Aberrant: 200X - International Party

[Ryusei Hideyoshi]

A porter comes in and whispers in Ryusei's ear and he smiles as the porter disappears. "Ladies and gentelmen we have reached International waters, please enjoy yourselves."

He looked to Keiko. "Tomorrow perhaps. I've used a considerable amount of power today. I'd much prefer to do that when I'm at my best."

He gives her a smile and watches the spectacle of Ein putting the "Fear of Ein" into Tomas. He doesn't react openly, but inwardly he's somewhat impressed.

"Remind me to never ever anger our blonde norse companion...."

[z-Sean "Loki" McCline]

A form skimmed the waves, flying a bit recklessly, right until a wave slapped his face and chest. Sputtering but laughing, the handsome young man flying so wildly angled a little higher. Even his handler would have been hard-pressed to say anything to the young man; it was the first time he'd been allowed to really cut loose in a long time.

At the boat full of novas, he arched higher still and came to a boot-thumping landing on the deck. Sean McCline stood there in red-headed, muscled cuteness, wearing a t-shirt and khakis with hiking boots. He may not have looked like he belonged on the boat, but he also didn't look like he cared. His duffle bag, stenciled with the DV of DeVries on the side, dropped to the deck. He'd get a room later; for now, he wanted to party. After all, his birthday was coming up, and he was due some fun.

The lights and voices drew him to the dining room, where he ducked in, smiling. Hazel eyes scanned the room, but quickly lit on the massive blond man. "Ein!" he called, sounding every bit the teenager he was as he jumped-flew over a table and landed next to the Elite. "Hey! How the hell have you been?"

Grinning, the blond man stood and gave the smaller teen a hug. He may have even said something, but Sean didn't hear it. He was too busy staring in wide-eyed embarrassment and horror at the ravishing blond teen. The squeaking voice that followed was downright unmanly "Contessa!? What are you doing here?! You never go anywhere!"

[SalmonMax]

"Well, probably not on the boat," Keiko demurs with a laugh. "We'd need a bigger track."

She trails off at the spectacle.

"That guy is really huge," she confides in Ryusei. "Do you think he was going to fight? Why was he scaring the goth guy away?"

[Ryusei Hideyoshi]

"Because the Goth guy could likely have anyone here he set his sights on. I would assume he acted to prevent such a thing from happening to Contessa."

He chuckles. "I suppose so.. Though we could fly around the boat, or swim if that would be more to your liking."

[Vixen]

"Feh. Men. Always gotta swing something around to show who's bigger." Vixen bites at a carrot, sniffs the air, and shivers, as the hair on her back stands up a bit at the whiff of heightened pheromones on the boat. Everyone here is cuter than me. Again. Bleh.

"You two gonna race, then? This I gotta see."

[SalmonMax]

"Oh, I can't fly," Keiko says with a shake of her head. She keeps watching Ein's towering figure with all the rapt, horrified fascination that one watches a massive car accident with.

"So...he's going out with the little blonde girl?" she asks skeptically. "How is that even possible?"

[Doctor Aeon]

The Doc standing next to Ryusei raised his hand up to his earlobe and tapped a finger to just behind his ear.

"We are a go for Operations L through O. Converge on Site 1."

He smiled warmly at Ryusei, but said nothing else and went back to being his shadow.

One of the Clones at the bar put down his plate, the non-Tomas pointing clone that is, and headed below decks with a grimace.

The Doc Aeon at the table kept looking forlornly toward Keiko, but to no apparent avail. He didn't have multiple tails and fox ears after all.

The one at the Trinity's table looked around somewhat less forlornly. He was more terrified. Though his existance was rated in hours, he felt those hours to be precious. The Big Blonde Killing Machine had shattered that entrancing young man, and the other excitingly odd man next to him had also gone. He ate a chicken wing absently.

[Ryusei Hideyoshi]

Ryusei looks to Vixen and nods. "Beautiful women bring out that part of our natures, for good or ill."

He looks about to take another bite then Keiko asks about Ein and his lovelife. "I truly doubt that. He's a great deal older than her, and she's younger than me which makes such a thing largely illegal."

"Besides.." He looks to Carver and Caitlin.."...I think he's more interested in the other company he's currently keeping."

He shrugs. "Love is quite blind to most things Keiko."

He looks back to Vixen. "Is there something wrong?"

[Contessa]

Time halted and there was no sound in Contessa's world during the moment Sean McCline came into the room. Nervousness, fear, anxiety, desire and affection all flooded from her heart in a single moment that shocked her back into reality just as swiftly as she had left it.

Omigod! Omigod! Omigod! Sean! What's he doing here?!? Where's he been, what's he been doing, why'd he leave us?!? Thoughts flooded her mind as she stood up and walked over to greet him.

"Sean..." her voice was little more than a whisper. Her eyes moistened slightly; her emotional high giving birth to the twinkle of starlight around sapphire moons. They'd faught, a lot. They argued, they bickered, and they never saw anything eye to eye. Here and now that didn't seem to matter to her at all. Sean was alive, well, and here in the flesh.

She fell into him her arms wrapping tightly around him as she'd never let go again. A few tears slid softly down her cheek, while other wettened his t-shirt.

"...I- um, we were so worried about you." she whispered/whimpered, heedless to any spectacle she may be making of her self.

[Ryusei Hideyoshi]

Just like that another nova was added to the ship's occupant list. This Sean seemed to have a definite history with Contessa but that took a backseat as Ryusei looked to Doctor Aeon.

"Doctor, would you care to explain just what your clones are doing?"

[z-Sean "Loki" McCline]

He'd expected her to rant and scream and make a scene. He'd prepared himself for her to be angry and maybe try to hit him. She was beyond beautiful tonight, and he'd noticed that the more emotional she got, the better she looked. He hadn't been ready for her emotions to be relief, and he certainly hadn't been ready for tears.

"Tessa," he said, his voice breaking a little as he grasped in confusion for what to say or do. He settled for putting his arms around her, one hand coming up to pat her head in the most awkward attempt at affection ever. Finally, he blurted, "I'm sorry. I didn't think you'd miss me."

He hadn't thought she'd be sad to see him go. In his need to be away from the house that reminded him of his loss daily, he hadn't considered that anyone would miss him. He thought they'd be glad to be rid of the burden.

Meanwhile, in the purely male part of him, he was praying, Please god... don't let me get a boner. 'Tessa will take it personally and try to snap it off... please... no boners...

[Caitlin Kieran]

With a sigh, Caitlin sank back into her seat.

Well. At least she's distracted, she thought dismally, glancing from the doorway where Tomas had vanished to the newly-arrived redhead, and then to Contessa.

Idly, she pushed the remainder of her food around on her plate, listening to the drama as it unfolded.

[Jael Carver]

Jael watched the various dramas with interest, particularly the one with the cute red-head. While he wasn't as attractive as Einherjar, he was still cute enough to make Jael's list - not a hard task for any semi-attractive man.

She glanced at Fianna and Einherjar to see if they had any idea of what was going on, and decided they didn't. Sitting back, she continued to eat and watch the going-ons.

[Doctor Aeon]

Doc Aeon (or more likely a clone, but Doc Aeon for this purpose) nodded his head curtly.

"Sir, while we are mostly sampling the various foods here - without the drawback of putting on weight, we are also mingling with the company to the best of our social skill set. We are examing this boat for its many various faults and fixing them. We plan to increase engine capacity 230%, modify the radar to an effective defense system," he counts off his points in his head, "and tripling the effieciency of the cooking station due to the precieved eating capacity of the novas on board."

"Are there any other alterations you would like us to undertake?"

He was well aware that these VERY necessary changes needed to be made to the boat and that the young novas before him might baulk, still, honesty was the point of this social excercise - being honest with his capabilities. That he might not be noticed was of no real consequence. He only wanted the attentions of those who noticed such things.

[Eingar]

He resumed his seat between Caitlin and Jael with a faint sigh as Contessa seemed to be distracted - at least for now - from the fact she was mad at him. He'd catch up with Sean once the kid was done being hugged to that bosom, but for now he appropriated back his rum bottle and took a large swallow before setting it down and attacking his food afresh.

Eating took his mind off the memory of Contessa's admittedly fantastic and definitely too-young-for-him arse as she had swished her way over here. He grinned slightly at Sean's expression over Contessa's shoulder and shook his head, then caught Jael's curious look.

"I think he stayed with them. He mentioned something when I met him in Houston about staying with a family called the Danae's... Should've made the connection sooner." He shrugged with a smile as he explained to Jael and Caitlin. "Looks like she missed him." He nudged Caitlin.

"How's that Guinness? Want a refill?"

[Contessa]

The moment had passed and Contessa now found herself in the arms of her first, and still on going, crush. She stepped away, still a bit flustered and wiped the tears from her eyes, it was amazing how her makeup didn't smudge or smear.

His words, whether he was aware of it or not, had formed a crack along her heart. There as many good times as there bad, long nights laughing, playing, and being average teenage kids doing their best to be young. Mixie loved him and he got along well her father, and it seemed, at least to her, that his wounds were healing and he was learning to love again.

And then one day he was gone. No letter, no good bye, nothing. Her look of disappointment and sadness upon her face was enough to cut the young man to the bone. "Yeah, you never were much of a thinker." She said with the tone of disappointment that only a mother could have delivered it with more weight. "I'm sorry every one, I need some air."

She didn't walk out, she simply hovered out wit the tips of her boots just an inch or so off the deck.

[z-Sean "Loki" McCline]

Sean just sat down in the chair she'd just vacated, his jaw open and shaking his head. What had just happened? Was she happy to see him or not? What the hell did she want? After a moment, he shook himself. "Well, hi, everyone," he said, his voice as befuddled as he clearly was. "I'm Sean. I'm getting some food and some beer, probably not in that order. Anyone want something while I'm up?"

Standing, he took any requests and then went for the buffet line and cooler.

[Caitlin Kieran]

Caitlin watched Tessa float away and, without another word, downed the remaining Guinness in her glass. Her eyes narrowed only slightly as she swallowed, and she was grateful (not for the first time) for being blessed with nova physiology.

There is something seriously wrong with these people. Are there hidden cameras, somewhere? With this much emotional flip-flopping, I'd expect a script to be involved. Christ. I can just see this showing up on some weirdo reality channel.

Attempting to force some degree of levity into her voice, she nodded at Einherjar and quipped, "Of course. Bird doesn't fly on one wing, does it?"

"Nice to, eh, meet you," she called after Sean. Ah, well. At least he was cute.

[z-Xiao Saori]

Saori held herself close to Tomas and offered what comfort she could. "Of course we have worked changes on each other," she told him softly. "Is this not what we set out to do? To better ourselves through one another. Which we have done." She smiled, even as she shivered from the cool air on her bare skin.

She glanced back at Shae. "I say we stay. We could leave... and what? We are here to learn, and we have already learned something. We have learned that Einherjar is no friend of ours." Her voice was cold and angry. He had spurned her, and that was fine. But what he had done to her lover was unforgivable.

[Ryusei Hideyoshi]

Ryusei frowned. "Doctor, please refrain from modifying the boat, as I do not own it. I have simply rented it for this event. Modification is something that even if it is beneficial, the owners aren't likely to smile upon.

He nodded as Sean spoke and sighed. Yet another nova he would have to find a place for. It was bad enough he'd already had to ask one guest to sleep on deck with him, another was simply the result of poor planning.

[Eingar]

He was gone and back in a couple of minutes with a sealed bottle of the black stuff, settling down between the blonde and the redhead once more with a smile. He set another tropical smoothie down in front of Jael then applied a thumbnail to the underside of the bottlecap. It pinged off, he caught it in his other hand, and in a few minutes later (pouring Guinness cannot be hurried, that's a rule!) Caitlin's glass was topped up and back in front of her.

"You know," Ein said conversationally to the other people sitting at the table as he set the empty bottle down next to it. "One day I'm going to throw a party for novas where people don't freak out, feel left out, run away, have long-lost reunions or try to ravish strangers as a matter of course." He picked up another steaming crab, cracked it between his thumb and forefinger with surprising delicacy, and picked out a chunk of the savory meat, his lips quirking in an ironic grin under his trimmed beard. "And when that happens, everyone will wonder if they had a good time or not." He popped the meat into his mouth with a chuckle.

[Mr Fox]

Daniel picked that moment to wander in and pulled up a chair at the end of the table, he looked some cross between frustrated and amused. "What's wrong with ravishing strangers? If there's no ravishing going on can you even call it a party?" He tried to smile and make it a humorous statement, but his voice had a slight edge to it of annoyance. "Hey, I'm Daniel by the way for those I haven't met before. How's it going Jael?"

He had almost not chosen this table, the only two people he really knew with any familiarity were Jael and Ryu, but in his present frustrated, cock-blocked mood he figured he might as well pile it on and start by talking with Jael, they had an entire cruise to mingle. Maybe Saori would get done with her little boy toys and whatever it was that had pulled her away in the middle of some phenomenal sex and they could finished what they had started. In the mean time might as well meet some new folks. Up close and personal Einherjar was pretty impressive, he's seen the opnet pictures and read the stories, but damn. Then there were the others at the table, just as impressive if in different ways. He wondered who they were, he thought the kid was Sean, he vaguely remembered him but wasn't sure if it was from the party last year, or the opnet. He shrugged and waited for introductions.

[Doctor Aeon]

One Doc Aeon Clone turns to another.

"All this hooking up ... why haven't any of us got some one yet?"

The Clone looks at the Clone thoughtfully.

"It's because so many of these novas are young and stuck up on things superficial like looks, cup and bra sizes. They don't look for the qualities that will take them beyond the casual hook up doomed to implode as selfish egos collide and desires are not met. No one is looking for the light under the bushel of darkness that holds true meaning and something that will last bright and true long after the luster of sex has faded."

"Really?" responds the first Clone.

"No. It's because we're dorks."

[Caitlin Kieran]

A derisive snort was Fianna's only reply to the newcomer's comment about ravishing strangers; if he'd intended it to be witty, or humorous, he'd evidently failed with her. She took a long draught of Guinness, lifting the glass toward her boozing benefactor in a brief salute as she pushed her plate back from the edge of the table.

At least Einherjar had managed to send Tomas scurrying off with his tail tucked between his legs.

That thought bolstered her mood considerably, and it was with a decidedly more upbeat mindset that she watched the interactions between the various novas moving to and from her table. All talk of school and similar subjects would apparently have to wait; there were simply too many people coming and going to carry on a conversation of any length or depth.

Most of them seem to know each other, she mused, quietly relegating herself to the role of observer until something struck her interest. She leaned the chair back until the front legs were elevated off the floor, glass in one hand and an attentive, curious expression on her face.

[Eingar]

The look Einherjar directed at Daniel was a little... okay, a lot less frosty than the one he had levelled at Tomas. But it was nonetheless daunting, the seemingly omnipresent threat in those eyes softened by the wry smile.

"Ahh, the voice of youth speaks." he grinned at the novox singer. "If you'd ever been ravished by a complete stranger, you'd not ask that question." His tone was light, but the Elite's eyes were gimlet-like. "Lot's of people make the mistake, but 'ravish' means to rape someone, to overwhelm them. Now it has come to mean other things in people's minds, and when getting frisky with a consenting partner a little overwhelming can be nice." His grin was mischief incarnate. "But in the case of some novas, who use their pretty looks and other quantum expressions to turn people into gibbering idiots before taking advantage of them, it's no different than slipping a roofie into their drink."

He took a large swig of his rum, the potent alcohol not really touching his physiology, and set the bottle back down, his eyes not having left the singer throughout his little speech. "Basically, Daniel, it's something I personally consider a casus belli."

[Contessa]

She didn't stay still as on her trip for 'fresh air'. The main deck seemed to be getting a lot of traffic and would soon require it's own air traffic controller. No, she chose to just walk the along the out skirts of the yacht away from the crowds that were building in all the 'free' cabins and assorted halls.

She was an emotional creature, this much was true, a simple girl who'd missed out on so much of life who had one day been given the opportunity to experience everything she missed, but it never came with an instruction booklet. She hoped she didn't cause to much of a scene, it certainly wasn't her intention to but Sean's words had cut her so deep that she could believe this was the same young man she'd played video games and watched movies to all hours of the morning with on countless occasions.

I thought we were friends. she thought to herself, pulling her ophone out of her small clutch purse. "Call Dad." she said and the device started dialing out. Why would he think that? That I wouldn't miss him? I thought of him everyday, I'll bet he never thought of me once.

"Hi Dad," she said suddenly. She smiled at a rather odd looking nova as they crossed paths. Tall and muscular, with the same quiet look to him that she felt. He simply closed his yellow eyes and nodded silently as she walked past. "Um, no, I'm not at home, look there's something I need to tell you, but I need for you not to wig out, okay?"

That never worked, he always wigged out. "Dad... dad... dad... would you listen, Jesus. I found Sean."

There was a sudden silence on the deck, she brushed away the few hairs the comfortable night breeze captured as she walked and she tucked them behind her ear. "No. He's fine. I found him at a party, on a boat..." She paused, not wanting to face the 'Wrath of Dad' with her next sentence. "In international waters."

"Cal-calm.... Dad... woah, seriously, take a pill..." Holding the phone from her ear a few strangers close by grinned, amused by the poor girl's misfortune. "I'll..." she sighed, unable to get a work in edgewise. "It's just a party dad, can you have a little faith in me?"

She grunted with frustration slapping the phone against her thigh a few times release her building aggression. "Nothing is going to happen! Yes, there's drinking, but I'm not, even if I was dad alcohol doesn't affect me any more, remember? What do you mean it doesn't matter? Ugh, never mind, it's irrelevant. Yes people are drinking but I'm not that's all that matters."

Her cheeks flushed and her eyes widened. Her father apparently had crossed a line of inquiries somewhere. "I- I don't know..." She stuttered. "Dad that's stupid, who cares? Oh, right, of course... you. Well, I don't know... shall I know on each door and ask 'pardon me, my dad would like to know if your having sex'. Oh, that'll go over real nice. So to answer your question: I don't know, but from what I can tell, the forecast is calling for a pretty chance."

She sighed as if fighting a losing battle. "Dad, please. Can you just trust me? Please? I can't shelter myself from other novas forever. I've spent my whole life trapped in my room over a stupid accident, please, please don't take this away from me too. I can take care of myself."

There was a long pause as she listened intently to the man on the line and then finally she slid her phone closed. It was placed back into her clutch and she rested her hands on the railing as the mist of the sea air caught her face with a refreshing coolness.

She sighed again then mocked her fathers voice, "I love you Punkin', but get home or your grounded. That's not the place for you to be. Jerk." She amended. "If you loved me you'd let me stay and be with my... oh, that's right... I don't have friends here."

"It's hard to make friends when you're out here alone." Came a cold voice behind her.

She spun about, startled by the silent speakers approach. "Jeez, you scared me." It was the man from before, the one she'd passed as she started to call her father. She looked about and saw that there was no one around but them, and her back was pressed as close to the bow of the boat as it could get. Oh my god... he's going to kill me and dump me overboard... wait... I can fly... "W-who're you, and I'm not even playing when I say I can scream really loud."

[Warren Verona]

"I didn't mean to startle you, I'm sorry." The man said, his lips twisting into a grin. "I'm called The Revenant, and there is no need to scream, unless, of course, you'd like to. I won't stop you. Sometimes, people just need to scream."

She's certainly got the lung for it! Holy fun bags Dead-Man!

"I'm not going to hurt you though, if that's what you're thinking." He pulled his leather jacket over his shoulders a bit to straighten it. His t-shirt read: "Tits or GTFO".

"Sorry." Contessa said, looking at the man who's pale features and dark ringed eyes reminded her of many a zombie movie. But he still seemed handsome in a way. She knew he wasn't a real zombie, quantum expressions took their toll in several ways and despite his outward appearance he was still just as much of a nova as she was. "I'm a little on edge, my dad hates me and a guy who I thought was my friends isn't, and some elite scared off the only decent person on the whole ship that would talk to me."

The Revenant cocked an eye brow.

"Sorry... I didn't mean you, I meant..." she grunted and threw up her hands. "Oh forget it... I don't even know what I'm saying anymore..."

He simply smiled at her, never letting his features fully come into the light. "Your father loves you dearly. He is concerned and worried for your safety, once you calm yourself you'll understand that. If the Elite scared off your 'date', simply go get him back, and if your friend who is not your friend has left you with unanswered questions, go find out the truth."

"You make it sound so easy." She smirked, rolling her eyes.

"It is. But you'll never have any of your answers unless you go seek them yourself."

"You erupt into Yoda or something?" She asked, trying to be cute. The Revenant was unimpressed.

"I've lost much, and so I've learned that in order find what I've lost, I must seek it out. No one will do it for me." He turned and walked away from her. "Call your dad and tell him you love him. Fathers are as much a precious gift to their daughters as their daughters are to them. Cherish every moment you have with him, because they are finite."

She thought on it for a moment before suddenly realizing she hadn't introduced herself. "Oh, wait, I never told you may name!"

He faded out of sight, disappearing like a ghost in the ocean's mist as he neared the wall that led into the main decks interior. "And I didn't ask." echoed slightly in reality before she resigned that he was truly gone.

"It was... nice meeting you... I guess." She sighed and walked back to the dining hall. You can do this Tessa. Sure he's a trained killer, but how bad can he be? If he gets out of line, Her mind was at a loss for how exactly to deal with the intimidating Elite called Einherjar... If he gets out of line, you're dead. I mean seriously... who're you trying to fool?

[z-Sean "Loki" McCline]

Sean came back with a plate just in time to hear Einherjar's remarks. "Wow, um... ok," Sean said, sinking into a seat and digging into one of the three chili-cheese hotdogs. He barely cleared his mouth long enough to say, "Hi, all. As I said, I'm Sean. Who are all of you?" He pointed at Einherjar. "I know you."

[Caitlin Kieran]

"Caitlin," the copper-haired girl replied with a grin that didn't quite reach her eyes. Her gaze was cool and measuring, as if taking stock of the young boy who'd driven her traveling companion to tears. Almost as an afterthought, she added, "Nice to meet you. I take it you've already met some of the people here?"

The question was casual, off-hand, but perhaps too much so. Her chair rocked slightly as she flexed one foot up and down, and she took another drink of dark stout as she waited for his reply.

[z-Sean "Loki" McCline]

"Yeah, I met Einherjar a while ago," he said, nodding, "and I lived with Contessa's... in her house for a while. I thought... I didn't think she liked me," he blurted suddenly, the words that had been rampaging through his head pouring out in a gushing flow. "She was always arguing with me. The only time we didn't fight was around Mixie, and that's just because Mix was kinda a... barrier, you know?"

Realizing he'd just blurted all that out to near strangers, he shut his mouth. "Sorry, I... I'm just really out of sorts. It is nice to meet you, Caitlin. I just wish I wasn't such... yeah." His shy smile, though still displaying his turmoil, was genuine.

[SalmonMax]

Keiko can't help but laugh at Dr. Aeon's antics, and Ryusei's perfect deadpan straight man delivery.

"This is so surreal," she says...then unclips her mic and squares her shoulders, facing Ryusei.

"Okay. First interview. Tell me about yourself."

Ryusei finds a small microphone pointing at him in the hand of a perky Japanese girl with an expectant expression.

[Caitlin Kieran]

Confused little thing, isn't he? Poor boy.

Caitlin's smile softened slightly at his outburst, and she nodded.

"You don't have to worry about apologizing to me, you know. Doesn't look like she felt the same way, though, boyo."

Leaning forward, she let the elevated feet of her chair come to rest on the floor again, and propped her chin up on one elbow to regard him curiously.

"Maybe you should have a word with her?" she asked gently, concern clearly visible in her expressive green eyes.

[Eingar]

"It's good advice." Ein smiled as he stole a small piece of food from Caitlin's plate with studied insouciance. An equal-opportunities flirt, he stole a morsel from Jael's plate too, grinning slyly as he popped it into his mouth.

"The girl was upset." He said calmly to his young friend. "That should tell you all you really need to know. Plus there's barracuda in these waters: she could use a good friend who won't be seen to patronise her. Or take advantage of her." He finished quietly.

[z-Sean "Loki" McCline]

"And say what?" Sean asked, the frustration rushing back into his face. He wore whatever he was feeling on his face. "I have no idea what she wants! She wasn't nice to me when I was in her house, but she misses me when I'm gone? Am I her punching bag?" He consumed half a hotdog in one bite, chewed maybe twice before swallowing. That gave Ein his chance to speak, and like a summer storm, Sean's emotions shifted again.

"Who's taking advantage of her?" he asked sharply, having leapt straight from frustrated to protective anger. He might not have thought she liked him, but it was clear he was at least somewhat soft on her.

[Caitlin Kieran]

With narrowed eyes, Caitlin jabbed a playful, mostly-gentle elbow into the Elite's side as Sean vented. She wasn't flirting; well, not really, but it was difficult to be sure about that sort of thing with someone you've just met. She realized that after the fact, of course, but there wasn't much to be done for it.

"Not sure that anyone is, right now," she interjected, turning back to the hazel-eyed teen. "But she seems the sort to be drawn into things easily. She's too pretty, and too sheltered by half." Sighing quietly, Fianna shook her head. "I sort of decided I'd keep an eye on her when we got here, but there are a lot of... persuasive people around, from the looks of it. She doesn't know me, so it's hard to compete with that kind of influence."

[Mr Fox]

Daniel had to force himself not to swallow and stammer an apology at the look he could see in the Elite's eyes even if he expression was friendly. Finally he said, "Yeah, sorry, I meant consensual frolicking of course." He tried to brighten up a bit, "I'm just a little grumpy from a case of coitus interruptus. Consensual of course." He grinned at that. "Hi, Caitlin, Sean, nice to meet you both. Good to see you again Jael." He paused for a second, it just occurred to him that Jael seemed normal, her emotions weren't all over the chart like the last two times he saw her. "You seem... well, you seem remarkably cheerful. Life is agreeing with you it seems."

[Eingar]

Ein's smile for Daniel seemed more genuine, more sympathetic now, despite the detached ice-cold core to his eyes that never seemed to leave them. "Well, that's a real bugger, right enough." He commiserated. "In that cooler is some rum I brought along if the stuff at the bar doesn't grab you."

His attitude was clearly one of no hard feelings as he mock-winced at Fianna's playful elbowing of his ribs, shooting the striking redhead a hammed-up look of pain and surprise before grinning at her.

[z-Sean "Loki" McCline]

Sean stared at Fianna. It wasn't at all sexual; it was a young man thinking as fast as he could, which was at average baseline speeds. "Ok," he said suddenly, standing up and leaving his food behind. "I'll see you all later."

With the expression of a man walking to his doom, Sean went above deck to find Contessa.

[Caitlin Kieran]

"Oh, don't look so wounded," she chided Einherjar teasingly. "I'm sure you've had worse, and from better."

She seemed to accept Daniel's explanation, and tipped her glass toward him in sympathy.

"I've heard blue-balls'll do that to a man. My condolences," she offered gravely, before returning her attention to Sean and the other matter at hand. Unfortunately, all she got was a brief glimpse of his backside, and she chided herself mentally for watching it disappear.

Just because he's got red hair, doesn't mean he's fair game. Simmer down, girl.

Another swallow of Guinness disappeared, leaving in its wake a telltale ring of residue on the inside of the glass.

[Jael Carver]

Jael nodded and slipped a carrot between her lips. She bit it clean with a snap. "Things are looking up," she said coolly, trying to fight her annoyance. He blew her off for sex? Maybe he didn't need to know what had happened, after all. "How about you?"