Thursday, April 28, 1066 SE
Masha and the Bear has been running for three weeks, and while it has not reached the level of an acclaimed critical success, performances have continued to be well attended, and the play has already generated a tidy profit for the owner Legendary, Sir Gregory Tsaplin. While the second acting and stage crews continue the nightly performances of Masha and the Bear, the first acting and stage crews are already hard at work on the next performance.
The Marquess of Sidorov admired the costume that Branna created for Masha's life in the Bear's house, and she orders an exact replica with the talented seamstress. Branna spends some of her extra time creating a replica for the Marquess, earning a total of 100 silvers. She also designed other costumes for friends of friends, earning more money.
Mon spends some of his time investigating who was arrested during the raid the Cardinal and his men conducted on the warehouse in the docks district. After asking pointed questions and greasing some wheels, Mon discovers that of the twelve remaining men still in jail from that night, nine men were eventually freed, all of them laborers or hired muscle. Some of the individuals were charged with disturbing the peace, while others have been accused of violating religious edicts. Three other people were also arrested, but none of them been seen since the incident. As no one has been reported missing, the locals assume that these three detainees were not from Katarina. The boxes that were seized were never unloaded in the Cathedral.
When items disappeared, both Marygold and Branna thought they would investigate the matter. After questioning some of the Legendary's old timers, they come to the conclusion that a ghost may be haunting the theatre, acquiring objects that have significance for it. About 40% of the items being stolen disappear during the winter, a pattern the elf and the hafling mark as odd. The items that go missing seem on the whole to be of a practical nature, though a few were completely outlandish. When they present their finding to their friend Mon, he speculates that the ghost might lurk throughout the island, and spends more time traveling throughout the other communities during the other seasons. Exploring the theatre, Mon discovers many hidden and "secret" passages that pepper the walls. Due to extensive construction and renovation over the history of the Legendary, spaces have been so remodeled that pathways, crawlspaces, and entire rooms have sprung up and do not appear on any official map of the building.
Inspecting one of these tunnels that provides an incomparable view of the lead actresses' dressing rooms, Mon looks for well-worn paths in the dust, and for places where only one or two people travel. Several of the pathways he examines show no sign of use, while others are well-traveled, revealing that many crew members know of their existence. The bard heads to the make up room to borrow a few instruments, and then to the kitchen where he uses flour and make up powder that he then sprinkles in specific passageways. His plan is to return and examine these if another object goes missing. Mon did notice that the secret passage behind the lead actors' dressing room, which is shared by Vadim, the second lead, and Ulan, the first lead, also has some limited traffic. Mon will keep more of an eye on this, to determine if it's the same amount of traffic for the other actors.
In his exploration, Mon discovers an abandoned wine cellar containing hundreds of bottles, all covered by a thick layer of dust. Looking to raise some quick cash, Mon returns to the wine cellar later that night, takes two bottles of wine from the rack, and gets them appraised at Kaleidoscope Winery. The bottles contain a red wine from Chateau Durso, a winery on the mainland. Viveka, the owner of Kaleidoscope Winery, identifies these bottles as being part of the Sunset collection, and each bottle is 62 years old, a great year for Sunset vintage. Viveka appraises each bottle at somewhere between 75 and 90 silver, describing the wine as one that "contains an overtone of smokiness which accompanies the strong dark cherry and blackberry flavors to coat one's palate, followed by hints of tea and spice," adding that "the tannin structure and exquisite acid balance of this wine gives it fantastic aging." She purchases both bottles from Mon for 81 silver pieces each. Returning to the abandoned wine cellar, Mon takes an inventory of the wine that is in the cave. He plans on selling a bottle or two every couple of weeks, and possibly also keep a few for himself.
Marigold spent time time building small wooden jewelry puzzle boxes in a variety of difficulties, assembling a small inventory she can eventually sell. She set up a deal with Veronika, owner of the Gemstone Harbor to sell her wares, along with some of the jewelry she has crafted. She uses river stones and polished class to make jewelry that is inexpensive and affordable for people who are less fortunate. She earned 60 silvers.
Saturday, April 30, 1066 SE
As Branna puts the finishing touches on a costume for the next play, Oskana barges into the sewing workshop with Masha's ruined dress, the one that is worn at the beginning of Masha and the Bear. Someone has accidentally dropped pomegranate juice on it, and even magic cannot seem to remove the stains that are clearly visible even from the cheapest seats. With the matinee performance only an hour away, she tasks Branna to find the Marquess of Sidorov, who had a similar dress made two weeks ago for a masquerade ball she was holding at her mansion last week.
Branna dispatches a messenger to the Marquess' manor, and she wonders whether it will be sufficient to find her and get the dress. What are the odds that the Marquess would be at home this lovely Saturday afternoon? Branna finds Marigold and Mon and requests them to help. Marigold takes one of her jewelry box, and finds the perfume that Luba wears as Masha. This may come in handy as a bargaining chip to trade for usage of the dress. Mon runs down to the wine cellar and quickly locates another bottle of Chateau Durso's Sunset, and takes it with him. This could also be used as a bargaining chip.
On the way to the Sidorov Manor, the party encounters the boy messenger Branna had dispatched. The boy reports that the Marquess is not at her residence. Marigold suggests they go visit Paula at the Needle and Thread in case she has knowledge of the Marquess' current location, but Paula has not seen the Marquess in days.
Branna, Marigold and Mon run to Sidorov Manor. Orest, the Marquess' butler, informs them that the Marquess is not here at the moment. After much discussion and the generous donation of a Chateau Durso's Sunset bottle, Orest agrees to show them his mistress's wardrobe. There they find the same dress Masha wears, but of course the butler will not let them borrow it without authorization from his mistress. The butler mentions that the Marquess left with her best friend Lady Fayina Sirenko to attend some event in town, but he does not know which one.
Marigold proposes they consult the Daily Night and the Evening Post to see what social events are happening around town. After buying a copy of each newspaper, they find there are three events that would most likely attract the Marquess' attention. First, the Katarina Library is holding a noisy auction to fund additions to the collection. Second, the Stetsyuk Art Gallery is featuring a new opening for Valadera, a female half-orc whose take on the nature of civilization and barbarism are widely acclaimed. Finally, there is a lecture taking place at the Serenity Center on the virtues of using cucumbers on your eyes.
After a brief discussion, the party decides to check out the Serenity Center. At the Serenity Center, they quickly discover that both ladies left a quarter of an hour ago to go to Khoroshim, a three star restaurant. Rushing from the Serenity Center to the restaurant, they run straight into a street protest, an event that is rare in Katarina. Mon inquires about the purpose of the protest, and learns that two young girls were arrested by the Cardinal's men in the Svetozar Plaza and have been accused of indecent behavior. Knowing both girls to be from reputable families, the crowd is enraged that the girls were arrested and they demand they be let go from the wagon in which they currently sit. The protest is large enough to block the entire street, and though they can backtrack through town, Branna, Marigold and Mon will lose significant time doing so. Marigold comes up with a clever solution. She enchants a rock to smell horribly, and she then uses it to clear a path through the protesters.
At Khoroshim, the trio is stopped at the entrance by the majordomo, who simply refuses to let rabble such as they inside his fine establishment. Branna drops the name Sidorov and intimates the Marquess would be sorely upset to have missed an opportunity to help her favorite theatre during this crisis, after which the majordomo relents and takes them inside to find the Marquess of Sidorov and her best friend Lady Sirenko sitting at a table and enjoying a mouth-watering meal, with a bottle of Chateau Durso's Sunset from decades ago on the table.
Branna explains the problem to the Marquess, who promptly writes a note allowing the seamstress to hand to her butler to take the dress with her. At this moment, however, the Cardinal enters the restaurant with his men, evidently searching for someone. He briefly stops by the Marquess's table, and remarks on the poor quality of her connections as he sneers down at Branna, Marigold, and Mon. Lady Sirenko pours a torrent of abuse on the Cardinal, who calmly accepts it, before staring intently at her and delivering the veiled threat that he was looking forward to a day soon where he could have an in-depth conversation with the lady in his Cathedral offices. Obviously not having located who they had come for, the Cardinal and his men left Khoroshim.
Branna rushed to Sidorov Manor, while Marigold ran to the Legendary to inform Oskana that the dress was on its way. Soon, the play started, and no one was the wiser that on this day, it was a replicate of Masha's dress, and not the real thing, that performed on stage.
Later that night, when Mon returned to the room he shares with Herald, he noticed two empty bottles of Chateau Durso on the ground by the scoundrel's bed. Hurrying back to the abandoned wine cellar, he finds Herald standing in there holding a bottle in each hand. Pleased to see the bard here, Herald thanks him for leading him to such a fine establishment, and inquires as to which of the two bottles he is holding Mon thinks his lady friend would like best. Mon casts charm person on Herald, and convinces him to take only one bottle. Once his roommate is gone, he moves the 72 most expensive bottles to the 6th floor in the ancient wood reserve he previously had located during his exploration of some of the Legendary's secret passages, and uses some of the wood to build a screen to hide the room and his growing bottle collection. He also takes some of the aged hardwood to Marigold so she can make additional puzzle boxes.
