Fiona was up and dressed, feeling strangely at home in this place that looked like it belonged into a fictional world of some novel she had read, with a single candle burning tremulously in the chamber filled with predawn darkness and the soft breathing of Freddie and her mother, when Annwyn knocked on the door on her way downstairs, to summon her to make her bread. 

"Good morning," she said, turning to Fiona from the row of candles she was lighting as she walked along the corridor. The half dragon's face was positively glowing with love and happiness in the flickering, golden light, and the feeling spreading to Fiona on the scent of melting wax made her lips turn up into a content smile. She felt happy for Annwyn and Leodhais; they both seemed to have found exactly what they needed in each other. 

"Just... don't say anything," Annwyn said seriously but couldn't stop a smile from blossoming on her lips as she laced her arm through Fiona's and led her towards the staircase. "Leodhais is still asleep, and so is everyone else," she added. "We'll bake the bread and prepare breakfast before we wake them up. Luckily, no guests apart from you all stayed for the night, we have the inn to ourselves until my helpers come in a couple of hours, when we usually open."

Fiona was glad it was only their group for the moment too, she felt awkward enough last night with the people looking at her as a princess, their future queen. Getting used to that was the most difficult part of this adventure so far; she needed time to come to terms with it.

"So where will we sleep tonight?" she asked, her adventurous spirit awaking along with her mind as the two women entered the kitchen.

The large room was permeated with the pleasant scent of bread dough, making Fiona feel even more at home. Annwyn revived the banked fire, adding few pieces of wood to the cinders and helping them catch fire with the candles in the candelabra she was carrying, while Fiona retrieved her dough and spilled it directly onto a bread shovel she spotted, propped against the wall right next to the fireplace, burned around the edges by the often use. She rinsed her hands in a bowl of water Annwyn passed her, then levelled the surface of her flat bread and made holes in it with her fingers, before sprinkling it with oil, salt crystals and fresh rosemary she noticed last light, stuffed in a vase with many other herbs.

"That's interesting," Annwyn muttered as she observed her, then, leaving Fiona to shove the bread into the flames alone, she walked off to pack their other provisions into fabric sacks that could be comfortably placed into saddle bags when the men arrived. "I've never made bread like this. Anyway... If we are still in Draconia by sunset, then we will probably spend the night in an inn. If we'll have crossed into Goblinica, though, we'll most likely sleep outside. Peregrine doesn't trust the goblins."

"Why?" Fiona asked, pulling her focaccia out of the fireplace to inspect it, then shoving it back; it needed a few more minutes to become soft but crisp at the same time, the way she liked it.

"You better ask him. I've never travelled beyond Draconia, and I've only met a handful of goblins in my life. Just like the dwarves, they lack the adventurous spirit to become travellers," Annwyn said, then added even as Fiona removed the bread from the reach of the flames and slid it off the pan onto a large wooden cutting board she spotted on the table. It filled the air around them with the homely, familiar scent of fresh bread and rosemary, making her heart soar when a new scent mingled with it, announcing Peregrine's approach before he could reach her, making her breath catch by placing his hand on the small of her back, in a way that Annwyn couldn't see it.

"Oh, here you are," Annwyn said. "I was just about to tell Fiona that her clothes are the best she can wear for the day spent on horseback, I myself start the journey in my male clothes."

The half elf looked at her jeans appreciatively, the glimpse of Annwyn's pointed ears as she adjusted a strand of her silky black hair making Fiona smile. Annwyn was such an intriguing being.

"But I'll carry dresses for both of us, and Alexandra, we will need to change upon reaching Elvenshire," she added, looking at Peregrine. "And I want you to give her one of your cloaks, it will cover her head to toe so no one will notice her clothes before we get there anyway."

"Thank you, Annwyn..." Peregrine started to reply. 

His words were interrupted by Gollum, who rushed into the kitchen, spotted Fiona immediately, and made his way to her in three happy bounds. The dog was followed closely by Gilderoy, appearing in the doorway. 

"I heard him scratching at the door." He shrugged, smiling at them. "Tell me what I can feed him, Annwyn, and I'll take care of him while you prepare breakfast and wake up everyone else."

"Thank you," Fiona told Gilderoy, embracing Gollum briefly. "You stay here with Gilderoy, understood?" She instructed her faithful companion who already skipped towards Annwyn when he smelled the meat she put into a bowl for him, Gilderoy in tow, while Peregrine moved to pack the numerous bags and sachets lying on the table into a pair of saddle bags hanging on a peg behind the door which she hadn't noticed noticed before.

She wished he had kissed her, she mused as she walked upstairs again to summon Freddie and her mother, but... He seemed set on his apparent role of her guardian in this world, on keeping any signs of attraction, and affection secret from the prying eyes, and if he thought it was for the best, who was she to disagree? Fiona had no notion about this world, but she thought she had already discovered and understood a few things about Peregrine's character. She knew that he would never put her in danger by suggesting that she was anything more to him than a charge, his king's daughter. He and his Highlanders, and their silly legends... However, she wasn't going to endanger the feelings budding between them by arguing with him now. It was too early, maybe it was really better to keep it a secret from the world, a well-known secret to their company.

Everyone was up and ready to leave when she entered her room, and it only took them a few moments to pack their things and check that they were leaving nothing behind before they gathered their bags and descended the stairs, Freddie rushing excitedly ahead, while Fiona, heavy luggage on both her shoulders, found herself dragging an arguing Alexandra down the staircase.

"I'm not riding a horse!" Alexandra was saying loudly, "I'm not able to, and I don't like them, you know that.

"Well, then I suppose you have a choice. You'll either ride with someone, say, your Leo, or you'll stay here. You can help Annwyn's staff to run this inn while we're gone; how about that?" Fiona finished even as Peregrine appeared in the door downstairs, coming back from outside. 

Spotting the two women halfway down the staircase, he ran to them, taking all of their bags.

"You should have left these upstairs, I would have collected them for you later; we still have to eat," he told Fiona before turning to Annwyn. "Your people are coming, Annwyn, I saw them down the road; they'll be here in a few minutes, and then we can leave; the horses are ready. It's not raining anymore, but it's windy, and overcast. It might just rain again soon. Let us make sure you all wear hooded cloaks over your clothes."

He was gone again as he said that, the lack of physical contact between them which she had gotten used to making Fiona sigh and frown, her expression underlined by a rumble of a distant thunder.

"You heard, mum, let's move," she said, leaving her mother's side upon reaching the bottom of the staircase to sit at the table next to Freddie.

Peregrine sat directly opposite of her, and she stretched her legs towards him under the table tentatively, trying to hide the elated smile blooming on her lips when his long, muscular legs encased hers immediately. So she understood him well. Nothing changed between them since last night; they just needed to conceal their feelings in Silmarea, according to him, for now.

She looked at Leodhais and Gilderoy who sat at his sides, as she avoided to look at Peregrine because she didn't want to attract their attention to herself, to the silly smile she couldn't quite wipe off her lips, and noticed their clothes for the first time.

Unlike Peregrine, who still wore his usual black clothes, the only difference being the pair of smooth pants in place of the black jeans, they were changed. Having discarded the 'normal' clothes they wore in her world, Gilderoy was now clad in a golden-green jacket with puffy sleeves showing the snow white shirt her wore underneath through a series of vertical slits and the elf was shrouded in a flowy creation of white and silver no tailor in her world could recreate. His blond hair was brushed and let lose to fall on his shoulders, and there was a huge, silvery bow on his back already, as if he had missed it.

He looked so much like a creature from myths and legends, an impression he didn't give off in her world, not this much, Fiona mused. Did she look different in this world, too? Would this world change her to its liking eventually? she wondered, allowing her mind to stroll unrestrained and illogical, as she nibbled at a couple of biscuits and sipped the herbal infusion Annwyn had prepared, wondering whether at least the king in this land had things like coffee and cocoa and chocolate-- they had sunflowers after all-- until Peregrine strengthened his hold around her legs, making her look up at him.

He raised his eyebrows at her, obviously puzzled by her thoughtfulness and the look of those mysterious eyes coupled by his secret touch sufficed to scatter her thoughts and pull her back to reality. 

She smiled at him reassuringly before she looked at Leodhais, who was now talking to her mother. It was obvious from her content smile that she would start the journey by riding Asfaleem with him. She looked at Gilderoy and Freddie standing by the fireplace deep in conversation. The boy, shrouded in a perfectly fitting shiny black cloak looked so much a part of this world that it took her breath away, the reaction earning her more concern from Peregrine who dared to lay one of his hands on her knee under the table.

Botheration... he felt so good, the fact that no one was aware of their interactions made the feeling even better somehow... 

She placed her hand on top of Peregrine's, letting her fingers fill the places between his as it crept a little higher, making her heart skip a beat while she noticed how Gilderoy looked taller in his tight, chocolate brown pants, before her eyes found Annwyn, opening the door to another member of her staff then collecting their used dishes and carrying them into the kitchen.

"Let me help your sister," she whispered to Peregrine, freeing herself from his touch against her will, wishing she could kiss him across the table as she stood up. But she didn't; she was happy to accept his rules and reasoning...

For the time being.