She hated to admit it, but Rheaven was actually fairly decent at public speaking. He stood on the steps of the Dalaran bank, addressing their guild clearly, confidently, and with an air that was far too somber for what was left of Night's Fury. There had been a fairly mass exit of most members once the charter was submitted and notarized and they collectively got nowhere.
Those who stuck around...well, there was Gilly's trio, naturally. A human death knight named Avi, who she found to be easy on the eyes minus the murderous glowing eyes who also seemed to fall asleep at the most random times. Twin dwarves Ciara, a warlock, and Bo, their main warrior. And a Worgen named Flynn who preferred their beast form, from the looks of it. They had introduced themselves at some point but Gilly couldn't remember for the life of her what class they were and was pretty sure she never saw them in human form.
So it was that the entire lot sat at the bottom of the bank stairs, mostly not listening as Rheaven prattled on about duty and such. Gilly was fanning herself from the oppressive sun. This was the longest she had been outside in months, and it was criminally bad for her delicate skin. To add to the suffering, the guild leader banned any alcohol for official guild gatherings. Ugh.
".. so in conclusion, our first order of business will have to be another round of recruitment. As we know, many of our inaugural members left not long after the guild was officially recognized, and there's not much… we can do with what we have." He eyed the group with grave eyes.
Amán raised her hand. He nodded at her to speak.
"This is ok, I have brat who join!"
"B..brat? Do you… we can't recruit children…" the Night Elf had a perpetual look of concern and anxiety when he was around them.
"No, no my brat. He is much old. Navee."
"She means brother," Gilly explained. "At least I think. Navee is her brother, anyway."
"I see… Well. I'm afraid to ask, but what sort of credentials does he have?"
Trixx frowned at him. "You didn't ask us for our credentials..."
"Which is exactly why I'm asking now…" he scratched his head as if this was obvious.
"Ah, da...he help murder Arthas. Old guild, they retire in ze glory after. He is.. as you say, ghost wolf now." She nodded proudly. Flynn the Worgen shifted a bit.
"She means lone wolf. Say, can we take this inside?" Gilly did her best innocent pretty head tilt. "I'm burning up."
"No," the druid snapped. "You need to work on your tolerance of the outdoors." The blonde mage was about to talk back when Avi chimed in.
"You can stay next to me," the death knight offered in a drowsy, monotone voice. Gilly raised an eyebrow.
"Oh?"
"People say the air around me is…cold." He wasn't one for words, she had noted, but she was pretty curious about him. This wasn't the first time they had met, but he had been thus far immune to her charms. This was unusual for men to not be at all interested… even death knights. And so clearly this quickly became one of the few challenges Gilly did enjoy, much to Rheaven's annoyance.
"Alright then." As she shuffled over to his side, Amán and Rheaven continued their conversation, though the druid did throw a few warning glances towards Gilly as he spoke.
"He was part of the crusade that helped fell Arthas? You're serious?"
"Da. He is paladin of Argent Crusade. Very nice tabards."
Trixx nodded enthusiastically. "It's true! I've met him. He's SUPER cool. He has tentacles on his face!" She giggled maniacally for a moment as Amán watched disapprovingly.
Rheaven scratched his bearded chin in consideration, unsure if he should get his hopes up. "Well, that would certainly be helpful. We could use another tank." He eyed Bo, who was a talented warrior but had a tendency to go into a frenzy fighting demons and loved to attack everything in sight. With Amán not yet ready to join in on healing, it was up to the druid to keep the group alive, which was an eternal challenge. Bo, Ciara, and the Worgen were competent enough, thankfully, and the four of them had managed some group tasks. Avi was their newest recruit and hadn't yet been tested.
Speaking of, Avi had completed fallen asleep again. Gilly was staring at the side of his face with a studious intensity, clearly more interested in him than the meeting. The air about him was cold, and his eyes, when they were open, had an eerie icy glow. But otherwise, he looked…well, like any other human. His skin was a healthy deep tan, his hair a dark chocolate brown. Nothing else about him seemed deathly. It was totally weird since most death knights she had encountered looked, well... dead.
"Gilly." She turned her attention away and back to Rheaven. He was giving her a pointed look.
"What?"
"Pay attention, please." He seemed more annoyed than usual. "Do you have anybody in mind for the guild?"
She scratched her head. "Not really."
"What about your brother? Didn't you say he was distinguished among the battle arena crowd?" She let out a sharp laugh.
"Oh gods, you don't want him in the guild. That kid is absolutely deranged. This one time he learned fire poi and set half a village aflame because, as he said, 'Dance is the great purifier'. Imagine." The leader sighed, unsurprised.
"Well, I know this late in the campaign it's hard to find folks who aren't either already in a guild or looking to join one. We need just a few more people and we'll finally be able to do something. We just need to work toge-"
"Hey now, I've got an idea." A familiar voice came from just outside the bank. There, sitting on the ledge was non-other than the firey red-headed Blood Elf from the other week. One leg dangled casually over the edge as she propped her chin on her arm.
"Where did YOU come from?" Rheaven bristled.
"It's a public area, you stuffy dolt." His eyes narrowed to slits but she didn't give him enough time to retaliate. "Anyway, if you guys are looking to recruit some heavy hitters, what you need to do is embrace some good old-fashioned networking. And I just happen to know the time and place for such an opportunity."
"We nay goin' ta take no tips from ye, bloody rogue. Ye can' be trusted," Bo growled loudly, his face reddened. Avi jumped, suddenly reawakened by the booming voice. Gilly offered him her most elegant smile, but he just looked at her, his face completely blank. After a few moments, she twitched and looked away. Weird...
Kaeli shrugged, unphased by the rejection.
"Your loss." The blood elf spun elegantly on her rear, hopping off the ledge, and began to walk back into the bank when Gilly shouted after her.
"Wait! We should hear her out. Besides, how can there be a social event that I don't know about?" Nobody in the guild seemed to agree, except Trixx, who smiled excitedly.
"Yeah! I wanna knooooow!"
"Well then…if you insist." The rogue slipped off a small bag that was wrapped around her thigh, rather sensually, Gilly noticed, and pulled out a small stack of paper. She waved them above her head. Rheaven shifted uncomfortably while the rest of the guild exchanged unsure glances. "Tickets to Dalaran's most exclusive social gathering of the month. Underbelly Rubs."
She was met with stunned silence.
"You have GOT to be kidding," Rheaven gawked at her. She shrugged coyly.
"You have to have money or know the right people to get in," she explained. "And no major guild wants their members associating with the place. But. There's a lot of untapped talent hanging about if you don't mind folks who are... a little rough around the edges." She smiled proudly.
"Let me guess, people like you?" Rheaven practically hissed. To her credit, Kaeli only let a flicker of annoyance flash in her eyes, otherwise able to keep her composure.
"Sorry, I'm taken," she winked and his face turned several shades darker. Gilly raised an eyebrow at that.
"If major guilds don't want their members going there, why would I?" The druid glared at the rogue, shifting the conversation.
She shrugged. "Thinking outside the box? Besides, you're obviously desperate." He snarled.
Avi suddenly interjected. "She's not lying. I've been once. It's decent. Lots of fights." He paused for a moment, thinking. "Good shit."
Gilly perked up. "You went to a scuzzy Underbelly party? Really?" This guy was truly interesting.
"Side note, ladies also drink free until midnig—"
"WE'RE IN!" With unusual alacrity, Gilly jumped to her feet, tossing a sack of gold coins at the blood elf getting her square in the patched eye. As Kaeli cursed and rubbed her face, Gilly plucked the tickets from her hand.
"This is going to be AWESOME."
"YAY, WE'RE GOING TO A PAAAARTY!" Trixx was running around in circles now. The twins exchanged a concerned look, while Flynn nipped at their feet, clearly uninterested. Rheaven let out a heavy sigh of defeat, lacking the energy to even be surprised.
"I SWEAR, Gilly, that money better not have come from the guild vault."
She smiled, shrugging innocently.
