[ ahead of myself - open ]

[ADDY.]

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— addy wasn’t good at much - well, not good at most normal people things. he could fight someone, beat the shit out of someone… but one of the most normal things he supposed he was good at was probably pool. he wouldn’t go so far as to call himself an expert, but he would go as far as to say that he wasn’t the worst person on the planet - and that, for having a casino right in their territory, not enough people cared to play. today would be their lucky day, though, because addy was actually in a slightly social - social for addy’s standards - kind of mood.

racking the pool balls, he glanced around absently as he removed the triangle from the table. and this was probably the best way he could spend his late saturday nights; with a pool table nearby, and a bottle of vodka even closer. as he waited around for someone to step up to the plate - maybe even get some spectators? he wasn’t sure - he settled for reaching for said bottle of vodka, taking a rather large swig of it before grabbing a nearby cue. let’s see how well this went, he supposed.


//woah this is crappy just tbh wanted to get something up

[truce.]

[align=center][div style="width: 375px; text-align: justify; font-family: verdana; font-size: 7pt; line-height: 1.5;"]— tw. thoughts of killing, manipulative behavior, mention of alcohol use

Ellis was very good at many things. He'd think so, anyway, despite in fact being awful at most things - he wasn't even that good at being a decent human being, yet of course he'd managed to convince himself otherwise. He didn't know any better. And so, when it came to 'decent human being' activities, like not killing things for the sheer thrill of it or not trying to convince manipulate people into liking him, he was utterly clueless. Before the Badlands, Ellis did not even know what a pool table was. In his mind, the only pool he knew of was a swimming pool. And so, when people began to mention pool table in generic conversation, Ellis wasn't even sure what to think.

A whole ass table in a swimming pool? This town didn't even own a damn swimming pool. Ellis wanted to roll his eyes - these people were so fucking stupid sometimes.

It was Saturday evening and Ellis knew that the casino was often the busiest place in the town at that time of day. And so, he naturally found himself gravitating towards it. Despite being very introverted in character, he also wasn't one to hide away from conversation and a social life. Though, he looked slightly out of place, a scrawny, sickly looking teenager who didn't drink stood in the middle of a casino on a Saturday night. If the world hadn't gone to shit, he wouldn't have even been old enough to be allowed in here. Eyes landed on a green felt table with these balls that made an awfully satisfying sound when clicked together, and then averted his gaze to see a man taking a swig of alcohol, about to play a game.

Ellis found himself wandering closer in silence, standing nearby the table, flitting his eyes over the different colored balls, before peering over to Addy. "What is this game? What are you supposed to do with it?"

[ADDY.]

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— some scrawny kid wandering up to question what the game was, and what they were supposed to do with it.. honestly, addy should’ve expected a kid to be wandering around in a casino, especially nowadays. the redhead himself knew that he would’ve loved to hit casinos back when he had been a teenager, if he had been allowed to. still, the teen could’ve gone literally anywhere except right over to the pool table. his gaze flitted over to him, searching his features momentarily before muttering, “it’s called pool. might be a little over your head.” addy had been working on not being such an asshole, especially towards younger people…

so, with a subtle roll of his eyes, he placed the vodka down before grabbing the kid a cue of his own. “take this. i’ll show you the ropes. just don’t expect me to take it fuckin’ easy on you.” it wasn’t even the redhead so much being helpful; it was more so just him trying to do something to take away from all that was going on in his head. this was simply the easiest thing that he could possibly do, and beating some scrawny twerp at pool -- wasn’t exactly how he planned to spend his saturday nights, but it was.. something. “here, watch,” and with that, he lined up his shot with the white ball and made the break, the satisfying click of the balls almost soothing.

sure enough, one of the balls went in. stripe. “since i potted that one, i’ve gotta pot all of the stripes, you do solids. just don’t have the white one go in, or the 8-ball. got it?” he asked that absently as he lined up another shot, managing to pot a few before he failed to pot another one. with a sigh, he leaned back before stating, “have a go at it.”

[CATALYST]

People went out to drink, socialize, play games. Well, most people did; Cat went out to watch people do those things. It sounded kinda creepy and... well shit, maybe it was. They didn't think so; they did it out of a desire to know without being known, out of a fascination with people and how they acted when they let lose. It wasn't some weird way to get kicks or... something.

The casino was a hotspot because of that, but also it was a place where people could find them easily without interrupting anything. If they were here and they weren't giving a meeting, they were free and available. Sure, you could also find them easily at their house, but there were no guarantees that they'd want to abandon whatever they were doing there, especially not quickly.

Cat's gaze drifted lazily over to Addy and Ellis, watching as the older tried to teach the younger how to play pool. They had a mystery drink in their hand; easy to assume it's alcoholic if you weren't aware of their distaste for it, though in reality it most certainly was not alcoholic. People were welcome to think that, though. They were here for that, actually. "Kick his arse, Ellis."

[spoiler=IF YOU DONT KNOW NOW YOU KNOW && INFO && 04/27/19]GENERAL  welcome to the end of eras, ice has melted back to life
⇥ Given name is Scott Mathew Darrow ⇥ Goes only by Catalyst or Cat
⇥ Assigned male at birth ⇥ Agender ⇥ They/Them pronouns only
⇥ Twenty-one ⇥ Born 11/27/17 ⇥ Sagittarius ⇥ Real time aging
⇥ Boss (leader) of the Badlands ⇥ Ex prisoner of the Badlands
⇥ Ex cultist (Mourningstar) ⇥ Ex member of the Young Rogues

RECENT EVENTS  done my time and served my sentence
⇥ 04/20/39 ⇥ Released Northstar from Badlands occupation
⇥ 04/16/39 ⇥ Was saved by Sheogorath
⇥ 04/15/39 ⇥ Took the Badlands brand
⇥ 04/08/39 ⇥ Had a huge fight with Molly

APPEARANCE  dress me up and watch me die
⇥ Catalyst is 6'2" tall; they possess a lean and muscular body, one that has a variety of old scars adorning it. One of the easiest to notice is one that stretches down their right cheek. While not a scar, one very notable marking on their chest is the "BL" brand. They have two piercings, one in their tongue and the other in the cartilage of their left ear. They typically dress in dark colors (favoring jackets with some sort of writing on the back), and their hair is black. They're not all dark, however, as they have pale blue eyes that peer out from beneath medium-sized eyebrows.

PERSONALITY  if it feels good, tastes good, it must be mine
⇥ Catalyst is ambitious, with the cunning and ruthlessness to reach their goals by any means necessary. They can be brutal when they feel it is needed, however when it's not they won't bother. They tend to be rather aloof and apathetic to most things and people, with some very rare exceptions. Provided those around them don't cross a few specific lines, they're content to leave them be, though they've been known to take an interest in some people, which seldom has a positive end for whoever their interest is in. They can be manipulative, and will often encourage people to make bad decisions. Those that stick by them will be rewarded, but those that do not will be cast out, as they've been outcast for their entire life and have learned to appreciate loyalty wherever they can find it. Even during the most stressful of situations, they usually keep a firm grip on their temper and keep their calm, though when they do snap and lose their temper, it is uncontrollable. They're remarkably observant, often able to deign much from subtle clues in what people say, how they say it and how they act.

RELATIONS  dynasty decapitated, you just might see a ghost tonight
⇥ Molly Darrow x Austin Darrow ⇥ No siblings
⇥ Adopted parent of Molly Valentina Darrow-Lupei (Mo)
⇥ Pansexual/Panromantic ⇥ Very much taken ⇥ One Crush
⇥ Not looking but it happened ⇥ Rarely forms romantic attachment
⇥ Holds most people at arms length and doesn't get close

INTERACTION  i'm taking back the c r o w n
⇥ Hard physically ⇥ Hard mentally ⇥ Doesn't let their guard down
⇥ Is most comfortable with close ranged-weapons ⇥ Dislikes guns
⇥ Brass knuckles ⇥ A variety of knives ⇥ Carries a handgun
⇥ Will kill/capture/maim in certain circumstances
⇥ Will leave things be in others ⇥ Will start & finish fights
⇥ No kill/capture/maim without permission
⇥ Peaceful powerplay allowed but they may react negatively
⇥ Dislikes almost any sort of touch unless they initiate or agree to it
[/spoiler]

[truce.]

[align=center][div style="width: 375px; text-align: justify; font-family: verdana; font-size: 7pt; line-height: 1.5;"]— Ellis frowned at Addy's comment - might be a little over his head? Ellis supposed that at least it wouldn't be a little over Addy's big head. Egotistical asshole. Ellis couldn't help but crack the tiniest of smiles Addy's way in response, a smile so demeaning however, before silently taking the cue from him. Honestly, Ellis had very little patience for people like this, yet he'd tolerate this one anyway. After all, he had people to impress here, and visibly having a row with somebody like Addy probably wouldn't help with his reputation.

He kept a tight grip on the cue, eyes following as Addy showed him how it was done. It didn't seem too hard, did it? All it was was hitting a couple of balls into holes on the sides of the tables. Why was this even a proper game? It seemed pretty dumb, after all. One of the balls went in, Ellis tipping his head to the side curiously as he watched the rest of the balls slow to a stop. Finally, his gaze turned back to Addy as he spoke, shifting side to side subtly, before responding quickly, "Yeah, I already know that." Well. That was a lie. He couldn't help but say so, however, especially with Addy acting so 'smart' about this stupid game.

Finally, it was now Ellis' turn, the scrawny brunet lifting the cue and trying to replicate what Addy did - emphasis on the word 'trying'. Cat piped up, a ghost of a crooked smirk playing on his lips at the comment, before he began to focus and-

He couldn't even pot one.

He exhaled a slow breath, straightening up in defeat before taking a step back. Well, that was disappointing.

[ADDY.]

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— “yeah, i already know that.”

fuck. it scared him to think about how much this little brat reminded him of himself, back when he was young and dumb. “shut the fuck up,” he settled on saying simply. it felt only right to return the boy’s lie with a simple jab. show that he knew better than to believe in that kind of bullshit, especially since he’d said that kind of bullshit many times, before. he liked to think that he and ellis didn’t have anything in common; however, the more he stuck around with him, the more he realized they were oddly similar. and honest to god he fuckin’ hated it.

and then cat had to make that damn remark. his gaze flitted over to them, sneering as he sent a, “fuck off,” his way. not that cat would be unfazed. bitchass wasn’t fazed by anything, it seemed.

he watched as the teen, smirking - absolutely failed at his first attempt. watching that smirk vanish was more satisfying than he’d like to admit. he had to admit, though, watching the teen get knocked down a peg was pretty damn satisfying. “looks like you’re shit out of luck.” still, as much as he enjoyed watching the kid get disappointed in himself at fucking up, he honestly just wanted a good game.

“try again. we’ll just call that first one a warm-up.” he wasn’t going to give any explanation as to why - at the end of the day, it was just him having some mercy on a fuckin’ kid.