Welcome to Gaia! ::

Wren had already been put to work slicing vegetables, and Lancaeriel directed Miyuki to three different sauces that were simmering over one of the fires and requested that she stir them all slowly in intervals.

"And how did the Pokeball go?" she asked as she herself continued working with the meat. "I'm assuming you completed the runes at least. Do you think it will be ready for testing?"

She turned her pale eyes to Miyuki and smiled warmly at her.

"If anyone tells you that magic is not complicated, especially when it comes to runes, they are fools and you must not trust them," Lancaeriel said bluntly. "They are not the same as magic that we use and must be far more precise because they operate on their own, without intelligence guiding their effects."

She inhaled deeply and let it out slowly. "Forgive me," she murmured, "there are far too many people who take magic for granted. It has been this way since the First Days and despite the way history has unfolded, people's opinions remain the same."

She rubbed her forehead as if warding off a headache and then she smiled faintly. "Perhaps after dinner is over I can watch you test it," she said softly.

Lancaeriel smiled warmly at Miyuki. "Thank you. I look forward to it."

She turned her attention back to the meat she was preparing. "But now we'd better focus. Be sure and let me know when any of the sauces start thickening, will you? They shouldn't be more than a few more minutes."

"Excellent," Lancaeriel smiled. She reached for a clean spoon and the packets of spices and moved to kneel next to Miyuki. She tested each of the sauces, one at a time, adding a bit of spice to one and leaving the others as they were. Then she checked on the vegetables before turning her attention once more to the meat.

It took another hour and a half, but at length the meal was ready. Lancaeriel had Wren and Miyuki help her to set it all out so that even in the wilderness like they were, it even looked like a feast. Then they were able to call everyone to the meal.

Wren laughed at the look on Lin's face. "Sincere apologies from the wife of the man whose son shot Shiro yesterday," she grinned. "And apparently when we arrive in town, we're to stay with them as well."

"Well, if I had to be shot," Shiro quipped as he sat down, careful not to jostle his injured shoulder, "at least I was shot by someone decent."

He chuckled softly, and Kaito glared at him.

"You've got a morbid sense of humour," he told his twin darkly, sitting next to him and grabbing dishes for the both of them.

Shiro shrugged his good shoulder and gave his answer as the rest of the group joined them for dinner.

"It hurts," he admitted, "but I'm glad to be alive. And fairly certain that if Kyrie hadn't been with us, I wouldn't be. I have to admit though that even after just one day of recovery, I'm getting really antsy."

He looked around for Kyrie, and when he spotted her on the fringes of the group he said, loud enough for her to hear, "I'm sure that by morning I'll be ready to travel again."

The comment earned him a glare from their guide, followed by the dry comment of: "If you're that eager to tear your stitches and reopen your wound, I'll shoot you again myself."

Some of the group laughed at the comment - Shiro included - but Kaito looked worried by it.

"Knowing her, she might actually do it," he couldn't help but mutter.

"Oh, that's just a matter of adjusting the charger to use the power from the crystal," Shiro smiled. "I don't need Zeus for that. But you're right, maybe I could work a bit with Andarien."

"For what?" Andarien asked, taking a seat between his sister and his cousin. He looked at Shiro and blinked. "I train with Kaito ..."

"I was just going to help you work safely with Zeus and his electricity," Shiro smiled. "I know you haven't had any problems so far, but you should be prepared for any eventuality."

"Especially as we get further north," Kyrie put in seriously. "We're safe within the borders of Caras Galadhon, but as we go to other countries we'll have to be more careful. If Zeus ends up in bags or in his ball or whatever for long enough that he can't handle his electricity, you're going to have to be able to deal with him. Without getting zapped yourself."