shifty louts

Tiny Fables Session 6: Missing Shadows

Players

Summary

Aftermath

The Month of Star. The Third Fair of the Sixth Week.

Under overcast skies, the group makes its way back to Thimblewood after escaping Chulipā€™s Castle, the ChĆ¢teau Maurice now in tow with Jack Witter, a zen-like Bat Cultist, and the magkial self-portrait of Remington Mapleton.

portrait

They return to the dire depressions of Thimblewood, finding most citizens still hiding in their burrows.

Itā€™s here that the group meets Dill Halva, a Dam Builder who has just arrived in Thimblewood, perhaps preparing to assist once the spring thaw occurs. The group meets at the increasingly filthy Squeaky Stein, and introductions are made.

Rumblings of a 200% for Mayor Mirabelle to collect food from surrounding communities, and that Daphne, the informal leader of the Thimblewood citizens, has gone missing, and that travelers and townsfolk alike are missing shadows, having nightmares, and seeing ā€œshadlingsā€ in the forest.

With this news, the group meets with Mayor Mirabelle, who has tons of litter and trash piled upon her yard. She sheepishly answers the door, and the group discusses what they found at the Wizard Castle, which doesnā€™t seem to bring them any closer to understanding why the Warden Tree wilted.

Crocus inquires about the ā€œTomb of Rosesā€ of Konrad the Maus Ritter, while Jack asks for information regarding these shadlings. Dill is suspicious of the Mayor, but holds his tongue. Cherry attempts to calm Remington's mood swings, who wants to hurry up and get to the Court of Fae for the next cotillion.

Mayor Mirabelle produces an old, dried map from one of her books that hints that roses grow in the northwest, but given the season, theyā€™d be difficult to find. She addresses that yes indeed, travelers have reported ā€œshadlingsā€ and that sheā€™s recorded their statements with the express intention of forming an exploratory committee to figure out how to deal with this issue.

shadling

Mayor Mirabelle also indicates that Daphne visited her to speak on what the group was doing and their progress, but she left afterwards. Mirabelle isnā€™t aware that Daphne has gone missing, as her mayoral duties have kept her busy.

Cherry, in a show of goodwill, volunteers the group to pick up the trash in the yard, and they are given a ā€œCommunity Beautification Badgeā€ by Mayor Mirabelle for their efforts. As the group cleans, they see a merchant arriving and wildly arguing with a mayoral representative.

They learn that the merchant, Arn, has brought one hundred sugar cubes into town and is subject to a 200% tax that will likely bankrupt him. Dill suggests leaving, but Arn the Sugar Merchant balks at the suggestion as he was chased by shade-like figures throughout the night and would rather risk homelessness in Thimblewood than another night in the forest alone.

The group decides to visit Daphneā€™s house to confirm her whereabouts. The gang splits as Jack and Remington go around the house, Cherry and Crocus investigate the front of the house, while Dill knocks on doors to see if there are any nosy neighbors who saw Daphne.

Crocus uses his knife to open the locked front door, as Jack and Remington find a skylight in her house. Dill interviews Farmer Basil, who said that he saw Daphne enter Mirabelleā€™s burrow, but never left. Remington yells out to Dill, asking him what he has found as Crocus and Cherry try to hush him from the inside.

Eventually, the group all finds their way into Daphneā€™s cold house. The fire having long extinguished, however, the house still shows signs that someone didnā€™t leave or signs of struggle. Cherry notices many images of Daphne and Mirabelle on the mantle, drawings of various Wackit games (a mouse-sport equivalent that blends baseball and cricket). Cherry also notices Daphneā€™s Wackit bat is missing!

The group runs back to Mayor Mirabelleā€™s house as the group believes Mirabelle is somehow responsible for Daphneā€™s disappearance, but the Mayor tells them that they have been long-time friends and teammates on the Thimblewood Whackers! Mirabelle shows them her attic to assuage their suspicions and is genuinely concerned for her well-being.

Crocus suggests that perhaps Daphne took her Wackit bat and left to go to Chulipā€™s Castle herself to help out the group. The group ponders this, but didnā€™t see her on their stay or travels to or from the Castle.

Remington has had enough of this and loudly wants to go to the Fae Court, much to the anger of the group, but with pressing matters of their own, missing friend Cornelius, the group decides to leave Thimblewood once more and head to Heartache Lake in the northeast of the Forest.

The group leaves Thimblewood once more and again has to dodge falling acorns. Dill gathers one as they travel, and eventually the group makes camp for the night. In the night, as Cherry takes watch, she sees two yellow eyes reflecting the firelight in the darkness.

She grabs her weapon and calls out. Jack awakens and grabs Remington, who charges his magikal canvas frame to give off more light. Cherry can see the briefest flash of a tattered grey cloak and a bandaged mouse tail as whatever was watching them bounds off into the darkness!

at night

The Month of Star. The Fourth Fair of the Sixth Week.

The low winter sun cuts through another overcast day as the group explores around camp for signs of who or what was spying on them. Jack communes with the darkness and senses that whatever was watching was familiar with the darkness and shadows. Crocus and Dill are unable to find a trail, but Cherry can catch a scent and a trail cut through the foliage.

The group follows this trail all the way back to the river as they find mouse tracks at the end upon the muddy banks of the algae-choked river. The group has lost another day attempting to find the interloper and heads back to their camp, arriving in the nightā€™s gloaming.

During the night, Dill Halva takes watch along with Remington and feels an uncharacteristically strong gust of wind start to blow as a hat flutters in from the darkness. Soon, the gust of wind turns into a gale, awakening everyone, wrecking camp, and sending Dill high into the air while a branch breaks through a piece of Remingtonā€™s canvas!

With camp awakened, Jack takes one of his bat teeth and some thread from his clothes and makes a quick stitch for Remington, who is on the verge of tears, worrying about being beautiful and cleaner enough to appear at the Winter Cotillion. Remington talks to the rest of the group about the need to properly bathe and how the Fae are mercilessly mean, rumor-mongers, and gossipers if one isnā€™t appropriately dressed for any social occasion.

The group finally goes to sleep and awakens upon the morrow.

ghost

The Month of Star. The Fifth Fair of the Sixth Week.

The weather has held with another overcast day punctuated by woodpecker cries and the smell of a campfireā€™s wood smoke coming from the southeast, but the rest of the journey is uneventful as the group reaches Heartache Lake as night falls.

Treasure Found:

Foes Encountered:

Rumors:

Deaths:

XP Awarded:

Notes