Aleron placed his hand on his palm, embarrassment radiating from him like light from he sun. He had been following them, yes, but something had happened.
He had been walking along when his foot landed in a giant road-apple. He thought he'd stepped in mud, but when he looked down, he found it to be much worse. Quickly to avoid negative attention, he stole away from the group and across the road. He then slipped into an alleyway. He eyed them from around the corner, and then, when they failed to notice his absence, he slipped off his leather sandal and three it away. Blisters had formed on his feet from the day, and as he placed his foot on the ground in the pitch black, he stepped on a couple shards of glass.
"Ow!" He yelled out, breathing heavily and wincing. He grumbled miserably. Hopping on one foot, he emerged from the alley and stumbled to the nearest shop. But as he walked, a scrawny cat darted in front of him, throwing him off balance. He fell to the ground, going unconscious.
He woke up, unsure when, in the middle of the cobblestone road. The shop was directly ahead, so he persisted on. He didn't know how long he was out. His foot throbbed, and he wanted nothing more than an apothecary, or healer. To his greater misfortune, it was a porcelain shop. Aleron burst in, wobbling around on one foot. His head hurt from his fall , and he was having a hard time keeping balance with shards of glass in his foot. He hoped that his constant meeting with the ground wouldn't become a trend. The owner, a balding man with fine clothing, squealed in fear at the sight of the ragged man before him. Aleron tried to plead his case but the owner had none of it. He pushed Aleron towards the door, but it only through the young man-elf off balance and he tumbled further into the store--right into a shelf full of porcelain cups. His eyes grew wide and barely a shriek could escape from the shop owner before it slammed into the next like dominos, and pretty soon all the expensive jade bowls and glass cups and porcelain played were reduced to glimmering sliver on the floor. Aleron completely forgot about the glass in his foot and darted out the door. The adrenaline wiped out any recognition of the pain stabbing at his foot. The shopkeeper roared angrily and burst out of the shop after Aleron.
"You scoundrel!" He screamed. "I'll kin your hide! I'll break your neck! I-I'll rip out your eyeballs and shove them down your throat, so you can watch me tear open your carcass!"
Aleron suddenly heard the shouts of a crowd, and he thought them to be an angry mob chasing after him. Guilt filled him for destroying the dishes, and he wanted to return. But if he did, he most definitely wouldn't survive the night. He set his goal for finding the rest of his group, hoping that maybe they could save him once again from the raging beast behind him.
He meandered breathlessly through the alleys of the city, often ending up in dark corners. The street lamps were his only source of light. He suddenly he burst from an alley and into a main road. He stopped dead in his tracks, a faint wheeze escaping him. Before him was a silver dragon. His stood majestically, and he gawked at it. When he approached it, he realized that none other than Gen and Lorin were on the other side with an unfamiliar elf. They looked as if they were preparing to hop onto the great beast.
"Wait!" Aleron cried out, running to them with his hands waving frantically. "Wait!"
