Page 161 of I Ran Away to Evil 2
A hand reached out and touched the paw I had balled into a fist in front of my face.
Brownie leaned in close and yelled over the rain, “When did we hear Madame Potts’s Cast? Was it the day before last?”
My Intelligence thirty wasn’t good enough to handle an entire kingdom’s worth of military information without giving me a headache, but it could recall these kinds of things easily. “It’s been four days.”
There was a mumble beside me, and when I leaned closer, she yelled again. “Madame Potts said five days of rain. We can’t wait it out if we’re going to make it to the Hollow in time for the festival.”
“At least it’ll be gone by the time the festival starts,” I yelled back.
We pressed forward for another hour, until all of us were at our wits’ end. It was one thing to be wet, and another to be doused with heavy rain so loud it made it hard to think straight.
And as Brownie said, there wasmanain the rain. I wasn’t sure if that made it better or worse, and I didn’t care—I needed out of this rain.
As luck would have it, the turn off to Gren’s Keep appeared.
We could stay at the Damp Gizzard and have some of their famous stew.
I couldn’t wait.
CHAPTER 98
Literally on a Quest
Brownie
“Come in, come in!” a singsong voice welcomed the pair into the inn.
Since everyone could recognize Rufus as their commander general, they’d barely had to stop for ten seconds before getting welcomed through the gate.
Donna was happily munching on high-grade hay in the stables attached to the inn, and Brownie and Rufus were trying to take off their cloaks in the doorway without shedding too much water on the floors. A mat had been rolled out in the entry that let them stamp their boots a few times.
Both chose to hang their cloaks on the wall beside the door instead of shoving the sopping wet fabric in their storage rings. If they had to go out into the rain again, then it would be nice if theydidn’thave to wear already damp apparel.
“A table for two, princess,” Rufus called out, shaking himself as an animal might to get any water droplets off his fur. “And a room if you have one.”
The infamous Princess Penelope—daughter of Their Royal Highness Rowen of Peldeep, and wife to the tavern owner Olen Orrin—glided toward them so elegantly she might as well have been dancing.
She probablywasdancing.
“Commander General! Minstrel Bronwynn, what a pleasure it is that you’ve chosen our inn!” Princess Penelope curtsied gracefully, straightening with a gleam in her eye. “One room, you say? Right this way!”
Brownie beamed at the musical princess who was leading them to a table. She had her long black hair in a ponytail that fell to just below her waist, and she was wearing a beautiful light pink gown under a crisp white half apron. The place wasn’t too busy, as it an hour before dinner, and who knew how many locals would be making their way through the deluge.
Two birds flew up to Penelope and circled her once. “I know, my loves, I know. Could you bring me the room key and then you may go?”
The bluebirds fluttered away and came back with a key and an ordering slate. They dropped the key into Rufus’s awaiting paw, and the slate with Penelope.
“That will be your room, 203.” Penelope smiled, then she pulled a pencil from her apron and tapped the slate. “And what can I get for you both to eat?”
“I’ll have the stew!” Brownie said, excited. The specialty curried stew was full of spuds and carrots and meat so soft it fell apart in the mouth.
Rufus nodded. “I’ll have the same, and whatever Lavender is making tonight.”
“Me too.” Brownie looked towards the kitchen. A familiar purple Lizard Wizard was happily at the bar mixing cocktails and setting off plumes of sparkles as she made enchanted drinks. They were a novelty all on their own, and paired with the rest of the cozy inn made for an enchantingly magical experience.
“Two stews and each a foaming floral coven.” Penelope nodded as she wrote.
“Sounds fun.” Brownie dragged her eyes from the lizard at the bar and back to their hostess. “What’s in the drink?”
