Return of the Emblem Paralogue One: The Travelers

[Phoenix]

Wagon

For the sake of following through on the initial request, ruse or no, Greta handed over a pair of gloves she'd taken from a small chest a few seconds after Jamilla had voiced her concerns in full. She kept a blank face at first, and then eventually grinned pityingly and said, "Lords, did I pick up an interestin' bunch. Alphonse is chivalrous, I'll give'em that much, but he could definitely learn a thing or two about communication. If a man's creepin' you out, best to let'em know right away. They won't figure out stuff like that on their own. Anyway, I'm not sure about the rest of y'all, but I don't plan on repeatin' whatever happened to his last caravan or whoever he was with. If the circumstances are so similar, we'll just have to stack the odds more in our favor, now won't we?" With that, her smile became more confident and reassuring.

[roymbrog]

Rhoul had left first to return to the wagon, that was true, but he hadn’t known exactly where it was and so hadn’t taken the most efficient route around. However, that did end up with him running into one of the people he wanted to see, and it looked like she had found her dog already. “Heeeey~”

Nimoeph looked up from where she was petting Elrey. “’Heeey’ what?” He had a really stupid looking grin on his face, leading her to narrow her eyes in suspicion. “What did you do?”

“What, me? Absolutely nothing,” Rhoul replied, looking a bit too innocent to actually be innocent. He tossed her a vial as he passed by, which she caught and held at arm’s length.

Nim peered at the liquid inside. “What is this? …Did you steal it?”

“Nope, favor from a friend. It’s an antidote for that nasty paralytic,” he replied, turning to walk backwards to continue speaking as he kept on towards the carpenter’s shop. “I heard some rumors in town, need to talk to that miss Greta lady ‘bout traveling routes. Back me up, ok?” Facing forward again, he walked around the corner towards where the wagon was parked.

Nimoeph followed further behind with Elrey, trying to figure out what the guy was up to. He had asked her to corroborate whatever story he was about to give, but that didn’t mean she was going to.

[Toogee]

Jam finally relaxed as Greta smiled and gave her advice. Indeed, talking with Alphonse should have been her first action. Maybe he didn’t realize how creepy he sounded, just like Greta suggested. The dancer was really hoping that was it and they could put this whole thing behind them.

“Thanks Greta,” Jam replied, taking the gloves, forgetting that she didn’t really need them. “If you need anything, you know where I am.” She smiled back and headed out of the wagon. Jam walked straight for the group and grabbed Alphonse by the arm.

“We gotta talk,” was all she said as she attempted to drag Alphy away from the wagon to a more private area. Once there, she stood in front of him, arms crossed. She was not particularly comfortable. She was about to repeat the same spiel she told Greta, but that wouldn’t go over well. She overreacted over a little comment from the others. How did things get so messed up in such a little amount of time? It was time to set things right.

“So, I think we got off on the foot. You told me something from your past, I didn’t take it too well. I’d like to start over. But if you’re going to follow me around like some helpless princess, we’re going to have to make things official. And for that, I’m going to need your sword. I also want you to kneel. I think that’s how it’s done…”

[Eail]

Alphonse had just been about to polish his weapon when Jamilla came back out of the wagon, he had actually planned on trying to talk to the girl again, but it seemed she had the same idea with how he was being dragged off.... Circe wouldn't like this.

"I understand that it upset you Jamilla." Using the girl's full name, figuring that he didn't have the right to call her Jam any more. "But even if you don't trust me any more I'm still going to protect you with my life."

"If me being your knight is what it takes to accomplish my goal I'll accept.... princess." Pulling his blade from it's sheath that was strapped to his waist the red-head handed his weapon over to the girl, before kneeling in front of her.

[Parrhesia]

"zzzzzz"

[Toogee]

Jam had to take Alphonse’s sword with both hands. How did he handle such a heavy thing? She positioned the sword like a cane as she continued with the ceremony.

“Oh, but it’s not that simple,” Jam replied to Alphy. “First, you have to swear to the oath.”

The dancer cleared her throat as she recited the knightly oath. And by oath, she meant a list of demands.

http://www.serenesforest.net/media/fe7music/047%20-%20A%20Knight%27s%20Oath.mp3'>A Knight's Oath- FE7

“Do you swear to protect me as long as I draw breath? Seriously, I could be cut in half, but as long as I’m alive, you better be figuring out a way to put my legs back on. ”

“And do you swear loyalty to me, our friends, and our employer? You will no longer accumulate damsels in distress for you to protect, cause you’re gonna need everything just to handle me. I’ll make sure of it.”

“Finally, do you swear not to wallow in the past and join the rest of us here and now? Things happened then, you can’t change them. I’m here now, so you better be here with me.”

[Eail]

Well, this wasn't like any of the Knight oaths from the books that Alphonse had read over the years, but it would certainly fulfill it's purpose of regaining her trust.

"I swear I will do whatever it takes to protect your life. If anyone harms you they shall fall to my sword without hesitation. No matter what it takes I won't let you die."

"Greta, our friends, you, I swear I'll protect you. All of my anguish for the past will be used to make sure nothing like it will happen again, I'll focus on the present and the future."

"The girl.... I won't forget her, but I'll move on. Honoring her memory while living in the now.... with you."

[Toogee]

Jam nodded to Alphy's proclamation and took up his sword with one hand, despite the heft of the blade.

"Then I hereby declare you Sir Alphy, Knight of Jam."

CLONK

Jam missed the hero's shoulder entirely, the sword hitting the ground with a thump. It was apparently a lot heavier than the dancer anticipated. "Dang, how can you swing this thing?" she asked as she took it back into the air with both hands. As she sung it upwards, Jam came nearly an inch to Alphonse's throat before raising the sword upwards. The attempt to tap his other shoulder resulted in the sword being embedded into the ground. Of course, had any of those "taps" hit their mark, poor Alphonse would have been maimed for weeks.

"I'm gonna get this right, don't worry." The dancer attempted to pull the sword from the ground in order to complete the ceremony.

[Eail]

*Swish* *Swish* *Swish*

Well, within the span of about five minutes his princess had nearly taken off his arm, slashed his throat, and decapitated him. This wasn't exactly going according to her plan was it? After the third attempt and the swordsmen fearing for his life at this point, Alphonse stood. "Lets uh.... just do this one together okay? I'm somewhat fond of having all my limbs to be honest." Reaching over and pulling the blade out of the ground with one hand, while the other one went into his coat to pull out a cloth to clean the weapon. "There we go, nice and clean.... Now, one more time, with gusto."

Giving the dancer back his sword, but clasping his hands over her own to help her lift the sword.

[Ether]

It seemed that was just about it, then. After a short while talking to Greta, Jamilla had come out, and dragged Alphonse off to the side, on the premise that they needed to talk. Circe wondered whether she was going to let the swordsman have it, or something else entirely. Well, none of her concern, the druidess reasoned, deciding to relax in the wagon with a book, for the time being.

***

Well, that was certainly an interesting scene. Some swordsman began gushing to a dancer girl about his troubled past in the middle of the damn bar, causing the pair of them to run off, followed by the young kid that was clearly way too young to be in a place like this, as well as the other dancer they had picked up. A strange group in appearance, to be sure, but they seemed to be taking people on the road free of charge, and this swordsman seemed to have a penchant for innocence looking young maidens... Angelica smiled to herself, this would be too easy.

As the woman began to give chase, one of the patrons of the place seemed all too eager to slow her down... one of the standard perverted types, who upon seeing a light frame and no visible weaponry, felt it a good time to try his hand and feeling around and getting a taste of man's most coveted bounty... nothing a swift strike to the throat to knock the sap out didn't solve, leaving Angelica to straighten out her skirt in annoyance. She certainly hoped that minor distraction hadn't caused her to miss the wagon...

Luckily enough, the edge of town found a still-stationary wagon, along with a few faces she recalled from the bar as the ones attending the thing. Walking over to the gathering with a perky smile on her face, the young woman began her appeal.

"Ah, is this the wagon that was leaving town? I'm so glad I didn't miss it~" She started, taking a mental note of the people around, as she made her way over to the young boy... the swordsman and the dancer that had entered with them were nowhere to be seen, so he would have to do for now.

"Did you have room for one more? Taking to the roads alone is always so dangerous and lonely..." She continued, taking note of the noticeably older man who had begun to look her over nearly as soon as she had come into view... on of those types, huh? Oh well, insurance was always nice, Angelica decided, thus opting to bow low to the young boy, with the older man at her back as she did so.

[Phoenix]

Wagon

With the Jamilla matter settled for now, Greta decided to exit the wagon and wait around with the others. Hopefully Erion's friends wouldn't keep them waiting too long. if they did, Greta was definitely going to consider scolding them for it. For now though, she had other things to scold various people for. First there was Shaun who had another provocatively dressed woman with him, there was the woman herself who had to know that bowing in a miniskirt was just plain lewd, and then there was her father, who just happened to be at the right angle to get an eyeful. She came up to him first and put her hand over his eyes with her palm facing away from him. "Don't look, pa; you'll give yourself a stroke."

"Uh, room? I uh ..." Shaun had been so close to recovering from the incident with Aubrianna too.

"Shaun, what is it with you and attractin' these girls?" Greta cut in. She began walking over looking both annoyed and concerned for Shaun. "Can I help you, miss?" Greta then asked the woman in the skirt. Sure she was annoyed, but she wasn't going to be rude first thing, at least not directly to the woman.

[Ether]

"Ah, yes. I overheard some of you talking in town about looking for people to travel with, and well... out on the road alone isn't the best place for a girl. I was wondering if you had room for one more." Angelica replied to the woman, who carried herself as the leader of this little group. Popping up from her bow with a swish of cloth and a slight bounce, the young blonde maiden gave Greta the most innocent smile one probably had ever seen. To the outside world, the girl seemed entirely oblivious to the fact that to most, her skirt left much to be desired in terms of coverage.

"He was the only one I recognized from town, so I figured I may as well talk to him."

Edited May 5, 2013 by Ether

[Toogee]

With Alphonse's help, Jam successfully finished the knighting ceremony. She smiled as the hero helped out by holding her hands to avoid further risk of limb loss. Everything was cleared up, and the dancer had her own knight to boot.

"You see, stuff like this wouldn't happen if you would just train me." Perfect segway. Just as she was about to make her case once more, they had arrived at camp to find another new person greeting the others. Or rather, they saw her "assets" peeking out of her skirt as she bowed to Shawn. That was just great. Just when she got Alphy to forego damsels in distress, the most innocent looking blonde stumbles into camp to join as a passenger. No, Jam wasn't one to talk, but she preferred to hold the monopoly on innocent-looking blondes.

"Can you fight, Miss...?" Jam called out to Angelica, drawing out the last word to imply that they didn't know her name yet.

[Eail]

"We'll see about the training part.... I've got an idea for something that you might be able to handle if it come down to that." Alphonse responded as the duo made their way back to the rest of the group... with one seemingly new addition.

'By the gods.... Jamilla /and/ this girl?!? Cute.... overload!'

He was still going to keep his word about the whole protecting random people thing.... but uh, maybe this girl could have a little more attention that a few others. That outfit was pretty much just begging for trouble, especially combined with the ditzy and innocent attitude she seemed to have about her state of dress.

.....He really didn't want to have to cut off the hand of Greta's dad....

[Ether]

Ah, there were the two from the tavern. That was rather convenient enough, and so turning towards them with a quick curtsy, Angelica began to respond to the young dancer.

"Oh~ They were the ones recruiting back in town!" She began, figuring it easy enough to get that out of the way, first.

"Oh, of course! My name is Angelica... can I fight? Well, you don't get far on the roads without protection, either from having a bunch of people or from beating people up if they try to steal your stuff, so I guess I can, since I don't have a group yet." She replied, with a chipper smile.

[Toogee]

Angelica's answer was sufficiently vague. Jam found herself as the interviewer, attempting to determine if she was more dead weight or someone who could contribute to the group. No need to tempt Alphonse with another charge. Then again, it wasn't her choice on who they accept in the group.

"Well, whatever you're fighting with, I hope you're good. We're headed for bandit country and we need all the help we can get. Course, it's all up to Greta."

[roymbrog]

Rhoul arrived at the wagon to find a scene he did not expect, but it was not unwelcome. Who was this chick? The first part of the conversation he caught was Jamila’s contribution, which explained that she was at least trying to hitch a ride. This trip just got a whole lot better; if for nothing else than the eye candy. Talking to Greta was not at the forefront of his mind at the moment.

Nimoeph followed shortly, Elrey trailing at her heels. She looked around to find two new faces, both scantily clad women. Ok... when it was mentioned they wanted more mercenaries, that was not what she had expected. “Are we ready to leave, miss Greta? I believe Rhoul wanted to speak with you as well, once he stops staring.”

[Phoenix]

Wagon

Greta listened and began to think on the matter. She was also wondering what the odds were of convincing the new girl to change into an outfit she could stand. The dancers she somewhat understood and begrudgingly accepted, but this girl probably wasn't around to boost morale. While Greta mused, Jamilla inquired about the girl's fighting abilities and got an affirmative answer with no actual details of any kind. After that and Jamilla's response, it seemed like a good time to interject. "Fine, you can come along ... but put on a cloak or somethin', please ..."

Turning to Nimoeph, she said, "We were just waitin' on y'all, really." She wondered what Rhoul wanted to talk about.

[Ether]

"A cloak? But I'm not cold..." Angelica replied, feigning ignorance, with an inquisitive look on her face as she gave her pointer finger a slight nibble, before shifting her expression to one of joyous affirmation, and launching herself at the merchant woman for a thankful embrace.

"Hehe, yayay~ Travelling with all these people, no way are any more stupid bandits gonna try and steal my gold~" The young woman exclaimed with elation, before releasing Greta.

'Too easy~'

[Blue]

"Ah, hey!!" Aubri yelled after the white-haired man as he walked away from her. "Stupid little... It's like nobody can even see I'm armed and expecting trouble." She sighed and wandered off to a tree not far from the wagon, going to rest against it and waving to Greta on the way, calling out to her, "Just lemme know about payment, I'm not too picky. I'll do what I can in exchange for whatever I can get." She watched as Jam headed into the cart with the merchant, hoping that just maybe she'd make it clear to her that the two of them were equally capable of helping out if the wagon got into trouble.

She didn't wait long before Jam came out of the cart, watching as she made a beeline for Alphonse and dragged him off somewhere. Aubri's brow furrowed a little; she'd be lying if she said she wasn't at least a little worried about the girl, not really being sure what to think of Alphonse.

She was a lot more sure what to think of the new girl who approached soon after; probably one of the group Aubri hadn't met yet, she thought. She wondered, though, since she'd definitely noted this girl around the tavern, why noboy pointed her out. Oh well... Either way, you don't just bend over in front of a guy like that on accident, do you? It didn't take Aubri much thought to decide that, no, you really don't. She had to admit, though, that the girl was pretty, and especially if she couldn't fight had to rely on something to get around. It wasn't anywhere Aubri hadn't been before herself.

Aubri didn't wait long to approach the blonde and the merchant after the dancer and the white (now much more literal!) knight returned to the wagon. Soon after she approached, Aubri having just caught the tail end of the new girl's introduction, the man from the bar along with a girl and a dog approached. Looks like everyone's coming in at once! Maybe we can leave soon. Aubri waved to her former darts opponent as his group approached. "Hey!" She called. "Didn't know you were heading out with 'em, too!"

She turned to address the others, most of her attention on the new blonde, but also glancing at the other two. "Hi there! My name's Aubrianna, but just call me Aubri, really~!" Cheerfully turning to the merchant, she counted the group in her head. "So, is that everyone, or are we still waiting on someone?"

[Phoenix]

Wagon

"Yeah that's everyone I recall hirin' or otherwise offerin' a ride. Circe went inside, right?" Greta clarified before asking about Circe just to be sure. She supposed they could get going and if Rhoul wanted to talk, they could do so on the road. "Alright, people, funnel in; we're headin' out. Rhoul, you'd best take a seat up front with me if you wanna talk. Shaun, Pa, y'all are on the roof."

"Th-the roof, sis?" a now intimidated Shaun spoke up, wondering what that was about. With his aging father, it made sense, the guy was a crackshot with that rifle and from a higher vantage point, he could easily hit anything around the wagon that got close with no blindspots. But why him, he wondered?

"Well, Pa can't hit anythin' from the back of the wagon, so he should be on the roof. I want the both of you up there so there's no ... funny business," Greta explained, hinting at the recruits issue. Best to keep Shaun at a bit of a distance. This is some pretty early exposure, and I'll be damned if he turns out like pa.

"Gonna be lonely up there without ya, boy," the old man said, trying to encourage Shaun.

"I-I guess so, pa. Okay, I'll go."

[Toogee]

Soon, Greta accepted Angelica into the group, despite the girl’s rather dopey behavior. Jam hoped the girl would work out; she had no interest in sharing bodyguards full-time. With the arrival of the other recruits, they were finally going back on the road to Europa or wherever they were going. The dancer rushed towards the wagon in attempt to get a good seat (or at least one with a cushion). As she headed up however, Jam saw that the stray she played with earlier had returned…and with one of the recruits too. Did he belong to one of them? Jam took a detour to greet Elrey and Nimoeph.

“I was wondering where you ran off too,” Jam said to Elrey, rubbing him behind the left ear as she looked to Nimoeph.

“Is he yours? He kind of wandered in the area earlier. I thought he was a stray or something,” Jam said to the adept, leading the way into the wagon as she spoke (how were they going to fit everyone in there?). “My name’s Jam. What’s yours?”

[roymbrog]

“Oh, well then I apologize for holding you up,” Nimoeph replied. Truthfully she would have been here sooner, if not for the search she had been on. She glanced over to the newest newcomer hugging Greta, shook her head slightly, and sighed. Not a lot of brains on that one, were there?

Rhoul had shifted his attention from Angelica to Aubri to give a friendly wave. Good, so his hunch had been right and mister sour had brought her over. Safety in numbers, and all that. It looked like they were about to head out, and Greta suggested that he talk to her on the wagon. “You sure? It won’t take long, I swear.” Besides, that meant he couldn’t sit in back with the ladies. Well, it actually seemed like it’d be pretty cramped back there at the moment…

“If you don’t mind, I’ll be on the roof as well,” Nimoeph spoke up. Like hell she was going to be stuffed back there with so many people. She enjoyed her fresh air very much anyway. Elrey could keep up by foot, if he needed to, so the dog wouldn’t need to take up space either. Speaking of her dog, one of the dancers approached and began to pet him. Where he ran off to? Did that mean he was here the whole time? “Yes, he is mine,” she replied in a way that would only be considered friendly relative to her usual demeanor. She followed the dancer towards the wagon. “Nice to meet you, Jam. I’m Nimoeph, he’s Elrey. Or, at least that’s what I call him. I haven’t been able to ask him myself yet.”

[Toogee]

Jam smiled at the little joke about Elrey’s name. So he had one all along? The dancer kept her dog name list to herself as she petted Elrey once more.

“Nice to finally know your name, Elrey.” The dancer gave one final playful pull on his ear before addressing Nimoeph. “And good to meet you too, Nimoeph. I guess I’ll see you when we stop.”

It was slightly disappointing that the two would be outside the wagon for the ride, but Jam had plenty of others to talk to inside. As she made her way in, the dancer took note of crates and blankets littering the area. Luckily, the seat Jam was sitting on for much of the journey remained intact. It consisted of a large crate with a double-folded blanket over it for extra cushion. The seat was large enough to seat three comfortably or provide a nice large bed for one. With a day’s worth of excitement so far, Jam was perfectly fine with the latter.

[Eail]

Well, at least this Angelica said she could defend herself in some way, was she a mage? Either way something kinda seemed off about her, that attitude was just too cheery, or maybe Alphonse was just too cynical these days, really either could be the truth.

The group was leaving now at least, and while the swordsman had contemplated on walking alongside the wagon, but with two gunmen on the top he really wouldn't be able to do that much. Hopefully he wouldn't be needed, hopefully....

For now he just piled into the back of the wagon with the girls, placing his weapon on his lap before un-sheathing it. Now would be as good a time as any to do a bit of maintenance work. Setting it along his lap Alphonse fished around in the coat of his pockets to bring out a case of oil and a rag. Washing down the blade and wiping it off, a repetitive task but one needed nevertheless. It was how it'd lasted so long in his family.

If the newest new girl decided to come back as well he'd introduce himself, if not, well she'd learn his name sooner or later.