[center][img]http://i.imgur.com/LVxoGqK.png[/img][/center]
In the face of Thoúlē Aristeas’s praise, Sand bowed her head lightly in acceptance. The warm reception was a relief for her, but she could not shake the feeling that this much was expected of them. In fact, Sand felt they had failed to perform to the level they could have achieved.

Had it not been for the surprising efficacy of Violet’s semblance, coupled with Sand’s fortunate decision to fetch the rifles, the flock of Grimm may have posed a real problem for the exposed team of Huntsmen on the ship’s hull. Another may have left it at that and been happy for the lucky coincidence, but the fact that Violet’s use of her power had taken her by surprise made Sand keenly aware that she did not really understand her team’s strengths and weaknesses.

Where she wanted to be happy with the results, the frustration in that thought lingered in the back of her mind even as she addressed the noblewoman. 

“We’ll take the chance to rest, in that case.” She glanced back at her teammates, gesturing at the two rifles she was carrying. “I’ll go ahead and return these in the meantime.”

With that, Sand left the others to their own devices. She was quick to find the officer that had lent her the weapons, a young man wearing the Atlas uniform that could only have been a few years older than her.

“Nice work out there,” he said when he saw her approach. “It’s always a treat seeing Huntsmen at work.”

“Just glad to be of service,” she answered, almost automatically.

The man hummed, taking stock of the weapons in her arms. “Looking to put those away, right? Give’em here.” As she handed him the weapons, and just before she took the chance to return to the others, he added, “wait here.”

Sand blinked, pausing to watch the man disappear into the ship’s armory. A moment later he came back out, still holding one of the rifles in one hand, and a harness in the other.

When he presented them to her, Sand found herself reaching out to grab them. “What’s this?”

“For the missy back there,” he said. “After seeing her shoot in the screens, we figured she deserved to keep one. Got a feeling we’ll all be better off with a rifle in her hands, anyhow. Let her know she’s free to keep it if she wants.”

“Oh. That’s unexpected,” Sand said as she took the ‘gifts’ and tried not to dwell on the fact that she was not being given anything despite her having been outside sniping the approaching Grimm as well. “I’m grateful, but are you sure this is fine? Won’t handing out hardware like this get you in trouble?”

“Don’t worry about it. I cleared it with the captain. Turns out these things go missing all the time.” The man winked at her. “For example, when someone tosses it away in a rush to keep a friend from falling off an airship and the gun happens to slide off the edge down to Grimm-infested wildlands.”

Sand blinked as comprehension dawned on her, and the man let out a self-satisfied chuckle. 

  

“Well done, team,” Sand said when she returned to the others.  She didn’t waste time presenting Violet with her prize. “Especially you, Violet. You impressed the crew so much, they want you to keep the guns we borrowed. Be sure to thank them before we’re done here.”

With her hands now free, she stood back, pausing to rub her forehead and pull her hair back. It was nervous fidgeting, she knew. Part of her wanted to leave the conversation at that, but she still felt the need to at least address what had happened above. 

Taking a deep breath, she continued. “We did well this time, but that could have turned out for the worst very easily. Robert, you need to be more aware of what’s happening around you. We’re a team, but we may not always be there to catch you if you fall.”

[i]This is turning out wrong,[/i] she realized. Her intent had not been to single out one of them in the first place. Assigning blame was a messy affair either way. The instructions about sticking to her or Trad that she had given before they went to the ship’s roof had meant to prevent situations like that, but who was she supposed to blame for it not working? Robert for straying too far? Trad for not keeping closer tabs on Robert? Herself for staying close to Violet instead of Robert? Or for not specifying who should pair up with who? An attempt to make their battle plan flexible may simply have made it difficult to follow properly.

She sighed. “That goes for all of us, I suppose. This isn’t just a training exercise. Let’s be more careful next time.”

[hr]
For a place they had been calling the ‘ICE CreAM facility’, the place where the ship alighted gave Sand an intense sense of disquiet.

She and the rest of SVRT followed Thoúlē as she dismounted the aircraft to meet the solitary person awaiting their arrival.

Though it took her a moment to realize it, there was something odd about the arrangement that did not inspire confidence in the young Huntress. It did not surprise her that there were no other aircrafts to be seen in the landing strip— given the location and purpose of this facility, as well as the difficulties they had encountered in the way, she imagined air traffic was nonexistent for most of the year. 

What did bother her was the absence of any visible landing crew aiding the descent or storage of the aircraft. She also found it strange that the white-haired man waiting for them had the need to ask who they were. Had there not been any communication between the ship and the facility prior to landing?

She shook away the intrusive thoughts. As far as she knew, it was explicitly because the facility saw so little traffic that none of the infrastructure one would expect was in place. Letting her paranoia run rampant without any context was simply not a good idea. 

[i]Better to defer to the inspector where unsure[/i], she resolved, glancing at the noblewoman and waiting for her answer.

[@Guess Who][@Awesomoman64][@Abillioncats][@Crimmy]