The Bandit Queen (18 Oct 2001) Agatha helps Sabrina and Maximillan set up for an "encounter" as part of Simon's quest.

The Gnarly Tree
This tree seems nearly as wide as it is tall, a great mass of twining branches and leafy boughs unlike the conifers prevalent in the area, but resilient enough to weather Ainigton's cold winters. Within its boughs are many forks and nooks, and anyone properly nestled inside is granted considerable cover from prying eyes, as well as vantage-points from which to look down upon Ainigton and Danzwyck Stables, with even more majestic scenery beyond. A dirt path runs nearby, making this tree not entirely secluded from the paths of casual explorers of the wilderness, but it nonetheless offers considerable privacy for the adventuresome at heart.

A threesome of children converge at the gnarly tree: Maximillan and Sabrina Winters, and Agatha Cunningham. Sabrina occasionally giggles, much to Maximillan's consternation, though she is enough of the giggly sort, that he has no reason to suspect that the probable reason she's giggling is because the tree nearby hides a tree house -- and she knows it, while Maximillan is oblivious to the fact.

Maximillan up-ends a metal hand-truck, depositing a canvas bag laden with what should be more than enough goods to handle any sort of quest. He is wrapped in a cloak and has his 'sorcerer's staff' riding on the hand-truck, even though the plans have yet to call for an appearance by Sorcerer Pelles for this part of the quest. Sabrina is in her usual outdoorsy attire -- grass-stained jeans, a brightly colored T-shirt, sneakers, and a loose over-shirt. Bragwaine mills about in the bushes nearby.

Clouds dot the sky, and closer to the horizon -- though not so easily seen past the trees -- darker clouds loom, threatening to bring a premature end to today's adventuring, if it storms.

Agatha pokes through the bag, and asks, "Should I wear a handkerchief around my face, like a desperado, do you think?"

Sabrina beams. "I've got it covered!" She opens up the canvas bag and starts rifling through the contents -- again, to Maximillan's consternation, simply dumping a good portion of the items on the ground in the process (a mish-mash of items of clothing and odd props that looks like they raided a garage sale).

Maximillan, meanwhile, extracts far more purposefully one of the foam swords used in the battle with the Green Knight. "Thomas has the other one," he says, as he hands the "weapon" to Agatha.

Sabrina pulls out a long black rectangle of fabric with a hole cut in its center, and turreted edges, trimmed in red, and a large bolt of red fabric. "Here's your tabard and a sash," she says, then she pulls out another large piece of black and red -- "and your cowl and mask!" Then, she pulls out a small "crown". "You can be the Bandit Queen!"

"Or King," Maximillan adds, "though it might add an interesting complication if Lefallon has to fight a woman."

Agatha grins at the costume after taking the sword. "It looks impressive, that's for sure!" she comments, and starts to put on the costume with Sabrina's help. "And whom shall be the Bandit Queen's victim?"

"Me!" Sabrina says. "Sir Lefallon can rescue me. I'll be a damsel in this dress!"

"Distress," Maximillan corrects.

"That, too!" Sabrina says, as she pulls out a "peasant dress" and pulls it on over her other clothes.

Maximillan suggests, "I've also got a few 'Robin Hood' type hats, too, if you think that more your style."

After she finishes adjusting the crown and domino mask, Agatha strikes a menacing pose. "Hmmm, Robin Hood is more Tom's style, I think. Don't want to appear a noble thief. Should I be robbing Sabrina, or trying to sell her into slavery or ransoming her or ... all three?"

Maximillan says, "Your call. Whatever you think would be sufficiently melodramatic."

Sabrina says, "Peasants don't have much to be stolen. Maybe if I were a merchant instead...."

Agatha hmms, thinking. "For a truer test of Chivalry, the victim should be someone of humble origins, rather than someone rich or important. I'll have kidnapped her from a pig farmer that didn't pay up this month's tribute to the Queen of Thieves, to sell her for whatever I can get. How's that sound?"

Sabrina wrinkles her nose. "Piiiigs?"

Maximillan says, "That sounds splendid."

Sabrina protests, "But I don't want to farm pigs!"

"Your father would be the farmer," Agatha says. "Pigs are very valuable, you know -- not to the ones that raise them, since they're just peasants, but valuable to their landlords, I'm sure."

Sabrina says, "Couldn't I be a princess instead? Held for ransom?"

Maximillan frowns. "I have an idea, Sabrina. You be a princess ... disguised as a common peasant maid. No one realizes this, and you are sworn not to reveal this, even under pain of death. In fact, Lefallon will never know he actually rescued a princess. What tragic irony."

"At least, he won't know until you're held captive by a dragon or something," Agatha suggests.

Sabrina smiles at this. "Okay!" She pulls out a crown of fake wildflowers, which she "weaves" into her hair.

"Try not to ... well ... ham it up too much though," Agatha says with a giggle of her own.

"Oh yes," Maximillan says, and picks up a pouch that rattles with "gold coins", testing the drawstring, then handing it to the Bandit Queen. "Here is some booty from previous thefts. I suppose it would not shine well upon him if he keeps it for himself, but he might get some ideas to return it to the poor, and so forth."

Sabrina giggles loudly at Agatha's pun, when she finally (belatedly) gets it.

The Bandit Queen ties the sack to her belt, but not too tightly. She may want to have it conveniently drop if she's forced to flee, after all.

"I've got more of those," Maximillan says. "At least one to give to our 'beggar' later on." He sets down the pack momentarily to move down the trail to peer over some bushes. So far ... no sign of anyone coming.

Sabrina fusses with her dress some more, and at last she looks something kind of sort of like a peasant ... just one that happens to wear sneakers.

"I guess it would be best if Sabrina rushes out with me chasing her, like she's just escaped or something?" Agatha asks. "I've never tried to hold anyone prisoner before."

Sabrina nods enthusiastically. "I could do some cartwheels and flips while you go after me!"

Maximillan scowls. "Peasants don't do cartwheels and flips."

Sabrina protests, "But secret fairy princesses do!"

"Maybe you should save those for another encounter," Agatha suggests, leaning against a tree. "Especially if you can do it wearing one of the Robin Hood hats. Maybe as a fairy like Puck."

"Exactly," Maximillan agrees. "And if you do cartwheels and flips, he'll be able to see you're wearing jeans underneath, and that would ruin the point of wearing a costume."

Sabrina concedes, "Oh, all right...."

Agatha practices different voices while waiting for Sir Lefallon to arrive, trying to find a good villainy one.

Sabrina practices putting one hand to her head and swooning, but then realizes that she hasn't anyone to catch her. (thud)

"Are you alright?" Agatha asks the girl as she comes over. "The road might be a little too hard for you to try that on."

"Oh!" Maximillan says, patting himself on the forehead with a sudden thought. "I forgot to give you this --" He reaches under his cloak and pulls out a rolled-up parchment. He pays no heed to his little sister sprawled on the ground.

Sabrina makes a grumpy noise, then gets up, dusting herself off. Then, suddenly inspired, she reaches down and gets some dirt on her hands, and smudges it on her cheeks, and sticks a couple of twigs in her hair.

Agatha turns back towards Maximillan and the parchment. "Ah, is it a clue to Simon's next destination?"

"Exactly," Maximillan says. "He'll have to part ways with 'Lord Explorer Thomas' in order for Thomas to sneak ahead to play the bandit, so he'll need another way to know where to go next." He hands over the map, which shows the wooded trail -- very much like the hazardous route that Knight Redmane had to take, only in reverse, and minus the dragon.

Agatha nods and puts the map somewhere safe. "Hmmm, could use this to try and tempt him into abandoning his knightly vows."

"Well, make it up as you see fit," Maximillan says, "just as long as we make sure he takes that circuitous route indicated on the map, so Thomas can take his shortcut to get to the intersection ahead of him."

Agatha nods and grins.

"As for myself," Maximillan says, as he starts loading discarded items back into the canvas bag, "I will move on ahead. I require a bit more time to move ahead than the rest of you."

Sabrina calls out, "Be care--" but then cuts off at a sharp look from Maximillan, and quickly amends, "--ing for common woodland animals so you don't wake them up when you go by!"

Agatha helps a bit with the repacking, and looks at Sabrina, noting, "I hope you've got something to clean your face off with later."

Sabrina says, "I'll just wipe off on my sleeves!"

"I suppose that will work," Agatha concedes.

Maximillan, with Agatha's help, gets the rest of the strewn items back into the canvas bag, and ties the bag closed again, then tilts it back onto the wheeled hand-truck. With slow and unsteady steps, he awkwardly makes his way down the path, the wheels of the old hand-truck squeaking noisily. "Should have oiled those," he mutters to himself.

Sabrina looks to Agatha. "I can practice running around screaming! Maybe they'll hear us and hurry up!"

Agatha laughs! "Okay, why not! But let's give your brother a little more time to get ahead, so he doesn't think he has to rush."

Sabrina watches Maximillan go on. "Oh ... all right. Well, I'll just practice the running around part, then. I can add the screaming in later." With that, she hikes up the skirts of her peasant dress (showing that she's wearing jeans underneath, clearly enough), and starts dashing to and fro. "Eeee," she says, without emotion. "Help, help, help."

"Come back, you little ... er ... whelp!" Agatha practices. "Or I'll ... I'll feed you to my wolf!"

"Oh! Bragwaine can be your wolf," Sabrina says, though her voice is somewhat jogged, as she's mock-running at the time.

Bragwaine, not looking terribly ferocious, sits to one side of the path, dozing in a sunny spot.

Agatha eyes the very un-wolf-like cat. "Well ... maybe if she can rustle the bushes or something."

"She could be resting after having eaten some other peasants," Sabrina offers thoughtfully, as she dashes by.

"That makes sense," Agatha agrees. "I'm sure even wolves get tired of eating every so often. Dogs, on the other hand...."

"Of course, if she ate some peasants, then someone would have had to have died, and that'd be sad," Sabrina says, jogging back the other way, then pauses midway, stopping to look down the path. "Oh!"

Agatha stands alert, and whispers, "Is he coming?"

Sabrina nods. "Oh! I forgot! What should my name be, Bandit Queen?"

Agatha blinks. "Oh ... uh ... Mary? Mary's a good common name."

Sabrina sticks out her tongue. "That's so plain!"

Rubbing the side of her nose, Agatha suggests, "How about Elsbeth then? Or Bethany?"

"How about Maeve?" Sabrina suggests. "After Queen Maeve, except I'm a peasant -- or pretending to be one."

"Okay, Maeve then," Agatha says, grinning.

Sabrina nods, satisfied ... then starts dashing to and fro. "Oh! Help, help, help! The Bandit Queen is after me to sell me into slavery and feed me to her wolf! Oh help!"

"Come back here!" Agatha calls in her Bandit Queen voice. "You're more trouble than the pig you replaced would have been!"

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This site serves as a chronicle of sessions in an online roleplaying campaign moderated by Conrad "Lynx" Wong and May "Rowan" Wasserman. The contents of this site are (c) 2001, 2002 by Conrad Wong and May Wasserman except where stated otherwise. Despite the "children's fantasy" theme of this campaign, this site is not intended for young readership, due to mild language and violence.