Chapter 208: Soap
The group was quick to shield themselves from the elements and any predators nearby; they found a safe spot near the lake in between some boulders and a few sparse pine trees. The large lake itself was surrounded by trees, almost like they were there to protect it from the plains. The only wildlife nearby was birds hooting now that the evening had grown darker still.
Evanna woke to the smell of cooked meat, making her stomach grumble. She was wrapped in white and grey furs, her head resting on her bag, her boots in front of the blue fire. Axel was crouched before a large leg of meat above the fire, making Evanna’s eyes widen. Had she been asleep so long she missed the group hunting?
"*Here,*" Garrett passed her a metallic plate with some of the meat and an assortment of red, black and blue berries.
Evanna sat up, letting the fur slide down her body and reached for the plate, her brows drawing together at it. "Thin-era," she thanked Garrett.
"*The laughing cats carried quite a lot of essentials,*" Garrett explained after seeing the look of confusion on the princess’s face.
"*I didn’t expect them to carry cutlery and plates,*" Arawn said, his eyes twinkling as he looked from the plate in his hand and to Evanna. He sat beside her, but not as close as she expected but when her eyes landed on the others in the group she realised why. Her friends were keeping a close eye on him like he was the enemy or, worse, some sort of a scoundrel.
"They don’t normally?" Evanna asked as she popped a berry in her mouth, closing her eyes briefly to the sweet taste bursting on her tongue.
"Laughing cats don’t like humans, elves and fae but they are curious creatures. Many years ago, they didn’t use armour or weapons to protect themselves, yet now they do. The plates and cutlery were probably stolen after one of their raids," Fiza replied as her gold and black eyes watched the blue flames.
Ger and Ronan looked between the elves and Evanna back to Fiza, putting together the conversation. "How many years ago are we talking about here? I’ve only ever faced them with weapons." Ger spoke up with a frown on his features.