Carmen stares at Bernhard with cold blue eys, silently waiting for him to stand down and get out of her way.
Then the murciélago!
The murciélago makes an obscene gesture with one tiny claw. 
¡Pinché murciélago! ¡Quita té! ¡Salga aquí!
Ludwig makes a show of lifting one leg and dropping a fruit-scentedgyano on the floor
Gemma clears her throat. "If the two of you are quite done, aren't we going?"
(Finally managed to catch up with the thread. It's easier to say that Arachné finally stayed outside as a back up, with an AC to Bernhard to Leap to. There are various ways she can know if there's trouble:
- She can keep a stick who had a part taken by the magi. Using CrIg 01 to create light equal to moonlight at AC range is lvl 05, 10 for diameter. If she stays hidden in the woods and watch it closely, she should have no problem seeing this. Problem: this requires a magus inside to cast a spell, and she doesn't know what she'd land into
- The people inside may have taken a spider, and she watches through it. She prefers to concentrate so as to spare her talisman. Problems: Her concentration will fail at some point (IIRC, it's what? 15 minutes per point?) and the spider can be noticed.
Whatever's the best, IMO the stick part. Anyway, it seems you people will be going out anyway)
Bernhard drops his gaze and steps aside. Once Carmen passes he takes a swing at die Fledermaus (or is it Batmanuel? 
) and grumbles in German.
Vibria falls in beside Carmen, whispering to her in Catalan. [color=red]"We're assuming that the child is his. He says it isn't, and she hasn't said who it is...that is, if she even knows. And the people who have dealt with her the most say she's not to be trusted, that she clouds people's minds. I don't think dragging her and the baby back to Andorra is such a good idea, and it doesn't look to me like she really wants to go." She then falls back and resumes her looking around for anything of value, especially the bow.
"How do we know we can trust Gemma?" Esteban growls. "You're cute, and you're the pontifex of Andorra and all, but this seems like an awful risk. She could be a spy, or worse. Where's the advantage for us?"
Gemma has gone from uncomfortable to angry. "Do not Jerbiton learn manners? Esteban de Barbastro, I rescind your invitation from this Aegis; you are not welcome here. A third breach of etiquette will not go well for you." (Any non-botched Folk Ken roll and it is clear that she is absolutely sincere, and there is a definite threat in her outrage.) "Vibria filia Fulminara..." she shakes her head. "I wish you the best of luck with your affections, but Anselm is not in the habit of courting plain-faced women, and if you do not learn how to control those feelings of inadequacy and jealousy, he will never see you as more than a diversion at best."
She turns to Carmen. "If your people wish to speak about me as though I'm not standing right here, they may do so outside. Until I leave this place, it is still my home, and I'll not be insulted and have aspersions cast upon my character, in my home. Now you may see about whatever business you have here, and if you were sincere in your invitation, you may call upon me when you are ready to leave." She hugs her child close and disappears into her office, latching the door behind her.
oy...
Do you guys not see what I am up to? This woman is very touchy, and skittish. She metioned the bow has been returned to its original state? She probably means it was turned into a tree. I am more concerned about needing her to cooperate and telling us where she got the pen from. And I think only Vulcanus can get that magic ring off her finger.
Just a reminder: what Gemma actually said was that "Caduceus did more than just strip Destiny of its vis" and that "it is only right that the bow be... restored to its original form" - which is to say, the bow is NOT in its original form now, but she thinks that it SHOULD be.
Also, Vulcanus described the bow as "made of living wood." Bernhard remembers the bow would flower every spring, and had green leaves in the summer that turned red and gold in the autumn; it only ever looked like a typical bow during winter.
invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4115359/
As soon as those words are out of her mouth, Carmen is pretty sure that reuniting Gemma and her son with Vulcanus will not make anyone happy, and that nothing you do will get her to tell where the pen came from.
For the record, Gemma does have an minor Oversensitivity to Impropriety, but I don't feel like it's really come into play at all, because you guys have been REALLY rude to her. Saying rude things about someone right in front of them is funny on tv, but Gemma has more self-esteem than Buster Bluth.
Bernhard mutters Sogar eine kaputte Uhr zweimal am Tag richtig.
I'm not entirely sure where Bernhard was standing, but where he's no longer standing is between Vibria and Gemma. He fully expects Vibria to incinerate the Hure for that one.
If she does want to cast anything, she takes a -20 penalty to her spells, and a -20 penalty to penetration totals, as she's in a foreign Aegis with no casting token.
Vibria's just surprised that Gemma speaks Catalan. Vulcanis is, she thinks, German, and she naturally assumed that Gemma was, too. (Does she know that Vulcanus had lived the last few years in Spain, which, iirc, also doesn't speak Catalan by and large?).
She spoke in Latin... The only language besides Latin that you've heard her speak is German. It's easier to understand a language than it is to speak it.
Vibria is fuming. Literally. Wisps of smoke drifting from her flaring nostrils.
As far as incinerating Gemma, Vibria won't. And not just because she's not a flaming psychopath.
- Vulcanus, for whatever inexplicable reason, seems to be fond of Gemma, and if Vibria kills her he will probably never forgive her.
- She seems to be a custodis of some worth to this covenant. She doesn't want to be brought up on some "deprivation of magical power" charges.
- Gemma's holding the baby.
That doesn't mean she likes Gemma, or that she doesn't wish that everyone else would see what she's seen. But the sooner they get the bow they're supposed to be after and be on their way (with Gemma far, far behind), the happier she'll be.
I thought the reason was pretty obvious... She has a +5 Presence and Venus' Blessing. She has +15 to Charming men
To Carmen, Esteban says, "I see that you are trying to get Gemma's help, and at the same time I hear Bernhard telling us seven times in two languages she's not to be trusted. So I was trying to goad her into explaining why she wants to help us. That remains a mystery."
He pauses thoughtfully. "I came here to raid an enemy covenant and avenge robbery and murder. If we ever get to the raiding part, let me know. I'll be outside." He leaves.
Vibria watches Estaban leave, half-tempted to join him. She instead goes over to the door that Gemma passed through and presses her ear against the crack or the lock, eavesdropping intently. ((Per 0 + Awareness 3 + Sharp Ears 3 + die roll of 0 (botch die is a 7) = 6.))
The door is solid oak, but the voice on the other side is clear and strong:
"...Aufer a me, Domine, cor lapideum, aufer cor coagulatum, aufer cor incircumcisum; da mihi cor novum, cor carneum, cor mundum! Tu cordis mundator et mundi cordis amator, posside cor meum et inhabita, continens et implens, superior summo meo et interior intimo meo..."