It was a beautiful autumn morning. The morning had been pretty chilly, but there were no trace of last nights fog and the sun was starting to warm the air. It was going to be a nice day after all.<br/><br/>Xhol could feel this would be an exiting day, he could feel it in the water as he swam his beloved Serpent. He was soon joined by others of his kinds, because as the old saying went, "Less than a bath a day a cranky T'Skrang makes."<br/><br/>At the village green, Keliek't was showing off to some children, amusing them with jokes and impressive acrobatic feats. He curiously waited to see who would show up, some of the kids had been pretty upset with him. He wouldn't let that worry him though, he had a plan.<br/><br/>Ari was walking around as she was still asleep that morning. Rose and the Troubadour had kept her awake for the better part of the night. That girl was loud! Not for the first time she wished her room had been on the opposite part of the building from Rose's. She had seen Keliek't at breakfast, before he had hurried out. He looked unfairly spry! How could someone his age keep this up? She was the one who were supposed to be young and energetic, but compared to him she felt old...<br/>Oh well. Her father had told her she could take the day off after she had helped clear the tables after everyone was done with breakfast. Today was the village feast, celebrating the end of harvest and the anticipation of the coming winter. Just the thought of the feast made her feel a lot better.<br/><br/>Ilene walked the old familiar road towards the village. Alone, which she did not like, she had much preferred a bit of company. Her parents would attend the feast later, so she wasn't sure she'd dare hook up with anyone, which was frustrating to say the least. Oh well, she should be able to find other ways of amusing herself.<br/><br/>Gara struggled on with her chores, muttering and cursing. She was sure her friends didn't have to work on a day like this! At least no one would begrudge her family attending the feast, the meat they would bring were always very well received. She had seen her brothers and cousins drag a large amount of firewood to the green, the bonfire would be huge this year. With some luck that old T'Skrang prat would stumble over a log and break his hip as he tried to show off for her friends. That would almost be worth seeing, but she was not going to set his foot at the green until the feast started.<br/>A loud oink announced the arrival of Snuffles. He dropped a big fat rat at her feet and sat down, wagging his little tail in anticipation for the praise he felt he deserved. He was a strange one, he didn't seem to be able to decide if he was a cat, dog or a pig from one minute to the next. Besides, a rat on a stick, seasoned and grilled over an open fire tasted surprisingly good...<br/><br/>Reya heard the beating of metal against metal stop as she left the house. When she looked over her shoulder, she could see her father standing in the doorway, watching her go. For a second it seemed like he would call her back, but instead he closed his mouth and went back inside. She could soon hear him go back to work. Whatever he wanted to tell her it would have to wait, it seemed.