[Scott, it was a quarter moon when the magi first arrived at the covenant, but I'm not sure if it's waxing or waning, and I'm also not sure if particularly overcast nights count towards the ghosts appearing. Given all that, I need you to pronouce on when this thread is taking place.]
Quarter moon waning, meaning you probably have a couple of days until the ghosts appear in full force.
Scott
Tasia is taking inventory of everything for the first couple days. Once she knows about all the spaces she will start planning where everything should go, starting with determining who wants which lab space.
Viola wants to wait until she the inside of the regio before she makes a decision. I suppose that might involve moving some of Portia's created lab equipment after the fact.
Scott
[OOC: Note that Portia said that lab equipment would have to be negotiated with her on an individual basis - it's possible that you can get her to create a batch lot for guests, but you'll have to get her to agree to it.]
A boat arrives from the village, docking at roughly the same spot where the original covenant disembarked. A German with a slightly befuddled smile (Leon) disembarks, accompanied by a suspicious looking Irishman (Patrick of Tytalus). There is a brief, potentially comical exchange as the Kipchak fisherman gestures into the small forest bordering the river, and the two passengers attempt to clarify their question by that ancient, illogical trick of speaking louder in a language their guide does not understand.
The fisherman heaves two medium sized chests off the boat, and leaves.
The German stares wistfully into the water.
The Irishman listens for a few seconds before doing a surprisingly good imitation of the local birdsong. He is actually speaking in Animal Ken. "Hey, you, ya wing-ed blighter! You, up in the tree! Are there any human lairs around here? Maybe one filled with especially dangerous looking humans? Do ye ken 'human?' Upright beastie, walks on two limbs. Bit like a monkey, without any tail."
The bird tweets back dumbfoundedly, "What's a monkey? And if you want to tell me what a human looks like, why can't you just point to yourself?"
Scott
"What? Never seen a monkey? What kind of migratin' avian are you, anyway? They're spectacular, they are. The next time you're down in Africa, you should ask somebody to point one out to you. Funny little blighters, too, I don't mind tellin' ya."
Leon rousts himself from his thoughts, glances around, notices the tracks of several dozen humans and their equipment leading into the forest, and begins to follow them. As he walks past Patrick, the magus absent-mindedly grabs the other two handles of the chests, and follows along, continuing his conversation with the bird.
"...and the things they'll do for a mango! My mate Tersius has a pet monkey and a mango tree he won off an Sidhe..."
In this manner, they arrive at the covenant's borders, whistling a merry birdsong tune.
I will assume Tasia is busy making rounds of the covenant or working on her lab. (Have to learn to cast the Aegis.) The few grogs we have would know where to find her.
When Tasia arrives, Patrick greets her in a loud, blustery manner, hardly letting her get a word in edgewise. "Good morning to ya, sister! I presume ye be Viola of Merinita, whose in charge of this little project here. Have ye even got a name for the covenant yet? They weren't sure. I'm hoping to have t' pleasure o' being yer first guest. Oooch! But where are my manners? I'm Patrick the Unrepentant, of House Tytalus. This here is Leon. He thinks he's a fish."
Leon waves.
"Now, I know you've only been here for a year or so, so I'm sure there's much left to be doing. An' I assure you that I won't be getting in yer way overly much. But if you could just point me to mah quarters, preferably somewhere in the beast-hunter's wing, and I'll get out of your hair. Oh, and if you could please lend me a lock of your hair and your signature on this contract, I'd be ever so grateful."
The scroll says, "I give Patrick of House Tytalus permission to scry on me." There are a surprising number of signatures on it. And by "surprising," I mean more than one.
Tasia, dressed in a gown that seems far too fine to have been what she was working in, waits for Patrick to run out of breath. "Greetings, Patrick of Tytalus. Welcome to our new covenant. I should inform you that we have been here far less than a year. In fact, we have only just arrived. But I'm sure that will not be a problem at all." Tasia looks over the scroll Patrick handed her. As she does so a breeze passes, but her aforementioned, long locks do not sway at all. "I should introduce myself. I am not Viola, but Quaesitor Hoplite Tasia of Guernicas, the leader of this covenant. Though I am afraid I will not be able to acquiesce to this request, you will have to tell me how you got so many signatures on this contract. I have not seen its like..." After being satisfied he is actually a Tytalus magus, Tasia will also provide Patrick with a token for the Aegis.
[OOC: How does one prove their House, anyway? And should I roll once for all her reputations? Is that Int + OoH Lore?]
Patrick grins widely at Tasia. "Oh, you'd be surprised what even a magus will sign if you ask for it quickly enough. It matters little, I doubt wee contract would stand up in trial, after all. So little does.
"Only just arrived, ye say? Saints preserve me, I count myself twice blessed then. Always wanted the challenge of making a home outa nothing. How can ah best help ya? I count myself a master magus with passing skill in wards, as well as the capture and taming of beasties of all ilk."
[OOC again: I've always used the term "master" to indicate a magus capable of opening an apprentice's arts.]
Tasia notices (Folk Ken roll of 14) that Patrick's Irish accent is poorly faked, not in a deceptive manner, but more of a protective one. The crow's feet around his eyes remind her of the sort of bravado displayed by a soldier while the chirurgen pulls an arrow out of his groin : smiling over teeth gritted in agony, laughing so he doesn't cry. This man, Tasia realizes, is playing a caricature of himself, as a mask to hide his tears.
((OOC - I figured it would either be that she had heard of him or that he says enough that she figures he must be a member.))
"I will have to consult with the other two. Viola is currently dealing with the faeries, and Gregorious is dealing with the townsfolk. In the meantime, let me see if I can find you a suitable place to set yourself up."
"Certainly. I'll need space t' pen the wee beasties I'll be bringing home, so if the sancta are still to be picked, best it be an out-of-the-way corner. Do ye have time for a wee bit of a tour while we're at it? We've been on ship for a while, and apparently much of my information about this place is suspect. What'd'ya mean, only just arrived, anyway?"
((OOC - I'm not sure how much time passed between the meeting during which Tasia was elected and the conversation she's now having. There were only a couple days between landing and that meeting. I was under the impression, since Gregorious has really just arrived in town, that in total we've been here well under a week.))
((Sounds good to me. Make up an answer that is before the new moon?))
You've been here a few days--it's right before the new moon.
Scott
"You may be surprised to hear we only just landed here three days ago ourselves. I'm surprised you got here so quickly after we did. How did you hear about our covenant? What sort of beasties or enterprise brings you out this far? Yes, I'd be happy to give you a tour, and you can fill me in on events from where you're from." Tasia will take him around and fill him in on the bits she knows. Meanwhile she will try to keep him talking so she can hear the latest gossip from wherever.
"Surprised? Yes, that'd be the word. I've spent the better part of a season coming here, and though I'd been told ye may need help, I was assured you were well established." It's easy to see that the guileless Tytalus is not being entirely truthful in this answer, but if she presses him for more details, his answers grow more vague.
As the conversation drifts away from topics concerning himself, Patrick's accent slips away somewhat, and you can hear more of the Hermetic order's accent in his Latin. He happily discusses the magi he's met from the Hiberian, Stonehenge, and Rhine tribunals, though that last is the source of his most recent news. The bulk of his stories concerns the children of magi, or his opinion of their parents. When the conversation moves back to him, his accent thickens and he returns to slapstick antics to attempt to divert the topic away.
Should Tasia mention the fluctuating aura (or any of the other mystical issues of the covenant), she discovers a third side to him -- the hunter aspect, sniffing game in the air and looking for trails. He suggests setting up circle-spells which detect the strength of the aura and somehow display it, perhaps as fire? His theoretical discussions might reveal his skills in numerology to those who know of its existence.
Noting that he is a Tytalus when she finds him not entirely truthful, Tasia doesn't bother pressing. She would rather stay on the topic of other magi and covenants.
Tasia will mention the fluctuating aura, the as yet to be seen ghosts, and the faeries. Should he ask about things outside of the covenant, she will let him know about the town and that the covenant will probably contact some potential magicians from nearby soon.