RP:Time and Time Again
Summary: Brennia and Odhranos are in for an unorthodox ride.
Chapter One: Chaos Theory
Dusk is falling across Lithrydel and soon it will be night. Wherever Odhranos found himself this evening Whoolio, the white winter owl, would find him too with an envelope secured in his black beak. The letter is was sealed ⚜️ and once he slipped the parchment free he would find Brennia’s romantic cursive way of writing in navy blue ink:
Dear Odhranos,
I have heard whispers of some prospecting talent in Cenril and I would be much obliged if you joined me so we can try and recruit them together. I’ll await you this time tomorrow at the beach.
Till then,
Brennia
Odhranos had just strung his hammock the night and was about to lie back with a book for some light reading. The Complete History of Runic Development, that is. The extended edition too. Nonetheless, the mage had only swung himself into the hammock when he heard a soft hooting noise overhead. Craning his neck back, the mage spotted a large snowy owl perched on one of the few branches the scraggy tree had to offer. Accepting the letter in exchange for a hastily procured biscuit, Odhranos skimmed through Brennia's formal penmanship, before gazing out across the mountains in the direction of Cenril, his eyes following Whoolio soar off into the east until he was no more than a white speck disappearing into the night. The next day, Odhranos greeted the sun as it rose over the peaks of the Xalious Range. Setting off down the mountain path, the mage strolled easily through the Sage as the quiet music of the waking forest graced his ears. By evening, and after a hearty meal in The Whaler's Bar, the mage strolled out to the beach, finding a nice rock to perch on to watch the waves gently washing against the sands as the great disc of the sun dipped it's edge below the horizon.
Sandy Beach
You stand upon the stretch of sandy land, entitled 'Sandy Beach' by those who know it. Obviously a popular locale, multiple youths of Cenril wander about, socializing among themselves in simple, near-bare uniform. A man-crafted barrier of stone hedging works around the sandy lot of shore, standing at about four feet tall and a foot in width. The entire beach forms a 'C' shape, opening east to the sea, probably much of the reason why it'd be famous in Cenril. Skirting the barrier, the beach continues on north and south. A note is here.
Brennia arrives a little bit ahead of schedule and lands with added grace upon the sands. She spots her friend in the distance and waves to him while making the small trek toward his perch, “Odhranos!” That friendly and warm smile upon her face as usual, “merry meet to you and I do hope the travel wasn’t difficult for you.” She takes in the warm scent of the sea on the air as it always reminds her of home and glances out at the horizon, “how are you on this evening?” Her caramel skin seems to glow between the black of the ink in this light and her wings glitter in hues of navy blues and forest greens. Her striking liberty blue eyes travel back to him, “let’s venture on shall we?” She would wait for him to stand in order to walk side by side with him, but before they stray too far from the beach she nearly trips over something shallowly buried in the sands. Stumbling sort of into the mage, “what’s this?” Curiosity getting the better of her she kneels down to brush off the thin layer of sand off was seems to be a rock. Once the mass becomes clearer it turns out to be a rather polished and saucer shaped stone with swirls circling each other in some sort of intricate mechanical fashion.
Odhranos smiled and waved as he saw Brennia descending onto the beach, midnight black wings unfurled. "Merry meet indeed, Brennia!" The mage replied from his cross legged position. "It's really quite an exceptional evening, there's not a single cloud to be seen. I feel all the better because of it." Hopping down as she suggests they venture into the city, Odhranos strode at an easy pace alongside her, before Brennia stumbled against him unexpectedly. Extending a hand to help her keep her balance, the mage's brows furrowed as she brushed away the thin layer of sand from the curious object. "It, looks like some sort of carving, definitely not natural. But there's... something off about the stone it's made from... almost like it isn't all here..." Crouching beside Brennia, the mage reached out and brushed his fingertips against the smooth surface of the stone.
Brennia’s eyes couldn’t leave the travel they were on within the lines of the stone. It felt like it didn’t belong and her thoughts went back to his mention of the night being so clear… Eerily clear and it dawns on her that her flight was entirely unobstructed and quiet to a fault. Something was not right about tonight, but she felt a pull of the object under her hand and now his. “Wait…” in attempts to pull her hand away she would find it was actually weighted down to the stone and she couldn’t lift her hand back up. Odhranos would find the same occurrence while his hand was also on the stone and once they were locked in place the spots on the large flat stone face was glowing where their hands are. She looked fearfully at Odhranos, but back at the stone as the lines started to move under their palms swirling and orbiting each other like the heavenly bodies and the gears of a clock. This would be the last thing she sees and doesn’t remember before she is thrust into the past, before knowing him, before knowing her dearest friends, before her college, before her castle. Finding herself tossing and turning in the rented bed of the Den of Iniquity room within the Hanging Corpse with no recollection of the life she was destined to lead….
Odhranos brushed his hand over the polished stone, mulling over what it could possibly be when Brennia's alarmed tone caught his attention. Meeting her eyes, his own widened with concern upon realizing that his hand was firmly stuck to the stone. "Xalious protect us..." the mage whispered as the lines began their movement, and the mage found his eyes were similarly riveted to the spin and dance of the rings before all he knew was washed away like waves upon sand. Thrown back into the past, all that had happened to shape the man that was Odhranos was torn apart with the dissolution of time, as he found his lungs filling with salt water and his chest burning for air. Odhranos burst from the churning waves with a gasp, which was followed by desperate retching as he sought to purge the water from his lungs. Crawling onto the fragment of ship's hull, torn into kindling by the storm, the man collapsed against the sodden driftwood, floating almost serenely as the storm spent it's rage all around him.
Hanging Corpse Tavern
This once-timber tavern has been rebuilt in sturdily vitrified blackstone and imbued with powerful protective magics that prevent occult fire and several other potentially harmful spells being cast within its walls. No effort has been spared to make what might otherwise be a bleak interior comfortable. The bar is made of polished stone with an oaken inlay, the space behind filled with a bustle of attractive barmaids, sundry barrels and a dazzling array of coloured bottles that glint in the light cast by a large wrought-iron candelabrum suspended from the ceiling overhead. Here, the one-eyed Steadman stands, ready to take orders for food or drink. Beyond the bar, stout tables are firmly bolted to the floor, though the high-backed chairs are freestanding. The hearth is a true feature, seeming to be cast from black lava into the shape of a colossal, laughing goblin's head, its maw gaping wide and deep, usually containing a merrily crackling fire. A delicious scent of roasting meats drifts in from the kitchens and a winding staircase leads to rooms upstairs. To the south are set cellar doors, usually kept locked unless a special event is taking place. The walls are hung with thick, richly woven tapestries depicting persons and events in the history of Vailkrin and the Vampiric race. There's also a notice-board near the entrance, where one may leave messages. Unobtrusive but ever-present are the security staff, staunch fighters ever ready to toss troublemakers out.
Brennia wakes up fully this time in her bed and mumbles something about weird dreams about stones to herself before sliding a half full bottle of blackfire wine from her nightstand. The room is a mess and she disappears behind a partition in order to find clothes in a heap and dress herself. A curious glance around the partition at the body in the bed that was next to her and an eye roll, “fockrying out loud…” She saunters over dressed in a slanky velvet hip slit gown before rudely jabbing at the one night stander, “ey!” She then rocks the man, “ey!!” This time she got a jump out of him and then a dreamy look in his eyes up at her, “Nuunuunu. Off you go mister.” He tries to reason before he’s cut off with a, “git!” She glances outside and it must be nearly nightfall by now, but who knows in the void and she can only tell this because of the noise coming from below in the tavern. A small crowd of frequent patrons have occupied most of the seats within the tavern that are nearest the baby grand piano. Slightly wobbly red bottom pumps make their way own the stone staircase which cause attention to be thrown her way and some rowdy whistling going ignored by her. Long wavy silky black hair cascade just past her bust and the sapphire blue dress compliments her caramel complexion while hugging tightly to her every curve. Striking deep blue eyes which are glazed over and a little bloodshot (and not from the lack of sleep) take in some new faces while she made her way confidently to the piano. Anticipation is thick in the air as silence hangs in wait for her to begin to play.
Tonight, I feel like I'm lost in the desert
But you're my oasis
You found my heart
Tonight, I feel like I'm lost in the desert
But you're my oasis, yeah, you're my oasis
Odhranos washes up on a beach. Who knows what beach? He doesn't, and that is all that matters. He lies face first in the sand, his breathing weak and gravelly as he drags his fingers through the grains of sand and larger pebbles. Weakly lifting a pebble to his eye, the tattered and ragged looking man squinted blearily at it. Something about a stone. Odhranos can't place where that thought came from, and in a moment, it sifts away with the sands. Slowly getting to his feet, the bedraggled man's grey eyes make out the shapes of buildings before him, up the hill. City by the looks of it. Odh stumbles forward a few paces before something buried beneath the sand trips him up, sending him sprawling onto the sand again. After a moment to catch his breath, the man hauls himself upright and sets off once more.
I am stuck in quicksand
And I am trying not to drown
Fell in deeper this time and I'm struggling to get out
And doubt creeps into my soul
And now, I've found there's nothing left to hold
Tonight, I feel like I'm lost in the desert
But you're my oasis, yeah, you're my oasis
Brennia closed her eyes and caressed her way through the notes upon the keys of the piano starting off in a simple tune before she can find the words. Seems even just with her playing the piano it keeps the tavern to a hush and they wait as long as it takes for her soothing alto timbre to greet them for the night. Once Odhranos draws nearer and nearer towards the Hanging Corpse all of the words she needs seem to float on the surface and pulling those listening away on a journey. By the time he would enter he potentially could be taken up along all of the hills of crescendos and dipping low down with all of her decrescendos while soaking up the soul like a sponge. Filling all of the holes left from the rough years of Lithrydelians and something other than the taste of blood from their feedings to warm their insides. She kept her eyes closed as a precaution for she doesn’t want a mistake like last time.
I thought I'd die
I had no fight, I had given up
Thought I was done, I was savaged by the sun
I thought I'd die
I had no fight, I had turned to dust
When I came to in your arms I knew I would make it through
Odhranos | It only took about an hour before the Cenrilian Guard dumped Odhranos out on his chin at the end of the bridge crossing the gorge. "Stay in the dirt where you belong, dirty thievin' vagrant" one of the guards growled before spitting vehemently, while the other gave Odhranos a kick in the stomach, sending him sprawling as he rolled bodily down the sloping stony ground. "That's right, drag your sorry arse off to Vailkrin, we don't want your sort here." Odh lay where he fell, gasping as he tried to catch his breath. "Bastards." He growled under his breath as they walked away, back across the bridge into the city. Once he had recovered, he clambered to unsteady feet before looking around. A few paces ahead of him, along the cracked and torn path, lay a portal, like a pool of darkness. Approaching the portal, Odhranos set his hand against the faintly rippling surface before passing his hand through and withdrawing it again. Nothing missing, should be alright, the man thought as he stepped through. In the gloomy darkness beyond, Odhranos could make out the outlines of buildings, lit faintly by sickly unnatural flame. All of a sudden, the faintest of music reached the man's ears, music that seemed to exert a strange pull on him, leading him towards one of the more central buildings, a tavern by the looks of it. Stepping inside the door, the haggard looking man gazed around blearily.
Tonight, I feel like I'm lost in the desert
But you're my oasis
You found my heart
Tonight I feel like I'm lost in the desert
But you're my oasis, yeah, you're my oasis
(You found my heart)
Oasis
Brennia could feel there was something in the air this night, but that wouldn’t last long. Soon there would be nothing to feel when she finished her song and usually when a human wanders into the Hanging Corpse they get hungrily ogled by the patrons. They were too busy clinging onto the song until the end and once it ends they look somewhat shocked as if they couldn’t remember feeling so empty once her song leaves their souls… Or what is left of them. For a moment she stayed at the pianist bench until a rather busty waitress made her way over with a new bottle of blackfire wine and a goblet. The waitress was blushing (just barely) and giggling while Brennia thanked her and took the bottle, leaving the goblet. She stood to her six two (plus some) height and leaned down to place a supple kiss upon to beautiful vampire’s cheek as she pushed a gold coin between the large bust of the barmaid as a tip. The small crowd as since disbursed since Brennia stopped playing they really want nothing else from her and she made her way to an empty booth seat, but not without guzzling some of the wine down and wobbly steps in those heels.
(OOC: Song - Oasis by Kygo, Foxes)
Odhranos forced his tired body to stumble across to a free chair, dropping into it heavily, eliciting a groan from the old worn timber. Resting his forehead against the roughly grained wood of the table, he felt a knot growing in his stomach and a lump in his throat as the ebony-winged woman played her art on the piano. When the hauntingly beautiful song ended, Odhranos sat upright with an almost relieved sigh; there were certain emotions that he couldn't deal with right now, couldn't face until the wounds closed. Unbound sorrow was one of the many. The man had barely been seated at the table for a minute when a pair of pale and elegantly thin hands reached over his shoulders and caressed his chest, each finger adorned with a long red-lacquered nails. A sultry and seductive voice whispered in Odhranos' ear as the female vampire sat herself on the edge of his table. "What's such a deliciously strapping man like yourself doing in such a nasty place like this?" she crooned, placing a finger under his chin to lift his face to her gaze.
Brennia sees this play out all of the time and if she can sense that a human does not want to be a happy meal then she can usually intervene. Tucking some of her wavy black air behind a pointed and pierced ear she listens to the pair trying to seduce the man for now. Striking blue eyed glance every once in a while to attempt pick up uncomfortable body language and a plate of raw meat is bought her way. Something was stirring in the shadows of the table she was sitting at, something large and with orange glowing eyes. A vampire with a flower attempts to walk up to Brennia, but she wasn’t quick enough to give her large white wolf his raw steak to serve as a distraction and the whole atmosphere shifts when the beast lets out a low guttural growl. The man dropped the flower immediately and fled while Brennia tossed the steak on the floor for Alariek.
Odhranos didn't appreciate the attention, to say the least. As the vampiress whispered sweet nothings in his ear, he very slowly and casually reached into his pocket, drawing out a short dagger, which seemed to have metal wiring set in ornate Celtic filigree upon the surface of the blade. The man clenched his fist tightly around the handle as the vampire noticed. "Ooh, honey, so sweet, you think a little toothpick like that would hurt poor old me? Why I'm just being friendly is all." She whispered, grazing his earlobe with one of her fangs. In an instant, Odhranos whipped the blade up and sank it into the table, driving it through the flared dress of the vampire where it draped on the table. The blade glowed a dull cherry red and the timber squealed as if in protest as the moisture inside it was rapidly evaporated. Curls of smoke drifted between the mage's fingers, as licks of grey flame sputtered free at erratic intervals. "Next time, it goes through your hand, succubus." Odhranos spat bitterly, drawing the blade free of the charred hole and waving the heated metal inches before the vampiress' face. She growled deep in her throat, then stood up from the table and made to walk away. Her hand trailed over the man's cheek before whipping away suddenly, a pointed nail scoring a cut across Odhranos' cheekbone. "Oopsie!" She tittered as she strode away, before collapsing with a scream as the searing hot blade thunked with finality into her back, just between her shoulder blades. Silence rang out around the tavern. Lazily, Odhranos stood up from the table, crouching alongside the fallen woman and he grabbed the protruding handle, twisting it cruelly as he leans down beside her. "I've killed worse creatures than you. Count your unholy blessings I'm not in the mood to finish you off." He growled, before ripping the knife out and returning to his table, as if nothing had happened.
Brennia stood up after his little outburst and in a moment the hustle and bustle starts back up as if nothing happened. She saunters past the pair of vampires which were just toying with the stranger when one vampire helped the other back up to her feet, “does it look that bad?” The wounded vampire asks the other and for now her protective wolf is occupied with his steak. One look at Brennia and he would be able to tell she is not a vampire while his most favorite scent grows stronger once she’s near him. Her body in that dress, her striking blue eyes and those wings looking almost mystical might steal the show and explain why she was garnering so many ogles from the patrons. It’s the tattoo pattern that could gain the most interest as it seems to cover every inch of her dewy caramel skin and she would stand there a moment while letting the atmosphere in the tavern go uncaring for the pair once more. Bottle of wine in one hand and her strappy red bottom pumps had since been taken off to dangle from her fingers. Her silky alto timbre seems to swim out from between her plump lips like smoke, “merry meet… I see you are having a rough bit of trouble?” She sets her wine bottle a safe distance in front of him, “something to drink?” A nod of her head toward the kitchens in the tavern, “something to eat?” She didn’t know what she was doing this for, was it pity? Was she looking for yet another one night stander? Maybe he has an interesting tale she can spin into song, but she’s here, blazed and tipsy while non threatening.
Odhranos glowered at Brennia as she approached, great, the songbird wanted a piece too. "Really? What's merry about it?" He asked sardonically, slouching back his chair as he glared at Brennia. As he did so, a waft of perfume trailed through the air and the man's eye's grew wide, startled even, before narrowing to slits. "What's your game, sugar? You looking for something or do you just enjoy attention that bit too much?" Ouch, Odh was not in the mood for chit chat. "While you're offering, I'll take a cider. And whatever louse-infested slop this place calls food." He grumbled before placing his elbows on the table, rubbing his eyes tiredly. He'd had one hell of a day, he'd accept any charity where it was offered at this stage. "So what's your deal? In-house entertainment? Or do you just play the piano?" Odh grinned at his own joke.
Brennia felt her plump lips upturned into a smirk and revealing perfect pearly white teeth while causing one dimple to poke into a cheek. Her tone didn’t change, still sultry, still soothing, “Yes really. Merry is our first meeting. It is a sort of greeting, ‘my game?’” A short and soft chuckle at ‘sugar’ before she continue with answering his questions, “I see someone having a rough go. A newcomer.” She was not nearly as imposing or threatening as the females before and she caught the attention of the barmaid she was flirting with earlier in order to whisper to her. He might be able to hear a reply of, ‘but we don’t have that.’ Her smile widened and he might be able to see now that she was a persuasive creature as the woman walked away giggling after saying she’ll be right back. “Thank you,” she called to the barmaid while watching her cute little bum hurry away. “Yeah I’m looking at a man who seems a bit lost. As for attention,” she shrugs, but he might pick of the fact that she seems pretty invisible if she isn’t at the piano. She picks her wine bottle back up, but still did not sit for she didn’t want to impose and she threw back some more of her liquor. “My deal? It’s to play music for the patrons as a form of rent payment for one of the rooms upstairs.” The waitress returned with a perfectly cooked steak and an array of colorful side dishes, but most of all a pitcher of hard cider.
Odhranos raised a skeptical eyebrow before looking over Brennia a second time, this time a more curious look than critical. Pursing his lips as she explained her reasoning for approaching him, he pondered over whether he had judged her too early and too harshly. When the food and drink was placed on the table before him, Odhranos felt downright lousy for what he had said. "Hmm, maybe I misjudged you. Can't be too careful in a place like this, but you ain't as worse as the rest, songbird. Pull up a seat." He gestured to the chair before him as he picked up the knife and fork laid before him. Cutting the steak with a practiced delicate etiquette that seemed wholly at odds with his gruff appearance and nature. "What's your name? Unless you'd prefer I keep calling you songbird." He grumbled after chewing a piece of meat and washing it down with a swig of cider.
Brennia shrugged, “I know how that is.” She looks at the seat across him at the table and decides to set her shoes in it while deciding to take a seat upon the tabletop instead. A bit of a bold move and yeah maybe she wanted attention, but from this stranger as the others are going unnoticed. One tattooed leg crosses over the other under her dress and she makes sure to fold her wings to drape away from him and his food, but from his angle he can see just how high her dress is slit and how ample her bottom is. Maybe a few jealous glances are show his way from other select patrons, but she presses on, “songbird, Brennia, Bree… whatever suits you.” She drinks some more from her wine bottle before asking, “but what shall I call you?” Anytime his hard cider would reach just below half in his tankard she would make sure to refill it from the pitcher. “And if I may ask, how is it you found your way here?”
Odhranos made no attempts to disguise his appreciation of Brennia's figure as she seated herself on the table across from him. How couldn’t he? Wasn't much else grabbing his attention in the place. In any case, Odhranos didn't give a damn if people stared at him, jealous or worse. He had showed them how he dealt with unwanted company, enough said. "Brennia, huh? ‘Brenniiiah’. Hmm, exotic." The man grinned, as he rolled her name around his mouth like one would a sweet. Odh nodded appreciatively as she refilled his tankard. "Name's Odhranos. Or ‘dirty thieving vagrant’ if you ask the fine upstanding guards of that city beyond the portal. Tin-capped halfwits." He growled, before chewing a mouthful of food. When he had swallowed, he explained his story. Stowed away on a merchant vessel, got caught, was to be sold into slavery. Ship sank during a storm and next think he knew, he washed up on the shores of Lithrydel.
Brennia faked a gasp, “oh? A thief?” Her free hand placed over her heart as if she were some damsel just before a smirk returned to those lips and the bottom one even tucked between perfect pearly white teeth. After stopping her playful tactics she listened intently and she now placed her free hand’s palm side down towards him, just a little, in order to lean on it. In doing so, she was leaned closer to him slightly and then he could also appreciate how low cut the dress was made. That the ink pattern on her skin seems to disappear into the top of her dress and weaker men usually stare while wondering if she really is covered completely. Drinking more and more from her own wine bottle and refilling his tankard in order to get him good and tipsy along with herself. “Well, Odhranos,” the way her Veretian accent seemed to emerge in saying his name made it sound as if he were taboo and perverse, but a desire to hear her say it over and over again might ensue. She continues, “where are you headed next, then?”
Odhranos snorted derisively. "I'm no thief. Though those imbeciles would tempt me to be. They searched me when they found me in the streets. One of the cretins found my knife and tried to... well "apprehend the dangerous item". When I kicked up a fuss, he accused me of stealing it, saying a washed-up bum like me would never have a fancy knife like that unless I had nicked it from some highborn noble. So I broke his nose." The man stated that with such nonchalance, as if he honestly couldn't care less what he had done, so long as he felt justified. "Long story short, they beat the fluff out of me and tossed me out on my ear. So I wandered, and ended up here." He shrugged, wiping up the last of the food and popping into his mouth. His eyes moved to the assumed position when she leaned closer, but after a moment or two of inspecting the goods, he leaned back in his chair, closing his eyes. "Bugger me if I know. A man escapes death and washes up on a strange shore, what in the blazes is he supposed to do?" His eyebrows furrowed as his eyes remained closed. "Find accommodation I guess." The man raised one eyebrow and glanced at the woman before him. "You mentioned you had a room here? One you pay for by playing for the patrons, if I recall correctly."
Brennia couldn't stop smirking down at him in her slightly drunken stupor. “Breaking noses? Oh my…” by now she was sipping down the rest of her solo bottle of wine and set it down on the tabletop. She felt herself getting quiet every time he spoke and becoming lost in his way of talking. She was still leaning and seated before him as if she were some sort of second course, but her free hand rose up to run through her own hair and position it to one side. In doing so exposed her neck and scars would be visible of vampire bites, feline fangs, and a Lycan mauling on the trap of her one shoulder. Either she's a valiant fighter or an adventurous lover, but whichever one - it is obvious she deals with more of the monstrous creatures of the land. “Yes, why? You want to play music with me and be my bunk mate?” Her smirk widens in her light and short raspy giggle, okay so she's definitely past tipsy, but that smile shines brightly in such a dim tavern and the dimples poke adorably into her caramel cheeks. “Maybe you're just looking for somewhere to sleep for the night…” her sultry timbre darkened a bit in her suggestion.
Odhranos studied the markings with a cool gaze. Clearly someone liked to live dangerously, though whether that was roaming the land or the bed sheets was clearly up for debate. Given the rough placement of the bites was all in and around the neck and collarbone, Odhranos guessed the latter. "The idea has crossed my mind. Is there a tavernkeep I can intimidate to cough up a room?" He growled, grinning mischievously as he ruffled his short yet shaggy brown hair. He studies Brennia as she giggles, clearly the woman was tipsy, verging on shamefully drunk. "You're cute, Bree, but I do feel like actually sleeping tonight. Shame though. It's been awhile since I've broken a bed frame." The man stood as he spoke, growling the last sentence seductively in Brennia's ear as he straightened. "Now, the tavernkeep?"
Brennia internally is a little shocked at such words coming so fast from the stranger. Usually she gets comments on her beauty first or some more subtle hints to their desires, but a straight suggestion about bedding her so fast wasn't common. She liked it, but kept cool on the surface and merely slid herself from atop the table she was perched upon. On her natural height of six two meeting his gaze she looked him up and down while her wings shift idly behind her as if preening for him. They were close and he could pick up on hues of deep blues and greens gleaming within the onyx shade of her wings. How hypnotic they were and how they seemed to beckon for touch, “they owe me from breaking up a few fights.” The way she said that bit might give away the issue that she could have been the cause, “you could take the room across from mine. This way of you need anything… Or want anything, you'll know where to find me.” Her smirk spreads before she stepped back in order to turn and lead the way, “I'll introduce you to the tavernkeep.”
Odhranos | Normally, Odh would have been more subtle in his courtship (were it courtship), but right now, he is exhausted, a little cranky and a whole lot tired. In actuality, Odhranos wasn't being serious about bedding her, his words were aimed to tease. Cheeky, but hey, Brennia wasn't exactly an innocent angel, not with a neck like that. And the best way to beat a flirt at their own game is with utter bluntness. "That'd be great." The man yawned as he followed the avian through the bar. Odh hadn't really made his mind up about this woman. She seemed likeable enough, but whether she was so bubbly and sweet sober had yet to be seen. Still, innocent until proven guilty, as they say. Odh snorted derisively as he trailed after Brennia.
Brennia works her charms on the owners, drunk even! So, Odhranos has a room at least for the night and he would find his room has its own large metal bathtub to get cleaned up, soaps and a razor. The night was still young for Brennia, though and once Odhranos gets settled in his own room she would set out to the local shops in order to find the man some clean change of clothes and a comb. Once she got back she would knock gently on his door so he would find the package of clothes, but find the Avian had retreated back to her own room.
Chapter Two: Vailkrin Is Strange
Hanging Corpse Tavern
This once-timber tavern has been rebuilt in sturdily vitrified blackstone and imbued with powerful protective magics that prevent occult fire and several other potentially harmful spells being cast within its walls. No effort has been spared to make what might otherwise be a bleak interior comfortable. The bar is made of polished stone with an oaken inlay, the space behind filled with a bustle of attractive barmaids, sundry barrels and a dazzling array of coloured bottles that glint in the light cast by a large wrought-iron candelabrum suspended from the ceiling overhead. Here, the one-eyed Steadman stands, ready to take orders for food or drink. Beyond the bar, stout tables are firmly bolted to the floor, though the high-backed chairs are freestanding. The hearth is a true feature, seeming to be cast from black lava into the shape of a colossal, laughing goblin's head, its maw gaping wide and deep, usually containing a merrily crackling fire. A delicious scent of roasting meats drifts in from the kitchens and a winding staircase leads to rooms upstairs. To the south are set cellar doors, usually kept locked unless a special event is taking place. The walls are hung with thick, richly woven tapestries depicting persons and events in the history of Vailkrin and the Vampiric race. There's also a notice-board near the entrance, where one may leave messages. Unobtrusive but ever-present are the security staff, staunch fighters ever ready to toss troublemakers out.
Odhranos woke with a start, jerking into a sitting position, his breathing ragged and panicked. Clutching his chest, he screwed up his eyes and shook his head from side to side. The dream reluctantly let him go from it's vicious claws. It had started benign enough, he was walking on a beach, that woman, Brennia, she was in it too. Odh scowled, it did no one any good if he was dreaming about her, that was just asking for trouble. They had walked on the beach and there was something in the sand. Next thing, he was back in the water, desperately trying to swim to the surface, except in the turmoil of the storm, he didn't know which way was up. Holding his head in his hands, Odh waited for his breathing and heartbeat to return back to normal before he got out of bed. Scrubbing up with a basin of soapy water, Odh shaved off the scruffy stubble that had grown out during the voyage to Lithrydel. Once he had dried off, he pulled on some of the clothes Brennia had acquired for him the night before. A simple black shirt, along with slightly worn jeans, the ensemble was completed with the man's pair of old dirty boots. Stepping out of his room, he crossed the hallway and knocked on Brennia's door. "How's the head this morning?" he called out to her if she was awake.
Brennia did not fare well with sleep as she had to continuously keep herself sedated with relaxing herbs, but the bit she did drift off to sleep she was in some lavish hall in a marble castle of the skies. The stranger was there and they were alone drinking hard cider and he came onto her, very strange since she had the same shocked reaction as she did just last night. She was already up and just laying in bed, but once there was a knock the large white wolf leapt up with a growl. “Alrariek! No!” Her timbre elicited a fear with her bardic magic and the animal laid back down with a sort of ‘scoff’ when she went to the door. A sort of dense smoke of a potent smell seeped out and escaped the room once she opened the door, “Oh. Hello Odhranos.” She was in a slip of a nightgown and her hair was pulled up into a high ponytail which only seemed to accent those long pointy ears. She takes in the sight of him in some decent clothes and cleaned up with a smirk, “head is fine. How about you?” She sort of leaned on the door she was holding open, “have you considered what you will be doing in Lithrydel now that you are a new man?”
Odhranos waved his hand before his face to dispel the strong smelling smoke that wafted out of Brennia's room. "Sven above... what in gods names were you smoking?" He leaned back, looking at her skeptically when she strode to the door, expecting some sort of drugged delirium from whatever caused the smoke. But she didn't seem to have any obvious effects, perhaps it was a sort of incense. "I'm surprised, you were fairly laying into that bottle last night. I pity your liver." He grinned as he set his hand against the doorframe next to her, leaning in slightly. "Not a clue. That's the hardest quest, isn't it, when there's every possibility, how can you just pick one?" He shrugged nonchalantly before reaching out and gently tucking a stray strand of Brennia's hair that had escaped her ponytail behind her pointed ear. "I was going to suggest you pull some clothes on and join me for a walk."
Brennia could hear the large padding footsteps of Alareik behind her as he was trying to snoop so she had pulled herself in front of the door so her right palm rested on the door knob and rests her wings/back against the oak of the door. Odhranos could see the herbs doing something for her as her eyes were still a little bloodshot and glossy, but it wasn't so much so that it affects her temperament, “just some herbal relaxation.” A smirk and soft chuckle at his mention of her liver, “Avians are a little more resilient.” The simple fact is that she doesn't really drink for pleasure anymore. At first she was grief stricken in mourning the death of her owner, Alariek, but her age and heartache had awakened something frightening within her. It's all to keep that part of her subsided, but he was making moves on her now. She would blush if she could and her liberty blue eyes stare directly into his own as if she were unaffected, but the hallway must be cooler than her room because two somethings were pointing that out. One half step closer to him brings their body frames to nearly touch as she also leans in to ask, “something wrong with what I've got on?” It was just a tease and a quirk of her brow to add when those plump lips smirked.
Odhranos "hmm'd" at Brennia's explanation of "herbal relaxation". But each to their own, he supposed. "Handy, that..." he commented about her avian resilience to alcohol, "...unless you're trying to get drunk. Then it's just a nuisance." He joked as he ruffled his messy brown hair. When she blushed and leaned forward, Odh smiled bemusedly at her question. "Oh nothing wrong per say. Just, if there's a puff of breeze, you'll end up wearing it like a scarf in no-time. But hey, maybe that's what you're going for, I won't judge." He teased before taking a step back and down the hallway towards. "I'll meet you downstairs in twenty minutes, Bree." He called back over his shoulder, smirking to himself as he went.
Brennia watched him walk away and thought to herself ‘what an irksome man’ before slipping back into her room. When Odhranos descends back into the tavern he would find it rather quiet and scarce this time while a nervous looking human woman was asking where she can find Brennia. Her hands were shaking while holding what looks like an odd piece of leather in her hands and watery deep brown eyes doe eyes look eagerly at Odhranos thinking it was the Avian, but sighs worriedly when she realized it wasn't her. A soft and timid voice asks the barkeep, “w-would you just be able to go up there and r-receive her? It-its rather urgent.” Steadman chuckles while shaking his head, “oh no way! Last time I did that she nearly ripped my head off. She’ll probably be around a bit later.” The woman sets about pacing along the path of the bar counter to wait for Brennia.
Odhranos strolled down the stairs and leaned on the banister to listen in on the conversation going on between the girl and Steadman. The lass seemed pretty worked up about whatever it was, judging by the nervous shake in her hands and quaver in her voice. Making his way slowly down the stairs and across to the bar, Odh lifted a glass from the bar and filled it with tap water while his eyes track the woman as she paces back and forth. "Something desperately important you need her for?" He inquired after a minute or so, draining the last of the glass before leaving it upside down beside the sink and leaning against the bar with his back to it as he studied the newcomer.
Brennia was busy baking some more while getting dressed for the day and left her friend to deal with the new rude acquaintance she just made. Rhaya was a young female human with kindness in her eyes and a naivety about her. She is short compared to Odhranos standing only up to about five three (and a half!) can't forget that half inch. She had been twirling her fine naturally blonde braided hair with her free hand while she paced and stared down at her sandaled feet. Her skin was fair and freckled just slightly from the sun which turned a slight shade of pink at her cheeks when the stranger addressed her, “um… Y-yes?” Her pacing had slowed to a halt and she dropped her braid which dangled about her waist, “and wh-who are you?” A skepticism filled those doe eyes for she was young, but not that easily trusting. She heard footsteps again to see Alareik padding down the stairs this time to which she sighed once more, but this was a good sign and meant that Brennia will be soon to follow. The beast of a white wolf trots over and licked at Rhaya’s forearm while trying to sniff at the unusual scrap of ‘leather’ she was holding, but she pulled it away behind her back.
Odhranos nodded slowly as if uninterested. "Ahh, I'm no-one important. Just a forgettable face." He smiled gently, his dark-grey eyes twinkling mischievously as he did so. "An acquaintance of Brennia's, if you will. And what about yourself?" He sat himself on the stool nearby and slouched against the bar, before Alareik padded down the stairs. "Ah, he seems to know you then. And I'd wager Brennia by extension?" Odh deduced, as he unfurled languidly from the stool and strolling across to scratch behind Alareik's ears before turning to face Rhaya. "Odhranos." He stated simply, his steely eyes meeting Rhaya's with a cheeky intensity, as if daring her not to look away.
Brennia, seriously, where are you? Rhaya continues to look down at the beast before her and his orange human-like eyes as if her life depended on it. When the stranger dares scratch the beast behind his ears Rhaya’s eyes widened, “no!” With a fearful tone and occupied Odhranos’ hand instead with a handshake, but it was lucky she did because he could see the beast was snarling up at him. She was forced to be looking up at the towering man and she blushed deeper under his shadow, “hello th-there Ohhonos.” She was nervous and not very good at names, but she sort of grimaces knowing she butchered it. Becoming more timid she started a, “s-sorry ab-” and thankful for the distraction when Brennia finally comes down the stairs. Rhaya almost seems a bit more relaxed in smelling lavender coming off Brennia and a friendly smile for the Avian, “Bree!” Brennia beams a warm smile down to Rhaya before bending down to give her a hug, “I see you've met Odhranos. Odhranos, this is a friend of mine, Rhaya.” Before they could all get too friendly Rhaya’s bottom lip was quivering in worry as she meekly interjected, “can I talk with you privately, Bree?” Brennia’s demeanor changed entirely, what a buzz kill, but she showed concern and led her friend away to a private booth while Alareik followed, but kept his eye on Odhranos.
Odhranos seemed very chill for one who had been an instant away from losing an appendage or two, but almost dying did that to you, sort of puts everything in relativity. Looking down to the wolf with a bemused smile, he chuckled. "Friendly little fellow, aren't you?" He then followed up his statement with a mocking pout before turning his attention to Rhaya, who was still holding his hand. Closing his own firmly around hers, he flashed a winning smile as he squeezed her hand lightly, before retracting his hand, his fingertips brushing across her palm softly as he did so before turning away to Brennia, who had that point reached the bottom of the stairs. When Rhaya called Brennia aside, Odhranos returned his attention to Alareik, crouching down so he was on eye level with the wolf. "Seems you and I got off on the wrong foot." He grumbled as he took a paper-wrapped package from his pocket. Pulling one pork rasher from the package, he diplomatically laid it on the floor between them, no-man's/wolf's land so to speak.
Brennia | Alareik almost seemed to, smirk? For an animal this wolf seems to have a lot of human traits, but what was more unsettling were the eyes and how conscious they seemed. The wolf takes up the morsel into his teeth and sort of snorted at him, I guess a reluctant thanks before taking off after the ladies to eavesdrop. From a distance maybe Odhranos would watch as Rhaya laid out the ‘leather’ before Brennia upon the table and this immediately got an reaction from the Avian with a gasp after her hand clamped over her mouth. Rhaya was talking hurriedly now and there was actual fear in both of the woman's eyes while tears were filling them, but whatever was being said would be drowned out by the wolf’s low guttural growl at this news. Brennia being too distracted by the ‘leather’ scrap in her hand as she was nearly catatonic, but it was too late as Alareik turned and glared right past Odhranos at the exit before barreling for it. Something dawns on the Avian and she tries to run after the beast, “don't, Alareik!” Rhaya stood up quickly and somehow found her voice, “Bree! No! Please, stop her!” Steadman reacted automatically in wrapping the Avian about her waist from behind and she flails helplessly with angry tears running down caramel cheeks. Brennia gave up and fell in a crumple upon the floor, “but he’ll kill Alareik… It was all I had left…” she seemed to all but forget that a stranger was in the tavern before bloodshot blue eyes look up at him spilling over with tears. Her cheeks were red from anger and embarrassment now as Rhaya hesitated in getting nearer to the Avian, “Bree I am so sorry. So very sorry…” her voice was meek and shy, but once Brennia made it back up on her own feet all she could do was swiftly escape up the stairs to her room with the lock of the door. Rhaya wipes her eyes standing at the bottom of the stairs.
Odhranos watched the exchange with growing suspicion. That scrap of whatever it was, while looking like leather, clearly had much too much of an impact on Brennia to be any simple piece of tanned cow skin. Which begged the question, if it wasn't from a cow... Odh gritted his teeth, that wasn't a train of thought he'd like to follow. As Alareik careened past, Odhranos attempted to scramble to his feet and maybe hold the door closed, but the wolf had already slammed a shoulder into the door and barrelled out beyond. In the quiet that followed, Odhranos glanced up the stairs after Brennia, as if unsure whether he should follow, but that might do more harm than good. Give the lass time to sort out whatever was going through her head. Striding across the tavern, Odhranos plucked a glass from the bar and after filling it with water, handed it to Rhaya. "Drink, settle yourself. Take what time you need." He grumbled, but his gruff words were offset by a gentle hand reaching out to brush the tears off her cheeks. "Anything I should know about?" He inquired simply, dragging across a stool before sitting facing Rhaya.
Brennia could be heard breaking stuff in her room, but knowing her it was probably half emptied bottles of wine. Rhaya knew better than to follow her and instead meandered herself to the bar just as Odhranos had while her arms were crossed around her petite waist in order to sort of comfort herself. She nearly forgot the stranger was here and flinches at his words in surprise, but she takes the water and empties the glass for a minute trying to calm herself while gathering her thoughts. Her cheeks are just slightly pink from the exchange because she was feeling angry along with Brennia, but when the stranger was brushing her tears away those pale freckled cheeks darken more and he would be able to feel how warm they were. He seems so kind, but Brennia only called him an acquaintance and Rhaya knows that Brennia's past can be a lot to handle. “W-well… Someone very bad that has been hunting the cou- the Brennia has finally caught onto her trail and is hunting her down.” She thought his note was menacing enough, but the freak went as far as leaving behind the other half of Brennia’s family crest which was tattooed on the inside her brother’s arm. Rhaya understood now why Brennia was so paranoid two years ago when she first arrived in Lithrydel and why she feels so lost without her ex. Rhaya glances to a bottle behind the counter of Rosè, but feels it's too early to start -that- and it always makes her waaay too chatty anyway. She glances over her shoulder to the stairs as the ruckus has died down, “she's probably smoking again…” Rhaya was too nervous to even look the tall handsome man in the eye and she looks down at her hands which are brushing some lint off her cotton sundress.
Odhranos noticed her eyeing up the bottle, and not having any qualms with drinking at whatever hour of the day, he blatantly picked it up and poured two glasses. "Soothe your nerves lass, I'm getting jittery just being beside you. Sit, I won't bite. That's Brennia's thing." He grunted as he plonked himself on a stool and drained his glass, gritting his teeth as the alcohol. "If this "bad person" is hunting her, why not just kill him? If she knows he's coming, prepare for him and ensure that he won't hunt her further. She has the advantage in that regard." Odh sniffed as he topped off his glass. "Besides, what's your business in all of this. Another of Brennia's little pets or just a worried acquaintance?" The man inquired, as his eyes sized her up, scrutinizing her intently.
Rhaya watched his movements and still neglected to actually look at his face because that would just make her more nervous. Well, if he's drinking then her drinking as well won't look as bad and she lifts her own glass to take a lingering sip. He made a joke about Brennia and she sort of giggled before a surprised snort, how could she be so catty? She drank some more and her head was already spinning just a little, but that's probably due to the fact she hasn't had breakfast yet and is on the verge of skipping lunch as well. “Well… It isn't that easy. That man is crazy. Avians are a determined race and from what Brennia has told me, he takes that to a whole new level.” She's sipping more rosè and in doing so getting drunk quite quickly. Her free hand goes back to twirling the end of her long blond braid around her finger, “oh - no. When Brennia escaped to Lithrydel I showed her around a bit and she got me out of my shell.” If she's shy and nervous now, one could only imagine how she must have been before meeting Brennia, “did I say escaped?” Her cheeks are red again in a tittering giggle, but it's from the warmth of the alcohol she's sipping from again and her embarrassing slip up, “I meant to say traveled or arrived.” She was feeling it now and sighed softly while look up at Odhranos with a weak smile, “oh my… I really shouldn't have said that.”
Odhranos sipped from his glass bemusedly, he hadn't expected the alcohol to hit her quite that quickly, but then again, she wasn't nervous anymore, eh? Kind of cute to, for all her giggling and blushing. Draining his glass and topping up hers as well, he reached out and lifted her chin with one long index finger, the sort of long fingers a piano player would have, graceful and... nimble. "You possibly shouldn't have, but I'm already invested in this situation, so what harm is me knowing a little more? I've already expressed interest in stopping the man you both seem to fear, I'd say we're all on the same side, so why shouldn't we all be on the same page?" The fingertip caressed her chin lightly, then moved up to her lower lip, before the man brought his hand away. "I'm sure I could ask Brennia if you deem it sensitive enough. I have... several intriguing ways of loosening a lady's tongue."
Rhaya blinks a couple times, drink in hand and being forced to look up at this handsome man. ‘He has a point,’ she thinks to herself, ‘... gosh - I bet Brennia thinks he's just as cute as I do.’ The red tinge of her cheeks spreads to her ears and down her neck as she felt his thumb on her lower lip causing them to sort of purse at the feeling. He's pulling away though and she feels like pouting because of it, but settles for drinking more. This causes what we call word vomit, “Brennia ran out of her wedding to this horrible man.” She hiccups, adorably, “he had plans to kill her on their honeymoon and make it look like an accident so he would be the ruler of Vere, an Island exclusive to Avians.” Hiccup, “She went back only once, in disguise, but she never expec-” hiccup, “expected him to murder her whole family and he was on the hunt for her back then.” Hiccup, sip, “it's been quiet since then and after her protector was killed she's been here ever since, but I found…th-” hiccup, “this thing hanging on a tavern board with a note and a dagger through it. He's here now. Looking for her and the thing h-” hiccup, “he left was a piece of her brother’s skin where he had a matching tattoo with Brennia.” She shifters and a grimace came over her. “Si-” hiccup, “sick man.”
Odhranos grimaced. "Sick man seems to cover it. I had a feeling that scrap was something more than just leather. So he's killed her family in cold blood to spite her and now she fears that she'll finally be next. Tell me-" Odhranos' face took on a stern frown. "-how exactly does a man kill a royal family and get away with it? How does he kill? If he has patterns, discernable habits, then he can be caught out. The killer can be killed." Odhranos reached across and laid his hand over Rhaya's. "I can protect her. I assure you of my good intentions. But you need to tell me, who is Brennia? She has to have some importance if marriage to her would leave this man ruler of a realm."
Rhaya’s own expression looked fearful and worried by his own stern one while those large brown eyes watch his face for a moment. His tone had scared her hiccups away without her noticing and she shrugged at most of his questions, but the one about Brennia…. She’s quiet and she looks around in the emptiness of the tavern to let her gaze rest at the top of the staircase while her pouty bottom lip tucked between her teeth; which only accents her slight buck teeth. “Um..” she looked down at his hand on her own, the redness on her cheeks remaining because of it. “Y-You can't tell her that I told you,” her voice got smaller and weaker. “Well, you've s-seen her,” she glances up to see how he reacted to thinking about Brennia, “the tattoo covering her means she's the highest r-royal family, Smyth, of island Vere and where she is from she was supposed to be the Countess of Vere. She was being forced into an arranged marriage when she turned one hundred and twenty because that's just the law, but she never felt right with it and never wanted to be a monarch.” By now she was looking down again as she cleared her throat gently, “most people can't even tell she's royalty. Sh-she tries really hard to forget the hell she went through in traini-” she realizes she's just talking away too much. “I'm sorry.” She slips her hand from under his in order to drink from her glass some more.
Odhranos' eyes softened when Rhaya explained Brennia's position. "So she's royalty, huh? Just typical, I trek halfway across the world and Lady Luck dumps me in the lap of another monarch. Or almost-monarch." Odhranos smiled softly, sipping slowly from his glass before turning to Rhaya again. "Let me tell you who I am. Or who I was. It's the least I can do to repay what you've told me." He shrugged a little. "I came from an island nation not too different from Vere. Oileán, it's called. A small but far reaching nation, that has a mercantile stake in almost every kingdom known to man. The nation is led by the High King, while the upper nobility are grouped in familial houses, who's members are trained from birth for their future role in the Oileánian war machine. My house were the right-hand of the High King, our name was House Carraig-an-Rí. My rank is... was that of the Royal Diplomat, but my duties were far more than simply that. I was the personal bodyguard of the High King of Oileán... or I was, until I was betrayed." Odhranos' eyes became overcast as he hunched over his glass.
Rhaya found herself looking up at him again while holding her wine in her hands, sipping from it here and there. ‘Well, that explains why he's so alluring…’ Her shoulders sort of slumped when she thinks that Brennia and Odhranos would probably have a lot in common and make a cute couple which caused an envy grow in her heart. Even though she was impossibly intimidated by him now she quietly asks, “s-sir Odhranos? How were you betrayed?” Her glance at him during her question was quick before returning back to the drink in her hand or the skirt of her dress on her lap. “I-I could listen to you talk all day,” she mentioned even quieter in an almost sigh, but she takes another sip of her glass as if she said nothing and in doing so she emptied it. She didn't realize that other than the alcohol she was already comforted by this stranger and his story, “there's nothing special about m-me… Just a plain girl from Xalious.” She seemed sort of sad at the mention.
Odhranos hunched further and grimaced. "I fell in love. She was the daughter of a foreign king, of a kingdom that Oileán was negotiating a treaty with, Kayvan. Had the most vibrant red hair, and the most beautiful voice..." A weary sigh came from the tired looking man. "She wooed me, and seduced me... and then I was caught by the royal guard in the king's daughter's bed. Kings don't take kindly to foreign diplomats getting cosy with their daughters, so the treaty was destroyed. Oileán lost a powerful ally and it was all blamed on some stupid diplomat who couldn't keep it in his pants. Other kingdoms lost faith in us, and soon, our nation stood without allies. Because of me." Odhranos seemed almost spiteful in his words. "A year later, Kayvan invaded Oileán. Two months of bloody siege and we lost hard. When the Kayvanian king marched into the throne room with his entourage, I saw her for the first time in many months. I tried to go to her, hoping she would see sense, that through our love, she might spare my nation." The man's eyes darkened. "She spat on me, and had her guards kick me to the ground. It had all been a lie, just a ruse, a way for Kayvan to weaken it's neighbor until they were ripe for harvest." Odhranos sighed, there was no point crying over it now. When Rhaya mentioned quietly how she wasn't special, the Oileánian's eyes softened as he turned to face her. "Don't ever say you're not special. Kings and Countesses, diplomats and monarchs, they're all a waste of time. They hold their position by standing on the shoulders of others. You stand by your own strength. So don't underestimate yourself."
Rhaya’s doe brown eyes widened at his story and she sort of pouted at his misfortune, “how awful of her.” The words came out harsher than she expected as she didn't understand why, but hearing him with someone else made the pit of her stomach lurch as if she were riding a carriage down a steep hill. She had put down her empty wine glass and let both of her hands untangle her braid at the end only to reweave it over and over. She felt so small next to him not only physically, but socially and when his words of encouragement comes out those large deep brown eyes look up at him. In the dim light of the tavern he would be able to see the reddish hue they held under thick long lashes and the pink tinge to her freckled cheeks. A smile spread across her lips and her buck front teeth show in a set of otherwise perfect whites. A soft and flattered giggle bubbles up in a high note, “that's nice of you to say.” She shakes her head slightly, but looks back down as she continues, “b-but I'm just no one.” Her short legs which dangle off the barstool were swinging a little just now which proves she likes his compliments even if she doesn't believe them.
Odhranos tilts his head and looks at her skeptically. "Everyone's someone, you just need to figure out who that someone is. I thought I knew, now I have to figure it out all over again. Give it time. You never know where life might take you" Odhranos got up from the barstool and gently took Rhaya's braid from her hands, deftly reweaving it before letting it rest against her chest. "We should really check on Brennia, I haven't heard something smash in a while, so she might be in a more amenable state of mind." Odh grimaced before heading for the stairs, beckoning Rhaya to join him.
Rhaya stood up and rushed after him so fast that she forgot she was drunk and stumbled into him. Her petite frame against his own and she was looking up at him blushing quite deeply now, “I-I’m sorry,” she wants to right herself and stand back up properly, but she didn't want to at the same time. “Um… I can't l-let you go up there…” there seems to be a lot more about Brennia that Odhranos doesn't know yet. “W-we might see something that we aren't meant to,” there was a fear in her eyes as her head was tilted back to look up at him. “B-Brennia has been battling some demons lately and I don't want to get in the middle,” her voice was barely a whisper now.
Odhranos looked as if he were going to continue regardless, but when Rhaya collided with his back, his hand reached back to stop her from falling, landing on her petite hip. "....fine. I'll give her an hour. But otherwise I'm going up. It's worrying, and I get she has issues, but she needs support at the same time. She shouldn't have to deal with it alone." He growled unhappily, turning to face Rhaya before noticing her deep blush. Grinning slightly, he reached out for her hip again, looping his arm about her waist before pulling her towards his chest. "You alright there? You look like you're far too warm, too hot in here for you?" He smirked.
Rhaya looked up at Odhranos and with her against him like this he could probably feel her heart racing within her chest. “N-no, sir Odhranos…” It's been so long since she has let anyone close like this, physically, and her mind was racing along with her head a little fuzzy from the rosé. Her voice was still so small and in a whisper, “it’s not th-that. It’s just…” Those deep brown eyes glance down at his lips and before she could filter what she was about to say or blame her red cheeks on the alcohol, more word vomit, “I'm just finding it difficult to not feel so nervous around such a cute man…” Shame brings her head down for her to look at her own hands resting on his chest.
Odhranos leaned down until his face was mere inches from Rhaya's, his breath brushing hot against her lips while his dark grey eyes met hers unwaveringly. "Is that so?" He murmurs softly, almost conspiratorially, as if this were some sort of secret just the two of them shared. "You have nothing to feel nervous around me for. I don't bite." He grinned cheekily, leaning in closer to her ear, before breathing huskily, "Unless you'd like me to." He pulls back with a smug smile before he steps back, taking her hand in his as he goes. "C'mere, sit before you fall over. Tell me more about yourself, Miss Rhaya of Xalious."
Rhaya would blush deeper if she could in his advance and tease, but she wouldn’t dare pull away. She’s one of those who fall fast and easy without much effort, but possibly confusing lust for love. So she’s lead to a booth and allows the chattiness she gains from her friend, ‘rosé’, take over. She goes on and on about her father in Xalious and his smithing skills, but that she spends most of her time in the library there and hopes one day she can become a teacher. They talk probably until near nightfall and she eventually starts to fall asleep on Odhrano’s shoulder on the inside of the booth they chose to sit at.
Chapter 3
Stay Tuned...