Bosh ignores the shushing of his sister and says, "I could ride a lion! Or a wolf or bear! I think..."

Lady Harriana watches the discussion of the group name for a moment, then says, “It sounds like you are still working on it. I shall use the names you have given me, should I run into these children’s parents. But now, like your cloaked friend, we have more to do. Thank you for your assistance. May Helm watch over you. Farewell.” She and her squire mount up and head south down the road at a fast trot.

Helena watches the lady knight ride off then would glance to the kids. "Well, let's get you situated." She offers, then waits for any decisions to be finalized for where the kids will travel, before she walks with the others onward.

Bramble shakes his head at Bosh, “Not an option. Do you two want a ride as it has been offered or do you want to walk? We’re burning daylight.”

Bramble will begin walking away to catch up with the party and expect the children to keep up, unless they request the ride on the boring donkey.

“Forgive my brother, sir,” says Hemily as she trots after Bramble, holding her brother’s hand. “A donkey would be fine. I think it’s amazing that you can turn into anything. But let’s walk for a while. I feel like stretching my legs. Come on, Bosh.”

They seem to have been revived a bit by the goodberries and they keep up with you pretty well. Bosh asks, “So are you really adventurers? Have you killed any giants? I want to train to be a fighter or wizard or maybe a wizard fighter. Then giants will fear me so much they’ll never touch my farm!”

Her nose wrinkling a bit at the mention of Helm, Essie manages to smooth out her face quickly enough. Hoping that it wasn't too noticeable, she gives the knight a slight nod. "Travel well."

Then as the group begins to move again, Essie falls in behind the kids, wanting to keep an eye on them. Her smile widens as she watches them. Now that they seem healthy and content for the most part, she's more than willing to let the others interact with them, fading into the background as she usually tries to do. Her eyes do scan their surroundings a bit more than usual, however, and she's keeping a tight watch on the group that she really hadn't been before.

“Adventure has found us, I’m afraid. A week ago, I had not met any of these people. A few days ago, I had never been to Nightstone. A few hours ago, I had never expected to meet the two of you. It seems one must expect the unexpected and then be ready to lend your talents, whatever they may be, to aid others.”

Bramble scans the countryside and then continues.

”Bosh, you know that we travel with both a fighter and a wizard? You might want to talk with them while we walk. Perhaps they could determine if you have an aptitude for their prospective arts.”

Sphyboe asks Bosh, "Do you have a farm? I believe that it belongs to your parents, doesn't it? Do you want to tell me about it's location and how do you plan to save it from the potential intrusion of Giants? A penny for your thoughts?".

The Sorcerer Half-Elf pulls out a Copper Piece and tosses it upwards....catching it and covering the coin with her palm. When she opens the palm of her hand, there is nothing inside and the coin seems like vanishing without any trace. (Detect Thoughts)

Bosh listens to Bramble, nodding his head, and then answers Sphyboe, “Our farm is back that way.” He points off to the north, in the general direction that you saw the knight approach with them. “And it’s our farm. Papa and Mama say that’s why we all work in the fields and take care of the animals. I feed the chickens and the goats. Well, I did before the giants came.” He pauses for a moment, a little sad. He kicks a rock off the road and says, “I know I can learn how to protect it. Maybe build a big wall. Or like I said, learn to be a wizard and blast them with fire. Or practice with a sword until I can cut their heads off. Are you a wizard or a fighter? Maybe you can teach me. That was a good trick with the copper!” Your Detect Thoughts spell shows that he is pretty much saying everything he is thinking as soon as he thinks it.

(Do you want to probe deeper into his thoughts? If so, he will know you are doing it.)

Hemily continues to hold her brother’s hand. She glances at him as he chatters and shakes her head a little. But she also listens carefully to his conversations with you all.

Essie and Bramble are keeping an eye on your surroundings as you all continue up the road. (Perception rolls - Essie: 12, Bramble: 8) The road and the surrounding countryside are quiet, beyond the normal sounds of birdcalls and the rustling of leaves in the breeze.

Daerthe continues to stay quiet, doing her best to not draw the attention of the children. The last thing she wanted was to either have them bombarding her with questions, or the more likely result of them being terrified of her.

Sphyboe realizes that interrogating a child who recently went through traumatic experience could be one of the most complex scenario. If she attempts to extract more information about the Giants' attack, the child may get further traumatized and finally he might refuse to co-operate. 

"Not a Wizard, but something more interesting...a Sorcerer who has some innate Draconic magical power? I can read minds of people if I wish...for example I can hear your thoughts too. Hmm..the name of the place from where Lady Harriana rescued both of you or how those Giants attempted to terrorize the farm but failed miserably...I can guess everything."

She attempts to probe deeper into his thoughts believing that he has the sharp visual memory of a child which is lost once they reach adulthood.

Bosh stares at Sphyboe, “A sorcer? You can see into my brain? Wild!” (Wisdom save: 15 ) As Sphyboe mentions the name of the farm, Bosh says, "That's easy: it's called Meadows!" But when she talks about the giant attack, he frowns and turns away, muttering, "They broke the house. Then they threw pieces of it at the barn. Why would they do that? We never hurt them." He looks down at the road and kicks another rock.

"I might not be able to teach you all the magic tricks within a short period. But, there's something that might inspire you to learn more about the 'Art of Sorcery'."

Sphyboe tears off a pair of scales from the crevice of her neck in such a way that the children mistake the scales as a part of her armor. The scales are smaller than the average scale size of Dragons, and easily fit into the fists of the younger male and his elder sister. The scales are silver in color and have reflective property that can be compared to the property of a mirror.

"Meadows? Why would a bunch of Stone Giants attack a farmland unless they needed food supply? That's peculiar."

She murmurs under her breath while attempting to recall something about the lifestyle of Stone Giants.

Intelligence: History 3

"You cannot really learn to be a sorcerer." Helena comments to the children. "You are either born a sorcerer or you are changed somehow and become one. Learning to use the power of a sorcerer is important, but only if you have those powers to begin with." She shrugs. "If you wish to learn magic I would suggest finding a wizard to apprentice to, as we have an art that most can learn if they wish to put the time and effort into it."

The children are properly impressed by the scales, and Bosh’s rushing flood of chatter finally pauses for a while. Hemily asks Helena shyly, “It’s really possible to learn to be a wizard? I guess I didn’t know there was a difference between magic-users. I just thought some people had magic and some didn’t. I never thought it was something you could learn, like calculating or proper harvest times. Don’t tell him, but I always thought Bosh was silly to think he could learn to use magic. Can you do magic?”

(We could keep roleplaying talk with inquisitive children, but I think we’ll jump ahead a bit. If you have any specific actions or discussion you would like to have, feel free.)

Conversations continue as you like and the road is peaceful. No visible dangers, giant or otherwise. You pass a wagon with assorted crates and bundles on it going the opposite way. Although you are cautious as they appear, they do not present any threat and you pass without incident. After another hour, the children do seem a bit fatigued. To keep up a good pace, either Bramble transforms into a donkey or a couple of you volunteer to carry them. After another couple of hours, you see a massive stone bridge ahead of you on the road. A wide river, the Dessarin, flows in from the northeast. To the west, light from the setting sun glances off the water as the river widens and heads out to the Sea of Swords. Across the river, on the north bank of the river, walls rise up around the fortifications that watch over the road and the Zundbridge itself. It’s an impressive sight.

Sphyboe’s memory of stone giants:

(Bramble will be sure to be returned to human form before we reach the bridge. No sense traumatizing commoners that might not trust a shape changer.)

Daerthe continues to listen to the children but for the most part stays quiets as they speak. As they walk she seems to be messing about with some of her abilities. As does so a few might feel a presence in their head for a few seconds before it fades.

Bramble is unnerved by the presence of someone else in his head. Although no “words” were spoken, it seemed to unlock something deep inside his sub-conscious mind. The foreign presence left his mind before he fully understood what was happening.

”Uhm … hello?” Was all he could muster as a thought, but it came too late. He quickly looks at the rest of the party in turn. As he does so, he studies this new “opening/channel/path” that had been discovered. It must have always been there, just hidden, he thinks to himself. His eyes fall on “D” who seems more pensive than her usual aloof air. Bramble decides to attempt his own telepathic link towards “”D”.

”Hello D. We’re you just in my head? This is Bramble, in case my thought doesn’t ‘sound’ like me.”

(Bramble has taken the Telepathy feat)

Sphyboe has been enjoying the presence of the children, she even sometimes attempts to amuse them with interesting lores to keep their mind away from the traumatic experience. Most of the stories involve the recent activities of the group 'Quorum', she explains how the skeleton crew has defeated a group of well-organized Zhentarim agents or the exciting encounter with a group of Ogres in a rescue mission supervised by the party.

When the view of the fort dominates her sight, she feels relieved to successfully deliver the children to the right authority. She attempts to search for an entrance to the fort while examining the exterior of the fort and the monolithic bridge, and prepares herself for a possible set of enquiries.

"We're almost there, Bosh, Hemily? Don't worry about the stone giants since it's very unusual for them to leave their mountain caverns and terrorize a settlement. I promise to take care of the situation so that you can get your farmlands back."

Intelligence (Investigation) 4

Helena would show the kids some small magic, to keep them moving if nothing else, and to keep their minds off anything tramatic. When the fort is visible she would give a sigh though, as working with kids is not her favorite thing and the many questions have her a bit cranky by this point. "Let's see if we can get some sort of shelter for the night, and turn the kids over to those in charge here." She mentions to the group as they approach the bridge.

As you cross the bridge, those of you who have never been here before are greatly impressed by its massive size and sturdiness, as well as the amazing views of the river to each side. You can just make out a hint of the sea to the west, with the setting sun glinting across the water. The children are certainly amazed. Bosh decides he wants to learn to build bridges.

Once across, the entrance to the double-walled fortification is obvious, and the guards at the gate don’t give you any trouble when you explain your business. Within the outer wall, you find a large field with several wagon caravans parked for the evening. Across the field you see a building made of stone on the lower half and large wooden beams on the upper floor. The windows glow with light and the sign reads Red Rune Inn. Assuming you proceed into the inn, you are greeted by a female dwarf with ruddy skin and long black hair held up in a bun except for two braids that frame her face. “Good evening, travelers! Welcome to the Red Rune Inn. My name is Cartha. How can I help you? Will you be needing rooms or dinner or both?”