A Friend for Magpie and Wizard
Log Info
- Title: A Friend for Magpie and Wizard
- GM: Aftershock
- Place: Fernwood, Room 3
After asking around at the arcanist's society and retrieving the book of Albus Kinkade back into his possession, Cor'ethil Cari'thana has taken his mother's rather odd absence for the past few hours (surely she's just holed up in her own accommodations with his father) as an opportunity to do the right thing and to return Albus Kinkade to Corey's one-time ally and patient listener of botanical facts, Magpie.
"What _is_ the Malice of Infinity, anyway? I mean, why that title? It sounds like this one sildanyari romance I read when I was fifty-two," Corey remarks to the book as he's finding Magpie's door in the Fernwood. "It was called the _Depths of Malice_, and it was about a man finding out he's come down with an incurable sickness of the soul that can only be staved off by the healing touch of his Daeusite cleric friend, Elian'side--"
Then Corey spots the door, and he smiles, sparing Albus Kinkade the second-worst torture of being a book (aside from having his spine cracked): not being able to walk away from someone's infodump. "Ah! There's Magpie's door!"
Corey approaches it and knocks. Thump-da-da-thump-thump, thump-thump!
"TWO COP," comes the immediate, though audibly annoyed, answer from the other side of the door. Followed shortly by the *thump* of something small hitting the floor on both feet, and the rhythmic stomping toward the door...
...then silence.
Then more stomping, followed by an impressive multilingual chain of swearing as something gets dragged beside the door, climbed, and *then* the doorknob turns, revealing an *incredibly* frowny-faced gnome lady, standing on a chair, on the outside of the door.
"...I fall too much if I just reach up," she grumbles, and green eyes flick over Corey's armor, pendant, then back up to his face, eyebrow rising. "...Okay is someone blaming me for blowing up a highway, too?"
Though the book - Malice of Infinity - had been rather loud during its abduction, it has largely fallen into silence since its rescue. However at the sound of Magpie's voice it perks up (as much as a book can... which is verbally only when a book can talk). "Magpie?!? Is that you dear? I've been abducted! Quick, pin this thief down and check him for a tail! Imps can't hide them you know!"
"Wh--" Corey is scandalized at the implication that he's a fiend, and also, that he's an imp. "If you're going to accuse me of being a fiend, at least pick a sexy fiend, like an incubus, or--"
He colors a little. "Nevermind. Anyway, hi Magpie. I'm Cor'ethil Cari'thana--remember, from the little Explorers' Guild mission to deal with that mage making the honey? And we tried to find little Debra?" That last fact is far too distressing to end on, so he adds, "And I shared all of my botanical facts about the area?"
Corey pulls out the book and hands it to Magpie with a smile. "Anyway, I caught the person responsible for stealing this fellow, and I rather thought you'd like him back. ... I think the person also blew up your room? A copy of the Tribune flew into my face earlier." It's the quickest way to receive the news, sometimes.
"PROFESSOR!" Magpie's entire face is altered by the sound of the book's voice, and leaps off the stool to plant a hug around Corey's neck. "I figured blowing up my room was cover for stealing him because he's the only book I have that isn't really *really* bad romance and if anyone important finds out I'm hanging onto him they'll probably stuff him back into Eluna's vaults and leave him there thank you thank you THANK YOU!"
Letting go of the paladin's neck, she snatches the book out of Corey's hand on the way down, giving the tome just as energetic a hug as she gave Corey. "Oh leave off, professor, would an imp *bring you back to me?* He's a paladin anyway, and I doubt an imp could keep his lunch at the *thought* of taking on a paladin's shape. Come in, come in, sit sit sit! I think I still have some Grenade Buns from the Goblintown bakery somewhere, and I *know* I've got tea somewhere -- don't just *stand* there Corey, come in! Mind the mess."
...The mess being a couple small stacks of books, organized -- if one could call it that -- by color, subject, *and* alphabetically, according to a system one can only guess at, next to waxed-parchment street food wrappers folded into various animals.
Clearly, Magpie has not yet had the time to make a true horror of the place, but efforts are ongoing.
As she rummages through her backpack for tea, cups, and kettle, she continues her chatter, voice growing more grumpy. "But can you beleive they're blaming *me* for that mess? I'm the *aggrieved* party! I'm not even *in* a department that would lead me to blowing stuff up! I'M NOT EVEN A STUDENT."
The book seems stymied by Magpie's reaction and soothed by being in her possession again because it leaves off the thought that Corey is an imp. Well mostly. "You could at least check him for a tail." The book mutters and then sighs. "Good to be with you again Magpie. I was horribly worried when I heard that your room was harmed. What if you had been in there?"
It's evident that the book has a certain amount of paternal affection for Magpie by its voice. "I'd let them have what's-for you know! I was a wizard of good standing! Before all this that is. I should anyway... but I don't want to end up on a shelf forgotten somewhere." A sigh.
"I promise that I do not have a tail." Corey goes into the room and closes the door behind him, taking a seat... somewhere. His twin sister would have a conniption at being in this room. Granted, the fact that Magpie managed to move everything she owns in such a short amount of time is actually rather impressive.
Cor'ethil watches Magpie work with a smile (getting hugged by anyone can put him in a good mood). Listening to Kinkade be aghast at the situation makes him smile even more, although the subject itself puts a little wrinkle into Cor'ethil's brow. "Kinkade's right. You really could have been hurt. I'm glad that we managed to save Kinkade..."
He remembers something. "Speaking of wizards. Magpie, do you know someone by the name of Frisgar? I met him. Older fellow who was coaxing the squirrels to him and offering butterscotch candies. He said he was a friend of Kinkade's and tried to help us."
Magpie pauses in her rummaging to look at the book next to her, then take it up and hug it tightly again. "Don't worry Professor, I still haven't given up, and I'm not gonna until someone makes me. We'll get you out of that thing someday, you'll see. And until then I will *not* let you be stuck on a dusty shelf in a vault."
With that, she returns to her searching, and mutters dire imprecations about the incident "If I'd've been there none of this would have happened!" Magpie protests, *thunking* a portable tea service onto the floor, followed by a jar of tea, and an alchemist's vial bandoleer full of... individual vials of sugar?
"There're self-defense provisions, I've read them all, and I can do a *lot* that won't hurt a room. Eardrums, sure, but not things! And if I can *turn a vampire into a weasel* I can definitely turn a thief into a slug or something." Opening a tiny bag hanging off the side of her backpack, she reaches in up to her shoulder, digs around for a moment, and rears back with a box the size of her torso made of thin wooden planks, with the design of a loaf of bread on fire burned into the top. "Grenade Buns," she says with satisfaction, toddling over to drop the box on the human-sized bed Corey is seated upon. "Spiced pork and gravy, they're great, have some! I'll just get to the tea. So... What even *happened* to get my room blown up? And will you be prepared to repeat it to a panel of coincounters?"
The book is humming lightly to itself in a pleased sort of way until Corey mentions a familiar name and then. "Oh yes. Poor Frisgar. Fiz was the best of us. Really was. I miss him dearly. Oh, Magpie, those sound delicious! Spiced pork? Ah, to be young again!"
"Well, we found a young man, who turned out to be possessed by a demon--I exorcised it out of him with my pendant of Gilead," Cor'ethil explains, taking a Grenade Bun and looking it over carefully before he thinks of having his first bite. He does. It's a taste he wasn't quite expecting, but then again, he doesn't know what he was expecting. "Mmm--"
And then he blinks.
"Umm." Corey looks at the book. "What do you mean, _was_? We met Frisgar. Bright as day. Very alive. He was talking to us. Don't tell me that he's dead and we met..."
Cor'ethil shakes his head, sighing. "Okay, let me back up. We were in the Arcanist Society's courtyard, where we met this old mage Frisgar who said he was old friends with Dremarin and Kinkade. Respectively, they were Fiz, Driz, and Kiz--Frisgar, Dremarin, and Kinkade. He appeared to know know what happened to his friends. Then there was this young man, who I detected great evil off of, so we followed, and it turned out he stole Kinkade--the book containing Kinkade, that is. He was the one who set fire to your room. We caught him, and I exorcised the demon, and now he's in holding with the proper authorities."
"...Hang on," Magpie says, setting the teakettle to heating entirely on its own. "You said Frisgar *helped* you, right? But... he's been gone at least a year, maybe two, Professor you *just said* you missed him. And Diz-- he's been missing for *months,* but he's a *really* respected planar-travel expert. Why even *would* he go missing if he didn't want to?"
Shaking her head, she pours out a pair of cups -- gnome-sized, sadly -- and hands both cups up to Corey. The reason for this is made clear, and she picks up Albus, and clambers up the side of the bed, plopping herself down on the other side of the box of buns from the paladin.
"...Okay so wait you *have the guy in custody.* He was possessed, but now he's *in custody* and his *name is known* and *WHAT IN THE FRAZGLEN XEL'LO'TATH GLR FTAGHN* AM I DOING BEING BLAMED."
"Now now Magpie. That's no way for a lady to talk!" Albus Kinkade says from his book. One can almost imagine him patting her on the hand gently to calm her. "Fiz died two months before our yearly meeting of old age. It's when I realized that I needed to really get moving on my book. I didn't want to die before I finished Malice of Infinity!" He sighs.
"I'm afraid I don't know what happened with Driz. He's a good man and I'm surprised to hear that anyone could get the upper hand on him. But then... Who am I to judge? I got myself stuck in a book." Kinkade sighs again. "Fiz must have some unfinished business. I hope he moves on soon."
Corey's a very pale sildanyari already. But if he could turn more pale... he would. As it stands, his silver eyes going wide are the only indication that he's-- "Did we meet a _ghost_?" he asks. It's his first time interacting with one that he can think of.
He looks at Magpie. "I don't know, but... It's not right, and I'd be happy to testify and try and fix this? Meanwhile, there's this whole mess with Fiz and Driz, and..."
Cor'ethil massages the side of his face, and he has a sip of his tea. "This is bizarre," he says. "I feel like I'm getting a migraine all over again just trying to think about it."
"I mean, probably?" Magpie says, lifting a shoulder. "But that's something for the Vardaman, especially if he passed of old age. They could probably help you have a word with him? And... it's not *that* convoluted. Fiz, Driz, and Kiz were pretty big names in the university before they settled down -- and you never told me you're *that* Kiz, Professor, I'm *gonna want stories now -- so whatever's going on probably has something to do with something they got up to back in the day. Kiz here *is* one of the school's big experts on diabolism, and with Fiz as a historian, and Driz as the planar-travel expert... I mean obviously it's demons, but it's probably demons. So Professor, how many upper-tier demons *did* you guys piss off as a group?"
At this, Magpie grins at the book, then pauses, blinks, and sucks in a big gasp of air.
...Apparently she forgot to breathe in during that entire spiel?
Growing red in the cheeks, she covers her embarrassment by opening the box and trying to stuff as much of one of the eight remaining buns -- each half the size of her head -- into her mouth as she can.
Kinkade makes a sniffing sound. "Total? I lost count. They are all written in my Compellation of the Eternal." He sounds rather pleased with himself all told. "Back in my day, we would travel right to the Abyss, pick a fight, trap a fiend in one of Fiz's gems and I would write all their information down. THOSE were the days. If not for that infernal V... Well. The fiend is gone now so I suppose that's enough."
There's a pause from the book. "Now, sir Cor'ethil, being that you're a knight and all that, might I ask you to look after Fiz for me? Take a Mourner to him?" The request is very politely asked.
"Holy shit," Cor'ethil says simply as he looks at the book, wide-eyed. He sits up a little straighter. "You... Would go and pick a fight with anyone you could find? And that's how you documented all of those demons? That's..."
Cor'ethil knows several languages. He is struggling to find a word. "Audacious," he settles in Sylvan. "I think that's right word. I don't immediately know its equivalent in Trade." He blushes a little before nodding.
"I can find a Mourner. Actually, I think I know one... One of the Lupecyll-Atlons? I think? I've heard there's a Mourner." He looks thoughtful. "I'd volunteer my twin, but An probably shouldn't go anywhere near a wizard who's an expert in demon-bothering. She'd talk his ear off with questions before she ever actually got to the part of... Sending him along."
"'Audacious,'" Magpie says absently. "And yeah that's a good word for it! Because Kiz here *is* pretty great, and right now it's my life's mission to get this bad boy out of his book and into a body everyone -- including the Guild and the city -- can live with."
Monching on her lunch, she looks up at Corey, tilting her head. "You have a sister? And she's... *into* diabolism, or into *diabolism?* Cos I mean if the Professor's willing, you could probably bribe her for something with a two-hour interview. It'll definitely be more interesting than the two of us reading bad romance and critiquing the writing! ...Which I was worried I'd never get the chance to do anymore. Seriously, thanks a lot, Corey. If the Professor fell into the wrong hands it might be bad for the world, but I'd also lose my *friend,* y'know?"
"Ah, you are too kind as always Magpie." The gruff old wizard sounds a little teary-eyed though he has neither tears nor eyes. "So long as it sees Fiz off, I could do an interview or something myself. I don't mind and I hardly have anything better to do. No offense meant Magpie dear."
There's a moment of quiet and then. "If the others were around I'd ask them to make you an honorary member of our group lass. Goodness knows you've the heart for it! You could be Miz and bring misery to fiends everywhere."
"I actually have two sisters," Corey admits a little bashfully. "My oldest sister, Lala, is... She's exceedingly talented, but she can't be bothered to anchor her talent to anything. I guess that comes with being the 'princess' of the household." He chuckles affectionately. "She mostly just helps my father with the family rookery. She loves taking care of all of the ravens. My twin sister, Ansír--the one who'd love to have a long interview--she's a scholar that specializes in the dual use of arcane and divine magic. She's also got a scholarly interest in things that might be considered taboo--like necromancy, demons, the like."
He sighs. "She would never _summon_ a demon, of course, but she believes having the knowledge is not a bad thing. It is actually critical to understanding how someone might, and how to stop someone who might. ... She also flirted with the Archmage Lupecyll-Atlon's sister-by-bond, Auranar, and now she won't stop asking me to scope out libraries for her to visit. Even though Auranar's a married woman."
Cor'ethil rubs his forehead again. "Which is all to say... I understand, Magpie. An knows a lot. If someone stuck her in a book and stole her, it'd be catastrophic. But... that's also my sister. My world would definitely be rocked if she were to disappear." He smiles warmly at Magpie. "Let me go talk to someone and get a Mourner for poor Fiz. Even if it ends up being my sister."
"Awwww..." The invitation to the 'iz' club brings tears to Magpie's eyes as well, and she tries to give the book yet another hug, without getting fire-pepper-gravy stains all over the cover. It really is a feat of manual dexterity that she manages it, even more so by how she has to use her feet to put the book back at her side... getting gravy all over the blankets, of course.
"She sounds like an absolute headache and I would *love* to meet her sometime," the gnome says brightly. "Because people say that about me a lot too! And anyone who thinks Auranar's flirting material -- wedding ring notwithstanding, I would *not* want to see what her wife would have to say about that -- has good taste too, so she's got that going for her! But yeah... definitely go talk to the Mourners. And when you're done, let me know? I want you there when I start yelling at old people who might take it personally. And nobody takes things personally like wizards in academia."
Albus makes a muffled noise, but otherwise says nothing for a long moment until the subject changes to Corey's sister. "See! That's what I've been saying for years! With the right knowledge we can identify fiends and know what they're up to before they become a problem! I never meant my book to be used to *summon* the blasted things, but if you don't know how then how do you know if you're looking at a summoning circle for one fiend and not another???" He harumphs.
"Knowledge is power, and power can be misused a number of ways," Cor'ethil says with a grin. "Maybe I will bring her by. I get the impression that you need more friends. Both of you."
The Warden of Gilead finishes his cup of tea and sets it down. "I'd like to stay and chat, but it sounds like I've got a twin--and maybe another Mourner--to talk to. Magpie, if you ever want to chat... About _anything_, not just adventurer business, please come find me? I'm usually hanging around at the Temple of Gilead or in the marketplace." He flushes a little. "Karasu and I are getting married, and it seems like we need more and more things every day for the wedding."
"See that's what *I'm* saying! And maybe the rules are stupid but they happen because of the *really dumb* people so, like, if we want *smart* rules we need to figure out how to take the dumb out of the *wizards*-- wait."
A diatribe that the pair of them have probably rehearsed countless times is cut right off. "You're getting married? You need things?! DO YOU NEED AN ILLUSIONIST?! I COULD HELP MAKE YOUR WEDDING AMAZING! *AND* HELP CATER!"
...Oh no.
Volunteering himself to be Magpie's friend... might have some drawbacks.