They say that time flies when you're having fun, which is probably why the next few weeks on Levitha's Pearl seem to last for years.

The Snowshoes manage to reach an agreement with the Jupani innkeeper to work for their room and board: an agreement that puts Gibson in the kitchen, with Anisa waiting tables and helping to tend bar. For the doe, the drudgery is only slightly offset by the fact that she doesn't have to wear a dress and that the hunting-party patrons tip well without being too forward in their behavior (although the latter could be due to the sight of Anisa lifting up the giant stuffed Scuttler table in order to clean under the legs). Tips accrue slowly though, so the Lapi maid often makes the long trek down to the docks to work loading and unloading cargo from the ferry and other vessels. Royce is left to clean rooms, but also earns some money by working for the local taxidermist.

The Whitewhisker brothers each find different jobs, with Kurtis assisting Rimtown's only doctor, while Spencer hires himself and Periwinkle the Dromodon out to hunting parties – something which often keeps him away for days at a time, causing the others to worry quite a bit.

As for the final member of the party, Wanda the Skeek tends to follow Anisa down to the docks, doing her part to keep sailors and airshipmen alert and out of trouble with various games of chance, off-color jokes and ribald stories.

After Spencer returns from his latest trip with a hunting party, the group pools their funds for a ferry ride back to Half Valley. The weather is bit rougher this time, due to what looks like a storm front brewing over the mainland. The captain notes to them that is isn't just a storm, it's Rephidim!

The doe leans on the railing of the ship, looking out over the water wearily, but inwardly glad to finally be on her way home, or at least to Half-Valley. She looks upwards at her home island, wishing she were back in her own room for a change.

Holding his wing up to test the wind speed, Captain Tildon says, "Should be in port by evenin' wi' this breeze."

This perks up Kurtis, who is nearby Anisa at the railing. "Great! We'll miss dinner, but there'll be real beds again."

Anisa smiles, nodding in agreement with the buck. "None of that bedroll nonsense anymore, and having a fire to warm up the ears will be nice." The doe rubs her lobes as if in emphasis, then sighs. "Royce and I still need a cover story, though. I guess I could always say the charm school flunked me and sent me home."

"What will you say about your brother though, Sugar?" Wanda asks as she wanders up to the Lapis. "Wasn't he supposed to be somewhere else entirely?"

"Yeah, that's gonna be a problem too." The white rabbit turns around, resting her back on the railing. "Maybe we can say he was such a prodigy, they felt inadequate to teach him?" The Lapi smirks.

Royce, the black-and-white splotched brother in question, is curled up next to Periwinkle the Dromodon, apparently intent on sleeping through the entire trip back to the mainland. Leaning casually on the opposite railing, Gibson and Spencer chat too quietly for even Lapi ears to overhear.

"With Rephidim so close, you could probably catch a taxi ride for a few shekels soon enough," Wanda points out.

The doe watches her brother and his friend out of the corner of her eye, her curiosity forcing one of her ears to focus in on them. "Yeah, that might be a good idea. Of course, we don't have to go right away. Mom and Dad expected us to be gone quite a while." She shrugs. "I can't decide if I'm in a hurry to go home, or if I'm dreading the inevitable of going home."

"Dreading it?" Kurtis asks, looking askance at the doe. "You really find Half Valley that fascinating, even though you'd likely just be waiting tables at Piksil's again?"

"Well, that's all I do in Rephidim also," replies Anisa. "More has happened to me here than up there, even though it was a bit chaotic." The rabbit sighs, and turns back to the railing. "I dunno… I wanted excitement, and guess I still do, but not with all the blood and death and things. That kind of ruins it."

"I think I'll head up to Rephidim myself," Wanda says, her whiskers twitching in amusement. "Lot's o' wild nightlife after all," she says, and winks at Kurtis.

Kurtis responds by lowering his ears and looks back towards the mainland … although the evening fog is already starting to obscure things.

Anisa grins at Kurtis' reaction to the teasing. "Yeah, there is that. I kind of miss it." She reaches up, and smoothes out her ears. "If you're going, then I guess I'd better go too – to keep an eye on you." She winks at the mouse.

Wanda's chittering laugh is loud enough to cause Royce to wake up with a snort. "Is it dinner time yet?" the younger rabbit asks after yawning and rubbing his eyes.

The doe laughs, and walks over to her brother, sitting next to him. "Well, what do you think? Do we go straight home, or do we hang around in Half Valley for a while?" She fusses with her little bother's ears. "If we go home, we need alibis – unless you like the idea of Abram's wrath."

A few of the crew-Wimmers have opened up a chest full of fish, and the rest of the crew take the opportunity to feed themselves before the work of landing the ferry is to begin.

"Home?" Royce asks. "I can't even remember what my room looks like … just that it doesn't have any bugs in it. Uh … what do you think our folks will do to us, though?"

Anisa pinches her pink nose closed, wincing at the smell of the fish. "I dunno, but I don't think it'll be good." She looks over to the larger black Lapi, still conversing with Spencer, then smirks. "Maybe we can get Gibson to go home for a bit with us and say he led our impressionable little minds astray."

The black Lapi must have been eavesdropping, because he stops his own conversation to throw Anisa a terrified look. "Hey now," Gibson says, "I might be willing to take the fall in absentia, but don't expect me to plead for you in person!"

Royce just groans and pulls his ears down over his eyes. "I'm doomed, that's all there is to it. You're lucky, Anisa, because you're grown up and there isn't much they can do to you, but they actually expect me to make something of myself! I mean, if you never get married, it just means you'll be there to take care of them in their old age."

Anisa shrugs at Gibson. "What're they gonna do? Ground you? Besides, I was only kidding." She readjusts her tail, and frowns at Royce. "Thanks for that vote of confidence, kiddo. I guess you're meaning they only need me for grandchildren, is that it? Thanks a lot." The doe crosses her arms, scowling. "Lucky me. See why I wanna go back to Rephidim oh so much?" She falls silent, staring an angry hole through her feet.

Gibson comes over and puts a friendly arm around Anisa's shoulders. "Heh, you know how Mom and Dad are. As long as you don't end up like me, they'll probably forgive anything you do, in time. But Royce is right in that they can't really punish you. If you left home, it would make them look bad."

"And in Lapi circles," replies the doe sourly, "it'd make me look bad too. So it's a no-win situation." The rabbit sighs. "They have expectations for both of us, but at least you guys get to choose yours without having it come back to haunt you." She squeezes Gibson's paw. "But anyway, I'll deal with it. We're not there yet."

"I guess I could go to camp again next year," Royce mutters as he starts digging through his pack for something to eat. "It was that hard to qualify for, after all," the splotchy boy rationalizes.

Gibson grins and winks. "Yeah, lots of choices, so long as Dad agrees with them. And Royce is making me hungry. We should get a snack now, since we'll probably land too late to expect any dinner leftovers at the Whitewhiskers'."

Anisa forces a smile, and gets up to her oversized feet. "Okay, I guess we can all agree to that … so long as it's not fish." The doe pinches her nose shut again.

---

After a meal of slightly stale rice cakes, Anisa and her friends are urged to stay in the center of the deck as the crew takes up positions around the railing, holding long sounding poles. Night falls quickly due to the Blanket, such that the ferry seems to be moving through a cloud, with only the sounds of the dock-bell to guide the craft in. After what seems like an eternity, faint smudges of torchlight can be seen ahead, and the Skimmer Crane is brought in safely.

With Spencer to guide them, the group eventually finds their way to the darkened Whitewhisker house, and Kurtis lets them inside while Spencer takes Periwinkle back to the stables. Once upstairs, Anisa can feel the bed tugging at her like a magnet, and she doesn't even bother to get into her nightclothes before collapsing into it.

Sleep is uneventful, with none of the nightmares that she suffered through on the Pearl, until the morning arrives, and the groggy doe imagines she's in the grip of an Observer once more, and the monster is trying to tear her arm off … except that it sounds like her brother Royce. "Wake up, Anisa!" the voice hisses, and something tugs on her arm.

It's got Royce! The doe spring bolt upward right out of bed, sheets and all, and cocks her arm back, ready for a straight slug at her would-be attacker. "I'll save you, Royce!!" she groggily yells, sleep blurring her vision.

"Yeee!" goes the younger Lapi, as he's flung halfway across the room. "'Nisa, be careful!" he complains.

Anisa blinks a few times, the haze slowly lifting from her head as the room comes into focus. "Oh… sorry," she says sheepishly, lowering her arm slowly. Looking around to make sure she is where she thinks she is, the Lapi gives a wide buck-toothed yawn, rubbing her eyes with a paw. "You shouldn't sneak up on me like that! Is it morning already?"

As her eyes clear, Anisa can tell by the sunlight and shadows that it must late in the morning already. She's probably missed breakfast.

The doe frowns as she sees the sunlight. "Or later, it seems… "

Royce practically dances around in a circle as he hisses, "Yes! But that's not important! I went down to see if there was any breakfast left, and I heard Mom! I came and hid on the stairs, and then I saw her and Mrs. Whitewhisker leave together with empty baskets!"

The white rabbit's ears shoot up in alarm, her face a look of complete surprise. "M-mom? Here?" The doe moves the sheets aside, stepping from the bed. "Are you serious?"

"I know what Mom looks like!" Royce says, thumping the floor with his foot a few times before calming down. "She must have come to visit, and so she must know we're here! I couldn't find Spencer or Kurtis or Gibson, though. They must have left early! What do we do?"

Anisa frowns, and grabs her little brother by the ear. "We don't do a thing, that's what we do!" She forces the younger coney to follow her to the door, peering out an ear, then a black colored eye. "She didn't see you?"

"Ow!" Royce complains, but says, "N-no, she would have done something if she saw me. I bet they went to the market."

The doe lets go of Royce's ear, and goes to the stairs momentarily to see if anyone's there. Frowning deeper, she walks back to her room, grabbing the sibling's ear once more and pulling him in the room. Shutting the door and locking it, she forces the younger buck onto the bed. "I don't think she knows we're here. You know Mom; if she did, she'd throw a fit!" The Lapi bites her lip, looking downwards in thought.

"I suppose she could have just got here," Royce concedes. "But she's sure to know by the time she gets back!"

"But we don't know that!" Anisa rummages around in her suitcase, and after pulling out a clean set of clothes, goes behind the changing screen. "We'll have to hurry up and get out of the place while we can, and find a place to lay low until we're certain." The sounds of rustling clothing comes from behind the screen, followed by the worn hla'cloth being thrown up and over. Anisa soon reemerges in a pair of soft blue trousers, blue shirt and a black vest. "Let's go find Gibson and see what he's doing. That should buy us some time."

Royce seems uncertain, but nods. "O-okay … I bet Gib went to that militia building with Spencer."

Anisa grabs the First Stone, and puts it around her neck. "Then that's where we're going. Come on!" She grabs the patchwork bunny by the paw, and tugs him towards the stairs. Once there, she stops to look down and make sure the matronly pair haven't returned.

There doesn't seem to be any activity in the main room, and only a lingering scent of mateh and bread coming from the kitchen … although the pair can't see into the dining area from the stairs.

The white doe tiptoes down the stairs, her ears alert for any sound of her mother. Once at the door, she cracks it open, and peers outside.

The day is bright out, and there seems to be more traffic than usual – no doubt due to shoppers coming down from the sky island. It seems like an ideal crowd to get lost in, and probably would be, if not for the familiar sound of a throat being cleared from behind them, in the dining room.

All of Anisa's hairs stand on end, and she freezes in place. Her ears lower behind her timidly as she turns around to confront the source of the noise.

Through the archway to the dining room, the long table can be seen – or at least, the central part of it, with the head being hidden by the wall. In the middle of it is a plate of cooling toast, and a piece of paper.

Royce freezes in place, refusing to turn around. If he doesn't turn around, then surely he can't be seen, or so the expression on his face might suggest.

Swallowing in nervousness, the doe tiptoes over to the door of the kitchen, and peeks inside, hoping the noise was her imagination.

Sitting at the head of the table and holding a mug of steaming mateh, is a familiar brown Lapi. "Good morning, Christina," says Abram Snowshoe. "You missed breakfast."

At the sound of the voice, Royce lets out a little whimper, and tries to hide behind his older sister.

The Lapi's face falls into a deep frown; she hadn't anticipated her father being here as well. "Oh… h-hello Daddy." Avoiding his gaze, the doe slumps over to a chair at the table and sinks into it dejectedly. Already wincing inwardly and ears set back submissively, the rabbit prepares for the sure to come third degree.

"Have some toast at least, both of you," Abram suggests, and has a sip of his mateh while Royce sits next to his sister (on the farther side, of course). "In case you're wondering, Ben told us what happened several days ago, after complaining that he hadn't been getting any packages in the mail."

"Ben?! That little-… oh … uh, yeah… " The doe keeps her gaze set on the table, and takes a piece of toast, nibbling on it half-heartedly. "So… how long have you been here?"

"Since last night," Anisa's father says. "Your mother was quite relieved to find out you made it back safely from your little trip, and quite embarrassed Gibson at breakfast. He tried to take full responsibility for everything, of course, saying he sent for the both of you." Abram then tips an ear towards the piece of paper near the plate of toast; apparently it's the actual letter that was meant for Quinn. Ben had kept it all along. "I really didn't think he'd try to cover for someone else like that; it took me by surprise. He even stuck to the story after I showed him that letter."

"I'm sorry I snuck off, Dad!" Royce suddenly blurts out, then goes back to hiding behind Anisa.

Anisa looks up quickly at the note, then back down at the table, paws in her lap. She starts to say something, but is cut off by her little brother – which earns him a quick scowl. The doe stays silent for a few moments more. "I-It's not Gibson's fault. We chose to come." The Lapi risks a look at her father. "He needed help."

Abram sets down his mug on the table, and steeples his fingers together as he looks at his two wayward children. "I'll say right now that I won't fault you for wanting to help your brother. But I will hold you responsible for the cost of travel and tuition that you both wasted, and for doing this behind the backs of your mother and me."

"I've already paid back the Merchants Association for what you owe, Christina, at least as far as money goes," Abram says, keeping his voice deliberate and calm. "You'll have to work it off of course, and won't be getting any spending money until you do."

"You too, Royce," the elder Lapi adds, eliciting a slight whimper from the younger one. Royce doesn't earn as much as Anisa does at the tavern, after all.

The snow-colored doe looks back down to the table, putting the almost-intact toast back onto its plate. She stays silent for a small while, then, in a calm voice, "I didn't want to go to Charm School."

"You never even gave it a chance, Christina," Abram says, sounding a bit disappointed. "It would have opened up at a least a few more opportunities for you, even professional ones. But now … well, you'll have to make your own opportunities from now on. I'm not going to go out of my way to find ones for you, if you're just going to bite my hand."

"I learned a lot more on this trip than I would have at camp, Dad," Royce pipes in, then adds, "But … uh … I can try to qualify again next year, can't I? I mean … I can still go, right?"

Abram flashes a brief smirk, and nods to Royce. "You can go next year … but, you'll have to pay for at least half the cost yourself and score higher on the entry exam than you did this year."

Anisa fights a scowl, but it comes anyway. "Huh … opportunities? Opportunities to get me married off to some short-eared oaf, you mean." The venom in her voice is clear, and her ears, formerly in a submissive position, turn inward into an angry one.

Trying not to scowl himself, Abram can only sigh at Anisa's comment. "Really, Christina, is that all you think we see for you? You could have tried for a secretarial position, or some career that requires a bit of tact and responsibility – maybe even something at the Temple. You are our only daughter, and we want the best for you … even if you don't always see what that might be."

"And the best for me is working as a secretary for that Dagh forsaken Temple?" The doe looks up this time, her voice rising slightly. "Why don't I just wait tables for the rest of my life? They're both about as equally dead end!"

Abram's look becomes sterner, and he asks, "Then you tell me, daughter, where you want to be in ten years? Have you thought about your future, or simply focused on how much you dislike your present?"

Anisa looks back down to the table. "I know I don't want to be hating my life, stuck in one place doing something I hate, while acting all demure and as eye candy for the sake of appearances." The Lapi frowns. "Look at Gibson. He does what he wants, and he loves it!"

"And he never wants to settle down, or have a family of his own, does he?" Abram asks, in a softer voice this time. "Living day to day, never staying in one place for long. Always being alone. Did he tell you that every day is an adventure, or that it is mostly hard, dull work to make ends meet while waiting for the next exciting thing to happen?"

"It seemed like an adventure to me," Anisa replies in a low voice. "I still have time for a family … if I ever want one, but once I do … it's all over after then." She looks up into Abram's eye. "Why are you in such a hurry for that to happen?"

Abram blinks, and then bursts out laughing. "Oh dear. You think that starting a family is the end of adventure? Why, it's just the beginning! I promise you, there is no challenge in this world that Gibson will face that can compare to raising even one child," the elder Lapi says. "And I'm not in a hurry for you to start a family, Anisa," Abram adds, using the girl's preferred name, "but I do want you to be prepared for that day. I'm sure that there is someone, First Ones help him, that is a match for you, and when you meet him it would be good if you could catch him."

Even Royce can't help but give a little snicker, which he then tries to cover with a cough lest his sister pound him.

Anisa rolls her eyes. "That's not what I mean!" She tosses her arms into the air, and glares at Abram. "I want to see the world, not get stuck in a house, taking care of little brats running around all the time! That's not an adventure!" She glares at Royce, then turns back to her father. "If there's someone out there like that, they'll have to find me, not the other way around!"

"See the world?" Abram asks, with an exaggerated expression of surprise. "You live in the greatest city in the world, full of wonders and examples from every culture there is, and yet you find it confining? I can't help but wonder if you ever gave it a chance. I mean, what do you do when you go out with your friends? Apparently you don't visit the art houses or cultural performances. You seem to have already made up your mind that it must be dull just because you live there."

"I'm not saying it's dull," retorts Anisa. "I'm saying it's only one place! Examples- yeah, it has examples, but that's not the real thing! I want to see where those examples are from, and see what it's like!" The doe sighs. "It's not so wondrous when you grow up there. You wouldn't understand; you're a man. You have your entire life to do what you want to do – I don't. Just look at Mom!"

Abram leans back, and asks, "What about your mother? Isn't she out enjoying a visit with her old friend? You know, it only costs twenty shekels for a seat on an air taxi to visit whatever land Rephidim happens to be over, and you earn more than enough to do just that, Christina. You aren't chained to the bar, after all. If you saved up instead of going out every chance with your party friends, you could visit a new city every month. Or does it not count because it's too convenient?"

"Well … yeah, but… " The doe looks for some retort to come back with, but just leans back in her chair, arms crossed, ears back, and face scowling. "She only came because you had to come get us."

"She always visits Joanne Whitewhisker when Rephidim is near Half Valley, and otherwise keeps in touch via mail. Your mother has quite a few pen-pals, you know," Abram points out. "I'm along to pick you up, in this case. Normally I'd be busy at the tavern, especially with the influx of tourists we always get when Rephidim is over a decent town or city. Poor Quinn might be secretly grateful to you for taking his place to see Gibson, but right now I imagine he's pretty steamed at having to handle everything on his own."

Anisa smirks. "Better he learn now, then, since it'll be his some day." She falls silent, wanting to argue her point more – if just for the sake of arguing and being angry – but is running out of arguments. "Pen-pals … big deal."

"She met most of her friends at school too, if you hadn't guessed," Abram points out, then wrinkles his nose as he realizes his mateh has gotten cold. "Clearly, you need to spend more quality time with your mother, Christina. So, I think I'll leave you here with her until she's ready to return home. Royce, are you all packed up?"

Jerking upright and still nervous at being the focus of attention, Royce stutters out, "M-mostly, sir! I can be ready in a few minutes."

Making a shooing gesture with one hand, Abram says, "Go to it then, son. I can't afford to laze about all day in paradise, and neither can you. I'll be waiting for you in the main room." As Royce runs out and up the stairs, Abram turns to his daughter once more and asks, "So, anything else you want to complain about before I head back to oversee the other slaves?"

Anisa's look of defiance quickly fades, replaced by a wide eyed look of shock. If one were to have just walked in, they would have thought she had been given some sort of inhumane punishment. "Leave me here alone… with Beatrice? You're not serious, are you?" She stares at Abram, jaw dropped open.

Abram just grins. "Like I said, you clearly don't spend enough quality time with your mother. And you'd get to see Gibson for a bit longer too, wouldn't you? And not have to wait tables, as I hear you'd been doing to raise money. How bad could it be? And that Spencer is a fine young man, too, in case you didn't know what one looked like."

The white doe sinks down in her chair, giving a groan as she covers her face with a paw. "Anything but that! I'll die of boredom!"

"So, you'd rather come back to the tavern and deal with a flood of tourists?" Abram asks, standing now and putting a hand on Anisa's shoulder. "Get a head start on all that money you have to pay me back, hmm?"

Anisa sighs, stuck between a rock and a hard place and obviously beaten. "Fine, I'll stay with her while she's here. But don't get any ideas in your head that I'll come back in a dress and married to Spencer, if that's what you're plotting."

Chuckling, Anisa's father just pats her on the head. "Nothing of the sort, dear. I just want to make sure you get a good education and understanding of what you think will be such a terrible fate. And you really do need to spend more time with your mother you know. Maybe if she gets to know you better, she wouldn't be trying to dress you up so much, hmm?"

"I'm ready, Dad!" Royce calls from the main room.

"Come say goodbye to your sister then, Royce," Abram says back.

The white doe sits up in her chair, her ears at a more neutral position now, but still frowning. "I doubt that, but I suppose I'll survive." Anisa stands up from the chair, and pushes it back underneath the table. "But if I go insane, you're the one to blame." She looks to Royce, and smirks at him. "It was fun while it lasted, I guess. I guess I'll see you in a few days."

Royce comes and gives his sister a hug. "Yup, thanks for bringing me, Sis, but next time … you get to ride in the luggage!" Then, before Anisa can retort, he kisses her on the cheek and runs for the front door.

"What?" Abram calls after him. "What's this about riding in luggage, young man?" Royce is already well gone, though, so the older Lapi can only shake his head for the moment, and then he bends down to give Anisa a kiss on her other cheek as well. "Take care, Christina, and try not to kill anyone," he says, and then tries to catch up with his fleeing son.

Anisa waves goodbye to her father and brother, trying her best to look cheerful as she follows after them to the door. "Bye, and be safe," she calls to them. "Too late about the killing part, though," she adds under her breath, almost silently. After they disappear around a bend, the doe walks back to the table, sits down and nibbles on a piece of toast, then gives an overly dramatic groan and flops her head onto the tabletop. "Alone with Mom … I'll be lucky not to kill myself!"