[Sacred Arch Hotsprings] Hope found in a Harlot (Isalie)

by **Matthew** on August 19th, 2013, 11:50 am

He tilted his head as he considered her question. Leaning back a bit to give her a little more space, offering a small smile at her delighted tone and sly little tease, he let himself consider the possibilities. Really, she was currently in no shape to be thinking of what services he could offer her. First, they would have to get a few other things in line.

"I usually charge around 10 GM, but I understand that is a tad pricey. I think we should focus on some other things first, though. Would you be willing to go into town with me, and purchase yourself some new clothes and some food?" He wrinkled his nose a little bit, eyeballing her. "Perhaps some perfume as well. You smell like mud, though the scent is only lingering. I am going to try and wash your dress." As long as she didn't protest, he would slowly rise from the warm water and head over to her discarded dress, gathering it up with his fingertips and holding it at a distance. Slowly walking back towards her, he found a clean patch of water and began to slowly wash the fabric off as best as he could. He was gentle with the dress, noticing that it was just about to fall apart in his hands. His blue eyes focused on his task, but he kept talking to her.

"You just need some sort of outfit. Even if you don't want to take me up on my offer in the end, you still need to at least start taking care of yourself a little bit." He paused a moment, glancing up at her, staring into her eyes briefly. "Anyways, I want you to see how differently people will look at you once you have changed your appearance a bit. I know you consider yourself a slave, and perhaps you still do. Perhaps that is all you think you will ever be. But, I don't want other people thinking that. Do you have any money to buy new clothes, or are we going to have to find some way to earn you some Mizas?" His brow furrowed again as he glanced her up and down once more. A clean body and a ratty dress wouldn't help her get any sort of job. Clothes were definitely first on the list. If she didn't have any sort of coin, he perhaps could afford one or two outfits for her. And what about lodging? She was going to have to become at least a little integrated into society if they were going to make all of this work. He chewed his lower lip a little in thought, mulling over the puzzle pieces in his head, flipping and turning them to try and make them work the way he wanted them to.

After a little bit he pulled the dress up from the water, glancing around until he found a sunbathing rock. Sloshing his way over to it, he draped the soaked material across the surface so it would dry. Crossing his strong arms, he turned to regard her again, his toned figure and clinging clothing putting on quite the little show. He was all business though, with that serious look to his bright and piercing eyes. "What do you think? Any questions? Complaints? Or are you willing to go into the city so we can figure out something for you?"

by **Hope Dawnwhisper** on August 20th, 2013, 12:29 pm

Isalie does little more than sit in silence, merely enjoying the warmth of the water in the hit springs as she watches Matthew rise to fetch her ragged, filthy clothing and return to the water. With as much care as he took over washing her delicate skin, he washes said dress, and this time Isalie can feel nothing more than humiliation over the way the water around the dress instantly loses sit transparent quality, going translucent brown for a few chimes, before finally turning opaque, overcome by the dirt and mud of the cloth.

It is only because of this visual representation of the minimalistic, pathetic life that she had been leading, that she agrees with all that Matthew was telling her. The homeless woman didn't have much, and could not, by any stretch of the imagination, claim to aspire to having a life of luxury. She could, however, aspire to having a life. And she says this out loud to him, allowing him further insight into her at she had already given, despite her reservations.

If she was going to do this, she would need his help, for more reasons than immediately obvious. Most of all, though, she wanted his company as she ventured into the city, still frightened of the Syliran Knights beyond belief. Since she had run away, her paranoia had been working in overdrive; any rustle of leaves behind her was a slaver coming to recapture her, any funny look from a citizen was someone going to accuse her of stealing, any guard walking in the opposite direction to her was going to apprehend her and she would never see the light of day again. No, she wanted him with her, just as Wanda had been with her the first time she ventured through the gates of the city.

Here, though, she blushes. "I have money..." she admits quietly, and she glances around to make sure no one was around to hear her admit her shame. That was the dichotomy that Isalie was - she had nothing, but would never admit to it, however ridiculously obvious it appeared to others "but I don't know how much... I... I can't count, you see... " her cheeks take on a further, deeper shade, "I mean... I can! I'm just not.. not great at it." her previous master had taught her the bare minimum to allow her to serve his family well, but he never permitted her to handle monies. And the monies were very different to the coins here.

She clears her throat, quickly thinking to draw the conversation away from further embarrassment, "New clothes would be nice... In fact," She offers Matthew a wry smile as she finally rises to sit on the edge of the springs, as she had right at the beginning of their meeting, "It would be really nice to just... have something that was mine. And mine alone..."

by **Matthew** on August 21st, 2013, 12:29 pm

He kept glancing back to the dress, not at all judgmental that it had been completely and utterly filthy, but rather irritated that he couldn't get it all the way clean. He supposed that was fairly impossible, though. It looked as if it had been worn for quite awhile, and if she had somehow been surviving out here, it had likely been with her curled up underneath a bush in a pile of dirt. It had acted as a blanket, a shield, and clothing. He would have been horrified to be wearing that. He hadn't been a slave though, and he had been given a choice. Perhaps she hadn't.

Noticing her blush, he blinked in her direction, noting that she was about to confess something. At her stammered words, he waved a hand in the air, as if slapping the shamed words from the sky. "Don't worry. I can't write. I have to spend hours to make even a couple of sentences look good. And I can't do any advanced math myself without writing, and that just leads back to my inability to write at any normal speed." He crossed his broad arms, standing on the shore without a lick of self-consciousness. It was quite obvious that he was extremely comfortable in his own body. The water that soaked through his undershorts practically made them useless in hiding any part of his figure, but he just stood there. It wasn't as if he was cocky, he was just detached. His body wasn't a big deal to him, neither was the fact that she could see any part of it he wished to. He just kept on talking, just like normal. "Then we will go to the city, and I can help you count it in there. Since that is an important skill, we will practice a little bit so you can figure out how to purchase and sell for yourself."

The harlot motioned to her, waiting for her to come out of the water. He would help her get dressed after she had dried a little bit, and then go about fetching his own clothes. His pants would eventually dry and he would tug them on, but his shirt was going to need washed. That was just neatly folded and held under his arm, something that he could get around to later. "Do you have the time to go now? If so, we can get started right away." After she had gotten dressed, he held out a hand, a serious stare aimed at her own gaze. He didn't mind the physical touch, and part of him thought it would actually comfort her a little bit. Once again, he wondered if he should be charging for the service. It was partially out of good will, but also just a project of sorts. He wanted to see what she would turn into, as he felt that she had the potential to transform into something rather nice. Chewing his lower lip as he waited for her to dry, he glanced again over her body, mulling it over in his head. Looks weren't the only thing that mattered when it came to the business, but they definitely helped.

"Do you have an idea of what sort of clothes you might like to wear? Some women like britches, some like short dresses, some like sun dresses with long socks or stockings. Some like heels, some like their bare feet. Or have you even seen that many clothes? I suppose we could just walk around and look at all the different types until you see something you like." He lifted his free hand to his lower lip, tapping it with a finger, drumming out a little beat on it as he planned out their trip. A little bit of food, some clothes for her to put on, and that should be a good start. He would see where she was at after that. His hand remained extended, politely offered to the girl if she wanted to accept. If not, he would still lead the way to the city, glancing back every now and then to make sure he hadn't somehow lost her.

by **Hope Dawnwhisper** on August 22nd, 2013, 7:55 pm

Taking the now relatively clean, yet soaked, dress off of Matthew, she offers a second thank you to the prostitute for his help. Standing up, she allows herself to drip dry in the warmth of the sun's rays as she wrings out her dress, shaking it about every so often. Luckily, there wasn't much of it and it was made of cotton, a material that didnt take too long to dry. Still rather damp, but not drenched, she pulls it over her head, surprisingly thankful to be covered once again in front of the man. Though she was relatively comfortable at being naked in front of him, there was a limit to her comfort and she had just about reached it.

The dress clings to her as she turns around to watch Matthew; clearly the man was confident in his body. The brunette assumes that, to do the job he had chosen to do, he had to be, and that, if she wanted to do it too, she would have to grow just as confident in her own bare skin as him. She wondered if she could; it had been so long since she had been a healthy weight. But that would be the easy part to fix. Because, beyond that, the welts and scars that marred a good portion of her back, and were scattered over other sections of her body, were unlikely to disappear entirely. Unless she only offered he services in the dark, her customers would notice. And even if that were possible they would feel them as soon as they ran their fingers along any part of her body.

She nods in response to his question, thinking it a fairly redundant one, but one worth answering this time, "Yeah, I have nothing planned for the rest of the day." She utters the words calmly, without any hint of the irony she was feeling. He was, despite his inferences, kind and clearly cared about the well being of other humans. Maybe not the individuals themselves, but about individuals he came across and had the time and ability to help. Isalie was nothing to him, yet here he was, having cleaned her, he was taking her shopping.

"Maybe..." She thinks, having seen many styles of clothing people wore, wishing she could too, one style always stood out to her, "I've always liked dresses... I think they're really.. they show off the body, feminine, that's the word." She smiles over at him, it was a girly smile, a sign that she was excited about new clothes. "But I don't know, you're the expert here, I defer to your better judgement on what would look good on me." She teases lightly.

"I need to go pick up Shadow first," she pauses' nibbling on her lower lip, "He's my horse... I'd rather take him into the city and leave him somewhere safe there, rather than leave him in the woods. With the Knights, he won't be taken in the city proper, you understand..." She was rambling this was hardly something he would find unreasonable. Blushing, she turns away. "He's not far away, just a little ways away from the path..." She gestures vaguely off to her right somewhere as she looks back at him, and his extended hand. She hesitates for a moment before slipping hers into his, still smiling, as she murmurs, "I'm ready, Matthew."

by **Radiant** on September 13th, 2013, 4:12 am

Matthew :

Isalie :

Notes :

My radiance is not bright enough?

If you have any questions or concerns regarding your grade, beam me a PM and we can work it out.

Skill	XP Earned
Observation	+4 XP
Socialization	+3 XP
Rhetoric	+2 XP
Leadership	+2 XP
Teaching	+2 XP
Philosophy	+2 XP
Massage	+2 XP

Skill	XP Earned
Observation	+5 XP
Socialization	+5 XP
Rhetoric	+2 XP
Seduction	+1 XP
Philosophy	+2 XP
Storytelling	+1 XP

Completed [Sacred Arch Hotsprings] Hope found in a Harlot (Isalie)