Act 2: Upheaval VI - Celebration and Departure

"No strange dreams or tight muscles." He smiles at their visitors but lingers on Nadia a little bit. "Would anyone like some tea? I have a supply of the good stuff in the galley. Warm you up, right as rain."

Mihai looks to the two ladies for an answer to Steve's invite.

Steve and Mihai

"I'd like that," Nadzieja says.

"I never say no to a good cup of tea," the Administrator replies.

And then, Konrad makes his entrance on the deck.

"Oh, Captain Granger."
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Samantha

A young man dressed in mage robes has joined the three people she previously saw speaking to each other—surely the one who shouted "good morning". What she sees on his right shoulder might just take her breath away; a male fairy she's never met before. In fact, many fairies are flying around the deck, using telekinesis to prepare the ship for departure.

This is definitely not the Happy Frog.

For a brief moment, Samantha is enchanted by the sight of all the fairies. She recovers and walks out imperiously, taking charge by the way she walks. They were just saying hello, and they already know each others' names, she thinks to herself. Say what a captain would say.

She nods to the straight-backed aged woman. "Yes, good morning," she replies back.

"Good morning, everyone, and welcome aboard," she says, not knowing a damn thing about the ship. It is a lovely ship, though, a magnificent sailing craft, though she's not sure where the distinct feeling of admiration comes from.

Steve looks over at the resident red mage. "I'm just about to make tea for everyone, would you like some Konrad?"

Good, she knows who she is now. "Yes, tea would be lovely. I haven't ate yet, in fact."

"Lovely"? Is that what this guy would say? Whatever. I should probably invite their guests as well.

She nods to the other two and says, "The two of you are welcome to join us."

"You wake up alright?"

Nadzieja gives a quizzical look at Konrad, but it vanishes after a few seconds. She waits for him to answer Mihai's question. As for Anastazja, she doesn't seem to have noticed any change in Konrad's behavior.

Did she "Wake up alright"? Samantha thinks back to the "company" she was with, while already painfully aware of her new...sensations, and tries to keep from blushing. She does detect the morning aftertaste of beer on her tongue, though. "I'm not hungover, so yes. I think that qualifies as 'alright'."

Steve's eyebrow raises up. "Glad to hear it. Shall we then?" He looks expectantly at Konrad, waiting for him to lead the way.

"Yes, follow me." Sam leads them in the direction away from Konrad's personal quarters, toward where she believes the galley might be.

In addition, she'll also look out across the side of the ship toward the city, to try and figure out where she is, while also training her ear to the accents of their guests and eyeing their mode of dress.

Intelligence 12
She's going to look for the galley using Captain Oldturn's tour of the Happy Frog to guide her.

Kn. Culture 20
She's going to discern her geographical location.

Samantha:

Samantha confidently walks toward the door that leads inside the ship. Nadzieja and Anastazja follow her without a second thought, unaware of what is really happening. The gender-bended rogue luckily chooses to turn left when she arrives at the hallway, instead of going right. So she presses on... and walks right by her destination.

Fluffle perks up. Steve and Mihai would immediately notice this mistake.

Steve stops in front of the galley and laughs. "Looks like you had a harder night than you let on; the galley is right here." He opens the door. "Come on everyone, make yourselves comfortable while I boil some water."

"I don't see Femke. Konrad, come with me and give me a hand."

Myr. She's in Myr. All the way down south! This is so wrong. She fights her lungs as they threaten to hyperventilate, aware that some seem to be paying attention to her...

When Steve points out her mistake, she stops and turns around, and starts to say something, before getting a handle on herself. "I guess so." Don't blush, dammit.

When Mihai speaks up, she doesn't question his directness. This must be how they interact with their captain all the time, right? So she follows him, but starts becoming a little paranoid...and hoping that finding this "Femke" doesn't lead her back to that naked woman in the captain's bed.

"Of course."

Mihai leads Konrad away from the galley. A place where they can have some privacy... right, the Captain's Quarters...

Steve

The two guests don't think much of Konrad's mistake and they join Steve into the galley.

"Thank you," Nadzieja says as she sits down in front of Anastazja. "Do you have any barley tea?"

Meanwhile, Fluffle appears slightly concerned about Konrad and probably wonders the real reason why he left with Mihai. He then returns his attention to the guests and decides to help Steve prepare the tea instead.

"I'll handle the stove," he says.
____________

Mihai and Samantha

Mihai leads Samantha back onto the main deck, and she quickly realizes they're going back to the captain's quarters. Before she has the chance to object however, she sees something out of the corner of her eye. Something big.

She looks northwest and sees a colossal round shape right above the horizon. It's far off, and yet so close. Like if a new moon had appeared in the sky, but much closer to Dust than the one she was used to.

Mihai is now at the door to Konrad's quarters. He only needs to open it.

Mihai doesn't notice what gets Konrad's attention, and opens the door. - "C'mon."

Samantha stops to look at this thing, unable to hide her surprise. Then, she hears footsteps getting quieter as they go further away, and notices the serious-faced man she is with has just reached the captain's door...and is opening it.

"Wait," she calls out.

She walks over briskly and tries to grab his arm.

"Thank you Fluffle, that would be great," he says to the fairy, immediately followed by, "No barley, but I have black and jasmine. I'm a big fan of the black personally." He opens the top of the kettle and begins filling it with water from his cantrip.

"Huh?"

Steve

"I'll take black then."

"I'll have the same," the middle-aged woman says as she makes herself comfortable on the bench.

Fluffle has just finished starting a small fire in the stove.

"There you go!" he proudly announces.
____________

Mihai and Samantha

When Samantha grabs Mihai's arm, she inadvertently swings the door open. Mihai then sees Femke standing next to Konrad's bed, completely naked. The Tyke woman—who a moment ago was searching for something on the floor—freezes when she realizes it's Mihai in the door frame.

Sam goes pale, and pulls Mihai out of the doorway and shuts the door.

"Excuse me sailor, but what the hell is the matter with you!?"

Femke can probably hear her through the door.

The black mage holds his free hand out to high five Fluffle and says, "Good work." To their guests he says, "Black it is then. Would you like some fruit or bread to go with it? It's not much but it's good."

Mihai's jaw is still dropped and his eyes dead and bug-like. He blinks a few times as his brain reboots, then he locks eyes with Konrad and sharply mutters - "You f---" - but then stops himself and facepalms - "Sam?" - he asks hopefully.