You release her wrist and raise your hands back in a show of good faith.
"Ah, my mistake," you reassure with a polite chuckle. "Sorry about that! I'm a little easy to trigger."
A weight is lifted from the air as the tension dissipates. You see her relief as she smiles and waves her hand in a stopping gesture. "Oh, no worries!" she says, all too courteously for a rough place like this.
"It just never hurts to be too careful around here," you add with a meaningful stare.
Her smile slightly fades at your implication. "Ah, yeah," she replies, scratching the back of her neck.
The other patrons have turned their attention back to whatever had them occupied before. You stand and stretch to alleviate some of the awkwardness before continuing, "So, you must be new in these parts!"
"Is it that obvious?" she asks rather sheepishly.
"Oh yes. You make the grass look dry and pale."
You see the gears turning behind her eyes. "Ah," she sighs, poorly feigning understanding of your words.
"What's your name, kid?"
"Kepper. And you are?"
You extend your hand, which she accepts and gives a sturdy shake. "Magnus. Anders Magnus. Nice to meet you."
She recoils in surprise at the sound of your name. "Like, THAT Anders Magnus?" she questions, wide eyed.
A smug grin pulls at your lips. Oh, she's already heard of me, you think to yourself. You can't help but wonder what legends she's been told about you. Your chest puffs out as you cross your arms and cock your head. "Why, I've not heard of any others," you muse. "What's the context?"
"The Valshkar prison break-"
That's a good one.
"- and the Caverton rodeo?"
That's not. The smirk drops from your face at the thought of it. Your skin crawls, remembering all the slime, and oh, that dreadful stench. Of course she had to hear about that shit. "Rat bastards," you curse between your teeth.
"Did it really catch on fire?" Kepper asks, staring at you in amazement.
"Yeah, it did," you grumble. "Anyway. Enough about me. What brings a kid like you to ol' pirate town?"
"Needed work," she shrugs.
"Ah yes, crime, the golden land of opportunity. Clearest and most promising career path for struggling youths by far."
You know very well the irony of your words, given your own past.
"Well, there weren't really any opportunities back home. And all I'm really good at are card games. So I just kinda got recruited."
"By who?" you ask.
"Uh-" her answer trails off as something over your shoulder catches her eye.
You turn to follow her gaze, which lands on a stout figure descending the stairs. Behind him you see the familiar form of the Pirate Lord Holiday - your old friend Vetica. You now recognize the man in front of her to be Van Dagerman, a captain of Lord Windreave's fleet. You've been in fisticuffs with him before - encounters between the Holiday and Windreave crews are rarely civil... not that pirates are known for being mannerly. You know Dagerman has been around a long time, even longer than you. He's capable, sure, but not so much that he could have ever resisted Lord Windreave. Your own lord, Vetica, locks eyes with you from the bottom of the stairs. There is clear purpose in her stride as she approaches with Dagerman. "Hey, Lucky Strike," she addresses you.
That nickname. She definitely needs you to do something. You give Kepper a slight nod to excuse yourself as you turn to answer your captain. She returns it and faces her own off to the side.
"Yes, Vetty?" you ask.
"One, don't call me that in public. Two, we got a deal. Dagerman agreed to give up the hit if we beat him in a game of cards. If we lose, we forfeit the hit to him. Two on two, you're with me."
"Hmm, interesting proposition. I'll think about it," you banter.
Based on her scathing, silent stare, you gather she's not in the mood to humor you, so you move on, "He really agreed to that? Against me?"
You glance over at Kepper's back as she speaks with Dagerman. This must have to do with her.
"I was surprised as well, but it was too good a bet to pass up. I imagine he must have something dirty up his sleeve," Vetica remarks quietly, side eyeing him. "He can't afford to lose this hit. But neither can we. So be ready for anything."
After a moment, Dagerman turns his attention to you and Vetica. "We'll be ready upstairs in a moment," he states, and saunters away to the stairs with Kepper in tow.
The two of you watch them go. "You spoke with the girl?" Vetica asks.
"Yeah, I did. Poor innocent kid shouldn't be here."
"Hm. I'd rather see her with us than that snake. Perhaps we could take her in."
"No," you sigh. "She needs taken home."
Your captain gives you a curious look, then a short, solemn hum. "I see," she says. "We can look into that. But for now, there is business to attend to."
A strange little spark of hope arises within you. With that, you follow Vetica as she leads you to join your other crewmates waiting upstairs. As soon as you're gathered, Dagerman approaches with his posse. "We are ready if you are," he declares.
"Let's get this over with then," Vetica answers.
You follow as they all funnel into one of the tavern's private rooms, presumably where the negotiations were taking place before. It's not a particularly large room, but everyone fits with ample space. There is a square table with one chair at each side in the center. You make uneasy eye contact with Kepper as you all approach the table. She sits closest to the door, and you sit across from her, with Dagerman at your left and Vetica at your right. Kepper takes out a regular deck of cards from her baggy overcoat and begins shuffling. It's a fairly quiet and tense room, though you can still hear the ruckus of the lower tavern. "So what's the game?" you inquire.
"It's poker," Kepper responds politely, continuing to shuffle.
Your brows furrow. "Two on two poker? That's new," you comment.
Poker? Really? you mull. That's this kid's game? But she hides absolutely nothing.
You've known her less than an hour but you're certain she wears her heart on her sleeve. This should be interesting.