#rescuemiriam

Earl takes a deep breath, pulls out his note pad, and writes 'YOU WANT ME TO TELL HIM WE"RE BEING SPIED ON?'' he looks tempted to write more, but then thinks better of it. Best to keep it to yes no responses.

Zara nods, gently covering the Listener with one hand. Eyes go back to the Storm, with some trepidation.

A deep breath, "Murray, storm," He says softly, "We have a problem."//Murray's reaction is almost instant. Rather than 'snap to attention' he seems to transition like a wolf going from an easy lope into a stalk for a danger to the pack. The Storm's grip on the spear changes to a more battle ready one, and his eyes scan about and he asks , "Details?"" //"We're being spied on," Earl whispers again, gesturing towards Zara's hands.// Murray raises a brow, then moves in one smooth gait towards Zara

Zara frowns, shrinking back a half-step.

Earl almost steps in front of his huge uncle. Murray mouths without speaking, "You want me to see this damn thing or not?"

Zara unfolds her hands, revealing the ear. She gums at her lower lip, doubting her choice to bring the thing out.

Murray is surprisingly clinical, he examines the ear, even sniffs it, a look of surprise on his face, and again his lips move, "No rot. No decay. Heavy glamour though. Treasure?" //Earl nods, reading the lips/ Murray motions her to set it down on a rock, and then jerks his head a distance away near where the stream gurgles with whiter water.

Zara sets it down, and her arms instinctively wrap around her torso - she slinks towards the indicated spot, as small and unobtrusive as possible.

They all move there. Murray now finds it safer to whisper, trusting the sluagh's ears to hear, and ready to watch her lips if he has to. But to Earl he comments, "Skittish little thing, isn't she?" // "She's cautious, "Earl counters in a whisper, "And a guest." A bit fierce./// Murray tilts his head and looks at his punier realation, "So that's what it takes eh? Huh." Then to Zara, "What's the story on that thing?"

"I found it in the grotto, beneath a pool of water. It... it listens. But I cannot.. treasures, I can't whisper to, I can't magic them. I know not who hears the other end."

"I know how you all value your privacy, here. How you depend on escaping notice.... I thought... " another frown, and she rakes back her pale bangs. "B-best you know, even though this is all I know."

Murray looks perplexed," The only one that could spy on in there is Earl. he's the only one who goes in, ever. "

"He cannot reach where I went. No troll, save, mayhaps, a child could..."

"I don't think any of the kids now adays know, but i can check." Murray says, "But you mean a sluagh planted that there? Okay. I accept that. but why?"

"I d-duh... I.. " She shakes her head, cheeks flushed.

"I don't know why either, " Earl says gently to Zara , "So no reason you should. "

Murray scowls, "Defense is my element now, joy. I don't think we should go to Grandpa with this. He'll hit the rough and go looking for infiltrators or claim some sidhe set a spy in our midst."

"I thought... p-pardon... treasures are beyond my grasp, but.. ah... a Mountain's? Mayhaps he could.. learn, see, what I cannot."

"If anyone can do it, he can." A grumble nod from Murray.

Earl takes a breath, "Any idea where he is?"//Murray nods, "He's having a pipe on that bench he likes so much. Why don't you leave the ear here. Bring him out. I don't want that thing further in the farm."

Zara nods, head ducked low.

"And relax will you?" Murray says, "Just because I'm Unseelie doesn't mean I'm going to bite you." //Earl frowns, "She has unseelie friends. You're just intimidating, Murray. and she's shy. "//Earl leads Zara on, explaining, "I think time as a family outcast made him a bit of a jerk. If he's going to be Storm he's going to have to at least pretend to have manners."

"I do not mind unseelie. Have warned Earl, I am not often far from that court. Too close, for the taste of most. Not close enough, for others." She nearly mutters the last, it may easily be missed.

Murray tilts his head, and a bit of a wolf grin escapes. How much he heard, can't be sure.//Earl leads Zara to an old bench, hand crafted out of a log, a bit crude by Hirim's standards, but a lot of love is in the bench. Some youngsters scratched their names in it over the decades. One can even see a 'Clem kicks ass!' boldly inscribed on the back side. Sitting in it, smoking a pipe that smells of vanilla and other harder to place scents, is the mountain. Emmit raises a brow, and doffs a hat, "Why Earl, this must be our guest. Introduce us?" As if they'd never met.///"This is Zara, Mountain Emmit. Zara, this is my Great Uncle, and Mountain of the hold, Emmit."//"Lo, young lady," The man says offering a tip of the hat again.

Hand on her chest, a formal and stubborn habit, as she drops into a bow. "An honor to meet you, Mountain."

Earl smiles, then blinks at something, "Have you two met before?"/The Mountain raises a brow, then smiles at Earl, "If we had. Then it wouldn't kill you to play along. If we hadn't? Then you might be a bit rude acting like we were acting." //earl sighs, and apologizes, to both , "Uhm sorry."//Emmit pats the younger man on the shoulder, "No no, it's fine, Earl." And looks to Zara, "How do you like the tour?"

"It is beautiful here. Very different from other holds I have visited, even the other Trollish one I've seen. Thank you for the hospitality you all have extended."

"Our pleasure young lady, it does us some good to scale back this isolationism I think," Slightest of quirk of lips.

"Miss Clementine, I know, has been active. But... but I know, too, your privacy is valued... discretion remains paramount."

Emmit nods to Zara, "Just so." Then he looks over to Earl, "I see why you like her, Earl. She's got more sense than many girls her age."

Zara the pale is very much Zara the pink, fingers tangled together in a complicated knot. "I.. pardon. When Earl w-was showing me about, I found something that... that ought not be here."

At that, Emmit's brow knits and his smile subsides, "Go on , please, young lady."

"A treasure, sir. A Listener, hidden in the depths of the grotto."

"It is... a kind I am familiar with, not one you would see with your kith, nor in a place a troll could reach. Not easily."

"The grotto? Heck,sometimes I almost forget about that place," Emmit frowns, "I think I've heard of listeners. Spying devices, but... it's not like we have conversations there. Earl? Do you bring anyone else there?" //" Just me and clem, and even then we don't talk about family business. I mostly just ... complained about how alone I felt here," A blush, "Sorry Uncle."//"Well, that's on us," Emmit nods, "And you don't owe US an apology." He then looks to Zara, "Anything else you can tell me? "

"....Have there been other sluagh here? Ones.. ah.. connected to a trolless?"

Emmit frowns at something, "We have one ... who comes here every year or two. He's an old friend of mine, and we trust him completely."//Earl nods, "yes, Mr. De Vere. He's the one who gave my first book by Poe."

"It... may not be malicious. I think... I think that may be a hasty conclusion."

"Curiosity is our bane and blessing. Part of what we are."

"Well, all he'd learn from that grotto is that I was sulky and withdrawn," Earl says.//Emmit frowns, "Stop that." //Earl looks startled, "Sir?"//Emmit says, "Earl, you weren't just sulky and withdrawn to be a pain, you were so because we never understood you, and kept expecting you to be more 'us'. It's okay that you're not. You've proven your way is not only 'okay' for you, it excells for you. And while I'm not going to get gushy in front of a guest, I'm very sorry it took many of us so long to see it."//Earl blushes then blinks, "Uhm, thank you?"

"It... to know private thoughts, they needn't be.. useful, per se, to be valuable."

"But my thought, perhaps, is one could examine it more closely with magic. Treasures are beyond my skill."

"I hear you, young lady. Lead me to it," The old man says to both, but looks troubled, "Maybe this is nothing."

Zara nods, willingly taking the lead for this.

Zara leads them straight back, Murray still watches from a slight distance. And Emmit moves to the ear and bends down. He begins to mutter and work a different sort of magic, not omen, but tattle tale, tracking back whoever is doing this. His bunk is to circle it thirteen times, it takes awhile, and he stops at each cardinal direction. North being last. Then..touches it.

Zara watches, studying the bunk and keeping her senses open to the way the grump "builds" his cantrip.

Zara can see his lips move, the words 'De Vere? but why?' and at this, he begins another cantrip building on a first, an omen Through the tattle tale!

"Oh...." she is transfixed - she's seen similar, once, but has not yet attempted it herself.

And whatever Emmit sees, it makes him jerk his head towards Earl, understanding, revaluation. And...concern.

Her eyes narrow, flicking between the two.