“Bread, are you sure you’re okay?” Yam knelt beside her fox-crow, who looked completely fine, if a little tired. “Do you need anything?” Bread chittered softly and rubbed his cheek against Yam’s. She swept him into a tight hug, looking as if she’d never let him go, lest something like this happened again.

“Is Aey okay?” Rolf piped up from where she sat, perched on the couch. Everyone’s moods had been vastly improved by the sight of Bread hopping around and purring like normal, and even if the horrific night had been cemented in all of their minds, it would be forgotten for now in light of the fox-crow’s absolute, undiluted happiness.

“I think so,” Yam replied without looking up, her muzzle buried in the crook of Bread’s neck. The fox-crow yelped in protest and she loosened her grip slightly, but not enough to let him escape. “I tried a little Bardic magic on her, she was coming around when I left. Ari’s staying with her,” she added, finally surfacing from Bread’s fur and gazing down at the small orange creature, her eyes soft. “We can go see her, if you want.”

Rolf hopped off the couch and Yam got to her paws too, letting Bread curl around her neck and make himself comfortable before she set off for the guest room, across the hallway from her own bedroom.

The Tabaxi pushed lightly on the door and it glided open silently, revealing a medium-sized dark room, the only light within coming from a candle-powered lantern on the bedside table. Ari was perched in a wooden chair next to the bed, her back to the door, and she whipped around as Yam and Rolf entered, her features relaxing as she realised it was them.

“How is she?” Yam crossed the room in a few large strides, staring down at Aey’s peacefully sleeping face, all her earlier hostility gone, vanished like mist on a summer morning. She seemed to have lost most of her unfriendliness towards the Tiefling, no doubt because of what had happened with Bread.

No one really knew what had gone down in those few minutes, hours or even days during which the only sound that could be heard were Aey’s agonised screams, a sound that hollowed through everyone’s heads, a sound that could strike fear into even the bravest of warriors. Not even Ari knew- she had explained that she’d shied away as soon as Aey began to yell, covering her ears in vain and shutting her eyes as tightly as she could.

“Oh… okay,” Ari murmured, brushing away a stray lock of hair that had fallen onto Aey’s face. “Her horn’s unfixable, though, so I suppose she’ll just have to live with it…”

“Knowing her, she’ll be ecstatic,” Yam teased, plonking herself down on the foot of the bed. Bread hopped off her shoulders and curled up on Aey’s knees, condensing himself into a small orange ball. “She seems like the type to like scars, anyway.”

“Her breathing’s been pretty regular,” Ari continued her report, “heartbeat, pulse, all fine. She’s just… unconscious. Maybe we can only wait and see.”

Yam rolled her eyes, looking impatient. “That Bardic magic is the strongest stuff out there. Probably even stronger than whatever wine she usually takes.”

“PFF WHAT??” Rolf snorted, almost choking as she laughed. “Yam! You can’t say things like that!”

“She’s unconscious, Rolf, she’s not going to hear me,” Yam sniffed, “and besides, it’s not like it’s not true. You cannot tell me Aey isn’t a drinker. Seriously. Try and tell me that with a straight face.”

No one tried.

After what felt like an hour or two of the three of them sitting around Aey’s bed, Ari got up to go get some water. Rolf waddled after her, proclaiming loudly that she, too, “required hydration right this second or [she would] collapse on the floor and turn into a waterless puddle”. Ari shook her head and walked away.

Yam stayed sitting cross-legged on the end of the bed, staring out of the window; faint dawn light was starting to shine through the gauzy curtains, bathing the whole room in a pinkish glow. She was just starting to relax, enjoying the filtered sunlight on her face, when a voice spoke from her left, making her jump.

“Hey there, Yam. Nice of you to drop in and visit me on my deathbed.”

Yam scowled at Aey, who was staring up at her, eyes half-closed and still looking decidedly out of it. “This is literally my house,” she snapped. Aey gave a light, if croaky, laugh, and glanced down at Bread, who was still dozing on her knees.

“I take it he’s okay?”

“Yeah.”

The two sat in a comfortable silence, Yam staring out the window again, Aey drifting in and out of consciousness. It was a few minutes before anyone said anything again.

“So… what happened in there?”

Aey’s eyes flashed open, her pupils dilating in fear. They went back to normal almost instantly, but Yam, who had been studying her face intently for any signs of lying, caught it. The Tiefling propped herself up against her pillows, sitting up slightly and lifting her head.

“I- well, nothing, it- it’s fine, it was all fine,” Aey stammered, clearly uncomfortable with answering the question. Yam decided to make her even more uneasy.

“Nothing, huh? M’kay, so, how come I, with my ancient Bardic magic, and Ari, with her Cleric healing, weren’t able to save Bread? Why could you? He’s a magical animal, you know-” she gave Bread a quick stroke, causing the ball to unfold and purr happily, “-and it takes quite a bit to bring a normal creature back to life, and even more so for magic creatures.” The Tabaxi stared Aey dead in the eye, causing the Tiefling to avert her gaze and stare determinedly at the top right corner of the room.

“It doesn’t matter,” she replied evenly, as if trying to keep her tone and temper under control. “All that’s important is that Bread’s okay.”

“Alright,” Yam shrugged, looking away. “If you say so. Oh, by the way, will you be wanting to keep that chip in your horn? I can fix it if you want.”

“Oh- what?” Aey lifted a hand to her head and felt around for the crack in her horn. Then her hand fell back onto her pillow and her head followed soon after, apparently exhausted by just raising an arm. “No, no, it’s fine. I’ll keep it.”

“Alright,” Yam repeated. She got to her feet and crossed the room, heading for the door; she put a paw on the doorknob and was about to twist it when she glanced back over her shoulder at Aey, who was watching her. “Try and get some sleep.”

Then she opened the door, stepped through it, and shut it behind her softly.