[IC] The Legend of Heroes: Tales of the World

[Orpheus]

Morris: Guild

Wait, what were they going to do?

Estelle’s enthusiastic proclamation left Lute confused. Perhaps if he had paid attention the conversation happening twixt Lady and the two other members of the Pride, he would have his answer, but he wasn’t the eavesdropping type.

Well, he wasn’t. That’s not to say Delilah’s of the same temperament.

As his familiar clued him in on the happenings, the lavatory room swung open and his eyes fell upon the newcomer who entered the room. A blush spread up his face as the virtuoso realized that it was this person whom was the source of that strange gassy noise earlier. Good heavens… Lute didn’t know whether to be embarrassed or not for the man since his business was just about broadcasted throughout the entire Guild, but he made a conscious effort to avert his scandalized (and slightly accusing) gaze at the wads of tissues dumped in the rubbish bun. All right, time to think of something else…

Lute sighed. Well, it was rude but he didn’t want to sit anywhere near Tummy Rumble dude. He supposed he could just go over to where the others were and listen in on the new mission directive, and perhaps ask a few questions too.

“I’m sorry for swamping you with questions too, but,” The virtuoso appeared right beside Xandra and Syed, “Does this circus have a, er, ‘record’? Perhaps they have a performer who used to be a part of a gang or something. J-just asking.”

[Rexcalibur]

Morris: Guild

When Lady first mentioned her presumption that the circus was linked with the absence of her boy and some Morris villagers, she thought both Moira and Estelle would have shrugged it off and told her she was being exactly that – presumptuous. Moira knew Lady well enough to understand that she was not the type to be paranoid over these things, and her son was always on the move, after all. Lady thought it over and wondered if she should have mentioned anything at all…

“We’ll do it!!”

Wait. Wait – do what, now? Even Lady herself wasn’t aware of what was going on, but – okay, now Estelle had to run to the bathroom. She looked to Marcus with an eyebrow raised. “Still as wild as ever? I see she hasn’t changed.”

"You say the circus is stationary, has it been there a while? Do they keep to themselves?"

Here come the questions. “It’s been around for than I've lived here. It’s a little ways away from Morris, but as far as I’m concerned they’ve always attracted folks from the towns and villages nearby it. You’ve seen how this place looks – rural, plants and bugs everywhere. It doesn’t take much to keep people here and passersby entertained. Though I’m sure there’s a limit to how many times someone can see the same acts at the same circus before they tire of it. Can’t imagine what that does for its income.” Lady shrugged, nonchalant.

"Did the disappearances start occurring after the circus came to town? And by any chance, do the missing people have anything in common? Hmm, maybe they're all linked to the circus?"

Lady wracked her head again, contorting her brows in both confusion and irritation at the situation at hand. “They do move around from time to time from what I hear, but they always nestle back in the same spot – equidistant from Morris and two other towns further north. I’m sure if there were any missing folks during their travels, they would have been apprehended by now. It’s been a month since the circus had returned from their last ‘tour’.”

Lady's eyes shifted to the missing persons photos. “None of the missings are guilders – I've already checked our records for these names and faces. Large age range there too. The first person here that went missing was only a couple of weeks ago. The numbers have climbed to six since then.”

“Does this circus have a, er, ‘record’? Perhaps they have a performer who used to be a part of a gang or something. J-just asking.”

Lady shrugged again, before placing a hand back on her jutted hip. “I’m afraid I don't know the answer to that, hun. I’ve not been to the circus myself. Which is why I was hoping you folks might be willing to check out the place for me…”



Trixie voiced the same enthusiasm as her dear leader. “We’d totally check it out for you! We’re gonna have fun and then when they’re not looking, we’re gonna wreck the place for kidnapping people and being total bad guys! Right, guys!?”

Lady thinned her lips, then chuckled. “She’s not entirely there, is she. Anyway… I do have a final note.”

The ladybug Fred that nestled in Syed’s hair plopped off of him and buzzed his way back to Lady’s shoulder as she spoke. The caterpillars that had been dropped off at the flowerpot all poked their heads out from the pot’s rims, their antennae twirling around as if they were listening in.

“My son showed me a flyer before he took off. It said something about a couple of newcomers. A ‘couple’ could be referring to the missings… or they could just be new recruits in general.” Lady shook her head. “I may be jumping to conclusions, but doesn’t that seem a bit suspicious to you all as well?

“Don’t tell me the people you’re looking for are from around here too, Moira?”



Amidst the conversations with Lady, Amy kept to herself at the bar. It wasn’t long before she was accompanied by the suited man who had occupied the lavatory. She squinted a moment from hearing him approach, but did nothing more than turn her head away from him. After the man made his order, Amy set down her glass and crossed her arms atop the counter. The bartender offered her a refill, but Amy shook her head.

She could only pray this creep of a man wouldn’t start talking to her.

[Crescendo]

Morris: Guild

Just as she had expected. Aria hid a smile behind her hand as the girl proclaimed that they would look into the case. Estelle was as enthusiastic as ever, wasn't she? As much of a mood killer her last question was...

The various guilders began to ask questions and the illusionist leaned over to listen. It certainly was a suspicious circus, and yet there didn't seem to be anything that pointed to the possible fact that the circus was the reason of the many disappearances. They would certainly have to pay the circus a visit however, and investigate in secret. She didn't quite think the members of the circus would take kindly to being called kidnappers to their face by strangers and then have their livelihood searched. Aria was rather starting to miss those simple missions where all they had to do was get rid of a beastie or take care of bandits.

The last tidbit from Lady was certainly interesting, but at the same time it wouldn't be surprising to see that it was only a coincidence. Circus' often had new people joining to add new acts or replace people who decided that the life of a clown wasn't for them. Or the ringmaster could be a person who reaped souls and was bamboozling normal people into joining the circus where they died grisly deaths from believing they could walk tightropes and tame lions and throw knives. She gave a small shudder- no more horror comics during the night for her, or ever again, it seemed.

She looked back to the board, then at the lady again. "Do you suppose we can get a copy of the missing people posters?" She gestured to the photos on the wall. "If we're going to the circus to search for missing people, it might be helpful to have pictures on hand. If it's not too much trouble."

[Bunanigans]

Morris Guild
"Nah, but we reckon they passed through here. You know... what's their names... Kara and... the other guy. Top brass for Clockwork Town. Wierd name, begins with a R. Fuck I should know this that's my home Guild..." Moira started in response, pressing her fingers against her temples. You could almost hear the cogs turning. "They've been missing for fucking ever, not even a word. We've got a l-"

She was interrupted by Syed thumping the metal plating which clad her arm. Then cringing and doubling over as he cradled his now throbbing hand. While the thump was pretty much nothing to the berserker, it did at least get her attention. They weren't alone in this place, and it was simply too small to rely on noise to keep any conversations secret. Especially with that man sat right next to Amy.

"We need them for somethin' important," she finished, rolling her eyes. Geez. "Like, really important." She leaned forward, thumbing towards the man. "Who is that?"

Syed fiddled with his ring for a moment before he chose to speak. "I... think it could be suspicious, although it would be kind of wierd for them to openly advertise a missing person," he admitted, looking to Fred the ladybird rather than any of the others. Oh, why on Ddeaer did it have to be a circus... he just wasn't keen at all. "But you don't know until you have evidence proving one way or the other. This is a lead, so we need to investigate it either way."

He finally looked up, looking embarrassed if anything. "That's pretty much the conspiracy theorist's mantra right there, heh..."

"I dunno, they might get pissy if we shove missing person posters in their faces," Moira replied to Aria's suggestion, missing her point entirely. Although it would be useful, as she wasn't very good at recognising people...

[Fox of Spades]

Morris Guild:

So, people hadn't started going missing till around a week or so ago.

The numbers had escalated rather quickly and it left the metallurgist feeling uneasy. How were these kidnappers working so fast? Lady answered the rest of their questions and it turned out the circus had been around for sometime. If the kidnappings had anything to do with them, then why was it happening just now, and why not in the other places the circus had already been to. The girl frowned then listened as more information was given to them.

Trixie sounded psyched and Lucien placed a hand on her head before giving Lady a thumbs up. "Yeah, yeah, don't you worry! We've slayed demons before and we've dealt with missing people too. Before you know it, we'll kick the crap outta the villains and bring everyone back." The summoner folded his hands over his chest and nodded confidently. There was nothing the pride couldn't handle!

Do you suppose we can get a copy of the missing people posters?"

"I dunno, they might get pissy if we shove missing person posters in their faces,"

Xan turned to Syed, "that would definitely be strange, but the Mask Phantom announced his robberies, so we can't be too careful. Copies of the posters sound good, interrogating the circus workers might spark up some problems, but that doesn't mean we can't ask the audience." She nodded her head, "those who frequent the scene might have noticed something suspicious."

Lucien gave Trixie a broad grin. "Hey, hey, kid. It's almost like we're detectives, yeah? Super detectives!"

[Fox of Spades]

Oops, double post, sorry >-<

[Orpheus]

Morris: Guild

“… Ah. I was hoping some of the residents heard something about the circus and spread it through the grapevine,” Lute muttered. Hmm, if that circus had been around for as long as Lady says, then they’ve built their foundations in this place already. He thought for sure that the townsfolk might’ve found something peculiar about the circus- bored minds do tend to wander to businesses they shouldn’t be poking in, after all- but it was a flimsy theory, not to mention that hearsay was not concrete enough to be used as evidence. They needed facts.

“So it’s been here for a month, and the first disappearance was two weeks ago…” That’s a mighty wide timeframe, but considering that the number of missing individuals climbed up until two days… Lute continued mumbling to himself, now having adopted the arms-over-chest thinking stance as he mused on.

Also, a “couple” of newcomers? It was vague language and they were prone to misjudging details during a situation like this so he didn’t want to judge whether it was suspicious or not, and merely gave Lady a shrug. “I agree with Syed on that one,” The virtuoso nodded at the mage and smiled wanly. As usual, Trixie and Lucien were pretty energetic about the mission. Lute was too, except he was feeling more wary than enthusiastic. For all they knew, the kidnappers could be psychotic perverts… “Oh, I mean, yes. We’ll definitely do our best to uncover this mystery and return the victims to their families,” He just added after the two in a less cheerful but sincere voice.

“… Ah, just what I was thinking of, Xandra,” Lute perked up when the metallurgist offered her opinion. “It’s amazing how people notice things that might’ve been hidden from your eyes. Although we’ll have to nitpick through eyewitness accounts…” in case they’re lying. Some people do that for the hype. “Anyway, let’s wait for Estelle and tell her about these too.”

[Pachamac]

Morris: Guild

Marcus watched the rest of his teammates with silent interest, lifting up his as he heard the rest of the Pride and Lady exchange information and questions. Marcus wasn’t entirely positive on Lady’s suspicions, or how she came to the conclusion that the circus might be at fault if her son had gone missing, especially considering the knowledge he travelled a lot. If the circus had been a local attraction for as long as it had, but the state of disappearances was something only recent, then it would seem to suggest the circus might not be behind, unless for some reason they would have need to. But what, was something Marcus couldn’t begin to guess.

He didn’t say anything, merely watching his companions’ reactions. Regardless of what the case might be or the likelihood behind it, they would still need to inspect the circus and see if they could find any clues from that. He only hoped that his friends might go to the circus with a broad mind in tow and not automatically jump to the conclusion of judging them guilty before the facts became clear. It was quite possible that the circus did have something to do with it. Or it could be just as likely completely unrelated and that there was another party involved altogether. It was simply too early to say.



“C’mon!” Estelle’s voice echoed throughout the Guild as the door to the lavatory slammed open once again with the telltale sound of it flushing ringing from behind. She stalked across the Guild floor towards the exit, eyes fixed with a determined stare. She didn’t wait to say or ask anything more, already believing that she had wasted enough of their time with that break already. “Let’s go bust up some bad guys!” Her fists smacked together.

Marcus sighed.

The man at the bar simply watched the rest of the Guild and the conversation between the pretty secretary and the younger Guilders with an absent minded looking expression, with his head rest on a hand supported with his elbow on the bar top. Sitting next to Amy, he said nothing, simply looking beyond her to the other people. Without breaking his gaze, his hand reached for the straw to his milk float and brought it to his mouth. He then took a loud slurp of it, before pushing the straw away again.

[Rexcalibur]

Morris: Guild

Lady flicked her wrist at Aria's request; it wasn't so much dismissive as it was permissive, as she had done so with a soft smile. "Feel free to take them. Even if the Phillis circus turns out not to be the cause of all this, I have no doubts you will all find the missings - especially if you've done similar missions before." She brought a hand to her mouth and chortled a second time upon both Lucien's demon-slaying comment and Moira's response to Aria, but decided against commenting on them. With a coy smile still on her lips, she nodded in agreement with Xandra. "Of course. While I'm sure the performers wouldn't appreciate any accusations, asking the visitors wouldn't do too much harm."

She glanced over to whoever Moira was referring to. Some strange guy sitting by Amy at the bar. Lady raised a brow, but otherwise held little interest. "Hm? The suit or the blonde? I haven't seen either of them before." After all, she had been fiddling with her paperwork when the Pride entered; she hadn't paid much attention to anyone who wasn't directly speaking with her. Whatever few other guilders hanging around before and during their entrance had already left with the smelly man's appearance and all the commotion.

Lady looked back to Lute, Lucien, and Trixie, all of whom displayed a level of enthusiasm. Lady's smile never faded. She knew asking these folks to check out the circus for her wouldn't be a bad idea, especially if half of them looked like they were interested in the place already. Who's to say they can't enjoy their time during their search? It'd be much less suspicious, anyway. She looked to Marcus next, though she couldn't make out what he was thinking.

"Thank you, Moira, everyone. I appreciate you taking the time to check it out for me. It may very well be that the circus isn't the cause of these numbers... and that my son is just a dumbass who can't win any prizes. But perhaps scouting it out is a good start for hunting them down." Lady lifted a pile of paperwork back atop her desk, before patting the top of it roughly. "I'll see what I can wrap up here with my workload so I can help out by looking around Morris."

She glanced to Moira a final time. "You did say you're looking for Kara, right? Both she and Rize had passed by here some time ago. I have information for where they traveled to next, and I would be more than willing to update you on their whereabouts if you can find the missings for me. And for their own sake." The secretary crouched down for a moment, rummaging through a couple of drawers before popping back up again. She handed Moira a small photo: a young man with a cocky smile, wearing a raggedy baseball cap, a black open jacket, and a pink tee inside it. "Here. Carry this as well. Just in case. But please don't lose it."

Everything looked just about good to go. Whether or not the circus was responsible for the missing persons, at least they had a lead and its visitors to verify or deter their suspicions. Lady trusted that these guilders were as good as that dopey purple-haired boy claimed, especially with Rachael's daughter and Moira on the team (though the latter's low ranking considering all the time they had been together could've said otherwise in anyone else's eyes). Soon enough, Estelle herself burst out the restrooms, rearing to go.

Lady nodded with approval. The Pride was just about ready to leave until...

"I'm not going."



Amy remained unmoved from her seat at the bar. She no longer drank any fluids, instead keeping her back to the guilders and her eyes away from everyone. Despite the man's loud slurping beside her, she was undeterred.



Trixie piped up at this, a look of horror all over her visage. She ran up to her elder and tapped on her shoulder, only to have her finger shrugged off. "Ames, what's wronnnggg. The clowns aren't that scary, Lucy was just jokin' about that! ... Right? I mean apparently they're just like Lute so they can't be--"

"No. I said I'm not going."

When Trixie continued to ramble on about how the circus couldn't be that scary even if they were secretly evil kidnappers, Amy snarled back at her. Trixie pouted in response. "Oh, quit being such a baby, Ames! You aren't seriously scared of the circus, are you?"

The cleric sighed, loudly. "No. No, Trix, I'm not. I just..." Amy's head lowered. "I don't want anything to do with the Phillis siblings."

"What? So wait, they really are bad guys then?"

"The circus owners and I... We just have a bad history. That's all. You guys go ahead with your investigation. I'll stay here with the secretary."

Trixie puffed her cheeks and began tugging on the ends of Amy's dress. "Amy, come on, you can't stay here! You gotta come with us. Who else is gonna heal our boo-boos?"

[Bunanigans]

Morris Guild
Moira gave nothing more than a simple nod as she took the photo. She knew how important these things were. She still had her own son's photo in her pocket, abeit folded and worn to the point she was having to apply tape to keep the thing in one piece. "Bloody hell he's got your smile ain't he?"

Syed peered over her shoulder. He cocked his head to one side in thought. "Is it me... or does he look a little familiar somehow?" Not that he could think from where.

Moira didn't even bother to respond to that. She didn't recognise him, she knew that. She shoved the photo in her pocket with the other.

"The circus owners and I... We just have a bad history. That's all. You guys go ahead with your investigation. I'll stay here with the secretary."

"Amy, come on, you can't stay here! You gotta come with us. Who else is gonna heal our boo-boos?"

Bad history? Moira frowned, while Syed shot a concerned look towards the others. As grumpy as Amy was sometimes, she had definately been acting off ever since they got here. Still, they knew better than to ask at this point.

"We're only checking the place out," Syed ventured, putting a hand to his elbow. "I mean I know things do tend to go a bit wrong for us with this sort of thing, but we'll just be careful." He smiled reassuringly. "I think it should be fine if you stay if you want to, personally."

Moira shook her head. "Nah, I reckon you should come. See, before? You didn't have us there. If they try to start any shit we'll just punch 'em for you." She strode over to the bar, at this point outright ignoring the man. "We're your mates, we've got your back. Nothin' better than showing some cock you don't like that you're doing pretty well."

[Pachamac]

Morris: Guild

"The circus owners and I... We just have a bad history. That's all. You guys go ahead with your investigation. I'll stay here with the secretary."

"Amy, come on, you can't stay here! You gotta come with us. Who else is gonna heal our boo-boos?"

"We're only checking the place out," Syed ventured, putting a hand to his elbow. "I mean I know things do tend to go a bit wrong for us with this sort of thing, but we'll just be careful. I think it should be fine if you stay if you want to, personally."

Moira shook her head. "Nah, I reckon you should come. See, before? You didn't have us there. If they try to start any shit we'll just punch 'em for you." She strode over to the bar, at this point outright ignoring the man. "We're your mates, we've got your back. Nothin' better than showing some cock you don't like that you're doing pretty well."

“Wait, Amy’s not coming?” Estelle frowned, dashing back from the exit towards the bar and towards Amy and Moira. “Why not? You know them? Are they… are they bad guys then?” Estelle frowned. “Moira’s right. We’re your friends, and you’ve got us! Nothing can go wrong, I promise-”

“Hmm… Estelle, Moira, I don’t think it’d be right to pressure Amy,” Marcus interjected, a raised hand accompanying a shake of the head. “If Amy doesn’t feel comfortable, then I think we should be able to respect those wishes. There’s enough of us here in the Pride, that I don’t think one or two missing from visiting the circus could be detrimental. And I’m not entirely convinced yet that the circus might be at fault. It sounds suspicious, sure, but there might be other avenues of interest to explore. Amy and I could investigate somewhere else during this time, perhaps?”

“Waaa?” Estelle’s mouth fell open, and her head shook from side to side dramatically. “No, we’re a team! C’mon, Amy! It’ll be okay, really!”

By this point, the red haired swordswoman had her arm unexpectedly thrown into Amy’s, and began trying to drag her the poor cleric away with her.

[Crescendo]

Morris: Guild

Aria carefully unpinned the notices from the missing board, assuming that Lady had more copies of them stashed somewhere behind her desk. She gave all another once over before tucking it away in some unseen pocket in her vest. The victims certainly didn't seem to have anything in common with each other as far as she could tell, so there was the chance that whoever was behind this was doing it indiscriminately and just picking off whoever looked like easy picking at the time.

Amy's unexpected declaration had everyone talking. What kind of bad blood did she mean? So she knew the owners of the circus? Aria did agree with Syed- they were only investigating, and it wasn't for sure that it was the circus that was behind the disappearances yet. Perhaps it would be good for Marcus and Amy to search elsewhere, seeing how adverse the cleric was to visiting the circus. Too bad Estelle had other ideas.

The illusionist couldn't help but chuckle, moving over and trying to dislodge the redhead before Amy lost her temper. "We'd still be a team even if we are split up for now, Estelle." Somehow she had managed to undo the death grip and dragged the girl backwards. "Besides, what if we're so busy investigating the circus and the kidnapper decided to run or kidnap someone else? There's no evidence that the circus is behind it after all." She ruffled the girl's hair, hiding a grin. Amy and Estelle were both quite stubborn, weren't they?

[Orpheus]

Morris: Guild

“It’s not a problem,” Lute smiled back at the secretary. If the Guild in Morris was as understaffed as she said it was, then it was their duty to extend a helping hand on any of the available missions. Asides from that, he personally thought that even if the circus may have no connection to the disappearances, it was better to weed out anything suspect before more people go missing. Oh and they’ve been offered an incentive. The situation with Rize and Kara had been explained in passing by Estelle, so Lute knew just how important that information was for the Pride. He momentarily glanced over at the swordswoman who emerged from the bathroom and nodded, ready to go.
But wait, is she okay? Surely there must have been leftover … smells left in the lavatory from the previous user… Lute scrunched up his nose then shook his head. He wasn’t going to continue that train of thought.

However, it seemed like Amy wasn’t too keen on visiting the circus.

The virtuoso followed after Trixie since he guessed by know that it wasn’t good to bug the cleric when she isn’t in a good mood (or even when she is); Moira and Estelle soon joined in coaxing Amy to come with them, which made Lute worry. Usually when people say they want to be left alone, they mean it… “Hey Trixie, maybe miss Amy needs a break too, you know?” Sure, she mentioned bad blood but it was also a good opportunity to take a breather. “Come on, there’s bad guys to investigate,” He added weakly as Aria dragged away a persistent Estelle.

“Lucien, come here and help me!” Now would be a good time for one of his puns. Without actually waiting for the summoner to come over, Lute gently prodded Trixie away from the cleric and towards the direction of the other members of the Pride, although it was really up to the girl whether she would let go or not. “So, um… I too think we shouldn’t force miss Amy to come with us if she doesn’t want to, but…” The virtuoso shrugged and stepped back from the limelight. Ah well, whatever. If they were going to leave, he’d follow.

[Pachamac]

Morris: Guild

“Waaaa, Ari, nooo, let me goooo!” Estelle whined after the illusionist managed to come inbetween her and Amy, to break apart the swordswoman’s grip on the cleric’s arm and pull her away, her feet dragging along the floor. Aria was surprised by just how much strength Estelle ended up demonstrating as she did, but it quickly waned and dissipated into nothing after Aria began to lecture Estelle on how it might be a good idea for Amy and Marcus not to join them, in order to investigate outside of the circus. Estelle didn’t like it at first, but she could, begrudgingly, see the wisdom in the idea, and finally gave up.

“Fiiiine,” Estelle folded her arms across her chest and swished her head to the side in a remarkably immature fashion. “I guess it’s a good thing we still have a couple of those communicators from Aliquam. If something happens at the circus or with you guys, we can get in contact easily enough.”

“Just so long as you don’t break them again, Estelle,” Marcus laughed, to a reddening Estelle. “H-hey! I’m not gonna touch it this time! Hmph!”

Estelle sighed, finally calming herself down, as she watched Lute and Lucien try to do the same for Trixie. Upon seeing their efforts, she couldn’t resist to do the same too, and walked over to Trixie and patted her on the shoulder. “Yeah, it’ll be fine, Trixie! Like Marcus and Aria have said, we can cover more ground this way! …so long as they’re not sitting in the Guild all day.” She flashed a serious glare towards Marcus, who sighed and shook his head.

“Anyway… I think it’s about time we should go, right?”

The man at the bar continued to silently watch the Pride, his mouth occassionally slurping his milk float through his straw.

[Rexcalibur]

Morris: Guild

Trixie and Estelle were immediately opposed to leaving the cleric behind, with Moira suggesting she joined along as well - though everyone else recognized and understood her desire to stay behind. Marcus offered to stay behind with her as well, with his own reasons. As the two girls were being pulled away from her, Amy coiled her fingers around her empty glass, feeling the cold run through her skin. She looked over her shoulder to the Pride members for a moment, smiled wryly, then returned her attention to her glass in hand.

"Thank you, everyone. I appreciate it."

"But," Trixie pouted, "but Amy, come on..."

"I'll be fine. Don't get into too much trouble without me, Trix."

“Anyway… I think it’s about time we should go, right?”

Following a wave goodbye from Lady and a cold shrug from Amy, Trixie crossed her arms and followed the leader out the guild doors. Lute did what he could to keep Trixie's investigative spirits up, so she at least had that to look forward to - and Aria's proposition about the kidnapper possibly doing a runner had merit as well. Still, it felt weird to her seeing Amy willingly split herself from the group so quickly, but they trusted the Pride well enough to keep each other safe when the other wasn't around. Mulling that over gave Trixie more reassurance than anything at this point. Though she still felt pouty about Amy (and Marcus) staying behind like that.

"She never told me she's been to a circus before. I didn't think she liked clowns. Unless"--Trixie gasped--"maybe she's been kidnapped by them before and just isn't telling us! Ooooh, bad guys, you're in trouble now!" Even she could admit she was jumping to conclusions now, but this little ~mystery~ of theirs helped keep her pumped and moving.

The Pride passed by the cluster of flyers again as they neared the northern entrance of Morris. Trixie snatched the paper nearest to them and handed it over to whoever was behind her to check out. Its header read "Phillis Circus" in fancy calligraphy, with concise information listed below it, including its location in relation to the three towns and villages nearest it. The performances were nightly, with some dates giving longer shows than others, while cutesy carnival games and other forms of entertainment kept its visitors busy during the daytime. From the flyer alone, the grounds itself seemed as large as a miniature fairground, with its circus tent being the main attraction. As Lady said, there was also a subtle note regarding a "couple of newcomers" to the show. Judging from how clean the print was, the printout seemed to be relatively recent.

As the guilders glossed over this paper before continuing out of town, Trixie leaned to the guilders nearest her and brought a hand to her mouth, as if trying to be secretive, though her whispering was loud enough for everyone in the group to hear. With her other hand, she jerked a thumb over her shoulder. "Who dat smelly guy? He's been following us for like the last ten minutes."

dat smelly guy

And there stood the suited man with his milkshake. He wasn't even that smelly tho

[Bunanigans]

Morris
While someone else had received the flier, Syed took advantage of his height to peer over them as they walked and look at it as well. He didn't pay much attention to it before, and he wanted to find out as much as possible before they got there. Oh, so it had a bit of a carnival type of thing around it? He was somewhat curious to see that aspect of it for purely self-centred, nostalgia fueled reasons. If they had the opportunity, of course.

Moira put her hands behind her head. She wasn't entirely suprised to find out Amy had a bad history with someone - she was a little spiky in demeanour. Like a cactus. Although... "I wonder what happened to piss her off so much..." she muttered to herself. Well whatever. Sure, she thought Amy was missing out on an opportunity here, but hell it wasn't like they were all joined at the hip. After all Marcus dissapeared on his own all the time.

"Who dat smelly guy? He's been following us for like the last ten minutes."

"What?!" Moira exclaimed, spinning around. And yeah... there he was. With that damned drink still. Was he some kind of stalker? Just a wierdo? She frowned.

"Oi!" she bellowed, putting her hands on her hips. "Why you stalkin' us? What do you want?"

Syed cringed at how rude her words were. While it wasn't particularly odd for someone who was seemingly new to the village - Lady said she had never seen him before after all - following them, it was a little odd for him to not say a word to anyone. Not even the secretary. Not that it wasn't explainable or anything, although it did make the mage a little wary. Maybe he just really needed the toilet. It did sound like quite the ordeal in there earlier. He was still quite eager to keep his distance as a result.

"Are you lost?" he asked in a much friendlier tone. "Because I'm not sure if we're the best people to ask, we're not from around here."

If he needed directions he would probably have better luck back in the village... but judging by the sounds that were beginning to be carried in the light breeze, they were probably getting closer to the circus at this point.

[Orpheus]

Morris

They finally left the Guild. Lute gave Amy and Marcus a wave before he closed the door behind him, then jogged up to the other members of the Pride. As they walked down the path he noticed that Trixie was still upset about some of their friends staying behind, and a wan smile crept up his face when she mused about the murky relationship between Amy and the… Phillis brothers, was it? “Let’s hope it didn’t come to that. But yeah, if they’re bad guys,” The virtuoso slammed his fist down on his open palm, “They’re in for a smackdown!” If and only if they were close to his body size, meaning no hulks like Bunnyface. Last time he tried to flip someone of that size he almost broke his back.

Lute hurriedly took the flyer before it flew away in the wind and raked his gaze through the contents. There was the elaborate handwriting, and the small designs on the edges of the paper looked like they were penned instead of printed. “That’s a lot of work,” He muttered to himself while straightening out the wrinkles on the leaflet. Games, food stalls, the typical setup; there wasn’t anything in here that said anything was out of the ordinary so he just handed it over to somebody else.

He barely caught on to Trixie’s whisper before a loud bellow broke out of Moira, startling the poor virtuoso so much that he- “Oh sweet beans!”- tripped over a rock. No big deal, he didn’t fall down, so he pretended that nothing happened and just turned around to see the deal.

Oh hey, it’s Tummy Rumble. He was still carrying his milkshake. “Is that allowed?” Lute asked, his eyes on the glass that the man held. Wasn’t that a property of the, uh, bar? Anyway, Syed tried to diffuse the situation and there was nothing the virtuoso could add to it save for a friendly smile aimed towards the stranger.

Oh wait, maybe he was headed for their destination too?

“Are you going to the Phillis circus?” He inquired in a louder voice, although he wasn’t sure if he was going to tell the guy to come with them or not. “Uh, if you are, I bet it’s there around that corner! If you keep walking, that is,” He jerked his thumb towards a bend in the road that was purposely paved like that to steer clear of a large tree.

[Crescendo]

Morris

Aria peered over Lulu's shoulders to glance at the flyer he had been handed. Looks like the circus wasn't a small affair; she could see everything from tightrope walking to beast taming to the various food stalls illustrated with great detail on the piece of paper. She wondered if they would have time to check out the carnival snacks; it had been a long while since she's had cotton candy or anything of the like.

"Who dat smelly guy? He's been following us for like the last ten minutes."

Smelly guy? She turned with the rest of the group to spot the guy with the tummy problems from the guild walking behind them and sipping on a milkshake. Milkshakes on an upset stomach? She had a feeling he was going to be a regular visitor to the washroom today. Moira bellowed her suspicion while Syed and Lute were a bit more polite. From around the bend she could already start to hear the faint sounds of the circus and since he was travelling that way perhaps he was just trying to go to the circus as well like Lulu had suggested. And maybe he was the type of person who could get lost on a straight road and that was why he was following them so he wouldn't get lost?

"If you are going to the circus I guess you could come with us?" She gave a hesitant offer, glancing around for the others' reactions. "Since we're heading over anyways, it shouldn't be problem, I think."

[Fox of Spades]

Morris Guild:

"Stay safe you two," Xan smiled at both Amy and Marcus then followed the others out the door. Bad blood between Amy and the Phillis siblings, huh? It made Xan curious, but she wouldn't pry and either way, they'd get to the bottom of this eventually.

"maybe she's been kidnapped by them before and just isn't telling us!"

Lucien jolted upright and held in a laugh, that sounded kind of silly, but hey, he'd play along. "Eh, that could be it! She looked really upset back at the guild." He rubbed his chin in thought then gave Trixie's head a knock. "Well, you know what that means? If they really are the bad guys, we'll just have to kick their butts extra hard." Lute mentioned a beatdown and Lucien grinned even wider. "See, Lute's definitely going to make their eardrums explode."

Xan arched an eyebrow when she noticed just how excited Lucien looked.

"Then they'll bleed from their ears and think twice about kidnapping people." The summoner ended the morbid image by giving the virtuoso and Trixie two thumbs up and an eager nod of the head. "They'll be no match for us." Lute grabbed onto a flyer and he peered at it. Animal tricks, magic acts, acrobats. Immediately, he lit up like a child on Christmas day. "On second thought, these guys don't sound half bad--ah." Before he could finish Moira started bellowing and he leaped forward like a frightened cat before crashing right into Xan. "Sorry, sorry, I was just uh...practicing my kung fu."

Thankfully, Xandra didn't fall over because if she did then they'd both get a mouthful of dirt road.

"Uh-huh, I think you need more practice, Lucien." She gave him a tap on the shoulder then turned to see what the commotion was about. It turns out the guy from the guild was tailing them, though it was possible he was just headed in the same direction.

Syed attempted to start a friendly conversation while both Lute and Aria offered to help the man. Like Aria, she wasn't sure inviting a stranger along would be for the best, but as guilders it was their job to help as many people as they could. "Yes, we're headed there as well. It shouldn't be too far away now."

[Pachamac]

Morris: Outskirts

The tranquil sounds of birds chirping, and the pleasant midday sun hanging overhead gave way to another peaceful day in the serene town of Morris. A peaceful day that was once again shattered by the Pride’s travels for the second time that day. Case in point…

"Who dat smelly guy? He's been following us for like the last ten minutes."

"What?! Oi! Why you stalkin' us?! What do you want?"

"Are you lost? Because I'm not sure if we're the best people to ask, we're not from around here."

“Are you going to the Phillis circus? Uh, if you are, I bet it’s there around that corner! If you keep walking, that is,”

"If you are going to the circus I guess you could come with us? Since we're heading over anyways, it shouldn't be problem, I think."

"Yes, we're headed there as well. It shouldn't be too far away now."

The Pride all stopped in surprise and confusion as they realised the strange man they had seen at the Guild, first emerging from the Guild’s toilet facilities and then claiming a seat at the bar to absentmindedly slurp on a milk float had been walking behind them, all the whilst slurping his milk float, and then stopped as soon as they did to confront him. Both parties stood stock still, looking towards the other, the Pride being friendly enough to try and accommodate whoever it was the stranger was and what he wanted, whilst the man, with his scruffy haircut and fuzzy chin, crinkled suit and creased shirt looked back… and said nothing.

A minute passed… and not a single word was said. The birds chirped through the air yet again. The man continued to stare at the Pride.

“What’s… up with this guy…?” Estelle whispered to her friends. Lucien shrugged.

The Pride kept staring… and the man stared back.

Moira’s eyes tensed as she affixed a powerful glare at the man, trying to feel him out. She was experienced enough to know that something like this… someone staring at them this long and this intensely… normally led to trouble. Her and the rest of the Pride’s bodies grew more tense, perspiration dripping down their bodies. A horrible thought flashed through some of the Pride’s minds… maybe this guy… had something to do with the missing people…?

The Pride stared.

The man stared back.

The Pride stared.

The man kept staring back.

The Pride stare-

The man slurped his milk float.

“SAY SOMETHING YOU ASSHOLE!” Moira shouted.

The man stopped his slurping, and looked up at Moira, his gaze colder and more steeled then before. The middle aged woman’s face twisted into an angry glare. “IF YOU’RE LOOKING FOR A FIGHT THEN WE’LL BRING IT!”

Another cold, suspense filled silence. The man, with his straw raised to his lips, didn’t slurp his drink. Instead he looked to the Pride, his own stare colder and harder. Seconds passed, before finally, the man spoke.

“Don’t. Or someone will die.”

The Pride instinctively reached for the grips of their weapons.

A smirk affixed Moira’s lips. A fight, eh?

“And who would that be?” She asked.

“Me.” The man replied.

“YOU?!” Moira shouted back, almost falling over.

“You freakin’…!” The berserker started to grow angry, but she was held back by a hand patting her on the shoulder, trying to reel the angry woman back from starting a needless fight.

“Hey. Don’t get pissed off, Moira,” Syed tried to cool her down, as Moira grunted under her lips.

“Playing with me…”

Lute stepped in front of the pair, hoping to play out the rest of this interaction peacefully and with diplomacy as Syed held the team's berserker back. He coughed and composed himself, smiling towards the strange man in front of them.

“Hey, er, Mister…” Lute began. “If you don’t mind me asking, who are you…?”

The stranger’s eyes widened with sharpness, and he glared back at the Pride. Another tense and suspenseful mood surrounded the group, as they awaited the peculiar man’s answer… after his cold and uneasy glare… a cold bead of perspiration slid down the back of Lute’s neck.

And then finally…!

“If you want something from someone, it’s proper manners to introduce yourself first.”

Lute took a step back and blinked, and his lips quivered into a half smile upon realising that indeed… they hadn’t introduced themselves. It would be polite to help do that first, and would probably help to make this man feel less tense, correct? Even if he had been the one following them…

“Y-yeah, you’re right… my mistake. My name’s Lu-”

“My name’s Eric Coil,” The stranger interrupted over Lute. “I’m 35 years old, Gemini, Blood Type AB…”

“CAN I KILL HIM?!” Lute raged.



“What… what do you want?” Estelle asked with a frown, as Aria helped try to control Lute the same way Syed did for Moira. “Why are you following us…?”

“Can I come with you?” Eric asked in reply. “My niece kinda went missing, and I’m looking for her...”

He slurped his milk float again.