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 Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2007 12:26 pm
Everything in cities was so egregiously big. Fortunately for him, so was his companion. A slight smile danced across the pale-skinned man’s lips as his wyrm friend loped easily up a set of steps that would have taken him an age to climb himself. He would definitely have to start letting Tenar come into cities with him more often; it was nice not to feel in danger of being knocked over every three seconds and the view from the tall wyrm’s back was far more pleasant than staring at people’s knees all the time.
“I think we’re nearly there now,” the dark-eyed gnome commented aloud. “Crowds are getting thicker up ahead, that sort of thing tends to mean either market or street entertainment and I don’t see any sign of the latter.” It might be quite interesting to see how bargaining went in his hybrid friend’s company too, the blond considered with a slight smirk. Somehow he suspected that there would be less sneering faces than he was used to seeing for starters, probably a lot more use of the word ‘sir’ too.
Angetenar rumbled a laugh at his companion’s train of thought. “Of course there will be, what else would you call somebody riding a loaded dragon if you were some dumb-assed peasant?” He was going to get to loom at people and he did like to loom, grinning was fun too; he could almost feel people counting his teeth when he grinned.
“I hope there’s spiced meat,” the ruddy-eyed creature went on, ignoring the shriek of a young woman who hadn’t seen him coming and stepping carefully over the shopping she spilled about. “Honey candy, too,” he added a moment later as though nothing had happened.
Beetle shot the woman an apologetic look, which went unnoticed but made him feel somewhat better about his friend’s effect on the probably inoffensive. “I’m sure there will be,” he replied as he turned his attention back to the road ahead, wondering privately if introducing his friend to the two foods had been a mistake; he seemed to buy a hell of a lot of both these days. “Looks like we’re just about here,” the gnome added after a few moments as the cries of merchants hawking their wares became discernable from the background noise of a busy city.
The purple-hided wyrm nodded and picked up his pace a little. Perhaps they’d even get some things other than food today; saying that his bard friend’s performance for some merchant or other in the last town they’d visited had been a success would be like saying that mountains tended to be a little on the large side. “Great,” the tall creature grinned, “let’s go scare people and stuff then.” Shiny things would be nice; he was fond of shiny things.
The dark-eyed gnome chuckled softly at the half-fire’s words and gave a slight shake of his head. “Sadist,” he muttered as they turned onto the market street.
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Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2007 1:05 pm
"Clara," she called, "there's a boy on a hot dragon coming our way. Worth attracting them over, d'you think?"
"Couldn't say," said Clara from under the counter, sorting through the crate of assorted trinkets as best she could. "How cute's the boy?"
Zita laughed. "He can't be more than four years old. I think he's a bit young for you - oh, hang on a tick, he's not human. It's a gnome. Hah. Maybe just a bit short for you, then."
A mess of black curls emerged from beneath the wooden counter, shortly followed by Clara. Her green eyes narrowed, squinting in the light as she tried to pick out the gnome's features. "Well, that makes a change," she said bitterly, "and hardly a change for the better. I miss Seth."
"As you've told me every night since he left, darling," Zita sighed, holding up a glittering necklace in her claws and examining it. "Dry spells are no fun."
"And nor are quiet houses. For goodness sake, I miss Tag."
The dark wyrm winced. "Ooh, ouch. That's when you know things are bad...oh, no, no, don't turn the corner!" Because the prospective customer seemed to be passing them by. "Dammit, look over here!" She deliberately held the shimmering jewellery out into the light in the hope of catching the dragon's eye. Most wyrms liked their baubles, hence the reputation for treasure-hoarding.
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Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2007 1:49 pm
A bright flash of light on metal caught the blond’s attention briefly but, before he could turn his head to see what it was, Angetenar had come a halt and the sudden change in speed pitched him from his precarious perch with a yelp of surprise. It was quite a long way from dragon back to ground, and the bard ended the journey with a crump and a cuss. Before anybody nearby had a chance to comment –or laugh – the dark-eyed man scrabbled to his feet and dusted himself off hurriedly. Had anyone seen him? He hoped not; if they had he just knew the sort of things they’d be thinking about him.
Rolling a slightly bashed shoulder, the mage turned his face up to glare at Angetenar… Who wasn’t there; the hybrid wyrm was now trotting towards whatever had made that flash. “Tenar!” the grey-skinned creature sent urgently, dodging a party of striding warriors and jogging to catch up with his friend. Bloody wyrm’s and their shiny fixation.
The hybrid paused at the telepathic call and turned about just as his bonded made it to his side. “Oops, sorry about that,” he said with a rueful grin. “I spotted shiny stuff over there and…” And now he’d spotted the wyrm, too. A dark, he thought, though he’d never seen a female of the element before. He’d been told that they were very different to their stocky male counterparts but somehow he’d still imagined them short-legged rather than elegantly constructed as the creature before him was.
“Cool,” he commented with a grin to his miniature companion, “let’s go over there.” He wanted a better look at those patterns and whatever that shiny thing was too.
Beetle hesitated for a moment as his friend set off once more. Dark wyrm. As a species, he had found them to be either outright evil, short-tempered arseholes or just plain manipulative. Well, she wasn’t rampaging about or anything of the sort so, by the looks of her, this one would either fit the last category or actually manage to break the generally well deserved stereotype. Didn’t look as though he had much choice in whether or not to have the encounter in any case. Taking a moment to compose himself, the gnome hurried off after his wyrm companion, hoping that the diamond patterned female meant them no ill, and that she hadn’t seen him fall.
The ruddy-eyed wyrm glanced briefly over his shoulder to ensure his friend was following, which he was, before continuing on his course toward the stall. As he drew nearer, he noted the biped female with all the black hair; she had to be the dark’s bonded he supposed. That probably explained her presence; the human, he thought she was human at any rate, must be a merchant. Ah, that explained the stall, too.
Chuckling at his own slowness, the striped hybrid crossed the last of the distance that separated him from the interesting pair before coming to a halt and glancing down to check once more that he hadn’t lost his bonded. Fortunately, he hadn’t.
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Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2007 2:24 pm
Zita had made a very careful show of not noticing the potential customers as they advanced, busying herself with arranging various items on the counter. Clara was over the other side of the stall, scrawling numbers on scrap pieces of terracotta with a stick of charcoal - labels, she realised, remembering the little human's rant last night about having to restate prices half a hundred times. They wouldn't be much help if the customers couldn't read, of course, but in a sizeable settlement like this one tended to run into educated folk fairly frequently. She didn't look up at the dragon until he was standing right beside the stall, and when she did she affected a look of mild shock and an ingratiating smile.
"Well, what a pleasant surprise!" she said. "I hardly ever see wyrms about town, especially not such fine specimens as you. Good morning to you, sir, and to your esteemed bond-partner - may I be of assistance?"
At the other end of the stall, Clara rolled her eyes and grinned. Let Zita turn on the charm - she herself was better at the business part. That wasn't to say that she wasn't attractive, because physically speaking she was: she just lacked Zita's winning personality. She continued writing prices on the pieces of broken pot and setting them next to her wares - a pair of silver bracelets here, a silk scarf there, luxury items for the well-to-do and gaudy trinkets to tempt the newly-rich adventuring types.
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Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2007 2:51 pm
Angetenar returned the grin and bobbed his head in greeting. “Well thank you, and the feeling’s mutual. We’re browsing today mostly, so when I spotted something shining I decided to come over; glad I did too.” And there were certainly some nice things here to browse through; it seemed the pair stocked quite a selection of goods. “I’m Angetenar by the way,” the hybrid added, turning his eyes back to the other wyrm. “The short guy down there’s Beetle.”
Thinking about it, his bonded probably wasn’t very happy all the way down on the ground. Firstly, the gnome wouldn’t be able to see the things arranged on the stall and secondly he was shut out of the conversation somewhat. The third factor that might usually worry his friend was the presence of big hurrying boots, but the presence of two large dragons was keeping those at a distance for now. Still, lack of boots aside, there were the other factors to think about.
Shooting his grey friend a grin, the hybrid indicated his back with a flick of his tail. “C’mon,” he sent, “they’ve got some cool stuff up here.”
The gnome flashed his wyrm friend a brief smile before kicking off the ground and drifting up to alight on his friend’s back, dismissing the levitation spell as he got his balance. “Ah,” he commented, smiling at the wyrm who had addressed them, “that’s better; I can see who I’m talking to now.”
The harlequin female seemed friendly so far, but then it was in the nature of people who wanted to sell you things to seem friendly. Still, he couldn’t help but feel kindly disposed to the well-spoken creature. The human on the other hand… well, she was busy with whatever it was she was doing over there; no sense assuming people were disagreeable just because they weren’t immediately friendly, right?
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Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2007 4:43 am
"I'm equally glad you decided to come over," Zita said with a dazzling smile. "Zita's my name - delighted to meet you both. And the ill-tempered so-and-so over there is Clara, my darling bond-creature. Don't let her outwardly disagreeable nature fool you; she's not incapable of being charming herself, when the mood takes her."
"I'm also not incapable of introducing myself," Clara called with a mild scowl, "when the mood takes me. Got my hands full at the moment, gents; Zita can deal with just about anything you require."
Zita laughed. "Unless it requires vast degrees of manual dexterity, yes, I can. So, gentlemen: just browsing, or do we have anything particular in mind?" She spread her claws, indicating the vast array of varied merchandise set out on the planks before her. "As you can see, we have an eclectic mix of products on offer today - and for kinsfolk, I might be able to do a couple of special deals." That last statement was glazed with a wink to Angetenar. Zita was not above using her feminine wiles to get what she wanted.
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Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2007 6:51 am
"Zita hu? Cool name," he hybrid said with a grin. "She's cute," he sent to his bonded as his eyes ran over the draconic merchant and her wares. Both were found to be more than satisfactory.
Beetle chuckled internally. "She's flirting with you, and I'm sure I'm no judge of a cute wyrm. Pretty colours through. Oh, and go ahead and ask for whatever you like the look of, Gods know we might as well spend some of this money since we have it." He never had been very good with saving money up unless there was something he needed, probably a habit that dated back to when large amounts of the stuff had been a pain to carry about.
"Thank you Clara, and Zita too," the bard said after a brief pause, shooting both females a smile and dropping to a seat on his friend's shoulders. "Well Tenar? Done looking at the girl yet?" he asked, glad that it was his turn to tease for a change.
Angetenar ignored his bonded's jibe but nodded to the words he had spoken aloud. His revenge for the gentle prod would be all the sweeter for waiting a while and catching the blond when he was off guard. Besides, right now he had been given free reign to spend money on pretty things, a situation that warranted his full attention. He glanced at Zita again. Well, almost his full attention then; attractive female wyrms who were willing to talk to him were just as rare as such an opportunity as this, and that was only slightly less rare than hen's teeth.
"I like the look of those silver chain bracelets," the hybrid said to Zita with a grin and a nod at the items in question. "Could I try those on?" he'd been looking for some jewelry for a while, and whilst he'd seen some very well made pieces in various places he very seldom spotted something he'd wear himself. Those bracelets however had just the right mix of elegance and badassness to suite the striped creature's tastes.
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Posted: Sun Dec 02, 2007 2:48 pm
Zita followed the purple creature's gaze. "Mm, these?" She picked them up with surprisingly dexterous claws - she'd been with Clara for a while now, and it had taught her unusual skills - and laid them on the counter in front of him. "Of course. Go right ahead. They're not as flimsy as they look, believe you me: I've tried them myself." She adjusted her golden cuffs and glanced over to Clara. "Got anything for Beetle, Clara-my-darling?"
Clara, who'd just finished with her price tags, dropped the charcoal into a little wooden box and slid the lid back into place. "Depends what Beetle's after," she said with a thoughtful frown. "We don't often have things in gnome sizes. I'll have a look through the boxes we haven't had time to sort, see what I can find."
She ducked under the counter and dragged out a large wooden crate, prying the lid off with a small spell. Most of the contents was clothing, clean but in some cases wanting mending. This box and its two brethren had been add-ons from a merchant who'd wanted to sweeten a deal: he'd already been doing himself down more than he realised, but Clara wasn't kind enough to let him know that. After some rummaging, she laid hands on what felt like a very small piece of plaited leather. It turned out to be a pair of trousers, most definitely gnome-sized, and in very good condition.
"Might be on to something here," the merchant announced with a broad grin, emerging from beneath the counter. "Have a look at these, Beetle, see what you think."
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Posted: Sun Dec 02, 2007 3:09 pm
He hadn't been looking for himself, but nevertheless the forest gnome found that the garment caught his eyes. Certainly it was an attractive piece, one that would probably make him look more attractive himself than he usually did. Ignoring Tenar's message, which stated that he was a vain b*****d, the blond got back to his feet and hopped down onto a conveniently blank spot of counter.
"They look good," he said with a nod, quietly assessing whether or not they would fit him. Surprisingly enough, he deduced that they probably would; even most things made for gnomes were too big for him, he couldn't imagine where these must have come from. "Look like they'll fit me, too," he added as he reached that conclusion. "How much?" he asked a moment alter, deciding to cut to the chase. He thought he knew about how much such a thing was worth; knowing about how much he ought to be paying for a given item was something he felt was important. If you didn't, most merchants would squeeze as much out of you as possible; it was their job, after all.
Angetenar snorted amusement at the mental image of his small friend wearing those trousers; as if the bard didn't get enough attention from small gentlemen and exceptionally tiny ladies as it was. Oh well, the results could be quite amusing to watch and or be told about, he supposed. Two-legs and their seeming complete lack of regard for monogamy had always made him chuckle, made him a bit jealous too; most female wyrms were not so loose in their dealings.
Shaking his head over the grey creature as he spoke to the human, the hybrid dragon turned his attention the the bracelets he had asked to see. "Alright then," he said with a grin to Zita, "let's try this." So saying he rose up onto his hindlegs and, balancing himself with his tail, managed to slide first one then then other over his forelegs without even wobbling too much. The fire-backed creature dropped gratefully back onto all fours at this point before raising one of his newly adorned legs to inspect the effect of the silvery thing.
Finding it to be most pleasing, he raised his gaze to Zita once more. She really was a striking creature. "Very nice," he said with a grin, wondering if she would catch the double-meaning he had sent her way.
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Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2007 12:56 am
"Call it five and twenty," Clara said without missing a beat. "High quality leather...lamb leather, I think, soft but tough...natural colour variations add interest to the garment...fastenings intact and in good condition, no visible weaknesses in the leather...the only problem I can see with them is the lack of belt loops, and I know a trader up the road who'll put a set on for you for pennies." She'd called the price a little higher than she expected Beetle to eventually pay for them, but unless he was very good at haggling he'd end up paying around what they were worth. Since she'd got them essentially for free, anything she made on the deal was a profit.
Zita didn't miss Tenar's cloaked compliment. She grinned broadly in answer, showing off clean, sharp white teeth. "I thought so," she said, answering both remarks at once. "Five and forty the pair, to you, sir - and I've this bag of honey candies here if you feel the deal needs sweetening."
It was a good price. She knew she could have got more for them, but if it would endear her to this wyrm she didn't mind making a small loss. Some things were worth more than gold.
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Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2007 3:27 am
The grey bard frowned thoughtfully at the merchant's words, nodding as she spoke of the quality. So far as he was able to guess, she wasn't actually trying to fleece him, that was nice. "Call it five and five?" he suggested, not willing to push Clara to anger by suggested too low a price. Five and five seemed fair to him, though whether or not the human would agree was another matter entirely.
Angetenar on the other hand was clueless about money, and as always when he was clueless about something he reached out for his bonded's opinion. At a mental feeling of approval, he nodded to Zita and gave her another grin. "Sounds good to me," he agreed, orange eyes darting over the counter for any more gems. "How about that black silk scarf?" It wasn't made right to just be a bolt of the stuff; looked as though it had been made for a creature such as himself, or perhaps to be some very elaborately knotted sash for a biped. Either way it was attractive, he wanted it and had been needing something his bonded could hang onto for some time. The gnome was probably getting really sick of being unseated once or twice a day.
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Posted: Wed Dec 26, 2007 11:03 am
"Five and twelve," Clara returned with a grin, "and you can take any one of those bracelets you like." She indicated a little cluster of brightly-coloured string bracelets, made up of plaits and knots. They were about the right size for a little girl, or for Beetle. "Zita, the black scarf's pure silk - don't give it him for any less than seven and thirty!" Zita would know not to go below six and ninety - that was a very low price indeed for pure black silk in these parts, but hey. They'd made a good profit already today, and she didn't want to drive a wedge between Zita and this fiery friend of hers.
"Then we'll say seven and thirty, shall we, darling?" Zita said to Tenar, holding up the scarf. "It's high quality, no marks or tears. You can touch it now if you're gentle, but mind if you rip it you buy it." She hoped he'd buy it. It'd suit him well.
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Posted: Wed Dec 26, 2007 11:41 am
Beetle glanced down at the bracelets, doubting that he’d be interested, but as his eyes caught on them they reminded him sharply of a similar though less intricate thing he’d made for his brother so very long ago. Abruptly he wanted one and he nodded to the merchant, bending to scoop up one in colours that would suit him. “Done,” he said with a smile, extending his hand to seal the bargain with a palm touch as he summoned one of the pouches of money from a pack. Sometimes he still missed Fick like hell but mostly, as now, the memories just made him feel warm inside; a reminder of the towering brown man about his wrist would be good.
The purple wyrm did not touch the flawless cloth, he didn’t trust his talons around it while it didn’t belong to him, but he did grin and nod to Zita’s price; Beetle hadn’t stepped in so it was probably reasonable. “So that’s... Seventeen eighty-two total then.” He thought his sums were right, but doubtless somebody would correct him if they weren’t. It was a shame though, they’d be leaving as soon as money changed hands, and Beetle was already on that. Damn. He’d rather wanted to spend more time with Zita... Well, if you didn’t ask, you didn’t get; right?
“So... When do you close up these evening?” the hybrid asked of his fellow wyrm with a grin, once again hoping that she’d take the hint.
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Posted: Fri Dec 28, 2007 4:00 pm
Clara marvelled briefly at the size of Beetle's hand. She'd seen gnomes before, but never one quite like this. He was like a perfect little doll. "Good to do business with you, sir," she said, grinning broadly at Beetle's display of sorcery. If she'd known he was a fellow sorcerer she might well have dropped the price a little. "Just drop the coins into my pouch here - I've change if you need it." She was wearing a simple apron pouch with pockets for each denomination of coin - she'd designed it herself after losing patience with a purse of mixed coinage one day and almost scattering its contents across the cobbles.
"Between sixth and seventh hour," Zita answered easily, mightily pleased by the way this conversation was going. "Drop down at sixth and help us pack up, and there'll be a tour of the town in it for you. We've been here a couple of weeks now, so I know all the best places." She was tempted to take Tenar down to the fighting ring and put him through his paces - from what she could tell he was powerful, and she did enjoy watching a good fight. She'd not been in many herself, but she wasn't afraid to try.
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Posted: Fri Dec 28, 2007 4:25 pm
After a brief check, the bard smiled and shook his head. “No, I’ve the right money here,” he said as he dropped the assorted coinage into the appropriate places. “Clever idea,” he added with a nod to Clara’s apron as he fastened his bracelet about his left wrist and sent the leather trousers to fold neatly into one of the packs along with the money purse.
”Looks like you’ve got a date,” the gnome commented to Tenar with a chuckle as he caught up on the situation between the two wyrms. It almost felt strange, the way his wyrm friend was flirting. To the sorcerer it seemed only moments ago that girls had been ‘icky’ but the blond decided to keep that thought to himself; somehow he got the feeling that it wouldn’t go down too well with his tall companion.
Angetenar grinned at his bonded’s words and gave a nod to Zita's. “Sounds good to me, we’ve been here a couple of times but only on business; haven’t had time to explore yet so I’ll be glad of a guide who knows the ins and outs of the place.” Well, this was all turning out very well; he had new adornments which he couldn’t wait to see himself in (finding a mirror was in order,) he had honey candy to eat and, as his bonded put it, ‘a date’. Life was good and the hybrid was very glad that he’d managed to talk his friend into letting him come shopping for once; he’d have to do it more often.
“So,” the striped male said to his fellow wyrm with a grin as he felt his bonded settle on his back, “see you at sixth then."
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