A Minnow in Callisto

[12:27] Kiernan "Akemi" Rourke had been positively brimming with restless energy since they talked. He'd dragged Odette out of the cottage once all 'discussions' had been well and done, going for one of the places he knew would be both unpopulated and incredibly scenic at the same time. It was a bit chilly that time of year to be exploring the grotto so its bar was closed... but Kiernan was a portable heater himself anyway, and the best fix for that was picking up snacks along the way. He had a box of deliciousness from the patisserie under one arm and Odette's hand around the other when they approached the sand and he started to toe off each of his shoes. "Kinne stand the grit in me shoes but I'm jus' fine walkin' on it barefooted," he said to her as he set his shoes on the wood of the bar floor. Knowing no one would be around here this time of year he kept his ears pointed too - stopping just shy of letting the red flames paint over his skin when he saw a figure near the water. "...shite, is that... do she look hurt?" he asked, and

[12:27] Kiernan "Akemi" Rourke rather bodily tried to hoist Odette onto his shoulder to jog across the sand with her in tow, heading for the prone lady in the waves.

[12:32] Minnow would be unconscious in the surf, wounds on her arms, torso and tail oozing blood into the sand beneath her. Gills at her throat and beneath her ribs, laboring to breathe until she dried out enough for her lungs to kick in. The waves lapping at her iridescent fins shifting them with each roll of water, making it hard to tell what bit was kelp, which bit was attached, and which bit was just cut flesh and needing to be put back. The mermaid was unaware of their approach, the crabs already gathering along the sands, hunting that source of blood faster than most other carnivores on the beach. They would scuttle to the side as the sands shifted at their approach.

[12:34] Odette di Benedetti gripped his hand as they climbed down into the cove, her eyes adjusting quickly to the lower light of the cave. The morning had been a whirlwind of emotion and, as such, when Kiernan had suggested an outing, Odette had found it a capital idea.

When he paused to kick his shoes off, she did the same, lifting them into her free hand as she stepped toward the bar.

The instant he released her hand, her gaze slid to him, registering belatedly what he was saying as he looked to where he jogged,

"Kiernan...wait!", she'd call after him, her black eyes falling to the figure in the sand.

In a flash, she was atop and wriggling to get her feet on the sand before she crouched in the sand beside the clearly prostrate female.

"Is that.....", her rusted rasp trailed off, one hand lifting to carefully brush hair out of the eyes, her own flicking up to his as her mouth opened and closed...

[12:37] Kiernan "Akemi" Rourke crouched nearby as Odette settled in next to him. He looked over all the wounds, the oozing blood and scrunched up his nose. "Oye... maybe lemme fix her up a wee bit before ye snack?" he said with a little touch of teasing in his voice. They were all about accepting themselves and their needs today, after all. He rubbed his hands together and loosened up his shoulders a bit. "Er. Should I... do ye know anythin' 'bout them? Should we put 'er back in the water before I go healin' her up?" he asked, entirely unsure. Boy should've paid more attention in his anatomy of magical species class.

[12:40] Minnow was lost to darkness. The darkness was nice because in the darkness there was no pain. But as she began to climb, the light got brighter and brighter and the awareness of her body would slowly begin to hit her. Here in the cave it was dim enough not to hurt, but still, the lanterns on the bar were far brighter than any found in her home waters, enough that her face scrunches up, fingers curling into the sand reflexively, chasing of a curious crab that had gotten too close. The first signs for the observant that she was coming to. She was weak, so much blood already lost, but the lost little Minnow was nothing if not a survivor.

[12:40] Vedis Seid: chasing off*

[12:47] Odette di Benedetti blinked at him, a look of consternation shifting her features at his teasing.

"I was not intending to....oh.", she stopped, realizing he was teasing her.

She had no desire for any other blood at the moment, though his comment did remind her that she was, in fact, unfed.

Dark eyes swept over the feminine figure, noting the lustrous sheen to the scales and iridescent skin marred by cuts and sundry wounds.

Whatever had happened, this creature had been through one hell of a time.

At Kiernan's question, she peeked at him and shook her head,

"The only ones I've ever seen were the selkies in Ireland. You did not go near those lest you were wanting to loose all or part of yourself. When healed...she may...be mad, my love. Please be careful.".

Odette braced herself to intervene with preternatural speed, should he require it while he healed the woman.

[12:50] Kiernan "Akemi" Rourke nodded. He took the words to heart, carefully hefting the top half of the mermaid into his arms to try and pull her back into the water a bit. It meant getting himself raaather wet, which was not a pleasant feeling for someone of his heritage. Standing waist-high in the surf and focusing his Aether, the witch attempted to heal the wounds afflicting her, energy flowing into her body like warmth to mend flesh and bone. It wouldn't cure exhaustion, nor would it take away any residual ache... but it would stop the bleeding and close the wounds themselves the longer he kept at it. As he worked the red flush on his face blossomed into that firey pattern that flooded down his arms and chest, almost seeing to ignite his hair and heat the water around them.

[12:51] ᴄᴀᴇʟ (helio5igma): ((brb! bus))

[12:58] ᴄᴀᴇʟ (helio5igma): ((back))

[13:00] Odette di Benedetti ((WB))

[13:01] Minnow whimpers, the sound slipping from those bloodied lips as the man lifted her. With her tail, she was unusually heavy, made of muscle and silken scales. She could feel the water as she sank into the waves, feeling it supporting her and... growing warm? That curiosity pulled her up further from the darkness, her limp body slowly gathering strength as he healed her, that warmth pouring through her like fire. She shifts at last, blinking her blind eyes open to look up to him as he hovered above her, all flames and warmth. She whistled, the sound coming from deep in her throat and memories come flooding back. She panics and begins to thrash in his arms, even in her weakened state that tail was a danger to contend with. But even the healing couldn't return her strength, not yet. That would take time yet. So her fight was mostly in a bid to get away, back into the water, only to realize the danger in the water is what had forced her here. Her eyes would go wide with sudden indecision, lower gills back in the wate

[13:01] Minnow she could at least try and catch her breath, oh, what horrors could keep a siren from the waters?

[13:05] Odette di Benedetti watched between the two, her eyes flicking over Kiernan's face before darting back to the figure of the finned and scaled woman on the sand.

Kiernan's heft garnered the diminutive revenant's assistance, and Odette moved to the other side, the water rising to her armpits as she braced the back of the woman's head.

The water around them heated to a lovely bath temperature, and the salt began to coalesce around their bodies where air met water.

Odette's eyes focused on the woman's perfect face- perfect aside from the cuts and scrapes to that iridescent skin.

Her features were much like the revenant's own: doll-like and and achingly lovely. It took every vestige of restraint to not touch the finned ears, or the blue scales on her chin.

Instead, she reached up and carefully lifted a stray bit of twig from the sodden jet-black locks, tossing it into the water behind her where it supposedly had come from.

The thrashing, while surely weakened from the wounds she suffered, had Odette nearly off balance in the

[13:05] Odette di Benedetti water, and instinctively she bit into the soft flesh of her lower lip as she gathered a bit of her power. Kiernan might recognize the tell as her honeyed words slipped free,

"No,noo....you're safe. Hush-hush. We will not harm you further. You are wounded, but safe now. Be still."

[13:13] Kiernan "Akemi" Rourke was not the most graceful of people, least of all in water. He ended up ass-over-teakettle so it was a good thing Odette was at least able to keep her balance. Once he came sputtering back to something vaguely resembling a standing posture he reached for the minnow again. "Calm yer gills fer feck's sake, I ain't tryin'a hurt ye!" he called to her though submerged as she was it was unlikely she could hear him altogether too well. Despite the chaos and the hectic... nature of it all he managed to keep himself from boiling all three of them alive, the temperature not raising to a level that was beyond comfort - a show of the control he'd learned, for sure. He saw the little bite to Odette's lip and steeled himself. He could feel Odette's magic working, trembling in the air as her voice carried to the Minnow's ears. If he wasn't entirely careful he'd find himself limp and noodley.

[13:15] Gonzo (odontoceti) is online.

[13:17] Minnow blinks to Odette as she pulled the twig from her hair, far to tired to even bare her fangs in fear she simply pushed against her to try and get away from them, her body in this form far more like an eel than a human, bending and twisting in impossible ways. It took a few seconds for the woman's words to slip past the fear gripping her mind but once they did she would slow her thrashing helping the warm water and the sheer exhaustion to relax her. She shivers as the sudden roll of fear seemed to seep from her and she began to float with the roll of the waves, instead of making her own. She sinks down into the water until just her eyes were above the surface, watching Keirnan drip from his duck for a few seconds before looking behind her, tail cutting trails in the water as she contemplates her next move.

[13:21] Vedis Seid: dunk*

[13:24] Odette di Benedetti gasped as he went under, her hands full of thrashing mer and incapable of helping him. Thankfully, it was but a brief departure and he was sputtering beside the woman once more.

Odette saw his eyes on her face, and her expression became contrite.

They clearly had more to talk about. He knew so little about her, but the decisions they'd made today changed all of that and he was owed every story of who she was. For now, though, they had bigger fish to fry. Not literally. ((Sorry.))

She canted her head toward the shore, her black eyes wide on his as she steered them to slightly shallower water, keeping the mer just under the surface so both the much smaller revenant and Kiernan could gain solid footing.

Peering down, then, into the woman's now-open though much less fearful eyes, Odette removed her compulsion and murmured gently,

"If we let go of you, can you remain safe in the water? I promise you, were are not trying to hold you against your will...we simply want to help."

Odette was strong, but the waves

[13:24] Odette di Benedetti pulling at the fabric of her hem made it increasingly difficult to not lose her balance.

[13:30] Kiernan "Akemi" Rourke heaved a relieved sigh when he felt the Mer relax, catching Odette's stare and smiling a bit to try and relieve the contrition. The smile was - maybe - a wee bit dopey but the woman's magic had that effect on the surroundings and Kiernan was not in the least bit shielded against such things. He cleared his throat once she started shuffling them back towards shallower water, attempting to assist in the effort. "Aye, listen ta th'woman!" he added on. "Yer in a bad way and it don't seem too much like ye feel safe out 'ere. Can ye - er... can ye even understand what we're sayin'?" he asked and frowned, glancing up at Odette again before tapping a finger to his head. "Think mebbe ye might get through ta her faster?"

[13:36] Minnow watches Odette, her hand falling to the woman's arm as she help pull her to shallower water, the sand coming up against her belly as she watches the landwalkers move around her. That third eyelid slicking over her nearly blind eyes with a soft sound. Once she had settled against the beach she looks back to the water's surface, to the dangers that lurked below. Thinking nothing of it, she transmits a picture of a looming darkness, cold and deep, the light that filters down to them just enough to see something large shift below, the flash of scales as her school scattered to the waters. She frowns, looking back to them both as the vision of long black tentacles, a cruel smile with blue lips and the feeling of pain. These people had helped her, for whatever reason. She was going to at least be honest with them. To Kiernan's question she would look at him closely, reaching out her webbed fingers to brush over his lips. She had no idea what they were saying, but she could certainly feel what they were trying t

[13:36] Minnow say. When he tapped his head she cocked hers curiously, looking back to Odette when he seemed to address her.

[13:40] Echo (keramu) entered chat range (2.05 m).

[13:41] Lance does not teleport on top of someone's head

[13:41] ᴄᴀᴇʟ (helio5igma): (( I did it too, I landed splat on the poor Mer's face :c ))

[13:41] Vedis Seid: ((:3))

[13:42] Echo (keramu): (( 1 sec I relog ))

[13:43] Echo (keramu) entered chat range (8.40 m).

[13:43] Echo (keramu): (( hi i return do i have leggies ))

[13:43] ᴄᴀᴇʟ (helio5igma): (( Yes!))

[13:44] Echo (keramu): (( splendiferous ))

[13:44] Odette di Benedetti It had not occurred to the diminutive woman that the being they were trying to help might not understand them. How very callous and arrogant of her.

Suddenly, Odette blinked in Kiernan's direction, but it was obvious if he were watching her that she was no longer seeing him.

Instead, her features shifted, tightened with fear as the images the Mer sent to her flashed in dark and grotesquely vivid scenes in her mind.

As quickly as they'd implanted, they were gone and Odette sagged just a bit at the relief of them vanishing.

"Fuck", she swore vehemently, her eyes focusing on Kiernan's face again before sliding to the woman's. To the best of her ability, Odette returned the communication- showing her and Kiernan both with careful intent as she murmured to her lover,

"She was attacked...horribly. She's...lost her family, I think. She does not seem to understand our language, but...".

The images sent to the woman were of kindness, care, soothing and calm in nature, and sympathy for the Mer etched itself into

[13:44] Odette di Benedetti her expression.

[13:45] Odette di Benedetti (moirraah.flanagan): ((Stepping away for a moment to throw dinner in the oven. Please bypass me if it comes to my turn. I'm just holding the feeshy-babe))

[13:45] Vedis Seid: ((<3))

[13:49] Lance approaches, sand crunching underneath his shoes. To be quite honest, his player isn't EXACTLY sure where "here" is, or how Lance got "here", but he is "here" and so "here" he shall be.

His gaze comes to alight on a trio of figures. One, laying prone upon the seashore, and two standing above her. It wouldn't be strange to suspect that this was some sort of beatdown in progress, but considering that the group seems rather still, Lance is not in any hurry to act the knight in armor.

"What is going on here?" he asks, voice raised above the din of the shore's crashing waves.

[13:53] Kiernan "Akemi" Rourke stiffened immediately as the Mer projected the image into their heads. When confronted with something that pinged his fight or flight the witch heavily favored the former, so the presence of a possible monster riled his need to keep Odette and their newly-rescued friend safe. He had no telepathy, no empathy beyond the human ability to perceive and relate to emotion - so he tapped the fish-woman and pointed at himself, then made a fist and an angry face and pointed at the water. "I - got our backs - 'kay? Anythin' in there, I'll just... wrangle it up, yeah?" he said and cast a determined gaze back at the waves.

He left Odette to stay with the Mer in the shallows before wading back out towards the water, all glowy with embers and red-gold skin and pointed ears like the fae-born boy he was when Lance called out to them. Blinking, he spun around.... and Lance's appearance at first had Kiernan expecting some sort of backlash from the covenant magic that blanketed the place and kept most humans unaware. When

[13:53] Kiernan "Akemi" Rourke none hit... he simply assumed Lance was at least in-the-know about magic and magical creatures.

"Summat in the deep here hurt her bad!" he called back out to the man. "She ain't speakin'! Figure someone ought ta make sure ain't nothin' comin' up after her!"

Explanation given, Kiernan turned back to the surf, focusing himself to reach toward any plantlife that might be nearby, hidden under the waves.

[14:02] Minnow straightens, water pouring from her lips as she feels the woman's response. Her eyes would go wide and she would reach for her, her skin slightly sticky. The poor creature was too exhausted to question if those feelings were true and honest, she just melted into that wave of kindness, of care. She was but one tiny part of a much larger school, she had never been alone in her life, she clung to whatever rock she could. Water clung to her skin like crystals, catching the light of the lanterns as she clung to the woman and the comfort she offered, a keening sound slipping from her lips as her body is rocked by the waves. She looks between Odette and Kiernan as he moves deeper into the water, her eyes going wide she would heft her mass in his direction, reaching for him with such a look of abject fear on her face it was clear she didn't want him to go deeper. She taps the water to get his attention, having caught his sign language before and points to the water, the picture of that dark ball of tentacles jerk

[14:02] Minnow from her body as it began to suffer from the bends, it's boneless body far less adapted to surface pressures than hers. It was the only thing that saved her. She tried to keep it just a vision, but some of the sensations would bleed through as well, and he may get just a taste of what those tentacles had been doing when they fled to deeper waters. She shakes her head, urging him to come back. When she hears the stranger she rumbles deep in her chest and backs up further into the water, even the isolated mer in her school knowing about the covenant, she does her best to try and keep her tail hidden, as if it wasn't already obvious what she was.

[14:10] However much those gathered might want to hide their supernatural nature, it is useless in front of Lance's eyes - and even as Kiernan had supposed, Lance was already well aware of what lay beyond the veil. His eyes, mystical and enchanting as they are, beholden to spectrums of unimaginable colors, pierced right through it and saw to the core of what they were. He steps forwards, gazing the trio up and down, stopping just short of where the water rose to. "If she got attacked by something in the deep, then why are you all in such a hurry to head down there yourselves?"

[14:17] Kiernan "Akemi" Rourke froze up when he felt the splash of water. He was just about to turn to respond to Minnow's concerns when he felt her share the information, the visuals and the... experience of meeting that creature down below. His knees buckled a bit and he ended up crouched in the water, a hand clapped to his mouth, partly to stifle the gagging sensation in his throat and partly to hide the furious redness on his cheeks. It took him a minute or two and a very knowing, sorry glance at MInnow to register Lance was asking a question. "...well - well look at 'er. Kinne just drag her out onto th'sand. Had ta heal her up and - I mean - he's probably wantin' ta go back ta wherever home is. Ain't gonna happen if summat's huntin' 'round down there." He swallowed, adjusting something in his pants as he got to his feet. Seeing that Odette was still reeling from what Minnow had sent via telepathy, Kiernan bent down to look at her and pointed at the fish-woman. "Do ye..." and he took a deep breath, gesturing at at his nose then his

[14:17] Kiernan "Akemi" Rourke chest. "...ye know, breathe air? Can ye?" he asked and glanced at her neck for gills. "Or... jus' water?"

[14:23] Vedis Seid is online.

[14:23] Minnow could only see a shadow in front of all those lights and lifts her hand to block out the glare before giving up and looking away. She gives another fearful look at the water before looking to Kiernan as he mimes breathing. She does the same, lower gills flaring mouth pouring water, in and out, making her look like little more than a fountain. But then it occurred to her he might be asking if she could breathe ~air~ and well that was a different question entirely! She closes her lips to stop the flow of water before nodding, cautiously, that she could. She pats the water again, then points to the beach, broadcasting the vision once again of water specked scales drying, the tear of skin, she spares them the worst of it, before a long pair of legs leading up into... darkness as the vision fades. She wraps her tail around Odette's legs, seemingly needing the reassurance of her there.

[14:25] Echo (keramu): (( is this to everyone or just Kiernan? ))

[14:26] Odette di Benedetti (moirraah.flanagan): ((Back! So sorry))

[14:26] Echo (keramu): (( weba, your post! ))

[14:26] Vedis Seid: ((That's to everyone. She's broadcasting at large))

[14:26] ᴄᴀᴇʟ (helio5igma): ((wb!))

[14:34] Odette di Benedetti (moirraah.flanagan): ((typing my response. Sorry for the delay. Had to read up.))

[14:34] Vedis Seid: ((all good!))

[14:34] Echo (keramu): (( take your time ♥♥ ))

[14:40] Odette di Benedetti felt the pull of what the Mer was seeing and sending, the fear still instilled in what had happened to her. It made her ease just a bit to see the realization on the Mer's face that they meant her no harm.

Odette inherently shifted her body closer to the woman as Kiernan turned to the deeper waters, then returned back at the finned one's insistence.

Her glassy eyes shifted to the shore, just seeing the man for the first time.

Her head canted to one side, and it occurred to her belatedly that they were all here, in their unmasked, unglamorred glory. She peered at him and stated above the rush of waves,

"I couldn't agree more. I'm sorry...I...have you been there the whole time?". Her normally smooth, velvet voice was rattled with a subsiding fear of the mer's visions and Kiernan wading into the deep.

The wrap of tail is met with a comforting hand, dropping to stroke carefully along now-healed scales in understanding.

[14:43] Lance frowns, receiving that image in his mind. He doesn't like it, not one bit. True, he might technically have the same ability but it's not as if he was born with it. Nor is he altogether skilled in its use. In fact, the only reason his player took it was so that he can hold people in place without needing to speak for hypnosis.

This lack of skill and familiarity would result in Minnow receiving some backwash from Lance's mind. The world as he saw it, awash in bright colors and shimmering hues normally incomprehensible to those limited by the visible light spectrum. Glaring Infrareds and iridescent ultraviolets sparkle against the water, making the trio seem as if they are almost glowing. The subtle beating of hearts flickering against one's chest as warm blood flows through them. Then, as quickly as it had surfaced in Minnow's mind, it vanishes, like a wave receding into the ocean sea.

His attentions move to Odette as she speaks to him, and he pauses to choose his words carefully, "No," he replies, "Proba

[14:43] Lance not. I've been here for as long as I have been, and not a second sooner. When I arrived, this all," and he gestures to the trio, "Was already well underway."

[14:44] Echo (keramu): *"Probably not ((darn rp thing ))

[14:51] Kiernan "Akemi" Rourke blinked, perplexed as Minnow demonstrated her ability to filter water through her gills. He was about to clarify when she seemed to get the picture, the image she pushed into his head hitting just about when he turned to follow her pointing arm at the beach. "...woof, er...well, look," he said, scrunching his nose at Lance.

"...she don't feel safe in there," he jerked a thumb back at the water. "...but gettin' ta be able ta walk 'round and breathe out here," he pointed at the beach. "Seems like it's gonna be real awful business. So'm at a loss what ta do, short a clearin' out what's down there. Though..." he looked down at Minnow. "...derno if I kin git deep 'nuff, if I'm understandin' what she's showin'." He glanced at Odette. "...could maybe find 'er a water source up at the Academy. But it'd... it'd be a tank, ye know? Not a whole wide ocean. Don't seem right."

Reaching out, he laid a warm hadn on Odette's upper arm. "Can ye ask her... where she wants ta go? If she'd be able ta wander 'round on land

[14:51] Kiernan "Akemi" Rourke 'til that thing's cleared out?"

[14:58] Minnow turns to look at Odette about the same time the feedback from Lance's telepathy skills would echo back to her and her eyes would go wide and she jerks back, thick tail bucking as all that ~light~ burned through her poor little mind, colors beyond her imagination searing the back of her eyes. She was from the twilight zone, where the light fell only enough to make everything dreamy in the darkness, her eyes, perfectly suited to thrive in that light, were a handicap here. Water bubbles from her lips in a sharp, short scream, her webbed hands cupping her eyes until, just as fast as it came, it disappeared and her gills flared as she tried to catch her breath, that low keening coming from her chest once more. Her tail wraps around her, holding her against the waves as she blinks at the droplets of water that dripped from her hair until the pain from that feedback faded and she seemed to curl back away from the fellow as if he had kicked her. She was too exhausted to fight back, she just needed some time to

[14:58] Minnow recover. Kiernan's noise drew her attention and she turned to look at him through the dark curtain of her hair, drawn to the color that burned along his skin. When he gestures to the water she realized they were talking about her. She chatters her teeth nervously.

[15:01] Odette di Benedetti 's dark eyes focused on Kiernan's face as he spoke, already trying to formulate how she'd ask that question in images.

Minnow reacted to something, and the keening wrenched at Odette's heart. She nodded her pale head and her hand stroked the scaled tail soothingly.

"Please...don't go. Give me a moment to ask?", she practically pleaded with him, her lips pulling into a thin line of fear.

Odette pressed her eyes tightly closed, taking a deep breath as she concentrated on the images she wanted to convey telepathically.

The first, a wide ocean at sunset, followed by a sense of questioning before the image moved on to one of her and Kiernan on their walk down to the cove, the streets teeming with traffic and bustling in the early daylight. This image was again followed by a sensation of query and then the next image- that of the academy that faded into a tank and represented safety. This last was also followed by a sense of askance, though Odette struggled to keep her own emotions from the images of the

[15:01] Odette di Benedetti Academy and Dashrix.

After a heartbeat or two, her sooty black lashes lifted from pale cheeks to peer into Minnow's eyes, hoping for comprehension.

[15:04] Lance doesn't seem to realize the effects - or even the reality - of the backwash that has happened, though does notice the woman squirming on the ground before them. For the moment, he stays quiet, turning his gaze to the ocean as if his enhanced sight might allow him to gaze beneath the water. (It will not)

[15:06] Kiernan "Akemi" Rourke frowned deeply, uncomfortable and unsettled by the state of the Mer and the ambient disturbed sensations among them. He glanced at Lance, glad the man seemed at least a little less scrambled than the three of them. "Ye thinkin' o'goin' down too now?" he asked, remaining by the two women in the waves. It kept the little area of see around them more temperate than the rest, even in the seasonal chill. Other than that he waited to see what came of Odette's attempt at communication.

[15:10] Minnow turns her gaze to Odette as she strokes her tail, pulling herself to curl around her legs, fins flicking lightly as she peeks out from around her to the shadow on the beach. When she begins to receive the pictures she would turn empty eyes towards her. She understood there was a question, the first picture caught her attention, it wasn't often she saw the waters from that angle, the second had her eyes widening, the fanciful world she painted in her mind utterly unknown to her, but she liked that it had her two new friends in it. But it was the last that she latched on to, 'safety'. Yes... she wanted that very much. She repeated the vision and tapped her chest. Safety. Yes. Somewhere away from the rolling darkness and the pain it brings. She looks back to Kiernan when he speaks again, this time to the shadow on the beach, content to keep the woman between her and the shadow she was clearly growing nervous, that soft clicking of her teeth giving it away.

[15:18] Odette di Benedetti "She wants the safety of the Academy.".

Her words bordered on flat, though it was an answer to their mutual question.

Dark eyes lifted to Kiernan's, her gaze fixing to his with a flicker of fear she quickly subdued.

"Is...is there a place for her there? I feel as if the hardest part will be getting her to the transit station safely. She can not dry out.".

Odette pulled on those images Minnow sent her a bit a go, recalling the ghastly death-drying of whomever she'd seen.

Her hand on the back of Minnow's head remained calm, soothing, the tail stroking the same as she pondered how best to get her to the Academy in a timely manner.

"I can carry her, and I won't be slow, but we have to have a plan before we pull her from the water.".

This time, her eyes flicked to the man on the shore, looping him into their plan in case they needed extra hands. After a moment, she thought to Minnow an image of Lance on the shore, followed by a sensation of query as if she were asking if the Mer thought him safe.

[15:20] Lance says, ""No. Unlike the rest of you, I am much too fond of my clothes to ruin them with sea water. I was merely looking to see if any of these new colors would show whatever is down there... And unfortunately, there is not. The sea might as well be a pitch black canvas for all my eyes can tell. Heartbeats are one thing, but who knows however many miles of frigid water and salt..."

His eyes detect Odette's look towards him, and he raises a brow in response. Though, lacking a concrete answer from her, he can only turn his gaze away, now feeling somewhat paranoid.

Admittedly, his player does think there is something amusing in the fish fearing the snake."

[15:20] Echo (keramu): (( ignore the quote wrapping, I was trying a new command >.>;; ))

[15:21] Odette di Benedetti (moirraah.flanagan): ((Can we move to a post to complete? I will log to the website and create one if everyone is amenable.))

[15:21] Odette di Benedetti (moirraah.flanagan): ((Thread, not post))