Anisa didn't get much time to soak up the scenery, however, because almost immediately as she was shown into the room, she was whisked into the couple's bathroom and had the door shut behind her. The rabbit was instructed to clean herself up, using the myriad of shampoos and other cleaning devices available. She did as she was told, taking a hot bath, cleaning her teeth, and shampooing her fur. When she emerged from the bath, she found her normal clothes replaced with a terrycloth-like robe, many sizes too big for the small Lapine. Nevertheless, she put it on, and it is more than enough to cover herself (even if she has to hold it in places to keep from slipping.)

Clutching the oversized garment close to herself, the Lapine emerges from the bathroom, having finished cleaning herself up. She peers about, uncharacteristically timid, her feet disappearing under the baggy robe.

The rabbit is presented with Charuman's back, the Khatta's hands clasped behind him as if he were looking over a painting on the wall where none exists. At the sound of the door opening, an ear perks. Without turning around, the feline says, "Ah! You are decent, yes?"

"Umm… as decent as I can be, yes," Anisa says with a small smile, pulling the robe up over her shoulder.

"Good!" The Khatta turns around, smiling cheerfully back, and directs Anisa over to a chair amongst the mannequins. "Please to be sitting down! My wife having many style to show you! Now, are you to be knowing somewhat what you are wishing?"

The rabbit takes the offered seat, pulling the robe against her. Her ears, unhindered by the usual ear-loop, fall to her shoulders instead of her back. "Well, I'm not too knowledgeable about zolk fashion… " She fidgets in her chair as she tries to think of what she wants. "I guess I'd like something casual, not a dress or anything. Just something comfortable."

The Khatta rubs his whiskers thoughtfully, causing the ends to rotate like little oars on a rowboat. "No dress? Hmmm… well, what is liking you to do? You attend many dance, yes? Or you are liking to travel? You are looking to me to be active, very much fast to run, yes? You tell Charuman, what are you spending lots time doing?"

Anisa smiles a wide smile at the flattery, "All of the above, actually. I love dancing, and running too. And I travel – er, quite a bit." She tries to make a convincing face to back the claim up. "I suppose dresses aren't all that bad, just as long as they aren't too tight." She sticks her tongue out to home the point in.

"Very good! We show you what may for be to interest you, one at a time!" Charuman turns away to face a wide screen set up near the far corner of the room, and claps his hands twice. "First to be for dance, yes?" he continues, and after a few moments, Laiji emerges from behind the screen in a long flowing gown of deep-sea green, cut in tiers that become darker as they descend to almost black at the hem. A shawl of the same green rests over Laiji's shoulders, and a matching handback dangles from the crook of one elbow. She steps elegantly around the screen to stand squarely in front of it, turning several times.

The rabbit's ears shoot forward, and her eyes go wide at the gown. "Amazing!" Her nose twitches wildly as she studies the garment, looking it up and down.

Though the deep green contrasts somewhat with Laiji's orange-splashed fur, the effect is muted, as it covers most of her. As Laiji walks, the zolk seems to flow in waves, as if the actual surface of the sea. Lighter cloth concealed in the folds peeks through from time to time, suggesting whitecaps. Laiji finishes turning, then glides back behind the screen. "First selection is been crafting very finely," enthuses Charuman, looking back at Anisa. It's evident his gaze was on his wife the whole time. "Is your style perhapsing? Or Lapi is to be wishing look more?"

Anisa pries her gaze off the screen as the Khatta disappears behind it, turning her attention back to Charuman. "I-It was very nice, very nice! But ummm," she twitches her nose, "do you mind if I see the others? I'd like to see what other wonders you two are capable of!" She smiles.

The zolk trader looks quite pleased at the comment, and claps his paws thrice this time. "For nexting, you are wish to be dressing as traveler, yes? I shall showing you Abu Dhabian Khatta-ha'clohi… design passing down many fathers through my family. Calling from by others as 'Khattan half-cloak'."

The young Lapine nods her hear vigorously, watching the screen an anticipation for Laiji to re-emerge.

Laiji emerges (after a few moments for changing) from behind the screen again, this time dressed in a more exotic fashion. The foundation seems to a be simple sky-blue zolken tunic and pair of trousers, loose and comfortable-looking. However, what makes this particular outfit remarkable are the accessories that go over it. Over one shoulder drapes what seems to be half a mantle, concealing Laiji's left side except for her hand hanging below it. It's composed of loose layers of zolk, from light blue down to cloudy sapphire. The throat ties are long and broad, bunched up beneath Laiji's chin like a scarf. Tied around the Khatta's waist is an identical half-cloak on the opposite side of the body, the ties knotted in a secure sash and supporting a sheathed dagger. It hangs down to just above the ankle.

Charuman speaks as his wife walks along in front of the screen. "This looking to be plain, does it not? It is to be holding many design secrets, however."

Anisa's eyes go especially wide at this, indicating that this is something right up her alley. "This is wonderful!" One side of the robe's collar slips partway down her shoulder, but the rabbit is oblivious to it as she takes in the outfit. "That would be perfect to see the world in!"

"It is just so!" replies Charuman, grinning. "Ha'clohi is to being make by only some zolk traders from Abu Dhabi… secret was losing from many, but my family is to being hold it. Ha'clohi is to be having … holes? Cuts? Vents! That word. Vents to be keeping you cool on hottest of desert days. Here I showing you how it work." The Khatta steps forward, and removes the lid of a small pot near the screen. The strong smell of incense rises from it, and thick ribbons of smoke curl lazily upward, as if they were stirring Nagai.

The white rabbit arches a brow, and bends over to watch the curious demonstration, nose twitching.

Laiji adjusts the ties around her throat, wrapping them under her chin, then over her head to form a white hood. She strides forward, and steps through the smoke… as she does so, the smoke seems to curl around her, flowing in through some folds, and out through others as she moves. The husband explains, "Vents are be to cut in special way that make air come in and go out as you moving. If you wanting be keep warm during chill desert night, simply to be turning ha'clohi over dark-side up, and vents shut. You can being to wear both on shoulders, both on hips, or up and down like Laiji."

A large grin of amazement spreads across Anisa's face as she watches the handiwork in action. "Ingenious! That is very much something that I'd like!" She smiles. "It's no wonder you're so successful!"

Charuman laughs, and leans forward with a grin. "Zolk is for to being very good travelling clothes. We tight weaving it, so water, sweat, mud, sand… it all to be staying out of ha'clohi." As if to demonstrate the cloth's durability, the peaches-and-cream Khatta draws her knife, and draws the blade and tip up and down one piece of the fabric, harmlessly. "You still not being want stab with knife or slash with sword, but it still strong." After sheathing the knife again, Laiji saunters back behind the screen.

The rabbit does a double take at the quick demonstration of the fabric's durability. "I… I see." She pulls the collar of the robe back up over her shoulder, smoothing her damp ears back. "Now I see why people pay top shekel for it."

The feline waggles his eyebrows. "Paying top shekel, yes, many do. We earn many Gooshurmlings. Very few honest traders left, very few of such high quality. Now, last style for to being active!" Four claps summons Laiji again, though there's a few moments lull as she changes.

Anisa perks an ear to listen to the fabric of the female Khatta as she changes, trying to figure out what kind of outfit she will emerge with this time.

Laiji emerges from the screen once more. And whew, does she emerge. Vivid slashes of color compose a suit that fits rather snugly, meshing together to move with her despite how close it fits her form. In a number of places, white or orange fur spills out. A veil crosses the Khatta's face, and semi-transparent silks trail from her elbows as she does a few rhythmic, graceful turns, as if demonstrating the first steps of a dance without music. "This to being for dancing!" says Charuman, his eyes focused on his wife, who returns a wink to him. "Very popular in my land! Very good for graceful girl like you, hmm? A pretty Lapi like you to be wearing this, and many Lapi maid buying from us, I am sure."

The white Lapi's ears turn a shade of bright red at the comments, and even though the outfit looks snug, she can't help but be entranced by it. "It's very, very nice! I love the colors, and it fits her so well!" She looks to Charuman quizzically. "You say other Lapi have bought this before?"

"All races of Sinai buying from Charuman," says the Khatta trader proudly, rubbing his paws together. "But Laiji and Charuman is being just two people. Not everyone knowing us, and Standard is being sometimes hard for people to understand from Charuman mouth. It is to be helping when others wear zolks of Charuman and Laiji, and being is told of who making them."

Anisa nods, "I'd be honored to spread the word for you myself." She smiles honestly, "All of your outfits are simply amazing!"

This time, instead of going back behind the screen, Laiji saunters over to the table, smiling just as widely as Charuman now is. It's she that speaks up now. "Ah, that just what hearing Charuman was wishing! Business from Rephidim, business from … where going to be are you?"

The white Lapi blinks, "Business? Oh! I – I'm headed towards Half-Valley." She looks at the two felines, puzzled. "Whydid you want to know that?"

"Then we to be seeing business from Half Valley!" Charuman grins again. "We just being curious to know who seeing zolken clothes. Which is being to your like?"

Anisa feels like a kitten in a candy store! "I like them all!" Her mind swims as she ponders over the three outfits, eyeing the one that Laiji currently wears. "But if I have to choose just one… " She takes a moment to ponder, "I think I liked the second one, the traveler's one." She smiles, "Besides, it's good to mix style with practicality; might bring in more buyers?"

The husband snaps his fingers, and points, smiling all the broader. "A wise choice you are being to make! To is be a rugged set of clothes, in rugged land. What color wanting you?"

The white rabbit shifts inside the robe. She's never spent much time with fashion, except when Beatrice drags her off to buy new maid's outfits. "I don't know… What do you suggest for white fur?"

"Hmmmm… " Laiji is the one to mull this over. She crooks a finger, beckoning. "Let me looking in eyes."

Gathering the baggy robe around her, the Lapi leans forward so Laiji can get a better look at her pupils. "They're nothing too great, just boring black. Not much you can do with that I guess."

After a brief inspection, Laiji leans back. "Not to is beingsilly, Lapigirl! Black is to being go with everything. You liking cool blues? Warm sunburst? Natural green?"

Anisa blinks, "W-well, I do like blue, and black too, but I suppose that would be too hot to travel in." She smoothes her ears back, trying to decide. "I suppose blue would work for me, if that's not too much trouble."

Laiji leans into her husband, who puts an arm over her shoulder. "Ah!" says the peaches-and-cream Khatta. "We having that color, so can being to alter a ha'clohi for you righting away. We making it right length, and give for to you matching tunic and trouser alter for legs before lunch!"

Charuman nods. "You can stay for be to measure arms, legs, shoulders?"

The Lapi begins to nod, but halts as she remembers about her brother back in the cabin. Oh well, she thinks, he'll be all right for a few more minutes. "Yes, I can stay." She nods with a smile. "Umm, where do you want me to stand?"

Laiji bounces on her toes happily, as if a girl receiving a new doll, and motions over toward the screen. "Come, come, come! You stand behind here. Charuman, beloved, you are to bringing measure? Pins?" Her chatter switches to native Khattan, while Charuman picks through bolts of cloth for the right shades and tools.

A bit of time passes, in which the two Khattas expertly put Anisa's new outfit together. The fact that they are talented is easy to see – the Lapi not getting jabbed even once as Laiji took measurements and needling things together – and it doesn't take long for Charuman to finish the final outfit. The white rabbit feels lightheaded with glee as she puts the new garb on, modeling it for the two felines. Except for a bare arm, she is covered from head to toe almost, but feels as though she were just wearing a light shirt, and she is not the least bit hot. Once done, she gushes her gratitude to the two Khattas, and heads out the door to her cabin, feeling as though she were in a dream.

The Lapi makes her way above decks, first to get back over to the second class section, and second to see what time of day it is. How long was she down there?

Above deck, a strange sight greets Anisa. The Rhian captain stands on the deck, his greatcoat and mane fluttering in the air currents. In a row, a number of airmen, with belaying pins hanging from their belts, stand at attention.

Nearby, the copperhead Naga sits coiled, flicking his tongue, and every so often opening his mouth to unfold his fangs. He looks distinctly agitated.

Anisa halts on her way back to the cabin, looking at the strange scene with a bit of puzzlement. She cocks her ears forward, trying to listen in on what is going on.

"I want this vessel turned upside down, Captain!" hisses Baleforte' angrily.

The Captain takes a deep breath, and exhales through his wide nostrils. "We can't violate the privacy of anyone we don't have reasonable doubt against, but we will speak to each passenger, sir."

The Lapi's nose twitches speedily as she studies the scene. Privacy… the thing she needs the most at the moment. Something inside the rabbit's head tells her that this is a bad place to be at the moment, and she starts to head off back towards second class passage quickly, but trying not to stick out.

As Anisa pads away, Baleforte' can still be heard speaking with the Rhian. "The thief must be found, Captain. Anything less is unacceptable, and if it isn't found by the time we put in to port, you are to see to it no-one debarks."

"Yes sir. Airmen, you have your orders. Sections A and B are to be covered by Daryl and Klauson, sections C and D… "

Anisa hurries down the steps to her hallway, almost sprinting down it to get to her cabin. She stops outside her door, making sure no one is able to see in before she tries to slip inside.

The rabbit's berth is secure when she slips into it… and unoccupied. There are some open packages that used to contain dried vegetables on the floor, and a few of Royce's bagsare open, scattered with cookie crumbs from a couple concealed munchy pockets.

"Royce!" Anisa calls out with a loud whisper, beginning to search the room. "Royce! Where are you?" The Lapi forgets her new outfit for the moment, bordering on fuming due to the dirtiness of the room.

A quick search turns up no Holstein Lapi, even in the places he could hide.

Anisa begins to bite her lip, calling out the younger sibling's name a few more times. Nothing. Pushing the scattered luggage up against the wall, and brushing the crumbs off the bed, she hurries back outside. "Royce!" She whispers loudly, first making sure that no one is around. "Where in the Ear are you? When I get my paws on you… "

No reply is forthcoming from the hall, and up and down its length, it appears to be devoid of people.

The white rabbit begins to worry visibly, her intuition telling her that the ruckus up on deck and the disappearance of her little brother are not unrelated. Taking a deep breath, she hurries back up on deck, hoping that the little brat is sneaking around up top.

Back up here, the airmen are beginning to disperse, having been assigned their ship sections from the Captain. Baleforte' is coiled near a railing, fuming and occasionally directing some bitter comment at the Rhian, who typically responds with a nod and sigh. One of the airmen remaining on the deck, a thinly built Cervani buck, spies Anisa, and ambles over toward her. "Ma'am?"

Anisa gives a small start as the Cervani guard approaches, her heart sinking, but attempting to hide her anxiety on the surface. "Oh, Hello!" She puts on her air headed façade. "Can I help you, sir?"

"May I see your ticket, please?" asks the airman with the bored respectfulness of the average guard.

"Oh! Yes!" She gives a wide, girlish smile up at the stag as she fishes through the pockets oh her new attire. "May I ask why this is needed?" She pulls out the ticket stub, presenting it to the guard.

The airman accepts the ticket, and inspects it for a moment, raising it to the sunlight to peer at a watermark. "And the signer for this ticket?"

Anisa blinks for a moment, "It's my brother, Gibson Snowshoe." She holds her paw out to take the ticket out, feigning annoyance. "Now, could you tell me what this is about?"

The airman flips through a small notebook clipped to his belt, then nods as he hands the ticket back. "Nothing to be alarmed about, ma'am. Some dishonest business we'll be getting to the bottom of. Can you tell me where you were from sunrise until noon, please?"

"Well, this morning I had breakfast with a girlfriend, then I spent most of the day with the couple from Abu Dhabi to model… an… outfit… " The white Lapi trails off as a scene unfolds itself in front of her eyes. One white Lapine ear, followed by a black one, sticking out from a cargo hold. "Er… that is… " She snaps back to the Cervani's attention. "I've been busy all day."

The ears twitch as Anisa speaks, and quickly drop back down. The Cervani nods, and produces a charcoal pencil from one of his pockets. "Can these other passengers vouch for your whereabouts during all this time?" While the airman is saying this, a twitching pink nose, barely noticeable, edges over the lip of the hatch, followed by more of a black and white face. Royce peeks over the edge of the hatch, glancing around quickly and giving Anisa a harried look.

Anisa only glances out of the corner of her eyes at heryounger sibling, suppressing the look of worry that wants so badly to erupt onto her face. She looks back up to the stag again. "Of course they can! Are you doubting my word?!" She stamps her foot. Royce, she thinks, if we survive this, I'm going to kill you!

"Standard procedure, ma'am," comes the reply, just as dry as before, though this time it's accompanied by some eye rolling. "If I could get some names, I'd appreciate it." Anisa's thump makes Royce duck below again, and this time he doesn't resurface, except for the occasional ear-tip.

The Lapi rolls her eyes, giving heavy sigh of annoyance. "This morning I dined with Wanda the Skeek – I don't know her last name – and then I spent the rest of the day with Charuman and Laiji of Abu Dhabi." She glances back at the hatch, then quickly back. "Can I go now?"

The airman scribbles some things in his notebook, and then snaps it shut, tucking his pencil back into a vest pocket. "Yes. Thank you for patience, ma'am." He starts walking again, notices another passenger, and starts walking toward him and away from Anisa. "Sir? Excuse me, sir… "

As soon as she is sure the Cervani's attention is no longer on her, Anisa nonchalantly paces over to the open hatch, glancing down inside only briefly to confirm what she saw. She then quickly turns her back to the hatch, looking as though she were gazing off upon the horizon, but keeping her ears tuned downward. Trying to keep her temper down, the rabbit whispers down to her brother almost inaudibly, so only those with finely tuned ears could hear. "Royce, you little fuzzball, did your ears grow into your brain? What are you doing out here?"

The terse whisper comes back. "I was starving, Anisa! I thought I was going to pass out if I didn't get something to eat! Weren't you supposed to feed me from time to time?"

The brief glance down reveals Royce to be dangling from some cargo netting strung up around the edges of the hatch. Below, various crates, boxes, bags, and the like are stacked around in the hold, with aisles between them.

"I was coming back, you twerp!" the female Lapi says through clenched teeth. "Couldn't you quit thinking with your stomach for a bit? Now we might get kicked off the ship if they find you!"

She looks back over to the commotion on deck. "By the way, I don't suppose this business with the snake has anything to do with you, does it?" She sounds positively peeved.

"I don't know what you're talking about! I just thought I'd be able to blend in with the crowd enough to go to the cookhouse and get a snack, then some Naga started yelling about something missing, and guards started running around! I scooted into the cargo area to hide, and when airmen started coming in, I climbed the cargo netting out of sight!" Royce shifts his grip on said netting, and his voice grows even tenser. "Is this really the place to discuss this?!"

Anisa puts a paw to her forehead, massaging just above her eyebrows in frustration. "How did you get down there? We have to get you back to the cabin." Making sure no one is looking her way, she turns around and takes a brief glance down into the hold, then spins back to view the horizon. "Is there a way to get back to our section of the ship from down there?"

Nearby, the Cervani speaking with the other passenger says, "Thank you, sir." The passenger returns to sunning, and the airman starts wandering his beat again.

Down in the hatch, Royce glances down at the crates below. "Yeah, the cargo hold is connected to the passenger area. I can climb down and get to our berth, but there's a couple airmen wandering down there, I think."

The white Lapi balls her paws into fists from frustration, taking a look around the deck to see if the coast might be clear. Maybe she can sneak him above decks.

The Cervani seems to have ranged to the far end of the deck, but his partner, himself a dusky brown Lapi, is on his way back, looking just as bored as his comrade.

Anisa clenches her teeth, noticing the brown Lapi headed her way. "Look – for now you'll just have to find a place to hide out down there, and try to get back to the cabin when you can. You picked a bad time to sneak out; there's guards everywhere!"

"What?! But… I can't just hang here all day!" The splotchy rabbit's voice develops a note of panic.

The white rabbit tries to hide panic as well, her brother's voice not helping any. "Okay, okay, fine! Let me think… Just lay low! Someone's headed this way!" She returns her attention back to the horizon, acting as through she werepeering at it in boredom.

The passing airman catches sight of Anisa as he approaches, the somewhat disheveled Lapi straightening up a bit and smoothing his ears back. He smiles crookedly at Anisa. "'Afternoon, ma'am."

The white Lapi just turns to regard the other Rabbit quickly, giving him a small courtesy smile and a nod. "Afternoon." She then sets her gaze back off of the ship, hoping she didn't betray anything.

The airman smiles back, but keeps moving on, in a direction to meet his partner near the bow.

As the airman passes, Anisa points her ears back down to the cargo hold. "Look, maybe if you come up here, we can hurry and get you back down to the cabin. It's either that or wait, and I don't know what else to do!"

"Uh… okay… " With a few grunts, Royce climbs higher up the netting, until he can reach a paw over the lip of the cargo hatch. "Pull me up, quick!"

The white Lapi bends down nervously to the hatch, offering a paw to her little brother as she tries to pull him up. "Oof, you're heavy! Hurry!"

Anisa, of course, could lift the little runt out of the hold by his ears if she wanted, but she wants to make him suffer.

Saying he's heavy is one thing, but the reality to Anisa is another. Royce barely manages to stifle an embarrassing squeak as he's hauled out of the hold by one arm, and onto the deck like a landed fish. He quickly scrambles to his feet.

"Now hurry," scolds the white Lapi, "and let's get below decks! If you're found here, it's the brig for both of us!" Keeping herself in between the eyes of the airmen and Royce, Anisa begins to quickly make her way back to the stairs to the cabin deck.

The two airmen seem busy chatting with each other, and their occasional brief glances up aren't enough for them to catch the pair of rabbits disappearing down the stairs to the passenger level. In the hallway through second class, two more airmen – a brownish Skreek at one end, and another one, this one black with a few grayish spots – are going door to door. The brownish one already appears to be speaking with an elderly human woman, while the other is moving on his way down the hall to another berth.

"Dagh's whiskers," Anisa mutters to herself. "Stay close, and try to keep behind me!" Nonchalantly, the Lapi makes her way down the stairs, and starts off to her berth. Hopefully, she can get to it in time…

"Behind you?" asks the larger Lapi. He doesn't look confident with the plan, but falls into step.

"Do you have a better idea?" Anisa hisses back to the black and white Lapi. "You're the brains, so use them!"

"I dunno, just… rrgh!" Anisa's frustrated brother remains crouched and concealed a short way up the stairs. "Can you distract one of them somehow?"

The white Lapi blinks; she hadn't thought of that! "That might work!" Pondering for a bit, she nods as she comes to a conclusion. "I'll go down the hall, past them both, and create a distraction. If I can get them to come to me, you sneak into the room, got it?"

"Um… um… Okay, right! I hope this works." Royce heads up the stairs a little farther, just to be safe.

Taking a deep breath, Anisa begins to walk down the hall, at first not making any commotion at all. She tries to make it down to the other end while the brown Skreek is engaged with the human.

The brown Skreek takes no notice of Anisa as she passes by, close enough to where she can hear the old woman talking. "… and I distinctly remember, I was playing k'tinza with Martha, only one of the pieces had slid off the board. You know how easy that is aboard an airship, and the first law of airshipping is that anything falling to the floor rolls someplace you can't reach. Isn't that funny? Anyway, it rolled under a dresser, and I asked Martha, who was playing black, 'Do you think the broom-handle can reach that pawn?'… "

Farther down the hall, a wooden arch leads to the First Class section of the passenger deck, and is appropriately doored to separate the well-to-do from the rest of the rabble. One of the doors is currently propped open with a doorstop, and not much farther in stands a dessert cart with a braked wheel to keep it from continuing down the hall by itself when the ship rolls. One of the cabin doors is also open, presumably the door that ordered berth service.

The white Lapi makes sure she is a good distance down the hall from the Skreek, near to the first class section. Then, giving a quick glance back, she feigns a fall straight down on to the floor. "OW!" she yells, slamming into the ground. "My ankle! Owwoowwoooow!" She grabs at her oversized feet, making her best attempt at a face full of pain, trying to force tears.

The brown Skreek looks all too happy to be diverted away from his 'conversation' with the chattering lady. Another rodent face appears as well – a plump Skeek poking his head out of the first-class room. Judging by the ridiculous hat on his head, he's the dessert cart pusher. "Um… uh… are you all right, miss? I mean, I guess not, but," he babbles, as the brown Skreek approaches. Still down the hall is the black one, but he just glances from afar, at the moment.

Anisa wordlessly shakes her head in mock pain at the dessert pusher, still grabbing her ankle and rocking back and forth, her eyes squeezed shut. Quickly, however, she opens one eye to take a glance down the hall, hoping Royce evades the rodents' gazes.

The brown airman arrives, stooping to kneel down by the Lapi. "Are you hurt, miss? What happened?" The black Skreek down the hall looks to still be watching curiously, his hand still poised in front of a door to knock on it, as if in the commotion, he'd forgotten what he was doing, and just left it there. The mouse wrings his paws, whilesomeone in the room calls out, "Where's my pala-fruit sponge cake? What's going on out there?"

By Dagh you idiot, knock on the door! The Lapi gives a teary eyed gaze up at the airman. "I – ow! – tripped! I think I s-sprained my ankle!" She hunches over in pain again, massaging her supposedly hurt appendage.

The black Skreek begins trotting over, abandoning the door he was about to knock on. As he nears by, Royce finally comes down the stairs, skittering toward berth seven in a mockery of speed combined with 'stealth'. (That being a gawky kind of fast tiptoe.) The brown Skreek examines Anisa's 'hurt' foot. "Can you stand with some help? We can get you to the ship's doctor."

The doctor? Dagh! The white rabbit didn't expect this… "I-I think so… " She writhes just a little bit more to buy her brother some time.

Royce manages to patter over to the berth door quietly enough to keep from alerting anyone, while the brown Skreek nods at Anisa. "Myre! C'mere and help me get this Lapi to the doc!" The airman starts to turn his head around to yell at his companion some more…

"OWWWWW!" Anisa wails, grabbing the Skreek by the lapels! Hurry up, Royce! "It hurts!"

The brown airman winces, jerking his head back down, and moving his paws around in front of himself helplessly. "Dagh… I wish I'd paid attention during first aid." It's enough. Royce fumbles at the doorknob a moment, and slips into the berth, disappearing from view. Meanwhile, Myre kneels across from his comrade, glancing down the now-empty hall before looking at the rabbit on the floor. "Hurt your foot? Okay, Kallins, you get a shoulder under her other arm, and we can lift her up… "

The white rabbit makes a few more sniffles, then wiggles her 'injured' foot. "W-wait a second… " She starts to get to her feet, 'testing' the bad ankle. "Hey, what do you know? I'm all right after all!" Smiling a huge smile of 'relief', the rabbit does a pirouette, then throws her arms around the brown Skreek. "Oh, thank you, thank you sir! You helped me more than you know!"

If the black Skreek just looks confused, the brown one looks absolutely flabbergasted. He holds his paws out to either side away from Anisa, as if unsure what to do with them, before patting her on the back. "Uh… that's… um… good, ma'am. You're sure you're all right? I guess you must be. Uh… carry on, then."

Anisa gives the rat a tight squeeze. "I'm right as rain! Thank you so much for looking out for me!" She then lets go of him, skipping back to her berth in a girlish, immature manner. She gives a little wave to the rodents, then slips inside the door, shutting it behind her.

The two Skreeks just stare down the hall for a few moments, then glance at each other. "What was that all about?" "I don't know, Kallins. Maybe she was flirting with you." "A simple wink would have done."

Back inside the room, the Lapi momentarily puts her ear to the door, blushing furiously as she hears the rats' words. She motions for Royce to be quiet until she hears all the airmen leave the hall for elsewhere, scowling at the younger rabbit.

Royce seems all too happy to keep his mouth shut, and really doesn't seem all that inclined to meet Anisa's gaze. It's not long before the Skreek's footsteps can be heard returning them to their rounds.

Once she is sure the coast is clear, Anisa turns to face her little brother, arms crossed. "Okay mister think-by-his-belly, let's get one thing clear: no more going up top, period. Understand me?"

The splotched rabbit folds his arms, but continues not to look at Anisa. "For all I knew, I was going to waste away in here. It looks like you were too busy getting decked out in fancy new duds."

The older sister stomps over to the bundle that is her old clothes, and pulls out what's left of Wanda's pastry, flinging it at Royce. "There, now eat it! I wasn't going to let you starve, broccoli breath! I just had… things to do!" She crosses her arms again. "If you get us thrown off this ship, by the Star I'll… I'll tear your ears off!"

The cold pastry glances off Royce and falls into his lap, where he clutches at it, looking hurt for a split second. "Hey! Ease the steam valve down a few cranks! It's not like you have to spend every hour of several days crammed into this cubbyhole! And I have to go to the privy sometime, don't I? By the Star… " Huffing, Royce places the pastry on the top of a trunk, dusting crumbs out of his lap.

"You're the one that insisted you come along, not me, so deal with it!" The white Lapi walks to the chest, sorting out some clothes. "Now you'll have to lie extra low. I don't know what the deal is up on deck, but they're searching everywhere now for that Dagh-cursed snake's… whatever!" She pulls the Khattan outfit's shawl off of her head, and places it in the drawer.

Royce looks up finally. "That airman alert was pretty sudden, and pretty strange, all right. I wonder… " The Lapi rubs his chin thoughtfully.

Anisa pulls a piece of soft string from the drawer, tying her ears together as she plops down onto the bed. "Do you have any idea what it was all about? The Naga looked mad."

"I'm not sure… Right before I came out of the berth, though, I peeked into the hall, and saw someone running out of the arch marked 'First Class', with something wrapped in a towel under her arm." Royce scratches his ears as he recounts, causing them to flop around. "It was about that point I got to the stairwell. I figured people would think I was a passenger, this far into the trip, so I acted normal, and passed a copperhead. About a minute after that,all Aeztepa broke loose, and I fled into the cargo hold."

The white Lapi finishes with her ears, putting them into the usual topknot-ponytail. "Did you get a look at this person? What race was she, and where was she headed?" The rabbit smoothes out a few creases on her new outfit.

Anisa's brother stares at his feet for a moment, dredging the memory up. "Skeek… kind of tan, I think. She wore a lot of blue, and was headed down the hall through Second Class."

Anisa freezes in mid smooth, her mouth dropping. "You said… tan Skeek? Are you sure?" She stares at her brother wide-eyed, almost in disbelief.

"Pretty sure." Royce tilts his head curiously, one of his ears rising a bit. "What's so special about that?"

The older Lapi closes her eyes, massaging at her temples. "If it is who I think it is, it means this trip just got a whole lot more complicated." The rabbit sighs, and lays back on the bed.

Royce finally takes an interest in the cold apple turnover, nibbling on it. "Is there something I should know?"

"Just that you should be careful who you make friends with." Anisa grabs a pillow, and flops it on top of her head, muffling a tired, stressed moan.

"Er… that's good advice, I suppose." The younger rabbit takes another bite of the pastry. "On the plus side… this turnover's tastier than I thought it would be. So, what are you going to do? You obviously know something I don't."

Anisa sits back up, taking the pillow off of her face and hugging it to her chest and knees, bringing her feet up on to the bed. "If it's who I think it is, then I'm going to have a talk with a certain Skeek about this." She sighs, "and here I thought we were going to be able to get to Gibson without any trouble!"