Chapter 4

Karkat soon found, to his relief, that the forest wasn't infinite. He followed Signless and the rest awkwardly as they led him to the edge of the woods. The trees thinned out as they met a small downard slope, and Karkat could see the glow of lights from a small village in the distance. The group was there in a few minutes, and Karkat looked around with great interest. The village was rural, though that was hardly surprising. Trolls walked this way and that on cobblestreet roads illuminated by lanterns. Small street stores were very common, although there were some kept within the confinements of a stone or wood building. So this is what civilization looks like in the past? Weird. Karkat thought as he continued to observe. However, he couldn't help but notice that some of the trolls who passed him by would give him a strange glance as they went, and he was beginning to feel a bit uncomfortable. Dolarosa must have noticed the looks he was getting as well, for she told the group she would be right back, and she headed over to one of the street shop. Karkat watched as she purchased something from the merchant, then brought it back over to him. She handed him what appeared to be some kind of cloth. "Put this on." She said as Karkat unfolded it confusedly. He then realized the cloth was actually a cloak, light gray and hooded. "Your attire at present is rather... unusal." Karkat took a look at his clothes, only now understanding how strange a sweater and sneakers must look to someone who had never seen them before. He thanked Rosa and slipped the cloak on, letting the fabric fall loosely around him. With that out of the way, he continued to follow the group as they entered a cheap-looking tavern. Then again, Karkat thought, almost everything here looks cheap to me. He once again took a look at his surroundings. The scent of something cooking wafted into his nose, and the chatter of many conversations rang in his ears. He sat down at one of the old wood tables with the rest of the group, and watched as a troll strode over to greet them. "Welcome to the Tavern! What can I get ya today?" He asked in a slightly raspy tone. Karkat let the others order first, so as not to make a fool of himself. Signless ordered some type of hoofbeast meat, Disciple said she'd have whatever fish they had in stock, Psiioniic muttered that he'd have stew, and Dolarosa simply asked for a vegetable plate. When it became Karkat's turn to decide, he stiffly said that he'd have whatever it was Signless was having, and the waiting troll nodded briskly and whisked away, saying he'd come back soon with their food. The table was silent for a moment, and Karkat shuffled in his seat and cleared his throat, his eyes flicking around nervously. Signless then proceeded to laugh hardily, causing Karkat to jump slightly. His ancestor looked at him, then to everyone else. "Come now you all, lighten up a bit. It's not every day we get to eat out on a special occation like this!" Rosa looked to him in slight confusion. "What special occation are you referring to?" Signless smiled, looking to Karkat. "Why, the meeting of our new young friend of course!" Karkat blinked in suprise, unsure how to respond. Not as if he would have gotten the chance, as the meals the group ordered were delivered to them. Signless thanked the troll for serving them, then once again adressed the group. "We eat tonight to thank the forces of fate for guiding Karkat to us. I hope we can assist you on finding your way back home." Disciple and Dolarosa followed him up cheerfully, while Psiioniic only muttered something incoherent. Karkat kindly thanked them for their generosity, then began to work at his food. However, despite the majority of peppy attitudes, Karkat was starting to feel more hopeless than he'd even been.