good intentions/bad luck [gabriel]

[Jenny]

Rian was not an easy person to get along with.. It could even be argued that he went out of his way to upset and disagree with people at times. And yet in spite of his sometimes abrasive personality, he was not a bad person. In fact he had an incredibly hard time looking past someone who was upset or in need, and he rarely ignored another asking him for a favor. It was a mystery why he was such a sucker for the weak and the needy, but that was surely a trait of his.

And it was a trait that would explain a lot of things... Like the little scar on his back from that unnecessary knife fight, his general lack of credits, or his being at Syn on a Friday night.
There was no reason for him to be at Syn. Rian didn't work Friday nights-- they were his one day of the week which he took off.

 Not this Friday, though.

It started with a call, as these things often do. Had he been asked, Rian would express complete indifference about his coworkers, and say he was neither close to, nor distant from the other bartenders at Syn. But there was only one, a kid about his age named Traxx, who he was more fond of than the rest, and this was who called him asking for a cover. He couldn't work, and if he missed another day, he would be fired. Explanation? Traxx had "some stuff going down."
Rian didn't have plans, and to put it plainly, he would have felt like a jerk to ignore a friend in need. He agreed.

First mistake? He should have asked what the "stuff going down" was.


Now there was some kind of punk-criminal with bright blue hair across the bar from him, screaming in his face about the "stuff" (Clearly "stuff" was never good) and Traxx owing him and hiding from him. "He can't hide! I've seen you talking to him, so you tell him to get his ass over here right fuckin' now, or I'll kill you instead of him!"

Rian stared at this kid pretty intently for a minute, trying to tell whether or not he was serious. It was times like these he wished he was psychic... Oh well, might as well call him on his bullshit, he thought. "Are you kidding me? I don't even know what the hell you're talking about, so I suggest you turn around and walk yourself out before I carry you out."
Shit. Always talking bigger than he was. Why did he do that?

"Oh, I didn't know I was dealin' with a tough guy... Come and show me what you got! Don't tell me you're scared," he leered, cracking his knuckles and flexing his fingers threateningly.

There was no passing up an invitation like that, not for Rian, and not for any member of the male gender, really.

It started off fine- a few rudimentary hits and it was nothing unlike any other fight Rian had been in. And Rian, lover of adventure and trouble, had been in plenty of fights.
A few more minutes and Rian was even getting ballsy enough to say that this kid did not know what the hell he was doing. He moved like a drunk and his only advantage was his great evasive skills.
Then he pulled a plasma edge knife on him, and Rian was pretty much done with that ballroom dance. He backed away steadily, putting his hands up. "Hey, watch where you're pointing that," he managed to say, before a few more punks showed up. Oh great, a gang of dumbass punks. Just what I needed.

"You played with the wrong guy, and now you're gonna get it." Rian wasn't sticking around to see what 'it' was, though. He played scared until he saw an opening, then he broke into a run, weaving through the crowd quickly. It was times like these that he wished Syn had a little more crime control.

By the time he managed to lose the gang, he was exhausted, on the complete opposite side of the club in the lounge. He pressed himself against the wall and sighed heavily, allowing himself to slump somewhat. Rian yanked down the zipper of his sleek blue jacket and shrugged out of it, tossing it onto a nearby sofa. He was sweating from that. Sweating. Why did he always get himself into crazy shit? Why was his luck so bad? He had so many question and so few answers. He reached into the pocket of his loose black pants to grab his phone.

to: traxx
1:53a.m.
the shit I do for you.

That being said, he dropped his head back and closed his eyes. Hell, he was tired.

[Rhi-Rhi]

Despite what had happened here a while back, Gabriel still liked Syn. The incident had made him more careful, more wary, and for weeks after it he had avoided the place like the plague, but he knew it was stupid and he couldn't stay freaked out about it forever. It was a fluke incident, and Bart was right--he was a damned Pilot and needed to watch himself better. Besides, the place had more good memories than bad and nothing had happened; he'd drilled Bart for information to be one-hundred percent sure of it and Siren had confirmed. They'd acted fast.

...It just meant he wouldn't be ordering any drinks here ever again. They never had found the person that had drugged he and his best friend so the 'why' of it all would just have to remain a mystery.

So, for the first time in over a month, Gabriel found himself (cautiously, and still feeling a little uneasy) back at his old hangout for some good ol' non-alcoholic-non-roofie-fun--except he'd apparently come at a weird time.

He always did had epic timing like that.

The bouncers at the door looked annoyed and distracted as they scanned Gabriel's wrist and waved him through, though he couldn't hear what they were saying over their two-way radios; the music was too loud, the bass thumping in his chest, and even without the music it was hard to hear much over the thrum of thought. Not that he could pick up on anything specific. As it was, it hurt his head--and reminded him to tighten his shields before he got bombarded.

Huh. With a shrug, Gabriel stepped inside the club and was greeted with more of the same sense of strangeness and an undercurrent of nervous excitement, a sense that something was a bit off. The club looked the same, but people were acting a little different--or maybe it was just him picking up on stray, wordless thoughts. No...not quite. There weren't as many people out on the floor as usual and as he watched, he noticed a small group of guys weaving through the crowds like they were looking for someone.

Well...Syn attracted all types. It was the curse of popularity. Oh well, that's what the bouncers were for! Pilot or not, it was his night off! Besides, he was supposed to meet someone here.

Shouldering his way through the crowd, dressed in his usual club get-up (neon accented bondage pants with band patches safety-pinned on, an Angry Llama t-shirt, and a spiky bracelet that was great for poking people into moving), he waded over to the other side of the building toward the lounge.

When he got there, he found he wasn't alone--but it wasn't his contact.

Kid didn't look so good, either.

"Hey, you okay, dude?" he asked, taking a step toward him, eyebrows raised. Club drugs were common, of course, and Gabriel now had first hand experience as to what they could do. Ecstasy made you sweat. It could make you overheat, too, if you weren't careful.

"You need some water or something?"

[Jenny]

At the sound of footsteps approaching the lounge, Rian's eyes snapped open. He wasn't about to be caught with his pants down after all the work he did to escape the gang in the first place. But upon seeing the other, he knew he could breathe easy. This guy was not one of the punks-- he remembered the group clearly, and this kid wasn't one of them. Hell, he wasn't even one of the kids that hung around with Traxx, thank god. Safe, he thought with relief. He almost began to doubt that assumption as the other approached him, but the words he spoke were of sincere concern. What reason anyone had to be concerned about him, a stranger, Rian had no idea, but he would play along.

Rian pushed off the wall a bit and offered a weak smile as he rolled his shoulders back to stretch them out. He was sore, not injured. "Unless it's alcoholic, I don't think I need it," he chuckled, his breathlessness apparent. He figured he probably owed the stranger an explanation for that, if nothing else. After all he had been kind enough to offer help. That was a bit admirable. It was a cutthroat world sometimes; Earth. He didn't think it was the type of place were people had much reason to help or trust each other. The focus was entertainment and pleasure, and any problems were swept under the rug.

"I'm alright," he assured him, "Just had a run in with some... not-so-typical druggies. They, uh, had some pretty advanced weapon tech. I guess they mistaked me for someone." Rian didn't see the point in getting into the entire story of the fight. That was enough, probably. But reflecting on what happened- speaking of it- he had to wonder. Those kids were more than druggies. They were involved in something. "I know thermic modification on a knife when I see it, so I got the hell out of Dodge." By the time he finished speaking, Rian was already feeling a bit better and not nearly as breathless. He reached out for his blue jacket which he had thrown onto the arm of a nearby sofa and slid it back on, covering his bare arms. He was a bit self conscious of his skin at times- the tigerlike quality of it was not quite normal, and he hated explaining it.

[Rhi-Rhi]

"Whoa, wait, what?" Gabriel blurted before he could stop himself, eyes going wide. He glanced over his shoulder at the thickening crowd and then back at the kid, blinking. "Not-so-typical, no kidding. With that kinda tech? Uhhh. Are they still here?"

What he'd observed earlier all made sense now. How the hell hadn't the bouncers caught that before they'd come in the club? Weapons were illegal, not to mention that kind of advanced weaponry, crap. But security guards were human, too, and while drugs were easily available to anyone, drug-runners still had power and credit. It was possible they'd struck a deal or something.

...Fuck. Maybe they were related to whoever drugged him. Someone ballsy enough to carry around illegal weapons never ended their illegal activities there.

"Heck, why are you still here? Anyone called security?" he asked, far too distracted to even notice the guy's odd skin. Then again, when your best friend was a blue-skinned hermaphroditic horned alien, more subtle differences could take a while to register.

Welp. Now he was committed, night off or not. His contact still hadn't shown up so whatever--the least he could do was make sure the guy didn't get shanked before the police arrived.

The least. He kind of wanted to meet these thugs for himself.

[Jenny]

Rian hadn't expected the stranger to actually give a fuck, even though it had been his question which had prompted the story. The whole "caring" thing... It didn't make Rian suspicious, but it did make him think. If this guy cared so much about the situation, then it was within the range of logical assumption that he was either an officer or with the government, or he had some personal experience with the people he had just fought.

Nonetheless, it was nice to find someone actually cared. The bouncers and guards of Syn always tried to deal with problems as best as they could, of course-- it was their job and they couldn't ignore fights and druggies.. But they never wanted to get cops or officials involved. The most they did was throw kids out. After all, Syn had secrets of its own, what was the use of attracting attention?
And then there was his father.. When Rian had begun to notice some of the more serious problems in Haviah, especially the slums, he had tried to bring it up to his father--a man he trusted, who worked with the government, who could bring attention to issues... But for a man in such a high position, rampant crime and space cowboys were below him.
In other words, Rian was caught between two poles, and no one around him seemed to pay much mind to the underground scene. Rian was not obsessed with, but he was certainly passionate about bringing these problems to light. So having someone around who actually cared? Pretty cool.

"They're probably still around, yeah," he nodded, raking a hand through his messy, sweat dampened hair and pushing his bangs out of his eyes. "I.. Well, I work here. And the other bartenders saw what happened, so security must be on it." Now that the adrenaline and fear settled down, he felt more prompted to deal with the problem.. He couldn't just let those guys get away. If he just had a weapon to counter their's, he would go after them. He sighed.

"To be honest.. They're after a friend of mine," Rian admitted begrudgingly. He didn't want to bring Traxx into it, especially if the guy he was speaking to was an officer or something. But he needed help. "I think I'm going to go after them. My workplace, my friend, my problem. Plus I know what they look like."

[Rhi-Rhi]

The whole "caring" thing was exactly his problem. Sometimes he cared too much, often about things that weren't even his business--and that created its own unique set of problems that had landed him in deep shit on more than one occasion. The consequences made him cautious--for a time--but, inevitably, he always wound up right back where he started no matter how many times he got burned (or burned others, accidentally).

But until he discovered that magical "don't give a fuck" button some people seemed to have permanently jammed, it would just have to continue being an issue, because like hell he was letting some civvie go off to confront some armed freakin' drug lords!

"Whoa, whoa!" Gabriel said, stepping around the guy as though to block his path, though he wouldn't stop him if he was bent on this. "Alone and unarmed?" Craaap. This wasn't his jurisdiction. He was off duty right now, the police were the ones trained in criminal procedure...he really shouldn't be getting involved. He was a soldier of the "search and destroy" variety (and hell, he did more "search and destroy" missions when it came to computer viruses, at that!), not a cop. Buuut...

The police also weren't here yet.

No harm detaining dangerous people until they showed up, right?

"You at least shouldn't go alone. Never go alone, good way to get messed up. These guys don't carry weapons unless they plan on using them. What'd they look like?" he said, and frowned as he looked out to the floor again. It was easy hunting down dissidents in quiet places, but Gabriel's telepathy wasn't strong enough to handle a crowded place, didn't have the finesse to pluck a specific thought out of a blended, chaotic mess. That seemed Roman's thing more than his, all subtlety and style.

His style was more "smack it around until it stops moving". In a place like this, he just had to do things the old fashioned way.

[Jenny]

He wasn't sure exactly why, because nothing about this night was funny, but Rian couldn't help but laugh when the guy stepped in front of him like that, blocking his path. It wasn't a condescending or disbelieving laugh like 'You foolish mortal! How dare you?!' but a sincerely amused laugh. Maybe it was just the look of concern on his face and the "Whoa!" It was kind of.. endearing how much this stranger cared, being that they were just that. Strangers. And he was so surprised by Rian's words. The surprise element was quite entertaining.

"I wasn't going to go alone. I mean, the security guards would be around... Somewhere. Wait, are you saying you want to come along?" he asked, quirking a brow and folding his arms across his chest. This just got more and more interesting by the minute. "They were... Well, the one I'd assume was the leader had all blue hair, spiked up. No way in Hell I'll miss that blue porcupine head if I see it again," he muttered. He was a little annoyed that he had been intimidated into running away, and he wanted to figure out what that gang was all about. And get rid of them. Damn his vigilante nature.

"Oh, anyway," Rian sighed, shrugging off his frustration. "The rest of them were not so obvious or remarkable at all. They were muscular and tall, big guys, but pretty plain- black hair, light skin. Even the clothes were simplistic." He paused, trying to think back to the fight and recall any unique characteristics. "One had a scar across his face. Another had a more memorable silver streak in his hair. I don't think it'll be hard to find them, if they're moving together."

With that, he tilted his head to the side, looking at the stranger curiously. "You gonna come along then?"

[Rhi-Rhi]

Gabriel nodded along as the guy described the men, committing the description to memory--not that there was much to remember. They sounded distinctive enough: Blueberry Head and his Generic Mooks, huh? They would stand out for being plain and uniform in a very eclectic crowd.

"Blueberry Head and his Generic Mooks, huh? Sounds like a bad movie," Gabriel said with a wry grin as he cracked his knuckles. "Anyway, yep! I'm coming with. Besides, bouncers or no bouncers they're not gonna do you a lick of good if the druggies find you first. And if these people are looking for you...yeeeah. But I gotta ask ya, uh..."

He leaned in a little closer. "What exactly was your plan when you found 'em? I mean, these guys are dangerous. Sooo, just one condition: stay back and let me be the meatshield if it goes there, alright?"

[Jenny]

For whatever it was worth, Rian had to admit that he found this guy pretty entertaining. Blueberry Head and his Generic Mooks... Chuckling, he had to nod in agreement at the "bad movie" comment. It definitely did sound like a bad movie- sort of like an installation of some cartoon, in which there would be plenty of explosions and tripping on banana peels. Rian almost wanted to pursue the strange joke, but it definitely wasn't the right time for that.

Anyway, he was quickly distracted as the other leaned closer to him and told him that he would be joining him. Surprising. But good surprising. Anything was better than trying to hunt down a gang of illegal drug dealers alone. That was bound to be a disaster, and even his sense of justice wouldn't make him ignorant enough to believe it would turn out well. The security system didn't really care, and the police probably didn't either. In a world were there were constant serial killings, what did this matter to them? Would the police even believe him? Clearly Rian didn't feel too strongly comforted by their presence, nor did he believe in their power or sense of justice.

"No plan. Plans are boring." He paused. "Hold on. Meatshield?" Rian echoed. He shook his head quickly, seeing where this was going. "No way, kid!" he exclaimed (Which was sort of ridiculous because, really, Rian was shorter and looked younger than Gabriel anyway). "If we're going to do this together, I'm not throwing you under the bus! We're a team or we're nothing," Rian declared dramatically, smiling a bit playfully. He pushed his hand out and offered it to the stranger. "It's about time for names, huh? I'm Rian."

[Rhi-Rhi]

Gabriel let out a startled laugh. Kid? This kid looked younger than him and was shorter besides! More slender, too; Gabriel was thin and his body type would never let him build much muscle mass, but he'd spent the last eight years adhering to a strict workout regimen and it showed. This kid just looked...delicate. Someone could probably snap him over their knee.

He opened his mouth to speak, but was spared from saying exactly that when the guy--Rian--stuck out his hand. He blinked down at it for a second, swallowed his comment, and gave his hand a firm shake.

"Fiiine, Team Drugbusters it is," he said, and crazy as this whole situation was, he had to grin at that. A team, huh? "Anyway, I'm Gabriel, or Gabe, or Gabby, or 'hey you'. Nice to meetcha! Weird circumstances, but--"

Motion out of the corner of his eye caught his attention and he turned to look, releasing Rian's hand. The crowd was parting, dancers jostled out of the way, and Gabriel caught sight of a black-haired head. The guy didn't seem to notice them yet, but he was drawing closer and he looked none too pleased.

Gabriel dropped his voice. "That one of 'em?" he asked, and nudged Rian lightly with his elbow. "And seriously, no worries, I'm used to playing tank. Really."

[Jenny]

Rian's smile spread into a grin as... Gabriel took his hand to shake, agreeing with him and declaring them 'Team Drugbusters.' Well, if this wasn't a call for trouble, Rian didn't know what the hell was. They were going to get into some serious shit together-- he could already see that coming a mile away. Yet, it made him feel incredibly content to team up with someone like this. It was what he had been waiting for. The opportunity to set things straight; to take matters into his own hands. Rian had never been one who was comfortable sitting idle and watching bad things happen, and now it was finally time to make up for everything he had let slip. Or at least, that was the thought process behind the blind culmination of feelings in his heart. He didn't really think that all through- He didn't exactly have time, seeing as how he went straight from listening to Gabriel to being alerted that one of the punks was nearby.

He turned to scan the crowd quickly, and almost immediately his eyes caught onto the black-haired man advancing, who was in fact one of the druggies from earlier. He was pushing through the dancers and moved at a good speed, and though he hadn't noticed them yet, he was bound to do so soon. The lounge where they stood was a fairly open space, and it was more well-lit than the rest of the club. Once Rian was recognized... It would be game over. "That's him," Rian confirmed quietly. "Listen, there's only one way this can go. He's going to notice me, but we're lucky it's just him alone this time, and there's two of us. I'll let him notice me, distract him, and you sneak up on him and take his weapon. I can see it on his belt."

That being said, Rian moved away from Gabriel to eliminate any visible connection between them so that the druggie would think he was still alone. "Hey!" he called out once he was at a good distance. The man had already exited the crowd of dancers and was in the lounge, and upon hearing him, approached him. "I'll tell you where Traxx is," he suddenly blurted out, obviously just bullshitting with whatever came to mind. "I just don't want to have anything to do with this, okay?" The druggie seemed to buy that and closed the distance between them until they were facing each other. He wore a condescending smirk that said 'What a coward, selling out his own friends to save his ass.' It made Rian want to punch the guy in the face, but he figured he could wait until Gabriel made his move.

[Rhi-Rhi]

Gabriel stared, jaw dropping, as Rian strode off before he could agree or protest or anything. Holy crap, was this guy lucky or what? As far as Gabriel knew, Rian...assumed he was just an average guy. And average people typically didn't know squat about disarming people. Yet Rian was off throwing himself into the lion's den and hoping Gabriel would save him before he was eaten, all on the unfounded faith that he, a complete stranger, was capable of doing it.

Gabriel rubbed his temples. Yep. He was daaaamned lucky he'd recruited a Pilot for this.

Welp. Too late for actual strategy now. It had begun so now it was time to see it through--and make sure the kid didn't get hurt.

"Well, bitch? Where is he?" the man demanded, stepping into Rian's personal space and getting up in his face, clearly trying to intimidate him, that "I'm better than you" smirk still plastered on his lips. He grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him closer, lifting him up onto his toes so he could sneer at eye-level. He his hand lowered to his side, ready to draw the modified knife, oblivious to Gabriel approaching him, quietly, from behind.

"Better get talking before I smash in your pretty white teeth--hurk!"

It happened fast. Grabbing the guy from behind, one arm around his neck and the other wrenching his arm behind his back, Gabriel slammed his knee into his kidneys and released. The guy dropped like a stone and Gabriel snatched up his knife as he did, throwing Rian a worried look.

"Y'alright? Jeebus, kiddo! Little more warning next time, yeah?" he said, and turned the knife over. His eyes widened. "...A plasma knife? For cereal? The heck did your friend do to these people?"

There wasn't much time to sit and chat, though. People had seen and they were reacting, gasping at the scene and the sight of a man with a knife. Wouldn't be long before the others zeroed in, but he had a feeling that's what Rian wanted.

[Jenny]

The plan to pretend to be weak and frightened had seemed so good at first. Flawlessly easy, really... But Rian wasn't crazy about the way it was actually going down. Allowing this guy to talk down to him and call him a bitch, even to pick him up... It was definitely pissing him off. The very danger of the situation went incredibly unobserved by Rian, who was much more focused on how irritated he was. For some twisted reason, his own level of annoyance was more remarkable to him than the fact that he was about to have a blade at his neck with an edge that could burn at up to seven-thousand degrees. But no, clearly that was not important. The words were on the tip of his tongue: Listen you son of a-- He didn't even have to pretend not to see Gabriel sneaking up on them. He literally did not care, he just wanted to strangle this guy.

And in swooped Gabriel. The man released his shirt from surprise as Gabriel took a hold of him, and Rian caught his balance quickly after stumbling a bit. The next time he looked up, the punk was on the damn floor. What--why did he always miss the interesting parts of everything? And stumbling, for god's sake. Before he could ask the other where the hell he learned that, Gabriel was calling him kiddo (Kiddo!) and telling him to be more careful. Rian laughed and offered a brief apology, before remarking, "Sometimes thinking and acting fast is the difference between living and dying." He paused to look at the knife Gabriel held in his hand. It was definitely advanced tech. But as for Gabriel's question, he hadn't the slightest idea what Traxx was involved in to get such a serious gang on his case. He shrugged, "I have no idea.."

There was quite a commotion going on now and people were watching them, but Rian wasn't about to run and hide again. There was no running from this now, only strategy and fighting. He crouched to the floor and patted down the druggie, searching for any other weapons he could use. Luckily, there was another knife strapped to the man's pant leg. He took it and stood back up before facing Gabriel. "I think..." he began to say, when he noticed the blue porcupine head and his three other buddies coming towards them at full speed. "Shit," he cursed, grabbing Gabriel by the arm and pulling him along as he broke into a run. So much for "no more running" huh? But the fact was that if it was a four-on-two fight, they didn't have a chance. It was only with trickery and sneaking up that they could really do anything, and he wasn't about to get them killed.

With that in mind Rian made a beeline for the staircase in the lounge leading to the upstairs rooms of Syn. If they could hide, he thought, bait the druggies, and sneak up on them like they had the other, then there was a chance for them. Luckily Rian had one advantage on the druggies. Two, actually. He knew Syn inside-out, and he had an ID card to get them in any room. He made a few sharp turns, unexpected enough to gain some distance on the gang chasing after them, before scanning them into a janitor closet and shoving Gabriel in.

For the second time that day, panting, and sweating. That had been one hell of a run. And it suddenly occurred to him how much he had manhandled Gabriel since he met him, and he had to laugh and say, "Um, sorry for all that."

[Rhi-Rhi]

Oh, dear gods. Gabriel stared at Rian as he gave him the whole spiel about thinking and acting fast being the difference between living and dying and had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from saying something. That was a lesson they'd all learned in candidacy; the part of the lesson Rian missed was that the keyword was sometimes. This had not been one of those times!

Buuut that's why he was here to bail the kid out.

Even though he didn't have to, and even though what he should be doing is being a responsible Pilot, not acting like some delinquent vigilante.

But hey, screw it! Roman and Bart had made the front page as heroes for throwing a bar fight. They could not judge him. Either way, it was too late now and Gabriel never did anything halfway. He saw the men coming and rolled his shoulders, ready to get down with the ass-kicking; he'd given Roman shit for that bar fight, but now he was starting to see the appeal--

"Gah!" Rian grabbed him and tugged him along before he could get down with the beat-down, and Gabriel was too surprised to do anything but follow. Surprised, and a little curious as to where the heck he was going with this because he didn't seem to have a clue. Sure, he often jumped headfirst and made it up as he went along, but he usually had some end goal in mind--it was just the stuff in between point A and point B that were murky. He wasn't sure Rian had a point B.

Never mind. Looked like he did.

...A closet?

Gabriel grunted as he was shoved inside, hardly winded unlike Rian. He still had the knife on him, flipped shut, and he stuck it in one over-large pocket.

"Gabriel, what are you doing?" It was Siren, who had apparently been picking up bits and pieces of his mood and thoughts, the little mental tells that clued the dragon in that Shit Was Going Down.

"Uhh...nothing. Clubbing."

"...Mhmm." A pause. "Should I be worried?"

"Nah, it's cool, it's cool. I'm good. Go back to sleep."

There was silence after that--Siren just checking to make sure he had a pulse--and he turned his attention back to Rian and grinned in the dark. "Welp. This sure brings me back to candi--uh, high school. Hiding in closets." He laughed and shook his head. "No worries, man. I'm, uh, sorta used to--ah!"

He'd backed up to make more room and backed into a wet mop, moppy bits reeking of ammonia getting him on the back of the neck. "Eugh! Who hangs mops?"

[Jenny]

Rian laughed lightly at Gabriel's comment about high school. Though he hadn't had the traditional "high school experience" (He had attended a prestigious private school as his father had wanted him to), he had seen enough shows and movies to know exactly what he was talking about. 'Eugh!' Rian looked around with surprise only to see that there was a mop teasing the top of Gabriel's head. He laughed again, reaching over the other's head to move the mop aside as he spoke, returning to the subject at hand. "Um, yeah, I suppose I'm not used to having to explain myself to people," he rubbed the back of his neck.
It was worth mentioning that he wasn't usually shy... though that didn't mean it was impossible, and Gabriel brought something out in him. From what he could gather, he had a slight urge to impress the other, if for no reason than to just keep him around. Which was interesting, because Rian was more of the type to wait for others to impress him. But then, he supposed Gabriel had already done that by going out of his way to help him.

"Usually when I'm getting in trouble, running away from gangs, it's alone," he explained, leaning back against the closet wall and crossing his arms. "You looked ready to fight back there," he laughed, "But if the lowly henchman with bad breath had two plasma blades, I'm a little worried about the blue headed one and his three friends. Really the only thing we can do that won't get us killed is sneak up on them. And I'd really rather you not get killed on my watch," he added.

[Rhi-Rhi]

Gabriel wiped the back of his neck, cringing, but Rian's words drew his attention away from the mop. "Wait, 'usually'? You mean this happens a lot?"

He gave a light laugh. "Man. What do you do here, anyway? 'Cause it's sounding like an awfully high-risk occupation, and if this night's any indication..." He shook his head, biting back his amusement as best as he could and failing, because the kid sounded so worried about him. Jeez, if only he knew.

But knowing would kinda kill the 'magic'. This was...nice. Being out and about around normal people--even if the situation wasn't normal. Getting into trouble that didn't involve a gunfight or terrorist threat, trouble that was just, well...typical teenage crap, sorta. Kinda. But his idea of 'typical teenage crap' was skewed since the bulk of it was spent in the ATC. He hadn't actually had much by way of teenage years; he'd had to grow up fast.

And this was dangerous, sure, but a different kind of danger and one he felt perfectly in control of because he knew he was holding back. Pffft, this was nothing. It was small stuff. The stuff candidates cut their teeth on.

Maybe he shouldn't have gotten cocky.

He waved his hand. "Anyway, seriously, don't worry! I've, uh...I've taken classes and stuff. These punks don't even know how to fight right, they just feel big 'cause they got fancy steak-knives and muscles. Basically."

[Jenny]

Rian laughed along lightheartedly as Gabriel pursued the subject of his being in trouble often. Saying shit like that made him sound like a punk kid himself, which was a funny thought. "Well.." he chuckled a bit, running a hand through his hair. "Like I said, I'm a bartender. Not very high risk-"
Footsteps.
He stopped speaking instantly, but soon noticed that it was only one pair of steps passing the hall. It was safe to assume it wasn't any of the people they were waiting for. After all, the gang would probably not separate again, seeing as how that didn't work out too well before. It would be hard to tackle them as a group, but if they were lucky, the element of surprise would give them a solid advantage. He would just wait until he heard them come down the hall.

As the sound of footsteps faded into the distance, Rian spoke once more (his tone significantly lowered though), "It's not here I get into trouble. It's pretty much everywhere else." He shook his head, not wanting to get into it. After all, how would he explain it? 'Hey, my hobby is exploring the slums of Haviah and observing the differences in life and how fucked up our world is. I also like to keep up with the crime problems, though I don't always get involved.' That wouldn't sound weird, not at all. Just let Gabriel think he had bad luck.

"Thing is, I don't know if they're just scum druggies. I have a feeling about this." Rian worried his lower lip out of frustration, unable to explain it. He wasn't sure why, but they were different. It was possible that they had weapons just to look 'cool' or by chance or they stole them, but then.. He had a lot of questions about it. And he had been hearing things, now that he thought of it. That was worth mentioning. "I've heard whispers about some really dangerous drug rings getting bigger around here."

[Rhi-Rhi]

Gabriel shut up as well, holding his breath without realizing it until the "danger" had passed. He exhaled in a rush as the footsteps faded and relaxed again, shoulders slouching. It would be just awesome getting caught in a closet--prooobably not the best place to hide, but he'd been trying not to think about it.

He was kinda claustrophobic.

"A feeling, huh?" Gabriel said once he was sure the person was gone, voice dropped to a whisper. "Yeeeah, if I had to guess I'd say your 'feelings' are probably spot-on. Small time crack-heads and dope dealers don't usually go this far, with the big-time weapons and the super public intimidation and fights and stuff in a freakin' nightclub. Not on the dance floor, at least; they save it for the back rooms."

Shifting closer to the door, Gabriel cracked it open half an inch. "They're ballsy."

Ballsy enough to drug Pilots, though?

[Jenny]

Rian nodded at Gabriel's words, agreeing with him. As a little silence fell over them, he focused his mind on trying to recall the time when the other bartenders and a few hostesses had been in the staff locker room talking about the drug rings popping up in Haviah. Usually, he would have been in that discussion, fervently throwing questions and ideas out, but he had been tired that day and sitting by his locker, half asleep with his face buried in his hands. Traxx had tossed a dirty towel at him and told him to wake up and stop being a lazy bum. Traxx. That's right, Traxx had been there. But what had he said?
Frustration swept over Rian- he should have paid attention. The one time he should have been listening, he hadn't been.  

"I don't know what they're up to, but it seems serious," he offered, shaking his head. They weren't joking when they said they would have killed him, and they probably had intentions to kill Traxx. If there was one thing Rian couldn't stand it was people treating others like toys.

"I have to ask," he started, "When I told you what had happened, you seemed... Interested, almost like you knew something. Have you had any experience with the drug rings?" Rian asked curiously.

[Rhi-Rhi]

"Err...you could say that," Gabriel answered, feeling a little sheepish. He never had been good at hiding his emotions, wearing them on his sleeve in neon colors. Still, he thought he was being way more subtle back there than he apparently was!

"Like, not direct experience or anything. Indirect. Super indirect! Uh." He scrubbed a hand through his bangs. He didn't really like mentioning this, the debacle too fresh in his mind, the feelings too recent, the memories bringing with them that horrible sense of violation and vulnerability that he hated--so like so many other topics he skipped around it. Talking about this stuff was admitting it was real.

"A friend and I got into some trouble and they wound up really hurting by bro. I don't actually know who or what, but it happened here. So I just thought, I dunno, that's fishy." He shrugged uncomfortably. "Can't stand the thought of it happening again, to someone else."