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RESPITE FALLS WATERFALL - LATE MORNING
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Gareth makes his way up along the trail to the waterfall's main pool, a box tucked against his side as he looks around. He spends a few minutes just kind of scanning around to see if Sammi might be floating around nearby, but he spots nothing. Feeling a bit awkward talking to himself, he raises his voice a bit and calls out across the pool's surface. "Sammi? Are ye here, lass?"
Sammi: There was another perhaps thirty seconds of silence, before a few ripples in the surface signals the rising up of the Cephalady herself, "Sorry Gareth. I was having a bit of a nap. Didn't notice you there" She pulls herself unto shore "What takes you down here to my little resting spot?" She seems happy enough to see him, abet curious, eyeing about his person to see if anything was new.
Gareth directs his attention towards the ripples, then smiles as Sammi surfaces. "Ah, sorry about wakin' ye up, Sammi. Just felt like stoppin' by to give ye a little somethin' in return fer that gift ye got fer me when we first met." He holds the box up as he talks, "I figured, since yer gift was in the name of friendship, it's only right I give ye somethin' in turn."
Sammi: "Oh. Don't worry, I nap a lot. You're not a bother at all, like..I'll probably be napping again later" Down the the deeps she lays dreaming. "Especially for gifts! I do love presents!" She leans forward, eyes on the Box "You got me a Box? That's great!" She's not being sarcastic about that either "I gotta find something proper to put in it!"
Gareth blinks, then chuckles and shakes his head. "Well, no, the box has somethin' in it already. I mean... if ye want to see the box as a gift, too, then I guess this is two gifts." He steps a bit closer and holds the box out for Sammi, "Here ye go, lass."
Sammi: "Oooh! A box AND something to put in it!" She's even more impressed, taking the box delicately, and opening it up eagerly, like a kid at Chrism...Midwinter Festival.
Narrator: Inside the box is a metal astrolabe. At a glance, it looks like an oversized medallion, but the intricate moving parts show that it's more functional than fashionable.
Gareth smiles a bit as Sammi opens the box. "I thought you might find this interestin'. It's an astrolabe, o' the sort we landfolk use to help chart our movement while sailin' along the surface o' the oceans. That one won't rust underwater, too."
Sammi: "ooooh" She takes it, running over the instrument "It's a Starchecker! That's great!" She looks to him, a bit confused when he calls it an Astrolobe, and describes what its used for "Oh.." She ponders "I suppose, that would work too! I have one in my bag, but it doesn't work very well out of the Trench, so this is actually great!" She appears to know how to use it (Even though its daylight) "Oh! That's good to know. My guess was a bit off. Stars a bit more aligned than usual. That explains why I've been so sleepy!" She comes over and gives him a hug, arms, and tentacles too.
Gareth likewise looks a little confused at Sammi calling the astrolabe a Starchecker, but he smiles again at the fact that she seems to like the gift nonetheless. He does get a little caught off-guard by the hug, but gives her a warm hug in turn after a moment, not really minding in the least that the front of his outfit is probably getting a bit soaked. "I didn't know we both had similar instruments to look at the stars, but I'm glad it'll be useful for ye, Sammi."
Sammi gives up last, slightly damp squeeze, before pulling away, rocking on her heels softly "It will be! I've been trying to just look up and eyeball it, but I'm not that good at it. Papa was always way better than me, but he could never really show me. He doesn't come up at all anymore, right? Well..sometimes he does that whole 'visit in dreams' thing, but you can't really do more than chat there right?" She rambles off, before catching herself "Oh! But really! Thanks!" She puts the instrument back in the box, and presses her thumb softly into the surface, leaving a small mark before she puts it into her bag, the bag snarling gently before she closes it again. "So! Got any fun new stories?"
Gareth tilts his head curiously at the bag, thinking he heard a snarling sound from it, but he just passes it off as the waterfall's background noise... he hopes, anyway. He chuckles again and nods, after a moment. "Yeah, I'd imagine it's a bit hard to really show anyone how to do things in dreams, unless they got really creative with manipulatin' them..." He pauses, shrugging at the thought, "As fer stories, I've got one in the works right now, in fact. Me huntin' partner and I finally got our hands on a new job, right here on Aephix. Seems like a simple one; just got to catch someone and send 'em back to Sarn, but sometimes the hunt's not quite that simple."
Sammi: "Ooh. You're going to ball someone up, and bring them to the big peoples? Sounds exciting! Making sure that they're all locked up" She nodnods "And..uh..it's like..you'll have a normal dream, and Papa will be just kinda there, as part of it, and talking. It's not really manipulating, and more dropping around for a visit, but this hunt sounds exciting! I can't wait to learn how it went down!"
Gareth grins. "Then once it's over, I'll be sure to come by and tell ye how it went. I'm hopin' it'll be an excitin' hunt, at least, since the target is supposedly a technology thief." He rubs his chin thoughtfully at the dream thing, then nods, "Ahh, so more just a fun visit from yer Papa than interruptin', I get it, I think."
Sammi: "Ooh..she could have like..um...Lightning Shooters!" That's technology. Right? "And right! He's nice to come around..but..y'know, if anyone ever tries it. They're in your dream..but like..its still your dream. You can do what you like with them while they're there. Really. People get super weird about that whole Dream Visitation Stuff. I must actually enjoy all the weird stuff they blame Dream Visitors for doing" She brings her brain back on track "Good luck with your Hunt!"
Gareth laughs a bit. "If they've got 'Lightnin' Shooters', I might come back with me fur a bit more singed than before. It'd make fer an excitin' tale, though. Thank ye for the luck, Sammi. It's always good to have some o' that." He shakes his head after a moment, "I can't say I've ever had any visitors in me dreams before, but even if someone did, I probably wouldn't remember it."
Sammi lets out a small giggle "If Papa finds out that we're exchanging gifts, he might drop along. He's a bit protective, but don't worry! Your dreams. Your rules!"
Gareth chuckles, though he seems just a touch nervous about potentially meeting Sammi's Papa. "Well, if yer Papa does happen to visit, I'll be on me best behavior, even if it's me own rules in the dream."
Sammi: "Oh. You'll be fine! He's really nice. I promise" She nods, to hopefully assure him of that "I wish I could help you with the TechyThief, but I don't really have anything that helps with catching people..well..like..not stuff that isn't kinda mean, and you don't really seem like the sort to use mean stuff"
Gareth nods, her statement definitely helping a bit to reassure him. "I appreciate the thought, Sammi, thank ye for that. Bounty huntin' can get a little dirty sometimes, though, so while we can get a bit mean, it's... usually nothin' long-lastin'." He pauses, then clears his throat, "Usually..."
Sammi: "I'm sure it was all by accident if anything happened, so that seems fine!" She doesn't question the 'usually'
Gareth chuckles again, smiling. "Accident, yeah..." He sighs a bit as he takes a seat near the edge of the water, "So... ye know, I'm curious... ye said ye've been more sleepy as of late?"
Sammi: "Yeah! When the stars all aligning, I need to sleep more, and they're getting up like that now, so I'll probably sleep for like..a week straight when that happens. Don't worry about me if you can't wake me up. Totally natural"
Gareth tilts his head again, giving Sammi a curious look. "Interestin'... I would have thought the stars alignin' would make ye... I don't know, more energetic or somethin'?" He shrugs, "I guess that's more a landfolk rumor, though." He pauses, smiling, "And good to know about the nappin' thing."
Sammi: "Ah, yeah. There's some legend mixup there, not quite how it works. I have to sleep when the stars are right. There's more than just me and Papa down in the deeps. They're probably thinking of other stuff. Not us"
Sammi stretches out "Not to suddenly stop this conversation already, but I am getting tired again" She says, suddenly stopping this conversation.
Gareth chuckles and nods. "Aye, I shouldn't be keepin' ye from yer sleep. It was nice talkin' with ye again, Sammi, and I'm glad you like the gift." He stands up and stretches a bit as well, "I'll be sure to come and find ye again once me hunt is over with, and tell ye all about it."
Sammi: "I did! And I'll try and find you too! I super want to know. It'll probably be after my longer nap!" She gives him one last tight hug, before dipping into the water, quickly sinking down into the depths.