Kiley says a silent, but fervent, prayer for luck as she waits for Vivi to answer Ven Vinder.
Just tell him what you told me Vivi. I'm sure there are no rats in the cellar, and Ven is smart enough to know when something's up... I hope.
The air starts to cool as the sun droops, and it is apparent that the fair afternoon is at an end.
Vivi follows Kiley and Vin down into the cellar. Without further ado, he sets the huge block of cheese down in the center of the room and steps back from it, scanning the walls for movement.
"Sir, I am sorry to bother you with this problem as your daughter did not wish to bring it to your attention. When I left your shop earlier, she quietly brought me to the entrance of the cellar and told me there were rats down here. She said that she thought I could help with them, but did not wish you to be bothered. I told her to watch the entrance and rushed to the Rusty Dragon to get supplies," here Vivi gestures to the cheese block on the ground and the peppermint sprigs in his hands.
"The cheese is to attract the rats out of the walls so that I can safely remove them. The peppermint is to apply to the likely spots they are coming from, to keep them from returning. It was at the Rusty Dragon that I ran into Lady Kiley."
Vivi inclines his head to her. "She believes there might be no rats in here at all, and that there might have been another reason she wanted me to come down here. I know her from my dealings with her to be as you are: an honorable being, who means what they say and only says what they do for a reason. I will let her explain why she thinks so, but I brought the remedies for rats in case she was wrong."
Vivi stops, and continues looking at the walls. If Shayliss was truthfull, the rats should eventually start coming to cheese, or at least making moves in reaction to it... if Kiley was right about her though... well..."
"RATS!? There are no rats down here, you young fool! And I better not hear of you telling anyone else there is, either!" He calms himself slightly, explaining with a smidgeon more patience. "Who would buy my foodstuffs if they thought I had rats in the cellar?"
He then turns to Kiley, looking rather angry. "What's this about, girl?"
In the gloom behind him, now that your eyes have adjusted, you see the outline of a small bed in the back of the cellar, little more than a cot, really. Vivi notices that no rats seem to be coming forth. He is hardly surprised, since there is quite a ruckus going on at the moment.
Before Kiley can answer, Vivi holds up a hand for silence. He leans in to whisper to them both.
"As much as I am inclind to agree with you good sir I wanted to make sure. Too much noise, though, and if there are they will not show themselves. Perhaps they are under that cot toward the back? It would give them warmth to sleep in on colder nights. Would your guest mind if I searched it?"
Well, Kiley was right about the bed.
Vivi silently approaches it and points to it for emphasis, examining the space around it.
Shivering at the gust of cool air, Jessica looks at Tal, "This was Nice, but I think we should be headed back, it's getting chilly." With that, Jessica leans against Tal as she slide her shoes back on before they leave the beach.
Gladly surprised by the new attitude from the town people, Delendir greets everybody with a calm and warm smile. After selling the prey, he also checks the blacksmith and shows him the junk he took from the goblins. "Do you have any idea where the goblins have gotten this weapon? Was it recently forged? If you think you can make use of the metal I can sell it to you for 4gp."
Savah looks at Delendir in amusement as she looks over the shoddy weapons. "What am I supposed to do with them, good sir? Make horseshoes out of them? I'll give you a silver, and no more."
Delendir looks at the dogslicer, then surprised back to Savah. "I don't know what you blacksmiths do with this kind of things. I suppose you melt them down or whatever. But I know from previous experiences this is worth fourth golds, no gold up, no gold down. I know you business men do this sometimes, but it feels quite miserable you try to swindle a humble man in such a gross way."
|
"Hmm yes, we better check in how Vivi and Kiley fared. Also a nice hot stew from Ameiko will be nice to warm up over." Tal smiles as he casts a dancing lights spell to light the way back.
"However with affairs as they are, we might not have a peaceful time like this for a while. Better make the best of it." He says with a grin as he moves in closer, clutches Jessica a little tighter and gives her a kiss.
"That sounds wonderful Tal." Jessica leans closer to him when he holds her tighter and turns her head to meet his lips with hers briefly. She then enjoys watching the lights dancing ahead of them.
Kiley swallows and gathers her thoughts, while praying this doesn't go badly as she thought it might.
"As Vivi says, he told me that Shayliss had told him that there are rats down here and she needed help getting rid of them. Vivi stopped by the Dragon to grab a couple of things to use, and that's when we showed up. I didn't want to cause you any grief, and that's why I didn't want to say anything in the open." A puzzled look crosses her face as she sees the cot after Vivi points it out.
"Ven? Why's there a cot down here?"
Either he doesn't come down here that often, or Shayliss set this up just to get her hands on Vivi. Poor lad.
He looks to where the two are indicating, head cocked to the side. "Funny, I keep that cot down here in case I need a rest, but it doesn't usually have all that fluffery on it." He walks closer, running a hand over the cot and soft, fluffy pillows at the top.
His face darkens at this point, looking at the young monk. He nearly growls out, "Thank you for your help in this matter, young man. Your efforts are appreciated." He starts to storm through the cellar and up the steps, seemingly forgetting that you are down there.
"I think we need to go," Kiley says nervously as she pulls Vivi along behind her, makeing sure to close the doors once the two of them are out.
After failing to bargain Delendir just takes the silver coin. When he is almost out he asks "Do you know when the theatre show is starting? My friends have free tickets so I assume I can find them there tonight. "
"But what about the cheese?" Vivi asks as he is pulled out by Kiley.
Before they reach the door, though, Vivi gives Kiley a quick hug and whispers, "Thank you for your help. I would have walked into this trap without even realizing it to be one if not for you."
He releases her and leaves.
"I think the father and daughter should be given some time alone. I have an idea for a gift for Ameiko-san, but I need a canvas frame. Do you know where I could find one?"
Kiley stiffens reflexively as Vivi hugs her, but almost as quickly as it happens, the monk has let go, leaving the young woman confused, flustered, and blushing.
"Y-y-yes, we should be on our way," She says stiffly, following Vivi out of the cellar. After she'd had a moment to recompose herself, she turns back to Vivi.
"I wouldn't know where to find a canvas frame, but someone at the Cathedral might know. Ask one of the Acolytes of Shelyn, they should point you in the right direction."
And with that, Kiley walks towards the Dragon, breaking into a run once she believed Vivi wasn't looking. She runs until she's almost at the door of the Rusty Dragon, then walks in and goes straight to her room. Slapping herself didn't seem to stop her heart from fluttering every time she replayed what Vivi had done. Splashing cold water on her face didn't seem to help the wild fantasies running through her head either. After fer minutes she collapses onto her bed and stares up at the ceiling.
"What is wrong with me?"
As he walks out of the blacksmith shop Delendir heads towards the Dragon.
Dinner time.
"Oh, ok." Vivi thinks for a minute, then turns to ask her if she would like to come with him only to find her walking fastly away... then bolting into a run around the corner.
Was it something I said?
Vivi shrugs to himself.
Vivi begins to walk down the street, mainly to get away from the General Store. For all his words of thanks I don't think I should show up here again for a few days... at least not alone.
Vivi notices that the light is dimming and the evening pressing on as he walks. It will be dinner time soon, and I still don't have a decent gift for Ameiko-san... and I have not purified from my actions yesterday either. That last bit will have to wait until tomorrow I think. I will ask Ameiko to wake me before dawn if she would, so that I can find a place to purify at sunrise.
Without realizing it, Vivi finds that in his musings he has wandered outside the town, and finds himself facing the same mirror he found on his way in to town yesterday, its cheerful text still surrounding it. It almost feels like a week ago since I last saw myself in this mirror... how much can change over the course of two days.
Straightening his tunic again while looking reflectively at himself, Vivi again seems to lose track of time. Looking up and seeing the last rays of sun, he sets out for the town again, again just wandering.
Delendir enters the Rusty Dragon with a smile in his face. "Ameiko, I hunted some prey you might make good use of."
The half-elf looks around missing Lilley. "Where is Kiley? What happened with the rats in the end Viivi?"
Kiley comes barging into the Dragon, making a beeline for her room. Ameiko looks curious, but has learned the young woman is moody and oft times needs time to herself, so let's her be.
Near dusk, everyone has finally managed to make it back to The Rusty Dragon. Tal orders a couple helpings of supper, which Ameiko nods amiably to and starts to collect for him and Jessica. It looks like a Minkai dish of hot, spicy beef in a dark sauce on top of white rice, with steamed vegetables to the side.
Ameiko grins as Delendir brings her a few fat trout, "My thanks, Delendir. These will go nicely with tomorrow's supper. You can have a helping for free, for your hard work." She takes them to the back to be cleaned.
As Vivi wanders in moments after, Ameiko comes out of the back, wiping water off of her hands. A wide smile comes to her red lips...she is obviously happy to see him. "More of the usual, Master Vivi?"
Delendir seems pleased with Ameiko's words. "To better serve Erastil and you."
Then he listens attentive to what Vivi has to explain to Tal's questions.
Jessica takes a bite of the stew and quickly chugs down some water, she gasps out, "Eeeep! That's hot." She takes a moment and then takes a careful bite, rolling it around on her tongue and then eating a bite of bread just after she follows, "Good, but spicy." She leans forward and looking at Vivi, "Yes, do tell, how did it go?"
After you arrive at the Rusty Dragon and wrestle with your emotions for a while, you come back out. Seated at a table is the young nobleman from yesterday, enjoying a drink and a late lunch/early dinner. He is currently talking with another patron about the upcoming play tonight, but when he spies you he waves you over.
"Hello again! Sorry about yesterday and all that. I was in a bit of a tizzy with that whole almost-being-killed thing and such, and lost my temper. You and your friends have my deepest apologies, of course." He digs around in his coat, pulling out a small sack. A jingly sack. "A reward, as promised!"
He looks pensive for a moment, then snaps his fingers. "I've got it! Do you think you and your friends might accompany me for a boar hunt tomorrow? I'm a decent hunter, but it's always dangerous to hunt the beasts by yourself. Your group certainly looks capable of taking down a pig, even a wild one. And you guys can accept it as my way of mending things with your more...mouthy companion. What do you say?" His eyes twinkle, his smile is warm, and he seems to genuinely want you to come along.
Vivi, distracted, does not even seem to notice that he has arrived back at the Dragon until he is being asked questions by Ameiko and his friends.
Vivi bows his head as he speaks, and a tear rolls down his face. He wipes it and turns to the others.
Vivi sits down absently as he is speaking, the weight of the events of the day, and the night previous, finally seeming to sink the monk's normal cheerful demenour. His face seems emotionless, distant, and his recitation of the events is monotone... the way someone might list items they need from the general store, or read names from a phone book.
"Well I hope this does not bother you or Keley anymore. Don't worry to much Keley was a child until recently. Her emotions are still up and down. I will not give to much relevance. Be advised though by experience, she will probably go mad if you ask what happened and how she feels. Unluckily she will get also mad if you ignore the topic as if nothing happened. You will need to balance out. I don't know how though." Delendir says this like thinking in past experiences.
He eats a bit, then seeing Vivi sad, he adds "Ei! Isn't tonight the Opera? That might cheer her up, why don't you invite her?" Delendir seems sincerely concerned.
After Vivi is finished speaking, Jessica looks to him worriedly, "What's wrong Vivi? You don't seem like your usual self today."
Vivi sighs, and turns to Jessica... but says nothing at first.
How can I even begin to express what I am feeling.
"I am just sadned is all. I have barely been in town for two days... and I have already been in combat twice, taken four lives, brought disharmony to a family seemingly by my presence, been hailed as a hero for actions I do not think are heroic, and alienated a new friend merely by giving her a hug and thanks for keeping me from danger."
Vivi shakes his head, takes his ticket from his pouch, and hands it to Delendir.
"If the play is tonight then I will not be much fun as company. I do not believe Lady Kiley got a ticket. Let her know I wish her to have my ticket to go in my stead, as way of apology for whatever offense I have caused her."
Delendir gives Vivi a manish half-hug of comprehension over one shoulder. Without words he takes the opera ticket and heads to Kiley's room.
Trying to remember some of Tal's good words the half-elf knocks the door. "Lady Angel of Death Kiley. Are you all right? Vivi asked me to bring something he prefers you to have."
Jessica seems to have a number of thoughts kicking in with what Vivi says, Hmmm, maybe I was mistaken about his interested in Ameiko. Looking to Vivi again, "What ever it is that happened I don't now if it has to do with you so much, Kiley has had a rough couple of days."
Jessica looks at Tal and leans in to whisper,
Getting up and giving Tal a quick kiss on the cheek, Jessica gently takes Vivi's hand, "I think we need to talk Vivi, would you come with me please?"
Vivi meekly nods, and turns to Ameiko. "Could you please keep some rice for me? I hope to be back soonish."
Vivi stands up and follows Jessica where ever she leads.
Vivi follows Jessica to the gardens, the beauty of the place finally giving him a sense of peace.
"You are right, peace is what I needed. And still need. I need to purify from those killings, they are bringing disharmony into everything I am doing."
"I just don't understand... and what did Tal mean when he said that she was becoming feminine?"
Kiley takes a moment to gather her thoughts in her head and tries to word her reply to be as polite as possible.
"I can't speak for my friends, but I wouldn't mind a hunt, or at the very least an outing out of town," The young woman says, "Thank you for the offer, and I will ask my friends when I see them." She says before grabbing a trencher and some stew before heading back to her room.
"It's open," Kiley says.
The room inside is small, almost cramped, even though it only has a small bed, which was likely perfect for the petite woman sitting at the small, plain table in a matching chair. The remains of her supper lay to one side. Before her sits five even stacks of coins and an empty pouch. Her armor and her sword belt hang off the foot of her bed and her halberd leans in a corner near the small wardrobe.
"So what's this "Lady Angel of Death" business about? Is Vivi rubbing off on you?" She asks as she finishes counting the last of the coin, her tone holding a note of whimsy and mischief.
A bit impressed by going into Kiley's intimacy, Delendir pushes open the door and steps into the room.
Looking nervously to the supper remains, the sword, and finally the small woman.
Unconsciously playing with one of the corners of the invitation Delendir starts talking from the doorstep without really daring to enter.
"Erm... I did not wanted to offend you... wo" Be sweet stupid! "sweetheart."
"He wanted you to have this."
Delendir places her hand with the Opera invitation in front of Kiley and waits for the girl to pick it up.
"Vivi is having a hard time to adapt to the town and culture of here. In his culture there are things that work different than in ours." Delendir makes a pause. "Including about how to deal with woman and feelings. I have heard Tien men even kiss one each other as a greeting. Can you imagine?" Delendir laughs as much as he can trying to cheer up the woman's mood.
Once the laugh is clearly out of tone he adds "Just don't take it seriously if he has done any stupid thing to you. He is really suffering he might have done something bad towards you."
Dusk falls, and with it comes a chill wind. The air itself is mild, but the wind cuts like a knife. You don't feel that yet, though, as you all remain in the cozy Rusty Dragon. The delicious smells of supper mingle with the crisp air that is let in every time someone enters or exits to create an almost intoxicating aroma. The Play should start in about an hour, more or less.
Jessica arrives shortly before the show to meet up with the others who are going.