<div align="center"><strong>~ Sasha Dearing, First Officer of the Gamble - On Persephone with Si and Steve, finally somewhat on the move ~</strong></div><br/>The crowded bustle of the street had eased only slightly by the time the trio emerged from the flower shop, the waning afternoon sun casting a warm wash of color over the faces of the throngs of people as they went about their business. Pausing on the walk in front of Ferret’s shop, Sasha glanced back over her shoulder and caught Damek’s baleful stare as he peered irritably through the glass door after them.  A smirk toyed with her full lips as she turned back around and waded casually out into the crowded street. Sasha had little doubt that the heavy had been given strict orders to not cause a scene, but it was of no concern to her that he was clearly less than pleased with his leash.<br/><br/>As Si quickly stepped up beside her, Steve seemed to linger behind them for the moment - whether lost in his own thoughts or courteously giving them a few minutes to debrief, she wasn’t sure.<br/><br/><strong>"From the lack of gunplay I assume things turned out well for us? You seemed almost to be enjoying yourself when you were preparing for your one on one time with our less than upscale business partner. I hope you didn't save that outfit just for her; I honestly wouldn't know whether I was supposed to be envious or lecherous about such a scenario."</strong><br/><br/>Sasha turned her head to glance curiously at Si as they strolled leisurely along the road, a shade of amusement reflected in the blue of her eyes. The man had been giving off interesting signals lately, and she wasn’t quite sure what to make of them. “Yes, Ferret is...something, isn’t she? Although, it seems that she’s not the only one who has her eye on you, Si...” She teased him with a wink, having noticed the subtle interplay between her right-hand man and Ferret’s pretty young underling.<br/><br/>Reminded of her intention for the crew to enjoy some R&R, as well as wanting to spend a little time getting to know the newest member of the Gamble’s crew, Sasha halted her stride and waited for Steve to catch up with them, then spoke to both men.  “Now that<em>that</em>bit of fun’s behind us, I’m thinking we can grab us some chow, maybe conversate for a spell. Afterwards, if you wanna stick around - or maybe go off and tend to your own business - well, that’d be up to you.” The idea wasn’t exactly an order, but then again it wasn’t exactly a simple invitation either. “I’m gonna check in with the Cap’n, give him an update and see how it’s going on his end.”  Her glance shifting to Si, she spoke aloud as she fleshed out her thoughts. “I know the Cap’n has mentioned he wants to visit that favorite pub of his; Si - why don’t you and McPherson start heading on over toward the Slippery Cock, and I’ll catch up with y’all in a minute.”<br/><br/>As Sasha pulled her radio from its holster at her hip, a woman casually crossing the road in their general direction caught her attention from the corner of her eye. She was beautiful, and in a word - soft. With pillowy lips of luscious rose, luminous dark eyes, and an angelic face framed by a silken cascade of dark tresses, she wore a flowing white kimono pantsuit that both hid and accentuated the womanly curves of her body.<em>Now THAT’S a vision’ll get our boys primed for their night out!</em>Sasha chuckled, imagining her men’s reaction to the breathtaking beauty.  The beautiful young woman (http://sinebuano.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/song-hye-kyo-2.jpg) smiled demurely as she caught Sasha’s glance, and Sasha nodded in polite reply as she continued walking toward a small sheltered alcove where she could talk in relative privacy. A twinge of edginess pricked along her subconsciousness, but looking carefully around the area Sasha saw no overt threats to back up her nervous sensation.<em>Just proves I’m in some <strong>serious</strong> need of that relaxation I keep promising myself</em>she smiled humorlessly. Leaning casually against the warm brick wall of the building, Sasha radioed Griff. “Cap’n? Got some info to share, face-to-face. What’s your twenty?”<br/><br/>As Si and Steve continued walking, the breathtaking young woman reached their side of the road and stepped up next to Si seeming to admire the bouquet he held in his hand, a soft smile gracing her delicately plump lips. Suddenly, two completely unexpected things happened simultaneously. The dark-haired beauty reached out a slender hand toward Si, the muted metal shine of a small gun in her grip reflecting the weakened rays of the sun as she firmly nestled the weapon against his side.  At the same time, a large ruffian seemed to appear from out of nowhere at Steve’s back, the tall man incongruously dressed in a white buttoned-down shirt and tie, with suspenders completing the false image of respectability.  A strong arm slid roughly around Steve’s upper chest, the cold kiss of a naked blade biting at his throat as the large man (http://cdn.mos.totalfilm.com/images/m/mr-blonde-00-630-75.jpg) began to force Steve into the alleyway shrouded in shadows behind them.<br/><br/>Although it was obvious they meant business, Si and Steve were experienced enough to recognize that their demeanor and actions did not necessarily suggest they were looking to inflict actual bodily harm, despite their aggressive maneuverings. With Si and Steve’s cooperation the two pairs moved into the deserted alleyway, and the woman spoke up in a soft, melodious voice. “Please excuse our graceless introduction; my name is Snow Ishii, and my associate is called Blondie. We mean you no harm, we are simply delivering an important message.”  Stepping cautiously from beside Si, Snow moved to position herself directly in front of him, not lowering her gun from where it was leveled at his chest despite her reassuring words. Blondie roughly released Steve from his hold, shoving him slightly away as he kept his long knife raised at the ready. Snow’s dark almond eyes glanced at the bouquet Si still gripped in his hand, and she smiled up at him. “Your flowers are very Piào liàng; a gentleman such as yourself must be eager to present such a lovely gift so we won’t delay you any longer.  Our message is from Badger. He wants you to tell your Captain that he doesn’t appreciate the company he and his First Officer have been keeping. But as a sign of good faith, he is willing to forgive the blatant disrespect he’s been shown. Tell your Captain that Badger expects him to pay him a visit soon - and definitely before another visit to the viper - or he will consider it a serious insult. Your Captain knows where to find him.”  Her eyes and gun still leveled at Si, Snow gave a graceful small bow to both men, then she and Blondie backed out of the alleyway and melted back into the milling crowd.<br/><br/><br/><em>Piào liàng = beautiful</em><br/>