And I suppose that means I need something to wear too…

Wedding? Sorry I might be out if some social loop somewhere.

And what mischeif might *you* be planning, Bellara?

No… my tattoos are not lyrium.

She stumbled towards it just as the ship lurched to starboard, throwing her at the open port. She slammed against the inner hull of the ship.

“Makers arse!” She growled.

She reached out and grabbed the porthole window and slammed it shut. The catch was bent and buckled but she managed to latch it.

As she gathered her senses she felt the familiar sensation of blood running down her face. She put a hand up and found a cut above her left eye. That’d have to wait.

She crawled across the bed, as the Mermaid heaved on the heavy seas, and pulled herself upright, scrambling for the open porthole.

Ev had been jarred awake by cold water spray and the slam of the cabin door, then immediately flung against the headboard of the bed by the heaving ship as it crested the wave. The cabin, full of pigeons and loose feathers, was also wet and one of the porthole windows had blown wide open.

“It was important, I understand.”

Ev smiled.

“Now we really ought to get back to the surface, before the crew think I’ve drowned.”

Ev made her way back to Isabela, and the bubble. She listened carefully to what she said.

“We all need to remember that from time to time. Where we came from, what we were. We can’t change the past but we can remember it shapes who we are.”

She kissed Isabela on the cheek.

“To humble beginnings”

She separated from her captain and swam over to the wreck. She slipped open the bag of strawberries and carefully let the contents settle gently around the wreck of what would have been the helm.

She paused for a moment before kicking back towards Isabela.

“Erm, I’ll hold onto your waist, if that’s okay. Thankfully my ill-spent youth diving to the bottom of the lake near Weisshaupt means I can at least manage a few minutes of air…”

Ev looked at Isabela.

“Ready when you are, Cap’n”

Ev blushed a bit, thankful that the majority of her body was at least obscured below the shimmering waters.

“I’m not really.. ashamed… I’m just not used to… you know…”

She took a deep breath.

“So where are we swimming to, sweetheart?”

“Oh… oh my…”

but notice her chest covering wasn’t doing a great job of hiding her reaction to the cold.

She looked at Isabela as she tread water to keep herself afloat. She paused and reached out a leg, her foot aiming for where she thought Isabela’s legs should be through the distorted water surface.

(contd)

Ev cautiously stepped down the ladder, aware that she was probably showing off more than she intended to any onlookers as she did so. The rough rope chafed at her feet as she climbed down, but before ling she plopped into the water. It was chilly, but not unpleasant, but she couldn’t help (contd)

“I’m coming. It’s important to you, so also to me. Besides… I could of with being a bit less… I dunno… shy?”

She relaxed a bit and moved next to Isabela, ready to follow her where they needed to go.