Fortunately for the gnome, Thrand remains clueless about his feigned blindness, otherwise he would have given his diminutive companion a swift kick - maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but soon.
"The dead guy and the unconscious guy had two companions. You could ask them about the dead body on the highway, not that highwaymen are like to give honest answers. And small blades are easily hidden, especially when there's a scuffle drawing everyone's attention. Have you checked the half elven woman for a bloody knife or dagger?"
He recognizes the name of Doctor Phineus Krane, but feels that now may not be the time to deliver the letter.
When Garl attacks, he says, "Holy smokes! Garl, what in blazes are you doing? I'd help you, sheriff, but I know how you feel about 'lethal weapons in a simple bar scuffle'." He sits away from the scuffle and sets his mace on the table.
(blind Garl)
(if evil female killed companion)
The sheriff does indeed check the half elven woman and discovers a dagger in her possession.
"Hmmm....this is all very perplexing. I will confiscate the dagger that was fought over. I will also confiscate this dagger found on you half elf and I will remand all you newcomers under house arrest in rooms here for the night until I can sort things out with the diviner." the sheriff then adds "reel your pet in gnome lest you find it skewered, last warning. Not helping your cause if you are innocent..." motioning to the barkeep [b]"Get them all rooms here on the first floor for the night. Move others out if you need to. I will take the room on the second floor. The rest of you go home, the inn is closed."[/ooc]
You are required to stay in your rooms until the morning. food and drink will be brought to you. You are on your honor to stay put but are warned if you leave then the Sheriff will put a bounty on your heads across the lands.
You all move to your rooms and notice the other newcomers are right across the hall from you in the inn.
The elf will walk by both the gnome and the cavalier with a look of daggers and keeps on walking to her room without a word, the purple of her eyes shining brightly in anger.
Thrand is confused by Tanariel's reaction. He chalks it up to being either a female thing or an elf thing.
"Your terms seem reasonable, sheriff, as long as someone looks after our horses. Please guard the dagger well, with dogs if you've got them."
Rolfe grabs Garl in a headlock as the gnome brings his blade to bear. "What'n'blazes are you doing? Have you completely taken leave of yer senses? Stop drawing more attention our way. An' don't be waving yer steel around unprovoked." he growls, pushing the gnome onto the dirty tavern floor.
"Don't mind him, sheriff. My friend here had heard wondrous things about Chesterhome hospitality. Imagine his surprise when not ten minutes in the gates we're threatened by a confessed murderer, says he wants a trinket we found by the roadside. But if it's food an' board you want to be givin' us then we'll say cheers to you, m'lord, and see ourselves to them nice feather beds until we see justice done."
Leaving Thrand to treat with the sherrif, Rolfe waits until Garl lowers his weapon before releasing him. "C'mon. Think you an' I are gonna have a long chat." he says, starting upstairs.
Victrix looks up from her fury to see the party in the middle of being put under house arrest. "Uh... roight."
Well, on the bright side, we've got rooms, right? Although I kinda expected us to get kicked out...
"I'll go along, fer now."
Thrand says to Garl, "Since your wolf is still not welcome indoors, perhaps you can make the most of a bad situation and have him guard the exterior to make sure that no one sneaks out through the windows. We just have to get through tonight and then all will be well. I've got my horn to alert the sheriff if I hear anyone in the corridor."
After learning about the gnome's good fortune, Thrand says, "They are going to let you sleep with your wolf? I wonder if they would let me board with Valor... No, I suppose he is better off in the stables. Well, good night, Garl. Try not to get into too much mischief."
Thrand sets his shield and weapons in a corner of the room. Not trusting the evil party to confine themselves to quarters, he keeps his door open. He puts the chest near the door frame, but still in his room, and sits on it for as long as he can stand with a signal horn across his lap. When he feels that he can no longer stay awake, he will close the door, move his bed against it, and fall asleep.
The elf will spend the night going over what she might have missed in the confrontation as well as detecting magic, if possible, to look for auras.
The night passes by with just regular creaks common to a wooden structure. The next morning, the party is brought down to the taproom, where Sheriff Blunnde holds an audience.
"Alright! Someone snuck into my room last night and stole the dagger I confiscated from the quarreling parties. I had it under my pillow as I slept and woke up and it was gone, as if it had just grown two legs and walked away. I figure one of these people did the crime..." standing before the Sheriff are the dark haired man, whose name you learn is Grelm, a local farmer named Huckabee Trent who was part of the tavern brawl, a dwarf named Lorckhay, the barkeep/tavern owner Ostler, a local woman Estle and the Sheriff points at....Rolfe "and you! There are witnesses to the crime and I will get to the bottom of this."
If your men were on guard sheriff then you and they would be able to discern anyone entering the room. However, that does not take away the fact that the magical dagger might have had properties to it that we do not know about as I was unable to study it in detail. she says simply.
"So much fer' justice." Rolfe mutters, setting his jaw as he meets the sheriff's gaze. "Fine, we'll do this yer way."
"I am just holding him for questioning right now. until I determine who did what he is a suspect. I suggest if you really think he is innocent you could work with me in questioning the witnesses provided your friend, the accused, does not intervene. He can watch but not speak or harass or intimidate the witnesses. Same for the others."
Rolfe folds his arms and slumps sullenly into a stool, adhering to the sherrifs instructions however reluctantly.
"If you want to speak to the witnessess wait here and i will get them one at a time. We will use the inn main hall here for this." the sheriff tells everyone involved.
In elven Tanariel will state
The female half elf from the other group laughs lightly after Tanariel speaks.
The Sheriff brings in the first witness.
She is one of the serving girls...
"Ummm...my name is Sara...and last night... I saw both Huckaby and Grelm ...in the hall outside the sheriff’s room ....at different times last night ....as I made the rounds checking the locks and windows of the inn... they could have done it....can i leave now?" she says nervously.
"You can ask questions if you like." the sheriff says.
Before the questioning by accused murderers of witnesses to a theft begins, in a case that surprisingly takes priority over a murder case, Thrand says, "I am deeply disappointed in you, sheriff. We entrusted you with that dagger. I asked you to keep an especially vigilant watch over it. We expect compensation if the dagger is not found. As far as I am concerned, you are a suspect as well."
He makes absolutely certain that his wine glass is continuously refilled during the trial.
"tough talk good knight, but stick tot he task at hand. after than i may just start asking to your lady friend with the axe who was seen striking the half orc before he died. maybe we will discuss that after this is done."
"You may," says Thrand to the sheriff, "unless someone steals her out from under your pillow."
To Sara, he says, "You seem nervous, Sara. What are you afraid of? How long have you worked here? How do you know Huckabee and Grelm? How long have you known them? Did you speak with either man last night? What was said? Have you seen them often in the company of others? Who? Is there anything else you can think to tell us that might help us solve this case?"
Could have does not equate with doing something though, child. Are you sure that someone has not put you up to this?
Victrix wasn't paying too much attention to the proceedings until the sheriff mentioned questioning her.
"Wait--where's the other party? Why aren't they 'ere too?"
Victrix blinks as she finally notices the rest of the party that accosted them sitting in the room. "Oh."
Evidently she's still half-asleep.
The sheriff listens to the girl and then asks Grelm and Huckaby about what she said.
"Sheriff I was drunk last night from wine following the tussle. I was probably looking for the privy and got confused... thinking your room was the privy." The farm-hand Huckaby says sheepishly and then laughs a bit at the situation. The Sheriff scolds him into silence.
"She lies. I was not in your room at all. This girl is a complete liar, or saw someone that looks like me. Possibly him" Grelm professes and points to Rolfe.
Sense Motive
Thrand laughs with the farmer at his explanation. After Grelm's outburst, he squints and tries to decide if Grelm and Rolfe look alike. "Did you get a good look at Grelm's face or are you judging by body shape alone? How was the lighting?"
(see if Rolfe and Grelm look enough alike for this to be plausible)
(on Grelm's outburst)
(on Farmer's explanation)
"i saw what i saw and told the truth. can i go now please?" she pleads.
Tanariel and Thrand suspect the girl and the farmer are telling the truth and that Grelm is either lying or keeping something hidden.
"You may go," says Thrand. He awaits the next witness.
The elf will attempt to catch the eye of the archer that she charmed yesterday almost to see if she can read what he is thinking.
The sheriff introduces the next witness, "This is Mr. Flint, a travelling merchant. Mr. Flint tell us what you saw."
"I saw the innkeeper hiding in the storeroom next to the sheriff's room. He had something in his hands, could be he stole something."
The innkeeper, upon hearing those words, hotly denies this saying "I was not hiding anything! I was stocking clean linens. It was my storeroom in my inn. Why shouldn't I be there taking care of the place! This is crazy!"
"I saw what I saw." the merchant says.
gets Jobe to sheepishly admit he doesn’t really know what the innkeeper was doing and had forgotten about the whole incident until he learned of the crime this morning. Jobe wanted to get back at the innkeeper for overcharging him room and board for years.
Victrix leans forward and sighs. "Sir, there's no need for 'ostilities yet. Now, please, could yeh explain why, exactly, our innkeeper 'ere would risk bringin' the sheriff down on 'im with this sorta theft?"
She frowns upon hearing Jobe's rationale. "Really."
Well, it looks like almost everyone here is everything I've come to expect from years of living in 'civilization'.
"My my a Suel Barbarian who uses brains instead of brawn...I am impressed." the half elf in the other group chuckles after Victrix gets to the truth using diplomatic measures.
"Get out of here Jobe and don't come back!" the sheriff yells at him and thinking a bit he adds "Dont come back for a while....we need his merchandise." the sheriff tells the rest of you.
"OK bring in Tab and lets hear what he has to say." the exasperated sheriff says...
A young stable boy comes in and states "I saw the master dwarf there, Mr. Ganderhoddle, beneath the sheriff's windows last night while i was out making the rounds of the stables."
"I was merely out releiving myself at that time" the dwarf states. "And then I smoked my pipe" he adds
you suspect Master dwarf might not be telling the whole truth
Thrand loses his balance and spills some of his wine, so he is distracted during the stable boy and the dwarf's testimony.
(aid another)
Rolfe sits silently, nonplussed as he watches his companions rise to his defense. Despite himself and the dire situation he's in, his whiskers twist into a smile.
Victrix is skeptical of the dwarfs response and aided by Rolfe who motioned his disbelief and Tanariel and Garl, Victrix is pretty sure the dwarf is keeping something back. Except for Thrand. Thrand believed every word the dwarf said.
"Unless there are no more questions for the accused we ca take a look at any evidence left behind."
"Excuse me, sir..." Victrix folds her arms with a skeptical look in her eyes. "...that's all yeh did that night? Yeh sure yeh didn't hear or see anythin' odd? This is an important matter--we can't afford ta overlook any details."
Thanks for the help, guys.
"I know not what you mean. I gave my response. Ask someone else."
"I think yeh do." She snorts before turning to the sheriff. "Sheriff, correct me if I'm wrong, but is there a punishment fer keepin' evidence from ya when yeh're investigatin' a crime?"