Another day comes and goes in the timeless Castle Pieksvaldt. Impassive Korvid housemen keep a careful watch on the castle grounds, while 'guests' live out their imprisonment under the constant threat of the Raveness' hunger. It's relatively uneventful, but at least one or two people seem to be missing from yesterday. Nobody speaks of them. A little first aid sees to Anisa's bumps and scrapes, getting her cleaned up from her scrap. Her cheek is still a bit swollen and bruised, but aside from some aches, she's back in fighting form. As before, when dusk approaches the house staff gradually trickle away, leaving through the front gate.

"So, ever followed a ghost before?" Xander asks Umeko as he stashes an extra housemaid's uniform into his robe.

A woman can never have too much clothing … or maybe it's more a noble can't. Either way, Umeko has switched to different attire: billowy and light pants combined with a black hopi coat for her torso and shoulders. As she's fitting her daisho into her belt sash, she answers, "I cannot recall a time that I followed a ghost. I tended to follow warriors and spy on them as they trained."

"I spied on jugglers when I was little," Xander admits.

"Male or female?" Umeko has to ask.

A soft but impatiently swift set of knocks comes from the door, followed by Anisa quickly darting into the room without waiting for an answer. "Dagh, it's nerve wracking walking around those halls alone, especially when it starts to get dark." She walks over to one of the spare chairs and plops down, leaning back with her paws behind her head – showing off the bandage on her right arm that goes from hand to elbow. "You two ready?"

"You must be pretty scared to risk running in on Umeko and me with so little warning," Xander says. "We could have been… napping."

Umeko considers her preparations for a moment, then dips her head once. "As much as I am able. With little knowledge of the town itself or what we may encounter there, it is hard to feel adequately prepared. But delaying further gains us nothing," the Kiriga notes.

"Then I would have woke you up, cause knowing you I doubt much would have been accomplished anyroad." Anisa nods to Umeko, "I'm traveling light myself, but hopefully we shouldn't be out too long." She fishes the hairpin along with the stone from it's hiding place. "Ready for me to call Tess?"

Xander adjusts the uniform wrapped around his waist, which makes him look a bit plump under the robe. "I guess I'm ready."

"Xander is wearing women's clothing under his robe," Umeko explains to Anisa and motions toward the bulge. "It is not due to reactions or food or over-eating. And I am ready as well."

"I'm not wearing them," Xander mutters. "They're for a Korv… "

Anisa just looks at the pair blankly, then shakes her head, ears flopping. "I'm not gonna ask. Okay then – Tess? Are you there? It's time… "

"I am never sure with you. You have tried on my robes before," Umeko points out to Xander. Her lips are twitching as if she's suppressing a grin.

"Female mostly," Xander whispers to Umeko. "There was one who kept adding beanbags from out of a nowhere… "

It doesn't take long for Anisa to be answered, her ears hearing the pit-pat of small bare feet before the ghostly Skeek maid materializes in the room, looking for all purposes like she were simply arriving to see if the sheets needed to be turned down. She smiles warmly at Anisa, before remembering herself and curtsying. "Lord and ladies?"

Anisa stands up from the chair, stretching as she does so. "It's time, kiddo. We need to get outside the castle for a little while, but be back before morning."

"Hopefully we'll be able to find the people we're looking for in that time," Xander notes.

"Good evening, most welcome memory of gentleness," Umeko says to the small ghost. She even dips slightly in curtsy before taking a chance to stretch one last time. He long torso and spine makes a series of small pops. "Mm, better," she mutters.

Tess nods earnestly. "I'm glad to see you all well. Yes, of course Miss Anisa. The guests are all abed, and the housemen are about their nightly flight. Our Lady roams the halls, but we shan't meet her, if we're quick and you stay close."

Anisa slips the pendant and pin back inside her shirt. "That's what we plan on doing. Everyone ready? Let's get moving then."

"I'd almost forgotten that the Murder would be out," Xander says quietly. "If we're captured outside… it'd be bad."

"Then we'll just hafta plan on not getting captured," Anisa says, pacing to the door.

"Do not fear, I can deal with them," Umeko claims. "Now, let us vanish into the shadows of night and slip unseen out unto a town that time has long forgotten. May we uncover the secret to victory over this lingering evil," she pronounces as she follows Anisa to the door.

"Mmmmm," Xander goes, following along, and thinking of which spell to work up once they're clear of the castle now that his Eye of Flame is running…

Anisa cracks the door and peers out – also sticking out an ear like a periscope. "Okay Tess, lead the way. We'll be right behind you."

It sounds like the coast is clear, and Tess seems to think so too. She pauses to listen for a moment, then begins hurrying down the hall as fast as her skirt and short legs will let her. Rather than head toward the main banquet hall, she moves further in toward the main castle itself, still keeping to the guests halls.

Anisa darts out of the room behind the small mouse and tries to keep close. Luckily, her big feet are furred all over, so they make little noise as well.

Umeko lowers herself by extending her tail rearward for weight balance as she lowers her front forward, making her spine almost completely horizontal. She's mindful of her toe claws and tries to make as little noise as possible.

Bringing up the rear, Xander pays more attention to what's behind them, so that nothing can sneak up.

The deathly quiet of Castle Pieksvaldt's halls seems to magnify every sound, but it's all muted enough that nobody comes to investigate. Tess herself makes as much as any of the others with her light footfalls, but it's helpful enough, making it easier to keep with her in the gloom of the halls. Soon the guest halls are left behind, and the group arrives in a much plainer series of halls. The decorations here are not at all as rich as they are in the rest of the castle, looking to have a certain homespun quality to them, paintings of the Sylvanian countryside, tapestries woven from rougher cloth, and utilitarian things like stands with baskets, ceder chests near clothes hampers, service carts, bells… this must be where the servants would have been quartered. While there's evidence of use, there's no indication that anyone uses this place to sleep anymore.

"I guess all the servants go back to town nowadays," Anisa says, looking around the hall while keeping her ears focused forward.

"If you were a servant here, would you not return to the town as well? For all its grandeur, this place is nothing more than an abattoir," Umeko notes.

"Best to come back in the morning and not hear the screams," Xander adds. "Makes it easier to deal with, probably."

Tess looks over her shoulder, stopping at an intersection of halls. "They don't sleep her anymore, but they still work here. Some still work here but won't ever go back to town. This is where I played when I didn't need to study or fetch water or mend clothes." She looks down the halls again. "Nobody's meant to leave the castle anymore, not without the Murder's say-so… but if you remember old ways, the castle remembers them too. Just barely."

A sad look briefly alights upon Anisa's face, but is soon replaced with resolve. "So it's like a maze? Without you, there's no way we could get out?"

"I think it is more that there are passages that are not well remembered," Umeko comments quietly. "I do not expect the walls themselves capable of shifting to construct a maze."

"Not a maze literally," Anisa clarifies. "But sometimes magic can make your head all foggy."

"Ah, that would explain Xander," Umeko agrees and nods.

"Magic makes everything… different," Xander adds. "When she says the castle remembers, you can take that literally… "

The buck, swats Umeko's tail for that.

Umeko's head and neck turns so that she can look directly back at Xander. All she does is smile … toothily.

The little Skeek seems to ponder this, nodding. "A little, I think. So I'm careful to do like I used to… you know, when I was still… here. You should probably do like me." She takes a few more steps down the hall, slower this time.

Anisa follows close behind Tess, almost mimicking her moves in paranoia.

And Umeko follows Anisa. Her tail lightly wraps behind Xander's neck and tugs him along too…

The Lapi mage doesn't voice a complaint, but keeps close as a result.

The Skeek trots along, her gait measured… and then she hops onto one foot. She hops forward again, landing on both, then forward on her opposite foot now. On looking down, the flagstones here are wider, and set at intervals. Years of chalk dust cloud the surfaces, though they were long ago smudged unrecognizable. She begins to recite as she skips in her pattern, "Mark in morning, mark in dawn, larks and starlings on the lawn. Buns for breakfast, cakes and tea. Fetch milk and honey, come with me."

Anisa slows considerably as she watches the young mouse. At first she looks perplexed, but then it hits her. "Hey… we used to say rhyme back in day school. And that's the skip game!" Scratching her ears a bit, the doe shrugs, then skips along with Tess, reciting the poem as well.

"I remember this," Xander says with a grin. "Some of the younger cubs still play it in the Collegia."

"We did not play such games when I was a child," Umeko admits. She tries to also follow the skipping pattern, but she has the disadvantage of not knowing the rhyme from her own childhood.

"Mark in noontime, mark the sun, minding chores till they are done, chopping wood and fill the pails, and come the teatime tell your tales," Anisa recites, suppressing a girlish giggle as she does so. "Just skip along, Umeko – that's part of the game."

"Let's see," Xander mutters. "Mark in midday, sun is high, uh… close your books for lunch is nigh! Grain and greens and longest laughter… clean your plate and sweets for after!"

Tess finishes her hopping across the stones, turns and looks back expectantly at the trio following her.

To anyone who didn't know better, Anisa – with her diminutive stature and not exactly threatening species – would look much like a child herself. "Mark the eve'ning, the sun will set, come in from chores and up you get, pipes and dancing, have your fun, then off to bed the day is… done!" She lands the last skip hard, a huge, goofy grin upon her face.

The Skeek beams, and claps her hands. She looks at Umeko, her rounded ears perking up. "Miss Lady Umeko, do you have rhymes where you are from? We had some tutors from Nagai, but they never sang or danced. They had poems, but they were long and never rhymed."

Umeko isn't reciting anything. In fact, it's hard to tell if she's even having fun. The skewed up expression on her snout is more like one that comes from trying to analyze and find the deeper meaning in a dance, a kata, or a puzzle. She doesn't even seem to notice the question until she's 'done' with the hopping. "Oh. Yes, we have rhymes and song. Dances too. But they aren't often done just for fun. With my people much if about seeking perfection in any action … so what may start as something that could just be fun … often becomes more ritualized, defined, and practiced," she admits and her own webbed ears wilt in realization. "We … well, I suppose in the pursuit of perfection we often lose track of its simpler pleasures."

"I don't know, your last attempt was pretty pleasurable," Xander mutters in Umeko's ear as he hops up behind her.

Umeko coughs politely, then promptly swats Xander's nose with her ear fin.

The Skeek seems to consider this, but one of her ears swivels, and she startles as if remembering something. She quickly turns in a whirl of skirts and trots down the hall, leading the way again, but stops only a half dozen yards or so, and turns to face an empty spot, curtsying respectfully at nothing. "Good evening, Nanna," she says. After doing that, trots a few steps and then looks back at the trio.

"When we get back to Rephidim, I'll have to teach you all the old games then," Anisa says, grinning to Umeko. Turning back to Tess, the smile fades and the doe looks confused. Following the mouse's lead, she stops at the same spot, and curtsys to nothing in particular.

Umeko follows Anisa's lead (though to get revenge on Xander's comment, her tail 'accidentally' sweeps between his legs, just so that her tailtip can flick up and lightly tickle one of his calves). When she reaches the same spot Anisa curtsied, Umeko repeats the gesture as well.

After recovering from the tickle, Xander curtsies as well – and since he's wearing robes, it's probably the most realistic outside of Tess's.

When they each have done curtsying, and Tess begins scurrying up the hallway again, rounding a corner. It might be imagination, but one can almost hear behind them an old woman's voice. "Don't run, Tess! Ladies do not run! Honestly, that girl… " At her range, Tess would already be out of earshot, and she doesn't stop scurrying when she snatches up what seems to be a ripped doublet from a basket of linens by an open door. She doesn't stop scampering, nor does she go into the doorway, though she does hazard a peek inside.

Anisa's fur stands on end at the sound of the disembodied voice, but really, she shouldn't be all that surprised in this place. Keeping close to the Skeek, the doe peeks inside the door as well.

"What do you see?" Xander whispers.

Umeko can't help but glance back in the direction of the voice. She doesn't try to peer in, opting instead to allow Anisa to explain what is inside.

It's a sewing room, full of rocking chairs, bits of embroidery and clothes in need of mending, knitting needles thrust into piles of yarn, and neatly folded stacks of clothing set off to the sides. The chairs are unoccupied, but all of them rock slowly back and forth.

Anisa's ears momentarily splay at the sight of the self-propelled rocking chairs, but she keeps in step with Tess. "Um… nothing important."

The bucks leans forward to peek anyway, but doesn't seem disturbed by the sight. "Moving along… " he says.

Umeko peers in as well. She makes no notable reaction whatsoever. "Squeaky chairs," she comments once they are beyond the door.

Tess rounds another corner, not waiting to see what the others do behind her now. The hallway is now taking them… back the way they came? The Skeek doesn't actually seem to be going anywhere, following circles and seeming to stop at random, but the halls seem to become… not noisy, exactly, but not the same deathly quiet that had permeated the castle before. She stops at a section of blank wall, looking at something only she can see. "Here it is," she says. "It's mended. You left the door unlocked, didn't you? What? Gossip? Oh, fine." She pauses, and lowers her voice. "Dame Floris has a son visiting from the western counties. Nanna thinks he fancies one of the chambermaids. No, I don't know who!" She turns to look at her three companions expectantly.

"I haven't touched any of the chambermaids, I swear!" Xander squeaks.

Umeko takes a completely straight-faced expression … then points at Xander. "He's the one with the maid's clothing under his robe," she whispers. "But I like him anyway. He is warm and fuzzy and I don't care if he is a commoner and I'm not… "

"Do we need to mimic everything she does?" Anisa whispers to the others. Shrugging, she stands behind Tess, and looks at the same spot the mouse does. "Um, it's mended?"

Tess folds her hands over her skirt, waiting patiently, though she glances between Anisa and Xander quickly, apparently satisfied with Umeko's reaction.

"Oh… oh! Um… " Anisa scratches her head. "Don't tell anyone I said so," she whispers at the wall, "but Vandringar can be kind of handsome when he wants to be. He's still evil, though."

"And… uh… Anisa screams like a girl when she's startled," Xander tosses in.

"Anisa is a girl," Umeko points out quietly.

"I am a girl," Anisa says, almost the same time as Umeko. She looks at Xander crossly.

"That's beside the point," Xander points out. "Gossip isn't about logic."

Tess nods wisely, and apparently satisfied, she… walks back the way the group came. But it's different now, the sewing room nowhere in sight. Instead, the hall ends at a staircase going up, evidently into one of the castle's many towers. But instead of climbing the staircase, Tess opens up a small door on the wall, revealing a dumbwaiter. She pulls the rope, making the dumbwaiter climb up its shaft… and then the girl clambers into the shaft itself, pushing at the rear wall. It swings out of the way, the stone apparently balanced on a pivot.

"How did you ever find that?" Xander wonders out loud.

Umeko's brow ridge arches a bit at this. "This is most peculiar," she comments.

Anisa's fur frazzles. "Better question – where did this stairway even come from?" She slowly walks to the wall, looking inside the shaft after Tess.

"It is best to not worry about such things. I hear worry will just turn fur white," Umeko comments. She has to then pause and look at Anisa. "Ah, well, never mind that, too late."

"Har har," the doe says, splaying her ears to the right. She climbs inside the dumbwaiter entrance, and once again follows Tess.

"Follow the white Lapi," Umeko mutters. And follow she does.

It takes some crouching to get through, but once past the pivoting stone, there's standing room in here, the corridor hewn from rock, with sconces on the wall holding unlit torches. "Stark, the stableboy I know… knew… he said that every castle has a way out, if the nobles had to go away. I played long enough here to find it… any of the other boys and girls who weren't servants never came here, so only I knew about it, far as I could tell. It goes all the way down the spire, and comes out behind Mr. Ansel, the beekeeper's place."

Anisa looks concerned at the Skeek. "Tess, how… long has it been since… what happened?"

Popping out of the shaft behind Umeko, Xander arches his back until it pops.

Umeko looks no worse for wear. She has had experience crawling up dumbwaiters recently, after all.

The little mousemaid's eyes grow distant for a moment. "I… I don't know. Sometimes it's hard for me to tell when something happened, yesterday or… or years ago."

Anisa frowns, but forces the expression away. She pats the Skeek on the shoulder. "Well, you're here now and that's all that matters. Lead the way!"

Tess smiles, even though patting her shoulder feels a bit more like waving one's hand through a chilly area of resistance. She hurries down the corridor in a swirl of skirts, leading the way. It's a long, winding, and at times very steep path, but there's no branches, and eventually it ends at another thick stone door on a pivot like the one hidden behind the dumb waiter in the castle. It opens into thick and overgrown bushes.

The fire mage sniffs for the scent of honey, just in case there are still beehives out there.

Anisa keeps pace with the mouse, skidding to a halt when they reach the door. "So, is this it?" Her nose twitches with curiosity. "Are we at the village?"

"I expect this is outside the village," Umeko comments.

The air past the overgrowth is fresh, and yes, sweet with the scent of flowers and honey. Sensitive Lapine ears can hear the buzz of insect wings, though it's fairly sedate… few workers seem to be active at this hour.

Tess looks up at Umeko, nodding. "Mr. Ansel lives on the edge of town."

"So, how should we proceed?" Xander asks the others.

Nodding, Anisa steps through the doorway, and into the bushes. "I just hope no one gets stung."

"I imagine singers would find some difficulty in getting past scales," Umeko notes as she follows after Anisa. "Just do not annoy the insects."

"Don't bother the bees and you won't get stung," Xander advises. "Stand near one of the hives long enough to get the pheromones on you and they'll ignore you too."

Tess puts her tiny hands forward to push through as well, though she hardly has to… the little mousemaid simply passes through the wall of vegetation as if it weren't there. The trio and their guide find themselves at the top of a hill, itself at the foot of a cliff, looking down over a tiered and rocky piece of countryside. It's high enough here to see the blanket of swamp trees surrounding the town of Rookery, which nestles in the shadow of Pieksvaldt's spire. Amidst a number of beehives, a simple-looking cottage stands, the windows dark but smoke curling from its chimney. A footpath worn into the grass leads amidst the other dwellings below. Here, the clouds that shrouded the castle seem further away but just as oppressive, and while it isn't raining the air is heavy and the ground is wet.

"This land is very wet," Umeko is compelled to remark as she stretches. A series of soft pops ripples along her long back and tail. She then adjusts the set of swords she carries; her own and the worn blade used to slay the Lord Rook.

"Now… how can we get back to the swamp?" Xander muses. "Without alerting the cottage?"

"I think I'm getting used to it," Anisa says. "Simple, we stay quiet."

The mousemaid nods solemnly. "Nobody will be out at this hour… not even a town watch. There wasn't a need anymore, when the housemen took to the night."

"There are alternatives to being quiet, but they are not desirable," Umeko comments. She can't help but look to the tower, wondering if the Murder is now about.

Anisa starts down the path towards the foot of the mountain. "I guess we do need to watch out for the Murder, although looking for crazy bird lazy may take us right into their path."

"I do not fear the Murder, I could easily take one of them," Umeko comments as she follows after Anisa. She can't help but look over the quiet town and wonder out loud, "Do you think they have given up all hope?"

"They're still here, so… I doubt they've given up completely," Xander reasons. "Unless they're just here because they fear being hunted down by the Murder if they leave."

"Tess, which house is yours?" Anisa asks the little mouse.

Tess follows close at Anisa's heels, taking two steps for every one of the longer-legged Lapi. Nothing in the beekeeper's cottage stirs, nor do the well-kept hives themselves, and the path descends amidst boulders and wildflower gardens overgrown from the rains, until the adventurers are making their way into the hamlet proper, finding themselves amongst sturdy stone and wood buildings in the high, narrow, thick-timbered and peak-roofed Sylvanian style. Most of the buildings are dark, only a few windows glowing, though more smoking chimneys attest to habitation. At Anisa's question, the Skeek looks at her a little anxiously, then down the road the group is on. She points at an unassuming house, middling in size, longer than some of the others. "I live… I lived there."

"Anisa," Xander Lapi-whispers. "If we bring her to rest now, we'll lose our guide."

Anisa makes a mental note of the house, but has to fight back a pained expression at Tess's reaction. "That one? It's very cute." She smiles at the mouse. "And you will be there again, I promise. Now, which way is to the swamp?"

Having nothing to really add to the current discussion, Umeko follows along quietly.

The girl wrings some handfuls of her apron, but nods again. She wipes an eye with her wrist and swallows, then says, "On the other side of the village. The main road bends at the well, and then goes to the gate. I'll show you the way, it's easy to get to… getting to the forest is harder, but you just need it to remember you."

"The… forest needs to remember us?" Xander asks.

It's now Umeko's turn to look at the small ghost. Her expression is so typically still, only broken by a soft and brief sigh. Xander's question causes her ears to perk a bit more, then she asks. "How does a forest remember?"

Tess nods. "Easier than the castle. The Lady Raveness, she… I think she did something that took us away from there. So nothing bad would come to Rookery. Everything just forgot about us, I think. But you came from there not so very long ago… there's someone out there who remembers you, isn't there?"

"Anisa's brother, Gibson," Xander says.

Anisa's ears wilt as she tries to wrap her brain around what's being said, but shoot back up at the mention of Gibson. "Yeah! My brother is still waiting for us on the outside. That'll get us out?"

"I do hope Gibson is well," Umeko notes, "And perhaps he has learned more on the outside about this place that could be useful."

"I'm sure he was able to charm Von Horne, and explain the situation," Xander offers.

"Such as you did?" Umeko asks.

Nobody disturbs the quiet conversation all the way to the edge of town and past the wooden gate, which lies open, overgrown with ivy. Above the gate is a stone arch engraved with the words "Town of Rookery est." The portion where a date should be has crumbled. Tess takes a few steps out past the group, then stops and looks at them each in turn. "Each of you, tell me a little about him."

"He's tall, and dark," Xander notes. "And very polite. Not at all like his sister, come to think of it… "

"A brave soul who went alone into a dragon's den to uncover dark secrets. There he unwittingly gained an ally in the form of a perhaps overly opinionated Kiriga," Umeko offers the mouse, "Kind and brave with a giving heart. He risks much and asks for little."

Anisa scratches the back of her head, ignoring Xander's comment. "Well… he's my oldest brother… and honestly my favorite. He used to keep Tyson and Quinn from picking on me when I was little, and would take me out for adventures in the Bazaar before getting ice cream. When he started going on real adventures, he'd send me things through the post to show where he'd been, and… um, I'm rambling." The doe's ears turn red.

Xander whispers to Umeko, "Is there something between you and Gibson I should know about?"

The girl smiles. "He sounds nice. Like my brothers." She looks out into the near impenetrable dark of the swamp's moss-laden trees, watching for a long moment, then points. "Walk out into the woods. Think about him, and you'll meet. I'll help, I promise." She turns again and trots out into the swamp, crossing a stretch of brackish water without leaving a ripple.

Umeko gives Xander an odd look. "What do you mean?" she asks the Lapi, "He is a friend who helped educate me on the strange creatures in the world outside my island."

"Oh… okay," Xander says, his ears blushing a bit. He follows after Tess, to see how cold the water is going to be.

"Gib just has that effect on girls, Xander – you should take notes." Turning, Anisa follows after Tess, remembering the times Gibson would give her piggyback rides while running through the docks.

Umeko follows after Xander. "Why are your ears red, Xander? Is something troubling you?" she asks.

"I'm fine," Xander mumbles, and then starts chanting softly to recharge his Eye of Flame.

"Oh … we did nothing intimate if that was your concern," Umeko tells the Lapi.

Tess stays ahead of the group, getting further away and becoming somewhat indistinct in the distance, but her voice carries back. "That's it… keep thinking about him. Close your eyes, you can't trust them now." Easy for her to say, of course… the water feels like it's getting deeper, and while it's not icy, it's unpleasantly cold and more than a little slimy.

"That's… ah. Good to know," the Mage comments, then goes back to working his magic. At the thought of wading through a Sylvanian swamp with his eyes closed, however, he seems hesitant. "What if we get separated?" he asks the ghost.

Anisa shivers at the sensations, but closes her eyes and keeps her thoughts on her brother. "I don't think we can," she tells Xander, "I don't think this part is totally… real? I don't know… "

"Cold water is not a Kiriga's friend," Umeko complains. Still, she does close her eyes as requested and her earfins spread, though it likely will not help much. "Just take hold of my tail, Xander," Umeko offers, "It should keep us close."

Xander grabs the tip of Umeko's tail with one hand, for reassurance, and then closes his eyes and thinks of… Gibson.

Umeko's thoughts are simply back to the night she stood upon the balcony and how she helped save Gibson … by having him climb up her tail. The grip on her tail tip only helps make the memory more vivid.

The memory is vivid indeed. The Kiriga can almost see him behind her eyelids, his expression of surprise when he nearly ran into her, disguised in mercenary armor within Hakuu's palatial estate. Xander can see him too, taking shelter by a drokkar out in a sea of dunes. And Anisa sees her brother as she did in Half Valley, smiling and joking with the River Rangers. Memories become more recent… now he's looking over his shoulder to say something to the group, perched on a Dromodon that wades through muddy swamp. Now he's being flung by a snare into some ferns and sludge, yelling as he flies. Now he's plucking what looks like a stick out of the bogs… no, it's a spear, with a beaked head. Tess' voice interrupts, a whisper. "Open your eyes. I found… someone… "

"Someone?" Xander whispers as he opens his eyes and scans about.

Umeko's golden eyelids slide open. Part of her remains wary, though, and her left hand slides down to 'Sunlight through Storm' and once there, her fingers curl about its grip.

The sound of Tess's voice gives Anisa a start – like someone waking another person from a vivid dream. Her eyes open – groggily – and she searches for whomever the mouse indicates. "Gibson?"

It is indeed someone, someone dark like Gibson. It's a Korv dressed in rugged clothes and draped over the shoulders with black furs. Knives and pouches hang from a bandoleer, and a leather mask covers her beak, a pair of goggles making her eyes expressionless, with a silvery crack in one lens. Bola hang at her hip, and the butt of a spear rests on the mushy ground, the steel point fashioned after a Korv's head, with the underbeak hinged.

"V-v-v-von Horne," Xander hiss-whispers. "Well… we did want to find her… "

"Ah, Von Horne," Umeko remarks in a calm and controlled tone, "You are one of two we sought out here. I hope you have not harmed Gibson; that would put quite a kink in the alliance we plan to offer you."

Anisa's fur nearly leaps from her body as she gets into a defensive crouch, her paw reaching for her bow. "That's not Gibson… "

The huntress takes a step back, but it's not a retreat… rather, she presents her side when she sees Anisa reaching for the longbow, and lowers her stance, her spear leveling out but not pointing at anyone… yet. "So you got out. He said you would… I didn't believe him. But Gibson was right, it seems. He's fine. What do you want here, then?"

"Well, we ran into a hunter named Borham Kuenn on the inside," Xander notes. "He had some quality of… er… emptiness that made him invisible to the Raveness. So, we thought consulting with you might be a good idea, since we don't know how to kill the Raveness ourselves… "

Anisa keeps her paw on her bow, but doesn't move to actually pull it forward. "We were going to come looking for him… and you, for that matter."

"To end the nightmare, same as you. Our tactics simply differ," Umeko answers smoothly. She releases the grip on her own weapon and moves to the worn hilt of the footman's blade. This she draws out and holds forward, blade pointing down so that Von Horne can see the entire weapon. "This is the blade that betrayed the Lord of the Rockery. This is the weapon that began the nightmare. This is the weapon that will end it. And what Xander says is also true, your skills may be of value in this. There is more than troubles these lands than simply those cursed; there is the mastermind behind it, and that is not the Raveness. She is simply a pawn."

"Kill the Raveness?" The Korv draws her head back. "What are you babbling about? What did-… " She stops abruptly when Umeko brings out the footman's sword, taking another step as if to keep her balance, taken aback. "That… that sword." She's speechless for a moment, glancing at each of the trio, then turns. "Come. Gibson is at my camp. We have a lot to talk about."

"I hope it's dry," Xander comments quietly.

Anisa perks an ear high at this, and looks to the others. "Well… I'm guessing it rang a bell." Shrugging, she follows after the Korv – still keeping he bow close.

The footman's sword twirls gracefully in Umeko's grasp, then quickly slips back into her belt sash. "As you wish," she says, "We shall follow."

Fortunately, it isn't a very long slog, even not being able to fly as Von Horne can. She leads the group to the hollow of an enormous fallen log, the inside long since rotted out. It's remarkably dry in there, with some earth pushing through the 'floor', on which sits a small and carefully tended fire. The light from it is well hidden by the log and the surrounding trees, and it burns with very little smoke. Bags of supplies are shoved up to the driest side, and a bedroll is unrolled near the fire, on which sits a tall black Lapi. He looks up when Von Horne leads the way into the firelight… then springs to his feet at the sight of the others. "Anisa!! Guys! You made it out!"

"We have to go back though," Xander points out. "Do you mind if I do a little magic to dry out clothes out?" he asks Von Horne.

Anisa sprints at the sight of her brother, and assaults him with a flying hug. "Gibson, you're alright! Thank the Star!"

"The night has not passed, alas. As they say, we must return and shatter the curse which holds this land in its sway," Umeko tells the Lapi as he's viciously attacked by a monster of hugs, otherwise known as his sister. "Tonight is a night of many unexpected alliances as well."

"I knew Von Horne would be reasonable… once Lilac wasn't around," Xander claims.

Gibson catches his sister against his chest, hugging her fiercely, cheek on the top of her head. "Star and Anchor, it's good to see you all again! I've been fine, the only real risk has been worrying myself almost to death." When he finally lets up, he gets a closer look at Anisa's face, and cups her chin. "That's a heck of a shiner you came out with, though. And… where IS Lilac?"

"Back in the Rookery. She seeks to confront the real villain behind all of this, the one who orchestrated the death of Lord Rock and the shattering of his wife's mind," Umeko answers.

"It's nothing," Anisa says, grinning, "just from a little disagreement with a Jupani." Letting go of the huge Lapi, the doe drops to her feet. "Yeah, she's still back at the castle. We managed to find a way out thanks to… a friend." She casts a wary glance at Von Horne. "But we think miss bounty hunter over there may be able to help us accomplish a few things – if she's up to it."

Von Horne leans closer, her voice incredulous even through her mask. "The Raveness lives?! How can this be?" She glances between Umeko and Anisa. "Just what did you find in there? How did you escape? And what's this about Kuenn?"

"So you know him?" Anisa asks, turning her attention to the Korv.

"I'll let Anisa explain about Kuenn," Xander offers, and starts chanting a spell to dry their clothes.

"The entire town still exists, ruled over by the Murder of times past," Umeko says as she draws out the work footman's sword and offers it to the Korv, hilt first to examine, "As for the Raveness, her body exists, but I cannot call what she is as alive. She exists, but seems trapped in memories of long ago, unaware of her surroundings. She haunts the halls of her castle, devouring those unfortunate enough to cross her path." The Kiriga then looks to Gibson as she adds, "The Raveness is fused with the Orb of Void."

The huntress sits back again, her voice flat. "I know OF him… and in passing. Sylvanian monster hunters aren't a sociable lot, but he was stranger than most, a savage. He hunted here, aye, but he disappeared more than a decade ago. I thought he finally got one scar too many."

Von Horne turns to Umeko, seeming to weigh her words, and accepts the sword to examine. Gibson speaks up, his voice hushed even though there's no-one else around to hear. "You found Void? The Raveness is tangled up with it? You couldn't get it away from her, I take it… " "Wouldn't know how to even try," Xander notes, and goes back to drying off himself, Anisa and Umeko.

Anisa shakes her head. "He was still earning a few more scars – only underneath the castle. I guess he found his way in there, and was captured – but he managed to escape, namely by murdering an innocent in the process." The doe's hand traces the outline of the hairpin under her shirt. "He's been terrorizing the place this whole time – we're not even sure who his victims were, and who were victims of the Raveness. Xander and I encountered him in the cistern underneath the castle proper – that's where I got this." She points to her eye.

"You cannot get close to the Raveness without her tearing you apart and devouring all the fluids within," Umeko explains rather grimly and quietly to Gibson. "Anisa's pendant also reacts around the Raveness as it did around the other orbs … but there is a problem, the pendant cannot access it from what Anisa and Vandringar both said. The key is in somehow getting the Raveness to remember and understand what truly happened. The sword must play a part, but what part as of yet I am unsure."

"The Raveness is tangled up with it, but you can't even get close enough to her to figure anything out. We watched her drain the life from some poor guy when we got there, and it wasn't… pleasant." Anisa shudders. "In any case, Kuenn won't be bothering anyone anymore," the doe taps her bandaged up arm in emphasis, "but what was really odd about him, is that he could roam the castle at will. It's like the Raveness couldn't see him."

"That is," Anisa adds, "she couldn't see him until the end."

"Because he was… empty inside," Xander says. "I think. He just didn't care about anything. It wasn't until we hurt him that the Raveness supposedly came for him."

Gibson scratches at his chin, his brow furrowed in thought. "That… seems to be relatively consistent, I think, with what little we know about these things. The green orb that you all freed seemed to govern all kinds of aspects of life, or 'being'… everything that comes together to make a person what they are, be it their mind and body and I guess their spirit. Void sounds like it's about… well, 'nothing'. As in, the quality of it, like how our world can't be made up entirely of stuff, it's got empty spots and… and… " He rubs at his temples. "Dagh, this is making my head hurt."

Von Horne, meanwhile, sits back on a thick root that managed to work its way into the fallen log, and she reaches up, undoing a buckle under her chin and behind her head. Her hood and goggles come away, baring a weathered face with a scratched-up black beak, hard dark eyes flicking over the sword. "This has to be it. My mother described it to me so many times I could have drawn it on parchment without ever seeing it."

"The question is how do we render it inert so that it cannot continue to rampage and consume," Umeko comments as she slips her light coat off and offers it to Xander to dry. "And somehow this orb is keeping that town alive, somehow separated from this world to 'protect' it. There Umeko pauses and looks back towards Von Horne. "Who was your mother?" she asks.

"We didn't know if the 'emptiness' was a skill that bounty hunters learn, or something that was unique to Kuenn." Anisa stops short, and turns to Von Horne. "It's not a… family heirloom, is it?"

The Mage keeps chanting, running the flat of his palm across the coat as if it were a flatiron.

"I am Klaudia Von Horne, daughter of Hilde Von Horne," says the bird, laying the blade across her lap. "My mother was part of the Lord Rook's retinue when he lead his host to battle, not knowing she was gravid. She was the host's only survivor when they were betrayed, seeing a band of our own Murder turn on our lord in the confusion of a pitched battle with the vile undead. Not many of their number made it away either, whether it was from fighting us or trying to escape the Necromancers. Mother took Magsbed's head to save him any disgrace and fled. She took this to mean a coup had happened within Castle Pieksvaldt, and when the Midnight Murder had seemed to have turned to marauding, she felt this bore her assumption out."

"Does your family still have the head?" Xander asks.

"Did she not think it was odd that the Murder had a few more… powers than before?" asks Anisa.

"The most of the rest of the Murder do not know of the treason that occurred, actually," Umeko explains as she finally sits down and folds her legs together. "The ones that did discover it were killed. One of those was a woman named Dame Riesling. The soul of that woman has lain without rest since that time. It even sought out help to end this. Our friend, the once you were determined to kill, bears Dame Riesling's spirit. It is why she also bears the curse of the Murder. She was guiding Lilac here in order to end this nightmare."

Klaudia frowns around her beak, taking up a stick to stir the fire again. "And that she couldn't find the castle that she'd lived in for near her whole life anymore? Yes, Lapi. They weren't always as we see them now, not always the things I claim these from from." She taps one of the tails hanging from her shoulders. "But they were ever hostile, bestial… something both less than and more than Korv. In the aftermath of the war, there was no-one my mother could turn to, so she was determined that the traitors and their curse shouldn't be allowed to exist or spread. When I was hatched, she raised me as best she could, and I followed." The huntress nods at Xander. "His skull rests in a small shrine that she kept as close to the castle as she could." To Umeko, she has little reply, seeming to need to chew this information over.

"With the skull AND the sword, we might be able to break the Raveness out of her eternal limbo," Xander suggests.

"I mean, if she feels something, even sadness, that could be enough to break her connection to Void, right?" he adds.

Anisa takes a seat by her brother, ears cocked sideways at the subtle rebuke. "It might. I guess what I'm curious about now is how she came into possession of the orb in the first place. Did they take it from the Necromancers?"

"Had you ever heard any tales about the orb before, Klaudia?" the doe asks the Korv.

"I imagine they found the old shrine and took it," Umeko offers, "And sought to use it to protect themselves from the Necromancers. The cost, though, has been enormous."

The Korv shakes her head. "Nay, nothing so specific. When mother had recovered from her wounds and had time to dwell in the swamps here, she'd heard rumors that the Raveness had found some way to bolster the castle's defenses by strange means before the castle and town were lost to the outside world. The stories that built up in the years since have grown and changed, such we don't know what could have been real and what was fancy."

"What she founds is some ancient artifact. One of several in the world tied to certain philosophical aspects," Umeko offers as explanation, "Dangerous artifacts that are best left buried and forgotten. Alas they tend to attract the unscrupulous, though. It needs to be reclaimed and sealed away. It is at the core of this … mess."

Anisa suddenly remembers something. "Did you say it's been ten years since Kuenn disappeared?" The doe's eyes go wide, and she rubs the back of her head. "Dagh… poor Tess… "

The Korvess nods. "Aye, give or take. Who is Tess?" Gibson angles his ears forward, apparently wanting to know the same thing.

"She's a friend," Xander says. "Who showed us the way out."

"She's… someone from the village. She helped us get out," is all Anisa will offer for now, nodding to Xander. "I'll explain more later, when you go back to the castle with us. You… are going to go with us, right?"

Anisa looks to Von Horne expectantly.

The Korv dips her beak, looking down again at the blade in her lap. "A chance to see the end to this once and for all? To avenge my mother and the lord she served? I would have gone back with you whether you wanted me or not." Gibson leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees and chiming in. "Can this Tess person get us back in? I don't like the idea of asking the Murder for the favor."

"She should be able to," Umeko says and bobs her head.

"See, I was right to bring the disguise," Xander whispers to Umeko, and takes the (now dry) maid uniform from out of his robe.

"She can get us back in – but you're staying put," Anisa says to Gibson, her ears set back sternly. "We need someone to stay on the outside, just in case we need to get out again. You're the only one we all know well enough, so you need to stay."

"True, we need a link on the outside to guide us back out through the magic that protects the castle and town," Umeko agrees.

Umeko then whispers to Xander, "I suppose so. Just … never ask me to wear such. It would be strange."

Xander blinks at Umeko. "It's a Korv's uniform. Why would ask you to wear something that isn't cut for a Kiriga?" he whispers back.

"Barring the cut. I would look silly in a maid's uniform," the Kiriga points out.

The black rabbit's ears splay out. "Like Dagh I'm staying put! You can't… but… ! Wait, what?" He trails off when Umeko explains as well, dropping his hands back to his knees. "So that's how it worked? Ugh… well, if it's the only way… " He reluctantly sits back again, crossing his arms, but his ears angle up again. "Hang on, this reminds me… Von Horne and I have been patrolling out here, watching the Murder and anyone else who comes through. We think there's been others in the outlying areas, not just treasure seekers."

Von Horne, satisfied with her role, looks over at the dress that Xander produces. "What… is this?"

"Others," Umeko asks Gibson, "What others?"

Anisa nods in agreement with Umeko. "If you hadn't been out here, then we might have been trapped permanently." She cocks an ear, "what kind of others?"

Gibson rolls his broad shoulders. "Hard to say, we haven't been able to get too close. They're not hunting for loot, so they steer clear of the Murder. They've got plenty of provisions and equipment… they could be Cinders."

"Vandringar's buddies, no doubt," Xander says, and then unfolds the garment to show Von Horne. "So… uh… nobody will suspect you… in the castle… err."

"Mmm, most likely the Cinders, yes. No allies, then," Umeko says as her head bobs again. "While we may have a temporary truce with Hagan, it will not last once the curse is halted. He will turn on us without blinking."

Anisa nods. "He's been helping us on the inside – though I trust him as much as I'd trust a rabid Bromthen hog. He does seem to know more than he lets on, as usual."

Gibson's mouth flattens into a line. "Hmph. I was wondering what he was up to. You've got the right idea, sis, don't turn your back on him."

"He and Anisa did make a cute couple at dinner though," Xander has to mention.

"Anisa was his dinner-date," Umeko notes to Gibson, echoing Xander, "He rather enjoyed how uncomfortable she was."

Anisa glares at Xander, and then at Umeko, her ears turning bright red. "It's not like I had much of a choice!"

Von Horne reaches out for the dress, looking it over critically, and with some measure of distaste. "Mph. How am I supposed to hide my weapons in this? I suppose the skirt is long enough."

Gibson arches a brow, looking sidelong at Anisa. "Dinner date? Well I'm glad to hear you've all been eating well in that deathtrap, at least. It must be very interesting in there indeed."

"Well… uh… I got the biggest I could find," Xander explains. "I mean, if you hunch over and act old, nobody will care if you have extra lumps under your clothes."

"There are many prisoners in the castle. All of them just waiting to be devoured by the Raveness, in fact. It is a macabre resort," Umeko explains to Gibson.

"You'll probably only want the essentials," Anisa says to Klaudia before turning back to Gibson. "Meals are never a problem, although how you have to attend them are." She nods in agreement with Umeko. "Although a few have seemed to take advantage of it. As long as you show no fear, you seem to be safe, or so we think."

The tall Lapi whistles, running his hands over his ears. "And the Raveness eats them? Strange… the orb itself shouldn't need sustenance, it's an artifact from before the First Ones. What uses blood and body fluids to survive?"

"Vampires," Xander offers.

Gibson rolls his eyes. "Oh c'mon."

"We do, do we not? Our blood and fluids keep us alive, so why not keeping others alive?" Umeko comments.

Anisa shrugs. "Maybe it's a side effect of fusing with the orb. It may not need anything, but she does, apparently."

Gibson holds his paws up. "Okay, okay, fair enough… I guess we've seen weirder already. So the Raveness is a vampire?"

"The barrier," Xander suddenly says. "If it's like a giant spirit manifestation, it could need the blood. Or… well, there could be other spirits involved that the Raveness is maintaining somehow."

"Barrier aside, I believe we should focus on what we do know and can do," the Kiriga notes as she raises one of her index fingers to accentuate the point. "So, I recommend we locate the enshrined head and pair it with the ancient sword. A secondary plan of action, should we have the time and others the desire, we sabotage the Cinder's camp so that they do not trouble us when the true chaos begins."

"By sabotage… do you mean blow it up?" Xander asks, just to be certain.

"Along those lines. Though a destructive act of that scale might summon the Murder," Umeko points out.

"That's definitely one way," Anisa says, nodding to Umeko. "And maybe we want to summon the Murder."

"You mean as a distraction to cover our return to the Rookery?" Xander asks the doe.

Anisa nods, "Kind of a double distraction. Get them out of the way, and also in what's left of the Cinders' hair."

Von Horne frowns at the mention of the Murder, though she holds her tongue for now. She shows restraint in light of the information new to her, but her unease dies hard.

"Mm, a fair point," Umeko concedes, "Without them there, that leaves us with just the Raveness and the traitor."

"And you'll wait for me to complete my spell this time?" Xander asks Anisa teasingly.

"As long as you promise not to try and get skewered this time, Hotfoot," the doe says, ears set sideways.

"You ask much of him," Umeko remarks dryly.

Xander notes, "With any luck, they'll have gunpowder with them again… "

Umeko notes to Von Horne, "The Cinders are a greater threat ultimately. They are monsters in hiding and have desires of world domination. They would think nothing of killing us and enslaving the Murder for their uses."

The huntress cocks her head. "Who are they? Are they here for this power the Raveness has been cursed with?"

"Anisa could explain them best. A simple answer is, yes, they are. But their goals are greater than just collection," Umeko says.

"Just don't ask me about any of it," the buck comments.

Anisa nods. "That's exactly why they're here. The orb is part of a set of ancient artifacts that they've been hunting down – their ultimate goal is to create a new world order with themselves as the rulers. Anyone who disagrees?" The doe shrugs. "Well, in your case – ever wonder what it would be like to be nothing more than a Creen?"

Von Horne's brow beetles, her ragged crest ruffling up a little. "A little hard to believe," she says, "But then again, I've been seeing plenty that would beggar belief. So either way, I'll go along with you… I certainly think they mean no good, to be here."

"I don't suppose the place with the skull is easy to get into and not guarded by zombies or other monsters?" Xander asks.

"Well, I hope you never experience what they would do to you. It is not pleasant," Umeko now explains. "I survived one of their attempts to … regress me to an earlier state of being. The pain cannot be described adequately by words and I am fortunate to have survived and be mostly restored. And yes, mostly. I assume you recall my bite and what it did to you? That … effect is due to the Cinder's attempt at mutilating me."

Von Horne smirks humorlessly around her beak. "I am the most dangerous thing guarding the Lord Rook's shrine. Myself, the Murder, and the swamp."

The Korv turns to nod at Umeko. "I must admit, the potency of your bite… surprised me. It took considerable time to recover from."

"Apparently a capability of my ancestors," Umeko says and nods. "Not something you would likely find on a Kiriga of this time. I am fortunate it is the only scar I bear from that ordeal."

Anisa stands up, dusting off her pantlegs. "Well, should we get started? We can't dilly dally too much – they might notice we're gone."

"Agreed. We're operating on borrowed time. We should move quickly," Umeko says as she pushes herself back to her feet.

Gibson gets to his feet as well. "Lead the way."

Von Horne is careful about breaking her camp. She looks for a moment like she's about to set a trap made from the campfire, but remembers herself and merely extinguishes it, burying the coals in mud. She efficiently double checks all her buckles, pouches, and weaponry, secrets away anything she doesn't intend to move with, and is ready to go within a few minutes. "Follow," she says. Easier said than done, of course… since the group is terrestrial and she can't take flight, Von Horne insists on doubling back every so often and passing through bodies of water to keep the scent trail broken. It adds an hour or two time to travel, but Von Horne seems satisfied when the group arrives at a cluster of trees grown tightly together, some of them with merged trunks.

"A Sylvanian banyan tree!" Xander notes happily, a little ghost-flame bobbing between his ears now.

Of course, with the multitude of giant rabbit feet in this party, hiding tracks is somewhat difficult. "This is unique," Anisa asks, "Is this the spot?"

"These lands are extremely unpleasant," Umeko observes as she trudges along. "Cold and wet. Why could they not be warm and wet?"

The huntress boosts herself up to a branch angled out over the swampy ground, perching on it near the center of the conjoined trunks. Nestled amongst them is a man-made enclosure built of what appears to be salvaged stone and wood with a sloped roof covered in moss. It's nearly invisible in its spot, but discovery doesn't seem to be a great worry out here, a few stubs of scentless beeswax showing where the occasional candle sat. "I present to you Lord Rook Magsbed Pieksvaldt of Sylvania," says the Korv, carefully measured and without cynicism.

"Dibs on not being the one to carry him back," Xander calls.

Even though the lord is long dead and buried, Umeko takes a single step backward and dips her head to the cairn being presented. "We are honored," she says softly, "May his removal from this place find him the rest he has long deserved."

Bracing herself, Anisa rears back, then makes a hard leap at a higher branch to get a better view.

Von Horne seems to appreciate Umeko's gesture, and she swings a small door on the shrine vault open. It's well sealed, and the interior is dry. White bone around a dark beak stares out with empty eye sockets, the skull large for a Korv. The bill is heavy and still black, built like a thick mattock. There's an unsettling sensation of being watched when looking at the skull's face for too long, and Von Horne herself seems reluctant to do so. "You are all certain that he will be returned to his home?"

"With any luck, his home will be returned to the rest of the world as well," Xander comments.

Anisa nods, leaping back down to the ground. "We're certain."

"We will do all that we can to see that he is. What comes are for the fates to decide," Umeko says. "Perhaps his will shall give us the strength to bring an end to those who betrayed him, destroyed his home, and enslaved the woman he loved."

The Korv glances between each of the Lapi, and then at Umeko. "You hold yourself with great poise. Are you of noble birth?"

"I am. My father is Lord Tsuguri of the Jadian isles. But, I learned long ago that nobility is not just an act of birth, but defined by ones actions in life," Umeko says as she bows her head. "So I have tried to bring back true meaning an honor to the title that my birth granted me. I told you once that I did not come here to raid tombs; I came here to put an end to the actions of the Cinders and protect a larger world. I meant it."

The huntress seems to consider this, nodding slowly. "If this is true, I apologize for my role in our conflict. I would ask that you bear this relic of House Pieksvaldt."

"I would be honored to," Umeko answers as she draws herself upright, her jaw setting firmly and proud. "And I thank you for the apology and offer one in kind. We are from different worlds and yours is one of harsh realities. I can understand that in these lands offering mercy to an opponent is a dangerous act. I apologize for my actions as well. Or to put this more simply as I am told I tend to be long winded: 'It is good that neither of our stubborn selves managed to kill the other over misunderstandings.'" That last bit even comes with a bemused smile.

"And brother, does that bit come up often", Anisa says, rubbing behind an ear.

Von Horne allows herself a small, wry smile, and bows at the waist, leaving Umeko to take up the skull.

Umeko takes a couple steps back, then darts forward towards the wall of trees. She leaps upward, leaving a spray of water in her wake. Toe claws catch bark and the Kiriga propels herself upwards, her feet soon alighting upon the branches that overlook the skull below. Not a word is said as she crouches down. Her fingers curl underneath the skull and soon she has lifted it from its resting place. The Kiriga holds it as if it were crafted of the finest, most delicate, porcelain. There's an unspoken thanks from her, a simple dip and brief close of her eyes, as Von Horne holds out a hide pack lined with fur and feathers for Umeko to place the skull in. Soon it is away and Umeko has taken the pack from their new ally. Firm and curt nod Umeko's head comes, perhaps to acknowledge the value and honor of the remains now in her charge, before the Kiriga descends back to the swamp below.

With this precious cargo in possession, Von Horne and Gibson quietly discuss where they last saw the encampments.

Xander asks the Korv, "Have you seen these men acting belligerent towards anyone? That is… uh… could you just walk into their camp and say hello, ask them what they're about, and so forth? I'm sure they're on the lookout for the rest of us."

Von Horne thinks this over. "Not belligerent per se. I assume they must have at least occasionally encountered treasure seekers."

"I know that I can't get near," Anisa says, swiveling her ears outwards. "They'd probably know me on sight."

Gibson nods, grimacing. "I imagine the Cinders are pretty familiar with us by now, if that's who they are."

"They would know all of us save perhaps Xander and Von Horne," Umeko notes. "All of us have made their lives difficult at one point or another."

"I just need to know where the flammable stuff is kept," Xander says. "I wouldn't be at all surprised if they had cannons with them!"

"I would. How would you carry a cannon in a swamp?" Umeko points out. "Without sinking and drowning in filth, that is."

"They probably have an airship anchored close to their camp," Anisa says, "although 'close' is relative. Knowing them, they have ways of masking it from sight as well."

Gibson nods slowly. "I wouldn't doubt it, sis. Vandringar came here walking lightly because he must've known no kind of force would have worked in Castle Pieksvaldt… but I doubt he's taking any chances with his egress."

"Then if that were true, then he has a way of signaling them when it is time for his escape, as it were," Umeko observes.

The black Lapi rubs his chin. "Should we look for signs of that, then? We might not have to get too close to do that."

"Perhaps … it would require magic to conceal an airship, would it not?" Umeko asks and looks towards their source of magical knowledge, Xander.

"Nobody risks flying an airship in Sylvania," Xander notes.

"The Cinders are already insane," Umeko points out.

"As for hiding one… well, just leave it up in the overcast layer," the Lapi mage suggests with a shrug. "Of course, that's where airships tend to get lost."

Von Horne folds her wings, and looks up at the sky through the dense foliage. "Dangerous though it might be, there is ample cloud cover too."

Cracking his knuckles, Xander adds, "Still, if they have one, I can always blow it up again!" He gives a broad, buck-toothed smile as he says that.

"If they were using magic to keep the ship stable, could you sense it, Xander?" Umeko asks.

"I'd have to be pretty close for that; I'm only a Journeyman," Xander notes. "If it's in the cloud layer, it'd be beyond my range for sensing or attacking. But then, there would be anchor ropes securing it near the camp. The men on the ground could literally be pulling it along to keep it from getting lost."

"We could catapult you into the clouds?" Umeko offers with a wry tone creeping into her voice. "So, it seems our only real choice is to try and find their camp."

"Doesn't that defeat the purpose of trying to hide it though?" asks Anisa.

"Vandringar came here on the train, just like us," the brown buck notes. "To me that suggests he didn't have an airship handy, or else just has a strong sense of self-preservation. His men could be locals too, and not anyone we've run into before."

"Correction, we do not know for certain he came by train," Umeko points out, "We only know he knew we would."

Gibson chimes in, "He used some discretion, at least. I don't know if a truly ostentatious entrance would have gotten him what he wanted from the Murder."

Von Horne grinds her beak. "I assumed he was an idiot when he let himself be captured."

"All this talking," Anisa says, grabbing her ears and pulling them downwards. "How about we go find out for ourselves? Klaudia, do you remember the way?"

"Oh, no. That was all part of his plan. He desired to enter the castle," Umeko says. "And given he knew not its exact location, being captured was the most expedient route available."

Both Gibson and Von Horne nod at this. "If they haven't moved far, we can get back to the camp we discovered in a couple hours," answers the Korv.

"Then let us go," Umeko says, "Before more gains of time roll through the hourglass of eternity."

Another squishy, muddy trek through the swamps, another couple hours spent. It's likely past midnight now, and the Procession must be wheeling well overhead, though through the clouds there's no way to tell. The camp isn't in the same place it was last Gibson and Von Horne checked, and they note as much, but a little more searching turns them up. It's relatively small, perhaps a dozen men, and they clearly take pains to cover their tracks and maintain a low profile, lacking even a campfire. They're dressed uniformly, with tabards and light leather armor. Two have large crossbows, the rest have bows, and all are armed with short or long swords. Their equipment is sparse, limited to some packs and what looks like a couple crates that're carried between them when it's not resting safely out of the way. These are no treasure hunters.

Stepping over to Anisa, Xander Lapi-whispers to her, "Hey, you don't think attacking his camp would be a breach of our truce with Vandringar, do you?"

"The truce only counts inside the castle walls," Anisa says, fighting back a smirk. "Out here, its still fair game. He might have a facade of honor, but he'd gladly screw us over if he had the same chance."

"And besides," she adds, "the truce was with him – not the Cinders as a whole."

Out loud (or at least enough for the others to hear), Xander says, "They have crossbows. It may not be all that safe for Von Horne to approach them. But she can call to them from a distance, maybe?"

"Mm, perhaps," Umeko murmurs, "I do not like being deceitful in battle. But, there is also precious little choice. I have an alternate thought, though. Xander could use his flame spell and fire it upwards to just attract the Murder. It would keep us out of harms way."

Gibson speaks up, his voice low. "Either way, it's interesting. We never would have found them if it hadn't been for Von Horne, and even that was by chance. They're moving kind of like I saw the River Rangers do in Half Valley, stalking and quiet."

Von Horne nods at this. "I know this land better than the Murder itself, and there might be more of these camps that I don't know of. They're well hidden."

"I guess they learned a thing or two from their time there," Anisa says, nodding to her brother. "You think there might be more of them? We're not setting ourselves up for an ambush, are we?"

"They're probably teasing out the edges of the barrier," Xander suggests. "They expect Vandringar to bring it down, after all. Then they'll be in the ideal positions to secure the town."

Gibson rubs the back of his neck uneasily. "I hope not, but the more I think about it, the more I think tangling with these guys might not be in our best interests. We need you to get back in that castle with the skull. If this is some kind of support team out here for Vandringar, we might be risking a lot to put a small dent in it. But Xander's theory sounds plausible.""

Umeko frowns. "Too many unknowns with them. Perhaps we should not attempt to disrupt them," she says.

"We can still use my Eye of Flame for a distraction if the Murder shows up. But mostly I think it would just make these guys move," Xander says. "From what you've described, I doubt they're carrying any heavy munitions or other supplies they'd have to worry about abandoning."

Anisa's fur frazzles out in frustration, but she nods along with the others. "Dagh, so near and so far. If Xander is right, we need to make a plan for when we get the barrier down."

Gibson shakes his head. "I don't think they are, but neither Von Horne nor I have been able to see what's in the crates. Could just be provisions, though."

"We'll need to know the signal Vandringar was going to use," Xander says to Anisa.

"Still… calling out to them from a safe distance could work. They'll move on once they know their camp is compromised, and we might learn something watching them do that… " the mage suggests.

Umeko still frowns. "If you insist on that route, then it should just be Von Horne warning them of the dangers of this area," she says grudgingly. "Nothing beyond that."

Xander nods in agreement.

"That sounds like a good compromise," Anisa says with a nod. "They have no reason to suspect her of anything."

Von Horne leans forward a little. "So then you wish me to get their attention and see if I can goad them into moving?"

"No need to goad them," Xander notes. "If they're as concerned about secrecy as you claim, they should start moving as soon as they think you've left."

The huntress nods. "If you bid, I shall go."

Umeko rubs her forehead. "I dislike this, but I am not sure of a better course of action," she says.

The Korv nods. She doesn't pull her mask up over her face, just letting it hang around her neck for now, and with a flick of her wings she disappears into the foliage.

It's several minutes before anything happens, but eventually there's some activity on the edge of the camp. One of the interlopers trots through the underbrush to speak with the apparent leader, and they exchange a few terse words. The subordinate then hurries away, and soon returns, leading Von Horne with them. Even with sharp Lapi ears, it's difficult to make out what's being said from this distance. Only Anisa's exceptionally sharp hearing picks up a few words, and they make little sense without context, but there doesn't seem to be any overt hostility yet, though the rangers are clearly on the alert now.

Anisa frowns. "Dagh, I hope we didn't just make a huge mistake."

"They seem to be keeping civil so far," Xander says, chewing on an eartip.

Umeko says nothing. The frown she was wearing earlier remains, though.

Some more exchanged words, and Von Horne gestures out somewhere into the jungle, then nods. The leader nods, and holds his hand out, dropping something into the Korv's claws and then making a dismissive gesture. Von Horne bobs her head, and cinches her mask back up, departing from the edge of the camp.

"Did they just… tip her?" Xander asks.

Umeko shrugs. "Ask her when she returns?" she suggests.

Once this exchange is over, a number of the men get up from what they were doing. The leader brings his hands to his mouth and blows through them, producing an eerily convincing Creen-like call. Moments later, a few more men arrive at the campsite, which rapidly gets broken down. The crates are hefted between poles carried by several rangers, and within minutes the whole group begins to melt into the brush and reeds.

Anisa's ears perk up in alarm. "Well… that was efficient."

"Poles, interesting," Xander notes. "The crates must be heavy at least. Or else the poles just make it easier to move faster."

By the time Von Horne rejoins the group, there's little evidence the camp was ever occupied. The Korv lands amongst the adventurers, pulling her mask away again.

"And double as tent frames. Efficient use of materials," Umeko comments. "It lends credence to the theory that there may be several camps. I am not sure how we will deal with them when the time comes."

"By a fast getaway, I'd imagine." Anisa turns to the Korv. "Did you find anything out by being up close? What did they say?"

Von Horne holds out a palm with some coin in it, a small sum though not insignificant to commoners. "They recognized me as a monster huntress," she said. "And they were interested in knowing the movements of the Murder."

Anisa frowns. "They did their homework, although that's not surprising. What did you say?"

Umeko huffs. "Not surprising," she remarks.

The Korvess sets the coins in a stack on a branch and then ignores them. "I gave them some superficial information… some routes the Murder pass through and some old sites that treasure hunters went missing in. Like as not old information, but they seemed satisfied enough to let me on my way."

"Did you get the impression they were intent on capturing the Murder?" Xander asks.

"I wonder … did you get a close look at those crates?" Umeko asks. "As Xander alludes, perhaps they are for containing them."

Von Horne shakes her head. "They didn't specify, but I had the impression they were more intent on avoiding them and possibly knowing where they were going. They bore no skins or trophies. One of the crates was partially open, and I did get a quick glance. They looked to me like jars of oil, pitch, and cloth wadding for bright and quickly lit fires. I recognized them because I use similar for this." She pats the metal head of her spear."

The Korv adds, "There were some other jars. Colored powders. These I did not recognize."

"So nothing special then," Anisa says with a nod. "At least now we know what to expect if we should get through this mess."

Anisa's ears perk up at the mention of powders, and she looks to Xander. "Any ideas on that?"

"Hmmm," Xander ponders, rubbing his chin. "They could be mapping out the location of the Rookery after all, by tracking the movements of the Murder… but those other powders could be for anything. Maybe even laying out a giant magic circle."

"Effective weaponry for attacking a town and instilling panic. Thatch roofs will burn quickly if such is used on them," Umeko comments. "The powders … chalks for magic?" she asks Xander. "They have mages in their employ and if they want to contain the orb… "

"Colored powder can also be used for colored smoke, which is the more likely use," the mage concludes. "Signal smoke. Different colors for different signals. I wonder if Vandringar smuggled some into the Rookery when he was taken there… "

Wiping herself down, a thin layer of water slogs from Anisa's fur. "Ugh… I think its time for us to head back. I feel like a sponge and I think we've done all we can do here."

"Speaking of the Rookery, the night grows late and our freedom short. We must return before the dawn alights upon the mists of darkness and despair that shroud this land," Umeko notes as she stands, joining Anisa. "But perhaps soon the shards of truth will vanquish the curse that has held sway for so long. Come, let us not keep fate waiting."

"I guess that's your cue to call up Tess again, Anisa," Xander notes. He seems slightly disappointed at not getting to blow anything up though.

Fishing out her pendant chain, Anisa put the hairpin into her paws. "Okay Tess, time to go back."

It doesn't take long before Tess responds, the white portions of her maid's dress stark in the gloom of the swamp. She crosses some still standing water without sinking in, and rubs her upper arms, looking around. "Oh, I'm glad Miss Anisa. It's dreadful out here." The path she leads back is a circuitous one, but sure enough, a few hours later finds the group back at the Rookery's dilapidated gate, the village still slumbering. Where there was nothing to see above the trees before but fog, Castle Pieksvaldt looms from its crag. The woods may have forgotten it, but the castle remains.

The trek back to Rookery was a quiet one by necessity, and made with Gibson's wishes for good luck but without the black Lapi himself, the buck asked to remain with the camp for the time being as their potential link to the outside world. The ghostly Skeek that Anisa befriended led the way, walking across brackish water and mud without leaving ripples or prints, and she stops once inside the village gate, her thick braid wagging when she looks over her shoulder to be sure everyone kept up. "No housemen. I think you're safe. There's even a few hours of nightfall left, we can get you back to the castle." The girl ventures a hopeful smile.

Anisa remains silent for a few moments, fiddling with the hairpin between her paws. "Tess… getting back into the castle… we don't need anything special to do that, right?"

"No one is truly safe until we end the nightmare that has devoured this place," Umeko offers in her ever so cheerful way. The skull that they recovered Umeko carries in the padded bag that Von Horn provided earlier and the weapon used to slay him is at her side.

Von Horne herself brings up the rear, spear resting on her shoulder and her leather mask back in place. Her goggles are expressionless, but her beak turns to point this way and that, the huntress alert.

Keeping his ears perked, Xander's attention is mostly skyward – watching for the winged silhouettes of the Murder…

Tess' smile melts away, and she glances up to look at the castle on the crag, then back at Anisa. "No, I… I guess you know where the tunnel is now."

Looking at the small mouse in the eye, Anisa gently walks over to her. She kneels down to eye level with the young girl. "I think we can manage from here. As for you… how would you like to go home?"

"Is that wise?" Umeko asks as she spares a glance towards Anisa.

"She needs a proper funeral to be at rest," Xander whispers. "We may not get the chance again."

Tess's long braid finds its way into her hands, and she wrings it, the frayed ribbon that was in place of her hairpin twisted in the girl's fingers. She hesitates, then says, in a small voice, "All I ever wanted after that day was… was to go home. To see Momma, and my brothers again. Now that that man is gone… ""

Anisa looks back to the Kiriga, and shrugs with a small smile. "I figure we're in this for the long haul now. Either we accomplish what we came here for and leave on our own, or we fail and stay here one way or another." Turning back to the Skeek, the Lapi's smile continues. "In any case, Tess has been through enough, and I think we owe her at least that much." Standing back up, the doe holds her paw out to the girl. "Show me which house is yours."

Umeko's head bobs slightly. "An honorable choice; the peace of another though it may risk yourself," she praises. "We will follow your lead."

The Skeek puts her tiny paw in Anisa's. There's no pressure, only a spot of chill, and with her other hand, Tess points up along the main street and past the square at a long, low house nestled amongst the others, a trellis of climbing ivy softening the thick wooden timbers and stout chimney. "There."

"Lead the way," Anisa says, taking a few steps forward.

Xander keeps up his watch on the sky as he follows along.

Umeko, for now, remains silent as she follows the others.

Tess does, walking down the dusty road quietly, quickly at first. As the house comes more into view, she slows, until she stops just outside the small low, rickety fence, her round ears high and her whiskers out, as if she were listening hard. After a moment, she seems to relax, letting go of her braid and letting it fall behind her again. "Momma's here. She's… I think she's well. And my brothers too." She looks down, moving as if to touch the fence, but then takes her hand back and just holding her wrist. "Miss Anisa, can you… can you give Momma my pin? Please? Just… half of it."

The skies remain clear of winged shapes for now, though only occasionally lit by flashes of lightning behind murky clouds.

"Half?" Anisa cocks her ears quizzically at Tess. "Why just half? Shouldn't I give the whole thing to her, sweety?"

"I think I would prefer to face the monsters of Being than have to look into her mother's eyes and tell her what happened," Umeko comments quietly to Xander. "Writing letters to the families of the soldiers who fell in Vipers hold was one of the most difficult tasks I have done … and it is but a pale shade to this."

"They already know what happened," Xander whispers. "This wasn't recent… they must have suspected. But who knows how the people of the village deal with the nature of their Raveness and the things that happen in the castle?"

The Skeek shakes her head, her little smile coming back. "No, I want you to keep a piece." She takes a deep breath, looking up again, her visage a flash of its ravaged skull again, an echo behind the round and earnest face and eyes. "The empty man is gone, and I got to see home again. It's… I think it's really over, now. The only thing left is what you have to do, and I want a little piece of me to go with you." She puts a ruffled cuff to her eye, wiping at it. "Momma can't see me like this. It's… time for me to go."

Anisa frowns, her brow creasing in worry as the small girl's image flickers. Kneeling down again, she leans forward, and gives the Skeek a hug. "I'll keep it then, and remember you always," she whispers. "Thank you for all you've done for us… and… and I'm sorry again that you ever had to go through this."

"Goodbye, Tess," Umeko says quietly from where she stands behind Anisa. "May you find your way to the home of your ancestors and take your honored place among them. You are one of the bravest souls I have ever met."

"Take care, kiddo," Xander offers with a smile.

Tess throws her arms over Anisa's shoulders, smiling at Umeko and Xander over them and then tucking her face into the Lapi's neck, her touch cold but her voice warm. "You were the friend I needed, Miss Anisa. You all were. Thank you." The chill gradually begins to abate, and Anisa finds its because the girl is gradually fading, until the Lapi finds herself embracing empty air. The last thing Tess says is, "Tell Momma I was a good girl… "

Remaining knelt with her back to the others, Anisa's arms slowly lower to her side. She lingers there for a few moments more, wiping her eyes off on her arm with a small sniff. Standing back up, she gives a small, heaving sigh, then turns to the others, her black eyes somehow betraying bloodshot traces. "You all can stay here if you want. I'll… try to be quick."

"Just… well, we'll be here if you need us," Xander says quietly.

"You should have your friends with you," Umeko offers and steps forward to go with Anisa.

"We don't want to scare Tess' family though. I can stay out here with Von Horne," Xander offers.

"Am I that scary?" Umeko asks.

Anisa smiles at Umeko, quickly wiping an eye once again. Wordlessly, she offers a paw to the Kiriga. "I think he means numbers," the doe says lightly.

Xander holds up the glowing, mystical flames in his hands. "Didn't mean you would be scary," he notes with a grin.

The Korv nods quietly, having looked on in silence the whole time. A Sylvanian native and no stranger to supernatural phenomenon, she still seemed mystified by Tess on first sight, but didn't question it. Now she seems to have the decorum not to comment as well.

Umeko takes Anisa's hand and squeezes it. She nods once towards the house and lets Anisa take the lead.

With another deep breath, the doe opens the gate, and starts off to the cottage, trying to force her ears to stand high.

The cottage is quiet and dark, but smoke curls from its chimney from a fire that's reduced itself to warm embers. A small shingle hangs beside the door, reading "Lirinov".

"Lirinov. I never did ask Tess her last name," Anisa whispers, straining her ears to hear any activity inside the cottage. After taking half of the hairpin off of the chain and timidly raising a paw, the doe raps on the door a few times. "I hope we aren't waking them up too early."

"Think of positive things about her," Umeko offers softly, "Her life was not fair, and yet it may still be her that guides her town from the darkness. Were it not for her we would not have found the secrets needed. We just need to be sure that the honor is dedicated to her when we destroy this shadow. A life, and death, well lived."

It takes a few knocks, but eventually Anisa's sharp ears can hear movement inside the cottage, and the glow of a candle reflects off the windowpanes. Soon enough, the door latch clatters, and the door swings in to reveal a diminutive and slightly rotund Skeek woman in a long nightgown, her gray hair long and loose. She blinks blearily a few times. "What is it, what's wrong?" she begins, but any more words freeze in her throat, and she reflexively takes a step back, nearly dropping her candle. "Y-you! You're from the castle! But how… why… wh-what do you want? Don't hurt us!"

Anisa takes a step back, raising up her paws defensively. "No! Ma'm, you don't understand – we're not here to hurt you," she says in Skeek, hoping to make the mouse a little less tense. "We… we have something for you. Something that belongs to you. Please, ma'm, I promise… "

Umeko takes a step backwards so that they don't crowd the woman.

The Skeek matron's eyes flick from Anisa to the others, but she just swallows the scream she was building up, a hand on her chest. "Belongs to me? I hardly have anything to my name, I don't know what it is you could have for me," she says nervously.

Slowly raising her paw, Anisa opens it to reveal half of the hairpin – indeed, the more detailed piece. She looks the matron in the eye wordlessly.

The Skeek woman stares in shock, her mouth half open. Hesitantly, she reaches out and closes her fingers around the copper-plated pin, the little woman running her thumb over the head's tarnish, as tears well in her eyes. "Where? Where did you find this? How did you get it?"

"We found it in the castle, but where isn't really that important," Anisa says softly, still in Skeek. "All that is important, is that Tess wanted you to have it. She wanted to go home again."

"So many years… so many years, we didn't know. We hoped, then we despaired, then we mourned… " Mrs. Lirinov puts her hands to her eyes, her fist curled around Tess' hairpin, and the woman's shoulders shake in a small, muffled sob. "Tessie, my baby, my sweet little girl… "

Anisa gives a quick, sad glance to Umeko, then takes a step forward, placing a paw on the mother's shoulder. "She was very, very sweet, and though I know it may sound odd, if it weren't for her my friends and I wouldn't be here right now. We owe her much."

Umeko's head tilts slightly to the left as her chin lowers in a bow of respect to the woman. Even her eyes close for a time. She doesn't understand the language, but she does understand what is told by their faces and eyes.

Mrs. Lirinov gives a shuddering sigh, pulling her paws down from her tear-streaked face, the touch on her shoulder bringing her out of the sudden rush of memories and pain she'd walled away. "She… then somehow she helped you out of the castle." She wipes her eyes on her cuff of her nightgown, for a moment looking very much like an older Tess. "She was a giving child. She would have been saddened if she'd really understood what happened in Castle Pieksvaldt, as much as any of us understand it. That she somehow helped you out of that place… she would have wanted that. Did you come just to see me? Come in, before the Murder see you."

"Yes, we came to see you," Anisa says, switching back to standard. "Do you mind if our other friends come in as well?"

The elder woman shakes her head, running her fingers through her hair as if still a little disoriented. "No, no… please, bring them in, and I'll put a kettle on. Please, tell me what happened. To my knowledge, nothing like this has ever happened."

"We promise not to stay long or endanger you," Umeko offers as she bows to the older woman. Quickly, the Kiriga then turns and goes to collect Xander and his pet Monster Hunter.

"We're being invited in," Xander tells Klaudia. Lapi hearing is a wonderful thing.

Anisa steps inside the doorway and waits for the others, making a quick survey of the cottage's interior. "I hope we're not intruding, I know it's early."

Xander lets Von Horne enter first, of course, since he's a gentleman.

Umeko follows Anisa in about half a minute later. For now Umeko remains silent as she too looks around the cottage.

Von Horne respectfully removes her face mask, and the whole group is ushered into the cottage, finding room around a low table while Mrs. Lirinov closes the window shutters so that the light from a newly built fire doesn't shine out. "You could have seen me at any hour you wished to have brought me this," the Skeek matron says. "And even without, to know that folk can leave the castle without the Murder's bid… the magistrate would want to know. Is the curse weakening?"

"If the fates are with us, it will be gone in the next few days," Umeko offers quietly. "The very reason we came here was to end the curse that plagued these lands. We were guided here by the soul of one of your own fallen, a Dame Riesling. We have also learned much of the source of the curse that holds these lands in sway."

Anisa shakes her head. "In fact, it was Tess that showed us the way out." The doe smiles, then suddenly splays her ears with a start. "I'm sorry, my manners are off today. My name is Christina Snowshoe, and these are my friends Umeko Tsurugi, Xander Lightfoot, and Klaudia Va- er, Klaudia."

"I see where Tess got her caring attitude," Xander tells the Skeek, giving a little bow. "She was a good girl."

"Yes, a very good girl," Anisa adds, smiling to Xander.

A kettle is hung over the fire, and Mrs. Lirinov settles into a rocking chair across from the group, still fingering the piece of Tess' hairpin she was given, never letting it out of her hand. Her hands clasp over her chest and she dips her head forward. "Pleasure. I'd caught glimpses of you around the castle as 'guests'. I couldn't have known at the time you would be such special ones. I could never have myself hoped that our lady's hold could be broken, that her tormented existence could be ended, but there's something different about you all, it seems." She smiles a little. "Something that would bring you back to an old woman, and would bring her little girl back home. Tessie was as good a girl as I could ever have asked for." Her voice becomes solemn. "She… she must have been among the ones that walk the castle after Nightfall. She helped you break free?"

Anisa's smile fades, having hoped that Mrs. Lirinov wouldn't have known the particulars of her daughter's fate. "She was, and she did, yes. She also helped us to bring justice to the one that wronged her. Without her, I don't know if we'll be able to get out of the castle again once we go back inside, but I promised her I'd bring her home."

Umeko remembers something and looks to Xander. "We should have her inform the town magistrate to be prepared for Vandringar's men. They will surely invade when the curse falls," she whispers.

The Lapi's brown ears shoot up at that. "We may need them to attack, to draw off the Murder from the castle," he whispers back.

"Yes, but we will want the townsfolk to take shelter and be safe," Umeko notes.

"It will need to be done quietly then, so as not to alert the castle," Xander notes. "Can the magistrate be trusted? Maybe we should ask Mrs. Lirinov to wait a while before telling him… "

"Wait a while, I think," Umeko agrees.

The Skeek nods slowly, her hands in her lap and eyes down to look at the pin that she turns over and over in her palm. "We could never uncover how poor Tessie disappeared, but we could only fear the worst. The wound in my heart would never heal, but I had years to learn to live with it, had to learn, for my boys. We knew that something in the castle had to have claimed her, and it wasn't our lady. That she is at peace now, and helped you along the way… I couldn't be more grateful. Is there a way we can help you? Tessie would have wanted it."

Anisa, having listened in on the others, nods. "There is, although really you owe us nothing. First… is your town magistrate trustworthy?"

Lirinov nods, glancing between the assembled. "Magistrate Yurevich has had the post most recently, he's had only Rookery's well-being in mind, at least as much as he could, given how we live."

"Would he act against the curse though, or try to stop any plan he knew of for fear of reprisals?" Xander asks.

"Then tell him about us, and tell him to be ready." Anisa's face grows more stern and serious. "Inside the castle with us is an old opponent, and he's after the secrets of the castle for his own ends. He has a small army lying in wait out in the marshes, and if – when – the curse is lifted, they'll most certainly pounce. Your people need to be ready."

"Should we ask Gibson to enter the town and help the people prepare? He is the most experienced when it comes to the Cinder's tactics," Umeko suggests to Anisa. "He could do well in protecting them."

Anisa nods to Umeko, then turns back to Lirinov. "That brings me to my second request. My brother is also out in the marshes… would you mind if he stays here while we return inside? He can be a huge help to your people." She pauses to think. "And he's also great for housework, too!"

The Skeek shakes her head. "I don't think the Murder or the Raveness would act against us. They've… been trying to protect us, in their own way, and not only because we tend the castle. I think Yurevich would take an opportunity to see this end safely, if he can." She seems taken aback by the idea that there are people outside waiting to come in, though.

Lirinov recovers quickly enough, though, and nods quickly. "We would gladly shelter him."

Brown bunny ears swivel, and Xander looks up at the ceiling. "Wings… " he whispers.

Von Horne sits up abruptly, her hard black eyes narrowing.

Anisa's fur suddenly frazzles out, and her ears shoot upwards. "Dagh, are they landing?" She follows Xander's gaze upwards, eyes wide.

Umeko's hand slides down to her sword. "We should not fight here. It would be disrespectful," Umeko says softly. "Outside."

"Wait, no," Anisa says. "I can't tell if they're landing or not… "

Umeko holds for now, though her eyes are narrowing and she's beginning to tense.

"We're hidden in here," Xander points out, and looks to Von Horne, who knows more about the Murder than anyone else.

"Shade the fire." The huntress stands and slides to the window, talons of one wing-claw resting on her bandoleer while the other gently nudges one of the shutters open a crack, peering through it.

Xander hides his magic by putting his hands inside his robe.

Anisa's ears swivel back and forth rapidly, trying to get a fix on the sound of the wings.

"If anyone asks, we will claim to have forced our way in," Umeko whispers to the older Skeek. She also looks moderately annoyed that she can't hear anything.

The Skeek quickly hops out of her rocking chair and holds a blanket to one side of the kettle's fire, keeping the light from shining toward the shutter. The beat of wings grows louder, many-fold… dozens and dozens of pairs. Von Horne's face grows hard, and she cinches her mask up over her beak again, pulling her goggles into place. Her voice is muffled slightly when she speaks. "The sky goes dark with them… they're circling the village. Wait… one among them is different… "

"Lilac?" Umeko asks in whisper.

Anisa nudges closer to Von Horne, trying to peer out the window as well. "Oh no, are they chasing her?"

Von Horne shakes her head slowly, not taking her eye off the crack in the window. "No… the white one… the rest are following her."

"White?" Anisa looks to Umeko.

"The white one? I do not remember any white Korvs," Umeko notes as she tries to slide up to a window and peer out of a crack as well. "Could it somehow be Vandringar? He dresses in white."

"Are they trying to land, or are they just circling," Anisa says, becoming fidgety.

"Lilac is the only one not as dark as the others," Xander mutters.

Von Horne squints. "They're coming lower… it's your friend, the one I tried to kill."

"Lilac. Are they chasing her?" Umeko asks.

"They're flying with her," says the huntress. "Could she have gone over to them?"

"No," Umeko says, "She was going to learn more about the traitor and the best way to confront him. I wonder what she is doing now."

Xander grins, and says, "Maybe she convinced the Murder of the treachery?"

"Shall I go confront them and find out?" Umeko offers.

Anisa shakes her head. "If she has gone to them, you'll be a giant beacon to send them our way." She looks to Klaudia. "You might be able to blend in outside, though. Would they recognize you without your mask?"

"I am also a giant beacon in leading them off," Umeko points out.

Von Horne hefts her spear, checking the hinge on the beaked blade. "I'm not sure… like as not they'd be suspicious of a stranger. They've had years to see everyone in the village, and their own number."

Anisa frowns, unsure of just what to do. "Do they look like they intend to land?"

"Nobody go out and lure anything," Xander says. "Klaudia, are they in hunting mode, or searching mode?"

Von Horne leans back from the window. "They don't seem to be actively hunting, but they're cautious. They're landing on high perches, scattered."

"How close is Lilac to us?" Xander asks next.

"I wonder why," Umeko murmurs. Looking to the older Skeek, she asks in whisper, "How many of the Murder remain? Do you know the exact number?"

"Oh Dagh – Gibson!" Anisa turns to Umeko, her eyes wide. "He's still out there!"

Umeko holds her hand up. "He knows how to hide, he will be safe," she tries to reassure Anisa.

Anisa bites her lip. She nods to Umeko, but with her ears set back, doesn't appear very reassured. "So what should we do? It seems too risky just to go out there and confront them."

"First I want to know if it is all of them or a subset," Umeko whispers.

Mrs. Lirinov shakes her head helplessly. "Of the Pieksvaldt sworn housemen, scores, perhaps more than a hundred."

"Your friend has landed on the town hall, with another," reports Von Horne, peering through the shutter. "They're talking."

Looking to Anisa, Xander says, "Either you or I need to get close enough to eavesdrop on that conversation."

Anisa points to her fur. "I think I may stick out a bit. Are you any good at sneaking?"

"And they can all change?" Umeko asks the Skeek.

The Skeek nods, chewing the nails of one paw while the other fingers the hairpin. "To the best of my knowledge, they can. We don't often see them that way."

"Then we cannot know if it is all or not. Pity," Umeko murmurs. "Xander, can your magic familiar … thing … spy for you?"

A few moments later, Lilac's voice carries out across the village, loud enough to be heard by everyone in the cottage. "I'm not captured, if you're hiding somewhere Ummy! We need to talk!"

The crest on Von Horne's head lifts.

"My familiar isn't that familiar," Xander notes, then blinks at the outburst. "Okay, I guess we don't need to sneak… "

Anisa's ears shoot upright at this, and she looks to Umeko.

Umeko's ears perk. "Well, that answers that, it seems. All of you remain here. I will go to them," she whispers softly. "If my blades draw, then you know we have been betrayed."

Anisa smooths back her ears, and nods. "We'll be right there when you need us."

"Do not risk yourself should I be surrounded. You have the townsfolk to protect," the Kiriga notes. "Is there a back door where it is dark? I do not want which house I exit to be known."

"So… do you want me prepared to blast anything that comes at you?" Xander asks.

The Skeek nods, and beckons Umeko back to the rear of the cottage, where she can be let out from a fenced yard and past some clotheslines that see little use. Outside, dark shapes crouch with folded wings on the rooftops and eves, while a white one in the distance shares the town hall's roof with another, darker one.

"No," Umeko tells Xander as she follows after the Skeek. Near the back door, Umeko takes a few deep breaths. There she pats the shoulder of the Skeek and nods to her as she says, "Thank you." No more words are spoken as the Kiriga then opens the door, crouches slow, and slips off into the darkness.

The white figure atop the town hall holds on to the bell housing, looking up and down the street. "If know Ummy," she tells the Korv beside her in a quiet voice, "and I think I do, she'll assume something bad happened, and that you're here because you caught me – just because I made a mistake one time! Then, she'll go off and do something dangerous by herself!" The bardess pauses, then shakes her head. "The Huntress could be anywhere, did she ever try that spiced meat trick on you? That was the worst."

Umeko slinks through the shadows like, well, a serpent, as she makes her way towards the distant white figure perched atop a building. "What insanity have you done now?" the Kiriga wonders.

"And then there was that awful whistle and the bolas-things; how did she ever come up with that? It's not like there's a lot of us," Lilac goes on, shaking her head. She pauses to sniff the air, then asks, "Do you see anything, Sir Greyswand?"

The Korv with Lilac holds a wing up over his beak, scanning the village. "It slumbers yet, but as you say, the Huntress is both cunning and deadly. She has found weaknesses in us before we have ourselves."

"Lilac," hisses a reptilian voice from the shadows of the alleyway near where the human and Korv perch, "What insanity has overcome you to bring them out here?"

Lilac's ears flick, then she leans over to peer down the alley, holding on to the bell assembly so she doesn't fall off. "Oh!" The woman wags her tail, seeing Umeko. "There you are! I was worried you had already left and were with The Huntress. Anyway, I showed Sir Greyswand the rubbing of the sword you found, and lead him to, well … ," she glances back at the knight, frowning with concern, " … Dame Riesling's remains. The dame 'spoke' with him briefly, and then we talked, and long story short: the Murder knows, and has sided with us. They're not a danger to us anymore."

"All of them?" Umeko asks suspiciously, "And we have more than just the sword now. Come down to me and I will show you. I warn you though, it is … unpleasant."

"I'm getting used to unpleasant," Lilac replies sadly, ears wilting. "And yes, all of them. They're sworn to the Raveness, not the Seneschal. They can't harm him while she still protects him, and definitely won't harm her, but they won't harm us either. Is this something the Murder should see?"

The Korv houseman descends as well, landing nearby, his voice low. "Miss Dragomir somehow brought Dame Riesling back to us. It was clearly her. What she revealed about the Seneschal, we cannot ignore, and I have gathered the Murder to see this through. If the Seneschal is warded against us, we cannot act against him, but we will not hinder you, and will aid you if we can."

"Yes, though its greatest effect will be on the Raveness herself," Umeko explains. There's a long pause, then the Kiriga adds, "We are bringing the Lord home, Lilac." The Kiriga's head tilts slightly so that she looks at the houseman through one eye. "The Huntress you have long feared is descendant of one of the Lord's original defenders. When they could not save him, they took it as their duty to enshrine and protect what remains they could save. I have been honored with the right to be the one who is carrying Lord Rook's skull home. It, along with the weapon that slew him, may be enough to break the Raveness from the nightmare that holds her."

On the ground, Lilac nods. "Dame Riesling's spirit resides within me, it's the source of my curse and why the tapestry recognizes me. I, well, I didn't want to give up on the Murder, so … Well … ," The bardess makes a little nervous, sheepish shrug, "I wanted to help them." She listens to Umeko's words, and nods. "It's about what I expected, actually, about the Huntress. Her hate was just too personal, and as for the Lord, I'm glad at least he can come home. Does the Huntress still live?"

"She does and has allied with us. She wishes to see this curse brought to an end as well," Umeko notes.

"Oh." Lilac nods, then reaches up and rubs her neck, perhaps remembering the strangling the Huntress gave her days ago. "I'm glad I urged you not to kill her then! I hope she knows I forgive her."

"I can take you to her if you wish," Umeko offers, "We can work out the details of what must be done." The Kiriga then holds up a scaly claw and adds, "And be warned there is a complication to the matter. Vandringar may have a small army waiting outside this castle for the curse to fall so they can invade."

The bardess suddenly laughs at the mention of Vandringar. "Of course he does, the sna- … Um, the wretch! I knew his soul was rotten," she insists without a hint of surprise in her voice. "Well, we'll show him and the Seneschal what happens to betrayers. Let's go see the others. Sir Greyswand and I will gather the Murder and follow; I need to calm everyone if we're going to meet the Huntress."

"And I her," Umeko admits. The Kiriga's head bobs once and she darts back off into the shadows.

Lilac gives Umeko a hand wave and tail wag, then turns to the knight. "Well, you heard Lady Ummy, let's gather the Murder and prepare to meet our Hunter in peace. We'd best warn them about Vandringar too, I fear he's just as wicked as the Seneschal. Shall we?" She extends her arm to the bird.

Greyswand takes the proffered arm, and says, "Lead on."