The Good Kind of Drawback ((Open))

[Archer Caughey]

It’d been awhile since Archer had been around.  Up on the rock big news had come with Spring.  Whenever there was big news, there were feasts, and whenever there were feasts, there were people asking him to play.  The kingdom’s excitement at having his serenades gracing the Great Hall again hadn’t worn off yet, not even a little, not even considering he’d been around again for almost two years.  It meant that over the last couple months he’d done a whole lot of singing and not a lot of science.

He was surprisingly alright with that.  The ancient channels were open, songs both old and new were flowing, and the jovial spirit that he couldn’t extract from his music if he tried wasn’t just in the music anymore.  It’d finally made its way back into him, too.  Like something had clicked into place.  Because he’d finally let it.  It didn't mean everything was perfect, and it didn't mean he no longer believed that he'd been forced to give up some precious things that he'd never get back, but...he accepted where home was and he lived there, he accepted his purpose and he lived it, and by and large he wasn’t being a morose jackass anymore.  Progress.

His plan had been to stick to his lab while he was down here and take advantage of the quiet that came with there being no one around to ask him for an encore.  Answer messages, clean some stuff, sketch some stuff, that kind of day in the life of Archer.  But he hadn’t been working for more than an hour before the sounds and smells of a street fair going on down the block distracted him enough that he opted for a break.

He was wearing one of his typical navy blue suits, but thanks to some brotherly fashion advice from the Doctor, he was wearing a t-shirt underneath instead of a button down and tie in an attempt to be more casual.  It wouldn’t be Archer if the t-shirt didn’t have a couple of test tubes and beakers on it and the words, 'Chemists have all the solutions'’.  Har har har.  He had no instrument strapped to his back as he strolled down the bustling street, but he did still have the beard even though the first day of Spring had come and gone.  It wasn’t that he’d lost another bet to Claudia so much as it was...the path of least resistance.  Let’s just call it that.

Tall mug of ale in one hand and some amazing meat on a stick in the other, Archer had no destination in mind until he spied the beautiful sight of an archery target in a nearby field.  Several targets, in fact, all standing in a row waiting for some arrows.  Polishing off his meat and drink on the way over, Archer wasted no time putting money in the vendor’s hand so that he could get down to business selecting a bow.  After he made his choice, the vendor quickly stepped in with a warning and then a suggestion of another bow that would be easier if he wanted a chance at winning a prize.  Was it his suit that had the vendor looking worried?  Or maybe his shirt that outed him as a scientist?  Whatever the reason, Archer laughed.

“S’alright, mate.”  Picking up the quiver of arrows he’d paid to rent, he flashed the vendor a grin.  “I’m not looking for easier.  As for the prizes...let’s just say me competing for prizes wouldn’t be too fair.”

Based on the light wind from the west and the day’s visibility, Archer took up a spot that was the farthest back he could manage based on the arrows’ ability to travel.  Physics was physics. “Really should’ve bought another ale…” The afterthought mumbled to himself as he toyed with his bow, loading it up and drawing back a couple times to test the feel.  He went about the work so quickly it’d be hard to tell when the testing stopped and the actual aim and shoot began - until the arrow flew from his bow, of course.

The vendor looked dumbstruck when this goofy guy who didn’t even bother to take off his blazer struck an arrow just inside the rim of the bullseye on his first shot.  It wasn’t perfect, and that’s why Archer loved archery.  So many variables to account for, and they were different every time.  Loading up a second arrow, Archer shifted his shot a bit to the right, a bit down, and fired away.

His small adjustments went a long way.  This time the arrow struck just shy of the center of the bullseye.  "On the topic of prizes though, mate.  You don't have anything winter themed in that collection, do you?"  It was a nice day.  Science could wait.

[Cocina]

She had been trying to keep to herself and the quiet of the Inn, but this was something she couldn't pass up. The rush of the festival down at the Marketplace was intoxicating - she felt it as she was outside the Inn tending the gardens. It would be okay if she took a short trip to see, wouldn’t it? It had been a while since she had been around a mass of people, but the current of excitement flowing into her was something she could not ignore.

Leaving her work behind, Cocina tied a side of her skirt to her belt and raced down towards the festival. The merriment grew stronger the closer she got and soon the young else was flitting along through the throngs of people. Their buzz crawled along her skin and made her blue hair shine and her ears twitch. Only a few decades short of being two-hundred and Cocinas abilities as an elven empath were starting to develop.

The young elf passed by a few people who were feeling disgruntled, over around the gaming area. She could feel the negative energy from the unlucky people inching its way towards her and she wrinkled her nose. Cocina was having a streak of good vibes, filling up her personal energy storage, and she didn't want to mar it now. The elf turned and started to leave the gaming section when something else caught her attention.  

She knew her main feelings pretty well - happiness, sadness, pain, anger - but this felt like happiness with something else. Pride? No. Maybe?

The young elf followed her feelings, trying to pinpoint where it was coming from.  This was harder to do than she thought it would be because other things kept trying to take her attention. At one point she even knocked into a man who had a bit too much to drink and it left her feeling disoriented.

When she cleared her head Cocina was looking in the direction of an archery stand and that new feeling pushed its way back to the surface. She knotted her brows and progressed towards it and the person currently shooting. Oh yes. This feeling was defiantly coming from him.

She smiled at the person running the booth as she stood off to the side out of contestants drawback. “Hello!” She said quite happily to the man with the bow. Eyes bright as she looked right at him. No mistaking to whom she was speaking.   Normally she wouldn’t be as open to greet a stranger, but she was high of various feelings and they drove her actions.  “Quite a feeling you have going on.”

[Archer Caughey]

“I know it’s spring.  Just asking after a winter prize because...ah, don’t worry about it.  Was just a thought.”  He dismissed the subject with a wave of his hand and a grin, putting his focus back on his target down the way.  Brow furrowed as he studied the location of the two arrows, reviewing the circumstances behind each shot.  A set of mental calculations made, ones that were heavy on the numbers, and he applied those results to his plans for his third arrow.

After the drawback, he paused.  The light breeze had shifted direction.  An adjustment made to account for that, and the arrow shot forth.  It struck the target right up against the left side of the arrow that was closer to the center of the bullseye, and he whooped with delight and pumped his fist in the air.  “There it is.  There it is.”  Where the arrow struck was the perfect spot for one half of his current fancy plan, and that meant his calculations were right on.

He held off on loading up for the second half of his trick, though, when he felt eyes on him.  And sure enough, before long those eyes spoke.  Well the eyes didn’t speak, but the owner of the eyes...you know what I mean.  “Afternoon, lass.”  Archer greeted her with warmth, jovial and charming, because honestly how could a person be anything but jovial and charming when they were shooting arrows on a fine day like this?  In Archer’s mind, anyway.  When he turned his bright blue eyes on her, there was surprise in them at the second thing she said.  “Quite a feeling, you say?  In all my years I don’t think anyone’s ever said that to me before.  Is it a decent feeling, I hope?”  He had to check.  Mostly because he was awful when it came to being in touch with all of that.

A nod at the target as he pulled another arrow from his rented quiver.  “I hope you don’t mind, it’ll nag at me if I don’t finish before too many of the variables change.”  So he was quick about it, since he didn’t want to be rude.  His drawback and release a smooth sequence this time, now that he knew his calculations were precise.  Sure enough, this latest arrow hit the other side of the second arrow he’d fired, and Archer had struck that arrow on the left and now the right in such a way that it popped right out of the target and fell to the grass.

He set his bow down, turning back to her with a grin.  “Something so satisfying about doing that.  Tends to make drunk betting men angry, though."  Many a gambler had lost money when they bet against Archer's skill.  "Now, you were mentioning me putting off a feeling?”

[Cocina]

“Well I’m not quite sure if it’s a good feeling or not,” she admitted quietly to herself while watching him. Her left hand came up and absently toyed with strands of her blue hair. He had eyes to match her hair. That thought brought on a passing smile which diminished as she watched him shoot.

There it was again. That odd feeling, though now she was certain that it carried a hefty amount of happiness mixed in with it. And why wouldn’t it? Cocina saw the look on his face and a person didn't have to be an empath to discern that grin.

She watched what he did with a wide-eyed expression. The trick with the arrows was not something she saw every day and, when he popped the arrow out that is when she felt a surge in the feeling coming from him. Cocina was suddenly struck with the obvious and said maybe a tad loudly, “You’re an Archer!”

Then she tapped a finger against her lower lip as she tipped her head up in thought. “I never met one before,” she began to say, but it’s not quiet sure if she was talking more to herself or to him. Perhaps a bit of both. All the various feelings tumbling around inside of her were jostling up her head. Cocina’s words spilled out rather quickly. “I mean I’ve met people who can do archery and some of them are quite good but I always thought an Archer was a myth.” At the end she finally took a deep breath and then smiled at him.

“You look rather real to me. Real enough that you feel of happiness and pride and, and,” she couldn’t formulate the word for the last feeling so she demonstrated it instead by standing up straighter and squaring her shoulders. “This,” she said as she indicated herself. “But all those things balled up together. What do you call that feeling?”

[Archer Caughey]

Quiet as they were, he caught her words, and he chuckled.  "That's pretty much my default, when it comes to feelings."  Not knowing whether any given one was good or not.  There was sheepishness in his smile, because he knew it was his own fault that he was a mess these days when it came to all of that.  He was a lot better when it came to facts and logic.

Was he embarrassed that her exclamation visibly startled him?  Yeah a little bit maybe, but he played it off as some kind of would-be smooth move to set the bow and quiver down.  “My name is Archer…”  One of them, anyway, but he wasn’t about to get into the others.  “My Da had a knack for being able to look into the eyes of babes and see their potential.”  That was something that Archer thought about a lot lately.  Out of all the things he had a knack for, had his father really only seen his skill with a bow and arrow?  There was no way to find out, which is why it’d been nagging at him.

“And I’m real alright.” A bit too real these days, but that was a topic for another time.  “But I’m a scientist by trade!”  Pride and joy shining as he declared that.  Best thing in the world, science.  He gestured to his t-shirt, as if that was some kind of proof.  It had a couple of test tubes and beakers on it and dropped the word ‘chemist’ with its cheeky saying, but if science wasn’t something she knew a lot about it probably wasn’t the most helpful illustrator.  “There’s a lot of science in archery, y’know, plenty of physics.  The bow is a spring, and the force used to draw it back makes it a house of potential energy which is then expounded to launch the arrow.  That’s just the tip of it, though, there’s draw weight and draw length to consider, trajectory…” Archer was running off at the science mouth like he so often did, and as usual it had taken this long for him to catch up with himself and put an end on it.  “Well, lots of science, is my point.”  An apologetic sort of grin followed.  Common Archer grin whenever he caught himself rambling on.  “I can tell you Archers aren’t a myth, though.  I don’t know about around here, but I’m from a place where plenty of folks choose that as a vocation.”

He watched her as she tried to demonstrate whatever feeling she believed he was exuding, brow furrowing in thought.  “Happiness and pride, eh?  Aye, I could agree with those.  That last one, though…”  He had a title for it, but it wasn’t a proper title to offer to a complete stranger.  Archer was sober enough to keep his sailor’s mouth in check.  “Confidence?”  The ‘I know what the f--- I’m doing’ pose, is how he said it in his mind.  When it came to archery and Archer, that was certainly the case?  

[Cocina]

Archer started talking about science, force, trajectory, and things about energy, and Cocina gave him one of those faces that said, 'I'm listening, but I don't understand what your saying." Her eyes were bright and her smile small as she gave a continuous slow nod.

Cocina looked towards the target as though that held some answers. What she knew about Archers was what she heard from stories as a child. Myths and legends spoke of them and what they could do. Part of her felt a bit intimidated - but that feeling was nearly muted by the other things she felt.

His shirt provided more answers to her in regards to what he was talking about. "Scientist...? Alchemist!” That made sense to her. HIs shirt had tubes and jars that she had seen in an alchemist lab before, so perhaps they used different names to mean the same thing? This wasn’t unusual in a place like Rhy’din and that she figured it out made her feel rather delighted in herself.

“Confidence. Do you always feel of confidence? What’s it’s like to have all that slushing around inside of you like that? I could use some of that for back where I work, oh!” Cocina gasped and put a hand to her mouth. “That’s it! That’s it! Archer, Sir.” she started saying. Though it wasn’t quite sure if she was calling him by his name or by his title. Did it really matter as they were the same? “Maybe it’s the confidence that makes you so great! I’d like to study it. Is that possible? Can you bottle it up so that I may use it for my studies?”

In her head Cocina started to think about the possibilities. “Being an Archer and an alchemist bottling up feelings is probably a simple task for you. Oh this is wonderful! I can have another feeling to add to my collection.”

[Archer Caughey]

Archer was all too used to those faces.  In moments like this it was his instinct to teach, in his well-meaning quest to broaden everyone’s scientific know-how.  But he learned by now that he shouldn’t don his metaphoric professor’s robes until the person asked to learn more.  A grin, though, when she dropped the word alchemist.  “Yeap, I’m one of those, too.”  Those were two separate distinctions where he came from.

Her question surprised him. “Do I - ?”  He interrupted his own sentence with a bit of a laugh.  He rubbed his beard, thinking about how to answer that.  “No, definitely not - well, when it comes to some - but with other things, I don’t - but I guess when it comes to those other things I’m...settling in and sometimes I do feel...Y’know, that’s a damn complicated question.  Congratulations, you’ve just stumped a genius.”  Admitted with a grin.  When it came to stumping Archer, talking about emotions was the best way to go.  

Glancing over at the target, he slid his hands into his pockets.  “When confidence is real it feels like you’re flowing right in tune with the universal current, headed in the exact direction you were supposed to go.”  Pretty poetic, for a scientist.  Using words like that was him flowing in the current he was supposed to, in the largest scale.  He looked back to her, trying to casually study her without being rude.  Was this the direction he was supposed to go today, to meet her?  That kind of “serendipity” happened a lot lately whenever he came around here.

Archer was going to ask her where she worked.  Her request derailed that thought.  “You want me to bottle my confidence,” repeated just to get himself on the same page.  “I...wow, huh.  I’ve created a lot of concoctions that can do a lot of things, including some that can kickstart a person’s body chemistry to help them jumpstart a certain emotion, but bottling the actual feeling?  Isolating the chemicals, maybe...hm.”  Something to think about.  But still he had to ask.  “Have you ever bottled a feeling?  You mentioned having a collection.  What kind of studies are you making out of them?”  

[Cocina]

She continued to give him that look of confusion, but now it was slightly mixed with a hint of accomplished delight. He had said she stumped him, but he wasn’t upset about it. In fact he had laughed! It hadn’t occurred to Cocina that her question about feelings may have been confusing or hard to answer. They were feelings.

“Right,” she said definitively. Cocina even connected her right fist with the open palm of her left hand. Though as she spoke her head was slightly lifted up. “Confidence should flow like a river. Like any other emotion. Flowing freely through the body and the passages of our souls.” Her words sounded memorized from a textbook.

Then she looked back at him with a smile. Cocina held her hands together and under her breast. Elbows out at both sides to make a perfect 180 degree angle from one elbow to the next with her fist in the center. This was clearly a stance. Even her shoulders were squared back and her head straight.”I am an empath.” Said very decisively, only to waver a bit with her next words. “In training. Well, not so much in training as I’m not training to be an empath but training how to control my empathic abilities so I don’t loose my mind or bring about destruction.” She took a breath and leaned in a fraction of an inch. “Too much?”

Cocina felt her feet start to shift as she stood there and her stance start to waiver, so she let it go. Relaxing her arms but keeping her hands together as she picked at her nails. “I have a couple bottles that my teacher has given me: happiness, sadness, and fear. Though none of them work as well as being around other people which is why I’m here at the fair! Can’t you feel it? The energy of all the emotions bounding from every—- oh. Sorry. I took in a lot of excitement that I… am… talking a lot.” A fact which seemed to surprise her. She was usually an elf of small words.

Her eyes widened a bit and she took a step back from him. Perhaps it was the confidence he had about him, mixed with everything else, that was loosening her tongue.

[Archer Caughey]

“Is that what they’re all supposed to do?”  Archer asked that with a grin.  “I’ll have to try that sometime.”  He was only half-joking.  Archer knew that’s how things were supposed to be, and he knew he was making things more complicated for himself by not letting all that run its proper course.  He let his big ole brain get in the way.  Well.   He put his big ole brain in the way.  On purpose.  

Brow lifted when she struck that pose.  He was no stranger to poses, and the various purposes behind them.  For all that Archer knew, though, he didn’t know a whole lot about elves, so he wasn’t about to venture a guess at the meaning behind her posturing.  She leaned in, and he leaned in, probably a bit more than she had.  To ask quietly in return, “Too much what?”  Lots of ways to interpret that two word question.  And he was a scientist.  Not going to jump to conclusions.

And out of scientific curiosity, he couldn’t help but ask, “What kind of destruction does an empath bring?”  Some of her struggle, how she described it, wasn’t unfamiliar to him.  The destruction part, however, Archer didn’t really have much of a destructive bone in his body.  Never had, at any point of his long living.

His brow quirked when she suddenly apologized for how much she was talking.  He was a well-known talker, that was part of his life’s purpose actually, so their conversation had felt like another day in the life for him.  A small smile followed.  Where she was from, he was figuring it was a lot different than anywhere he’d ever been from.  “I sure can.  My lab’s not too far from here, I was planning on getting some work done, but the hustle and bustle out here was too big to ignore.”  Blue eyes strayed a minute, looking around at the crowds moving from this booth to that, that small smile returning.

“What about voice recordings?”  While the change in topic came suddenly, it was the result of the mighty gears in Archer’s mind turning this entire time.  His eyes returned to her when he asked that, and she had the full of his attention again.  “Are voices useful for you, as an empath?  Do voices have feelings captured in them in the same way that you have those feelings captured in bottles?”

[Cocina]

What type of destruction can an empath do? Cocina opened her mouth to answer the question then paused, and promptly shut her mouth.  She looked at him with a considering expressing and turned to the side, leaning in towards him with her left shoulder as the guide. "If I were to tell you about the destruction, would you still help me out with handing me Confidence?" She thought it was a reasonable question.  "Not many people are likely to be for the idea of helping someone do something awful."

Cocina tented her fingers down at her waist as she stood up straight again and started a cursory look around where they were.  She was looking for any sign of guards, militia, that sort of thing.  If they were in ear shot or shouting distance. "That's why I said 'too much'. Telling, that is. I've only just met you and I go prattling off about killing things not knowing if you'll have me dragged away in chains or --- and I'm talking a lot.  Again."  Now she lifted her right hand and drummed her fingers over her collarbone.

"There's so much energy here." The off-handed comment wasn't directed towards anyone. Cocina only said what she felt. She normally didn't spend a lot of time around a large mass of people ever since her abilities started to spark.

"But alchemist are destructive people too!" Her attention snapped back to him and she focused again.  She said that almost like it was a revelation! A confirmation that he was a dangerous person too and therefore he would be okay with her talking about destruction. "And Archers because they kill people!  Can kill people.  Have you ever killed anyone?" She waved her hands in front of her face and shook her face. "Wait. Off topic."

Breathe, Cocina.  Breathe.  She took a deep breath and held it, clasping her hands together again as she exhaled slowly. When she spoke again she was calmer and took on that textbook tone she used earlier.  "A well-trained empath can not only sense the emotions of the beings they are around but can alter the emotional state of their subject. Blocking emotional pathways or strengthening them." She relaxed and smiled at the Archer. "Yes?" Her way of asking if he understood.

"If I were terribly strong - and a wicked elf - I could send the people over there who lost their game into a rage, compelling them to take their anger out on the things around them,"  Cocina said it rather matter-of-factly.

As for if a recording would work or not, she didn't know.  She never tried it.  "As for your recording, I'm sorry, but I don't own anything to hear recordings. Maybe I could find one."

[NotSuperman]

Games were sort of his thing. As a creature of the Fae, it very much enjoyed toying with people. Especially mortals who didn't know any better then to avoid it. Was it really his fault that they didn't think twice before accepting even small gifts without asking what the cost was? Or took a wager without completely nailing down it's terms. It was such a wager that Clark had levies upon the current game he was playing. It was a shooting gallery, one of those where multiple people shot down with laser rifles, and the most points won.

While it was not his fault that the people here were not very good at guarding themselves. It was his fault that the folks playing the game felt anxious about the game. And it was his fault that they were all in their own heads about it. overthinking every shot, all of those things culminated in a rather piss poor performance. So when Clark won by a landslide, the others were understandably upset as they handed Clark their money. Though, as clark reached out giving a man a pat on the arm, the poor man visibly calmed, collecting himself. What was a frown soon became a smile and then he embraced clark warmly.

The sidhe man returned the hug and gave the man a pat on the back. his friends looked confused, that was of course until Clark went to take their money. again, the outcome was the same, frowns and anger became warmth and camaraderie. In fact, Clark could be seen handing the first man back a bit of paper money and then motion to a refreshment stand. As the men turned and walked away Clark gave a shake. His warm smile before the sort of grin that a cat might have as it contentedly digested it's canary. After watching them leave, he turned his attention to a passer by. reaching out to give the man a tap on the shoulder. he smiled warmly again, jerking his head to the shooting gallery game. Now it was all about building up the next session...

[Archer Caughey]

Archer intended to answer her about confidence.  She kept talking, though, and Archer was getting the sense that talking like this wasn’t an opportunity that she got often.  So he gave her the floor, was happy to give her the floor actually.  Listening with a slight smile.  Well, not just listening, he was watching her, too.  Where she looked, her little fidgets, they told as much of a story as her words did.  Granted Archer hadn’t been spending nearly as  much time around these parts as he used to, but even when he was, he was hard pressed to remember anyone he’d met who was quite like her.

“I’m not going to have you dragged off in chains.  Do you want to have lunch with me?  My treat.”  Probably not the first words she expected to hear from him, but there they were.  Archer gestured to the various booths that were around them, plenty selling various types of food and drink.  “If it helps you decide, no, I’ve never killed anyone.  Back where I’m from they nicknamed me Peacemaker.”  Among other things.  “But you’re right, an alchemist could kill someone if they’re so inclined.  So could an archer.  But so could anyone, really, you know?”  

He looked over at the gaming area she mentioned.  A sudden hoot escaping, followed by a smirk and a shake of his head.  That was Archer spotting Clark.  Clark who’d made Archer get up on stage and use the almighty power of Elton John to get a nightclub under control a few weeks back.  So boy did he understand the kind of thing this elf was talking about, confirmed with a confident, “Yes.”  A smile directed at her when he looked back in her direction.  “And sure, I’ll still help you with confidence.  If we withheld knowledge from one another out of fear that a person might do something bad with that knowledge one day, we’d all be fools before long.”  There went the genius getting deep again, but at least this time it didn’t last long?

“As for a device that can record, you’ve found one.  Or a person who can give you one, at least.”  Said with a proud grin.  It wasn’t the only thing that took up Archer's days these days, but science was a permanent part of his heart and soul.  “Like I said, my lab is right down the road.”  

A nod in that direction had Archer watching Clark settling up with the other men.  A roll of his eyes once all that hugging commenced - if that didn’t look suspicious he didn’t know what did.  Folding his arms across his chest, Archer was fighting an impulse to give the fae a taste of some of his own medicine again.  Be nice to him, Claudia had said.  Their kind just like to play games, she said.  Man...Archer shook his head, focusing back on his elf companion.  “What happens when someone with your talent tries to do that on someone else with your talent?”  Innocent question...

[Cocina]

The sudden hoot from Archer caused Cocina to blink and take a fraction step backwards. He’d just expressed a happier feel after  mentioning that anyone could kill anyone and that made her wonder if something else was going on. She had followed his eyes and her own smile quivered as she laughed a bit nervously. Her own sliver of confusion worming itself into the swirl of emotions tumbling around inside of her. “Yay for… anyone… being able… to kill… anyone?”

He was defiantly smiling, but that wasn’t much change from  how he was when she first introduced herself to him. Though she was welling up with excitement the sudden burst couldn’t be her fault. She hadn’t touched him, but she was carrying around all this elation from the people at the festival so maybe.. But it was bad thing! She couldn’t risk him loosing his confidence. She needed that!

Subconsciously she drummed her fingers on her collar again as she thought over all that he had said. “Stronger person is more likely to win,” Cocina began to explain. “You follow the pathways of emotion. I can’t suddenly make you feel like you’re a looser while you’re brimming with confidence - partially because I don’t know how that particular emotion works. But if I were stronger and you missed a shot and your confidence dropped I could latch on to that and feed it with worry or doubt.”  She took a breath. “Emotions are mind games. Empaths learn, too, how to lock emotions. Can you imagine if I were taking someone’s anger and it caused me to go into a murderous rage?” Might be hard to picture it with the delightfulness she had been displaying. Cocina was being free flowing with the things she was feeling today. Taking it all in from herself, and from others. It was her chance to feel, not to block herself from feeling.

When her mind played back the question about food her stomach suddenly started to knot up in nervous excitement and the bit of confusion she had was overpowered. She could feel it around her.  His, the people who won their game, the merchants who were pleased over the days profits, and she feed into that.  “You’re asking me to sup with you? And you’ll pay? No one’s ever asked that of me before. Bring your plate and have a seat doesn’t really count the same as being asked to share a meal with someone, especially if you’re the one who cooked the food. I’m usually always cooking the food so you can’t be asked to join in eating the food you’ve made, unless for some reason you’re not allowed to eat the food but that’s an entirely….” Cocina let herself trail off and flashed him a wide smile that pushed her cheeks up and gave a twinkle to her eyes. Safe to assume that she accepted the food offer. The fingers that had been tapping on her neck stopped and the fingers laid there flat instead.

“Cocina,” she said with a small bow of her head. “ I don’t recall if I had told you my name.”  Honestly she couldn’t.  She knew that he was a confident Archer named Archer and his eyes matched her hair. Also that he was going to help her out.  Afterthought.

[NotSuperman]

The hoot caught Clark's attention, The shide furrowed his eyebrows and glanced around. breezed past buzz killington and landed on the woman. He made a quick glance once over and then actually noticed that she was with someone. And it was Buzz Killington, who completely crashed his totally rad party a few weeks ago. He went back to his work though. Shaking hands, and looking rather uninterested. Didn't mean that he wasn't listening though.

It was hard not to look interested when the conversation itself was so interesting. HE had never met anyone that could do what he could. But, it wouldn't do to be rude. So it only took the Shide man finding a good opening. "I recommend a degree in psychology." Incredibly helpful for understanding why emotions work like they do. It had been his undergrad degree before joining the police force. He approached the pair with a beaming brilliant smile. Sharp eyes got a better look over the woman that he didn't hid in any way and then he reached up to give Archer a pat on the back. a pat that brought a subtle big of warmth into the man's mood. IT sure was great to see clark again wasn't it? "It's good for understanding the reason people think the way they do. helps to dial into their emotional state." And how that related to their emotions. He gave her a wave and a nod. "Hi there, Clark Kent. I'm Elton's new friend." Clark hadn't remembered if the man had given him his name before. but he had remember that performance.

[Archer Caughey]

Archer pulled his attention away from watching Clark be up to no good, to look at his elven companion with a mixture of surprise and chagrin. “What?  No, not yay for anyone killing anyone, that’s not yay at all.  What I meant was, logically speaking, when it comes to the capability and the means, the vast majority of people possess the potential energy to kill someone, not that they should. They shouldn’t.”  Well Archer got himself into a nice tangle trying to talk himself out of that one, didn’t he.  Rubbing the back of his neck in a self-conscious fashion as he cleared his throat. “Back home I'm called Peacemaker, I mentioned that, right?” He had. Archer wasn’t the type of man to invite someone to lunch so he could have them for lunch.

He was glad for the change of topic.  Listening to her explanation with a nod.  “If their confidence dropped...hm.”  There went the gears of Archer’s big ole brain turning, a brief glance in Clark’s direction as he was working that through.  Watching the sidhe has he ‘innocently’ shook hands with way too many people for it to be good news, Archer narrowed his eyes and hoped this wasn’t another night club scene in the making.  “Aye, he certainly does treat everything like a grand old game, doesn’t he?”  He who?  The poor elf probably had no idea who the hell he was talking about, but that’s what happened with Archer when his mind set to racing - he skipped over steps and forgot to take the people with him along for the ride.

“Well, I’m glad you’re not going to go into a murderous rage, Cocina.  It might ruin lunch.” Said with a sudden grin, as Archer decided to use some of his goofy humor to lighten the mood.  A bit of a laugh following as his offer seemed to catch her of guard.  “Yes, I am.  And yes, I will.  I’m surprised no one’s ever asked you that before, but I think it’s only fair after all you’re teaching me today?”  Sure, as a reason that would do as good as any. But maybe there was something that Archer had picked up on over the course of their conversation, in her excitement and eagerness to talk alongside the fidgeting, that told him she could use the company of someone taking her out to lunch.  “I promise this time you won’t be making any of the food.  Neither will I - which is the much better promise between the two, if you ask me.” Archer was absolutely crap when it came to cooking food.  He’d much rather be measuring out bases and acids instead of flour and sugar.

“Why don’t we - “ Archer had turned to scope out what food merchants were in proximity, just in time to come face to face with Clark. And a second too late to swerve his shoulder.  Archer’s grimace lasted for a nanosecond, thanks to the growing thrill of seeing Clark again that the sidhe planted with his touch.  (Jerk.) Archer giving the man an easy smile as he corrected for Cocina’s benefit, “New friend of a friend - his girlfriend and my girlfriend chill out often.” Pun that Clark would catch intended. “Which apparently means I have to be nice.  Even though my name is not Elton.” Said emphatically for Clark’s benefit.  “It’s Archer.  Or Bragi, if you must.” Apparently that stupid touch to his back had put Archer in the mood to overshare, divulging that name for himself while he was down here.  If Clark reached for him again, though, Archer was going to be ready for it.  While he was thrilled to see Clark, he still wasn’t born yesterday.

And if Archer was Buzz Killington, Clark was Dennis the Menace. MENACE.

[Cocina]

She liked talking to this Archer!  It was a bonus that he wasn’t going to eat her but this guy could talk about as much as she could, and that was a comfort in itself.  While she was busy giggling and thinking over a lunch where they should probably get cold food, because hot food may cool off if they spent too much time talking and not enough time eating, she wasn’t paying attention and another player entered the scene.

“Psychology!” Cocina said with a bit of a shock when the new person spoke up - and he was so close, too. The elf didn’t mind people being in close proximity to her, she was standing not too from the Archer as it were. But in a place like this, where emotions were the reigning fare of the day and running wild, she liked to get a feel for the people she may be getting in contact.  “Wait. What?” Right now Cocina was pushing down the embarrassment at being caught off guard and unawares mixed in with all the elation, bravado, and arrogance. These things were making a fine mix inside of her. Not to mention a spot of hunger now as there was the prospect of food.

The new guy eyed her and she eyed him, taking in whatever he may have been feeling. It was reactionary.  Something she didn’t know how to turn off yet. Be around a person feel what they are feeling. She, herself, was feeling slightly embarrassed at the moment and a bit confused. Happy? No wait. While she was happy, that sudden happiness wasn’t hers, it came when this new person appeared and maybe it moved from one man to the other?  Couldn’t be. She must have imagined it.  Right. No. This Archer was simply glad to see this man who was, “your friend of your girlfriend’s friend?” Well, that straightened everything out now, didn't it? After she said it she thought maybe she had gotten it mixed up and even frowned a little.

Cocina shook out the frown and turned a bright smile to the newcomer. All this time she still had her hand up to her chest and her fingers had started tapping along her collar bone once more. “I’m Cocina and I was going to have lunch with Bragi,” she said it with a rolling ‘R’ and paused for a breath now as she looked at Archer and continued, “which I’d much rather call you instead of Archer as it may be strange to call you by what you are, but it’s also quite invigorating isn’t it? I could call you the Archer but that has its own meanings and associations that you may not want to…” that train of thought was trailing off and she spun back on her heel to face Clark.

“Perhaps you’d like to come to lunch with us? Are you checking on his behavior to make sure that he’s behaved? There hasn’t been a feeling of ill-will about him! Just an over flowing amount of confidence, as he called it. that comes from being an Archer and a alchemist. He’s really quite talented…” She would really have to work on talking.  It was a wonder anyone stood to talk to her.

[NotSuperman]

Clark jostled Archers shoulder with a self satisfied grin, He knew what he did. “ Yes, Bragi here is dating my lady love’s new BFF. They’re off playing in the snow somewhere. “ Clark mastered his emotions well, The elf would feel his own jubilation and confidence , simply oozing off of him not to mention no small amount of self satisfaction. It was a trick he’d learned when he had discovered his abilities. Project something loud enough and then folks won’t see what you don’t want them to, kind of like an empathic ‘rope-a-dope’. He carried that knowing smile to the woman, where it became a little less devious... a little.

“Yeah, Psychology. The study of the human mind... Really helpful when you want to influence peoples emotions. “ He pointed to the men who were at the shooting gallery, they were having an absolute blast. all of them, as a group. “That group there, they were not having a very good night, admittedly even before I made it worse. “ He said that all without shame, just talking about his good work. “ You they were already close to the extreme, I just... pushed them over the edge, distracted the mind as it were.” He rose a hand to her right and snapped his figners to draw the eye. “ When they’re down there, the mind it’s really on focused over here...” another couple of snaps. “Then, a nice shove...” he brought his other hand up and gave her a tap on the shoulder, it was a bit of a heavy handed push, dampening her sense of unease and bringing to the surface a sense of excitement. “... In the other direction, and boom, they’re having the time of their lives. “ He put both hands in his pockets. the false senses bled away, he really only wanted to prove a point. not mess with the woman’s mind. “ sorry about that.”

To the request to join, he gave Archer another look, turning it into a grin. “Ah well, I don’t want to intrude. I know he’s a good dude. Its why he broke up my party.” clear blue eyes turned back to the woman. “ to be fair though, I still wouldn’t take up the creepy basement invitation... but that’s just general advice for life in general, not specific to Bragi here.”

[Archer Caughey]

Well, shit.  Now they were both calling him Bragi.  Good job, mouth.  Even though he was the one to offer it, it felt strange to hear it, down here. But he wasn’t making a face about it. Hopefully.  He did cram his hands into his pockets, but that was an innocuous gesture, right? Nodding with a wry smile. “Yeap, yeap, an archer being named Archer’s a bit on the nose, I can’t argue with you there.”

Archer scoffed without remotely trying to hide it, when Cocina asked Clark if he was checking up on him.  “He’s the one who needs to be checked up on.” Straight from his brain out his mouth,  no hesitation.  That wry smile returned, though, this time accentuated with some full-bodied pride, “I am pretty damn talented though.”  Catching Clark’s eyes, he nodded in the direction the sidhe had come from. “That little hustle you had going on down there?”Archer shook his head.  Clark wouldn’t have a chance in hell against him, that’s what that head shake was saying.

And yes, for the record, they both knew what he did.  Which is why Archer was working through that sudden swell of joy so he could give Clark a bit of side eye.  He was watching him. Literally.  With those merry deep blue eyes that had some ancient energy behind them.  So when Clark started the snapping and touching Cocina, Archer was quick to interject.  With his words, not with his hands. Those stayed in his pockets. “Clark - Clark.  Maybe follow the rules of civilized scientific discourse, yea?” They were talking about psychology, and that counted as a science. “Like asking for participation before initiating an experiment?”  Archer wasn’t angered or scolding him, but there was a gravitas to his voice that wasn’t there before.  Clark had seen how Archer could command a room just by his voice alone; well, the orator in him sometimes came out in his tone and timbre even when he was cheating and using a potion like he was now.  He always cheated, when he was here in Rhy’din.

At the same time, when Clark had done that a really strong sense of loyalty swelled in the scientist.  It was built into his nature that he came to people’s defense if he thought they needed defending, so it didn’t matter that he’d only met Cocina a few minutes ago. That loyalty simmered back down when Clark put his hands into his pockets.  Archer giving the sidhe a bewildered look.  “What basement - my invitation to visit my lab?  My lab’s not in the basement, are you insane?”  Basements had too many variables to contend with, wasn’t worth the effort you had to put in to get all that under control.

A shrug followed as his blue-eyed gaze traded between the two of them. “It’s not an intrusion.  I’m sure the two of you could learn a lot from each other.” And it seemed like a potentially exciting discourse, and we all know that a good discourse was as satisfying to Archer as a nice meal.  So having both at once?  Eureka.

[Cocina]

Cocina was nearly full to bursting with her own excitement so when Clark touched her he’d feel it it bounce right back at him. Felt a jolt and it got her mind to thinking! She looked where he tapped. It was like a magicians trick! The misdirection that is. The pushing people over the edge?  She could relate to that. All the while she was looking at him with wide-eyed curiosity and interest.  Taking all of what he was saying in. With all the excitement she’s been saying whatever comes to mind -mostly - as she has been all morning. Like now.

“Are you empathic or are you a pick-pocket? Because if you are, that’s okay. I’m not going to tell. Even if you are an empathic pick-pocket. We all have to make our living somehow!” She leaned towards him and lowered her voice a bit. “The boys and girls would use misdirect to distract their target while lifting things from pockets or bag, and the person would never know it because while they were being robbed they were having a great time with whatever else was going on in front of them! I admit I don’t know much of the…” Cocina would really have to work on her hanging sentences and being distracted. At another time she may have reached to pat her own pockets - but she didn’t have any. Nor did she have any bags.  The talk about a ‘creepy basement’ came back to her and that’s what caused her to trail off in other direction.

There was a lot to process. Especially when she was standing between two men who had all these feelings going on. The amount of confidence in the air was so thick, the elf thought that she could see it!  Perhaps she could.  There’s no real way to describe how emotions looked - people  who could see them may see it differently - but Cocina saw glimpses of bright color in the air between the two men and she absently reached up to touch what she saw.

“The two of you are really quite colorful,” said almost absently as she was focusing on the colors.  Though as soon as she was about to touch a color it vanished and she blinked. Must have been a trick of the light. The sun. It was bright out here.

To not look overly odd with her hand partially raised she plopped it on her head and picked at her hair

She thought that she was getting a good sense of what belonged to Bragi and what didn’t. The flow of feelings about him was pretty consistent, expect for a few variances here and there. Then there was, oh, wait, what was that? A sudden more forceful command feeling in the air coming from him. Cocina took a small step backwards. The hand in her hair slide down the side of her face and neck until those fingers were drumming on her collar bone again. Had she misjudged Bragi? Maybe Clark knew something about this man that Cocina should take into consideration? He had broken up the man’s party afterall.

“Don’t all alchemist have underground liars where they do their experiments?” Cocina offered. “So sunlight and wind and all those other elements don’t mix in whatever they are cooking up? Stone walls. A leather strapping holding table. A hunchback tugging on a cord… Maybe that was a book I read?”  She shook her head. “We’re all friends now and Bragi’s going to pay for our food before bottling up his confidence for me!” The last bit sounded odd when said out loud. “Maybe you have some feelings we can bottle up as well, Clark?”

[NotSuperman]

Clark smiled broadly and pulled his hands back at Archer's request, putting them safely into his pockets. "Of course... Just a harmless demonstration between friends. "  eyes met Archers, mirth filling them,  Did he mean the hustle he was showing off or his little demonstration for the elf.  At Cocina's question he turned his smile back to her. " No, I don't steal, I'm handsome enough to get by on my good looks... And its universally illegal..." and Clark while a peacock did not often fancy attracting that sort of attention.

"Colorful, yo have no idea..."Clark let his glamour  slip for a moment, his facade rippling like the haze behind a fire to reveal his sidhe form,  his hair a deep royal blue and for just a moment his face took a distinctive light green caste. Then, it was normal again  if normal was something that Clark could be.

He distracted himself by producing a fresh rolled cigarette from somewhere.  He definitely lit it with a light didnt he? When Cocina asked her questions. He watched archer curiously, that was definitely interesting. "You know what? that sounds like a great idea, I've always thought it was time I design my own signature fragrance."

[Archer Caughey]

Archer laughed when Cocina asked if Clark was a pickpocket. A good, hearty laugh. While the sidhe was denying it, Archer was shaking his head denying Clark's denial. "Bullocks...you're getting by with more than good looks. It wasn't your good looks that had those men handing you money a few minutes ago, aye? And looks could've set some of those variables into motion at the nightclub the other night, but all of them? Mathematically improbable, nearly impossible." The genius was flexing his logic to keep Clark on the hook, but that was just typical Archer. Said with an air that was jovial enough and casual to be sure, he didn't mean any ill-will by it.

He was unsurprised by Clark’s momentary reveal of his true appearance, by the time Archer had reached him and Arcadia at the club the faerie had dropped his cloak then, too. What did surprise Archer was the step back that Cocina took, and the change in her body language.  That was enough to make him furrow his brow - he couldn’t make the connection between what he said (or more precisely how he’d said it) and the sudden hesitation.  At this point Archer was back in the swing of his old self enough that the gravitas built into his being was just par for the course, and he didn’t notice it.  At least, not when it peeked out for as short a time as that.  If he wasn’t cheating by keeping a lid on everything?  Different story, he’d feel completely awkward and out of place here.

“I don’t,” was his answer about underground lairs. “Moisture control, mold control, pest control...easier to make a clean room above ground without windows if you ask me.”  Or in Archer’s case, rooms, he had more than one lab and more than one storage facility each which served different needs.  Now he even had labs on three different worlds, but one of those was mostly unused in recent years.

The more Cocina talked, once she got to that part about leather tables and straps and hunchbacks, boy was Archer’s expression something else. “I have an apprentice, but he's a teenage kitsune, not a hunchback." Wasn't likely that Lumie was currently at the lab, though, he was probably off with the Doctor fixing some crisis or another. Or hanging out with Pris trying to figure out how to make a move she'd understand.  “As for a leather-strapped holding table, you’d be more likely to find one of those in - “ Pause. Did he really want to say what he was going to say to someone he’d just met?  A shake of his head. “Nah, not important.”

“What?” That was asked of Clark.  For that look the sidhe was giving him.  A shrug followed. “It’s science. Wouldn’t get your hopes too high about a fragrance, though, most science smells like sewage.” Archer flashed them a grand grin.  Wasn’t that an appetizing thought to have just before lunch?  The genius seemed to think so, because he was dropping off his bow and quiver with the man who was running the archery range and gestured down the street to a couple food booths and a sitting area. “Shall we?”

[Cocina]

“One of those in…?” How ironic that Cocina questioned when someone else left a sentence hanging when she did it all the time.  Perhaps it was due to the subject matter The table with the leather straps. “In the party that you broke? Is that where you put the table, Bragi?”  That gave her another thought and she looked back between the two men as she turned on her heel and took a step backwards in the direction Archer had pointed to for food.

“Maybe the table isn’t Bragi’s and it really belongs to Clark - which is the place that is more likely for it to be found in that you didn’t want to say because you broke his party - and maybe his table - so he won’t let you use it anymore, but if I ask nicely Clark will let us use it to pull forth even more emotions!” And breathe.  She turned her attention, and a smile over on Clark as she folded her hands in front of her.  “Clark, with the  gorgeous blue hair that’s like mine that he really shouldn’t cover up.” The elf sighed and looked longingly at Clark’s hair that was’t blue anymore.

The way her eyes had lit up when Clark had dropped his glamour and she saw his blue hair was infectious. There was a sudden jump of degrees in her excitement and maybe the two of them wouldn’t be affected because she had already taken a step back, but one could never know.  She wasn’t going to get one, but two feelings today, she met an Archer, a tae - she was pretty sure he was a type of fae, especially with his abilities - and she was going to be treated to lunch!

“This is the best day!” Maybe she was getting a bit over excited. She was walking backwards, letting her senses keep her from bumping into anyone. Though a few passerby were a bit more animated than before. “I’m so glad I left the Inn!”

[NotSuperman]

"Well, that's not necessarily true, you of all people know what a golden tongue can get you?" Eyes went down to the group again, they were just having the best time now... "you're right though... It helps to be incredibly charming too." He said to the man with said charming grin. It really was dazzling, it had been his best move as a mortal and being a sidhe only made it that much more effective. The elf's excited drew his attention back as he felt her excite pulse through the air, he felt it bu he was also ready for it now. "... She knows exactly that I'm talking about." Charm went hand in hand with their abilities. " Yes, Archer... Lead on. Maybe I can help, I took a two year long course in forensic science..." He motioned the man forward, hanging back a step to walk beside the woman. leaning in conspiratorially, whispering" It only means that I know how to stay out of the way." his glamour falling in entirety as they walked along with Archer. He was wearing a floral button down shirt, filled with spiraling summer wildflowers in full bloom. The colors worked well with his light green complexion and dark blue hair.

"Clark hides his gorgeous blue hair because it makes those without gorgeous blue hair jealous... left the inn? Are you staying at that big famous one?" he gestured off in a vague direction. " Tale... Ramen... Was that what she called it?" he looked thoughtful for a moment, thinking back to the conversation he'd had with jade about the Inn in the area. She'd said he should take up rooms there

[Archer Caughey]

“I’m pretty sure I don’t want to know what Clark uses his tables for.” A hiccup followed.  Not like a literal hiccup, more like a...stilted pause that seemed out of place. The sentiment was sincere, though, he was pretty sure the sidhe was into some weird sh-t. “Especially if you want to keep having the best day.” Those words, too, were slightly distracted, the direct result of Cocina’s excitement bubbling out everywhere. Archer didn’t have the mental mojo that Arcadia did when it came to this stuff - it affected him, and he didn’t have much else besides his willpower to keep himself steady. Hence his wariness of Clark - knowing what the man was up to didn’t necessarily add up to him being able to avoid its effects, when push came to shove.

Archer was hoping, however, that Cocina’s excitement about the whole situation was enough for her to forget he still didn’t finish his earlier statement. Then there was the sight of that way too charming smile of Clark’s to avoid. He really had a test of resilience cut out for him, choosing these two for his afternoon company. That’s why he set course for the food and drink at a brisk pace, putting his long legs to good use. “Can I have two really big sticks of - that big, those two sticks of meat right there will do.” Archer pointed at two skewers of meat fresh off the rotisserie, not portioned out yet for sale.  Yet there he was, calling that oversized portion lunch. “No, I’m not kidding. And the strongest drink you have in the tallest glass, too. I’m not kidding when I say that either.” He gestured to Clark and Cocina as he fished for his wallet, adding, “Their tab is on me, too.”

That business settled, he finally answered Clark. “My tongue’s not golden.” Archer’s faint smirk was evidence that he knew he was using literalism to his advantage. Because his tongue was etched with the sacred runes of his people, for reasons that Clark was trying to reference. Rich blue eyes turned in the sidhe’s direction, Archer giving him a minute of silent scrutiny before he asked, “Book courses, or laboratory practicums?” The fae’s help wouldn’t go far if all he’d done was stick his nose in some science books.

“Tel’Ranaemyn. Thanks, mate.” The first word was provided to Clark, courtesy of Archer’s perfect memory, and the latter words to the vendor, who’d done a fine job of delivering a drink that looked to be twelve inches tall. He wasted no time lifting that glass in a toast, even if the others hadn’t been served their drinks. When it came to his spirits, Archer didn’t wait. “Sláinte.”

[Cocina]

Cocina had been walking and listening and letting her eyes take in the full scope of Clark's hair as well as his attire.  Now that he had dropped his facade he was even more lovely than before.  The brightness of all the colors simply lit him up in her eyes. He was so bright and approachable that it made her want to touch the flowers on his shirt, but she knew better. To occupy her hands she

“If we can’t use yours,” she was talking to Clark, “I’m sure Bragi knows where I can get my hands on a table with leather straps. It must be quite handy when you are in need of holding someone down and being the scientist that he is Bragi must know how to and maybe he will even demonstrate by placing you on the table, or even myself, it’s been some time since I’ve been tied down in the physical sense and I’m sure that would be quite a . . . " A fast talker, that’s what she was, though her trail of words ended when her attention was taken by Archer getting his food.  

She watched with interest and focused her attention on the vendor then took a quick side-step away from Clark and closer to the food cart. "I’ll have what he took.” Cocina paused briefly and pointed at Archer. “His meat on a stick, but I can only take so much, though I suppose it’s really your meat, on his stick, that we’re going to eat - separately -  since it’s coming from you, but not you physically as from what I can see you have all your parts intact and are not bleeding so I’ll just take your meat on a stick, like that only smaller.” She actually finished a statement!  The bit of confusion and embarrassment she felt was written all over her face, and directed to the Vendor. He was completely flummoxed for a moment and looked at around his stand like he wasn't sure why he was there or what he was to be doing. She had affected the man. Was it any surprise why she hadn’t been taken out to eat before?

"Oh," Cocina said as she looked at the man and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. She had to get a handle on herself. "Sorry," came her sheepish apology as she offered a smile to her afternoon companions.

"Yes, yes, the Tel’Ranaemyn," the way she said the name of the Inn was marked with musical inflection. It was an elvish word. "I use to stay at the orphanage, but then I got too old and was hired to work in the kitchen at the Inn though I do other things there as well but try to stay away from the people there because I don't quite have a hold on my abilities and there's already a lot of feelings all over the place even when no one is there, there may be feeling impressions lingering about...  Thank you." Cocina took her order and stepped away.

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