Allana was shocked at the speed the woman’s feet were carrying her, she kept her normal pace and yet the crone was still a few feet ahead of her. The two crossed under the bridge and Allana found herself in a part of the town that she had never seen before.
     It had an eerie yet homely feeling; the buildings were smaller and more compact. The tiny shops they did pass were unlike anything she had ever saw in the main square. The trek through the cranny of unusual shops was short, the crone stopped outside a peculiar looking store. It was a dark green with black trim, faded on the e outside and dark on the inside.
     “This way, dear. ”
     As Allana followed suit her nose was bombarded with several scents; mostly incense. The woman looked about the store in awe. Shelves lined the entire place; books dominated but there were little knick-knack things too such as herbs, rocks, and candles. Allana’s eyes caught sight of a small cloth covered table. The crone had taken a seat in a comfortable looking chair and motioned Allana to sit.
     “I don’t mean to be rude ma’am, but what do you want with me and why am I here?”
     “Shush my dear. I simply want to read your fortune. People with your—abilities tend to have a very interesting future.”
     The crone’s hand disappeared into one of her sleeves and she withdrew a stack of cards.
     “Sadly I have never had the opportunity to read a Were’s fortune but those that have tell me that it’s the most intriguing.”
     The crone shuffled the cards out and cut the deck. Allana shifted rather uncomfortably in her seat, the quiet shuck of the cards didn’t help any.  She could hear the crone mumbling as she placed the first four cards face up in a diamond shape. Allana leaned over and looked at the card faces: six of swords at the top, two of wands and an inverted eight of wands in the center, ending with an eight of pentacles.
     “Very strange indeed…your fortune is definitely one that I’ve never seen before.”
     The crone pulled out another card and placed it to the left of middle row.
     “What do you mean by ‘strange’? Is that good or bad?”
     Allana was uneasy about all this; she had never encountered a human, like this woman, before. She looked at the fifth card and cocked her head in curiosity. Five of cups…what did that mean? Allana opened her mouth to say something but the crone cut her off before she could utter a word.
     “You’re in a long journey of pain…but don’t worry, wisdom will be gained through these experiences and future disputes. In the end you’ll have lasting success.”
     The crone pulled out a sixth card and placed it on the right.
     “However, your wisdom will come with great defeat and emotional letdowns. If you’re not careful, your disputes could mean ultimate defeat.”
     The crone lifted her one good eye and stared at Allana. The woman shifted again and looked over her shoulder at the door estimating how fast she could make for it. This crippled woman had no idea what she was talking about. Allana was angered that this stranger said she would learn through defeat. The woman had never been defeated and yet she still learned things. Well, she had been defeated once but it was an unfair match. That didn’t count though.
     “Thank you for wasting my time with this nonsense.”
     Allana nodded her head in acknowledgement and rose from the seat. Why did she follow this old woman anyways? She shook her head as she stepped out the door, the tiny bell cluster jingling as she went out. The woman rubbed her arms as she stepped out into the evening air. She had only managed to take a few steps when she heard the bells mixed with a hoarse voice.
     “Your journey isn’t over yet, it has only begun. Follow your instinct instead of your mind and it will lead you to prosperity!”
     The woman ignored the crone’s words and she hastened out of the neighborhood as fast as she could. No wonder she had never heard of those shops before, the residents there were nuts!
     Allana made it out into the main square and stopped briefly to catch her breath. People walked by and eyed her wearily; most were drunk but those that did have their head on right gave the woman a wide berth. Once she had composed herself, Allana caught sight of a boy walking down the street waving a paper about and passing out copies.
     “Harvest News, read all about it! Events and contests listed here! Don’t miss out on all the fun! Only three days away!”
     The boy made his way to Allana and handed her a copy. She scanned the parchment and stifled a laugh. This year’s festival was going to be entertaining to watch. The paper advertised costume contests, crop grading, and a small band of traveling performers. Allana could care less about it all but she enjoyed walking around and watching people of all ages, and size, participate in the silly get together. This would be the first time that the town had performers; they were usually overlooked because of the town’s size. Performers tended to go for large cities where money was a plenty.
     Allana crumpled the paper and dropped it on the ground before heading home. She had found an inn that was cheap yet nice; she had no money but usually ran errands and washed tables for the keeper. The inn was also a small pub but compared to the other it was shabby, focusing more on the inn itself. The walk wasn’t very far and Allana sighed in relief as she stepped inside. The familiar, yet odd, scent of lemon washed over her.
     Silently striding to the stairs she climbed up without a sound, she didn’t want to deal with the keeper today. With the festival only a few days away her workload would be doubled and knowing him, he’d have her scrubbing the roof clean.
     The second floor of the inn held about a dozen rooms, each of which was only furnished with a bed, closet and tiny end table. Allana was given the room in the back, which happened to be the smallest. Go figure. Her belongings were few which was a shock to most people since human women tended to carry a large load with them. Allana closed and locked the door behind her, the events of the day swimming in her head.
     She unfastened the leather belt and placed it gently on the end table, the sheathed dagger thumping on the wood. Slipping out of her gown she hung it up next to its identical twin. The light cotton of the under slip felt good on her skin. The material was both thick enough to conserve body heat and thin enough that it breathed easily.
     Allana walked over to the bed as she untied the katars from each forearm and placed them beside the belt dagger. Being a female she wasn’t allowed to use large weapons with the exception of bows and daggers. Her pack had given her the choice between the two and she chose the latter for both usability and efficiency.
     The woman yawned and sat at he edge of the bed, kicking off her shoes she swung her feet onto the bed and laid back. Her body instantly relaxed and she felt the hands of sleep tug on her eyelids. It was still some time before sunset but Allana was so tired she couldn’t help herself.
     Closing her eyes she drifted off into a sleep that sent her mind racing into the past. She recalled her former home and the event that had changed her life forever.