Spot Check

[Rhea Hartman]

Rhea had always known that Cecil enjoyed roleplaying games. Between his sacks of occult-looking dice and sobering army of hand-painted figurines, it was difficult to miss. How such a skilled outdoorsman could spend hours decorating tiny plastic fairies was something she had never understood, but she excused it as an endearing quirk. It was one of those hobbies that she was happy to encourage so long as she was never asked to participate, like civil war reenactments or base jumping.

This was where Rhea had made her mistake. A few weeks ago in the afterglow of a particularly good run, she had been smiling and nodding as Cecil described a new game he had ordered. He said something about magic level balance and added earnestly, “You should try it sometime, I think you'd be surprised.”

“Yeah, sure,” Rhea replied with vague enthusiasm. “It sounds like it could be fun.” And then she had forgotten about it.

Cecil, evidently, had not. His younger brother Tristan was visiting from Wales for the week, and one of the planned activities was a gaming session with Cecil's old Dungeons and Dragons group from New York. But then Ting Chun had gone and gotten stomach flu, and Cecil had called in the middle of her shift and asked anxiously if she could come.

Rhea didn't have the heart to say no. And now she was climbing out of her Corolla down the street from Cecil's apartment, anticipating five or six hours of confusing boredom.

Rhea was about as far from a nerd as it was possible to be. Had her vicious streak been a little wider, she would have been the kid in high school who dunked nerds in toilets. All she knew about fantasy was that it had something to do with elves. To try to become slightly less ignorant on the topic, she had furtively looked up The Lord of the Rings on Wikipedia last night. She made it about four paragraphs. Every other word seemed to be a made-up country, race or deity, and after a few minutes all she had gained was disbelief that anyone could care about this enough to understand it.

But Cecil had been working on this game for months. So with an internal sigh, she rapped her knuckles on the front door. If nothing else, it would make a good story later.

[Cecil Wathen]

It had been four days since Tristan had arrived in the states, and Cecil was feeling a little guilty that most of their time had been spent planning out the game for this evening. Of course Cecil had drawn the outline up as soon as his baby brother had announced he was coming over, but the plan for the group had changed so many times over the months since then that the last few days had been a little chaotic. Sure they had spent some time visiting Burlington and going for a short hike in the hills and such, but Cecil had spent most of the time fretting over whether or not the gaming session would actually work. Tristan had, of course, told him to knock it off and just enjoy his few days off work. For Cecil, however, that was always easier said than done.

Mandy had arrived from New York that morning and, despite Cecil's gentle protests, had insisted on helping him get things set up and ready. The dining table had been moved out of its usual home in the corner and had taken centre-stage in the living room, a gaming mat and lay out and several scenry pieces placed to make a woodland setting. Tristan and Mandy had already got their character's miniatures ready, and Cecil had picked out a few suitable ones for Rhea to chose from. The necessary monsters, however, stayed firmly inside an opaque box on the table. Well, it would have been a shame to ruin any surprises before the game had even started.

Mephit, of course, was relishing in the attention of two new people in her lair. The Kelpie alternated between power-naps and frolicking around the room, begging for cuddles and wanting to be a part of everything that was going on… Especially the food. Cecil let her have a small piece of pepperoni as the rest was spread out over a pizza base ready to go in the oven, alongside a chicken and sweetcorn and a three cheese. There was also cookies and a small selection of dippers with a few tubs of the sauces and relishes that Ferris had brought over the other week. The generosity of his friend had never failed to amaze him.

They still had a little time before Rhea was due to arrive and so Cecil headed downstairs to the little garden of the bar for a smoke, Mephit trotting along with him so she could have a runaround and burn off some energy before things got underway. Cecil was incredibly excited about tonight, but also a little anxious. He knew it could be tough for new players to get into the game, especially when in a group completely made up of seasoned gamers, and he did truthfully want it to be as fun for her as possible. He’d do what he could to help her along and keep her involved, but if she didn’t enjoy it, well… D&D isn’t for everyone, after all.

After the cigarette was spent Cecil stubbed it out thoroughly before discarding it in the bucket, heading back inside and to the upstairs apartment just in time to see Rhea knocking on the door. “Rhea! I’m so glad you came; it’s great to see you.” Mephit gave a bark of greeting and butted her head against Rhea, looking for some attention as Cecil let them into the apartment. It was warm and cosy, the walls lined with shelves full of books and board games and video games and miniatures. So very many miniatures. “Please, come in, make yourself at home.” Cecil led the way in, indicating to Mandy who was reclining in a chair and reviewing a rule in the Players Handbook. “Rhea, this is Mandy, my friend from New York. Mandy, Rhea.” A voice called out from the kitchen asking what everyone was drinking. Cecil chuckled. “And that’s my baby brother, Tris. What drink do you fancy?”

[Rhea Hartman]

Rhea's forced smile was made genuine by the sight of her friend, and upgraded to one of her bright laughs when Mephit wedged her nose between her thighs. “Good to see you too! Hey girl!” Rhea ducked down to furiously scratch Mephit's ears. “You are getting so big. Who's a good girl? You're a good girl, yes you are! You big, cuddly sausage.” She gave Mephit a final slap on the rear and she galloped back over to Cecil, tail frantically slicing the air. Rhea followed her in.

“You'd better watch those--” Plastic trees? Tiny...wizard people? “--thingies on the table, or Mephit's gonna knock them all off.” Rhea eyed the table apprehensively. This would be fine. A little confusing maybe, but Cecil said he'd help her out. It might even be fun, she thought unenthusiastically.

The introduction brought her attention to the short, pretty woman with sleek black bangs sitting in a recliner with her legs crossed and reading from a book with a lurid battle scene painted on the front. Rhea, who rarely wore anything but uniforms, zip-up hoodies and capri yoga pants, had to admire her presentation. She was neat, stylish, compact, with a smart blazer over a fitted t-shirt emblazoned with some quote Rhea didn't know, straight-leg jeans, and black flats. Rhea noticed a tattoo on her ankle that was, again, a reference to something she didn't get. “Nice to meet you,” Rhea said with a smile, holding out her hand. “Cecil told me you guys were in a gaming group together in New York. I've never played before, but he said it's fun.”

She had been too busy sizing up the table to notice, but Mandy's eyes had widened in horror when Rhea walked through the door. Unbeknownst to Cecil, Mandy had long nursed a soft spot for the Welshman, tended during midnight hours of slaying minotaurs and debating rule revisions. She had been elated by his divorce and her formidable imagination went into overdrive—midnight despair, a shoulder to cry on, soothing words of comfort, gentle strokes on his broad, trembling back, and then in his moment of loneliness a shy, tearful kiss...

And then he had moved. And now in Ting Chun's place stood a six foot tall beautiful woman in Adidas gear with the physique of a pro wrestler and legs like an Amazon. Mandy smiled politely and held out her hand in return. “Nice to meet you too. It's a funny story actually, we met through a friend of mine on a Japanese RPG board that I used to be an admin on. And you?”

“Running partners, mostly,” Rhea said. She was surveying the table warily again but was interrupted by Cecil. “Drinks? Yeah, do you have any diet soda?” She left Mandy to her reading and followed him to the kitchen. She was greeted by the smiling, cleanly-cut face of what could only be another Wathen. “Tristan! Great to finally meet you!” Another hand extended and shaken. “Cecil says you work in law enforcement too, one of the paper-pushers.” Her black eyes sparkled. “Hope her Majesty's own don't get you in too much trouble.”

[Cecil Wathen]

Over the past year and a half Cecil and Rhea’s friendship had become a firm one, in his view anyway, and he had been ecstatic when she had agreed to come over and play on such short notice. Sure it would be a little awkward getting her into the game and settled when the rest of them had been playing for years, but there were few people he would rather be introducing to this little aspect of his life. It of course helped massively that Mephit adored her, and he laughed as the excitable Kelpie greeted his friend with her usual puppyish enthusiasm. His tone was bright and teasing, the Welshman clearly in very high spirits. “What do I have to do to get a head scratch like that?”

Cecil chuckled as Mephit bounded into the room and headed for the kitchen, no doubt looking to see if anything delicious had found its way into her bowl while they were outside. “They’ll be okay. She knows she’s not allowed to bang about too much, and I think I managed to take most of the edge off her outside.”

Sliding his mobile phone out of his pocket, Cecil set it to silent before placing it next to the laptop on the table while the ladies got talking. He had wanted to do it all old-school style with nothing but pencils and papers, but all the last-minute changes had meant he’d had to move all of his notes and plot plans onto his laptop so he could access them and make changes easier. It rubbed away a little of the authenticity, but hell, he had to admit that it did often make things much simpler to keep track of.

Cecil did not notice Mandy’s reaction to Rhea, being far too busy making sure he had all the necessary mini’s ready so he wouldn’t have to duck away to try and find any during the game. Even if he had seen it, he would not have understood the reason behind it. Mandy had been a good friend for a long time and he cared about her deeply, and she had been a rock for him to cling to when he felt like he was drowning. He could not have asked for a more sensitive and understanding platonic friend. He grinned as he turned back to the girls, trying to mask the mischievous smirk as he ran through the plot in his mind again. Oh yes, he had mean things planned, and was clearly excited and loving every moment. “That’s right. Rhea’s pretty much the only person who can keep pace with me up the hills here.” He switched to a mock-whisper in Mandy’s direction, just about loud enough for Rhea to hear. “I let her win sometimes though, just to be kind.”

Before he had a chance to see the expression that crossed Mandy’s face they were summoned into the kitchen, Cecil giving his brother a quick hug before opening up the fridge. Tristan was a little shorter than his brother and less powerfully built, but had the same dark hair and cheeky glint in his brown eyes. Tristan's smile was also equally as bright as his brother's when he offered out his hand to the newcomer. His accent, however, was stronger than Cecil's, heightened by a lifetime living in Wales and nowhere else. “Rhea, right? Good to meet you too. Yeah, there's diet soda in the fridge. Help yourself to whatever you want.” Leaning against the door frame, Cecil laughed. “Yeah, thanks Tris. Feel free to offer out my everything to everyone.”

The younger Wathen just rolled his eyes in amusement, retrieving a glass from one of the cupboards and offering it to Rhea. At her appraisal of his job, however, Tristan's eyebrow rose in quiet disbelief. “Paper-pusher? Is that how he described me? Well then... this game might get a bit more interesting than planned.” Now it was Cecil's turn to roll his eyes before heading back into the living room to get plates and such ready for snackables. Tristan gave a quiet laugh, but it was clear he was slightly bothered by the phrase. He took his job and the responsibilities it entailed very seriously, even if the rest of his life tended to just be one giant game. “I'm a witness support officer. I look after crime victims, which does involve a bit more than moving files around.” He gave a small shrug. “Cecil says you've never played before. Looking forward to giving it a go?”

[Rhea Hartman]

“Get a lot hairier and a lot cuter,” Rhea said as she gave Mephit her final pat. Despite her grim outlook for the afternoon, Cecil's enthusiasm was contagious and she couldn't help smiling. She was glad to hear at least that Mephit wouldn't be a problem. She loved her and Cecil had her impeccably trained, but sometimes a hundred-plus pounds of ecstatic canine was a bit much to add to a situation.

Mandy laughed at Cecil's stage whisper, to which Rhea replied with a playful shove of the shoulder. “In your dreams, limey. I could roll you from here to Central Park and you know it.” It was Rhea's habit to claim ultimate dominance in any sport regardless of how frequently she actually won.

"C'mon Cecil, you know I don't need your brother's permission to take whatever I want from your fridge," she said with a small wink in Tristan's direction. Mandy had requested a gin and tonic, and Rhea poured one for her from Cecil's ever-ample stock of liquor before pulling out a diet coke for herself. She looked mildly impressed when Tristan elaborated on his career. “That's rough stuff. Good for you.” She opened her can with a 'snk' sound, took a sip, and shook her head. “The legal stuff on the other end, the persecution and defense, it gets horrible. I couldn't do it.”

As they navigated back to the living room, Rhea continued to ask Tristan questions about his vacation, how he liked the States, what he liked most about Wales. She delivered Mandy's drink, who had moved next to Cecil and was making notes on a sheet of paper and chatting about the Churchkey. Rhea glanced over Mandy's shoulder and was horrified by what she saw—it looked like a tax rebate form. “No, I haven't,” she told Tristan as she took a seat across from the other woman. For once in her life she looked uncertain and even slightly intimidated. She pulled one of the sheets towards her and examined it blankly. “So are these the rules?”

Tristan, though no one else, caught Mandy's sharp eye-roll.

[Cecil Wathen]

Cecil gave a mock gasp of offended shock, but the humour was bright in his eyes and he clearly had to battle to keep the grin back. “I’ll have you know that people think I’m adorable, thank you very much!”

He was genuinely thrilled that Rhea had agreed to come around today. He had grown fond of her in the time they had known one another, and it made him happy to be able to involve her in this little aspect of his life, even if only temporarily if she didn’t enjoy it. He rolled his shoulder at the shove, rocking off most of the momentum, and playfully shoved her back. “Hey, quit calling me limey, yank. You know you’d have to roll me there because the only way you could beat me was if I was unconscious.”

Tristan had the same easy smile as his big brother, and he laughed at her comment and nodded towards her. “I like you already. About time there was someone knocking him down a peg or two.” Cecil rolled his eyes at the pair of them before rescuing a bottle of beer for himself and heading back into the other room, leaving his brother and Rhea to chat while he went over to double-check what Mandy had come up with for her rogue spymaster character.

The younger Wathen gave a small nod as Rhea spoke about their respective careers. “It is tough. The worst is when I’ve been working with an abuse witness for a while, and because of how it plays out in court the bastard gets found not guilty, when you just… know he did it, y’know?” He gave a quiet, humourless laugh. “It’s a shame I have to co-operate with lawyers so much, considering how much I fecking hate them sometimes.”

Tristan chatted easily with Rhea as they headed back into the living room, and he rested a jar of relish on the shoulder of Cecil’s arm that was draped over the back of the chair behind Mandy. “I can’t find any of the small bowls for that.” Cecil gave a faux dramatic sigh of frustration but it was ruined by his smile, and he rescued the jar before it fell and got up and headed back into the kitchen to get a dipping bowl for the Ferris-made relish.

Tristan caught himself before he was about to sit down, giving a small shake of his head at Rhea’s question. “Ah, no. That’s a character sheet. Yours is over here.” He went over the table, glancing over it to find the simplified-as-much-as-humanly-possible character sheet drawn up for Rhea and handing it over to her. He noticed Mandy’s eye roll and frowned slightly, but made no comment. “I know it looks a confusing mess, but you’ll pick it up quick enough. We’ll help you all the way, wont we Mandy?” He put a slight emphasis on her name, hoping she would pick up on his intent. Tristan wanted this to be a good game for everyone; it wasn’t exactly like he got to play often any more, and he knew just how much work his big bro had put into it. The last thing he wanted was a random bad mood to risk ruining anything.

[Rhea Hartman]

“Unconscious, huh?” Rhea tilted her head back and gave him a lazy once-over with her dark, heavy-lidded eyes. She grinned and flexed her shoulders. “I think that could be arranged.”

She continued to banter as they got the refreshments sorted, but her expression sobered when Tristan went into more detail about the difficult parts of his job. She shuddered. “Shit, I'd be over that railing before you could say 'criminal justice.' Makes me sick just thinking about it.” She and her peers were risking their lives to stop these people from hurting anyone else, and then some slick-tongued lawyer in a court room talked them free. She shook her head. “Glad we've got people like you in the courts, anyway.”

On the other side of the table, Cecil and Mandy were having a much more lighthearted conversation. “...then Simon decided that was a good time to bring up his vendetta with Pathfinder.” Mandy smiled impishly. “And that's how the two hundred dollar Tiamut headdress ended up on fire.” She squeezed the hand dangling by her shoulder. “It's good to see you, Sess. I'm glad the Churchkey is doing so well. We miss you up in New York.”

Mandy made no sign that she'd taken Tristan's hint, but when Cecil got up to find a bowl for the relish she moved around the table to sit by Rhea. “Do you want a hand with your sheet?”

“Yeah, that'd be great,” Rhea replied unenthusiastically. "Thanks, Mandy."

Mandy shifted the piece of paper towards her. “Wow, Cecil really boiled this down for you. You're a fighter, I see.”

“Yup.”

“You might want be a spellcaster instead. Tristan's a cleric but it doesn't provide the same strategic--”

“Nope. I'm good.”

“Okay, fighter it is.” Mandy gave a small shake of her head, unaware that Rhea and Cecil had had a nigh identical conversation several days ago. “It looks like Cecil has filled most of this out for you already. You just need to write in your name and age and that sort of thing.” She pointed to the blank spaces at the top of the sheet.

“Okay.” Rhea took one of the pencils and began writing in Rhea and 35.

Mandy grabbed instinctively for the sheet. “No, not you you. Your character, the person you'll be playing. You know, roleplaying?”

“Oh, right.” Rhea blinked and looked down at the piece of paper again. “Um...” She added an n. Rhean. "Does that work?”

Tristan wasn't looking, and neither was Rhea. Mandy rolled her eyes again. “Yeah, that'll be fine.” She pushed her chair back to move back to her seat. "It looks like you're ready to go, other than that."

[Cecil Wathen]

[This is a blanket apology to all D&D fans. For the sake of keeping this thread interesting and not just having countless posts of nothing but dice rolls and explaining said dice rolls to Rhea, there is a very high chance that some game rules will be tweaked, glossed over or just flat-out ignored. Consider this as Cecil dumbing things right down so Rhea can get more involved and not have to worry too much about learning everything all at once.]

Tristan gave a small, slightly sad smile and nodded his head. “Yeah. It gets really hard sometimes, but we try our best. I mean, we have to, right? Someone has to help the poor sods when the laws that are supposed to help them screw them over instead.” He fixed his own drink up. “Still, if it weren’t for you lot out on the streets pulling them in, we’d never get any of the dicks dealt with. Mutual respect.”

Cecil and Mandy’s conversation was far more spirited, and he laughed boldly as she explained just what had happened to the headdress. “Aww, no! I’d have sold a kidney for that thing and it got toasted for that? God, I can’t leave you all alone for five minutes, can I?” The Welshman smiled at the gentle squeeze on his hand and he let it fall idly down and around Mandy’s waist, pulling her into a gentle sideways hug. “I know. I miss you all too. As soon as things are more settled with the bar I’ll come and visit you all properly, I promise.”

Cecil retrieved the dish for the relish from the kitchen before returning to the living room, settling it down on the table. He then went over to a shelf in the corner of the living room and picked up two small items from it. Seeing that Rhea and Mandy appeared to be bonding over the cop’s character sheet, Cecil placed them on the table and served out the relish and arranged snacks out on the table while they spoke. Once they appeared to be done, Cecil picked up the items again and held them out towards Rhea. “Here, these are for you. Every new gamer needs the basics, at least.” One was a plastic holder containing a set of red marble dice, and the other was a miniature of a female warrior that Cecil had hand-painted to look as close to Rhea as he could manage. The emblem on the little shield was a sword slicing through a rat.

Cecil gave Mephit a chew bone to keep her occupied while they gamed and then took his seat at the head of the table and began to get settled, checking to make sure he had all his notes present and in order. He then looked up to Rhea. “When I’m running a game, sometimes I’ll send out visuals and sounds of what’s going on, just to give my players a better feel for things. If you’d rather I didn’t send them to you that is absolutely fine, I’ll respect that. I just wanted to give you the option to say no before I just did it and spooked you or something.”

[Rhea Hartman]

“Mutual respect indeed,” Rhea said with a smile, lifting her can of soda in a toast. “We'll keep all these punks in line.”

Mandy smiled and leaned into Cecil's hug. His strong arm, the fresh, laundered scent of his body wash... “You should try and make it in for ZakiCon. They've got some big names from Wizards of the Coast that'll be there. We could all--” and by that she meant the two of them “--rent a room and make a weekend of it.”

Rhea glanced up with the arrival of snacks and groped for a few crackers while Cecil fussed with the relishes. Mandy was pointing out things like 'bonuses' and 'to hit' rolls, but Rhea was mostly hearing "geek geek math nerd dice geek." She had yet to penetrate how this could be considered enjoyable by anyone.

Mandy finished her explanation and Rhea smiled and nodded, resigned to her fate. At least hanging out with Cecil and Tristan and Mandy would be fun. She was just spreading some pickled beets on one of her crackers when Cecil made his gift. She blinked and took the dice first. “Oh, you didn't have to do that,” she said with a smile as she examined the bizarre shapes. She shook the dice out onto the table. “Wow. These are--” needlessly complicated “--pretty cool. And you got red ones!” Her smile warmed. “Thanks, Cecil.”

Surprise replaced the smile when she saw the figurine. She took it gingerly and examined it between two fingers. “Is this—it's me!” Her voice expressed more shock than pleasure. “Did you paint this with, like one hair? Is that a...” She held the figurine closer and squinted. Then she burst out laughing.

She stood and slung Cecil into a one-armed hug. “Thanks, Sess! I can't imagine how long that took you, that's really sweet.” She rustled his immaculate hair with the hugging hand. “You giant nerd.”

Tristan asked to see it, and Rhea passed the figurine around with pride, even chuckling sheepishly through the admission that she was terrified of rats. Mandy wondered if there was any way she could exploit this. Her irritation at having another woman vying for Cecil's attention had spiked into seething jealousy.

Once everyone had seen it, Rhea placed the figurine at the top of her sheet where she could admire it. She glanced up at Cecil's question. “Oh yeah, sure. No, that sounds like it could make it a lot more interesting.” She adjusted the figure slightly. Rhean was a mighty fine looking lady. Good, solid suit of armor.

[Cecil Wathen]

In truth, a Con sounded like a great idea and Cecil gave a small nod of his head. “Sounds like a date. If you can get me the dates and nearby hotels and stuff I can get someone to watch the bar while I'm gone.” It had been a very long time since he'd been to a con and it'd be good to meet up with everyone again, and Christ knew he deserved a bit of a break. He hadn't had a full weekend off since... well... since he'd bought the bar, really.

As he set up Cecil nabbed a breadstick, dunking the end into the salsa and nibbling on it while he checked and double-checked that everything was ready. A grin cut across his lips as Rhea thanked him for the dice, and he chuckled softly. “Hey, no problem. It was that or lend you a set of mine, and that'd be bad luck.” Of course Cecil didn't believe in that, but there was a surprisingly high number of gamers that did. Sharing dice was just not on.

He had kind of expected her to have an odd reaction to the miniature, but he was glad it was just surprise and not some form of horror. He genuinely enjoyed painting the figurines, and admittedly it helped kill the hours of the day when he had literally nothing at all better to do. Admittedly the number of figurines he had was getting a bit... much. He sold a couple occasionally but nowhere near as many as he bought in. When Tris had arrived and seen quite how many miniatures had been gathered, he'd told his big brother that he needed to get a boyfriend. Cecil had told him to shut up or he'd have to get a hotel room.

“A very tiny paintbrush, and quite a few toothpicks.” Rhea's laugh was reassuring to hear and he returned the sideways hug warmly, laughing as she messed up his hair. “Hey, I'm just glad you like it.” He left his hair as she had ruffled it – it wasn't exactly long, she could ruffle it all day and it wouldn't make that much difference – and settled down into his chair and took a swig of his drink. “Right. Is everyone pretty much set to play Dungeons and/ or Dragons?”

[Rhea Hartman]

There was a chorus of agreement around the table, and even Rhea sounded cautiously interested. She cast another eye over her sheet and the complicated dice before returning her attention to Cecil, as Tristan and Mandy were already doing. Well, time to give this a shot.

[Cecil Wathen]

Cecil got settled in his chair, taking a swig of his drink before launching into the description.

“It is a fairly small desert town. The streets are lined with merchant stalls selling everything from spices to weapons to animal pelts, but the vast majority of the populace are poor and struggling to get by. When you arrived in the town two days ago, taking a break from your travels to rest and resupply before getting ready to carry on your journey, you were welcomed like shiny new toys by the locals. They don’t get many visitors in these parts, due to the heat and their near-constant droughts, and so the arrival of three obviously seasoned warriors is enough to create some excitement. A few people, however, have been giving you a little cause for concern. They keep approaching you and asking if you’re going to save them, but their kin shoo them along before you get a chance to respond to them. “

Cecil took a moment to project an image into their minds; a little market square crowded with wooden tables heavily laden with goods. The ground is parched reddish-brown dirt, of which small clouds swirl lazily in the wind. The stall owners and customers are all humanoid and wearing loose clothing in pale colours, and there are three town guards patrolling in light armour and carrying spears.

“One such man approaches as you are browsing an alchemists table, his voice stuttering and hands wringing as he addresses the three of you.” Cecil changed the image to one of the human man, fairly short and slender with deeply tan skin and brown eyes that kept flicking around warily. “P-P-Please can you help us? They keep c-coming… They keep coming all the time… We c-can’t fight them f-f-forever.”

[Rhea Hartman]

Rhea's brow furrowed as Cecil began telling the story. So...her figurine person was in a desert, along with Tristan and Mandy's figurines. The description elicited several questions: What was this journey they were taking a break from? Why were the three of them traveling together? Were they being paid to do this? If the village got so few visitors, why were they bothering to go there?

"Wait, so they're...?" she began before Tristan hushed her. Cecil wasn't finished.

Cecil had projected to Rhea before, but it was usually just words or maybe a picture. She blinked in surprise as the dusty, sagging little market swirled to life in her mind's eye, then at the nervous man pleading for help. "Fight who forever?" she asked Cecil. "What're you--is he--talking about?"

"You have to find out, that's the game," Mandy said with a shake of her sleek, shining hair. She placed her figurine in the center of the table and said in a businesslike tone, "Sylvanna checks to see if the alchemist is listening in. Then she asks the man if there is anywhere in town where they could buy him a private drink."

[Cecil Wathen]

Cecil knew it would take a little while for Rhea to settle into it. He could vaguely remember his own first game, though it was many years ago now. He had been overwhelmed and confused and not had a single clue what the heck was going on, but he had persevered and learned and come to love it. Perhaps that would be asking a bit much from Rhea, but as long as she didn’t have a too-sucky time he would be happy.

Tristan listened intently to the description, putting his own miniature onto the map near the representation of the alchemists’ table before picking up and idly fidgeting with a breadstick. He didn’t have quite as much experience with the game as Mandy and his big brother, but he knew enough to be able to help Rhea along. He indicated to Mandy with the breadstick when she explained that they had to find out what is going on. “Exactly what she said. We know there’s this guy who seems to be in some trouble; it’s up to our characters to find out what and decide what to do about it.” He dipped the end of the breadstick into the tub of salsa. “While Sylvanna is talking to him, I’m gonna have Vermilion try to sense his motive; try and work out if he’s faking or if he’s genuinely scared and needs our help.”

Tristan knew of course that he didn’t have to be so wordy with his descriptions to get Cecil to know what he wanted to do; a simple ‘sense motive’ and dice roll would have worked, but he hoped that it could maybe help Rhea get a bit of an idea of the kind of things she could do.

Cecil addressed Mandy first. “The alchemist is dealing with a customer at the other end of his stall. He doesn’t appear to be paying any attention to you at all. When you ask the man about somewhere to have a drink he stutters about a small tavern on the other side of the market square. Tris, you can totally check to see if he’s B.S.ing you.” While he was speaking, Cecil put a figure representing the shaky man onto the map near Sylvanna. When Tristan announced fifteen, Cecil gave a small nod. “You’re ninety percent sure that he’s genuinely crapping himself over something and does really need your help.” Brown eyes looked up to Rhea. “Do you want to put Rhean on the map where you would like her to be stood?” Baby steps…

[Rhea Hartman]

"Ooookay..." Rhea copied the others and placed her figurine on the map. She watched in bafflement as Tristan explained the 'sense motive' phenomena then rolled one of the funny dice. "Wait, why would he be lying? And can't we just tell? See if he's restless or his pupils are contracted?"

"That's what we're doing," Mandy said with another nigh-invisible roll of her eyes. "The dice roll is to see if we get it right. He might just be a good actor."

"Okay," Rhea repeated again. She looked down at her sheet and saw 'Negotiate' with some numbers next to it. "So let's go to a bar and...negotiate? Does this mean I can negotiate?" She pointed to the line in her sheet. "Do I have to roll something to do that?"