Logs:Glares Over Cards
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| RL Date: 14 December, 2013 |
| Who: E'ten, Ali, Isyath, Elaruth |
| Involves: Fort Weyr |
| Type: Log |
| What: E'ten makes a visit into Dice to relax, only to come across Ali and then riders from Sandstone and Jasper almost cause a fight. |
| Where: Dice - Fort Weyr |
| When: Day 11, Month 7, Turn 33 (Interval 10) |
| Dice, Fort Weyr(#900RJs) High up above the lake, a small ledge is barely noticeable, and indeed most pass by it unawares. It's small enough that a green can comfortably land, perhaps even a blue, but larger dragons would find it too awkward and small to do so. Just inside, a couple of couple of men are standing with arms crossed and sharp eyes watching the comings and goings. The small size of the various rooms that make up the weyr proper has probably made it unappealing for any to claim as their own - however this makes it perfect for its new purpose. In each room there's a table and chairs set up in different configurations - card games here and there, dice in another room, roulette in yet another. The dealers are dressed in plain gray outfits, though the security guards that wanders from room to room (and occasionally come to collect marks) are more casually dressed. The decor and lighting are dark, intended to make identification of other patrons more difficult.
E'ten may not be known to play a solid game of cards for sevendays on end, but he does have a little skill - to not lose his shirt. Marks? That's a wholly other matter as the wingsecond makes his way into Dice, knot tucked into the inner pocket of his jacket. Animosity is not something likely to be given here, but at least the rank doesn't have to stare any prospectives in the face. That doesn't mean he's blind though. The murmured comment from a pair of riders finds his gaze drawn in the direction Ali - or at least the woman who he thinks is Ali. Pausing near one of the tables, he waits for the order to be complete before murmuring in bemusement. "Is this a second job or a hobby?" Most of the other inhabitants, too, aren't wearing their knots- there's a few familiar Weyrfolk, but moreso unfamiliar faces that he might've once seen on some trip to a nearby Hold or Hall. Seeing E'ten here is clearly unexpected on Ali's part; she catches her breath, frozen a moment before she manages to gather her wits enough to reply, "I- I've yet to decide." Whether that's intended to be facetious or an honest response is hard to say- she follows it quickly with, "Drink?" A not-so-subtle hand smooths down some of the material of her skirt, as if embarrassed. It's not as if the skirt isn't anything new, even though E'ten's eyes flicker down briefly to take notice - naturally, before looking back to Ali's face with a smirk. "Either way, I bet there are some riders who would be envious of you being so.. how should I put it," he says thoughtfully. "Healthy." It's better than the comment he could make verbally about her legs. Then again, there's a greenrider who may want a monopoly on that. "I'll take my usual brandy." Yes, definitely embarrassed, and now awkward to boot. "It makes people spend more," Ali explains, uncomfortably. "I didn't realize it until I saw it for myself. Rey was practically falling over laughing at me, so you needn't do the same," she adds, hand going to her hip when she sees that smirk. With a wrinkle of her nose: "Fine. Find a table and a spare space for me. I can't play, but I can be a good luck charm, or something. I'll be back with the drinks shortly." While the table she was gathering drinks orders from is full, the one next over - whose dealer is more stern-faced, has far less players at hand. "I meant that as a compliment," E'ten replies, lifting up both hands to fend off the reaction before taking a step back with a slight turn to face the table in question with a more relaxed smile. "Not laughing at you. I'll save you a seat. Besides, ow difficult is it to find me," he asks, both shoulders lifting into a shrug as he moves towards the table with another look towards the dealer before dipping his head in greeting. "Deal me in next game," he remarks, eyes already taking note of the current layout of the current game in progress. At the table with him is a couple of men in their forties; they look like laborers of some sort, with calloused hands and sun-weathered faces- they've been drinking a fair amount of beer and to listen to their talk, steadily losing. He'll recognize the Sandstone bluerider to his immediate left, her dragon having hatched two clutches ago out of Elaruth. The dealer nods his way obligingly; there's a bit of begrudging hesitence before one of the laborers finally throws his cards down in disgust, and his friend guffaws with delight. The next hand is dealt, while nearby Ali's returning and giving out drinks at the next table. The bluerider to E'ten's immediate side is given a nod of greeting, his right hand reaching out to reserve the seat beside him for Ali on her return trip. In the meantime, he's placing in his own initial bet. Modest. He doesn't get paid that much in his current job, after all. "Been winning tonight," he remarks to the Sandstone rider, not drawing more attention than that with a glance to the two men to see if they're staying on for the next game. "More 'n not. Those idiots barely know what they're doing, and the drinking doesn't help," the bluerider mutters dismissively. The men do, indeed, stay on, seeming intent to stay till the bitter end - whether that's being broke, or running out of beer. With a sweep of her skirt, Ali joins them, grateful smile sent E'ten's way as she slides into the seat he's secured, setting the brandy down by his arm. There's an odd sort of light to her eyes as she watches the game, taking in the other's postures, and the dealer's especially. Nearby, there's some chuckling from a pair of Jasper riders who have positioned themselves just in line of sight of the bluerider, deliberately. She's noticed them, posture stiffening. Still benefiting from the lack of the tale-tale knot on his shoulder, E'ten's demeanor is outwardly relaxed as his fingers reach for the glass with a smile flashed towards Ali as she sits. Nevertheless, the Jasper riders are noticed after the bluerider beside him stiffens with a flick of his eyes up and further away before addressing the cards in front of him. With the rim poised at his lips and eyes on those same cards being dealed out, he murmurs, "Problems, bluerider?" Not that he expects anything to happen inside the establishment. Then again, he can't say for sure at this point. Ali, meanwhile, is peeking over E'ten's shoulder at his cards, thoughtful. "You should discard that one." She's such a backseat gambler. As to his comment to the other side of him: "None of your business, Hematite." The bluerider's recognized him in turn, after all, and with a cluck of her tongue, throws her cards down. It might well just be an excuse to concentrate on the pair of Sandstone riders loitering nearby, however, given not long after she gets up and walks in that direction as if stretching her legs. The fact that she 'accidentally' stumbles into one with an elbow to the stomach is mere coincidence. Probably. The angry shove the other Jasper rider gives her is not done with any kind of pretense, however. "You play?" Not that E'ten should be surprised, fingers lifting towards one card and then drifts towards another while following the suggestion from Ali. The rebuke from the bluerider finds his lips pressing together firmly as he follows the progress of the Sandstone and Jasper riders. It's going to be a talent to watch them and then follow the game. Thankfully, he didn't wager a great amount starting out. With a tilt of his head towards the goldrider beside him, he murmurs, "What do you think? Should I see how it plays out?" "Rey made Yaret and I play with him a lot for practice. I picked up a few things here and there." Ali's modest about it, but nods approvingly all the same when he discards said card, resting her chin on his shoulder to better see the replacement card when it comes. Though green eyes flicker up to spot the riders, she doesn't move, even if her gaze darkens. "I think you should go over there and knock their heads together, but, that's a personal opinion. If you want, I can take over your hand? I'm not very- authoritative in this outfit." A flush of color again, as she straightens. Speaking of said riders, there's some words that might start as low muttering but are quickly becoming louder, drawing more attention- there's another shove from both sides, and another Sandstone rider joins in to back up the bluerider. Dragon> Though clearly uninterested herself, Isyath is the sort of queen to let everyone know of her rider's displeasure: « They are at it again. » Which could mean all sorts of things, though perhaps after a query from someone, clarifies, « Jasper and Sandstone. » (To Fort dragons from Isyath) Dragon> From Elaruth, there's the lash of a command waiting to snap out across her Weyr, her usually gentle touch laced too heavily with salt and the uncomfortable tang of ash, weighed down by her own agitation and her rider's frustration. Not even Isyath escapes a hint of that displeasure; it's quite clear that the senior believes her daughter /should/ take the action /she/ is having to take. « You will stop them, » is not for her junior, but for those Jasper and Sandstone dragons belonging to the riders 'at it again'. That the glimmer of dawn's gold lurks in her tone says it all: if they don't, /she/ will. (To Fort dragons from Elaruth) Dragon> It's not really passivity so much as calmness that Isyath sends back to her dam: « Adiulth's has it under control. » She? She's going to continue to circle the warm summer thermals high above, having faith that neither of them need intervene. There might be a prickly undertone to her thoughts thereafter, but surely that's just a mute reflection of Elaruth's. (To Fort dragons from Isyath) Dragon> « He had better, » sounds more like Hattie than Elaruth, but the little queen's presence still continues to hover closer to some of the Weyr's dragons than others, whether it's of her own volition or her rider's insistence. Too tense to step back completely, she keeps that salty taint in the air at a level that's /just/ there and not there, irritating enough to be noticed and not entirely dismissed, though it could be completely unintentional. (To Fort dragons from Elaruth) "Encouraging such thing? Really," E'ten murmurs, taking another sip from the glass before passing the cards to Ali with a moment's crossed eyed expression as Adiulth relays the situation as it unfolds in conversation between senior and junior. "Hold my place and try not to lose my marks. Don't interrupt." Murmured to the junior, he moves to stand with a straightening of his jacket as he moves to intervene. To the gathering Jasper and Sandstone riders, he nods to all gathered to remark with a touch of firmness to his voice, "Problem, /riders/?" There's a faint smile as Ali accepts the cards with the dutifully murmured promise of not making him /too/ broke. The dealer frowns a little, but it's Ali, and so the game continues as E'ten departs to take charge of the situation with the riders. Even as the bronzerider's approaching there's another Sandstone rider, out of breath- like he was called by one of the others and hurried over to join in. "Sandstone has no manners," is one of the Jasper rider's summation of the situation. The bluerider from E'ten's table bares her teeth, "And Jasper has hygiene problems. What's your point?" That earns a snickering from the other Sandstone riders, and a growl-and-attempted-shove from the other Jasper rider. This situation may be getting worse and worse as more riders between Jasper and Sandstone arrive. Instead of standing to one side, E'ten makes an attempt to move in between both sides with a glance between both sides in the process. "Indeed. What /is/ the point of this?" Asked with a glance pointedly at each of the riders, he continues, "Do I have to order you all to disperse before a fight breaks out?" Hematite as he is, no less. Wingsecond all the same. Beyond him, Adiulth may be lending his weight to the matter with a growing presence of silence and yet, he's there. That makes /both/ groups look at E'ten kind of dumbly. Clearly, there is a point, and clearly, the Hematite rider does not get it. With a muttered imprecation directed towards the other riders, the pair of Jasper riders move on, though not without some taunting looks. The bluerider, meanwhile, looks thoroughly pleased with herself, like they won some sort of victory. "Thanks. You should've tossed them off the ledge," she says to E'ten, to the laughing agreement of her fellow wingriders. Or maybe E'ten gets why both wings at at this nitpicking but either he doesn't care or.. well, he doesn't care. "What I'd want to do wouldn't be amendable to either side," comes the retort, aiming to discount whatever victory on either side so that neither comes out of this feeling swelled up. Then again.. Adiulth's presence backing up his rider's words might make an attempt to assist in such matters, silence. No sign of elementals aside from the faint whiff of ozone - lighting before a storm. The bluerider looks surprised, then annoyed at E'ten's reaction, or maybe it Adiulth's presence in the mix, too. With a glance at her wingmates, the rest of the riders disperse - thankfully not back to the table. Where Ali's won at least one hand, before settling in to observe, Isyath's presence felt faintly in the distance - it's hard to get the queen interested in such bland human matters, after all. With a lift of the brandy glass, she invites him back over to the table, hopefully to relax, and maybe even express puzzlement at the rivalry - at least that's Ali's apparent take on the whole thing. |
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