Closed Catching Wind (Garland)

[April Windweaver]

WINTER 17th, 514 AV

April was still out of breath by the time she had gotten into her casual clothes.

She looked over at Garland with a huge smile, her chest still heaving. "Thanks for coming over, Garland. A morning workout was just what I needed." A sly smile split across her lips. "Maybe next time we can bring a mat. And some barbells"

She had to stretch out her arms and legs to keep from getting sore. Those squats did a number on her thighs. And her arms were all swollen from the reps. She felt out of shape. It had been quite a long time since she had done any serious training. They should start a routine, maybe work in a few new techniques every couple of days to keep things fresh. Yeah. That'd be nice.

"Right, so... ah! Yes! Tosca! We were going to clean out the ship. I've done most of the work already. And by most I mean some. And by some... I mean... uhm... I moved all the clothes into one pile"

She gave a sheepish smile and rubbed the back of her neck. She had gotten a little distracted along the way, but with Garland here she might be able to get back on track. Though, to be honest, there wasn't too much besides standard dusting and cobweb removing. Most of the stuff in storage was just junk April collected during her travels and was unable to part with. Getting her to part with some of the stuff would be the most difficult part of their day.

[b]"C'mon, Let's take a look"[/b[ Her head disappeared past the trap door and into the dimly lit hold beneath the deck of the ship. It was a tad larger than April's cabin, but most of it was stuffed full of barrels whose contents held little to no value outside of a scrap shop. She was a bit of a hoarder.

[Garland]

He was still in a bit of a shock at what happened, though. Their "exercising" was rather eye-opening, along with other things that were opened. He saw his jacket he had lent her, hung on a chair near the corner. He would need to remember to pick it up later. He looked around and saw that it was a bit more tidy in here, though clothes and such were still littered about, but in a slightly more organized fashion.

He was returned to his senses when she started talking to him. "W-Well... B-Barbels?" He asked nervously, he was rather new to this, he understood the need of a mat, but a barbel?

He was still in a strange daze of sorts, though it was more like his mind was conserving power instead of shutting down. He came here for something... He couldn't remember what for though. He needed to wake up, and focus on the task at hand.

"Right, so... ah! Yes! Tosca! We were going to clean out the ship. I've done most of the work already. And by most I mean some. And by some... I mean... uhm... I moved all the clothes into one pile"

"Y-yeah, it does look and feel a tiny bit cleaner in here. Then again, the cleanest room I've ever been in is my friend's room, which really had like nothing in it. You should see my room, one corner is just a mountain of stuff." He said, his mind slowly starting to return to him.

He lit a candle that was on the table and followed April down to through the trapdoor, trying to keep his head from hitting the floor on the way down. "Please don't tell me you have any explosives here, I don't want to accidentally blow up Tosca."

And as if the boat heard him, a pot that was hanging over head landed on Garland's head. "Ow!" He said and rubbed his head. "Anyway... What's in these barrels anyway? Treasure? Old loot?" He asked with a childlike curiosity.

[April Windweaver]

"Explosives? Pfft, naw. Well, I mean except for the barrels full of dynamite and oil." She looked back to gauge his expression, stifling a giggle. "Just kiddin'. Mostly old clothes and moldy food I haven't thrown out yet. Don't eat anything until I give it the okay. Don't want you puking all over the ship."

The first crate she opened up let loose a plume of dust that settled on everything else in the room. April coughed and waved her hand as she tried to survey the contents.

Clothes, from her younger years. Far too tattered to be used, and far too small to be worn. She might be able to sell them as bulk scrap, but for hardly anything more than a silver coin. Plus, they had too much sentimental value for her to get rid of. She'll store it away somewhere else. There was no way she could part with something she had on her body for so long.

The next crate was full of rotten meat, and April had to clasp a hand to her mouth to keep from puking. She stumbled back and held onto one of the barrels for support and looked dangerously close to passing out.

"Gh-blugh... chhh... petch... petch... Oh goddess... Huk!" She held part of her shirt to her nose and mouth to keep from breathing it in and used her foot to kick it down towards the trap door.

[Garland]

Garland went around and looked into the barrel filled with clothes. He, being a curious little devil that he is, dove right in and fished out... "Hehe... April, you wore THIS?" He held out a little pink dress, tattered and ripped, a long time ago this dress would have been beautiful, but give her a bell and April would have probably set this thing on fire.

He threw the dress into the barrel and followed April around, noting the dust and spiderwebs littered about, he reckoned that she hasn't cleaned out this boat in years. He brushed off a bit of dust and webs and such. It was mess down here, and it seems like this place didn't just need a good honest dusting, this needs the whole day of dusting and cleaning

He followed right behind her and peeked over her shoulder as she popped open another barrel. Garland almost puked when he saw the contents of the barrel. "April! Do you ever eat here! Next time buy some salt too, it keep the meat fresh." Garland went over and pulled the trapdoor open, covering his mouth as April kicked it down.

He let go of his nose and closed the trapdoor. "Ugh... Ummm... Where does that door lead anyway?" He asked and looked around the room, he could possibly find someplace to get her shirts and old clothes somewhere dry and such, maybe someplace in the city. It would be good for more space for her.

[April Windweaver]

April felt her cheeks grow hot as an iron. She hadn't worn that dress in years, maybe even a decade, but it still seemed to be only a few sizes smaller than her. If she really tried, she could fit into it. Thing is, it was so painfully pink and frilly that wearing it would probably make her melt into a puddle from embarassment.

"P-put that away! Goddess... I don't even dress like that anymore!" She snapped, slamming the lid on the barrel.

The rest of the cabin was so dusty that each step the two made caused plumes to rise up. It was near impossible to go any deeper without hacking up a lung.

K-kak... ghuh... geez... hold on" She lifted her shirt over her nose and pressed on, reaching one arm out to try and find the broom at the back of a pile of crates. Her first attempt netted her a rake, which she tossed behind her. Next was a shovel. Tossed that too. Finally she got the broom, bringing with it a spider so big it could have been mistaken for a rat.

It's body was furry and black, each of its red eyes staring out with murderous intent. And its fangs, nearly as big as a panther's.

"GYAAAAAAAAAAH!" She flung the broom back, the spider leaping off and onto the ceiling. Its spindly little feet scampered and scurried across the ceiling towards the stairs up. "KILL IT!" She yelled, chasing after it with the shovel. All of her swings missed spectacularly, one even going so far as to her her own knee. "PETCH!" She cluthced it and fell to the floor, pointing at the creature.

"Don't let the bastard escape!"

[Garland]

Garland gave a small smile when April looked red as a tomato. "I think you would look cute."

He covered his mouth and nose as the dust and smoke swam around the enclosed air. "Ugh... You need to put a window down here... Or what were those things called? The little flap things where the front of the cannon pops out? Those things." He said and noticed the particularly large number of spiderwebs.

As April began to throw things on the floor, including a rake, and shovel. I shovel he understood, but why did she need a rake? Were leaves a common thing here? And usually when you use a rake, you make a pile. Does she make leaf piles on the deck of her ship? Huh... "There seems to be a lot of spiderwebs here..."

When April finally had gotten the broom, and followed it by a scream and throwing it back, Garland looked at her with concern. "What's-Aghhh! What the Hai is that!" The giant black furry spider scurried across the ceiling of the ship, heading to the stairs, with April giving chase. Garland took the broom and followed her.

"It's like a tiny demon dog-rat thing." He noted and stifled a giggle as April hit her own knee.

"Don't let the bastard escape!"

"Don't worry, I got it!" He said and ran up the stairs. He looked around, trying to find the not-so-little hairy spider. "Where are you?" He felt a tingle on the back of his neck, the same feeling he gets when an enemy would sneak up behind him. He looked up and saw the spider mere inches from his face.

It was tense, very very tense... And then, the spider landed on his face. "AHHHH!" He screamed like a little girl and proceeded to smash his face with a broom. "Getitoffgetitoffgetitoffgetitoffgetitoffgetitoffgetitoff!!!" He yelled as he fell on the floor, hitting his face with the hairs of the broom, he then began to roll on the ground, trying to get the spider off his face.

[April Windweaver]

April hobbled up the stairs to her room, the smell of rotting meat now having filled her room, too. She could still feel pain surging through her legs, but it was ebbing away.

"Bleugh... euck... Where is that thing?!"

As if on queue, the spider rushed out of April's dirty laundry and towards the door, frantically trying to find an opening. Fortunately, the door was shut tight, and now the creature found itself cornered by the pirate and the squire. Its thorax pressed up against the door as they two drew near, casting long shadows over the creature.

Only the evil twinkle in April's eyes could be seen underneath the shade of her bangs. An evil grin stretched from one edge of her face to the other. The shovel, gripped tightly in her hands, gleamed in the candlelight. She was wielding it like an executioner's axe.

Desperate, the spider launched itself at April and knocked her to the ground, the shovel pirouetting through the air until it bounced off the far wall. The spider was now on April's chest, it's furry face right next to hers. Her heart just about leapt out her throat.

Her hands scrambled to find something solid to smack it with, and eventually came upon one of her shoes. She raised it up and was about to strike when she realized that the creature hadn't moved to attack her yet. It was still just sitting there. Menacingly. It made her hesitate. Was it waiting? Why? Why hadn't it bitten her? Or wrapped her in a web? Or laid eggs in her mouth or something?

She tried to get u, and the 8-legged beast skittered off her, keeping a safe distance from the two to avoid further punishment. The Svefra continued to eye it with equal parts curiosity and disgust.

"Garland... I'm kinda weirded out right now. Am I bitten? Did it bite me?" She spun around, looking under her clothes to look for a mark, but didn't find anything. She turned her attention to the arachnid. "Well... uh... alright... just gonna... stand here with a giant petch-off spider in my room... u-ghuhk... Garland, please do something about that meat? I'll watch our little friend here" She couldn't stand the rancid scent that was wafting from the crate. She could already feel vomit rising in her throat.

[Garland]

"Is it off? Ugh..." He got up and covered his nose. He followed April, cornering the not-so-little hairy spider, there was fear in its multitude of eyes, but there was also something else, determination maybe? It was weird to see such a little, simple creature with such determination to live, even so far as to jump into April's chest and knock her to the ground, he ducked under the shovel and he was about to smack the spider off April, but he'd rather not risk hitting April.

"Garland... I'm kinda weirded out right now. Am I bitten? Did it bite me?"

After a small stare down between the two, Garland took a deep breath, which was a big mistake with the stink of the rotten meat was too much. "Gross... N-No, I don't think so. Ughh..." He covered his mouth, feeling like his stomach wanted to eject the food onto the floor.

"Well... uh... alright... just gonna... stand here with a giant petch-off spider in my room... u-ghuhk... Garland, please do something about that meat? I'll watch our little friend here"

He took the barrel of rotten, rancid meat and carried it out, and dumped it overboard and into the icy water, even the fish seem to avoid it at first, he was tempted to throw the barrel off along with the rotten meat, it seemed that the smell had seeped into the barrel and would hold the smell forever. It wasn't his to throw, but he doubted April would like to have a barrel that smelled of rotten flesh.

He went back into the cabin and left the door open so that the smell would air out. "Is he still staring at you?" Garland bent down and slowly and carefully picked up the spider. "You're... so... cute! You're tiny feet tickles!" The spider started started climbing up Garland's arm, the fear was still there, but so was curiosity.

The spider started scampering up his arm and up his neck then into his hair. "He likes me, or wants to make a nest in my hair..." He said with a slight squeak in his voice. "Oh..." He placed his hand on his hair and the spider climbed on.

"Hey, April. Look, he's just a big softy." He saw a tiny piece of rotten meat that had fallen out of the barrel and picked it up. "Here you go, big fella." He gave the rotten meat to the spider and she took it happily. The spider scampered up to Garland's shoulder and just sat there. "Well... That was exciting. Should we continue cleaning up?" He said and acted as if nothing happened.

[April Windweaver]

She felt her eye twitch as Garland treated the creature like a pet, letting it crawl along his body. Its creepy, hairy legs scurrying up and down his arms and legs with Garland just standing there. She shuddered.

"Cute? Not... really. It's kinda creepy. Ugh..."

She took a step back, feeling a bit queasy with the spider, the meat, and the absurdity of her moment making her head spin. She had seen quite a bit of weird things in her life, but a meat-devouring, cat-sized spider was not one of them. And now that abomination was making friends with her boyfriend. April wasn't sure to feel jealous, happy, or disgusted.

The spider was happily eating the raw meat with a noise that made April want to crawl inside her self. It was sickly, like slurping, smacking, and chomping all combining into a symphony of grotesque sounds. She hated it. No matter how cute, adorable, and admittably innocent the thing was, her primal instincts told her to destroy it.

Her hands found the shovel again, and she brandished it at the beast with malice in her eyes. The spider crawled to Garland's back to escape her, with April still advancing as if to crush it with her makeshift weapon. She ran around to try and whack it off his back but instead it just leapt at her again and stuck to her face.

"KYAAAAAAAAAAA!" She screamed, arms flailing wildly as she ran in circles around the cabin. Her feet eventually got tangled up in some dirty laundry and she ended up face-first on the floor. Just before the impact, the spider jumped off and scurred up the wall.

Still determined, April squirmed back up to her feet and tried to climb the wall like a cat trying to chase a beam of light. She hissed and spat as her limbs hopelessly clung at the wood panels.

[Garland]

Garland just watched as April did her thing. It was actually quite amusing. The spider was already out of harm's way, but April's furious scampering on the walls were surely going to keep the spider at range for now. "I'll take him out if you want, April." He said and pulled April away and kissed her cheek. "Let's finish up cleaning at least, before you end up smashing a hole into a wall." With that he took the broom and went back down into April's storage of everything. He went over to one corner of the room and began sweeping.

The dust and stale air were just what Garland needed... He loved the fresh sea air of the docks, but the air inside April's storage was anything but fresh! He swept the dust from one side of the room to the other side, slowly making a small dust mound, about a centimeter or two off the ground.

"This place is filthy, and I thought I was messy..." He said to April and went over to one of the barrels. He opened the lid and saw that April had acquired a literal barrel full of weapons, though these weapons were beyond repair, rusted to a point that one attack could break them in two. Some of them were already broken and some were so blunted that a dented wooden sword would be more effective than this.

"Well, this is a treat... April, you're just a big hoarder, aren't you?" He took the barrel of weapons and carried it outside the ship. "We need to get rid of some of these at least. If I'm eventually gonna move in with you." He said with a wink and looked over the deck of the ship. He might as well swab the deck after they're done cleaning the cellar.

"She is a mighty fine ship... Though a little small I think." He said to April and went over to kiss her cheek. "Maybe we can go on a date... again. I would love to get to know you a bit more." He leaned in her ear. "And maybe treat you to something special, something... hard~" He gave a wink, and then laughed. "Right. I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself. Let's get this place cleaned up."