Le moment où Spook a expliqué l'épidémie qui s'était apparemment propagée à ces félidraques, Lily a laissé perdre un soupir de longue haleine. Pendant un instant, elle saignait, sa tête s'inclinait entre ses épaules, puis elle se tenait debout et se brossait les mains, assez vite le moment d'épuisement aurait pu être juste un tour de la lumière, des épaules en arrière et du menton haut.
« Merci, Spook, » dit-elle agréablement, se détournant d'un dernier coup d'oeil sur la terre herbeuse innocente où le cercle magique avait lain quelques instants auparavant. Elle a posé ses mains sur ses hanches, en hurlant au voyageur. "C'est très agréable de savoir ce qui se passe, pour une fois. Cependant, c'est aussi agréable de donner une chance aux petits bêtes, non?" Personnellement, une fois que l'ampleur du problème a été révélée, Lily était plus disposée à écouter Spook, tant qu'il avait une bonne raison – les félidraques étaient mignons, mais une poignée de bêtes n'était rien comparé à des villes pleines de pères, de filles, de tantes et de grand-mères.
Lily se déplaçait rapidement pour prendre sa meute d'où elle l'avait mise quand Spook appelait des volontaires au cercle, la réinstallant sur ses épaules et donnant une dernière brosse à ses genoux. Elle était silencieuse – ses mouvements ont signifié son report à la direction de Spook assez bien, et de toute façon, elle ne se fiait pas à elle-même pour parler davantage pour l'instant.
Si les villes environnantes avaient été anéanties par la maladie, qu'était - il arrivé à ses sœurs?
Lɪʟʏ Mᴀᴅʏɴᴇ
A practical lady of the night who has decided it’s time to move on.


Ask anyone in the lower quarter of Enn—Lily (although no one really believes that’s her name) is a florist. A successful florist. A curiously successful florist, actually, for someone who lives in one of the poorest district in the city, where few people have to coin or the urge to buy the delicate blossoms she peddles. Occasionally, she’ll take her wares to the upper districts and actually come home with an empty basket—but that’s not really how she makes her livelihood, and everyone knows it.
Almost six years ago, times were tough on the docks of Enn—there was little work, all of it backbreaking, and much too difficult for Lily’s widow father or her three younger sisters to keep up for long. For months, as the family got closer and closer to starving, Lily tried to find work for herself, and took any and all jobs to keep the family afloat. Every once in a while, though, she’d dream of leaving the city and finding adventure and riches—but she’d never abandon her family like that.
One day, some rich merchant’s boy offered her an entire silver piece for a drunken kiss, and she had her ‘eureka’ moment.
Things quickly escalated, and these days she’s making enough to support herself, her father, and her sisters—all three of whom now have lives of their own, in Enn and in other cities, all of which Lily paid for. The youngest is studying at the Royal University, the next oldest works for a seamstress in the next city over, and the second oldest lives on one of the outlying farms as a stablehand. Their room and board, their food, their tuition, father’s medicine—all of it, bought on Lily’s dime, and she doesn’t mind one jot. As far as she’s concerned, once she crossed the line, she might as well do the best she can. ‘Shameless’ is an understatement—she’s actually very proud of how far her family’s come.
These days, though, things are not as good as they were a year ago, even if her sisters are largely supporting themselves now. Her father’s wasting sickness has only gotten worse, and even with more and more coin going towards his care, his condition declined. Rapidly. With all her experience, she could see what was coming plain as day, but refused to believe it.
She saw the notice calling for Traveller’s companions on a Saturday. Her father died on Tuesday. Today is Thursday, and she’ll be at the east gates with all she owns at the crack of dawn. There’s nothing left for her to do in this city now—time to find those adventures she’s been dreaming of.