As he waited for the eating contest to begin, Brutrumukk noticed the goblin he'd hired to spy on the carnival hurry into the Feasting Orchard. "Oi oi! Come sit with me!" Brutrumukk called out an offer to the goblin in the tongue of the goblinoid races. "An eatin' contest's about to start! Let's you an' me win it together, eh?! Show all this lot that the Conquerin' 'Ost can clean 'ouse at the eatin' table just as easily as it cleans 'ouse on the battlefield!"

Aurora reached up and snatched one of the seeds from the air. As she opened her hand, the seed opened displaying what could only typically seen at night. The light show lasted for only a few seconds, but it left Aurora feeling much happier than she had been in years. It seemed as though even the smallest things, such as the rotating spiral tops of the Hall of Illusions tents held her attention for several moments until the event between the two halflings occurred. It was a strange sight, sad yet amusing in it's own way. After the halfling had darted into the tent Aurora's attention went to the glass case with the mannequin.

"Tasha? I don't know who she is. Though the name Tasha's hideous laughter sounds like something my sister would use." She giggled to herself slightly thinking about sister using a spell called hideous laughter. Maybe it was the only way she could laugh, Aurora hardly ever saw Sophia laugh.

"I know few bards who've used it on a heckler or two!" he too began chuckling slightly reminded by a fellow named Orm who used to cavort the Yawning Portal, a so-called comedian although nobody found his jokes funny they certainly enjoyed laughing at the fat oaf charming the ladies tending bar shame he was thrown in prison for using the spell after a dismal show.

"Well I suppose this is the maker of that spell. She looks pretty, least if this is how she actually looks." She shook her head and looked back to Gabriel. "Let's go on to the tent." Aurora reached for Gabriel's hand to start pulling him along with her. "As you wish madam!" the bard made a tip of the hat gesture to her, Gabriel taking her hand in his with a goofy smile on his face "Shall I fetch our carriage after?" Gabriel joked good-naturedly as his elven companion dragged him along with her towards the tent. She laughed at the joke as though it was the funniest thing she'd heard. Have I lost it? Normally I wouldn't laugh at such a joke would I? she thought to herself. She thought back to just minutes ago to the seed she had caught for a gift. It was right after the seed had opened that she felt like this. Certainly there was magic being used, though it did not seem to be done to be harmful.

Just outside the tent she handed one of her tickets to the mime for to punch. She notice the sad, sympathetic look on his face and cocked her head slightly. She found it amusing yet still unsettling. Once she got the ticket back she looked over to the halflings, though one had dashed into the tent and she couldn't see him. Gabriel feeling particularly whimsical at the moment, stopped facing the elvish mime and the bard himself decided to mime the action of retrieving an invisible ticket punch expertly hiding the real one in the palm of his hand, upon receiving the card the mime would realize that it had in fact been real. With a flourish of his hand and a mouthed word, a small bouquet of multicolored flowers appeared in his hand of which he gave the mime.

"Well then shall we madam?" Gabriel motioned an after-you gesture to his companion towards the tent. Aurora led the way into the tent.

The mime punched the tickets, and silently mimed a 'Thank you' to Gabriel before the two entered.

As the two walk through the Hall, they see that the tent interior is lined with numerous mirrors. The first mirrors they see reflect the pair of adventurers as children.

One might be aware of a strange phenomenon where if they're intently looking for something, they can't find it, but when one isn't looking for something, they immediately find it. Aurora and Gabriel both experience that phenomenon, because while they are simply enjoying the Hall of Illusions, they easily find the Halfling who darted in here earlier!

The halfling is gazing into a mirror, on his knees. His actual self is alone...but in the mirror, there is a little girl whispering to his youthful reflection. Aurora and Gabriel would notice that this girl is wearing a tattered dress, the skin on her arms are gray, she is carrying an oversized lollipop in one hand, and she is wearing a pig mask over her face.

However, upon finding him, the girl lifts her head up from whispering in the halfling's ear, and looks at the pair of adventurers for a moment, and turns. She walks away from the halfling and disappears.

The halfling then notices Aurora and Gabriel's reflections in the mirror, and he turns to look at the both of you. He has a worried look in his face, his face bearing tear streaks. He sniffs and rubs away the tears as he greets you, "O-Oh...Hello. Sorry, I didn't mean to be in the way..."

"You're not in the way. Are you ok?" Aurora crouched down ton look him directly in the eyes. She did occasional look at the mirrors to see if the girl was still near. "Who was that talking to you? The grey skinned girl with the mask?" uncharacteristically reticent Gabriel felt the scar on his face checking if it was still there, seeing himself as a child jostled some memories of his time as a street urchin. He barely acknowledged the halfling with a nod.

The Halfling sniffed as he nodded at Aurora's question of being okay. But it wasn't really convincing. He answers her next question honestly, a little bewildered himself, "I...I don't know. But she asked me if I had any regrets. If I did, she said she knew someone who could help...and all I had to do was follow her..."

He then sighed and laments, clearly trying to keep himself from crying, "....I proposed to my girlfriend, Ween. And...she laughed at me...Oh Gods, Why...?"

Rory fought to suppress a grin, not very well either. "There... there is.... There is magic here... and.. and it affects people's personality sometimes..." She barely managed to finish before bursting out in a small fit of laughter. "I... I'm sss.. sssorryy... I'm.. I'm.." she paused for a breath. "Oh by Tyr I don't know what came over me. I am not normally so giddy." Aurora fell over onto her butt from the giggle fit she just had and slowly tried to calm herself down.

Gabriel shook himself from his reverie, overhearing the poor halfling's plight and despite maybe chuckling under his breath slightly, he couldn't let the fellow wallow it wasn't right to not try to help him "Listen friend and listen well, there is no shame in what your feeling but have you thought about why she laughed?" he knelt next to the halfling to speak eye to eye, a friendly smile on his face mustering every bit of his willpower to not break into laughter "Maybe she had a nervous reaction mate? Go talk to her, nothing gets done if you don't talk." with a reassuring pat on the mans shoulder Gabriel stood.

The Halfling looks to Aurora as she explains while trying to hold her laughter in, but failing. He asks confused at first, "Magic...?"

He then looks to Gabriel as he encourages him to speak with his sweetheart. After hearing Gabriel, he wipes away his tears, and he answers, "Y-You're right. I should talk to her. Thank you...Thank you so much! Really! "

Aurora smiled as the halfling seemingly cheered up, then slowly got to her feet again. "Well glad you were able to cheer him up. I think we should see what else is in here. I am still curious about that girl we saw. You did see her right? She kept going forward looking around to see what else may be around.

The girl never appeared again and they only thing Rory saw were images of her much much later in life. As entertaining as it was to see an wrinkled silver haired version of her self, it was again mildly upsetting. "I think we've seen all of this exhibit." Suppressing a laugh Gabriel nodded, her reaction to looking old understandable but still remotely amusing. He simply followed her, as she was still leading him around by the hand like a schoolchild.

As the duo and the Halfling make their way out of the Hall, a woman's voice calls, her tone shifting from concerned to relieved, "Rubin! There you are!"

The halfling woman, Ween, hurried over to Rubin, and she apologizes, "Oh Rubin! I am so sorry! I didn't mean to laugh like that. I don't know what came over me! I was so happy...!"

As she speaks, Rubin looks relieved, and then she finally told him...

"What I mean to say is...Yes! Yes, I'd be happy to marry you!"

Rubin looks overjoyed, and the two embrace each other. Rubin places the ring on Ween's finger. After they separate, Rubin looks to you two, and thanks you again, before the two leave the Hall of Illusions together.

The mime who stands in front of the Hall of Illusions holds hands close to his chest over his heart. He looks overjoyed for the both of them, even wiping a tear from his eye.

Aurora gave a small wave to the two before taking off to the Snail Races, her companion smiled at the two halflings glad they could work things out, then before Aurora took off he turned to the mime and winked with a rakish smile upon his face.

As the both of you sit at the long table, other contestants come to join in on the contest at the table. The announcer calls for everyone to show their tickets, before he comes by and punches each ticket.

Once all of the tickets are punched, the food appears. Platters and platters of cupcakes appear on the table, with a plethora of different colored frosting, possibly indicating a different flavor for each cupcake.

The announcer calls to the contestants, "The rules are simple folks! Eat as many cupcakes within 60 seconds! The one who eats the most is the winner!"

He calls "Ready...? GO!" before he blows a whistle.



As the announcer blew his whistle, Brutrumukk descended upon the cupcakes with reckless abandon. For the first fifteen seconds he was in fine form, demolishing cupcake after cupcake with ease. But as the sixth cupcake slid down his gullet, Brutrumukk started to slow down. Six seconds later, he stopped completely. He picked up his ninth cupcake and attempted to eat it. But as he brought it to his mouth, Brutrumukk lost balance, toppled backwards, and passed out with a massive, satisfied grin on his face.



Jub barely had any time to sit down - and zero time to respond to the bugbear's words - before the announcer spoke. The diminutive wizard hurried over to Brutrumukk's side before stuffing the nearest cupcakes into his mouth. Like his bugbear companion, unfortunately, his ninth cupcake completely took him out, as his ochre skin had turned a shade of green more befitting his people, and he had to turn away form the table to barf up the contents of his stomach.



The other contestants around Jub and Brutrumukk dove into their cupcakes with gusto. The group they were with were very competitive. Of course, that proved to be their undoing. Many of the contestants fell over unable to compete anymore.

The cupcakes were delicious and very sweet. The custard filling in the middle tasted like different flavors of berries, depending on the frosting color.

By the time 60 seconds was up, every contestant was on the ground, splattered with frosting and custard. The announcer called out, "Looks like we don't have a winner this time, folks! But no worries! This is only the first of many of these contests. Next one will be in an hour!"

As Brutrumukk and Jub pick themselves up from that event, they would notice a woman, a gnome bard, just sitting on the swing holding her lute. She seems to be watching the both of them.



As Jub wiped the remaining vomit from his face with an oversized sleeve, his eyes fell upon the gnome. Doing his best to pick himself up and stand up to his full height, he waved to her. "Hello over there!" he said, his usual cheeriness seemingly unaffected by his queasiness.

Brutrumukk was grinning from ear to ear as he picked himself up off the floor. "That was fun!" Brutrumukk exclaimed happily. "I'll be givin' this another shot sometime today, that's fer sure!" As he considered what to do next, Brutrumukk heard his companion call out to someone. The bugbear barbarian turned to see that the goblin wizard was talking to a gnome bard who looking back at them. "Oi oi!" Brutrumukk called out in friendly greeting. "Don't suppose y'know that song about the goblin an' the pointy 'at, do ya?"

The gnome bard smiles and waves back to Jub, returning the greeting, "Hiya! Glad you two could make it!"

She smiles as Brutrumukk as he makes his request, and she hums to herself, while looking upwards in thought, "That song about the goblin and the pointy hat..." She plucks a couple of strings on her lute, before she returns her attention to Brutrumukk as she answers him, "Ah yes! I know just the song you're talking about!"

And with that, she performs the song exactly as Brutrumukk knows it!

When she finishes, the few who were near her gives an applause, and she asks Brutrumukk and Jub cheerfully, "How's that?"

"That was amazing!" Brutrumukk cheered as he applauded along with the rest of the audience. "You did it exactly as I knew it. Was that just a coincidence or did you use a little bardic booyagh to pull the song from me 'ead just now?"

Jub gave a nervous laugh as the bard finished her song. "Hah..." he said, pulling his hood further over his head. "Yes, err, very amusing..." He quickly turned to Brutrumukk. "Err, may I talk to you for a second?"

The gnome bard takes a moment to take a bow, smiling to Brutrumukk and Jub. She thanks the crowd, before answering Brutrumukk, "Thank you! Thank you very much! Oh no, I just simply know a lot of things!"

She looks to Jub as he asks Brutrumukk for a private discussion. She remains silent and turns her attention elsewhere to let the two have their chat.

Brutrumukk opened his mouth to speak some more to the bard. But then his companion spoke up with a request for a private word, causing the bard to move on. "I suppose I have time to chat now." Brutrumukk said as he turned to face the goblin. "What's buggin' ya, booyagh?"

Jub cleared his throat. "Could you possibly, err, not go around telling everyone I'm a goblin?" he said, keeping his voice low. "And not talking to me in goblin while we're in public? It's, err, bad for business, you understand."

"Now that's just a load o' rubbish." Brutrumukk spoke in goblin, not bothering to lover his voice as his companion did. "I don't 'ide that I'm a bugbear, an' look at me. Folks around these parts say that I'm a Mag damn 'ero. Brutrumukk, The Spirit O' The Snorin' Stone they call me. Does that sound bad fer bizz-niss to you?"

Jub lowered his head so he was gazing down at his feet. "Yes, well, clearly you and I have had very different experiences," he responded in common, and for once, his voice lacked its usual cheer or enthusiasm, instead sounding almost bitter.

At those words, the smile that had been on Brutrumukk's face ever since he decided the carnival wasn't that bad left him. In it's place was an expression that was difficult to read. "Lemme guess, adventurers came traipsin' into yer 'ome one day an' slaughtered yer entire tribe." Brutrumukk said. "Yeah, I've been there too. But just because the adventurers don't like you doesn't mean you should be ashamed o' what you are. Yer a goblin, the first o' the three races Mag brought to 'eel. An' when 'e named our kind an' our tongue, 'e named it fer you an' yers. The way I see it, that's somethin' to be proud of."

Jub looked back up at the bugbear, a little surprised that the same beast that had earlier threatened him to attack him if betrayed was now sharing such a personal story. He hesitated for a moment before saying, this time in goblin, "Well, let's just say my tribe didn't think I was something worth being proud of."

"Really? A booyagh like you? Not somethin' worth bein' proud of?" Brutrumukk said, an eyebrow arched in curiosity. "Well then they're a bunch o' Mag damn idiots who could do with a few good clubbin's across the arse... You should introduce me sometime." With that said, Brutrumukk shrugged and looked around. "Either way, the day ain't gettin' no younger an' there's still more to see. You wanna decide where we go next or should I?"

Jub didn't know what to say. He looked the bugbear up and down, as if taking this opportunity to re-evaluate his opinion of him. When he spoke again, his voice had its usual bombastic cheerfulness once again. "Lead the way, my good fellow," he said in common.

"Well then, I dunno about you, but I got a good feelin' about that massive tent over there." Brutrumukk said while pointing towards the Big Top, the eager grin also returning to his face as he spoke.

The flash of a smile could be seen under Jub's hood as his followed where Brutrumukk was pointing. "Sounds like a plan!" he responded.

"Then let's go see wha-" Began to say before being cut off.

"You got good instincts!" The gnome bard said as she seemingly appeared from out of no where

"Gah!" Brutrumukk yelped in surprise.

"The Big Top does have a lot of shows, but the fourth hour is when things really kick off into high gear! I recommend going to the Big Top then!" The bard explained.

"Yeah... we'll keep that in mind." Brutrumukk said as he recovered from the shock.

"Oh! Sorry, where were my manners? My name's Ellywick Tumblestrum! It's nice to meet you both." Ellywick introduced herself.

"My name's Brutrumukk" Brutrumukk replied. "Nice to meet you as well."

Jub also took a moment to recover from the shock. Once he did, he gave a low bow to gnome. "Jub the Peculiar, at your service!" he said.

"So if you'd wrecker-mend waiting until four until 'eadin' to the Big Top, is there anything else you'd also wrecker-mend?" Brutrumukk asked Ellywick.

Ellywick seemed to chuckle at Jub's words and she spoke to them again cheerfully, "Hail and Well met!"

The gnome bard answered Brutrumukk's question, "Oh! I may be a good performer, but if you want to hear some real singing, I definitely recommend going to listen to Palasha the Mermaid at Silversong Lake! Her music is just beautiful!"

She continues addressing both Brutrumukk and Jub, "If you guys, or the other four, have any questions or need a bit of guidance: You are always welcome to come ask me. I'll be here in the Feasting Orchard. Oh, and before you two head off..."

She finishes before they leave, giving them a vote of confidence, "I think you guys are going to go on to do some heroic things,"

"We'll go on to do some 'eroic things, eh?" Brutrumukk said. "Well if we do, we'll make sure yer the first bard to know. Give you an 'ead start on the song writing an' all that. See you around." Once their conversation with Ellywick had concluded, Brutrumukk turned to Jub. "You wanna go to that Siversong Lake then?" Brutrumukk asked. "I've never seen a Mermaid before."

"Me neither!" Jub responded. "Should be most interesting." He motioned for Brutrumukk to lead the way.

Her haste leads her into a torrent of raining golden seeds- which most certainly is not an ordinary weather phenomenon, mind you!- which she regards with the same time and care that a stone might regard the wind. She barrels through, caring not for wishes nor this particular game of whimsy; talking trees and squirrels could be processed shortly. As her haste takes her past the Calliope, she finds herself briefly distracted by the musical tunes therein.

She hesitates but a moment, her gait slowing enough for a carnie to potentially consider it 'interested'. This warrants the triggering of the rhyme and a glance towards Brutrumukk as he entertains the request for a button. The Bugbear's smile was somehow a bit infectious- not that she consciously seemed to comprehend this fact- and as she sped away from the Calliope she herself was smiling a strained smile that made her seem more mad than glad as a nervous giggle emanated from her lips quietly.

Dodging and weaving through the crowd- obscene mathematics whirring in her mind as she orchestrates a no-touch crossing of the carnival grounds, requiring her at one point to carefully weave between the steps of a stiltwalker with impeccable timing- she finally approaches the Lost Property Wagon.

She heaves a deep breath, running a hand loosely through her hair to relax some rension. Her breath catches however upon witnessing the strange tentacle'd feline creature from the nether realms of nightmare playing with two boys. She freezes, as if suspecting the creature might only be able to see things that move- a theory swiftly dashed as the as-of-now-determined female looked directly at Zavakri.

"Erm- Hallo." She manages lamely, waving in a stilted and almost robotic manner. She similarly adopted Elvish in a fluent manner. "I am looking for some...Er...Thing...?...One...?...That I lost. Her name is Detara, is she here?" Her voice gradually rose into an anxious crescendo pitch. Her hands began to busy themselves, one awkwardly housing itself upon her hip, the other seeming to occupy itself trying to find a comfortable and socially casual manner of playing with her hair.

The Displacer Beast lowers the tentacles as Zavakri asks if she's seen a person named Detara. While the older boy who had been roughhousing with her wanders a little away, the Displacer Beast speaks sympathetically to Zavakri, "Detara...I'm sorry, I haven't seen any child going by that name,"

She then asks Zavakri, clearly thinking about the situation, "Oh, when did you last see her? I can ask some of the Witchlight Hands to help look for her,"

"Oh, roughly, I don't know, eight years ago to the day. Not that I've been keeping track or anything, mind you, just decided to drop by on a whim. Last I saw her she was a young girl of, say, ye height, about ye width, shares many features with meself- comes from having the same mother and father, you understand- though I'd hazard she was a bit prettier than myself. To be honest, it was always a little frustrating to think that as children. Sure she couldn't handle her numbers and was useless with the laundry, but the gel had a smile that would light up the room and if she screamed you could hear it through a storm. In fact, it was a pretty unique scream if I do say so myself. I recall her using it to wake us all up on many an occasion when she had a nightmare. I can imagine she felt extremely similar to how I do right now, if I stretch the ol' imagination just a smidge.

Now that I think of it, she'd be all grown up now. I wonder how she looks... Oh, drama, I can't even begin to imagine. What if she's got all these horrible scars now? What if she was burned, or had an accident and lost a leg, or decided to shave her head and get tattoos, or fell into company with adventurers and is all brawny now? It wouldn't be dreadful or anything, but it boggles the mind to consider. What if she doesn't even go by Detara anymore? What if she unofficially adopted just 'Tara' like the family always called her? Tara the Adventurer almost has a good ring to it; you could drink to Tara the Adventurer if you were the drinking type. Is she the drinking type nowadays? I hope not, she'd still be a little young for it, you know?

I'm not the drinking type meself. I prefer to keep my head on straight, keep things nice and tidy, helps me keep sense of the world. It's confusing enough and dangerous enough without dulling the mind with the alcohols. When I get a drop of the stuff I start to get fuzzy with my maths- in fact, one night I took to a brandy because it was sweet and treated me well enough, but by the end of the night I was seeing double and thought that there were two Glyths up in the Sea of Night. How ridiculous would that be, seeing two Glyths? That'd be like seeing two Taras. There wouldn't be two nowadays, would there? Some magical accident that split her into two, one Good and one Evil? Those things happen, you know, it has to to balance out all the perfectly mundane things that people like me prefer to see happen. For every chicken that lays an egg, there's a Cockatrice spawned somewhere in the multiverse to wreak havoc, you understand, it's the worst sort of math.

At least it keeps the equation balanced."

She takes a breath.

The Displacer Beast, Dirla, was very attentive as Zavakri speaks. When she starts to ramble out of a panic of sorts, Dirla begins to let out a rumble of a purr, as though trying to calm Zavakri out of instinct. During her mathematical ramble, Dirla speaks to her still speaking in Elvish, "Breathe, Dear. Take a deep breath,"

As Zavakri takes a breath, Dirla speaks again in Elvish, "I am so sorry about your plight, dear. I'll let the Witchlight Hands know, and they can keep an eye out for Detara. I, myself, am not a stranger to this..."

She lets out a sad sigh herself, "I swore to protect all of the children who come, and yet...my own cub, Star...He disappeared years ago as well. I couldn't protect him...."

Someone else expressing a plight of some sort seemed to register within the woman a strange and intrinsic politeness. She nods along to the strange abomination's words, and wipes at her own eyes as the beginnings of a tale is yarned before her.

"Star is a lovely name. You can never be without them; just look up. Stars are always with us. I think that's something you can take some comfort with." She offers sincerely despite her reservations at being near this creature. "I won't pry, but I appreciate you." She concludes. She sniffs, then, and sighs.

"...Witchlight Hands. I suppose that's for the best. I don't know what I expected, really...Running over here like she'd just be standing here waiting for me. That was rather childish of me, eh?"

[quote=@Guardian Angel Haruki]
Dirla shakes her head and she answers Zavakri kindly, "It's not childish at all. In fact, it's quite reasonable to come here if you lost something. Or at least...it used to be..."

She looks around cautiously, before she informed Zavakri quietly, her elvish voice hushed "Something is wrong as of late. It's not just the both of us. Many people and items have been disappearing and never returning. I'm worried, the carnival wasn't like this..."

Before she could say more, the older boy of the two Dirla was minding, pulls out a mirrored ball from the toys, and he speaks, "Ooooh! This is awesome!"

Dirla looks and her eyes widen. In an unusual moment of anger, she lets out a roar, and shouts in Elvish, "PUT THAT BACK! THAT'S NOT YOURS!"

The boy looks surprised, before his face contorts as he cries and runs away. The boy runs past Miizel as he finally finds his way to the Lost Property.

Dirla looks shocked at herself, and she herself lets out a remorseful moan, "Oh no...!"

She starts thinking out loud herself, "I have to go after Viro...but I can't leave Allowin alone. Oh, what should I do...?"

“Right. Gondola Swans, Gondola Swans.” Miizel muttered to himself as he walked towards his destination. He kept his head buried in the map and only looked up to orient himself. “Ok so a left over here, followed by a right, then go straight for a bit, then as I turn the corner I…should…be…at the place…voila!”

He pulled away from the map expecting to see a large lake with a couple of boats but was greeted with the ticket booth and the entrance they came from. It seemed as though he had walked around in circles.

“Oh damned of the gods, this is a faulty map.” He grumbled. His eyes landed on lost property where he saw one of the people from earlier conversing with a strange tentacled being. “Well…might as well go there since technically I am lost.”

Miizel started to walk towards them but was interrupted when a kid ran past, nearly toppling him over. “Hey kid!” He reaches out to try and grab the child running away, managing to just get his fingers on the back of his collar and pull him to a stop. “You should really watch where you’re going.”

He looked over to the creature in charge of lost property who was looking worriedly over at his direction. “Running off like that isn’t good. Come on.” He starts to pull but the child was stronger than he looked. After several tugs the boy remained stubborn and refused to move. It looked like they were stuck there for now.

Miizel sighed and turned to look at the tentacled creature. Cupping his mouth with his free hand, he casts the message spell and says. “Well I caught him but he doesn’t want to move. Now what?”

Zavakri briefly recoils at the sudden roar from Dirla, her body jerking away as she rises up on the tips of her toes and performs a series of anxious tapping-steps in a slow circle. She watches as the boy runs off, some instinctual thing welling up within her.

"Don't worry-" She began, taking a suddenly bold step after the running boy...

Only to lose all the steam she'd been working up.

"He's perfectly alright and in-hand already! Jolly Good, that one!" She deflated and let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding, lifting a hand to her forehead as if to ward off her own swoon.

"Thank you kindly, sirrah, that was almost a headache!" She calls out to Miizel in Common. "Who knows where a boy like that may have gotten lost, eh? Things should remain where they should be- as should people!"

She turns back to Dirla and smooths her hands along the hem of her shirt to calm herself. She switches back to Elvish to continue the dialogue;

"I'm interested in hearing more about how things've changed- oh, but I suppose he may have lost something himself. I'll form a Queue. I like those, they're tidy things."

She dutifully steps aside and curtsies to Miizel, partially.

After a bit consoling to the child from Zavakri, and an apology from Dirla, Viro calms down and walks back to Dirla and his brother. Once Viro gives Dirla the mirrored ball back, Dirla turns her attention back to Zavakri and Miizel. She continues the discussion in Elvish,

"Thank you. I appreciate the help,"

She then continues quietly in Elvish, "People and items have been disappearing starting years ago. The mirrored ball is the only thing I have left to remember Star. I'm afraid I don't know much more than that, though,"

Miizel looks at the child that was now obediently walking back to the tentacled creature and nodded. “Thank you.That boy wasn't going anywhere, and well, neither was I.” He said, returning the human’s curtsy with a small bow before turning towards the boy and reprimanding him. “As for you young man, it’s not good to run away without telling anyone. You’ll have people worried sick.”

He paused for a moment after saying those words, eyes glazing over as he recalled something.

“Right!” He placed his hands on his hips and smack his lips a few times before saying. “I think the map given at the entrance is a faulty one. I tried to go to Gondola Swans but ended up getting lost. I suppose it’s quite fitting that I ended up here.”
He laughed loudly, the slight panic seen earlier before entering the carnival seemingly gone.

“Oh right! Where are my manners, my name is Miizel Throe. Pleasure to meet you.”

Silence reigns over Zavakri for some time. Serenity, perhaps, in a word. The concept of waiting her turn was a thoroughly relaxing one-

Ah. It was not to last. Realizing she was being addressed by both, she hastily recalled the words they said. She nodded to Dirla once, conspiratorially, before looking to Miizel and curtsying in a common fashion. Neither too ostentatious, nor a mockery of the formality. A proper greeting.

"Zavakri, the pleasure is all mine. Children are a wondrous thing and deserve these kinds of headaches."

She giggles quietly, a reserved sound.

Viro mumbles an apology in response to Miizel after being admonished. Dirla nods in response to Miizel's and Zavakri's introduction. She listens as Miizel talked about the map, and she tilts her head before letting out a small rumble of a chuckle. She looks to Zavakri, and she advised in Elvish,

"It might be a good idea to have someone accompany him. Our maps and layouts have remained the same over time,"

She then introduces herself, "It is nice to meet you both. My name is Dirlagraun. And yes, I agree: Children are wonderful and should be protected to the best of our abilities,"

She looks around again and she looks to Zavakri again. She talks quietly again, after thinking for a bit, "While your sister isn't here at the Lost Property, I'm guessing you are going to continue looking for her?"

The tentacles that held the mirrored ball moved towards Zavakri, and she speaks again, "I apologize for the sudden request, but...if you find my cub, Star, could you give this to him?"

Zavakri's eyes widen as Dirla speaks, and soon the woman is curtsying once more. She then gently takes the mirrored ball into her hands and balances it gingerly between her fingers.

"Of course." She says softly. "And if you see my sister, let her know that mum is still incredibly cross about what happened and I'd greatly appreciate her putting in the good word for me."

She releases a breath once again, gently placing the ball into her bag; then, she turns to Miizel.

"The Gondola Swans? They were this-a-way, sirrah, when your business here is concluded." She gestures astray. "I could walk with you there, if you don't mind the company."

Dirlagraun nods once, bowing her head a bit, before answering Zavakri, "Of course. I will be sure to tell her, if I see her,"

She turns her attention back to the two boys as Zavakri speaks with Miizel.

Just before the two leave, an older woman arrives with drinks in hand. The two boys run to her, calling

"Mom!"
"Mom, you're back!"

The mother soothed her children before giving them their beverages. She thanks Dirlagraun for watching them before she and her two children head off back into the carnival.

The first hour passed by quickly for Brutrumukk and Jub as they spent it in the Feasting Orchard. They easily find their way to Silversong Lake.

As Brutrumukk and Jub approach, the both of them can hear the crowd chatter amongst themselves, before one observant fairgoer notices movement in the water and hushes everyone. The crowd hush themselves, and they turn their attention ahead towards the lake.

Mist gathers at the banks of the shimmering lake. Near its center, a beautiful mermaid lounges in a giant bowl. She begins singing a glorious, haunting song that captivates spectators on the lakeshore. In response, the lake water coalesces into magical sculptures that whirl around her as she performs.

"So that's a mermaid then." Brutrumukk said quietly as he watched the mermaid rise from the water and begin her performance. "She's quite a sight, ain't she?

Palasha's song continues on, with the watery sculptures changing and shifting forms to match the lyrics, and remain in time with her song.

Unfortunately, the beautiful mermaid's performance was met with adversity...

"BOOOO!"

A voice echoed out from the crowd watching Palasha. She stayed strong and continued to sing, but her watery statues wavered slightly,

Another voice rings out maliciously from the crowd, "Get some singing lessons!" and it causes the watery statues to waver even more, as Palasha's voice weakens...

"By the Gods! Have some mercy on those poor cats!" A third voice jeers at Palasha, finally causing the watery statues to fall back into the lake. The mermaid is now completely silent, as she leaps out of the bowl and back into the water.

The crowd is clearly saddened that Palasha stopped her performance because of some hecklers...

As the performance was halted by a trio of hecklers, Brutrumukk's smile vanished once more. This time though, the expression that took its place was a lot more readable. "Who said that?!" The furious bugbear demanded to know as he looked around, trying to locate the hecklers.

Brutrumukk growled in frustration as he found himself unable to locate the hecklers. But then an idea came to him. Reaching down, Brutrumukk seized Jub and hoisted him into the air and high above the crowd. "We gotta find those gits!" Brutrumukk declared. "You should be able to spot 'em from that height. You give me targets an' I'll give 'em all Nine 'Ells!"

Jub had been so focused on the mermaid's song he hadn't even noticed the various hecklers. That was, until Brutrumukk suddenly picked him up. "H-hey, wait-" Jub shouted. It took him a moment to register the bugbear's words. "O-oh, okay!" He hesitantly scanned the crowd.

Brutrumukk may not have been able to find the hecklers, but thanks to his and Jub's efforts combined, the goblin wizard would find one suspicious figure.

A human seems to be sneaking his way out of the crowd, snickering under his breath. Jub sees this human just in time to witness as his appearance magically changes to that of a half-elf, before they start to move away from the Silversong Lake.

Jub was about to point out the heckler when he suddenly stopped himself. If this man could shape-change, there was nothing to stop him from doing so again, meaning Brutrumukk could easily lose him in a crowd. As the goblin considered this problem, the flash of a smirk appeared on his face. He raised his hand to point at the man again, but this time made a very specific flick of his hand and muttered something under his breath, attempting to cast Prestidigitation, in an attempt to paint an unmistakable sign upon the man's crime upon his back.

Jub easily pulls and manipulates the arcane energy, not just from himself, but also from the Witchlight Carnival. As he casts the spell, a large paintball forms in the color of his choice, floating in midair growing bigger and bigger. When he feels it's ready, he flicks/fires it with a precision unlike any other!

The paintball arcs in the air until it lands just as the heckler reaches the calculated point. The paintball hits the heckler on the back of their the head, causing this half-elf to squawk!

Wait...squawk?

The magical disguise falls to reveal the heckler's true form to Jub: A kenku in a blue dress wearing fake butterfly wings.

The kenku seems to realize that their disguise is gone more than anything and quickly brings up another disguise: A dwarf. But the colored mark from Jub's spell remains!

Brutrumukk watched as Jub cast his spell and followed the paintball all the way to the kenku heckler. A cruel smile stretched itself across Brutrumukk's face as he set Jub down. "Well that was certainly somethin' to be proud of." Brutrumukk said with an approving nod. "This next bit will need a distraction. Make some noise. Throw out some pretty colors. Do whatever ya need to do to keep the crowd's eyes on you and off me." If Jub does as requested, Brutrumukk takes advantage of Jub's distraction and the inherent affinity for stealth that all bugbears possessed to sneak up on the kenku.

At the mention of the word 'distraction', Jub suddenly recalled an old trick he had used during his earlier days. He glanced at the people in his immediate surroundings until his eyes fell upon a young human girl. Perfect. He reached up to his head and carefully pulled back his hood to reveal a small spider resting on top of his head. Jub gave a small whistle to catch the creature's attention, causing all eight of its beady red eyes to open. The goblin reached an open hand towards the spider, who crawled onto his hand as if on command. Jub then lowered his hood back down and attempted to approach the girl as sneakily as possible, so he could plant to the spider on her shoulder without her or anyone noticing.

Jub easily plants the spider on her shoulder without her or anyone else noticing. As soon as Jub makes himself less noticeable, a little boy notices and points to it shouting, "Oh my gods! Julie, what is that?!"

Julie looks at her shoulder and she screams and cries in fear at the spider. This caused many around her to look, and try to help her take the spider off or kill it.

While the crowd is focused on helping the little girl, the kenku keeps walking away, never noticing that Brutrumukk is approaching...

Brutrumukk's cruel smile turned slowly but surely into a downright sadistic grin as he closed in on the kenku, Jub's distraction leaving the bird completely unaware of the danger right up until it was too late. When Brutrumukk got within arms reach, the bugbear sprung upon his prey with malicious glee, seizing the kenku by one ankle and lifting his catch up into the air. "OI! OI! Look 'ere! I caught the git!" Brutrumukk called out triumphantly as he displayed the disguised heckler for all the crowd to see. "I caught the shapeshiftin' git what ruined the show!"

The Kenku lets out a surprised yell as Brutrumukk caught them and lifted them up in the air. The Kenku was still in their dwarvish disguise as Brutrumukk called to the crowd and shouted in retaliation, using a silky smooth male voice, "Help! This Bugbear is crazy! I didn't do anything!" The crowd looks at the disguised kenku and look to the bugbear, starting to think that Brutrumukk is falsely accusing an innocent fairgoer...

Brutrumukk's grin faded as the kenku tried to trick the crowd, and an annoyed grimace replaced it as he noticed the crowd was buying it. "Oh come on! Don't tell me you lot are believin' this git!" Brutrumukk exclaimed. "A good chunk o' you lot know who I am even! You know I ain't crazy! This git is the git what ruined the show! An' now that I've nabbed 'em, they's tryin' to git their way out of 'ere by gittin' you into thinkin' that I'm crazy!"

Jub pushed himself through the crowd so he was closer to Brutrumukk and the disguised kenku. "Yep, listen to the bugbear, folks!" he called out to the onlookers. "I saw it with my own eyes! This guy..." He pointed to the kenku. "He's the one who's been ruining your show tonight!" He paused before adding, for attempted dramatics, "And he's not even a dwarf!"

The crowd murmurs amongst themselves after Brutrumukk and Jub spoke up,

"He is the Spirit of the Snoring Stone. He helped us a great deal..."
"But...Are they sure that he's the heckler?"
"Why would he lie?"
"Maybe there's some sort of misunderstanding...?"

One member of the crowd looks to Jub when he mentions that the dwarf isn't even a dwarf. They ask Jub, "...If he's not a dwarf, then what is he?"

"Why tell ya when we can show ya!" Brutrumukk answered before lowering the heckler so that they were eye level with him and glaring at the disguised kenku. "Alright, Bird Brain. Drop the act. Now."

The dwarf disguise shows the heckler's fear as their eyes widen. He looks around, and it's clear that they are trying to think. They look like a cornered animal.

He then laughs hesitantly, and he calls to the group, "It's alright, everyone! I think there's just a misunderstanding between us! Nothing to worry about,"

He then looks directly at Brutrumukk, and he speaks again, this time with a pink fog appearing briefly in front of Brutrumukk's face, "Why don't we go somewhere private and we can talk things out, yes?"

An angry snarl began to form on Brutrumukk's face when his demand for the heckler to drop their disguise went unfulfilled. For a moment, Brutrumukk considered crushing the ankle he was holding the kenku by. However, before he could commit to the action, something stayed his hand. The heckler was a spellcaster. It didn't take much to kill a spellcaster. And if Brutrumukk killed someone in the middle of this crowd without a good reason, the mob he'd been trying to form for the heckler would come for him instead. Violence wasn't the answer here.

"I think we're fine where we are, Bird Brain." Brutrumukk said in response to Bird Brain's request to speak somewhere private, before turning to look at Jub. "Since this git don't seem too eager to drop their disguise, 'ow's about you use some o' yer booyagh to drop Bird Brain's act for 'em, yeah?"

"Errr, right!" Jub said. He quickly ran through his list of known spells in his mind, trying to think of any that might help in this particular situation. After a moment of drawing blanks, he turned away slightly as he began rifling through his pack. "Just, err, give me a moment, my good man." He pulled out a rather old, ratty-looking notebook and began flipping through the pages. Anyone who happened to glance over his shoulder would see scribbled writing inside, accompanied with various arcane symbols and diagrams.

After a few minutes, Jub once again was unable to find anything useful. However, as he was about to close the book, it suddenly occurred to him that he didn't necessarily need a spell. He just needed the kenku to think he did. The flash of a smile appeared beneath Jub's hood as he put the book away and he turned back to Brutrumukk and his quarry. He leaned towards the kenku and said, lowering his voice little, "My feathered fellow, I suggest you drop this act immediately. Otherwise, I, Jub the Peculiar, will be forced to do something rather drastic." With a flourish, he produced what appeared to be a twig from his pocket, a blue ribbon tied haphazardly around the handle. He pointed it at the kenku. "I will count to three, and if you don't removed your disguise, I will summon a horrible creature that will take the knowledge - very painfully, might I add - straight from your mind." He paused dramatically for a moment, as if allowing that threat to sink in before beginning to count. "One..."

The heckler was visibly sweating when Brutrumukk refused to speak with him in private. The crowd watched as he encouraged Jub to try something.

However, when Jub tried to deceive the heckler, they simply grinned knowingly at the small wizard. He speaks again, this time to Jub, "You lost something important to this place, didn't you?"

He addresses Brutrumukk and Jub this time, "I can tell you more about this place...if we go to somewhere private,"

"Two..." Jub started notably sweating, that little smirk he had given earlier gone almost as quickly as it ha appear. However, as he was about to say that final number, the kenku's words sunk in and he hesitated. Lost...? Jub hadn't lost anything. He frowned, glancing down at his pockets and reaching into them, suddenly worried that something might have fallen out. Nope, everything still there.

Then something seemed to occur to the goblin, like a memory long buried starting to dig its way out to the surface. Jub lowered his wand. "Perhaps..." he began, glancing at Brutrumukk. "We should consider hearing the fellow out."

Brutrumukk sighed in frustration as he pointedly ignored what Bird Brain and Jub were saying. Efforts to make the kenku drop the act had gone on far too long for the lazy bugbear's liking, so he decided they'd have to settle with just telling the crowd. "Ok, so Bird Brain 'ere would rather us tell ya what they is instead o' showin' ya!" Brutrumukk said as he addressed the crowd once more. "An' seein' as what I gotta tell ya tell ya now ain't the easiest thing to believe, I get why they'd rather 'ave things that way! Just keep in mind that magic and kenkus are a thing when yer listenin' to what comes next! So 'ere's the thing, this ain't a dwarf I've got danglin' by the ankle! It's a kenku what used magic to not look like a kenku! They did that an' then they shouted mean things at the mermaid to ruin the show!"

The heckler was glad to see that Jub seemed to be coming around. But then...things seemed to go south when Brutrumukk called out to the crowd giving his claims. The crowd gasps and murmur amongst themselves. The heckler sighs in disappointment, "Well...so much for negotiations..."

He looks to the side, before directing his attention back to Brutrumukk, and he speaks with a lopsided grin, "As much fun as this has been, I gotta go! Good night!" Another flick and midnight blue smoke appears in front of the bugbear's face.

Brutrumukk had no chance. Once he inhaled the smoke, his eyelids grew heavy and he fell asleep before he even knew it.

Once Brutrumukk fell asleep, the heckler took his chance and fled the scene.

However, what the heckler didn't realize is that they dropped something: A doll, with a wire around the neck...

"Hey!" Jub shouted as the kenku ran off. He hesitated for a moment, glancing down at the sleeping Brutrumukk before, rather awkwardly, patting the bugbear's head and muttering, "Err, I'll be right back." He then attempted to give chase.

However, it didn't take much for Jub to lose track of the kenku, as they had a head start and admittedly, Jub wasn't much of a runner. He stopped to catch his breath, then scanned the crowd in hope of catching sight of that telltale mark he had left on the heckler with his prestidigitation. Unfortunately, he couldn't see, and after muttering some curse in goblin, returned to Brutrumukk.

"He's not gonna be happy about this," Jub muttered under his breath before leaning down and lightly jostling the bugbear. "Oi! Friend! Rise and shine!"

Brutrumukk half groaned and half growled as he awoke. Slowly but surely, he sat up and looked around as he pieced together an approximation of what had just happened to him. "Stupid magic kenku." Brutrumukk growled in frustration as he got to his feet. "The next time I see it, I'm clubbin' it to death an' mountin' its 'ead on a spike... Fer now though..." Brutrumukk looked to the lake before making a pile on the ground of everything he had on him and turning back to Jub. "Keep an eye on me stuff." Brutrumukk said. "I'll be back in a bit." With that said, Brutrumukk took off towards the waters edge and sucked down a good three minutes of air before diving into the lake in search of the mermaid.

"Oh, err, sure!" Jub said as he watched Brutrumukk dive into the water. He glanced around him at the remainders of the crowd, an awkward smile on his face as he did so. It was at this point he finally noticed the doll the kenku had left behind. He picked it up, turning it over in his hands.

Brutrumukk does not see Palasha in the immediate vicinity within the lake. But when he comes back for air, he does notice that the lake does connect to the river that surrounds the carnival. Perhaps Palasha went down the river?

As for Jub, his knowledge of magic comes in handy as he studies the corn husk doll the kenku dropped. He notices the thorny stem around the neck, and he recalls reading about voodoo. This doll...it represents someone, but Jub isn't sure who. But he does realize that the stem around the neck is the most out of place object about this doll...

Now that Jub thinks about it...That kenku wasn't mimicking anyone when he was talking earlier. They were using one consistent voice the entire time, forming their own words!

...Could it be...?

"Mag damn it, nothin's ever simple, is it?" Brutrumukk muttered as he eyed the river and steeled his resolve for the long period of exertion ahead of him. "Alright. Let's get this done." With that said, Brutrumukk began swimming towards the river, sucking down another three minutes of air and slipping blow the surface as he reached the river's mouth.

Brutrumukk swims down the river until finally he reaches part of the river that's closest to the Hall of Illusions. There, he sees Palasha has taken refuge there. Her head is slightly poking upwards, and the bugbear can see that she is looking at the mime who is standing in front of the Hall of Illusions. She lets out sigh while her mouth is underwater, forming bubbles that rise to the surface as she watches him.

Having caught sight of Palasha, Brutrumukk swam over to a patch of riverbank to come up for air fifteen feet away from where the mermaid was watching the mime. The bugbear steadied himself on the riverbank with one arm as he gasped for air for a time, half from how long he'd been holding his breath and half from the how long he'd been exerting himself swimming down the river. "Oi oi... Miss... Palasha... The Mermaid...?" Brutrumukk tiredly called out in between labored breaths. "Could ya... come back to the lake... an' finish yer show... please...? The... kenku git... what was insultin' ya'... is gone now... An' everyone else... was really enjoyin'... the show... an' we'd like... to see... the rest of it..."

Palasha turns to look at Brutrumukk suddenly when he reaches the bank and calls to her. She looks surprised before she looks wary. She looks away from him for a bit before she asks him, "...How do you know the rest of the crowd won't heckle me too...?"

She then shakes her head, and she answers, "...I can't..."

"You can't...?" Brutrumukk said as his breath slowly but surely returned to him. "You can't...? Now that's just a load o' rubbish... O' course ya can... Yer show was amazin' before that kenku opened its beak... An' I guarantee ya that no one's gonna open their beaks again... If anyone does... I'll club 'em to death an' mount their 'eads on spikes as a warnin' to the rest..."

Palasha blinks at his words, and she sighed "...You're going to have find some other way to prove that, other than a promise of brutality..."

She seems to think about it, and she seems to gain an idea after looking back at the mime. She snaps her fingers a couple of times, before looking back to Brutrumukk, "...If...you can help Candlefoot...get his voice back...then I'll return to continue the performance..."

Brutrumukk looked over at the mime, then looked back at Palasha and gave a firm nod. "Get a mime to speak? Yeah, I can do that" Brutrumukk said. "Does anyone know 'ow 'e lost 'is voice to begin with or got any other leads I what could follow?"

Palasha nods and she begins to explain,

"The last time I heard him speak...he wanted to ask me something...important. However, while he was in the middle of his speech, he suddenly fell silent. After that...he ran away crying. I'm not sure what happened, but...it's clear that this was not intentional on his part,"

"Hmm... Sounds like there's booyagh afoot." Brutrumukk said. "An' as luck would 'ave it, I know someone what knows their booyagh. Don't you two worry. Now that the Spirit o' the Snorin' Stone's on the trail, Candlefoot won't be without a voice fer much longer! Don't go nowhere, I'll be back in a bit." With said, Brutrumukk hauled himself from the water and ran back to the lake.

When Brutrumukk arrived back at the lake, he was quick to track down Jub. "Oi oi, booyagh! Yer needed." The soaking wet bugbear called out as he closed in on the goblin. "Firstly, I'm gonna need some booyagh to dry me off." Brutrumukk elaborated as he reached Jub's speaking distance. "An' second, I'm gonna need some booyagh to return a stolen voice to someone."

"Gah!" Jub jumped slightly when Brutrumukk returned, nearly dropping the doll in the process. "A little warning next time! I might have accidentally flung a fireball at you!" Once he recovered from the shock, he raised his free hand to cast Prestidigitation on the bugbear. "And... stolen voice? What do you mean?"

"Sorry 'bout that." Brutrumukk apologized for startling Jub as he appreciated the newfound dryness of his fur. "As fer what I mean, some git came along and stole the voice from one o' the carnies. Now they can't speak. Their usin' 'im as a mime down the river." Brutrumukk moved to collect his things as he spoke. Just as he finished his last sentence, the bugbear noticed the doll Jub was holding. "Is that a doll? Where'd ya find that? An' why's it got a noose 'round its neck"

"Hm?" Jub glanced back down at the doll in his hands. "Oh, yes. I found it on the ground. I think that kenku must have dropped it when he ran off." He turned the doll over in his hands once again. "I remember reading about something like this... I think it may be magical in some way." As he was speaking, something seemed to occur to him. "This mime lost his voice you said?" He paused before adding, "Did you notice something... strange about that kenku from before?"

Brutrumukk considered Jub's question as he reclaimed his items and gear and ensured that nothing was missing. "Now that you've got me thinkin' about it... yeah. Yeah, I think there was somethin' strange about that kenku git." Brutrumukk said before scratching his head. "They talk by makin' sounds they've 'eard from somewhere else. But that kenku git was usin' only one voice when I caught it. An' it didn't sound weird or nothin'... You thinkin' that kenku git's the one what stole the carnie's voice?"

"Undoubtedly," Jub said. "And this doll might have something to do with it. But first..." He looked back up to Brutrumukk. "Can you show me to where this mime is? If I can see them for myself, it might confirm some things for me."

"Right right. Follow me." Brutrumukk said before leading the way back to the place where the bugbear had left Palasha and Candlefoot.

Brutrumukk easily leads Jub back to the Hall of Illusions, where the mime, Candlefoot, stands in front of the entrance. Palasha is still partially hidden in the water, clearly watching him, and both goblinoids as they approach.

"Oi oi!" Brutrumukk called out to the two carnies as they approached. "I'm back, and I've brought reinforcements. Jub 'ere thinks the kenku git what ruined the show is the same git what stole Candlefoot's voice. An' 'e also thinks a doll the kenku git dropped as it escaped may be the key to breakin' this curse." Brutrumukk then looked to Jub and grinned encouragingly. "Do yer thing, booyagh."

Jub looked Candlefoot up and down and then back at the doll, still clutched in his hands. Yep. This was definitely modeled after the mime. "Well, I'm almost completely sure now," he said. He glanced up at Candlefoot. "I'm going to try something. I don't know if it's going to work..." He hesitated, and even beneath his hood, one could tell he was wincing slightly. "And there is a teeny-tiny percentage that it might make things worse. Are you, err..." He nervously scratched the back of his head. "Are you okay with those kind of odds?"

Candlefoot the mime, blinks in surprise when Brutrumukk called to him and Palasha. When he looks behind him towards the river, Palasha had ducked down into the river, and only came back up when Candlefoot turned to face the goblinoids again. He pointed at himself in confusion as though to ask if Brutrumukk and Jub were talking to him.

He listens to Jub, still confused and a little out of the loop about the situation. He takes a moment to think about it, before giving a silent nod to Jub, as though to say 'Yes,'.

"Alright," Jub said, returning the nod. He then attempted to undo the thorny stem around the doll's neck.

Jub successfully undoes the thorny stem around the doll's neck, albeit pricking his fingers a couple of times. The thorny stem falls off thanks to Jub, and at first it seems like nothing happened.

The mime sighs, "Maybe it was impossi-" He stops in realization: He just spoke! His voice has returned!

He joyfully laughs, "I...I can talk! I can TALK!"

He runs over to Jub and Brutrumukk and he eagerly takes their hands to shake and he thanks you, "Oh Frabjous Day! Thank you! Thank you so much! I simply can't thank you enough!"

He then seems to realize something, and he speaks out loud, "Oh! Palasha! I gotta find her-!"

"I'm here," Palasha speaks up as she rises from the river.

Candlefoot stops and takes in a nervous breath. He walks up to her, and he kneels down. He speaks, "I'm sorry, Palasha...About before. But...what I wanted to ask you was..."

He pulls out a small box with a ring in it, and he opens it before her, "...Will you marry me?"

Palasha's shy, aloof, and cold exterior finally shatters, as she gasps happily, and she practically leaps out of the water to hug Candlefoot. She exclaims happily, "YES! Yes, I will!"

The mood brightens significantly, as the surrounding people applaud the two carnies.

After a moment, Palasha returns her attention to Brutrumukk and Jub, and she speaks, "Thank you. I will return to perform. But be sure to stay afterwards. I wish to give you two a singing lesson as well in return for your assistance,"

Brutrumukk watched eagerly as Jub undid the noose around the doll's neck. The eagerness deflated when nothing happened, but was quick to turn to a grin of triumph as Candlefoot's voice finally returned to him and he shook their hands in gratitude. The bugbear then watched as Candlefoot and Palasha reunited and the former mime proposed to the mermaid. As the crowd applauded the acceptance of the proposal, Brutrumukk let loose a boisterous cheer in honor of the happy couple.

When Palasha thanked the goblinoid duo and offered singing lessons, Brutrumukk chuckled nervously in response. "Fair warnin', ya may 'ave yer work cut out with me." Brutrumukk cautioned Palasha. "I don't think any amount o' teachin' could do much about the sorry state o' me pipes. Either way..." Brutrumukk turned to Jub, picked him up, placed the goblin on one of his broad shoulders, and called out to the applauding crowd. "Give it up fer the 'ero o' the hour! Jub the Peculiar! Returner o' Voices! Bane of All Shapeshiftin' Gits! Booyagh Supreme!"

Jub had been in the process of letting out a sigh of relief when Brutrumukk picked him. "Oop!" He looked slightly stunned as the bugbear essentially forced him into the spotlight and, for once, his usual showy persona was nowhere to be seen. Instead, there was a glimmer of an almost bashful smile beneath his hood. "T-thank you, yes, thank you..." he said, nodding to the crowd. Sudden bout of shyness aside, though, it was clear he was very pleased.

Palasha chuckled in response to Brutrumukk's warning, and she answered "Don't worry, I'm not a stranger to bugbear vocals. If I can teach Burly, I can teach you,"

The crowd cheers and applauds Jub as Brutrumukk gives the goblin wizard the spotlight.

Afterwards, Palasha returns to Silversong Lake, with Candlefoot and the rest of the crowd. She continues her beautiful performance, and everyone would be able to note that it sounds much more jubilant. The performance had significantly improved considering the turn of events.

Both goblinoids are also able to notice that as Palasha sings, Candlefoot himself seems to become more colorful himself. His clothes and his general appearance loses it's monochrome appearance, to reveal that he has brown hair, and he is wearing vibrant blue and pale yellow attire.

When Palasha's performance finishes with a crescendo and water sculptures meant to mimic fireworks, Candlefoot becomes monochrome again.

After the performance, Palasha makes good on her offer and gives Brutrumukk and Jub a singing lesson. Thanks to her lesson, Brutrumukk now knows how to use his low timbre vocals in an operatic way. Jub is also now able to sing as well.

After all the unpleasantness, Brutrumukk was more than happy to get things back on track. As he walked back to the lake, carrying Jub on his shoulder all the way there, he told the crowd that followed them all about the shapeshifting kenku and how it had stolen Candlefoot's voice and made mean comments about Palasha's singing. Once the crowd was well aware of the kenku's crimes, Brutrumukk let them know that Jub had marked the kenku with a splotch of blue paint on the back of its head. He instructed them to spread the word of the villainous shapeshifting kenku voice thief and told them to come find him if they suspected that someone was the kenku in disguise.

By the time he was back at the lake and watching the show again, Brutrumukk was firmly back to the jolly mood he'd been in when he first decided the carnival wasn't so bad. The performance was amazing right up to the last note. And when the time came for singing lessons, Brutrumukk was astounded to realize that Palasha was more than capable of improving his singing. By the end of the lesson, the second hour was drawing to a close and the third hour was almost upon them. "We got one more hour to pass before the big show at the big tent." Brutrumukk said to Jub. "You wanna decide where we go next?"

Jub's shyness melted away as the hour progressed - he chipped in throughout Brutrumukk's telling with own tiny embellishments and seemed to warm much more to the praise as it continued - but he was still a little more subdued than usual. Even as he enjoyed Palasha's show and took part in the singing lessons afterwards, his mind dwelt on what the kenku had said before: "You lost something important to this place, didn't you?"

Huh. Now that he thought about it, Jub had thought there was something... familiar about this place, but had written it off as simply being a typical carnival atmosphere. After all, he'd only been to one carnival in his whole life. That had been about eight years ago, before he was "Jub the Peculiar", soon-to-be greatest wizard in all Faerun. Back then, he had just been plain old Jub, an outcast from his tribe, never expected to live long or amount to anything, living on the streets in a world that naturally mistrusted and looked down upon him. He didn't like to talk about those days or even think about them if he could help it, but sneaking into the Witchlight that fateful day was probably one of the more pleasant memories from that time.

Well, up until the end, that was, when he realised something was very, very wrong.

"Huh?" Jub suddenly realised Brutrumukk was talking to him. "Oh err..." He looked at his surroundings, peering into the distance for anything that caught his eye. "Erm, how about the Dragonfly Rides?"

"The Dragonfly Rides." Brutrumukk agreed with a nod. "Not as good as Dragon Rides probably. But I can't tell, I've never ridden either." Brutrumukk then turned to Palasha to say his goodbyes. "You an' yer fella 'ave a good night now, yeah?" Brutrumukk said to the mermaid. "Gimme a shout if anyone says mean things or tries to steal voices again. Especially if it's that kenku git." With that said, Brutrumukk waited for anyone else who wanted to say goodbye to do so and then set off for the Dragonfly Rides, Jub still mounted on his shoulder.

The first hour quickly passed by as the two were in the Hall of Illusions. Time turns to the second hour as the pair reach the Snail Racing area. The grandstands next to this racecourse are filled with cheering fairgoers ringing bells, swinging rattles, and waving flags. On the starting line, eight giant snails are having their shells scrubbed by pixies.

Above the circular course, a wooden gantry hangs from the branches of a central tree, where two goblins officiate the proceedings.

As you enter the area, Aurora and Gabriel would notice signs posted in the stands and along the racetrack warning that neither jockeys nor spectators may influence the outcome of a race by using magic or by harming other jockeys or snails. The both of them also notice that the snails have saddles on their shells...but no riders...

"Where are the riders at?" Aurora asked as she stepped closer to the course "Could it be possible their riders are pixies?" the half-elf mused leaning upon the railing before them, he chuckled at the thought of tiny invisible jockeys riding snails twice their size.

"Oh, is this your first time to the Snail Races?"

A muscular and handsome human male (appearance wise: Think Gaston), spoke to Aurora and Gabriel. He informs the both of them, "Anyone can volunteer to take part as a snail jockey. I won the last race, and I'm about to volunteer to race again. Of course, watching from the stands is also a viable option..." Gabriel glanced askance from the racetrack to the muscular gentleman as he addressed the both of them "Is that so?" the duelist quirked an eyebrow at the man, quickly looking him over then he offered the stranger a hand in greeting "Gabriel, of Waterdeep and you are?" something in the bards tone gave the impression he was putting on an air of good sportsmanship, however his eyes made it clear he took the man's words as a challenge.

"It's been a long time since I've seen them. What do you think Gabriel should we give racing snails a go?" A small smile crossed her face thinking about seeing Gabe trying to race a snail. Looking from the man to his elvish companion the mischievous look upon Gabriel's face clear as day "I think I wadger I might," Gabriel looked back to the man dropping his hand to his waist "So you said you won the last race then?" the bard asked the man.

The man introduced himself after Gabriel began introductions, "My name is Vernon Delajoyeux. Hail and well met," He ignores Gabriel's hand, in favor of Aurora's hand. He would kiss her hand if she lets him. Gabriel would also see the look in his eyes mirror his. He is clearly challenging Gabriel and trying to impress Aurora.

He answers Gabriel's question, "That I did. The racing is worth the ticket punch!"

He then nods and comments, "I've yet to meet anyone who could beat me this night, but you both are welcome to try. See you on the race track!" He then walks off to sign up to race. A pixie punches his ticket as he stands next to a snail draped in red flags.

As the man reached for Aurora's hand she snorted out a small laugh as he gave his name. When he tries to kiss her hand she pulled her hand back to keep him from doing so. He reminded Aurora of the sons of other noble families who tried to impress her or her family with the courtesies, or vain attempts of honor and valor. While Gabe was had already been planning on racing, Aurora had initially thought about sitting it out. Vernon's comment about not having been beat yet, in combination with how clearly he had been trying to be impressive changed Aurora's mind. She was now going to race as well.

"He seems rather full of himself eh?" She nudged Gabe with an elbow. If he weren't in a good spirited mood the duelist would have taken offense to Vernon's blatantly obvious attempt to impress a lady in his company, the oaf obviously lacked in telling when a woman had no interest in him.

Gabriel glared at the man as he left, his gaze scanning the available mounts before being jostled by Rory's nudge "Quite full of himself." he agreed looking back to his elvish companion with a slight smirk, thinking of how she rebuffed the man's swooning gesture.

"He might have thought we were an item, if he was so bold to try to kiss your hand in my presence." Gabriel shook his head slightly with a chuckle, usually such things of that nature were likely prone to happen amongst the snooty upper-class or so he was told, something of a challenge in cases of courtship all of which sounded idiotic to him.

"Maybe, however these snails may have more wits than he does if he thinks such actions are impressive." Rory laughed at her comment. Vernon really did seem quite the fool to think he'd get a positive reaction from her. "I think we should both try to knock him down a peg, especially as he thinks he may think he'll be undefeated this evening." She started towards the pixie that punched the tickets for those entering the race. Gabriel simply nodded, smiling amusedly as he followed behind her all the while finding it funny how Rory was so determined to make Vernon seem foolish after his bold move to impress her, the duelist made a mental note to bring it up at dinner.

After getting her ticket punched by the pixie, Rory walked over to the snail draped with the purple flags. She looked around to see who else besides Vernon, Gabe, and her were participating in the races. Gabriel handed his ticket to the pixie, a determined look on the half-elves face not breaking his stride after as he strode over to the snail draped in blue flags.

The pixie punches Aurora's and Gabriel's tickets after they told them that they were going to race. After getting assigned to their respective snails, the pixies inform them, "Alright, just hop into the saddle! Now, these babies respond well to encouragement, so keep that in mind, ya?"

After getting the both of you situated, the snails begin lining up. Some are without riders. Vernon is on a snail with red flags, while Gabriel's has blue flags, and Aurora's has purple flags.

The goblins above call out to the crowds, "Alright, folks! It looks like the next set of racers are ready! Will they beat the champion of the last race? Let's find out! 3...2...1...!" A bang resounds, and the snails take off.

Gabriel and Aurora would find that these giant snails are faster than expected!

"And they're off! Shellymoo and Quickleaf take the lead, while High Road and Flowerflash are not far behind! Taking up the rear are Nimblefoot, Breakneck, Whizzy, and Queen's Majesty! But the race has only just begun folks!"

The race seems to be starting out well for Gabriel and Aurora, there is still time for them to catch up.

...

Then, somebody threw two heads of lettuce in front of their snails. They could hear someone in the distance call out, "My Lettuce!" in dismay.

Their snails immediately stopped and proceeded to begin eating their lettuce.

Vernon calls out as he leaves the two, "See you at the finish li-WO-WOAH!"

Both Aurora and Gabriel can see that his saddle snapped and he fell off of his snail. His snail is continuing the race without him! Vernon is now splayed out in the mud.

Shellymoo's saddle can also be seen snapping off. Both Flowerflash and Whizzy seem to be bolstered by the crowd and seem to move faster. Queen's Majesty on the other hand seems to get a stitch and slows down.

Aurora burst out in laughter as Vernon falls from his snail and lands in the mud. The only thing that would make it better for her now was to beat him in the race. However it did seem that her snail was more interested in eating the lettuce now rather than racing. Gabriel also couldn't suppress himself from laughing at the handsome yet clumsy Vernon, now looking to have fully embraced the look of a fool, however it seemed his headway was ground to a halt as his snail stopped to chow down upon some lettuce.

After both Gabriel's and Aurora's snails finish eating the heads of lettuce, they continue on. Aurora can feel that her snail seems to register the cheering from the crowds, and seems to move faster! Gabriel, as much as he tries to encourage his snail to move faster, his snail seems to keep a consistent pace.

As the race continues on, the both of them would notice that two more saddles fall off two of the competing snails, and another snail is distracted by a head of lettuce. Shellymoo, the snail adorned with pink flags, seems to have the lead as of right now.

That is, until the snail got a stitch. The snail maintains the lead in the race. At this point in time, Gabriel's snail now gets a boost in speed from the cheering crowd. Gabriel and Aurora are neck and neck with each other while Vernon's snail is ahead of them, but missing the racer himself. Queen's Majesty is last as it eats another head of lettuce that was tossed in front of it.

Gabriel's and Aurora's speed quickly picks up, as though the snails were simply getting into stride earlier, making their way while three more snails stopped for heads of lettuce, and Shellymoo's saddle falls off. The pink flag adorned snail is in the lead, and it looks like it is going to do the final sprint. Gabriel held tight on his snails reigns, a gut feeling telling him now was the moment that would make or break who finished first, looking over his shoulder to Vernon, with a laugh he turned looking straight ahead to peer at Aurora "You can do it Aurora, let's show Vernon what your made of!" he shouted, filling his words with power.

At this point, Aurora's snail faces a stitch, but it was able to keep going thanks to Aurora's encouragement and Gabriel's Inspiring words! At this opportune moment, Shellymoo stops to eat a head of lettuce that was tossed in their path.

Now, Gabriel, Aurora, and Shellymoo are tied. But, Quickleaf has the lead, and the red flag adorned snail that used to have Vernon as the rider, are second.

Aurora and Gabriel quickly noticed that Shellymoo doesn't move any further, due to another head of lettuce being thrown into its path.

Whatever encouragement Aurora gave High Road and the cheers from the crowd have significantly bolstered the snail! It sped up, almost threatening to have Aurora fall out of her own saddle. But High Road quickly passes Breakneck (red) and Quickleaf (green), and crosses the finish line! The crowd practically leaps out of their seats to cheer at the sudden victory!

Gabriel crosses the finish line at the same time as Quickleaf, the cheer of the crowd was as much a moment of triumph for Aurora as it was for Gabriel who practically jumped out of Nimblefoot's saddle as soon as the snail crossed the finish line to run over to his companion. In the midst of all the excitement Gabriel threw his arms around Aurora as soon as she dismounted "By Correlon you did it Rory!" he laughed.

Vernon's snail earned third with the rider still far behind...

As Aurora crossed the finish line just ahead of the other snails, she created a shower of sparks in the air in celebration. She was caught off guard as Gabe hurried over and threw his arms around her. Instinct caused her to pull away at first, but she realized it was done more out of excitement.

"Thank you Gabe." She said as she pulled away and took the offered item from the person. After she had looked at it for a few moments and didn't recognize it, the kind individual explained that improve her chances on one thing. She simply needed to drink it and preform the task within an hour of taking it. "Oh.... that's pretty cool. Thank you." She nodded to the person in gratitude.

"What'd you get Gabe? glancing from the small kaleidoscopic instrument to his companion the bard looked slightly amused as he tucked the wand away into his pocket "A wand, won't last beyond a single use." shrugging Gabriel looked around to spot the gentleman they'd set out to beat "Oh yes and um, sorry for tackling you." he smiled coyly at Aurora although it was clear he meant the apology in earnest.

She gave a slight smile in responseto his apology. "It was a moment of excitement, though try not to make a habit of it." After putting the potion away she looked over towards the food tents were on the other side of the carnival. "Is it just me or can you also smell the food all the way over here?" following her gaze, Gabriel whiffed the air briskly with an arch in his brow "I do believe so, I am absolutely starved." he nodded curtly before turning on his heels to his companion, one hand upon the hilt of his rapier and the crook of his other arm offered to Aurora "Shall we make a show of our exit?" he nodded to over to Vernon with a mischievous grin, it would be humorous to walk her out amongst the fanfare while the man simply watched grumpily after all.

"Let's." Aurora took Gabes arm and as the proceeded to exit, she waved a hand through the air making another display of sparks over their head. She turned her head to make eye contact with Vernon, and gave him a smug victorious smirk.

Vernon, who had finally reached the finish line, was caked in mud, and looked tired. He makes eye contact with Aurora and looks both angry and embarrassed. He could only watch silently as the crowd around the duo of racing victors give them fanfare as they leave.

As the both of them leave and head off to find food, they can hear a pair chatter excitedly with each other,

"Ohh! I can't wait until the fourth hour! The Big Top Extravaganza's gonna be great!"
"What do you think they'll show?"
"I don't know, but I'm looking forward to it!"

The pair leave after unknowingly imparting that information to Gabriel and Aurora.

Miizel, with Zavakri's help, finally finds the Gondola Swans. As they approach the lake, they see enormous swans glide through the water, pulling ornate wooden gondolas draped in flowers. The swans disappear into banks of silver mist as they wend their way down the river. A jetty extends ahead, at the end of which a waiting swan preens its feathers.

After saying their goodbyes Miizel and Zavakri went on their way to the Gondola Swans. Thankfully with her there, they managed to arrive without much trouble. Upon arriving, Miizel’s eyes went up in shock. When he heard the name Gondola Swans, he had expected small boats rowed by the occupants as they went on a relaxing ride through the like. Not actual gigantic swans pulling it.

“Well I’ll be. This is a pleasant surprise.” He said, slowly walking up to swan preening its feathers. He reached out to try and pet it. “Biggest bird I’ve ever seen.”

"Funny thing, innit?" She posits as she guffaws quietly at the sight. "Makes one wonder. Weight and muscle ratios don't hold up well with enlarged sizes- can they fly? Do they weigh too much to get off the ground? If their muscle mass is proportionate, is their density the same? Is that how they can float despite the increase in weight? Frankly this is mind boggling. Do you think they'd tell me how much the swans weigh if I asked nicely? Oh, bugger, I'm doing it again. Don't mind me; were you keen on riding one of these...er...Gondolas?"

She sighs and taps her fingers on her thighs, trying to keep pace with racing thoughts.

As soon as Miizel approached, the swan looked towards both adventurers. When Miizel tried to pet the swan, The swan leans away from his hand, and speaks,

"I'm sorry, but did I ever give you permission to touch me?!"

She then looks at Zavakri and she answers the sorceress, "And to answer your question, young lady, I absolutely would not. A lady never tells! But I do see some promise in you as an academic,"

She then informs the two of them, "My name is Feathreen. If you wish to ride the gondola, you only need to have your tickets punched once,"

Miizel flinched when the swan spoke and his quickly pulled his hand away. A talking swan. How intriguing. Still he needed to apologize for his actions.

“M-my apologies, Feathreen.” He gave the large swan a slight bow as an apology.

He looked beyond the large creature and noticed another gondola disappear behind a silver mist as it made its way down the river. Or lake. He wasn’t quite sure to be honest.

“I hope you don’t mind me asking but how far does this go? And does it lead to anywhere or do you just circle back here?”

Miizel flinched when the swan spoke and his quickly pulled his hand away. A talking swan. How intriguing. Still he needed to apologize for his actions.

“M-my apologies, Feathreen.” He gave the large swan a slight bow as an apology.

He looked beyond the large creature and noticed another gondola disappear behind a silver mist as it made its way down the river. Or lake. He wasn’t quite sure to be honest.

“I hope you don’t mind me asking but how far does this go? And does it lead to anywhere or do you just circle back here?”

Feathreen nods at Miizel's apology, and she answers his question, "The river circles around the entire carnival, young gnome. It will circle back here,"

Miizel pursed his lips and nodded as Feathreen explained. Its been twice today that someone has called him young. Either the carnival employees are that old or he just looks that young. Its probably the latter. After all when it comes to gnomish age, he would be considered a young adult.

“Thank you for the information.” He then turns towards Zavakri. “What do you say? It would be quite useful to see the Carnival in its entirety. Though it’s alright with me if you prefer another attraction.”

For the second time in the night, Zavakri found herself stunned. The creature was speaking to her. Sentience was so easy to come by these days- it used to be for select creatures. Alas, she must adapt to the times. With haste she drops into a curtsy, her head bobbing swiftly as she absorbs the conversation.

"Feathreen is a wonderful name. I don't quite know why, but it seems exceptionally fitting for you! Suits you well!" She babbles, searching for some way- any way- to recover from this bumble.

"--Why yes, sirrah, that'd be delightful! Punch of the ol' ticket, jolly good Feathreen-madam-ma'am, consider my ticket well and good punched. Let us enjoy this, er, attraction with, ah, gusto!" She declared boldly.

With both Miizel's and Zavakri's tickets punched, the both of them are able to board the gondola and Feathreen proceeds to swim down the river, taking the both of them on a relaxing ride. As the both of them leave the jetty, they are able to hear the sound of a woman singing grow fainter and fainter.

As the ride continues on, they can see the carnival continue on as normal. Soon Feathreen asks both Miizel and Zavakri a question,

"What is Joy?"

Relaxing as the journey makes its way, Zavakri leans back upon her seat and casts her gaze skyward rather than outward. The familiarity and expanse of the night sky was calming to her, whereas the chaos of the surrounding carnival was anxiety inducing and fear emanating to the woman. She'd had many a nightmare about this place, and here she was- right back in the middle of it.

"Joy..." She breathes. "Is the opposite of Despair. It's... Pleasure, happiness, uplifting. I feel Joy when I look at the sky, when I count the stars, when I think of my Fiancée, when I get to go to work at the Astrolabe in Baldur's Gate, when things work out just right!...Those are things that bring me Joy."

Miizel watches as Zavakri babble. For some reason he found the young woman’s excitability contagious as he soon found himself chuckling. “You’re quite a bubbly person aren’t cha young miss. Lady Feathreen, please punch my ticket as well.”

As the gondola they boarded began to move along the river slowly, Miizel leaned back sighed. This was relaxing. Taking a seat after traveling for long felt so good. He was rather small so he managed to sit cross legged. After hearing the swans question, he fell into deep thought.

“Running.” Miizel said, his eyes gazed off into the distance. “Running takes you places. When you run you can feel the wind rush through your face. When you run, everything around you becomes a blur and for just a moment, you can forget about all your troubles and worries. Focusing on nothing except the road in front of you. Running is freedom, therefore running is joy.”

The gnome's voice carried just a tint of sadness as he spoke.

Feathreen nodded at their serious questions, and she voiced her thoughts aloud, "That is a good way to define it in a textbook. I suppose joy does differ depending on the person and their preferences..."

After pondering on that question, Feathreen decides to ask another question to the pair as they continue down the river,

"But...How do I know you exist?"

Miizel tilted his head at the next question. Such strange queries for bird. He turned to Zavakri and gave her a puzzled look.

“How would I prove that to you? Would you like me to touch you? Jump on the gondola to make it move? Use magic? Perhaps even hurt you in some way?” He paused for a moment before continuing. “I feel no matter what I say, it will end up with you doubting my existence. Perhaps you doubt your own which is why you ask others. Tell me Feathreen, do you exist to pull these gondolas? Shouldn’t a beautiful swan such as yourself be free to roam the rivers and skies?

Feathreen looks back at Miizel as he made his answer. At first she is silent, before she chuckles. She answers his question, "Don't we all doubt our own existence? Don't we all question our own positions, if not our own lives in general, even if it's just a little?"

Miizel would be able to tell from her answer, that Feathreen is enjoying the verbal sparring as a philosophical debate. So far, your serious answers have been impressing her.

She then answers his other question, "As for my being here, in the Witchlight Carnival. I have been here for a long time, and everyone here is family to each other,"

Feathreen continues and issues her next question, "In worlds so full of magic, is Time an illusion?"

This question- Oh, how this question resonated within her! Zavakri gasped, sitting up straight, as the very idea struck her;

"I most assuredly would say it is not! Time is the universal constant, the only thing in our existence that is unabashedly continuous! Sure, our perceptions may shift and change, but in all realms, for every creature, one second is one second. I can even prove that time keeps ticking; I don't need a clock for it. I suppose on a philosophical level, the 'illusion' is within our memories; for example I can remember the first day I met someone, or the last day I saw them, like they were yesterday- but many other days blend into memories of joy or sorrow or anger. In that sense, true, it can feel illusory, false, and incalculable, rendering our conscious reality a timeless experience to a certain capacity, but the hard mathematics lies below. The metaphorical clock keeps ticking regardless of what goes on, and tampering with the subject has lead to rather severe repercussions as reality rather...asserts itself. There's tales of high level wizards being capable of buying a precious few moments, but I don't think the math backs that up; several things happen in an instant as opposed to time truly stopping and moving without someone.

As for the proof..."

Someone had better stop her, she's beginning to define variables and functions- What even is a sine function anyhow? Surely she's making these words up? As she speaks, one could almost see the formulae weaving around within her eyes and flowing into the world upon her lips, faint magical energies ebbing around her as she discusses the mathematics of it.

At this point Miizel's head begins to hurt from her talk of mathematics and instead chooses to look at the carnival as they pass by. Apparently the headache does make it difficult to focus on his surroundings.

Feathreen listened to Zavakri as she answered the question. As Miizel looks out at the carnival, he doesn't really notice anything odd. The mood is bright, and a lot of people seem to be happy.

Feathreen does eventually stop Zavakri by reassuring her, "There's no need for you to define those mathematical terms. I already know them, thank you,"

She looks at Zavakri as she speaks, showing that she is indeed impressed, "I was right about you. You truly are a scholar yourself,"

She then looks at Miizel and she suggests, "Perhaps that is enough philosophy for now. Is there anything you two would like to talk about while we traverse down the river?"

When Feathreen stopped Zavakri from explaining the theories of…who was it? Pie thagore as? A visible look of relief could be seen on the gnome’s face.

He allowed the swan’s question to hang in the air for a moment, the sound of water hitting against the boat filling the space. While looking out at the carnival as they float by he asks. “How long has this place been around?”

Feathreen answers Miizel simply, "This Carnival has been around for hundreds of years, always bringing joy to those who visit the Carnival,"

Zavakri’s face reddens as her ramble is cut short, and she fidgets herself into a cross-legged and closed off posture for a brief period as the two converse. Her eyes finally forced to take in the pure and utter chaos of the carnival.

Realizing that the silence was waiting for her input, she clicked her tongue thoughtfully.

“…How often do people go missing here? I heard that strange things have been happening lately.”

"How often...?" Feathreen asks as she clearly thinks over her answer. She answers, "Clearly not so often for it to be noticed by customers, but still...it is concerning because I know someone who has disappeared,"

She continues, her gossipy nature revealed, "As you could tell, I enjoy having debates. I usually have them with Burly the Bugbear. He has a profound mind and is simply wasted guarding the staff wagons. His brother, Hurly, is one of the few who disappeared."

She then states, "He misses his brother tremendously. No one knows what happened to Hurly, but everyone knows he never really fit in."

Missing person. It seemed like Zavakri might have lost someone here before. He turns to look at the swan again when she mentioned one of the carnival staff having gone missing.

“This Hurly, what does he look like and where was he last seen?”

Feathreen answers Miizel, "Hurly and Burly are twins, so they look a lot alike. They're both very large, muscular bugbears. So, once you see Burly, you'll know what Hurly looks like,"

She continues answering his question, "As for where he was last seen. I'm not quite sure. It's been some years, but I have heard that he was last seen at the Hall of Illusions,"

Miizel’s eyes widened at her response. Years?

“If none of the carnival employees haven’t found him after all this time don’t you think he might have left? Maybe he didn’t want to be found.”

Feathreen answered Miizel's question, "We thought that at first. But the problem is that Vincent, the one who runs the Ticket Booth, would have seen him leave. And yet, he didn't!"

Miizel arched a brow and thought about it for a moment. There’s no way that place near the ticketing booth would be the only exit, or entrance for that matter. He decides not to push any further or he might reveal something unnecessary that could get him and/or Zavakri in trouble.

“Right ok, we’ll keep an eye on him then.” He allows the silence to sink in for a few seconds before continuing. “You mentioned that the carnival has been around for hundreds of years. How long have you been here?”

Feathreen answered Miizel, "I've been here since I was a young swan. Not all Witchlight Hands are hired from outside. Some Witchlight Hands are born into the business. Of course, they are welcome to stay or leave the business as they please. Mister Witch and Mister Light ensure that we are paid and are not left without our basic needs covered,"

Mister Witch and Mister Light.

Those names bring up a long forgotten memory and Miizel begins to have a troubled look on his face. He stops talking and focuses on trying to recall the source of those memories.

A chill sweeps through Zavakri as the conversation flows around her; she was comfortable allowing Miizel to speak, as the questions he asked were much the same as the ones she herself was coming up with. She allows herself to breathe easy for a few minutes, before the conversation begins to fade.

"..Witch and Light." She whispered. "..Screeching crickets."

She shuts her eyes and sways in her seat, collecting herself.

"I suggest we pay a visit to the Hall of Illusions after this, unless you had another idea good sir." She prompted the Gnome, at last.

Miizel nods in agreement at Zavakri’s suggestion. “I agree, seems only plausible to go there now after what we’ve heard.”

He looks towards Feathreen once again, his voice a tad lower and hushed. “These Mister Witch and Mister Light, what do they look like?”

Feathreen answers Miizel's question, "They are both pallid elves, but Mister Light is thin with a smile on his face, and a costume of diamonds worn. He carries a vane. Mister Witch is heavier and bears a frown, but bears a dapper suit. You will be able to see Mister Light at the very least at the Big Top Extravaganza,"

The next sight of the carnival both Miizel and Zavakri see is the jetty. Just as Feathreen promised, the both of them had circled back to where the started. Feathreen bids the duo, "Here we are! Back where we started. I hope you two enjoy the rest of your time here at the Witchlight Carnival,"

As the two depart, they notice the joyful singing and jubilant air around the Silversong Lake. The mermaid is singing happily!

As the second hour ends and the third hour begins, Brutrumukk and Jub head for the Dragonfly Rides. They see huge lily pads rest on the surface of a pool glistening with phosphorescent algae. Giant dragonflies use the lily pads as landing platforms, buzzing loudly overhead with wings as brilliant as stained-glass windows, and alighting briefly to drop off and pick up excited passengers.

Near the entrance, a small, smiling tree turns your way and beckons you over. A red squirrel clings to its leafy canopy, peering at you suspiciously. This is the same tree that Brutrumukk, Jub, and the rest of the party saw during the first hour!

"Oi oi!" Brutrumukk called out in friendly to the treant and the squirrel he'd seen when he'd first arrived at the carnival. "Fancy seein' you two 'ere. This were you two 'ang about when you ain't getting people to catch fallin' seeds or givin' away wish grantin' dandelions then?"

Jub, still sat on Brutrumukk's shoulder, greeted the pair of friendly faces with a wave, though admittedly he was a tad distracted by the whizzing and buzzing of the dragonflies, eying them with a mixture of awe and slight apprehension. "Good to see you again," he said, still staring at the giant insects.

The treant answered Brutrumukk happily, "Oh yes! We punch tickets for the Dragonfly Rides! Gotta do our part for the Carnival after all,"

He continues cheerfully, while answering Jub next, "It's so good to see you as well! I hope you're enjoying your time here? Everyone here seems to be in a great mood tonight!"

"I'm enjoyin' my time 'ere fer sure!" Brutrumukk exclaimed happily. "This place is amazin'! I've never been in as good a mood as I am right now outside o' times when I was knee deep in loot an' carnage!" Brutrumukk's jolly expression then fell away and was replaced with something much more serious. "Sadly though, there's someone 'ere what can't seem to 'ave a good time without ruinin' it fer everyone else." Brutrumukk continued. "There's a kenku about. A shapeshiftin' kenku what steals voices an' ruins shows with mean words. The git swiped Candlefoot's voice just as 'e was about to ask Palasha to marry 'im. Then the kenku 'ad the nerve to go to Palasha's show and yell mean things at 'er 'til she stopped the show and swam away. Jub an' I got Candlefoot's voice back, an' we managed to convince Palasha to finish 'er show, but the kenku escaped an' is still on the loose. So keep an ear open fer anyone speakin' in sounds. Keep an eye open fer anyone what's got blue paint on the back o' their head. An' make sure ya pass this on to anyone ya can. The more people what know to look out fer a villain, the better."

Jub took his eyes off the dragonflies a moment to look back at the treant. "Indeed, this definitely one of the most enjoyable days I've had in a while," he said. He did a sideways glance towards Brutrumukk as he spoke, as if he were going to add something, but then decided against it. Instead, he simply nodded along with what the bugbear was saying about their encounter with the heckler.

As Jub looks around the area, he catches a glimpse of something strange on one of the lily pads. It seemed to be a humanoid frog-like creature. But when he looks back to try and get a better look at it, it's gone.

The treant and squirrel listened intently as Brutrumukk told them about the situation with Palasha and Candlefoot, and warned them about the kenku heckler. The treant spoke happily,

"That's wonderful news! I'm so glad to hear that Candlefoot got his voice back and he's marrying Palasha!"

The Squirrel speaks up a little more seriously, "Thanks for warning us about that kenku, mate. We'll be sure to keep an eye out for that bloke! You will too, right, Northwind?"

The treant, Northwind, nods and answers the Squirrel, "Oh, of course Red! I can't imagine Mister Light being too happy about this!"

He looks around before he adds, "I'm not really supposed to talk about this, but there's nothing Mister Light likes more than a sea of smiling faces—if the carnival's happy, he's happy!"

"I'll do me best to keep things 'round 'ere 'appy then." Brutrumukk said once Northwind and Red were done talking, a smile returning to his face as he spoke. "So, you two mentioned somethin' about punchin' tickets, yeah?" Brutrumukk continued as he produced his ticket. "Well as it so 'appens, I gots me a ticket fer punchin' right 'ere."

Once again, Jub had been distracted - this time by the strange frog-like figure he thought he had seen - that he was only half-listening to the conversation. "Hm? Oh right, tickets!" The goblin fumbled around in his pockets before pulling out his ticket and presenting it to the treant and squirrel.

With the tickets presented, Northwind proceeded to punch both tickets, and once that was done, he gestured towards the dragonflies, "There you are! Enjoy the dragonfly rides!"

As the two approach, the Witchlight Hands guide them to a Lily Pad where a dragonfly just lands and the previous rider leaves. The witch light hand looks to the both of you and asks, "Oh, will you be riding together, or separately?"

Brutrumukk looked at the Witchlight Hand that asked the question, then at the goblin seated on his shoulder. "I'm leanin' towards goin' together, but either way's good by me." Brutrumukk told Jub.

Jub nodded in agreement. "Together sounds good to me," he said.

"Right right." Brutrumukk said before looking back at the Hand. "We'd like to go together if that ain't no bother."

The Hand nods as he answers, "Not a problem at all!" He looks to Jub and informs the goblin, "You will be sitting in front of him,"

The Hand helps Brutrumukk and Jub situate themselves in the saddle of the waiting giant dragonfly. The Hand walks them through how to use the harness, "Now, just need to loop this through here, then--"

Before he could finish however, the Dragonfly's wings start to drone and beat quickly, sending the Hand down to the ground. Before anyone could say 'Widdershins', the Dragonfly takes off before Brutrumukk or Jub could actually secure themselves with the harness!

As things started to go wrong again, Brutrumukk breathing began to issue forth in rough, ragged huffs. First the kenku spoiled Palasha's performance. Then the kenku cast a sleep spell on him to escape. And now this stupid fucking Dragonfly wanted to take off before they were ready?! FUCK! THAT! A terrible, bestial roar ripped free from the enraged bugbear's throat as the grip of his legs suddenly and painfully tightened around the Dragonfly, securing his place on the bug. As this happened, one of Brutrumukk's hands shot out and held onto Jub when it looked like he was going to fall off. Then, once Jub was safe, Brutrumukk clasped his fists together and raised them high above his head. "YOU DON'T TAKE OFF UNTIL I SAY SO!" Brutrumukk bellowed before bringing his fists down onto the Dragonfly with the intent to force it back down onto the lily pad it had tried to leave too early.

Jub hadn't been prepared for the dragonfly to take off like that, and would have definitely went crashing to the ground has Brutrumukk not grabbed and secured him back on the insect. Once Jub's life had stopped flashing before his eyes, he glanced back at Brutrumukk. "Thank you," he said, still trying to catch his breath. However, even though he had avoided falling, the frantic movements of the dragonfly were still a problem, and Jub held on tightly, hoping Brutrumukk knew what he was doing.

When the Dragonfly refused to land, Brutrumukk reached for his morningstar to teach the insect a painful lesson on why it should listen to what bugbears tell it to do. But before he could draw his weapon, Brutrumukk realized something. The Dragonfly had taken off because something had frightened it. Realizing also that his rage wasn't helping, Brutrumukk took a moment to let his rage subside and loosen the grip on his legs. Seeing that Jub was now trying to calm the Dragon fly, Brutrumukk helped out as best he could. "The bug's frightened." Brutrumukk told Jub as they worked together. "Not just from me though. I may 'ave made it worse, but something else spooked it first. That's why it took off."

Jub listened to what Brutrumukk was telling him before glancing back down at the dragonfly. Somewhat awkwardly, he patted the insect's head. "It's okay, my winged friend," he said, his voice taking on a more grandiose tone. "Brutrumukk here isn't going to hurt you, and whatever is currently troubling you, I, Jub the Peculiar, will make sure it will no longer cause you no bother." As he saying this, he took a cursory glance around them to see if there was anything that was obviously upsetting the creature.

The Dragonfly's movements become less frenetic as the Dragonfly seems to calm down. The Dragonfly seems to move back onto its normal course. It now flies 20 feet high above the Carnival thoroughfare, moving in lazy figure eights. Brutrumukk and Jub can now relax and enjoy the ride as the Dragonfly flies above the carnival, as they are no longer in danger of falling off.

As they fly, the Carnival Mood visibly brightens. A lot of the carnival goers even smile and wave to Brutrumukk and Jub as they pass by.

Eventually, the ride does end and the Dragonfly lands on the lily pad. As the Dragonfly lands, the Hand that helped them on runs up to Brutrumukk, Jub, and the Dragonfly. The Hand rubs the Dragonfly's head, as he apologizes earnestly to the goblinoid pair first,

"I am so sorry about that! I don't know what got into her! She normally doesn't just take off like that!"

He continues to tend to the Dragonfly and he comments, "Though, I am impressed you guys were able to calm her down mid flight. I'm so relieved,"

"Ah it weren't no trouble really." Brutrumukk said as he waved off the Hand's apologies and compliments. "Although, I think there may be a mystery 'round 'ere. I may 'ave made things worse, but I weren't the one what spooked 'er to begin with." Brutrumukk looked around suspiciously. "Yeah. This mess got kenku git written all over it." With that said, Brutrumukk once again hoisted Jub into the air to give him a better view once he noticed the goblin wizard was looking around.

Brutrumukk lifts Jub high above his head once again. Unfortunately, it seems that if the kenku was indeed behind the Dragonfly's scare, then they seem to be taking extra precautions. Jub is still not able to see the kenku, or anything that could have been a threat to the Dragonfly.

The Hand asks in confusion in response to Brutrumukk's words "Kenku git?"

He then speaks, "Well...I'll let the other hands know to keep an eye out for the kenku. In the meantime, I believe the Big Top Extravaganza is going to start soon..."

Jub scanned his surroundings from his new elevated position, but saw no trace of anyone, kenku or otherwise. "No luck," he said with a sigh, motioning for Brutrumukk to put him back down. "I don't understand it. I can somewhat get him stealing someone's voice, but why heckle Palasha's show? Why sabotage the carnival? Is he just causing trouble for the sake of it?" Even as he was speaking, his mind was going over what the kenku had said earlier. It had been bothering him this whole time. The kenku seemed to know Jub had lost something and claimed it was something to do with the carnival. The kenku also had some sort of magical power, or at least strong knowledge of the arcane arts, which had allowed him to steal Candlefoot's voice.

In the midst of these disjointed thoughts, a conclusion was starting to form in the back of Jub's mind: had the kenku been responsible for what had happened to him eight years ago, stolen from him just the same as he stole from Candlefoot?

"Well whatever the git's reason is, I'm gonna enjoy mountin' its 'ead on a spike once I catch it." Brutrumukk said as he lowered Jub back onto his shoulder. "Either way, I reckon we've passed enough time out 'ere. Let's go see if this eggs-travee-ganza is as good as they say, yeah?"

"Hm," Jub responded. Seemed Brutrumukk wasn't really all that curious about the kenku's motive, which wasn't too surprising. The bird had given them enough trouble at this point that any reasons for his actions didn't matter, at least not to the bugbear, and had Jub not had extra incentive, he wasn't he'd sure he'd care that much either. He'd have to make sure he managed to have a word with the kenku before Brutrumukk finished him off... though given the kenku no longer had a voice, getting information out of him would be far more difficult.

This was starting to hurt Jub's head. "Yes, we should probably go see what all the fuss is about," he said. "With any luck, our feathered quarry may have had the same idea, and we can catch him when he leasts suspects it."

"Right then. Let's 'ead on over." With that said, Brutrumukk made for the Big Top... At least he hoped he was. Brutrumukk didn't have a map, so he was just heading for the biggest tent and hoping for the best.

Aurora and Gabriel easily find the smaller stalls. Many of them serve a lot of snacks, and the vendors are calling out to the fairgoers to buy one of their snacks or beverages for one ticket punch. While they peruse the snack and beverage stalls, they can also hear laughter as a human woman and a gnome male compete in what seems to be a poetry contest. Aurora settled on the Euphoreo cookie and some Eveningberry wine, eyeing the ring toss game while Gabriel picked out what he was to eat.

Deciding upon a more classic fair-going meal option, Gabe had himself a delicious candied apple on a stick alongside a bit of the Faerie bell nectar preferring a sweet tasting meal over the tartness of a wine as fine as it may be. Seating himself by his companion atop a barrel Gabriel noticed the elf eyeing the ring toss game "A game of tossing rings, if they did that in Waterdeep the poor'd be rich." he laughed, slapping his shin while wiping the nectar from his lips with the back of his hand "I think I'll test the mettle of that gnome over there." he clapped his hands together wiping any food from them with a twist of the hand and a whispered incantation of prestidigitation before standing to walk over to the poetry contest "Let's meet afterwards eh?" then with a nod he left to amble over to the gnomish gentleman and the woman.

"Sounds good to me. Good luck with the poetry." Once Aurora finished the cookie and her wine, she walked over to the ring toss game watching the person currently trying their luck at it. After the person finished playing, Aurora stepped up with one of her tickets in hand.

Aurora notes that the Eveningberry wine is actually sweet and non-alcoholic, while the Euphorio cookie has something to it that makes anyone who eats it smile. Gabriel enjoys the candied apple and nectar. Both Aurora and Gabriel had their tickets punched twice, one for each snack.

The two eventually split for their respective games of their choice.





Rory left the ring toss stall, and went over to where the rhyming gnome was. She waited for Gabe to make his way to the back before walking up to him.

"Certainly bested me," he jerked a thumb over his shoulder towards the gnome as he stepped off the stage following a quick bow of farewell to the audience and the gnome himself "Guess I should stick to swordplay." Gabriel laughed mirthlessly, he wasn't a sore loser after all the gnome definitely was a talented wordsmith.

Aurora went up to Gabe and gave him a sympathetic look. "Seems like you faired about as well as I did with the ring toss. That was trickier than it looked. I think I could do with a bit more food, what about you?"

"I think a bit of wine would be nice," Gabriel nodded in agreement, his throat was a little parched from the poetry competition and he was a little eager to drink off his loss "Let's get something and find a place to sit, eh?"

"The Eveningberry wine is good, unless you want to something with a bit more kick to it. They might have something at the feasting orchard. Probably better seats as well."

"Sounds a bit better than sitting on the ground," and the sound of stronger drink wasn't something he'd pass up if he could help it thus Gabriel nodded in the direction of the orchard "Let's go before the nights at it's end, wouldn't want to miss the main event." gesturing towards the large main tent down aways from the two of them.

She kept pace with Gabe while they made their way to the tents in the feasting orchard. "I know I'm looking forward to the event at the big top. How are you enjoying this so far?"

As Gabriel and Aurora continue walking, they see that the mood seems to brighten around them. Music and mirth radiate from the Feasting Orchard. The heady scents of flowers, mead, and berry pie waft through the air. Stilt-walkers pluck fruit from trees; musicians drum, pipe, and strum; and everywhere there is singing, dancing, and an inordinate amount of custard.

A female gnome bard is currently performing, strumming her lute while singing,

"There, you see her
Sitting there, across the way
She don't got a lot to say, but there's something about her
And you don't know why, but you're dyin' to try
You wanna kiss the girl,"

They also notice that some of the people here are also preparing for another cupcake eating contest.

Aurora settled for a more savory meal to go with the mead and looked for seating closer to the edges of the orchard. She took a few bites of the meal and washes it down with a swig of mead and looked over towards the cupcake eating contest to see who all were going to attempt it. While his elven companion settled in for her meal at the edge of the orchard her new friend, Gabriel was leaning an elbow on the table of a food vendor's stall looking rather perturbed with a frown as he rested his chin on his fist.

He had just offered the man a tidy sum of gold, if he were to share some stronger liquor if he had any tucked away unfortunately for the bard the vendor hadn't a drop of good whisky nor rum to share thus with a huff the half-elf turned with a meager leg of turkey to make his way to Rory but was stopped by the musician who apparently took notice of his knack of honest flattery and people skills. Handing him a bottle of spiced rum a smile spread across his handsome face, thanking the musician Ellywick the bard now in better spirits accosted his companion with a spring in his step.

Seating himself beside Rory, Gabriel swished the bottle to get her attention with a smirk "Regards from the songstress," he said mischievously taking a small bite of the turkey leg, making sure to finish his mouthful before speaking again "Care to have a swig, before I finish the bottle?" Gabriel asked offering Rory the bottle of rum.

She took the offered flask and downed a small bit that and set it down on the table. Aurora coughed a bit as it was a much stronger drink than she normally had. "Wasn't expecting that. Good gods what is that? She took a swig of the mead to try to sooth the burn from the liquor. "Is that a common drink for duelist?" the duelist, so to speak was chuckling amicably at her expense before taking back the bottle and downing the remaining contents of the rum holding a finger up in a 'hold on' gesture "No, but it's common for the folk that live under bridges." he said voice a little rough from the liquor, the buzz even if it was weak satisfied the bard yet it didn't hide the odd way Gabriel sounded when he answered her question almost like he was talking about himself.

"You sound like your are speaking from experience. I've met a few people that lived under a bridge and they did drink anything like that." She shook her head slightly as if to try to forget the taste. "You didn't truly live under a bridge did you?

In the amount of time they had known one another, Gabriel hadn't once looked anything but in good spirit yet at that moment a shadow crossed the half-elven man's face as he cast his eyes downward looking into the empty bottle of rum wishing it were full.

A wistful sigh escaped his lips as he pushed a strand of gray hair out of his eyes as he looked up from the bottle to his companion "You see this mark on my face?" the duelist traced the long scar upon the left side of his face turning slightly so to give Rory a better look at it.

"As a child I had to steal food to keep myself fed." he chuckled as though it were funny, a mere reflex as much as a nervous tick "Boys that get caught don't go to prisons, no not in the slums of Waterdeep." he looked away from the elf staring at his hands as they tightened around the empty bottle of rum, breathing in and out slightly gathering his nerves some before continuing "We disappear, or made an example out of...I was an example." he said simply gesturing towards the scar once more.

Aurora fought down the urge to laugh caused by the enchantment from this place. It would have been a very inopportune time for such things as this appeared to be a very serious matter for Gabe. She sat silently contemplating why someone would do such a thing. Sure he stole but it wasn't for petty want or envy, it was only to survive. "I'm sorry to have brought up those memories with my question. I didn't know that happened there...

Her curiosity was getting the better of her and she wanted to ask more about the matter. However she knew that she did not have the relational position to press the matter with him. They had after all just met a mere two hours ago. He did not know her, and Aurora knew little about him. "We can talk about something else of you'd like, or find something else to do." This was not something she was accustomed to doing. She didn't know exactly know how to comfort someone dealing with a rather traumatic event. Gabriel understood her, hell they'd only known each other for a couple hours and after a swig of the hard stuff he was nearly telling a complete stranger his life story and thrust her into an uncomfortable situation "It'll be another story for another day," those were the words of his mentor one that he told him often when Gabriel wanted to learn more from the old bard but words he often used in times like these "Let's just finish our meal then make way for the big top."

For the rest of the meal Aurora stayed quiet. The little bit of the story Gabe had told started to remind her of rumors she had heard about Thay. She didn't think most of them were true, after all why would someone be that cruel. It left her thinking more about the stories she had heard about Thay, and had her wondering if such things happened in her home of Aglarond. Once she had finished the meal, she cleared the trash, and made sure to clean any grim from her hands and clothing using prestidigitation. "Well I'm ready to go when you are." Gabriel gave his companion a curt nod, pushing his plate away without a word getting up with a grunt as he dusted his hands off "Let's go then." he sounded slightly less enthused yet his smile had returned, a hand upon his weapon as the two departed from the orchard.

[oops]

As Zavakri and Miizel make their way to the Hall of Illusions, they notice that the air around them seem brighter than before. The stars above them twinkle a little more so, and the people around them seem happier. When they reach the Hall of Illusions, they see that this large tent is painted with a mural of shifting images that show grinning faeries diving into pools of color. The helical stripes of the tent's pointed canopies rotate in spirals, and the whole display seems designed to befuddle onlookers.

Near the Hall of Illusions, there is a wooden mannequin of a grinning, raven-haired young woman in witch's attire and a green flowing cape hovers inside a glass cabinet. At the top of the cabinet, a sign reads "Tasha the Wizard—Known for Her Hideous Laughter."

Right now, a human witchlight hand stands near the entrance of the attraction with a ticket puncher ready.

Miizel approaches the witchlight hand and presents his ticket.

"I’ve been told that a certain bugbear was last seen here.” Miizel casually mentions. “Was it inside the Hall or the general area around it?”

The Witchlight Hand tilts her head and she answers, clearly confused, "I'm...sorry? I'm a new Witchlight Hand, so I'm afraid I'm not sure what you're talking about. I'm just holding the fort here until Candlefoot comes back,"

She then asks, "Oh! Are you here for the Hall of Illusions? Well, step right up and I'll punch your tickets for the attraction!"

Zavakri frowns slightly. Then severely. And finally she tilts her head a bit.

"Do people truly enjoy...Illusions? I can't fathom it, honestly. Willingly allowing yourself to be deceived? That's so mind boggling, that'd be like leaving the kettle on to boil then starting a chore only to forget that you had the kettle on in the first place and having to run back across the house to get at it as it screams at you the whole time. I like my world to be the way it's supposed to be, thank you very much!"

She extends her ticket all the while, offering it to the attendant despite her diatribe.

"Candlefoot? New Witchlight Hand? This is all so very interesting- who's Candlefoot?"

The new Witchlight Hand tilts her head as she listens to Zavakri's biting words regarding illusions. She shrugs as she answers, "I mean...I guess it depends on the person? Plus, if you're told up front that you're about to see illusions, then is it really deception to begin with? In the kettle context, by informing fairgoers that they're going to see illusions, we'd be telling them to keep an eye on the kettle, right?"

She then shrugs at her own questions, her own mood cheerful despite Zavakri's words. The mood is too good for anyone to take offense.

The Witchlight Hand punches Miizel's and Zavakri's tickets as she answers, "Oh! Candlefoot is the mime. He was here earlier, but then he took off running when he got his voice back! No doubt to see Palasha,"

Miizel looks up at Zavakri with a puzzled expression, as if just now realizing that his companion is a little bit stuck up. He then turns back to the Witchlight Hand and says. “Bah, don’t worry about it. Come on let’s go.”

As they enter he’s going to say to Zavakri. “You don’t have to think too much about the logic of a carnival attraction. Not everything needs to be philosophical.”

As Miizel and Zavakri enter the Hall of Illusions, they see tall mirrors line the interior walls of the tent. The mirrors near the entrance reflect onlookers in their youth; the images grow steadily older, until the mirrors deep within the hall reflect onlookers in their twilight years.

Miizel begins to look distracted as he stares into the interior of the Hall of Illusions. His brows furrow in confusion, trying to make sense of the memories, or lack thereof. It seemed like the Hall held answers to questions he didn't know he had. Miizel begins to enter the Hall without waiting for Zavakri.

"It's not about the philosophy it's about-"

She watches, briefly surprised by Miizel's sudden departure. She raises a hand as if her solitary source of stability in this uncertain world were slipping away, then rushes herself along with him.

"I take it you're fond of illusions then." She chimes.

Miizel doesn’t hear what Zavakri says and instead takes a step forward. Then another, and another, and before long he was winding down the Hall. Each step and turn had purpose in them, as if he knew this place like the back of his hand. It even surprised him.

As he passes by the mirrors, he could see a younger version of himself. Dozens upon dozens of reflections of a gnome child walking through these halls. He wasn’t even looking at where he was going anymore, his focus was on the reflection of a childhood long gone.

Suddenly his feet came to an abrupt stop and looking forward he could see another mirror. Those around him still showed his younger self but the one in front was different. He couldn’t quite make out what it is but that it tugged at something on the furthest reaches of his memory. His heart was pounding and a cold sweat began to form. Miizel took several deep breaths and slowly reached out to touch it.

As he slowly reaches out to touch it, the few seconds seem to pass agonizingly slow...

His heartbeat pounds louder and louder, his hand shakes more and more, until finally....!

...

...

His hand touches the mirror. It rests on the mirror surface. Nothing happened when Miizel touched the mirror.

Confusion overtakes the gnome’s face as he puts his other hand against the mirror. He taps it a few times then begins looking around and behind it.

The mirror surface remains just as solid when he places the other hand on the mirror surface. Nothing happens when he taps the mirror. He doesn't see anything odd or out of the ordinary around or behind the mirror.

Miizel shakes his head and turns to look at Zavakri, an annoyed look on his face. “Sorry. I don’t know what got into me. The moment we stepped into the Hall I felt something tugging at me. Pulling me forward and leading me…well…here.” He turns to motion at the mirror he was just inspecting. “I’ve searched the mirror and the area around it but to no avail. Sorry for wasting your time.”

Miizel shakes his head and turns to look at Zavakri, an annoyed look on his face. “Sorry. I don’t know what got into me. The moment we stepped into the Hall I felt something tugging at me. Pulling me forward and leading me…well…here.” He turns to motion at the mirror he was just inspecting. “I’ve searched the mirror and the area around it but to no avail. Sorry for wasting your time.”

"Eh, what?" She blinks at him, severely distracted in her own right; this current mirror was annoyingly portraying her in all her teenaged glory... And it was not very flattering to her mind, what with her gangling limbs- and, drama!, how she needed to wash her hair more! She blinks several times before tearing her eyes away and looking to Miizel. She clears her throat, her mind digesting his words.

"Oh, nonsense there chum; this place has some kind of power over us all, I'm sure of it. Each of us given a free ticket is here for a reason, though mine is plain enough. I raced off to where I felt drawn to; you did as well. To reference our conversation with Feathreen and the perceptions of time...You didn't waste my time, we're all here trying to regain some time we lost long ago."

She smiles wanly and places a hand on her hip.

"Frankly, friend, I'm terrified to go much further down this hall of mirrors. I don't think I'm ready to see myself as a crone. I already suspect I'll be needing glasses 'fore long, I'd hate to have a visual to back up that probability. We can stay here and look around as long as you need though! I'm not going anywhere." she offered supportively.

"I appreciate that. I'm good now, I'm sure it'll come back to me as we travel the carnival." He gives her a smile and puts his hands on his hips. "Well, I suppose we should get going then."

As Miizel and Zavakri head out of the Hall of Illusions, they hear the joyful sounds of the crowd bustling about outside. The carnival outside of this Hall seems to have become a much more welcoming place compared to this Hall...

When they reach the outside, they see that a lot of the customers are heading for the Big Top! The next event is apparently taking place there.

Within the hall, something lurks in the shadows, watching them leave before it vanishes.

As the three pairs of adventurers head for the Big Top, they notice that the Calliope seems to be giving a happier tune than when they first came in here, and everyone seems to be in a brighter mood. They also notice that the stars twinkle even brighter above the carnival. There are even some shooting stars, giving a spectacular show if one decides to look up.

These adventurers are all heading to the same destination: The Big Top

The roof of this tent reaches toward the night sky in three swooping peaks topped with spinning gold stars. Painted wooden panels on the tent walls whirl with colorful motion, displaying vibrant circus performances. The sound of music and laughter drifts out through the canvas door.

They enter to see a lot of fairgoers also arrived to see the Big Top Extravaganza. Unfortunately, this also meant that there are fewer seats.

As fate would have it: There are 6 seats in a row that are left open for them to take. The adventurers would easily notice each other as they take those seats.

For one of the Witchlight Hands...this is the beginning of her shift, and of all things to start with, it has to be the Big Top Extravaganza.

Brutrumukk grinned eagerly as he passed the happily playing Calliope. "I think we're in the right place, booyagh." Brutrumukk said to the goblin wizard perched on his shoulder. "Just goes to show, when in doubt, always 'ead fer the biggest tent you can find. Never fails!" As he entered the Big Top, Brutrumukk became momentarily frustrated when he saw the lack of available seating. However, this frustration quickly evaporated when the bugbear caught sight of the six empty seats in a row. "Looks like we're in luck, booyagh." Brutrumukk laughed. "Let's 'urry before someone else nicks 'em!" With that said, Brutrumukk made for the empty seats.

Aurora looked around the tent and saw how full it was for the show. There were however six seats, well four now as the bugbear and the strange gnome from earlier had made their way down to the remaining seats.

"Looks pretty packed for the show Gabe, there are a few more seats down in the front. If we want to sit during the show we should probably get to the seats quickly." Aurora started to make her way down to the seats turning slightly to still talk to Gabe. "What are you looking forward to seeing during the show? I know I'm looking forward to the acrobatics."

"Quite a crowd," Gabriel mused, during the walk to the big top the duelist had been oddly quiet however he seemed in better spirits probably due to the excitement filling the room as if at any second anything could happen "Best we get to our seat then yes." following Rory as she made for the remaining seats by a familiar pair "Not quite sure really, it all seems so exciting!" he answered seating himself between her and the bugbear.

As Brutrumukk headed towards the empty seats, Jub was surveying the surrounding seats for any hint of the troublesome kenku. However, he abruptly stopped his surveillance when he spotted the familiar elf and half-elf he had almost bumped into earlier. As if suddenly self-conscious, he tugged at his hood slightly to make sure his face was still obscured. While hanging around Brutrumukk, he had felt not to worried about keeping up appearances - it certainly helped that the carnival itself seemed to be full of all sorts, making his status as a goblin seemed far less of problem then it had during his time in cities.

Now, however, seeing these strangers who had been so kind and forgiving to him earlier, made him painfully aware that they might be far less accepting of him if they realised what he was.

As they neared their seats, Jub suddenly hopped of Brutrumukk's shoulder and took his seat between Brutrumukk and the two strangers. "Good to see you again, comrades!" he said, putting on a more bombastic tone. "Have you been enjoying the carnival so far?"

Gabriel didn't immediately recognize the peculiar little fellow at first, quirking an eyebrow as he turned in his seat. In fact this was Jub the Peculiar, the one who definitely wasn't a goblin "A hello yourself my short fellow," the side of the duelist's mouth curved up into a rakish smile "It'd be better if they served hard liquor but I..I mean we made due."

As Miizel and Zavakri made their way to the Big Top, the gnome was having trouble navigating. It was less about the direction and more about size. The place was packed and he found himself being constantly bumped and pushed around. Needless to say, this irked him rather quickly.

“Watch where you’re going you shit with legs!” He yelled at one before turning to another who bumped into him saying. “Just cause you’re tall doesn’t mean you can’t fall!” Before balling up his fists and punching the poor fellow’s kneecaps.

But his efforts at deterring people were useless as everyone rushed to get seats which caused more collisions and only served to infuriate him more. He grabs Zavakri’s arm, signaling her to stop before reaching into his pouch and pulled out a handful of ball bearings before tossing them into the ground in front of them. Scattering the tiny metal balls into the crowd.

Zavakri manages to somehow create a bubble of personal space around her by exerting sheer willpower and mildly hyperventilating in an overdramatic manner. This effect is merely temporary, and that certainty only serves to escalate her drama as she struggles to stay by Miizel as the crowd ushers them into the Big Top- but his cunning scheme pays off in a sense. She watches, enthused, but as people begin to slip and slide about before her her pathing seems to be disrupted severely by the added chaos. She jerks away, avoiding contact with a poor victim of circumstance... She is briefly separated. Nothing of note occurs during this. Nothing of note at all.

When the brief moment of Zavakri's apparent drowning in the crowd concludes, she rockets out with her cheeks puffed out and her breath held until she explodes into the miniscule space provided by the open seats. Proverbially skidding to a halt on the balls of her feet, she dusts herself off and finally draws breath.

"I was never good in crowds!- Oh, hoi there chums." She seems immediately calmed by all the familiar faces, and offers a polite and civil wave to the others. "Positively dreadful carnival, eh?" She laughs despite her severe declaration of the events. "Wonderful people, though, running the things. I think. I've had to reassess my definition of people twice over so far, but I think I'm a better person for it."

And with that she falls heavily into a seat and seems to...

Relax.

.