A Little Too Friendly

Alne is a sprawling city. Even here, where the city gives way to the entrance of Aincrad tower, there are still plenty of Adventurers and Landers. Small groups cluster around the base of the tower, some looking more harried than others. It seems to act, at least for now, as a gathering place for those who are looking to ascend into the tower, proper.

Kita has seemingly chosen this place for the fact that the shadow of Aincrad keeps the worst of the day's sun off of her. The imp is sitting on a blanket in a patch of grass a little away from the others. At first glance, it might look as if a book exploded, but there seems to be some method to the madness. There are rough sketches, some with accompanying written text, all in various states of completeness.

Most seem to be too vague to really get a sense of a person, but two look to be more fully fleshed out. Kita is working on one of them. Her legs are tucked underneath herself, the fabric of her dress flowing over pale skin. She has one pencil in her mouth, another one sketching the lines of what looks to be a girl, dressed in a shrine-maid outfit. She seems lost to the world when drawing, likely not even realizing the passage of time, or the approach of others.

    Kita would find what little light was creeping into her shade became soon fully blocked out. Then a male voice would speak up, before the Salamander figure crouched down. "You seem hard at work." His voice was gentle, but it was clear who it was; Xander.

In his hand, he extends out to her a type of fuzzy skinned fruit. Something like a peach really, "Hungry? These are so far the only decent items to eat that actually /taste/ like something. Well, any fruit, but still." He shrugs gently.

Kita looks up, her eyes briefly shaded by the white fringe of her hair before she brushes it back with one hand. She still has that pencil in her mouth at first, which gives her an oddly 'naughty-librarian' sort of look. There is a subtle shift in her gaze, though, from something more unguarded to a more defensive expression.

Slowly, she plucks the pencil from her lips. "Leave it to humans beings to take advantage of a situation." Kita murmurs. "Still, I'd make a deal with satan himself if it would let me get Jurou's picture out there." Her eyes flick to the chaos of pages around her. "With the work I've been getting, I'm starting to wonder if I already have."

She huffs, shaking her head. The girl's witch hat is sitting next to her, likely because it would serve little purpose since she's already in the shade. The fruit is given a skeptical look. This girl seems to question the intention behind everything. Then, she grabs it with the same hand still holding her pencil. "Thanks." The response is clipped.

"You know... the head of Plant Hwyaden figured the food thing out. Or at least a start on it. Unfortunately, I suck at cooking, regardless. The gods blessed me with other talents." Kita rolls her eyes.

    "I read something on it." Xander admits, still crouching there, as his heavy scaled tail slowly moves side to side across the ground. "Using a more... Standard method, instead of trusting the menu for assistance. Or something like that."

The Salamander tilts his head gently. "I saw one of your drawings. Seems people are taking notice of your work," He motions to what she is doing, "But has it helped you get any closer to finding your friend?"

"Supposedly. She certainly didn't explain it directly." Kita answers, "In fact, she sort of just left a pot of tea and poofed, mysteriously." The girl waggles her fingers. "I swear, people of this world have taken on a flare for the dramatic." You know, says the girl dressed like a goth version of a witch.

Shifting her weight ever so slightly, it causes her Imp tail to move across her legs, twitching there as if intending to draw attention, though it could also just be absentminded movement. "Nothing yet." The fact that she still hasn't found Jurou certainly weighs on her. Despite her guarded appearance, there is a tiredness behind her eyes.

"Knowing Jurou, she's probably off doing something athletic. Hunting monsters. Delving into dungeons." She smirks, "It might be a few days before someone even points her at the Lost Adventurer Network." Kita looks down at the drawing she is working on, then sets the pencil down, using a hand to pull a few strands of blue hair back behind her ear. "I'd go days hearing from her in the real world sometimes. You get used to it."

    Xander shakes his head gently and then at last sits down on the ground. Somewhat in an 'Indian' style of sitting, with his tail moving just slightly next to his left leg. He does look at her tail tip for a moment, but his eyes go to meet her own.

He is silent as he listens, his jaw shifting a little in thought, before he looks off to the distance, before back to her. "I am sure she will show up. You are doing good things for folks as well, should be proud of that-- If you are not already."

    The edge of Xander's mouth rises up slightly, trying to smile, though his sharper canine gently touches the tip of his lip before he lowers his head. "I-- am sorry. I'm... Not good at... Pep-talk, but I am serious though," He looks at her once more. "You are doing some good work here. Better than most who are-- just after selfish desires and looking out for themselves."

He grunts gently, as he mutters lowly, "Even I fall into that category..."

"Oh, I'm sure she will." There is some certainty in that. "If people could just up and vanish, I'd be more concerned, but we're all pretty much stuck here, so it's only a matter of time until she shows her face again." Kita leans back a little, the gesture causing her back to arch and her dress to show of a hint of her chest.

What comes next is a laugh, but it is a sort of joyless, ironic sound. "Hah. You think this isn't selfish?" Her hand motions over the various half-finished sketches. "You think I have much investment in these people? I started this all so I could find Jurou." She sighs to herself. "I guess, I don't want to see other people face the same problem, but it still feels like a selfish reason if you ask me."

Her eyes glance sideways at him, her lip curving in a bemused smirk. "No, I imagine you're not. Better at barking orders from what I've seen." She twitches her nose at him. "I don't do well with orders. Or following rules."

When he mutters about his own selfishness, the girl laughs again, "Oh no. Poor darling. You're telling me the salamander knight isn't a shining bastion of goodness and light." One hand goes to her chest, the other fanning at her face. "Oh perish the thought." Her tone is teasing, though it has a wry edge to it.

    Xander listens more, he is silent, rolling around in his head what he like to say, but what comes out is just a low rumble. It was not a good day for him. Bad days were, not the best for general conversations.

Though when she took a jab at him, he did a hmph snort and couldn't help but smirk a little, before he chuckled softly, "More like a dark knight hiding as a white knight. Polish doesn't hold forever after all." The Salamander gives a gentle shrug.

    He falls quiet yet again, looking out toward the city, before back to her, trying to ignore his own thoughts and what her dress was doing. His elbows coming to rest against the inside of his knees, as he goes to gently rest his scaled chin, on his just as equally scaled hands. "Just as you might look edgy as hell, but you have a good heart under all that gloom n' doom."

Xander smiles softly. "What /do/ you like then?"

Kita doesn't seem to mind the rumbling and grumbling from Xander. She delicately gathers up some of the pieces of paper, gathering them together. Lightly tapping them, the are made into a stack which she then tucks between the pages of her book. Then, in a motion that is far too relaxed, she lays back on the ground, sprawled out at length in front of him, looking up. The motion sets her head right near his legs.

"Aww, we need to work more on tarnishing your reputation then." Kita muses. "Dark nights are more interesting if you ask me. White knights are boring. Corruption is fun."

His appraisal of her has her looking up at him, a teasing look on her face as she reaches up, trying to bat her fingers at the white fringe of his hair as he leans forward. "Is that so?" She laughs at that, though the humor in it doesn't reach her eyes at all. "I think that people are usually assholes. And I'm usually right."

Her hand comes back down, both folding across her stomach, briefly. "Hmm. I do art for a living, but music has always been my passion. Don't even get me started on the shit-show that is the Japanese music industry, though. It's only a couple of levels above the abusive shit the Koreans get put through."

    The Salamander watches her. His tail thumps the ground as she lays there. It thumps the ground again which she reaches up to mess with his hair. Ignoring some folks passing by making their own comments.

Though his eyes slowly do look their way, before he looks back to her. He hasn't moved away, but he was using his hands to hide his face slightly a they slip down a little.

    Women.
    They were cruel, evil, creatures.
    And yet...

    Xander found himself being drawn back into the conversation and away from his wandering thoughts. "I admit, I am actually a big fan of hard rock and industrial." He shrugs his shoulders lightly. "Not so much pop music..." Though he did like most of the 80s rock n' pop, not that he'd say that out loud or where from. "But I can see you doing music. Probably holding a guitar while singing a song."

He grins a little, before he closes his eyes. "Me though? I have no artistic talent. I am," there was a long pause before he continues, "... no... was good at combat and intercepting hackers."

Just when Xander had tried insisting that Kita had a good heart underneath it all... Oh, she might act like someone oblivious to what she's doing, but there is a hint of a wicked glint in her eyes that suggests she is well aware of the effect that an attractive woman can have on a man. "Worried about what others are going to think?" She follows his gaze briefly, then looks back up with another of those wicked little smirks. "I wouldn't want to sully your reputation... too much."

She closes her eyes, a brief sign of her mind going back to some distant memory. Her fingers shift, delicate things with pale digits, moving to where they would on a guitar if one existed in this world. She strums the invisible instrument, then opens her eyes again, "It's a shame that electric guitars don't really exist, or I'd play something for you." Her hand moves in the air, the ghostly visual of her menu there for a moment before a lute appears in her hands. "You can't exactly do metal on one of these."

She begins to strum through a few chords, fingers dancing as if they were experienced on the strings. It doesn't sound like metal, but there is a rock edge to it, as much as one can manage on such an instrument. She plays thorugh what sounds like the opening to a familiar song, humming along with it rather than singing.

When the music finally fades away, she opens her eyes again, "Not quite the same." Something about the song might be vaguely familiar, depending on if Xander actually had any interest in more minor name J-rock bands.

"It's fine, though. Not everyone can be an artist. That would be dull. Sometimes a girl needs a strong man. They have their uses." Her Imp tail reaches out, lightly nudging against his draconic one.

    Xander looks away to see where they two guys went, before back to her. "Maybe if I even had a reputation to begin with. I'm just another tool in Aincrad Liberation Front's arsenal to through at the Tower. Nothing major. Nothing important."

The Salamander shrugs. "After all, we all got reset, whatever we did before the expansion matters little now." He does watch her play the lute and raises a brow. He, can almost make out some of it, but it was like a faded memory, nothing that could honestly stick.

    "Maybe different, but doesn't mean it wasn't enjoyable." He chuckles softly. "Music, like art," He motions to her sketchbook, "Take heart. Its part of someone and it shows with you." Xander glances at her tail as it makes contact with his own. There was a low rumble from his throat, he almost doesn't realize he is doing it.

The Salamander then carefully rubs the bridge of his nose with his thumbs, before resting his head there. He said something under his breath. It was extremely hard to make out, but he was using his hands once more to hide his face. Though he didn't stay like that long. Instead he went to place his hands on his thighs. "I just remembered what time it was!"

"We could work on giving you a reputation." Kita replies, that wicked glint in her eyes again. Imp is definitely an appropriate race for this girl. "All depends on what sort of reputation you /want/ to have." She flashes her tongue at him, a teasing gesture.

She isn't the sort to console him, or try to tell him that he is someone important. He might very well have a better idea of his importance than she does. Even so, Kita moves her fingers again, letting the lute vanish back into her inventory. "Oh, it matters. Maybe in the past it didn't. This was a game. Now? Everything matters. Seems to me that being a badass is the best way to make a legacy for yourself."

She chuckles. "You've got the looks to pull it off. Dark, mysterious dragon-man. Loved by women, envied by men. Slayer of monsters. Defiler of fair maidens." She has this all thought out, apparently.

Luckily, Kita doesn't catch what he mumbles. Instead, she just gives a disappointed sigh when he seems to remember the time. "Aww. Leaving so soon? You're going to make me have to go back to work, and teasing the crap out of you is /way/ more fun than that."

    Those words, all those words are like daggers just freezing him in place. His two rows of canine teeth show just for a moment. His index finger taps against his leg, before he inhales deeply, before he lowers his head. Those bangs hide over his face.

The internal struggle was real in that Salamander's mind, he can't help but chuckle a little at just how real it was. So when he does speak, he doesn't look at her. "Yeah, a guy who can go from being a paladin to a berserker in a single snap of a finger." Which he does snap his finger as he says that.

    Then there was more he wanted to say. That he was crazy. That she really didn't want to push those buttons further. That he was, on some level dangerous if what he could manage to get out was true.

Instead, what does he say. "... I need a drink. A /damn/ strong drink." He lifts his head up slightly. "... and it tastes like shit, but I seriously... Just need a drink." Xander then goes to stand up. Don't say yes. Just... "You want to come along, Kita? Share a bottle or two?" He smiles as he fully looks at her, "Give you that break and light you right up."

After all, maybe Mikage was right...
    But was this really what she meant?
    Damn'it.

It's hard to tell if Kita has any idea just what buttons she is pushing with the Salamander, or if she cares just how difficult she might be making matters for him. Clearly, though, she doesn't mind riding that edge of danger. In fact, it seems to give a little bit of a thrill.

"In this world, that might be just the kind of man that we need." Kita admits, lightly pushing herself up. The girl turns just a little to face him, her legs slightly shifting beneath her as she does. Ever movement almost feels intentional, like it is meant to draw the eye along her curves. If nothing else, she is certainly dressed to show off such things.

"Well... at least I can say I drive a man to drink. So I guess that's something." It is so hard to read this girl. There are times when she sees so... normal. Then there are moments like this where she is playing up everything, her appearance, her words, her attitude. But which is the real Kita?

The invitation is met with a lift of her eyebrows. "A man offers to buy me a drink and I'm supposed to turn that down?" She moves to pick up her book, sliding it into a carry bag before offering him out her hand, obviously expecting him to help her to her feet.

    Xander chuckles, but whatever he was thinking he was keeping it to himself. When she expects the hand, he gives it to her, helping her up on her feet.

Though once she is up on her feet, he motions with his claw for her to follow. "The place is outside of the city here. Ran by this ol' Kobold. Long as you blend in with the bandits, shouldn't be any problems." The Salamander does look back at her, "After all, you seem like the kind who loves to flirt with danger, so, shouldn't be a problem for you, huh?"

It is with an easy grace that Kita gets to her feet. She takes a minute to tap through the menu, stowing the blanket and the rest of her drawing gear into her inventory. Reaching down, she plucks up her jacket, pulling it on to ward off the worst of the chill. "I suppose of we're going to be around bandits, I should probably show a little less skin." She buttons the coat of her dress, though there are some aspects of her appearance that show through, regardless.

"Lead the way." She slides her hands into her pockets to keep them warm. The comment about flirting with danger is met with a sly sort of look, "Sometimes. You seem like the fun kind of danger." Her blue eyes show a glint of amusement. "Walking into a den of bandits wearing my usual attire and without a big strong man to keep me safe... that's not flirting with danger, that's stupidity."

She reaches out, intending to hook her arm around his. "So, you'll just have to keep me safe from the big band bandits, won't you?"

    Catching a ride was the easy part, the tricky part was finding where the ol' Kobold has moved off too, but he had a general idea. So, Xander leads Kita to the location.

He wears a hooded cloak to help hide some of his features, as he keeps Kita close to him once they enter the camp, as he uses a code word he managed to get his clawed fingers on; Probably from the Kobold.

    There was all types of bandits here, people and monsters alike. It was half-rag group, with no real leader by the looks off things. Yet, in the center of this place was the rickety, old building. The wood floor panels creaked as his boots walked across the wooden surface.

Behold the counter was a hefty, heavy kobold cleaning a mug with a maybe questionable rag. Xander greets him as he walks in. The the Salamander also growls at some Bandits who try to maybe look to close at Kita. The Rune Knight motions for her to sit first at the bar, before he does, "Need a bottle of your strongest and two glasses." He then slaps down a few silver.

As they exit the city, Kita remains close at hand with Xander. She is, at least, smart enough to wear flat boots rather than heels, even if the later would show of her legs better. It makes it easier to traverse through the wilds. She is light on her feet, though not particularly stealthy. It is likely that she is one of those Adventurers you can take at face value for how they dress, meaning she likely has an arsenal of damage and utility spells rather than anything defensive.

Luckily, at least for now, there isn't any fighting to be had. There is only a moment of anxiety that shows on her features when one of the bandits decides to get a little too close for comfort. Xander's growling seems to ward most of them off, though. "You have the strangest friends." She muses.

She takes a seat, giving a nod to the kobold bartender. "How did you even discover this place?" Kita nudges her seat closer to him, if only for the protection that his presence brings. "Oh well, hopefully it's strong enough stuff that we won't catch anything from that bar rag." This is said in a quieter voice, the girl leaning in his direction, her lips close to his ear.

    Xander closes his eyes. His claw taps gently the bar wood, which speaks in his ear, he stops tapping and it digs into the wood a little. His eyes open slightly and his jaw clenches a little.

"Honestly," His voice is kept down, "Landers needed some work done. We ran into this guy," His thumb jabs to the Kobold, "Tried out his brew... after the job was done, we came back, got more drinks, and I bought a few bottles from him."

The Salamander's tail twitches. "Been keeping tabs on him since. His stuff is strong, reminds me of home." He laughs softly, "Just he needs to work on the flavor. I think he is trying though."

    The Kobold slides over two glasses and places down the bottle. "Thanks fella." Xander says to him with a respectful head nod, before opening the cork with his teeth, then pouring the bottle for them both. "I think honestly, the bandits just follow him for this stuff as well... For all I know, he might secretly be their leader." Xander then looks over his shoulder slightly as some drunk fellows step out. "Just the golden rule here is," He looks back to her, "What happens in this camp, stays in this camp."

Xander then kicks back the shot, before working to pouring another.

"You need to relax, Xander." Kita picks up on that tapping claw and the general tenseness of his mood. She slides a hand down his arm, the contact surprisingly gentle. "At least enough to enjoy yourself. Otherwise this isn't going to be much fun."

The Imp eyes the drink as it is poured, listening to the story of how they discovered this odd little locale. "What we need to do is find some Adventruers who got into brewing and convince them to make something proper with this new crafting system." She lifts the cup to her nose, giving a delicate sniff and then twitching it once. "Certainly smells like paint thinner." Kita would know.

The girl is a bit more delicate with how she drinks, sipping rather than shooting it back. Even then, she makes a face. "Yeah, this needs work." There is a dry laugh at the idea that 'what happens in camp, stays in camp'. "So, is this how you usually react to feminine attentions? Alcohol and agitation?" Her Imp tail flicks in his direction, sliding down along his own tail briefly, another of those teasing gestures.

    The Salamander hasn't gotten use to the fact of his tail being touched and its obvious when, just for an instance holds his breath before a deep inhale. "Yes... and No." He says simply, before taking another shot.

"Just when I argue with myself." He sighs softly and then chuckles. "Besides," He leans back, before looking over at her. "I keep trying to figure out why a gal like you, would even be interested in teasing a guy like me. I have nothing to offer and remember what you said?"

Xander then leans in close to her, moving toward her ear to whisper in it, "You hate orders... and rules, so if you want me to lighten up," Xander pauses, his mind shifting one moment to the woman he once loved and to the words that Mikage gave him yet again. "... Then help me break my own." He said with a low rumble in his voice; Almost predatory. With the only question the back of his mind asking himself: What the hell are you thinking Marcus? This is no longer a game.

....

And yet-- wasn't it?

While Xander tosses back shots, Kita continues to only sip. Perhaps if it actually tasted like something she would consider joining him, but it's also a good idea that at least one of them remains partially sober. Getting completely trashed in a den full of bandits would likely not end well for either of them. "Just so long as you don't start talking to yourself, too. I don't know if it's possible to go crazy inside a game, but if you could, I bet this is the game for it."

As for his question, she considers it for a time, before deciding to give him a small dose of honesty. "Because this is how I am." It isn't much of an explination, but she continues. "People develop ways of protecting themselves. I usually lean one of two ways. The incorrigible flirt, or the intense and dangerous delinquent." Her lip quirks, "You seem to bring out the more fun of the two. Though... it was pretty close to going the other way."

The two could have easily gone down a path of agression, butting heads over any number of issues. However, Kita had curtailed her anger, realizing that lashing out wasn't exactly the way to earn friends. There is still some measure of that ever-present wariness in her eyes. It wasn't that long ago that she admitted to feeling that most people are assholes. It's possible she's just waiting for him to prove himself one.

"What rules are you looking to break, Xander?" She asks, looking at him from under the white fringe of her hair. "I can't guarantee I can help you. Everyone has lines they don't cross."

    In one way, her words were a part of him going, 'oh thank god', then there was that more evil side that just snapped it fingers and went 'damnit!'. The end result was, well, him actually laughing a little and moving away from her. Not fully, just back to normal distance.

He poured himself another glass, though he didn't drink it right away. Either she /was/ getting him to relax or it was the content of the horrible tasting booze. "Thank you. I needed that. Right there," He finger guns at her with a smile. "Lines and explanation, cause I probably would have seriously f**ked up just in a few more minutes."

    The old Kobold peers over, shakes his head and keeps on cleaning, though seems to start to work on something else or is just cleaning lower shelves, who knows!

    Xander looks at the shot glass now, his index fingers on either side of it. "But you are right earlier. People are assholes. I know for a /fact/ I'm an ass. I won't double cross anyone, but I will shiv them in the back if they double cross me."

He then picks up the glass. "Honor has no place after all on any battlefield, just like neither does asking questions, but on some battlefields..." The Salamander looks over to her, though his eyes look a little sad. "You have to ask or you could make an enemy, out of a friend." Then he lowers the glass once more.

"And I'm only crazy, impossible to control, when I get blinded by the monster that lives inside. That is why its hard for me to relax and that is why I can't, honestly, let anyone get to close to me." Xander admits, looking at that liquid in the glass as he just, for once, takes a sip. "So yeah, thank you."

Rather than responding right away, Kita listens to him, the edge of one delicate fingertip tracing around the rim of the glass. There are a lot of things she could say, but that relief that he seems to show has her considering otherwise. "You are a strange man, Xander Scaleharth." She shakes her head, using her other hand to tip the edge of her witch's hat down slightly.

"But if you want the truth, you wouldn't have fucked anything up. I wouldn't have let you." Her hands move away from the glass, the palm of one laying over the arm of the other. She lightly rubs at her forearm, as if it brought back a thought to mind. "Jurou isn't just my friend, Xander. She's my girlfriend." It's something she hasn't admitted to many people, if only because there is still a chunk of the world that might frown on that sort of thing. "I'm an incorrigible flirt sometimes, but I'm also loyal."

It is some measure of honesty that she offers to him, "I don't know if you're an asshole." She looks around the camp, which is full of people who are very likely to be the real assholes. "All I'm asking is you don't shiv me in the back." She chews on her lower lip, another of those suble attractive gestures, "We're all fucked up in some way or another. You, me, everyone here, probably. No one sees the real me, not often, anyways. Does that make me any less of a monster?"

She smirks then, "I get it. You've got your walls, I've got mine." Kita laughs, the sound seeming to lack real humor. "Just don't get too drunk, will you? I still need you to keep these dickwads away from me long enough to get back to town." She does at least hazard asking, "So I'm guessing what you're really saying is I should back off? Or... is this okay?" She reaches a hand over, trying to play her fingertips along the back of his hand.

    Xander listens to her in turn. When she explains that the Salamander she is looking for is her girlfriend, he just takes a sip of his drink.

When she brings up don't get to drunk, he just smirks, but still remain silent. The gears were easily turning in his head, but he wasn't really showing what he was thinking, beyond a slight jaw movement.

When her fingernails play against his hand, he closes his eyes, but he was still quiet for only a moment when he says. "Back when I was younger, I'd play along. Then things happened in my life. So, it makes it harder to keep this already messed up head of mine straight."

Xander smirks, "But it is nice and... Probably just a nice reminder that in this damn virtual space, I am actually whole... and not half a man." He then goes to finish off his shot glass. "So yeah, its fine."

    Though he does move his hand away, looking at some bandits who come in. "Besides, keeps them guessing, and that works in your favor." At least he doesn't pour another glass, apparently aware he is getting close to his limit. "This, lady of yours," His eyes look over to her, "Jurou. Do you know what guild she is in? Or should be in?"

There are certainly aspects about Xander that Kita doesn't really understand. Someone else might have asked after what he meant by the 'half a man' comment, but she doesn't. Perhaps it is as she said, that she has her own damage, and if she knew his, she might have to share some part of her own, and that isn't something she's quite ready to do just yet.

"Another nugget of honesty?" She offers to him, "It's not just about toying with you. I tend to be more physically affectionate than most people. Some of that I use to my advantage. But I won't if it bothers you." Kita doesn't seem bothered when he pulls away, respecting his space in that moment.

When she speaks again, her voice carries a bit more concern in it, and uncertainty. "I don't really have any idea. She's always been the athletic one. She runs for a track team at her university in the US." It is a contrast to Kita, who seems to be the more artistic sort, "In a world this large, I haven't the first clue where to look."

She glances at him then, "You shouldn't cut yourself off from getting close to people, though. Been there, done that. Try to let a couple of people in, at least. Your life will be better for it. Mine is."  

    Xander doesn't look at her when she brings up letting people in, instead he inhales deeply and closes his eyes in thought. Then he speaks more plainly. "Why don't we get out of here huh? More bandits are going to show as it gets later and last thing we need to do is be here when they do."

He closes up the bottle and sends it to the inventory as he goes to stand up, offering his hand to her once more, but he says softly. "... Also like to continue this conversation out of earshot."

There is no argument from Kita as he suggests they leave the bandit camp behind. That is the moment she gives him a nod, and then tosses back the remains of her drink. Seems she could have gone one for one with him if she'd wanted to, or that's the impression she's trying to give.

Accepting his hand, she takes it gracefully, fingers warm against his. "Understood. Let's go then, my dashing Salamander."

    Xander accepts her hand and goes to lead her out, giving one of the drunk bandits a hard cold stare. As they leave, his hand reaches up near his ear.

Kita might hear some of his words, but his tone was, militaristic. The words she might make out was his name and something about members, but the rest was hard to make out.

Followed by the end a very confirmed, "Thank you, ma'am."
    Once outside the gates, Xander tossed a few silver coins to the two guards, which seem to keep their mood on good terms with him, before he leads her deeper into the forest.

The Salamander pulls down the hood and looks over to her, "I was thinking about your situation. So far, you are using the notices to try to find her." He almost forgets to let go of her, but he does so as soon as he realizes it. "Why not try to go larger." Xander says motioning with his hands.

"The Scale Empire is growing in size. We have an HQ, that means a bed for you to sleep on and perhaps even some privacy." Xander looks at her. "There is a guild, I can't remember their names right now, but they are more loose and free than the ALF," He pauses, "Which is my guild."

    Xander looks off to the distance and back to her. "At least, think about it? Being in a guild, in an alliance. Getting to know those people, having access to their resources. It /should/ give you even a larger window to work with. A larger window to /find/ her and a safe place for the both of you once you do."

It's subtle, but there is a slight easing of tension in Kita's form as soon as they are out of the camp. It would be impossible for her not to notice the eyes on her from the bandits. The more distance between them and the camp, the less likely that the two of the would find themselves jumped by those who thought to take advantage.

"Now you really are starting to talk to yourself. Should I be worried?" Kita asks.

This time, she can feel the intention as his hand moves away. "It really does bother you, huh?" Her voice is softer. The girl tucks her hands into her pockets then, her Imp tail twitching down along her ankles.

The suggestion doesn't fall on deaf ears, though. "I've heard of them. They're the ones focusing on trying to get out. On getting higher in the tower." Kita had dealt with Misa before, who seemed to be Scale Emblem's representative. "I respect Misa, she helped me get in touch with the others and arrange the Lost Adventurer Network."

She smirks then, "No, I don't think your guild would suit me. Too many rules and orders being barked around, from what I've seen." She chews on her lower lip again, something that might have seemed coy, or teasing, but in this context, it seems like she does so when she's thinking. "I'll have to look into the others." She shrugs, "It isn't a bad suggestion."

    Xander nods softly, "Yeah, there are two others, but I know the one-- somethings Knights, they are more loose and fast. They probably be a better fit for you, maybe." The Salamander shifts his weight, keeping his focus on this conversation and less about his issues of physical contact. "If nothing else, maybe see if the Alliance will take you without fully joining a guild. We need those willing to do daily tasks. Like hunting, cleaning, just some basic stuff you know?"

Xander rubs his chin in thought, before he shrugs, and then lowers his arms, "But yeah. It is a thought. No pressure." he smiles softly. "A-anyways, should we head back to the city?"

"Do I look like the sort of person who is interested in volinteering to do cleaning?" Kita rolls her eyes, "Yeah, you can keep your mundane tasks to the people who chose to take skills in 'maid'." She reaches up, tugging at her witch hat. "Besides, I've got enough on my plate right now. Any guild is going to have to deal with the fact that the Network takes up pretty much all of my time."

After a moment, she just mutters, "Yeah, let's go." Some of her more pleasant mood seems to have evaporated. "I should get back to those sketches anyways. Shiroe wants to find out what is causing Adventurers to seemingly go missing. So those faces have to go up on the boards as soon as possible."

    Xander picks up on her mood change and frowns a little. He probably shot that in the foot, which causes him to only exhale at his great job of dismantling what should have been a great idea.

As the cold wind blows past and the chill finds his face for a moment, he winces a little. Including looking off to the distance as the sun continued move down. "Let's just... pick up the pace." He watches the low sun play against the grass and fallen leaves. "Only going to get colder."

Then goes to continue to lead the way even as he whispers out, "... I'm sorry."

When Xander looks off towards the sunset, Kita's eyes follow in the same direction. There is a long moment where she stays, looking at that unfamiliar horizon. There are years that separate her from the memory that springs to mind. Another place, another sunset. Warmth and light and hope. Yet this sunset? It only seems to carry the chill that seems to sink in to her very bones. Cold, loss, and that lingering feeling that this world will be just as isolating as the last.

When he suggests picking up the pace, it snaps her from that memory. The girl turns, but she doesn't follow at his side like before. Instead, she walks behind at a distance. Far enough away that she doesn't hear that whisper. Far enough away that she'd eventualy just vanish between times that he checks behind him. Footsteps leading off in another direction.