Solo [Pig's Foot] Free Drinks

[Caela Dorin]

14th Summer 514AV

Dancing was a thirsty business. Caela couldn't say that the heat was helping things. Her throat was dry and scratchy, leaving her practically gasping for liquid. Alcohol might be nice, it might even be cold, or at least colder than water but she wasn't in the mood for paying for it. If she could convince someone else to buy it for her, then she was all for that. Sequestering drinks took a lot of time and she was dying with thirst now. Water would have to suffice for the moment, at least until her thirst was quenched. After that was sorted, she'd find a target.

Signalling to Merv what she wanted, the blonde was rewarded a chime later with a mug of water at the hands of a barmaid. The beverage had its usual earthy taste and was lukewarm as was the norm but she didn't care. The liquid was gulped down eagerly, the mug emptied within mere ticks. Placing the mug back on the bar, she gazed around the tavern, searching for some man whose hospitality she could take advantage of. Someone sitting alone as opposed to a group of men, although she could sometimes play men off of each other. Someone quiet, someone sort of shy of her. Quiet, shy men weren't that common in Sunberth, it was a hard city after all and you had to be a hard sort of person to survive it. There were individuals who walked the fine line in between though. If she could only find one...

She tried to remember some of the men that she had made eye contact with while she danced. Who had been fascinated by her movements but hadn't quite been able to meet her eye? There had been a youth, a teenager, maybe sixteen or seventeen. How thin had he seemed though? Thin and scrawny like Elea? If he wasn't able to feed himself properly then he wouldn't have the coin to splash out on drinks for her. But then there were many people in Sunberth who didn't have enough to eat and yet could afford to consume a considerable amount of alcohol. He might not be a lost cause after all. She liked to think that she could make men spendmore than they could afford on her.

Her eyes found him and she was about to sashay over to him but she remembered something. Slipping into the backroom that was used both as a dressing room and storage area, the dancer approached the cracked and dirty mirror. Tilting and turning her head to catch the light and illuminate as much of her face as she could, she checked to see if her make up was still in place. It wasn't something done out of vanity but rather out of a need to maintain a facade. She still bore bruises upon her face from the attack that Web had saved her from only a few nights before. The physical damage had been relatively minor thankfully, bruises mainly including a number on her face. She'd been smacked in the side of the head and that had left its mark. It had taken careful concealment with make up to hide the ugly marks on her cheek and the side of her brow. Her scalp and hairline had suffered too when her hair was yanked but one of the barmaids had helped her arrange her blonde locks so that the damage was concealed.

Despite her recent activity, she hadn't sweated the make up off and so it didn't need to be reapplied. There would be no indication to show that she was a victim and could be made one again. Caela looked fine.

Satisfied with her appearance, the blonde exited into the front room and made her way without hesitation to the table of the teen. He hadn't moved in the brief chimes she'd been away but almost looked ready to do a runner when he noticed her approach. She'd realised, thanks to Elea, that not all men were quite as susceptible to her charms, at least not young, quiet types so she made a note to tread carefully.

Smiling sweetly at him, she hovered across from where he sat, affecting what she hoped was an uncertain air. "Do you mind if I, um, sit down here?" she asked him, tucking a piece of hair back her ear. The reply was a grunt but it was coupled with a nod that showed that she was allowed to sit. Perching on a seat across from him, she didn't meet his gaze, didn't even look in his direction. Better to let him get used to her presence before talking to him. No point being too forward too fast and scaring him off.

Word Count791 words

x

[Caela Dorin]

Acting. She could act sometimes. Sometimes you needed it to be able fool people but she wasn't sure just how good of an actress she actually was. The occasional faked smile, a suggestive look, they were all easy things to fake. Faking a whole persona of innocence, or shyness was no easy task. Her natural attitude was one of confidence and she was naturally assertive. That was a bit difficult for her to mask but she would try. She wanted to come right out and ask him to get her a drink. That wouldn't work though. She was sure of that. So subterfuge was the way.

"It's nice to sit down after being on your feet for awhile," she told him, favouring him with a quick smile and the briefest moment of eye contact before turning away again. She signalled for a barmaid. When the girl arrived, she made a show of checking her purse, searching for the right coin for an alcoholic drink. "I'll have something strong and chilled, please. Oh wait, I don't have the coin. I'll just have some water instead if you don't mind," she told the girl, sighing quietly to show her disappointment. The girl knew what her game was, a hint of a smile on her lips before she went to see about Caela's order. It might look friendly to the boy rather than knowing, or so she hoped. She'd showed him that she was unable to buy anything stronger than water for herself so now she just had to provide him with more bait and hope that he'd bite. If he didn't, well then she'd try to frighten him away by being her usual self which was apparently intimidating for some men.

A glance in his direction showed that he'd been watching her, turning away quickly when she turned towards him. She looked away, still trying to affect shyness. When the water came, she would be able to engage with him more but it was all a matter of waiting. It didn't take long but Caela wasn't particularly patient today. Her fingers drummed a rhythm against her leg as she waited and it wasn't until she saw the barmaid coming back that she was probably ruining her act and stopped herself.

She received the water with a gracious smile and finally turned to face the teen although she didn't look at his face as she took a sip of water. She set the mug back down and wrapped her hands around it. He was watching her again and so the dancer raised her own eyes slowly, not wanting to startle him. When her gaze stopped on his face he was looking away from her. The girl waited. If she continued to stare then he should look up. Sure enough after nearly a chime, the teen met her gaze. The dancer lowered her gaze slightly before catching his eye again, smiling nervously.

"I'm not... bothering you by sitting here, am I? I'd hate to disturb you if you were just trying to have a quiet drink in peace," she said to him. Her teeth grazed her lip, pulling a small section inwards that she bit slightly. The comment about being alone might make him deny it, or maybe a desire to keep her here. Provided she hadn't scared him off.

"No! No bother at all," he replied quickly, returning her smile nervously. She rewarded him with a brighter smile and he seemed to grow a little more confident in her presence. His posture changed as he sat up a little straighter and he became far more talkative. "I'm Caela by the way. I don't know if you noticed but I dance here." The blonde giggled a little at that, it wasn't in any way funny (except that he couldn't not have noticed her) and maybe he'd think that she was an airhead.

"Oh yeah, I noticed. I mean, you were there and noticeable so it was hard not to see you, you know." The dancer wanted to laugh at him. He was getting himself tongue tied over nothing, digging a bigger hole for himself even as he tried to dig himself out. It wasn't like she was going to eat him or anything. Amazing what a few simple words could do. Laughing breathily, the young woman pushed a lock of hair behind her ear again. "Yeah sorry. That was a bit obvious, wasn't it? I mean, you were here while I was dancing. I was... looking at you so it's not as if I didn't know that you must have seen me and... yeah." She tried to copy his nervous speech, hoping to create some common ground between them. Put him more at ease. She needed to get somewhere fast or this was going to be a gigantic waste of time.

Word Count807 words

x

[Caela Dorin]

The youth smiled at her apparent fluster. Her act was obviously doing something right because he seemed to be becoming more relaxed around her. He drank the rest of whatever he was drinking and gestured for a barmaid. One didn't come immediately as the tavern was quite busy but it gave him a chance to talk to her more. She just had to push for that free drink.

"I didn't catch your name before." She waited patiently for a reply. He seemed to be very focused on where the barmaid had got to so it took him awhile to realise that she'd been talking to him at all. "Oh right, yeah. I'm Quin," he told her. He ran a hand through his hair and looked at her closely for a chime. "You don't want a drink, do you? I'm getting one myself anyway and maybe you'd like one?"

The question was the last thing that she'd expected, at least so soon. She nodded. She was feeling a little put out. She'd been already to wrap him around her finger and he'd just scattered her plans. Not that she minded that she was getting the drink and much faster than she'd thought. When the barmaid finally arrived, he ordered her wine and ale for himself before turning back to her, a charming smile on his face. There was something very calm and confident about that expression. Where it had come from she didn't know. There was no way that he had gone through such a complete personality change unless she was missing something here.

Her facade was slipping and she knew it. This was a different situation then she was expecting and she was slow to adapt. She couldn't say anything until she got her head straight but he wasn't giving her a chance. Her inner confusion must have shown on her face because he laughed. He was laughing at her, she realised and the blonde didn't know how that could be unless he knew and he couldn't possibly know.

"Think you had me fooled, dancer girl? No, I knew what you were after," Quin told her, grinning. "You were all right, I'll give you that but you were a bit... transparent. You could have sat anywhere in this place but you looked around and you chose here. Why? Because I was sitting alone and I wouldn't quite look you in the eye, right?" There was no denying it. He'd known exactly what she was up to and he'd let her act like an idiot. There was no way that she could deny it. If she tried to lie, it wouldn't be convincing. There was little that she could say to defend herself.

"If you knew then why did you... why would you let me think..." The questions trailed off before she could fully voice them. All the while, he sat across from her looking smug. When the drinks arrived, he tipped the barmaid and sent her off with a wink. He pushed her wine towards her as if encouraging her to drink. "There's what you were after, sweetheart. Drink up. If you ask nicely, I might get you another one," he laughed, taking a mouthful from his own drink.

The dancer stared at the wine suspiciously. There was a motive here. He couldn't have put anything in her drink but yet there was a reason behind him buying it and it wasn't kindness. "If you knew that I came over here to get drinks from you then why did you... play along with what I thought? How did you even know what I thought?" the girl asked angrily. Whether she'd get a straight answer out of him or not was unclear. He'd tricked her at least once already so why not do it again?

"I felt sorry for you, love. You were being pathetic and though I would have loved to have seen just how far you would have gone, I got bored pretending," Quin sneered. His answer made her bristle with indignation. The nerve of the man! He was a number of years younger than her as well and yet the audacity! Though looking at him with new eyes, she may have guessed his age as younger than it was. With his current expression, he looked older. He wasn't done yet though. He still had more to humiliate her with. "There's usually one girl in a tavern who'll come sniffing for some fool to buy drinks for them. It really pays off sometimes to be that fool, Some girls will do... interesting things just to get something for free. If you know what I mean. You were just the one that came sniffing."

Disgust, contempt, that was how Caela viewed the young man in front of her right now. What he'd been doing was horrible. Sure, she sometimes got a few more coppers out of men than they could afford but it didn't really cause any harm. If what he was saying was true though then he was tricking women into doing gods knew what for the sake of a free drink. Whatever they did for it was bound to be sexual and she couldn't help being revolted by him. When she thought she was playing him, he'd in fact being playing her. He'd thought that he could have gotten some little favour from her and the fact that anyone could think she'd behave that way was sickening.

The dancer made to rise but he reached across the table and pushed down on her shoulder. "No point in wasting your drink now, is there?" Quin pointed out. As much as she hated to admit it, he had a point. She hadn't had to do much to get this drink but there was no point leaving it there and going off to get a drink out of some other man. She wanted to leave it there out of spite but there was no point turning down a free drink. Only problem was, it meant sticking around with Quin the pervert a little longer. Needs must.

Word Count1015 words

x

[Caela Dorin]

She made a good point of ignoring him. The drink was lifted from the table and kept in her hand while she turned her body away from him. She didn't turn her back on him but it was close enough. Caela took a sip of the wine, savouring its cool sweetness. It was white wine he'd gotten her, more palatable than the room temperature, bitter red. She ran the liquid over her tongue, enjoying the taste. It still had that alcoholic burn, the sort that left her mouth feeling aflame but it was still good. It almost tempted her to become drunk when the taste wouldn't matter and everything looked better somehow if a little cloudy. The money for such an endeavour was not forthcoming however and she might do something stupid if she got drunk. Merv would ensure that she was brought home safely but as long as she didn't cause harm to herself while in such a state he wouldn't interfere with her. If she did something that she would regret later, it probably wouldn't be seen as regrettable or embarrassing in Merv's eyes. No best to stay sober.

"So..." The word was stretched out, no doubt to make it difficult to ignore him as he tried to charm her. She wasn't going to listen to him or talk to him though so he was wasting his breath and she told him so. "Just because I'm still sitting here doesn't mean that I'm going to talk to you, look at you or acknowledge you any more than absolutely necessary," she told him briskly, not so much as glancing in his direction. He laughed, apparently not put off in the slightest by her cold attitude towards him. Maybe it would have been better to move and take the drink with her but she didn't have many seating options.

The tavern had been fairly full even when she was performing but it had filled up considerably since she'd finished. There was a seat here and there but she wasn't in the mood for sitting with rowdy drunks any more than she was with sitting with Quin. Standing room was at a minimum and she wasn't going to squeeze in amongst them only to be jostled. There was no way that she was ever going outside to drink ever again, not after what had happened the last time, a couple of days ago. She doubted that there was anyone to attack her out there now but she wouldn't take the chance. There was nothing to stop Quin from following her either if the dancer decided to move. Maybe she could have Merv get rid of him because he was bothering her. Anyone he asked would quickly tell him that she had approached Quin herself in the first place and he wouldn't see the problem with her just moving away from him. There was no choice in the matter though. She couldn't, or rather wouldn't move.

"Don't be so cold, dancer girl. I bought you a drink, didn't I? I've shown you that I'm not really that bad so why don't you just talk to me? You might find that you even like me," he told her, his expression charming when she turned to glare at him. Gods, the bastard was persistent. Could he not take no for an answer? Was he too dense to realise that she wanted nothing to do with him? No, he was far from dense as his careful, calculating planning had shown. Maybe he had a way to change her mind, or thought that he did. Maybe he planned to ply her with more drink. He couldn't do anything if she ignored him though so she tried. The dancer drank more of her wine, hoping to finish it quickly so that she could get away from this youth. The longer she stayed her, the longer she'd have to listen to his attempts to get her to talk to him.

"Your dancing is very good. You really know how to use your body to your advantage, don't you? Now how can you act like that but be so cold?" he asked, a note on wonder in his voice. She wasn't sure if it was genuine or faked, not that it mattered. "Is what you do while you dance put on then? All an act, all part of the show? Even the way that you look at some men with a look that says, 'Please petch me' is put on? I find that hard to believe." The blonde had frozen, horrified at his words. She felt the hairs on the back of her neck rise on end and she suddenly felt very, very unsafe near this man. She didn't like that way that she was talking to her at all. Maybe he would follow her home when she left and try to give her what he thought she wanted, or rather take what he wanted.

The dancer's hands started to shake and it was with difficulty that she could even bring the edge of the mug to her lips to drink the last of the wine. As soon as she was done, the mug was placed on the table and she tried to get away quickly. His hand grabbed at her wrist in an attempt to keep her there, a string of apologies and promises coming from her lips. He'd say anything to make her stay. The blonde flinched at the touch and tugged against it, almost dragging him across the table as a burst of strength came from nowhere. His hold broke and she made her way up to the bar, body shaking as adrenaline coursed through it.

Her employer was a welcome sight as he was the only one who could keep her truly safe. He was the one who could provide her with an escort. She nearly begged him to let someone bring her home, tears threatening in her eyes as the full terror of the situation sank in. He wanted to know why but she just shook her head and almost burst into tears in front of him. Maybe he thought it was a residual fear of what had happened a few nights ago but he asked no more questions, providing her with a mercenary escort to ensure that her journey home was safe and trouble free.

As she followed her protector outside, she tried to calm herself down. The man had done nothing to her, hadn't threatened her directly. It was probably just her fears getting the best of her. This was only her second day back and she'd been so careful to act normally, even going so far as to try to seduce a man into buying drinks for her. It had been a stupid thing to do and a dangerous one. It may have just been her imagination or the man could have been a real threat to her safety but it had been too soon. She was still frightened after what had happened but she could be strong. Web had pointed out that inner strength in her and she just had to use it.

Nothing had happened this time but she had still felt as helpless as when she'd almost been raped. Again she was relying on other people to shield and protect her because she couldn't do it herself. She didn't want that anymore. She hadn't realised just how much she needed Web's aid in teaching her to defend herself. The girl was too good at attracting the wrong sort of attention to herself and getting into trouble. She needed to get into another line of work but the problem was that she wasn't good at anything else so where did that leave her?

One thing at a time. Protect myself now and learn a new trade later, she told herself as she walked. A sense of determination replaced her fear and she felt perfectly calm. She was going to show them all.

Word Count1333 words

x