Eight Intertwined

101 - Watching

Finding H'aanit was a simple affair in the end, something Olberic couldn't have been more thankful for. The huntress sat on a bench in Quarrycrest's busiest square, Primrose to one side and Linde off to the other. H'aanit curled her fingers gently around her snow leopard's chin, tickling at Linde's face with a light smile. Linde nuzzled against her partner's grasp, purring gladly at the contact. The scene was, in a word, heartwarming, but Olberic didn't have time to express that in full. 

Instead, he simply sat down beside H'aanit on the other side of Linde. Primrose seemed to be able to sense something was amiss with him, and she tilted her head to the side ever so slightly. "What are you thinking, Olberic?" she asked. "Is something wrong?"

"I have a question for you, H'aanit," Olberic began. "If you can answer as well, Primrose, then that would be even better." 

"Goen on," H'aanit instructed. She looked up from Linde slowly, and the snow leopard butted at her hand in a bid to get the attention back on her. H'aanit gave her partner a charming smile before she continued to stroke at her head. 

"Have you felt like someone is watching us?" Olberic questioned, and H'aanit immediately perked up. "I can't seem to shake the feeling that someone is here who shouldn't be. They're watching everything we do. I may just be paranoid, but..."

"You know yourself well enough to believe there could be more to it than that," Primrose finished, and Olberic nodded. The dancer thought about it for a moment before shaking her head. 'i haven't sensed anything, but I suppose I'm not quite as battle-hardened as the two of you are."

All eyes shifted to H'aanit, and she took in a careful breath as she sifted through her thoughts. "I went out to hunte with Cyrus yesterday," she began. "While we were waiting for our quarry to arriven, I felt as if someone was watching us. I thoughten it may have only been my imagination, but the longer we sat there..."

"The more you became sure there was more to it than that," Primrose finished for her, and H'aanit nodded. The dancer sucked in a careful breath through gritted teeth. "I suppose that means there must be someone following us then... What are we supposed to do about it?"

"Until we understanden what the spy wanteth, we cannot do much to keepen them at bay," H'aanit pointed out. She sighed and shook her head. "We should do our beste to remainen on guard. If there is someone who seeketh to spy on us, then we must be careful and cautious."

Olberic shook his head as he looked off to the ground below. "I had been hoping perhaps my paranoia was bothering me, but I doubt that's the case," he admitted. "It would make too much sense if somebody was trying to follow us. I have no idea what they could possibly want, but there are at least a few reasons a person may wish to tail us."

Primrose winced, on the verge of listing off the reasons before she held herself back. "We've certainly gotten ourselves into quite a bit of trouble since joining the Kindling journey," she murmured. "Anybody could have started to follow us at any point."

"Looking back, I believe this was always the case," Olberic frowned. "Hindsight is a poor judge of what is happening in the present moment, but I still think this has been an issue for much longer than I expected. The person following us has been on our heels since I joined the party back in Cobbleston."

"Maybe it has something to do with the Kindling," Primrose offered. "I don't know why the church would send someone to spy on us though... I've never heard of the Kindling coming with an escort, provided by the church or otherwise."

"Perhaps our spy is someone else entirely," H'aanit supplied. "If we assumen that the one following us is doing so because of the Kindling, then that leaveth a wide variety of possibilities open to us. Many people may holden ill will against the church and choose to taken that out by following us as Ophilia carries out the faith and tradition."