[hr][hr][center][h1][b][i][color=39b54a]William Fraser[/color][/i][/b][/h1][img]https://bookesther.files.wordpress.com/2017/02/john-thornton-smile-gif.gif?w=500[/img][/center][hr][hr][center][color=39b54a][b]Location:[/b][/color] [b]Gretna Green - Church[/b]
[color=39b54a][b]Skills:[/b][/color] [b]Perception, Wisdom, Cnut, Kadlin[/b] [/center][hr]

	Despite William's best intentions, no-one rushed to take up his offer of first aid. The Russian man that had saved William earlier didn't even acknowledge him, despite the wound from where the creature had struck his arm, instead turning his attention towards the blonde woman's requests for a weapon, and searching for some animal, a 'Dieter', whatever that was. It was the other Russian man who was the first to respond to William's offer, and William couldn't help but smile slightly at the theatricality of the response. 'The Great Bazhooli' certainly suited the flamboyance of his outfit, and something told William that the Russian was a valuable ally to have, and no doubt an excellent drinking partner as well. 

	The Duchess was still taking sips from William's flask as she recovered from the ordeal, and amongst all of those gathered around the alter, she did seem to be the one with the best grasp on just what was going on. The white haired man with the notebook gave off the air of understanding, but his thoughts never seemed to linger long enough for him to fully grasp them. At least the Duchess seemed to be all there. But even as the group continued the endeavor of understanding where the creature had come from, or even what the creature was, most of the ideas went over William's head. He was not one for sweeping theories or spiritual planes. In truth, he was already thinking about whether the encounter could make a good song. He'd take some creative licence of course, mainly leaving out his own ineptitude, but the story of the women descending upon the creature of shadow, light streaming through a stained glass window and framing the scene with mottled reds and yellows... Now that could be something. 

	Something broke William's train of thought, even as he subconsciously tapped a beat against his leg with his finger. It took a moment for him to realise what it was that had interrupted him. It was the sound of movement, faint and almost lost beneath the conversation, but as he turned towards the alter, he saw that he was not alone in noticing it. Although he wasn't entirely sure what 'it' was. It looked like a flower, sprouting from the ash, light seeming to spill from within the petals. Instinctively, William's hand moved to grip the hilt of his dirk. He'd never fought a flower before, but then he'd never fought a shadow until a few moments ago, so he wasn't taking any chances. The words that seemed to come from nowhere and everywhere all at once did nothing to calm William's nerves. Three times the voice repeated the same phrase, but it didn't mean anything to William. He found himself looking around at the other members of the group, wondering if it was any clearer to the others. 

	The pale woman murmured a name, 'Belladonna', but that didn't mean anything more to William than the haunting phrase did. Most of the other's looked just as lost as he was. But not the Duchess. She looked almost like a woman possessed, her lips moving seemingly with a will of their own. It took William a moment to realise what it was that she was saying. 'Three'. The same word, over and over again as her hands moved through the air. William wasn't sure whether he should take a step forward to try and help her, or a step back to put some distance between himself and the Duchess. As it was, he settled for holding his ground, and not releasing his grip on the hilt of his dirk. It was clear that what she was saying had some meaning to the Duchess, but that meaning was lost on William. The haunting voice had repeated it's phrase three times, the flower that had emerged from the ash had three petals, but was that anything more than a coincidence? 

	All at once, the Duchess had fallen to her knees, etching a strange symbol in the ash and the dust, before reaching out for the pale woman and 'The Great Bazhooli', her eyes seeming to plead with them, begging them to understand. And apparently, the pale woman did. She spoke with some hesitation, but there was a determination to her words as she said what sounded like an impromptu farewell to Millicent, before moving to take the extended hand of the Duchess. William gritted his teeth slightly. The haze still hung over them, but it felt like something else was there now too. He didn't know if it was merely tension, or something more spiritual, but something was about to happen it, he could feel it. 

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[hider=Roll Request]
[b]Character current location:[/b] Gretna Green - Church
[b]Characters attempted actions:[/b] Ready himself for conflict
[b]Any and all skills being used:[/b] Cnut, Kadlin 
[b]Why each skill is being called:[/b] Cnut, for preparing himself for fighting with his shortswords. Kadlin, for preparing himself for fighting without them.
[b]Desired location of the character:[/b] Same as current location
[/hider]