Keri advises against the campfire, as there’s no telling if the people who built it will be friendly or hostile. ”The hill looks kinda like a hobbit hole. I wonder if halflings live there? And the tree hollow would provide simple shelter. I’d say we try one of those two.”
"I also don't like the looks of the campfire, either. But it could be the first opportunity we've had for a non-violent interaction."
I don't really even need it to see at night, in this new body.
"I think we should head for the hollow. I think it'll be more important for us to conceal ourselves than to be exposed on a hill to have better visibility of our environment." he says, after a moment. "Plus it'll be easier to get out of this rain and get a shelter and fire going. We can worry about food after, but we shouldn't be in want of water."
Tamien runs a hand through his soaked hair. "Wait. Aren't Keri and Vultan both enchanting when meeting people. Why don't we have them go knock on the door of the hill and try to get us out of the rain? If that fails for some reason, we can head to where the fire is and some of you can easily tell who might be sitting around it a ways before we get too close to it. Lastly, we know where the hollow is so we can trudge our way through the dark and back there."
Keri wraps her arms around herself, shivering in the cold rain. Her soaked dress clings to her body. "Tamien makes a good point. I say we make for the hill!"
Con walks behind the group, not having much to say. He's glad to have something to listen to while they walk, to keep his mind focused on the task at hand.
M'ushu feels like a feather on his back, and their mutual scales are smooth against each other. It makes him happy that he's able to be helpful, even a little bit.
He didn't notice the weather until someone mentioned it. Though he was usually one to enjoy an overcast day, he decided to voice how he really felt.
"I do not like Piña Coladas nor getting caught in the rain!"
Later on, he nods in agreement to Tam's suggestion, but looks expectantly at the ones who will actually be doing the hard bits.
Nick puts his book back when the rain threatens but otherwise avoids the discussion about shelter. He isn't actually keen on having shelter, his skin is starting to feel unpleasantly dry and the prospect of being rained on is remarkably tempting right now.
On top of that the constant company is beginning to grate. The reasons for staying together are many, varied and excellent but still... some peace, quiet and time to process. Those are what he wants now, far more than food or a dry bed.
You step off the sliver of a path from the beach and head into the grasses. The tallest of you can see where you're going, but for the shorter it's like walking in a city with skyscrapers - you can only see the road; nothing beyond, and you have to look up to see the darkening sky.
It doesn't take too long to read the hill. You can see the door, and it even seems like there might be some candlelight flickering inside.
Keri keeps her hand on Nick's back as she walks through the tall grass, unable to see much through the tall, wet stalks. She sighs with relief when they reach the hill, grateful for the promise of respite from the cold rain. She knocks on the door and awaits an answer.
M'ushu stays on Con's shoulders, directing the group to the hill he spoted.
"Alright, we're almost there. At least the owner or owners seem to be in: I can see candlelight coming from inside the place. We might want to let them know we're heading over, to show that we're friendly."
I should stay vigilant for any traps. I'm one of the very few people in this group that can actually see above this grass.
M'ushu tries keeps his vision wide as he keeps in mind to look around the group and not just at their destination. He also hides his arms in his shirt to appear more like a mundane snake, along with his sling, just in case.
Vultan agrees that the hill, should it be a home, is their best bet by far. Sleeping behind a closed door couldn't be beaten; it was certainly better than beach sand.
Not that the beach was uncomfortable, exactly...
He forges on with the party, jumping here and there to see over the top of the grass. It was good practice, too. He felt that his exceedingly high jump capability would come in handy in the future. The exercise also served to keep him warm in spite of the rain.
Nick continues through the grass, staying with Keri since she seems to want him there - mainly as eyes in all probability. The grass tickles annoyingly and he finds himself wondering why everyone is walking away from a perfectly nice ocean...
...and then remembers that no-one else can breathe underwater.
That's probably why.
I can't imagine who'd be living out here. I'm sure they want to be left alone...
Tamien pushes on through the grass along with the rest of the group even as they're getting soaked with the rain. He's miserable and couldn't see through the grass but trusts that those ahead of him will make their way to the hill hut.
I hope we can convince whoever lives there to let us in.
As you knock on the door, everything seems to go quiet.
"What was that?"
"I think someone's knocking at the door."
"Who could possibly be knockin? We ain't near nowhere. You expecting someone?"
"No I ain't expecting someone? I ain't been expecting someone for years. Now go an answer the door."
"Me? What if its bandits? Woman, you answer you door."
"You'd send your own wife to call on bandits? Have you no shame! Man up, protect your house, and you answer the door!"
"But I ain't ready for no trouble! You answer the door and give me a minute to prepare."
"Oh alright, fine. Coward."
"What was that?"
"Nothing, honey. Love you. Now go on and prepare yourself."
From behind the door, you hear a woman's voice call out, "Who's come knocking at my door this late at night? You descent folk, or folk looking for trouble?"
Keri is able the hear the muffled argument behind the door. She smiles and leans closer to Vultan. ”Sounds like an old married couple lives here. They’re bickering.”
She raises her voice to respond to the woman. ”We are not here for trouble, I assure you. My name is Russ—Keri Russell. We are travelers from a distant land, who have found ourselves caught in this storm. We seek only a warm and safe place to rest tonight. We would be grateful if you would be willing to open your home to us.”
"Russkerirussel? That's a mouthful! Who else is with you, Ms. Russkerirussel? You said 'we.'" You ain't ona em fae folk, are ya? I got iron, I'll have you know!"
I'm good with people, this should be easy.
He thought to himself as he approached the door with Keri.
After knocking, he heard some shuffling. He smirks quietly as Keri can apparently make out what they're saying. Then someone greets them through the door.
"H..."
He cuts himself off as Keri takes the lead. He listens to her intently, checking for anything she might say that he can double down on or hedge should the door-person be too critical of her words.
”You can just call me Keri. Yes, I am an elf, but I am not a typical fae. My companions are of varied ancestries, and while they might seem frightening, they are all quite fri nelly and amicable. Give us a chance to prove our intentions are noble.”
"Alright, alright, just a moment please. I gotta make myself presentable."
It stays silent for a solid minute, before you hear a lock mechanism becoming unlocked. Then another, and another, and another.
The hobbit-style door swings open, and before you stands a older halfling woman, with her long grey hair tied up in a bun on top of her head. She's wearing a faded floral-printed dress that looks like it's seen one too many summers. An iron-tipped spear is steady in her hands, and pointing directly at you.
She quickly taps each of you with the iron. It doesn't seem to have any affect on Vultan, but for Keri it has an instant effect. She immediately gets a headache and her whole body feels weak from the slight touch.
"Alright, I know which of you is the fae. You can come in out of the storm for the night. God's know it's dangerous out there. But you both wearing an iron bracelet, you hear me? I ain't takin no chances. That's the price of hospitality."
Behind her, you see another halfling. And older man, standing a mighty 3-1/2 feet tall. His grey hair is ruffled. He's wearing a pair of simple brown pants and stained white shirt, but on one of his fingers is a gold ring with a red gemstone. A look of suspicioun creases his face.
Keri gasps at the touch of the iron spear. She lets out a whimper as she feels weak, reaching for Vultan for support before she falls.
Having to feel like this all night while wearing an iron bracelet doesn't sound like fun at all, but she knows it's a small price to pay for safety and shelter. "Okay," she says with a grimace. "I accept your terms. There are four more in our group, too. A halfling like you, plus an undine, and two reptilian folk."
Ope, they were critical, alright.
His shoulders shake and he grins as he suppresses a chuckle.
Then he cringes immediately when she openly admits to being fae to someone who is seemingly biased.
Not that we could've hidden that fact, I guess.
He looks her over, considering ways to help hide her identity in the future, should it be necessary.
He watches with apprehension as the door open; the woman appears with spear in-hand. He slowly raises his hands to his chest, palms out to show they were empty. She's much too deliberate with the reach of the spear for it to be an attack; even on high alert, he doesn't jump as she gives them both a tap.
Brr, that's cold metal.
When she taps Keri, he can see her begin to fold. He reaches out to her a hairsbreadth after she reaches out to him. He shifts a foot for balance and puts his forearm where it's easy to reach and she catches herself. He begins reaching out with his other hand, but lets it fall short as she recovers before losing her feet.
As Keri regains her agency, he shoots a look of consternation at the woman. He opens his mouth to reply, but Keri beats him to the punch. He softens his demeanor at her gracious acceptance, and follows her up.
"A big cat made a mess of us the last time we camped, I can't think of anything more desirable than being indoors for some rest. A couple of us are still recovering, though it'll be no burden on you, I swear it. Your hospitality is truly a blessing for us, thank you so much."
He bows his head a few inches as he thanks her, a habit of his. When his head comes back up, he avoids eye contact with the woman to avoid inviting her to offer any protest. Instead he turns to Keri and offers her a warm smile.
"Thank you."
He says it quietly enough that it's almost pantomime.
He waits a beat before turning back to the woman in the house.
"It... Seems like you're wary of the fae, and maybe even appropriately so. Neither of us are disillusioned enough to believe you can trust any fae on sight, but... I've learned to trust her."
He indicates Keri with a tilt of his head, intoning his words to imply they have a long and storied history together.
"Is there any way we can avoid directly attaching iron to her? She's truly not deserving of the suffering it would cause her, and we're sincerely happy to make any other allowances you'd ask of us in return."
This time he bows much more fully, a bow of askance rather than one of introduction. As a show of humility, he doesn't raise himself until she offers a response.
After the two most charming of their group do the talking and the owners open up their doors, Tamien walked up with the rest.
"Thank you." he says to the older halfling couple with a grateful smile. "That storm was really coming down out there. My name's Tam by the way."
"Sure thing, sweety," she says, with a warm smile. "You don't have to wear the iron if you don't want to. You're free to sleep out in the storm, if that's what ya fancy."
Then her looks turn harder, "But if you want to stay here, you be wearing irons. I ain't sleeping in a home with no elf that ain't ironed up. Now get on out of that cold, and call yer friends in."
"It's fine, Vultan," Keri says, placing a hand on the stolian's arm. "I'll wear the iron."
The waterlogged elf gratefully steps into the halflings' home after waving the others forward. Once introductions are complete, she turns to the matron. "Might I trouble you for a towel to dry off and some clean clothes, if you have something that would fit me? This dress is soaked and I'd rather not catch a chill if I can help it. And you can fit me with the bracelet."
"Sure thing. I bet I got something that'll work. Honey, get the bag, would ya?"
The other halfling says, "Sure thing." He leaves the room for a moment and returns with a bag. He reaches inside and says, "Robes." About a dozen robes of different sizes and colors come out of the bag. "One of these oughta fit you. Now, come on in out of the cold. My name's Bramble. That lovely lady there is Theodora. Come on in and we'll make you something hot. Theodora, can you make them something? I got em from here." He tosses the bag to her.
"Sure dear." she responds to her husband, swiftly catching the bag out of the air. Then, turning back to you, she says "Come in, strangers, and grab a robe. Leave your wet clothes and other things in the the pot here, and we'll see them cleaned up. I'll be back with something warm."
You step in to the warm hobbit home. The ceiling is low, but at least half of you don't have to crouch to walk through. The entry leads into a sitting room that's large enough to seat all of you, and presumably this is where you'll stay. There's a pile of robes on the floor, made of various quality and styles, and of different sizes. All except M'ushu will be able to find one that somewhat fits, though most likely it'll just be slightly too large. M'ushu will just have to wear one like a blanket. Conversely, Con will have to wear them like a cape, as none of them are large enough for him.
They do not offer you a place of privacy to change, but Bramble says, "If you really want privacy, I can probably figure something up for you."
As M'ushu is carried in on Con, he does his best to pretend to be a mundane snake. He does not make eye contact, does not react when spoken to and does not move beyond flicking his tongue in and out. When Con puts him down, he slithers closer to the fire and coils up into a tiny bundle, barely taking up any room at all.
Gotta remain vigilant while we're in these strangers' home. Never know who is up to what, in this world. Probably won't be sleeping tonight, just in case.
M'ushu accepts no food, unless Con gives him some, and follows Con's commands, appearing as his pet snake. The cautious, but warm, reception from the halfings did little to get his guard down.
Hope they just forget I'm here and we are able to safely pass this night. This being their literal home turf would put us at a severe disadvantage.
M'ushu stays so still it's hard to know what he's thinking or even if he is still awake, bundled in the rags he's in.
Keri frowns when it becomes clear there is nowhere private to change. ”Alright. It’s fine, I guess.” She rummages through the robes until coming across a few mismatched pieces of clothing that look like they will fit. She gives the others a stern look and says, ”No peeking!” Then she turns around and peels the wet dress off of her body before putting in the dry clothes.
You are treated to a view of Keri’s shapely backside. The base of her cow’s tail protrudes from just above her heart-shaped bum.
The green skirt is long, covering Keri’s legs completely. The blue top has long, flowing sleeves, but it cuts off just below the elf’s bust, leaving the smooth skin of her midriff fully exposed. Keri runs her hands down her bare belly and blushes. This is the kind of outfit she liked to see on attractive female characters in fantasy art, but she never imagined she’d be the one wearing an outfit like this!
She has to admit, though, it’s a good look on her new body. Once the clothes are in place, she turns back to the others. ”So, what do you think?”
Vultan offers Keri a look of doleful resignation as she accedes. He heaves a sigh and says:
"I trust your judgment, but... blink twice if it gets to be too much."
He turns away from the door and waves the party in. As they approach, he steps down off the porch and speaks, first in such a way that anyone inside can hear, but follows it up sotto voce.
"They've graciously invited us to stay! And thank goodness."
He looks skyward to punctuate that last.
"Halfling couple, They don't seem to like anything fae, they've asked that we wear iron bracelets for as long as we're inside."
Vultan bullets out the important points for the team so they can take an informed posture before first contact.
He looks out past them and surveys the area as he gestures for them to continue inside. He scans the tree line, then the skyline, walking back to the door as the party filters inside, closing the door behind him.
He stays by the door and waits for a break in the conversation to ask the host if they would like him to lock it.
What a blessing. Hoowee, I can't wait to catch me some half-decent shuteye.
As the party filters in, he eyeballs the pile of clothes. He marches over once everyone else has theirs and holds a couple up until he finds some his size.
Good thing the military robbed me of any of that pesky decency. I'll just quickly--
Still standing near the pile at the center of the room, he whips his pants off with ease, but when he goes for the shirt, it's caught.
Naturally.
He closes his eyes and takes a moment to reason out how to get the shirt off.
I could ask for help, but I'll need to be self-sufficient at some point anyway...
Anyone looking sees Vultan, undergarments apparent; it's made worse by how his shirt has already been hiked up over his head. He stands there, brief ly, before enacting his plan.
Ok, pull my arms down through the holes and life the whole thing up and back...
You can see that his left shoulder is still mangled from being puma'd. It's not healing pretty at all.
His wings flutter the shirt off the rest of the way and he kicks it into the rest of the wet clothes pile. He dons his new digs in short order.
And now we pretend like nothing's happened and hopefully nobody speaks of this for as long as I live.
He thought, cooly turning about and finding a place to seat himself. He looks to the host and offers an additional thanks and compliments the home as he gets comfortable in the chair and scans the room, appreciation clear on his face.
He notes each person's position and how far he is from the door.
Tamien nodded as their surprisingly gracious hosts offered them a random assortment of robes to look through. He dug around until he found one that looked just about right.
He turned his back to Keri as she said not to look. Then he took off his oversized, drenched t-shirt he'd been wearing and put on the robe? It was mismatched, a long sleeved white V-neck shirt which had been sewn onto overlapping and sequential black and orange strips which went down to just above his ankles.
"Well, at least this doesn't hamper my mobility at all." he says looking down twisting left and right.
Nick nods to the hosts from outside their small home and politely waves away the robes.
"Thank you for the offer but I'm well enough clothed thank you. Some food would be welcome but I won't trouble you tonight. Your hospitality is much appreciated though."
Keri takes note of Vultan's mangled shoulder, but she doesn't comment on it. Once she's dressed, she holds out her hand for Bramble to slide on the iron bracelet. The weak feeling immediately washes over her again, and she stumbles a few steps before sitting down heavily in whatever spot is convenient. She grits her teeth, accepting the necessary sacrifice for the group's well-being.
Con shuffles up to the house, with M'ushu draped around his shoulders and still clutching his spear. Up to this point, he hadn't been too concerned about his appearance but this "normal" couple made him painfully aware that he is, in fact, a terrible-looking monster.
He stands on the porch not knowing what to do. He abruptly tosses his spear down, so as to not seem unnecessarily hostile and stands with his hands cupped to his chest.
He's shivering partly from the cold and partly from the fear of being judged harshly by their hosts. However, he forces himself past the threshold. Once inside he relaxes slightly but avoids eye contact with the halflings. He tries to make himself as small as he can, and only grabs a robe after everyone else has done so.
If he is addressed by the couple directly, he will offer a gracious "Thankyou." in his hollow, alien voice.
M'ushu continues to observe his generous hosts bestow more gifts onto his companions.
What is going on here? Are they normally this generous? Are they really secure enough to open their home to 5 or 6 strangers and comfortable enough to give us clothing? There must be some other angle here, right? Or maybe I'm just completely jaded and this is normally how these things work. Haha Gotta love wishful thinking.
He continues to lay coiled and still while everyone who can grabs a new fitting wardrobe to put on. He does his best to observe the situation, keeping a close eye on any weird eye contact or hidden smirks shared between the two halflings.
After a few moments, the halfling couple comes back in the room. Theodora is holding a silver platter with 7 identical fancy cups on it, all of which have some sort of steaming liquid in them.
"Come on now, don't be shy. These are some of our special drinks; we only bring it out when we have guests arrive on a cold day. She has a smile on her face as she serves.
Bramble, for his part, looks on keenly at the drinks. "Somewhat of a blessin you all have shown up here. I haven't enjoyed this in quite some time."
”Happy to brighten your day,” Keri says weakly as she carefully sips the hot drink.
”Might I ask why you have chosen this place to make your home? It seems quite far from any civilization.”
Even through M'ushu's careful scrutiny of the halflings, he doesn't see any signs that the halflings were up to anything.
I really don't understand what they're trying to do here. Are they really just this hospitable?
He is overcome by his curiosity and abruptly follows up Keri's questions with more of his own.
"Yeah, it seems potentially dangerous to be out here by yourselves. Aren't you worried about centaurs or anything else? We also came across some orc slavers earlier."
He looks around at his companions' new gaudy and well-fitting robes.
"Also, are you sure you want to give us these nice robes? I don't think we have any way to pay you back, and we may never be able to find you to repay you in the future." M'ushu says stoically.
He stares at the halflings who are looking at him in bemusement and shock unblinkingly.
"Oh, I don't think I introduced myself. My name is M'ushu." he says, rearing up and then bowing.
"Oh! There's more of you! I apologize; I didn't realize we had six guests. I'll have to go make one more. Bramble, be a dear and serve these to our guests, I'll go make my own."
Bramble takes over, handing out the drinks. Well, we can take care of ourselves for the most part. Plus, our home is well camouflaged if you're facing the ocean. So the centaurs don't see us. They don't get this close to the waters; them waters can be dangerous.
And also, as long as the centuars don't see us, no one else will be much of a threat. Very few folks come up this way, and if you are any further in, the centuars are likely to deal with you first. They don't like people in their lands, much."
"Oh, don't worry about the robes. We'll have your clothes clean by morning."
Tamien adjusted his sitting position and was pleasantly surprised when Theodora brought them all drinks. He took the warm cup sipping it lightly to not scald his tongue as he'd done so many times in the past.
He waited a polite amount of time after Keri asked her question and M'ushu introduced himself before he spoke.
"It wasn't entirely by design we came here. Had the weather held we would probably have passed on by without ever even knowing you were here. We're a little bit lost and trying to head south. If you wouldn't mind, could you tell us what else is around here? Or give us any other advice? Like my companions said, we've come across some of the wildlife and locals."
"Orc slavers? Unlikely, this far east. The centaurs do not like the orcs, and they absolutely will not allow them to cross the plains. You must've mistook them for someone else."
To Tamein, he says, "Of course. We can talk about that in the morning. For now, let's just enjoy the evening. Let's get a fire started, too, shall we? It's about dark enough to start one and ain't no one'll see the smoke. You, lizard man, go'in fetch us some logs, will you? There's a stack just outside."
"That's okay, Mrs. Theodora. I'm still a kid, so I should probably stick to water. Sss sss sss"
M'ushu allows the cozy atmosphere to sink in for the first time.
"Yeah, it was crazy and we were able to talk our way out of it, thanks to a couple of our charming friends. They were an odd group, though. Some of them were missing limbs and they seemed to be working for someone. Got any crazy stories or recent events to share? I've got a crazy story, if you want to swap tales." M'ushu continues amicably.
Vultan accepts the drink graciously and takes a sip.
Guess I'll die.
He thought with great mirth. His head was filled with the depiction of Hobbits from Lord of the Rings. Content to stay safe at home, and not averse to hosting company.
He imagines Bilbo hiding behind his door and telling anyone outside to leave.
Well, mostly not averse.
M'ushu "joins" the party and he notes the exchange with Theodora.
She'd not have risked giving up a non-poisoned drink so easily, methinks.
He sinks into his seat, further than he had before.
If this is a false sense of security, I don't wanna be true.
He leans his head back and closes his eyes. He's at risk of falling asleep, but he does his best not to, to listen to the chatter and gather intelligence.
Keri finishes her drink quickly, enjoying the taste and the slight buzz from the alcohol, though her body and head still ache from the iron around her wrist. As Con leaves to get wood for the fire, she walks across the room to sit beside Vultan.
She and the birdman seem to have hit it off relatively quickly. His vibes are similar to her own, and she feels better with him around.
"You doing okay? That shoulder looks bad," she says to him.
Vultan picks up his head and opens his eyes as Keri sits down. He smiles before closing his eyes and setting his head back down.
She is very sweet.
"You doin--"
He spoke at the same time she did. He opens his eyes long enough to snort out a small laugh before closing his eyes again and letting her speak first.
"Yeah, it's not gonna be right. Seems to work OK, though, so I'll live. You doing ok?"
Keri giggles as Vultan starts talking at the same time.
"Heh. Yeah, I'm okay, I guess. I'll just be a bit out of it until we leave tomorrow. I think we'll be safe here, though."
She's quiet for a few moments. Then, she says, "You haven't talked much about your life before all of this. Do you have a family back there?"
Staring at the tiny cup in his large scaly hands Con doesn't quite realize he's being spoken to for a few seconds. Once he realizes she was addressing him, he abruptly stands, places his tea down, and quickly makes his way out the door.
He takes a moment to look around, to see if anything has changed since they arrived at the wholesome home. Then he grabs a few logs and goes back inside.
Nick withdraws gracefully when Theodora moves away to make drinks, the warm air is becoming stifling and the small home with so many people in it has instincts of the body and mind both, screaming.
By contrast the cool rain and the darkness of the night sky is soothing, peaceful and exactly what he desperately needs.
Peace at last.
The thought brings back thoughts of the children's book and he smiles at the memory. That however leads to other memories and the smile fades as he sits on the hill in the rain and the dark.
For those who have partaked in the drink, make a strength challenge roll.
If you failed the challenge roll while in th grass, add a bane to this roll.
If you are susceptible to iron, add another bane.
On a failure, you are drunk.
While drunk, you have a bane to all rolls, you act irrationally with overconfidence, and you reduce any damage taken by half.
As Keri awaits Vultan’s response, she finds it difficult to maintain focus. The room seems to be tilting back and forth, and her thoughts are beginning to muddle. Damn, that was a strong drink, she thinks, and an inadvertent giggle escapes her lips.
Hearing Keri giggle was a warm sensation against the cold of his concern.
Or maybe it's the alcohol.
Vultan sits up a bit and stretches.
"Glad to hear it. Really. Was worried you'd be in a coma by morning with how you reacted to the spearhead earlier."
He stares at the iron on her wrist.
"I know you're not exactly dying, but having to feel rotten all night so the rest of us can rest easy... I really appreciate it. I'm sure we all do."
He holds his drink up as a private gesture of cheers.
"Here's to you."
"To me!" Keri agrees with a wide grin. She raises her own empty glass and clumsily knocks it against Vultan's.
"I noticed you didn't answer my questions about your previous life," the elf says, slurring her words. "That's okay. We don't have to talk about that right now. We can talk about something else if you want. I just like talking to you."