Aimee says, with a smile,

"Uh? I saw what in there cus that is where I was when," she makes a boom noise, "I put out the fires on them! I can wait over at Rasha's though, get some reading in!"

Aimee blinks as the pastry is swatted away, her smile marginally wriggling towards a grimace as her left eye twitches. She gives Lyss a LOOK that flickers between pastries,

"You want to waste dessert?"

She waves her arms around in distress while giving Lyss another LOOK. Whether or not Lyss understands the LOOK she'll smile at the watch and head to Rasha's.

Performance to distract: 14

Upon entering she says to Rasha,

"Hi again! My house is a crime scene, gonna stay here until I'm "summoned"! Lif is gonna be soon mad! Can I buy some stuff while I wait? Came to me in a dream, a very naggy one!"

She'll get what she needs from Rasha then grab a book and a seat.

Aldrik returns with Lady Hornraven to speak with the officers, not wanting to be fleeing the scene.

"My lady, if you can tell this officer what you saw, we can all be on our way."

Edvord follows Fala back to her shop and begins to peruse the available potions. The wizard mutters to himself making sure nobody overhears him as his eyes glance from potion to potion, "I can always be polite, apologetic, and helpful... for the right price."

Aimee hears Lyss's voice in her head.

"Imma snag one!"

Sleight of Hand: 26

Lyss hears a voice back,

"Hey! I forgot about this! You can do it too! Woo! Get two if you can!"

Cico:

The footprint seems to be abnormally thin, and there is not much of a tread as you would find in most shoes. It is as if the sole of the shoe was smooth.

The rider lowers his crossbow, waving you down. "Down you go. You're intel has been noted, please do not further interfere with the Watch's investigation."

Edvord: 

Fala takes you through the store. The scent of the flowers shift with every step you take, as you pass endless varieties. They open a cabinet at the back, piling up a bunch of bottles "The Lotus will promote regular bowl movements, Lavender for stress, and of course I you may have one of my premium potions."  They talk you through their magical potions, of which they have a Potion of animal friendship, Potion of Climbing Potion of healing, greater potion of healing and a Potion of water breathing

Aimee and Lyss: 

The guards are on particularly high alert over this crime scene at this time. A hand grabs Lyss's wrist "Hold child! Any more foul play and we'll be locking you up" He let's go with a little bit of a shove.

Rishaal greets you both with open arms, selling Aimee what she requires and offering use of his equipment. " Of course my young Book Wyrm's. Did you not have some friends there as well? Let us gather them, It's only the neighbourly thing to do.

Kerri:

The child slips the necklace back into his pocket. "I'm gonna wait in the pastry shop. They were good friends, they need to know." 

Aldrik:

Lady Hornraven nods, and as you approach the guards she starts to wave at them. Her voice is the perfect pitch to cause physical discomfort, and being so close to you only exacerbates it. 

"Excuse me... Excuse me. We are in quite the rush, as you probably know we are from quite the important families and have business to see to. I have a statement ready so get out your notepad. " 

The guard shakes his head stuttering as he points to the end of the road. 

Everyone sees this:

All of the guards stand to attention as two figures enter the alley. One a tall man with a friendly face in a casually worn City Watch Sergeant's uniform. He salutes the guards with a smile as they walk and waves in acknowledgement at the civilians. The other man is a short bearded fellow in robes of the Watchful Order of Magists and Protectors. Even behind is spectacles it is clear that he makes no eye contact with any one, observing the details of the street. The pair reach the crime scene, and you see the shorter mage whisper to to the tall Sergeant who in turn commands the watch. As the Watch fan out knocking on doors for questioning, the Mage bends down first to the Gnome's body. He produces a pouch from the body, emptying out five gems into his hand before locking eyes over his spectacles with the Sergeant.

Cico climbs down from the roof, pondering the narrow, smooth footprint he had found up there.

When he gets to the bottom, he sees that the Trollskull Manor is blocked off by the guards and that most of the others have disappeared except for Kerri talking to a child and Aldrik talking to a strange woman.

Rather than wander aimlessly looking for the others, Cico finds a spot to the side of the street where he can sit and watch the watch sergeant and the mage. He slips quickly into a lotus position, his legs crossing effortlessly, and watches the pair as they examine the crime scene. He's pays close attention to see if the mage spends any extra time looking at the muck that was on the gnome, the muck that Cico has a sample of in his pocket.

Perception: 13  

To Risha,

"Thanks! I really like it here, like the cloister but with less yelling at me!"

To the bit about friends Aimee looks at Lyss's sadly empty hands,

"Guards said we couldn't be out there or touch anything, even slightly burnt pastries! Don't think they'll let us find them, but I can lean out and yell!"

Aimee does exactly that, yelling  everyone's names and that "We're in at Risha's place!"

She waves at the guards then goes back inside,

"Done!"

She'll then start using the proffered equipment saying to Lyss,

"Let me know if they do something neat!"

Lyss pouts a bit and sticks out her tongue, but perhaps wisely resists the urge to sticky finger the guard and he tosses her away. Probably doesn't have anything good anyway.

As Aimee hollers for the others, Lyss will follow each up with a message in their heads, if they are within 120 ft of the pair and Rishaal.

"I'll keep watch. Wonder if the pastry shop got damaged? Perhaps we should check..."

Edvord point to the potion of climbing. "That particular one is of interest."

Leaning in closer to Fala, the man adds in a conspiratorial whisper, "If you see my brother again.. you know the large brute with the warhorse running amok out there right now... make sure to offer him the lavender. He has a condition that he refuses to talk about... nor does he wish to hear strangers mention it... but his doctor and I have been attempting to obtain sufficient treatment for his ailment. If he steps foot in the shop... please do not let him leave without him purchasing some of your lavender."

Hearing Aimee's call, Edvord takes leave from Fala and heads over to Risha's shop. Careful to leave sufficient room between himself and the watches activities.

Cico looks around when Aimee sticks her head out of the one shop, loudly announcing her presence. 

He returns to watching the guard and mage examining the scene of the explosion for a few moments more, but then uncoils his legs and walks over to the shop, arriving as Edvord does.

"I found a footprint on the roof where the attack may have come from. It was smooth and very narrow. I'm not sure what would have made that," Cico adds before turning back to the doorway to continue watching the city watch.

Cico notices the short mage briefly glance over the muck, steering well clear of it. 

You all convene at Rishaal’s. His shelves of books over three floors is far more impressive than you would have originally expected from the outside. Following a brief questioning from the City Watch, he keeps a close eye on Aimee offering tips as she burns ingredients in a brass brazier filling the room with a thick sweet aroma. 

After about an hour, you hear a knock on the door. The friendly face of the Sergeant pops around the door. 
“Why hello there, Sergeant Saeth Cromley at your service” his voice bounces in an almost singsongy way. “The neighbours said we’d find the owners of Trollskull Manor here. Mind if we ask a few questions?”

"Yeah, we're the owners... some of us... Whatcha want?", Lyss pushes through, hands on her hips as she regards the watchman with no small amount of suspicion. 

Assuming Lady Hornraven departed, Aldrik would have rejoined the others. Over the course of the hour he got bored and started a card game using his deck of cards.

To Cico (and whomever else is around), "That noblewoman, Lady Hornraven, she saw a 'man but not quite, like a marionette but with no strings, that threw something into the crowd from the rooftop'. Seems to match what you found from the footprint, at least. Poor sods. But what sort of person is like a marionette... or I guess, if there's a puppet tossing bombs, who's pulling the invisible strings?"

As the watchman enters, he leans back against the wall, awaiting their questions -- even if he was not directly referenced.

If Aimee is done she'll join Lyss otherwise she keeps at it.

As Rishaal and Aimee come back into the room, Cromley stands to the side as the squat mage wordlessly enters, pacing back and forth before you. Rishaal looks absolutely starstruck, the normally reserved Dragonborn barely able to control his excitement. Cromley announces his companion. " Please meet the brilliant Barnabus Blastwind of the Watchful Order of Magists and Protectors. He has made some keen observations of this scene and we are well on the way to finding the culprit. The road closure will be lifted shortly and you will be able to return to your homes, we thank you for your patience and offer our condolences." 

Blastwind continues pacing, looking each of you up and down. "The intended target of the blast was travelling unmistakably to your front door. What is your relationship with the deceased Gnome?" He states bluntly