It's morning. Since they're a safe distance from Rephidim, the Candidates are up on the deck. Tahir leans against the railing and looks out over the clouds, the wind teases at his long hair and blows it about gently. He's still dressed casually, looking a bit like a miniature version of one of the airshipmen.

Rhys is abovedecks as well, but keeps himself busy chatting with the guards and the crew. The fellow does seem to enjoy talking (and also getting a nice little verbal jab in here and there). He leaves Tahir alone this morning though, having made his own point last night.

Leeta stands beside him. She is wearing her typical clothing, the simple temple robe, with the only additional adornment being a zolk scarf around her neck. The Savanite is experiencing the unusual sensation of an airship voyage, something she's never been able to appreciate fully before. The wind whips her mane out behind her, as she looks over the side, and around at the rest of the crew.

The view below is spectacular, Rephidim is normally surrounded by clouds, so there's not much of a view when one looks down from it… but here the sky is clear. The ocean below glitters like a gemstone and the salty air tingles one's nose… even from this altitude. The crewmen are busy, but fairly casual about their work. Many of them seem more than willing to set their work aside and chat with Rhys, wave to Tahir, and even nod to Leeta.

The red-maned Savanite smiles and waves back at the crew. She looks a moment longer at the sparkling ocean far below. How the sun on the surface makes it look like an endless expanse of broken blue glass. She signs to Tahir beside her, "This is wonderful, isn't it?"

"It's nice to be outside." Tahir closes his eyes for a moment and just enjoys the sensation of the wind blowing through his hair. "I never left Rephidim after we set down. I'm glad I got the chance to in this life."

Rhys pulls back the hood of his robe as he chats with one of the guards about the light fixtures in the Temple. The guard chuckles loudly as the young human cracks a joke.

"That's sad, Tahir. Even I've seen a few other places." Leeta watches Rhys, and the reactions of the crew to him. "I bet these Airshipmen can tell you some interesting stories. They don't look too busy, you could probably ask."

Tahir looks over his shoulder. "Perhaps later. I think for now I'd rather just enjoy the view."

Naoko walks up from belowdecks. She balances a tray in one hand and a bucket in the other. The old slave walks from crewman to crewman, offering a drink of water from a ceramic ladle in the bucket. When she reaches Rhys she holds out her tray, offering him a glass of something, it looks like lemonade.

Leeta's tail swishes nervously, for the most part curling tightly around the railpost, the only indication that she's not comfortable with the drop over the side. "Maybe the view would be better from where the Captain pilots this ship?" Leeta's signs trail off as she spots her old friend.

Rhys takes up the ladle from the bucket instead and drinks some of the water. He mumbles something and waves towards Leeta and Tahir. Naoko looks confused at this, but bows and walks up to Tahir and Leeta.

Her ears give a curious flick as the fire-haired Savanite looks at the face of the older one. Leeta examines the tray as Naoko comes over, looking especially at the glass of lemonade. Her whiskers twitch forward in a puzzled manner, and she gives a questioning glance at the other cheetah.

Naoko holds her tray out to Leeta and Tahir, offering them both a glass of lemonade. She looks at Tahir, then stares at Leeta with questioning eyes.

Leeta also checks to see what Rhys is doing. Her hands flicking, "I think he's trying to make you look bad again," where Tahir can see them. "What did Rhys tell you?" she asks Naoko, the signs shielded from view by the older Savanite.

Rhys wipes his mouth, smiles at Leeta and Tahir and then wanders belowdecks.

"He said he did not want his drink, and that you should have it," Naoko signs after putting down her bucket. Then makes a quick bow of apology to Tahir, since it's not a slave's place to make conversation in front of one's master after all.

"It would not be right for me to share a master's drink, I will have to say no," Fire-Mane signs, with a sideways glance at Tahir.

"As you wish, master," Naoko signs and holds her tray out to Tahir. The human accepts the glass and bows his head in thanks.

Leeta steps back so she is more visible to the crew, and crouches down beside the bucket. She looks at the water, and the ladle, and waits for permission to drink, not looking up at Tahir.

"Tell me, no, it's for the crew only," her hand flicks, hidden by her leg.

Tahir blinks, looking confused for a moment – then taps his foot twice where the Savanite can see it. "No, Leeta. It's for the crew," he says… trying to strain some tone of authority in his voice while he speaks.

The Savanite nods and rises away from the bucket, managing to keep her head bowed and aspects of submission in her movements. She waits, her eyes looking sideways from under her mane, trying to see when the airshipmen are no longer directly watching them.

A couple of the crewman gawk a little, but quickly resume work. Naoko looks at Leeta strangely, then bows again before picking up her bucket and heading back belowdecks. Leeta catches a quick flash of a handsign that the old slave once used in Nartak's house when the master was in a foul mood. A sign the means, 'Meet me later'.

Tahir casually sips at his drink.

Once she is no longer the subject of attention, her slave posturing fades. Enough remains that she will not look suspicious, but its hard to tell if they are forced, or atrophied habits. Leeta leans on the rail, making her closer to Tahir's height. "You have to look better than me," she signs, when no one is watching.

"Will try," the human signs with his free hand as he watches the little droplets of water form on his chilled glass.

Leeta turns to look over the side, her tail curling behind her in a way that says she's found something interesting to look at. Her forearms are resting on the rail, and her hands in front of her. Tahir will be able to see the signs, if he moves a little, and still be able to look across the ship. The crew, hopefully, will have no idea she is saying anything.

"It's all appearances, Tahir," the Savanite signs, as she looks down at the waters far below. Clouds drift by beneath the ship, and the sensation of height is almost mind boggling. "Rhys was trying to say, you drink with a slave so you are a slave. You have to give the impression that he drinks with the crew, so he is crew."

Tahir shakes his head. "Bah. Maybe Rhys should have been the one to go into diplomacy. He seems to know more about it than I can remember." He softens his voice to almost a whisper. "Thank you, Leeta, for your presence of mind. I'll need it during this voyage."

"I'll try to help all I can, but I don't know much about being a leader. I only know all the masters I have had, good and bad, and some training for social parties. You'll have to find it inside… " The Savanite keeps looking down, nostrils flaring as she inhales the salty air. "… You have to get used to ordering people around. I'm willing to pretend, to help with that."

Tahir just nods and pushes himself away from the railing. He drains the contents of his glass and then looks to the deck. "Leeta, I'm finished with this and I have a bit more reading to do below in my cabin. Could you return this to the kitchen for me, with my compliments?"

Leeta snaps upright from the railing, and bows to Tahir. Not raising her head she takes the glass and heads immediately for the kitchen. A slave on an errand.

The kitchen turns out to be fairly easy to find. Another curtained door greets Leeta as she approaches as well as the clattering of dishes. Inside, three small Savanite cubs are huddled over a large tub full of soapy water as they wash the dishes. Naoko sits there was well, she seems to be resting and watching the cubs with smiling eyes.

"NAOKO!" Leeta signs, slipping the glass into the washtub, no longer having to contain herself. The fire-haired Savanite moves around the cubs to hug the older one. "Oh I'm so glad to see you!"

The older Savanite's ear wiggles as she hugs Leeta and gives her cheek a lick. She pushes away long enough to sign, "It's so good to see you again, and you look very well. It must be strange having one so young as a master though."

Leeta's eyes twinkle, still in the half embrace with Naoko that allows her to sign. "Oh he's more than that! It's more strange than you could even imagine. You look great as well, theres a bounce in your step I haven't seen in years, and whose cubs are these?"

Naoko gives Leeta a quizzical look then smiles at the cubs. "They are new here. Their mother died in an accident in Darkside and the cubs were bought by the captain. They have been put in my charge for the time being." The old slave flashes another smile. "Life on the ship has been good to this old pelt of mine. I get lots of fresh air and the food is very good. The cubs got to eat your master's dessert last night since he didn't take it." She winks.

The red-haired Savanite smiles reluctantly, "It's good someone got to enjoy that dinner at least. It wasn't very pleasant for Tahir. Oh, I've got so much to tell you I don't know where to start. I found my family!" Her expression genuinely beams, and her tail flicks happily.

"I noticed that things seemed unpleasant," Naoko signs, pausing to touch the deep blue collar around her neck. "Your family? Ah, that is good to hear. I have always said that the Star guides us down the right path if we just have the faith."

"The Star did, Naoko. It was there to lead me even when things were the darkest. It even brought me back to my oldest sister, and helped me to forgive." She pats the older Savanite's arm, smiling at the cubs doing the washing, and thinking of Jezebel & Zoltan's family. "I need some help, Naoko, if it's not too much to ask."

"What do you need from me?" Naoko signs. She barks sharply as the cubs start to splash dishwater at one another.

"I just need you to listen, but don't do anything that would make you lose your other ear." Leeta smiles, wiggling one of hers. "The other candidate is trying very hard to embarrass Tahir. Any plans you hear about, anything you hear him or the rest on board saying about us, would help immensely. It would let me warn… my master."

Naoko nods. "I aided him with some writing last night. But he never spoke one ill word about your master. He was quite pleasant, actually… for a master. But also strange. He does not act like a child."

"They both want very badly to be the Captain-Astromancer, and they're going to be fighting for it till one of them is chosen," Leeta signs, the events of her own brief candidacy coming to her mind. She gives a nervous glance around the room. "Don't tell anyone this, it's not something you should know, but Tahir is just like that as well. Its so strange, I don't even know how to explain it. He is a child, but he has memories from before."

Naoko tilts her head sideways and scratches the spot on her head where her missing ear would be. "Indeed you have a strange master. He seems to care for you, though. Leeta, what was that about that happened on the deck with my water bucket? And why do you hold yourself with such a different bearing now?"

Leeta shakes her head briefly and brushes back her mane with both hands. "A lot has happened to me Naoko since I was sold by Nartak, and you would barely believe any of that either. I found out things about others, and myself. Those things changed me, I saw the fire inside me and wasn't afraid anymore. I'm not a slave now, I had a chance to escape but I didn't because Tahir needs me. He is my friend."

Naoko frowns. "What do you mean when you sign that you're not a slave? We are all slaves."

"I don't feel it inside anymore. The lessons, the discipline, the whole way we were taught to think and be, its let go of me somehow. I still wear the collar, but I don't feel it anymore. I'm here by my own choice." Leeta's signs are a confused and unsure as she tries to describe her feelings. She shakes her head again, "It's not important, Naoko, I'm not going to be causing problems. I'm just going to do my best to help Tahir get what he wants."

The older Savanite's frown doesn't lighten up by very much. "Just because you have a kindly master does not mean you aren't still a slave. If you escaped they would look for you. If you went out onto the deck without your collar you would be punished. A free person would not have those worries."

"I know, I won't be doing any of that. Tahir needs to look like a good leader. It won't help him if he can't even control his own slave, and expects to be ordering free men around. He does care for me a great deal, but he will have to hide that, and I have to make sure that he does," Fire-Mane signs.

Leeta looks around again before signing, "The watchers do not want a Captain- Astromancer that likes Savanites."

Naoko shakes her head. "Having to teach your master to be harsh with you. I Never thought I would ever see the day when a slave signed those words." Her one ear wiggles again.

The kitchen is quiet and unoccupied, no spies or prying eyes to be seen. Only the noisy sounds of the cubs washing dishes.

Leeta's own ears wiggle as well in her fire-mane, "I know, it does look silly doesn't it? Oh Naoko, I am so glad you're here, it's almost like our old household. Did you know I got to keep the mandolin? I'm much better with it now."

"I have been trying to find out about you, but after I was sold to the merchants I was not been able to find anything out," Naoko signs as she wipes a bit of soapy water from her dress as the cubs start to get a bit too enthusiastic again. "I have not found out what has happened to Reseth either. But I think Master Nartak sold her to his accountant."

"I haven't been able to find out anything about her, either. I was sold to the Temple, to the Inquisition. My master there was almost assassinated. I stopped it, and was blamed, and Tahir rescued me." Leeta leans against the counter, her shoulders slumped forward a tiny bit. "I hope Reseth is okay, the accountants were never pleasant to Master Nartak."

Naoko rises for a moment and picks up an armload of dishrags. She places them on one of the only dry spots on the floor and signs, "Dry them now, carefully," to the cubs. The one-eared slave looks at Leeta again. "Assassinated? Goodness, I hope your life has not been all turmoil. I have heard that there have been many strange things going on in the Temple as of late."

Leeta's ears take on a sly slant as she smiles and signs, "Oh no, some days I never left our room. Though in the last little while it did seem that anytime I was let out something worse happened than the time before. The Temple has been good to me, a lot of my family are connected to it. I'm surprised I could have been in Rephidim so long and not known."

"Master Nartak did not like visiting the Temple very much," Naoko signs, nodding her head as the cubs begin to dry the dishes and stack them carefully on a table.

The other Savanite nods, smiling at the cubs doing the dishes. "A lot of things are changing… Does Rhys ever speak to you about things, does he know sign?"

Naoko shakes her head. "Not that I am aware of. I have not seen him use handsign around me."

"I don't want him to know for sure that Tahir understands. Oh, Naoko, things were so much easier with Nartak. More than ever now it seems my every step and motion is being watched, and I'll get more than just myself in trouble if I misplace one. I don't want you to get involved in any way that would bring danger to you or the little ones… " Leeta signs, looking over at the old Savanite and resembling again the slave girl that used to face a Jupani's rages, "… but I don't think Tahir will win without my help. Anything that would let me know what the other candidate or the Watchers are thinking would be useful."

Naoko just stares blankly at Leeta for a long moment. She sighs softly, looking old once again. "All you can do is try your best to serve your master… even if you claim he is not your master. I will listen for you."

"I'm trying very hard, remind me if I forget." Her own tail goes limp as Leeta sees how she's put the years back on her old friend. She offers a fleeting smile, "Please Naoko, don't worry, it isn't that bad. I'm just having to dance harder around the dangers, I'm still too fast for them to catch me."

Naoko nods. "I just worry about you, child. I worry when I see a slave have cause to advise her master to treat her like a slave, and see that selfsame slave sign to me that she is no longer a slave and take her collar off during dinnertime with her master."

Leeta stands there with no reply, not looking very happy with herself, or the world in general. She nods to Naoko's gestures, and looks at the cubs drying the dishes.

"Don't look so sad, dear," Naoko signs. "Just you mustn't confuse your poor master. Children are so impressionable after all." She gestures to the cubs.

Tahir's question burns in her mind, 'Would you risk everything for a chance at a better life… for your cubs?'. "Yes. I know, I'll be careful." Leeta manages a more sincere smile at her old friend. "I'll try stuffing him with meat at dinner tonight, and maybe he won't want dessert again."

Naoko smiles. "I'm sure the cubs will be grateful. Now, you scoot. We will have plenty of time to sign again. You should get back to your master before me starts to miss you."

Leeta gives the older slave a big hug. "It is so good to see you again, Naoko, maybe I'll even get a chance to let you hear me play. You're right, though, I should get back. Is there something I can have to drink before I do?"

Naoko nods and goes to a chest that has water condensing all around it. She pulls out a glass of lemonade and holds it out, winking. "Made it myself," she signs.

Fire-Mane drinks it all down, a big smile on her muzzle. "Thanks!" She signs, giving Naoko another quick hug, and the cubs a pet each on their heads. She slips through the curtains and heads back to the cabin. She's learning not to mis-step even under the swaying motion of the airship.