<div class="floatleft">(https://i.imgur.com/FsSwBxR.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong>Rosette de Courtenay (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=300519.msg14691423#msg14691423)<br/><strong>Position:</strong>Captain<br/><strong>Location:</strong>The Esperanza | Lower deck<br/><strong>Time &amp; Date:</strong>Day 1 | 11 PM<br/><strong>Tagging:</strong>Argus<br/><strong>Content:</strong>Making amends… maybe<br/><hr/><br/>The words that were exchanged between them were reserved at best, but Rosette thanked the Gods below that at least they were talking. It hadn't been a certainty; Argus was a hard-headed man and whilst that had never deterred her before, Rosette knew damn well that she had done enough to ruin what trust had existed between them - tenfold, if not more. She heard the pain that hid behind words spoken so crudely, they belied the underlying meaning. Rosette had hurt her, her<em>friend</em>, and although she hadn't been entirely certain she was even still capable of such a feat, now she found herself feeling a pang of remorse for having made a decision that might have been the only viable one at the time, but that had come at a cost that, in hindsight, might have been too great.<br/><br/>Wordlessly she accepted the bottle, and there was no restraint in the way she craned her head back as she brought the - not particularly full anymore - bottle to her lips. She didn't sip, didn't quite chug either but there was no denying that when the bottle returned to its owner it was relieved of a considerable part of its contents. Rose had never been one to seek comfort in alcohol, but she could understand why others, why Argus, had. She'd need more than what she'd gulped down to feel that blissful haze cover her conscious mind, concealing all those things she didn't want to think about or at least made them that much easier to ignore, but the burning sensation in her throat offered a momentary distraction.<br/><br/>"You know what it is, Argus?" she said, staring off into the dark far end of the ship's lowest deck. "Maybe I needed it. Maybe I needed to hit the bottom of the pit to have something to crawl out of. And I did, I really did." The words sounded a little strained, as if she were trying to convince herself more than she was her old friend - former friend? But they rang true though; in the four years that had passed, Rose  had gone to hell and back, had grieved, had raged and had learned to accept what had happened. There was no denying the truth anyhow, but it had taken her a long time to face it. After that, she had begun planning again, had begun thinking about a future doing the thing she loved most. And being a pirate was in her blood, and so returning to that kind of life had been as inevitable as it had been for Argus to return here, too. She could hardly hold it against him that he had made his way on board without seeking her out in advance. In fact, in spite of their rivalling stubbornness, Rose was mostly impressed that he had come back in the first place.<br/><br/>"There's no use in denying what I said or did," she continued, and she reached out again, opening her hand in need of that belly warming drink no one could craft quite as well as Argus could. "And no apologies are goin' to change the past so let's move past that. You wouldn't be here if you didn't still want me for your captain, and I need to know if you'll still have my back. In spite of what happened Argus, this time I need you more than ever. And I won't send you away." Rose shook her head. "Not this time."  She knew she was asking a lot, and also knew that his unwavering loyalty might be clouded by pain and grief that she herself had caused. "I need you out there tomorrow, Argus," she pressed on relentlessly. "And if not with a sword, then at least with a clear enough head to get that treasure off that merchant ship."<br/><br/>