[b]Nin and Tristran[/b]

"I don't [i]wish[/i] anything" the merchant snaps, but then immediately looks apologetic, Nin. "Look, I just, my friends go hunting all the time, and they swear on their grandmother's graves that what they saw was some kind of demonic beast, tall as two men stood on top of each other. It sounds like tall tales even as I'm saying it and I don't want to believe it. But that's what they said and what we've all heard. Some kind of huge beast, red eyes and long fangs and claws, big loose hair hanging along the coat. No wolf pack, just one big terrifying thing wrecking carts and stealing the food. Some folks have even said they saw it burst out of the ground like it was lying in wait with a trap or something, and they're starting to say it's part of the land itself and it wants its food back. We don't deserve it anymore."

Well that's enough to do the trick. You both know that it's probably some kind of demonic animal, and something that digs. Giant wolf maybe, certainly possible. Some kind of cat or weasel, maybe a mole could be possible. The real trick with something like this is figuring out the why of it. You could solve the immediate problem by just finding a way to lure it out and kill or capture it (capture would be real tough, there may not be a cage that can hold the thing in the whole keep). But the why is how you make things better, make sure it doesn't just get replaced in a month of two.

[b]Constance and Robena[/b]

Cerwen looks uncertain. She knows your traditional role, Constance, and this is your castle and your bodyguard standing right there surrounded by your people. She could try for a power play here, but she'd be risking everything. If the crowd didn't go with her, if Robena stepped in, if other knights interfered, she'd have given up everything she tried to earn here. She's not that kind of person and she doesn't want to have that confrontation, at least not for a very long while even if things go very badly. 

So, instead, she nods slightly and then walks over to Robena. "I offer a gift, to the Lady of the Low!" she calls out loudly, taking off her golden cross. "The sign of my god, in concert with the old gods! Let her bless the fields on all our behalfs!" And then, Robena, she takes that golden cross and walks right up to you and puts it around your neck to emphasize her point. She doesn't quite leave the space either, instead she's going to stand with the bodyguard, just a tad to the side and out of the way, and let you get started Constance.

So, go ahead Constance, bless the summer and the fields.

To Robena, she says, simply, "do you two know each other?" A clear tip off she didn't grow up in the keep even if you thought your memory was playing tricks on you, Robena.