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 12, Facades and Flirtations
or the Wildlands Waltz. Last time on Scandals
and Scavengers. An injured Lefroy languished
in bed until he received a letter from Fiona
requesting to visit her little hero. Lefroy and
Salt hosted their guests with new vigor, and
Salt and Beadere discussed the curious behavior
and scent of Oscar during yesterday's incident.
While Mary and Trudy gabbed about how Trudy's
going to tear it up at the ball, another communication
arrived from Nicodemus. Instead of a note, this
message was scratched into the wood of the box
and read, One lives. One lives with you. One
lives no more. Three used me. The second protected
me. The first ended me. Beware! Mary headed over
to the Drake residence, and after revealing her
secret alter ego to Samuel, asked for assistance
in deciphering the message. Though Samuel was
unable to help with the riddle, he did reveal
a secret of his own. He believes that Gammabloom
will attack his honor during the ball. After
agreeing to keep each other's confidences and
aid each other when possible, they parted ways
and Samuel headed off to dinner with Nathaniel
while Mary snooped in Edison's office. Mary found
some dog-eared books on magical rituals and the
creatures of the tearing, as well as a strange
coin from someplace called the Shadow Fox Den.
At the Clarence home, Alistair was tearing up
the place looking for his presentation notes
from the carnival. But he wasn't the only one
who spent the day in turmoil. Ruby received news
that vehicle malfunctions were being reported
all across the city, so after approving the overtime
for repairs, she called in Mr. Roebel. He suggested
that she take on a more official role in the
business while her father is ill, but again,
when she tried to sign the papers, she couldn't
make head nor tail of the writing. Mr. Roebel
hurried out muttering something about Ruby already
being under an exclusive contract and Ruby took
matters into her own hands by commissioning a
flyer that accepted responsibility for the carriage
issues and vowed that the company would not only
fix the carriages, but also innovate transportation
for all of Neo -Britannia. She kept her head
in the game when a visit from Edgewater was interrupted
by a surprise appearance by Ruben. She asked
him to investigate the mysterious release of
the octaguars at yesterday's carnival. But now
it's finally time for the masquerade ball. And
you will all have a day to prepare. There are
outfits to be bought, masks to be purchased,
transportation to be arranged, because you are
going out not to the Drake Manor in the city,
but to the wonderful country estate of Affle House.
And oh, what a party it shall be. Now, for the
Grand Masquerade Ball, I am going to turn it
over to Samuel to narrate what do people see
as they arrive and are announced to the ball?
Is it indoor? Is it outdoor? What are we looking
at? What is the vibe? So the vibe, as the invitation
stated, the theme of this was embracing the wild.
And so a lot of time took in the preparations.
And it can be seen with just how much nature
has overtaken the Affle House. Hard to tell
if this has been druidic magic that has caused
the vines to grow over the entire building. When
you're all escorted through the manor, shrubbery,
poking in and out of everything, exotic fruits
hanging from trees. Servants, as you walk by,
And I should mention, these servants are all
people the ton have never seen before. very
bestial races. There are dragonborn, there are
leonin, all species very uncommon in Neo Britannia,
but dressed to present in a mixture of similar
to what Samuel wore at the very first garden
party of the season, a spattering of very typical,
well put together servants outfits, but... adorned
with furs and leathers and fangs and similar
things they are picking fresh fruit off of trees
and bushes and handing those to the guests as
you're all escorted out to the gardens. And I
will say upon their arrival all of the members
of your former community that are assisting you
to act as servants in this fashion, they have
been guided by the Wayfinders who all right before
the party gather everyone together and focus
their energy and In order to ease their travel,
they are awash with knowledge of the local customs
and language and social practices. So they all
completely understand the protocols of the ton
and how servants at a party are expected to behave.
You have been blessed by a number of priests
of travel. Samuel's like, the day before, just
like, damn. Why couldn't you bless me before
I went over to the city? But led into the garden,
it transitions into almost like an oasis in the
middle of a rainforest where there's a clearing
now and sitting in the middle of it, dressed
in fur that looks like ursine claws meeting to
embrace him along his chest, like holding him
snugly, sitting on a throne carved from some...
ancient tree, a mask covering his face. It has
bear-like features, but they taper off into
bird feathers of massive size. And he sits semi
-arrogantly with a leg crossed on top of one
of the others, hand dangling off the side, waiting
as everyone makes their way into the garden.
And once it appears everybody has entered, with
a booming voice, My honored guests, thank you
for joining me this evening at my late husband's
estate. For those of you who are not fortunate
enough to have had the pleasure of knowing my husband,
he was the greatest man I've ever known, and
I was the luckiest man to have earned his affections.
The day we were wed, we each took a chance. We
each decided to take a leap of faith into the
unknown, into the wild. So tonight, I invite
you all to celebrate with me in his memory. This
masquerade will allow you all to interact as
strangers, as my husband and I initially did.
And like us, I hope you come to realize that
embracing the wild, the unknown, can lead to
something greater than the sum of its parts.
I have seen the wonders that you and your land
can provide to me and my people. Tonight, allow
myself and my fellow country folk to demonstrate
what we can provide to you. Eat heartily, drink
merrily, and most importantly of all, Live happily.
Damn. All right. Fantastic. There is less restrained
round of applause from quite an impressive crowd
as all of the nobles are starting to realize
that there are a lot more people here than even
at the most well-attended balls. There are darn
near a hundred extra folks here. So it is, it
is, thrumming but it is that is a very well received
greeting so so well delivered that i'm just not
gonna have any rolls happen because anything
that I say would cheapen it. Um so the party commences
now a lot of the nobles are in wild themed masquerade
but none going you know too far that they would
break actual protocol like you know no excessive
skin being shown or nothing, nothing terribly
shocking it's a little harder to tell who's who
but you've known these people some of you for
years so it's not hard to necessarily guess who
is behind about half of the masks the other half
are complete strangers to most of you So it will
be a little more challenging if you're trying
to locate someone as you go. Is there anyone
who wants to do something immediately after the
greeting? I think before the ball, just in case,
Edgewater sent a letter to both Ruby and Mary.
Just saying, dear friends. Just in case, I just
wanted you to know what I'd be wearing at the
ball so you could tell it was me so we could
find each other. So I will be wearing a Lyron
mask. I don't know if you've caught this. The
Lord Drake has this wondrous creature with a
wiry mane, and I'm going with a mask of that
creature. And then my dress, you will think me
so clever. In the letter. Yup. The skirts
are tin can lids all tied together. And the top
is a bodice of milk jugs. So clever. I think
Mary and I are together the day before drinking
out of the flasks of whiskey and we receive it
at the same time. Incredible. And I will respond
and I will say. Thank you so much, Edgewater.
What I will be wearing is the mask that you all
have come to know and love, the cut up dirty
mask with perfect blonde ring curls. But I will
be wearing something a little bit more demure.
What you all would... looking at it it's actually
a classic black velvet dress, but it looks like
from a different time. It's not black anymore,
but it has faded. It is sun damaged. maybe water
damaged in a way where it kind of has a little
bit of like a black gray tie day going on, but
it is an off the shoulder dress that is asymmetrical
on the bottom and would be to anybody who is
of not a halfling of a human sized height would
be a, a short dress on them, but it is a full
length gown on Ruby. It is velvet, and she is
wearing a choker necklace that has the twist
ties that keep the bread fresh. But also there
is a jagged sunrise ruby that is on her neck.
And she has black booties on with a red bottom.
Whoa, she has some Louis Vuittons. Some Louis Vuittons. Yeah,
Louis Vuittons. You both have never seen her wear this
dress before, but she says something along the
lines of, found it in the back of my closet,
and decided it was time to wear something, something
a little different, and maybe reuse an outfit
once in a while. It is... For anybody wondering,
inspired by the Princess Diana's revenge dress.
Oh, hell yeah. Is it the revenge dress? Who knows?
I'm going to, on the bottom of it, I'm going
to scrawl, P .S. This is Mary. It's kind of scribbly
because we've been drinking whiskey for about
three hours. Gonna wear mouse mask. Bye. okay
that is fantastic I just wanted to circle back
to the fact that Edgewater has decided her look
is going to be inspired by what Lord Samuel rode
to the first party. Yeah. Just okay yep all right
yep fantastic. Rock on. No uh no look Ruby wanted
the energy of being ridden. And it's going to
be there. Yep, yep. Okay, cool. No subtext there
to be seen. Fantastic. Cool. Mr. Salt, what are
you rocking in to the party as? Salt arrives
with the Seltzers. Pierre and Pilar kind of make
their way forward. And he kind of ushers in and
makes sure that Lefroy is okay. I think Lefroy
kind of moves a little quicker into the party
than his usual, like, can you check my hair and
check my shoes? He's kind of ready to go a little
bit more. Lefroy is dressed, he's got like neon
green and black kind of alternating stripes and
kind of like these big billowy pants that give
like kind of a bounce around. And these little,
we've arranged some bubble wrap to look like
wings on the back. He's dressed as a green hornet.
And I am behind with the eye mask, kind of like
classic superhero eye mask and the hat. We are
dressed as Kato and the Green Hornet. Yeah. Nice.
Okay. Cool, cool, cool, cool, cool. All right.
That works. I think he knew anonymity was kind
of out the door when you're the nine -foot Goliath
arriving with the three -foot bumblebee. I mean,
yeah, it's... He kept it simple. That's also
the benefit of, like, yeah, the staff was secretly
invited, but you're always invited to chaperone
Lefroy anyway, so... There are those that are
expected to be there, and then there's the mystery
crowd. Yep. I think he's very excited to see,
especially he's being a little less worried about
keeping an eye on Lefroy the whole time. I think
he's kind of keeping an eye out because he's
still a little injured. He does have one arm
still in the sling because he took a hard hit.
I think he's very excited to see who each house
decided to invite. He knows a couple people who
were invited, but knowing the plan, he's very
excited to see who else is here. Sweet God, don't
make me list 100 people. He wants to know every
single one and how they're doing. What are their
names? What are their voices? Do it now. What
animal are they dressed as? Dance, monkey, dance.
All right, just let me Google here really quick.
It doesn't take long for Lefroy to locate Fiona,
who has come in a sort of elaborate butterfly
mask with sort of bedazzled antenna that are
just a little too heavy and are kind of drooping.
And the dress has sort of a cape tied to the
wrists that are the remnants of two butterfly
kites. Oh, cool. And so she is very much going
with a butterfly theme for the evening. Once
I spot Fiona, can I give a quick scan around?
And I think he's going to try to use a little
bit like he did when Nathaniel arrived, that
way of the anatomist feature, to see if he can find
anyone carrying themselves the way that he knows,
especially now having seen her fight, how Bea-
dere carries herself. Someone who's walking around
like they have a weighted braid behind them.
Absolutely. Roll perception with advantage. 23.
Okay. 23. Actually, it doesn't take you long
because just like you, she can't let her responsibilities
entirely slide. So she's not right off of Fiona's
shoulder as is usual. She is a little, a little
further away, not behind a buffet table, but
you definitely see Beadere, and she has leaned
in hard. She has a long mask that is of a deer,
replete with vine -wrapped antlers, and she has
vine bracers, effectively, and is completely
wrapped in what looks like fronds of fake palm
trees that have been stapled into a wrap dress.
Cool. And she is wearing sandals that have blades
over the toes. Yeah. I think, yeah, that's, he's
kind of like, as he's like, Oh, the mask. Holy
shit. All right. Yeah. So like if, if she had,
and the, the, the battle braid is like on full
display and the end of it is not the, uh, the
little flanged mace head. It is actually a full
on chain monkey fist. Cool. That is just. you
know hanging there for a second you're like how
does she stay facing forward with that much weight
but she's badass yeah so she's she's clearly
uh clocked you because yeah it's very easy and
there is a slight incline of the head. I'll kind
of start making my way over especially if Lefroy
is heading over towards Fiona and on my way if
there's people coming around with like drinks
on trays, grab a couple and then sidle up and hand
her one. She's not there when you get there. Whoa.
Almost like she's messing with you. Oh, okay.
He kind of looks around. I think he looks around
for a second. He sees Lefroy, and Lefroy gives
him the look that he usually gives Lefroy at
these parties of like, well, go. You got to get
out there. One near-death experience, and he
grows up so much. Salt downs one of the drinks
that he found, and then... goes into the crowd
and tries to find Beadere. All right. And it is
extraordinarily crowded. I think he, he makes
a first guess. He sees someone. He's like, Oh, I
think, and immediately goes up and like taps
the shoulder and it's Ford. The crowd kind of
obscured the... or the horse legs. So good. Ford,
I got you a drink. Dashes right back off. Yeah.
Kindly. As you're going, he's clearly wearing
a leaf vest. That was just a horrible coincidence.
So you're going to be looking for Beadere. Ruby,
as you are mingling, there is a light touch on
your exposed shoulder. I will turn around and
look. I must say, fantastic choice. Well, thank
you. And is this Ruben? Of course it's Ruben.
What is Ruben wearing, can I ask? Ruben
is in what looks like a tux vest and a cummerbund,
which is sort of an odd layering choice. Black,
it looks like tearaway track pants with the reflective
stripe down the side. He has a cape that has
been attached to the vest. It doesn't come to
a clean end. It's all sort of spiky. So as he
moves, it creates sort of bat wings. Oh, cool.
Batman. I love it. And his mask does go all the
way back around his ears, which are sort of extended
and pointed. His tattoos are on full display.
Oh, well, I will say I do enjoy that your tattoos
are out for everyone to enjoy. It's nice to not
have to cover up as much. Yeah, I will say, you
know. I wanted to come and just show myself.
I know other people are making a little bit more
of a statement with the outfits, I guess. But
I just wanted to be here. And I will cast, having
seen that he is a bat theme, I will cast Disguise
Self on myself. And I will just have little spiders
start to crawl on my shoulders and things. So
that there's a little bit of some sort of animal
or insectoid. Just, you know, to... Make myself
a little bit more creepy. But I'll be like, you
know, I think I can fade in more of this. Yeah,
the mask wasn't creepy. I like the bat motif
that you have going on. And you're doing quite
a nice job catching me in your web. Were you
able to find out any information from what we
had talked about? People's lips are a little
tighter than... you'd think on certain topics.
But I think I might be shaking the right trees.
Oh, that sounds good. Who exactly are you talking
to? Can I know? I'd rather not until I know I'm
right. That makes sense. That makes sense. So
are you enjoying your time at the party? Is there
anything in particular you're looking forward
to? I mean, it is extremely crowded in here.
Out here, I guess. It's quite the turnout. didn't
realize there were this many people in town that
were of our standing. Yeah, I guess so. I mean,
I never really realized how many people are here
until I get here and I'm like, oh, it's a lot
of people. You know what I mean? But it just
sort of makes it a little more fun. Yeah. We
got to figure out who it is, right? It's like
a mystery. Or not and just enjoy. True. I must
say, turning to a bit of sort of outside world.
Masterstroke with the flyer that you had printed
up. That was a great way to take control. Well,
thank you. I'm looking to try and take more control
of my life, if that makes sense. And with Daddy
in a coma, there was really no other option.
I think control suits you. Thank you. i'm gonna
be honest. Imagining this guy in tearaway pants,
Daniel is like, I'm totally in. The tattoos... Daniel's
totally bought in. Daniel you cannot pull and
rip. I mean I will just say I feel gross. I kind
of wish everyone could see our faces anytime
Ruben shows up. Everyone's just like, this slimy
motherfucker. Except for Daniel, who's head over
heels. Thank you. But I will say, you know, if
you do know anybody who's looking to get into
business, we are looking for some partners to
help improve the transportation here in Neo Britannia.
Well, I'll keep my eye out on that as well. I
mean... If you need more hands at the factory,
I can help around that, too. All right, well,
let's not talk so much business here. Let's just
have a fun time. Has anyone offered you a drink
yet? No, but I would enjoy one. Let's fix that.
And the aggressive flirting continues. I think
that whole conversation, Mary's standing like
one foot away and it's just like, oh my God,
that's so gross. Oh God, I want to go find Edgewater
now. Oh God, that's hard. Speaking of Edgewater,
what are you up to? I think she is wandering
through the crowd going, Hello? Is that you?
Who are you looking for? Is that you? Oh, no.
She would have seen him do the speech. Oh, yeah.
So specifically, Samuel is actually not joining
the dance floor or the party right now. He seems
to be waiting for something. So he's sitting
at the throne at the head of the garden. Okay.
It would be very presumptuous of her to go up
to that throne. If anybody knew who she was!
Presume away. She's going to march right up and
say, Good evening, Lord Drake. I must thank you
so much for your kind invitation to this lovely
ball. Do I need to roll to know? No. I think coyly,
though, just... Oh, and I don't know who I have
the pleasure of speaking to, but you're very
welcome. Oh. Thank you. Um, do you, are you going
to dance this evening? You know, I was looking
for the right partner. Um, don't really have
to deal with dance cards here. Would you like
to dance now? Oh, with me? The person you don't know
at all? Miss Clarence. Oh! Okay. Yes, please!
He will rise and will offer a hand for Miss Clarence
to take and will lead her into the festivities.
Okay. And it is a little closer. dancing than
normal just because of the number of people here.
That's why. That's exactly why. I don't understand
what you're all implying. It is simply a matter
of logistics. I think Edgewater is constantly
going, oh, I'm so sorry. I almost bumped into
someone else. Just have to get a little closer.
Samuel playing the game is just like, oh, excuse
me. That's my fault. And will pull her in. And
it is active. The music is a little more up -tempo
than as per standard. Where's Lefroy? He's working
his own game, thank you very much. He and Fiona
walk by and he goes, did you see? Fiona's going,
I'm so jealous of Miss Clarence's jugs. She upgraded
from cans. Oh man, that's a gift that keeps on
giving. So yeah, you get... through a dance and
it is warm out here and a large like six foot
six foot one like basset hound masked dog comes
up behind Miss Clarence and he's he's wearing
what looks like a polo shirt but with epaulets
made of playing cards and he's wearing bracelets
made of uh dog collars uh Sorry, I don't mean
to cut in your lordship, but... You're not. Oh,
I meant to interrupt, but could you find me after
you finish this dance? Certainly, I suppose I
could. Where might I find you? Over by the beverages.
All right. Enjoy. I do apologize. I do apologize,
Lord Drake. Can we roll insight? Absolutely.
I know who it is. You came in the same carriage.
Oh, I thought it was Corny. No, I thought it
was actually your dad. No, trust me. Corny sounds
very different. No, I don't remember. Sorry.
That was yesterday. It was yesterday. Only a
10 for Samuel. I mean, it's not an accent you
recognize. But he seemed to know exactly who
Edgewater was, so... Miss Clarence, is that something
you would like to take care of? That's, it's
just my brother. Is that something you would
like to take care of? Oh, I just thought about
this. There's some talk at home, of course, not
out and about, that he might propose this season
to... A one Miss Nigella? So I do probably need
to help him. It probably is in reference to that
somehow. Samuel will lean in, not too much to
cause her to faint again. Uh -oh. The masks are
still on. But he'll whisper in your ear, if he's
looking for a moment, there is still one more
showpiece to happen tonight. Perhaps that would
be an ideal time for your brother. Oh. Well,
I'll let him know. Is there some sort of signal
he should look out for? There's going to be a
show of a dance. Oh, very nice. Choreography.
I'll let him know. And she'll wander off to find
Gladstone. Oh, and one last thing I'll whisper.
And if you need me, you'll know where to find
me. And just points back to the throne. Perfect.
Gladstone is at the beverage table, but he is
doing that sort of, like, I'm slightly tall,
so I'm going to try to look over the crowd to
try to find someone. What's going on, Gladstone?
Oh, I just, I was trying to find Miss Razorstorm,
and I can't honestly, for the life of me, recall
what she said she was going to be dressed as.
And you're pretty, you understand, like, you
know, how... uh these all whole things like operate
and what do I what do I do what's the right, I
mean should I should I start tapping random people
on the on the shoulder or is it um I... I can't
seem to locate her and I kind of need to find
her. Did... did she send you a letter? Yes
but I forgot it at home. Of course. Um all right
what's her...I don't carry my correspondence with me. Right. Fine.
This might have been the time to do that, just
this once. All right, I do see what you're saying.
What's her favorite animal? Some kind of spider,
I think. So she's dressed as a spider. Hmm. All
right, look for anything with webbing or too
many eyes. We'll start there. Masquerade balls.
People are impossible to decipher under these
masks, so I'm not sure we'll be able to find
her, but we'll try, and I'll get the group on
it as well. Oh, you have a whole group? Oh, of
course, my besties. Wow, you have been busy this
season. Yes. All right. I don't know if you've
heard, but I am the gem of the season. There
were some whispers about that. You were getting
quite a few looks at that last ball. Oh, speaking
of which, Dad's on the lookout for you, too,
with the Major. So... You didn't tell him what
I was wearing, did you? I might have forgotten.
Oh, you forgot. Good. Good. Very good. I'm not
blind, Drips. Okay. Good. Well, listen, I've
told him about Lord Drake. He just won't listen.
Yeah, well, you know how Daddy is. Sometimes
he gets his mind fixed on something, and he's
a little hard to get through to. All right. Well,
let me get on this. As that happens, you literally
see Ruby getting lifted up, and you know it's
her because of the mask, and she's covered in
spiders. Oh, there's Ruby! I mean, there's someone
I must go talk to. Okay, I'll keep an eye out
for you, and if I find her, I'll let you know.
Great. Oh, also, Lord Drake told me that if you
were looking for a special moment this evening
to do something a little exciting, there will
be... quite a dance. Just keep your eyes out
for some choreography. I don't know choreography.
It's a dance. It'll be a very fancy dance. I
don't have to do it, do I? Oh, it's a watching
dance. Okay, that's better. Alright, I'll find
you. I'm sorry. I'm just really nervous. Yes,
of course. When you're going to propose... You
have a habit of talking a lot out loud in front
of crowds. I just don't... Could you not maybe
for this one? I mean, there are times where you
let people know what you're thinking and sometimes
everybody around knows that as well. So could
you maybe... I think she flashes back to the
moment two days ago when she said something about
bathing in Lord Drake's house. She's like, you
might be right. I just, maybe if something doesn't
work out or, you know, like I lose my nerve or
I can't find her, maybe don't spread around that
I'm going to be doing this. I would never. All
right. All right. I'm sorry. I'm a little wound
up. Of course. It's fine. Just give me some time.
All right. All right. Fine. All right. Good luck.
And thank you. Thank you. And enjoy. Don't let
this take up your whole night. It won't. You're
mighty quick on saying that. But all right. Mary,
what are you feeling like doing right now? Sorry,
I'm distracted by Daniel's artwork over there.
It's so troubling. Are you being disruptive?
No, I'm just drawing my outfit. Do you see what
he's doing at the table, Evan? There need to
be rules here. It's Ruby by way of the mummy
from Courage the Cowardly Dog. That's the most
upsetting thing I've ever seen. But also so covered
in spiders. Oh, boy. Anyway, let's get back to
Mary. Mary, I think, is begrudgingly... going
to be keeping an eye out for her squad of acquaintances,
Edgewater and Ruby, just because so much weird
stuff's been going on and she wants to make sure
that they are, you know, someone's watching over
them a little bit. So I'll probably post up near
Edgewater. And so she's wearing a kind of plain
mouse mask, but she's also, she's kind of bringing
in some Belladonna to the look. And so her fingertips
are dyed with dark berries and her, her bodice
is, it's kind of vines, but it's actually just
old Christmas light strings. And then she's wearing
kind of like a dark canvas. It looks like a full
skirt, but they're really pants. It's very scandalous.
And so she is kind of incorporating some Mary
Smith and some Bella Donna in her look tonight.
And so she's, I think she's watching Ruby and
Ruben. In particular. Because she doesn't like
Ruben. And that's not Emily. That's Mary. Absolutely.
I'm going to catch him doing something. I swear
to God. No character bleed here. No character
bleed. I'm going to destroy him. At some point
I also want to find Trudy. I don't know what
she's wearing. I'm going to need a perception
check. Different DCs are going to show you different
things. Look for a lamp without a lampshade.
She's got to be nearby. Did Trudy come as a lampshade?
I will die. That is a 25. Wow. Holy smokes. Yeah,
baby. Okay. I catch Ruben doing a crime immediately.
Ruben has killed Trudy. Oh, my God. I swear to
God. I will channel every ghost. Dial it back.
All right. Now, the nice thing, weirdly, There
are so many people here. It is weirdly making
your job easier because usually you have to be
a little discreet about sight lines in terms
of how you're watching people. The flood of bodies
just out in this garden and dancing and sort
of a little slightly freer than usual is affording
you a little bit more latitude in your open perception
of things. You clearly clock Ruben and Ruby.
He is the only one sporting this many tattoos.
And he has gotten her a full-size goblet of
something for them to... They each have a full
-size goblet. You also see a familiarly sized
mouse. Aw. Wrapped in a red and white polka dot
terry robe that has been sort of cinched shut
and an elaborate mouse mask with a little red
and white bow on her head. And she is dancing
with a stockier, dusky blue-skinned rock dragon
with elaborate tails of mustache and beard poking
out from the mask. Is that Lucas? That's fucking
Lucas. I knew it. The people said what they wanted.
That's my man. I'm going to look at her and say,
good for her. She's going to climb him like a
tree later. I mean, he's a dwarf, so he's not
that much bigger than her, but she's also small
for a gnome. Climb him like a stump. Sorry. Yeah,
so at some point, I'll want to check in with
Trudy and see how she and some of the other servants
are doing. And through that, I want to try to
get a bead on how the servants are doing. If
they're having fun, if anyone has noticed that
they're there yet, and if there's been any trouble.
Okay. A couple of things, sort of riding that
25 further. A, you can clock that there are clicks
of what, by body language you're guessing, are
servants that haven't mingled, but you swear
there are... people that you have not recognized
in the ton engaging in conversation with lords
and holding their own and it's like the mask
is allowing them yeah the freedom to finally
speak. Awesome. And they seem to be animated in
happy conversations it seems like for now things
are working okay you also spot your favorite
not quite relation from the other side of the
family. Oh, Connor. Yes. And he's having a controlled
and hushed conversation off to the side with
someone wearing a unicorn mask. What's Connor
wearing? Connor is wearing a hat with rabbit
ears, and that is as far as he's gone. So lame.
What a prick, man. That sucks. It's not a mask,
dude. It's a hat. Get with the program. Yeah,
I think I'm going to select him as my person
of interest again to get advantage on following
him and observing him throughout the evening.
All right, cool. If I can overhear anything,
I would love that. Are you going to get closer
to try to overhear or are you just going to kind
of keep him under surveillance for the time being?
I think I will while everything seems to be going
pretty smoothly at the moment. So I'll try to
make my way over. Try to get a sense of who he's
talking to or what he might be saying if I can't
tell who it is that he's talking to. All right.
Make a... make a stealth check and then depending
on your stealth check we'll run a uh perception
or insight, your choice. Uh that is a 21. Oh you
are you are doing great on... because there
are so many people for you to like hide behind
and sort of like oh i'm dancing with and just
sort of like roll off of that you're... it's easy
for you to get close by without drawing attention.
Yeah. So now I'm going to give you advantage
on whatever perception or insight check you make.
Sweet. Because you have managed to get close
enough that you're not suffering any problems.
Yeah. Perception will be more about the content
of the conversation and insight will be identifying
the unicorn. I think I'm going to do insight.
Yeah. That's seven plus nine. That's still pretty
good. That's actually not bad. Thank you. That's
the best compliment Mary Smith has ever gotten.
I remember that Ruby was channeling me when she
was being mean, so that was pretty nice. You
swear you have the body frame, the way they're
holding themselves. You swear you've seen this
person before. You think it's one of the Wolfes.
Oh. Is it Horatio? No, no, no. Wolverton? No,
Wolfe. There's Astrid, Miranda, and Horatio. Yes,
there are three wolves. Astrid, Miranda, or Horatio.
It is most definitely not Horatio. Okay. So it
is either Astrid or Miranda. All right. Because
I... heard a rumor about Horatio a while back.
I mean people will talk. Yeah, people do. Alright,
so I will continue to keep an eye on Connor,
but if I have an opportunity to talk to Edgewater,
I may try to see if she knows about the rumor
that I know about. Okay. Because he's your person
of interest, it will be easier for you to find
him if you have to break surveillance. Okay.
Edgewater is not hard to find. She was looking
for you, but then you completely disappeared.
So she's probably close to the same spot. Okay.
She looks so lost. Oh, wow. Okay. I'm going to go
right up behind her and be like, hey. Oh, Mary.
It's so good to see you. You too. How is your
evening? Are you enjoying the wild? Wonderful
time so far. I do have a favor to ask of you. My
brother Gladstone... Now keep this quiet because...
This isn't gossiping, right? No, of course not.
Because I wanted to not gossip with you about
something else also later. So my brother Gladstone,
I think you may have heard, he has been courting
Lady Nigella of Ravenstorm. Is that right? Ravenstorm?
Razorstorm. And he... can't remember, fool,
what she's wearing tonight, what her mask is.
He did say that her favorite animal is a spider,
which is not suspicious at all. I don't find
that suspicious. I mean, look at Ruby. She's
covered in spiders right now. Oh, my God. Yeah.
Every time I look over, there's more spiders.
Yeah. Every time someone looks at Ruby, the,
like, jump scare scream happens. Okay. Well,
at least we can. Check that one off the list.
That's not Nigella. Yeah. All right. But if you
can, if you hear anything about what she's definitely
wearing, if it's not spider related, or if you
find out where she is, could you please let me
know? Yes, of course. Of course. Thank you. Do
you, you know my benefactors relation, Connor
Carson? Yeah. Carson. We'll maybe get this right
one time. What about Connor Carson? Connor Carson.
He's over...You can tell who he is because he's
not wearing a mask. Oh, I did see that. I will
have to talk to him about that. Honestly, he
might... I'm just a ward, but he may listen to
you. I don't know, as the gem of the season.
It's so kind of you to mention. Do you know who
he's speaking to? And then she'll look over to
see the unicorn mask. And I'll share that I can
tell it's one of the Wolfes. Okay, given that
it's one of the Wolfes, you can make an insight
check and not take disadvantage on the distance
and number of people. Ten. They are both sort
of a similar frame, so it's kind of hard to tell.
That's one of the Wolfes, you say? I was just
wondering because I, you know, I... With my humble
origins and whatnot, I heard something about
Horatio. You know Horatio, right? Yes, of course.
Horatio is a foundling like myself. All right.
But there is some complicated origin that he
has, and it makes me think about my mysterious
past. You know, it makes me feel emotions, you
know? Oh dear, I'm so sorry. I just didn't know
if you had heard anything about their family.
No, I haven't as yet, but I can keep an ear out.
I know that people trust you with these sensitive
matters. Of course they do, because they know
I will not spread gossip. So good of you. That's
the bedrock of our relationship is your discretion.
Thank you. That is so kind. So I'll kind of set
Edgewater loose with that kind of charge. And
I'll do a perception at some point to see if
I do track down Nigella. But mostly I'll be watching
Connor. Okay, fantastic. Now you've weaponized
Edgewater. Grand. Who is first heading straight
over to Connor Carson. to let him know that a
masquerade ball is an occasion upon which you
wear a mask, not a hat. That, I certainly understand
the confusion, but I could help you. There are
some cups over there that we can cut them up
and put them together and we'll make you a little
mask. Miss Clarence, I... Who? What do you mean,
who? Who else? If it makes you feel better, and
he lifts the hat and pulls down a sort of clockwork
rabbit mask. Much better. Thank you. It was exceptionally
itchy, so my face needed a rest. But I suppose
it is more important for protocol than my personal
comfort. Yes, of course. You understand how these
things work. I'm very proud of you. Have a wonderful...
Thank you, Miss Clarence. It was all worth it.
As you are dancing and drinking, Ruben goes,
Oh, I have to check on a lead. All right. Stay
right here, and I'll be back maybe with something
interesting. Can I come with you? Might make
the lead clam up. Not dressed as a clam, but...
The expression still stands. All right, yeah,
I'll stay here. And he starts to weave off through
the crowd. I wanna follow him! Yes! I'm gonna
quickly, where I am, I don't care who I see,
who sees it, I'm gonna cast Disguise Self on myself,
and I'm gonna look like a little, I'm gonna look
like a rat. Like a rat mask instead of what I'm
wearing. And then I'm going to try and, follow
him through the crowd. Are you changing the statement
dress as well? Yeah, yes. No, I'm going to look
like, yeah, it's going to be like a rat mask
with tubes that are attached to the mask that
kind of wrap down into a kind of like, it just
looks like a sack of tubes, basically, like going
down. And no figure at all, and just walking,
trying to stealth after him. Oh, God. I'm sorry.
I do not love that. Wow, there are a lot of feelings
there. Okay, so make a perception or investigation,
whichever you prefer. I'm going to make an investigation
check. Oh, eight. Oh, there are so many people
here. Yeah. Oh, man. All right. And I walk back
to where we were. And I become a rat. And I'll
just stand where he told me to wait. And I'll
be bobbing around looking out to see if I can
notice anybody. Still as a rat. Oh, no. I'm going
to take the rat off. I'm going to not think about
who saw me do that and just keep dancing a little
bit. All right. She's going through a lot right
now. Yeah, there is a lot. In your search for
Beardere, throw me another perception. Please.
Just a nine. Nine. You're looking around, and
you do notice Oscar and Zoe. It's very hard for
them, even in a masquerade, to hide who they
are, given the fact that they are sort of uniquely
Hobgoblin within the ton. I'm going to guess
her voice cuts through a crowd. It cuts through
granite sometimes. But they are dressed. They
have chipmunk masks, which the whole thing, it
doesn't work. It doesn't work at all. But they're
looking around and specifically sort of looking
down. Okay. Yeah. Because they stand much taller
than Lefroy and Fiona. They do. Okay. Yeah. And
you're paying so much attention that you almost
trip. Okay. As there is a little neon green blur
followed by an orange blur that zips past your
path. And you hear, we don't have to spend any
time with them. They don't know exactly who we
are. Come on. And Lefroy and Fiona zip through
the crowd using their diminutive stature to help
hide. I'll kind of stand in between them and
the Hensons just to give a little extra blockage
of their path. Fantastic. All right. Excellent.
Excellent. Do I have line of sight to Lord Drake
while he's up on his throne? Oh, yeah. Everybody
has line of sight to Lord Drake. He is just slightly
elevated. Ballsy move sitting on a throne at
a place where the queen may show up, by the way.
Ballsy move. I'm going to just, maybe not necessarily
at this exact moment, but as I'm kind of working
through, at some point I'd like to catch his
eye, give him a kind of acknowledging, like,
thank you for inviting me, and I'll just pat.
like a breast, my breast where like a pocket
might be and just kind of give you a nod. It's
not well hidden, but it's like just a little
like he's like scratching his nose and the other
hand just happens to come up a little bit. Can
I, once... I'll give a five count to let our charges
get further enough away... I'd like to just kind
of walk past Oscar. And I think at this point
where I have morbid curiosity, I'd like to see
what he smells like. Okay, make a perception
check for you to sniff this person. I would like
to sniff the boy. You're the strongest boy. What
do you smell like? I heard he was so strong.
Is he also musky? 13. I'm going to, I think for
this one, I'm going to burn. I took lucky at
our last level up. So I'm going to burn one of
my luck points to reroll that. That's only seven.
So that was a 13 total. Okay, you get close to
him and you kind of have to be in motion. Yeah,
yeah, yeah. The only smell, it's not that strong.
There is a slight trash can smell. Sure. Like
there is a slight garbage that's out on garbage
day kind of. But it's not strong. It has been
like either scrubbed or covered over. Yeah, it's
not overpowering. No, no. It's just like... and
you're like very specifically focusing down on
that. And you're just like, it's not pleasant,
but it's nothing that you would make note of
in a normal situation. He kind of thinks about
it and a little thought bubble appears above
his head. And it's a list that says, Henson
assault on the senses. And number one is Zoe's
voice. And number two gets put Oscar's, but it
moves down the list from below her voice. And
he just kind of cocks his head and wonders, and
then kind of continues making his way through
the crowd. All right, cool. Those of you who
are looking for Nigella. Can I do an investigation
check? Absolutely. Can I do perception? Yeah.
Can I also do one for Horatio rumors while I'm
out and about listening for things? Oh, yeah.
I'll let that happen. Nigella first. I got an
18 perception. A 9 investigation for Nigella.
I can't know anything about that woman. She is
hard to find. And then for Horatio? 26. Oh, mama.
You know his blood type. The fuck? Okay. I knew
I was right. All right. You have wildly overshot
this rumor. So you know what? I'm going to have
you roll a D8 and a D6 in addition. On the D8
is a four and on the D6 is a five. Okay. Oh,
that's right. We have a rumor system. Can I do
one thing, Evan, while this is happening? Absolutely.
I'm just dancing there. And then I have a moment
of, I forget exactly where he told me to wait.
So I'm just looking around and I'm just going
to start walking towards the throne because I
know Lord Drake is there and I'm alone and I
just didn't want to be dancing alone. So I'm
just going to make my way towards Lord Drake.
All right. Can I also, while after kind of clocking
us here, can I look around? Can I see the Henson
parents? Oh, yeah, make a perception check. That's
a 14. Yeah, actually, you do manage to. Was it
Bertrand? Ernestine and Bertrand. Ernestine and
Bertrand, yeah. Ernestine is a short squat hobgoblin,
extraordinarily orange, very animated, having
a lovely conversation with a number of other
people. She has got a sort of very... It's like
a whole bunch of pool floaties. that have been
inflated and put together in a dress. And it's
just a line of yellow duck heads going straight
down her midsection. And she has a yellow duck
mask. And Bertrand is standing. He is a tall,
sort of pale gold hobgoblin. And he is wearing
a pigeon mask and sort of a pigeon feather cloak
over just a horrible striped sweater. Do they
seem to be paying attention to their kids at
all? Not at all. Okay. Interesting. They have
been cut loose, and they are of marriageable
age. They're in the market. They're not their
problem. Cool. I don't know. Lady Ernestine is
having a fairly animated conversation with Lady
Agatha Blood, the shadar kai, and one human lady
who is in a very pronounced, like, part of a
fur coat and it's only like one one sleeve and
it's belted together with like the thick cotton
webbing like multi-eyeleted belts and she's wearing
like leather pants and combat boots... Cool.... and
has her the one bare arm has like a steel gauntlet
that ends in like claws and she has a like dramatic
wolf mask. Uh do I recognize her like, the look's
pretty strong. You can make an insight or perception.
Cool. Does it, on the chance that it is not a
member of the peerage, does it help that I'm
familiar with the house staff of other homes?
No. Okay. That's a 13. I mean, odds are this
is probably Lady Astrid Wolfe. Okay, cool. She's
a very strong personality and, like, really,
like, leans into the whole image and mystique.
Also not someone to be fucked with. Yeah, in
that vein, I think he thinks back to the clawed
sandals that Bea is wearing and the iron gauntlet
that she's wearing and kind of looks at his regular
white leather valet's gloves and thinking he
may be under-accessorized for the evening. And
then kind of continues his search. All right,
fantastic. So that all occurs. You're making
your way up to the dais? Yeah, I'm going to go
up and say, good evening, Lord Drake. Good evening,
Miss... You've seen this mask. I'm not. I'm in the
mask. I'm not the rat right now. You have very
much seen this mask. He was just pretending to
get out of this conversation. Also, you remember
that whenever you're wearing this mask, your
voice is altered. That's true. It is. Get out.
Miss Rhinelander, enjoying your evening? Oh,
yes, I was just dancing with Ruben Weller, and
he had to step away, and I lost him, and I forgot
where I was supposed to wait. I mean, I don't
really need to be up here until my staff alerts
me that the queen has made her arrival. I could
assist you if you tell me what he's wearing.
I can go down into the party and see if I can locate
him. Yeah, he's wearing tearaway pants and showing
off all his tattoos with the bat mask on. That
should make our job much easier. Yeah, I think
so. It's a look. Specifically tearaway track
pants. He's ready for action. Also, I haven't
seen Edgewater in a little bit. Do you know where
she is? She left for her brother. I did see her
earlier. All right. Well, we can either go look
for Ruben or we can stay here if you want. Well,
hopefully you don't forget this. Let's split
up and meet back right here. All right. Okay.
I can do that. At the throne. At the throne.
All right. Great. Where are we meeting? At the
throne. Good job. Great. All right. So I guess
we're going to split up. Yeah. Cool. Just see
if we can cover the most ground. Yeah. Perception
checks? Yeah, yeah. You asked the wrong guy to
help you look for someone. Oh, my God. You asked
the right guy. Oh. 16 minus 2 is 14. Still, not
bad. Not shabby. I got an 8 at advantage. Oh,
buddy. Oh, buddy. I know. That's okay. That's
okay because with a strong look and a better
vantage point, a 14 is going to cut it. You notice,
like, the tattoos are the dead giveaway. Ruben
is having a conversation. And he's having a conversation
with a chipmunk-masked hobgoblin and a golden
eagle-masked tiefling gentleman who otherwise
is wearing a pristine uniform with his small
spectacles perched over the beak of the golden
eagle mask. And they're having a close conversation.
And then they nod to each other. and break apart.
Could I make a roll to try to guess either of
the two other figures who they might be under
those masks? Absolutely. Well, there's one that
you... It is clearly Desmond. Okay, good. That's
what I thought. Those little spectacles and the
fact that he came to a masquerade with just a
mask and no costume. So lame. Like, yeah. He
is an officious little... A little pain in the
butt. I will sick Miss Clarence on him. Come
to my grand ball... I actually don't care about
the other man, so I clock his presence, and then
wait a couple seconds to make it seem like I
hadn't just seen them split, and then we'll come
up behind Mr. Weller and give him a tap on the
shoulder. Mr. Weller, I believe? Oh, Lord Drake,
well spotted. This is... Quite the extravagant
event. And I must say my compliments on the theme.
Everyone seems to be having a bit more fun than
the usual formulaic event. The goal was to entertain
just as much as you all have entertained me since
my time arriving in Neo Britannia. Well, we
do strive to be entertaining, if nothing else.
Quite the turnout as well. Lots of... I would
say new faces, but you made sure that I wouldn't
be able to see those. Quite a lot of new faces.
I honestly wasn't expecting such a turnout. Ah,
well, I mean, you are sort of the talk of the
town right now. Speaking of, I believe you left
a companion who tends to usually have whispers
about her. Ah, I would expect a gentleman of
your standing wouldn't listen to idle whispers
about a young lady. She informed me that there
are often whispers about her. That tracks. She
would like to return to your company. I will
locate her. My conversation has come to its natural
close. If you'd like, I did inform her. If I
did find you, I'd be bringing you back up to
where I was previously seated. You can wait for
her there. Excellent. I swear to God. He's going
to look so hot. Punch him. No, he is. We can't
take that from him. It's going to be that awkward
thing where we're both walking very neatly and
it's like the little stumble race. My chair,
my chair, my chair. And about those whispers.
I mean, honestly, who worth knowing doesn't have
a few whispers about them? Can I insight check?
Was there a bit of threat behind those words?
You can insight check all you like. He might
be flirting with you. He might be, yeah. That's
a seven, sir. He might be flirting with you.
Just wait till tonight, sir. I can't wait. I
will lead him back up to the throne area so that
way he can wait for Ruby, who should be unsuccessful.
Yeah, I'm walking around and then I stumble into
Edgewater. Oh, hey, Edgewater. Oh, Ruby, there
you are. I'm looking for Ruben. I lost him. Are
you here, too? I'm the real Batman. You were
really blended into the wall over there. Oh,
yes. It's my vines. Yeah. There is a lot of shrubbery
here. That's my favorite. But you lost Ruben.
Oh, yeah. He went off to talk and then Lord Drake
is going to help me find him, I think. But I
can't find him. I can't find Ruben. Lord Drake
said to me. At the throne. At the throne. Oh,
good. Well, we can all head back there together.
But in the meantime, I did find that I did hear
that rumor about Horatio Wolfe. What do you think?
Would you say that perhaps he has some of the
facial features of Lady Astrid or Lady Miranda?
Whoa. You know, now that you point it out. I
might say that. I must say it was a well -hidden
scandal. Very nicely done. Worthy of the Bridger
Tenets. But also, between the three of us, and
perhaps Mr. Salt, I did hear a rumor about Miss
Sweetly, the young Miss Blightwind's guardian.
Oh, the hot lady with the weapon braid? That's
the one. Wow. Icon. Apparently, there's a
carriage driver who still has a limp right now
because he's still recovering from quite the,
we'll just say telling off, from Miss Sweetly
about some off-color comment he made about Miss
Blightwind. Seems a bit intense. Seems fucking
awesome. Oh, hey. Says the guy who gave some
guy dental work. Yeah. True. I think maybe I'm
going to look around until I see. I don't know
what Mr. Salt is wearing, but I'll look around.
He is one of the two tallest people here. And
you just see him sniffing young Mr. Oscar. He's
sniffing that man over there. He's very good
at his job. I look over to see Miss Edgewater.
And we wave him over. I see Miss Edgewater. I
kind of smile and walk over. Then I see the mask
again. And he downs the second drink, and he
heads over. As you're on your way, you are, Edgewater,
you are tapped by, just sort of lightly on the
shoulder, a slightly hunched woman wearing an
owl mask, and it seems like sort of drab gray
dress with a gray layered cloth cape to make
it look like feathers. Owl. I've heard such good
things about you. You, um... Word is, you are
quite the prize. Best of luck, dear. You've studied
well. Have we ever heard that voice before? I
don't think so. No. No, you haven't. Enjoy the
evening, all of you. And she just kind of goes
through the crowd. Is she there or visible as
I walk over? Yeah, you see her walking over.
She's not a ghost. It's okay. I think Edgewater
immediately reaches out, grabs Mary and Ruby's
hands, and goes, Oh, my God. Do you think that's
a ghost still following us around after the seance?
Oh, I wasn't. I know, but you're definitely involved
here. And I think Ruby just looks in her terrifying
mask, goes, That lady was terrifying. That's what
I'm saying. Do I recognize her? Oh, no. Okay.
No. Oh, Mr. Salt. Ms. Clarence. Ms. Rhinelander.
Ms. Smith. Wait. How did you know it was me?
Oh, good question. I guess I don't. I mean, honestly,
there are very few people who refer to you by
name that are not from your house. Yeah. You
called me over and knew who I was. That limits
the list to quite a few number of people here.
It's very good to see you all. And he looks over
at Ruby with the mask and he goes- Who is waving...
Also, who is next to Ruby. That's the other big
old tell. How's your evening so far? I think
it's fine. We just had a creepy old woman come
up and talk to us. Yes. We don't recognize who
that was, do you, Mr. Salt? Kinda looks over
and says, I don't think so, no. It was almost
like she gave some sort of prophetic announcement.
Is she, can we still see her moving away? Is
she heading towards anything? No, she's just
sort of weaving through the crowd. Okay. Can
I see Drake anywhere? Or like, can I see him?
Oh, yeah. Drake is up by the throne waiting with
Ruben. Oh, okay. If he's in conversation, I won't
gesture towards him. Oh, actually, we should
move that way because I said I would meet them
up there. We all can go up to the throne if you
want. Oh, I've walked up to the bar for the first
time this evening. I wouldn't presume to step
onto a throne in the same night, but I'll walk
over there with you guys. No one will know it's
you. Don't worry. Not that we were able to spot
you from literally across the room. I was going
to say, I think Edgewater's six for six on people
immediately being, hey, I know you. But I think
first Edgewater will say, but before we go up there,
I must share with you, I did hear a rumor about
Miss Sweetly. It seems that she did put someone
basically in traction for making an off-color
comment about her charge. Oh. In that case, and
as another servant walks by, he'll grab two more
drinks and says, I don't think I'll be able to
accompany you all to the throne. Something just
came up I need to attend to. And he bolts back
into the crowd looking for Sweetly. Bye. All
right. Getting a little hot under the collar there,
Salt. It is at this moment. That there is a fanfare
from the entryway. And Queen Mara is announced.
And no one walks through the door. And with that
festival of befuddled faces, we're going to bring
this episode to a close. And we'll see what wonderful
little tidbits the second half of the Masquerade
Ball will reveal to us next time. All right.
Well, thank you all for listening. And we will
catch you next time. Oh, man. Will Salt ever
catch up with Beadere? Will Edgewater find Nigella
before accidentally telling everyone about the
impending proposal? Can Ruby make herself seem
any creepier? Can Mary get to the bottom of whatever
is going on with Connor Carson and the Wolves?
Why has the Queen not appeared at Samuel's ball?
Keep your masks on, everyone. I believe we're
in for a wild ride 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,
MattstheLast as Lord Samuel Drake. Johnny McElearney
as Second Lieutenant Immortan Salt, Emily Carmen
Welden 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.