The smokey atmosphere of Delosar's Inn, arguably the seediest and rowdiest bar in town, was roughly disturbed by the door opening, giving way to a strawberry-blonde terror on the warpath entering.

Rose briefly scanned the patrons. All seamen, fishermen and an assorted collection of low-lives. So far there was no sign of Laska, but Rose had been to every bar on this side of town, and her lover had to be drinking somewhere.

Slowly, Rose navigated through the growling, brawling, leering, drinking and shouting crowd. It was only when she passed a booth that she suddenly found two arms wrapping around her waist. "Rosie-gal!" she heard the slurring voice of Grady, one of her regulars from her past. He was a greasy man with a greasy face and a greasy slur. Rose fought back the bile as she considered just how many times she had gone up to his room in the past. "Wow, a new outfit," Grady slurred. "My, my, my, very much different from the dresses..."

Rose wore a plain brown, but tight-fitting leather tunic she had bought at the Trademeet market, above the matching leather pants and black boots. The tunic did leave her midriff bare, something which Laska appreciated when Rose modelled it for her lover, but she could not tolerate being pulled to sit unto Grady's lap. She had suffered that humiliation too many times already.

"Ain't seen ya for a while, Rosie," Grady grinned. "Care to catch up on old times? I certainly do. It's still 100 gold for an hour, right?"

Grady's eyes bulged as he felt Rose's elbow connect to his stomach, followed by a shove which sent him headfirst into his greasy chicken-dinner. The half-elf stepped back, and suddenly Grady found himself staring into a sharp and shiny sword. "Trust me," Rose grinned, living out a fantasy she had had ever since the first time Grady had dropped a greasy bag with greasy coins in her hands after an hour of having to endure his sweaty pawings, "you won't be able to afford it this time."

The sword was one of Laska's practise swords, which she had borrowed from the Laska's practise-site in the backyard. So far, her threats worked and Grady backed off, grinning like a fool trying to keep the glowering half-elf from running him through. "Just for your information," Rose menaced, "I'm not in the business anymore..."

"Geez," Grady coughed as he saw Rose walk off and dive back into the crowd, "what's the bee in her bonnet, then?"

Rose, however, didn't hear him. She sheathed her sword and scanned the backroom as she entered it. And there she was... Laska Leafwalker was sitting at the bar, and by the look of the five empty cups in front of her, she had been steadily getting loaded. Rose nodded sadly as she saw Laska's braid swaying ... signifying that Laska was in the process of downing yet another tankard.

"What do you think you're doing?" Laska heard Rose's voice calling out to her from behind. It wasn't so much of a plea, but more of a statement.

"I'm making love to a rhinoceros, what does it look like I'm doing?" Laska shot back without turning to face Rose.

"You promised to tone down on the drinking, don't you remember?"

"Hey, it's only suz-ale... Light stuff, to begin with. I'll have some more Darkfire and then I'll move on to the hard liquor. Believe me, I'll be here all night," Laska said. "Nobody wants me home anyway."

"I want you home!" Rose said. "And your friends want you home."

"Hah!" Laska snorted. "My own sister hates me... Don't you know how much that hurts?"

Rose didn't answer, and Laska still didn't look at her.

"Worst thing is," Laska said, taking another sip from her tankard, "she's right too. I did leave her to rot... I could have gotten her out a lot earlier, but I let her to rot because I was afraid... Afraid to fail..."

"From what you're told me about Irenicus," Rose said, "I don't blame you... but if you weren't prepared to face him, he'd have you both... again!"

"Don't make excuses for me, Rose," Laska shot back. "I'm a failure and a coward. I can't even protect the people I love most."

"Stop being so hard on yourself, Laska," Rose said. "There's no need for this... come home with me, please."

"I'm fine where I am," Laska said. "Go home yourself."

"LOOK!" Rose said, getting a little angry now, while all the other bystanders ignored the lover's quarrel. "You didn't promise Imoen to tone down on the drinking, you promised me. Now come home with me and leave your drinks."

"HAH!" Laska chuckled. "You can't trust me, remember? Just ask Imoen. She'll tell you what kind of failure I am... Heh, it's kind of a pattern, you know? I'm a failure as an elf, I'm a failure as a daughter, I'm a failure as a scholar, I'm a failure as a sister... All I've got going for me is fighting and drinking. And I'm sure I'll have ample opportunity to do both later on. So just go home, I'll be along later."

As Laska turned to grab another cup, she suddenly felt a feminine hand encircle her left ear. Before she could react, the hand squeezed around her ear and softly yanked at it. Immediately, tears started to sting in Laska's eyes, a sharp cry of pain escaped her mouth while her cup fell to the ground. Rose still held Laska's ear tightly, again demanding that Laska return home with her at once.

Laska fought to keep from crying out from pain and turned to Rose to give her a harsh reply, but instead of anger, she saw tears and sadness in Rose's eyes. Laska's expression softened and laid her head on the bar after Rose had released her ear. Rubbing her sore and throbbing ear, Laska slowly sat up. "Dammit," Laska said, "you can add 'failure as a lover' to the list now too." The elf rose from her seat, while Rose wrapped her arm around her waist to guide her home.

Coming to the exit-area of the bar, they once again ran into Grady. The seedy sailor was suddenly ogling Laska as the two passed. "What?!" Grady shouted. "You are... like that?! What does she has, that I haven't got?!"

A sharp crack sounded as Laska's fist connected to Grady's nose, shattering it on impact. "Don't ask for the obvious, git-face!" Laska grinned as she and Rose slipped outside.

"Coffee..." Laska muttered as she sat in the kitchen of her house and felt the dark muck chase away her liquor induced euphoria only to replace it with a numb throb in the back of her head. "I really, really hate coffee..."

"Drink it all up, Laska," Rose smiled and poured a little milk in Laska's cup. The elf ran one hand through her long, dark hair while raising her cup to her mouth with the other. Again, she felt the hot murky liquid slam all the way down into her stomach and cringed.

"I'm drinking already," Laska sighed. "Do I still need more of this stuff?"

Laska felt Rose beginning to softly massage her shoulders. Laska closed her eyes and smiled, allowed herself to be swept away by the sensations. "You know," Rose said after briefly kissing the top of Laska's head, "I really should be angrier with you."

"But you love me, right?"

"Yes," Rose said. "I love you and all your little quirks... but if you ever make me go into that seedy bar to get you again, I'll make sure you'll swallow that sword."

"Ouch," Laska chuckled. "Kinda like a meal with high iron-content?"

"Too much for you too handle," Rose said.

A third person emerged from the doorway. Rose's little sister Risa was looking at them in a rather bemused way and made exaggerated kissing-sounds with her mouth.

"Hey," Rose smiled and walked over to the little girl, scooping her up in her arms. "What are you doing out of bed at this hour?!"

"Lise is snoring!" Risa shouted while Laska smiled and shook her head. So far, the little elven girl Lise was readily accepted by both Risa and Becky, though Lise was still very shy.

"Come on," Rose said. "I'll bring you back to bed."

"Oh," Risa giggled, "you two wanna..."

"Talk," Rose finished. "We have some things to discuss."

"Rrrrrrright," Risa grinned. "Can't use little sister around when you want to... talk. I understand. But you owe me a lollipop in the morning."

Laska looked on as Rose and Risa giggled and chatted together, as two sisters should. She felt her insides churn as she thought back to her earlier encounter with Imoen in her room. She briefly wondered which was more bitter now : her or the coffee she was drinking.

"Laska?" Rose asked. "Would you mind if I put Risa to bed again first?"

"Sure, go ahead, don't worry," Laska smiled. "I'm not going anywhere."

Laska slammed back her last cup of coffee and fought to keep herself from gagging. She leant back on her chair for a bit, only now noticing that from the small kitchen table, she had a perfect view on the pink door to Imoen's room. For a moment she merely stared at it, reflecting how much Viconia, who was still keeping Imoen company, must be hating the pink interior of Imoen's room... Also, Laska reflected upon how funny it was that she actually wanted to be inside that pink room with Imoen, chatting away about everything silly and sillier...

Her heart filled with grim determination as she raised from her seat and strode confidently towards the door to Imoen's door. Standing in front of it, she sighed once and reached out for the doorknob. Her hand floated in mid-air, outstretched towards the knob. At the last moment, she cursed and clenched her hand into a fist.

'Coward' she thought to herself as she turned away and headed towards her own bedroom.

Rose had just tucked in her little sister and had walked into the kitchen to check up on Laska, when she was suddenly surprised not to find her lover there. She briefly feared that she might have run out back to the bar. Relief swept over her when she saw a light in their bedroom. Immediately, she went inside.

"Laska, I put Risa to... Laska?" Rose said, but fell silent when she didn't see her lover. Instead her lover's clothes and belt with assorted throwing daggers were haphazardly thrown over the chair near the bed in a messy tell-tale Laska-fashion. The fireplace in the room, next to the bed had been lit and was spreading its warmth.

Suddenly, as Rose took another step, the door was closed and the half-elf was caught from behind by two strong arms encircling her midriff. "Talk is it?" Laska whispered in Rose's ear while nipping at her lover's neck. "That's all you wanna do tonight?"

Immediately, Laska continued her erotic assault by sliding one of her caressing hands upwards while taking the other downwards at an agonizingly slow pace. "Shut up," Rose whispered and gasped, laying her head backwards on top against Laska's shoulder. The elf didn't hesitate and captured Rose's lips with her own while the sweet smell of her lover's long strawberry-blonde hair aroused her own passion further.

Rose giggled as the elf swept her off her feet, carried her across the room and lay her gently on the bed, again capturing her lover's lips while letting the half-elf rewarded Laska with roaming soft caresses over her upper body.

For a moment, their eyes locked... and, to Laska's pleasant surprise, she found herself being suddenly flipped over by Rose. Sitting on top of her lover, Rose smiled knowingly before raising her tunic over her head and bending down to receive another kiss... It was to be the first of many this night.

The fire was fading, leaving the room with a pleasant flicker of dying light. The two exhausted lovers lay on their side under the covers with their eyes locked as they lounged.

"Sorry I yelled at you," Laska said.

"I say you apologized many times for it just now," Rose smiled.

"Hey, it's my way of saying sorry," the elf smiled.

"I shouldn't have grabbed your ear," Rose sighed. "That was wrong of me."

"Oh, don't mind it," Laska said. "But please, if you plan to kick me in the butt, don't do it figuratively but literally. I prefer my ears to be touched purely as an act of love, if you get my drift."

"I get it," Rose nodded. "It won't happen again," she added, letting her fingers gently slide over one of Laska's long, pointed ears for a moment.

"Hey," Laska grinned. "As long as we're touching," she smiled and let her fingertips graze across Rose's abdomen, "I say our training sessions are paying off."

"They are?"

"Oh, aside from you being able handle a sword now," Laska said, "you grow more beautiful every session. Just look at those tight abs. You last bits of baby-fat are gone..."

"Baby-fat? Hey..." Rose mock-pouted and batted at Laska's of abdomen. "I don't make fun of your beer-belly."

"That's because I don't have a beer-belly, Rose," Laska chuckled.

"Details, details."

"It's a combat-term, Rose," Laska chuckled, "and it means you're getting in excellent shape."

"I had a wonderful... and beautiful teacher," Rose smiled, and the two lovers brushed lips for a brief moment. "Who just happens to also be a complete tyrant..."

"What? In the sack or on the practise-field?" Laska grinned.

"Either way, you're tireless," Rose smiled in reply. "Then again, so am I."

"So, like my new tattoo?" Laska smiled.

"It's lovely," Rose replied while taking a few strands of Laska's hair and twirling it with two fingers. She referred to an elaborate multicolored tattoo of a leafed branch and a sword crossing over each other, depicting both her elven and warrior nature in perfect harmony, which ran from her ankle to her knee on her outer left calf.

"You're the first to see it," Laska said. "I had it done in Trademeet, but then... the whole mess with Imoen's soul being taken..."

"You have to fix this, Laska," Rose said and caressed Laska's cheek. "For both your sake, the two of you have to start talking again."

"Easier said than done," Laska sighed bitterly. "She hates me, Rose! How am I ever going to fix that?"

"She doesn't hate you, love," Rose tried to be encouraging, but didn't know if she was having any luck. "She's disappointed in you, but she doesn't hate you. Things are... fresh, but it's not too late."

"She won't even talk to me."

"Reconciliations will have to come from both sides, Las," Rose smiled. "No doubt Viconia is already lobbying your case. She might never admit it, but that Drow cares too much about Imoen to see her suffer like that."

"I just hope that..." Laska sighed, "we'll be able to be like sisters again... like we were. I meant to save her, Rose, I really did..."

"I know," Rose smiled. "And I think that, deep in her heart, Imoen knows that too. You have to talk to her... first thing tomorrow..."

"We're back to the beginning of our relationship, remember?" Laska grinned.

"How do you mean?"

"You know, we'd start off with wild sex for half the night, then we'd have sensitive chats afterwards..." Laska grinned.

"That's how I fell in love with you, you know?" Rose smiled.

"Because of the wild sex?" Laska winked.

"No, because of our conversations," Rose smiled.

"Did you believe me when I first told you that I was a Bhaalspawn?"

"Not at first," Rose said. "I thought you were just saying that to act interesting but... I saw in your eyes that you were telling the truth. I don't fear you, Laska. You're you, not some mere extension of a mad god."

"I love you, Rose." Laska smiled and kissed the tip of Rose's nose. "I'm so happy that you're in my life."

"My world has gotten a lot better because of you, Laska," Rose said and returned the kiss.

The fire died out and the room darkened. Laska welcomed Rose into a warm embrace just before the two lovers fell asleep in a tight embrace.