The woman from the registry made a few final turns and opened the dark green door to a house on the outskirts of town. It was a modest, but well kept abode with a freshly shingled grey clay roof. Across from the house and a street over was a small town-square of sorts with an unimpressive fountain. He sat down and back against the low stone wall with a clear view of the woman’s house. As the sun faded, the house lit up with lanterns and hearths, and Lohmen could see her entire family. There was her husband, who was slightly taller than she was. He had a full head of black hair and a plump midsection. Two children were also about the house, a boy who was maybe 12 and a girl a few years younger. The family went about their evening, as you might expect any normal family to. The simple acts of daily life: Reading at the table, eating supper, and finally turnout out the lights before retiring to bed. The lights in most of the houses began to dim and only the soft weak glow from street lanterns remained. Lohmen found a corner of the square to relieve himself and sat back down where had before and nibbled on a few foodstuffs he had in his tomesack. With his tomesack as a pillow and his robe as a blanket, Lohmen got as comfortable as one could on the cobble stones and contemplated his next moves. I could appeal to her again, on account of her kids. No. If she wasn’t persuaded yesterday, she won’t change her mind. Maybe I could follow her back to work and threaten her with my dagger. No, we’d still have to go to the registry, and there was no way he could take the guards. Then it hit him. He knew how he could get the woman to cooperate without raising suspicion of the guards. He awoke the next morning, stiff as a board from having spent the night sleeping on cobble stones. As soon as he was alert, he turned his attention back to the house of the Registry woman. After about half an hour, the front door opened and her and her two children left the house. Her husband left came out shortly after, but went in another direction. Lohmen got to his feet, pulled his hood back up, and followed the mother and her children, just as he had followed her the night before. The kids had satchels of their own and the girl carried a book under arm. The woman was taking a different route than the night before. They woman arrived at their destination, a small schoolhouse with a well kept courtyard out front, and a handful of kids the same age running about. The school marm waved as the woman gave each the kids hair a scruff and gave them each a kiss on the tops of their head. The boy bolted to the left to a group of his friends playing some sort of game on the stones, and the girl walked more gracefully to join a group of her friends. Their mother stood for a moment and watched them in their natural habitat before waving once more at the school marm, and continuing on her way. Lohmen assumed she was going back to the registry office so he stayed outside the school for a while longer, until the marm called the children inside. The next day, Lohmen arrived at the school just as the children were arriving. He watched as they greeted their friends and went inside. He waited until the last child had entered the building before making his way inside.
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Once inside, Lohmen made his way to the office and asked the secretary if he could speak to the headmaster. He told her that he was part of an academy and that they had heard that Mount Registrars son was a promising young artist.
“Apologies, for the look of me marm, I was ambushed a few weeks ago and had most of my possessions taken, and they left me with this unsightly scar. My orders, which I kept in my bag were to find a Mount Registrars son, but I haven’t the papers to know which realm.” He gave a soft chuckle, at the fact that the best lies are often filled with truth. And to appear legitimate to the headmaster.
“Miles Hallstrom?!” The headmaster burst out laughing. “He’s a nice boy, albeit a bit rambunctious, but an artist he is most definitely not. I’m afraid you are in the wrong place, Ser.”
“Perhaps, it was a daughter and not a son? I was knocked around pretty good…”
“Vinka? Oh I doubt that as well. She’s a brilliant musician. You should see her play a lute…if you were from a conservatory, I’d agree with you.” She smiled back at Lohmen.
“My apologies, marm, and thank you for the time. I appear to be in the wrong realm entirely!
I’ll have to speak with the academy about danger it seems.” He said jokingly as he stood.
“If it’s just the same, and perhaps I am the right place, would you send a letter home with Miles? It contains information about the academy, just in case.”
Lohmen handed her the sealed letter and apologised for the intrusion to which the Headmaster assured that it was no trouble at all and wished him luck on his journey.
Lohmen left, and headed back to the Mount Registry.