Closed Unnatural Encounter [Valerius]

[Amelia Cross]

This man seemed to be fascinated by language, it was easily spotted by the way she spoke of it. Then again, he could just be bragging about his knowledge, a few people enjoyed doing that, but one way or the other, his skills of using the Ancient Tongue, are worth noting. Amelia herself didn’t have the lightest head when it came to languages, despite her adoration of it. Making her somewhat impressed.

Amelia couldn’t help but roll her eyes at the way he introduced himself, only to make her glad she was slightly behind him at that point, so he probably didn’t notice that. Amelia didn’t have anything against any of the families, probably because she wasn’t in touch with them, she just knew a few things like why they were so important. And as much as Amelia knew, it was something to be proud of, she never could understand such high arrogance as it was clearly heard in his voice ”Who hasn’t heard of him?” she stated, but the question didn’t ask for an answer ”It’s a pleasure” she added. Still casually enough to not expect any reaction from the man.

Amelia was well aware that she could confuse people, she was used to it, but she wasn’t quite used to men admitting it. None the less, it was his latter statement that really caught her off guard. ”So I’m not worth talking to?” ”In that case, what does Mr.Nitrozian find worthy of a discussion?” Still polite, and short, as she toke a step forward, to be next to Valerius.

”It depends on the nature of your question…” she began, after hearing his, quite understandable, curiosity of her thoughts about the pit. ”I’m not much of a violence lover, I prefer theatre and art as my entertainment. I would much rather spend my time reading and eating sweets, singing maybe…so to put it short, yes, they are too brutal” she began speaking, unwillingly shifting into a rant ”I don’t see point in the fights they hold there, as I don’t see a reason for someone to treat their slaves that way…the only reason I drop by there is to see my father, who claims that place is full of information, and if you manage to buy one before a fight, good slaves in good price…that just need a bit of talking done…” ”…not that he keeps them””not to mention, it gives you a feeling of power and superiority, to see people fighting like animals for your entertainment…at least, that’s what a few of my friends claim” she should probably stay quiet, but she was now wondering, does he enjoy those fights ”what about you? Do you enjoy those fights, or avoid that place?”

[Valerius Nitrozian]

„There are quite a few things that I find worthy of discusssion“, Valerius replied. He was more than happy to talk about the things he liked. „There is of course the Ancient Tongue. But I also have a certain interest in the Eypharians and their culture, even though they have not seen Rhysol’s light yet. Slavery and my work at the KRI are likewise a topic worthy of discussion, but I will stop here. I do not want to bore you by giving you a lenghty list.“ Another man might have smiled here, but Valerius was as always dead serious. „And which topics interest you, Miss Cross?“ he asked, more for politeness‘ sake than anything else. „Singing?“ he asked and arched an eyebrow, a sign of at least mild surprise. He had a certain interest in singing and music himself, although he did not often talk about it as it would be at odds with his carefully cultivated reputation. „Are you a singer then?“ „I regularly visit the Pit. Sometimes the fights can be a little brutal, but there are some fighters that are worth watching“, Valerius replied. „But my main reason for going there is information. Your father seems like an intelligent man, Miss Cross. There are a lot of things that can be gained from spending an afternoon at the Pit.“ „As for that feeling of superiority you’ve mentioned, I’ve never felt that. Why should watching two slaves, two slaves that I do not even own, make me feel superior?“ He shrugged his shoulders. By now they had gotten a fair bit closer to the Pit, and Valerius could not help but wonder what meeting Amelia’s father would be like. It would definitely be of advantage to try and get to know the man better and get on his good side. He needed more contacts among the members of the Black Sun.

[Amelia Cross]

Amelia tried to recall in her memory anything about the Eypharians, but sadly, aside from the fact that they had multiple arms and dwelled in the desert, she knew nothing. So that topic didn’t help much. Amelia’s thoughts about slavery and how one should threat their slaves, is slightly different than most people of Ravok, as she had spent quite some time in Syliras. Research at the KRI? ”so he is a scientist?” Amelia began wondering, and actually, the KRI was a topic worthy of discussion, Amelia was highly interested in Kelvics, well, highly might be pushing it, but she was.”So, you are a scientist?” Amelia asked ”I must say Kelvics seem to be an interesting topic of discussion, I’ve encountered quite a lot of them in my travels, interesting creatures, aggressive and not the most social creatures, but interesting ”

The Cross doubted that he was sincerely interested in what Amelia would enjoy speaking of, but she answered none the less ”Theatre, Literature, Religion…Philosophy…that is what I find to be most interesting, just as language but that’s a topic to be done by a cup of tea by people willing to learn from each other, not by strangers on the streets” Clearly avoiding topics that the man might find to be wrong for a female. The Nitrozian came off too much like a conservative man. ”You could say I’m a singer, my mother is a music teacher, songs and rhymes where put in my crib, as some say” ”and Rhaus enforced it”


The talk about the Pit bored Amelia, she couldn’t deny it. While she could be seen there quite often, she didn’t like it or find it entertaining. She just nodded to the mention of her father being an intelligent man. Though she assumed that every member of The Black Sun where like that, cold and intelligent? ”Neither have I, though as I said, I don’t find the fights entertaining. Or maybe I just haven’t seen the right ones?” might have been true? Either way, she didn’t bother to try and explain the possible views of the empowering parts of the fight.

As they closed in on the Pit, Amelia began looking around, searching for her father. He normally stood out amongst the rest of the people here, but somehow, she failed to spot him this time. ”Oh, Papa…” she wondered as she let her eyes look over the perimeter again. And the she saw it, she saw him. Her father was having fun, chatting with a group of men. Amelia didn’t recognize them, but judging from the way they handled them by her father, and seemingly well-tailored clothing, they might have been his equals? Or just merchants with pockets full of Miza”there he is!” Amelia almost cheered, while using her palm to gesture to the tall, pale man who held a striking resemblance to Amelia. Slender, well groomed and black hair that reached down a bit below his shoulders. The overall image finished off with his cane, which was more of a fashion statement than anything else.

[Valerius Nitrozian]

„Indeed, I am“, Valerius confirmed as Amelia asked him whether he was a scientist. He had only recently started assisting his aunt Amanda, the head researcher and Doctor Gaius Alzelin in their experiments, but Amelia didn’t need to know that. She didn’t need to know that he had spent months upon months feeding the creatures, washing them, getting rid of their excrements and doing other, demeaning and not in the least scientific work. „I wouldn’t call them aggressive though. Murderous is more like it. I once watched as one of them went from calm and seemingly harmless to tearing a woman’s throat out and destroying an entire room within seconds. I barely made it out of that situation alive.“ What he didn’t tell Amelia was that he had survived by hiding under a table like a coward. It wouldn’t be good for his reputation if that became known. „Is that an invitation then?“ he asked as she spoke about discussing those other topics over a cup of tea and arched an eyebrow. He could not help but wonder why she had made that comment. Was she simply trying to be polite or interested in further meetings? It would be advantageous to get to know the daughter of Dominic Cross better, he decided. „Maybe we can share a cup of tea at Yae Varone’s one of these days and talk about religion, philosophy and music then. Yae Varone’s is my favourite cafe in Ravok.“ „Maybe“, he replied and shrugged his shoulders as she wondered whether she simply hadn’t watched the right fights. Just like Amelia he didn’t wish to pursue the matter further. He was thinking about other things. „As I said, there are some good fighters that try to do more than simply kill their opponent as quickly and brutally as possible.“ As they arrived at the Pit, he fell silent and simply walked next to Amelia as they looked for her father. He recognized the man almost right away because Dominic Cross bore a striking resemblance to his daughter. He was tall, handsome and very well dressed, definitely a man that was worth getting to know it better. „Shall we go to him?“ he asked Amelia.

[Amelia Cross]

Despite the profession being highly interesting, and worthy of talking, especially by someone who seemed to be as eager to impress as Valerius, he didn’t pay much attention to it. At least, not as much as one would expect, but she didn’t mind. Amelia was curios, but now she knew what was his trade and that might come in handy. Kelvics came in all shapes and sizes. She would love to get herself a dog kelvic or maybe a well behaved bird? Maybe Mr.Nitrozian could help her out?

”I think, that is just self-defense…of course, I won’t pretend that I know how proper research is done but I think…they just get scared” it seemed reasonable to the girl, especially as she herself was scared of doctors as a whole, if she didn’t understand that each appointment was for her own good, she’d probably attack and run off. Kelvics, were dumb and fi not dumb, then at least slow…they might think of someone coming near them, as an attack. Could they not? ”yet, I have to acknowledge your bravery, dealing with such creatures on a daily basis, you must be close to fearless…after all, a kelvic might as well be a wolf or even something worse” Was Amelia really impressed or was she just brushing his ego, to make her more appealing to the man? Hard to tell.

”did I want to see him?” Amelia couldn’t help but wonder, sure, the man was easy on the eyes. She couldn’t argue with the fact it would help her out to bout know someone at a higher position of the KRI and a member of the Nitrozian household. Her father would also be impressed, so…why not? ”You have good taste, they have amazing sweets there” a bit of a flirty tone in her voice ”I’d love to meet up with you there, sometime…when you find the time, wouldn’t want to pull you away from your research” was she pushing it? Probably. But Amelia hopped that he loved himself enough, to find her comment flattering, or at least well mannered for a woman.

The topic of fights was a bore, so she let it slide by as if it was never said, hopping the Nitrozian wasn’t interested in the topic. But she didn’t hesitate to answer once he questioned about seeing her father. ”oh yes! Let us go’ she smiled brightly and walked towards her father, who had already managed to spot her and Valerius. However, he didn’t wave at them or even smile, he just looked in Amelia’s eyes and nodded his head, ever so slightly, probably only Amelia had a guess what it meant. In her father’s language, it meant ‘come here’.

As they approached, the two men had decided to leave Dominick. It was uncertain, had they chosen to leave or did the man ask them to? That didn’t matter, really, nobody was able to predict the Cross. Some would even claim that as the reason why he has never come closer to becoming an acolyte. He is just too crazy and unpredictable.

They finally had reached the man and Amelia performed a curtsy with a bow of her head ”Papa” she said, what caused her father to only smile, smile like a sly animal…a killer who knew every move of his prey and was toying around. That was true, her father knew that she didn’t fool around with such gestures on the open, meaning, she was trying to impress the man she was with. ”enough dear” was his simple request, before he turned to Valerius. Dominick had paid enough attention to him, from the way he walked and was dressed, he could tell that he was well off. But that wasn’t what drew his attention to Valerius, it was the fact he looked familiar. Could he had seen him before and not remember? Could be, unless someone showed enough interest in him, or he needed them…Dominick tented to erase memories of people. ”and who might be you,sir?”

[Valerius Nitrozian]

„In some cases maybe“, Valerius replied as Amelia mentioned how the Kelvic might just be scared. „But this particular Kelvic wasn’t scared. I had been working with her for some time, and she never showed any sign of fear. She was an insane, murderous beast, nothing more.“ He left it at that. He had no interest in telling Amelia the whole story of Winter, the cat Kelvic that his aunt had ordered him to take care of. He smiled very lightly as she complimented him on his bravery though. „Maybe I am“, he replied. He liked being flattered, even though he did of course know that everybody had hidden motives and that she didn’t only act like that because he was such a nice, handsome man – he was far from naive, and he knew that he wasn’t nice - but still. Amelia Cross was such a refreshing change from the likes of Tock who had come into his house one day, dressed like a man and said things that no lady would ever dare to say. „And maybe we can meet in the evening, a few days from now. My work at the KRI and for my family can be very time consuming, but I do occasionally have a few bells off.“ He noticed that the men Dominick Cross had been talking to left as Amelia and he approached. Did they not want to be seen with her father? Did Dominick Cross not want them to meet? What had they been talking about? What was Dominick Cross up to? He decided that he would try to find out. For now though he bowed respectfully to the man before he politely replied, „My name is Valerius Nitrozian, Mister Cross. I am Sitanos‘ grandson. Your daughter told me that she was looking for you, and I offered to escort her.“

[Amelia Cross]

Every man loved a well-placed compliment, and Amelia was sure she had managed to put hers in the best possible moment. Well, let the girl think like that, think that Valerius was blind enough to think that Amelia was sincere. But even with the confidence she held in herself, of her own actions and skills, she didn’t push the limit further. She was afraid to come off too fake. So, before she knew it, the topic of bout the KRI and the man as a whole, drifted off.

”well…maybe not” she fought the urge to roll her eyes. Amelia liked to be in charge of her time, and for the most part, she knew that if one was overly available…they looked cheap. While a man who is part of the Nitrozian family, couldn’t really look cheap and overly available even if he wanted to, Amelia was in a different position. ”I’m sorry, but I will be busy this evening, my father is in need of my help” she knew that it was a statement that seemingly invited someone to question her more, but that was the best she could pull out.

”It’s a pleasure”Ah, her father was back into his game. Amelia could see he was looking Valerius up and down, he was trying to tell apart his potential and use to him. Of course, the fact he didn’t actually remember the Nitrozian, made Amelia realize she had done well to have met him, but would her father share the opinion? A man might be useless even if he was from the higher ranks of sociality. ”And I should thank you for accompanying my daughter, she returned just recently and still gets lost””if you would have actually been at the temple, where you were supposed to be…” she still smiled, not letting her thoughts reflect on her face.

This was getting awkward for Amelia, she wasn’t sure what to say or do. ”father, the job, why you asked for me…?” her eyes shining with hope to leave, to leave now. Her father knew, he saw, and usually he wouldn’t let her escape a social encounter with a man of Valerius’s status, but this was an exception. Dominick didn’t want to speak of it in public. ”ah yes, my friend is in need of your services” he simply stated ”Mr.Nitrozian, I must apologize, but I must kidnap Amelia”

[Valerius Nitrozian]

„I did not say ‚this evening‘, Miss Cross“, Valerius informed her. If she decided to play hard to get, it was her loss. He wouldn’t turn his whole schedule around just because she was Dominick Cross‘ daughter and a well mannered and mildly interesting woman. Valerius liked to be in charge of his time as well and expected others to accomodate him. „I said ‚in the evening‘, one of these days. I would of course never tear you away from your father, although I cannot help but wonder what it is that he needs you for.“ ~~~ Valerius noticed how Amelia’s father was looking him up and down. The Nitrozian stood completely still, with his head raised slightly and looked directly into the man’s eyes. He hoped that Dominick Cross realized how beneficial this little meeting could be for both of them. „The pleasure was all mine“, he replied. „I found Amelia’s company to be quite enjoyable, despite some initial confusion. You should be proud of your daughter.“ „Of course“, Valerius said as Mister Cross told him that he had to ‚kidnap‘ his daughter. He furrowed his brow very lightly at the mention of ‚services‘, but decided not to ask about it anymore as it could be considered impolite, and he didn’t want Dominick Cross to consider him implite. „I will take my leave then, Mister Cross. Amelia. He bowed to them.

[Amelia Cross]

The way Valerius made it clear that he wasn’t in a rush to see her. This made her reconsider her idea of playing hard to get. She knew how this worked, he was the one in charge, wasn’t he? Men like that could enjoy a chase, but this should have been the other way around. He had a lot Amelia could gain, while she had little to offer. Actually, she had nothing to offer and should have been the one begging out for his attention ”I must be too eager to see you again” she said, trying to appear innocent and charming. Well, not her best act. Her pride always showed though.

”as for what my father needs from me...you’d be surprised, see, I’m a bit more than I appear to be” the best way she could explain fortunetelling for snobs, she had no idea. Saying straight out ‘fortune telling’ might have just have her lose the little good grace she had earned with pulling out her manners to the show. ”I can open eyes to others, but shh, it’s a secret” she smiled, placing her index finger against her lips. Yes, that was the best she could think of. And she hopped the little gesture would make it clear that she wouldn’t want to speak of it. If she showed her manners well, he could do the same and not push the matter.

-

”Confusing others is an art, that my little bird has mastered well “ Amelia as she looked away. This embarrassment wasn’t had to be faked, she felt out of place. Thankfully or not, Dominick decided to not directly refer to the man upon his further statement. Despite his daughter coming from Syliras, he was always proud of her, maybe he didn’t quite approve of her hobby…but even that he found useful. One would be surprised how many enjoyed such things.

As he said his final words of farewell, neither Dominick or Amelia said anything more. Her father just nodded his head in acknowledgement, while Amelia, being on the top of her act performed a light bow, just enough to be considered polite. She, after all didn’t want to appear completely fake.

At this, The two Cross turned around, the girl hooked her arm with her father’s and they left. What exactly was Dominick wishing to have the young girl do was unclear, and that would be a story for a different time.

[Abstract]

Grade Awarded!

Amelia

Skills

~ Rhetoric - 2
~ Socialization - 2

Lores

~ Valerius Nitrozian: Linguistics Student
~ Valerius Nitrozian: Works at the KRI

Other

N/A

Valerius

Skills

~ Observation - 1
~ Socialization - 1
~ Rhetoric - 2

Lores

~ Amelia Cross: From Zeltiva
~ Amelia Cross: Into Linguistics
~ Dominick Cross: Amelia's Father

Other

N/A

Notes

I quite liked their social banter! Well done! I've always been more interested in that kind of conversation... and I'd love to see more! Though there wasn't much to give, enjoy!

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