Frowning with mild confusion, Midnight shifts a bit closer, the beaded curtain rattling with his movements as he pushes his head and shoulders past the threshold.
"For what? You want contact with the spirits?" he asks, considering Grey's face. Perhaps he wanted to speak to a dead pirate to find the location of some hidden treasure, or to a departed lover. Perhaps he just wanted a palm-reading, ridiculous as it might be, but other sailors and pirates had come to the mage just for that.
It also doesn't escape his notice that Grey is clearly on edge (literally) with the mage, so... whatever it is he's after, it's important enough that he's pushing through his clear discomfort.
"We," Grey gestures towards the other assholes still hovering at the foot of the house, gazing up at them. "We are going to sail to the ends of the seas. Find a way to enter the underworld."
He leans a bit forward, as if to explain just how serious he is. "And I need you to guide us."
It's simple and it's rather terrifying in that simplicity. They could sail until they're old men and not get anywhere. There are certain pieces that they need to find the right spot, to find the way to pass the threshold.
Midnight's eyes widen with shock and he only briefly glances down at the other men before fixing on Grey's face again. He seems frozen for a moment, and then a nervous laugh slips past his lips in a breathy gust.
"The underworld? You're not serious-" he begins, nervous smile briefly curving his lips. "You're not supposed to go there, the living don't do well mixing with the dead..."
He glances down again, almost as if expecting the other two men to start grinning or laughing at the joke Grey must be telling, but then he freezes again, eyes narrowing as he stares at Ulysse. The other man just calmly stares up at him in turn, arms crossed, tilting his head towards Kai to say something or other about Midnight.
Catching himself, Midnight turns his attention back to Grey, but now he's distracted, because that man down below... No, it couldn't be...
"Do I seem like I'm joking?" Grey asks, his voice clearly annoyed, the way his jaw tightens speaking clearly for his irritation. "I didn't come here to get a lecture. You are either in or out."
Mages. He hates mages.
"We are going, and I'd rather just stop wasting both of our times. I will pay you your share of the spoils and for your consulting."
He offers his hand in order to shake on it. "Are you coming or not?"
The terse manner is getting to Midnight at last, which is odd in itself. The mage isn't one to get tense very easily, no matter how rude his guest, but somehow, Grey's getting under his skin and making him bristle.
"Listen here," he snaps back, brows drawing down sharply as he leans right into Grey's space himself, jabbing a finger at the pirate's chest. "You haven't told me anything about this harebrained plan of yours. How the hell do you think you're gonna get into the underworld? What do you intend to do there even if you do get in? You want my help, you're gonna need to tell me a lot more than you're offering."
The captain's eyes narrow as the mage gets close to him. He doesn't back down, far from it, instead his chin lifts in the most subtle way, but enough to suggest superiority. Grey's temper is never that far when it comes to mages, but this one just made a new record by pulling his strings.
"What do you think I'm hiring you for?" he asks, shoving away the hand that is poking at his chest. "Did you think I was coming here to offer you a luxury trip that was all planned and paid for? I have the ship, I have a interest to go there, the rest is still open for discussion."
His jaw clenches tight, grey eyes brewing up a full storm under furrowed brows. "If you need a lot of handholding in taking care of your job, don't bother to tag along."
"Handholding? I'm asking for some fucking information so I don't go swimming into the dark!" the mage hisses, slapping his shoved hand down on the deck but not moving away from Grey. "The last time I was on a ship, I was in chains as their private whore before I destroyed it and nearly drowned. You think I'm about to sign up on a trip with some stranger who refuses to give me a sound reason beyond-"
There's a flicker of... something that tugs at Midnight's attention, cutting him off as he looks around him with confusion. Whispers in his ears, reminiscent of waves lapping at the shore, tugging at his limbs, and then the mage's eyes are staring down at Ulysse again.
There's that flash of ocean blue flickering briefly in the other man's eyes and the whispers die down.
"... At least tell me why you're trying to go there," he finally says, voice considerably calmer and quieter than before, the rising tension and aggression subdued as he refocuses on Grey's face.
All of them, mages, unstable like this one. Unhinged. Grey stares at the mage with obvious disdain in his eyes, even his lip has curled a little up, over his teeth as if he wants to snarl.
"I don't care what you did in the past," he says silently, his voice a little hoarse from an attempt to keep it low and quiet. "I'm not going to chain you, as long as you keep yourself under control, we're good."
Then the mage suddenly calms down. This is exactly why Grey doesn't like working with them. They're unpredictable, taken in by the magic.
"Someone in there I need to talk with," he says roughly. "You do not need to know anything else."
He wants to yell it, to grab Grey by the shoulders and shake him, to make the daft pirate see some sense. Instead he closes his eyes, taking a deep, deliberate breath through his nose. A strong wind suddenly blows through the tree tops, making the hut shake for a moment before calming.
Spirit mages are unpredictable for that reason - they aren't fully tied into one element or the other, spirits of all vying for their attention, and sometimes a connection is made. It's the only reason Midnight was able to escape the last time at all, through an unhinged, desperate connection made to the storm that had nearly taken him down to the depths with the pirates.
He lets out a slow, slow exhale and the wind dies down completely, but his skin is left prickling, irritated and needing to scratch that itch which he very deliberately ignores as he focuses on the infuriating pirate in front of him.
"Fine. I'll meet you at your ship before sundown."
Grey is quite surprised to be honest. He didn't expect this one to be interested in the offer at all. Perhaps there's something he doesn't know about it, something this mage is hiding. His eyes narrow and he gazes at the man and his curly hair for a moment, perfect silence stretches between them.
"Alright," he says finally. And it's not a fond kind of agreement. It's terse and sharp around the edges. Grey turns so he can climb down, dropping himself already down from the little hut when he pauses, hands still clutching the edge of the floor as he levels a hard look at the mage.
"But cause me any trouble and I won't hesitate to control you myself. I'm not sailing with an unhinged mage."
Dark eyes narrow dangerously but Midnight's smile is saccharine sweet, a saucy wink flashed at Grey. The threat doesn't sit well with him and it takes a lot of self-control not to just kick Grey off the edge of his hut, but that wouldn't do.
"Threatening me with bondage already? Careful, captain, or people will talk," he retorts, tossing his hair and retreating into his home. He has to pack, after all.
"Maybe I'll just throw you overboard," Grey grumbles as he stares at the mage's back, all those irritating mocking gestures that the mage throws at him grinding right at this self-control.
It's going to be a very long trip in that boat with this jackass. A very long trip and definitely not enough space between them.
He lands on the smushy ground with a definite growl and marches past Kai and Ullyse, not saying a word but glaring at the former.
"Oh, that's interesting," Kai murmurs with a small smile and gazes up at the hut for a moment longer before following after Grey. "So, I think we have a mage?" he asks brightly. Grey grunts something at him and Kai's expression is positively devious as they walk along the blanks towards the boat.
"Whoever said sailing is boring?" Kai comments to Ulysse.
"Careful, otherwise I think the captain might throw you overboard, too," Ulysse jokes, smirking at Kai, putting out of his mind how the spirit had practically reared it's head in him when the mage's eyes met his from his hut in the trees.
Very interesting, indeed.
"10 gold pieces says they fuck before the month is out," he whispers to Kai, eyes dancing with delight.
"A month?" Kai tilts his head with a dirty little grin as he considers it, staring at Grey's back as they walk. "I'm going to stay it'll take two. I might lose this bet, but our brave captain can be a bit of a hardass..."
He laughs as they step into the boat, Grey fixating his glare at the river while Kai picks the oar next to Aidan and makes the man scoot over to make some room for him. He might be amused and full of mischief but the smile he gives Aidan is always warm and genuine, so fond it's hard to see anything but clear affection in it.
"Speaking of fucking," he says quietly, to Ulysse whose place is in front of them. "Your sea mage hasn't made it unclear to anyone whose pants he'd like to be in..."
Aidan lightly bumps shoulders with Kai in wordless greeting, brows rising as he listens in on the conversation.
While he's not one to publicly speak on these things, Ulysse knows these men well enough that it doesn't feel awkward and just gives Kai a small, quietly amused smile.
"Hasn't he? I think he's just curious and sniffing around, for now."
Kai can't resist the temptation of pressing his leg against Aidan's from thigh to calf while they pull on the oars right beside each other. It's those little things he's bargained with himself that he can have. He can pretend it's nothing but some innocent physical affection...
He snorts at Ulysse, though, then looks at Aidan to laugh at him: "Like when the asshole pretty much told me to get lost in the tavern so he could talk with our boy Ulysse here alone. That was him just sniffing around, you know."
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perhapstomorrow2020-01-25 10:33 pm
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It wasn't easy to admit to a mage that he needed one of them for anything at all but here he was, confessing it with a small twitch at his brow.
But this one, pretty with his curling hair, had something that Grey desperately needed.
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"For what? You want contact with the spirits?" he asks, considering Grey's face. Perhaps he wanted to speak to a dead pirate to find the location of some hidden treasure, or to a departed lover. Perhaps he just wanted a palm-reading, ridiculous as it might be, but other sailors and pirates had come to the mage just for that.
It also doesn't escape his notice that Grey is clearly on edge (literally) with the mage, so... whatever it is he's after, it's important enough that he's pushing through his clear discomfort.
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He leans a bit forward, as if to explain just how serious he is. "And I need you to guide us."
It's simple and it's rather terrifying in that simplicity. They could sail until they're old men and not get anywhere. There are certain pieces that they need to find the right spot, to find the way to pass the threshold.
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"The underworld? You're not serious-" he begins, nervous smile briefly curving his lips. "You're not supposed to go there, the living don't do well mixing with the dead..."
He glances down again, almost as if expecting the other two men to start grinning or laughing at the joke Grey must be telling, but then he freezes again, eyes narrowing as he stares at Ulysse. The other man just calmly stares up at him in turn, arms crossed, tilting his head towards Kai to say something or other about Midnight.
Catching himself, Midnight turns his attention back to Grey, but now he's distracted, because that man down below... No, it couldn't be...
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Mages. He hates mages.
"We are going, and I'd rather just stop wasting both of our times. I will pay you your share of the spoils and for your consulting."
He offers his hand in order to shake on it. "Are you coming or not?"
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"Listen here," he snaps back, brows drawing down sharply as he leans right into Grey's space himself, jabbing a finger at the pirate's chest. "You haven't told me anything about this harebrained plan of yours. How the hell do you think you're gonna get into the underworld? What do you intend to do there even if you do get in? You want my help, you're gonna need to tell me a lot more than you're offering."
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"What do you think I'm hiring you for?" he asks, shoving away the hand that is poking at his chest. "Did you think I was coming here to offer you a luxury trip that was all planned and paid for? I have the ship, I have a interest to go there, the rest is still open for discussion."
His jaw clenches tight, grey eyes brewing up a full storm under furrowed brows. "If you need a lot of handholding in taking care of your job, don't bother to tag along."
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There's a flicker of... something that tugs at Midnight's attention, cutting him off as he looks around him with confusion. Whispers in his ears, reminiscent of waves lapping at the shore, tugging at his limbs, and then the mage's eyes are staring down at Ulysse again.
There's that flash of ocean blue flickering briefly in the other man's eyes and the whispers die down.
"... At least tell me why you're trying to go there," he finally says, voice considerably calmer and quieter than before, the rising tension and aggression subdued as he refocuses on Grey's face.
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"I don't care what you did in the past," he says silently, his voice a little hoarse from an attempt to keep it low and quiet. "I'm not going to chain you, as long as you keep yourself under control, we're good."
Then the mage suddenly calms down. This is exactly why Grey doesn't like working with them. They're unpredictable, taken in by the magic.
"Someone in there I need to talk with," he says roughly. "You do not need to know anything else."
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He wants to yell it, to grab Grey by the shoulders and shake him, to make the daft pirate see some sense. Instead he closes his eyes, taking a deep, deliberate breath through his nose. A strong wind suddenly blows through the tree tops, making the hut shake for a moment before calming.
Spirit mages are unpredictable for that reason - they aren't fully tied into one element or the other, spirits of all vying for their attention, and sometimes a connection is made. It's the only reason Midnight was able to escape the last time at all, through an unhinged, desperate connection made to the storm that had nearly taken him down to the depths with the pirates.
He lets out a slow, slow exhale and the wind dies down completely, but his skin is left prickling, irritated and needing to scratch that itch which he very deliberately ignores as he focuses on the infuriating pirate in front of him.
"Fine. I'll meet you at your ship before sundown."
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"Alright," he says finally. And it's not a fond kind of agreement. It's terse and sharp around the edges. Grey turns so he can climb down, dropping himself already down from the little hut when he pauses, hands still clutching the edge of the floor as he levels a hard look at the mage.
"But cause me any trouble and I won't hesitate to control you myself. I'm not sailing with an unhinged mage."
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"Threatening me with bondage already? Careful, captain, or people will talk," he retorts, tossing his hair and retreating into his home. He has to pack, after all.
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It's going to be a very long trip in that boat with this jackass. A very long trip and definitely not enough space between them.
He lands on the smushy ground with a definite growl and marches past Kai and Ullyse, not saying a word but glaring at the former.
"Oh, that's interesting," Kai murmurs with a small smile and gazes up at the hut for a moment longer before following after Grey. "So, I think we have a mage?" he asks brightly. Grey grunts something at him and Kai's expression is positively devious as they walk along the blanks towards the boat.
"Whoever said sailing is boring?" Kai comments to Ulysse.
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Very interesting, indeed.
"10 gold pieces says they fuck before the month is out," he whispers to Kai, eyes dancing with delight.
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He laughs as they step into the boat, Grey fixating his glare at the river while Kai picks the oar next to Aidan and makes the man scoot over to make some room for him. He might be amused and full of mischief but the smile he gives Aidan is always warm and genuine, so fond it's hard to see anything but clear affection in it.
"Speaking of fucking," he says quietly, to Ulysse whose place is in front of them. "Your sea mage hasn't made it unclear to anyone whose pants he'd like to be in..."
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While he's not one to publicly speak on these things, Ulysse knows these men well enough that it doesn't feel awkward and just gives Kai a small, quietly amused smile.
"Hasn't he? I think he's just curious and sniffing around, for now."
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He snorts at Ulysse, though, then looks at Aidan to laugh at him: "Like when the asshole pretty much told me to get lost in the tavern so he could talk with our boy Ulysse here alone. That was him just sniffing around, you know."
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Ulysse himself just snorts and shakes his head. "Perhaps he wanted more honesty in the conversation?"