Morning light had only just reached the back garden when Ruan finished lighting the hearth.
The fire caught slowly beneath the kettle. A thin line of smoke slipped upward through the chimney.
He set the lid in place and stepped toward the back door.
Voices drifted in from the garden.
Ruan paused a moment, then pushed the door open.
Outside, the air carried the cool edge of approaching winter.
Near the stone path beside the garden beds, several vegetables had already been gathered and laid out on a cloth.
The beds themselves curved in a round shape, divided by a narrow path that led toward the centre where compost and scraps had been piled together. Moss had built it that way months ago. It kept the soil rich even as the weather turned colder.
Boro stood beside the cloth, holding one of the vegetables in both hands.
Moss crouched nearby, listening.
Ruan stepped closer but said nothing.
Boro lifted the vegetable slightly.
"T-this one… Lapapa."
It was shaped like a small diamond, yellow with scattered brown spots.
"G-good for restoring energy," he said. "I-I think it goes well with beef if grilled."
Moss gave a small nod.
Boro set it down and picked up another.
"This one… Tamato. N-not the same as tomato."
The fruit was round, but its skin was rough and coloured a deep purple.
"N-normal tomatoes are simpler," Boro said. "B-but tamato helps the h-heart… and it's juicier. G-good for stew. O-or pie."
He hesitated.
"J-jam too."
Moss tilted his head slightly, considering.
Boro reached for another vegetable resting near the edge of the cloth.
"This one is Babiri."
Its skin was pale and smooth, almost like a fruit.
"S-sweet taste," Boro explained. "B-but people still call it a vegetable."
He rubbed the back of his neck.
"I-it's rare though. S-seeds are hard to find… so people bake it into cakes instead. N-nobles like it."
Behind him, Ruan spoke.
"I gave some to the chickens."
Boro froze.
"C-Chickens?"
"Yes."
Boro stared at him for a moment.
"M-Master… it really shows you don't care about m-money."
"I do care," Ruan said.
Boro seemed unsure how to answer that.
Ruan crouched beside the cloth, looking over the vegetables.
"Any recipe ideas?"
Boro brightened slightly.
"I-I was thinking of… snail soup."
He picked up another vegetable with an unusual shape.
"Kelsy," he said. "G-good for the gut."
Moss covered his mouth.
Boro looked at him.
"Y-you don't like snail?"
Moss shook his head quickly.
"I-I can cook fish too," Boro added.
Moss nodded at once.
Ruan stood again and glanced toward the inn.
"They'll start hibernating."
He brushed a bit of dirt from his sleeve.
"A little work today."
"Y-yes," Boro said.
***
Light from the back windows had begun to reach the kitchen floor.
Ruan was already at the hearth.
The kettle rested near the edge of the flame, steam rising slowly toward the rafters. He had just set another pot beside the fire when the door from the hall opened.
Miren stepped in carrying his pack.
The blue familiar circled once above his shoulder before settling along a beam.
Miren placed a small brass key on the table.
"I'm heading out," he said.
Ruan glanced up from the hearth and gave a small nod.
Behind him, Boro turned from the counter when he noticed the pack.
"Y-you're leaving already?"
Miren adjusted the strap across his shoulder.
"Classes start soon."
Boro stepped closer, wiping his hands against his apron.
"Y-you should eat first."
Miren hesitated.
"I already ate."
Boro shook his head immediately.
"T-that was y-yesterday."
Miren laughed softly.
Boro was already reaching for a bowl.
Ruan lifted the lid from the pot and ladled stew into it before setting the bowl on the table.
Steam curled upward.
Miren sighed and sat down.
The familiar drifted down from the beam and hovered briefly beside the bowl before settling again.
Outside the open kitchen door, Moss sat at the small table beneath the tree, eating from a wooden bowl. He did not look up.
After a moment Miren picked up the spoon.
"Thank you," he said.
Boro nodded, satisfied.
They ate quietly for a few minutes.
When the bowl was empty, Miren stood and slung the pack over his shoulder again.
"I'll come by after the semester," he said.
Ruan inclined his head.
The familiar lifted from the beam and circled once near the door.
Miren stepped outside.
The door closed behind him.
Ruan picked up the key from the table and slipped it into the drawer beneath the counter.
Behind him, the kettle rattled softly above the flame.
***
Evening settled slowly across the inn.
The last of the daylight had slipped from the garden, leaving the kitchen lit only by the hearth and a small lamp near the counter.
Boro carried another large bowl through the doorway.
Steam drifted from the surface.
"This is the fourth," he said quietly.
Near the table, the traveller bear sat with his paws resting beside the bowl set before him.
On the floor nearby, one of his carriage bears crouched beside another dish, eating slowly.
One of the carriage bears lifted its head briefly before returning to its meal.
Boro placed the bowl carefully onto the table.
The traveller bear lowered his head again and continued eating.
Across the room, Ruan sat near the counter with a folded paper in his hands. His eyes moved across the page for a moment before drifting toward the bears.
He watched them briefly.
Then he returned to reading.
Footsteps sounded on the stairs.
Two travellers appeared in the doorway.
One held a folded sheet.
"Could we have another one?" the man asked. "This one's been used already."
Ruan rose and took the sheet from him.
He passed a fresh one from the cabinet beside the stairs.
"Thank you."
They nodded and carried the clean sheet back upstairs.
Their steps faded along the corridor above.
The kitchen grew quiet again.
Boro wiped his hands on his apron and watched the bears finish their meal.
Moss passed the doorway once on his way back from the garden, glancing briefly toward the bowls before disappearing into the dark outside.
The traveller bear finished first and pushed the bowl away from the table.
The carriage bear continued eating for a moment longer before lifting its head.
Boro gathered the empty bowls.
"Ready?" he asked quietly.
The bear lifted his head once.
***
For a moment the room held only the sound of the fire shifting in the hearth.
Then something carried faintly through the open window.
A long, distant howl drifted across the fields beyond the forest.
Ruan lifted his head.
The sound came again, thinner this time, stretching somewhere deeper behind the inn.
He glanced toward the kitchen doorway.
Boro was rinsing the bowls.
No one reacted.
The sound faded into the night.
Ruan listened a moment longer.
Then he lowered his gaze and continued reading.
The paper rustled softly in the quiet room.