It was late in the afternoon the next day before their carriage arrived in Ashwyvern’s Rest. Hestia knew they were getting close about an hour out when they passed a tall, jagged spire of volcanic rock protruding up from the ground. Vagha’s Tail, it was nicknamed, after the first ashwyvern to be hatched by the royal family.

The landmark was incredible, stretching up as high as Hestia could see from inside the carriage. The dark black rock absorbed all sunlight that shined upon its surface, giving it an aura of unnatural darkness. She felt lighter once they passed it as if the rock was trying to drain the force within her. She glanced over at Ezra to see if he was feeling the same way, but he was silently conversing with the driver and when the carriage suddenly picked up speed, jostling her back into her seat, she forgot about the feeling entirely.

With the carriage traveling faster now, they arrived in town in half the time. Hestia was feeling much less nervous at this point. After sleeping for most of the night without a trace of a nightmare to be found, and the quite pleasant conversation she and Ezra had shared this morning since they had awoken, she was beginning to feel like this opportunity might just work out after all and she was determined to make the best of it.

The driver stopped the carriage in the middle of the village square. Just from looking out the window, Hestia could tell this wasn’t a very large village. The square consisted of six, medium-sized buildings, each with a sign on the front advertising their wares. It was a charming little village, Hestia thought as she watched the people walking in the square. There was a group of children, laughing and chasing each other with no care for the few people around them. Hestia smiled when they almost knocked over a young couple who were too entwined with each other to notice the disruption.

“You’ll get a better view from outside the carriage,” Ezra said, opening the carriage door and descending the steps outside it. He held his hand out, a silent request for Hestia to join him. She did, taking his hand and stepping down from the carriage herself.

“I was planning to stay here for the night before we resume the last leg of our journey. I thought a nice meal and some time to stretch our legs would be beneficial,” Ezra explained. “I must go over the plan with the driver, then we can reserve some rooms at the inn.”

“That sounds delightful,” she told him, giving him a small smile, as that is exactly what she was hoping for. Ezra bowed his head and walked to the front of the carriage where the driver was still seated.

As she waited, Hestia walked toward the center of the square, hoping to get a better look at the few buildings that surrounded them. They were parked in front of the largest building, at least three floors from the looks of it. The sign that hung in front of the doors read The Serpent’s Nest. This must be the inn Ezra had mentioned. It looked cozy enough, and the smell of food that wafted in her direction was making her mouth water. She secretly wondered if Ezra had factored lunch into his plan as well. Just as she was about to start looking at the other building near them, he rejoined her side.

“Are you hungry?” he asked, as if he knew exactly what she had been thinking.

“Starving,” she admitted, her stomach grumbling in agreement.

Ezra chuckled a little, causing Hestia’s face to grow red with embarrassment. Before she could spiral too far, her thoughts were interrupted by his stomach grumbling even louder.

“I must be starving too,” he smiled. “Let’s go get something to eat, shall we.” He offered her his arm, which she took only because it was the polite thing to do, and led her into the inn before them.

Once inside, the smell of food was even more overwhelming and much to her dismay, Ezra was not leading her to a table. Instead, they made their way to the counter where the innkeeper resided.

The innkeeper was an older-looking woman, with dark skin and hair the color of ash. She did not have pointed ears, nor did she seem to be of noble fae descent. A common fae, Hestia thought, much like her friend Raea, though they did not come from the same area.

“Ezra!” the innkeeper called out in excitement as Hestia and Ezra made their way over to her.

“Hi Lottie, how are things at the Nest?”

The casualness of their conversation was unusual to Hestia at first, especially since the innkeeper did not address him using his official title. Though she supposed he told her to call him Ezra too when they were introduced. Still, it seemed odd that someone from this small town would feel so comfortable with him.

“Things are going just fine, plenty of traffic from those stopping by on their way to the beaches. Especially with those Nagas stirring up trouble in the cliffs surrounding Noroak, more and more travelers are avoiding that path as the days go by. Who knows, in a few years our little town may begin to rival Noroak in size and notoriety.” Lottie beamed with pride at her last statement, it was clear this inn, and the town it resided in, meant a lot to her.

“Well, we both know your recipes are far superior. I wouldn’t be surprised if you manage to double the town in size someday.” Ezra winked at the woman, but she waved him off.

“Come on now, I know you didn’t come here to butter me up. Certainly not with this lovely lady on your arm,” Lottie said gesturing to Hestia and drawing far more attention to her than she would have liked. “So how can I be of service?”

“Where are my manners, Lottie this is Hestia, a highly gifted priestess from Gyrteplin, The Grand Temple of Ignius. She has so graciously agreed to help me plan a Pyrniel celebration at my estate.” Hestia bowed her head to the innkeeper, not knowing what to say, nobody had ever spoken so highly of her before.

“It’s nice to meet you, Hestia,” Lottie said, “Any friend of Ezra’s is a friend of mine, especially one who is helping him out as you are.” Lottie put her hand to her mouth, so only Hestia could see the next few words that came out of her mouth. “Between you and me, he needs the help.”

“You know I can hear you right?” Ezra commented, clearly unbothered by the comment.

“It would have been a pity if you hadn’t,” Lottie said, winking at Hestia as she did.

Hestia smiled back, fighting hard to choke back the giggle that was forming in her throat. She may be feeling more comfortable on this journey, but not enough to laugh at her noble companion, even if he seemed amused as well.

“If you are finished pointing out my shortcomings,” Ezra jested, “we would like to reserve two rooms for the night and order two slices of your cottage pie for lunch.”

“Done, and done. Our two best rooms in the house,” Lottie said, turning around to grab two keys off the wall behind her and handing one to each of them. “And as for lunch, have a seat at an empty table and I’ll have two slices brought to you in a moment.”

“Thank you, Lottie,” Hestia chimed in with a smile.

Ezra reached into his pocket, grabbed a few gold coins, and handed them to Lottie. She tried to wave him off, insisting that it was on the house, but when it was clear that Ezra wouldn’t budge, she sighed and took the coins, thanking him sincerely before he turned around and led Hestia to a nearby table.