I'ma show you how to turn it up a notch... (Els)

[Lotty]

“Do you wanna feel alive?” The question was asked point blank, but that devilish cast to his eyes spoke of exactly what it was that was really on his mind. K’sel was already throwing on his wherhide jacket as he eyed, her, ready to take off back to the Inverness territories whether she came or not – what he did when he got back though depended entirely on the answer to his question. He had no want or desire to go home exactly yet, a bit of wildness was lingering under his skin still and it did not fade or evaporate after the heat of drills. He could tell her now that what he wanted was an unusual adventure. He wanted to be somebody else again for just a little while.

There was a time, sure, when he had turned his nose up at such false pretenses. The younger him found no reason to be a fake or a fraud, but then that K’sel was ideologically constrained; an optimist somewhere underneath a jaded and moping cynic, but he hadn’t been forced into a corner yet, and the peace of the South allowed for such philosophical musings. As he had grown he realized that he was splintered. That everyone was splintered, and sanity was hinged on the ability to take on many roles and wear many masks, and that authenticity was a very problematic concept indeed. Being true to himself meant that he had to admit that he was also something of a liar. Family man one minute, and former vagrant the next. To protect his most precious identity, he felt it necessary to take on another, and not one to be alone in this he looked to the only other human he could expect to share in the concept.

Not waiting for an answer, he leaned back against Pettahth, giving Elysia another smoldering look before continuing, “Rumor at Inverness has it that the Bitra Lord has been collecting quite the menagerie. Has a caged feline even… poor thing. Of course nobody really knows how true this is since of course he is so cross with dragonriders.” He crossed his arms and continued, but not without a short hmph of amusement, “I was thinking of taking a mental health day… what M’gnum doesn’t know won’t hurt him…” he referred briefly to his wingleader. He didn’t mind the man, he was quite the idealist, and there were many virtues to that, but regular old wing duties were rather droll and horribly draining, especially after having lived such a unique dragonriding life as he, “So my question to you is if you want to come along. If nothing else we can hit those gaming tables… are you more of a craps woman, or roulette? I’m rather shit at all of them, but I can play blackjack rather well….” PaiGow even, but he didn’t expect everyone to share in a taste for such a slow game.

Of course there was a matter of coming up with alter egos as well, but he didn’t want to get too far ahead of himself. There was always Aramis to fall back upon. The troubadour act had almost become common place in the South, but the Northerners wouldn’t know what had hit them. On the other hand, when in a place of such waste, why would he dare tarnish the reputation of the King of the Hobos? No he should come up with a different angle. He and Elysia could be a pair even. Holders! Landowners from the border of… something and something. Hmmm they’d have to work on that.

[Rei]

“Do you wanna feel alive?” Dark eyes regarded her Legatus wingmate from under even darker lashes, the type most women would murder for. A catlike smile was offered the man who was leaning against his sandy brown so nonchalantly. A loaded question. But surely Tiger already knew her answer. Or he wouldn’t have voiced it in the first place. Being domestic was just…so droll. Elysia did a well enough job in her role as mother and weyrmate but could anyone blame her for the occasional wild run she had? The greenrider liked to think not. Even if it annoyed S’rei he was bound to forgive her. Furthermore she had a sneaking suspicion that such events privately amused the bronzer as long as she didn’t drag his reputation though the mud with her. Tch. Not that she ever worried about that overly much. Men.

A slender eyebrow rose at the word feline and though he had certainly captured her attention already he had it in spades now. Imagine how fun it would be to annoy that man. Furthermore to covertly find out if those rumors were true. Spying, gambling, alcohol, and who knows what else. If Elysia weren’t in she’d be crazy. Besides wasn’t she just looking for a chance to wear something scandalous again? With a winning smile she reached forward to trail a long manicured nail down the brownrider’s chin. “Mental health day? That sounds like just what the doctor ordered. Of course I’m in. I have the best poker face in all the North, though roulette is also something of an addiction.” Mostly because that one was a game of pure luck and chance and sometimes she liked to test her luck. Who didn’t?

Elysia didn’t even bother mentioning Elias. S’rei was perfectly fine playing mister mom and a note would suffice as a clue to where she had gone. He’s be cooped up in his office anyway for the next few candlemarks and he often picked Elias up from the creche himself. Miguel was more than old enough to take care of himself for a few hours. Thoughtfully she tapped her finger against her lips. “Now I have to decide what to wear.” Though that would depend on what impression they wanted to give wouldn’t it? Dark eyes flicked back to his companion. “So what’s the flavor of the night? Tourists without a clue? Rich landholders? Crafters looking for a break from monotony? Newlyweds out to paint the hold in whatever color we fancy?” There were so many different options and Elysia was pretty sure she could come up with the prefect outfit for each. Either way she wanted heels. Nice heels. And something slinky and tight. Pregnancy had done little to ruin the body she had been graced with. She made well sure of that during and after her pregnancy, and what tiny flaws she would never admit to having were easy enough to cover.

“You must remember that I come alive at night.” She purred and glanced up at Onyth. Oh yes. The dragons. I can hide myself just fine. The dark female replied. I am quite sure that Pettahth and I can find plenty to amuse ourselves without your help. She continued allowing the brown in on the conversation as well. Alright then. Seemed it was settled. All they needed to do was hammer out some of the more intricate details. She would have no problems with meeting K’sel in Bitra once that was accomplished.

Her dark eyes flicked back to her companion a certain excitement building in their dark depths. Had been quite a while since she had last indulged herself, she’d have to make the most of this.

[Lotty]

The flavor? Oh dear, the decisions to be made. The clueless tourist was so appealing, since after all it would give him a chance to act out on yet another side - slightly avuncular, mild mannered, polite and naive. He could brush up on his harperly ways, and put to good use the words "oh goodness, golly, and geeze." He had a certain soft spot for the idea, since doing bad while playing good had that tension he always admired, yet he wasn't all that sure Bitra was the best place to take it on a test run. He had not a doubt the two of them could make it out of any situation alive, but doing so without starting a political dispute was not guaranteed. He rubbed his chin while he considered the options.

"Newlyweds.... at least then any strange groping or bedroom eyes can be easily explained away," he thought a bit longer, "Not to say we can't also be rich you know... I don't think a poor couple would be caught out there anyway... though I guess I should find a ring to wear or something." K'sel had never been one for mens' jewelry exactly. Save for a feline tooth necklace he owned - courtesy of his lovely of course - he didn't have so much as a stud punctured into his ear. This costume would be hard to come by for sure, he hadn't exactly ever played anything like it before, shards he didn't even believe in the fundamental premise of the disguise. You know marriage - hardly for holders and definitely never for a dragonrider like he. Conforming to the expectations wouldn't be without difficulties, but worth it he was sure.

"I'll need a name as well, and a few marks, though I suspect we can scheme something up while there and get by no problem," he wasn't looking to get rich from this night by any means, he just wanted to get back into the spy game. At least long enough to investigate these feline rumors. He pushed himself up and away from his dragon to venture close enough to Elysia to tap her on the nose, "Of course you do my fine feline, we are all rather nocturnal aren't we?" He was completely pleased with himself and how this was panning out. A night on the town! Of course that left Nephele with Kephe... but there was nothing stopping him from making something of a deal with his weyrmate. The kid could be dropped off with Marina, she'd be overly ecstatic, and then the two of them would be left to their own devices for an evening. Not exactly romantic, but it was necessary to get out every so often.

Pettahth crooned slightly and looked at Onyth with a slow blink, Indeed. It was a practical if short answer. From sweeps he knew Bitra was a strange place, in a valley between between some rough highlands, and a river branch that swung off to the west and another to the southwest too. At least though there were plenty of places left to hide, as well as drop off their riders. It will be good to spend time outside of drills. Especially since living in Inverness meant that he saw rather little of Onyth otherwise. It was a shame since he was so fond of his wingmates... his sense of duty often meaning that co-workers doubled as best friends.

[Rei]

“I’ve never gotten to play at the whole joined couple thing.” Elysia purred her dark eyes flicking to K’sel before she teased. “Bedroom eyes and groping hmm? Why K’sel if I didn't know any better I would think that such things are what you are really looking forward to.” But really she did know better. The brownrider was a child of chaos just as she herself was. They were kindred spirits or something all spiritual like that. Sometimes the woman wondered what would have happened had she been a bit younger and not so life jaded and they had taken up together. Or, Faranth forbid, if they had grown up together. She was fairly sure that they may have been able to bring Pern to its knees. That or perhaps destroyed half of it. Alas fate worked in strange ways, and in this case who was to say whether or not it was self-preservation or something like that? After all the instances where they did get together and create havoc were ones for the record books and Elysia herself was willing to bet that this one would top them all. She couldn’t wait.

The older woman barely resisted the urge to snap playfully at his finger as the brownrider poked at her nose. She did have the good grace however to wait until he had finished speaking before opening her mouth herself. “Hitched and rich. I like the sound of that. We really don’t have to worry too much about marks. Thankfully being Weyrleader pays pretty well and my dear weyrmate is something of a miser. I highly doubt he’d just give me the marks if I asked. He’d probably come up with some bullshit about using my own or something but I know where he keeps them and what he doesn’t know won’t hurt him. Besides, if lady luck smiles on us I can just return what I ‘borrowed’ with interest if necessary.” Elysia was well aware that if S’rei did happen to find out he’d likely have a fit but she was willing to bet there were a few favors she could perform to make him more inclined not to throw too big of a fit. And no, not all those favors were sexual in nature. The woman was willing to bet that her weyrmate would get a bigger kick out of making her clean the weyr herself or something equally ridiculous in nature. Warriors did not sweep floors or make beds thank you very much.

Tossing her dark hair back the rider chuckled. “I would say I could help us on the ring bit too but then I remember that the only joined person I know is pretty much not speaking to me currently and I highly doubt Dmitri would loan me his ring anyway. Nor do I think that I could pry Erilena’s off her unless she was already cold and dead so we may have to improvise or something there.” Hmm she was willing to bet that one of the mandyrs who hoarded such shiny bobbles had a ring or two or maybe even twenty lying around. Perhaps she could coerce Amour into finding some for her. The flit often stole from mandyr hoards in order to gift things to the various shiny gold females in the weyr in the hopes of winning their favor. Not that something like Millieth could be bought off with a ring but trying to tell the flitter that was pretty much completely pointless and Elysia had long since given up on breaking him of most of his quirks.

“So I suppose that leaves our story and the all-important alias doesn’t it?” A thoughtful expression crossed Elysia’s face as she debated. She needed something that fit her look. Currently she was debating wearing a dress that she had commissioned for some special event and then never gotten to actually wear it. It had been sitting in her wardrobe unused as not one event she had taken part in seemed to warrant such a dress. It was emerald green and form fitting cut from some shimmery fabric that clung in all the right places when she moved. Low cut enough to show off a decent amount of cleavage without being too over the top, and showed enough leg to turn heads without being trashy. Pair that with a pair of strappy black heels and the rider was fairly sure that she could get enough second looks and drool puddles to last her a lifetime. Yes that would do. Now she needed a name that would fit the look and was distinctly feminine. Hmmm. Suddenly it came to her like a flash of inspiration. “What do you think of Jolene?” She asked her companion with a catlike smile. “I think it sounds holderish?” Hopefully K’sel would find it easier to come up with a name now that she had a possible one.

Honestly Elysia was more worried about the attitude part then the name. The woman wasn’t used to censoring herself like holder women had to. She couldn’t be as upright in your face demanding and bitchy but she supposed that she could work the passive aggressive angle like no other. She was fairly sure she could tame herself down enough to play spoiled rich woman who had never heard the word no pretty well. “I suppose once we have the names and such down we can come up with a backstory when we actually reach Bitra. I find it more exciting to let that kind of stuff take shape on its own anyway. There’s no point in planning it all out now. I think there is a certain excitement to making it up on the fly don’t you?”

Onyth rumbled softly to Pettahth her eyes whirling in a pleasant green shade. I agree. I do not remember the North really, besides what I can glean from Elysiamine of course. I think it will be good to get a change of scenery Indeed the dark female was rather looking forward to exploring a little on her own. The brown was a good flying partner too. Small enough to perform aerial maneuvers well and fast enough to keep up where other larger browns struggled. Being small had its perks. Furthermore she trusted the brown which was actually saying a lot. He was a wingmate (albeit a secret one) and so of course he held a more special place with her then most did.

[Lotty]

"You know me... I'm very hands-on with my work..." K'sel almost snorted. Way to go Els, making him out to be some kind of pervert or something, just rubbing up on women every chance he got, "Strictly professional you know." He smiled and canted his head in thought as she explained her financial situation. If she saw it fit to take out a loan from her weyrmate then that was fine with him, so long as the wrath of S'rei didn't somehow find a way to come down onto his life. It wasn't a particular fear, but he could imagine that life would become more difficult than he preferred it to be... and it wasn't like things were a cake walk for him right now. Not when he was technically on two different wings in two different weyrs and living a jet-set intercontinental lifestyle.

"Normally I'd gossip with you and inquire as to why this person was not talking to you, but frankly it is hard to care when what we are about to do is more fun and interesting than anything they've done ever..." normally this would be an exaggeration, but honestly, come on. How many people sneaked into Bitra for the hell of it? He was going to venture that they were on the short list for that club, "We will get the ring situation sorted out I'm sure. My mother might have something that can pass for one if nothing else. I agree that the backstory is what we need to have pretty tight." Of course that meant starting with names, and poor K'sel was already behind Elysia on that one.

What exactly made a holder name anyway? Being impossible to shorten? Not sounding girly or silly like his did? Hmm, he took a few paces back and forth as he worked on something to mesh well with Jolene, which seemed perfectly appropriate for her character, "I think I'll go with Roedell, has that earthy holder feel I guess. Plus I guess it is similar enough to K'sel that I'll respond to it. Just isn't as sexy as any of my other aliases." Because everyone knew that Aramis was the hottest thing to hit Pern ever, "Should we make up a small bordering hold? Like West Hoboken or something equally rustic sounding? Or are we gonna be bold? A couple from Lemos or Telgar or High Reaches or even Benden? Just nothing oceanic... I don't exactly look sea worn, and I don't know shit about ships." He sort of ran a hand over his skin. It had paled again from living up north and he looked every bit like a man who was landlocked. Anyway, "I feel like once we agree on that much it will make it easier to come up with off the cuff sorts of replies, because I sooooo agree... it is much better to just roll with the punches. Besides what if nobody asks us any questions at all?"

Pettahth was pleased, and waggled his tail just a little bit in anticipation. Soon they would both be off... K'selhis would finally stop complaining of boredom, and he would be able to stretch his wings with a good flying partner. I will see you there then! We really must be off, or Ours will just stand around and talk all day. He paused to address his rider, Isn't that right K'sel? Lets go already!

"Alright, alright... we'll rendezvous later, yes?" He walked a few step backwards to prop his foot up on a leg he instinctively knew was already there before twisting his body around to pull himself up and mount the brown dragon, "See you tonight sex kitten~" he teased at his platonic playmate before the pair of them took off for their weyr.