<div class="floatleft">(http://i.imgur.com/XMlhw6I.jpg)</div><strong>Name:</strong>"Talan" (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=272443.msg13402563#msg13402563)<br/><strong>Location:</strong>Tavern, Top corner table (C5)<br/><strong>Tagging:</strong>Kallis<br/><strong>HP:</strong>24 / 24<br/><strong>AC:</strong>AC: 19, TAC: 14, FFAC: 16, CMD: 16<br/><strong>Passives:</strong>Fort +3, Ref +5, Will +4, Init +6, Perc +12<br/><br/><hr/><br/>Talan could feel Kallis relaxing in his arms, her body going just a little bit slack as she practically curled into his chest. Her breathing slowed ever so slightly, and he knew full well that had he not started speaking, she would likely have dozed off there and then; not that he could blame her, of course. It had been a long few days, filled with con after game after scam, and as fun as they always were, they were also extremely tiring. It took a lot of effort to trick somebody as completely as they frequently had to, and after several days of sustained conning to make their money, they were usually fairly mentally exhausted. Nothing that a good meal and an uninterrupted rest wouldn't fix, but...well, he wasn't surprised that Kallis was being lulled gently to sleep just by his presence. Of course, he rather liked it; not just because she was absolutely adorable when she was curled up into his chest dozing away, but also because it showed just how much she actually trusted him. Kallis was on her guard with the rest of the world, always alert and ready for trouble, always ready to run at a moments notice...but with him...well, with him, she was settled. Comfortable. She felt safe enough in his arms to let her guard down, knowing full well that Talan would keep enough of an eye on things to keep them both safely out of trouble. To have somebody as suspicious and cynical as Kallis placing her trust in him...it was humbling, really, and never ceased to make him smile.<br/><br/>And of course, watch the area he did; with this many drunken thugs in one area, something was bound to happen eventually, and if it came down to it...he wanted him and Kallis to be as far away from trouble as possible, or they might just end up getting involved. And honestly, on their night off, he didn't want to have to get mixed up in Guild Affairs. They'd done that once before during their first week in MercTown, and...well, it caused a whole boatload of problems that he didn't really feel like repeating anytime soon. Their lives were much easier when they were flying under the radar, doing small scams that never got noticed until far, far too late. Messing with the Guilds was serious business, after all; they never let anybody but other guilds fuck with them. Didn't want the rabble getting too uppity, after all. But that meant, of course, that naughty men and women like him and Kallis had to step twice as fast to avoid trouble, and an environment like a busy night at a popular tavern? It was a breeding ground for trouble. His eyes tracked every new customer as they walked in - a scarlet-clad fox woman who, after a brief scan, seemed to be largely uninteresting due to her lack of obvious material wealth and...the Summoner and her Eidolon. Ugh. Why did they have to arrive? He was having such a nice night...they obviously didn't like him, probably because he knew their secret...but outing them would just cause trouble for him, and so long as the girl was happy with the arrangement, it was none of his business - but largely...his focus was, as always, on Kallis.<br/><br/>Speaking of Kallis, his murmured words appeared to have roused her from her almost-sleep, and she was soon back in full flighty attention mode. Sometimes she changed subject so quickly that he had a little bit of trouble keeping up with her, so much so that oftentimes he didn't even try. He just had to wait for her to settle on one subject, and then he could take it from there. Honestly, knowing Kallis, she probably did it at least half on purpose to try and trip him up and get him off balance. It was just the sort of game she'd play to get the upper hand with him, which was why he didn't get that bent out of shape trying to keep up with her flickering interests; one moment she was teasing him about picking an easy target - which he was, but the rules said nothing about not picking easy targets! - the next she was wondering about that fox woman who'd just walked in, and then she was back to the game...though he could tell that she wasn't really interested in the game, not really. Between dozing off, and now looking at him with an almost evil smirk on her face - a challenging, daring smirk that told him exactly what she was thinking, that she wanted him to really try to get her off balance rather than just teasing her lightly - he knew that the time for The Game had passed. They were playing a new game now, one of cat and mouse...and he wasn't entirely sure which one he was. But that was fine; he liked it that way. Made things more exciting.<br/><br/>His eyes flickered briefly towards the rest of the bar again, always keeping half an eye on the goings on - noting the Orcs growing harassment of the poor women serving them...whilst nothing major yet, that incident in the corner with Amelia looked like it could easily spiral rather quickly; though she was a little clumsy and just wouldn't leave people she knew to have Arcane knowledge alone (which is why he was glad that she hadn't twigged onto his abilities yet), she was still popular enough to warrant people getting involved...especially if Felicia noticed - before they flicked back to Kallis, a small smile spreading across his face. Despite the tension in his shoulders, Kallis could always get him smiling. He made sure she was watching him, then jerked his head behind her, eyes flicking around the room.<em>Careful. Things seem to be escalating with the Orcs. Be ready to move, just in case.</em>They'd been partners for years, and in their line of business...well, an unspoken secret language was rather important, if they were going to get out of trouble. But his smile remained genuine, the hand that she'd brought up to nip - making him shiver just a little - reaching up to cup her cheek gently.<br/><br/>He enjoyed that little tremble she gave at her ear being played with; that was her most sensitive spot, and whenever he wanted a reaction...he could get one out of her, without fail.<strong>"Well, ah don' rememb' the rules sayin' ah couldn' pick easy targets, bu'...very well."</strong>He winked slyly.<strong>"How 'bout <em>you</em> pick me a target, if y' don' like my choices?"</strong>He paused for a moment, his own dark mischief dancing in his eyes as he looked down at her, the card pressing ever so slightly harder against her inner thigh, tracing its way around her leg.<strong>"'less there's a <em>differen'</em> game y'd like t' play. Ah c'n think'f a few things we c'd do t' pass th' time."</strong>He lifted an eyebrow, then gave her a quick, flirtatious wink. He dragged his thumb across the very tip of her ear, his calluses scraping against her skin. He leaned in ever so slightly, resting one part of his forehead against hers, their faces coming ever so slightly closer. His thumb moved to caress her soft, plush lips ever so gently, dancing across the surface of that teasing mouth of hers. He kept half an eye on the bar, just in case the trouble kicked off...but his primary attention was on Kallis. When she was around...he just couldn't help himself. She always demanded his attention, no matter what she did, and as always...he was more than happy to give it.