Thank you to the player of Taverius (Suits and Ties) for collaboration.

Prior to Raye's return to RhyDin

After completing the necessary errands in the town, Tavarius went back to the house, where the old couple was preparing a simple dinner of some sort of stringy, but tasty meat and various vegetables from the farmstead out to the west. "Merci!" he yelled across the house when he didn't immediately see her. "Dinner!"

She considered feigning sleep, but immediately discarded that idea as her stomach rumbled discontentedly. After washing her hands in the basin beneath the window, she wiped them dry on her pants and made her way to join the others.

A polite nod of her head was given to the old couple and she immediately moved to assist the the older gentleman with lifting wood from the hearth so that he could feed it into the fire. He glanced over her battered face and offered a smile. "Guessin' ye 'ave seen better days, child. Won't no one bother ye 'ere." He nodded firmly before patting her shoulder and moving away to sit at the head of the table. She offered one of the most sincere smiles that had crossed her lips in many years, a soft little thing that spoke volumes of her thanks for the kindness...and the rest. After clearing her throat, she turned her attention to the older woman. "Anything I can assist you with, Ma'am?" Despite her coarse language and rough behavior, Rayvinn had been raised to be a lady. That was many, many years ago.

Tavarius was bustling about the kitchen, waving this utensil or that at random at the instruction of the woman who seemed positively delighted by his antics. By the time Raye had come out, the meal was nearly ready and so both Tavarius and the woman spoke at the same time as the each shook their heads at her. "No, you just sit. It's almost ready!" their voices sounded in unison and the woman gave the trickster the strangest of looks for a moment before laughing at the quite unperturbed, odd man who went back to bouncing around and making a large mess out of everything he touched. "It's ready!" Tavarius exclaimed as he zipped around to take a seat at the table where plates were set out. The old woman placed a group of platters between the plates, so that each part of the meal was available to her guests. "Enjoy."

Raye's dark brows were both arched heavenward as she watched Tavarius zipping about. Her gaze shifted to the woman and she offered a polite bow of her head before retreating, one last glance given the Trickster from over her shoulder as she made her way to the table. Making herself as comfortable as possible with a hand pressed to the bandage over her stitching; she smiled up at the woman as the platters were placed upon the table. "Thank you for your hospitality."

After everyone had eaten, Raye toyed idly with her fork, pushing the remaining vegetables and mashed potatoes around on her plate. In a fit of what anyone who knew her would only call "normal for Raye," her subdued, polite demeanor abruptly changed. Mischief gleamed and sparkled in what had been half haunted, shadowed and dulled eyes. A piece of carrot was speared and immediately the fork was twisted to catapult the orange projectile at Tavarius' head.

Uproarious laughter was barked out as the carrot smacked him between the eyes. Rayvinn immediately set about reloading her miniature trebuchet.

So much for the ladylike demeanor and behavior.

He went cross-eyed to try and look at the carrot as it pelted him between the eyes. Then he turned and eyed Raye thoughtfully, then her weapon, then he grabbed his own fork and scooped up a few peas, without even pausing to aim, and launched them at her. The shot was wild, but the multiple projectiles gave him a higher hit chance, and sure enough, a few bounced off of her head and shoulders. He snickered.


She jerked quickly, earning herself a stabbing pain at the site of the wound stitching, but was still pinged with peas. A ridiculously silly grin quirked up one side of her mouth after the pain dwindled and she scooped up a forkful of mashed potatoes and slung those towards Tavarius with a little snicker of her own. The older couple simply watched the two with a look of patience that only came from raising many children.

Hands lifted to shield his face, a moment too late. He spluttered and wiped the mashed potatoes away before slamming his hand into his plate and grabbing a fistful of his own mushy foodstuffs to toss across the table at her. Who needed utensils? "Take that!" he exclaimed triumphantly.

"Ackkkk," was half squealed out before she had a faceful of mess. "Oh no you didn't!" She giggled wildly, while wiping the food from her eyes and mouth. In a flash, the agile and very quick elf, had pushed her chair back from the table, vaulted herself atop the table on the ball of one foot. Pushing off the table with that leg, the other was kicked forward gracefully in a grande jete that took her across the width of the table. Her extended foot planted against his shoulder with enough force to tip the seat backwards. As she landed, she reached back to grab a handful of food from his plate and leaned down to rub it into his face. "No...you take that!"

She was overcome by a fit of giggles and had to hold her injured side to prevent the stitching from pulling free.

More sputtering ensued as she all but tackled him back to the floor and smothered his face with food. He flailed wildly and cackled with childish delight at the game, his arms lifting to try and block his face. His arms twisted and touched the ground before pushing himself up, she was liable to fall back in the process; then he reached past for his plate and lifted it over her head, tipped it, and watched the food slide off and let gravity do the rest.

He scrambled to his feet, bouncing up suddenly with arms and legs out wide. "I'm alive! It's okay, no need to pour anything on-" he paused, peering at her. "Your side hurts," yup, he nodded in the most sage-like manner one could muster when covered in various forms of food. "You should lie down, let me have a look at it to make sure it's alright," like a mother hen he swept up behind Raye and began shooing her toward the hallway. "Go, go go go. This is important."


"I am happy you are alive!" She rasped out from between pursed lips and gritted teeth and attempted to smile at him. Before she knew what had happened, her upper hand in this situation was gone and she was being shooed along with a much bigger Tavarius behind her like some twisted version of a cute puppy. As she passed the old woman, she grinned a little sheepishly before speaking. "I...am sorry for this mess. I will clean it all up and pay for all of the wasted food and damages." She was rottenly mischievous but she always took care of her debts.

"I...I think I am alright! Really." He had her moving at a ridiculous pace that caused soft gasps from the pain radiating up her side. She was not about to tell him it was hurting, because she had no intention of letting him look at it, the thought of it made the tips of her ears turn red in mortification. Her pace slowed down considerably and she attempted to play it off like she was casually strolling along because she was juuust fine.


"I can hear it," he argued. What exactly "it" was, he did not specify. Suffice it to say, whatever this it he was speaking of was, it told him that she was not being entirely honest with him. "It won't take long, just lie down, let me see, I may need to change the bandages, I want to make sure it isn't bleeding anymore. You've lost enough blood," Tavarius nodded again and squinted at her in the "try and argue with me," kind of way. "Go on. It won't kill you to play it safe."


"No but I might kill you..." she growled lightly under her breath. So bossy. Who did he think he was bossing her about in such a manner. She was the one that bossed and he was to be the bossee but somehow he had this all twisted up.

"Why do you need to look at it? Why can't I look at it...or the old lady...or hell, even the old man? Why does it have to be you?" Her logic would make no sense at all since the old man was tossed into the mix of what people could look and what people couldn't. Perhaps he wouldn't notice that he was the only one not allowed to look.

She opened the door to her room and stopped to glare accusingly up at him. "You are very bossy. And stubborn. Bossy and stubborn. You should work on your people skills..." said the elf smeared in food and sticky mead that had tackled and put him into a choke hold. Hello there kettle, I'm the pot.


His head canted as she spoke and what had been a stern face had been overcome by a rather charming smile. "Because, I know more than they do about it, and it's always better to have someone else look than you, I can see more, you'd have to strain yourself to get a good look, and that would make matters worse. It won't take long, might be nothing's wrong. But you've been moving around a lot, I want to make sure the stitching's holding. So, lie down, stop making such a fuss. Or are you afraid?"

Her head canted as well, because that just made sense when someone else's did and you were watching them smi...talk...watching them talk! "Well...maybe i could take the dressing off and look at that and if there is blood on it then you can look but if its clean, there will be no need for you to look because its fine." She was quite distracted by suspicion now.

"Why are you doing that?" She pointed an accusing finger towards his mouth and wiggled it around indicating she meant the smile. "That...smile...stop that! Stop trying to persuade me by smiling like that. I will not be easily swayed!"

Her hand lowered to press to her side. She was pretty sure she had pulled the stitching loose but there was no way she would be telling him so. She had dressed her own battle wounds countless times, so she felt she would be capable. She would just need a mirror or to be even more of a contortionist. Nooo problem!

But then...gasssp! "I am NOT afraid! I...I will show you who is not afraid! Hmph!" Gripped by a fit of temper, she yanked the shirt up and threw herself quite indelicately upon the bed on her uninjured side. "Get to work!" NOW she was the boss again! Sort of...


He stepped in after her and closed the door for some semblance of privacy. His smile widened until pearly white teeth were displayed in open amusement. "I didn't think you were, you're tough. Nothing scares you," Tavarius said as he knelt on the bed just behind her and carefully began to peel the bandages away. "And I don't know what you mean about smiling. I smile. Smiling is good. It makes me happy. You should smile more, too. I'm sure you'd like it, so would other people."

Tilting her head back to look up at him; she stuck out her tongue in a most endearingly childish manner as he confessed to not thinking she was afraid. "You are quite devious. I would not have thought that possible. And I am scared of plenty of things. They just don't happen to involve weapons, injury or death." Marriage, however...or children...being forced to stay in one place? Complete terror.

She winced a little as he peeled the bandages back that had began to soak through with blood. Only a spot the size of a quarter had actually soaked all the way through, however. Perhaps she should stop tackling and choke holding until her side healed?

"I am not telling you to stop smiling. You have a brilliant smile, it is a happy thing. You just...I don't know..bah." She frowned up at him, trying to keep herself occupied so she didn't pay any attention at all to him tending her wound. "I smile plenty. But I dunno what you mean about other people liking it if I smiled more. That is...I smile plenty." She began to fidget a little. "So, everything is alright, isn't it?"


"I've only seen you smile a few times," he replied, tossing the bandages aside and sliding back to find more, tucked in a little bag he'd stationed by her bed when they first arrived. "New bandages, but nothing looks too bad. You were bleeding, so stop jumping around and being crazy until you're nice and healed up," he nodded sharply and peered down at her. "Understand?" he asked as he began the process of administering fresh bandages to the wound.


She sighed in exasperation. "What do you think I was doing? Just feeding you? I was laughing and smiling. But now you are telling me to stop doing that. Make up your mind." She crinkled her nose up at him as he started to bandage the wound. "And I don't know who you are saying is crazy. You pushed me down. An injured woman! You should be ashamed of yourself!" And he might have just gotten a hint of a smile to show that she was just teasing him.


Mortified didn't quite cover it... "I did not! You-you tackled me!" he cried back, leaning over to peer at her. "You are mean, do not tease me over that," he said as he finished bandaging her. "Or the next thing I dump on your head will be ice water. With extra ice! And not a lot of water!"

"You hit me with projectiles! They were ball shaped. You have those ball things that kill people. How was I to know?" She appeared quite innocent and continued to bait him, forcing down a mad fit of snickering:::

"And will that ice be with or without the mud? I hope you realize that I am also capable of doing something to you in your sleep! So instead of planning an attack on a poor, helpless, injured woman; perhaps you should plan your defense." She nodded as if she were giving him the most helpful advice.


"I'm quite capable of defending myself against your sluggish attacks in my sleep, thank you very much," he bounced away. "You're all bandaged up and good to go for now. Don't be too active, or I'll tie you down so you can't do anything until you heal. Got it?"

"You wouldn't!" He received a smirk before she amended her statement. "You couldn't. And I am not so sluggish that I didn't take you down from your chair, pull you to the floor a second time, and then choke hold you until you conceded my victory. I can get to you while you slumber!" She pulled herself to a sitting position and leaned over to try to peer down at her side before lowering the shirt again.

He received a wicked grin, "Got it?" It would do him good to think of who had actually started the food fight and then whom had attacked first...she was completely capable of doing something in the middle of the night when everyone else slept. He might wake up bald or something.

He grinned and danced out of the room, closing the door behind him as he replied in a sing-song voice. "I let you!" snickering cheerfully, Tavarius wandered off about the house before finding a spot to curl up and rest.