John brushed a lock of hair out of his eyes and leaned back in the chair. The card dealer, a man with a scar over his eye and foreheads and hands, threw his cards down on the table. “Twenty one,” he announced with pride baring his crooked and yellowed teeth in something resembling a smile as he reached for the pile of coins on the table.

A hard tanned hand stopped him. “I believe that we haven’t seen my cards yet.” He splayed his cards letting them drop. “Twenty-two?”

Everyone at the table groaned. “You’ve got be kidding me.”

John shrugged and scraped the pile of gold to his corner.

“I’m out,” someone proclaimed.

A few others grumbled and opted out of the next round. “AW, come on guys!” John called as he gathered up his cards. He tucked them away scooped his considerable earning and slipped them into his money pouch.

Alexander had just walked in when he saw everyone get up from a table grumbling about losing that much money. He couldn’t help but smile a little. He walked up to the man who had been putting away his winnings. “So how much did they lose to you before they learned their lesson.” Alexander asked in a friendly chit chat way.

He had on the same garb he normally wore to the Dancing Dove on his frequenting visits. He was wearing plain light brown leggings, a dark green shirt, with plain calf-high boots. At his side he had his most prized possession, a simple dagger from Raven's armory that was cased in a plain sheath and had a wire spun wrap around handle. He also had his moneybag filled with a couple of coppers.

“A fair amount,” John grinned not looking up from flicking gold into his purse. He rubbed his neck and glanced up at the boy standing before him. He looked familiar, by sight, by there wouldn’t be any name with the face.

He stretched and motioned to the chair across from him. “Have a seat.”

Alexander took the seat that was offered. He then grabbed the attention of a bar waitress and ordered himself a cold lemonade for the day was growing unusually hot and sticky. Alexander had his normal roughish smile on and a happy twinkle in his eye’s.

“So what’s your name, kid?” John asked good naturedly reaching for his own tankard of ale. “And do your parents know you’re in here?”

His mother would faint, for real, if she found up what her middle son was up to. And then, he’d get the Gabriel would never do that. He took a dip and went back to studying the young boy.

Alexander thought a moment not sure if he should tell him just his name or his holdings or anything, but then he replied "Alexander of Rosewood 3rd year page." To the mans second question he smiled light-heartedly "No, not unless they have little birdies watching me, but one can never no with one's parents.”

“Ah, so that’s where I’ve seen you,” John nodded. “Of course you can never know with your parents.”

He set his tankard down and sighed. “I’m John of Elden.”

" Aren't you a knight?" Alexander said with some curiosity. He was positive he had heard of John before, he just couldn’t remember where.

“All right, Sir John of Elden,” he revised with a minute shrug of his shoulders. “It’s little more than a title.”

Alexander nodded his head when John said Sir was little more than a title. Alexander was curios why John thought this, yet he agreed with it, and asked “ Why do you say that?”

John shrugged."Sure it's a title I worked hard to get, but it's still just a title."

"So Sir John" Alexander said with great mirth "Do your parents now that their son visits the lower city, and plays cards with a bunch of ruffian’s?" Alexander said teasingly and then sipped happily at his drink.

John pursed his lips. "Do you know if by chance they're still alive?"

OOC: I don’t remember reading that your parents where deceased, so if they are just tell me to change this post. And I am sorry I forgot to switch out of this character. Please forgive me, it's been a long day.

“Because I vaguely remember mention of your mother… And your brother perhaps?” Alexander sat there trying to remember what the man’s name was “Gabriel, yes the man’s name was Gabriel.” Then just for arguments sake he added “But if I am mistaken you have my deepest apologies, and I am sorry I assumed your parents where of the living, as you did mine. People make mistakes, jump to conclusions, the only thing we can do after that is apologize.” Then Alexander shrugged his shoulders with an apologetic look on his face and ordered another lemonade.

"No they're very much alive," John soothed Alexander. Unfortunately on Gaberiel's half. He sighed and raised the tankard to his lips again.

"I figured as much." Alexander said as he downed the rest of his drink. "This place seems to be pretty slow during the afternoon." Alexander commented somewhat dryly.

"Usually," John replied smoothly. "It's a lot busier in the evening. Most bars are."

"Yeah at night it gets downright dangerous here, but it's fun." Alexander smiled devilishly.

"So how long have you been a Knight?"

John paused. Had it only been a year? One damn long year. "Only a year," he replied. "What year are you?"

"Me, I am in my third year as a page." Then Alexander thought with slight anticipation, he would soon be a squire, and smiled to himself shakily.

"Well, that's the worst of it. Mostly being a squire is much easier than being a page, at least it was for me." His master had demanded he try and get the horse to like him and allow him on its back.

"As a Squire, you get a lot more freedom."

"Who was your Knight Master as a squire? How much fighting did you get to do?" Alexander asked as he prayed silently to Mithros yet again to not get a desk knight but a field knight.

"Sir Kern," John smiled a bit remembering his old master. They still went out for drinks occasionally and talked often. He was alot like his father in many aspects.

Alexander tried to recall a Sir Kern. He had heard the name but at the moment he could not put it to a face. He then sipped quietly at his drink.

John pushed himself to his feet. "I had best be running back to the palace. There is some business I need to atend to. Farwell, Alexander." He said before ducking his way through the crowd

Alexander finished his drink quietly, wondering what he thought of this Knight. Then he paid his bill and left the Dancing Dove as well, blending into a crowd that happened to be passing by.