Early August

Her body twisted under the fine silk sheets of the large bed, beads of sweat along milky pale flesh glistened under the flickering candlelight. The woman's breathing was labored and the clawing of her hand against his flesh caused his muscles to flinch.

"P-Please stop," her plead was called out, rang in his ears.

"Be silent woman," he strained out a grunt from between his teeth as one hand moved to cover her mouth. Words hissed out from his lips, "I am almost done." She was tears beneath him by the time he was finished with her, passed out from sheer exhaustion.

Yes there was a woman in Larcius Shimmer-scale's room and if his family knew they would be in awe to how she found her way to be there and the fact that she was in his room of all places.

At first they would gawk.

Then they would realize that while she was in his bed it was out of a simple necessity. The young woman who had been tossing and turning in his bed wasn't out of pleasure but out of excruciating pain. Her delicate face twisted in display of such pain as she laid panting on the bed even though she was out cold. Her shoulder sewn by skillful hands but still needed time to heal. Moving to the bowl of water he dipped his hands to wash off the blood and placed the curved needle to the side.

Be damned! Why did it have to be the same woman who found him on the night he was unceremoniously dumped in Rhy'Din. Why couldn't she of been found by one those amazonian women that had been with her at her temple instead of now in his bed. He needed to put something on her sewed flesh to ebb the pain so her sleep wasn't so fitful.

Not even hours ago he found her, spilled across the street in silks that had been eaten mostly away by flames. She was lucky that she, personally, seemed to escape whatever fire she had been in with what wounds she did have. The worst being a large gash as if someone had ran her through with a sword.

Collapsing down into the chair at his desk he watched her sleep, his mind whirling through the fact that she was even there to begin with. How was he going to keep this a secret? Be damned if he was going to get ribbed for having a female in his room.

Rubbing his face he groaned into his palm. "What a fine m-"

"Larc! It's me! Let me in!"

He heard the semi-whisper spoken at the door and the little raps of knuckles against the wood. Crap! He flung himself out of the seat and to the door, meeting it as it opened and barely managed to push his sister back out into the hall.

"Qui. Not tonight." he rumbled at her through the inches the door was cracked.

"But why not? Are you working on something I am not allowed to see?"

"My bed will be occupied tonight." He lowered his voice at her. "I need rest. Please leave me."

She eyed him suspiciously and he knew she would be hard to shake if she caught on.

"Be ready by morning's light. I have a task for you." he gave a bit of an order tone to his sibling and her eyes seemed to light right up.

"I'll be here before first light." she answered and quickly headed off in the direction that was her room. No doubt to get a full night's rest.

Closing the door he sighed and turned to find the young woman was sitting up and staring at him with wide eyes. He watched as she inhaled deep. "Don't you dare scream woman! You've caused me enough trouble this night!"

That seemed to deflate the delicate thing and she withered in the blanket. Recognition of him seemed to dance in her eyes though and she relaxed further. "How did you find me?"

"Be silent and rest." he demanded as he moved to the bed like some towering force that refused to touch her now that she wasn't in harms way.

The woman started to sink more down into the blankets until she was laying down again. "Thank you, sir."

"You may call me Larcius." While he spoke he turned to head to the desk again. "When you are able I want to know what happened."

"Kai and I am not sure what happened. Fire. Lots of fire." her voice waned and became but a whisper.

Falling back asleep he figured. "Rest for now, Lady Kai."

"You are that man that I found hurt outside of the city while searching for herbs."

"Yes and you nursed me back to health despite how rude I was. Now stop speaking and sleep. If you do not my family finds you here you will get no rest." He turned to her only to find she had fallen fast asleep. Sighing in relief he retook his seat and turned to his studies. His bed may be used tonight but it wouldn't be by him.

When his sister came knocking just before morning's light he woke with a start. Falling asleep was the norm for him, face planted in some book. Groggily he turned to the door to find that Quil had already let herself into his room.

"I thought you said you would be using your bed tonight? Liar!" She scolded him but figured her big brother just got drawn into some new project. It did seem to happen often.

When there was no squealing he looked to the bed, sheets tucked nice and neat and minus one elven woman he frowned. She must of snuck out while he slept.

"What is wrong?"

Looking to his sister he shook his head and rose out of his seat. "Go get your gear. We are going hunting."

Tiberius would be greeted by the first of three rooms that was the workshop and by far the messiest of them all. It seemed that even though they were not long stayed in the city Larc had gathered himself quite the collection of books, vials, beakers, ores, and whatever seemed to catch his fancy that would be used to better the equipment and alchemy he was constantly working. Jars of dragon pieces neatly set on a shelf with sheets of paper shoved not so neatly between them. Leather pieces, paper, herbs, and random trinkets scattered the floor in a chaotic mess but yet miraculously not in the path of coming and goings.

A door to the far end of the room was sheltered by hanging fur and past that the voice of the elder brother rose, "I'm in here."

The middle, joint chamber consisted for what could be considered a sitting area. A small table with trio chairs made of simple wood, a cot nestled in the nook of a corner with furs draped down for privacy or protection from the sun during those mid-morning naps. Worktables were snug against the wall, an odd assortment from a grinding wheel to his alchemical station. That is where he would be found, slouched over a book with sheets hanging from between multiple pages.

While he knew who it was by the voice he still took his time in jotting down his findings but would eventually lean out of the chair that groaned at him once his weight was off of it. It was likely thanking him for releasing it from the duties of holding his bulk for the hours on end he tended to stay seated.

"Drink?" would be offered while he stretched himself out a bit. The scruff at his cheek tattled that he likely hadn't shaved in a while and made him look, and feel, ages older than what he was.

While Tiberius explored, and over all poked his nose where he would, Larc had moved off to grab a tankard to pour himself a pint from a personal keg that was tucked away in a corner. Until the younger sibling spoke up on the offer of a drink one would not be poured for him.

"A little of this 'n a lot of that." Larc replied to the question with a smirk. "There are many different sorts of metals and qualities of items here in this land. I have been speaking to a local about his forging and have learned quite a bit. Maybe knowledge I can bring home with us."

Larc had taken in a lot of the local variety in many ways but not all of them good. It seemed Tiberius was doing the same. Larc's steely gaze drifted over the younger male and eventually a brow started to crawl up. His brother's garbs were interesting to say the least. "I've been locked away, as you put it, because I am not keen on these lands. Quite frankly I feel as if it is toxic." He would not place the weight of his concerns of the family on Tib's shoulders. Instead he gestured the youth to the joint room and started that way.

Within this room there were a handful of wooden mannequins that housed finished and unfinished projects alike. One said mannequin was where Larc stopped and held a suit of leather armor that had painstaking details set to it. Though he knew that Tib's preferred a more of the whiter side of coloring these leathers were at least faded down from their natural colors to more light gray hue. Something that would blend when trying to conceal oneself more easier than white but wasn't the heavy earthy colors that Larc normally went with for armor. Straps showed that suit came in a variety of changes; removable sleeves, chest, torso, thigh, and calve pieces. As each piece was removed to show this Larc made sure that Tib's saw the lining of protection that was hidden. Dragon scales were lined the wearer with each attachable piece to protect those vital places. There were also line of pockets and hidden compartments for Tibs to stuff away his things.

"I made this set lighter for you but didn't skip out on the protection." Larc informed his sibling as he left the gear for his brother to examine. "I also made an removable inner lining for the upcoming winter. You just slide it between the sets like you would a vest." And Larc was even went so far as to get white fur just for Tibs.

A hearty chuckle left him as he watched his youngest sibling's excitement over the assemble. It did his heart good to see that he liked it. "My muse only comes when the hour is late and everyone is asleep."

While he didn't help assist put it on he did point out here and there where it was needed so Tiberius would find it easier to get geared. "Sometimes it is a blessing, sometimes it is a curse. I have woken up from a dead sleep with ideas to write down." Which is likely why his room looked the disaster it did. Papers, herbs, metals, and knickknacks laid everywhere.

When asked what was owed he looked to Tiberius with both confusion and amusement. "Your safety is more than enough payment my brother. I just hope it serves you well in the days to come."