Closed Opportunities Abound (Ambrosia)

[Yisanareysin]

26th of Summer, 517 AV

The Rear was busy today, it seemed. In an unobtrusive corner of the room, Rey smiled slightly to himself. Perfect for the task at hand.

Unobtrusively, he kept track of his target: a young symenestra man, and more importantly, an informant for one of Rey's rivals. Hawthorn had been poking at prodding at Rey lately, even sending one of his own to infiltrate Rey's network. Evidently, the more established spy wanted to get rid of rivals before they could grow dangerous to him.

Rey had no illusions about his ability to challenge Hawthorn head on. Rey had only been in Alvadas for three years, whereas Hawthorn had been born and raised in this city. The spider had more contacts, more influence, more money. Rey knew he couldn't win this fight. But he could divert his opponents attention. A fake job, one that Hawthorn wouldn't be able to resist meddling in. Hopefully it would be enough to keep him occupied.

The first step was to get the contacts attention. Getting up from his seat, Rey made his way to a table near the symenestra, close enough that he'd be able to hear Rey over the din, not so close that Rey's intentions were obvious. "Mind if I ssit?" He asked the group at that table. As the words escaped his mouth, he drew on his djed, infusing them with a suggestion of friendliness.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the contact turn slightly. Good. Now certain that the contact was aware of him, Rey ignored him, trusting that the spider would do his job.

"Not at all." One woman at the table said, making space for him. "But you might regret sitting here. Teddy here's just about drunk enough to start singing." She elbowed the man beside her, sparking off a minor shoving match between them. On Rey's other side, a large, imposing woman shook her head. "These two. I'm Anya, and those clowns are Ri and Theo." Her bag was open beside her. Bingo.

"Revan." Rey smiled politely, and under the table, drew a folded piece of paper from his pocket. It was blank, but the contact wouldn't know that. As he started to chat with them, he angled himself so the contact had an unobstructed view, and dropped the paper into Anya's pack. She was unlikely to think anything of it, but to the contact, well. It would look like Rey had just sent a message.

After a few more chimes, Rey parted with them, leaving Anya with a sympathetic look as Ri and Teddy launched into a duet on their way out the door.

When he turned to move to the bar, he saw the contact was gone as well. Good. A few more well placed hints would leave Hawthorn scratching his head as to what Rey was up to.

Satisfied, he gestured at a passing barmaid."A mug of lager please."

Snake Tongue | Common | Arumenic

[Ambrosia Alar]

Ambrosia hated it when people came in and didn’t order drinks. It didn’t happen often, at least not without a good excuse. Some people would come in with friends and not partake in the refreshment, and those Ambrosia really couldn’t complain about. It was those who came in alone and just watched, lurked. Not buying a drink wasn’t the part that irritated her the most, though she did find it mildly insulting. What irked her the most was that it felt like a threat to the patrons of the Rear, and Ambrosia was very protective of her customers, especially her regulars. A Symenestra had been trying to pretend that that was not exactly what he was doing. For his part, he was doing a terrible job at his deception. Maybe it was just the fact he hadn’t ordered a drink. Maybe it was the fact that he had refused a drink both times Ambrosia had stopped by his table to ask him. Maybe there was something in his eyes. Ambrosia couldn’t be sure, but there was something about him that made her suspicious. And because she was suspicious, it was easy to spot his real reason for being in the Rear. Despite a meager attempt to appear interested in everyone in the bar equally, the spider’s focus kept returning to one man. The man in question seemed unremarkable at first glance, though Ambrosia knew that appearance meant little about what curiosities the individual might harbor, and Ambrosia was eternally curious. The man was short, shorter than average, at least. Ambrosia imagined she had an inch or three on him, but it was difficult to tell with him sitting. He had remained in his seat at a table in an out-of-the-way corner. He, too, had yet to order a drink, but Ambrosia liked the look of him a bit more than the man watching him. His eyes wandered the room as well, but unlike the spider’s, this man’s eyes held a genuine curiosity about everyone and everything. That, and as Ambrosia watched him, he smiled. It was a pleasant smile, subtle and not overdone, and Ambrosia liked him all the more for it. “Degtine, please, Ambrosia.” The other customer’s voice brought her focus away from the two men, the watcher and the watched. Ambrosia smiled. “‘Please’? Since when did you get manners, Job?” She considered him for a moment. “Is there a woman in your life now?” Job snorted and rolled his eyes. “Yeah. My mom. She heard the way I was talking on the docks and said if she ever caught me talking like that again she’d disown me.” Ambrosia laughed. “Well, drop the propriety while you’re here. It doesn’t suit you.” “Yeah. Petch that.” “That’s more like it.” Swiping up the few empty shot glasses on the table, she made her way to the bar to pour his shots. When she glanced about, she found the Symenestra man where she had left him, but the other man had moved. He was now rubbing elbows with a table of three. Perhaps that was why he hadn’t ordered a drink yet. Maybe he had just been looking for the right people to have one with. Everyone at the table seemed content. She’d let them settle in a bit before dropping by to check on drinks. Besides, one of them was already at or past his limit. It was a delicate balance, staying pleasantly drunk. Too little, and you didn’t have fun. Too much, and you would break. Whether that presented as belligerence, becoming a sobbing wreck, getting overly friendly, or passing out depended on the individual, but regardless, the fun got ruined in a hurry. There were few who could get completely trashed and still be pleasant company. Soon, Ambrosia found herself in the middle of a flurry of drink orders, and the two men and the curiosity surrounding them, though not forgotten, lost their importance. When she finally managed to finish running drinks around the tavern, the Symenestra man was gone, and the other man was standing at the bar. As she approached, she realized she was right about his height. She did stand just a little taller. He flagged her down as she passed and ordered a lager. “Sure thing, love.” As she poured the beer, she chatted over her shoulder with him. “I’m glad you finally ordered a drink. I always find it a bit odd when people don’t. We had one of those tonight.” She flashed him an apologetic smile. “I hate to put a damper on your night, but I’d be careful on your way home. I think you were being watched.”

[Yisanareysin]

Rey liked to consider himself a watchful person, with a healthy amount of paranoia and a good sense for anyone who might be watching him. But it seems in his little game of snake and mouse with Hawthorne's man, he'd missed the presence of a spectator.

No mention of his covert fake message, and her smile seemed genuine. She hadn't seen it, then. But she'd noticed that he hadn't had a drink yet, and that, from the sound of it, the spider hadn't either. And that the spider had been watching Rey. An attentive one, then. It made sense, given her profession. Now that was an idea he hadn't given much thought to.

Who was more perfectly placed to hear Alvadas's every rumor, was everyone's trusted friend and confidant, and would have the talent for watching and befriending? Now that it occurred to him, it seemed absurd that he'd never considered it before.

Still, this was not the time to consider it in more depth. He was being asked a question. How to respond; ignorance, deflection, or honesty?

"Ah." The word came out amused, rather than surprised. It seemed he'd chosen honesty without thinking about it. Partial honesty, anyways. "You saw that too, did you? Thank you for the warning, but I'm not in danger." He grinned at her wryly. "Impressed that you caught it, though. Most wouldn't. I almost missed him at first."

Once Ambrosia's hand was free, Rey offered his own to shake. "I'm Revan. Or Rey. Don't drink here as often as some, but I think I recognize you. You're.." he frowned, flicking back through his memories of the Rear. "Amber? Something close?" He shrugged sheepishly.

"If you don't mind, was there a reason you noticed him watching?"

Snake Tongue | Common | Arumenic

[Ambrosia Alar]

Ambrosia winced at the incorrect name but took Revan’s outstretched hand warmly in hers. There were few things she hated more than being called Amber, but she couldn’t blame the man. At least he had made the effort, and if she was being honest with herself, she had recognized his face but couldn’t put a name to it. “Close, Revan. It’s Ambrosia.” Setting his drink in front of him, she pondered his question as to how she caught on to the fact he was being watched. “I don’t know. I guess it’s if you go somewhere and everyone is doing something, you notice anyone who’s not. If you’re in bar, you expect to see people drinking. When they’re not, you notice them.” She shrugged. “I suppose he probably could’ve put an empty mug in front of him, and I wouldn’t have given him a second thought. But he didn’t, so I noticed. And because I noticed, I watched him, and in the watching, he seemed suspicious. You could tell he had a purpose for being here.” Her eyes sized Revan up for a moment. “You, not so much. Or, if you did have a purpose, it was certainly more benign. There was something likable in the way you waited. Him, though, he lurked.” Someone stepped up to the bar and ordered wine. As the deep red liquid filled the glass and brought with it an aroma of cherries, Ambrosia continued their conversation. “I guess a part of why I noticed him was just my curiosity. There’s so much to know about everyone, and I want to know it all. You never can though. That might be the most frustrating- and addicting- part of curiosity. There’s always something new. There’s always something more.” She pushed the wine to the customer and pulled the coins he had placed on the counter back toward her. “I’m glad you’re not in danger. I don’t like it when our patrons feel threatened. This is supposed to be a place where you can let go of your worries.” Ambrosia waved to a group of drinkers as they stumbled out on to the street. “Like Ri and Theo. We get graced with their duets pretty often. How long have you known those two?”

[Yisanareysin]

"Ambrosia." Rey murmured, locking the name into the profile he was beginning to build up of this woman. Her explanation was simple, and it betrayed a lot more about her personality than her talents.

She wasn't just observant, she was curious. It was one thing to notice that someone stood out, it was another to be interested enough to work out what they were doing. She hadn't been able to keep track of everything that was happening, especially since she was on the job, but it was a good start. Ability could be trained easily enough. Attitude was much harder.

She'd cottoned on to his own observations too, and understood intuitively the difference between genuine curiosity and a hired hound. The ability to fit motivation to action, that was good too. Perhaps that was why she'd found him likable, why he now found himself warming up greatly to her. A kindred spirit.

"Ri and Theo? Maybe twenty chimes. I've just finished a long, stressful job. Needed to go out, meet someone new, you know?" He shook his head. "Of course my work would follow me here."

Rey caught her eye. "I know exactly what you mean about wanting to know things. There's always so much more to people than you see at first, and everyone only open up to those that they trust." He grinned at her, the barest hint of an idea coalescing in his mind. "I suppose you have a bit of an edge there. But there's a lot you can tell about someone just by watching them. More than people think. You'll never get everything, but you can get close."

Snake Tongue | Common | Arumenic

[Ambrosia Alar]

Ambrosia liked most people. It was difficult to last long in her line of work if one didn’t, but there was something different about Revan. Sure, she liked him, but more than that, he fascinated her. It wasn’t often that Ambrosia found someone who shared her addiction to knowing everything she could. As with all things, she was curious. She wanted to know how his mind worked and what drove him to this need for knowledge. Her mind was bursting with questions. What about Ri and Theo had drawn him? What was the job Revan had been working on? Who was the man who was following him and what did he have to do with Revan’s work? Her mind was spitting them out faster than she could remember them to stick aside to ask later. As a barmaid, she had to stifle her curiosity often to find the appropriate balance between listening and having her own questions answered. Latching on to as many questions as she could remember, she buried them under a weight of discipline she had conditioned over many years, temporarily smothering them in their infancy. Instead, she moved on to his second observation. “I suppose I do have an edge. Most people trust the people who serve them their drinks. I’m not sure why. In any other situation, it seems like a person trying to get you drunk has ulterior motives.” She laughed. “I have heard some things from people that they wouldn’t tell their most trusted confidants. I suppose some people find a comfort in confiding with a stranger. There’s a unanimity to it. This person you’re talking to doesn’t know you, and you’ll likely never see them again. I’ve had people tell me things they’d never tell their lovers.” She cocked her head to one side. “What was that you meant about being able to tell about people just by watching them. I generally only get vague impressions when I watch people. Like with you and lurking man. All I got from watching was that he was watching you and that his reasons for doing so weren’t beneficial to you. All I got from watching you was that your reasons for being here weren’t to cause any disruption, but beyond that you remained somewhat enigmatic. Likable, but enigmatic. Maybe I’m just not as observant as I ought to be.” She paused for a moment, then considered the eyes that met hers. They weren’t the eyes of a stranger, though she barely knew them. There was a question that she definitely had to know the answer to. “How much could you tell about me just by watching?”

[Yisanareysin]

Rey could see thoughts and questions crystalize behind Ambrosia's eyes, and reached out, almost without thinking, with his auristic senses, probing curiously at her. The tantalizing scent of fascination, the tang of wanting, and heaviest of all, a metallic taste enveloping everything else like a cloud, something like determination or duty clearing her mind out.

The tangled swirl of thoughts tightened, collecting into something more purposeful and singular as Ambrosia asked her question of Rey. Like he'd thought earlier: talented, but inexperienced and a little too trusting, though he couldn't really fault her for that. Suspicion and service likely didn't mix well.

"What I mean, is that people give themselves away with every move they make. Not just what they say and do, but how they hold themselves, what they wear and carry and value." He grinned, sipping at his drink. The aroma of puzzlement wafted over to him, not sour like it was for some, but a mellow sort of sweetness, with the barest tint of familiarity to it. "I promise, you're already more observant than most people. And "ought to be" depends entirely on you."

"Difficult to say what I could get from you, since what I've learned from talking with you overlaps with what I could learn just from watching. Curious, observant, good memory. Like talking to people, even beyond what you can learn from them, else you'd pay more attention to the newcomers than the regulars." Rey hummed thoughtfully, studying her and the area surrounding her. Her clothing was nothing out of the ordinary, and it wasn't clear whether she lived alone or not. No Chevas mark, but there was a picture behind the bar of two women.

"You take your job seriously. Put your own curiosity second, at least while at work. A native Alvad, or else lived here long enough that you may as well be, judging by your clothes and accent. Unmarried." He gestured at the spot behind her left ear where a Chevas mark would go. "But there are important people in your life. The two in the picture back there... close friends, or siblings? Still in your life, I think. Doesn't seem like you look at it often enough to be missing them, but everyone's different, and this is a bad angle to see your face when you look at it. "

Catching her eye, he shrugged. "There's probably more that will come with time. These things can't be forced."

Snake Tongue | Common | Arumenic

[Ambrosia Alar]

Ambrosia raised her eyebrows, impressed by Revan’s quick synopsis of her, and spent several moments in stunned silence, her own mind going to work trying to figure the man out. Sure, his curiosity seemed to be a match for her own, but there was something more to his. This was more than being observant for watchfulness sake. There was a purpose to it. His was practiced; the way he listed out the observations was methodical. There was more to Revan, but he played it close to the chest, kept it concealed without making it seem like he was hiding anything. She finally managed to find her voice. “Forced? There was nothing forced about that. You read me as natural as some people read a book. That was amazing, Revan. It’s almost like you could read people for a living.” It wasn’t an accusation, but it did come out as more of a question than Ambrosia had intended. She kicked herself for that. While she hadn’t been rude, she had given it away that she was trying to figure out his motives. Nobody she knew paid that much attention, not without a purpose at least. To save face and to save him from feeling forced to answer, she quickly dried her hands on a bar towel before reaching back and grabbing the picture to set in front of Revan. “You were right on both accounts as far as the girls in the picture go. They’re my sisters though you wouldn’t know that from looking at our picture. We look nothing alike. But they’re more than that. They’re also my best friends, and both are still in my life.” Her fingers tapped each one as she mentioned them. “I live with my big sister Bethany. This picture doesn’t show it very well, but she’s prettier when she worries. My younger sister Tessa pops in on us regularly whenever it suits her, but she likes to live life independent from us. They’re both good kids.” Ambrosia tended not to think of herself and her sisters as grownup, responsible adults, though all three were. She slid the picture back toward herself, careful to avoid the few splatters of spilt beer on the bar top. “Sorry. Most people don’t come to the bar to hear me talk about myself. Your reading of me was just too good.” She smiled at Revan. No matter how much she tried to steer herself away from her curiosity, she kept coming back to wanting to know how he did that. Wiping the bar top down to clear it of the small puddles of beer, she let an idea develop in her mind. Alcohol seemed to loosen people’s lips. Maybe she could get him to tell her how he had become so good at this. If not, maybe she could still pick up a few pointers on how to make herself better at reading her customers. She set two shot glasses on the bar top and held up a bottle of the Rear’s specialty liquor. “You ever tasted degtine, Revan? First drink’s on the house for virgin tongues.”

[Madeira Dusk]

Grades Awarded!

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Ambrosia Alar

Skills

• Deduction: 3xp
• Observation: 4xp
• Socialization: 4xp
• Logic: 2xp
• Investigation: 3xp
• Intelligence: 1xp
• Subterfuge: 2xp

Lores

• Lore of the difference between a watcher and a lurker
• Lore of the drunk threshold
• People: Revan
• Revan: unreadable

Awards & Retribution


Notes
I keep saying it, but your dialogue is my favorite on the entire site. What could have been a dry back-and-forth social thread becomes so witty and engaging with your writing style and your observant, intelligent character.

PM me if you have any questions about the grade!