[Nexus] The Dancing Fox Inn II: Title, Title, Who's Got The Title?

[Lady Serpentine]

Soon enough, the crystal has dissolved as well, and Talina tries to hand Ashtrek the potion.

[ThirdEmperor]

"So . . . did it work?"
Naku asks Strahd, as she un-deadtimes.
"I'll admit, I hadn't done that before . . ."

"I.. think sho? I can''t feel anything anymore, but my legsh aren't hurting at leasht." Strahd says hesitantly, before giving his new legs an angry glare. Treacherous appendages they are, sneaking up on him and replacing his old legs while he was sleeping. "W-what kind of shick **** doesh that an-anyway!? If I ever find out w-who shtole my legsh and left theshe.. Theshe shecond rate piecesh of junk in their place, I'll fry him alive!"

[Chezmarine]

She takes the Potion.

"Do i DRINK it?"

[Lady Serpentine]

She nods.

"Yes, you drink it."

If the wolfess does so, she'll find it tastes syrupy sweet, with sharp, chemical notes, and has an earthy undertone.

[Chezmarine]

She drinks the potion...

Not Much Happens.

[Lady Serpentine]

A moment or two after she drinks it, the wolfess should find herself quickly cooling off.

[Chezmarine]

A moment or two after she drinks it, the wolfess should find herself quickly cooling off.

She sighs and burps, starting to cool down.

"Thank you, Ma'am"

[Lady Serpentine]

She sighs and burps, starting to cool down.

"Thank you, Ma'am"

Talina smiles.

"You're welcome."

[Chezmarine]

She gets up and goes back to her rounds, being a wolfess.

[Mee]

"I.. think sho? I can''t feel anything anymore, but my legsh aren't hurting at leasht." Strahd says hesitantly, before giving his new legs an angry glare. Treacherous appendages they are, sneaking up on him and replacing his old legs while he was sleeping. "W-what kind of shick **** doesh that an-anyway!? If I ever find out w-who shtole my legsh and left theshe.. Theshe shecond rate piecesh of junk in their place, I'll fry him alive!"

"Well, it was just supposed to be your legs . . .
But ah well.
Lemme know when you want feeling back, please."
Naku says, un-deadtiming, and sighing slightly.
That was fairly tiring.

She then-slowly, as she is tired-went back to her spot behind the bar.

[Chezmarine]

"Well, it was just supposed to be your legs . . .
But ah well.
Lemme know when you want feeling back, please."
Naku says, un-deadtiming, and sighing slightly.
That was fairly tiring.

She then-slowly, as she is tired-went back to her spot behind the bar.

Ashtrek glomps Naku.

"Anything i can do for you?"

[Mee]

Ashtrek glomps Naku.

"Anything i can do for you?"

"Besides stop hugging me so I can breathe?

Not really anything I can think of, no."
Naku gasps through the mega-hug, her ribs starting to protest.

[Chezmarine]

"Besides stop hugging me so I can breathe?

Not really anything I can think of, no."
Naku gasps through the mega-hug, her ribs starting to protest.

Ashtrek gets off her.

"Sorry bout that. This drink seem to have made me hyper... OOHH WHATS THAT!?"

She chases after a butterfly.

[Mee]

Ashtrek gets off her.

"Sorry bout that. This drink seem to have made me hyper... OOHH WHATS THAT!?"

She chases after a butterfly.

"Uh . . .
Whu-oh.
That . . . that's probably not going to be good, is it?"
Naku asks, taking a few deep breaths, while hoping that 'hyper' doesn't equal 'get rid of all evil in bar, including all vampires'.

[Chezmarine]

"Uh . . .
Whu-oh.
That . . . that's probably not going to be good, is it?"
Naku asks, taking a few deep breaths, while hoping that 'hyper' doesn't equal 'get rid of all evil in bar, including all vampires'.

No, 'Hyper' equals 'Running around and chasing after a butterfly on her powerful digitigrade legs.'

Which she Does.

"Come back here, Little Flying Thingy!"

[Mee]

Well, Naku, not having many ways to respond to this besides sighing and shaking her head:
Sighs and shakes her head, before going back to wiping off the counter.

[Chezmarine]

Ashtrek catches the Butterfly.

"What is it, anyways?"

[Mee]

Ashtrek catches the Butterfly.

"What is it, anyways?"

"What is what?"
Naku asks, not having gotten a clear view of the butterfly.

[Chezmarine]

"What is what?"
Naku asks, not having gotten a clear view of the butterfly.

Ashtrek shows her the Butterfly.

[LadyOfWar]

((Actually, Sorrow is fairly tall, as is Fear.))

Lady Raennal may notice much the same sort of alertness from the two Tieflings, as well as that Fear, who's sitting down at one of the tables for the moment, as no-one has ordered anything, seems to be almost unconsciously examining everyone but her brother and Naku to see how drunk they appear, and if they have any obvious pouches, etc., that could contain money.

((Heh, I wonder where I got the idea they were short? Thanks for clarifying. I’ll change my post.))

The Lady turns to Sorrow, and sensing a similarity in their outlooks, smiles softly at him. “May I help you?” she asks in the polite tone well-mannered people use when interrupted by a complete stranger.

The second Tiefling will see that the Lady has no obvious bulges in her coat where a money pouch might hang from someone else’s belt. She bears a large satchel slung over her right shoulder and resting on her left hip. Her clothing is simple and rugged, not what one would expect of a leader born into a hereditary title. The only item of great worth clearly visible on her person is her sword. The hilt and scabbard are without gaudy decoration, but they gleam with careful polishing and are clearly of extraordinary quality.

"I cannot wait to converse with your pony...tell me, what's her name?" he asked as he gets ready to follow Thein.
"Also, how do you like your cupcakes?"

“His name is… hard for foreigners to pronounce. In Common it means the same as… oh, how could I forget this? It’s that candy that is light tan and all chewy. They sell little cubes of it plain or sometimes it is covered in chocolate or apples are dipped in it… That’s my favorite. Apples dipped in… starts with a ‘c’.” He finally gives up on remembering the word and addresses Songdancer's second question. "What's a cupcake?"

He leads the way outside as he says all of this. They will walk over to the side of the inn that is most sheltered from the wind and find a pony and a horse standing there. They are both covered in dense, fluffy fur that keeps them quite warm in the late evening chill. The pony is just barely short enough to quality as a pony. Another hand high at the withers and he’d be considered a horse. He is a rich tan in color with a dense mane and tail. When Thein rounds the corner the pony turns his short, dished face toward his master and gives a warm nicker in welcome.

Thein runs over to his beloved steed and throws his arms around its neck. The pony reaches out its nose toward Songdancer, curious, and eager to meet another equine.

Beside the pony is a great warhorse. Its fur is white but its skin is grey, which is obvious only because of the color of its lips and nose. The horse’s long, elegant face is punctuated by two enormous, dark eyes ringed by long lashes. He looks so intelligent and wise even someone who is used to the dumb animals of Thein’s world would almost expect the animal to speak.

The horse is so tall that Songdancer could probably walk right under the horse’s belly without his ears brushing its fur.

((I'll insert pictures here as soon as I get them up online))

[Mindfreak]

"It's called caramel, and you're about to find out what cupcakes are."
He levitates a rock up, coating it in a black aura.
And then it morphes into a chocolate cupcake with peanut butter icing and a caramel center.
He levitates it over to Thein.
"That, my young friend, is a cupcake."
He then looked at the pony.
He began talking in pony-speak. If Thein's pony is actually a pony then he should be able to understand Songdancer.
"<Hello! I'm Songdancer, what's up with you?>"

[Lady Serpentine]

((Heh, I wonder where I got the idea they were short? Thanks for clarifying. I’ll change my post.))

The Lady turns to Sorrow, and sensing a similarity in their outlooks, smiles softly at him. “May I help you?” she asks in the polite tone well-mannered people use when interrupted by a complete stranger.

The second Tiefling will see that the Lady has no obvious bulges in her coat where a money pouch might hang from someone else’s belt. She bears a large satchel slung over her right shoulder and resting on her left hip. Her clothing is simple and rugged, not what one would expect of a leader born into a hereditary title. The only item of great worth clearly visible on her person is her sword. The hilt and scabbard are without gaudy decoration, but they gleam with careful polishing and are clearly of extraordinary quality.

((You're welcome! As for where you got the idea, perhaps you've been interacting with too many ogres? ))

Sorrow returns her smile, and wonders what it is that she's running from.

"Thein said to talk to you, about some people I know that need help..."

His tone is polite, but a bit resigned, and slightly bitter, as though he doesn't expect her to be willing to provide assistance based on his past experiences.

Fear, meanwhile, decides, without really thinking about it, that she'd make a very bad target, and goes back to studying the other patrons. Not that she actually intends to steal anything from them, but she's gotten into the habit, and doesn't see any reason to stop herself from doing so.

[LadyOfWar]

"It's called caramel, and you're about to find out what cupcakes are."
He levitates a rock up, coating it in a black aura.
And then it morphes into a chocolate cupcake with peanut butter icing and a caramel center.
He levitates it over to Thein.
"That, my young friend, is a cupcake."
He then looked at the pony.
He began talking in pony-speak. If Thein's pony is actually a pony then he should be able to understand Songdancer.
"<Hello! I'm Songdancer, what's up with you?>"

“Yes! Caramel, that is it in Common. In my country we like to add …” he falls silent as Songdancer levitates a rock. Thein watches in confusion and wonderment, first as the cupcake floats over to him, then as Songdancer strikes up a conversation in equine with Caramel.

“My name is Bherente,” the caramel colored pony replies. The way he pronounces it, only a horse’s large lungs and deep vocalization can actually create the sound. “Thein calls me Caramel, it is a good name compared to some.”

The war horse gives Songdancer a polite nod of welcome.

((You're welcome! As for where you got the idea, perhaps you've been interacting with too many ogres? ))

Sorrow returns her smile, and wonders what it is that she's running from.

"Thein said to talk to you, about some people I know that need help..."

His tone is polite, but a bit resigned, and slightly bitter, as though he doesn't expect her to be willing to provide assistance based on his past experiences.

“Certainly.” She glances around the bar, eyes pausing a bit longer on the vampire behind the counter than on some of the others. “Is this an acceptable place to talk?” she asks quietly enough that others should neither hear nor be offended.

[Lady Serpentine]

“Certainly.” She glances around the bar, eyes pausing a bit longer on the vampire behind the counter than on some of the others. “Is this an acceptable place to talk?” she asks quietly enough that others should neither hear nor be offended.

He nods.

"It is, unless you prefer to discuss things in private."

His tone should make it clear that he doesn't really care either way.

[LadyOfWar]

He nods.

"It is, unless you prefer to discuss things in private."

His tone should make it clear that he doesn't really care either way.

“Here is agreeable.” She holds out a hand to indicate a nearby table and moves toward it. The motion caused the sleeve of her jacket to pull up slightly revealing toughened white and pink scar tissue ringing her wrist. The concentration of scarring on the sharply curved edges of her wrist and the width of the scars implies prolonged chafing with rough rope or metal. She pulls out a chair for herself, placing her back toward a wall and her eyes toward the exits.

As Thein heads outside Raennal’s eyes narrow slightly, unsure of his choice to depart. When she sees him standing just outside the window with their horses, she turns her attention back to the Tiefling, who she begins to scrutinize.

((EDIT: I've got to go, see you all Monday))

[Chezmarine]

Ashtrek certainly is entertaining herself with that butterfly.

Oh no, It's escaping again!

[Lady Serpentine]

“Here is agreeable.” She holds out a hand to indicate a nearby table and moves toward it. The motion caused the sleeve of her jacket to pull up slightly revealing toughened white and pink scar tissue ringing her wrist. The concentration of scarring on the sharply curved edges of her wrist and the width of the scars implies prolonged chafing with rough rope or metal. She pulls out a chair for herself, placing her back toward a wall and her eyes toward the exits.

As Thein heads outside Raennal’s eyes narrow slightly, unsure of his choice to depart. When she sees him standing just outside the window with their horses, she turns her attention back to the Tiefling, who she begins to scrutinize.

Sorrow sits across from her, still looking wary, and keeping a hand near his name-blades (the strange, wavy, knives he used earlier, to cheer up Songdancer).

"Few are willing to hire Tieflings, at least for anything resembling a good job. Naku took myself, and my sister, in, but she only has so many jobs that need doing.... Anyway, the point being, that there are five others who need work, of some sort, so that they're not having to pick pockets - or, sometimes, less pleasant, and not nearly so subtle, means of theft - to eat barely enough to live."

While his words are polite, there's a harsh edge to his voice, like he's been denied help many times before, and expects that she's no different.

[Mindfreak]

“Yes! Caramel, that is it in Common. In my country we like to add …” he falls silent as Songdancer levitates a rock. Thein watches in confusion and wonderment, first as the cupcake floats over to him, then as Songdancer strikes up a conversation in equine with Caramel.

“My name is Bherente,” the caramel colored pony replies. The way he pronounces it, only a horse’s large lungs and deep vocalization can actually create the sound. “Thein calls me Caramel, it is a good name compared to some.”

The war horse gives Songdancer a polite nod of welcome.

Songdancer nods back at the War Horse.
"<Hello Caramel...I knew another Caramel...back home."
He wondered...
"<Tell me, does this boy treat you will?"

[Mee]

Well!
Naku un-deadtimes again!

And, even though I wasn't here, to seeing the butterfly, she would have replied with: "Oh, that's a Mothran Blood Drinker.
I suggest not letting it too close."
Well, or that's what they are from wherever she's from.

And now, Naku's back to humming to herself, and cleaning off the counter some more.
S'always dirty.

[LadyOfWar]

Sorrow sits across from her, still looking wary, and keeping a hand near his name-blades (the strange, wavy, knives he used earlier, to cheer up Songdancer).

"Few are willing to hire Tieflings, at least for anything resembling a good job. Naku took myself, and my sister, in, but she only has so many jobs that need doing.... Anyway, the point being, that there are five others who need work, of some sort, so that they're not having to pick pockets - or, sometimes, less pleasant, and not nearly so subtle, means of theft - to eat barely enough to live."

While his words are polite, there's a harsh edge to his voice, like he's been denied help many times before, and expects that she's no different.

The edge in the Tiefling’s voice and his readiness for an unpleasant encounter had Raennal tense, but upon hearing Sorrow’s request she drops even more of her wary look and replaces it with kindness.

“That,” she tells him, “is a perfectly reasonable desire.” She glances out the window again before continuing.

“If this were my homeland I would offer to set them up with a small tract of land of their own and a horse and plow on loan. It’s hard work, but a good life. Here, however, I will be seeking work myself over the next days. Unfortunately I am not in a position to personally hire five people at the moment, but a new day could lead anywhere, so, please tell me of your friend’s skills so that I can decide if there are any ways I might help.”

She pauses briefly before continuing, “If racial prejudice is the main barrier, then there many things that can be done. If any of your friends are personally known in the community as thieves however… it will make building trust much harder. Not impossible, just harder. I do not want to crush any hopes, but I believe in speaking the truth as I have experienced it.”

Meanwhile outside…

Songdancer nods back at the War Horse.
"<Hello Caramel...I knew another Caramel...back home."
He wondered...
"<Tell me, does this boy treat you will?"

The fluffy pony continues speaking to his new friend in Equine. “He follows the ways of the Rhaemarr, the horse people of the plains. He feeds us before he will eat, he waters us before he will drink, he brushes our coats morning and night, he sleeps beside us and learns our ways. He knows when I am pleased, when I am angry, when I am tired. He asks me to work, but does not force me. To his ancestors we are sacred.”

The pony pauses to suspiciously eye a bit of trash blowing by in the breeze. Then he continues. “In return, I carry him across the plains and look after him. Humans are weak, they could not live in the Northlands without us.”

The fluffy caramel pony nuzzles the boy and Thein scratches just behind the pony’s ears, where the crown of the bridle can become itchy. “He’s my friend.” Caramel sums up his speech in equine.