Quote from KudosWyvernspur >>

Chester claps his hands and says to Osborne ‘What a wonderful diversion. Here is your potion of Guidance for 10 gold as agreed’.

“Oi, thank you.”

he takes the potion that I assume just gives the spells effects upon drinking it?

After this, Osborne will follow the rest outside

Sinak is looking suspiciously at the Wyvern’s head when the wards alarm and everything happens.  He feels .. something.. happen to him, but he doesn’t know what.  What is clear, is that the jig is up.  He stops casting detect magic, only a short way into it.  “There is something… anyway, I just wanted to locate any magical items for sale without disturbing you.  No harm or ill intent was meant.  Your prices are rather steep.  I didn’t just fall off the turnip wagon, so I think I will say farewell as well, Chester.”  Sinak gives a mock bow, and heads for the front door.  After he comes out, he looks back at it, appraising the shop again from the outside.  “Something was odd in there… couldn’t quite get to the point of putting my finger on it…”. He looks at all of you standing there looking at him.  “What?  Why are you all staring at my head?”

Maybe it's a bit of leftover guidance from the Raven Queen or the lingering effects of his half completed ritual, but Sinak is sure that the Skull is watching him even while Chester is obviously busy sorting potions on the counter.

Quote from Twombley >>

Sinak is looking suspiciously at the Wyvern’s head when the wards alarm and everything happens.  He feels .. something.. happen to him, but he doesn’t know what.  What is clear, is that the jig is up.  He stops casting detect magic, only a short way into it.  “There is something… anyway, I just wanted to locate any magical items for sale without disturbing you.  No harm or ill intent was meant.  Your prices are rather steep.  I didn’t just fall off the turnip wagon, so I think I will say farewell as well, Chester.”  Sinak gives a mock bow, and heads for the front door.  After he comes out, he looks back at it, appraising the shop again from the outside.  “Something was odd in there… couldn’t quite get to the point of putting my finger on it…”. He looks at all of you standing there looking at him.  “What?  Why are you all staring at my head?”

 Osborne starts laughing hysterically. He would let Sinak know why, but he is laughing so hard that he can't get himself to talk.

Kelytha doesn't follow the others out of the shop. Instead she approaches the counter.

"Sorry, she's a sailor. No manners!" She says with a smile. "I'd like to make a purchase - a key, to your automaton's mouth, from which a story of the other night might escape?"

She carefully piles 10 gold coins in front of Chester. "It isn't 15, but then again it isn't nothing. I can leave here 10 gold lighter and my mind fuller, or none the wiser with jingling pockets. Your choice, do you prefer secrets or money?"

Chester gives Kelytha a smug smile and pockets the money, he then gives Kelytha a nod and says ‘I understand perfectly, these people have their uses but sometimes forget their place.’ 

Due to her Watch training and experience in dealing with the nobility Kelytha doesn’t need to make a saving throw to avoid punching Chester in the face.

Chester turns to Service and says ‘Service, please help our esteemed customer.’ Chester then returns to organising potions on the counter.

Service walks up to Kelytha and says ‘Good morning Esteemed Customer. Your sailor mentioned a missing halfling. Approximately 57 hours ago I was cleaning the front of the shop when I noticed a small elderly humanoid, similar to a halfling, helping a drunk noble out of the Dragon Inn. They were quickly followed by five Zhentarim, easily identifiable by the winged snake tattoos on their necks. As I was cleaning the Zhentarim started to question the pair and eventually beat them to the ground and took the unconscious bodies away. I believe they were heading in the direction of Candle Lane. Luckily I was there as the fresh blood was much easier to clean up than dried blood would have been. Is there anything more I can help you with Esteemed Customer?’.

Also, could I make some use of my background feature? Would I have to be out on the streets looking for signs and clues?:

Feature: Watcher’s Eye:

 

Your experience in enforcing the law, and dealing with lawbreakers, gives you a feel for local laws and criminals. You can easily find the local outpost of the watch or a similar organization, and just as easily pick out the dens of criminal activity in a community, although you’re more likely to be welcome in the former locations rather than the latter.

Agreed that you can use this feature especially with the information provided by Service, to distinguish one gang from another. You would need to be in the vicinity of the hideout and say you were actively looking for a hideout of a particular gang, but you wouldn’t need to roll. This ability lets you recognise hideouts, rather than know without looking where they are.

Cat considers for a moment. "I'll take one of the value potions, then," she says as she sets the gold down on the table.

Chester hands a potion to Cat and says 'An excellent choice Ms Puddletwist. Certainly one of my most popular items. As you can hear from Service, the distribution that the Zhentarim are causing to local business is only escalating. The Watch is nowhere to be seen and the Guild is not providing any extra security. Why if it wasn’t for my own security measures then my shop would be flooded with Zhentarim. I trust that I can rely on your support when I raise this issue with the wider guild membership. Something needs to be done and the Guild needs leaders who can provide security’

You all see Osborne walking back towards the Skewered Dragon with a dragon embossed tablecloth. It's possibly the bravest thing you will ever see, but as always you know that Osborne is up for a gamble.

"Um... right! Well, uh, I will... certainly see what I can do to convince the guild of this... situation. Good day, sir!" Cat takes the potion and heads towards the door, waiting for her companions.

The remaining party members await Kelytha, who is still in the shop. Sinak is starting to get either funny or knowing looks from passers-by.

“My hair is pink!  What in the blazes!  Hard to blend in like that! Gonna affect our inquiries, if everyone is staring at my damned head!  Why that little pain in the arse gnome… ought to give him a piece of my mind…”  Sinak turns around, waiting for Kelytha, tapping his foot.  With a sudden instinct and burst of anger, standing outside, he turns towards the Wyvern head and extends his middle finger, grinning.  “You can stick this where the sun doesn’t shine.  I told you I didn’t mean anything by it!”

After the moment has passed, and he is calming down, he says to the rest of them.  “Anyone have any way to change my hair back to its normal black color?”  He looks at everyone sheepishly.  

Kelytha makes her way back to the group outside. She smiles at Sinak's hair, remarking "Suits you, pink's definitely your colour. Right," she addresses the group. "We need to get to Candle Lane. It's straight up Zastrow Street, should only take a few minutes."

The party proceeds to Candle Lane. The buildings on either side of Candle Lane are so tall and so tightly packed together that light touches the street only at highsun. Therefore, despite the early hour, gloom envelops the narrow alley as dark as a dungeon and as odorous as one too. Nearly all the streetlamps have been smashed. The only light that pierces the darkness is a faint flickering from down the lane, like a distant candle. The flickering comes from the one streetlamp still intact on Candle Lane, kept alight by a continual flame spell. A warehouse is directly across the street from the lamp, which illuminates a black winged snake painted above the door’s handle. Kelytha easily recognises this as a Zent hideout based on the information provided by Service about the winged snake design.

“Should we scout around it, see if there are any windows to look in?”  Sinak says, straining to see in the distance, looking for any sign of movement, relying on his superior darkvision to help.  “Do you want me to go?  Who is the quietest?  Ballen, do you want to try?”

The hideout is a ramshackle two-story warehouse. The warehouse stands at the back of an outer yard behind a high fence. Sinak with your passive perception you can see a front door, a large warehouse loading door, and a painted-over window visible from the street.

"I can try I suppose, but in my experience trying to sneak up to the front door is rarely a good idea." Ballen shrugged a little.

The gate in the fence is clearly unlocked. Ballen can attempt to sneak up on the front door, the loading door, the window or explore the area around the warehouse with a Stealth check. Otherwise she could walk up normally and knock on the door if she wants.