Thankfully, they weren't very far from society, so watch wasn't exactly necessary. It allowed the exhausted members to sleep through the night, while only a few were needed for watch. Jasmine and Ursa took turns that night and spent most of the day traveling to sleep. Overall, it was a peaceful night and day as they headed for their first contract. The only real issue was the carriage starting to get cramped with all their gear, and members stuffed into it.
They'd need another carriage, or maybe a larger one, if they did get more members. Not to mention how they'd fit a 20-foot-long Lamia in here. Claire was just praying they didn't find Samira on this trip. There was little room to fit someone with her body in this carriage. They would have to find another carriage or maybe a trailer for the woman.
That aside, there was just enough room for six people in the back without feeling too cramped. There was room for Lily's portable workbench, where she was teaching both Toni and Hannah about her craft. They were curious about the potions Hannah had to take each morning, so Lily showed them her birth control potions. Then, she kept going with the basics. While Toni was enthralled in learning about Alchemy, Hannah was trying not to fall asleep.
Claire was still overjoyed that the two fit almost seamlessly in with her lovers. There might have been friction between Hannah and Ursa, but Claire hoped that was over. She'd seen the two interact since then, and it seemed friendly. Maybe they just needed to see how strong the other was?
Claire didn't know. But she won't lie, she was scared she'd have to be stricter with Ursa. Claire hated scolding her pets back home. Whether it was yelling or punishing the dog, it just made her feel sad. She hated how their dog's ears would fold back, and it'd pout. She could never do that to Ursa.
Claire chuckled to herself. Comparing Ursa to her pet dog felt wrong, but also right. It was confusing to really put into words. She had so many mannerisms that reminded Claire of a dog, but she was a fully functioning human. She'd have to see if it was common for Ravians to pick up canine habits with their blessings. Maybe Claire could train her to do tricks.
That made her laugh again.
Ursa sitting or rolling over on command. Reward her with treats every time she does it properly. Claire was having fun picturing Ursa doing all the different tricks, like how Jane taught their dog. Rolling over or presenting would have a much different connotation in this case. So would wagging her "tail."
Claire glanced at the northerner, who was fast asleep. She was leaning against Jasmine, who was also asleep. Claire's smile slowly faded as she looked at Jasmine. Something was bothering her. Claire couldn't quite understand how she knew that, but she did.
Jasmine just felt off.
Like she was forcing her emotions. It was hard to explain unless you noticed it. Like the night before, she would have scolded Elsie for being distracted from her duties. She'd never miss an opportunity to do that; it was a part of their banter. But it was missing last night.
Claire wasn't the only one to catch that, either. Elsie practically sacrificed herself to help Jasmine destress or loosen up. Something that would have surprised Claire six months ago, but she's found Elsie to be a lot less selfless than she lets on. She may act spoiled, but that's all it is. Especially when it came to Ana. Maybe that level of care was broadened to the rest of them.
Claire nicked her finger with her knife and winced. She'd picked up whittling again after getting bored with it before, but her thoughts distracted her. She sucked on the cut to clean the blood, then put her knife down.
"Probably shouldn't be distracted while doing this," Claire muttered to herself.
"Was going to warn you not to do it in a moving carriage, too," Hannah smirked. She grabbed one of Lily's bandages and moved close to Claire. She was obviously looking for any excuse to leave Lily's lecture. "Let me."
"Thank you," Clair nodded. She held out her hand and let Hannah wrap a bandage around it. "Though I won't even need a bandage. My aura will take care of it in a bit."
"Nah," Hannah smiled. She glanced back at Lily and Toni, who were working on a potion together. "I was bored."
Claire giggled. She's so straightforward. "That is fair. I'm not the best with magic either. Too many theories and formulas to remember."
"Not only that," Hannah relaxed beside her. "It's not as fun as fighting. You sit too far back from the actual fight, so you can't use weapons. Maybe a bow, but that's the same idea. At least when I throw my spear, I need to be kinda close."
"Interesting," Claire smiled. "I wasn't thinking about that. I know it's far safer in the back. But that doesn't concern you, does it?"
"Far more boring, more like," Hannah chuckled to herself. She shook her head and glanced back at Toni. "No. I'm a knight. I do not concern myself with my own safety."
"That's why my mothers didn't want me to become a knight. Didn't want me sacrificing myself for some noblewoman," Claire nodded. Had she not been contacted by a Goddess, she would have been enrolling for a position as a squire soon. Or for one of the academies. "Not like what I'm doing now is any different."
Hannah shrugged. "My mothers were knights, and so are my sisters. It was expected of me. Not like I wouldn't have chosen this path."
"Oh?" Claire tilted her head. "Is that who taught you grappling?"
"Not grappling, no," Hannah shook her head with a smile. "That I learned from my mentor that I squired for. She was extremely short for a knight and not someone I was looking forward to studying under. I didn't think I could learn anything from anyone at that time, given my sisters and moms, so I got cocky and challenged her to a fight. If I won, she'd fast-track me to knighthood, then if I lost, I'd stop resisting her teaching."
"And you lost?" Claire asked after a moment of Hannah's silence.
"Fuck yeah I did." Hannah chuckled. She had a nostalgic look on her face as she recalled her former mentor. "Imagine someone as big as me getting choked out by one of those twins. It was not pretty."
Claire laughed at the thought. Elsie or Ana putting Hannah in a chokehold. There was nearly a full foot between Hannah and the twins, which made their fighting seem comical. It'd be like Hannah was fighting a kid.
"I woke up a minute later," Hannah continued. "No idea what happened or where I was. She was standing over me with one of the smuggest looks I have ever seen. I was so pissed off that I spent months learning grappling."
Claire chuckled. "Really? You learned it out of spite?"
"Oh yeah," Hannah nodded. "I had to compete all my life for shit with my sisters, I do my best with a clear enemy."
"So why do you still use it?" Claire continued. "You'd be a stronger striker."
"She still fucking beat me," Hannah was quick to reply. She looked at the ground and exhaled. "All this muscle and height, and I lost to a scrawny bitch. She looked even… smugger? More smug…?" Hannah scratched her head. "You know what I mean."
Claire burst out laughing. "Really? She still beat you? And now you use it to get better to fight her again?"
"Yes!" Hannah clapped her hands together. "That. I've challenged her every year since becoming a knight and still fucking lose. 3 fucking years of losing and it's driving me crazy."
Jasmine and Ursa stirred from their slumber. Hannah's clap had awoken the two. They rubbed the sleep out of their eyes before Jasmine stood up to stretch. Claire's eyes darted to the exposed midriff as her shirt rode up. Ursa lay back down, not quite ready to get up.
"Sorry, Jasmine," Hannah apologized. "Got too excited."
"It's all good," Jasmine yawned. She finished her stretch, much to Claire's dismay. "Judging by the time, I was wanting to get up soon anyway."
"Well, then, you're welcome?" Hannah giggled.
Jasmine rolled her eyes and sighed with a small smile. "Sure, thank you. But I'm more curious about your plan for beating your mentor."
"Huh?" Hannah blinked. "Were you not asleep?"
"I was," Jasmine chuckled. She sat beside Ursa, who quickly adjusted to rest her head on Jasmine's lap. The northerner was too tired to care where she lay her head at the moment. "But is it surprising that I have skills that let me remember conversations I've heard in my sleep?"
Hannah blinked rapidly. She hadn't heard about any skill like that. She was about to say something when Jasmine held up her hand. She let out a gentle laugh to not disturb Ursa, then explained.
"No, I woke up when Claire cut her finger," Jasmine explained. She looked down at the northerner, who was back to sleep already. "Didn't want to wake Ursa, so I pretended. Not often she cuddles up to me."
Claire snorted. Even Jasmine was treating Ursa like a dog.