Dase would have warned Tamy about Saia's temper had he a chance before she ran off. Instead he waited for her to reappear but she was intersected by Torbin instead. Dase didn't know much about her but she seemed to be on their side so he liked her. He liked Tamy too. It was a relief to finally have someone around that was closer to his age. Rhn's hawk hissed at him as he walked by. Dase responded by sticking out his tongue. So what if animals didn't like him because of Airy. Who among them could command the spirit of wind?
Yeah, right. Like he had control. It was more like the other way around. She seemed to do what she wanted on whim. He didn't understand, and "talking" to her when she was in one of her states was impossible. He began gathering firewood, keeping close to camp. Airy hovered beside him, a subtle quiver in the air. She was still sulking.
He sighed. What is it?
You always get angry.
Another sigh. You always go too far.
I am right here.
Dase lifted his eyes skyward. How do I communicate with you, his expression seemed to ask. I mean you DO too much.
The quiver grew angry, as much as a quiver could. Well next time I will just let them have you!
She's impossible. He picked up another dead branch. They were after you, not me!
ME?!!
Yes. You. Stealing is illegal you know.
I don't know. What is stealing and why is it illegal?
Dase wanted to bonk himself on the head with the wood he was carrying, he was so frustrated. C'mon. He'd lived in a cave most of his life but even he knew that! He tried explaining the concept to her simply. There's this thing called money, you see, that people get when they work-
What's work?
Aiye. It's how people get money. They like, help another person who pays them with money or they make things that people buy from them with money.
Oh.
And when you take something without giving them money, it's stealing. That's bad. Bad is illegal. It gets you in trouble. So when you took those things off the tables, you were stealing.
I don't get it.
This time he bonked himself.
If work is people helping other people then wasn't I helping you and aren't you supposed to give me money?
Dase laughed out loud. Imagine that. A sprite asking to be paid for stealing! He almost dropped his pile, he laughed so hard. He'd confused her again. You have to be hired. That's when somebody asks you to work for them. Then you get paid. That's when you get money. They pay you. If you don't work for somebody then you make stuff and people BUY your stuff with money. They pay you what you tell them to and then you give them your stuff. You trade. You didn't give those people any money.
I didn't. Airy told him, ashamed now. Am I in trouble?
Aha! Now she's getting it. Not anymore. I gave the stuff back. Well, most of it anyway. But they were angry at me cause they thought I did it.
I will go back and tell them I did it.
You can't. they can't see you.
Why? She paused. How come only you can see me?
I can't. I just hear you.
Why?
I don't know.
That made her silent. Dase finished his gathering and set the pile near the campire. The food Rhn was cooking smelled wonderful and he told him as much.
"Have some," the ranger said. "It's ready."
Eagerly, Dase went to Josen'd pack and pulled a small wooden bowl. With a second thought, he pulled out another and filled both bowls up with meat, gravy and bread. He didn't bother with utensils since he'd always eaten with his hands before and went in search of Tamy. She was emerging from where they'd tethered the horses with Torbin. He'd intended to give a bowl to Tamy and coax her off to eat somewhere grownup-less but he handed both dishes as they met, one to each girl. "Dinner's ready," he told them with a charming twelve-year-old smile.
He followed them back to the fire where Rhn was enjoying his meal. He handed Torbin and Tamy a fork as they sat down. He gave one to Dase too but the boy only used it to pry off a chunk of meat and then set it back down. He picked up his dripping sandwich with both hands. "Don't worry about Sai'a," he told Tamy. "She's not really mean. She's just... odd. If she's not angry at one thing, she's mad at another. Don't let anything she says get to you. It doesn't mean nothin'."
Airy was slowly becoming jubilant again. She went from Dase's shoulder to Tamy's hair. The girl jumped up in surprise. Dase scrambled to catch her falling dish. "That's just Airy. She likes hair. If she bothers you I can try and stop her." He said try because he knew better than to promise when it came to airy.
Tamy shook her head and sat back down, giggling when Airy tickled her neck. Dase handed back her bowl. He looked into the trees where Sai'a, then Val, had gone to. "Shouldn't someone tell them that dinner's ready?"
Sai'a could not believe the nerve of him. She was pretty much a relationship virgin but shouldn't he NOT talk about his past loves with her? Especially in this way? She could be wrong, of course. Maybe it was customary to share one another's past personal relations before embarking on a new one. But the way he was describing the other woman was making her even angrier than before. Wait. Did he just say he prided himself? With another woman? That. Was. It.
She hollered and would have clobbered him in the eye had she not been holding a weapon. A weapon sharpened way beyond the point of perfect sharpness, having been forgotten in her hands when Valhorek started speaking. The whetstone had chiseled the blade to a fine edge the mere width of parchment. she resisted the urge to scratch him with it when her yell garnered no reaction. She listened to him dumbly. Oh. He was talking about his ship. Well then. She put the down the knife.
She could not be all this to him, she thought as she listened. It all sounded so surreal, hearing these words spoken of her. Anger washed out of her like a slow moving wave. Her she was again, feeling overwhelmed, confused and defenseless and unable to do anything but look in wonder at the man doing it to her. He certainly made sure to hit all the spots she'd been angry about and make her blush wildly while doing so.
"You really think that of me?" Oh no. Did she say that out loud?
He answered her with a sweet kiss on the cheek. The touch left an invisible brand on her already warmed skin. "Val," she was surprised she still had a voice. Even more surprised it was somewhat steady. "I've never done anything like this before so you may find it is you, and not I, who is required to have the most patience when it concerns the two of us. As far as you making me angry, I am beginning to think you rather like getting a rise out of me, what with magic potions and letting a stranger into our midst, which I still don't agree with. He is only telling us these things so he can use us to get to this castle and this treasure of us. I can't be the only one who thinks this. He may be able to help us, but I truly don't believe that we need him. He obviously can't be trusted. What has gotten into you? We should've killed him and been done with it. If he decides to sneak off and kill someone while they're bathing or washing pots then whose to stop him before it's too late? What if he takes Tamy and Dase? We are going to double the watch, are we not? I want to be on first. No. Wait. I want the whole night."
By now, Val was frowning again so she stopped talking. She liked it better when he smiled so she kissed his cheek back. "Don't look at me like that," she told him.
OOC - I posted two different posts so that if you all wanted to, the in town thread and out of town thread could be seperate. Any which way is fine with me. And Torbin, feel free to write them finding the house and questioning the shoemaker if you want. ^_(
