Hollows Last Hope [IC]

[Haze]

It's an overcast day in the small township of Falcon's Hollow, with the sky itself seeming almost to reflect the somber mood of the townspeople. After all, the plague has come to this town, and the cries of the sick and dying can be easily heard echoing through the largely deserted streets. Those few citizens out from behind locked doors hurry about their business, many of them with charms against pestilence around their necks, and muttering the occasional prayer for safety to Pelor.

Things are grim, and Falcon's Hollow, a border town that has always prided itself on its self sufficiency and independence, has found itself in desperate need of a miracle. The greedy and profit driven lumber barons who rule over the small lumber township are ill inclined to help, as the costs outweigh the benefits. After all, what does a few dozen workers and citizens dead from plague matter to them, when the alternative is a hit to their bottom line, and their decadent life styles of gambling, prostitutes and drink.

Not everyone has given up on finding a cure, however. The town herbalist, a woman who goes by the name Laurel, is thriving from the increased business, and would love nothing more than to charge a hefty fee of her own to cure those ailed people who come to her shop seeking to rid themselves of the disease. In fact, it is outside her shop that this adventure begins...

The small herbalist shop, Roots and Remedies, if the recently polished sign hanging over the doorway is anything to go by, is probably the busiest place in town at present. While elsewhere people take all precautions to avoid others, here there is a crowd of customers, begging entry and ointments for themselves and their loved ones. The shop itself is a small, ivy covered affair, with window boxes full of blooming flowers, that seem to defy the somber and almost desperate mood of the rest of the town. For whatever reasons, it is here that a group of would be adventurers has by chance, or fate, gathered...

[Prince Zahn]

Odette

"Excusez-moi! Excusez-moi! Femme de Noblesse - err, nobilitie, passing trough. Excusez—" The young Odette De Mont cuts through the discontent crowd standing in line to the Roots and Remedies shop, she is gravely concerned, why else would she be jabbering so much in Giant?
in her eyes, she earns her privilege, trying to rescue ancient creatures from far beyond the limits what man, elf and dwarf could possibly fathom. and not one in Falcon's Hollow has not heard her name, although many wish that they hadn't.
She suddenly flinches back with passing ire.
"Unhand me tis instant! I must speak to the herbalist at once!" she continues to pass through, mumbling something about a divine mission and some people who can't fathom it.
is there a check involved to cut in line? And is it Charisma-based? :smalltongue:

Also - changed my color to Royal Blue, code #4466DD , because I liked it better :3 happy adventuring guys!

[Haze]

A burly man, near the front of the crowd, pushes up to Odette angrily as she attempts to cut to the front. In his arms is a small child, of about three, who is obviously suffering from the effects of the disease ravaging the town. "Get back to the end of the queue, lassie, I dinnae care if yer some godfersaken lumber baron's daughter, or the Queen o' the bloody world."

The girl starts crying, obviously upset by her fathers raised voice, and the other townsfolk look on in disapproval, obviously as upset with Odette's actions as this man is.

[DoctorFaust]

With shaded eyes, Alya pushes her way through the crowd, wincing when the shouts begin. She turns towards the voice and continues pushing forwards, and eventually winds up behind Odetta. "'Scuse me," she says, laying a hand on her shoulder. "This is the herbalist's, yeah? Oh, um, parley...vis...common? Herbary? Jya? Nyet?"

She turns to the large man and grins winningly, or at least tries to. "This is the herbalists, yeah?" she asks, trying to surreptitiously pass him a few silver while mouthing For the kid's medicine.

[Dr.Gunsforhands]

"Yes, it is."

A statuesque elf emerges from the herbalist's doorway, ushering out the shop's last patient. Having addressed the out-of-town visitor, she looks down on the other, more impatient young lady. "...and The Herbalist intends to get to everyone, so there's no need to worry, or to cut in line. Now, who's next?"

As the person in front files into the shop, Kaytu stops to examine the ailing toddler. "Now, who might you be?" she smiles, trying the calm the little one. She looks to the girl's father for an actual answer.

[Modigar]

A scruffily dressed man, with a dagger at his side and studded leather armour barely covered by a tattered cloak, worn my years of travel, walks up. "Did I hear you correctly? This is the herbalist, right?"

[Lady Moreta]

Sophia hurries up the street towards Laurel's shop, the crowd has gotten bigger since she was here earlier this morning arranging a trade, medicine for her parents in exchange for meat for Laurel. Hunting isn't great at the moment, even the animals seem to be avoiding Falcon's Hollow, but Sophia still managed to find a couple of decent-sized rabbits. She arrives at the entrance just in time to see an elf woman leave and say something about not cutting in line to... Odette. Sophia groaned inwardly, even as she slipped and slid her way through the crowd to her friend. Odette could be completely oblivious sometimes. She shrugs and grimaces at the townsfolk, surely they're used to her smoothing over Odette's odder habits by now, and grabs the younger girl by the elbow.

"Don't be an ass!" she hisses, voice pitched low enough for Odette's ears only. "Laurel will see everyone in turn, now come on!" with those words, she tugs firmly on Odette's arm and forcibly drags her to the back of the line, shooting apologetic looks at all and sundry as she does.

[esorscher]

"Move aside, move aside," a dwarf bellows--easily recognizable by his racial identity if not his gruff demeanor, as dwarves are few and far between in Falcon's Hollow. Murklur pushes past the crowd and the elf in the doorway to get to the alchemist, Laurel. If he accidentally knocks over the sick child, he feels no remorse. "Look, we're all here, now give us the job so we can get on with it." The alchemist is used to his brusque demeanor, but no doubt recoils at his selfish attitude in the face of the mob of the sick. Then again, speed is of the essence in finding the cure.

Strength check to force his way through the crowds: [roll0]

[Prince Zahn]

Odétte vigorously displayed her signet ring before the brute - the mark of twin doors sealed by a single lock.
"My papa owns more salt mines than vous have firewood in a fortnight. And tankfullie, good sir, it is not your job to care, or la Queen du la bloodie world would hav—waah!"
At the brink of Odétte escalating an uncalled for argument, she is dragged away by Sophia, who thankfully knows how to save Odétte when she gets herself into these situations.
"But Sophia, you do not understand ...!"
Odétte pouted silently at the back of the queue, forced to back down. "...I could have overtaken tat man, you know..."
Odétte will resume her FrenchGiant later, ideally when she gets too excited, angry, or nervous, YMMV :smalltongue:

[Lady Moreta]

"I never understand." Sophia muttered, in a terrible mimicry of Odette's accent. "I don't want to understand." Out loud, she added, "I'm sure you could have, but that isn't the point. The entire town is scared and nervous, they only want a spark to send them up in flames. Please try not to give them a spark" she pleaded.

Glancing around, she lowered her voice and added, somewhat nervously. "Do you have any... um, friends with you at the moment?"

[Dr.Gunsforhands]

"Hm? Hey!" Kaytu shouts as the one with the red text shoves past. "What did I just say?"

The giant elf goes back inside to pull the dwarf back out, but hesitates when she sees Laurel's approving reaction to Murklur. "...Laurel, child, were you actually looking for someone to send out on a job?"

[Prince Zahn]

"eh? J'everi endeavor I take is for tese people!" Odétte retaliated to the yelling. But as her friend lowered her tone, so did she.
Odétte groaned. "Alright, alright. D'accord. I won't start anie riots. I know tey don't like me, here, and I kneaux not to burn te town down because of it. Tat is just...just... Barbare.

As Sophia asked if she was with company, Odétte shook her head and took off her headkerchief to prove it.
"non, not yet, see? but later today, ouais, most likelie."

[SilentNight]

Keeping an eye on the confrontation, a young man no more than 18 hangs to the side of the line, listening to all the goings on. Kim's instructions had him report to this herbalist to start looking for leads. "Excuse me honored sir," he addresses on of the more disgruntled looking customers, "can no one else help with zis plauge?" ((Faust, what are we taking Russian as?))

[DoctorFaust]

Alya's smile freezes on her face, and she allows a few wisps of eldritch energy to flow down her arms into the palms of her hands. "Or, Herbalist," she yells, "You could give the job to those of us who don't keep our weapons shoved up our -" Before she can finish the sentence, a young man approaches her, and she rounds on him with a snarl, which she quickly brings under control. "That... is precisely what I was trying to do."

I dunno. Maybe draconic or orcish?

[SilentNight]

"Splendid honored madam!" Kim claps his hands with joy, "I am chela to Mistress Elnara, honored priestess of Fharlanghn, perhaps you have heard of her, yes? I am to help as well."

Orcish sounds good to me, Kim speaks it.

[Modigar]

Aaron sharply turns to look at Alya as she calls upon her powers, paying far more attention to her hands than her words.

[Lady Moreta]

Sophia grimaced, "Well, just... be careful." The loud commotion at the front of the line drew her attention forward and she realised people were talking about a possible cure. Curious and wanting to dispose of the rabbits as quickly as possible, they were starting to smell, she started edging through the crowd. She turned briefly to Odette, intending to tell the girl to stay where she was, thought better of it and muttered "come on" instead. Sophia eyes the group crowded around the entrance,

"Excuse me?" she says hesitantly. "Did someone say Laurel wants people to go and find a cure?"

[Prince Zahn]

Odétte follows Sophia, trying to imagine what the ancient spirits would think if they knew of this double standard.

Has Sophia ever babysat before or was Odétte her first?:smalltongue:

[Dr.Gunsforhands]

The wood elf takes a hissing breath and opens her mouth to shout something as more adventurers quickly start filing into the store behind her, but thinks the better of it and just falls back to a look of mild frustration.

Her gaze follows that of the man in the studded leather cuirass, to the woman with the spooky special effects. "Careful, young lady. You don't want to put an eye out with... whatever it is you're doing." As she's wearing the medieval equivalent of an Ehlonna T-shirt with a matching shield on her back, it's not hard to place Kaytu as a cleric, but having access to magic isn't the same as actually knowing anything about it.

Kaytu then turns to Kim, the gregarious teenage boy with the accent. "Actually, I do remember an Elnara... but if she is the person I'm thinking of, it would have been from... some time ago."

Kaytu's mind wanders nostalgically for a moment, only to snap out of it as Sophia bursts in asking about the Cure plan. ... Cure plan?

"Wait. Laurel, does this mean what I think it means? You actually found it??"

[SilentNight]

Kim sidles forward in line to hear about a cure. Medical knowledge was always helpful, both in the line of duty and for larger application. He'd have to see if he could secure it's source for Ahlissa.

[DoctorFaust]

"Uh, chela?" Alya asks, tilting her head curiously. "I've never heard that word before. Whatsit mean?"

[SilentNight]

"Disciple," Kim replies with a smile, "it is what she calls me, I do not know from what language it hails, something spoken somewhere in the south where she spent many years."

[Modigar]

Aaron rocks from side to side in place, impatient. Eventually, he takes a copper coin out of his purse and starts playing with it, moving it from finger to finger with fluent motions.

Basically, since he's of a somewhat antisocial disposition there's not really much for me to do until the plot moves onwards unless he's approached, which seems unlikely atm.

[Dr.Gunsforhands]

Laurel presumably gestures for the group to hold on while she finishes with one last customer.

With an understanding nod, Kaytu straightens up and watches over the suddenly-assembled crowd of adventurers as patiently as she can.

"Huh. In Elven, the word Chela sounds like a kind of crab... I guess it's a false cognate."

[SilentNight]

Kim shrugs, My honored mistress's revered mother was an Elf, perhaps it is her little joke on me. I must ask her when I return from pilgrimage. Perhaps it is a compliment as well sahib, dost thou not know that some crabs can live forever?"

[Dr.Gunsforhands]

"Ha, I suppose I didn't!" Kaytu smiles. "It's nice to hear she's still around... she's probably in her eighties now. Where is your pilgrimage taking you, if you don't mind my asking?"

[Prince Zahn]

As Odétte walks back to the front of the line with her friend, she passes by the burlesque lumberjack, and blows a raspberry at the man's direction, but quickly ceases and retracts it the moment he pays any attention to it, feigning innocence.
[roll0]
"Wait, what is tis about a cu—SACRÉ–!"Odétte asked completely oblivious. She came to get a beauty cream and some ritual supplies, but Odétte had avoided going to the center of town for quite some time, only to be the last to discover the plague has come to town.
"Tis is horrifique! How long have tey had tose tings on tér skin?"
I rolled a 1 when trying to decide how Odétte will react, so she has a little catching up to do :smalltongue: Okay, Odétte just had her first change of priorities, so She'll be caught up to speed of you guys within two posts, hopefully.

[Lady Moreta]

Sophia, still hovering protectively at Odétte's elbow (though whether she's protecting Odétte from the crowd or the crowd from Odétte is anyone's guess) startles quite violently at this comment. She stares in disbelief at her friend, then lowers her head into her hands, shaking it almost despairingly. The words "oh dear" can be heard from behind her fingers, repeated over and over in tones of utter disbelief. Finally Sophia lifts her head to stare directly at her friend.

"I told you Odétte! I'm sure I told you! ... I must have told you... my parents" Sophia's voice trails off, small and quiet at the last, wondering if her dear (possibly only) friend could really be that self-absorbed. She was sure she'd told Odétte about the plague, if only to make sure the girl protected herself, and she was nearly 100% positive she'd shared her concerns about her parents with her friend. Odétte was hopeless...

I find it impossible to imagine that Sophia wouldn't have told Odétte about the plague, hence her reaction above.

[Prince Zahn]

Odétte thought long and hard about Sophia and this whole plague business. It takes her vaguely backs few months, she remembers Sophia came to her and said something about the plague encroaching, but she more vividly remembers having just made a pact with Dahlver-Nar for the first time - between his abrupt moaning and the aching teeth that sprouted on her forehead, her attention span flew out the window and broke the sill. Could it be from back then?
"the teet...I—I am so sorry, Sophie... You never—I didn't...! And the teet!" Odétte hesitates, pointing at her forehead in shock, she only now connected the dots together. She embraces Sophia strongly, quite tightly, even.
She spoke by her ear."Forgive me, S'il vous plaît! Please, Sophie I didn't realise how... How hardt it must be pour toi..."

[Lady Moreta]

Sophia made a choked sqeaking noise as Odétte hugged her fiercely. Not being a particularly touchy person herself, she doubted she'd ever get used to Odétte's sudden expressions of affection. Odétte's words penetrated finally and she realised she'd been a bit of an idiot. She suddenly remembered the day she'd first told Odétte about the plague, the girl's attention had been all over the place, and there were teeth involved. She wrapped her arms around her friend and hugged her back.

"It's okay," she murmured. "I'd forgotten you were... distracted, that day."