The Pig: Part 2
It was still early in the night. The five friends went back to the abandoned house to rest before the morning and at the rising of the sun they went to the fishery. Fortunately it was nearby and they did not encounter any guard (courtesy of Nine Fingers?).
As promised, they found three big men and 2 children with a huge cart full of fish. The group was shoved in a secret compartment in the back of the cart - where they all could fit, even if packed like sardines. After maybe half an hour the cart started moving. They could hear the cart stopping at the main gate and the guards checking the fish and then granting passage to the cart, and finally they arrived at their destination. They got out of the cart, smelling terribly, and found themselves in the middle of a big open market in the Little Calimshan neighborhood.
From there they decided to split up to be less visible (everybody was looking weirdly at the dragonborn, after all Baldur’s Gate is a city of humans). The market was very busy, nobody was really paying too much attention to anybody, there was shouting everywhere, vendors trying to sell their food and merchandise, and buyers trying to negotiate a better price. Serafina could easily pass unseen but she still was at risk to be recognized and stayed alert.
Iwia had an idea and grabbed Rowan. He thought he could find the slaughterhouse and ask some questions pretending to want to do business with The Pig, and Rowan, the pretty girl, would be perfect to get his attention, since he likes pretty girls. They started walking away from the market, following the directions given by a passer-by, leaving the rest of the group and after walking for 20 minutes through the side road, they found their way to the enormous building that was the butchery. A very big building with one entrance in the front and one in the back, two floors and some windows. Nothing Special. They saw guards at the front entrance, which promptly stopped them from going any further. Iwia said: -«Hello! I am here on a business proposal, on behalf of my boss. He has a lot of livestock to sell and we would like to meet with the butcher to sell it and make a deal.» «Is he expecting you?» asked one of the guards. «No, we are here asking for an appointment with him to talk business». So the guard went inside the building and disappeared for a while. Then he came back saying the butcher could see and talk to them later in the day, before sunset, and dismissed them.
In the meantime, at the market, Morgan asked a food vendor where she got the beautiful cuts of meat she was selling, pretending to be in search of a lover that she knew was working at the butchery, and got the information about the location of the slaughterhouse, then bought an orange, winking at the vendor. Noticing how weirded out the people around there were about Sora, Morgan placed her in a small open space and started singing an improvised song about “The Lizard”, this creature coming from afar that everybody ought to see. Some people even threw money at the bard. Taking advantage of the distraction and commotion, Serafina went around and pickpocketed people. They managed to get a few golden pieces. When the song was almost over and Sora was about to beat up Morgan, Iwia and Rowan came back. The show was over, and the group retreated to a nearby tavern to eat something and talk about the next steps.
After ordering the food and the drinks, Sora wanted to play a game of arm wrestling but she wanted to throw the game to con other people so she started arm wrestling Iwia who let her win, then Rowan that, to make a scene, started yelling and flipped over the table, with much annoyance of Morgan that was still eating. The tavern owner started yelling: -«This behavior is not tolerated in here, get them out, now!» and 4 big guards grab the group and throw them out of the tavern.
After being un-graciously kicked out they realized they were fed but still smelling and meeting The Pig for a business proposal wearing dirty clothes and smelling like fish was not the best idea. They felt they had no choice than to go to the only other place with rooms and baths, the Whitkeep Inn. They spent the rest of the afternoon there, cleaned up, and Morgan dressed up with his fancy rich woman disguise. The plan was as follows: Morgan, Iwia and Rowan would go talk to The Pig, while Sora (too big to pass unobserved) and Serafina (not eager to be recognized) would follow but stay outside, hidden.