Letting Off Steam

[Vega]

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30th Cylus, 718

"There you are!" Huw said and he moved to sit at the small dining table in the galley where Arlo was cooking. Joq'an was in with Vega, who was sleeping, and Huw looked at Arlo with a serious expression. "You are an astonishing cook, and I understand that you cook for my seq'lat, which means female cousin in our language, because you and she are one soul. But you cook also for Uncle, who is your qau'ma's da'at, or father of your love. But what am I?" He smiled, a rare thing for the biqaj man. "We are qy'akot, family. Clan of the heart." It appeared that he was moderately determined to give Arlo a lesson in Rakahi as he was there. "And so, I thought that we could get drunk together."

Huw was a serious sort, but he had an ability to make Vega see red within moments. Less than a bit. He had been entirely unsympathetic to her, to her face, since the injuries. Yet he had sat with her for breaks at a time and Arlo had seen him sitting and reading books on therapy for the body after injuries, exercises to help, that kind of thing. He'd gone out and brought the blankets and towels and so on which had needed to be bought and had simply taken over every domestic chore that wasn't cooking without question. His worry for Vega was not in doubt to anyone, except possibly her to whom he was consistently vile. And both Arlo and Joq'an got to see the look of triumph on his face when that caused her to move, to fight, to fling abuse if it meant she wasn't wallowing.

He was a much more complex being than he seemed to be.

"Uncle will stay with her. She has done a lot to-trial. I think she will sleep, don't you?" He wouldn't even consider suggesting the young man go out for a drink otherwise. "Also, Fi will move her things in, so she will be here." The sister in law to Huw's brothers, the woman that Vega had more or less suggested that Arlo might want to sleep with in the interim of her injury was who Huw was referring to. It had been agreed between the Lei'nox clan that Fi would come aboard whilst Vega, or Eva as they all called her, was incapacitated. However, the twins and their new wives would be on their ship - the one which had, up until recently, belonged to Joq'an and they would travel together. So, there was likely to be a fair amount of movement between one vessel and another, if what Vega had told him was true in all cases.

"So, I thought that you and I might go and have a drink. Maybe ask Shon and Reese, although I believe they are too busy discovering that marriage is not so bad." The twins had, apparently, got married, though when that might have been wasn't clear. Huw, however, provided the answer. "They are not officially married. Uncle has declared the wives part of the clan and they will wait for the ceremony until Eva is able to stand with them." He shrugged and added, "with us. One clan. So, it might be just us. Would you like to go and drink?"

[Arlo Creede]

From the trill that Huw walked into the kitchen and exclaimed, in effect, that finally he'd managed to track him down, Arlo was suspicious. After all, while the Wanderer was substantially larger than your average rowboat, he just wasn't that difficult to find. And he hardly left the ship these trials, even choosing to have most of their foodstuffs delivered. He said nothing though as Huw took a seat at the table, but only smiled a little and shook his head while looking back to his task.

A host of chopped aromatics thrown into a roasting pan along with two large, seasoned racks of beef ribs, that he was currently wrapping and covering tightly in readiness for putting it into the oven. "Qy'akot," he repeated, and committed it to memory. "As a devotee to Cassion, I cook for the Immortal, for fellow travelers, for anyone really," he explained. "But it's always better to cook for those that genuinely appreciate it." Vega did, Arlo know, and so did her family.

But running off for a drink? Arlo wasn't quite sure about that, and said nothing at first. He knew that Vega was in good hands with her father. But still he liked to be nearby, just in case. "It's a balance she's got to find," he agreed, referring to how hard Vega was working. "Too little movement and she'll grow stiff, lose muscle. Too much, and she'll compromise the healing process." As for Fi, Arlo frowned when he turned away, back to large pot that he picked up and slid into the oven. He still wasn't sure they needed the extra help. He wasn't sure about any of it really. But he'd said before, let Jo'qan and Huw decide, and so they had apparently.

"They're married, but not?" he asked curiously, finally wiping off his hands, wiping down his work space and leaving their evening meal to take care of itself. He understood the concept, he guessed. When he was young, he told Huw, there was a neighboring couple who lived with one another all the way to old age, through children and grandchildren. But they never married until all of their offspring were grown and gone. Still, they'd considered themselves to be married. Humans though, so probably not the same.

"I don't know about getting drunk. But one drink maybe," he agreed. After all, if Vega was in good hands, their evening meal would also take its time. It was covered tight and the flame in the stove was set at such a low heat that the dish would take four or five breaks to fully cook. All the more tender and flavorful that way.

[Vega]

]

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Huw raised an eyebrow and replied with a somewhat dry tone, "I would say that you are surrounded by those who appreciate you. Although, my expanding middle might pose a problem." There was not an ounce of fat on Huw, he was a muscular and lean chap, but he did have a hearty appetite. Joq'an teased him that he had hollow legs and it might be reasonable to assume such, in fairness. He saw the look on Arlo's face at his offer and he wondered whether he'd lost the young man before he started. He thought maybe, but he said nothing about it. No point to pushing right now.

"A balance? That is not Eva's strong suit. She has always been all or none." He glanced and as it always did, the worry on his face showed. "Still, she is committed and determined it seems. Uncle tells me that was a lively conversation?" As he watched Arlo work, he nodded at the human's assessment of his brothers. "They have committed themselves to each other, Uncle has formally accepted the women into the clan. They are ly'akor. A sister, or a woman you respect. Put ly before any woman's name to show respect. A brother, or close male friend is qa'akor, and qa before a male name does the same." He shrugged slightly and added. "We fall into habits and might slip in front of you, revert to our usual language. I hope not, it would be rude, but might happen by forgetfulness and chance. If it does, then you knowing the small phrases might help." He didn't want Arlo to feel isolated but understood that there were times when, by falling into habits they might make him feel such. So, he tried to put it right.

"So, yes, they are married, we just have not had the party yet. They wish to wait for Eva to be standing with us. We have many strange superstitions, I understand, but it is bad luck for there to be sadness on a trial of happiness. Therefore, we will have a party and be happy when we can all be happy." It was the same logic which had impacted Vega's birthday and, whilst she understood Arlo's feelings, it seemed entirely logical to those who had been raised with such ideas.

When he agreed to a drink, Huw smiled. He'd seen Arlo's frown at the mention of Fi, but said nothing about it. Instead, he stood and waited, should Arlo want to pop in and tell Joq'an and Vega where they were going. For himself, Huw was happy to leave a note. If Arlo did, then he would see that indeed, Vega was asleep. Clutching Bruce and resting - her father was sitting on the chair next to the bed and reading a book to her - since Huw had done it the first time, it had become apparent that she slept better if that happened when her father or cousin were with her.

Either way, Huw was happy to go to the nearest Inn, not far away and Lyova would undoubtedly stay behind to keep an eye on things as Arlo wanted. Scalvoris was reeling, especially this area, following the events of just a few trials before. The Elements were very much not seen and the people were damaged. Not just physically, although there were a lot of injuries visible, but psychologically too. The Inn where they went was quiet and Huw got them both a drink. Sitting down, he nursed his glass of whisky for a moment and then spoke. "Fi is gorgeous. Possibly the most beautiful woman I have ever seen." He nodded, slightly and looked back down at his drink. "When Eva was a little girl, she would fight anyone, anything. But she would not allow herself to have friends. Always, she would push away anyone who seemed to like her." He considered for a moment and then added, "and inevitably, she pushed them towards full biqaj. Proper biqaj. We were vile to her, it became habit and until I saw her with you I had no idea how unhappy she had been before she met you." He raised his glass, pointing it slightly towards Arlo.

"To happiness," he said and then he looked at Arlo with a querulous expression. "Does this mean, qa'kor, that you have never played Stars? It is a traditional card game which we often play." Reaching into his coat, he pulled out a deck of cards, not like the ones Arlo was used to, but more like the cards the fortune teller had used - although not entirely like those, either. He held the pack up and gave a rare, but most genuine smile. "Would you like to learn?" He grinned slightly, and put the deck on the table between them. "If so, shuffle and seven cards each, with the remainder in the middle."

[Arlo Creede]

"All of one or all of another," Arlo agreed while finally wiping down his hands and tossing the cloth aside. Balance? Not a bit of it when it came to Vega. It wasn't exactly true. There was balance, and there were nuances. But sometimes the temperament made it difficult to see. Except for him as time went on. He was learning to recognize and appreciate it.

She was however determined. A lively conversation, no question about it. "I'm surprised they didn't hear the exchange out on the docks and beyond," he admitted. It was like daring to poke a tiger in the eye, and he'd happily done it in order to get just the response that he had. It was nice to be able to learn and recognize a handful of words in Biqaj, and he appreciated Huw taking the time and making the effort. Arlo wasn't sure how often he'd actually use the language himself. But at least when surrounded by those who did, he be able to grasp the gist of it.

As for the wait before the wedding, Arlo shrugged and smiled a little. "If she has her way she'll be standing in half the time. If her own will was all it took, she'd be able to do it in less than that." Unfortunately, nature would have a say in it. Vega might be able to help the process along, even speed it up a little, but in the end, in nature's own time. Given the choice, Arlo opted to look in on her before they left. Leaving Huw to wait, he looked into the room to find her sleeping, but her father there beside her. "If she wakes, tell her I won't be long," he whispered before grabbing his coat, his weapons and ducking back out.

Naturally Lyova would stay behind. The link between them was impervious to the space between them and it was already understood that she would keep him informed. He only shook his head a little at her antics as he made way up on deck. He'd found her lounging cheekily right in the middle of Joq'an's open book, but with the older man completely unaware of it. The nearest inn was Arlo's obvious choice and it was just as well he didn't run across any members of the Elements. His memories were fresh ones and he'd have turned the man's face inside out if there'd been one available. At any rate he thanked Huw for the drink and promised to buy the second round himself.

"Funny, I hadn't noticed," he said, grinning when Huw talked about Fi and how fair she was. Arlo had of course noticed. He loved Vega and only her. It was only her that he wanted. But on the other hand, he wasn't in the least blind or immune to things such as that. "So are you going to admire her from afar or do something about it?" he wondered after a long drink from his mug. The raised mug was met with one of his own, though Arlo smiled and shook his head. "I've only known one Vega, not the one she was before. That's the one I fell in love with."

But no, he'd never played Stars but was willing to try it. Arlo had played cards plenty of times, and gambled too. Just not this particular game or with cards that looked exactly like this. "Growing up in Rharne," he said when he picked up the deck and began to shuffle, "there were lots of Biqaj though they tended to keep to themselves and not mix much. Still, I heard mention of the game." By name he meant, as he dealt the cards, seven to each of them.

[Vega]

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Huw chuckled when Arlo talked of people hearing the 'conversation' between the two of them from afar. "She has a healthy pair of lungs, it is true." And he did not doubt, he said, that were it down to will and determination alone, they would be celebrating the wedding come the morning. But he understood that nature had to take it's own time to do what it needed to do. He said nothing, either, when Arlo popped his head in to Vega, understanding how worried the young human was. Or, at least, believing he did.

As they walked, he looked at Arlo and shook his head. "What I find hard to grasp is the randomness, the sudden, inexplicable nature of it. It's a nonsense." The trial before the party on the docks Vega had helped Reese and Shon on what was now their ship. Arlo knew that, he and Joq'an had been getting supplies for the voyage and Vega had offered to help get the Waking Dreamer ready for the wedding. The story stopped as they arrived at the tavern and got drinks and so on, and it might seem like he'd forgotten as he put down their drinks, and waved a hand dismissively at Arlo's reassurance that he'd pay. It would all work out, he was sure.

But on the subject of Fi. "I don't know," he said, thoughtfully. "I think that I am too old for her, nearly a decade is a lot. Also," he shrugged slightly and shook his head. "I have been rejected by my share of women, and rejected as many. But she is family now, clan. That would make things awkward, should she say no. Or, say yes and it not work. Especially if we are living on the same vessel." No, Huw said, he thought that he'd wait a while, see how things panned out. He really had no idea if she'd be vaguely interested, he said. Although. "Who knows what is going on in the head of any woman?"

As they toasted happiness, Huw looked at Arlo with a definite change of colour in his eyes, swirling from green to turquoise in an instant. In Vega, it would mean one thing, but none of them seemed to share the same colours for specific emotions, although the way the colours moved was the same for all the Lei'nox clan thus far. "Only one of her? She has changed so much." He glanced back at the direction of the ship and then spoke again.

"When I got there, while Eva was helping Shon and Reese," he said, sure that Arlo would understand that he was continuing the story of before. "There she was, seated on the top yard of the main mast, not two foot below the crows nest, shouting at Reese and telling him that whoever had told him he was funny had evidently lied," he smiled at Arlo as he considered it. "I was worried for her, up there, and I thought to myself that they should not have let her be the one to climb to the highest point." His face told a clear story; he was well aware how productive and useful telling Vega what to do was. "I thought, if she falls... but I," he stopped and shrugged, his face telling more than his words, although those were clear enough. "It makes no sense and I don't know how to protect her from it."

Instead, he turned his attention to the card game, and did not dwell on what he couldn't change. Vega, meanwhile, unaware that she was being talked about, had woken and was pleased that Arlo had gone out. She'd questioned Joq'an on who with, smiled when it was Huw and replied that it was good that Arlo had some space, some time away from all of this; gesturing to her legs as she did. Joq'an frowned at that and was about to argue, when she carried on talking, "I don't mean away from me, Papa. I mean, away from this. If I could take myself off somewhere an' not have to look at these, I would. Shame it's with Huw, though, that means Arlo's still the grown up." Joq'an chuckled and asked her the question which Arlo knew she hated being asked. "How are you feeling, Eva?"

Through his link with Lyova, of course, Arlo saw and heard the answer. "In a lot of pain, and scared witless I'm not strong enough to do this, Papa. An' my knee itches. I mean, like, really itches. How're you feelin?" Joq'an blinked and shook his head, then started to answer. "Eva, you know you are more than strong enough.." Vega shook her head. "I know that Papa. I do. You asked me 'ow I was feelin', not what I know." She frowned and then added, although it probably didn't need saying, "oh, an' grumpy. I'm feelin' grumpy too." Joq'an raised an eyebrow. "Really? I could not tell."

Huw, meanwhile, was teaching Arlo the game. The idea was much like poker, but cards were collected together in 'constellations', there were no suits, all cards were star cards, but the 'suits' were different coloured backgrounds for the night sky they portrayed. The number of stars in the constellation was important, and would determine the number of points gained, but whether two cards could be part of a constellation depended entirely on whether they could be laid down together to make a whole picture. Some cards had half a star, or a tiny pinprick of light. The idea was to put down a central card, face up on the table in front of you and then, build up a constellation by laying down other cards. They could be laying side by side with the base card, or could be up to half covering it (no more than that), but the picture had to remain constant. Huw looked at Arlo and gave a slight smile. "We can go back and play with Eva if you would rather. I had thought that maybe you would want a break, not from her, but the situation. However I do not want to keep you away, if you would rather that you, I, a bottle of whisky and pack of cards visited her, that is fine too."

[Arlo Creede]

Arlo wasn't sure that anything that happened in the world was truly random. Or at least that's what he'd supposed when Huw wondered about it. "If you drop a sack of marbles on the floor often enough, in the same way, you'll start to notice after a while that each time they roll and scatter in exactly the same way. It's only when you intervene in the process that things change." Free will, Arlo suggested, was what he meant. But he wasn't inclined to engage in any deep discussions that night.

As for why Huw was resistant to making his interest known to Fi? Arlo snorted, shook his head and took a deep swallow of his drink. "Well know absolutely," he said dryly. "Don't let a bunch of silly things like happiness and love get in the way of awkwardness and uncertainty. Priorities, you know." Besides, he added, what was age? His stepfather was a good decade or more older than his mother. And they did alright. As for a woman's mind, he couldn't begin to guess and in fact would advise against it.

When it came to Vega and Huw's sense of how she changed, though, Arlo shrugged as he dealt out the cards. "The Vega you're describing, as she is now, it's the only one I've ever known." Meanwhile Lyova was keeping up a stream of chatter in his mind, ever since Vega's eyes had fluttered open. She was struggling a little, he knew. But her father was there with her, so when Huw asked if he'd rather return to the ship for worry about her, Arlo smiled and shook his head.

"A few bits longer won't hurt. I have it on good authority that she's awake and doing fine." He opted not to tell Huw just how he'd come to know that. "So I've dealt," he said after the rules of the game were explained. "Does this mean you go first?"

[Vega]

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At Arlo's assertion that he shouldn't let little things get in the way of the important ones, Huw looked at him with a grin. "You know, if ever I thought of the man who would steal Eva's heart, he would have been compliant and easy going. Not a sarcastic bone in his body," in truth, Huw knew that would have bored Vega senseless within about ten bits. Still, it was a point to make. He grinned at Arlo and gave a sort of half nod, half shake of his head that told of his confusion and uncertainty regarding the woman in question. "There is a lot to lose. When does it become worth the risk?" He shrugged and then asked something which told a lot of how much Vega had, or in this case had not, shared with her family about their relationship. "It is easy to judge when you are with the woman you love. Were you ever really just friends?" Huw, had not met them until just before Arlo and Vega had got together and to him it was obvious from the first time he had seen Eva with Arlo, when they had come to the boat to learn carpentry, what the nature of her feelings for him were and he said so. "But the move in relationship, from friends to lovers? That seems to cross a large and very dangerous chasm to me, where many a heart must have shattered. Is it the same chasm you suggest I leap across from clan to mate? I don't know." Huw grinned and shrugged. "But she is very beautiful. Ah, who knows? "

He seemed much more inclined to focus on the cards and he watched Arlo deal.

"I bet you, Huw's gonna play cards with 'im, an' he's goin' to do his usual. Did you warn Arlo that Huw's an outrageous cheat?" Vega asked Joq'an and her father shook his head. "They won't play for money, and he will learn." Vega rolled her eyes. "Yeah, it's not Arlo who could do with learnin' a lesson there. You know what he's like, Papa. Huw, I mean. I was there when he taught the twins, the wives I mean, I was there when he taught them. He did it all fair, except he forget to tell 'em certain rules, till they were ones he wanted to use."

Joq'an, who had been playing the game of Stars so long that he couldn't really imagine not knowing the rules, frowned slightly. "What do you mean?" Vega sighed, "He didn't tell 'em that you can put yer cards on the other person's constellation, to block em. The girls 'ad three of the cards with jus' one star an' a blank sky in their hands. They could 'ave blocked him, but he didn't tell 'em that till it was time for 'im to block them. He's shameless." Joq'an chuckled. He was fond of Huw there was no doubting it. "And Arlo will learn, Eva. You can not protect him from everything." Vega grinned and shook her head. "Wanna bet, Papa?" "Indeed," said Huw. "You deal and now we both put down our base cards. That is the card on which we form our first constellation. It is usual to choose one with many opportunities, but that is up to you." He put down a card which, indeed, had a lot of stars on it, four in total and a half one. "Once we have both put down our base card, we draw another. Then, we take turns to put down a card. I will start, so you can see how it works, but usually it is the one with the least stars on their base card. But here, I put down this one." He put a card down on the corner of his own base card. "You see? It has the same colour background where it touches, and completes the star in the corner. So now, both are part of my constellation. I now take another card and it is your turn. If you can not go, you can just take another card."

He looked at Arlo and smiled. He had the same expression on his face that Vega wore when she knew something he didn't, as it turned out. Ironically, it was the same expression Vega was wearing as she looked at her father.

"What do you mean, Eva?" Joq'an asked and Vega grinned at him. "Nothin' Papa. Some things should stay between a couple, don't you think? Arlo an' I 'ave to have our own secrets. Do you want to play a hand?" Joq'an's eyes narrowed suspiciously, but he said no more. He got a deck and shuffled them, dealing them out and Vega looked at hers. "Alright, so, base cards down an' then I call exchange. I give you two o'my cards, an' choose two random cards of yours, yeah?" Joq'an nodded, looking at her querulously. "Why are you explaining the rules to me, Eva? I know them."

Vega smiled, obviously far less grumpy suddenly and she shrugged. "Jus' remindin' myself Papa. I think the medicine I take makes me a bit fuzzy, you know? So, as long as I 'aven't put down my first non-base card, I can call exchange. So I'm gonna wait till you've put down a card, drawn another an' then call it." Joq'an looked around the room, as though expecting there to be someone there, but there was not and so, with a slight frown on his face, he put down a card and drew a new one. Vega then chose two of her cards, and slid them over to him. If Lyova looked, she chose two which were a different base colour from his cards, but were the same as hers, and which had a small number of stars on them. Joq'an put down a card and sighed, slightly. Most of his cards were the background colour of Vega's base card. Vega, meanwhile, asked innocently. "My turn, Papa?"

[Arlo Creede]

Compliant and easy going? Arlo grinned a little and shook his head as he drank down the contents of his mug by half. Easy going though, possibly. "And my grandmother used to say that some trial I'd stop moving, and find myself a meek and obedient wife." What he'd found and who he'd fallen in love with was a far cry from that, and he wouldn't have it any other way. Still, considering what Huw had to say about his interest in Fi, Arlo frowned thoughtfully. "In my experience, the things most worth having, are those that bring with them the greatest risk."

It was an interesting question. Had he and Vega ever been just friends? Looking back, he wasn't quite sure. "It's not an easy question to answer. Looking back, I'd say no, it was always something else. But I'm looking back on it in the context of now. Then though, I didn't have that sort of context." It had been a risk though, and one the biggest, maybe the biggest he'd ever taken, telling Vega how he really felt. "I'm predisposed by nature to throw caution to the wind. It's my nature." But just as he'd said before, what was the most worth having, was worth the risk of losing it all.

Meanwhile, leaving Lyova behind was turning out to have been a very good idea. Not only was his little blue friend invaluable for communicating over great distances. But her very nature in his case was an added boon. Lyova was a playful creature, a mischievous one and a chatty one too. And given her role in the world, she liked nothing better than to be included somehow in all the excitement. She'd caught on straight away to what Vega was up to, and passed what she was given along as fast as she got it. Almost too quickly, her stream of chatter wasn't easy to keep up with.

So, Huw's playing style tended to not be carried out at table level, insofar as he was inclined to trot out the rules when they proved most advantageous. Arlo had to admit, he might employ a similar style himself, was he a frequent gambler and wanted to win. Still, he repressed the grin that might have emerged when Lyova warned him, and sat back to watch Huw, while the other man studied his hand. And as the other man made his first move, Arlo decided there was something very familiar about that expression.

As it turned out, there was nothing in Arlo's hand that he could play. It would have been nice, had he anything that he could've blocked Huw with. But because he didn't, but also didn't want any more cards in his hand? Well, presumably Huw had played a card that he could ultimately play more of his hand on. Frowning, apparently in deep thought, Arlo tilted his head curiously. "You know, I think there just might be a little something I know about the game...having seen others play it," he explained.

Choosing two cards from his hand that were the most useless to him and calling "Exchange", he slid them face down across the table towards Huw. And then he plucked two of Huw's cards from his hand. Settling back then with a grin, he drained his drink, and on they'd play until one or the other, had the other one beat.

[Alistair]

Arlo

Knowledge
Gambling: Biqaj game: Stars
Gambling: Dealing cards
Gambling: Shuffling cards
Gambling: Stars: Put stars in 'constellations'
Gambling: Stars: Rules of exchange
Gambling: Stars: Blocking another
Intelligence: Using an invisible spy to gather information
Intelligence: Gather as much information as possible about intentions
Intelligence: Watch facial expressions for clues

Loot: No
Injuries: No
Renown: Slight (+5)
Devotion: No

Points: 15

Comments: That was a well written game. Makes me think you might have some experience with it, haha, although I personally had no clue what was going on game-wise (don't know anything card related). Well done regardless!