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For a fleeting, drowsy moment, Kali was content. Curled against Rinzaan, his arms wrapped around her, and his chin tucked into the nook between her neck and shoulder, she could've stayed there all day. His slow, steady breaths wafted through her short fur. That cozy warmth, tangled up in the hammock with him, almost lulled her back into blissful slumber. Then an ear flicked forward. A sound.

Something that wasn't there before. A deep, rumbling growl from somewhere below them. Uneven and ragged. Kali's eyes snapped open. She heard snoring. Unintelligible mumbling and murmuring. The occasional gravelly wheeze. Higher pitch, breathy whistling. Scattered voices all around them. Other cats. Not just one or two, either.

Kali jolted upright, jabbing Rinzaan with her elbow. She snatched his muzzle, stifling his alarmed chirp against her leathery palm. Her ears swiveled around. Awake now, she could better distinguish the drunken snoring. She could smell it, too, with the slight tang in the air.

She waited until Rinzaan came to his senses, and his pupils were as round and alarmed as hers. Which didn't take long. A second later, his large brown ears skewed the same way hers did.

His silence assured; Kali took her hand off his muzzle. She flattened her ears and peeked over the red fabric wall. No movement. Not from any of the cats. Only the hammocks, which gently swayed with the rocking ship. Not a single other soul stirred. It looked like the entire crew was there to sleep off the booze. Almost every bunk had a lumpy figure curled up in it. Some with an arm or tail draped out over the side. One with a leg - someone who had fallen asleep before they settled in. A scarce few were empty. Even if they were, their intended occupants weren't far. Several cats couldn't make the climb and slept on the floorboards instead.

One last scan of the crew, and Kali dropped into the hammock. Everyone was sound asleep. Kali silently thanked the stars and shoved her way past Rinzaan. With some kicking and squirming, she leaned forward enough to reach the clothes piled at their feet, and she rooted through them until she found her wrinkled shirt and pants.

Rinzaan leaned up on his elbows, his tail twitching nervously against the side of the hammock. “Should I-"

“Shh!" Kali snubbed whatever he was about to say with a quick shake of her head. He started to say something else. Inhaled. His mouth parted. Kali crinkled her muzzle. She bared every one of her short, sharp teeth with a soundless hiss. That got the point across. Rinzaan's mouth snapped shut, and he nodded once. He didn't try to say anything else after that.

After more digging, Kali found and squirmed her way into her underwear. Eventually she wrestled her pants on, too, only kicking Rinzaan a few times while she did. Now and then, she paused and listened, checking if the rustling and crinkling fabric woke anyone. Each time she listened, she was met with the same contented snores and nothing else.

Kali pulled her shirt over her head, shoved her arms through the sleeves, and scrambled out of the hammock. Not another word to Rinzaan. Not even a glance. He could wait. Right now? They were one half-awake sailor from getting caught screwing around in the sleeping quarters. Which wasn't unheard of. Plenty of sailors bumped tails on long voyages, but doing so regularly was frowned upon. Especially for apprentices who hadn't earned their place - worse so for an apprentice like her, a cat from the Benz, messing around with a Dockie like Rinzaan.

Somehow, by the tips of her whiskers, she did it. With careful clawing and footwork, Kali managed to climb down the wooden beam and tiptoe out without waking any of the sailors. None of the creaking floorboards gave her away. Granted, all the drinking they did the night before helped, but she'd take any help she could get. As long as she could slip out, clean herself up, and pretend nothing happened.

She stopped in the hallway and checked behind her one last time. No twitching tails and no reflective eyes in view. Ears forward, she only heard the same symphony of snores as before. Her luck was unbelievable. She made it out undetected. With both ears solidly on her head, and no signs of getting chewed off. Not this time.

Kali pivoted towards the hall, flooded with sheer relief. Another successful escapade. Now all she had to do was get cleaned up and sneak into her own bunk. Her feet carried her forward, unaware, in the vague direction of the washroom, while her attention lingered on the doorway over her shoulder. Kali didn't think to check the hallway ahead of her. A mistake, she realized, when she spun her head forward and ran whiskers-first into another cat.

She stumbled backwards two steps, her fur bristled in alarm. Until Kali realized the cat she ran into wasn't a sailor. It was just Cerinnia.

“Hey sor-" Upon realizing who, exactly, ran into her, Cerinnia paused and straightened up with an annoyed scowl. “Watch your whiskers, Weird-eye."

A retort waited on the end of Kali's coarse tongue, but she didn't speak it. She let the insult slide. After a pleasant nap with Rinzaan, up until her rude awakening, Kali was in a better mood than usual. She didn't feel like picking a fight. Witty comebacks could wait for another day. “Yeah, sure. I'll do that," she instead answered, dropping her lashing tail and lowering her ears. “Thanks for the tip."

Kali took one long step to the right. She took only one more step and Cerinnia hopped in front of her. “Where have you been, exactly?" Cerinnia asked, peering down her tortie-point muzzle and narrowing her eyes.

“Sleeping. Obviously."

“Really?" Cerinnia swatted Kali's shoulder. She plucked a downy white feather from Kali's shirt with the tips of her claws and twirled it about. “On a feather pillow?" Cerinnia mused. She flicked the feather, shooing it away with a flippant wave. “Like you could ever afford a feather pillow."

Kali tossed her shoulders with her best casual shrug. “I saved up my earnings to buy one."

“Sure, you did." Cerinnia lifted her nose, peering at the crew quarters over Kali's shoulder. “Did you buy a different hammock, too?" she asked, and her eyes darted back to Kali. “Because you sure weren't asleep in yours."

Kali's tail jerked to a stop, pausing mid-swish. She didn't have a convincing answer for that one. That brief hesitance was response enough for Cerinnia, who smiled with her pointed teeth. “Don't think you're so smart, Benz-rat. I see what you're up to."

“I don't know what you're talking about," Kali muttered. She took another step, but Cerinnia followed, continuing to block her path with that smug smile plastered on her slim, tortie muzzle.

“You're not smart," Cerinnia continued. “You're not sneaky. And Rinzaan isn't, either. You two are screwing around. Did you really think you both can go missing at lunch and no one's going to notice? That's stupid."

Kali's tail lashed once. She stepped left, towards the wall, and Cerinnia did the same. A kitten's game, but it was crawling under Kali's fur - itched at her nape and hackles. “So, what if we are?" Kali asked, trying not to show her teeth. “It's none of your business."

“Oh, it's my business. Everything is my business-"

“Well, yeah, only because you're an annoying gossip." Kali rolled her eyes. “If you're done, just move out of my way."

“Look, I'm just watching out for you," Cerinnia said. Her sickly-sweet smile evaporated from her muzzle, replaced with a mock seriousness instead. “To keep you from getting your little Benz-rat-heart from getting broken."

Kali's tail ticked left and right. With as much curiosity as annoyance while she glared at Cerinnia. It was clearly a baited hook, but she had to ask. “Why?"

“Because you're just seconds. You should really know that. To Rinzaan, you're nothing more than a plaything. Because compared to me?" Cerinnia chirped a haughty laugh. She brushed her fingertips along her whiskers, tossing the ends with a flick of her wrist. “You're nothing. All I have to do is point my rear in Rinzaan's direction to prove it."

“Like I'm going to believe that."

“You don't have to believe it. It's true. You can ask Rinzaan." Cerinnia scoffed. “The fancier is going to make us a pair. It's only a matter of time. We've already been practicing together."

“You're full of sand," Kali growled.

“No. You know what I'll be full of," Cerinnia said. “I'll have a beautiful litter of Rinzaan's kittens. And all you'll be full of is a bunch of little bastards. Just like the bastard you are."

Kali's ears flattened, and she bared her teeth. She hissed with every shred of annoyance seething in her chest. All Cerinnia had to do was move. Just back off. Step aside. Leave. But Cerinnia didn't. Her long muzzle wrinkled, muscles rippling underneath the tortoiseshell patterned fur. Cerinnia showed her pearly white teeth and responded with her own guttural hiss.

Kali lunged first. Her hand was tensed, claws drawn, as she leaped forward. Her attempted swipe swung wide, narrowly missing the ends of Cerinnia's whiskers as she stepped away.

Cerinnia laughed once, thinking herself so nimble and clever. Her eyes, wide and watchful, but more mocking than wary with how they flashed in the dimly lit cabin. But that was fine. The Dockie could gloat all she wanted. Cerinnia left herself open.

Mikora taught Kali, when she was still half a kitten, that claws were cute, but a broken nose is better. 'If you need to take someone out, don't use your claws. Use your fist.' That's what Mikora told her. A lesson that came in handy repeatedly. Just as it did now, as Kali clenched her hand and sank her hooked claws into her palm.

Kali's second swing didn't miss.

Though she didn't hit Cerinnia's nose dead-on, either, but she was close enough. Her fist slammed into Cerinnia's upper lip. The tortie reeled.

Her head snapped back, and she stumbled, swaying with the ship until her tail whipped into balance. Cerinnia clutched her muzzle. Growled her shrill pain through her clenched teeth. She took away her hand only to see bright red blood streaked on her palm.

The Sandstalker listed farther to starboard. Kali braced against the wall, claws gouging thin lines on the wood. She watched Cerinnia and the blood dripping between her fingers. Kali grinned. “Don't worry," she cooed. “I'm sure you'll still have cute kittens with that split lip."

Cerinnia's eyes widened. She shrieked with an indignant rage that bristled every hair on her pelt. Her lips parted from her bloody teeth; teeth drawn with a snarl. The moment the ship leveled, Cerinnia pounced, tackling Kali onto the ground.

The rest was a frenzied blur of teeth and claws. All Kali heard was her heart pounding and her own furious growls. Cerinnia raked Kali's arm. Kali bit her hand. They tussled in the hallway, neither giving in. Both hissing and growling with the sort of fury only a spat between competing lovers could incite. Kali kicked, but she couldn't shove Cerinnia off. Not until the ship lurched.

That was Kali's chance. She threw Cerinnia aside and slammed her hand down on the Dockie's white whiskers. Cerinnia started to twist her head, but she shrieked when her whiskers yanked. Trapped, but hardly defeated, she glared at Kali from the corner of her eye and hissed.

Kali clasped her free hand into a fist, raising her arm and taking aim at Cerinnia's turned muzzle. “Let's see how cute you are with a black eye-"

“Kalari!"

Kali's ears lifted. A split-second distraction. Her claws withdrew. Before she realized what was happening, someone grabbed her arm before she could throw that last punch. A firm hand dragged her away despite her protesting growls.

Masede yanked Kali up to her feet. He dodged a flail of her arm, claws nowhere near his face, and he hissed. Not a hiss looking for a fight, but the sort of hiss that every cat experienced. Every cat heard it at least once as a kitten. That tail-dropping, stern hiss of disapproval, and the threat of a full-grown cat behind those teeth. “What are you doing?" he asked, still snarling. “You know better. Of all cats, you know better!"

True to form, Kali's tail dropped. She grabbed the back of her neck, digging her claws into her loosening hackles. Under Masede's harsh gaze, her fervor waned. That spark of anger snuffed out by his disapproving grimace. “I-"

“She attacked me!" Cerinnia spat. She clawed her way off the floor and pointed at Kali with her bloodied hand. “She attacked me for no reason!"

Kali's ears fell flush with her fur. Her snarl returned in an instant. As did her desire for that black eye she had promised. “That's not true, you mangey liar!"

“Hey! That's enough!" Masede bared the points of his teeth. Cerinnia crossed her arms and huffed, while Kali lowered her muzzle and resumed watching her feet.

Masede growled under his breath, muttering inaudible strings of curses as he looked at each of them. His gaze lingered on Kali, rife with unspoken dismay, and he shook his head. “Okay, you-" He pointed at Cerinnia. “Go to the medic. Get that lip patched up. And you-" Masede scowled at Kali next. “Report to the Captain."

Kali's whiskers plummeted. “What? Why me-"

“Hah!" Cerinnia jeered. “That's what you get, Benz-"

“Don't finish that," Masede said, throwing his teeth at Cerinnia. “Keep your slurs off this ship. Unless you want any of the Benz cats behind you to give you worse than a split lip. You understand me?"

Cerinnia looked back at the dozen or more sailors watching from the doorway. All of their ears were on her. Most eyes, too, and the looks they gave her weren't hospitable. Whatever unimaginative insults waited on her tongue stayed there, unspoken, under all the piercing stares and tense muzzles. Instead, Cerinnia bobbed her head with an awkward nod and spun on her toes. She left at a brisk walk, almost a run, towards the med bay as ordered.

Kali's whiskers lifted. There was something so satisfying about watching her enemy flee with her pointy tail tucked between her legs. A keen sense of accomplishment puffed up her cheeks. Until reality smacked her on the muzzle. All her bravado vanished the moment she felt Masede's stern grip on her arm. “Captain's," he said, his voice a low, threatening growl. “Now."

“What?" Kali nearly shouted. “I thought you were joking." There were a few dissenting murmurs from the sailors. Most of them seemed more disappointed that the fight was over, rather than sympathizing with Kali's plight. “I didn't do anything!"

“You punched another apprentice," Masede said. “You drew blood."

Kali turned to the spectating sailors, searching for anyone that might vouch for her. One by one, the crowd steadily dispersed. Some retired to their bunks to finish their naps, and others headed for the stairs and returned to work. With the show of claws and teeth over, none of them acknowledged her now. Kali could only turn towards Masede, her ears falling flat. “She deserved it!"

“Doesn't matter," Masede said. His claws pinched her arm, punching through her sleeve, and he dragged her along. Each reluctant step, each attempt at futile resistance, didn't slow their progress at all. “You don't punch Dockies. What did I tell you when you started? Keep your ears down."

“I did- I did that! My stupid ears were down," Kali grumbled. She pulled and twisted, but her arm was trapped in Masede's steeled grip. Her feet skidded along, finding little traction on the smooth, worn floorboards. “It's not fair!"

“You're right. It's not. Sorry, Kali, but that's how it is."

Kali's ears dropped. Not out of anger this time. Masede wasn't being cold or mean. He was just as disappointed as she was. Because the world wasn't fair. He knew that, and Kali knew that, too. She knew better than anyone.

He didn't drag her the entire way there. As soon as they turned a couple corners, where eyes were off them, Masede released her arm and let Kali follow on her own. Defeated, morose, she dragged her feet as she plodded after him. She couldn't run away. There was nowhere she could run or hide. If she did manage to hide from Masede, that just meant the captain would find her instead. And Kali definitely didn't want that. She had to face what she did. There was no way around it.

At least, that's what she tried to tell herself. Kali's courage was short-lived. Once they were standing before the tall arched doors, a fearsome dread sank into the pit of Kali's stomach. The worn carvings of sea beasts and monsters etched into the surface loomed over her. The massive fangs and gaping maws, tearing into broken ships with shattered masts and hulls, once a source of apt fascination, now incited a silent terror. Facing those imposing doors, Kali's urge to run surged anew.

She'd witnessed fights on the ship when she was younger. Many brawls between sailors, over rations or coins. Several between hot-blooded apprentices. Shorter exchanges, and less bloody, with more insulting and posturing. Just cats figuring out their social hierarchy, even if it was temporary. She only saw one fight between one of the first-year sailors and a new apprentice - a Dockie.

No one saw how the fight started. They only heard the commotion when the two cats hit the deck, growling and spitting. The other sailors barely pulled them apart, and the Dockie looked far worse off than the sailor did. Bloody gashes on their arms and face. Kali didn't recall much else, but she knew one fact for certain. When they returned to shore, she never saw either of them on the Sandstalker again.

“Masede," Kali said, an imploring whine. “Can't we just-"

A stern look from Masede assured her that, no, they couldn't forget this happened. With a final huff, he raised his arm and knocked twice on the solid, carved doors.

Kali's ears swiveled forward. They pointed towards the door. There was a chance the captain wasn't there. An exceedingly slim chance, which was the sole hope she clung to. A hope dashed, when, after a minute, there was a muffled response.

Masede shot Kali another look. “Don't say anything until you're spoken to."

Kali just nodded. She was too busy trying to fight down her nerves, which actively bristled her fur. The loud groan of the imposing doors, as Masede shoved them open, didn't help. Masede led the way in, and Kali followed after with cumbrous feet and a tail fluffed up twice the size it normally was.

Captain Tulaziya sat at her desk in the far-left corner. At first glance, she didn't appear any different from the other sailors. Her clothes were a similar make. A loose, white long-sleeved tunic, bound at her wrists to keep the sand out, and a dark blue scarf draped over her shoulders to ward off the daytime sun. The only distinguishing feature on her attire was the line of golden tassels dangling along the bottom edge of her scarf. A formidable array, earned from fighting off attacking vessels and beasts alike. A woven badge for every successful voyage the Sandstalker had taken stitched onto the fabric. The tassels were impossible to count as they looped around her shoulders. Too numerous to try.

Tulaziya's icy blue eyes stayed on her paperwork as she scribbled a few numbers. Then her pen etched the page, as she marked out others. Her short, dark brown fur looked almost black in the flickering candlelight. “Did you bring news of the sails?"

“No," Masede said, “we haven't checked yet. The storm is just now settling." He scratched an ear and glanced at Kali. Like he was considering forgetting it happened after all. Her hopes were dashed again, as Masede sighed and addressed the captain. “We had a fight in the halls."

Tulaziya's ears didn't so much as flick. Her pen continued dancing across her paper as if nothing had happened. “And?" she asked.

“It was a couple of apprentices."

Her pen stopped. Tulaziya looked up, her vivid eyes lifting off the page, and she frowned. Her frown deepened when she spotted Kali, despite her efforts to hide behind Masede. “Oh. Oh no." Tulaziya dropped her pen and rubbed her temples. “How bad is it?"

“Can't say. Lots of cuts," Masede answered. “A split lip. I sent her to the med."

“Which one of them was it?"

“Cerinnia. The colorpoint with the tortie-marks."

Tulaziya grimaced, wrinkling her nose. “Which?" she asked again. “The rich one? Or the very rich one?"

Masede's ears skewed at the question. He sighed, but, at length, he did answer, “The very rich one. The merchant's daughter."

Tulaziya buried her muzzle in her hands. She hissed into them. Her thin tail thrashed against the chair, beating against a leg. After a long, stressful silence, Tulaziya raked her claws down her face and dropped her arms onto her desk. “Leave us."

Masede's ears flicked forward. “But the other molly, the Dockie, she started it, I'm sure-"

“Leave, Masede," Tulaziya growled. “Now."

Masede snapped his jaws shut. He waved his tail once, a hasty farewell, and left. He hauled the heavy doors closed behind him. A solid slam, and a loud snap of the door's old latch, and he was gone.

Kali stared at the solid doors that sealed her inside. The iron ring handles swayed, then were still. Slowly, she turned back towards Tulaziya. Her ears held low, and her puffed tail tucked against her legs. “Ziya," she said, “I can explain-"

“Captain Tulaziya," Tulaziya said. “It's Captain, when you're in my office." She narrowed her eyes. “When you're in trouble. Now, sit down."

Kali bit down on her tongue. She nodded once and reluctantly took a seat at Tulaziya's massive desk. Her nose dropped, and she stared at the weathered boards under her feet, fighting off the panic that made her gray hair stand on end.

The exasperated hiss from Tulaziya prickled her skin from across the desk. “What did I say?" Tulaziya asked. “When you first stepped on my ship?"

Kali's eyes widened. She couldn't think of anything on the spot. Even if she remembered, in that uneasy instant, a single thing Tulaziya said, her tongue was too numb, and her throat was too tight for her to answer.

Tulaziya didn't wait long for a response. “Don't punch the rich ones?" she asked with a lash of her irritable tail.

Kali hesitated, but she found her voice again. “I don't think you told me that."

“Maybe not in those exact terms. But, even if I didn't, I'm sure Mikora told you something along those lines," Tulaziya grumbled. “She taught you better than to pick fights like that. You can't mess with Dockside cats."

Kali's ears sank lower. She lowered her gaze again. Her whiskers felt so leaden they could drag her through the hull down to the sand's depths below. “I know," Kali whispered. “I'm sorry."

“Sorry doesn't cut it. Not with cats like these. I can't keep this ship afloat without them and their rich parents." Tulaziya's claws raked against her desk, drawing in towards her palm. “They pay me, and they expect me to take their kittens on a joyride and bring them home. Unharmed!"

Tulaziya slammed her hand on the desk. Kali flinched. She didn't dare look up. From her voice, and what Kali could see of her lashing tail, she could tell how furious Tulaziya was without looking. She was just waiting for those final words. Rejection stamped on her slip. Her dismissal. Like the other cats that fought on the ship before. She waited for that final judgment, where she would walk off The Sandstalker and never return.

Kali bit back a pitiful mewl. Pleading with Tulaziya wouldn't get her anywhere. Apologies didn't count for much, either. Words mattered little, compared to the deep pockets of the Dockside's upper echelon. Words didn't keep Tulaziya's ship afloat. There was nothing Kali could possibly say.

Tulaziya hissed again. Her chair shifted on the floor and creaked when she leaned back. “There are consequences for this. There has to be."

Kali merely nodded. Even if what she said mattered, she couldn't speak. Kali pinned her ears, shutting out everything he could. She didn't want to hear it. Tulaziya's final verdict. The inevitable decision. After two excursions, and so many years on board, Kali was getting let go.

Tulaziya tapped her fingers against the desk. Each unsheathed claw drummed in sharp succession. Her tail lashed again. Her claws came to rest as she leaned forward. “Kals, there's no easy way to say this." The powerful scarf wrapped around Tulaziya rose and fell with a weighty sigh. “You'll have to eat sand for a while," she said. “You're on galley duty until we dock."

Kali's ears raised slightly. She looked up at Tulaziya, waiting for more. Her ears lifted higher when nothing else came. She squirmed in her seat, her fluffed tail twitching. “Is- Is that all?"

“I'm sure Masede will think of more chores during downtime," Tulaziya answered, “but, for now, that's all. Don't get me wrong. You'll work your tail off until I can get this all smoothed over." Kali's ears shot upright. She picked up her head, with her muzzle scrunched and confused, and Tulaziya smirked. “You're not tossed yet. I'm not ending your apprenticeship."

“But-"

“Do you want to get kicked off the crew?"

Kali shook her head vigorously. “No. I just thought you had to. Because- I mean- the others? They never came back."

“Others?" Tulaziya tapped an idle claw. Her brow furrowed as she dug through her mental ledgers for all the cats that crossed her decks. Her eyes lit up as she remembered. “Oh. Those apprentices? Those were Dockies. I always toss the Dockies overboard if they're trouble. They never stay on the crew, anyway."

“But what about the other tom? That sailor that punched a Dockie. The tabby? The one with the brown-striped fur and that white patch on his face-"

“Farash?" Tulaziya asked, now as confused as Kali was. “Him? I didn't toss him. He got a better offer on another ship."

Kali blinked. She had no idea what to say - or what to think. Tulaziya didn't seem like she was joking. Which was only more baffling. After mulling some perplexed chirps and trills around in her muzzle, Kali gathered enough of her wits, and courage, to ask, “So I'm not getting dismissed?"

“If I dismissed every cat that fought on this ship, I'd have no crew left," Tulaziya said with an airy laugh. “And I'm not losing the only apprentice I'm going to keep on after this pleasure cruise. We haven't been short on whiskers in years. You don't keep a hearty crew, if you don't keep the good ones. One slip up with a Dockie? You're not getting tossed for that."

Kali's tail lifted higher, but Tulaziya hardly glimpsed the gray furred tip and she scowled anew. “Don't assume you're completely in the clear," Tulaziya said. “You're still eating sand for this."

“Of course, Captain," Kali answered. She returned her tail to an appropriate, sullen droop. Though, with how relieved she was, she had a tough time keeping it from popping up again. “I'll do whatever I can. And I'll do better."

Tulaziya's whiskers lifted with a pointed smile. “Oh, you will. You'll have to, if you're joining this crew, when your time is up." She glanced at Kali's tail, which was still fluffier than it should be, and chuckled. “Did you actually think you were losing your job?"

Kali's whiskers burned. “I don't know," she muttered. “Maybe I did."

“Well, you can smooth that tail of yours. You should know I'm not going to let a little quarrel ruin your chances. You're safe here, so long as you don't beat up too many more of my passengers."

All the tension in Kali's short fur flooded away. Her hackles loosened, and, though messy, the rest of her pelt started to settle. As instructed, Kali swung her tail up into her lap and combed her claws through. A familiar motion, slicking her hair back into place. Tulaziya was always true to her word. If the captain said Kali was safe, then she meant it. Which held just as much weight as her promise that Kali would have to eat sand, too. And eating sand was fine. As long as Kali still had a paying job, she'd eat all the sand she had to. “Thanks, Zi- Captain."

Tulaziya smirked. “Don't thank me yet. You'll be paying me back." She swept aside the stack of papers with a bat of her hand. “But, off the books, I don't blame you. There's been plenty of Dockies I've wanted to knock flat." Tulaziya turned in her chair. She tilted her muzzle up towards a mural on the wall beside them. A painting of swirling gold sands and a ship, their ship, which sailed across the paper. Her grin broadened, showing her pointed teeth. “And we don't talk about the ones I have." Tulaziya peered over at Kali. “Do you drink?"

Kali's hands froze, pausing mid-brush, and she frowned. “Um, no?"

Tulaziya hissed a sigh. “I didn't ask if you're allowed," she said. “I asked if you do. So, do you drink or not?"

Kali's tail twitched between her fingers. It still felt like a trick, but lying to Tulaziya never ended well. “I mean, yeah," she admitted with a sheepish shrug. “Sometimes?"

“Good." Tulaziya opened the desk's lowest drawer. She tossed a couple of short glasses on the counter and set a bottle beside them. “You need something for that fur. Just take small laps. This stuff is strong." She filled the cup halfway and pushed it over to Kali.

Since she had little choice, Kali did as instructed. She wasn't unfamiliar with strong drinks, though she wouldn't admit that to most cats. The cheap stuff she snuck off with from Mikora's liquor cabinet wasn't for lightweights. So, she wasn't too worried about the potent scent of brandy that might've curled other cat's whiskers. She pressed her nose into the wide-brimmed cup and licked the surface once. An immediate burn rushed down the back of her throat. Kali tossed up an arm and coughed into her sleeve.

“Yeah, I warned you." Tulaziya grinned as she picked up her own drink. She took a long sip without missing a beat. “Now," she said, licking her lips, “why exactly did you punch a Dockie?"

Kali set her glass down, her whiskers pulled taut against her cheeks with a cringe - more from the sharp burning taste than Tulaziya's question. “Because she deserved it?"

“I'm sure she did. They usually do. I'm just curious. You're not normally that hot-blooded. There has to be a good reason for it." Tulaziya swirled her cup, watching the brandy spin. Her hand stopped. Her drink sloshed against the side of the glass. Tulaziya frowned. “Unless- Don't tell me this was about a molly- or a tom."

Kali's ears jumped upright. “What?" She swished her tail. Waved off the thought with every bit of nonchalance she could fake. “What? Yeah. No way-"

“Oh, 'Mere's stars." Tulaziya ran her palm down her muzzle, her fingers strumming across her whiskers. “It was a tom. I should've known. You're at that age." She tossed back her drink and poured another. That, too, raced down the hatch. “Which one is it? A sailor or- Wait-" Tulaziya, after quick consideration, held up a hand. “On second thought, don't tell me who. 'Mere, save my ears. I really don't want to know. You don't need any sort of contraceptives or-"

“No," Kali answered hastily, “I don't need anything."

“You're sure? You know what happens when you-"

“I know!" Kali growled. “I'm not a kitten."

“Mikora would kill me, if I brought you back to shore, and you were pregnant. She'd tear my whiskers out. Every single one." Tulaziya gazed at her empty cup. She tapped her claws on the glass. Her tail fidgeted. “Speaking of. Mikora, uh, hasn't mentioned me recently, has she?"

There was the real reason Tulaziya brought the drinks out. Probably why Kali wasn't being thrown overboard for punching their most valuable Dockie, too. The old flame, also known as Kali's mother. Mikora. Kali choked down a sip of brandy with another short cough. “No," she said. “Not recently."

Tulaziya's whiskers and tail sank. Of course, that wasn't the answer she wanted. It was what she expected, but it wasn't what she'd hoped for. Like every time Tulaziya asked. And, like every time Kali answered, Tulaziya was crestfallen. Kali took another drink. She choked back her cough this time and straightened up in her seat. “But Mikora doesn't tell me about that sort of stuff," she rasped. “So, I don't really know. Okay?"

That prompted an optimistic lift of Tulaziya's pointed tail. “Of course she wouldn't," Tulaziya agreed. “Yeah, she's always been good about that. Keeping her personal matters personal. Right." Tulaziya nodded, her whiskers bobbing along with her own encouragement. Realizing, by Kali's dour expression, that she was swept up in her own fantasies, Tulaziya dropped her tail back to an appropriate height and she cleared her throat. “But, anyway, yeah, just be careful. Around the Dockies. Apprentices and otherwise. With you being who you are, they'll never go easy on you, if you step on the wrong tail."

Kali nodded. She braced herself and downed the last of her drink with a single gulp to get it over with. Tulaziya watched, wide-eyed, and she laughed when Kali started coughing anew. “Well, that's enough for you," Tulaziya said, as she confiscated the empty glass. “Make sure you look sad when you leave. You know how to fake it."

Kali chuckled. “A little."

“Of course you do. I've seen you do it plenty." Tulaziya nodded at the door. “Go get some rest. You've got a lot of crab-scrubbing to do tomorrow."

Kali jerked her chin with a quick nod. She rose from her chair, stumbling once. Her whiskers and ears felt warmer than before. Any more of whatever liquor that was, and they would've burned off her head. As she made her way to the door, the ship seemed like it was rolling more than usual. Even though the storms were long gone.

“Kalari."

Kali paused in the doorway, her curious tail curling. “Yeah?"

Tulaziya's piercing blue eyes met Kali's. She was one of few cats whose gaze didn't buckle, when faced with Kali's strange eye. More than likely because Captain Tulaziya, herself, had a frightening stare when she needed to. Like now, as she laced her fingers in front of her muzzle and leaned forward on her desk. “You clocked her good, right?"

Kali's whiskers rose up. Her lips peeled back with a vicious, toothy grin. “Yeah," she answered, “I did."

“Good." Tulaziya smiled behind her knit fingers. “Galley duty. Don't forget."

“I won't. Thanks, Ziya."

“Captain," Tulaziya corrected her once more, but with a playful swish of her tail this time. “And don't wind up back here again. I don't care how cute this tom is. Next time I see you, we better be on shore."

Kali flipped her tail. An agreement as much as a farewell. A more loose, casual motion than a sailor ever used when addressing their superiors. Tulaziya didn't mind and tossed her dark brown tail in return, smiling as she resumed work on her ledgers. Despite her stern tone, Tulaziya was more proud than disappointed, and Kali knew it, too.

Mikora told Kali often, when settling arguments, to use her fist and not her claws. But it was the Sandstalker's captain, Tulaziya, who showed her how.