Martha lets the boys deal with speaking to the simpleton. She finds her patience being tested by the second as he rambles on about honey and candles. She taps her foot softly and impatiently as she sits in the back of the wagon across from the disguised Jesla.

Eventually she pulls out a book and begins reading to try and alleviate her suffering. However, her ears do perk up a bit as he mentions knowing the layout of the keep, but she stays quiet and lets the others handle the dialogue. This simpleton is useful for now.

"Well, its not a storefront per say, but there's an empty home. Jannete Millry's husband passed away last year, and she decided to move back to her home town. It could be remade into a store. I could always use more goods in my own shop, but it might be more than a little, uh, crowded with five people."

Balin slows the wagon down as he starts rambling on in earnest. Much of what he mentions is of no particular interest, but there's some good information in there. Eventually he starts going on at length about a woman names Kaitlynn Mott, wife to one of the captains here. He is most definitely smitten with her.

Respar takes copious mental notes as Balin rambles.  He even notes to himself that Balin's near-obsession with one captain's wife might come in handy, if they need to persuade the man to do something he would prefer to avoid, either through promising her to him, or threatening her.  {Hells, I bet we could even convince him that he could be her rescuer at some point to earn her favor...the fool,} he muses silently.

He also asks for information about any inns and taverns, especially the one supposed to have a direct passage to the keep, though he does not bring that rumor up.  If Balin mentions it, he will ask about it.  But he definitely asks for information about the people who live and work in that inn.  Getting close to one or another of them might make a recon of the basement easier.

Kiven too takes mental notes of all of the names and descriptions Balin rambles on about.

"Indeed, let us start with rooms at the Lord's Dalliance and go from there.  There is no rush in the first few days.  It is best to just observe and make our 'business' plans once we have a feel for the town.  How much would this Millry's house sell for, Balin?"

Eya stays quiet for now but listens to the discussion intently. She's actually looking forward to this Inn after sleeping on a boat for the last...really long time.

"Um, well, the Lord's Dalliance is the only inn in town. Its run by Bellam and his wife Alicia. Old Bellam is brother to captain Barhold by the way. It used to be a brothel, and there's still a bit of that going on there, but no one talks about it. Oh, there's a bunch of dwarves there right now. A crew hired to refurbish parts of the keep apparently."

When asked about the house, he shrugs, "I think you'd have to ask Vallison about that. Its the town's property now. A few thousand in gold at least, but he's the type to hike the price way up if he doesn't think you belong here in Aldencross, so I'd make sure you give a good impression."

"I always give a good first impression..."

  Jesla listens to this back and forth in the rear of the wagon with Marsha.   Upon hearing Kiven say " I always give a good first impression" she starts laughing uncontrollably after rolling her eyes at Eya.   Her laughter ends when she gets choked up and it turns into coughing.   

"See, I knew you had to have a sense of humor in there somewhere amidst all of the rage, Tigress.  There is hope for you yet."

The Prince turns back to Balin and says "what can I say, she adores me."  "On to the Lord's Dalliance, yes?"

The wagon rolls on into town, passing through most of it before stopping in front of a large building on the east side with a prominent sign, depicting a noble raising a glass in an apparent toast. "Here we are. When you, um, when you need me again, just take the southern road from here, look for the sign saying 'candles and miscellany'."

After the group gets off, he turns the wagon in that direction, and slowly rumbles off, taking his barrels of honeycomb with him.

The Lord's Dalliance turns out to be a rather nice inn. A dozen tables within cluster around a bandstand, though no one is playing at the moment. A heavily abused dartboard hangs in one corner, and patrons are playing chess at a table in the corner. You are greeted by a jovial man who is built rather like a wall, a big frame, big muscles, and a big belly to top it off. He spreads his arms wide and calls out, "Welcome to the Lord's Dalliance, the finest establishment you'll find north of Ghastenhall. What can I do for you fine folk?"

Respar immediately smiles at the man and says, "Dinner for four, first off, my good man.  Then rooms for a few nights, while we get our bearings in your town.  I'm Dayven Rose, how do you do?  This is my sister, the noted alchemist Martha Rose.  Our employee Annaryth, and the elderly fellow is my sister's new apprentice, Wulfric."  He shakes the landlord's hand and asks his name as he strides towards a central table that will seat the entire team.  He pulls out the chairs for Annaryth and Martha.

Over the course of the dinner and evening, he is willing to chat about trivialities with any locals, but he keeps his eyes open and constantly surveys the room, looking for a couple of things:  Anyone taking too keen an interest in them, and he also visually surveys the staff.  Specifically he is looking for members of the staff that appear to be junior, and who feel underappreciated.  Preferably female, but not exclusively.

Jesla looks around the room casually as they eat.  She takes a seat with a forced  smile as Respar pulls her chair out. The barbarian didnt say much during the meal.  She was doing her best to maintain her Annaryth disguise and assumed she probably should  not talk much. 

"Pleased to meetcha! Name's Bellam Barhold, and this is my place. You're a bit early for dinner, the first bit of roast won't be done for another hour at the least. You can't rush a good roast I'm afraid. I can supply you with drinks while you wait, or perhaps some sandwiches and soup would do for now? Also, If you would like, baths can be drawn up for you, and you can get clean and relaxed before your meal. The road takes a toll on all travelers."

There aren't many patrons in the inn at the moment, just regulars who apparently have nothing better to do than bide their time and chat away in here with a stein in hand. Every single one of them gives the group some considering looks, but it doesn't seem to be any more than the curiosity of townsfolk who don't see many visitors.

The only staff you see out here are Bellam and his wife Alicia. Both seem rather happy and content as they go about their business. There is a young woman working in the kitchens, but you only get glimpses of her.

Respar nods at Barhold's words.  "I think a hot bath and brief rest in a room would suit me.  My companions can make their own choice, of course.  Lead on, please."

Martha speaks up, "Pleased to meet you, Bellam. A bath sounds wonderful. Thank you so much for your hospitality. It will be nice to have a room to spread out and relax in."

She will follow Barhold to a room and place her things in the room while the bath gets ready. She shuts her door and checks up on Kili in the bag, she speaks to him using Message, "Hey, are you still okay in there? This is where we'll be staying for a while, but I'm not sure where to put you. Do you want to hide in here or would you prefer somewhere outdoors because it would be easier to hide?"

  Jesla smiles pleasantly at Bellam.  " Thank you good sir.  I would like go ahead to my room as well.   A bath sounds wonderful.  " She almost grits her teeth as she says this so pleasantly.   

Bellam smiles, "Right then, since it sounds like you're staying for a while. Perhaps you would like to open up a tab? Just leave something suitable as collateral in our storage and we'll settle up whenever you depart. Prices for everything are on a board by the kitchens, so there's no surprises. In any case, would that be two rooms?"

However the issue of payment and the number of rooms is settled, you're shown upstairs to the two bath rooms, and buckets of hot water are brought up by a pair of young men to fill up large bathtubs for your use. The bath rooms are divided by gender, and then each tub is separated by curtains for a little privacy. The bedrooms aren't nearly up to Kiven's standards, but from everyone else's perspective, they're quite clean and nicely appointed, especially for a small town inn.

Kili looks a little dubious about either option, "Hey, how about I just sleep in here during the day, and you leave the window unlatched at night so I can move about then? I like the night anyways, and it keeps the risk of being spotted way down." There's a space in the top of the provided wardrobe where he could stay hidden and rest.

An hour later, those amongst the group still interested in that dinner have reconvened downstairs. The common area is starting to get a little more crowded, and the kitchen has just started serving out steaming platters of roasted mutton and freshly baked bread.

One of the lads who filled your baths rolls an entire barrel of ale out into the common room, he sets it in the corner but leaves it untapped. Why becomes apparent perhaps ten minutes later, as the door opens to admit a troop of dwarves. Eleven in all, obviously worn out from a day of hard labour. They claim a trio of tables, tap the barrel left out for them, and proceed to drain it. They're chatting amiably with each other in dwarven, and largely ignoring the townfolk, who ignore them right back.

The hot bath is most welcome.  Respar is certainly used to roughing it, occasionally going many days without proper bathing, but he does prefer to stay clean and shaved.  The group has not had a proper wash since they left on the mission.  Once or twice during the sea voyage Respar would wash using buckets of sea water, but this is a delightful luxury.  Once he has set his gear away in his room, he returns to the common room for dinner.  He digs into the mutton and bread, and also whatever veggies or stew are presented as side dishes.  He eats quickly, then begins to work the room.

He begins by buying a round of drinks for the house, courtesy of Rose's Elixirs, Solutions for Many Problems, and plays the part of the chatty businessman, assessing potential for clients and such. 

Wulfric raises an eyebrow at 'Dayven' when he labels his his sister's new apprentice.  He pipes up and says "yes, well, never too late to try something new, you see.  Young man, I require your finest room actually.  I don't know how many days I have left but I intend to live them well!"  The old man's acting is likely a bit off.

When they are headed to their rooms Wulfric says "very nice" with a bit of disdain for 'Dayven', but perhaps a bit of appreciation for the well timed slight as well.

Returning from their hour break Wulfric remarks to the group quietly "I feel dirtier now than I did this morning."  "I had managed my expectations for our 'previous camp,' but had higher hopes here."

Martha nods at Kili's suggestion, "Good idea." She places her extra clothes along with some books and other things near the top section of wardrobe to help obscure Kili a bit. She also puts some of her heavier mundane adventuring gear in the wardrobe, including the camouflage tarp, the hammock, and the alchemists kit among other things. She keeps her normal bag with her as she goes to take a bath.

She removes her clothes then cleans them with magic. Afterwards, she takes her bath quickly, as the water is a bit too cold for her liking despite being warm enough for most people. Once she's all cleaned up, she walks out to the main bar area to see the dwarves drinking, laughing, and talking. She eats dinner with the team but eavesdrops on the dwarves' conversations as they chat. While Respar does his thing, she too will make idle chit-chat with the dwarves and other patrons, introducing herself as both his sister and a young alchemist named Martha Rose. She wants to make herself known and seem like just a normal visitor in town. She talks about wanting to open up a small shop and how she heard about a potential building for rent in the town.