hell. He should be groveling at your feet."

  Tristan's face grew twice as red. While Vral's raw confidence was rubbing off on her, she still was more self-conscious than she let on. Walking up behind her, I wrapped my arms around her torso and reached for her breastplate. As I did, I let my face graze her exposed neck. I murmured in her neck, "Let me help you."

  "Okay..."

  I took my time strapping her breastplate on, making sure to let each touch linger a little longer than it needed to before cinching her straps. After it was fastened, she turned in my arms, and kissed me softly on the lips. A soft, low sound escaped her as I gently bit her lower lip before pulling away and letting her go. Stepping back, I let my hands linger on her hips as I took her in. "You look fantastic."

  "You look pretty great, too." Her voice was low and husky. I wished then and there that we could stay another night. Not that we'd crossed that bridge yet, but still...

  Turning, I saw Vral was eying us. With a sigh, she pulled her sword belt on and cinched it. Looking back up and noticing me, she smirked. "I didn't say you two could stop." She pulled one of her daggers out and spun it.

  I shook my head. "Let's finish up and get going. I get the feeling the longer we delay, the worse it'll be for us."

  Tristan nodded. "I agree. The sooner we head out, the sooner we get to Elna. Then, we'll go see my old home. I can't wait to show it to you both."

  Vral sheathed the dagger and threw her backpack on. "What are we waiting for? Let's go!"