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"You don't talk much, do you?"
Percival looked up from his book, blinking once. Twice.
"Pardon?" he finally asked when he pushed past his surprise.
Vex'ahlia's lips—soft, he recalled, though the memory was admittedly unbidden—curled up into a smile, amusement glittering in her dark eyes as she crossed her arms. "You heard me, darling."
"A-are you always this, ah… familiar with individuals you've only just met?" he asked rather than answer her question.
"I'd argue that we haven't just met," she countered, finally pulling out the chair opposite him. She turned it so the back was facing towards the table, straddled the seat, and propped her arms up on its back. She seemed to study him for a few moments before he noticed her amusement giving way to worry, her brow furrowing slightly. She then let out a little sigh and held her hands up in a placating gesture.
"I can keep this professional if you'd prefer, Mr. De Rolo. You are, after all, the one funding this expedition."
"I… appreciate that," he said slowly. "But I also did not mean to offend you by seeming so…"
"Distant?" she supplied.
Percy laughed once and he was startled that she had pulled such a sound out of him. "Yes, I suppose that is an apt description."
She smiled faintly, though he noted that the gesture didn't quite meet her eyes. Before he could linger on it, she continued in a teasing tone, "I suppose you do need to keep up that mysterious air of yours."
He did the same one-two blink of surprise and asked, "Mysterious?"
Vex tilted her head, something bordering on incredulity in her features. "This little group of mine has certainly had its fair share of expeditions and treasure hunts, Mr. De Rolo, but you are the first to have reached out to us, rather than the other way around.”
“Ah,” he said simply.
Her features softened once more into a smile and then she leaned forward, now hugging the back of the chair she was sitting in. “So, what exactly is it that you’re hoping to find out in the Shattered Teeth, darling? There are very few people who even dare to venture into that region.”
“You’re daring to do so,” he pointed out, evading her questioning once more.
“Yes, well… You’ll find that our little band has a penchant for running towards danger. My brother, in particular.” She let out a faint laugh before she continued. “I suspect that we might be one of the only mercenary companies that would have accepted your job, what with the rumors of moving islands and spirits and all that nonsense.”
“I take it you are not one for superstitions, Miss Vex’ahlia?”
“Not particularly,” she replied with a shake of her head. “And you’ve yet to answer my question, Mr. De Rolo. What is the purpose of this expedition? What do you hope to find?”
“...An artifact.”
She tilted her head slightly, a small quirk of her brow substituting her words as she silently asked him to elaborate.
Percy let out a soft sigh and, after being sure to mark his place on the page, closed his book and set it neatly in his lap. “I assume you know of the Age of Arcanum?”
“I’d be surprised if I didn’t, darling.”
“Yes, well, I have found that there are some individuals to whom it is not an interest, and they know little more than the very basic story that it was a technologically advanced era that then ended because of the hubris of humanity.”
She nodded and, to his surprise, she seemed genuinely interested in what he had to say, without any semblance of impatience or weariness in her expression.
“...Scholars believe that the Shattered Teeth are the remains of the first city that fell at the beginning of the Calamity,” he started, encouraged by her silent fascination, “Avalir, the City of Crowns. As it was one of the few floating cities that consistently interacted with the known world at the time, it often seems to be the one we know the most about. Yet, at the same time, we know next to nothing about it. I suspect that is due to the location of its ruins, to be honest with you, but I also suspect—as do many others that study the floating cities—that with the loss of Avalir specifically, we lost an incredible library of knowledge from that time period. However, there is also a common theory amongst academic circles that those records were actually preserved in an arcane artifact. The Por’co Sphere. I’m hopeful that we’ll be able to find it in the Teeth.”
“And you’re truly only interested in the promise of knowledge? The fact that the Sphere is supposedly made of pure gold is none of your concern?”
Percy paused, again blinking twice, before he felt warmth spread across his cheeks. “You know your history,” he said with a faint laugh, hoping to hide his embarrassment about lecturing someone who already knew the lore.
“I know my treasure,” she corrected with an amused smile and an odd fondness creeping into her tone.
“Fair enough,” he said with a slight nod before he looked away in an attempt to save himself from further embarrassment.
“If nothing else, that explains what you needed us for,” Vex said. “A lot of people are interested in the Sphere, scholar or otherwise.”
“Oh, yes,” he agreed, grateful that the conversation had shifted. “I am not helpless by any means, but I believe I stand a better chance of dealing with what may or may not impede my progress if I have a team with me.”
“We’ll be sure to protect you, darling,” she assured him before she winked.
The same damnable wink that stole his breath on the day they’d been introduced to each other.
He cleared his throat and, gripping his book tightly, he stood up. “I… I do appreciate that, Miss Vex’ahlia. Your confidence is certainly a comfort. But if you’ll excuse me, I believe now would be a good time to retire for the evening.” He gave her a bit of a stiff nod and stepped past her towards the staterooms.
“‘Vex,’ darling,” she called over her shoulder.
He paused and turned to look back in her direction with a questioning look.
“You can just call me ‘Vex.’ If you’d like.”
“I… I will keep that in mind.” A beat. “And… you may simply call me ‘Percy.’” Another beat before he echoed, “If you’d like.”
“Of course, darling. I hope you rest well tonight.”
He nodded and continued along his way. At the end of the promenade, he paused once more and glanced back in Vex’s direction, watching as she stood and righted the chair she’d been occupying. He couldn’t help but smile, knowing that he would be treasuring her kindness and her willingness to listen to his ramblings. How lucky he was, then, to have hired Vox Machina.