Everyone looks at Ageless.
What? says Ageless.
Lobster Guy will intervene? says Baudin.
How will he intervene? asks de Freycinet.
What does intervene mean? asks Terence.
Stick his oar in, says Baudin.
Terence is none the wiser, but thinks that he is.
I'm sure there'll be no need for that, says Gaius.
So am I, says Ageless. I simply meant that I'm willing.
Can we go back to the campground and see if they're back yet? asks Terence.
Yes, says Gaius. Will you walk with us, Louis?
I will, says de Freycinet.
Can we walk fast? asks Terence.
At a reasonable pace, says Gaius.
They thank Baudin for the sardines and say farewell.
Come again anytime, says Baudin.
Gaius, Ageless and de Freycinet walk along the trail together.
Terence runs ahead for a while, then stops, for them to catch up.
Why are you doing that, Terence? asks Gaius.
To make you go faster, says Terence.
It's not working, says Ageless.
Stay with us, says Gaius. I know you like talking.
I already talked, says Terence.
Then listen, says Gaius. Louis has been telling us of his adventures.
Okay, says Terence. What adventures?
It was really my wife Rose's adventure, says de Freycinet.
Indeed, says Gaius. She must have been brave.
She loved me, says de Freycinet.
Did she save you from tigers? asks Terence.
No, says de Freycinet. She dressed as a man and came with me on the Uranie.
Woop, says Terence.
It was illegal for women to join naval expeditions, says de Freycinet.
Did she get into trouble? asks Terence.
Not from me, says de Freycinet. I was the captain. And once we had sailed it was too late for the navy to do anything about it. What times we had. There was even a shipwreck.
A romantic tale, says Gaius.
Yes, sighs de Freycinet. My dear Rose. And later, she nursed me when I was dying of cholera.
That's devotion, says Gaius.
Did she die of cholera? asks Ageless.
I don't know, says de Freycinet. I had already turned into a lobster.
Did she turn into a lobster? asks Terence.
No, says de Freycinet. Only sea captains do that.
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