Utterly Mad

"So that's that then." Lydia said, a bit awkwardly after she had shown Ferret around the museum. Or rather, what was left of it. The ghost had told Ferret all about the various exhibits around the museum, both those present and those absent. She had also told her about the day of graves and how the museum had been looted in all the chaos. In exchange, Ferret had told Lydia everything the ghost desired to hear and more. "So the church raided your college while everyone else was busy dealing with all the undead coming up through the streets?" Ferret asked. "Aya. Isaac tried so hard to protect the museum and the younger associates. We all did. They stole a lot of relics and killed some of our best and brightest. Some of our associates back then were of a less than savory sort, but they weren't murderers like the Ateshites. After that, Isaac decided that we should try to do a counter raid on the church." Lydia and ferret were sitting on a tipped statue of a man Lydia had claimed was of someone simply called "Dhog." The statue had been beheaded in the raid Lydia had described. "And that's when you died?" She asked. Lydia didn't respond, but Ferret could tell by the way she rubbed the back of her head that she was remembering the events vividly. The distraction caused Lydia a lapse in concentration and in that moment she almost completely lost coherent visible form, going briefly transparent. She caught it though. It was good, she thought, to have someone to be visible for after all this time. Transparency had plenty of perks, especially in a place as dangerous to one such as herself as it was dangerous to her new... Friend? Could she really call this young woman who had forced her way through the front doors of the historical college and, without knowing it, Lydias unlife a friend? Probably not yet, but again she thought it was good to have someone to talk to again. "So..." she said awkwardly, "What brings you to Gulgatha then?" Ferret stayed silent for a bit. It was a detail she hadn't let the ghost in on, and then, all at once, she said "I am here to reclaim a family heirloom, and to loot the ruins of Gulgatha." Lydia only nodded and replied "I imagined the looting part, a family heirloom though? Anything the college would know about?" Ferret considered briefly lying about it, but pushed the idea away. Ghost she may be, but Lydia had proved to be desperately friendly. "All I know about it is that it was some old pair of clay eye balls given to some distant ancestor by a very important person. I'd show you, but all my notes and letters were ruined out in the swamp." Lydia was nodding now, "Not a problem.  Do you have your ancestors name? Such a simple gift was probably magical, and such gifts were usually given by one of the great houses. Maybe you have the name of your ancestors patron? or the house that patron belonged to?" Ferret was confused, "I have no idea what you mean. I just know that the balls were my families, and the church here in Gulgatha stole them after one of my long gone grandmothers died." "Alright..." Lydia sighed, "How about your name then, and don't tell me it's 'Ferret.' Even in this day and age, I doubt people are naming their children after slinky rodents. Your real name?" The prospect of revealing her name seemed daunting to Ferret. She had been told again and again by friends and family, "If your full name is known, someone might try to bring you back from the dead." Ferret was serious but the ghost sitting next to her, having first hand experiance of the secrets of life and death, just looked at her with a knowing smirk. "That drivel about being easier to summon after your dead is just not true. Not entirely anyway. Knowing someones name makes raising them easier, sure, but it isn't a requirement. Just give me your surname if it means that much to you." Ferret still looked nervous "If it makes you feel any better, my middle name is Leandra." "Painterly." Ferret said after a long moment of hesitation. It was hard to get over her upbringing, but if it meant finding what she came to get then maybe it would be worth it. "My name is Nora Painterly." Lydia stood up and made a show of dusting off her knees, "Now see? That wasn't so hard, now we really are friends." She winked as she said, "Plus, finding out about this item of yours should be pretty easy. Everybody knows about Scholar Damon Painterly. Elder historian Pater even wrote a treatise on him once. I'm assuming that's who this item was supposed to be passed down from as he was the only Painterly to ever receive a gift from a patron. This way please Ms. Painterly." Lydia bowed slightly and gestured much like she had throughout the tour. Ferret bristled at the use of her name, "Ferret, please." She said chastizingly. She hadn't expected the ghost to be so visibly dismayed at her irritation. It seemed wrong. They had gotten along so well up until then. "Listen," she said, "it's fine. Just 'Ferret' ok? Who was Damon Painterly?" Lydia gestured, "The archives are this way."


Alright, thanks perigrin. Actually, they are all short enough I could just remove the spoilers.