The Multi-Dimensional OC Bar

"Right." Ician looks away and, picking up his glass of water, takes a deep gulp. "If only everything else went perfectly too."

Harmony stares at Paladin uneasily. "Don't drink too much, it's... bad for you." She pauses. "Look, there are things you can do to drown your sorrows other than drinking."

Paladin chuckled and closed the flask. "R- Right you are... Harmony..." Closing his eyes and moaning, his horn began to low faintly, a similar glow surrounding his temples.

Both Ician and Harmony stare at him.

"Is that... a spell?" Ician asks.

"M- Mhmm..." He moaned as his eyes widened. Yelping in pain, his table hits the table. Rubbing his forehead, he blinked a few times. "T- that's better..."

"... I'll take that as a yes." Ician nods.

Harmony, meanwhile, looks at him worriedly, eyeing the spot on his forehead where the table had struck. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm just hungover now..." He moaned and rubbed the spot again. "And I can't cure that unfortunately."

Ician's horn flashes brightly, and his glass of water, held aloft by his telekinesis, hovers over to Paladin. "Want some? It might help. Or so I'm told."

He shook his head. "No thank you. I have to suffer through this myself." He smiled at Harmony. "I'm alright love, just sore."

"Well, if you say so." Ician brings the glass back to his side.

"Maybe I could play something to cheer you up?" Harmony suggests, a twinkle in her eye. "Any requests?"

He smiled at the thought. "Something as beautiful as you my love." He ordered a glass of black coffee as he waited.

"Oh, come on, dear!" Harmony snickers mischievously. "Any requests for songs that exist?"

He sipped his coffee and chuckled. "Oh, of course my love... Hmmm... Well, I'm curious if you could pull off the Devil went down to Georgia?" He smiled at her.

Harmony smiled sweetly at him. "I could, maybe... but I'd need a vocalist, too." She extends her hoof towards him. "What do you say?"

The door opens and Griff steps inside. "Ahh, what a long journey." He says and closes the door behind him.

He stood up and took her hoof, kissing her gently. "I'd love to. Begin whenever you want."

"Then let's go and-" She stares at the open door. "Griff?"

Ician, who had just begun to smile, stiffens immediately. His gentle grin dropping to a stony, frozen face, he narrows his eyes at the newcomer. "Griff."

Paladin blinked and stood protectively between Griff and Harmony. "Hello Griff."

Ician casts a glance at Paladin, then turns back to Griff. "I seem to recall that you recently returned from a trip to the Eastern Sea?" He smiles at him with faux pleasantness, a thinly veiled snarl behind it. "What did you say again, about having killed a 'few'?"

Harmony stares at the scene apprehensively. "Um, Paladin? Should we... stay out of this?"

"Probably... Depends really on Griff's answer. And his reaction." He relaxed though and kissed her gently. "Let's stay out of it for the moment."

"So... the Devil Went Down to Georgia?" She asks tentatively.

"After you my dear." He smiled at her gently.

Smiling widely, Harmony stretches the bow across her violin and, with a melodic hum, begins to play.

Meanwhile, Ician ignores the two and focuses his attention solely on Griff. "Well?"

Beside him, the snake flicks its tongue once more, taking a glance at its master and assuming a more hostile position towards Griff.

Paladin grinned and started singing. "The Devil went down to Georgia. He was lookin' for a soul to steal.
He was in a bind 'cause he was way behind. He was willing to make a deal
When he came across this young man sawin' on a fiddle and playin' it hot.
And the Devil jumped upon a hickory stump and said "Boy, let me tell you what."

"I bet you didn't know it, but I'm a fiddle player, too.
And if you'd care to take a dare I'll make a bet with you.
Now you play a pretty good fiddle, boy, but give the Devil his due.
I'll bet a fiddle of gold against your soul 'cause I think I'm better than you."

The boy said, "My name's Johnny, and it might be a sin,
But I'll take your bet; and you're gonna regret 'cause I'm the best there's ever been."

Johnny, rosin up your bow and play your fiddle hard.
'Cause Hell's broke loose in Georgia and the Devil deals the cards.
And if you win you get this shiny fiddle made of gold,
But if you lose the devil gets your soul.

The Devil opened up his case and he said, "I'll start this show."
And fire flew from his fingertips as he rosined up his bow.
And he pulled the bow across the strings and it made an evil hiss.
And a band of demons joined in and it sounded something like this." Paladin paused to catch his breath, listening to her play.

"When the Devil finished, Johnny said, "Well, you're pretty good ol' son,
But sit down in that chair right there and let me show you how it's done."

"Fire on the Mountain." Run, boys, run!
The Devil's in the house of the rising sun;
Chicken's in the bread pan picking out dough.
Granny, does your dog bite? No, child, no.

The Devil bowed his head because he knew that he'd been beat.
And he laid that golden fiddle on the ground at Johnny's feet.
Johnny said, "Devil, just come on back if you ever wanna try again,
'Cause I've told you once--you son of a bitch--I'm the best there's ever been."
And he played:

"Fire on the Mountain." Run, boys, run!
The Devil's in the house of the rising sun;
Chicken's in the bread pan picking out dough.
Granny, does your dog bite? No, child, no." He finished, panting hard.

"Heh." Harmony chuckles. "Not bad, not bad." She flourishes her bow. "But can you sing... faster?"

She pulls her string across her bow, and once again begins to play, but this time at twice the speed.