Rilcheaux would attempt to get of a "quaesatoris" while the man ranted, figuring he would not keep the door open long-
Where is your cousin.
Failing that he will circle around the back to see if the effective allegation that his cousin was looking to borrow money and use him as security for that produces any reaction worth observing.
FYI, I haven't forgotten this. I just don't see any way to move forward until PoB gets back. He's involved in both the castle and Arans scenes.
You could give Rilcheaux an answer while Father Vilanus et al make their way to the weavers. Rilcheaux did start out significantly earlier in hopes of being first to wrap this up.
The fairest way to handle this is to make opposed Quickness rolls to see if Rilcheau can get in his question before Tomas slams the door shut.
Quickness roll for Rilcheau: 1D10+1 = [4]+1 = 5
Quickness roll for Tomas: 1D10 = [10] = 10
Botch Die: 1D10 = [1] = 1
Botch Die: 1D10 = [3] = 3; no botch
Rilcheau gets his question in: "Where is your cousin?"
The answer is: "In the weaving house."
As the door slams in his face, Rilcheau hops over the fence and meets Tomas at the back of the house where the weaver is just coming out the back door.
"You!" Tomas shouts. "I'll not have a moneylender on my property. I owe you no money. You have no right to be here."
Meanwhile, just a short way down the lane, Alexandrus and the others see Rilcheau talking to Tomas the Weaver only to have the door slammed in his face. A moment later, Rilcheau hops the fence and runs toward the back of the house.
I'd say hopping the fence quickly is a TL 3 Dex + Athletics check.
Athletics check : 1D10+1 = [9]+1 = 10
I'm still going to keep things somewhat slow so that I don't get ahead of the others. I know Rilcheau's intention was to get things solved before the others arrived. But he went to two locations in town and they only went to one. Given that they didn't dawdle back at the castle, I figure it all evens out. So I wouldn't say Rilcheau started out significantly earlier, though he clearly started somewhat earlier.
Keep in mind that in addition to his reputation Rilcheax also has air of rightfull authority always on...
He looks Tomas square in the eye and mutters "Oblitero" erasing Tomas' memory of their entire encounter to this point (Loss of but a moment's memory- up to 5 minutes) then says "You were going to show me the weaving house?"
"What?" Tomas says looking around with a curious expression on his face. "I was just having a meal with my wife and now I find myself in the yard. Martha!" he calls out. shaking his head and shuddering. It's only then that he seems to notice Richeau "Do I know you?" he asks suspiciously.
Int roll to notice that he has missing memories. I'm going to make the stress roll have an Ease Factor of 6 since this is very important to him.
Int roll: 1D10+1 = [4]+1 = 5
Alas, this is just not his day.
Still, with the loss of his memory, he's found himself suddenly moved from his table to his back yard with no explanation. That's got to leave him confused and worried. I don't care how convincing someone is, if I find myself suddenly moved from inside my house to outside my house with no explanation, I'm going to be a lot more worried about that than what someone is asking me to do. Most of the time I've seen this spell used it doesn't change a person's general situation. A guard is standing at the gate, something bad happens, and ZAP, his memory is erased of that bad event. But he was standing at the gate before the time he lost, and he's standing at the gate after the memory loss. Unless he remembers the missing time, he's not likely to suspect anything happened. But here, Tomas is in an entirely different location than before the memory loss. It must seem to him like he was just teleported from sitting at the table (or just answering the door, wherever the memory loss starts) to standing in the back yard. Given that this is the Middle Ages, he probably suspects witchcraft or sorcery is to blame.
I know you want to just make a Leadership check and have him jump to follow your orders. And yes, Rilcheau is designed to be an uber leader. But Leadership is not Entrancement. It's going to take Tomas a moment to calm down to the point where he can listen to anyone. He's just had the freakiest thing that's ever happened in his entire life just happen. And really, I think calming him down is more a situation for Charm than Leadership. Of course Leadership can also be used to intimidate...
Actually it was more an attempt to fast talk and use the momentary confusion with a suggestion that the could cling to the appearance that the other person knew what was going on, so Tomas might pretend he recalled what was going on even though he didn't.
Rilcheaux answers "No, I'm a friend of your cousins, if you need to go inside..."
Rilcheau gets a 15 on folk ken, or an 11 if charm is required instead.
Folk Ken and/or Charm is definitely the way to go right now. I'd have made this a much tougher Ease Factor normally. But saying you were a friend of his cousin's is the right tack. All it takes is an opposed Guile vs. Folk Ken to get him to believe it:
Guile Check: 1D10+8 = [2]+8 = 10
Folk Ken Check: 1D10+2 = [5]+2 = 7
Success.
Tomas is clearly bewildered and shocked at what's happening, but Rilcheau finesses that with a few well-placed comments, reading the weaver like a book and figuring out just what to say. At the mention of his cousin, Tomas narrows his eyes suspiciously. But something in the way Rilcheau speaks causes him to (unwisely) trust the man. "Are you here to help him find somewhere better to hide?" He asks. Then, when Rilcheau suggests they go inside, he first turns toward the house, instinctively heading there first. Before he can go a step, a woman about his age comes out the door.
"Is everything okay, Tomas?" she asks. Then, seeing the well-dressed Rilcheau, she executes a simple curtsy to him and says, "begging your pardon. I didn't know you had a guest. When you ran through the house, I thought the Devil himself was after you."
Tomas still looks distracted, but he waves off his wife's concern. "Nothing like that," he says. "Just business. I need to take this gentleman into the weaving house to talk business. You go back inside."
The woman looks back and forth between the two men, but then shakes her head and returns to the main house.
Tomas then turns toward the weaving house and motions Rilcheau to come along. "We can talk in there," he says.
Now I do need to delay until PoB comes back to see what the group on the road does.
Rilcheaux follows Tomas into the weaving house.
Solomon curses to himself, Sophia, return to the Covenant. Your presence their now would constitute scrying on a magus. He then finds a servant and asks, "please find me Lucas immediately."
[hr][/hr]
"What the hell is he doing here," Alexandrus mutters upon seeing Rilcheaux. "This can't be good Father," Alexandrus says as he picks up his pace walking towards the house.
Understood, Sophia replies, and wings off to the left to return to the castle.
Alexandrus, Fr. Vilanis, and the armsmen hurry down the lane and arrive at the house of Tomas the Weaver. The door is closed, and they can hear voices in back of the house.
Meanwhile, back at the castle, Lucas quickly returns to see Solomon. As it happens, he was still gossiping with one of the guards just down the corridor.
"Was there something you forgot?" the magus asks when he gets back into the room. It wasn't that long since he left.
As they approach the weaving house Rilcheaux catches Tomas' eye and mutters "quaesatoris"
What do you know of your cousin's troubles?
"He owes a great deal of money to a moneylender in Tolouse," Tomas replies. "The moneylender has sent men to come after him. He can't pay, and I'm afraid about what the men might do to him if they catch him. I'm an honest man, you have to understand. But I'm sure that foul moneylender charged my cousin usurious rates and that's why he couldn't repay the money. Besides, he's family."
The question was posed with pose the silent question, not asked aloud... if that changes the answer....
I just realized me error as I was sitting down at the computer. No, it doesn't change the answer. Rilcheau just gets it mentally.
"It sounds as though someone is at the front, we should hurry."
Tomas agrees and ushers Rilcheau into the weaving house. Inside is a large open room with three looms, one large, and two small, each with a partially finished product on it. There are two chests, a simple frame with some woolen objects stacked on it, and some boxes with piles of wool yarn. Off in one corner is what looks like a leather traveling pack. But there is no sign of anyone else in the structure, nor is there another room or loft visible.
"Àlex?" Tomas says in a questioning tone. "I brought someone to see you." He turns to Rilcheau. "I can't imagine where he's gone."
"You should get the front door to avoid arousing suspicion, I'll see if I can locate him." then mutters "Quaesatoris"
*Is there anywhere you know of he could be hiding?
"I know of nowhere. This is all there is to the weaving house."
Tomas closes the door behind him.
Rilcheaux begins with the travelling pack, looking through it for clues as to where Tomas' cousin might have gone, as well as for evidence one way or another as to the church's greater concern. Depending on what he finds there he will check out each of the chests as well.