Baldur's Gate : The Sword Coast Chronicles : NWN2 Persistent World

Nearly four days ((time stretch approved by DM Fugue)) after Echo left Doron Amar... and very shortly after Rai decided to protect the small gray cat...

Eli ((the cat)) leads Rai to Doron Amar, frantically seeking a familiar face among the elves of her home... she darts about... pawing first at the door to the inn. She gives Rai especially, and anyone who is paying attention a rather expectant look... the feline seems to be looking for someone in particular.

However... the cat is in quite a state of panic, and lacking patience goes back to the two rangers guarding the bridge. She circles them expectantly, mewling insistantly as she paces between them. Her posture is increasingly agitated as she simply cannot convey the problem at hand.

A female elf dressed in black waits by the male Evereskan ranger at duty while the cat makes her way towards the other ranger. The female Evereskan ranger guarding the bridge eyes the cat silently and then takes a knee while closing her eyes simultaneously. The cat sprints up to the female elf and then jumps up on her knee.

She lifts Eli up and rests her on her shoulder however the cat becomes restless and hops down to the ranger's feet. The hooded elf standing by the male ranger does not make much of this but the female ranger intuitively understands that the cat is implying something. She turns to the other two and says in elven: "She's missing Echo's shoulder. Where's Echo ?" and then leaves with the cat without waiting for a response.

They pass the bridge and then walk towards the crossroads near the courtyard.

Once the ranger mentions Echo, the cat does her best to convey that it is the correct answer...

She pauses briefly in her panic to rub against Rai's leg in thanks... offering a grateful cat style head-butt before weaving around the small group and then follows the female ranger. She looks only -very slightly- relieved that at least someone knows what is missing. From her demeanor, and the way she weaves about the female ranger as she walks through Doron Amar... still looking for something.

Vanira sits on one of the stone benches in the court yard, wintery blue eyes glancing over a book in her lap while on occasion she glances to the small elven toddler playing close down by her feet. Lifting her left hand up she tucks a few silvery white stray hairs back behind her pointed ear before turning the page in the book.

The toddler (under 2 years) plays contently at Vanira's feet with a bar of soap, a set of thieves tools, a vial of holy water, and a unraveling healing kit bundle. The child seems content to roll the vial around and tap one of the tools on it to make "music" for the most part, on occasion she stops and looks at Vanira with her almond shaped silver eyes.

Each time their eyes meet Vanira tenses, while she couldn't deny the fact it was a beautiful child, and at least sleeping through the night for the most part... she also looked at the child as if it was a cat.... At that moment ironically the child reaches out as if to pet the newly arrived small grey cat....

BY THE GODS WHAT HAVE I DONE TO DESERVE THIS TORTURE!?!?!?!?!?!? She screams in her mind.

The cat too, tenses... as if inwardly praying this were a much more mild toddler than most... and looking like she wished a shoulder to jump on. The cat gives the ranger a pleading look... then turns her attention to Vanira. Sensing as cats do, Vanira's dislike she studies the elf... Her body language saying she wished to avoid this necessary evil --- er meeting... then resumes her agitated pacing, doing her best to avoid the toddler, and trying to convey the problem to Vanira... Again she gives the ranger a pleading look... and eyes the nearest tree with low hanging branches. Thinking less selfishly she forgoes the tree... continuing to try to get across that something very important is gone. She keeps the tree in her line of sight however. The small cat looking rather pathetically... lost.

Lance Renslin can be seen more frequently in Doron Amar by the side of Vanira as she tends for the small child. In his arms, on occasion, are a few wooden toys that he has purchased for the little girl to play with. As he sits beside Vanira on the stone benches, he lowers a hand to play with the toys that the little elf child is as well to further the child's enjoyment.

He comforts Vanira through her inner torment, offering her a warm smile each time she shows fears of the child at her feet. Here and there, Lance can be seen laying on his side, playing with the child. His laughter can be heard alongside the little girl's as she giggles and gleefully plays.

The small cat takes advantage of the small child's distraction. She then paces in front of Vanira... frantically trying to get her attention and convey some sort of urgent disaster. The usually calm cat mewling pathetically ... she sits in front of Vanira and gives her a pleading look.

The elf's eyes move to the disturbingly heart warming yet horrifying sight of Lance laughing and playing with the child to the cat... back and forth, forth and back again.... Her wintery blue eyes finally remain on the cat, deeming it to be the bigger of the threats for the moment.

Her eyes narrow further on the cat. "What do you want... go shoo..." She scowls at it. "Your master needs to keep you closer to -her- feet... not ours. Now get!"

The small cat snorts. She then paces a bit more before sitting and looking between Vanira and the ranger. The cat seems immensely frustrated and out of sorts... Something is wrong. The cat tries to convey the message. Unwilling to be shoo'ed away, she sits between Vanira and the female ranger. She gives the pair of women a pleading look before she lets out a terribly mournful meow. She is clearly as unhappy about bothering Vanira as Vanira is about being bothered.

The elf freezes, and not just because of the "threatening" sound it surely is making... "Wait... you are never but a bush away from your Echo unless she's gone out with the group for training... and we are scheduled for an outing for a few more days" She pauses a moment, her mind goes to processing a mental check list of everyone she's seen walking around in Doron Amar the last few days, her wintery blue eyes drifting from the cat to Lance and the small elven child.

"Love, have you seen Echo walking about here the last few days?" Eyes then drift upwards to the ranger, "Have you?"

Sensing a change in Vanira's demeanor she tries to be as non-threatening as possible. With every mention of "Echo" the feline reacts with an ear twitch and an expectant look. Once it is clear that -someone- finally truly understands the nature of the issue, the cat paces, though differently than before. Her body language indicates that a lack of her mistress may well be the problem... but her posture remains urgent as the silvery cat does her best to relay just how bad the situation is, looking mildly disheartened as this new barrier presents itself in the communication line.

In the tranquil open-air festhall, in a shaded secluded corner a black cloaked Elfmaiden unassumingly sets up a table at dusk reliable as ever: Small circular wooden table with a humble white cloth draped over it, a single vased rose alongside a plate with one mound of salt with, another with a lemon atop and full silverwear arranged, teacup & saucer always ready but never filled, and a napkin black mourner's robe folded. One bow of her head and a murmured prayer, then she unassumingly leaves avoiding everyone.

The gray cat wanders Doron Amar for a few days...

Even for a ridiculously small cat, she looks pitiful. Lost, fragile and mournful in her posture. She studies the other elves, as though seeking something... something that is beyond her ability to find... It is this knowledge that weighs heavily on silver-gray shoulders.

Whether or not the creature's departure was noticed is anyone's guess. In the still of the dark hours before morning, she slinks her way from tree to tree... If she were seen at all, she made her way with painful slowness, dodging orc and other denizens of the treacherous wood... inching her way toward the Lion's Way.