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Alja huffed out a relieved sigh when Luci came along and broke up Graves and Rael. Stepping backwards out of the maelstrom's center, she smiled in an altogether different way than usual as she watched the rest of the scene play out; a soft grin, with a bit of an amused tilt at the corners. More catlike than her usual bombast. She loved watching Luci put people in their places. She'd grouped with the DPS on occasion, and she'd been an absolute [i]joy[/i] to work with every time. Yeah, she was competent--[i]way[/i] past competent actually, better than Alja by a long shot--but that wasn't super important to Alja. Rather, what was important was that Luci was just...[i]fun[/i]. Once you dug past the ice-queen politeness, there was a certain streak of dry, deadpan humor that made it a total joy to banter with her. And for the cherry on top, their playstyles gelled together pretty well too. Of all the people she'd met in Pariah, Luci was probably the one she liked the most--maybe with a single exception--even if they didn't end up seeing each other very often.

[i][color=d1fffc]Not to mention,[/color][/i] she chuckled to herself, [i][color=d1fffc]she knows how to keep Rael in line. And that takes some doing.[/color][/i]

A few minutes passed; Alja spent them making small talk with some of the denizens and smaller-name Wayfarers in the guild hall, downing ale all the while. She'd just finished a showcase of Tundra Glass to a couple new players--they were moderately impressed with her fairly high-level and [i]very[/i] specialized conjuration tricks--when she heard Luci come up behind her, commenting on the altercation between the two hotheaded players from earlier. She laughed, slapping the other woman on the shoulder (it was a greeting that she used often) and chugging down another drink of the digitized alcohol.

"[color=d1fffc]Too long for sure, Luci! God[i]damn[/i], it's nice to see you![/color]" She pulled the other woman into a crushing, bearlike hug, taking her time--a good five seconds--before releasing her "[color=d1fffc]When [i]was[/i] the last time, anyway? Was it that time I tried to duel Aag and he wiped the floor with me, or was it one of the dungeons? Never had the best memory.[/color]" She pondered a moment, then her face broke out in a massive grin. "[color=d1fffc]Well, who gives a shit anyway? It'll be good to work together again![/color]"

Only after her rambling was over did she address the first comment that Luci had made. Her smile became a rueful grin, and she rubbed the back of her head. "[color=d1fffc]Ah, I don't know exactly what I was thinkin'. Kinda thing I said is exactly what stokes Rael and Graves, gets 'em riled up. Only way it coulda been worse is if I put loot on the table and started taking bets.[/color]" She shrugged her massive shoulders, leaning back against the table. "[color=d1fffc]Still, kept 'em from each others' throats long enough for you to roll on up so...success![/color]"

She was about to say something else, leaning in, when she paused: someone was talking over near Graves. Someone that she hadn't seen in just as long as Luci, and someone that she missed even more. Her eyes lit up, and her grin--rueful as had been--bloomed into something almost manic. She bounced on her heels, and then, with a quick "[color=d1fffc]hang on![/color], she was bolting her not-inconsiderable mass over towards the green-haired girl and launching a huge flying tackle-hug at the exception: her favorite partner in crime.

"[color=d1fffc]YO LEAFY! LET'S PAINT THE FUCKIN' TOWN![/color]"