A Flower in the Desert

A Flower in the Desert
Date of Scene:	10 July 2013
Location:	Agrabah City
Synopsis:	A couple of young travelers accidentally stumble into one of the seedier taverns in Agrabah. Fortunately, they get a little help from an unexpected person.
Cast of Characters:	Rapunzel, Alma Hyral, Gerad Iron Fogair

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Gerad Iron Fogair has posed:
AGRABAH, LIKE ANY other city, has its fair share of pubs and taverns, places where the unscrupulous and desperate share tables with the washed-up and hopeless. It is a whirlpool of equal parts despair and undirected *emotion*, where wise men or women can find companionship for their misery, or at the very least hear about the roots of somebody else's.

This particular bar is prototypical in its layout and raucousness - men hang drung from the rafters (Arabians are FLEXIBLE), across tables, while others play Desert Card Games and brandish knives at the silliest insults. A group of men have huddled around a booth in the bar's corner, where they listen, rapt, to a pale-skinned, blonde man covered in a traveler's over-clothes, the spear behind his back as much a threat as it is a landmark for the weary and bored.

Gerad is used to holding court.

"-astle, idiots, and THAT'S what I'm sayin', that we gotta find a way into this damn cave! I got the maps to prove it!" Gerad finishes his shouted story with a healthy mouthful of whatever the bartender's put in his mug. The people around him have already started their loud, nondescript refusal of the tale.

Rapunzel has posed:
SAND. So much sand.

That's the thought that kept running through Rapunzel's mind as she trudged across the flat wind-swept plains that stretch out before her. At first she was super excited about coming across a desert - well after she got over being super excited about riding on the big modern ferry that took her from Wutai, which was a super exciting /ninja city/, to the quaint little resort town of Costa Del Sol where she had this super awesome thing called ice cream for the first time!

Now, some hours later, the endless sea of sand has started to lose its glamour. Even as the mid-afternoon sun drifted inevitably down towards the horizon the blistering heat failed to wane enough to be noticeable. The leather bag that contained their water at one point has long since been emptied and dangles loosely over the girl's shoulder as she focuses on placing one foot in front of the other.

On top of her head, Pascal is draped languidly in her shimmering golden locks. Unlike the native fauna, the tiny chameleon isn't adapted to this sort of environment and suffers just as much as his companion. However, he is the first one to take notice of the strange sight taking shape on the horizon.

Rubbing his big eyes to clear the haze, Pascal perks up when the sight of towering walls and people fails to vanish in the heat. He scrambles down onto Rapunzel's shoulder, tapping insistently at her cheek and pointing excitedly towards the looming distant city. She looks up and after several seconds has the same reaction.

"Pascal! A city!"

Half an hour later, the door to the dingy tavern slams open without warning. The blinding glow of the sun silhouette's a slender figure for a few moments before Rapunzel falls into an unkempt pile on the floor, her hair still trailing out beyond sight into the city.

"Water..."

Alma Hyral has posed:
So the Pridelands were a lot of fun. Coming back from a fishing trip there guised as an owl made for a very eclectic experience. But then she found herself afflicted with some minor wanderlust.

So coming back from the Land of Dragons, she made a quick stop through the portal to Phantasia Mountains.. and off to Agrabah.

For someone of skin so pale that she appeared sickly most of the time, Alma was taking to desert environments better as of late, given that she was living in Archades. You either learned to deal, or you moved. And so the girl found her way to Agrabah, as she was drawn there by it's beautiful architecture and it's great libraries. Arabian Astronomers were much famed for their studies of the heavens.

While her garb was strange for this land, it wasn't so strange that she stood out especially. She was dressed in her typical white mage robes now for the desert trip, her robe lined in red triangular trim, her hair up in a bun, with a cowl over her head. Unfortunately the portal's magic didn't translate /all/ the signs for her especially well, so when she looked up at the title for the tavern, she mistook it for an inn. And so she strode right in without hesitation. Only to find herself in a tavern. Mental sweatdrop. Her actual physical self was already covered by a sheen of sweat as a result of traipsing across the desert.

Well, this place was especially raucous... men were literally hanging off the ceiling drunk! And then that man in the corner.. trying to recruit hardened adventurers

She might have turned around immediately, except that Rapunzel stumbles into the bar and collapses. Oh Sweet Cosma, heat exhaustion... Without any sort of hesitation, she bends over, taking her canteen and offering it to her lips. Then she places a hand around her, a soft white glow seeking to correct some of the electrolyte imbalances likely caused by the dehydration. "Hey, stay with me here. Are you alright?"

Gerad Iron Fogair has posed:
The shouting in the corner is reaching a fevered pitch. A dusky-fleshed fellow has assembled a convincing reason to defy the story about the castle and the cave, and the group is splitting into two philosophically-aligned teams. Gerad is *just* about to slam his mug down to A) break it and B) get some damn attention when the tavern's entryway is filled with two *women*.

Mug held over his head, pre-smash, Gerad freezes upon seeing the two - the one with the chameleon, mostly. If either woman is looking his way, they miiiight catch the ghost of a smile, the flash of those blue eyes=

--BUT THEN--

There isn't even a stampede sound effect. There's not even a pause in the tavern's atmospheric conversation. This is a Disney world, and in Disney, beautiful ladies entering a bar are going to have no less than twenty hands shooting in from off-frame, holding all manner of water, ale, wine, and whatever.

One guy's holding a hookah, smoke trailing from its end.

Another guy is extending a room number hastily scrawled onto parchment.

The mob is incredibly thick.

Rapunzel has posed:
Rapunzel puts up no fuss as the canteen is brought to her lips, lacking the strength to do so even if she wanted to. The majority of the first few sips end up on the front of her dress and the side of her face but after a moment the girl begins to practically inhale the water, eventually reaching up with her hands to push the container up to where her lizard friend is perched on her head. Pascal simply opens his mouth and latches it entirely around the opening, his tiny body quickly bloating up as he gulps down the refreshing water.

Wiping the excess liquid away with the back of her sleeve, the girl sits up and opens her mouth to offer thanks to her savior. Her words pause mid-syllable as she finally takes in her surroundings and the incredible array of various beverages held out for her to take. Her eyes travel upwards, following the comically beefy hands wrapped around the mugs to the assortment of ruffians, oafs, and rogues all clustered around her and the unknown girl at her side.

To her credit, she manages not to scream. Rapunzel inhales sharply and kicks her feet, scooting rapidly across the floor on her backside until she's up against the wall. She reaches for something at her waist and brings up her deadly - frying pan?

The girl stares with wide-eyed fright at the rough looking hoodlums that surround her, holding her weapon out at arm's length, shifting it between targets in a frenzy.

Alma Hyral has posed:
Alma is probably more mousey than beautiful at this age. She might even be considered cute, pretty, or adorable depending on the eye of the beholder. But beautiful? Probably not, especially while garbed like this.

She actually looks up at the sound of the stampede only to have a Hookah shoved in her face, and she's waving it away, coughing from the smoke, which causes her to step backward and bump into a man behind her in a suitably klutzy manner who is holding out an ale mug, all the while spilling the water from her canteen. Which then causes her to take a step forward and nearly run into a piece of paper who is almost /assuredly/ holding out the room number to the convalescing Rapunzel, not herself. Which causes her to run back into the hookah filled with smoke. More coughing.

"Oh s-sweet Cosma!" She would scream maybe, but she's coughing on the smoke too much, which was making her breathless already and exacerbating her terrible asthma. Shortly after she's doubling over.

This whole experience was giving her sensory overload, to a young girl with social anxiety, as she starts to hyperventilate just a little from being crowded by the mob of men and the smoke. She looked suitably flustered, even though all of them were flirting with Rapunzel.. ..except one guy, who was giving her a lecherous oaf smile that just rubbed her the wrong way in every sense of the phrase.

A moment later she's on the ground where Rapunzel used to lay, still hyperventilating.

Gerad Iron Fogair has posed:
Gerad may be SUBSTANTIALLY GRITTIER than his noble-born doppleganger, but no amount of emotional distancing could keep the rapscallion from favoring women. Especially women in need!

"Move it! Out of the way! Shit, shit!! Oh, hello Fahad, I didn't see you there. MAKE WAY, PLEASE!" In moments, the mob is cut through - one pale-fingered hand falls upon the business end of Rapunzel's frying pan, lowers it, and then Gerad's stepping into the women's circle, his back to the audience - and allowing the two ladies a barrier between themselves and their adoring fans.

"Laaaaaaaaaaaaadies~", he practically purrs, presence overwhelming, animal, even despite the way he masks his appearance! "So sorry to see the two of you subjected to such a paucity of manners! Agrabah was never known for its kindness to the fairer sex... but this is ridiculo- oh, oh, oh no, your young friend is dying." Gerad drops to a knee, reaches into a satchel at his side, and removes an empty kidskin bladder from the container. This is affixed to poor, gaspy Alma's face. Gerad stands, and turns to the crowd.

"EVERYBODY BACK THE HELL OFF!" Nobody moves. Gerad begins scowling.

He looks over his shoulders at Rapunzel - and Alma, if she's gotten up by now. "Do you two know any magic? Any special tricks? The crowd seems to have a liking for you."

Rapunzel has posed:
Rapunzel is too busy attempting to ward off the potential danger of someone approaching her to notice when someone actually does. By the time she realizes that her weapon has been pushed away, Gerad is already getting uncomfortably close. Unfortunately, there's no where else to escape to, what with every person in the tavern clustered around the three of them.

Despite his attempts to be sauve, the golden haired teen's look of outright terror doesn't seem to fade very much. Her bright green eyes shift from the mob of ruffians to Gerad, then back again, not finding much that sets them apart save for his out of place hair color. She winces when he yells, but as no one seems to be buying it, she just gives them a nervous smile.

"Tricks..." Well she knows one that would wow them for sure, but she's not about to let that secret out in a place like this. "Um... I can paint?"

Alma Hyral has posed:
A gentleman(?) begins to part the crowd. While Alma is laying there with a hand upon her chest, staring at the ceiling, her vision doubled by the experience of breathing so rapidly. Her hands were beginning to tingle with the telltale signs of alkalosis.

She dimly registers the man standing overhead, apologizing for the rude mannerisms of his respected associates and colleagues. Or something like that, his speech and mannerisms reminded her of her time in Port Royal with Argider.

And then a bladder gets stuck in her face, and the absurdity of the implement used causes her to go crosseyed, as she starts to rebreathe her own air.. the carbon dioxide within it actually doing her a lot of good. A moment later a soft white glow was spreading throughout her body easing the inflammation in her lungs and working at the shortness of breath. The bladder rolls to the side forgotten. She manages to gasp out, "T-Thank you. And y-yes.. I know m-magic but I r-really don't want to h-hurt anyone."

This would probably spur on laughter, given the timid and plaintive looking sight of the recovering white mage. She didn't look like she could hurt a soggy cheese sandwich, much less disperse a crowd. Still, she's getting up, very slowly...

Gerad Iron Fogair has posed:
Unseen, Gerad is frowning. The crowd is *not* doing what he wants them to. Behind him, Rapunzel and Alma are *not* doing what he needs them to! Well, Alma is getting up, which is a start, but... Gerad glances to the side, if only to ensure Rapunzel is assisting Alma to her feet. He hopes she is.

"Alright, you, ah... you dunderheads!" Gerad is wincing. That didn't sound right. Moving along. "I GUESS I'LL NEED TO BRING OUT MY-" Gerad is stopped, mid-announcement, by a man shoving him in the chest. The wanderer stumbles backwards, a cloud of white, choking dust billows forth from a sleeve, and then he's collapsing to an awkward half-sprawl before Rapunzel and Alma. The movement tumbles his hood backwards - both women should be able to see how his eyes seek theirs out. He offers a miserable little smile.

"You should turn around and leave, now. I'll find you and we'll see about water."

Gerad steadies himself, and regards the man closest to him - his face is caked in powder.

"LAST WARNING! ONE MORE STEP TOWARDS THE LADIES AND I'LL USE MAGIC!" This seems to have some effect.

Rapunzel has posed:
Rapunzel would like nothing better than to get out of here at the moment. But the way remains closed. Seeing that her mysterious benefactor has recovered enough to stand, the girl cautiously scoots forward enough to give her a hand, scooting her back towards the wall and interposing herself between Alma and the rough crowd. If things go sour here, she'll not let this small girl be the one to get trounced.

However, it seems like the aid being rendered by Gerad is only making things worse. Rapunzel ponders for a moment then steps forward, putting her hand on the rogue's shoulder as she moves past him. Hopefully, she can defuse the situation.

"There's no need for any of that now." Pascal huddles down on her shoulder, blending into the purple fabric as the heavy-set men loom closer. She swallows hard. "These gentlemen just... ah... wanted to offer me a drink. Isn't that right, guys?"

Bright smile. Big puppy eyes. Disney Princess charm, go!

Alma Hyral has posed:
Crap.

And now their rescuer needed rescuing. If she used her magic offensively here she'd probably cause a panic. If she caused a panic, she might be booted out of the city. There was one option she had left to her, but she'd prefer it be one of last resort. It was something she wanted to refine with Cronus first before trying it again..

Rapunzel attempts to distract the crowd, given that Rapunzel was the target of nearly the entirety of the crowd's flirtations, save one guy who still squecks her out, Alma moves over to Gerad, tending to him by wiping the choking powder off his face with the sleeve of her robe. And murmuring very softly, "Are you alright, Sir?" He wasn't hit hard, but she checks him for injuries anyhow with a concerned look.

And then she's watching Rapunzel very carefully and those giving her their attention.. if this mob decided to get especially fresh with her then she'd have little choice but to act.

Gerad Iron Fogair has posed:
The powder did end up on his face, didn't it? He smiles broadly at Alma while she wipes his face off, and her cursory inspection will give her ample evidence that Gerad is fine; he's wearing armor beneath all the cloth, and there's a multitude of -- suspicious shit in those bags, beside.

"I'm fine now, dearest. You really should leave, immediately. Take the longer-haired dove with you." Gerad stands up, hastily runs a hand over his face -- he really needs to get that dust-thrower retooled -- and steps forward, towards where Rapunzel is trying her very, very best to look adorable and cute to a crowd of men who admire her for that exact ability.

"Dear, you really should have been out the door by now." Gerad shoulders his way past Rapunzel - he's rude, yes! The situation calls for rudeness. Look at these men, encroaching! The jealousy, anger, and irritation in their eyes! Look at the powder still caking the face of the one to the left! Gerad is.

"Leave, now," he asides to Rapunzel and Alma. Then he's reaching a hand out towards the powder-faced gentleman. Clever witnesses might spy the flint and steel strikers cleverly hidden on kissing aspects of adjacent ringbands.

"ALRIGHT, VAGABO--" No, no, "DOUCHEBAGS! MAGIC!" Gerad snaps his fingers. Sparks.

A man's face lights on fire, brilliant and white. His beard catches soon afterwards.

Rapunzel has posed:
"H-hey!"

Rapunzel stumbles slightly as she's shoved aside. Fortunately, a large pair of hands catch her mid-fall and pull her upright. "Tha-aaah-nkyou?" She looks up to find that she's been pushed up against one of the largest men she's ever seen in her life. Considering she's only been out of her tower for a couple weeks now, she may not have the best sample size to go by, but anyone who requires her to tilt her head up in order to see their face counts as huge in her books.

She gives the man a nervous smile and steps back. And suddenly there's fire. Rapunzel turns and stares, just as stunned as the scoundrels in the pub are likely to be. Maybe not as much as the guy who's head just got turned into a candle wick.

Pascal's insistent tugging on her hair snaps her out of it. "Uh oh... time to go." Latching on to Alma's wrist, Rapunzel turns and barrels for the door way, wielding her frying pan with swift strikes on anyone who tries to get in her way.

Alma Hyral has posed:
"But.." She points towards Rapunzel, who then at Edgar, then at the crowd. She looks extremely indecisive. But at his insistence, she takes ahold of Rapunzel's hand and tries to make a break for the back of the crowd towards the door. Except the crowd isn't readily abating which would allow them to leave.

And so she turns to Gerad and spies the rough edges on the inside of the ringbands. Inwardly she groans. Her sister was a genius inventor, she was a dabbler in some devices, and she also knew Myla, who was a skilled engineer that literally created fully working animatronics. So she knew right away what was going on.

That's not how fire magic works! That's not how fire magic works at all!

A man's beard still catches on fire from the sparks. Oh great, either this would /really/ intimidate the crowd or he was going to get his posterior beaten. No choice then. With Rapunzel firmly grasping her, she reaches out with her opposite hand, grabbing ahold of Gerad with her opposite hand, giving the image of Alma being stretched between them. But this was a very necessary gesture. She needed to be touching both of them. Crap. She really didn't want to do this again without getting advice from Cronus first. And she'd /never/ tried to do this for more than just herself. Well no time like the present.

Destiny lies in my hands. Stop movement, Galaxy stop!

A large radiant Sigil appeared in front of Gerad. And then she punched her fingers forward into it, before grasping ahold of his shoulder once more with her hand. This was probably going to suuuuckkkkk. Immediately it began to look like a small Galaxy of stars, which immediately spread out so that the entire tavern looked like it was filled with a sea of tiny bright lights that looked akin to small stars. Everything started to slow down gradually, until it looked like everyone was barely even moving. Even the man with his beard on fire, they could only see the crackling and sparking of the flames in his beard moving in slow motion within ticks of a second. She'd dilated time to the extent where everything looked like everything had almost stopped. She took a moment to just look at both Gerad and Rapunzel to make sure they were still moving, and they had a hand on her. Sweat was already beading on her forehead from the strain of doing this.. "Don't question.. just move, and keep a hand on me.. we only have a few more seconds."

And then she was allowing Rapunzel to pull her towards the door. The gaps between people were /probably/ just large enough that they could squeeze through.

Gerad Iron Fogair has posed:
In the few seconds granted by Alma's Time Witchery, Gerad is endlessly amused by the trivialities exposed to him. Considering his hand is on Alma's shoulder - luckily, she's young enough that he's not trailing southerly at all - Gerad is content to put his attention elsewhere. For example, the dust on his unfortunate target's face.

"Hmm." Phosphorous dust seems to be reactive to extreme heat in its chemical makeup rather than its aerosol natures! He'll need to remember that. You can tell because the individual grains of the stuff are heating up BEFORE the ignition, rather than the opposite. In any case, now he's slipping past strangers behind his savior, grumbling beneath his breath.

"You know, they would have scattered. Magic is very scary. Did you know that some high-level practitioners can almost stop time?" Gerad casts a speculative eye to Alma, right before ducking to slip beneath one man's hanging haymaker. He smiles at Rapunzel.

"Thank you, by the way, for trying to leave! I swear I had the situation under control. This is a more... elegant solution..." Gerad waves his hand around, indicating how TIME HAS STOPPED.

"But I definitely had it under control." Now he's slipping past the door frame, holding it open for the two ladies beside him.

Rapunzel has posed:
And now she's really confused. If she were back in her tower, Rapunzel would be pulling out books and flipping through them madly trying to find out the parts that mentioned nonsense like this, going 'This isn't how they said it was supposed to be at all!'

But she's not in her tower any more, its protective walls somewhere back in the forest she left when she defied her mother. Has she come to regret that decision? A little bit. Would she do it all over again? Definitely.

The golden-haired girl steps quickly through the maze of time-frozen bodies, slipping around outstretched arms and under hunkered over bodies with a strange mixture of grace and awkwardness. Her hair trails along behind her like a serpentine tail, weaving in and out of bodies the same as herself and by the time she's reached the door, a fair majority of the people inside are ensnared in her long locks.

Rapunzel pauses at the door when the slack on her hair goes taut, only now noticing her mistake. She tugs on the long mass, reeling it in like fishing line, but it's taking a fair bit of time to get it all gathered up.

Alma Hyral has posed:
Alma seems a little annoyed when the man lingers for even a second to study the effects of his direct application of /SCIENCE/ to the man's face. Maybe she'd introduce him to her sister when this was done, the two would probably get along famously so long as he keeps his hands to himself. Idle thoughts between the ticks of a second that they were using to escape.

"Yes, Magic is /very/ scary.. No.. I had no idea whatsoever that magic users could stop time..." ....she's definitely gritting her teeth through the sardonic tone, her skin taking on a very sickly shade of ashen grey. The sheen of sweat on her forehead is increasing at an alarming rate. "Yes sir, you obviously had matters well under control..."

When Gerad touches the door, it opens at an alarmingly slow rate. As in, moving perhaps a millimeter... it's like the application of force to affected objects during time dilation to this extent was barely existent. It's about that time that she notes Rapunzel gathering up her hair, and she gives her time to do so. She looks distinctly worse for wear for the experience. But they're out of the circle of the crowd now, that's what matters. She releases the spell just as he starts to open it. All of the stars retract into a tiny galaxy once more, it's rotation picking up speed, before it winks out. The crowd all charges forward, dog-piling on the now displaced Gerad.. which led to the unfortunate individual with his beard /ON FIRE/ getting tackled. The crowd looks infinitely confused. But by now the door is opening rapidly and shutting behind them.

The sounds of a comical bar fight occurring within, likely with other hapless individuals getting blamed for the loss of their quarry is almost certainly taking place. Alma looks distinctly faint, from the experience, but she's still standing, probably mostly because the other two are still holding onto her.

Gerad Iron Fogair has posed:
Gerad stands outside, frowning magnificently. He leans against the bar's outer wall, cape fluttering in the breeze, crossbow clattering against his hip. If ever a man could appear to be pouting, Gerad manages to pout.

"I *had* it under control. Ah, well. This way I look like a wizard. They'll believe me the next time I come around." He continues staring out into the distant desert, as though looking for something. Eventually, his handsome features flip into an unhandsome frown, and he turns, reaffixing his hood to his face. Half of his hood is on fire.

He takes a moment to bat the flames out of the thing, momentarily cursing, then regards both Alma and Rapunzel. His mien is one filled with significance, his shoulders broad enough to shoulder any burden, his posture hunched as though he'd carried too much for too long. Indeed, the fate of a very kingdom seems to weigh the man down, for all the royalty hinted at beneath this shoddy facade of dust, grime, and sand.

A brilliant, gleaming smile splits the murky features of his face.

"So, onto the question I had intended to ask the two of you when I first saw you... what's your sign? Are either of you eighteen?"

Rapunzel has posed:
It takes only a short while to gather the incredible length of hair up into a bundle which Rapunzel holds onto with both arms, only barely managing to keep her hand on Alma's wrist. The frying pan is placed back on its small makeshift holster at her side to make up for the difference.

She ducks out of the door behind the other two, pausing long enough to watch the strange star magic fold back in on itself. A wince is given as the gang of men all pile into a heap on the unfortunate guy who's head was already on fire. Not going to be a good day for him. Before anyone can notice her, however, she vanishes into the street.

Dumping her load in a heap at her feet, Rapunzel catches the mage before she can fall over and sets her down in the pile of fluffy yellow hair to recover. An annoyed frown is given towards Gerad as she does so for being more concerned with his appearance than helping the person who just saved them.

"My sign? What does that mean?"

Alma Hyral has posed:
Rapunzel sets her down in a pile of yellow hair, which she takes advantage of to rest and recover.. "I'm certainly glad that I inadvertently improved your reputation, Sir.." She mumbles, some of the fire going out of her sarcasm as she's obviously exhausted from the experience of having an Asthma attack, Anxiety attack, and a then using magic which was still almost uncharted territory for her in a very strenuous way. But then it picks up again from sheer annoyance. "...really, if we had MMO style reputation meters, your tavern ruffian reputation would be through the roof. I mean it's set to /wizard/. And everyone knows that if something awesome happens, then a wizard probably did it." Symptom of being a modern girl from an ultramodern world.

She pushes up her glasses as she catches her breath, trying to regard him. "Young enough that you'd probably go to jail for asking that in most worlds. Did I mention my boyfriend is an Archadian Judge? And Virgo. That's the celestial maiden. We're on speaking terms and she's on speed dial. Would you like me to connect you to her?"

She's rubbing her forehead, taking a drink from what little remains from her canteen, then trying to catch her breath, "Now let's revert this conversation to somewhere outside of the fifth dimension, forget everything else that was just said, and start over. Hello, my name is Alma Hyral. It's a distinct pleasure to meet you... Miss. What's your name?" As she offers a wan smile to Rapunzel. And then she looks at Gerad, she actually let up on the snark, "And what's your name, Sir?"

Gerad Iron Fogair has posed:
"Your sign? Oh, it's the Zodiac symbol you were born beneath, patterns in the stars that dominate the sky during certain months--" Edgar grins, eyes sparkling, "Mine is The Conqueror. I can only imagine yours must be The Muse, possibly The Beauty??" A long pause when Alma speaks up.

Gerad is confused, at first. He just completely put himself out back there - completely! He was ON FIRE. And now they're giving him looks like he's chopped liver! Well, the one just admitted to being underage, which more than explains why he's looking chiefly to Rapunzel. The other one's even giving him attitude. Gerad winces, inwardly - he hates teenaged girls with too much of a chip on their shoulder.

In an alternate dimension, Relm is giving a triple-snap, right now.

So the man sighs, closes his eyes, and rolls his shoulders. Waits for Alma to get through her substantially more polite greetings. Then, once she's extended the olive branch;

"Gerad Iron Fogair. I'm a..." Pause. "Thief. If you haven't heard of me, you aren't in the right line of work to know. I'm kind of a big deal. Right now I'm trying to find volunteers to help me excavate a magical cave out in the deserts. It's been hard-going." A frown.

"It's important to me."

Rapunzel has posed:
Once she's certain that Alma is comfortable, Rapunzel takes a step back to let the younger girl unleash her irritation on their new acquaintance. She hasn't got a single clue what she's talking about however. Archadian Judge? Cancer? MMO? It's all Greek to her.

Unfortunately for Gerad, Rapunzel has passive resistance to suave rogues and their charms. She gives him a skeptical look at the obvious attempts of flattery, a wry smirk working its way onto her face.

"Hmm. I know lots about the stars. I charted them for years, after all, but I've never heard of anything like that."

And now to proper introductions. She's not surprised to find out that Gerad is a thief, just like a certain other rogue she knows. Flynn would probably get along swimmingly with this guy.

"My name is Rapunzel. And this is Pascal."

The lizard lifts a hand to wave at both of them from his perch on her head, smiling smugly, like he knows something amusing that they don't.

Alma Hyral has posed:
Perhaps sensing the tension in the air as a result of her turning on the maximum snark, she just murmurs, "Sorry.. I have the worst headache. I'm actually very grateful that you decided to step in there, really..." In fact, she'd have not let her annoyance bubble up if not for the question of her age, and sign. That just rubbed her wrong in so many ways.

Alright, thief, she could work with that. "Alright.." Wow, he really put the kind of a big deal out there.. she has to visibly restrain the snark there. In fact, she's trying her hardest not to giggle. She may have a hand over her mouth. "...A thief, I can work with that. What is it that you're trying to excavate in this cave? I could probably put you in touch with the right people, depending on the cause."

And then Rapunzel introduces herself, as she manages a sort of goofy looking smile, from atop her pile of blonde hair. "It's very nice to meet you Rapunzel. And you too Pascal, you're just /adorable/. And by the way... I really love your hair. I don't know how you do anything with it once it gets that long. I've only been brave enough to grow it out to my waist..."

And then a far more important question gets blurted out, "Do you happen to have any of those star charts left?" Despite her exhaustion, she looked.. eager? Rapt with attention as to what her answer might be.

Gerad Iron Fogair has posed:
Gerad takes the introduction of the lizard with much aplomb. His smug expression hardly moves when Rapunzel's all like "HI YES AND I LIVE WITH A LIZARD??". He can dig it. He knows a guy who hangs out with bears, anyway. Bears eat lizards, he's pretty sure. "Rapunzel and Pascal. There's something clever in the names, there, I'm sure..." Gerad puts a hand to his chin and absorbs himself in thought...

Only to be interrupted by a very insistent Alma. "What am I doing in the desert? Listen, there's a..." Geological fault. These rubes have no idea what that is! "...Place in the desert where caves happen. A lot. And earthquakes. I know a castle that went under just to the side of one, and am willing to bet the whole of my fortune..." Gerad pauses, to turn to Rapunzel.

"...And my body..." Wink. Back to Alma.

"That there's a cave going from the surface to the castle. There's got to be some pocketing, which means that there's access..." --And Gerad hasn't heard anything about the air supply leaving those poor fools trapped in the castle, so... -- "And if there's ACCESS, we can get to the TREASURE. You ladies want in?"

Gerad regards both Alma and Rapunzel. "Could definitely use the time magic and the, ah... hair. Milady, your looks will slay even the burliest rogue!" A swift recovery, Gerad.

Rapunzel has posed:
Pascal preens at the compliment, clearly willing to accept flattery, which makes Rapunzel smile brightly. She chuckles at Alma, running a hand through the aforementioned hair and glancing away to roll her eyes and mutter under her breath, 'You have /no/ idea.'

"Thanks. But it's nothing special really, I just never got around to cutting it, you know..." She looks surprised by the sudden outburst about the star charts for a moment but shakes her head. "No, sorry. I painted them on the ceiling of my tower. And I don't think they'd be much help anyways. Ever since I left the stars have been... different somehow. I can't make any sense of them."

She glances back at Gerad as he lays out his plans, tapping her cheek thoughtfully. "You mean a fault line? Must be a pretty big one to swallow an entire castle. Never read about anything like that in my books."

Alma Hyral has posed:
"So basically, when the worlds merged it also brought over enough of the geological faults from the tectonic plates merging intact, thus allowing you to predict that this sunken castle, is also still intact. Right?" She pushes up her glasses. She decides to offer some explanation for being a pedantic little miss know-it-all. "...my research is into tracking anything that could have survived the fall of the world, from it's origin world, Sir. Including World Shards, by locating the original position of the world via star charts. If I have topographic maps it becomes even more accurate."

....Alma had to bite back the comment that he was wagering nothing of value, but that might be a particularly low blow.

She looks a little crestfallen when Rapunzel mentions that she doesn't have it any longer since it was painted in her tower, "Oh.. Well. That's a shame, if you did, I'd be able to find the shards to restore your world. I find worlds by comparing the original configuration of the stars from each world, to the current configuration. It let's me triangulate them."

Alma kind of waves Gerad off, "I'm not actually all that interested in treasure, Sir, but if it'll be an adventure, then I could probably find the time. Maybe I can get some friends of mine interested too. I prefer to pitch in my services to a good cause that'll help people regain their homes or worlds, you know?" And then she gives him a cheerful smile, "And by the way, what you saw was White Magic. Don't question it. It just was. I'm a White Mage."

Gerad Iron Fogair has posed:
Oh my God. Gerad makes a face at both of the girls he's talking to. It's very nearly getting to the point where he's ready to stalk out into the desert by himself! Anything to get away!! Ugh!

He kind of sits and listens while Rapunzel goes on -- and then sits and LISTENS when Alma goes on. "Ah... um. Is that what that's called? A fault? You don't say." Be the better man, Gerad, that's what you were born to do. "Well, yes, in any case, don't mistake me. I don't know if it will be an adventure, unless you like caves and treasure. I'm splitting the loot as evenly as I might - I get a double share, everybody else in the group gets a single share." Gerad lofts an eyebrow while he regards both women.

"In exchange, Ms. Punzel, I'll help you with whatever's got you out of your tower, and as for Ms. Alma..." Gerad regards the glassesbound woman with a slight concern, "I imagine you'll have plenty of research to supplement... whatever you're doing. With world plates. I imagine it's important. Interesting that you divide the study of magic into schools; I've never heard of the distinction. As far as I'm concerned, you wave your fingers and stupid things happen without rational explanation. I don't need any more than that."

Gerad stands tall, heaving off of his lean-to. "In any case, it's getting late, and Agrabah is a bit of a viper-pit in the late hours. We should find bedding arrangements before things become.. dangerous."

Rapunzel has posed:
"Restore my world? What are you talking about?"

Rapunzel peers at Alma quizzically. She's still talking about things that don't make any sense. Pascal mimics the look, squinting at her from his perch.

"I left my tower to get out and see the world. I don't think it needs restoring... I just got seperated from my guide. Once I find him, I'll get him to take me to see the floating lights."

She clasps her hands behind her back and gives Gerad a coy smile. "Ofcourse, it'll be another year until the lights show up again, so I've got plenty of time to kill. Going on an adventure sounds like a great way to see things I've never seen before!"

Alma Hyral has posed:
Alma looks obliviously at Gerad Iron Fogair, the Long-Suffering.

"It'll do." She shrugs. Exploring interesting places was kind of a hobby for her as of late. "I'll see if any of my friends are interested. My sister might be too. She always likes to butt heads with a fellow inventor in a contest of wiles. Maybe she can test out her Hi-Potion Rifle, or one of her genetically engineered leeches. "

She gives him a look of absolute consternation, "I'll have you know..." And then she stops herself before she scolds him, just stating instead, "...I'll just chalk it up to your world not having magic as commonplace. Manhatten's world is like that too. What world do you come from anyhow?"

She gathers herself up from on top of the pile of Rapunzel's hair, smiling at her. On occasion reaching up with a finger to rub Pascal under the chin, "...I don't suppose you know how to braid your hair, by the way? I never learned.. I've been looking for someone willing to teach me."

And then on her question and comments, "Oh.. you're one of the lucky ones then.." She smiles at Rapunzel, "...if your world didn't fall to darkness, then all is well. Nothing needs restoring if it fully merged. It is a pity, though, I would have liked to locate where it originally sat in the heavens."

Gerad Iron Fogair has posed:
Gerad is moving, now. He waits for a pause in conversation, then gestures the ladies to follow him, cutting a path through Agrabah's desolate streets, but never quite leaving the comforting heat and light of the commercial district. His goal becomes apparent soon enough, provided one can read whatever Agrabah's written language is called - in either case, inns are pretty damn recognizable.

"Don't get excited about the cave," mutters Gerad. "I don't know where it is, or how to open it. Whenever I mention a cave in the desert, people are either confused or get scared. The absolute best hunch I've heard is that it's got something to do with bugs and division." The man rolls his shoulders, before turning to regard either woman once again.

"I'd like to meet your sister, Ms. Hyral. She sounds interesting." By now, Gerad is too tired to affect much of the bravado - his blue eyes search from Alma to Rapunzel, and he's idly fiddling at the coinpouch at his side. "I wasn't aware worlds split," he lies, evaluating the weight of his currency. "I just know that there's treasure under the sands, and I aim to find it. Two rooms sound okay with you two? I imagine you girls would like to share a room..."

Gerad looks levelly at Rapunzel. "--Or maybe just a room for the young lady, while we share one? I *did* save your life back there, after all." Tried to. Never mind the semantics!

Rapunzel has posed:
Rapunzel follows along as they shift their venue from the exterior of the seedy tavern towards a less rowdy part of town. She sticks close to Alma to ensure that the seemingly frail girl doesn't have any more sudden break downs.

"Braid? Well, I've never tried, I just let it do what it likes. Besides, it would be much harder to use it for various things if it was all tied up."

When they come to a halt again, she glances up at the sign. Even with her limited experience, she's come to recognize such places. The mere thought of sleep dredges up all of the fatigue from the day once again and the girl is forced to stifle a yawn.

"Two rooms will be fine." She gives Gerad a look. "We'll see you in the morning."

She holds her frying pan up, poking it at the air right in front of his face. Pascal scrambles down onto the skillet and gets close enough to be almost nose to nose with the thief, squinting at him with a 'Don't even think about it, buster' look on his little lizard mug.

Alma Hyral has posed:
Recognizable to him maybe. They weren't to her, given that she stumbled into the tavern earlier for that very reason. As she follows along, she lags behind just a bit. As she still has the worst headache, and her limbs felt alarmingly heavy. Her heart also felt like it was beating out of her chest for a long period of time afterwards. She definitely wouldn't be doing that again without consulting Cronus first. She puts a finger to her temples, and uses a little white magic trick to ease it just enough. "Well, that's a shame, as if you knew which world you came from, and had a map of the original location of the cave, I'd probably be able to find it."

She pushes up her glasses, smiling sweetly at him, "I'm glad, I'm sure she'll find it to be quite an... experience. She's not eighteen either, by the way." Just barely shy of it, thank Cosma. Not that she'd let the guy anywhere near her.

And then the question of room arrangements comes up. She stifles a yawn before saying, "Oh um, two rooms is likely best. My nerves are just shot from what happened and I'd feel so much safer with her nearby. You know?" She earned the Shard Seeker Buzzkill achievement for a very good reason after all, thwarting a man who was far more persistent than Gerad. Also she was beginning to really like Pascal.