Welcome to Stoneport

Noct let out a small yawn, "Fuck is taking that guy so long?"

*Examining the bar, Noct would be able to see the tool never made it. Drunk way over his limit, he's passed out about halfway.*

Noct let out a sigh, and weighed the pros and cons of continuing to be lazy, and sit there, or getting up off her ass and going to the bar herself. After a small huff, Noct pushed herself off of the couch, and made her way over to the bar. She walked past Carson and Senthose, ignoring both, and locked eyes with Astarte, "Hey, one bottle of--" She looked back at her booth, and let out a sigh, she didn't want to have to walk back. "Never mind, I'll just take my drinks here," She said, taking a seat, "One glass of Dom Perignon White Gold. Let me get a shot of vodka too, Diva if you have."

*Kent is still sitting at the table, kind of in a trance.*

Kent: [Should I... take the chance? I could end it now if I succeeded...]

*He looks to see where the bathroom is, and then at the backpack by his foot.*

*Senthose spins around & suddenly his whole demeanor changes. He smiles just a fraction more than he's been smirking at his own quips & widens his eyes slightly so that it looks like he's paying more attention. He also focuses on somewhere over the left of Carson's shoulder, so that his pupils dilate, making it appear as though he's really interested in what Carson is talking about. He also spreads his arms slightly, but keeps them down to nearer to his side, so they only spread out about half as far.*

"Oh, hello, Mr. Carson! My apologies, I didn't notice you arrived. I'm afraid I'm not used to chaotic scenes like this."

Connor attempted to pull his eyes up to hers. "Coke's for little kids. I'm all for the stronger stuff, you know. Marijua--er, Meth. You can hook me up?" His words were slurred, his vision blurred, and he still could not on his life recall what Methamphetamine was like. He ended the sentence with what was supposed to be a wink, but from the look on the waitress's face, it probably seemed more like an eye spasm.

Astarte nodded to Carson and rushed down the bar, filling as many glasses as possible with her right hand and wiping all the spills made by herself and others with a tea towel in her left hand.
She turned and hurried back just in time to catch Noctis' order. She nodded, hiding a frown, and turned to find a bottle and champagne glass.
"Bit of a strange order... for an event like this, anyway," Astarte returned with a glass of champagne which she placed in front of Noctis before quickly making up two shots of vodka. "Most of these guys just want to get as wasted as possible as quickly as possible."
She slid the first shot to Noctis and downed the second herself.

*Carson gives Senthose a quick hug and takes a seat next to him.*

Carson: “Not a problem, my friend! I just hope you enjoy yourself. I have a sin for every man here, so please, indulge yourself.”
*The attractive bartender tries to maintain her demeanor and just smiles at Conner.*

Bartender: “Sorry, sweetie, we only have angel dust tonight. Carson’s drug of choice.”
*One of the High Rollers sitting next to Noctis is listening in on the conversation. He is wearing a much more affordable suit than the previous Roller she met and seems much more composed. His hair is still neatly trimmed and his rugged and handsome face shows no sign of wear from stress or drugs.*

Roller: “Well, not all of us are looking for a quick ride down wasted avenue. Some just enjoy the company of all these…” *He takes a moment to look around at the sad image of the youth destroying their lives.* “fascinating people. And I must say, you two are probably the most interesting in here. If anything, because you’re just so… out of your element.”



*The dealer watches Kent, waiting for his answer.*
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Ryder: “Hey, buddy. It’s your turn. I’d like to get in the game at some point tonight.”

*Ryder takes note of his wandering eyes. This guy probably needs to shoot up or some shit before he dies from withdrawl.*

"Goddammit," Connor tried to mask his relief in frustration. He slid from his seat and stood up, letting out a yawn. "I have money," he mumbled, mostly to himself. Out of a sleek leather wallet he pulled a hundred-dollar bill.

Connor turned back to the waitress. "Here...is your...tip." And then he fainted.

Noct downed her shot, then began to nurse her champagne, "I'm not really one for letting events dictate what I should do. I like champagne, so I will drink champagne. I like vodka, so I'll have a shot of that as well," She looked at her empty glass, "Make that two shots. As for wanting to get wasted or not--" Noct turned her attention to the other guy, just now realizing he was talking in her direction. "Yes, I am entirely out of my element. I do not know what to do surrounded by all these scary gangsters wearing Men's Warehouse clearance sale suits," Shaking her head a bit annoyed she turned her attention back to Astarte, "As I was saying, I'm not here to get wasted, I'm here to relax. There are not many places in this city where one can easily get lost in chaos, and I find that I like being around people the most when they're busying themselves with other things." She took another sip, then looked at Astate, she was kind of cute, "So, what about yourself? Surely you can't be here for the company, and free drinks."

[Eww. It touched me.]

*He sits back down.*

"I suppose alcohol is my vice of choice. We medicinal types are not known for our indulgant tastes."

*He looks back at Astarte quickly.*

"Pardon, would you mind pouring a third shot of vodka, for me? After you've seen to the lady in the lovely dress, of course."

Astarte smiled at the High Roller sitting next to Noctis as she poured two more shots, one of which she slid to Senthose and the other to Noctis.
"I don't really care for most of the company, or most of the drinks available, but tending bar for Carson pays pretty well," She considered pouring herself another shot as she spoke, but chose against it. "It's not too hard, either. My greatest challenge has been trying to ignore drunken slurs and clumsy advances while I work."

"Ah, so it is only the clumsy advances you ignore?" Noct asked with a smirk as she downed her second shot, and returned to her champagne. "You know, if payment is all you're looking for, I could set you up with some work at my business. Sensible hours, no drunkards, and the only drink you'll have to worry about making would be coffee. I'm sure Carson would be kind enough to let me steal you away from him." Almost as an afterthought she looks down the bar at Senthose and curtly says, "Thank you for the compliment."

"I'm sure that would be lovely... Uh, I don't think I caught your name?" Astarte decided she would take another shot, and began pouring herself some vodka.

Noctis extended her hand over the bar to shake Astarte's, "Noctis Talea. A pleasure, I'm sure, Ms...." She paused, waiting for Astarte to fill in the blank.

"Not a problem, Sunshine."

"Astarte Cyprus, nice to meet you," Astarte lightly shook Noctis' hand before knocking down her third shot, the vodka flushing her cheeks bright red.

Noct smiled, "So tell me about yourself, Astarte. How long have you been in Stoneport?" She put her elbows on the bar, and leaned her head in her hands, interested in finding out more about Astarte.

"All my life... My parents were pretty public figures, but they both died a long time ago," Astarte was fairly comfortable talking to Noctis about her past, but that could be credited in no small part to her low tolerance of alcohol. "And yourself?"

"Barring high school, and college, I was raised here too. My mother had something of a reputation, but she passed when I was still in school," Noct said, "I'm sorry to hear about your parents. Why don't we get onto a cheerier subject? What are your interests?"

"Uh, well, not a lot... I'm a pretty dull person, honestly," Astarte smiled sheepishly and looked across the bar to see if anybody was calling for a refill. "When I'm not serving drinks I stay home... How about you?"

Noct smiled, "I quite like 'dull' people, they're endearing. People who are too interesting can be a bit unapproachable. As for myself," Noct let out a small laugh, "Would you believe video games are my guilty pleasure? I'm also a bit into dancing."

"Video games and dancing? I'm afraid I can do neither very well," Astarte poured herself a fourth shot and knocked it down. "You mentioned a business before... what kind of a business is it you run?"

"Something complicated and tiresome," Noct said, "It is a private equity firm, basically we buy out failing businesses, and do our best to help them turn a profit. If they do good we all win out." Noct let out a small sigh, "I spent four years in business school to take over after my mother, but it is really a lot easier than it seems." Noct then sat up straight for a second so she could peek over the bar at Astarte's body. Slouching back down and resting her chin on her hands again, Noct said, "You know, you wouldn't be a bad dancer, you've got the body for it."

"Uh, I... Thanks..." Astarte blushed again, but this time it had nothing to do with the vodka. "But I could never dance... I mean, I'm too... I couldn't."