[Drunken Fish] Hear Me Now [Kailani]

by **Azcan** on September 23rd, 2018, 6:23 am

Azcan was absolved of faces and names through the haze that was the passage of time. Maybe it was the drugs, or he just didn't, truly want to open up and face the world. The Illusionist never thought of the Wayward Tabernacle as home. The Svefra of the Crestwidow Pod were family for a time, but in the end, Azcan was truly liberated. The drummer didn't forget, but rather, the memories were in a haze. The drummer feared reaching out and straining himself to recall, to truly grasp what he'd lost and come to terms in it. The drugs were easier, they demanded no reconciliation, nor did they require forgiveness. Perhaps, even before gaining the favour of Ionu, the drummer never truly shared himself. He was along for the ride, pleasure in both the narcotic and the visceral needing no such true, meaningful exchange. But, that wasn't the case with Kailani. The Svefra was the one he'd spent so much of his time with, sharing tasks on the deck, often sitting next to one another during the telling of stories. Azcan nor Lani pretended to call themselves a lover, but a bedmate and a shipmate could be one in the same without such names given out. The sharpest memories he cared to grasp upon were the ones with her at the forefront, and it irked him tremendously. She was the one woman he regretted lying to, and that irked him, too.

Perhaps, it was due compensation for the mountain of frustrations that it was to care about the drummer. At arm's length Azcan was charming. At lip's touch, perhaps he was vivid. But at heart's grip, he was poison, spewed forth in waves. The facets of his mind were jagged to the touch, and he drew back, preferring for momentary pain than a greater anguish. He'd lied so easily, so willingly, an instinct carried through his wide grin that often came to being out of his perceived necessity. Since gaining Ionu's favor, such masks were raised higher still. Reality, as he'd come to learn, was a matter of opinion. Deceptions, already second nature to the drummer, turned into realities he could weave into being. What else was he meant to do? Face the notion of goodbye when he could simply disappear? Selfish though it might be, he saved them bells of anguish that the other would need to lay witness to and confront.

"I could give you more lies, Lani. I could weave them and help you believe they were true. It's so easy to lie when the truths are difficult. I could tell you it was spur of the moment, but it wasn't. I'd known for days that your journey continued without me. As much as you might have wanted me to be..." Up until this point, the human spoke in Common, answering her Fratava with his own fluent tongue. To some, the exchange might've seemed awkward, but it was the communication he thrived in with the Crestwidows. When he spoke to her next, his tongue adapted to her oceanic tongue. Fratava poured him his lips,

"I'm not a Svefra. I can't sail a ship, I can't drink salt water and I don't know Laviku like you do. Ionu became my patron, and I couldn't stay any longer. If you shed tears for me, I'm sorry, Lani," he admitted to her in her tongue before going silent. Did she mention an ordeal? Something happened after he'd left the Svefra? She barraged her with teases of information, brandishing her anger at him through his perfectly reasonable explanation. His apologies were hollow and trying to emphasize them did nothing but fling further lies towards Kailani. She didn't know the homesickness he felt for the Crestwidows, the shifting and turning in his straw bed as he remembered the soothing sway of his quarters at sea. For Azcan, leaving so suddenly wedged the insecurity into his life again. But, he needed to. Azcan's patron asked him to, and it was the right decision to make. The drummer pursed his lips as he rose up from the bed. He stood on his feet, pushing forth to meet the Svefra now that she'd finished tossing her venom, holding over information that in truth mattered very much to him. Svefra or no, Azcan felt a bond with the Crestwidows when he joined their number.

"Then tell me. Give me my guilt and I'll wear it on my sleeve, Lani. I can't pretend that I made the wrong decision," he admitted to her. This reality wasn't an opinion he could change. Sunberth was his home. Or, at least it was now.

WC: 774

by **Kailani** on September 23rd, 2018, 9:07 pm

If you shed tears for me, I'm sorry, Lani. Kailani stiffened as he spoke, but at least he was apologizing. “I didn’t cry over you,” she spat with a sneer; as much as she had berated him for lying, now she was doing it herself. The moment she’d realized he wasn’t aboard any of the ships as they departed, she’d locked herself in her quarters aboard The Wayward Tabernacle and hadn’t come out for two days. Bedmates they might have been, but he was her best friend above all else, and he’d abandoned her. “I did throw the rest of your shit overboard, though.” Now that wasn’t a lie. As soon as she’d pulled herself out of the well of her self-pity, she’d channeled that sadness into anger. She’d gathered every last one of the things Azcan had left behind and dropped them over the side of the vessel, a spiteful offering to Laviku that did little to make her feel better. The seafarer had comforted herself with the burning grudge she held against him, using her completely justified anger to banish the misery his absence had wrought.

She took a step back as he finally approached, her gaze wary. Azcan’s final words, however, at last seemed to undo her. Just like that, the stiff, proud girl simply…deflated, her offended fury leaving her with a shuddering sigh. “Karigan is dead,” she said softly, deep blue eyes fixed on the floor in front of her. While Karigan Crestwidow had been her mother, family units worked a little differently for the Svefra. Her aunts, cousins, even sisters…they’d all had as much a hand in raising her as her mother had. This didn’t stop the pain of her loss, however-they all felt it the more keenly for their tight infrastructure. “A foolish raid with a trap that we were all too hungover to see coming.” Kailani tried not to carry a lot of regrets in her life, but that was certainly one of them-even if she hadn’t been the one to make the call. Surely she could have done something differently, something that would have changed the outcome. If she had stayed by Karigan’s side, maybe she could have prevented the sword to her belly…Pushing such guilty thoughts aside, she continued in that same soft tone, “The pod is broken without our Lia. For even though Azhure means to take her place, it will never be the same. You know yourself how well my mother was loved.” Azhure Crestwidow was Kailani’s aunt, her mother’s younger sister and now most senior member of the pod. It wasn’t that the others didn’t respect her-they certainly did-but they all knew Karigan would be a tough act to follow. She’d led the pod with an adventurous heart and a shrewd mind, and they would all be the poorer for her loss.

Turning away from him, she squared her shoulders and took a deep breath. Kai had cried enough over the past few weeks, and she was so tired. There weren’t any more tears left to shed. “I left the pod for some time on my own and got caught up in a storm at open sea. I got far more separated than I intended to, and now I have no idea where the others are, or if they’re even looking for me. Maybe they think I’m dead, too, I don’t know.” Kailani’s body shook in a short, mirthless laugh. “That’s the only reason I’m here. Sunberth had the closest port and I was afraid to keep searching. Who knew if they might turn up where I’d just been? We could keep passing each other for an eternity, and never be the wiser. At least here, I can try to reach out, let them know. I just haven’t had the opportunity yet to find any other Svefra in the city.” If she could find some of her own people, hopefully her pod could be found. Her race had a way of bonding together. She was sure it wouldn’t take much convincing.

Her story completed, Kailani sighed. Still turned away, she muttered, “I’m still mad at you, you know.” Just because she’d poured her heart out didn’t mean she had forgiven him. Even if he’d abandoned them, he still had a right to know. Svefra or no, he’d still been a part of their family, and her grudge wouldn’t change that. “Just so we’re clear.”

WC: 736

by **Azcan** on September 23rd, 2018, 10:41 pm

What was it with the Crestwidows and premature deaths? The Svefra pod was aggressive and while Azcan stayed aboard the Wayward Tabernacle, he'd never exposed himself to bouts of piracy. He fought with members of the pod, raising his fists and utilizing the items strewn across the deck to his advantage. But, Azcan wasn't a fighter. His heart wasn't in the task and he learned primarily to defend the children on the ship in case someone boarded them. The occurence happened, perhaps once or twice, but Azcan didn't bother to remember such trivial things. The nights filled with music and moans alike were what called to the Svefra. Hearing that Karigan Crestwidow suffered Dira's embrace next didn't shake him to the core as it might have done to Lani. Death was what it was, the pains and agonies that came with it blown by the wayside with drugs and liquor just like everything else. From what the Svefra said, it seemed that the rest of the pod was okay and that much he could take solace in. The Svefra turned away from Azcan, but was it truly to hide tears. She took a breath and collected herself as she continued to divulge more and more of her story to him.

Kailani's story was rife with sadness. The death of a podmother, the storm that took her away from her pod. Kailani was lost in the world and yet... the direction she'd been thrust in led her right to him. Azcan wasn't a great believer in the tidings of Lhex, nor the intervention of most of the gods. Religion eluded the drummer, the idea of bowing down and worshipping anything seemingly nonsensical. Even the God he knew personally, the Trickster Ionu never asked him for such indulgences. No, Ionu demonstrated a fondness for the drummer and the way he was, and asked him to worship with his drums, his voice, to spread through the illusions of life and brandish them in the name of Ionu. Azcan wasn't quiet about his burgeoning faith, he told those who asked freely and used his powers to whatever advantage they could provide. However, he couldn't help but feel the tidings of Fate woven in her arrival within Sunberth.

Kailani's story drew to a close and though she insisted that her rage continued on, Azcan drew closer to her. Hands rose up, squaring along her shoulders before he pushed the pads of his fingers into her tense shoulders. Azcan wasn't a masseuse, he identified the knots in her flesh but didn't realize how best to rid her of them. Instead, his digits pressed into her flesh, a slow kneading at the thumb, his palms traversing her shoulders in a show of his empathy for her plight. The drummer couldn't help how he felt in the moment. He was flung into the past, the swaying of the Wayward Tabernacle felt as he tipped his head forward and placed his lips gingerly on the flesh of her neck. He knew not how she'd react to his touch, but touch was what Azcan knew best. The gnosis on his palm flared with his musings as he tapped into his connection with Ionu. Along with the waves of sensation that his lips and hands brought to her flesh, he'd let tremors dance along her forearms up to her elbows. Azcan pressed his chest to Kailani's back, releasing her shoulders to let his arms wrap around her waist.

"You're not leaving, are you? There's a fierce storm outside. Take my bed, if you need rest. I can go get you something to eat. Just... stay," he beseeched her. Azcan's lips hovered along her neck before he placed them gingerly upon her pulse, the tremors that danced along Kailani's shoulders moving next to her chest, then her neck. The sensation was meant to be a pleasant one, intent upon distracting her from the grief, from the pain, and instead upon the flight of fancy that fingertip like touches imposed on her skin.

"I can rent another room, if you'd rather be alone," he assured her. Kailani, from what he saw, didn't need a bedmate. He didn't know what she needed, but he knew at the very least that he'd sleep on the floor or on a tavern table if the need for such arose. Deflect his feelings as he might, the reality that was her presence was one he never thought he'd want again. And yet, he craved it desperately, to please her. To apologize to her in the only way he knew how: by giving her shelter from the tempestuous winds that likely assaulted her casinor.

WC: 777

by **Kailani** on September 24th, 2018, 12:37 am

When Azcan’s hands came down upon her shoulders, Kailani’s automatic response was to stiffen, his touch unexpected and at first unwelcome. She didn’t need his comfort! As his fingers dug into the knots, however, she started to slowly, ever so slowly, relax under his familiar touch. It had been weeks since anyone had touched her in a manner even resembling intimate, and as much as she might resist, it was a comfort she desperately needed. Closing her eyes, she subtly leaned into his embrace as his arms came to rest around her waist, hating herself for caving, but not knowing what else to do. She was furious with him, yes. He’d abandoned her, yes. But he’d been her best friend and practically a podmate; stranded from the other Crestwidows for the first time in her life, she was so desperately alone. And frightened. What he offered was something she didn’t even realize she needed until he offered it.

She gasped as his illusions started to work their way over her skin, azure eyes flying back open. Was this part of what his gnosis offered? Shivers ran up and down her spine as Kai stared at her arms in wonder, gooseflesh rising in its wake as the illusion continued up her chest and throat. When Azcan’s lips brushed her flesh, those shivers intensified-Kai biting her lip and trying to ignore the lazy tendrils of desire that curled in her stomach at his touch. Remembering the distraction of the drunkard before, a smile tugged at the corner of her lips as realization clicked into place. “It was you interfering in the fight, wasn’t it?” she asked softly, though he didn’t even really need to answer. She knew. Even though he’d tried to escape as soon as she’d turned around, he’d still tried to help her. A warmth spread from deep within her, a further thawing of her grief and fury. It would seem some things never changed.

Just…stay. Those words echoed hollowly in her ears, her eyes falling shut again. If she stayed...she knew exactly what would happen, just what she had sworn to herself wouldn’t happen upon her arrival. Falling back into his arms for the comfort of familiarity…a friendly face in a very unfriendly city. Was that really what she wanted? Did she truly wish to fall right back into old habits, continuing their impulsive, raucous, tempestuous song and dance as if two seasons had never passed?

Yes. The wordless answer to her own silently posed question breathed from her heart through the rest of her, while unbeknownst to her, the same tides of fate that had murmured to Azcan firmly wove themselves into her core. Were she willing to listen, she would have heard their whispers, but Kailani had never been the type for introspection. She lived in the moment and nowhere else, and she had no plans to do otherwise. And this moment…the answer she gave could define this moment for a lifetime. For good or for ill, that would remain to be seen, but either way, she’d be sure to enjoy the ride.

Another silence stretched between them as the rational part of her weighed her options. He was right-she couldn’t go back to her casinor, not until this cursed storm passed. If the boat even remained by then…She had to stay somewhere relatively safe, or at least somewhere that could be considered safe by Sunberth’s standards. So, what options did that really leave her? I can rent another room, if you’d rather be alone. They both knew that wouldn’t happen, but at least it was polite of him to say. When she hadn’t immediately pushed him off, she’d sealed her fate. What would come next was as predictable as the tides, and something she’d surely kick herself over in the morning. But she’d worry about that then. “Consequences” wasn’t a word in her vocabulary.

“Fuck you,” she finally said with a deep sigh, the curse not one of condemnation, but one of defeat. Turning in his grasp, her hands came to rest on either side of his face, her oceanic gaze seeking and holding amber while the balls of her thumbs slowly brushed over his pronounced cheekbones. “I’m going to regret this,” she informed him, breaking his gaze before her lips captured his own. Fingers wove into his hair as she pulled him in closer, her lithe frame molding to his. That demanding kiss held weeks of frustration and two seasons’ worth of bemoaning his absence, and it felt as if a full bell had passed by the time she pulled away. Her breath was ragged as she pressed her forehead to his, fingers still tight in his hair as she purred against his lips, “Get me a drink, and spike it good. That rain isn’t letting up any time soon.”

WC: 805

by **Azcan** on September 24th, 2018, 1:46 am

In the midst of the fury Lani exhibited, he'd never once thought that her needs would turn physical. Azcan wasn't naive in the slightest, and his manipulations were physical out of necessity. Tactile by nature, the powers of Illusionism that he exhibited the greatest control over was the sensation of touch. Sensations were often difficult to ignore and the gnosis of Ionu taught the drummer that of all the senses that mortals were blessed with, it was touch that enslaved them the most. Touch flared emotion into being, be it lust or reassurance. Compassion or anger, it was touch that decided their ultimate fate. Shivers tore through the body, an ultimate treason against the anger she exhibited. That was what the drummer wanted, to soothe. To add gnosis to the physical touch was, perhaps, a bit overboard. The question the Svefra posed to him earned her shrugging shoulders, coy laughter bubbling from his lips.

"I won't say," he teased. Lani was far smarter than Azcan was, and she hardly needed his affirmation to make her connections. The drummer couldn't... wouldn't... allow her to suffer alone. Silence stretched through an age between them, and it seemed that the Svefra might yet listen to reason. She didn't shy from his touch, nor did she for a moment believe what to him, were indeed very sincere words. When she turned to face him at last, light brown eeyes met hers, then closed rather abruptly as her thumbs trailed along his cheekbones. The gesture brought a simple delight with it, and the kiss she pressed to his lips very quickly had him set against her. Blessed reunion spread fire throughout his body. With his focus obliterated by the sudden, demanding gesture, the illusions faded from Kailani's mind. Azcan pressed forward, his (seldomly) clothed chest set against the Svefra's. Regret it though she might, there was no fight in her words. Relief and desire alike spread throughout the drummer's mind. His light brown eyes were wide, his ears ringing with the rapid pulse of his beating heart.

Laughter escaped him again as she purred against his lips. The Svefra felt the nip of his teeth against hers next before Azcan stepped back and brought her along with him. His lips brushed next along her cheek before he pulled away, brushing his hip against her own and raising his shirt back over his head and tossing it to the ground behind Kailani. Azcan was very seldom clothed, and the idea of entering his bedroom (with a woman, no less) without a shirt and leaving it on when he exited might prove... odd. He left it behind and exited the bedroom. Unlike the Svefra, Azcan wasn't so gentle, or careful, and the door slammed behind him as he wound through the staircase. When he emerged from the place, he truly had no way of ascertaining how much time had passed. The same patrons took the chairs, with only the drunkard from before long gone. Of course, more patrons joined in number, with additional souls seeking shelter from the storm. Manowar was the first to notice the drummer, or rather the first to attract his attention. Azcan didn't sit down at the bar, instead he looked to Father Manowar.

"I'll have a gallon of ale. Two glasses along with it?" Manowar looked to the drummer with no shortage of amusement, the expression stretching to open laughter as he searched Azcan's eyes. "No bruises on ye, lad? I'll assume she's shackin' it up with ya?" The words brought bright laughter from the drummer's lips. His heart was lighter, and he raised his fingers to his lips before he said, "This isn't going to be enough, though. You know anyone inside who might have some of that stuff they sell at the Bolt Hole?" Azcan, despite the amount of time spent in the city, still didn't know the name of that particular tab. He didn't care enough to investigate it, as every dealer he could possibly talk to knew what he referred to. Confusing the matter by educating himself wasn't solving any problems. Manowar raised his brow, his lips curved in obvious, pent-up laughter. The drummer didn't care, the older man could laugh it up all he wanted. Azcan waited for an answer, Manowar at last regaining his focus as he pointed to a group of women in the corner. He motioned to a particularly lanky woman with frizzled blonde hair. Azcan didn't have forever to waste.

"I'll come back for the ale in a moment, then," he told Manowar before taking an empty space at the table. Azcan wasn't shy, and he readily leaned forward to tell the woman, "You've got Bolt Hole blow?" The moniker Azcan put on it was met with further laughter, but Azcan showed nothing but stoic determination. Later, he'd laugh about it, too, the improvised name perhaps able to be taken in any sort of different ways. "Uh, yeah..." she answered. Azcan nodded his head, reaching into his pocket and placing four gold mizas on the table in front of her. "I'll take four, then," he informed her, a wide grin set on his lips. The transaction was closed soon enough. Azcan carried four tablets with him when he returned to Manowar.

The drummer pursed his lips, letting an easy whistle escape his lips after he paid Manowar and made his way off. Finding it difficult to carry everything in one go without breaking something, the drummer left one of the glasses there, abandoning it as he set forth towards his room. Azcan opened the door, setting the glass and gallon on the table before looking back to Kailani with a smirk. Ale was kind of... unfortunate to bring, but the wine tasted terrible.

"You said fucked up, right?" he asked, raising his hand. Between each finger, there was a tab, the second one held between the tips of his index and middle digit.

Ledger :

WC: 989

by **Kailani** on September 24th, 2018, 3:16 am

Laughter rang sweetly through the room as Azcan finally parted from her embrace, the laughter fading to a smirk as he tossed his shirt to the floor. Most people put on more clothing when they left their bedrooms, but not him apparently. Keeping up appearances? Gods only knew with him. Kailani’s gaze followed the cut muscles of his back with appreciation as he trotted out of the room, another laugh shaking her chest as he departed. She knew she’d used the magic words.

When she was sure he was off down the stairs, Kailani started a more thorough inspection of his quarters, curious as to the state of his life in Sunberth. A couple articles of clothing lay strewn on the bed, though nothing outstanding or of particular note. She rifled through the pockets of a pair of his pants, but found nothing more than lint. A few items were scattered across the dresser-again, nothing that called out to her or attracted attention. What finally did pique her interest lay within feet of his bed, an old bongo drum sitting on the floor adjacent to his headboard. The golden-haired Svefra’s face softened as she stared at it, finally taking a few steps closer and kneeling down in front of it. Fingertips gently traced across its leather surface, the touch stirring memory and emotion alike as she found herself caught up in fond recollection.

It was the deep velvet of late night, and Kailani and Azcan had long since absconded aboard her tiny casinor. The face of the sea was calm and flat, barely even rippling in the gentle breeze. The cool and stillness of the ocean was a stark contrast to the warmth and vivacity of her small quarters, the cramped room lit by half a dozen flickering candles. Kailani’s svelte form was clothed in firelight and nothing else as her body swayed to the rhythm Azcan’s drum provided, eyes closed and bent back in ecstasy as she lost herself in the magic of the simple music he wove. Their chemical intoxication certainly didn’t dull the enchanting effect, but Kailani knew it was more than just that. It was him.

Tendrils of glimmering light whispered over her skin like a lover’s caress as she dipped and wove with the beat, her fingers stretching toward the sky in an almost worshipful gesture. Each movement was like a benediction, each sway of her hips a prayer and a promise of what the night still would hold. The slow grace of her dance was smooth and seductive, her eyes finally flicking open to meet Azcan’s in a hot, come-hither stare. It was only seconds before he responded, jumping to his feet and abandoning his drum as he wrapped himself in her embrace…

Kailani’s smirk had widened by the time she finally pulled herself from that particular memory, a touch of color staining her cheeks as she made her way back to her feet. It was a moment she visited with a little more fondness than she cared to admit to, one of her favorite nights they had ever spent together. One that had never seemed to end. It was only seconds later when Azcan arrived back in the room, carrying a jug of ale and a few unfamiliar tablets of-presumably-a mind-altering substance. Her mild discomfiture disappeared at his arrival and approval lit her face as he walked over, only barely restraining herself from clapping her hands with glee. She had asked, and he had delivered. Had she really expected anything less? “That’s my boy,” she murmured sweetly, already visibly warmer than before. An affectionate hand brushed his cheek before indicating the pills between his fingers. “What are those?” she asked curiously before helping herself to the jug in his hands. Not that it mattered; she would do it, anyway, but it didn’t hurt to know what she was consuming. Grabbing the one glass he’d brought up, she filled it to the brim before setting the bottle down on the closest available surface. Half of her glass was drained in the blink of an eye, waiting for his answer before she finished the rest.

WC: 690

by **Azcan** on September 24th, 2018, 3:59 am

Substance abuse sat at the very core of Azcan's being, the medium of mindless intoxication appealing tremendously to the drummer. One could rationalize if they so chose, that to use was to connect with Ionu. They could argue that to experience new sensations and powerful intoxication was to indulge oneself fully in the domain of Illusions that Ionu brought into being. While it was another god, one unknown to Azcan, that ruled over pleasure and the mindless addiction to things, Ionu was the life breathed into Azcan's intoxication.

His usage of narcotics was a quality the God enjoyed, and seemed quite intrigued at what the drummer could come up with in the future. Their conversation was short, but little by little Azcan found that pleasing his patron and honoring its domain was a pleasure that seldom found an equal. Seldom, for the toe-curling, mind-numbing ecstasy found in other actions was heavy competition, indeed. The drummer closed his hand, allowing the pills to gather in one place as he watched the Svefra knock back half the glass in one go. Azcan's memories were, perhaps very different than Kailani's own, for it was the rare, but intoxicating view on the woman's face when they delved together into the world of narcotic pleasures that stewed the greatest intrigue from him.

"The Svefra don't spend quite enough time off their boats, Lani," he mused, setting down two of the tablets before he looked at the woman in earnest. She was sitting on his bed, with his bongo drum in front of her, a strange, romanticized look in her eyes. It wasn't a bad look in the slightest, but the Svefra certainly raised questions within Azcan, who wondered which of the many nights they'd shared together she dove into. No one in Sunberth knew Azcan like she did. Or rather, no one at all knew him as she did. The drummer's perception of the world evolved on the Wayward Tabernacle and though Azcan hid his gnosis from her, he didn't hide much of anything else. Azcan set beside her on his bed, an arm flung around her waist as he pulled her away from the jug and properly onto his bed.

The tablets, held in his other hand were gripped in a tight fist until he was on top of the Svefra, his face at level with her chest, his head tilted upwards. Eyes pointed to meet hers, his light brown hues taking on new colors as he tapped into the power of Ionu's gnosis. A rainbow of colour swept between his eyes, a teasing nod to the power he'd told her of before he dissipated the illusion and crushed the tablet between his fingertips. Azcan settled his chin on the woman's breasts, his chest brushing playfully along her abdomen as he answered her at last,

"I don't actually know the name, I call them Bolt Hole Blow because while they're tablets... it's a cleaner, faster high if you crush and snort them," he informed her. Azcan spent many a time and a hearty amount of coin in the Bolt Hole buying this shit, even when he worked there the narcotic was far too pleasurable to avoid. Azcan lifted his hand, armed with the dust ready to be inhaled, and placed his thumb against his nostril. He inhaled sharply, letting the drug course through his mucus membrane and send violent, beautiful shivers that coursed through his body in waves. It worked almost immediately, and the shuddering pleasure had the musician, for a brief moment, collapse on top of her.

However, he raised his head, laughter spilling from his lips as he placed one of the tablets in her hand, to crush at her own pace as Azcan's fingers moved to lay claim to the mug she'd left behind. Azcan rose from the bed, picking up the jug and setting it closer still. Azcan paid for one of the nicer rooms in the Drunken Fish, and the bed was more than wide enough for the both of them to lay upon with relative ease and comfort.

The drummer filled his glass, his lips curved in a wide grin before he poured a full glass of ale for himself. Like Kailani, Azcan was certainly not a chump. He knocked back his glass in two long sips, the smooth taste of the ale awash among his senses. A twitch carried about him for a brief moment. Azcan waited for long enough. Kailani wasn't a fool, and certainly knew that once the drummer was invited to partake, such an invitation wasn't so easily revoked. He returned to the bed, arms reaching forth and claiming her wrists. He pulled them to her waist before releasing her so that his digits framed along the expanse of her jawline. Azcan pressed forward and enrolled the Svefra in a kiss. Hot and needy it was, his tongue branching forth, parting the woman's lips to taste her for the very first time in who cared how long. The drummer was alive, intense pleasure coursing through his senses, his breath heavy, his body crushed against hers. Heated flesh set against her as a fervent, driven need poured through Azcan's senses.

Doubt? It existed no longer. Fear? Buried beneath an endless, terrible bout of lust that spread like fire throughout his senses. Azcan's hands moved, each trailing along one of the Svefra's thighs and slowly, he sought to spread them apart. The drummer's touch was hampered by cloth, though the fervency of his embrace was not to be ignored. He teased her, lips brushing against flesh, bare chest set against her covered flesh. However, he didn't seek to take her. No, the turn of the seasons required for the drummer to toy with her, a measure of revenge for her fully justified and perhaps understated anger at him.

WC: 973

by **Kailani** on September 25th, 2018, 12:54 am

The Svefra fell back with a giggle as the drummer’s arm encircled her waist, listening to his “explanation” of the drug with a roll of her eyes. Just like Az not to ask questions. Ah, well, what did it matter? If it got her fucked up and didn’t kill her by morning, it was doing its job properly. Kailani looked on indulgently as Azcan partook of his share, a laugh parting her lips when he collapsed against her. Well, that was promising, even if he didn’t actually know what the powder was. Her hand ran briefly through his hair as his head rested against her chest, contemplating the tablet in her own hand. Snort it like he had or crush it in her drink?

Before she could make a decision either way, however, she found herself back against the bed, Azcan’s hands running down her thighs and pulling her legs apart. Her pulse picked up at his touch, her breath a little harsher, but she wasn’t going to just let him have his way. Not after everything he had put her through. If anyone would be doing the teasing here, it would be her. “No, I don’t think so, Boy Wonder,” she purred in heavily accented Common, pushing up from under him to graze her teeth over the flesh of his throat. “You’ll not be the one in charge tonight.” Taking advantage of his intoxication, she pressed her hand to his chest, shoving him backward and quickly flipping their position. Straddling his waist, she looked down on him with a wry grin. Crushing the tablet between her fingers, she leaned down and spread the powder in a thin line over his sternum. Holding his gaze with a twinkle in her own eye, she slowly bent over his body. Her grin widened for a split second before she winked, plugged the left side of her nose, and snorted up the snowy powder so stark against his olive skin.

One hand braced herself against his chest as Kailani’s eyes rolled back, groaning aloud as kaleidoscopic visions of swirling color danced their way across the insides of her eyelids. She knew she was grinning like a loon, but she couldn’t stop it, the euphoria spreading through her veins boiling her blood. When her eyes finally opened again, the orbs were more pupil than iris-licking her lips as she met his gaze. This was more like it. Everything else could fall into the background of this all-consuming ecstasy; for a few hours, she didn’t have to think or remember…just be. And now she didn’t have to be alone. Her hand slid up his chest toward his throat, gliding up his neck to tangle her fingers in his hair. Gently pulling his head back, her mouth descended upon his, tongue sliding between his lips to seek out and tangle with his own. After a long moment, she pulled back enough to whisper, “Much better,” her lips brushing his with the motion of her words. Teasingly, her hips ground against his, tongue flicking at his lower lip before she suddenly pulled back. Another wink was tossed his way before she rose from the bed, laughing and grabbing the abandoned glass. Filling it with ale again, she tossed it back and drained it in three swallows. Her eyes sparkled with mirth as they met his before filling it a third time. “Putting the moves on me already and only one drink in?” She shook her head, tsking softly. “I’m a little disappointed in you, Azcan. Letting the ale get warm.”

by **Azcan** on September 25th, 2018, 1:52 am

Azcan didn't need to ask questions to know that he wanted to use. The Bolt Hole was a place he trusted with his life, the call of Ionu's guidance throwing him towards the Favored duo and the gift they bestowed upon the city of Sunberth. He was the sort of man to believe that people like Dee and Den wouldn't try to bring something into the Bolt Hole that might cause problems for their guests. Azcan just... used a bit more than they did. It was his innovation that started the trend (or he'd call it a trend) of snorting up the 'Bolt Hole Blow' and the high was simply... better for it. The drummer felt the tremors of pleasure course through his flesh, tremors that he'd throws onto the drunk earlier. Was it so bad, to make the drunk think he was on drugs, too? The juice was worth the squeeze, it seemed. Lani wasn't shying away from his touch, but rather, she pushed into him. Her teeth grazed the flesh of his throat, gooseflesh left in the wake of her teeth.

Lani's words tore a shiver of delight from him. Like the Svefra that lived aboard the Wayward Tabernacle, Azcan developed a healthy respect for the dominion of women. It ignited his senses to feel the moment that one took control. The drummer wasn't a subservient man by any means, but as Lani shoved him back and straddled his waist, he felt the chills of pleasure roll down his spine. Light brown eyes looked up at the Svefra, his hands raised to link behind his neck, supporting it as she held his gaze. His hands remained linked behind his head, a smirk cast upon his features as she lined the power along his sternum. When she leaned forward and quickly snorted the powder, the pull of her breath brought laughter in bounds along. The echoes of laughter coursed through him as he watched the effects of intoxication set her body ablaze. Fingers rose along his flesh, capturing his throat for the briefest of moments before they tangled into his hair. When she pulled his head back, his grin parted against her lips. A groan of pleasure vibrated tongue against tongue, shivers of heat and pleasure alike coursing through his body.

As her hips rubbed against his flesh, he found his senses both overwhelmed and not stimulated enough. He required more, desire emboldening his high as his wide, pupil-dominated eyes whipped his gaze along the plane of her body. She rose up from the bed, his senses wild and craving. She teased him as he had her, the battle of wits and need turning the drummer's mind to nothing but indulgence. When she filled the glass for the third time, the frustration of her teasing gave way to laughter. He offered her a shrug before rising from the bed himself. This. This ease that settled between them was the reason he poured illusion through her. The reason he hungered for her. There was nothing quite like it and because of its presence Lani drove him wild. It was a quality both intoxicating and accursed, for it made him vulnerable to her.

"Well... you come back to me after so fucking long... What do you expect?" he whipped back at her, a sheepish grin followed by his reaching for the glass. The drummer whipped forth his other arm, wrapping it around Lani's waist. He didn't pull her forward until after he knocked back his ale in a series of gluttonous gulps. He handed the glass back to her before he pulled her back. The froth of ale was still on his tongue as he swallowed again. Azcan brought Lani in towards him, his lips pacing a trail along her shoulder, up the flesh of her neck before he breathed into her ear,

"You're always disappointed in me, anyway. What does it change, really?" he asked her. Azcan was one disappointment after the other, so indifferent to the qualities within him that drove his closest companions to the brink of insanity. Could he truly help it, though? That one last push before taking the plunge to madness... it was the greatest ledge to hover over, a delight and fright all at once.

by **Kailani** on September 25th, 2018, 3:50 am

“I didn’t come back to you,” Kailani replied sharply, her brow arched as she took the glass back from him. “You happened to be here. There’s a difference.” Her free hand reached up to grasp his jaw, angling his face to look into hers. “I never wanted to see you again, you understand? After I finally made my peace with you leaving, that was it. You weren’t part of my life any more, and I aimed to keep it that way.” Her laugh was bitter as she released him, grabbing the ale and filling her glass once more. “When I docked in Sunberth, I wasn’t even sure you’d stayed here. And I figured even if you had, it was a big city. What were the odds I’d run into you?” She drained half the glass, lowering it before wiping her lips with the back of her hand. “Of course, it’d be just my luck to run into you on my second day here. But such is life, yes? And here we are.”

Ecstasy still rippled through her body, but it wasn’t enough, especially after that. Kailani needed to go farther, deeper. The Svefra had never been good at dealing with her own emotions, preferring the route of alcohol or narcotics; it was easier to numb her feelings than to process them. It was part of the reason she and Azcan had (initially at least) gotten along so well, both first in line to try whatever new substance one of her podmates had brought aboard. Now was no different, and she found herself seeking one of the other tablets the drummer had bought upstairs. “Bolt Holt Blow.” What a name.

Finding the little pill she sought, she crushed it in the same manner she had before, squeezing it between her fingers until it was nothing more than a coarse powder. Spreading it along the back of her own arm this time, she snorted. “See you on the other side, boy wonder.” Breathing it up in one quick motion, she shuddered violently as her head tipped back. It was amazing just how fast this shit set to work. Not that she was complaining. Every cell of her body seemed to expand with pleasure, every hair on her form standing on end. When was the last time she’d taken something so strong?

Arm useless, it fell to her side, knees threatening to buckle beneath her. Kailani grabbed the bedpost to steady herself as she started to fall, a breathless laugh parting her lips. “This stuff is amazing,” she muttered, words starting to slur together as the combined effects of the substances she’d consumed took hold. Reaching out with her free hand, she grabbed the waistband of Azcan’s pants and yanked him forward, heavy lidded eyes slowly opening as she tilted her head back to look at him. “Even though I never wanted to see you again, I’m glad I did,” she whispered before kissing him again, slender fingers carefully undoing the ties of his pants. “But don’t ask me to repeat that tomorrow.” Hand finally finding its way to her target, she smiled. “Now get back in that bed with me before I change my mind.” She might regret every second of this in the morning, but damn if she wasn’t going to enjoy it tonight.

Completed [Drunken Fish] Hear Me Now [Kailani]