Seaside 6: Six at the Beach

[bc56]

Lunch Time
"Why would, uh, my parents name me after that?" Selekhael never met either of her parents, nor did she realize just what she was, so this is a delicate subject. "Are you saying I should, uh, masquerade as this goddess? Because, uh, I don't think I'm angry enough to do that." The smudges of simple wooden houses have appeared over the hill up ahead.

[Rebonack]

[Lunch Time]

"I will freely admit that I have absolutely no idea," Zee replies with a resolute nod.

Because she doesn't!

The justification for that name is completely unknown to her.

There was probably some sort of reason for it. Maybe symbolic? Who cares.

That at that second question Selekhael gets a laugh. "Haha, no way! You should masquerade as you. That's the best person to pretend to be. Except I guess it really isn't pretending since that's who you are?"

Does that count as deep commentary on the nature of existence? Or just Zee engaging in Zeeisms?

"Your temporal echo probably knows what's up with that name, though. You really should probably get to know her a bit. Sit down and chat without taking her head off. Learn who she is and what she's been through since your paths diverged at Marlick Bay. I think, if you really try, you can forgive her. She cares for Prumathe, too. And you want him to be happy, don't you? Even if he isn't happy with you?"

That's a little nudge from Zee for Selekhael to better define herself.

The Mighty Forgive.

[bc56]

Lunch Time
Selekhael sighs. She knows Zee is Correct even if she wishes she weren't. And she does want Prumathe to be happy.
It just hurts so much to think of him with another her, married to her even, in the week she was stuck in Marlick Bay (even if it was a year to them). "Fine. After we're, uh, done here, I'll go talk to them. But, uh, not at GLoG and, uh, only if you're there too." That's a pragmatic choice really. Selekhael doesn't want to be somewhere with so many memories for a meeting that is already going to be dredging up the depths of her happy memories and turning them bitter, and she's confident that if a conflict breaks out, Zee will choose the right side (she's also confident that her side is right, but that's not important yet).

[Rebonack]

[Lunch Time]

Zee definitely picks up on that body language.

The drooping countenance is unmistakable.

She reaches out with one of her wings and pulls her friend into a nice little angelic side-hug. It definitely helps that Zee radiates light and warmth.

"One of the things you'll learn now that you've made it up to the bronze-host is that maintaining your Path is really important. Think of it like a little walkway through a garden. If you let it get overgrown then it isn't really useful as a trail anymore, is it? You have to tend to it and work at it. You can't let the bitterness you feel toward your echo stick around. It's like poison in your mind. How can you forgive others if you can't, after a fashion, forgive yourself? Forgive the person you used to be? You need to lift that burden from your shoulders and leave it behind."

Yezekiel hugs Selekhael a little tighter. Just a brief little squeeze.

"This will be one of the first and most important steps for you; to show yourself and everyone else what forgiveness looks like. We can meet up at Trog's, maybe? I can give Sekhmet a call and invite her over. It might be best if Prumathe didn't come, though. I think that'll make it easier for both of you."

Which side would she take?

Honestly, Zee would do what she can to get both of them to settle down. Zee wishes to Strengthen everyone in the Nexus, to gently push them toward who they can be.

It isn't long before our heroes discover a nice little trailing leading down the hill toward the lower beaches below and the river mouth Redcliff is built around. The namesake is pretty hard to miss, too, great sandy sea bluffs stained red with iron and manganese, hard as concrete. And heavy with rare earth, gold, and platinum group metals. Even from way up here they can see people loading black sand from the beaches onto donkeys to bring them back for metallurgical sifting in the town.

Zee gives a little snerk as she watches. "Eh heh. Okay, fun fact. The weird eye-star-things I've got exude pretty strong magnetic fields when I don't keep them in check. If I rolled around on that beach I would look like a great big black sheep from all the iron-sand sticking to me."

[bc56]

Lunch Time
"That, uh, sounds okay." The hug is comforting, so Selekhael hugs back. "I guess we should stay off the beach then?" She doesn't have a solution to the problem of rampant magnetism.
The village looks nice and almost exactly how Selekhael remembers it, but last time she will be here, everyone is preparing for a monster attack and not working, this is much more peaceful. "Do we just go down an introduce ourselves? We, uh, can't tell them why we're really here, so, uh, how can we explain it?"

[Rebonack]

[Lunch Time]

Sometimes sounding okay is all you can hope for.

"OR! I can just refrain from rolling around in the sand," Zee replies with a laugh. Then she raises one fist, clenching it dramatically. "It'll be a hard task. Resisting the urge to derp around on the beach will perhaps be my greatest test! But I have the Determination to endure!"

She's probably being silly again.

Zee does that pretty often.

And then questions considered!

"Hmm... Well, we could be truthful. That's always a good start. That we're here to help. Normal folk in the Nexus almost always have intractable problems that it would take an adventurer to solve. And having a couple celestials show up in search of people to help will probably seem like an answer to prayer for at least one person here. So we make ourselves useful! Do a few quests. Find out what's going on. Maybe figure out what the deal is with this monster so we can thwart it before it becomes a problem?"

And maybe discover what triggered Selekhael's host-advance, too.

Zee checks her quest log to see if there's anything active for the area she's in. There's gotta be SOME sort of problem for them to solve, right?

[Morty]

[Shore of a distant island]

Calm Reed is still approaching. She can see a young woman and a monster on the beach... which means she should hurry. She was already pushing the boat as fast as it will go... on its own. But now it starts going faster still. The water it kicks up glows a deeper shade of blue that seems to emanate from the woman steering the boat.

[Ironsmith]

Elster
"Lupine. You mean wolves." See, that's useful information. Diablo needs to not look shocked by talking wolves when he encounters them, and presumably other strange creatures too. "What about military hardware? I can't presume everywhere is friendly. What's the common level of defenses?"

[Elster]

"Yeah, wolves. And a few things that're wolf-adjacent. You know the type, I'm guessing." Duffle shrugs. "Military hardware... eh, I don't know about that. Haven't seen a base nearby or anything. Doesn't mean there isn't one, just means it's not right up on the shore. There are a few veterans in town, including some rich, eccentric folks, so someone up there's probably got a private collection, but apart from that... eh."

[Deathkeeper]

[Codebreaker's Home]

"What? No, not really." Kyrie shrugs. "Zee pays me enough from her stock to feed four, and it's only split three ways these days. We've had plenty to drink, and more than that, enough to stash away for certain nights when Owena needs a little more." He gives a nod toward a part of the wall that he knows for a fact has been replaced recently, making it a little clearer what he's alluding to. "As for contractors..." He runs a hand-paw down his snout and sighs. "...Well, I'm not proud to say it, but I've been looking into it. And getting laughed out of every agency in town in the process. Most of them say I'd be better off just tearing down my house and building something more cushy in its place, like an outhouse."

Codebreaker's Home

"Oh, so you just weren't buying in bulk? Eh, whatever.
I mean, we could build you a little cottage if you wanted. That might fit on that land." CB actually isn't sure how Kyrie got that land.

[bc56]

Lunch Time

Rhipidistian Rampage
- Find information about the sea monster
Uncontrolled Advancement
✓ Talk to Selekhael about her recent promotion
- Investigate the village for unusual influences
Forgiving Oneself
✓ Talk to Selekhael about her temporal echo
- Arrange a meeting between Selekhael and Sekhmet

Mouths to Feed
- Ask the innkeeper about the missing food
Runoff Rundown
- Ask Omar about the smell coming from his house
Growth Industry
- Talk to the foreman about the broken shoveling machine

There are a few problems but nothing especially notable. They're all marked as short missions with minimal combat, hardly worth the time of two powerful beings like themselves... Except that they want to help and have no more pressing concerns.

Selekhael is apparently looking at her quest log too (presumably it looks different except the available quests are the same). "What do you think? I think helping with whatever the, uh, food problem is would be a good first step.

Elster
"Sounds like it's a pretty safe place for me to start my search." Diablo knows from experience that weapon-collecting eccentrics can be very dangerous, but usually they don't bother you when you don't provoke them. "Thanks for all the help, you've made this much easier for me."

[Rebonack]

[Lunch Time]

Zee's eyebrows actually shoot up a little in surprise!

"Oh wow, no illness or injury healing quests? Not even any moonstruck stuff," she says, looking quite pleased. "These people are really fortunate! It isn't often you find a village Outside that isn't being plagued by some persistent weird problems. Though... I guess the you-know-what attack in a few days probably makes up for that."

As they walk into the town Zee will offer a cheerful wave at the townspeople she passes, apparently oblivious to any staring.

Which, knowing Zee, really isn't that much of a shock.

She practically radiates life and light; a burning desire to endure and strengthen and encourage.

Not her aura, though. Most certainly not.

Just a certain level of contagious enthusiasm that Zee always had even before her apotheosis and has only been redoubled since.

"Hiya! My friend and I noticed your cute little town and thought it would be nice to visit and lend a hand. Could you point us to the inn?"

Having a celestial just chatting with you might be a little jarring, but this is the Nexus and there are probably stranger things blowing in from Outside regularly.

[Ironsmith]

Codebreaker's Home

"Oh, so you just weren't buying in bulk? Eh, whatever.
I mean, we could build you a little cottage if you wanted. That might fit on that land." CB actually isn't sure how Kyrie got that land.

[Codebreaker's Home]

"Ah, well, there is one other problem." Kyrie replies with a nervous shuffle. "I've had to look into the local ordinances for construction and property development. Technically, my family and I are what the city of Butterfly Bay refers to as 'squatters'. The land my home is built on is, legally speaking, still public property (weird concept, incidentally). That makes my position a little tenuous; I'm apparently not allowed to hire someone to develop it on my behalf, with the exception of basic repairs and upkeep. Something about a stopgap measure to prevent abuse of the system by real estate companies." The wolfman shrugs. "Anyway, the other half of that is that I am allowed to work on it myself, with the understanding that I don't actually own the place and anyone else can come along and do pretty much the same thing, for better or for worse. In summary, I can't put up a cottage there because I don't know how to make one, and I can't just go out and hire someone else to build it, even if I could afford it."

Elster
"Sounds like it's a pretty safe place for me to start my search." Diablo knows from experience that weapon-collecting eccentrics can be very dangerous, but usually they don't bother you when you don't provoke them. "Thanks for all the help, you've made this much easier for me."

[Elster]

"No trouble at all." Duffle shrugs and leans against the railing on the side of the ship. "Nothing you wouldn't learn within ten minutes of making berth in that town anyway. Doesn't cost ya anything." He looks over at Diablo meaningfully. "Speaking of which, let's have a look at those tunes you brought in, yeah?"

[bc56]

Lunch Time
The miner is very obviously shocked at the appearance of two unearthly beings. "T-t-that way. Third building on the r-r-right." Selekhael nods and looks at the man. No doubt being watched by those predatory eyes of hers is disconcerting, but she says, "Thank you. Don't be frightened. We're here to help, however we can." Hopefully he believes them, but they're moving on to the inn already.

The inn is a rustic, two story building of wood on a stone foundation. There's no customers here right now, it's too early in the day. A slate hangs over the counter showing the prices of various foods and services: if it's to be believed, the price of lodging is reasonable but food comes at an exorbitant markup. A bored-looking inkeeper is at that counter, but looks very surprised when the two angels enter. "Hi. Uh, don't be afraid. We're just visiting," Selekhael opens.

Elster
"Here you are. That's a bit over what you asked for, but I assume that's fine. Collected from the best rock of dozens of systems. Enjoy." If Duffle doesn't like rock, that will be unfortunate, because Diablo does. It's the kind of music that's great for getting pumped up for a battle.

[Rebonack]

[Lunch Time]

As they're heading toward the inn Zee glances back over her shoulder, mostly prodded by her instinct to encourage. "You know that you can. And you know that you should. Don't hesitate when she asks."

Kind of cryptic!

But no doubt the miner will know exactly what she's talking about.

And when the situation arises he'll remember that feeling of Determination that radiates from the angel he crossed paths with today.

Anyway to the inn!

Now, Zee spends an awful lot of time at an inn. She knows inns pretty well. This is the sort of place that's far enough out of the way that it doesn't get THAT much traffic. Usually high food prices might be the result of how far out of the way it is, but Zee has that little nudge to tell here there's more to it than that.

"Wow, either that salted fish has been touched by the heavens themselves or you guys have been having some shortage problems," the seraphim comments, her up-beat and casual attitude going a long way to relax and build up those around her. It's hard to be terrified when the celestial is treating you with the casual kindness of a friend.

[Deathkeeper]

Codebreaker's Home

Codebreaker nods sagely.
"Huh. Yeah wow, that sounds like a problem." says Codebreaker in a somewhat surprised, matter-of-fact way.
His face, of course, says another thing entirely. That's the face Codebreaker made when he insisted Kyrie not pay him back. And when he gave Owena a job. And about seven other times in the last year.

[bc56]

Lunch Time
"Farmland and fishing's bad around here,* The inkeeper says matter-of-factly, "So most everyone in town gets shipments from Albert's Hills further inland. Problem is, someone's been pinching food off the caravans. I've been taking the brunt of those losses because I'm not just feeding my family with my shipments. So every fish you buy is coming straight from my children's bellies. 'course no one will buy anything at this price, so I'm losing money to keep them fed." That explains a lot. It sounds like if the situation gets any worse, people will start starving.
Selekhael looks thoughtful at the story. "That sounds bad. We'll, uh, take a look. But first, we need, uh, two rooms for the next four nights, right?" she looks to Zee for confirmation. "I suppose you divine types will expect to not need to pay?" "No, no, we, uh, can and will pay. Up front even." It's clear that Selekhael is actually doing this to help, not because they need the rooms for all that time.

[Rebonack]

[Lunch Time]

Zee, unlike Lapis, keeps actual mortal money on her person.

Not that she has a great deal of need for it personally, of course. Mostly she uses it when buying supplies for Trog's since Tower knows Cosmo can't be bothered to buy actual bread let alone proper baking ingredients.

But! It helps in situations like these since-

"We would be pretty lousy angels if we came in here and stiffed you. What's the point of telling someone to 'go in peace, be warmed and filled' if you don't actually help them get what they need?" Zee reasons, fishing a little coin pouch out of her pocket and plunking it down on the table.

She's overpaying.

Not by much, however.

Zee knows that throwing around heaps of money in little towns like this can wreck trade just as surely as lack of goods.

"Any idea where the supplies have been getting knicked? It sounds like some folks need a stern talking to about the virtues of generosity."

[Ironsmith]

Elster
"Here you are. That's a bit over what you asked for, but I assume that's fine. Collected from the best rock of dozens of systems. Enjoy." If Duffle doesn't like rock, that will be unfortunate, because Diablo does. It's the kind of music that's great for getting pumped up for a battle.

[Elster]

Duffle doesn't much care for the music himself, as evidenced by the sort of visceral grimace that forms on his face when Diablo starts playing it. Ugh.

Fortunately, he doesn't need to like it. The value of these tracks would come from the fact that nobody else in the Nexus had them, and Diablo had assured him of their quality.

"That'll do." He say quickly, turning the music off. "Should fetch a fine price on the open market."

Codebreaker's Home

Codebreaker nods sagely.
"Huh. Yeah wow, that sounds like a problem." says Codebreaker in a somewhat surprised, matter-of-fact way.
His face, of course, says another thing entirely. That's the face Codebreaker made when he insisted Kyrie not pay him back. And when he gave Owena a job. And about seven other times in the last year.

[Codebreaker's Home]

It's a look Kyrie's developed mixed feelings for. On the one hand, Codebreaker did have a habit of making his life easier that way. On the other, every time he did, Kyrie's pride inevitably took a hit.

"...What's on your mind?" He asks at last, wearily.

[bc56]

Lunch Time
"Go west along the coast about a quarter mile, and the road's to the north. If'n I remember correctly, the thefts have been in the hills a couple miles past that." The inkeeper also produces a pair of keys from beneath the counter and hands them over. "Here're your keys. First two rooms on the second floor, across the hall from each other." Fortunately, they don't have any things to put in their rooms, so they can just take the keys and head out of town on an adventure.

Elster
"Good to hear." Diablo's face fell when he noticed that Duffle doesn't like the music, but he's not going to comment on it. "How long until we make port?"

[Rebonack]

[Lunch Time]

"Thanks!" Zee says, pocketing the key. "We'll see what we can find. You keep up the good fight, okay? We'll get this problem figured out."

And then they're off!

It helps that there's a pull in the direction they need to travel to accomplish their task. The Quest Log really is a useful tool. Kind of weird that the Game just supplies them with it, right?

Zee will continue her habit of waving with her typical exuberance to everyone they pass, even stopping to pluck one of her iridescent feathers and gifts it to a group of children. They seem pretty enthusiastic about the shiny thing.

"I think we might have managed to avoid some paradox, maybe?" Zee says to Selekhael as she walks. "Because if you had been here looking human, then the people should have recognized future-past you, right? But since you're doing the lioness head deal they wouldn't."

Ugh.

This is why time travel sucks.

Too much nonsense to keep track of.

[Deathkeeper]

[Codebreaker's Home]

It's a look Kyrie's developed mixed feelings for. On the one hand, Codebreaker did have a habit of making his life easier that way. On the other, every time he did, Kyrie's pride inevitably took a hit.

"...What's on your mind?" He asks at last, wearily.

Codebreaker's Home

"Nothing." Codebreaker insists.
"Just running the numbers on how much it would cost to make that public land not public anymore, and how long you'd need to get it on your and Owena's salary." he says nonchalantly.
Of course even avoiding it, the reality is obvious. He's thinking about just buying the land to make the problem go away, and isn't saying so because he knows Kyrie will stop him.

[bc56]

Lunch Time
"That's, uh, probably right," Selekhael agrees. She's not nearly as exuberant as Zee when it comes to all the people around here. A life spent intentionally avoiding people does not lend itself to being an open and welcoming person (but she's getting better about it thanks to her day job as an apprentice barmaid). As they get out of town she looks less nervous. "I, uh, feel guilty looking at them. I know everything here is going to be ruined in a few days but I can't do anything without risking a paradox, and I can't make a paradox until I know what I need to do to minimize it."

[Rebonack]

[Lunch Time]

Being around people sometimes helps with being sociable. Not always. But sometimes. Selekhael has a whole lot to learn and plenty of time to learn it in.

It'll be a nice walk along the river delta. Or stream, really. This is no massive river with an equally large city at it's mouth. The river is just big enough to be a useful water source. If not for the waterfalls a short journey inland the town could probably be supplied by boat rather than cart. A shame.

Regardless! Nice walk. The bluffs overlooking the ocean are still wonderful and the little bridge spanning the river quaint.

"We know what is coming but we know we can do something about it, too. We can't always save everyone but we CAN save SOMEONE. So we do our best and live with our mistakes and get better for next time," Zee says. "Stronger, wiser, more knowledgeable, whatever it takes."

She offers an encouraging smile.

"We'll figure out how to make the best of this for sure."

[bc56]

Lunch Time
"Uh, okay? We'll, uh, do it. I'm sure." Unfortunately that's regular old sure, not time travel sure, so it's not a very reliable statement. It's also uncharacteristically Determined for Selekhael, but she does spend a lot of time around Zee. "Uh, it looks like we need to go off the road up ahead?" Sure enough, the pull is starting to lead off east of the road towards the cliffs up ahead, where the road winds up along switchbacks and the stream forms the aforementioned series of waterfalls.

[Reinholdt]

[Shore of a Distant Island]

Rachel takes a wary step back as the monster starts to reach for her, but she can feel her heart squeeze a little. She shakes her head. "No, I'm not your mother. Are you lost?" Rachel asks the creature close to twice her size.

A sudden distraction! Rachel turns to look, taking both eyes off the monster, either too trusting or too inexperienced to realize her mistake. Seeing the boat, the catgirl starts to wave it down. Over here! Maybe the person in the boat was this creature's mother. That would explain her presence.

[Romantic Dinner?]

Reinholdt's mouth curls up into a bit of a smile. "I suppose I do need to find out what moonlit skinny dipping is like. But I am surprised," Rein says, his head tilting a little as he swirls his glass. "You say the grove is holy? I didn't think witches and holy got along very well. Aren't you... I dunno. Heretical, is that the word?" Witches were generally known for darker magicks.

Apparently the colorful horns was a much bigger deal than Reinholdt had reason to believe. It seems to be directly tied in with whatever inner turmoil Ukry had been going through and its resurgence a suggestion of personal growth. Alas, he hasn't known them long enough to say that with any certainty. The mention of it seemed to spark a magical history lesson, Ukry conjuring magical constructs above and beyond any that Rein could bring forth. Not exactly a high bar, granted. Reinholdt eyes each statue as they evolve and suffer, things getting worse and worse for each of them. As if touching the tapestry itself was the curse that doomed them all to wither and perish while simultaneously making them dependent on it. Unless he misunderstood, which is possible, he certainly wasn't going to state such observations out loud. Not with a glass of wine in his hand. Maybe after they've gotten through the bottle...

One of the figures seemed more personal to Ukry than the others, what with imitating Pyrhra so closely. So that was the general gist of their past, huh? Which meant they were layered in malevolent magics? He hadn't seen any particularly negative supernatural influence to suggest such, but maybe they had grown effective at keeping it hidden. Hidden like their emotions. Ukry was asking a question again, in that softly pleading sort of way they do when vulnerable and scared. Rein looks away from the statues up to Ukry's eyes. "Why no, it doesn't bother me at all," Reinholdt lies with a warm smile. "Who wouldn't want to know exactly what their girlfriend's thinking? It'll make shopping with you that much easier. Oh and asking where you want to go for dinner." The fey gives Ukry a terrifying smirk of someone with great power at their fingertips.

It fades though and Rein gives the witch a genuine look of sympathy. "Sorry to hear about your people," Reinholdt's eyes slide away for a moment in quiet contemplation and a brief pang of loneliness. He forces himself to look back and propose the obvious solution. "Guess I'll just have to help you repopulate."

[Rebonack]

[Lunch Time]

Being encouraging is something Zee can't really help.

Thankfully, most of the time, it isn't a problem.

Most of the time encouraging people is fine. There are lots of great things people need encouragement about.

But sometimes... not so great.

Encouraging self destructive behaviors, for example.

Or encouraging banditry.

Speaking off!

"Sounds like we're goin' up then," Zee says as she crouches a little, spreads her wings, and JUMPS with a powerful downstroke.

pchooooooo!

Off into the air she goes!

At the zenith of her ascent she begins beating her wings again, scanning her eyes across the ground below like a hawk in search of a vole. Or maybe not a vole, specifically. Mice or rates are typically okay too, when it comes to the various vermin hunting birds but anyway that's just an analogy what have we got going on down there?

[bc56]

Lunch Time
Selekhael follows suit less dramatically. Also, unlike Zee, she actually has the eyesight of a bird of prey, so this is arguably much easier for her. "Lots of, uh, small animals, but I don't see any people... Wait. Uh, it looks like there's a tunnel entrance in that rocky area over there. Someone's left a shovel sitting outside." She points over in the distance. The detail would be difficult to make out with normal human eyes, but neither of them are normal humans (right now).

[Aurora Alchemi]

[Romantic Dinner.]

Ukry laughs softly, the idea of heresy apparently fairly funny to the witch. "Heresy is very much in the eye of the god and the follower. We are neither god, nor follower, but we suppose removing a goddess from her throne would make us a heretic to some." Ukry frowns for a moment, mulling it over. "Perhaps in some ways being a heretic is a good thing, then... But what we call holy here is something that perhaps you have understood before." Ukry turns their eyes toward their partner. "Have you ever sat in a wild place, long from others, and felt one with yourself? Or perhaps one with another? This is the holy of which we speak. Not one of simple deity, pious faith, and foolish rules. No, instead, it is a holiness that allows one to play with the strings of the world, and perhaps even of themselves. We haven't tried it with another yet, however...." The curl of the smile leaves no question as to the invitation. "As long as you are sure you can help with some simple rituals." And there was even a wink, the witch clearly playing with fire.

Then the conversation eventually winds around to that little quip, Rein taking the first hints of control. There is a long, slow sip of wine, followed by a coy lean on a hand. "Your girlfriend's thoughts, hmm? We'll let you have the relationship, certainly... but..." There is a gentle flash of curiosity and playfulness in the glowing eyes. "How much do you actually know that we are what you would call a girl? Perhaps we should tell you... No, no... we think it might be more fun for you to experience the satyrlyrri's interesting quirks all on your own, hehe." The soft giggle betrays the kind of malice that only an embarrassed lover trying to redirect thoughts can give, as the witch very nearly hides the fluster caused by Rein's confident commanding role in the conversation. The witch definitely wanted to be something like a girlfriend being taken on dates and given gifts, but they wouldn't lower themselves to freely admitting that, at least not yet.

Reinholdt's genuine sympathy hits slightly different, however, the witch's smile fading, and the eyes searching the fae for signs of deceit. When the joke comes as a way of diffusing the awkwardness, Ukry pauses for a moment and considers how to move forward. Finally, they lean over, softly wrapping arms around Rein's shoulders, and placing a cheek against his for a moment, the brilliant eyes closing softly. There is a long pause, the gazelle seeming to act more like a snake craving the heat and touch of Rein's body, before whispering. "We did not consider them our people for a very long time. Perhaps we were wrong in that thought... but we know that if you are truly serious about the children... they are something of your people too." Ukry pulls back, placing a soft kiss on his cheek, before slowly opening their eyes. In that moment there was the soft sparkle of magic, and some deeper connection in the witch's eyes. For a brief moment, the witch seemed to say 'if we can become a part of those people again, they can be a home for you as well, regardless of what past you run from.' It's a small moment, but a direct extension of the care and acceptance Reinholdt is giving to the witch in an equal part back.

Then they are gone, back to being seated in their chair, the slightest hint of a blush grazing the soft cheeks. Of course, they make to change the subject. "So then, you've made quite the spread of side dishes.... What all is here, and what order should we try them in?" And, as if for effect, they finish their glass of wine in an ever so slightly too large sip. "And of course, should we have another glass of this wine to pair with them, or do you recommend we save that for the bird and have something slightly stiffer and well mixed instead?" The reference, of course, is clear on both fronts, calling for both a mixed drink/cocktail, and alluding to something more private. "And beyond just what is on the table... what of you? Certainly we don't expect you to share a full history, as we did not... but clearly our boyfriend has skills that do not come from living simply or simply living."

[Rebonack]

[Lunch Time]

Ah, come on, don't be so quick to dismiss Zee!

She has the Eye motif, after all. Her visual acuity isn't terrible.

So!

What have we got?

Tunnel. Disturbed rocks. Forgotten tunnel.

Bandits digging some more space in their hideout, maybe?

Hmm... Anything else? Zee's trying to focus just on the relevant details and and not other random things like Rein and Urky sharing a romantic evening with each other la la la that is irrelevant I don't have to pay attention to those worldlines right now thank you. Nope only the things going on right here at the moment are important not the chat going on between her bouncer and that other wolf guy nope don't need to pay any attention to that either!

C'mon Zee, focus, you do better than this usually is it the time stuff it's gotta be the time stuff.

The seraphim lets out a small breath and then DIVES.

Well.

More like drops out of the sky.

Just BOMPH! right in front of the tunnel.

Should she say something goofy? It feels like she should say something goofy.

"Genova's Witness! Have you heard the good word of giant meteor impacts and pretty boys with really big swords?" she calls out into the tunnels while gesturing at Selekhael to stay aloft just in case there's a different tunnel this might flush the thieves out of.

[bc56]

Lunch Time
Nobody comes to the tunnel entrance. Nobody runs out of any other tunnels either.
Some people do whisper to each other.
"Who is it?" "I dunno, some weird religious thing." "You wanna get the door?" "No. Maybe if we ignore them, they'll go away? "Sounds good to me." By the sound of it, it's a man and a woman.

Selekhael lands a bit later. "What's going on? Is anyone there?" She twitches her ears thoughtfully, but really she's using the trick Lapis taught her. The tracker says we should go straight down that hole.