Porthca Landing I: Memory of the Sea

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Walking around the table to take the empty space next to Robern, Tyrius decided to skip eating and just drink coffee. Normally, Tyrius would eat a hearty breakfast but he didn't feel much of an appetite.

Picking up on Anthol's mood from the sigh, Tyrius said, "I can't imagine many people thinking they'd need to say such a thing, Master De'Porthca." Tyrius gave a slight smile, trying to reassure through his body language, "You're not alone, Ben's gathered a good group of people."

'I hope Virra, Lizzy and Winston are alright.' Tyrius thought to himself as he took the first sip of coffee.
 
Catelyn nodded to Ander. "Yes, of course I will keep this to myself. Whenever you're dealing with fey, there are a great many possibilities of what might have happened, and very few of them are good. If the family is aware of her ancestry, then I see no reason to pursue this line of thought any further until they believe it bears mentioning." Catelyn smoothed out her cassock before standing up, giving Ander a slight smile. "Thank you for hearing my concerns, Sir Ander. I pray that the gods grant us the day of peace that the De'Porthca family is desperately in need of, but I fear that this may be a power far more ancient than even the gods possess." She looked to her right hand and tightened the cord around it nervously before turning back to Ander. "I believe that's enough doom and gloom for one morning. Shall we rejoin our companions?"
 
Ander stretched and smiled at Cate, opening the door for her. He allowed her to lead the way back to the dining room, where he picked up some coffee and sat down beside Tyrius.
 
Benito continued to eat, there was a lot on his mind and the normalcy of eating settled him. He looked over as Tyrius mentioned the good people he'd brought together, "It wasn't so much my doing as just what kind of fell into my lap. Sure I knew you and Lizy, but you both traveled here for your own reasons. Virra is here because I didn't think we needed to deal with a gnome spouting gossip about me trying to run her down on the street, but I didn't intend for her to get involved. Winston was just..." Ben hesitated, "Being a good samaritan. Ander was here before I arrived and has his own concerns as I recall." He shrugged. "Seems the only one I actually gathered was Cate."

He pushed his food about his plate. "Seems like we've gotten really lucky so far. Gods willing we'll have a day to mourn before we must find a way to stop this threat." Ben looked to Anthol, "I hope we can resolve it before the council meeting, I imagine that ending this strife will garner some measure of favor if I am to take your place." He kept trying to be better, see how things fit into the political picture, but there was a nagging worry. Worry that he'd miss something, that he'd make a rash decision and get someone injured or killed.
 
The De'Porthca Manor | Dining Hall:

"Yes, hopefully the day will go as smoothly as possible. Once those attending with us have had some breakfast, we will be leaving for the Temple." Anthol nodded towards Ben, taking a bite of the toast he had before him.

Sidwae spoke up, "True, dealing with whatever it is that's been going after the Families will make them indebted to us." She lifted a glass of water as she took a sip, "However, I still wonder how much those outside of the Families know." with her glass she gestured to the servants working their way around the room, setting plates or refilling glasses. "Gossip travels quickly, even if told not to." She glared at some of the servants who moved faster out of her sight.

Robern glanced at Tyrius as he sat next to him, noticing his cup of dark liquid. His face scrunched for a moment as he muttered, "Coffee ... so bitter," before continuing with his own breakfast.

Meanwhile to Ben's side, Joane nodded, "I've fallen asleep in the library sometimes ... but somehow keep ending up in my own bed. Wonder why it didn't happen to you too?"
 
Benito shrugged, "We'll see how much a debt there is once we've reached the end of this. It seems everyone has put something forward, The Accmours and their trinkets, the Tahyrsts and their maps, the Defallians offering to summon an elemental to speak with the Sea. We can't count our coin until it's in our pouch." Then he looked to the others, "If you'd like to know what's been said around town, speak with Cate. Her ears are always open."

Ben then turned to Joane, "Well, I'm a lot bigger. I bet Ander is the only one who could carry me to a bed, and he was busy watching your room in case that bad man came back, because it's important that you and your brother are both very, very safe." He chuckled lightly, a genuine moment of joviality in the depression that was his brother's funeral day.
 
The first thing Virra noticed upon waking was that she had gained a dull headache, the sort that grew more prominent whenever she moved. Clearly all the social drinking had caught up to her, Wonder if I said anything stupid.

Sighing, she hauled herself up and, remembering what day it was, went to the wardrobe. Her hunch was right: at some point yesterday a servant had come in and provided suitable funeral attire. An austere black dress, about the size that might fit a human child, made of fabrics that were rough to the touch. So dark and miserable it wouldn't have looked out of place on her sister. Virra reluctantly put it on, and spent a long while trying to figure out whether her armour might fit over or under it and still look appropriately mournful.

When she finally gave up and headed downstairs, most of the household had already gathered for breakfast. She put a smile on and went to join them, picking the empty seat next to Ben. "Morning," she said, already reaching for a glass of juice and some bread before she even got to cross her legs. "Did I miss anything?" Her tone was just as peppy as usual, despite her headache and sombre clothes.
 
Ben smiled as Virra took the seat next to him. "Virra, hope you were able to get some rest last night as everything seemed to stay quiet." He reached across the table pulling a few of the serving trays closer and offering her the butter. "There's been no word of attack from the other houses. We were just discussing what will come of the resolution of our quest and how quickly gossip spreads throughout the city. Had you heard anything interesting before I picked you up two days past? What about in Chilldrift, do you have the same trouble with rumors that spread like wildfire?" He turned slightly in his chair so he was facing her more, invested in the conversation. He glanced over his shoulder at Joane, "I'm sure Jo would love to hear a tale of a far away place. And if you've boats up there, you might even interest Rob as well." Ben tried to invest the table in the conversation, take their mind off the day.
 
Virra happily accepted the butter and began to dollop it on her bread while she thought. "Well, when you put me on the spot like that, it's a little difficult. I don't think there's ever been a boat in Chilldrift, and stuff up there pretty much goes on like any other city. Honestly, I was happy to get away from it." And the only big rumour she'd heard recently had been the one about the noble murders, and by now she knew Ben well enough to not bring that up at hs breakfast table. Small tales, though...

"Not sure if you guys would be interested in the weird sightings going on in Booford," she mused almost casually. "Trees getting up and moving in the night, they say. Tiny dragons the size of cats hibernating up in people's haylofts. I've even heard the owlbears in the woods there have started to go up on two legs and learn how to speak Common." Maybe she'd only had a dream about that last one. But hey, rumours had to begin somewhere.
 
Winston awoke after a fitful nights sleep, skin sticky as he felt the damp sheets of his sweat underneath him. He lay there for a few moments, before rolling out of bed still naked. Winston wipes his face with the shirt on the floor, then took a whiff of it...hmm not terrible, just a bit damp and mildewey. He slipped on the shirt and pants, but left the room barefoot to find a servant in the hallway. "Hello, morning. Would I be able to get some clean clothes, and directions to the washroom?"

The halfling followed the servant to the washroom, and stripped off the dirty clothes. He climbed into the bathtub, and took a long bath, something he was not typically accustomed to, but again he found himself enjoying it. He was not sure what was wrong with him lately, but a lot of the things that he had formed opinions on over the course of his life, about nobles, religion, and other aspects of his everyday life had come into question recently. Thats not to say he had changed his mind about all these ideas, but he had never questioned himself so much. When he was growing up, Winston knew one thing and one thing only: survival. He did what he had to do to get a meal in his belly, and if he pissed off a load of people as he did so, tough toenails. But this group of people...it just got him thinking.

Winston climbed out of the tub, his hands and feet wrinkly from the overexposure to water, and changed into the fresh clothes laid out for him after drying off. Leaving the washroom, he nodded to the servant who had helped him out and allowed himself to be escorted to breakfast. When he entered the room, he saw that almost everyone had already been up and started eating. Not saying a word, Winston sat at the end of the table that he had become accustomed to, and began helping himself to some of the provided food. Once again, similar to the lunch a day earlier, he did not dive into the meal with his usual gusto. Instead, the halfling nibbled quietly while staring at his plate, only looking up to occasionally glance at Benito, but never making eye contact.
 
Benito looked to Joane, "So, would you rather head about naked owls, winged cats or the awakened forest?" He grinned at his own butchery of Virra's stories. Ben knew next to nothing about any of the three, but assumed moving trees were likely a larger version of the Defallian's shrub, Froot. He turned back to Virra with a smile, "Personally I'd love to hear your take on dragon cats, if Lady Joane has no issue with it." A with a quick glance over his shoulder he stuck his tongue out at his sister before turning back to the gnome with his full attention. Ben saw no reason why dinner couldn't be pleasant, if they allowed the whole day to be dour the funeral would be all the more difficult on the children - he knew from experience. The thought brought him a measure of sadness, but he knew that unlike being a better noble and mending his relationship with Sidwae, this is one area where he could absolutely do better. It would not be difficult to do better than Anthol had done for him after Elean's death; he just needed to be around.
 
The De'Porthca Manor | Dining Room:

Joane peered around Ben towards the small gnome before glancing up at her brother with a small smile, "They aren't naked owls, Ben. I've seen pictures in the library -- they're massive creatures, very dangerous too supposedly." She leaned back into her chair as she forked a few things from her plate to eat, "Dragon cats sound neat though -- maybe we could have one as a pet?" She snickered as Robern rolled his eyes.

Swallowing a bite of bacon he shook his head towards his twin, "You keep asking for pets ... what would you do if you actually got one?"

Joane shrugged, "Won't know 'till I get one, will I?"

Sidwae had been discussing softly with Anthol as she heard the two speaking across the table, "Enough you two. Finish up your breakfast, of all those arriving, we should not be the last."

Standing with a stretch, Anthol squeezed Sidwae's hand for a moment before speaking to the room, "I'll tell the servants to ready the carriages for our travel." He nodded towards Ben, "Those of your friends who are joining us will need to be at the gate when we go to leave."
 
Benito leaned back, "You should ask Lizy about Faust." Then he straightened as Sidwae commented to the children and Anthol addressed him. "Of course Father, I'll make sure we're all ready to go post haste." He nodded, "Sorry Virra, another time maybe..." A small frown appeared, but passed quickly, he was determined not to let the day win.

Looking around to account for everyone he sighed and pulled a servant over, "Go collect Cate and Ander, tell them there's not much time if they intend to eat and send someone up to collect Lizy as well. Even if she chooses not to join us, she should be given the opportunity to eat breakfast."

After dismissing the servant to do as he bid, Ben turned to Winston, "Something on your mind? You're not eating much and saying even less." He paused a moment to try to find the right words, "Though today is... solemn, we did not take a vow of silence. And you should eat. The service is long and there's no break for lunch." Ben recalled how hungry he'd been at his own mother's funeral. He wasn't sure if Cyne's would be the same, but he assumed it would.
 
Winston jumped when Benito addressed him, having been lost in his own thoughts. He put down his fork and put his napkin on top of his plate, indicating he was finished with his meal. He then finally met Benito’s gaze, displaying an expression that was not so much sorrow and solemnity as fear and confusion. A small bead of sweat formed along his hairline, and he mindlessly wiped it away. “I — I’m not that hungry this morning, I didn’t sleep so well last night. I know you are preparing to head out for the service soon sir, but...would you have a few minute that I could speak to you? Privately?”
 
Ben took a few more bites from his plate hurriedly. "Yeah, lets be quick. It'll very likely be my funeral next if I make us late." He grinned, but realized the joke was is quite poor taste. "Sorry." He apologized, mostly to Robern and Joane, but to the others as well.

Benito stood and took Winston across the way to the library, "What's this about?" His voice was level and focused, commanding and clear. He knew they were short on time and didn't want to mince words or play games and he had a sneaking suspicion that the halfling was about to discuss the investigation - a topic Ben really would prefer to avoid on this day. No time to back out now, he pushed forward, "Speak quickly and plainly. We've got to be at the door before the carriages pull around. Unless... you aren't coming to the funeral, but I still have obligations."
 
Virra was getting ready to spin the tallest tales she could about mischievous household dragons when Sidwae cut in first. She gave Ben a small shrug. "It's fine. We'll have time to talk later." At least it gave her some time to get back to her food and drink, which she enjoyed even though it was only breakfast fare. The novelty of eating meals meant for nobility hadn't worn off for her yet.

Still, eating in silence wasn't Virra's style. She giggled at Ben's funeral joke, then glanced across the table towards Cate as she swept up the last morsels from her plate. "Hey, when we get back, could you let me measure your feet?" she asked straight into the priestess's mind. "I can't make you any shoes otherwise."
 
Catelyn was uneasy after her chat with Ander, and it likely showed. She took a small portion to eat for breakfast and was doing her best to keep it down when she suddenly heard a voice in her head. She tensed up and glanced around for a moment before seeing it was only Virra and visibly relaxed. "Oh, sorry... Yes, of course Virra. I am sure there will be time after the funeral to do so. Thank you so much for your help. Did you have a pleasant night?
 
"It was all right," Virra said with the mental equivalent of a sigh. "Think I've found out what my comfortable drinking cap is, which is something I've always wondered about. So it was a pretty useful night." The visual contact necessary for keeping up the link soon paid off as the gnome realised her companion seemed distracted. She leaned forward, squinting. "Hey, is something bothering you? You seem kind of... melancholy, I don't know."
 
"I am glad that your night was productive." Catelyn hesitated, somewhat regretting her tenets of honesty before meeting Virra's gaze. "Yes, something is bothering me, but now is not the time to speak of it. I promise to share everything following the funeral, but now is not really the time." She put on a slightly forced smile at Virra. "Don't worry, I'll be alright. I'm merely shaken by some revelations I had last night." She broke off eye contact and returned to trying to get some food in her system.
 
Winston followed Ben wordlessly to the library, his already small stature seeming even smaller as his head hung down. When Ben adopted the authoritative tone, however, Winston straightened up and raised his chin to meet the man’s gaze. But the same look of confusion remained on his face even as he did so. “I’m glad you asked for me to speak plainly, for that’s exactly what I intended to do. I...am not what you think. Or maybe I am, I can’t tell what you think of me. I know that this is not the best time to do this, but it couldn’t wait.” Winston began to shift nervously as he stood in front of Benito, breaking his eye contact as he tried to organize his thoughts.

“The truth is I followed you here from Azarad. You were right when we first met that you saw me selling questionable wares. I took advantage of many clueless people in order to make a living, and I do not feel any regret for that. It’s all I’ve been good at for as long as I can remember, and it’s much better than pick pocketing; I should know I used to have to do that as well. But yes -- the truth is I saw the wealth you had back in Azarad and I hoped I would be able to profit off of that.” Winston started to pace now the more he spoke, the nervousness giving him a case of the jitters and he began to speak faster and faster, just looking to spew out what has been on his mind.

"So why am I telling you all of this, you're probably wondering. No, I'm not looking to get my ass kicked as I'm sure you could do, and I most certainly don't want your pity. I just want you to get an idea who I am and what I'm bringing to the table. I'm fast. I can talk my way out of most situations. I have many talents...and yet none of them seem to be the style of this group you've gathered." Winston stops pacing and leans back against a wall and slides down to the floor.

"I don't know what has come over me these past few days, whether it's the impact of this group of people who have come to your aid, or maybe it's just the fact that this is the first time I have ever left Azarad, but I have never found myself second guessing my actions as much as I am now. I want to be forthright and honest with you, that I did not come here out of the kindness of my heart and yet...I find myself desiring to help you. The very man I left Azarad to swindle. I know that this means that you cannot trust me, and I understand that." With this Winston pushes himself off the floor and goes to stand judgement in front of Benito. "I'm not saying I am a changed man, looking to give up all worldly possessions to help every living soul, but I believe I could really be of some aid to you. I tell you all of this so that there are no secrets, so that we have somewhere to start to form some kind of trust between us. That is, assuming you decide that you still would want me around. I will abide by any judgement you see fit; if you never want to see my face again I am gone." Winston's eyes glistened slightly as he stood in front of Benito, the tears of a confused man refusing to fall.
 
It was hard for Virra to filter her speech at the best of times. When she wanted to think something, her self-control failed entirely. "Wait, revelations? Did you figure something out?" Excited now, she leaned in a little further to try to catch Catelyn's eye. "C'mon, you can tell me. A problem shared is a problem halved, right? And you know you're not really "speaking" about it anyway," she pointed out.

Then her elbow slipped on the table, and she had to turn away to catch her glass before it tipped over and splashed juice everywhere. She realised quite suddenly that to everyone else around the table, she had just been staring intently at Cate for half a minute now. She bit her lip, set her cutlery straight on her plate and glanced up at the priestess for half a second longer. "Okay."

She slipped out of her chair. "See you at the gate," she said to the table in general, then left to get her things from the spare room.
 
Benito waited for Winston to finish speaking to even try to respond. His hand gently brushed the handle of the dagger concealed in his belt, but he quickly dismissed any sort of notion of violence, instead he began to chuckle. "You've not told me much I didn't already assume, Winston. I knew I recognized you, both from the Azarad shops and from the carriage two days passed. I saw the scratches on the lock of my wine and assumed nefarious intent, though I now guess you failed to open it since the wine was not miss, watered down, nor poisoned."

Ben shrugged, "It doesn't matter too much, you returned my goods and you've offered your aid. You should know my generosity extends far beyond that of my family, though it's fair to warn you much of my 'wealth' in Azarad was more 'debt' to my family. Not that they're struggling, mind you." He gestured to the grand home standing around them, "But I drank and schooled on their dime, and what little money I had, I earned - same as you, or similar enough rather." Ben grinned, "You see, I'm no stranger to a swindle and I've played my share of cards; I'm quite proficient, but where I really excel is games of skill: darts, bow betting, and the like. No one believes the noble can hit a target from across a field after a few quaffed ales, but you'd be surprised what I can do with a bow in my hands."

He sighed at the half-man. "I've seen you talk a man out of house and home for a vial of colored water. I know you've got the skills to help me with these problems, and you seemed capable enough with a blade the other night when Rob was attacked." He hesitated, thinking on it. "Here's the deal: you swear to me that anything you may have taken from this house will be returned and that you won't take anything for the duration of your stay. In exchange, I'll see that you're compensated for your assistance in this investigation along with everything you've been afforded up to this point, food, clothes, lodgings. When we've found my brother's killer and set this right, then we'll discuss employment in the De'Porthca family business, because we can always use a talented roguish type, and it seems I'll be taking a more active roll in the making of those kinds of decisions."

He leaned against the table and relaxed, "So, now the choice is your Winston. Will you stay or will you go?"
 
Winston felt relief slowly flood through him as he listened to Ben’s reply. He had never opened himself up like that before, to be so vulnerable. He smiled slightly at the man’s terms, wiping his eyes with his sleeve. “Well I can say that this conversation went a lot better than expected. You are a truly impressive man Lord Benito, many would have fallen upon me with curses and fists at the things I have admitted to you, but you remained calm and poised even with this ordeal you are about to go through. I truly appreciate your patience and understanding, and I of course agree to your terms. I’ll do my best to do right by your family.” And with that Winston puts out a hand up towards Benito to shake.
 
Finishing his cup of coffee, Tyrius was glad he'd decided to at least drink something rather than completely forgo food and drink for breakfast. 'Wonder where Lizzy is.' Tyrius thought as he set the now empty cup back on its saucer.
"Excuse me," Tyrius said as he stood up, nodding to both Joane and Robern but also giving a brief nod to Virra and Cate as well, "I just have to fetch something from my room, will meet you at the gate."

Walking out of the room, Tyrius found himself doubting whether it was really a good idea to take daggers to a funeral. 'On the one hand, it would be better to be armed in case anything out of the ordinary happens. On the other, its very poor form to show up to a funeral tooled up with weapons.' Heading up the stairs and into the guest room he was currently occupying, Tyrius made a decision, 'I had intended to take them both, but I figure maybe just the one would be best.' Picking up one of the daggers off the set of drawers, Tyrius slid it into his right boot. Looking at his quarterstaff, Tyrius decided to just leave that where it was before he headed out of the room and started making his way towards the entrance to the manor.
 
Ben waved it off, "Don't be too impressed; when met with expectations I often vastly underwhelm." He nodded at the mention of his 'ordeal', "Cyne's already dead - the ordeal is over, today is simply a day to mourn and I'll not let it get the best of me or my family. But thank you for the consideration." He shook Winston's hand. "Lets be off then, best we're not late for the funeral." Ben stood and exited the room in a slow stride to allow Winston to keep up as he traveled to the front of the house and the waiting carriages.
 
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