Servant of the Serpent

Once Bitten

Adder sits up, seemingly awoken fully by the sound of  Eben's pain. "Do you need assistance...?"

The redhead brushes off his friend's concern, already rewrapping his wounds. "I'm fine, Adder. Don't worry about me."

The gorgon opens his mouth to argue, but Daisy interrupts as she places a tray on the table. Eben's mouth waters at the scent of cinnamon and apple emanating from the bowls.

"What's this?" Adder asks

Daisy crosses her arms nervously. "It's cinnamon-apple oatmeal, with goat milk and honey. Ah, as well as some ginger root tea...I just used what was on hand..."

Adder smiles pleasantly at the woman, immediately tucking into the meal. "Thank you Daisy, that sounds wonderful. You can join us, if you like."

Daisy seems hesitant to eat at the table, previously taking all her meals in private, but at the gorgon's request she sits down on the rug beside Eben.

The half-elf begins to dig in, ready to taste what the nun had whipped up. He sighs contentedly as he takes a bite of the simple meal. The taste of cinnamon pairs perfectly with the creamy honey-sweetened oatmeal, and Eben almost feels the healing power of the ginger root as he washes the meal down.

As they eat, Eben starts up the conversation. "Adder, Since it's raining so hard today, I thought it would be a good idea to focus on doing a deep clean indoors today."

Adder seems to tense at Eben directing a question at him, frowning. The reaction makes the half-elf a little frustrated, but he tries to be understanding.

"That sounds fine to me."

"Ah and... I wanted to clean Helia's room."

When Adder stiffens further, Eben hastily starts to explain. "If you're okay with it, that is. I want to fix the mess I made."

Adder seems uncomfortable, but relents. "If you're careful, I guess it's okay..."

"I'll clean up here and in the bedrooms," Daisy adds.

Permission secured, Eben finishes his breakfast, heading off Helia's study to start the day.

Carefully watching his step in the dark room, Eben lights each lantern lining the stone walls. Now in the soft glow of the amber light, he can inspect the area carefully.

The half-elf surveys the mess, taking note of the piles of books, broken statues, and strewn papers littering the floor. His heart twinges with guilt, remembering it was all his fault that Helia's precious possessions now lay scattered in disarray.

In the far corner of the room, he can see what had frightened him so badly that fateful day; the petrified statue of Helia. Eben approaches warily, almost expecting the figure to rise and chastise him.

The elder doesn't appear in a state of horror or fear like Eben had expected of a petrified person. Instead the woman looks peaceful, albeit a bit eerie, looking up from her position in the oakwood chair. She's smiling, with one arm extended as if taking someone's hand.

Eben turns his attention to the table she's sitting at, noticing several items placed on the surface. There appears to be a thick tome opened to a page, a small carved statue of a young harpy, and an empty china teacup. He wonders if these items were placed here by Adder, or if they were there from the moment of petrification. The pristine dust-free condition of the items, alongside the suspiciously new-looking headscarf on the statue, seems to indicate the former.

Turning away from the remains of Helia, Eben tries to clear his mind. He needs to get started on this mess.

Cracking his knuckles, he begins sorting all the askew items, starting by carefully collecting all the shards of the broken statues. Once they are all placed on the table, he moves on to the books.