Scene 1: The manor

Nathaniel follows Alexander's lead. Taking what he's learned from his staff at his office, he talks up how smart must Gunther must be to handle all of the complicated facets of managing the manor. He compares is to surgery, hoping Gunther will take that as a compliment.

@KingHotTrash,@crazybirdman Gunther is slightly confused by the surgical terms and comparisons. After all, the man has little experience with modern doctors and their practices. He does get the idea that it is difficult and so the analogy does not fall flat. "Oh thank you, Lord Nathaniel. Yes, yes, these days it has been difficult to manage the manor. A lot to do, a lot to do." Alexander skillfully grabs the opportunity to make a witty remark about Roderick's nearly obsessive need to have "it under control", softening the remark with a joke about how he himself could not survive Gunther's job. "Your grandfather likes things in their natural order. But things need to things to work perfectly if they are to work at all. he briefly defends Roderick, before sighing "...but there are so many things to prepare..."

"Of course there are so many things to prepare. Grandfather is so damn particular about things and then there are the preparations for Grandmother. Even a skilled man such as yourself needs help." Alexander smoothed over with empathy, patting the man's bulky shoulders before he continued. "I must admit though, I had such little time with grandmother here at the manor. My memory of her is quite...foggy. You've been here forever, Gunther. Please, tell me about her some. I'd hate to embarrass myself in front of Grandfather. You know how he gets when he is disappointed."

"There's so much on your plate already. Let's not bother telling the old man of our inquiries"

"Oh yes of course of course. Your grandfather is very busy with more important things. You will meet soon, no need for me to bother him" Gunther nods as he agrees with both of you. He looks towards Alexander in silence, trying to remember something. "How old are you boys now? Yes, you must barely remember your grandmother... yes. That is, if you met her at all" he stops for a moment, as if to relive some old memories. "Your grandmother was a very sweet girl, that she was. Master Roderick was very fond of his little sister. But after she left, the master doesn't like to speak much about her". He looks around for a moment, then to the sky, and then to his empty basket, and you notice the man is starting to get a bit more agitated.Players Waiting:

History

KingHotTrash July 14, 2022 6:43 pm

'Gunther, I realize there is nothing that happens in the manor without your knowledge, but do you happen to know anything about what is going on in the woods?'

"Indeed. Grandfather Roderick barely ever spoke about her. At least to me. I know terribly little about Grandmother and I would hate to reopen old wounds by questioning the old man about what happened to his dear sister." Alexander said quietly, ruminating for just a moment. After a second though, his eyes opened with a brilliant thought. "I realized something. You could tell me about her passing Gunther! I would hate to say anything...out of turn that could worsen my return here with the family. Please, tell me what happened. You simply must!"

@KingHotTrash, @Cettish "Oh yes, yes, you boys wouldn't know much about your poor grandmother, I guess. Most unlucky girl she was." he continues talking about her as Alexander probes further. "Poor girl Very sweet" he repeats as he looks at you a bit confused. "Her passing? Why do you ask? Oh, dreadful thing. Young Master was deeply saddened by it. Never even found the body." The man looks again at his empty basket and then through the window inside the tavern, getting clearly more agitated as you probe him further. "I'm not sure what happened... Me and the Master arrived late that day. I remember there it was something about the war that kept us away. And the family never really spoke much about it."

You both get the feeling that there is something very wrong with the way he talks about your grandmother. Not only does he keep referring to her as a sweet girl, he also seems to imply that Roderick is somehow young. Even more strange is the mention of the family... If you might have not met the woman... and everyone you know of, except Roderick, is younger than you... who could he be talking about? And then what war is it talking about? There have been minor conflicts here and there, but the war? The war ended decades ago! Hell, were you even born back then? You can't help but wonder if the man lost it completely.

Gunther turns to Nathanial and whispers "What about the woods?" the man looks over his shoulder from time to time as he continues. "Oh you must mean the rumors about a giant wolf in the woods? Non-sense. No wolf could be that big. Youngster pranks is what it is" the man looks unsure of how to continue. It is very clear that he is aware his next words are blasphemous. However, Alexander's down to earth attitude and Nathaniel's scientific outlook seem to convince him that you are not one of those fanatical puritans. "It's the Knights and their witch hunt. It's driving everyone insane. I tell you that's what it is." he now looks very, very nervous "The Ree... The Reeve. He even hired some men. Hunters of these sort of... creatures. Hunters! Can you believe it? Mercenaries to kill what? A wolf of all things?" You look at each other as you both know that, if the Knights are somehow are getting involved with these rumors, they surely don't think this is a mere wolf.

The man suddenly stops talking like he has said too much already and apologies for having to leave. It seems he will need to return to the Manor soon (you know how Roderick is!) but he needs to finish his business in Town before that.Players Waiting:

History

KingHotTrash July 17, 2022 4:36 am

CESN July 17, 2022 8:23 am

CESN July 17, 2022 8:23 am

crazybirdman July 18, 2022 6:17 pm

Alexander's wry smile began to fade bit by bit with each and every strange word that Gunther said, the man's manic description of his grandmother being young when she passed away. Had the servant gone mad? There was certainly confusion on his face as he spoke to the matter of her death. Roderick seemed young in his memory. Could it be that his grandmother had already been dead? If so, why was there a message now for a funeral? What was the point of all of this?

The information of a massive wolf within the woods having drawn the attention of the Knights was curious too. They would not be there to hunt down some bloodthirsty beast. The fact that the Reeve, the town's magistrate, had called them in was curious as well. It had to be something unusual, something that no one would wish to speak about.

"Of course Gunther, we've taken too much of your time now. Please, be safe." Alexander said with a honeyed tongue, his charming smile fading away when the old servant moved away and left him with his cousin. The mask fell away to actual concern, his eyes narrowing as he spoke softly.

"Nathaniel, that...that was strange was it not?" For a moment, the confident bravo before him had pulled back to actual concern. What exactly was happening in his home? Who was the funeral for? Were they in danger? The thought of Claire being caught in this strange web made his stomach twist before he took a breath. All there was left to do was move to the manor and see what dark surprises awaited them there.

"Even for the Rookwoods, that was strange."