Bawdy Ballads (open)

[Marius]

62nd of Spring, 511 AV Marius had always despised silence. He didn’t like empty rooms, let alone ones that lacked the creak of timbers or the scratching of rodents. To him, those sorts of places were anathema. He rarely slept, but on such occasions he was known to converse with himself while falling asleep, in a deep slumber, and even continue the same discussion through his morning bath. He was the sort of person who was incapable of silence. This evening, as Marius leaped through the door of The Stranger’s Welcome, a silly grin plastered on his face, he was looking forward to a night of boisterous revelry. However, he was sadly disappointed. There were plenty of other patrons, but they were muttering to each other in a revoltingly subdued manner, not celebrating. “Now this won’t do,” he said to nobody in particular. “This is most unsatisfactory.” Back in Zeltiva, he’d been known to bellow at the top of his lungs in temples, the university, and even at funerals, with the intent of creating uproars. He was singularly effective at this pursuit. So effective, in fact, that he’d been on the receiving end of more beatings and rebukes than he could remember, and was barred from the university for perpetuity. This places reek of solemnity, he scowled as he sauntered to the bar, solemnity and cheese. Oleg was telling a story about Olga, as usual. Marius didn’t have anything against the man’s cousin, but he objected to hearing the same yarns over and over again. “Oleg, my good man,” he tossed his purse on the bar, winking. “The degtine is on me tonight,” he said loudly, causing the other patrons’ heads to perk up. “Are you sure?” Oleg raised an eyebrow. “As sure as my ‘nuncle Ambrose was the night he decided to marry his neighbor’s goat,” Marius chortled. He seized the bottle of degtine the barkeep set before him, took a long swallow, and then leaped onto a table. By now, people were beginning to crowd around the bar, eager for the free booze. “Ever hear this one?” he shouted, belting out the first verse of ‘The Lusty Spearmaiden’ while dancing an enthusiastic, yet clumsy jig.

[Sitkanis]

Sitkanis was unsure why he continued to go into the Stranger's Welcome at night. It was a little pointless due to the fact he did not need to eat or drink at night. Leth's light kept him satisfied enough. Maybe it was simply that fact that the Denvali people were causing him to seek companionship outside of Adalia and her dog. He was in no way skilled in the arts of conversation. He prefered to stay silent most of the time, talking when needed. He was not sure what this trip to the Stranger's Welcome would bring about but he tried to face it with a positive additude, or his version of a positive additude. To Sitkanis' surprise Marius was already in the establishment when he arrived. "Really? Am I ever going to get away from this guy?" Sitkanis was not sure what he thought of Marius. One on hand he found him a bit annoying. He seemed a little too social for Sitkanis' tastes. On the other hand, he was easy to talk to and he was an interesting man. He was the only male he had managed to make friendly and extensive conversation with. Sitkanis was unsure about how he would approach Marius, if he was going to approach him at all. He looked much different at night, what with his horns and extreme lack of height. He knew that Marius was aware of what his night time form looked like but he was a bit embarassed of it. From the looks of it Marius did not seem to be in a judging mood anyway. He seemed more like he was a bit drunk although Marius seemed to act a bit strange on a daily basis. At least when Sitkanis saw him. "Nice song Marius. It's good to see you are doing well since our journey through the mines." The nice song part of his statement was said a little loose. He knew there was nothing to gain by making snide comments. Besides, it was some of the better music he had heard since his fall, as odd as that was. "That pretty generous of you to buy drinks for everyone. Is it a special occasion or did the mood just hit you?" He offered Marius a small smirk hoping to not offend. He really was trying hard even if it didn't seem like it.

[Marius]

“…and she polished the spear all night!” Tossing back another slug of degtine, Marius was about to begin the second verse when he picked a familiar face out of the crowd. “Sitka!” Squealing, he bounded off the table and threw his arms around the other man, catching him in a bone-crunching embrace. “How wonderful to see you here,” he chirped, squeezing a bit harder. A measure of degtine spilled from his bottle. “Come, have a drink. Have many drinks. Hmm, what’s that? I’m still holding you?” Marius took a step back, and then offered Sitka the half-empty bottle. “People here never have any fun,” he complained. “It’s always so dismal here, so I thought I’d spice things up a bit. I don’t understand how they survived so long without me. If we’re lucky, we’ll create enough of a ruckus that the captain will show up.” He raised a hand to his lips, tittering as he envisioned the subsequent fondling that would occur. What luscious thighs! “Excuse me a moment,” he said, traipsing to the bar for another bottle. More customers were pouring in as the news began to spread. As he snaked his way through the throng, Marius managed to fondle a firm buttock and scamper away before he received a cuff on the head. Not quick enough, he giggled. “Where is the lovely Adalia this evening?” He inquired of Sitkanis, making an effort to be serious. Marius was often unmindful of the feelings of others, but after the perils he and the lovers had faced in the caverns, he found himself trying to be more considerate.

[Sitkanis]

Sitkanis felt his body stiffen up to Marius' embrace. He was not fond of people, especially men, throwingt their arms around him. Adalia was a special circumstance. A very special one. In an attempt to show Marius a bit of friendship Sitkanis' patted his back as he prayed that he would let go soon. "Please Leth, get this man off of me." He frowned a bit as Marius kept holding on to him. "Yes, I think you should let go now." He spoke with a bit of a dark tone. Not because he was angery. More because he was frustrated. "I don't drink. Besides, Ethaefal don't eat or drink at night." He knew that statement would a bit of a mood killer but he was not going to waste his money on drinks that he did not need or want to consume. While Sitkanis did not think he could be as upbeat as Marius he could not deny that he would have liked to see Astrid. In truth, he would have even had a drink with her if she showed up. He respected her, mostly for how welcoming she had been to him since his fall. "It would be interesting if she showed up." He smiled a bit at Marius' comment. He had to admit that the man had the ability to electrify a room if he so desired. He did go about it in quite an odd way though. "Well if anyone could get these people to wake up I'm sure it is you. Some how you keep getting me to be social and the Gods only know the energy that takes. Sitkanis smirked a bit at the statement. A few seasons ago he would not have been so apt to make a joke about himself but maybe Denval was getting to him a bit. Maybe it was making him less of the stoic man he had been when he fell and more like the Denvali people. Although he was sure he would never be offically considered a Denvali, as much as the city was starting to grow on him. Sitkanis tried to supress a chuckle as he watched Marius make his way through the Stranger's Welcome. The man was clearly not shy and he had proved that quite nicely on many occasions. "No fear huh?" Sitkanis spoke in reguards to the handsy action Marius had just made toward one of the people in the bar. He smiled at bit at Marius' question. "She is very good. She has been quite busy lately with healing at the Chapel which is why I am here tonight." He really needed to start making his outings to food related places during the day. There was no reason to be in bars when he could not eat. "What about you Marius? Has anyone caught your eye?" His eyes flicked over to the girl who had just been fondled by Marius. "I gotta say, if you are looking to get the attention of women it is better just to talk to them." He thought back to Adalia. He wanted so badly to be a little more physical with her, much like Marius was with the passing strangers he came in contact with. He loved her but he desired to know the woman that existed past her clothing. He had seen it once but so did Marius and the rest of the mining crew.

[Marius]

“Caught my eye?” Marius giggled. “My dear fellow, the lustful dumplings of this city mean nothing to me. I don’t mean to say that I don’t appreciate the view, or the company. I love a good tease, but they can’t satisfy my yearnings. I am enamored of Semele, you see. So far the relationship has been distinctly one-sided, but I am convinced that she will take notice of me.” He took another swig from his bottle, his eyes shining. “My friend, did you not feel her slumbering presence in the mines? I have descended into many caverns, but I have never felt it so strongly before. I can imagine that you might have been a bit distracted, what with your scaly delight being buried, not to mention the anxiety of treading through unstable caverns. It is my love for her that drives away my fear. I have devoted myself so wholly to her that she must eventually take notice.” “You might say that my love is tragic, but perhaps that is my destiny.” Marius tried to shrug off his growing feeling of melancholy. Sitka was clearly a bad influence on him. He needed to help this man emerge from his shell, to start enjoying the decadent pleasures of these dingy joints. “I’d sing some more, but they usually throw me out for making too much of a racket. I might try again when they’re all soaked to the gills. I don’t think they’ll mind so much then.” Denval was such an orderly place, and most of its people so dour that the prospect of mischief was minimal even on a good day. Marius raised the bottle again, only to find that the liquor wasn’t helping. He wasn’t entirely serious, or even sober, but he certainly wasn’t his usual flighty self. “Sitka, do you ever wonder if we all have purposes?”

[Sitkanis]

Sitkanis could understand worshiping a God or a Goddess. Heck, he could even understand following one so devoutly that one would put their life on the line for them. Being in love with one though? Was that even possible? Maybe it had been too much time in the Ukalas that caused him to not understand. Who knew how long he had dwelled up there with Leth? He knew for sure that he could not be in love with the God. Of course, Leth was more like a father than anything to Sitkanis. He indulged himself in Marius' strange talk though. Even if it was odd it was interesting. 'Well, I suppose if you are going to romance someone you might as well shoot for a Goddess. You never know, in death you could be at her side." In the entirety of Sitkanis' past life he had worshiped Caiyha and Leth and when death found him in the Sea of Grass he had finally found his place in the domain of his diety. "I remember you talking to Semele in the caves but I thought that was you just being charismatic." He chuckled at the memory. He did not have many of them but those of Marius were by far the most comical. "I respect that." Sitkanis smiled at Marius. A little more intently than in previous times. Marius had called him a friend. Sitkanis liked that. "I think..." He stopped on his words. He was not sure if he should share his experience on the shore with Marius. "I think we all just want to be seen in our dieties eyes, hopefully in a good way." Sitkanis thought of Adalia. He had been getting the silent treatment from her as well. Just as he thought he was getting close to getting that quiet woman to open up she seemed to disapeer into her work. Sitkanis shrugged at the man's words. "Doesn't matter if it is tragic. If you want it, you want it." It was blunt but Sitkanis really wasn't a man of profound words. "It is admirable that you try." The Gods knew he tried for Leth's attention. Of only he could get it. Sitkanis arched an eyebrow at Marius' question. Not only was it a completely off topic but it seemed a little deep to be coming from Marius' lips. "I suppose so." He talked with Adalia about destiny quite often but it seemed a little odd talking about it to Marius. "I'm sure we all have found our way to Denval for some reason. I'm sure that reason leads to our our purpose." He gave Marius a small smile. "What do you think?" He was very interested in what Marius would say. "Even more so, do you think you will attract Semele's attention someday?"