The start of something magical (Mi and Ves)

[Mihai Ionescu]

Few things were quite as satisfying as slipping from his Order’s scrutinizing stares and just roaming free around a big city. As Mihai walked down one of the many streets of the Archades’ marketplace, fully dressed in civilian clothes, one couldn’t look more inconspicuous.

Cheerful to the point of humming to himself, the adept browsed the stalls for what seemed to be hours, until night fell and the shops closed. Like an Esper’s gift though, just around the corner, he found a pub. Time to make the day more interesting…

Heads turned when the boy waltzed in, short and scrawny looking, and Mihai smiled as usual when people watched him come. The Oracle cleared his throat as he announced: “Gentlemen.” And he pulled a velvet little bag from under his clothes. “A bag of coins for the man who defeats me in a shot contest.” Some people laughed, mocking the newcomer, and some smiled, already picturing themselves spending the easily earned cash.

No one smirked brighter than Mihai.

Fast forward a couple of hours, and Mihai had most of the tavern cheering him on around a table, across from his fiercest contestant so far. The wizard was past the drunken point, but his fans didn’t need to know, right? As long as he kept drinking.

Ten.

With another shot down, he smiled to the man sitting with him. He couldn’t possibly last much longer; Mihai knew they had all been drinking before he arrived. “Ready to give up, big boy?”
The man hiccupped a laugh in reply, and shot down his tenth glass, slamming it back on the table louder than necessary. They both gestured the waitress for another. “Fine, fine.” The Oracle laughed. The guy was a good sport, at least. Cheers to you!

Eleven.

Mihai was pretty sure he wouldn’t walk away from this. Maybe crawl back to his sanctuary, if he could even find the way in this state, and beg the monks not to be too harsh on their punishments. The contestant put his empty glass down, but his hands were starting to shake. That would be painful in the morning, if the man prayed to the wrong One.

Twelve.

And one to the God who won’t let you have a hangover!

[Vesna Kitanovska]

What did Vesna Kitanovska do after killing a large monster and getting a large bounty?

She drank of course.

Not alone of course, Vesna was in the company of some of her clan mates. She never drank alone after all and they earned the break. They had all come back safe and sound, except the few scrapes and bruises they received. A job well done and the small village was thankful. And she was thankful they coin that provided food and drink in her belly.

Everyone seemed to be cheering at the bar, piquing her interest. A new guy? Wow, he was giving the regulars a run for their money. When the rest of the clan called it a night she opted to stay, wanting to see the finale. Easily she wormed her way through the crowd and hopped up on the bar to get a good seat. Cute guy, kind of scrawny, but was clearly able to hold her liquor. Vesna grabbed a beer from the bar keep and watched with amusement.

"What are they at?" She asked a man next to her. His reply had her eyes widening. 12? Oh wow, someone was going to be sorry in the morning. Neither of them looked like they were going to back down either. Vesna sipped her beer, waiting anxiously for the competition to end. Secretly she was rooting for the scrawny guy. She always liked when the underdogs won.

[Mihai Ionescu]

At that point, Mihai was starting to wonder how many more shots the man could handle before throwing up, but his answer came as he raised the thirteenth glass. The guy looked at him, frowning and wobbling, before doubling over and emptying his stomach’s contents on the floor.


Mihai took the next shot, under the stares of the entire bar. It did take him a moment to swallow, cheeks puffed with the vodka as he looked back at the people. There was a moment of silence and time seemed to stop as expectancy rose. Would he follow the contestant’s fate?


With a drunken grin, though, the Oracle swallowed the drink and rose his hands to announce himself the winner. If the tavern had been cheering before, the screams were deafening now, and Mihai lost count (on the third, mind you) of the pats over his back.

He barely registered when someone pulled him up by the arms and passed him around over the men’s heads. Hell yeah, worship me!


When Mihai was put down again, his legs faltered and he had to grip the closes thing not to land face first on the floor. It just happened to be a chair, so he quickly sat on it. In his immediate front, sat an amused looking girl with dark hair. Use your best smile, Mihai. There was an attempt to stun the girl with his good looks.

“Hi!”

[Vesna Kitanovska]

When the bigger man threw up they all laughed and began to cheer on the small blonde as he lifted the glass. On cue through, when he brought it to his lips they all went silent. Would he be able to swallow it? She leaned forward slightly, still sipping the beer she had in hand. A tense moment passed as he drank the shot.

However, once he got to his feet the cheering came back ten fold, and she watched as they lifted him up and crowd surfed him along. Vesna grinned and finished off her beer so she could clap for him as well. She was happy he won, that guy needed to be brought down a few notches and she wasn't able to do it.

When they finally put him down she watched as he stumbled towards her and sat on the seat in front of her. That was a relief, if he fell he probably wouldn't get back up again. His drunken smile had her smiling back at him. Up close she could see how cute he was. Too bad he was so drunk, she'd feel bad flirting with him like this. Wouldn't it be taking advantage of him anyways? Probably, so only pleasant conversation for now. Oh well!

“Hello!” She responded cheerfully, uncrossing her legs and letting them swing against the bar. “Congratulations! You did great!”

[Mihai Ionescu]

It took Mihai a moment to check his immediate surroundings, with overly squinted eyes like it would force his eyes to focus. The crowd had moved on from him, back to their usual business. At least they had left him with a pitcher of the house’s best. And with that girl too, he noticed, one of the few in the tavern. Maybe it was an invitation? Turns out he had landed not only too close to the girl’s legs, but at eye level with her breasts. Not bad. He just smiled again, and mumbled.

Lady, tonight it’s not happening. I’m sorry.

Or, he tried to say it. In reality, something more like "So like. I tooootally know whatz you wantz, but I don’t have no moneys. Yeah. But I would takes you if I had. Promish." came out instead.

Nailed it, Mihai. Real smooth. Carry on.

He giggled, and slowly winked at the girl. The he took a sip from his glass, because he did still have to play it cool. The beer was probably good, if only he could taste it over all the shots. So instead of wasting a prize beer, why not share it?

"Wouldz my lady want to taste shome?"

[Vesna Kitanovska]

Did he just say what she thought he did? Vesna happened to be very fluent in drunk; it was her second language after all. He actually thought she was a prostitute? Her clothes weren't in any way revealing! Was it because she was sitting on the bar? She always did that though. Whatever the reason it pissed her off and she had a bit of a short fuse after fighting a large monster all day.

With a sickly sweet smile she leaned forward and grabbed his shirt collar, bashing their foreheads together. “Oi, you little shit. I am not a prostitute. I'm a mercenary.”

Not fully satisfied, she took his beer as further punishment. Now they were even. With a content look, she sipped his beer, well it was her beer now, and grinned down at him. Poor guy, he was going to regret all this in the morning, hence why she went so easy on him. It was probably time he called it a night, and she really was doing him a favour by taking his beer.

“You should probably go home, you're pretty drunk.”

Home, she probably should head back soon. She wasn't drunk but she still didn't want to wake up anyone sleeping the barracks. Ahh who was she kidding, someone was probably awake in there, either playing cards, having a lady friend over or just chatting. If you couldn't sleep like the dead you never slept in there.She'd make sure this guy got on his way okay before heading home; it was the honourable thing to do.

[Mihai Ionescu]

Between all his smiles and flirt attempts, and alcohol, too, the boy failed to notice the girl’s fists moving. And even if he weren’t completely smashed; he probably wouldn’t have seen the hands in time either. Surprised, Mihai let out a little gasp when she pulled him up and bumped their foreheads together.

"Ouch! Ow, owowow.” Mihai whined, while he rubbed his forehead. He didn’t even realize the beer was magically gone from his hands, as he looked up at her again to pout. "Hey, I’m shorry! Geez…” That would have been a first, avoiding a fight with all the alpha males around to get beaten by the warrior maiden on his way out. "I don’t have them moneys either way…”

With his fingers still caressing his forehead, he laid his face against the girl’s thigh, and let out a sigh. "I’m losht.” Which, while not entirely truth, wasn’t a full lie, either. He would never find his way back to the Order in this state, let alone in a new city. "And I’ll gets yelled at if I shows up.” Then his eyes sparkled. “We shooould find a hotel. I’ll pay for its, it’s okay.”

Now that things are solved, where did my beer go?

[Vesna Kitanovska]

Now she felt a little bad for him. She didn't mind when he laid his head on her thigh, not the type of person bothered by physical contact. Instead she ran a hand through his hair, trying to be comforting. It didn't sound like he had a great home to return to, even if he found his way back. She moved her hand towards his temple, messaging it lightly as a way to make up for her physical assault.

“Hmmm, I thought you said you have no money. How can you pay for a hotel if you have no money?” Ahh, she didn't have much of a choice now, did she? Did they have any spare beds in the barracks? None with blankets that she could recall. Oh well, the beds were big enough to squeeze two people in. It would be like a sleepover. He'd pass out quick enough, no time for any wandering hands from him.

With a sigh, she finished off the rest of the beer. “You can come home with me, how about that? In the morning when can get you on your way home when you're feeling better.” If he ever felt better, he might be out for a few days with all that alcohol in such a short period. Ahh, did they even have a healer in at the moment? He might need one in the morning. “I'm not far, you can walk right?” Vesna could carry him easy, she was just worried about him throwing up all over her.

[Mihai Ionescu]

Mihai couldn’t help but smile to himself when the sweet, sweet girl started stroking his hair. Even drunk off his mind, he still had a talent for getting what he wanted. It was often the usual formula; sound a little more sorry for himself than he really was, add some general truth, a pout, and voilà: Petting! It was all too easy, really. Considering how many times before he had accomplished similar results, it was still a pleasant surprise getting it from the warrior who just about cracked his skull.

He looked up at her, without raising her face, and smiled. “No monies for the ladies. Only to not go home. Gets it?” The boy chuckled, because she did seem to get it, if the headbutt was anything to go for.

With her next words, Mihai had to think long and hard about the plan. Somewhere in his alcoholic induced misty mind, he seemed to recall the last time he let a stranger take him home. Waking up in jail for public indecency and disorderly conduct was only acceptable so many times for an Oracle.

But happier times than the monks. Definitely.

“Okay! But no takings take my clothesh ovv.” Nodding in agreement, Mihai got up in a jump, only to falter and lean on the counter for support. Not two inches away from the girl’s breasts.

“Oopsh! ”

[Vesna Kitanovska]

What was she getting herself into? Oh well, it would make for an interesting story right? This guy was amusing, to say the least. She felt a bit bad that he didn't want to go home that badly. Home was supposed to be a good place. Her home was filled with good people and fond memories. Everyone should have that.

“I'm not going to take of your clothes off. Unless you throw up on them, so please don't do that. I don't have anything for you to change into either.” Please, please, don't get sick, she pleaded to whatever gods there were that were merciful. Hopefully he would be able to stumble along with her until they got to the base and into the barracks. And if those gods were really merciful they would make him quiet the whole time. She didn't really want the catcalls right now.

When he fell she reached out to catch him, hardly noticing how close he came to falling into her chest. If he did Vesna wouldn't have batted an eye. Guys bumping into them wasn't anything new, she was very tall after all. He caught himself, so it gave her some indication that she might not have to carry him back. What a relief!

Regardless, she lifted a hand up to steady him. “You sure you can walk back?”

[Mihai Ionescu]

It took the Oracle another moment to lean back from the lady’s personal bubble, even though his fingers kept such a tight grip on the chair that his knuckles turned white. And it still failed to make Mihai stand up, still. His body wobbled and he threatened to fall again, but this time, he managed to take the girl’s hand and give her another smile.

“I’m so not throwing ups. I’m good!”

The second attempt to stabilize himself was more composed than the first one, and he did manage not to stumble when he released the woman’s hand. Chuckling to himself, Mihai proudly put his hands on his waist, as if to prove her he was indeed fine.

“See? All’s good!”

With a final stumble, Mihai managed to take a step back and offer the girl his hand instead. As soon as he got a firm grip, he pulled her along for them to get going. Before the changes her mind… So his steps were as uneven as physically possible, Mihai decided to change his approach. Instead of holding hands, he wrapped his arm around hers, not unlike a senior person. She’s strong enough, right? She can drag him…

“Name’sh Mihai, by the way. What’sh yours?”

[Vesna Kitanovska]

Well, there was one hurdle crossed when he got to his feet. Vesna laughed when he took her hand, letting him pull her out of the bar. It was kind of cute, when was the last time a guy had done that to her? Too long, she was on a bit of a dry streak unfortunately. When she felt him wrap his arm around her she laughed harder, wrapping her arm around him to keep him standing. This wasn't so bad, better than hauling him over her shoulder.

“I'm Vesna! Ranger extraordinaire!” She responded with a grin, pulling him along. “It's not too fair, we're going to Clan Khavalian's head quartres.” It truly wasn't that fair, maybe a five minute walk. They built the bar strategically of course. It was great because it was just a straight walk to the building, even the drunkest could manage this. Vesna had walked this completely wasted more times than she cared to remember.

When they got in front of the building she pushed open one of the doors and shimmied them inside. “Try to be quiet okay? There's people sleeping or trying to get intimate. We don't want to disturb anyone!” Hopefully he could at least do that for her as she dragged him across the room.

At the other end through a hall was the door to the barracks. Slowly she peaked her head in and sighed in relief when she could hear some guys still talking. “Okay, we're going to my bed. This is the home stretch!”

[Mihai Ionescu]

Walking wasn’t nearly as hard as Mihai had anticipated, at least not with such a big anchor to steady him. Every time he’d try to take too many steps at once, the girl would pull him back and hold him up. The boy was thankful for the company, not only for the help getting out of the bar but also to get him a place to crash for the night.

“The Clans, huh? Neat, I don’t think I’ve ever been into thesh!” But of course, Vesna’s request for silence fell on deaf, drunken ears. “Woo, so you don’t get like, roomsh for yourselves?” Interesting to know, as the Oracles would hardly ever get time to chat with clans members. It seemed the warriors didn’t care much for the Orders, which also explained to Mihai why they all seemed to die so often.

While Mihai tried to focus solely on not tripping over his own feet, he let Vesna do most of the effort; he was nearly hanging off her side by the time they reached the room. He grinned, more playful than ill intentioned. “Gettin’ my hot body on your bed, huh?! Keeps your hands to yourshelf, lady.”

Dropping his arms from her waist, he practically took a dive into the cot and made himself comdy. “Nots bad.”

[Vesna Kitanovska]

Oh this guy was comical. If he wasn't so drunk she might have flirted, but he was clearly past the point of no return. She led him into the room, ignoring the whistles she got from the men still awake. “Oh lay off guys, he has no where to stay.” She said quietly but loud of enough for them to hear her.

When he flopped into her bed she sighed and leaned down to remove his shoes. Ugh, she didn't want to sleep in a dirty bed. Once those were gone she started to take off her own boots and jacket.

“No, there's over a dozen other guys in here. There was another girl but she got her own place. So we all just sleep in here, this is home!” Vesna said cheerfully. She really meant it, she was completely comfortable in here with everyone. So much so that she started to change out of her ripped up clothing into her comfortable sleeping clothes right in front of everyone.

Once she was changed she got into the bed, shoving him over a bit. “You comfortable? I can see if I can borrow a blanket if you want your own bunk. Just in case I can't keep my hands to myself.” She teased with a wink, pulling the blankets onto them.

[Mihai Ionescu]

Mihai could only giggle the most unmanly of ways with all the whistles and catcalls they got as they walked. Looking sideways from where they laid, he could still feel the stares on the back of his neck. Not that he could make much sense of it all, but one thing he could tell: “You don’t gots lots of boys over, huh?” Maybe he had a nerd in his hands.

There weren’t many luxuries Mihai enjoyed better than having someone take his own shoes off for him. He just laid back, arms folded behind his own head, grinning at Vesna while she joined him in bed. He did little to move over and give her more room. “Do thish for all your rare guests? I’m pretty comfy right now.”

Once under the blanket, Mihai took the time to get comfortable. He might be drunk, but he still had standards. Somewhat. Shifting the pillow a bit (and pulling most of it towards himself), Mihai was beyond caring about Vesna. “I hope you’re good too, I’m not done yet.”

With a few more kicks, the boy managed to settle facing Vesna in the bed. He grinned again, even though they were so close he could barely get her into focus. “Hi!”