Roleplay - Hikaru and Arabella discussing the Necklaces

At some point when he’s near the city, a messenger comes to deliver some mail for Hikaru--it looks like a letter that was sealed with wax, but the wax is loose... whole, but not securing the letter anymore.

Mr. Karu,

Miss Mellas' faith has nurtured my desire to pilgrimage through these great cities, and do some missionary work myself! May the greatness of Tarj persevere forever.

Thank you for your friendship and kindness. I'm starting out from Farewood Ravine, after I stock up at *The Jeweled Pestle*. I heard they have an amazing selection, I highly recommend stopping in when you have a chance.

Looking forward to seeing you again someday, perhaps back in Alwyn or during the Awakening! May light and knowledge guide you.

Ruby P.

The name of the place appears to be in a different ink, and Hikaru knows the last time we all spoke, Ruby was adamant that (in person) we'd all meet up in four months, even though she says otherwise now. Farewood Ravine is just several miles outside the city.

He looks at the note and feels very confused and even a little hurt. "What in the name of Tarj?" He makes a mental note that the letter was unsealed as well, feeling uneasy. He gathers his things and slips his rifle over his shoulders.

The city of Farewood Ravine is small, but it is the only pass through this particular ravine leading to several other major cities. It is a large ravine, sporting a small river and a forest along the edges. A main road leads much of the traffic by, close enough for business but far enough that it doesn't detriment the peace here.

He approaches the Jeweled Pestle, an unassuming little stone building with big windows. It has been whitewashed and has beautiful sun catchers hung from every possible place, causing colored light to dance around. A side gate seems to lead to the back gardens and greenhouses, which span some distance into the forest.

Hikaru looks around a little surprised by how quiet it seems. He's not very used to quiet anymore. He strides up to the door and knocks.

The door swings open and several loud bells jingle overhead. A mousey girl with brown frizzy hair jumps near the counter, spilling a few of her ingredients she was working with. "Y-y-yes! I mean, uh, w-welcome!"

Hurriedly scooping them back together into the containers she was sorting, she looks up again and her eyes grow wide. "Hik---h..hii!!...Are y-y-you looking for any t-t-thing I can find for you?”

The girl appears about 25 or so, with frizzy brown hair and amber eyes. She's tan with freckles and wearing a large thin coat with lots of pockets. Round glasses keep slipping down her nose, and a red bandana hangs around her neck.

"Uh um excuse me ma'am," He takes off his hat, "have you seen a Miss Ruby Pennington? I was told she would be here."

He looks slightly shy but her clumsiness helps him deflect his insecurities.

"O-o-ohh!" She glances around nervously, checking for other customers. "Yes she, came b-b-by here some time ago... p-p-pretty lady. Matter of fact, s-she requested s-s-something be provided f-f-for anyone coming b-b-by looking for her..." She mumbles.

He lowers his voice, "Is everything alright miss?" then louder, "How long ago did she pass through?"

"Y-yes I'm just a t-t-tad shy... s-s-s-stuttering is a m-medical condition of m-m-mine." She blushes embarrassedly. "I believe I have what s-she left in the b-b-back room, although I..." she seems to become nervous and fiddles with her pendant of Tarj. "I t-t-think it would be wise t-t-to attend to other customers l-l-later."

She goes to the door and changes the sign from "Welcome!" to "Closed", and locks the chain and bolt as she does so.

He shrugs and follows her a little cautiously.

She quickly moves into a back room, leaving the door behind her open for him to follow. As he look in, it's a small bedroom with a bookshelf, a cozy bed, and a large, familiar trunk of clothes. A coat hook on the wall supports a green scarf just like the one that you gave Ruby.

His ears flick in slight annoyance. His tail moves agitatedly. “She left it behind?” He thinks to himself.

The door closes behind them and the girl surprises Hikaru with a big hug, almost knocking him over. "Hikaru!!!! I wasn't sure if my message got to ya, I plum forgot I sent it to be honest." Her voice has changed dramatically, and has a southern drawl now.

"But when I saw you I 'membered everythin' again. How've ya been? I..." She stops and fiddles with her necklace again becoming more quiet, nervously looking at the door. "Find anythin' new?"

She sees his emotions literally pass over his face, surprise, confusion, shock then confusion again. "Wait, miss Ruby? Is that you? But you look so different!”

"Wait you forgot? And Miss Ruby... What's, what's wrong?" He looks very concerned and glances back at the door and puts his hand to his revolver on his hip.

She blushes and kind of stutters again, almost out of habit. "I d-d-didn't mean ta scare ya sweetie. Just.. Ever since we had that run with..." She keeps fiddling with her necklace nervously. "That... t-thing, ya know..." She shudders. "I just wanted ta throw people off our scent, ya follow? I feel like we was bein' watched mighty close. Ruby was becoming somewhat of a.. noticeable face, so I wanted to make her disappear."

"So I wrote a letter to ya, and one to Miss 'Mella, to say where... Miss Ruby went off to. I didn't wanna mention our little meetup again, the one y'all planned the last time we was together."

"I've been so nervous, thinkin' someone might up an' follow me here... Just tryin' to be extra careful is all." She sighs. "I dunno why, but.. I did forget, I think, that I sent that mail out." She frowns, furrowing her brow.

He stops and thinks hard; something he doesn't like to do much. "Well that makes sense. But wouldn't it be safer with us all together? I mean, I'm a combatant and I've also been alone for a long time. But you're not a combatant... unless... I've misread you."

"You're alright though? No one is hurting you or twisting your arm right?" He puts his hand on her shoulder and looks very surprisingly concerned. More than she's ever seen.

She's surprised at the kindness of the gesture, and smiles genuinely, perhaps a little shyly. "Naw, no one's twistin' my arm. I know Mr. Luther wanted me with y'all so I'd stay safe. Though he..." Her voice softens, and she blinks some tears from her eyes. "Well he's not here right now, and I didn't wanna cause y'all no trouble."

"Miss Ruby you aren't trouble. I'M trouble. You're nothing of the sort. You're all help and talk."

She guffaws out loud and sits. "I've met a fair bit of trouble in my day." She looks down at her outfit and runs her hand through her hair, embarrassed. "I would often... use disguises to help Mr. Luther with some of his investigat'n. I learned all the right strings to pull. This was one of 'em, and I thought she'd do well out here to avoid attention."

Looking over, she continues. "I figured... well, I'm not sure what Miss Mella would have thought, but I know you're a good friend of Rodricks... and… well he darn right puts me to shame with what he can do." Ruby chuckles and lets out an audible sigh. "So.. I hoped you wouldn't find it too odd that I... well, I'm a bit of a trickster myself."

"Miss Ruby, Rodrick is literally a whole crowd of trouble and tricksters. You aren't odd. I'm just worried. Come back with us. Even if it's like that, we accept you Miss Ruby. We put up with his changes of face. I'm sure yours won't bother us. Surprise us sure, I'll admit I didn't know you had this skill. But not bother."

"Oh! Well.. I can't do what he does, for sure. He puts me to shame. This is all makeup and wigs, but thank ya for the compliment."

"I figured it was a wig. Although a darn good one you don't have the same feel as Rodrick."

Ruby smiles and looks down again. "But I reckon what you say is true... I do miss y'all. I also wanted some time to investigate what we'd seen out there... That's another reason I came to this little town."

"I've had mighty nightmares of that... monster." She shutters, rubbing her pendant again out of habit and takes a deep breath to calm herself. Walking to a table she draws out one of the familiar glass tubes from that night, but has several more now with similar looking material in them.

A dark look passes over his face... "The... The serpent?"

"The abyssal creature that was in the heart of that church house." She looks at the vials. "Terrorizin' those poor citizens."

"Oh, ahem right. That one."

She hands him one of the vials to examine. "What do ya think? Does it look like the real deal?"

"I haven't the foggiest notion miss Ruby. I'd like to think so though."

"I've taken some… samples, from animals, and mixed in some other components that should give us the upper hand if any other... creatures come our way." She pauses, listening for any sounds outside. She seems a bit more paranoid than before.

Continuing to fiddle with her pendant, she looks perplexed. "I mean, we've s-seen firsthand how wild and dangerous these other uncultured societies... these outlanders are." She gets up and looks over her small bookshelf, picking out a copy of The Unspeakable - Vol. 2, Horrors of Heathens, and leafs through it.

"Who's to say that nasty creature didn't come from some unspeakable group? We saw w-w-what the church warned us of, out in Wuxia. That wild...." She looks at the door, worried, and whispers, "...magic."

Hikaru stares. "It seems different seeing you so nervous. Is that how I always look?" He looks at the blood and then the books. "We've seen a lot of things. I can't make heads or tails of it anymore. To be honest I've been a devout atheist all my life. Now I've seen things that makes me wonder if there are gods… or if I even want to know if there are any."

"I've kept going to church here, as Arabella... everything seems just fine, like nothin' happened. Just like that day you and I went. What if more monsters, or other heathens, try to infiltrate another town? We saw what madness powered... those Wuxians. What destruction followed? It doomed all of those folkish peoples didn't it?"

She stands, getting louder, clearer, losing her stutter completely. "Why shouldn' the church eradicate it, and why shouldn' those who belong to those groups despise the church? Try to bring it down from the inside? Use their fearsome power to instill fear and doubt among those who seek peace and knowledge and prosperity and freedom??"

She's standing now, breathing heavily, holding her pendant tight. Her eyes go a bit wide for a moment, and she hurriedly sits back down. She folds back into her meek self, looking at her shoes and wringing her hands, kind of shocked that all spilled out.

Something dawns in Hikaru's eyes. "Miss Ruby… have you taken off that pendant?”

She continues to breathe steadily for a while, trying to calm herself. "I… what do you mean?" She looks at you, then down at the pendant. "Why no, I felt it was… keeping me safe. That might sound kinda silly, but... I... I dunno, I reckon I've been praying with it and renewing it at church each week."

He thinks back, remembering he didn’t wear his once.

“May... May I see it? Just for a moment. I promise."

"I..." She looks confused. "I suppose so..." Taking it off gently, and with some noticeable hesitation, she hands it to him. "I even had a time I was out collecting samples in the woods for Ms. Ruthie, the old lady who runs this shop here, and I felt... like somethin' was watchin' me. I was so scared, but I held it and prayed, and it felt like those eyes went away."

"How... How do you feel now? About everything? The same as you did?"

He takes it in his hands almost in fearful reverie as though he expects it to do something.

"I... I feel alright, I think..." She sits quietly for a moment.

"Miss Ruby you remember those tribesmen. Different, backward even. But they were very kind to each of us." He looks slightly apprehensive.

She breathes deeper, thinking about what she'd been saying. "Oh--they were? I... but in the museum..." She trails off, her eyes narrowed like she's trying to remember more.

"The museum was hogwash. They listened to us, fed us. Freely shared information with you Ruby. You were as angry as I was Miss Ruby. That they besmirched the good tribe's name."

"I... I was?"

She suddenly remembers his actions at the museum, and how he paid his respects so sincerely and with utter reverence.

"Yes miss Ruby. And while the wild magic DID scare you… You seemed to open your eyes to a new world. Then after the museum we ran from the autarchy. But you never forgot. You... Never forget. Ever. Anything as far as I know miss Ruby. But you seem so forgetful. As though..." Looks down at the pendant with a little bit more apprehension.

"But.. the church is all about knowledge, and learning. If wearing the pendant is making me forget... then… why would they give that to us? It seemed so important at the time?"

"I have a few personal thoughts about that but we can save that for later.” He pauses. “I don't believe in Tarj. But try praying to him for a moment without the pendant."

She furrows her brow, and tries to quietly pray. But after a few moments she gives an exasperated sigh. "It… feels so weird now, without the pendant. Perhaps I got too used to it."

"Miss Ruby I don't know much about Tarj. But Mella has always taught him to be a loving, open god. And that he listens no matter WHAT vestments or trinkets you hold. Please try again. If it helps I'll even join you." He puts down the pendant and takes her hands.

Ruby seems surprised and suddenly, a bit shy about it. She is honestly touched that he is willing to help with something like this, when it's so foreign to him.

As he touches her hands he seems shy as well, but mostly because he's never been so open with anyone; particularly a woman.

She gently holds his hands and closes her eyes, trying to clear her mind for a prayer.

He shuffles uncomfortably, not sure how to proceed. He tries to wait quietly, if not antsy.

She is quiet for a minute, but begins sweating, her hands clenching his tighter. Almost as if she has a mini panic attack, she opens her eyes. "I-i'm sorry, I just... I keep seeing that... face. Those bulbous eyes. That slimy maw, trying to... trying to..." She chokes up.

"....Trying to eat poor Miss Mella." She lets out a small sob.

"I forgot about that!! How can I forget about something like that...!! I just... it just flooded back to me, and I saw… it... reaching for her, with its tentacles and teeth, its breath hissing in…" Her voice loses some of its drawl even, at this point.

"Miss Ruby that's alright. You tried. I'm sure that counts for something in Tarj's eyes. You just cry it out ok?" He finds himself shocked at his own comments. *Have I become soft?* "We sent that beast to hell though Miss Ruby. I made sure if that myself. And if we find more I'll do it again. Every time."

"But how did you forget? You... You never forget miss Ruby. You're observant to ever the smallest details. How could you forget that?" He does not sound accusative but in fact genuinely concerned as though he thinks something else made you forget.

"I'm not sure how I'd forgotten..." She looks crestfallen. "I... almost even forgot you... and Armella, and... and our other friends...  It wasn't until I saw you come in the door that I... Oh what a terrible friend I am. How dare I..." She looks like she wants to cry again.

She wipes her face of her tears, rather embarrassed. Some of the freckles come with it. "I-i'm sorry, Hikaru. Maybe... should I put the pendant back on? I feel like a mess right now... definitely not lady-like, like Ruby." She lets out a small sob as she tries to chuckle.

"....No... I think... Maybe you shouldn't... I'm... Concerned with what its affect is. Call it... Intuition. Paranoia even. Can you... Test things for magic? If you can't can we... Can we have Rodrick try? If it's nothing I promise I'll give it back. But..." He looks at it ominously.

"Magic..?" She looks shocked. "You think... but the church gave us that? You think it has magic in it..? I don't think... But would... That doesn't make sense..." She furrows her brow, hiccupping a little.

"Miss Ruby. You seemed almost paranoid when I came through the door. Almost like I'm paranoid. And I've been shot and kicked since I was 6. You seem LESS so now that it's off but very tempted to wear it. I don't know what's going on in the Church but I do know that... THING was in charge of our area when you got that pendant. Maybe IT did something to them. Please miss Ruby."

"That's... that's a good point. Did I really seem that off? I mean..." She bites her lip. "I guess I was behaving a little differently than I usually play Arabella, I'm never that neurotic... Shoot..." She looks almost mad. "I'm usually really careful about that. Do you still have yours..? From when we went to church that Sunday?"

"It's still in my pocket but I never wore it. Not once. We can check mine too."

She looks at him for a long moment, really seeing the concern in his eyes. The longer the pendant is off, the more she seems to remember how differently he acted before, compared to his comments and behavior now.

"I feel really out of my element I'll be honest. I'm usually a runner. Kind of a coward miss Ruby. But you're my fr-" cuts off clearing his throat and looking to the side as though he can't handle emotions.

Ruby smiles at you. "I'm grateful for your friendship, Hikaru. And for you... coming here to find me. I feel I may have lost myself if it weren't for that..." Her smile fades a bit, and a dark look passes by her.

"Ok..." She breathes. "How about this... Let me keep my pendant--don't worry, I won't wear it--At least..." She coughs a bit, and the southern drawl seems to come back more. "At least, not here. I usually have the darn thing tucked away, and Ms. Ruthie's as blind as a bat. She won't notice it gone."

"But…" She stands and goes to her mirror, pulling out a small bag that has little tools in it. She begins to fix her freckles. "Miss Arabella goes to church every Sunday, and I reckon they'll be mighty suspicious if she's not wearin' it."

She fiddles with the things on her table. "If you wouldn't mind… writin' me a note, I'll keep it here, hidden under my pillow. So when I come back, if'en I forget about this little talk we've had and forget to remove it, your words will... remind me. And I think I wanna do some more testin' on it myself. Now that you bring it to light, there does seem to be somethin' fishy about it all. Can Rodrick check yours when you see him again?"

"Miss Ruby..." He looks at her suspiciously, and he takes it. "Why don't we just have Rod make you one that you can wear. A mimic. Just until we know."

"True..." She looks down. "It's… well, I won't lie, part of me wants to wear it. But that darn right scares me."

He looks down at the pendant and stares hard at it trying to see if anything happens. "But knowin' the church, I'm not sure they'd be usin' magic. At least, I wouldn't be one to know about it, so I know Rodrick would be great at it."

"Can--does he know how to check for alchemical properties too? Or should I do that here, with the tools Ms. Ruthie has?"

"He can do that too, he's been an alchemist far too long not to figure that out. I promise I'll be back within the day with a pendant look alike and if it turns out to be nothing I'll give you yours and I’ll even wear mine."

She's a bit taken aback by the offer, but knows he means it with all kindness. "That's alright sweetie, I... I think you're right. There is somethin' strange, I don't wanna put you in danger by wearing yours."

He looks visibly relieved.

"Unless...  Maybe… when you're with Rodrick.... if you wore yours, he could see if there's any effect on you? Although that sounds like a troublesome thing, if he can figure anything else out alchemically or magically with it...." She trails off.

"I'll be back miss Ruby. It may be best I get this away now. That actually... May be a good idea. I'll tell him. But I'll make sure he locks me up, too." He looks over. “But it may take time so I might wait until after I give you the fake. No offense, but when I lose control I become a little more dangerous than you."

Ruby shakes her head and says jokingly, "That’s fine. Again, I don't wanna put you in no danger. You seem to get into enough as it is..."

"Sure enough miss Ruby, ain't that the truth."

"Oh.....OH." She seems to remember now that he changes under stress. "I'm nuttier than a squirrel in a bear suit. How'd I forget that too... Argh." She ruffles her hair, making it more frizzled in doing so. "I'm sorry, that sounds like such a terrible idea now that you say it."

She looks crestfallen. "I don't wanna put anyone in more danger. I'll keep workin' on these… vials, in the meantime, and I'll keep an eye out for ya." She looks a little scared that she might not see him again if something happens to him.

"We'll see miss Ruby. I'll let him test it first then we'll see if it's a good idea but... I'll return soon." He puts his hat back in his head. Then pulls out a revolver.

She straightens her coat and goes to open the door again, moving back into the brightly sun-lit, colorful room of the main shop.

He hands it handle first to her. "Keep it safe. I never leave my weapons very far. So I WILL return. It is loaded so please take care but if you need to, don't be afraid to use it."

She looks at the gun, then at you wide eyed, and back to the weapon. "I... thank you." She gingerly takes it. "I'll keep it safe, and use it only if necessary..."

She moves her coat aside and adjusts her belt, removing some of the vials of alchemical powders and finding a place the revolver can fit comfortably and safely.

"Take care. It has a mighty kick and WILL recoil into your face if you don't hold it right... do you know how?"

She looks a little awkward, never having handled a larger gun than her little derringer-sized dart gun, but she tries her best to appear competent. "Oh! Um..." She looks a bit confused. "I know how to hold my little one...." She looks around the store, making sure Ms. Ruthie isn't near.

Taking it back out, she looks at it and tries to get a feel for the weight of it in her hands.

He moves her hands a little to the right spots. "Put this hand here under your other one; you put it there in front of the cylinder it'll blow your fingers clear off. Steady strong grip like Derringer but not too tight or you'll hurt your wrists. There ya go! Now you look like a natural!"

She blushes a moment and adjusts her hands, getting used to the position of them on the gun. "I'm not used to one with a cylinder, I'll have to watch for that... I suppose that makes sense though."

"Alright I'll be back soon miss Ruby and don't worry. I'm a tracker. If you disappear I'll find you and if I disappear, it's because I'm safe. If I go out it'll be in a blaze of glory. Or cuz I pissed someone off. Mostly cuz I pissed someone off. But you'll know if I die.”

An old lady voice can be heard from outside a back door, shuffling with a large crackly bag. "Miss Bellaaaa! Miss Bella where are you? I need you to sort these amanita caps for Mr. Gunther down on 7th! He ran through his whole stock again, the crazy bat."

She looks up at him sincerely. "Thank you...again."

He looks embarrassed at the emotions and blushes too.

"Just uh… ahem. Don't mention it. My reputation as a hired killer is at stake."

"Oh Karu, don't talk like that..." Her face looks a little crestfallen again but she smiles just the same. "I know that would be just like you... But come back, okay?"

"I will miss Ruby. It seems you have someone calling though. I will return."