Entry #1

 Dear Diary, 

My name is Euphemia Tosscobble. Euphemia is the name my Mama gave me. Tosscobble was Horace's last name. Not that Horace and I were married or even betrothed ever, but when people in the civilized world asked me my whole name and were suspicious when I said we didn't have second names where I was from, well, Horace offered me his, and I gladly took it. Now, of course, with Horace gone, I'm the only one with that name...

But I won't dwell on that right now. 

What I will dwell on is all of the wild changes that have taken place in my life over the course of the last eight days. You see, I was hired by a dwarf named Gundron to deliver some goods to Phandalin. Of course, I took the job originally to seek my revenge on Glasstaff for Horace's death, but along the way, we discovered that Gundron had been taken, and I banned together with the others Gundron hired to save him. 

And wow, what a crew. I'm going to jot down a list and my impressions really quick to catalog it all. 

Valenthe - When I first met Valenthe, I was terrified. She is an elf, a full elf, and she's a bard, so she performs and is beautiful, and is totally overwhelming. The days on our trip to Phandalin, I tried to befriend her some, but she was...well...I guess the best way to say it is that she is way too cool for me. And I mean, it makes sense. She's beautiful, and she's clever, and she's obviously good with the fellas (and ladies?). I've been out of my home island for what, a year? And while yes, I met and lost the love of my life in that year, I feel like my life is so dull and colorless next to Valenthe. I mean, she has all of these epic stories that she sings and songs that she plays, and you just know that she has just seen so much of the world, right? Although, now that I think about it, I don't really know much about Valenthe herself. I mean, I told her all about me and Horace, and she said that she'd been with quite a few folks, and did she say she was, like, 100 years old?! I can't even remember. Well, now that we're besties, I can probably ask her about things like that. And yes, I mean it - we're totally best gal pals now! I mean, I'm pretty sure she tried to light me on fire once when we first started off, but killing a lot of things for each other, writing songs and chatting around the campfire a bunch, and then even watching her get macked on by a half-orc (more about that later!!), then you definitely are bound to bond - right? Right! Anyway, Valenthe is awesome. And super powerful. I'm pretty sure she finished off the last two bad guys we fought all by herself. So, yeah, in the last eight days, I've made a best friend, which is something I've definitely never had before, so EEK!

Ulryk - You can't talk about Valenthe without talking about Ulryk. He's her hired bodyguard - not that she needs one! Ulryk is a half-orc, and is pretty effective in battle, although his strategies are sometimes really confusing. Like our first encounter with some goblins, Ulryk just straight up ran into the forest at, like, a 45 degree angle, and I have no clue why! But, I mean, he did end up killing a goblin, and several more since, so I can't fault the guy too much. Ulryk personality-wise is a little confusing. I mean, he is definitely down with killing things. He teases Droop about murdering him all the time, although I don't think Ulryk would actually do it - I'm not sure even he wants to go against Rowan in a fight. But, then, Ulryk's got this little mouse friend he picked up while we were doing some recon one night, and he's just so...tender with it. I thought maybe he'd like another mouse, so I brought him one, but then he tried to kick me! Although, I was a cat, so I guess that could be confusing, but still - WHO TRIES TO KICK A CAT?! CATS ARE THE BEST!!!!!!!!!!!! Anyway, Ulryk also is the half-orc that made out with Valenthe. I mean, I don't know if Valenthe kissed him back - I was a bear at the time, so my senses were more focused on the smell of blood and battle than the vision of romance, but, I mean, Valenthe seemed pretty taken by it, so who knows? I think I've heard catch phrases about business and pleasure, but maybe Ulryk doesn't mind mixing the two?

Rowan - Okay, so on to Rowan. Rowan is, like, the best. He's this huge human dude with a giant red beard that is super long. I really hope he'll let me craft some flowers to braid through his hair one day, because it would be So. Cute. But, I don't think we're quite there...yet! Rowan is a super cool guy. He is really good at chatting with animals, and can even use them to investigate things - so clever! He's also pretty nice! We found this goblin somewhere along the way that was a little bit less terrible than the rest, and at first we kept him just for information, but Rowan got kind of attached, and now he's like her little companion! I mean, I heard he even helped us fight the goblins at the castle and landed some hits too! Rowan also performs sometimes, and even though he's not as good as Valenthe (I mean, who is?!), he's still really fun to listen to! He's also the one I know I can go to if I'm in need of help, because he rarely turns anyone away. Although I would never want to fight him. Not unless I was my bear-self. And even then, I would hesitate. I mean, he gets to this certain point in battle, he just loses his mind and is like a super-powerful-hitting-destructive-force! It's AWESOME! I'm glad he's with us. 

Galador - So, Galador is another high elf. He's an interesting dude. He's a wizard, which, after Glasstaff, didn't make me too drawn to liking Galador, but I try not to discriminate too much based on preferences, but it's hard...the way wizards approach magic like all the mysteries of the universe can be read in a book, or that it's all just secrets meant to be uncovered through any means necessary is just so far from how I connect with magic, that it's hard to understand. I embrace the mysteries of nature, and that acceptance gives me greater power, I think. Although, that's not to say Galador isn't powerful. He has this one spell that makes this, like, cloud of daggers that is absolutely terrifying and definitely powerful. I'm glad to have him as an ally. But, he has made some questionable decisions in the past. This one time, he totally just opened the door to a room full of owl bears! I mean, I think it was an accident, but it definitely created a stressful situation for us. Anyway, I guess I need to get to know Galador better. It seems like he has more going on than meets the eye. 

Rook - Okay, so besides Valenthe, Rook is definitely my favorite. Not to play favorites, but, well, Rook is a bird! Okay, not a bird persay, but a humanoid-bird-thing? I've never come across what Rook is before, but I find him fascinating! And not just for his appearance! Rook also has an interesting quirk in that he can't really speak. Or, at least, it seems like he can't speak unless he's borrowing someone else's words. He's great at imitating voices, and seems to use what we say, or what he's heard, to make his points. This means he hasn't revealed a lot about his past because I guess his powers of description are limited, but he really does such a great job communicating that I don't even think of his imitation-speak as strange! Plus, Rook is crazy good at finding things. Like almost annoyingly so? He found Glasstaff's get-away bag in the Red cloak's hide out, which proved pretty clutch in beating that old crap-bag wizard bastard. But he always seems to have awesome new stuff that I'm a little jealous - like a minute ago, I think I saw him breathing under water! Ugh! I can't even turn into a beast that can swim yet! So jealous! ...Mama would be horrified at me for saying that. She said material things tie us to civilization and keep us from truly becoming one with nature. But, I mean, I have this fantastic hat now, and I feel like nature is pretty cool with me having it sooooo...oh well. I don't really want to think about Mama's disapproval right now. 

Ruuka - Sooooo, Ruuka is probably the companion I know the least about right now. She is this totally badass fighter half-orc, who honestly gives Ulryk a run for his money in terms of who is the better fighter. But she is soooooooo quiet about her past that it makes me seriously question it. I think the one thing that has even hinted at her past is that she really hated the drow that we captured - like wanted to hardcore murder the chick, without any hesitation. I mean, I'm not judging. When I'm a bear, I'll eat pretty much anything in sight, humanoid or not, but I find it a lot harder to kill in human form. I still see Glasstaff's face sometimes in my sleep. Sometimes, I'm me, and I'm murdering him over and over again, and sometimes I'm not me, and I'm watching myself murder him over and over again. I never dream about the people I've killed in my bear or wolf form...but I guess since I was my halfling-self it stuck more? I dunno. Anyway, I get the vibes that Ruuka doesn't have many bad dreams like mine. She did seem to question the drow about some marking on her neck? I didn't get a good look at it, but I kinda want to ask her about it. Although, I'm a little too intimidated to do it. Maybe I could get Rook to ask? Ruuka likes Rook. She calls him little duck. It seems like they know each other pretty well. I honestly can't wait until we all know each other that well. I really feel like we could become a family, you know? At least, I hope so. Ever since my sisters left - since Mama left - I've felt so alone. And I - I hope this is the start of something real - like maybe we could become a family and really help each other? Maybe I could try telling them about my home and the pool and...

Oh, Rook is starting to play the new flute he found! (Another cool thing - *eye roll*) He's pretty good but... oh, but wait, Valenthe is starting to play! And pictures are coming out! Okay, I've got to watch this now! Plus I think Ulryk has finally passed out somewhere? I'm glad. He was rubbing his sword and then poking me earlier, and it was really weird. So, I'm gonna check everything out, but I can't wait to write down more about our adventures! Eek!

Sincerely, 

Euphemia Tosscobble