*This story of accidentally published on my daughter's account, so I'm republishing it here for those who would like to read it possibly for the first time.

Maris Kettering didn't care if the light up ahead on the trail was a nice, warm cottage or a rundown, seedy tavern; they were stopping to get out of this godforsaken rain. She'd been soaked for more than an hour and would kill just about anyone for a set of dry clothes and a hot, steamy bath.

Twenty more minutes of trudging through the rain granted them their reprieve at what looked to be a very nice inn. The door was open and inside lively music flowed out into the night. "Come in out of the wet if you like," came a sing-song voice that belonged to a short, barrel-chested man with a mop of blond hair.

"We appreciate your hospitality."

"That's what we're here for," the man smiled. "Name's Stu Jackson, and this here's my wife Effie."

Maris looked around the inn, her body and mind on alert. After a quick perusal she sighed and approached the reception area. "I'm in need of three rooms if you have them available."

"That we do," Effie smiled brightly. She was a plump woman, dressed in a pretty, homemade dress with an apron over the front. Her hair was pulled up in a bun, but wisps of red curls clung to her face and neck. "Ever since the King's decree, we don't get many visitors. It's nice to have someone to look after."

"How'd you manage to end up on the King's Road at such an hour?"

"Official business," Maris said, "Unfortunately I can't divulge exactly what our mission is, but I can pay you handsomely for allowing us the use of your inn for a night or two."

"We'll charge our regular rate. No one on official business for the king is going to get scalped simply because they can afford to pay."

"We appreciate that ma'am." Maris grinned at Speck. He was massive, despite the insinuation of his name. At six foot-seven inches, he towered over everyone else in their small group. Maris was also tall, for a woman. She stood an easy five-ten and attributed her height to the long bones in her legs and an evenly matched torso.

Maris paid for the three rooms, handing keys to Speck and Drake, who'd be sharing a room with his partner, Reo. "Get clean, get dry and then sleep. We'll wait out this rain, but we'll leave as soon as we see the sun again."

"Yes, ma'am," Speck said, grinning as he met her gaze.

She waited until they entered their rooms, before turning to her own. The click of the lock had never sounded so good, and she sighed as she toed off her boots and felt her feet sink into the plush carpet just past the entryway. Done in butter yellow, the carpet offered a reprieve to her sore feet. But it was the pull of a light from the bathroom that tugged at Maris. She wasted no time stripping off her soaked clothes and all but whimpering when she saw the huge clawfoot tub filled to the brim with steaming water. They'd even put those little flower bombs to fragrance the water. She sank down into the water, not a care in the world that water splashed over the sides in waves. Every muscle in her body lengthened, sighed and relaxed as the heat penetrated all her aches and pains.

Maris toweled off and was more than a little surprised to see a silky nightgown waiting on the massive bed for her. She grinned as she slipped it on and felt it pool around her legs. "You look stunning." Maris whipped around, even more aghast at the man standing in her bedroom.

"How are you here?"

"Does that really matter, when you look like that?" he grinned.

"Of course it matters!" Maris said, instinctively covering her nearly bare breasts. "You can't just be here."

"Why not?" he smiled and Maris felt her insides curl. "You've always wanted an interlude like this, have you not?"

"I..."

"Now, we can finally have that time, and no one has to be the wiser."

Alarm bells started to ring even as Finn drew nearer. Maris felt her body tingle straight down to her toes when Finn's body stepped into her aura. "Do you know how many nights I've dreamed of you, Maris?" She closed her eyes and bit her lip.

"This isn't right," she breathed, even as her body betrayed her.

"I know you want me. You've wanted me for a long time," he grinned and Maris fought to open her sleepy eyes. His lips tasted exactly like she'd imagined when he took her mouth. Skilled in magic, she knew none that could compare to the way Finn made her feel. Was this love? Was this what it felt like to touch true, innate magic that needed no well beyond that of the wielder?

"Wait," Maris said, putting a hand against Finn's solid chest and pushing. She pulled back until she could see the deep green of his eyes. "You knew I wanted you?"

"Of course I knew," he grinned. "I have an enigmatic personality, you're not the first to be interested and I highly doubt you'll be the last."

Maris felt as if someone had splashed her with cold water. And for a moment Maris toweled off and was more than a little surprised to see a silky nightgown waiting on the massive bed for her. She grinned as she slipped it on and felt it pool around her legs. "You look stunning." Maris whipped around, even more aghast at the man standing in her bedroom.

"How are you here?"

"Does that really matter, when you look like that?" he grinned.

"Of course it matters!" Maris said, instinctively covering her nearly bare breasts. "You can't just be here."

"Why not?" he smiled and Maris felt her insides curl. "You've always wanted an interlude like this, have you not?"

"I..."

"Now, we can finally have that time, and no one has to be the wiser."

Alarm bells started to ring even as Finn drew nearer. Maris felt her body tingle straight down to her toes when Finn's body stepped into her aura. "Do you know how many nights I've dreamed of you, Maris?" She closed her eyes and bit her lip.

"This isn't right," she breathed, even as her body betrayed her.

"I know you want me. You've wanted me for a long time," he grinned and Maris fought to open her sleepy eyes. His lips tasted exactly like she'd imagined when he took her mouth. Skilled in magic, she knew none that could compare to the way Finn made her feel. Was this love? Was this what it felt like to touch true, innate magic that needed no well of power beyond that of the wielder?

"But, wait-" Maris pressed her hands against Finn's chest and pushed until she could see the dark green of her eyes. "You knew I liked you, decided to ignore that fact, but now expect me to just 'be appreciative that we can have time together."

"Well there are plenty of women who'd take your place. I even know a couple of men who wouldn't mind being where you are right now."

"That's fine then," Maris said, anger starting to simmer under her skin.

"Come on, Mar-" he said, "We can finally have this time and no one has to be the wiser." Maris turned and felt like an idiot.

"You've said that three times in the last ten minutes."

"So?" Finn said, grinning. "Don't you want to know what it is to be touched by a man? To have a man want you? Afterall, it can't be easy to snag one when you walk around in breeches, barking orders at the men under your command all day."

Maris bit her cheek, willing her eyes not to betray how she really felt. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath and opened clear, serious eyes to see this Finn for what he was. "I'm not interested in anything you have to offer," she said. "Clearly you're only here on some random click of desire I once thought I felt for you."

Maris watched as Finn wavered like smoke before finally disappearing. She felt lighter, as if the air had changed right before her eyes. She poured herself a stiff two fingers of bourbon and then dressed in dry clothes that didn't scream desire and headed for her door.

Maris banged hard on the door that belonged to Drake and Reo. She hollered their names over and over again, until she was sure someone was going to stick their head out of their room and tell her to shut her mouth. Still, no one answered and her irritation turned to concern when not even Speck came to see what was wrong.

Standing as far back as the entry would allow, Maris ran and put her shoulder into the door, groaning when the door didn't immediately give way. The solid strain of the hinges though, gave her enough adrenaline to try again. The second attempt moved the door enough that a solid kick had the door banging open. Even knowing what to expect, she hadn't truly been prepared for the oddity that met her eyes. Both Drake and Reo were stripped down to their skivvies and yelling at an invisible something. She tried to shake them, calling their names.

"What the hell?" she said, unable to shake them clear of their delusion. Then she remembered that both Drake and Reo had a bit of a fix for gambling. She focused on Reo, because she'd known him the longest. "Come on you big oaf!" she hollered, gripping his arm. Reo jerked back, his meaty forearm catching her on the jaw.

"Fuck!" Maris said, wiggling her jaw to make sure her corporal hadn't broken anything she'd need to use later. "God Damit, Reo!"

At the end of her rope with her two best shooters, Maris drew back and kicked Reo right in the balls.

Instantly the weight in the room changed and both Drake and Reo were eyeing her with a mixture of irritation and stunned confusion.

"I don't have time to explain right now," she huffed. "We need to get Speck and then we're getting the hell out of here."

"Let's go," the men said, not even worrying about clothes.

Speck's room was the last, sitting at the end of the hallway. As the youngest of her troupe, Maris had no idea what his vices were. He'd been assigned to her just two weeks before and while he was an amiable sort, she didn't know enough about how he spent his time to know how this place would pull at him. "Speck! You piece of shit, open this fucking door before I kick your skinny ass!"

Huffing and pushing her hair out of her face, Maris growled. "I didn't really think that'd work, but I'm desperate. We don't have time to wait to pull him out. This place is creepy as fuck and I'm afraid too much more will suck him in for good."

"Let me try, teach," Reo said. He knew how much she hated the nickname, but figured it'd give her somewhere to put all that pent-up anger. He knew Maris wasn't one to think rationally when she was worried about the men in her care. Pulling his leg back, Reo heaved a hard kick at the door and felt it splinter as he fell forward. Then Drake was through the door, tackling Speck with little to no preamble.

"What the hell?" Speck said, shaking his head as if to clear it. "What are you guys doing in here?"

"We came to tell you that it's time to go. So get dressed and let's split."

"Already?" Speck said, his soft brown eyes betraying his age and inexperience.

"Right, fucking, now." Maris said. "Meet me in five in the hall."

Maris bit back a groan as she and her team stepped out into the foggy gray of morning. Instead of feeling rested, she felt as if she'd been up for days. Uneasy she pressed her hand to the hilt of her sword as she took point on the King's Road. "We'll stop again as soon as we can, but I'll take more time to vet out our new accommodations before we settle in."

She was still smarting that her magic hadn't done a damn thing to stop the illusions that had nearly sucked the life from them. Still, leaving Stu and Effie barely able to form two sentences between them was satisfying. They wouldn't be hurting anyone else for some time. "You did the right thing," Drake said, stepping up to her right flank. "Even if it wasn't easy."

"I second that, t-" Reo said, grinning when she only glared at him. "Mar."

"I know," she said with a huff. "It doesn't mean I have to like it."

"Using our gifts against those we see as innocent is never easy, but sometimes it is necessary."

"In my head I know that" she said, "But I can't always feel it in my heart, you know?"

"Yeah," Speck said. Maris knew he was the most dejected in her party. At just eighteen, he was so green he practically glowed. But he'd learn.

They walked for days, camping at night around a fire that did little to actually warm them. By day six, Maris could see the toll it was taking on her team to keep trudging along the King's Road.

"You'd think," Drake said dryly, "Since this is the King's Road and all, it'd have more in the way of accommodations."

"Oh, it does," Reo chuckled, with little humor in the sound. "Except none would open their doors to such as us."

"We'll stop in Tarnia," Maris said, knowing it would have plenty of places they could safely sleep. "I've stayed there before and know of several establishments that will welcome both our patronage and any stories we have to share."

Two days later they finally reached Tarnia, but almost immediately Maris felt a shifting in the air that didn't feel familiar or particularly welcoming. She drew her sword, alerting her men to her heightened awareness. "Stay on guard," she whispered. "Whatever's moving through Tarnia isn't going to be happy we're here."

She moved first to the tavern, knowing little would bother the people inside and seeing four dirty, tired travelers wouldn't be shocking to those who frequented suck a place. They stepped through the swinging doors to an eerie silence that sat stiffly inside the establishment. The patrons moved woodenly, smiled too often, spoke formally and even dressed much too fancy for a tavern. Maris looked back at Drake and Reo to confirm she wasn't the only one noting the odd atmosphere. "What the hell's going on, Mar?" Reo whispered.

"I don't know, but whatever it is, it's different than what we encountered at the Inn. Stay close and watch your backs."

Maris caught the scent first, noting the sickly-sweet stench a minute before a Niall came screaming across her vision. Reflexively she stepped back and ducked, turning at the hip and swinging her sword through the middle of the demon spirit. Its screech grated through her head like a serrated blade, instantly setting a headache in place.

She turned to see Drake and Reo battling a Neph, like a Niall, but twice as big and three times as strong. She opened herself to her magic and felt twin blue balls of fire fill her hands. She was going to throw them at the Neph, but in her mind, she heard Speck's shriek of pain. Closing her eyes, she reached out to him, seeking both to comfort and to find.

Images flashed through her mind and then she was moving, barreling through the double doors where they'd entered, she turned toward an alley and found Speck twenty feet in the air, suspended by a fierce wind that sliced at his skin like small, thin blades. Each time the wind moved over him, Speck would cry out and Maris threw the balls of flame, moving her hands quickly to push herself into the air and propel her toward Speck.

She grabbed him around the waist and yanked hard, pulling him into the swirl of wind she used to protect them both.

"Ance petruvius Astor ecte," Maris chanted, feeling the pull of her magic grab Drake and Reo as well. Maris pushed harder, chanting ancient magic that'd strengthen as her team joined her. "Edme ectum patricum emdabellum." Immediately when she stopped chanting the wind died down and Maris stood with Speck, Drake and Reo in a clearing twenty yards out from Tarnia.