Volcanic

Volcanic would have responded, but she had no chance to do so before Teion was gone before her eyes. The walk to the Teleport Gate had been an exercise in patience. Volcanic was normally a very reserved person, but as such generally expected those that she was around to offer their conversation to fill silences. But this wasn't simply Teion being reserved, or shy. No, this was something worse. Something clearly ate away at the woman, and she had no idea what to do, simply because she didn't know much about her. On that same token, nothing could be wrong. This could just be how Teion was, and as Volcanic considered that, she considered how rude she had been to assume that something might be wrong. But it still made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. It just didn't sit right with her that someone could be this impersonal without something being wrong. Even if that something wrong meant that Teion was a sociopath.

Volcanic sighed, and followed behind Teion once the light had faded, before moving to follow the woman after reaching Floor One. But before anything else could be said, Volcanic finally worked up the courage, though not without a bit of a strain in her voice, to ask, "Teion, I know i hardly know you. But... is something wrong? I mean, you don't have to tell me, but if we're going to potentially be working together, I'd like to know that my potential business partner is okay." Volcanic immediately felt horrible for so suddenly approaching this subject, but it was clear that this would just be incredibly awkward if left alone otherwise. Volcanic didn't even try to smile, she let the concern show clear on her face so that Teion knew it was serious.

If Volcanic was being honest with herself, she realistically had no idea what she was doing. She didn't have any trouble with the first quest, but what about when they got harder? Could she handle combat? Volcanic didn't want to die. She had to make it home to her father. She had to become a lawyer and put to use all that she had worked for. How pointless would it be to die to some stupid game? She couldn't let that happen, and that was about all she knew. And so that was what she told Ruby, "I just need to survive. That's all that really matters. For a long time I thought that was just wait until the game ended, but it's clear that it won't end without more people working on ending it. Which means taking risks."

Volcanic gave a light shiver, and thought about the dangers that awaited outside. The idea of an angry boar goring her and her never waking up from this nightmare. It was almost too much to handle, but she had to. She needed to escape one way or another. "I guess that means I have to fight," she admitted, though she hated the idea. "I'm less worried about doing quests, so long as I can help everyone get out of here somehow. I'll figure out the rest as I go, I guess." She shrugged, and looked off into the distance with a sheepish frown on her face. She wished she had a better answer, but she knew so little about these types of games that she didn't even know how to begin formulating a plan of attack.

@Ruby

Volcanic thought about what Xander said about her eyes. "Perhaps having a poker face isn't such a bad thing in a game like this? One where people can..." she paused at the thought, and gave a small gulp, "where people can kill you." She shuddered a bit at the thought of someone being so heartless and cruel, but then again she never did, and never hoped to, understand murder. Despite that her father was a mystery writer, whose bad guys often killed out of cold blood, she had never really understood motives past it being a very flimsy reason to take a life. Her thoughts started to pan out and drift into dark places, such as the idea of having to kill someone in self defense, before she brought it back and shook her head, smiling back at Xander.

She looked around the store after her smile, while tapping her chin in thought, "There certainly isn't a whole lot here that looks to be Japanese in nature. Not outright at least. Much of it just appears to be comfortable looking loose clothes, stuff one might wear as pajamas." Her eyes fell on a mannequin draped in a nightgown looking dress. But it was cut down the sides, exposing the legs of the mannequin all the way up to the hips. The top part looked fairly tight fitting, but not uncomfortably so, while the sleeves had a bit of a flourish to the end of them, and appeared to have a starburst shape leading away from the arms. It was completely black with some floral patterns embroidered in, and Volcanic wondered how it would look on her. "Hold on," she stated to Xander as she walked over to the clerk, who, most likely through the power of the game, pulled the nightgown type dress from the mannequin with a few button presses and handed it over to Volcanic. Volcanic bowed and thanked her before walking over to Xander with a big smile. "I'm going to try this on, okay?"

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Volcanic had managed to hold onto her sword, but only barely. She needed to catch the creature off guard, but it appeared to be too wary for that. Volcanic jumped at the creature, and attempted a few swings, getting far too frustrated for actual combat at this point. She hadn't been able to hit this boar in so long, and it was starting to wear on her nerves. Of course, wild swinging hadn't offered any sort of relief to combat, and resulted in yet another hoof print to her stomach for her troubles. She groaned as she held her stomach after the blow, and started to chase after the boar yet again, not relenting in her quest to flail at the thing until she made combat. The boar easily sidestepped each swing, and no blows connected. Volcanic wasn't even remotely surprised as she stood there huffing at the boar, who simply huffed back. She felt like it was just taunting her at this point.

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Volcanic couldn't find her focus. She wasn't even entirely sure if her magical glowing sword attacks would work if she had no energy. She wasn't sure if she could win this now, and she had to consider that running was a very real possibility. But would the boar pup let her leave? The thing seemed very adamant to kill her now that she had ruined its day. She couldn't even say she blamed it. She watched the boar pup carefully for its next move. As expected, the creature charged her once again, and she had made an attempt to put her blade in the path of the creature to try to cleave the last remainder of its health, only to find it sidestepping her and slamming her with its hip and back leg, knocking her sword to the side. She spun around and did her best to keep her footing after the attack, and stumbled backwards from the creature.

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Volcanic followed behind Xander as they wandered the store, quickly relaxing as it had seemed that the store was not entirely comprised of one's unmentionables. Those were on display, certainly, but Volcanic could handle a section of the store dedicated to such things as compared to the entire store being dedicated to it. As Xander spoke, Volcanic looked up at him and said, "No, not as bad as I imagine, for sure." She loosened up and found herself eying certain aspects of the displays, curious about how certain pieces would look on her. She listened to Xander talk about capes, but such things held little interest for her. She instead found herself taking a look at a mask on a nearby mannequin's head. It had no eye holes, which was interesting. She wondered for a moment if this mask was specifically designed for blind people, until she picked one up and tried it on. As she slid it over her eyes, she saw that she was able to see through the cloth, but as she looked to a nearby mirror, she couldn't see her eyes. She couldn't help but gasp with delight at the odd mask, and immediately went scurrying back over to Xander to show him her find. "Look, I found a mask! It's pretty neat! I can see, but you can't see my eyes!" she explained to him, before giggling and looking over a cape he was looking at. "Do you really like capes? I guess Japanese culture aside, a cape would certainly fit the fantasy feel of this game better. Perhaps that's what we should be going for? Since this is a high fantasy game after all."

Volcanic tried her best to loosen up about the idea of where they were going, but found it more difficult. Especially as Xander talked about wearing tighter clothes. She found her face getting red all over again as she followed him, and tried her best to look down and hide it until they reached the shop. It wasn't really until Xander started talking about things that the Japanese found fashionable, and all the new craze of wearing and trying new styles compared to old fashioned attire. As Volcanic thought about it, she thought about people wearing old pilgrim attire in America, and how it would probably get someone laughed out of anywhere but a costume party. She hoped that it wouldn't be the case here, but she would just have to see what they found. She continued to listen to Xander, nodding politely, before finally saying, "Honestly though, we'll never know until we take a look. Let's see what they have, shall we?" Volcanic moved past Xander to open the door, and held it open for him to enter before she did so herself.

Volcanic couldn't help but squeak in surprise as Xander shouted behind her. She very nearly jumped out of her skin, as he turned and attempted to navigate his own map. She tried to shake it off, and not seem like he had startled her as she continued to scroll through the area. When he pointed at the shop called Dainty Things, she couldn't help but blush. "T-that's certainly possible. I would imagine they have a lot of underwear and stuff. I feel like that might be a b-bit too much for having just met. But if you really want to go..." she trailed off, and could feel her redness continuing to spread across her face. She shook her head and tried her best to hide it form Xander directly over her shoulder. Trying to regain her composure, she said, "I tend to just wear a tank top and short shorts in nice weather like this, but I want to be more cultural here. Since I'm playing a Japanese game. That's part of why I want to use katanas. I always like to try to explore other cultures of where my dad and I visit. Respectfully of course."

Volcanic shrugged, and could see that Xander seemed pretty excited to go to that store, despite everything. "D-Dainty Things it is... I guess..." she said, as she mustered her best smile, feeling the redness creep back into her face. This was going to be so awkward.

Despite her attempts to be cheerful, Volcanic's smile and warmth seemed to still have no effect on the seemingly continuous apathy that emanated from the woman she was trying her best to get to know better. A light sigh escaped her lips as she looked down at the counter and her smile faded. She had no idea how to really deal with this. Her dad had days like this, usually when he had writers block, or had accidentally been culturally insensitive on one of their trips. But all it took was a smile and a hug from Volcanic and he was right as rain again. It was obvious that the type of pain Teion was going through was not a hug and forget kind of pain, though if that was all it took, despite them still basically being strangers, Volcanic would have gladly hugged the woman. She was snapped out of her thoughts by Teion's voice once again, as her eyes shifted to watch her grab some water. Volcanic took the bottle, giving a polite, "Thank you," in response to it being handed to her.

For a moment, she mulled over the thought of being on Floor Five for their materials search. But the more she thought about it, the more dangerous it seemed to be anywhere but the first floor. Upon this consideration, she said, "Honestly, I think the first floor is best. The boars seem to be docile unless bothered, and the weather there always seemed to be warm and sunny." Volcanic rubbed her brow, just thinking about being in the heat of the fifth floor. Even just looking for blacksmiths had ended up with her drenched in sweat, and she wanted to avoid that if she could, at least  this time around. But Volcanic made sure to finish her statement with a, "If that's okay with you, of course. You're the teacher." Again, Volcanic tried her best to lighten the mood with a smile, as she stood and waited for the next steps.

Volcanic had been following along with all that Xander had said, until he said the last sentence. "B-both of us?" Volcanic stuttered, wondering how she looked to him. How interesting would it be if Xander had turned out to be a girl interested in girls like Volcanic? Volcanic's cheeks turned red as she shook her head and said, "I mean, these clothes aren't ideal..." She walked up next to Xander and squinted at the light. "I wouldn't mind looking for more culturally befitting attire. That isn't just standard unisex fare..." It seemed she shared yet another sentiment with Xander, and the more they talked the more she realized that she may have found a real friend in this death game. She smiled at the thought and pulled up her map, positioning herself so that Xander could also see it. She filtered out all the nearby clothes shops, both player and NPC run, as she said, "Does anything sound interesting on this map to you?"

Volcanic pushed herself back onto the metal lid of the trash can, and could feel it shift beneath her weight. But it stayed stable, so she wasn't worried. She leaned back against the stone wall behind her, her legs kicking lightly as she looked to Xander and listened to his tale. They were both in an awkward spot, though he could have his friends here. Friends who might otherwise not have made it in this world. But, she considered something as Xander, and once he had finished speaking she said, "But you survived, didn't you? And you're probably the least skilled of all of them, based on what you're saying. I think that means they would be okay." Volcanic said this with a light smile and nod, to reaffirm the belief to the man next to her, before saying, "Really, I just have to be careful. So long as I don't rush headlong into pointless danger, this game doesn't seem so bad. Scary, sure. But not too bad."

Volcanic paused again as she thought about all that Xander had said again, mulling over the prospect that his friends could be in this world too. Finally, she said, "Where do you think they would be? Maybe we could go looking? I know these cities are vast, but perhaps if we check places where you think they're likely to be, we can find them." Volcanic, absolutely certain this was the right answer, pushed herself off the trash can, causing it to wobble. But it remained standing as her feet slapped against the cobble of the alleyway. "Also, do you normally dress like that? I think if we get you some more clothes that look like what you'd wear, it'd be easier for them to recognize you, right?" It was a bit of a guilty pleasure she was asking for. Now that she had Col in her pocket, shopping just sounded like fun, but at least in this case she could apply good reasoning to it.

Volcanic watched Teion mull over the prospect of her becoming a true apprentice with bated breath. Though, for all of her body language, it was clear that Teion was not thrilled with the idea. And yet, she agreed, even if in words alone. Volcanic could see a battle raging behind the woman's eyes, and her natural curiosity piqued her interest as to why, and what could be causing this type of inner turmoil. Teion appeared to be a good person at heart, but something held lock and key to that person inside her. Perhaps she missed home. Perhaps something worse. Maybe she had an apprentice before, and it hadn't turned out well. Realistically, Volcanic could spend hours trying to figure out why this was, how it had happened. But that would get her nowhere. She ultimately knew nothing about Teion. Perhaps it was time to change that? Especially if the prospect of them working together became a reality.

"H-how about this?" Volcanic finally stammered, in response to the obvious pain in Teion's heart, despite her words. "Why don't we go out and I can get some materials? I just learned how to do it the other day. Once I have some you can walk me through how to do this myself." Volcanic smiled and an arm instinctively wrapped itself behind her back, her hand gripping on her other arm from behind. "I think the fresh air will do us some good, and we can get to know each other a bit better, and you can make your final decision once this is all over." Volcanic nodded and walked up to the counter to give Teion the biggest smile she could muster in this tense moment, "No pressure, okay?"

Volcanic couldn't help but find herself smiling. There were others who had lived a similar life to Volcanic. Missing home, missing friends, missing family, but too afraid to play the game, too unsure. She wasn't smiling at his pain, but at this odd kinship she had, with a man who may have been a part of a famous band no less. Volcanic gave a nod at points as Xander spoke, though he didn't meet her eyes, so the polite gesture was ultimately lost. That was fine though, as once he was finished speaking, Volcanic thought of ways to keep this going, as she walked over to a nearby trash can and sat on the top of the thin metal lid. hoping it wouldn't collapse on her. She waved to Xander to invite him over, and said, "What were their names? I'm sorry, but I only saw your band perform at the SAO release concert. So I can't claim to be a big fan. But the music was lovely for what I did see," Volcanic said, her smile that one of genuine happiness as she actually relished the idea to be more open with the world they came from.

For many players, it was all about this world. The real world was taboo for many, because this world was their current prison. But even people in prison had to talk about the world they had been taken away from now and again, no matter how much it hurt. They had to be honest with the fact that the world still exists, even if they never go back to it. That their family and friends are there. Volcanic nodded again, as if affirming to herself these truths in order to keep going, even if the thoughts of her dad made her want to break down. "My dad's name is Edgar. Edgar Winters. He's a mystery writer, though calling him famous might be a stretch. He's sold enough books that we live comfortably and travel the world. He didn't enter the game. This stuff isn't his thing," Volcanic giggled at the thought of her dad floundering around as he usually did in this game as she continued to explain to Xander, "I'm gonna be honest. A part of me is glad he isn't here. I wouldn't want him to be scared like me, even if it meant we'd have each other to lean on."

Volcanic blinked at Xander's explanation of how he entered the game, as she watched him peer out of the alley where they stood. She cleared her throat lightly at his odd assumption, being as she didn't know much about MMOs either. "Well," she admitted, "this is my first MMO too. I entered by choice, but honestly I had no idea what I was doing. I'm even just visiting with my father from America."

The thought of her dad made her eyes glassy, but she quickly pushed it aside. It seemed that she had finally found a kindred spirit. There were so many people who knew how to play these games. It was good to know that Volcanic wasn't alone. She smiled and admitted her other secret, "I lived in these alleyways for the longest time. It took a kind member of the nearby homeless shelter to finally get me going. I haven't made it far, but sleeping in an inn was a nice change of pace."

Volcanic looked at Xander for a bit, as he motioned to himself. She was not sure how to answer that question at all. He had very feminine features, a girlish face and a thin, lean body that most men didn't have. His voice was ambiguous enough to not be obvious which gender he was. "A-ah..." she stammered, her face growing red as she had to stand there and unabashedly look over his body to try to figure out the answer to that question. If he moved in certain ways, he looked like a woman. If he moved another way, he seemed very masculine. She blinked, and shook her head, looking off to the side. She didn't want to meet his gaze now. "I-I don't know," she muttered, the light words reverberating along the walls of the alleyway around them. "That was why I asked, after all. It's hard to tell, and I don't want to assume either way. I feel like that would be too rude," she sighed, closing her eyes and hoping that she didn't upset Xander.

As Volcanic felt a bit of an odd kinship with the blacksmith Lyle, she could understand how one might get attached to an NPC. Though she did feel a bit bad for the idea that poor Xander apparently had gotten used in a way by this NPC. Not that it was really either Xander's or the NPC's fault. No doubt there were people in the game who were far worse and far more abusing than that NPC inadvertently was. Volcanic considered this carefully as she said, "Really though, NPCs are scripted, which means that they can't ever hurt you in a creative way. It's better to be confused with a bar wench who isn't a person, than lead out into a wild by a player bar wench and murdered, right?" Volcanic smiled, and shrugged, accepting Xander's name and giving him a simple, "Volcanic," in return.

Now for the next question. Name was done. But there was one odd question that sat in the back of her mind. Almost unsure if she should actually ask it, she figured the worst that could happen is she offends this poor stranger and moves on with their life. So she started, "Um... can I ask? I'm sorry if this is weird... but are you a guy or a girl?"

@Xander Rush

As Volcanic had ended up walking entirely out of the inn, though hadn't gotten far down the street, she was more than a little surprised to hear Ruby's voice calling out behind her. She paused, and in an instant had considered still walking. Had considered running away from the woman. Her eyes still burned with the lingering remnants of the tears in her eyes. The tears that nobody except those still waiting in line for soup or stale bread would understand.

Finally, her face a mask, she turned to watch Ruby run up to her. Winded, the woman explained her apology, and Volcanic's eyes regarded her as the words mulled over in her mind. The gears in her head turned slowly as she thought about what her next action should be. What she should trust, and who. She listened to Ruby's tale of loss, and continued to regard her with cold eyes, before finally feeling her heart flutter and settle, as she looked away with a sigh. "Okay, I understand. Honestly, I get that much at least. The desire to live is what kept me a gutter rat for so long."

The thought that players could do what they did to Ruby wasn't a foreign one. Occasionally she would hear stories float through the shelters or the alleys of another of the homeless kids getting roped off into working as a lackey or sidekick to another player, only to be robbed for all they worked for and possibly killed. Or they would show up days later, downtrodden and crying, wishing with the rest of us that they could go home. She wondered if they would ever be able to venture out of the alleys again, and thought not. Many people didn't have the strength to leave once, let alone twice.

Volcanic continued to look to the side with a sheepish frown, before finally rubbing the back of her neck and saying, "I'm sorry I overreacted so much. Your story rings true with a lot of the rumors that floated around the alley ways. And I'm sorry to hear that happened to you." She still wasn't entirely sure what to make of Ruby, but she knew that at the very least, it appeared that the woman wasn't going to cause anymore of a fuss, and so Volcanic wouldn't either. Finally, Volcanic looked back to Ruby, her eyes still a bit red and puffy from the crying, "So, what do you plan to do if you have to basically start over again?"

@Ruby

Volcanic's mind eased a bit as she watched Teion effortlessly work her way around the forge, crafting a basic sword. It was good to see that there was some hands on work being done, though it wasn't quite like making an item completely from scratch. Volcanic supposed that was for the best. As much as she would love to learn how to properly shape weapons, actually learning how to do so would take another lifetime. She simply didn't have that type of time, or at least so she hoped. She leaned on the counter as the blacksmith worked her magic, explaining as he went, trying to take in all the details as she watched so that she could replicate the process. However, there was one point of the teaching that Volcanic's mind started to get a bit hung up on. Once Teion had finished she stood up again and smiled, "Thank you so much for going over all that. I wish I had brought a notebook for notes, but it doesn't seem too hard to start. I'm sure I can remember most of that. I hope I can..." she looked off to the side and frowned a bit with a light blush at the last words. She would have to remember this. It's not like many people like Teion existed. She wouldn't have another opportunity.

Before they went on any further, Volcanic figured she would approach the idea that niggled at the back of her neck once Teion had said it. "I get my own shop through the quest... but I don't know that I want to work in my own shop. I feel like I would want to continue to work under someone. I feel like that could be one major issue that holds back many starters." She rubbed her chin as she continued to look off to the side in thought, before looking back to Teion, "I understand if the answer is no. I'll simply resume my search again. But would you mind if I worked to supplement your shop instead of making my own? I would be happy to give you any items I make to sell. As a high level blacksmith, I feel that the items would actually get sold, rather than if I went and made a shop in the corner of nowhere that nobody knows exists. Does that make sense?"

Volcanic felt like she had sold her case, but Teion hadn't seemed entirely thrilled with her presence from the beginning. So she wasn't really expecting a whole lot from this. At the very least, she had already learned a lot, and would be happy to accept that as it was from the kind, if apathetic, woman.

Volcanic couldn't help but chuckle at the person as they spoke. His words were reassuring to her. He didn't talk like someone who had a ton of experience with these games, just like her. She put a hand up to her mouth to stifle the giggles a bit as she said, "Yeah, I have trouble with the robot people too. They seem so real, but aren't. It's creepy." Volcanic looked around the alley, reminded of her time living in one. She wondered if this person was also living in an alley. Perhaps she could help them as she had been helped, but that depended on a lot of things. Not the least of which was whether or not they actually wanted the help. Probably best to approach things carefully at first, so as not to overstep boundaries with what could be one of her first real friends in this game. "So, um, what's your name then?" was all she managed to muster.

@Xander Rush

Volcanic was a bit more lost than usual, but not without a purpose. She was shopping, in a roundabout way. Not that she was actually going to buy anything. Not that she knew what she was even shopping for. But she still was shopping. It was better than admitting she was lost. As she looked through display windows, and watched as NPCs and players alike went through their transactions. It was a good way to pass the day at the very least.

As she walked, she started to pick up on a song, cutting through the din of the afternoon. It was a rock sounding melody floating through the air, though it didn't seem to have any accompaniment that she could hear. Volcanic, the curious sort she was, walked in the direction of the song, wondering who was singing. It was a lovely voice, one of actual talent, and as she walked towards it she started to have some memories come back to her. A band had played this song while she had been waiting in line for the NerveGear with her father. What was the band's name? Psyren she believed it was.

She saw a throng of people passing by the singing person. She couldn't tell at a glance if it was a man or a woman singing. The voice seemed neutral enough to leave it up in the air, and she was a bit surprised that nobody actually approached the singer. Perhaps they had no need to, but Volcanic couldn't let her curiosity die. She walked up to the singer and waved lightly, not wanting to stop the singing, but still interrupting as she said, "Hello. I hardly know the band, as I don't actually live in Japan, but I heard them at a concert once. Are you a fan of that band Psyren?" Volcanic smiled and was ready to back off if the singer ignored her.

@Xander Rush

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Volcanic wasn't sure what to do. She was out of energy, she was exhausted, and this boar refused to go down quietly. She grunted as she tried to find her footing, only to get charged by the boar once again. Another dust cloud was thrown up as she hit the ground with a thud, and she groaned. Should she just run? Fighting this boar wasn't doing much good in the way of actually killing it. If this continued, if she couldn't even do a simple task like standing up, she was bound to die. She looked to her health, noticing that she was realistically nowhere near death. But that was the effect the very real prospect of death had on one's mentality. She found herself continuing to worry about that unrealistic prospect in this situation as she finally managed to find her feet and face the boar in front of her. She needed to end this.

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Volcanic thought she had the boar on the ropes, but this one was not like the others. This one was clearly just very angry by the attack, and didn't care in the slightest about its remaining health. Sure, maybe it was huffing a bit more than the last charge, but all Volcanic knew is that she needed to get out of the way and fast. But the boar didn't give her the chance as it charged headlong right into her legs, sending the girl flipping forward through the air. She landed flat on her back with a hard thud and stared at the world as it rattled. She blinked, trying to clear her head before the boar decided to charge again, but that had been too vicious of a blow. She reminded herself once more to pick her targets more carefully next time. Slowly brought herself to her elbow to look at the boar, who was still upset. Of course.

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Volcanic told herself she needed to focus. She was tired now, this fight having dragged on much longer than he others. She felt like she had been fighting this boar for hours, but as she looked up to the sun it was almost as if it hadn't moved the slightest bit. She grumbled, before locking eyes with the boar. It continued to scratch at the dirt for another charge. Volcanic frowned, before readying her stance. She held the sword out to her side and it began to glow once more. The boar charged and she smirked and sidestepped the creature easily, as if she were a matador for a bull. As it ran past her she brought her sword around to the flank of the creature and watched as a red line drew across the creature's rear as it squealed in pain. She had gotten it! Finally! But she watched as the heath bar dropped very nearly to the end but not all the way. The boar turned and growled. Not over yet.

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Volcanic watched the violet haired woman, who she now knew as Teion roll around the ore idly. It took a while, as Volcanic shifted uncomfortably before Volcanic responded to her not being very good with people. She scratched the back of her neck nervously and looked off to the side, her blush still light on her cheeks, as she said, "Honestly, without a script in hand or conviction in my mind, while standing in front of an audience, speaking can be difficult for me too. It's strange, the more eyes on me, the calmer I am." Volcanic shook her head as she watched Teion pull up the menu and call her over. For a moment, her feet were rooted to the floor, as she watched the apathy finally start to melt into something more helpful. But she wasn't sure just how warm Teion had gotten yet.

But she didn't give it too long, as she finally just slid over to the counter to watch as Teion poked at the menus. It was also in this moment that Volcanic realized a key feature of the menus. They weren't private. It was like a cell phone, someone could easily look over your shoulder and see everything you're doing. This worried Volcanic a bit, but she wasn't going to stress over that idea here. It was better than her thinking the menus were invisible though.

Also as she watched Teion poke through the crafting menu, her heart sank a bit, but only because things didn't seem as hands on as she had hoped. Finally she asked, "So... do you have do actually do forge stuff? Or do you just pop the items into the menu and it pops out a creation? I was rather hoping for the former..."