No Time to Lose

Janette yawned, opening her eyes and noticing Kou still asleep. Once the drowsiness subsided and her mind was clear, she slipped out of the covers and scooped up her clothes from the ground. Upon getting dressed up, she gave one last glance at her previous night's fling before going out the door.

"Okay, I'm ready." Syri confirmed, getting a smile from her sister. Felix nodded and pushed the window open when they received a knock on the front door. It was morning by now, but he still called out just to be sure.

"Yea?"

"Hey, it's me." He moved over and unlocked the door, letting Janette walk in and locking it behind her. Brushing her hair to the side did little to hide the messy look on her, not to mention the slight smell of sweat on her. Emyri wiggled her nose with Syri frowning. Janette's eyes flashed wide open. "Na'Vi, hey I thought we... what's going on, am I missing something?"

KuliKuli shuffled a bit in her spot, with Reta shrugging her arms. "I'll keep you updated, but you girls need to step it up. Window is closing right now."

Na'Vi and Syri poked their heads out the window, noticing the soldiers freeing the horses and mounting them. The robed man, Perdilius had stepped out into the musky air, inhaling deeply with a wide smile. "Ore! Time moves on, so do we. Let's move!"

Plenty of soldiers agreed and picked up the pace, with one young looking soldier opening the door for Perdilius to step inside his private carriage before taking the front himself. Felix looked over at a nervous Syri, sweat forming on her forehead. "She's right, now or never. Sure you're up for this?"

"No turning back now." Her eyes appeared focused, lifting herself up on the window frame. Closing her eyes, she leaped out and could hear Janette gasp behind her. While in the air, she focused her hardest into the transformation before landing on all fours with hardly any noise made. Felix sighed and noticed Emyri beaming as her youngest snuck her way into the road before climbing up a hanging branch of a tree. As the carriage began to move, Janette realized it's direction was heading underneath the same tree, just right for Syri in cat form to pounce onto the surface and hang on as the men were now on the move.

"She's gunna get caught."

"Hoping she doesn't," Felix replied, quickly turning around with Emyri grabbing his arm. She smirked and placed his hand on her ass, transforming before being lifted by his palm in cat form. Brushing his blush aside, he lifted her to hang on to his shoulder with KuliKuli doing the same with Na'Vi resting on her shoulder. Reta opened the door wide open for them to hurry out, with Janette stumbling in words and thought.

"Wait, what's the plan, what's going on?" She called out before being left alone with Reta.

"You need to pay the bills downstairs. Then I'll brief you in." Janette frowned but sighed, reaching in for her side pouch.

She dropped the pouch atop the round table, counting out the coins in her hand. "You're sure it amounts to that much? Seems a bit pricy."

Nyitzcha the dwarf grumbled and snatched the coins from her paying hands before stomping behind the bar counter and stuffing them away. Looking around, Janette pitied the small girl. The bar looked clean and well kept before, now it reeked of stained booze and man sweat with plenty of empty barrels lying around, stools flipped or broken, and a possible blood mark on the wooden door. "Yeesh, sure hope the pay was worth it."

"Fancy lad certainly paid handsomely, but still gunna take the piss outta me to clean this shithole up. Bloody hell, gunna need that boy to help me wit dis lot." Nyitzcha muttered before jumping atop her bar and into view. "Ye certain there was no damages in 'em beds?"

"Positive."

"Good. Now get steppin, I ain't got all bloody day 'ere!" She cried out, with both girls quickly walking out.

"I get why but she was still being quite bitchy. bet she couldn't sleep." Janette commented, getting no reaction from her friend. She groaned. "Alright so now what? Where did our horse go?"

"Felix said they would need her. How much money do you have left?"

"I don't know, enough for one more night I guess, what's the plan?"

"Na'Vi knows where Dimyri is. She and Emyri are going to take the others to her by cutting through the roads, like a shortcut."

"But what if the others get there before they do?"

"That's what your girlfriend is there for. She's gunna distract them."

Janette frowned. "Not my girlfriend."

"Which about that, you two need to sort your shit out and work this thing out. She knows?"

"Knows what?" The look Reta gave her was enough of a reply. "Oh, but... fuck, the scent. I forgot."

"Drama is not for me, so I'm just gunna say it once. Talk to her. You still got that book with you?"

"Yea, why?"

Reta smiled, a rare sight that caught Janette off guard. "I need to grab something from your place, I figured out how to make that work."