New TnT! Some of you were wondering what's happening in Amn right now, so I wanted to oblidge. Strangely, though, this story contains a double-flashback, so I hope it works. :) Hope you like it.

Rose tossed around in her bed, unable to catch sleep for yet another night. The poor half-elf lay awake watching the rain pounding on the windowpanes. The weather outside was horrid again, engulfing Amn in a veil of rain. She almost wished she had been tending bar tonight... if so, she would have stayed at the Mithrest and would have spent the night in a small one-person room.

She sighed again and pulled the covers firmly around her body. It didn't help. The night was especially cold, just like every time it had rained this much outside. In fact, the rain had even penetrated the chimney, dousing the fireplace in the room. Usually if this had happened, Rose would had cuddled up to Laska if she was at home, but not tonight. Laska's place in the bed was empty, and would likely remain that way for quite some time.

Rose grunted in frustration, reached for her robe and huddled it around her body. She hissed when her bare feet touched the cold floor and quickly slid into her fur-lined slippers. It was only a short step through the door to enter the huge main living room of Laska's mansion... her mansion. But Rose missed the chatter, missed the fights, missed the camaraderie. Even in the middle of the night, there had always been someone awake to chat with, someone who'd listen to you. But now, the house was silent as a tomb. She, the maid Lasalla and the three children were the only ones there... and they were all fast asleep.

Now, Rose was used with the house being empty from the many times Laska and her friends were away... but this was different. Though Rose knew in her heart that Laska had to be alive, there was still so much... uncertainly.

She had started seeing shadows playing in the dark corners of the house from the corners of her eyes, but they had always been gone whenever she looked... The living room had never seemed so much wider and larger than it had ever been in her eyes... it was a sign that she had better make her way into the smaller and better lit kitchen behind her. After quickly closing the door behind her, she headed towards the larder to take a small bottle of milk from the cooling room and put it on the stove. Luckily, the kindling was still underneath it so Rose could light it quickly to cook her milk. Hopefully, it would help her to sleep.

She sat down on the kitchen table and spotted the progress report on the repairs to the Swiftwind. Just where she had left it yesterday-night. No doubt Lasalla left it lying there on the table for Rose to find and to spend time with it while waiting for her milk to warm up. She fingered through it, and once again read that the ship would be completely repaired soon. The Destroyer had been boated up the river to Silverymoon, where elven shipmasters would repair the ship through traditional elven craft. She knew Laska would approve of that, even though it would be more expensive than to have it done at the local shipyard. Still, 5000 gold was do-able, she felt.

Though finding the money had presented to be a bit of a problem at first. Laska never trusted banks, so she had stashed most of her cash in a safe and heavily trapped place. Fortunately, Laska had told Rose that she stashed her nest-egg into a magic bag which she in turn put in one of the wine kegs in the cellar, which was already a heavily trapped place, seeing the elf was afraid someone would make off with some of her booze.

Unfortunately, Laska never told Rose which keg the bag was in... and there were fifty...

Together with Irylarr, whom also counted on her pay for the trip to Spellhold, Rose probed each and every wine keg with a stick until they finally unearthed the magic bag to pay for the repairs and Irylarr's fee.

Fortunately, Irylarr, though eager to return to her children, checked in on Rose from time to time, to see how she was doing. The two other elves had left the ship. Mook felt it unsafe to return to Athkatla, so she caught a ship to Waterdeep almost immediately upon hitting the docks... Rose had wished her well. As for Limryu, well, he probably had gone back to 'selling' the Athkatla Bridge to Kara-Turan tourists.

Looking over her shoulders, she noticed her milk still wasn't done... so her thoughts drifted towards Laska again... And she dwelled on how much she missed her... and if she'd even come back to her.

"Sir, please leave," Rose huffed as she attempted to get the pushy man to leave the work-area of her drafty over-priced rented home in the bridge section of Athkatla. "I've had a long evening and I want to call it a night." She had gathered enough money today to cover her rent, her bills and could even buy some much needed art-supplies. Luckily, thanks from the generous tip her noblewoman visitor had left her yesterday, she could take the rest of the week away from streetwalking and spent some time in the countryside, painting and relaxing. Those times were luxuries, sadly, and she was looking forward to getting some rest... unfortunately, a lout of a man had come into her work-area as her last customer left and now refused to leave.

He could be called a handsome man by some women. Tall, dark, slightly muscular, charismatic, sweet-talker. But Rose wasn't interested in sweet-talkers right now.

"Oh, come on," the man shot her a roguish grin. "I'll pay up front. And you'll be thanking me when it's over."

Rose darkened on the inside, and struggled to remain polite. "Sir, I am not selling right now. Surely one of my friends outside will see to your needs?"

"Ah, but they are all just common human girls," the man smiled. "I prefer women of elven blood, like you, my dear lady. Ah, your delicate build and elven ears are a sight for sore eyes."

'And for something else,' Rose grimaced as she saw the man's bulging pants. "Ah, but I am a half-elf," she tried. "That means I'm half-common, aren't I?"

"Ah, but your elven blood more than makes up for your flaws," the man smiled, and once again Rose felt herself grow dark inside. "Just let you and I undress on that bed there. I promise you, it's win-win. You get a night of extreme passion and you get paid to boot!"

"The only persons who can actually instill extreme passion in me are other women, berk," Rose all but snarled. "And judging from your flat chest and the bulge in your pants, you're not one of them."

The man's eyes flashed with feeble understanding. "Ah, I see. You've obviously never been pleased well enough by the men in your life, so..."

A knock sounded at the door and Rose groaned. She desperately hoped not another bloke would barge in on her right now. Luckily, it wasn't a bloke.

"Oy!" the man started to say. "I was here before you, so I get to shag her first!"

But Rose smiled. She instantly recognized the woman who now entered her home. It was Laska Leafwalker, the attractive moon-elf she had met two days ago. The elf had run through the district, hoping to solve a horrendous series of murders... and she did, with Rose's help. To Rose, Laska was the most beautiful woman she had ever seen. Aside from her impressive female elven physique, she felt Laska had depth. She was so full of life, so enthusiastic and passionate about everything she did, and to Rose, that was incredibly alluring. Laska was the sort of woman who immediately became the center of every room she stepped in, a woman who never apologized for who she was, made no effort to adjust to society's wishes and radiated an air of confidence...

That, and she had one hell of a sexy body.

She was wearing the tight-leather pants again and one of her revealing vests... Rose found herself blushing a bit as her thoughts drifted back to their more physical encounter after Laska had solved the murders.

The man, in the meantime, blanched white as a sheet. "No, it... it can't be. Not YOU!!"

Laska's eyes, in turn, grew wide. "YOU?! You stupid ass-bastard!!! You sad, wanking turd!!"

"Ooof," the man said as his head dropped on the pillow in the small room at the Three Old Kegs inn.

"Well, that was fun," Laska grinned as she dismounted the man and lay down beside him. "But I have still have to work up a sweat."

"You are one impressive elven lady," the man sighed as he wiped the sweat off his brow.

"You're not done yet," Laska grinned as she turned to the man and let her hands slide over his chest. "And, oh, I see you are, ahum, up for another session."

"Hmm," the man grinned. "You sure are something. I'm gonna pay you double for all the things you've done to me. Wow, that thing with your tongue was incredible... Ermm, could you do that again?"

An uncomfortable silence fell into the room. Laska stopped moving completely... she didn't even seem to be breathing.

"What?!" Laska said, almost inaudibly.

"Ermm, sorry, was that inappropriate?" the man stammered. "You don't have to, if you don't want to."

"Yes, it was inappropriate," Laska snarled. "But what exactly did you mean with 'pay'?!"

"Well, I mean," the man stammered. "I was gonna give you 300 gold. That's twice as much as you prostitutes in Baldur's Gate usually ask for a night, don't you?"

"You... you think I..." Laska seethed with anger.

"Ermm," the man gulped. "The clothes, the come on, the looks you were giving me? Was I wr... Aren't you? You mean you're not a prostitute? But, why were you acting so slutty, then?"

A low growl could be heard coming from the back of Laska's throat. The man shivered as he saw Laska's angry expression on her face... an expression that could only be described as 'demonic'.

"AAAAAAAAAHHH!" the man shouted as he, followed by shards of glass, fell three stories down and met the cobblestone road in screaming pain.

"YOU COMPLETE BASTARD!!" Laska shouted after him from the top-window. "I only wanted to have some fun! Three long steamy sessions of fun, at least! But you ruined it!!"

"Aaaaahh," the man wailed. "I've broken me leg!!"

"I'll break more than that, you wanker!!" Laska shouted from above. Almost instantly, the man felt something sharp after watching something silver zoom by his ear. Closer investigation revealed it was a throwing dagger which had nicked his ear. "NEXT ONE WILL HIT!"

"NOOO!" the man cried and desperately tried to drag himself into a cover while daggers rained down all around him.

"I'm gonna GET DOWN there and CUT YOUR BLOODY BOLLOCKS OFF, you ass-wank!!" Laska shouted and down and withdrew from the window.

The man desperately looked for a way to escape and noticed that a cart was about to leave. In desperation, the man grabbed a chain hanging from the side of it and allowed it to painfully drag his battered body over the cobbled roads. He grimaced, he cried... he shrieked in terror when he noticed the hastily clothed Laska speeding from the inn's entrance with two swords in each hand. Not only that, but the elf was actually chasing after the cart barefoot.

"No, no, no," the man cried when he noticed the elf wasn't only chasing, but also rapidly gaining on the speeding cart.

He held onto the chain for more than dear life as the elf was almost at sword-point now. With no other choice left, the man started to wail : "No, NO! HELM, TORM, TYR, SHAR, CYRIC, SILVANUS, SUNE, SELUNE, TALONA, MALAR, PLEASE, PLEASE SAVE MY PRECIOUS BOLLOCKS!!!"

"NO, NO, NO!" the man shouted, and jumped through the open window in the back Rose's working room. Soon enough, a splash could be heard outside, followed by an 'OW, me leg!'.

"Hmm," Rose said as she looked through the window. "He hit a mooring pole."

"BASTARD!" Laska shouted after him as the man swam away for dear life.

The two women backed away from the window and turned to each other.

"Well," Rose smiled. "You're back in my parlor again, I see. Thank you for getting rid of that maggot, by the way."

"My pleasure," Laska smiled. "Say, um, Rose, I was, um, in the neighborhood and, well, I, well..."

"Say no more," Rose nodded. "I've heard it many times before. But I was just about to close down and go to sleep..."

"No, no, no, it's not that," Laska said quickly and looked away. "I, well, I... I just wanted to see you again."

Rose smiled warmly and could barely contain her surprise. A very pleasant surprise.

"I, well, I wanted to ask you if you'd like to join me for a drink, but if you're too tired, I could..."

"No, no, no, that's alright," Rose smiled as she quickly interrupted Laska and grasped her forearm. Her hands slid down to Laska's and she started to slowly massage the elf's hands. "I'd love to, in fact. Just give me a moment to wash up and I'll join you..."

"So I chased the cart halfway across the city with him squealing like pig all the time," Laska spoke while Rose chuckled. "Would have caught him too, if I hadn't stepped into that broken bottle. Had to hop back to the inn to get it healed."

Together, Rose and Laska had taken a booth in the back of the Five Flagons Inn and were talking pleasantly. The place was very quiet, seeing it was the middle of the night, so both women had a great deal of privacy. The Five Flagons was a pleasant inn, from its cozy size to the pleasant smells of next morning's bread baking in the kitchen.

"How can you be mistaken for a streetwalker?" Rose smiled. "You don't have any of the signs, you know?"

"Signs," Laska asked as she took a sip from her wine. "What signs?"

"Oh," Rose eyes were downcast. "desperation, misery, sadness, loneliness, complete absence of self-worth."

"Sorry," Laska said, cursing inwardly. "I didn't mean to upset you."

"That's okay," Rose nodded. "It's a vicious circle, you know? Once you're into this life, it's very hard to get out. But I still don't understand how you got mistaken for a streetwalker."

"Horniness might have something to do with that," Laska grinned. "It tends to turn brains into mush."

"I know that better than anyone," Rose grinned, but she herself blushed when her eyes grazed at Laska's revealing vest and the impressive bosom it held. She quickly took a draught from her own cup of wine.

"Take my friend Viconia, for example," Laska said and took another sip. "She's a Drow, and last time a Gold Elven trade ship from Evermeet was docked, she walked around with her hood on all the time, because the sailors for that ship kept asking her to join them in the bedchambers."

"Heh, those prissy gold-elves have a taste for half-elves too," Rose nodded knowingly. "But I take it, your friend wasn't too happy about the proposition?"

"Not exactly," Laska snickered. "But it was mainly because she thought those gold elves were crap in the sack."

"Yep," Rose nodded. "That's what all my friends say too..."

Laska fell silent and simply looked at Rose for a moment. When Rose noticed, however, Laska quickly looked away.

"What?" Rose smiled.

"Oh, um, nothing," Laska gulped. "I, um, just think that you have beautiful eyes."

Rose blushed briefly and smiled warmly. Of course, many people had told her had over the course of her career, but she knew that Laska had truly meant it. She decided to reply when she noticed Laska's long dark hair was once again tied in a long braid.

"I wish," Rose smiled as she stood up and walked towards the somewhat startled elf. She turned around and started to loosen Laska's braid, "you'd let your hair flow free."

Rose's fingers worked too loosen the braid and freed Laska's hair. The half-elf slowly and loving brushed the elf's silky soft hair. She pushed some of the dark silk over Laska's shoulders, while letting the rest of Laska's mane flow freely over her back. Of course, Rose enjoyed every moment of it... and after getting back in her seat, she judged from the slight flush on her face, that Laska had enjoyed it as well.

"Wow," Laska grinned. "That's one hell of a brush..."

"You look very good," Rose said.

"I wear a braid when I go adventuring... and most of the day, really. I guess it's a habit that sticks with you. When you fight as much as I do, you don't want hair getting in your face, I suppose. Plus, it took me about 20 years to get my hair this long and I'll be buggered before I get a haircut," the elf grinned.

"Good," Rose smiled. "I like your hair long."

"I notice you've been doodling on your napkin," Laska said.

"Oh?" Rose said and showed Laska her drawing. "Well, it's just a doodle, nothing special."

"This is good," Laska smiled when she saw a quick drawing of herself brandishing two swords and apparently running. "Do you like to draw?"

"Drawing, painting," Rose smiled. "I love it. My art is my soul."

"I may not know much about art, but I know what I like," Laska grinned. "I'd love to see your paintings sometimes."

"Maybe you will," Rose smiled warmly. "Besides, you have an artsy streak yourself. Those tattoos of yours, for example. Very artfully done."

"I love my tattoos," Laska smiled. "They're mementoes, they're decorations, they're... well, they're me."

"I'd like to see them all sometimes," Rose grinned.

"Maybe you'll... study them closely one day," Laska shot Rose a roguish grin.

"I already did, remember?" Rose chuckled.

"Oh, yeah," Laska blinked. "Well, there goes that fine flirt down the crapper, doesn't it?"

Rose laughed and took another drink of her wine. "Oh, my cup is empty."

"So is mine," Laska said and took Rose's hands in her own, softly brushing her fingers with her thumbs. "I guess our date is over then, isn't it? Unless you want me to bring out another bottle."

"No, thanks," Rose smiled. "I hate hang-overs, so I'd better avoid it."

"You don't get a hangover from one bottle, do you?" Laska raised her eyebrows. "It takes about five to ten bottles... and even then it depends on the kind of wine."

"Eh?" Rose blinked.

"Errmm, never mind," Laska said quickly.

"Well, here we are," Laska said after she had taken Rose by the arm and brought her back to her home.

"Yes," Rose smiled as she turned to Laska when they had reached the door. "Here we are."

A silence fell.

"So..." Laska said.

"So..." Rose replied.

"Well..."

"Well..."

"Shall I...?"

"Do you want to..?"

"This is silly," Laska sighed. "I feel like a schoolgirl now..."

Rose chuckled softly. Even though Laska obviously had had a lot of sexual experience, this was new terrain for her and the normally so confident and self-assured elf had become a bit nervous. The half-elf thought it was rather cute and decided to take the initiative.

Rose stood in front of Laska, and slowly slid her hand over Laska's arm until her hand rested on her shoulder. Laska in turn, responded by embracing Rose by wrapping both her arms around her waist, resting just above her hips. They looked each other in the eye briefly before Rose closed her eyes and softly pressed her lips on Laska's. The softness of her flesh was almost overwhelming. Rose slid her hand into Laska's hair as she tentative kiss progress. This, however, was terrain Laska WAS familiar with. The elf slowly parted Rose's lips with her tongue and began her exploration, leading to a most heavenly kiss. The soft probing continued as the two lovers pressed their bodies together and held on to each other tightly.

Finally, after what seemed to be an eternity, the two new lovers broke their kiss, but not their embrace. "When will I see you again?" Laska said as she briefly caressed Rose's cheek.

"Soon," Rose smiled. "Tomorrow evening?"

"Deal," Laska said, watching as Rose unlocked the door and smiled at her one more time before she slipped inside and closed the door.

Laska stood there for a moment. Then, she tossed the keys to her house into the air and caught them again. "Yes!" she whispered into the night.

Hot tears fell into Rose's glass of warm milk as she thought back to her first 'official' date with Laska. "I know you're still alive, Laska," Rose sniffed as she spoke the words into the dark loneliness of the house. "Please, be alive..."