Hedge Patrol II

[Ram]

"What is going on?" he asks again. "What are you hiding?"

"Speak!" he barked, trying to snap Oliver out of his frightened silence.

Ram was done with all the innuendo, cloak and dagger shit. Not from an oathbreaker. His companions thought the pig man had answers. So the Render would get them.

[Gerrit]

Ram's aggressive tone made Gerrit's blood boil even more. No, he didn't want to give in, didn't want to have this escalate into violence. He tore his eyes off of the other Ogres, away from the welcome invitation to get some blood on his hands. Where is Cassandra? Through the adrenaline he noticed his fellow Winter missing. There weren't many places she could have gone to - back into the Hollow was the most likely option.

Problem was, they couldn't be quite sure that there wasn't another trap inside. He should probably follow her - not being subjected to the scene here would be a plus. A big plus.
He asked for Smoke's assistance, called for the dust and the sooth around them to hopefully conceal his getaway.

1 success

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2021-05-18 01:45:44	Gerrit rolls 5 to invoke Shadowpatch (Wits 3 + Wyrd 2) (10 Again)	4, 2, 4, 9, 5	1 success

He asked and smoke answered. Looking down the Stonebones saw his body darken, the colors washing out. With the Contract struck he tried to slip away and follow Cassandra - at least he was following an educated guess on where she went.

1 success

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2021-05-18 01:48:21	Gerrit rolls 7 to sneak away (Dex 2 + Stealth 2 + 3) (10 Again)	2, 3, 4, 4, 2, 9, 5	1 success

He tried his best to be quiet, but his heart was hammering and he couldn't fully tear away his Ogre-brained focus from the promise of a fight. A low, raspy sound seemed to be stuck inside his throat, like the gurgling growl of a big dog. Time to get away. He just hoped that Ram captured Oliver's attention well enough for him to sneak by.

Equipment: Backpack - 1 bottle of water, First Aid Kit, Rope (from climbing gear).



Shadowpatch (+3 to Stealth)

[Anatole]

Anatole watches, his face contorted by his sardonic grin. The sickening parody of a smile continues to grow, now spreading to the other side of his face.

When the porcine Ogre breaks under Ram demonstration of might, the burned dwarf simply steps back into the hob-house and quietly closes the door.

[Cassandra Reeding]

Cassandra steps through Oliver's Hollow and immediately begins her search for a mirror. She knows that any old reflective surface will do, but something multi-purpose could be even more useful for later. As she is walking through, she notices Gerrit following behind her.

3 successes

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2021-05-18 10:43:29	Cassandra Reeding rolls 3 to Perception Gerrit (resolve 2 + composure 2) -1 clarity (10 Again)	5, 9, 10, 8	3 successes

"Help me find a mirror I can take," she says quietly.

failure

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2021-05-18 10:45:31	Cassandra Reeding rolls 4 to Investigate for a Mirror (Wits + Investigation) (10 Again)	1, 6, 7, 6	failure

The Fairest hears the conversation between Oliver and Ram continuing to heat up. It's distracting. She needs to investigate, go over every surface for something that will do. And yet there is something tugging her mind away from her task. Just like old times. She used to do this all the time. Sneak around or simply wander herself into unexpected places. She swallows, but continues her search, seemingly not finding anything yet.

[Saber Sloth]

Ram barks out and Oliver squeals.

"I don't know! I don't know! I don't know what you want! I'm just to protect this library!" escapes the pigish Ogre's lips, in the same squealed pitch, "That's it! That's it! I proooomise!" big, fat, tears roll down his puffed cheeks.

Anatole closes the door separating him and the others from the Summer's interrogation, but Oliver's squeals can still be heard, echoing around the living room.

Gerrit slips through shadows and Smoke, his already impressively ignorable presence made more so, but his fellow Winter keeps a well weathered eye on her surroundings, but even as she opens the hutch* she regrettably doesn't find the Mirror she was after. She sees bound tomes, various knickknacks, that could be Tokens or Hedgespun for their wyrdish appearance, or they could be stage props. Without further investigation there really wasn't anyway to tell.

The kitchen where Oliver had made their drinks might have more reflective surfaces, and there was of course whatever was behind the closed door.

Sorry if I missed it, but I'm assuming that Cassandra hasn't yet opened the door in search of a mirror. Tell if I have missed it though and I'll fix up the narration! *Spoke with Shenanigans and found what was missed!

[Ram]

“You don’t know why the Hedge is so messed up that it threw us a city away from our destination? Or why your Freehold’s symbol manifested on our Gate? Or why this place used to be a bustling suburb but now it’s a ghost town? Or why your so defensive that you’re willing to break an oath because someone bad mouthed your Queen when there’s obviously history there?”

“Something is going on and either you can’t put the pieces together or don’t want to because you’re scared. So, which is it?”

“Autumn?” The last comment was sarcastic and pointed. A challenge to the man’s very mantle that represented conquering fear and seeking knowledge. Oliver may play the part of professor but to Ram he smelled like nothing but damp paper.

[Gerrit]

Gerrit was relieved to find that Cassandra actually went off and that she seemed safe for the moment. But why was she looking for a mirror? Even with Ram's voice bellowing through the house (and because part of him still just wanted to answer that aggression in kind), Gerrit didn't dare replying to the Fairest. Instead he just gave her a thumbs up and went looking himself. She didn't appear to be having any luck here, so Gerrit looked around and zeroed in on the closed door. A faint memory echoed in his head: Cassandra warning them about not keeping mirrors around. Her Contracts! Maybe Oliver heeded that warning himself?

If that's the case we can look for anything else of interest - we are looking for a mirror now. Of course he was a bit curious about what else there was, but he couldn't do a solo act while Cassandra had a clear goal in mind and they were pressed for time.

2 successes

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2021-05-20 00:13:57	Gerrit rolls 7 to sneak towards the door (Dex 2 + Stealth 2 + 3) (10 Again)	9, 2, 3, 2, 10, 1, 3, 5	2 successes

He moved silently and tried the door. If it opened (and barring anything alarming or dangerous) he would scan the room behind it with systematic thoroughness, starting with the walls and moving clockwise through the room for any other places you could find one.

2 successes

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2021-05-20 00:16:01	Gerrit rolls 5 to look for a mirror (Int 3 + Invest 2) (10 Again)	8, 2, 10, 3, 6, 4	2 successes

Equipment: Backpack - 1 bottle of water, First Aid Kit, Rope (from climbing gear).

Shadowpatch (+3 to Stealth)

[Anatole]

Anatole raises an eyebrow as @Cassandra and Gerrit start their respective searches. Having missed the gist of the Fairest's words, the dwarf has no notion of what she seeks.

When Ram voice batters through the closed door, the burned dwarf grins once more.

Sighing in... contentment... the Wizened takes a position by the hob house's front door and checks outside - just in case they are going to be disturbed.

Perception check: -

2 successes

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2021-05-21 01:10:49	Anatole is perceptive rolls 4 to Wits + Composure (10 Again)	9, 8, 3, 5	2 successes

I think I might be loosing sense of the house's layout Saber Sloth

Anatole has moved to the front door and is checking outside (through a window in the door) if possible.

[Cassandra Reeding]

Cassandra doesn't need to think about it for more than a second. These are important. Immediately, her hands reach out, and if she is able, she decides to take every oddity in the hutch that she could possibly fit in her backpack, which thankfully isn't holding too much, and carefully places them inside. These they can study. These belong to Anne. They can do something with these. If nothing else, these could be useful in general. There is a shake of excitement in her.

As she does so, she focuses on the Tomes and what may seem like Tokens or Hedgespun items. She examines them as she is able, trying to see for authenticity or any particular tells. Regardless, she will take whatever she can, even more so anything that looks true. There is a thought in the back of her mind about the Winter archives she needs to build. These could be the beginning if they mean something. And a mirror... Gerrit can focus on that. She needs to focus on this.

Quick check for Authenticity - 3 Successes

3 successes

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2021-05-21 01:25:51	Cassandra Reeding rolls 5 to Investigating the items in the hutch (Int + Occult) (10 Again)	10, 5, 9, 10, 3, 1, 4	3 successes

[Saber Sloth]

Anatole watches through the front door's window, and sees the back of Oliver's head, with Ram's forceful strength demanding answers. From around the pair, the Smith keeps an eye on the area, or as much of one as he can, and doesn't see anything (besides Ram) disrupting the silence of the ruined cul-da-sac.

Ram, makes his demands. Anatole watching on, "Th-the bloodsuckle laid waste to the rest of the houses! Pruning it back cost the others their lives!" Oliver wails, "I am here alone, alone because of that fiend! G-guarding my Queen's library! An-an-and you! You ha-have the nerve to lie to me about my Queen. Who has given me this task! I have been here for months! Months! Months since the Christmas of 2016, where now I stand sentry, alone, after burying what little the bloodsuckle rejected of my friends." he blubbers out, words chosen to make him seem unaffected but, his stuttering was telling. As was the Autumn who didn't reach for the Courtly Contracts to bar against Fear.

Gerrit moves through the house, on silent feet with a task given to him by his fellow Winter, he crosses the room, to open the door. The knob turns, and as the door swings open, a hallway is revealed. Very particularly average in width for a hallway, with one door, closed at the end of the hall. Two doors, closed as well, on the left side, and one more closed door on the right. The right side door would have fit perfectly between the two on the left were they all on the same side.

Cassandra met with the siren call of knowledge meticulously sorts through that lay inside the hutch. The majority of what she find in this hutch are simple mundane knickknacks, there are a few novels as well, but underneath those there are things that are decidedly not of a mundane nature. There is a book that seems to be about basics of cultivating specific goblin fruits, which matches the vase in front of it which seems to have a good handful of dried Blushberries inside of it. Another tome on Hedge weather and how the Seasonal Cycle effect it, and one full book on the Bloodsuckle. Shoved into a nook is a large, dried out humanfaced hobfly. Another thing that she finds is a small corked bottle filled with fingernails.

Sadly there doesn't seem to be more of what she's looking for in this hutch.

If my wrist was up for it I'd try and draw out the house, but as it's not, we have words!

House layout (so far)

front door, entrance way with a closet directly across from the door. To the right is the sitting room, north from the sitting room is the kitchen, to the right of the sitting room is the formally closed door, which leads to the hallway. The hallway has four doors. Two on the Left, one on the Right and the last directly across from the open doorway.


Also! If you want to take back any goodies and put them into your Court's Hollow (or to your sheet)you will need to spend the XP to keep them, or else they will go poof. If it's to say we have Queen Anne stuffs, for future Plots then then they cannot be used for anything other then that
future Plot(s)

failure

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2021-05-22 13:17:52	Something rolls 1 to something insignificant (10 Again)	4	failure