Prologue Interlude

The party is now traveling on the King's Road through the Harken Forest, north towards your goal of Harkenwold. This road is rarely used so the trees and other forest plants are majorly encroaching into it. The stones of the road are mostly still good, their magic keeping things together, despite the wearing and the occasional crack. The rest of the day is spent hacking the path clear where appropriate, though ironically the path is clearer the further you get into the forest, showing that someone is using and maintaining the road, probably the elves. You guys are exhausted from the slow-going but it only put you four hours behind. Not bad. Zoe and Carlos have been conspicuously avoiding each other ever since their argument outside the Grove. Finally you lot stop for the night to make camp and have supper.

Once supper is over, Kathryn casually approaches Zoe and sits down next to her to speak in private. "Hey Zoe. You okay?" she asks with concern.

Zoe is fiddling around with an electrum coin, clearly from the old dragonborn empire of Arkhosia thanks to it's dragon pictures and draconic script. She's flipping the coin across the back of her fingers with a practiced ease, telling of manual dexterity and how often she plays this game. "More frustrated than anything. I knew the road was rarely used but I wasn't expecting it to be so badly overgrown. I was hoping we'd be further down the road."

The white-haired knight examines the facial features of her friend, and move sideways to get closer to her. "I wasn't really talking about the road," specifies Kathryn. "You haven't talked to Carlos since we left the grove."

She stops her game with the coin mid-flip. "Oh, that." She puts her hand down and looks at the ground. She doesn't sound too enthused about the subject.

Kat doesn't let this reaction deter her from pursuing this line of questioning, but she is admittedly uneasy about it. "Did I... did I do something wrong? I thought you would enjoy dancing with him, but maybe I shouldn't have stuck my nose in your business."

"Oh no, I enjoyed dancing with him. He's stiff, but was eager enough once it was a slow dance. The stupid jerk!"

In the face of such bitterness, Kathryn does the first thing that goes through her mind; she takes Zoe's hand and gently caresses it. "What did he do?"

"That idiot will charge into a group of literal child-eating monsters without a second thought but he won't tell me to my face that he likes me. Or what he likes about me. He just deflects and makes a stupid joke about ogres and then apologizes like a bloody coward. He makes me so mad!"

The young fighter keeps listening attentively, and with a soft tone, she asks, "Was it the first time that someone spoke to you like that?"

A few heartbeats pass. "No, and it hurt then too."

"I think I understand why you're so mad," she tells her. "It's like... if he thought you weren't special enough to warrant the embarrassment of telling you the true. Is that how you felt?" She looks at Zoe to see if her guess was right.

With a pained look Zoe nods in assent. "No one gets to make me feel that way. No one. I am special. And I am worth it."

Kathryn lets the silence persist for a moment, and then she rests her head on the cleric's shoulder before she says, "You're special to me. You worry about the safety of people you've never met before. You risk your life even when you don't have too. And you make me laugh a lot. You're one of my best friends, and I love you."

Zoe is moved by Katheryn's words and wipes away a few tears with the back of her hand before answering. "Thank you Kit Kat. I love you too. You know just what to say to make a girl feel good about herself." She hugs her friend.

The newly appointed knight, who doesn't look the part in her white tunic and plain trousers, smiles and hugs her friend back. "I do?" she says, a little surprised by this observation. But instead of thinking too much about it, she just accepts it, and gently rubs Zoe's back. "Well, I'm glad it worked."

"Yeah it did but there's still the matter of Carlos. I kinda like the big idiot and I'm not sure what to do here. I can't force him to be brave. What should I do, Katheryn?"

Being asked for advice by Zoe certainly puts Kat on the spot. She thinks for a few seconds, and asks, "What kind of ‘like’ is it?"

"Friend. He's too timid for me."

"Hmm." She ponders the problem for a long moment, but then finally says, "He's your friend, even if he is a dummy. You two should talk, clear things up. I can make it easier for you, if you want to."

"What do you have in mind?"

"Nothing for now. But do you trust me?" She smiles.

Zoe doesn't hesitate, but answers immediately. "Of course."

"Then you don't have to do anything for now. Just be the awesome girl you always are." Kathryn then proceeds to hug her friend again, and rubs her cheek against hers while she giggles.

Zoe laughs and returns the hug.

The girls then make small talk about the supper they just had and Katheryn asks how Zoe found the rabbit stew she cooked for them. Zoe shrugs and begins telling her friend about the faith of Avandra.

Carlos approaches Zoe. She is sitting against a tree, resting her head on her knees while she listens to the forest at night. She seems relaxed and turns her head to look at the dwarf as he approaches.

He speaks in a quiet voice - "We have to talk." The dwarf is somber and there is a weariness about him beyond the day's physical exertions.

She sighs and pats her bedroll, offering to let him sit on it if he wants to. It's the only hospitality she can offer here in the woods.

He frowns a bit but sighs as well, and takes the offer, sitting on the bedroll. The silence drags out as he composes his thoughts. - "I was nervous. I'm not used to sweet talk, giving it or receiving it. I didn't know what to do, so i guess i tried to humor it off. Didn't mean to, was just the first thing i blurted out." - he confesses, but then his tone becomes slightly heavier - "But you hurt me too, Zoe. A lot. You didn't let me try and fix it, and when i flat out apologized, you condemned me while i was down." - he takes a quiet breath, as if what he said just wore him out, before picking the strength back up in his voice - "I didn't deserve that."

She sits thinking about what he has said. Almost twenty seconds pass before she answers. "You are a brave warrior Carlos. If you want to say something nice about someone just do it. It doesn't have to be a thing for the ages like some bard would shit out on command, it just has to be sincere. I'm not a succubus waiting to consume your soul through your peener. I'm your friend and I would understand. It makes me feel like crap when you can't muster up the courage to try. I won't let you make me feel that way. You or anyone. I was angry and wasn't ready for your apologies. I'm sorry I hurt you but you did it first."

Carlos frowns. He doesn't answer for a while
"Only this morning, i was told i should keep that damn healing potion we got out of a dead Gnoll's guts because of how i stink. I was a little upset, but it's standard fare for a guy like me. Not that anyone has to say anything; in any place that isn't full of Dwarves, the look i get alone is clear enough." - his voice becomes charged with frustration, as he struggles to keep the worst out of it - "You can walk into a room and make every guy in there swoon just by being there, Zoe. In the same room, i know off the bat that i can't compete with anyone over five feet tall, and so does everyone else." - he takes a moment to calm down, as his voice was starting to get too hard - "I wasn't ready to come here now either. I don't have a scale to weigh how crap you felt compared to me, but i got really angry after you took me down like that. You'll still be the freckled beauty you are, no matter how you hard you kick me. But i'll still be this rough-hewn midget all the way down, too."

"You have a fucked up way of seeing yourself Carlos. You're brave, kind, and your beard is thick and proud. Am I a liar?"

"My beard just grows back. And have you ever seen a beardless dwarf? It's pathetic."

"I've seen one and yeah, he was pathetic." She laughs.

He chuckles a bit, but it's short lived. He ends up sighing again - "When you can't be anything but what you are, might as well be that as best you can. Maybe. I dunno, just made that up." - he pauses a bit before continuing - "I'm not looking for pity, but i never ever thought that one jab would be enough to ever hurt you. If i even..." - he trails off, and ends up staying quiet.

"I know. But some hurts run deep and we always pay for the mistakes of others. I'm very sensitive to it and I hurt you. I'm sorry."

Carlos sighs, and doesn't say anything for a moment "Yeah... don't worry about it." - he finally says, in a tired voice.

"Are you feeling okay? Any bruises or cuts from the foliage? I can heal any problems you might have."

He almost chuckles, but just shakes his head wearily with a very slight worn out near-smile, letting it show just how tense he was up until a few moments ago - "Just tired."

"Okay. Let me know if you are running a fever or anything. You never know when dealing with new plants."

"Yeah..." - he gets up - "I will." - he takes a moment - "Goodnight, Zoe."

"Goodnight." She watches him walk away, no doubt heading for his bedroll. She take a deep breath and goes back to listening to the sounds of the wood. She is smiling now, content. All is right with the world again.

After having just talked to Carlos, Kathryn goes to find Hunter by the fire and plops down right next to him. Having taken her armor off a few hours ago, she is now wearing a comfortable white tunic and plain trousers. She seems to be in a good mood.
"Hey, what's up?"

Hunter looks down away from the night sky. "Oh, hey Kat. Nothing, I was just taking a moment to reflect. Look up there. You see that empty spot in the sky? The Thief really is gone. Or reborn, as the others are saying. I mean, he is reborn. The stars are gone."

The white-haired knight leans back on her arms a bit, and looks up at the sky. "...Yeah, it's just like in the Feywild." She frowns. "He's supposedly ‘bound’ to one of us, whatever that means."

"And it just happened. I don't know, what if it stole a memory? If he's stolen anything yet."

Kathryn's attention is now slowly shifting to the entirety of the night sky, taking this chance to admire this spectacular view. "I've told Eni I would try to find the Thief, and convince him to steal her curse. I hope it works."

"That's crazy talk! The Thief would just as soon steal from you." He grins mischievously. "Hey, if you're lucky, maybe he'll steal your heart first."

She frowns at this idea. "If he does, I'll beat him up until he gives it back. This is something for me to give."

Hunter chuckles. "Of course!"

"Eh, if you're looking forward to meet the Thief so much, how about you get your heart stolen?" Kat smirks at Hunter. "It might be a woman."

"If I could only be so lucky." He sighs.

She glances at her friend with a curious eye and asks, "How so?"

"I...I don't know. I'm just really..." He looks her in the eye a little too long, and looks away. "I'm just really missing someone right now. Anyone, you know? I mean...no, not anyone, I meant someone."

She stares at Hunter's face, suddenly serious, and asks a new question. "You want someone special in your life, right?"

"Yeah, you're getting it. I feel like such a dummy. What was I thinking? We're stuck in this mess because of me. Alli was a Harken's Heart druid, I should have known that it wouldn't work out."

She puts her hand on his shoulder, looks him in the eye, and with a soft voice, she tells him, "Don't worry, we all end up feeling like dummies at a moment or another. Especially me."

Her lips curl into a smile.

He smiles back. "Thanks, Kathryn. I think I'm gonna pull back for a while. I'm just looking too hard and too often. Eninahes is pretty hot too. Way out of my league though. I mean, look at me. You'd have to be crazier than archfey usually are to give this drooling hellspawn a chance."

Kathryn gleefully puts her arm around Hunter's shoulder and gives him a nice and brusque hug this way. "We should form a club then! You're discriminated because of your looks, and I'm one of the most unlucky women in the world when it comes to love. We make a great team!" She giggles.

He hugs her back. "My, how exclusive. Yeah, we'd make the best team."

"Eh, we can accept other members too." Keepìng her arm around her friend's shoulders, she thinks about who could join them. "Eni would probably qualify for our club too. She's the most unlucky out of all of us, although she did say she kissed someone before. I haven't had the chance to yet, but I'm not as old as her either."

"Actually, didn't she say she was the kissed? Not the kisser." Hunter leans on Kathryn a little.

Oblivious to Hunter's proximity, she turns her eyes towards the starry sky, and attempts to remember Eni's exact words. "Wait, I think you're right. Hmm, my memory was never that good." She shakes her head. "I can barely remember the Harken's Druids history."

He brings one hand up to turn her head towards his as he's looking into her eyes. "I feel like I'm getting mixed signals. If I am, just tell me to stop."

Kathryn raises her eyebrows, and asks, "Uh? Stop what?"

Hunter gives her a gentle and short kiss on the lips. "This."

Kathryn is stunned, and she can only look at Hunter with widen eyes. Her cheeks are slowly flushing red, and she begins to stammer. "Wa-wa-wa...? You... I- I... " Her breathing has quickly accelerated, and the ranger can see by looking at her eyes that she is panicking. It's like if a firework had been ignited into her head and short-circuited her brain.

"Sorry. Is this getting weird?"

The young and inexperienced woman can barely formulate a reply. "My- my first kiss..."

"Yup."

Her fingers touch her lips, as if to verify that this really happened, and takes a few seconds to recollect her thoughts. "Wh-why?"

"It's not fair that you've never felt a kiss before. And I think you're really cute."

Another firework fires up in her head, and Hunter can almost see the smoke coming out of her ears. She stammers again.

"Sooo...what are you thinking?" asks the ranger.

"I- I- I... I don't know." He has never seen her cheeks turn so red before now. "It was- I mean, I didn't- It just... really surprised me."

"Hey, you're starting to turn the same color as me."

"But I'm not- I mean, thanks." She immediately winces at her stupid answer, and hangs her head down.

"Hey, don't mope." He holds her hand. "Kathryn, I think about you sometimes. How kind, gentle, thoughtful, and insanely altruistic you are. And that you're hot. And, I'm wondering if you feel anything toward me."

This confession lights up another firework, but she seems to be getting a better hold of herself right now. She looks down at Hunter's hand and tightens her graps on it. "I... I don't know. I think you're kind too, even if you're a little too harsh sometimes. You're my friend, and... I think I liked the kiss." Her own words embarrass her, and she needs to gather herself before continuing. "You... you're asking me to be your special one? Is that it?"

She is feeling overwhelmed by all of this.

"I am. I want you to be interested, first. Let's say, when we get to Harkenwold, do you want to go on a date? I mean, if the lamia is really that dumb, maybe we can find the time before this is all over."

She blinks multiple times. "A date!?"

He blinks. "Yeah. You used to go on dates, didn't you?"

"Yes, but... there was a kiss just now." This argument doesn't seem to be that logical, except maybe in Kat's mind. She takes a moment to think some more about it, and then finally says, "I- I need to think about it. Can you gimme some time? I promise I'll give you an answer before we arrive in Harken."

"Alright. But I'll be expecting an answer by the time we get there!" He answers cheerily. "In the meantime, you wanna swap stories? I can tell you what I saw in the well."

"Swap stories? No, not right now. I mean, I want to! But, I need some time to think." She touches her lips again, and then looks at Hunter. "I have to go."

It's clear to the ranger that she can't hold a normal conversation in her current state.

He nods. "Goodnight."

She nods too. "Goodnight."

Pulling away from Hunter makes her even more self-conscious of how close she was to him, and as she gets up, she almost stumbles to the ground. "Oh, sorry!"

"Whoa." He tries to catch her.

"Oh, uh, thanks." She blushes again, and scurries away in a hurry.

As for Hunter, he slinks back out of view and into the darkness beyond, where he does a fist pump, and then he crosses his fingers. Then he comes back to lay down in his bedroll.

After Kat watches Carlos leave and make his way to his own bedroll, she goes to see Zoe, who is sitting against a tree, resting her head on her knees and listening to the sounds of the forest at night.

"Zoe!" whispers Kathryn quite loudly. "I need help!"

She approaches the cleric, her hands fidgeting.

Zoe had just started lightly dozing when Kathryn walks up. She snorts a little as she wakes up again. "Oh, Kat. What are you doing here?" She yawns.

"Hunter kissed me!"

That gets her attention and she's now wide awake. "Wait, what? I had no idea you guys liked each other. Very interesting. Tell me all about it."

"That's just the thing; I don't know if I like him." She starts to pace back and forth in front of Zoe. "We were just talking like usual, having fun, then he got closer and kissed me. My first time ever!"

Zoe is gobsmacked by the idea it is Kat's first kiss and she says so. "What? Really? But you are so beautiful. Is he really the first boy to try to kiss you?"

Kathryn stops walking, and calms herself down, realizing that her friend is just learning about all of this. "No, not really. Well, it's complicated." She approaches Zoe and sits down next to her.

"So, how was it? Any butterflies in your stomach? Some heat in your chest and cheeks?"

In an effort to get more comfortable, the white-haired woman puts her arms around her knees, and rests her chin on them. "At the moment, I didn't understand what was happening. But... there was a lot of that when it was over. Butterflies everywhere."

"Well that's a good sign. That means he does it for you, at least at this stage. What's the problem?"

"He wants to go on a date..."

"Are you afraid it will be bad? I mean, I thought you knew Harkenwold. Surely you know some good date spots."

"I... I just don't know if I should go on a date. I mean, I like Hunter, but it's the first time I've ever thought about stuff like this with him."

"There's your problem. You are thinking about it too much. Just go on the date. The worst that happens is you spend a few hours with a friend and decide you don't like him romantically. But think about all the good stuff. You could hold hands and kiss some more. Or, you know. If you really like each other."

Kat's cheeks flush red at the last part. "I've... never done that."

"Well, why not? Do you really like talking to unicorns that much?"

"Uh?" Kathryn faces Zoe, and asks, "The unicorn? What about her?

"Unicorns only talk to virgins. It has to do with their symbolic connection to purity and chastity. It's pretty dumb if you ask me."

"What, really?" This puzzles Kathryn. "Well, I wouldn't keep my virginity just to speak to unicorns, but... I don't want to just throw it away." Even though she isn't saying it, it's obvious that she is also a little afraid about giving it to someone.

"Ah. Well you don't have to do anything you don't want to do. Are you waiting for marriage? Nothing wrong with that."

At the mention of "marriage", her mood visibly darkens. "...I thought I was waiting for marriage, but I just wanted it to be someone I liked. Even then... there was nobody like that."

"You've hinted at your bad love life before. What happened?"

"Nothing," she says bitterly. "Nothing happened. I turned sixteen, and my parents arranged a few dates so I could get married, but most of them were perverts, or jerks. I mean, I wasn't being fussy, but they were just horrible. There were a few who seemed nice, but they... I don't know. I guess they just excused themselves. It went on for years."

Zoe looks at Kat, surprised by her bitterness. She hugs her friend. "You know Hunter isn't any of those things, right?"

She leans on the cleric, and slowly nods. "I know. But what if we go on a date, and I like it, but it's not love love yet?"

"Then you go on another one. And one after that. And one after that if you need it. You are on the first date right now. No need to worry about that part. Just try to have fun and figure out what you are looking for in a boyfriend or if boys are what you really want in the first place. You are the type of the person who learns more from doing, not sitting around and worrying about it. That's not how you learned swordsmanship right? That isn't what made you a knight, right?"

This advice seems to resonate with Kathryn, and a little more confident than before, she nods and says, "Yeah, you're right. So I should just go on dates with him, and if it feels right, we... go for more?" She blushes again.

"Yeah. You'll know what to do. Your mother taught you about the tea that keeps you from getting pregnant, right?"

"Yeah, I think I remember..." She realizes something. "Uh... could you buy some for me?"

"Of course. We'll go together so I can show you what you need. I know you aren't ready but that's no reason not to be prepared."

"Thanks Zoe." A small smile finally appears on her face. "Can I ask you a question? Something personal."

"Sure. What's on your mind?"

"How was it for you? Your first time. Was it with someone you liked?" Kathryn seems to be asking this question not only because of her curiosity, but also from a need to be reassured.

"Avandra only really has one holy day, new years day, and that involves a short ritual of renewal and a declaration of intention for the coming year. But every so often, a group of clerics will come upon each other and a great feeling will come over them, that now, now they should Rumdidlearumpshia. It's a long, silly word that doesn't mean anything accept that we party as hard as we can and drink as much alcohol as we can. And then we tell stories of all the things we've seen and feats of daring we've accomplished since our last party. It was my first one you see, and it was a real joy being able to share that with my fellows. We are all out wandering the world most of the time and don't get to see others of our kind that often."

She smiles at the memory of it.

"One of the clerics there was named Adrian, and we were about the same age, sixteen, and besides, he was a very handsome human. He had dark hair, and it was just perfect somehow. He didn't even really do anything to make it that way either. It just kinda came together. And when he laughed, he laughed with his eyes too. And he was witty. We spent half the night making jokes and double entendres until Anne, the one who initiated me into the faith, finally told us to knock it off or get a room already. Our cheeks burned in embarrassment as the adults laughed at us. "

Kathryn is listening intently to this story, her eyes wide open.

"We didn't do anything that time except hold hands and make out in the barn while we took a break from the party. He was a good kisser. Not the best I've ever had but there was an honesty to it I've never quite felt again. A few years later, when we Rumdidled the Arumpshia again, we were older and weren't the awkward teenagers anymore. He had filled out in the chest, becoming strong and very beautiful though I would never say that to his face. Men don't typically like that. I had filled out too, the girls were pretty big by then and I noticed the boys were looking more. He was just as witty as before, but our talk was more of a seduction this time. And boy did it work. He knew how to do this thing, heh, well, I'll tell you more about it another time. What I can tell you, I wasn't his first but he was mine, and I'll always love that about him."

The white-haired knight hung on very word of the story, completely entranced by it, and the intimate retelling of this event pushed Kat to lower her voice in order not to break the spell that was cast on her. "It sounds like it was the only time you were with him. I mean, to spend the night together."

"Yes. We both knew it was a thing we wanted but that neither of us wanted anything permanent. I still think about him though. I hope he thinks about me too."

"That sounds wonderful..." Kathryn lowers her gaze, and she can't help herself but cry a little. She immediately wipes the tears with the back of her hand.

"Hey sweetie, you'll have that too someday. Just keep on going on dates with good guys, okay? And be honest with yourself and them about what you want."

She wipes away the last tears, and nods. "I will. I'm not sure about what I want, but I'll figure it out."

"Of course you will. You're Ser Katheryn. Right?"

This makes her smile. "Yup. Finding the courage to love someone should be easy for a knight."

"Exactly." Zoe hugs Kat tight.

She welcomes the embrace, and says, "Thanks Zoe. You're the best."

"Right back at ya, Kit Kat."

She stays like this for at least a minute, until she realizes that it's quite late now and that they should turn in for the night.
Zoe waves to Kat as she heads back to bed, finally climbing into her own bedroll to call it a night.

The night passed without incident and the party awakens to a new day. After their normal morning routines and a quick breakfast, they are soon back on the road. Hunter ranges out ahead, scouting and keeping an eye out for trouble, an activity he'll do every day of the journey. Around noon the party stops for lunch, rations again. Hunter has taken up position in a tree, just outside of the camp, keeping an eye on things. When Zoe comes over to pass it up, he hops down to get it, and says, "Hey, uhm, did Kathryn say anything to you about, I mean did she mention me at all?"

The cleric flashes a bemused smile. "She may have said something, yes."

Hunter leans in a little. "Really? I mean, what about?"

She leans in closer. "About you smooching her and then asking her on a date."

He leans back. "Uh-huh...so what did she think? Er, what do you think?" Dammit man, get ahold of yourself!

She laughs good-naturedly about it. "Ah-ah. That would be telling, Hunter. Besides, I didn't take you for the gossiping type."

"I'm not. I just wanna know if I screwed anything up."

"No, nothing on your end. The girl will run into a group of savage gnolls or murderous elves but she gets nervous about a date. I swear, you guys are hilarious sometimes."

"Oh, heh, okay. I just want this to go smoothly, you know? Actually, I've never been on a date before."

Her jaw drops. "What? Really? I never would have guessed. You always seem like you are on the prowl."

He blushes a little. "I...can you blame me? Alli just....I saw her, and I blame the elven standard of beauty, because I couldn't see anything else. Also..." he points at his horns. "I mean, that's surprising. It's not like I've never asked before."

Zoe shrugs. "She was a hotty, no doubt about it, but we were on a mission and she didn't really seem interested in any of us at the time."

"Yeah, turned out she had something happening with someone else way before us." He gets a handful of nuts, and then asks, "Wait, 'any of us'? That gesture you made... Oh, stop me if I'm wrong, but were you..."

She tips her head a little to the side in confusion until it finally hits her. She laughs. "Actu-" Zoe is cut off by a loud, ululating roar, followed by a loud, echoing screech.

"Okay, what? That sounds like a big whatever-it-is. Crap, get the others." Hunter draws his bow and nocks an arrow, ready to draw if he needs to.

Zoe, who had been frozen in place by fear is snapped out of it by Hunter's command. She nods. "Okay. But what are you going to do?"

"Just going to find out what's doing that. It could be alone, or there might be more."

"Be careful. We'll be right behind!" She runs off back to camp.

Hunter sets off after the sound to see what it is. The sounds of loud screeching can be heard from ahead. It's intermingled with yips and ululating barks. As you draw closer you also hear crashing and the sounds of heavy claws tearing at what sounds like a tree.

The screeching is bad news. His best guess, it's an owlbear, the work of some mad wizard sometime in the past. It's the size of a large bear, as big as a grizzly, but with the head of an owl instead of a bear. Somehow it's even meaner than a normal bear, and that's saying something. To quote his uncle, "The only good thing about owlbears is that the wizard who created them is probably dead."

Hunter's suspicion proves true. The great beast is trying to force it's way into a copse of strange looking trees. Somehow they've grown together, like a giant grabbed the tops and gave them all a good twist. As you draw closer you see that the trees have created a shelter of sorts and it's into this the bear is trying to force it's way. The cries of an animal in distress can be heard from within.

Hunter decides to try a thing. He carefully puts away the arrow and bow and tries to make himself appear smaller and non-threatening. He then whistles to get its attention.

For its part, the owlbear was now standing on two legs to try to use it's front paws to tear it's way in to the copse of trees. When he whistles it's head pops around like a normal owl and it screeches at him in surprise. It goes back down to four legs and turns around to look at him. It screeches a challenge but it's not attacking yet.

Using his ranger arts, Hunter projects feelings of peaceful intentions and curiosity about what is in the copse of trees.

It blinks but Hunter feels its response. Food, hungry, mine. It cocks its head. Kill, eat you, it considers. The owlbear has been in a fight recently. It still has cuts from weapons on it's shoulder and chest.

In an attempt to defuse the situation, Hunter decides to threaten the owlbear. He conveys that his pack is coming for him, five in total.

It gets up on two legs and screeches again. Bring them on, it says, welcoming the challenge. It's about to charge.

Hunter's eyes go wide. He casts Hunter's Mark on the bear and books it back to camp. The owlbear screeches once more and runs after him, crashing through the bushes and trees in its way to try to get at Hunter. He ducks and weaves and slides and dives, trying to stay ahead of it and manages to get a good lead despite the owlbear's superior speed. Casting Thaumaturgy for a booming voice, he shouts, "Owlbear!" A good warning and hopefully a way to draw the party to him before the beast can catch him...