Two's Company

[MadEmperor]

"Thanks! I'll do just that," Thrax said with a smile before absolutely demolishing his stew.


Thrax, for his part, did his assigned chores with minimal complaint when he reached his stamina threshold. And in practically no time at all, the day came when they were to leave.

"I think that's everything," Thrax reported as he finished returning their things to their packs.

[DragonSong]

Hana was doing a final check of the loft, and she crawled back out from under the small bed in her smaller fox form, tail waving.

"Yep, nothing I can find." She shrugged up into her halfway shape and moved for the ladder. "Ready to go scandalize some academics?" she asked with a crooked grin, flicking all four tails much the way she had as a proper fox.

[MadEmperor]

Thrax smirked back at her before she climbed down. "Always."

Once he, too, was at the bottom, he looked over at Tobin with a good-natured grin. "Well, we're just about off. It was good to meetcha Tobbs."

[DragonSong]

The halfling grumbled about Thrax's use of the affectionate nickname, but didn't actually protest it. Over the last few days, Tobin had displayed quite thoroughly that his default method of communication was, in fact, a grumble.

"You two take care of yourselves," he muttered as he walked them to the door. When Hana was through it, he shifted to stand in front of Thrax--all three and a half feet of him--and gave him a sudden, hard stare. "Really," he muttered, "take care of her."

[MadEmperor]

Thrax let all frivolity drain from his face as he regarded the small man. "Don't worry. I would give my life for her," he said quietly and with conviction.

He then turned to follow Hana. "Alright, time to bounce... and hopefully not set off any snares this time."

[DragonSong]

The kistune glowered at him, then groaned, "I'm never living that down, am I?"


Without pushing themselves, it was a just over a day to reach Arca proper. As nightfall approached while they walked, Hana glanced up and noted, "We might as well camp out for the night--we'll have a better shot of finding a somewhat decent place to put ourselves up for a few days in the city if we don't come stumbling in passed midnight."

[MadEmperor]

Thrax nodded with a smile. "I was just thinking the same thing."

"I even see a good place," he said, pointing to a small copse of trees ahead and to left of the road.


After dinner...

Sitting on a log beside her, he gently leaned against her. "Tobin really does care about you, yanno? He point-blank commanded me to take care of you."

"I think he's actually worse at showing his real emotions as we are," he laughed.

[DragonSong]

"Oh, I know," Hana laughed. "Where do you think I got it from?"

She smiled lopsidedly at him, then leaned over to nudge his shoulder with hers lightly. "I'm glad he didn't, y'know...get on your nerves too much. He's a crotchety bastard, but..."

She shrugged and ducked her eyes slightly. "He's the best family I got. Besides—well, besides you. Sort of. I guess." She cleared her throat and looked away, cheeks warm.

[MadEmperor]

Thrax snapped his head in her direction, an oddly surprised and touched look on his face. Then, just as abruptly, he fell into his usual smirk. "Gods. You make it sound like we're married," he laughed.

Turning his gaze away, he awkwardly added, "Not that I wouldn't be the luckiest man alive if we were."

[DragonSong]

Hana's cheeks went from pink to deep red very quickly, and it was her turn to snap her head around at stare mutely at her companion for a moment.

"W-well, that's--" She swallowed. "I mean...thanks." She shook her head quickly and glanced away again, trying to joke, "Not sure either of us is exactly the marrying kind though, right?"

[MadEmperor]

Even with his own burning cheeks hidden beneath his fur, Thrax couldn't bring himself to look in her direction. He wasn't the marrying kind; his clan didn't formalize their relationships any more than the Longfangs did. So why did her question hurt a little? He knew she loved him; what else mattered?

"R-right. Besides, what difference does it make whether what we have has the blessing of anyone else? Especially some religion we don't give a shit about."

[DragonSong]

"Yeah. Right. Exactly." Gods this was awkward. Was it awkward? Was it just her? Was it supposed to be awkward? "I mean, it's not like we stay in one place long enough for the neighbors to gossip about it either," she joked a little desperately, telling herself that her voice absolutely did not sound any squeakier than normal.

[MadEmperor]

Her voice absolutely did sound squeakier than normal, and he noticed, and it made him even more emotionally confused. "Yeah. It would only ever mean anything to anyone but us, and we don't care."

"We don't, right?" he asked uncertainly. Gods, this conversation was torture. It needed to end, but it just kept going! Why?!

[DragonSong]

"Right." She nodded with a certainty that she very suddenly didn't feel. "I mean, it's not like we could even...what sorta priest or priestess would bother to--fuck."

She growled quietly and twisted to face him, frowning slightly. "Okay. I suck at this. I vote we just stop talking." Vaguely desperately, she added, "We have much less awkward ways of keeping our mouths busy. Wanna do that?"

[MadEmperor]

"Oh, Storm yes," he laughed awkwardly as he turned to look at her. "I would accept literally anything to not continue this accursed conversation."

The moment they kissed, he forgot all about marriage nonsense.


Around midday, the dynamic duo finally walked through the gates of academia. Thrax had wrapped Stormsong in a cloth so as not to blatantly carry a naked weapon into the university. Just being a gnoll was drawing enough negative attention.

"I can't say I like the way the noble students are looking at us," he said self-consciously.

[DragonSong]

Hana had shifted into her fully human form for the trip, for much the same reason that Thrax had chosen to wrap Stormsong. Though with the looks they were getting, she honestly wasn't sure if either choice was really doing them much good.

"Just ignore it," she advised quietly. "If we let them make us uncomfortable enough to start acting suspicious, they'll think we have a reason to be suspicious. We've got as much right to be here as any traveling scholar."

It was much easier said than done, but she certainly had practice at it. Granted, that practice had been when she was on her own. Though despite the additional attention Thrax's presence brought, she couldn't say she would have preferred to go without it. She'd rather have him with her.

[MadEmperor]

"Right." Thrax straightened and relaxed; nobody was going to pick a fight, so why be defensive?

"So... what first? The library? Archeology? Enchantments?"

[DragonSong]

"I'd think archeology would be a good place to start," Hana mused aloud. "If we want information about any expeditions that might be heading south, I'd think that would be the department most likely funding that sort of thing."

She fished out a small piece of paper Tobin had given her before they left, glanced down it, then added, "And it looks like at least one of these names Tobbs recommended is in archeology. Don't know about two of them, but this one definitely."

[MadEmperor]

"Then archeology it is!" Thrax declared as he started walking with purpose.

Then he stopped to look back at her. "Where... do you think that is?"


It took some searching and getting directions from a very nervous clerk, but the pair eventually found the office of Dr. Cymon Hauptman, professor of archeology.

Thrax let Hana be the one to knock on the door. People didn't always react well to the unexpected appearance of a gnoll upon opening the door.

[DragonSong]

Aside from the surprised or sideways looks they kept getting, Hana actually quite liked what they saw of the university--if she had to stick in one place, she could see the appeal of a place that had doorways to so many other places all lined up next to each other. Albeit those doorways took the form of books.

When they finally reached the right--literal--door, she rapped quickly and called, "Professor Hauptman? The clerk said you were accepting visitors for office hours?"

"Hm?" came a voice on the other side of the door, followed quickly by a shuffling sound. "What? Ah, yes, of course, one moment."

More shuffling, then the sound of footsteps before the door swung inward to reveal a half-asleep half-elf who came very quickly awake at the sight of them.

"Goodness!" the professor yelped, jumping back a step, but quickly recovered a semblance of manners. "Oh, er, I mean--what is it I can help you two...folks with?"