Randy will take the time to give Hank a refresher on tracking while  they're walking along.  "Are you any good with a bow, Hank?"

"Built a little meat smoking shed, years ago... had forgotten all about that. Wonder if it's still standing, or if anyone is using it.", Garvey volunteers while lost in reminiscing.

"I'm alright, not anywhere close to what Essilar could do, but I can at least get an arrow near the mark."

Would-be-bandits firmly under your wings, and with the halfling lad pestering an increasingly wild eyed Evar with questions about horses, the terse answers he's receiving only prompting more questions and observations, the caravan gets moving along. Evar eventually makes excuses of needing to scout ahead, though Randy and Hank are doing a thorough job, and deposits Bimmfur with the young tiefling lass. It looks as though he promptly asks her about being a tiefling, but she responds with pealing laughter, still in a buoyant mood from her interview with the old dwarven diviner. She soon has him hanging on her every word as she tells him stories about something or the other fantastical.

After a long day of walking and riding, the signal to look for a place to camp is passed forward.

((Randy, you can make a Survival check with Advantage with Hank helping out.))

Randy gifts Hank his old longbow and arrows. "We'll get some target practice along the way.  This bow has seen me through a lot.  I'd rather someone got some good use out of it rather than just sell it."

He and Hank start working on Hanks scouting abilities. 

Survival with advantage: 25

Ulmwin spends some of his time chatting with their would-be-bandits, mostly seeming to be there with a genuine interest in their lifes, making record and note, not chastising them for the bad decisions, but commending them on the good and how they could so improve. 

It's debatable how much of this they see as well-intentioned, of course, after all those previous "warnings" they've gotten.

Ulmwin, let's have a Persuasion check from you, at disadvantage if he's still putting on that off-putting crazy gnome "act". 

(I thought the entire joke was that he never meant to be putting on any kind of act, but that just genuine interest was misconstrued! With that said, given how we wouldn't have changed being himself, I'll roll at disadvantage. :P )

13

((Yeah, the "act", but I suppose if he realized that and put a different face on it, that'd be the real act.))

They seem slow to warm to Ulmwin as he asks them genuine sounding questions about their lives, praises them and provides unsolicited advice, all while jotting notes down about his interactions with them. They are reluctant to share much of anything, he gets a few crumbs here and there, but that's about it.

Dornikal will confide with Garvey,

"The gnomes are a bit... Different."

He'll cast a glance at Ulmwin,

"Aye think it's just a gnome thing."

Randy shakes his head "It's an Ulmwin thing.  If you want a relatively normal conversation,  go talk with Father Burberry."  He gestures towards Coljin.

"Father? Who does he cleric for?", asks Hank, exchanging a glance with Garvey.

Randy and Hank found a fine spot to camp for the night, atop a low rise above the roadway, that the wagons can be drawn up, with a undercut cliff face that will provide enough shelter that tents wouldn't be needed to keep off any rain that might pop up, though they'd still offer privacy and protection from the late summer insects that might come looking for a meal.

There is a natural spring a bit farther along, the water seeming clear and cold where it burbles forth from the rocks.

Randy and Hank had spotted some game along the way, a couple rabbits and a squirrel, but all of Hank's attempts went wide, so he has no game to show for his efforts... though one of the stray arrows landed in a blackberry bramble. He lost the arrow, but gained a few handfuls of sweet berries.

Vaduta volunteers to take Bimmfur to collect some kindling for an evening fire, but so as to not worry either set of parents, be they biological or foster, stays within visual distance among the scattered conifer trunks and undergrowth.

"I will help with carrying firewood."  Coljin joins Vaduta and the other new to the group on the little walk away from camp.   He will look for kindling, wood and foraging for anything edible.  He will also watch for signs of any wildlife or worse in the area.

Survival: 21

The wildlife seems of the typical variety one might find in such a forest, nothing that seems alarming or worrisome. Coljin manages to collect quite a tidy parcel of edible mushrooms, roots, a stash of nuts in a hollow tree, and some fibrous twigs that are pleasant for scrubbing the teeth with after a meal, also having a slightly sweet, earth flavor.

Ulmwin keeps up his usual spiel, but will try to make himself useful once it comes time to setting up proper camp. This might involve doing the few odd jobs of helping mend a few quick things as necessary, or setting up some of the tents, but more likely than not he will soon take the role of moral support by playing music for everyone to enjoy while they work.

Once they get back to camp Coljin asks , “I have found a bunch of vegetables, anyone have some dried meat to add so we can make a stew?”

 Either way.   Colin will work on some warm dinner for the group.  Soup, or stew if meat is available.   

Dornikal will be showing people that are interested, and probably some that aren't, the finer points of sanding rough gems.

"Ye can't just use any normal file, nah ye needs something like..."

Randy caught the glance between Garvey and Hank and felt the question about Coljin's faith was mildly odd.  

Insight: 20

Evar brings by a bundle of jerky to Coljin, and silently joins in food prep by cutting it into more stew-sized dimensions.

Best Randy can tell, Hank and/or Garvey may have had some less than pleasant interactions with religious sorts in the past and are cautious. He doesn't get the sense of anything nefarious.

Garvey gives (for him) polite attention to Dornikal's gem lessons, though it's clear that it doesn't quite make the sense to him that fitting stones together did.

Bimmfur seems to have gotten over most of his reservations about Ulmwin, largely through his association with Vaduta. The pair of youngsters have brought some chores with them to work on while listening to the gnome play.

Randy  sits down by Evar. "I recognize the situation seems a bit...odd.  If we're making you and your's uncomfortable, we can go separately from you into town. Might be better in some respects.  Don't quite know how the local thieves' s guild is going to react to us coopting their members.   You don't need to be involved with that.  I still have an item to purchase from your friend, when he gets done making it, so I could just meet him at his shop." 

Evar glances at Randy, running the tip of his tongue under his upper lip and sucking at his gums before speaking with a shrug. "Don't bother me. 'long as they don't... backslide. Anyone cares, we was just sharing the road in."