The start of a beautiful ... well, something. (peerface x eldarface)

Del’ure was a little surprised at the sudden confession but it was what he had expected anyway. The looks that had passed between Rinaldo and Aevaline at the market place had said it all. She desperately wanted to not only be seduced but appreciated not only as a wife but as a woman. It was Del’ure’s easiest prey but he wasn’t quite ready to use her just yet. If he did, he would leave her just as broken as he had found her now and that generally wasn’t his way either.
Yes, he did like the easy women but he liked them because he could give them something in return for the pleasure as well, something their husbands generally were either unaware that they needed or something they were quite simply unwilling to give to their wives.

As she stepped back in and requested him to hold her, he did. He simply took her into his arms and gently pressed a kiss onto her forehead without doing anything else. He didn’t fumble, he didn’t try to kiss her, nor did he try to charm her into doing anything else.

After what seemed like a long time, he said, in a low voice: “I know what you mean. Maybe you should talk to him. Try something different to get his attention. I don’t know either of you well but I know that you cannot go on living your life this way. I cannot give you the love and appreciation you seek, but what I can give you is a night of pure sensuality.”

There it was. His offer. She could either take it or leave it and he wasn’t going to be mad at her for rejecting the proposition. Though at first he may have thought that he would try and get his way, he now realised that it would break her. Aevaline was too fragile a woman to be able to deal with adultery if she didn’t give in of her own free will, even if her husband was a cheating bastard.

More internal fighting. Of course, she knew it would never last, ever. This wasn't her true love - there was no such thing. And, even if he were, it would be painful to never be able to leave her own husband to be with him. So.... a fling seemed most welcoming. Her hands on his chest closed around his shirt as she pulled him close. "N.. no..." she said lightly. "He.. he wouldn't understand. He wouldn't. It's no use, talking to him, but... nevermind him." She looked up at Del'ure desperately. Then, more to convince herself, "He wouldn't find out. He never would. besides... what would it matter? Please... please..." She couldn't really get the words out that she wanted to say. It was difficult.

She took a deep breath and let it out as she organized her thoughts. "I know you can't love me. I know this is true. Not emotionally. I'm already married after all... but... I would love for you to love me... just for a night..." She closed her eyes and relaxed against him, her tightened grip loosening. "Just for a night. Please."

When she grabbed his shirt, Del’ure was very tempted to plant a kiss on her lips but refrained from doing so, despite it being difficult. After all, he had a fairly attractive woman in his arms, completely at his mercy. How could he pass by such an opportunity?
Yet, he didn’t, and he was glad he didn’t because it seemed to convince her that she wanted him, even if it was just for the night.

“Alright, I will,” he whispered softly as he planted yet another kiss on her forehead, and then slowly worked his way down her cheek towards her lips. “We’ll work our way around him. Maybe send him off to one of his girls. Maybe you could feign a terrible headache and go to bed early, making him believe that you’ll be out like a light so that he will just bugger off to one of his girls? Or anything along those lines? Anything that could help get rid of him, we need to do it. Or rather, you need to do it.”

Del’ure kept his arms locked around her as he contemplated the situation and then his thoughts swerved back to Jack. It wasn’t quite fair to leave the boy on his own now, his first night in a stranger’s home with no clue what might or might not happen. Then again. Jack would be sleeping so it wasn’t like he was going to miss Del’ure in the other bed. Either way, he would talk to him either before or after dinner, as soon as this was settled with Aevaline.

“You will have to go back down to the kitchen soon, Aevaline,” Del’ure reminded gently. “Otherwise the maids will wonder where you’re at. Especially Mila, I wouldn’t trust her.”

BUT SHE WANTED HIM NOW. Life was suddenly so unfair. Alas, she knew he was right. It couldn't be right now, when dinner was so soon... "I have been sleeping in my own quarters as late, that's how bad it's been," she said, looking flustered. "but... I think ... I think that will do the trick." She greeted his kisses gently, trying not to be too passionate when there was so much risk involved right now. "It would be best if he was out of the house... I think... I think I'll be able to arrange that. It will be a little tricky... but... I'm sure I can send him away." She frowned. "I know what usually does it anyway, I'm sure I'll have no problem of it again tonight." She narrowed her eyes as she thought about that cheating bastard.

She let out a sad sigh and pulled away before she gave into her carnal urge to just strip right then and there. "Let's go back down then. No... Maybe I should go back alone, and mayhap you should enjoy this bath. I'll of course call you when dinner is ready, but if you accompany me back down, I'll be... I'll be most visibly distracted, and it will be suspicious that you aren't in the bath when that's why you called me up. I'm sure Dinner won't be much longer now." ... She leaned forward and stole one more kiss on his cheek. "Please.. please don't leave before tonight," she asked lightly. For once, she finally had something to look forward to. That did not happen near enough.

She turned and left him alone in the bathroom, and hurried down to finish with dinner, trying her best not to look flustered.

“Good. Just don’t be too obvious,” Del’ure warned, just to make sure that she didn’t do anything she otherwise wouldn’t have done. They wouldn’t want to raise any suspicion after all.
“Don’t worry, I’ll be here,” he whispered into her ear as she stole one more kiss before disappearing out of the bathroom.

Seeing that the bath was already heated, the towels were ready and it needed to be used after all, Del’ure stripped and gave himself a quick bath, despite having wanted to do that in the morning only. Of course, now that he was sure that he was going to be with Aevaline that night, he preferred to be fresh and clean for her.

Once he was done, he wrapped a towel around his waist, and casually strode across the hallway and briefly knocked on the bedroom door before entering.
“Hello Jack, have you enjoyed your alone time with the beds?” He had a wicked grin on his face that could mean everything and nothing at the same time but he meant well. “Dinner is going to be ready in not too long and the bath is still hot, towels at the ready if you want to get yourself cleaned up a little.” Del’ure explained as he strode over to the bed. He stopped short in his tracks however when he noticed how dishevelled they were. Looking from the beds to Jack and back, he grinned and shook his head before continuing where he’d left off without commenting. “Might be better as well to get all the cleaning up out of the way tonight. We might have to leave early and in a hurry tomorrow morning.”

Jack grinned - he had since flopped on a bed and was just relishing in it's awesomeness, but he hopped up when Del'ure came in. "A hot bath? Oh man..." The barrel of water at the inn had been nice enough just because it was room-temperature instead of winter-water-temperature, but a HOT bath was something that he just couldn't pass up at all. Fortunately, he had only messed up one of the beds. Since he didn't have footwear, at least he didn't have to worry about having the forethought to take his shoes off, since he probably wouldn't have. "Why will we - ? Oh, nevermind, I'll just - I'll just go ahead and assume you're going to do what you have to do." Oh man, now that his stomach had settled a bit more, he was absolutely looking forward to dinner.

Jack went past Del'ure and cleaned himself up nice and good. And, he was out in time for dinner.

So, Dinner was starting! Woot!

Rinaldo returned just as soon as Dinner was ready, coincidentally enough. The maids were setting out the plates for everybody and the roast was brought out, and put on the center of the table, for all to enjoy. Rinaldo looked to be in a slightly grumpy mood, but tried to hide it. "Ah, My dear, that smells delightful," he said, but it lacked the emotion behind the words he was saying. It sounded very automatic. Aevaline was now most assuredly avoiding Eye-contact with Del'ure, and gestured for Del'ure to have a seat across from Rinaldo.

Jack, all cleaned up now and with wet hair, noticed that there were no servants at the table, and he leaned iin to Del'ure a little bit. "Pardon me, should I... should I sit at the table too, or should I ... excuse myself?" He asked, a little worried. He really didn't want to miss out on this. It smelled so, so good.

Del’ure enjoyed a little rest while Jack was in the bath but dinner came almost too soon, he had quite enjoyed a little peace and quiet, and most of all rest in a lovely bed such as this one. But of course, he was also looking forward to dinner itself and especially what would come after it.

When they were all seated at the table, Del’ure added to Rinaldo’s compliment: “It really does smell delicious, my lady. Thank you again, for your hospitality.” At the last bit, he looked at the master of the house, trying to figure out if Jack and him were in any kind of trouble as a result of Rinaldo’s bad mood or not, but there seemed to be no hint, so Del’ure let it slide.

At Jack’s question, Del’ure almost froze up, completely having forgotten that Jack was supposed to be his servant in this scenario, but he quickly recovered, playing over his hesitation by glancing at Rinaldo and Aevaline apologetically.

“I think it may be alright just this once, after all we are guests in this house and you are temporarily relieved of your duties as a servant. If that is acceptable to the master and lady of the house of course?”

He looked at the others once again but was fairly certain that Aevaline wouldn’t say anything and Rinaldo was most likely not going to care as long as they were out of his hair by the next day. For show, he turned back to Jack once again and warned: “No ill behaviour, understood? This is not the place to act up!”
Translated, it merely meant that Jack shouldn’t overdo it on the pork roast due to his still sensitive stomach.

Rinaldo, as predicted, didn't care at all. He waved a hand. "Do what you wish with your servant - you are indeed both guests here. Sit, sit, both."

Jack beamed and nodded carefully to Del'ure, to show upmost respect. "Thank you Master." He took a seat politely.

The Pork-Roast was absolutely delicious. The meat was so tender... it fell right off the bones. It was absolutely perfect. Jack was eating very slowly, of couse, but every muscle in his body wanted him to lose the self control and wolf it down.

About halfway through the meal, Aevaline tried making polite conversation with Rinaldo. "I... hope your day was all right."

"Mmm? Oh... yes."

"It's very important business being the governor..."

"Mmm."

"... I do wish that you would set aside the duties sometimes. I miss you being at home."

Rinaldo shot her a glare. He knew where this was going. His wife was so needy - and, more than that - she had the audacity to start this conversation in front of GUESTS. How embarrassing! "I know you miss me - I'm sorry," he snipped. "There are things that cannot be done without my being there." Then, to Del'ure, "I'm truly sorry for this rude discussion."

"But surely even lords and kings must attend to their families sometimes... right?"

He rolled his eyes. Aeveline knew at least a little what she was doing, though. He almost always left on the nights when he felt to stifled, and asking such questions certainly prompted that. Rinaldo finished eating without answering any more questions. "If you'll excuse me, I need to go to my study to write up an important document." and just as soon as he had returned, he excused himself hastily, leaving Jack, Del'ure, and Aevaline alone in the dining room with that kind of awkward air.

Del’ure could see the way Jack was forcing himself to eat calmly and like a person used to food, it made him feel sorry for the young man of having had such a hard life – once again. He wouldn’t have thought himself that he would be glad to have done such a deed but he really was glad that he had helped Jack the day before and was now trying to provide him with a way to live a decent life. It was oddly.. fulfilling.

Aevaline however really seemed to know what she was doing without even raising any sort of suspicion. Acting his part, he looked at his plate, slightly embarrassed at the conversation but quickly went to reassure Rinaldo when the latter addressed him.

“Oh, no, it’s quite alright. Don’t worry about it. I know how taxing business can be sometimes and one simply doesn’t have the time to take care of everything.” Okay, so maybe he didn’t know that from personal experience but he had heard many stories from boring and dissatisfied wives and he had observed his fair share of supposedly important businessmen. It was always the same story. The more they thought they were someone, the more they neglected their personal life – or at least that part of the personal life which didn’t involve making money.

After Rinaldo left, Del’ure took a deep breath before quietly helping himself to another piece of pork roast, not wanting to appear all too pleased at how well this had gone. Though of course, the silence at the dining table had to continue in case of eavesdropping servants. Thus, Del’ure didn’t speak apart from a brief “I’m sure he didn’t mean to leave quite so soon again but business is business.” Of course, what the servants couldn’t see was that the phrase was accompanied by a grin and a wink, both directed at Aevaline.

Getting up out of his chair once all their plates were empty, he turned to the boy. “Well, then. Jack? It’s time we get to our beds and digest this lovely dinner. Thank you very much for the meal, it was utterly delicious!” He bowed shortly before Aevaline at these words before walking out of the room and heading back upstairs and towards the bedroom.

.... Well. Since Del'ure had a second piece...

Jack quickly cut himself a small helping of seconds as well. Tiiiiny. But he didn't care if he got sick from eating too much - It was just too good. Such a fancy meal he had never before experienced. How could he have lived his entire life without eating like this once? He took tiny little bites but as the conversation wrapped up he hurried up a bit. He sort of kind of knew that Del'ure was planning something with the Mademoiselle, but he wasn't sure how the conversations at the table fit into it at all. He would have felt more sorry for the woman if she didn't get to eat like this EVERY DAY and sleep in such a soft bed. Matters of love were secondary. It was true, of course, but since he never really cared about anybody before, he simply couldn't relate to her pain at all. It seemed foreign and frivolous, truth be told.

Aevaline sighed and bowed her head, looking quite distressed. "O-of course he would leave," she said lightly. "And I'm sure he'll be leaving for more 'business' in an hour" she said spitefully. The spite was quite sincere, but she was mostly saying it to let Del'ure know that in about an hour, it would be safe. She wiped her eyes, trying to be discrete, but she exhaled slowly and stood as well, letting the spite melt away into her own desires and thoughts of sweet, sweet vengeance. "I suppose I'll retire as well... If you need anything while my husband is away, my door will be on the third floor, in the master suite. I know that this house is a big large, but if you have anything you'd like me to attend to, please don't be afraid of waking me up. I strive to be a good host before everything." All of this was of course code. She wasn't really as subtle as Del'ure, but the servants had heard this rant before, or at least rants very similar to it, so they didn't think too much of it. Mila was kind of looking at them suspiciously though.

Jack wiped his mouth politely and stood once he was done, looking perfectly innocent even though he knew he probably shouldn't have had that little extra. "Sir, if it please you, I'm not tired yet... May I have your permission to help the cooks clean up?" He asked hopefully. And then gave a subtle nod in Mila's direction. Kind of as if saying that he was gonna help distract her.

The message was clear, to Del’ure at least and seemingly not only. From the way Mila was eyeing them, he was starting to be annoyed with the girl. She stuck her nose in things that weren’t her business and though it was typical servant behaviour, Del’ure really didn’t appreciate it.

“Thank you, my Lady, that is most kind of you, but I’m sure the servants will be more than happy to attend to any possible needs as well, so there would be no need to rouse you in the middle of the night. I am much grateful for your kindness however.” And out the door he was, merely stopping briefly to respond to Jack’s question.

Giving him a thumbs up from the hallway where nobody could see him anymore, he said: “I thought I gave you the evening off of your servant’s duties? But very well, if you think you must, then go ahead. They probably won’t mind a bit of an extra hand in the kitchen. But make sure not to make too much noise when you’re going upstairs, I do not want to be disturbed.”
It was a brilliant idea, really, and though Del’ure had considered sending Jack off as a distraction for the servants, he would not have asked it. After all, Jack was not his servant, no matter how much they were acting upon it at this moment in time.

And when the time came, a little over an hour later, just to be on the safe side that Rinaldo had really left the house, Del’ure happily headed upstairs to find Aevaline in her chambers. He would have to remember to snatch some sort of dessert or fruit out of the kitchen on his way back down again just to thank Jack for his efforts. The boy really deserved it, and he hoped that Mila hadn’t been too much of a pain while he had helped out in the kitchen!

Nobody was in the corridors while Del’ure was creeping around, which made his life much easier still, and only shortly after having left his own bedroom, he was already knocking on Aevaline’s door.

Jack would cope. He was a good sport. He did a very, very excellent job of distracting Mila.

Aevaline opened the door a crack before ushering him in in a hurry and closing the door behind him. "Thank you - thank you for coming." She bit her lip and looked down. Although she had been looking forward to this, she wasn't really sure how to initiate this - of couse she knew her way around the bedroom but seducing and being seduced by somebody who wasn't her husband.. she kind of wanted Del'ure to do the seducing. Well, all right then. She reached up and brushed her hand against his face shyly. "Please..." she asked. "Please.... make me feel alive."

((Le fade to black?))

Seeing how shy and nervous, Aevaline was, Del’ure knew that he was going to take the complete initiative in this, but he didn’t mind. He knew how to, and he had done it more times than he could count. Pushing thoughts of how grateful he was to Jack for distracting Mila and of a possible early return of Rinaldo out of his mind, he focused on solely the woman in front of him.

As she brushed her hand against his face and asked him to make her feel alive, a warm smile spread over his face as he bent towards her lips. “Your wish is my command, my Lady.”

~*~*~*~*

It was still early when Del’ure snuck out of Aevaline’s bedroom, having planted a farewell kiss on her lips and hastily dressing before he reached the door. Everything was silent in the hallway and it had been almost all night long. Aevaline was fast asleep and her regular breathing did nothing to interrupt his sense of hearing as he listened for possible eavesdroppers. But all seemed fine. It wasn’t in every house that he was chased out of it in the mornings, though it did happen regularly.

He reached the bedroom Jack was occupying by himself not to shortly after and quietly slipped inside, making a mess of his bed to feign someone having slept in it – it helped that he had actually lain down a little after his bath – before making it up as though he wanted to make life easier on the servants who would have to strip the beds. The comfort of this house really was on a very high standard. It was remarkable.

“Jack? Are you awake?” he whispered, unsure whether the boy was sleeping or not. The breathing was regular, but it didn’t seem like he was in a deep sleep, or maybe Jack never really slept very deeply as a way of self-preservation, considering his life experiences up until now.

Aevaline barely stirred, only offering a tired smile as she was bidded a silent farewell.

Jack hadn't been asleep at all when Del'ure came in. He had stayed quite still as Del'ure had entered the room, with his eyes closed, halfway expecting the intruder to be the Lord of the House rather than Del'ure, but when the identity of the intruder was known, he flipped onto his other side, his eyes wide and with a mischievous grin on his face. "Nope, not for I think an hour," he whispered back. "I hope it all went smoothly..." He winked. "And uninterrupted."

Well, since it was Del'ure, and since Del'ure was awake, he himself sat up. He wasn't sure whether Del'ure wanted to sleep in a bit or not - Personally, Jack wouldn't care either way. Whatever Del'ure decided, Jack would certainly follow suit. Although he wasn't tired, he was absolutely not at all going to object to spending a few more hours on these beds. They were the beds of the gods. He was sure that this was what clouds were made out of. "So," he asked, still keeping his voice low in case of any eavesdroppers. "I take it we're safe then? We gonna stay here a little longer or sneak out while the sneaking is good?"

“All went well, and uninterrupted,” Del’ure confirmed, returning the smirk on the boy’s face. It had indeed gone rather well. She was an easy woman to please, and he did not mean that in a bad way, but as a compliment rather. “And how were things down in the kitchen? I hope Mila wasn’t too much of a pain for you to handle? Thanks again though for doing that, it really made my plans so much simpler!” That was when Del’ure remembered that he had wanted to pick something up from the kitchen for Jack’s benefit upon his return, which he had now promptly forgotten.

“No, we won’t be sneaking out, since we don’t want to rise any kind of suspicion. We will now quite simply get out of bed as though nothing happened.” Grinning, Del’ure added, spotting Jack’s wistful glance at the sheets: “Sorry about stealing the fun away. Anyway, we will then clean ourselves up, and head downstairs for the kitchen. One of the servants will most likely be close by to hear the movement, the use of the bath and us walking downstairs. It will be enough. We will then just tell them that we want to make an early start because I do not want to impose myself any further on Rinaldo.”

Del’ure had also kept his voice low and moved a little closer to Jack’s bed to make conversation in whispering easier but he was now raising his voice to a more normal level since they were actually going to get up.
“Jack, gather our things together while I clean up quickly. The bath will be yours once I’m done, but be hasty. I want to get an early start and cross as much distance today as possible. We have a long ride to Didienne.” With his head he shook a quick no, telling Jack that it wasn’t where they were headed but in case there were any spies, they would then be going the wrong way.

“Brief stop at the kitchen after that, but really only brief. I don’t want to abuse Rinaldo’s hospitality. Just breakfast and a little something to keep us going for a few hours. The rest we will buy on the way.”

Jack laughed quietly. "Nah, not too much trouble. Turned out, all I had to do was get her talking about herself. Heh, learned so much dirt." That didn't become much easier though until he was able to convince Mila that he and his Sire were completely harmless. And.... well, he sort of got sick, which certainly helped with the distraction, but he really didn't want to tell Del'ure. It had been TOTALLY WORTH IT. That pork roast was so good... but it didn't taste near as good coming up as it had when he had eaten it. Again, though, so worth it. "Like the reason apparently she was giving you guys the eye was - well, of course she wanted to catch Aeva cheating - but her motivation behind it was that she herself had been one of Rinaldo's love affairs and has feelings for him, so she does everything for him. Everything."

when the normal voices started to be used, he hopped up the rest of the way, and stretched out nicely. "Of course, I'll have everything ready before you're out. If you don't mind, I'll wait until after I'm done bathing before I set up the horse, since that might take me a bit longer." He didn't know where Didienne even was, so he shrugged and smiled sheepishly. "It'll be nice to finally get there," he said, completely in the dark about geography around here.

Although he had gotten sick earlier - or maybe because of it - he was pretty hungry again. the idea of stopping by the kitchen was enough anything to make him take a fast shower.

So, dutifully, he gathered up their items while Del'ure bathed... though there wasn't terribly much to gather that wasn't already in a bag, so that took no time at all. Jack, too, finished his bath in a hurry after Del'ure was done with his. And with he and Del'ure cleaned and ready for the day, Jack helped carry their things and followed Del'ure down to the kitchens, eager for a bite.

Aevaline wouldn't be seeing Del'ure for the rest of his stay. Even if she had awoken before he left, she would have avoided bumping into him as to avoid Mila catching on to anything.

The news that Mila had had an affair with Rinaldo didn’t really come as a surprise to Del’ure though it was still quite stunning nonetheless to actually hear it being said, out loud. There always was a particular reason why a servant would be that eager to obey the master in such an intense way. It was good though that she was a little selfish in that respect, it seemed to have helped Jack quite a bit in his endeavour, for which Del’ure was glad.

“That is fine,” Del’ure replied, almost out the door already. “The horse was probably glad to get the rest as well. But no more delays after the bath!” For the sake of possible eavesdroppers that last bit was added, otherwise Del’ure would have taken care of the horse himself while Jack was getting cleaned up.

As it was, Mila was already downstairs in the kitchen preparing some sort of hot brew and apparently she had literally just finished baking a loaf of bread. “Oh, that smells delicious! Fresh bread!” The excitement wasn’t faked in this instance as Del’ure really liked the smell of freshly baked bread, though he usually avoided eating it. It wasn’t all too easy on the stomach; a good thing in this case too that he didn’t because it would keep Jack from digging in straight away as well. The boy would most definitely be unable to digest freshly baked bread. For a moment, Del’ure wondered when he would be able to stop considering things Jack could or couldn’t eat and hope it wouldn’t be all too long before that was the case.

While he was negotiating their breakfast package, Del’ure sent Jack off to prepare the horse so they could be on their way as soon as possible.
“And please make sure to give my regards to Rinaldo. He has been most kind to both myself and my servant. It is a shame I couldn’t see him anymore to thank him myself but alas we have to be on our way and I wouldn’t want him to have any more trouble with us than he already had.” Specifically the merchant would be a pain if he realised Del’ure was still around town, thus it was better they weren’t anymore. Del’ure didn’t say it but he was sure that Mila already knew what he meant.

Once outside, he looked at Jack. “Ready?” And before long they were already winding their way through the streets of the city and out into the fields surrounding it.

After a month of riding here and there, through and between towns, Jack had made himself fairly well equipped. He got himself a rather nice tunic and his own bed mat - nothing could beat those first beds he slept in, but still worlds above the cold paved roads or muddy ground. He also acquired a mule and two long daggers, which he was becoming quite skilled with. After being fed regularly and well for a while, he was also showing a good deal of acrobatic prowess (and he kept mentioning how much easier handsprings were to do when he was actually eating regularly). So all in all, Jack was becoming a handy little side-kick; enthusiastic and excitable and whose top priority was to make sure he did everything in his power to make things go smoothly. He had put on some weight, too. He'd probably never weigh over 120 lbs due to his malnourished childhood, but his bones weren't prominently sticking out anymore. His ribs weren't grossly protruding, or anything like that. He was actually turning into a real person. He was even getting a little confidence.

So before long, they became to a particular town. Well, it wasn't that particular of a town. It just was one more town between them and their ... destination? Jack didn't really know where he was going. From everything Jack could tell, they didn't really HAVE a destination, but Jack didn't mind to much. He was just pleased regardless as long as he was with Del'ure. Right, but the town seemed pleasant enough. It had a mayor, a nice high defending wall, a quaint tavern and inn, the whole get-up needed to make a nice enough town with not enough politics to make it terribly unpleasant.

"All right!" Jack said, enthusiastic as ever. "Any plans while we're here?" He asked. "Going to go swoop another married woman off her feet and nab some stuff from her hubby while you're at it?" He asked with a smug grin as he sized up the town.

They had spent their time on the road well and it had been much more fun than Del’ure would have thought. For so long, he had been used to fending for himself and doing everything on his own, but despite the rather big change, it had been a good one to get Jack into his life. The boy really knew his way around and it made some of their adventures all the more interesting with having a side-kick who knew exactly what to do.

Most of all, it was good to see though that the youth was really starting to bloom, growing some meat onto his bones, self-confidence and all the usual that went hand in hand with those developments. Del’ure was almost proud of this accomplishment.

The town they chanced upon was just what they needed. Quiet but not quiet enough that every movement of theirs would be noticed and thus big enough so they could hide amongst the masses if they ran into trouble. Two or even three inns, so they could switch if necessary and a handful of easily conned men.

“Hah! No, not this time around,” Del’ure grinned. “Though of course one never knows what may happen. No, this time it will be your turn to get the lady.” The man looked at his companion with the grin still plastered on his face. “It’s about time you learnt to enjoy the touch of a woman! What do you say to that?”

As they were currently making their way through the surprisingly broad road leading towards the city center, where there would no doubt be the first inn, Del’ure kept his voice fairly low so that nobody could overhear them but he was not particularly worried about anyone eavesdropping on them. "I will of course help you in any way that I can. You take your pick and I will help you make the best out of it. And don't worry if something should go wrong. It is never easy at first."

Jack looked surprised at the suggestion. More than that, his face turned Red. While he had found a lot of his confidence... when it came to girls, he still was at a complete loss. Del'ure seemed like a natural, but his techniques seemed a little questionable at times. And, that's not to say that Jack thought of himself as honest, but girls were just frightening. He'd never been met with anything but rejection from them. And sure, they were pretty, but they seemed very high-maintenance and temperamental and snooty and full of themselves. He started nervously laughing, but he kept his conversation-voice quiet for now. "Wh-what, are you serious? What exactly ... what kind of... what kinda girl would want a guy like me?" ... And, the matter of age would add a complication as well. He was a pretty young guy himself, and he hadn't really known ANY girls his age when he had been in that hell-hole, but older women, as far as he could tell, were the real bitches. "I wouldn't even know what to SAY to a woman!" he said, as if that should disqualify him from trying.

But he really didn't know what he was missing. On the other hand, he had been looking at the passing women a lot more lately once he became healthier. He didn't know why they were suddenly much more alluring, but they were. And it wasn't like he was into guys at all, but still. Right, the bottom line was that women were scary.

He rubbed his forehead and eyes sort of in one as he tried to think. "S-so... does... does that mean we're going to .. uh... look for... " his face got red again. "I mean, I think the idea is a good one, but I don't want to look for - ah - you know -" He lowered his voice again. "What measures are we going to take, I mean? I don't really want to buy a harlot if it's all the same to you," he finally said hastily. Some creepy guy had tried to buy him once. That hadn't worked out well for anybody. So he didn't want to be that creepy guy looking to buy anybody else's body either. While Del'ure hadn't gone for a hooker before, he wasn't sure how easy he was going to try to make it on Jack, and while a Hooker might have been easier, it just left a bad taste in his mouth. "Or am I just... I don't know... going to start flirting with people? How do I even...?"

“Are you kidding me?” Del’ure asked with a smile on his face. “You’re quite a catch, you know? Now that you’ve shaped a little, it’s easy to see that you have the looks, and I’m sure that a lot of girls would fall for you in an instant. And they will come flocking to you, which will make talking to them all the easier.”
As so many previous times, Del’ure was taking quite a bit of amusement out of Jack’s apparent embarrassment. It wasn’t the first time they had talked about this, though it was the first time Del’ure had suggested him to seize the opportunity.

“No, no no. Absolutely not,” Del’ure stated vigorously. “It will be a normal girl or even woman, and nothing else. There will be no whoring, not on my watch. Besides the problems this might cause with health and reputation and whatnot, it simply is silly to pay for something you can have for free.” It was crudely put but that was just the way it was. And this did not only go for sex, in Del’ure’s opinion. There were many services people demanded money for that should be free, but that was a whole different matter.
“And why anyone would want to support such a horrible thing, I do not know. No. Your first time will not be with a harlot! What sort of experience would that be? Most of those girls don’t even know how to handle themselves in bed, much less the guy in with them. No no no no.”

Contemplating Jack’s question, he looked at the boy for a moment, musing over possibilities. “Yes, starting to flirt is a distinct possibility. I mean, you have noticed the women who crossed our paths. No denying that,” he grinned. “It starts with eye contact, fleeting at first, then more regular and for longer periods of time. The occasional smile, maybe a wink. Though, no, not for you. You need to keep your innocence, so no winking. Observe her, but in a non-creepy way. Sooner or later you’ll find an opportunity or excuse to talk to her and then you compliment her on how wonderful she looks. Try to get a sort of conversation going, and then see where it takes you. Light touches on the arms, hands, but nothing too invasive, just enough to let her know that you’re interested.”

"I'm not a catch," Jack insisted, still blushing. "I mean, I'm just a guy. Well, I don't know, maybe." He hadn't really thought about how he looked since he started travelling with Del'ure. He knew he had better clothes, but he didn't really get that it wasn't a magical thing - that being social and friendly was a learned skill, and even somebody like him could learn how to be attractive to girls.

"All right, so, uh..." He rubbed the back of his neck, still really nervous. Even so, it's not like Del'ure was forcing this on him. Not really. He was trying to help him out. Jack knew that if he wanted to, he could just tell Del'ure to back off, but he also knew that that really wasn't what he wanted either. He DID want to learn how to actually talk to girls, he just didn't want to be rejected, and that would undoubtedly happen if he started trying. "All right. Uhm. All right. So, what kind of angle should I come in from?" He asked, kind of half-frowning. "Or should I come in with an angle? Should I just be - you know - guy travelling with my boss lookin' for a place to call home, lookin' for a good cause? Where do 'girls' meet 'guys' at this age? I know a lot of adults go to taverns, but is it the same with ... I mean, respectable girls don't spend their time in taverns. They're usually out gussying up pretending to be little ladies and what have you. Is there anybody in specific who I should, you know, 'target''? Like, farmhands, or milkmaids or flower-peddlers , or... I don't know. I really don't know the first thing about women," he said again, even though that had been made clear before. "Never got to observe them the way I observed the rest of the marketplace."

“It is entirely up to you, in all honesty. I would suggest however to start with something easy, so to speak.” Del’ure scanned the crowd for a few moments, though there weren’t all that many suitable women about at this time of day as they were most likely taking care of household chores that did not involve shopping for food.

“Alright. See the girl admiring the flowers over there? She could be an excellent starting point. Young, innocent, fresh but old enough to blush at a little flirtation. I’m not saying you have to get into her knickers right away, mind you, I’m merely pointing out that you should learn how to talk to her.” Del’ure nodded towards a young girl, probably around 15, admiring a rather large stall of freshly cut flowers, potted plants. Her light brown hair was tightened in a bun, suggesting that she was probably a maid of some sort, but from the way she was dallying and taking her time to inspect and smell each flower, she did have quite a bit of time on her hands. Probably waiting for someone to finish up something else so they could be on their way.

“Unprepared and unable to think much about this. It will be your best opportunity. Go for it now. You’ll both be shy and surprised at the situation, it will be perfect. Use the stall as your excuse, look at the flowers, say that your master sent you to get a few flowers for a lady friend of his but you aren’t really sure and would like a girl’s opinion. Maybe even buy her her favourite. The stall owner is busy with someone else. Go, go! Talk to her and have fun.” Del’ure gave him a little grin as he grabbed the reins of Jack’s mule to take it to the inn’s stables, which were perfectly placed so that Del’ure could still keep an eye on what Jack was doing.

Okay. Now? Now. All right. Jack dismounted off of his steed in a hurry and moved towards the flowers quickly. Right. Right, he had to pretend to be interested in the flowers. He made his way next to the girl and stood in front of the flowers, his cheeks burning red. He tried to act naturally, but "naturally" couldn't be farther from what he looked like. He stood very stiffly, and his hands were on his hips, his pose looking a little forced. Flowers. Right. Flowers.

"Uh..." Talk about the flowers, come on, mouth, work! "D-did - uh - S-say, I don't mean to bother you...." He closed his eyes and exhaled nervously. Well... he supposed that the worst thing that could happen was that she'd tell him to get lost, and he was plenty used to that, so he'd just be at the same place where he had been. So... relax. He exhaled again and opened his eyes again, and leaned into the flowers a bit more. "I hate to bother you... Uhm... My boss is going to be meeting his betrothed today. He wants to make a good impression so he told me to put together a bouquet, but I'll be honest, I really don't know the first thing about flowers. I know that roses are popular, but he indicated that he wanted to give her something with a little more flare to it. So... can I ask your opinion? What kind of flowers would you want to receive if you were meeting somebody for the first time?"

He tried to turn his face to her as he addressed her, but he just couldn't make eye-contact. What else should he say? Should he leave it at that, or try to fill the air with more conversation? "We - me and my boss - we traveled a long way to get here for her. We still don't know if this is going to be our home yet or not, or if we're going to whisk this mystery woman back to my Boss's estate," he added.

Del’ure grinned as he watched Jack stride off towards the flower stand and awkwardly make his entrance. Ah, the innocence of a young and untainted mind. It was a joy to observe. Del’ure was glad that the stablemaster was quick to come to fetch the animals to take care of them. Smiling at him in gratitude, Del’ure quickly removed the saddlebags and other belongings before nonchalantly planting himself against the inn’s outer wall to keep an eye on Jack’s advances.

At first, Selina was a little put off by the boy who suddenly appeared by her side. She disliked being interrupted when she was pursuing one of her favourite hobbies. The vendor knew her well enough to leave her in peace when she was smelling his flowers, but only because she bought one from time to time and made for a good advertisement. However, this insolent...!

That was when she finally looked up at him and saw how very uncomfortable he seemed to be, his pose unnaturally and cheeks flushed a bright red. Almost like a rose. Once he managed to press out a few words, she eased up a lot and immediately offered him a smile.
“Oh, well a rose is always lovely, especially when it is for his betrothed. But here, let me show you what else might make for a suitable flower arrangement.” And on she went to point out various flowers in all shapes and colours, prompting him to smell them as well.
“You see, there is a whole lot of variety. Personally though, if I were to get a flower from someone, I would want it to be something cheerful, like a sunflower. A sunflower is not only a thankful plant as it lives for quite a long time but it is also very beautiful and gives a nice message at the same time. Maybe you should talk to your master again to make sure you got the right flowers. Ask if she has a preference in colour or what she means to him. The bouquet should convey the right message after all.”

In her enthusiasm, her cheeks had flushed a little and without even thinking, she put her hand on Jack’s arm to point him to the sunflower once again. “Isn’t it lovely?” she asked, her voice taking on a dreamy edge, before she gasped and blushed furiously when she realised that she had just touched him. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to.. sorry.”

» Arasolra --:> How Beautiful is your Pain?