Chapter Five:

I could only look on in astonishment as we rode into Crossroads. The city was absolutely huge and seemingly jam packed with people. The main entry road was very wide, wide enough for multiple caravans to pass by easily. Every so often there was a pole on the side of the street with a bright light at the top of it. Even in the darkness of night, the streets of Crossroads were bright!

"Stay close," Lyra said was we rode along. "It's very easy to get lost in a city this big."

I believed her. Even riding on this busy street was a chore with all the traffic. I noticed that there were many of the city guards on patrol as well. Several were seated on fine stallions watching the people go past. It seemed like a thankless job to me.

Lyra slowed her mount and was looking about as if searching for something.

"Are you lost?"

"Not yet," Lyra said lightly. "Just trying to find the right street."

I couldn't figure out how she was going to find the right street just by looking around. That's when I noticed that the poles with the lights also had signs with writing on them. My guess was that the names of the city streets were on those signs. Handy to have, assuming you could actually make use of them.

"Here we go," Lyra said pointing to a side street to our right.

She urged her mount in that direction and I followed. We weaved our way through the traffic and finally rode onto the less crowded side street. I later learned that we were traveling down Maiden's Lane. It was nowhere near as wide as the major street, so saw much less traffic.

Numerous businesses lined the sides of Maiden's Lane. Up ahead I saw a sign that had a maiden with rosy cheeks on it. There were words as well, but all I could make out was Inn. Lyra said it was the Blushing Maiden Inn. This was our destination.

Lyra dispelled her mount while I stabled Thunder in the area beside the Inn. We entered the Inn and found the common room over half filled. Lyra spoke to the Innkeeper while I took a seat at open table. I ordered an ale while I waited for Lyra to return.

"Our room is waiting for us," Lyra said when she did return. "Plus it has a bath that will be ready to use later on. Dinner will be served shortly, so we have time to change clothes and get cleaned up."

I swallowed the rest of my ale and then followed Lyra up to our room. Much like our stay in Pyris, the room must have been the best one in the Inn. Saying that it was a room was misleading, it was more like a suite of small rooms. The door from the hallway led into a good sized common room. There was a fireplace with chairs around it on a woven rug. In one corner was a bronze bathing tub surrounded by privacy screens. It had claw shaped legs that held it off the floor. A large table with six chairs was in the middle of the room.

There were three doors off this common area that lead to small bedrooms. Each room was crowded with a small bed, a table, chair, and a dresser. It was a comfortable and cozy set of rooms. Much nicer than my house back home!

"My mistress has this suite on permanent reserve", Lyra explained. "It's used by her and her guests when they travel. Much like the room at the Green Forest Inn back in Pyris."

"Must be wonderful to be that rich," I noted.

"Wealth does have its perks," Lyra agreed. "At any rate, you may stay here while you are in Crossroads. So pick a bedroom and settle in. I'll just be staying the night."

"Leaving so soon?" I asked in confusion.

"Yes, I have to continue on to Gateway in the morning and complete my mission to deliver the message to Lord Sharadin."

I had completely forgotten all about that during our long journey to Crossroads. Traveling with Lyra had been so much fun that I was really going to miss her presence and her history lessons. It made me feel sad.

"I'm really going to miss traveling with you."

"Aw, thank you," Lyra said genuinely. "It's been fun for me too, but we both have separate tasks ahead of us. Such is life. Come, let us get changed and have a fine supper. Pick which ever room you want to bunk in."

I took the middle door and set my gear down in the table inside. I removed my over-shirt and set it on the chair. The sword belt came next, followed by the chain mail armor. My clothes underneath were fine for the rest of the evening as the weather was comfortable and not too hot out. I let my hair down from its pony tail and then joined Lyra for dinner.

We chatted about this and that while we ate a fine chicken dinner. Lyra sipped her wine while I had several ales. I was feeling pretty good by the time we returned to our room. By then the tub was filled with hot water and I could smell the fragrance of roses in the air.

‘Oh, that's wonderful!" I nearly squealed in delight.

"Enjoy yourself," Lyra said with a laugh. "I've got some errands to run before I sleep tonight, so I need to get going before the stores close. Have fun!"

"Oh, I will,' I said as Lyra departed.

Lyra locked the door behind her while I stripped in my room. Then I slowly settled into the tub and all my cares just drifted away in the warm water. It just felt so good on my shoulder muscles. I didn't want the sensation to end.

As I sat in the tub, I noticed that there was a bucket on a table adjacent to the tub. The bucket held a chilling bottle of wine and several glasses were next to it. I had tried wine before, but was not in love with it. Ale was the thirst quenching and hearty drink for me. Especially Ansimont Ale. That was yummy!

But the wine came with the room, so I said 'why not'. I opened the bottle and was immediately hit by the pleasant aroma of the wine. I poured a glass of the fragrant red wine and took a small sip. It was sweet to the taste, not like any wine I tried before. I quickly finished that glass and poured another.

I must have fell asleep while soaking as when I woke up the water was cold and I was shivering slightly. I quickly got out of the tub, dried myself off with towels the Inn provided and slipped into one of several robes that were hanging on a nearby hook. I sat by the fire for a time while my hair dried, sipping more of that fine wine.

This place was so far from home and yet it felt so homey. It was a strange feeling. Here I was, a simple farm girl, in a great big city enjoying the kind of creature comforts that were unavailable back home. A nice clean room with a real floor, not a dirt one. A tub to bathe in and fine wine to drink. How could it get any better than this?

I woke with a start sometime later. It was morning and sunlight was pouring in through the small window in my bedroom. My head hurt a bit and I felt woozy. The last thing I remembered was sitting by the fire drinking wine. Now I was in bed paying the price for a night of drinking.

It wasn't the first time I had a hangover, nor was it the last. Each time makes you swear that it will be the last, but it never is. I laid there for a time in the warm bed, gathering my wits. At some point last night I had changed into my sleeping clothes and gone to bed. The robe I wore last night was casually tossed on the table and an empty bottle of wine lay on the floor.

After a time I started to smell food and something else that I couldn't quite place. The fog in my head cleared a little and I realized that it was hot coffee. I found it to be a very bitter brew, but some people actually like it. However, it was said to be the cure for a hangover.

Rising from bed, I put the robe around me and walked out into the common room. Sitting at the table was Lyra with a good sized spread of breakfast food and drink.

"Good morning, sleepyhead!" Lyra said upon seeing me. Her voice very nearly went through me like a blade.

I grumbled something in response, but what I wasn't sure.

"Come on over and get something to eat," she continued. "That will knock some of the cobwebs out of your head. I asked to have our breakfast served in private this morning."

I did as ordered and started to dig into the nearest food, suddenly realizing just how hungry I was. I took several gulps of the coffee, grimacing as I drank it, but did manage to swallow it. The fog began to lift in my head.

"Looks like someone had a fun evening," Lyra stated. "I came back to find you asleep in front of the fireplace. I'm surprised that you didn't wake up when I put you to bed. You're not exactly a lightweight. I couldn't get that bottle of wine away from you."

I shrugged helplessly as I ate. The food was very good. Having had enough of the coffee, I changed to milk for my beverage.

"What were you thinking?" Lyra asked. "Drinking a full bottle of Rennydale Red would have put me asleep for the day. It's a wine you need to enjoy in moderation. You must have the constitution of a horse. I've heard men say that it's the closest thing to feywine."

"Feywine?"

"It is a wine of Elfish making that is so intoxicating that just a sip can knock a man out for a week. Elves enjoy it, and surprisingly so do halfings. Anyway, eat up and get dressed. You've slept late into the morning and don't want to be late for the adventurers gathering. I checked around last night and it's been held at an assembly hall not far from here."

"Oh right," I mumbled. "I had forgotten all about that."

"Not a surprise," Lyra said with a laugh. "Oh, I bought you something. Here."

Lyra handed me a book. It had pictures on it and more on the pages inside. I shot Lyra a confused glance.

"It's a basic introduction to reading common," Lyra explained. "It uses pictures to show you want words mean what. I can't continue to give you any more lessons, so you'll need to learn for yourself."

"I don't know what to say," I said after a long pause.

"Say: thank you."

"Thank you." I answered. Tears started to well up in my eyes. "I'm going to miss you so much!"

We got up from our chairs and gave each other a long hug. Our time spent on the road had created a strong bond between us.

"I'll miss you too, Stephanie," Lyra said was we parted. "But duty calls for both of us. I've got my message to deliver and you've got new friends to meet. So its time to say goodbye."

Lyra picked up her meager belongings and made her way to the door. She paused long enough to direct me to the adventurer meeting area. It was just a few streets away, so I shouldn't have to wander this giant city trying to find it.

"Goodbye," I said with a wave as Lyra moved to the door.

"Goodbye," Lyra answered with a wave of her own and a smile. "Enjoy the hospitality of the Blushing Maiden Inn while you remain in Crossroads and good luck on your adventurers in the Frontier Lands. I just know that you will do great!"

With that Lyra was gone. I settled back down to finish my breakfast. Afterwards I quickly dressed in my red blouse, black pants and boots outfit. I left my chain mail behind, but did buckle my sword belt on. It was time to meet all the adventurers and see if I belonged among them!