#rivervale_lodge

"Good luck finding that kind of girl" Gerd says with a snort still eyeing the jewelry box

A beat, then he says "It'll be a quest but worth it I think"

She looks up "yeah I..." then their eyes lock and she.. she blushes.

He blushes.. and smiles

She smiles just a bit back then coughs "Ah, thanks for this wonderful box"

"Thanks for being the right person to give it to. Mind if I drop by again sometime?"

"I.. I don't mind" she says that confused what's happening here? look

"Great" He sets the drink down "Should I put this..."

"I'll put it up" she offers

"Thanks..and tell the Hearth and the little man it was nice meeting them for me please?" he moves to the door

"Will do" She nods

And he swings the door open, looks at the size of it "Geez nice to know the family mamoth can slip out..." And then he's gone outside. Closing the door behind him.. and trying not to freak out That went well, right? RIGHT? I mean, she liked it! I can visit again! Oh god I have to visit again! I can't afford to make a box everytime I visit! She has one!

Gerd watches him go, and then once she's gone she breathes deep He's nice. Huh, he'll be back then her eyes snap wider Oh god! He's NICE.. he'll be back!

Suddenly her concerns about Connor are ALMOST forgotten. What the hell just happened?

**********************

Kerri comes out of the kitchen and...oh, yes, that looks like quite the clever jewelry box. Oh, I can see why Gerd is impressed. She tries to open it.

There's a ..latch ..which should slide open but... well, what may happen is it will take her a moment, only to find there are layers to this thing

She explores it for a few moments, then stops. I'll let Gerd show me all the details of it when she chooses. I've got something else that needs doing.

Still the space this could save... mmm one more craftsman on her 'potential contact ' list

It shows all the signs of being a token of affection. In fact, the whole approach was definitely that a of a gent seeking to earn a lady's attention. Nocker style

Well, he'd better stay a gentleman...or he'll likely find himself in the lake.

That does take the edge off.

She leaves the treasure box and goes upstairs, back into Connor's room. The photo has her attention again. She picks it up and murmurs to it in a sing-song: "Kodachrome
They give us those nice bright colors
They give us the greens of summers
Makes you think all the world's a sunny day, oh yeah
I got a Nikon camera
I love to take a photograph
So mama, don't take my Kodachrome away"

The glamour clings to the photo and the post-it on the back.

Her glamour swirls around the photo, and what sounds like a dry paper rustles, waiting for a question.

"Who gave you to Connor?"

She know s what name is written on the note. She also knows names can be forged.

"A golden flower that grows from the Hearth of ancient Tunisia, not a goat, and yet nanny still."

A nod. So it does come from this Marigold person.

"What purpose do you serve beside being an image of a loved one?"

"Image of one who has gone... from one who held her dear. She dandled the sire, and also his pup, and wishes he were sometimes near. No compulsion I, save for memories gone by, that may be revisited here." The voice whispers, half coming from the photo graph, half from the note, taken as a whole.

Kerri purses her lips. It sounds like the photo is harmless...and she can't quite trust that. But since that's the answer she's got...she goes for the long shot. "What happened to the woman in the photo?"

The rustle is growing fainter. "Beloved of dragon, and child of eve, such flows a tragic stream, she suffered for love, and for love was lost, flower withered, tempest tossed - swallowed within the Dream." And it fades away like a dried petal, crushed into dust, and a faint hint of floral scent.

Kerri sighs and puts the photo on the table again. She looks at it thoughtfully for a moment, then leaves the room.