The rest of the crew was trickling in now, and with each new arrival Li seemed to care less and less about his "distant leader" guise; how strange and validating it felt, having people report to you. Not just people, but warriors! Adventurers! Surely this lot had been on a dozen adventures each already, and here they were, calling [i]him[/i] leader, greeting [i]him[/i] with respect. [color=7bcdc8][i]This adventuring thing isn't too hard. I bet I'll have my own squire within a month. I don't really know why I would need a squire, but I'm sure I'll find something for him to do.[/i][/color] Perhaps he was getting ahead of himself. There would be plenty of time for daydreaming during the wagon ride.

The first to arrive after the Viera was the moogle. [color=7bcdc8][i]I would describe him as a master of "unauthorized acquisitions."[/i][/color] Li had no qualms associating with known thieves, and was glad to have one on the team. He cared little for the law out in his remote river town; the Ivalician courts never dabbled in the affairs of the tribal fishermen and both groups seemed to have no problems with that arrangement, even before the government became corrupt and ineffective. Tribal councils were no more lenient, however; the penalty for thievery was losing a hand, so most of the thieves Li knew were good enough to avoid getting caught and ending their careers. He knew they had great stories, at least.

As the son of a dastardly pirate, he wasn't in much of a position to judge anyone. The thought of a little moogle running around snapping necks and mugging townsfolk in the alleyways did make him chuckle a bit, at least internally. Growing up in a backwoods fishing town with a bunch of yokels had saddled Li with a great number of prejudices, unfortunately, but he was making an effort to broaden his horizons in more ways than one now that he considered himself a full-fledged adventurer. Resisting the urge to say "But I thought all that the moogle were good for was making magic trinkets and building airships" upon recruiting Moguri was part of this effort. This young cutpurse seemed to have all ten of his stubby fingers left, so he must be competent, at the very least. [color=fff200]"Moguri here! It's a pleasure to see you again, kupo!"[/color]

If Li wasn't a cold blooded reptile-man, he would have blushed just the slightest bit. [color=7bcdc8][i]It's a pleasure to see me again? Me? Aww shucks. And they actually do that 'kupo' thing, huh. I thought that was just like an exaggeration or whatever. At least I don't have any weird speech problems.[/i] "Sssssssssssalutationsssssssss, friend. You look quite ready for an adventure,"[/color] he noted, looking the moogle over. [color=7bcdc8]"That's a fine cloak you've got. Looks very...thiefish. That's a word, right? Surely,"[/color] mused Li, thinking aloud. [color=7bcdc8]"We'll be dealing with Chocobo rustlers on this job. Are you familiar with the business? Any chance we'll run into old associates of yours?"[/color]

The monk had arrived now, and Li responded with a quick nod and a muttered [color=7bcdc8]"greetings"[/color] before returning his attention to the moogle thief. Monks had always been respected among the Bangaa and Li was no exception; he himself had been considered for joining the clergy as a young boy, but he was deemed unfit to commune with the gods on account of his low birth, not that he particularly wanted a life of chastity, worship, and toil. He did envy their strength and piety; Li had never spoken to a god nor torn a man in half with his bare hands, so I guess Monks 2, Li 0 for now. [color=7bcdc8][i]Soon![/i][/color] The thought of a human monk did make him a bit curious though; perhaps he was a different kind of monk? Does he converse with other gods? How can humans speak to Bangaa gods? Strange. At the very least he could probably be trusted if he was anything like most pious men.

The Nu Mou wasn't far behind, arriving to the sound of the clock tower bells. [b]"Hey guys!"[/b] She was exactly on time, but the conjurer of demons and hellfire had yet to arrive. Perhaps he had lost track of time performing experiments in his magical laboratory; Li recalled an old myth around his village of a shaman who would snatch up children who ventured too far from home, then take them back to his lair where he would rend their souls from their body and imprison them inside forest animals. Whether or not Li was aware that this was only a tale the village elder had spread to stop the children from wandering out at night seemed to be in question, but one could be certain that this myth and all the others he'd grown up with were certainly affecting the way Li thought of the strange magister that had deigned to join Li's clan of adventurers.

[b]"I guess we're just about ready to go, so what's the plan cap'n?"[/b] she asked. Li swooned internally. [color=7bcdc8][i]Cap'n? OOooooooh, if only my dad could see me now. Father and son, both captains of a legendary crew. One day I'll be a household name too, I'm sure of it.[/i][/color] Something of an overly smug grin spread over Li's face, but with Bangaa it was always hard to tell; their reptilian features made them all look like smug snakes, to a certain extent. Speaking of snakes, Li was surprised that one could sleep so soundly in broad daylight. The serpents Li had grown up with were all feral watersnakes, dreadful creatures and a bad omen to the more superstitious folk. This one seemed well-behaved, though. The Nu Mou really did appear to be good with beasts. Li was certain she would prove useful in light of the recent problem with monsters plaguing the countryside.

[color=7bcdc8]"The plan [i]was[/i] to set off at three, but we're short one such weaver of chaos, it would seem,"[/color] sighed Li. He couldn't appear to be too bothered with the mage's tardiness, as that would make him seem too harsh and strict. But he couldn't let it go unmentioned either; surely they'd think him soft and doubt his authority. Any reasonable person would note that deliberating over how to respond to a man being a minute or two late is clearly overthinking things, but Li, a fledgling leader still savoring his first taste of power wasn't what most would consider reasonable. He figured it would be best to make a joke about it. That would be endearing, right?

[color=7bcdc8]"If a man can call lightning down from the heavens and summon fire from hell itself, you'd think he might be able to craft himself a way of telling the time. Why not just teleport here in a cloud of smoke and brimstone? Why not just raise a dragon made of bone and curses and fly in at your leisure?"[/color] he wondered aloud. [color=7bcdc8]"Perhaps we mere mortals can teach him a thing or two about punctuality. Apparently it's not something you can learn from a dusty old tome." [i]Maybe that was too mean? I don't want them to think I'm petty...[/i][/color]

Meanwhile, Mr. Klauser greeted the monk with a hearty smile and a hello, accepting Chapel's handshake absentmindedly, forgetting that he'd just specifically refused a handshake because he had Chocobo spit all over his hands. As such a rather unsettling squishing noise resulted from their shake, and a considerable "moistness" was imparted to the monk's palm. "Oh, a thousand apologies, sir! I've just finished feeding my friend Boko here," explained the old rancher, mortified. "Sorry, you'll have to excuse this old fool's clumsiness; I used to be like you lot, adventuring around and such. Boko and I were quite the team... oh! Terribly sorry! My name is Bartz Klauser. You'll have to pardon my rudeness a second time, sir," he added, sheepishly. The fact that Chapel was a very tall and muscular MEAT STACK of a Hume made the old rancher nervous to meet his gaze, despite the monk's generally gentle nature. While looking down at the floor, Bartz noticed Chapel had no weapons on his belt. 

"You seem to have forgotten your weapons there, sir. The road could get nasty on our journey; there are many bandits in these parts. Perhaps one of your companions brought an extra blade for you?" he queried, a little concerned. Chapel wore no symbols to indicate his monkhood, and it would seem to the average commoner that he appeared indistinguishable from your typical warrior type.