Miracle Aligner (D&D, Dragon of Icespire Peak)

a day in the life of a folk hero

sovosil enjoyed the convenience of her work and living space being under the same roof, she has had many years to perfect it into a place of comfort and fun. the bottom floor had her glass shop, with the back half having the furnace and a chest of her many tools thrown into it. the front of the shop displays her most popular items and prized works, windows included as they shine multicolored stained glass. she's proud to see most of the town's windows are her own work, excluding her neighbor and second worst person in sovosil's life. the top floor has her's and her assistant's shared living space that is a bit cramped as she prioritizes most of the top floor to her small laboratory, this is the only area which is left immaculate.
she likes the town too. it's a cute, small city tucked away to the colder, northwest coast. gloomy beaches and a gloomier forest sandwich the place which sovosil and the people of the village find much to do. many are fisherman, few choose to use the forest for income but of those most are lumberjacks. she was actually one of the founders of the city, and the last one alive to still talk about it making her a somewhat involuntary celebrity and figure of the town. but seeing as there's an actual mayor that oversees its wellbeing she just sticks to her own business, and tries her best to make it the most welcoming of a business.
but what she didn't always enjoy of having the convenience of her work and living space being under the same roof was that when people come knocking, it is unavoidable. she had been getting ready for the day slipping on thick welding gloves when the rapping knuckles against glass could be heard, it was still half an hour before opening.
answering the door she didn't expect to see that bard again, and with two other people. "top of the morning! we're opening soon if you'd like to wait." she went to shut the door but ko's hand jutted out to stop it.
"hey sovosil, we actually had some things to talk to you about, what i'd mentioned when we last talked. may we come in?" he shoved his other hand in his bag to dig out the multi-patterned scarf he'd worked on the last few days and waved it out to her, "this is for you."
she locked onto it with interest for a few moments before turning around, "gryn! hurry down we have customers!" spinning back she moved close to face the princess and cher, "hello and welcome to the glasshouse! i'm sovosil, owner and creator of the items you see here aside from some being gryn's own making. most is novelty but some is practical. and i'm currently available for commission work if you have any custom requests. gryn!" she yelled again for him and moved out of the doorway to let them in. inside cher and the princess' eyes moved over the glass art squished onto as much counter space as possible. on the chairs, table, shelves, it was all filled. mainly stained glass depicting mountains, forests, people. some hooked to chains hanging around the shop and bigger pieces stood at the princess' height. glass jewelry overfilled a bowl or two, and a few glass smoking pipes as well. she took the scarf from ko, bundling up with it with an excited smile growing on her face as she studied each piece of fabric used, it was too gaudy in his mind but he tried to get it to match with the earth tones she usually wore. a large figure came into the room, an older gnoll that although hunched over still stood at ko's height. the elf walked up to him showing off her new gift, "guys, this is gryn! see he has the best smile, smile gryn!" she pulled at her own lips making a large smile at him. a very toothy, very sharp teeth, toothy smile slowly came on his face. "i'm gryn, hello."
she turned to them quickly, "i forgot to ask for your names, who are you?"
"this is cher, and you can call me princess. it's nice to meet you!"
"yes and we're not here to shop but to talk?" ko tried again hoping to get sovosil focused, she was still trying to show the other two her wares. she snapped up and invited them upstairs, "a bit messy up here sorry, we don't get visitors too often but i can get you tea or water, just find a place to sit." there weren't actual seats up here, just throw pillows and rugs so they all sat on the ground as she continued to rush around the small space. "okay, i still have time before opening and gryn will be fine if need be, so let's get this business sorted."
ko was sprawled on the pillows, propping up on his elbows to gesture to the three, "i mentioned before that phandalin has a few jobs popping up, before i didn't have a group to consider this, but this could work."
sovosil passed out cups of both tea and water not knowing what they wanted and having plenty of fun cups to show off, "i know you care about money but you know i don't. what makes you think i'd be interested?"
ko turned to face her, "when's the last time you left town? when last we spoke you said you're getting bored, and it'll only be a few days vacation from your busy busy days here. then you can get right back to it when we're done. you get to try out some of your concoctions, formulas, whatever during the trip. this is a chance for hands-on experience if we run into any problems, how about it?"
those seemed to be the words sovosil wanted to hear, her long, pointed ears were perked up and previously light brown eyes flashed with a bright orange glow.  but she moved back in her seat, sipping her tea, "i should really think on it. you're right that things are busy around here," she gestured around with her cup nearly spilling her tea, "i do have a business to run and a village to look out for."
cher and the princess were silent throughout the exchange, although sharing glances at each other at the word 'concoction' and the glow of the elf's eyes. the princess also was able to sneak a couple cubes of sugar which she dropped one in her mouth with a cheeky smile before cher snatched the rest away.
"i can't drop everything just to join you," sovosil had now been arguing with herself,  "i haven't been out of town for a while, but i do have time to kill."
"even so i have a few affairs to settle. give me the day and i'll be ready this evening. gryn!" she stepped downstairs quickly to find the gnoll. of the three left alone in the room, cher looked over the book pile the elf had, curious of her reading. it was mainly textbooks and journal accounts related to alchemy.
"this sets back the time a little." ko said, thinking of what time of day they'll be able to arrive in phandalin over the next few days. the princess grabbed for his and cher's hands pulling them up. he didn't expect her to do it so easily and keep the firm grip on his hand. "this means we have some time to stock up for the road and see the town for a little bit, come on." she swung the arms of the two while bounding downstairs, eager to go see what the village has to offer.
cher slowed down a bit as they got close to the entrance of the store, looking for sovosil, who was bent under the counter. the half orc spoke up, "do you need help?"
the elf poked her head up from her spot, eyes finding the tall woman. she propped her hands to rest her chin on, and rolled her head to the side with a smile, "are you offering?"
"of course, i appreciate you welcoming us."
"alright! i have a few things in mind."
cher nodded, turning to give a pat on the princess' head, "you'll be good to shop with ko?"
"yeah sure thing, does that mean i get my coin purse?"
she hesitated on handing it over, warning her, "don't spend it all on snacks."
but the door was already swinging after the princess' wake, a shout heard from ko being dragged behind her. cher huffed, all their money would be gone by the afternoon.
"so, what can i do?"
"i have a delivery to make to nina, should talk with mayor, and one last surprise for tittycoil before i go," she smiled. "so i could use your help with carrying that to her and on the way back we can stop by mayor's." she made her way into the back of the shop waving cher over. on one of the benches was a large slate, differing green glass pieces formed rolling hills, a few figures sprawled atop the hill with yellow pieces towards the top being the sun rays shining down.
"it's beautiful."
"really? thank you, this one was very adorable. my client gave me a child's drawing to follow which was simple enough to adapt, but she wanted it to be big which kept me busy assembling it."
"assembling?"
"yes! i mainly make stained glass because the process is most fun to me. i collect glass around the town and the beaches then come back to melt it down into sheets. then i make a tracing and number it for cutting and putting it back together, like a puzzle! then i melt some lead along the cracks to keep it all in place."
"what made you interested in this work?"
"i don't know. i got bored and it's calming, though i also like using fire. had a lot of time to figure it out and get better." she started to lift it, cher quickly going around to the other side. she put parchment paper on it to lessen the amount of fingerprints they'd leave while carrying it. the two brought it outdoor, after a few minutes of walking sovosil said, "is cher short for anything by the way?"
"it's cherlindrea."
"a lovely name."
"thank you." cher huffed once more, adjusting it in her hold, she was doing most of the lifting seeing it nearly hang above sovosil's shoulder as she directed them. she studied her companion more, seeing the choppy, dirty blonde hair splayed about with the new scarf on, a twiggy frame with the pant legs of her overalls nearly dragging. she didn't seem bothered by the cold however, even with only a tank top on she seemed to radiate heat.
"morning nina!" she shouted out throwing open the wooden gate to a cottage, some chickens clucking in the yard but otherwise no one was to be seen. it was still pretty early, as she continued to loudly call out, and knocked on the front door, "nina? you home?"
an older woman answered the door, beautiful grey curls growing past her waist seemed to surround her. sovosil smiled in greeting, "hi sweetness, where would you like this put down?"
nina opened the door wider moving out the way, "please, the dining table will do. i'm going to get my glasses i want to take a better look." she disappeared as the two women placed it down. sovosil fished around in the front pocket of her overalls to pull out the drawing, and set it next to her piece.
"oh my. sov this is gorgeous, truly. thank you so much."
"of course, i'm excited for edwin to see. did you tell him?"
"no, he won't be here for another day or two, kester has him working aboard with him, just watching for now seeing how young he is. but soon he'll get to try it out."
"i can't wait to hear what he learned," sovosil said. "i'm leaving myself, i'm not sure when i'll be back but i imagine only a few weeks. won't you miss me?" she leaned foward with a smile forming.
"you? i don't know, maybe i'll take those weeks to think about it."
sovosil reared back, "not nice!" but she came back down quickly to hug her gingerly, "no bother, i'll miss you enough for the both of us."
nina returned the hug, giving her a kiss on the cheek. "take care of yourself then, it's been awhile since you've left. think it'll be good for you instead of holing yourself up here. and a good break for gryn too."
"he will definitely miss me!" she disagreed again, before fixing herself upright "i should get back to him now though, still more to do today."
"good to see you sovosil."
"and you, nina. see you later!" sovosil waved wildly on their out, cher giving a quick one herself. walking out the cottage sovosil lifted her arms over her head, "gosh, isn't she the prettiest girl in town? i remember only a few years ago she got married to that buff fisherman. ugh. they are very cute together of course and she now has a lovely family. and i love that grandson of her's, he's fun to be around when i come to see her."
cher nodded along, wondering if it was only a few years ago they got married or a few years ago is a different amount of time in sovosil's mind.
with the princess and kosumi, walking around town was quiet. the princess fussed with her fingerless gloves, before clasping ko's hand once more. he let her. "so you make clothes as well as a being a performer, is that a hobby?"
"it was my original work, but business went to the ground without enough help, so this was easier in working on my own."
"oh," the princess glanced up at him and his seemingly unbothered expression. "i'm sorry. that must've been really hard."
he rolled his shoulders, "it's fine, i've been making more money lately. and i'll collect even more with these little jobs on the side."
the princess thought a moment, keeping her gaze on him before speaking more, "well let me know if i can help, i only care for money to pay for food and shelter. so extra can go to spot the nice fabrics you like to use."
he chuckled at that, but didn't bother to answer.
shopping went expeditiously with the princess recalling what could be needed in rations and supplies, and ko keeping a close account of the reimbursement he would require from the others. he'd also slip in that they were friends of sovosil to see for a discount, which worked mostly, but sometimes they actually increased the price to his horror. but overall, they all liked her when brought up and would send the two with messages to relay to the elf. mostly just to say hello and thank her. she seemed to do small tasks around town outside of work.
they actually saw the other two walk down to city hall, and the princess ran ahead to catch them.
"you can go back to my place with all that, i'll be there in a bit." she turned and they watched her try to creep inside the building, and only a few moments later a girlish scream was heard and a coughing fit followed by a man's voice, the mayor, scolding sovosil.
the three turned the other direction, making their way back. the princess talked about what they bought and got cher to share about her and sovosil's delivery. they were greeted by gryn on their return, offering to heat up leftovers for them to eat.
it was nice, the cold breeze coming in the windows sometimes brought the salty scent of the ocean close by, and some sov's products that hung outside would clink together and reflect colors on the ground when the sunlight hit them right.
sovosil came back later, and made a beeline for her lab to which gryn waved off their concerned looks knowing she had zeroed in on her research. she had a few things that needed to be wrapped up in the matter of hours and the worry was now seeping in. she decided only a few of her formulas could be used, and had the best possibility of working. storing them carefully, she braced herself for truly leaving. she really hasn't explored anything out of this area, it was nerve wracking but she was also very curious.
it was only a few hours until sunset when she came back downstairs, surveying the group, "i told cher earlier i have one more thing to do related to my neighbor, tittycoil."
"tidycoil." gryn piped in.
she continued, eyes narrowing over each person, "i don't think cher can do it, no offense but your armor might be too loud. and the bard is nearly a walking wind chime. so that leaves me with the little one, can you be quiet?"
the princess nodded quickly, wondering what she had planned for her, a little worried by the smile that crept on sovosil's face.
the two snuck over to her neighbor's property, gone for half an hour. and when they returned the princess' hands were coated in a deep red.
"good god are you alright?!" cher rushed over taking the princess' hands in her's to see it wasn't blood, and the princess couldn't help laughing with sovosil who jumped forward excitedly clasping her hands together, "i forgot to bring gloves for her and i didn't want her's to stain, but it went so well! tittycoil always goes to sleep so early and he didn't even wake this time, so now it'll be a real surprise tomorrow morning. but we should get going just in case." she got her pack, and went over to gryn,  ruffling his hair and hugging tightly. "be good, and look out for everyone while i'm out."
he dropped his head on her shoulder returning the embrace, "i will, i will. you need to be careful, don't get too carried away." she gave him a quick smile and raised eyebrows, both knowing it was in her nature.
ko spoke up, "we should be able to get an hour or two into the journey before nightfall." the four got onto their horses, leaving the coastal town. sovosil waved like a celebrity to those that were still out. they were going around the forest, the elf cautioned that things would lurk around other parts of it, but they wouldn't stray from the forest. she still kept her longbow out.
an hour had passed when ko clocked it first, then cher and the princess noticed. there was scuffling in the shrubs. it was quiet, he squinted to make out a possible squirrel or rabbit. then three small plant creatures launched from the right, barreling towards the group.
sovosil snapped to attention, arrow notched and flew towards one. it sunk into its chest and it let out a cry as it fell backward. the princess sprung off the horse her and cher were on, running straight for the others. she pulled a fist back before slamming it in one which folded at her attack. her second fist missed contact with the other. it immediately countered with claws that caught the princess at her hip and she winced. cher was able to get off the horse, twirling her scimitar. she thrusted it toward the one that hit the princess, but it narrowly missed its sharp point. ko from his horse threw a dagger, poorly, and it nearly nicked cher's ear. she shot him a look.
an even bigger creature suddenly emerged, tall and slender with needles poking out of its body. seeing the arrow in one of the smaller ones it shot out one of its needles at sovosil and it pierced threw her new scarf, inches from her neck. she retaliated with another arrow that hit the creature in its leg. the princess leapt at the smaller one, and missed again but as it dodged this time she was able to hit it hard when it tried to shift its weight to the side. its legs buckled under it, and she let out a breath turning to the bigger one.
but cher swung her blade with a yell, the larger creature already stumbling from sovosil's lodged arrow had no chance to avoid it as it sunk deep and he fell off of it. cher wiped it from the blade.
it was quiet again and the group breathed a moment before cher walked over to the princess, putting a hand over her wound, hands beginning to glow with a warm light as she whispered quietly. then she made her way to sovosil in offering, "it's not much but it should help relieve the pain."
"it's not that bad, but i appreciate it." she gave her a smile but frowned to see the hole and blood smattering her new scarf.
"i can fix that at least." ko said pointing to the scarf with the dagger he picked up. he spun it back to himself at the sight of cher's face, a nervous laugh coming from him, "i'm sorry."
sovosil went over to take a closer look at the creatures, the princess tagging along behind her. the elf poked at the needles in the bigger one, eyes alight. "wow how fun! i don't get to see blights too often."
cher perked up at that, having read about them she never would have imagined she'd see them in person. she joined sovosil and now the two were babbling over the twig blights and the needle blight they encountered. the princess and ko caught eyes, neither familiar with what they just saw. eventually they all agreed they should put more distance between themselves and the forest, as they went to find a place to rest.

author's note: yayy first combat it was so cool rolling for it. and the party is all together now and ready to go! can't wait to get into the adventures. <3