Fort Weyr - Gemstone Tavern
The dim lighting by the flicker of candles lining the walls is enough to offer a view of a room decorated in such a way as to be tastefully appealing. Each piece of furniture and decoration is chosen to accent another piece, and so on and so forth, matching and tying the whole room together in a theme that's separate, and yet at the same time unified. Tables line one wall, dimly lit by candles hanging in sconces all along. The bar along the far right wall is made of richly toned mahogany, tooled by a master and polished to shine with the soft glow of wood at its finest.
Candles strategically placed add to the atmosphere, accenting, punctuating. Towards the back is an open fireplace, constantly burning with a bright light, warming the tavern on cold nights and serving as a gathering place for patrons' story-tellings. Across the room, lush pillows and soft-covered floors promote relaxation at ease. Just before the pillows is a long stage, so full of its own vigor and memory - nicks here, marks there, scuffs from footware and other things - that it's possible to imagine the shows put on for the patrons without necessarily seeing the performances.
When evening comes to Fort Weyr, there are few places better to relax in than the Gemstone Tavern. This evening, and at this hour, it seems relatively quiet, with no live entertainment other than a couple of weyrfolk who've brought in their own instruments strumming away quietly at a table. There's space aplenty at the bar, which is where Russall is currently leaning. He's still dressed in his uniform, and with a longstaff on his back, too, suggesting he's come here straight from wherever his duty for the day had him posted.
While not grumpily antisocial, R'yal just..isn't the type to often spend too much time in crowded places. But occasionally, the greenrider has been known to poke his head into places like the Gemstone, even if only for a short while. It's one such night, apparently, as the greenrider peeks inside to assess the situation before finally meandering all the way in. The little bit of quiet music has him smiling though, before he makes his way bar-ward. There's a subtle tilt of his head, peering at Russall briefly before he turns instead toward the prospect of getting a drink. "No time to change?"
The familiar voice causes Russ to look up, and he smiles over at R'yal. "Not today," he replies, before catching the attention of the bartender and ordering them both a drink - whatever the greenrider wants, and an ale for himself. "Bloody galleries duty. It'd be alright, if it weren't so shardin' hot up there all day. How'd you do it down on the sands?"
R'yal takes his own drink happily enough, a weak blend that really is likely more fruit than alcohol. Fingers gently hold onto the rim of it though, offering a sympathetic shake of his head. "I think when you're down there, there's a bit more..going on. Enough to take your mind off it, anyway. It was always uncomfortably warm in the galleries." There's a small sniff at the memory, before the greenrider shakes his head, instead turning to lean back against the bar with his drink in hand, sipping lightly. "It's a shame anyone needs to be stationed there."
Russall shrugs his shoulders gently, taking a sip of his ale before replying in a hushed voice. "Paranoid goldriders can't be denied," he grumbles, shaking his head dismissively. Clearly, he's not a fan of the increased security measures. "History doesn't repeat itself. But I guess that's why we're there, to make double sure it doesn't." The guard rolls his eyes, huffs out a breath, then drinks some more, and adjusts his position to lean against the bar so he can face R'yal. "How's Liv?"
"Things can and do happen, I'll grant that." Though R'yal makes a slight face at the reminder of the things that /have/ happened in the past. Even his own candidacy wasn't..lacking in dangerous elements. "Not a good idea to try and deny her, either. Heh..Liv? Oh, she's the same as she always is. Keeping a high perch off the bowl rim lately. Good view of everything.."
"At least she's not glowing any more." Russ winks, leaning over to gently nudge the greenrider with his elbow. "Who was it this time?" Not a question the guard typically asks… which is probably why he shakes his head and holds up a hand. "Wait. Don't tell me. I don't really want to know." He takes a long drink from his ale, followed by exhaling a deep breath. "So they offered me a post over in Stonehaven, training recruits."
The question itself has R'yal's eyes going a bit wide, and his face coloring. "/Really/?" Thankfully, he wasn't taking a sip of anything! The flustered greenrider at least calms down again once Russal relents, huffing softly into his drink. "But..no. No she's not." The mention of a posting has him blinking slightly though, brows raising as he looks at the guard again. "Oh?"
Russall nods. "Yeah." He looks down at his drink as he swills it round in the glass, before he drains what's left of it and orders another. "It's supposed to be good for my career. Help me make Lieutenant as part of an exchange programme. But do I really want to get transferred over there for a turn or so? Eh." His shoulders are shrugged, and he looks down at R'yal before reaching out to flick a little something off the greenrider's shoulder. "What would you do, little greenie? Promotion, or stay home? Close to… certain people?"
R'yal frowns just a bit, his own hand chasing Russall's..just briefly. Enough to touch before he turns back to the bar again, resting his glass down on the surface. "Well that's hardly my decision! Honestly.. If it's something that you /want/, there shouldn't be anything that stops you. And /if/ you need to be close to..people, well. Dragons hop places all the time." He rests his arms then on the bar, head tilted to look at the other man. "Do you want to be a lieutenant?"
Russall can only reply to that question with a shrug. "I want the marks that come with the knot?" But not necessarily the rest of it, is what he doesn't say. He shrugs his shoulders again. "Dragons do hop places all the time, if their riders want them to. And Stonehaven is only a ride away, even without a dragon. It's not like moving to Landing or wherever." He shrugs a third time, then sets his second empty glass on the counter for the barkeep to take away. "I'm considering it. But I'd rather stay here and drill, than go there to teach bumbling babies how to guard."
R'yal tilts his head, but offers a small smile after a moment or two. "Well, if you don't want to deal with teaching them, then stay here. Marks are one thing..sanity is another." With his glass empty, he pushes it slightly away from himself, sighing. "I'd hardly be good at teaching, myself. I'll prefer to keep my distance from any weyrlings that come with those eggs out there."
"That's because you're good at search and rescue," Russall grins, leaning in a little towards R'yal. "Though how Liv manages it with those tiny wings, I've got no idea." He frowns, then shrugs. "Eight new weyrlings on top of the ones we've already got… it's going to be chaos. No wonder they brought in that new guy on M'icha's team. I can't ever remember there being so many in the barracks, not for Turns. Maybe they'll have to draft in others to help - maybe you'll be press-ganged into being weyrlingmaster."
R'yal lifts a hand, poking his finger right into Russall's forehead. "Maybe they'll recruit /you/ in to teach them a thing or two." So there. They're both at risk! The horror! Still though, the greenrider does grin a bit, shaking his head. "Can you even imagine? Liv wouldn't stand for it. She'd be nowhere near helpful. I'm /not/ giving anyone a mating flight talk, that's for sure." If he has to outright refuse someone higher ranked than him..he will!
"There's already been a note in the barracks about training candidates, so I wouldn't be surprised if we get drafted in to train the weyrlings to be even more deadly." Russall smirks, batting away R'yal's poking finger with a gentle swat. "Th'ero's army. That's what we're building. As if dragons aren't lethal enough already, we need their riders to be bad-asses, too." Now it's the greenrider getting poked in the chest. "You should come to me for some private training sessions, little greenie… I'll clear my schedule for me."
"They've been doing that part with them for a long time. At least some of us, anyway." R'yal laughs lightly, shaking his head just a little bit. "I'd never even touched a weapon before Impressing, but learned well enough how to use a blade." There's even a knife on the greenrider's person, after all! But then, search and rescue riders tend to run into..situations at times. A brow lifts though at the offer, watching Russal just a bit skeptically. "And just what are you planning on teaching me?"
Russall grins. "Of everyone in Fort, it's hardest to imagine you taking someone on with a blade." He laughs softly, ordering another drink for himself and R'yal too, if he wants one. "If I'm going to Stonehaven, I'm doing training in swordmanship, archery, longstaff. Though it's the latter two that're more my area. But, if I'd said to you come to my room and learn about the longstaff… there's just too much innuendo there." Wink wink.
"..And quite a bit of exaggeration." R'yal manages it. He manages it with a straight face and everything. The greenrider does however move away from the bar. Likely to hide any start of the fit of laughter that's threatening. The drink is declined though, fingers waving off the offer. "One's still just about enough for me. And if I don't get back, Liv will start to complain about it. He does take a glance back though, shaking his head just a bit. "That's why they don't expect it. See you later." Off he goes, however, hurriedly escaping through the tavern doors.
Russall is amused by R'yal's reaction, and he lets the greenrider step away. He doesn't bother to hide his own smirk. "I'll drop by later then, shall I, little greenie? Longstaff in hand, since it seems I've got something to prove!" Hopefully Rav heard that before he disappeared!