A New Arrival in the Temple of Lathander

Priest of Lathander, Cleophus Kinn, Jay Mayer, and Ahri can be seen escorting a pale and frightened woman through Myth Drannor, to the Temple of Lathander. The group appears to have been through a battle and come out on the winning side with minor injuries. After a short time, Cleo, Jay, and Ahri can be seen leaving the Temple.

Along the way, Garren would encounter a temple priest leading the girl to a room. He nods to the paladin as he continues with his duties. The girl trailing behind would look at Garren curiously, but doesn't say anything to him unless he speaks with her.

As days pass, Lianna gets used to her new surroundings and can be seen around the temple, dusting statues and shelves, scrubbing floors, and helping launder linens and robes. In the evenings, before dusk, she walks around the farms and settlement, looking at the scenery and watching the people. It isn't long before the notices the orphanage. She then starts spending time with the children, reading to the younger ones and teaching the older children to dance. The former slave keeps largely to herself, except when visiting the orphanage or when anyone in the temple speaks to her. Whenever Cleo visits, she iimmediately brightens and goes to him, speaking animatedly about the dawn of her new life and how excited she is.

More time passes and Lianna spends more and more time at the orphanage. She spends most of her time with a young woman by the name of Miranda, talking, laughing, and getting to know her. They often take walks around the settlement, just before dusk, but always return before it starts to get dark.

Despite his own recent difficulties, Cleo, now stationed at the Settlement at least until Garren's return, would have ample time and opportunity to check in on Lianna. He would do so regularly, but not frequently.

Jay would meet Lianna again because of the sorry news of a little girl gone missing. After the failed rescue mission, he would ask the mornmaster to allow Cleo a few days off. If agreed, Jay would take Cleo to his room, at the local inn, to take care of him in the following days, paying extra tips to have meals served upstairs, walking with him along the settlement, should he feel like stepping outside once in a while, and mostly offering his chest and arms to curl up against at nights, waiting for him to fall asleep before finally finding some rest as well.

Cleo does take to his room, at Jay's behest, and enters into a period of near-total silence. When he goes outside, he looks somehow small and timid even in his mithral armor, but he greets people with a nod and a sad little attempt at smile.

He is briefly seen at the orphanage, one afternoon, setting a silver tray of cookies on a table in the dining hall. He smiles at the children, and watching them attack the cookies seems both to cheer him and to drive him into thought. He holds a tiny folded note in his hands.

Lianna is inconsolable; pacing her room and crying almost constantly. Should anyone try to comfort her, she would push them away and say its her fault the girl is dead and she doesn't deserve sympathy. The only person she will talk to is Cleo.

Celovar makes his way into the temple, being well known for spending nights with Arya, he attempts to make his way toward the girls room after telling the priest he needs to speak with her, now. (Would of posted sooner but could not find this thread XD).

Cleo, only now recovered from his own shock and confusion, looks up from his station to see and hear Celovar talking to the Morninglord. He stands quickly and walks behind Celovar, rushing to catch up. "I understand your urgency, but please allow me to accompany you. My presence will make it easier on the girl."

"My thanks, but it is very important she tells us all she knows. I brought a mind blank spell to try to subdue her fear so that we can understand the situation more clearly and unbias to emotions. The utmost haste needs to be taken, as well as getting the real story. Maybe hearing it twice would be beneficial."

Celovar proceeds toward the room with Cleo and knocks onto it calmly.

At the sound of the knock, a tentative and hoarse voice responds. "Come...in?"

((would you two like to continue this in game?))

After the questioning and subsequent removal of Lianna to a safer and more secure location, Cleo, who has plenty of time on his hands, visits Lianna every day.

He mostly attends to her creature comforts, and to her feelings. He lingers for some time, making tea and chatting. He doesn't pry, but he does ask, every day, whether the vampires have spoken to her again.

When Ahri isn't studying or doing other business in Myth Drannor, Ahri goes to visit Lianna. She smiles and gives her a big hug, and asks how she is doing and what has been going on while she was in Shadowdale. The mage is genuinely happy to see the woman.

Lianna seems jittery and depressed whenever Cleo and Ahri visit her; though, she perks up considerably when she sees them. She gives Ahri a big hug and chatters with her about trivial things, but she doesn't go into any detail about how she's doing, as if that's a topic she tries to avoid.

With Cleo, she opens up more and explains that the silence in her mind is almost as bad as the near constant voice of the vampire trying to influence her. It's only now starting to become easier to deal with and she's confident she just needs time to adapt. Her feelings of guilt are still as strong as ever.

Ahri would chat with her, not pushing too hard if she asks anything that seems to make Lianna uneasy. If she avoids a subject, Ahri doesn't press her either. Though, she does watch her reactions and her mannerisms, and she also carefully inspects the area around the Temple after she leaves every time she visits with True Seeing upon her vision, looking about for any intruders in disguise, invisible or Ethereal. She would do this as inconspicuously as possible. She'd rather not cause trouble.

((At this point, Lianna has been moved to a safe house within Myth Drannor so she's no longer at the Temple of Lathander.))