Darts and Foreign Dignitaries
PASTE


Fort Weyr - Shenanigan's Lounge
The natural walls of this cavern have been completely covered and replaced by straight and sometimes curving walls of brickwork. There's a method to the madness of covering stone with stone. It's as simple as the electric buzz in the room. New grade electric lights dot the fancy brick-worked walls, with wires cleverly hidden behind, allowing more focus to be centered on the rest of the room rather than the numerous strings of wire needed to operate the lighting. Each bulb roosts in a bronzed metal flowering fixture, giving the room a rich atmosphere. Still, the walls are not the only place which has stone on stone appeal. The floor has been run smooth, the surface now slate rock, creating an imperial cast.
Beyond the actual foundations of the lounge, the luxury continues. High backed wooden chairs with padded white seats have been stationed all around the room. Between the individual chairs are benches fashioned out of the same rich wood with pillows made to flatter the cushions. There are low lying coffee tables or end tables near the individual chairs, while there's larger dining room sized tables with chairs to match scattered as well, giving much variety to those who find themselves in the room. Decorative hangings and framed artwork has been neatly hung around the room, but to offset the meticulous method of the room, there are some pieces that give a sporty feeling to the room - such as a fishing rod or a snowshoe.
Of course, the final appeal of the room comes in the form of its purpose; athletic competition. There are several games of darts lining the walls, various decks of dragon poker cards available, a large velvet lined pool table centered to one side of the lounge, a mat area surrounded by ropes, and an area that keeps track of all the runner races around the world via radio signal, giving constant updates on the status of the runners.
Over the turns, the use of Shenanigan's as the in-Weyr watering hole has seen the bar expanded and expanded again. Now, the brick of the bar has been built into a rectangle broken at the narrow ends and surrounding a free-standing wall of brick and mirrors that holds all the supplies the on-duty bartender(s) could wish for. Stools hug the bar for those who are here for the drinks, but bar food can also be ordered there to be run by the bartender's assistant(s) from the nearby kitchens.


DOES RISALI BELONG HERE? Well, no. Not exactly. She doesn't belong to Fort, but sometimes the fact that she is the Senior Weyrwoman requires her to be in Fort. For now, whatever diplomatic (or personal) ventures have dragged her half a continent away, Risali is in Shenanigan's with a drink in hand, a dart in the other, and a distinct lack of knot on her shoulder as she takes aim. SHE TOSSES. SHE… She doesn't miss exactly, but she certainly doesn't hit the bullseye and there is a hiss of disappointment as she brings one arm over her ribs, presses fingers into the crook of her elbow opposite, and takes a drink. One beat, two beats, five of grey eyes just… staring at where her dart landed and the board as a whole, and — "Higher," she decides, setting down her drink so that she can pick up another dart and try again.

At some point, D'ax has arrived with literally no fanfare. Because he does belong here. Or at least he comes here often enough that it's interesting to NO ONE but not so often that it's… well, interesting to anyone. Basically it means that Risali might not realize he's nearby when he says, "Once you get used to the weight and balance of the dart, it gets easier to judge the dropoff and hit where you want it." Of course, D'ax has no idea how long she's been at this. But he is wearing his knot on his flight jacket, so it's probably not going to surprise anyone that some bronzerider is sharing his unsolicited opinion on something.

Risali does not realize that D'ax is nearby, not until his voice cuts through her concentration and goldrider jumps, turning on instinct with the dart in hand wielded as a weapon instead of a means of recreational past time and pointed right at the bronzerider. See? This is why Risali doesn't wear her knot, because for as ACTUALLY unthreatening as she is (height, the fact that it's just a board dart in her hand), she is quick to resort to, if not violence, then at least the threat of it. "Faranth," comes as grey eyes take a quick assessment and her arm goes slack and then drops away altogether. "What is it with you bronzeriders?" Did she just reach out to flick his knot? YES. YES SHE DID. "I swear it's like a requirement of impression that every single one of you has to be…" a beat, a breath, and then an emphatic gesture at D'ax's feet because she can't find the right words. "That." WHAT IS THAT, RISA? (Silent, stealthy, HALFWAY TO A DEATHWISH.) But tension eases, even if brows knit together and those grey eyes dart back to the board. "I think I'm throwing too low… in the arc, I mean." A beat, and then she's holding out that dart's NON-pointy end towards D'ax. "Show me?" Now her eyes are back on him, something softer in that expression that might half be an apology except that she doesn't speak it.

"Really, really, ridiculously good looking?" D'ax offers up as a suggestion even if she IS gesturing at his feet. And it's fair to gesture at them, because a man as big as D'ax shouldn't be capable of moving as quietly as he can. At least he doesn't seem to mind her getting close enough to flick at his knot. Or, you know, threaten him with a dart. To the contrary, he has the audacity to look amused. But not, like, smug. So he takes the dart as he says, "I don't actually play with these very often anymore. But basically, you want to stand kind of like this, depending on which hand you throw with." And he positions himself while he does it, no thoughts on whether she's potentially setting him up and is actually amazing at darts. "And you can shift and follow through as you throw," as he does what he's saying and throws the dart. He doesn't hit the bullseye, but he does hit one of the slices around it.

RIDICULOUSLY GOOD LOOKING? Well, yes D'ax but LOOK AT RISALI'S UNAMUSED FACE. (https://memegenerator.net/img/images/300x300/11669255/toothless-is-unimpressed.jpg) "The worst part is that I am weyrmated to two of — wait. Was? … Am?" A beat, as Risali is distracted by the messy reality of her own romantic life — distracted enough that grey eyes roll up towards the ceiling as if to invoke long dead queen (or maybe count the amount of (ALSO good looking) idiot bronzerider men in her bed, given the way her mouth keeps working even if there's no sound coming out) and then she makes a soft, frustrated noise in her throat before amending with, "Whatever, it's complicated. The fact remains that you're all …" A beat, and Risali just… GESTURES AT ALL OF HIM. WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN? Doesn't matter, because she's sighing as she puts her hands on her hips and then actually takes to studying D'ax's form and listening as he tells her how to stand. He throws, and her eyes track the dart before Risali winces and then nods. NO WORRIES. No secret dart-throwing majesty in the works here. Put a bow in Risali's hand and she'll take you for a ride, but darts? "I was trying to apply the basics of archery," Risali admits, as she steps right into D'ax's space and then aligns her body to his posture, watching him from over her shoulder to make sure she's got it right before she picks up a dart again and lines up her aim. "But you're taller. So I have to…" adjust for height, which she does in her toss and… still doesn't hit the middle. "Damn. Alright, show me again," comes as Risali picks up another dart and extends it for the bronzer to take. "If you can get a bullseye, I'll buy you a drink." FAIR IS FAIR, RIGHT?

"Whoa, there, gorgeous. I wouldn't go kicking you out of bed or anything, but my weyrmate might have something to say about it. And you people get so angry about the smallest things." Get it? It's a height joke. Never mind that it would require her to know his weyrmate is also short, at least compared to D'ax. All bronzeriders are awful, is probably what Risali means, right? "I'm no expert with a bow, and they aren't entirely dissimilar, but darts lack the… stability? I suppose? There's a flow to it. And once you get it, you get it. It just takes practice." He sort of sounds like someone who teaches other people to do things with their bodies. "Don't overthink it." He positions himself again, a little exaggerated for her learning benefit, and throws. He gets closer to the bullseye this time, but doesn't quite hit the mark. "Do your weyrmates know you're out offering to buy drinks for ridiculously good looking foreign bronzeriders, Weyrwoman?" Of course he knows who she is.

GORGEOUS? D'ax, how dare you. Risali, for all that she is better at being angry than she is at being anything else, blushes. MAKE NO MISTAKE, she's still angry, even as that red spreads across her cheeks and crawls up to the tips of her ears and she forces herself to look away (because whatever is lingering on the tip of her tongue is probably scathing), but now she's flustered, too. "Faranth, that wasn't an invitation, you … what does that even mean?" WHAT PEOPLE, D'AX? Yes, okay, SHORT PEOPLE is established, but Risali doesn't know that. And even if she did, SAY IT TO HER FACE. ALAS, even if her shoulders tuck in (and that blush stays INFURIATINGLY in place), Risali forces her attention onto D'ax's form and instruction, and probably has a little too much sharpness in each movement she executes thereafter (which is probably why she, too, misses … by a lot more than the first two times). "Faranth. My …" a beat, because Risali really doesn't know what to call K'vir or D'lei anymore, doesn't know if one of them is friend or 'mate, and if the other is… boyfriend or… weyrmate again. IT'S COMPLICATED, and so Risali tries again with, "My name is Risali, not 'Weyrwoman', and I'm offering you a drink, not trying to take your clothes off. What is your name?"

Well, aren't they just a fun pair, because D'ax finds Risali's reaction absolutely delightful. But, hey, he'll give her a few moments to breathe and relax before he continues poking at whatever flustery buttons he can find. "I promise that I'm aware of your name. But your title is Weyrwoman, Weyrwoman Risali. And it seems disrespectful to assume we're on a familiar name basis the moment I meet you face to face." Never mind any of the other potentially disrespectful stuff that might sully her first impression of him. That wasn't his intention! "I'm D'ax. Bronze Azirath's. Well met." This time when he throws a dart, he's not trying to show her how to do it, he just does it. And this time he hits the bullseye in the middle of the board. Then he looks at her with a very broad grin.

Lucky for D'ax, murder is illegal in EVERY HOLD AND WEYR (ESPECIALLY when you hold rank and title). So Risali endures his explanation (instead of stabs him) and then allows her eyes to follow the next dart he throws… right into the bullseye. Oh come on. "Fuck you, D'ax," is probably why she wanted his name in the first place. She emphasizes those three words with a (mostly gentle) punch to his shoulder, and then blows her bangs out of her eyes before holding out one of her hands, palm up, and gesturing that he should do the same. "Well met. Does your weyrmate know that you're letting foreign Weyrwomen of assuredly ill-repute," because of her TEMPER, D'ax, "buy you drinks?"

Never let it be unsaid that D'ax would very much appreciate her restraint if only he knew she was being so restrained. Being stabbed sucks! He doesn't even make a joke about how she already denied the whole prospect of fucking. He's not as dumb as he looks, after all. Probably. Accepting her punishment as just, and let's be honest, he's probably been punched a lot in his lifetime, D'ax takes her hand and uses it to leverage a tug to pull her practically against him. "My weyrmate would probably feel very insecure about my talking to you at all, honestly." Or very angry that D'ax would say something like that to the person. "But he's pretty hot when he's upset." Which, frankly, probably says a lot about the way D'ax seems to be enjoying his moments with flustered-Risali.

There are probably a lot of people appreciating Risali's restraint right now (even if they don't know she's exerting it), particularly those who don't want to have to deal with an interweyr incident but would have no choice. AND RISALI, UNFORTUNATELY, is one of those ones who would have to deal with the repercussions for Xanadu Weyr if she shed blood on Fort's sands. ERGO, she (barely) practices restraint and settles for squinting at D'ax as if she is trying to set him on fire. There's an intake of breath when her extended hand is caught in his, and then a noise of both startled surprised and mounting agitation as she stumbles forward when he tugs. Too close is close enough, and Risali utilizes an elbow right into his ribs to shove herself right back away from him. "You." BREATHE, RISALI. Which. She does, drawing in labored breaths that speak to violence even as she glares at him from ALL THE WAY DOWN HERE and gives her brain a moment to catch up with her body. One. Two. Five. HOPEFULLY HIS RIBS ARE OKAY. "Well," comes as Risali reaches into one of her pockets, grabs D'ax by the wrist, and then shoves marks into his hand before letting go like she's been burned, "I can't imagine why." COULDN'T BE ALL THE SHAMELESSNESS AND THE FLIRTING, D'AX. COULD IT? And listen, she's still flush, but it's hard to tell if she's still flustered, or mad, or a combination of both. "Thank you for teaching me how to throw a dart. If you will excuse me, I have an actual man to get home to." And there Risali goes, chin up as she STEPS AROUND D'AX (or tries, anyway) and attempts to depart with THE REST OF HER DIGNITY IN TACT.

D'ax does make a slightly strained sound, possibly satisfying for her, when Risali's elbow hits his ribs, but he's trying not to make it obvious that it hurt. Because how could he show vulnerability around this tiny woman he keeps baiting! Fortunately, for all parties, he only inclines his head briefly when she dismisses herself, and turns to watch her go.


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