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SOON TO BE FRECKLEMEYER RESIDENCE - LATE MORNING
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Louma slithers over the cobble alongside Nesseth, fresh out of the barracks after finishing her work and calling Nesseth to come along with her. The Captain's home is in sight as she slows a bit. "I'm honestly a little surprised that you haven't met her, she's been freely wandering around town, and is pretty hard to miss. Should let you know she seems to believe it's about 35 years closer to the war that killed her family." She gives him a glance as she reaches for the door. "Just as a reference point for timelines."
Nesseth sighs a bit and makes a slight face of discontent before Louma opens the door. "Oh... great. I wasn't expecting to pull out history lessons for this one. 35 years ago was before I was even a thought to my parents..." He takes a moment to think, then grimaces, "Just... kind of glad I decided to leave my guard stuff at home for this one."
Louma sighs quietly, entering the house ahead of him and taking a quick look toward the kitchen, then the sitting room. "It was probably a good idea, yes. I believe she knows that there are lizards living among everyone else here, though I haven't tried to pry too much."
Nesseth follows Louma in once she's over the threshold. "Well... we'll find out one way or another, I guess." He gives Louma a bit of a look, "I do hope you're ready to play mediator if me being here makes her freak out, though."
Louma shrugs, her tail pushing the door closed behind Nesseth after he's inside. "That all depends. If her highness orders it, I may be compelled to slay you." She winks at him, grinning before poking her head into the sitting room. "Xochicoatl? Are you at home?"
Nesseth sighs and rolls his eyes, but can't help a grin appearing on his face as he moves with Louma, though staying back a bit. "Long as you make it quick, and make the funeral a good one."
Louma nods, responding in a slightly distracted tone. "Your carcass will be fed to only the finest sand gator. You will be missed. Highness? Hm. She might be out. We can put some tea on and wait for her, if you like."
Xochicoatl slithers towards the sitting room as she is tying an apron around her waist, wishing to do some housework to help out, she calls out ahead, having heard the door, "Oh? Louma? Maybelline? Did you forget something? I was just-" Her eyes stop as they cross over to Nesseth, and her wings flare out nervously, her expression suddenly cautious.
Nesseth draws back a little when Xochicoatl's wings flare open, though part of it is also just surprise at how... unchanged she looks compared to normal, despite being a lot younger... if perhaps a bit shorter. After some short time, he glances uncertainly towards Louma. "Uh..."
Louma turns toward Xochicoatl's voice, noting her reaction and following her gaze with a glance toward Nesseth. "Ah, there you are, Xochicoatl! You were so quiet, I didn't know where you'd gotten off to." She gestures toward Nesseth. "This is a colleague of mine, a good friend as well. His name is Nesseth. Nesseth, this is her Highness Xochicoatl."
Xochicoatl takes a moment to gather herself, her wings slowly settling back down across her tail. "Nesseth, then? Yes. If you are a good friend of Louma's, than I shall assume there is reason to trust you." She glances at Louma, looking more uncertain than her tone of voice suggests.
Nesseth blinks as he glances between Louma and Xochicoatl, then decides to just conduct himself like he figures he should. Looking at Xochicoatl, he smiles and dips into a bit of a bow, respectful, but clearly a maneuver he's none too familiar with. "Yes, uh... hello there, your Highness. I'm Nesseth, and Louma and I have been colleagues for about six or seven years now."
Louma nods, putting on a practiced relaxed aire as she slowly coils her tail. She hopes keeping her own nerves in check will help ease the mild tension in the room. "I feel he could prove helpful, he has some insights that we may have missed, though you'll need to catch him up to speed."
Xochicoatl nods to the show of respect, sighing slightly as she raises a hand, "Rise, Nesseth. You...? Would help me, then? That is unexpected, I admit."
Nesseth hums as he stands straight again, nodding at the question and the statement both. "I would, and it is... I know our kinds have had a... history with one another, even before, ah... recent events." He gestures a little, "But... I'm a little behind on the details, I'm afraid, as Louma says."
Louma nods encouragingly to Xochicoatl, though she wonders if rehearsing a bit with Nesseth might have been prudent. With what he said about Xochi's possible condition, the extra day might have been a bit too important.
Xochicoatl sighs, crossing her arms, "I suppose I should expect my appearance to be a shock. You do know the entire Royal Family was killed, yes? The Red King, as well as the Prince, died in the throne room, they say. But I was only newly born, and they say I was not in the palace. I was found, and taken away by Your kind." Her tail twitches in agitation. "I do not know what plans they had. For sixteen years I was held, in their manor, forbidden from leaving. But I have escaped, and I intend on retaking the throne that your people attempted to deny me."
Nesseth shakes his head a bit. "I wish I could say I know why you were taken prisoner like you were, your Highness, but I wasn't privy to any of the conversations surrounding that. Though, I do want to help you if I can, and help get back what was taken away."
Louma keeps an eye on Xochicoatl's mannerisms and tone, sparing her gaze to Nesseth when he speaks up. "I know Nesseth has no relation to the events that took your parents and the Red King. That I can vouch for him with utmost confidence."
Xochicoatl nods, letting go of any anger in her voice that had built throughout her tale. She lowers her head and lets out a sigh, "I would not expect that he would be privy to it, what you say makes sense, Captain Louma. I... shall thank you, Nesseth, for whatever help you can give. Please forgive my tone."
Nesseth shakes his head a bit, giving Xochicoatl a kind little smile. "It's fine, your Highness, I understand. Louma knows what anger I had myself towards Snakes, back when the two of us first met." He looks over at Louma and nods, "Being friends with her for so long has been helpful in understanding things more clearly."
Louma gives Nesseth a smile, nodding. "And the same in return. Of course, both of us being separated from the politics of home helped keep things in perspective." She looks to Xochicoatl. "I was going to give Nesseth more details, but wished for you to meet him first. Could you recount to him how you escaped, Highness?"
Xochicoatl recoils slightly, the dark thoughts from her night with Victoria in her mind. She shakes her head, the thoughts no clearer now than when she was drunk. "I... don't remember. I only recall that the window had been left open. That... should have been impossible, yet there it was. The matron of the house had just told me that I would be forbidden from flying... and I had nearly given up hope, only to find a way out presented to me... I took it."
Nesseth hums curiously, his arms crossing as he considers. "A way out that... hm... I see. And no memory of the trip here, then?" He pauses, casting a short look at Louma, then shrugs, "Maybe the freedom was just that overwhelming..."
Louma fully settles down, looking to Xochicoatl. "Perhaps you're not able to remember because something happened you do not wish to remember... We wouldn't force you to, of course."
Xochicoatl frowns, looking down. "I do not know... I remember going through the window... and then... arriving at the North gate. I have been thinking about it the last few days... I arrived here feeling as though I knew this was where I should be, yet having no memory of this place, or how I knew about it. Or even what I should be doing here. The only reason I found you, Captain, is because Vix greeted me and guided me here while you were gone."
Nesseth falls quiet as he listens to Xochicoatl's journey to Respite, wanting to appear at least like he's uncertain and curious, though he knows full well why she showed up when she did. He casts a glance at Louma, wondering what she might be thinking. "Odd... certainly. It's possible, like Louma says, that something might have happened on the trip over? Or... hm..."
Louma hums. "Or... You never travelled? What if her escape was punctuated by some other force, something moving her to Respite Falls in the blink of an eye? That would be very powerful and dangerous magic, but well..." She looks to Xochi, her tone carefully thought out. "There were no records of you even entering Bairnell... And you certainly did not fly all the way to here. You would remember that."
Xochicoatl nods to Louma, lifting her wings, "You can attest to the state of my flying before you taught me... but no recrod of my entry to the port, either? Then... someone magicced me here? Who? Why?"
Louma shakes her head, looking from Xochicoatl to Nesseth. "I have... Not the slightest idea, even if it is true in some regard."
Nesseth meets Louma's look and shrugs as he looks back at Xochicoatl. "If the window was opened when it shouldn't have been... well, someone might have wanted to give you your freedom. Without a record of your arrival at Bairnell, then it's possible some kind of magic transported you here, away from Orela." He sighs and shakes his head, "I've had enough experience seeing magic at work to know it can do some... weird things."
Xochicoatl listens to Nesseth's explanation, but her face falls slightly. "I suppose... it does not matter, does it? How I got here? What is important is that I am here, and that here I can find a way to retake what is mine, yes? I am no conqueror, I will not repeat the sins of my Grandfather... but I can take the throne, and rule in peace."
Nesseth shakes his head. "It shouldn't matter, no. Though... considering how close it's been to the end of the war, I can't imagine you ascending the throne before gathering a large following dedicated to your peaceful rule will be viewed as peaceful... In the years since, too many Snakes and Lizards are still looking for a reason to continue fighting."
Xochicoatl considers this, but her youthful naivity perhaps gives her away. "I am Coatl, of Pure-blood. Would the Snakes not simply bow to me? I can end any fighting!"
Nesseth sighs quietly, giving Xochi a sympathetic look. "They would, but after the war, I've noticed that there are a lot of folks who are looking for any reason. Another coatl ascending the throne would undoubtedly get the Lizards riled up again, and the Snakes may get overzealous having a princess they thought long lost suddenly reappearing to lead them as their new queen."
Louma nods in agreement with Nesseth. "His insight is good. We would be better to ease the people of Orela into the idea that the line of coatl blood is not broken yet. And especially for those who are not snakes, the idea that a new coatl leader would be benevolent."
Xochicoatl leans back, sighing. She takes a moment to look between the two, perhaps a bit more shrewd then her age lets on, "So much waiting... it seems we do nothing. I am simply impatient... and I feel there are things you are not telling me."
Louma sighs, looking away from Xochicoatl toward the floor.
Nesseth shakes his head as he loosely crosses his arms. "Both sides have already lost too many people, and the Snakes lost a good Prince in the process. The last thing any of us wants is to instigate another war that actually cuts off the coatl bloodline."
Xochicoatl 's expression darkens at Nesseth's words. "My Father..." She shakes her head, "I understand all of this, yes. Something about it all still seems wrong to me."
Louma clears her throat. "There is something we have been keeping from you. I. Something I have been keeping from you..."
Nesseth is about to respond to Xochicoatl's statement, but instead looks over at Louma with a raised eyebrow.
Xochicoatl seems both relieved and disappointed at Louma's words. Her coils roll over one another in place nervously as she nods to her. "...what is it, Captain Louma?"
Louma looks back to Xochicoatl. "I did not want to get your hopes too high too quickly, Highness. I had sent word of your arrival two weeks after my return, to a few trusted colleagues in Orela. I have been waiting for responses from them." She bows her head to Xochicoatl. "My apologies highness, I wanted to know how folks would take the news before we started formulating plans."
Nesseth blinks, then hums quietly as he reorganizes what he thought Louma was about to say, then nods. "Louma only just recently told me, as well, because the less folks that know mean planning will be more carefully thought out."
Xochicoatl brings a hand up to her chest and bows to Louma, though she finds it still does not explain the strange gaps and feelings in her mind. "I see... Yes, that is good. I am sorry to express my doubts."
Louma raises her head, giving Xochicoatl a relieved smile. "You are not upset with me? Thank you, highness. As for how you got here, I posed that question as well, but anything they may find will not reach us any faster than the first purpose of my letters."
Nesseth shrugs again, his chin tucked against his chest as he considers things. "I wish I could add on some knowledge about how you got here, too, but I'm afraid all I have is speculation, your Highness."
Xochicoatl shakes her head, "I... I am not upset with you. You have been nothing but kind to me." She nods to Nesseth as well, clearly still bothered by something, but saying nothing else about it at the moment.
Louma hums, glancing toward Nesseth. "Perhaps a cup of tea would help, if we hear everything you remember from the top and have some time to mull the information over?"
Nesseth hums and nods at Louma's suggestion. "That sounds like a good idea. Something nice to help clear the head a bit and to relax, so we can better think."
Xochicoatl sighs, her fists tightening, but she does her best to keep her calm demeanor, not letting her frustrations show. She nods. "Yes... tea. I can... do whatever I can to remember again, yes."
Louma sees Xochicoatl's fists balled, uncoiling slowly and approaching the door to the kitchen. "Yes, I will put the water on."
Nesseth notes the same movement, then nods at Louma. "Do you need any help getting things prepared, Louma?"
Xochicoatl waits, watching the two motion towards the kitchen. She nods to Nesseth, "Go and help her, yes."
Louma nods to Nesseth, gesturing for him to come with her. "Yes, please get the cups and sugar ready." Once they're alone in the kitchen, she lets out a sigh, shaking her head mostly to herself as she sets a full kettle down on the stovetop.
Nesseth dips into a short bow at Xochicoatl's gesture, then goes to join Louma in the kitchen, where he starts going about getting the tray set up for serving. "Well..."
Louma glances at Nesseth, fetching the cups from the cupboard by the stove and handing them over. "We have a lot of information to process, and not much time to do it in. Well indeed."
Xochicoatl waits a moment, weighting her options. But ultimately, impulsiveness and anger win out, and she moves for the door as quickly and quietly as she can.
Nesseth sighs a bit as he takes the cups and goes to get them set up efficiently. "Mmh... she's all but confirmed something happened, and we know what happened that brought her here like this..." He pauses and takes a moment to stretch the tension from his neck while he's adjusting the tray to be just right, "How are we going to approach it, though? No matter how we slice it, the truth just sounds insane."
Louma is about to respond when she sees a shadow cross the door, followed by the front door opening a moment later. "And now she's just fled... I don't know if she saw through my ruse or if it's something else... Perhaps we should give her a few minutes to calm down, then go look for her?"
Nesseth blinks and turns to look out the door into the living room. "Uh... that can't be good, either way... She's clearly upset, so..." He pauses, then looks over at Louma, "About how far do you think she can fly? That might change how far out we'll have to look..."
Louma hums, shaking her head. "She's not going to go far, even with flying, and we'll have all day to find her from on high. She might just need some time. If we chase her right now, she's only going to get more upset."
Nesseth nods. "Then... I guess we'll just spend a bit figuring out how to go forward from here? She's getting suspicious of us, I think, aside from the frustration."
Louma sighs, nodding. "Perhaps it was something of a mistake to introduce you to her myself. That may have hurt her trust in me. Maybe it didn't. It is impossible to ask now, that would only raise any suspicions, I think."
Nesseth shrugs as he stops fiddling with the cups and instead just leans against the table a bit, figuring their excuse of getting the tea ready is no longer necessary. "Probably best you were around, though. I can't imagine running into her out on the street would have gone any better. You saw how nervously she reacted."
Louma turns away from him, taking the kettle off the stove and using her tail to push herself up higher, retrieving a bottle of wine from the cupboard. Her talon digs into the cork as she turns back, removing it with a practiced twist before she pours some into two of the tea cups. "Perhaps you're right. Let us come up with a more graceful plan for the second encounter, hmm?"
Nesseth hums in agreement as well as appreciation as the scent of the wine wafts over him. "Probably a good idea. She'll already be more than a little upset, so we're going to have to have a plan for it to not make things... more uncomfortable."
Louma raises her tea cup of wine, downing half of it. "I shouldn't have lied, but I felt it will buy us a little time. Well, with Xochicoatl, if not Xochi."
Nesseth picks up his own cup and takes a more measured sip of the wine. "A bit of time for a more formulated plan, anyway. It might be all that we need to convince her, maybe... but we still need to figure out how we're going to tell her this stuff without coming off as completely off our rockers."
Louma nods, smiling a half smile at Nesseth. "Of course. Really though, how far off is this situation from many others lately?"
Nesseth sighs as he looks at Louma over the rim of his cup. He takes another sip before he answers. "Honestly, not too far off from everything that's happened, and that's the worrying part. What I wouldn't give for something to be mundane for once."
Louma chuckles, sipping for the rest of her wine. "Maybe that would be nice."
Nesseth takes a bigger drink of his wine in turn, but clears his throat quietly as it clears his senses rather handily. "Anyway... any ideas on how we approach Xochicoatl wherever she's gone?"
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TEMPORARY WORKSHOP - MIDDAY
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Shirley bustles about, doing her best to get things in order and stowed in anticipation of an upcoming move to Bairnell so she and Robin can start working on the larger-scale parts of constructing an airship. She'd gotten word back from the port town that there was someone willing to sell a ship of the necessary specs for relatively cheap, and that boon definitely stoked the fires of motivation in Shirley.
Narrator: From the outside, a sudden yelp of a '...f-fucknuggets!' in a deep voice can be heard, followed by a very loud 'CRUNCH!' as a 5" by 5" log of wood makes its' way through one of the barn walls very unceremoniously, shoving itself good couple of feet in a glorious downward motion.
Shirley recoils as a wooden beam comes crashing through the wall of the barn not too far from her, and she reflexively turns her body away from the splinters flying through the air to protect the instruments she'd been carrying. Once the dust settles, though, she looks over at the damage, then groans audibly. "Oh... bloody brilliant! I did not need this sort of thing happening, not now of all times!" She sets the stuff she'd been carrying on a safe surface nearby, then goes stomping over to the hole in the wall, where she shoves her head out and looks around, "Who's the gormless twit that thought shoving a wooden beam through a barn wall was a good idea?!"
Prachi is kneeling and leaning her head on the wall, holding her head with one hand: "Oww... d-definitely not a good idea..." The big camelid is wearing her usual next-to-nothing that barely cover the essentials as though her thick fur already doesn't.
Shirley 's eyes snap over to Prachi the moment she starts talking, stares for a moment, then scowls as she pulls her head back from the hole. A few seconds later, there's a sound of the barn door opening, quickly followed by a slightly irate-looking bluejay as Shirley goes stomping over to Prachi, "What in the gods' names happened?! You're well enough to talk, so I know you're not hurt that badly."
Prachi groans as she lifts her head enough to shake it and blurrily look at the bird: "Oh. Hi. Yeah, uh..." She looks at the beam now nicely sticking upwards from the wall, then at the offending root on an otherwise nearly entirely clean bit of land behind her. She points at the root: "...that."
Shirley lets out an exasperated sigh as she sets her hands on her hips, still looking a touch ruffled as she looks over at the root in question. "Well, I'm glad you didn't get hurt worse, but why were you transporting that anyway? I didn't know the barn's owner was doing construction nearby. They didn't mention anything of the sort when my partner and I rented it out."
Prachi sighs, sitting back to kneeling position as she attempts to put her head together after the hit it took. "Mm, hold on a moment." She taps her forehead a couple of times, then shakes her head: "Mmm, didn't really ask. Was just asked to deliver this here, cause my size, you know?"
Shirley 's annoyance slowly trickles away as she waits for Prachi to get her senses back in order, her feathers slowly settling back down from the annoyed ruffle, though she doesn't look particularly mollified yet as her eyes wander towards the damage in the wall. "Well, if you need a trip to the clinic, we can get you there. Just let me know." She sighs and shakes her head as she pulls her gaze away from the gaping hole, "Well, I'm definitely not getting my deposit back."
Prachi looks at the hole: "Sorry about that. Wasn't really my intention, it just happened... tripped on that damn root..." She blinks and for the first time proper focuses on her current company: "...Shirley?"
Shirley shrugs as she shifts her stance and crosses her arms instead of resting her hands on her hips. "It's fine. Luckily, I've already got everything squared away financially out in Bairnell's Foothold, so I can afford to pay for damages if they need me to." She frowns a little, raising an eyebrow as she meets Prachi's look, "Hm? Yeah, I'm Shirley Cawlin. You've heard of me?"
Prachi blinks a couple of times, considering the bird in front of her... then shakes her head. "N-no. Must have been thinking about someone else. Head hit and all that." The camel looks considerably fine despite her excuses to the opposite as she gets up.
Shirley hums a bit. "Mmh, if you say so, miss. Quite the coincidence if I look like a friend of yours, though." She looks Prachi up and down a moment, trying to gauge how hurt the camel is, "How are you feeling, then?"
Prachi looks at the beam going through the wall, then back at Shirley with a shrug: "Fine I guess. I've hit my head before, and at least this time I'm not covered in mud."
Shirley shrugs as her gaze goes towards the hole in the wall again for a moment. "Small blessings, at least. We can explain what happened to the barn's owner later, but are you sure you don't need to see the town's doctor?"
Prachi gets proper up and lifts one hand on the beam: "I'm fine, really I am. Kinda used to accidents." She gives Shirley a smile that is completely reassuring. Probably.
Shirley steps back to give Prachi some space if she's intending to pull the beam out. "Maybe, but hits to the head are still something to watch for all the same. Rattling the brain too much is a bit more concerning than breaking an arm, after all."
Prachi smirks: "Well, if it helps, I've yet to break my arm." She gives the beam a test pull with both hands, but finds it proper stuck: "Hmm. This might take better angling."
Shirley hums, then turns around to go back into the barn. She calls out through the hole in the wall. "Give me a second, and I can set up one of my winches to lift the beam a bit!"
Prachi smiles and calls after the bird: "Sounds like a plan! The only winch I have right now is myself, but I think I need me on this side!"
Shirley does her thing out of sight, the only indication that she's busy getting the beam ready for movement being the scuffling and scraping as she straps the beam into place on a winch. "Okay, whenever you're ready, I'll start lifting it!"
Prachi picks up hold of the beam: "Ready!" She tenses herself, ready to pull just as hard as needed... after all, she can carry that damn thing by herself, easily...
Shirley presses a button on the machine, and it rumbles to life as the gears turn, steam hisses out of some piping to get the necessary torque, and the winch slowly lifts the beam up. "Okaaaay... and there we go! You can pull when you're ready!"
Prachi lifts up and pulls: "Nnngh! Okay, should be easy... enough!" With a big yank, the camel manages to get the wooden beam loose, getting it out from the wall and to the other side. Once Prachi has it on her hands, she lets it down on the ground, letting out a sigh of relief. Belatedly, she realizes to call out: "Thank you!"
Shirley deftly presses a couple more buttons as Prachi pulls the beam out, the winch moving with the beam to prevent any (more) accidents before the beam is fully outside again. Once free, she shuts the winch back down and goes back out to where Prachi is standing. "Not a problem. We just got lucky the beam landed there and not a foot or two to either side. One side would have hit the winch... the other side would have hit me."
Prachi winces: "Okay, so good luck there. That's good." She gives Shirley a smile: "Glad you were here, though. If I was alone, that'd been pretty hard to pull out."
Shirley chuckles a bit as she takes a moment to adjust her goggles a bit more comfortably on her head, even if she's not wearing them over her eyes at the moment. "If I wasn't using the barn as a workshop, the door probably would have been unlocked anyway."
Prachi looks at the wall that's just barely-solid wooden planks: "Probably could have broken way more if I only cared about the beam, too."
Shirley shrugs. "I mean, that you could have if you didn't mind paying the owner for the damages... It's still a barn owned by a farmer, after all."
Prachi shrugs in mirror: "I have enough mining savings to draw from. It's not ideal, but accidents happen."
Shirley hums, nodding. "Mmh, fair enough. You at least got the beam back, and no one got too hurt from it, so that's what matters."
Prachi sighs softly as she picks up the beam, hefting it over one shoulder and pointledly directing it away from the barn: "I'm used to getting myself hurt, so if no one else does, that's a win."
Shirley smiles a little, then dips into a slight bow. "Well, just be careful, miss. Anyway, I'm Shirley Cawlin, inventor and steam-tech specialist. You already guessed my name, so... I guess that takes care of the introductions."
Prachi smiles and nods: "Pr- Prachi. Just, uh, Prachi. Kinda here for construction help, as you probably could guess."
Shirley nods. "Hauling lumber that large, I can see why. Some things are just easier to do manually than to build machines for right now. I can imagine labor is in high demand right now, with the construction happening to the west of town."
Prachi shrugs with a smile: "Kinda why I came here. After fame and fortune... and staying on muffins. You know how it goes, or at least the ambitious part of that. The muffins."
Shirley tilts her head. "Muffins? I mean, if you subsist on them, I could see it being good to find a variety of them. Respite is certainly not lacking in food variety."
Prachi chuckles, waving her free hand: "Well, not subsist on them. I just like them. 'Keep me on bread' sound so boring."
Shirley chuckles quietly. "Fair enough. Either way, you won't be wanting for all kinds of food here, no matter what you like to eat." She looks at the beam resting on Prachi's shoulder for a moment, "Though, strong or not, I should probably let you get to delivering that lumber before folks start wondering where it is when they need it."
Prachi nods: "You are probably right." She gives a wave: "See you around, Shirley!" With that, she carefully turns around with the sizable piece of lumber on her shoulder.
Shirley waves a bit, but also ducks down as the lumber swings around. It's not necessary, but she feels it's prudent to do so, just in case. "Take care of yourself, Prachi. Be seeing you!"
Prachi waves as she starts walking, humming to herself.