A Drink to Warm the Soul

[Seth Roshan]

It was a busy night for the pub. The usual clamor of the establishment was in full swing. All around glasses clinked, people chattered, stools rocked, and floorboards groaned under the weight they were forced to bear. In the background, under the din, lively music could just barely be heard as it carried on for the entertainment of the guests.

Outside the tavern, a harsh storm carried on as it had for most of the daylight hours. It was dark and cold, with an icy pounding rain that could freeze one to the bone. The door to the pub opened slowly to reveal the grim scene outside and a cloaked figure entered quickly, shutting the elements away behind him.

All eyes were momentarily on the man as he quickly made his way to a table at the back of the room. As he trudged wearily, his shadow flickered in the dim light as if it struggled to mimic his form. The figure did not remove his cloak until he had reached his destination and he spoke to no one as he passed. The other guests immediately pegged him as antisocial and continued with their merriments.

The small round table he chose was almost entirely in the only corner of the room that the light could not reach. It was positioned directly next to, almost beneath, the back of the stairs that led to the rooms for those that had purchased a night's stay. His shadow pulled a disappearing act, as shadows tend to do, when it met with the darkness around the stairs.

The man gracefully removed his long cloak in a sweeping fashion with one arm and deposited it on the back of his chair. Even in the shadowed corner, his appearance was striking. Dressed almost entirely in black, he wore a toga like outfit made out of flowing black cloth that ended in a skirt like attachment that reached his knees, similar in a appearance to ceremonial robes that the mythical Egyptians of the lands of Earth wore. The left half of his chest and his entire left arm were bare, revealing the marble pale skin beneath the fabric. A purple sash stretched from his right shoulder, at a diagonal, across the covered portion of his chest and wrapped around his waist. The tassled ends hung almost to his knees. A separate black sleeve covered his entire right arm, beginning at his shoulder and attached there with a gold chain and brooch. A black glove on his right arm, black pants, and black knee high boots completed the ensemble.

If his outfit did not bring attention to the figure, his physical appearance certainly did. The man was well built, lean and thin, but strong, with a princely face. There was, however, a sickly air about the man that one could not shake. It could be attributed to the dark circles under his red eyes or the unnatural paleness of his skin. Or maybe it was his hair. The man's hair was beautiful at first glance. It was black as night and hung far down, past his torso. But at a second glance, one would see that it hung limp and straight; lifeless. And a huge portion that hung in his face, effectively covering the right half, was bleached white. It looked as if all the life had been drained right out of it. He was a very strange man indeed.

Strange though he may be, the man simply looked wet and weary this night. He sighed as he closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair, grateful for the warmth of the fire and the bodies in the tavern. The man sat up straight after a few moments and sad garnet eyes stared out past his surroundings as he waited for something. What exactly he waited for, even the man did not know; another guest to approach him perhaps? Or maybe he waited to be asked what he wished to drink. Either way, he waited for something to happen and eventually something would.

[artemis]

Callista, having found a sheltered spot to tie up her horse outside, made her way into the tavern. Her cloak was wet from the storm, but she didn't seem to care. She kept the hood up so her face remained shadowed, and stood at the bar for a few minutes to get a drink.

While she was waiting, she looked around, seeing if there was anybody that caught her eye, or if she recognized somebody from a past greeting.

Of course, she was still technically new to this town, so she knew she wouldn't find anybody here that she knew- or rather, recognized. However, the shadows in the far corner seemed to hold interest. A rounded table, with a single male sitting there. Nobody giving him company. She continued looking around, trying not to glance for too long of a moment.

Hmmm... I suppose it wouldn't hurt to sit over there. Bet he wouldn't really care either way... she thought to herself, as she moved her attention back to the bar when the bartender finally made his way over to her. "Just a mudshake for me, and something hard for the gentleman in the corner. If he doesn't drink it, I will." she told him, waiting a couple minutes, then grabbing the drinks and walking over to the table casually.

As she made her way through the crowd, she barely managed to prevent people from bumping into her or stepping on the one inch of black dress and cloak that dragged on the floor behind her. When she finally reached the stranger's table, she slid the drink she bought for him across the table to him, then silently sat down opposite to where he was sitting. She was never good at this 'making new friends' thing, but she figured this was a good start.

She got herself comfortable, setting her drink on the table infront of her, then removing her hood, smoothing out her hair. She had only removed her hood, because she felt somewhat safe, and she figured he'd probably talk more if he knew what she looked like. So, after doing said movements, she took in a deep breath, and cupped her hands around the glass, waiting for him to say something first.

[Seth Roshan]

As the drink slid towards him from across the table, the man caught it with his gloved hand and then quirked his visible eyebrow in curiosity at the young woman who planted herself across from him. He'd seen her enter in her trailing attire and had watched, with some amusement, her ordering at the bar as she snuck a few glances at his spot in the corner. He had, however, been mildly surprised when she'd actually headed towards him and sat down. Most people tended to avoid the necromancer. If his appearance did not set them ill at ease, then the feeling most got from his presence did. It was as if they could sense there was something unnatural about him.

The man shifted his gaze down to the drink that had made its way to his hand. The liquor was a copper color and from the smell of it, it was something strong. It looked like it would burn all the way from his throat to his stomach. If nothing else at least it might manage to warm his cold and tired body.

The young woman had not yet said a word to the man. She’d simply sat down and passed him his drink. It appeared that she wished for him to initiate conversation on his own terms. He thought it funny that she had so boldly invaded his space, yet waited for him to speak as if she didn’t want to disturb or annoy him. Although the man was not usually very sociable, this girl amused and intrigued him, so he decided to humor her.

He returned his attention to the woman and said with a smirk, “Do you make a habit of sitting next to the strangest people in a bar and buying them a drink?”

He waited a moment to gauge her reaction to his remark before offering his ungloved hand to shake as he introduced himself with a smile that did not quite reach his cold eyes, “I am Seth Roshan. And who might you be?”

(OOC: Sorry that took so long, I was out of town and then my mother ended up in the hospital. She's ok now though.)

[artemis]

Callista took in a deep breath, looking at her drink. Then, she heard the man say something about strange people and buying them drinks. "That is obsurd. I never said you were strange, and no I do not make a habit of it." she said, "In fact, it's the first time I've done such a thing." she finally looked up from her glass to him, glancing at him with lost, searching eyes. She nodded when he introduced himself, "I am Callista Bronwen. Nice to meet you, Seth." she said quietly, making sure only he heard her name.

[Shadow De Vaezai]

The door of the pub opened again to reveal a tall figure who quickly shut the elements out behind him. A tattered and worn cape covered most of the man's body, with a soft glow emanating from his left shoulder. Lowering his hood and shaking the raven black hair out of his face, the man was revealed, and his crimson eyes danced around the crowd.

Shadow nodded at familiar faces, grimaced at people he did not want to see, and glanced at strangers. A few nods were returned with acknowledgments, bringing a smile to Shadow's face.

The glowing spot beneath his cloak rustled slightly, and a small orange head popped out of the cloak. Chao squintingly examined his surroundings before jumping down off of Shadow's shoulder. the little creature was glowing because of his accelerated body heat, to help protect himself and Shadow from the cold outside. Chao's body was golden-orange in color, complete with a red mane that ran from the tip of his head to the spikes on his tail. Sharp claws and teeth made this one creature that none would want to attack.

Once Chao on the floor, he looked up at Shadow I'll find you someone interesting to sit next to, I promise. and darted off in the direction of the corner table beneath the stairs, which was Shadow's usual spot.

Shadow made his way up to the bar, clapping friends on the back and saying hello. once he got to the bar, the bartender nodded and poured him the usual: a goblet of fine red wine that almost looked like blood. Shadow took a sip and thought to himself Ugh... i hate how this looks so much like blood... it gets people so unnerved, and more than once it got me in trouble... Oh well, still taste's great.

Yawning, he tossed the bartender a gold coin and made his way through the crowd towards his usual table, only to find Chao looking at it confusedly. Normally, the table was covered in dust. today however, there were two people sitting at it!

Looking at the table through his goblet, he examined the two. the young girl had a strange aura about her. she was different, which was quite obvious, and Shadow could tell she was hiding something... but not exactly what. The man at the other side of the table, however, wasn't hiding anything. He was brimming with power, and had a dark aura. The condition of his body led Shadow to guess that the man practiced dark magics. Perfect... a group of three perfect strangers, sharing a drink. At least it'll be interesting...

Chao looked up at the arrival of Shadow, and jumped back up onto his shoulder. Shadow indicated the other two at the table with a nod, and as he took his seat, he smiled warmly.

"Well! it's good to see that I'll have company tonight at my table!"

Untying his cloak, he draped it across the back of his chair, and petting Chao on top of his head.

"My name is Shadow DeVaezai. This is Chao-" indicating the fox-sized creature on his shoulder- "He's a dragon-dog, and has been my companion for more than twenty years." Chao nodded his head as he examined the others on the table.

"And who might your two be?"

[artemis]

Callista was slightly unnerved by this man and his dragon-dog, but she tried not to show it. She hated people she didn't know seeing her face, but she knew he had already seen her, so it was pointless to raise her hood to shadow her face. She nodded when the man introduced himself as Shadow DeVaezai. She'd certainly never heard of him before, and could already tell he knew there was something very different about her.

She attempted ignoring that fact, and shrugged her shoulders, "Nice to meet you, Shadow... and Chao." she said, raising an eyebrow awkwardly. "I did not see your name printed on this table anywhere. I apologize for not realising it was yours." She never meant it in a rude way. Sometimes she just had a habit of taking things literally.

[Seth Roshan]

Seth didn't react for a moment or two. He simply sat there, dumbly holding his untouched drink as stared at his table mates. Out of all the people in the pub, the three with the most secrets to hide had managed to all gather together. Not that all the other rowdy patrons didn't have things to hide, but none projected strange power like the three at the remote table did. The girl's aura didn't speak of magic like Seth's and this Shadow did, but there was still something slightly off about her; something that set her aside from the average people.

This fact, combined with the fact that this was more company than the necromancer had had in quite possibly hundreds of years set him off laughing. It hurt to laugh, but the man simply could not help himself, the situation was so ridiculous. Still, once he was in control of his senses again, a part of him realized that it had felt a bit good to laugh after so long.

"I apologize," he said quietly, his deep voice slightly raspy from laughing, "It just struck me as a bit odd that the three of us in particular find ourselves gathered here together. I have a feeling that none of us belong with them and we each know why."

He motioned to the rest of the customers in the bar with his free hand as he said the last bit. Then he offered the same ungloved hand for Shadow to shake as he had offered the girl and with a smile that, despite his laughter, did not quite reach his eyes, he offered, "Seth Roshan. And what brings you here tonight, Shadow?"

[Shadow De Vaezai]

Shadow returned the shake with a firm grip, looking at Seth's eyes. they were... interesting.

Swirling the glass in his hand, Shadow took another sip of his drink. Turning to Callista and swallowing the liquid, he sighed. "Well, it just so happens that my name is carved somewhere on this table, but not blatantly as my name." Shadow examined the table quickly, and pointed at the exact center. there was a butterfly, hidden by the dust layer, carved into the table. "That butterfly was the mark of the Guild of the Nightwalkers, which I created, and, helplessly watched get torn to shreds by warfare."

As Shadow was speaking, Chao lightly leaped off of Shadow's shoulder, landed, and padded beneath the table, where he intended to curl up and go to sleep. however, once he got to a spot he liked, there was something already there. He couldn't tell what, but reached out his two longer whiskers to poke it.

Meanwhile, Shadow turned to Seth. "As to answer your question, Mr. Seth, a great thirst and a strange feeling brought me here tonight. I do not like to drink. I once did, until the day I became so inebriated that I made a very foolish mistake." Shadow shuddered. Indicating the glass, Shadow took another sip before continuing. "this wine is the only alcoholic beverage that I will ever consume- and I'm the only one I know around these parts that does."

Shadow took another sip from his glass, emptying it. Shadow then motioned to the bartender, who hastily poured another glass and gave it to a waiter, who promptly delivered it to Shadow.."How about you two? What brings you here tonight?" Shadow took a sip, smiled, and tossed the waiter two gold coins- one for him, one for the bartender, before turning back to the conversation. "Have either of you been in Avaren long?

[artemis]

Callista couldn't help but get a little nervous when the creature went under the table. After all, she was wearing a dress. So, she casually folded her dress around her legs so that it couldn't do any... exploring. Not to mention it was very strange, as Seth had mentioned, that the three of them ended up here tonight. Perhaps this was her chance to get more people on her side... however, that would involve a great deal of explaining, because she had no way to prove the existence of her twin sister.

She finished off her drink, but did not motion for anyone to pour her another glass. She came here to relax, but so far it seemed everyone had suspicions on her. Which of course, they had all rights to have. She only had an identical twin that had done an outrageous amount of stealing in this town, and one of the council members had already recognized her. She could only hope that nobody else would.

She took a deep breath, watching Shadow intently. She fought the urge to just get up and leave without saying anything, but that would probably look worse than just staying here. She just couldn't decide what to do. This guy was pretty much interrogating them, and she wanted nothing to do with the answers.

Finally a few moments later, she figured out what she'd say. "I just figured this would be a nice place to just sit and have a drink. The only trouble is, I have to keep an eye on my horse outside." Luckily, she could barely see him through the small windows of the bar from where she sat, instead of having to go outside to check on him. Then another question came, and she answered, "Probably about a week now." she said. She never kept track of the days, so there really was no way of telling how long she's been here.