Tea Party for All Kinds (Part 2)

Jp with Lorem, LucianNepreen, Omni, mdman, Redsword and Cindy

Lorem’s attempt at conversation was like someone fishing with a lure and a bob. She was thankful someone was gracious enough to take a bite. Seeing her question nibbled upon, she had been successful in initiating conversation with one of her new unfamiliar colleagues. She reeled in the response from Dumont.

Of course she knew of Gemma Aberly. She had no idea that the industrious gnome was a member of the Order of the Moon, and still didn’t, but as an engineer she was familiar and admired the woman’s work and accomplishments that were publicly known. To have herself brought up in the same sentence as her was flattering.

“Yes sir, I do believe we share a variety of things in common and have similar interests.” She tried not to sound too eager like a fan girl. “I have never met her, but perhaps one day I will. Though you could say I’ve met her through some of her engineering feats, as one could say they know the creator of an art piece through observing their work.”

“May I ask how you are familiar of Miss Aberly, Mr. Dumont?” She inquired, hoping she had remembered his name correctly from when everyone had been initially introduced.

Before Dumont could answer, Cronk was led into the room, the bottle in hand. Seeing the spread on the table, Cronk’s face brightened. Placing the bottle on the table with a thunk, Cronk grabbed a plate. He placed a couple of biscuits and a handful of sausage on the plating. Pausing, as he felt all eyes were upon him, Cronk thought maybe he took too much. He placed one of the sausages back on the dish upon the table.

He spotted the larger seat next to the small stool Lorem sat upon. Cronk plopped down on the chair. Turning to look at the gnome, Cronk took in her features.

Cronk’s eyes seemed to spin as he looked at the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. “Ooooooo!” Cronk gushed. “You pretty as flower!”

Elizabeth would have shook her head at Cronk's display, if that had been at all appropriate. Instead she just waited for the Orc to settle in.

In order to reign the conversation in from the awkward place it seemed to be headed, Elizabeth decided introductions were in order.

"For those who haven't met yet. This is Cronk." She paused for a mere instance. "Cronk, next to you is Miss Ipsum and, " She pointed are Vor, "This is Mr. Vor’Aster." She then motioned to Tristin. "This is Lord Andrews. This is the team minus two, who have not returned from an assignment as of yet."

Elizabeth was not going to mentioned it at the moment but her plan was to make Cronk be security for Lorem, when Lorem needed such services.

"Now, that almost everyone is here I do have one announcement. We have been requested at headquarters, tomorrow morning at 10:30." She took a sip of her tea. "I'll talk to everyone individually about assignments, after we are done at headquarters. For now, just enjoy this meal and the company."

Dumont saw the delight in the gnome’s eyes turn suddenly to surprise as the orc made his entrance and Lady Elizabeth laid out introductions and plans for the morrow.

When things settled, Dumont raised a hand in salutation to the orc. “Good afternoon, Mr Cronk, you are looking very dapper.”

Then he picked back up on his previous conversation with Lorem, “Miss Aberly is a dear friend of mine and a member of the Order. She works on our research and development, usually stationed in London, but she has chosen to join us here in Paris for a time.”

He didn’t mention that Gemma had come to see through the mission that had led to her late brother’s death. Dumont thumbed the braid of hair that he had re-affixed to his pocket watch.

“I am surprised to hear you didn’t see Miss Aberly yourself, she was making repairs on the steam coach near the carriage house yesterday. The two of you must have JUST missed one another before we headed to the Guilde yesterday, Miss Ipsum, eh… or do you prefer, your own tongue, Fräulein?

Lorem’s eyes had opened as wide as her plate as her attention was drawn to the orc. She had never before seen one in person or anyone that massive before. In fact, her older brother used to tease his two young sisters when they were little with games where he would pretend to be an orc and if they were caught they’d be eaten. She knew it was silly none sense; however, seeing one in such close proximity made it feel as if they could eat a gnome in a bite.

She was staring, not out of fear or surprise any longer, but because she was studying Cronk; gathering objective data for her understanding of the race. When he took a seat next to her, the sheer weight impacting the chair bounced Lorem up out of her’s a good inch and a half. By the time she stabilized herself, she realized the orc was addressing her.

Lorem noticeably blushed and meekly averted her eyes. Her body language was quite gentle and feminine, adding to the flower compliment . “Thank you” she managed to squeak out to the compliment before the meeting suddenly began.

When the gnome discovered that Dumont was a friend of Miss Aberly, Lorem instantly wondered if that meant she could somehow gain an audience with her. Then to find out that they just missed each other had her disappointed that she spent all yesterday in the carriage house working and had missed the opportunity.

“Alas, I did not stray from inside the carriage house yesterday. Now I wish I had. I hope I have another chance to cross paths with her.” She smiled hopefully.

Lorem slightly hugged her sides at the sound of being called Fraulein. Very few used German openly here in Paris, including herself. “Either is fine, but I admit it does my ears well to hear the sound of the motherland.”

“Which Guilde did you visit yesterday ?” She said with obvious curiosity.

He swallowed one of the strawberries. "I'm afraid my German does not extend far, but I will do you the courtesy wherever I can, Fräulein." He put up a finger. "And it is a certainty that the pair of you shall meet, even if I am forced to make it so. She will likely be on site tomorrow at the headquarters. As for the Guilde, myself and Lord Andrews visited the Guilde de le Magie for registration," Dumont responded.

Cronk was lost with the French words. Fraulein, he understood. He repeated, “Fraulein Flower!” before placing a whole sausage inside his mouth.

Lorem was inwardly ecstatic at Dumont’s promise to help her meet one of her heroes. The gentleman excused a confident charisma and generous competency that she found admirable. It definitely fast tracked her willingness to trust him. In addition, he was considerate.

“What type of magic do you use?” She had this personal desire to try and figure out the science behind magic. In addition, magic had inspired her before in many a design that was attempting to mimic its results for the layman.

She jumped again at the booming voice of Cronk and couldn’t help but blush again at being made the center of attention with such an adorable title. She beamed up at Cronk, having to lean backwards since they were sitting next to one another, in order to see all the way up to his eyes. “You are most kind Mr. Cronk.” She had never been compared to nature before; at best she was usually explained with iron, widgets and steam.

Vor watched the interactions around him rather humored. He had been selecting various meats from the spread provided, entranced in their simple yet exquisite flavor. One thing he always enjoyed about the upper class was their demand for quality food. Seeing an orc was interesting, but his voice was what gained his curiosity. Seeing that the man apparently held true to the legendary wit of his kind, Vor tried to word his inquiry simply.

“Pardon the question Cronk, but where do you come from? I swear you have a familiar sound to your voice.”

Cronk looked at the Araundan. Araunian? Araundish? Cronk wasn’t certain what to call someone from Araunda. “Cronk from Tonsberg,” he simply stated, placing another sausage inside his mouth. “Outside Oslofjord.”

As he chewed the sausage, Cronk added more of his history. “Cronk come from Dublin. Boss took Cronk there.”

Vor nodded at the pleasant surprise, at the very least he wasn’t the only Norwegian in the room. He had never really known how to think of the brutish race, but many he had met balanced their belligerence with an appreciation for the empty moments in life.

“Quite a trip then, just to then come all the way the France. I assume your old boss was taking you here as well?”

Cronk sighed at the talk of his former boss. He missed the man. With Quinn, Cronk had known some adventures. The whiskey, women, and weapons were plentiful.

“Boss bring Cronk here,” Cronk explained, not a man of many words. “On bizness. Evil Doctor kill Boss. Cronk find doctor. Cronk kill doctor.”

By the end of Cronk’s speech his voice had crescendoed to an almost roar. One could tell there was strong feeling behind them.

Vor instinctively leaned away from the outburst, hoping that he hadn't just incited a rampage. With the room now dead silent, Vor could swear his calm, steady voice seemed to echo.

"My apologies, for your former boss and for reminding you of his loss. I certainly hope you get your chance for justice."

He thought of his next words carefully, desiring to lead the Orc's thoughts away from such a potent source of rage.

"How have you fared being here, in Lady Elizabeth's home I mean? From the few Orcs I have met, they preferred the outdoors."

Cronk looked at Lorem, wondering what his outburst had done to her. Cronk gushed to her, “Sorry! Cronk calm now.”

Cronk then addressed Vor’s inquiry. “Cronk feel rich. Not rich. Feel rich. Cronk not like farm. Went Dublin. Big city.”

To Cronk, Dublin was the big city, although much smaller than Paris. Paris must be the biggest city in the world in Cronk’s mind. It could be the capitol of the world for all Cronk knew.

Elizabeth sat back and watched the interaction. The mention of Cronk's made it clear, the Orc had apparently been close with his former boss. Though Elizabeth had suspected that upon meeting Cronk, earlier. The response from the Orc just cemented the fact.

Things calmed back down quickly.

Elizabeth said nothing about it or really any interaction that was going on, at the moment. She was just watching, seeing how the team interacted with each other

Lorem was accustomed to being around loud machines that made all sorts of noises. This included the random bursts of steam and clinking of gears. Not to mention the occasional and usually unexpected explosions and malfunctions.

The noise itself didn’t startle her, but the fact it happened in a setting where she wasn’t expecting it did. It was made apparent by her tea cup shaking in her tiny hands and she just managed to hold onto it before it spilled.

Collecting herself, she calmly smiled back at Cronk to reassure him everything was alright. Then she promptly placed her tea cup down before having another chance to drop it.

Able to calm his anxiety, Vor continued with the conversation, noting the others very professional handling it as well. It was good to verify that they actually had some experience with such events, unlike others he had seen who would panic just from an Orc raising a boisterous cheer.
He looked to Elizabeth as he responded to Cronk, nodding her way and raising his glass before looking back to the Orc.

“I would agree, being housed here is rather gracious of our hostess. I don’t believe I’ve had the time to properly show my gratitude for it, Lady Elizabeth. Never been to the Dublin myself, though I’d imagine it is quite large when compared to most of Norways most sizable towns.”

Speaking of his homeland brought a smirk to the conversation, relishing the moment to reminisce before the talk turned to business.

Dumont watched the situation to gauge a measured response and it turned out the orc was easy enough to calm, especially with Lorem nearby.

Once Vor continued his conversation with Cronk, Dumont caught Lorem’s attention against.

“Fräulein, you asked about the magic I use? I only dabble in a bit of… euh… folk magic, tu vois?”

Wiggling his fingers and giving her a wink, Dumont lifted one of Cronk’s sausages with his telekinetic abilities and sent it levitating and slowly spinning sideways like a dial right in front of the orc’s face, making him go a bit cross eyed before picking the pesky thing up out of the air and eating it.

“Can’t remember when I even learned that I could do it, but it isn’t very strong and focused. I never had the opportunity to study and tune it to a greater magnitude. Maybe things will change, eh?”

A nod to Vor, as a thank you for the acknowledgement. She was glad that everyone seemed to take Cronk's growl in stride.

Harvey entered the room, he leaned over and said something to Elizabeth in her ear. She glanced up at Harvey, who nodded.

"If everyone will excuse me for a moment, I have something I need to attend to. Please, continue with tea, I should not be long." Elizabeth gracefully stood, and left the room.