#ccsemberclub

The boggan finds her, "I think I'm going to take up smoking , for the stress. You were gone too long."

He snaps his fingers, indicating his visage.

As he snaps , she snaps back, and the illusion fades, "Apologies. "

His wicked, crooked smile, and a twinkle in his eye. "Some things one must take time to enjoy, Dearest."

He takes her hands and kisses them.

"mm true, true. what did you discover? I didn't want to risk scrying on you. I was worried it might Draw attention to you"

She does rise as he kisses her hands

"Thank you for that." He releases her and bustles around the office, putting his things away in the little nooks and crannies as he brings her up to speed. "... and so needless to say, you must stay home. Let them find someone else to carry their plague."

"I do want to find out a bit more about the Freehold and these nobles. I'll look into it."

"Damn." She says after she learns, "Yes, that would have been a no win."

She raises a brow at the other part "Pardon, if nobles are killing or atl east using nobles why do you care?"

Clearly not crazy bout him looking into it

"I like to watch." Impishly.

"Or is this some ire you have on my behalf?"

He chuckles. "Would you like it to be?"

His equipment clean and put away, he comes back to sit with her.

"Your lies are sweet, but in this case, let's stick with the true? Mmm. Are you doing this, even if only in part, because this woman tried to use me like British officers once used blankets on Indian tribes"

"What 'this' am I doing, Dearest? I've gotten what I think is creditable intelligence, determined the threat, mitigated it, and we have an answer for the creature when she returns." He shrugs, settling next to her. "The idea of you being a plague-bearer, while charming, isn't really feasible."

"I should hope not, I maybe easy, but I'm clean," Said with melodramtic loftiness

"But I do think I should go along. Just.. sadly, not as the star."

He chuckles appreciatively. "Go along where?"

"Your investigations"

"Oh, I was just going to call a few people, perhaps visit that library at Firnost, see what I could find out. Take it from there."

"You want to involve Kitten?" Startled

"No!" He looks at her blankly. "Whyever would I?"

"Pardon, the word library and the rest tuned out..." A shake of her horns, "Where is my head?"

He frowns, and kenns her.

"Look at me, Dearest."

She kens fine, no sign of bedlam, "Yes, I can see why you'd want to check.'

"Hmmm..." A disapproving noise, but he lets it go. "At least I can be sure you're not letting yourself Forget."

"I will try to balance things out, sometimes I even try balancing you."

"My brave girl, given how unbalanced I am." Fondly.

A kiss on HIS hands now, "Yes, very much your girl, and sometimes brave."

"Now... do you wish to take any precautions to the return of Lady Porch?

"No, no need. Oh we'll have bouncers positioned, and I'll create our 'fake guests' and even play the part of a few if need be so the hold is still 'too crowded'"for her to stay here. but let's not draw attention by changing things up from one day to the other."

"Dearest, I don't intent that she ever see the inside of the place! A noble, -inside- our Freehold? No, never."

"Then never" she says

'i'll see what I can do to ...make it less palatable to nobles."

"I can think of a few things." Muttered sourly.

"I was thinking of some chicanary frequently cast to affect only nobles. Maybe a sense of 'distaste' or 'disinterest'."

"Hmm..." Considering it. "Don't some chimera emit a kind of rede that acts thusly? Perhaps we need a guardian?"

"mm I know that ugly baby thing scares folks, fear ...maybe there's something more nuanced but just as effective?"

He lifts an eyebrow. "I recall hearing about something like that, years ago, yes.... Let's try for a bit more .... style."

"Oh, am I getting predictable?"

"No." Mildly amused. "You never cease to delight! Why?"

"It sounds like I've repeated myself or at least fallen into a pattern."

"Oh, good heavens, no, Dearest." He chuckles. "The ugly baby thing I was thinking of; I heard of it years and years ago, well before we met. At Firnost. There was a sluagh who used something like it as a messenger. I heard."

He smiles and strokes her cheek with a fingertip. "Caesar would have been in diapers around that time, I think."

"Ha." A smile, then a snap of her fingers.

"I think I .. I'll need to make sure it's true, but I think I have an idea."