The young man gave a mock-severe stare up at Ridahne. It might have been more effective if he had been able to look down at her, but she was tall and lean, even among some men. "Haven't you had enough already miss?" He was trying so hard to look serious, but the smile kept leaking onto his face no matter how hard he tried. 
"Give it up," she said easily, a little smile playing on her lips too. "You're as drunk as I am and you're supposed to be working. Give me the dark one." Ridahne held out her wrist where a plain, sturdy wristband coiled around one dark, slender arm. Ridahne did not carry a wallet (wallets got left and stolen and lost) and she didn't have a phone, so she always opted for the wristband credit chip. It was designed for kids that didn't have phones of their own and couldn't be trusted to carry a wallet, but some adults used them too for their simplicity. The man swiped a silvery handheld device over it and it beeped softly.
"You want the dark one? But it's a thousand degrees out." 
"And?" She arched one dark eyebrow. "It's closer to what we drink at home--not this swill." She smiled casually. She actually did like the local brew. But she missed true Azurei beer, which sometimes more resembled a barleywine, depending on the region.

The man grabbed a plastic cup and filled it, careful not to get too much head in the glass or to spill it. He handed it over, but his eyes lingered for a moment. They'd chatted on and off throughout the day as she came to get her drinks--nothing more than small talk. But he found her interesting. "Is it nice there? Azurei?"
Ridahne's confident gaze dropped to the counter as she idly wiped condensation from her cup. 
"Sorry, I didn't mean to--"
"It is nice," she said finally, cutting him off.  "Different than here. And beautiful like a storybook. But it's a hard land. With even harder people." 
Her tone was almost...wistful, he thought. He wondered why. "Hey, so I get off in like two hours...would you..." He felt suddenly intimidated, looking up at her. There was something decidedly fierce about her and yet graceful, like a proud tiger. "I know a great spot for some dumplings..."

Ridahne gave a soft, humorless laugh. "Sorry. I'm not your type. Enjoy the festival." Taking her drink, she strode away and melted into the crowd. She liked the festival; the pageantry made her feel a little less obvious as lots of people wore more traditional garb and adornments. She did own a pair of jeans and some tank tops, but she often wore the traditional Azurei [I]uri[/I] in the warmer months, which was a soft, fluid fabric wrapped in a very practical sarong. She wore an indigo crop top of sorts that only went around one shoulder. Hers was plain in comparison to those of other Azurei women, who sometimes adorned theirs with stone or silver beads or silvery embroidery. These clothes, combined with her ink, usually made her stand out downtown, but not today. It was nice for a change. 

The beer was cool and pleasantly bitter and roasty, like a good chocolate or coffee; it reminded her of a sturdy bread. She sipped it not-so-delicately as she meandered, hearing a commotion off towards the stage. The Chancellor hadn't yet taken his place, but clearly someone was up there giving introductions. Ridahne did not care about him, or his politics. She came here for the food the drink, the people, the culture. One had to have roots to have thoughts about politics, Ridahne thought.

A swath of indigo caught her eye; two men were making their way purposefully through the crowd and she knew without seeing their faces that they were Azurei by the way they were dressed. They wore [I]uri[/I] and richly dyed vests with black sashes slung across their chests and white ones around their waists. Elegant swords were tucked into the waist sashes and Ridahne could see the glint of daggers in their light boots. 
Not just Azurei. Taja.

Ridahne nearly spilled her beer ducking down underneath the sea of people to hide. They had not seen her and she did not want to be seen. Not by them. She began skulking away, head swimming from the alcohol, when she overheard two more off to her left speaking soft Azurian. She couldn't make out what they were saying, not fully. Something about waiting. Something about being swift and accurate. Ridahne didn't stay to listen. She kept her head down and moved very quickly the other direction, ducking into a small tea shop for cover. She closed the door behind her, enjoying the brisk whoosh of air conditioning as she looked over her shoulder, then around at the quiet room. Most of the customers were outside, though a few sat coolly at low tables along the walls. 

And elderly Asfaline woman greeted her with a polite smile that was very practiced but with searching eyes that saw more than they let on. Ridahne was led further in and showed to a table that she sat at with crossed legs, facing the part of the room with the television screen showing the video feed from the stage outside, though this appeared to be official news coverage. Feeling spontaneous, Ridahne ordered a milky, spicy tea and sat back, alternating sips of beer and hot tea as she watched the Chancellor finally take the stage with some fanfare that made Ridahne want to gag. Commonwealth politicians were never exactly popular in Azurei, and this need for showmanship was some tiny part of that.

He had a horrible smile too. Fake. Plastic. Desperate, almost. Azurei matriarchy did not smile and wave and cloyingly beg for people's approval. They merely demanded it, and it was both given and deserved. He kept trying to make people laugh with bad jokes, too. Ugh. How pathetic.