[Semi-Open] Eating Crow

[maltesefalcon]

Who: Cerrit Agrupnin and People that Should Know
What: Little Talks about a Big Deal
When: Backdated late August up until Dahlia's Gala
Where: Wherever Talks Happen
Warning(s): None yet


Cerrit's secret has been eating at him, and now it's time to let it out. If you work closely with him as an Enforcer or a member of the militia, or if you're good friends with Cerrit and you don't know about his deal with Aster yet, sometime in late August (post-Blight) or early September he's going to invite you for a private conversation.

The means may vary, the context may vary, but he has some things he needs to say.

Comments

wildcard.

[decrypter]

It's a beautiful autumn day, and Helena Adams is walking in the fields. No work, and the great open space of it all calls to her in a way she hasn't felt in a long, long time. It's not like home, but the air is real. The grass is real. The trees and birds she hears are real. And so she walks, letting herself go after an impulse that she hasn't really chased.

Walking so far, though, has a drawback - when she actually stops and turns around, she frowns. At this point, she has no idea where she truly is, only that the earth smells nice and the leaves are rustling, and she touches a tree.

Okay. She thinks she knows what to do, and takes a deep breath before bringing her cane down on the earth. The sound is strange, too resonant to be something standard, and for a moment, she tilts her head and listens. She's lost...but not so badly that she cannot come back. Maybe if she heads down this particular other road...

[maltesefalcon]

"You don't want to go into that part of the woods."

The voice comes from above her--male, mature. Confident. Protective? Clearly this someone is up in the trees somewhere.

[decrypter]

Notably, her head does not jerk up to look, but her head tilts minutely. Ear a little up, standing still, listening.

"What's in that part of the woods, sir?"

A voice like that, she might listen to.

[maltesefalcon]

"There's cabins out that way that the priest says are tainted with abyssal magic. Probably used by the cult of Nyarlathotep in the past. It's not recommended to explore there without preparation."

[decrypter]

There's a pause there, as Helena fights the instinctual shiver at hearing abyssal magic.

"Certainly not there, then. Which way is it back to the village?"

[maltesefalcon]

"I can accompany you, if that would help? Otherwise, it's south-by-southeast of here."

He's wise enough not to just swoop down at her.

[decrypter]

"Accompaniment would be most helpful. Unfortunately, traditional directions and I don't exactly mix, as I lack the sight to make proper use of them."

A pause.

"Saying that aloud, it seems rather foolish that I would have headed off on my own. But I promise I have sufficient reasoning for it."

[maltesefalcon]

"Right. I'm about to land on the left of you. You can explain as much as you'd like."

And she hears the sound of a Big Bird Doing A Swoop, but he is very careful not to touch her in the process.

[decrypter]

She hears wings, and thinks of someone who is not here, and lets her grief inform her that her love for them still lives.

"It has been a very, very long time since I was at liberty to truly walk where I would, to have the grass grow and to hear the creatures that live around us. Adjusting to this life out of captivity...I told someone that it is rather like recovering from an illness. Strength must grow, and I must not overextend myself. Today, I became so enraptured with the world around me, with liberty and life, that I did not wish to wait on anyone else."

Another pause.

"I suppose I assumed at a point I would find something, and then if needed contact a friend to come retrieve me. That was less important than existing out here."

[maltesefalcon]

"You did find a friend to retrieve you. Here, stay by my side and we'll be back in town soon. We'll pass by the farms, so if you smell animals and hay, it's animals and hay." It might not smell as nice as other available routes, but it'll be safer to pass by Baker Ranch and Kasprak farm.

"I'm Cerrit, chief of the constabulary, back in town."

[decrypter]

"I've heard your name, and that you were recently promoted - should I be calling you Chief instead?" She laughs a little, and takes up a stride at his side, cane tapping her way forward. "I'm Helena. I work at the printer's, though I've been here for longer. That adaptation I mentioned took some time to truly set in."

[maltesefalcon]

"You're not my staff; you don't need to call me Chief." Cerrit's steps on the forest floor don't sound like human feet in shoes. This is probably not a surprise to her. "I'm not the boss of you."

[decrypter]

"No, but I'd like to call people what they would like to be called, that's all."

She is Polite, Cerrit. Even if his steps sound a little odd, he wouldn't be the first person whose walking sounded strange to her in her life.

[maltesefalcon]

"I like my name. I like Cerrit. I'm fairly simple to please." Beat. "There's roots in the path coming up."

Yes, she's got the cane, but the warning feels like it might be useful? Maybe.

[decrypter]

"Ah, thank you."

It lets her know to step more carefully, to make sure of her footing.

"I don't think I'll be able to map the entire island, not without spending years here. But if one never ventures out from home, they'll miss out on so much. It's such a beautiful day."

Her whole heart is in that sentence, tender and yearning, feeling peaceful.