"I never even thought of that."
Tif let's out a sigh and grabbing Eliva by the elbow begins dragging her towards the sweets, her eyes alight as she gazes at the oddities tent.
Seeing that the roll is not poisoned, Res takes a big bite out of it. With his mouth still full of roll, and crumbs falling out, Res mumbles, "This sure beats trail rations. Let's go find some animals."
"Thankyou Ange," says Nathaniel, taking am experimental bite from the sweet treat before following Res into the animal tent.
"Best day since we got here. You think these things will keep? I could store some in my pack."
The honey rolls are as delicious as their scent promised. You proceed towards the animal tents. As you get closer, you detect the scent of manure that indicates you are in the right place. The tent is dusty and dirty, but that does not seem to bother the patrons wandering into it. Behind the tent, you can make out a stable area where the animals are housed.
Standing to the side of the tent is a miserable-looking man with a hooked nose and an imperious look about him. He seems to be watching the carneys with hawk-like intensity, as if he were some sort of overseer.
“I wonder if that’s our man?” Nathaniel murmurs to Res. “Why don’t you and Tiff go and talk to him like you suggested, the rest of us will wander about and look at the animals.”
Res gives Tiffana a slight nod and ambles over near the man. He says loudly to Tiffana, "Sister Cecile was right, there are some amazing animals here. Where do you think they all come from?" Res tries to keep one eye on the man to see how he reacts when Res mentions the nun's name.
The miserable-looking man doesn't seem to care about the name. The lack of recognition makes you think you've got the wrong person. Your great understanding of personality also gives you the distinct impression that he has a severe cruel streak just below the surface.
Res senses that this man is not Yuri. He points to another animal away from the man, saying to Tiff, "Oh look at that animal, let's take a closer look." He then heads off in that direction looking for other animal handlers.
Angalia lingers over the last crumbs of her honey roll before going to look at the animals.
For the moment oblivious to the fact that Res hasn’t found the man they are looking for, Nathaniel wanders about the area, looking at the animal attractions.
Tif's eyes glint with mischief as she twirls towards the man, stopping just short of him and almost bumping into him. "Oh! Greetings sir, could you by any chance assist me?" She says in a voice just loud enough to be heard over the din of the gathered animals.
The man at first looks enraged at the disturbance but then leers at Tiffana without a hint of subtlety. "I could assist you with all sorts of things," he says in a grating voice.
Angalia wanders with Nath, watching discreetly to see how Res and Tiff fare. She smiles to herself at Tiff's approach to the nearest handler.
"That's pretty well bound to be effective," she murmurs.
Tif smile slyly and looks up at the man through her long lashes, "I'm sure you have a hundred ideas on how to do that... but sadly for you I require just one service... for now. Could you, kindly please, point me in the direction of on Yuri? I'd like to finish my business with him before freeing myself to handle new things" she places her hands on his chest and waits with a pleading look in her eyes.
Unsure of what Tiff is planning, but doing her best to play along, Eliva opts for an imposing but not immediately threatening manner, standing slightly behind Tiff with her arms crossed.
At the mention of Yuri's name, a brief rage flashes over the man's face. He composes himself, however, in response to Tiff's posturing. "Yuri? What do you want with him? Why waste your time with some kid who shovels shit all day when you could have a man with more... experience?"
He sighs. "Ah well. I will take you to him." He begins to lead you in the direction of the stables.
Nathaniel’s wonder at hearing the bellow of what he thinks could from a near mythical elephant soon gives way to sadness and a growing anger at the cramped and cruel conditions the animals here are kept in. He is torn between wanting to see the animals inside the tent and manifestly not wanting to.
Glancing around to find the others, he sees that Tiffana is talking to (well, apparently seducing) the man he at first assumed to be Yuri, with Res and Eliva standing nearby. The man seems to be starting to lead Tiff around towards the side or rear of the tent.
“Let’s get some air,” Nathaniel murmurs to Angalia. He starts to move out to a location where he can keep a line of sight with Tiff as she moves away from the front of the tent.
Tif smiles at the man, "Thank you love, you really have been a doll. Do not think I'll forget your charms when this is done." She beckons Eliva to go with her and follows the man, her eyes searching the stables as they walk.
Not wanting to ruin Tiff's ruse, Res hurries to catch up to Nathaniel and Angalia and tries to keep a discrete eye on the pair following the overseer.
"Keep calm Nath. I know you want to, but you can't just set all these animals free."
Angalia keeps an eye on Tiff's antics and notes Eliva and Res's tactful bodyguarding.
The miserable hook-nosed man leads Tiffana (and anyone else following) to where a number of horses are stabled. A young man - more like a teenager - is brushing one of the horses. His face is acne-ridden and he has a malnourished look about him.
"Yuri!" the older man calls out.
Startled, the young man trips on a feed bucket, spilling the contents on the ground. Almost reflexively, the older man strikes him in the face.
"I'm sorry, Nik," the lad says submissively.
"These people are here to see you," Nik says with disdain. "For what purpose, I can't imagine. This had better be cleaned up before I get back."
"Thanks for the help."
Angalia offers a small coin. "Have a drink on us."
Nik sneers and takes the offered coin. He walks off and starts conversing with another carney some distance away, but you get the sense he is continuing to watch out of the corner of his eye.
Yuri regards all of you timidly. He's not sure why you're here.
Nathaniel remains apart from Yuri and the women, deciding to let the girls talk to the timid looking stable-hand. He keeps an eye (from a distance) on Nik and his compatriot.
Angalia smiles at Yuri, wanting to put him at his ease. Conscious of Nik's eyes (and quite likely ears) upon them, she keeps her tone light.
"You're just the person I wanted to see. My betrothed and I are to wed soon. My sister, Cecy saw the carnival recently and thought you'd help us make our day especially happy. She didn't tell us much, I'm afraid, but now that I see your wonderful animal collection, I'm sure she was right."
Yuri looks puzzled. "Cecy? I don't know..." Then he looks alarmed. "Oh! I..." He looks around him and then, without a word, moves around the wall of the next stall to block the view of prying eyes.
"They're watching me," he whispers. "They watch everything. It's the carnival manager - Sergei. He's shut himself up in the funhouse, but there's something else in there. Something very dark. Right after that, the plague started. You've got to watch out, though; there are a lot of people very loyal to him, like Nik and Zorya and Zaria. I don't know what any of us can do."
"Is there any way into the funhouse?"
Angalia keeps her face cheerful and her tone quiet for the benefit of any watchers and listeners.
"I've seen some people go in and out the front door," he says. "It's boarded up, but I think that's for show. If there's another way in, I don't know it. If you come at night, there won't be anyone around - most of the workers go to the wagons back behind the fairgrounds. Whatever you do, this can't come back to me. They'll kill me. I know they will."
Nathaniel keeps watching Nik and the other man, standing apart from the others while they talk to Yuri, but trying to block a direct line of sight between Nik and Yuri.
"You're a brave man Yuri. Can't you leave here? I think my sister would be happy to have your help with the wedding guests."
Unwilling to put Yuri into any more danger, Angalia smiles again and prepares to leave.
"Is there anything else we should know?"
Res stands next to Nathaniel also keeping an eye both on the group talking with Yuri and Nik. He occasionally points out an interesting attraction to Nathaniel to maintain the ruse.
"And go where?" Yuri asks. "I have nowhere to go. You should move on, though. The longer you linger, the more explaining I will have to do. In addition to Nik and the twins, watch out for Oleg, the strongman. He does whatever they tell him, and a couple of weeks ago he killed a pickpocket with a hammer. He is dangerous and short-tempered."
"We'll see what we can do to change that," murmurs Angalia very quietly before raising her voice.
"Thank you for your help. I'm sure the wedding will be wonderful."
Still smiling brightly, she returns to the group.
"More honey rolls anyone?"
Once safely out of earshot, she tells everyone what happened.
"I think we'll be paying an after-hours visit."
As they turn to leave Tif spins, "I hope to see you again soon Yuri.", planting a long kiss on the young man's lips before she goes.
She gives him a pat on the trousers as if to bring something to his attention as she breaks away from him.
Yuri is quite stunned.
Those of you watching Nik see him walk away toward the vendor area. In the distance, you see him stop to talk to a large man, almost hulkish in his proportions. He, in turn, makes no effort to hide the fact that he is staring at all of you.
Meanwhile, you spot a familiar face in the crowd heading to the animal displays. Your former guide, Andrei, is stuffing a honey roll in his face and grinning childishly. He calls out to you, "Isn't this place great! There's so much to see!" He moves on to view more of the attractions.
As they turn to leave Tif spins, "I hope to see you again soon Yuri.", planting a long kiss on the young man's lips before she goes.
1d20+10
She gives him a pat on the trousers as if to bring something to his attention as she breaks away from him.
“Big man,” Nathaniel comments quietly to Res out of the corner of his mouth as his gaze locks with that of the burly fellow across the field. “The bigger they are, the harder they fall as we used to say in the logging business ...”
When Angalia and Tiff return, Nath nods. “I think that’s a good idea. Should we get going in the meantime? That strongman seems to be itching for a fight ... I wouldn’t mind taking him down a peg or two, but if it comes to a brawl here and now innocent people might get hurt. It might also be worth telling young Yuri to find somewhere to lie low until tomorrow – for his sake I wouldn’t want those fellows to start asking him about what he told us.”
"I hope he can see himself away from here." The young woman pauses for a moment before adding "If any harm comes to the boy, by any hand, I will make the guilty one beg for the release of death."
“So long as we keep a low profile, there might be some value in getting the lay of the land, poking around a bit more before we come back tonight,” suggests Nathaniel, glancing after Andrei.
Res gives a slight nod to Nathaniel at his mention of the strong man. After Angalia has shared her story and Nathaniel suggests more exploring, he speaks up. "I agree with Nathaniel. We need to look natural. Let's explore more of the carnival. And I can think of nothing better to see than than freak show. Come on let's go." With that, Res gives a friendly pat on the back of the group to nudge them along and says a brief prayer to Gorum to grant resistance to each person. He leads the group toward the freak show tent.