Vasili's general reaction to the events so far could easily be mistaken for calm and collected action. In addition to stepping up to translate for the child, Vasili cracks off a message spell the moment the child appears, so that the group could share thoughts privately if need be. He sends Leila on a long, loping journey in the opposite direction from the child, circling the perimeter of the courtyard far enough to be as nonthreatening as possible.
When the crowd appears, Leila shrinks to her small size so as to get lost in it, and zips around between legs and feet in a general intercept course toward the boy. Not to actually meet up with him, but just to catch a glimpse of him, see if he's still there and perhaps get a bead on where he's going. Vasili, meanwhile, affects a hearty and affable demeanor as if he fully intended to join the festivities from the moment he arrived. When Altan explains that he's not carrying any wine, Vasili immediately searches his belongings for a replacement gift. His hands slap his sarong and robe, pausing with a quick grimace at his ring, and then withdrawing something else from a hidden pocket, which he holds tight in the center of his fist.
"I may have a gift," he says offhandedly, "but I fear it's much more expensive than a bottle of wine, and may therefore be inappropriate..." He looks around for anyone to offer alternatives, or even just some suggestions. He has a few semiprecious stones on his person as part of his cash, but fears that cash as a gift would be considered gauche. After a moment's thought--and any conversation--he reaches back into his robe, and stops. "What about an ordinary gift that was...entertaining...in the giving of it?"
Close observation of Vasili's behavior tells a different story than the casualness of his facial expression, the decisiveness of his actions of the offhandedness of his speech. His pasty complexion is even more blanched than usual, and beads of sweat appear on his bald head the moment the boy came into view. His spellcasting and commands to Leila are with snapping hand motions that suggest nervous energy, and indeed whenever he has no deliberate action, his hands begin to fidgit on their own, a rotating dance of each finger meeting his thumb and returning straight in turn, from his pinky to his index. If anyone is watching very closely, they may notice that Vasili began holding his breath the moment the child arrived, and didn't let it out until he spoke to translate. Even now, Vasili's breathing is a long, slow struggle, as if he's underwater and forced to breathe through a straw.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Bluff +22 to appear like he isn't thinking about another little boy that was mutilated, and wondering if these parents truly love their child, or punish him for arbitrary infractions.
[dice]0[/dice]
Will save +8 to avoid being Spooked by the appearance of an obvious undead.
[dice]1[/dice]
And what the hey, a Sense Motive +10 might help confirm or deny any resemblance to his own situation. He's going to focus on the Lord ApBlanc.
[dice]2[/dice]
Another Sense Motive +10 (DM's)
[dice]3[/dice]
K(nobility) +11 to read the boy's tartan.
[dice]4[/dice]
K(nobility) +11 to read ANY tartan at the festivities
[dice]5[/dice]
