Nerris stares at the lock. After a brief moment she starts picking it again and says," If this doesn't work its time to bash it with a rock until it opens."
Indra takes one of the pins and affixes it to her lapel. Her cloak falls naturally over it, allowing her to hide it from prying eyes.
While waiting on Nerris to get the box open, she looks around the place. "I sincerely hope there's another way in and out of here that does not involve walking through all that again," she says pointing back the way they came.
Eventually, Nerris gets the lock to clunk open, and inside you find a massive collection of documents. Several different bundles are tied together with twine, and there is a scroll tube that contains four separate parchments, each with arcane symbols.
When Rexus sees the documents, his eyes light up. ”Ah, yes! This must be the trove my mother thought we might find here.” He leafs through one stack of documents, brow furrowed in concentration. ”There must be hundreds of pages here, and they appear to be written in cipher. See, here elven, here celestial, and here... Strix? It’s been years since I studied that, and mostly academic at that...”
He shakes his head as though to clear it. ”More work than can be accomplished here. Come! Let’s celebrate this victory - what is your favorite establishment, my friends? I look forward to enjoying a cup with you! In the morning, we will begin our work in earnest.”
Indra checks the back room thoroughly, but there aren’t any other ways out from here. You’ll have to go back the way you came.
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"The Tooth an' Nail!" Alexite barks, probably startling everyone. When people look at him, he has the grace to look slightly abashed. "Sorry. I, uh...I like the Tooth and Nail. Good place to grab a drink after a hard day's work. Or during! Or any other time, really."
Pip stuffs the silver buttons in his belt pouch and sidles over to investigate the papers that have Rexus so excited.
"I can help with some of those papers. My upbringing was very...multi-lingual. It's strange how sappy love poetry is so universal, but Songbird Hall's library was full of it - in more ways than one. Anyhow, I could help with the text in Elven and Celestial. The ciphers, too. Let's just say that Nandy's had to revise her own cipher strategies more than once to keep secrets from me."
...
In preparation for another jaunt through the sewage-soaked halls, Pip prepares to enchant his sling again.
However, Alexite's outburst disrupts his concentration, and Pip ends up choking and coughing out wisps of peppermint air as the cantrip goes awry.
The nobleman shares his thanks with Pip. "Your eyes would be incredibly helpful - I might go blind going through all of this myself!"
Rexus taps his nose at Alexite's request. "I know the very place, though I have not frequented it. Let us go!"
Your group makes its way back through the foul basement, past the lair of the gremlins, up the ladder to recollect Ruina, and back out into fresh air. Rexus offers to use a cantrip to help clean any soiled clothes, then confidently walks with you to the Tooth and Nail.
- - -
The Tooth and Nail may present the facade of a rundown tavern, but it is in fact a fixture of Old Kintargo as a popular hangout for the district’s artisans, merchants, and adventurers. The single-story tavern is marked by nothing but a wooden post outside, four bent and rusty nails and six wolves’ teeth hammered into its weathered face.
The tavern shares the building with a confectioner’s shop, identified by the words “Sweet Tooth” painted at its entrance on Tuce Alley.
Inside, the Tooth and Nail carries the stink of stale beer, tobacco smoke, and less discernible odors hovering in the air like clouds of gnats. Narrow windows, stained yellow, allow in little natural light, and a few sputtering candles do little to disperse the gloom. The furniture is dilapidated, and was of poor quality even on the long-ago day it was fashioned.
It's getting late, but the tavern is in full swing with the bustling news of the day: the protest, turned riot, turned rout, and the dozens of protesters now locked up in the castle, awaiting prosecution for their actions today.
As you take one of the remaining tables for your group, a server comes by, takes your orders, and whisks off to the bar with Rexus' coin in hand. Within moments, your beverage of choice is in hand, and the nobleman raises his cup of wine. "To your health, my friends, and to our success." He drinks, grimaces at the cheapness of the wine compared to what he, apparently, is used to consuming.
- - -
A few rounds into your time there, feels a hand clap on his shoulder. Looking up, you see the Tooth and Nail's proprietor, Setrona Sabinus. She is a fixture of Old Kintargo—a woman of small stature with a larger-than-life personality in the old Kintargan neighborhood. As the proprietor of
the Tooth and Nail, Setrona knows and is known by a diverse array of citizens, and her reputation as something of an upstart and a critic of the government is well established, probably leading to all the free talk about the protest in the park that's happening in her place tonight.
Setrona is short for a human, and has a habit of making up for her height with a bombastic (some would say shameless) way of speaking. She’s often called “Countess” by denizens of the district, a wry yet affectionate reference to her family’s long-lost noble roots.
Looking down at the fighter, she grins and says, "Fair evening, Master Tauranor. I saw you come in earlier, but didn't get to make it over until just now. You just missed your friend, Willem. He was asking about you - seemed to be worried that you weren't here to share a cup with him. But I see you've found some..." she pauses a moment to look at the motley crew that surrounds you before continuing, "...new friends?" Her eyes linger on Indra's blue skin for an extra moment before turning to Alexite with a crooked smile. "Well, enjoy your time, and let me know if you need anything from the better stock tonight! You seem to be celebrating something, and I'd hate for you to pass on the chance to celebrate with me."
- - -
Rexus settles up his tab at the end of the night, though he's been somewhat reserved in his own consumption. "Well, to rest, then. I invite you all - meet me at the Long Roads Coffeehouse tomorrow morning. We'll meet with another associate of mine and continue our business there. It also has rooms to let, if you need a place to stay tonight. Otherwise, I trust that I'll see you in the morning. Good eve!"
Indra audibly sighs upon being able to suck in fresh air. "I understand how it deters unwanted visitors, but perhaps we could do a little... cleaning." She nods her appreciation to Rexus' cleaning magic. "Yes, like that." Perhaps one of them could teach me that spell, she muses.
She doesn't mind heading to the Tooth and Nail. She'd been there a couple of times, and, though it had seen better days, it was better than her usual haunts. Nicer clientele. Talk about the riot today catches her attention. "Pardon me," she says to the others as she tries to hear some of the conversations about the aftermath (and perhaps ask a few questions about those arrested).
She meets up with the group at their table. "Wine for me. And whatever you have for food.". It's not the finest, wine or food, but she's had worse. With every sip she takes, a small puff of steam erupts from the cup as her lips touch the wine. She's on her third glass when Setrona comes by.
After Setrona leaves, Indra glares after her for a moment. She leans over and asks Alex, "Who is this Willem fellow, eh?"
As the group gets ready to depart, she thanks Rexus for his generosity. "Thank you... for the food... and wine." She isn't used to showing appreciation and it shows. "Where is this coffeehouse?"
Orrias gratefully departs the sewer with their prizes in hand (being certain to claim a silver raven figurine for himself, along with the masterwork hand crossbow) and while he's not familiar with the Tooth and Nail beyond reputation he gladly accompanies. He orders the most expensive wine available, for what that's worth, and doesn't grimace when he takes a sip--while expensive drinks aren't foreign to him, the last two decades of his life he was no stranger to poverty and cheap booze doesn't phase him.
He keeps a ear piqued for rumors or interesting gossip amongst the crown, at one point volunteering to carry the empty glasses to the bar and pausing to chat up a few of the locals, though his tactics are a bit blunt.
When Setrona comes by and speaks with Alexite, Orrias' eyebrows quirk suggestively at the phrase celebrate with me but he doesn't voice the thought aloud. As the evening winds down he rises from his seat and stretches. "I'm bound for a hot bath and a good book this evening unless anyone has a better offer."
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Alexite is cheered by the thought of ending the evening in his favorite bar, and doesn't flinch or particularly care when the group has to head out through the foul-smelling complex again. At the Tooth and Nail itself, he steers the party to his favorite of the remaining tables, and seats himself where he can keep an eye on the common room. Though Indra and Orrias spend some time chatting up the other customers, Alexite is dedicated to drinking; he puts mug after mug of ale away as he chats amiably with Rexus and the rest of the party at the table.
He's getting pretty heavily intoxicated when Setrona approaches. "Setroooonaaa!" he roars, leaping up to embrace her. "Good to see you!" When she tells him about Willem, he chuckles. "I'll catch him up, never fear. I may or may not have been roundabout Aria Park today, where I may or may not have met these fine folks, an' now we're friends! Thrunie's bringin' the people together arready. Lemme introduce Pipsqueak, Blue, Blondie, Books, Ears, an'...uh, Rex." He gestures vaguely at the table. "An' good news! He's buyin'! So, that bein' the case...I'mma celebrate with a Rusty Nail! In fact, we can ALL celebrate with Rusty Nails!"
Setrona is, fortunately, wise enough to bring the house special only to those who actually ask for it; the drink, when it shows up, is a potent mixture of ale and some kind of rust colored liquer. With a real rusted nail in it. Alexite will finish the drinks of any who order it and decide to turn it down.
When Indra asks about Willem, Alexite chuckles and says, at a more reasonable if also more slurred volume, "Willem's m'oldest frien' an' drinkin' buddy. Known 'im since we were both country sprouts. Come 'ere together a lot! I c'n innerduce yeh sometime." He salutes Rexus as the man gets up to leave.
Nerris takes Indra aside and says to her,"If that wound gets worst feel free to visit me at the office. I promise to keep everything a secret and the old man never really cares much about any how anyone gets injured."
Nerris starts to shift nervously upon hearing about the captured protesters. Remaining quiet through most of the festivities she decides to ask around about them.
Though upon observing Indra she realizes that she is being rather panicked about the whole situation and tries to come down.
Looking at Alexite she smiles and says,"I can't. I mean I appreciate the offer but I have to take care of patients tomorrow and I can't have a hangover."
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Pip orders a mug of applejack and nurses the potent hard cider throughout the night. He is more interested in the dinner offerings, requesting the hashed mutton and some apple cake.
His attempts at chatting up the local color result in little more than dodging filthy boots as laborers pass without even heeding the slip, and one man sets his mug down atop Pip's head, drunkenly assuming he was a side table.
Pip reasons that this calls for a new approach.
Fueled by cider, Pip decides to test how loudly he can make the taproom howl with laughter.
He clambers atop a bench, then a table, and hoots for attention.
"Lots of folks don't realize this, but dwarves and ogres have a lot in common. For instance, they'd both love to receive a pony as a birthday gift.
The dwarf would comment, 'What a fine steed,' while the ogre would ask, 'What's for dessert?'"
.....
When Pip wraps up his impromptu performance, collecting any coins tossed his way and digesting any rumors his audience passes along, he returns to his new friends' table.
"All joking aside, before we adjourn for the night, how are we divvying up our spoils for the night? I want to know how much I can bring back for the temple tonight and for my family tomorrow."
The food, like most food in this cosmopolitan port town, is heavily influenced by fish and seafood. However, since this is a lower-class part of town, it's less of a finely seared fillet, and more of a thick, hearty stew that really sticks to the ribs.
((Sense motive on Setrona))
Setrona appears to be a genuinely affable personality, and when big spenders come in on lots of drinks, she is the kind of proprietor who will come over and greet that table personally - plus, she appears to know Alexite fairly well!
"Where is this coffeehouse?"
Rexus nods, blearily. "Of course, of course, directions. Head up to Villegre. Make for the Night Road gate out of town, but turn turn left towards Villegre Park, it's one of the main roads, you see. You can't miss the park, and Laria's place, ah, she's the halfling that owns the coffeehouse, at any rate, Long Roads Coffehouse opens onto the park - beautiful spot for a cup of coffee and one of Laria's pastries. I'll make sure she knows that we'll all be there!"
Setrona just shakes her head at Alexite's antics, and delivers the drink as requested. The beverage is truly an experience not to be missed. Or, rather, Alexite's enjoyment of the foul concoction is not missed by most of the patrons in the tavern, many of whom cheer him on, and at least two of the fighter's friends at the tavern start making plans to cart the cad home.
Your nerves must be getting the better of you, or you're asking the wrong questions, but mostly the clientele is more interested in drinking than sharing information with you.
Indeed, no one mistakes you for a side table after your performance, though folks are more interested in congratulating you than telling you rumors tonight. Sertona herself was howling with laughter at your comedic act. The proprietor comes by to shake your hand and ask when you can come back for more. "You got us to increase the flow of ale for twenty minutes. I wasn't sure it was possible for this lot to drink more, but I'm glad they can. Laughter goes a long way farther than depression for selling drinks. You come back and do that again, and we'll make it worth your while." She adds a coin to the ones others were already handing you for your work, and at the end of the night you've pocketed another 13 silver pieces - good showings both this morning and evening!
Pip accepts the coins with a bow.
"Thank you kindly, Countess," he says to Setrona. "I will certainly visit again. This is a good crowd, and I was especially impressed by that stew. This was my first visit to the Tooth and Nail, but now I realize what a disservice I've done by staying a stranger."
Now that he has not just an invitation but also directions to the coffeehouse, Pip excuses himself for the night. His feet have many cobblestones to kiss before he can rest.
He first hustles over to Songbird Hall both to return the fine clothes that Soria wove for his performance and to let her know that he was not harmed in the chaos that erupted.
"I had entirely almost nothing to do with that, I assure you, my big sister."
He also passes along 10 silver shields as a donation for the church.
His next destination is an outbuilding of the Tanessen Estate in the Greens, to visit his family.
Pip's father and siblings are already asleep, exhausted from the day's labors, but his mother, Filu, stayed up to await her free son. Pip presses another 17 silver into her palm, then regales her with a story about his grand performance.
He says nothing of the riot or his adventure in the livery, but he does mention meeting some new friends over the course of a busy day.
Finally, he returns home to his tenement and finds his landlady seemingly waiting for him - or rather, for his rent money.
The 2 gold sails he tosses to her seem to placate the crone, allowing the slip to slip into his room, drop his banner pole and gear, and collapse onto his bed.
"I'm glad we're meeting at a coffeehouse," he mumbles to the lightless night air. "I'm going to need some coffee to handle another day like this."
A sleepy-eyed Soria waves you in, then watches you go almost as quickly as your coins jangle into her hand. "Just remember to come by for prayers, Pip! Your faith is as important to your craft as anything, don't forget... Wait, what do you mean, 'almost'?" You're most of the way out the door by the time she finishes, however, and you're not sure if she was ready to say more on the subject.
Your mother, also sleepy-eyed from her hard day in the estate, is more than happy to hear about your grand performance. She makes her usual show of trying to refuse your coins, the two of you dance about the issue for a while, and eventually the money lies on a nearby surface, forgotten for the moment. "I'm glad that you've made new friends, my dear. Soria sounds lovely, but some other influences would be good for you, too. Any of our kind folk among their number? Or are they all tall'uns that you're rubbing elbow-to-knee with?" She says this last bit with a twinkle in her eye, but you know that there's a certain melancholy there. After all, she's only really known one kind of relationship with non-halflings.
Old Nurla's grim facade of exhaustion and disgust cracks for just a moment as the sails glide through the air, but the moment of surprise is quickly extinguished as the coins disappear from sight into an inner pocket. "About time," she grumbles. "I'll be seein' the rest soon, aye?" But again, you've gotten past before she can further bend your ear, and you quickly slip into a deep unconsciousness.
On their way out, Indra grabs Orrias' arm. She whispers, "A moment... " She leads him off a little outside the tavern. Once they are more or less out of ear shot of the tavern folk, she sighs and says, "I wonder if you can help me out. Since you said you didn't have any real plans." If Orrias' face betrays any hint of her having offended him by that remark, she probably won't notice.
"Some of the bar patrons I met tonight mentioned that... well, that there was someone said to be stalking tieflings in the Devil's Nursery. I'm not living there, but I do have to pass by. I wonder if you wouldn't mind accompanying me to pick up some things from my dwelling. There's no need to tarry there, I just..." She lets the statement hang, waiting for an answer.
Orrias quirks an eyebrow at Indra--wine and a bath after a jaunt in the sewers seems a fine plan to his mind--but lets it pass, offering Indra a reassuring smile. "It would be my pleasure to help, lead the way."
Sara orders a glass of wine with a bowl of stew and some bread. She also orders a haunch of meat and bowl of water for Ruina who is releaved to be back with her master.
Sara listens and laughs with the others in her party, especially when Pip put on a show for the tavern.
Hearing only the normal commotion in the tavern, Sara relaxed into her chair. She sighed in content as she rubbed Ruina behind her ear.
"To be honest," sara said while on her second glass of wine. "I thought this place was just your average hole in the wall tavern but i can really see its charm now."
I should tell this Mikhail about... oh gods Mikhail knew she was going to the protests and has probably heard of what happened. He's probably worried since she never went to see him. She stood quickly, looking around for her belongings.
I'm terribly sorry but I must take my leave. If you need to reach me, i am typically at work at the Devil's into Detail tannery or at the temple of Ragathiel." she said before hurring out, Ruina trotting out behind her.
Alexite waves the others off as they leave. He's enjoying his drink, and has no plans to leave until he heads home later that night!
make their way through town...
...and while you pass by the Devil's Nursery without incident, it isn't long after you pass into redroof that you see a trio of men boldly striding down the center of the street. Both of you have keen enough vision in the darkness to recognize Thrune pendants hanging from their necks, and armbands marking them as the similar sort of self-deputized militia members that you fought in and near the park this morning. While they haven't yet specifically targeted you, it's clear that they'll come upon you in just a few moments.
quick dash home is uninterrupted, and when you arrive, you see a single candle burning at the meal table, and Mikhail sitting near it, reading a small book. When you enter, he looks up, and quickly rushes over to embrace you. "I feared the worst. Are you all right? Where have you been?"
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As the Thrune loyalists come striding into view Orrias' hand twitches toward his blade for a split second before he catches himself. He doesn't break stride, instead half-turning towards Indra as they walk, voice low but pitched to carry and taking on an argumentative tone.
"...not old enough to remember but the civil war was monstrous. Thrune finally put an end to it all and brought peace to Cheliax, and if cracking the heads of a few addled fools is what's needed to keep the peace in Kintargo then more power to them."
As they pass the guards he offers a respectful nod and calls "I heard you did good work today at that riot! Give 'em Hell boys!" but doesn't slow down and immediately turns back to his "argument".
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Although Indra's first instinct was to duck down an alley, deception is old-hat to her and she's quick enough to catch on to Orrias' play.
"If you ask me, those rebels deserve whatever they get," she says, drawing out the word deserve into 3 syllables. She winks at one of the soldiers, as if to say, "I love a man in uniform."
The three militia men cheer with you as they pass, and the one blushes sheepishly at Indra's bawdy wink. His buddies laugh at him and clap him on the shoulder as they continue on their way down the street and into the night.
The rest of the trip home is without incident, and Indra is safely deposited. Orrias is now free to pursue whatever flights of fancy his hedonistic little heart desires.
Sara smiles and leans into Mikhail as he hugs her tightly. For the first time today she has felt safe. "I'm fine. I'm sorry I worried you. There was a riot and innocent people were in danger. Mikhail, Thrune was going to have them all killed. I couldn't just stand there or run. But thankfully there was others who felt the same. I should have come back to you then and there but instead I traveled with them."
She pulled herself away now so she could look at him in the eyes.
This was something important, something she knew she needed to portray her meaning. "They all feel the same way as we do... and I think we may able to do some good. I'm sorry for this but this is something I need to do." She explains to him.
Upon reaching Indras' home, Orrias notes the location as a matter of habit. "We should deceive Thrunites more often. I grabbed a few of their uniforms, Calistria knows what sort of mischief we could get up to if I have a few minutes of quiet and a little makeup. Is there anything else I can help you with?"
She shakes her head 'no.' "Thank you," she says. "I like the way you think." She snickers a little thinking about the misdirection possible. She heads up to her flat and gathers a few things together. I don't want to be caught unaware again. Best to keep the necessary things with me, she thinks.
She cleans her wound and puts on a clean bandage. She puts in a little positive energy, too. Certainly can't hurt. (CLW) She finally lies down, thinking of all the fun they're going to have messing with the Thrunies.
Mikhail sits quietly while you share the story. It's always been a little different that his eyes don't blink as often as a human's need to, but you've known him long enough that it isn't as disconcerting as it used to be. At the end of your tale, he takes a deep breath, sighs, and shakes his head a bit. "I love you and trust you, Sara, but this... It's one thing to slight your family as you have, but taking on Thrune itself... Just tell me that you'll be careful, and that you'll thoroughly cover your tracks. In the meantime, do I need to look for an assistant to train here at the shop? Will you be away at all times of the night?" You can tell that he's not looking to be placated - he just wants to know that you're going to do everything you can to be safe.
The remainder of your night at the Tooth and Nail is a blur of drinks, laughter, arm wrestling, and good natured fun. You manage to keep from showing off your silver raven figurine, just in case, but some of the regulars can tell that something's a little different about you today. You aren't quite as angry as you were last night - or rather, that the anger has transformed into something more positive.
A few other regulars that you know well make sure that you get home without incident, and help you collapse into your home for the evening.
Location: Long Roads Coffeehouse, Kintargo, Cheliax
Weather: Slightly overcast skies, mostly sunny, and a comfortable temperature
If there’s anything to say about Kintargo, is that it doesn’t let a little rebelliousness go to waste. News of the previous days events in Aria Park has flooded the city, and the accounts that you overhear on the way to Long Roads Coffeehouse vary from the accurate...
”Barzillai himself ordered everyone arrested, and his troops would have done it if a few brave souls hadn’t stood up to them. I can’t imagine what might have happened if they hadn’t!”
...to the wildly inaccurate...
”...should have seen it - Barzillai brought out a pet dragon at the end that breathed fire and torched twenty people! ‘Course they cleaned it up right away and the families all paid off to keep mum so’s you’d never hear about it, but then a blue demon woman jumped up from the ashes, flanked by an angelic archer, an elven warrior of old, a halfling trickster, a half-orc bruiser, and a leather-clad human, and together they drove off the dragon and saved the lives of hundreds - maybe the whole city! What? No, ‘course I wasn’t there myself - upstanding citizen that I am. But me cousin was, and he also said...”
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
The coffee house is buzzing with activity, as appropriate for the morning. From medical and arcane students of the Alabaster Academy, to the half-elven ladies attending Lady Docur’s School for Girls, to local businesspeople getting ready for their day, Laura Longroad clearly knows how to draw in a crowd. It definitely helps that it’s one of the few successful businesses in the Villegre district, a once-prominent scholastic center for Cheliax, now fallen on harder times. Indeed, you pass several empty storefronts on your way to her shop, and can’t help but wonder what this might have looked like at the height of Cheliax under Aroden’s guidance.
When you step inside, you see Rexus at a stool at the bar, positioned so that he can keep a view of the door. You see that he has the iron coffer of documents with him, and a steaming mug of coffee at his elbow sits next to a small platter piled high with halfling-craft pastries. The nobleman's eyes are bloodshot, and he’s clearly exhausted, but there’s also a twinkle of energy in them, belying his excitement.
While each of you arrives, he greets you warmly and calling you over. As soon as you reach his side, a bright eyed halfling who must be Laria Longroad , bustles over and greets you like an old friend. "Welcome, welcome! So glad you're here! Won't be a moment before I get the office cleaned up enough for all of us to catch up. It's been too long!" She pushes a hot cup of coffee into the hands of any of you who accept, and makes sure that the stack of pastries doesn't diminish.
Indra's not sure if she'll ever come back to her flat. If she's recognized, it might be best to keep mobile, switching "home base" every now and again. It won't be the first time she's had to ditch a place. Hell, it's not even the first time she's had to do it in Kintargo. Just in case, she leaves a few coins for the landlord, Tasha. She'll keep the room as is until she hears otherwise.
On her way to the coffeehouse, she keeps her head down and her ears open, a hood concealing her features. She smiles to herself as she hears some of the tales of yesterday's exploits on the lips of the town rumormongers. A girl could get used to that, she muses. Oddly, she noticed herself feeling happier than she has felt in quite some time. At last, she felt like she was doing something. And there will be Hell to pay for what their sins. A gleeful sneer crossed her visage at that thought.
The coffeehouse was right where Rexus said it would be. His greeting shocked her a little as she walked in the door. The man was really paying attention. The slip owner of the shop offered her a drink and a scone. Never one to turn down free food, she accepted, of course. And damned if he wasn't right about the coffee. I'm not sure that I've ever had coffee this good. A girl could get used to this, too.
Having gotten home too late for a bath that evening, Orrias sleeps in late and treats himself to a long bath in the morning instead, then lays out the uniforms he took off the unconscious militia the previous day, inspecting each for unique identifying features that could be used to trip him up if he attempted an impersonation and carefully noting each item so he knows what to include or watch out for.
That done, he dresses and heads out, walking past a few of his favorite shops to look longingly at the fine dresswear before finally arriving at the coffee shop. "Apologies for keeping you waiting, I had a few errands to attend to," he offers cheerfully by way of explanation, pulling up a chair besides Indra and pouring himself a cup of coffee. "Mmm, splendid! So what acts of daring sedition will we be up to on this beautiful day"?
"Quiet ones, I hope," Alexite mumbled, slumping into the seat next to Orrias. He'd woken up bleary-eyed and badly hungover, albeit in his own bed. He'd barely had time to throw on his clothes and armor before he had to head out to get up to Villegre; he still looks mussed. His stomach isn't too steady, either, but the pastries look manageable enough.
The coffee's another question. He looks at it suspiciously when Laria pushes it into his hands, and takes a sip. Grimacing, he glances around, then surreptitiously takes a flask out of his pocket and adds a slug of...whatever's in the flask right now to the drink. Turning back to Orrias, he adds, "And should we really be talkin' about that here?"
Nerris wakes up feeling worst than she did before. Upon entering the coffee house she finds Indra. While violently shivering she says to Indra,"I hope your doing better than I am. The old man told me to take the day off after seeing how sick I am."
Upon seeing all the food offered at the place Nerris seems to grow even more depressed. Looking at the others she says,"I wish I could eat that but I'm not sure my stomach can handle it."
"And should we really be talkin' about that here?"
Orrias tips the hung-over human a wink. "Almost certainly not."
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"Ugh. Why does my head hurt so much? And why do I smell so bad?" Pip groggily grumbles as he rises from bed.
The memories of Thrune loyalists walloping his head soon break their way back to mind, as do recollections of the livery's unique bouquet.
"Oh right. That all happened," he groans.
A minor blessing, he reasons sarcastically to himself, that he can save time on dressing since he went to bed in his clothes. Then again, now he worries that his bed will also reek of a fetid stable's basement.
He reflexively shoves his hands into his jacket pockets and discovers both that he forgot to give Soria the silver buttons and that he still wears that strange signet ring he found in the livery's rafters.
"Good thing Old Nurla's eyesight is fading," he thinks. "She probably would've tried to bite the darn ring off my finger for the rent. What a sorry sight that would be, a halfling with nine fingers."
Pip spends a few minutes magicking the stains and smells from his only set of clothes outside the temple.
He leaves behind his comedy gear but packs his scriveners' kit in case he and Rexus set about deciphering those papers.
With the silver raven figurine tucked into his right pocket, Pip steps out into the morning and starts on the long march across the city.
Approaching the Bleakbridge, Pip scoffs as he sees the Lord-Mayor's men collecting tolls from people trying to cross.
Brave but not stupid, Pip decides against trying to slip past them lest he draw too much attention to himself and his destination.
At one of the many vendors crowded around the bridge's mouth, he buys a bar of soap, a ball of string, and 2 candles to make sure he has exact change in coppers for the toll.
These men have shortchanged him before on trips to visit his family in the Greens.
.....
When Pip reaches the coffeehouse, his spirits are high again after hearing the local rumors about he and his friends' exploits.
"I don't remember fighting a dragon, but that is definitely what I would have done," he thinks with an internal giggle, ensuring he arrives with a smile on his face.
When he encounters the bubbly Laria Longroad, however, he becomes uncharacteristically tongue-tied.
He dumbly accepts a mug of coffee as the friendly proprietress familiarly ushers him to his allies.
He grabs a plate and practically builds a hut out of pastries.
He gestures to the food and says, "By the way, this isn't a halfling thing. This is a Pip thing."
He stuffs one into his face while letting the big folks talk, though he straightens up and tries to make his chewing more polite and dignified whenever Miss Longroad passes by.
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What a sorry sight that would be, a halfling with nine fingers.
Nerris looks at the halfing a bit amused and says," You know fries make better building blocks than pastries. At least according to my daughter."
"You gotta kid?" Alexite asks Nerris, looking surprised. "Huh. You don't seem the...I mean, you seem young."
"I mean adopted kid. I met her one day crying about her hurt friend and I offered to help. Turns out her friend was a torn teddy bear. Spent the entire day fixing it. Decided to take her in once I found out she was all alone," she says while weakly smiling.
Alexite whistles. "Lotta responsibility. Count me impressed, Books. I wouldn't've pegged you for it." He takes another slug of "coffee" and glances around, eager to get into the back room and talk more openly.
While Rexus makes a show of laughing a little too loudly at comment, the elf can clearly tell that the nobleman is nervous about doing too much conversation out in the open.
Laria looks approvingly at appetite, clapping his shoulder and saying, "I love a man with a good appetite! Don't worry, love, I'll keep 'em coming." She makes a curious wave to one of her servers, who disappears into the kitchen and returns with a doughnut the size of Alexite's fist, covered in powdered sugar, which Laria then sets before the diminutive sorcerer. "Enjoy, with my compliments!" she winks.
The halfling proprietor maneuvers through the crowd to bring more, stopping when she sees what is doing to her coffee. With a tut-tut and a shake of her head, she says, "No, no, no, this'll not do, my friend." She runs behind the bar, grinds something in a mortar and pestle that releases a pungent odor, mixes it together with coffee and... something else that you can't quite see in a large green mug, and passes it to the fighter. "Here, a better cure for what ails you this morning than any hair of the dog ever could." Though it initially smelled foul from afar, under your nose it's actually quite sweet and wholesome-smelling, though the brownish-blue color of the liquid leaves something to be desired.
However, his laughter dies on his lips when he sees state. "By Shelyn, you're a mess! Forgive me, but we need to get you seen to, and soon. As soon as we complete our business this morning, Pip, can you take Nerris to Songbird Hall? I'll write a note to the high priest there, Zachrin Vhast. Treatment won't be free, of course, but he's... helped me in the past, and will not object to me requesting aid again. [bigger]Indra[bigger], if you're also so afflicted, do you want to go with them?"
Indra almost blushes at Rexus' attention... almost. "I believe I'm fine. Though, I admit that I have never visited Songbird Hall." She chews on her lip thoughtfully. "Very well, if it will make you feel better." She waves a hand nonchalantly.
Well that's fortunate. I was getting a little worried when I saw Nerris that this might be my fate as well. Convenient not to have to ask for aid. Of course, it might be because of her orcishness.