Closed [Pig's Foot Tavern] Foolish Games

[Naeya]

Foolish Games Timestamp: 17th of Winter, 513 AV "Oh, c'mon lass. Sit 'n have a drink. Y'said it yerself - you don't have more parcels t' deliver. Right?" "Right, but-" "Then what's the trouble? Too fancy for Merv's brew?" Naeya sighed, sensing the beginnings of a trap. "Of course not, Lex. It's just-" "Ooh, does Miss Fancypants have somewhere fancy t'be? Some fancypants afternoon party? Us regular folks jus' get invited to the night parties, y'know. Spend our afternoons mindin' our own business." "I wouldn't exactly call this minding your own business..." "And a tongue, too! Will wonders never cease. C'mon, doll. Let yer hair down 'n have a drink. Put yer feet up. It won't kill ya, y'know. What doesn't kill ya makes ya drunker. Or somethin' like that." She grinned in spite of herself and felt the last of her resistance fade in the loosening of her lips. "All right, you got me. Only one, though! Okay?" The expression on the barmaid's face could have lit up a Zith cave. Naeya slid into an open stool at the bar and let her hood fall, revealing piercing emerald eyes and an amused expression beneath. She swivelled in the stool, back to the counter, and surveyed the room. The general temperament in the tavern was merry, mixed with a dash of boredom here and a sprinkle of mischief there. The regular rough-and-tumble crowd wasn't drunk enough to cause any real damage, and everyone else seemed to be in a good enough mood - for Sunberthians. A crackling fire burned in the hearth, just warm enough to make one forget the biting wind that lay in wait outside the walls, and to its right a lutist played a dulcet tune. It was on afternoons like these where she didn't fear the city. And that was the most dangerous act of all. "Place yer bets!" Her gaze flicked over to the far corner of the room where a small group of men and women had begun to gather, jostling each other in jest. In the center of it all sat a heavyset bearded man and a carefully guarded handful of coins. One of the women, raven-haired and athletic, nudged her girl friend before shouting a dirty jibe at one of the men. The group burst into raucous laughter, and several threw a silver coin onto the table. "Here y'are, lass." Lex was back, plunking an overflowing mug of ale on the counter behind the konti. Naeya smiled her thanks. Upon further thought, she pointed a gloved hand toward the ragtag huddle. "What's going on?" she asked, eyes turned in earnest to the barmaid who shrugged coolly in response. "Who knows what those scruff do to keep busy. S'long as they pay the bill 'n don't break anythin', I'm a happy gal." Lex winked before sauntering off to another customer, leaving Naeya with a full cup of beer and a stubborn case of curiousity. Ah, may as well. "Hi!" Naeya waved her hand lightly in an effort to capture the attention of the man sitting beside her. "Any chance you might know what they're up to?"

[Adam King]

The cheap liquor was more than satisfactory that afternoon. Not boozing for three days in a row would have that effect on Adam. Taking the odd booze break wound up his expectation enough so that the signal his body would be giving (One of "Please, please, just please not again, this will be so bad tommorow, please.") could easily be ignored. Things were rather slow for the ragged charmer's taste, though the game of "Whore Out" in the corner seemed to be escalating to promising levels. He'd normally be in there playing, except his experience taught him it's funnest to play around attractive females and there wasn't much of that. Well, Sirina was playing, and she had the body not only to entertain, but to possibly keep a full grown man pinned down indefientely. But she'd rejected "Lord" King before. Specifically, she had threatened to "pickle his marbles if he dances anywhere near her again". Now, in Sunberth, coming from a merc' girl, this could be innuendo. Adam had never deemed it worth the risk to find out though. That Roberta girl was passable for a night or two, Adam thought, but something felt "wrong" about being with a girl that also has Daggerhand boyfriends. There are cleaner options, like Madame Ruby's girls. Scanning a couple of more potential prospects, he idly sipped. You'll find something, Addy-boy. "Hi!" Something not very tall but distinctly female sounding signaled for his attention. "Any chance you might know what they're up to?" Voice cheerful and polite. Warning, mister King. Turning his head, the suspicion Sunberth rationality had taught him about polite cheerful people that are dangerous was melted away by the childlike nuances in the bright eyes. He would stare in silent inspection for a second as a more base side of the man's mentality couldn't help but note that the girl did however fall into the "Very Well Passable" category. Maybe your day can get better still, Kingy. Trying to hide that nasty glint in his eyes, he looked once more to the game unfolding. "Oh that?" He sipped from the glass, biding the extra seconds to word things. Petch, this stuff is strong. "That's Whore-Out." He nodded thoughfully before looking back towards the woman, head tilting. He tried not to be obvious in his further inspection of her woman. Something in the way she looked back signaled the answer wasn't clarifying in itself. So not a raw Suberthie, this girl. He shifted his body towards her on the seat, soft smile arriving in reflex. He launched himself right into explaining, even voice steadily carrying local education. "How it works," He thought for a split second considering the choice of word. Polite out-of-towner. ", miss, is that when a player's turn comes up, the others call out a challenge of sorts and then auction up money into a pot. Should the player perform the challenge to satisfaction, they take the pot. Should they not, they add an extra half of the gathered amount to the pot, and the next player is challenged." He smirked, sipping. Let's do smart-speak, Adam, shall we? "The best metaphorical tradition-expression of Sunberth spirit if there ever was one." He let out the briefest chuckle. Cute kid. But what kind of 'cute' are you reffering to?

[Naeya]

She didn't particularly like the way he studied her, like a prize to be won or a creature in the Menagerie, and her eyes questioned both the man and his words as he spoke. But it was a cheerful afternoon and she had been raised to be civil, so she continued to listen. Besides, she was surprised to find that the Sunberthian game amused her. Humans had a habit of approaching sex easily and recklessly. They kissed and fucked with pleasurable abandon, consequences be damned - a far cry from the akalak men she was raised with, where thoughts of children and esteem clung to the periphery of every flirtation. Naeya removed her leather gloves and placed them on the bar, flexing her webbed fingers before reaching for the mug of ale. The beginnings of a sly grin danced on the corners on her lips, and she leaned conspiratorially toward her new acquaintance. "Have you ever won the pot?" she asked. She took a sip of ale and leaned an elbow on the scratched wooden counter, regarding her dark-haired companion with an attentive eye. It had been a long while since she'd felt her natural playfulness emerge, and she revelled in the energy it lent her. Maybe, just maybe, she could finally relax - if only for the next few bells. "'ey!" The konti turned her head to see one of the women from the far corner of the room striding toward her - or rather, him. She was a pock-marked brunette, with a large bust and a heavy line of kohl around her eyes. Her brown woollen skirt was hiked up to her knees, and her cream-coloured corset drew all eyes to her chest. She walked with the confidence of a regular, even as her hips swung with a drop too much affectation. "'ey, King!" The woman rested a hand on the shoulder of Naeya's companion, and leaned toward his ear to whisper a secret for only him to hear. Naeya averted her gaze and turned back to her drink, taking a long swig to fill the silence. Sounds of clinking glasses and erratic laughter floated across the tavern, mingling happily with the lutists's lighthearted melody. "So are you gonna join us or what?" the brunette pouted as she straightened, ignoring the konti's presence with practiced ease. "It's gonna be a good game, but we need more players. I told the girls I'd rally up a fellow or two. Yer good for it, yeah?" Naeya shifted in her seat and ran a finger in circles over the wood grain of the counter. Despite her earlier misgivings, she couldn't help feeling a dash of disappointment at what she expected to be the imminent loss of her conversational partner. She took another sip of ale and glanced at him sideways as she awaited his reply.

[Adam King]

Her micro-expressions suggested that the girl wasn't buying the smooth flourish to his words, but she wasn't telling him to petch off either. "Have you ever won the pot?" A personal interest, if safe and minor, good. Straightening with a long knowing and proud nod, he would have answered the same either way, but actually telling the truth when bragging was always a very welcome bonus. "Oh, I dare say I've in fact never let a pot pass me u-" Focused on the out-of-towner's reactions and subtle unintended expression, he missed the holler from across the room. Only following her gaze did Adam notice Siri' ambling up. No, Sirina never 'ambled'. Equine-muscled though she may be, this was a stride. Her inquiry was about his joining the game, and he half-expected it, considering King was adept at both entertainigly pulling off the dares as well as issuing them. But here was the mean mercenary Siri the Skull, out of her armor, literally and figuratively, asking him to play with her and her cohorts. No, a "yes m'am" just wouldn't do. And besides, he couldn't let the fish-girl get away like that. He had noticed the hands and it lined up with other clues about the girl's physiognomy. Those hands had potentia;. She was one of those... What was it. With a "K". The fishy ones. Were they the ones with only female offspring or the ones with the horns? Silly question, she's evidently got no horns. Anyway, two rabbits, one stone and all that. He sipped from his glass as though considering this. A smirk came up with his answer as he turned towards Sirina. "Let's make it interesting: Get the newbie fish-girl to play as well, and I'm all yours for the night." He downed the rest of his glass and immediately signaled for a refill before adding. "To play, of course." Smacking his lips and checking for the new girl's reaction out of the corner of his eye while he challengingly faced the human female, King realised the addition hadn't yet discharged the innuendo. "To play the game." He leaned back, to spectate, refreshed glass in hand.