Big City Living (Midpoint Mingle)

[midpointmods]

The town of Midpoint: called thus because it is at the exact center of the game arena, a busy little Western town full of strange people, many of whom don’t look remotely human, because this is where all the players gather and live. Midpoint Saloon: called thus because it is the only bar in Midpoint. It’s also the biggest building in town, four stories high, dotted with windows, painted a jaunty yellow and decorated with red and green flowers in all the window boxes.

This is where your veteran teammate points you. Or just stomps off to and hopes you follow.

Downstairs is a bar and tavern, Old West style, right down to the upright piano in one corner and a raucous crowd of locals - largely locals, but with a healthy smattering of unusual or downright alien faces that clearly indicate the presence of other Players - eating, drinking, gambling, and getting into trouble. There’s a broad, bearded man behind the bar, waving cheerfully at you as you enter.

The rest of the night and the next day is yours to do with what you see fit. Explore the town, take a long nap in your new room, try to get to know people... everyone is here for the next twenty-four hours before travel to the mission site, so it’s a good chance to scope out the competition, at the very least.

Comments

[midpointmods]

"Sam Vilson, good to see you!" North shifts aside to show him the hash browns and sausages currently sizzling on two separate pans. "Dinner for someone who is not you, I think. Vat are you looking for, eh? I start dat next."

[notabirdcostume]

"Good to see you too."

Sam checks out the food being prepped and can't help but feel a little disappointed to it is NOT necessarily what was on the menu. Oh well, he could put his own order in and let whoever had the idea to get sausage and hash browns enjoy those.

"Well since you're teasing me with someone else's meal, I'm tempted to follow in their footsteps. That smells too good." There's a pause and then he adds, "I'd be remiss if I didn't ask what the special was today though."

[midpointmods]

"Special today is chili with cheese, or Russian pelmini," North says. One of the specials with him is almost always Russian. Wonder why? "But I make vatever you are craving, no questions asked," he adds cheerfully, winking at Sam. "More hash and sausage is easy."

[notabirdcostume]

As North has probably learned by now, Sam's expressed a decent interest in cooking, especially after he'd learned that North COULD cook. So, of course, as soon as North mentions a dish he isn't familiar with he has to ask: "What's pelmini?" He appreciates a good chili as much as the next guy, and he has no doubt about North's ability to whip one up, but he's always been the type to want to try new things -- especially when it came to food.

[midpointmods]

Mod cannot spell, technically it is in fact spelled: "Pelmeni! Russian meat dumpling, very tasty, very filling. Can be baked with sauce, fried up vell, or frozen for later or if you are very hot." North counts the options on his fingers. "I am very good at them. If I do say so myself. And I do!"

[notabirdcostume]

Sam is of the opinion that you really can't go wrong with any sort of pastry stuffed with meat, even more so when there is frying or sauce involved. Sam nods, appreciating the various ways you can serve this dumpling.

"Then I'll have the dumplings. Show me what you got since you're so good with them."

[midpointmods]

"Yes! Good!" North looks delighted by this, and sets about getting out ingredients, replacing the previous pan with a new one (while the old one goes straight into the dishwasher under the bar, North closing the door to it with a foot as he passes). "So how are you, Sam Vilson? You got mission and new players and you are still smiling. They are good?"

[notabirdcostume]

There's no rush and Sam, glances off towards the bustling saloon before returning his attention when North engages him in more conversation.

"I'm doing as fine as can be expected after a long ride -- managed not to fall off the horse this time." And he only had to get the horse off the nearest scraggly bush twice as opposed to every few minutes they passed one. He'd slowly learned to give her a lot of food before and after each ride and that seemed to do her just fine. "Players seem capable enough for new arrivals, then again, most people who wind up here seem to know how to handle their own business." He couldn't quite tell if they were going to be team players, but he at least didn't have to stress about them not being able to handle a gun or a fight -- at least he could tell that much.

Of course, it was hard not to think about what Bucky had told him about North. Sam knows how valuable information is around here and he doesn't know who ELSE could be listening, so he keeps the rest of what he learned today pretty close to the chest. He's honestly not exactly thrilled about being the bandit this time -- the "bad guy" -- but it's not like it has to end in killing someone. He was a soldier, he could do it if necessary, but he was sort of dreading the day he had to do that.

[midpointmods]

"Not falling off horse-- good start!" North chuckles as he works. "Did you fall off last time? I vas never very good with horses. Give me reindeer, and I excel, but horse? Bah." Yeah, sorry, he's Santa Claus. Horses are not his thing.

[notabirdcostume]

"Depends. I was intending to get off anyway and misjudged the distance between the horse and the ground...I didn't completely land on my face, but it was a close call." His dismounts still were still far from graceful, but since he kept the same horse, he was at least better at understanding the difference now.

It's a little easier to believe things like Santa Claus when you're in a place like this...but even so Sam is still trying to decide if he's the real deal or just really in the role. "Reindeer, huh? I'd imagine they're a bit wilder than horses for starters."

[midpointmods]

"Whole different training system for reindeer," North explains, quite as if this is something he knows intimately. "Built for pulling and running, not like horse that gets all confused by harness. Also not break leg every time the ground is a little rough. Cloven hooves are much better for running."

He chuckles jovially, and allows, "Not so great for sitting on, though. Even with saddle pads-- very bony backs, reindeer."

[notabirdcostume]

Sam nods like he understands at all what North is talking about. One some basic level he does, of course, but he's very much a man of the city and his understanding of animals is really limited to those creatures that can survive in a small house or apartment -- certainly not larger animals that needed training. "You make horses sound like they're made of glass -- I thought people used horses for pulling too."