[i]A collab by[/i] [@Haeo] [@MacabreFox] [@Frizan] [@MiddleEarthRoze] [@Mortarion] Sevine headed down the alleyway towards the Candlehearth Inn, her head hung low. Her blood-red tresses glimmered in the noon sunlight, with stray strands that had wrestled free from her braided hair hung loose over her shoulders. As she neared the steps to the inn, Sevine spotted an all too familiar face. Sagax. He leaned against the wall outside the entrance to the inn, where she offered him a friendly smile, one that seemed crestfallen from witnessing the tragedies of those that did not make it this day in battle, but a smile nonetheless. “Sagax! You re a sight for sore eyes. I’m glad to see you alive.” She approached him, and wrapped her arms tightly around him in an embrace, holding him against her body, before stepping away again, and gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder. “I wasn’t sure if you would make it. Where were you in the midst of battle?” Sevine gestured for him to follow her inside to the inn as she stepped past him, and began to ascend the stairs to the inn, before pushing the door open for him to follow after her. “I could really use a drink, or some food. Won’t you join me?” Leaning on the wall near the front door to Candlehearth, Sagax was able to get his breath back. He watched mercenaries and citizens alike come and go, the former discussing tactics and battle plans with the latter whispering skittishly about the Kamal, a name he heard amongst the rumors. Snow demons, they called the giants. Sagax set his head against the wall behind him and sighed. Forsworn were one thing, but snow demons? At least the Reachmen didn't swing around hammers as big as a man on stilts. He hoped things wouldn't get much worse, but a nagging feeling in the man's head told him that they would. Fortunately, things would get better before that got worse, even if momentarily. Looking up to the sound of his name being called, a large smile formed across Sagax's face as he saw the huntress approach him. She looked worn down and solemn, but then again, who wouldn't be in the current situation? Even Sagax's grin only masked his own worries and sorrow. "Hello there, Sevine! It's great to see you too!" He returned the admittedly unexpected hug; Sagax never took Sevine for such an affectionate person, even though she was clearly approachable. "Yes. I'm completely fine, thank Mara. I was at the pier, but I stayed behind the front lines. I'm no warrior like Jorwen, unfortunately. No warhammers or greatswords for me. But, hey, I was ready to jump in at any moment, counts for something I suppose." Seeing his friend gesture towards the inn, Sagax straightened himself and stretched out his shoulders. "Sure, why not? Nobody seems to need my help right now. Besides, you really do look like you need a drink. Can't have you going overboard though!" He said with a hint of laughter echoing in his voice, following behind Sevine into Candlehearth. "No, I cannot afford to lose my head, not if we face another fight. But one will help kill the nerves. Like I said, Sagax, I am glad to see you alive. I would have felt horrible losing you in the frays of battle." With that, Sevine stepped inside, and headed for the bar, where she took a seat on the stool. She had kept her coinpurse at her hip, unsure if she would need it later, and thankfully it came in handy. Pulling out two gold coins, she slipped them towards the keep. "Two Nord ales, please." Sevine said, as the keep took her coin, and went to fetch the requested drinks. The battle had not been one of Rhasha's favourites. Not that he lusted blood so much to look for it like Sylvanis, but there were a few he looked back with more fondness than pain. This one most definitely fell under the painful category. Thankfully, none of his troupe had died - the Nord girl - whose name he found had been Solveig - had been removed from the scene by who he presumed was her Father, but she had been breathing well enough for him to not be too worried. There had been plenty of healers around. As for his own skills in healing, he donated all of the health potions he had on him, and also offered to bandage the wounded - but his magicka was severley depleted, just from healing a few, so after realizing he was doing nought but getting in the way of the Restoration experts, he and Sylvanis retreated back to the inn. Some of the wounded had spilled out onto the streets by now, paired with frantic fighters looking for their friends, or shell-shocked guards consoling one another. It had been a truly bloody battle, one that would leave both physical and mental scars on the survivors. Upon entering Candlehearth Hall, the air was sombre - punctuated only by further mutterings of the battle that had been waged on the docks. While Rhasha breathed a sigh of relief, upon hearing a Nord mutter than "The Cats over the bridge ran away at the first sign of trouble - cowards.." And further words to that effect. But he was pleased - they had left, travelling further inland no doubt to avoid trouble. "I'm sick of this talk, Rhasha." Sylvanis muttered, glaring darkly at the patrons of the bar, who paid no heed to her, and instead cotninued gossipping about the battle. The word 'Kamal' and 'Snow-Demon' were mentioned once or twice. "I'll take my drink to my room. Come find me in the morning." She added gruffly, and after purchasing her drinks, she somehow managed to get the copious amounts of bottles up the stairs, armour clunking as she went. For a moment, Rhasha'Dar stood, unsure of what to do. His ribs and head still ached, but he had no magicka, nor potions to heal himself with. Sagax entered and took a seat next to Sevine. "Well, then it's a good thing I know enough to keep myself from being crushed by a warhammer or what have you. I know my strengths and weaknesses so I'm never too keen on just running straight into a battle." Unlacing his hood from the collar of his armor, Sagax shook his head vigorously to loosen his hair up. He hated the feeling of his hair sticking to the sides of his head, it just bugged him for some reason. "It was a mess out there, but we drove them away from the pier though! I'd say we have a good chance to get out of this alive, especially with the reinforcements that have arrived." These were words he actually believed himself. If they were smart about it, Sagax was completely sure Windhelm could beat back the invaders. There would be many losses of course, but they would have died gloriously in defense of Skyrim. Seeing the door open out of the corner of his eye, Sagax looked over to see two more people enter the inn. One ordered drinks and gruffly ascended the stairs, leaving behind her Khajiit compatriot. They looked a little lost, so Sagax waved his way with a welcoming smile. "Come, friend! Sit with us, why don't you? It's been a long day, and it's probably about to get longer, so it's best to take the breaks afforded to you, yeah?" As Sevine received their drinks, she caught the words of a few fellow Nordsmen calling the Khajiits cowards for high-tailing it out of Windhelm last night, and moved to a table away from the bar, near a four-paned window. She grunted to herself in annoyance at their ignorant words, shaking her head in dismay as she brought the bottle to her lips, and took a long sip. When she set the bottle down, Sevine spoke more to herself than to Sagax, "Those Cats probably had the right idea, with the moon as bloody as it was last night, who is to say they were in the wrong for fleeing?" Her head turned as she caught wind of Sagax calling out to someone. Her pine-green eyes landed on a Khajiit, and a Bosmer woman who departed upstairs. A smile spread across her face as she waved as well at the tall Khajiit standing. "What is your name, Khajiit? Allow me to buy you a drink." She offered as she stood up from her stool. If a Khajiit looked tired, this one did; and what better way than to make friends with those who were shunned from society? Sevine never judged the Khajiiti people, infact, during the war, Sevine often traded with them to replenish her supplies, restock on food, and ale, and the likes. If anything, there was a deeply rooted secret in the heart of the huntress. She had always desired to touch the fur of a Khajiit, as she never had the opportunity to do so, solely because she was ashamed to ask. From afar, Sevine could not help but to admire the furred coat of the Khajiit, and the urge to run her fingers over the fur burned inside her like a fiercely blazing fire. Despite his avoidance of tropes on certain races, Rhasha was undoubtedly surprised as two humans invited him to the table and a drink - an Imperial and a Nord, no less. "Many thanks - This one is indeed tired." Rhasha replied, walking over to their pair - offering his hand first of all to the Nord woman who had stood up. She had a curious look in her eyes - one that was not common among Nords when it came to the Khajiit. A warm look - paired with the deep green of her eyes, he was reminded of Kyne - although he himself did not worship her, as she was unknown to the Khajiiti faith; he greatly admired her all the same. Simply for the things she withheld and represented, and the almost familiar sense of home he felt whenever around a shrine belonging to the Deity of nature. "I am Rhasha'Dar - a pleasure to meet you, friends." Introducing himself with a heartfelt tone - their company was indeed a pleasant surprise. When seeing such gruesome things like he had this morning, the last thing he needed was to spend time alone in his room. No matter how Sylvanis tried to drown her negative emotions in mead - these matters had to be talked about sooner or later. "A pleasure to meet you, Rhasha’Dar. The name is Sevine Varg-t’uk." She said as she extended her own hand to shake his furry, clawed one. Sagax raised his hand and waved in greeting. "Sagax Speculatus. Good to meet you, comrade." Sagax hadn't seen many Khajiiti. Though not a complete rarity in Cyrodiil, the Imperial City was mainly populated by men and mer: Bosmer and, of course, Imperials, making up the majority. He always imagined the beastfolk to be taller for some reason. He made a mental note to ask a Khajiit in the future, perhaps Rhasha'Dar himself, about their culture and customs. May as well, since Rhasha'Dar would undoubtedly not be the last Khajiit Sagax would meet. There seemed to be several dotted across Skyrim running caravans, if he remembered right. "So, how did the battle treat you, Rhasha'Dar?" After shaking Sagax's hand, Rhasha sat himself around the human's table. "This one was very fortunate, compared to some of the others." He replied to Sagax as he began to remove his armour. It was light - leather armour over steel mail - but following a battle, it seemed to weigh on him far more. As he unbuckled the pauldrons from his shoulders, then propping them against his stool, the scars atop his arms became visible. He'd had people query about them before - despite a somewhat harrowing experience upon gaining them, he didn't feel uncomfortable talking about the subject. "These... creatures, these Kamal... Snow Demons are an unfortunately accurate name for the beasts. It is difficult to imagine brutes of such strength are capable of emotion." He added with a light sigh, before his golden eyes darted back to Sevine and Sagax. "And you both? You seem to be in one piece - no injuries, I hope?" He asked as he began removing his leather armour. There appeared to be a small tear on the side, where the Kamal had struck him. Perfect. Sagax took notice of the Khajiit's wound on their side, and remembered that he had several perfectly good healing potions stashed away in his pack. He hadn't suffered any strikes against him so he hadn't needed to use any of them. "I'm fine, but you took a bit of a beating, huh?" The man fished around his pack, easily finding one of the potions in the section he usually had them in and handed the vial to Rhasha'Dar. "Here, friend. I don't need it, and I've got more anyway. Always pays off to see to what seem to be little things, so they won't turn into big problems." Taking a swig from his drink, Sagax exhaled slowly. "Too bad we don't know what they want, if they want anything other than destruction anyway. Something tells me ambassadors won't be of much use in this situation." After this was done, Sagax hoped they would be sent out to deal with something a bit less dangerous. Like an over-population of rabbits. With an inquistive, curious, ever-watchful gaze, Sevine eyed Rhasha as he removed his armor. Her eyes went straight to the scars on his shoulders, faded, and long since healed over, she wondered how he obtained them, yet she bothered not to ask. A smile lit across her face at Sagax offering up his healing potion to the Khajiit, the Imperial had a friendly personality, something she favoured in people, beastfolk, and Mer alike. It never hurt one to be friendly, nor did it cost one anything. "I was upon the ramparts, pecking those damned snow demons off. It is a difficult feat even for me, to find openings in their armor." She quietly added, a hint of sadness in her voice for those that perished. Truly, Sevine felt deep inside that she could have helped more in the battle on the docks. "Are you with the company? Or are you just passing through?" The sight of the healing potions was a pleasant one - as Rhasha had depleted both his magicka and potions, he had nothing else to heal himself with. With the discovery of a wound on his side, where the mail had bitten into the flesh, this was most helpful. Reminding himself to mix some more health potions before leaving with the company, Rhasha took the vial with a grateful smile towards Sagax. "This one will return the favour in the future." He promised the Imperial before downing the potion, then taking a swig of his mead. The potions... rarely tasted appetizing. As Sevine began talking, Rhasha offered up a sympathetic look. He knew all to well about survivor's guilt. An unfortunately common occurence here in Skyrim. "Myself and Sylvanis - the small angry Elf you saw going upstairs - joined just last night. Fair to say we weren't expecting any frays until we were on the road." He said with a light chuckle, and then paused thoughtfully. "It is hard, I have found, to watch others die before you. But fate can rarely be rewritten - and the people you lose will not be lost for long. There may be many races in Tamriel, but we all have our final homes in the sky." Taking another sip of his mead, he gently touched the Azurah amulet around his neck; he did that a lot - whether for luck, for comfort, or just when feeling alone. "Perhaps even these Kamal have their own Gods and Heavens." "Well then, welcome to the company. Sagax here, has been with us since our first mission in the Reach. I myself took an arrow to the chest," Here, Sevine tapped the top of her left breast where the arrow had pierced her, "But boy am I glad that I had some thick armor to stop that blasted arrow, or else I might not be sitting here with you today." She took another swig of her ale, almost finished with the bottle now. "The small angry elf, you say? I spotted her carrying all those bottles up the stairs, quite the drinker she must be, eh?" Sevine looked at the bottom of her bottle, squinting one eye, and staring down the neck of the brown, glass bottle. She swished the liquid around, and then looked up at Rhasha once more. "You may think me strange to ask this, but..." Sevine hesitated momentarily, before carrying on, "Can I touch your fur? I have never had the chance to do so, and I do not get the opportunity to talk to a Khajiit such as yourself everyday." A dark, crimson blush blossomed across the apples of her cheeks, as she realized how much of a fool she sounded for asking the question. Personally, Sevine hoped she had not offended him by her words. An eyebrow perked up and a thin-lipped smile crept across Sagax's face. He found the red-faced Sevine's request of Rhasha'Dar incredibly amusing. Not ridiculous, really, just very funny and unexpected. Accidentally laughing aloud, the Imperial took another sip of his mead. "No shame in being curious I suppose." He said not-quietly-enough. At Sevine's request, Rhasha followed Sagax's suit by chuckling - a curious sound, like a combination of a man's laugh and a lion's grumble. This was not the first time someone had asked to touch his fur. Usually, it was young children, - who, despite their parent's discriminations and doubt agains the Khajiits, found the Caravan's most curious - who had never seen a Khajiit up close before. Of course, adults such as Sevine had requested it too - they were a strange and exotic thing, that was for certain. He couldn't blame the smooth-skinned humans for wanting to touch the fur of a Khajiit - to see if it was anything like mountain lion fur, or housecat fur, or something else entirely. "Please - help yourself. It would be cruel of me to deny you - you humans, I think, are missing out." He said almost teasingly with a chuckle. A smile lit across her face, like the dawn breaking across the land, as she stood up from her seat, and reached up with both hands, and gingerly began to rub the tips of his ears. A gasp escaped from her mouth as she felt the softness of his fur beneath her fingertips. She marveled over the sensation, how soft it was! Like that of a rabbit pelt. "Oh my! Has anyone ever told you how soft your fur is? Certainly they have, that is a stupid question," She chuckled quietly at her actions, almost forgetting her manners. She even went as far as scratching the base of his ears, like she would have any other cat, almost expecting him to purr; if he did, she would have fallen over in joy. Finally, after remembering what she was doing, the huntress cleared her throat, and returned to her seat, her cheeks still the color of roses blooming in the summertime. "Thank you, Rhasha. That was quite...enjoyable." She cracked a broad, toothy grin, and took another sip of her bottle, glancing at her furry companions sideways. In the back of her mind, she wondered what it woud be like to fall asleep, cuddle up against that warm, fuzzy chest of his. [hr] Tsleeixth had stayed with Niernen and Do'Karth for a while, eating his food alongside hem and striking casual conversation. However, he eventually stood up and, after bidding goodbye to the Khajiit and Dunmer, he decided to go back to the docks, he let out a soft sigh as the cold air, mixed with the smell of blood, hit his face. Wondering for a few seconds, he looked over the former battlefield and spotted the Kamal that he had killed, along with the remains of the unfortunate warrior that had tried to help him. He quickly retrieved his sword, still lodged in the Kamal's knee before quickly moving away from the former battlefield. Without any direction in mind he found that his feet eventually led him to Candleheart Hall, where he recognized an Argonian that stood outside of the inn. He approached the man "Greetings marsh-brother, what are you doing out here, instead of inside of the inn?" Asked Tsleeixth to the other Argonian. "But, where are my manners, my name is Tsleeixth." He said to the other Argonian before gesturing to the inn's door with his arm. "Shall we go in?" [hr] Utu found his attention drawn to an unfamiliar Argonian who addressed him with questions and an open demeanor. His head rose so that his eyes could meet those of the one who addressed him. It was difficult to find the will to move but he did, rising to his feet and betraying his bent form and thin tail. His voice was soft and a little raspy when he responded. "Greetings. I am Utu-ja, born of Skyrim." He paused, then added. "I do not know why. Maybe the firelight was too bright for my eyes at first." He lied, but there was little reason to tell a stranger of his personal defeat. "Very well, perhaps the light will not be so bright to my eyes in company." With that, he moved slowly to follow Tsleeixth into the inn. The subtleties of Argonian skin were often lost on members of other races and Utu lacked this knowledge himself due to his upbringing among non-Argonians. His pattern seemed slightly duller and his scales around his eyes and nostrils showed the subtle signs of serious injury within. While he had been healed and was no longer in danger, it remained true that the signs of the damage remained. [hr] Sagax's eyes were again drawn to the doors of Candlehearth. Peering over Rhasha'Dar's shoulders he was able to see two familiar faces. Two Argonians, one he immediately recognized as Tsleeixth, but he couldn't remember the name of the other, but Sagax definitely knew him. He was the Argonian the Imperial shared words with before the assault on the redoubt back in the Reach. "Tsleeixth! Good to see you alive and well. Figured it would have taken more than some overgrown apes to send you to the grave!" Tossing some gold on the table, Sagax gestured for two more bottles of mead for the newcomers. Making eye contact with Utu, he offered up an apologetic smile. "And good to see you too, friend. Ah...I'm much better with faces than names, I'm afraid. But I do remember you!" After getting some extra stools for the Argonians, Sagax stopped suddenly. "Oh! I'd better introduce you!" He glanced over to Rhasha'Dar. "This is Rhasha'Dar! He just joined up with the company." Gesturing towards Tsleeixth and Utu, he began addressing Rhasha. "This is Tsleeixth. He's been with us for a while, and...ah...you are, sir?" Speaking to Utu, he offered the same sheepish smile. He would let Sevine introduce herself, thinking that the change of subject would perhaps break whatever spell the Khajiit's mane had on her. [hr] The greeting that Utu received from Sagax was enough to draw a corner of his mouth up a smidge. He was not surprised that the young man did not recall his name. They had only met the once after all, and two battles had followed without them speaking. "Utu-ja is my name, Sagax. You have done well to survive these two challenges. I am happy to see you well." He turned his attention to the others who had been introduced as well as the one who had not. "Welcome to the company, Rhasha'Dar. I hope the rest of your time among us is less like today and more like an unending series of paydays. Tsleeixth and I met outside. But this lady is not entirely unknown to me, as we both were in the Reach. I saw her there, though I do not believe that we met properly." Sevine leaned backwards in her stool, and looked at the two Argonians that had entered the inn, Sagax knew one of them by name, and called them over. She recognized both of them, though she had yet to learn their names until both of them were properly introduced. Saving her greeting for a moment, Sevine lifted the bottle to her lips, and finished off the rest of the ale, before pushing it farther out of her reach. He stepped into place and sat on the stool nearest him that was free. He then attended to the mead that was placed before him. He sniffed it briefly, with a wary look, before slipping his jaw forward and swiftly downing the whole thing in a single sweeping series of swallows. Then he put the container down. It was drinkable. Maybe another would be more noticeable. He put coin down and another mead was soon before him, only to meet the same fate as the first. Tsleeixth was startled when he heard being called out loud, but it soon turned into a smile as he noticed it was Sagax who was greeting him. "Sagax! Good to see you alive and well as well!" Said the Argonian spellsword, a modicum of relief filling him with the knowledge that at least another one of those he knew was alive. He let out a soft laugh when the young Imperial man said that it'd take more than some overgrown apes to kill him. "Aye, but I had my fair share of wounds." He said, pointing to the arm that was in the sling, and a few new scars that were on his face due as a result of having fallen face first into the harbor. He made his way to where Sagax sat, taking the stool next to him. He recognized Sevine by face, if not by name, and noticed that there was also a Khajiit looked a bit when Sagax didn't knew Utu-Ja's,name, and was about to introduce his fellow Argonian but Utu introduced himself in the end. He listened as Sagax introduced the Khajiit, Rhasha'Dar, to him and Utu-Ja. "Ah, pleasure to meet you Rhasha." Said Tsleeixth as he extended his good hand for the Khajiit to shake, while giving him a friendly smile, or what passed for a friendly smile among Argonians. Greetings out of the way, if one didn't count Sevine, who had stayed silent through the exchange and hadn't greeted the newcomers, Tsleeixth turned to his own bottle mead, taking it with his free hand he took a swallow from it. "Ah, I needed this." He said as he set the bottle on the table once more, before he turned to face Sagax and Sevine. "How are you holding up?" He asked to no one in particular, even though the answer was simple enough and the question itself quite foolish. But by the tone of his voice, it was obvious he was concerned over his comrades well being. "It is good to see you both have survived the battle my friends, Tsleeixth, was it? I remember you, and Utu-ja? I recognize you both from the Reach. Nasty business that Reach was." Sevine reached over to Tsleeixth, and held her hand out for a handshake. Both Argonians, to her at least, looked similar. Though in truth, Tsleeixth had black scales with a set of horns in a row down his head, while Utu-ja...well he was an odd character. He had lengthy arms, something she noted when he walked in, and now, as she leaned backwards, she noticed his tad-pole like tail, which look rather flattened, almost as if it had been crushed. Utu-ja was a curious Argonian by all means, his scales were a mottled colours of greys, blue, and blacks, a perfect colour mix for blending in the shadows of night, or swimming in murky waters. Even his head creast was black, and like Tsleeixth, he had a slightly smaller set of horns, though not as prominent as Tsleeixth. Utu-ja even had a slouching posture, and was considerably shorter than his counterpart, Tsleeixth. As she fell silent, studying the both of them, there was something nagging at the back of her mind, about Tsleeixth. Had she heard him coughing horribly, when they were escorting the children back to camp, and after he had chased down the eldest child that knifed one of their comrades when another comrade came to take the child away? There was not a doubt in her mind that he did, but she did not see him struggling now with his ailment. Perhaps he had cured himself on the way over to Windhelm? "It's good to see you alive and Sevine." Said Tsleeixth, offering the Nord woman a friendly smile "And yes, I remember you as well from the battle at the Redoubt." He said, grimacing as he remembered the battle against the forces of the forsworn. He smiled once more when Sevine reached over to him and held her hand in for a handshake, a gesture he returned immediately "So, how are you three holding up?" He asked. It was an obvious question, none would be holding up well after such a battle, but he question itself was motivated in part by a desire to start some form of conversation to breakf the silence but mostly by his concern for his comrades. As he waited for an answer to his question, the Argonian reached for his bottle of mead, drinking some from it but as soon as he was finished he felt a small cough coming up while alerts began flaring in his mind, He thought about excusing himself, he didn't want to have a coughing fit in the middle of Candlehearth hall, but before that he could utter a word a violent coughing fit over came him, using his good hand to try and hold on to the table. "Don't worry, I'm....." Was saying the Argonian before he began coughing again, a few patrons of the in turning around to look at the conmotion "I'm fine." He managed to finish his sentence as that particular coughing fit subsided. He took the bottle of mead once more in his hands and began drinking, but were it not a few seconds after that that his coughing fit began again, more violent this time, and soon enough he was coughing blood on the table. Sevine started suddenly at Tsleeixth when his coughing fit began, as she did not even have the chance to answer his question, she nearly leapt out of her seat, especially when blood splattered upon the table top, "Mara bless you!!" She cried out, her brows raised, and mouth agape in astonishment. So he was sick! Reaching quickly to her belt, Sevine picked out a potion bottle fastened to her hip, and handed it to Tsleeixth. "Here, drink this." A kindred smile appeared on her face, like that of a mother tending to a sickly child, "This is a Cure Disease potion. It should take care of that problem for you, within a day or two." She returned to her seat, embarassed she had reacted fearfully at his spell of illness. "I thought I heard you coughing back at the redoubt, on our way to camp, after you handed off that brat of a Reach child. I had no idea you were this sick, Tsleeixth. I should have given this to you sooner." Although surprised that Sevine went straight for his ears - people usually touched the fur on his arms - he didn't show it. Partly because the scratching was more then pleasant. Much akin to the housecat, Khajiit did enjoy pettings such as this. Not that many would admit it - probably because they didn't want non-Khajiit races thinking them as intelligent as a common cat, which certainly wasn't the case. Even the Alfiq, which was indistinguishable from a regular cat, was far more intelligent than them. Restraining himself was purring - Gods, he'd never live that one down - Rhasha returned Sevine's grin as she returned to her seat. "If you feel the urge to do so again, please feel free." He replied with a chuckle, his eyes considering her own skin. It was still strange, seeing people furless. Only now did he realize that he'd never really felt the skin of a human, nor touched their hair. Would it feel any different from Khajiit hair? His internal musings - and stare towards Sevine - was broken as they were joined by two Argonians - Tsleeixth and Utu-Ja. He welcomed them with smiles and handshakes, pleased to see that they appeared to be above any racial tensions that often existed between the Khajiit and Argonians - he himself, never paid attention to race. A foolish thing, to consider one's worth and heart on what they were born as. Watching on as Tsleeixth doubled over, then as Sevine offered up a potion, Rhasha observed the Argonian more closely. He did seem to be in poor shape - with coughing up blood disregarded. A slight pallor to his scales, perhaps? He was unsure - not particularly knowledgable in Argonians, due to him not having met many. "If you need more potions or healing, you can come to me, my friend. I'm quite skilled in brewing up concotions." He offered to Tseelixth. [hr] Utu-ja had only ordered his third drink when Sevine adressed him briefly, commenting on the Reach and the battle for the Foresworn Redoubt. He had little to say about the battle since he had spent it waiting for orders in camp. Sometimes it was fortunate to be a scout, but it did no good to be proud of only being brave against the night. In fact, Utu wasn't feeling very proud of anything just now. The drink was not helping him feel more, or less yet. He actually jumped in his seat when Tsleeixth suddenly began coughing, and then coughing blood. Thankfully, Sevine took care of him quickly. Utu had not taken any pains to meet or befriend anyone, especially not other argonians, before. It was time for that to change, among other things. But, Tsleeixth seemed like a pleasant and worthy person. So did these others, in fact. He tried to settle into his place again and winced, his fingers twitching briefly with the effort of not being more obvious. The sudden tightening of his insides had hurt surprisingly more than he expected. While a child of Blackmarsh might have sought rest or some additional healing, Utu was raised in Skyrim. He ordered two more drinks and chugged the one in front of him. If his injuries got drunk before he did then that would be all the better. Still, maybe he could flesh out his tail if he filled it with booze. Maybe he was actually starting to feel the drinks after all. And, there was a lady scratching a Khajiit on the ear area. Weird thoughts, how does all that hair not tickle and itch? Utu found himself staring absently at one of his new acquaintences after another. Then he tilted his head to one side in an effort to stop them from swaying. Then he drank another tankard. That was not helping them stop swaying. "Damn invaders... they should take those atronachs and shove their glacial bits up the beasts other... bits." He mumbled softly, lacking the words to describe what he wanted to say and not realizing that he had actually spoken aloud in the first place. "Shot them... stabbed them, poisoned the daedra kissers... and what did it take? The ocean had to eat them!" His grip on his fifth drink was shaking. "I had to go and swim in the frozen drool of the ocean to drag that walking pile of spider ass into the deep. And then... then it finally died." He then continued to mutter too quietly to be made out. Sevine watched with a careful eye, how many drinks Utu-ja downed. Was that five she counted? Poor thing, he was already muttering to himself. About what, she could not decipher, as he sat closer to Sagax. Leaning across the bar table, Sevine motioned with one hand for the keep to come to her. When the woman did, she whispered something quietly, that only those sitting close to her would have heard. The keep simply nodded, and retrieved the empty bottles Utu-ja drank, and disappeared with them, before returning with a plateful of a chicken breast, and salmon steak, along with the empty bottles, though now they were full. Full of water. If Utu-ja drank them, he would only find himself feeling oddly better over the next hours. She slipped another two gold towards the keep, as she set the plate, and bottles in front of him. A large grin immediately spread across Sagax's face as he watched Sevine pet Rhasha'Dar. It was adorable, how childlike she was for just a moment. He almost forgot she was a hardened warrioress who had hardly a week before cut down several Reachman, and took only a non-lethal arrow in the chest, blocked by her armor. He stopped himself from laughing as Sevine returned to her drink; it was quite obvious she was embarassed enough already, and Sagax didn't want to make it any worse for the poor woman. After all, she was simply curious about the fur of the Khajiit. To be honest, so was he, so he couldn't quite judge Sevine. It was certainly no shock to Sagax when Tsleeixth began hacking up blood, but he was still concerned. He was relieved to see Sevine hand the Argonian a potion that would help. To hear that Rhasha knew his medicines, and offered to assist Tsleeixth in the future pleased Sagax more. Mercenary companies were just as full of comraderie as any other outfit, to be sure. Anyone who says different obviously just had a bad experience, or just didn't get along with people. Sagax could tell he was going to have the time of his life with these people. He hoped it lasted as long as humanly possible. Sagax was only halfway through his first bottle when he looked over and saw four empty ones in front of Utu, and he had yet another one to his lips. He was able to decipher his drunken mumblings, and they appeared to be centered on his fight with the Kamal. His hands were beginning to slip and he swayed back and forth. Sagax wondered if Utu had a bit too much to drink. To his left, Sevine whispered something to the barkeep, and the keep was gone for a moment, taking the empty bottles with her, and came back with the bottles plus some food. He only noticed they were the same set of bottles due to a bit of residue on the side of one of the dark vessels. They were refilled, but Sagax simply assumed with more mead. He returned to his own, downing the rest quickly. He inhaled slowly, starting to feel the brew kick in. His father was famous among his legion mates for his ability to hold his liquor, and Sagax wondered if he had inherited that ability. Hopefully, as he foresaw much more drinking very soon after the company dealt with the damned snow demon bastards. Tsleeixth offered Sevine a weak smile, showing some of the teeth he had lost when his face had fallen on the docks "Sorry, I didn't want to bother anyone, plus I've had Bloodlung since I left the College of Winterhold." Said the Argonian spellsword, giving the Nord woman another smile. While it was true that he didn't wish to bigger anyone with his disease, that was only a half truth since -while he indeed didn't wish to bother anyone- his main motive for keeping his disease a secret was so Ashav wouldn't kick him out. Giving Sevine another smile, he accepted the potion to cure his disease "Thank you Sevine, and my apologies for worrying you." Said the Argonian to the Nord huntress. He was about to drink the potion when he heard the Khajiit speaking to him "Thank you friend, I'll keep your offer in mind." He said, smiling again "Say, if you know restoration magic, do you know of any spell that makes teeth grow back? I've lost a few in this battle." He said trying to inject some humor to the situation, but he was afraid that the joke was in poor taste "Regardless, I once again offer my thanks Rhasha." Said the spellsword before he downed the bottle that Sevine had offered him, letting out a sigh of relief. He turned towards the huntress once more, about to thank him again, but was in that moment that he noticed that Utu-Ja seemed to be overindulging hinself with mead "Easy there Utu." He told the misshapen Argonian as he began mumbling about he attack of the kamals, giving him a friendly pat on the shoulder. He was considering some way to help Utu with his drinking, either by taking some of the share of liquor or by taking the bottles away all together but Sevine -Divines bless her- was ahead of him and had paid the barkeep to take Utu's bottles away and give him some food., along with a new set of bottles whose contents Tsleeixth guessed were supposed to help calm down the inebriated Argonian [hr] The sudden awareness that he had a large platter of food and a number of filled bottles in front of him, disturbed Utu enough to stop his muttering. He had a moment to notice them before a hand patted his shoulder and a set of words that he recognized as being well meant but unintelligible passed his ears. He looked away from the platter and bottles long enough to recognize that it was Tsleeixth before suddenly realizing that it was a bad idea to look up. The inn did not like it. He finished off the drink in his hand, which tasted remarkably like the previous four, and then reached for one of the new arrivals. One swig went back and he stopped. He blinked, twice, slowly. Then he swallowed it down at a deliberate pace. The empty bottle made a dull clunk as he set it down carefully. He blinked again and raised his head, quietly taking a long, slow breath and holding his tail very still. Then he looked from one side to another, focusing on each face in turn. That was when his tail wrapped itself under him, coiled around the legs of his chair. Then he lowered his head again and picked up the chicken, taking one deliberate bite after another with his eyes fixed on a single abstract point. His body temperature was higher than before, by a marked amount. But, scales do not blush. Still, he would be pretty hot to the touch, as embarrassed as he was. He continued to eat, pausing occasionally to drink from the refilled bottles. He noticed that the others, however politely, were now paying a notable amount of attention to him. He cleared his throat softly. "Sorry, not a drinker." He said with a strange tenseness in his voice. "Just wish their armor was more like their boats. I put Frostbite Venom straight into that thing at the ankle and..." Here Utu was interrupted by a surprisingly delicate burp. "All it did was trip it up."