Passing through the front door of the Mountain View Inn, a cold wind briefly hits the group. Lamp post have already started illuminating themselves for the coming night. The town is much quieter, with many of the nearby shops shuttered. Adjusting his jacket, Markus makes a quick right turn in the direction of the restaurant.

From the sidewalk, Augustus' truck can be seen parked beside the back end of the restaurant. A large portion of the cargo seen earlier is now gone. Nerves begin to grow, which force Markus to stop just across the street from Evergreen. He observes the restaurant to see if anything unusual could be spotted. The large windows show a sizable crowd inside with waitresses moving about between all the tables.

“When we get inside, I'll do most of the talking. I'll try to drag out any information I can. Directions, people, locations, and whatever else.” Markus says to the fae. “If... if this is a set up, don't worry about me. Just go. Don't get in trouble for me.”

“I won't have anywhere to go if that happens... so no.” Aurora says with sly smirk. She flies close to Markus' head and gives him a comforting pat. “Anyways, you'll be fine. I've thought about it and I think you're right about Augustus.”

“Ya, a man like that would probably help a person from Earth rather than give them up to the Acquisition department.” Eclair says with confidence. She then flies close to Markus' face and copies the head pat Aurora provided.

“Now you're both just teasing. Just enjoy the food and stop me if I'm about to say something stupid.” Markus says with a laugh.

Markus feels more confident after the chat with his friends. His feet now carry him across the street and toward the front door of Evergreen. As soon as the front door opens, the sound of numerous conversations and noises fill the air.

Once inside, the group is met with a young hostess with long, black hair. She says “Hello, welcome to Evergreen. Just one... oh! Hello little ones! We usually don't see your kind here.” The young hostess happily waves and smiles to the fae.

“Actually, we're here to meet friends.” Markus responds, then begins looking around the restaurant for Augustus or Abel. Evergreen is a large, square design with cushioned booths at the walls and wood tables in the middle. At the back corner area, Markus spots the pair sitting at a round table. “Found them.”

Markus immediately heads in their direction. The young hostess nods and allows the group to pass. As Markus nears the table, Augustus sees him and calls out “Marcus! Good to see you. Please sit! Hello again ladies.”

Augustus is his gregarious self from before. He is genuinely happy to see Markus and the fae. Abel and him are dressed the same as earlier, but a little more worn out. It looks like they both had a busy day.

Pulling back a wooden chair to sit on, Markus sees everything already prepared. A paper menu, cutlery, and plates are laying in front of him. Eclair and Aurora sit themselves on the table with their legs crossed beside Markus.

As he sits, Markus quickly reaches to his back to make sure the pistol doesn't accidentally show. He feels everything is alright, then focuses on checking the menu. As expected, most of the items are unreadable. Only numeric prices and English words mixed into the menu can be picked out.

“We haven't ordered, but please get anything you like. Everything is on me tonight.” Augustus says with a smile. He seems to already know what he wants, but Abel has his face buried in the menu.

Markus gives a glance to the fae, and then moves the menu over so they can read it too. Eclair and Aurora get the hint. They both start browsing the various items, and begin reading things off.

An idea comes to mind for Markus. He says to Augustus “I'm not from the area, so I've never eaten here. Do you have any recommendations?”

Abel instantly perks up and responds back with “Get one of the burgers. Always a good choice here.”

“Oh, he's right. The steak dinner is also good here.” Augustus interjects, then continues with “I know the head chef. He studied in a culinary class hosted by one of the Earth fellas in Caelum. A lot of the menu is Earth inspired recipes.”

Suddenly, the dinner is already revealing information to Markus. He responds back “Really? That's interesting... I didn't know folks could take those types of classes.”

Augustus is immediately filled with excitement as he says “Yes! It's true. Those poor Earth people stuck in their walled city in Caelum need to pass the time somehow. Classes and lessons of all types get offered to select individuals in the kingdom. It's one of the ways knowledge from the other world is passed along. I actually met my wife in the capital when she was attending studies on Earth fashion. I married into the business!”

“Wow, you must have all sorts of connections in the capital.” Markus says with grin. The night is already off to a good start.

“Of course, I've lived there for decades. Several of my friends are from Earth. Always nice talking with them when I get access for visits.” Augustus replies.

Mentally, Markus notes everything said by Augustus. His connections may prove useful in the future. However, it was clear more information could be learned if the right questions are asked.

“Sir, you're being too talkative again.” Abel says, finally looking up from the menu he is reading.

“It's fine Abel. I'm a clothing merchant for goodness sake. Not exactly important in the grand scheme of things.” Augustus replies in a dismissive manner. “If it was medicine or technology then you would have a point.”

Markus flashes a smile, playing dumb to the intuition Abel has already shown. He turns his attention back to the fae, asking them “Know what you want?”

Eclair and Aurora both nod. Eclair speaks up saying “Aurora and me will share a grilled chicken salad. A human sized portion will be plenty for us.”

“Alright, easy enough. I'm getting a hamburger.” Markus says while laying the menu back onto the table. A small smirk then appears on his face. It's still strange to hear and see fae eating meat. The old stereotypes he knew about their kind certainly don't apply anymore.

A waitress dressed in black slacks and matching shirt arrives with glasses of water for everyone. She even hands off smaller cups with straws for the fae. Grabbing her notepad, she says “Hello everyone, I'm Ellie. Nice to see you again Gus.”

“Same to you Ellie. I saw your sister earlier today when I arrived in town.” Augustus says with a big smile.

Markus realizes what Augustus meant. Looking closely at the waitress, he can see she is a beastial. Brown cat ears twitch beside her head and her tail sways behind her uniform. In her early twenties, with short auburn hair and slender figure. Completely human looking except for the ears and tail.

Introductions finish quickly as everyone is beginning to get hungry. The group orders their food in turns, and Ellie moves away from the table once everyone is done. Markus takes a look around the restaurant as she leaves. A rustic, wood style seemed to be the theme. The walls have pictures and decorations of all manner to match the furniture.

“Tell me Marcus. What do you do for a living?” Augustus asks. The question catches Markus of guard, and he focuses back to the table.

There is a short pause from Markus as he racks his brain for the correct answer. He finally speaks up saying “I gather specimens or notes for researchers. I'm in the area for a job, gathering samples of choking mushrooms and such. Eclair and Aurora are helping me out.”

Eclair and Aurora suddenly freeze at the response said by Markus. They give each other nervous glances before shaking their head in agreement.

“It's not interesting work. I think what you do is more interesting.” Markus says to Augustus. “Meeting all those Earth folk and seeing new things before anyone else. It would be amazing to visit that world. Too bad everyone says it's impossible.”

Augustus suddenly scoots his chair closer to Markus. He's trembling with excitement, leaning over to say “That's not true, most people have that information wrong. There are ways to reach Earth.”

A smile slowly forms on the face of Markus. He can barely contain the growing happiness he now feels. Paths back home do exist, and he's talking to a person that may know the way.