Kess appears to consider for a moment. "My performances are usually only for the dead, but..." She sighs and reluctantly stands, feeling the spirit in the lyre urging her on. "I do want to see what's in that tower. I think the lines of the shape in the middle show the order of the moves." She starts to dance along with Razz, with less flair and more focus on precision.

Performance: 19

At first, all you get is a few stares. The patrons definitely don't seem to be familiar with the dance. After a while, however, a couple of them start to join in on the dancing. After about five of them have joined in, you spot one table in the corner with four somewhat scrawny men. They start to dig through their bags and pull out various musical instruments, eager to join in. 

Performance: 14

Eventually, about a dozen people join in, including the musicians. The hunters seem extremely disinterested. Urwin chuckles at he brings you your food and wine.

Kess had been so focused on getting the dance right that she didn't notice the villagers joining in until the musicians' song got her attention. She laughs before she realizes it, sitting down a little breathlessly as their food arrives.

"Oh, Urwin," she calls before the man can walk away, grabbing the weird portrait and holding it up for him to look at, "Do you recognize this man? We found this in Fiona's house and it...looks oddly Strahd-like. Also what do you know about Stella's father and Vasili von Holtz? We're trying to decide if we should revive the former for his children. And the latter we are supposed to meet tomorrow, so we want to be prepared."

As the impromptu dance fades and the music carries on without him, Razz twirls midair one last time before landing lightly in his seat. With a satisfied sigh, he dusts off his sleeves and flutters his wings as he settles down.

"Well, that was fun. Nothing like a little organized chaos to liven up a room. And look—food! Perfect timing."

He snags his drink and leans forward, catching just enough of Kess’s conversation to raise an eyebrow.

"Ah, yes, dinner and ominous discoveries—now it really feels like we’re back in Vallaki."

Urwin looks back, furrows his eyebrows, and tilts his head. "The portrait doesn't look familiar, and I can't say I've heard of a Vasili. As for Nikolai, he's a Watcher, so there's gonna be that tie to Strahd. They've been claiming some vague connection for generations now. He didn't otherwise seem too terrible when he was alive. It might be worth a try if you can spare whatever material components you need."

Razz takes a sip of his drink, tilting his head as he considers Urwin’s words.

"Ah yes, the ‘vague connection to Strahd’ flex. Classic. Nothing like a little ‘we're totally not his lackeys, buuut maybe just a little’ energy to keep the family name interesting."

He sets his drink down, tapping a finger on the table.

"That said, before we go around resurrecting people, should we check in with Lucian first? Might be worth making sure we’re not about to bring back someone who’ll make everything more complicated."

He stretches, wings flicking slightly.

"Also, if Strahd’s big surprise is still happening tonight, maybe we make sure everyone’s not half-dead from exhaustion before we deal with whatever fresh horror he’s cooking up. If we’re really lucky, it’ll hold off until morning... though I don’t think luck’s been on our side much lately."

"Of course. At the very least, our tiger is being delivered to the church." Kessintra can't resist a bit of tense excitement at the prospect of trying to befriend the creature.

“Yes, we also need Lucian to inspect these bones as well”

Ada begrudgingly grins as Razz and Kess perform the dance. Her grin turns to laughter when other villagers join in, some even bringing out their instruments. Ada taps her foot along to the beat, starting to sway a bit despite herself.

"That was pretty good actually," she says.

"I think our next stop should be the church," the paladin agrees. "We can get answers, but we can also rest. It's the safest place in town."

At the mention of the tiger, Ada grins. "Oh, I almost forgot about that. Do you think it will let me pet it?"

Razz’s wings flick as he grins, clearly pleased with Ada’s reaction to the dance.

"See? You do have a little rhythm in you, paladin. Careful, or I’ll have you doing full choreography next time."

Then, at the mention of the tiger, his grin widens. He places a hand over his heart, feigning deep sincerity.

"Oh, don’t worry, Ada—I’ll make sure to ask the tiger exactly what you want… but, you know, while I’m at it, I might also ask if it’s open to something better. Like, would it prefer a cuddle? OH! Or Maybe give you a scenic ride through town?"

He smirks, wings twitching.

"You could just pet it, sure, but where’s the flair in that?"

"A paladin with a tiger mount would be an impressive sight indeed," Kess remarks with a smirk, picturing the remaining cultists fleeing in fear, "We should buy some uncooked wolf steaks on our way out. I'm not an expert on animals, but providing food other than ourselves seems like a good idea."

“Yes, I’d prefer not to have survived this long only to be the tiger’s dinner.”

Razz crosses his arms, wings fluttering slightly as he shoots Kess a dry look.

"Yes, providing food other than ourselves is definitely the priority. I, for one, would very much like to stay off the menu, thank you."

He gestures vaguely upward.

"I mean, sure, I can fly, but I didn’t take Aspect of the Moon — so at some point, I have to come down. And I’d rather not spend the night hovering above a tiger with questionable opinions on whether I belong in its diet."

"Whatever you say, 'flying mouse'," Kess remarks with a chuckle, drinking the last of her wine and stretching a bit as she stands, "Oh, we should show it off to Stella after we tame it. She probably likes cats, right?" She heads to the bar and orders a good bit of raw meat for the road.

Razz narrows his eyes playfully at Kess, wings flicking as he crosses his arms.

"Yes, Yes, I accept ‘flying mouse’ — but let’s be clear, I have zero interest in becoming a dead mouse. Big difference."

He tilts his head, considering.

"Though, if Stella does like cats, maybe I should be careful there… I’d rather not find out if she also likes playing catch-the-mouse."

Upon returning to the church, you immediately notice that the windows are each barred with several wooden planks. Gentle lute music fills the air, though it's not particularly good. Occasionally, a sour note rings out; the player pauses, and the music resumes. As you enter the church, you quickly identify Ireena as the struggling musician. She has some sheet music spread out in front of her. Ismirk is sitting nearby, sharpening his longsword. Father Lucian perks up at your arrival. "Welcome back. Did anything interesting happen?"

Kess immediately feels a sense of pride at seeing Ireena playing, honestly impressed with her progress so far. She moves to set down the large package of raw meat Urwin sold her as she considers Lucian's question.

"Quite a bit, actually. Fiona and the cult's higher-ups are dead. Rictavio is giving us a tiger to help in the battle. We met Fiona's daughter Stella and freed her...Speaking of which, would you be able to resurrect Nikolai? If you don't think him too evil, of course."

“Oh and we found these bones hidden in their house. Are you able to divine any information about them?”

"She's dead? Already? You all made quick work of her. And all while getting us an ally? I have to commend you. Anyway, about Nikolai. He wasn't terrible, I guess. Of course, he was a Watcher, but he wasn't as bad as Fiona. Still, I doubt I can do anything. I do have revivify and its components, but Nikolai's been dead for months. As for the bones...." He examines the skeleton for a few moments. "They don't appear to be anything special. My best guess is that she was planning on animating the thing."

“I will leave the bones in your care to bury as you see fit. Now that we have killed Fiona, there is a bit of a leadership vacuum. Do you have a recommendation on who should take up the position?”