keepcruising | (no subject)

Crowley has been a traveler for a while now. It's been a few years that he's traveled around, collecting rare artifacts and flipping them for exorbitant profits. He only has to sell a few items every year and he can keep himself in all the ale and whores a man could ask for, but it's not all sitting and doing nothing. He has to spot the items and to do that, he has to know them and know how to acquire them. The less he has to put down, the better, especially if it's nothing. It certainly beats tailoring and when times are hard, he's got what little witchcraft he'd learned from his mother to fall back on.

He notices Blake in a tavern--rather, he notices the hilt of Blake's sword. It's a nice sword, crafted well and long ago, and Crowley knows that a sword like that can be worth a nice penny, but the owner of it could well have other things worth many more.

Rather than simply lifting the sword in the man's sleep, he opts to buy him a drink and see if he can't lead Crowley to something more interesting.

"You're not from around here, are you?" He slides into the seat next to Blake and places an ale in front of him.

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Taverns are a good place to gather information. Blake often finds himself sitting for hours, listening for information to help on his current quest. Sometimes he's searching out kidnapped royalty, other times he's seeking hoards of treasure. Whatever the current task happens to be, though, it's usually a solitary endeavor.

"What gave it away?" he asks, taking up the offered ale. There's a cursory sniff — one can never be too careful — before John takes a drink. He nods, tipping his head thankfully. "Much obliged for the drink, though." He wonders the reason behind it, but he doesn't bother asking, since that's probably going to become clear enough in a moment.

"Not a lot of men with swords around these parts. More men with mules or produce." Crowley smiles. "Besides, I'm a traveler myself. I think we tend to have an eye for our own."

He knows he has to show himself an honest man and in truth, he generally is one. The tale that he's prepared to weave isn't exactly a stretch from reality.

"I was wondering if you were headed anywhere interesting, actually. I've been looking to move on from this area, but traveling on your own isn't safe in these parts and I'm not the most skilled of fighters. If you wouldn't mind taking me along with you, I would happily make it worth your while."

There's no small amount of hesitation as he considers this man's words, but Blake does listen intently. He's already what amounts to a civil servant in at least one kingdom, and being something of an adventurer for hire in others, there's a sense of obligation to hear out almost anyone.

"What sort of troubles would you expect to find in these parts?" Because he doesn't know a lot of bandits that trouble traveling men, though he does know a few that like to prey on the producers around the small kingdom.

"There are a few notorious bandit gangs around these parts. Nothing too large for a good fighter, but a man like myself can't fend off four or five men on horseback."

He takes a sip of his own ale.

"I was planning on heading out on my own a few days ago, but there's been a rise of such activity and I thought it best to travel with at least once companion."

And who knows? Maybe Crowley will get a good lead and actually leave this man to his travels as he's proposing.

"Oh, and I'm terribly sorry for my rudeness. My name is Crowley."

"Crowley." He tips his head in greeting and takes another sip of ale. From what he can recall, the name's new to him, although the message of unrest is not new.

John looks around for a moment, takes in the rest of the patrons, and then returns his attention to Crowley. "John Blake," he says, though he doubts his name will be any more recognizable in this kingdom. Being an adventurer often comes with accolades and attention, but as John's not very interested in that, he's managed to keep a somewhat low profile.

"And you have no particular destination in mind?"

"It's nice to meet you, John Blake." Crowley tosses him a winning smile.

"I just want to wind up somewhere with a bit more of an economy than this. Even a place with more foot traffic where I can find another companion to head somewhere else. This town is fairly small and quiet, so it's not every day that travelers even come through, let alone ones that seem like they could defend us."

And oops his eyes might just wander a little bit at that statement because Mister Blake certain does look like he could fight well. Among other things.

He's oblivious. Or if he's not oblivious, he's good at acting like he is. Instead, he just smiles back at the other man. He's nothing if not helpful, though, and that probably won't ever change.

"My next destination's forty miles away. It won't be by horseback, either," he says, making certain that Crowley understands everything that comes with the deal. The last thing either of them need is false pretense, right? As far as Blake's concerned, this is the best direction if Crowley's serious.

"I need to be there in three days, so there won't be much time for rest, either."

"That's quite alright. I won't slow you down. I'm fitter than I look and I have a mule to carry my things. He can take on a few more pounds for you, too, if you like."

Crowley doesn't have many worldly possessions because it's hard to travel with much, but he's a man of creature comforts. That's what he works so smart to maintain. Having a mule to carry his things is really the least of what he could have. If he weren't often in a rush, he'd have a whole cart for the thing to pull, but as it is, he has to slip away in a hurry too often for that.

Being a trusting individual (maybe to a fault), John weighs the options laid out before him. While he does tend to be fairly solitary, Blake can't help but admit that it is nice to have company once in a while. And four eyes are certainly better than two.

Reaching out, he offers his hand to seal the deal. "Very well. We'll travel together as far as you'll go." And committing to as much probably means that Blake's going to adopt something of a serious guard mentality.

"You're bold for asking, though, I will say that. How many of these other man have you asked? Am I the only one that's willing to take on such a task?" He grins a bit.

With a firm handshake, Crowley grins. He's never shied away from asking for what he wants. Maybe that makes him seem bold to Blake, he sees it as nothing more than doing what he needs to do to survive.

"You're the second person I've asked here. Sometimes I have good luck and sometimes it takes a few more tries, but one can't be too prepared when they're traveling through forests."

One needs protection, after all, from men with morals like Crowley's.

Blake's far too trusting in this light to be thoroughly concerned by Crowley's morals, but that's probably an alarming oversight. He wants to see the best in people because he's a champion of those people, but he's not quite so naive to believe everyone skews good all the time.

"In that case, I'll drink to our travels, may they bring us adventure and intrigue without loss of limp," he toasts quietly. Now this is their business so it doesn't need passed around the tavern. They'll have plenty more time to work on the details when they're on the road and outside the reach of prying eyes and sharp ears.

"You'll need some time to gather the necessary supplies, then? Or are you ready to go?"

It's a toast Crowley can drink to and drink he does. This isn't the best tavern he's been to, but he'll savor decent drink while he can. There are some taverns where the ale is more watery than the water.

"I can be ready in the morning, if you like."

He wants a night to rest and make sure he's got himself in order, but he's certainly eager to leave this small town. There's really nothing for him here and he's already spent too much time playing nice with these people.

John considers his options. He'd like to move out as soon as possible, but morning works well enough, especially since he'll have a traveling companion to consider. He's already warned the guy that he's not slow on the trails, but maybe it's not entirely vital that they move through the night every night. I mean, part of his role here is going to be getting to know this guy, right?

"Morning's fine," he says, nodding politely, a thin smile set on his face. "And drink in the meantime," he adds, because that gives them some time. "You can tell me more about yourself."

Maybe there's a lot to learn here, who knows. It's stupid to set aside curiosity when there's something to gain and Blake's got a feeling just listening will tell him a lot about Crowley.