Arty Fox

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Baronfjørd "Blackberry" Chedgusah Dragon Born, Monk (Astral self), Level 05 HP: 40 / 40 Armor Class: 16 Conditions: N/A Location: Coach House -> A little walk Action: Animal Handling (17) Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A Ki: 5/5

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BlackBerry had always known to some degree that there was a lot that went into Animal Husbandry and his first week at the L'Rose estate had confirmed this. But what he hadn't fully appreciated was that there was A LOT to animal husbandry. In the first week BlackBerry's task had simply been kept to the care of Old Boy in his single stable at the coach house under Jons supervision. As previously mentioned he had mostly done the thankless tasks such as cleaning down Old Boys stable, replacing his feed and water each day. Now however Jon had decided BlackBerry was ready for the more rigorous tasks of horse-care.

When checking over Old Boys teeth, in the age old way of the universe's sense of comedy, Jon had barely uttered the words "Careful with that file not to stab the poor thing." before BlackBerry did just that. When it came to then trimming old boys hooves, "Should he not have shoes?" BlackBerry had asked, and Jon informed him that not all horses need or even should wear shoes, BlackBerry found it hard to get enough force or even the right angle with the file to wear down Old Boys hooves enough. Jon thankfully took over and with one of Old Boys hooves held between his thighs set to work with a hand at each end of the file to wear down the hoof to a healthy length.

Despite the setbacks and having to be reminded repeatedly on various aspect of care, Jon had invited BlackBerry to also lend a hand up at the workman stables, either out of respect for Blackberry's efforts or hate depending on how you looked at the situation. The horses at the work stable were a very different breed of beasts from either Old Boy, they were large creatures with muscle pulling their skin tight and almost steamed in the cold air when they were taken out of their stables. But for all their stoic grandeur they would give a little start when BlackBerry arrived either from his bright(er) colouration or from being such a novelty. Likely it was a bit of both.

Even with the few beasts the L'Rose had on the property, every day he finished with a feeling that the Stable Master had shown him all there was to do, he would turn up the next day to find there was yet another thing he had to learn, or even relearn a few times before the facts stuck in his head. The amount of work he now had to do was immense; cleaning the stables now took hours and more than a few times the wheelbarrow would tip over in his rush to get everything done which only made more mess for him to clean up. He struggled to keep track of all the different tools needed and often had to get one of the other stable hand to begrudgingly show him where things were. And all of this on top of trying to take care of Old Boy back at the Coach House.

Needless to say the novelty of it all had worn off ad likely died in a ditch. The bath tub at the coach house saw a lot of use as each day BlackBerry would return smelling of sweat and....shit. He unfortunately found that he would need to buy some new robes after a few new stains refused to budge despite vigorous cleaning.

One morning however was different from the others. And in the darkness of winter, lit only by the few brave lights in windows and torches found BlackBerry and Jon standing in the Coach hHuse courtyard facing the stable.

"I tell you Jon, I have nary a clue what has possessed the fellow. I came out this morning to feed him and he tried to bite me." BlackBerry gestured towards Old Boy, who was now licking the lower stable door.

"Are ye sure he weren't just going for the feed?" Asked Jon, a man who was nearly as wide as he was tall even without the thick coat he was wrapped in.

"Very much so. The fiend would have taken my nose if I had been any slower."

Jon made a non-committal noise and replaced the pipe in his mouth. The two men stood side by side several paces away from Old Boys stable, watching the horse licking the door for another minute before he was apparently satisfied with his work. Old Boy then gave a harsh snort, twin jets of steam bursting from his nostrils, and took a few laps around his small enclosure, and then resumed licking the stable door.

Jon removed the pipe from his mouth. "He's stressed, when did you last take him out?"

"The other day when I was cleaning out the stable. The fellow was reluctant to go back in afterwards until I led him around the courtyard a few times but otherwise seemed fine in himself."

Jon went to put back the pipe but then halted midway as a thought occurred to him. "And where else?"

"Where else?" BlackBerry echoed.

"Where else, where else have you taken him while you've been staying here?" Jon ad now turned to face BlackBerry. And in the following silence, gnawed angrily upon the end of his pipe. "No wonder the poor things in a state; you've gone and left him locked in there all this time with nought to do, and not even giving him the relief of somewhere to be. Horses are like any other animal, they need to be taken care of proper. That means proper sleeping, proper eating, proper care of their feet, teeth, and coats." Jon was stomping towards the small storehouse to the east of the Coach house grounds as he continued berating BlackBerry over his shoulder. The mans voice muffled for a moment when he went into the storeroom to return with a bridle in hand. "And exercise." Jon slapped the bridle into BlackBerry's obediently waiting hand. "If you're really wanting to keep the beast then you need to keep better care of him; you wont be having us there to remind yer when to fed him, brush him, or water him and all."

"I would remember a darn sight better." BlackBerry snapped, growled out the complaint between grounded teeth. "If I were not being worked to the bone every day doing all the tasks no one else either wishes to do or can not be bothered to."

Jon simply moved the pipe from one side of his mouth to the other and let a single puff of smoke rise from it. "Worked to the bone? Boy, you aint worked nothing." There was an almost malicious glint in Jons eye now. "'Worked to the bone', you're only here till the end of the season, rest of us is here all year round. You're going to be out there on the road and if something happens to him." Jon took out the pipe and jabbed its end towards Old Boy. "Out there you'll need to know how to take care of him cause no one else will be around to help you. So you'd best wise up and listen to us proper or you'll regret it. And now more of that cheek."

BlackBerry took a breath and while trying not to grind out his words or roll his eyes, said. "Yes, yes. I see your point, and I do apologise for my outburst." Part of BlackBerry felt like he should explain a bit more or add on to his apology. But his arm was still aching from yesterday, it was far earlier than he ever wanted to be awake, and he was generally in a foul mood with it all.

"It's not me you need to apologise to mate, it's him." Jon pointed his pipe at Old Boy, who had now fixed his attention on BlackBerry and snorted. Jon upended his pipe and knocking it against his boot asked. "You remember how to fit the bridle? Good, I'll leave you to it then. A stroll to the village and back should do the trick. Best of luck to ya."

"Wait, hold on. Are you not going to help?" BlackBerry snapped his head between Old Boy and Jon now walking away.

"Consider it another lesson lad; how to deal with your horse when he's stressed."

"Did you not listen? He tried to bite me."

"Better learn quick."

After the figure of Jon had disappeared into the darkness BlackBerry stepped towards Old Boy with the bridle in hand. "Alright Old Boy. Shall we go for a wander then? I shall just need to put on your bridle first before we do so...please, I kindly ask you do not try to bite me again." When Old Boy made no furhter movements other than flicking his ears, BlackBerry undid the letch on the stable door and entered. To his surprise old Boy remained politely still though did still let off several distinctly frustrated snorts, but let BlackBerry fit the bridle without any fuss. "Well then. Thank you good fellow. Shall we be off then?"

The walk itself had initially started with BlackBerry being almost dragged out of the Coach House drive by Old Boy as mule had heard loud and clear it would be taken on a proper walk as exercise, and was damn instant it was going to get it. The pair managed to find the main road, their journey lit in equal parts the moon setting in the distance and the sun clawing its way from the other side of the horizon.

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Baronfjørd "Blackberry" Chedgusah Dragon Born, Monk (Astral self), Level 05 HP: 40 / 40 Armor Class: 16 Conditions: N/A Location: grape field Action: Nature (10) Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A Ki: 2/5

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It would have been a lovely walk towards the grape fields if it werent for the cold. Where the others walked, lead by Kosara leaping and bounding her way playfully along the snowy edges of the paths, BlackBerry meanwhile trudged behind, trying to stomp some feeling back into his feet. Even with his new shoes he could feel his toes starting to go numb after huddling away in the tunnels entrance for so long. He had half a mind to wonder if Kosaras idea to keep busy and therefor moving by making a snowman had been the better idea of the pair.

When they arrived, watching Lady Kathryn had been a sight an a half. BlackBerry stared in wide eyes horror when the knight had plopped the offensive grape into her mouth. What in the name of all the Gods had possessed the woman to try one of the grapes would be a question he would have for the rest of his days. The audible ‘pop’ from within Lady Kathryns mouth and her following reaction simply confirmed that the idea had been a very bad one.

“Might I suggest not eating or drinking everything in sight, please.” BlackBerry pinched the bridge of his nose. But what Lady Kathryn said about definitely being the L’rose brand did make his tilt his head in confusion. “Well I certainly would not doubt that, Lady Kathryn but I must say they do seem a tad off given the situation. Kosara, these are the same grapes as the ones you brought us at breakfast. Are they not? Were you able to ask Madame L’Rose about them when you spoke earlier?”

He took the moment to look across the field they had been lead to and it struck him as incredibly odd that, of all the dead or otherwise dormant bushes around them it was only these two which were bearing fruit. BlackBerry peered over Kosara shoulder at the strange plants before kneeling down beside her to get a better look. The plant didn’t seem normal, even to BlackBerry’s untrained eye. The plant looked dormant as any other would be at this time of year; brown, dry, and bare but for the most stubborn leaves which rattled when he flicked the hardy stem. Other than the strange fruit he would have supposed the plants were dead for the winter.

The rest of the field had been marked, likely for clearing if BlackBerry’s meagre knowledge of farming served him right. There couldn't be that much difference between growing fruit and growing any other vegetable. Was it simply the case that the odd occurrence was contained to just these bushes? Or were they otherwise a foretelling of what was to come?

“Personally, I do not think these belong here.” He stated matter of factly whilst giving one another tap. Its leaves rustled with indignation. “Out of this whole field there are only the pair of them. I remember Madame L’Rose mentioning something about a late crop still needing to bring in but I would be very surprised if these were them. I believe we should take some to Madame L’Rose and get her opinion on this matter, and our other findings before we proceed with anything else.”
BlackBerry gripped the plant where a small branch split from the main stem and gave it a tug. The branch stubbornly refused to move, even and he twisted it this way and that trying to remove the damn thing. Lady Kathryn kindly lent a hand to rip and tug at the poor plant until it spitefully let go. BlackBerry held up the small branch he had been given with the mangled end and few remaining leaves. The parent plant was barely doing any better,, if only for the fact it was clinging to the ground for dear life.
“Ah…yes…thank you lady kathryn.”

He gave the shredded ends of the twig a curious sniff. It smelled like dry grass, almost like straw as he expected, but with sharper undertones of something else. The twig cracked quietly when he squeezed it between his thumb and finger. To him it was nothing more than a very dead twig from what should be an equally dead plant but couldn’t tell figure out anything else about the plant.

“Well, I unfortunately have no idea what sort of plant this may be but hopefully Madame L’Rose or someone else will know.” A somewhat unorthodox idea struck him then. “Victoria, perhaps you could even take some to your teacher in town? Perhaps she may have some inkling as to what is happening here.”

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Baronfjørd "Blackberry" Chedgusah Dragon Born, Monk (Astral self), Level 05 HP: 40 / 40 Armor Class: 16 Conditions: N/A Location: Outside secret distillery Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A Ki: 2/5

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“By the gods, say it not so.” With a voice as flat as a pancake, had been the only response BlackBerry gave to Victoria revealing Morty’s true nature. The rest of Victoria’s musing though left more of an impact. The idea that maybe someone was controlling those creatures below in the distillery was quite distressing even if right now they were being commanded to lie low.

“It may be conjecture but it seems as plausible as anything else though I would argue fairly unlikely. This hardly seems like the sort of place for such a thing after all.” BlackBerry didn’t sound convinced and his eyes kept slipping back towards the direction of the manor.

After waving Lady Kathryn and Victoria off on their most dangerous quest, taking the liberated/rescued alcohol back to the manor, he was left to watch Kosara’s escapes trying to make a snowman. He chose to watch such things from the relative protection of the tunnels entrance. While BlackBerry would decline any invitation to join in making the snowman, “No thank you. I shall happily keep watch just to be on the safe side.”, he would off the occasional bit of advice or suggestion as the pair waited for the other half of their group to return.

“Master Urmdurus, marvellous to see you again.” BlackBerry moved out of his refuge to greet the master dwarf and the with a mock reverent bow he continued. “I do apologise for us taking you awake from your work but we have rather urgent need of your skills. I am not sue how much my friends have explained of the situation but, see there the hole in the wall? We need it sealing up as best you may please.”

“If you have any need of an extra hand at all I am certain Lady Kathryn here will be more than happy to oblige. If that is agreeable with you Lady Kathryn?” The question was directed towards Lady Kathryn. But without waiting for her to respond he then turned on his heel and strode towards Kosara and her snowman. “Shall we be off then Kosara? I believe we have some more work to do before the day is through.”

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Baronfjørd "Blackberry" Chedgusah Dragon Born, Monk (Astral self), Level 05 HP: 40 / 40 Armor Class: 16 Conditions: N/A Location: Outside Hidden Distilery Action: Nature on Sycamore (8) Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A Ki: 2/5

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Blackberry blinked down at the now burning bodies waiting to see if it would convince…whatever they were to finally act and reveal themselves. It didn’t. The corpses remained lying exactly as they were without any care in the world. Meanwhile, the flames continued to happily eat away the dry, crumbling, rancid flesh and fabric of the corpses.

[color=00aeef]“Yes, well.” Blackberry stepped away from the fire, making sure to pull his trailing robes up away from the fading flames as he started back towards the door. “I suppose that settles that then. If you all do not mind I shall wait outside until all is done. I can barely see past the end of my nose, even before all this rancid smoke.”

Stepping past the others he then made his way back up the short tunnel back into the outside world. Grey skies and refreshingly cold air welcomed him with a well timed breeze to blow away the cobwebs, both metaphorically and literately. For a few moments he simply pulled his robes close trying to stop the wind from snatching them and what little warmth he had gathered down in the hidden distillery away.
Finally back out in daylight, even as overcast by the darkening clouds above, he could see his own transformation; his blue scales had taken on a luxurious sheen. Blackberry turned his hand this way and that to marvel at how the sun danced across them, certainly not as shiny as a jewel but enough to say he looked a bit ‘shinier’. He even dared a moment of chill to lift up his shirt and confirm the transformation on his stomach. Curiosity demanded a more thorough investigation later in private and possibly with a mirror.

While waiting for the others (or more likely, just Lady Kathryn) to finish getting the barrels out of the Distillery, his attention was caught by the Sycamore tree standing naked and proud atop the hill. Following an idea he strode towards the tree and then, when he was right next to it, looked back towards where he had come from the entrance leading into the distillery. With a nod BlackBerry guess-timated that he was probably now directly above the Distillery and so the roots he had seen, or felt below belonged to this tree. Continuing to follow the stray thought, he then circled the tree examining its trunk and branches above from all angles looking for anything that seemed off or un-tree-ish. After a few laps he gave the tree a few affirmative knocks and then affectionate pat before returning back to the others once they had all exited the Distillery.

“Good news. It would appear that whatever magic there is below seems to be politely staying there. The tree just there appears unaffected by anything.” He jabbed a thumb over his shoulder to said tree. Turning his attention to Victoria and Lady Kathryn he then said. “If you two are taking some of the barrels down to Madame L’Rose perhaps you might ask for Master Urmdus to accompany you back and put together a more permanent solution to keeping this place locked up? Kosara and myself could wait here until then before investigating the strange grapes nearby.”

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Baronfjørd "Blackberry" Chedgusah Dragon Born, Monk (Astral self), Level 05 HP: 40 / 40 Armor Class: 16 Conditions: N/A Location: Old Distillery Action: N/A Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A Ki: 2/5

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BlackBerry glared down at the corpse. The corpse…didn’t move. It remained resolutely still even when BlackBerry quickly withdrew his finger from its socket. Unceremoniously, he wiped his hand across the dirty, dusty floor trying to get the worst of the skin and sinew stuck to his finger. His nose curled at the stench that had arisen from the corpses now much-emptier-eye socket.

“Yes, yes I am fine thank you Lady Kathryn. It is just all this dust and filth wreaking havoc is all.” He sniffed and felt a familiar warning tingle at the back of his nose. “But yes if there is nothing else here perhaps I may head outside for some fresh air, and to get a better look at whatever change has become of me and investigate those grapes as well.”

But even saying this BlackBerry didn’t move from his spot where his eyes kept jumping between the two corpses. A warning sense of dread had made itself comfortable in his stomach. Similar to their situation in the Township they were left with more questions than answers and likely not anyone around with the answers they needed.

“Bashed his head in?” He repeated Kosaras findings of the other corpse. “Possibly we have stumbled into an old crime scene? But if so it would seem a lot of effort to lock and bury this place if it were after the fact.”

BlackBerry took a breathe and stood back up with a stretch.“Well, I feel that blocking this place up again might be a wise idea actually, Kosara. We would not wish for anyone else to stumble in here in case whatever has affected us may return and affect someone else. There is no telling what harm could befall someone. On that note, I am sorry to say Victoria but perhaps our changes may not just be physical but magical as well?”

He grimaced as he spoke the thought. It was a worrying idea that they had all been so changed so easily.

“I must admit, I am likely mistaken about this corpse.” He gestured down to it, it grinned up at him still having not moved. “They are likely nothing more than simple corpses and I am simply jumping at shadows.”

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Baronfjørd "Blackberry" Chedgusah Dragon Born, Monk (Astral self), Level 05 HP: 40 / 40 Armor Class: 16 Conditions: N/A Location: Old Distillery Action: Perception on Corpse (4) Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A Ki: 2/5

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“Well.” BlackBerry sighed at Victoria and Lady Kathryn, and dragged his hand over his face.

Lady Kathryn, yes he could see her doing this but Victoria, choice of arcane study not withstanding, he had expected at least some level of common sense or even self preservation. The withering stare from the Dragonborn lingered upon the pair of them in way that directly translated to I’m not mad, I’m just disappointed.

“I suppose as adventurers such actions are par for course. I shall take glad solace that neither of you appear worse for wear currently.” His mind played catch up and recalled the snippets of conversation he had overheard from the other side of the casks and barrels. And was just about to offer a suggestion, but Victoria beat him to it. Nodding, he then added in agreement, “You took the words right of my mouth, Victoria. No doubt it could be classed as quite a vintage by now.”
Kosaras squeal of delight bounced around the confined space.

“Well, I can see one of us may choose to keep this new change.” He smiled after Kosaras delighted squeal had finished bouncing around them. Her comparison of him to a True Dragon did draw out a small but loud chuckle. “Why thank you Kosara. Perhaps I shall should the opportunity arises.”

Stepping forwards to follow Kosaras investigation of the corpses he was thankful that enough time had passed that they no longer stank. He curled his nose up at the sight of their bodies; withered skin, eyeless sockets, twisted limbs, and rotten clothing. They were human, or at least very human-ish as far as could be figured given the state of the bodies and how time had removed many features.

“With any luck one of them might have a journal or something of the like on them, Preferably one that could answer all our questions with this whole situation. It is unfortunate that we are unable to simply ask…” His eyes settled on the furthest Corpse. “…them.”

He squinted at the corpse with suspicion as he tried to match what was seeing now with what he remembered. The problem was he hadn’t been paying the corpses a huge amount of attention but he was certain that the one at the furthest wall had not been facing them. BlackBerry grabbed Kosaras shoulder before she could get closer. He did allow Victoria to pass after her cryptic statement and he watched with a rising sense of unease in his stomach a her construct her spell, the whispers of her voice somehow refusing to echo as all their other words had done. And then…nothing happened.

“That spell you used Victoria, I can assume safely it allows you to communicate with the dead?” BlackBerry twisted moved passed Kosara and then Victoria, stepping towards the corpse in question. BlackBerry gently nudged the corpses head with his toe. It didn’t move.

He the squatted down by the corpse and eyed it as closely as he dared. His eyes narrowed as he visually inspected the corpse for anything unusual but found, in the dank darkness, nothing. But there was something very odd about this corpse, and possibly even the other one. He momentarily eyed the other corpse as well before returning his attention to the one before him. It was still dead and hadn’t moved.

BlackBerry held his chin as horrifying thought was promptly followed by a very stupid one. Victoria would see him bounce in his squat and wrestle his head side to side. Finally, after a few seconds of the odd looking dance, he then took a deep breath as if bracing himself against against a painful strike.

“You.” Jabbing a finger into an eye socket and noticably shivering in disgust when something squelched. “Were facing the other way but a few moments a go. Victoria here, is a very skilled magic user so I know her spell would have worked had you actually been…well…dead. As you have yet to attack us let us assume the best of each other shall we?”

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Baronfjørd "Blackberry" Chedgusah Dragon Born, Monk (Astral self), Level 05 HP: 40 / 40 Armor Class: 16 Conditions: N/A Location: Old Distillery Action: Investigate Door (6) -> Investigate Barrels (7) Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A Ki: 2/5

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BlackBerry shuffled uncertainly through the darkness, following gravity’s downward pull with his hand brushing against the wall over first, rocks, and roots. Thankfully there weren't any branches to the tunnel and it was wide enough for them all to get through. At least that is what he thought,

“Careful Lady Kathryn." He threw the warning over his shoulder after hearing the unmistakable sound of metal scraping against rock.

Finally, after more shuffling and stumbling, he emerged behind Victoria into the room beyond. Casting his eyes about the room, thankfully somewhat lit by shards of sunlight that burrowed their way through cracks in the earth and between roots from the tree above, he could make out the shapes of barrels, casks, jugs, and all sorts of tools buried under years worth of dust. He deduced that it must have been a store room of some kind for the Vineyard in years gone by, somewhere they did something to the grapes and other fruit used for making wine. What exactly that would be he hadn’t he fainest idea.

Two very important question he was about to have were put to the side as Kosara and Victoria then made their observations.

“Good gracious me, I believe you are right Kosara.” He drew up to Victoria and Lady Kathryn to measure them against himself in turn. The pair had definitely grown slightly. “I shall trust your eyes and believe I have become shinier, whatever that entails, it is too dark for me to tell. Do you all feel well in yourselves however? Out of us all I am more worries for you three as you have experienced the more dramatic changes.”

Something had to have caused it. Victoria’s description put one obvious culprit in BlackBerry’s mind for if not the cause of the Wild Magic build up then at least it’s trigger. He approached the door frame and began running his hand up and down it trying to find any tale tell dents of ridges that might be…well something, he wasn’t sure what he was looking for, and in the darkness he came across nothing on the door frame that could have caused their changes. He did however admire the care that must have been taken to keep the door frame the past for it to be in such good condition now.

“While I agree it is likely Wild Magic I would say something must have triggered it to act. Whether it is just our presence or some action we took in particular I would be interested in finding out. Nothing on the door though. I suppose another question is…well…why there would be any Wild Magic to begin with? I will admit my knowledge on the subject is rather lacking beyond stories, tall tales, and the like.” He turned back to face the room and his eyes wandered over to the barrels stacked neatly onto shelves and racks in the middle. “Perhaps something in these is a source of Wild Magic?”

Approaching the barrels he gave one a sturdy knock, but couldn't tell by the sound if it was empty or full. He ran his hand over the barrels trying to see if the was anything like…well…like something to say what was in them. Instead, all he found was years upon years of dust and dirt now rising up in front of him after being disturbed for the first time in what could be several decades.

BlackBerry sneezed loudly and briefly disappeared behind a blue flash of light.

“Bless me.” He sniffled with a few stray sparks still dancing over his snout.“Nothing here eithe-what are you drinking?” He had rounded the barrels to see Lady Kathryn and Victoria drinking. His eyes jumped between the cup in Lady Kathryns hand and the newly opened cask. His jaw nearly hit the floor in horror. “Is that really wise? For all either of you know that there may be why this place was barricaded and buried in the first place.”

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Baronfjørd "Blackberry" Chedgusah Dragon Born, Monk (Astral self), Level 05 HP: 40 / 40 Armor Class: 16 Conditions: N/A Location: Gazebo Patio Action: Short Rest (13 hp restored), Medicine (7) Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A Ki: 2/5

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BlackBerry sat beneath the gazebo while Lady Kathryn did her best to tend to his injuries from their little battle,. All the while his legs kept bouncing, protesting at having to sit still for so long. A few of the staff who had turned up to watch had had the forethought to bring some cloths, bandages, and a few herbs with them just in case of any serious injuries happened to either the combatants, or even the audience for that matter knowing these adventuring types.

“Oh! That is painful!” He squeaked. Grimacing, he held himself still for Lady Kathryn to work her best bit of healing along his now very bruised ribs. “I hear tales of lizards whom spend their days doing nothing but lounging on rocks and soaking in the warm rays of the sun. What I would not give to be one of them now. I bet you the desert Kosara is from has them.”

He winced when Lady Kathryn continued touching his ribs just in time for a gust of wind to come sailing through to add insult to injury by making him shiver. The muscles all along his sides cried in protests at having to move. But despite his grumbling the blue dragonborn endured the treatment while stubbornly refusing to fully take off his shirt, and instead pulled it up about his pits for Lady Kathryn to work.

“Thinking about it.” He said quieter than usual. It was a bit painful him to talk not that it was actually stopping him. “I think I shall take a page out of your book Lady Kathryn and begin training in more earnest than I have done. Perhaps even one day I might land a strike as strong as your ow-ah! careful, careful.” He nearly jumped out of the chair in his attempts to scoot away.

BlackBerry peered over the bundled cloth of his shirt to the splotch of dark purple scales. He grimaced then clicked his tongue. “Well, no doubt it would have been a lot worse without. And I shall say it does look anywhere near as bad as the Abominations own work the other week. I think that shall do me for now Lady Kathryn, you help is very much appreciated.” He rolled down his shirt, gladdened to be given a bit more protection from the cold. Why they hadn’t chosen to go inside was beyond him.
“Here. Allow me to check over your injuries as well. It would not do otherwise, and I do wish to check I haven’t left any serious marks on you.” He waited for Lady Kathryn to be as ready as she would be for him to check her over. Once she was ready he began his quick checks over her and continued to talk, “Gracious me, if Old Brother Rorvil saw that he would have boxed my ears and have me scrubbing all the chamber pots in the Monastery for a month. On my own no less!” A few half hearted chuckles filled with memories followed.

He spent a few minutes simply applying a cloth, dampened with very cold water, onto the worst of the burns and bruises he could find but unfortunately missed quite a few. “Yes, I think that is the last of them. I do apologise Lady Kathryn you have suffered a few minor burns but nothing that will cause you much bother. I normally find such things clear up after a few days and bit of cold water here and there.” BlackBerry spoke with the confidence of a man who didn’t quite realise scales and human skin heal differently.

“Well, I suppose with that we should go and find the other two. If I recall Kosara had found a rather interesting wall the other day and wished to go investigate, possibly with Victoria in tow. With any luck the pair will still be at the Coach House, or otherwise may have gone without us to investigate.” He stood up from his seat with a joint cracking stretch and retied the Viscous Shortsword back into place around his waist. “Unfortunately Kosara neglected to mention the exact whereabouts of this interesting wall she found. However I imagine we can find it without much trouble. Are you ready then?”

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Baronfjørd "Blackberry" Chedgusah Dragon Born, Monk (Astral self), Level 05 HP: 40 / 40 Armor Class: 16 Conditions: N/A Location: Coach House -> Patio Battleground Action: Breakfast Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A Ki: 5/5

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The week had passed by without much comment.

For starters there had been his and Victoria's little trip to Southmoor. The pair parted soon after arriving to handle their own affairs, BlackBerry had made a beeline for a shoemaker who had understandably been surprised by ar having Dragonborn for a customer. But a customer was acustomer, and after taking the necessary measurements suggested BlackBerry return in a few days to collect his purchase. The Shoemaker understandably didn't have anything that would fit properly already made.

What followed after the little trip had been several days of hard, gruelling, thankless work both at the Coach House stable with Old Boy.

The battered Dragonborn had gotten his wish and been given many of the unglamorous jobs which needed doing before the first snow, namely mucking out the stables, cleaning various tools, counting the bags of feed. Now that Jon, the head Stableman had seen the Battered Hero could indeed pull his weight outside of ‘flashy, magic heroics’ there was now promise of more laborious tasks to come.

However, it was not all bad. While the mornings and afternoons were indeed hard work, Jon had been a man of his word, his evenings had been a change of pace going through the basics in horse-care. There had been a lot to go through and Jon was a man who adored the animals in his care. He would spend hours go

Jon taught BlackBerry mostly the basics in horse care; keeping an eye on the animals gait in case if injury, how often each year to have his shoes cleaned, how much to feed and whatnot. BlackBerry ended up asking for a lot to be written down for him so he could refer to it later.

Right now though, he was sitting around the table with the others and turning his nose up at the rancid smelling parcel Kosara had just put on the table.

“Madame L'Rose did mention some fruit was being left on the vine did she not? Perhaps these had been left on a bit too long.” Giving another sniff he then added with no small amount of disgust. “Definitely been left too long. Any longer and it very well may walk off on its own.”

He didn't dare unwrap the parcel in case what Victoria had suggested were true and he unleashed a swarm of midges, flies, or something equally horrid in the room. There were numerous songs, jokes, and cautionary tales of masterful adventurers being laid low by the smallest of creatures and he didn't want to follow them.

His leg bounced rapidly as he followed the thought. “Does the cold not kill off bugs? you tend to not see many bugs other than during the summer. Especially those horrid little midges that like to fly by your ear. Ghastly things.” BlackBerry pinched the air to illustrate the size of them.

“Though perhaps you should inform Madame L'Rose about that, Kosara. I doubt she would want any crop going to rot in the field. The wall though does also sound interesting, might prove a fun pastime to go investigate it as well. I wonder if Madame L'Rose knows of it. I bet you Lizbeth would; she continues to strive as the sort for whom exploration and wanderings come easy to. That is of course if you can convince the Girl to take a break. I do believe I have seen her asking our fair knight for as much training as she can handle. And then a fair amount more.”

“On the bright side however. It does seem we've hit a stroke of luck in a calm and benign time here seems guaranteed. the debacle with the bugs last week notwithstanding. I have had plenty of time to talk with Jon, the stablemaster here, who has yet to mention anything much of interest going on. Nothing more than a worker going places they ought not but I fail to see anything overly nefarious though.”

A thought then struck him. With an annoyed click of the tongue he said to himself “Drat. I still need to get those letters sent off. So that the rest of you know Southmoor does in fact offer a postal service shoukd anyone else have anything to send. It seem well organised to my mind.” But there wasn't time to dawdle. He had a battle to fight which was heralded by their knights arrival and departure from breakfast, armed to the nine hells and back stopping only long enough to invite Victoria and Kosara to watch.

“Was that today?” He frowned and then stood up so fast when he remembered the chair fell back. He grinned excitedly.“Goodness gracious me, I had plum forgot. Yes, one moment I shall be after you in just a moment! Oh this will be fun. Do not alarm yourselves.” He paused for a moment between stacking the plates to reassure Kosara and Victoria. “We shan't be going overboard. Just a short and friendly spar is all.”

His words trailed off. He was watching Lady Kathryn striding down the road to their agreed battleground with Lizbeth trailing behind, almost bowing under the weight of the Knight's weapons she carried.

“I believe those were training weapons young Lizbeth was carrying, were they not?”

Avonshire - D&D Based Adventure

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Baronfjørd "Blackberry" Chedgusah Dragon Born, Monk (Astral self), Level 05 HP: 40 / 40 Armor Class: 16 Conditions: N/A Location: Manor House Terrace Action: BREAKFAST Bonus Action: N/A Reaction: N/A Ki: 5/5

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Happy with the knowledge that everyone was quite happy with their flatbreads he turned his mind to the very important topic of Breakfast. After pouring tea for those who accepted the offer BlackBerry then served himself a small sampling of the ‘coffee’. He eyed the pitch black liquid carefully as it steamed happily and his murky reflection looked up at him carefully. BlackBerry had seen Lady Kathryns reaction and wasn’t entirely sure he wanted to try at first, b her then saying it tasted good put those worries to rest.

BlackBerry took a sip of the drink and promptly regretted it. The scalding, bitter drink assaulted his tongue and he fought to restrain a small cry of surprise and disgust. Trying his hardest to not make an absolute fool of himself or insult their host, BlackBerry swallowed the mouthful and put the cup back on the table.

“I daresay it is not to my taste either.” He shook his head trying not to squirm in his chair, and instead reached for a fresh cup, the teapot, followed by two spoonfuls of honey into his tea.

But now was time for the next important part of Breakfast; after drink it was time for food, and Madame L’Rose had arranged a most marvellous spread. But a flag flew in his mind, his hand coming to a halt just before grasping a pastry, and directed him to the various utensils gathered around the dish in front of him and around the larger dishes containing food on display. Back home, meal times were often a case of grabbing all the good stuff before everyone else could, and eating on the road didn’t have any strict rules at all. BlackBerry withdrew his claws from the pastries and instead settled for using the tongs as he had seen the others do so, the slices of bread however seemed quite happy to be handled as usual.

His plate quickly found itself stacked with; two slices of bread, a trio of fruit jam dollops, a small bowl with a handful of chopped fruits hidden beneath some yogurt, and a nice buttery pastry to finish off everything. He even politely requested two fried eggs to go on top of another slice of bread. The next issue then became the Cutlery. Serving spoons, forks, and the like were easy to know as they were just bigger versions of the usual ones, but now he was faced with multiple of each all in front of him. He stared down at the shining utensils, eyes hoping madly from one to another as they silently fought to be the one to use first.

A cup was suddenly thrust towards him by Victoria asking for another cup of coffee which he politely obliged. Whilst doing so it gave him a chance to check what utensils she was using so that once the cup had been refreshed he copied her utensil selection.

Munching happily away at his breakfast he let the conversation carry on without him for a while but turned his head to focus on each person as they spoke their plans for the next few months. His eyes did momentarily stop at Lady Kathryn who managed to eat a comically large block of cheese without unhinging her jaw. He put down his fork. Otherwise the conversation proceeded without much excitement as they all listed their plans for the season, though one lacking point in Lady Kathryns plans did catch his attention.

After wiping away a straw bit of jam from his lips BlackBerry turned to Lady Kathryn with goading grin. “And no plans for our battle then, Miss Knight? Poor show, poor show indeed. Why just last night I recall you saying ‘I get you into a good hold, or on your back and you’re pretty f-’” His mind suddenly sounded the alarm demanding a course correction. The goading look was wiped away in the sudden panic. “in-in trouble. That is what you said, and I am not a man who backs down from such challenges.”

“But before then, Victoria, may I join you to Southmoor this morning? I wish to buy a few articles of clothing more suitable for the oncoming months.” As if on cue a small breeze slipped around the Manors guard making the Dragonborn shiver and pull his jacket closer to him. “I would also see about sending off a letter or two home if possible.” He then added with a chuckle. “No dances or the like anytime there soon unfortunately, and no doubt any dances I know would pale in comparison to yourselves.”

“Before I forget, Madame L’Rose. Might I offer my services to help around the stables? I admit I am not an expert in the care of animals but I have grown somewhat attached to Old Boy, our mule, and would appreciate some tutelage on his care in return for doing any odd jobs that may need an extra hand or two before the first snow.”