Flandre's Quest (Touhou) World - (Madness Quest)
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Entropy Judge
Recurring Bouts of Misanthropy
Votes are not locked.
[X] Explore the city.
-[X] Night.
[X] Find out if there are any interesting places to visit.
4
EDIT: They are locked.
[X] Explore the city.
-[X] Night.
[X] Find out if there are any interesting places to visit.
4
EDIT: They are locked.
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Windhelm
Entropy Judge
Recurring Bouts of Misanthropy
[X] Explore the city.
-[X] Night.
[X] Find out if there are any interesting places to visit.
Sedris is waiting for you at the gates, and she gestures for you to stay close to her as you move with the crowd, then taps the side of her head. "Storm bad enough Nords come in walls, really bad." Even with the amount of people trying to get in, though, the guards conduct searches, and a few people are moved to one side, where a tall, rough-looking man with a neat reddish beard seems to be interrogating them. He must be an interesting fellow - anyone who wears bear hides over their armor must have a story to tell! Sedris handles the communication with the guards - you're travelers, going to Winterhold, don't speak the language very well. They don't seem particularly impressed by you three, and you're pretty sure they're being rude, if not insulting, to Sedris, but they let you through, and Sedris smiles apologetically as you walk through the gatehouse. You notice Lutecia and Agito both relax a little and you watch them closely.
"It's cold out there, Flandre, cold and windy. Maybe you don't feel it as much as we do, but even though we're used to it and dressed warmly, it doesn't mean we like it." You blink in surprise as Agito mutters an explanation, less at the reasoning, which makes sense, and more because you aren't sure how she noticed you watching. She snorts and shakes her head. They both brace themselves as you leave the gatehouse - and, watching for it, you see Sedris does, too, and so do a lot of the other people you can see - but the high walls of the city block the worst of the wind. You giggle and dart away to grab a handful of snow, compressing it into a little ball that you can play with, and you laugh outright at the expressions on Agito, Lutecia, and Sedris, but the shouting catches your attention, and you turn to watch as a pair of guards try to haul a struggling boy toward a large building in the middle of the courtyard. Sedris frowns as she follows the scene, but shakes her head and leads you along a different path to the same building.
"Were the guards rude to you?" She looks back at you and shrugs a little.
"Not new, used to now. They leave you alone, is fine." She glances at Lutecia, still a little moody. "Saw Thalmor? You safe from them." Agito shakes her head.
"Did they even do anything wrong?" Sedris opens the door for you and follows you in. The woman behind the counter smiles at the three of you, but it vanishes and her lips form a thin line when she sees the Dunmer. She doesn't seem to like her either, and likes the company tokens Sedris shows her even less, but she takes out a couple of keys and hands one to Lutecia, the other to Sedris, and calls for someone to show you up.
"Living one is Thalmor, yes. Others? Maybe." She sees the confused expression on Lutecia's face and chuckles, drawing a glare from the guide. "Thalmor is political, not race. Aldmer, High Elf, yes all." Agito seems a little less unhappy about that, but it doesn't seem to have helped Lutecia's feelings on the matter at all. "Talk upstairs?" Lutecia nods as you split off into your own room. You stretch after setting your pack in a corner.
"I suppose you're going to take a nap?" You glance at Agito and shake your head.
"Maybe in a bit, but not right now. I want to talk to her a bit," you say, and Agito looks at you suspiciously, but you stick your tongue out and dash out of the room. You don't like keeping the cloak on, but it serves its purpose for now; once you reach the College, though, it's coming right off and never going back on if you can possibly help it. You hum along with the bard as she sings, a slow song that seems to hold the rest of the room enthralled. You find the server and tap him on the shoulder. "Mead?" He frowns at you, but you hand him a few coins and he shakes his head before getting you the drink. You hug him and laugh, waving as you head to an empty table. After a few more minutes of the bard's music, your companions come up. You slide the remaining half of the mug to Lutecia, and she smiles as Agito scowls at you. "Do you know any fun places around here?" Sedris frowns thoughtfully as Agito rolls her eyes. As long as you'll be stuck here, you might as well see if you can do anything.
"Fun places? Calixto has House of Curiosities, odd man. Not fun city. Temper, war, dour city." She smiles apologetically at you, then looks up as the bard starts up a tune. The rest of the room goes quiet, and she starts to sing slowly, sadly, and after she finishes a single verse, the formerly merry room is filled with sorrow. She stops singing continues playing the music as she stares at the floor. You sigh - stuck in a boring city with nothing going on, and no obviously fun places to go. You pay a little attention as Lutecia and Agito talk to Sedris about the city, the boy from earlier, and the road to Winterhold - as much to practice their pronunciation as to get any useful information, you're sure - but it's not long before you find yourself bored, and you excuse yourself to go down and take a nap.
You stretch, flexing your wings as much as your arms and back, and grin in the dark. It simply feels so good to be going out and doing something. You make sure Lutecia and Agito are sleeping soundly, then take the key and lock the door securely behind you. The lower doors are locked, but the door on the upper floor isn't as secure.. Normally, you would simply take a window, but with the snowstorm, they're all shuttered and barred. The wind howls as you open the door, but you're able to keep the door under control and keep it from slamming as you dart outside, and you close it almost as quietly. You shiver in excitement - even your senses are hindered by a snowstorm like this, so if anyone else is out and about, you might not know it until you bump into them! Of course, the odds of running into anyone at roof-level are pretty low ….
Your first order of business is to find that Calixto's place - Sedris said it was to the east, even wrote down the name so you'd recognize the sign - so you float along above the streets, keeping to the outside wall. You're glad to be in this city, in its close and mazelike streets with so much stone and brick. Even if you aren't familiar with some of the ornamentation, you can tell that this is a good city, one that your sister would probably be comfortable with as well. You follow the wall for a while, then frown as you reach some steps heading down and turn around. You passed it … ah! You thought there'd be a bigger sign, or at least more prominently displayed. You make a note of the location and trace your steps back to the inn, weaving back a few times to find the best route for moving on foot. That done, you turn to the west, just exploring without a real goal in mind. You seem to be in another residential area, heavily built-up and crushed together, but once you pass through it you reach the market district. Smaller than Whiterun's … then again, they probably do a lot of merchant-work at the dock.
You think about the city for a minute. Gate on the south side, large inn directly in front. Residential areas to both the east and west, with a market district on the west side, docks - and presumably another market area - to the east. Most of the buildings are wood construction, but they're constrained by the old walls of the fortress the city used to be. You settle on an outcropping of one building and tap the wall. It feels like good wood, and despite the violence of the storm, you've seen very little damage, so these people are both smart and good craftsmen. But what's to the north …? You simply fly over the walls that would make foot traffic difficult, and you land again, bewildered. It's a graveyard in the middle of a city, but it's so very small for a city this size, and now that you think of it, it's the only graveyard you've actually seen. There wasn't one in Riverwood or in Whiterun. Between that and the architectural style - and the fact that the really old parts of Windhelm are all stone, and the newer parts are wood - Windhelm must be much older than the other cities. That would explain why it's the capital of the isolationist movement ….
You shake your head, dismissing the concerns over the graveyard, and follow the path that weaves north. You reach another residential area, but this one seems much higher-class than the other two; the houses are larger and more elaborate, and they have fences or walls to maintain privacy. Following the twisting streets to the east eventually leads you to the area north of the inn, and north of you is the palace. You shake yourself and find a sheltered corner to have a drink in peace. It's not cold enough to cause you any problems, but it is cold enough, especially without the cloak, to be a nuisance. And you haven't even been out two hours! You return to your sweep, but the final quarter of the city is odd - compared to the rest of the city, its buildings aren't as well-maintained, damage to the walls and doors is obviously not recent, and the storm's fury is almost certainly felt by the residents. The streets twist even more than the rest of the city's - not helped by the downward slope of the city toward the river - and many are missing bricks and cobblestones, so the footing will be even more treacherous when the storm lets up. Maybe this is a poor quarter? You do find a cleared area near a heavy gate, so there does seem to be some sort of mercantile activity.
You sigh as you make your way back to the inn - as Sedris indicated, there simply isn't much to do in the city, especially in the middle of a raging snowstorm. And that latter qualification means you didn't meet anyone, either. You take a deep breath and shove the door open, press it closed, then leap into the air above the tables and start radiating power to dry yourself off - all as quickly and as quietly as you can. You're pretty sure no one heard anything. Your dress is destroyed by the aura, but since it would have been ruined by the snow anyway, you made sure to wear one of your many extras from Earth. Dry and warm, you creep back down to your room and sneak inside. Agito and Lutecia seem to be asleep, still, and you return the key before getting yourself ready and curling up to go back to sleep. As always, it comes quickly.
What do you do?
[ ] Try to find Ralof and give him the message.
[ ] Take Lutecia to Calixto's House of Curiosities.
[ ] Play some snow-games with Lutecia.
[ ] Sleep. It's your day off!
[ ] Other?
-[X] Night.
[X] Find out if there are any interesting places to visit.
Sedris is waiting for you at the gates, and she gestures for you to stay close to her as you move with the crowd, then taps the side of her head. "Storm bad enough Nords come in walls, really bad." Even with the amount of people trying to get in, though, the guards conduct searches, and a few people are moved to one side, where a tall, rough-looking man with a neat reddish beard seems to be interrogating them. He must be an interesting fellow - anyone who wears bear hides over their armor must have a story to tell! Sedris handles the communication with the guards - you're travelers, going to Winterhold, don't speak the language very well. They don't seem particularly impressed by you three, and you're pretty sure they're being rude, if not insulting, to Sedris, but they let you through, and Sedris smiles apologetically as you walk through the gatehouse. You notice Lutecia and Agito both relax a little and you watch them closely.
"It's cold out there, Flandre, cold and windy. Maybe you don't feel it as much as we do, but even though we're used to it and dressed warmly, it doesn't mean we like it." You blink in surprise as Agito mutters an explanation, less at the reasoning, which makes sense, and more because you aren't sure how she noticed you watching. She snorts and shakes her head. They both brace themselves as you leave the gatehouse - and, watching for it, you see Sedris does, too, and so do a lot of the other people you can see - but the high walls of the city block the worst of the wind. You giggle and dart away to grab a handful of snow, compressing it into a little ball that you can play with, and you laugh outright at the expressions on Agito, Lutecia, and Sedris, but the shouting catches your attention, and you turn to watch as a pair of guards try to haul a struggling boy toward a large building in the middle of the courtyard. Sedris frowns as she follows the scene, but shakes her head and leads you along a different path to the same building.
"Were the guards rude to you?" She looks back at you and shrugs a little.
"Not new, used to now. They leave you alone, is fine." She glances at Lutecia, still a little moody. "Saw Thalmor? You safe from them." Agito shakes her head.
"Did they even do anything wrong?" Sedris opens the door for you and follows you in. The woman behind the counter smiles at the three of you, but it vanishes and her lips form a thin line when she sees the Dunmer. She doesn't seem to like her either, and likes the company tokens Sedris shows her even less, but she takes out a couple of keys and hands one to Lutecia, the other to Sedris, and calls for someone to show you up.
"Living one is Thalmor, yes. Others? Maybe." She sees the confused expression on Lutecia's face and chuckles, drawing a glare from the guide. "Thalmor is political, not race. Aldmer, High Elf, yes all." Agito seems a little less unhappy about that, but it doesn't seem to have helped Lutecia's feelings on the matter at all. "Talk upstairs?" Lutecia nods as you split off into your own room. You stretch after setting your pack in a corner.
"I suppose you're going to take a nap?" You glance at Agito and shake your head.
"Maybe in a bit, but not right now. I want to talk to her a bit," you say, and Agito looks at you suspiciously, but you stick your tongue out and dash out of the room. You don't like keeping the cloak on, but it serves its purpose for now; once you reach the College, though, it's coming right off and never going back on if you can possibly help it. You hum along with the bard as she sings, a slow song that seems to hold the rest of the room enthralled. You find the server and tap him on the shoulder. "Mead?" He frowns at you, but you hand him a few coins and he shakes his head before getting you the drink. You hug him and laugh, waving as you head to an empty table. After a few more minutes of the bard's music, your companions come up. You slide the remaining half of the mug to Lutecia, and she smiles as Agito scowls at you. "Do you know any fun places around here?" Sedris frowns thoughtfully as Agito rolls her eyes. As long as you'll be stuck here, you might as well see if you can do anything.
"Fun places? Calixto has House of Curiosities, odd man. Not fun city. Temper, war, dour city." She smiles apologetically at you, then looks up as the bard starts up a tune. The rest of the room goes quiet, and she starts to sing slowly, sadly, and after she finishes a single verse, the formerly merry room is filled with sorrow. She stops singing continues playing the music as she stares at the floor. You sigh - stuck in a boring city with nothing going on, and no obviously fun places to go. You pay a little attention as Lutecia and Agito talk to Sedris about the city, the boy from earlier, and the road to Winterhold - as much to practice their pronunciation as to get any useful information, you're sure - but it's not long before you find yourself bored, and you excuse yourself to go down and take a nap.
You stretch, flexing your wings as much as your arms and back, and grin in the dark. It simply feels so good to be going out and doing something. You make sure Lutecia and Agito are sleeping soundly, then take the key and lock the door securely behind you. The lower doors are locked, but the door on the upper floor isn't as secure.. Normally, you would simply take a window, but with the snowstorm, they're all shuttered and barred. The wind howls as you open the door, but you're able to keep the door under control and keep it from slamming as you dart outside, and you close it almost as quietly. You shiver in excitement - even your senses are hindered by a snowstorm like this, so if anyone else is out and about, you might not know it until you bump into them! Of course, the odds of running into anyone at roof-level are pretty low ….
Your first order of business is to find that Calixto's place - Sedris said it was to the east, even wrote down the name so you'd recognize the sign - so you float along above the streets, keeping to the outside wall. You're glad to be in this city, in its close and mazelike streets with so much stone and brick. Even if you aren't familiar with some of the ornamentation, you can tell that this is a good city, one that your sister would probably be comfortable with as well. You follow the wall for a while, then frown as you reach some steps heading down and turn around. You passed it … ah! You thought there'd be a bigger sign, or at least more prominently displayed. You make a note of the location and trace your steps back to the inn, weaving back a few times to find the best route for moving on foot. That done, you turn to the west, just exploring without a real goal in mind. You seem to be in another residential area, heavily built-up and crushed together, but once you pass through it you reach the market district. Smaller than Whiterun's … then again, they probably do a lot of merchant-work at the dock.
You think about the city for a minute. Gate on the south side, large inn directly in front. Residential areas to both the east and west, with a market district on the west side, docks - and presumably another market area - to the east. Most of the buildings are wood construction, but they're constrained by the old walls of the fortress the city used to be. You settle on an outcropping of one building and tap the wall. It feels like good wood, and despite the violence of the storm, you've seen very little damage, so these people are both smart and good craftsmen. But what's to the north …? You simply fly over the walls that would make foot traffic difficult, and you land again, bewildered. It's a graveyard in the middle of a city, but it's so very small for a city this size, and now that you think of it, it's the only graveyard you've actually seen. There wasn't one in Riverwood or in Whiterun. Between that and the architectural style - and the fact that the really old parts of Windhelm are all stone, and the newer parts are wood - Windhelm must be much older than the other cities. That would explain why it's the capital of the isolationist movement ….
You shake your head, dismissing the concerns over the graveyard, and follow the path that weaves north. You reach another residential area, but this one seems much higher-class than the other two; the houses are larger and more elaborate, and they have fences or walls to maintain privacy. Following the twisting streets to the east eventually leads you to the area north of the inn, and north of you is the palace. You shake yourself and find a sheltered corner to have a drink in peace. It's not cold enough to cause you any problems, but it is cold enough, especially without the cloak, to be a nuisance. And you haven't even been out two hours! You return to your sweep, but the final quarter of the city is odd - compared to the rest of the city, its buildings aren't as well-maintained, damage to the walls and doors is obviously not recent, and the storm's fury is almost certainly felt by the residents. The streets twist even more than the rest of the city's - not helped by the downward slope of the city toward the river - and many are missing bricks and cobblestones, so the footing will be even more treacherous when the storm lets up. Maybe this is a poor quarter? You do find a cleared area near a heavy gate, so there does seem to be some sort of mercantile activity.
You sigh as you make your way back to the inn - as Sedris indicated, there simply isn't much to do in the city, especially in the middle of a raging snowstorm. And that latter qualification means you didn't meet anyone, either. You take a deep breath and shove the door open, press it closed, then leap into the air above the tables and start radiating power to dry yourself off - all as quickly and as quietly as you can. You're pretty sure no one heard anything. Your dress is destroyed by the aura, but since it would have been ruined by the snow anyway, you made sure to wear one of your many extras from Earth. Dry and warm, you creep back down to your room and sneak inside. Agito and Lutecia seem to be asleep, still, and you return the key before getting yourself ready and curling up to go back to sleep. As always, it comes quickly.
What do you do?
[ ] Try to find Ralof and give him the message.
[ ] Take Lutecia to Calixto's House of Curiosities.
[ ] Play some snow-games with Lutecia.
[ ] Sleep. It's your day off!
[ ] Other?
Who's Ralof again...
*searching*
Right. We may want to relay that message, I guess.
*searching*
Right. We may want to relay that message, I guess.
It sounds like the Dragonborn hasn't caught any local serial killers yet, so a visit to the House of Curiosities might turn up some interesting smells. On one hand, we don't want to draw this kind of attention when we have squishy mortals with us, but then again, forewarned is forearmed.
Entropy Judge
Recurring Bouts of Misanthropy
Happy New Year, everyone!
Votes are not locked.
[X] Try to find Ralof and give him the message.
4
Votes are not locked.
[X] Try to find Ralof and give him the message.
4
[X] Try to find Ralof and give him the message.
Entropy Judge
Recurring Bouts of Misanthropy
Votes are locked.
[X] Try to find Ralof and give him the message.
5
[X] Try to find Ralof and give him the message.
5
Sneak, Sneak!
Entropy Judge
Recurring Bouts of Misanthropy
[X] Try to find Ralof and give him the message.
You lean back as you finish your vegetable soup and take a deep breath. At least it wasn't fish. The rest of the common room is fairly quiet, despite the boy's protestations and the guard's presence. The bard hasn't started work yet, though it doesn't seem that she's supposed to be here yet. "Did you enjoy your outing last night?" Your eyes snap to Agito as she puts her spoon down, and Lutecia frowns unhappily at both of you. "You're not quite as sneaky as you could have been when you came back." She shrugs at your scowl.
"I didn't do anything, just wandered around the city. Besides, no one was outside, not even the guards. Raging blizzard and all." Agito shrugs again and goes back to eating, and you tilt your head at Lutecia before smiling. "Say, Lutecia, did you have any plans for today?" Her shoulders droop and she looks down at her soup before shaking her head. Agito sighs.
"Of course we don't have any plans for today - the only reason we're still here is because we can't leave. We're stuck here until the company gets its stuff together and says we can go." Lutecia slowly, and you lean forward, chin resting on your fists.
"So, would you like to do a good deed? I'd need to borrow Agito for a while, and you should probably wait in our room until we're done." Agito stares at you suspiciously, Lutecia curiously, and you shrug, grinning. "I figure since we're here, we might as well pass on that message from Riverwood. That'd be a good deed, right?" Agito snorts.
"It's not a good deed if you're doing it because it's a good deed." You roll your eyes.
"I'm not doing it because it's a good deed; I'm doing it because I think Lutecia wants to help, and it's not like we have anything better to do. We're here, where the man we're supposed to pass it on to is supposed to be, so …." You trail off, shrugging, and Agito scowls.
"You … did you find out where he was last night?" You shake your head, and Lutecia frowns. "How did you plan to find him?" You smile.
"Well … it may have been an exaggeration, but the kid said he was famous, right? And in any case, Riverwood is a small place. So, I figure the best way to do things is to start at the top and work our way down. I'll go to the palace and find someone who looks like he's in charge of things, and you can teleport Agito to me if you can't set up a telepathy network from here. We'll get him brought to us and pass on the message, then come back here. Simple!" Agito's jaw drops as you finish your explanation, and Lutecia looks a little nervous about it as well.
"Why don't we just come with you? You make it sound like you were planning on sneaking in …." You nod at Agito.
"I was, because this is a huge city, and I don't think the guards would just let two or three kids walk into the palace and meet with someone just because they said they had a message - and without seeing someone important and making sure it gets passed on correctly, we have no reason to believe a guard who says he'll pass it on. As far as you coming with me, instead of teleporting in, well, you said it yesterday: it's cold outside, and it's a bit of a walk to the palace. It doesn't bother me as much, but you two don't seem to like it much." You look at your friends and tilt your head. "So? Want to help?" After a long pause - you almost start thinking they won't help - Lutecia nods, and Agito sighs.
"Yeah, we're in. I suppose we should make sure he knows, if we can." You smile and clap your hands.
"Good! Then, finish up your breakfast, and we can get back to our room and get everything ready." They go back to eating, finishing quickly, and you bring your dishes to put back in the kitchen as you head to your room. Lutecia changes into her old clothes - more comforting, you suppose, which should certainly help - and puts on her gloves, while Agito changes back to her small form. Lutecia also gives you one of her bugs so she can track you more easily for teleportation, and then you're off.
You skip happily through the inn, out the front door, and marvel at the snow - taller than you in some places, and it's still snowing lightly. One of the people walking through the courtyard stares at you, and you look back at him, then drive your head into the snowbank to your left. When you pull your snow-covered head out and smile at him, he shakes his head and wanders off. You brush your head clean, then unobtrusively make your way north - and when you're finally unseen by anyone, you turn invisible and leap into the air, heading north toward the palace at a relatively sedate pace.
Several minutes later you reach the courtyard, and instead of entering anywhere near ground level, you swing along the southeast side of the upper level until you find an unlocked window. No one inside except someone in a chair by the fire, back to the window, head buried in a book. You slip inside, careful and quiet as you can, but somehow the man hears you, and the book tumbles to the floor with a thump as he leaps to his feet. You yank the window closed and finally notice the power saturating the room.
"Flan!" Of course you had to pick the room with a magician in it! He says something to you, and after a few moments he starts muttering, power gathering in his outstretched hand. A dark bubble flies toward you, but you slip to the side, and it slams into the wall, dissipating against the stone. He glares and begins muttering again, but a guard opens the door to say something, and you take advantage of the distraction, dashing forward and slipping past the guard before either can react. "Flan, are you alright?" You smile and shake your head at Lutecia's concern - you're halfway down the hall before the magician manages to get past the guard, and you're already turning the corner as a trio of glistening icicles slam into the wall.
"I'm fine, Lulu. Just accidentally wandered into a magician's room is all. Give me a few minutes to find someone important and a place for Agito to wait safely, okay?" You can feel her relief over your connection and send a caress of your own. You float through the narrow halls, checking inside room after room, mindful of the irate magician chasing you and dodging the occasional guard or worker, but you still don't find anyone who seems particularly important, and you head down the stairs. You slip through the door and into a grand entrance hall, tucked away in a corner by a buttress. So … main entrance would be to your right. You go left, and toward the end of the hall is short hallway leading to a war room - at least, it's a functional room with maps of the region, of various cities and fortifications, and some other things. It reminds you of Remilia's office when she was dealing with military problems, and the men inside certainly look important. There's the man from the gate, and another man in the same armor, but older, blond, and holding the presence of war within him. The third man … you grin and nod your head. You've found someone important. Older, of an age with the other man, blond with a neat beard, but wearing rich clothes and a polished breastplate instead of the savage accoutrements his companions wear … and though he too has the presence of a warrior, he has something else, a cold charisma. No human would mistake him for normal, you're certain. "Lutecia, can you connect me with these men?" There's a pause - and then the third man jerks his head up, hand leaping to the axe at his hip. The other two men take a step back, shaken, and you grin. "Excuse me, I'm not here to kill you. But I'm looking for someone, and you seem like you're in a position of authority, so I think you can help me." The other two men ready themselves for combat as well, the younger man hefting a small axe while the older man grabs a dagger from the table. The third man, however, lowers his axe after a moment.
"You hide. Come out, talk." He speaks aloud as he communicates with you, and you try to listen to his words and his way of speaking.
"I stay hidden for safety - yours, and that of my friends. I fear none of you, not even that magician of yours who is searching for me right now, but this is the best way to accomplish my goals." After a moment, the leader laughs and puts away his weapon.
"Not fear Wuunferth? Either fool or powerful." He says something, and the red-haired man unhappily hurries out of the room. "Well, spirit. Speak." You snort quietly - the man is obviously used to command, and to being the most powerful being in the room. You could demonstrate how powerless he is, but ….
"I'm looking for a man named Ralof. He may have lived, at some point, in a small village called Riverwood." The man frowns and looks at the warrior, says something about Ralof. There's a pause, and you continue. "I have a message for him that I'd like to deliver personally." Another pause, another frown.
"Came here find him." The leader laughed mirthlessly, and the magician rushes into the room, panting and gasping like Patchouli on a bad day. After he recovers, he and the leader babble at each other - too quickly, and accents tot thick, for you to clearly understand what's being said. "Here steal Wuunferth research?" You laugh, and the warriors look up toward you as the magician glares.
"Wow. He's pretty arrogant. No, I'm not here for his research, whatever he's working on. If I were, he'd be dead. Now, where's Ralof?" The leader says something to the mage - Wuunferth, presumably - and he relaxes. He glares suspiciously up at you, then slinks out. The leader relaxes and leans over the map on the table, but his subordinates are more suspicious.
"Ralof comes. Friend of Stormcloaks?" There are an equal number of red and blue flags on the map - one over each major city, except Whiterun, and three others in various locations.
"Hm. I'm not a friend, and not an enemy. Not really interested, don't know the situation, and I have other business anyway." He looks up toward you, an eyebrow raised, then shakes his head and turns back to the map. He asks the other man - Galmar? - something about Balgruuf, and some other things, and you try to figure out what they're talking about. "I don't suppose either of you have an idea of what they're talking about?"
"Not a clue. Lulu's scrying isn't so good at hearing things. What's it sound like?" You shrug and try to figure out what's being talked about.
"Dunno. Something about Balgruuf, some proper names with a different base than their current language, and some stuff north of Whiterun. It's political, probably, but I can't put together any specifics." They talk for a few more minutes, until a tall man, dressed for traveling, steps into the room, agitating the red-haired man and sparking another round of discussions. You catch a few names - the red-haired man is something like "Rsural," the leader is Ulfric, and the newcomer is Ralof. Ralof looks around the room at something Ulfric says. "Lutecia, I guess that's Ralof. Can you let me talk to him?" She obliges, and you drift to a different location above everyone's head. "Ralof of Riverwood?" He jumps, spinning around, and it's hard for you to keep from laughing. "You have family there, right?" He stiffens - they all stiffen, and Ulfric's hand drops to his axe again. "I was there … a bit over a week ago. A little boy thought I was strong, and asked me to help him. He said his parents were taken by Thalmor, and that if I couldn't help directly, he asked me to come here and tell his uncle Ralof about what happened." Ralof seems about to explode, but then all the fight seems to go out of him, and he sways until the junior officer catches him and sets him in a chair. Ulfric looks up at where you used to be, his face hard.
"You ... helped, not help. I thank you. If need help, ask. Later. Please, go." You curtsy invisibly as Lutecia breaks the connection and slip through the short hall into the entry. Fourteen men and women are waiting there, dressed similarly to Ralof. Since they aren't particularly wet, they're probably about to go out somewhere.
"Flan, if you want, you can just wait by the door until someone opens it. You won't have to find an empty room or anything." That ... is actually a good idea, and you hear Headless chuckle in the back of your mind. "You were just trying to show off, weren't you?" You don't even dignify that with a response, and simply settle down to wait, taking a drink from your flask as you do - and one of the doors opens barely a minute later. You dart into the wind and sun-glare and head for the inn. You probably could do something else ... though you do have a bit of a headache growing. You land in a corner away from everyone and drop your invisibility, then hold some snow against the side of your head. It helps, a little, and you walk toward the doors.
What do you do?
[ ] Take Lutecia to Calixto's House of Curiosities.
[ ] Play some snow-games with Lutecia.
[ ] Sleep. Make sure this headache doesn't bother you tomorrow.
[ ] Other?
You lean back as you finish your vegetable soup and take a deep breath. At least it wasn't fish. The rest of the common room is fairly quiet, despite the boy's protestations and the guard's presence. The bard hasn't started work yet, though it doesn't seem that she's supposed to be here yet. "Did you enjoy your outing last night?" Your eyes snap to Agito as she puts her spoon down, and Lutecia frowns unhappily at both of you. "You're not quite as sneaky as you could have been when you came back." She shrugs at your scowl.
"I didn't do anything, just wandered around the city. Besides, no one was outside, not even the guards. Raging blizzard and all." Agito shrugs again and goes back to eating, and you tilt your head at Lutecia before smiling. "Say, Lutecia, did you have any plans for today?" Her shoulders droop and she looks down at her soup before shaking her head. Agito sighs.
"Of course we don't have any plans for today - the only reason we're still here is because we can't leave. We're stuck here until the company gets its stuff together and says we can go." Lutecia slowly, and you lean forward, chin resting on your fists.
"So, would you like to do a good deed? I'd need to borrow Agito for a while, and you should probably wait in our room until we're done." Agito stares at you suspiciously, Lutecia curiously, and you shrug, grinning. "I figure since we're here, we might as well pass on that message from Riverwood. That'd be a good deed, right?" Agito snorts.
"It's not a good deed if you're doing it because it's a good deed." You roll your eyes.
"I'm not doing it because it's a good deed; I'm doing it because I think Lutecia wants to help, and it's not like we have anything better to do. We're here, where the man we're supposed to pass it on to is supposed to be, so …." You trail off, shrugging, and Agito scowls.
"You … did you find out where he was last night?" You shake your head, and Lutecia frowns. "How did you plan to find him?" You smile.
"Well … it may have been an exaggeration, but the kid said he was famous, right? And in any case, Riverwood is a small place. So, I figure the best way to do things is to start at the top and work our way down. I'll go to the palace and find someone who looks like he's in charge of things, and you can teleport Agito to me if you can't set up a telepathy network from here. We'll get him brought to us and pass on the message, then come back here. Simple!" Agito's jaw drops as you finish your explanation, and Lutecia looks a little nervous about it as well.
"Why don't we just come with you? You make it sound like you were planning on sneaking in …." You nod at Agito.
"I was, because this is a huge city, and I don't think the guards would just let two or three kids walk into the palace and meet with someone just because they said they had a message - and without seeing someone important and making sure it gets passed on correctly, we have no reason to believe a guard who says he'll pass it on. As far as you coming with me, instead of teleporting in, well, you said it yesterday: it's cold outside, and it's a bit of a walk to the palace. It doesn't bother me as much, but you two don't seem to like it much." You look at your friends and tilt your head. "So? Want to help?" After a long pause - you almost start thinking they won't help - Lutecia nods, and Agito sighs.
"Yeah, we're in. I suppose we should make sure he knows, if we can." You smile and clap your hands.
"Good! Then, finish up your breakfast, and we can get back to our room and get everything ready." They go back to eating, finishing quickly, and you bring your dishes to put back in the kitchen as you head to your room. Lutecia changes into her old clothes - more comforting, you suppose, which should certainly help - and puts on her gloves, while Agito changes back to her small form. Lutecia also gives you one of her bugs so she can track you more easily for teleportation, and then you're off.
You skip happily through the inn, out the front door, and marvel at the snow - taller than you in some places, and it's still snowing lightly. One of the people walking through the courtyard stares at you, and you look back at him, then drive your head into the snowbank to your left. When you pull your snow-covered head out and smile at him, he shakes his head and wanders off. You brush your head clean, then unobtrusively make your way north - and when you're finally unseen by anyone, you turn invisible and leap into the air, heading north toward the palace at a relatively sedate pace.
Several minutes later you reach the courtyard, and instead of entering anywhere near ground level, you swing along the southeast side of the upper level until you find an unlocked window. No one inside except someone in a chair by the fire, back to the window, head buried in a book. You slip inside, careful and quiet as you can, but somehow the man hears you, and the book tumbles to the floor with a thump as he leaps to his feet. You yank the window closed and finally notice the power saturating the room.
"Flan!" Of course you had to pick the room with a magician in it! He says something to you, and after a few moments he starts muttering, power gathering in his outstretched hand. A dark bubble flies toward you, but you slip to the side, and it slams into the wall, dissipating against the stone. He glares and begins muttering again, but a guard opens the door to say something, and you take advantage of the distraction, dashing forward and slipping past the guard before either can react. "Flan, are you alright?" You smile and shake your head at Lutecia's concern - you're halfway down the hall before the magician manages to get past the guard, and you're already turning the corner as a trio of glistening icicles slam into the wall.
"I'm fine, Lulu. Just accidentally wandered into a magician's room is all. Give me a few minutes to find someone important and a place for Agito to wait safely, okay?" You can feel her relief over your connection and send a caress of your own. You float through the narrow halls, checking inside room after room, mindful of the irate magician chasing you and dodging the occasional guard or worker, but you still don't find anyone who seems particularly important, and you head down the stairs. You slip through the door and into a grand entrance hall, tucked away in a corner by a buttress. So … main entrance would be to your right. You go left, and toward the end of the hall is short hallway leading to a war room - at least, it's a functional room with maps of the region, of various cities and fortifications, and some other things. It reminds you of Remilia's office when she was dealing with military problems, and the men inside certainly look important. There's the man from the gate, and another man in the same armor, but older, blond, and holding the presence of war within him. The third man … you grin and nod your head. You've found someone important. Older, of an age with the other man, blond with a neat beard, but wearing rich clothes and a polished breastplate instead of the savage accoutrements his companions wear … and though he too has the presence of a warrior, he has something else, a cold charisma. No human would mistake him for normal, you're certain. "Lutecia, can you connect me with these men?" There's a pause - and then the third man jerks his head up, hand leaping to the axe at his hip. The other two men take a step back, shaken, and you grin. "Excuse me, I'm not here to kill you. But I'm looking for someone, and you seem like you're in a position of authority, so I think you can help me." The other two men ready themselves for combat as well, the younger man hefting a small axe while the older man grabs a dagger from the table. The third man, however, lowers his axe after a moment.
"You hide. Come out, talk." He speaks aloud as he communicates with you, and you try to listen to his words and his way of speaking.
"I stay hidden for safety - yours, and that of my friends. I fear none of you, not even that magician of yours who is searching for me right now, but this is the best way to accomplish my goals." After a moment, the leader laughs and puts away his weapon.
"Not fear Wuunferth? Either fool or powerful." He says something, and the red-haired man unhappily hurries out of the room. "Well, spirit. Speak." You snort quietly - the man is obviously used to command, and to being the most powerful being in the room. You could demonstrate how powerless he is, but ….
"I'm looking for a man named Ralof. He may have lived, at some point, in a small village called Riverwood." The man frowns and looks at the warrior, says something about Ralof. There's a pause, and you continue. "I have a message for him that I'd like to deliver personally." Another pause, another frown.
"Came here find him." The leader laughed mirthlessly, and the magician rushes into the room, panting and gasping like Patchouli on a bad day. After he recovers, he and the leader babble at each other - too quickly, and accents tot thick, for you to clearly understand what's being said. "Here steal Wuunferth research?" You laugh, and the warriors look up toward you as the magician glares.
"Wow. He's pretty arrogant. No, I'm not here for his research, whatever he's working on. If I were, he'd be dead. Now, where's Ralof?" The leader says something to the mage - Wuunferth, presumably - and he relaxes. He glares suspiciously up at you, then slinks out. The leader relaxes and leans over the map on the table, but his subordinates are more suspicious.
"Ralof comes. Friend of Stormcloaks?" There are an equal number of red and blue flags on the map - one over each major city, except Whiterun, and three others in various locations.
"Hm. I'm not a friend, and not an enemy. Not really interested, don't know the situation, and I have other business anyway." He looks up toward you, an eyebrow raised, then shakes his head and turns back to the map. He asks the other man - Galmar? - something about Balgruuf, and some other things, and you try to figure out what they're talking about. "I don't suppose either of you have an idea of what they're talking about?"
"Not a clue. Lulu's scrying isn't so good at hearing things. What's it sound like?" You shrug and try to figure out what's being talked about.
"Dunno. Something about Balgruuf, some proper names with a different base than their current language, and some stuff north of Whiterun. It's political, probably, but I can't put together any specifics." They talk for a few more minutes, until a tall man, dressed for traveling, steps into the room, agitating the red-haired man and sparking another round of discussions. You catch a few names - the red-haired man is something like "Rsural," the leader is Ulfric, and the newcomer is Ralof. Ralof looks around the room at something Ulfric says. "Lutecia, I guess that's Ralof. Can you let me talk to him?" She obliges, and you drift to a different location above everyone's head. "Ralof of Riverwood?" He jumps, spinning around, and it's hard for you to keep from laughing. "You have family there, right?" He stiffens - they all stiffen, and Ulfric's hand drops to his axe again. "I was there … a bit over a week ago. A little boy thought I was strong, and asked me to help him. He said his parents were taken by Thalmor, and that if I couldn't help directly, he asked me to come here and tell his uncle Ralof about what happened." Ralof seems about to explode, but then all the fight seems to go out of him, and he sways until the junior officer catches him and sets him in a chair. Ulfric looks up at where you used to be, his face hard.
"You ... helped, not help. I thank you. If need help, ask. Later. Please, go." You curtsy invisibly as Lutecia breaks the connection and slip through the short hall into the entry. Fourteen men and women are waiting there, dressed similarly to Ralof. Since they aren't particularly wet, they're probably about to go out somewhere.
"Flan, if you want, you can just wait by the door until someone opens it. You won't have to find an empty room or anything." That ... is actually a good idea, and you hear Headless chuckle in the back of your mind. "You were just trying to show off, weren't you?" You don't even dignify that with a response, and simply settle down to wait, taking a drink from your flask as you do - and one of the doors opens barely a minute later. You dart into the wind and sun-glare and head for the inn. You probably could do something else ... though you do have a bit of a headache growing. You land in a corner away from everyone and drop your invisibility, then hold some snow against the side of your head. It helps, a little, and you walk toward the doors.
What do you do?
[ ] Take Lutecia to Calixto's House of Curiosities.
[ ] Play some snow-games with Lutecia.
[ ] Sleep. Make sure this headache doesn't bother you tomorrow.
[ ] Other?
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ultima333
Lazy Snug Youkai
Good catch, remembering that. I forgot about the whole "murderer of women" thing in Windhelm.
Entropy Judge
Recurring Bouts of Misanthropy
I thought about doing this, but it didn't make sense.
...
You slip in through the window after making sure no one is around. You'll need to get moving, but there's a lot of neat looking things on the table - some bug parts, a sharpened bone, some nice jewelry, and .... You tilt your head and pick up the round, gold-colored object. It's a disc with eight holes punched into it along the edge, and it has some sort of design in the middle. You poke at it; it's not gold or bronze or any other metal you know.
"What is it?" You scowl. You aren't really sure what it is, only what it looks like.
"... It's a metal gear." You can feel the surprise coming from Agito, and from Lutecia ... amusement?
"A metal ... I KNOW that! What's it doing here?" Lutecia is definitely laughing.
"I don't know! Maybe whoever lives here is a clockmaker." Agito snorts, a very strange feeling inside your head.
"A clockmaker, right. Flan, we haven't seen a single time-keeping piece of equipment since we got here! Not even a sun-dial!"
"Maybe he's not a very good clockmaker, then." You shrug and put the gear back down on the table. "Anyway, you can keep thinking about why a metal gear would be here; I'm going to go back to looking for Ralof."
...
You slip in through the window after making sure no one is around. You'll need to get moving, but there's a lot of neat looking things on the table - some bug parts, a sharpened bone, some nice jewelry, and .... You tilt your head and pick up the round, gold-colored object. It's a disc with eight holes punched into it along the edge, and it has some sort of design in the middle. You poke at it; it's not gold or bronze or any other metal you know.
"What is it?" You scowl. You aren't really sure what it is, only what it looks like.
"... It's a metal gear." You can feel the surprise coming from Agito, and from Lutecia ... amusement?
"A metal ... I KNOW that! What's it doing here?" Lutecia is definitely laughing.
"I don't know! Maybe whoever lives here is a clockmaker." Agito snorts, a very strange feeling inside your head.
"A clockmaker, right. Flan, we haven't seen a single time-keeping piece of equipment since we got here! Not even a sun-dial!"
"Maybe he's not a very good clockmaker, then." You shrug and put the gear back down on the table. "Anyway, you can keep thinking about why a metal gear would be here; I'm going to go back to looking for Ralof."
...
Flan is best mailman.
It's a big, complicated city in the game, and I assume more so here now that it's 'real', so just staying clear and hoping that he doesn't ever come across them randomly is probably safer. We just need to hope that the cold and the good sense to not go out without their bodyguard keeps the other girls from checking the place out by themselves while Flan is asleep, or anything silly like that.
The group stands out enough that he may decide to do that anyway if he ever sees them. If they go there then Flan might possibly notice something suss about him and know to be on the lookout, or just decide to kill him on the spot, but that's a pretty big 'if'.
It's a big, complicated city in the game, and I assume more so here now that it's 'real', so just staying clear and hoping that he doesn't ever come across them randomly is probably safer. We just need to hope that the cold and the good sense to not go out without their bodyguard keeps the other girls from checking the place out by themselves while Flan is asleep, or anything silly like that.
Um. Flandre is a Vampire. Shouldn't she be able to smell freshly spilled blood and be at least curious about it? The same if she roams the city and someone is killed, blood is spilled, she could smell it from distance and should investigate it (out of curiosity if not hunger).
Slith10
Back from the dead and ready to party!
- Location
- New Zealand
Maybe after we have slept, we can come back tonight and deal with him.
Entropy Judge
Recurring Bouts of Misanthropy
Votes are not locked.
[X] Sleep. Make sure this headache doesn't bother you tomorrow.
3
Edit: Votes are locked.
[X] Sleep. Make sure this headache doesn't bother you tomorrow.
3
Edit: Votes are locked.
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Windhelm II
Entropy Judge
Recurring Bouts of Misanthropy
[X] Sleep. Make sure this headache doesn't bother you tomorrow.
You almost get hit in the face by the door opening from the inside, and you glower at the young men who stumble past you. Hoping something perfectly dreadful happens to them, you slip into the inn and wince, still holding your head. The woman behind the counter - you still don't know if she's the innkeeper or a worker - frowns sympathetically and says something, probably asking if you're okay. You try to smile and wave her off as you make your way to your room. Lutecia worriedly pulls you into a hug as Agito closes the door behind you.
"Hey, are you okay?" You nod, appreciative of their concern but still wishing they wouldn't get so close to you.
"I'm fine, just have a headache. I'm going to go back to sleep." Lutecia's expression grows unhappier, and you force a smile and return the hug.
"Like at the pool?" You blink and turn your head to stare at Agito, who shrugs. "I mean, back at the pool with everyone, you sort of just crashed and said you'd had a headache when we asked you about it." You frown as you think about it, then nod slowly. It fits, sort of - you'd been outside for a while, then let Giltless play with your clones, and here you'd been outside for a shorter time, but had been using your invisibility. You'll have to remember to ask Remilia about it.
"Something like that, I think." Lutecia relaxes a little, and you smile at her before trying to head for your bedroll, but she manages to pull you off-balance and onto her bed. You stare blankly, more surprised that she succeeded than that she tried, and then Agito is helping her push you back into a lying position, and you start to laugh and wave them off. "Alright, alright." Lutecia frowns unhappily and Agito shakes her head.
"Fine, fine, we'll leave you alone for a while. You want us to bring you anything, or you going to be asleep before we could get back?" You wince and rub your head a little, then start getting yourself more comfortable, starting with taking off the cloak.
"No, I'm fine. Have fun. Make sure you wake me up if you need me, okay?" You catch nods from both of them before you close your eyes, and the last thing you're aware of is the door opening.
Your eyes pop open and you look around the candlelit room. Agito is sitting at the table in the corner, and Lutecia … isn't here. You sit up, and the fairy turns and holds up one hand. "Just a minute!" She turns back and scribbles something before stretching and looking at you. "You've been out for most of the day, you know?" You tighten and relax your arms and shoulders before rolling your legs out of the bed.
"Mm. Where's Lutecia?" Agito snorts and shakes her head.
"She's fine, out doing some … business, I guess." She doesn't sound particularly happy about it, and you stare at her, head canted. "Well … after you turned out the lights, we went out into the common area and talked with Sedris some more. You know that guy you were talking to? Not Ralof, the guy in charge - Ulfric? Turns out he's the Jarl of the Windhelm, and the leader of the isolationist side. So when he says something like offering to help if he can, that's a pretty big deal." You snort.
"If he's telling the truth, and if 'circumstances permit' him to help at the time and place of my asking." Agito gives you a look and you shrug. "People do that, even when they know what they're dealing with. Ever see an entire town council replaced because one guy went back on his word? I have. Wars have started because one person or another wouldn't keep his word … of course, wars have started because one person or another did keep his word, so I suppose it balances out …." She shakes her head as you trail off, remembering things from home.
"Right. Anyway, so that's kind of a big deal. Lutecia … she asked some more about that kid who got dragged in here yesterday - you remember, right?" You nod. "Anyway, turns out he's … well, his parents are dead, and he seems to be high enough on the food chain that someone up top thought he shouldn't be living alone when he's just a kid. They sent him off to some orphanage down in another city, Riften, but the old lady who runs it is …." She shrugs, face twisted. "She's bad enough that the kid, Aventus, decided to run away, come back here, and try to contact a group of assassins. Hasn't worked yet, but he's sure it will - except the guards caught him again, and he's supposed to be sent back to the orphanage. Would've been gone, except for the storm. Anyway, Lutecia offered to go back to his house, see if everything was still set up right. She left … thirty, forty minutes ago? Something like that. We didn't want to leave you alone, though, and it wasn't something important enough to wake you up for, so I stayed here to keep you company." You stare at Agito.
"So Lutecia is 'fine,' except she's wandering around a strange city with confusing streets, looking for a particular house, alone?" Agito rolls her eyes.
"I know you're worried, but we're not dumb. Garyuu's out and with her, she's using her insects to widen the area she's searching - she found that 'House of Curiosities' place Sedris told us about, but it's closed today - and if she can't find it before it gets too dark to see, she'll just teleport back here. She's going to do that from the house anyway, for that matter. Besides, he did give directions, and the house is pretty unique-looking, so she shouldn't get lost." She tilts her head and snorts a laugh.
"Flandre? Are you okay?" You smile, and Agito shakes her head before turning back to the table.
"I'm fine, Lutecia. Are you doing well?"
"I'm okay, Flandre. It feels nice out here. It's not snowing right now." You smile.
"That's good. I'll see you later, then." You glance at Agito. "And what were you doing?" She shrugs and holds up a small notebook.
"Making a journal. I can remember all the important stuff, but keeping a written record helps with thinking about things, since I have to put the words down so other people will understand it." You nod in understanding, then lie back on the bed, stretching. What to do, what should you do …. You look at Agito.
"Is Sedris staying here, then?" She looks at you oddly.
"No, actually. She's going up to Winterhold, too. If the weather's clear, we'll be leaving tomorrow, probably in the morning." Hmm. You nod and focus on the ceiling.
What do you do?
[ ] Take Lutecia to the House of Curiosities.
- [ ] Tonight. Break in if you have to.
- [ ] Tomorrow, if you have time and weather permits.
[ ] Skip to leaving Windhelm.
[ ] Find something else to do. (Write-in)
You almost get hit in the face by the door opening from the inside, and you glower at the young men who stumble past you. Hoping something perfectly dreadful happens to them, you slip into the inn and wince, still holding your head. The woman behind the counter - you still don't know if she's the innkeeper or a worker - frowns sympathetically and says something, probably asking if you're okay. You try to smile and wave her off as you make your way to your room. Lutecia worriedly pulls you into a hug as Agito closes the door behind you.
"Hey, are you okay?" You nod, appreciative of their concern but still wishing they wouldn't get so close to you.
"I'm fine, just have a headache. I'm going to go back to sleep." Lutecia's expression grows unhappier, and you force a smile and return the hug.
"Like at the pool?" You blink and turn your head to stare at Agito, who shrugs. "I mean, back at the pool with everyone, you sort of just crashed and said you'd had a headache when we asked you about it." You frown as you think about it, then nod slowly. It fits, sort of - you'd been outside for a while, then let Giltless play with your clones, and here you'd been outside for a shorter time, but had been using your invisibility. You'll have to remember to ask Remilia about it.
"Something like that, I think." Lutecia relaxes a little, and you smile at her before trying to head for your bedroll, but she manages to pull you off-balance and onto her bed. You stare blankly, more surprised that she succeeded than that she tried, and then Agito is helping her push you back into a lying position, and you start to laugh and wave them off. "Alright, alright." Lutecia frowns unhappily and Agito shakes her head.
"Fine, fine, we'll leave you alone for a while. You want us to bring you anything, or you going to be asleep before we could get back?" You wince and rub your head a little, then start getting yourself more comfortable, starting with taking off the cloak.
"No, I'm fine. Have fun. Make sure you wake me up if you need me, okay?" You catch nods from both of them before you close your eyes, and the last thing you're aware of is the door opening.
Your eyes pop open and you look around the candlelit room. Agito is sitting at the table in the corner, and Lutecia … isn't here. You sit up, and the fairy turns and holds up one hand. "Just a minute!" She turns back and scribbles something before stretching and looking at you. "You've been out for most of the day, you know?" You tighten and relax your arms and shoulders before rolling your legs out of the bed.
"Mm. Where's Lutecia?" Agito snorts and shakes her head.
"She's fine, out doing some … business, I guess." She doesn't sound particularly happy about it, and you stare at her, head canted. "Well … after you turned out the lights, we went out into the common area and talked with Sedris some more. You know that guy you were talking to? Not Ralof, the guy in charge - Ulfric? Turns out he's the Jarl of the Windhelm, and the leader of the isolationist side. So when he says something like offering to help if he can, that's a pretty big deal." You snort.
"If he's telling the truth, and if 'circumstances permit' him to help at the time and place of my asking." Agito gives you a look and you shrug. "People do that, even when they know what they're dealing with. Ever see an entire town council replaced because one guy went back on his word? I have. Wars have started because one person or another wouldn't keep his word … of course, wars have started because one person or another did keep his word, so I suppose it balances out …." She shakes her head as you trail off, remembering things from home.
"Right. Anyway, so that's kind of a big deal. Lutecia … she asked some more about that kid who got dragged in here yesterday - you remember, right?" You nod. "Anyway, turns out he's … well, his parents are dead, and he seems to be high enough on the food chain that someone up top thought he shouldn't be living alone when he's just a kid. They sent him off to some orphanage down in another city, Riften, but the old lady who runs it is …." She shrugs, face twisted. "She's bad enough that the kid, Aventus, decided to run away, come back here, and try to contact a group of assassins. Hasn't worked yet, but he's sure it will - except the guards caught him again, and he's supposed to be sent back to the orphanage. Would've been gone, except for the storm. Anyway, Lutecia offered to go back to his house, see if everything was still set up right. She left … thirty, forty minutes ago? Something like that. We didn't want to leave you alone, though, and it wasn't something important enough to wake you up for, so I stayed here to keep you company." You stare at Agito.
"So Lutecia is 'fine,' except she's wandering around a strange city with confusing streets, looking for a particular house, alone?" Agito rolls her eyes.
"I know you're worried, but we're not dumb. Garyuu's out and with her, she's using her insects to widen the area she's searching - she found that 'House of Curiosities' place Sedris told us about, but it's closed today - and if she can't find it before it gets too dark to see, she'll just teleport back here. She's going to do that from the house anyway, for that matter. Besides, he did give directions, and the house is pretty unique-looking, so she shouldn't get lost." She tilts her head and snorts a laugh.
"Flandre? Are you okay?" You smile, and Agito shakes her head before turning back to the table.
"I'm fine, Lutecia. Are you doing well?"
"I'm okay, Flandre. It feels nice out here. It's not snowing right now." You smile.
"That's good. I'll see you later, then." You glance at Agito. "And what were you doing?" She shrugs and holds up a small notebook.
"Making a journal. I can remember all the important stuff, but keeping a written record helps with thinking about things, since I have to put the words down so other people will understand it." You nod in understanding, then lie back on the bed, stretching. What to do, what should you do …. You look at Agito.
"Is Sedris staying here, then?" She looks at you oddly.
"No, actually. She's going up to Winterhold, too. If the weather's clear, we'll be leaving tomorrow, probably in the morning." Hmm. You nod and focus on the ceiling.
What do you do?
[ ] Take Lutecia to the House of Curiosities.
- [ ] Tonight. Break in if you have to.
- [ ] Tomorrow, if you have time and weather permits.
[ ] Skip to leaving Windhelm.
[ ] Find something else to do. (Write-in)