author's note: I was not planning on this chapter being this long. Ack. But on we go...

islands in the sea
chapter two - start a fire

With weapons in hand and a few supplies carried between them, Hubert and Pascal set out to explore the island on which their ship has crash-landed. They first circle the area, walking close to the shore, looking out across the ocean at the other islands and trying to guess the distance between them. Pascal says she's pretty sure that they landed on the southernmost body of land - the smallest one - and Hubert thinks that the island's circumference is of less than a mile. The nearby land is not close enough for swimming, but he comments, when they stop to look out to the center island, that it might be close enough for a boat trip - and at that remark the Amarcian's eyes sparkle in a way that makes him groan and wish he'd never opened his mouth.

Their walk in the sand is slow and uneventful, and takes less than an hour. Hubert is somewhat relieved to find that the ocean around them is calm, for the time being, and Pascal seems delighted by the sand on the shore, which is almost pure white and soft and dotted with shells (quite different from the rough yellowish, sand that makes up the deserts of Strahta). They see no sign of monsters, only a few tiny red crabs scuttling along the beach, and at one point they witness a few large fish leaping out of the water in the distance. It's actually almost peaceful, like an uninhabited vacation destination. But when it's time to venture into the trees that are clustered together in the middle of the island, everything changes.

"It's obvious that no one has been here in ages," Hubert remarks, using the blade of his weapon to cut a long, thick vine out of their path, "if ever. This overgrowth is so thick that I am not sure we will be able to continue much further."

"Ugh. I totally see your point." Pascal is to his side, using a small knife to saw away at additional vines, and he can hear the frustration in her voice. They are barely twenty minutes into the trees - although it's more like a jungle, he thinks - and all they have done so far is cut vines and tall shoots of what appear to be bamboo out of their way. "I dunno if it's worth going in any further, I mean... I haven't seen a single monster so far, just a couple birds up there in the trees. Fourier would know a ton more about this than I would, but maybe it's just not possible for very many creatures to survive on this kind of terrain."

"That is possible. Especially considering the lack of fresh water."

"Seems like monsters are more like people than we give them credit for, sometimes." She laughs, watching a vine fall to the dirty, dusty forest floor in front of them. "But hey, this is good, yeah? Nothing attacking us but these stupid trees."

"Don't get too confident." He chops down a stalk of bamboo, squinting in the direction of the trees ahead, listening carefully for any noises around them. "The deeper we go, the more likely we are to encounter something dangerous. If humans have never been to this location - "

"Or," she cuts in, with a smile, "if the last people to be here were my ancestors, hundreds or thousands of years ago - "

" - then," he continues, not at all amused by her interjection, "we should be prepared for the worst."

"Oh, c'mon, really?" She shoots him a skeptical look. "It's been totally quiet since we got here, except for the birds, and I don't see them dive-bombing us or anything. If there really were monsters running around thinking about eating us or whatever, wouldn't we have seen them by now?"

He exhales, shaking his head as he slashes at another vine. "Please stay on guard, Pascal. I can ask for nothing else."

She scrunches up her nose at him, taking a few steps ahead to work on a vine of her own. "You can be a real buzzkill sometimes. You know that, right?"

He scoffs, taking a particularly hard swipe at a stalk of bamboo, even though it isn't really even in his way. "Forgive me, I hadn't realized that my actions were causing you any kind of hardship. Please do forgive me for being cautious on an unknown and possibly unexplored island in the middle of the Strahtan sea, away from any hope of rescue - "

"BANANAS!"

Hubert is used to nonsensical interruptions from Pascal, especially after traveling by her side for so long, but this particular shout carries so much joy in it that he doesn't bother trying to continue. Instead he watches as the Amarcian claps her hands together merrily, scurrying ahead into the trees, and lo and behold... "I see," he sighs, as he picks up his pace, "there are indeed bananas here."

"Oh, man, I was soooooo upset about landing on this island, but this is like paradise right here!" She laughs happily, sheathing her knife and tucking it away in one pocket of her shorts, and as he watches she rather easily climbs the trunk of a tall banana plant, wrapping her arms around it like a beloved friend. "There are probably hundreds of bananas! And they're allllll mine!"

"It seems that way," he comments, rather begrudgingly. For once, she's not exaggerating: the trees in the forest have given way to tall, leafy banana plants, all clustered close together, their tops reaching nearly as high as the palms and vines behind them. As she coos and practically nuzzles the tree she's chosen to hug, apparently delighted by their discovery, he can't help but feel a bit envious - No, he stops himself, that's ridiculous. He has no reason to be jealous of a tree. It doesn't at all matter that she's never shrieked and hugged him that way -

There's a rustling to his side, and he immediately holds his weapon aloft, tensing as he whirls around to face the source of the noise. At first he sees nothing - but then, looking down, his eyes settle on the form of what appears to be a small brown boar. The creature is short, with brown fur and a dark, scruffy mane and tail, and long white tusks that curve up in the direction of its bright golden eyes. It stares at Hubert and he stares back, wondering he should be alarmed, but the creature doesn't appear to be moving, aside from its slowly swishing tail. "Hmm," he murmurs, bending slightly, "where is it that you came from?"

"Hu?" He hears Pascal's voice and doesn't like the trepidation it carries. "Um... there's something you should know..."

"What?" he asks, and almost immediately assumes that he has his answer: when he lifts his eyes from the creature in front of him, he sees several more creeping out from behind the banana plants, all moving slowly and quietly, golden eyes fixed directly on him. He swallows, hard, and brings his dualblade close, his free hand gesturing back in her direction. "They don't appear to be interested in harming us," he begins, keeping his voice low, "but it would be best if you stayed - "

"In the tree? Yeah, too late, sorry." She's beside him again in an instant, and he sighs, remembering all at once just how light - and fast - she is on her feet. "Looks like you were right about monsters, huh?"

"... yes. It appears that way."

"They're probably just wondering what the heck we're doing in their neck of the woods." When he looks at Pascal, he sees her peering down at the boar closest to her, one finger tapping her chin. She seems completely unconcerned by the presence of the beasts that are slowly surrounding them - Hubert counts about fifteen of them, more or less - but she has unstrapped her staff from her back, and holds it tight in her opposite hand, the end resting against the dusty earth beneath their feet. "Actually, these bananas are probably their source of food. Boars eat fruit and small things like bugs, if I remember correctly. So they probably got a good look at me climbing up that tree and were like "what the hey?" So..." She laughs, bending over a little further, smiling broadly. "Hey there, boar! You and me are gonna be pals, okay?"

"Pascal!" He groans, rubbing his forehead with one palm. "These creatures do not understand our language! You can't simply try to reason with them - "

"And how do you know so much, huh? Maybe they're descendants of like, some ancient Amarcian pet boar that understood our language perfectly!"

"I highly doubt that."

"Pfft. You don't know anything about animals. My pet fish used to understand me just fine." She makes a face at him that he tries desperately not to think is cute. "I talked to him all the time!"

He looks from her to the boars, noting that they still aren't moving, simply standing in place with their tails swishing slowly. "You had a pet fish?"

"Yeah, totally. Though he didn't live very long..." She laughs nervously. "I kinda forgot to feed him."

"This, sadly, does not bode well for our current situation." He glances around them, swallowing. "Though they do appear harmless..."

"Yeah, like I said! We're gonna be pals!" She laughs, bending over the creature in front of her again. "What should I name you, little guy? Or are you a girl? What kind of name do you want to have, huh? How about - " Hubert is about to scoff and tell her to stop when all of the boars visibly tense, and there's the sound of a cry in a distance, one that makes him freeze, too. "Huh?" he hears her murmur, lifting her head. "What was that?"

"I don't," he starts, and then each of the beasts that have surrounded them begin running in the direction of the beach beyond the trees, several of them releasing what sound like alarmed squeals and snorts. He watches them, both eyebrows raised, before turning on his heel to face the depth of the forest in front of them, the place they've yet to explore. "Whatever it is," he says, frowning, "I believe it is something they do not want to encounter."

Pascal heaves out a sigh, leaning on her staff. "Another monster?"

"That is my guess."

"Aw, man, that's just annoying. Here I was hoping to enjoy my bananas in peace..." Another cry sounds from within the trees, but this one is closer, and Hubert tenses at the sound of it, swallowing again. The sun is slowly sinking low in the sky, and the lack of light makes it hard for him to see past the place where they stand - no thanks to the leafy trees that stand around them, either, providing a shady canopy that blocks out much of the sun. "And that is a really creepy sound," she adds, making a face. "Like some kind of crazy ghost or something."

"Get ready," he tells her, and braces himself. A moment later he hears the thundering sound of hooves on the dirt and small trees snapping under the force of something large, and suddenly there's another boar charging through the trees to where they stand - but this one is enormous, and angry. It stops short of where they stand, effortlessly snapping a stalk of bamboo in half with one long tusk, and Pascal squeaks, taking a careful step back as the creature fixes its eyes upon her. "Don't move," Hubert warns her, watching the boar closely. "And don't do anything that might be seen as a threat."

"Wh - what is this thing?!" She makes a whining sound, clutching her weapon close. "Is it like, the king pig or something?!"

"Most likely the queen," he comments, gritting his teeth, "if anything."

"Aw, geez..." She fidgets. "I really don't think I can just stand here, Hu - "

"Be still!" he shouts, but it's a useless order: she backs up quickly, holding her staff in front of her like a shield, and the boar immediately lowers its head, stomping one foot so hard against the ground that he feels the vibration. "Pascal," he tries again, with as much patience as he can muster, "do not move."

"It's gonna charge at me..."

"Not if you stand still." He takes a hesitant step forward, and the boar doesn't appear to notice, its gaze still fixed on the woman to his side. "Just wait. Creatures like this are driven to attack by sudden movement. If you stand without moving - "

The monster suddenly snorts, lowering its head even further, and Pascal shrieks. "I don't think it cares too much for your theory!"

Hubert curses under his breath, taking another step in the direction of the monster. "Don't do anything drastic - !"

Before he can make any further movements, the boar gives a loud cry, moving forward threateningly. Pascal shrieks, tossing her staff into the air as she turns to flee, apparently giving up hope of standing still. "UWAAHHHHHH!" she screams. "It's gonna come after meeee!"

"Pascal!" He manages, somehow, to rather gracefully catch her staff in the hand that holds his dualblade, his other arm stretching out to wrap quickly around her waist before she can flee. As she's caught in his grasp she gives another terrified sounding shriek, but he pulls her in close without caring about the contact her body makes against his own, frowning over the top of her head at the large beast. "Running away will make it worse," he says, "because it will give chase. If you don't want to be hurt, stay here and remain still."

"Y - you're going to try and fight that thing?!"

"I'm afraid we don't have any other choice." He releases her, dropping her staff carefully to the dirt beneath their feet before straightening. His eyes never leave the boar, even as he swings his weapon in front of them, preparing for an attack. "We are the ones invading its home, as far as I am aware. My first inclination would be to leave peacefully, but based on its behavior we have no choice but to fight. Kill or be killed is all this beast knows."

He feels something warm on his shoulder, on top of his coat, and it takes him longer than it should to realize that Pascal is holding on to him. "Hu," she murmurs, and he doesn't like the fear in her voice or the way her hands tremble, "I'm all for fighting monsters, but just the two of us facing this big ugly thing..."

"I will protect you," he says, and it's a promise he's made before, though maybe not loud enough for her to hear. "Just - trust me."

He sees, out of the corner of one eye, a surprised expression appear on her face. "H - Hu - "

"Now!" The boar has been preparing to charge, and as he pushes Pascal back and out of the way, Hubert thanks his lucky stars for his quick reaction time. If he'd waited a second longer, they might have both been run through, and he's all but certain that the creature in front of them wanted it that way. He rushes at the monster with his blade held aloft, and though his enemy is fast, he knows he is faster. The boar sidesteps his first attack, but the second one lands, followed by a third, and the beast gives cries that fill the trees with sound and send tiny birds scattering from the branches above them. Still, it has a lot of fight, he thinks, because even as it bleeds it lowers its head to charge again, this time in the opposite direction. "If you insist on attacking me," he mutters, twisting apart his dualblade, "I will give you my all - "

Across the forest floor he hears a low murmuring, and glances over, just for a second, to see that Pascal has retrieved her weapon and is beginning some kind of spell. "You don't have to help!" he calls, rather angrily, because he doesn't want her to get hurt. "Stay back!"

"Distract it!" she shouts back. "If you're gonna be an idiot about this, I'm not letting you do it alone!"

Hubert isn't sure whether or not he should be appreciative of such a comment, but he doesn't have time to think it over: the boar roars before charging at him again, and his quick sidestep is countered almost immediately with the slash of an enormous tusk. One half of his weapon is knocked out of his right hand, and he winces at the hard slap against his wrist and forearm, but he has no plans to give up yet. He spins the remaining piece of his weapon around in his left hand and fires six bullets, two of which catch the creature between the eyes, and another enormous cry fills the air around them. He steps back and is about to consider an arte when there's a burst of fire on the area where the boar stands. "Hu!" he hears Pascal shouting, "now! Go for it!"

"My pleasure," he mutters, and bends quickly to retrieve the fallen half of his weapon. The dualblade is reassembled in only a second, and he rushes forward again, taking careful aim with his blades. The boar groans and tosses its head madly as it's cut, but then it stills, and as Pascal's fire spell fades away it falls lifelessly to the ground. Hubert draws in a deep, unsteady breath, then releases it, lowering his weapon, feeling his heart pounding away like the beat of a drum. "That was altogether unpleasant," he remarks, frowning down at the beast's lifeless body. "Though perhaps not as difficult as expected."

"You did good!" The Amarcian rushes over to his side, beaming, staff in one hand. "I totally thought that thing was gonna take us both down, but you flattened it like a pancake!"

"... ah, well." He clears his throat, reaching up with one hand to push his glasses back up on his nose. "Your help was - appreciated. But if that monster had come after you..."

"It didn't, though, did it?" She pokes at the boar's body with the end of her shotstaff, winking up at him. "And besides, you said you were gonna protect me. You would have done that if you needed to, yeah?"

"Y - yes - " He fumbles with his dualblade, separating the pieces again and clumsily holstering them out of sight beneath his coat. "A - anyway, I believe we have seen all of this island that we need to. We should return to the ship and decide on a plan of action for the next several days. It is possible that we will..." He notices something moving behind her and forgets what he is planning to say, raising both eyebrows and watching in silence as a small boar comes tumbling through the trees with a small bag in its mouth. "... what in the world," he begins, "is...?"

"Huh?" Pascal turns and watches the creature for a moment, then shrieks, clapping a hand over her mouth. "That's some of - my food - ?!"

He leans to one side, looking around her, and sees another boar trotting along with what appears to be a scarf wrapped around its tusks. He looks from it to his companion, and they stare at each other, wide-eyed, until they realize what is going on -

"The ship!" they chorus, and immediately break into a run, hurrying as fast as they can out of the trees and to the beach again.

"So?" An hour later, Pascal sits cross-legged in the sand in the middle of the beach, her chin propped up in one hand, and as Hubert comes to join her she gives him a sympathetic look. "What's the damage?"

"We have a few ounces of clean water and one can of soup." He collapses beside her with a loud, heavy sigh, shaking his head, and out of the corners of his eyes he can see her cringe. "The rest was either eaten, stolen, or in some state of contamination. In addition to the loss of our perishables, you appear to have lost a scarf, and the cabin and rest area were in total disarray. The door to the back of the ship has been all but destroyed, thanks to those beasts."

"Great..." She sighs loudly, closing her eyes. "So now not only are we stuck on this stupid island, all our food's gone."

"Those monsters may have been waiting for us to vacate the area. Once we were distracted, they used the opportunity to raid the ship for food." He shakes his head again. "Some of our more critical supplies remain untouched, but I fear that we are in a far worse situation than before. We will have no choice but to search the island for a source of food, and clean water is almost completely out of the question, considering our location."

"Aw, man..." She lifts a hand to rub her forehead. "This sucks..."

"That is an understatement." He frowns. "Had I been privy to even a hint of what might happen upon our arrival at this island, I would have immediately rejected your offer and remained at home. Right now I would be - " He glances up at the sky, which is rapidly growing darker as the sun sinks low into the ocean. " - eating dinner with my father, or reading in my room, or perhaps even catching up on paperwork in my office. I would certainly not be sitting here with no food to speak of - "

"Oh, but there are bananas, right?"

" - with no substantial food to speak of," he corrects himself, his voice hardening, "and no drinkable water, stranded on an island in the ocean with no hope of rescue and only a half-crazed Amarcian companion to help me survive!"

"... right," Pascal says, weakly, and out of the corners of his eyes, Hubert sees her stiffen, her gaze falling to the sand in front of her. "You're right. This is my fault, I guess."

"It's - " he starts, but then stops himself, realizing what he is doing. He is tired and frustrated and hungry, and his wrist aches something awful, and he is lashing out at her purely as a matter of consequence. What remains of their ship looks terrible, and he is not happy with the loss of their supplies - but it isn't her fault, not at all. Neither of them are to blame for this -

"... Hu?"

He looks over at her, lifting an eyebrow, wondering what she is going to say. "Yes?"

"So I..." Much to his surprise, she lowers her head, her voice growing soft, and he catches a glimpse of a sad expression on her face before her hair falls into her eyes. "... I know I keep roping you into all these stupid plans, but this one... it's gotta be the worst, yeah? I really just thought we could spend a day or two together, and it'd be fun, like old times, but I didn't expect all this to happen..." He hears an unusual kind of sadness in her words and doesn't like it, doesn't like it at all, wants suddenly to throw his arms around her shoulders and tell her to stop it right this instant. "The last time something crazy happened, you told me you only wanted to do normal stuff, and... I totally blew it, didn't I?"

He leans forward, ready to interrupt with an apology. "Pas - "

"So," she continues, and he falls silent, realizing that she still has more to say, even though hearing these words will surely hurt him, "when we get back... I promise, only normal stuff from now on. I won't ever bug you to go adventuring or exploring or treasure hunting with me again. I'll do all that on my own, okay? And that way I won't bother you anymore, and we can go do whatever normal people do. Or if you decide that you don't want to see me again, I mean..." She shrugs. "I guess I can't blame you, huh...?"

He considers these words for a while, studying her, the way she sits completely still with her head bowed and hands clasped together. He knows that it's his fault that she is acting this way - that his short temper has led her to believe that he wants nothing to do with her. And that couldn't be further from the truth. He is upset with their situation, yes, but he doesn't blame her, not at all, and the mere suggestion that he is angry at her makes him feel like a selfish, terrible man -

"Pascal," he says, and watches as she lifts her head. "Smile," he tells her, firmly, with a nod, "instead of making a face like that."

"Smile...?"

"That kind of expression really doesn't suit you. You look much better when you're giving me one of those ridiculous grins, and bouncing all over the place shouting about bananas or some piece of Amarcian technology." She blinks at him, lips parted, and he's struck by the urge to reach out and ruffle her hair, of all things - and he does it, because he's always wanted to know what her hair feels like, and it's tangled from the wind but surprisingly soft against his fingers. "I - I'm not angry with you," he stutters, drawing back his hand as her eyes grow wide, "I am merely - frustrated - with our situation. So please smile. If things are bad enough that not even you can smile, then..." He swallows, looking away, already wondering why in the world he would have dared to do such a stupid, intimate thing -

"Hehe." She giggles suddenly, softly, and much to his surprise he feels the light touch of something on his wrist - her hand, he realizes, snapping his head back in her direction. "Have you cheered up a lot of girls before, Hu?"

He feels himself beginning to color, and gives her the most annoyed look he can muster, even though she's inches from holding his hand and he wants that more than anything else, even more than he wants to get off this island. "W - why would you think something like that?"

"I'm just wondering. You're pretty good at it. You've gotten better, anyway." She smiles, and he feels his heart thump hard against the front of his chest. "I remember when you used to try to cheer me up by telling me to knock it off before I distracted everybody, or when you'd pass me an extra plate of food at dinnertime while we were traveling without saying anything." She moves her hand, threading her fingers through his, and Hubert feels so lightheaded that he's worried he might faint. "Thanks," she says, and squeezes her palm to his. "I kinda needed to hear that."

"Y - you're w - wel - " He looks away, cursing his inability to speak when he's embarrassed, and he's starting to feel a little dizzy on top of that. "... don't mention it," he says instead, closing his eyes, both loving and hating how warm her skin is against his own. "I couldn't possibly bear the thought of - of being stranded here with you if you were to be pouting and speaking ill of yourself the entire time."

She giggles again. "Yeah, 'cause being stuck here with me is bad enough, right?"

"I - I didn't say that!"

"You kinda did. You called me a half-crazed Amarcian, didn't you?" She squeezes his hand again, and god help him if she does it a third time, because he's all but certain he will pass out right here on this beach. "Well, even so, I'm glad it's you here with me. If it were anybody else, I'd probably drive them nuts. You're strangely resilient to that sorta thing."

This conversation is moving in the direction of a topic Hubert wants to avoid - his feelings - and so he carefully pulls his hand out of her grasp, clearing his throat and opening his eyes as he prepares to change the subject. When he looks to her again, she seems to be watching him carefully, and he hopes she isn't noticing the flush on his cheeks or the way he's trembling, but as unobservant as she is, sometimes, he thinks that she can't have possibly missed that reaction - "A - anyway," he starts, and tries desperately to level his unsteady voice, "as unfortunate as this situation is for the two of us, it is not impossible to deal with. Provided there are no additional monsters on the island that pose a threat to us, we should be able to survive long enough for rescue by your sister, or perhaps a search party from Strahta."

"Oh yeah!" Pascal is back to her old self again already, and she gives him a grin, clapping her hands together. "I completely forgot that I gave the prez a copy of the map with the islands and coordinates drawn on and stuff. So as soon as he figures out we're missing, he'll probably send some guys looking for us!"

"Unfortunately, I did advise him that the entire expedition would take at least two nights." He frowns slightly. "So we may be here for the better part of a week before my disappearance is noted."

"Well, there's always hope of Fourier getting back to the lab early."

"But how will she be able to reach us, even if she does hear your message?" He lifts an eyebrow. "And for that matter, will we be able to hear her response, if we are away from the ship?"

"Fourier built - er, had built, she didn't do any of the heavy lifting or anything - a zippy little aircraft of her own, not that long ago. She studied the technology of that thing - " She jerks a thumb over her shoulder, at the crumpled and broken plane on the ground. " - and duplicated it on a smaller scale, plus with a whole bunch of efficient energy-saving technology stuff. It was still a little wonky, the last time we took it out, but still way more reliable than my ship, I guess." She shifts on the sand, stretching her legs out in front of her and kicking off her boots. "Anyway, I figure she can bring that out here to pick us up. As far as hearing her, well... I guess we'll just have to stay close to the ship, 'cause the speakers aren't that loud, even with a big hole in the side. But the good thing is that as long as the energy source and solar power work together - " She points over her shoulder again, this time at the panel attached to the top of the aircraft. " - she'll be able to leave us a message, even if we aren't around to hear it." She smiles. "And if all else fails, I bet your military buddies will come sailing out here on a big ol' ship trying to find the islands, right?"

"That is always a possibility." He rubs his chin, releasing a sigh. "But I would prefer not to be rescued by my own men. They would most certainly not allow me to live that kind of thing down."

"Hehe, well - " A loud rumbling noise interrupts Pascal's response, and she looks suddenly at her stomach, her face flushing. "Yipes..."

"I remember that sound very well." Hubert gets to his feet, holding back a chuckle as he does so. "I suppose we should eat. There is at least soup for us to share tonight, but tomorrow morning we will have no choice but to search for other options."

"But there are lots of bananas - "

"And I don't particularly like bananas." He shakes his head at her, but his frustration is all but gone, so his words sound more teasing than they do angry. "So if you would like both of us to come out of this alive, we will have to find some other source of food."

"Y'okay!" She springs up off the sand, saluting him with a grin and a wink. "I can get behind that. I'd feel pretty lousy if you keeled over and died out here in the middle of nowhere."

"I would hope you would at least write a proper epitaph for my tombstone."

"Ooh, that's heavy. Let's see..." She turns away from him, folding her arms behind her head as she begins walking in the direction of the trees behind the ship. "How about... "here lies Hubert Oswell, a total jerk who never had any fun ever in his entire life"?"

So much for his frustration being gone. "Pascal!"

"Hey, you didn't say it had to be nice." She looks over his shoulder at him with another wink. "C'mon, slowpoke. Get over here and help this crazy Amarcian find some firewood."

Hubert is suddenly very sure that Pascal is going to make him wish he'd never lashed out at her, and he doesn't exactly blame her for it, but...

"What have I gotten myself into?" he wonders aloud, following her.

By the time they set up camp on the beach and share a meal, night has fallen on the island, leaving Hubert and Pascal in the dark with only the light of the moon and stars above and a campfire in front of them. Hubert sits on the sand with his attention on the navy sky, and although he is still irritated with their situation and the difficulties they have faced so far, he knows it is pointless to complain about things any more than he already has. Tomorrow, he thinks, he must turn his mind to their survival - to finding food, and to ensuring their safety.

To his side, Pascal is humming cheerfully to herself as she munches on a banana, sitting cross-legged with an empty bowl in her lap. They'd had only a can of soup left to share for dinner, but she'd insisted on having a banana, of course, and had dashed into the trees to grab a few bunches "for later." Some of the boars had chased her out, leaving Hubert to deal with them while she screamed apologies "for killing their mother, or father, or whatever that big monster-y thing was." After that mess, they'd built a campfire out of branches that she'd lit with a fire arte, and then he had found a pot, two bowls, and two spoons in the tiny, messy kitchen of the ship. He'd been tasked with holding the pot of soup over the fire to warm it, but Pascal had of course looked at the scene for five entire seconds before declaring that in the morning she would build a full cooking station over the fire to make it easier to use. Then they'd eaten quietly, hungrily, apparently both worn out and eager for food from the fiasco of the afternoon.

Hubert glances at his companion, letting out a sigh as he does so. "This day," he remarks, quietly, "has been rather... taxing."

"Tell me about it." Pascal finishes her banana and tosses the peel into her empty bowl, placing everything on the sand in front of her. "But hey, at least we came out of the crash alive, yeah? Things could have been way worse."

"You are correct, but I worry for our safety on this island. We still do not know what awaits us here - or how long we will be stranded."

"Mm, you're right, Hu..." He sees her expression shift away from that of the happy smile she had been wearing while eating her banana. "Do you think we'll be safe here? I mean..." She turns her head to look at the trees behind them, biting down softly on her bottom lip. "What if that was the king pig, and the queen pig is still out there somewhere, waiting for us to let our guard down so she can run us through? Those tusks looked pretty hard..."

"Yes," he remarks, and rubs absently at his aching wrist, still sore from the slap of a tusk; he won't be surprised if his arm is sporting a particularly nasty bruise in the morning. "It is always possible that there are additional monsters lurking about, or that the smaller boars might attempt to cause further trouble for us. And although the weather and temperature both appear agreeable so far, we have no knowledge of the storms that may pass through this area. We might awake to find the entire island flooded." He thinks for a moment, shifting his eyes to the ocean before them, watching the tide roll in and out in three slow cycles before he speaks again. "I suppose there's no choice. One of us will have to stand guard."

"Really? But - "

"I don't mind doing it," he says, and looks back to her with a nod. "You may sleep inside the ship for the evening. I will remain outside on the lookout for any signs of trouble."

"Hu..." She makes a noise of concern, frowning up at him. "Then when are you gonna sleep?"

He shrugs, palms-up, avoiding eye contact with her. "I will sleep for a few hours in the morning, once you are awake, and perhaps again in the afternoon."

"That doesn't seem fair. Why don't we just trade off? Like, I'll stand guard for a couple hours, and then you'll do it for a couple hours, and - "

"That won't be necessary." He shakes his head. "I am more than capable of performing guard duties on my own. Besides, I can't say that I am at all confident in your ability to guard our camp without getting yourself into some kind of trouble, or falling asleep at your post."

She makes a face at him immediately, narrowing her amber eyes. "You're one to talk. I remember getting up late at night and finding you snoozing at your post more than once."

"Y - you what - ?!"

"Guess you thought nobody noticed, huh? Hehe." She grins. "Alright, so this is how it's gonna go. I'm gonna string together a couple traps to put around the perimeter of the ship. They'll make lots of noise, so even a super sound sleeper like me will wake up when they go off. Then we're both gonna go to sleep, and if we need a better solution or get attacked in the middle of the night, we'll figure out a better system tomorrow."

He opens his mouth, closes it, then opens it again. "Pascal, you cannot simply decide - "

"I can and I just did. You're not gonna be any good to me tired, y'know?" She reaches out and pokes him in the shoulder, still grinning. "Now get up off your stubborn butt and help me make some traps."

"W - why should I?" He frowns, folding his arms stiffly together. "Even if the traps make noise, by the time we hear anything from inside the rest area, it could be too late. Those boars are capable of running at a very high speed, and sounds are muffled when they reach the inside of the ship."

"Hm... You have a good point there." She tilts her head slightly, eyes shifting skyward, and then nods, smacking a fist into her palm. "Okay, not a problem! I'll just move the traps further back on the side that faces the trees, so if something comes through there, we'll hear it earlier. And since we can't do much for the beach ones, I guess we'll just have to move our beds outside so we can hear them sooner."

He gapes at her again. "You are suggesting that we sleep outside?"

"Heck yeah! It'll be like a good old-fashioned camping trip!" She laughs, squeezing both hands into fists, and her eyes practically sparkle with excitement. "We'll just drag some of the mattresses and blankets and stuff out onto the sand, and smash 'em together so we're close to each other and can wake each other up if something crazy happens, and - and hey, that means we'll be able to like, sleep right under the stars and stuff! Isn't that cool?"

Hubert thinks he is able to do nothing but gape anymore, like some sort of dying fish out of water. "Cool?" he echoes her.

"Well, yeah! Didn't you ever go on camping trips when you were little?" She smiles up at him, her eyes still bright, and he wonders if it's possible for a human being to be killed by his heart stopping multiple times as a result of a pretty girl's smile. "Fourier and I used to do that kind of stuff all the time. Are you seriously trying to tell me you and Asbel never slept outside overnight in tents, staring up at the stars or cooking stuff over the fire on sticks?"

"N - no, I - "

"Then it's settled!" She leans over and smacks a fist into his shoulder, laughing. "This will be your initiation to camping. We are gonna have soooo much fun, Hu!"

He groans aloud. "This is not my idea of fun."

"Too bad, so sad! Now get up - " She grabs for his hand and he snatches it away, but then she loops an arm around his neck and practically chokes him. " - and help me out, you grumpy guy!"

"Ugh - Pascal - "

"C'mon, c'mon!" She drags him almost effortlessly to his feet before releasing him and bounding off in the direction of the ship. Hubert watches her go, slack-jawed, and after a moment he lets out another long, loud groan. If he could have picked anyone to be stranded with on an island in the middle of the Strahtan sea, it would have not been Pascal. Pascal would have been his last choice, right behind Raymond, or even Captain Malik -

"Hubert Oswell, get your grumpy butt over here before I kick it over here!"

- but he has no choice now but to deal with the hand that fate has dealt him. All he can hope now is that he makes it home in one piece... and that his heart doesn't somehow get broken on the way there.