She laughs. "You know, Txell, a lot of people here can't do normal magic, either."

"The ones who'd be any good at games like that can!"

She shakes her head, grinning. "Nah, some of them just make weird potions instead of getting into wizardry. I partied up with one for a month or so, once; he was definitely wizard smart and just decided to do something else with his talents, including being a walking library." 

"Weird potions? Weird how? Like did he cast anything into them or what?"

"He swore up and down that he wasn't doing magic, and he didn't have cantrips! But he'd mix up stuff that worked like spells in a bottle, just... not shelf-stable. Some of it was your usual potion stuff, but he could also do stuff I've never seen potions for... Shield, Alter Self, Identify..." 

"Huh! - if it wasn't magic could you just swipe his ingredients and copy him?"

She looks thoughtful. "You know, I never thought to try! He had limits per day kind of like a wizard, though, so I'd be  surprised if it really did work like that, unless I studied a lot more than I was going to."

"Yeah, that smells like magic to me."

"It does seem like it in spirit even if Detect Magic wouldn't necessarily agree," she says affably.

Any interesting gossip about, before they head out on their overnight patrol?

The new Gozrehn down the line got into a huge fight with his new CO after his reassignment and the general in charge of the whole Chelish Worldwound operation apparently took a leaf out of Artigas's book and reassigned him again because he's more valuable than the guy he had a fight with and might be close to channeling positive if nobody puts him in a tough spot.

Oh! She hopes that works out for the guy, really, they do really need the channels.

They really do, that's why Blai's on his way out after his stew for a long overnight.

Yep! She's ready to head out with Txell and co in the other direction.

She absolutely cannot kiss him goodbye! She will wave the same way she would have yesterday.

Wave. It's a pretty restrained wave, basically just displaying his palm in her direction and then dropping it again.

He is so cute she's going to explode actually no she isn't she's so normal. 

Patrol time! 

This patrol, as most patrols, is uneventful. Snowy, but not enough to make it hard to see the wardline.

Then Venn can deposit the rest of her healing (and a bit of courage, once everyone's healed) and then bunk up for the night. 

(She doesn't sleep as well as she did in Blai's arms, of course, but the memory of being held so recently does help a fair bit.)

She'll get back to #11 before him; he's not there till it's lunchtime.

She'll get caught up on her gossip and heal anyone who got hurt while they were both out! 

And then maybe they can spend more time together. If he wants.

Unfortunately while he's having his lunch one of the camp followers - a kitchen girl - stomps her way out of the kitchen right up to Blai and says something, voice tight, volume too low to be clearly heard from where Venn is sitting.

Blai picks up his stew bowl and accompanies the kitchen girl up the stairs to his office gravely.

Oh. 

There's a lot of things that could be but the most likely one is going to end in an execution. (- he posted the rules, they know what he's like about rules -)

Quietly, one at a time, seven men are interrupted at lunch or whatever else they're doing by a runner, and disappear up the stairs.

...after the third, Venn excuses herself.

(It's - too hard to think about how she actually feels, with this many eyes to see. And - she'll probably be needed after, people are going to be stunned and upset and trying to make sense of it and this is happening because she's here and so the least she can do is help with the aftermath -)

She returns to the dining hall after about twenty minutes.