Private Tales Brothels and Broken Things

[Lexi Quinzell]

"Kain's never liked the sea," Lexi laughed and patted her friend on the back before offering him her water skin which he gladly took to wash out his mouth. Mitch was busy kicked up a few barrels in order to make them all a make-shift circle to sit together. The weathered captain then sat down heavily and passed the rum bottle to Cass with a grin.

"Aye, ne'er since he went o'er board when he were a welp. 'Ad to fish 'im out wit mah hook," he motioned to the nasty looking harpoon that was leaned up against the side of the ship. Kain grimaced a little at the memory before sitting down, Lexi chose a spot next to the Captain and earned herself a ruffle on the hair for her decision.

"Mitch taught us all how to sail, he did all his training with my parents," the Commander smiled, taking the bottle when it made its way round to her. "He has all the embarrassing stories," she shot the Captain a sly like who grinned wide enough to reveal more than a few golden teeth.

 

[Cassian]

Cassian took a swig from the bottle and passed it on, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees as his stomach seemed to rock with the ship. "Can't imagine why.." he winced and rubbed at the back of his neck. He hoped he wasn't turning the same awful colour that Kain had.

He listened to Mitch and Lexi talk and grinned. "That so? Well we have plenty of time to hear em, don' we lass? Feel free to share, Mitch!" he looked to Lexi with a wink. She was lucky, to have parents and people like Kain and Mitch to grow with and share memories and stories with over her years, he couldn't be jealous of her, but he couldn't help but feel a little sombre. A few embarrassing stories might sort that though, he wanted them all.

 

[Lexi Quinzell]

"Did we hear embarrassing stories?" Alex and Peter plopped themselves down on the floor, giving over the remaining barrel to the stoic Aelenora who sat down and took the bottle next from Lexi before the boys could make a grab for it. Tryst had also lumbered over.

Mitch clicked his teeth and leaned back, hands coming behind his head as he quietly laughed to himself.

"Aye ya did laddies, I need tah fink carefully 'ere," he stroked over the stubble on his jaw as if he were pondering it. Kain and Lexi shared a look of knowing. "Oh well 'ere's a good one about Lexi. When her Ma got pregnant again she asked 'er - where do babies come from Ma - ns I fort to myself oh heck 'ere we fuckin' go," Lexi was already going a suitable shade of red as she realised the story. "But her ma told her straight n Lexi was a smart girl, but she wanted tah be just like her Ma, went round for a 'hole week tellin' everyone she 'ad a baby in her tummy and her Daddy had put it there. That near did damn well kill me," Mitch chuckled.

 

[Cassian]

Cassian offered a nod in greeting to Aelenora and a broad grin at Tryst before turning back to Mitch to listen to him speak, swigging at the rum as it made it's way back around. He almost spat it out though at the end of the story and he coughed, slamming his fist on his chest as he laughed and rubbed at his face. "Fuck sake lass.." he grinned, though the laughter kept coming.

He smirked at the woman and looked down, he hadn't realised she had a sibling, she'd never told him but he realised he'd never asked. He rubbed at the back of his neck and took another drink of rum before passing the bottle on again. "I thought they came from apples.." he admitted with a grin "I remember my mother eatin' a lot of em before my sister was born." he smirked, recalling the memory.

 

[Lexi Quinzell]

Lexi's face was beetroot as everyone else burst into hysterics at the story. She ran a jerky hand through her hair and in the end she couldn't help laughing too.

"Look, at least it made more sense than apples," the rum was quickly passed to her and she took a long, long drink from it before passing it back to Mitch who was grinning from ear to ear. Clearly, he enjoyed having an audience.

"Eh, yer daddy took it well he did, be'er than most," a deep chuckle. Still, Lexi struggled to meet peoples eyes after that dramatic reveal of her past but she did nod in agreement with him.

"How is Dashing Damien?" Aelenora basically purred, leaning forward a little. Lexi pulled a face at how the woman asked after her younger brother.

"My little brother," she stressed and Aelenora grinned. "Is doing just fine from the last letter I got, he's doing well with the Griffin Rider trials," there was a small bit of pride in her voice as she spoke. "I think my parents were planning to stop in on their way home."

 

[Cassian]

Cassian's brow creased as he lifted his eyes to Lexi with a small grin and a husky laugh and his gaze followed the conversation with amusement. He did sigh and chew absently on his lip though, not only did she have two parents he had yet to deal with, but a younger brother too. Brothers hated him as much as parents did.. He winced slightly, and eagerly grabbed the bottle as it made it's way back to him.

"Griffins? Your brother's in Oban?.." he asked with curiosity. It'd been a childhood dream of his, but it had quickly been quashed by his father, he was born to be in the Anirian army, anything else was simply ridiculous.

 

[Lexi Quinzell]

Lexi glanced across to Cassian where he sat opposite her and her features softened a little. Damien always brought out her softer side.

"My family is from Oban originally on my mums side, her parents left when my grandmother showed a strong talent for magic - it's not the ladylike thing to do over there. She used to tell my brother all these stories about Griffin Knights and Damien was determined to leave the Order to do it when he was old enough. He signed up at the latest Festival of Feathers," she wrung her hands together. It worried her that her brother was so far away but she had to let him go and be his own person.

"It's a shame, he would have made a great Templar," Aelenora sighed dreamily and Lexi snorted a laugh.

"Aye, but kid has to do what he has to do."

 

[Cassian]

Cassian rested his elbows on his knees as he listened, apparently struggling a little as the waves rocked the ship a little more. He rubbed at the back of his neck and felt it clammy, trying to push the thought down and taking a breath.

“They’re an impressive sight, the Griffin Knights. Brave kid.” He nodded lightly “Can’t say I ent a little envious.” His lips twitched with a smirk.

He could see that it worried her. He suppose it would worry him too if he’d known anything about his sister, but he usually pushed that thought from his mind rather than let the wonder consume him. There was little point.

 

[Lexi Quinzell]

"Why can't we have Griffins?" Alec frowned after he took another sip of the bottle that was being passed around. "Horses are lame - let's get something interesting."

"You get scared when your horse rears, you think you could handle going on a Griffin?" Peter snorted. Alec hurmphed but passed the bottle on. There was a smattering of laughter from around the circle.

"How in the hell would you even expect me to get you all Griffins anyway?" Lexi looked incredulous before shaking her head. "I'm good kid, but I'm not that good," she smiled.

"T'aint as bad as when Kain 'ere tried to catch 'imself a faerie for a wife," Mitch snickered. "Kept goin' out into the woods like a moron with honey and milk. Pissed off the lil Brownies so much when he stopped goin' they tormented him for weeks."

"Oh I remember that!" Aelenora started laughing. "That's how you broke your ankle, they left marbles outside your door."

Kain muttered darkly.

 

[Cassian]

Cassian listened to the stories, content other than the turbulent waves of nausea in his stomach that he was currently doing his best to ignore. He did refuse the rum as it made it's way back to him however, a sign that not all was well. His gaze narrowed to a wince as he looked at Kain with a shake of his head.. "A faerie?.." he laughed under his breath. Of course, growing up in Vel Anir, such things would have you flogged or worse, but outside the city he'd chosen to keep his thoughts on those matters to himself as much as he could. He laughed at the man's muttering though.

He watched Red scamper around on deck, annoying the captain's cat and he called her over with a psst. She bounded toward him and climbed up into his lap, and he was silently glad of the comfort as she nuzzled into his chest.

 

[Lexi Quinzell]

Lexi raised an eyebrow when Cassian refused the rum and passed it along. She caught his eye and tilted her head slightly, silently asking if he was feeling well. It would do him no good to feel ill this early on in the journey when they had says left on the seas. She wondered if he was also rethinking his ideas of taking up sailing as a retirement plan.

Aelenora and Mitch were deep into the story of Kain's ideas for a faerie bride now which was causing the others to roar with laughter, not least because Kain believed marrying a faerie turned one in to such a creature and would wear clothes made of leaves and moss to 'get a feel' for his future life in the woodland realms.

 

[Cassian]

He would not throw up after slagging off Kain for being weak stomached. He couldn't, he'd never live it down. He offered Lexi a weak smile and an uncertain nod as she caught his gaze. He watched her with a small smile, even as Red started chewing on his chin, he listened vaguely to the stories about Kain being a faerie but his mind was on her. It was the only thing taking his mind from the nausea..

A few stories later and Cass got up, a little unsteady on his feet, he couldn't sit any longer. He squeezed Kain's shoulder with a devious grin and lifted Red onto his shoulder to wander to the bow of the boat to get a little fresh sea air in his face.

 

[Lexi Quinzell]

Mitch silently passed her a full bottle as Lexi stood up a little time after Cassian left the circle. The group were naturally splitting off now into smaller huddles anyway to discuss this or that - Alec had even set up a game of poker for Tryst who they had discovered had no idea how to play. Lexi had no intention of being nearby when he inadvertently lost at some point. Mitch would blow a bit of the half giant destroyed his ship.

Lexi made sure her footsteps were heard as she came up behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist and pressing her cheek against his shoulder with a soft noise of contentment. The sky was beginning to darken, they had been sailing for some time, and the first stars were beginning to show. It was a peaceful evening.

"Do you need a little spell?" her voice was muffled slightly by her position.

 

[Cassian]

Cassian’s knuckles were white as he clutched on to the carved wooden rails, his shoulders locked head bowed below them as he struggled not to throw up. He heard the steps and knew the sound belonged to Lexi, and he sighed as her arms wrapped around him, a throaty sound of appreciation given as she did so.

He turned himself around in her arms and reached behind him to take her hands and lift them to his head to run her fingers into his hair and held them there. “Don’t tell Kain...” he couldn’t handle it anymore.

 

[Lexi Quinzell]

"Never," she promised as she allowed him to run her fingers through his hair. She arranged them so her thumb lightly brushed the temple on either side and then she took a breath and concentrated. Her hazel eye turned gold as her lips moved slightly, her brow furrowing in concentration. It would start off as a tingle not entirely unpleasant and then a cool sensation would sweep through him like a soothing balm. The spell came to an end and her eye returned to normal. She let her fingers slide down his face so that she cupped his cheeks affectionately.

"How does that feel?"

 

[Cassian]

He held on to her wrists, thumbs caressing her skin as she worked. She really was like a drug. He sighed at the feeling of calm and closed his eyes, his lips twitching into a smile as the nausea eased and he pressed her hands to his face. "Better.." he opened his eyes to look at her, fighting a smirk. "Now we know I can't retire unless I have you with me, lass." he mused with a cheeky wink, feeling much more like himself.

He let his hands fall to step around behind her and wrap his arms around her waist and settle his chin on her shoulder as he looked out at the soft hues of pinks and purples on the horizon, finally being able to appreciate the sight without feeling like regurgitating whatever was in his stomach. He breathed her in, and pressed a kiss to her neck.

 

[Lexi Quinzell]

Lexi chuckled at his words. It was a shame neither of them would probably end up retiring, she thought as she watched the sunset hit the waves, she could have got used to a life on the sea perhaps in time. Usually it made her a little uneasy. She had been aboard enough during a storm to rethink the waterways many a time but there was definitely something calming about the creek of wood and soft breeze at times like this.

"Mitch gave me a spare bottle of rum," Lexi nodded to where she had set it down beside them. "If your stomach can handle it a bit more now. Food will be out shortly the cook said too. Red I left bullying the ships cat, I think he likes her really."

 

[Cassian]

Cassian looked down at the bottle of rum and his cheeks dimpled.. “Lass.. Are you tryin’ to get me drunk and take advantage of me? Cos I ent sure I can let that fly.” He shook his head and bit gently at the crook of her neck, hands wandering to her hips.

“My stomach can handle it fine..” He mused with another kiss. The thought of food was no longer a dreadful thought to him and he realised how hungry he was, his stomach grumbling as if in response to her words.

“Aye.. Well if he doesn’t he’s goin’ fuckin’ overboard.” .. Nobody, not even cats messed with his cat.

 

[Lexi Quinzell]

"I don't think I need you to be drunk for me to take advantage of you," Lexi gave a husky laugh as he nibbled at her neck. She let her head tilt slightly in the opposite direction to afford him more room and as he rested his hands on her hips she made sure to lean a little further forward on the railing, shifting her weight to one foot.

"I think Mitch'll throw you over board if you touch his cat, till I met you I didn't think there could be another man who loved a ball of fur as much. That thing has definitely got more than nine lives too. I swear it's been around longer than I have," she shook her head. She was also pretty sure it had always seemed like an old cat for as long as she had known him too.

"Did you enjoy the embarrassing childhood story circle time?"

 

[Cassian]

Cass returned a laugh and squeezed playfully at her hips.. "I suppose that's true.." he agreed and picked up the rum to uncork it and take a gulp from the bottle before passing it around to her.

He snorted at her comment about Mitch and his cat "A bond between a man and his cat is holy, lass.." he smirked. His hands wandered, thumbs pressing at the small of her back, sliding firmly to her shoulders where he kneaded at her muscles. "I did.. It's good that you have people to remember em like that, yer a lucky lass.." he smiled. "Din't mention that you have a brother though.." he laughed under his breath and pushed his thumbs into the muscles at the sides of her neck..

 

[Lexi Quinzell]

A soft noise escaped her throat when he began to massage from her lower back up to her shoulders and she arched her back a little more for him. She could get used to this kind of attention that was for sure. His comment on men and cats made her laugh and for a second she rested her forehead on her hands against the rail, which was when he chose to start massaging her neck.

"You didn't ask about my family in fairness," she countered. The topic of her parents had merely come up naturally in conversation but the topic of her brother hadn't. "He's only just turned 20, bright kid. Destined for something better than this. He was always a sweet kid, Alec reminds me a lot of him actually," she raised her head then and ran a hand through her hair.

 

[Cassian]

Cassian's brow knit into a brief frown and he sighed quietly, continuing to run his hands over her back, neck and shoulders since she seemed to enjoy it. "I spose not. I guess the subject just.." he frowned, trying to think of the words. He was afraid to talk about families, he didn't want to talk about his either. "I shoulda asked.." he admitted quietly.

His eyes narrowed in a smile and his hands returned to the small of her back, pressing at where her dimples were "Sounds like a good kid. Perhaps I'll meet him one day.." his brow lifted, the thought less intimidating than the thought of meeting her parents.

 

[Lexi Quinzell]

"You didn't have to ask, I get it," families were a sore subject for him. He had had a wife, a dad she really had to resist the urge not to hunt down, and a brother he had loved and lost. It was always the way when one person asked a question the other would probably return it. She straightened after a moment and finally turned back towards him and rested her backside against the rail of the ship. "I won't ask about your family, you've told me enough, if you want to tell me more you do it when you want to," she hooked her fingers in to his breeches and pulled him close then placed a kiss to the exposed chest through his skirt.

"I hope you meet him," she smiled after a moment. "I'm afraid he is a huge nerd though, he will talk your head off about that codex," a soft laugh.

 

[Cassian]

"Just 'cause I don' talk about mine doesn't mean you shouldn' talk 'bout yours, lass. I want to hear your about your life and listen to your stories and memories. I shoulda asked." he told her again. He smiled as she turned back to him and nodded "You can ask if you want to lass, I just ent got much to say 'bout it.." he shrugged and dropped his gaze to her fingers as they hooked into his belt. Warm lips against his cool skin made his eyes closed with a frown and a rumble sounded in his throat.. 'Mh...Fuck." he huffed.

"Lets go to Oban. When this job is done." he proposed in response and pressed against her a little harder, hands latching on to the wooden rail to cage her there as his lips attacked her neck and jaw, biting gently and kissing to soothe.

 

[Lexi Quinzell]

She felt a little better when he encouraged the discussion on her family. He had seemed genuinely distressed about her parents still being active Templars and so she had been unsure about mentioning her brother but now that was gone. She felt even better when he made a face like she had done something wicked and she gave him an innocent look. His proposal caught her entirely off guard.

"Really?" Lexi sounded stunned and for once even his kisses were only slightly distracting her. She put her hand on his chest to push him back and search his gaze for any sign of a joke. It ... it meant a lot that he would even offer that.