<div class="floatright">(http://41.media.tumblr.com/a2f9ee9f69862b4347b81042d23f8c7c/tumblr_nmi4a72NCd1qgd7rdo1_1280.png)</div>A tiger spent most of her waking hours priming her muscles to take down deadly prey. As soon as Dza woke, that was what she was doing. She was short of breath at the break of dawn, touching her toes, twisting, using the raw timbers of the rafters to strengthen her arms, using the wrought iron of the window grill to lift her heels up over her head. When her armor went on, she was ready for it. She was ready for goblins. She was ready for Captain Marika.<br/><br/>If she neglected to humble herself as she arrived at the captain's table, it wasn't for lack of respect. She had shown every formality, once, the way the junior watch had taught them to her. Then she had gotten to know Captain Marika, and gone to the pub with her, and they had spoken about the past. She had come to understand what camaraderie meant, and it wasn't shown in a smart salute.<br/><br/>"That sure smells good after a time out under the stars." She took a seat, fully equipped, her bag cupped in her shield. Keeping it friendly was one thing, but she intended to be ready for whatever the captain had in store for her. Marika was a busy woman. "These are those people from the bivouac. Brannock wants to get back out there, but the tavern food brings me back." A smile would only have ruined the dry wit, and it had to be dry. The humidity seemed to irritate the captain's old wound. "It came just a few hours from the gates, this time."