Tangled Crowns

Mischief

Darts were fun, Derek decided. It helped that the beautiful, bright-eyed man named 'Mischief' was his teacher.

He aimed his dart and landed it just to the right of the bullseye.

Mischief threw his hands up in celebration. "Hey, that's your first miss, I may just have a chance!"

Derek grinned before landing his last dart, hitting dead center this time.

Levy chuckled from where he was watching from the bar.

"Okay, so I just have to get all my darts in the bullseye to beat you. I can do that." Mischief said. He shook his arms out and rolled his neck.

Derek watched with admiring eyes as Mischief took his first dart and very seriously aimed it at the board. It was nice interacting with people who didn't treat him like he was going to break or be offended by any little remark. Not once had he been apologized to. It was refreshing.

"Damn it," Mischief swore as his dart landed just under the bullseye. He threw the second one hitting just above this time.

"If you can land this one, your drinks are free for the rest of the night," Levy said, crossing his arms over his chest as he leaned against the bar.

The bar was quiet as Mischief aimed his dart. It soared through the air and landed in the board with a soft thud.

"Is that in?" Vander asked from his table.

Derek took a half step forward to get a better look. "Unfortunately, not quite." The dart sat just outside the line nearly on it.

The bar roared with laughter, which Derek couldn't help but join in on.

"Damn," Mischief sighed, plucking the darts from the board. "How about another go?" he asked a grin on his face despite the loss.

Derek hesitated, glancing into his almost empty tankard. He had planned to have one quick drink before heading back. He wanted to stay. God, he wanted to stay. But Boyd would worry if he was gone too long.

"Come on, give me a chance to earn my dignity back." Mischief held up the cup of darts. His eyes danced under the lantern light as he waited for Derek's response.

"Yeah, okay." Derek found himself agreeing. He was having fun. He hadn't had fun in a long time. It might be a while before he got to have fun again.

Mischief grinned widely, making Derek's own lips pull into a small smile.

He didn't know if it was the atmosphere or the people, but Derek felt calm here. He liked how friendly everyone was with one another. Even Vander was laughing and teasing his friends. There were no social expectations. No polite small talk. Everyone seemed to know each other and seemed to genuinely care about each other.

"Mischief, how's that horse a yours doin'?" The man that had puked up his dinner earlier asked. He had turned in his ale for water per Levy's suggestion. He was currently propped in a chair watching their game of darts.

Mischief paused, his dart mid-aim. "He's much better, Mikel. Thanks for asking. It ended up being just a small infection, but we cleared it up."

Derek noted the fondness in Mischief's tone. He seemed genuinely touched that Mikel had asked.

Mikel hiccuped. "I had an infection once. It was on my pinky toe." A solemn look crossed his face. "It didn't make it."

Mischief barked a laugh. "You're lucky it didn't spread." He turned back to the dart board.

"It spread all right. It spread to his brain," Vander teased, giving Mikel's shoulder a gentle punch.

Derek smiled. He'd trade all the fancy clothes and fine wines for this any day.