(Portrait) Portrait of an Angel

[Naga]

Naga could only frown, very slightly, as she sensed the psychic presence. As much as she wanted to stop and scrutinize it, she didn't have time at the moment. She could leave the others hanging after volunteering to speak with the Awakened strangers.

Therefore, the Ladder put on a brilliant smile as the group approached the individuals.

"Hello, please do excuse us. We couldn't help but notice you both. I hope you're both having a lovely evening." The Warlock's eyes shifted to the paitning the pair had been studying. "Fans of fine art, are we? Is there anything we can help you with?"

[Yumyumcrow]

Smiles all round.

The bald man's smile was fleeting and sheepish. His hand hovered at the shoulder of his gothic companion, shifted to rake a hand through his hair, then fell naturally behind his back to give him a sort of formal, protective, pose.

"Seems you have us," the bald man replied gently. "Yes. We have been enjoying the exhibition. Its nice to view the work of local artists. Sometimes they can be the most illuminating of all."

The woman gushed initially. She smiled at first: a broad social smile that gradually faded into a wry line that teased at one corner of her darkly coloured lips.

"Well hey! Nice to see some other true art lovers about. We're into the true art too; not just the fine arts."

She focussed on Skye

"Oh it is. Its most intriguing. Never expected to find its like here. I'd have expected to find it hidden away in a collector's vault but not put out so openly."

She gestured with her head, indicating the painting.

"You wouldn't happen to know how the painting wound up here, would you?" She asked Naga innocently, her head moving slightly to include Skye if she wished to answer as well. Her smile was turning into an impish little grin.

Both of the them noticed Kaze

The woman's eyes flashed up and down as she took him in. The bald man raised an eyebrow and shared a small glance with his companion but did not break his stance.

"How is Pixel?"

Book Keeping: -

2 successes

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2020-07-31 04:44:49	Someone rolls 4 to do something insignificant (10 Again)	8, 9, 3, 6	2 successes

2 successes

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2020-07-31 04:44:38	Someone rolls 5 to do something insignificant (10 Again)	9, 8, 7, 2, 5	2 successes

[Kaze]

Kaze stifles a sigh, smiling a friendly smile instead. He steps up closer to the two out of town mages, standing beside and just a little behind Naga and next to Phoenyx and Skye the better to speak quietly in semi-privacy. He stands at a slight angle, his side to the two strangers rather than directly head on.

"Oh we all got back alright, thanks for asking." Kaze says. "Call me, 'Chase'." He offers. "I haven't seen any of the guys from the trip up there for a couple months, though. I'm really not sure if they're still around."

[Phoenyx]

Ice was broken. Time to let more talky people do things.

And Pixel. What the hell had happened to him? If they got back fine, as Kaze said, where did he disappear to?

However, These were questions for later. The new faces had revealed important information. They were here for a painting. Namely, this one.

Phoenyx turned to look at the picture they were gesturing towards. Stretching her senses, the Arrow tried to see what they were interested in it for.

failure

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2020-08-01 05:15:53	Phoenyx rolls 5 to Scrutiny: Int+Occ (10 Again)	5, 2, 6, 5, 3	failure

Unfortunately, there was very little she could make out.

[Skye]

Spells

Body Mastery
Organic Resilience 2E monthly pot2

Looking at them both and then to the woman.
"Sadly no it is a lovely painting though, however I would recommend talking to either the owner or the umm sorry I don't really know the proper word but the person in charge of the exhibit. If the painting is not new or done by someone local so will they most surely know who is either trying to sell it or lent it here and in my experience so is it quite common for those in charge of events like this to know a bit about the art that is shown wouldn't you say." The fact that most of that knowledge weren't really things she had experienced but rather just snapped up and assumed to be true was a different tale, she wasn't totally sure if people here were just showing of their art or selling it or if it was a combination. She hadn't really expected anything to happen, looking to the painting for a bit.
"So tell me what do you see in it? How does this piece speak to you?"

Trying to put on her charms, to just take make their gazes focus on her for a bit leaving it free for her friends to examine the painting better and take out the information they could need feeling certain that the information she had shared with them were quite common knowledge and mainly just served as being polite. Also if her charms made them more open to talk and share with them so would that not hurt either. She did have some charms after all and did always fancy herself as someone that was easy to talk to.

4 successes

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2020-08-01 08:01:01	Skye rolls 6 to Charming presence+persuasion (10 Again)	8, 10, 7, 3, 3, 10, 10, 3, 3	4 successes

[Naga]

It wasn't the disappearance of Pixel that bothered her. It was the fact these two strangers knew he was gone. Still, she didn't let that show. Her smile didn't falter.

"Pixel? He's fine, the last I saw him." It was the truth, after all. She just hadn't seen him in some weeks. Naga's eyes went to the painting in question. "This piece, you mean?"

The Warlock gave the painting a once over. She was no art expert, but she'd moved in fancy circles often enough, and she read quite a bit. Perhaps she'd know something about this particular work?

Apparently not

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2020-08-01 13:34:03	Naga rolls 6 to Int + Academics (10 Again)	4, 7, 5, 6, 6, 4	failure

[Yumyumcrow]

Phoenyx focusses on the painting, her face both slack and focussed from concentration.

The two mages from San Francisco recognise her Scrutiny and politely ignore it, focussing more on Skye who posed before them, and on Kaze .

"You haven't seen Pixel? Or his associate?"

The woman went on to sketch Abacus before continuing. Her eyes slide back and forth over the Arrow, Skye, while she aims her conversation more toward the Apostate, Kaze.

"Well that doesn't sound good. They were inquiring about a Grimoire. I do hope they haven't wandered off into danger.

The bald man let a small and appreciative smile touch his lips. He spoke to Skye.

"I understand. I think this particular painting has been hidden away for some time. We only had a hint of a rumour to go on. To be honest, if we hadn't been passing through on other business, I doubt we'd have followed it up. It is exciting though! I'm really glad Striga Mortis here bought her check book. You must be a real health enthusiast to have hiked all the way out here when the Freeway is so close by."

His gaze fell to the full waterskin hanging from Skye's hip.

Breaking eye contact with Kaze and Skye, the woman - Striga Mortis - responded to Naga

"Yes. If it is what we think it is, then it really should not be here. Not at a community event like this. I mean, I have a theory... But I was wondering if you might have known. Did you know? That this particular item was... No? No! Oh my! Wow. I mean, fascinating. This painting must really have fallen through the cracks!"

Her eyes grew wide and her mouth formed an exaggerated "O". The lips compressed quickly into a quirky grin that crept up and around one corner of her face. The general impression Striga Mortis gave off was that she was in possession of information that the group clearly was not.

[Kaze]

Kaze instinctively resists what might be a subtle misdirection to focus on the painting and consciously glances around to make sure he isn't missing something or someone else instead of looking at the painting.

2 successes

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2020-08-03 11:58:04	Kaze rolls 6 to perception (Wits 3 +Composure 3) (10 Again)	8, 6, 7, 1, 4, 8	2 successes

Likewise, he resists the line of questioning about Pixel and Abacus and their availability, and wonders why the two out of towners are so persistent in asking about them. Once might be politely establishing a prior connection, but now it seems like they might be in town specifically to contact them and just happened on the painting, or were here for both reasons. If it was about the Grimoire, they might tell Kaze about it instead of insisting on Pixel. Or not; Kaze is pretty obviously not really a book hound, magical or otherwise; at least he's aware that would be the impression people get of him.

"I guess they might still be around; honestly I haven't had a reason to call them for a while; I don't really know them that well. It sounds like you really need to talk to them about something. Is it something maybe we could help with?" Kaze asks.

[Phoenyx]

The conversation continued around her, but the Arrow was still more focused on the picture than the words of the others.

1 success

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2020-08-03 13:28:20	Phoenyx rolls 5 to Scrutiny: Int+Occ (10 Again)	5, 2, 8, 1, 2	1 success

[Skye]

Spells

Body Mastery
life mage sight/pulse of the living world
Organic Resilience 2E monthly pot2

The description of Abacus just sounding foreign to her something she wasn't opposed to let her facial expression show, if they thought it for a ploy or not though were up to them but he was not someone she recognized at all.
"Ohh I bet that Pixel is just busy with some school thing, he looked like a student to me the few times I met him so I bet he found something that took his attention or who knows maybe he got an offer to go to some really fancy school or something. Not that I really know him though we are quite the different people." She had no clue but it was an explanation as plausible as anything else and it was better to respond and react to both see how they would carry it on.

Smiling towards the bald man, just trying to keep his attention and for things to go in a friendly manner.
"Ohh I am, I have walked through several states before just to see and experience things on the way. When you are inside a car or vehicle so do you miss so much of the little things all around you, not to mention that our bodies were designed to be used and move around not to sit still and let some machines do things for us. I quite enjoy all the small things you get to experience when you walk, I do hope that you're other business here worked out well for you without any incidents though?"

Her eyes slightly wandering to try and see if there were any price tag hanging somewhere she could spot for the painting or if that was something you would have to inquire about.