You leave the forest safely.

The rest of your trip goes smoothly and just before dusk you and Tara manage to make it to the edge of the forest. Ahead of you lies a small village. There's maybe ten houses, a blacksmith and an inn. You see a road snake off into the distance. The path to the rest of Itheria.

From here, Tara steps forward and leads the way. She moves to the inn and heads in. It's quiet with only a bartender right now. When he sees Tara his expression lightens up, "Ah! Tara! I wasn't expecting you so soon. Weren't you in just the other day?"

She nods, "Of course, but I have some pressing matters that came up and so here we are coming through."

The tender eyes you carefully, "This your man?"

she giggles a little, "No, nothing like that. Do you have a room with two beds available."

He grabs something under the counter and sets it on the bar. It's a key. "For you? Of course."

Tara smiles warmly, "Thank you! I'll be sure to pay you back."

The bartender smiles down at the bar a little bashfully, "Now, you don't have to be paying me any money. Not after all you've done for me and the town."

"Well, thank you very much Bronn." she takes the key and motions for you to follow her. You head upstairs and the two of you slip into a small room with two beds.

You sit on the bed, "I take it you're well known around here."

She nods, "I try to help them out as much as I can. I pass through here quite frequently and want to be on good terms. I treated Bronn's daughter for Sap Sickness."

You've heard of Sap Sickness. It's a magical ailment that is usually contracted by disturbing some of the more whimsical creatures of the forest. It can also be spread through sexual contact with one who has the illness. However, It's rare outside of the regions around The Northern Forests, at least in Itheria. The illness normally results in a sort of madness that causes them the victim to act foolishly and sporadically "So they know you do magic."

She shakes her head slightly, "No...They know that I'm a skilled physician who lives in the forest where i grow medicinal plants. I've never seen a reason to bring up my magic."

"Why?" It doesn't seem to be that big of a deal to you.

"Because, Donmal. There are places where such things are ostracized. Even in places where magical is legal, the backwaters and more rural regions often have superstitions that precede the law."

"I suppose that's true..." You have read history books detailing dangerous witch hunts which would result in several innocent deaths before tensions cool down.

She pulls her satchel off her waist, "Now take your shirt off."

"Hmm?" You look surprised at the sudden suggestion.

"You have a cut on your arm. I want to clean and wrap it." She pokes your arm which causes a pain to jolt up your arm.

"Oh...Right" Because of the adrenaline, you didn't really feel too much when the spiderfolk stabbed your arm, but afterwards both you and Tara were too alert to take care of it and it had simply slipped your mind.

You pull your shirt off and Tara moves onto the bed. She takes a cloth out and pours something into it and rubs the cut gently. You wince a little. there's not much blood, fortunately, but the cut is a little deeper than you remember. Once again you take in the smell of her aroma and find it to be quite woodsy and pleasant. Once she's done wiping the injury down it feels as if there's a dull pain She flips the cloth over and takes another vial. This one is filled with a strange orange liquid. She pours a little onto the cloth and wraps it around your injury. You blink in surprise as the pain fades quickly.

She leans back, a thoughtful expression on her face before she slides off your bed. "You may put your shirt on."

You follow her instruction while pondering that moment. It seemed like she was considering doing something, but decided against it before following through. You wonder what was running through her mind that caused her to make that decision before her voice interrupts your concentration. "So, where do we go now?"

You look over at her and find her watching you from her bedside. It's true that the original plan was to leave the forest for more civilized traveling conditions before making any more definite plans. Unfortunately you haven't yet decided.

Your response is a shrug, "I don't know. Honestly with all that has happened, I was more concerned with just getting out alive."

"Hmm..." she looks thoughtful for a moment. "perhaps it would be best if you slept on it and decide on your own time. We have a few days before we overstay our welcome I believe, but I really don't want to bother the people of this village more than we must. We are getting these rooms for free."

"You're Right. I'll think about it." with that you blow the candle out that lights the room and relax in your bed. Off in the darkness, you hear the shuffling of armor and clothes as Tara changes. Unfortunately for you, it is far too dark to see anything on her side of the room. After a few moments things quiet down and you're left with simply your thoughts.

What do you do from here? Your mind travels back a year or so when you were being taught lessons on the great families of Itheria. There weren't too many in such a small kingdom and fewer that you may explicitly trust.

The Medden Family rules the Duchy of Vismark in Northern Itheria. Their family is one of the most honorable ones in the kingdom and they devote a fierce loyalty to The Crown. They are also the only ones with a sizeable **** that you could rely on and aren't too far away. The land under their rule lies just a few days to the west.

The Loon family would also be a safe bet. Your half-brother Count Martin Loon took charge the county of Luxem after your mother became Queen. However, Luxem is neither large or wealthy. It is, however, close to The Capital and if anyone were to have heard of the whereabouts of your sister, it would be Martin.

You could also simply head for The Capital and confront your mother. Anything other than that would almost guarantee trigger a war. It would be the best way to end the crisis without bloodshed, but you still have no idea how you're going to convince people that you are the True Donmal and not the fake one.

As you drift off, you wonder if you should also talk to Tara tomorrow about the strange rift that seems to have appeared between you and her.