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“Godsdammit, Wilred, you’re cheating!”
The accusation rang throughout the Rising Stones like an alarm, and more than just a few heads turned. Rivayn decided it was best he intervene before it came to blows.
“I’m not cheating!” the younger man insisted as Arenvald crossed his arms in what could only be described as an aggressive pout.
“Boys…” Rivayn began as he entered the room, prompting both men to turn their attention – their negative attention – to him. He paused as he noticed their twin glares. “…what?”
“Boys?” Wilred asked, his glare narrowing and intensifying.
“Well, I mean…” Rivayn gestured haplessly at the pair of younger men. Better they were angry at him than at each other, he figured. “So… uh…what are you playing?”
“Triple Triad,” Arenvald announced, his tone of voice extremely nonplussed.
“Which I am not cheating at,” Wilred added with crossed arms.
Rivayn glanced at the cards before him. “I am something of a Triple Triad prodigy, according to some.”
“So, you’ll know I’m not cheating,” Wilred replied, his expression stony. Arenvald continued to glare.
“Probably,” Rivayn agreed with a shrug. “I’m sure a Scion of the Seventh Dawn wouldn’t cheat at cards, though.”
“Sure they wouldn’t,” Arenvald returned, glaring daggers at his opponent.
“Aren’t you two both from Ala Mhigo?” Rivayn asked, hoping to diffuse Arenvald’s ire.
“He’s not,” Arenvald nearly spat.
Wilred was having none of it. “Am too, you bloody lump of goobbue dung!”
“Hey.” Rivayn’s voice cut through the tension like a knife. “You both want to be men? Well, it’s time to start acting like it.”
Arenvald and Wilred both fell silent.
“Real men have disagreements that they talk through,” Rivayn continued. “They don’t resort to name-calling over a game of cards.”
He looked back and forth between the two now-silent men. Both of them hailed from Ala Mhigo, though he knew that only Arenvald had actually lived there. Wilred’s parents had fled their homeland during the war, and he had been born in Thanalan. It was something he knew caused Wilred no end of consternation.
“How about we assume that no one is cheating?” Rivayn suggested, inviting himself to the table. The two Ala Mhigans stared at him as he sank into the chair across from them. “What?”
“Triple Triad is a two-person game,” Wilred told him, though his cheeks near immediately turned to a blush. “N-not that you’re not welcome, or…”
“Relax,” Rivayn ordered with a laugh. “You both need to stop thinking of me as some kind of celebrity.”
“Easy for you to say,” Arenvald muttered under his breath.
Rivayn quirked an eyebrow. “What was that?”
“You’re, well… you,” Wilred offered in Arenvald’s stead, much to Rivayn’s delight. “We’ve done nothing but heard stories of your heroics for months on end.”
“Oh, really?” Rivayn asked with a smirk. “So you’d rather I just watch then…?”
Arenvald had spent more time with the Warrior of Light, so his reactions to Rivayn’s taunts were slightly more in check. “You can watch all you like,” he finally offered. “And then you can see he’s cheating.”
“I don’t cheat!” Wildred exclaimed in exasperation, though his objection was kept in check by a gesture from the Warrior of Light.
“Do you lose at cards often?” Rivayn asked, his gaze fixed on Arenvald. The boy stared at him for a moment before answering.
“…sometimes.”
Rivayn fixed his gaze upon the younger man. “Why do you think Wilred is cheating?”
“Because…” Arenvald trailed off. “………damnit.”
Wilred’s face blossomed into a smile. “You know I’m not cheating!”
“Damn it all,” Arenvald growned.
Rivayn frowned. “Arenvald.”
“Fine, fine.” The boy seemed defeated.
“Why do you dislike me so much?” Wilred finally asked, his voice soft but clear. Arenvald turned his gaze to his companion.
“I… I don’t know,” the Ala Mhigan finally admitted. “I just… you say you’re Ala Mhigan, but…”
“Your people have been given a raw hand,” Rivayn began before Wilred could speak. “You home was taken from you, and you suffered more than most before you fled, but…”
“…but I’m not the only one.” The tone in Arenvald’s voice suggested perhaps he understood where he’d gone wrong.
“Wildred didn’t have the privilege of being born in his homeland,” Rivayn continued, “but that doesn’t mean he’s any less Ala Mhigan than you.”
“I know,” Arenvald replied, his head hung low. “I just…”
“It’s hard,” Wilred offered with a weak smile. “It’s hard for all of us.”
Arenvald raised his gaze to meet his comrade’s. Wilred’s face held nothing but a warm smile, and even Rivayn could tell that Arenvald’s heart was moved.
“You’re right,” the older boy finally admitted. “I can’t just… own Ala Mhigo like this.”
Wilred reached out and placed a hand on Arenvald’s shoulder. “You went through some absolute shite, Arenvald,” he began with a warm smile. “Life was hard in Little Ala Mhigo, but… I’m sure it can’t compare to your hardships. And I wouldn’t try to compare them.”
“No, I’m the one who was wrong,” Arenvald returned with a shake of his head. “I had the privilege of being born in my homeland, and you didn’t.”
Rivayn chuckled lightly. “You were both granted a similarly raw deal,” he began, the smile on his face never quite leaving. “How about you play cards and think about what you have in common instead of what you don’t.”
“You’re right,” Wilred returned with a warm smile. “We should focus on the positive instead of the negative.”
“I still think you’re cheating,” Arenvald said after a moment, though his expression quickly turned to a grin. “And I plan to best you nonetheless.”
“Good luck,” Wilred taunted, grinning back in equal measure. Rivayn smiled, taking this as his cue to leave.
“Good job,” a familiar voice said as he stepped out of earshot of the two boys. Rivayn’s head snapped toward the sound.
He smiled as he realized the source. “It was about time I was useful out of combat,” he replied with a wry grin.
“First time for everything,” Yda returned with a smile to rival his own. “You being a peacemaker is certainly a new role.”
Rivayn frowned as seriously as he could. “I am deeply offended.” He was not, and Yda knew it.
“Right,” she answered with a grin. “Shall I buy a pint at the Seventh Heaven to help you feel better?”
Rivayn couldn’t help but smile. “Certainly couldn’t hurt.”
She seemed delighted. “Well then,” Yda replied, a broad smile plastered across her face, “shall we?”