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 Posted: Wed Aug 15, 2012 7:09 pm
At first, it was a struggle to keep the laughter unvoiced. Same lines, different man. Did they all come from the same stock? However, she did not quite have the heart to laugh at him. While they might be words she had heard time and again, it was less often that a man so...awkward as this one was brave enough to say them. On the rare occasion that such an event occurred, Rajani was always a little surprised at the sincerity in them. Of course, she still suspected this one of wanting more than he was going to get, but that was besides the point. She would at least try not to be needlessly cruel to the poor thing.
Her struggle not to laugh then turned to puzzlement. It seemed to be a habit among the male gender to try to warn women away from men they deemed unsuitable. Sometimes, it was out of genuine concern and sometimes, it was to sabotage the competition. It hardly mattered which was the case this time. There was only one other man who had spoken to her tonight, so there was little doubt about whom Patrek was referring. Rajani was most interested to hear just how he knew the other man, and whether Patrek's presence at the table was liable to backfire. If the two men were on friendly terms, Rajani might have inadvertently given herself more trouble than she had bargained for.
"I assume you mean the young, would-be bard?" she inquired. "How would you know about him?"
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Posted: Wed Sep 05, 2012 6:05 am
"He's a..." Patrek wondered what to say. To call Aufidius a mere acquaintance would have been something of an insult to their relationship, but Patrek certainly didn't think of him as a friend. No, Patrek Falconer did not make friends with the likes of the singer; he was too honest a man to comprehend the minds of young, charming, flirts such as Aufidius, and when he came across minds he could not understand, he trusted the owners only as far as he could throw them.
Still, he had to admit that in all the days they had spent in each other's company, Aufidius had never once done anything to prove Patrek's distrust correct. Much as the soldier hated to admit it, he had to concede that his companion could not be half bad. Though Patrek's new fawn still maintained a policy of chilly indignance whenever he was forced to interact with the singer, Careo didn't seem overly fond of humans in general. The fawn had stopped peppering their joint consciousness with images of Aufidius' offenses, however. Patrek had to take it to mean that they no longer afflicted Careo with the same outburst of emotion as before, and that it signaled the fawn's gradual acceptance of the singer.
"We're traveling to Palisade together," he said finally, when he found himself unable to more eloquently express how he knew Aufidius. "But that's not really the point," he heard himself say next, and even Patrek wondered where he was going with this. But it was too late to stop it now, and words were just coming out, whether he wanted them to or not.
"He's just looking for some company," Patrek continued. "And, and... that's not necessarily a bad thing. To each his own, see? But you're not what he's looking for, you're more... special." He stopped suddenly, realizing what he'd said, and cleared his throat uncomfortably.
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Posted: Wed Sep 05, 2012 5:40 pm
Oh, lovely. They were companions, after all. It would figure that her deterrent would turn out to be no deterrent at all. Oh, well. At least it did not sound as though they were on the most amiable of terms. Not if this one was warning her off of the other.
"...special?" Her lips quirked in amusement. That was a new one. To her immediate memory, Rajani could not recall being called special before.
"I am aware of your friend's intentions," she said. "Though I am surprised you do not think me appropriate for them. Most would think us a proper match." It was an all-too-true fact. Society would take one look at her and assume the worst. She was a gypsy, therefore she had to be loose. Society would be surprised to learn the truth.
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Posted: Fri Sep 07, 2012 6:37 am
He wasn't too sure what to say next. Calling her special hadn't exactly factored into his plans - though admittedly, he hadn't had much of a plan to begin with. He never really did when it came to any woman, let alone a beautiful woman like Rajani. Most times, that got him into trouble, as it had now, and left him stranded as he sought for a way to organize himself again.
Patrek managed to shake his head. "No, I've seen you," he said finally, his voice uncertain. There was a fine line between being attentive and coming across as a stalker, and the soldier certainly didn't want to do the latter. Not with her, anyway. She didn't really seem to believe him, and he wanted to convince her that he meant what he said. Scaring her off wasn't exactly conducive to his plans. Or lack thereof.
"You'd... you need someone who actually cares, I think," he continued. Obviously, Aufidius didn't. The singer's life was composed of as few worries as he could possibly manage, and caring about whose pants he ended up in was clearly a dispensable concern. Most nights, Aufidius just felt like having someone to warm his bed, maybe snuggle up against when it was cold outside. Looks, gender, personality, none of that seemed to matter much when it came down to it.
But Patrek didn't agree, just as he didn't agree that Rajani came from the same stock. "I know people might think that, just because you might look a certain way. But there are exceptions to every rule. I mean, you... you could be an exception."
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Posted: Fri Sep 07, 2012 2:45 pm
The waited patiently as he composed himself. Clearly, he was not used to conversing. Or maybe it was only women that got his tongue tied into knots. She glanced at the stage, wondering if it was close to time before he finally spoke. When he did, she narrowed her eyes. Oh, he'd seen her, had he?
"Make a habit of observing women?" It was probably innocent enough, and perhaps some might find it flattering to be told they had been noticed, but Rajani was not most people. She might be used to it, but that did not mean she particularly enjoyed it. Her songs were the only thing she wanted people to pay attention to.
"Sounds like you have me all figured out, then," she drawled caustically. "Oh, yes. Poor, misunderstood gypsy. Just a delicate flower waiting for the right man to come along." She gave a delicate snort. "You are too naive, Patrek."
In truth, she had no idea what had come over her. Why was she suddenly being so harsh on this innocuous man? What was it about him that irritated her so? The thought never crossed her mind that he might have hit too close to home, that perhaps she was being cruel in order to hide from the truth.
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Posted: Fri Sep 14, 2012 8:09 am
"Well... no," Patrek blurted, before catching himself and shaking his head. He supposed he did observe women sometimes, but that was really only a factor of his being a man and the fact that he had to notice something sometime in the crowded tavern, and it would simply have been too weird to notice men. "I wouldn't call it a habit, I mean." The last thing he wanted was for her to think that he preyed on unsuspecting women. He wasn't nearly as creepy as that, he hoped.
Then he had to shake his head again, and this time he smiled a sheepish smile as well and looked away to hide what might have been embarrassment. Patrek Falconer was not so easily embarrassed, after all. "I wouldn't presume to think that I could ever have you figured out," he said at last, after carefully observing the empty bowl that sat on the table between them. "Though I don't think you're a delicate flower, either. You don't seem so fragile. But that's just me."
He could be wrong. Patrek would be the first to admit fault when it came to women. He didn't have much experience with them, really, and he could only expect himself to make mistakes. Those mistakes could be forgiven, anyway. It was hard to know what women were really thinking at all times. "Well, maybe you're right." He nodded thoughtfully. Maybe he was too naive, and maybe this entire conversation was just a big mistake. "I can live with that, though. At least it got me to come over here."
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Posted: Tue Sep 18, 2012 1:41 pm
Rajani leveled an eloquent look at him, clearly unimpressed with what he had to say about any of the matters at hand.
Unknowingly echoing Patrek's thoughts, the gypsy wondered if she hadn't made a mistake in allowing this large, awkward man to share her table. Though she could not pinpoint any particular reason, and though she was loathe to admit it even to herself, his words unsettled her. And Rajani did not take well to being uncomfortable in her own skin. It tended to make her irritable.
"What, still think it was worth it?" she wondered, dubious and derisive all at once.
Glancing at the stage, Rajani realized that she would be up soon. At least time was kind to her. She could bury herself in her music and forget about her would-be suitors.
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Posted: Wed Sep 19, 2012 10:49 pm
He wasn't sure what it was about her that had drawn him to her, or what it was about him that seemed to push her away. There seemed a sort of resistance that Patrek didn't quite understand, but that made perfect sense to him, somehow. Maybe it just wasn't meant to be. But Patrek had never been under the illusion that it was so he was alright with that, too. Perhaps he could hope for the best when they parted ways, hope that she didn't get too wrong an impression of him or of Aufidius or even of men in general, though he sensed that perhaps it was too late for that now. Perhaps it had always been too late, or he had been too late. He wasn't sure about that either.
"Yes." His answer came with little hesitation and he met her look with his own, a steadier one now that he had come to the conclusion that there was little left to lose. But of course it was worth it, no matter what she said or what he thought. That was the very nature of these things; nothing had to go as planned, and it would all be worth it in the end. She couldn't drive him away with caustic words or biting glances.
But he needn't push her, either. Patrek mimicked her brief glance toward the stage, watching her and thinking of the time. "Looks like it's your round," he said, saving her the need to do so.
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Posted: Thu Sep 20, 2012 4:21 pm
"Hmm...." If he thought her less than companionable company had been worth the effort of speaking to her, he was either desperate or a fool. Given their conversation, she was betting on the latter. Oh, well. At least she was not the one who would have to live with it.
Oh, and there he was echoing her thoughts, speaking of them before she had the chance. Really, she did not understand this man. He was too...placid.
Regardless, she pushed away from the table and nodded slightly at him. For all he rubbed her the wrong way, Rajani was fair enough to acknowledge that Patrek seemed to be a decent man despite who he kept company with; it was just that he also happened to be an extremely awkward man.
"A piece of advice?" she offered. "Think about what you say before the words leave your lips. It might save you trouble in the future." With that, she sauntered up to the stage, exchanged a few words with the previous act, and set about earning her coin. It was to be a long night.
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