Open Heads or Tails

[Zion]

Zion S.
5th of Fall

A tall, slim man entered the rather long and dingy establishment. It was obvious by his confident lope that this wasn't his first time in the tavern. A smile already stretched across his lips as he entered, his eyes brightened with friendliness. He removed his hands from the pockets of his coat to push up the sleeves.

His brown eyes wandered the evening's scene. It wasn't packed, but it was far from empty. There was a group of people at each table and some at the bar, which was enough to create a buzz of noise that was intermittently pierced by a laugh or shout. He made his way to the bar, and his head seemed to never cease nods that were accompanied by "Hello!"s and "How do you do?"s.

As he stood at the bar and waited to be served, he took stock of the individuals at each separate table. He looked for the one that seemed to be the loudest and had the highest amount of empty mugs. One group caught his eye the most, so he figured that'd be the people today. He turned back and caught Cade's eye, and the action caused the business man to walk his way and ask his wants. "'ey, Cade. Let me get..." He looked back at the table before he turned back.

"Two pitchers of lager, two pitchers of ale, and a mug of wine. Actually, make that three of ale," he appended, after a particularly rowdy round of laughs emerged from the table. He slid a total of three golden Mizas to the bartender, pocketing the three silver Mizas he got in return. His knuckles rapped across the bar as he waited for Cade to return with a large platter of his order.

He took a long swig of wine before he went, and was glad for the drink. He approached the table with greater ease thanks to the influence of the light alcohol, a charming smile still stretched across his lips.

"Many strangers here and even more empty mugs! I've got some free lager for you lovely gents and lasses, and even some ale, buuut..." He paused as he set the platter down on the table, the eyes of each person on him, as intended. "The ale isn't free. You've got to play a little coin game for it, totally harmless. Any of you grand lot interested?"

Receipt :

2 pitches of lager: 1 GM
3 pitchers of ale: 1 GM, 2 SM
1 mug of wine: 5 SM
Total: 2 GM, 7 SM (Paid in 3 GM, given 3 SM)

[Asterope]

5th/Autumn/517

Aster stifled a yawn as she made her way down the streets of Alvadas, just finished at Ionu's Mercy for the night. She'd been arriving early and leaving late due to the amount of patients, and while during the day she had plenty of energy, the work was beginning to take its toll on her mortal form. Normally she would have another bell or two before her form changed, but with the shift of the seasons the sun had begun to set earlier, and the last of its warm, golden light had slipped beneath the horizon just before she left the healing house.

She reached up to tug her hair out of the tight bun she had scraped it into earlier, fingers twinging as they breezed through the air where normally they would have met the smooth, warm surface of her horns. The exhaustion hardly had a great effect on her mood, and being trapped in her frailer body was making her more irritated than normal, frustration twisting the pit of her stomach into knots. The pale blue dress she wore hung much more loosely on her frame than it had that morning, and to her annoyance fluttered around her ankles rather than her knees with each step.

Suddenly her stomach let out a low growl that she felt up to her chest, reminding her quite rudely that she needed to eat something. Huffing out a breath, she cast her eyes over the shops around her until she settled on one with warm light visible through the window. Upon closer inspection, bright silver lettering on the door marked it as The Stallion's Rear. She could hear voices and laughter faintly through the old wooden door. Seeing no better options in her immediate vicinity, Aster pushed the door open.

The light spilled out onto the street, voices suddenly amplified as she stepped into the tavern. The lively, boisterous environment might have amused and intrigued her at any other time; at the moment, it just served to further her slowly building irritation. Her mouth twisted into a frown, and she made her way to the bar, thin body and short stature making it easy to slip between people.

Once at her destination, she examined the menu. Ale, lager, wine, something called degtine...catching the bartender's attention, she forced herself to smile politely as he approached.

"I'm sorry to trouble you, but do you happen to serve any food?"

The man shook his head, looking perhaps slightly apologetic, and Aster exhaled forcefully through her nose. Of course they don't, she thought, bitterly. She was ready to spin on her heel and leave, but unbidden, Nara's voice came to mind, telling her to take a deep breath and calm herself, that she could be strong and endure or else she wouldn't be here, and that the sun would rise again.

Take a deep breath. She did so, filling her lungs and then breathing out slowly, her palms flat on the wooden counter top. If anyone around the tiny redheaded woman noticed her actions, they said nothing. Calm yourself.

She closed her eyes for a brief moment, focusing on the solid surface beneath her palms, the faint glow of the light that she could see through her eyelids, the rowdy noises around her, the faint smell of alcohol in the air. You can be strong, you can endure, or you wouldn't be here. Her own thoughts interrupted her mantra, perhaps slightly desperate; Syna wouldn't have left you here without a reason, wouldn't have left you here if you couldn't survive it.

Another deep breath worked its way into Asterope's lungs. The sun will rise again. Those were the words that calmed her spirit the most. The sun will rise again, she repeated to herself, more firmly, as she fluttered her eyes open. While nothing compared to what she had once been, she would return to the physical form she felt most comfortable in, as she did every day. Syna had not abandoned her entirely.

Clearing her throat, she ignored the strange look the bartender gave her, though a faint flush rose in her cheeks; she supposed she must have looked slightly strange with her impromptu grounding session at the bar.

"A mug of wine, please."

She gave over a gold Miza, taking her change, and sipped the alcohol tentatively. She had very little experience drinking, now that she thought about it, and the clear spirits she'd tried on other occasions had never appealed to her. She was pleasantly surprised to find the wine, cool on her tongue, tasted of fruits. The faint flavour of strawberry and something slightly more exotic that she couldn't place mingled in her mouth, and she swallowed with a pleased hum.

Wrapping her fingers around the mug, feeling much more at ease now that she'd forced herself to calm down, she swept her gaze out over the tavern, surveying the other patrons. A shimmer on the ceiling caught her attention, and when she glanced up, her mouth parted in delighted surprise.

Tiles covered the roof sparingly, scattered here and there, showing the night sky. They were a pale indigo, echoing the still darkening sky outside, and the stars glittered as if it were truly pieces of the night sky that had somehow been affixed to the roof. Her mood significantly lifted, Aster took another swallow of her wine, finding her eyes now drawn by a particularly rowdy table.

A tall man, on the slender side, was standing by the table, commanding the attention of all the occupants, who were suddenly quiet as they listened to him. He had several pitchers sitting in front of him. Her curiosity spiked, and Aster moved from her stool at the bar to edge closer, wanting to see what was going on but not quite wanting to involve herself, at least not yet. Already she felt a warm buzz humming through her veins, no doubt thanks to the fact that she still had yet to eat anything.

"...a little coin game for it, totally harmless. Any of you grand lot interested?"

Aster caught the tail of his sentence as she eased closer, watching with bright eyes, face inquisitive. The members of the table seemed to discuss amongst themselves, the man waiting seemingly patiently.

Aster took a small step closer to try and hear what the members of the table were saying, but she quite suddenly realized it was one small step too close as the attention of the people at the table shifted to her. Oh.

"Uhm," she said, eloquently, her face pink both from the wine and the sudden amount of attention she found herself with. She could excuse herself, apologize and duck off to sit at the bar again, embarrassed to have been caught eavesdropping. Or she could take the man up on his offer and pretend that had been her goal the whole time.

She was still curious to see what game the man wanted to play, and the wine made her feel bolder than she might otherwise. He said it was just a harmless game, surely playing for just a little bit couldn't hurt? She wouldn't miss one or two coins, and maybe she might even get lucky; though, perhaps not, judging by the way her night had gone so far.

Clearing her throat, Aster turned her gaze to the man standing at the head of the table. "I'll play," she offered, trying to sound confident, though not succeeding all that well. Her voice pitched with uncertainty, and her freckles were still hidden with a faint flush of embarrassment from being caught moments earlier.

Ledger :

Mug of wine: -5 SM

"Common" | "Nari" | "Pavi" | Thoughts
"Other People's Speech"

[Zion]

Zion S.
5th of Fall

He simply waited as the table began to buzz with activity once more, the table's denizens dicussing amongst themselves. Of course, they all knew each other, so they were far more comfortable with each other than they were with the stranger. For this reason, Zion kept a friendly smile on his face and a looseness to his stance that suggested comfort and an easy openness. He was about to take another sip from his wine (it was good stuff) when the talking stopped and everyone turned to look at a single direction.

There stood a shorter redheaded woman, her pale features blushed from whatever was in her mug or embarrassment or both. His smile faded. Not out of anger or some other hostile emotion, but out of slight confusion and a hesitation. The woman's single filler word made caused Zion to raise an eyebrow and wait. His mouth opened slightly as if he were going to ask her a question when she cleared her throat and then stated that she'd participate, which effectively silenced him.

His grin returned as a small cheer went up from around the table and they all agreed to play his little game. "We're glad to have you, beautiful," he stated charmingly, then pulled out a total of ten bronze mizas and placed them on the table. "Now, there's four sitting at the table, not counting our newest player. I'll keep it fair and be her partner," he said sliding two to each pair. But he held the last up as he motioned to the woman before he continued. "The goal is to be the least drunk pair within half a bell. Now, each person will have a single bronze piece, of course. You can challenge any other pair to a 'duel', where aim and intent are very important." He grinned.

"Before the duel starts, each person in the duel will place their cups somewhere on the table, and it can not be moved until the duel is over, or you get kicked. One person from the defending team will throw their miza and try to land it in one of their opponent's cup. After their throw, one of the challengers will try and throw their miza into one of the defender's cup, and it goes back and forth. If you miss the cup, you're out, and you'll have to chug an entire cup of ale without stopping." He paused at the cheer. Of course, they'd all been waiting to know when they get to drink. "However, if you make it, then the owner of the cup will have to close one of their eyes, but they're still in. For each coin in a person's cup, they close one eye. You can help your partner aim, should he be blind, but you can't throw for them," he concluded, looking at each person in turn, but his eyes lingered on the redhead before they moved on. "Oh, and you can't move your seat, or you're out and have to quaff the mug. Pick your partner and be sure to ask me any questions," he added.

The scraping of chairs and calls of friends to other friends sounded as everyone moved their seats to sit next to their partner. Zion, on the other hand, walked over to the shorter woman and greeted her with a wave. "I'm glad you've come to play. You can pick one of this lot to partner with, or you can stay as my partner if you'd like," he said as he held out a bronze miza for her with his usual friendly smile.

[Asterope]

A surprised but genuine smile curved Aster's lips at the cheers that accompanied her statement. Her eyes flitted to the man when he addressed her, and she nodded in somewhat bashful acknowledgement, taking a drink from her mug to soothe her nerves and avoid saying anything unnecessary.

She listened intently as he explained the rules of the game, the copper miza between his fingers glinting dully in the lamplight. She was slightly surprised that the man so readily offered to be her partner, but said nothing as he continued to talk. It seemed simple enough, really; try to get a miza in someone else's mug, and if you missed, you drank.

Aster watched the table split into pairs, chattering and laughing, before she looked to the approaching man. He was even taller now that he stood next to her, and Asterope found herself loathing her mortal form more than usual as she straightened her posture and craned her neck slightly. Even so, she still had to tilt her chin up slightly to make proper eye contact with the stranger.

"Well, I'm glad I'm not intruding, at least. I was quite curious." She returned his smile, though her own was perhaps not quite as broad, and took the proffered coin, running her thumb over it absently. "No, I'll be your partner, if you don't mind having me. I'm not sure how good my aim is, and I...don't often drink," she admitted, somewhat sheepishly.

Caught up in the excitement, she almost forgot to introduce herself. "Oh! You can call me Aster, by the way." The table was calling for their attention, ready to start, but she waited for the man to introduce himself before finally glancing over.

Two of the pairs had evidently already challenged each other, their mugs set up as far as they could feasibly be from each other without tipping off of the table. Aster watched with amusement as a man, clearly already fairly drunk, flipped a coin across the table, missing spectacularly. Someone pushed a mug of ale towards him, which he promptly chugged to the cheering and clapping of his friends.

Aster was surprised to realize that she was enjoying herself despite the loud, rather rowdy atmosphere, giggling as the man thumped the glass down with an exaggerated sigh. Normally such an atmosphere didn't appeal to her, though it was likely the wine had a say in her enjoyment.

She watched the two pairs toss the rest of their coins, then collect them up again once the 'duel' had finished, with only one more of the four having had to drain a mug. Suddenly, she realized a pair across the table were gesturing to her and Zion. Here goes nothing, she thought, suddenly nervous.

She tapped Zion's elbow lightly to draw his attention to the other team, who were already setting up their mugs now that they'd been noticed. "Do you want to go first?"

"Common" | "Nari" | "Pavi" | Thoughts
"Other People's Speech"

[Zion]

5th
Fall
517 AV





A wave of his hand along with a simple, "Oh, of course I'll have you," dismissed the notion that he had any problem with trying to stay sober with her. Her admittance of lack of aim and alcohol tolerance made him chuckle, though. He was in the same boat as her and said as much. "Mmm, don't worry about it. Just be prepared to stumble home a bit drunk and hope the streets don't mess about." He laughed heartily, a rather rich and deep sound. Friendly.

He raised a brow at her exclamation before his smile seemed to broaden again. It was a wonder he could smile anymore, his nearly pearly whites on full display. "Zion, but my friends call me Z." He turned back to the table as Aster did, and cheered almost immediately for the challengers; it seemed like this one wasn't quite a quiet one. He watched the poor but comedically rich exchange until he felt physical contact.

He looked back and down at Aster, who was looking at a team somewhat across the table. It would seem like they had been challenged, and just too soon; he was ready to challenge the drunker pair, which would give them a better chance to win. "Oh, well. Here goes," he thought to himself before he nodded a few times.

"Sure, I can go first. Don't count on me, though," he added as an afterthought as he lightly snickered. He moved until he was directly across the other team, and set his mug down. He made sure to the handle of his mug faced them, then positioned his coin on his finger.

His look of concentration consisted of squinted eyes and his bottom lip caught between his teeth. He moved his hand back and forth as if he meant to gain some sort of momentum before he flipped the coin.

The bronze glinted dully in the iffy lighting as it flew towards....

Well, not the mug he had been aiming for. It went a bit higher than it was supposed to and bounced off of their opponent's (and not even the owner of the mug he'd been aiming for) ruddy forehead, which drew a laugh from everyone that watched. Zion's concentrated face turned into an embarrassed sheepish one and he muttered a low, "Sorry."

He poured his own mug until it was nearly brimmed, then brought it to his lips and quaffed the entire thing in a little under a minute. His inexperience was obvious from the way a bit trailed down his chin until he wiped it, but his size ensured he was less drunk than he could have been. Still, a dusky glimmer to his eye revealed just how tipsy he was. "Weeeelllll, good luck, Aster," he chuckled softly as he received his Miza.

[Asterope]

Zion's admittance of equally poor skill drew a genuine laugh from Aster, short and clear like the brief ring of a bell; a stark contrast to the deep, rich laugh of the man before her."Well, it seems we'll likely be out of luck then. I don't think the streets ever aren't messing around." At least in her time in Alvadas so far, they always had been.

She watched with bright eyes as Zion placed his mug after nodding in acceptance of the other team's challenge, setting her own down on the table as well."That's alright, I believe in you." Amusement laced her voice, and she took a small step to the side to let Zion take aim. The look of concentration on his face was intense, and Asterope couldn't help the peals of laughter that escaped her when the coin flipped through the air and landed with a soft but audible sound against one of their opponent's foreheads; the man seemed surprised, but laughed it off with the others.

Aster glanced to Zion, catching the look of embarrassment that crossed his face, and tried to stifle the last of her mirth. The sudden realization hit her that she had no idea when she had last laughed so much; the wine likely had a lot to do with it, but the feeling was still rather freeing.

"Here I go," she squeezed her shoulders in slightly with a breath in, flashing Zion a grateful smile as he wished her luck. Taking his spot, she held the coin between her thumb and the side of her index finger. She held her tongue between her teeth as she focused on the nearest cup, moving her arm up once, twice, and then finally releasing the coin on the third swing. Her grip on the coin allowed for slightly more control in its trajectory than she otherwise would have had, and it flew neatly through the air, but with too little force, and hit the side of the mug with a dull sound before clattering to the table.

A slight flush crept along her cheekbones, and she shook her head slightly as the other team cheered and high-fived each other. Filling her mug, Aster eyed it warily before taking a deep breath and bringing it to her mouth. She took deep swallows, her nose wrinkling slightly at the taste of the ale, a far cry from the fruity wine she'd previously been enjoying. It took her a fair bit longer than Zion to empty the glass, and she coughed slightly when she was finally finished, a look of distaste on her face as she set the mug down.

"Eugh," she mumbled, taking a small sip of her remaining wine to wash the taste out of her mouth."People like the taste of this?" The comment was directed more to herself than anyone else. She could feel the warmth from the alcohol flooding through her slowly, her head feeling slightly fuzzy as it began to take effect on the Eth. One of their opponents managed to flip his coin into Zion's mug as she watched, while the other one missed and had to drink as well.

Another pair of teams stepped up almost immediately, keeping the game going. The crowded tavern and the alcohol running through her veins was beginning to make her skin prickle with a borderline uncomfortable heat, so Aster pulled her hair into a loose, messy knot atop her head in an effort to combat it. She felt it was all too soon that the challenge was once again directed back at them.

Setting up her mug accordingly, she waited for Zion to do the same, while the other team opted to go first this time. The first opponent managed to flip his coin neatly into Aster's cup, and she put her face in her hands with a small groan as her already low chances of succeeding dropped even more. Peering up from her palms, Aster watched as the woman on the other team grinned apologetically at her before aiming for her cup as well. The coin hit the lip of the mug as the table watched in anticipation before tipping in. Asterope stared in despair as the table erupted into cheers and laughter.

Picking up her coin, she glanced to Zion, a mixture of bemusement and dismay on her face; she hardly had a chance now."I hope you're good at giving instructions," she said, a smile playing at the corners of her mouth. She set herself up, closing both her eyes, and waited to see what little help her companion could give her, if any.

"Common" | "Nari" | "Pavi" | Thoughts
"Other People's Speech"

[Avela]

Asterope

XP Award:

• Observation - 3
• Endurance - 1
• Meditation - 1
• Socialization - 2

Lore:

• Location: The Stallion's Rear
• Stallion's Rear: Doesn't serve food
• Endurance: Working through hunger and exhaustion
• Mantra: The sun will rise again.
• Aster: Enjoys wine
• Ale: Tastes terrible
• Coin Toss Drinking Game

Notes:
This was a fun little thread, and I'm sorry that it didn't continue! Let me know if you have any comments or complaints about your grade, and please remember to edit or delete your request.

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~Avela~