Location: Kirborg, Blackthorn Inn<br/>Date / Time: March 16, going on noon<br/>Tagging: Eztli, possibly Wren<br/><hr/>The inn didn't have to wait long, as it was the first place Alain inquired, wanting to establish a base before he went about his business. Given that the Blackthorn Inn was the first house after the village gate, it took only minutes after crossing the river to hand the horse and pony to the care of a young man working at the inn and getting inside.<br/><br/>At this time of the day the inn was still cool, the fireplace having only recently been kindled, and the travelers had the inn very much to themselves. The innkeeper, a human in his forties with a neatly groomed beard that showed the first faint traces of grey in his brown hair, who introduced himself as Merik, showed them their beds upstairs and where they could stow their gear, while a woman about his age, and perhaps his wife, got busy about the common room. Soon the merchant and his entourage had the opportunity to dry at the fireplace and the smell of cooking wafted from the kitchen. By the smell of it cabbage would be a major part of lunch, but Merik proclaimed himself more than happy to provide whatever his larder could produce, should the stew of the day not be to the travelers' liking.<br/><br/>"You men can take it easy today," Alain stated, after Merik had taken their orders. "I will spend the day here in the village, talking with some of the local merchants, perhaps the priests of Pelor and the sheriff too. I don't think I will need an escort here, in broad daylight. But I will need someone to go to the castle and make some arrangements so I can pay my respects to the baroness tomorrow.  Frontier or not, these things have to be done properly."