POOHEAD189

Gold & Glory: AU thread

It was interesting walking her demonstration, he had to admit. No wonder she had been successful at her swindling. Well, he wasn't certain how successful, but clearly she had been eating well. He smirked and took her arm so she could walk beside him as he went to go and collect his jacket at the tailor just down the next street. "Well...I only needed you to be my date. But I'll suggest a mixture between Imperial aristocracy and ditzy arm candy. You won't need to do much talking other than the kind that distracts or bores other guests, unless something unexpected happens. In which case we'll improvise." He judged. Improvisation had always worked in the past, even if it was a bad way to go about planning.

The stream of early risers were thinning somewhat, however that only gave way to the slower, later risers that slunk out of their inns and homes to go and perform more leisurely, or at least less pressing matters. Men hauled crates and sacks onto carts and called to one another across the street as women chattered amongst themselves and swept porches. Markus saw a strange deal being made in an alley they passed between a halfling and a man dressed as a chiney sweep. The place reminded him a bit of Marienburg if he was honest.

"No, come in with me." Markus chuckled as Emmaline slowed down at the door. They both stepped into the tailor's shop together. "No need for me to go into a dressing room, I'll just be grabbing a- What in the hells."

The inside of the building was burgundy in color from the deeply dyed carpet, with racks upon racks of jackets, shirts, trousers, belts, and even a few cloaks hung up along the walls. Three well dressed and sporty employees walked every which way to adhere to the customers they had within, which to Markus' surprise were three Dwarfs who seemed to be finding dress for a special occasion. One of them being unmistakable by his mohawk and lack of an arm.

"Sketti?"

"Cap't Flintbrook! Aye lad, there ye are! And the bimbo too, och, small city eh?" He said with a hearty laugh as a young attendant measured his thrice broad chest, long arms splayed out. Dwarf bodies were a strange sight when displayed, their legs being half the length whilst their arms were almost ape-like in muscle and length. All attached to a barrel body of stout muscle. "What brings you two into this den of thieves?"

"Not gonna introduce us, aye?" Another Dwarf said. He was a well to-do Dawi with a carefully groomed brown beard, wearing the handsome attire of a successful businessman, his clothes earthy colors of green, brown, and white linen beneath. He sported multiple satchels and purses on his belt, with three tied up ledgers draping off of him. Whoever he was, he had a jovial personality. The next Dwarf was less so, but with an odd zeal and smile to him. He had a dirtier, gruffer atmosphere to him despite having obviously gotten clean recently. On his forehead were smoked goggles, and a black beard that still had the tiniest hint of soot and smoke about it. He had more pronounced muscles than the merchant, though they just barely fell short of Sketti's. He wore simple overalls and a tan top, though his workboots had clearly seen better days.

"Yeah yeah, keep yer beard on! Och, Captain, these two lads run things on the engineering quarter of the city. Branvaldin Goldsmith and Hugrin Ironbellows here. We're to go and see this Duke and his assembly of simpering lords I been hearing about. By the look on your faces, you are too. And no, I'm not wearing a shirt. As a slayer, best I can do is a cloak which Branvaldin here insisted on." He complained.

"You can't embarrass us. They might be manlings, but they're business!" The merchant harumphed, balling his hands in fists and placing them on his broad hips.

As the two Dwarfs bickered, Markus whispered to Emmaline. "At least we found him now. I'd hate him to give us away as pirates spontaneously in the castle."

Gold & Glory: AU thread

Markus himself hadn't gotten fully dressed yet. He wore the black pants and the button up shirt, though his sleeves were rolled up as if he was preparing to do hard labor, though he truly didn't expect to be doing any. He hadn't the time to buy new boots, so he merely buffed them as well as he could and polished over a few of the blemishes and cuts. He was glad he couldn't do the same for his scars. Even dressed up, he never wanted to seem like he had not seen battle or combat. Plus he felt Emmaline thought them attractive, though she hadn't said it explicitly.

Speaking of the witch, he perked up from his hunched position on the bench just outside, blinking at the sudden change of her attire. If he had never met her before he would have been immediately convinced she was the daughter of an imperial count, in both looks and dress. A smile bloomed on his rugged, handsome face as he gave a whistle. "Babe, you looked good in the sailors clothes. With that on you're a goddamn goddess." He assured her, still amazed at how he could marvel at her beauty after wrapped up in one another the previous night.

He took the last bite of his apple, tossing the core into a nearby wastebin with his normal dexterity. He slid out of his seat and approached her, rolling down his sleeves so he could give a sly bow and extend his arm for her to take. "Have you ever been to any courtly event, Em? Or can you dance for such an occasion? I forgot to ask."

Urban Shadows

Will have mine done ASAP. We might want to make an OOC soon though

What Are You Listening To?

Post a random fact about yourself.

My dad is a pastor/minister. Went to 12 years of school for it, has a Bachelors, Masters, and Doctorate degree, learned 3 different languages, 2 of them dead. It's a strange thing. Some churches just choose someone who can just go up and talk, but other actual ministers are historians, linguists, administrators, and semi-philosophers.

~ Valkyria Chronicles - Changing of the Guard [Pt. 2 - Open] ~

TFW POOHEAD is lurking above, probably going "hmmmmmm" at all of the soldier writing.

@TGM

Gold & Glory: AU thread

Markus grinned fiercely. Despite their bickering, there was an attraction between them Markus hadn't forgotten. That, coupled with a shared sense of greed and an enjoyment of nefarious activities, were the reasons he had sold or even executed some captured women but offered Emmaline the opportunity to share his bed with him. He had made sure to not look at the necklace after he had traded all the gold and diamonds he had won for it, but now that he saw it again, nestled within Emmaline's full bosom as well, he felt a powerful mixture of greed and lust that he had to visibly quell. He realized he was staring, and all thoughts of regret over his decision to purchase it and what's more to give it to her fled immediately.

"We have until tomorrow night to find something." He chuckled, and he now leaned back on the cushioned booth he sat on, his hands behind his head as he drank her in. His next words had the barest hint of a groan to show he was stretching a bit. "Besides, seeing as I technically didn't take any coin from the treasury, we have a bit of extra coin to spend. I'm hoping we can make an actual, legitimate shipping agreement with one of the bloody upperclassmen. We'll be sailing to Ind and I'll become a High Captain of Sartosa while simultaneously making legal allies in Tilea."

He snorted, knowing full well 'legality' in Tilea could very well be seen as illicit further north, or even illegal in other Tilean city states. There was almost no collective national identity to the Tileans except a shared language and culture. Though he supposed if he wanted something uncouth, he could have picked a better city than Tobaro for it. It was all he could have done in this situation, considering Von Roberts attempting to tail them.

"I have some friends in town I met today. An Elf, actually, so I'll need to keep my Druchii sword at the ship. We'll need to hide a few knives. They'll take the old steel backsword I'll bring." He was more thinking aloud than anything, and when he saw once again the gleed-like nature of the golden tresses accompanying the hue of sapphire atop her creamy skin, he shook his head and gave a suggestive whistle. "Sink me Em, you'll make the Duchess jealous."

Gold & Glory: AU thread

He didn't know if he should be insulted. Was this so uncharacteristic of him? He'd certainly argued with her more than anyone on the ship, but she had worked the least out of everyone, she had been made a part of the crew without any hazing or pledge of loyalty. Of course she had risen quiet rapidly to become 'Captain's woman' due to saving his life and a good lay, but that had been in her interests as well. He grabbed the second pint, and drained it fully before her eyes, small streams of ale sliding down his neck until it was all in his belly.

He clapped the flagon on the table, wiping his mouth with his forearm. "You're a part of the crew and I haven't treated you like it." It was as blatant an admission as any he'd give. "I made the lads treat you with respect but I haven't, so I'm setting it right, got it?" He held back the bit of dangerous anger that flared up in him, which just made him seem that more more thoughtful. He slid the flagon away to bump into his knives, the light of the lamps dancing on their mirror polish.

Once he calmed a bit, his casual captain's control of the situation took the helm once more, though he didn't change his tune. "We're going to fight in the future. That's about as sure as the sun rising. But you're still my woman, if you haven't changed your mind. So..." Now Markus would prove it. He reached over to the sack, which turned out to be wrapped silk of blue. Pulling it to him, he gingerly unwrapped it one small movement at a time.

"I killed a man today. A rich bastard. I took every jeweled thing he had off his corpse, thinking to sell it so I could add to our savings. Instead... I sold them and got this."

When the last bit of silk was pulled aside, the room suddenly brightened as if the light of the moon peered through a window they couldn't see. There by his callused fingers was a necklace. A interlinked bronze chord held dearly a sea blue sapphire that could swallow an onlooker with its deep beauty, framed by a thick collection of pure gold tears, like the tears of the sun radiating off of the jewel in a broad wave six deep, five deep, four deep, until it had fully thinned and tapered off into the bronze chord once more.

Markus slid out of his chair, letting hang the necklace so she could continue to appreciated it. He slid his strong fingers along her hair and lifted it so he could clasp it upon her neck, the necklace now draped just above her chest. "You like it? It's yours. If we're together, we share in the wealth." He said with simple pragmatism. "Besides, tomorrow I was invited to an expensive gathering and I need a date." He wasn't going to order her to, nor was the gift a bribe.

"So how bout it. Wanna go on a date? Maybe fuck some shit up if things go south?"

Gold & Glory: AU thread

Behind her, Halfdan was too busy playing dice with a few other ruffians to glimpse Emmaline, else she would have heard a bit of racket from the huge norscan. Rather, a few ne'er-do-wells that skulked the sides of the inn had spotted her and were approaching to see if they could grab a cot, but before they made it three steps, the curtain to one of the private areas opened. Markus poked his head out, dagger in hand as he whistled, reeling in Emmaline's attention. He saw her look his way, but instead of approaching, she simply picked up the Dwarf ale and sipped it, trying to appear standoffish. Though her cough from absentmindedly consuming the extremely potent brew broke the dignity of it.

Markus stepped out and took her hand, practically dragging her within and closing the curtain, though he could tell she wasn't in the best mood around him. Hopefully what he was about to do would help.

On the table was a sack with unknown contents, Markus's sword, and four daggers he always kept on his person. They were keen edged and unblemished, and they all had varying hilts denoting he had acquired them in different areas of the world. It must have seemed like a threat of torture, as Emmaline glanced at the exit warily. Markus didn't bar her way. He merely took a seat at the booth and lowered the light in the lamp by a hair. The Captain took his jacket off, placing it beside him on the long bench. "I'm just cleaning them, sit down." He told her. Hesitantly, she did so, sitting across from him. There was something on her mind, but when she opened her mouth to speak, he stopped her.

"Wait, let me speak first."

"Oh by all means. You are the captain after all." She said, rolling her eyes. He didn't take the bait, instead he sat back and looked at her with his dark eyes.

"You annoy the hell out of me." He stated, unsure if she would find offense or burst into laughter. He could never tell with her. He let the words hang before he looked away for a brief second, sighing. "But I've been unfair to you." She could see two pints of ale before him, with one emptied and the other halfway gone. There was obviously something Markus was hesitant to say, but he trudged on nonetheless.

"You're fun to be around." He admitted. "You aren't something to be controlled or a prize to be won. Everything you've done, you've just done to survive. We're similar in that regard. But what's more, you've saved me and my crew more than once, without reward or accolades except being allowed on the crew. I realize that is wrong. I just...I want to you to know I'm sorry, and that you have my respect. You probably haven't heard that a lot in your life, and considering you likely swindled a lot of people, with good reason. But you deserve to hear it once in awhile."

Urban Shadows

I'll go ahead and make known my will that I choose Fae.