Iron got his ass beat and has pissed off a whole criminal syndicate, Amber is doing some shady shit at the police station, Silver is making friends, and Spark is enjoying Whinnysotan hospitality.
>>146505Amber hangs back slightly and asks them,
"What do the offices contain that's so important?"
>>146506The bat answers
"Case files is what we are after. That, and notes or other information collected by the detectives."
>>146503"We are quite lucky. This is one amazing view."
>>146508She smiles, and looks back to Silver
>>146509Okay, this requires another luck roll for the little pony
[1d20 = 10]
>>146510My luck hasn't been too great, will it get better?
[1d20 = 8]
>>146511>>146510>>146509Sunnyside Meadows volunteers an answer, and the pegasus' ears swivel to hear.
"It's a high profile case. They probably moved it to the chief's office, near the end of the hallway on the other side."
>>146513"We have authority granted by the head of State and the Secretary of the Interior. That's higher than the chief." She says, moving forward
>>146515This little pony gets another luck roll
Hopefully these things are not too obnoxious
>>146516Nah, one day these will pay off.
[1d20 = 5]
>>146510Silver looks to his Jubee, and smiles.
"Person who recommended this place said they have fish. I hope it is 'deli-fish'."
He can't stop himself from smiling wider at his own pun.
>>146519Amber's mouth hangs open.
"Uh, where did you get it? I'm guessin' you didn't visit his house to ask him for it?""
>>146429“If you use a gun, that might alert more. The neighborhood could be filled with snitches that hope to gain favor by reporting an altercation. You would be putting your parents at risk even if no more changelings arrive.”
>>146519"From one the detectives earlier.
While you were with the red stallion." She answers
>>146522"All the same, I'd rather have it than not have it" He answers
>>146520She looks confused, but the confusion is broken by a unicorn waiter, who lights a candle and places it on the table, places glasses of water, and several menus.
"Would you care for something off of our wine menu?" He asks
>>146523Silver looks over at the waiter.
"Yes. You would not happen to have anything from Southern Griffonia? Sicameon?"
>>146524The blue pegasus continues forward, with the white griffin right behind her. But the bat answers Amber
"Probably to lock up the doors at night."
She tilts her head
"What brings a little earth pony filly here so late at night? Didn't I see you at the scene of an alleged politically motivated crime, this afternoon?"
>>146525"Yes. Sicameon, Asterion, Wingbardy. We have Aquelian, but that is in reserve."
>>146523“Don’t use it unless there is no other option. I’m going to see if I can get any more information from her.”
>>146527He nods. Well Spring has taken a seat on the couch, and her head is falling down.
>>146529I think it was ~8 hours before. Either way, it was recent"Then understand that keeping ponies like those from being armed with guns is what we are here to prevent." She answers
Another luck roll[1d20 = 20]
>>146532The group turns the corner, and may look down the hallway>>146533She is starting to fall asleep, it seems
>>146526He looks to his date for approval.
"How about it, my sweet dove? Does some Sicameon Red sound good?"
>>146530"Well they're causing enough mischief with pipes as is...."As they make the turn she starts to sweat. Surely there's a way to delay at least one more minute?
"Hey! Do you know where the bathroom is around here? I looked for one down this hallway a few minutes ago and it wasn't here. It's rather urgent...."
>>146534“Well, I guess I won’t be getting many answers.”
Spark checks out a window to be sure she isn’t already tracked here.
>>146537She moves her head up
"Huh?"
Outside a lone car drives. It doesn't seem to be slowing down.
>>146536Okay, one more - perhaps final - luck roll
>>146535She pauses, and says
"Sure"
>>146539[i][Mediocre/i]
Sunnyside Meadows comes forth and says
"Sure. Down this hallway, to the by the end. It's one room and one gender."
>>146538He smiles, and turns to the waiter.
"Then we will have bottle of that."
>>146538“It’s ok. If you are tired, you should get your sleep.”
>>146542"Is there... a blanket?" She asks. She is at least shivering less than before.
>>146541He nods, and walks off unless Silver has something more to say to him
"It will be so."
>>146543Spark levitates some blankets over if they are present in the room.
>>146543He does not. Instead he takes a sip of water, looks at his menu, and talks with Jubilosa.
"I am trying out different pet names to call you. Any input?"
>>146546He walks into the hallway, and points near the end.
And there is Red Scabbard, standing in the hallway
>>146545“Well... Khoi calls me ‘Juby’.” She smiles
“But I sort of want to hear what you come up with.”
>>146544She takes the blanket, and takes off her long cloak. Spark can see that her whole coat sort of glistens, even in the dim light of the street lamp that enters through the window. Her mane is kept in place by a set of ties into two ponytails. She tries to cover herself on the bed, shivering.
>>146547"Jubee is great nickname, I have been using that, myself. I was talking about pet names. You know, like honey, sweetie...I was thinking 'dove'. It is great way to describe your beauty, I think."
>>146549“D’aww!”
She bats her eyes, places her claws wide apart on the table, and moves close in, as if eager to here what he will say next.
>>146550He doesn't say much else. Instead, he takes the opportunity and Jubilosa's moment of weakness to lean in and steal a kiss.
>>146551This requires leaning in all the way, over a lit candle, past a glass container of water, past empty wine glasses.... you know what? Roll die.
>>146548Spark feels bad for her.
“Rest easy now. We will handle it from here.”
>>146553“Thank you.” She says, trying to pull the cover closer to her. She lays down, incidentally taking the place where Spark slept.
>>146554Spark probably wasn’t going to sleep anyhow, with a possible changeling attack. He makes his way back to Madake.
>>146556Makade waits for him there in the kitchen, looking to Spark
>>146555Silver makes it across the table, and kisses her perfectly on the beak. Her eyes go wide, and she seems to blush.
>>146557“She’s too drowsy to hold a conversation. Our next step is probably to set up more defenses at possible entry points.”
>>146558"We have the front door, the rear door, and several windows." He answers. "How did she even get back there? She must have jumped a fence. Unless she
flew."
>>146557He pulls back just a little to smile mischeviously at her.
"I take it you approve?"
>>146560"Heh, you're a silly pony. Do you know that?"
>>146561"And what does that make you, my dove?"
>>146559“We will consider that possibility once the area is secure. We need to barricade what we can so there are less immediate options for entry. The more time we buy it they attack, the better we can defend.”
>>146562She smiles awkwardly. Silver has her now
"Uh....."
>>146547Oh thank goodness, we didn't catch him red-hoofed...well, metaphorically. Can we bluff him out of this?She walks ahead of him in the hallway and calls out to Red Scabbard,
"Hi Red! There was such an awful fight earlier, but I think everypony let bygones be bygones. Still, you should check to make sure nothing gets mussed up. I just need to use the restroom." She winks at him in a way that's not visible to the ponies behind her.
>>146564He smiles widely.
"We are just pair of silly people, huh?"
>>146565[1d4 = 2]>>146566"It seems so" She says
The waiter returns, and pours a glass of wine for each of the two lovers.
>>146565>>146567He comes close to her, places a leg over her, and says in a very low voice, almost a whisper
"You just missed being there with me."
>>146568She frowns but exclaims, out loud,
"Red! Is that all you think of? I really wish you could be more sophisticated...."
>>146569"You like it."
He bats her with a tap of his hoof on the fur past her mane. Again coming closer, and with a voice just a bit louder than a whisper
"
Come by my office when you're done"
>>146563"What is coming, exactly?" He asks
>>146567Silver takes a sip of the wine, and takes a serious look at his menu. What kind of fish dishes are there?
>>146572Red Scabbard tries to move past the horde of creatures. The pink mare gives him a dirty stare, while Trakyr actually pats him on the back
"Sorry if I missed anything. Was in the bathroom." He remarks as he attempts to move past them
[1d20 = 20]>>146573Things such as salmon dip for bread, halibut, flounder, and tuna, as well as crab and shrimp.
Temperate freshwater fish, and deep ocean fishes are more expensive than coastal fishes.
>>146571“Could be nothing, could be a patrol of several changelings looking to mess with our new guest. We need to be prepared for the latter should it happen.”
>>146575"What do they want her for?" He asks "And who is she to you?"
>>146574Silver orders some shrimp for himself.
>>146574Amber enters the bathroom and locks the door behind her if possible. She stares at her reflection in the mirror and takes some deep breaths.
>>146576“She says that a changeling found her attractive, or at least desired to use her, so she tired to run, but it seems that this one is persistent and may have brought friends. As for who she is, time will tell. She is just a stranger, but she needs help.”
>>146578It's a single person bathroom. At least it's clean. She still has the envelopes in her jacket. Her mane is a little disheveled, and the light is a bit more yellow than preferred.
>>146577I could select a more culturally appropriate menu...>>146579"At the risk of getting us all possibly arrested for helping insurgents?" He retorts
>>146580She doesn't really need to use the restroom, but she does so anyway. When she's finished she washes up in the sink and tries to straighten her mane before heading out.
Just one more thing to do now. Or maybe there's more, but I can hope.
>>146580“She isn’t an insurgent. She worked at a factory. But regardless, her story doesn’t mean all that much because circumstances are the same. If she is a spy or if she brought changelings along my because she is running, we are being targeted. Refusing to help won’t change anything in our situation.”
>>146582Suffice it to say, there are very fancy foreign words next to the description of shrimp.
>>146581Simple enough.
Amber opens the door to find an opened office door, and Trakyr, the pink mare, and the bat still in the hallway, though the last is partly inside of the office.
>>146583“I’m just saying, do we need to harbor her?”
>>146584She offers a quick prayer as she tries to get by to where she needs to go.
>>146585The pink mare gives her a dirty look. But Trakyr of all creatures, stops Amber to try to talk to her
“Hey. You’re Scabbard’s girl?”
>>146584“Yes. Plus, if we send her away, she will be caught and reveal our description. For both her safety and ours, she stays with us.”
>>146586She tries to ignore the dirty look.
"I haven't known him for very long, but I guess you could say that."
>>146587“Fine. But it’s my parents here in this house, and my tribal band’s heir apparent. I do not like risking them.”
>>146588“Nice. He’ll say he meets all these mares wherever, but I always tell him he’s full of shit. Looks like he has more charm than I give him credit for. Or luck.”
>>146584Regardless, this is still Silver's choice, even if he can't make heads or tails of half of what describes the shrimp.
>>146589"What do you mean, 'all these mares?'" She looks surprised and offended.
>>146591He hold out his right paw and does a repeated turning motion with it.
“Oh, over the years he’ll say things. I don’t think it means anything. It’s just talk. But you’re here.”
>>146590“I think I’ll wait a big longer to order” Jubilosa says
>>146589“Unfortunately the risk came to us. What we can do, however, is handle the risk the best we can. Now, let’s get to work blocking the doors and windows.”
>>146592Silver nods, and looks to the waiter.
"I will hold off until she is ready."
She blinks. "I'm...I'm going to ask him a few questions. Thank you, Tracky, and it was nice meeting you."
>>146593Wordlessly, Makade stands up, and goes to the rear portion of the house, and starts closing the shutters on the windows.
>>146596He waves at her with a paw. Sunnyside Meadow, though partly inside of the office, also waves a hoof. And no one stops Smber from leaving.
>>146595The waiter nods, and leaves the two.
>>146597With no further obstruction, she heads to Red Scabbard's office.
>>146598Amber goes down the hallway, turns right, goes down the hallway again, turns right again, snd his door is cracked open on the right. Red Scabbard is standing there in the office.
>>146597Silver looks back to Jubilosa.
"What are you thinking of getting?"
>>146597Spark helps the silent wolf.
>>146599She enters the office and closes the door behind her with a sigh, and stares at Red Scabbard.
>>146600“Uh...” she stares at the menu.
>>146601When he is done closing blinds - and where possible, shutters - in the rear of the house, he moves to the front to do the same, looking out the windows for anything of interest.
>>146603“I got the papers.” He says
He pushes forward a few papers. Two letter sized, one much smaller, all with typing on them.
“I think you should take these along with the other items.”
>>146604"Do you need help choosing? Any input?"
>>146604"What are these, anyway? Shucks, maybe I don't want to know...." She gingerly folds them and tucks them away with the other paper.
>>146606“Indexes, catalogs, exhibit tags... Paper. But aside from that, it is best not to know.”
"Mmm, I don't like it one bit...but anyway, I'm going to quarrel a bit loudly with you so I can leave quickly without looking suspicious."