Into the castle!

[NoTrammeling]

Matthias steps gingerly over the stream, doing his best to avoid its waters. "This fort may have fallen to disrepair but I would willingly wager a week's worth of herb foraging that this little brook once sluiced all the filth from keep and stable alike."

[Jenara]

Eloise walks over the brook, holding on tight to the small dagger she carries.

[Breila]

The stream comes out of a gap in the wall that can be closed with a wooden shutter that's drawn up about five, six inches, allowing the water to pass. With the shutter closed, the space between the low wall towards the courtyard and the wall of the inner castle would fill with water, forming a huge basin that's hip-deep at the lower and and ankle-deep at the higher end. At the deep end of the basin, two large iron rings are fixed to the wall of building #3.

The source of the stream looks very much like a natural source, since the wall of the inner courtyard is built onto the bedrock. The water pours out of a hole right between the lowest building blocks of the wall. Moss and the lime dissolved in the water have made quite a picturesque cascade of tuff plunging into what can become a basin.

[Stik]

"Dangerous and inconvenient, that's what it is. Easy for a man, or worse, a horse to step in and turn an ankle." Christopher dismounts and looks at the gutter, dropping Apollo's reins. He's watching the horse closely. If there are other horses around, the stallion should react, one way or the other. "Let us check these buildings, see if anyone is here."

[NoTrammeling]

Despite his age the apothecary moves forward to the Stony Barn on sure feet, hardly even glancing at the courtyard's muddy flooring. He approaches the entrance, and if he should it open, throws wide the door. "Now let us see if the tithe is in order."

[Breila]

Apollo shows no sign of other horses nearby, but he makes a move towards the uppermost of the three "stable" doors, as if he sensed fodder behind it.

The courtyard is not muddy because it is completely paved. It's just a bit uneven because it's no longer used daily. The stream runs in a rounded, shallow path (maybe five inches deep), like a gutter crossing the street, that can be easily crossed because it's not even half-filled.

The left pair of doors of the Stoney Barn is padlocked, but the right pair can be opened. The room behind them is open, with a wooden ceiling/floor about 8 feet high (a little higher than the doors are) supported by stone pillars. The ceiling begins about only 7 feet from the front wall. A ladder leads up to the upper storey thus formed. Some last remnants of hay clinging to the floorboards show what will soon again be stored there.

But the most striking feature of this room are four large swings hanging from the crossbeams supporting the floorboards. They essentially look like giant drawers (each about six by six feet) suspended by tough rope.

[Jenara]

"This looks interesting." Eloise says with a mischievous grin, grabbing the ladder with a free hand. "I'll take a look." Pulling herself up she vaults up the ladder.

[pixie chic]

Thelma moves up close with Eloise and says to her friend, "Be careful, Eloise." She holds the ladder at the base.

She turns to the group, "Somebody is maintaining the place at least." Thelma waits to see what Eloise spots from the top of the ladder at this point.

[Breila]

When Eloise comes up the ladder, she sees something like she has seen many times in her life. It is a barn, albeit an unusually large one. It even seems to house a barn owl. And back in that corner, where some hay has been left, a barn cat may have taken up residence as well and born a litter of kittens.

[Jenara]

Hopping up onto the loft Eloise treads carefully towards the remaining hay. "How cute." She giggles and hops along slowly.

[NoTrammeling]

Curious, Matthias moves forward to the closest of the wooden swings to give it an experimental push. He looks up to examine the state of the ropes, then back down to carefully inspect the swing for signs of use or some clue as to their purpose.

[Kafen]

Dale draws his sword and takes up a middle ground position. "Watch out for signs of prisoners and recent camp sites. Firepits and refuse piles, that kind of thing."

(( Nags Ali... ))

[pixie chic]

"What do you see?", Thelma calls up to Eloise from the ground as she tries to keep the noise down.

[Breila]

After Matthias's push, the swing sways gently. The board and frame, as well as the ropes supporting it and the hooks in the beam are in very good contition. What he finds in the corners upon close inspection of all swings are a few grains each. In one swing, there is spelt, in two are rye and in one barley. They are hard and dry, from last year's harvest at least.

There is nothing in the barn that would suggest that people have stayed there. The little hay that remains seems to have been left there on purpose to make a cat comfortable, though no cat is in sight at the moment. The barn owl, however, is roused of its sleep by Eloise's hopping and Thelma's call. It rustles its feathers and hoots indignantly, it looks ready to swoop at the girl.

[Stik]

Christopher makes a little clicking sound with his tongue and says: "Stand. Stand," to Apollo, the second time more firmly than the first. "I will admit, Saul, when it comes to grain I have little knowledge of the part that happens between the harvest and the feed bag. Could these swings have aught to do with processing the harvest?"