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| Details |
| Author: | Alli |
| Summary: | Atley, Brannagen, Elston, Gwenivene, Lena, Mi Shu, Shine, Shun, and Skylarke meet up in Paw'don Village to chat about how things are going in Pandaria and welcome the newcomers. It looks like the squads will be heading inland soon… ~4400 words. |
| Rating: | T for Teen |
Prospector Brannagen Stillwall is having a detailed chat with Serenity about brewing practices as she samples some Stillwall Barleywine. No, he's not flirting, you're flirting.
Lena is sitting at the table by the inn, enjoying a plate of dumplings and a glass of barley tea.
Mi Shu looks around her with wide eyes taking in all the sights. Fusheng is sitting on her shoulder bobbing around restlessly.
Skylarke ambles up to Lena's table and sits. "Mrs. Shine," she greets, grinning.
Shine steps out of the inn and does the slightest doubletake at the sight of Skylarke.
Brannagen turns around at hearing "Mrs. Shine" and ambles over toward the group.
"Skylarke," Lena says with an answering smile. "Good to see you ashore. How're you finding the land?"
"Different," Skylarke says with a laugh. "Very different. I like it."
Shine goes to the same table and absentmindedly picks up the tanuki at his heel to set it on one of the chairs. He does not himself sit, but remains standing by Lena.
Shun steps up the ramp, pausing to glance over at the cluster of Cobalts nearby.
"Lo there! This is yer wife then?" Bran says to Shine, beaming in Lena's general direction.
"Oh. Aye. I beg your pardon. Mrs. Lena Shine, Prospector Bran Stillwall." Shine nods to Bran. He looks a little puzzled.
"Wow… I never thought I'd ever see the mainland. It's so big!" Mimi is still in awe.
"Oh, aye," Lena says with a nod. "Might recall from Icecrown? I was with the forces there. Pleasure to see you." Lena reaches over to pat Bun.
Skylarke's sparkling eyes turn to Mimi and look her over.
"Lo there!" Bran says. "Good ta see ye!" Bran's tone toward Lena is ambiguous enough that he might mean 'see you again' or 'meet you,' it's really hard to say.
The tanuki stands up in its chair and puts its front paws on the table to see whether Lena is petting him because she has food.
Atley marches up the hill and spots the Cobalt gathering. He performs a brief, silent head count before he approaches. "Afternoon then, you lot."
Gwen wanders into the tavern courtyard, speaking to her arcane familiar, Pookie. "…a note. Groundskeeper Wu says plant with the pretty little yellow flowers is poisonous. Spread the word among present Alliance. End note."
Shun glances over his shoulder at Atley, nodding to him.
Atley nods to Shun in kind before he glances over his shoulder at Gwen.
Lena does have food. She casually offers Bun a dumpling.
Bun snaps the dumpling from Lena's fingers happily and settles back in his chair to eat.
Skylarke unwraps a taffy and pops it in her mouth. Chewy!
Bran snaps Atley a crisp salute, then settles down and opens his journal to a fresh page, taking note of the gathering. He sketches each person, but they have no faces - they're just kind of… vibes.
Gwen absent-mindedly walks right past several Cobaltians…suddenly finding herself surrounded by them.
"I just got back from the mainland… Nothing happened in the last day or so here?" Shun asks.
"Mm, been a little quieter, last few days. A blessing," Lena looks curiously over at Mi Shu.
Atley responds with a crisp salute of his own towards Brannagen before he looks to Shun. "Nothing dreadful… But I do have news. I'd planned on waiting until we were all assembled tomorrow, but there's enough of us here."
"Oh! Look at everyone here!" Gwen lights up. "Hello!"
Shine nods courteously to Gwen.
"News?" Bran looks up curiously.
"News? Oh, nothing grim, I hope." Gwen nibbles her lip.
Shine glances at Skylarke again and offers her a nod this time too, before looking over at Atley.
Shun raises a brow at this.
"News? I've been reading the newsletters, but did something new happen?" Mimi asks.
Skylarke winks at Shine. Hey, hotness. She quarter-turns in her chair to look at Atley.
Bran glances over at Mimi. His curious expression intensifies.
Shine pretends not to notice he has been winked at. Maybe he didn't notice. It was on his blind side.
Atley looks between each of them, his gaze last lingering on Gwen. "I come from Dawn's Blossom. Spoke with a respectable trader there by the name of 'Toya.' Gave word that he passed by some other foreigners on the way to the Valley of the Four Winds, farther inland, to the west."
"Horde?" asks Bran with a frown.
At the same time, Lena stiffens a little. "Horde?"
Bran glances at Mrs. Shine and chuckles dryly.
Shine folds his arms.
Atley shakes his head. "Unclear, by the sound of it. But with the fleet handling cleanup and salvage at Serpent's Heart, I'm ordering both squads to rally together and move west to track these foreigners in search of the Pawn. We're leaving the Jade Forest tomorrow. Pushing into the Pandaren heartland.”
Shun nods slowly, "Understood."
Mimi's eyes sparkle with excitement at Dane's words.
"Should've just shanghaied the little ba— boy when we had the chance," grumbles Skylarke.
"Yes, sir!" Gwen gives her best approximation of a military salute. Good effort, Gwen.
"Pass along word to those who aren't here. We'll assemble at Dawn's Blossom tomorrow." Atley says, giving Gwen a salute.
Bran narrows his eyes at Skylarke.
Atley also examines Skylarke for a moment.
Skylarke holds up well under examination. She's still chewing her taffy.
"You're not wrong," Lena nods to Skylarke, and then glances to Shine. "Reckon we'll be sticking close to the coast, but hopefully not too far."
Bun, disinterested in the matter of foreigners, wonders where his second dumpling is. He hops down from his chair and goes to Lena's, to haul himself up onto it beside her.
Shine nods at Lena impassively.
Bran takes a few notes in his journal, in rapid and impeccably neat dwarven script that looks machine-printed.
Lena realizes she now very nearly has a lap-tanuki. She hesitates for a moment, then gives him dumpling number two. She looks over to Mi Shu. "Newsletter, you said? Are you one of the Cobalt pandaren?"
Shun casually starts boxing some food.
Bran's turquoise eyes lift sharply from his journal to examine Mimi curiously.
Atley shifts his gaze to Mi Shu and squints.
"I am!" Mimi answers proudly and puffs out her chest.
"Ah. You're no native, are you." Atley pries off his helmet and tucks it under an arm.
"I finally made it here to the mainland today! I still have more training to do, but I hope to be helpful to everyone very soon!" Mi Shu says cheerfully.
"Do ye know a Dailu Summersong by chance?" Bran asks in the tone of one who has asked this many, many times and is not expecting an affirmative answer.
"Oh Dailu? She's my cousin! We used to play together all the time when we were little. Do you know her?" Mimi bats her eyelashes at Bran.
"Yer… yer cousin." Bran looks like the little pup that has caught the carriage it was chasing.
Lena looks curiously at Bran now. "Someone you met before?"
Skylarke looks between Bran and Mimi.
"She was… we were…" It's kind of clear from his awkward flabbergastedness what they were.
Mimi tilts her head and peers innocently at Bran.
Shine raises his eyebrow at Bran.
"REAlly?" Skylarke asks Bran.
"Ye look like her, a bit," Bran says. Since when has Bran remembered what *anyone* looked like?
Atley deadpans Bran, eyes half-lidded.
Shine's eyebrow lifts higher.
Mi Shu chuckles, "I mean we are cousins after all."
"She's… all righ' then? Doin' fine? Been years." He clears his throat.
Shun blinks at Bran.
Lena looks between Mimi and Bran, a faint crease between her brow. No more dumplings are forthcoming to Bun, she's too distracted now. But then again, maybe that makes them easier to steal.
"Bran seems to draw the local female eye more oft than not…" Atley says, sounding half bemused and half impressed.
Skylarke now looks back at Atley. "REAlly?" she repeats with the same inflection and everything.
Atley grunts.
"Years," Lena repeats. "World is smaller than we think, sometimes."
Skylarke eyes Bran with more interest now.
[Brannagen]: "Aye she was… it was a solo expedition. She kept to the shadows in a manner o' speakin'. Brave lass."
Shine glances down at Lena and smiles faintly. Bun uses the opportunity of conversation he does not care about to stand up and help himself to a dumpling.
"Yeah. She seems well. She went off on an adventure a while back. I figure that's how you met." Mi Shu giggles, "But she seems to be the same old Dailu."
Skylarke laughs. "A solo expedition…" she repeats. If you know what she means, wink wink nudge nudge.
"Aye," Bran says, a bit wistfully.
Atley keeps eyeing Bran with vague, gruff, teasing amusement.
"Well!" Bran says with forced cheer. "Good ta know tha' it's not a bad reason I havena heard from 'er." He clears his throat again. "I'm gonna get some tea. Be right back!" He rises from his chair, taking his journal with him.
Shine watches Bran go.
Skylarke watches Bran go, too. "Well. Good for him," she decides.
"Aye." Shine agrees with Skylarke.
Atley looks to Mi Shu. "I believe we met in Stormwind, miss."
Shun now has a box full of dumplings.
"Oh! Does anyone want something to drink? I brought a few things with me." Mimi pipes up.
"Wot've you got there?" Atley asks.
"Oh?" Lena glances at her barley tea. Then she frowns at her plate. Didn't she have more dumplings than that?
Bun gazes pleadingly back up at Lena. Look at her with all those dumplings, while innocent Bun starves.
Lena gives him another. It's only the third, right?
Bun can't count, so sure, lady.
Mi Shu takes out a couple clay bottles from her pack, "I have some of the new sake brews I've been working on since leaving the Wandering Isle."
"I'll have one," Atley says. "Just a snort."
"Oh, you make them?" Lena asks, looking over curiously. "I'd like to try."
Shine nods amiably at Mi Shu as well, eyeing the bottles.
"Never let it be said that I was afraid to try a new variety of drink," Skylarke says. "Um, what's sake? It's not like tea, is it?"
"Oh, gosh…be careful, Dane," Gwen advises. "We sampled some pandaren drinks at the monastery. They're really strong. Really, really, really strong."
"Maybe just a sip, for me," Lena says, somewhat responsibly. She finishes off her tea, to have a cup to offer.
"Rice based alcohol," Shun states.
Skylarke beams at Shun. "Thank you," she says. Hey, hotness.
Shun just nods to her in turn.
"So I've heard," Atley says to Gwen and Shun. "I've yet to try any rice liquor."
Bran returns with a cup of tea, his journal under his arm, and a cheery smile. He sets tea and book on the table.
"Feel free to have as much as you like." Mimi says as she pours several little glasses, "Yeah, it's a type of alcohol maked with cooked rice. It's very tasty and doesn't take too long to make either so there's more where this came from!"
Lena holds out her own glass for pouring.
Skylarke leans out to pick up a glass and takes it like a shot, straight down the gullet. She gives it a second to settle in.
Gwen visibly winces, watching those sampling the sake.
Atley steps forward to pick up a glass. He examines it, before he leans in to smell it, and eventually knocks it back, quietly smacking his lips.
"Ahhh," Skylarke says. "Nice!" She looks over the number of glasses, then the number of people.
"Anything special about these?" Lena asks. "You said you made a few different ones, only, and I don't really know one rice alcohol from another, I'm afraid." Lena sips hers, once Mimi pours.
Shine takes a glass and tips back an experimental sip. He makes a mild, appreciative face and nods to Mi Shu.
"It's sweet. Not unlike a wine. Bit misleading, I warrant. One'll do for me," Atley says, setting the glass back down.
[Mi Shu]: "This one is just a normal one. Not unfiltered or with any added flavors. I felt like it was best to get the basics down in this new environment before I do anything too crazy."
Bran nods at Mi Shu without looking up from his journal, in which he's writing again.
"Always good to start with the foundation," Lena nods agreement. "In this and in other things."
"Feels like the sort of thing ye could drink too much of without noticing," Shine observes, and then drinks the rest of his glass as if to test this hypothesis.
Atley looks to Shine and grunts. "Quite right."
Mimi grins at everyone's appreciation of her brew, "If you think that about this, just wait until you try my plum wine." She winks at Shine.
That's twice today Shine has been winked at. Is it contagious? He sets his empty glass on the table and nods courteously to Mimi.
"Reckon there's some pandaren folk here who'd be happy to talk to you," Lena adds. "I hear Cobalt squad here helped out some brewing families already."
Atley looks to Gwen, cinching his thumbs in his belt.
Gwen looks back at Atley with an oblivious smile.
"Oh really?" Mimi's ears perk up, "I'd love to learn how pandaren on the mainland brew too. I've been learning all I can in Ironforge for now."
"I'm interested in buying a bottle of your stuff and sending it home," Atley says to Mi Shu.
Mimi hands Dane a bottle, "Here. This one's on the house."
Atley accepts the bottle and leans back to read the label, if any. "Cheers. We've met before, I warrant, with the Wandering Isle delegation."
Shun eyes Mimi a little cautiously.
Skylarke reaches out to take another glass. She sips at this one, because others did.
"Yep! That was a pretty exciting time wasn't it?" Mi Shu says. The label is mostly in Pandaren but there is a small portion that says 'Jadepaw Junmai Sake' along with the proof.
"T'was," Atley says with a nod, before looking to Skylarke. "Are you with the fleet, then, miss?"
Skylarke smiles prettily at Atley. "I'm a captain," she says. "A former pirate captain, more's the pity. Because of the former, you see."
"Can I see that?" Bran says to Atley, pointing to the bottle.
Atley blinks slowly at Skylarke, leaning over to hand the bottle to Brannagen across the table without looking.
Bran studies the pandaren writing on the label, and copies it into his journal.
Shine regards Skylarke flatly.
Skylarke sips innocently from her glass.
"Very well," Atley says at last.
"Fallon trusts her," Lena says in a low voice to Shine.
"Aye," says Shine to Lena, less low-voiced.
Shun just raises a brow.
To Skylarke, Lena adds, "Friend of mine did some time with pirates. It was an undercover thing, though."
Gwen slips away to start making notes for White Squad tomorrow.
"Undercover pirates sounds like a musical group," Skylarke notes.
"That sounds pretty exciting." Mimi says about the pirates.
An adventurer steps out of the inn.
Bran looks up curiously at the Unfamiliar Adventurer, and gives a little wave.
Atley's gaze shifts. "Elston."
Shun glances back.
Mi Shu waves at the newcomer.
Shine surveys the newcomer. He nods politely.
Elston stops walking as he sees the crowd. "Atley. Heard you all were up here."
Atley inclines his head. "Have you just come in to the country, then?"
"Friend o' yers, Red?" says Bran, the redhead, to the dark haired warrior.
Skylarke looks over her shoulder to give Elston a good look-see. She smiles. Hey, hotness.
"We're familiar. Come 'round, Elston, meet some faces, new and old." Atley beckons.
[Elston]: "Recently. Odd jobs and prospecting. Hello, everyone."
[Brannagen]: "Prospector Brannagen Stillwall, Cobalt Company Blue Squad and Explorers League gadfly. Pleased ta meetcha."
"Shine," says Shine.
"Shun," grunts Shun.
Skylarke takes note of the names. "Skylarke," she says. "Captain Skylarke if you're being picky, which I rarely am." She leaves that open to interpretation.
"I'm Mi Shu Jadepaw! But you can just call me Mimi if you like. It's nice to meet you." Mi Shu bows.
"Lena," Lena says, smiling in greeting. "I'm with the fleet, like Skylarke." She doesn't clarify rank.
Elston looks over the crowd and stops to nod at Brannagan, and Shine, and Shun, and then a deep, appreciative nod at Skylarke. "Good to meet Blue Squad. I've heard of your deeds, of course. Everyone has."
Brannagen beams!
Atley nods. "We've members of White Squad about, as well. We've both made great strides in the country."
Shun nods as White Squad is mentioned.
Bun does not introduce himself because he is occupied by discreetly finishing the last of Lena's dumplings.
"You've come at a good time. The land is stable, for now. Most of the noise has settled," Atley explains. "Ought not to find prospecting too hard, if you have a care. Much of this place is still wild."
"We just kicked the stuffin' out of the Sha of Doubt," Bran says. "So unironically we are feelin' a bit more confident."
[Elston]: "Deserved confidence, then. Congratulations. Well-fought, I'm certain."
"Quite a battle," Bran acknowledges.
Shun grunts lowly.
Shine nods again.
"Excellent. I haven't ventured far, yet. But I mean to. This place is—" Elston glances at Atley for a second. "I know there are troubles here, but it's beautiful enough to calm the heart."
Shine nods at Elston.
Bran nods in exuberant agreement. "It's quite possible I'll never leave, unless they kick me out."
Atley inclines his head. "There is a calming beauty here. I've yet to see a land or people like it. I recommend you make for the Tian Monastery on your own time. The Jade Temple as well."
"I know what you mean. This place is so beautiful. I can't wait to explore." Mimi says, working to contain her excitement.
[Elston]: "I might have to stay too. Strawberry sulks when we have to come back to rest."
"Plenty to do, still," Lena adds to the newcomers. "For all it's peaceful now. Mending the statue, helping the jinyu. We could point you to the responsibles."
"Someone explain to me this sha thing," Skylarke says. "Aren't there any sha of good things? A sha of happiness or a sha of relaxation?"
"The sha by nature are creatures o' bad feelin's," Bran explains. "We dunno fer sure yet, but ta me it seems there's the stink of Old Gods all over et. Then again I've been accused o' seein' Old Gods in me mashed potato, so."
"Not this time, Bran. You're on to something," Atley says gravely.
"That seems terribly unfair," Skylarke says. "No positive sha, I mean, Though seeing Old Gods in your potatoes would be unfair as well."
"I'm not sure if it would be better if there were a sha of happiness," Lena says, considering. "Then you… couldn't be happy…"
"That's an excellent point." Elston, who seems like the scowly type, also seems more at ease.
"Yes, but maybe they'd be good when they showed up," Skylarke explains. "Like a sha of happiness would make everyone happier. But alas."
"No such luck. They all seem to be monsters." Atley says.
"Et's not an unreasonable hypothesis though," Bran says, waving his pen toward Skylarke. "So much o' the Void stuff has a Light reflection an' vice versa."
"That would sure be a thing," Lena says, amused. "One day maybe we'll meet a great force that's benevolent. Till then…"
"Well, you'll just have to continue killing them all, I suppose." Skylarke toasts Atley and knocks back the last of her sake.
"Killin' them is possible, but… whoof." Bran leaves it at that.
"They'll learn to fear us before long, if they've any wit about them." Atley says.
"Can fear feel fear?" Bran muses.
Shun turns towards Bran.
Mimi ponders Bran's question.
"We know doubt can feel pain," Atley says.
"If anyone can teach it…" Skylarke says.
Bran smiles and takes a few notes.
Lena glances at Shine. "Think I'll head down to the Blanche to check in with Sir Atley's news."
Shine nods at her. "Aye. Going up to see Baird now, then."
"Hmph. I should go inform Estel as well," Shun states. He also has dumplings to deliver.
Shine scoops up Bun and goes to retrieve his horse.
Atley looks to Lena. "Tell the Admiral I'll be along shortly to give word of Cobalt Company's progress."
Bran remains at the table, contentedly making notes in his journal. People can come or go; he's happy either way.
Lena waves goodbye to the others. "I'll be sure to do that."
Elston nods. "I made a nice ring. I'll have to find more gems if I want to try it again."
Atley turns to Elston. "Let's have a look, then."
"Oh sure, look at this." Elston holds out an [Ornate Band of the Undertow].
Skylarke leans over so she can see the ring too.
Atley accepts it and holds it up. He eyes Skylarke eyeing it for a moment, but doesn't immediately offer it to the former pirate. "Feels light." Atley leans forward to hand it back.
[Elston]: "It's a fine ring for a healer, I think."
"Pretty," Skylarke notes, making no move to take the ring. She's a pirate, not a thief.
"I guess I should head off for now too. I got my training to get back to!" Mimi bows to the group and takes her leave.
"Farewell, then," Atley says.
Bran watches Mimi go a little wistfully.
"Train well," Elston smiles. There's that handsome face!
"I'm off to speak to the Admiral. I recommend you get a bite to eat here," Atley says to Elston. "S'good eating."
[Brannagen]: "Tell him the Prospector says hello an' to take care."
"I'll take that bottle now, Bran," Atley says.
"Oh, right!" Bran seems to have forgotten he had it, and hands it back.
Atley grunts and tugs his helmet on. He glances at the label one more time before looking to Skylarke, inclining his head in farewell. "Captain."
"So a Captain's under an Admiral, right?" Bran asks, unaware of the innuendo possibly.
"That's right," Atley says.
"Thanks!" says Bran, making a note. "See ye, Red."
Atley grunts in farewell and turns, marching off.
"So whats yer story?" Bran says with a twinkle-eyed smile that seems to encompass both Skylarke and Elston.
[Elston]: "I'm a paladin…but lately I've been more interested in jewelsmithing. And you're an explorer."
[Brannagen]: "Aye! An' a priest, an' sort of trainin' to be a monk. But mostly an explorer, an' everythin' else is in service o' that. So what led ye to the paladin path?"
Bran gives a little nod to Skylarke as she wanders off to get further refreshments, one surmises.
[Elston]: "When I was young, they were — they shone. I thought that they were special. I wanted that too."
"An' now?" Bran says, his tone neutral other than curiosity.
"It's true," Elston says. "But there was a lot a child couldn't see. No one can escape being people, no matter what power or gift they possess. It took a while to learn that."
Bran nods slowly, his eyes solemn. "I was lucky enough never ta see the Light I use as anythin' other than a tool I'd learned ta wield. Never thought it reflected on me as a person. Saved me a lotta confusion, I thenk. But once ye've seen a murloc wield the Light, et's a bit hard ta feel snooty about it." He chuckles.
Elston laughs. "I think that would have settled me down much faster, if I'd seen that."
Bran makes a murloc sound, and waves his hands around, making them glow slightly with the Light. "Really humbles ye," he agrees. "So what brings ye to Pandaria, then?"
[Elston]: "I knew there was the work of battle to be done here. I thought I'd come in case I could be useful."
"How good are ye at keepin' yer feelin's centered an' calm?" Bran asks, one rusty brow rising slightly.
"I've been keeping steady," Elston allows. "The pandarens have ways to settle the mind, and I've been imitating them."
[Brannagen]: "Aye! Been studyin' the same. Marvelous stuff, useful ta anyone I thenk. But especially folk like us who need ta stay in touch with powers of healin' an' goodness. All too easy fer strife an' bitterness to cloud those connections."
[Elston]: "Very easy. And—I don't know, I have strange ideas about it."
"Oh aye? Such as?" Bran leans forward curiously.
"I've been sitting, or doing these simple movements, to calm the noise of your thoughts, but….it's you," Elston says, as if confessing. "The thoughts and feelings, they're yours, but I mean, you can face them. See their truth. And they aren't so…urgently frightening, or enraging?"
Bran nods. "Aye. Et's when we fight ourselves tha' we run inta trouble."
"Exactly," Elston says. "And I hadn't seen that. The whole time! And I feel a bit silly for it."
"Ach," Bran says with a warm smile, his eyes almost disappearing into it. "Ef yer silly then we all are. Et's where we all start. Tryin' ta control every little theng. The more ye live, the more ye learn ta let go."
"And that's why I like it here so much," Elston says. "I can't wait to see it all."
"My squad's movin' to a new region tomorrow," Bran says excitedly. "I'm glad; I thenk I've sketched every inch o' the Jade Forest by now." He chuckles.
"I hope I'm not too far behind," Elston says. "It would be nice to happen upon you all again."
"Aye!" says Bran. "Feel free ta send a message ta Red - er, Ser Dane Atley - ef ye want ta find 'im an' catch up at any time. I'm sure he'd welcome the company or an extra hand!"
"I will," Elston promises. "I'm going to get a basket of dumplings and go scout out some ore before it gets dark."
"Enjoy!" says Bran, beaming. He gives a little nod of farewell, then turns his attention back to his journal.