Collecting firewood

[Wolfman2006]

Pity crosses the teacher's face, his is one often worn while the user tries to soften a blow, to spare pain. Although maybe there is another emotion in there, maybe envy?

"Heaven and Hell are very real, just as the Wildlands where we recently saw Balor fall. These places have been known by many names, and are likely very misunderstood, but us lacking perspective doesn't change the truth even if we can't recognize it or them for what they are. The truth can be a painful experience, to spare ourselves of such pain humanity often chooses ignorance. While painful learn from the experience, allow it to shape you, adapt, evolve. It is who you are, never forget that."

"As for when we die? I do not know for certain...."
There is an unmistakable trace of bitterness when he said the word "we".

"I do know that a great many things can transpire to the souls of the departed. There are beings of power of great influence on this realm and others, and it is by their intentions and whims that dictate the fates of those passed on. The Well of Souls for example is something of a prison containing ghosts of sorts, The Morrigan with our assistance destroyed it and cast those ghosts into fleshed forms once more to serve as their army of the dead so they might stand against Balor. I would theorize that the dead gravitate towards one or perhaps all three of these outer realms, either by compulsion, desire, or forcibly. As to why, how, or for what purpose I can't fathom."

[Casidhe Cool]

::During the first part Malcom's response Cassie looks like she is holding back cynical laughter, by the end she just nods affirmatively and agrees to the mystery::

"My perspective of the world has changed for me like this before; Ten years ago I learned about the true nature of the family business...."

::Her words hang for a moment and she looks like she is having trouble choosing the words to elaborate, and instead continues on to the next thought with a not-so suppressed aggravation::

"What really pisses me off is that my uncle still tried to protect me from the rest of it; as near I can tell, he knew something of-"

::She waves her hand about indicating Whisper Hill::

"...this kind of stuff. And still decided to shelter me from it. And he probably lost his life because of what it may have cost him to protect me. I don't know if my father knew and was the reason I was kept out of the loop but It's been hard to think I still looked weak enough to need protecting after all the work I've done and the shit I waded through to get here."

::She raises an eyebrow towards him::

"Tell me, From your... I'm guessing unique-ish perspective... Do I really look so fragile? I feel like I've handled things better than most outsiders would so far at least..."

[Wolfman2006]

With that Malcolm laughs, genuine deep laughter and he sighs contently upon its completion

"Miss Cassie first I will answer your question, then I will answer what you actually want to know. Do you look fragile? Of course you do. You are a woman for starters and with all the strings attached, the vast majority of such stereotypes are woefully unfounded of course but sadly the exist in our society regardless. You are not a very large and imposing person, this could add to that perception. But most importantly in the eyes of your family? You will always be a fragile thing, something to be cherished and protected, something to avert all risks when possible."

Malcolm waves his hand dismissively as if to ward of this explanation, and to clear the way for a better one.

"Now as for what you want to know is are you fragile? Or at least do others share your family's perception of you? Miss Cassie... you walked into the woods and made conversation with a man holding a sword one you've only met a few days prior... that alone is either foolish or a telltale sign at your confidence in handling yourself in the unknown. You fought alongside us at the Cave, you had the courage to not give in to the temptation and hide behind ethics or morality, and the conviction to know that despite the horrible actions we were undertaken... they were necessary. I need not know anything else about you that alone confirms my belief that you are anything but fragile."

[Casidhe Cool]

"OK, I guess I can live with that. But you don't strike me as dangerous-"

::She hurriedly amends::

"I mean, you strike me as very strong; and certainly you have the potential to be very dangerous; but I don't get the sense you are a danger TO ME. Most of the people here all seem to have an air of dangerous potential, but not intent. At least, not towards people."

::She stretches her arms and menuevers into a comfortable position by the fire crossing her legs instead of kneeling.::

"Sorry if I disturbed your quiet... Why did you come out here alone with just your sword? Armed or not, Whisper hill seems dangerous."

[Wolfman2006]

Malcolm gives a good natured chuckle at her observations and amends to remain polite.

"To some I would be considered dangerous yes, certainly not you. I don't disagree with your initial assessment of this community. Most of the locals are just simple people trying to live their lives in that blissful ignorance we discussed earlier. There are a handful who are much more than that however, like nearly all of the tourists as they are sometimes called, or newcomers. That said, there are some here whom I question their intent, and I urge you to be cautious as adapt to life here. Oh and you are no intrusion fear not, if anything I welcome the company. I am not opposed to pleasant conversation, and I am happy to become acquainted with you. I sought isolation to avoid creating a disturbance and to seek a peaceful environment in which I could focus."

Malcolm nods towards the pile of wood and then the Nano-sword
"Eh strength had little to do with that, I had an unfair advantage. The blade does all the work in the cutting edge, little to no actual strength was needed. Getting it back to the Diner however will likely be a fair amount of work."

Malcolm's brow furrows slightly at his own disapproval
"As for what I am doing out here? Events this weekend have demonstrated to me a need for me to be at my best. To be blunt I am out of shape, out of practice, my form is poor, I have allowed very finely honed skills degrade; and I have decided to rectify that. So I came to practice."

He points to the hobbled together scarecrow now filled with countless punctures and a multitude of small narrow cuts.

"I had thought that I no longer had a need for the arts of swordplay, for I had no integrity to couple with it. That has changed. To quote a far greater man than I: Learning is not virtue but the means to bring us an acquaintance with it. Integrity without knowledge is weak and useless, and knowledge without integrity is dangerous and dreadful. Let these be your motives to action through life, the relief of the distressed, the detection of frauds, the defeat of oppression, and diffusion of happiness. I possessed the knowledge but let go of it due to my absence of integrity and purpose. The trials we have recently faced have shown me have shown me otherwise, thus I have rediscovered both anew."

[Casidhe Cool]

::Cassie nods but looks a bit detached::

"Can't say It's that complicated for me; but I can agree with the sentiment. I am looking forward to this volunteer firefighter gig though; It's a lot more meaningful than courier work or-"

::She gestures at the fire with a fake and mischievous 'smile' ::

"Insurance claims. If you like, I could use the practice keeping a sword off me; and I'll be a bit more sport than a scarecrow. Just don't actually land anything worse than a punch; I'm supposed to be taking it easy."

::She scoffs at the last bit and probably never had much of an intention to honor the task::

"I was under the impression a lot of the dangers had been discovered before over the last couple of years. So have you not been in Whisper Hill that long either?"

[Wolfman2006]

Malcolm smirks at her implications regarding her line of work.

"I'm a turncoat working for Whisper Hill High, I'm from Colebrook the Whip'o'Willows dreaded rivals. It's the next piece of civilization you'll find out here, Coos County is not particularly urban or developed. I've come to the area infrequently over the years for Hockey games as well as my work with the First Nations Embassy. So while I am no stranger to most of the locals here, I have only been living here a few months now. I was asked to come and help where or how I could with the area's recent problems with the Wendigo. I have some experience dealing with them in the past and hoped to be of help here, especially due to the complicated and important nature of this place.

Malcolm finishes his pipe and gently taps the remains into the fire, before tucking it away.

"In the rest of Coos County It is widely accepted that strange things happen in Whisper Hill at night, but country folk mind their own business and don't look for trouble. You are not wrong though, things have escalated here significantly from what the locals have told me, they think it's due to the massive influx of outsiders kicking the bees' nest so to speak. "

At Cassie's offer Malcolm grimaces, and looks at her his expression composed but not unkind
"Maybe another time, he gave me all the fight I can handle for today. I apologize if I am overstepping my bounds, but you have expressed a great deal of interest in what happens to the departed. That and you have demonstrated grave concern for the fate of your Uncle, do you mind if I ask what happened to him? Or at least what you suspect has happened?"

[Casidhe Cool]

::Cassie weighs the choice for a moment and then deliberately clears the sad look on her face::

"Sure, it's ok; I mean, I've been asking lots of questions... I guess I should start by clarifying that I did do some legitimate courier work; the business is real. But of course, It's also a cover; I would also run sensitive documents, discrete messages, un-laundered money and occasionally small weapons for my uncle. We don't handle drugs. After I learned about the less leagal side of urban life I couldn't be kept away, but they kept me to the safer stuff."

::She sounds a bit bitter about that::

"Anyway, I had thought I must have been sloppy and given away a location of a storehouse or something; I never knew how he died... I thought some job had gone wrong, and have been laying low all summer in case I had become a known figure, or was next on the list... But If Erlend can be believed my uncle probably lost his life making these..."

::She pulls out a pewter disk from around her neck, it's only about the size of an Oreo cookie and is embossed with strange circular runes.::

"Erlend says my uncle made the two of these-" ::She clarifies:: "Erlend has the other... To protect me, and that he really..."

::The next part sounds hard for her to say, but she stares into the fire and gets it out::

"...Put a lot of himself into it. He knew something of the occult all this time and never told me! It wasn't supposed to be so hard on him I guess; he wasn't expecting it to weaken him so much. The Idiot! I'd rather almost anything but being the reason he's gone."

::She looks up to Malcolm again and is clearly frustrated. But also with a guarded look as if weighing his response with a simmering warning as if his next action could make her upset::

[Wolfman2006]

Malcolm nods attentively if a bit impassively as she speaks, he gives the small amulet a long appraising look clearly interested.

"I'm sorry for your loss miss Cassie, there is nothing I can say that will give you solace or peace of mind. Nor should you have it, the loss of a loved one is meaningful because of what they meant to us in life."

He holds his hands out to the fire warming them before continuing

"Did you know this fire has a spirit? It was birthed the moment your spark grew into a flame proper. The cold around has has a spirit, as do most living and unliving things. Spirits reflect the nature of what they are. Fire spirits are destructive, Crow spirits are curious, Stones spirits are strong. Learning about something's spirit can tell you an awful lot about the subject the spirit belongs to. Miss Cassie, given time a Shaman could likely commune with the spirit of your uncle's labors, and you might be able to learn the nature of what it is you hold and for what purpose it was created."

[Casidhe Cool]

::Cassie relaxes a bit and turns to the fire as Malcolm does. She doesn't seem upset::

"I never thought of fire as destructive as it's primary property; at least not more so than lots of other things. I always considered it loud, bright, and active; like a dance party. It radiates warmth like our favorite people and gave us the power to found civilization as we know it... I think it's only scary and destructive to people who aren't accustomed to it. I mean, sure it's dangerous to us; but so are wolves and lots of people see them positively just because they are easier to relate to with the whole ears eyes and teeth thing in common."

::Cassie pauses a moment to temper her fascination with some sense::

"Well, I know it's not ALIVE. At least, not in the mundane sense. But I've always enjoyed the company of fire; I find it soothing. I guess like some people find those little running water fountains."

::Cassie reaches over and gets her bag, pulling out her small pistol. Once she has that nearby she unhooks her necklace and holds it over towards Malcolm with her left hand while getting her pistol ready in her right::

"I'm sure you understand the caution; I DID just meet you out here in the woods. Besides; it will take more than a couple bullets to keep you down I think. But if you'd like to help me with this I'd owe you one. He didn't leave me any information about it; His will was just very specific that I was to have it. I thought it might be some kind of code or something; but if Erlend isn't lying it might be a lot more complicated than that..."