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Post by Gavin Graves on Feb 27, 2022 20:01:39 GMT -8
Passing by the two Springs on his way out of the exhibits he was observing, the tall ginger Aussie appears to have his groove on. Even with all the pulsing lights and image panels adorning the space, the Beast's eyes were wide like saucers drinking in the light. It was obvious his trip had started.
Scooping an unattended shot from Yuan's platter on his way by, "Cheers, gents!"
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Post by Croupier on Feb 27, 2022 20:12:12 GMT -8
Dan struck a friendly grin and took up a sheepish demeanor. In his eagerness to get himself noticed, he hoped it didn't lead to stepping on toes.
"You're right. Sorry about that." he accepted one of the fluorescent drinks and raised it in cheers to Yuan, "And you know what? A drinking game sounds like a hell of a way to ring things in, eh? Let's fucking do this!" the shot hit like a punch to the face. "So... how long have you been out and about?"
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Hua Yuan
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Presence 2 - Nostalgic; SL 1 - Flawless
Posts: 304
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Post by Hua Yuan on Feb 27, 2022 21:11:17 GMT -8
"Five years, give or take. Now." Yuan removed his glasses to better confront his new adversary and took a glass. "Less talking and more drinking."
A small crowd had gathered around the two Emeralds, egging them both on and placing bets on their favourite. The Beast was no stranger to alcohol. Usually, the belief was that Asians didn't handle Western alcohol very well because of physiological reason, or whatever. If that were the case, they had forgotten to tell Yuan about it. He was used to endure, to bottle it in. Clubs had been his safe haven for many years. He was determined to prove his superiority again, chasing the high of the Grove where their small motley had confronted the eldritch Hydra.
He was going to drink Croupier under the table. He was going to blackout tonight if it was the last thing he did.
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Post by Croupier on Feb 27, 2022 21:29:54 GMT -8
Dan had no idea what to expect when he arrived at Imbolc, but getting involved with a drinking game seemed like the best idea he heard all night. The paltry drinks he had been imbibing all night did little to cut the edge off, and were more set dressing for his conversations. But now... he was getting into the spirit of the night.
Dan paid no mind to the gathering that had formed around them. All that mattered were the vanishing drinks and the Emerald Beast in front of him. All pretense of being charming and witty were thrown out the window in favor of savoring the night's pleasures, and how good it would feel to knock his challenger down a peg.
It all went wrong almost at the first drink. A night of indulgences were paying their toll, and Dan found it impossible to catch up. The world became a blur, and even trying to lock eyes with Yuan only made the room spin faster. Still, he would not relinquish, even if he was being beaten. Giving up before he reached his limit would just make Dan look weak, and disappoint the crowd worst of all.
As the last drink got knocked back, Dan could not tell if he was standing or sprawled out on the floor. He slammed the empty glass down and laughed, throwing his other fist in the air. "I could go for a few more!"
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Hua Yuan
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Presence 2 - Nostalgic; SL 1 - Flawless
Posts: 304
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Post by Hua Yuan on Mar 1, 2022 21:08:58 GMT -8
The Beast burst out into laughter, a mix of satisfaction at his victory and humour at Dan's behaviour. "I like your style!" he roared.
Finally, he placed the platter on the bar counter before picking up two more shots. Holding one it the Fairest's general direction, he down his down before wince out of reflex; Yuan was long past the ability to feel the burn. "Lubricate," he slurred. "Then I'll allow you to explain that business proposal you were talking about."
"If you can manage to stand up right that is!" The Playmate burst into more laughter at the ridiculousness of the situation. The opportunity to speak his mind was the least he could offer to Miller for trying to keep up with him. Unfortunately, there was no guarantee Yuan would remember anything in the morning.
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Post by Croupier on Mar 1, 2022 21:50:15 GMT -8
The laugh that came from Dan was louder than he intended. Or was it? Fuck, he wasn't sure. Didn't much care, neither, by this point. The spirit of Imbolc was welling inside him by now, and while the void inside him never quite filled, tonight it felt a little less empty.
"I'm game." Dan slurred back as he stumbled over to the last shot. The floor and laws of gravity seemed to be in upheaval at the moment, and his legs felt like they were full of jelly. "Sounds only fair to me."
Picking up the last shot, Dan raised it to Yuan and tried to think of something witty or poignant to close out their game. All that came to mind was, "Imbolc!" before he took down the shot. One more dousing of alcohol was barely noticeable on the fire in Dan's stomach.
As he slammed the glass down onto the counter, he let out a satisfied sigh and smacked his lips in dramatic fashion, "God damn I could go for some ramen right now. They have food at this thing?"
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Post by Cinderella on Mar 3, 2022 17:19:12 GMT -8
Swimming in the throes of alcohol, Yuan spotted a familiar face that he almost could have missed. He had never seen Cinder harden her Mask before, and didn't realize the Sun's Tongue had natural black hair when it wasn't glowing with starlight. Makeup already smeared, she had shown up in a clubbing outfit that still managed to scream Privileged Princess, though the Fairest looked uncharacteristically nervous and intense as she boldly ducked behind the bar and snuck around the side with an unmarked bottle that she kept low to her side. She was bumped by other Lost as seemed to flinch, ignoring shouts for her attention as she looked like she was on a mission as she forced her small frame through. Her trajectory would hit the pair soon, and Croupier was even drawn to the weirdness of seeing someone's Mask up at this sort of party. Maybe she was trying to force everyone to never reveal her human face with the Oath?
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Hua Yuan
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Presence 2 - Nostalgic; SL 1 - Flawless
Posts: 304
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Post by Hua Yuan on Mar 6, 2022 1:47:14 GMT -8
The Grimm waived his arms, now free of liquid burden, frantically up in the air. He wasn't particularly tall, even by regional standards, and his efforts went unnoticed. "Hold my beer," he managed to blurt to Croupier as he shoved the proverbial, imaginary bock into his chest. The Playmate wasn't about to be overlooked by his long time friend if he could help it.
With drunken determination, he frayed a path through the sweaty bodies to Cinder.
"Cinder! Cinder! Cinderella, for fuck's sake!" He was practically jumping out of his clothes. "If you're looking to get smashed I'm starting a fellowship. A cult? Like, a team effort of debauchery. Wanna join? Beats nameless bottles and whatever else you had planned."
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Post by Croupier on Mar 6, 2022 17:42:59 GMT -8
Croupier barely had a chance to acknowledge Yuan before the Beast had stepped in front of the approaching Fairest to put on what in the Animal Kingdom could have been considered a mating dance. His hackles raised, as though he now had to compete for the right to have Yuan's attention from this unexpected challenger. The indignity of it all! Usually, people were clamoring for Dan's attention - or at least, the clay cheques in his tray, not the other way around. Maybe he should just carry around a deck of cards and stack of reds for just such occasions.
Yet he too was fascinated by Cinderella. She was beautiful, exotic, and maybe it was the combination of drink and free spirit nature of the evening, but Dan felt enraptured and wanted to join in the circle. What confused him the most, over everything else, was how she kept her guard up in such a free space; one where even a King seemed to have no problem flaunting his power in front of a mortal.
Speaking of, things seemed to be heating up in the center of the dance floor, where he caught glimpses of a scene going on between the Winter King and a few others, including Henley. With the throng of dancing bodies everywhere, it was impossible to see what was going on for sure, and hearing them would have been impossible.
Instead, Dan walked back over to Yuan and Cinderella, "Yuan, who is this lovely thing you're keeping all to yourself, here?"
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Post by Cinderella on Mar 6, 2022 20:53:44 GMT -8
Cinderella lit up with a grin at Yuan's excited pawing, going along with it as one would expect with two drunken friends finding each other in the bar.
"Wow, you are...absolutely ahead of me," she laughed, offering Yuan the bottle to playfully tip it back if he played along, but not letting it go. A friendly wave was offered to Dan as she did a sweeping gesture that pointed away from the crush of people,
"...In desperate need of a cell signal, and a break from all the noise! You boys want to talk outside?" she gasped, hoping they would pick up on her distress. The young woman wasn't exactly built for power, and making her way through a sea of bodies had proved a challenge.
As the gunshot cut through the music, she instinctively took a knee as she tucked her head, pulling both down with her with a warning yelp. Her eyes were wide, unable to perceive anything that gave her useful information.
"Lets go," she said flatly, colour already draining from her face as she run the math on a mass shooting in such a tight space, not to mention the risk of Crowd Crush.
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Post by Krakenbox on Mar 6, 2022 20:59:07 GMT -8
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Hua Yuan
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Presence 2 - Nostalgic; SL 1 - Flawless
Posts: 304
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Post by Hua Yuan on Mar 7, 2022 16:17:46 GMT -8
The Courser desperately tried to get his head on straight. The booze in his system was recreating the feeling of running through the Hedge, along with the brazen and unwavering belief that he was going to be just fine. After all, he had managed to outrun a Huntsman.
Shoulders and elbows started bumping into his ribs as people snapped out of their daze. Soon, there might be a stampede to get out of this joint. Yuan ditched the glasses and tried nodded to Cinder. Adrenaline was kicking his gears into a rusty grind, fighting off the night of party. He grabbed the Summer's hand and brought her closer to him, using his body as a battering ram through the crowd.
"Try yo keep up," he told Croupier. Logic dictated that they should move in the direction opposite of the gunshot. "Cinder, you know where's the exit?"
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Post by Croupier on Mar 7, 2022 19:32:14 GMT -8
Nothing quite sobers someone up like getting shot at.
Correction, Dan Miller was definitely not feeling sober as he kept low and followed behind Cinderella and Yuan, keeping close to them as he could. More alert, more aware of the throng of people around him and the chaos stampede erupting around them, but more sober? He wished.
Doing his part to shoulder check and push their way through the crowd, becoming one with the salmon stream of Lost trying to get as far away from the sound of gunfire as possible, Dan overheard Yuan ask Cinder if she knew where the exit was. Taking a risk, Dan perked up just enough to peek over the crowd to search for the exit. The last thing they needed was to follow a crowd that was just going to run headlong into a wall and bunch up for a nice, juicy target.
"Who's doing the shooting?!" Dan shouted, unaware as to whether or not either of them could hear him over the crowd. "Did anyone see?!"
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Post by Krakenbox on Mar 9, 2022 21:53:12 GMT -8
In the concentration of magic and unbound emotion, Bedlam was firing off left and right. Emotions hit in waves where it ceased to have meaning — frightening adrenaline, joy in the chaos, the thrill of berserk offense, uncontrolled selfishness, to exhaustive lethargy to give up and cry. Everyone was sweating as they dispersed to their collective goals or took a moment to collect themselves with dips and highs that self-corrected with the next wave of Arcadian madness cancelling it out.
Cinder didn't respond to Yuan, blearily focusing on navigating the surge. She seemed grateful for finding them, helping if one tripped or tugging them away from an errant claw or crackling mien. Croupier seemed to have the best idea of where to go, taking point as they were one of the earlier leads through the mirror maze.
Glass was starting to shatter in fantastic pulses, the music trying to cut more than once as someone wrestled with the sound system. It was chaos. The trio witnessed snapshots of Lost enacting violence on the Masked as accusations of Fetches flowed through the cacophony. Heads literally flew as motleys spotted a double and sprung without hesitation, while others gawked in pale shock at the bestial actions of their peers. Some froze, mentally unprepared and being threatened with trampling as they fell to their knees or curled defensively, while other hands reached to pull them up and hurry them along.
There as a collective sag of relief as they saw one of the fire exits with a steady steam. The hushed voice of a Whisperwisp cut spoke directly in everyone's ear. "Members of the Freehold, the shooter is no longer active. Make your way to the nearest exit and refrain from Portalling or using the mirrors. It is dangerous and unstable. They are not Fetches. Proceed in an orderly fashion and refrain from firing weapons. Proceed to the nearest exit. We repeat: they are not Fetches."
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Hua Yuan
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Presence 2 - Nostalgic; SL 1 - Flawless
Posts: 304
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Post by Hua Yuan on Mar 13, 2022 12:48:07 GMT -8
The emergency exit came with a wave of relief. Yuan bodied the door with his shoulder, not trusting the dexterity of his hands to work the latch. Then came the disembodied voice, making the Beast wonder how drunk he really was.
Not fetches? Faulty mirror network? It had to be linked to the way Anthony dropped after Golden Boy. Thoughts were hanging at the back of his brain, born of paranoia and familiarity with Mirror Walking. He’d never actually stopped on the other side, but he’d seem more than most.
The cold night air stung his damp skin. “Croupier, Cinder. You good?”
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