09-09-2013, 02:38 PM
The die fell from Oriena's fingertips and made a small, satisfying thudding noise as it bounced across the center of the table. It turned over three times and finally came to rest. The face showing atop the red cube bore a single white pip. So the numbers would move to the left.
Jon turned to Oriena and slid his card across the table to her. Do you believe in fate, Jon? Fate. What an interesting concept. And a stifling one as well, the notion one was not free to make his own decisions at the end of the day. Yet it couldn't be ignored that oftentimes what appeared to be choice was dependent on some previous decision made before, a path that had to be followed to its conclusion. The man traveling down the desert highway could pay close attention to his fuel gauge and thus ensure he had enough fuel to reach his destination, or he could ignore it and find himself stranded on the side of the road, forced to take other actions such as hitchhiking or abandoning his vehicle that would set him on an entirely different path.
He caught Oriena's eye as she slid her card over to Jaxen. Yes, she had a bit of a twist to her lips as she gave her card over to him. Someone had been pleased about the roll so far – well, she had a surprise coming when she turned over Jon's card.
“I believe choice and fate both exist. If we really do have freedom to choose our destiny, then the path our choices send us down must necessarily be the one we are supposed to be on.”
He accepted Jaxen's card. “Take this game. We have a role in the setup by choosing our numbers, but the final outcome hangs on a chance roll...”
He turned his card over. It displayed a 10. He certainly wouldn't be the loser in this round.
Jaxen and Oriena turned their cards over. Both of them had a 1.
Well! What an interesting twist of chance in Jon's favor! Oriena, it seemed, had gone for Jon's play on this round, attempting to stick someone else with a certain loss, only it hadn't gone as well for her as it had for Jon. Since they had both tied for the loss with the lowest number possible, they were both required to pay a forfeit. And Jon didn't have a judge in this round to constrain him from his demand. They were both subject to his whim now.
He chuckled. “So the first forfeits belong to me,”
he mused. “What shall I do with them...”
A naughty voice in the back of his mind whispered Oriena. Shirt. Off.. He dismissed the voice with a hint of amusement. No, it wasn't time yet to descend into bawdiness. No, Jon wanted to bring some familiarity to the table amongst the three. Get them to reveal something personal, something deep. An intellectual and emotional baring of the character, not of the flesh. It would make them more vulnerable to themselves, and to each other, and perhaps, there, some real connection could be made.
“Oriena,” he said, turning to her. “I want you to
describe for me the thing in your life that makes you happiest. What gives you the fondest memories or feelings?”
And now Jaxen. Yes, that smug, arrogant exterior must certainly hide something deeper. “Everyone has something that causes them anxiety...So Jaxen, what are you most afraid of?”
Jon turned to Oriena and slid his card across the table to her. Do you believe in fate, Jon? Fate. What an interesting concept. And a stifling one as well, the notion one was not free to make his own decisions at the end of the day. Yet it couldn't be ignored that oftentimes what appeared to be choice was dependent on some previous decision made before, a path that had to be followed to its conclusion. The man traveling down the desert highway could pay close attention to his fuel gauge and thus ensure he had enough fuel to reach his destination, or he could ignore it and find himself stranded on the side of the road, forced to take other actions such as hitchhiking or abandoning his vehicle that would set him on an entirely different path.
He caught Oriena's eye as she slid her card over to Jaxen. Yes, she had a bit of a twist to her lips as she gave her card over to him. Someone had been pleased about the roll so far – well, she had a surprise coming when she turned over Jon's card.
“I believe choice and fate both exist. If we really do have freedom to choose our destiny, then the path our choices send us down must necessarily be the one we are supposed to be on.”
He accepted Jaxen's card. “Take this game. We have a role in the setup by choosing our numbers, but the final outcome hangs on a chance roll...”
He turned his card over. It displayed a 10. He certainly wouldn't be the loser in this round.
Jaxen and Oriena turned their cards over. Both of them had a 1.
Well! What an interesting twist of chance in Jon's favor! Oriena, it seemed, had gone for Jon's play on this round, attempting to stick someone else with a certain loss, only it hadn't gone as well for her as it had for Jon. Since they had both tied for the loss with the lowest number possible, they were both required to pay a forfeit. And Jon didn't have a judge in this round to constrain him from his demand. They were both subject to his whim now.
He chuckled. “So the first forfeits belong to me,”
he mused. “What shall I do with them...”
A naughty voice in the back of his mind whispered Oriena. Shirt. Off.. He dismissed the voice with a hint of amusement. No, it wasn't time yet to descend into bawdiness. No, Jon wanted to bring some familiarity to the table amongst the three. Get them to reveal something personal, something deep. An intellectual and emotional baring of the character, not of the flesh. It would make them more vulnerable to themselves, and to each other, and perhaps, there, some real connection could be made.
“Oriena,” he said, turning to her. “I want you to
describe for me the thing in your life that makes you happiest. What gives you the fondest memories or feelings?”
And now Jaxen. Yes, that smug, arrogant exterior must certainly hide something deeper. “Everyone has something that causes them anxiety...So Jaxen, what are you most afraid of?”