"Um, Alewives or otters? Ah,... No. BUT I learned from Weird Al how to do a mean polka!" Danny says with a 'bahDUMtish' rimshot and a pose.
"Wow. Tough Crowd. But seriously, let's check out the spots first, and then burn those bridges as we cross them. That;s one of the nice things about having friends with money. They can always afford to be into all those hobbies us mere mortals, er, poor folks, could never afford to do! Like, Scuba diving for example." He says with a grin.
"Yeah, a scouting mission would be in order. Then we can return with the proper gear if needed. What do you say, should we go to the confluence of the three rivers - or the Well of York, or whatever? - like, right now? We can just kind of tourist around and be ignorant of rules and security during the day without arousing much suspicion. If we go at night, it looks really hinky." She shrugs. "No time like the present. Strike while the iron is hot. Set them back on their heels, and all that, right?"
She looks around inquisitively.
Kenneth says, "I could as like whip something up tae help with the breathing, but I've nae got anything like that ready. If you're thinking we're going tae need tae spend some time being all Cousteau, then I'd suggest that I head off tae make the stuff whilst you do a first-level scouting pass ay one or both ay our nearby locations, and I'll meet up with you when it's time tae make a splash."
"Hmm."
Sal frowns thoughtfully at Kenneth, scowls thoughtfully at Edwyn, gives Danny a passing glance, then scowls again up at the sun, which shows the time to be past noon. Finally, she nods. "Right. You go brew, and We three will check the river and the Well. I also think we should let the Warden know what little we know, and Ms. Lauren, too, especially since we'll be poking around the University."
"Any objections? I mean, the whole thing is pretty public after the fishfight this morning. They can be on alert and maybe will have more info. We can call on the drive."
Danny whips his head from Sal to Ken and back again, trying to keep up.
"Sure thing. Sounds like a plan!" He agrees enthusiastically, not quite certain what he's just agreed to,...
"Excellent. I'll drive us to the rivers in the Tripmobile first, then to the University. Where and when should we meet up?"
Kenneth says, "Dinnae ken quite how long it'll take - may be best Tae play it by ear .. I can call one ay your mobiles when I'm ready. "
Danny sighs,
"I'll head back to the house with you. Sounds like I should probably fine-tune my guitar,..." He says with a grin.
Sal nods briskly. "Right then. That leaves the two normies to check out the spooky stuff. Frankly, I don't know what we're looking for, but we'll poke around for anything out of the ordinary." She tosses the Rover keys up in the air, catches them, and spins towards the car in the same motion, beckoning Edwyn. "C'mon, fellow Muggle." After a few steps, she turns back to the others.
"Hey, um,... I don't think the fishfaces would have mounted a public, mass attack if they had any idea what... or who... specifically they were looking for. But, y'know... keep your eyes open, right?" She holds Kenneth's gaze on the last few words, then nods again, spins on her heel, and stalks to the Range Rover, still clutching the wrapped blade under her arm. She calls a few words without turning back, but they are mostly taken by the fresh breeze.
"something... don't... something something... rescue...something"
Kenneth nods, "Aye, well, assuming I make it home, I'll be nice and protected by a threshold... I dinnae think that lot would dae well coming intae my shrine tae Brigid... let's just say I'd like end up with enow fishsticks tae cover the whole ay Ireland next Good Friday."
Sal's laughter drifts back along the wind, and she swings up into Trip's Range Rover with a wave.
Danny snickers too. He can be heard to mutter 'Fish Sticks!' in a gleeful tone.
"Well, in that case master brewer, I'll head over with them for a look-see. More eyes and all that." He says with a smarmy salute.
Danny collects his guitar and quick-steps over to the range rover.
"Well,..." Danny says as he slides his guitar and himself into the back seat. "Off we go! Where we stop, nobody knows!" He grins at Sal in the rear-view.
Sal adjusts an imaginary chauffeur's cap. "Where to, sir?" She grins back at Danny. "Seriously, do you guys need to stop anywhere, or need me to drop you off? I kind of assumed you'd go, Edwyn, but it's not really your fight. Unless you want it to be?" She ends on a slightly hopeful note.
"Anyway, if nobody needs to stop, we're off to the confluence."
She begins whistling something that might be "Follow the Yellow Brick Road." Badly.
Danny winces at Sal's tuneless whistling, but refrains from giving any melodic advice or musical criticism.
"Oh, I can think of SEVERAL other places I'd rather be, and things I'd rather be doing, than looking for ANOTHER fight." Danny says with a melodramatic sigh from the back seat..
"BUT, Since the fight is likely to come to us ANYway, we might as well take a look and see what we can dig up! Besides, the company is good."
"and, Ooh! Fresh meat for my my old recycled jokes!" Danny adds with a grin at Edwyn.
"It is SO much easier to find a new audience than to find new material. Stop me if you've heard this one before,..." Danny says eagerly,...
As the range rover starts to roll out, Danny cheerfully begins monologing with a series of bad Dad, Uncle and knock-knock jokes. Interspersed with bits and pieces stolen from every good, and bad, comedian ever heard of.
"We're not looking for a fight. We're just tourists. In fact, we're trying to NOT find a fight." Upon hearing some of the jokes, Sal whistles louder.
"You're going scuba diving? Sounds like a blast," Edwyn remarks deadpan. He’d be lying if he said his curiosity wasn’t nagging at him, though. With a sigh, he tugs out his pocket watch and checks the time. "I'd love to join you, but truth be told, I wasn't lying when I said that I'm here on a job. A job that, until a few hours ago, didn't involve fish people. I'd better check in with my client before doing anything off the clock."
He takes a step toward the Rover and gives Sal a nod. "Mind dropping me off at my apartment? It's not too far from here."
"Sure, no problem. Want to rejoin us after you've done your duty? Here, get our numbers in your phone while I drive. Call if you want in, or just to find out what's going on." She hands him her unlocked phone and follows his directions to the dropoff point, double parking while he exits the vehicle.
"Hey, Edwyn... even if you don't want in, feel free to call me for backup. After Amsterdam... well, I owe you. Even if the name got out somehow. Lots of ways that could have happened. I'm here now, and relatively safe. So, um, thanks."
;P
Taking Sal's phone, Edwyn quickly punches everybody's numbers into his own mobile, attaching them to names and faces. Curious folks, the lot of them. He punches her number in as well, which he already has courtesy of the sandwich wrapper she gave him earlier. The cheese on it was still sticking to the inside of his pocket. Once he is finished, he scrolls down his contact list, which has literally just doubled in size. For a moment he lingers on Mrs. Miller's name, only to shove his phone back into his pocket. Yeah. Client confidentiality. Right.
"Listen, Sal," Edwyn starts as he steps out of the Rover, pausing as he debates on how to tell her that he might have borrowed a few parts of her borrowed identity from a disappeared person. With said person's permission, of course. He grimaces, deciding to save that tidbit for later. "I didn't exactly do a bang-up job on your case. So as far as I am concerned, you're still one of my clients. Once I've gotten a few details squared away, I'll help you out in any way I can. It seems like you already have the vampire thing squared away, but with this fish people thing going on, well, it looks like I have a second chance. So yeah, I'll be in touch."
"Huh? Great, but... you did fine, I got here and all. I'm sorry I was grouchy in the park. HEY! DID YOU PUT YOUR NUMBER IN MY PHONE?" Sal finds herself apologizing to then yelling at the closed passenger door as Edwyn strides away before she finishes, looking like a man on a mission. She sits frowning for a moment, until she realizes all the honking is at her, and puts the Rover into gear. She sighs as they trundle through the streets.
"Guh. Why do I always yell at people who help me?" she asks, more to herself than anything. Then she checks the rear-view mirror and catches Danny's eye. "I saw you were with, um, your ladies at the festival this morning. But when everything was all over, they were gone, like instantly. They OK?"
Danny manages to hide the smirk that threatens split his face into a grin when Sal yells at the retreating Edwyn.
It gets a lot easier to hide when she turns the 'evil eye' on Him!
Then he realizes she's just asking a genuinely concerned question.
"Hm? Oh. OH, yeah, the girls are fine. Thanks." Danny answers absentmindedly. He just realized that he hasn't actually thought of his friends as 'twins' in a while. Since he has been spending so much time with them that he can now easily tell them apart. Usually.
"It's just, well, Lets just say that their father is 'proactively protective' to be polite shall we? That man has made an art form of making his daughters vanish from a scene faster than a camera crew can get there. Sometimes faster than a Facebook post can fly! I'm pretty sure there's magic involved there!" Danny grins.
Then he frowns, and leans forward between the seats. He speaks in an almost conspiratorial tone.
[b]"Actually, there WAS magic involved there. This morning I mean. And I don't just mean MY act. When the Fomor started their playtime, the girls were great. Jumping into the way to help save other folks and their kids. But, well, they weren't just using martial arts. They were casting spells. Like a live-action Street Fighter or Mortal Combat game!"
Danny grins excitedly.
"I was kinda jealous for a sec there. Gotta admit." He adds sheepishly. Then frowns.
[b]"But, whatever they were using took a lot out of them, real fast. AND it made them an instant target for McFish-face and his fiends. I don't think what ever they are learning is on Dear old Dad's 'Approved Reading' list. And now they made themselves known to the fish-sticks. Even THEIR security force isn't going to be able to withstand a concerted attack if the Sea-Monkees decide the girls are high-priority targets."
Danny looks at Sal's face in the rear-view, (careful to avoid direct eye contact) and Sal can see the worry showing unabashedly on the singer's face.
"Whoa there. Wow, that's a lot to unpack." Sal thinks a moment as she carefully maneuvers through traffic. "So your ladies didn't have power, now they do? And you didn't know? How do you tell if someone has power? And are they born with it, or is it a skill you can develop?" She shakes her head, baffled.
"But that's not important now. I mean, we took care of the fishfaces without much trouble. But if you think they can get through the kind of serious defenses I suspect Daddy can muster, that means the uglies we saw today are simple foot soldiers, and there's artillery and tanks coming. Is that what you truly think? Today wasn't a huge problem, but I did some good shooting. It could have been a lot worse." And we had some really good luck, she thinks, but doesn't want to say anything and jinx them.
"Danny, dude, I don't like to get involved in other people's business, but if you suspect something heavy is heading here, maybe you can suggest to Daddy that they all take a nice vacation. Get them out of the line of fire. Even if they have Powers. Especially if they have Powers."
"Yeah. Sorry 'bout that. Over-sharers anonymous here." Danny gives Sal a grin. He shrugs.
"I've never been exactly 'shy'. If you hadn't figured that out by now, Whelp, I can't help you much." Danny ducks an imaginary backhand, grinning, then leans forward, serious once more.
"Well, I'm no wizard, and I never went to Hogwarts, so I'm no expert. But from what I understand MOST people with power are born with it to at least some degree. Wizards, sorcerers, changelings. In some cases it can be given. Or 'assumed' might be a better term. Like some positions in the Fae courts." Danny explains.
When he mentions the Courts, he frowns, and hurries on.
"But I know that there are some things that any monkey can do. Wizzie once showed me how anyone can empower a protective circle. All it takes is a bit of your personal essence, like a drop of blood, an unbroken circle of chalk, or brass, or salt, or whatever, and enough Will to make it happen. So it makes sense that there are other things, 'spells' I guess, that you can learn too?"
"Heck, there are a lot of minor talents that probably never LEARN that they have Powers. But I've been reading in some out-of-the way websites that some talents are gathering together in their areas to become stronger, or at least more powerful working together."
"I guess,... the girls probably have minor talents in the family? I mean, the oriental and the supernatural go together like peanut butter and jelly. I'd be surprised if they DIDN'T have a trace of something in the old family tree." Danny chuckles.
"But,... They might not have ever found it out, or at least not tried to master magic, if they hadn't been hanging out with me and gotten involved in,... well,... my life."
Danny leans his cheek in one hand and deflates visibly.
"Perfect. I'm already on 'Daddy's NOT favorite' list. What am I supposed to do?!? Tell him, 'Hey! Your girls are practicing magic and have attracted the attention of some Atlantean-wanna-be slave traders. Maybe you should all go to Disneyworld until this blows over?' Nah. I wouldn't get out the first sentence."
Then Danny blinks as something Sal said finally kicks in.
"Wait, not TOO much trouble? Um, just for the record, not ALL of us are crack shots there Eagle-Eye. I don't know if one of them got a hold of you, but they hit like a Mack truck. I swear the BREEZE from that big one's fist almost cracked a rib! And yeah, I think they were looking for talents, but not major, like a White Council Wizard. If they had been there would have been a LOT more of them. And a lot meaner. That was a grab-n-bag squad I'll bet. They weren't expecting any real resistance. Or, you know,... US. Next time,... I have a feeling we better be ready for 'next time'."
Danny flops back into the rear seat with an "ARGH!" of frustration.
"I whine a lot. But I actually LIKE being me. I mean, if SOMEone has to be me, they may as well enjoy it, right?" He asks from the backseat, clearly on a roll now.
"But sometimes I wish my powers were a little more,... powerful. Or at least physical. I mean c'mon! I can do ANYTHING that Green Lantern can do! But it's all just pretty pictures for me. I can't actually protect anyone unless I throw myself in the way of the bullet. Or Fist. Or trident. Whatever."
This appears to be a genuine sore spot for Danny, who has never expressed (in front of Sal anyway) anything but utmost confidence in himself and the awesomeness of his own abilities.
He might just care for his friends, and would-be girl-friends, more than he's willing to admit,...
Well, isn't that interesting? Muggles can do some magic? Sal files away that information for later consideration. Right now, it's time to focus on the mission - and to get Danny focused on the mission, not on his romance(s)(?) Or whatever they were. Sal drives for a moment before speaking, gathering her thoughts.
"From my experience with gangst-- er, members of the Legitimate Businessmen's Social Club, they're really good at speaking in and understanding code. And code is simply understated messages. Now, you're not great at understated. But consider this: instead of spilling your guts to Daddy, couldn't you tell him -- or a bodyguard or someone sensible in the Family -- that York and environs could see more of these awful "terrorist attacks" like the ones in the park? And it might be dangerous for a while? And it might be a good time for a vacation? I mean, there are more ways to protect people than with magic or fists or swords or guns. A few well-chosen words can do the same."
She pauses, waiting for that to sink in before moving on, but needing to continue before Danny starts talking. Again.
"As far as fighting, what you do is called battlefield control, and it's absolutely critical. If Kenneth or I had three of those guys on us at once, we'd be goners. But you get in there and distract, confuse, annoy, misdirect. You save our butts with whatever voodoo you do. I wouldn't want to go into a major battle without you, man."
In the rear-view, Sal can see Danny looking back at her. He arches an eyebrow. Then he smirks. Just a little.
"Heh. Yeah. I admit that I don't do 'understated' very well. And it doesn't cross my mind for me not to be the one delivering the message directly. Hazard of the mind-set of being a professional performer I guess. Center of attention and all that."
"And if I told the girls, that would just make them dig in their high-heels and refuse to leave. But, maybe, their 'driver',... " Danny inflects the word to leave no doubt that the man in question was hired for his mercenary, not driving, skills. ",... Well I wont say he LIKES me, but he would take me seriously if I were to let him know the danger."
At Sal's last words, Danny gives a small but genuine smile of pleasure.
"Aw stop it, you'll make me blush." Danny waves her off, (giving no indication he is anywhere near ready to blush.)
"Heh. Speaking of Major Battles, Maybe we should make up code names, for our all-to-frequent-lately public appearances. Like Super Heroes! Ooh! I could be MAJOR DISTRACTION! You could be LADY BADA$$, Ken could be,... I dunno, HOTHEAD HARRY? FLAME OF VENGEANCE? SUPER-TOASTY-MAN?" Dan is grinning hugely now, and on the verge of giggles.
"I already think of you as THE HUMAN FLASH-BANG," Sal smiles, not volunteering the pet name (if any) she might have for Kenneth.
"We'll be there soon. Any ideas of what to look for? Do you have Force Sense like in Jedi Academy? Or is evil like pornography -- we'll know it when we see it?" She suddenly gives the steering wheel a good thwack with her palm. "Da..rn it! Why didn't we examine the boats they came in?"
"Heh. I've been called worse." Danny snickers.
"No Force Sense, I DO have the third eye, some call it 'Wizard Sight', but I don't like to use that nearly as much as I used to." Danny explains. he is still leaning back, which tells Sal that Danny is struggling with this subject.
"You probably heard that the third eye lets you see things that others can't. Which is true. You see things as they truly are, and in ways I can't possibly explain. What they DON'T tell you in 'Muggle Studies of the Supernatural' is that whatever you see with your third eye open you can never forget. Ever. It's like, burned into your brain. The Good, the Bad, AND especially the Ugly. Which is good if your looking at a pretty lady whose truly nice inside, or a family home thats been filled with love for generations. Not too bad if your looking at an area affected by darker magics or spirits. VERY not good if you catch a glimpse of something that makes Webster's definition of 'Evil' look like a Pre-K reader. Um, if you consider that 'True EVIL' would be more like War and Peace."
Danny shudders once.
"ANYway. Yeah, I figure its like you said. We'll know it when we see it. Besides, the smell of seafood and the hand-flippers should be a dead giveaway." Danny sticks his tongue out, snickering.
"Yeah, wouldn't hurt to check out the boats they were using. Whats left of them anyway. Danny agrees, leaning forward once more.
"BUT I think the cops might have something to say about that. Judging by the way they were roping off everything in sight. We can always sneak back later after they've left and take a peek at them, if you think we should?"
"Hmph. Sounds... not fun. I'd rather have Altair's Eagle Vision. Turn the bad guys red so you know who they are. That'd make life a lot easier, wouldn't it?"
Out of habit, Sal pulls the Rover into the car park she used when she'd go sailing with Morien. "I don't know if we could see the boats now, or if they would tell us anything. If they were hired, we might be able to find humans allied with the Fomor and trace them instead. But I have no clue. They could have carved the things for all I know."
She beats a Jaguar to a parking spot and grins in glee, putting the Rover into park. "I wish Morien were here. She'd make this a lot easier."
Kenneth enters his place to the soft upbeat tempo of rag-time piano playing. From the living room, Sloane in a cotton summer dress spins around languidly enjoying the billowing of the hem before she comes to a stop and regards her brother.
Ever since the destruction of the red court she had been doing better, returning to her old self - however her personality remains mellow and unconcerned by the troubles around her. "Hello, did you see the apple blossoms in bloom?" she adds in a soft voice.
Absently she adds; "Sara called, she wanted to make sure you were alright. The tea-leaves mentioned that there was a whirlpool of trouble or something, she said. Also mentioned something about a big gathering soon, if you could give her a call..."
Arriving at his apartment there's a man sat outside on an old rocking chair, "Hello my Son, verily your aura seems strong e'er in this sunlight." The shade of the hallway, hides for a moment the translucent nature of the ghost.
Asher, a Jewish carpenter in life taps the mouse carved into the armrest of the chair; "You need some information from our side of the veil? For we might need some help from yours... there's some powerful death-handlers(?) in town... do they mean us harm?"
"Yes, she would... but it's just me today. She decided to head up river." a rich voice says from the river, like a brook cascading over a weir it has hidden depth. The man is completely topless revealing a lean toned physique, dotted with the river water that he's emerging from. Despite his apparent age it's obvious that the white haired man is in good shape; "Lycius, if you remember we met before I believe?"
Danny senses the familiarity of a Fey creature in the stance and attitude of Lycius, not just a regular joe either but mayhaps one of the Sidhe themselves.
"Wow. Ask and you shall receive,..." Danny murmurs to Sal as he closes his door.
Danny raises and eyebrow at the figure and adds in a whisper.
"Yeah,... If I looked like that I wouldn't wear a shirt either."
Noting Lycius is likely an actual, real Fae (capitol 'F') and not a changeling or something similar. Danny bites his tongue so as not to blurt the first thing that comes to mind. Just in case this one of the Fae that is easily offended.
It is worth noting that despite all of the classifications of 'Winter" 'Summer' and 'Wild' Fae out there, and their various alliances, In Danny's mind there are only TWO classifications of Fae.
Those Fae who are 'Friendly(ish)/Not likely to kill you for no reason', and 'NOT friendly/VERY likely to kill you for no reason'.
Not knowing which classification Lycius fell under, Danny wisely chose to bite his tongue and allow Sal the chance to perform introductions first.
(Danny is the first to admit that once him mouth starts moving, turning it off again is,... difficult.)
Sal tries not to gape as she approaches the aquatic apparition. "Lycius? But weren't you a fish before? Er, sorry if I am being rude. I'm just confused."
A rare light bulb clicks on in Sal's head. "Wait a moment. The Ouse... did you save me when I was thrown into the river?"
What an odd bunch, Edwyn thinks as he turns his back on the Rover, smirking when he hears Sal's muffled shouts. She seemed like an entirely different woman than the one who walked into his Amsterdam office. But then, not many people get to experience the satisfaction of filling their demons with lead. Seems like she's found some good friends here. I guess she really is doing alright, all things considered.
The detective steps towards the building, which while not exactly a hole in the ground, is on the lower side of what he could probably afford. Given the resources he's been provided, he could probably shack up in any suite in the city, but that isn't really his style. Even if it were, it's not like he could properly enjoy it in his current state.
"Hello, Asher," Edwyn greets as he fishes his key out of his pocket, which is thankfully still there, even after all the scuffling earlier. Mental note: work on your fisticuffs. Once he has the thing in hand, he subtly glances around, making sure that nobody is staring at the pasty foreigner busy talking to himself. "Stronger, huh? Well, you should be more careful - sunlight won't do you any favors."
"I do need some information. But I'll answer your question first: I have no idea," he replies, wishing he had something more substantial than that. "All I know is that there are least two people walking around this city who are supposed to be dead. Who were dead."
Danny gapes as the slow gears of his mind finally begin to chug and move things sluggishly into position.
He facepalms himself, then snaps his fingers.
"Lycien! Right! Sorry ol chu,... mate." Danny swiftly corrects himself mid-thought, not sure if a fish-person would take offense to being called 'chum', even if meant in a positive manner.
"Sorry, been a bit distracted lately. And you caught me by surprise! Nice to see you again." Danny smoothly chats Lycien, realizing as his mouth is moving without him that with all of the people he's been hanging around lately, AND his Fae 'connections', a shape-shifting fish really isn't the strangest thing he's had to deal with. Lately.
Kenneth smiles as he sees the figure dancing before him, unsure of why until the hidden dagger of memory strikes him, Ach, she moves just like her sister... , the familiar ache of loss biting deep as other reminders of Cait and their time together flood through him.
He shakes his head to push away that pang and melancholy, By the Harp, man, get o'er yourself. This lass has been nae but wonderful tae, and yet you're always holding her at length from your heart because she's a constant reminder tae a loss years ago. You're nae really a friend tae her, and she bloody well deserves one..
He sighs, the smile coming back to his face, though maybe not quite to his eyes, and he clears his throat, chuckling slightly when Sloane jumps in surprise, "'Tis tidy braw tae see you, halfpint, especially smiling and dancing... Tae be honest, I'd nae taken note ay the blossoms as yet -- my plans for a bonny walk in the park today were messed up by a pack ay munters." He pauses, then chuckles to himself, Aye, no sense hiding the truth from one that's living with witches, and already kens the things that go bump, even out ay habit.. "The nasty, inhuman sort... Seems they was looking tae gather up folks with talent -- a message you should well take back tae Sara and the lot ay them.... So, I'm reckoning that's as like what Sara's got tae tell me about..."
He quickly holds up a hand, "I dinnae say I wouldnae have a blether with her. I'm good tae learn all I can about what's happening here, and a body would be a right bampot tae reject help or insight, especially from friends those that care about him."
"Aye that's wonderful..." she replies still swaying to the music; "Getting help, not being attacked. Would ye like a pot of tea? I can put a brew on."
Twisting his head to one side with a faint cracking sound of dried twigs underfoot, Asher looks to Edwyn; "The dead do not return, so you supposition must be right. They are supposed to be - for whom could pass the barrier and return." He replies perhaps unaware of Edwyns nature, or actively ignoring it, for it'd mean his own existing should be more precarious.
"I had heard they were important or powerful or wanted....I forget. It happens so frequently nowadays.... If only I still had a yamaka I feel naked without...oh well....what we we saying?' He asks in his sallow cultured voice.
Kenneth nods, "Aye, I could have a cup, or a couple. Though, let's boil some extra water and put it in the copper kettle. I'll take it tae the shrine in the shed. So, tae what does a body owe this visit in person, rather than a quick text? Everything right tidy, half-pint, or dae you need tae have one ay our extra-special talks?"
His face breaks out into a smile, a curious but knowing smile; "A fish was I? And people that trespass into my waters, well they have to aware that I take care of them." He says with a low voice and all the double-talk of the Fey.
"But it seems you have done well, even of there's a bit of a Romantic smell of the University upon you Miss." He says to Sal, before replying to Danny; "Whilst the Herald here, you've done a good job - keeping awatch upon proceedings. I wonder what the pair of you want?" Lyceus states, with a catch to his voice that he already knows.
"Well, I had some extra herbal tea and I wanted to thank you... the past few months, well I feel alot better. My thoughts are less cluttered, my memory better." Sloane replies in her ethereal voice, seemingly more focussed since the destruction of the Poppy and Red courts. With a willowy dance she moves to the kitchen and fills the kettle with pure water, knowing Kenneth's preference for filtered crisp tea.
"Sara gave me this stuff! It's really wizard, Jaipur harvested with a hint of lavender." she holds up a small ziplock bag of herbs.
Sal smiles. "I certainly didn't mean to trespass into the river... but I'm glad it was there to catch me. And glad you were there to help. I've been thinking I was rude and didn't thank you, then I began wondering if it were real at all. So I'm happy for this chance to meet and thank you in person." She beams at him, a genuine smile that transforms her normal scowl, and moves to a level spot on the riverbank nearer Lycius. There, she easily sinks into a comfortable squat so she doesn't rudely tower over the dignified, er, man.
"I'm doing well, thanks. I've been working at the University, as you somehow figured out! It's a living, and an honest one for a change. I hope you and Morien are well. I haven't seen her for a while. Did she take Mote or go, um, herself?" Sal glances up the river, wondering about the strange life of her strange but somehow kindred friend.
"But you're right. We're here looking for information. Or trouble." She grins again, the sobers. "I'm sure you know about the attack in the park today, since the Fomor came in boats on your water."
Sal hesitates, now uncertain what precisely to ask now that she has an interested party. From Danny's uncharacteristic silence, Lycius might be a lot more than a Mote-fetcher. "Are they causing trouble for you, too?" she finally ventures. IFF, she thinks, suddenly aware that she doesn't know Lycius's allegiance beyond to Morien. And the good will from being Morien's friend might go only so far, if the Fomor were his allies.