Mission of Stealth

[Scarlet]

He's only thinking of what's best... I know that... I really shouldn't be so stressed out... everything will go great, just like I've planned it. She allowed herself to relax a little. The sound of Firestripe's voice sounded soothing as it reassured her. She was heartened by his words of "tearing down the mountain"- it wasn't a mere gesture meant to console her; she felt the truth behind his words. Suddenly, a wave of realization hit her like a cement wall. They could die. They could be killed. The mortality of their very being was vivid now. It wasn't about dying that she was suddenly afraid of. No no, it was the fact that this could be the last time they were ever together; either one, or both, of them could be killed on such a dangerous mission. This could be it.

She turned, leaning around Firestripe to set her glass down on her desk. Taking his face in her paws she gazed into his red eyes. " I know I've said it over and over again, but I can't say it enough. I love you. And I trust you. And if you think that Jaazer coming along is a good idea, I'll try my very best not to let it throw me off. Because if that happens and our cover is blown and something terrible ends up happening to you..." She knew she didn't need to finish. It was clear enough how she felt, and what was going through her mind. Being so emotional in one day was exceptionally tiring on Scarlet's mind. But with the heightened sense of upcoming danger, the anxiety, the stress, the love, the fear.... it all just outed itself in these weird little speeches of love or distress, of fear or excitement. It certainly wasn't what Scarlet was used to.

[Firestripe]

*Firestripe just gazed down back into Scarlet's eyes with a loving smile upon his face.* "All you need to do is worry about yourself. I'm just making an angry face at the badger lord to get his attention. You'll be the one in danger, ya know." *He said, putting his hands around her waist to draw her closer. He wanted to feel her closeness as long and as much as possible because, just as Scarlet had said, this could be their last time together. It seemed like reality had sunk in for her and, to be honest, he wish that it hadn't. He'd rather her do her own thing and leave the worrying to him.*

"Besides, even if the fighting does start, I'll be fine. I've fought badgers before." *He said with a wink. Of course, he failed to tell her how said fight with said badger had actually gone. He'd barely survived and the rest of the group he'd been with had been completely wiped out. That being said, he wasn't even thinking about that so there'd be no way, absolutely NO WAY for Scarlet to realize that there was something amiss with his words. No way at all. None.[/font]

[Scarlet]

Wrapping her arms about Firstripe for the third time that day, Scarlet felt comforted by his words. She just wanted to be held by him for forever, or at least until they had to get ready for the heist.
"I can't help but worry about you at least a little bit, darling." She smiled up at him, then buried her face in his soft black fur.
I think someday... someday I may have the strength to leave all of this pirating business behind, and live somewhere with him... Somewhere where we can be safe, and happy, and with eachother all of the time... Someday...
Scarlet calmed her fears with these thoughts, and the warmth of their embrace. She felt... Safe. Anytime she was in his arms, safety was the first thing she felt. Like nothing in the world could touch her, could touch them. That they were almost frozen in time, unreachable, distant and happy. She'd never felt anything like it before.
Tilting her head up, she looked deep in Firestripe's eyes. It's funny how someone can become almost addicted to staring into someone's eyes. He had the most capturing gaze that enthralled her completely. Carefully going up on tiptoes, she kissed him gently on the cheek. A sweet, loving gesture that one would certainly not expect from such a Captain. It's almost as if Firestripe had tamed her, had turned her into more of a girl than the fierce piratess she was. Love truly does soften the soul.

[Firestripe]

*Firestripe felt electrified by Scarlet's kiss, even if it was only on the cheek. He loved the togetherness he felt with Scarlet. He loved everything to do with Scarlet, even the annoying stuff, which there wasn't much of. He couldn't think of a life without her now and dreaded the day that such a reality would exist for either of them. For now, however, he would savor this feeling and let it spur him on towards their future together. He would live for that until there was no more life left in him. He certainly hoped there was some sort of afterlife so that even then he'd be able to be with her.*

"Let's be sure to live through this so that we can make a future together." *It wasn't a question, it was a statement. He'd make sure of that.*

-------------------Transition-------------------

*Firestripe put his arm around Scarlet's shoulders as they sailed away from Salamandastron, victorious yet agai-[/font]

OOC:
Scarlet: Oi, what are you doing Stripes? You just skipped past everything!

Firestripe: Eeeeeeh? I figured it'd be ok...

Scarlet: No no and no! We are doing this properly!

Firestripe: But couldn't we just...

Scarlet: No!

Firestripe: *sigh* Fine...


--------------------Transition--------------------

*It was night time, Scarlet and Jaazer were at the longboat preparing to leave. Firestripe was there to see them off. He shook Jaazer's paw and gave him a pat on the shoulder.* "Good luck out there my friend." *He said with a friendly smile. He was of course worried about them but was also confident that they would do just fine.*[/color][/font]

*Jaazer was nervous. He about to spend an entire night alone with a beast with a bad attitude that didn't much care for him. To be honest, he didn't really dislike Scarlet, there was obviously something good about her for Firestripe to have fallen in love with, he just didn't understand why she disliked him so. He shook the paw that Firestripe offered and was glad for the encouragement.* "Thanks." *He said simply.*[/font]

[Scarlet]

This is it. Scarlet thought. The excitement that she felt earlier that day came rushing back. There was the fear nagging at the back of her mind though; the fear of everything going wrong and losing the person she loves. But she pushed it away, determined not to let it interfere with the task at hand. This will bring me that one step closer to my dream... Her paws tingled with anticipation.

Scarlet didn't want to linger here, with goodbyes or good lucks, or any such sentiments. It would only cause her to think again of how dangerous it all was. She hopped into the longboat, her cloak and ears in a waterproof satchel over her shoulder. She set it down in the boat, and stood there, paws on hips, waiting for Jaazer to get in as well. She looked at Firestripe, a small smile on her lips. Everything will be okay. She told herself. She was armed with her cutlass and pistol, and a small dagger, but she knew even with her and Jaazer's skills combined, she knew... Scarlet set her jaw firmly. She was ready.

[Firestripe]

*Noticing that Scarlet was waiting for him, Jaazer hopped in behind her with his satchel over his shoulder and a pistol at his hip. That was the only weapon he carried and even that was at Firestripe's insistence, he just didn't feel the need for weapons. He was still nervous but he was starting to have a good feeling about this. Maybe if I do well here then she'll start to trust me. That thought was on the verge of lightening his mood when suddenly he remembered, I'm a traitor. Sobered at the thought, he waited for their send off.*

*Firestripe had been feeling confident in this, feeling confident that he'd be able to see Scarlet off with happy farewell and a see you soon. As he saw the small smile she gave him, though, a wave of nausea hit and he suddenly felt like throwing up. What am I doing, letting her go off and do something like this? He knew the answer to that already but suddenly the wound was raw again and he could feel the pain it caused all to well. He gave her a confident nod, trying to mask the pain, and lowered the longboat into the water.*[/font]

[Scarlet]

Scarlet kept her eyes glued to Firestripe as he lowered their boat until she could see him no more. She kept a firm handle on her emotions- She wasn't about to let them get the best of her again. Sitting down, she grabbed the oars in both paws and started their long row to the mountain side. In the dark, it was hard to make out the small details that marked the cave entrance into the mountain; an egg shaped lump in the rocky cliff. Well there would be plenty of lumps, Scarlet knew. It could take hours before they found the one. But they had all night, so Scarlet wasn't particularly worried about time.
"You got everything with you?" She asked Jaazer curtly. She hadn't even checked to make sure the beast hadn't foolishly forgotten anything. She rowed steadily, her strong arms guiding the oars smoothly through the water, which was a little choppy, but really not that bad at all. Under the cover of night, they would be practically invisible out there on the water. Scarlet was glad though that once they got close enough under the mountain they could light a small lantern; The dark didn't set well with her...

[Firestripe]

"Yes m'am." *Jaazer replied as he pushed his oar through the water, he would be less than useless if he didn't at least have those things. In the dark that surrounded them, he finally felt peace. It was almost like he was alone, apart from the sound of Scarlet's breathing and the tiny splashes her oar made. He could hide in this blackness. He could hide his feelings, hide from his feelings. Here, he was strong. He could tell himself that lie and almost believe it. Almost was enough.*[/font]

*Firestripe watched the longboat until it was no longer visible. He tilted his head back with closed eyes, putting his emotions in check. It was going to be a long night and there wasn't much to take his mind off Scarlet. He wasn't like her, he didn't have a goal to set his sights on so that he could hide from the pain. The only thing he had to set his sights on was her and it killed him seeing her go into something so obviously dangerous willingly. Geez, I really am weak, aren't I? He thought to himself in a resigned manner. He leaned on the railing in front of him and stared into the darkness where Scarlet's longboat vanished, feeling utterly alone.*[/font]

[Scarlet]

They continued on in silence. Scarlet wasn't about to try to make conversation with Jaazer; What would they talk about? It would have been nice if Firestripe would have insisted on sending someone else, someone who I could actually talk to... It was going to be a very long night, and even longer without being able to chat or anything- Just complete silence besides maybe a slight word or two. She rowed her oar in silence, not even glancing at the young ferret. As long as he did his job of being her shadow, she was okay with him being there, even though he made her feel in her stomach the feeling that means "I can't trust him". It wasn't a very pleasant feeling at all, and it only made her feel more alone out there in the darkness.
___________________________________________________
Transition to the following dawn
___________________________________________________

Scarlet woke with a start from where she had fallen asleep, sitting in the floor of the long boat. It was finally dawn. She and Jaazer had a very uneventful night; They didn't talk much, and once they had found the entrance to the cave, all that was left to do was get some shut eye before the morning. She wasn't really what you would call well rested, but she was better off than she would have been if she had been awake all night. She yawned, and shivered- The mountain cast a shadow over the water where they sat and it caused the dawn to be rather cold, the warmth of the sun not reaching them.

[Firestripe]

*Jaazer heard rustling behind him and a yawn, it seemed Scarlet was awake. He was crouched in the longboat with his back to Scarlet, keeping watch and meditating at the same time. He had been in this position ever since she had gone to sleep and his fur, glistening, was still wet from the morning fog that had already passed. He liked meditating to focus his mind and calm his nerves and block out pain and emotion; he'd need all of those things for what was to come. If he had time, he preferred to meditate before any sort of conflict or mission so that he'd be at peak performance. He'd keep this state throughout the mission so that he could make quick, intelligent decisions on the fly without delay.*[/font]

*As expected, Firestripe hadn't been able to sleep at all that night. He'd switched numerous times between pacing, staring into the darkness and planning for all that could go wrong. He worried way too much, and he knew it, but he didn't care. If he stopped worrying that meant he stopped caring and he would never stop caring. Now, however, it was about time to get things started. He roused the crew to get the ship sailing. He had made sure to keep it out of site so that Salamandastron wouldn't have any prior warning to their arrival. The Nightpearl drifted around the bend of the coast and Salamandastron came into view. Now was the time Firestripe to put on his face of confidence, and he was confident. He was confident that he'd do whatever it took to see Scarlet to safety, even if it meant his death.*[/font]