BuzzingBee

Plenty of Sharks in the Sea [BuzzingBee & Dagger]

Now face to face, Daniel had a chance to get a better glance of the woman who had caught his eye that evening. Her figure was what had caught his eyes originally but she had a pretty face to match. He found her olive green eyes attractive, both due to the makeup that surrounded them as well as how the few small lights of the bar reflected in them. The only thing he liked better about them was how they swept over him. It was a silent stroke to his ego that she was already eying him with interest. Based on that alone, he had been expecting for her to welcome him in and brush off whoever this other man was. It was a bit of a curve ball to him when this other man spoke up first, already standoffish about his sudden appearance.

It was then that his gaze finally pulled away from her to look over the other man. He was muscular but a tad shorter than Daniel and in his opinion, annoying looking. Daniel could pinpoint exactly what it was that made the man in front of him rub him the wrong way—aside from a similar interest in women of course. Perhaps it was the lacking care of his appearance or the way he was clearly sizing up his competitor in such an obvious way. Daniel glanced towards the woman again, expecting her to voice her own opinion only to find her sipping at her drink. So she wants a show… he realized, stifling a snort. Fine by me.

Though he was hoping she’d be direct enough to shoo the other man way, it seemed like he’d have to put in more of an effort or do it himself. He should have expected as much when he had insisted on leaving unibrow to Eric—who was already making the most of his conversation with the redhead. Daniel didn’t plan on backing down from this box of a man though. Instead, he met the other man’s gaze. "I'm sure that conversation was a dull one. I should make it clear that I wasn't talking to you anyways." Daniel said smiling politely but having a sharp edge in his voice as he spoke.

“Excuse me?” The box glared at him hostilely.

Daniel sighed and crossed his arms. “I’m saying I’m asking her, this pretty lady right here, if it’s alright I cut in. Not you. Do you understand now or do I need to simplify it more?”

It was amusing how red the other man was getting. If he had had a few more drinks, Daniel fully believed that man would have tried to punch him. Luckily he seemed to be sober enough to yield what little control he did have over his temper. “Hey asshole, I gave you her answer. It’s the same as mine so go bother someone else.” he growled.

“Huh. Interesting, I didn’t see you ask her about it.” Daniel mused. He was beginning to see why this man had annoyed him so much right from the start. The dude had no regard for the woman he was speaking with. And apparently speaking for in this situation. Whatever guilt he may have harbored from cutting in was gone now. When a hint of confusion flashed across the other man’s gaze, Daniel bit back a chuckle. This guy was not sharp at all.

Assuming that he wouldn’t mentally catch up in time with his words, Daniel smirked. “Listen man, point is I’ll leave if she wants me to but it’s gotta come from her mouth not yours. And she hasn't said it yet.” he sneered, putting as simply as he possibly could after all the poking he had done at the other man. Daniel shrugged his shoulders in a careless manner and looked over at the woman who's attention they were vying for. It wasn't a battle he needed to fight for her but she had clearly been looking for the two men to argue over her. Daniel was merely trying to met her expectations. He flashed her another charming smile and winked in a sly manner rather than a flirtatious one before looking back to the other man. The square was slowly turning into a rectangle with how tensely he stood. Daniel's words were clearly getting to him so he couldn't help but take one last jab at the other man. “So maybe stop acting like a douche and step aside.” he remarked with a simplistic tone of voice as he took a final dig at the other man.

Plenty of Sharks in the Sea [BuzzingBee & Dagger]

I love it xD

Daniel and Eric decided to intervene for the hell of it lmao

Plenty of Sharks in the Sea [BuzzingBee & Dagger]

The crowd that night was rather lackluster. There was a large variety of different people there but none seemed to be of importance. Scanning crowds like this was one of Daniel’s specialties. He liked to keep aware of the people around, always looking for an opportunity to get closer to people that had influence whether he knew them by face or simply by the clothing they wore. Since the Devil’s Share was also near his old college, quite a few other old classmates frequented it and he was never against seizing the chance to speak with them about work. That being said, it was also a great way to check out women too, namely if there were any that he wanted to introduce himself to.

It had been a while since the last time he had had any type of relationship, be it as small as a one night stand or more serious venture. Work had taken up a good deal of his life that getting out like he was now wasn’t common. Despite telling himself he’d stick with his friends, he couldn’t help but at least take a look at his possible options that night. His gaze was soon drawn away from the crowd as a soft clink made him turn to see the bartender set his glass down in front of him.

“Did you want to open a tab?” the other man asked as he slid the jack and coke over to him.

Daniel paused, debating how much he planned to drink, before nodding his head. He dug into his pocket for his wallet and pulled out his credit card, familiar with the process at the Devil’s Share. “Yeah I’ll go ahead and open a tab.” he said, handing over his card. The man nodded his head and accepted it before turning to put the card away. Daniel wasn’t planning on ordering a ton of drinks but he knew his friends could rope him into changing said plans. He’d rather not have a hassle with payment when he was wasted. He lifted his drink to his lips and took a small sip before he’d have to return to his friends. Just as he was planning to step away from the bar, a new voice surprised him.

“Ayyye! Daniel!” Turning around he spotted Eric walking over to join him at the bar. The other man had his usual goofy, broad grin on his face. Of course that was the only way Eric could ever sneak up on someone. The dude was big, both tall and muscular, someone who could easily be intimidating if not for his usually goofy demeanor. Of course, his goofy demeanor was also a product of being apart of a frat for his four years of college, something Daniel believed most people could pick up on from first meeting him.

“Hey Eric, I didn’t know you were coming to this thing too.” Daniel greeted his friend with a small smile. It hadn’t been that long since the two had crossed paths. In fact, Eric was the one person Daniel saw almost regularly due to their work places being located only down the street from each other.

“Of course! I had to celebrate the two taken people in our group getting engaged. It’s sort of a big deal.” Eric smirked as he slid up besides Daniel at the bar, subtly flagging the bartender down as they spoke. His smirk faded a bit as he looked at Daniel with a little more seriousness. “So how are you feeling about all this?”

Daniel raised an eyebrow at him. “What do you mean?”

Eric rolled his eyes and leaned against the counter. “Oh come on Daniel, I know you and Brandy used to date. Surely it’s got you bummed!”

Daniel paused before laughing at Eric’s assumption. “Dude we dated in high school and I broke up with her because we sucked as a couple. I’m happy that they’re happy, nothing more.” he explained with a shrug. He eyed Eric as he turned to order a beer from the bartender. “Are you upset?”

“Well a little.” Eric admitted rather honestly. “Not over Brandy of course but you gotta admit, this engagement reminds the rest of us of how single we are. I mean, when’s the last time you’ve even slept with someone?”

Daniel shook his head. “I’m not discussing this at our friend’s engagement party.” he said with an amused smirk.

“Fine, fine.” Eric sighed, holding up his hands defensively. As his gaze strayed, a new light flickered in his green eyes. He nudged Daniel’s side eagerly. “Buuuutttt I say we ditch the engagement party and go fishing. There’s a lot of pretty faces here tonight.”

“You’re a terrible friend.” Daniel scoffed. “Brandy would kill us. Specifically me first and then you.”

“Oh come on! Brandy won’t even notice we’re gone and you know Trevor wouldn’t give a shit.” Eric encouraged. “I mean look at them! Annahita’s here so her and Brandy are going to be talking all night. And Trevor’s got Jamie. Let’s slip away for a bit and see what our options look like tonight. If it goes nowhere, then we can go back.”

Daniel wish he could say he wasn’t interested but mingling with a few pretty faces did sound more enticing than sitting around and drinking while the couple talked about their future wedding. Though he cared about both of his friends, it did seem like a waste of night for him. As he placed the glass back down, he eyed Eric before letting out a sigh of defeat as he caved. It was his first night out in a while, he wanted to make the most of it. He’d just have to make sure to throw Trevor a killer bachelor party when the time came. “Fine… We can slip away for a bit.”

“Great!” Eric beamed and without skipping a beat, nodded his head towards two women towards the other end of the bar. It seemed that Eric had set his sights on them long before he had even brought the idea up to his friend. You sly, goofy bastard… he thought amusedly. Daniel was a bit quick to recognize the one woman as the one he had eyed coming into the bar. They already were accompanied by two men from what Daniel saw. “Let’s introduce ourselves to them.”

“They look preoccupied with those other two guys though.” Daniel pointed out as he picked up his glass.

Eric snorted. “So? Those two guys are pathetic.” he mused mercilessly as he picked up the whiskey that the bartender had set down. He paused to open up a tab as well before turning back to Daniel with a mischievous smirk. “I’m pretty sure one of them had a unibrow. Can you not compete a guy with a unibrow, Daniel?”

Daniel shot an annoyed look at Eric. Personally, he found it a bit rude to simply cut in but there was a clear hint of challenge in his friend’s voice. And Daniel wasn’t one to back down from a challenge. Especially when he believed the odds were stacked so highly in his favor. He had only been trying to be polite when it came to the other men around them. But if Eric wanted to make it into a competition, then that no longer mattered. With another look towards the women, he eyed the dark headed girl from the end of the bar before looking back to his friend with a smirk. “I can but that’d be too easy. I’ll handle the other guy, you can deal with unibrow.”

Eric laughed, thrilled by his friend’s sudden change of attitude. “Alright, fair enough. The redhead’s more my type anyways.” he used as he picked up his drink to follow his friend. Daniel now took the leading in casually moving down towards where the two women were. He assumed that they weren’t in over their heads with inserting themselves. From the glimpse he had gotten of the other two men, they didn’t appear particularly threatening, both look and strength wise. Sure the one was muscular but he wasn’t quite as large as his friend, Eric. If he tried to intimidate either of them, it would sooner be met with laughs than them backing down. Provided the women they were talking to took more of an interest in Daniel and Eric than them.

The competition side of it all made Daniel more willing to step up. So as they reached their side of the bar, he wasted no time in stepping up to them. “Hey,” he greeted, flashing a charming smile—something he was rather skilled at—with his gaze solely focused on the woman in front of him. “mind if we join you guys here? The bar’s a bit crowded tonight, hard to find an open spot.” he asked, smoothly lying through his teeth. Behind him, Eric stood with a flirtatious smile, shamelessly casting a wink towards the red haired woman.

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

It was xD

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Penelope smiled amusedly as Crow added to her statement. Regardless of him only just beginning to be formerly trained as the viceroy, she was well aware of his skills of persuasion as well as bartering. Others might be less inclined to trust the man who was a thief not that long ago but she knew better and it was one of her few worries. What worried her much more was him being able to safely reach the Younisian king and return. The threat of mercenaries continued to weigh heavily at the back of her mind and she doubted there would be any ease until he finally returned. She'd likely be a little on edge for the next two weeks but at least she could distract herself with the work she had to do on the warfront. Her smile waned for a moment at the thought before strengthening a little once more at Naida’s comment.

A soft sigh escaped the knight as her friend brushed off the people suffering due to the war. She knew Naida meant no harm by it but her lack of care just showed the lack of connection between higher and lower class. It reminded Penelope of her resolve to try and lessen that distance through gathering aid for the peasants at the end of the war. That would be the next step for the knight once she returned from the warfront. There was plenty to repair and the warning of the gods made it sound like there was still a threat around other than Younis. She wanted to do what she could before that threat came to light, if it ever did. The thought gave her a small surge of determination before she was brought back to the present as Naida spoke again.

At the mention of Olivia, the knight began to wonder how her comrades on the warfront were faring. It had been quite some time since she had last written them so she had no idea what the current state of her battalion was. She hoped that her friends and family were still well and alive. I suppose I’ll find that out by the end of the day.. she thought off handedly before focusing on Naida. “I’ll be sure to relay the message.” Penelope said with a small laugh. “It’ll be nice when we can all get together again after this mess.”

“I know! It’s been far too long!” Naida nodded with eager agreement.

Penelope turned her head to look over as Preston and Percival returned with the horses, causing a small frown to cross her lips. "Well, looks like it's time for you guys to head off." she mused. Before she could say or do anything else, Naida threw her arms around her friend, giving her a tight squeeze before letting go.

"I'll see you in two weeks!" Naida said firmly. "Good luck on the warfront until then, Penelope."

"Good luck on your mission to Younis." Penelope replied with an appreciative nod. She watched Naida step away to collect her horse for a moment before turning to Crow. It was only two weeks but she was still reluctant to part ways. She let go of his hand to face him and leaned up to press a parting kiss to his lips. The knight lingered longer than she normally would have when around the others but since she wouldn't see him for a while, she wanted to make the kiss count. When she finally pulled back, she flashed him a half hearted smile. "Travel safe and I'll see you when you get back."

(BuzzingBee) Shadows of the Past (Euphemia)

Ok! How are you feeling?

Plenty of Sharks in the Sea [BuzzingBee & Dagger]

Brandy Mays

Age : 23
Gender : Female

Trevor Middleditch

Age : 25
Gender : Male

Jamie Hinderson

Age : 24
Gender : Male

Annahita Lopez

Age : 24
Gender : Female

Eric Winters

Age : 26
Gender : Male

Plenty of Sharks in the Sea [BuzzingBee & Dagger]

Daniel 'Danny' Shen

Age :24
Height : 6'1"
Weight : 185lbs
Nationality : American (Chinese descent)
Gender : Male

Bio : Daniel comes from a fairly big family, being the eldest of three siblings and has many cousins. With his father being a respectable lawyer and his mother a college professor, he was raised with high expectations and an emphasis on education. Despite some setbacks along the way, Daniel has made quite the career path for himself. He works as a field director at a small, local campaign firm and is apart of several well known activist groups in NYC. Ambitious and driven, he plans to one day make a name for himself and run for congress.

Plenty of Sharks in the Sea [BuzzingBee & Dagger]

Hooray xD

Plenty of Sharks in the Sea [BuzzingBee & Dagger]

The bar was rather busy that night. Loud music filled the room almost as much as people. The Devil’s Share was a popular stop for many who lived in this area of the city. It was a high end bar that was always lively. Daniel had visited it only a few times, all mostly in his college days. While he enjoyed the good—but expensive— drinks and music, bars weren’t usually his scene of choice. Namely because he disliked going to them alone. After college, it was always difficult to get schedules to align with his friends so the few times he did go out had dropped down to nearly zero. Tonight he was out for a special occasion.

“Alright everyone get a shot!” Jamie, one of Daniel’s friends from college, instructed grinning ear to ear. His face was already slightly red from the alcohol he had consumed. Raising the small shot glass in his hand, he looked over to the man besides Daniel. “This one’s for Trevor finally growing the balls to propose! And to Brandy for actually accepting!”

“To Trevor and Brandy!” Daniel voiced his agreement with a sly smirk as he raised his glass as well. With two of his closest friend’s getting engaged, it had finally brought everyone together for the night despite their busy schedules.

“You guys are such assholes.” Trevor rolled his eyes before cracking a grin. His gaze shifted onto Brandy, the woman on the other side of him, and wrapped arm around her as he held the shot in his other hand. In response, Brandy smiled and leaned into his side as she grabbed her own glass. He leaned in and clinked the glasses with the rest of the group and then quickly downed the shot.

Daniel did the same as he downed the shot before placing the now empty glass back on the table. He scrunched his face slightly at the harsh liquor. Shots had never been Daniel’s strong suit but somehow, he managed to force them down. The group had secured one of the bigger tables at the right corner of the bar. There were only four of them at the moment but they had about four more still coming to join them that night. He let out a small breath and leaned his elbows on the table. His dark gaze shifted to look around the bar, just beginning to take in the crowd when he felt someone nudge his side. Looking to Trevor, he raised an eyebrow as his friend leaned in.

“Hey Danny,” Trevor began in a lowered voice. This conversation was clearly just meant to stay between the two of them and luckily Jamie was already wrapped up in a separate conversation with Brandy. “I don’t think I ever said it before but thank you for introducing me to Brandy. I really owe—“

“Save that sappy bullshit for your wedding day, Trevor.” Daniel cut in before his friend could say anymore. It didn’t feel like the time nor place for it. Plus he was far from drunk enough to give Trevor the reaction he wanted. Trevor was a more emotional person than himself and a simple ‘no problem’ would likely disappoint him. Daniel flashed him a teasing smirk. “You’re not already drunk are you?”

“Man fuck you.” Trevor scoffed and gave his friend a small shove. “I’m not drunk, you’re just an ass.”

Daniel laughed and shrugged his shoulders in response. “Never claimed not to be.” he grinned, patting his friend of the back. “I’m going to go grab a drink.” He slowly rose from his seat and straightened his attire. Physical appearance had always been important to him. With ambitions to one day be a congressman, he wanted to give off a feeling of importance even though he was only a measly field director. He was clean shaven and his hair was neatly combed back with a small amount of gel added to keep it in place. He wore a nice, dark blue dress shirt with black suit pants. As far as accessories, the only thing he wore was a Rolex watch he had received as a present from his parents. Despite the expensive brand, the watch itself wasn’t particularly eye catching. It had a toned down design, a simple but quality leather band with a golden center. Over all, he made sure his appearance was simple yet sophisticated.

Stepping away from his group of friends, he turned just in time to catch a glimpse of the people just entering the bar. Among them was a rather attractive woman. Despite the distance and the low lighting, he could still make out her features just enough to cause his gaze to linger. Her jeans and shoulder-less top seemed to accentuate the curves of her body. In the next moment, he turned away from her though and continued on his path to the bar. She had been accompanied by two other people, one of which was a man, so it turned him away from making any approach towards her. Besides that, he had come with the intent to celebrate his friends’ engagement. It’d be rude to merely leave them behind.

Daniel stepped up to the counter, squeezing into a less dense spot. Leaning an arm on the counter, he waited for the bartender to finish serving another customer. “Jack and coke please.” he told the other man as he stepped over to take his order. The bartender gave a silent nod and stepped away to prepare the drink. Waiting patiently, Daniel let his gaze drift around the bar, entertaining himself by looking over the people around him.