Chapter 70: Well This Is Awkward

“What’s that supposed to mean? Miss out on my company?” Tom went as soon as Jackalope was airborne and out of listening range.

“Oh come on, she didn't even leave you in the tree. Figure it out”

“She fell asleep” Fengi did seem to struggle with that prospect.

“Well, she certainly feels safe around you then” She finally piped up. Tom had to give her points for that one. Even if he was fairly certain Jackalope could sleep in the maw of a dragon as long as she was semi-confident of not becoming a snack.

The two of them took off running with him dangling beneath her as they got airborne. It was almost routine by now. “What about you, got anyone you fancy?”

“Careful now I think my hand is slipping”

“Oh come on. Unkai is crazy for you that’s for sure.”

“That he is.” She just answered plainly. ‘Uff buddy,’ Tom thought to himself, still, a promise was a promise.

“Well, what’s wrong with him? He’s kind, steadfast, a healer…"

“And boring. Honestly, the amount of times he has called my eyes beautiful is absurd. He can’t even dance” ‘Well, shit.’ Tom thought to himself. Could he fix that… should he try? He couldn’t dance for shit either. At least not sober… “What are you plotting down there? Wait he put you up to this didn't he!?”

“Uhmm” Fengi just let out a deep sigh.

“He just never gives up” She sounded a tad defeated.

“You can’t fault him for trying.” Could she? Apparently, she could, since her tone changed to one of disinterest.

“Oh no, here comes your ride” True enough Jackalope came up from behind settling beneath them, Tom was placed on her back gently as ever. “Hey Jackalope, he loves you” She went as she let go and pulled up.

Jackalope went stiff at that comment. The awkward silence ruled for an uncomfortably long while, Tom sure as shit didn't want to break it given his current position. Of all the places he could be right now he was lying on top of her… and couldn't get off. ‘Damn you Fengi’

“She’s taking the piss right?” Jackalope finally went, Tom really struggled to figure out if that was her joking tone or if there was a hint of hope in there. If so she was trying to hide it. Her confidence didn’t seem to have taken a hit though. ‘okay could be worse could be worse’ he thought to himself.

“Uhmm... Well, I asked about her and Unkai, she apparently didn’t like that and decided payback was in order, you know how it is” That wasn’t false, he just hoped Jackalope’s feelings were as tough as the rest of her. Besides, every dragonette who had seen him described him as hideous and he was fairly sure his personality wasn't that good.

“Right, of course” Her demeanor didn’t seem to shift at all, he had kinda expected her to be either relieved or sad at that answer. The awkward silence reigned once again. Tom looked to Jarix, searching for something to do right now. The young dragon was almost up to the treetops, but clearly working hard climbing slowly. Crucially he wasn’t there yet.

“It’s Sapphire isn't it?” Jackalope finally went in a dejected tone. Oh yeah, he had hurt her feelings alright… goddammit “Just admit it and be done with it. I know you like her.” What had he done to deserve being in this situation he wondered. His instincts wanted to try and make a joke to get out of this, or just run. Probably not smart though, all things considered. That meant talking his way out.

“No no, Sapphire is a good friend, we’ve spent a lot of time together and all that, not that we haven't. Obviously.” He did his best to sound convincing, patting her on the shoulder. It really didn’t help that he had no clue what he wanted to do right now though. Should he just try damage control? He had already pretty much agreed to ask Jackalope out or whatever their equivalent was around here.

“Oh come on, I’ve heard how they talk about her, she’s a damn prize. You’d be an idiot not to want her.” Now she sounded genuinely hurt.

Sapphire might be good looking, but so was Jackalope, hell all of the huntresses were borderline eye candy and she was quite a lot more fun. Not to mention she could toss him around like a doll and likely crush his skull between her thighs. And what kind of man doesn't like a woman that’s into guns and explosions. Fuck it, he liked her a lot, she was awesome!

“Hey Jacky,” Tom grabbed one of her horns and turned her head around so she faced him.

“What are you doing? Leave me alone.” She went annoyedly at her head being jerked around like that. He even spotted a tear in her eye.

She did shut up when he did his best to kiss that still slightly burned snout of hers though. It was most definitely an awkward kiss and it didn’t help that she clearly had no clue it was coming.

“What the fuck dude!?” Okay, maybe that was too forward then. “I ain't dying!”

“Uhhhh, what?” Perhaps he had misjudged the situation more severely than he had anticipated.

“You did that with Dakota, well I ain't dying on you.” Her voice was downright quivering. “I’m not some weakling or a kid for that matter. Just give me a moment okay.”

“Uhm that was a kiss Jacky, not mouth to mouth,” Tom tried, he was in deep water right now or high skies more accurately. She turned back to look at him, oh she had tears in her eyes alright, he had never seen that with her. The expression did seem to switch a bit though as she stared at him.

Tom could literally see the gears turning in her head, as they slowly clicked into place. “Wait, is that like an affection thing?” She finally went. ‘of course it is dummy, that couldn’t be hard to figure out… Wait, they didn’t kiss?’

That did stump him quite considerably. Thinking back he had only seen them do that rubbing snouts thing like birds do. That did look rather funny, actually. She did seem to figure it out though as her eyes lit up.

“Really? I mean I know I’m awesome and all” Now there was the Jackalope he knew and loved. Straight to bragging. “Not like Sapphire could have taken you through that storm after all.”

“Or been that much fun at the lake” he retorted.

“Yeah I am pretty great aren’t I?” She turned back to look ahead, she looked very content though. He guessed mission success then. He just sighed a sigh of relief that he wasn’t gonna need the parachute.

“Humble too,” He added sarcastically. Jackalope nodded at that still beaming with pride, until she realized the sarcasm at least, then she scowled back at him. That was just too much for Tom as he broke out laughing at her expense.

Tom knew Fengi was overhead, though he hadn’t heard any snarky comments from up there. He just hoped that wasn't another shit show to deal with. He couldn’t worry about everything and right now, he was going to enjoy the ride as he embraced Jackalope, nuzzling his head against her neck. This was nice.

They didn’t say anything as Jackaople turned at a leisurely pace following Jarix. She fell back a fair distance though, Tom guessed she wanted a modicum of privacy.

“Tom I wanna ask a favor” She went after a bit.

“Uhm, sure thing” He really hoped she didn’t just want something that went boom really loud. Though it was a distinct possibility.

“Would you mind pinching me?”

“Sure” He did so, grabbing a hold of the thick leathery skin on the side of her neck and gave it a bit of a pinch.

“Well, it hurts a bit so I guess I ain't dreaming right now… That thing you did what does that mean… exactly?” She sounded very pointed on that last part, to Tom s ears.

“Well... That you really like someone”

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“How much exactly.” It would appear the usual confidence had vanished completely then.

“Jackalope I love you” he finally admitted, surely that wasn’t open for interpretation

“Wuhuu” Jackalope went rolling over onto her back pulling up hard launching into a very characteristic set of slightly insane maneuvers. Tom just did his best to hang on as he got the goggles on. That response certainly wasn’t open for interpretation.

When she finally calmed down enough to fly level she was already panting even her breathing sounded excited though. Fengi predictably came down alongside. Tom really hoped he wasn’t about to fend off a verbal assault from her.

“I told you he liked you, but no no. I must be crazy you wanted Esmeralda to let you know, cause she would know for sure.” Fengi went, snarky sarcasm off the chart.

“I know I’m sorry, I just didn’t believe it” her head snapped back around to look at him. “You aren't joking right?” Tom got the feeling if he said yes, he was gonna need the parachute, as a best-case scenario.

He just kissed her again. She turned to look at Fengi mouth agape, beaming with happiness. Goddammit, she was hilarious. He turned to look at the grinning Fengi who was following along, he had been played at his own game. In fairness, they did seem a lot better at this than him.

“Well, that does make it hard to keep my promise to Unkai.”

“And what would that be?” Fengi asked, rolling her eyes, still smiling though.

“That if he dared to treat you like a person and ask you properly I would ask Jackalope”

“Sorry for ruining the surprise. Can’t wait for the first part, but could you at least try and make him a bit more interesting.” Fengi replied clearly not thirled by the prospect.

Tom pondered that one for a bit. How do you make a person interesting? Fuck it why not he had kinda already started and today was going very well so far.

“Sure I’ll try.”

__________________________________________________________________________________

“Chug, Chug, Chug, Chug” The chorus rang out as Sapphire's next unsuspecting target lost his round of darts against here. It was almost easy enough to make it boring. She did throw a shot every now and again, just enough to give him hope.

“Well, it’s official we have a new champion.” The barkeep shouted out, eliciting cheers all around. Sapphire was fairly sure he was called Reiker, everyone just seemed to call him Barkeep though and she was too drunk to care.

There were a fair few people in here and she hadn’t had to buy a drink, yet. All in all this was turning into an excellent evening. Maiko had left before dinner to report where they had ended up though Tirox, Canabrera, and Udanti had shown up, claiming they had nothing better to do with the evening.

Her brother Haiko had managed to snake his way out of guard duty for the night so they could have a proper reunion. She walked back over to their table fresh drink in hand from her victory and sat down at the crowded table.

“You're a dirty cheat, you know that right,” Haiko went, laughing as she sat down.

“No no, you misunderstand. I’m very poor and need the drinks covered” She was slurring a bit and giggling profusely.

“If she can hit in that condition I say it’s more than fair” Udanti defended her.

“Thank you, see she gets it”

“To the poor huntress then, with her silver crown” Oh that was right, she had been a copper last she was here, silly Sapphire. They raised their mugs in a toast. “Till the boards do we met” cheered, echoed by the rest of them “Till the boards do we met”

Taking a good swig butting the mug back down, Sapphire took off her crown and put it on Haiko. “There we go, a huntress just like Tom”

"Don't forget the jewelry” Dakota added laughing.

“And a damn handsome one at that” Haiko went, getting up and posing for them.

Balethon was practically in Canabrera’s lap and since he was still there, Sapphire guessed she didn’t have to worry about him for the evening, either. All in all, this was going marvelously.

“Wait you made that guy a huntress?” Triox questioned incredulously.

“But he is so damn ugly”

“No, he isn't” Sapphire protested “He’s just very weird looking”

“I really wanted to touch him, but was afraid he was gonna take my head off” Canabrera added, nuzzling Baltheon.

“I can report his skin is very soft, very warm, and wet when he has been working hard” Dakota went, their fearless leader seemingly also having gotten a bit of a buzz on.

“Yeah he’s like a big hot water bottle” Sapphire added in, it was true too.

“Come on, his face looks like it has been smashed on or something, and his teeth look like a deer’s” Tirox, clearly hadn’t been convinced by their persuasive arguments.

“Well, he isn’t a dragonette now is he?” Dakota clarified for him.

“No, he’s exotic”

“And he’s got a winning personality” Dakota let out pounding the table laughing. They all had a good laugh at that.

Sapphire turned to Haiko snatching back her crown. “Anyone else come through besides Viper and me?”

“Oh yeah, mother was here last fall, along with a few faces from the keep. The year before that, Palak and Rosey came by” The stung a little, hearing of her littermates having been here. It had been so long since she had seen any of them.

“Why you are just living the dream aren’t you? Getting to see the old gang now and again”

“Hay I ain't the one living the life of adventure, it’s mostly just standing outside trying to look welcoming yet intimidating.”

“You, intimidating!” Sapphire had to laugh at that, her big brother was many things but scary certainly wasn’t one of them. “You couldn’t hurt a mouse if it ate your breakfast”

“Hey, just because I ain't a bloodthirsty killer like you doesn't mean I'm soft.”

“Didn’t you once spend half your shift with an orphan girl on your arm, telling her stories… you even fed her didn’t you?” The barkeep spoke up clearly taking the piss.

“Being kind doesn’t make you soft either”

“I can be kind too” Sapphire protested,

“How? When you demolish the competition less thoroughly?” Dakota went chuckling. Sapphire had a comeback for that but saying it wouldn’t be very kind now would it, miss I’m so miserable I can’t get out of bed.

They had continued well into the darkness until finally, Balethon collected the courage to ask Canabrera up to his room. Honestly, it was almost like he became timid when drunk rather than the usual opposite. Haiko invited them to come see his apartment sometime when he wasn’t on duty, then made his excuses. Tirox and Udanti bade them good night and made for the free traders guild. Sapphire just hoped they were better at finding their way around here than her and Dakota. The two drunken huntresses staggered up the stairs arm in arm, to call it a night.

“Well, I would call that a good start to proceedings” Dakota went as they entered the room.

“Best first day ever, got to see the training fields from dragon back, and actually feel welcome, meet my brother, had a good night drinking. I could get used to this”

“Yeah, well don’t it’s not all going to be a pleasant breeze. Let’s get some sleep”

“Fine, ohh fearless leader”

“Oh shut it”

The two of them woke the next morning to the sound of someone pounding on their door. Sapphire got up, still a little unsteady on her feet, the buzz not quite having worn off yet to go answer it. She opened the door a twinge, peering through the crack to see who it was.

“Good morning, why?” She just asked, at the rather official-looking individual standing outside.

“Good heavens” He exclaimed “Uhm are you by any chance Dakota Bizmati?”

“No I’m Sapphire Dakota is sleeping”

“Oh right, sorry, may I come in? Are you dressed?”

“No, and uhm No not really”

“Well would you mind, I will be waiting in the meantime”

“Okay just a sec”

“What is a sec?” Sapphire sighed internally, she really needed to not use Tom phrases here, they were just so good through.

“Get up Dakota, we got a visitor”

“Tell him to go away, I need my beauty sleep” Dakota protested.

“Come on, he looks important, get dressed”

“Ugh, fine!”

It took them a bit to get to a presentable state but eventually, they opened the door. The man outside averted his gaze for a second before realizing they were properly dressed by now. Honestly, did he think they were so drunk they couldn't put on clothes?

“Ahr, good I think I failed to introduce myself earlier. I’m Theodor, pleasure to meet you” He extended his hand and the two of them shook it curiously. ‘what’s this all about?’ Sapphire wondered. “I’m here to inform you that his royal highness king Lucius the seventh requests your presence at the day's council meeting. Proceedings will begin following lunch. I was informed there were three of you though?

“Balethon is next door” Sapphire responded, stiff as a plank. ‘What the fuck!’

“Do try and make yourself presentable, it’s my understanding that you won’t necessarily be speaking before the king, but still” His face was one of clear disapproval as he looked them over.

Sapphire couldn’t help but feel a little ashamed. She didn’t even have her armor on right now and she was speaking to a representative of the king. She turned to look at Dakota who was just staring at the little man, mouth hanging slightly open expression one of horror. She did eventually snap back into reality.

“Of course, we shall do our best. In the future maybe a little more warning?” She asked, switching to a pained expression on her face.

“Yes, I can see that. I trust you know how to find the palace?” Yeah, Sapphire could understand the low opinion right about now.

“Certainly, you just caught us at a bad time”

“Very good don’t be late, oh, and here are your papers to get you in.” The man gave a polite if slightly pained smile handing over three small scrolls and turned to leave in a slight hurry.

Once he was gone the two of them turned to each other. “We're going to go see the king. and the council… while drunk!” Dakota let out, somewhere between ecstatic and horrified. Sapphire honestly didn't know what to make of this situation. She had never even been up to the top of the cliff, let alone inside the royal palace. She knew Dakota had been there at once when she was a little girl.

“We need to get Balethon up” Sapphire stated. The two of them rushed over and started pounding frantically on the door, eventually, a very sleepy-looking Canabrera open staring at them with a distinctly unamused expression.

“What?”

“Get the dude up, he needs to go see the king!” Sapphire exclaimed. Canabrera just looked at them for a second before breaking out laughing.

“I gotta say you do have a sense for humor, sorry about calling you a bit dry last night.”

“We aren’t joking” Dakota went holding up the three scrolls. “Get him up now!” Canabrera’s expression turned to one incredulousness.

“Right of course… Right away.” She shut the door, but it was clear there was frantic activity inside. “Get up you lazy dog, get up!”

The inn did have bathing facilities so they did their best to freshen up as much as possible a few of the staff kindly helping polish what parts of their equipment they had time for.

“What the fuck did you do to get summoned to a council meeting?"

“We have no idea!” Sapphire replied exasperatedly, adjusting her crown and earrings. She was damn grateful she had gotten that full bath yesterday, she just prayed you couldn’t smell the beer on her from last night.

“That’s as good as I can get it” Lola replied, the sweet young maid having done her best with Sapphire's necklace.

“Thank you all so much” Sapphire replied, taking the necklace, they were out of time though. Not looking your absolute best was one thing but being late was an entirely different level of bad when it came to something like this. “We need to get moving"

“Yes, let's go” Dakota echoed, voice stern.