Lirrah trembled as she made her way into the tomb. Irian would need people more skilled than her in the case of a counter-ambush, and though her eyes would be of good use in that respect, she personally suspected a higher likelihood of a trap inside than a force that Roger hadn't detected from the skies. In that way, she considered that she'd be of better use spotting for the explorers. It soon became readily apparent, however, that there were no cultists and no traps. In a way, that put her on edge even more. She'd hoped that the third party, whoever they were, was somehow swift enough in their machinations to have cleared out before the Lions reached the heart. Lirrah didn't particularly sense any magic about the place, but she was untrained in the mystic arts, and Velvetica seemed to agree with the mage. Well, if there was magic, and it wasn't of the expected type, then it might have belonged to Lirrah's suspected third party. Theories could harmonize, after all.

It was the effigies being destroyed that really sealed the deal for Lirrah. Only someone not affiliated with the cult, and [i]certainly[/i] not whatever they planned on summoning, would have done such a thing.

It turned out she was probably right-ish and probably wrong-ish.

Lirrah had assumed that someone close to the Lions sold the information and coordinated with a party that wanted something with the cultists, but didn't have a large enough force (or not enough drive to get a bunch of their people killed) to do it without a big, distracting murder party. For that, Lirrah was probably wrong on all counts.

Because they were apparently dealing with a capital-W-Witch.

She'd only really heard legends about such things. Legends so infamous and wide-spread that some had even reached her homeland. She was certain that such a creature could have figured out [i]anything[/i] about their plans through any number of magical methods, if she had the inclination.

There were too many unknowns, but since Lirrah wasn't dead yet, the Witch probably wasn't hostile to them at the moment. It might have been safest to remain quiet, but Velvetica seemed to want to talk. It was Velvetica's duty to find out what was happening in these lands, and it would be at their peril. Well, if that was the way it was going to go, Lirrah would have to assist. If she couldn't be counted on to talk, then what use was she?

[color=f49ac2]"S-safas ma tasu, miss Witch,"[/color] Lirrah greeted, smiling pleasantly. If the Witch could understand those words, it would likely make her feel in-the-know, and build some immediate rapport. If she didn't know them, and she was the curious type, then it might engage her.

If it made her feel small and stupid, Lirrah would probably be dead soon. But 'probably dead soon' seemed to be the order of the day. At this point, she could only gamble and take her shot.

The doll body, Lirrah noted, seemed to be very detailed and well-made. She had on a frankly beautiful dress, with ribbons and frills, and had [i]coordinated her entire person[/i] with cool colors that went well together. This was a person that lovingly chose every aspect of her appearance, and due to being a Witch, probably didn't have a lot of people to compliment her work. In short, she was probably pretty vain. None of her choices served any practical purpose, and Lirrah understood this well.

[color=f49ac2]"My name is Lirrah. I love your dress, [i]p[/i]y the way. You look radiant today~"[/color]

Lirrah hoisted her biggest, sweetest smile over the fear on her face.

[color=f49ac2]"It seems you have done us a service! L-less work for us, of course! We were merely wondering why. If it were me, I'd [i]p[/i]e afraid of getting too much [i]p[/i]lood on my nice dress. Forgive us this curiosity, [i]p[/i]ut might you sate it?"[/color]