Arrenhadn't paid that much attention to Fir the first time he saw her, but now that she stands before him, he recognizes her from Emma's drawings. He lowers his voice to match her quiet tone when he responds. "We did find her, yes. She's unharmed. Forgive me if I don't go into detail just yet—since we're still investigating, it's best to keep things limited for now. We may be able to explain more once the situation is more stable."
He glances at the Corporal, then back to Fir and her son. "My companion here and I will need to ask a few questions. Please answer them as best you can—they may prove very helpful."
He pauses, and then tries to summarize some of what they've learned so far. "It seems Emma and Hector got along well during the early years of their marriage, but something changed in the last year. I won't go into detail, as Hector’s behavior toward her appears to have been widely known. What is important is that we don't yet understand what triggered the shift, but we believe it may be connected to their attempts to conceive—which we've traced to around eighteen months ago.
We also know Emma had contact with someone from outside Ersta who may have tried to help her with that. Not in a traditional medical sense, perhaps, but by other... less conventional means. Do you know anything about this? Do you happen to know how that person might have found out about the couple's attempts to conceive?"
As he speaks, Arren's attention is primarily on Fir, but he makes a point to glance at her son now and then—just enough to make it clear that even the kid might have seen or heard something worth sharing.
Fir's face brightens when Arren says they found Emma unharmed, but the expression quickly changes to confusion mixed with concern. "Is she here then? Safe at least?" She asksafter Arren says he cannot give her the details yet.
The younger Elf also seems interested now. "Is it true what the drunkard says, then? Is there a monster? Is that what you're still investigating?"
As Arren resumes detailing what he already knows, especially when he mentions Hector, Fir looks down at the floor, and her son seems a little irritated. "It sounds like you already know a lot," Fir answers. "It's true, and I tried to talk to her about it, but Emma had some... conviction that things would work out. They've been happy together for so long, so it's not that I couldn't understand, but... it didn't get any better. But I respected Emma's wishes and didn't do anything about it. And if anyone else did... I wouldn't know. It's been going on for a long while, and anyone who passed by The Stewpot would have known."
"I think it took too long before anyone took action," Fir's son interjects. "Monster or not, if it didn't hurt Emma, it only did good." Fir turns to glare at her son for amoment, but he continues. "Nobody said it while we thought she was hurt, too, but if that's not the case, then whatever it is must be a good thing. You think so too, but you don't want to say it. Hector wasn't behaving right with Emma, and it doesn't matter why he changed. He was no longer himself as we knew him to be. The thing might as well have done him a favour, too, like putting a rabid animal down. The rest of the deaths must be some bandits who used the rumours of the monster for their schemes, or maybe those people also deserved it."
"Olive!" Fir shouts, and the boy goes quiet, though he maintains a haughty, righteous look. "We do not speak like that about the dead, and you better not think like that either! Aleshi always listens!" He rolls his eyes, but does not respond. "I'm sorry," Fir turns back to you. "But, as I said before, many people thought something needed to be done. Anyone could have thought in a similar, wrong manner." She shoots towards her son, scoldingly.
"As for Emma's failed attempts to conceive," Fir speaks in a low voice again. "She confided in me about that often. They've been trying for a long time. However, she didn't talk to many people about that. She was never comfortable speaking to people she wasn't close with, especially regarding personal matters. I find it a little strange she would turn to a stranger for help, though if she was desperate enough to try, she didn't tell me anything."
'Tace' listens as the mother and son discuss the issue of Hector. He is particularly interested in the change in Hector, and the timing.
"I think there is no arguing that Hector's behaviour was abhorrent, but might I interject for a moment", he asks stepping forward from his place by the kitchen door.
"I am keen to understand the timescale here. Were Hector and Emma trying to conceive prior to the change in Hector's behaviour?", he asks Fir and Olive just trying to be clear on that at least. "They were obviously trying to conceive for some time, and it wasn't going well. And then Emma, and possibly Hector, were made aware of an individual who claimed to be able to help in some way. If she confided in you often about this, to tell you about this hope seems likely. Did she perhaps mention anything about being asked to place a Cucerbitaceae on her windowsill? I would think something like that would be hard to forget, being so unusual a request", he asks Fir not in an incriminating or accusatory manner, more like trying to jog her memory.
"Oh, and I would like to circle around to the rest of the deaths. Who else specifically has died, and in where?", he asks Olive.
(OOC: A few questions there, I would assume this is more conversational than simply firing questions at them, if that works. He wants a timeline of events, with approximate dates if possible)
(OOC: Don't worry about it. I'm posting because I have time, but this was never intended to be a fast-paced game. Waiting a few days doesn't bother me much.)
"Yes, for a long time, at least a year earlier, probably more. I'm sure they tried for a while before I first heard of it, too. I mean, things like this usually happen naturally. Yet, unfortunately, it didn't in their case." Fir answers. "But Emma stopped talking about that when Hector started... You know. At first, I thought he was just frustrated, which I could sympathise with to some degree, but frustration doesn't linger for so long, nor does it drive people to be this violent."
Fir shakes her head. "She didn't. At least, I don't recall anything as such. She did try all sorts of things - mostly foods that were said to help. But some stranger with unexplained hope? She didn't tell me, if it did ever happen." She sounds a little sceptical. "And nothing like a Cucer... Cu..." She struggles with pronouncing the word, and a little embarrassed, she instead resumes: "Nothing like what you mentioned. I don't recall seeing any pumpkins on her windowsill, though I might not have paid attention to it if she did."
"Oh, I don't know," Olive answers, and to Bryn's best reading, he doesn't seem to be hiding anything. "Not people from Ersta. However, I've heard that there have been recent attacks in the area on passing travellers. I think there were five, maybe six, such cases. Folks described the bodies they found in a similar manner to how Hector was found. Ain't heard of any survivors, though maybe they ran the other way and never passed through here. I think there was also a hunter who went searching for this beast, but we didn't see him again. Could have given up, too, so I can't say for sure. But some passing merchants told us there's also an increase in bandit attacks and the like, as there is at the beginning of every winter. I think they're just trying to cover up their tracks by making up this 'monster', or riding on fear from one."
Arren listens intently to both mother and son, especially surprised by the boy's passionate remarks. For someone so young, he's taken a keen interest in what happened to Emma. It's not unexpected—yet another sign of how deeply she was loved in Ersta—but still surprising to see such strong conviction from someone his age. Arren had expected him to be more aloof, but instead, the boy spoke his mind plainly, much to his mother's displeasure.
"For what you said, I think we can rule out the possibility that Emma contacted this stranger,"he says first to Fir. "That still leaves us with the question of how they learned about Emma and Hector's situation. We know Hector was a merchant who traveled often, even to places like Pojah. He may have spoken of it there, and someone happened to overhear."
He pauses briefly, then adds, "That leads me to another question. Did you ever hear of Hector expressing frustration about leaving Pyorre for Ersta? We suspect his life may have been more prosperous back in the capital city. I'm asking in case that might have sparked the shift in his behavior."
Then Arren turns to the son. "We heard about those bandits from a…"—he nearly says scammer—"…woman on the road a couple of days ago. But she mentioned nothing valuable was taken during the killings, which discards banditry."
He hesitates for a beat. Could Emma have done that? If so, then what they told the Commandant—that Emma hadn't killed anyone else—was wrong.
"And this hunter,"he continues, addressing Olive, "you’re the first person to mention them. Can you tell us anything more? What did they look like? Where were they searching—was it the forest? Did they speak to anyone in particular while looking for clues?"
(ooc: I'll try my luck with insight as well. 19+1 = 20)
'Tace' listens as the Sergeant takes up the questioning, a little less sure that Emma's memory can be relied upon after reminders that there have been other reports of monster attacks.
Even if some were exaggerated or made up, it is doubtful one isolated instance caused all the rumours.
He leans forward to hear more about the hunter. As the Sergeant said, that seemed to be new information. And if he went to find Emma intending her harm, then she was likely to defend herself.
"Is there anyone else who might have more information? Anyone Emma or Hector might have confided in? We have spoken to her mother, Wyler and Zaba. And the cobbler and the smith", he asks once the Sergeant's questioned have been answered.
((In case I wasn't clear, Olive looks like the Elven correspondence of a Human teenager. For simplicity, I assume most races mature at about a similar rate, and so, it means he is somewhere around 15 years old, or what a Human would be at that age.))
Fir shrugs slightly and shakes her head. "I don't know. Maybe. Hector travelled often, so I don't think it mattered much. If I had to guess, I'd say he spent between a third and half of every year on travels. He was still here the majority of the time, but, well, I never asked him how he felt about it. He always seemed happy with Emma, so it seemed natural that they'd be together, whether here or in Pyorre. I think he used to say it's easier here, since there is less competition."
"Dunno him," Olive answers plainly. "He wasn't from here, and when he heard of the story about the monster, said we're all just exaggerating things, that it must be some rabid wolf or something like that. Said he'd go into the forest to hunt it down the next day. That was about... eight days ago? More or less. Haven't seen him since. Either he found what he sought, or he never entered the forest."
"Sounds like you've already talked with a lot of people," Fir answers. "But as for other people who might know something important, not that I know of. Emma didn't ah... have many close friends. She was liked by many, but she had trouble bonding with people. She always did. Even when we were younger, she'd rarely hang out with other people. But, it's always possible that I'm wrong, maybe she did have other people she trusted, or maybe someone happened to see something while it happened. I'm sorry, I just can't help you with that."
At that moment, someone knocks on the door twice, then enters the kitchen. It is Lieutenant Tireur who tries his best to look apologetic. When he opens the door, you can hear a faint baby's cry from the other room. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but I think your baby needs you." He addresses Fir, who, after a brief apology, excuses herself and exits the kitchen.
Olive springs down from the counter, but doesn't follow his mother yet. Instead, he turns to the two of you. "Is Emma really back? I don't see light in the Stewpot, or even from her house from here." He nods in the direction of the window, from which (Bryn might recall) the Stewpot can be seen.
'Tace'thanks Fir as she leaves to tend to the baby, before turning his attention to Olive.
He shakes his head in response to Olive's question about Emma having returned.
"Emma did not feel comfortable returning until we have resolved the issue of the monster. I believe you are right that it will not harm Emma though, it does seem protective of her", he replies, keeping to the truth, but not revealing all of it.
"You and your mother have been very helpful. We will do our best to resolve this mystery, but our time is limited. I don't suppose you know where Zaba is?".
He looks to the Sergeant to see if he has any more questions.
(ooc: Did Arren get anything from his Insight roll, or did they just seem totally fine and truthful?)
Arrenwatches Fir go and nods at Tace's answer regarding Emma's whereabouts. A good response—truthful, but without revealing what's really going on. He tilts his head slightly, thinking that the Corporal is remarkably good at being discreet.
With the mother gone, the sergeant turns his attention to Olive, watching the teenager with curiosity. Why hasn't he left with her? Too much time in that room full of kids and crying babies, perhaps? He addresses him again, just in case he might happen to share something else now that his mother isn't present—maybe something he hasn't thought about so far. "Helpful indeed. I'm surprised you're the first to mention the hunter. I suppose seeing a hunter, especially a stranger, in Ersta would catch your attention. Does the town get many visitors? Has anyone else caught your eye? Maybe not recently—perhaps longer ago. A year, maybe a year and a half?"
He lets Olive answer, then continues. "And since you mentioned Emma's window... I imagine your parents have been busy—especially your mother—since Linden was born, so maybe they haven't paid much attention to anyone's windows. But you? You strike me as an observant one. Ever happen to see anything like a melon, cucumber, pumpkin, or a fruit like that in any of the windows at The Stewpot, or at Emma and Hector's house?"
He gives a small shrug. "I mean, I wouldn’t be surprised if you hadn’t. Who pays attention to cucurbitaceae in windows, right?" Not me, definitely.
Arren believes that neither Fir nor Olive is trying to mislead him, nor is intentionally hiding important information. At least, he doesn't spot any sign to suggest otherwise.
"At this time of the night? I suppose he's at his home. You can get there through this door," he points to the second door in the kitchen, "though I suppose that would be strange. Usually, you'd walk around the Three Frogs to reach the house's front door. It's a similar design to the Stewpot, or perhaps I should say Emma took inspiration from Zaba. Except she forgot to build a door connecting the inner parts, so she had to walk out every time she wanted to go into either."
"There are some visitors, I guess. If you want to go through the mountains from Pyorre eastwards, or if you want to go south from the ocean in the north along this side of the mountains... you're probably passing not far from here." Olive answers, and he seems a little puzzled why it matters. "And thanks to the Stewpot, if you pass nearby and have heard of it, you're likely to stay the night. At least it used to be like that.
"But I don't have much to do with strangers. I mean, I don't run a shop or anything. I happened to run into the hunter while I was out in the forest." Seeing that he's not done here yet, Olive leans against the counter. "I didn't go in deep, I just checked on a few rabbit traps I set, whether they caught anything. He happened to see me and, since I told him I caught nothing, he instructed me on how to set the trap better so I'd be more likely to catch something. I then happened to tell him of Emma and... well, that's how he heard of her.
"He also gave me this:" Olive digs in a deep pocket in his pants, and when he pulls his hand back out, he shows you a dried root with a spiralling shape. "He said that if I happen to get hurt while in the woods, if I happen to meet the monster, perhaps, that I should eat this." If you're interested, he allows you to inspect the root (you can make a Nature check if you're interested). "Other than him, I can't say anyone else caught my eye, not in particular."
"Emma liked growing plants she can use in her cooking." Olive picks up a nearby spatula and mindlessly flips it from hand to hand. "Usually in the garden behind the Stewpot and not on the windowsill, but if she placed a plant there, I doubt anyone would notice. It wouldn't exactly look out of place, you know?"
'Tace' looks outside at the rain and then back to the internal door. "Perhaps if I knock he won't mind, just to avoid dragging the wet into his living area", he muses quietly.
He listens as Olive details his encounter with the hunter, and does indeed take a look at the spiral shaped, dried root.
Out of curiosity, Arren takes a look at the root as well. He waits for the Corporal's final questions, and having no more questions at the moment, he simply stands by.
He doesn't have any questions for Zaba either, but since his companion is interested in speaking with him, he nods at the idea of knocking on the kitchen door. Given that they're in a bit of a hurry, perhaps Zaba will forgive this small transgression.
The root seems unfamiliar. The plant itself doesn't seem to be special in any notable way, but both Arren and Bryn think that its shape is peculiar, as roots usually either dig deep into the earth or spread wide to the sides. The spherical shape seems odd since it does not increase the chances of finding water in any way, and that is what roots do after all.
"Halfling, I think. Maybe a little tall for one but too short for a Human or an Elf, and didn't really strike me like a Dwarf." Olive tries to recall. "He had an accent, but I didn't quite recognise it. I figured it must be Etanan since most Halflings come from there, but it could be wrong. I think he had light-coloured hair and..." He pauses for another moment to think. "He had a bow with him. I asked him if I could shoot one arrow, but he refused." He thinks for a few more moments, but eventually sighs. "That's about it," he says finally. "I think he told me his name, but I cannot recall it. Something with an 'R', maybe. I'm not sure."
At the mention of the Etanan accent, Arren's curiosity is renewed. After so many years living in Katto, he's lost much of his native accent in his day-to-day speech—but he doesn't have to make much of an effort to imitate his mother's, who, despite having been away from her homeland for just as many years, still keeps it.
So he says something in Halfling, then translates it into Common, keeping the kind of accent an Etanan native would have: "Did that hunter sound similar to this? That was Halfling speech, and this now is how an Etanan speaking in Common sounds."
'Tace' looks curiously at the root, "Most odd. I don't recognise it, and something is certainly strange about it. It's not like any root I have seen".
The fact Olive believes the hunter is from Etana peaks his interest and distracts him from the root. Now that is a bit of a coincidence. Too much of a coincidence, though?
When the Sergeant starts speaking in Halfling, he remains quiet. Sergeant al-Nasrid had told him of his early childhood in Etana, and how he favours his Etanan side. It must be nice for him to have a purpose for using that accent again.
"Umm, similar, I think." Olive answers. "Maybe. It was a while ago, but I believe it sounded similar. Are you Etanan? I didn't know they had foreign-born serving in the Katton army. Though perhaps the Meyen consider us Peraisin to be foreigners as well, to some extent, so maybe it's not too strange after all. Say, what's it like, swinging a sword? I saw yours while we passed by it earlier. Is it heavy?"
Bryn probably didn't hear anyone speak Halfling before, nor any Etanan accent (or perhaps just a tiny bit, not anything he'd remember). Since the Etanan accent is heavily derived from the Halflings' language, which is very different from the Elven, Humans' Common, or Meyen, which are more often spoken where Bryn lived, it is a new sound to him. He finds that the accent in the Humans' Common tongue is a subtle yet noticeable one. He'd probably notice someone speaking with it, unless they'd worked to erase it from their speech (or, like Arren, had lost it over time), but it doesn't make one's speech any less intelligible.
"I've lived in Katto for most of my life, but I'm Etanan — my mother was born there, and so was I,"Arren replies. "And there are others like me in the army, yes. Not many, to be fair, but we're not unheard of. At least, not to people who are more used to spend time around soldiers."
He doesn't respond to Olive's remark about the Meyen possibly seeing the Peraisin as foreigners too. Not being Peraisin himself, and possibly being considered an outsider in both circles, he prefers to let the comment pass in silence.
When the young Wood Elf asks about the sword, the Sergeant pauses thoughtfully before answering. "I was eighteen the first time I trained with a longsword," he says, a faint smile touching his lips at the memory. "My arms ached for days. You get used to the weight the more you train, of course. Later, I switched to sword and shield, and it was like starting from scratch all over again. Now, I couldn't imagine one without the other."
He glances at Olive, his tone shifting slightly more serious. "They're heavy, yes — though not as heavy as what I'd have to carry if your parents or my superiors caught you too close to my weapons." He gives the teenager an apologetic look, recalling his interest in the hunter's bow and suspecting he might be tempted to ask about the longsword next.
During the conversation, Arren unconsciously keeps up his Etanan accent. The memory seems to have quietly brought it to the surface, and it's clear he's genuinely pleased to speak of his roots, and of his initiation with the sword. It's a small respite from Emma's case—like when he stepped into that room full of children a few hours earlier.
After this, Arren turns to look at the Corporal. "Should we try to look for Zaba, then?"
'Tace' looks across to where he and the Sergeant left their weapons. His was certainly outsized by the Sergeant's.
He smiles a little under his mask, It's more about how you use it than the size.
He doesn't interject though, letting Olive have his moment with the Sergeant. Katton, Peraisin, Meyen, Etanan. They are all foreigners to me anyway.
When they are done, and talk turns to looking for Zaba, he nods his head.
He wanders over and raps gently on the door. If there is no sound of movement, he rap a little louder. He will continue doing this until the volume would reach a level to disturb those sleeping in the common room. At that point, he will try the handle to see if it unlocked.
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Arren hadn't paid that much attention to Fir the first time he saw her, but now that she stands before him, he recognizes her from Emma's drawings. He lowers his voice to match her quiet tone when he responds. "We did find her, yes. She's unharmed. Forgive me if I don't go into detail just yet—since we're still investigating, it's best to keep things limited for now. We may be able to explain more once the situation is more stable."
He glances at the Corporal, then back to Fir and her son. "My companion here and I will need to ask a few questions. Please answer them as best you can—they may prove very helpful."
He pauses, and then tries to summarize some of what they've learned so far. "It seems Emma and Hector got along well during the early years of their marriage, but something changed in the last year. I won't go into detail, as Hector’s behavior toward her appears to have been widely known. What is important is that we don't yet understand what triggered the shift, but we believe it may be connected to their attempts to conceive—which we've traced to around eighteen months ago.
We also know Emma had contact with someone from outside Ersta who may have tried to help her with that. Not in a traditional medical sense, perhaps, but by other... less conventional means. Do you know anything about this? Do you happen to know how that person might have found out about the couple's attempts to conceive?"
As he speaks, Arren's attention is primarily on Fir, but he makes a point to glance at her son now and then—just enough to make it clear that even the kid might have seen or heard something worth sharing.
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
'Tace' waits while the Sergeant fills Fir in on their investigation and asks his questions.
He watches Fir and her son closely for any reaction to the questions, and listens closely for signs either might be hiding something as they answer.
He doesn't feel the need to add any more questions, wanting to hear some answers before decided the direction to take the conversation.
Insight: 3+5=8
Fir's face brightens when Arren says they found Emma unharmed, but the expression quickly changes to confusion mixed with concern. "Is she here then? Safe at least?" She asks after Arren says he cannot give her the details yet.
The younger Elf also seems interested now. "Is it true what the drunkard says, then? Is there a monster? Is that what you're still investigating?"
As Arren resumes detailing what he already knows, especially when he mentions Hector, Fir looks down at the floor, and her son seems a little irritated. "It sounds like you already know a lot," Fir answers. "It's true, and I tried to talk to her about it, but Emma had some... conviction that things would work out. They've been happy together for so long, so it's not that I couldn't understand, but... it didn't get any better. But I respected Emma's wishes and didn't do anything about it. And if anyone else did... I wouldn't know. It's been going on for a long while, and anyone who passed by The Stewpot would have known."
"I think it took too long before anyone took action," Fir's son interjects. "Monster or not, if it didn't hurt Emma, it only did good." Fir turns to glare at her son for a moment, but he continues. "Nobody said it while we thought she was hurt, too, but if that's not the case, then whatever it is must be a good thing. You think so too, but you don't want to say it. Hector wasn't behaving right with Emma, and it doesn't matter why he changed. He was no longer himself as we knew him to be. The thing might as well have done him a favour, too, like putting a rabid animal down. The rest of the deaths must be some bandits who used the rumours of the monster for their schemes, or maybe those people also deserved it."
"Olive!" Fir shouts, and the boy goes quiet, though he maintains a haughty, righteous look. "We do not speak like that about the dead, and you better not think like that either! Aleshi always listens!" He rolls his eyes, but does not respond. "I'm sorry," Fir turns back to you. "But, as I said before, many people thought something needed to be done. Anyone could have thought in a similar, wrong manner." She shoots towards her son, scoldingly.
"As for Emma's failed attempts to conceive," Fir speaks in a low voice again. "She confided in me about that often. They've been trying for a long time. However, she didn't talk to many people about that. She was never comfortable speaking to people she wasn't close with, especially regarding personal matters. I find it a little strange she would turn to a stranger for help, though if she was desperate enough to try, she didn't tell me anything."
Varielky
'Tace' listens as the mother and son discuss the issue of Hector. He is particularly interested in the change in Hector, and the timing.
"I think there is no arguing that Hector's behaviour was abhorrent, but might I interject for a moment", he asks stepping forward from his place by the kitchen door.
"I am keen to understand the timescale here. Were Hector and Emma trying to conceive prior to the change in Hector's behaviour?", he asks Fir and Olive just trying to be clear on that at least. "They were obviously trying to conceive for some time, and it wasn't going well. And then Emma, and possibly Hector, were made aware of an individual who claimed to be able to help in some way. If she confided in you often about this, to tell you about this hope seems likely. Did she perhaps mention anything about being asked to place a Cucerbitaceae on her windowsill? I would think something like that would be hard to forget, being so unusual a request", he asks Fir not in an incriminating or accusatory manner, more like trying to jog her memory.
"Oh, and I would like to circle around to the rest of the deaths. Who else specifically has died, and in where?", he asks Olive.
(OOC: A few questions there, I would assume this is more conversational than simply firing questions at them, if that works. He wants a timeline of events, with approximate dates if possible)
(ooc: Since I'm not going to be able to post soon, and Volcano has asked what I was going to ask, if you want to go ahead Firecat that is fine by me)
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
(OOC: Don't worry about it. I'm posting because I have time, but this was never intended to be a fast-paced game. Waiting a few days doesn't bother me much.)
"Yes, for a long time, at least a year earlier, probably more. I'm sure they tried for a while before I first heard of it, too. I mean, things like this usually happen naturally. Yet, unfortunately, it didn't in their case." Fir answers. "But Emma stopped talking about that when Hector started... You know. At first, I thought he was just frustrated, which I could sympathise with to some degree, but frustration doesn't linger for so long, nor does it drive people to be this violent."
Fir shakes her head. "She didn't. At least, I don't recall anything as such. She did try all sorts of things - mostly foods that were said to help. But some stranger with unexplained hope? She didn't tell me, if it did ever happen." She sounds a little sceptical. "And nothing like a Cucer... Cu..." She struggles with pronouncing the word, and a little embarrassed, she instead resumes: "Nothing like what you mentioned. I don't recall seeing any pumpkins on her windowsill, though I might not have paid attention to it if she did."
"Oh, I don't know," Olive answers, and to Bryn's best reading, he doesn't seem to be hiding anything. "Not people from Ersta. However, I've heard that there have been recent attacks in the area on passing travellers. I think there were five, maybe six, such cases. Folks described the bodies they found in a similar manner to how Hector was found. Ain't heard of any survivors, though maybe they ran the other way and never passed through here. I think there was also a hunter who went searching for this beast, but we didn't see him again. Could have given up, too, so I can't say for sure. But some passing merchants told us there's also an increase in bandit attacks and the like, as there is at the beginning of every winter. I think they're just trying to cover up their tracks by making up this 'monster', or riding on fear from one."
Varielky
Arren listens intently to both mother and son, especially surprised by the boy's passionate remarks. For someone so young, he's taken a keen interest in what happened to Emma. It's not unexpected—yet another sign of how deeply she was loved in Ersta—but still surprising to see such strong conviction from someone his age. Arren had expected him to be more aloof, but instead, the boy spoke his mind plainly, much to his mother's displeasure.
"For what you said, I think we can rule out the possibility that Emma contacted this stranger," he says first to Fir. "That still leaves us with the question of how they learned about Emma and Hector's situation. We know Hector was a merchant who traveled often, even to places like Pojah. He may have spoken of it there, and someone happened to overhear."
He pauses briefly, then adds, "That leads me to another question. Did you ever hear of Hector expressing frustration about leaving Pyorre for Ersta? We suspect his life may have been more prosperous back in the capital city. I'm asking in case that might have sparked the shift in his behavior."
Then Arren turns to the son. "We heard about those bandits from a…"—he nearly says scammer—"…woman on the road a couple of days ago. But she mentioned nothing valuable was taken during the killings, which discards banditry."
He hesitates for a beat. Could Emma have done that? If so, then what they told the Commandant—that Emma hadn't killed anyone else—was wrong.
"And this hunter," he continues, addressing Olive, "you’re the first person to mention them. Can you tell us anything more? What did they look like? Where were they searching—was it the forest? Did they speak to anyone in particular while looking for clues?"
(ooc: I'll try my luck with insight as well. 19+1 = 20)
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
'Tace' listens as the Sergeant takes up the questioning, a little less sure that Emma's memory can be relied upon after reminders that there have been other reports of monster attacks.
Even if some were exaggerated or made up, it is doubtful one isolated instance caused all the rumours.
He leans forward to hear more about the hunter. As the Sergeant said, that seemed to be new information. And if he went to find Emma intending her harm, then she was likely to defend herself.
"Is there anyone else who might have more information? Anyone Emma or Hector might have confided in? We have spoken to her mother, Wyler and Zaba. And the cobbler and the smith", he asks once the Sergeant's questioned have been answered.
((In case I wasn't clear, Olive looks like the Elven correspondence of a Human teenager. For simplicity, I assume most races mature at about a similar rate, and so, it means he is somewhere around 15 years old, or what a Human would be at that age.))
Fir shrugs slightly and shakes her head. "I don't know. Maybe. Hector travelled often, so I don't think it mattered much. If I had to guess, I'd say he spent between a third and half of every year on travels. He was still here the majority of the time, but, well, I never asked him how he felt about it. He always seemed happy with Emma, so it seemed natural that they'd be together, whether here or in Pyorre. I think he used to say it's easier here, since there is less competition."
"Dunno him," Olive answers plainly. "He wasn't from here, and when he heard of the story about the monster, said we're all just exaggerating things, that it must be some rabid wolf or something like that. Said he'd go into the forest to hunt it down the next day. That was about... eight days ago? More or less. Haven't seen him since. Either he found what he sought, or he never entered the forest."
"Sounds like you've already talked with a lot of people," Fir answers. "But as for other people who might know something important, not that I know of. Emma didn't ah... have many close friends. She was liked by many, but she had trouble bonding with people. She always did. Even when we were younger, she'd rarely hang out with other people. But, it's always possible that I'm wrong, maybe she did have other people she trusted, or maybe someone happened to see something while it happened. I'm sorry, I just can't help you with that."
At that moment, someone knocks on the door twice, then enters the kitchen. It is Lieutenant Tireur who tries his best to look apologetic. When he opens the door, you can hear a faint baby's cry from the other room. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but I think your baby needs you." He addresses Fir, who, after a brief apology, excuses herself and exits the kitchen.
Olive springs down from the counter, but doesn't follow his mother yet. Instead, he turns to the two of you. "Is Emma really back? I don't see light in the Stewpot, or even from her house from here." He nods in the direction of the window, from which (Bryn might recall) the Stewpot can be seen.
Varielky
'Tace' thanks Fir as she leaves to tend to the baby, before turning his attention to Olive.
He shakes his head in response to Olive's question about Emma having returned.
"Emma did not feel comfortable returning until we have resolved the issue of the monster. I believe you are right that it will not harm Emma though, it does seem protective of her", he replies, keeping to the truth, but not revealing all of it.
"You and your mother have been very helpful. We will do our best to resolve this mystery, but our time is limited. I don't suppose you know where Zaba is?".
He looks to the Sergeant to see if he has any more questions.
(ooc: Did Arren get anything from his Insight roll, or did they just seem totally fine and truthful?)
Arren watches Fir go and nods at Tace's answer regarding Emma's whereabouts. A good response—truthful, but without revealing what's really going on. He tilts his head slightly, thinking that the Corporal is remarkably good at being discreet.
With the mother gone, the sergeant turns his attention to Olive, watching the teenager with curiosity. Why hasn't he left with her? Too much time in that room full of kids and crying babies, perhaps? He addresses him again, just in case he might happen to share something else now that his mother isn't present—maybe something he hasn't thought about so far. "Helpful indeed. I'm surprised you're the first to mention the hunter. I suppose seeing a hunter, especially a stranger, in Ersta would catch your attention. Does the town get many visitors? Has anyone else caught your eye? Maybe not recently—perhaps longer ago. A year, maybe a year and a half?"
He lets Olive answer, then continues. "And since you mentioned Emma's window... I imagine your parents have been busy—especially your mother—since Linden was born, so maybe they haven't paid much attention to anyone's windows. But you? You strike me as an observant one. Ever happen to see anything like a melon, cucumber, pumpkin, or a fruit like that in any of the windows at The Stewpot, or at Emma and Hector's house?"
He gives a small shrug. "I mean, I wouldn’t be surprised if you hadn’t. Who pays attention to cucurbitaceae in windows, right?" Not me, definitely.
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
Arren believes that neither Fir nor Olive is trying to mislead him, nor is intentionally hiding important information. At least, he doesn't spot any sign to suggest otherwise.
"At this time of the night? I suppose he's at his home. You can get there through this door," he points to the second door in the kitchen, "though I suppose that would be strange. Usually, you'd walk around the Three Frogs to reach the house's front door. It's a similar design to the Stewpot, or perhaps I should say Emma took inspiration from Zaba. Except she forgot to build a door connecting the inner parts, so she had to walk out every time she wanted to go into either."
"There are some visitors, I guess. If you want to go through the mountains from Pyorre eastwards, or if you want to go south from the ocean in the north along this side of the mountains... you're probably passing not far from here." Olive answers, and he seems a little puzzled why it matters. "And thanks to the Stewpot, if you pass nearby and have heard of it, you're likely to stay the night. At least it used to be like that.
"But I don't have much to do with strangers. I mean, I don't run a shop or anything. I happened to run into the hunter while I was out in the forest." Seeing that he's not done here yet, Olive leans against the counter. "I didn't go in deep, I just checked on a few rabbit traps I set, whether they caught anything. He happened to see me and, since I told him I caught nothing, he instructed me on how to set the trap better so I'd be more likely to catch something. I then happened to tell him of Emma and... well, that's how he heard of her.
"He also gave me this:" Olive digs in a deep pocket in his pants, and when he pulls his hand back out, he shows you a dried root with a spiralling shape. "He said that if I happen to get hurt while in the woods, if I happen to meet the monster, perhaps, that I should eat this." If you're interested, he allows you to inspect the root (you can make a Nature check if you're interested). "Other than him, I can't say anyone else caught my eye, not in particular."
"Emma liked growing plants she can use in her cooking." Olive picks up a nearby spatula and mindlessly flips it from hand to hand. "Usually in the garden behind the Stewpot and not on the windowsill, but if she placed a plant there, I doubt anyone would notice. It wouldn't exactly look out of place, you know?"
Varielky
'Tace' looks outside at the rain and then back to the internal door. "Perhaps if I knock he won't mind, just to avoid dragging the wet into his living area", he muses quietly.
He listens as Olive details his encounter with the hunter, and does indeed take a look at the spiral shaped, dried root.
"Could you describe the hunter for us?".
Nature: 13+3=16
Out of curiosity, Arren takes a look at the root as well. He waits for the Corporal's final questions, and having no more questions at the moment, he simply stands by.
He doesn't have any questions for Zaba either, but since his companion is interested in speaking with him, he nods at the idea of knocking on the kitchen door. Given that they're in a bit of a hurry, perhaps Zaba will forgive this small transgression.
(Nature: 11+1=12)
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
The root seems unfamiliar. The plant itself doesn't seem to be special in any notable way, but both Arren and Bryn think that its shape is peculiar, as roots usually either dig deep into the earth or spread wide to the sides. The spherical shape seems odd since it does not increase the chances of finding water in any way, and that is what roots do after all.
"Halfling, I think. Maybe a little tall for one but too short for a Human or an Elf, and didn't really strike me like a Dwarf." Olive tries to recall. "He had an accent, but I didn't quite recognise it. I figured it must be Etanan since most Halflings come from there, but it could be wrong. I think he had light-coloured hair and..." He pauses for another moment to think. "He had a bow with him. I asked him if I could shoot one arrow, but he refused." He thinks for a few more moments, but eventually sighs. "That's about it," he says finally. "I think he told me his name, but I cannot recall it. Something with an 'R', maybe. I'm not sure."
Varielky
At the mention of the Etanan accent, Arren's curiosity is renewed. After so many years living in Katto, he's lost much of his native accent in his day-to-day speech—but he doesn't have to make much of an effort to imitate his mother's, who, despite having been away from her homeland for just as many years, still keeps it.
So he says something in Halfling, then translates it into Common, keeping the kind of accent an Etanan native would have: "Did that hunter sound similar to this? That was Halfling speech, and this now is how an Etanan speaking in Common sounds."
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
'Tace' looks curiously at the root, "Most odd. I don't recognise it, and something is certainly strange about it. It's not like any root I have seen".
The fact Olive believes the hunter is from Etana peaks his interest and distracts him from the root. Now that is a bit of a coincidence. Too much of a coincidence, though?
When the Sergeant starts speaking in Halfling, he remains quiet. Sergeant al-Nasrid had told him of his early childhood in Etana, and how he favours his Etanan side. It must be nice for him to have a purpose for using that accent again.
"Umm, similar, I think." Olive answers. "Maybe. It was a while ago, but I believe it sounded similar. Are you Etanan? I didn't know they had foreign-born serving in the Katton army. Though perhaps the Meyen consider us Peraisin to be foreigners as well, to some extent, so maybe it's not too strange after all. Say, what's it like, swinging a sword? I saw yours while we passed by it earlier. Is it heavy?"
Bryn probably didn't hear anyone speak Halfling before, nor any Etanan accent (or perhaps just a tiny bit, not anything he'd remember). Since the Etanan accent is heavily derived from the Halflings' language, which is very different from the Elven, Humans' Common, or Meyen, which are more often spoken where Bryn lived, it is a new sound to him. He finds that the accent in the Humans' Common tongue is a subtle yet noticeable one. He'd probably notice someone speaking with it, unless they'd worked to erase it from their speech (or, like Arren, had lost it over time), but it doesn't make one's speech any less intelligible.
Varielky
"I've lived in Katto for most of my life, but I'm Etanan — my mother was born there, and so was I," Arren replies. "And there are others like me in the army, yes. Not many, to be fair, but we're not unheard of. At least, not to people who are more used to spend time around soldiers."
He doesn't respond to Olive's remark about the Meyen possibly seeing the Peraisin as foreigners too. Not being Peraisin himself, and possibly being considered an outsider in both circles, he prefers to let the comment pass in silence.
When the young Wood Elf asks about the sword, the Sergeant pauses thoughtfully before answering. "I was eighteen the first time I trained with a longsword," he says, a faint smile touching his lips at the memory. "My arms ached for days. You get used to the weight the more you train, of course. Later, I switched to sword and shield, and it was like starting from scratch all over again. Now, I couldn't imagine one without the other."
He glances at Olive, his tone shifting slightly more serious. "They're heavy, yes — though not as heavy as what I'd have to carry if your parents or my superiors caught you too close to my weapons." He gives the teenager an apologetic look, recalling his interest in the hunter's bow and suspecting he might be tempted to ask about the longsword next.
During the conversation, Arren unconsciously keeps up his Etanan accent. The memory seems to have quietly brought it to the surface, and it's clear he's genuinely pleased to speak of his roots, and of his initiation with the sword. It's a small respite from Emma's case—like when he stepped into that room full of children a few hours earlier.
After this, Arren turns to look at the Corporal. "Should we try to look for Zaba, then?"
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
'Tace' looks across to where he and the Sergeant left their weapons. His was certainly outsized by the Sergeant's.
He smiles a little under his mask, It's more about how you use it than the size.
He doesn't interject though, letting Olive have his moment with the Sergeant. Katton, Peraisin, Meyen, Etanan. They are all foreigners to me anyway.
When they are done, and talk turns to looking for Zaba, he nods his head.
He wanders over and raps gently on the door. If there is no sound of movement, he rap a little louder. He will continue doing this until the volume would reach a level to disturb those sleeping in the common room. At that point, he will try the handle to see if it unlocked.