Old stories

[Kray]

Kray is on the hunt for books. Old books. Something for his mind to chew over. As such he’s been wondering around antique stores, much to the concern of proprietors. This one advertised a constantly renewed stock which sounds promising. Taking care with his great bulk not to knock or break anything he is taking his sweet time looking through the isles. Leather Coat On. Shoes polished, and of a ratty fedora on his head with two moth eaten holes in the front rim. At least that’s what it looks like to those who don’t know better.

He doesn’t need to see the old woman at the counter to know she’s torn been hovering nearby to keep an eye on him and wanting to stay firmly behind the counter. As he with a practiced care admires many things he can't afford while keeping eyes out for the written word.

[Anatole]

Someone else is waring a hat this day. Anatole lurks - or is it prowls - the store. He is waring an Australian Akubra, the stout hat of that sun blasted southern land; with it, a cheaper overcoat; boots; checquered shirt and jeans. He looks very much the cowboy or traveller, not his usual business-man like self. All part of the disguise experiment really. Can't quite hide the effusive curls though: they just explode outward and frame his face.

The burned dwarf is more interested in the knick knacks and the furniture, rather than the stacks. Still, Kray cuts an impressive figure in both height, bulk, and perceived menace. If the Gristlegrinder had been smaller, perhaps, the Harvest King would have missed him. Naturally, Anatole doesn't.

The Wizened finishes his mental inventory of the store and his in-person inspection of the furniture; and then on his last pass he curls toward's Kray. He says nothing at first, letting a silence mature before looking up.

"Good to see you again, my friend. Looking for anything specific?"

Let the mundane folk assume what they will: the juxtaposition of a small man and a giant will always make tongues wag.

[Kray]

Kray is not the most perspective of ogres and consequently, distracted as he is, it takes him until Anatole talks for him to register the presence of the harvest king. Then bulbous yellow eyes look down from the shelves, and the flinty pupils soften from looming displeasure at being interrupted, first to understanding and then, what is closer to a warmer welcoming glint as he registers the company of the sovereign. The corners of his mouth turn up in a small smile of greeting that causes the faintest sound of his teeth pushing past each other as the expression forms.

Hand touches rim of hat in what is becoming a familiar greeting. 'Oh. Hey Boss.' Kray wasn't about to call him king in public. 'Likewise, always glad to have your company. You going somewhere or just dressed down today?' While it was different, they had only met a handful of times so it could just be Anatole's casual attire. 'Like the hat.' An essential part of the wardrobe in the Ogre's opinion.

Turning back to the shelves. 'Uh. I'm looking for books, a few kinds. I neglected reading ... earlier in life. But, hey never to late to make amends for that.' That's the good thing about books, they don't go anywhere.

'Ah. I looked into night classes.' That had been his first idea. 'Couldn't afford anything close to what they wanted.' You don't appreciate a free education till you have to pay for one. 'So I figure what can the person up front tell that the book they're reading from can't.' Cut out the middle man so to speak. 'Those though I can go to a library for if all else fails. But here. Here I'm looking for old books, with old stories. Old relatable stories.' The kinds they told kids only the older, truer versions. 'Or stuff like them.' The Baritone rumbles out casting a more well spoken tilt to his words, quite at odds with the posture, bulk and general airs of the Ogre.

He holds onto shelves and steadies the oddities and ornaments on the shelves, as he moves to look at the next section, least his bulk catch something and send it tumbling to the ground or crashing over. 'Hm. And yourself? got your heart set on anything today?'

[Anatole]

Anatole smiled - a happy line cutting through his effusive curls.

"Dressing down... In disguise. Try something a little different."

The Wizened's glance was enigmatic.

"Thank you. I'm finding that the Akubra is growing on me...."

His voice trailed off as he listened to what the Ogre said, nodding along at key points.

"Reading? Good. Good. You've made a good start here - these are the places where you'll find what you are looking for. The old book depositories are better, if they are of quality. Otherwise, places like this. It will take a while to sift through the chaff though. Like panning for gold. But this you already know, I'm sure."

He paused to look like he was perusing the stacks again.

"Keep an open mind on what you find. Not every scrap or lore is in an old tome. Just train yourself to keep your expectations low. Much is obscured or misunderstood, sometimes deliberately so. Public libraries won't help us much, unless it is a local phenomenon you are chasing."

He shrugged and abruptly half turned to stare back at the furniture.

"Hmm. Yes. Some of those wooden chairs and their accoutrements have quite the charm. I'm thinking of re-arranging some of the rooms in the old Boarding House."

[Kray]

'Huh. Why not all a little of all of the above.' Unable to deduce the true intent through that mysterious face.

A moment of alarm then flashes across the grotesque and menacing features before the ogre catches on to the word play. Then and only then does he chuckles a deep and guttural sound. 'Ah. Better be sure to trim often then. Don't want it weighing down your head if it grows to large.' Like each Ogre before him Kray is prone the the curse of his seeming that renders him easily provoked be it anger, alarm or just being drawn off track that breaks his composure. And for a just a moment the literal understanding of the Harvest kings words seemed to have done just that.

Eyes peruse titles, spines and volumes once more, struggling to see those on lower shelves. 'Hm. The way I figure it.' Pause to move again. 'Attics, basements garages and the like things that get emptied out and sold to places like this. They might contain the odd old book be it a journal that contains an odd encounter or just a story book with a unique telling.' He trails off as he looks at one with yellowed pages before putting it back and moving on. 'I don't mind hunting for the one hidden gem among a sea of glass beads. But no I don't expect to answer any questions in a day or two or ten.' If it were that easy knowledge of them would be spread far and wide and all would fear them.

He scratches up behind an ear shifting his hat a little in the process. The dangling stands of lichen that compose his hair dance with the vigour of the motion. 'Ah. Unfortunately. Determining fact from fiction is not my strong suit.' How can it be when not everything I experience is as it is. 'But that won't change unless I change it.' Besides who can know any fact about them for sure?

Turning his head to look over yonder to the furniture. 'Oh. Yeah some of its really nice.' And really out of my budget. 'If you need a hand carrying stuff. Heavy lifting now that is my strong suit.' Not exactly pushing the boundaries of ogre expectations with that one but he knows what he can do and how to make use of it.

[Anatole]

An eyebrow arches, quickly suppressed. The Wizened has been around a few Ogres in his time, yet he still finds that on occasion, words and meanings become lost or confused.

"Yes. Yes! You have it right. Eye witness accounts are the best. They catch a moment better than a photograph, really. You don't just get an impression of event, you get a description and a location. The place and the before and the after, so to speak. More context than a photo alone."

He looks up.

"Your patience will serve you well in the long run."

He follows Kray's gaze back to the furniture, eyes flashing at the offer of help.

"Eh. The Boarding House hasn't had a real change in decor for years. I'm considering making a change but haven't quite decided. It is true, some of the furniture here is of very good quality. Makes me wonder what the story is, really... Tell you what, if I decide to go ahead with a purchase, I'll keep you in mind."

[Kray]

Some of the skills and archetypes of the ashen court did not come naturally to the Ogre so the praise of his line of thinking was appreciated. 'Ha. Yeah that was my line of thought more or less.' The wizened had put it more eloquently but the idea was there. 'What of yourself any good finds over the years?'

He grunts. His offer stands if the sovereign has need of him. 'Hm. Yeah do, always on hand if you have a need not just in the here and now.' That probably didn't need to be said but always better to be clear with such in the ogres mind. But something else tugged at his attention tying up his curiosity. 'Uh. Mind if I ask what could be an insensitive question?' Not really waiting for an answer the Gristle grinder ploughs ahead with it perhaps a little brutishly.

'Ah. Excuse me if this isn't the time or place to ask but. When the house and park are brought up you don't seem particular fond of either.' Not in our first meeting, Solstice happened elsewhere, and that seems indecisive at best. 'Not that there's anything wrong with that, just curious is all.' The idea of a haunted house wasn't something the Ogre himself was particularly in favour of that much he was certain about. Its a mockery, well intentioned maybe but a mockery of our courts ideal. Least so it seems to me. But he's king and gets to make that call.

[Anatole]

Anatole runs a hand through his beard, thinking for a moment.

"Picked up some legal dictionaries once. Full set. So it was a little out of date - who cares. At the time I was... reacquainting myself with the law... so they were very useful, regardless. And of course, when I first settled here, I found it was easier to get hold of second hand furniture... Much better quality then you got in the stores as well. I felt blessed. Still do."

At Kray's question, the smile fades. The Wizened's eyes swivel carefully between the Ogre and the rest of the shop, carefully assessing the space.

"I think it is time we moved on from the park. In the beginning it was a refuge and an escape. Now... I don't think we need it any more. As for the house. The Boarding House was the site of several murders. True killing. And our ... Court glossed it over and draped it in playful cobwebs so it could fit in the new Freehold. None of the other Courts had to do that."

His mouth tightened and his lips vanished amid his effusive curls. He looked around, carefully, again.

"Edna's was a real place of Fear and we've turned it into a comfortable parlour."

[Kray]

Eyes move round the shop, following Anatole's example. His intention is more to make space if needed, look at someone hungrily enough and they tend to move on. I wonder what the difference betwee ... NO. Stop it. His stomach growls. That's the problem with leaning into those urges, however useful they can be. A little disgruntled he turns back to the conversation. 'Huh. Law.' Never been a big fan. 'Ah. Never hurts to know the what's what.' Even if you don't care about breaking it, means you can do it smarter. I should probably look into that. Before he snorts a little. 'Second hand. Try and third of fourth things are getting way to expensive.' A commentary on society that could be true from any age.

Then in a stark juxtaposition to the Sovereigns own fading smile. A true, wide grin slowly creeps across the ogre's terrible jaw, a sight that some would call nightmarish, if they could truly see it. 'Oh. Its real good to hear that.' Seems I'm not alone in my thinking. 'The idea of something people look forward to. Want to return to. Get excited about.' He shakes his great head. 'Wasn't really captivating me either. It felt like a Halloween costume.' Fake and plastic and a little mocking.

Kray will pull a few generic murder mysteries off the shelf until he finds what he is looking for and pass it down to the harvest king. A tough blackened nail taps twice on the cover art. 'Hm. Seems to me be both goals could be set in motion if we could get one of these.' The image he has found is of a body spread out and crumpled ... a victim of some killer. 'If its found mimicking one of those that happened before, and in the right place it could to do wonders to bring some old stories back to mind.' His head turns a little, inquisitively seeking the sovereigns reaction. 'Fake of course.' Did he mean that or was it just for cover? 'If it could disappear of its own volition even better, a new twist on an old story.' And make it harder to track, now how do we get one that can do that AND pass inspection?

[Anatole]

Anatole suppresses a laugh and nods.

"Yes. It is getting like that. More and more expensive for... unseasoned rubbish... True value seems to be increasingly neglected this days."

His eyes narrow.

"Yes. A Halloween costume. They pantomime being frightened these days, don't they. Like... How do they put it? A meme of a meme? So sad."

The Harvest King manifests an exaggerated sigh. His eyes snap back, once again, to the Ogre. There was a hungry curl to the line of his lips.

"A dangerous plan. Something to think about. Something to think about."

Had the Harvest King taken the bait?