2019-06-19: Swimming Lessons

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<Pose Tracker> Avril Vent Fleur has posed.

    Avril and Rebecca had been in agreement on this:

    Given the nature of Spira,

    Given the hazards that threatening from the sea,

    And given where their struggles are likely to take them...

    The time has come. Dean Stark must learn how to swim.

    They've come to a small sandbar a short distance out from Luca just for this purpose. For one thing, no one wants to get hit by a boat. For another, the water is a little gross by the docks. Blame the seagulls. So they're out here!

    "Here, allow me to show you once more," Avril says, padding out along the low lapping tide, the foam no higher than her ankles. She'd found a simple one-piece suit in her size. It is, of course, in a deep sapphire blue.
    What had taken somewhat more effort was managing her hair. There's rather a lot of it. In the end, she has opted for a rather substantial single braid, which has been looped about her head in a crown with the assistance of a full army of hairpins. It has, against the odds, suffered not even a strand coming undone so far in spite of the fact that she has been swimming.
    Magic must be involved. Somehow.

    "First, you will want to submerge your body..."

<Pose Tracker> Dean Stark has posed.

    For what it's worth, Dean agrees on this count, that he needs to learn how to swim. He even challenged the Sunken Temple! ...while wearing all manner of floatation devices, but he tried. He even survived! That counts for a lot.
    
    The sandbar's also nice in that the water is very shallow around it--if it comes to that, Dean can just walk back to shore. He, too, wears a swimsuit--a good pair of trunks that reach to his knees, in the style of many of the locals--and crouches down in the tide as Avril attempts to show him what to do. He's mostly underwater, but he's wavering on that last bit where he has to actually submerge his head.
    
    "Uhhh okay," he says, sounding a little dubious. He's not wearing any floatation devices now--not even those ones you wear on your upper arms like a pair of water wings. "Okay... here I... go!!"
    
    He dives forward. He does not submerge his head. Congratulations: Dean has gained one level in Doggy Paddle.

<Pose Tracker> Clarissa Arwin has posed.

It has been far too long since Clarissa has been swimming.

"Oh wow, others had the same idea, huh," Clarissa remarks with a blink as she comes strolling down from the shore. The girl's got a huge blue and white inner tube slung over one shoulder and has added a wide-brimmed straw hat to her repertoire, encircled by a bolt of flower-patterned cloth. With her free hand at her hip, she flips her other hand up from the inner tube to wave. "Hello, you two!" she calls to Avril and Dean, her eyes bright and her smile wide and genuine. "I hope I'm not interrupting you! I was coming to swim...."

At the sight of Dean doggy-paddling, Clarissa trails off, then cups one hand over her mouth. It hides a cheery little smile. Her hand descends after a couple of seconds. "Wow, you're really doing it!" she calls out to him. "Good job!"

Clarissa's swimsuit is a relatively modest two-piece. It is white with a blue and copper geometric Spiran textile pattern, and it has a ribbon over the arch of each hip. They peek above the top of a patterned sarong caught about her hips. She's let her hair down in a big blonde billow.

<Pose Tracker> Kamui has posed.

    Speaking of floation devices...

    A flotation device that's coloured neon yellow with green spots and sports a cute little Trask head floats next to Dean as he bravely dives forward without submerging his head, not terribly far from Avril as well. Ontop of said flotation device...

    ... is the severed head of a young girl!! Oh, woe, the humanity, the decency! Appalling, scandal, scandal!!!! Murder, she wrote!!

    "Mui... so, this is the human sensation of lazing around... it's comfortable, mui..."

    ... wait, it's Kamui's head, who's looking absolutely blissed out on said Trask waterwing. She looks like an olive-skinned young girl with neck-length black hair and also has a part of her face broken off where there's a camera eye and internal mechanisms underneath.

    She probably shouldn't get wet.

    What about the rest of her, mui?

    Well you see, a pair of girls scream nearby as they realise the person reclining comfortably on one of the beach stretchers actually has no head. It's not terribly far from Clarissa, in fact Kamui's Body waves at her when she approaches nearby.

<Pose Tracker> Kamui has posed.

    Addendum: Kamui's Body is wearing a swimsuit. It's one of those incredibly old 19th century style onesies that's striped black and white. You know the ones.

<Pose Tracker> Seraph Clarine has posed.

Clarine is here with her friends! Perhaps it's a group activity day for ARMS, or perhaps everyone just decided to show up independently. Regardless, she showed up with someone, and can currently be found curled up on the beach in a manner very remniscent of a cat, soaking up sun and just generally enjoying the presence of good friends.

She's wearing her normal attire rather than a swimsuit - as a Seraph of Light, she didn't have to worry about her clothes getting wet. The water brought other worries for her, of course, but for now she just relaxes.

She's not napping at the moment, though - she's watching Clarissa and Kamui...and then, she pokes her head up curiously as she spots a familiar face, apparently helping someone learn how to swim.

<Pose Tracker> Isolde has posed.

A dead body drifts in from deeper in the ocean.

Ha ha! It's not a dead body. It's just in the extremely relaxed neutral posture that anybody could assume in the water, and barring cases of extremely low body fat, would simply be able to float it easy.

The woman is recognizable as Isolde. She has a lot of cloth wraps which approximate a swimsuit, although there has been an unusual amount of care in covering her midriff. The cloth wraps are colorful, and mismatched.

The seventh wave makes her wash up on the sand bar. She lays on her back there, seeming content. As one leg splays out into the sea foam, Isolde asks the nearby voices without turning her head, "Are those screams anything to worry about?"

<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.

Marivel is, of course, laying on a beach stretcher next to Kamui's headless corpse. She has a VERY large umbrella that practically encompasses her wholly in shadow. She is in a onepiece BLOOD RED swimsuit which is simultaneously more bare skin Marivel has ever shown and also literally playing with fire. The sun's fire. The sun that makes Marivel combust fire. She is plastered with sunblock, of course, and in fact she turns her back towards Kamui to say, "Hey can you reapply the sunblock on the back?" It's like SPF 10,000 here.

This is what it takes to get Marivel to have a beach day apparently. A lot of preparation and reapplication of sunblock AND INFINITE SHADOW.

She throws a wave towards Clarissa though she doesn't approach her friend just yet. In fact she just gives Clarissa a small sad smile along with that wave, glancing over briefly towards Avril (who gets a bit of a raised eyebrow) and Dean (who gets two raised eyebrows). But most of her attention is on Clarissa in this moment. Clarissa is making her think of something.

Something she does not share.

"I'm glad your remote-head mode allows for floatation maneuvers, otherwise you would have never really been able to swim without an appropriate armor upgrade. I wonder whatever happened to the Kero Suit." She may be joking.

May be.

<Pose Tracker> Ashton Anchors has posed.

Amongst everything else, there is Ashton. And his dragons.

It's obvious that he's... well, at least trying to enjoy himself. And intends to get a swim. Because he has somehow managed to wrestle cheerfully-colored bathing caps onto himself and both dragons.

Neither Creepy nor Weepy seems pleased with this development.

Beyond that, he's gone for a fairly mundane set of black board shorts. It's a little shocking, given how reluctant he is to show off skin normally. And in this case? It's a good job of showing off the dense network of Symbological work that is scrawled across his body.

At least, that's what one would see for all of the fifteen seconds it takes before several of those tattoos burn brightly, displacing the sellsword to just above the water. Which he hits with a loud cry.

"CANNONBALL!"

<Pose Tracker> Gwen Whitlock has posed.

    Gwen, as the other person who cannot swim, is naturally there. For support. "You can do it, Dean!" she yells from the beach.

    Well, technically, Gwen *can* swim by now. A little. If by swimming, you mean 'not panicking when your heaviness makes you not as buoyant as people expect you to be'. Or 'does not expect water to transform into solid, grabbable matter if she flails her arms hard enough' .

    Gwen, dressed in the closest thing to swimwear she could find and be comfortable with it: her normal goddamn green Spiran-style tunic, with no belt, and her leggings. And sandals. And a very wide brimmed straw hat, because while her skin does not compare to Marivel's, it is mostly due to being human.

    "Don't try to breathe if your head's under water!" Gwen is just full of great advice, too. "There you go! You're doin' i-" She squints. "...."

    why is there a head floating by dean

    Gwen turns, looking towards the familiar face of Marivel. "Is there a head out th-" oh, there's the body

    The courier considers. "... That's... a pretty handy skill."

<Pose Tracker> Eleanor Klein has posed.

Coming from the other side of the shore--and spotting Clarissa with a wave and a smile--Eleanor Klein happens to be putting away a notebook and a pen in her satchel, feet padding along leaving slightly wet prints in the sand until she sets it down beside her things, including the sandals she isn't wearing. For the sorceress's part--

Apparently the journey to Besaid for its famous textiles was worth it, because she has a lovely suit in cool blues, top halter-style with generous fabric, tied under her bust with a bright flowerburst on the front of the left strap.. Around her hips is a similarly tied wrap, uneven with the longest portion hanging down about her knee, at the side, and even her toes have perfect polish because some people just aren't fair. She tilts her head watching Kamui and... sighs.

Eleanor finds that you just sort of get used to Kamui's quirks or you don't. Besides she's very good company if you don't mind unattached heads happening with a certain frequency. ...She hasn't found a good way to express that aloud.

"Well," she comments, "She is having fun..."

And then curiously, in the space just before Ashton hits the water, Eleanor happens to have turned awa right then, letting the splash that does reach this far mostly just hit her hair, which is down and loose. Her ears point up easily as she turns back around to walk until she... pauses, near Isolde. "...No," she says, "The screams seem to be just harmless fun. ...I think."

She has Questions for Isolde. She has not come up with a polite way to ask them. "Is he learning to swim?" she asks of her new friend(?).

<Pose Tracker> Ohiru Amano has posed.

 Ohiru's arrival is eclipsed by what is a near stampede of white, red, and orange-colored hounds, who swarm into the sea like they have nothing else to do with their lives. Well, they probably don't. Plus, they might catch fish! (That would be lovely, they're so hard to feed.) Instead, minutes later, Ohiru drifts down the sand, barefoot, in a white, plain one piece.

 "No, come back..." She calls out, not meaning it in the slightest.

 They'll be fine.

<Pose Tracker> Avril Vent Fleur has posed.

    There were a number of reasons the girls had selected this spot -- and, for that matter, why Dean needed to at least learn how to tread water.

    They may have heard about the incident at the sunken temple...

    Avril submerges, keeping a stable float in the water relative to her intended dive as if she were born a mermaid. She breaks the surface again soon after, with nary a hair out of place. "Like that," she says, drifting with the semi-still sea. Her attention zeroes in on her friend's suspiciously dry hair. "...You didn't put your head under the water, Dean," she says, a mild scolding tone to her voice.

    Then again, the doggy paddle is better than nothing.

    Someone calls out to them then. "Ah? Clarissa, wasn't it?" Avril says, shielding her eyes against the sun's glare. "Not at all. I am teaching Dean how to swim with Rebecca." There is a pause. "She had said she had to retrieve something in Luca and that she would meet us here. Why don't you join us?"

    Something bumps into Avril's arm. She glances down.

    AT A SEVERED GIRL'S HEAD--

    Avril manages to look mildly nonplussed as she stares at Kamui, tilting her head to one side as if she were instead gazing at a lost beachball. "Oh. It seems she has lost her body," she comments mildly.

    Before, rather suddenly, turning away.
    Just in the nick of time, in fact, to avoid a through soaking from the cannonball dive -- in the same moment Eleanor does. Avril must have the devil's own luck.

    "Gwen? Is that you?"

    She may have spotted a familiar face in the form of a certain strawberry blonde courier.

<Pose Tracker> Dean Stark has posed.

    Paddle paddle paddle paddle!! Dean might not be sure about this (however much he agrees he does have to learn), but he's at least putting his all into it. Too bad Rebecca went off to get drinks or something; she'd probably just dunk Dean's head underwater to get it over with. Avril, on the other hand, merely calls him out. He gives her a sheepish grin as he twists around on his back--and one thing he can say about being underwater is that it's really neat how much easier it is to move around--to face her. "Ehe... Yeah, I know. But the water goes straight up my nose--"
    
    OH HEY MORE PEOPLE. He beams at Clarissa's and Gwen's calls of praise, and he kneels/stands to give her a wave. "Hey, thanks!" he calls back, adding to Clarissa, "Nah, you're not interrupting anything! Avril's just teaching me out to swWAUGH!"
    
    That would be Dean turning to look at the Headless Kamui Body as she waves at Clarissa. This also neatly takes care of 'how to get Dean to dunk his head underwater,' since he promptly slips and falls with a great ker-SPLASH. Hopefully it won't splash all over Isolde, Clarine, Eleanor, or Marivel, but if they're out swimming they're probably gonna get splashed sooner or later anyway. Especially when Ashton cannonballs into the water, which sends a wave that might wash Dean into deeper water...
    
    Meanwhile, underwater, Dean paddles frantically at the water while his cheeks bulge like a chipmunk's with the attempt to follow Gwen's advice and Don't Breathe Underwater.

<Pose Tracker> Isolde has posed.

Isolde obtains... a friend. She turns herself to rest her chin in one hand, facing towards Eleanor. She is asked a question, and says, "It sounds like it. I don't know, exactly. When did you learn to swim, if I can be so bold?"

At this point there is a great splash that washes over Isolde's face. Her hair drapes, not particularly artfully.

"Oh, yes," she says. "That's definitely the thrashing of terror. Can you see where he is? I'm not qualified for rescue... should the worst happen." She also draws herself up to sit on the sandbar cross-legged, the waves washing up and over her as they gently pass by.

<Pose Tracker> Clarissa Arwin has posed.

Clarissa flashes a smile back to Eleanor and waves brightly her way. "Hello!" she calls out, before smiling Avril's way in turn. "Oh? Sure, I'd love to! Swimming's a lot of fun and I haven't done it in awhile--"

The sound of screaming interrupts things. It demands Clarissa's attention - but the blonde merely waves cheerily back to Kamui's body, as if she's starting to get used to her mechanical friend's foibles. Her eyes drift towards the familiar voice, towards where Kamui's head is floating.

She pauses, then blinks with sudden worry. "I hope she won't short-circuit," she murmurs.

When Isolde washes up, Clarissa blinks a couple of times, then cants her head with an anxious little smile. "Ah... are you alright? Um, don't worry about that... someone was just surprised, is all. Um. Hello. Are you alright?" She gives Isolde a quick once-over, as if to make sure she didn't wash up injured.

Look, she's trying to decide if that's a swimsuit or bandages, okay? GOSH

At the sight of Marivel, Clarisa flashes a cheery wave her way - but the sad smile she gets back leaves her blinking with some surprise. She begins to drift towards the Crimson Noble, adjusting her hat a little. "Hi, Marivel... you look like you have something on your mind?"

The surprise is gone just like that. She covers it with a smile that's like a little sunrise. "Did you want to come in the water? It looks like it's pretty nice."

<Pose Tracker> Kamui has posed.

    Kamui's Body perks up and fumbles around for sunblock, before finding the bottle and giving Marivel a thumbs up! She applies some of it to Marivel's back, which she has to fumble a bit too. Don't get it into your circuits, Kamui, you might just spontaneously combust.

    But Kamui's Body is incapable of speaking, so sadly she can't answer the mysterious question of the Kero Suit. Kamui's Body waves to Eleanor or Gwen, though, as if she's doing nothing amiss.

    That sure is a handy skill.

    Kamui's Head spots the presence of yet another dead body in the sea-- wait, that's just Isolde. "What a magnificent float, mui..." as she tries to shift, but then--

    SPLOOSH!!

    Ashton emerges out of the water, and Kamui's Head's Eyes grow wide. "The appearance of two Dragons... but, I have my own Dragon!"

    She looks down at her Trask-shaped water wing.

    "Go, Trask, go! Don't lose to Dragons, mui...!"

    Trask, being an inflatable plastic water wing, doesn't 'go' or 'doesn't lose to Dragons'.

    What Trask does, though, is get toppled over when Dean panics at the sight of her body and splooshes over, which prompts her to exclaim, "Rough seas! Mui overboard...!!" Fortunately, mui hasn't fallen overboard quite yet.

<Pose Tracker> Ashton Anchors has posed.

It takes a good half-minute before Ashton surfaces.

Wait. No.

Ashton does not surface. Instead, two dragons do. They poke out of the water like snake-periscopes as their attached human starts to swim around underwater.

Are they -breathing- for him? He's not coming up for air, that's certain.

It also isn't entirely clear if they are or aren't navigating for him, as his swim direction seems a bit random. Right up until Kamui unleashes Trask! OH NO!

Immediately, both dragons veer to the side and start after the errant water wing. Both let out a playful kaiju-esque roar as they give chase!

<Pose Tracker> Rudy Roughnight has posed.

As various people gather together to see enjoy the beach or help a young man in his noble quest of Not Drown, one soul slowly moves toward the sandbar in question. The red bandana flow gently in the breeze, his red vest bellowing from time to time in the inviting winds. While everyone else is dressed for summer fun, Rudy Roughnight is here, clad in his normal attire, even as the sand threatens to get into his boots.

 While he gives a small wave to everyone gathered to be polite, the young warrior merely watches for the time being. After all, this is interesting stuff and someone needs to make sure there aren't monsters or things about. He does look toward the being without a head and where the head is, giving a mere arched brow, but for now, nothing more.

<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.

Marivel throws a wave over to Isolde too. She doesn't seem to be particularly affected by corpse shenannigans or corpse imitations but that's just how it is. She shakes her head to answer her question, though.

It's a whole world of problems while out on beach day but she still makes it happen. For Kamui, of course, but also because well--

--Her people had referred to walking into the sun as basically a fancied up term for choosing the time and place of your demise. But for Marivel...well, sometimes she wonders what it means for her too. And you can't wonder at such things if you fear it. Most of which she loves lies in the realm of light after all.

Like Kamui over there. And here. Kamui is kind of in two places at one time right now. This is all she really needs, after all, being with a friend and just being near them. Sometimes that's enough. Sometimes that's more than enough.

Actually it isn't just 'a' friend now is it? There is Eleanor there, and Gwen, Clarissa and Clarine. Isolde and--

"Ahem!" Marivel says. "The body is not lost! I am supervising her body as we speak. Do not underestimate the advanced engineering put into Kamui to allow this miraculous technology to exist! The head and body are in constant communication so that they can detach for long periods of time without losing track of one another! This is not a Never Give Up Skeleton situation!"

She nods firmly, smiling faintly as she sees dogs appear. This is good.

She looks to Gwen. "So how did you end up joining the Fiends?" She asks of her before looking back to Avril. "Your friend is drowning! You should not let him drown!"

Does she know mysterious Avril secrets from her millenia of activity?? Well she's not acting like she does but that means pretty much nothing when it comes to her.

She considers betting Isolde on Dean's life but that honestly feels a bit too on the nose for a Crimson Noble even in jest.

Marivel nods to Clarissa and says, "Oh I do. I suppose I shouldn't get too much into it during a beach trip but I was ruminating lately on the nature of 'Truth' and since you care about the 'Truth' more than most, you reminded me of the difficult decision I have to make."

She gives Kamui's body a thumbsup though since she needs it on her back it's kind of backwards. She may have been waiting for Kamui to be headless to comment on Kero Suit.

"You're doing great Kamui. Thank you! Do you want me to get you?"

She's a robot Marivel she can't get sunburned...CAN SHE??

<Pose Tracker> Seraph Clarine has posed.

"A-ah!" Clarine lets out a cry of surprise as her pleasant relaxation is interrupted by a stampede of hounds swarming into the water. And, shortly after, she finds herself splashed!!

...This doesn't really affect her, though. It just makes her appear to kind of shimmer in the sun for a bit, as if she got just a little refracted. It does get her attention, though, as she hears Kamui calling out from atop her noble dragon steed.

Clarine quickly uncurls and stands up, though her eyes quickly find Ohiru. She offers the young woman a nod before heading into the water herself, swimming -

...Wait, she doesn't really...swim, exactly. She just kind of...drifts weightlessly? She doesn't move her arms or legs at all.

Drifting in the direction of Kamui's Head, which currently appears to be in a bit of a bind.

"I-I'll save you...!" She calls out.

<Pose Tracker> Eleanor Klein has posed.

Paddle paddle. Eleanor watches a little nostalgically, before she answers Isolde easily, "You may!" A beat, "I learned when I was quite young; I grew up by the ocean, so it was practically second nature for me. I don't even remember much about learning."

"...Even just coming out of the water you're so graceful," she finds, csually complimenting her acquaintance as she regards Dean. "Hmm... Not everyone knows Kamui very well," she admits, with a sort of 'yikes' undertone. "But I can see him! This close to the shore, with so many people around him, he's reasonably safe." Pause. "...I'm less sure about the..." Man with the dragons.

But she pauses, lifting an eyebrow. She raises her voice to Marivel, "Are... skeletons known for their perseverence?" she asks, certain that she's missed something going on. ....But she realizes something else as she sees that too, Avril turning around--or turning back, and being not soaked. "...That's interesting," she comments thoughtfully. "I think I'll check on him," she says to Isolde, and starts forward, wading in until she's deep enough to just casually swim over--it's a lazy kind of swim because she's only around half in the water. "Would you like a little help?" she offers. "Two can teach better than one. ...If I'm not intruding, naturally."

<Pose Tracker> Gwen Whitlock has posed.

    ".... You-" Gwen stops herself, realizing that the Head of Command is over by Dean. So she looks to Marivel instead. "She's from Aquvy, isn't she?" It is, in fact, Gwen's only way to make anything this strange to her make sense, beyond assuming that someone is Hyadean. As opposed to 'Hiya, Dean.'

    Speaking of Dean, he seems to be doing- oh, he just went underwater due to the disembodied head. "It's okay, Marivel's watching her! -Oh, hey, Avril! Gosh, how do you get your hair t'look like that even at the beach?" oh, Dean's head isn't coming back up. "Hey, uh, Dean may be... havin' trouble."

    Marivel's question distracts her. "Joinin' the Fiends? Oh, the Vile Fiends? For a sec, I was thinkin' you meant 'fiends', as in 'the monsters we fought a few days ago'." Seeing Rudy just past Marivel, being predictably Rudy, Gwen waves her had. "'ey, Rudy! Glad t'see you out n' about!"

    Then, she sees Clarissa, and Gwen's sunny expression falls, remembering what happened the last time she saw Clarissa's face. "... Clarissa, I never got t'properly thank you for savin' my life. If there's anythin' I can do to pay you back for that, uh... lemme know." Not only that, Eleanor is seen, just beyond.

    The smile is back. "... Gosh, so many people here! If we had beaches like this on Ignas, I bet this'd what'd be like!"

<Pose Tracker> Ohiru Amano has posed.

 Meanwhile...

 Hounds #3 and #5 are following Ashton's dragon heads.

 Clarine finds herself accompanied by the smallest of them (who is still, roughly, waist-height when compared to Ohiru.) It seems he wants accompaniment, and has chosen Clarine. Perhaps he intrigues her.

 The rest just do their thing. Awoo, wuff. Etc. Awoo.

 Meanwhile, on the beach, Clarine got a nod, and then Ohiru shakes out a blanket and sprawls out on her stomach, her tail wagging in the air behind her as she watches the shenanigans.

<Pose Tracker> Isolde has posed.

Isolde sweeps her hair back with one hand and tells Clarissa, "Oh, I'm fine, yes; I was just enjoying myself. I'm glad I didn't drift very far, if this is where I think I went. It's relaxing, but it's also a little..."

"Risky,"

"To go swimming out and letting things pull you to shore," Isolde tells Clarissa, with a strange kind of relish. "And," she says to Eleanor, "as for me, I remember it quite well... it was in a lazy flowing stream near where I grew up. Ah... I used to just dive in, like this -"

Isolde then moves to rise up to her feet - and the wave swells and knocks her forwards into the water. "glub"

The backwash leaves her reaching up, blindly grabbling onto the leg -- of Rudy Roughnight!! On whom she walks her fingers up a little, feels a knee, squeezes momentarily, and then raises her hand up imploringly. The tide washes outwards and she spits out salt water, before saying, "Pardon me, sir! Could you help a lady up and point me towards shore?"

<Pose Tracker> Clarissa Arwin has posed.

Clarissa raises her eyebrows and smiles lightly back at Isolde. "Well, I'm glad the tide washed you back to land eventually. It sounds like you had a very relaxing time."

But then there's Marivel. As the little vampire confides in her about her truth quandries, Clarissa raises her eyebrows and reaches up to adjust her hat. She pushes the brim back just enough that her bangs poof free and out across her forehead, unable to truly be constrained.

"I suppose it's true that I hate lies. I don't like to tell them," she admits with a soft blush. It had bothered her a little even finding out that Marivel wasn't actually Leviram - but she's come to terms with that, at least.

"Well, if there's a decision you have to make, maybe I can support you? I mean, all I can do is try to give you advice, even if it might be a bit weird for someone who's not a career soldier to guide you on things." Clarissa smiles, easy and earnest. "But you're my friend and you've done a lot for me, Marivel. The least I can do is try to help you through a tough decision, whatever it is...."

Gwen steps into things, and Clarissa blushes slightly, clasping her hands and inclining her head. "You don't need to pay me back at all, Miss Gwen. I'm just glad I could help you, and I'm really glad to see that you're alright. Seeing you up and about again is all I could ever ask for."

Then Clarine cries out. Clarissa gasps as she realizes what's happening - Kamui's head is in a bind! She takes a couple of darting steps forward, coming up to the edge of the water.

"Kamui!" she calls out. "Hang on, okay? Don't get wet!"

Clarissa has no idea if falling into the water will fry Kamui's circuits or something. It's a concern!

<Pose Tracker> Avril Vent Fleur has posed.

    "Dean, there's no need to worry, she--"

    Avril turns away, just in time. For there is a mighty splash, indeed.

    What ensues is, well -- perhaps a third party's viewpoint may provide some context. Let's take Rudy, for instance. As far as Rudy can tell from his spot on the shore, a small bit of chaos has ensued at sea:

    * Ashton has set forth a great wave, which is currently threatening to send Dean out into the deeper shoals.

    * A disconnected head wobbles atop a Trask-themed float on the waves. Can... heads swim?
    (it's a good thing more than a few of the others gathered here are attempting or willing to rescue the... head.)

    * And let's not forget that a whole lot of good dogs are on the beach.

    Avril, meanwhile, turns back to take in the rest of that scene that is underway. "Ah?" she says, shaking water off her arms. "That is good to hear. It would be a shame for a head to lose its body," she says matter-of-factly, as if a head without a body (or a body without a head?) is an everyday occurance for her to encounter.

    But this is a mere pleasantry that passes in the moments before Avril's eyes widen, and, scanning the area about her, she realizes that they are missing one person. "Dean!"
    This happens just seconds before Marivel calls out to her, before Gwen can so much as open her mouth to similarly comment.
    And at the exact same time that Eleanor opts to go check on 'him'.

    Avril plunges onwards into the waves, like a dolphin.

<Pose Tracker> Dean Stark has posed.

    Yeah, MARIVEL, that would be kind of MEAN to bet on whether sometime DROWNS TO DEATH or not.
    
    Fortunately, Avril is right there to help Dean out, and Eleanor is there to support, too. Between the two of them, they get him back on his feet--hacking and coughing, but back on his feet. "Y-yeah, it can't hurt having someone else teach," he says to Eleanor in between sputtering. He coughs a little longer, then adds, "I always sink like a rock when I try to swim. But there's water everywhere around Spira! So, you know." He looks a bit abashed. "I figure, better to learn now instead of when I fall off a boat or something." He looks over at Avril. "That okay by you?" He doesn't figure she'd have a problem with it, but who knows? He doesn't know enough about swimming to say if it's better or worse to have more teachers.
    
    Fortunately, one of Dean's good points is his indomitable spirit. See: even though he nearly just drowned, now that he's caught his breath, he gives them both a big smile. "Okay! I'm ready to try again! Watch this!!" And then he dives back into the water!
    
    ...
    ...
    ...
    He's doggy-paddling again.

<Pose Tracker> Kamui has posed.

    Marivel speaks of Skeleton.

    NEARBY

    Skeleton sits on a beach recliner with a straw hat and unbuttoned flower-pattern shirt. He looks up to the skies where an image of Virginia translucently appears, giving him a wave. He waves back, then sips from his virgin daiquiri. He realises a moment later that it's pouring straight through him.

    Panic--!!

    HERE

    "Aaah--!! It is as if, Scylla and Charybdis themselves have come to devour me!" Kamui exclaims. It's unknown what she's talking about, but given the JRPG nature of the MUSH, they're probably palette-swapped random encounters in *dice roll* the Great Seas of Aquvy and Bhuj Temple.

    And Ohiru's hounds too. "A-and Orthrus and Cerberus!" That's a two- and three-headed dog, Kamui. This is Hounds #3 and #5, so you only got one of them right. ... not that any of them have more than one head.

    But Clarine exclaims that she'll come save her. "Clarine...!! Clarissa!" she cries out dramatically. "Save me!"

    Kamui's Body gets up as Marivel asks if she wants to get picked up, and ambles on after Clarina and Clarissa. Avril's cry of Dean prompts a bit of mild surprise as Kamui's Body attempts to look around for the missing person.

    Kamui's Body realises a moment later that it can't actually see anything without her Head. Fortunately, Dean's surfacing back up and ready to try again...!

<Pose Tracker> Rudy Roughnight has posed.

"I'm glad that I'm not dead and I'm glad you're not dead, Gwen!" Roughnight states while a smile and a wave.

 Well, at least he's cheerful.

 As expected of the highly reactive soul, Rudy continues to observe. As he watches the head and the woman who isn't dead floating in the water and then the dogs, it's clear he's on threat assessment mode, though thankfully he gauges his appropriate recourse by how others take the situation. No one seems to be crying out for blood or to shoot things, so he just continues to observe, almost statue-like save the periodical twisting of his head to take in the information surrounding him.

 It is then that a powerful wave gets his lower jeans. Water is in his boots now, but he finds there is something else that is making him unsure. The woman has cloth about her, including her eyes. He doesn't move a muscle as she moves about his leg. After all, no one is reacting, so clearly this is how Spira people act on the beach. "I can help you if you like," Rudy begins with a small smile, offering his hand to aid as requested. "I like helping. My name is Rudy Roughnight."

 There are cries for help and Rudy looks toward those that he knows, calling out with uncertain. "Gwen, Avril, do I need to stop the dogs?" he inquires, looking toward his ARM, then his knife, then his bare hand, as if silently asking the means in which to dispose of the 'monsters'.

<Pose Tracker> Ashton Anchors has posed.

Ashton enters scene, pursued by dogs.

Well, he does not just quite yet. The dragons are a bit busy at the moment, as they are chasing Trask-floatie. Their goal is simple: GET IT.

Draconic maws snap and snarl, chasing the errant water wing. (Those observing closely will note the lack of teeth, so they're probably just playing. At the moment.) They're getting closer!

But so are Hounds #3 and #5. Oh no!

The two dragons look at each other for a moment before splitting their tasks. Creepy continues to stretch out ahead, jaws grabbing for the floatie hungrily! Weepy, in turn, twists around. His mouth opens before breathing.... very very gently. The chill dragon's breath hits the surface of the water, kicking up a dainty cloud of snowflakes towards the Hounds!

<Pose Tracker> Seraph Clarine has posed.

Clarine drifts out, only to find that the smallest of the dogs accompanying her. This dog is still pretty large, of course, especially compared to Clarine, but as one who is rather short among her people, she feels a bit of a kinship with this one.

On the whole, animals that were active in the day tended to be fond of her. To them, she's pretty much a walking(or floating, whatever the case may be at the moment) ray of sunlight, so she's used to them sticking around her.

But enough about that! Kamui's in trouble!

Right before Creepy can grab for the floatie...Clarine dives underneath it, grabbing it from below and beginning to drift away back toward the shore with it(and Kamui's head, hopefully) in tow!

But will she find herself pursued...?

<Pose Tracker> Eleanor Klein has posed.

Drowning is a problem! ...Diving, less so--Eleanor smiles when Isolde mentions the dive, "Once he's safe you'll have to show me!" ....And thus misses her new friend totally blowing it apparently which may be for the best. But she reaches the others quickly--

"Not that I don't imagine you're a great teacher," she tells Avril once... she sees... Dean doggy paddling again. He's certainly indomitable, isn't he?

"I'm sure Kamui is fine," she says brightly, and hsan't met Avril's eyes yet, coincidentally. Instead...

"I think the best approach," she says, "Is for us to help keep you up, and for you to try to relax--it's actually fairly natural for people to float a bit if they let themselves, but regardless when you aren't worried about falling under you can practice kicking!"

Pause.

"..." She glances to the side and admits, "...That's the cutest swim I've ever seen," under her breath with a faint redness to her cheeks.

<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.

"I meant the Vile Fiends." Marivel tells Gwen. "But I am still curious as to the answer." She tilts her head. "And whom do you mean 'from Aquvy'?"

She turns her attention to Clarissa and nods a few times to her as she explains her own nature. She smiles faintly at being called a friend but words are just words in the end and Clarissa has already proven her friendship with action. It may yet be tested, she supposes.

"Well," She says to Clarissa. "I am not a career soldier either. Or a commander for that matter." As she is so fond of saying despite being wholly comfortable ewith ordering others around. She doesn't seem to be fretting over Kamui's safety. Or anyone's. But that fretting would involve going out into the sun and that just isn't happening. Not so easily as this.

"I tried telling Leo the truth." She says to Clarissa. "He did not believe me. Perhaps it would have been better if I stayed cagey." She considers the ocean's waters for a long while. "Whereas in the company of the Summoner Yuna, I have seen such powerful bonds, such faith even with so many secrets, so many lies between dearest friends. Truths unsaid at times, yes, but other times outright falsehoods."

She stares ahead. "Well, the decision is not whether or not to tell a lie or not, but rather if a lie can at times be more honest than the truth. What do you think about that, Clarissa?"

She quietly raises a hand and aims Kamui's body a bit by adjusting her position before staring ahead again. Apparently all this nonsense is just business as usual to Marivel.

"Isolde," Marivel says. "I have a suspicion that you have found yourself in a strange situation before ending up here. Do you know what happened?"

<Pose Tracker> Clarissa Arwin has posed.

"People not dying is usually a good thing!" Clarissa agrees with a nod towards Rudy, quick and firm.

Canting her head back towards Marivel, Clarissa blushes just a little as she listens to the tiny woman explain herself. It never occurred to her that Mariven wasn't a professional, either - she seemed to take to things so naturally.

"I don't know Leo very well, or Miss Yuna for that matter," she confesses, lowering her eyes to her bare feet. "But I've heard that she's very devoted. I admire that in someone.... I think it's good to have a strong desire to achieve good things for the world."

Clarissa looks up again, momentarily diverted from her attention on Kamui, eyes darting to Clarine briefly to make sure she's got this. Then she taps a finger against her cheek as Marivel pitches her a tough question. "...I'm not sure I see how that could be," she admits quietly. "In the end you're still telling a lie, aren't you? I think it's important to try to be truthful. I know that sometimes you've had to keep things from us, and I understand that...."

Clarissa lowers her hand to her side and exhales. "...But I've been hurt before because I believed a lie. That's why I don't want to tell lies, even if telling the truth would hurt."

<Pose Tracker> Isolde has posed.

Rudy gives her a hand. Isolde pulls herself upwards, sweeps her hair back, and lets out a huge sigh. "Oh, how wonderful! Thank you so much. Here, if you're fishing or something, let me just stand here for a moment and get my bearings, such as they are."

Dogs come up. Isolde frowns slightly at the news.

Then she looks towards Marivel. Well, looks. "Oh, I don't know," she says. "If I was feeling things right I'm about half a mile from where I left my things underneath a stone, so I could enjoy the sea. It was ten paces south of one of those Sphere things. Here, Marivel, have you met Rudy? I just did. Tell me if he's as handsome as he sounds."

("Call me Isolde," Isolde adds parenthetically.)

<Pose Tracker> Avril Vent Fleur has posed.

    "Thank you," Avril breathes to Eleanor, once they've got Dean up on his feet and out of the water. She briefly locks gazes with the familiar-unfamiliar girl.

    "...Are you feeling alright, Dean?" she asks, a hand resting a moment on his upper back. It lingers there; her face is the very picture of grave concern as she leans forward, looking at him.

    Fortunately, he's the resilient type. And the determined type.

    "...Yes. I think that's a wise way to approach it. But, I think I should also keep a better eye on you for now." She smiles, if slightly. "After all, I am the more proficient swimmer." It's a statement of fact rather than a brag.

    She stands when he rises to his feet, lingering there on the shore alongside Eleanor as Dean plunges onwards, back unto the breach--

    "..."

    Avril inclines her head to one side.

    "I wonder if it may be best to teach him a form where he can keep his head above the water," she supposes aloud.

    Rudy gives voice to a separate issue. She turns towards him. "Ah?"

    There are a lot of dogs.

    "Ah..."

    She looks around, as if in search of an owner.

<Pose Tracker> Gwen Whitlock has posed.

    In many contexts, Rudy's statement may be odd to Gwen. But after recent events and seeing yet another time where she nearly died, Gwen can't help but nod. "Me too!" she says, with a big thumbs up.

    "My word is as good as gold, so all y'need t'say is the word," Gwen says, nodding towards Clarissa.

    Clarissa gets a tough question, while Gwen's question is... not so tough. "Oh, someone hired me t'chat with Hiro, way way back, so I did, but I let Hiro know at th'time. He n' I hit it off real well, n' before I know it, it was like I knew him n' Ruby all my life." She winces a little, laughing. "Thankfully that wasn't th'case, because I wouldn't wanna wish my home town on nobody, haha." Little Twister, that is, rather that Boot Hill, which was and still is a very decent town in comparison. "So it just kinda worked out like that. Why d'ya ask? Also, I was just curious, since there was that one guy I met who was also from Aquvy who was kinda like that."

    Like... that. Like.... a living machine? Is that even possible?

    Gwen looks up towards Rudy, standing in the water. "I think the dogs are Good Dogs." She says this, as Ashton and his two dragon friends have an EPIC DUEL(?).

    Cupping her hands around her mouth, Gwen calls out to Dean. "Did'ja keep from breathin' water?" Good Advice Gwen has Good Advice. Always.

    "Oh, that's right, Marivel, this is Rudy Roughnight. He likes to help people, n' he's certainly helped me!" A nod towards Isolde. "N' Isolde!"

<Pose Tracker> Dean Stark has posed.

    Get held aloft, while he works on floating and kicking...? ...Dean considers this as he stands out of his doggy-paddle--fortunately the water is still shallow enough that it only reaches his neck while standing--and he nods. "That sounds good to me! That stuff's, like, the basics or something, right?" He nods firmly. "You gotta master the basics before you can go digging for artifacts, too!" So, like... the basics of shoveling...?
    
    To Avril, he gives a lopsided but cheerful smile. "Yeah, I'm okay! Still don't like getting my head underwater, but I gotta do it sooner or later, huh?" He nods to her as she says she'll keep an eye on him. He doesn't take it as a brag; they both know she's the better swimmer, and he's not threatened by that. That's the whole point of her teaching him! "Yeah, I'll be counting on you."
    
    Either way, with Avril and Eleanor's help, Dean works slow but sure on floating and kicking. He's still not good at putting his head underwater, but once he gets better at floating and not sinking like a hammer, maybe that'll come next. ...Otherwise, maybe he can swim with the *actual* doggies...?

<Pose Tracker> Kamui has posed.

    "Oh...!" Kamui beams as Clarine swims underneath her and props her upright again. "The sails are back with us... fate is truly with us!"

    Clarine helps the Trask-floatie twist past Creepy in a close shave! "Together, with Clarine and I... we're undefeatable! Forward..."

    Kamui looks convicted.

    "Forward, Mui Hearties!!"

    ... this takes about like, half a second because she's not really all that far from the shoreline, where her Body leans over and grabs the Head out of the Trask-floatie and reattaches it to her like no beheading untoward happened.

    ... well, on closer inspection, she's very clearly a machine, what with the broken side of her face revealing the red camera eye squinting at Clarine, not to mention parts of her just having... no skin where the musculature fibre and other mechanical bits stick out. She's ancient and busted. Kamui, you a Buster.

    "Mui... that was a nice swim," Kamui answers as she reaches over to Clarine to help her up and out of the water.

    Then she perks up. "Mari! Eleanor Klein... Clarissa Arwin!" That name-recognition still isn't perfect. "I went for a swim! Kamui was nearly devoured by a Dragon...!"

    She points at Creepy not all that far away. ...

<Pose Tracker> Ashton Anchors has posed.

Underwater, Clarine briefly can see Ashton as she ducks down. He looks.... almost resigned? As if the entire situation is out of his control, despite the fact that he's the one doing the swimming.

Above, Kamui and the Trask-wing are moved out of reach. Creepy lets out a kaiju roar and angrily snaps in futility!

In turn, Weepy lets out a roar as well.

The two dragons waves back and forth in the air angrily, as if shouting CURSE YOU! WE SHALL GET YOU NEXT TIME, MUI! NEXT TIIIIIIIME!

But they do not actually say that, because they can't.

Underwater, Ashton bubbles as he sighs.

<Pose Tracker> Rudy Roughnight has posed.

 Wait, Ashton is getting ready to kill the dogs. Clearly, it's time for act-oh, it's just a light chilling breeze. Rudy eases the hand off the gun as Gwen explains they are 'good dogs'. Guess there is no need for SWIFT DEATH. At least not this time.

 Rudy remains rather silent for the time being, more than content to listen and learn. Faint bewilderment accompanies the odd duck, treating the various conversations as if he were observing beasts in the wild. But slowly he is drawn into conversation, coaxed out from silence through intentional interactions with others. "I'm not fishing or handsome, I'm making sure no one hurts my friends. This is a new land, so don't know what to expect. It's hard because you're supposed to know things, but I feel like I don't know anything. Or at least not as much as Zepet would." There is a brief pause as he realizes that if this woman is from a different land, she might know who the 'greatest man on Filgaia' is. "Zepet was the Digger who raised me. He was really smart and really kind. He was a great man."

 As Marivel speaks to Isolde, Rudy tilts his head faintly toward them and listen. When he decides to speak again, it is in response to Clarissa. "It's good to be honest. When you lie, people find out and you hurt them," he states with child like solemn nature, as if he were able to explain the importance of pinkie swearing next.

 Finally, Rudy looks toward Kamui now that head and body are reunited. There is a long stare and a tilt of his head. He doesn't know what she is, but the noted wariness is palpable. Something, he'll have to look into another time, it would seem.

<Pose Tracker> Eleanor Klein has posed.

"Of course," Eleanor answers Avril, and looks to Dean with--not worry, because she has more confidence that he'll be fine, but in a way that's obviously checking himm over, making sure he is as well as he claims to be. "Yes," she agrees with Avril though, "It's best to have someone to look out for him, isn't it?"

Or... is that what happens first? Eleanor recalls saying it--everyone will hear it, everyone will see it normally, but at the same time she finds herself staring into Avril's eyes for longer than that. The effect is strange, cause and effect briefly seeming to... detach, and she is silent for the next few moments.

Then she blinks, shaking her head, and feels... dizzy, lightly, but not so badly that she can't steady herself. She didn't miss what Avril said she finds. "I think that's wise, but it's best to rip off the bandage this way--it's more dangerous to swim while you're still afraid of putting your head under. It nearly guarantees difficulty."

She considers the dogs thoughtfully, after that. Then, to Dean--

"Ah, exactly! You need to start with the basics before you can go all the way. ...And it's actually quite useful in digging for artifacts--I've been on a number of expeditions to remote islands, and it involves rather a lot of swimming sometimes."

"...It's counterintuitive, keeping your head under, but you'll get it with your friend looking after you like this."

She actually giggles faintly at the next flail--whatever that strange thing was...

"You were very brave," she tells Kamui instead. "I'm impressed!"

<Pose Tracker> Seraph Clarine has posed.

Ashton gets a sympathetic look from Clarine. She is not entirely sure why he's in the situation he's in - just more human strangeness, she supposes, without anyone to correct her that no, this is far from falling under that umbrella - but she can tell he seems resigned to his unfortunate fate.

She sends him a brief, encouraging nod.

But, through their combined power, Clarine is able to safely ferry Kamui back to land! Kamui retrieves her head, then bends down to help her out of the water.

Clarine accepts it gratefully, climbing out of the water. She doesn't need to dry off or warm up, being made of light.

"I helped...!" Clarine adds with cheer, lighting up figuratively and literally as as Kamui calls out to Marivel, Eleanor, and Clarissa.

<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.

"Oh I don't know if I'm one who can judge whether a man is handsome or not." Marivel says. "Though I have always have been partial to blue hair so if that is what you are into then, yes, I suppose he is likely handsome enough."

She gives another look towards Avril but her attention is quickly drawn away by Gwen asking that question.

"Ah. Hiro found me in a chest the Al Bhed dug out from the bottom of the sea. And I bit Jean. That is, I think, the moment we truly became friends." She does smile though and admits, "But they do have that way about them, don't they? I imagine they make friends easily. I look forward to seeing the culmination of their journey. It will surely be fascinatin to observe."

Why does she ask? Marivel is slower to answer that as she smiles back to the waves.

"Oh--I suppose they had simply charmed me too in their own little odd way."

Gwen gives a description of Rudy and she nods to that. "Ahh, so that is why he has such kind eyes."

She tilts her head at the mention of Little Twister but she says, "Surely it could not be that bad. You do after all share a great deall with Hiro and Rudy. You should aim with a steady hand, Gwen. Your heart is on the right track."

"Oh this doesn't involve ARMS." Marivel promises. "Tis a personal matter I am reflecting on." She rests a hand then on Clarissa's shoulder. "I do not wish to dismiss your pain, Clarissa but I believe you will always be an honest woman, even if you tell plenty of lies in your future." She smiles faintly. "Because I can never imagine you telling a lie that would hurt someone."

She pulls her hand free and adds, "But I appreciate your understanding. Perhaps I will continue to rely on painful truths a little longer even if...well...we will see."

She stands herself up when Kamui returns and she says, "I saw! You were very brave, Kamui! Even when challenged...by the terrifying dragons of the dread pirate Ashton Anchors, you persevered...and survived!"

She reaches for her pouch and--

"--ahh I left the stickers in the hotel room." She frowns as if she had lost a major tactical battle.

<Pose Tracker> Clarissa Arwin has posed.

Clarissa blushes softly at Gwen, her smile small and warm. "We should talk soon," she invites, her voice quieter. "You're a really good person and I'm glad I could help you when you needed it."

When Clarine comes wading out of the water with Kamui's head in hand, Clarissa brightens visibly, clasping her hands together. She smiles widely towards the pair. "You did, you went for a swim! And you came out okay! Everything worked out in the end!" She giggles a bit and cups one hand to her cheek. "...Well, they are very nice dragons, if that's Mr. Ashton...."

Rudy gets a nod from her, her smile fading a little and growing more sober and serious. But soon enough, she looks back towards Marivel as the smaller woman lays a hand on her shoulder.

Colour rises to her cheeks. Dipping her eyes for a moment, she clears her throat and bites down to the inside of her cheek, then looks up once more. "...I've been lied to like that before. It's not something I'd ever want to do to someone else. But I'm glad you have faith in me...." She briefly rests her hand over Marivel's.

When the Crimson Noble does move off, Clarissa looks after her a moment longer, then smiles and begins to drift towards the water, evidently ready for a swim in her own right.

<Pose Tracker> Ohiru Amano has posed.

 Ohiru cracks open one eye.

 "Please don't hurt my hounds." She says, absently. "They won't attack unless I give a specific signal. Instead they're like big fuzzy pillows. Feel free to nap on them."

 "Awooo?" Offers the biggets.

<Pose Tracker> Gwen Whitlock has posed.

    "... In a chest? N' you bit Jean?" Gwen itches the side of her head, underneath her wide brim hat. "Gosh, n' all the times I've been around when Hiro's found somethin', I miss the time he unearths a Crimson Noble. Or, well, the Al Bhed did, anyway. But yeah, that's definitely Hiro n' Ruby!"

    She does not mention Lucia, of course, for safety reasons. That, and Gwen never has... actually sat down and chatted with the blue-haired woman.

    Someday, she should correct that.

    "... I wonder." The journey has gone on long enough that Gwen has forgotten to even think of a 'when', rather than a 'if the journey comes to an end'.

    "We're all in the same boat, Rudy, but there's been a lotta good people here, too. If you ever need some help 'round a place. lemme know. I think I'm gettin' the hang of the traditions n' culture here, but that's only natural for a Super Courier to begin t'know by now!" Gwen beams. "Still don't know much 'bout Yavonism or Yovenism, but I'm sure I'll be able to figure that out next. Someone did say I was real similar t'the Lady Yuna, after all, n' she's a great summoner." no, gwen does not think she's similar to yuna, she's just trying to project an aura of confidence and humor-

    The young man with the kind eyes. The moniker could be described to Hiro, but definitely describes Rudy. Perhaps that's why Gwen could never truly find the young man's more stark actions as potentially sinister as she should. "My heart?" She softly grins, and nods. "I'll take it as a compliment. Though I admit I'm curious to the similarities, hehe."

    She pauses.

    '-wait, why were you in a chest at the bottom of the sea?!"

<Pose Tracker> Isolde has posed.

Isolde rubs her cheek with a fingertip as Rudy denies being either fishing or doing the act of handsome right now. "I think that's a wise perspective," she says. "You've got an excellent place to set your feet."

Rudy speaks against lies. Isolde is quiet for a moment. She then can perhaps sense that Rudy is considering something else in great detail...

But then Isolde's lips draw into a wide, teeth-baring smile, as Marivel confirms things. "Ah! A blaunette; I'd thought so, but I hate to assume from the tone of the voice."

She then murmurs, "How awful," when it is revealed that Marivel was found in a casket in the bottom of the sea. "But how exactly did you--"

<Pose Tracker> Marivel Armitage has posed.

Marivel is asked why she was in a chest at the bottom of the sea.

"I swam inside when Vinsfeld sent me to Lunar. I have to presume he hoped to eliminate me by sending me directly into the sun's path, aiming to finish me off with its ultraviolet rays...! But his efforts..."

She brings a hand up to her mouth and laughs haughtily. "Useless...! Useless...!!"