An Adventure to Town (Attn: Matty)

[Cal]

Zuin walked carefully through the city. A part of his mind still couldn't believe that he was actually doing this. He wanted to turn and race back to the Tower before he was discovered to be missing. But another part of him relished the rebellion. He had spent his whole childhood being good and studying. A bit of freedom was nice. So was breaking the rules even if it left him absolutely terrified at the same time.

There was an hour till bed and he had taken the chance to sneak into the city for a break. He needed it. There was only so long he could spend in the Tower before needed to escape for a bit. It had actually been quite easy.

All he had needed to do was weave a simple illusion of a Dedicated pin onto his collar. It wouldn't stand up to close inspection, he wasn't good enough at illusion for that, but it was enough to fool some guards if you walked past them quickly enough and looked like you had a purpose.

He wandered into one of the inns. He didn't really have a plan for his time just that he wasn't going to spend it stuck in the Tower. He froze as he walked through the doorway. There was a Dedicated sitting at a table with a glass of ale and some other mean playing with dice. Guards might not know him a Soldier but a Dedicated would. He was about to back out when he saw what the Dedicated was doing. His hand was right one of the barmaid's dress.

Zuin's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. He didn't know the rules for the Dedicated and Accepted visiting Hama Valon but he was fairly sure they were meant to be drinking, gambling and fondling the barmaids, at least not so openly. The man was still in his black coat with his pin on. His mind began racing as he tried to think of an excuse for being her before the man saw him.

[Chris]

Nathaniel Carridus Nate could be more than this, more than the man currently splayed on the chair enjoying himself that evening, but what was the point in that? No, what was the fun in it? He trained hard in the day, he did his channelling lessons and his reading lessons and all those other bloody lessons he was thrown into, and he exercised with the trainee Warder types because old habits died hard, but what motivation did he have? Kicking his brother's ass? Sure, when he was in the Black Tower and Nate was at the Grey. What else was there... become an Asha'man? Sure, yeah, then he could get himself as drunk as a skunk while wearing two pins, not one. Oh, and a stupid sash.

"Count me in for another," he told the table as the game of dice concluded. "And another ale here!" He lifted his empty mug with one hand, his other... occupied elsewhere. Bonnie was a lovely perk that came with 'The Three Figs' Inn, and since frequenting the place she had often sat with him. If he ever drank more than he ought to and needed a place to rest his head for the night, Bonnie had a set of pillows he could lay his head on. Oh, and a bed as well. It was a favourite pasttime of his.

"Nate," the woman giggled, leaning into his warm body, his coat undone, shirt unbuttoned at the top, "I should get back to work, it's getting kinda busy..."

Nate made an amused noise, "that's a real shame. Maybe I'll see you later?" He let her stand, grinning as her nails ran up his torso and scraped through his exposed hair on his chest before she went back to the bar, swaying her hips. Nate nearly missed the first round of dice as he was occupied with her, though a nudge from his side had the burly Dedicated look away and at his companion. Rough Red was a tough fellow with hair as dark as a dying flame, and as Nate looked his way he gestured to the door.

"Got an admirer," he grunted, motioning towards the newcomer to the Inn.

"Eh?" asked Nate, turning his attention to the rather short guy by the door. He straightened up in his chair, rubbing the back of his head a little as he got a look at the guy. He was dressed up as a Dedicated, but Nate was pretty sure he'd never seen this guy before. At least, not as a Dedicated...

Nate gave the table an apologetic look. "I'm sorry, carry on without me for this game. I'll be right back." He stood up and moved around the table, advancing on the lad with a questioning look on his scruffy face. Nate was pretty tall, and big along with it, so he leaned in a little to get a good look at the guy. It only took a moment of squinting before he worked it out. "Ahhhhh....ha!" he declared. "You, sir, are a Soldier! I've seen you in the yards a time or two, I'll wager." Nate swiped at the sword pin on his collar, finding it to be a mere gimmick, and he let out a snort. "Wow, that actually worked? I'm impressed." The Mayener grinned, "can't say you should be out here unaccompanied though. Or impersonating a higher rank. Someone who cared two figs would report you for that. Maybe that's why I like it in here! This place is called the Three Figs Inn, so I don't have to give a single one away."

He took his ale from Bonnie when she brought it over, smirking and giving her a kiss and a slap to the bottom before sending her on her way. "So what are you doing here of all places, Soldier? Here to hang out with the men?"

[Cal]

Zuin's mind raced trying to think of a reason for being here. Anything he came up with was flawed by the fake sword pin on his collar. The fact the Dedicated had figured it out screwed him over. Then he processed what the Dedicated had actually said. If Zuin wasn't mistaken then what the Dedicated had said meant that he wasn't going to report him to the Upper Ranks.

Instead of making excuses he said instead. "I just wanted a break from the Tower for an hour. Guards didn't even look twice, they only saw a Dedicated." He smiled slightly at that and then said "But speaking of things we shouldn't be doing..."

He stopped in mid sentence realizing just what he had said to the Dedicated. He hadn't been quite as careful around the mid ranks since his first conversation with the Accepted Avyra but what he had just said was to a whole new level. He couldn't quite believe that he had actually been stupid enough to let his mouth run away without him. He guessed it was the fear which was still making his body pulse with nervous energy. He wasn't thinking totally rationally.

All he could think to do was untie the weave holding the illusionary sword pin in place. He might as well lose one part of the trouble. Most people outside of the Tower wouldn't know what the pins meant and what the rules around the Tower were. Now all he could do was hope that the Dedicated was merry enough that he wouldn't report him for any of the offences he had just committed.

[Chris]

To be fair to the guards, they wouldn't necessarily know a Soldier by sight alone, especially if he was wearing what looked to be a sword pin. Light, Nate wasn't sure even he would have looked twice, especially if he was doing what a guard did, which seemed to be relatively little unless the Tower was being attacked by Seanchan.

He'd probably have to tell the guards to be on the lookout, but he wasn't all that interested in doing that right that very second. Nate was rather enjoying himself and saw no reason to stop just because some Soldier was breaking the rules. He'd done his fair share of sneaking out as well in his time - not to mention his fair share of getting caught - and he couldn't fault a lad for heading out into the city.

Nate's eyebrows climbed higher up his head as the Soldier... called him out? What was he going to do, report him to the Master of Soldiers when he shouldn't be out the city either? Nate let out a loud chortle, shaking his head. "Oh blood and ashes Soldier, colour me curious. What sort of things shouldn't we be doing? After all, as a Soldier you shouldn't even see what happens outside the Grey Tower, so what would you do? Tell someone you had a Foretelling of me drinking ale and enjoying myself?" Despite his words, Nate didn't sound at all angry. If anything, he was amused, and a tad impressed.

"This is what we're going to do," he declared. He put a strong hand on the lad's back and herded him over to his table. "Boys, we have a new contender for our next game."

"What? The lad doesn't have a copper on him, you can see that a league away," one of the men grumbled.

"We'll have a round without coin, and I'll buy your ales. A man's got to start somewhere, hasn't he?" Nate looked around at the table, giving them a level look.

"Whatever you say Nate," was the general consensus, so Nate sat the Soldier down and took his seat again, making sure they were next to one another. "A round for the table!" he called to Bonnie. "Now kid, watch these men play and I'll explain the rules. It's not a hard game, you just have to remember the different ways another person's roll can screw you over." Nate gave a wink, "the name's Nate, if you need that when you report me to the Master of Soldiers."

[Cal]

When the Dedicated mentioned Foretelling Zuin started forgetting his fear at angering the Dedicated. Was it possible the man knew about his Foretelling and apparent Talent for the thing. He doubted it. From what he knew very few knew about it. The upper ranks had done their best to keep it hushed, not wanted knowledge of a Foreteller to slip out. It wouldn't work forever, this sort of thing tended to get around but for the moment it was still under the rug so to speak. He tried not to let his shock at the words show but was sure he failed.

Rather than linger on the Foretelling he focused on the Dedicated in front on him. While he had seemed likely to be angry a moment ago he seemed almost friendly now. That changes in people and their emotions through Zuin of even more. He wasn't accustomed to people being able to adjust their outwards mood so fast. No one at home had been good at it and he still hadn't grown accustomed to it here despite that fact that many people had that level of control over their apparent emotion.

He sat at the table next to the Dedicated and watched as the men began to play. He hadn't even played dice before and so didn't know the rules. He understood the basic odds involve though having studied the maths which went on behind these games although having never studied the games he knew nothing of the individual probabilities involve in each game.

[Chris]

Normally when a guy introduced himself he expected to get a name back, but the Soldier wasn't forthcoming and Nate's eyebrows raised. He was doing the guy a favour here, sort of, and it was going to drag if he had to keep calling him "Kid" or "Soldier" all the time. The latter was a bad idea because some of the men here might be more savvy in the fine art of Ways To Get Trainees in Trouble.

The game in question was called Top, a simple name for what Nate felt was a simple variation of Crowns. He explained the rules to the unnamed Soldier as people played, pointing out what counted as high, what didn't, and the various combinations that could be used to win. They went around the table so that Nate could go, and then the Soldier would go last. The man didn't roll very well, but Nate made the best of it, taking his time to show Cal the different choices he could make to pair his dice based on the rolls. It wasn't a winning hand but hey, they weren't playing for money.

"Alright then kid, your turn," Nate said when he had finished his turn. The ales turned up at some point and Nate drank his happily, gesturing for the Soldier to do the same. He sat back, arms folded as he watched the roll of the 5 dice, and his eyebrows raised at the numbers that tumbled forth. It looked to Nate like a winning hand if the Soldier used the right combinations, and Nate could see how to do it.

"Pips are low," grunted Dreyson from the other side of the table. Of course he would say that, the pips were essential to a decent round for the Soldier.

"Pips are high," Nate said, "that's how we played before, that's how we always play. Are you seriously trying to cheat a kid out a winning round that isn't even being played for coin?"

"And whose fault's that?" Dreyson grumped, spitting to the side.

"Ahhh, it sounds like you left your pacifier in your crib," Nate said, waving a hand idly. "Maybe you can go wash some dishes with the serving girls until you grow a pair and get over yourself? Let the kid have his win, it ain't like he's going to be here much. And like I said, everyone starts somewhere." Sure, it was a game that was mostly luck based, but he was glad for the kid anyway. "Good job!" he said. "Now then, that's out the way and we'd better let the men carry on playing for coin, before Dreyson has a temper tantrum. I don't suppose you've any coppers to play?" Nate was a kind guy usually but he wasn't going to share his gambling money, that was just asking to be taken advantage of.

"It's getting a bit late for you Tower types, maybe you should head back," Dreyson said gruffly, taking the dice and rattling them in his cup. "It's past the kid's bedtime."

Nate gave an irritated huff, but the forced smile on his face was still a smile as he looked at Cal. "Finish your ale and we can leave the men to their late night debauchery," he supposed. He could kick Dreyson's ass the next time he visited the Three Figs.