RP:A Wonderful Audience

Kelay Tavern

Jiya : Having been sitting alone in the middle of the tavern for quite some time, Jiya had stewed long enough on her own. She blinked a few times, pulled the drink in closer to the body almost as if in reflex, and conjured up a bright smile for the snake-woman. "Of course, of course. I am always loving company, darling. But I will ask the price of a story for your seat." She winked, and gestured to a seat opposite herself.

Reginae smiled before coiling herself around the empty chair. It would take a great deal of delicate concentration to keep from snapping the chair in twain with her muscular limb. "The price of story," the Naga mused, pawing at her chin thoughtfully. "Ah yes, of course." Regi took a breath and dug into her satchel, revealing a small vial, amber in hue. "This story will be well worth it, I promise you." Chuckling to herself, the Naga uncorked the vial and poured the contents onto her tail very carefully. She used slender palms to rub the oils against the snow white scales and began to speak... "There was once a time when I was something much...much different.." she began, opal hues glowing in the flickering fire light.

Jiya spent a few moments admiring that tail, and the muscle hidden beneath its scales. "Few stories are less than that promise," she allowed. She flexed her toes against the wood of the floor, seemingly unmindful of the many dirts the day had brought. She tipped her head to the side, thoughtful. "You are so lovely as you are, it is a hard time thinking what else you could be."

Reginae cleared her throat, doing her best to avoid blushing in the midst of a conjuring act. Instead, she winked confidently until the liquid on her scales seemed to smoke and with a small squeak of a sound, her hands darted away from what appeared to be melting scales. They drizzled down the length of her tail, extending past where the oils had already touched. It was akin to watching snow melt in the warm glaring sun. The scales oozed to the floor one by one, dissolving on contact with the wood until only human legs were left in their place. "It is the most lovely things that we should be careful around." She advised, humorously, her story having unfolded to a seemingly dramatic climax of melting body parts. "Once I was just a normal girl." The thought made her laugh, did anyone have that luxury anymore?

Jiya leaned back, eyes widening as the scene unfolded. They soon narrowed as she became accustomed to the magic, and she was as intent and focused as any storyteller might hope from their audience. "Ah," she said, looking up to Reginae's eyes, "but you were unlucky as this normal girl, no?"

Reginae smirked, dazzled by her attention and participation. "It wouldn't be a good story if it wasn't so. Alas..." Her hand withdrew a small blade and with grand gesture drew it against her neck. "I was held hostage by various thieving guilds; pasted from town to town like a worthless parcel....until..." Smoke conjured in the form of a man stood between them now, rolling off the fire with careful purpose. It reached out, playing as if to draw the knife away and free her breath but instead thrust a knife of it's own smokey possession into her breast. To which she replied by shivering, shaking...small pools of ocean blue ooze trickling down for effect. "It is the most beautiful things..that care harm us the most...." Regi choked, a bit dramatically, locking eyes with Jiya again.

"No," Jiya said, caught up as Reginae put that blade to her throat. Her lips rounded in an appreciative 'o' as her eyes darted from the smoke-man, to Reginae, to the smoke-knife, and finally the ooze. Her eyebrows knit, and she muttered, "unlucky, yes." She met Regi's eyes, and understanding dawned in her own. "Ah, he was handsome, this stabbing fiend. No? Did you repay him thrice?"

Reginae cocked her previous slumped head back onto her shoulders squarely, the smoke retreating to it's home and the ooze dissolving back into her clothing and skin. "I dare say I may -still- be paying him back." She laughed, slapping what would have been her knees dramatically if her illusions had not dissipated in her lack of concentration. Instead, she sat just as healthy and happy as she had when she'd arrive; maybe more so of the later. "You, m'lady, are a wonderful audience!" Regi cheered, beaming.

Jiya watched the smoke and ooze as if to catch every moment of its presence. She took her pipe from where it wobbled between her lips and clapped her hands together a few times. The sound was muted. "There is not a time I have seen this before. Not the same. Disalike." She paused, lips pulled to one side, and shook her head once as if to dismiss the words. "I always appreciate the stories. A seat well earned." She nodded to Reginae, eyes once more skimming down that tail. "You should be knowing that the pattern of scales is lucky, or meaning luck. Though I am not knowing if it is this way for your luck, or that way for someone close to you." She waved her pipe back and forth, the motion vague. She shrugged, and grinned. "I am of thought you make your own luck, no?"

Reginae laughed, thinking she had not had much luck...yet. "I'm hopeful that there's a place for a bit of luck in my future." Her optics softened as the woman spoke, "How do you feel about the idea of luck?"

Xolin would enter the scene, practically a skip in his step and a tune being hummed to himself. Someone of his stature should really act their age no? Ah yes, but what was he exactly? The outline of his form would suggest a male human, and his clothing might imply minor nobility, but little apart from his long strangely crimson colored hair could be discerned. For his face was covered by quite the strange mask you see. It was jet black but shined like marble and had quite the ominous cheshire cat grin painted over where a mouth might be. Most curious of all would be the eye holes, exposing what normally would be the true eyes of the one wearing such a disturbing mask, but instead seemed to show eyes that not only changed to colors that had no names but also held pupils within that changed shapes! Was this an effect of the mask or truly the eyes of the being behind it?! None but those who have seen the man behind the mask can say. On top of that however it would seem that whatever sound exited the lips of the being, humming included, was coupled with a menagerie of strange voices to mask the original. Creepy and strange indeed. Despite these things, the man seemed to have no trouble finding a vacant table near the wall and sitting himself almost cheerfully. Upon doing so he would pull from his pocket a deck of what would appear to be tarot cards. After suffling through them he pulled out two in particular and placed them face up on the table. After a second or two miniaturized versions of what the cards portrayed would spawn up from the card like the undead uprooting themselves from their grave. One would rise as a righteous knight, glittering armor included, while the other a barbarian Orc, smell included. Once the two beings see each other they charge and begin to fight to the best of their respective abilities. Xolin himself snickered like a mischievous child watching the show and murmured to himself, "Dance puppets dance!"

Jiya glanced the way of Xolin -- or had intended to glance, but found her eyes snagged by several points of interest -- and there was some level of admiration in her expression. It was in her regard, selfsame to that which she had given Reginae, but tainted with some other hooded emotion. Careless of social skills she was not, and so she collected herself long enough to say to Reginae, "it is currency, hoarded and spent --" when the sound of the voices caught her attention again. Interest was a strange thing, a capricious and sneaky being capable of bringing even the mightiest low at an opportune moment. The tarot cards crippled Jiya for too long to be considered polite; she stared. "Ah," she said, gathering herself long enough to realize her faux pas. "Ah, what was I..." movement was the next to snare her attention, and it was only with great effort that she turned back to Regi. "There is my sorry state." Hedging, as she grimaced in apology. "You can only spend luck if you are knowing how to gather it, no?" Her eyes drifted back to the magical puppets, and with some guilt she brought her attention back to Regi once more.

Merrien walks into the tavern as is her custom after a long day only to stop short. The woman had been coming to this pub for years now and it was difficult to surprise her anymore, but the denizens of the tavern were quite a sight to behold. The girl scans the room seeing several usual suspects as well as...a snake?! Woman?...Snake-woman?? Merrien blinks wildly as she also spies a man in a mask with some kind of deck of cards, not altogether strange for a pub, once more, but the cards appear to summon puppet creatures to fight for the amusement of the gentleman. "All the loonies are out t'night...wonder if the moon's full..." she mutters to herself as she signals Mesthak for a cheap ale. Once delivered, she seats herself at the bar just far enough away to keep an eye on all these weirdos in case they make any sudden movements.

Reginae watched with curious eyes as the man entered, his mask gleamed and whispered to her, convincing her that she must touch it or she would never hear the silence of those harsh and quick witted words they whispers so numerously in her ears. A shake of the head and the voices dissolved. Her attention turned back to Jiya for a moment more before she coiled up as if she might be about to depart. "This might be a bit easier to spend," She smiled, tucking a pouch into Jiya's palm while she sat captivated by the tarot puppets.

Jiya looked down at her palm, dumbfounded for but a second before a quick and hungry smile overtook her face. "Much is my appreciation," she said, dipping her head so her wild curles briefly crowded her shoulders (even held at bay as they were by her head-scarf). Just like that, the money was gone. As she raised her head, she took note of Merrien's quieter entrance, and subsequent seat at the bar. Curiosity, open on her face, before another glance was stolen towards those tarot puppets.