Katie’s lifeless body rested on a table in the Mirth Tavern. Her mother, Sandra, was draped across her, sobbing uncontrollably.

  The three party members stepped inside. Peregrine had hoped to go undetected, to give Sandra her space. But the floor creaked under their combined weight.

  Sandra’s crying stopped. “I trusted you to keep us safe.” She didn’t bother looking at the group, choosing to remain hovering over her daughter. Her voice was stern and barely above a whisper, like she was struggling to keep her composure. “You’re failures. I should’ve known better than to put my faith in you. Leave Fiddler’s Green. Now. Be gone from my sight.”

  “I-I’m s-sorry,” Wendell folded his hands and lowered his head. “It was my fault. I shouldn’t have been so close to the cellar. If I wasn’t a coward, she would still be alive.”

  “A damn coward who shouldn’t have been so close to my daughter.” Sandra rushed at Wendell and poked him in the chest with her finger. “What good is that shield if you can’t protect anyone?” She poked him in the chest again and again. Her arm swung back to slap him across the face.

  SMACK!

  Alissa caught Sandra by the wrist and pushed her arm down. She slid in front of Wendell, causing Sandra to back off. “Listen, bitch.” Sandra’s jaw dropped. “Yeah, your daughter died. And that sucks. But you can’t blame us. We’ve been here for one day. One day.” She held up a finger and positioned it close to Sandra’s face for extra emphasis. “We got a ten minute tutorial on how this world works and how to use our skills. Do you think that’s enough to turn us into all-knowing master warriors? Well, it fucking isn’t. Do I agree with you that Wendell is weak? Of course I do. That doesn’t mean you get to blame us for your own failure. You’ve had how long to leave town and find somewhere safer? Yet, here you are still. That’s on you, lady.”

  Alissa said what Peregrine was thinking. Though, he’d never have the guts to say something that aggressive. It was distasteful to take the dig at Wendell … but she wasn’t wrong. If he had been somewhere else, or stood his ground, Katie would likely still be alive. He also felt it unfair to focus solely on Wendell. They all had been scared. Hell, Peregrine was still scared.

  Sandra dead stared. But she didn’t say another word. She walked away and sat at the table, grabbing her daughter’s hand and bowing her head.

  The party members didn’t speak, either. Alissa gave Peregrine a light thwap to the stomach and motioned toward the door.

  Once outside, they stood like dummies in front of the Mirth Tavern, unsure of what to do. Most of the activity had ceased for the evening. Leon sat on a chair at the front gate, reading a book under the warm glow of a torch.

  The dead were lined up in the center of town, covered in blankets. A bonfire roared nearby, with a couple of people sitting on logs, appearing to be keeping watch over the bodies.

  Perhaps they could sleep by the campfire. However, the reality of that skeeved Peregrine out. Any open invitation to stay at the Mirth Tavern had likely been revoked. Where would they go? He surveyed the area, finding an answer that didn’t sound great, but was better than nothing.

  “Hey, Pat,” Peregrine yelled, waving her down.

  Immediately, Pat dropped whatever she was doing and hustled over to the group. “Yes, my pet?”

  “Uh.” Peregrine didn’t know how to respond to that. “Do you know of any place where we can sleep tonight?”

  Pat, with sparkles in her eyes, replied, “YES. You can stay at my home tonight. I wouldn’t ask anything in return.”

  Alissa leaned in close and whispered, “Take one for the team, if you have to.”

  Gross. Peregrine scrunched his face at her.

  “That sounds great,” Peregrine said, turning his attention back to Pat. “We won’t be useless, though. If you need anything, just ask.”

  ***

  Pat’s house was just fine. It was only two rooms, but it was large. The structure itself appeared to be constructed with a combination of modern and medieval techniques. The outside walls looked like they were formed with mud, or clay, slapped and molded together. Instead of shingles, the roof was made of straw. Inside, the large timbers used for the frame were exposed. A large cast iron range took up a decent section of the kitchen area. It seemed too close to the wall, considering the whole house looked like a fire hazard. In stark contrast to the outside of the place, the floor was vinyl and there was a bathroom with a normal toilet in the second room. Did they have running water in Fiddler’s Green? And if so, how?

  “Thanks for letting us stay here, Pat,” Peregrine said. “I’m not sure what we’d have done without you.”

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  “It’s no worries,” Pat said, grabbing a pan out of her cupboard and setting it on the cast iron range. She opened a door on the range, revealing a small fire, and threw a few more pieces of wood inside. “I know it’s hard experiencing death like this on your first day in a new realm after having just experienced your own death. Sometimes little gestures can help alleviate it.” A loaf of sourdough bread, and a wheel of cheese, made their way out.

  Pat cooked up a stack of grilled cheese sandwiches a mile high while the party members took a seat at the kitchen table. She even had ketchup to dip them in. All four of them ate in silence until their stomachs were content. After, the party did dishes while Pat pulled out bedding.

  While Pat was in the bathroom getting dressed for bed, the other three got ready in the main room. Since he arrived via casket, Peregrine hadn’t packed any pajamas. He took off his suit jacket and shirt, but wasn’t sure if he should take his pants off. What are the other two wearing? He glanced and saw Wendell already laying on his mat, curled up with a blanket and pillow. Then he saw Alissa and couldn’t help but gawk.

  Alissa stood topless, working on slipping out of her pants. She caught Peregrine staring and rolled her eyes. “It’s a pair of tits, Peregrine, you prude. Never seen them before? It’s hot in this house. I’m not sweating my balls off to keep your eyes from burning out of your skull.” She finished undressing and got into bed.

  Peregrine just cleared his throat, too dumbfounded for words. Of course I’ve seen them before.

  If he was speechless before, what he saw next doubled that.

  Pat came out of the bathroom wearing a purple nightgown, unruly fur covering all her visible parts. She had a gigantic bed in the corner of the room and she plopped on it, the wood creaking under her frame. With a loud yawn and a stretch, she threw herself down and covered up.

  Dear lord, Peregrine thought. Shaking unwanted thoughts of what was underneath the nightgown.

  Everyone was in bed. But Peregrine found himself unable to fall asleep. He was hoping his tiredness would carry him off instantly, but he’d been staring at the ceiling for some time. “Pat?” he asked, wondering if she was awake.

  “Yes, my pet?” she answered.

  Peregrine shuddered. “Do you ever get used to it? All the death?”

  “No one does. It’s horrible. We’ve already encountered death once, and that should be enough. Nobody deserves to go through it a second time.” Pat shifted in her bed. “They say it used to be peaceful here. But that was before I arrived, so I never experienced it. I’m always afraid that I’ll be next.”

  “Why don’t you leave?” Alissa asked, the sudden sound of her voice surprising Peregrine. “No one is forcing you to stay here. You’re free to go.”

  Pat sighed. “I can’t leave. On your planet, was it hard to leave the home you grew up in? Hard to leave your loved ones? It feels like that here for me. It’s the home I chose, and I can’t abandon it. Only one night of the month is deadly. The rest of the time can be quite nice. Everyone stays busy to keep the worries away. We help each other. Protect each other. Home isn’t always a location. Sometimes it’s the people in it that make it home.”

  “I’ve always wondered what that felt like,” Alissa said. “I was a military brat. Never had a physical location to call a permanent home. Never had any constant people in my life to make a home, either. My mom left when I was young. Couldn’t handle the lifestyle. I don’t blame her. I’m glad she didn’t take me with her, because I would’ve become a quitter like her. My dad did his best for me. He was beyond busy, but always made time to teach me. Strict, but fair …”

  Her speech trailed off and Peregrine sat up to see that she had fallen asleep. Pat had started snoring midway through Alissa’s story, so she was zonked out as well.

  That just left Peregrine. He was exhausted, too, and would give anything to greet the sandman. After a short time listening to everyone’s rhythmic breathing, his eyes grew heavy.

  “Psst.”

  The voice sounded far away and his time for shut-eye had arrived.

  “Psst.”

  A stiff elbow to his back jostled Peregrine awake. “Huh? What’s happening?”

  “Can I talk to you?”

  Peregrine rubbed his eyes, his senses coming back. “Wendell? I thought you were sleeping. What the hell, man. You haven’t said a word since the fighting ended.”

  Wendell took a moment to respond. “Yeah. That was really hard.”

  Peregrine stifled a groan. Every ounce of him wanted to roll over and go back to sleep. “What’s on your mind, Wendell?”

  “Do you think Katie was my fault?”

  It was a tough question to answer. On one hand, he couldn’t blame Wendell. It was an accident that could’ve happened to anybody, nonetheless to a human reborn into a fantasy realm using a wooden shield to fight a werewolf. However, he had royally screwed up. He had placed himself right next to the cellar where Katie was hidden. The werewolf hadn’t been causing any damage to him, it appeared. Then, he’d lost his bearings and opened himself up to an attack. And the rest was history. Peregrine knew better than to make the guy feel even more miserable.

  “No. It wasn’t your fault, Wendell. You heard what Alissa told Sandra. You’ve got to let it go. It could’ve been me in your place. It could’ve been one of a hundred of those villagers. Or what if Sandra had been standing there and got knocked into the cellar? A random chance encounter. That’s what it was. Don’t let it eat you up.”

  “I-I suppose so. But did you hear all the screaming? There was so much blood. I never want anyone to have to go through that again.”

  Peregrine had been thinking about this all night and had mostly made up his mind, but this drove the nail home. “So let’s put a stop to it. If the three of us are meant to save this realm, then let’s hold up our end and make sure these people never have to suffer, or die, again.”

  Silence followed, until Wendell spoke up. “I really like the idea of rescuing Fiddler’s Green. But I’m scared. It might be best if I leave. You and Alissa seem like you're strong enough.”

  “No way. I’ve got your back. All of us have one piece of a puzzle, and we need to learn to work as one to keep each other safe. We’re at our strongest together. I know I wanted to get the hell out of this place before. And I still do, but I think a key to that is serving others. Let’s save them.”

  Wendell uttered a soft “OK,” before rolling over and ending the heart-to-heart.

  Peregrine was worried about him, but took the opportunity to finally get some sleep.