The group decides to head to the big top, joining in the flow of townspeople headed that way.

The town guards listen to Marrin but make no attempt to join you in watching whatever is going on in the big top.

Looking up before entering the tent, everyone can see that the spinning gold stars on top of the three swooping peaks of the tent glow brightly as if lit up by real stars.

The sound of music and laughter roars through the canvas door, indicating a full house.

Inside, the party notices most of the stands are filled with spectators laughing, and getting settled into their seats.

While they do, tiny fire flies race around the center of the main ring, darting up, over, and around an immense ogre. The ogre, dressed in a top hat and tails guides the bright fire flies through a series of configurations that ends up looking like a mini fireworks display.

Trying to figure out where to sit, Jan notices Geffroi waving at you, trying to catch your attention. Beside him, Hammerdasher is valiantly defending extra space from spectators trying to sit there. It appears they must have seen you earlier and are saving you seats.

The stands are more of less full, and the ogre seems to take that as a cue. He doffs his top hat and when he does, all of the fireflies zip about and then fly straight into the hat.

When they all blink out of sight, all of the lights in the tent suddenly turn off then all blaze back on a moment later. The audience laughs and claps.

The ogre steps forward, top hat back on his head. A band plays quietly as a bright light centers on the ogre.

“Welcome, welcome, welcome to the big top extravaganza. We’ve something for everyone. Soon you will see Burly the bugbear perform feats of incredible strength, Palasha the mermaid will serenade you from a clamshell bathing pool, Candlefoot the mime will play silent games that you may or may not understand.”

As he finishes his intro, faerie dragons with bright streamers tied to their tails fly into the tent, performing dazzling acts of synchronized flying as a troupe of acrobats, clowns, and fire-breathers parade into the tent from outside.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

Perception checks from each of you please.

 No report from K'oshash yet.

Ethel is pleased to see both Geffroi and Hammerdasher.   She carefully maneuvers through the bleachers until she reaches them.  Briefly, she considers discussing something with Geffroi, but then thinks better of it.  It is far too noisy in here.  There will be time to discuss research later.

Perception:  13

Jan will head over to join the boys, looking around her as she moves.

"Either of you seen Adelysia in the last couple hours?"

Perception: 18

Avaria doesn’t even look at the stands.  She could have easily stood right where she was the entire night, transfixed by the center stage.  As the others start dragging her towards Geffroi and Hammerdasher, she finally starts looking around.

Perception:  19

Marrin steps in and takes in the crowds and the scene before closing her eyes and just letting the sounds and smells wash over her, grinning.

"This is nice."

Opening her eyes she slides through the crowd to Geffroi and Hammerdasher and the seats,

"Thanks gentlemen!"

Perception: 5

Marrin, Ethel, and Jan are completely entertained and entranced by the show in the center ring. The muscular bugbear introduced as Burly stands steady in the ring juggling three elven fire breathers.

Avaria is equally amused by the spectacle but her heightened natural instincts still take in her surroundings.

She spots the two townsguards from earlier standing near the main entrance to the big top. Just when she's about to turn away to see whether the elves get dropped or the bugbear gets burned, she spots a person in a dark hooded cloak come up to the guards and speak to them. A flash of light from the center ring illuminates the face under the hood and Avaria is sure she spots Mayor Lawrence Klein.

Marrin cheers wildly!

"WOO! TOSS THOSE ELVES! HIGHER! HIGHER!"

Ava elbows Jan immediately, "Hey, I swear I just saw Mayor Klein talk to the guards at the main entrance.  Normally, that wouldn't be a thing, but he is wearing a dark hooded cloak... strange right?"  She makes sure Marrin, Ethel and Ula hear as well.  

She looks at Marrin, "Sorry... I wish I hadn't seen it, I just wanted to enjoy this night as well."

Jan groans, but resists the urge to look over there. "I'll go check it out. You hear a ruckus, come save my ass, yeah?"

She'll reach out to K'oshash, but if she gets nothing back she'll assume he's too far away. She uses Ava's frame to block line of sight somewhat from the guards and mayor and waits for a particularly spectacular elf toss to slip from her seat, gradually changing her appearance as she goes. She'll make her way towards the back, having adjusted her apparent height to be shorter than the surrounding crowds, seeking to find a shadowed area by the back tent that she can slip into before going invisible.

Marrin keeps enjoying the showing and yelling but her smile seems a bit more pasted on.

She does a quick scan for some of the Lintoll's guards nearby, perhaps ones keeping the crowd back.

Despite her inclination toward detachment, Ethel finds herself uncharacteristically entranced by the performance.  After their recent trials, perhaps it isn't so bad to relax and let herself have a little fun?

As she watches the bugbear toss the fire-breathing elves into the air, she cannot stop herself from thinking of how much her girls would have enjoyed this show... and for once, the thought comes without blinding pain.  She had a path forward, now.  It would be a long road, no doubt, but she was taking the first steps.

She let herself smile as she took in every detail of the show.  

When I see them again, I will have to tell them all about it....

Jan doesn't feel anything from K'oshash, but it wouldn't take much for them to be out of range. With the Lintoll on he far side of the town from the port, to get to the Broken Ore, K'oshash would have had to go a fair ways away.

The crowd seems as enamored with the show as the party was and no notices, or at least doesn't react like they've noticed when Jan modifies her appearance and then becomes invisible. The loud cheering crowd makes it easier for her to move without being heard, but the large crowd also makes the going slow in order to avoid bumping into people. 

Jan does eventually make it to where the guards are, with the hood covered mayor just as it appears the mayor is about to leave. She overhears the last words he directs at the guards.

"As usual, none of this gets back to Mard, understand?" Mayor Klein says. "He does what he's told but asks too many questions. Signal me as soon as one is isolated.'

Then the mayor heads for the exit.

(Stealth roll from Jan please, with advantage)

((No Lintoll guards?))

(None in the tent that you can see)

Stealth: 21

Jan appears to remain unnoticed as the mayor leaves.

Jan will dismiss K'oshash, then bring them back as she slips after Mayor Klein, telepathically bringing him up to speed and getting any report from what they were able to see or not see on their lap of the town.

She's not sure if it's more worrisome if this IS Mayor Klein, or a doppelganger wearing his face.

((Right now mostly looking to see what he's doing as he departs from the guards, eg, continuing to stay hidden under his hood, leaving the Lintoll, turning into a doppelganger, etc.))

As Jan slips out of the tent, she gets a report back that says essentially there's nothing going on in the town. At least nothing K'oshash saw from the air. The Broken Ore looked undisturbed and there didn't appear to be any ruffians out and about.

At the same time, the elves jump to the ground, the large bugbear bows, and the four run off out of the center ring, to the cheers of the crowd. A spotlight moves to the back and picks up a giant clamshell that appears to float forward into the ring. The way the light shines and the shadows play out, it's impossible to tell if it's on wheels or is hovering just off the ground. 

The crowd goes quiet with anticipation. The huge clam shell opens, revealing a small pool of water and what appears to be a mermaid lounging. The mermaid begins to sing a gentle song the makes those listening think of a gentle ocean breeze.

Outside of the tent, Jan spots her target moving quickly through the crowd of Lintoll goers who aren't in the big top. They look to be heading for the entrance to the Lintoll.

Marrin is annoyed she isn't getting to really enjoy the show.

Jan chews on an invisible lip, and thanks K'oshash, directing them to follow the Mayor and listen in on anyone he talks to before reporting back. She'll peal off return to the two guards, and keep tabs on them from a short distance away, staying out of the path of any fairgoers.