2023.03.11 Smoke, Swara, and Kinfolk

03.11.23 Smoke, Swara, and Kinfolk
A meeting with a ranking Bastet and her exceptional Kin mate.
IC Date	03.11.23
Players	Natalie, Richard, Trey
Location	Smoke and Barley
Spheres	Bastet, Kinfolk

Smoke and Barley - Private Dining(#9526RAM)
Wood paneling shines in warm tones from the walls, the large stairway leading downwards into a large expanse. Glyphs are etched railing, giving texture as one's fingers graze over the wood. Full spectrum lighting brightens the room and keeps the plants that fill the corners lush and full.
In the center of the room is a large, round fireplace that burns merrily and bright. The flames leap high, and are tended regularly by staff. Thick oaken tables are laid around the fire pit for those that would enjoy the dance of the flames. The tables have large leather seats and are set for the barbecue feast to come, with a bucket that holds bottles of spicy sauces and piles of napkins.
Dark green walls add color to the lounge area, with a red throw rug in the middle of it, and a smattering of furniture including two couches, and four recliners, with occasional end tables for drinks about. The couches are both beige in color, and rather comfortable, while the recliners are green leather, and the end tables dark stained oak.
Opposite this wall is the bar, a rich and dark stained wood set low with red and beige colored chairs seated in front of it. Behind the bar are three large kegs on their sides each holding 4 taps. The reddish wood of the bar's counter is inlayed with glyphs, carved with care and polished to a shine. http://www.cityofhopemush.net/index.php/Smoke_and_Barley

Richard takes a seat at the square table. Table 2.

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This evening, Richard and Natalie are here. Sitting at a table covered with food, and a bottle of wine, they have apparently just settled in to eat.

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Natalie reaches for the plate of ribs to start putting some on the plate in front of her, "So when will we be doing the next video?" she asks of Richard, a sparkle in her eyes. "I have to admit, it was fun last time. I thought I'd be more nervous."
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Trey comes down the stairs, a new face but one known to the staff here at least. He has a backpack slung over one shoulder as usual, long hair drawn back into a tail, and an easy smile on his lips. He takes a look around and notes the couple he's not seen before; he's curious, and draws in a breath through his mouth, tasting the air in the padaa of the cat shifters.
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Richard chuckles a bit at Natalie. "After a while, you forget the cameras are there." He assures her. He's digging into the chili cheese fries and nachos at the moment. He looks up and sees Trey. He offers a bow of his head to the man. "Good evening!" He says with a warm smile.
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Natalie follows Richard's gaze and studies the stranger curiously. Her head tips slightly, and she blinks slowly before offering, "Hello." She glances at the abundance of food, not to mention the ability to get more easily, so she looks back to the stranger and offers, "Care to have something to eat?"
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Trey glances over with a smile, and offers a friendly expression and a wave. "Good evening," he replies, looking between Richard and Natalie before approaching their table. "Thank you, I'd be delighted." He moves to one of the empty seats and says, "I'm Trey... formal introduction, I'm Treads-on-Thin-Ice, born on four feet to the Bastet tribe of riddlers. Ranked Tekhmet." He orders some iced tea from the server, always polite, and then accepts a plate from said server to take a portion of the food as offered. "Thank you both!"
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Richard offers a deep bow to Trey. "I am Richard Doukas, kin to the Black Furies, father to Phoebe Doukas, cub to be." He sits up, "Well met." He offers his hand to shake.
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Natalie puts a few more ribs on her plate and sets the platter down. She waits for Richard to finish his own introduction before she offers, "If we must be formal," humor sparkles in her eyes and tugs at her lips, "I'm Morning Mist, born on two feet of the Silver Folk, Ranked Ilani. I'm also known as Natalie Matthews." She grins a little bit, "And very much formality gives me hives." She picks up a rib to start work on.
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Trey grins back and says, "I don't usually stand much on ceremony either, and formality's not much fun, but hey, I don't wanna have it said I didn't do the basics. I've only met two others of us here." He smiles and adds, "And congratulations on the cub in the works!"
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Richard chuckles a bit and shakes his head, "The cub is my daughter." Richard clarifies. He looks to Natalie and grins and then looks back to Trey. "We haven't made it that far yet." He thinks, "But we're celebrating six months." He says with a wide grin.
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Trey ohs and says, "Oh, my bad. I was going to say it didn't look like --" He stops. "Right. Tact, Trey, do you speak it?" He sighs and offers a rueful little half-smile. "Six months is good, I'm not interrupting, I hope?" If he's at all surprised that a Fury Kin wound up with a Swara, he's not saying so, that's for sure. One faux pas was enough.
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Natalie blinks a couple of times again at Trey, then adds, "Richard has a daughter with his previous. I have a daughter with my previous." She glances at Richard tenderly, then back to Trey. "We are both widowed." It probably doesn't answer all of Trey's questions, but perhaps a few.
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Richard shakes his head, "No, you're not interrupting." He says. "It's always good when we get out and meet new people." He takes Natalie's hand. "We're both widows, yes. Sometimes Gaia works in mysterious ways."
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Trey ohs. He didn't blunder into that one, thankfully. "I'm so sorry, but it's good that you found one another." He chuckles, and notes, "I haven't really sought out anyone, yet. This is the first I've settled down since my first change."
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Natalie can't help but smile, "I wasn't looking when I met my late mate. And I wasn't looking when I met Richard." She glances at Richard and smiles a little broader, "In fact we met here. So Smoke has a bit of a special place for us both."
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Richard nods, "It's best to not look." Richard says. "You'll find what you're looking for ... when you least expect it." He smiles, "But not to drown you in our sappiness." Richard says, "What brings you to Prospect? Travelling through or here for a purpose?"
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Trey beams at that, and takes one of the ribs, gnawing as he listens to them. "Well, I've made friends here, so it's a good start." He waves a hand and says, "Never apologize for joy, we see little enough of it in this world." He smiles, though, and explains, "I'd been wandering, trying to figure out where I was going to end up. So far, I like it here, so I intend to stay. At least for a while. I've gotten a good welcome so far and I love the coast and the water. I grew up near Canada, so it's completely different here, but I like it." He pauses, and then asks, "What about you? Are you both local, or did you come here from somewhere else?"
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Natalie shakes her head a little bit, "Born and raised in Albuquerque. I didn't know what I was until like, literally the day before my first change. My teacher found me just in time. After my year, I started travelling. At least until I wound up here. I've been here for a while. Other than some time back east sorting myself out a little bit. But I came back here."
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Richard's accent is definitely not local. "I'm originally from Greece." He grins, "I was brought over by my mate. I've been here for a few years now."
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Trey comments, "I didn't know until I changed and... everything was different. The whole world was different. It still fascinates me, honestly." He smiles a crooked little grin and says, "I should have guessed that," to Richard. "I'm still not very good with accents." He takes a sip of his drink and notes, "I didn't even get a full year. A lot of times, the Qualmi.. we just get fed up with one another and it doesn't last. I try not to be as cryptic as a lot of my kin, though."
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Natalie chuckles softly, "I made it a year. My teacher abandoned me in Kenya. Had to make my own way home." She leans over and eyes the fries Richard had been working on, nose almost twitching, "Are you going to keep all of those for yourself?" she asks him.
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Richard laughs a bit, "No." He says and pushes the plate towards the middle of the table. "I don't much about the fera. Qualmi?" He asks.
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Trey chuckles with that and swipes a few fries when the plate is moved. "Kenya. Finding your way back must have been interesting. Did you encounter the Ahadi? I've heard so many rumors about how things are changing in Africa for the Hamaal, but I've not traveled there. I do hope to do so someday, though." He ohs and answers Richard, "The Tribe of the Werelynx. We're known as riddlers. Tricksters, to some degree, though more in the sense of puzzles than anything."
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Natalie transfers some of the chili cheese fries to her plate, "I did. And things are changing, but I think Bastet will always be welcome." She smiles faintly, "It was a wonderful experience. And getting home was fun in it's own way. An adventure."
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Richard nods as he listens. "I don't have any fun stories like that." he says, "I help where I can though." He says with a grin. "I have talents and gifts of my own."
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Trey nibbles as he listens, and considers the statements. "I'm glad to hear that. So many of us come from Africa that it's more of a homeland than almost anywhere else. Well, there's a lot of us from the Americas, too..." He huhs and asks Richard, "Gifts, like ours? Or magic, perhaps?" He doesn't seem to judge with those words; if anything, he's curious.
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Natalie glances to Richard fondly, but lets him explain what he wants to share. Instead she takes the opportunity to dig into the fries she put on her plate.
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Richard shakes his head at the magic part. "I was blessed with the gift of Gnosis." Richard says. "I know several gifts. Looking forward to learning more." He says. "I was even touched by my mate's totem, as a part of the pack." Richard adds, "Most of my gifts are centered around healing."
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Trey ohs and says, "That's quite rare. I've met a lot of kin who take up hedge magic, but you're the first I've met who could use Gaia's energies directly." He does, in fact, seem impressed by that, offering that smile again. "Oh! Gifted by a totem is a high honor, indeed. That's impressive. All of it."
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Natalie says quietly to Richard, "Your skill at healing is very much appreciated too. Especially with the littles that are running around."
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Richard reaches into his pocket and pulls out a card. It's got his name and youtube channel and phone number on it. He offers it to Trey. "If there's anything at all we can do for you, let me know." He says with a smile.
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Trey says, "I can imagine! I've heard there are a lot of little ones running around. Seen some of them, even." He accepts the card with a warm smile and pauses to scrawl down his name and number twice, once to each of them. "Thank you! I appreciate that. I'm living at Kitten Itza thanks to Miguel, so if you ever need to find me, that's the best place to look." He adds, with a chuckle, "There, or the caern, or Sunhome."
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Natalie pulls out a card that reads "Natural Creations" with a phone number and address in town, "If you need something, and I'm not there, the person who handles the front can get me a message. He can be trusted." She takes the offered number from Trey and pockets it.
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Richard smiles, "I do chores at the sept." He take the number and tucks it into his pocket. "I'm not hard to find most of the time."