You're listening to Twisted Tropes. Familiar
settings. Wild new tales. Now, on with the story.
Scandals and Scavengers. A post -apocalyptic
Regency romance. Episode 6. Balls and Bewitchments.
Or I am the Apple. Last time on Scandals and
Scavengers, our protagonists became even more
entwined. Mary secretly read a letter to Edison
Sparks sent by Samuel and discovered that Samuel
is interested in arranging a business deal with
Edison. But that's not all. While she delivered
the reselled letter to her benefactor, Mary furtively
read his ledger, noting a column of payments
to a CC. Samuel invited both Mary and Edgewater
to call upon him separately. Unfortunately, as
Mary was leaving, after discussing a covert business
arrangement with Samuel, she ran straight into
Edgewater, and after a few tense moments, Edgewater
decided that Mary had been invited as her chaperone
for her visit. Mary was trapped. Samuel asked
Edgewater for her assistance with proper torn
etiquette and with purchasing appropriate attire
for the Gadwallow ball. After they spent the
afternoon together, half unintentionally starting
a rumor about Samuel's brother -in -law Nathaniel,
Samuel asked Edgewater to hold a dance for him
at the ball. Lefroy spent another awkward afternoon
at Promenade when Zoe Henson, Oscar's sister,
approached him for a stroll. Salt spotted Beardia
and Fiona on the opposite side of the green,
once again promenading with Oscar. Salt and Beardia
exchanged looks, but sadly, nothing more. Having
checked on her father and believing him to be
in better health, Ruby decided to join Ruben
on the town that night. After setting one doll
in each of the two cribs, Ruby headed out for
an evening of drinking, gambling, and dirty dancing,
until Ruben was pulled away by a stranger wearing
shiny military -issue boots. But now we return
to our protagonists on the morning of Lady Godwallow's
Ball. It is the morning of the ball. However,
that's not where we're starting. We're going
to rewind just a bit to a bizarrely clad halfling
coming home and going upstairs to check on dad.
He's still there as good as you left him. Good.
Oh, he's feeling so much better. I can tell.
I can see his chest rising just ever so slightly
more. If that makes you feel better to think
that, sure. And then you pass the room. If you'd
like to look in. Yeah, I'm gonna look in. The
dolls are in the crib. Good. Singular. One of
the dolls is cradling another doll. Fuck this
show, man. In a singular crib. Oh. Now, I start
laughing and I go, oh, I guess somebody must
have moved you in there. Oh, that's so funny.
I'm going to reach in and I'm going to try and
take the one that's cradling the other doll.
I'm going to be like, oh, you belong in this
one. I will go and I will pick it up and I will
put it back in to the other crib. It doesn't
do anything. It's a doll. No. It's not just a
doll. We all know it. It's too creepy. All right.
You two stay there. Very good. Good. Glad that's
dealt with. This is great. I'm going to take
out my earrings that I wore, and I'm going to
leave them in the room for tonight. and I'm going
to take out the set of playing cards, and I'm
going to put it in the crib of the doll that
had obviously been moved by somebody who works
here. And I'm going to put it in there in the
crib, and I'm going to say, if you get bored,
you can use the hose. I'm going to leave the
door closed for a bit. The door that's off its
hinges. Oh, I forgot. The door is off its hinges.
Nobody's fixed that yet. You're going to have
to put in a request. I have to put in a request.
I'm sure I'll remember that tomorrow. All right.
Well, sleep tight. Don't let the bed bugs bite.
Good night, RGs. I'm going to turn. Yeah, I'm
just going to turn. I'm going to walk out of
the room. That's what I'm going to do. Great.
Cool. And it is time for sleep now. Uh -huh.
Great. And bye -bye. Oh, no. Oh, no. Daniel.
We're going to just take a hot minute to look
at the time between sleep and waking. And the
magic that can happen there. Oh, no. So as Ruby
falls asleep, it's been quite a night. The effects
of that amazing drink are still, you know, doing
its work. So sleep finds you very quickly. It's
been taxing. And as you sleep, you dream. And
your dreams turn to just memories of yours. You
remember your first fancy dress. You remember
your first dancing lesson. You remember your
first ball. Your first kiss that you stole. You're
remembering all of these things. But you're not
really remembering them, you're watching them.
The earlier the memory, the farther away you
seem to be watching it from. Oh. The memories,
as they get more recent, come closer and get
into better focus. But... It's like you're imagining
what those memories would have looked like to
someone watching. Oh. Make a quick insight check.
Cool. Not awful. That is a 15. It's not something
that is, you know, concealed or concerning. It's
just something odd that you notice about this
dream. You never see your face. You're witnessing
all of these memories from behind you. Oh. Almost
as if, okay, I get it. Like a third party observing.
Yeah. Oh. It's just like someone, whoever is
the videographer of your life was always stationed,
you know, in your earliest youth was stationed.
you know, a city block behind you. Right. And
then has slowly been gaining ground. Oh. Until...
They're right behind you. They're right behind
you. Even tonight, your dalliance with Ruben
at the club, your view is right behind you the
whole time. And with that, you wake. Oh, man.
Hey, everybody. How you doing, Ruben? Oh, I'm
doing great. Okay. Yeah, I love being a sorcerer.
Yeah. Normal sorcery. That kicked in six months
ago. Yep. Yeah, yeah. When your dad got him off.
You're feeling very well rested. Yeah, that was
a great sleep. And the morning comes. Anyone
have any specific morning shenanigans to get
up to today as you're preparing for the ball?
Yes, I am going to... Look for a rumor. Okay.
What are we looking at? Are we looking at an
investigation? A perception? Investigation. Okay.
You are putting the ear to the street. Getting
your network of informants. It's very specific,
too. Okay. So I'll send it to you. Sorry. All
right. Cool. Anyone else have anything they want
to get up to this morning? I do as well. As I
am getting ready, I also... Would like to I'm
going to be out in the front yard. I'm going
to be talking to the people that work at the
house. And I would also like to start a rumor.
Oh, you're going to start a rumor. Yes, I would
love to start a rumor. Cool. Can I text that
one to you? Absolutely. And you can just make
your persuasion or deception roll. Please let
me know which it is. It is persuasion. And it
the number 22. You're looking to beat a 10, so
you've got a little bit more idle chatter going.
I love that. As those text messages are being
sent, Evan, just to save on time, can I start
maybe like rolling investigation checks to start
getting through Henry's old effects to try and
find any documents? Absolutely. Okay. Make just
a starter investigation. 17. 17. Okay, as you
are parsing through stuff, you do locate a commendation.
It is not heavy on the details, but it does seem
to involve a meritorious service. And it's from
a while ago, from what you can gather. Something
about... Courage under adverse conditions leading
to the rescue of another service member. Does
that ring any bells with anything Henry might
have shared with me about his past service? Not
really. He talked more about his current command
and what he was hoping to achieve. 17? Yes. You
know, with that... It does mention the serviceman's
name. Oh, that he rescued. Yes. One Second Lieutenant
Salt. Oh. I don't think Salt said specifically
what their relationship was. No, he was fairly
specific about the stories that he was telling.
I didn't mention that one. Looking forward to
seeing Mr. Salt at the ball tonight. Shall be
a salty ball. No. That's it for me this morning.
That would have taken up all my morning time,
I'm sure. Okay, fantastic. Edgewater, there is
nothing specific about that, but because you
did put your ear to the ground, you do hear something
else. I will try to... hear a rumor specifically,
and I don't mind sharing, but I want to see if
there are any rumors about Belladonna that are
circulating pre -party. And if not, I'll take
what you got. Roll me a perception or an investigation
depending on how you're going about this. I'll
do perception. I think most likely I'm... Hearing
from my family who's getting ready for the ball,
anything from Nicodemus or when I was at the
promenade yesterday. Any just kind of chit -chat
about the seance, about how people feel about
it, blah, blah, blah. That is 17. Okay. That
is extremely funny. Oh. Ha -ha? I mean, I don't
know if it's funny ha -ha, but it's just sort
of like... You didn't find anything specifically
about Belladonna. Okay. But you did hear something
that kind of made your eyebrow go, huh? Okay,
excellent. So take that for what it is. I mean,
whose ball is this? The Lady Lavinia Gadwallow,
the widowed Martianess of Marion, purveyor of
post -apocalyptic produce. Cool. Salt, what are
you doing? For more names, I think part of salt's...
daily routine in the early early hours of the
morning is running down and picking up supplies
for the day for anything that housemate needs
and part of what he enjoys doing that is that's
where he often runs into some of the other you
know his his copies in other houses he occasionally
runs into lucas uh claribel from the the clarence
household on rare and special occasions he runs
into trudy which is always his favorite and while
he's down there just making idle chit chat he's
gonna try to start a rumor excellent i don't
uh i think It's been his impression that Bea
Deer has been a little bit more obvious in her
role as matchmaker with her award. And he's going
to try to start a rumor that she is interested
in setting up some time between Ellsworth Adams
and Fiona. Ooh. Make a deception check. Trying
to beat a 10. Okay. 10's not too, too bad. Yeah.
You're a charismatic guy. Got a plus one of this.
That's a four. Oh, no. There seem to be other
things that are kind of catching fire right now
that doesn't get the traction you were hoping
it to. Gotcha. Unfortunate, but funny as hell.
I was like, where are you going with that? Oh,
I get it. Oh, okay. Yeah, yeah. All right, cool.
There is a knock on the door of Rhinelander Hall.
I had just come in, so I will turn around and
I will go and get the door. Hello there. Oh,
Miss Reinhardt. Mr. Oblegan, how are you doing
today? I'm doing quite fine, thank you so much.
Do you have something for me? I have some...
extraordinarily important paperwork for your
father to look over. It's, things are, there
are a few things, irregularities that have come
up and need to be dealt with. I'm so sorry. I
should have let you know. He's in a coma. Oh,
what's that you say? Yeah, a day or so ago, the
day you came by, actually, he, later that night,
he went into a coma and has been unresponsive
since. But he's breathing. Seems to be getting
better. Ah, so just a light coma. Yeah. Semi
-coma. Semi -coma, yeah. Is there anything that
I might be able to help with? Actually, yes,
it would be probably prudent for you to start
taking a bit of a hand at things. Heaven forfend
that something should happen to your father,
but you would be required to assume the mantle
of command for your family interests. So, if
you would like to peruse the paperwork, and maybe
we can sort of get you acclimated. Yes, let's
get me acclimated. This is, I mean, not that
your father's in a coma. That's terrible. But
let's, yes, we'll make progress nonetheless.
We'll forge ahead. All right. So shall we, where
would you like to look over things? Oh, we should
go to the study down the hall, I think would
probably be the best place. Capital. Okay, fantastic.
After you. And I will lead him to the hall, to
the study. Excellent. Excellent. He goes into
his his briefcase and it's actually like two
old briefcases that have been sort of like welded
together at the hinge. So they don't really it
doesn't kind of close close, but it's close enough.
It's like a briefcase with an overbite. And he
pulls out just a sheaf of documents and puts
them down in front of you. The language is somewhat
technical, but just sort of take a gander at
them and, you know, see if you have any questions.
And also, have you noted the irregularities here
so I know what they are while I'm reading them?
I would actually like to see if you can see them,
if you have a head for this sort of thing. I
totally do. Thank you, sir. I mean, the apple
doesn't fall far from the tree. Yes, you are
correct, and I am the apple. All right, so let
me, we'll start to look through these. Okay,
here's the thing. This isn't, this isn't, what
the fuck is this? It's not. It's squiggles. It's
squiggles and stamps and doodles. And it's like
somebody handed you a legal document and wingdings.
Oh, I'm sorry. What language is this? Oh, it
is New Britannian, the common tongue. Is there
a problem? No, no, sorry. Would you actually
mind leaving these here? I do have actually an
appointment I forgot about that I have to get
to, but maybe I could, if you leave them here,
I might be able to take some time and read them.
There is a certain amount of time sensitivity
to getting certain things done. So if you could
at least initial on the second page where it
indicates so I can get a move on, that would
be very good. Um, sure. No. I'm going to go and
I will sign. I will sign. There's nowhere for
you to initial. Oh, um, I'm sorry. There's nowhere
for me to initial. Wait, what? Can you point
to me where you want me to initial? I don't entirely
understand. He's just giving you this look. Like,
he is absolutely baffled at the words coming
out of your mouth. And then kind of cocks his
head. You know, it can wait. I can move some
resources around. And I do wish for your father's
speedy recovery. I shan't trouble you with any
family business anymore. And honestly, I seem
to have grabbed the wrong documents. That is
entirely my mistake. I shan't intrude upon your
time anymore. No worries. We'll just put these
away then, shall we? And have a good day. And
he's just sort of like backing away from you.
Yeah. As he's saying this, like excusing himself.
You as well. Have a lovely day. Thank you. Have
a pleasant time. Good day. Good day. Bye. As
he leaves, I run over to a book that's in the
study and I open it. Can I read that book? Yeah,
absolutely. Whoa. You're a culture -doing lady.
Of course you know how to read. Oh. Fiddlesticks.
Why couldn't I read it? Our girl boss got gaslit.
I am gonna take a deep breath in and out, and
I'm gonna... I'm going to try and figure out
why I couldn't read it later. I need a minute.
I'm going to go get some sweet tea and pour some
extra bourbon in it. That'll help. Morning drinking.
I need my 8 a .m. There's a ball later. Extreme
pre -gaming. All right, cool. I actually have
one more morning thing for Edgewater, if that's
okay. She's going to run over to her father's
office. Father, I must speak with you about business.
I have a new idea. You see, I've been speaking
with Lord Drake. He's an importer -exporter,
as you know, I'm sure. I think that we may have
an opportunity here to grow, to move away from
jugs and cans and into sacks. Well, I mean...
I got to applaud your initiative there, Edgewater
Deer. Thank you. But I got to say, I'm not confused.
I mean, sacks, you say. It's not really a...
Sort of apples and oranges to what we do. We
don't really deal in textile. It's still containers.
That is true, but we tend to deal more in rigid
containers to protect stuff. Well, I suppose
these things would still need to be protected,
but they would need some sort of soft barrier.
Oh! I just had an idea, thinking of the Lefroys.
There might be something we could use here for
packaging. I'll get back to you. In the meantime,
look at these papers. I don't... I mean, I applaud
the initiative. And I'll give him a look over.
Are you all set for the ball of the night? Oh,
yes, Father. That is the most excited I've seen
you in a while. Are we in a special fell that
got your eye? Well, perhaps. I don't know whether
to be happy or angry. Why would you be angry?
Well, it's a father's prerogative to try to protect
his little girl. I mean... Oh. Granted, not that
you can't protect yourself. Axel's been telling
me that you've been doing a fantastic job with
her training. Well, yes, if another fencer were
to approach me, I do believe that I would win.
Be that as it may. All right, well, I'm happy
for you. There's not a lot of fencing matches
at balls, though, so I think... This is the time
when I really, really miss your mother. Oh, yes.
I do too. And also, what has gotten into Gladstone's
head? What do you mean? He's never around anymore.
Oh, well, he was visiting Nigella, as you know.
I'm sorry. Miss Razor Storm. And then he was
with me because I was at Ruby's because Ruby's
father was ill, of course. Oh, no, that's terrible.
But he should have been home all day yesterday.
Oh, well, he came in for a spell, but then he
left for the promenade time. And then he was
out again at night. Said he had dinner plans.
At night? Yeah. Interesting. He mentioned something
about going to have dinner with another family.
So I guess, I mean, if he's sweet on this Miss
Razorstorm, I guess things are moving pretty.
Yes, do you think he was perhaps asking permission?
Oh, now I raised him better. He's not going to
spring that without telling me. That's not the
way we do things in this family. Yeah, that's
true. And you know your brother, he may not be
the quickest of wits, but he's got a good heart,
so I don't think he's going to do that to me.
Hmm. I'll get to the bottom of this, Father.
I knew you would. Well, anyway, you should probably
get ready for the ball, and I'll try to make
myself presentable. You're always so handsome,
Father. Oh, stop it. All right. Better make sure
I don't embarrass myself in front of your new
fella. Yes, please. And she will hustle out.
Not the response I was looking for. Okay, cool.
Morning is good. Calling hours. Anything happening?
I think that Mary will be meeting up with Nicodemus
at some point. I was going to ask, will there
be time for me to... go and prep the room with
him and then come back to get ready for the ball?
Oh, absolutely. You can use a bunch of promenade
time to prep, to purify the room. Spiritually?
Yes. And really purifying it spiritually is you
two drinking shots. And then you'll have time
to go home and get ready to go out as... Mary.
That window between five and nine gives you a
lot of leeway. Great. Okay. All right. It's going
to be a fairly relaxed day as most people are
in preparation for the ball. It being the first
official ball of the season. Promenade time.
We are going to prepare the room. Nicodemus has
a crate that you've never seen before. I start.
cackling ominously. He unboxes this crate and
it is like a full seven and a half feet tall.
It is a kind of concrete paper mache like idol
that is has absolutely no grounding in any Any
faith tradition that you are familiar with. Incredible.
And he's like, right. So he is the best part.
Okay. Check this out. And there is a hatch in
the plinth that it is on. And he crawls up inside
it and can see out of what you see now are like
window screen eyes. Yeah. And he's placed it
behind your chair so he can see the whole. table
and the room and you hear from inside hey okay
so look and uh take take keep your eyes on the
fireplace yeah okay keep your eyes on the fireplace
yep i'm looking and suddenly it flares with green
flame yeah nicodemus as they say in the tenants
of saint linda You really match my freak. I don't
say it enough, but I'm truly grateful for that.
Really, I never got around to reading him, but
I'm assuming that's a good thing. Now, just to
be on the same page, Nicodemus is super useful
for you. What's his deal, magically or technically?
It's not so much doing things with artifice and
whatnot. He is usually concealed and uses a combination
of control flames. Mold Earth, Shape Water, Prestidigitation,
and Thaumaturgy. Great. To make things happen
and to give the whole room the proper spooky
atmosphere. Great. Excellent. And that frees
you up. So if anyone is focusing on you to see
if you are using any spells, then you are not
debunked. Yes. That is wonderful. Okay. So we'll
go over kind of like a... rough game plan, you
know, some stage directions for the night, you
know, using control flames to create shapes of,
you know, spirits or beings or whoever I'm pretending
we're summoning or doing prestidigitation for
wind gusts and rattling of saucers, etc. So we'll
kind of go over like, you know. A cue list. A
cue list, for sure. Okay. And he's experienced
and has done this many times with me before,
so not to worry. He's going to insert himself
into the idol probably about 40 minutes beforehand,
so there's no chance he can be caught. I'll make
sure he has like... a flask of water, a flask
of whiskey, a very quiet snack. There's not a
whole lot of space in there for him to move around.
It's basically enough space for him to move his
hands. Could you get two straws up there? Maybe
a little pumping mechanism. The setup, it looks
like there will probably be about 20 or so audience
members. There are these chairs for about 20
or so audience members. And you are at the head
of an octagonal table. And there are comfortable
chairs placed all around. I'm going to need you
to make me a, you can do history, you can do
investigation, or you can do a charisma save.
I'm going to do a charisma save. Okay. So this
is going to represent you kind of, this is probably
the biggest show you two have tried to stage.
And this is you kind of quelling your nerves
and focusing up to be like, okay, what am I not
doing? Have I forgotten something? So this is
getting your game face on, which in your case
actually means something. Yes. Yeah. All right.
That is a 21. Okay. So that's the thing that
hits you all of a sudden is you're preparing.
For whoever you might be called on to summon.
Yes. You know that you're usually called on to
summon relatives or loved ones. Yeah, that way
people get really sad and they give me more of
their money. Right. Yeah. For who? Who are these
seven chairs? Who would someone at that rank
of Martianess Gadwallo? Who would she deem important
people to have brought in? She wouldn't have
the queen at the table, right? She wouldn't,
right? That would be presumptuous. Okay, that's
what I figure. For a second, I fully black out
because I'm like, oh, shit. I'm swinging way
above. And then I realize, no, that would be
very distasteful for the queen to be. Because
this isn't. necromancy it's not it's just for
funsies even though it's real but it's still
a little like it's it's not like it's not like
you're doing it is you're allowing it to happen
yeah sure i'm just a medium a channel for the
spirits um okay so i'm thinking i'm trying to
think about people who would be offended to not
be asked i'm thinking about people who are maybe
up and comers in the marriage mart Newcomers,
perhaps. People who she would maybe want to be,
even though I'm the one kind of performing or
on display, the other people sitting around the
table are also on display with me. So I'm trying
to think about maybe who that might be. You can
make an insight check now. Why are you scribbling?
He solved it. Damn it. All right. yeah yeah there's
there's a there's there's a bit of a there's
a bit of a double -edged sword having at least
two people here that would think pretty close
to how i think so 15 15 okay the the newcomers
i they may not have experienced sufficient loss
to give you anything to work with and also if
they're duds why put them up there yeah um because
there have probably been a few duds um they're
grieving but they're boring so no yeah and that's
the thing grieving yeah you only deal with the
dead yeah so who has an important dead person
that they're going to want to talk to lord drake
I don't think you need seven chairs for Lord
Drake, do you? He's pretty big and beefy. He's
a lot of man, but not that much man. It's a whole
lot of dragonborn. There's a lot of widows on
here. Oh, yeah. Is it just all the people with
dead spouses? If you were to go through, you
would clock there are seven widows or widowers.
Including our hostess. That are in the nobility.
God damn your stem brain. All right. I feel like
I'm not going to be able to put too many more
over on people because I think Matt and Johnny
kind of have my number on this one. It started
with the ooh -hoo and now it's... The offlay
house. Offlay house and ooh -hoo. And the ooh
-ha were my downfall. Yeah, so there are seven
widows or widowers. So you're thinking those
are probably your guests of honor. Yes. So...
Nothing like trotting out a bunch of widows and
widowers to make a spectacle of their grief.
Well, it's not like... And take their money.
It's not like anybody lost their significant
other more than six months ago. Oh my God! All
these people got widowed on the same day. No,
no. But there are some people who have been...
Ruby's dad, Richard, lost his wife years and
years and years ago. He's going to have a hard
time. Ruby doesn't even have... Maybe he'll get
better in time. Ruby doesn't even really have
memory of her mom. Okay. All right. I'm going
to... make a note of that and you know i'll spend
some time for the rest of the day kind of like
trying to like think through you know like how
long ago some of these folks maybe died and how
sad how sad people seem about it or if they're
like kind of like you know which of those people
are like genuinely grieving and which of those
people maybe mention how sad they are when it's
socially convenient. Trying to plan around that
kind of stuff. I feel like you're projecting
a little marguerite on other people, but sure.
Listen, I have nothing to do with that woman.
I'm going to say you can take a little bit of
time. Gather enough that you can make performance
checks to adequately sell. A convincing, vague
performance. Yes, excellent. That's my bread
and butter. It's not what you say, it's how you
say it. It's how you say it and how they respond.
Exactly. And then before I leave, I'm going to,
I want to do kind of a perimeter check of the
room and just see, make sure there's no like,
I don't know, peepholes or like anything in the
room that I might be able to use like, for my
performance and that kind of stuff but mostly
like to make sure that we can kind of control
the room once the seance starts and there isn't
like people watching in or anything like that
okay it's an exterior room but it has been heavily
curtained as per your request yes the doors will
be closed and no one will be admitted once you
start as you're working Nicodemus does kind of
walk around and Finds a couple of books on shelves
that he sort of separates and gives them a little
breathing room so they would be easier for him
to yoink out with a quick application of a stealthy
nature. Make sure at least one of those is a
book of love poetry, okay? Yeah, we gotta really
go for the jugular on this one. Subtle as a sledgehammer
there, Mary. That's exactly why we're here. I'm
sorry. Madam Belladonna. Thank you. Sorry. Sorry.
All right. I think we're locked. All right. Thank
you for your assistance. Let's make some rich
people cry tonight. Hands in. My favorite words.
Hooray. Fantastic. All right. On three. Fuck
the man. Cool. So other than that, we're all
getting ready. Any last minute nonsense? This
is right before the ball or? Yeah, we're in the
sort of promenade phase. I think in prep for
himself, Salt is quite nervous right now. I think
this is maybe the most stressed he's been. I
know the garden party was the debut, but this
is a bit more formal. There's a little bit more
competition going on, so to let off a little
steam. He's got a little shack in the back. It's
the gym that he works out in and works out with
LeFroy. He's got his coveralls on, but like...
zipped down and tied about his waist he has yellow
caution tape wrapped around his hands as hand
wraps and as like a heavy bag he just has a bunch
of bubble wrap like tightly taped together and
he's like working the heavy bag uh with his sleeves
off it's probably the first time we see he has
a huge like scar down his arm kind of starting
at the top of his chest uh and if anyone's seen
it it's a lichtenberg figure the lightning strike
pattern that goes down his arm, kind of starting
from his chest and moving down his arm. It's
like when lightning hits a tree, it does the
same. It kind of burns down. And as he's kind
of hitting the bag, he's got kind of flashes
of what he's thinking. He's thinking about the
Ellsworths, or Ellsworth and his father for the
first time as well, so he kind of flashes back
to the duel from a couple years ago where he
knocked, what's the father's name? Elliot. Or
Elton. Elton's teeth out in front of quite a
crowd. Then that snaps back to some of his military
days, and we see flashes of a kind of mage -looking
figure getting knocked out, kind of a first -person
view of being tackled out a window as the building
explodes behind him, and a streak of lightning
hitting him in the shoulder as he lands on the
ground. Once he kind of gets it out of the system,
he goes to help get Lord Lefroy, or Mr. Lefroy,
ready for the evening. See, Ruby, that is hot.
But he didn't jump off a balcony. No, he fell
out a window. That part wasn't hot. It's the
working out part. All right, cool. Any promenade
nonsense over on this side of the street? I don't
think so. I think I'm going to stay in and get
ready and just make sure and stay with my dad
until it's time for me to leave. All right. I
think Edgewater, if Gladstone doesn't come home,
has he come home at all? Oh, no, Gladstone has
definitely come home. He has got a fresh suit
in a bag. Wonderful. I think I will help Gladstone
get ready for the evening. Excellent. He seems
to have had assistance because his outfit seems
to be coordinated. It is actually not garishly
clashing for once. Interesting, Gladstone. Your
taste in clothing seems to have suddenly become
more refined. What's going on? Well, I have learned
over a certain amount of time that it is probably
in my best interest to listen to ladies who are
smarter than I am. And you seem to be occupied
for quite a bit of time, so I needed to look
elsewhere for assistance. And honestly, I think
it's time that you stop having to take care of
me. I'll never stop taking care of you, Gladstone.
I know, I know. But was this Nigella? Yes, Miss
Razorstorm did, in fact, help me pick out a few
items for this evening. Was she at the dinner
last night that you were at? Wow. Pop can't help
but be a bit of a chatterbox. Alright, yeah,
actually, yes, I did enjoy a pleasant evening
meal with her family. And what did you all discuss
at this pleasant dinner? I mean, not a whole
lot of anything of substance. We were just sort
of talking about the... the sort of comings and
goings of the day. Folks are kind of interested
in that new shiny blue fella, Lord Drake. There
are a lot of divided opinions on him. What do
you mean divided opinions? I mean, there are
some people who are a little scared that suddenly
you've got a guy coming in from the wildlands
who's suddenly got a title. But other people
are taking a little more measured view of it
and saying, hey, why don't we see what kind of
a... what kind of substance the man has. So,
divided views. But, you know, I'd prefer to sort
of wait and see, because he hasn't done anything
wrong by me, so I got no axe to grind with the
man. Was Miss Elena Razorstorm at dinner? Was
she feeling better? Oh, yeah, yeah. She was fine.
Hmm. Any signs of any previous illness? I mean...
I didn't suddenly become a doctor just because
a young lady has turned my head, but no, it seemed
to be a passing thing. Just wondering. I'm glad
she's feeling well. Well, do you expect any furthering
of your relationship with Lady Razorstorm - uh -
Miss Razorstorm? Sorry. Why don't we just not
put the cart before the horse? I'm taking things
at a slow and, most importantly, respectful pace.
All right. Good to know. Well, yeah, eventually,
hopefully. But, you know, I don't want to jump
the gun and jinx it, okay? Well, good luck tonight.
And she'll tighten his tie. I'm so sorry. Could
I have just sent one letter to Edgewater during
this, at some point during the day, just to ask
her to accompany me tonight since my dad is not
going to be there? So maybe I could get transported
there and I could go in a group with her and
her family? Absolutely. Thank you. Oh, I just
received this letter. My God. We need to pick
up Ruby on the way to the ball. Oh, no worries.
No worries. Excellent. How's her door situation
going? Oh, I forgot you were there. Right. Door
is still... Yeah, that's kind of memorable. The
whole door was just off its hinges and there were
two very slight little, slight small women involved
trying to tell me that they leaned on it and
knocked it over. They did. You all get into whatever
shenanigans you want to get into. Honestly, I'm
kind of proud of you that you're getting into
shenanigans. Thank you. I think. Well, anyway,
I'm going to go finish getting ready, and I'll
meet you at the carriage. Fantastic. I don't
think Alistair is going to be joining us tonight.
He says he's got some work he's got to get done.
This is the first ball of the season, and Alistair
thinks he's going to skip it?! Hey, I'm not the
boys' keeper. We're going to... This is slighting
Lady Gadwallow or whatever her name is. Alright.
I'll go have words with him. Thank you. Just
keep your head on straight. Mine? You had quite
a reaction when I told you that. Well, because
it's improper for him to... Alright. Don't
get your accent all worn out. Love you little
sis. And he goes to have words with Alistair.
Eventually, Alistair comes out in the most basic
outfit possible. It is not worth describing,
honestly. He has worn it before. He is going
to attend, not to give slight, but he is not
putting any effort in. I suppose we have to meet
halfway then. Alright, let's get going and
everybody be nice in the coach. The Clarences
swing by the Rhinelander estate and Rhinelander
Hall and pick up Ruby and make their way to the
ball. Ford has got one of his fancy hats on.
A little feather of some kind of bird of prey
sticking out the side. You look nice tonight,
Ford. I mean, is that... It's a new hat. I don't
think I've seen that hat before. Yeah, it's new.
Should I? Would I look...? Thank you, Ford. Not really sure you could pull
it off there, Skinny. I think you're right. Definitely,
you're bigger than... I'm going to... I'm going
to pull the thing. I look dejectedly forward
and I grab LeFroy's seatbelt and hold it tight
on the back to make sure that he's in. There's
a little *pop* as he crushes his cape slightly.
Nice. Alright. And we arrive at the ball. Again,
we're going to do rollies for arrival order.
We'll do one for that coach because you all...
I'm not rolling. Alright. Coach Clarence. Three.
Three. Three? Whoa! Five. Okay. The hat's doing
something. Oh, we three meet again. What a weird
trio. Alright. Hey. Alright. So the Seltzers
are in early. I mean, not obscenely so, but LeFroy
is actually getting a little bit better reaction.
Okay. With his slightly more subdued look. I
think on the way in, because he doesn't have
his hat and he's feeling a little, he's got like
unkempt hair since he's usually covered. Before
we're like in view of everyone, I kind of catch
him and I quickly spit in my hair and like slick
it back for him so that it's taken care of. You're
like grandpa. Cool. Alright. So you make your
way in. Of note, the blight winds have not arrived
yet. Okay. Um, so there is that. Is there anyone,
uh, are other people here? Is there anyone? Oh
yeah. I mean, they're like, uh, let's see. Uh,
folks that you see off the bat. Well, they're
obviously there are the Gadwallows. Um, they
are a family of Satyrs. So they're really only
concerned with the upper outfits. There are the
Knights, the Marquess of Manchester, Maxwell
Knight, and his wife and son. They are painfully
attractive people. They're Aasimar. Okay. There
is the Duke of Fairview, Lord Neville Bloodaxe,
and his son. And two of the single countesses:
the Countess of Milford uh Lady Georgina Nightshade
and the Countess of Springfield uh Prudence Rosewell
but you all come on down and it is a... the evening
is slowly getting going. Now the aesthetic, they
seem to have really leaned into the fact that
they are the uh they're sort of like they have
the leading uh agricultural holds in the community.
So it is very cornucopia-themed. There are sheaves
of wheat and grapes adorning everything. And
there are ornate fruit bowls as centerpieces
on all the tables. The spread is very fresh,
which is kind of weird. But there are things
that are coming into season for harvest, so not
wildly surprising. The drink table has a varied
selection instead of just the weird toxic citrus
punch. But it is very nice. They have like a
seven-piece small ensemble playing. The dance
floor has been cleared and there is a sunrise
over a golden field sort of mosaic pattern in
the floor. It is a... They definitely have resources.
Gotcha. So it is quite nice. For the size and
set of the venue, is there a separate entrance
for Salt? Is there somewhere he is meant to keep
to as the family enters? There is a side set
of stairs that goes down. So they will go down
the main staircase and you'll go down a side
staircase and meet everyone downstairs. Okay.
And I think as I kind of leave them and head
to that entrance before I get down, I'm going
to cinch, he has a sash about his waist from
his military service, like indicating his veteran status
since he's heard the queen may be here. And it's
a pink and silver sparkly sash that says "bride
or die" across the front, indicating his rank
and service. Fantastic. One might even say woo.
Those things will survive the apocalypse. Or
cause it. Alright, so. Cool, cool. The ill-fated
quartet slash trio of carriages all arrive almost
simultaneously and three footmen come to help
everyone disembark. And there is the awkward
"hey..." moment. Because included in this is Lord
Edison. As he's like, oh! Ah, Lord Sparks, yes,
I would be very interested in possibly calling
on you tomorrow to discuss some of the opportunities
we might have in terms of the resources that
are present in your area and what I can do with
them and how we can be mutually beneficial members
of this society. And that would be fantastic
if the offer still stands. Absolutely. I look
forward to it. I'll arrive promptly at three.
Excellent, excellent, excellent. Fantastic. We
will have refreshments out and we can go over
some numbers and I can show you some of the things
that we have been working on to give you an idea
of what possibilities may be lurking under your
lands. Fantastic. Well, anyway, enough business.
Let's enjoy the night. See, Father? Uncle Sparks
is already getting in on this. We need to move.
Business happens in the daytime. We're going
to do business when it's appropriate, let the
man get settled. There isn't any reason to throw
in a whole bunch of new changes at him. This
can't be a lot of fun for him. I'm going to let
him get his feet under him first before we, you
know, get too pushy. Oh right. What if he isn't
having any fun? What if he doesn't like it here?
Oh, no. Well, that's for him to figure out, but
I think it's probably worthwhile that we give
him that chance to figure it out for himself
instead of telling him how he has to feel. You
are, of course, right, Father. Occasionally it
happens. Now, let's go enjoy ourselves and get
through this thing. I get right next to Mary
Smith, and I go, Well, hello there, Miss Smith.
Good evening. I lean in and I go, do not worry.
I have two flasks tonight. I think that is very
appropriate. Great. Shall we? Okay. And I begrudgingly
walk. I'm like, oh, God, everyone's going to
look at me. I'm actually. How do I get away,,,? No, actually,
this is this is good. This is good, actually.
Mary's talking to herself. This is good. This
is good. I can work with this. I'll put my hand
in your arm, even though you're way low down.
And I guess we'll walk in together. I'll kind
of stand, even though we're linked, I'll kind
of stand slightly behind you, because I know
that you're going to draw a lot of eyes. And
as we strike our entrances, what are our sartorial
achievements for this evening? Alright, I guess
I'll start. Let's go hard first. So I am wearing
my fish hook earrings with dice on them, but
I am in a fishing rod corset that is lined with
fishing nets. And it has a very ballroom skirt
with fishing nets, but it's all see-through
because underneath it's actually like a very
tight dress. Or not super tight, but very...
appropriate for the time but it's all made out
of different versions of the Queen of Hearts
playing card and adorned with the red and white
balls that you put at the end of the fishing...
when you throw it. Bobbers. Bobbers, thank you.
And also has like a very regal fan around her
face to center it all made out of Queen of Hearts
cards inspired by the deck that she got. So that's
what Ruby is wearing. Amazing. Mary has gone
for, she is wearing basically the same skirt
that she wore to the garden party. So it's layers
on layers, pockets on layers, lumpy. There are
some kind of strips of kind of like the reflective
caution material that you would wear if you're
like biking at night, kind of. draping down to
make it a little fancy but that's about it it's
basically it i think what she's kind of going
for is like she's clearly attempting to make
an effort to upcycle an outfit that is not really...
it's appropriate but it's not new and she's hoping
to very slightly kind of cause concern maybe
if anyone notices that you know kind of weird
that the ward of the Sparks family is kind of
kept in two season old clothing uh there's actually
a mechanic for this. Excellent. So you're gonna
have to make a charisma save against i believe
it's 15 for people not to notice that you are
coming to the ball in old fashion i do want them
to. Well, it's sort of like the save is, do they
notice? It's like, if you want to do something
to, if you want to do something like walk around
and like call attention to it, that's an entirely
different kettle of fish. No, that's a little
too much for me. I will say. Yeah, it's a 23.
Damn it. Damn. Way too subtle. Wow. It's not
so much that it's subtle, but you are also so
good at keeping yourself not seen that you kind of
make it so... It's mostly like Ruby is covering
the lion's share of your lower half. Yeah, absolutely.
It's hard to tell. Yeah, that's fine. Because
I also want to be able to say after the event,
Oh, I was there, I wasn't there. This is when
I left, this is when I came. So that's fine.
Let's go to Edgewater. Alright. So Edgewater
is wearing the outfit that she had bought, ordered
for... the heist that she was going to do with
Ruby climbing up the side of her house to get
in the window. So she is in a black leather gown
that is, it's got a corset that is studded with
bits of mirror, but covered over that with like
a chain mail so that you can't like actually
cut yourself on the broken bits of mirror that
are all over. And then she has long opera length
leather gloves with spikes all up the sleeve.
And she has spikes on her shoulders and chains
that wrap from the shoulders underneath the arms
and back around. And then she has loops of aircraft
cable on the skirts that may or may not be hooked
to a grappling hook of some kind. I am honestly
really, really glad that Samuel kicked in the
door because you would have died. We're going
to scale a building in a spiked corset. Full
ball skirt. You can't thieve without looking the
part. That's so true. That's against the Ton.
Alright. And Samuel. Yes. Edgewater. Excuse
me. Miss Clarence really helped me out to try
and fit in, but still make a statement, as I
like to do as the newcomer. So coming in. We'll
go from bottom to top. So the shoes, instead
of the leather boots he was wearing for the military
garb, it's now a more comfortable, functional
blue cloth material. If he happened to lift up
his feet, you would see there's grips on the
bottom because they are the hospital socks that
people get. Tucked into those are tight trousers
from tailored cloth bags, the coat itself is like
a Frankenstein of like three duffel bags that
were sewed together the zippers are there as
silver accents a blue duffel bag that helps complement
his naturally blue scales but to keep it closed
instead there are six, if one looks closer, bottle
caps that looks like soda pop bottles that they
scraped off the paint and the label on top and
other silver buttons tied together with bungee
cord to keep it a little bit tight. And then
over that is a silvery cape that is just as iridescent
as his scales. It's actually a reflective emergency
blanket. And a little thing he added to himself
that is clasped around one of the Cymac crystals.
Cool. Oh, nice. Fantastic. Nice. So you all make
quite the impressive entrance. You've got probably
about... By the time you all get there, you've
got probably about half the Ton is here. Is
there anyone we're looking for? Anyone we're
hoping to see? Yeah, I want to know if Ruben's
here. Of course you do. Not yet. Fashionably
late. I'll have to make another entrance. Wasted
on these people. God. Some more people come in.
And of note, there is an announcement that you
haven't heard yet. There is... The Baron of Dayton,
Lord Nathaniel Drake. And he comes striding in.
And stride is the appropriate word. He is walking
in in a... Basically, it looks like a flight
jumpsuit with a long... thick leather belt uh
cinched around uh in very much a sort of medieval
knight style um he has a uh like he's wearing
like tall like brown boots um that are clearly
like scuffed up, he has a like shoulder cape that
looks like it was a couple of uh like faux leather
overcoats that were uh restitched together. So
they drape over one shoulder, and there are a
number of chains going across his chest and clasping
it on. And he has a dual-ended, double-sided
battleaxe slung down by his hip. It's short,
so it looks like it's a one-handed kind of thing.
And he has a very, very beat-up... brown oil
skin fedora. And he is... Like a really dangerous
newsie? No, more like a professor of archaeology
that should have been canned for sexual harassment.
So he's got that and is rocking the I'm stubbly
but it's cool kind of thing. He looks rugged.
Can I try to use my Way of the Anatomist monk,
the analyze ability? Yeah. Usually meant to find
weaknesses or pressure points. Can I try to read
that kind of information in body language to
see if these are ornamental or if he's actually
someone who has used them and seen some danger?
Yeah, I would allow that because you're going
to get different information if he's got old
injuries. Okay. Than if he is, you know, bizarrely
healthy for someone who is making a show of how
rugged he is. Cool. So that's an intelligence
check and I beat their passive con save? Yes.
Okay, cool. That's an 11. Does not beat the passive
con save. So it's hard to tell. Also because
he's standing there and not doing a lot. So you
can't see like if he's like favoring one leg
or anything like that. But interesting idea.
I like it. I'd like an insight check from everybody
on him. Just as he's announced. He does the routine
like stop, bow to the room, and then sort of
straighten up. Alright. Let's just go around.
Edgewater. 15. Ruby? 16. Twisted 20. Samuel saw
something?! Samuel! I got a 9. I got an 11. For
Ruby, Edgewater, and Samuel, he is scanning the
crowd currently. And he finds what he's looking
for and comes straight at Samuel. And he is approaching
with... He's not running, but he is walking with
purpose. Does anyone want to do anything? I would
like to... cast true strike on my flavored true
strike to assess him for weaknesses, vulnerabilities,
etc. Okay. Alright. So you'll have advantage
on your next charisma check if you do it in the
next minute against him. Okay. I have a question,
Evan. Would you consider this social combat?
I have an ability that's labeled as I can only
use during combat, so that's why I ask. No. Okay.
No. You've got to respect the hustle. Yeah. I
mean, you've got to respect the hustle, but we
did for that true strike thing make it that you
can't use it in actual combat. Totally. Makes
sense. If you wanted to neuter that ability down
to you can only use it for social combat, I mean,
we don't have a social combat mechanic. Yeah,
no. And also, he's just walking up right now.
Yeah, I know. I was going to try and see if I
could freeze him and make him stumble and embarrass
himself. I just want to freeze him for a minute.
So, anybody want to do anything? You've got about
10 seconds until he is within arm's reach of...
Maybe shuffle a little closer to hear the conversation
a little better, but that's about it. Once he
reaches the appropriate distance, I will give
him a bow and greet him as Lord Drake. And I'm
going to assume that you are also Lord Drake.
That is a correct assumption. It's a pleasure
to finally meet you. Ah. And he just... And grabs
you in... You are a big Dragonborn. He grabs
you in a preposterously tight hug. And, like,
does, like, the big clap on the back and, like,
squeeze. I'm so sorry for your loss. I'm so sorry
we didn't get to meet before this. Can I roll
an insight check? And just given my past history,
is this meant to be comforting or meant to be
intimidating? Oh, okay. Yeah, sure. Nat one.
God damn it. You can take it however you like.
Am I close by? Yeah. Can I cast Silvery Barbs?
Nice. Yes. To give my friend a reroll. Yeah.
There is a moment of absolute perplexed. Because
I feel like I'm watching this and I'm like, this
motherfucker isn't being friendly. He's doing
that weird man hand crush thing. 16. Now here's
one thing that you've noticed about the Ton
in your... very brief amount of time here. You
do not show outward emotion willingly or in a
calculated manner at this level. This is a little
too raw to be staged. He actually seems to be
embracing you. Okay. Oh my god. Roll a survival
check for me. It's weird, but I was like, wait
a minute. Okay. 14. Okay... You grew up in the
Wildlands. You have learned to rely on senses
that most people, especially in and around this
area, do not pay attention to on a regular basis,
and especially not for life and death situations.
There is a lingering smell on him that... It
is... It's not what you would call familiar,
but you're like, this is from a wild place. This
is not a plant that I'm familiar with, but it
is definitely not any of the domesticated nonsense
that you'd find around here. He has come from
somewhere else. He just got back in town, which
is why he hasn't said anything yet. He's been
away. So that is what you can glean from that.
Yeah, with all that, I think it's shocked at
first. I had an assumption going in, and then
it's like a double shock moment. It's like, oh,
I thought you were coming to smack me, maybe.
And then two, it's also like, I think I glance
at Edgewater. I'm just like, you said that, no,
this doesn't happen. And I just like the small
hug back, and I will say to him as well and to
his ear, just the loss is mutual. I know what
this must have done to you. If you haven't received
my letter yet, I do have some effects of Henry
if you'd like to come by someday. That would
be appreciated. We didn't talk much after he
enlisted. There was a little rift from our younger
days. But he went his way and I went mine. Do
wish that we could have patched things up before
the end. But... Ah, but enough of that. Nathaniel
Drake. Happy to make your acquaintance. Samuel
Drake. It's a pleasure. I believe we should probably
raise a glass to Henry's memory. I would like
that. I'll go get us something. I'll accompany
you. Excellent. And they bro walk off. I'm still
watching suspiciously. I don't trust him. I trust
no one. Anyone else want to do anything? I do
want to attempt to follow Connor. Connor Carson?
Connor Carson. Connor Clayton was his maiden
name. Okay, gotcha, gotcha, gotcha. So confusing.
Or whatever the equivalent is. Before he got
married. His virgin name, yeah. We're giving
him the benefit of the doubt. That's what it
is! Sorry. It is. Yeah, I would like to select
him as my kind of person of interest to follow
for the evening and eavesdrop on until I need
to go get ready for my... Excellent. Cool. Yeah,
they're making the rounds. He's a little less
openly hostile tonight. I think largely because
he is more following his husband around as this
is a slightly more official function. Yeah. So
there is a lot of the various lords and whatnot,
you know, making their, ah, we haven't seen you
in a while and other things. Yeah. Very boring.
You know, doing a litany of, you know, bragging
but not bragging kind of things. So, yeah, that
is what is going on there. After a while, pretty
much everybody in the Ton has arrived. No royal
appearance yet, but rumor persists that it is
highly likely that Queen Mara may arrive. I would
like to come up to Ruby and say, did you hear
that the queen may be here? Oh, really? The queen
may be here. I haven't seen her in a while. I
don't believe I've ever met her or seen her.
Oh, really? Have we ever seen her, met her? Oh,
yeah. I would say that she usually makes at least
one appearance per season. Okay. At the very
least, but only at the higher profile events.
Well, you might get the pleasure of meeting her
tonight. Oh, I don't think we'll meet. Seeing
her from a distance will be plenty for me. Meeting...
Face time would require extraordinary circumstances.
Oh, yeah. But you might. You're an up-and-coming
young person on the marriage mart. You never
know. Thank you. I appreciate it. I will say
I have been talking to a fella. Oh, a fella?
Is he here tonight? Has he arrived? Yes. He is
currently with his family, looking undisguisedly
bored. Yeah, you see the bored one over there?
Yeah, I sure do. Yeah, that's him. He's quite
tall. Yeah, yeah. He's got that going. Perspective
-wise, yes. Yeah, yeah. He's been quite sweet.
He bought me these earrings, I think. Oh, a gift.
Mm-hmm. So is he a suitor? I don't know. Maybe.
I hope so. That would be exciting. Tonight, the
outfit is a bit softer in appearance. It is a
ripped black denim shirt with the sleeves ripped
off and a hunter green full-length terry robe.
but belted with a wide, like double eyelided
black belt and his, his like ever present, like
scuffed up black boots. He just gets the casual
edgy look. You know what I mean? And there are,
now that his arms are bared, there is a lot of
art going all the way down. Oh. Wow. Wow. Are
you okay? I'm doing just great. Okay. Thank you.
I'm going to, you know, we can hang out for a
bit, but there might be some time where I need
to excuse myself to go talk to him. Oh, please
enjoy yourself. I am not even here. Alright.
But don't forget this. And I give you a flask.
Stuff it in my pocket. Yeah. That was the primary
reason. Hey, girl. How are you? There are alcoholic
options. Yeah. You're only allowed to have two
of those. Yeah. According to some. So sayeth Edgewater.
So sayeth the tenants. Alright. Fantastic. Do
we have any other big hunts? Yeah. I'd like to
kind of keep an eye out. I would love if there
was an opportunity, if I ever notice Oscar and
Ellsworth together or near each other. You do
notice them individually. Okay. They do not seem to run in
the same circles. Did they ever happen to be
by the buffet table at the same time? They don't
need to be interacting, just near each other.
Ideally within earshot of a conversation. That
was a very low roll, but I know it's going to
be very bad for one of them, so I'm going to
go with it because I like it. Yeah. Yeah. Let's
light this candle. If they're both over getting
food, I'll be on the kind of back of the table
also getting a plate. and go up to kind of find
myself across from Oscar and say, I don't mean
to be too forward, Mr. Henson, but it's a pleasure
to see you. I've heard you are the strongest,
strongest boy in the Ton. And looking at you,
I believe it. Give me a persuasion check, because
that is a weird thing for a staff member of another
house to come out and say. That's a six. He just
sort of looks at you and like, uh, thanks? Can
I roll separately to see if Elton believes me?
Or sorry, Ellsworth believes me. Okay. Alright.
We'll see if it lands better with him. Exactly
the same. Consistency. Alright. There's gonna
be a flat roll and let's see if it beats it.
Okay. It doesn't. Yes. I got a five. I knew I
could count on that little idiot. Oh, God. Alright
Fantastic. Okay. Well, you avoided unintentional
repercussions. Okay. They both kind of look at
you like, who are you talking to? Or more why are
you talking to us? And they just kind of mosey
off their separate ways. That feels alright.
Could have been worse. Chalk that up as a win.
Subtle. Very subtle. You just go right up and
talk to them, don't you? Oh. Hello, Miss Sweetly.
I didn't see you there. I was trying to be friendly.
Fantastic trait for a bodyguard. I was engaged
in sterling conversation with some of the...
young lords of the evening and they were... I was
enthralled with uh their thoughts. I mean let's
be honest they probably don't have two thoughts
to rub between them. No, no, I don't think they
do. What are you doing? I mean honestly you have
a reputation and you're embarrassing yourself.
I think only in front of you, and that seems
to be an unavoidable consequence these days.
I mean, keep it up. I'm finding it entertaining.
Wait, hold on. If you don't think he's the brightest
boy of the batch, why do you seem so in on this
Oscar boy? Sorry, Mr. Henson. Oh, that's adorable
that you think I'm in on that idiot. It's not
about finding the right one right now. Hmm? It...
uh, okay. Not what I was expecting. It's a little
quiet over at the buffet table, so there is going
to be a certain amount of leveling with you.
Alright. Here's the thing. You and I both know
that, and she cracks her knuckles, it's a dangerous
place out there. I mean, not as dangerous for
them as it is for us. No, I do sometimes prefer
it out there to in here, but your point is taken.
Threats are more direct. A marriage is a partnership.
So if you're going to have a partnership, at
least one of those partners has to be able to
defend the partnership. And it wouldn't do for
two members of the partnership to be incredibly
soft. It's not good for survival. So I make sure
that certain hurdles can be overcome. And right
now... Some folks are falling at earlier hurdles
than others, where later hurdles they may be
able to overtake very easily compared to others.
When it comes to the end of the day, I'm going
to make sure that Miss Fiona has someone who
can protect her when I'm not around. Can you
say that your little charge is that person? Honestly?
He kind of looks for a second, and I think he
does smile at that, thinking about the... improvement
in some of the lessons if not the actual ability
there but first he looks over and I think he
sees he sees Lefroy, I think in excited conversation
with other young misters and misses not necessarily
flirtation or courtship which is very excited
and I think he kind of nods for a second he goes
I think he can. Not from the the dangers of life
that you're thinking of necessarily but I ask
you: You and I have lived a dangerous life, and
he kind of grabs accoutrements, because have you
enjoyed it thoroughly? And kind of nods over to
a kind of bubbling, laughing, friendly conversation
with the young folk. Do you really think that
those of us in our situation, our purpose is
to enjoy? I think all of our purpose is to enjoy.
And he kind of cheers us and maybe at that takes
his leave. How the fuck have you survived so
long? That was a more... I think a more extended
conversation than we've had. Ever. Yeah. Does anyone
notice, like, do people take notice of us talking?
You're staff. Absolutely not. Okay. That's what
I figured. Just thought I'd ask. Yeah. There
are other lords and ladies in the room. No, your
staff. Yeah. Okay. Mary, what are you up to?
I think that if I'm seeing that Connor is not
doing anything shady. Which makes sense because
it's a very crowded ball and everyone's being
boring and rich. I think I will go visit with
Edgewater. I take a deep breath. I think to myself,
Mary, you got to do what you got to do. You can
talk to her for five minutes. Because I know
that Edgewater can't keep her mouth shut about
anything. And so I'm going to go. Say, go over
to her and say, Lord Drake looks excellent tonight.
Yes, he does. I think that may be some of your
influence? Oh, it was not that you were noticing
that. Oh, not for me. Thank you so much. That's
so kind of you. No, we're just friends. We are.
You and I. Oh, yeah. I love that. Yes. Of course
we are. Yes, of course we are! Our conversations
are always delightful. So good. So good. Well,
I know that you, you know, as one of the premier,
you know, singles on the marriage mart. That's
what I've heard. And I'd like to try to, not
start a rumor, but spread a rumor if I can about
one of the other singles who is likely here.
Who your new friend, Lord Drake, may know. Lord
Drake may know another single here? Well, no.
Because I know, of course, a very discreet young
lady would never just be... gung-ho about one
prospect. Because that would be very forward.
Of course not, yes. Of course you're right. I'm
wondering if you've met Major Buford Corny. I
believe. Has Edgewater ever met? No, because
he just got pulled back? You've never met him,
no. I heard he had a connection with the Queen
even, but I don't believe he has any prospects
or has any agreements with other singles
on the mart and I just was wondering if you knew
him? You know I don't know him personally but
I may... this is just just to be clear this is not
me spreading a rumor... I know that you would never
spread a rumor. And that's why I'm talking to
you about this. Exactly. Because I can trust
your discretion. We can be discreet with each
other. I do believe he was recalled. That's from
the Wildlands. I heard. By her majesty. My goodness.
Exactly. Now, he's retired because she wants
him to marry. Oh, well, the queen's favor then?
Very interesting. Perhaps. Unless he doesn't
want to be married. Well, does it matter? Who
wouldn't want to be married? We all want to get
married. We do. And if the queen wants him to,
all the better. Exactly. Very interesting. And
she may be here tonight as well. I have heard
that as well. She does like to go to these rather
grand balls. You'd really know everything. You
really do. Thank you. That's so sweet, Miss Smith.
I'm so glad that we're now best friends. Yeah...
I'm just going to nod the most forced smile you've
ever seen. Can passive aggression actually circle
all the way back to like weapons grade aggression?
Absolutely. I think we just witnessed it. Wow.
That was a lot. Yeah. I'm trying to just like,
I know that she's kind of a loose cannon a little
bit and especially a high pressure event like
this. I'm just a little curious to see what is
going to happen. Um, you know, speaking of the
two of you should probably make insight checks.
It might be very handy right now. Uh, 21. That's
a zero. Oh boy. You have a new best friend. I
do. Yeah. Um, I sold it too hard. Edgewater! Um, so as you're,
you're looking around looking for who this Major
Buford Corny might be, you're looking around and
people are... There are people kind of looking
at Edgewater and sort of whispering and checking
her out. Is it because she is maybe talking to
Lord Drake? Or is it just because she's single?
Or unclear? I mean, they have no clear intent
other than check her out. I'm absolutely going
to point it out to her. She's currently with
you. So if they're checking her out because of
the company, well, but it doesn't seem to be
a scornful examination. It seems to be a reappraisal.
Okay, so it feels different because I remember
I was watching people kind of avoid her during
the garden party. It feels different than that?
Yes. It's shifted. Yes. It's not like everyone
here, but there are a handful of people who are
kind of giving her a second once over. Yeah,
I'm definitely going to point it out to her.
What? Because I'm a really good friend. Best
friend. Best friend. Looking right now. I know
that you, just because you are so humble and
wouldn't notice these things, but. You have options
is all I'm saying. Oh. Good. That's a very good
thing. Yes. Of course. Alright. I'm going to
go. You have fun, girly. Okay. Go dance. Why
haven't you danced yet? Go dance. Go dance with
Lord Drake or, you know, one of those people.
I mean, he did ask. Oh, he did. He has not signed
my dance card yet. Oh, why? Oh, I don't know
why. This is starting to feel so mean. Perhaps.
It's a big night for him. Yes, I'm sure he's
very distracted. His brother-in-law. Yeah.
I don't know if you saw that. Miss Smith. Miss
Clarence. It's so funny to see you two together
again. It's hilarious, honestly. Yes. Quite a
coincidence. We were just not talking about you.
I mean, talking about you. I keep my mouth shut.
To each their own. Apologies for my delay. I
was speaking to my brother-in-law, but I believe
if it would please the lady, I do owe you a dance.
It would very much please me. I slink into the
shadows. Smoke pellet. Ruby. Yeah. You are sort
of watching sort of all of this unfold. It's
quite a crowded room. What are you up to? That's
a great question. I think part of me wanted to
go over and talk to Ruben, but he's with his
family and I don't think we're there yet. So
I think what I am actually going to do is I would
like to, at this moment, go grab a drink. Maybe
make it a little bit more alcoholic with what's
in my flask. And then I would actually like to
try and just see if I can hear any rumors that
are kind of like milling about. Okay, fantastic.
This would be a perception check. And we'll see
if there's anything spicy being whispered about
at the ball. Negative one. Oh, Ruby. You went
a little overboard. Yeah, that was a lot. That
was a big pour. Yeah, it was a heavy hand. We're
back into wingdings. As you're adjusting your
mixture of alcohol to alcoholic punch, you feel
the lightest of hands on your shoulder. I turn
around. And as you're turning, you hear, well,
I was going to say, luck be a lady, but I'll
take my other option. Well, hello there. You
look fantastic. Thank you, and I will curtsy.
He will give you an appropriate bow. I didn't
want to interrupt with your family. Oh, god,
please interrupt whenever you can. They never
met a boring anecdote they couldn't extend. I
understand that. How are you enjoying the evening
so far? Oh, not at all. These things are the
worst. I agree. The only fun little bit is there
are, ample opportunities to slip away and look
for other diversions. Well, shall we? I do believe
there are a few people who might be putting together
a little bit of a card game outside. Well, that
sounds fun to me. Excellent. So you slip out
into the garden. There is a... It takes a few
minutes to get there. It is kind of like there's
sort of a hedge maze kind of feel. It's not like
super maze-y. Like you can easily find your
way out. Cool. But there is a sort of ramshackle
patio set that has been sort of refurbed. And
there are a couple of people around playing some
kind of a card game. Cool. Do I recognize anybody?
Well, it's you, Ruben. There is Caroline Gammabloom,
a tiefling. Lydia Hicks, second daughter
of the Earl of Burlington. Finally, there is
Barnaby Flint, eldest son of the Baron of Jackson.
Amazing. There are glasses of punch and bottles
of wine that were definitely not out on the table.
This looks like just a ball. Well, hello, everyone.
Hey! May we join you? Barnaby raises his hand.
Oh, absolutely. Come on over. We have to have
something to keep us occupied. Parents are so
pushy at these things. I do understand that,
but it's nice to get a breath of fresh air and
to play some cards. A drink is poured and a hand
is dealt. Amazing. I think I play for a little
bit and just try and relax and have a fun time.
And I do have a question. When I'm looking at
my cards, am I just seeing my cards or am I looking
over a shoulder and seeing my cards? You're just
seeing your cards. Okay. Great. It's not like
there's someone standing in front of you. You're
just seeing your cards because you're holding
your cards in front of you. Yeah, that makes
sense. Great. I'll play the card game. Excellent.
Ooh, that tingly feeling's back. When I do feel
that, I just look over my shoulder one more time.
Is everything alright? Yeah, sorry. I thought
I felt a chill. Oh, well. And he starts to pull
his sleeveless robe off. Thank you. I appreciate
the gesture. So unhelpful. Exactly. But the gesture.
Yeah, I appreciate it. And actually on her, it
would be like... That's true. Yeah, fair enough.
I would wrap myself in it. You would get swaddled.
Get out of here. Thank you so much. I appreciate
the gesture. I'll be fine. It was just, I think,
a gust of wind. Alright. Well, your deal. And
the card game continues. Great. How long are
you interested in playing for? I think I'm going
to play for about... hour or so and then i do
want to make a return to the party at some point
just because the queen is supposed to be here
tonight, or rumored to be here, and i want to see
her gotcha uh so we're going to uh snap back
to Edgewater and you see your dad coming up ah
hey hey dear uh how's everything going? Good. Fantastic,
fantastic. There's someone I want you to meet.
And he kind of gestures and an absolute mountain
of a man comes lumbering. Lumber is definitely
the wrong word. He is walking with perfect posture.
And he is very crisp. He is a seven foot two
Goliath. Super close cropped like white beard
just a like wrapped um it looks like he took
like a tent fabric and fashioned a uh
almost a sort of like a wrap tunic and there
is a huge sash of office uh that he's wearing
with numerous little knickknacky metals. Oh uh,
Major Corny, I presume? Yes. It is a pleasure
to meet you, Miss Clarence. Lovely to meet you
as well. I have heard wonderful things about
you from your father. Oh, he's so kind. I see
he was not exaggerating. Oh, thank you so much.
If it would not be an imposition, I would very
much enjoy a dance later on, if you have the
time. Well, of course. Here's my dance card.
He signs it, and it is the most crisp, perfect
handwriting you have ever seen. I look forward
to it. Now, I should probably get some refreshment.
And he goes to turn, and right behind him, there
is somebody else wearing a sash that is, you
know, much narrower, duller color, no extra bibs
and bobs. Ah, Major, don't worry about it. I've
taken care of it. Here you go, sir, your refreshment.
Ah, I'm terribly sorry. I don't mean to interrupt.
Second Lieutenant Gammabloom. He is precise,
small spectacles, very well-pressed shirt. It
looks like he has high quality, almost like
sweatpants that were in some vacuum bag or something,
and just absolutely pristinely maintained black
military boots. Interesting. That means nothing
to Edgewater. Well, in any case, Major, if you
need any assistance tonight, I shall be most...
available, and I will be ready to assist you
in any way possible. I should probably retire
for the time being, but simply wave and I shall
attend. Thank you, Lieutenant. And he turns and
crisply marches away. Samuel, do you want to
impress everybody and make another perception
check? Oh, we can try. Actually, you're going
to get advantage on this because your attention
was drawn there. Okay. That's an 18 on the die
for the first one. 10 on the second. Okay, we'll
take the first one. Perception? Yeah. Minus two,
16. Okay, well, as you were looking around to
find Edgewater, you cannot help but notice the
gigantic man who is striding up to talk to her.
Wow, he's a big 'un. Doesn't seem overly emotive,
but he's fairly impressive. You're about to go
over to join the conversation when you stop and
see Desmond, Henry's lieutenant. The one who
was handed the two letters to mail out to Neo Britannia.
The one who was his right hand for the entire
expeditionary force. The one who not exactly
was displeased by the peaceful annexation of
my land, but had something to say against it?
He might have at some point in time during negotiations
brought up the fact that... Technically, they
could just use a military solution and take the
land without trying to find peaceful means. Yeah,
he may have brought that up once or three times.
Fuck. And on that pleasant note, we're going
to leave the party for now. And we're going to
pick up next time with Revelations and... A meeting
with the dead. Alright. Hope everyone enjoyed
and we will catch you all next week. Bye. Bye.
Why can't Ruby read Oblegan's writing? What did
Desmond Gammabloom do with Henry's letters?
What will Madame Belladonna foresee for our protagonists?
What's behind Edgewater's sudden rise in popular
opinion? How will Salt convince Beadere that
Lefroy can be the right match for Fiona? It's
getting tense. Perhaps a few answers will loosen
things up a bit on the next episode of Scandals
and Scavengers. Thank you for listening to Scandals
and Scavengers, a post-apocalyptic Regency romance
with Daniel Began as Ruby Grace Rhinelander,
Matt's the Last as Lord Samuel Drake. Johnny
McEIearney as Second Lieutenant Immortan Salt,
Emily Carmen Weldon as Mary Smith, Bo Powell
as Edgewater Clarence, and Evan Kelly as the
Game Master. Produced by Evan Kelly, Trope Warden
Bo Powell. Hey, this is Daniel. Thanks for listening.
If you're enjoying what you're hearing, consider
supporting us on Patreon where we release episodes
early and you'll get access to our post-show
cast discussions, Twisted Talks, our Discord
community, and more.