“Sit, wizard, and tell us about yourself,” Dexter said, chuckling. “Don’t be worried, we’re harmless.”
“Hardly that, I think,” Xander muttered, sitting where Rosh had left. “You’re not of a mind to abuse me today?”
“Well,” Dexter said thoughtfully, “it is early yet.”
The twinkle in his eye made Jenna laugh, which let Xander know that the Captain was not quite as temperamental as he had believed he might be.
“We’ve our health, the wide open void before and behind us, and a good meal for our bellies,” the last Dexter accentuated by raising a steaming spoonful of stew and winking at Jodyne. “It’s a good day.”
Xander glanced around the table and realized that, perhaps, it was his time to earn some of the respect he was due. He leaned back a bit and took in a deep breath, then opened his mouth.
“Captain, can I talk to you?” Jenna asked, beating Xander to the punch.
Dexter looked at her, raising an eyebrow. He shrugged. “Sure, talk.”
“Private, I mean,” she said, rolling her eyes at him in a decidedly non-elvish fashion.
“The elf’s cracked, Dex, careful,” Kragor warned his friend and Captain under his breath. Jenna actually smiled sweetly at him by way of retaliation, which caused Jodyne to snicker softly in the background.
“Aye then, let’s go have a look at that head of yours, see where the bump is,” Dexter said good-naturedly. He stood up and handed Jodyne his half-eaten bowl of stew, then followed his arms mistress back to her cabin.
“Never seen an elf go daft before,” Kragor mumbled after they had left.
Jodyne shook her head and sent a warning glance his way. Bailynn smiled a little, though she kept it to herself. She wondered if, perhaps, Jenna had seen herself in a new light since they had been forced to work together. The elf still confused and terrified her, but that was not in the least because she could still feel the connection between the two of them. She realized she needed to talk to Bekka, the strange woman that seemed to want to help her. Bekka alone had seemed to have a talent at unraveling the magic that made her what she was.
“Temperamental lot, elves,” Xander said, trying to sound sagely. “As I was about to say-“
“Kragor,” Jodyne said, interrupting the wizard but having the courtesy to at least flash a brief smile his way, “I’m for needing another barrel of salted meat from the steerage.”
Kragor sighed then shrugged and stood up. “Listen to an old dwarf and stay single, wizard.”
Jodyne stared at the ceiling beseechingly and shook her head; she knew better than to listen to her husband’s blustering. “You want to eat?” She asked him.
Kragor grumbled something then grinned and winked at her as he made his way to down the hall to the cargo bay that hosted the trap door that led to the steerage between their feet and the Voidhawk’s hull.
Xander looked around, noting how his crowd had diminished to the shy little girl and the cook, who was back working in her kitchen. He sighed and stirred his stew morosely.
“I’d like to hear,” Bailynn said softly, glancing up at him then looking away quickly.
Xander looked at her and nearly laughed scornfully. He paused though, realizing that he needed to start somewhere. Rightfully someone of his rank and prestige deserved better, but given the circumstances, he reminded himself that he had to make do with what he could. He nodded and smiled at her, and began to tell her of himself.
“You’re not going to be taking your clothes off again, are you?” Dexter asked as the door to Jenna’s room shut behind him.
She turned and smiled at him. “I thought you’d never ask!”
“No!” Dexter said too quickly. He grinned. “I mean, you’re a pleasing sight to my eye, but that just complicates things.
Jenna pouted a little and reached up to her vest, then winked at him and let her arms fall to her side. “Captain, I want to stay with you.”
“Stay with me? Like in my cabin?” Dexter asked, confused.
Jenna beamed at his idea. “I hadn’t thought of that, but okay, I accept.”
“What? I didn’t offer nor ask!” He protested.
Jenna laughed. “A girl can try,” she offered before letting her smile fade and turning serious again. “No, I mean I want to stay with you…with the crew… with the Voidhawk. I don’t want to leave at our next port.”
“Oh!” Dexter said, relieved and a little disappointed all at once. He had liked the forbidden thoughts that had entered his mind involving her in his cabin. “Why the change of heart?”
“Something Bailynn said to me,” Jenna said, shrugging it away as unimportant. “She reminded me of what it means to be an elf and that I don’t want to be one.”
Dexter stepped closer to her so that he could place a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “Jenna, nothing wrong with being an elf,” he said. “No more than it’s bad to be human, dwarven, or anything else. The problem’s not with what you were born with, it’s what you do with it that counts.”
Jenna looked at him for a long moment, her eyes searching his. Then she smiled and nodded. “Captain, I need you to know something.”
“What?” Dexter asked, concerned.
“I don’t plan on ever leaving your service or side,” she said with a twinkle in her eye that hinted at excessive moisture. “And that I’m looking forward to the game we play going on for a long, long time… or until you give in and accept me.”
“What game?” Dexter asked, knocked off balance by his mercurial second mate yet again.
“The game where you pretend you don’t want me,” she said, leaning in a little towards him to break the barrier of personal space between them.
“I do want you,” Dexter admitted solemnly. Then, with a grin he added, “otherwise I’d have to promote Rosh to arms master! There’d be no living with him then.”
Jenna’s mouth fell open in surprise, then she laughed. “That’s the game I mean, Dexter. I’m an elf and I’ve got plenty of time to wait for you to come to your senses.”
She winked at him and backed away, turning and heading towards her trunk. “I need to get changed to head up on deck.”
“Meeting’s adjourned then?” Dexter asked her, noticing that the way her hands were moving in front of her she was obviously not waiting for him to leave before changing her clothing.
She looked over her shoulder at him and smiled, “yes, Captain, as long as you’ll have me on your crew.”
Dexter chuckled. “I’ll think about it and let you know,” he said mischievously before turning to leave.
He paused at the door and said, “Oh, Jenna?”
She turned to face him, her vest hanging open in the front and allowing him to see her as she slid it from her arms. “Yes, Sir?” she asked softly.
“I thought about it,” he said quickly, forcing his eyes to stay on hers. “You can stay… matter of fact, I was never going to let you leave in the first place.”
She raised an eyebrow and laughed, then blew him a kiss as he turned and stepped out of her room. Dexter stood outside of it and shook his head, knowing he should not encourage her but also knowing that he enjoyed it so very much when he did. Whistling softly to himself, he started down the hall back towards the galley, then decided he might be better off to head up to the main deck.
Kragor grunted and moved through the dimly lit hold. His dwarven eyes made it easier to see in the poor light, but the shadows were still deep. He kicked aside a crate and made his way over to some barrels that were lashed together. He stumbled on his way and glanced back at whatever had tripped him. Curious, he bent low to examine it, wondering how a tree limb had made its way into the hold.
The limb moved, coiling up slowly and reminding him not of a tree limb anymore but more of a tentacle. He cursed and backpedaled quickly, trying to figure out what it was. He crashed into the barrels and fell on them, breaking apart a weakened one. He grabbed some of the wood and held it up, noting that he should be laying in a pile of salted meat. The wood showed signs of being worn down and eaten away, and the contents of the barrel were missing completely.