"Maybe we should check the vault in case Alexei took any valuables from there."

"First, 3 out of 10 on that joke. Second, no we can fly back and let rest for the day. Then we both can do a non-crash course version of teaching you how to access the vault tomorrow."

Jamie laughs, "'Lexei wouldn't steal." He grins at Aaron, "It's me you should be shaking down if you're worried about that. Who knows where I could be hiding valuables?" 

(Not many places, really, he's wearing jeans and that's it.)

Alex rolls his eyes, smacking Jamie on the shoulder as he lifts into the air, "Leave it alone, Jay." He nods at Topher, "Sounds good. Do you guys actually have a list of what gifts are in the vault? Especially of which ones you want out of it." 

Aaron pretends to check James out. "Well, obviously... not in your person. That would be the first place to look. And we do, can't be entirely sure it's complete - Temple thinks there could be hidden gifts that don't come out as monsters - I can show you."

"I wasn't in the same rush as you, because dad was holding to the memory gift after uncle Tom died, but I did want to learn vault access specifically, so I could have it."

(Jamie pouts at Alex, reluctantly leaving it be instead of commenting on where he could be hiding things on his body.)

"That'd be good - we could start thinking about which gifts we're gonna swap out now, unless there's something really obvious." Back to the house?

"Back to the house. We got the more urgent gifts out. Franklyn's wanted his disney princess gift for fun, but it was also a really good tactical decision. Of the ones that still in the vault the... nothing tactically obvious, but there is one that set up these magical land-mine things. They are easy to avoid, but annoying to have to walk around during combat. And there was that toxic smog one too."

"Yeah, with that one the main problem is visibility. We can just convert other lifeforce into breath and wear googles so it doesn't sting our eyes, but your gift," he looks at Jamie, "should deal with it pretty easily, so don't feel pressured."

"Which aspect do those ones tie to? Health, or something else?" 

"Health for the smog and stamina for the land-mines."

They are nearing the Grayward home, isn't flight so practical?

So practical! 

"Maybe you could take the smog and I could take the land mines?" He suggests to Alex, "If I don't get something that would be worse to have in the vault as my stamina gift, anyway." Alex shouldn't get that one either way though, really. 

"Sounds reasonable," Alex agrees, "We should see what else is in there before we decide, though."

He heads for the kitchen when they land, feeling very hungry from the interaction with the vault. Jamie stays outside and loiters up in the air for as long as he can, sunning himself.

Topher follows Alexei inside, but mostly to prepare some tea to drink.

Aaron looks at James, then vaguely up towards the sun, then at the pool.

He strips off his clothes and dives right in. Flying out of the water for a moment, the back.

Jamie rolls over to watch, slowly making his way over to float above the pool, descending so he can skim his fingertips through the water. 

"...Hey Aaron," he calls over, "Gotta question for you." 

"And the answer, yes. I am partially teasing you, but no, sorry. Still, very straight." In a setting position, where the water is around his belly button.

Not that hides much of anything.

His eyes dip down, but return to eye level pretty quickly, "Not my question! But, for the record, you're evil!" He mock glares at him for just a moment before giving it up to grin, "Actually, my question was: are there sex-change rituals, and I guess, if I used one would that do anything to the vault connection?" 

He gives him a look. "Man, you are related to Temple. And, yes there are sex-change rituals. I know that Temple couldn't use one without breaking his vault connection, but I am not sure if it applies before you are properly attuned. Or if you use the lighter ones that only make more superficial changes. The vault will accept people that are born with and currently have male chromosomes and genitals."

He decides not to explicitly say that certain injuries to sensitive areas can break the connection, and healing those means that the connection can be reestablished.

The comparison to Temple makes him beam a bit brighter, before the rest of the answer catches up to him.

"Well, that's rude of it. Maybe I could try one that does superficial changes before I attune to it?" He considers this, rolling over midair onto his back again, "I bet I'd make a cute girl." 

"I think in Temple's case part of the problem is that he would need to put all the gifts he got from the vault back in, to be safe? And that would be a lot of work to kill that kind of curiosity. Topher should know better about it than I do. But, yes, I am sure you'd be cute as a girl. I wonder what prompted this." He is shamelessly smug now.

He points at Aaron's face, "That look. That is what prompted this. I mean, I'm also curious about it in general. I don't think I'd want to be a girl all the time - though I think it'd be fine if I was born as one..." He trails off thoughtfully, "What's the sexism like in the other worlds?"

"I think most of Elsewhere has similar levels to sexism as America? It's not obviously different to me, but maybe a woman would have a different opinion. In Efross, people live in small tribes and the world is too harsh for people to care about gender. Elan is... I am not sure if this just a Daliath religion thing, or the world in general, but they are supposedly more egalitarian in many ways. And also make married couples more codependent than Earth? Like, both sexes are more equal, but people marry young, divorcing is harder and taboo. Which makes harder for people of either sex to deal with spousal abuse. Oh, and there is stuff like the law assuming your spouse just has the right to know where you are, or that you two should serve jail time together."

"...Probably still a no, then," he shrugs. "Anyway, the vault wouldn't like it, so it doesn't really matter either way. People marry younger? Weird, I would have thought the extended lifespans would make them marry later. That sounds like a pretty bad idea, especially if they can't divorce if they picked badly, and get stuck with someone they only liked when they were teens for hundreds of years..."