Rongar's Cabin

[Rongar]

It had been a hard last few days.

As he leaned against his western wall. Beside him was a basin and cabinet filled with a wash cloth, soap, water pitcher held in place by a leather strap that ran through the handle and looped around the hook twice to keep it in place, a towel, and a shaving blade.

He raised his eyes to his cabin's ceiling and recalled a few things that he had observed since their last confrontation with the devil...

Bryn seems to have a connection with Scratch...however small it is...

Sinbad has seen the bad changes he has gone through since Maeve's absence...

I wonder who the Lady in blue was....

He had observed Sinbad mostly. He seemed to be trying to be more open and not blocking himself from the thoughts and feelings of the past year without her here. He was sincerely trying to find a balance within himself, and all he wanted to do was help his dear friend find it. Even if the old Sinbad didn't come back in full, even a little bit of the old Sinbad would be a wonderful thing to see once more.

With that decided, he stood up and placed his hand on the door knob.

Now, should I go up there and see about taking his duty...or not...?

[Sinbad]

The night was still as silent and peaceful as it had started when the captain returned to the deck after his conversation with Bryn. Making his way up the stairs he stepped back outside and slowly walked back towards the tiller, walking past the cabins as he did so. The young sailor he had left at the tiller was currently the only one outside, him and the man in the crow´s nest, but still there was barely a sound and the footfall of his boots seemed unnaturally loud in the nightly air.

It was good to be outside again where the wind would keep him awake and alert. There were still quite some things going on in his head but he could deal with that, one by one. Right now, his concern had more been the question whether he had acted right by leaving the deck. Bryn´s warning had sounded serious after all. He decided to do a short check up stroll around the Nomad to see if everything was as calm as it seemed.

[Rongar]

With a decisive nod, Rongar opened his door and stepped out...

...only to stop short of bumping into Sinbad's body.

He blinked slightly in surprise at how close his friends body was and smirked. He knew he was silent and lucky when it came to arriving just in time to hep his friends, but this was ridiculous.

He place his hand on Sinbad's shoulder and smiled. He stood like he always did when at the tiller, and nodded as he pointed to himself. Then he placed his hand on Sinbad's shoulder once more and pointed to him. Then he crossed his arms like he was thinking deeply and nodded to Sinbad again.

It bothered him still some, that he couldn't communicate like the others, but he could get his point across with body language and facial expressions.

[Sinbad]

Had this happened but a few minutes earlier, Sinbad would probably have jumped in surprise at the oher man showing up all of a sudden. He had been edgy, especially during the earlier parts of his conversation with Bryn, but now it seemed he had found a way back to his usual, controlled composure.

Therefore, he just did an instinctive step to the side to avoid pumping into Rongar and chuckled. "I didn´t know you were awake too." he said.

Sinbad knew the other man rather well by now, well enough to understand what he wanted to express: I take over the tiller, you go, take some more time to think. He smirked slightly, wondering whether his mood of the previous days had been sort of a general topic of gossip on the Nomad. "Is there anyone on this ship who´s not concerned for me right now?" he asked with a slight smirk.

[Rongar]

Rongar sighed and tilted his head. His eyes clearly pointed at him and he placed his hands on his hips.

The stance was one he hardly ever used, as even he still vividly remembered the lady who used it so many times when she was here, and he made the sign of devil.

He pointed at Sinbad once more and pursed his lips with a slight smile as he gave a tiny wave with his hands.

He only wanted Sinbad to get better. He hoped his dear captain knew that. That's all everyone truly wanted.

[Sinbad]

In all the time Sinbad had known Rongar, he had learned that since gesture and body language was all the other man could rely on to communicate, his body language was never just chance. He used it like others used words. He had learned to read from that and to interpret things that way.

"I know." Sinbad said, interpreting the devil sign and the wave of the hand as ´Don´t worry about whatever Scratch said´ "I´ll try not to let that get to me too much."

[Rongar]

Rongar rolled his eyes and sighed loudly.

He pointed to Sinbad again, then to his captain's head, and made the sign for Scratch. He then placed his hands on his hips once more and raised one like he was holding a orb or something similar in shape.

He lightly pushed Sinbad away from his door, and stood in front of him.

He wasn't sure if Sinbad was being obstinate for ignoring his symbolism for Maeve, or if he just didn't get it, but was willing to try again.

He made to act like he was holding the tiller and pointed to himself while he nodded his head. He head the tiller again, pointed to Sinbad and shook his head no.

He placed his hand on Sinbad's heart, then he touched his head, and placed his hands on his hips once more.

Hopefully Sinbad got his meaning this time. He truly did want Sinbad to feel better-even if it took a while longer.

[Sinbad]

Sinbad wasn´t sure why he hadn´t understood Rongar correctly right from the start. Maybe he had had too little sleep, maybe there was just too much going on in his head to see that others understood him better than he wanted to admit.

Strange, he thought, how Bryn seemed to have broken an unspoken law and thus a long silence, because even though Rongar of course couldn´t express it in words, it was clear who he was referring to with that stance. He sighed inwardly. Recently, people seemed no longer afraid to mention Maeve and he was still uncertain about how to react to this new kind of behaviour that seemed to spread around his crew like a wild fire.

"And there I thought I´d get away without yet more thinking." he said with a small sigh, his smirk fading slightly. The ´...thinking about Maeve´ he did not add, but it was so clear that it was almost audible even though not spoken aloud.

[Rongar]

He crossed his arms and tilted his head to the left and slightly down. He gave a tiny smile and shook his head.

He knew that the unspoken part of ´...thinking about Maeve´ was yelled in between them, and his smile grew. Sinbad finally got it!

He took a step forward and placed himself in front of Sinbad, so he could get out to the deck before his captain.

He turned and looked behind him and smiled again.

Then he exited the lower decks and made his way to the tiller.

Even if Sinbad hadn't agreed to give him his duty, and despite the superstitions of changing duties, he was going to do this for Sinbad.

And d*mn the lower crew members who would make a fuss.

He was no superstitious sailor.

He paused and added to himself most likely because those evils are very real and DON'T occur because of changes in the duty roster!

[Sinbad]

Sinbad looked after him, shaking his head in a mix of amusement and resignation. By the looksof it, his friends were determined to give him what they thought he needed and what he experienced as something awkward he felt he rather wanted to escape than face. First Bryn, then Doubar, and nor Rongar. They couldn´t all be wrong of course and he valued their worry over him, it was just that he would have preferred not having to think all this through.

Scratching his chin with the back of his hand he looked after Rongar while the other man took up his duty at the tiller. Nothing of this would have happened had it not been for this accursed storm, he thought, a new thought as well, just like many on this day.
His skin felt rough under his fingers. Maybe, he thought, he should shave.

[Rongar]

(((Takes place after Rongar's duty at the tiller.)))

Rongar all but collapsed on his bunk.

It felt like a year long journey on foot with with chains and iron cubes the size of Firouz's old Ruby Beamer just to make it back to his room without falling flat on his face.

He had never been so glad to see that tiny bunk in his room.

With a sigh of relief, he closed his eyes.

A second later they popped open and he glared at the closed door.

Sinbad had better leave him be, for he wanted to sleep until the sun broke out across his face; and since his bed faced the opposite direction of the dawns rays, he expected to sleep for many hours.

For he'd only wake up earlier for no less than a complete disaster!

He closed his eyes once more and a second later he was dead to the world and the slowly growing sounds of the awakening crew of the Nomad.

[Rongar]

((Light snores echo throughout his room))

ZZZZZzzzzz