A Meeting Looms

Theo was face down on the bed, cheek squished against one pillow. One arm was draped over the bed and the other came out to rest over Ava's belly. Theo began to shift awake when she felt a hand tickling at the back of her neck. She mumbled out a few noises and smacked her lips together sleepily. The hand did not stop and she felt her hair get brushed to the side, the cold morning air hitting her exposed neck. Theo made a loud grumbling noise and shifted her head from one side to the other, trying to rid herself of the pest touching her.

She heard a soft giggle from above her and she cracked one eye open to see Ava staring right at her and she closed her eyes again. It was Ava's hand that was playing with the small hairs at the nape of her neck and Theo attempted to wiggle around as best she could to get the hand away. A louder laugh emerged and Theo frowned.

"Ava, let me sleep," Theo murmured and the touches stopped.

"My name is no longer Ava, it's Red" Ava reminded Theo and Theo didn't want to give up on more sleep but it seemed like she had to.

"That was my nickname for you, what am I going to do for a nickname if Red is your name?" Theo said, sleep laced in her voice and eyes still closed.

"Call me something new," Ava suggested, obviously.

"Mmkay," Theo said and flipped onto her side, back facing Ava.

She felt Ava shift from her side of the bed and came up behind Theo, looping an arm under Theo's to spoon her. Ava placed a soft kiss on the back of Theo's neck and then rested her forehead against Theo's back. Theo was naked from the night before and so was Ava, their warm skin pressed up against each other provided relief from the biting morning air.

After a little while, Theo's body began to wake up. She shifted a bit and her movements alerted Ava that Theo was just a little more awake than earlier. Theo felt a finger tracing her back.

"What do your tattoos mean?" Ava asked, not even waiting before Theo woke up to begin with her questions.

"You really try my patience, huh exal" Theo teased and flipped around, facing Ava for the first time that morning.

"Exal?" Ava asked and pushed some hair out of Theo's eyes.

"Aye," Theo propped herself up on one shoulder and leaned over Ava, placing a soft kiss on her lips, "new nickname for you, as requested."

"What does it mean?" Ava tried to hide the blush that came with the sudden attention from Theo but it was etched in her face.

"Means red in Aelizan," Theo lied. It didn't mean that and Ava would find out eventually but the name had slipped out and she felt weird about Ava knowing the true meaning, even if they were on the same page with their feelings.

"Cute," Ava commented with a large grin and pulled Theo in for another kiss. Theo was more than happy to give in.

Waking up had its upsides at times. Theo pressed her lips repeatedly against Ava's for quick consecutive kisses and by the third one, Ava was laughing against her lips. An angelic sound to hear so early in the morning. Theo pulled away from her assault on Ava's lips and began to move her lips down, across Ava's jaw and down her neck. Theo felt Ava's breath catch in her throat and Theo smirked against the crease between Ava's collarbone and neck.

"Theo," Ava gasped out, "don't start anything you can't finish."

Theo would have made a remark about how she had every intention of finishing what she had started but she realized she couldn't. She had no idea what time it was or how long it would be until they needed to start getting ready. So Theo backed off, lips lifting from the pale skin under her.

"Fine," Theo conceded and stared down at the redhead who hadn't stopped smiling all morning.

"Will you answer my question?" Ava asked, innocently batting her eyelashes.

Theo laughed, "About the tattoos? Sure. Which one do you want to know about?"

Ava snaked an arm around Theo's shoulders and tapped on the spot behind Theo's neck, where she had been touching earlier.

"The one on the bottom is the symbol of the Roamers. It's like a pass to get me into underground smuggling circles and the one above it is a traditional tattoo that Aelizan rebels used to wear to identify each other," Theo reached a hand back and rubbed over them.

"Smuggling circles?" Ava questioned.

"Aye," Theo nodded, "it allows me to do business with people who deal with smuggling contraband. They've also got a strict code and won't interact with anyone that doesn't have the tattoo."

"Are roamers not the same as traders?"

"No," Theo shook her head, still sometimes surprised at the general lack of knowledge Ava displayed from time to time, "they deal with different things. Traders deal with-"

Theo was cut off as the door swung open. Theo quickly pushed away from Ava and reached an arm under the bed to pull out the falchion. She pointed it towards the doorway to see Xyra looming in the doorway, papers in one hand and a large tankard in another. She was looking down at the papers making no move to look up at what was going on around her.

Theo glanced back at Ava to see her turn red as a strawberry and hide under the covers. At the noise Theo's shuffling around made, Xyra looked up and between the two figures on the bed. If she thought anything of it, she showed none of it on her face. Xyra returned to the papers in her hand and a minute passed in silence. Theo was frozen on the bed with Ava next to her. Theo looked over at Ava and Ava looked at Theo from her place under the covers and they both shared bewildered looks.

"Xyrabellis?" Theo questioned.

Xyra glanced up from her papers and took a sip from her tankard. She raised an eyebrow, wondering why she was called. Theo rolled her eyes and reached over to grab at the floor until she found pants. She slipped them under the covers, put them on, and got out of bed. Her arm coming up across her chest to cover where she was exposed. Theo walked up to Xyra, turned her around, and pushed her out of the open door.

"You can return in five minutes," Theo said and shut the door behind her friend. Xyra and Cooker knew no personal boundaries sometimes but Theo would be lying if she claimed she did. Theo had pulled the exact same stunt on Navi and Xyra multiple times.

"Sorry, Red," Theo mumbled and walked to her discarded shirt and slipped it on.

"Could've been worse. At least I was under the covers," Ava chuckled and also started to pull on her clothes.

They got dressed in silence and Theo stretched out and let out a yawn once she was done. She plopped down on the large armchair that was in the room next to the fireplace and began to work on getting the room warm.

"There is breakfast downstairs," Theo said and looked over at Ava to catch a glimpse of her getting reading.

"I'm probably going to skip out on breakfast and head to the ship to grab a change of clothes. How far is the ship from here?" Ava asked as she pulled on her boots.

"Far," Theo poked the growing fire with a metal pole, "If you know what you want to wear you can just have Oceane bring it to you."

"I can do that?"

"Aye, you are part of the officers that sit in on the meeting which means the others help us get ready for that. We're going to need you here for strategizing so when she goes to grab my clothes she can grab yours too," Theo held her hands out to get warmed by the fire, "go on downstairs and fill up. It'll be a long sun."

Ava listened and walked out of the room. Once the door opened, Xyra let herself back inside. Xyra walked over to the second armchair near the fire, eyes never wandering from the papers in front of her. She crashed into a small table on her way over before safely sitting down. Theo laughed a bit and snapped her fingers a few times. Xyra finally looked up from whatever had her so interested.

"Morning," Xyra greeted and took a sip of her drink.

"What is that?" Theo asked about the drink but Xyra had already been taken back in by her papers. Instead of answering she held the tankard out for Theo to take.

Theo reached over and took it then sniffed it. Her nose scrunched up in disgust and her tongue came out of her mouth trying to rid herself of the aroma that has permeated her senses. She handed it back to Xyra. She had hoped it was juice or something nicer so she could cure the dry mouth she had.

"I will never understand why you go with T'lio root," Theo commented. T'lio root when boiled into a drink produced an awakening effect. It kept the user alert and wiped sleepiness. However, it wasn't the only drink that did that. T'lio root was bitter and nasty to drink but Xyra insisted on it compared to its milder tasting comparisons.

"And I will never understanding why you pick more issues with me about drinking T'lio root than you do with Cooker for snorting shit," Xyra said and looked up from her papers, "Speaking of, has Cooker come by with the agenda yet?"

"No, you're the first one I've seen this morning," Theo leaned back in the armchair and closed her eyes, relaxing for what would be the last peaceful moment for the foreseeable future, "Did you sleep last night?"

Theo asked just to confirm what she already knew. It was going to be a no. Which is why Xyra had T'lio root so early in the morning.

"No," Xyra confirmed, "was going around collecting intel on people. I've got stuff we can use against Bortyle so he won't be a problem during the meeting."

"Do I wanna know?" Theo asked.

"Best you stay out of it. I've got it handled," Xyra assured her and that was all Theo needed. She trusted her first mate to take care of business effectively. If she said Bortyle would not be a vocal part of the minority later, then he wouldn't be.

"I told Red I had feelings for her last night," Theo said, her eyes still closed.

"So, it's progressed from just sleeping together?" Theo heard Xyra put her papers down on the side table.

Theo cracked an eye open. She had assumed that from the way Xyra had reacted to them sleeping together, she would have been fine with this progression but her tense tone proved otherwise.

"Aye," Theo nodded, "I think so."

Xyra stayed quiet for a second and Theo could tell she was thinking long and hard about something. She had her distant face on, the cogs turning in her head and filtering through a million different things at once. Xyra's brain and the way it worked was not something Theo was envious of. Eventually, Xyra picked the papers back up and cleared her throat.

"If it is okay with you, just for my peace of mind, I want to look further into her past. Just to confirm what she's told us and that she has no ties to anyone," Xyra attempted to ask nonchalantly.

Theo sat up a bit, her blood going a bit cold, "You've been on the Ava boat for a while now. What's with the sudden switch? Should I be worried?"

"No," Xyra shook her head, "nothing like that. Just paranoid. I want to make sure we cover all of our bases. I let Viv slip through the cracks last time and I won't let something like that happen again. I'm sure Ava is not a spy but..."

"But there is always a possibility," Theo finished for her, she didn't want to agree to it but Xyra had a point. , "Fine."

Theo nodded but felt a bit guilty at giving Xyra the go-ahead to inquire about Ava's past behind her back but it was just to be safe. After a few minutes, she looked at the fire before posing her next question.

"You think she's ready?"

"For the meeting? Aye, she's got a sharp eye," Xyra nodded and then went back to her readings. Whatever was on those pages was a loss to Theo but Xyra was trying to figure out her game plan to move on Bortyle with the information she had.

Two bickering voices were crossing the threshold. Theo glanced back to see a messy-haired, sleepy Cooker, and a disgruntled Ava. Cooker was stuffing her mouth with a pastry and talking through a mouthful of food, her other hand also full of pastries. Ava was holding a large plate of pastries and bread in her hands as she made her way over to where Xyra and Theo were. Ava set the plate down on the table between the two armchairs.

"There was more but Cooker kept swiping the pastries," Ava glared up at the unapologetic officer and then took a piece of bread for herself.

Theo made use of the offer of food and grabbed herself a few pieces. She nibbled on the bread she swiped and the room fell silent. The four of them all in a room together with no noise present was a rarity and Theo attributed it to the early morning. Cooker walked over to the table with the pastries and pushed the plate aside to clear a place for her own things. Cooker knelt down, took a small satchel out of her bag, and sprinkled some of its contents on the table.

Theo saw the light orange powder and instantly recognized it as damiam. She reached a hand out and covered the powder before Cooker had a chance to touch it.

"Don't you think it's a bit early for that?"

"Gotta get my brain up and running," Cooker pushed Theo's hand away and Theo sat by and watched as Cooker snorted the powder on the table as best she could.

"What is that?" Ava walked over and squatted down, nosily peeking around to try and got a good look.

"Drugs," Cooker said and sniffled, "want some?"

Ava looked over to Theo to see if it was advisable. Theo shook her head a bit, "I wouldn't."

"What does it do?"

"Makes you high strung and jittery," Xyra said.

At the same time, Cooker said, "Makes you faster and smarter."

"Oh, I'm good then?" Ava said, in a concerned tone and shook her head, "Why are you using that?"

"She sits as Uncilo's advisor during the meeting," Xyra said, used to helping Ava with her questions by then, "claims she needs it to stay focused."

"Advisor to Uncilo and historical expert to all, thank you very much," Cooker said as she put her satchel away and plopped onto the wooden floor below her. Cooker reached into her coat pocket and retrieved a sealed piece of paper, "The agenda."

Cooker held it out between her fingers and Xyra leaned over and snatched it, quickly breaking the seal and scanning the paper.

"There are three points on this agenda," Xyra looked up from it and over at Cooker.

"Aye, that is what Uncilo wants to talk about," Cooker nodded and crossed her arms.

"You were there for most of the night," Xyra commented, "this is all you came up with?"

"Oi, I don't see how a small agenda is a bad thing," Cooker defended, "Plus, Uncilo was the one that kept taking shit off the agenda. We tried to add more things but he insisted this was our only priority right now."

A small agenda was out of the ordinary. Their semi-length pirate meetings covered a wide variety of issues each time they met and pushing all of that off completely was a bit worrying. With classifications coming around the corner, meeting as a council and discussing pirate matters like political happenings and trade routes were of utmost importance. Theo wanted to see the agenda for herself. She reached out and took it from Xyra's hand while Xyra and Cooker were engaged in a squabble over nothing, they were both tired and high strung; Theo was sure this was not going to be the first fight of the day.

Her eyes scanned the page. The first item was to discuss who had been targeted and how, moving along after that to theories as to what was going on and then ending the meeting with a solution to the problem. It may have been short but Theo had a gut feeling that this would not be a one-sun event. They were in for a rough few suns. Theo made a noise of approval at the agenda that had been decided on and folded the piece of paper.

The squabbling came to a sudden stop and when she looked over at the bickering pair, two shocked faces greeted her. Cooker almost looked perturbed and Xyra bewildered. Theo looked around the room to see what the fuss was about but there was nothing. Looking back she confirmed they were focused on her. Neither made a move to speak. Theo raised an eyebrow at them and Cooker's eyes simply fluttered between the paper and Theo. Theo opened the paper again and realized what the situation was. The agenda had been written in Common and she had easily read and understood it.

Fuck.

Theo had never gotten around to telling them that she was learning, and doing so pretty rapidly. She hadn't been ready to tell them either. They would make it a big deal and ask too many questions and Theo wanted to avoid that. Further, she knew deep down they would feel hurt that she had gone to someone else for help and that someone besides them knew her secret. She opened her mouth to say something but a loud and cheery voice entered the room, saved by Morgana.

"A great morning to you fuckers!" Morgana clapped as she entered the room and went straight to the fireplace to warm her hands up.

The entrance did not mean Theo was not still being stared at but she paid her two best mates no mind.

"You ready for your first meeting?" Morgana asked Ava.

"Once I am told what to do and what is going on, I will be," Ava laughed a bit.

"I must say, whoever your teacher was, was awful at it," Morgana reached down and squeezed Ava's shoulder.

"I couldn't divulge any information to her until she was a pirate. Once your ugly ass gets out of here and stops being a distraction, she can begin to get filled in on what's happening," Xyra quipped.

"I'm staying. I love meeting prep. Pearl and Navi are coming later too," Morgana said and then stepped away from the fire, deeming her hands warm enough, and dove onto the bed in the room, "free entertainment."

"The sun is shining, there is no fog, and we are in Corinpse!" another cheery voice entered the room and Theo found it hard not to smile at it, "Good morning, everyone."

"Good Morning, Oceane," Xyra answered, always nicer to Oceane than she was with anyone else.

"I am here to take orders for clothes," Oceane made her way into the room and sat in Theo's abandoned armchair.

"My outfit has been set aside. It's on my bed," Theo stated.

"I don't have shit prepared, you can go through my clothes and pick something for me," Cooker said.

"Aye," Xyra nodded, "same for me."

"Can you also pick something out for me?" Ava asked, a sweet smile on her face as if she needed to convince Oceane. She didn't.

Oceane was only sitting for a moment before she bounced right up out of the chair and stomped her feet a few times excitedly, "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

She bent down to where Cooker was and planted a kiss on her lips. She walked to Xyra and attempted to do the same but Xyra ducked away with a laugh. Oceane then sauntered over the Theo and gave her large, saucer eyes. Oceane's bottom lip jutted out.

"No," Theo responded bluntly and crossed her arms. Oceane didn't wipe the face, "No, you can't pick out my clothes. I've already chosen."

"Please captain, I'll make you look good," Oceane promised and put her hands together, pleading.

"I dress myself, Oceane," Theo reminded Oceane, as she did every time they had to get ready for a meeting.

"Good Morning!" another voice announced their presence, this time it wasn't her crew "I've come to check on my favorite pirate crew. Besides my own, of course."

Captain Blue was a few feet into the room, the same clothes as the night before were on. Captain Blue never slept anywhere except his ship and they were far from there. Same clothes, sleeping away from his ship, and coming in so close to Oceane; the scene in front of Theo screamed that they had shared a secret sexcapade night. The other girls, by the looks of it, didn't catch the hints.

Theo smirked a bit as she looked away from Blue and over to Oceane. Oceane was looking between Blue and Theo, a look of dread on her face. Oceane knew Theo knew. Theo leaned in a bit to whisper, "Better go escort your boyfriend back to his ship before anyone else puts together the puzzle pieces and realize that you're fucking him."

Oceane backed away from Theo with narrowed eyes and flash of her tongue. She quickly walked to Blue who was exchanging pleasantries with Morgana, clutched him by the arm and began to walk out, "Let's go."

The door shut behind them and after a few moments, Morgana shot up in the bed and gasped, "Oh my gods! They're sleeping together!"

-------

They had been in Theo's room for hours. It was nearing time to leave for the meeting and they had covered a lot of ground. Navi and Pearl had joined in, Oceane had come back with clothes sans Blue, and Cooker had consumed what seemed like too many drugs too early in the sun. Ava figured out that Cooker would not be sitting with them or working on behalf of the Scorned Woman. Uncilo had chosen her, as he did most meetings, to sit as his advisor and the resident history checker. Cooker knew a lot and her encyclopedic knowledge came in handy at times.

Ava was told she would be the eyes and Xyra the ears. Ava's job was to observe and take notes; who was speaking the most, what tone did they have, what were the interactions between captain's and their officers like, what were interactions between captains like, who was weak in their decision making and who was not. If something came down to a vote, Ava's notes would be the basis for their work whipping undecided or opposing pirates. Ava realized that this was no different than politics in The Center. Except, it seemed discussion was allowed more freely here.

Xyra's job was to listen to what was being said, what was being suggested, what could be twisted or emphasized and relay that to her Captain. Theo's job was to do whatever she needed to do to support Uncilo and help adopt rational solutions. Ava wondered what Uncilo would be like. She imagined a skinny, gnarly man, as ugly as the crimes he committed. Ava didn't know him but the hate was still there. She seemed alone in this sentiment, not a bad word was ever spoken about him.

Cooker and Theo went back and forth the most. Both of them bringing up theory, history, and personal experience to strategize how to guide the conversation when it came to solutions. Ava couldn't keep up, most of what they said was just jargon and they were speaking too fast to catch it all. In addition, sometimes their conversations would interchange Common words for words from other languages effortlessly. Xyra would pop into the conversation every once in a while but for the most part, she was like Ava, on the outs.

Xyra and Ava eventually made it back onto the large bed with the others, leaving Cooker and Theo to their own devices. Ava started practicing her observations, starting on Navi and Xyra. The tension between them was intense. Navi kept staring at Xyra but Xyra wouldn't face her. Ava had desperately wanted to know what had happened between them but no one had spilled. Finally, after what seemed like a good observation session, they were ready to leave.

Ava had been pushing the nerves and fear of failure aside and doing pretty well at it, but it caught up to her. As they walked out of the inn, the butterflies started. She fidgeted with her hands the whole way to their destination. They walked for quite a while and even had to trek up a small mountain where their destination was waiting for them. They entered a beautiful, giant stone feat of architecture. It looked like a castle but it was embedded in the mountain range. Ava looked around in awe as they passed highly decorated walls, gaudy paintings, and armored mannequins. Theo led them through large, wide hallways until they arrived at a large set of wooden double doors and opened them.

Walking inside, they were the first crew to arrive. The room was spacious with a massive round wooden table that took up the majority of the room. There were chairs lining the rest of the room, pressed up against the walls. There was only one other figure sitting at the other end of the room, a gray Captain's hat. It was Captain Uncilo and while he was old, stark white hair and a thick white beard, he was tall and strong and not at all what Ava had expected. He flashed a warm grin.

"Sit. We have things to discuss before others get here."