Soon as the girls leave the inn, a middle-aged woman approaches them, wearing the Golden Sun's staff uniform, with a small busket in her hands. "Excuse me... I really shouldn't bother the guests like that, but... did I hear that right? You're heading to the fortress? Can I... ask you for a favor? I've a son, you see - he's a soldier at Dawnshield, and he was supposed to come home today for a leave, so I made some of his favorite food, but... they say shifts were changed, or something, and... it would be a waste to just let it waste, so if you could bring it to him... his name's Merick, Merick Whistle..."