Welcome to Gaia! ::

It. Was. Early.

Almost painfully so. The sky was dark, the streets were empty, and the winds blowing in from the south carried a definite chill. Skadravi slouched over his bushi, leaning his cheek to the great tortoise's shell and groaning out a low, displeased sound. The morning was necessary. He'd said as much himself. If they left during the cooler morning hours, there'd be less traveling to do in the scorching daylight hours. In fact, hopefully they'd be in the next town by then and could take a nap...

After righting himself and securing his and Khalel's packs to Ruindego's back, he moved back toward the entrance to the Haven and slipped inside. His girlfriend had a great many pets making the journey with them and his bustling about in the early morning must have woken them. Or maybe they were nocturnal anyway. Dravi wasn't particularly familiar with the habits of nearly any animal.

"Kha-leeeeel," he chirped softly as he dipped to his side, leaning in to nose away the auburn waves that had slipped into her face during sleep. "We're all packed you know," Dravi hummed into her ear. "And we're waiting on you, my love."

His lover dear did not take well to the morning. That much was obvious. Skadravi chuckled and smoothed a hand down the back of her hair as she rose and stepped away from him. After another moment, he pushed to his feet as well and cast a final, critical eye about the dimly lit room.

There was no telling when they'd next set foot in the Haven. No telling if they ever would again, to be frank. Over the course of the past several months of his time with Khalel, the place had served him well. The thought of never coming back almost stung a little. But his gaze caught on one of the blankets tucked beneath a table, a smear of red accenting its otherwise bright Matori colors. It was a shame silk stained so readily. His back itched. Dravi fidgeted and looked away.

It did seem wasteful to leave behind a small trove of pearls and beautifully woven silks and Matori artifacts that would probably do well to be brought back to their homeland. But they hadn't space for all of it, and something in the back of Dravi's mind nagged that it felt like defiling the place to remove them somehow. Not that that had stopped him from filling a small pack with the Haven's readily available monetary provisions. He'd chosen not to tell Khalel, for fear that she'd take it poorly. And reasoned that they really might need the extra goods on the road, when finding new income would be scarce.

His girlfriend's voice (slightly more awake now) attracted his attention, and Dravi tossed her a pearly smile and chuckle. "You don't need to tell me twice, if my Lady is finished primping."

They headed outside once more, where Skadravi's bushi, Ruindego already waited for them. He approached the great tortoise and skimmed a hand down his neck. "You'll be alright, hm?" Dravi murmured softly. "It's a few days of slightly more intensive travel than you're used to, I know..." Dego was not a speedy beast, and Dravi never usually felt pressed for time. But in this instance, the longer they lingered in the sands, the more it seemed like something bad would happen. And without any real destination other than 'Matori,' the hybrid man feared things could take a turn for the worse at any moment.

Nevermind that he was poor with directions to begin with and getting anywhere seemed a far-cry from plausible.

Skadravi hadn't told Khalel that either.

But he wasn't about to now. He turned on his heel to face her and all her many companions. "Do you need a hand up?" Dravi offered. Though he doubted her mount, Shaza would appreciate the proximity that such a thing would necessitate. "I can't say for sure how far off the next town is, either, so you should be well and prepared for several hours of riding..."

'No need to worry,' indeed. Well, she was wrong because a great slew of things could and probably would go wrong. It was a long trip, through unforgiving terrain, and they didn't exactly have the supplies to make too many mistakes. Only what their beasts could carry, and with Dego being an amphibian, not exactly suited to desert travel, Dravi didn't want to overload his bushi. He only hoped they'd be able to make it into the next town with just a day or two's travel. Surely the whole of the group could survive for that long.

But, on a different note, Khalel didn't need to concern herself with his suddenly blossoming anxiety. Because Skadravi was absolutely positive that if he'd been making the trip alone, he wouldn't have been anywhere near as worried. One hybrid boy lost to the desert probably wouldn't be missed. He couldn't let that happen to Khalel- wouldn't, and she shouldn't stress herself watching him worry over it.

They'd be fine.

Even if he was fairly skeptical of that, he should at least look like he thought it was true. As his dearest took her place with her janarim, Dravi shot them the broadest smile he could manage before taking up Ruindego's reins and guiding their small troupe down the path leading out of the city. At least it was early. The heat of the day wouldn't catch them for several hours, yet. And, on the bright side, he really didn't have to worry so long as they were still in sprinting range of the city. There was still time to dwell on if they'd forgotten anything or assess if they would truly make it or change plans, if need be.

Might as well take this last, easy breeze through town as a time to relax. "Y'know, I'm sure whatever you take will be grateful to be back in Matori, anyway," Dravi reasoned as he strode ahead, as he thought back on the pearls and fabrics they'd taken from the Haven. "Probably doesn't mean much if we need to pawn them off in Oba, but there's some chance that we packed well enough to make it out of Fire lands before dropping any back-up funds."

He hoped so, anyway.