Kiley breathes a sigh of relief after the dwarf woman leaves, then looks curiously at Stryn.
"Stryn, why do you talk like that when around others," she asks after they are seated and their orders made. She'd bought what she could with her nine copper pennies.
Stryn orders some food as well and plops himself up on a seat. Before speaking he looks around to make sure no one is specifically listening in then shrugs as he replies to Kiley "Often easier to play along with people's expectations. You see others prejudice, it is bad enough when they think I'm just like all the other stupid goblins, if they find out I am much smarter they often become much more concerned." He smirks as he continues "Plus it often gives me an advantage, acting weaker than I am. So, long story short, it is a survival mechanism."
"Oh," Kiley says, feeling a little embarrassed for not seeing that. "That makes sense. I remember when I put some chelish slimeball's head through an oak table. Everyone was shocked that had that much strength," she says, then immediately realizes she probably shouldn't have.
While she knew Stryn might not take it well, Renae found it difficult to not look at him with some sympathy. "That's... most unfortunate to hear, Stryn. You'd think that your intelligence would stem people's anxieties, but than again, prejudice hardly tends towards the sensible."
The wizard sighed and tried not to think about idiot childhood bullies that mocked her book-learning ways. Coming out of reverie, Renae's eyes darted towards Kiley. "Well, let's hope that said 'slimeball' learned a lesson that day," she told Kiley with a knowing grin. "After all, one should never discount the strength of a women scorned or just plain annoyed."
Hal was playing with some beans, the leftovers of his meal. Now that the food had satisfied his body's need for sustenance, he was utilizing the scraps to give his mind what it craved every bit as desperately: constant engagement. Any engagement. Fortunately, the cleric was easy to entertain. He was arranging the little pellets into the shape of a skull - a skull within the moon-round shape of his plate.
He was a bizarre figure in the tavern, the spindly elf hunched over the table, playing with his food with all the enjoyment of a child. So concentrated on his task was he, that he added nothing to the conversation between the others. But he was listening. And he was thinking. Prejudice, huh? Was it prejudice not to invite the rabid dog to one's table? Hal didn't think so, no. He thought that very sensible. Ms Morgmon's response, anyone's response, to seeing a goblin was perfectly understandable. Goblins ate people. When one encountered a being that upon every prior encounter had maimed and killed your own, not even in necessity but out of a deranged sense of pleasure, then it seemed only sensible to avoid said beings. As Stryn had said, a survival mechanism.
Was this fair to outliers such as Stryn? Hal pulled his lanky hair away from his plate - he'd gotten some sauce onto the strands. No, of course not. But it was understandable. Even the elf could see that. He might be insane, but the cleric wasn't mad. Prejudice tended towards the sensible.
How fortunate that the group wasn't sensible then. Hal said nothing and finished his skull. It didn't matter. None of it mattered. Rationality and folly, truth and falsity, it didn't matter. Only happiness mattered and the others were happy in their ideas. Happiness was his mission. It was his calling. Only happiness mattered. And so the elf said nothing.
Stryn quirks his brow to Kiley's response about the slimeball. He nods to Renae's words and when she mentions the slimeball learning a lesson he adds "It seems we have both grown quiet a bit since we knew each other years ago."
With his food present he goes to work eating it. He chows down on the food, eating it with the decorum one would expect from a goblin. While he might be smarter than the average goblin his eating habits were one area that he never focused on refining, mainly because there was never any need. After he finishes eating more food than it would seem his little body could hold and he see's Hal playing with his remaining food Stryn asks "If you aren't going to eat that, can I have it?"
The dark pools that were the elf's eyes swiveled from the scraps over to Stryn at the question, the cleric's expression changing from one of deep concentration to polite curiosity in the process.
"Of course you may," he said smiling. Helping someone satisfy a healthy appetite? Hal was at his happiest when he made others happy, and he found there was nothing like the simple pleasures in life.
"Enjoy," he chirped in passing the plate. What was left over was arranged into the vaguely grisly shape of a skull. Stranger still was that the elf's little art project was quite skillfully done. "It's a skull," Hal added, very helpfully.
KIley starts to reply to Renae when she notices Hal playing with his food and making a skull. She shakes her head and takes a moment to clear that out of her head since she was about to have a hard enough time without that disturbing image distracting. She looks around for eavesdroppers before speaking again.
"Well, there's more to it," she admits quietly. Almost too quietly to be heard over the general din of the tavern. She takes a deep breath, figuring now is as good of a time as any to let the others know why she ran away from Roderick's Wreck and the other reason she hides her ears and tail.
"I… I need to tell all of you a-about why I-I ran away," she says, "Renae already knows, so you should too.
She looks around the table, taking in a deep breath.
"My mother and father, n-not my real parents, but the ones that took me in, they were part of a Varisian Caravan and-and we were heading to Sandpoint ten years ago. We'd heard rumors of goblin attacks, b-but what we f-faced was worse. Th-th-they were g-g-ghouls," she stops, her eyes squeezed shut as she does her best not to break down in public. Her shoulders shook with the effort of holding back her sobs, but she manages to keep control and after a moment, she opens her eyes again, now glassy and hollow looking.
"I was the only one that survived," she says flatly. "I walked back to Magnimar and snuck into the city. I sang and danced for a place to sleep and coin to buy some food. It wasn't much but it was enough to last me for a little while. Unfortunately, my parents apparently owed some Sczarni, the Black Rose, money, and now that they were d-dead, that debt fell on me. They treated them fairly since they were varisian. I am not, so they didn't see any reason not to basically enslave me. I was fourteen at the time, but I looked younger, maybe only eight or nine at most. They figured my talents with song and dance could be put to use. They used me as a distraction for pickpockets, and I had to run for my life more than once. Unfortunately for me, over the next couple of years later my ears and tail came in. I didn't want to know what would happen if they found out I wasn't human, or was cursed, so I hide them. That worked for another few years, but then one night I was called downstairs to account for a poor showing after I'd gotten ready to sleep by the leader of the Black Rose, Anatolie Stanca, and his lieutenant, Calin Randa. I got dressed as quickly as I could. A little too quickly."
Kiley breathes in another deep breath. It was easier than she had thought it would be, but that didn't mean she wasn't feeling the waves of anxiety the memories brought back.
"Anatolie saw something and he and Calin tore the scarf from my head. They saw the ears and locked me back in my room. The next few months were nerve-wracking as I waited to hear what my fate would be. I started drawing and painting about then out of boredom. Thankfully my window overlooked a busy square where the Gendarmes drilled and sparred, so I got lots of practice, and even learned how to use a sword by watching them. One of my keepers and I got to know each other and he started bringing me paints because I reminded him of his little sister. That made it bearable, but I was still worried they would kill me or just toss me out into the streets of Riddleport."
Kiley's eyes turn dark as she moves on. She doesn't meet the others' gazes as she continues.
"What they came up with was worse in a lot of ways. I still looked young for my age, but I wasn't flat as a washboard any more. Those months they'd spent lining up clients for 'private audiences' and I was the exotic eye-candy to make the gang look more affluent. At first it wasn't too bad. I did like I had been doing except without covering my ears and tail. Then they put me in more risque costumes and had me performing more risque acts and dances. Their favorites even saw me shed clothing until I was nude, but it never went any further."
"At least it didn't until that night last winter. I had stopped looking like a girl and more like a young woman, and the man was a wealthy smuggler that could get them access to more exotic and dangerous drugs." Her eyes flick to Hal for just a moment, guilt and shame clear in her expression. "He had made a great deal with the gang for the privilege of fondling and deflowering me. I was sitting there after they'd agreed to the terms and he was going to take me there. Something in me snapped and drove his face into and through the table. He lived, but no one wanted to touch me after that. The gang's fortunes turned sour and I was blamed for it as the whole thing came apart. Rather than wait for my throat to be slit in the night by Adelina, I stole what I could and left for Roderick's Cove without any plans beyond earning enough to go further south.."
Still looking at the table, she shrugs.
"And there you have it, why I came here and part of why I hide what I am. The Black Rose is probably tearing itself apart and getting gobbled by its rivals, but why make it easy for them if they are looking for me?"
She keeps looking at the table, not willing to meet the others' eyes.
Stryn looks up after finishing eating Hal’s food once Kiley finishes her story he nods and says ”Good idea to hide, very smart. Sounds like they got what they deserve though, but your with us now, so we will watch your back.” He sits back in his seat and rubs his belly, apparently content ”My life wasn’t as rough as yours sounds but I’ve had my difficulties. Things were a lot easier when my friend Jess was around. She kind of saved me so I can tell you how important good friends are. We are good friends now, so you’ll be ok!”
A full belly definitely seems to have put him in a good mood. Not that he is generally in a bad mood, but more of a cautious, persistently watching your own back mood. It was a nice change of pace to have some new friends, especially ones willing to stick up for him, that he could let his guard down around.
Henric spent the meal eating and reading one of the books that he'd acquired about Thassilon. His attention wasn't really on the book, though, as he listened to the conversation that the others were having. Eventually, he closes the book and says, "Sounds to me like you don't have anything to be worried about. You managed to not only stand up for yourself, but literally gave the guy his just desserts. If you ask me, they should fear coming after you. And now it's not just you anymore, either."
"Thanks,"Kiley says, cheering up at Stryn and Henric's support. "I'm glad I met all of you. It's like having a family again," she tells the others, choking up a little at the end as she tears up. Despite the sadness she feels for her old family, she manages to smile and chuckle a little.
"And you're right. I probably don't need to worry about them coming here. We have a job to do, so how are we going to do it? How far away is the stone house anyway?"
Renae took in Kiley's words as she told her story, having not even bothered to touch her food. She knew part of the story but not all of it. Stryn and Henric more or less said everything Renae wanted to but the wizard felt compelled to do something.
She stretched out her hand and touched Kiley's shoulder. "Your not the only one whose had to escape from shiftless bastards that just wanted to use you, Kiley," she says with barely controlled bitterness. "But you're right. You don't have to worry about them with us by your side. Come what may."
After all the talking when Renae reaches out to comfort Kiley Stryn notices she hasn't even touched her food. He looks to Renae for a moment as if trying to decide on something before eventually asking "Are you not hungry? I can eat it so it doesn't go to waste, if you don't want it..."
He gives Renae a smile, which is rather creepy with his over sized looking, but proportional for a goblin, mouth full of sharp pointy teeth.
Whether Renae passes him the food or not he turns to Kiley with a shurg "Not sure how far it is, but I say we go to the goblins first. Luckily for us we have someone who can blend in and maybe do some scouting to figure out what the situation is before we charge in. Then maybe we can save the dwarves, if they are still alive, and then go check on the stone house." He pauses as he runs through what he just said and nods "Yeah, save the people that need help first, right?"
"Hm?" the elf said at Stryn's prompting. "Yes. Right. Absolutely. Save the people first." His mind had begun to wander without his little art project to occupy him.
"But don't put yourself in any undue danger. Let's see what we see when we get there. No use in planning too far ahead. You never know what the next day brings, after all. Why, I could wake up dead tomorrow."
Was that a joke?, Hal wondered. He had been sleeping in the town's cemetery for the last few nights, with Audrahni's permission, of course. Setup: sleeping among the dead. Twist: waking up dead. It sounded like a joke. Or was that just word play? Phrase play? Hal supposed it was a kind of joke. He decided to laugh since no one else was. Nothing sadder than a joke without laughs.
"I suppose that's one way to say seize the day," Kiley deadpans as Hal laughs.
"I agree, dwarves first then the house. Stryn has a good idea, but won't that be dangerous for you? I thought goblins were just as bad to goblins of other tribes as they are to anyone they outnumber or are more powerful than. Also, depending on how far away this place is, we'll need to set up a camp, which means tents. I'm afraid that I left mine in my other pocket," Kiley jokes, a sure sign that she's starting to feel better.
Renae simply looked at Stryn for a moment, her mind entirely somewhere else, before she causally passed her untouched food to him. It's all yours, Stryn. My hunger has suddenly left me I'm afraid and you're right that it would be a pity to let this go to waste."
With that bit of awkwardness over, Renae's mind returned to their plans. Yes, going after the dwarves should be our priority. I'm not entirely sold on you going into lion's den, though, Stryn, but scouting the goblin camp is prudent."
The wizard paused and caressed her chin as she thought of the group's remaining needs. "As for the actual trek through the Churlwood, I agree that purchasing some camping gear would be the best course. Even if this Stone House isn't that much of a journey to get to, its entirely possible that we may be sidetrack by any number of things and suddenly need to spend the night in the woods.
Renae flashed the group a coy smile as she reached the end. Which means a shopping trip to Conrel’s General Store is in order.
"Well, I think we have a plan of action. Get supplies then set out," Kiley says, looking forward to a chance to look in a store she hadn't visited much since coming here.
As the group leaves the Creekside Tavern, Kiley tugs on Renae's sleeve to get her attention.
"Um, I hate asking this, but I just spent my last penny in there. Do you think you could help me trade some outfits that I had with me for something more appropriate to go tramping about goblin dens in, or just buy them?"
Stryn happily takes Renae's food and indulges, his little belly expanding even further. Once he finishes, which doesn't take long at all, it seems the group is ready to go shopping. He jumps up from his seat and as his food settles he lets out a loud belch and smiles to the others "Sure we can get stuff if you need. I usually just sleep under the stars when I have to be outdoors but if you all need other stuff now is a good time to get it."
He will follow the others toward the store even though he doesn't particularly need anything himself.
As the group moved to the general store, Renae felt a tug on her sleeve and noticed that Kiley wished to speak with her.
After her chat with Kiley, Renae began to list off some things they may be. "Hmm. Rations for a day or two in the wilds. Animal repellent. Some acid or alchemist's fire in case of swarms. Also, a large tent would do nicely, though, I suppose we could rough it with only bedrolls. Oh! And crossbow bolts! I wasted so many of them in the Wreck and... Wait!" The wizard suddenly turned towards Styrn. "You found some silverwave in the Wreck, did you not? How much do you think all of it was worth?"
Oh Desna, I didn't think this through. She's definitely going to see that one!
"We also have these," Kiley says as she pulls out the finely made mapmaker's tools. "I was hoping to learn how to use them, but if you feel that the gold they'd fetch would be better..."
She looks at the slippers as the are brought out, and a thought comes to her.
"Would anyone mind if I see if these fit? They look about my size," she asks.
Kiley finds a place to sit and pull her boots off to put the slippers on. The red stands out brightly against the black of her stockings.
"Well, if Stryn did grab the silverware than you may not even have to part with them anyway."
When Kiley puts the on red slippers Renae's eyes rise in alarm. "Wait!" she says urgently, before moving to where she is seated. "There's an off-chance that those slippers have been enchanted or even corrupted by the spirits in the Wreck. It's best that we scry them before putting them on."
Renae hadn't prepared the spell for the day, but with the aid of her ring she was able to conjure the magic necessarily to cast a minor divination spell on the slippers. With a few words of Thassilonian and her ring glowing softy, Renae examined the slippers for anything noteworthy.
"There's two or three that I'd really like to get rid of though. It's just..." Kiley shudders. "Well, I guess I could show you later."
Kiley stops, her foot just an inch from going into the first slipper. Hearing about what may have affected them gives her some pause.
"Y-you mean these might be haunted?"
As you cast your spell and focus on the slippers, you see they are definitely magic. Concentrating further, you detect only a single aura.
After further focus, you determine the aura is faint transmutation, and that these are feather step slippers.
Renae made a sigh of relief as her divinations revealed the slippers to not be haunted at all. Quite the opposite, in fact. "They could have been, Renae tells Kiley with a faux grave tone before quickly making an sly grin. "Fortunately for us, though, they are not.
The wizard causally took one of the slippers and held it up for closer examination. As she did, she begun to describe the slippers effects with notable interest. "They are enchanted, yes, but their transmutative effects are beneficial. Wearing these you can maneuver around any hazardous terrain without impairment. Jagged rocks, thorns, slippery floors, etc. They don't appear to have much of magical strength, though, so I doubt you'll be able to enjoy such an effect for more than ten minutes a day."
Renae handed the slipper back to Kiley. "Still, I imagine those will be of great help during a fight. Any takers?"
Kiley looks at them and frowns slightly.
"I think I'm going to pass," she says before looking at Stryn. "What do you think?"
Stryn shakes his head "Might be useful, but I think the coin would serve us better right now." He smiles and adds "Plus... uhm... I think they might make it easier for things to see me when I am hiding, they aren't very discreet..."
"No, they really aren't," Kiley says with a chuckle before looking at Hal, Henric, and Renae.
"I think Stryn has a good idea. Magic shoes should more than cover anything we want or need for this trip," she says, "but if you want them..."
She holds out the slippers with a shrug.
And with the extra money, my dignity has a stay of execution.
The cleric somehow seemed more impressed by Renae than the shoes as she summarized the magic bound into them.
"See, this is what I mean," he said, wagging a long finger. "People like me really shouldn't be commanding any magic. Priests and ideologues without the foggiest as to how any of it works... Only those with wits and book-smarts like good Renae can figure out all these intricacies like this. Hm? Oh, no thank you. I wouldn't know what to do with them."
Henric holds up a hand facing Kiley, "Thank you, but they wouldn't be all that useful for me. If I have to move that much, I'm probably doing my job wrong."
Renae looked at Hal strangely before eventually giving him an appreciative nod. "Thank you, Hal. The divine magics that cleric's such as yourself channel are not without intellectual and philosophical complexities, but it is good all the same to hear that you appreciate the arcane sciences and all the work that goes in understanding them."
With Henric declining the slippers as well, the wizard shrugged as everyone seemed content to do without them. "Well, if no one is interested we can always sell the slippers at the shop along with the silverware. Enchanted items fetch a high price on the market and I'm sure Conrel's would be willing to buy one.
With that said, Renae returned to walking to the aforementioned shop.
Kiley follows along and after receiving her share, she buys a sack, a waterproof satchel, some parchment, a journal, and two sets of clothes that are darkly colored and tough. Her purchases complete she asks if there's a place she might change in privacy.
Henric looks around the shop while the others make their purchases. "I'm really not certain if there is anything specific that I need, personally. Is there anything that we might need?"
Kiley returns about fifteen minutes after she leaves the others to change. She looks more like a woodsman now than a rake with her green tunic and brown pants. She looks about, her cheeks colored pink for some reason. She approaches the others, her belongings rearranged between her bags. She looks around, one hand tugging slightly at the hem of her tunic.
"Are we ready to go," she asks, her voice pitched a lot like it had been after she had changed in the woods.
She's clearly embarrassed about something.
It's pretty clear that she's embarrassed about her clothes for some reason. Maybe she isn't used to the way they fit?
Those pants are fitting a lot more snugly than the ones from her other outfit that had been soaked at Roderic's Wreck.
When they reach the shop Stryn looks around at the various weapons. Luckily he finds a training mace meant for a kid and a sickle meant for a halfling laborer. He purchases both hoping to expand his attack options after having difficulty with his rapier in fighting the previous creatures.
When Kiley returns in her new outfit and asks if they are ready to go Stryn nods, but he notices something is off with her. Looking her over he notes "Those look good on you, very fitting for the outdoors."
Purchases made, you head out of town. Renae knows that the best way to get to the Churlwood is Hallen's Ferry.
Hallen's Ferry is located 5 miles upriver from Roderic's Cove, where the Chavali River grows shallow. Here, there are a series of mismatched wooden pilings sticking up out of the river. Originally intended to be the site of a bridge over the river, extending the road to the south bank, the plans for construction fell apart shortly after the pilings were set. Yet the citizens of Roderic's Cove are resilient, and rather than let this discourage them, one of residents, an old woman named Hallen Rosker, took it upon herself to set up a ferry over the river at this site using ropes anchored to the pilings. She's been providing ferry services for the past couple of years.
As you approach the ferry, you see an old lady sitting in a chair on the bank. The ferry is docked next to it. She looks up at you and says, "Five and a donkey for crossing the river, then?"
Renae led the way to Hallen's Ferry. It was the best way for them to get past the sometimes tumultuous Chavali River and into the Churlwood without undue hardship. Once there the wizard greeted Hallen respectful and answered the old woman's question.
"Correct. It's just the five of us and our donkey."
Seeing that Hallen likely knew a thing or two about the traffic going in and out of the Churlwood, Renae used the opportunity to probe Hallen for some useful information.
"May I ask how the traffic's been in or out of the Churlwood," she says causally, as if asking about the weather, before her tone turns a bit more serious. "Seen any unusual travelers trying to make their way into the Churlwood? Beyond yours truly, of course."
Kiley's blush deepens at Stryn's compliment.
"Th-thanks," she gets out, smiling a bit as recovers some of her composure.
---
Kiley lets Renae handle the talking. She seemed to know the old woman and Kiley was well aware of the value of silence. Instead, she focuses on helping with the donkey by stroking his muzzle. Her mind wanders a little as she begins to contemplate whether Busby or Maximus was a better name. A part of her leaned towards the latter, liking the irony inherent in the name.
Stryn followed along with the others, when the woman called out he pulled the hood of his cloak down a bit, which crunched his ears some, but he was used to it and did his best to not stand out while he let the others deal with the woman.
"Nope, nobody unusual. I did ferry a few militiamen across a couple days ago who were looking to get some Dwarves back from the Bramblemouth goblins, but I haven't seen them since. Doesn't usually take that long for people to get there and back. Welp, let's get going."
She moves over to the ferry, motioning you to come aboard.
Henric steps onto the ferry, giving the ferrywoman a small grin, tipping his hat in thanks. He makes sure to keep his distance from the donkey, as animals don't tend to look kindly on him.
Kiley does her best to coax their donkey on to the ferry without spooking him.
"C'mon Maximus," she says in a soothing voice, "Time to go for a little ride."
Stryn follows Henric glad to see Kiley try and deal with the animal. He had no interest whatsoever in getting near the donkey.
"Listen to your mistress, little mairo," Hal added to the tiefling's plea, clapping the donkey's side. "She won't steer you wrong. Nésë nórima rocco."
Whether it was the soothing Elvish or the cleric apparently being better at herding mules than parishioners, his words seemed to carry some effect with the recently dubbed Maxmimus.
Hal and Kiley succeed at herding the donkey onto the ferry. It's quite stubborn about it, and brays fearfully, but its hooves clop onto the ferry and it stands still as the surprisingly strong elderly woman begins pulling you across on the ferry.
As she does so, she asks, "So, what brings you out into the Churlwood?"
"We're off to find some dwarven corpses," the elf cheerfully responded, putting one hand into the river. "Maybe some militia corpses too. Might leave some goblin corpses in return, who can say? Might even leave our own corpses, though I should hope not. Who among us can pretend to know? Whatever the case, the forest will have something to feed upon."
Yes, nothing so bad it wasn't good for something, right? Hal was enjoying the cool water playing with his fingers. Good and bad, it was all a matter of perspectives. For example, right now he took the perspective that he was off to enjoy a nice nature picnic with friends. This wasn't strictly true he knew, but life was so often what you made of it. And the cleric chose to focus on whatever made him happy.
"This is a lovely boat, ma'am."
"Umm..," says Henric, hesitantly, "We're actually trying to look for answers regarding the strange events happening in the Cove lately, and hoping to find the missing dwarves along the way."
There's a smack as Kiley slaps her forehead and quietly groans at Hal's reply. She lets him and Henric finish before trying to salvage the situation.
"Henric is right! What my companion was trying to say," she says as she gently elbows Hal out of the way, "is that we will be looking for them and hopefully helping them get home. If some militia men have tried to do the same and found themselves in trouble, we'll help them as well."
Stryn just shakes his head as Hal rambles on about this corpse and that corpse and our corpses but he doesn't speak up. He just thinks to himself If we ever need to be really diplomatic with someone we are going to need to distract Hal with a toy or something... keep him away from the talks...
Oh dear. This boat ride just became rather awkward, Renae muses to herself as the others desperately tried to salvage the situation. Though Henric and Kiley looked to have situation in hand, Renae didn't see the harm of adding her voice to smoothing over Hal's faux pas.
"We're actually working with Captain Thort," Renae added, trying her best not to sound to defensive. "She is in need of extra hands and we volunteered to be of assistance. If we do find the dwarves and the militiamen, I am sure she'd be very happy to hear that you helped us."
Hallen looks bugeyed at Hal as he talks about finding corpses in a rather cheerful tone, but the others put her at ease as the explain. "Well, if you're looking for those missing dwarves and militiamen, I'll waive the usual fee. Still, I hope you're able to find them all alive. The Churlwood can be dangerous if you aren't careful."
Hallen continues moving the ferry across the river, the journey taking about 10 minutes. As you approach the southern bank, you notice three people step out of the woods onshore - two men, and a woman dressed in black leather armor and a blue hat with a red feather. She's flipping a coin, and all three are smiling at you. Hallen hisses, "Those three are Road Keepers. Best to just give them what they ask for, and they'll let you be on your way. That one who's flipping the coin is Lullaby Vancaskerkin. She's a piece of work - you'd best not be giving her any reason to get angry."
As the ferry comes to the moorings on the other side and Hallen ties it off so you can disembark, Lullaby steps up with a grin and swagger and gives Hallen a nod; Hallen responds with a scowl and rude gesture that is somewhat disconcerting coming from an elderly woman. Once you've disembarked, Hallen set's about getting the ferry ready for the return trip across the river, whispering her warning again, "Just pay up and there won't be trouble."
Lullaby turns her attention to you and says, "Friends, let me welcome you to the scenic Churlwood. It's a lovely place, and we, the Roadkeepers, are responsible for maintaining it's natural beauty and ease. Unfortunately, it does cost money to patrol such a dangerous forest and to keep its trails nicely pruned and free of clutter. Although it pains me to have to ask for charity, I'd greatly appreciate a donation of ten gold each to help us in our solemn duties."
Although 20 gp may not seem like much to adventurers, it's 20 times the amount the Roadkeepers usually charge.
Hallen gasps in surprise at the amount, and starts moving even quicker to return across the river.