CH. 8: Reunion

[HorizonsDream]

"Well, that is part of the reason why I'm here," Jocelyn admits. She didn't want to go into details with the woman. "But if I'm able to convince him, he might be gone much longer than just a few hours."

[JadedDM]

"Oh, did you get him a job then? Or a place of his own? Well, by all means, go on up and see him," Sigrid says, getting excited at the idea of her brother-in-law finally moving out.

[HorizonsDream]

"I have to see if he accepts first," Jocelyn says as she makes her way to Andar's room. "Don't get too excited just yet," she adds before she disappears up the stairs. Once there, she knocks upon his door, providing that it is closed. "Andar?"

[JadedDM]

The door opens, but it is not Andar that responds. It's a young girl, the daughter of Alvor and Sigrid--Dorthe. "Hullo, pastor," she says, stepping aside to let Jocelyn enter. "Are you here to visit Andar?"

Andar is sitting on his bed, an open book by his side. "I was teaching him out to read," Dorthe explains. "But I'm not too good at it, either." She grins.

Andar gets to his feet. "Pastor, I wasn't expecting you for another day. Is something the matter?" he asks.

[HorizonsDream]

Jocelyn gives the little girl a pat on the head with a small smile. "I'm sure you are doing a good job teaching him," she assures the little girl. "Um, could you excuse us for a little bit. I need to talk to him privately," she asks the girl before giving a small nod to Andar. "Yeah, we need to talk."

[JadedDM]

"I need to go help papa with his forge anyway," Dorthe states. "I'm gonna be his apprentice, ya know." She skips out, closing the door behind her.

"You look harried," Andar notes of Jocelyn. "What is the matter?"

[HorizonsDream]

"When we first met, you remember the group of people that were with me, right?" Jocelyn asks as she takes a moment to try to compose herself. She wasn't usually this frazzled with things until the end of the day, but so it seemed the end of the day was no where in sight! "Well, they are back, including Areilon, the elf that was not so subtle about wanting you. She apparently has every intention of keeping her promise of seeing you as well. On top of that, there has been an attempt made on my life," she adds with a long sigh.

[JadedDM]

"Yes, I remember. I told her to seek me out in a year...damn, it has been a year, hasn't it?" he asks, suddenly realizing. "I didn't honestly think she'd remember after all of this time. But then again, I suppose a year is just the blink of an eye to an elf."

These thoughts are quickly forgotten upon hearing about the attempt on her life. "What? But who would attack a priestess of Octhanus? What happened? Are you hurt?"

[HorizonsDream]

Jocelyn can't help but smile faintly at his concern. It seemed genuine to her, so it was enough to make her smile. "I'm fine. With the help of my friends, we were able to stop him from actually hurting me in any way," she assures the man. "But the attempt on my life has to deal with my past. It has finally caught up with me, and I guess I need to deal with it," she explains, even though it is a little vague. "Confronting my past means going to Draska, as that is where I'm from originally. The assassin was hired by the crew of the Poisoned Curse, a pirate ship I use to serve on. They are under the impression that I killed their previous captain, even though I didn't. I'm actually kind of hoping that you'll be willing to come with me," she admits.

[JadedDM]

Andar sits back down again, trying to take this all in. "Draska? By the gods...an entire island of pirates, smugglers and thieves. That's incredibly dangerous." He stands back up again. "Are you sure you're up to that?"

[HorizonsDream]

"Honestly, no," Jocelyn admits. "But if I don't go, the attempts on my life are going to continue until they finally do kill me. I have to go. Though, I'm going to need protection, and you could be my form of protection."

[JadedDM]

"I haven't fought or sailed in a year," Andar admits. "But if I can be of help, I'll do what I can. I owe you and your friends for rescuing me from those demon worshipers, after all."

[HorizonsDream]

"You haven't forgotten any of your skills," Jocelyn assures him. "It will come right back to you once we get going, I'm sure. I seriously can't thank you enough for helping me out here. Though, are you willing to face Areilon. I can't promise she won't be...as bad as she was when she first met you. Maybe I can act as a buffer between the two of you?" she offers.

[JadedDM]

"It's been a year, and with your help I think I've done well. I don't have nightmares anymore," Andar points out. "I'm sure I can handle her."

[HorizonsDream]

Jocelyn gives a nod of understanding towards the man. "Then she is outside waiting to meet with you. I'll leave you to that then," she says. "We are all meeting at the temple in the morning tomorrow to start this madness." In all the time that Andar has known Jocelyn, this was probably the first time that she has looked nervous or even scared of something. Normally, she was good at hiding such things, but the more she thinks about the more she can't hide her emotions on the matter.