JENNA: * Jo wakes not too long after daybreak, helped along by bright sunlight streaming in the window. She blinks drowsily, slowly coming aware of Shane and his position relative to her, and a faint snort escapes her. Still too comfortable to move just yet -- particularly since he'd probably wake up and disrupt it, she carefully squirms an arm free, content to let him sleep a little while yet as she brushes her fingers absently through his hair.

JUSTIN: * It's a good while before Shane finally starts to stir, but the morning light shining in on his face eventually has its way. He shifts in his position, limbs stretching as he lets out a soft groan. At first he seems intent on staying where he is, arm curling around Jo again as soon as it finishes its stretch, and his fingers splay across her stomach. His eyes begin to show signs of opening, first a weak flutter, squinting against the harsh change in brightness. He dimly acknowledges Jo's proximity -- her warmth, her fingers brushing his hair, the pressure where her body is up against his -- and he smiles faintly in his half-awareness.

JENNA: * Jo, having drifted almost back into a half-doze by the time Shane begins to wake, and she stirs, almost startled, when he moves. Blinking again, she gives his hair a slight tug and yawns, supposing regretfully it's probably about time for them to get moving anyway. "Morning," she murmurs after a moment, trying not to brace herself for his reaction.

JUSTIN: * At the sound of her voice, Shane's eyes open wider, finally taking in his surroundings completely. With his sudden awareness comes a slight startle, and it's only due to being tangled with her that he doesn't jump in surprise. He does, however, slide away and up, moving to a sitting position with unnatural speed for someone who just woke up. "What time is it?" He asks, consciously aware of and purposely masking the jitteriness he feels at waking up in such a position. "Did I oversleep again?"

JENNA: * Jo makes an irritable noise, sitting up and turning away from him to kick her feet over the edge of the bed -- largely in order to keep from hitting him with something. "No. We're fine." She doesn't say anything more, leaning down to retrieve her boots and tug them on. For the moment, she's forgotten about taking a bath, wanting mostly to get on the road, for some reason.

JUSTIN: * Shane is vaguely aware of Jo's aggrivation, but his own phobias prevent him from persuing it with questions or apologies. Instead, he simply copies her, throwing the blankets from his legs and turning to stand up. He dresses hastily, a side-effect of the small adrenaline rush Jo's provided him. "We've got quite a hike back to Juno, don't we?"

JENNA: "Yeah. We should probably just get moving." Boots on, Jo walks over to her pack, flipping it open and grabbing some jerky for a very light breakfast and taking a drink from her canteen. "If we keep the pace up, we can get back before a week's out. The sooner we have work again the better, probably." Finished with her meal, she closes the pack and slings it over her shoulders, glancing at him expectantly.

JUSTIN: * Shane does his best to avoid looking at her while he gets his gear on, feeling an uncomfortable mix of guilty and embarrassed. "Sure..." Grabbing his pack, he slings it over his shoulder and foregoes the meal. He makes for the door, unlocking it and opening it with some clumsiness. It's only then that he looks back to see her glance, and he clears his throat. "Ladies first."

JENNA: * Jo nods shortly and heads out the door, trotting quickly down the stairs and out the front door. She pauses there, briefly, as the mercenaries from the night before are clustered nearby, but she chooses to ignore them in favor of making for the stables. "Idiot," she mutters under her breath, once she's sure Shane hasn't caught up with her yet.

JUSTIN: * Shane follows along after her, feeling rather sluggish now by comparison to his abrupt wakeup. The light stings his eyes as he leaves the dimmer staircase, and he doesn't notice the mercenary group at all as he stumbles along after his partner. He has a feeling it isn't going to be a good day.

JENNA: * Jo has her peco saddled and ready to ride by the time Shane arrives, and her expression at his lack of wakefulness is wholly unsympathetic. That, she believes, is /entirely/ his fault. She mounts up and trots toward the entrance, waiting in the patch of sunlight by the door for him to catch up again. Out of the corner of her eye, she notes the mercenary group headed in their direction and scowls.

JUSTIN: * It's not the most welcome form of motivation, but Shane tries to get his peco readied as fast as he can in order to appease Jo's impatience. He doesn't succeed in full, but nonetheless, he gets his peco saddled and starts leading it toward the exit, taking the ocassional headbutt in stride.

JENNA: * The mercs reach the entrance at approximately the same time, ambling past Jo and Shane without acknowledging them -- at least until the last one comes by. He, in fact, glances up at Jo, catching her eye, and then leers pointedly -- less in a lustful way than a threatening one. Jo gives him a hard look, still trying to figure out if it's someone she knows, then glances sharply away and pushes her way outside.

JUSTIN: * Shane may not be fully awake, and he may be rather distracted, but he's not out of it enough to miss the silent exchange between the man and Jocasta. He pauses at the stable gates, and turns a look at the mercenary much like the one he gave to Jo. "Is there some kind of problem here?"

JENNA: * The man grins widely, a heavy dose of insolence in his manner. "None 'tall, neighbor. 'Less you want there to be." Jo swears mentally and turns her peco back, looking at her companion sharply. "We don't. Let's go." She half turns to leave, looking again at the mercenary but still unable to place him, to her irritation.

JUSTIN: "Excuse me." Shane turns Jo an irritated look, not much liking the unnecessary treatment. "I can answer the gentleman myself." He tugs at his coat, yanking it straight and tight against his shoulders, and then turns his attention back to the mercenary. "I would oblige you not to glare at my partner, if there truly is no trouble here."

JENNA: * The mercenary grins again, and by now his companions have noticed the disturbance, ambling over to see what the problem is. "No trouble at all, neighbor," he replies agreeably. "'Less, as I said, you want there to be." Doubly irritated now, Jo turns away. "I'm going," she says flatly, and true to her word begins to trot away.

JUSTIN: * Shane finds the man's grin to be entirely in poor show, and he can't help looking somewhat disgusted at the way the ruffian carries himself. "I'm fairly certain the point is that we don't want trouble. Obviously you're itching for it, though." He glances over at Jo's retreating back and grits his teeth. In spite of what he'd like to do, he truly can't justify causing trouble for the innkeepers, so he simply turns away. Giving his bird's reigns a pull, he starts after Jo with a gloomy crease in his brow.

JENNA: * The mercenary spits after them both before turning back to his companions and returning to their business. Jo slows long enough to let Shane catch up, then increases her speed, beating her way out of Hugel without so much as a glance at the gate guards -- who wave. For the moment, running the peco as fast as she can will have to make up for being unable to take her irritation out on anything else.

JUSTIN: * Shane pauses at the gates to give the guards a more proper fairwell, making up some excuse to cover Jo's less-than-polite departure. He then properly mounts up, kicking his bird immediately up to speed in an attempt to keep up with her. The bird gives a shake of its head, bristling with irritation, but it complies anyway -- probably only because it can see its companion pulling away up ahead.

JENNA: * Jo keeps the pace up for most of the day, slowing only when her bird begins to flag, squawking pathetically when it has a chance to draw breath. She glances up to see the sun sinking beyond them and huffs a low sigh, casting around for a camp site near the river. It doesn't take her long to find one in a clearing quite close to the river's edge. Once there, she dismounts, tying her peco, and starts looking for wood to start a fire. The peco sinks gratefully to the ground, pecking wearily at the feed she scattered for it.

JUSTIN: * It's whole minutes, a surprising amount of them, before Shane's bird finally comes trotting into the camp, looking just as worn as its friend. Shane's butt is saddle sore, and he winces as he drops to his feet, hobbling over to tie his peco alongside Jo's. He doesn't say a single word as he trudges across the clearing, finding a decent tree to slump against wearily. His sore spot aside, he's much more mentally worn-out than physically, but it seems to translate into a universal loss of energy.

JENNA: * Jo has the fire going by the time he arrives, and she seems content to let him sit by the tree all night. Once she's sure the flames won't fizzle in her absence, she kicks her boots off and starts for the river, tugging her tunic over her head as she goes. Cold river water is no substitute for a warm bath at an inn, but she's determined to get washed one way or the other.

JUSTIN: * Shane watches her leave silently, looking back when he sees her begin to strip, realizing what she's aiming for. He turns his eyes to the fire, feeling mildly depressed, a little angry, a tad guilty, and shockingly normal. In some ways, it's like a return to what he's used to. For a brief moment, he entertains the thought that maybe everything that's happened since they left Juno was all some strange sort of hallucination, and in reality nothing ever changed.

JENNA: * Much as she tries to prolong her bath, for some reason she doesn't much enjoy exposure to the cold water, and she climbs out before too long, trying without success to shake away the last of her anger. Unable to towel off, she lingers near the shore and waits to drip dry, gazing into the river and considering going back to the fire, where she's likely to dry quicker. It doesn't take her long to think it over, and she snatches up her gear, pulling her tunic over her head as a minor courtesy before walking back over to soak up the heat.

JUSTIN: * Shane is not-quite-dozing by the time she comes back, his eyes shut almost all the way. He's pulled his knees up to his chest, arms crossed and resting on them. The sound of her entrance to the clearing causes him to sit up a little straighter, and he moves a hand to rub at his eyes before turning them to inspect her. They rebound back to the fire quickly when he notices she's walking around half-naked again, and he closes them again with a mumble.

JENNA: * Jo looks at him sideways, annoyance experiencing a resurgence, and then turns to face him, hands on hips. "Problem?" she asks sharply, but she continues before he can answer. "I can get some fish after I finish drying off -- or you can just eat jerky out of the packs, if you're hungry." Having broken her silence, she waits for a response, prepared to have it irritate her even more.

JUSTIN: * Shane shakes his head, looking decidedly away from her -- not so much because of the nudity as the attitude. "I'll eat jerky. Not in the mood for fish." He avoids saying anything about her first question, as it would likely get out of hand if he tried. Keeping himself facing either the fire or the side of the camp opposite her position, he pokes around through his pack in search of rations.

JENNA: "Whatever suits you," comes her flat response, and she turns back to the fire, tempted though she is to throw one of her boots at him. It doesn't take much longer to pronounce herself sufficiently dry, and she pulls her trousers back on, though she leaves the boots where they are. Tempted as she is to go fish for herself, she decides that's largely a waste of time and goes to her pack to retrieve some bread to go with her jerky. Then she seats herself near the fire, stewing irritably.

JUSTIN: * Shane stares off into the woods, gnawing absently on a piece of jerky and basically ignoring Jo's presence. As long as she's mad at him, there isn't much he can do about it. As far as he's concerned, he didn't do anything that his own embarrassment wasn't already punishment enough for, so why would he even need to apologize. He sighs, fishing around for his canteen and bringing it up to drink. After a sip of the water, though, he pulls it away in surprise when he gets little more than a gulp before it runs dry.

JENNA: * Jo glances at him, sighs herself, and whistles at him sharply before tossing him her canteen. "We'll have to fill up before we move," she says, then goes back to her meal, all at once feeling weary after the day of hard riding. It's almost enough that she can't sustain her irritation.

JUSTIN: * Shane startles, turning only just in time to catch the tossed canteen. His own falls to the ground with a hollow clunk, and he lets out a mildly exasperated sound. He doesn't say anything, though, simply taking a brief sip, and then carefully pours some of Jo's water into his canteen to last him the night. Recapping hers, he reaches over and gives it a light toss to land in the dirt beside her, and then settles back against his tree again to stare blankly at the fire.

JENNA: * Jo finishes her meal quickly, taking a last drink from her canteen before putting everything away. For a moment, she watches Shane, feeling annoyed at his sullen behavior, then she straightens, stretches, and walks over to him, crouching directly in front of him and folding her hands across her knees.

JUSTIN: * Shane is half-heartedly picking at his meat, chewing at negligible bits of jerky between negligible sips of water. His silent staring at anything other than Jo is going well, up until he suddenly finds her interposed between his eyes and all things not-Jo. Although he tries to ignore her obvious position right in front of him, it is clearly impossible to do, and his eyes finally focus on her face in admission to her presence.

JENNA: * Still thinking about what she intends to say -- if anything -- Jo doesn't speak, continuing to stare at him silently as she waits for him to finish eating. Most of her irritability is gone, replaced with a simple desire to reestablish communication -- or at least get a response when she talks. And possibly to let him know in no uncertain terms what the problem is.

JUSTIN: * Realizing that Jo is apparently waiting for something, and isn't prepared to leave, Shane finally sets his food canteen aside after one last drink of water. He edges back against his tree, shifting into a slightly straighter sitting position that puts his eyes more level with hers. He clears his throat quietly, a look of suspicion on his face as he fights to find his voice again. "...yes?"

JENNA: * Jo frowns slightly, as he's broken the silence before she has anything ready. Though several questions spring to mind, she doubts any of them will do much more than make the situation worse, and as tempting as it is to pick a fight, it doesn't help in the long run. Instead, she drops to her knees, inching closer to him -- as if to see how he reacts to the increased proximity.

JUSTIN: * Shane certainly has no where to go, short of getting up and running -- and somehow, that doesn't seem like a very wise choice, if he hopes to salvage anything from this situation. He does momentarily press back against the tree, an instinctual reaction brought on by doubt and not knowing what her intentions are. However, he quickly forces himself to relax -- at least visually -- in a sort of stubborn showdown, almost like a game of chicken. He continues to stare into her eyes, his face blank except for a hint of uncertainty, and he doesn't bother to repeat his earlier question.

JENNA: "You know," she says suddenly, scooting forward again until their legs are almost in contact, "it would be nice if someday you didn't /flinch/ when you woke up next to me." With this, she leans forward, dropping her hands to rest against his knees, and kisses him briefly -- and almost with an air of resignation.

JUSTIN: * As if justifying her point, Shane almost lurches as the sudden contact and kiss. It is precisely because of her words, however, that he forces himself to remain still and composed. This extra effort almost causes him to forget to answer her, and it is several seconds before he even thinks about it. He blinks a few times, heavily, as if a bright light was just aimed at his eyes. "What... just what are you talking about? Are you talking about this morning?" He knows she's talking about this morning.

JENNA: "What else would I be talking about?" she asks mildly, maintaining her distance from him -- or lack thereof. "Unless you mean all the other times it's happened." Her gaze is intent, inches away from his, and tempted though she is to ease closer, that would put her in his lap -- and she doubts that would help matters any.

JUSTIN: * He should have expected that. Shane's eyes droop -- then shoot up again when he realizes the sight waiting for them down there. He blushes, casting his gaze off to the side instead and looking rather uncomfortable. "I'm not that bad... I didn't jump or scream or anything, did I? I just..." He wiggles himself up a little straighter, forcing his eyes back to her and trying to look indignant (and mostly failing). "I've slept alone for twenty-something years, Jo. It's not that easy to adjust to."

JENNA: "That's all?" she says mildly, brows lifting. She, after all, has spent the bulk of her adult life on her own, though she has admittedly been conditioned by the orphanage to tolerate more than one sleeping companion. "I suppose I can understand being startled," she says after a moment. "But you act like it's a horrible thing." She shrugs, deciding not to add the part where it hurts her damn feelings.

JUSTIN: * Shane sits up to his full height, giving her a cross look. "Now that's just an unfounded accusation." He finally pushes away from the tree, squirming around to get into a better sitting position. "If I thought it was horrible, then why would I have ever even consented to it?" He slides his eyes away, feeling rather jittery all of a sudden.

JENNA: * Jo makes a face, following him when he moves. "You consented in your sleep. Do you think that counts?" She sits back slightly, folding her arms. "And I think flinching counts as a negative reaction, personally." Now she almost wishes she hadn't started the discussion.

JUSTIN: * Shane dusts himself off, repositioning himself yet again -- this time to sit crosslegged. He sets his hands on his knees, leaning toward Jo and frowning at her. "I only flinched because I was surprised... I'm not used to it, okay? What do you /want/ me to say? It's not like... like I flinch everytime I see you, o-or startle everytime we touch..."

JENNA: "Isn't it?" She leans forward again, closing most of the distance between them. "Do you really think it would bother me if it was occasional, Shane?" She looks at him doubtfully -- maybe he does. But she doesn't back down, intending to see how long his pretense lasts.

JUSTIN: * Shane starts to turn his head away, but he stops himself, fearing that will only help her point. Instead, he crosses his arms over his chest and continues to stare at her defiantly. "I don't know what you're hoping to get out of me." He sniffs, feeling a little picked on -- though that wouldn't explain the guilt. "I told you, you're exaggerating things..."

JENNA: "Prove it," Jo says promptly, leaning back and folding her arms as well. "If I'm exaggerating -- or imagining things -- prove it to me." She rests back on her knees, brows lifting as she looks at him, torn between doubt he'll do a damn thing and hope that he will.

JUSTIN: * Shane simply sits there and stares, face turning more along the lines of bewildered now instead of upset. "What do you mean /prove/ it to you?" He takes his arms from his chest, and reaches out ahead of himself to poke her knee a few times. "Look, I'm touching you. And I'm not flinching or complaining." He leans back again, spreading his hands in a defeated manner. "What do you want me to do? Violate you or something?"

JENNA: * This time it's Jo's turn to stare at him, blank incredulity on her face. Then, slowly, she lifts a hand to her forehead, almost laughing when she speaks. "Tell me, how is it 'violating' me when I'm asking you to do it?" She looks up at him again, expression becoming, for a moment, almost totally bland.

JUSTIN: "Technically, you didn't ask me to /do/ anything." Shane recrosses his arms. No longer able to summon a suitably challenging expression, he has to settle for strained. "You just said... prove it to me. If touching you without flinching isn't what you had in mind, then you're going to need to be more specific."

JENNA: "That's not what I meant, and you know it's not," she says flatly, but instead of pressing the matter, she backs away and gets to her feet, dusting herself off. "But fine. Have it your way. I'm going to sleep." Despite a resurgence in the desire to hit him, she settles for walking toward the other side of the fire, shoulders taking on a tired slouch as she goes.

JUSTIN: * Shane starts to say something -- then stops, watches her get up, and finds himself conflicted about how to respond. "B-but... but it was your idea!" He realizes after he's said it how entirely stupid that sounds, and he buries his face in his palms with a low, hissing sigh.

JENNA: * Jo's sigh follows his fairly closely, and she glances back over her shoulder at him. "So it's okay if I just give up on it, right?" Instead of continuing, however, she turns around, resting her fists on her hips and gazing at him silently for a moment. Then she tosses her head. "All right. You wanted specifics?" She presses a hand against her forehead, embarrassed. She doesn't /want/ to give specifics. "Kiss me. Or sleep next to me and don't bolt when morning comes. Though I guess that wouldn't be too comfortable on the trail, anyway." She shrugs, making to turn away again.

JUSTIN: * Shane stumbles clumsily to his feet, nearly getting tangled in his own legs. "I kiss you all the time, Jo!" He stops to think about that for a second. Well, maybe 'all the time' is a bit overestimating. He shakes his head clear (mostly) and steps over to her, resting his hands on his own hips. "I could kiss you anytime I want to."

JENNA: * Jo turns to face him, once again mimicking his posture, expression the very picture of skepticism. "So do it," she suggests, tilting her head up to make things easier on him -- or perhaps harder. Once she's done so, her expression becomes challenging as she waits for him to either take the dare or back away.

JUSTIN: * Shane stares hard into her eyes, shifting his weight a couple times as he works up to face her challenge. "All right. I will." There is, however, a momentary pause. His eyes shift down to her lips. The look she's giving him does not seem like the face of someone who wants to be kissed, but clearly if he doesn't do it then she'll think he doesn't want her. Before she can have the chance to accuse him of just that, he quickly leans down and plants a quick peck on her lips. He immediately straightens again, shifting his eyes off to the side with a strange surge of embarrassment. "S-see? It's not that difficult."

JENNA: * Jo gives a sudden snort of laughter, taking a stumbling step forward to fall against his chest. For a moment, she seems shaken by giggles -- as if his move was completely unexpected. Then she winds her arms around him, amusement fading as she looks up. "Try again," she suggests drily, fingers tangling in his shirt to prevent an escape.

JUSTIN: * Shane seems mildly alarmed by the completely unexpected fit of amusement, but that alarm turns to a much more pouting look as she traps him in her arms. "But I just kissed..." He trails off, feeling somewhat cheated in this test. A kiss is a kiss as far as he's concerned, but if he claims he can kiss her whenever he wants, she will likely just contest that that includes twice in a row. He grunts quietly, giving her eyes a long stare as his arms grab around her midsection. "I just want to go on the record as saying that this is entirely unfair." Before she can reprimand him or make fun of him, he tilts his head and leans over, lips pressing against hers firmly and earnestly -- lest she fail him yet again.

JENNA: * Jo seems to find this much more agreeable, returning the kiss warmly and shifting her arms to twine around his shoulders, lest he attempt to escape before she's through with him. She lets the touch linger for some time before drawing away and looking at him with arched eyebrow. Then her expression relaxes into a near-smile. "You should do that more often," she suggests.

JUSTIN: * Shane breathes in deep and exhales slowly when she finally releases his lips, and his face has admittedly softened from the pouty, defiant look he was attempting earlier. He watches her for a moment in silence, then lowers his head, eyes half-closing. "You think so...?" He doesn't let go of her, apparently having gone from wanting to ignore her presence to clinging in the span of a kiss.

JENNA: "Mmhm," is her comfortable reply, relaxing into him slightly when he doesn't seem inclined to release her. "In fact, I'd say I know so." She smiles -- almost grinning -- having gone from angry to almost totally pleased with him. For the most part her mind is toying with other ways to encourage him to do that again.

JUSTIN: * Shane's solemn face twitches into a boyish smile, and he hides his face by nestling into her hair. "Oh you know so, now." Some of his jitters are still there, but they don't have confusion or panic to feed on anymore, and so instead it's almost a pleasantly ticklish feeling. "And what about you? If I'm to kiss you more often, what's your obligation?"

JENNA: * A number of responses -- each with varying degrees of lewdness -- flit across her mind, and she almost starts giggling again, staving that off by nuzzling against him. "That's up to you, isn't it?" she says finally, pulling away to look up at him again with mock-seriousiness.

JUSTIN: * Shane moves a hand from her back to scratch at his cheek, giving her a suspicious look from the corners of his eyes. "Up to me? And what if I can't think of anything suitable...? Just going to surprise me?" He lowers his hand again, and it crawls to her back to latch on once more.

JENNA: * A grin escapes her control, and she reaches one hand up to stroke his cheek. "I can probably manage a surprise," she says impishly, then lowers her hand again. "If you're sure you can't think of anything." Her brows lift as if she doubts this to be true.

JUSTIN: * Shane slides his gaze off to the side, blushing profusely. "I don't know, I'd have to give it some thought..." He drums his fingers against her back, eyes eventually finding their way back over. "How about I sleep on it, and get back to you in the morning?" He leans in, giving her forehead a few light kisses. "Is that acceptable?"

JENNA: * Jo's expression becomes momentarily suspicious, eyebrow arching skeptically. "If you think it'll help," she says, doubtful and teasing. "I can suggest a few, if you'd like." The impish look returns, and she gives him a light squeeze, nestling against him for a moment.

JUSTIN: * Shane sets a hand to the back of Jo's head, brushing fingers in her hair. "That's all right... I think I can manage on my own -- really." He murmers quietly, admittedly curious what sort of suggestions she has in mind, but equally afraid to find out. "Besides, I have the sneaking suspicion that you'll do whatever you want to, anyway, regardless of what I say." He pulls back a bit to look at her, a small smile at the corner of his lips.

JENNA: "Probably," she admits comfortably, turning her head to nuzzle him before relaxing again. "I'll just keep it up 'til you stop flinching." She grins again, unseen, then her expression sobers, and she squeezes him again, weariness returning. "You don't mind that much, do you?"

JUSTIN: "Of course I don't mind..." Shane continues to stroke at her hair, eyes half-closed as he returns her squeeze. "But..." He rests his cheek against the top of her head, staring at the fire. "In the meantime, are you going to get upset and put me on trial everytime I do flinch?"

JENNA: "Not every time," she concedes. Her fingers tangle for a moment in the fabric of his shirt, and she closes her eyes, trying not to sigh. Except for the part where she's standing, it wouldn't be a bad way to go to sleep, she reasons, but she doubts he's going to have any part of that.

JUSTIN: * Shane settles his arms around her comfortably, swaying a little as if rocking her to sleep -- unaware as he is that that is exactly what's on her mind. "I suppose that's fair enough." He smiles, turning his head to rest his lips against the top of her head. A slight grin transforms his smile, and he pokes her lower back. "Your hair is still damp, it's getting me wet."

JENNA: * Jo makes a muffled noise, stirring out of her comfortable near-doze. "You'll dry," she retorts, wrinkling her nose, but she draws away slightly, rubbing at one eye. "We should probably rest, anyway.. still a long road to Juno." She glances toward her pack, thinking of the pages contained therein. "Still no valkyrie," she remarks suddenly. "Guess she didn't mind after all."

JUSTIN: * Shane plays with the fabric of her shirt, glancing over his shoulder at the pack and smirking. "That, or we gave her the slip. Master thieves that we are." He shakes his head, and reluctantly lets Jo go, moving his hands to rub at his face. "Mm, must be tired if I'm saying that. Care to start my next test?"

JENNA: * Jo grins at him, reaching over to tug on his shirt. "If you think you're up to it." Then she moves ahead of him to the other side of the fire, where the pecos have settled into an exhausted doze. "If you think you need a day or two to study up, I'll grant you that," she says with mocking charity, kneeling next to her pack and fishing around for her cloak.

JUSTIN: * Shane begins to strip off his gear and coat, turning her a bad attempt at an unamused glare. "I think hands-on training is the quickest way to mastery. And it'll keep you happy." He smiles then, and circles the fire to toss his things next to the tree, crouching down to retrieve his own cloak.

JENNA: * Cloak found, Jo gets to her feet again, ambling over to the fire and laying it out, then walking back to get her pack for its secondary use as a makeshift pillow. "Well then," she says, turning to face him with hands on hips. "We'd better get started." She looks skyward for a moment, relieved to see it hasn't gotten too late.

JUSTIN: "I've got a long, hard night of work ahead of me." Shane jests, setting his cloak on the ground so that it overlaps Jo's -- a sign that he seriously intends to make an effort. Rolling his pack into position at the head of the makeshift bed, he then sits down and kicks off his boots. "Ready when you are." He lifts a hand, offering it to her with a soft smile, and pats the cloak beside him.

JENNA: * Jo finds herself momentarily taken aback by the offer, as though she hadn't really been expecting his agreement. It's only a moment before she takes his hand, however, taking her place next to him with a faint trace of embarrassed heat in her face. She pauses, resting on her knees, then leans forward to kiss him once again. "Thank you."

JUSTIN: * Shane returns the kiss, trying to repress an impish smile. "You're welcome. Let it never be said that Shane Veribaent doesn't listen to his woman." He tilts his head, scratching his cheek. "Most of the time." A quiet chuckle comes out, from embarrassment as much as anything, and he takes the initiative in lying down. He folds his hands over his chest and watches her for a moment, still smiling, and silently prays to whatever god is listening that he won't flinch come morning.