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[img]https://i.postimg.cc/DyH88WMW/Kid-s-Hat-Final.png[/img]

[color=8258fa]Level:[/color] 6 (53 -> 55/60)
[color=8258fa]Location:[/color] Edge of the Blue - Inkwell Isle Three -> Seaward Bay -> Limsa Lominscuttle Town - Hawker’s Alley -> Bulwark Hall -> ???
[color=8258fa]Word Count:[/color] 766 (+2 EXP)
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As tempting as it was to jump ship to chase a Time Piece on her radar just as they were leaving port, Hat Kid made the difficult decision to instead set sail and come back for it later. The voice in her head was right. There was no telling what she would be tasked with or asked to do by the time she found it, and she would then have to find her own way across the sea afterwards to catch up. Besides, she didn’t like to work that way anyway. Anytime she made planetfall/went somewhere with a specific task or goal in mind, she didn’t detract from it to tend to another; she saw it through. There was always next time, when they made their eventual return trip on their way to the Dark Forest, so she was content to simply make it her next goal for when they passed back through.

Kid settled in as they left port and seated herself for the ride in the stillest spot she could find on an animate vessel that lived on the basic principles of animation. Of course, she made sure her spot had a panoramic view; perhaps the crow’s nest would suffice. This way she could calmly scan the horizon on all sides, from the bay to the Sea, while also keeping her mind’s eye on the waypoint and direction given respectively by her Hat and Compass. The former pointed ahead, and the latter behind, so she wanted to be aware of any sudden changes made to that as they went. Needless to say she would be opting out of the fishing minigame, but casually observing as they passed the trawler heading the opposite way.

They eventually made port at the seaborne town; Hat Kid didn’t wait for them to finish docking to jump ship and begin looking around, consulting her Hat and Compass once more. She quickly lost focus on either of her objectives with the arrival and introduction of the hybrid ship-girls, whom she giddily redirected her full attention to. Okay, maybe not her [i]full[/i] attention. She mostly just looked them over and admired the novelty of their concept whilst skimming the listening portion of the rundown Shropshire was giving them, mostly honing in on the answer she gave that they were, in fact, ships. But is that what she [i]really[/i] meant, or were they but pilots wearing/wielding ship parts being classified as ‘ships’? Related inquiries aside--such as how mass shipments of anything were handled in the presumed absence of proper freighters larger than a female humanoid--the child had a feeling she would have her answer sooner or later.

With Shropshire’s departure and Peach’s permission, the latter of which she wouldn’t have waited for anyway, Kid set off to explore the city at every altitude she could manage, just to cut loose in this bustling new locale they had made the right decision to come to. Though, she kept track of where Peach went in case she needed to get back to her in a hurry, which wasn’t and wouldn’t be too hard for her. In any case, the shopping district wouldn’t keep the child long, given she had nothing to spend there to make it worth her while.

Some few minutes after leaving Hawker’s Alley for the ‘ship’-yard to get a better look at its ‘navy’, Kid ended up incidentally reuniting with Peach, both of whom skipped conventional routes to get there. The Admiral, who was not at all like the subjects she commanded, was stern and rather blunt in her dialogue with the Princess, initially dismissing their mission as folly. She was right about one thing though: trust really [i]wasn’t[/i] earned through taskwork. Hat Kid personally knew this much from experience; she mutually distrusted just about everyone she ever did a favor for, and for what almost always turned out to be good reason. Still, that didn’t seem to stop her from assigning them what sounded like a sizable task before returning to her own duties and sending them on their way.

Regarding where to go from there, the child consulted her internal waypoint for the next relevant point of interest while the others debated on the next step to take. Then it was just a matter of monkeying her way there (not that she had to, but would choose to) to see what was in store. Any who wished to follow her were welcomed to do so, but she would have to manage her pace and route choice to accommodate those less mobile than her if that included everyone.