Wow, it seems like I was updating this fic less than 12 hours ago. Wait...I was. After much thought, I realized that if I didn't post this chapter, I would've been upset. I like it a lot...and although there isn't MUCH to do with the Locke/Rachel thing...it can still work with the fic. I love Relm...she's so cute, so I wanted to incorporate her into the story...and I LOVE the way she and Interceptor bonded in the game. It was so cute. Therefore, I decided to post this for sanity reasons in the future. LOL! oooh...for some reason my italics aren't working when I upload the ms word documents! I have to fix them all now! What a pain in the ass! Oh well.

30. Thamasa

The next morning, Locke woke up feeling like the world was spinning. With a groan, he put his hand over his eyes and slowly sat up, remembering that he was still on the boat. Ugh, the fact that the boat is rocking is not helping me here…

"How're you feeling this morning?" Terra asked with a giggle as she fiercely patted him on the back. He moaned and put his hand on his stomach, which was still slightly upset.

"Like hell," he muttered with a slow inhale of air. "I feel like something crawled in my stomach and died."

"Well yeah, you were sick for over half the night," she reminded him, still giggling at the memory. "You are aware that it's almost three in the afternoon right? We were going to wake you up, but we decided that it would be better if you slept. I can't believe a strong, tough guy like you gets sea sick. I like ships."

"I prefer the train," he informed her sarcastically as he slowly rose to his feet. He put his hand on the wall to steady himself then slowly began to walk up on deck with Terra.

"Yeah, the train is great, but unfortunately a train can't take us through water from Albrook to Thamasa like a ship can." He shot her an annoyed glance over his shoulder as he climbed the stairs.

"Smart ass," he said with a chuckle. Upon reaching the deck, he shielded the sun from his eyes and saw General Leo, Shadow, and Celes congregating on the starboard side of the ship.

"Ahhh, good morning! Or should I say 'afternoon?'" General Leo exclaimed as he saw Terra and Locke. He looked at Locke, chuckled, then raised an eyebrow at him. "So, I heard you had a rough night last night! Feeling slightly better now?"

Locke scoffed at the General's laughter and rolled his eyes, making sure that he wouldn't look at Celes. He wasn't sure what he would say to her after what happened the previous night. "I'm not about to start up a fight with your ten best soldiers, but I'll be fine once we hit solid ground."

"Well, that's good news," he stated with a nod. Locke stared at his feet and by the position of Celes' shadow on the ground, she was doing the same.

She won't even talk to me now…it's like…it's like she's pretending that she doesn't know who I am…He thought to himself as he shifted his weight to his other foot. I don't think she realizes that this is all too familiar of a situation and I'm not liking it…

"Anyway, we're almost at Crescent Island," Leo explained as he pointed in the direction that they were going. Everyone turned their heads to see the patch of land that they were quickly approaching and Locke thought he was going to rejoice.

"Oh thank the goddesses," he cried, a little too happily. "I won't have to deal with the rocking boat anymore."

"He's easy to please," Terra explained as she motioned General Leo to continue. "Don't let him interrupt you. Please, go on."

"Very well. When we disembark, we'll split into two groups," he said, pointing as he spoke. "Celes and I will form one group. Terra, you go with Locke and Shadow."

"Good," Locke stated as he looked up at Celes. Even though her head was pointed toward the ground, he could see her wince. He had to fight himself so he wouldn't show her any forgiveness for the way she treated him the other night. As long as we don't have to work together, we don't have to communicate…He sighed at his attitude and put his hand to his forehead. "Sorry, go ahead."

"That's about it," he finished with a nod as he watched the sailors tie the boat up to the dock. "Oh, there is one more thing. If you spot Espers, report at once! Good luck, you three."

"Thank you," Terra replied with a smile.

"Okay, let's go, Shadow," Locke stated toward the shrouded man as he turned on his heel and started to walk toward the exit ramp.

"Hey…Locke…" Locke stopped walking at the sound of Celes' voice, but he didn't turn around toward her, even though he was ecstatic that she was talking to him again. "Um, I…"

He swallowed the lump that was in his throat as he turned toward Terra, not even acknowledging Celes' existence. "Terra, come on. We have work to do." His voice cracked at the last word, but he shut his eyes and continued to walk toward Thamasa with Shadow. After a few seconds, Terra ran toward them to catch up.

"Now why did you do that? Did you see her?" She asked him, causing him to let out a huff. "Oh, don't give me that."

"Terra, just stay out it," he snapped as he shoved his hands in his pockets. "This really isn't relevant to why we're here. We're here to find Espers. Besides, you were the one who wanted to find out your heritage, so this shouldn't even be on your mind."

"Oh, that's fine," she replied sarcastically at him, making him regret his words. "You can just blame everything on me and turn the entire situation into my fault. I understand. It's happened more than one time in my life, so let's just add another. Thanks, Locke."

He shook his head and sighed. "I didn't mean that. I just don't want to talk about it, okay? When old memories are brought up again, it's like adding salt to a wound. Going to Kohlingen, seeing General Leo and Celes at the same time again…"

"This is relevant to the stuff that you won't tell me about, isn't it?" She asked as he nodded his head at her. With an exhale, she said, "Okay. I'll let you have your peace for now."

"Thanks," he muttered quietly as they walked into the small village of Thamasa. "I really hate to do this, you guys, but do you mind if we go to the inn for a while? I still feel so damn queasy."

"Yeah, if you want, you can rest and Shadow and I will go searching for stuff about Espers," she said cheerfully as she looked around. The villagers walked around quietly, giving the three of them queer and suspicious looks as they passed. "Hey, do you guys get the feeling that we're unwelcome guests here?"

"They live on a small island that can't be reached except by boat or airship," Shadow pointed out as he watched Interceptor sniff the ground. "They're probably not used to guests."

"Good point," Terra said as they walked into the inn.

The innkeeper flashed them a large smile, and Locke could tell that he was faking it. "Good day and welcome to Thamasa! What can I do for you folks on this beautiful day?"

"Yeah, hi," Locke said, leaning against the counter and putting his hand on his stomach. "Look, I just want to rest for a while."

"Of course!" The innkeeper stated with a nod as Locke started to dig through his pockets for some gold. "That'll be 1,500 gold pieces, please."

Locke stopped searching and looked up at the innkeeper in shock. When he looked at Terra, he saw that she had the same expression on her face. "1,500 gold pieces? You want to charge me 1,500 gold pieces to lie on a bed for a few hours? What, are you clinically insane?"

"Well, with taxes the way they are, we have to make our money somehow," the innkeeper responded politely. "So, would you like a room?"

"Hell no!" Locke scoffed and stormed out of the inn in disbelief, the other two not far behind. "Damn, I'd rather suffer! I don't quite understand how an inn, a building that solely exists to offer travelers a place to stay the night, can survive by screwing over its only customer base, but hey, that's just me! Now I'm afraid to go into the item shop to buy a damn potion! How much do you think they're gonna charge for that?"

"And you're wondering why the villagers are giving you odd looks?" Shadow said in regards of Locke's outburst.

"Not all of us can remain phlegmatic like you," Locke threw back, still upset that he wasn't able to rest for a little while. "Oh well. Where do you suppose we start looking for hints about the Espers? Should we just knock on some doors and hope that we get some info?"

"Interceptor!" Shadow cried out as his dog started to bark and run toward one of houses on the northern side of town. "Interceptor, come!"

The dog whined at the door of the house, so Shadow walked over there to scold him for misbehaving. Locke and Terra raised their eyebrows and followed him.

Before Shadow was able to yell, the door opened and an old man walked out. "What in tarnation is going on out here?"

"Oh, hi," Terra said politely with a small wave. "Sorry, we didn't mean to bother you."

"I just wanted my dog," Shadow added as he snapped his fingers at Interceptor then pointed to the ground next to him. "Sit." Locke watched in amazement as the dog obeyed.

"All right, I was just making sure everything was okay," the old man said as he watched Interceptor, mainly his razor sharp teeth. "Well, I'm going to go back inside. You folks have a nice day."

"Hey, wait!" Terra took a step forward to stop him from walking away. "You know, while you are out here, do you mind if we ask you a few questions?"

"Whatcha want with me?" The old man asked as he narrowed his eyes. He took a few steps outside and shut the door before speaking again. "You aren't trying to sell me something are you? I swear, there are more merchants around than anything else these days."

"Nothing of the sort," Locke replied politely as Shadow gripped Interceptor's collar roughly to hold him back from sprinting inside for he was becoming antsy again. "You wouldn't happen to have any information about Espers, would you?"

The old man's eyes went wide in shock, then he calmed himself down and cleared his throat. "Espers?" He repeated as he looked up at the sky and rubbed his beard in thought. "Espers…Hmm. Not really familiar with that word."

"But, you've heard it before?" Locke asked as the old man shook his head nervously.

"Nope, uhn, uhn…Can't say I have," he said, stuttering over every word. "Honestly can't say I have! Sorry!"

Locke turned back around to Terra and Shadow and bit at his lip. "That's odd…"

Before Locke was able to discuss it further, they all heard tiny footsteps from inside. As they looked at the door, it flew open and a small girl poked her head out. She was short, blonde, had several different colored paint smears on her face, and held a paintbrush in her hand.

"Grandpa!" She exclaimed cheerfully as she put the paintbrush behind her ear. "What's going on?"

"This is my granddaughter," the old man drawled as he pointed to her. She smiled and opened the door all the way, closely looking at Terra, Locke, and Shadow. She began pulling at her grandfather's clothing. "Hey…HEY! What in blazes! What're you doing?"

"Grandpa," she started, half whispering as she walked over to them and started to circle them. "Who are these people? Huh? Are they friends?"

"Well, they just stopped by to ask me some questions," he stated with a shrug, and Terra and Locke nodded in confirmation.

"Oooh!" She squeaked as she stood between Locke and Terra and looked up at them. "That's fun! We never have anyone new stopping by! So, who are they? Can they use magic, too?"

"Yaa! Hush!" The old man shouted.

Locke and Terra exchanged glances and smirked at each other at the combination of what the young girl said and the old man's reaction.

"Heh," Locke said quietly as he eyed the old man. "Magic, eh?"

"Kids these days," the old man said as an excuse, blushing around his cheeks. "They say the darndest things."

"Aww, what a cute doggie!" The young girl squealed as she ran up to Interceptor.

"Get away. He bites," Shadow warned her, but she didn't listen. Instead of Interceptor attacking her like he was trained, he started to playfully lick her as she went down on her knees to pet him.

"Nonsense!" She said as the dog tried to climb on her. "He's so playful!"

"Relm! Go to your room!" The old man snapped and pointed to the inside of the house.

She stood up and put her hands on her hips. "I will not!" With a giggle, she faced Locke and Terra and shook her head. "What a fussy old man!"

"Please…" He begged, shaking his finger in the direction he was pointing. "Leave us! You've done enough damage for one day!"

"Well, all right," she said with a pout. "But I have all my paints set up, so I think I'm going to go paint a picture of the puppy. Come on, puppy!"

Before Shadow was able to protest, Relm walked inside with Interceptor and slammed the door. "Hoo boy…" The old man began with a chuckle toward Shadow. "Seems to like your dog…"

"So, what exactly did she mean by asking if we knew how to do magic 'too?'" Locke asked as he and Terra crossed their arms at the same time.

"Oh, she's just a child," he stated with a sigh. "Please, come in and have some tea as my apology. I just made some."

The three of them nodded as they walked inside. Locke looked around at the quaint little house and he had to smile. It reminded him of the house that he and his grandmother shared in Kohlingen when he was younger, including the scent of mint tea that always lingered in the air.

"I'm terribly sorry for being rude, but I just realized that I haven't introduced myself," he said as he went to the stove to take the kettle off the heat. "My name is Strago Magus, and that was my granddaughter, Relm Arrowny. When her parents died, I took her in and I've basically raised her since she was a baby. She's a bright girl and a very talented artist for her age, but she has a tendency to talk too much."

The door to the stairwell opened up and Relm squealed in delight, splattering paint from the paintbrush that was in her hands as she flailed her arms in excitement. "What a sweet puppy! You should see the painting so far! I think it's the best thing I've ever painted!" She wiped off the paint that hit the door and heard Interceptor bark from upstairs. "I'm coming, puppy!"

The four adults watched as she shut the door again then heard her run up the stairs. Strago sighed and shook his head as he handed the glasses of tea to Terra, Locke, and Shadow. "This is terrible. Sorry."

"No problem," Shadow said simply as he kept his gaze on the door to the stairwell. "The dog doesn't usually like people though."

"Please excuse her," Strago apologized, shrugging his shoulders as he turned back toward the cupboards for condiments. "Like I said, she's just young."

"Hmmm…" Locke said in thought as he put his glass to his lips. "So, you're aware of magic and Espers. Or at least your granddaughter is."

"She's just heard myths and stories about the War of the Magi, that's all," Strago explained, not convincing anyone. "This is just a back-water village on a tiny island on the eastern side of the world. We can tell you nothing about your Espers. I'm terribly sorry."

"I see…" Locke muttered under his breath as Strago turned around toward the tea kettle again. He leaned in toward Terra and Strago and stated the obvious, "There's something wrong here…"

"Ya think?" Terra said as she tapped her nails against the table. "She's young, yeah, but I think she proved to us that there is more to this town than meets the eye. Let's have a look around. Maybe we can find something else out."

"Agreed," Locke stated as he took one last sip of his tea and put the glass down. "Well, we've got to get going. Thanks for your time!"

"And for the tea!" Terra added and handed him her glass. "It was excellent."

"Of course," he replied with a shrug. "Sorry I couldn't have been more helpful!"

"Interceptor! Come!" Shadow bellowed with a whistle in the direction of Relm's room. After a few seconds, Relm walked downstairs with the dog, her paintbrush still in hand.

"But…" She started to whine with a pout. "I'm not done with the painting yet."

"Relm," Strago said calmly as he patted the young girl on the head. "Just use your imagination for the rest of it, okay?"

Her pout didn't wash off her face as she sighed and said, "Oh, all right…"

"Oh, I forgot to mention," Strago cried as they began to walk away from the house. "If you want to stay the night at the inn, just tell the innkeeper that you know me. I'm sure he'll give you a hell of a deal."

"Well, that good, because he basically asked for my firstborn when we went there earlier," Locke stated with a sarcastic smile and a nod. "Thanks, old man, we'll definitely take your advice."

Strago shut the door and Terra and Locke leaned in toward each other. "Now what?" Terra asked as Locke shrugged his shoulders. "They know about Espers, it's obvious, but how do we get them to confess?"

"Let's just stay the night here first and then we can seek out the elder of this town tomorrow or something," Locke suggested with a sigh. "There really isn't anything else we can do. I feel like we're doing the Empire's dirty work for them by trying to pry information out of this town."

"General Leo and Celes were going to look around the island too," Terra mentioned with a smile. "If we don't find out anything, I guess we can just meet up with him and see if they've had better luck."

"True," Locke agreed with a nod as they started to walk back over to the inn. Then I'd like to have a little heart to heart talk with General Leo. Maybe ask him about the Clemix diamond and also if there's anything I can do for Rachel…