Solo Have a Nice Trip

[Rosela]

5th of Winter With a huff of breath that frosted over the glass, Rosela surveyed the outside snow with no small amount of dismay. It looked like the entire city had been blanketed in white batting during the night, and despite finally having winter wear, she wasn’t quite ready to face so much cold. It was her day off of the shop, and staying late the day before had allowed her to finally catch up on her inventory. She could go in for kicks, and get a head start on the cloaks she knew would fly off the shelves… Or she could return Art of Seduction to the library, and test out what progress could be made in her learning. Pulling the cloak tight around her, she put on her bravest face and ventured out into the snow, book tucked under her shirt for safe keeping. She’d had a few fantasies of falling dramatically, book flying to the feet of some beefy Akalak, but couldn’t figure out how he’d react. Maybe someday she’d be able to play off something like that, but for the moment, she’d stay a little conservative to avoid being branded a weirdo. She moved slowly in the early morning snow, four arms outstretched for balance and the other two clenched to her body for warmth. After a few minutes, she got the hang of it, and by the time she passed the first other person on the street, she was moving along steadily. She attempted to give her slow, careful walk a meandering feel, as though she were appreciating her surroundings, instead of trying not to topple over every time her boots hit an uneven patch. As she neared the library, an Akalak, possibly some sort of warrior given his scars, moved out of an alleyway and started down the road opposite her. He was surveying the icicled shops he passed, and his steps were sure and measured. Rosela knew she’d only have one chance to get it right… She let out a small cry of surprise as she strategically stumbled next to a light post, catching herself before she might have gone tumbling forward. She saw his head swing to her in her peripheral vision, but allowed herself a moment to be flustered before she ever-so-accidentally met his eyes. There was a moment of surprise on both ends, and she dissolved it into maidenly shyness. “Are you alright?” His voice was clear and deep over the expanse of unbroken snow between them. ”Yes, thank you. Just a bit new to the snow.” She glanced down nervously, four hands swishing her coat away. It displayed just enough of her curves, and his eyes darted immediately back up to hers when she looked up. “Ah…yes. Do…be careful.” His voice was tight and awkward, he offered her only a tight nod in farewell before walking quickly away. Her little ploy had only been a half success, as she’d been hoping he’d offer to escort her to the library. Huffing in irritation as soon as she was out of earshot, Rosela trudged the rest of the way to the library alone, seeing only a Konti and an elderly human man on the way, not bothering to waste her time on them.

[Rosela]

The library was cold and nearly empty when she returned the book, though Rosela was still loathe to go back out into the snow. She couldn’t spend all day stalking around in the snow for men – she’d catch her death. As she took an extra bit of time bundling herself up at the door, she planned out her day. Head home to warm up, head to…some place where good looking men might hang out, then back home. If she had to suffer the cold to find men, she’d better be efficient about it. She prayed for the slim female population of Riverfall to be stuck inside while only the bravest, and buffest, of the men ventured out into the cold. She also prayed for that selection of men to be young, bold, and single. When she stepped back outside, she wanted to think it was a few degrees warmer, but the sun sitting slightly higher above the horizon may have been deceiving. More people were getting out and about, and it was hard to pick a target when everyone was moving quickly to get out of the snow. Outside a leather shop, a human man was brushing the snow away from his doorway and he shot Rosela an apologetic smile, but nothing more, as he paused in his brushing to let her pass. She discreetly tried to catch his eye again after she passed, but he refocused on the snow and didn’t look up again. There was a guard further down the street, kneeling down in the snow with an Akalak boy held firmly by the arm. He had a stern finger waving in the boy’s face as he clearly berated him in low Tukant. Rosela took the moment to push her hood back and shake out her hair as she passed, which unfortunately only attracted the boy’s notice. As he gave her a goofily amazed smile, she cocked an eyebrow at him, a hint of a smile pulling at her lips. The guard looked up angrily at what had caught the boy’s attention, only for the anger to fade into shock when Rosela met his eyes. She gave him a smile of good humor back, turning away and covering her mouth with the back of her hand as a giggle escaped. "Come in from the cold miss? Fancy a hot drink?" A young human man stood in the door of another establishment, a bar she'd never been in, looking up her her hopefully as he leaned on his shovel. He was a good head shorter than her and Rosela offered a friendly wink in response. "Sorry honey, doing errands. Maybe on the way back." His smile lit up similar to the Akalak boy's, and Rosela had the unusual urge to ruffle his hair as she passed.

[Rosela]

She was nearly to her house as her first true mishap of the morning occurred and she tripped honestly on a rock hidden in the snow. Her gasp was loud and panicked, and she saw several faces turn to her as she put out all six hands to catch herself. There was half a moment were she cursed herself for not having gloves by this point, when she felt a pair of large, solid arms close around her shoulders and midsection, stopping her inches from the snow as her hands snapped to them for balance. With a quickness that displayed extraordinary strength, she was back on her feet, still holding onto the pair of arms as she stumbled. “Easy there.” A firm, deep voice echoed somewhere above her head. Rosela looked up in shock into a pair of dark silver eyes, belonging to a handsomely rugged Akalak face, which explained the two very large arms now releasing from around her. ”Thank you…” The awed breathiness of her voice wasn’t entirely faked. “My pleasure.” Rosela saw the spark in his eyes, and believed him. “You should be careful out here; snow can cause all kinds of accidents.” Now that was an opening line. Trying to get back control of herself, Rosela gave him a sly half smile back. ”Good thing you were here to save me then. Can I buy my hero something warm as thanks?” “Sometime warm sounds nice…” His eyes swept over her face and shoulders, pointedly not moving any lower. “But let’s start with a drink.” Rosela couldn’t keep her smile from twitching with suppressed laughter, and she settled for raising an eyebrow. ”Sounds like someone’s getting ahead of themselves.” His eyebrow matched hers and he held out an arm for her to take. “Fortune favors the bold.” ”Said the spider to the fly.” She smirked as she slipped a pair of hands around his arm.

[Rosela]

The Blue Bull wasn’t crowded when they got there, but it was certainly busier than Rosela had expected. It could only be considered lunchtime if one ate unusually early. Seeing her surprise, her new companion, Taskel, leaned in for a low word. “Some of the off duty guards help shovel out the city for a little extra pay.” ”Ohhh,” Rosela smiled up at him knowingly. ”Is that what you were doing out and about this morning?” “Maybe.” His returning smile was secretive, but smug. His hands were heavy on her shoulders as he took her cloak. “Saving damsels from a wintery fate seemed a brighter option.” Casting him an unimpressed look, Rosela slid onto a barstool. ”’Wintery fate?’ I tripped. Which I do thank you for saving me from, but let’s be realistic.” After betraying her obvious interest in him right off the bat, she really needed to slow him up a bit, lest he think he’d be seeing her bedsheets before the day was out. It was difficult to keep stringing him along without getting either too hot or too cold. “I'll take what I can get. Barkeep? Two mixed specials.” ”A small for me please.” She flashed Takel an innocent smile. ”Hot things just fill up easily.” Pretending to peruse the menu, she ignored the way his nostrils flared and his eyes narrowed predatorily at the double entendre. A little cool, a little hot. He licked his lips as he looked at her, but didn’t pursue it. “So tell me, what was a damsel like yourself doing out and about on a day like this.” ”Returning a book to the library actually.” “Mmm, didn’t take you for the scholarly type.” ”Oh really now?” Her faux-affronted look was accompanied by a delicate hand under her chin, accentuating her bare shoulder. ”I’ll have you know I can be quite scholarly if I want to. I can do plenty of things, if I want to.” His response was cut off by the arrival of their drinks, but his heated stare did not leave hers as she took a satisfied sip of her drink.

[Rosela]

The ‘mixed special’ was apparently some alcoholic version of a hot chocolate, and Taskel was quite surprised when she drank it down quickly. ”This is practically morning coffee in Ahnatep,” she lied breezily. Eypharians weren’t alcoholics, but she could still hold her liquor just fine. “Ahnatep, hm? If the women there are half as beautiful as you, I might just have to visit sometime.” He rubbed the stubble on his chin thoughtfully as he looked her up and down. Giving him a sideways look, Rosela crossed her legs, offering a more flattering angle of her thigh. She’d never been so grateful for the stretchy fabric of her pants. ”Half as beautiful? Maybe. But why go all the way to Ahnatep when you’ve got an Eypharian right here?” “Why indeed. Speaking of, how about we change our ‘right here’ to some place a little more,” he cast a disparaging eye around the bar. “Private?” For a moment, Rosela was actually tempted to go home with him. He was well built, intense, and clearly passionate about, well, her. The moment passed however, and the thought of opening her legs to a complete stranger made her sensibilities, and more importantly, her pride, rear back fully. ”As tempting as that sounds,” she began delicately, and could already see the masked disappointment on his face. ”I actually need to get to my shop. Today’s inventory day.” “Your shop? A lady with means, I see. You wouldn’t be that pretty Eypharian who owns the clothing shop down by the Crystal Rose?” He seemed honestly impressed and Rosela couldn’t help but preen a little under his regard. ”One and the same.” “How about I come down and help you out for the day?” ”As grateful as I am for the offer, I think you’d be a little…distracting.” A smile twitched at her lips and she allowed herself a quick look at his bulging shoulders. ”Tell you what, come by on one of my open days, and we’ll chat.” She pulled a few mizas from her purse as she stood, fully expecting him to speak up to pay for her, but he merely finished his drink and stood up with her. “You sure you got this? Rescues do typically come free?” Rosela smiled sweetly, but recognized the tone of the false offer to pay, as she’d used it many times herself. ”I did promise a hot drink.” She laid the mizas with a feeling of finality on the bar. A man who actually let her pay for his drink? He wouldn’t be seeing her bedsheets any time soon. Ledger : 5 sm – Small mixed drink 8 sm – Large mixed drink 1gm 3sm total

[Limey]

Skill and Lore Rewards Skills Lore Observation 4 Enjoying Idle Fantasies Seduction 3 Choosing The Right Time Psychology 1 Riverfall: Smorgasbord of Males Be Careful On Ice Taskel: Akalak Gentleman Slow Down There, Tiger Always Pay For The Lady's Drink Additional Notes : This was really well done, Ros. It didn't rush for an ending or XP, it was just Rosela being Rosela and there was so much there that any reader could relate to. Hell, I learned a thing or to! I loved how you did depict Rosela as a seductress, not someone who's just looking to get laid, and knows very well how to back a man off as well as attract him. Still, maybe Taskel gets a second chance, eh? Be fun to see! Any questions or queries, please PM me.