Aesa gave him a smile and rolled her eyes at his comment. Though she laughed when he wiggled his eyebrows. It was a playful flirting. One that said he was confident, but not pushy. It left the door open for her to return the flirtation or not. That was the way she preferred flirting. Casual. Fun. No pressure. It was ideal. "Oh I dunno. I think you're the kind of guy that women will fight over." She looked him over, this time without trying to figure him out. He could decide for himself what it meant. "How many songs you thinking to do tonight? I have one... or maybe two on the book for later."
It was strange how they'd just ended up hitting it off and chatting. She felt comfortable with him despite not knowing much about him. There was something about the vibe he gave off that said he didn't give a damn about much of anything, but at the same time, she'd put money on him caring an awful lot about somethings. The way he'd stared the guy down earlier told her he had a bit of a protective streak. And while normally that would irritate her and make her want to prove she could take care of herself, it didn't this time around. "Got any family around this area or are you like me and a long way from where you grew up?" She didn't say home. It wasn't home. It hadn't ever truly been and never would be.
After he'd answered that nosey question, she motioned to him with her drink as she lifted it. "You know, your name isn't exactly common either. It sounds European for sure. Not sure which part. German, Scandinavian, Icelandic. Any of those feel like they'd fit. Doesn't sound french. Maybe Russian? Do you never shorten it? Go by Wulf or anything?" She wasn't normally one to talk this much, but a long day at work, probably her fifth beer by now and she was loosened up enough that her tongue felt like taking a walk.
Gerwulf thought about her comment and shook his head, having been there, done that, and wasn't really interested in being fought over. If they wanted him, people needed to be able to share. "You're wrong there, I'm the kind of guy everyone fights over," he stated cheekily as he grinned to himself. As for the songs, well, he thought about it and raised a finger before placing his bottle down on the table, before ducking away momentarily and then back again through the crowd. It wouldn't take too long, just enough to brush up against everyone on the way back to the stage to sign up, before popping back. Hands brushing against some individuals who got a little too handsy before he literally moved them from his path with a soft spoken word and a chuckle that made both sexes blush.
Once he was back, he answered. "Better to do than to think too hard on it, so I signed myself up for two more songs for the night." his hand went to the bottle, not caring that he had left it alone and it could have been tampered with while it lay open in a bar like this. "Family, nope, and I guess that would be the case. A fair bit away from my origins," nodding in response as he thought about it. He was thinking about that, a long way from home indeed. The forests, the rolling hills. Last time he checked out the lands, there were cities and highways all about. The ancient ruins crumbled and were lost beneath industry.
Taking a long drag of the bottle, the contents were noticeably emptier than when it was seen on the stage. "My name? It isn't common, but its roots come from before those countries became what they are today. I have a knack for ancient languages, same as yours, it comes from a place of flux. As for shortening it, nah, I don't. Though some know me as that or other colorful little tags. I prefer the full thing unless it's being screamed." He snickered to himself, head moving downward as he tried to contain a chortle before he went back to taking another long drink. Dirty old man, he thought to himself as his eyes moved to look at Aesa once more. "What about you? Have any nicknames or easier ways that people have taken to calling you by?"
The confidence this man had was of epic proportions, but she liked it. When he mentioned both sexes she nodded. "I see. I'm an equal opportunity partner type person myself. Don't really care whats in your pants, I care more about how you treat me and those around you. I also find confidence quite a draw." She smirked as she met his gaze. They seemed to have a lot in common. At least as far as the types of partners they chose. When he motioned for her to wait, she watched him make his way through the crowd. As she expected, people reacted to him. He was to far away to see details, but she didn't see him come to a full stop anywhere. She pressed up a bit spotting him at the sign up book. When he returned and revealed he'd signed up for two more, she grinned. They'd be here for a while yet. They'd never let you do two songs in a row to give others a chance. When no one signed up for a bit, their names would get slid into the list. Until then, they could just relax.
Aesa nodded as he spoke about his family. She didn't offer any information about her family. Talking about it sounded like telling a sob story, so she usually didn't. If anyone pushed, she just said they had a difference of opinion and left it at that. As someone who stuck her as a 'good guy', she didn't know if he'd want to hang out if he knew her past. Even if it wasn't her choice. Wanting to keep the conversation going she focused on him. "Ever go home and visit or easier not too?"
When he mentioned his name being screamed, she laughed, blushing softly. Why did that get to her? It was the alcohol more than likely. The question about nicknames caused her gaze to get distant, but she smiled as she thought about it. "My brother calls me Sunshine. My friends too." She lifted a lock of her hair. "Kind of obvious why I guess. Though it might help to know he's got dark hair like you. Except his is very long." When she was learning the various styles of martial arts, someone had called her The Shieldmaiden because of her name and being a female fighting, but she never used it for a nickname for herself. She paused a moment then chuckled. "Someone I learned martial arts with called me Shieldmaiden, but I've never used it as a nickname myself. Seems.... egotistical to use it."
Gerwulf didn't say what was on his mind, glad that she didn't seem to be one of those odd mind-reader types that you met every few decades. The first thing that came to mind was just the thoughts of a dirty old man and how he also didn't care as long as they became a drooling mess after he was done with them. Instead, he nodded with a grin in response before he moved off to do what he did. Returning with a knowing feel that the night was going to be fun with a capital F. Too bad she didn't smell of anything that he recognized as sturdy, otherwise, he'd have been able to go all out later. Licking his lips, he kept those kinds of thoughts buried.
"Nope, I come from one of those places that no longer exists anymore. Like that guy who got stuck in an airport because their country disappeared. Sad stuff, great movie," Gerwulf said in a friendly manner, not once did he seem to bat an eye at telling Aesa such a thing. Like it either didn't matter, or it was so long ago that it was a moot point to be upset. Given how he acted in life, it was surely related to the fact that he lived life to what he believed to be the fullest. As for the reaction to his words almost lit a fire in his chest, making him want to lean in and growl, but he held himself back. That sort of thing was for closed doors, and they would surely get there at some point.
"Sunshine, cute," He commented as he brushed his free hand through the same hair she was remarking about. "It's not that long, used to have enough that it could have been called a mane." He chuckled before taking another sip of whiskey; he'd almost gotten through three-fifths of the bottle. Given it was a 70cl thing, it was kind of impressive or suicidal, yet, given how stable he seemed, perhaps it could be chalked up to how big he was. "Skjaldmær! Hah... never say that. It is better that others call you such. A Goddess blessed for battle, shield in hand and blood on one's lips." His mind almost floating off as she spoke, the word he used bleeding into the old language in such a fluent manner. "Egotistical is when you say it with arrogance instead of pride. Names have meaning, even as small as that."
What was it like for your home to disappear? She couldn't imagine it. Not that she would truly mind if her family home disappeared off the face of the earth. The city? The other people? She might be sad about those being gone. As she rolled his words around in her head, she tried to think of a country that had stopped existing in the last ten or twenty years. Nothing came to mind though. "Do you mind if I ask what country? I can't recall any being taken over in the last decade or two, but world history isn't my area of expertise." She felt for him losing his home, but at the same time he didn't seem terribly bothered by it.
It was instinct to flinch when his hand came near her, but she held herself still fighting it. He'd done nothing wrong and the small flirt wasn't unwelcome. She gave him a smile when he touched it, hoping he didn't notice the partial move she'd stopped herself from making. She just needed to remind her brain that she wasn't under a threat at the moment. She chuckled. "I don't have a recent picture of Thorin." She took out her phone, scrolling till she found a pick of him somewhere in Europe working on a fishing boat. "Here he is." Where Aesa was average height and blonde. He was tall, muscled, and dark. "That's Thorin. He's out of the country at the moment." The tone of her voice clearly said she missed him, but she didn't say anything more."
While she had her phone out, she seemed to think for a moment, then laid it on the table with a new contact pulled up "If you're going to be in town a little bit, why don't we exchange numbers. That way if you need anything you can reach out. And I'll actually answer instead of sending you to voicemail cause I'll know who it is." After she'd made her suggestion, she listened to what he had to say about the other nickname. "Oh, I'd never call myself that. Felt weird when someone else did. I mean, I've seen my fair share of blood and battle, but still. Makes me feel... undeserving when they said it."
