Book the Second, Chapter the Second: An Unexpected Arrival

[VictoriaSilverwolf]

Book the Second, Chapter the Second: An Unexpected Arrival; Or, The Ensorcelled Heir

Taken by surprise by the sudden appearance of this remarkable individual, the adventurers are struck dumb for a moment. They may also be struck by the person's obvious lack of cleanliness, which assaults the senses with a distasteful miasma.

Spoiler:

roll for Georgina's CHA[dice]0[/dice]

For a moment Georgina seems to be on the point of falling into a swoon from the distasteful sensation, but is able to recover her senses sufficiently to remain conscious.

"Whosoever you may be," she cries,"if you can lift this dreadful affliction Papa will be sure to reward you richly! And, oh, what has become of my dear Henry!"

It is true that there is no sign of the foundling. It is evident that Georgina is in a state of distress, torn between sorrow for her brother and fear for Henry.

Meanwhile, the twins examine the new arrival with great curiosity, walking around him and holding their doll up as if to examine him.

"You are a funny--

"little man. Poppy--

"says she knows--

"you from--

"somewhere."

[jp1885]

The fact that a child's doll might know Lepus doesn't seem at all strange to the fellow. He bows low once more, doffing his tricorne to the twins.

"Hehe perhaps we have met before my little ones. Good morrow Poppy, mayhap we can chitchatchitchat in a while hm?"

Suddenly he straightens up and points at Harold.

"But first the curse! Let old Lepus see what he can do..."

He treats the bewildered youth to what he thinks is a reassuring grin, but is probably more like an unsettling leer. Keeping his arm outstretched, he works his bony fingers into complex patterns, muttering unfathomable words as he attempts to undo the curse.

As he gibbers, the more solid parts of his mind know that his powers will have to be stronger than that of this Henry. Hopefully the foundling's soft life indoors will have taken the edge off his vexing.

Victoria,Lepus will use his Gypsy abilities to try to remove Henry's curse, which if I've read the rules correctly, can be attempted by a Gypsy of higher level. I'm hoping that Henry is a 'minus' level, having lived in the big house for so long.

[SunlessNick]

William finds himself stunned by the sudden arrival of this apparition, and even more so by the fact of allowing him to intervene in Harold's distress.

[VictoriaSilverwolf]

Spoiler:

Let's make the attempt to lift the curse dependent on a WIS roll, which is very likely to succeed.[dice]0[/dice]

The words and gestures of the mysterious new arrival seem to have a salubrious effect upon the young man. He shakes his head and blinks his eyes, in the manner of one awakening from a vivid dream. He does not appear to be aware of what has occurred during the last few moments.

"Where has that bounder run off to?" he inquires, evidently referring to Henry. "The coward! He is in need of a good thrashing, by Heaven!"

Torn between joy at her brother's recovery of his senses, and distress at the loss of one dear to her, Georgina falls to her knees.

"You must not harm him!" she cries. "I love him!"

His face turning a frightening shade of deep red at this confession, Harold trembles with rage. As if he feels the need to direct his wrath at another, he faces Lepus.

"Are we to have all manner of beggars invade our home with their foul ways? Be off with you, man!"

[SunlessNick]

"That man just healed your mind," says William to Harold. "I do not understand it, but none here can deny it. Let me help you - we should get you inside."

[jp1885]

Lepus takes a couple of steps backwards, thrusting his hands deep into his pockets.

"Pssht! I told you they wouldn't want my help. All Lepus asks for is a plate of scraps and a warm corner for the night, but are they grateful?"

He cocks his head, as if listening to some distant reply.

"Yesyesyes, but... Hmm... mayhap you are right..." He waves his arms as if dismissing an unsaid answer before lowering his head and glowering at Harold. "Or mayhap I should return the curse, hmm?"

Suddenly all trace of malice disappears from his expression. He chuckles, dancing a little jig.

"A foolish notion yesno? Such anger does not become the young gentleman, but if he wishes old Lepus to leave, then so be it, but poor old Lepus has been sent to help so he has."

He winks at the twins.

"Miss Polly knows this hmm?"

[VictoriaSilverwolf]

"Pshaw!" Harold exclaims. "Healed my mind indeed! There is nothing at all wrong with it, I assure you, that would require the questionable services of a mountebank."

It is evident that he recalls nothing about his temporary affliction.

"However," he continues, "as my sister possesses a tender heart, I suppose we can allow the fellow to find a scrap or two in the servants' quarters. Come inside, dear Georgina, and think no more of the scoundrel our father so foolishly took into our home."

[Mr. Handy]

"Thank you for you timely aid, stranger," says Henry, bowing to Lepus and trying not to inhale too deeply. "I am Dr. Henry North, thirteenth Earl of Dunwich. Your servant, sir."

[jp1885]

Lepus lunges forward and grasps Henry's hands in greeting, no doubt to the good Doctor's discomfort.

"'tis an honour to meet such a noble scholar! I am Lepus: wanderer of the world, mender of broken things and student of hidden truths."

He steps back, mercifully releasing Henry's hands. Standing up straight, he salutes William.

"And a gallant soldier too!"

When Lepus' eyes fix on Vincent, he gasps.

"And a fellow student of les artes mystique! An auspicious day indeed! Such fine gentlemen have been very kind to old Lepus. Lots of hidden truths for us to discover here hmm? Mayhap you could tell me what has transpired so far?"

He hopes that the fine gentlemen will bring him up to speed on what has happened, for the voices have only told him so much.

Victoria,I assume the twins have run off to play? Lepus is intrigued by Poppy and would like to speak to her.

[Rooter]

"Sacre bleu!" Vincent says, holding a perfumed handkerchief to his nose and following the others inside.

[jp1885]

OOC:   Sorry Rooter, I thought Vincent was resting in the house. I'll edit my post above to include him.

[VictoriaSilverwolf]

Intrigued by this new arrival, as they are always in search of amusement, the twins, who have, willy-nilly, the run of the house, accompany Lepus to the servants' kitchen, where he receives a simple but nourishing meal.

"Poppy say you--

"may talk to her but--

"you must discover--

"how."

_______________________________________________________

Meanwhile, in the main house, Harold seeks out Lord Highdark, making no secret of his intent that Henry be disowned and declared outlaw, accusing the foundling of an attack on him, and of attempted seduction of Georgina; this latter charge tearfully and shamefully denied by her, although, being of an honest nature, she must confess that, on occasion, they have gone off together unchaperoned.

[SunlessNick]

Harold's meeting with Lord Highdark is of course a family affair on which William caanot intrude. However, he addresses his fellow guests on the same subject. "As I said to the young Master Altumber, it cannot be denied that this Lepus here healed his affliction. Equally, it cannot be denied that the foundling boy was the cause of it. We must find him before he can work any more mischief." (Better minds will have to discern whether Georgina's declaration plays any role in this assertion).

[jp1885]

While the fine folk debate in the main house, Lepus is ensconced in a corner of the lowly kitchen, being studiously ignored by members of the household staff. With much frowning and gurning he ponders the twins' reply.

Assuming his new best friends (whether they like it or not) have outlined their recent findings to him, he wonders whether spending a night among the druid stones might bring him into touch with Poppy.

He also considers asking his little friends and cousins, the faerie folk, for advice. But he is not sure whether such landscaped grounds would include any wild areas suitable for them to frolic, should indeed they feel like helping him at all.

After some consideration (amid much noisy mastication) he settles on an opening gambit. He grins at the twins.

"Such spirited little girls like to play games yesno? Old Lepus knows a fine game! Fetch me something - the first thing that pops into your head mind you - and bring it back to Lepus. Yesyesyes, a fine game! Run along now, fast as a hare! For when you return, old Lepus will show you a trick!"

The part of Lepus' mind that stands on firmer ground than the rest, reasons thus: if the twins are mentally linked with Poppy, then maybe their subconscious will cause them to bring back a clue to help him converse with the doll.

[Mr. Handy]

"Yes, we must find him," says Henry. "He can't have gone far. We'll be better able to catch him up if we're on horseback. It seems I'm destined to spend the day searching for missing children."

[VictoriaSilverwolf]

Spoiler:

William's tracking skill while on horseback = WIS 13[dice]0[/dice]

Spoiler:

Let's see if anybody else has better luck, with WIS - 10 for lack of training in tracking; highest WIS, with Lepus not yet being consulted, is 11, so I'll roll for all 3 -- Henry, Vincent, and Ivan -- and allow success if anybody gets a 1; tracking is hard![dice]1[/dice]

It seems that Henry has been careful to leave little, if any trace behind him. There being no others in the household willing to attempt to go after the foundling -- opinions among the family and servants ranging from "let him do what he will" to "none of my affair" to "good riddance," save for the heartbroken Georgina, who is in no state to be consulted, the adventurers may wish to seek the help of the mysterious Lepus, who may possess wisdom not revealed by his appearance.

Meanwhile, the twins have run off to parts unknown and returned to Lepus with an iron key, quite large and evidently not used in some time, judging by its rusty condition.

"Now you must--

"find the right--

"room and open it--

"up and speak to the--

"person inside."

Further questioning evokes only giggles from the two little girls. Evidently, however, they have somehow managed to obtain a key that opens one of the many sealed (or, perhaps, entirely secret) rooms within Highdark Hall, although the twins cannot be persuaded to reveal which one.

"That would--

"be telling and--

"would spoil the--

"fun."

[jp1885]

"Ah such clever monkeys!"

Twitching in his seat, Lepus thanks the twins as he secretes the key somewhere upon his person. For his promised trick...

DEX 15+1 (sleight of hand),[dice]0[/dice]Phew, only just!

...he takes the spoon he has been eating with and seemingly swallows it. Then he pulls it out of his left ear, before pushing it back in and pulling it out of his right ear, apparently passing it through his head.

Grinning, he allows the twins to go about their business before turning his attention to the key. Didn't his new friends mention a sealed area of the house? He decides to go and find them and, mumbling thanks to the servants, wanders out of the kitchen.

[Rooter]

Vincent has spent this time resting in his room and has just partaken of supper. "Curieuse," he says with regards to the key upon the malodorous Gypsy's arrival "The sealed areas are on the third floor, non? We have an acquaintance, Miss Ravenscroft, with a room there who may be able to help identify the door."

[Mr. Handy]

Henry goes looking for Lepus and almost bumps into him as the strange man is seeking him. "Ah, just the fellow," says Henry. "We've had no luck trying to find the lad who ran off. I was hoping you might be able to track him down."

[VictoriaSilverwolf]

Spoiler:

WIS = 18, -10 for lack of tracking training = 8[dice]0[/dice]

Whether it be from a life spent mostly outdoors, or in some arcane manner, Lepus is able to determine that the young man has set off in the directions of the stables; upon investigation, it seems that he leapt upon the nearest steed available and rode at high speed toward the west; a direction that would eventually lead him to the wild and unexplored moors beyond the estate.

Meanwhile, discrete questioning of house servants has brought Miss Ravenscroft from her secluded room. She is filled with curiosity about what the adventurers may have discovered.