Debriefing[continued from Fantastic Mr Fox] With Ginger as an eager and a hungry herald, Gillian and Joao were soon before a semicircle of carts near the Arts department buildings. Each of the carts was manned by one or two [Rebman] women (men don't have a head for finances, after all!) dressed in university colors...although they were dressed in as little as regulations permitted. There were reasons why the Rebman food carts were popular. As far as the food, as Gillian soon learned with Joao as guide, much of the Rebman food was raw, of course, varieties on sushi and sashimi. These were artfully served in beautifully constructed boxes. Other carts held cooked Rebman dishes. One of these in particular was the destination that Joao steered Gillian toward. "Dobre Utra, Student Joao," the blue haired, blue skinned, middle-aged woman said. "Are you here to have Hayaben?" She looked over Gillian with a critical eye as if expecting someone different. "Nyet, Miss Anfisa," Joao said with a smile. "A regular portion, today. I don't intend to eat later. I'd like to introduce my friends," Joao cast his gaze about for Ginger, "to some Udon. I'll have my usual. Also a bowl of Su Udon, with the Kamaboko, for our feline friend here, and for Gillian..." he turned and regarded Gillian thoughtfully. She raised her eyebrows back at him. "Some Udon topped with some stir fried chicken, I think." "Five coins, Student Joao," Anfisa said easily. "With all respect, two and a half," Joao said. "You haven't had any customers this morning." "Four," she replied, easily. "Three and call it a deal" Joao said. "One coin for each bowl" "Agreed," Anfisa said. "Three bowls is one more than you and the dancer usually eat anyway." Joao nodded, paid the vendor, and turned to Gillian. "Miss Baronson hasn't quite tried some of the more traditional Rebman dishes yet, either," Joao said as the dishes were prepared and put in clay bowls. "One day, I'll invite all of us in our club to the family estate for dinner and correct that deficiency." "That sounds lovely," Gillian smiled, and then the smile faltered a bit. "It's not all raw, right?" she whispered. "The chef at the estate up here does cook food with drylander techniques," Joao said reassuringly. "Although she will be upset if you don't try her seviches, too." Hurried footsteps approached them. "Yes, you must. The seviches are grand!" said Raina from behind them. She squeezed in and said to the vendor, "I'd like one, please," as she rustled in her bag looking for money, brushing away a stray lock of hair at the same time. "Raina!" Gillian exclaimed, surprised at the girl's sudden appearance. She lowered her voice. "What happened to you? We were all worried." "Raina!" Joao added, in a pleased and relieved tone. At their feet, Ginger moaned and squirmed like a Mont Nuit whore. “Mrmmmmm. We need to go there. Soon. Very soon. As in like now. Please? Can we? Please? Huh?” She pawed Gillian’s leg and soon resorted to nails when her needs weren’t immediately met. "Ow!" Gillian startled and dropped a couple of her books. She bent over to pick them up and glared at her familiar. "How far do you think I can punt a tabby?" Ginger snorted. “Isn’t that what got you into all that trouble with Shiva last night?” Throughout the pathetic display, Anfisa maintained the unflappable, Rebman sense of decorum. She nodded to the new arrival - pleased to see one of her regular customers returning. "Patience, Ginger," Joao said placatingly to the feline. "Arranging a dinner party at the estate, even the Amber one as I propose, would take time. Mother would not approve if I had guests come without suitable preparation." “Patience?” Ginger retorted. “You do realize I’m a cat, right? Geez, Fishstick. I wonder if you got knock in the melon harder than we thought. I still like you though.” A sudden chilling thought came to Joao, that Mother might want to meet his friends, or at least threaten to put in an appearance, especially if Cole was involved. He swallowed slightly and turned to Raina. "I was buying Gillian and Ginger some lunch and to discover what happened to her, and to tell her the story of what happened after the two of you departed," Joao explained. "I was on the way here to find food and look for you when I found them at the shrine by the Koi pond." Finding her money, Raina plunked some coins on the counter, then turned to smile at her friends. "Yes, I had hoped to find you here, Joao," she said, her smile brightening as if caressing his name. "And Gillian! Having you too is a boon. We've SO much to catch up on!" she gasped excitedly. Despite her unexplained disappearance the prior evening, the petite dancer looked none the worse for wear, except for the weariness that tugged at the corners of her eyes. One would never tell how exhausted she was from her bubbly demeanor though. When she received her meal, Raina turned away from the vendor and eyed her companions intently. "Is everyone all right? I was so worried about you all," she whispered. Obviously she was including the rest of their group as well as present company. Gillian led them away from the vendors to a shady spot under a nearby tree. "I think everyone is," she answered Raina as she sat Ginger's bowl down. "Why don't we hear your story first, since you were the first to disappear?" Ginger plunged her head into the bowl and began to gorge herself with piggish-demure. "We should go round-robin," Joao agreed. He reserved the more private areas nearest the trunk for Gillian, Raina and Ginger, sitting down at a spot furthest from the trunk, and closest to anyone who might come and disturb the twio ladies and the feline, from the nearby walkway. Joao ate neatly but quickly, alternating bites between the seaweed on top, and the noodles below. Raina set her bowl down beside her and launched into her tale. "After I left you in the hallway, Gillian, I went back to the lab. I sat by the window and was kind of kicking myself for making such a mess of meeting that boy in the hall. I got to thinking about the times that I had spoken with S... my Other. She had always seemed so strong and confident and she had spoken kindly to me for the most part the few times that I conversed with her. I decided to just go ahead and name her. How badly could it go, right?" Gillian choked on her noodles. Joao looked at Gillian with slight alarm. A moment later he nodded encouragingly for Raina to continue. He finished a piece of seaweed and listened attentively, subtly moving his head in her direction. She chuckled ruefully and shook her head, looking down at the ground. "So I did it. And she... took advantage of me. She tried to shove me away. Out of my body. Told me to go away and dance in a dream where I wouldn't feel weak anymore." "Gods, Raina," Gillian said. "What did you do?" "I started to panic and she just laughed and called me stupid. Perhaps not in so many words, but that was the gist." The girl smiled furtively. "That was her mistake. See, back when I was just a girl, I went to a carnival with a friend. I played those one of those games where you throw a ball to knock over milk jugs? I played it and played it, putting down more money because I KNEW I could do it. Finally, I did it and won the prize. I was so happy, but my friend just sneered, 'That was stupid. You could've just bought that toy for less,' and walked away." The memory must have still stung all these years later because Raina's eyes were bright. "Ever since then, I simply cannot stand to be called 'stupid.' Joao bit his lip, nodded, but said nothing. Ginger glanced up, her face crunching with effort not to say something. “Nah… too easy,” she muttered through a mouthful of food. She resumed gorging. Gillian thumped Ginger lightly on top of her head. "So I got angry and raged my will forward at her. She had taken my notebook and drawn a picture in it. She started to go through it when I hit her and we both fell through, still struggling over the same body. In the end, we came to an... understanding. That I was willing to share my body if she treated me well but she could never take it away. We both learned something about the other. She learned that I had fire and could fight hard. And I learned never to completely trust her." "Da. I don't think any of us should trust our Others," Joao said. "Or else they will be the Master, and we their helpless puppets." Gillian nodded at Joao's comment. She turned to Raina. "I'm glad you're all right. That could have turned out much worse than it did—Cole tried to join with his Other and if we hadn't been around, the Other may have won. As if was, his Other knocked Joao on the head." "I tried to engage the Other into dialogue," Joao clarified. "This was not only foolish and impractical, it nearly was the end of me. If not for the help of Gospodin Temnal, I might have not survived the fruits of my foolishness." "Oh Joao! Are you all right now? When I saw you before, you looked injured, but I didn't have time..." Raina bit her lip, not wanting to get ahead of herself. "I'm all right, now. Mostly," Joao said encouragingly. "Please continue, Raina," he added. Raina smiled, relieved, and continued. "But anyway, we - Sand and I - ended up back in the lair of the night wolves. Sand had, by now, come to terms with the Joining and we searched for items that she had left behind when she... died. We tried to get back but it took far longer than I expected. I was so worried about all of you - about your own Joinings. I wanted to tell you that you had to remain strong. That you could not allow them to get the upper hand, royalty or no." Joao picked through eating some more noodles. "I think the plan of continuing the Joinings while with others, if possible, is a good one," Joao opined. Raina nodded whole-heartedly. With noodles hanging from her mouth as if she’d swallowed a running shoe, Ginger looked up. “You know – slurp, munch – these Others are sound like spirits almost. Or daemons. Normally, they’ll be all sweet and cuddly. But if you – nomnom, slurp – let your guard down, they’ll wear you like a meat-suit.” She plunged her head back into her bowl. Joao stifled a laugh at the sight. Gillian looked uncomfortable. "I...um...Joined last night too. I didn't intend to, but it was the only way to avoid being consumed in a creation ritual. I...I don't want to be a meat-suit." "Creation ritual?" Joao inquired, looking at Gillian. "Some sort of conjuration?" Raina turned to Gillian expectantly, eager to hear her story. In anticipation for Gillian's story, Ginger raised her head and began to softly hum appropriate background music. "Bow-chicca-chicca-wah-wow-wow-wow." Gillian lowered her bowl and glared at the cat. "You can be replaced by a dog." Ginger stuck her head in the bowl, “Sorry. Can't hear you! Too busy eating!” "If it is a sensitive subject," Joao said in a placating tone, "perhaps, Gillian, we can defer your story until another time. What is important is that you are safe, sound and hale, da?" He gave a glance toward Raina, looking for support. Glancing back at Joao, Raina nods after the barest hesitation. "Yes, of course. If it's an uncomfortable subject, we can wait. Or... you can leave parts out. Do you know who your Other is yet?" "Cybele," Gillian replied simply. "We trumped out last night. That's why I disappeared—I was afraid she was going to do something to Cole when he and Finndo Joined and Finndo started acting up and getting all testosteroney." She shrugged. "So...I found myself elsewhere. There was a beautiful demigod there, and we Danced, and I agreed to something I shouldn't have and I got pregnant as a result--though it was in more of a metaphysical way than an actual way I think, if that makes any sense—and it gets rather complicated after that, but I kinda gave birth to a world, and to survive that Cybele said I needed to Join with her because she had access to Amber's Pattern and I didn't. So we Joined, and here I am." Gillian shrugged again and gave them a half-smile. "So...did you bring back anything interesting from the night wolves' lair?" Ginger blinked dumbly and finally shook her head, “By Erato’s Flappin’ Knickers, you are the singularly dullest flesh-stick in Creation. All those juices and naughtiness and you made it sound as exciting as a coffeehouse poetry reading. Are you sure you did it right?” She gave a disgusted snort and began looking for stray morsels at the bottom of her bowl. Gillian blushed and looked down at her noodles. Joao cleared his throat. Although he knew she would not see it, Joao tried to give Gillian a reassuring smile, and he stared at Ginger for a long moment. "What did you find in Sand's Lair?" Joao said, returning to the subject that Gillian mentioned. He turned to face Raina, and took a bite of noodles. Raina took a moment to finish chewing before answering. "We went down into a deep part of the caverns in search of an artifact that Sand thought could bring us back to Amber. In the chamber, we found... her body. Or what was left of it. It was difficult to get her past that. We retrieved a pendant that contains a multitude of trumps." Raina patted the front of her blouse lightly where the pendant hung beneath the fabric. "I'll show it to you when we meet everyone in the lab," she whispered. Gillian looked up with interest, previous embarrassment forgotten. "The trumps are contained within the pendant? How do you access them, if I may ask?" "We wanted to try to see if the Dark Hour affected the Pattern chamber in Amber, so we used a trump of that chamber to enter. Sand saw no difference, but because time runs differently, we could not tell if we were truly there at the Dark Hour or not. I would like to try that another time starting from Amber instead of the lair. With help, of course." "It's an intriguing question," Gillian said as she replaced Ginger's empty bowl with her still partially filled one. "After you pose it to the others I suspect we'll have an all-participation Dark Hour road trip to the castle tonight--I'm sure Cole will be happy to come along just for the opportunity to whack things as needed." The girl paused. "Me tagging along would also help with one of my own predicaments." Gillian frowned. "It's something I need to tell everyone about. I meant to last night, but other stuff took precedence. But never mind now." "As you like," Joao said to Gillian. "Let's see where we are in the catching up.... Joao, I think it's your turn." Ginger gave a cannon-shot belch and then slumped over on her side - snoring. A few of the ‘refined’ students cast disgruntled looks their way and then moved on. "It appears that the dish was pleasing to her," Joao commented. "To bring up a point perhaps not considered first," Joao said. "The remoteness and menacing look of Castle Amber might make it difficult to try and reach within the bounds of the Hour," Joao said. "If we were to travel there before the Hour, without cause, the guards would surely detain us or drive us off. And if we were not to do so, we would have to ascend the mountain, enter the Castle, and find the Pattern Room all within an Hour's time." "I think", Joao said, "we need to wrangle ourselves excuses or invitations to the Castle and do our investigations from within, to give us more time. I myself have already been invited to an upcoming event there. Joao thought of Professor Advocat's mention of Princess Rhea, in relation to Cole. he had a possible invitation, too. Joao continued. "Perhaps combined with, for example, Cole's friendship with Princess Rhea, we might manage to get all of us to attend, and from there, visit the Pattern Room during the Darkest Hour." "That's a fair point. Seabhac could probably help in that regard, too," Gillian replied. "He probably could, but there might be another way," Raina suggested. She leaned in closer to them so she could speak softly. "The trumps in the pendant. There are dozens of them. There must be one for someplace in the castle. If one of us could get to one of those spots with Seabhac's help, perhaps the others could meet them there at a specified time by going through the trump." Joao nodded encouragingly for Raina to continue. "I might have to call upon Sand for help with them though. I haven't had the time to truly study how they work yet," she added almost apologetically, partially in answer to Gillian's earlier question. "Panoply," Joao said. "I didn't realize that bonding with Sand would give you access to such, but it makes sense." "It's a..." Joao paused for the unfamiliar word, "Jazz concert. Prince Martin is going to perform. A...friend of Prince Martin's from Rebma has asked me to escort her there. If Cole can ask Princess Rhea to attend, and you..." he looked at Gillian, "get Seabhac to get you to attend, the others can come through on the trump in the pendant you have, Raina, and we can all go to the Pattern Room." "When is the concert?" Gillian asked. "I should probably finish my bonding to Delwin between now and the Castle Expedition," Joao added, thoughtfully, looking down at the remnants of his noodles, a bit of shameful color adding red to his pale complexion. Gillian glanced at Raina and then back at Joao. "What's wrong?" she asked gently. "I just feel that I.." Joao said, still looking down. His head rose with the sensation and he stopped his answer to Gillian As they spoke, they group felt a chill in the air. A murder of crows passed them by in the form of the Florimel Sisterhood - all mocking laughs and unkind eyes. At their head walked the Lady Daphne. She smiled at Gillian - a slug-slick smirk that made the skin crawl. Her delicate fingertip drew across her throat and then waggled 'harmlessly' at her former roommate. Gillian quickly averted her gaze. Joao studied the Florimel Sisterhood carefully, watching them with an almost inhuman stare. Certainly they were beautiful, but that beauty seemed to be their only redeeming quality. Their lack of grace was uncouth and unbecoming. Mother would not approve. [Daphne] whispered something to her companions. They laughed even louder - the spiteful sound echoing across the quad as they drifted away. The noodles in Gillian's stomach turned sour. Suddenly she felt very exposed, as if she was under a magnifying glass and the entire world was staring at her, judging her. Her chest felt tight and her heart began to pound. She rose to her knees and started gathering her books. "I'm very sorry, but I need to go or I'll be late for work," she explained. "Joao, I'm sorry I can't stay to hear your story—please forgive me. And thank you very much for lunch! Raina, take care and I'm glad you're safe. I'll see you both tonight!" Gillian forced a smile for her friends and scuttled away in the direction of the library. "Good luck, Gillian" Joao called toward Gillian's retreating form. [Gillian continued in Echoes of Fate] Raina appeared to be about to say something before Gillian retreated so quickly. Instead, she simply watched her friend hustle away and shot a scowl back toward the Florimels. A low growl rose up in her throat. "They're so MEAN," she huffed angrily in a voice low enough for only Joao to hear. She slumped back down next to Joao. "Gillian is so much better than them and they just... RRRGGGHHH!" "They are nyeh kuturni" dared himself to say, barely above a whisper. It was one thing to think Anthony, Cole's nemesis, that. But a member of the fairer gender, even one from above the waves? It was nearly scandalous. She shook herself to clear out the anger and turned back to Joao, completely attentive now. "I'm sorry. They just annoy me and they interrupted you. You just feel that you what?" she asked, reaching out a hand tentatively to him. Joao relaxed slightly, and then more, at Raina's gesture. "I feel like I let the team down, da?" Joao said. "I know who Delwin is, it would have been useful to merge with him, get it done. Especially given that..." Joao paused. "Especially given that we were put under siege at the culmination of the Hour. I was not only useless if they had gotten through the barricade, Gospodin Temnal's efforts were spent in ministering to me." "My foolishness in the way I confronted Finndo not only nearly killed me, Raina, but everyone else in that room." Joao finished. Not as asleep as she had let on, Ginger injected, “Including me! Me! And then where would you all be? Hrm? In a much sadder world, I’ll tell you that mcuh.” She gave a sea-weedish belch and began cleaning herself in a very unladylike fashion. "Come now, Ginger, I'm certain it wasn't all _that_ bad. You being so swift and agile and... um... _smart_..." Raina let the praise hang heavy and shot a quick smirk at Joao before continuing, "I'm sure you were quite safe." Ginger preened, “Well, it’s about time someone noticed my finer qualities! I like you, Rainy. You’re not looking for a familiar are you? Because I definitely deserve a better quality of associates. You know. Ones that recognize my magnificence.” She resumed cleaning her unmentionables. Joao smiled encouragingly at Raina's praise. He shook his head slightly at Ginger but said nothing. "And you," Raina turned fully to Joao, her expression softening, and took his hand in both of hers. "Don't you fret upon it. Given what was happening, it was probably best for you to remain in your true form at that moment. Can you imagine if Delwin had gotten the better of you at such a time? Never mind almost. You might all be _truly_ dead." The thought caused her to shudder. "I had not thought of that possibility." Joao admitted. "Da, that would have been a worse outcome for all of us." "I need to show you the trident I crafted, though." Joao added. "Delwin helped me create it out of a fireplace poker. I left it in our..." Joao smiled slightly "headquarters." Ginger bobbed her head, “Indeed. Fishy here is a master conjuror. He’s a natural at weaving aether into substance. Before you know it, he’ll be summoning daemons to do his unholy bidding.” "Demons?" Joao said. He thought of some of the things he had heard in Rebma. Before his thoughts could veer fully in that direction, Raina's enthusiasm lured him to pay attention to her... Raina beamed. "That's brilliant, Joao! It's a combination of he and you and you haven't even joined yet! I think you might have a better base than the rest of us when you do it." Joao blushed slightly at Raina's praise, reddish color intruding upon the black and white palette of his complexion. "Maybe" Joao admitted. Her expression clouded as a related thought came over her and she pulled her hands back to wring them in her lap with disappointment. "I fear I might not be of help to you when you join though. I want to. I want to be there for you when you take... that step. But I fear Sand's presence would be a distraction. Delwin hates her so, and she him," she lamented, looking up at him sadly. "The antipathy is strong" Joao admitted. "Osric and Finndo, too, last night, seemed to be opposed to each other. I would not want Sand to try and take control of you in an effort to kill me. I would not want Delwin to try and kill you." Joao looked at the remnants of seaweed and noodles in his bowl. Decisively, he finished them. Once he did so, he looked up again at Raina. "Even so, I don't want you to be alone" Joao said. "These things are dangerous. The fact that we are awake during that hour is something that draws them, somehow. Like a shark smelling us in the water. None of us should try and be alone during this hour anymore, except perhaps in a sealed and barred room." “Wow. Maybe you should get hit in the head more often,” Ginger said. “That’s the most sensible thing I’ve heard in months. I’m all for the hide in a deep, deep hole option!” "Only if we were caught alone, Ginger." Joao clarified. "No, Ginger. We can't hide in a hole. You can if you want," Raina dismissed the notion. To Joao, she said, "Agreed. As much as I worry about the possibilities, I know I would not do this alone anymore, nor have you do so. I'll deal with Sand somehow. I just wanted you to also be prepared for the possibility." "We will be meeting again in the lab tonight, yes?" "Da" Joao said brightly. "I wouldn't miss seeing you tonight." He blushed slightly, coughed and then continued. Raina positively beamed at that, oblivious to Joao's embarrassment, as he continued. "I think you, and Gillian, and Rusalka, and Temnal, and Cole, and Cynwyd, and me, have managed to establish, informally, a club to deal with these dangers in the Dark Hour. Kill them, or at least deal with the monsters.. A specialized extracurricular execution squad." "It's too bad there's no class credit we can claim for independent study," Raina said wryly. "What do you think of this idea? Of going to the castle?" she asked. "Truly. Do you think it can work?" "We have a few weeks before the performance to find the gaps in the coral reef of our plan." Joao said. He paused a moment. "The Castle has to be a key to this, Raina. Although everything changes in the Dark Hour, the Castle's exterior seems to be so very different, don't you think? And then there was Princess Mirelle and her companion Bob. Da, we DO need to find out what we can up there." “Don’t forget that Seabhac has that cottage behind the castle,” Ginger offered. “His grandfather’s private playhouse, wasn’t it? You could always go there and get a closer look at the castle before plunging right in.” She flicked her tail and waited for praise. "I *had* forgotten" Joao admitted. "It is a good idea, Ginger. One that I suspect that perhaps Miss Talbot should broach to Seabhac before and ahead of anyone else." "I had forgotten," Raina admitted. "I wonder... perhaps if I could show Seabhac some of the trumps in the pendant, he might recognize them. Perhaps there is a point that would be more useful to us than the pattern room. That one seemed almost TOO powerful." "Da" Joao said. "A transport close to the Pattern may be dangerous. Somewhere close by, in the Castle would be useful. I wish Princess Caer was here to ask, too." he said. He reflected inwardly, and smiled. If not for her, he never would have met Raina. The thought of facing that first Darkest Hour alone, with likely Caer in a coffin for the duration, would have been horrible. And he would never would have met Raina. Ginger crawled into Raina’s lap and stared up at her, “You and Gilly might want to talk, as well. Cybele used to be a mistress of the Trump. Although the Dorker knew them better, she wasn’t far behind. As evidenced by her little poofy act last night. ” "The Dorker?" Joao said to Ginger. “Dworkin. The Big Cheese. The Trump-a-Dump. The Unicorn Diddler. He Who Named All Things Poorly,” Ginger said. “I think I met him once, but that was several ‘skins’ back. And I’ve slept since then.” She yawned for emphasis. She began to knead Raina’s lap with her claws, settling in. “What able you, Rainy? Can you call them into your head?” "Not without the locket," Raina replied. Then she reconsidered, "At least I don't _think_ so. I... I haven't tried." She turned to Joao. "Do you think I should?" "Especially with Gillian's advice and help" Joao said. "I think you definitely could, and should try." His voice rose in conviction with every syllable. "We need every advantage that we can get against these creatures and this menace, and being able to transport yourself on a moment's notice is a stunningly good tactical advantage. As the even more martial members of our society would attest." Raina smiled, reassured, and nodded with determination. "I will then. I will learn it. You're right. We all need to stand together - us AND our Others. We must find a way to make them all get along and defeat the Hour." She turned to face him more fully and reached out for his hand again. "Oh Joao," she sighed. "I hope I can do this. I'm not a hero. I'm a dancer. For every time I think I can take on the monsters, I have three more moments where I fear I can't. It's only taking on the role - channeling Sand's strength and... and... _royal-ness_ that gets me through. Do you feel that too? How do you manage it?" "The nobility part is far from alien to me." Joao said wryly with a smile. "Far from it, after my mother recovered from the shock of the situation, would I be so foolish as to tell her, she would think it right and proper that I was linked to one of the Amber Royal Family, even deceased in this way." "Of course she would," Raina agreed quietly, blushing slightly and returning her hand primly to her lap. Sometimes she forgot that Joao was nobility. "I find it strange that this has accelerated my exposure to very un-Rebman ideas on what men could and should do, what their roles are." Joao said. "I wonder if this Role taking will be as pronounced for me, as it is for you, when I finally complete the process. For now, for me, its more of a collaboration with Delwin, rather than emulating him, or taking on his traits and abilities." Ginger settled down in Rain’s lap, “Oh trust me, Fish-boy. The land-walkers play all the same games your mermaids do. Which is probably why Delwin doesn’t want to have anything to do with them. Heh.” "Mermaids?" Joao furrowed his eyebrows "I do not speak of the Tritons, Ginger. They do not rule in Rebma. They are patently unsuited for even servitude to the Noble Houses. Nyet, you must mean the Nobility of Rebma." Joao said. Ginger blinked and blinked again, “Whatever you say Mr. Literal.” "I imagine so," Raina answered for Ginger as she began stroking the velvety fur behind the golden cat's ear. The feline immediately went into ‘Love-Me’ Mode, squirming around in Raina’s lap like a Tantric Engineer. "Anyway," she began, changing the subject. "You said that everyone else Joined last night. Do you know what their specialties are?" "Did I say everyone joined? I don't quite remember..." Joao gave a look toward Ginger. "Ginger may recall events with more clarity and accuracy." “Too - happy - to - talk - about - it - just - being - Cole,” Ginger purred, arching her back and tail in pure bliss. “And - my - Kitten.” "Spaesba, Ginger." Joao said. He looked at Raina. "It appears that your ministrations have found favor with her." "It seems that Gospodin Cole has martial oriented joinings, as Finndo taught me" Joao continued, tapping his forehead. "Osric, Cynwyd's shadow, is very magically focused. Temnal's, whoever that is, also has some sort of arcane ability. He said that his healing of me came from himself, the Unicorn and also his Shadow." "And Sand seems to specialize in trumps," Raina added. "Though from what I saw in the caverns, she was also a very skilled fighter. And she could control the Night Wolves. I wonder if they could be used to help us?" After an exquisite happy-shiver, Ginger lounged on Raina’s lap - glancing around for a cigarette. “A pack of two-hundred pound beasts made from shadow and anger? Nah. Why would /that/ be helpful?” she panted. "I do wonder if the Wolves will leave this realm that Sand made for her own." Joao wondered. "At the very least, perhaps you might talk one of them to act as a sentinel and an honor guard..." Joao grinned slightly at the thought of a wolf following Raina around classes. "for the Darkest Hour anyway." Raina giggled at Joao's suggestion, then continued more seriously, "They might be useful as a weapon that could fight FOR us rather than against us, Ginger." She turned to Joao and continued, "If they would be willing. As for whether they are able, I don't know. We would have to somehow transfer them from that realm to ours, and keep them in check when they're here. And... I wonder... would they exist in the Dark Hour or would they be closed up in coffins, do you think?" "A good question" Joao said with a nod. He looked briefly at his empty bowl, in thought, and then glanced at Ginger. Eyes widened slightly and he regarded Raina. "We are not the only ones who are awake in the Hour besides the monsters. We cannot be." Joao said. "After all, Ginger remains awake and aware during the Hour." "Perhaps the Night Wolves will be the same." |
