This will (hopefully) eventually be part of a larger plot arc, but for now I just wanted to see who might be interested. Please only post if you're willing to commit semi-longterm. Thanks!
The wagon--if it could even be called such, as it was very nearly a house on wheels--rolled quietly through the gates of Myrkentown one afternoon, drawn by two enormous grey draft horses. The beasts moved slowly, gently leading their burden down the main street. Scarves the color of roses were tied loosely around their massive necks, adding a splash of color to their otherwise modest appearance, but the woman holding the reins was a veritable field of flowers in comparison.
She stared straight ahead with a solemn expression, her dark hair falling in cascading waves over exposed shoulders. A laced cotton corset was worn over a white blouse that reached to just beneath her sharply defined collarbone, while a silk shawl the color of the dusky night sky hung behind her, draped across her elbows. Braided leather belts with scarves and pouches hanging from them crossed her waist and gave way to layered skirts that billowed in colorful tiers around her heeled boots. If her appearance drew attention from the people milling about the streets, she gave no indication that she noticed, her gaze never slipping from where it sat somewhere in the middle-distance ahead of the wagon.
At her side, as if in stark contrast to the woman, sat a rather plainly dressed blonde man strumming a lute, lazily watching the world beyond his perch on the wagon roll by. Messy hair framed a handsome face and bright blue eyes that seemed to catch on points of interest before moving on to other, more exciting venues. A piece of straw hung from the corner of his slightly upturned mouth, and a stripe of hair trailed from his bottom lip to the tip of his chin and along the edge of his jaw, the only thing about his appearance that seemed to be meticulously styled. A comfortable-looking tunic and loose pants hung on his skinny frame, and a simple short sword was propped against his knee, rattling in its scabbard as the wagon bumped along.
The side of the vehicle featured a painted golden star with the features of a beautiful woman drawn upon it. Elegant white words sat above and below the star, reading:
Donnabella, Mistress of the Cards
and
Teller of Fortunes
The odd pair continued their slow journey through the town, making their way South and eventually coming to a stop before the Broken Dagger, the tuneless melody from the man's instrument trailing them the whole way. The wagon creaked as it came to rest, the horses pawing at the ground and nickering as the woman loosened her grip on the reigns. Her companion set his lute down, stood, and stretched with a yawn before hopping off the drivers seat, landing in the grass beside the road.
"That guard did say there were stables, right?" He asked absently, plucking the piece of straw from his lips as he looked in the direction of the tavern.
"There is time enough to worry about that later." the woman replied with a rich accent, gathering her skirts in one hand and stepping off the wagon. "We do not yet know if we will be spending the night."
"Surely you jest?" The man looked nonplussed, if not surprised, at the possibility of another night on the move. "We've been on the road for days. My backside is likely bruised from the time I've spent atop that accursed seat. The least we could do is stay until sunrise."
"You are welcome to stay as long as you wish, if even a driver's seat is too much of a challenge for you to overcome. But I will not be delayed by such things."
"I at least require a drink." he pressed, the corners of his mouth twitching upwards playfully. "I am far less likely to complain with a belly full of mead."
"Do as you will." she said with a dismissive wave, as if shooing him away. "But make yourself useful and water the horses before you surrender yourself to your vices. They are truly deserving of rest."
She held her skirts to the side as she stepped across the grounds towards the tavern's porch, leaving him to care for the enormous beasts. He raised his eyebrows at his companion's back and looked meaningfully at the horse nearest him.
"Bundles of fun, that one."