Fire Emblem: Curse of the Goddess [IC / Conditional Acceptance / PG-16]

[Otaku-sama 31]

Abdul smiled as the mayor’s expression relaxed as he drained the last few drops of tea from his cup. No matter where he travelled, a cup of warm tea was an easy way to win favor with almost anyone. However, an uneasy glance from Penelope reminded him to continue being tactful and to not get too comfortable. After all, he was a practitioner of dark magic, something that many people do not understand. Those who witnessed him using it may be right to be suspicious.

"Actually, Pylauses is actually part of the reason I came here. You see, I wasn't just figuring out the details of the fete these past hours. I was also trying to make housing arrangements for you all. I know Alois has his own, but I highly doubt Goodwife Mene has room enough in her house. Er, no offense, Mene."

"No worries. I knows meself that there's not much space 'ere.”

"Anyway, I've cleared out that old house down the road. You know, the one that's been empty for a while now. However, it's rather small, so it might not comfortably fit all of you. And, err, Pylauses has offered to let you all stay at his...manor. He says he has more than enough room."

Abdul stroked his beard as he considered his options. Although Pylauses may be a charlatan and possibly a missionary of a malign cult, staying at his manor accompanied by one of the capable warriors of the princesses’ retinue would be an excellent opportunity to see if his suspicions were correct. After all, after several nights of roughing it, a proper bed would be a welcome comfort for his aching back.

"Well, I don't truly mind where I end up as long as there is a roof over my head. But what of you all? I'm sure Alois doesn't want to share his bed with all of us."

"I think he likes you so why don't you go over to his place? Oh, right. Whatever happens, we can't let Cat stay at Pylauses place. With how she is and how he is I can only imagine that would be...bad."

“Indeed, it is expected for one who considers himself cultured to welcome guests from a distant land such as myself,” Abdul replied, “Although he may be...eccentric... I would not mind spending a night at his manor. My back will appreciate a proper bed after many nights of travelling!”

Abdul then turned towards Penelope, whose expression suggested she was considering her options.

“Will your highness be staying with Pylauses as well? Surely a bed of feathers and silk would be more befitting of someone of your station.”

[Wind Rider 10]

It didn't take long for Icleias to pick up Licorice's scent again, and for Sienna and Phai to start running after him again. Sienna looked over at Phai as they ran, she was rather quick for human, being able to keep up with her and Icleias so well. And since Gunther stayed behind, they could cover more ground more easily. "Come on, Licorice... Where are you?" Sienna quietly mumbled to herself.

It took a bit before they found anything noteworthy until they stumbled upon an old bridge. Phai seemed against crossing it, but Icleias still had a scent and kept going, and so did the duo. They crossed the bridge and almost immediately found themselves in a more swampy terrain. The soft ground practically becoming muck as they slightly sunk into it a bit, so much so that they had to back up.

"This is the Great Marsh," Phai said softly as she stepped back to firmer footing. "We won't be able to go any farther. It's said that those who wander into this place and don't know the way find themselves swallowed up by the place." She gulped. "And I, uhh, don't know the path. There's said to be one, but I wasn't ever taught it."

No... This can't be the end. Even Icleias had given up as he dragged his muddy tail back towards the girls. This was the end of the line. "No... But... We can't just..." After coming this far, Sienna could only look towards the swamp in disbelief. Was her friend really just gone, scared off by something so unexpected? Sienna gritted her teeth and just let a loud, "Licorice!!" Before falling on her but in the mud. Her friend was gone, that was that.

[Cheshire Toon 139]

It was a testament to Link’s ability to control his emotions that his face did not twist into a frown as soon as “Lord” Gaston arrived. No, he simply kept his expression impassive despite the distaste he held for the man and his very frustrating mannerisms. Moreover his attention was quickly stolen by Princess Catriona. Upon locking eyes with Gaston she tensed up; she fell back a step, and it was only for a moment, but the color fled from her face as if she had seen a ghost. 

He was all too familiar with what that signaled. He struggled with the weight of a similar burden everyday. Driven largely by a kindred feeling, Link moved closer to Catriona’s right side. Not so much that it could be mistaken for intruding upon her personal space, but close enough that the princess would be able to sense his presence, to know that she was not alone. Whatever she had suffered through before, he wouldn’t let her face it on her own were it to return. 

"Perforce, are you inquiring as to where you shall be residing after hours? In which circumstance," Gaston spread his arms wide, saying, "My domain is well equipped to accommodate the entirety of you."

Link didn’t respond. Not only was it not his place to speak for the princess, but also he still had no desire to interact with the walking embodiment of everything he hated about noble society. More importantly… he had lost track of Rohns. The cub had escaped his grasp when he was distracted by Catriona and fled somewhere. Link looked around, trying to be subtle so that no one would notice, but at first he saw no signs of a wolf cub.

And then he spotted him. Rohns had snuck up behind Gaston and was leaned back onto his haunches, his butt wiggling in a hunting stance, and then… 

“Rohns!” Link snapped, moving forward.

But it was too late. The cub lunged forward and bit the man on the back of the leg. 
 

[Asriel Dreemurr 38]

Edrick, at this point well and truly having difficulty keeping himself awake nut too stubborn to really let himself sleep either, was fading in and out of the conversation the others were having around him. Something that was all the easier to do with everyone seemingly interested in not bothering him too much. But he did manage to make a little sense of what everyone was saying and what they wanted to do. Why were they talking about marrying Penelope off to this fake noble again? No, wait, that didn't make any sense. Letting them stay at his house didn't mean that... or even imply that really. Then why was she in a- no, no she wasn't wearing a wedding dress. It was hard to make sense of what was real and what his tired mind was throwing out for some reason.

"...though, Eddy's already got my bed covered in...himself, so I wouldn't crowd with all of you in there anyway." And once again Alois got him to laugh in spite of his hurt, exhausted state. And the fact that it didn't hurt so much this time meant he was recovering, right? Well, no point in sitting up all the same. They weren't leaving yet anyways.

"I'm not bleeding that much." He protested quietly, "just let me know when we're going and I'll get up."

[Sethera 290]

Alois, Penelope, Edrick, and Abdul

As the four discussed their action plan among themselves, the mayor glanced pointedly at Mene, who returned his look with one of her own. "Ahem, while you all, er, talk, we'll be right back," he coughed, and the two left the house without further preamble, rounding the corner of another house so they were just out of view of the group. None of the group would be able to hear what they were saying unless they decided to walk outside themselves and listen in.

--

Catriona, Link and Citron

Catriona had expected the others to at least say something, but both of them kept quiet. Perhaps they were intimidated by this man's...swollen vocabulary. Catriona could readily admit that she, herself, was unsure how to react. His manner of speaking reminded her of some of the nobility she'd talked to in the past, but there was something different about it all the same. She just couldn't readily figure out what that was.

Link moved closer, perhaps sensing a threat from the man in front of them. Or he noticed my lapse, the woman thought with a trace amount of bitterness. She mulled over how to respond--it didn't sit well with her to make a choice for the group when most of them weren't present, but this decision could very well mean the difference between them resting in a bed tonight or camping out once more. And it had been quite a while since she had gotten to sleep in an actual building, the empty cabin in the fox village notwithstanding. Not that she wasn't used to roughing it, but there were others who weren't quite so experienced. Penelope, for one. For her sake, it might be better to accept the offer now, and then--

"Rohns!" Link snapped, moving forward.

BGM

Catriona glanced around in confusion. Her gaze snapped forward upon hearing a howl from the man in front of her. He was currently doing a jig, which was a little odd, but--no, wait. He was trying to shake off Rohns, who was currently attached to the back of his left calf.

Horrified, the princess stepped forward...and then stopped. She was no good at dealing with animals. But she could at least smooth things over diplomatically. "My apologies for this! That cub has not been fully trained yet."

"It's a perilous peril is what it is!" the man shook his leg further before reaching down and grasping Rohns by the ears, attempting to pull him off that way. "And you allegate that it's with you?! What kind of barbarosity is this?! And here I took you for refinited citizens."

It took Catriona a second to sift through his words, many of them she had not heard before. While she was not herself an expert in all things lexical--that was more Penelope's area of expertise--she could still claim to have a decent grasp on the language due to her upbringing. And while it could be that this man was of a type with Penelope, the similarities between the terms he used, and actual, existing ones could not be ignored. Thus, there was also a chance he was misusing his words, perhaps due to never learning them properly.

Still, the man's dubious education was of little importance right now. No, what mattered at the moment was getting the wolf cub off of him. And that was a feat that would best be left to Link. "Please calm yourself, Lord Gaston. Link will be able to get him off of you in short order." She turned to the mercenary, hoping that he would, in fact, be able to follow through on that. If not, she would have to help, and she was not confident in her ability to do so. We are fortunate that he is still young, so the wound should not be that deep. Though I doubt that will calm Pylauses's ire that much.

Indeed, the man looked positively apoplectic as he continued to jump around and make a scene. Many of the villagers, who had been ignoring the group as they went about their business, now stopped to stare and point at the scene as they whispered among themselves. Surprisingly, they seemed to be smiling, some even outright laughing, none of them making a move to help Pylauses out with his predicament.

At the back of the group, Remy whinnied in what sounded remarkably like a laugh as well.

--

Sienna

"I...I'm sorry, Sienna," Phai approached the Protean gingerly. "It uhh, sounded like she was pretty important to you, so I'm sorry. But," she perked up, "you could probably ask one of the adults to guide you through the marsh if you wanted. I mean, since there's only one path, so they probably know where she ended up, unless uhh, Licorice went off the path, in which case, she's probably dead." She shook her head in horror. "Agh! I mean, uhh, that came out wrong. She's probably not dead since she's your friend and she was able to cross the river by herself and all. So, umm, yeah, don't worry?" she cringed slightly as she finished speaking.

There was some silence before she spoke up again. "Sorry, I'm not the best at uhh, knowing what to say. Or saying things right. But what I mean is, you could still find her. Maybe. Or uhh, probably! Yeah, probably."

--

Gunther and Tsetseg

The barking continued for a short while before it stopped. It wasn't long, however, before it picked up again, a little louder and faster than before.

---

OOC

Spoiler

Not much going on in this post, mainly just a continuation of previous events. The mayor and Mene have left the house for now, so the main group's free to discuss opinions on housing arrangements. Catriona and company are reenacting a comedy skit, and Phai is trying, however badly, to comfort Sienna. Not much is going on with Gunther and Tsetseg.

Also, I really wanted to use Groose's theme from the Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword for the background music in the scene with Pylauses and Rohns. But I've been careful to use only Fire Emblem music for this RP, with one exception, that being a crossover/reference character, which since it was a crossover character, it made sense to use something non-Fire Emblemish for that. Or at least, that was my justification.

On another note, even though I said I'd be trying to be better at doing quality posts, this wasn't really a good example of that, so I apologize. Still, there's something nice about not spending half a day or more working on a post. One time I actually spent my whole day working on a post! It's nice to have some daylight left after you finish writing. That's the main reason I like summer, actually: the longer days. That, and on summer nights, you can sit outside and look up at the stars and not have to worry about freezing to death. I haven't done that as often lately, though, since it's not fun to get bitten up by bugs.

I guess this OOC seems to kind of meander, but it'd be pretty short and boring otherwise. Then again, maybe it's better to be short and boring for something like this. I don't know.

Edited July 21, 2020 by Waluigi

[LordCowCow 839]

Penelope listened as the others gave answers to figure out where the best place for her to go was. She wanted to be smart about even something as simple as this.

"oh, right. Whatever happens, we can't let Cat stay at Pylauses place. With how she is and how he is I can only imagine that would be...bad." 

Like that. She could imagine Pylauses somehow convincing Catriona that he was actually important. What that would do for the future she didn't know. Though perhaps, in that case, it meant that it would be a good idea for her to stay in that man's so called manor after all. One of them should make sure to investigate him in some way...

“Will your highness be staying with Pylauses as well? Surely a bed of feathers and silk would be more befitting of someone of your station.”

...On second thought. "Oh, no, not at all." Penelope said. Her tone having a bit of an edge to it despite the cheerful smile on her face. "After all I've not been sleeping on silk for quite some time." She looked over to Alois and Edrick. "I think the three of us shall stay here. Someone has to make sure Edrick doesn't try and fight any more statues, right?"

"just let me know when we're going and I'll get up."

She giggled. "Well you don't have to worry about that. We'll be staying here for the night so you can just relax and enjoy Alois's bed."

Maybe she could make Gunther stay at Pylauses's house.

---

Gunther felt a chill. As if an unpleasant task was just hoisted upon him.

"it's alright. Sometimes you don't know what you can't do until you can't do it! And like I said, friends shouldn't leave each other friends behind. So here I am! And there they are!"

Her answer was so simple. So simple that Gunther really wanted to believe it. It'd be nice to not worry so much about what he couldn't do. "You have a...nice way of thinking about things." He said.

Tsetseg then proceeded to give him a full on introduction. Which caused him to chuckle. Catching himself he apologized. "Sorry, I shouldn't laugh. I didn't expect such an...earnest answer." He was glad he asked though. He felt better already.

"I don't know much about you either! And even if I like talking about myself I also like other people talking about themselves too. So, how about it?"

Ah, right. He supposed he should have expected that. He was a bit embarrassed that he had pried about Tsetseg without offering much in exchange.

"Well, I'm not sure I'm as interesting as you but..." He thought about it. He could talk about where he was born but...no, that wasn't a place that would be pleasant to talk about. "I was raised in a castle. The castle of the King of Galtea actually. My mother was a servant there. It was a bit scary sometimes, intimidating, but it was nice. Safe. And there was Catriona, and Penelope, and other servant's children. I..."

The barking was getting louder. And he could tell by Tsetseg's not-so-subtle cues that she heard it. He relented. "You want to go check it out, don't you?"

[Otaku-sama 31]

Abdul eyed Mene and the mayor from behind his cup as they made a hasty exit to talk in private. Their secrecy was not comforting to him in the slightest, even if he did not suspect the village was a nexus of nefarious cult activities. Sudden secrecy always preceded persecution of the outsider, and he was not keen in getting caught up in the village’s xenophobic fervor. However, if he would be able to stay close to at least one of the royal retinue, surely the villagers would think twice before attacking.

"Oh, no, not at all. After all I've not been sleeping on silk for quite some time. I think the three of us shall stay here. Someone has to make sure Edrick doesn't try and fight any more statues, right?"

The cold edge in the princess’ voice clearly showed she had no interest in staying near him for the night. Adbul silently cursing his earlier misstep. If her mistrust was so great, he may have to escape the village at night to avoid being beset by angry villagers.

“My apologies for my presumptuousness, your highness,” Abdul said with an apologetic tone, “I did not mean any offense.”

Abdul looked to the door, making sure the two villagers were out of earshot before continuing.

“I am worried by the mayor’s sudden secrecy. While I do not think the village would dare attack royalty, I fear that I may not be so lucky, especially if they have witnessed the magic I wield. If I were to be alone, the villagers would surely overpower me if they were to descend upon outsiders. If this is the case, I may have to flee at nightfall. I hope you can have sympathy for this common merchant.”

[Skaia 578]

Alois couldn't help but snort at one of Abdul's comments. "Right, 'sudden' secrecy. And I don't know where you're coming from but," Alois waved his hands around saying, "we did just kind of save everyone, and I think the people like you a lot more then they like me. And I wasn't kicked out, I left." Add to that, he doubted the mayor would be so hasty to kick another outside out after the last time he had done so everyone was turned into animals. Shrugging, he said, "but anyway, just don't give anyone a reason to hate you and I'm sure you'll be fine for the time being."

Putting a hand to his chin, the boy said, "well, that seems to be about all the people my house can fit right now." It was obvious that he would be staying at his own place and Edrick had already claimed his bed and he didn't really feel like shooing him elsewhere. And then Penelope was also staying here. As the thought entered Alois's head, the boy thought about it for a moment. His house wasn't actually that big, so he wondered where both he and Penelope would actually sleep. As he thought about it more, he seemed to have a momentary pause in though. Clearing his throat, the boy looked back and continued. "So, we should probably figure out where the others are going to just put them wherever when they get back."

 

Tsetseg cocked her head to the side as Gunther tried to downplay his own living style, which swiftly changed to a very enthusiastic smile. "You got to live in a castle?! That sounds amazing! I've never been in one of those before. In fact, the shrine back at the fox village was probably the biggest building I've ever been in before! So living in something that huge all the time sounds awwesome. And to also live with the princesses at that!" The girl seemed to stare into the sky with a smile on her face, trying to think of just what that would actually be like. However, her attention snapped back to Gunther as he asked about the mysterious barking noise. Nodding, the girl said, "it sounds like it's in trouble so I want to see if it's in need of help." 

[Tiamat's Circus 116]

Citron brought her good hand to her mouth, doing her best to hide her smirk as the scene played out in front of her: what could only be the picturesque symbol of nobility… Getting humiliated by, what Citron assumed, was a few week old wolf-cub. It was impossible to understate who… Out of the blue? The whole thing had been. One moment Citron was focused on Catriona, waiting to see where they were sleeping, what kind of night they would have… And then, unceremoniously, a wolf snuck it’s way into the situation.

It wasn’t until the man started throwing out more and more nonsensical words that Citron found her goal of “not laughing directly in the man’s face” slipping further away from reality. In a last-ditch attempt to save herself, she found herself slipping behind Peaches, of all things, before outright bursting out in laughter. Something about the whole situation was just so… Absurd. It would have been more alarming if she didn’t laugh, but still! She JUST joined their group, she couldn’t go laughing at their first encounter’s misery!

Or, well, couldn’t go laughing at their first encounter’s misery, in front of him. Five feet behind a wyvern? That’s alright.

---

To get snubbed by her Rider? Awful. Terrible. No good. Peaches hated that. But to get snubbed by someone else?! Someone who she had TRUSTED, who seemed more aware of their surroundings than her idiot of a rider? The worst. Awful. Laying down, it was clear to anyone who saw that the wyvern was… Pouting. Very clearly pouting.

[Cheshire Toon 139]

Link was faced with several emotions at once. First off, he held no strong love for any nobles that would lord their position over those lesser born like this Gaston seemed so eager to do. Secondly, the situation in and of itself was admittedly humorous. Rohns had managed to surprise the man, who was no hopping around and dancing, while the citizens nearby shook with laughter and didn't make any moves to help him. The only person who seemed somewhat unhappy with the whole situation (aside from Gaston) was Princess Catriona. Unfortunately, Princess Catriona was the person whose opinion held the most weight to the soldier, so Link decided something had to be done about the situation.

 

He stepped forward and grabbed the cub by the loose skin around his neck; then, in one clean motion, he forced his jaw open and yanked him away. It would cause Gaston some pain but it put an end to the shenanigans almost immediately. "Bad dog," he scolded, holding the cub in the air, who seemed all too satisfied with himself as he dangled. "Don't bite people. No matter how temptin' they are."

[Sethera 290]

Alois, Penelope, Edrick, and Abdul

Through the open door, the group would be a party to several snippets of conversation as various villagers passed by Mene's house. Though most of them were discussions on repairing the damage done to the village, there were also snatches of gossip, much of it uninteresting since most were about people that nobody, barring Alois, knew about.

"An' so, I told Melesus t'go and knock 'is head over the well. That'll learn him!"

"Thile did?! I can't believe it! Don't she know why Achos follers 'er 'round like tha'? An' she told him--"

"I heard Phaidra caught one so big she ended up trippin' o'er it and fallin' flat on her face! The poor girl."

"He did what?! Wait'll Nausa finds out 'bout that! An' Dorosid already bein' in hot water as 'tis."

They also would overhear some conversation about them and their companions.

"I got t'see tha' mercenary helpin' Thile out, an' I almost fainted. Why, if'n I were thirty years younger..."

"I gots ta wonder why Alois came back. Unless...d'ye think he came ta take Cora wiv him too? They always were mighty close, hmm?"

"Didya see tha' giant winged lizard? Doncha think it looks a lot like the--"

"Tha' man tha' came in later, I've heard he's an Isaurian. Tha' 'splains the clothes, but there's somethin' else 'bout him too..."

However, one exchange, in particular, would stand out. A pair of older women were busy laughing as they approached the house, holding baskets filled with tools and materials.

"Tha' was so funny I almost split my pants laughin'!"

"I know, weren't it? I thought ter meself, 'Oh what a darn shame tha' cub can't stay 'ere forever.'"

"I'm not a fan o'wolves, y'know, always takin' the sheep, but I reckon I can tolerate this one, 'specially wiv it bein' a baby an' all."

"Didya see his 'xpression too? My oh mighty!"

"Tha' poor woman, though. 'Avin' ta apologize cuz of tha'. An' ta a person like him!"

"Doncha think she looks a sight more noble too? An' all exotic besides, with her white hair an' everything, an' her being still such a young doe an' all."

"I reckon tha's the only reason the man didn't threaten ta 'ave her 'ead chopped off, or whatever new threat 'e comes up wiv."

"But ya know...I ain't seen Hanikap there. Did ye?"

"No, now tha' ya mention it, I didn't."

"Speakin' of, didya 'ear about what 'e did the other day?"

The conversation grew fainter as the two began to walk past the house.

--

Link and Citron

To Lord Pylauses Gaston, it must have seemed that the world stood against him, beset by an animal, and surrounded by laughter and smiles instead of concerned faces. The only exceptions were Catriona and Link, both of whom stood by with stone-cold gazes, though the former had at least made efforts to ameliorate the situation with words. The man sneered as he turned his face away from the villagers. A smarter man would have wondered what he had done to deserve such a reaction, while a wiser man would have already known, and perhaps accepted the consequences. However, Pylauses did neither.

"The nerve of these pedestrians, to cachinnate as they do!" he shouted, pain kindling his vocabulary, and anger, to new heights. "You!" he pointed at Citron. "Why are you agglutinating with these village yokels?!" he gestured toward himself. "This is an outrageous infuriation! Why I--" he cut himself off with a howl as Link yanked Rohns away from his calf.

"Bad dog," the man scolded, holding the cub in the air. "Don't bite people. No matter how temptin' they are."

"And what are you adumbrating, by tempting?!" the man roared. "I am--"

"Lord Gaston, I must offer you my sincere apologies," Catriona interrupted, lowering her head. "I ask that you not blame either of these two or the animal for what has just transpired, on account of their injuries and the cub's age." That single action, of lowering her head, was both deliberate and graceful, and rather than lowering her dignity, it seemed to raise it. She lifted her head then, dark blue eyes boring into his. "We are all exhausted after being on the road." Though her words were spoken as an apology, her cold expression and stiff back gave a different message. I insist that you overlook this matter or risk censure.

The man broke out into a cold sweat. "Y-Yes, I supposit that makes sense," he stammered, taking out a handkerchief to dab at his brow. "Though I must interject, it is quite unconsciousable that I might offer succorination and receive naught but injuriousness."

The woman frowned, "You are correct. In return for the disgrace we have done you, I can provide some measure of first aid for your wound." She looked over his calf with a clinical gaze. "The bite is shallow at least, and shouldn't need much beyond superficial care."

In turn, Pylauses looked her over as well, the previous fear replaced with rapaciousness. His eyes lingered on her hair, which seemed almost translucent as it took in the blue of the late afternoon sky. "That would be admissible indeed, but what about the sufferance to my dignitary?" He sniffed. "Perforce, as recompensation, you might considerate my priory offering as to your residence for the night?"

The white-haired woman blinked. "Ah, yes. Then if it pleases you, Lord Gaston, I shall accept your generous offer, though I cannot speak for my companions." She turned to the other two. "I will remain here to tend to Lord Pylauses's wound. I ask that you go on ahead and inform my sister of this matter, as well as our possible accommodations."

--

Gunther and Tsetseg

Were either of the two to approach the source of the barking, they would find themselves out of the forest and back in the clearing that surrounded the village, though from a different angle than when they entered. The barking was quite loud now, the source of which showed itself to be a rough collie at the front of a lean-to. An older man slumbered there, seemingly deaf to the dog's cries as he snored, the sound almost as loud as the dog in front of him. The canine pawed at the ground as it barked, ears flattened. Every so often it whined and tugged on the man's clothes, as if to get his attention.

---

OOC

Spoiler

Apologies if the first part seemed inundated with random gossip. I ended up having fun with it and got a bit carried away. Speaking of parts, I didn't include Sienna's part this round, but assume things are still the same over there. Also, if you ever wonder why a part of a post is shorter, it's because I figure it doesn't need much input from me for that round. Usually it means you guys are doing a splendid job of carrying things on yourself, so good on you! 

And yes, this was another post that did not include Catriona's POV. Why? I don't know, because I felt like it, mostly. *shrugs*

So yeah, react and stuff. Or don't react. Since, you know, free will and all. So you could have your characters not react to things, and do something totally unrelated to what's going on. For example, after hearing the gossip, Alois could choose to ignore it, and instead discuss his ultimate dream of building a library. If that is, indeed, his ultimate dream. Which it probably isn't. Unless it is, in which case I'm psychic! Go me!

Edited August 5, 2020 by Waluigi

[Skaia 578]

As Alois was getting ready to divvy up where the rest of their group members were sleeping, on their behalf, he looked outside to hear some manner of gossip happening. The boy didn't care much about it, though he did frown at the comment about Cora. Getting ready to tune them out and simply get back to their task at hand, he instead heard something from a pair of ladies. The boy glanced to Penelope, and tilted his head towards the outdoors as if telling her to listen in as well, as they talked about a few familiar sounding things. 

Once the conversation was over, the boy mused aloud. "A strange woman with white hair and a wolf at her side. And a not so noble noble and Hanikap. Well, how very curious that is." Smiling towards the princess he said, "I'm getting the feeling that our little investigation might give us a bit more info then just how to get this man out of town." As Alois thought more on it, the boy threw his back letting out a sigh. "Of course I was born here so I can't just stay at his place and figure this all out myself. I swear I have some of the worst luck sometimes." Facing his head forward again, he said, "well, whatever. The fact remains that there was another outsider here in town. Must've been recent to be some wives gossip going on about it and it doesn't sound like the same person who cursed the village either. But, maybe we should ask our dear friend the mayor about both?" 

Tsetseg lead the way to the sound of the distressed dog's barking. When she got there, the girl looked back to Gunther, pointing at the dog and the man slumped over saying, "look, look. Over there." To her surprise it didn't seem like the dog was in any trouble at all. Though it certainly seemed troubled as the man it was pawing at didn't seem to be getting up. The girl looked at the man, seemingly with some admiration as she said, "boy he sure is a deep sleeper. I wish I could sleep like that sometimes." However, this seemed like neither the time nor place to nap. And there was a dog that needed help too! 

Walking over to it, the girl looked down at the dog saying, "hey there boy. Is this guy your owner? Do you need him for something? Are you hungry? Did he feed you properly? Oh, I know! I'll ask him too." The girl then grabbed at the man's shoulders shouting, "heyyyyyyyy Missssteeeeeerrr! Waaaaake uuuuuuup!" 

[LordCowCow 839]

"You got to live in a castle?! That sounds amazing! I've never been in one of those before. In fact, the shrine back at the fox village was probably the biggest building I've ever been in before! So living in something that huge all the time sounds awwesome. And to also live with the princesses at that!"

"I...I guess you're right. I don't really think of it as much but..." He scratched his cheek awkwardly as he realized how silly he sounded. Of course it was something amazing. Especially for a commoner like himself. He was going to say more but then Tsetseg went off after the dog and Gunther decided to follow along.

It turned out that the dog wasn't in any sort of danger. From what Gunther could tell they were trying to get their owner to wake up. Maybe it was hunger?

"boy he sure is a deep sleeper. I wish I could sleep like that sometimes."

"I don't know about that...I'm sure I would have gotten yelled at plenty if I slept so soundly." He imagined what the knights would have done to him in training if he slept as deeply, or snored as loudly, as the man.

He moved towards the dog. Ready to try and see what was wrong. But Tsetseg beat him to it. He was content with letting her try but then....

"heyyyyyyyy Missssteeeeeerrr! Waaaaake uuuuuuup!" 

Oh, oh no. "T-tsetseg wait." Gunther said. He stepped forward and grabbed the girl's wrist and pulled her arm away from shaking the elderly man. Once he realized what he did, however, he quickly let go of her. "Ah, sorry. Just...maybe we shouldn't...he might be tired."

Before he could see if the owner was in fact woken up by the girl he crouched down by the dog. Remembering the beavers, though in that case they were actually people, he tried to talk calmly to the dog. "Show us what you need and we can help."

---

“I am worried by the mayor’s sudden secrecy. While I do not think the village would dare attack royalty, I fear that I may not be so lucky, especially if they have witnessed the magic I wield. If I were to be alone, the villagers would surely overpower me if they were to descend upon outsiders. If this is the case, I may have to flee at nightfall. I hope you can have sympathy for this common merchant.”

Alois assured the stranger that he would be fine and Penelope felt he was likely correct. These people didn't seem like much of a threat.

"If they haven't done anything yet I don't imagine that they would later. If anything I'd feel they would be afraid to try especially after they already had to deal with one curse." She paused. "But, if you're that concerned, I do intend to have Gunther stay at Pylauses's manor. I can just tell him to make sure nothing happens. They wouldn't be able to get past him." There was a clear pride in Penelope's voice as she gave praise to the young Knight.

"A strange woman with white hair and a wolf at her side. And a not so noble noble and Hanikap. Well, how very curious that is."

The gossip that they could hear, coming in as though carried by the wind, did intrigue the princess. In particularly the bit about Cora. She never really got a satisfying answer about her and Alois's relationship...

It seemed that Alois had focused on a different part however. Something that, she supposed, was more important. "It would be good to know where that man's pet rat is hiding. I can't imagine it was a coincidence that he, of all the villagers, was the only one in the town hall. But for now we should leave those two to Gunther. There are many questions we need to ask the mayor, some much more pressing than others, but it would be best to ask him tomorrow. Perhaps after he had drank some of this 'specialty wine."

She thought a few more moments, then, "ah." She turned to Abdul. "Do be sure to tell the others of our current sleeping options if you happen upon them on your way to Pylauses's home."

[Tiamat's Circus 116]

Just as soon as Citron had let herself laugh, had she regretted it. The man who was now screaming like a new-born lizard had directe more than a little of his anger towards the amused villagers, and then her, for laughing with them. Taking a moment to stop herself from laughing anymore, Citron moved her good hand towards her face, in a manner to hide her grin. “Sorry, sorry,” she murmured as Lincoln hauled the cub away. “It’s just... Not every day you get to see a man of such high stature mingling with the commoners, and even allowing small animals that could never hope to wound him play around with him.” She did her best to lie, a hand firmly placed over her mouth.

As the situation continued to unfold, Citron did her best to keep her hand where it was - in front of her mouth - and to keep her mouth shut. It seemed, after all, that Catriona had the situation under control. From where Citron was, it was more than evident that this wasn’t Catriona’s first time dealing with this sort of noble; and as much as she herself hoped, Citron doubted it would be their last time either. It wasn’t until Catriona agreed to stay at the man’s home, and then asked her and Lincoln to go on ahead to ask the others for their thoughts, that she found her mouth moving before her brain again.

“Are you sure, Lady Catr- Er…” Citron cut herself off, stumbling over her words. She had said not to be so formal, hadn’t she? But she was also their leader, so shouldn’t Citron just… Accept her orders? As shady as this guy seemed - and he did seem pretty shady - Citron honestly wondered if it would have been better to just sleep in a tent in the forest, but... “Yes ma’am. Mister Lincoln, do you know the way?” She asked, moving a hand to tug on Peaches harness.

---

As Citron moved a hand to pull at the wyvern’s harness, the wyvern let out what could only be described as a defiant, muffled screech. If her rider was going to snub her, she had no problems snubbing her rider. “Screeeeeeeee.” The wyvern groaned, as the human tugged harder and harder on the harness… Finally relenting, and raising to follow, the wyvern slowly nudged against the rider’s free, leading arm. If she wasn’t going to freely give the affection, the wyvern would get it herself.

[Cheshire Toon 139]

Link didn’t flinch when faced with Gaston’s outrage. He had stared down a wall of Pontic cavalry charging with their massive spears leveled at his chest more times than he could count; the earth-shaking thunder of dozens of hooves falling in unison, armor rattling, that had chilled him to the very bone when he was a wet-behind-the-ears soldier paled in comparison to facing off against the undead just days earlier. Gaston and his indignant shouting were comparatively a mosquito, much more likely to annoy the Galtean soldier than to intimidate him. 

Rohns pulled his lips back to reveal his tiny teeth, stained just barely by blood, and snarled at the man. It seemed he wasn’t easily intimidated either. 

Princess Catriona cowed the man into backing down rather quickly though. Link had once heard gossip at the border that the elder child of the Winter King was unsuited to rule; she was awkward, stern, and had no ability to inspire or lead. He had never understood what inspired those rumors. Catriona was among a handful of nobles Link had ever had faith in (the others were the Balfons and the Winter King). She held no love for useless talking or pleasantries, she said what she thought, bluntly, so that there was no room for confusion. She had not only the ability but the backbone to come to the border and to battle shoulder to shoulder with the smallfolk she would one day rule, just as her father before her had once done. That was more than could be said about the scum who had ruled over Nalbina. 

Still. He was unhappy with the idea of leaving the princess behind with Gaston, alone. He had more faith in her ability as a swordswoman than he did his own skills, but when overwhelmed, the skill of the fighter rarely mattered. 

A direct order was still a direct order though. He had the ability to disobey, if the princess’ orders went in direct contrast with her own safety, but in this case he didn’t have enough proof to believe they did. Link grimaced (by his standards, at least, as his brow just barely crinkled). “Yeah. I can show you, ma’am,” he said to Citron, starting forward, Rohns still dangling in his hand.

He did stop as he passed by Gaston. He leaned close to the man and whispered, just loud enough for the two of them to hear, “if you try anything… I’ll hurt you.” There wasn’t a drop of malice in his voice as he said it, rather he was completely casual, the tone of voice one would use to discuss the weather. Not a threat so much as it was a statement of fact.

And then he walked away. 

[Sethera 290]

Alois, Penelope, Edrick, and Abdul

The conversation would continue uninterrupted for some time before the group would catch sight of Link and Citron, followed by Remy, with Ciela still lying on his back, and Peaches. They would also hear the mayor and Mene shouting from somewhere to the side, urging the newcomers to join them.

--

Catriona, Link and Citron

Catriona breathed an internal sigh of relief at seeing Lord Gaston calm down. She wasn't sure what she would have done if he had continued on so. As she was not in Galtea, Galtean rules for offending the nobility did not apply here. Still, her tutors had warned her against offending foreign dignitaries as well, as the consequences could be far worse than if she had slighted one of the Galtean nobility. She still was not sure whether Lord Gaston was an actual lord or not--more likely he was akin to that of a country squire--but she could not be too careful. It would not do to draw unnecessary attention in Histia, even with the blessings of two of the Council of Three.

Thus, it was fortunate that Lord Gaston had accepted her apology, as well as her excuses on behalf of the others. She wasn't sure what had made him change his mind, as he had looked to be working himself up into quite the fit. Perhaps bowing her head had been enough to mollify him. Otherwise, there was a very likely chance that he would have insisted that Rohns be put down, an act that Catriona was sure Link would not accept. No, he would accept it, or at least he would obey. The lord could picture the man bowing as he handed the struggling wolf cub over to her, her raising her sword, and--

She closed her eyes briefly. It seems Link is not the only one that would be unhappy with that prospect. It was ridiculous. She knew he was not the same Rohns she had once known, was not even the same species, and yet the name itself caused her to hesitate where otherwise she would have carried out her duty without further thought.

Thankfully, Lord Gaston had not pressed the issue beyond insisting they stay at his house and treat his wounds. While this was not an issue with Catriona, she thought it best to separate Rohns and Lord Gaston as soon as possible. Citron posed a slight risk as well, having not been able to control her laughter. Though she recovered quickly enough. “Sorry, sorry. It’s just... Not every day you get to see a man of such high stature mingling with the commoners, and even allowing small animals that could never hope to wound him play around with him.”

"Humph," the man sniffed, before thinking it over. "In that case, I might be so magnanimous as to exculpate you. It must seem quite gelastic for a man of my statue to minglesque with the proletariat. Alas, it is my own altruistic heart," he put a hand over his heart, "that enables such. I am a," he winced as he put weight on the bitten leg, "most lenient lord, after all."

Still, it wouldn't do to risk another incident, especially since, unlike Citron, Rohns did not even pretend to look contrite. So Catriona ordered the two to meet up with Penelope and the others at Mene's house. The consequences for the wolf cub biting Alois's mother were far less dire than if he were to sink his teeth into Lord Gaston again.

“Are you sure, Lady Catr- Er…” Citron cut herself off, struggling with herself. “Yes ma’am. Mister Lincoln, do you know the way?” She asked, moving a hand to tug on Peaches harness.

Link, who, in contrast to Citron, looked unbothered by the entire situation, replied with an affirmative, though he stopped as he passed by Gaston to whisper something in his ear. What it was, Catriona couldn't hear, but by the way, the noble whitened in fear, she assumed it was a threat. Though soon enough his face reddened in anger, and the princess held back a sigh.

"Shall we head to your manor then, Lord Gaston?" she asked, taking over the conversation before it could be steered in an unpleasant direction.

The man nodded, "Yes, indeed," he coughed. "Let's." Perhaps still cowed by what Link had said earlier, he did not offer an arm to escort her, merely marching in front of her, each step drawing attention to his well-shined shoes. Catriona paused to nudge Remy to follow after the other two before walking after Lord Gaston.

Link, Citron, and Remy with Ciela on his back would reach Mene's house soon enough. There was a small space in front, though it was barely large enough to be counted as a yard, but large enough for both Remy and Peaches to stand. As they approached, they would see the mayor and Mene talking to the side in front of another house, as well as hear part of their conversation.

"Do ye...wise?"

"Alois would've...eventually, and...no reason--" the mayor cut himself off as he noticed the group's approach. "Oh, hello there," he called out in a much louder voice, "Here to join your friends? They're all just inside that house over there," he pointed at the house.

"I'll be there in just a wee bit meself," Mene said. "Sorry I don't have nothin' fer ya. I'll be sure t'bake a fresh batch o'goods in the morn. Tha' nice young man, Abdul, has some tea though."

While Citron would certainly have heard of tea, and probably drank some as well, Link would only have heard of it had he made contact with people from Locris or Isauria. Most people in other countries had never even heard of the drink before, much less drank it themselves, save for certain merchants and nobles with a taste for "exotic flavors."

Were the two to enter Mene's house, they would see Penelope, Alois, and Abdul, with Edrick lying on one of the beds.

--

Gunther and Tsetseg

Upon being shaken by the shoulders and shouted at, the older man woke up with a snort. "Eh...whuzzat?! What?" He looked around in a daze before his eyes focused on the two in front of him. "Oh, huh, hullo there. Yer them outsiders I've heard tell of, right?" he picked at his ear. "Ye sure kin shout fer a little girl. Whaddaya need?"

The dog, as if waiting for that opportunity, started to bark loudly at both the man and Gunther, and then ran off a few yards before stopping and turning back to face them, still barking, tail held high like an exclamation mark.

"Huh, ol' Lassie's in a right pickle, she is," the man scratched his head in confusion. "Wonder if'n she's hungry. Usually, young Timmy'll feed 'er, but," he turned his head from side to side, "huh, I don't see Timmy anywhere. An' he should be watchin' the sheep too." He yawned, before turning toward the two. "Say, could I ask ye two to fetch young Timmy back? I'd do it, but, see, I'm plumb tuckered out an' all from earlier today. Wouldn't ye know, I turned into a sheep meself earlier. Was the strangest thing, an' all these 'ere sheep turned t'human too. Almost couldn't believe me own eyes. Why I still can't believe 'em," he chuckled.

---

OOC

Spoiler

Yes, two of the groups are now in the same place, so feel free to interact with each other. Unless you're Sienna, Gunther, or Tsetseg. In which case, you're kind of...not in the same place. Or rather, you're not in the same place at all.

I'm probably going to wrap the day up within the next few rounds, though it depends somewhat on what happens with Gunther and Tsetseg. Let me know if there's more you want to do before the end of the day, though. Again, the new posting schedule won't take place until after the end of the IC day, so until then it's still post at least once a week by Tuesday.

Strangely enough, these posts lately haven't taken that long to get out, though I think that's partially because I haven't had to do as much for them, comparatively. They'll probably go back to taking several hours once we move on to more plot-heavy or battle-heavy stuff again.

Let me know if you have any questions, comments, or concerns. And don't forget to leave a like, subscribe, and hit the bell icon for--oh oops. This isn't a youtube video, never mind.

Edited March 7, 2022 by Sethera

[Skaia 578]

Leaning back, Alois thought more on what Penelope had said before saying, "oh. Right. About Rat-face." Alois looked back, hearing that his mother and the mayor were still talking but confirming that they were still outside. "I didn't feel like throwing too much out at the mayor but Rat-face wasn't just at the town hall. He was at the Mayor's house too." Pointing towards the ground he said, "well, in his basement. I saw him there when I was fiddling around with the lock - Rather, I found a rat. Who reminded me as much of Rat-face as the badger did of the mayor. So, make what you will of that."  

Looking at the door, he said, "well, looks we got some other visitors coming here." 

Tsetseg frowned as she was pulled away from the man by Gunther, thinking it was the best way to get him up. And clearly it was important to get him up since the fluffy cute dog thought so. All the same, Tsetseg looked curiously between Gunther and the dog, wondering what he could find out from the canine. Before such a thing could happen, though, the man seemed to rouse awake. "Hey hey there!" The girl loudly greeted, nodding as the man seemed to guess that they were the outsiders in this town. The girl then looked back to the dog as it seemed to bolt away, trying to urge them to go and do something. As the man talked about the dog and its owner Timmy, Tsetseg pondered for a moment. Then, upon remembering something, she looked at Gunther pointing to the dog. "Oh man, Lassie could be trying to tell us something reaaaallly important! She's apparently like, super smart and found someone in a well, so who knows what they could be trying to tell us!" 

 

[LordCowCow 839]

"I didn't feel like throwing too much out at the mayor but Rat-face wasn't just at the town hall. He was at the Mayor's house too."

Penelope nodded as Alois gave her this information. "I'm not surprised. I can only imagine those two are either trying to uncover the same thing I have been or are attempting to take something that they already know is in this place. Any information Gunther can get us about this man would certainly help."

She noticed the arrival of others around the same time as Alois. "Ah, well that's less people we have to track down it seems." She said as she made her way outside.

Before approaching them she cast a bright smile at Mene and the mayor who had seemed to have greeted the others already. She noticed that it was just Link, Citron, and the unconscious Ciela. It seemed that her sister was not among them. Which led her to believe that she had been caught by the trap of that 'noble' after all.

"Greetings! Welcome to Mene's palace." She swept a hand towards the house. "I'd offer a tour but I suppose that's unnecessary. I can tell you it's a lovely home but I'm afraid a bit small for all of us. We actually had been talking about sleeping arrangements so your arrival is fortuitous." She pointed at herself. "I will be staying here with Alois and Edrick. The mayor has kindly offered an abandoned home for some of us. Abdul has plans to go stay at that fake-noble's so-called manor and I intend to send, er, suggest Gunther go there for the night as well."

She sighed and then asked "I suppose Catriona is already on her way to his house isn't she?"

---

"Say, could I ask ye two to fetch young Timmy back? I'd do it, but, see, I'm plumb tuckered out an' all from earlier today. Wouldn't ye know, I turned into a sheep meself earlier. Was the strangest thing, an' all these 'ere sheep turned t'human too. Almost couldn't believe me own eyes. Why I still can't believe 'em,"

Given the unusual events of the day Gunther couldn't help be worried at the thought of a missing boy. That this man seemed unconcerned didn't help much given how he reacted to having been turned into a sheep. "You seem, ah, quite calm about that incident sir." Gunther noted.

"Oh man, Lassie could be trying to tell us something reaaaallly important! She's apparently like, super smart and found someone in a well, so who knows what they could be trying to tell us!" 

A...a well? Did people often get lost inside of wells? He was starting to suspect maybe this village was rather eccentric on the regular. Perhaps that explained this man's attitude. Alois's too, now that he thought about it. He wondered if townsfolk often were like this.

The world got stranger and stranger every hour.

"Well, I don't doubt it." Gunther said to Tsetseg. "I've met many dogs smarter than some humans I...well, I suppose I shouldn't be saying such things." Gunther said with a light blush. It would be improper to insult members of the nobility especially in front of a stranger. "I have a feeling you'd chase after her even if I didn't say it but we should follow Lassie to see what the problem may be."

Taking a breath and preparing himself mentally for having to possibly run again Gunther moved towards the dog. "Well, Lassie, what is it girl?....Is little Timmy trapped in a well?" The Knight would follow the dog wherever she went as far as he could.

[Otaku-sama 31]

"If they haven't done anything yet I don't imagine that they would later. If anything I'd feel they would be afraid to try especially after they already had to deal with one curse. But, if you're that concerned, I do intend to have Gunther stay at Pylauses's manor. I can just tell him to make sure nothing happens. They wouldn't be able to get past him."

Abdul breathed a sigh of relief with the knowledge that he would be under the protection of a stalwart knight, at least ostensibly.

“Aah, thank your highness,” Abdul replied with a gracious bow, “Your generosity is much appreciated. I pray that you are indeed correct and that his services will not be necessary.”

"Oh, hello there! Here to join your friends? They're all just inside that house over there."

Upon hearing of the arrival of new guests, Abdul opened the top of his teapot, seeing that there would only be enough of the dark brew for three more cups. As he finished pouring out its contents, two of her retinue walked in with uneasy expressions on their face.

"Ah, hello friends," Abdul said as he rose from his seat, gesturing towards the filled cups of tea, "You've come at the right time, the tea is still warm! Please, have a taste."

 

Edited August 10, 2020 by Otaku-sama

[Cheshire Toon 139]

Link spotted what he assumed to be Gaston’s house as they traveled (having gotten directions to Mene’s house from a nearby villager). It was much larger than most of the surrounding buildings, and extremely out of place in such a humble village. He made a note of the location; Princess Catriona would be staying there, so he would be returning before the night was over, even if he had no intention of actually resting in his abode. He could never sleep in such a strange place. 

The mayor and the woman known as Mene were standing outside of what Link guessed to be her house. Rohns began to struggle in his grip at the sight of the mayor specifically; his little nose twitched a couple of times, then he started to growl and bare his teeth. Link fought off the urge to sigh. Epona had already been an adult mare when he received her, so he had never gone through the troublesome endeavor that was raising an animal from their youth, and he was apparently not doing a very good job of it. “Sorry. I’ll go see them now,” he said to the pair, but the door opened before he could make his way past them. He spotted Alois first but Princess Penelope quickly pushed her way past him to greet them. 

She gave them a rundown of the situation in short order. Link wasn’t thrilled to find out that she planned to stay at Mene’s house with only Alois and Edrick as guardians, but he also harbored no doubt that there was little chance of him convincing her to change her mind. “Yes. Prin-- …Catriona will arrive at his house soon.” He kept his answers short and brief. “About your plans… Permission to speak on them?”

Penelope looked slightly surprised but nodded. "Go right ahead."

Link dipped his head in thanks. Before he could speak, Rohns began to fuss even more. The soldier could not prevent his sigh that time. He kneeled down and released the cub, who side-eyed the mayor for just a moment before running off towards the edge of the village. “Don’t send Gunther to this man’s manor. I will be staying there myself. There’s…” He paused. It took him a moment to gather his thoughts and plan out how to word them in a way befitting a conversation with a princess, especially considering formalities had never been his strong suit. “A Knight guards with his presence as much as his skill. They scare away smallfolk who see their armor and size and back away. I… I do not mean to say that Gunther isn’t strong. But the type of people who may try to harm Pri--to harm Catriona, Gunther has no experience with them. They are trained assassins. Please allow me to handle guarding Catriona, and keep Gunther close enough to protect you should anything happen.” He was indirectly implying that he DID have experience with this sort of thing. He knew Princess Penelope was more than sharp enough to figure that out, but things were getting to the point he needed her to figure out his actual abilities.
 

[Tiamat's Circus 116]

Citron would have made the journey with few words spoken between herself and Lincoln, mostly due to the struggle she had getting Peaches to follow. “C’mon- Oh, come on...” Citron would eventually murmur, as the wyvern slammed into her stomach; the rider stuck walking backwards to deal with the wyvern. “Fine, fine!” She frowned, rolling her eyes before, finally, giving into the wyvern, scritching under the wyvern’s chin with her good arm. “Now! C’mon!” She exclaimed, patting under the chin a second, before turning around; just in time to see Mene’s house, and the figures talking nearby it.

“Ah, yes.” Citron bowed, smiling. “Thank you for keeping an eye on them, both of you.” Citron rose from her bow, moving her hand to fidget with her hair as she walked.. “Oh, but um, Miss, you don’t have to bake anything for us, your hospitality is more than enough.” She smiled, quickly making her way towards the house, before abruptly pausing in the ‘yard’, as she turned around to Peaches.

“Now! You!” She paused, pointing a finger towards the lizard in an accusatory fashion. “While I’m in here, keep a good eye on the unconscious lady, okay?” She paused, before pressing a hand against the wyvern’s nose. “And! And, and, don’t, eat, the horse!” She exclaimed, before turning on her heels once again, this time to approach the house, passing Penelope - and Alois - as the princess and Lincoln talked about… Something. Sure, Citron was curious, but she was nothing if not polite; and eavesdropping was anything but polite.

So, instead, she’d continue, and finally enter the house, waving hesitantly to Abdul as he himself greeted her. “Ah, hey!” She smiled, perking up at the mention of tea. Someone, he assumed the woman who owned the house, had mentioned it before, but she hadn’t really given it much thought until seeing it for herself; it wasn’t as if she had expected to see it this far away from home, after all. “That sounds lovely!” She made her way towards one of the cup, taking one of the seats. “And it smells lovely, to- Oooh… This makes me think actually, I know this isn’t the right kind of tea, but I wonder if you have what we would need to make some kinda half and half, sometime…?” She cut herself, wondering aloud as she reached towards one of the cups, only to once again stop abruptly.

“Wait-- Wait, actually, before I drink of this--” She paused, turning to look at Abdul; the matter of his occupation stopping her in her tracks. “As a fellow merchant, I have to ask... Is this from your stock? And if so, you aren’t-- You aren’t offering this to me, in hopes that I’ll drink it, and then try to charge me an exorbitant amount after the fact, right?!” She asked, pausing. “I-I’ll have you know, I had someone do that to me in one of the towns I stayed in already! I don’t have hardly any money to give you!”

[Asriel Dreemurr 38]

Edrick's overall awareness of the situation was best described as tentative over the past several minutes. However much stubbornness he had in his body, along with not a little fear of what his dreams might bring him, was finally being overcome by bodily exhaustion. Or at least it was making headway, because while he lay there in Alois's bed he once again found it difficult to tell whether he was really in this small house in Histia or... somewhere else. It was never really clear. Sometimes he saw his own room back in the rugged stone house on the banks of the Lanti that he had grown up in, sometimes he saw the high vaulted ceilings of a cathedral wherein a statue of the Maid of the Sun smiled peacefully down upon the congregation, and a hundred other places he had been danced before him. The grey skies overhead pouring ice and snow down upon him while he lay wrapped in blankets, stretches of sky broken by pines in the rocky foothills of the Dran mountains, and of course the pale sunrise above an all too familiar graveyard. But all the same his dancing between the present and his memories remained largely peaceful, enough that a worried mind was slowly lulling itself to sleep while the others discussed important issues around him. Once again he took to muttering softly in his native tongue, though no words came out distinctly, as he drifted on the edges of a dream.

"...They are trained assassins. Please allow me to handle guarding Catriona, and keep Gunther close enough to protect you should anything happen.” Well, hearing Link's voice was more than enough reason for him to wake up and take notice of the situation, which led to a delirious wave of his hand as he looked around and realised that Catriona wasn't with them. Which, with what little he knew and the soldier's apparent worry about her safety, meant only one thing.

"A-alright. I can- I can help with guard duty." He certainly sounded confident, as confident as an exhausted boy bordering on the feverish from bloodloss could sound anyways. Which, considering how this was becoming the norm for Edrick, was remarkably so. Though about the time he swung his legs over the side of the bed and just ended up sending himself flopping over in the other direction on the bed was where that confidence came out as decidedly ill-placed. "Just gimme a few minutes!"

At least he managed to retain his enthusiasm.

[Wind Rider 10]

"It uhh, sounded like she was pretty important to you, so I'm sorry. But," she perked up, "you could probably ask one of the adults to guide you through the marsh if you wanted. I mean, since there's only one path, so they probably know where she ended up, unless uhh, Licorice went off the path, in which case, she's probably dead." She shook her head in horror. "Agh! I mean, uhh, that came out wrong. She's probably not dead since she's your friend and she was able to cross the river by herself and all. So, umm, yeah, don't worry?" she cringed slightly as she finished speaking.

Sienna was quiet, she didn't know what to think or do in this situation. And Phai really wasn't making the it any better. She stood up, a gloomy expression on her face as she looked at the swamp one more time before turning away. "Let's... Let's just go... Everyone is probably worried..." She said in a very quiet tone before starting to walk away, her tail low and dragging in the mud.

As far as Sienna was concerned, Licorice had no intention of returning at this point. And even if she had made it past the swamp somehow, she doubted that Licorice would even return. That desperate, crazed look she had at the sight of that stone beast being animated. That was the look of somehow who wasn't going to stop running even if they escaped. Tears welled up in Sienna's eyes as she walked, her friend was gone.

Edited August 11, 2020 by Wind Rider

[Sethera 290]

Gunther and Tsetseg

"You seem, ah, quite calm about that incident sir." Gunther noted.

"Well, 'course I yam, sonny," the man nodded cheerily at him. "Ain't like I kin be much else. As they alwa's say, ain't no time fer rushin' aboot, er..." he scratched his head. "Or was tha', ye 'ave all the time in the world? Dagnabbit, wha' was tha' again?" he glared at the ground as if it would give him the answer.

"Oh man, Lassie could be trying to tell us something reaaaallly important! She's apparently like, super smart and found someone in a well, so who knows what they could be trying to tell us!"

"Well, I don't doubt it." Gunther said to Tsetseg. "I've met many dogs smarter than some humans I...well, I suppose I shouldn't be saying such things." Gunther said with a light blush. "I have a feeling you'd chase after her even if I didn't say it but we should follow Lassie to see what the problem may be."

"Ye kin bet yer britches she's smart. Smarter 'an a fox, or was tha', smarter 'an an owl?" the man squinted at the ground again. "Anyway, she's smart. Heck, e'en smarter 'an me, or so people've said. 'Och, tha' there lassie, ain't she a beaut? Aye, much smarter 'an Ol' Paulos.' Why, I've 'alf a mind t'agree wiv 'em! I 'greed so much, I e'en named her Lassie an' all."

The collie whined and tugged on his shirt again.

"Ye know, I think she wants summat from me, doncha think?" the man turned to the two. "But ye know, I'm not gettin' any younger. I'm in no shape t'go follerin' her 'round like young Timmy does. Oi, Lassie," he turned to the dog, "why doncha let these nice young fellers help ya out, eh? I'm gonna stay 'ere an' rest me weary bones fer a spell or two." He yawned, stretching his arms as he settled down back to where he was previously sleeping. "Jes'...a minute." And then he began to snore again.

The dog shook its head, letting out what sounded very much like a disgruntled bark, before turning to Gunther and Tsetseg. Barking again, this time louder, it turned in a circle before facing them and beginning to run. Not here and there, stopping intermittently to sniff at things. No, much like Icleias had before, it ran in a straight line without stopping, heading right for the forest.

If Gunther and Sienna followed, they would soon find their way to a stone quarry filled with the smooth, white rock that the statue they had fought earlier was made of. Not much had been taken from the quarry, but enough had that there was a hole large enough for a person to fall into. It was here that Lassie stopped, giving a couple of loud barks for good measure.

The two would then hear a small, high-pitched voice, like that of a young boy, coming from the hole. "Lassie, is tha' you?"

Lassie perked up, turning toward something behind the two. Shortly afterward, they would hear the sound of leaves crunching and twigs snapping, and then a familiar voice. "Oh hi! You're over here?" It was Phai, Sienna and Icleias at her side. She was smiling, though as she looked between the two a frown settled on her face. "Huh, wait, that's strange...why are you here? A-And why's Lassie with you?"

--

Sienna

Sienna stood up, a gloomy expression on her face as she looked at the swamp one more time before turning away. "Let's... Let's just go... Everyone is probably worried..." She said in a very quiet tone before starting to walk away, her tail low and dragging in the mud.

This then alerted Phai to a very important thing. Something she had, in fact, neglected to notice. That Sienna had fox ears and a fox tail. Letting out a slight squeak, she didn't say anything more, seeming to realize that now was not the time to talk about it. "I'm uhh...uhh...sorry," she muttered as she followed. Eventually, Icleias did as well, his posture mirroring Sienna's for a time, though soon enough he perked up and took the lead.

The two would easily make it back over the cliff via the rope swing. Since both Phai and Sienna were rather light, there were no issues. Phai was even able to swing one-handed, the other tucking Icleias under her arm. The dog scrabbled in her grip for a second before relaxing, tracking muddy pawprints over Phai's clothes. The girl didn't even seem to notice, however.

Once reaching the other side, Icleias stopped, stiffening before suddenly beginning to run.

"Huh, Icleias, what's the matter?" Phai asked as she followed, turning her head back to make sure Sienna was still with them a few times.

If the fox followed, she would notice that they were heading in a slightly different direction than the one they took earlier. It didn't take long before Sienna would hear what had caught Icleias's attention. The sound of barking.

The two would then break into a clearing filled with pale white rock. A hole was in the center, and grouped around it were two familiar faces--Gunther and Sienna. At their side was another dog, this one a rough collie.

Phai broke out into a smile at seeing them. "Oh hi! You're over here?" she waved brightly. Something seemed to occur to her then and she frowned. "Huh, wait, that's strange...why are you here? A-And why's Lassie with you?"

---

OOC

Spoiler

Yes, I might be trying to reunite everybody. No, there are no ulterior motives, why would you ask? It's not like I'm trying to make things easier for me to handle, no way. What, you're saying I'm choosing not to write out any scenes for the main group or Catriona since I don't actually have to? You're implying I might be trying to slack off? Poppycock!

Okay, maybe you're right. Yeah, so I might have cut some corners here, but I figure the main group doesn't need my input right now, and there really isn't any point to writing out Catriona scenes since nobody else is with her. If you're that curious what's going on with her, well, you can just find out eventually when you do meet up with her. And yes, it does make it a bit easier for me when you're all grouped up together. Don't let that stop you from separating if you want, but in this case, it makes sense for the dogs to hear each other. Dogs have super hearing. It's not just cats, you know?

Speaking of dogs, I was originally planning on Lassie being something like a border collie, but then I was like, "Well I could do that...OR I could make a reference." So Lassie became a rough collie. Going off of that, I should've named Icleias the beagle Shiloh instead, but then that would imply that Amas abuses his dogs, so maybe it's better that I didn't... Oh well. Another day, perhaps. Not like there aren't more things I can use as Easter eggs. I should eventually make a list of all the Easter eggs I've included in this RP, since there are a ton.

Edited August 12, 2020 by Waluigi

[Skaia 578]

Alois pinched the bridge of his nose as Link explained the situation to them, and also at the sheer number of people that were starting to crowd into his home in general. "Of course she went to his place," the boy couldn't help but state as it had turned out Cat was now with the faux noble. Well, maybe it was a good thing after all. Maybe he would be so distracted by her that Abdul and Link would be able to find out more things more easily. All the same, the boy raised an eye at Link's suggestion. "Hell no, Gunther's not staying here. Four people is already crowded enough and there's no way we're fitting another person. He can go guard the others anyway. Eddy and I are m- " Alois flinched, cutting himself off as he heard the crashing noise of the Pontic falling behind him. "I'm more than enough to guard this little book worm myself." 

Tsetseg looked towards the dog as it seemed to bark again, now disgruntled at the man who fell asleep once again. The young archer didn't get any insight in what it was looking for, the girl not able to understand if they were in fact looking for a well. She could, however, understand that it seemed to want to lead them on. Looking to Gunther, the girl nodded earnestly before making a sprint for the dog. It didn't take long, however, for them to come to a stop. The girl paused as they came to a stone quarry, looking at it curiously. "Oooooh. Pretty rock." The girl stated. 

As she walked over towards the hole, before she could examine it she was stopped by the sudden emergence of three others. "Sienna! Phai! Dog!" She waved back. As Phai seemed curious about what they were doing, the young huntress said, "oh, well, see, see. Lassie was barking a bunch so we went to follow her and now we're here and want to check out this hole! Right Lassie!" The girl seemed otherwise oblivious of the mood or lack of other fox protean with them, and instead seemed quite interested in the hole.