[IC] Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

[EliteCommander]

"Hmm, that is not an easy question to answer, as there are quite a few you can make." Meesei began as she tried tot hink of where to begin. "Of course, a lot of mistakes are fairly obvious. They are the same things you would want to avoid while making friends, and hopefully, you will gain plenty of practice at that. There are some others that I made, though. One story I told your sister was when I had arranged to meet my mate one night, but he never arrived. I grew concerned, and eventually angry at him, only to find that he had been injured while hunting the previous day. It is good to avoid being too...presumptuous. Of course, that isn't to say you should not ever try to guess what your partner is thinking or feeling, only that you should not treat your guesses like law. Thinking back on it, I think a lot of my problems might have been solved by simply by talking about issues more clearly and openly. Relying on guesswork caused many of my mistakes. Even then, some of these relationships may not work. Luckily, if one wants a partner, it only takes finding one which does."

Kaleeth nodded as she grabbed the bag under Janius' hammock. He was bigger than her, so she worried his clothes would not fit, but she was willing to try anything at this point. Since other crew members were starting to make their way down to the crew quarters as well, she had to use the storage room they used for the majority of their belongings in order to change. As usual, she had some difficulty getting out of her dress, so it took a bit longer than normal for her to change. As well, she realized only after she started to try them on that the trousers would need a tail hole if she wanted to wear them around.

When she stepped out of the room, Kaleeth turned a few heads, namely because she was unaware that a shirt was actually necessary, so her torso was bare. As well, the trousers were hanging beneath the base of her tail, and they were loose enough that she had to hold them up to keep herself from losing them. "If we make a hole for my tail, I think they will stay up, but...is this okay?" She asked.

"Yeah, it's good." One of the nearby crew members, this one being one of their few Argonians, blurted out, not taking his eyes off of her.

[EliteCommander]

It seemed a little strange to Sabine at first. It took a few seconds for her confused brow to level in some semblance of clarity. "I think I understand," Sabine said after thinking about it, "I thought that speaking too much was embarrassing people, but being honest is better for relationships?" Her mouth twitched into a small smile, "That would be nice. I wouldn’t have to worry about saying too much all the time."

Janius crossed his arms and leaned against the doorframe, waiting patiently for Kaleeth to try the clothes on. He exchanged glances with the crew, but didn’t go as far as meeting them properly yet.

When the door creaked open, Janius lowered his arms and turned his head to see how Kaleeth looked. Her state of dress rebuffed the words he had lined up for a moment, and he simply stood with his mouth open, stopping the expression with an "Um…" Kaleeth began speaking without heed to the eyes on her, and Janius managed to register what her concern was despite it all. One man across the quarters gave a comment out of turn, and Janius knew that all that was left was salvaging the situation and trying to be a little less mortified.

Janius glanced to the Argonian who made the quip, then turned to lightly push Kaleeth back into the storage room, speaking as he did. His tone was high with some nervousness, but was trying to play it off. "Kaleeth, how about you take my dagger and make a quick hole to put your tail through," Janius pulled his dagger from his belt and handed it hilt first to Kaleeth, and then began to close the door with his other hand, "We’ll see how it looks once you’ve done that, just...make sure you’re dressed before coming out again, okay?" Janius gave her a reassuring smile before shutting the door.

As his smile faded from the awkward moment, Janius exhaled, and then looked to the man who had spoken. "Eyes to yourself," he said in a non-threatening but assertive manner, much like a teacher would remind a child to stop a habit.

Meesei smiled, giving a small chuckle. "I...will not say you have not embarrassed anyone, but it was not because of how much you were talking. The kinds of things that embarrass people tend to be very personal. Romance can be particularly embarrasing; usually it is something people talk about in private. Of course, there are other times where it is perfectly alright to talk about those things. I will not pretend it is not confusing at times. Still, you will gain a sense for it as you spend more time around others. I just want you to promise me that you will not let your fear of embarrassing people stop you from asking questions. Your curiosity will be very helpful to you, and it is worth accidentally upsetting a few people."

Though confused at Janius' strange reaction, Kaleeth complied with his suggestion. She removed the trousers and carefully pushed the dagger through the fabric. As she had made her own set of armor, she was actually quite proficient at simple tailoring, so the hole she made was the perfect size and distance from the waistline. Her tail fit snugly through the hole, and though the trousers themselves were a bit large, her tail also served to keep them secure, just like a belt. However, in his haste to rush her back into the room, Janius had not explained that it was important for her to wear one of his shirts as well. To her, wearing just the trousers was enough to constitute "dressed."

Despite Janius' prior warning, several eyes shifted to Kaleeth when she stepped out of the room again. She placed the dagger on top of the bag and handed both to him. "Here you go. It is loose, but I think it will be fine." She said, blissfully unaware that anything was wrong.

Sabine nodded, but she felt like she was still going in circles with how she should be treating conversations. She looked a little glum with how it was turning out. There was no recipe or technique that seemed to be available. She returned to her previous position on the railing and sighed. "I'll keep practicing, then." There was a tightness that came about Sabine rather suddenly then, and she turned her wide eyes to Meesei. "I'm not embarressing you, am I?"

Oh, not again... Janius rubbed a hand over one side of his face, then hastily put himself between Kaleeth and the crew again. He couldn't blame Kaleeth for not understand where he hadn't explained things, but he didn't expect that he would have needed to. "Kaleeth," he whispered severely, looking at her with wide, apologetic eyes, "It's not normal in most places for women to leave their chests uncovered. You need to put on a shirt." Janius glanced over his shoulder at the crew and met their prying eyes for only a moment. He took the items from Kaleeth then, but he felt like hitting himself for not making it clear earlier.

Meesei shook her head, keeping her smile and placing her hand gently on Sabine's shoulder. "No, not at all. You do not have to worry about embarrassing me. There is nothing I will not discuss with you, or the others, for that matter. I suppose I cannot speak for the others on that, but I hope we can all be as open as possible. If you started asking me for embarassing childhood stories, I would answer."

Kaleeth sighed in frustration. "What, why? That doesn't make any sense; I thought they were only embarrassed about things related to mating? Imperials...make no sense." She said with a bit of frustration. Glancing back into the room, she stepped inside once more, but this time pulled Janius in with her. Strangely, she heard laughing from outside once she closed the door.

"Okay, I can put on one of the shirts, but is there more I need to know? Imperials, your...culture, it has things I don't understand. The rules seem...random, I think is the right word. I thought your gods might have rules that the Hist don't, but these rules don't even seem to be about them." She said, giving another sigh. "Next, you will be telling me Imperials swim in clothes."

Sabine relaxed. She didn't want to be upsetting Meesei unintentionally. Contemplating what Meesei said, Sabine's eyes looked down to the water, then back up to her with a cautious smile. "Are they...funny?"

Even if Kaleeth was only half correct, in that people tended to swim in their undergarments, Janius only responded to the notion by contracting his brow sadly and sounding an apprehensive "Well..." That would be enough suggestion to confirm Kaleeth's exaggeration. "Look, there are a lot of things, yes. I'm sorry if I haven't let you know. It's just that..." Janius breathed out through his nose, "How do I say this? It's like...growing up in the culture can make you forget what someone like you, for instance, knows or doesn't know about it." Janius tried to smile, "As for all the rules that don't make sense, why do you think I prefer it in the wilds?" He put a hand on her upper arm and rubbed it comfortingly, trying to bring down her frustration. "Next time, if something like this comes up, I'll try to remember to tell you beforehand. If you give me a minute to try and list a few rules that are different from your home, we could have a discussion about it if you like."

Janius had really expected the culture shock that Kaleeth was experiencing to come about when they actually reached Cyrodiil. While there was probably still going to be plenty for her to learn when they got there, Janius didn't predict anything to come up on the ship.

Meesei grinned as she glanced away from the shore, which was now barely visible in the distance. "Maybe...I have quite a few stories, many from my youth. . Most are rather boring, but some are exciting, like the times I was learning to fight with magic. Some are interesting or funny. Some, well, some you probably would not want to hear, being a bit...inappropriate. And then...there are the embarrassing ones. I made quite a few stupid mistakes as a hatchling, and as a young woman...and as an adult. Sadly, there is not really a point in anyone's life where they do not make mistakes."

After having a few moments to calm herself, Kaleeth did not respond immediately and instead put her arms around Janius and gave him a quick kiss. She still felt easily stressed, and she did not want to agitate something that could become an argument between them, especially something she did not greatly care about. "Don't worry so much about it. It's not me that's bothered by it all, it's them. I made a mistake, but I don't care about it. I can go on like nothing happened. But, yes, I would love to stay here and talk with you about it. Even if they make no sense, it would be great to learn about your people too.

Sabine smiled widely and exhaled sharply in a manner that was almost a laugh. With the levity, Sabine straightened and lifted herself up from the railing, but kept her hands on it. "Could you tell me one?" She asked innocently. She didn't much care what it would be at this point, she just wanted to hear something interesting.

"You taught me enough about your people. It only seems fair." Janius said, wrapping his arms around her as well, "Just don't be too surprised if more strange rules come up."

Janius was glad that things didn't escalate as they could have. Between the obtuse rules of Imperial culture and Kaleeth's beast spirit, Janius understood that it might have made her angry. He didn't mind staying in the storage room a while longer, however cramped it was. It was more private, so he wasn't afraid to be intimate again. He did eventually concede to reminding Kaleeth to put on her shirt, as other people might need to access the room as well.

Their discussion on Imperial culture lasted as long as Kaleeth had questions and Janius had answers. They mostly covered day to day life and customs initially. There was talk of trading, some social cues, how to act when meeting people for the first time, whether regular people or nobility, and they even touched on table manners. The last subject caused the most confusion of all, with the many pedantic nuances. Significant relief came when Janius informed that the more stuffy rules only applied amongst equally stuffy company. Janius was thankful that their dinner with Ariel and Rukeewei was not so formal as to retrospectively humiliate them.

Over the next few hours, Meesei and Sabine found somewhere a bit more private for her to share a few stories. Mostly, she focused on more humorous tales, something that would put Sabine in a good mood and make her laugh. Not all were focused on her, but some were about her own mistakes, such as the time she fell in a very unfortunate place in the village's guar enclosure during a game with friends. It was lighthearted conversation, not to teach Sabine some great lesson, just for her entertainment.

For the next week and a half, the pack did what they could to become acclimated to life at sea. Luckily, it did not seem like any of them were prone to seasickness, and since they were simply traveling along the coast to their destination, land was rarely completely out of sight. Even so, there was no denying that the ship quickly became dull. It was cramped, crowded, and even the meals were not very enjoyable. After they finished off the remains of the food they brought onboard, they were forced to make use of the ship's rations, all of which were cheap and not of great quality. For preservation, the meat was dry and salty. The vegetables and fruits were decent, but the bread already tasted stale. The only kind of drink onboard the entire ship was ale, as water could not be guaranteed to be clean. Within the first few days, the entire pack had explored every room of the vessel in which they were allowed. They were able to keep each other entertained for a while, but eventually, it started to seem more worthwhile to take the risk to get to know some of the crew. After talking to a few, it did seem that not all of the crew shared the same outlook as the Imperial Kaleeth and Janius had encountered, but they had not spoke to enough of them to get a sense of how tolerant the crew was overall.

Leaps annoyed some of the crew, but others, like the ship's cook, learned to accept him, especially since he had a tendency to catch and kill rats and other vermin aboard the vessel. It was a behavior which Ahnasha was able to make use of, as the tome she and Fendros had been studying seemed to suggest that she would need to improve her skills in necromancy. Using the storage room near the bunks, she practiced simple reanimation with the remains of Leaps kills. There were a few times where she had to find rats herself to practice on, and she only nearly got into a fight once with a crew member who tried to make fun of her for being a cat chasing a mouse.

It was early in the morning when most of the pack stepped above decks for some fresh air. The crew worked in shifts all day, but as passengers, the pack were not under much of an obligation to aid with the operation of the ship. As long as they did not interfere with the crew's duties, they would be free to roam. Even so, Meesei made it a point to help at least to keep the crew quarters as neat and orderly as possible.

One of the few Dunmer crew members was taking a break, leaning on a mast near Fendros. He coudl still be considered young, though he looked like he was somewhat close to middle age. His clothing was rough and dirty, but then again, so was everyone's by this point. He seemed to be looking at Ahnasha, who was holding Rhazii and allowing him to look out at the waves on the ocean, before turning his attention to Fendros. "Hey, your group's not sailin' with any more cats, is it? Who fathered that one?"

In the time they had on the ship so far, Janius had no idea that he would despise having so much free time. The days were punctuated with meals, training and teaching Kaleeth in various areas, practicing with his own magic, very occasionally finding a private spot to be close to Kaleeth, socialising with the rest of the pack, and otherwise not much else. They could not hunt, they could not find much free space. It was becoming stifling, even this early on. Socialising with some of the crew was useful for preventing future trouble, and thankfully the one's he spoke to were fairly friendly. He was barely separated from Kaleeth during this time, and thought that he would probably have gone mad if not for her company.

Without ready access to ingredients, Sabine found that she had to be conservative with her alchemy. This gave her much more time to practice magic with Meesei, practice her writing where the supplies could be spared, and even practice conversational skills with some of the crew. At least, the crew that didn't try to find excuses to ignore her incessant questions about a sailor's life. Sabine's social experiences seemed to be hit-and-miss for that reason.

Fendros wasn't exposed to the intolerant remarks from the scarred Imperial as Janius was, so he found no issue in being close to Ahnasha in front of the crew. Not that they were exposed to the crew for long periods, between studying Orskan's tome and caring for Rhazii.

The Dunmer that caught Fendros' attention after coming up to the deck was not one he had talked to before. Judging by his question, he had not talked to Ahnasha either. He was older than Fendros, that was clear. It was strange that the man was asking Fendros, though. Perhaps he had a problem with talking to Khajiit. Fendros turned to him and answered clearly, but not with any particular pride or shame, "I did, sir." It had been a long time since Fendros had any apprehension about telling people his relationship with Ahnasha. They were out of Morrowind, so there was little danger in saying as much. He had decided that he would not lie about it, even if it might upset some people.

On another spot on the deck, Sabine approached Kaleeth where she stood. Janius was nearby, training Leaps using some of the rat corpses he had collected, but he was separate from the two. "Good morning, Kaleeth," Sabine said to her, smiling. She thought it might be nice to speak to her, for practice and to get to know her better. Sabine remembered what came next in such a greeting after a twitch of her mouth, "How are you?"

The Dunmer man nodded. "Hmm, that's what I thought. I took you for the type that would pollute our blood with that abomination." He said, his expression and tone becoming much more venomous as soon as he shifted into insults. Being that she was close enough, Ahnasha took note of the comment immediately. She scowled at the man and was practically stomping her way over to him. As prideful as Ahnasha was, she was much more likely than Fendros to start throwing punches.

At the same time, there was another who heard the Dunmer's insult and was quick, and vocal, in her response. She was also Dunmer, but much younger, perhaps only slightly older than Fendros. "Oi, Reynal, how 'bout you leave 'em alone, you s'wit? You act like your blood's so pure, but it's probably half sujamma by now. None of your business if he has a baby or a kitten."

"It would be you coming to their defense, wouldn't it Nirasi? You've probably bedded half the crew by now; I'd bet you probably mixed a few lizards and cats yourself. Just can't control yourself. You're the reason our women have the reputation they do, s'wit" The Dunmer, Reynal, retorted.

"Hmph, 'least I get to enjoy my reputation. How much fun you havin' with that 'crabby old man' thing you got goin'? Why don't you go get drunk and complain 'bout the 'good 'ol days'?" Nirasi said, crossing her arms.

Reynal huffed and gave a dismissive wave. "Why don't...no, you're not worth my time. None of you." He shouted before storming off below decks.

Nirasi seemed to have no small amount of pride at angering Reynal and was quick to turn to Ahnasha and Fendros with a smile. "Ah, don't let him get to ya. He's just a sour old man, in the mind at least. His body hasn't caught up to 'em. Not all of us are like that; I'd say there are only, what, three of like that? At most. An' they all hate each other too."

At present, most of what Kaleeth felt was fatigue. Not only had she just woke up, but relative lack of activity on the ship compared to in the wilds seemed to drain her of all energy for some reason. The opportunities she did have for training were helpful, she could never put as much time into it as she wanted to. It always seemed that they would end up getting in the way of the crew eventually, something Meesei was insistent they not do. She yawned widely, but otherwise, she did not feel too bad. "Good morning. I feel tired and bored, but...at least I feel healthy, I think. Janius said some people get sick on the water, but I don't seem to. How are you feeling?"

Fendros couldn't say he didn't suspect the man to speak as he did. He tightened his lips and tried not to react immediately, but it took holding out an arm to try and stop Ahnasha that made him realise his own anger building. Thankfully, another of Dunmer of the crew intervened. She and the man went back and forth, but the man backed off.

"Er, thank you," Fendros said with some surprise, "We don't often get tolerance from my kind, but hiding it isn't worth it. Thank you for standing up for us." Fendros itched at his arm and decided that perhaps being acquainted with this woman might help on the ship. She didn't have a problem with them, and her sharp tongue might come in handy. "Nirasi, was it? My name is Fendros," Fendros came forward and held out a hand. He didn't want to distract Nirasi from her duties for too long, but they would at least have time for an introduction. Fendros gestured to Ahnasha and Rhazii as well so Ahnasha could introduce herself, "This is my family." The words seemed almost inappropriate, given that Fendros didn't directly refer to everyone else in the pack, but for the sake of their cover, it fit well.

"I am okay. I sometimes feel sick on ships, but I know a simple potion to stop it." Sabine angled her head to one side, confused. "I haven't needed it, though. Maybe it was just on the ferry to Vvardenfell." Sabine stared ahead of her, trying frantically in her mind to come up with something else to speak about through the silence that followed. It was a few seconds more than she would have liked before she looked up to Kaleeth again. "I learned how to spell some more words with Fendros the other day. Did you get taught to read and write in your tribe?"

Though still angry, the fact that the man left did help to calm her somewhat. This Nirasi seemed like a crude individual, but at least she didn't have a hateful personality. While Fendros went for the handshake, Ahnasha continued the introduction. "My name is Ahnasha, and this is Rhazii."

Nirasi hesitated a moment on the handshake, not because she had a problem with it, but rather because she was not used to the gesture and it threw her off. Nevertheless, she shook his hand with a friendly smile. "Ah, don't mention it. I like takin' that fetcher down a few notches when I can."

"You said there were a few more on board like, what is his name, Reynal? Does one of them happen to be an Imperial? Our friends had an encounter with one the first day we were here. " Ahnasha questioned.

Nirasi nodded. "Yeah, that's probably Felintus. He's an ol' soldier. Fought in the Great War. Hates Dunmer for not helpin' in the war, hates the Lizards for the same reason, and hates the rest of the Elves and cats for, well, obvious reasons. War made 'em a bitter ol' man, an' it shows. He's even worse in bed than Reynal. The last one's Cerinwe, our navigator's sister. She's about the most typical goldenrod you'll meet. Thinks she's better than anything that's not Altmer. She's meant to be our cook, but her food tastes like guar dung. Don't know why her brother even put's up with her, 'cause he's about the opposite. Humble, kind, an' decent in bed."

To Ahnasha, Nirasi's response pretty much confirmed her first assessment of her personality. She did not particularly like it when Khajiit were referred to as "cats," but she decided not to hold her word choice against her. If this was how she spoke when she was being friendly, then she probably meant no harm. Besides, she put up with Lorag using it all the time. Although, she was starting to wonder if Nirasi really had bedded half of the crew.

"Oh, yes, I can read and write...in Jel. Not Cyrodilic." Kaleeth answered, quickly clarifying the language in which she was literate. "The Treeminder taught us. He liked for us all to be able to carry on our stories and history. I wasn't as good at it as some of my friends, but I can still do it. He told us to write down all the interesting things that happened to us everyday for practice. I usually did, as long as I had something to write on. Maybe you could do the same thing?"

"That's good to know," Fendros said though a small laugh, referring to some information more than others. Nirasi was certainly crude, but not malicious. It was actually nice to meet a Dunmer who wasn't so serious about everything. He might have judged her promiscuity, but he didn't feel it was fair, being the partner of what his kin considered a slave race, as well as the whole lycanthopy business. "Those three aren't liable to cause any trouble, are they? We don't really want things to get...out of hand."

Sabine's eyes seemed to light up with Kaleeth's idea. "That is a good idea. I find it hard to practice without supplies. Keeping a book like that would be easy." Sabine smiled, "Thank you." Looking around for a moment made Sabine frown, "I don't think I could find one here, though. Do you still practice?"

"Oh, those three love causin' trouble, they just don't cause trouble together, since they all hate each other. Might have to put up with some shoutin' and arguin', but those three don't got any teeth. They're all bark. Still, they cause a lot of our problems." Nirasi explained.

Ahnasha wasn't looking forward to having to deal with that Dunmer again, but she supposed it could be worse. She could handle a few arguments, though there was one thing which confused her. "Alright, but...if those three consistently cause problems for the ship, then why does the captain keep them onboard?"

Nirasi gave a slight grunt. "Well, they're important, for one. That ol' soldier Felintus's the best fighter we got. Keeps the men feelin' safe and in practice. Reynal's got more sailin' experience than most of the crew combined. Cerinwe's 'bout useless, but her brother's the nagivator. If she goes, he goes. Much as the capt'n hates it, he can't get rid of 'em."

"I suppose that makes sense." Ahnasha said, shrugging her shoulders. The situation was not ideal, but at least the captain also recognized that. She supposed that Nirasi would have to return to her duties soon, but there was one more question she could not help but to ask. By the way Nirasi acted, she probably wouldn't mind answering. "Just one more thing. A second ago, you seemed to suggest that you bedded Felintus, but if he hates Elves...how did that happen?"

Nirasi chuckled. "Yeah, he's also a hypocrite. Just couldn't resist when I cornered him in that storage room."

Kaleeth shook her head. "No, not anymore. Once you learn, writing doesn't take much practice to remember. I would like to give you something to use, but I left all of that in the village. I didn't think I would need it. But...maybe when we get to the Imperial City? They probably have paper; Janius says it is a big place. You can also write to your sister when we get there, but...I also guess you won't have much to write about. Being on this ship is't very exciting. I wish we could swim; I feel dirty with how long it has been since I could get into the water. All that water out there is just so tempting."

So the unpleasant members of the crew weren't threatening. That was a relief. They should probably pass the information on to the others so they would know. Fendros gave a smile that hid the uneasiness he had with Nirasi's words, but he was grateful all the same. "Well, you're probably busy. We shouldn't keep you from your duties for too long." Fendros waved to Nirasi, "We'll see you around, Nirasi. Thank you again." With that, Fendros turned and headed to the edge of the ship. He placed his hands an the railing and his expression turned somewhat sour. He didn't face Ahnasha, but he spoke, "This prejudice is just frustrating. I would have hoped that all of these sailors would be as accepting as that woman, being worldly, but there's always at least one who wants to be vile to us, isn't there?" The question was rhetorical, with the anger that he had bottled behind it.

"It is." Sabine agreed, looking out to the water. "Going without washing has been so...itchy and uncomfortable. And sticky. I hate it." Sabine sighed in annoyance, "Meesei says that we can't stop to swim, though." She looked at Kaleeth hopefully, "Maybe it will rain? That would be nice."

Ahnasha would have leaned onto the railing with Fendros, but she had a certain paranoia about holding Rhazii over the edge, no matter how good of a grip she had on him. Still, she stood beside him and let out a sigh. "No matter how many nice, or even just indifferent, people we meet, it only takes one, doesn't it? One...idiot to shout an insult and ruin our day. Honestly, I can't promise that I won't knock one of them out one day. If I'm ever in a position where I can get away with it...that will feel good. I almost look forward to it. For now, I wish we could just go and be alone, but there's nowhere to be alone on this ship. Well, Nirasi did say she used a storage room for...nevermind, maybe we should just go find one of the others? Get our minds off of it.

"I would love to be able to stand out in the rain. The air is...salty. I've never been around so much water, and felt so dry. I can't even drink water; all they have is, what do they call it? Ale, right? They said it is safer than water because of the...alcohol in it. I didn't like it much at first, but I guess it has gotten better." Kaleeth commented.

"You're right." Fendros pushed off the railing, "It won't do to stew over it." He turned and spied the deck for anyone familiar. As it happened, Lorag was closest, though he seemed a little unsteady. He had apparently got along with a few of the sailors and seemed to enjoy the notion of drinking ale for sustenance, at least as far as Fendros could see. A solid week and a half had tapered his binge into an eternal cure by hair-of-the-dog, but he was still going strong... somehow.

Fendros and Ahnasha approached him to see how he was, whatever he was doing. "Good morning, Lorag. How are you doing?" Fendros asked, preparing himself for Lorag's impending breath.

"It makes my head fuzzy," Sabine said, rubbing her temple with one palm, "I can drink it without it tasting so bad anymore, but if I have too much, it makes me feel like my head is underwater. Then I wake up with headaches and a dry mouth." Sabine swallowed and frowned, "Janius says that the Imperial city has a big lake around it, fed by rivers. It is all cool, fresh water. When we get there, I want to swim, right away. I miss fresh water."

"Oh, hey." Lorag greeted, glancing to Fendros before returning his attention to what he was looking at before. There were a few crew members who appeared to be on a break taking their chance to unwind. They were gathered around some boxes, taking bets on a few games.

""This lot just loves to gamble. I used to join them, 'cept now there's no point anymore. I won a bit of coin arm wrestling against them, but they learned quick that I'd always win. No one'll bet against me." He explained before anyone asked.

At the prospect of competition, Ahnasha became immediately interested. She did not even care as much about winning coing; she was just excited to see a game she thought she might be good at. Some of the crew had set up around one of the boxes with a knife, challenging each other to what seemed to be a game of precision. One person held his hand out on the box, then quickly stabbed the knife in a pattern between his fingers, which the other person had to replicate. She had never played such a game before, but she was practiced enough at being precise with her daggers that she felt she could do it. Nudging Fendros with her elbow, she motioned towards the group. "That game looks interesting. How well do you think you would fare?"

Kaleeth agreed enthusiastically. "Oh yes, I can't wait. Janius says the lake is named lake....Rumor? Ru-more? I don't remember, but whatever it is named, he says it is big and safe to swim in. I am not really looking forward to going to, what is its name? Bruma? He says it is cold there, with something called 'snow' everywhere. I don't know what that is, but at least the Imperial City doesn't sound bad, just crowded. He says it is bigger than any city you all have been to."

[Muttonhawk]

Fendros squinted an eye and inspected the game from where they stood. On the surface, it didn't seem too hard. Fendros thought that he would be able to keep up. As the crew playing sped up, it seemed a little more difficult, but Fendros wasn't going to back down. He leaned slightly towards Ahnasha and smirked, "That depends, is that a challenge?"

Sabine confirmed Kaleeth's impression with a nod. "I have seen the tower, but not been to the city. The lake is called Rumare. You might like snow, though. It's like water, except frozen. Here, I'll show you." Sabine retrieved her waterskin, now filled with ale, and poured a little into her palm. "Meesei taught me how to do this." With a face of fierce concentration, a pale glow emanated from Sabine's palm and the ale in her palm solidified with air bubbles going through it. Sabine smiled at the success of the spell, then held the frozen ale out to Kaleeth. "It's like this, except with water, not ale. It falls from the sky in soft little flakes."

[EliteCommander]

Ahnasha gave a chuckle. "Honestly, I didn't think it was a challenge you would actually take. If you do...I'm guessing you are going to end up with a knife in your hand by the end of it."

Looking into the pouch tied around her waist, Ahnasha scrounged through to see how many coins she had. Unfortunately, she had very little with her. "I only have a few coins, though; I'm not sure if any of them will take a bet that isn't more sizable. Most of our gold is with Meesei...as it should be, of course. I wouldn't want to gamble away all of our gold or anything. Still, I think I can win something...more than you could." She said confidently, in a teasing tone.

Kaleeth held out her hand and allowed Sabine to drop the frozen ale into it. She disliked the feeling immediately, as it was quite cold. She had seen ice before, but only in the form of frost spells. She had a hard time imagining what the land would look like covered in these flakes Sabine described. "I...don't know if I will like that. Warmth is comforting, but the cold...I have never been in a cold place before. I was hit with a frost spell before, and it really hurt. It won't be anything like that, will it?"

[Muttonhawk]

Fendros brought the back of his hand up and splayed out his fingers so he could look at it. An uncomfortable sensation ran over the back of his neck as he started to regret the potential pain, but it was a matter of pride to stay true now. "When have I ever backed down to a challenge? What's say we see who can get the most wins." He kept as confident of an expression as he could muster, but his next words might have undermined it. "...You go first."

"Not really, unless you don't wear warm clothing. Frost spells are supposed to hurt, though. It's not like them." In truth, Sabine had only experienced snow once, when on higher elevations in Cyrodiil, but she liked it for her own reasons. "When the snow falls, it's pretty. The snowflakes float down like tiny petals, and melt when they land on you. The cold might not be nice, but the snow is still pretty."

[EliteCommander]

Ahnasha grinned, taking the small pouch of coins out of her bag. "Alright, provided one of them will actually take my bet," She watched the game in progress to attempt to understand the finer rules, though someone would no doubt explain it to her if she asked. The pair of imperials on each side of the crate went back and forth a few rounds until one of them. stabbed the knife a bit too close to his hand and cut part of his hand near the base of two fingers, a cut that made Ahnasha wince. Once the winner took his gold, Ahnasha was quick to step forward before another game started.

"Hope you don't mind, but this game looks like something I could do. Unfortunately, I don't have much in the way of gold, so I don't suppose any of you would be willing to take a low bet?" Ahnasha asked, opening the pouch to show its contents. The victor of the previous game glanced inside, but did not seem impressed.

"Eh, not enough to be worth it, not for me. Hey, Hjorin, you could use some coin, how about you take her on?" The man suggested to the large Nord standing behind him, who had noticeable cuts on his hand. He stared at Ahnasha's coinpurse for a few seconds before finally letting out a sigh.

"Uh...fine, okay, whatever. I'd like to go way with something, at least, and I've still got enough to at least match that." He said, albeit hesitantly.

As they were getting ready to start, the others started placing their own bets. Noticing that Fendros had approached with her, the Imperial gave him a quick, questioning nod. "You got any bets, Dunmer?"

Ahnasha followed the man's question with a glance of her own. "Yeah, I'm wondering who you think will win this one?"

Kaleeth seemed skeptical. She did not have any reason to distrust Sabine, but she wondered if cold would affect them differently. After all, the Argonian homeland was warm at all times of the year. She wondered what kinds of things they would have to do to prepare. "I hope you are right. You say we have to wear warm clothes. What are warm clothes? Are they enchanted to be hot or something?" She asked. Given that she had never once used clothing for insulation, or indeed, had never needed to insulate anything, she was not aware that layering clothes would make her warmer.

[Muttonhawk]

Pulling his lips between his teeth in doubt, Fendros opened his own purse and saw little more or less than Ahnasha had. All of six septims was what he found. It wasn't much, but he could still bet. He figured that he wasn't going to be using the gold for anything else, so he could bet three on this game and three on his own attempt. Even if he lost it all, it wouldn't be devastating. He pulled out the three small gold coins he intended to bet and turned them in his palm while inspecting both contenders. The Nord had plenty of cuts on his fingers, so that could mean he wasn't very good at the game. This assumption was supported by the fact that he seemed to be unsure about facing Ahnasha and had little coin left. It could all be a trick, though. But for the meagre amounts they were playing for? It was unlikely.

"I'm in. I'll put three on Ahnasha," Fendros declared with a confident smile, dropping the coins into the pile of coins that encompassed the bets. Before the game began, Fendros put his arms out and carefully took Rhazii from Ahnasha's hands, holding the cub close. Rhazii smiled with an open mouth at some of the sailors, but seemed content to look around with a couple of fingers in his mouth rather than pay attention to the game. Fendros just hoped that the salt that was beginning to encrust Rhazii's frequently washed loincloth was not causing him too much discomfort.

For once in a very infrequent number of occasions, Sabine smiled widely at another's lack of experience and almost laughed. "They're not enchanted, they're just warm. You know, they're thick and lined with fur." Past an explanation that probably wouldn't help Kaleeth's understanding any better, Sabine realised that Kaleeth was serious and became curious. "Doesn't it ever get cold in the swamp? Have you ever worn so many clothes that you need to take some off because you can't cool down?"

[EliteCommander]

The bets placed on the pair were fairly low, but there were a few on both sides. It seemed that at least some of the onlookers were either willing to risk their coin on someone they did not know, or the Nord was simply not known for being skillful at the game. Once all bets were placed, the Nord grabbed the dagger and laid his hand out on the table with his fingers spread out. "Alright, game's pretty simple. One of us stabs at the points between your fingers in whatever speed and order you want, then the other has to match it at the same or faster speed. We go until someone hesitates, slows down, messes up the order, or stabs their own hand. Oh, and just to make sure you're not just stabbing at random, there's a limit on how many you can make. We'll make it ten for this one.Easy, right? I'll go first."

The Nord started out at a brisk pace, but Ahnasha could tell he was being cautious. She followed his movements carefully, which, at their current speed, were not too difficult to follow. She could understand his strategy, though. He likely did not want to risk making a mistake at first when he did not even know the skill of his opponent, so he wanted to gauge what she could do. Once the pattern was set, Ahnasha laid out her left hand on the table, since it still had all of its fingers, and took the knife in her right. Following the pattern he set, she was able to mimic the Nord at his speed with no issue, though by the reaction of the onlookers, it was not really an impressive feat.

When it came time for Ahnasha to set the pattern, she had to decide on how to approach it. She felt confident that her training would give her a definite advantage, since, when she did use blades, it was almost always in a precise manner directed at vital areas, or gaps in armor. However, she did not want to show all of her capabilities at once, so the speed and patter she set was faster than the Nord's, but not so fast that they could not believe she was a beginner. Still, with each stab of the knife being so close to her fingers, she was feeling an adrenaline rush by the time her pattern was set. It was a dangerous game, but to her, that danger was exciting.

Ahnasha expected that the Nord would be able to keep up, but surprisingly, he seemed to have a significant amount of difficulty mimicking her pattern. He had to concentrate for a few seconds at first to get the pattern down in his head, then seemed quite nervous as he was carrying it out. As he was nearing the end, he slipped up and held his dagger in the air for noticeably longer than Ahnasha had. He finished the pattern regardless, but he knew he had made a mistake.

"I...think I'm going to have to call that one. You hesitated, she wins." The Imperial sailor said once he finished, with a few of the others nodding in agreement. Ahnasha had expected it to end with one of them being stabbed, but she supposed there was more than one way to lose. She now had a few more coins to her name once the bets were paid out, though it was only really enough to make a more enticing bet if she put all of her gold into the next one. First, however, she looked to Fendros with a grin, wondering if he would live up to his challenge and step up as well.

Kaleeth shook her head. "No, it is never cold in Black Marsh. I remember hearing that it could be in other places, but I never imagined it could get so cold that water would freeze without even using magic. That almost seems unbelievable." She commented, trying to imagine how being in such a place would feel. The only experience she really had with cold was frost spells, and Sabine said that it wasn't quite painful like that. She could not understand how it was possible for water to be freezing on its own, but the air still be comfortable enough to live in. "You said that wearing thick clothes makes you warm? I didn't know that; the most clothes I've ever wore at once is this, or that terrible dress."

[Muttonhawk]

Ahnasha did as well as could be expected for her first round. Given that the betting odds were not particularly in the Nord's favour, Fendros only gained a profit of two septims. It was still more than before, he supposed. Given that there was no blood drawn, Fendros felt a bit more comfortable trying the game out for himself.

"I think I'll try as well," Fendros handed Rhazii to Ahnasha and sat down by the pitted crate they were playing on. He put five septims on the table this time, without concern to whether or not he would win.

The Nord, fed up from apparently frequent losses, stood up with his palms to Fendros. "Sorry, can't match that without losing it all." Once he stood up, he stepped away from the crate, "Does anyone want to play this elf?"

"Well, we can't let him walk off with all of your coin, Hjorin. I've got to walk off with a bit more." A spritely looking dark green Argonian man stepped up and sat himself down opposite Fendros and put in the same number of coins "Let's see what you can do, young master," he said through a challenging grin. When the Argonian placed down his coin, Fendros could see that he had a fair share of cuts to his fingers, but few enough of them were fresh looking. He definitely seemed more confident than the Nord.

As other people were placing their bets, the Argonian leaned forward and muttered to Fendros while putting one more coin forward. "Tell you what, if I win, how about you introduce me to one of the lovely ladies accompanying you?" He gestured with a flick of his head in the general direction of Meesei and Kaleeth-Rei while he talked.

The notion made Fendros smile, but he pushed the extra coin back in the Argonian's direction. Fendros wasn't sure whether Meesei would be interested in a sailor, but he had a feeling that she would have no trouble spurning this man if that were the case. "The light green one with the feathers is named Meesei," Fendros murmured back to him, "The other one has a mate already. Any introductions should be done by you alone."

The Argonian straightened back into his original position and spoke normally again, "Ah, you are a cruel elf man, but thoughtful. Now," He looked to the surrounding sailors, "Are we done betting?"

Fendros looked sideways at Ahnasha expectantly. "What do you think, Ahna? Am I worth a bet?"

"That's right. Most animals in cold places have thick fur on their skin to stay warm. Most races don't have fur, or can't grow warm enough fur for Khajiits, so we make clothing out of the animal fur to warm us. It can be scratchy at first, but it's more comfortable than a dress." Sabine seemed to enjoy being the teacher for once, "It's just Nords that don't get cold very easily, even magical frost doesn't hurt them as much, or at least my old teachers in the coven told me when I was a small child. They come from Skyrim, though, and it's always cold there." Sabine scuffed her foot. This was mostly second hand knowledge, as she had never been to Skyrim, or known any Nords very well. "If it's always warm in Black Marsh, does that mean that Argonians don't get hurt by fire very easily?"

[EliteCommander]

Being that she was the actual victor of the previous round, Ahnasha had a few more coins to work with, eleven in all. She did not actually know how Fendros would fare at this game, given that she was not as involved in his swordsmanship training. Janius and Lorag often handled that part, while she focused on archery. If he was practiced enough, his skills could transfer over to this game, however.

"Hmm, I'd say...I am about as confident as you." She answered. "Five coins on Fendros." She said as she put forth the coin, matching his bet from the previous round. Once she took back Rhazii, the game was ready to begin

Kaleeth paused, seemingly deep in thought as she tried to figure out what to say."I...don't know. I mean, I've been burned before, and it didn't seem to hard. It really hurt too. I just don't really know how it compares to Humans and other races. I've never burned a human before, and we can't really test it or anything. Do you know how easy or hard you burn?" She asked.

[Muttonhawk]

The stakes in this game were slightly higher now, and there were about an equal amount of sailors who bet on Fendros as who bet on the Argonian man.

"Alright, Dunmer, let's start with ten as well, for you are new-" the man placed a hand to his chest, "-and I am generous." The Argonian took up the dagger, laid his hand down with his fingers spread, and began a pattern of stabs between his fingers. Fendros kept his eyes fixed on where the dagger was landing and did his best to remember it, but the man seemed awfully calm. He put down the dagger once he was done and one half of his mouth grinned to show his teeth.

Fendros paused, then took up the dagger and began between his own fingers. He held his breath as he imitated the pattern. With how easy his opponent made it look, the pace he had to keep was unprecedented. He just managed it, though, letting out a breath as he finished. He believed he could continue, he just had to stay calm. Fendros took another breath and made his own pattern, slightly faster this time to make it more difficult for the Argonian. Fendros' opponent kept a calm demeanour as he kept up with the pattern. He took up the dagger without hesitation once Fendros was done.

The dagger point tapped even faster still against the crate as the man outdid Fendros' pace impressively. He finished completely unscathed. The next pattern was so quick that Fendros had trouble keeping up with it. It was over before he knew it, and the dagger was placed on the crate once more.

Taking in another slow breath, though more uneasily than last time due to the rush of the game, Fendros took up the dagger and began to imitate the man's pattern once more. Slightly out of pride, Fendros even sped up as he went. He counted to nine in his head with each fall of the dagger before number ten was interrupted by his own sharp intake of breath through his teeth and a shot of pain in his ring finger. Fendros dropped the dagger flat on the crate as his shoulders hunched up, and the game was called.

"Looks like Drinks-In-Sun, wins. Good effort, though, Dunmer." The Imperial sailor said with an encouraging smile as he took his share of the winning, as bet against Fendros.

Fendros held his cut hand up and observed the drop of blood weeping from his finger. "That's disappointing," he said, following a small sigh.

"Ah, but fair is fair, Dunmer. " the Argonian said, running his scarred fingers up the small column of coins that was his winnings. He reclined slightly and looked up at Ahnasha, "But you, Khajiit mother, I could see some dexterity in your hands. How about we play a round with a bet of..." the man began to trail off as he thumbed a small column of coins onto the crate's centre, "...ten gold? If you can't match it, simply put in what you can and I will not mind. I want to see you against an opponent without fat Nordic fingers, like Hjorin has."

Sabine actually had to think about that a bit, herself. "Well, fire spells don't hurt me as much, but most spells don't. Meesei says that's because I'm Breton. I still burn as well, though. I haven't properly tested it either." Sabine rubbed her arms, soaked with the warmth of the sun, "My skin gets burned if I stay in the sun for too long, but not all humans are like that. Although, I've never seen a sunburnt Argonian before."

[EliteCommander]

After watching the first two games, Lorag gave a small laugh at Fendros' defeat. He could have made a joke, but he did not want to put himself in the position of being challenged at the game. He did not fear being hurt, but he was not exactly the most dextrous individual. Against these sailors, he would probably lose, so trying to say anything to Fendros would likely backfire on him.

"Hmph, I should have known you would lose my coin." Ahnasha teased as she handed off Rhazii to Fendros once again. It only took her a moment to consider the Argonian's offer before placing down the remainder of her coin on the box in front of her. "I only have six, but I'll take the bet. You want to start us of?"

Drinks-In-Sun gave a nod as he laid his hand out on the box and took up the knife. Given that he had already shown what he could do with Fendros, his pattern was just as rapid as the one which had won him the last round. She had to watch him intently to memorize the pattern he set, which was both complicated and quick. He finished it seemingly without issue, so Ahnasha took in a deep breath once it was her turn to take up the knife. Concentrating intently, she started to mimic him with just as much speed, trying to imagine the gaps in her fingers like the gaps in armor. She was practiced with precision and needed only to apply that experience. It was only a few seconds before the round was over, and her hand unscathed.

The others quickly took considerably more interest in the game upon her success. It was obvious that this Argonian was one of the more skilled players among the sailors, so for her pattern, she decided not to hold back. Ahnasha pushed the limits of what she could do, nearly cutting herself on two occasions as the blade danced between her fingers. Not only did she keep up a high speed, but she tried to make sure the pattern was as complicated as she could make it. Luckily, she managed to finish the pattern without cutting herself, so it was up to the Drinks-In-Sun to match it. He seemed a bit less confident than before, but then again, neither was Ahnasha. If he managed to pass this round, then it was unlikely that she would win the next.

Kaleeth matched Sabine's motion of rubbing her arm. "Hmm, the sun is warm, so I guess it makes sense that it could burn, but...I've never been burned by it before. Maybe it is because you have skin and I have scales? Human skin seems thinner and easier to scratch, so...maybe it is easier for the sun to burn? I'm not sure; I never really thought about any of these questions before. I wonder what else is different about us that we don't really think about?"

[Muttonhawk]

At this point, Drinks' face had lost all of its jovial charm and had been replaced by an intense concentration. He didn't seem to react to Ahnasha's pattern at all, except to take his own inaudibly slow breath through his nose and pick up the dagger. Imitating Ahnasha's pattern was clearly pushed him to his limits as his eyes darted to follow the dagger between his fingers. Everyone around the crate was dead silent, the only sounds being the tapping of the blade point and the creak of the rigging. For such a short space of time it seemed to go on forever. Everyone involuntarily began to lean in as Drinks' approached the end of the pattern. When the tension was highest, he completed the last stroke by barely missing a finger and then slammed the dagger into the crate between them in triumph. Everyone around the crate who had placed a bet on him raised their hands and cheered.

A few moments passed where Drinks-In-Sun took a breath and let the sailors behind him pat his back. The game wasn't over, though. Drinks pulled the dagger from the deep divot he had made in the wood and everyone's revelry was silenced. His own new pattern began. He started off at the same pace as before, but he began to speed up to a dangerous level, his face straining as he tried to keep control. He wanted to win and this would be his final move. Even so, he had three close calls before he finally, inevitably, struck deep into the side of his index finger. "Aagh!" His strained shout and wide eyes was met by an uproar of victory from Ahnasha's bidders. Fendros even let out a cheer, caught up in the moment.

"Just as I thought, Khajiit mother. You are a worthy opponent!" Drink-In-Sun smiled respectfully through the intense pain as he clutched his hand, "I think that is enough of this game for me, before getting this wound seen to, anyway." Drinks slowly rose up from his seat and left the gold to be dealt out by the Imperial. Ahnasha now had a respectable amount of gold in comparison to before.

Fendros squat down to Ahnasha and gave her a friendly nudge. Holding Rhazii made it difficult to do much else. "Nice one. Thanks for winning back my coin," he retorted finally.

Sabine twisted her mouth before she could decide to speak about what Meesei told her about the differences between Argonians and Humans. She didn't want to mess up her streak of not making people feel uncomfortable. Sabine instead looked sideways at Kaleeth, finding another small difference on the top of her head. "There's hair," Sabine pointed out, "You don't have hair growing on the top of your head." Sabine ran one hand along the side of her head, pushing her frizzy hair behind one ear, "I've seen lots of people try to make their hair look pretty, but it seems like more trouble for nothing. You don't even have to worry about hair."

[EliteCommander]

Ahnasha breathed an audible sigh of relief when Drinks failed to set his pattern. It seemed he grew a bit too ambitious, or felt that he had to create a much more difficult challenge to defeat her. In all honesty, she had a good chance of failing the next one even if he had matched her last one. As Fendros knelt down beside her, she gathered the coin she had one into her coinpurse. "I think I've had my fill of excitement for now. That will be my last one."

As she stood up, Ahnasha grinned at Fendros. "Yes, I did a wonderful job at winning back my coin, didn't I? All my training really helped, but you weren't too bad. Ah, that was exhilarating, I feel...energized. I know fighting is a serious matter, but games like that give a sort of...thrill like in fighting. I guess it is the danger. I wouldn't mind taking some risks more often."

Once again, Kaleeth mimicked Sabine's motion by rubbing her fins at the same time as she rubbed her hair. "We don't have hair, but some Argonians do have feathers, like Meesei. They are...sort of the same. A lot of Argonians have horns, and some like me have fins. I don't know why our heads are so different compared to yours; it seems like humans just have different colors. There are a lot of Argonians that try to make their heads look pretty too, though. Some like to pierce their fins and put rings in them, some put larger rings over their horns, some tie fabric to them. There are a lot of things people do, I just never tried it because I was a hunter and didn't want jewelry to get caught on things."

Curiously, kaleeth reached out to Sabine and ran her hand through her and across the side of her face, not actually remembering to ask beforehand. "Your hair is soft, though, like your skin. It feels a lot different from feathers and scales. I had never felt hair before me and Janius became mates."

[Muttonhawk]

Fendros and Ahnasha both stepped back for now. Fendros might have liked to play once more, but he didn't have anything near an enticing bet. He just readjusted Rhazii in his arms and watched the next game while responding to Ahnasha. "It was certainly a bit of fun, I'll give it that. Perhaps this won't be the last we'll be playing this game while on board this stagnant ship."

Rhazii began making a small babble and Fendros held his head back to look at him. "What's that, little one? You want to play too? Not until you're older, I think," Fendros said with a grin, "We don't want people thinking you inherited your mother's missing finger, now, do we?" Fendros bounced Rhazii up and down lightly and caused the cub to smile. Fendros found it strange that he could talk about Ahnasha's finger without feeling sick anymore. The memories were just as bad when he recalled them, but it seemed as if his mind was less sensitive to skirting around it now that he had gone more than a week with fairly uninterrupted sleeps. Perhaps this was what Ariel meant by needing to sort it out while taking her remedy. Perhaps it would not be best to bring it up in front of all these strangers.

"Rhazii just keeps gaining weight with his Cathay form. He's already bigger than most babies his age." Fendros' smile faded, "I hope we'll still be able to carry him while he's so young."

Sabine nodded. She had seen such decorations in all the cities of Black-Marsh, as well as amongst Kaleeth's tribe. At Kaleeth's physical contact with her hair, Sabine flinched in surprise, but didn't mind all that much. It was a bit uncomfortable when Kaleeth's fingers found a mat or a knot in her hair and pulled at it slightly. Sabine's eyes looked side to side for a moment, not expecting what Kaleeth said. She took as a compliment. "It's soft? Thank you," she said quietly. Feeling the need to reciprocate the kindness, Sabine reached up towards Kaleeth's fins. They were unlike anything Sabine had ever seen, so touching them would mostly be out of curiosity. She didn't know how to compliment them, though. "May I?" Sabine asked, having known the discomfort of unwanted physical contact all too well from her past. "What is having fins like? Do you have to care for them in any way? Do they hurt?"

[EliteCommander]

Ahnasha no longer took as much interest in the game now that she was not playing and had no investment in it. She instead she paced a few steps as she glanced out over the horizon. As they were travelling along the coast, they were still in sight of land, which was comforting. Once Fendros spoke up about Rhazii, she turned her attention back to him. "You know, I can't actually say I know exactly how quickly Cathay grow. I know it is fast, but I really don't know when he will be what size. Hopefully, he will be able to walk before he is too...inconvenient to carry around at all times. Though honestly, we will probably have to carry him a fair amount even when he is old enough to walk and talk. That, or we'll need to be content with covering a lot less ground in a day."

Kaleeth leaned down to allow Sabine to reach up to her fins, giving a nod to ask permission to feel them. She did not feel there was anything special about them, but then again, Sabine probably felt the same way about hair. Although, she really could not say she understood what Sabine meant when she asked if they hurt. "No, I don't have to do anything special to them, unless I wanted to pierce them or something. They don't really do anything, I don't think. I think feathers take the most work if you want to make them look pretty. I think I am glad I don't have feathers; I wouldn't want to have anything that would take a lot of work, and hair seems like it is even more work than feathers. Humans even have hair on your body and not just your head. Do you have to worry about that too?"

[Muttonhawk]

"At least we'll have the advantage of strength over some parents of Cathays," Fendros said, looking at Rhazii as the cub brought his tail to his mouth with his hands again. The end of Rhazii's tail was almost always sticky or moistened with saliva these days. After a short pause, Fendros looked to Ahnasha, "Say, how have you been feeling lately? Has the extra sleep been doing you good? It has for me."

Before Ahnasha answered, Fendros noticed Rhazii's face begin to momentarily strain in an unmistakable way. They would probably would not be able to get too deep into the conversation before moving somewhere to clean Rhazii.

With an apprehensive gentleness, Sabine inspected Kaleeth's head fins with her fingers. They felt as strange as they looked; they lightly bent at the touch, but seemed flexible enough not to snap,and the webbing was more like skin than scales. The strangeness of them almost made Sabine giggle. "Hair is annoying. It picks up sweat and dirt, it dries slowly, it gets tangled, and it keeps growing," Sabine responded, though not with too much annoyance as she tested the flexibility of Kaleeth's fin webbing with her thumb and forefinger, "The hair on the head seems to grow the most. You need special salves and brushes to make it straight and shiny like other women," Sabine withdrew her hand and pulled on a matted lock of her own hair, "that's why mine is all messy. Ariel tried to brush the tangles out when I stayed with her for a night, but she stopped because it pulled my hair too much and hurt. Even Meesei's feathers don't tangle like that. You are both lucky that you don't have hair." Sabine still managed to smile, Kaleeth's company wasn't nearly as intimidating as the sailors. They both seemed curious enough about each other that the conversation felt good. "At least I won't get hair on my face, like men do," Sabine remarked with a wider smile.

[EliteCommander]

Ahnasha gave a smile, walking over to the railing and leaning over to look at the waves hitting the ship below. "Well, I have been sleeping better, certainly. I'm not completely without nightmares, but they're more like the ones I was always used to having, not so...regular in topic. I do have some trouble sleeping still, but not because of dreams. I still have not become completely used. to sleeping on the ship. The rocking of the ship and my hammock at night, it is somewhat distracting and disorienting. Hopefully, I'll get used to it, but if not, at least we won't be onboard forever."

Ahnasha turned her head, noticing Rhazii at the same time as Fendros. "We should get back down to the bunks." She said simply.

"Oh, is that why I sometimes see Janius and some of the others cutting the hair on their face? I guess that makes sense; the hair not on the top of a human's head doesn't feel nearly as soft. It's almost...itchy. I almost wish Janius would cut all of his hair off, but I guess that wouldn't look right." Kaleeth said, pausing for a moment when she noticed Ahnasha and Fendros starting to head below decks. It inspired a question in her mind, though Sabine was not likely to know the answer to it. "I wonder what it's like to be a Khajiit? Humans have hair on your heads and other places, but Khajiit have it everywhere They probably have to do a lot more to take care of it than Humans do. It would seem like having all that hair would be very itchy, but they don't seem to act like it."

[Muttonhawk]

"Right," Fendros had no protest. They proceeded below deck again to find another cloth. "The rocking was distracting at first for me, but I actually found it relaxing after a while," Fendros remarked on the way. After stopping by the storage room, Fendros found a lidded barrel to lay Rhazii steady on and began the procedure of replacing his loincloth. The smell was always horrendous, but Fendros was used to the chore by now. Rhazii happily grabbed at his toes during the whole scenario.

Being that they were in a private spot now, Fendros glanced up at Ahnasha and pursed his lips nervously. "We don't have to speak about it right now, but, Ahna, I was thinking about what Ariel said about working out our...problem. I still don't quite know what to do, but...perhaps we could try to talk about it?"

Sabine's eyes followed Ahnasha and Fendros as well when Kaleeth drew attention to them. "I have wondered that, too. Ahnasha's fur is about as soft, or softer than most human head hair. She has to spend time cleaning it well. She often complains that it takes a long time to dry, but I've not seen her scratch more than anyone else." Sabine shrugged, "I always thought that it would be too warm to have all that fur." The talk of fur brought another curiosity to the front of Sabine's mind. "Kaleeth?" Sabine looked up to Kaleeth's face, "Meesei once told me that there were other people covered in fur in Black Marsh, in the far south. They were said to look like foxes. Is that true?"

[EliteCommander]

Ahnasha let out a long, uncertain sigh once Fendros' questions took on a more serious nature. "I know you're probably right, but...what is there even to talk about? I mean, we were both there, we both know what happened. And neither of us have any solution to just get rid of that pain. I know I'm not alone in the pain I experienced, at least not the mental pain. I wish I was; I wish you never had to go through that, but...I guess I'm saying I just have to accept that it happened. There was nothing we could do about it, then or now."

Though confused for a moment, Kaleeth's eyes lit up when she realized that she was actually familiar with what Sabine was talking about, at least partially. It was nothing she had ever seen herself, of course, but it was a familiar detail in the stories told to her by the Treeminder. "I...don't know what a fox is, but I think I know what you mean. Like I said, the Treeminder loved to tell us stories. According to him, Argonians have not always been alone living in the marsh; there were other people. There were Humans, a group called the Kothringi, that used to live in Black Marsh. They all died with the...Knahaten Flu, I think was what it was called. The other race were the Lilmothiit. They used to live where Lilmoth is now, and they were covered in fur like Khajiit. They all died a long time ago too. The Treeminder said it was probably the Knahaten Flu too, but no one knows for sure. That is probably what Meesei was talking about, I think."