[Xanth]

Naava's reaction amused Xanth. She had artfully avoided answering the girl's question, using Euphenia's interruption to disguise the fact that she did not wish to interfere with the Skotadi's regaining of her memories, because - though her reasoning was not entirely magnanimous - she was concerned. She remembered all too well how Suka had suffered when he regained his memories so suddenly, and the slightest trigger could bring tragedy. She would say as little as possible, and allow the girl to regain hers naturally.

Somehow, she doubted that "No, you were my ghostly servant" would do more than bring about a blood-curdling scream and fainting session, in any case.

Xanth was pleased to see Euphenia taking the initiative in offering an olive branch, as it were. Diplomacy would be a valuable skill for the two women in the coming months, but as Naava suspected, Xanth did not wish to leave this task in one pair of hands, unguarded. The Nyad may be capable of defending herself, but Xanth was loathe to put her in that position; Nymphs were pacifists for a reason, and though Euphenia was the offspring of an assassin, she still held more to her father-kin's beliefs than those of her mother. Naava, on the other hand, would be skilled enough to guard both Euphenia and the quadrangle.

An amused smile played about the child-Xanth's lips at the thought. “You are correct in your thinking, Naava. I wish for you to be the brawn to Euphenia's brain.” That was not to say Naava was less intelligent than Euphenia, only to indicate the duality of their roles, though Xanth was sure the girl would take it the wrong way. “And perhaps, as you guard liaison and statue, you might also weed out the culprits for this... mess -” Another wrinkling of her nose accompanied Xanth's glance about the little square. “- and prevent it from happening again.”

How she chose to do that was entirely up to the Skotadi.

“And perhaps -” She spoke to Euphenia now, her smile becoming sly as she read the girl's thoughts. “- seeing you here will remind Alexshire's public that they, too, have a responsibility?” In other words, perhaps the two would not be two for very long.

[Euphenia]

Phen bowed her head when Xanth mentioned Naava's "brawn" protecting the nyad's "brains". If her goddess wanted the two half-breeds paired up to that end, so be it, though when Phen looked back up again it was with an apology in her expression for Naava's possibly stomped on feelings. "Change can be dangerous unto its instigators," she murmured, a gentle melody that hopefully would soothe any ruffled feathers, "And our Lady has ever believed in us finding our own way to safety. I will welcome your protection, Miss Naava, if you will also welcome mine."

She decided not to comment on the suggestion to find the animals who had littered the quadrangle with their waste. Given Xanth's mood, Phen wasn't certain if the goddess would agree in the nyad's belief that it wasn't the dogs fault. She laid the blame squarely upon the canines' owners. Then the nyad's thoughts stalled. What if they didn't have owners? Perhaps they were homeless? Well, that actually made things a bit simpler. All she would have to do was tell Christie, and the founder of Haven would send volunteers to round up the dogs and give them shelter. If Haven didn't have room, she could always search for other animal shelters ...

Oh dear. Phen's eyes focused on her goddess's face when she realized that Xanth had addressed her. Luckily she caught just enough of what was said to not embarrass herself by muttering something about chasing puppies, or worse, in response. "Such is my hope as well, my Lady," she replied with a nod, "If others find an interest in becoming acolytes, how shall You wish such matters handled?"

Piper's Boutique # Raine # Celestial Star # DaFont # Angel

[Naava]

Naava was still wary of the whole idea. Xanth had never answered her question, either! Though from the way the woman in a girl's body was acting Naava assumed she wasn't getting an answer to that question in the foreseeable future. Surely there were far more qualified individuals for the task, though. Naava couldn't help but feel a bit insufficient, especially she was "just" the brawn.

Looking to the ground a bit, Naava sighed. What was she expected to do? It was such a big decision. But... perhaps it was for the best. Besides, if she served Xanth well the lady might feel more like answering some of Naava's questions. “O... okay,” she said a little less than resolutely. She sealed the decision with a nod of her head as she reached into her bag and withdrew her dagger and partially unsheathed it. She would probably need to start carrying a weapon she actually knew how to use, though.

Carrying her katars would mean needing to wear pants more frequently as well. Her weapons were more utility based in general than open combat or self defense based, too, but they should suffice as long as Naava could predict the attacks coming at her. But that was her job, anyways. “When... when do we start, then?” Naava asked, slapping the sheath back on in one motion.

Piper's Boutique + Jessica Alba

[Xanth]

“Hmmm.” Xanth's tone held more delight at the prospect of future acolytes than consideration, but she tipped her head. “If things go well, such will become the Priesthood's responsibility, to induct and train them properly. Ah,” she sighed, reminiscing, “There was once much weight on their shoulders, but many shoulders to carry the burden.” Acolytes had essentially been priests in training, once upon a time. Where the priests remained in one town, a direct line to Xanth, the acolytes would roam the lands, flitting from shrine to shrine and temple to temple. It was only after Xanth and the Priesthood parted company that she had taken on the task of finding acolytes for herself, and the job description had naturally changed as a result.

Perhaps it was folly to look to the old ways. The worlds had changed. Xanth had changed. She was no longer interested in having the masses fawn at her feet, not as she had in thost first few millennia.

Still, the Priesthood had started this with their ambitious - and loud - plans to rebuild their former glory, and Xanth was loathe to see that happen if they did not first retake their oaths.

“In the meantime, test them. In the vernacular, put them to work and see how long they last.” That had been one of the less appealing parts of finding her own acolytes - few ever lasted very long, once they realised just how much manual labour was involved, and how little glory came with it. “And why not start right now?” The girl-Xanth chuckled, waving away protestations before they could rise. Euphenia had already suggested she needed some time to juggle her prior engagements, and Naava was perhaps no different. “I give you a week, but no more.” If they could not begin by the next weekend, they were no good to her - too busy, uninterested, undedicated. A mortal's propensity for agreeing to something for fear of the results should they not had been another of Xanth's bugbears in finding acolytes: too many feared she would smite them had they said no. She did not think that the case here, but Naava was certainly undecided despite her verbal agreement.

She had most definitely only heard the negative in Xanth's earlier comment, of course. “But do not sell yourselves short, my loves. And perhaps, if you work hard and do as I ask, I may even give you a present.”

With that, Xanth considered the conversation closed. The Xanth-child blew a single kiss, her eyes sparkling with mirth as a puff of purple smoke left her hand in the shape of a love-heart. It split in two, and each newly formed heart floated to each of the girls, hovering before their faces for a moment before darting in to land upon their cheeks.

Xanth had not stayed to watch, however. The moment the kiss left her hand, she disappeared with a muted poof, leaving only a wisp of purple smoke behind.

((Thank you for the thread, ladies. It's been fun to dust Xanth off. Oh, and don't forget, you can claim acolyte at the job centre for monthly karma. ))

[Naava]

“A week?” Naava said, mostly to herself, in repetition of Xanth. That wasn't very long to get her schedule rearranged. At least they didn't have to start right now, though it would probably be a good idea to clean up the mess that was in the quadrangle right now. Whatever animal had been through here before had obviously been allowed to freely run amok.

As Xanth finished speaking, Naava wondered if the lady had been inside her mind again. Naava couldn't think of a better gift than to actually have her questions answered. It was true, regaining her memories terrified her, but the longer that she lived without them the more she felt as if she was missing a part of herself. And the missing part seemed important. Besides, not all of the memories she'd regained thus far were terrible, just most of them.

As the heart clouds made contact with their targets, Naava giggled. It was like being kissed by a cloud, or something. Very soft, and comforting for a reason Naava wasn't really sure why. As the skotadi looked up, though, she realized that Xanth was no longer there.

“Uhm, well, I guess we're partners now, then...” Naava said as she regained her composure fully. “Do you want to exchange COM information, or something, so we can keep in contact?” Naava asked, already reading into her bag for the device in question. “Oh... And I didn't catch your name, yet, either?”

Piper's Boutique + Jessica Alba

[Euphenia]

"Test them," Phen exhaled, speaking so low as to hopefully not interrupt, for her goddess was far from done.

Concentrating not just on what her deity was saying, but on the meaning behind the words, wasn't as difficult as Phen had expected. It helped to keep her from focusing overmuch on scary details. For example, how the goddess seemed to have appointed Euphenia and Naava to be the proverbial kick to her priesthood's collective behind. That was going to smart.

"What sort of salve heals a bruised ego best?" the nyad mused as Xanth allowed them each a week to get their acts together, "I'm sure that Mother would have some idea."

"I'll do my best, my Lady," Phen thought as verbal support was provided and the possibility of presents hinted upon. She missed the details of Xanth's exit, for by then Phen was humbly bowing her head. The airy kiss on her cheek brought out a slow smile from the winged nymph, and somehow Phen wasn't surprised when at last she straightened and could plainly see that the goddess was no longer physically present. The fingers of her right hand rose to gently brush where the love-heart had touched her skin, and the nyad's smile warmed.

Bringing her arm back down to rest comfortably at her side, Phen turned to regard Naava with a nod. "Yes, that would be best," she agreed, then reached into her satchel much as Naava had done with her bag, "My full name is Euphenia Vallas. Most call me Phen, but I think I may go by Euphenia while officially serving our new role."

With her COM held aloft with one hand, Phen tapped several times on its touch screen to get the correct program up. She paused once she was looking at her business card, and said without looking up, "I feel I must warn you from the start, Naava, I'm unused to working with others in the long term."

Pale gold shone faintly as Phen lifted her head and tried to meet Naava's eyes. "I'll learn," she promised, then eased her serious expression into a slight smile. "If it's alright with you, I'll send you one of my contact cards. It should have everything you'll ever need to reach me in the file."

Sanna had already recoiled herself within Phen's hair and dedicated her precious time to the fine art of napping. Whatever had happened couldn't have been all that big a deal anyway. It's not like the Creator was going to drastically change the angel snake's schedule, right?

Piper's Boutique # Raine # Celestial Star # DaFont # Angel

[Naava]

Naava was already flicking through menus and options on her COM by the time Euphenia withdrew her own. “Euphenia,” Naava repeated. She tacked on a nod as Euphenia explained her nickname. “So then I should just call you Euphenia, I guess?” Naava asked as Euphenia tapped through her COM's menus as well.

“A contact card is fine, I'll send you one too,” the skotadi said with a smile as she flicked through another few prompts until her card came up. The virtual business card held her name, COM number, and address on a purple background. Once it was sent to another COM, though, the program would absorb the information and display it however that COM was programmed to. The card was sent with a press of a button and the COM emitted a little ding noise in success.

Naava was a bit nervous, though. She really felt like Euphenia didn't like her. First the whole snake thing (ew, snake! Guh, gross! Ew!), and now the whole "I fly solo" monologue she'd given just a moment ago. Their problems seemed to be deftly proliferating on their own. It seemed like this wasn't going to be a very... peaceful partnership. Though Naava could be wrong and everything could turn out fine and dandy.

“So, one of us should call the other once we've got our schedules more sorted out.”

Piper's Boutique + Jessica Alba

[Euphenia]

Phen gently pressed a fingertip against her COM's touch screen, and what sounded like the dimmed chime of a handbell announced that her business card had been sent. Soon after, another chime at a higher octave confirmed that Naava's card had been received. The nyad had set the COM to preserve all graphic information it received until otherwise specified by its owner, so when Phen switched the screen view to look at Naava's card, its purple background and original text were intact. Phen's own card still had the background and border images provided by her workplace, The Birdcage, but she didn't care if the picture of the nyad posed in her Ice Phoenix costume remained attached to the card or not. It was her name, COM number, and address that really mattered.

"No need to be so formal unless we're on official business for our Lady," Phen replied to the inquiry over her name, her lips taking on a version of Naava's smile, "Unless you're more comfortable with my full name, feel free to call me Phen, or some other variant of your preference."

"I'll be glad to call you, though my line will be mostly open should you seek to contact me first." Phen nodded to indicate Naava's COM, "My current schedule should be on the card I sent you, including the times I can't be reached."

"I'll be coming here tomorrow morning," she decided, then pressed the button that locked her COM's screen and slid it back within its sheath. Then the nyad paused. After considering Naava carefully for a moment, Phen asked, "I was going to visit Le Bon Café this morning ... Would you like to join me for breakfast?"

Piper's Boutique # Raine # Celestial Star # DaFont # Angel

[Naava]

Naava's eyes bulged a bit at Euphenia's card. The costume seemed... odd to say the least, and made Naava wonder what the girl did for a living. Well, a second glance at the girl's rather petitely curved body brought Naava to a startling conclusion. "... That actually explains a few things..." Naava thought as she tore her eyes away from Phen's chest and to her face. Hopefully Phen hadn't noticed that Naava was essentially checking the other half-breed out, since it had only been mere seconds and only Naava's eyes had wandered.

In the skotadi's recoil from the snake and such she must not have fully appraised Euphenia's body. Naava was exceptionally good at assessing other people's bodies without the noticing due to the past she couldn't remember. With a few mundane flicks of he eyes and a soft smile to judge their response she could differentiate the gentle from the cruel like night and day. What she couldn't always tell were the whys, or even the hows. Phen seemed to be the gentle sort, though not a submissive (unless Xanth was in the vicinity, aparently).

Looking back at her COM as Phen spoke about her schedule, Naava flipped through options to see all of the information. Wow, this wasn't a contact card, it was practically a resume. Now Naava's assumption about what Euphenia the half-nymph did on the side was pretty much cemented in her mind, regardless of whatever reality really was. Definitely not a submissive type.

She was prompt, though. Starting tomorrow? But wasn't she the one who'd asked for a week to get her schedule sorted originally? Not that Naava was complaining. Explaining to Eros why she was going to need to be late to tactical command training from now on wasn't going to be a pleasant scenario for her. “I actually can't, I have training in...” Naava paused as she pressed a button to store all the information from Euphenia's card in her contacts list so that she could look at the time. “Fifteen minutes! Oh no! I have to run, I'll be in touch!” Naava shrieked as she bent down and scooped up Flit before running towards the open street.

“Look out, please!” Naava called as she yawed a bit to the side due to the weight of the bag that she'd forgotten to clip up behind her. After running several feet Naava began to flap her wings and soon she was taking off into the air and soaring towards the portal.

Piper's Boutique + Jessica Alba

((OOC: Naava's left the thread. Thanks for the thread, Colly!))