"I like the cut of your jib, Halie. Thanks for your assistance in this matter. Let me know if you need anything from me, you know where to find me. Brother, did you need to hear my confession again?" Talia turns and heads back to her ship, and gets back to studying.
"Yes, my daighter, the extent of your depravity does quite upset the Lord, you know," the false monk admonishes as they walk away.
Halie looks at the shepherd expectantly.
Nevin was looking around and seems startled at the man's appearance. He's about to answer when the man looks about and then starts hurrying away.
"Well I...hey!" Nevin begins. He frowns and then looks to Gowan and nods. Gowan returns the nod and spits and starts heading after the man.
"Oy! Where ye goin'? Lord Nevin ain't through wit' ya!" he calls after the man. Nevin then sees the other approaching party and feels that he might be finally egtting somewhere.
"Gowan." he says. "Come on back. I think the welcoming party is arriving."
((Okay, re-setting the scene here, just for clarity. The shepherd arrived, was taken on the boat, and eventually spoke with Talia and the faux monk. They (being Talia) decided that this would be in Halie's bailiwick and decided to go speak with her.
Meanwhile, a man unknown to any of the pcs arrives, with another man and a cart, and more or less parks himself at the foot of the pier near the Whoa Buoy. One of the covenfolk screws up the courage to see what Nevin wants, but bolts when he sees the trio disembarking.
Talia, Caoimhe, and the shepherd would have to pass by Nevin and Glowan to get to Halie's cottage, where they find her effectively in flagrante with her young, buff, grey-haired paramour, and relay what the shepherd told them.
Does Nevin stop Talia et al, or do they blow past him on their way to Halie's, or what?))
((Yes, Nevin would try to speak with them))
"Excuse me. I'm Nevin Mac-an-Toisich, Lord of these lands. I'm looking for the magi that I'm told reside here? Can ye help?" his gaelic is rather formal but not snooty.
((I guess I missed this. I guess I can probably pick up laird in his Gaelic?))
In Latin, and the monk will have to translate: "I'm a maga, but I'm ill-suited to conduct or assist in a murder investigation, I'm seeking out one of my sodales who is a better fit to this task. If you have matters related to ship building or sailing, I'm your girl."
((At this point, I'm not sure if Talia will meet Nevin in summer, so I'd hoped to avoid interaction with Nevin now, so it isn't weird later game-wise, but earlier story-wise. So I'm trying to keep the language even and not indicate that Talia does or doesn't know who he is.))
The monk relays, "She only knows sailing and sin. The one that way can help you."
((And she has a body made for sinning.))
((Hey, if G-d didn't want us to do it, he wouldn't have made Tab A fit into Slot B. Or Tab A fitting into Slots C and D. Or Tab B fitting into Slots--- you know what, nevermind.))
Nevin's eyebrows raise at her 'offer'.
"Uh...sure. Maybe I'll ask about the other at a better time. Right now I'm mainly concerned about the murder though. Shall I wait here then?"
Talia takes him to Halie.
((I'm extricating myself from this thread!))
((I'm thinking probably not.))
When they knock on Halie's door, and as they're waiting for a response, the shepherd starts to speak. "M'lord, will you be..." he says nervously. The door opens, and Halie stands there. The shepherd's jaw drops, and he says nothing more.
Nobles are perhaps a bit more difficult to shock. Seeing...all of Halie, Nevin's eyebrows raise a bit higher but he retains his composure, merely looking down at the ground. His henchmen openly leer.
"Pardon madam...are you, one of the magae of this place?"
"In Orkney, a visitor introduces himself prior to making inquiries of the master of a house," she chides mildly, "I did not realize that standards of decorum deviated so drastically here on the mainland. I am Halie, daughter of Birna."
'Ye answer the door in the nude and I'm the one who's impolite.' muses Nevin.
"Pardon again then Halie, daughter of Birna. I am Nevin Mac-an-Toisich, laird of these lands. I would speak to the magae who dwell here regarding a murder nearby. If this were simply a murder I'd handle it myself or let the constable do so when he comes round, but there's strangeness about it that I know not. And if it's not too much to ask, maybe I can wait upon ye to dress for the occasion? Not that it bothers me." he points a thumb at his men who are still ogling Halie. "But the boys are easily distracted."
"If your men are so easily distracted, perhaps they can use the concentration practice," she retorts with a wink. "But if the sight of my flesh is so upsetting, I can find something to wear."
She disappears back indoors and cones back out wearing a green silk shift that clings to her every curve and barely reaches mid-thigh. Barefoot and bare armed, but seemingly unperturbed by the chilly air, she gestures forward. "Lead the way."
Nevin clears his throat as Halie becomes more...presentable. 'Lead the way.' Nevin shrugs his shoulders and steps aside revealing the handcart with a bloody bundle covered in a simple hemp cloth.
"If ye wish. It's not pretty." Nevin says as he takes hold of the cloth and reveals the gory body it was concealing.
When Nevin pulls the covering aside Halie sees the body of an older man (based on the fact this his hair is, or was, grey). His clothing is soaked in blood, and there are a lot of little, deep cuts and small chunks torn from pretty much his whole body. His face also has gouges torn from his cheeks and nose.
Halie non-fatiguingly sponts Image of the Beast (In18+An8+Sta2=28,/5=5.6).
She will also spont a Corpus version of the same spell, also non-fatiguingly (In18+Co5+Sta2=25,/5=5.)
The Animal version gets nothing.
The Corpus version gets you an image of a stocky, elderly man with red eyes, taloned hands, and large teeth, dressed in leathers, wearing a red hat on his head, holding what looks like a spear. ((Insert Awareness check for more details. Also, I'm surprised that Halie doesn't have any Faerie Lore.))