"For the time being, this should do." Using his innate ability, Barburry casts Disguise Self. He shrinks a little shorter whilst taking on more human features. He resembles a bearded  scruffy brown haired, dad bod, bear of a man. He is wearing a simple pair of brown slacks and tan shirt with a sort of long open sweater, with a knit floppy cap. It is all illusory though, so if it should grow chilly then he would likely begin to shiver. But at least he seems clothed.

Sensing---with her changeling instincts---that shapechanging is going on around her Hin finally snaps to attention with almost military sharpness. Looking at Barburry, her features soften. Her lips curl up into a smile, and it gives away her appreciation for the illusion. "It seems like i'm not the only one capable of shapechanging here, I like the look. However, I have never seen those clothing before. Is that some kind of robe?" she lilts, motioning to the long, open sweater. "Maybe it's time for a little change of pace myself, it might help clear my brain a little." She takes a deep breath and holds it, anticipating a great effort is needed to change. She bends over, holding her arms close to her chest. With an audible strain of effort, black feathers pop out of her skin, bubbling like soup. Her whole face darkens and comes to a point in front of her nose, becoming a sharp beak. He jumps up, spreading his arms out, waving them about as if expecting to fly. But, instead, it only blurs the transition and suddenly his arms have been replaced with a pair of raven wings. He lands with a decided thump, and a single white feather pops out of the side of his head. He looks back at Barburry, clicking with approval.

"Ah, nothing like shedding skin to snap one back to reality." He wiggles his eyebrows jokingly. His voice is melodic, but in a way that's squeaky and mechanical. It's almost like the croak of a mischievous raven. "Well then, should we get this show on the road? Check out the house?" The question is punctuated by two sharp clicks.

"This old thing?  Oh it's my old reading cardigan.  I liked the way it hung loose and was snug around my upper arms.  I used to wear it drinking tea and reading in a nook of my home, looking out over my orchard.  I would read aloud to the critters when they came by.  Scritches liked it especially.  I miss the old thing." 

He briefly gets lost for a moment in his den of memories.  Not long mind you, he has already grieved and is quite alright now.  He just hadn't thought about the sweater, or nook, or his orchard in a minute.

"That sounds like a good time. Maybe there are a few trees somewhere around the Academy campus, that you could read under. I know I'll be spending most of my free time in the library, it makes me feel closest to home. I get it." The corners of his beady black eyes pull up in a smile. He waits around for a few more minutes, whistling and clicking a tune.

So, in the meantime, what are Laurence, Mythe, and Vera doing?

The three of you watched Hin and Barburry step into the pool and disappear. Hin, fully clothed, while Barburry rather naked and not afraid, at the time. Laurence sent their opossum into the pool, where it disappeared, then they re-summoned it back, and got a little bit of information from it. Vera managed to somehow modify a spell and redirect the message to Barburry out of panic, and received word back from him. Then Vera tossed Barburry's belongings into the pool, where they continue to float.

Barburry and Hin

Donavera Isemist

Vera stands near the edge of the pool with gaping mouth when she watches the floating pieces of clothes. She quickly averts her attention away from the view and decides to share the latest information. "Barburry has somehow teleported to a pocket dimension. From my own experience, I had better call this process an event of 'planeshift'."

"I don't want to take the risk of being expelled from the academy for the sake of quenching my thirst for knowledge. Curiosity killed the cat and I wonder if it would kill a hexblood too. I propose that we should immediately summon Professor Maz."

Mythe continues to stare at the water, brow furrowed in uncertainty. There was no way she was jumping in after Hin and Barburry. She would not risk her life for those she had just met - not to mention the damage the water could do to her perfect clothes and hair. She was, however, worried about her towers reputation. She could not be associated with those whom had failed on their first mission. Her family would never let her live it down. 

Turning to Vera, Mythe nods her head. "I agree. That seems to be the best course of action."

The three of you call for the professor, and a few moments later he appears. You explain the situation; that the pool of water is surrounded in conjuration magic, that Hin and Barburry both walked into the pool and disappeared, that Barburry's clothes did not disappear, and instead floated in the pool, and that Laurence had sent Roquefort into the pool, called the opossum back, and learned a little about the area. "It sounds like you found a portal" the dragonborn says "the good news is you say your opossum described the area where the portal takes you is a safe area. Portals are two way doors, so they can safely return when they want. We should be safe to step through the portal, and see what the other two are doing." Professor Maz creates a ghastly dragon's claw and fishes Barburry's belongings out of the pool. "Other than getting a little wet from wading into the water, it shouldn't be any different than when you stepped through the academy portal. You'll need to be carrying the firbolg's equipment when you step through if you want to bring it with you." Professor Maz looks among the three of you as Barburry's belongings splat against the ground. "I am willing to come with you if you'd like. We can't return to the academy until all of you are accounted for, however."

Hin and Barburry

(OOC: Laurence, you have the opportunity to react however you'd like prior to Professor Maz reaching the room where the three of you are, if you'd like.)

Laurence bites their lower lip but does not object to notifying Professor Maz. The situation seemed too complex and they forget that this kind of thing is no longer their responsibility to deal with.

As Professor Maz spoke, Laurence moves to scoop up Barburry's items from the ground and bundles them up in his britches securely, "uh, I think we should head to the other side of the portal, since it doesn't seem dangerous..." They trail off, think for a moment, then quickly adds on: "I think Mister Barburry would appreciate his belongings. I'd also like to explore it further."

They give Roquefort a pat, "looks like you don't need to take that swim anymore," and dismisses it. Feeling much more confident now that they know entering this portal isn't going to get them into trouble, they tighten their grip on the bundle and carefully step into the pool, pant leg floating on the surface of the water.

Donavera Isemist

Vera expresses concern regarding the fact that the additional weight might slow down Laurence a bit. But, she will follow them eventually after folding the length of her skirt carefully. "Come on, Zodiac! Don't behave like a foolish little birdie. It's probably going to be a smooth journey."

Laurence wades into the pool of water, disappearing, followed by Vera who folds her skirt up and climbs in. Mythe you watch as both of them look as if they're falling before they disappear. Mythe, you're left standing alone in this chamber with Professor Maz "Well, the other two didn't say anything. Would you like me to come with you, or shall I remain here?"

“I think it would be best if you came with us, Sir. Should there be dangers on the other side we will likely need all the help we can get.”      
Mythe takes a few seconds to stare at the pool,  looking for a way to avoid getting wet. Unable to find a suitable method she lets out an irritated sigh, before lifting her skirts above her ankles and wading into the water.

Laurence, Vera, followed shortly after by Mythe, you all arrive in a large grassy plain. All three of you are wet up to the waist, as it felt like you were falling down as you teleported.

*You find yourselves in a fairly large grassy plain. No pool of water. The area is well lit, as if the sun was shining down, but the sky is dark, illuminated with all sorts of celestial bodies. You see stars, moons, planets, and.. is that a massive asteroid shaped like a foot? Looking above the tree line, far in the distance, you can see what looks like a castle. Closer to you however, you hear a babbling brook running by a small house. Smoke is coming out of the stone chimney, candlelight dances in the window, and you can see the shadow of a shape moving within. You also see a raven colored kenku and a taller than average scruffy brown haired human man.

A few moments later a completely soaked silver dragonborn appears standing on his feet. "That was invigorating" he freezes to take in his surroundings "we are definitely not on the Prime Material Plane any longer. Perhaps we should return from where we came." You watch as the professor looks around in confusion. You can only assume he's looking for some sort of pool of water to act as a portal.

(OOC: *My initial description given to Hin and Barburry on post #223, with some modifications. I believe Hin is technically a kenku now, if I'm wrong please inform me.)

Caught up in the flow of the song he was previously whistling, Hin's added lyrics into the mix. In a soft, almost crooning voice, he sings, "Hush now, hide, all you little ones... Rush now, into the middle of nowhere... Singing and laughter will die.. Dreamless sleep, follows the---" He stops abruptly in the middle of his lullaby when he sees the rest of his cohort and their professor arriving next to him. He waves over to the group excitedly, clicking twice. "Well you finally decided to join us! Welcome to... wherever this is." Almost comically, he does a double-take at the foot-shaped asteroid. "Barburry, I'm fairly positive that foot used to be a hand. Is it just me?" He takes a beat and then continues enthusiastically. "To catch you all up, I'm Hin and this is Barburry. We both changed our appearances a few minutes ago." He pauses shortly again. "Now you're all caught up."

Laurence exhales and wipes the water off their face. They take in the landscape with blatant confusion. When they see the two unfamiliar figures, they blink blankly. As... Hin...? Introduces himself and the supposed-Barburry, they acknowledges with a slow "O...kay..." and tighten their grip on the bundle. If someone could see inside their head, it would be a lot of question marks. What in the nine hells. Did the portal work? Are they even who they say they are? Carefully, they ask: "Um, Mister Barburry... what was your familiar's name again?"

"Scritches, naturally. And thanks for sending Roquefort through before. It's quite a relief you all came through. And you brought my clothes! Thank goodness! We were just about to investigate the cabin over there to find a portal back."

Laurence nods slowly and hands Barburry's things to him. "Of course, we were worried. It's great you haven't gone far yet." They add a bit hesitantly, "uh- thank you both for waiting, I suppose we should move forward now? Professor Maz said that a portal is two-way but there doesn't appear to be one nearby... at least not like the pool we came through." And they start walking towards the house while wringing out their clothes, pace relatively slow so that it's clear they are waiting for the others.

(OOC: can they discern what plane this may be since the sky is all weird?)

You all move towards the small house and as you do you notice a change in the sky. As you look up you watch as the celestial body that was extremely large and close, shrink and grow distant, then the whole sky rotates and a completely different celestial body enlarges as if getting closer. As you eventually get to the house, one of you knocks. You hear shuffling on the other side of the door, followed by a muffled voice shooing someone or something, and the sound of elephants? As the door swings open, two miniature, no larger than 2 foot tall, winged tusked elephants barge through the legs of the man answering the door and prance through the field. "Ah buggers!" You see an impossibly handsome, shaggy haired man standing in front of you. He's wearing a simple white tunic with a brown apron over it, and a matching brown pair of linen trousers. "This is a surprise" he glances over each of you "none of you should be here, how did you get here?" His voice is soft, gentle, and kind.

(OOC: Laurence no known plane of existence has a sky like this. One of the planets in the sky is unnaturally large, as if it was almost touching the sky. Go ahead and make a history check, though the DC will be pretty high.)

"Wait a second, a two-way portal? Interesting. I wonder if portal entrances and exits have to be in the same location or not. As in, if we all fell from the sky after being dropped from the pool of water, then would we have to ascend through the same spot we were dropped from in order to get back? Or could the two portals be separate in space, and still be connected? Would a pool of water even work? So many questions." Muttering mostly to himself, Hin quickly pulls out his poetry book and conjures his own personal quill, jotting down his questions and observations messily it's margins. He makes note of the asteroid as well. Following Laurence, he puts the two away and continues whistling his tune, dropping the lyrics.

Hin clicks in surprise as the two elephants burst through the door. He tries to remember if he's seen them before, maybe in some sort of book?

I'm sure I've seen them somewhere. Don't know where. They're certainly not Loxodons, they're small and have wings. Having seen Thal'rin, Loxodons don't have wings, and they're definitely taller than these little guys. Oh, I should probably disguise my voice in front of a stranger. Plus, there's nothing better than completely devoting yourself to a character! On we go!

After mulling over his own thoughts for a second, he pulls out his book and quill once more and turns to the front cover. He motions everyone over away from the door quickly and jots down something then shows it to the rest of the group. It reads: We don't know who this or even what. I'll disguise voice, pretend to be actual kenku. Can't have him knowing real names, what if fey or otherworldly being? Better safe than sorry. Name now Click.

Turning back to the man, he opens his beak and speaks. "Hello! I'm Click. What's your name? We fell... portal... sky... here." His speech suddenly has become broken; his voice sounds like it's many different people saying only one word of the whole sentence at a time, changing pitch and accent almost every word. The only exception is the first few sentences, his official introduction. He points to the area where everyone else was previously standing in. "Come from..." He pauses, furrowing his brows. He brings his wings in front of his chest, positioning them parallel to each other, one on top of the other but separate. In this position, he waves his arms back and forth and clicks a few times. "Other... place. Where is this?"

(ooc: Would Hin have read about them somewhere? Based on the description, I think (as the player) I know what they are, but I'm wondering if he would know that as well.)

History: 9

Laurence hastily moves out of the way to avoid colliding with the little creatures and stands politely, hands clasped together. Their eyes skims the words Hin wrote but do not acknowledge it. “Yes. As Click said, we stumbled upon what appeared to be a portal, but there was no way back where we landed. I’m Leon, sorry, may I ask why we shouldn’t be here?”