Informational Post (read byf!) 🌱 Prince Hen Ry'Oak of Oakvale
🐣 Character Sheet: click here!
🐣 Daily Hen Facts: click here!
🐣 Playlist & Pinterest: [🚧]
🐣 Sign Off: - Prince Hen (or just Hen)
🌱Quests: (w/ completion %)
🐣 1) Travel Back to Earth...Again (0%)
🐣 2) Become A Powerful Druid (6%)
- 2a) Help Kill @fisherman-with-a-plan (0%)
- 2b) Master Time Travel & Other Magic (5%)
- 2c) Teach @justalittlebirde Magic (0%)
🐣 Note: Is currently trapped inside Worst Ending!AU's Oakvale following his sort-of-death.
Boundaries, Story, and more under the cut!
This is a DnDads (Dungeons and Dragons, a D&D podcast) rp/ask blog for a teenage version of Henry Oak-Garcia! Also referred to as Hen, Teenage/Younger Henry, etc. Prince Hen is transgender and uses he/him pronouns.
This blog is run by Mod Bishop, who uses he/they/xe pronouns. :] (Blog follows from @princehen)
Other DnDads RP blogs can be found here as well as here, and my other RP blogs can be found here!
🌱 Boundaries:
🐣 In Character (IC) DMs: ✅ (and encouraged!)
🐣 Out of Character (OCC) DMs: ✅ (would prefer you said hello on discord, but you can message me here to plan stuff or do private rps!)
🐣 Anon/In-Character Asks: ✅ (negative & positive asks are welcome!)
🐣 Shipping: ⚠️ (ships are okay at a pg-13 level--hen is a teenager lol)
🐣 Tagging: ⚠️i tag for serious topics (drug use, suicide, assault, violence, etc) but not for spoilers b/c hen is a pre-S1 character and is a MASSIVE S1 spoiler. I also add IC tags to posts--OOC tags/markers/messages from me begin with "//".
- OOC posts: "// OOC: bishop chats"
- OOC reblogs/tags: "// OOC: bishop reblogs"
- IC posts: "prince hen posts"
- IC reblogs: "reblogs"
- IC answers to asks: "answers"
- Daily Facts: "// OOC: daily hen posts"
🐣 Reblogs: This acct reblogs nature photos/facts, art/hobbies, and positive messages!
🐣 Other: ❌ no explicit 18+ content EVER
🌱 Character/Story:
🐣 Hen is a level 4 druid. i roll for stats!
🐣 His story is basically Henry Oak-Garcia's past! Prince Hen Ry'Oak was raised inside Oakvale to be the heir to Bear's cult/village. Everything changed when he had an odd dream and woke up somewhere else with a phone ("light box," as he says) clenched in his hand. He discovers the existance of other timelines and that he lives in the past--but soon becomes facinated with the existance of interdimentional/time travel.
i don’t know if anyone else encounters a quite frankly absurd number of rabbits like my dear wife Jane and i do, but you can’t cook them after they’re dead!
Listen, we don't need this much of you! That's just the facts of things! You can either decide amongst yourself which part of this garden bed you're going to cede to other plants, or you're just going to have to deal with me ripping you up and throwing you into the sea!
Autumn realizes she hears a bit of a commotion coming from the tree line, and realizing this must be the rescue party, hikes up her skirt and starts sprinting towards the noise.
Well, he sure remembered this place. Where he made an ass out of himself and still somehow made it out with a...Henry. (There were probably better words to use for him, but Glenn hadn't thought up of them yet. He's too busy "managing" the small pit in his stomach--if "managing" meant "shoving and punching and stomping down into a fine ash".) Despite his horrible nature, things were looking up and that's all he had to focus on.
And that's definitely an Autumn, alright; even he could see the similarities clear as the blue sky they stood under. He holds a hand up in the laziest wave he could (not) muster.
Glenn stares at the younger Autumn, not knowing who this is.
Who is this?
It asks via the telepathy link, not wanting to piss the new person off. That'd be a bad idea. If they're stronger than him, it'd be dead if he angers them.
(( @princehen , i am so sorry, i forgot youre in the turn order now))
Hen has been pacing around the room, now finding it more cramped than before. He was nervous, but at least there wasn't anyone around to see how nervous. The prince felt terrible about what happened--he had gone and gotten himself killed, and now these very kind people had to rescue him!
What? Are you all in Faerun now? Sofanda and my mother should be near Oakvale.
He mentally responds to the group. Oh, Sylvanus, he felt useless, asking only questions.
Junior huffs in annoyance. Despite coming through the portal first, they have the least idea of where they actually are right now. The woman in the near distance starts approaching, and Junior starts walking toward her in response.
"HEY!" they shout across the distance. "Which way to Oakvale!?" As Autumn reaches the group, Junior vaguely recognizes the same features present in the older woman, but still frowns at her until she answers their question.
Shortly after Autumn runs up to the group Sofanda is heading up after her with a very large travel bag on their back. When she reaches the group she gives the Glenn she’d seen before a quick wave before she notices the older Autumn.
Oh wow Autumn, look at you! Like a fine wine!
They lightly nudge younger Autumn’s arm without breaking the staring they are doing at older Autumn.
Yeah, yeah, we're all capable of carrying out a mission; let's not hurt each other's feelings.
He says, almost breathlessly. As much as he thought he wouldn't have time for a smoke break in the whole nature cult thing, he was already debating lighting one up right here and now. Wow, Glenn, what an tough fucking iron will you got there. Did 'ya get it from Toys 'R Us?
Can we all at least pretend to know each other--or, for some of us, pretend we don't--so we can get this done as quickly and/or smoothly as possible?
He chuckles, stuffing his hands in the pockets of his signature leather jacket.
It doesn't matter who Sen is. He's a dick and he's not here so just ignore the fucking Glenns.
Junior huffs and balls up their fists.
"You're all taking forever-" they storm over to the Autumns and Sofanda. "Which way is Oakvale?" the witch asks with the bare minimum of a polite demeanor.
Sofanda makes a slight face, not really convinced this rescue team was a team at all before sighing.
It’s going to take a while… we have a horse but that’s two passengers at most? You guys are going to be able to get along long enough to save the little prince right? Unless, Autumn, you’re a Druid right? You’ve probably just gotten stronger with age!
She looks to older Autumn, stepping up to her and putting a hand on her shoulder
Do you have any teleportation spells? I have one to get us back but not one to get us to there.
I mean, I assume you have Transport via Plants if I do. The main drawback would be that it's my highest spell slot and we'd all have to make sure to be quick. The window to use it is only around 6 seconds ((1 round))
She pauses to think.
I have a pretty good idea where Bear is keeping him ((History check: 17)), so we could try to get as close as possible, or we could stay further out and sneak in. The problem with teleporting is that you don't really know what's waiting for you at the other end until you get there.
I can cast that, I've got higher spell slots if we need them later.
She glances around at the rest of the ragtag crew they've assembled.
I personally would opt for further out, because, like you said, we don't know if there's going to be any guards or whatever once we get there, not like they'd be able to directly harm us, but it's best if we can stay undetected as long as we possibly can. Of course, that might be easier if we don't have to sneak through the whole commune though.
Autumn's glad her younger self seems to have such a grip on where Hen might be, she's been out of Oakvale long enough that her memory of it's layout is a bit shaky. ((History check: 10))
She glances over at the two Glenns, she's not sure she'd call them particularly adept strategists, but they at least had an eye for tactics that she felt could be useful.
Glenn rolls his eyes at Junior. Come on--comparing him to the guy wearing an ugly-ass robe? Where'd he even get something like that, some...dead Faerunian grandma's estate sale? It's not even an option--she's just so much cooler and much more representative of the Glenn name!
At the time that he was in Oakvale, he reasoned that Bear was an asshole with a shitty interior design sense. But thinking back...wasn't there something he missed?
Okay, got it--once we get there, we can figure it out.
Come on, Glenn knew what a trapdoor looked like, especially under the poshest rug he had seen in his life. (Perception check: 20 + 3) But was he going to mention that? Not really--everyone else could just follow his lead.
His grin reaches his eyes in a way that is purposeful.
Yeah, ignore the Glenn's. Just come find me before you cause too much damage?
He startles at a noise from outside the room he's in and backs as far away from the door as he can as it's opened.
There's someone outside--I think someone's-
He begins to telepathically communicate to the group frantically, but is cut off by @mother-of-oakvale (unbeknownst to the rest of the group) severing the magical connection.
// @mother-of-oakvale if you want, you can start a new post actually for this lmao
Junior's tone is mollified, almost gentle, for a moment, as they respond to Hen. That goes away when Hen's voice comes through in alarm.
Hen? Hen!? Hen, come back! Fuck!
Their pupils dilate, and a faint heat radiates off of them. "Shit, we need to go. What if they're hurting him?" They look at the younger Autumn pleadingly. "Do your plant thing! We don't have time to waste."
Autumn doesn't answer Sofanda. She's doing her best to mask her panic at the severing of the mental connection they'd had with Hen, no matter how brief she'd been a part of it.
This only lasts for six seconds, so once it's cast, we all need to get through right away.
She'd been planning on having the older version of herself cast this, but she feels horrible about having waiting as long as they did, she's cursing herself for not running back to Oakvale as soon as she heard that Hen was back there. She...she's stayed somewhere when she shouldn't have again.
She casts Teleport via Plants
This spell creates a magical link between a Large or larger inanimate plant within range and another plant, at any distance, on the same plane of existence. You must have seen or touched the destination plant at least once before. For the duration, any creature can step into the target plant and exit from the destination plant by using 5 feet of movement.
and without any further discussion she touches the tree and vanishes from sight.
His heart sinks as Hen pleads. Shit. There's no use trying to communicate at this point--he knows what beating a dead horse looks like. He does what he finds least exciting: following the lead. He touches the tree and dissapears.
The group appears just outside of Oakvale, and they can see into the peaceful village from where they stand. Everything looks normal and just how the Autumns left it. Oakvalians move about, chattering peacefully among themselves and all is well.
(It's at this point where the younger Autumn & Jailbreak!Glenn can remember the trapdoor entrance to the basement under Bear's house.)
Failing the save to resist the Calm Emotions spell, Junior's shoulders relax slightly, though their scowl remains intact. It works to stop them from shouting any more or running off on their own. When the Teleport Via Plants spell is cast, they follow immediately after the younger Autumn. Without their usual loud bluster, what remains is a quiet determination.
They step out into the clearing, sticking out like a sore thumb with their bright red hair, though not nearly as much as Dood, Glenn, and Glenn do when coming in behind. Junior looks toward the Older Autumn, regarding her as the expert on this occasion. "He said he was in a basement. Do all the houses have basements? Will we have to look through all the buildings?"
Sofanda follows everyone else through, grimacing the second her eyes fall on Oakvale. She moves to stand at her Autumn’s side, hand reaching for hers. She keeps her mouth shut for now… she doubted Autumn was in any shape to actually answer any questions right now anyway.
Autumn has to stop herself from simply walking straight into Oakvale, it was so familiar, being back she can't help but still feel like it's her home. She looks around to double check that everyone has made it through.
Okay, so I'm pretty sure I know where Bear would keep Hen. Not alot of buildings here have basements, and I don't think he'd trust having him particularly far away, so the basement in our - I mean, his house is probably our best bet.
She glances around trying to discern if Oakvale is actually secretly on high alert and just hiding it really well, or if they really don't feel like changing anything after Hen and her disappearance. (Perception: 6)
With her free hand she rummages in her pack and pulls out a tiara and tucks it into her sleeve, somehow managing this without letting go of Sofanda's hand, though she doesn't seem to actively notice she's holding it.
Being back in Oakvale was making her feel twitchy, at least this was before Bear went on his homunculous kick so the Oakvalians were legitimately people and not just weird psuedo-versions of her son. She can tell the younger version of herself is starting to slip into her old demeanor, something about her posture, a little too perfect to be actually comfortable, and her gaze somewhat softer than it had been previously.
So she can't trust her judgement on the situation, fortunately this Autumn has a bit more distance from Oakvale and can be slightly more objective. She takes in the environment, trying to gauge what kind of threat level they were working with. (Perception: 16)
There was a benefit the younger version of her did have and that was remembering the secret basement. She'd completely forgotten about that until she'd mentioned it, but it seemed as solid a bet as any.
Autumn casts Pass Without Trace on the party.
A veil of shadows and silence radiates from you, masking you and your companions from detection. For the duration, each creature you choose within 30 feet of you (including you) has a +10 bonus to Dexterity (Stealth) checks and can’t be tracked except by magical means. A creature that receives this bonus leaves behind no tracks or other traces of its passage. (Duration: 1 hour)
Let's be as careful as we can, we can't be un-noticed after Bear realizes we're here, so I'm all for putting that off as long as possible.
Although dood’a never been to oak vale, he immediately recognizes it. Slowly, though, the recognition is tainted by a sense of fear and he grips autumns hand.
he looks cautiously at the people around him and curls his body towards autumn slightly. (Insight on the oakvaliens: NAT 20 BABY HELL YEAH)
Glenn didn't nessessarily like Oakvale, but had to admit it was...pretty, now that he actually looked around. (Perception = 7)
He didn't have much time to sightsee, though, so he directs his attention to the creepy basement. He doesn't say anything but a quiet thanks to Autumn before running in the direction of Bear's house.
@autumnwithnooaks, with a roll of 6 (perception)--nothing seems amiss in the little village of Oakvale. Just like Autumn remembered it! Everybody is normal, and Autumn believe that Bear has probably done a good job at managing the disappearance of yourself and Hen.
@dood-the-doodler, with a roll of 20 (insight)--something seems amiss in this little village that Dood has never been inside before. Although the party goes unnoticed, the people still seem like they're hoping that someone will return. Maybe multiple someones, from the way people keep checking the village's entrance.
@too-cool-4-meth-bay, with a roll of 7 (perception)--yeah, this village seems peaceful! Pretty identical trees, people happily going about their days...nothing isn't perfect in the village of Oakvale.
The inside of Bear's house was somewhere that the Autumns would be very familiar with--magical artifacts on nearly every shelf, the belongings of the entire family....this place was much less humble than Bear needed people to believe he was. There is one very nice rug in the corner of the living room--the one that @too-cool-4-meth-bay would remember as 'way too nice to just be shoved in the corner.'
// Also! Everyone should roll stealth to enter Bear's house undetected (it'll just be 1 roll to navigate the town + get inside bc y'all have both Autumns there lmao).
Junior gets a 16 for perception and a 3 (+10 for Pass Without Trace) for Stealth
The red-haired witch follows Autumn toward Bear's house, still calm but alert as they walk. Their hand goes to their jacket, from where they pull a set of nunchucks. Just in case.
Sofanda stays as close as they can to Autumn, staying quiet and walking with purpose. She hated this place. So so much. As much as she was not focused on the people and almost entirely locked onto Autumn and whether or not she was okay, they couldn’t stop the fantasy of burning-down-the-copied-trees-to-enrich-the-soil-for-new-real-ones-to-grow from popping into her head every time she caught a glimpse of those carbon-copy lies in her peripherals.
Autumn, as much as she's convinced that the residents of Oakvale appear to not be paying attention for anyone who is missing, recognizes her older self as having a point in regards to the idea that once they're noticed, they can't go back to being unnoticed.
She keeps a hold on Sofanda's hand as follows after the Glenns who already were heading towards her - no, Bear's house.
The vibes are off, but not dangerously so. Autumn gives Dood's hand a small squeeze. She was still concerned how they would respond it the group ran into Bear, not to mention being concerned how Bear might react if he figured out who Dood is. She holds a finger to her lip to encourage him to stay quiet as they make their way across the compound.
Glenn continues his charge until they reach the inside of Bear's house. Yep, just as humble and homely as he remembered. He glances around to see if there are any shiny objects he could steal, but stops himself before he could go down that train of thought any longer. Glenn, that would be fucking weird--what would Henry say? In fact, he should have brought that spider robe you stole earlier to return...but he left it at Henry's house. Ah, shit.
He cringes a little, remembering what his kids might do with a robe that gives you spider abilities, but ultimately brushes it off as no big deal and goes to pull out the fancy rug.
(19 + 5 = 24, +10 from PWT = 34) (7 + 3 = 10 to perception)
Glenn follows the rest of them, looking around and trying to notice anything he can see. It just let's everybody else do what they have to.
He hadn't been here the first time that small group had come to Oakvale, so it doesn't know how he can help. He really just joined to see if he'd be helpful and to get into combat if it came down to it.
The entire party manages to enter Bear’s house unnoticed! What the party sees as Jailbreak Glenn pulls up the rug is a trapdoor. It looks ordinary, with no locks or magical symbols. As if Bear never expected anyone to ever trespass in his home nor search through it.
The trapdoor leads to a basement that specifically Autumn had never been allowed inside—when Jailbreak (or anyone else) opens the door, they would be greeted with the sight of a spiraling staircase that leads to a small basement that is currently out of sight.
To Dood's mental question, Junior does briefly try for an answer. But with what they know about this Oakvale, it could be anyone or anything.
I don't know, and I don't care. It won't matter because once we get Hen, we're leaving.
Junior's confidence carries through the mental tone of their voice, and it's reflected on their features. When their eyes land on the trapdoor, their expression gains a flicker of hope. "The basement," they mutter, and if no one beats them to it they're lifting the door just enough to slip inside, seemingly undaunted by the darkness below.
Sofanda doesn’t wait or hesitate, once she’s sure there’s no security alarm or trap the door could trigger and Junior has slipped through she grabs the edge of the door with her free hand and hefts it up all the way.
Should a lookout remain or- it’s probably fine right?
They whisper before following after Junior down the steps, moving slowly incase Autumn stops their forward momentum.
She frowns, she'd known about this basement, but she'd never seen it or appreciated how mildly foreboding it seems.
It feels like we're less likely to be noticed if there isn't someone standing outside the trap door. Also I'm really not sure which of us would even be a good candidate to stay behind.
She gives Sofanda's hand a squeeze, trying to remind them that not everyone in this rescue party has darkvision.
She can almost admire her younger self. There was still a small voice of Bear in her mind insisting that this was a place she was not allowed to be. She wonders if, when the anti-violence field had gone up if it had taken some of her spark with it. After all, she had attempted to defy Bear and yet nothing came of it, or more accurately, it made things worse.
To distract herself from that line of thinking, she gives Dood a small nudge, before heading for the steps.
Are you doing okay?
If she's busy making sure those around her are still alright, maybe she can avoid having to answer that herself.
Glenn hops down and descends the spiraling staircase behind the younger Autumn. As the minority in the party without darkvision, he figures it’d probably be safer that way--though it would be fucking funny if he fell down these stairs. Which reminds him:
Hey guys, what do you call a snobbish criminal going down the stairs? A condescending con descending!
He mentally exclaims to the group, attempting to bring some light to the situation. After all, this has been so incredibly easy so far; they just walked in and, by the looks of things, they were going to just walk out. And more than that, the group could kick anyone’s ass! Nothing could possibly go wrong, so they should stop acting like they’re going to a funereal.
After the group rounds the corner and enters the first room of the basement, the area becomes more illuminated by candles placed around the room. This first room is a library, with shelves upon shelves of tomes, journals, and books of all kinds. There are a few desks with their own notes and books scattered across them--as if more than one person had been making use of this room.
There are various things that the characters can explore, but I will DM you when you do decide to check something out (noting so in my response). This means that the party can split up!
1. The bookshelves--roll either History, Arcana or Perception (each will allow you to see different things--and you may roll multiple).
2. The desks--roll Perception.
3. The door--there is a door that is closed, leading further into the basement.
Sparrow sighs. She looks at Hen. She casts Dispel Magic on Hen to dispel the Charm Person she casted. She knows Hen will know she charmed him, but that's the price to pay to get him to stop freaking out.
When Sparrow casts Dispel Magic, a few realizations come to mind. Firstly, that he felt almost ill--something about the spell made his head spin. Then there was the realization that he had been charmed, which hadn't ever happened to him before; weren't elves more difficult to charm magically? Which meant that Sparrow was even more dangerous than he had assumed earlier--or at least more powerful than Hen himself was (not a difficult conclusion to make).
Hen attempts to stand up, but the dizziness he felt forced him to sit back down and look back over at Sparrow. He attempts to cast Druidcraft to light the corner of her cloak ablaze with a small flame.
[REDACTED] roll: 87, 6. The spell fails entirely, and the only evidence that Hen had done anything at all is a small trail of smoke that rises from Sparrow's cloak before vanishing entirely.
Hen's head hurt, and he was realizing that he lacked the strength to attack Sparrow at all. He simply leans his elbows on his knees and puts his head in his hands.
"If I stay, can I leave this room?" Hen asks, very quietly.
Hen looks back up at Sparrow, correcting his posture.
Yes! Uh, I mean I won't...attack you. I'll stay.
With a successful off-screen insight roll (17 > 9), Sparrow can tell that Hen isn't necessarily lying when he says that he'll stay. It's more that he's willing to go along with what his father apparently wants him to do, but that plan would certainly change if either version of his other parent showed up. Not to mention Hen's past rebellious streak, mentioned to Sparrow in detail by Bear.
Sparrow smiles. She knows that Hen is lying, but building trust is also important if Hen was to ever consider this Oakvale his home and to consider Sparrow family.
Good. That's good. Did you want to leave the room now? I'm assuming that's why you asked.
I will let you leave the room. But until we are sure they won't come and try to kidnap you, I will have you by my side.
You'll be by my side most of the time anyway. With me teaching you, I can't teach you without you being there.
Hen walks faster than Sparrow, and in his excitement speed-walks right through the hallway ahead of her. He opens the door and vanishes for a moment, stepping into the study.
The study under Sparrow and Bear's home is small, and lined with books and nature-related decor. Including a cracked skull with a mushroom growing out of one of its eyes, resting on the desk next to a notebook and other trinkets.
Hen approaches this desk, then notices the skull. He jumps back with a strangled yelp and wearily eyes the object from behind the desk chair.
Sparrow follows behind Hen, before hearing Hen yelp. She quickly goes over to see what happened. She sees the skull sitting on her desk and then Hen crouched behind the chair.
Oh, did it frighten you?
She looks at Hen.
Natural causes, I assure you.
She looks back at the skull.
The mushrooms started to grow in it a few years ago. I think it looks quite lovely. Death is a beautiful part of the cycle of existence. Life is formed one day, and the next, it can be destroyed.
But the mushrooms don't care. They'll reclaim the dead. Use it to fuel themselves. It's part of the cycle. Plus, they grow in some of the strangest places. In this case, a skull.
She smiles, looking at Hen.
How about we get going?
You seem a bit shocked at the sight of one of my prized possessions. Close friend gave it to me, lovely woman she is. You'll probably meet her eventually.
Hen chooses to look over at Sparrow and pay attention instead of staring at the skull any further.
That's really interesting--I never learned much about mushrooms. Father--my father, wasn't very fond of them. Or the concept of death. I've never seen them around Oakvale.
He glances back over at it, then back at the other Oak.
I guess it was a bit, uh, frightening...is it real?
Hen lets Sparrow pass him, remaining at the bottom of the stairs until the trapdoor is open and she is upstairs.
Illuminated by the light from the ground floor of the house, he walks up the stairs and pops his head out of the trapdoor, glancing around at his surroundings.
Perception check: 15 (to recognize the building as a copy/different version of his house or if there is anything creepy/dangerous about)
Hen climbs out of the trapdoor and stands up, moving to stand a few feet away for Sparrow to shut it.
Sparrow sighs. She looks at Hen. She casts Dispel Magic on Hen to dispel the Charm Person she casted. She knows Hen will know she charmed him, but that's the price to pay to get him to stop freaking out.
When Sparrow casts Dispel Magic, a few realizations come to mind. Firstly, that he felt almost ill--something about the spell made his head spin. Then there was the realization that he had been charmed, which hadn't ever happened to him before; weren't elves more difficult to charm magically? Which meant that Sparrow was even more dangerous than he had assumed earlier--or at least more powerful than Hen himself was (not a difficult conclusion to make).
Hen attempts to stand up, but the dizziness he felt forced him to sit back down and look back over at Sparrow. He attempts to cast Druidcraft to light the corner of her cloak ablaze with a small flame.
[REDACTED] roll: 87, 6. The spell fails entirely, and the only evidence that Hen had done anything at all is a small trail of smoke that rises from Sparrow's cloak before vanishing entirely.
Hen's head hurt, and he was realizing that he lacked the strength to attack Sparrow at all. He simply leans his elbows on his knees and puts his head in his hands.
"If I stay, can I leave this room?" Hen asks, very quietly.
Hen looks back up at Sparrow, correcting his posture.
Yes! Uh, I mean I won't...attack you. I'll stay.
With a successful off-screen insight roll (17 > 9), Sparrow can tell that Hen isn't necessarily lying when he says that he'll stay. It's more that he's willing to go along with what his father apparently wants him to do, but that plan would certainly change if either version of his other parent showed up. Not to mention Hen's past rebellious streak, mentioned to Sparrow in detail by Bear.
Sparrow smiles. She knows that Hen is lying, but building trust is also important if Hen was to ever consider this Oakvale his home and to consider Sparrow family.
Good. That's good. Did you want to leave the room now? I'm assuming that's why you asked.
I will let you leave the room. But until we are sure they won't come and try to kidnap you, I will have you by my side.
You'll be by my side most of the time anyway. With me teaching you, I can't teach you without you being there.
Hen walks faster than Sparrow, and in his excitement speed-walks right through the hallway ahead of her. He opens the door and vanishes for a moment, stepping into the study.
The study under Sparrow and Bear's home is small, and lined with books and nature-related decor. Including a cracked skull with a mushroom growing out of one of its eyes, resting on the desk next to a notebook and other trinkets.
Hen approaches this desk, then notices the skull. He jumps back with a strangled yelp and wearily eyes the object from behind the desk chair.
Sparrow follows behind Hen, before hearing Hen yelp. She quickly goes over to see what happened. She sees the skull sitting on her desk and then Hen crouched behind the chair.
Oh, did it frighten you?
She looks at Hen.
Natural causes, I assure you.
She looks back at the skull.
The mushrooms started to grow in it a few years ago. I think it looks quite lovely. Death is a beautiful part of the cycle of existence. Life is formed one day, and the next, it can be destroyed.
But the mushrooms don't care. They'll reclaim the dead. Use it to fuel themselves. It's part of the cycle. Plus, they grow in some of the strangest places. In this case, a skull.
She smiles, looking at Hen.
How about we get going?
You seem a bit shocked at the sight of one of my prized possessions. Close friend gave it to me, lovely woman she is. You'll probably meet her eventually.
Hen chooses to look over at Sparrow and pay attention instead of staring at the skull any further.
That's really interesting--I never learned much about mushrooms. Father--my father, wasn't very fond of them. Or the concept of death. I've never seen them around Oakvale.
He glances back over at it, then back at the other Oak.
I guess it was a bit, uh, frightening...is it real?
Sparrow sighs. She looks at Hen. She casts Dispel Magic on Hen to dispel the Charm Person she casted. She knows Hen will know she charmed him, but that's the price to pay to get him to stop freaking out.
When Sparrow casts Dispel Magic, a few realizations come to mind. Firstly, that he felt almost ill--something about the spell made his head spin. Then there was the realization that he had been charmed, which hadn't ever happened to him before; weren't elves more difficult to charm magically? Which meant that Sparrow was even more dangerous than he had assumed earlier--or at least more powerful than Hen himself was (not a difficult conclusion to make).
Hen attempts to stand up, but the dizziness he felt forced him to sit back down and look back over at Sparrow. He attempts to cast Druidcraft to light the corner of her cloak ablaze with a small flame.
[REDACTED] roll: 87, 6. The spell fails entirely, and the only evidence that Hen had done anything at all is a small trail of smoke that rises from Sparrow's cloak before vanishing entirely.
Hen's head hurt, and he was realizing that he lacked the strength to attack Sparrow at all. He simply leans his elbows on his knees and puts his head in his hands.
"If I stay, can I leave this room?" Hen asks, very quietly.
Hen looks back up at Sparrow, correcting his posture.
Yes! Uh, I mean I won't...attack you. I'll stay.
With a successful off-screen insight roll (17 > 9), Sparrow can tell that Hen isn't necessarily lying when he says that he'll stay. It's more that he's willing to go along with what his father apparently wants him to do, but that plan would certainly change if either version of his other parent showed up. Not to mention Hen's past rebellious streak, mentioned to Sparrow in detail by Bear.
Sparrow smiles. She knows that Hen is lying, but building trust is also important if Hen was to ever consider this Oakvale his home and to consider Sparrow family.
Good. That's good. Did you want to leave the room now? I'm assuming that's why you asked.
I will let you leave the room. But until we are sure they won't come and try to kidnap you, I will have you by my side.
You'll be by my side most of the time anyway. With me teaching you, I can't teach you without you being there.
Hen walks faster than Sparrow, and in his excitement speed-walks right through the hallway ahead of her. He opens the door and vanishes for a moment, stepping into the study.
The study under Sparrow and Bear's home is small, and lined with books and nature-related decor. Including a cracked skull with a mushroom growing out of one of its eyes, resting on the desk next to a notebook and other trinkets.
Hen approaches this desk, then notices the skull. He jumps back with a strangled yelp and wearily eyes the object from behind the desk chair.
Sparrow follows behind Hen, before hearing Hen yelp. She quickly goes over to see what happened. She sees the skull sitting on her desk and then Hen crouched behind the chair.
Oh, did it frighten you?
She looks at Hen.
Natural causes, I assure you.
She looks back at the skull.
The mushrooms started to grow in it a few years ago. I think it looks quite lovely. Death is a beautiful part of the cycle of existence. Life is formed one day, and the next, it can be destroyed.
But the mushrooms don't care. They'll reclaim the dead. Use it to fuel themselves. It's part of the cycle. Plus, they grow in some of the strangest places. In this case, a skull.
She smiles, looking at Hen.
How about we get going?
You seem a bit shocked at the sight of one of my prized possessions. Close friend gave it to me, lovely woman she is. You'll probably meet her eventually.
Hen chooses to look over at Sparrow and pay attention instead of staring at the skull any further.
That's really interesting--I never learned much about mushrooms. Father--my father, wasn't very fond of them. Or the concept of death. I've never seen them around Oakvale.
He glances back over at it, then back at the other Oak.
I guess it was a bit, uh, frightening...is it real?
Sparrow sighs. She looks at Hen. She casts Dispel Magic on Hen to dispel the Charm Person she casted. She knows Hen will know she charmed him, but that's the price to pay to get him to stop freaking out.
When Sparrow casts Dispel Magic, a few realizations come to mind. Firstly, that he felt almost ill--something about the spell made his head spin. Then there was the realization that he had been charmed, which hadn't ever happened to him before; weren't elves more difficult to charm magically? Which meant that Sparrow was even more dangerous than he had assumed earlier--or at least more powerful than Hen himself was (not a difficult conclusion to make).
Hen attempts to stand up, but the dizziness he felt forced him to sit back down and look back over at Sparrow. He attempts to cast Druidcraft to light the corner of her cloak ablaze with a small flame.
[REDACTED] roll: 87, 6. The spell fails entirely, and the only evidence that Hen had done anything at all is a small trail of smoke that rises from Sparrow's cloak before vanishing entirely.
Hen's head hurt, and he was realizing that he lacked the strength to attack Sparrow at all. He simply leans his elbows on his knees and puts his head in his hands.
"If I stay, can I leave this room?" Hen asks, very quietly.
Hen looks back up at Sparrow, correcting his posture.
Yes! Uh, I mean I won't...attack you. I'll stay.
With a successful off-screen insight roll (17 > 9), Sparrow can tell that Hen isn't necessarily lying when he says that he'll stay. It's more that he's willing to go along with what his father apparently wants him to do, but that plan would certainly change if either version of his other parent showed up. Not to mention Hen's past rebellious streak, mentioned to Sparrow in detail by Bear.
Sparrow smiles. She knows that Hen is lying, but building trust is also important if Hen was to ever consider this Oakvale his home and to consider Sparrow family.
Good. That's good. Did you want to leave the room now? I'm assuming that's why you asked.
I will let you leave the room. But until we are sure they won't come and try to kidnap you, I will have you by my side.
You'll be by my side most of the time anyway. With me teaching you, I can't teach you without you being there.
Hen walks faster than Sparrow, and in his excitement speed-walks right through the hallway ahead of her. He opens the door and vanishes for a moment, stepping into the study.
The study under Sparrow and Bear's home is small, and lined with books and nature-related decor. Including a cracked skull with a mushroom growing out of one of its eyes, resting on the desk next to a notebook and other trinkets.
Hen approaches this desk, then notices the skull. He jumps back with a strangled yelp and wearily eyes the object from behind the desk chair.
Sparrow sighs. She looks at Hen. She casts Dispel Magic on Hen to dispel the Charm Person she casted. She knows Hen will know she charmed him, but that's the price to pay to get him to stop freaking out.
When Sparrow casts Dispel Magic, a few realizations come to mind. Firstly, that he felt almost ill--something about the spell made his head spin. Then there was the realization that he had been charmed, which hadn't ever happened to him before; weren't elves more difficult to charm magically? Which meant that Sparrow was even more dangerous than he had assumed earlier--or at least more powerful than Hen himself was (not a difficult conclusion to make).
Hen attempts to stand up, but the dizziness he felt forced him to sit back down and look back over at Sparrow. He attempts to cast Druidcraft to light the corner of her cloak ablaze with a small flame.
[REDACTED] roll: 87, 6. The spell fails entirely, and the only evidence that Hen had done anything at all is a small trail of smoke that rises from Sparrow's cloak before vanishing entirely.
Hen's head hurt, and he was realizing that he lacked the strength to attack Sparrow at all. He simply leans his elbows on his knees and puts his head in his hands.
"If I stay, can I leave this room?" Hen asks, very quietly.
Hen looks back up at Sparrow, correcting his posture.
Yes! Uh, I mean I won't...attack you. I'll stay.
With a successful off-screen insight roll (17 > 9), Sparrow can tell that Hen isn't necessarily lying when he says that he'll stay. It's more that he's willing to go along with what his father apparently wants him to do, but that plan would certainly change if either version of his other parent showed up. Not to mention Hen's past rebellious streak, mentioned to Sparrow in detail by Bear.
Sparrow smiles. She knows that Hen is lying, but building trust is also important if Hen was to ever consider this Oakvale his home and to consider Sparrow family.
Good. That's good. Did you want to leave the room now? I'm assuming that's why you asked.
I will let you leave the room. But until we are sure they won't come and try to kidnap you, I will have you by my side.
You'll be by my side most of the time anyway. With me teaching you, I can't teach you without you being there.
Sparrow sighs. She looks at Hen. She casts Dispel Magic on Hen to dispel the Charm Person she casted. She knows Hen will know she charmed him, but that's the price to pay to get him to stop freaking out.
When Sparrow casts Dispel Magic, a few realizations come to mind. Firstly, that he felt almost ill--something about the spell made his head spin. Then there was the realization that he had been charmed, which hadn't ever happened to him before; weren't elves more difficult to charm magically? Which meant that Sparrow was even more dangerous than he had assumed earlier--or at least more powerful than Hen himself was (not a difficult conclusion to make).
Hen attempts to stand up, but the dizziness he felt forced him to sit back down and look back over at Sparrow. He attempts to cast Druidcraft to light the corner of her cloak ablaze with a small flame.
[REDACTED] roll: 87, 6. The spell fails entirely, and the only evidence that Hen had done anything at all is a small trail of smoke that rises from Sparrow's cloak before vanishing entirely.
Hen's head hurt, and he was realizing that he lacked the strength to attack Sparrow at all. He simply leans his elbows on his knees and puts his head in his hands.
"If I stay, can I leave this room?" Hen asks, very quietly.
Hen looks back up at Sparrow, correcting his posture.
Yes! Uh, I mean I won't...attack you. I'll stay.
With a successful off-screen insight roll (17 > 9), Sparrow can tell that Hen isn't necessarily lying when he says that he'll stay. It's more that he's willing to go along with what his father apparently wants him to do, but that plan would certainly change if either version of his other parent showed up. Not to mention Hen's past rebellious streak, mentioned to Sparrow in detail by Bear.
Sparrow smiles. She knows that Hen is lying, but building trust is also important if Hen was to ever consider this Oakvale his home and to consider Sparrow family.
Good. That's good. Did you want to leave the room now? I'm assuming that's why you asked.
I will let you leave the room. But until we are sure they won't come and try to kidnap you, I will have you by my side.
You'll be by my side most of the time anyway. With me teaching you, I can't teach you without you being there.
Sparrow sighs. She looks at Hen. She casts Dispel Magic on Hen to dispel the Charm Person she casted. She knows Hen will know she charmed him, but that's the price to pay to get him to stop freaking out.
When Sparrow casts Dispel Magic, a few realizations come to mind. Firstly, that he felt almost ill--something about the spell made his head spin. Then there was the realization that he had been charmed, which hadn't ever happened to him before; weren't elves more difficult to charm magically? Which meant that Sparrow was even more dangerous than he had assumed earlier--or at least more powerful than Hen himself was (not a difficult conclusion to make).
Hen attempts to stand up, but the dizziness he felt forced him to sit back down and look back over at Sparrow. He attempts to cast Druidcraft to light the corner of her cloak ablaze with a small flame.
[REDACTED] roll: 87, 6. The spell fails entirely, and the only evidence that Hen had done anything at all is a small trail of smoke that rises from Sparrow's cloak before vanishing entirely.
Hen's head hurt, and he was realizing that he lacked the strength to attack Sparrow at all. He simply leans his elbows on his knees and puts his head in his hands.
"If I stay, can I leave this room?" Hen asks, very quietly.
Hen looks back up at Sparrow, correcting his posture.
Yes! Uh, I mean I won't...attack you. I'll stay.
With a successful off-screen insight roll (17 > 9), Sparrow can tell that Hen isn't necessarily lying when he says that he'll stay. It's more that he's willing to go along with what his father apparently wants him to do, but that plan would certainly change if either version of his other parent showed up. Not to mention Hen's past rebellious streak, mentioned to Sparrow in detail by Bear.
Sparrow sighs. She looks at Hen. She casts Dispel Magic on Hen to dispel the Charm Person she casted. She knows Hen will know she charmed him, but that's the price to pay to get him to stop freaking out.
When Sparrow casts Dispel Magic, a few realizations come to mind. Firstly, that he felt almost ill--something about the spell made his head spin. Then there was the realization that he had been charmed, which hadn't ever happened to him before; weren't elves more difficult to charm magically? Which meant that Sparrow was even more dangerous than he had assumed earlier--or at least more powerful than Hen himself was (not a difficult conclusion to make).
Hen attempts to stand up, but the dizziness he felt forced him to sit back down and look back over at Sparrow. He attempts to cast Druidcraft to light the corner of her cloak ablaze with a small flame.
[REDACTED] roll: 87, 6. The spell fails entirely, and the only evidence that Hen had done anything at all is a small trail of smoke that rises from Sparrow's cloak before vanishing entirely.
Hen's head hurt, and he was realizing that he lacked the strength to attack Sparrow at all. He simply leans his elbows on his knees and puts his head in his hands.
"If I stay, can I leave this room?" Hen asks, very quietly.
Listen, we don't need this much of you! That's just the facts of things! You can either decide amongst yourself which part of this garden bed you're going to cede to other plants, or you're just going to have to deal with me ripping you up and throwing you into the sea!
Autumn realizes she hears a bit of a commotion coming from the tree line, and realizing this must be the rescue party, hikes up her skirt and starts sprinting towards the noise.
Well, he sure remembered this place. Where he made an ass out of himself and still somehow made it out with a...Henry. (There were probably better words to use for him, but Glenn hadn't thought up of them yet. He's too busy "managing" the small pit in his stomach--if "managing" meant "shoving and punching and stomping down into a fine ash".) Despite his horrible nature, things were looking up and that's all he had to focus on.
And that's definitely an Autumn, alright; even he could see the similarities clear as the blue sky they stood under. He holds a hand up in the laziest wave he could (not) muster.
Glenn stares at the younger Autumn, not knowing who this is.
Who is this?
It asks via the telepathy link, not wanting to piss the new person off. That'd be a bad idea. If they're stronger than him, it'd be dead if he angers them.
(( @princehen , i am so sorry, i forgot youre in the turn order now))
Hen has been pacing around the room, now finding it more cramped than before. He was nervous, but at least there wasn't anyone around to see how nervous. The prince felt terrible about what happened--he had gone and gotten himself killed, and now these very kind people had to rescue him!
What? Are you all in Faerun now? Sofanda and my mother should be near Oakvale.
He mentally responds to the group. Oh, Sylvanus, he felt useless, asking only questions.
Junior huffs in annoyance. Despite coming through the portal first, they have the least idea of where they actually are right now. The woman in the near distance starts approaching, and Junior starts walking toward her in response.
"HEY!" they shout across the distance. "Which way to Oakvale!?" As Autumn reaches the group, Junior vaguely recognizes the same features present in the older woman, but still frowns at her until she answers their question.
Shortly after Autumn runs up to the group Sofanda is heading up after her with a very large travel bag on their back. When she reaches the group she gives the Glenn she’d seen before a quick wave before she notices the older Autumn.
Oh wow Autumn, look at you! Like a fine wine!
They lightly nudge younger Autumn’s arm without breaking the staring they are doing at older Autumn.
Yeah, yeah, we're all capable of carrying out a mission; let's not hurt each other's feelings.
He says, almost breathlessly. As much as he thought he wouldn't have time for a smoke break in the whole nature cult thing, he was already debating lighting one up right here and now. Wow, Glenn, what an tough fucking iron will you got there. Did 'ya get it from Toys 'R Us?
Can we all at least pretend to know each other--or, for some of us, pretend we don't--so we can get this done as quickly and/or smoothly as possible?
He chuckles, stuffing his hands in the pockets of his signature leather jacket.
It doesn't matter who Sen is. He's a dick and he's not here so just ignore the fucking Glenns.
Junior huffs and balls up their fists.
"You're all taking forever-" they storm over to the Autumns and Sofanda. "Which way is Oakvale?" the witch asks with the bare minimum of a polite demeanor.
Sofanda makes a slight face, not really convinced this rescue team was a team at all before sighing.
It’s going to take a while… we have a horse but that’s two passengers at most? You guys are going to be able to get along long enough to save the little prince right? Unless, Autumn, you’re a Druid right? You’ve probably just gotten stronger with age!
She looks to older Autumn, stepping up to her and putting a hand on her shoulder
Do you have any teleportation spells? I have one to get us back but not one to get us to there.
I mean, I assume you have Transport via Plants if I do. The main drawback would be that it's my highest spell slot and we'd all have to make sure to be quick. The window to use it is only around 6 seconds ((1 round))
She pauses to think.
I have a pretty good idea where Bear is keeping him ((History check: 17)), so we could try to get as close as possible, or we could stay further out and sneak in. The problem with teleporting is that you don't really know what's waiting for you at the other end until you get there.
I can cast that, I've got higher spell slots if we need them later.
She glances around at the rest of the ragtag crew they've assembled.
I personally would opt for further out, because, like you said, we don't know if there's going to be any guards or whatever once we get there, not like they'd be able to directly harm us, but it's best if we can stay undetected as long as we possibly can. Of course, that might be easier if we don't have to sneak through the whole commune though.
Autumn's glad her younger self seems to have such a grip on where Hen might be, she's been out of Oakvale long enough that her memory of it's layout is a bit shaky. ((History check: 10))
She glances over at the two Glenns, she's not sure she'd call them particularly adept strategists, but they at least had an eye for tactics that she felt could be useful.
Glenn rolls his eyes at Junior. Come on--comparing him to the guy wearing an ugly-ass robe? Where'd he even get something like that, some...dead Faerunian grandma's estate sale? It's not even an option--she's just so much cooler and much more representative of the Glenn name!
At the time that he was in Oakvale, he reasoned that Bear was an asshole with a shitty interior design sense. But thinking back...wasn't there something he missed?
Okay, got it--once we get there, we can figure it out.
Come on, Glenn knew what a trapdoor looked like, especially under the poshest rug he had seen in his life. (Perception check: 20 + 3) But was he going to mention that? Not really--everyone else could just follow his lead.
His grin reaches his eyes in a way that is purposeful.
Yeah, ignore the Glenn's. Just come find me before you cause too much damage?
He startles at a noise from outside the room he's in and backs as far away from the door as he can as it's opened.
There's someone outside--I think someone's-
He begins to telepathically communicate to the group frantically, but is cut off by @mother-of-oakvale (unbeknownst to the rest of the group) severing the magical connection.
// @mother-of-oakvale if you want, you can start a new post actually for this lmao
Junior's tone is mollified, almost gentle, for a moment, as they respond to Hen. That goes away when Hen's voice comes through in alarm.
Hen? Hen!? Hen, come back! Fuck!
Their pupils dilate, and a faint heat radiates off of them. "Shit, we need to go. What if they're hurting him?" They look at the younger Autumn pleadingly. "Do your plant thing! We don't have time to waste."
Autumn doesn't answer Sofanda. She's doing her best to mask her panic at the severing of the mental connection they'd had with Hen, no matter how brief she'd been a part of it.
This only lasts for six seconds, so once it's cast, we all need to get through right away.
She'd been planning on having the older version of herself cast this, but she feels horrible about having waiting as long as they did, she's cursing herself for not running back to Oakvale as soon as she heard that Hen was back there. She...she's stayed somewhere when she shouldn't have again.
She casts Teleport via Plants
This spell creates a magical link between a Large or larger inanimate plant within range and another plant, at any distance, on the same plane of existence. You must have seen or touched the destination plant at least once before. For the duration, any creature can step into the target plant and exit from the destination plant by using 5 feet of movement.
and without any further discussion she touches the tree and vanishes from sight.
His heart sinks as Hen pleads. Shit. There's no use trying to communicate at this point--he knows what beating a dead horse looks like. He does what he finds least exciting: following the lead. He touches the tree and dissapears.
The group appears just outside of Oakvale, and they can see into the peaceful village from where they stand. Everything looks normal and just how the Autumns left it. Oakvalians move about, chattering peacefully among themselves and all is well.
(It's at this point where the younger Autumn & Jailbreak!Glenn can remember the trapdoor entrance to the basement under Bear's house.)
Failing the save to resist the Calm Emotions spell, Junior's shoulders relax slightly, though their scowl remains intact. It works to stop them from shouting any more or running off on their own. When the Teleport Via Plants spell is cast, they follow immediately after the younger Autumn. Without their usual loud bluster, what remains is a quiet determination.
They step out into the clearing, sticking out like a sore thumb with their bright red hair, though not nearly as much as Dood, Glenn, and Glenn do when coming in behind. Junior looks toward the Older Autumn, regarding her as the expert on this occasion. "He said he was in a basement. Do all the houses have basements? Will we have to look through all the buildings?"
Sofanda follows everyone else through, grimacing the second her eyes fall on Oakvale. She moves to stand at her Autumn’s side, hand reaching for hers. She keeps her mouth shut for now… she doubted Autumn was in any shape to actually answer any questions right now anyway.
Autumn has to stop herself from simply walking straight into Oakvale, it was so familiar, being back she can't help but still feel like it's her home. She looks around to double check that everyone has made it through.
Okay, so I'm pretty sure I know where Bear would keep Hen. Not alot of buildings here have basements, and I don't think he'd trust having him particularly far away, so the basement in our - I mean, his house is probably our best bet.
She glances around trying to discern if Oakvale is actually secretly on high alert and just hiding it really well, or if they really don't feel like changing anything after Hen and her disappearance. (Perception: 6)
With her free hand she rummages in her pack and pulls out a tiara and tucks it into her sleeve, somehow managing this without letting go of Sofanda's hand, though she doesn't seem to actively notice she's holding it.
Being back in Oakvale was making her feel twitchy, at least this was before Bear went on his homunculous kick so the Oakvalians were legitimately people and not just weird psuedo-versions of her son. She can tell the younger version of herself is starting to slip into her old demeanor, something about her posture, a little too perfect to be actually comfortable, and her gaze somewhat softer than it had been previously.
So she can't trust her judgement on the situation, fortunately this Autumn has a bit more distance from Oakvale and can be slightly more objective. She takes in the environment, trying to gauge what kind of threat level they were working with. (Perception: 16)
There was a benefit the younger version of her did have and that was remembering the secret basement. She'd completely forgotten about that until she'd mentioned it, but it seemed as solid a bet as any.
Autumn casts Pass Without Trace on the party.
A veil of shadows and silence radiates from you, masking you and your companions from detection. For the duration, each creature you choose within 30 feet of you (including you) has a +10 bonus to Dexterity (Stealth) checks and can’t be tracked except by magical means. A creature that receives this bonus leaves behind no tracks or other traces of its passage. (Duration: 1 hour)
Let's be as careful as we can, we can't be un-noticed after Bear realizes we're here, so I'm all for putting that off as long as possible.
Although dood’a never been to oak vale, he immediately recognizes it. Slowly, though, the recognition is tainted by a sense of fear and he grips autumns hand.
he looks cautiously at the people around him and curls his body towards autumn slightly. (Insight on the oakvaliens: NAT 20 BABY HELL YEAH)
Glenn didn't nessessarily like Oakvale, but had to admit it was...pretty, now that he actually looked around. (Perception = 7)
He didn't have much time to sightsee, though, so he directs his attention to the creepy basement. He doesn't say anything but a quiet thanks to Autumn before running in the direction of Bear's house.
@autumnwithnooaks, with a roll of 6 (perception)--nothing seems amiss in the little village of Oakvale. Just like Autumn remembered it! Everybody is normal, and Autumn believe that Bear has probably done a good job at managing the disappearance of yourself and Hen.
@dood-the-doodler, with a roll of 20 (insight)--something seems amiss in this little village that Dood has never been inside before. Although the party goes unnoticed, the people still seem like they're hoping that someone will return. Maybe multiple someones, from the way people keep checking the village's entrance.
@too-cool-4-meth-bay, with a roll of 7 (perception)--yeah, this village seems peaceful! Pretty identical trees, people happily going about their days...nothing isn't perfect in the village of Oakvale.
The inside of Bear's house was somewhere that the Autumns would be very familiar with--magical artifacts on nearly every shelf, the belongings of the entire family....this place was much less humble than Bear needed people to believe he was. There is one very nice rug in the corner of the living room--the one that @too-cool-4-meth-bay would remember as 'way too nice to just be shoved in the corner.'
// Also! Everyone should roll stealth to enter Bear's house undetected (it'll just be 1 roll to navigate the town + get inside bc y'all have both Autumns there lmao).
Junior gets a 16 for perception and a 3 (+10 for Pass Without Trace) for Stealth
The red-haired witch follows Autumn toward Bear's house, still calm but alert as they walk. Their hand goes to their jacket, from where they pull a set of nunchucks. Just in case.
Sofanda stays as close as they can to Autumn, staying quiet and walking with purpose. She hated this place. So so much. As much as she was not focused on the people and almost entirely locked onto Autumn and whether or not she was okay, they couldn’t stop the fantasy of burning-down-the-copied-trees-to-enrich-the-soil-for-new-real-ones-to-grow from popping into her head every time she caught a glimpse of those carbon-copy lies in her peripherals.
Autumn, as much as she's convinced that the residents of Oakvale appear to not be paying attention for anyone who is missing, recognizes her older self as having a point in regards to the idea that once they're noticed, they can't go back to being unnoticed.
She keeps a hold on Sofanda's hand as follows after the Glenns who already were heading towards her - no, Bear's house.
The vibes are off, but not dangerously so. Autumn gives Dood's hand a small squeeze. She was still concerned how they would respond it the group ran into Bear, not to mention being concerned how Bear might react if he figured out who Dood is. She holds a finger to her lip to encourage him to stay quiet as they make their way across the compound.
Glenn continues his charge until they reach the inside of Bear's house. Yep, just as humble and homely as he remembered. He glances around to see if there are any shiny objects he could steal, but stops himself before he could go down that train of thought any longer. Glenn, that would be fucking weird--what would Henry say? In fact, he should have brought that spider robe you stole earlier to return...but he left it at Henry's house. Ah, shit.
He cringes a little, remembering what his kids might do with a robe that gives you spider abilities, but ultimately brushes it off as no big deal and goes to pull out the fancy rug.
(19 + 5 = 24, +10 from PWT = 34) (7 + 3 = 10 to perception)
Glenn follows the rest of them, looking around and trying to notice anything he can see. It just let's everybody else do what they have to.
He hadn't been here the first time that small group had come to Oakvale, so it doesn't know how he can help. He really just joined to see if he'd be helpful and to get into combat if it came down to it.
The entire party manages to enter Bear’s house unnoticed! What the party sees as Jailbreak Glenn pulls up the rug is a trapdoor. It looks ordinary, with no locks or magical symbols. As if Bear never expected anyone to ever trespass in his home nor search through it.
The trapdoor leads to a basement that specifically Autumn had never been allowed inside—when Jailbreak (or anyone else) opens the door, they would be greeted with the sight of a spiraling staircase that leads to a small basement that is currently out of sight.
Hen is breathing quickly now, with the slowly dawning realization that this person was not Father. His phone is slipped into his pocket (slight of hand roll of 17).
When the Calm Emotions spell hits Hen, he also fails the saving throw (12). His tense stance relaxes visibly.
Nobody? Uh—nothing?
Deception roll of 4. Hen is a terrible liar, just like the older version of him.
The Calm Emotions spell is broken with the Entangle spell that Hen is caught by and he screams as he pulls against the vines to no avail. Until, of course, he is forced to stop moving by the Command spell. (Hen fails all saving throws.)
You’re lying! They’re on their way—you’ll see!
Hen shouts at Sparrow, tears welling up and threatening to spill over.
Now. It's not Oakvale, which isn't dangerous. The outside world is dangerous. You got hurt, sure, it was a homunculus body, but you still got hurt.
There's a reason you shouldn't leave. You will only get hurt if you leave, but if you stay. Oakvale will keep you safe.
I will keep you safe.
You got hurt and lied to by everybody you met. The outside world will only lie. Give false promises. Promises it will never keep. Promises it can not ever keep.
If you stay, I will keep you safe from the outside world. I'll keep you from harm's way.
The only thing I ask? Is that you don't leave Oakvale again.
Once they give up on trying to find you, it'll be safer to leave the basement. We can't risk them kidnapping you under my watch.
She sighs.
They don't care for you, Hen. They just want to feel righteous in saving you in being your savior. When you know Oakvale will be safer than any place they can ever bring you.
When the vines release Hen, he almost doesn't find his footing (Dex save - 12 + 3 = 15). But he manages not to fall over, instead leaning against the wall for support.
He considers what Sparrow says, tears threatening to spill over again. What she said about Oakvale being a safe home was exactly what he was taught his entire life, but it was the system that he found so constrictive and demanding. She was right about Hen getting hurt, but that hadn't happened because he left Oakvale. There are contradictions between what Hen had been taught and what he thought could happen--the past and the future. It was overwhelming, to say the least.
I know Oakvale's safe....but I just wanted to make my family proud. That's why I left--
His voice cracks, and he crosses his arms defensively.
They're worried about me. Why else would they come rescue me? My mother's out there, for Sylvanus' sake!
Oh, Hen. Well, when they come here to try and rescue you for their own selfish reasons, I can make sure your mom isn't harmed if they attempt to fight me or harm anybody here in Oakvale.
She sighs.
All I ask is that you don't leave Oakvale again. You got hurt out there. You wouldn't have gotten hurt if you had stayed.
You learned new cantrips? Which cantrips have you learned?
Sparrow looks at Hen, staring at him.
You're trying to get better at being a Druid. You aren't wrong about father always being able to manage his magic so easily.
I will be teaching you a thing or two now. After I've dealt with the selfish people who don't care about you.
After I've dealt with them, I can teach you what I know. From Druid spells and how to use them to everything I know about mushrooms.
Mushrooms are quite fascinating.
They're one of the few plants that can grow in the dark and won't die from not having sunlight. They're lighter in color and have smaller caps, but they still grow.
There was the one that created a fire…oh! Druidcraft let me put it out! And, um. Light, and the other light cantrip—the prettier one.
Hen’s counting them off on his fingers, now smiling for the first time in this conversation.
And—and the one with the magical hand. That one I used to make shadow puppets! I’m good at it!
He pauses, the smile faltering.
Selfish? I thought they were good people…I mean, my mother was there and the older version of me. And I don’t think I would be manipulative or selfish.
They just care about me, that’s why they’re here in Oakvale! I swear, they’re outside the village right now.
We aren't at your Oakvale. I didn't want to freak you out about that. But you aren't in your Oakvale.
It's in an entirely different time.
Sparrow frowns and she looks away.
I didn't want to freak out about that. I was planning to ease you into that truth.
She looks at Hen.
The Oakvale you are in right now however, is so much safer. It's even more protected.
Father had a protected Oakvale, but he also asked me how it could be better. After we got this new Oakvale, we needed better security than before. Especially with what happened with the last Oakvale.
I easily found ways to make Oakvale safer. Father did always say I picked up on magic easily. Said I could even surpass him on a magical level, I don't think I'm at that level yet. But he sure thinks so, so I must be then.
Hen stopped paying attention to what Sparrow was saying after ‘aren’t in your Oakvale.’ His breathing quickened and he straightened his posture to stand as tall as he could. To put on a brave face despite how un-brave he felt.
I’m not at home?
He whispers this, taking a half-step towards Sparrow and the door.
Please, I need to be home, or-or somewhere with my parents—
A barely-stifled sob interrupts him as he finally begins to cry.
Hen doesn’t say a word—well, more like couldn’t say a word. Instead, he watches Sparrow shut the door behind her and approach him. Something about her mentioning his father agreeing to this (whatever ‘this’ was) made him second-guess another attempt at leaving the room. Instead, he just nodded and went to sit on the bed. He tried to take deep breaths, just like he had been taught, but his breath was shaky and Hen couldn’t quite get enough oxygen to his lungs.
It takes Hen nearly an entire minute to successfully match Sparrow’s breathing, hugging himself tightly. Embarrassing, a Prince should be composed and in control. Just like Father—
But he wasn’t Father, or anywhere near him. Or anyone he knew, for that matter.
Tears still rolling down his face, he looks back over at Sparrow from the scorched ground where he had been staring before.
He said I should be here?
Hen whispers—who else could he be referring to but Bear.
This is muttered, under Hen's breath. Someone's bitter about what happened.
My mother's in the wrong Oakvale...but she'll find me eventually--you can't keep me down here forever! What--why is he keeping me here, and not at home? Er--my home.
Hen is breathing quickly now, with the slowly dawning realization that this person was not Father. His phone is slipped into his pocket (slight of hand roll of 17).
When the Calm Emotions spell hits Hen, he also fails the saving throw (12). His tense stance relaxes visibly.
Nobody? Uh—nothing?
Deception roll of 4. Hen is a terrible liar, just like the older version of him.
The Calm Emotions spell is broken with the Entangle spell that Hen is caught by and he screams as he pulls against the vines to no avail. Until, of course, he is forced to stop moving by the Command spell. (Hen fails all saving throws.)
You’re lying! They’re on their way—you’ll see!
Hen shouts at Sparrow, tears welling up and threatening to spill over.
Now. It's not Oakvale, which isn't dangerous. The outside world is dangerous. You got hurt, sure, it was a homunculus body, but you still got hurt.
There's a reason you shouldn't leave. You will only get hurt if you leave, but if you stay. Oakvale will keep you safe.
I will keep you safe.
You got hurt and lied to by everybody you met. The outside world will only lie. Give false promises. Promises it will never keep. Promises it can not ever keep.
If you stay, I will keep you safe from the outside world. I'll keep you from harm's way.
The only thing I ask? Is that you don't leave Oakvale again.
Once they give up on trying to find you, it'll be safer to leave the basement. We can't risk them kidnapping you under my watch.
She sighs.
They don't care for you, Hen. They just want to feel righteous in saving you in being your savior. When you know Oakvale will be safer than any place they can ever bring you.
When the vines release Hen, he almost doesn't find his footing (Dex save - 12 + 3 = 15). But he manages not to fall over, instead leaning against the wall for support.
He considers what Sparrow says, tears threatening to spill over again. What she said about Oakvale being a safe home was exactly what he was taught his entire life, but it was the system that he found so constrictive and demanding. She was right about Hen getting hurt, but that hadn't happened because he left Oakvale. There are contradictions between what Hen had been taught and what he thought could happen--the past and the future. It was overwhelming, to say the least.
I know Oakvale's safe....but I just wanted to make my family proud. That's why I left--
His voice cracks, and he crosses his arms defensively.
They're worried about me. Why else would they come rescue me? My mother's out there, for Sylvanus' sake!
Oh, Hen. Well, when they come here to try and rescue you for their own selfish reasons, I can make sure your mom isn't harmed if they attempt to fight me or harm anybody here in Oakvale.
She sighs.
All I ask is that you don't leave Oakvale again. You got hurt out there. You wouldn't have gotten hurt if you had stayed.
You learned new cantrips? Which cantrips have you learned?
Sparrow looks at Hen, staring at him.
You're trying to get better at being a Druid. You aren't wrong about father always being able to manage his magic so easily.
I will be teaching you a thing or two now. After I've dealt with the selfish people who don't care about you.
After I've dealt with them, I can teach you what I know. From Druid spells and how to use them to everything I know about mushrooms.
Mushrooms are quite fascinating.
They're one of the few plants that can grow in the dark and won't die from not having sunlight. They're lighter in color and have smaller caps, but they still grow.
There was the one that created a fire…oh! Druidcraft let me put it out! And, um. Light, and the other light cantrip—the prettier one.
Hen’s counting them off on his fingers, now smiling for the first time in this conversation.
And—and the one with the magical hand. That one I used to make shadow puppets! I’m good at it!
He pauses, the smile faltering.
Selfish? I thought they were good people…I mean, my mother was there and the older version of me. And I don’t think I would be manipulative or selfish.
They just care about me, that’s why they’re here in Oakvale! I swear, they’re outside the village right now.
We aren't at your Oakvale. I didn't want to freak you out about that. But you aren't in your Oakvale.
It's in an entirely different time.
Sparrow frowns and she looks away.
I didn't want to freak out about that. I was planning to ease you into that truth.
She looks at Hen.
The Oakvale you are in right now however, is so much safer. It's even more protected.
Father had a protected Oakvale, but he also asked me how it could be better. After we got this new Oakvale, we needed better security than before. Especially with what happened with the last Oakvale.
I easily found ways to make Oakvale safer. Father did always say I picked up on magic easily. Said I could even surpass him on a magical level, I don't think I'm at that level yet. But he sure thinks so, so I must be then.
Hen stopped paying attention to what Sparrow was saying after ‘aren’t in your Oakvale.’ His breathing quickened and he straightened his posture to stand as tall as he could. To put on a brave face despite how un-brave he felt.
I’m not at home?
He whispers this, taking a half-step towards Sparrow and the door.
Please, I need to be home, or-or somewhere with my parents—
A barely-stifled sob interrupts him as he finally begins to cry.
Hen doesn’t say a word—well, more like couldn’t say a word. Instead, he watches Sparrow shut the door behind her and approach him. Something about her mentioning his father agreeing to this (whatever ‘this’ was) made him second-guess another attempt at leaving the room. Instead, he just nodded and went to sit on the bed. He tried to take deep breaths, just like he had been taught, but his breath was shaky and Hen couldn’t quite get enough oxygen to his lungs.
It takes Hen nearly an entire minute to successfully match Sparrow’s breathing, hugging himself tightly. Embarrassing, a Prince should be composed and in control. Just like Father—
But he wasn’t Father, or anywhere near him. Or anyone he knew, for that matter.
Tears still rolling down his face, he looks back over at Sparrow from the scorched ground where he had been staring before.
He said I should be here?
Hen whispers—who else could he be referring to but Bear.
This is muttered, under Hen's breath. Someone's bitter about what happened.
My mother's in the wrong Oakvale...but she'll find me eventually--you can't keep me down here forever! What--why is he keeping me here, and not at home? Er--my home.
Listen, we don't need this much of you! That's just the facts of things! You can either decide amongst yourself which part of this garden bed you're going to cede to other plants, or you're just going to have to deal with me ripping you up and throwing you into the sea!
Autumn realizes she hears a bit of a commotion coming from the tree line, and realizing this must be the rescue party, hikes up her skirt and starts sprinting towards the noise.
Well, he sure remembered this place. Where he made an ass out of himself and still somehow made it out with a...Henry. (There were probably better words to use for him, but Glenn hadn't thought up of them yet. He's too busy "managing" the small pit in his stomach--if "managing" meant "shoving and punching and stomping down into a fine ash".) Despite his horrible nature, things were looking up and that's all he had to focus on.
And that's definitely an Autumn, alright; even he could see the similarities clear as the blue sky they stood under. He holds a hand up in the laziest wave he could (not) muster.
Glenn stares at the younger Autumn, not knowing who this is.
Who is this?
It asks via the telepathy link, not wanting to piss the new person off. That'd be a bad idea. If they're stronger than him, it'd be dead if he angers them.
(( @princehen , i am so sorry, i forgot youre in the turn order now))
Hen has been pacing around the room, now finding it more cramped than before. He was nervous, but at least there wasn't anyone around to see how nervous. The prince felt terrible about what happened--he had gone and gotten himself killed, and now these very kind people had to rescue him!
What? Are you all in Faerun now? Sofanda and my mother should be near Oakvale.
He mentally responds to the group. Oh, Sylvanus, he felt useless, asking only questions.
Junior huffs in annoyance. Despite coming through the portal first, they have the least idea of where they actually are right now. The woman in the near distance starts approaching, and Junior starts walking toward her in response.
"HEY!" they shout across the distance. "Which way to Oakvale!?" As Autumn reaches the group, Junior vaguely recognizes the same features present in the older woman, but still frowns at her until she answers their question.
Shortly after Autumn runs up to the group Sofanda is heading up after her with a very large travel bag on their back. When she reaches the group she gives the Glenn she’d seen before a quick wave before she notices the older Autumn.
Oh wow Autumn, look at you! Like a fine wine!
They lightly nudge younger Autumn’s arm without breaking the staring they are doing at older Autumn.
Yeah, yeah, we're all capable of carrying out a mission; let's not hurt each other's feelings.
He says, almost breathlessly. As much as he thought he wouldn't have time for a smoke break in the whole nature cult thing, he was already debating lighting one up right here and now. Wow, Glenn, what an tough fucking iron will you got there. Did 'ya get it from Toys 'R Us?
Can we all at least pretend to know each other--or, for some of us, pretend we don't--so we can get this done as quickly and/or smoothly as possible?
He chuckles, stuffing his hands in the pockets of his signature leather jacket.
It doesn't matter who Sen is. He's a dick and he's not here so just ignore the fucking Glenns.
Junior huffs and balls up their fists.
"You're all taking forever-" they storm over to the Autumns and Sofanda. "Which way is Oakvale?" the witch asks with the bare minimum of a polite demeanor.
Sofanda makes a slight face, not really convinced this rescue team was a team at all before sighing.
It’s going to take a while… we have a horse but that’s two passengers at most? You guys are going to be able to get along long enough to save the little prince right? Unless, Autumn, you’re a Druid right? You’ve probably just gotten stronger with age!
She looks to older Autumn, stepping up to her and putting a hand on her shoulder
Do you have any teleportation spells? I have one to get us back but not one to get us to there.
I mean, I assume you have Transport via Plants if I do. The main drawback would be that it's my highest spell slot and we'd all have to make sure to be quick. The window to use it is only around 6 seconds ((1 round))
She pauses to think.
I have a pretty good idea where Bear is keeping him ((History check: 17)), so we could try to get as close as possible, or we could stay further out and sneak in. The problem with teleporting is that you don't really know what's waiting for you at the other end until you get there.
I can cast that, I've got higher spell slots if we need them later.
She glances around at the rest of the ragtag crew they've assembled.
I personally would opt for further out, because, like you said, we don't know if there's going to be any guards or whatever once we get there, not like they'd be able to directly harm us, but it's best if we can stay undetected as long as we possibly can. Of course, that might be easier if we don't have to sneak through the whole commune though.
Autumn's glad her younger self seems to have such a grip on where Hen might be, she's been out of Oakvale long enough that her memory of it's layout is a bit shaky. ((History check: 10))
She glances over at the two Glenns, she's not sure she'd call them particularly adept strategists, but they at least had an eye for tactics that she felt could be useful.
Glenn rolls his eyes at Junior. Come on--comparing him to the guy wearing an ugly-ass robe? Where'd he even get something like that, some...dead Faerunian grandma's estate sale? It's not even an option--she's just so much cooler and much more representative of the Glenn name!
At the time that he was in Oakvale, he reasoned that Bear was an asshole with a shitty interior design sense. But thinking back...wasn't there something he missed?
Okay, got it--once we get there, we can figure it out.
Come on, Glenn knew what a trapdoor looked like, especially under the poshest rug he had seen in his life. (Perception check: 20 + 3) But was he going to mention that? Not really--everyone else could just follow his lead.
His grin reaches his eyes in a way that is purposeful.
Yeah, ignore the Glenn's. Just come find me before you cause too much damage?
He startles at a noise from outside the room he's in and backs as far away from the door as he can as it's opened.
There's someone outside--I think someone's-
He begins to telepathically communicate to the group frantically, but is cut off by @mother-of-oakvale (unbeknownst to the rest of the group) severing the magical connection.
// @mother-of-oakvale if you want, you can start a new post actually for this lmao
Junior's tone is mollified, almost gentle, for a moment, as they respond to Hen. That goes away when Hen's voice comes through in alarm.
Hen? Hen!? Hen, come back! Fuck!
Their pupils dilate, and a faint heat radiates off of them. "Shit, we need to go. What if they're hurting him?" They look at the younger Autumn pleadingly. "Do your plant thing! We don't have time to waste."
Autumn doesn't answer Sofanda. She's doing her best to mask her panic at the severing of the mental connection they'd had with Hen, no matter how brief she'd been a part of it.
This only lasts for six seconds, so once it's cast, we all need to get through right away.
She'd been planning on having the older version of herself cast this, but she feels horrible about having waiting as long as they did, she's cursing herself for not running back to Oakvale as soon as she heard that Hen was back there. She...she's stayed somewhere when she shouldn't have again.
She casts Teleport via Plants
This spell creates a magical link between a Large or larger inanimate plant within range and another plant, at any distance, on the same plane of existence. You must have seen or touched the destination plant at least once before. For the duration, any creature can step into the target plant and exit from the destination plant by using 5 feet of movement.
and without any further discussion she touches the tree and vanishes from sight.
His heart sinks as Hen pleads. Shit. There's no use trying to communicate at this point--he knows what beating a dead horse looks like. He does what he finds least exciting: following the lead. He touches the tree and dissapears.
The group appears just outside of Oakvale, and they can see into the peaceful village from where they stand. Everything looks normal and just how the Autumns left it. Oakvalians move about, chattering peacefully among themselves and all is well.
(It's at this point where the younger Autumn & Jailbreak!Glenn can remember the trapdoor entrance to the basement under Bear's house.)
Failing the save to resist the Calm Emotions spell, Junior's shoulders relax slightly, though their scowl remains intact. It works to stop them from shouting any more or running off on their own. When the Teleport Via Plants spell is cast, they follow immediately after the younger Autumn. Without their usual loud bluster, what remains is a quiet determination.
They step out into the clearing, sticking out like a sore thumb with their bright red hair, though not nearly as much as Dood, Glenn, and Glenn do when coming in behind. Junior looks toward the Older Autumn, regarding her as the expert on this occasion. "He said he was in a basement. Do all the houses have basements? Will we have to look through all the buildings?"
Sofanda follows everyone else through, grimacing the second her eyes fall on Oakvale. She moves to stand at her Autumn’s side, hand reaching for hers. She keeps her mouth shut for now… she doubted Autumn was in any shape to actually answer any questions right now anyway.
Autumn has to stop herself from simply walking straight into Oakvale, it was so familiar, being back she can't help but still feel like it's her home. She looks around to double check that everyone has made it through.
Okay, so I'm pretty sure I know where Bear would keep Hen. Not alot of buildings here have basements, and I don't think he'd trust having him particularly far away, so the basement in our - I mean, his house is probably our best bet.
She glances around trying to discern if Oakvale is actually secretly on high alert and just hiding it really well, or if they really don't feel like changing anything after Hen and her disappearance. (Perception: 6)
With her free hand she rummages in her pack and pulls out a tiara and tucks it into her sleeve, somehow managing this without letting go of Sofanda's hand, though she doesn't seem to actively notice she's holding it.
Being back in Oakvale was making her feel twitchy, at least this was before Bear went on his homunculous kick so the Oakvalians were legitimately people and not just weird psuedo-versions of her son. She can tell the younger version of herself is starting to slip into her old demeanor, something about her posture, a little too perfect to be actually comfortable, and her gaze somewhat softer than it had been previously.
So she can't trust her judgement on the situation, fortunately this Autumn has a bit more distance from Oakvale and can be slightly more objective. She takes in the environment, trying to gauge what kind of threat level they were working with. (Perception: 16)
There was a benefit the younger version of her did have and that was remembering the secret basement. She'd completely forgotten about that until she'd mentioned it, but it seemed as solid a bet as any.
Autumn casts Pass Without Trace on the party.
A veil of shadows and silence radiates from you, masking you and your companions from detection. For the duration, each creature you choose within 30 feet of you (including you) has a +10 bonus to Dexterity (Stealth) checks and can’t be tracked except by magical means. A creature that receives this bonus leaves behind no tracks or other traces of its passage. (Duration: 1 hour)
Let's be as careful as we can, we can't be un-noticed after Bear realizes we're here, so I'm all for putting that off as long as possible.
Although dood’a never been to oak vale, he immediately recognizes it. Slowly, though, the recognition is tainted by a sense of fear and he grips autumns hand.
he looks cautiously at the people around him and curls his body towards autumn slightly. (Insight on the oakvaliens: NAT 20 BABY HELL YEAH)
Glenn didn't nessessarily like Oakvale, but had to admit it was...pretty, now that he actually looked around. (Perception = 7)
He didn't have much time to sightsee, though, so he directs his attention to the creepy basement. He doesn't say anything but a quiet thanks to Autumn before running in the direction of Bear's house.
@autumnwithnooaks, with a roll of 6 (perception)--nothing seems amiss in the little village of Oakvale. Just like Autumn remembered it! Everybody is normal, and Autumn believe that Bear has probably done a good job at managing the disappearance of yourself and Hen.
@dood-the-doodler, with a roll of 20 (insight)--something seems amiss in this little village that Dood has never been inside before. Although the party goes unnoticed, the people still seem like they're hoping that someone will return. Maybe multiple someones, from the way people keep checking the village's entrance.
@too-cool-4-meth-bay, with a roll of 7 (perception)--yeah, this village seems peaceful! Pretty identical trees, people happily going about their days...nothing isn't perfect in the village of Oakvale.
The inside of Bear's house was somewhere that the Autumns would be very familiar with--magical artifacts on nearly every shelf, the belongings of the entire family....this place was much less humble than Bear needed people to believe he was. There is one very nice rug in the corner of the living room--the one that @too-cool-4-meth-bay would remember as 'way too nice to just be shoved in the corner.'
// Also! Everyone should roll stealth to enter Bear's house undetected (it'll just be 1 roll to navigate the town + get inside bc y'all have both Autumns there lmao).
Hen is breathing quickly now, with the slowly dawning realization that this person was not Father. His phone is slipped into his pocket (slight of hand roll of 17).
When the Calm Emotions spell hits Hen, he also fails the saving throw (12). His tense stance relaxes visibly.
Nobody? Uh—nothing?
Deception roll of 4. Hen is a terrible liar, just like the older version of him.
The Calm Emotions spell is broken with the Entangle spell that Hen is caught by and he screams as he pulls against the vines to no avail. Until, of course, he is forced to stop moving by the Command spell. (Hen fails all saving throws.)
You’re lying! They’re on their way—you’ll see!
Hen shouts at Sparrow, tears welling up and threatening to spill over.
Now. It's not Oakvale, which isn't dangerous. The outside world is dangerous. You got hurt, sure, it was a homunculus body, but you still got hurt.
There's a reason you shouldn't leave. You will only get hurt if you leave, but if you stay. Oakvale will keep you safe.
I will keep you safe.
You got hurt and lied to by everybody you met. The outside world will only lie. Give false promises. Promises it will never keep. Promises it can not ever keep.
If you stay, I will keep you safe from the outside world. I'll keep you from harm's way.
The only thing I ask? Is that you don't leave Oakvale again.
Once they give up on trying to find you, it'll be safer to leave the basement. We can't risk them kidnapping you under my watch.
She sighs.
They don't care for you, Hen. They just want to feel righteous in saving you in being your savior. When you know Oakvale will be safer than any place they can ever bring you.
When the vines release Hen, he almost doesn't find his footing (Dex save - 12 + 3 = 15). But he manages not to fall over, instead leaning against the wall for support.
He considers what Sparrow says, tears threatening to spill over again. What she said about Oakvale being a safe home was exactly what he was taught his entire life, but it was the system that he found so constrictive and demanding. She was right about Hen getting hurt, but that hadn't happened because he left Oakvale. There are contradictions between what Hen had been taught and what he thought could happen--the past and the future. It was overwhelming, to say the least.
I know Oakvale's safe....but I just wanted to make my family proud. That's why I left--
His voice cracks, and he crosses his arms defensively.
They're worried about me. Why else would they come rescue me? My mother's out there, for Sylvanus' sake!
Oh, Hen. Well, when they come here to try and rescue you for their own selfish reasons, I can make sure your mom isn't harmed if they attempt to fight me or harm anybody here in Oakvale.
She sighs.
All I ask is that you don't leave Oakvale again. You got hurt out there. You wouldn't have gotten hurt if you had stayed.
You learned new cantrips? Which cantrips have you learned?
Sparrow looks at Hen, staring at him.
You're trying to get better at being a Druid. You aren't wrong about father always being able to manage his magic so easily.
I will be teaching you a thing or two now. After I've dealt with the selfish people who don't care about you.
After I've dealt with them, I can teach you what I know. From Druid spells and how to use them to everything I know about mushrooms.
Mushrooms are quite fascinating.
They're one of the few plants that can grow in the dark and won't die from not having sunlight. They're lighter in color and have smaller caps, but they still grow.
There was the one that created a fire…oh! Druidcraft let me put it out! And, um. Light, and the other light cantrip—the prettier one.
Hen’s counting them off on his fingers, now smiling for the first time in this conversation.
And—and the one with the magical hand. That one I used to make shadow puppets! I’m good at it!
He pauses, the smile faltering.
Selfish? I thought they were good people…I mean, my mother was there and the older version of me. And I don’t think I would be manipulative or selfish.
They just care about me, that’s why they’re here in Oakvale! I swear, they’re outside the village right now.
We aren't at your Oakvale. I didn't want to freak you out about that. But you aren't in your Oakvale.
It's in an entirely different time.
Sparrow frowns and she looks away.
I didn't want to freak out about that. I was planning to ease you into that truth.
She looks at Hen.
The Oakvale you are in right now however, is so much safer. It's even more protected.
Father had a protected Oakvale, but he also asked me how it could be better. After we got this new Oakvale, we needed better security than before. Especially with what happened with the last Oakvale.
I easily found ways to make Oakvale safer. Father did always say I picked up on magic easily. Said I could even surpass him on a magical level, I don't think I'm at that level yet. But he sure thinks so, so I must be then.
Hen stopped paying attention to what Sparrow was saying after ‘aren’t in your Oakvale.’ His breathing quickened and he straightened his posture to stand as tall as he could. To put on a brave face despite how un-brave he felt.
I’m not at home?
He whispers this, taking a half-step towards Sparrow and the door.
Please, I need to be home, or-or somewhere with my parents—
A barely-stifled sob interrupts him as he finally begins to cry.
Hen doesn’t say a word—well, more like couldn’t say a word. Instead, he watches Sparrow shut the door behind her and approach him. Something about her mentioning his father agreeing to this (whatever ‘this’ was) made him second-guess another attempt at leaving the room. Instead, he just nodded and went to sit on the bed. He tried to take deep breaths, just like he had been taught, but his breath was shaky and Hen couldn’t quite get enough oxygen to his lungs.
It takes Hen nearly an entire minute to successfully match Sparrow’s breathing, hugging himself tightly. Embarrassing, a Prince should be composed and in control. Just like Father—
But he wasn’t Father, or anywhere near him. Or anyone he knew, for that matter.
Tears still rolling down his face, he looks back over at Sparrow from the scorched ground where he had been staring before.
He said I should be here?
Hen whispers—who else could he be referring to but Bear.
