[ Voice, Action ] "You lost today, kid. But that doesn't mean you have to like it."

[talentsgirl]

[Molly debated, but in the end, didn't lock this post from Harry. It was as good as a note slipped under his door, really.]

Hey, Luceti, here's a crazy question. Does anyone know the best path up to the mountains? I hear there's a lake up there I'd like to see. And does the Welcome Center keep those really good maps in stock, the ones that are a bit more in detail than the one in the journal?

And here's a slightly less crazy question - if there's anyone feel like filling in an inquiring mind and have a chat over a cold one, I'd love to know some more about these missions everyone keeps going on. Even if it was about the more recent one, or about one of the ones we can sign up for, there's nothing like first hand experience. I'll be in the Good Spirits from 1-3 if there's any takers.

[And that is exactly where she will be, sitting at the bar or on one of the tables, looking friendly over a cold one... which will originally be an iced tea. She may upgrade, depending on the conversation and the conversate-ee.

After her time in the Good Spirits, hopefully chatting with friendly, informative folk and if not spent poured over a very old-looking book and a village map (hopefully someone will help her get her hands on one of the Nami editions), she'll head to the Item Shop and finish picking out her camping gear. After being exposed to some serious bad news magic, she hasn't been quite herself. And this dusty old book and a remembered conversation with Shiro once upon a time has given her an idea.]

Comments

[talentsgirl]

"Sounds about right." She made a face, "Although carrying all that with the wings is going to be annoying."

[greenjacketed]

Well, he thought, if she needed a hand...

No.

"That's the problem with bloody tents. More trouble to carry than their worth. Even with the mules."

[talentsgirl]

"Then maybe I'll just take the bedroll," she smiled a bit. "There hasn't been rain in a while, so it should work out okay."

[greenjacketed]

"And a blade. For protection, like."

[talentsgirl]

"And for cutting things," she nods and turns to jot it down on her list, feeling a little silly that she hadn't thought of it. What was she going to do to make a fire, break off twigs with her hands?

[greenjacketed]

"You'll need to build a fire, too. And you'll need a flask. For the tea."

[talentsgirl]

She couldn't help but grin a little at that, "For the tea, huh?"

[greenjacketed]

"Or the brandy."

[talentsgirl]

A soft scoff of amusement, "I'll probably be passing on the brandy."

All she needed was to be drunk, by herself, in the middle of the wilderness. That would completely help with the purification ritual. ...well. Sanya might agree, actually.

[greenjacketed]

"Don't be so quick, lass! Brandy? It'll keep you warm on a cool night."

[talentsgirl]

'ware, this way there be danger. She bites back a more flirtatious response for a milder, "It's a very warm August. I think I"ll be okay."

[greenjacketed]

In the mountains? Where it could indeed get cooler? Ah, well. He said nothing more on the subject. Simply sipped his ale.

"I was, ah, thinkin' -- Molly?" Brave bugger -- he tried to find her eyes again.

[talentsgirl]

She allowed their eyes to meet for the briefest moment and then slid her gaze to another part of his face, "Yes?"

[greenjacketed]

"Magic. Sorcery. It's a fact here, ain't it? Not just yours -- not just Harry's. But all of it. All beyond superstition."

So maybe...maybe, he could adjust. Learn. Adapt. He was good at adapting if he put his mind to it.

[talentsgirl]

Her gaze flicked to his and then away again, "It is. Very real. Even things that I thought weren't real are real here. But..."

She bites her lip for a moment and then - decided against the risk of proving it to him.

"I can feel it, as sure as I can feel the table under my fingers. It's very real."

[greenjacketed]

"...It makes a man feel mighty left behind, at times."

[talentsgirl]

Molly recalled her recent participation in a magical battle and spoke quietly, "Believe it or not, I can understand that."

[greenjacketed]

"You? With your magic already? How so?"

[talentsgirl]

"Me, with my magic already, only lets me see how much more magic other people have. It's like a measuring stick, and I've got inches compared to fathoms out there, and I can just barely see how deep it goes."

[greenjacketed]

"Well, lass. We none of us all get to start out with the bounty that others get. Some of us -- most of us -- have to start with little."

[talentsgirl]

"I know," she said with a small smile. "But it can make a gal feel mighty left behind, at times."

[greenjacketed]

He returned her smile -- smallishly as well, thank God. When he'd been made ensign, many of the lads had laughed. An ensign, at his age? Why, most of his fellow ensigns barely had reason to shave yet. Left behind, indeed.

"Oh, I dunno. You amaze me, you do." He cleared his throat rather awkwardly. "And not just a'cause of the magic."

[talentsgirl]

Ah, well. That was a problem, really. Molly was a beautiful young woman, and she knew that like she knew four minus two equaled two. It was just a fact, she wasn't vain about it, but she knew when a man admired her for more than her scintillating conversational skills.

And Richard was, by all she'd seen, a good man, an attractive man, and someone who evidenced a rough kindness she found appealing. He was also a man who she hadn't seen much of since she'd told him about her magic. A man from nearly two hundred years in her past.

And she? She was no prize. He deserved more than what he'd get with her, and at the very least he deserved for her to be straight with him.

She folded her hands on the table and glanced down at them. "You're very kind."

[greenjacketed]

...He thought he understood that determined choice not to look him in the eye. By now, the meaning became abundantly clear. Or so he believed.

"Nah, lass." His voice remained low -- a rough, rich collection of emotion. "Just a man who's sometimes too honest for his own good."

[talentsgirl]

Molly wished she knew what she wanted to do with Sharpe. He probably just needed a little bit of encouragement, either way, and he'd go with the direction she spelled out. He wasn't forceful or obsessive, he seemed, by all means, a decent and attractive man... from two hundred years ago... who'd spent justifiable time avoiding her after learning her secret.

Sigh.

"Too honest is better than less-than-honest. Things are confusing enough here without games."

She didn't want to be playing games with a good man's affections. Or even his baser inclinations. But she didn't know the rules of his time, and she had her own concerns.