Pub Crawling Problems

Gareth felt a little off put at his offer of buying Pendra a few drinks was rejected but at least she let him down nicely. It seemed that both Dwarves had some business with the king and it didn't sound too friendly. Gareth crossed his arms over his chest. But at the mention of a celebration of their rescuing Pendra, Gareth smiled again. "Sounds like fun."

As they headed upstairs Pendra quite handily verbally beat the crap out of the proprietor, Sanga. It was a glorious display. The look on the human woman's face was worth listening to the mud being slung. And then Pendra made off with a mug of ale. His unfinished one before he went downstairs it seems had returned to his hand. He finished it and sighed then winked to Sanga and walked out of the Pearl.

And then he saw the shadow of someone move. Pendra had cursed. She threw her mug at him but missed and Gareth was already moving, his White Steel armor clanking. He hated wearing heavy plate armor, preferring to move in the more form fitting and lighter scale mail, or in the case of a landsmeet, heavy chainmail. The light of the sun sparkled off the polished steel that wasn't marred by blood. He chased after the mage, and drew his blood soaked sword out.

He tackled the mage to the dirt and promptly pinned his arms down with his arms, and headbutt the guy to stun him or better still, to make him bite his tongue.

Gunnar was at that moment trying to lit with a match a wooden smoking pipe. He saw with great interest how Pendra tried to hit a man with a skirt with a mug, and then the boy running towards him to tackle him down.

Way too much exercise for just one morning.

Expelling smoke, the dwarf studied curiously the struggling man and the lad keeping him pinned down, and then looked at Pendra

''Well, gorgeous, and who is this? The one who sold you, the one who drugged you...? Or are you just offended by his skirt?''

Looking at Gareth, he patted his shoulder with his only hand, almost fatherly. ''Good boy. Next time try not to crush him...''

The young man was quick, she gave him that as she watched him run off after the mage and capture him. Pendra grinned, chuckled at Gunnar when he asked his question and walked over to Gareth and the pinned man, "Two of the three. He did not sell me but he did sell me out to that sect with the bird tattoos. I suppose the money must have been good as well as the extra incentives."

She knelt beside Gareth and chuckled at Gunnar's comment to not crush next time, "Oh no. Crush him as you will but he is needed alive. He just doesn't have to be in much working order besides being able to talk."

Pendra looked down the street then stood, hand on her one hip as a human man and elven woman were walking towards them. The woman had long white hair and the man wore a blond goatee style beard and blond hair. They seemed to be coming towards them at a good clip and she waited, ready for anything just in case.

Gareth's head spun. Never ever headbutt someone ever again, Gareth he chided himself. His face hurt from the gauntlet-clad punch he received in the cellar earlier and this headbutt had only served to make both he and the mage dizzy. "I say we cut his hands off so he can't cast any spells. Then we make him talk. Can't believe I just said that." Gareth muttered and then he felt a and on his shoulder by the bearded dwarf and it made him scowl.

He turned his attention back to Pendra while keeping their captive pinned. "So he's part of some kind of cult you think? 'The Cult of Desperate Men' sounds appropriate enough." he jested. Then he saw two people walking towards them and placed more pressure on the mage's hands till they started to break a little and the mage beneath him whimpered in his daze.

''Well, aye but...'' Gunnar's voice faded when he saw what Pendra was seeing as well.

For a moment he was speechless, but then he laughed. ''Well, shave my back and call me an elf!''

The dwarf was still laughing when the white haired elf giggled and kneeled to hug him, hiding her face in his shoulder. Also, the tall human kneeled too to hug the dwarf as well, looking as moved as her. Even the one armed dwarf looked moved, and for some minutes the three just hugged each other, speechless.

Recovering themselves, both the human and the elf stood up again, the girl wiping a tear and smiling, and the human grabbing the dwarf's shoulder.

''We were told you were here...'' Started Bowen

''...so we came to pick you up and go home'' Finished Calliara

Then, both of them looked at the other two curiously, Calliara lifting an eyebrow when she recognized Gareth. Gunnar looked at them too, smiling.

''Well, these are Bowen Pentaghast and Calliara Mahariel, both of them Grey Wardens. He is Gareth and this gorgeous lass is Pendra. She says she workds for that monkey that is sitting in the throne, I take you already know''

Bowen laughed, nodding. ''Yes, we know. Come on, we will take you with the Commander''

"Let's not be cutting off hands. It be too bloody to deal with on the street and the screaming hurts the ears."

The scene of the two people hugging the dwarven man gave Pendra a wide smile, especially when Gunnar introduced her. She bowed her head a bit in respect, "I am Pendra Dragoncoal, weaponsmaster and trainer for the crown. It is good to meet the two of you and know that the cult had not brought any physical harm to King Theirin. That would have been unfortunate."

Pendra turned her head one way then the other to readjust her neck and get out some soreness from her muscles, "The Warden Commander is here now? That is good news by far."

Gareth found it dubious that these two could be here for him. Then again, he saw that beautiful white haired elf girl and his face paled. Oh bugger He thought to himself, remembering his failed attempt to cheer her up a few days ago which prompted a verbal beating from his cousin Macha as well as the white haired elf. He still did not understand why she found it as an act of stupidity, seeing as he hated seeing people upset.

Swallowing his pride, he stood up and kicked the mage in the ribs while offering a bow to the two wardens. "Ah... I see you know the one armed dwarf here. As he says, I am Gareth... Arl of Umoja." He said with his head turned up a bit to mask his discomfort. The mage was groaning again so he kicked him in the ribs once more. "Look... Ser Calliara was it? I wanted to apologize for my... behavior the other day. I just have this thing where I cant stand to see people crying... I have to cheer them up. Probably why I make such a lousy Arl; I try to please everyone." He muttered the last bit. "I honestly did not know you were in mourning. Macha had explained some of it to me... and what happened during the Blight."

Both Gunnar and Bowen looked at Gareth and then at Calliara, an unspoken question on their eyes, but Calliara just nodded

''I accept your apologizes. For the next time, be sure that you try to cheer up human females only. We Dalish don't like our personal space being invaded''

She even offered him a tiny smile before looking at Pendra and bowing her head. ''Well met, Pendra Dragoncoal. We can take you with the Commander, she was with the King the last time we saw her''

''Surely he is hiding under his bed right now'', Bowen muttered, ''expecting us to not know that he forgot to tell us about this''

So Gareth was the type to not realize about racial differences at all. That was an interesting point in a human. Too many people of all races tended to be segregationists and had a hard time accepting their own let alone those outside of their race. It was too bad that he had not known how to deal with a mourning Dalish but it happened at times.

"I would like that very much. The few times that the Warden Commander had been around before I had not had the chance to meet her. We should probably see her after seeing the king, I am sure." She did not know of the relationship between the two or that they would be together at the moment.

Pendra hooked one arm with Gunnar's and looked to Gareth, "Will you be carrying Barcleth or someone else?" It was a hint that she wanted to include him on the other side.

Gareth made a face when Calliara said not to try cheering up non humans anymore. "Oi! That hurt." he whined and then scratched his beard, listening to the exchange between Pendra and Calliara and Bowen. Gareth then blinked at Pendra when she took the one-armed Dwarf's arm and then offered him a smile, which took a moment to register to Gareth as an invitation. "Ah. Well, I'd rather have my arm around a pretty lass like yourself." He grinned and then took her other arm as best he could with his taller height.

Gunnar smiled wide with Pendra by his side, and with his stump he nudged Calliara's hip. ''You two surely have a lot to tell me''

Calliara smiled, resting her arm around his shoulders, and nodded. ''We'll tell you later, in private... Now it's time to go and see the Commander. Last time we saw her, she was with the King, so maybe you'll be able to talk with the two of them, ser Pendra''

Bowen patted Gareth's shoulder and then lifted the mage's body to his own shoulder, grinning. ''You're too skinny for this, lad, let me help you'' Then he looked at Pendra and winked

Pendra grinned while the two men took an arm then Gunnar picked up their quarry. She sneered at the almost unconscious man, her eyes showing a hatred she would not let go of. This man had been the reason she was removed, the reason there was some cult trying to take over and the reason she had been used in such ways that most women would have cracked. Pendra had no trouble with sex but what these men had done was different. And she had trusted him.

She turned her head to wink at Gunnar and then to wink at Gareth and started off. She was not the type to dwell once something was over. It wasn't like she'd never been abused before. Thankfully, she was also not the type to give up her ability to trust and these two seemed the type who would be easy to trust and be trustworthy.