Stone Man Pass

[Drannin]

Argus blinked, taking in Maduin's rapid-fire (yet not unexpected) message. He looked down at himself, at his very plain outfit. Suitable for Joe Traveller, maybe, but not for Professor Archmagus Argus Cleiviein. Though he was technically lacking the first two titles, he still wanted to make a good impression on his estranged daughter. He looked back up.

"Three things. One: no offense taken. Two: How much time do we have? Three: will it be enough?" Argus groaned. "I should have asked your help on this ages ago, honestly..."

[Drusia]

"Drusia, I think we should see what they're up to," Rose said.

"Right," I say over my shoulder, following them out of the inn. I make it downstairs just in time to see them pull away in a carriage. I concentrate for a moment, eyeballing the distance and making a few adjustments for the estimated speed and acceleration and -

Reality folds for a moment and I'm sitting on the back of the carriage. Not a very lady-like position, but at least I didn't appear half-way inside or miss the mark entirely and end up face down on the road. I follow with a quick invisibility spell, watching in mild amusement as several bystanders blink and double-take. Did they just see that, they wonder. No, it couldn't be. I grin and lean back. I guess I'll see where we're going when we get there.

Anyway, I like clothes. This might be fun.

-- Drusia

[Graybeard]

City people, Sister Rose thought, rolling her eyes as the hansom rumbled away from her. She'd grown up in the city, too, but she'd spent much of her adulthood deployed to places about this size or smaller. Didn't they realize that the center of town, where the stores were, could only be half a mile away or so, since the whole town couldn't be much more than a mile and a half across, and their inn was well inside the village limits? And that by the time they got onto and off of the cab, and paid their fare, they'd have spent about as much time traveling the horse-drawn way as if they'd just walked? Well, maybe Maduin was planning on buying enough stuff for Argus that they'd need a wagon to carry it ... She set out at a brisk walk to follow the shoppers.

It was good that Drusia had insinuated herself into the shopping trip, anyway, just in case things went south. She thought she'd seen the elf smile and wink from the back of the carriage, before she vanished; an invisibility spell, presumably. Rose wasn't happy about that at first -- even in Veracia, there were starting to be too many people around who had enough magical sensitivity to notice that kind of spellcraft. Of course, that was likely to be more of a problem in Emerylon and Saus, and even Lorenzel, than out here. The country folk tended to treat magic as something to be feared and shunned, never mind the possibility that it might make their lives better. The clergy might have some sensitivity, but they weren't likely to be out walking the street, notwithstanding the ruckus the cab's quick getaway had made. No, there shouldn't be any problems with the spell here ...

... And that was when she noticed, among the passersby gawking at the passage of the cab, a small man with blond hair, a big nose, and cold gray eyes, watching proceedings with an expression that conveyed neither curiosity nor amusement.

[Porcelain Fish]

[OOC: I tried to make this brief and move things along - hopefully it adds to the frenetic air rather than detracts from the scene./OOC]

"However much time we have, it will have to be enough. Fayna has a remarkable way of making miracles happen around her, because frankly no one wants to contemplate the alternative," Maduin said blithely, looking Argus over with a critical eye. Stern. Patrician. Fatherly. Something in an appreciably dark, midnight blue (but not black) for trousers and outer robe. The vest then, would need to be a rich, warm brown, subtly patterned with amber and possibly even very faint hints of red. The shirt though . . . a good steel gray, Maduin decided at last.

He was still dithering over whether or not lace would be appropriate and had just come to the conclusion that it didn't suit Argus' somewhat austere aspect when the carriage came to a quick, ungraceful halt outside of Renlong's Fine Clothiers. Maduin threw open the door, tugging Argus along, flung coin at the driver, and ran inside.

Within five minutes he had the place in an uproar, within ten Argus was standing at the eye of a storm of flying needles, singing thread, and snapping fabric. Fifteen minutes later Argus was wearing his new three-piece, complete with steel-gray shirt and a silver tie with diagonal brown stripes and slender threads of blue, and tailors and seamstresses were scattered about the place like casualties in a war of haberdashery.

Maduin was adding the finishing touches to Argus's hair as he propelled him back to the waiting carriage, an elegant, somewhat short cut parted in the middle with a little pomade, beard neatly trimmed. The door slammed shut behind them, and the driver lashed the reins, careening back across Gervasiel.

Maduin wore a distinctly self-satisfied air as he regarded Argus. His gaze dropped to Argus' dusty boots, mouth turning slightly downward at the corners. A snap of his fingers and they gleamed as though freshly polished.

“Well, it'll do for now since she's not here in person,” he allowed. “But we'll have to do something about your wardrobe before she arrives.” He sighed happily. “You know, this reminds me of Fayna's first date. She couldn't find a thing to wear. We kept Moki Yagame waiting downstairs for almost twenty minutes.”

[Graybeard]

I might have underestimated the size of this town, Sister Rose thought as she followed the cab, her brisk pace now turned into more of a tired trudge.

Her pace also might have been affected by the man she'd just seen. She'd just had a quick glimpse before he turned and walked down a side street. That glimpse could scarcely be enough to establish that the man was Arsoro Kurou; after all, she'd never seen Kurou in the flesh. However, it certainly was enough to make it clear that it could be Kurou. He was short and skinny, as Kurou was said to be, and when he moved, Rose could see that he walked with the limp that the farmer had described. She thought his eyes were gray, rather than blue as described, but that could just be the light. And he'd certainly been giving the cab the eyeball.

Not good, Rose thought. If the man was trouble, as Argus seemed to think he could be, they'd lost the advantage of having more complete intelligence on him than he had on them. Furthermore, he'd surely have the magical awareness to notice, and probably interpret, Drusia's impetuous invisibility spell. All this meant that the tactical initiative had passed to Kurou ... if Kurou he was.

So busy was Rose with her calculations of what to do about this frightening Tsuirakuan that she didn't notice that the cab had reversed its field, and was now careening back down the street where she was walking.

"SISTER! LOOK OUT!"

She'd also forgotten that she was wearing nun's robes, rather than the generic explorer's outfit she'd meant to change (more accurately, shape-change) into. As a result, she didn't figure out that the shouts and gasps from the street were meant for her until it was almost too late. She looked up just in time to see the cab bearing down on her...

Good military reflexes had saved Rose's life at least once in the Albigenish Incident, and they almost let her roll clear of the cab. Almost, but not quite. The nun's robes were more cumbersome than her military outfit, and it was just enough to keep her from getting clear.

On the other hand, they also provided a little cushioning when the wheel grazed her, and sent her spinning into the crowd.

Well, thank Luminosita for small blessings, Rose had time to think, before she banged her head against a wall and everything went dark.

[OOC: Not to panic, just a head bump rather than time for a new character , just wanting to see how the others will react...]

[Drannin]

Argus took in his new clothing appreciatively. He had to hand it to Maduin. The man knew style. Argus was definitely going to have to make a thorough shopping trip with him to expand his wardrobe. He had to be in perfect condition when Fayna and he finally met face-to-face (a prospect that filled him with equal parts fear and excitement).

"Moki Yagame?" Argus chuckled. "That's a story you're going to have to tell me about?" There was so much about his daughter's life he had to catch up on... and that went for both of them. "Maduin, thank you. I am truly in your debt-" The wagon hit something with an audible thump.

"What was that?" Argus peeked out the window and saw Rose slumped unconscious against a wall. "Oh shit! ROSE!!!"

[Graybeard]

"I think I'm okay," Sister Rose mumbled as she got groggily to her feet, surrounded by well-wishers. A quick self-inspection hadn't revealed any broken bones or serious internal bleeding. Her left shoulder was badly bruised after taking the impact of the carriage, and she suspected a mild concussion from hitting her head on the wall. That was probably the biggest problem; she'd just have to take it easy for a while, because head injuries were notoriously tricky to use magical healing to address. Her vision seemed all right, anyway, which was a good sign. Otherwise the damage seemed confined to numerous cuts and scrapes, including some tears in her robe. Magical healing would address those, and her shoulder, just fine. All told, it could have been worse, much worse. At least her roll had carried her out of the path of the horses.

Argus and Maduin descended from the cab, concern etched into their faces. (Where was Drusia?) Argus looked ... distinguished despite the look on his face, she noticed. "Nice threads," she smiled weakly, "but what was the hurry?..."

[Drusia]

Renlong's Fine Clothiers, huh? While Maudin whips the staff into a frenzy, I take a few items into one of the dressing rooms with me. Since I'm serving myself, I can't worry about alterations, but I find a very nice formal dress in a deep red that shows off my cleavage and butt enough to be alluring without being tasteless. I fold up the rejects and leave them for the people who work here to put back. Cloaking myself in another invisibility spell, I slip out while Argus' suit is being altered. I get in to the carriage and wait, still invisible just in case someone notices that a very expensive dress has been stolen and comes looking. Not that I expect anyone to notice for hours, considering the wonderful distraction Maudin has created.

A few minutes later, Argus and Maudin emerge, Maudin still shoving and fussing over him. They pile into the carriage, so distracted by Maudin's haste and commentary that they don't even notice me. Well, technically that is the rather the point of invisibility spells, but I'm sure either one could locate me if they bothered to try. They don't.

I almost reveal myself when the carriage runs Rose over, but she seems to be all right, and anyway I'm not all that good with medical stuff. So... I think I'll wait. I want to see where we're going, and who this Fayna person is. Lillith's mother, maybe?

Also, part of me is curious to see how long it will take Argus and Maudin to notice me. If they do at all.

-- Drusia

OOC: Shoplifting for fun and... well, mostly just for fun. ^^;;

[Drannin]

Argus sighed. "My daughter, Fayna, appears to be on the verge of making contact with me via magic, if I read things correctly." Technically, Maduin never gave him the details, but some things just got assumed between Tsuirakuans. Speaking of Maduin, he was both nodding vigorously and looking increasingly desperate. "Sorry. She will be making contact imminently." Maduin nodded so hard it looked as though his head would fly off.

"But never mind that," Argus continued with concern in his voice, "Are you alright, Rose...?" he trailed off as he senses a familiar presence nearby. Cloaked... in the carriage...? He glanced over his shoulder. "Oh. Hello, Drusia. Didn't see you there." Dismissing the obvious reasons for that, he turned back to Rose. "Are you in need of healing? That looked pretty damned serious..."

[Graybeard]

"Are you in need of healing? That looked pretty damned serious..."

Sister Rose thought about it, smiled weakly again. "It probably wouldn't be a bad idea. I was lucky and missed the full force of the cab, not to mention not getting trampled by the horses. I don't think there's anything more seriously wrong than a knock on the head ... but oh my, do I hurt. Go ahead and scandalize the on-lookers, thank you. Maybe you can tell me more about your good news while you're at it."

Contact between a male member of the laity and a nun of the Veracian Church wasn't exactly forbidden by the Orthodox people, but it definitely didn't happen very often, and magical contact by a layman was nearly unknown, for the simple reason that very few people outside the church could bring it off, particularly out here in the countryside. Their loss, Rose thought, having seen the way basic magical skills like healing improved the quality of life beyond the borders ... She shifted into a position where Argus could touch her bruised shoulder without being too scandalous, wincing in pain as she moved.

----------

Back at the inn, Brad was taking his cousin's injunction far more seriously than Rose had intended it, of course.