Cico cocks his head to the side as Aldrik speaks then Kerri. Then he looks over at Aimee and Lyss.

"I think they still do not like each other," Cico says. "They say sorry and that they agree but I think they mean the opposite."

As he digests everything, his fingers move in the air as if he's cataloging each piece of information and putting it in its proper place.

"The Sea Ward and Dock Ward are on opposite sides of the city, correct? And the Sea Ward appears to offer a greater concentration of leads," Cico says. He looks over to Aimee. "Do you know where to meet the Blackstaff? Can we do that on the way to the Sea Ward?"

He then settles back down into his lotus position with his eyes closed for several long seconds before they blink open again. He turns to look at Aldrik and Kerri.

"Does our knowing the secret revealed at Mirt's help or does it just cause Kerri distress to reveal?"

"I dunno, Mister Brimble the shop-keep by the docks argues like that with his wife, and they've got like a dozen kids. I heard her say fighting was like four play, but when I told her I liked games, but not numbers, she changed all sorts of colors and ran upstairs. Mister Brimble gave me a sweet if I left and never brought it up with her again."

Kerri looks like she's sucked on a lemon as she thinks about her response, "If it makes you feel any better I wasn't planning on assasins and artifacts. That didnt happen till you lot showed up. And I didnt-" she bites her tongue and thinks for another moment.

"How about this: Three strange men appear at your door offering assistance after you aquire a run down tavern. Men that you have no idea how or why they figured out about any of this. They could be anyone, from anywhere. Working for anyone."

"And sure we seem to be on the same side right now but it's clear at least one of them only sees you as some form of amusement," she looks over at Edvord, "because they treat you like it and then instead of apologizing for it they do everything in their power to avoid the words. Including getting their own brother to say it. Because they cant see what they did wrong."

She looks back to Aldrik, "So I am sorry that I never told you that I am a Harper. But for all I knew back then you, at best were strangers intruding without thinking about how people would feel about strangers turning up and at worst trying to get either infiltrate the Harpers or something worse. And in my line of work it's easier to assume the latter than the former."

"Wait, you're a HARPER?! COOL!"

Insight on Kerri and the brother's reaction: 18

Aldrik gives a satisfied nod. "And you were right to be suspicious, at first. But now that we are dealing with assassins and artifacts, the game's changed. So we have to trust in each other, trust that those in the circle have your back... because there's some seriously messed up stuff going on out there. Pawns and power brokers all making plays, and if we're divided we won't survive."

To Lyss, the big guy gets way down low. "Now, Lyss... the first rule of Harper club, is you don't ever talk about the Harpers to anyone who isn't one of us. It's the most important secret you can keep!"

Cico opens his mouth to speak when Aldrik tells Lyss that not telling anyone about being a Harper is the most important secret you can keep. There are several secrets more important that come to Cico's mind. But before he can say anything, the voice of Master Treewhirl sounds in his head reminding him that sometimes precision gets in the way of meaning. Cico's still coming to grips with that and he's not sure if he agrees but perhaps this is one of those occasions.

He then looks to Aimee to see if she has remembered where to go to meet the Blackstaff again.

Edvord has mostly stayed quiet during the conversation. At Kerri's prodding though the man speaks up for himself, though his voice is mumbling repeating the arguments of the morning, "Look... we survived. Some of my actions may not have been entirely... successful. However, the intention was right. We survived without lasting scars... except Verklarung." The hint of a tear develops in the side of Edvord's right eye at the mention of Verklarung.

The man sits back and tries to process how to frame an apology for Kerri. The gears in his head are unable to quite click, and he instead settles on attempting to admonish Aldrik as an olive branch, "As for the secrets Aldrik, we all have them... even the nobles of this fine city with whom you drink and carouse. Is it truly that surprising that the present company has not fully disclosed their own secrets..? Kerri is right to not fully trust us."

"... before we begin running across the city, it may be prudent to spend a few moments researching what we have gotten ourselves into. The Stone of Gollorr... the uniform artifact... the Gondish creations. Would not the fine book establishment across the street perhaps hold valuable knowledge... let us not end up in compromising positions like last night, least one of us slip in a puddle of grease."

Attempting to foil Aldrik's instruction, the mage speaks to Lyss in a hushed voice, "I believe Kerri is the only true member of this 'Harper's club'...  whether their rules apply to you is for only you to decide."

The corner of Kerri's eye starts twitching at the mention of the rat. "Oh I'm sure we won't be 'slipping in a puddle of grease' as long as a certain magic user knows to keep his hands and magic to himself."

Aimee startles back to the conversation having frozen at the mention of a poor, starving horse.

The rest of the information just washes over her and she decides to focus on the important stuff,

"For play probably meant it was for fun Lyss, not counting! But ya, they like each other, it is like that in all books!"

She then looks at Cico and gets a distant, thoughtful look as if she is searching through memories from more than a year and a half ago rather than just a couple days.

"She didn't say specifically, but she did say I should go to the Blackstaff Academy! Which is in Blackstaff Tower which is in the...Castle Ward! It is pretty close to the Sea Ward, or you can see the sea from it anyhow!"

She looks pleased at having been able to figure that out. Further she mostly just listens to the discussion of the Harpers with curiosity, not really knowing a bunch about them. She is happy to go across the street and read.

"I like reading! Let's get some food and head over! Granjul, make sure the horse is fed!"

The last part she just yells to seemingly no-one, and is, again, on her way out the door to the bookstore.

Aimee and Cico heading over to do some reading while the others rest?

You'll be greeted by the ever friendly Rishaal, and he's pretty happy to let his Book Wyrm's and their friend's do research. Anyone researching let me know exactly what you're looking into and make an investigation check.

Edvord will follow Aimee across the street. The man will mostly keep to himself as he goes about his business.

Edvord Investigation: 10

Specifics of the investigation relayed via discord.

Aldrik blanches at the idea of reading a bunch, but does so anyway, looking for information about Golorr. 

Investigation: Nat 18 for... 18.

Investigation on Golorr: 17

She naturally gives Duregan a hug and chats about the boom and that they now have a chaperone, that is missing.

Lyss tries to find a book on shadows.

16

Cico sits down outside, to the side of the bookshop entrance. He keeps watch of the street and rooftops while the others are inside, while at the same time wondering where their city watch minder has gotten to.

Aimee and Edvord pour through books, pretty unsure of where to start but they find the name Golorr mentioned in a book on Aboleth’s. 

”..In aid of researching these unfathomable creatures, one was transformed into a stone - capable of communicating telepathically though unable to secrete it’s mind dominating ooze. We learned this specimen called itself Golorr, and it believed itself to be a god.”

Research on shadows seems to be a little.. academic. Taxidermy of the undead creature you were attacked by, (frightfully detailing how you would have been transformed into the ethereal creature upon death) speculation on what truly makes up shadowstuff and lively debate on wether the shadowfell can be classed as an elemental plane. One news article catches your eye, a report of a halfling shadow emerging from the abandoned Kolat towers in the Southern Ward.

While everyone else is busy doing reading, Kerri does some good old fasion stress cleaning in the tavern.

"AIMEE! Maybe it's my shadow!", Lyss says to her friend, pointing at the news article. 

"We should go check, maybe after we talk to Mrs. Staff?"

"Absolutely! Staffy may have an idea how we can re-attach it too!"

She'll share her boring information on abolith rocks too.