Ardent

Cas tossed the fineries like coins in her hand, coyed her companion with a haughty, thrown-head laugh. She might not have been the strongest in the manor--and that was saying something--and she might have induced a few sighs and eyerolls whenever she picked up a bow, but she was fast and unhesitating. And Deryn's little glittering dangles demanded a lesson taught.

Nevermind that Cas didn't have pierced ears. She'd keep them, as a trinket.

She was halfway through another laugh when her older friend launched herself at her. Cas was quick, tried to dodge, but lo--pinned down like an airport floozy. Studs and hair alike went flying as the girls tumbled, Cas spewing a steady stream of elvish curses regarding Deryn's supposedly illegitimate lineage.

A laughable insinuation, but one that left a sour taste in her mother's mouth. Anatol Seingalt watched the altercation from afar, arms crossed and hips cocked in annoyance at the indignity of having her daughter so easily taken down in front of half the manor. It was a stance Cas herself would later find herself imitating many times over. "Cas," her voice rang out, clear and reprimanding. With that tone, she may as well have used her daughter's full name.

Cas, pinned down and embarassed, spit out one last insult before looking across the grass to their audience.

Soon enough, after making Cas struggle a bit Deryn was going to force her to admit defeat... or at least attempt to. Some kind of public proof that this little fireball of an elf below her could be silenced. Before the words could make it out of her mouth she heard the firm and clearly agitated voice of Anatol Seingalt, it was like hearing the voice of her own mother. Yes, Deryn was known to start trouble but one rule she did follow was respecting your elders inside the mansion.

It was clear the courtyard brawl was over so Deryn came to her feet and brushed herself off, dust flying about her in the air and dried blood caked onto her ear and jawline. "You've got a scar on me for life, not many can say that..." Reaching a hand down to her friend she knew Cas wouldn't take the offer, it wasn't her style to be helped up when down.

"There you are... it figures the only time I can find you is when you're in some kind of spat out front." There it was, that voice she had been trying to avoid all day. Lilith Langdon, her aged and well known mother, news had been traveling around the mansion that she had been looking for her youngest daughter in desire of delivering heavy news. It wasn't like Deryn had any idea what it pertained to, she just knew it was something she wanted to avoid hearing. Blurting out a sigh and dragging a hand along the side of her face she forced a happy smile at her mother. "Looking for me?" The statement was returned with nothing but a stern nod of her mothers head.

"Cas... I've got something to take care of, we can talk later over a warm loaf of gypsy bread." Now the smile she gave Cas was much more genuine than the one she gave her mother, despite their scuffles nothing pleased her more than spending time with her closest friend... especially when her favorite cinnamon treat was involved.

Without a word she followed behind her mother as she led her daughter up those lengthy stone steps back into the building. The silence was bringing sweat to her brow, along with anticipation of what kind of bombshell was heading her way. It was that time, Deryn was finally of age and it was clear that her fate was going to be the same as her older siblings. The unspoken rules and regulations that were followed inside these walls were not something she enjoyed the thought of, but it wasn't something she could just speak against so frivolously.

Entering her mothers chambers, Lilith took a seat quite elegantly in a large embroidered maroon chair. "Come here, my dear..." Taking a rough swallow to gather herself Deryn moved forward and knelt before her mother as she pushed away the thick locks of her daughters hair. "Just look at you... you're covered in dirt and..." A gasp fled her sophisticated lips, "...you have rougher edges than most of the men in this home." A proud smile came to Deryn for a moment, but in fear of upsetting her mother she quickly brushed it away, still not speaking. "You aren't meant for this world Deryn, I've known that for a long time..." Once those words were spoken, those emerald green eyes of Deryn's widened at this turn in conversation. "I found a man by the name of Constance DeBoulde, he is of Tyrisian nobility... he is handsome and very well educated..." As her mother boasted of this mysterious man, Deryns expression dropped... this wasn't the good news she thought it would be, it was the news that she expected. The sudden change in expression was clearly noted by her mother who placed a hand on Deryn's. "No dear, you aren't to be forced into anything... this man is an old old friend of mine and I asked him to take you out of here, as a favor..."

Deryn took a few moments to process the information before she did something that caught her mother off guard, she leaped up and wrapped her arms around her. "Why? Why me and not Gretta or Elliette?" Her mother stood up, along with Deryn and walked her over to a wash bin beside the bed and took a damp cloth to her ear in attempt to clean her up. "He is a scholar, and has been away from the city until now... but do not worry, they wish you well and could not be more happy for this opportunity."

An hour passed, the two spoke of memories and plans inside her mothers chambers. Upon exit her mother explained to her that this was her last afternoon within these walls as a resident and he was coming for her tonight. It was all so sudden, not much could be seen that was negative about this news but one thought couldn't stop plaguing her mind. What is to happen of Cas? She wasn't alone in those house, but her family was eccentric leaving her friends few and far between. Along with that, Deryn had taken such a custom to treating her like the younger sister she never had... this news wasn't going to be easy to deliver.

Cas was only a year behind her friend, but at this age a year may as well have been an eon. Deryn was old enough to be taking on a companion. Cas' lip would have curled at the thought had she not been busy being stared down by her mother as she rose to her feet, ignoring Deryn's hand as expected. But Cas felt a certain apprehension, moreso than disgust, at the thought. She wouldn't deny her curiosity and burgeoning interest in the godschildren who strolled through the courtyards, aunts and cousins all a-flutter and hanging on their arms and every word. She wouldn't deny that, no.

But there was something unsettling about naming a goldfish after your deceased dog and letting it sleep in the bed, too. Cas might have chuckled at the odd comparison, but--stared down. Right.

She bowed her head respectfully first to her mother, and then to Lady Langdon. Glancing at Deryn with a smile at her promise of their beloved treat, her grin only widened and she nodded. Leaning over, she whispered: "Good luck." But as her friend walked on, Cas' insides turned themselves inside out with worry. She glanced at Anatol with an unspoken--but mutually understood--question.

Anatol shrugged, uncaring. Maybe her father would know, then.

Cas slipped out of the courtyard and into the inner manor as the crowd began to disperse. It was not exactly customary to go to one's father seeking advice--indeed, barely if any relationship was purposely cultivated between daughter and father, as a rule of thumb--but Anatol's own disapproval of Cas had led the girl seeking her father's approval more than once.

Some shred of vestigal humanity, perhaps. Not that Cas, or another, would know it.

She found her father where she almost always did: in the attic with a handful of the other men, shirking their responsibilities. Even younger than they, many times over, her annoyed glance sent them clearing their throats, laying down their cards, and heading back downstairs. All in all, not an usual reaction to any girl that might have wandered up here.

Cas glanced out the window and into the street below--bustling and never still, save for an old man in the center of it all whose eyes were on the manor itself--before looking back to her father. She closed the blinds to avoid the pedestrian's watching eyes. "Father. Is Deryn taking a partner?" she asked in a voice a step softer than she used with the other men.

Her father was one of the older ones in the manor, his grey hair just beginning to display. A sign he was very, very old. It went hand-in-hand with a little respect, and, in turn, a little more information than most. Her father, however, only looked at her for a long moment before shaking his head. Cas' heart leaped, only to stumble and fall when he spoke.

"I don't know. But you should head downstairs, before you're looked for."

"So should you," Cas countered, annoyed with his uselessness. The small man only smiled and nodded, rising and escorting her down the steps and into the hallways. Had the two been of another kind, his suspicions regarding the Langdons more secure, or the eyes of his daughter's mother not on him--he might have done more than squeeze her shoulder and point her back into the courtyard.

"And good luck on your lessons," he leaned over to whisper, before she glanced back and hurried into the courtyard to once again embarrass herself with a bow.

Enris nodded his head in thanks as Barasa held the door open for him. "I agree." He replied as he followed the man down into the ship. "But at least this will be a good experience for you. I believe that while scholars need to be experts in knowledge and spend a lot of time studying, they should also have as many experiences as they can." After all, what use was all that knowledge if it wasn't practical.

He followed Barasa as the man wandered down the hall looking for an empty room. It wasn't long before the man found a generic, nondescript room to settle down in. Enris squeezed past him as he entered and flopped the bags onto the floor at the foot of the bed. He stretched his cramped shoulders and flexed his neck back and forth, glad to finally be rid of the heavy cargo. Perhaps he should work his arm muscles more during his training sessions. He made a quick mental note to add that to his schedule. Normally, besides practicing his magic techniques (which took hours by themselves), he would jog for an hour or two and now he had something new to add: arm strengthening.

"We should probably head to dinner. We don't want to keep the others waiting." Enris stated as he headed out of the room and towards the dining room. He took note of another unoccupied-looking room a few doors down for him to put his stuff down in after dinner. The bag he had brought with him wasn't that heavy, holding only some snacks and an extra change of clothes and a few miscellaneous items. Putting them in a room was less of a priority than right now. His snacks had already been digested and he could feel his stomach protesting for more meat, preferably pork.

Enris followed the man down into the ship.

It was quite odd, seeing Boj being friendly to someone. And smiling. He never smiled. Apparently there was a personality somewhere in that giant, up until now, seeming shell of a man. Whatever his dark secret was, apparently Varis either knew about it or make Boj forget in existed.

"It would be much appreciated." Rynn said, nodding in agreement, although there was definitely a tinge of guilt there- she hated dragging someone else into her mess. Honestly, the more she thought about it, the more she realized what an awful thing she'd done to Boj by dragging him into this. He had been seen with her, and now his life was in danger. Rynn had still had one trademark trait of a noble then, selfishness and the lack of thinking of how her actions affect everyone else. She shouldn't be hunting for this thing, she should have made herself content to just run off to some far off land and start from scratch.

Rynn was dragged out of her self-deprecating inner monologue as the part elvish man- he was far too well built to be all elf- kissed her on the hand. She couldn't help but smile at the action, it was very friendly. "It is so very much appreciated" the woman added, smiling at the man.

"Yes please, join us for dinner, its the least we can do." Rynn said, nodding in agreement with Boj. The man offered her the berries, but Rynn found it hard to accept them "I can't accept all of your fruit for myself. We can share it, or you two can have it." She smiled, looking between the two.

"And its not Boj's fault he's here. Its mine, he hasn't gotten mixed up with anyone. I'm the culprit here." Rynn said, trying to sound lighthearted but there was a marked tinge of guilt to it that she'd not displayed before.

Varis laughed a contented man's laugh and settled down between the two, only glancing at the view before them as if it was a thing he was all too accustomed to. He seems rather pleased with himself, and in turn it starts to grate on Boj's nerves in the littlest amount--barely perceptible, but there nonetheless.

"Ah, a lady of the people," Varis said with a smile. He shrugged and split the berries between the three of them, Boj giving the two an uncertain glance before grudgingly accepting. He was starting, slowly, to return to his usual mood. "Culprit how, may I ask?"

Boj finished his berries and glanced behind them into the caverns, then leaned over and eyeballed the ground below. He shifted a little before rising, and quietly excused himself before ducking into the caverns and disappearing for a while.

Varis watched the small scene play out, eyebrows slightly raised. In anticipation of a question--spoken or not--from his new acquaintance, Varis simply shrugged. "You'll get used to it." He leaned over and looked at her intently, grin only growing. "Culprit, you say? Now what exactly does that mean, m'lady?"

Rynn took the berries, they were perfectly ripe. The sweetest berries she'd tasted. Perhaps that was because it had been a while since the runaway princess had actually eaten berries. Varis seemed very comfortable, considering he had no idea what he was doing in the situation or who was after the redhead next to him. It was really quite odd.

And then Boj left, leaving her alone with the hulking half elf. There he went again, being anti-social and leaving Rynn to felt quite like a villian. "Well you see Varis, I am a very stubborn girl." Rynn said, grinning at him. She couldn't help it, he was in such a good mood and began to lighten her a little bit to her normal personality- a confident young woman who enjoyed finding amusement in everything. Boj was such a downer Rynn hadn't felt like herself in days.

"I am actually a former Noble of Cann. Still am if you ask the people there, am not if you ask me. I'd never liked the lifestyle there, and so when I found out I was betrothed to quite possibly the most possessive cruel man of the group, I was not happy. You see, I'm not much for being in a cage, even a golden one." She took a swig of water from the container she'd brought with her.

"Well, I was going to try and deal with him, see if I could make him see my side. I enjoy being treated as a human being, my friend, not as a piece of finery to put in a collection. Nathaniel and I didn't exactly see eye to eye on that. He wanted to be an owner, I wanted to be a human being. And so, on the night of our public debut, after he'd decided to try and get a taste of the wedding cake before the wedding, I bolted and came down all the way over here, trying to find a way to make my own fortune and I asked Boj to help me. I want to put myself in a position where men like Nathaniel don't matter."

"Unfortunately, Nathaniel doesn't like that idea, and so he has sent some dear friends to track me and take me back too him. Lovely little tale isn't it? Sounds like its right out of a novel. Unfortunately, when its your life, it's nowhere near as much fun." Rynn shrugged, looking over at the man. It was odd, his cheshire grin, but Rynn was thankful for some talkative company. Boj made conversatoin very difficult.

As Rynn's tale wore on, Varis' own demeanor became more and more like Boj's--such an odd thing, how they seemed to trade moods back and forth. His hand clasped over his mouth and rubbing it slowly in thought, he leaned back and nodded a little.

"A few years ago, I might have laughed in your face and called that a tall tale. But this is not the first I've heard of women like yourself leaving the restrictive lifestyle there--I only know as much from what I'm told, you see, never been there myself--nor men. Though I imagine it is a far more enjoyable atmosphere for the men," he added, looking at her with a gleam in his eye and a slight grin.

"You are lucky Boj is such an...ahh..." he glanced behind him towards the cavern, where Boj was currently occupied and well out of sight with whatever it was he was doing. "A pushover. Regardless, I can see why he believed your tale. It's not the first he's heard of these things, either. Speaking of which, he tells me the two of you overcame some spirits of the Gale. Is this true? Did you get any of those strange little voice-stones?"

Fort had seen to it that little lord Fauntleroy (or Randersvayne as the case may be) had been seen to his "state-room," no larger (though no smaller either) than any of the other, more permenant members of his flying family might lay claim to. If the silk-swaddled nobleman had thought that the captain might, of his own noblesse, offer his cabin at the stern of the Ardent, well, he might have sooner wrung gold-dust from a charcoal briquette. Fort stayed long enough to ensure that his backer and his hand-picked marines had been settled in the crew-cabin and the general barrack (as he was now referring to a shady little corner of the cargo-hold) respectively before he begged indulgence to "perform his captain-ly duties in preparation for launch.

By the Golden Throne. Tapdancing on eggshells had never been his strong-suit.

The dinner bell had rung insistently about twenty minutes prior, but Fort had needed a moment to himself in his cabin. A drink, mostly. But a drink required moments just the same. Dantymer's Dew, blessed by the Throne. A gift from ol' Sam. It settled the jangling edge of his nerves and braced his resolve. This whole journey had been attempted with fewer handicaps once before. No noblemen, no questionable marines, a full compliment, and a swift west wind. Here was to hoping that the new crew, the Ardent's new accoutrements, and the Queen's blessing would be enough to counterbalance the faults.

He couldn't put it off much longer, much as he might like to simply oil his bolter, have another drink, and sleep until they were well-underway. Captain-ly duties, after all.

Fort squared his shoulders, wincing as his back popped disconcertingly, and made for the crew-stair. He took the stairs two at a time, pulling at the cuffs of his doublet and ensuring that he did not look so haggard as he felt. The turns were instinctual by now, ducking under the low joist at the bottom of the stair without raising his eyes. It'd always been Cain's bane, not his. This was his boat. He knew, for the most part how to avoid her little love-bites.

Captain Fortinbras stepped through the door to the galley, gave the assembled women a once-over and moved to his seat without apology or explanation. Captains and Wizards. Never early, never late. To boot, he was not the only one that had taken his merry time in arriving to the dining room. He sat, leaning back in the heavy wooden chair and folded his hands in front of him, looking out over the spread that was already laid out.

"So, what have I missed?"

Cas was leaning back in her usual uninvited seat, captain's chair on the one side and girls on the other, smelling faintly of lho-seed and sipping the questionable drink which Alcy had very mildly spiked. The elf was not well acquainted with alchohol, indeed she was not acquainted in the slightest. Her bored and vaguely contented expression was plastered across her face, lids lowered just a little more than they might usually have been.

So when Fortinbras Carlyle stepped into the room, Cas quite uncharacteristically--lho and drink, of course--fumbled with her drink and snapped her chair back to a more formal position in which all four of its feet were fully on the ground.

"Capt--capt'in," she greeted him with, ducking into another long sip of mystery drink.

The rest of the hall had begun to fill a little more satisfactorily with minor crew members, a few of whom were in fact slacking off their shift and swiftly ducked out of the room at the captain's arrival. Cain was presumably decking it out with one of the newer pilots, bless them, their resident expert and mage nearly done settling into their quarters. Their medic...well, perhaps he was patching up some poor soul who'd suffered some minor wound as a result of Aerodar's little rocketing incident.

Cas, for one, found herself smiling in the captain's general direction with a mild buzz she assumed to be from the elves' little shared bout of lho-sticks earlier.

Fort watched a handful of junior crewmen duck to the task of shoveling their food up and tossing off the rest of their drinks. While Fort had never been a slave-driver to his men, never taken up the lash or any of the other punishments by and large attributed to the Captain's station, he was still something of a killjoy where crewmen were concerned. He was the Old Man of the boat, after all. And no one wanted to be swapping fart jokes while Daddy sat and watched sternly from a corner.

He let them duck out without comment, matching faces to names as best he could. Quite a few fresh ones, at that, to memorize. Would have to be after last time.

His attention returned to Cas as she stammered out his familiar title. She was close enough to smell the lho-seed smoke on her. Though not close enough to be sure that she had been the one smoking. Still, her unguarded smile had him puzzled.

There was just something damned unsettling about the little murder-sprite smiling like that. Her gunner's smirk as she pipped a target well beyond the range of mortal man, sure. Her little hate-fueled smile when dealing with Cain or Belo (or any Innate). Even her fixed and plastered make-shift smile of politeness when conducting delicate negotiations, or when Fort told her to relax and enjoy herself. Those he could deal with, had learned to deal with. This, well...

"Mmmhm," he offered arching an eyebrow and taking an apple from the basket near to hand. His right hand dipped for the dagger in his boot-top and he made to slice into the apple, pausing to gesture with the blade toward his elven gunner. "Who drugged Cas?"

The two were sitting in a pleasant silence, both probably lost in thought as Deryn took the time to tear off bits of bread to stuff her mouth with. It was actually rather enjoyable, the conversations of the indecent sort being sputtered about amongst the room were amusing to listen to and the food was more than delicious.

That ease was broken in a matter of moments when most of the idle chatter was cut short and her friend to her left tightened up. Cocking a curious brow, Deryn turned to see what the fuss was but before she had a chance to look back the Captain was already passing beside her and the situation was becoming all too understandable. It was then that she had realized she was still sitting in her chair backward and hopped out of it immediately.

"Captain Fortinbras." In an effort to show respect she gave him the proper salute and stood as tall as she could, which wasn't exactly tall, waiting for him to take his seat. He was an aged and experienced man as expected, you couldn't go running a ship like the Ardent without that kind of essence. At that moment Deryn noticed something, Cas had gone stiff but she wasn't as formal as thought she would be. They must share many memories... she thought, the elven woman finally sitting back in her seat properly this time. Following his arrival the remark he imposed about Cas was enough to bring a smile to her face, although she didn't want to outright laugh in respect for her slightly chemically imbalanced friend.

He contemplated on what was said, not so sure he could deny what the fellow Kerrian meant. At the very least, he was right about the importance of experience, even for a book hermit, ground-loving scholar. Whether this would be a good experience or not, he had his doubts. It didn't help that his intestines were already disagreeing with the journey. And they'd just departed. He was pretty sure if he ran back up topside, he'd still be able to make out the parting mountains in the distance. Withholding a sigh as the other man squeezed in past him to set down the bags, he knelt before them, immediately plying the smaller bag open to retrieve the notebook he'd reserved for the journey, along with a few writing tools. He'd never ventured anywhere without carrying something of the sort. Whether just to keep his thoughts organized where his lifestyle couldn't be, or just to have something that put him at ease in all the flurry.

At the mention of heading to dinner, he looked up, nodding briefly, “Yes, of course, just had to grab something,” He said, pulling himself to his feet as he stuffed the hand-held notebook and the writing implements in the pockets of his trousers. He had always found the academy robes much more efficient for such things, which was part in why he always felt inclined to wear them. That and being the practical man that he was, he'd never taken to wearing much else unless the weather called for it. It also helped that it was the most prominent source of home that he had.

Absently, his fingers tinkered with the small golden crest pinned at the front of his robes, running his thumb along the indented groves of the design. He wondered concisely how his assistant back in Castillo was fairing but it faded , the ship's movements urging him to keep moving.

With one quick glance around the room, he followed the other man out, a bit of a distance between them now as he closed the door. He kept his hand trailing the wall, using it as more moral support than physical, his balance having at the very least, steadied itself. He wasn't all that sure how he would get through dinner though. The thought of food made him a bit nauseous. His nerves and his stomach already aflutter, lessened as it may have been by then.

After a moment of drawn out silence, Barasa only assuming that the man was in a hurry to eat, he half-jogged up behind him, hand still steady on the wall, only breaking off between open doorways, eyes peeled and glancing about every so often so as to memorize the inside of the ship. Panic surged momentarily as he glanced back to check if he could remember where his room was, but it settled , his memory being a bit kinder to him than usual. New place. He needed to focus, “I take it we're just going to guess where the dinning room is?” He asked, his eyes still wandering, “Shame to say, I'm about as useless navigating as I am carrying my bags,” A mild laugh leaving his mouth with his words as he proceeded to follow the man through the corridor.

She took a small notice of Varis's odd demeanor, but didn't change the way she was acting. Perhaps he had something against those of noble blood. She wouldn't know. Rynn thought she'd never be able to really understand Kerrians.

"It is a true tale. Boj and I were attacked by them this morning. Why would I make this up?" Rynn saw as Varis looked at her like she was something akin to a piece of meat. It was really quite offensive. Why would he say something like that? He was not making the best first impression. "Yes.... it is far more enjoyable for them. They get to do whatever they want."

"A pushover? I'm not sure if that's the necessary term." Rynn said, her discontent with Varis growing, though it was yet to show itself. Why would Varis comment on Boj believing the tale in such an odd tone. She really wished he'd return. "Yeah... I got my own voice stone." Rynn said, choosing not to mention the woman's voice that had so affected Boj.

He shrugged. "Why does anyone make anything up, love? To cover up worse stories, for attention, or to exact some sort of prize that their story might grant them..." he trailed off and shrugged once more. "It matters not. The point is, I believe you. Boj's miss had the worst things to say about Tyrisian nobility, I'll tell you. Say what you will about Kerria but at least our nobility have had humility pounded into them since you lot--Tyr'ians, I mean--showed up. Gotta respect that, that sort of humble, noble type, you know?"

By the gods, was Varis talkative. "Talk about doing whatever you want, just be glad you weren't my dad. Poor sod," he tapped his ears, "men of his sort get trampled on more than you ladies. And pushover is indeed the right word, ma'am, you 'aven't known Boj for years like I have. He's a pushover, alright, just like my old man, I--Y'really--really? Your own voice stone? That can't have been a joy to see. You lose any words?"

When Varis got talking, he really got talking, it seemed. He seemed a little on edge, a bit nervous about something.

His words caught her attention "Boj's miss? He had a significant other? How odd... he's never mentioned her." Rynn's eyes widened as she remembered the voice in the forest that had frozen them and nearly caught them in a trap. "That was her voice... it must've been..." Rynn said, more to herself than the Varis. He was so caught up in his own words that Rynn doubted he'd heard her.

"Was your dad.... an elf?" Rynn ventured the question, hoping not to offend him but his ears made it really obvious, it wasn't like he could hide it. "Boj just seems nice, though he's not one for conversation. I don't think he likes me much." Rynn said, finding it odd that he'd managed to romance a woman with his personality. "And yes. My own. It was very very odd. Boj ripped it out for me, but I have it. And I don't think I've lost any words, not that I've noticed." Rynn looked away from him, over towards her pack, wondering what those stones really did.

There was still something off about Varis, and Rynn couldn't quite place it. He didn't seem very genuine, seemed like he was trying to distract himself form something. "Hey do you know why boj went in there?"

Varis talked like wildfire, fluid in the movement but unable to stop once he'd gotten started. Unless someone came and put the fire out--as they would, soon enough.

"What, really? I mean, I know his folks back home didn't like her, but that huge fucker'd never shut up about her. I liked her, though: lovely girl, bit too polite, but knew what she was doing."

"And, heh, you've guessed, yeah. Mum was a soldier from one of the southern academies along the coast, he was...erh...let's just say that if I ever wanted anything when I was a kid, I asked him, heh. Were your parents like that? Nevermind, you--well, show it here, and I'll tell you. Come on, then," he added, holding out his hand and wiggling her fingers invitingly at her with a grin. "And Boj? Oh, he's probably taking a piss, moping around or something. You'll get used to it. Wasn't all that friendly even before she--"

BOOM!

From within the caverns, a tiny plume of gravelly dust rolled out, all curls and ill omens. Varis shot to his feet, with or without the lady's voice stone. "Mierda, Boj--?" he cursed in Kerrian, scrambling into the cave to see what had happened. Some small distance in, a fair amount of rubble had fallen over a passageway. There being no sign of Boj, Varis wasted no time in moving to the pile of rubble and began moving rocks out of the way.

Behind--thankfully, not beneath--the wall of broken rock, Boj sighed and stroked the odd little rabbit he'd found, before setting it down, warning it to sit still, and carefully setting aside rocks on his own side. Piling, as he went, a little fence around the rabbit.

She couldn't keep up with what the elf was saying. So he'd had a girl. Something must've happened, the way Varis kept talking in past tense and the fact that Boj had never mentioned her before. It was all very odd, but whatever happened would likely explain much about the man's behavior.

He wanted her voice stone. There it was, something very suspicious to ask for. Boj had told her to protect it with her life. "Well I don't see why you need to see it before you tell me what it does?" She narrowed her eyes, her distrust starting to show through. Rynn moved the pack closer to her body, guarding it more fiercely. She wasn't about to let him touch it. But it turns out, she didn't have to say much more as Boj made his presence quite known.

Rynn leapt up, grabbing the pack with her to keep it on her. She wasn't going to just leave it there now that she knew Varis had an interest in it. Rynn followed Varis in cautiously, waiting to see if Boj was okay in all the rubble. After he'd cleared it, the sight that greeted her was quite perplexing.

Why Boj building a rubble fence around a bunny?

"Boj... what exactly are you doing?" Rynn asked politely, thankful that Varis's attention was no longer on her.

Varis had shrugged at her question regarding the voice stones, briefly answering just that "you can tell a lot from these little rocks" before he'd continued chattering away.

He'd glanced at her with some frustration--"What, you aren't going to help?"--as he pulled rock after rock, Boj's face eventually showing from the other side and the men repeatedly grabbing for the same rocks. Varis chuckled and shook his head. Boj looked a little worse for wear: dreadlocks askew, dirt digging into the creases of his face...

"I don't know how you manage to do this. Every time Boj, I swear. I know these places are unstable, but..."

Boj had spoken matter-of-factly, his expression blank. "I hit my head. Ceiling's too low."

Varis, in turn, had grinned and turned briefly to Rynn. "Make sure he doesn't hit his head and cause a little avalanche again, eh? Bad habit for him to have."

The rabbit's nose twitched when Boj answered Rynn's question by picking it up. "I found it. I didn't want it to run off. Not sure what it's doing here," he said, stroking the little white rabbit's ears. This one seemed especially tame, even domesticated--certainly no wild jackrabbit bounding around the woods. It was such a strange place to find the thing.

His friend once again shook his head and laughed, clearing away the last of the rubble. "I've found all sorts of nonsense in here. A funny little drawing, once, but it was gone when I tried to bring you back to show it to you, you remember that?" Boj nodded, eyes still on the rabbit. "And I swear to the gods of my father himself, I've seen a spirit wandering here. I shit you not, my friend. I shit you not."

Boj frowned at Varis' last words, some unspoken question in his eyes as he looked at Varis and stepped over the leftover rocks. But he seemed content with something after a moment, his question answered in some unknown way. He looked to Rynn. "Are you ready to continue?"

Alcy had been 'enjoying' the elven company- cautiously of course, when she noticed a silence descend upon the room and Cas completely change her sitting position, though Cas was being much nicer. Seemed the alcohol or the Lho must've been getting to her. Alcy saw the captain, in all his leader glory at about the same moment Deryn did. Copying the elf, Alcy stood up and saluted him as well. This was her first impression she was making, and she'd be damned if she screwed it up.

"Cap'n" Alcy said, smiling a respectful greeting at the man as he acknowledged him. He was an imposing figure- he actually made Alcy feel like he deserved her respect, something no other captain had done. When he mentioned Cas's possible drug induced state, Alcy couldn't help but grin softly, her eyes meeting the captain's. It was a confession of sorts, though not one that Cas or Deryn would notice. Just a small flash across her light eyes a grin on her lips.

Alcy hoped that small show of.... mischief wouldn't make the captain find her to be an immature nuisance. Cas had deserved it. She'd been a brat to Alcy and deserved a little.... loosening up. It would be the first of many things that Alcy did that the crew would notice but necessarily realize she'd done. If only Cain was here. She'd love to brag to him about her telling Cas off and then helping aid in her silly behavior. Where was he anyways? Napping on the wheel?

What exactly could you tell from the rocks? It seemed like an odd sort of thing to learn from, but the three of them that she'd seen did have different shapes after all, so that must've meant something. But her thoughts were interrupted by the landslide.

Rynn would've stopped to help, but Varis had it under control from the looks of it. Not to mention she doubted she'd be much help. As Boj appeared, Rynn wanted to smile a little at his helter skelter state, but she didn't want to offend him so she remained stonefaced.

"I will" Rynn said, smiling at Varis. She still didn't trust him, but they were back with Boj so she felt little need to worry. "Don't you think its a little odd to find a sweet little white rabbit in the middle of a cavern?" She asked, looking at the adorable rabbit. She wanted to pet it. Rynn loved rabbits.

"A spirit?" Rynn asked, she would have been skeptical, but having experienced what she had in recent days, she was skeptical of very little at the moment. "What kind?" She asked, curious as to what he'd seen.

There was an odd moment between the two that she caught, but Rynn doubted she'd ever find out what it was. These two had the aggravating ability to talk without saying anything. "Yeah, I'm ready. Are we taking the bunny?"

Enris glanced back at Barasa at his comment. "It's this way. I can smell the food." He replied nodding his head in the direction of the dining room. He had a keen sense of smell that seemed to double when he was especially hungry. . .like now. His mother had spoiled him with delicious food when he was young and now he had a voracious appetite as well as picky tastes. He had been thrown out of more than one restaurant for viciously insulting the chef's skills (or lack thereof according to Enris) and not being afraid to voice what he thought to be an insult to good food everywhere.

He continued at a leisurely pace, the smell of food becoming stronger the longer they walked. It wasn't too long before they were in front of a door with the words "Dining Room" carved into a plaque attached to the door.

"Well, this looks like the place." He said absentmindedly. Without wasting another minute, Enris pushed open the door and entered into the dining room.

Enris opened the door to the dining room to see an odd sight. No one had started eating yet. Lucky. He thought they would be late, but seeing as how the two elves, the girl who looked too young and even the Captain were just sitting about, they were right on time. No one was speaking at the moment however. Did he accidentally barge in on something? Well even if he had, it didn't look to be too serious. The air in the room wasn't tense, it was relaxed, just hanging there.

He crossed the room, not even seeing if Barasa was still following him or not. He wasn't responsible for the man no matter how awkward he seemed aboard this ship. Sure he had helped him carry his bags, but that was just a nice way to get to know him. Barasa was a full grown man, surely he could pick out whatever seat suited him best, he didn't need help for that.

Enris nodded his head in polite greeting as he passed the Captain. One look at the man and it was obvious he was more than worthy to be captain of the Ardent. Enris got the feeling he was a fair but stern captain, not one to abuse his crew but not one to let them slack off either. Enris had seen captains harshly punish crew members for the most minor of grievances. Of course, Enris could do whatever he pleased (like standing up for said crew members). The captains that had employed him wanted his power but also feared it. They were afraid of upsetting him and then having their bodies move in ways beyond their control. Idiots. He would have made them jump off their own ship had they not been paying him. Although, they probably deserved worse. Those days, despite them being. . .interesting, were over. Good riddance.

He headed towards an empty table and sat himself down, dropping his satchel beside him on the floor. He leaned back in the chair, arms crossed. He hoped food would be served soon. He was starving.

Boj and Varis both nodded in answer to Rynn's question regarding the oddness of finding a domesticated rabbit in a cavern deep within the wilds of Kerria...Boj himself simply shrugged and answered: "Yes. It is. There are odder things on the other side."

His friend filled in for him, looking to Rynn. "On the other side of the mountain, he means."

Regarding the spirit he'd seen, Varis was the one who shrugged this time. "She was this sort of faint violet figure. I swear that I've seen her face somewhere." Boj frowned at this but did not raise any question.

"We are taking the rabbit. Get your things." Boj turned to Varis and the two lowered their heads in respect to eachother...before smiles slowly dawned over each of their faces and Varis clasped Boj on the shoulder. He looked to Rynn. "I'll watch the exit for a few days. You, eh, you have a good trip alright?" He gave her a long, funny look until it was interrupted by an annoyed glance from Boj. Varis hurried down the way until he disappeared into the crack of light emanating from the entrance.

Boj slowly turned to Rynn, looking halfway amused and impatient both. "He likes you." He completed his turn, facing down the dark cavern beyond.

Switching the rabbit to his left hand, he dug through his many pouches until he pulled his fingers away to reveal some sticky, wet, dark substance that clung between them. He pressed the affected fingers together and rubbed them quickly, the dark substance slowly lighting up until it revealed itself as some sort of nicely glowing, teal...something. It seemed organic and unnatural at once, as if it had been mixed together.

Boj continued down the hallway, the strange moss-mix on his fingertips lighting their way. After some time, he smeared the tiniest amount on the rabbit's head, and then attempted to do so to Rynn's shoulder.

The moment the door had opened, his sense of smell kicked in, a variety of aromas catering the atmosphere. He looked around curiously, taking in more of the vessel's innards as some of the crew members had already taken to their meals, some rushing, others lax and generally slow on satisfying their hunger. The room was fairly small compared to what he'd been accustomed to; both the passenger ship and the hall at the academy having been much larger in size. But he found it less impersonal despite the oddly quiet pause they'd intruded on. He gave little regard to it however, more so distracted by the view itself over the specific people occupying it. Most of them looked at home, if not comfortable or accustomed to the ambiance. Others looked almost impatient, such as the seemingly friendly Kerrian that had helped him out. He starred only briefly as Enris departed from his company, going off to find somewhere to sit. It all seemed to look natural together. Like something he'd visualized from reading storybooks as a child.

Caught once more by his impeding thoughts his lips quirked, teeth catching the skin inside his lower lip, not sure whether to frown or smile. Truth was, he was pretty sure he could get used to being there. Granted, with time and a bit of forced optimism. He just wasn't sure if he wanted to. Adaptable as he was, fitting in just wasn't a quota he could fill easily. Then again, this trip wasn't about making friends or being remotely comfortable. And while he certainly welcomed the idea, he had a job to do, something to accomplish. And these people, the men and women mulling about their business, whatever that consisted of had a job as well. He settled with that, stepping aside as another crewman walked in behind him, seating himself at a table half occupied without so much as a thought. He watched for a moment, the interaction between coworkers somewhat enlightening.

After his particularly distracted pause, his eyes finally lingered on a table occupied by the man he'd known to be the captain of the ship, a fairly young woman and two distinctly elven woman sitting with him, one of which he had recognized as being the one who caught him off guard earlier. He was genuinely surprised at the time, having not expected to be sailing forth with an elf at all, but to find that there were two of them. It was hard to fathom. Forcing his eyes away so as not to be caught starring, he moved further into the room, standing around awkwardly still. He hadn't known whether it would have been appropriate to address the Captain or not. He looked like a fairly decent man, someone, at the very least, who knew what he was doing, but that didn't help in his decision much.

Rubbing a hand along the back of his neck, his gaze settled on the food they had displayed on the tables, bowls of fruit and bread and other simplicities set out. Had he been on solid ground, he may have given into hunger. But the only thing that seemed to be hindering his stomach then, was the ongoing anxiety he'd been attempting to shrug off.

Giving the room one last glance, he moved over to an empty seat at one of the unoccupied tables closest to him and sat himself down, facing away from the food for fear of going green at the thought of eating it. Tentatively, he reached into his pocket, pulling out his notebook and preceding to ink in words nondescript and vague below his feeble sketch of the Ardent. Trying to distract himself, for all it was worth.

Captain Carlyle returned the elven aeronaut's greeting with a cordial nod and a polite baring of teeth in something that might've shared a common lineage with a smile. "Deryn. How are we liking the Ardent?"

Fort's eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly at Alcy's near admission of guilt; her guileless grin and brazen, mischievous eyes. His reprimand was well-thought out and just about to crease his tongue, painting the air between them blue. But he checked himself, letting it instead, as he had so many times, find its path instead through his nostrils as he snorted derisively. That simple, unassuming expulsion of breath might've spoke volumes, but he capped it with a small, tectonic shrug of his shoulders and proceded to lay into his apple with a precision that might've made a surgeon blush; cutting delicate slivers from the hapless fruit and transferring them nimbly to his mouth.

"Might be for the best, anyway."

Enris, his sullen-eyed Innate and Barasa with his querelous glance and faint smell of ink and parchment (skittish as a new-dropped foal, that one) made their way into the dining room by turns, hot on one another's heels. Enris dropped into a corner after a perfunctory nod that was met by a squint and a nod in return. Strange boy. But useful, to balance. He folded his arms and leaned back, waiting, it seemed, for the waitress. Ha.

Barasa, for his part, folded himself over a book at another nearby table, recently vacated by a number of junior deckhands. What it was that he was scribbling with that nib, one could only guess, but it buzzed at scratched like an angry wasp as he bent to the task with single-minded ferocity.

Fort paused in his slow slaughter of his apple, a lacewing crescent still clinging to the edge of the knife. "You gentlemen going to sit aloofly in the corner or come and join us for a bite to eat?" He gestured to the breads, grilled meats, cheeses, fruit and vegetables the lay along the trestle before him. "Or does sitting with the Old Man seem overly burdensome?" His lips split into a genuine smile.

Dinner was important, damn it. It had always been. Even when his mongrel children didn't get along; even when they gave each other threats and jibes and honest-before-the-Throne bullets in about equal measure. And it was still important.

It made them family.

Once the captain and the rest of the shift has assembled, a few cooks practically toss out some food haphazardly, too busy squabbling among themselves. Night has completely fallen now, and unlike the Ardent's last trip, no massive sea monsters from the seven hells are accosting the ship.

Truly he was a more amicable man than she ever thought he would be. Opening the air with casual discussion set her at ease. Loosening her shoulders and smiling back at him she was trying not to seem like she was so easily impressed.

"You run quite a remarkable ship, and from who I've met of the crew so far you have a keen eye to match." Granted it was true that she wasn't going to fall in love with every crew member she met, but hearing Alcy boast of her qualifications and doing her own research on a few "senior" members it was an all star list to say the least.

At that moment the thought popped into her head, What kind of skill does Cas possess? Strangely enough Deryn hadn't even discussed what her friends duties on the ship were, let alone did she ever see her in action. Making a mental note to inquire Cas on the subject later she took another modest bite of bread.

Soon Fort had began to address the men behind her, who up until now she hadn't noticed, almost certainly due to being so swept up in the eagerness to formally meet and greet the Captain. The dark haired Innate that she had crossed distant paths with among boarding the ship seemed content sitting by himself. At no fault of her own, her nostrils flared lightly as she quickly averted her eyes, almost as if to ignore the man. If there was one thing her mother taught her was that they certainly were not worth her time, and granted Deryn was far from "traditional" as her mother was there was still that prejudice that boiled under her skin. In her eyes, it would be more than appropriate to not act on pure instinct and besides something far more appealing had caught her interest.

There he was again, sitting so innocently with his nose aimed into the parchment of what she could only imagine to be one of his constant companions. Dark skinned prominent features and a distinct smell of a library. One thing leaving her home in Cann gave her was the ability, no... the privilege to seek the attention of men who were not of common elven taste. It was true, her heart would forever be drawn to what she could never have and at times guide her somewhere her mind had no intention of going but a combination of a desire to fill the seemingly unfulfillable void inside her and a love for the company of a well educated man would guide her to certain feelings.

But it was not only the eyes of Deryn who had fallen on the intriguing man, the suspicious sideways glance of her comrade were making their way in his direction as well. Well I'll be. Hmm.... It would certainly prove for a more interesting night if the new additions to the crew would all join together under the watchful eye of Captain Fort.

She had already managed to make a bad impression. What a shame, but Alcy would much rather have gotten the small harmless jab at Cas rather than made a perfect impression. Alcy was certain she could overcome the small slight in the Captain's eyes on her part. Besides, he was right-it was for the better. Cas just didn't seem to be very nice.

And the Lho seed, well that wasn't Alcy's fault at all. Most of the fault was on Cas herself, though there was no way to tell the captain that without telling Deryn she'd given Cas alcohol, and pissing off the evil cat's sidekick wasn't a very good plan. Alcy sighed softly to herself, sitting back down and casting her gaze around, not really paying too close attention to whatever the captain was saying to the others. She just wasn't quite comfortable around these people. All of them, except for Cain, had seemed to take a sort of distant dislike to her. Perhaps this crew wasn't as family like as she'd been hoping.

Or perhaps there just wasn't room for a twenty year old on this ship, no matter her skill level.

And at that thought, her gaze meandered around the room, trying to find the one person who hadn't taken a sort of disdain to her. But he still hadn't made his way down here. A bit of disappointment crossed her, and Alcy's gaze found its way to the Innate sitting by himself. She was fairly certain he hadn't had a very nice welcome. Elves weren't big fans of innates, and there were two on here.

Hearing the captain address the two, Alcy decided to help things along by going over and introducing herself to him. It seemed the nice thing to do, perhaps he'd be a bit nicer than the others, though she wasn't counting on it- it seemed the general default was dislike on this ship, and she wasn't expecting him to be any different, especially if the elves had been rude to him, that'd likely put him in a bad mood. Alcy stood up and walked over to Enris.

"Hi there, We haven't met yet so I thought I'd go ahead and introduce myself. I'm Alcy." She smiled at him, putting her hand out to shake his. She sincerely hoped he wasn't going to shove her off and be rude, because she was trying to be nice to him, and it was never good to reciprocate kindness with coldness. But Alcy was making too many assumptions.