Hello (closed to Lavinian Ambition)

[Whiskey in the Willows]

Iron struck stone on the heels of the last strike’s echo.

“You sure it’s here?” Emeline asked. She continued to strike, stone cracking and tumbling beneath her pick. Sweat was dripping from her brow, the stagnant air of the cave as humid as a steamhouse, though the night had been dry and cool. Lamplight flickered, the mirrored back of the lantern casting the glare to the stone. From behind it, the light was dim on her sister. Esme’s large dark eyes were narrowed in annoyance.

“Have I ever been wrong?” she asked quietly. Em shook her head and continued to work. The minutes drug on, and as her arms stang with the effort of digging, stone crumbled away from the last piercing blow of iron and something glittered in the light. The spectacled girl let her pick drop to her side and pulled her fingers through short, dark hair.

“Finally,” she sighed. “We’re gonna be good for a while on this, Esme.” Looking over her shoulder, she watched as the slighter girl smiled weakly and fanned herself. “Let’s get this out so we can get you some fresh air.”



In Radasanth, there was an apartment. It was nestled somewhere between the slums and the government buildings, a respectable little neighborhood with well kept streets and a night watch that never failed to do their rounds. It was the sort of apartment that good money bought, but not for itself. The girls had found it to be a safe, suitable home. They kept it spartanly, with most comforts reserved for their bedrooms. In the den, however, there was a desk with four comfortable chairs around it. A small safe was mounted beneath it, and the fireplace in the room revealed a tastefully, warmly decorated space. Here was a space for business.

A clock ticked quietly above the mantle. Their guest was late.

[Lavinian Ambition]

“Why me?” The words hung in the air the belligerent tone setting the feel of the conversation. Looking through a thin screen of crimson locks at the newcomer he sipped his drink and grimaced. It was a frank question, one that cut to the heart of the matter. His storm grey eyes held a note of irritation in their depths, belying the true anger behind them. Arms crossed the chest of the man even as he looked back at the other in the room.
“Listen, Firebrand, I do not need your anger being directed at me. I already had to cut off Demon this week, and I don't need to have another person angry at me for no reason,” The challenge was thrown back into the face of the red head before Firebrand did a double take.

“You cut off Demon? But he's-”

“None of your concern. The only thing you need to be concerned with, is the two women who stumbled upon an artifact of great value. I don't care how you do it, but get us the artifact. This directive comes from Father himself...” The man stood up from the table dropping a few coins on the wood before he gestured dismissively at his drink. “Watered down piss is what that was...”

The red head nodded sullenly as he shoved his drink aside and dropped a few coins of his own on the table and stood. He clasped hands with the man who gave him his instructions before he spoke, “I'll do it, hopefully I won't have to do anything to drastic...”

“I don't care, just don't fall for the targets. Last thing I need is to chase you down because you went lovesick puppy on a pair of doe eyed brats...”

~*~

He looked down at the paper for the twentieth time, trying to discern the handwriting the fence had given him. The man's penmanship, if it could be called that, was so bad, that it made the chicken scratch that Jared had cobbled together in his spare time look like the work of nobles. Finally he determined it was in fact a five and not a six that he was looking at, raised a bare hand and knocked on the door.

Silently he counted to ten and prayed he had not knocked on the wrong door...

[Whiskey in the Willows]

The door swung open, and Emeline stared up at the man standing there. After a moment regarding him over the rim of her glasses, she greeted and hastened him in. He’d produced a paper, one that identified him as working for their fence, a tinkerer who could appraise their find of authenticity. He seemed legit enough. The handwriting was so bad that she’d never have believed he forged it – no tinkerer had that unskilled script, and the fence was new.

The warrior swept him through the apartment, though there was little to see. When they came into the den, stepping down to the recessed room, she swept her hand to one of the chairs. Esme sat in it, her pale hands folded on her lap, her fingers moving to smooth the blue skirt here and there.

“My sister, Esme Duwitt.” Emeline introduced. “I am Emeline, and the artifact is on the desk there.”

“Forgive me for not standing,” Esme said quietly, before falling silent. She was sure he wouldn’t care anyway. After all, this was a business visit and the apple of his eye was sitting upon the desk. The box itself was of a good size, and simple but obviously crafted with care. The latch on the box wasn’t locked, prepared for the tinker’s inspection. Emeline slid into another seat and crossed her scarred arms. With a glance towards Esme, a smile crept across her lips as she waited for the tinker to do his work, not a doubt in her mind that he would be as impressed as she had been.

[Lavinian Ambition]

Jared was surprised at the furnishings. His eyes wandering over the knickknacks and little oddities that made the place a home. They were higher quality than the ones in his parent's hovel, but the sentiment was much the same. It was all garbage to anyone uninitiated in their importance. It put him more at ease as he nodded distractedly at the lead woman who made introductions. It wasn't until his eyes settled on the woman with the blue dress that he finally paid attention to the tenants of the apartment.

She seemed almost porcelain, much like the dolls of Akashima. Beautiful yet delicate. It wasn't until he felt both pairs of eyes on him that he shook his head and looked at the table, “Ah. Yes. The artifact. Let's have a look here and see. I had heard you found it, where was it exactly? You can be vague on the location, I understand it is after all your find, I just need a gist for what kind of purpose it could have had...”

He carefully lifted the lid of the box before an eyebrow rose. The artifact kept neatly in the box upon a small cushion to preserve it from harsher conditions. There was no doubt in his mind it was genuine, whatever it was. Carefully closing the lid he looked at the girls, “I can say this much, it is very old, but I don't want to mess with it too much before you tell me more about how you found it...”

[Whiskey in the Willows]

“Well,” Emeline started, before her sister stopped her.

“Southern Corone, near the coast.” Esme finished. Emeline glanced at her sister, but aside from a small raise of her brow, she gave no reaction. Instead, she waited quietly. The frailer of the two brushed her braid from where it had laid over her shoulder behind her and leaned forward in her seat. “It was buried with some other possessions, but nothing else of value, and not in a gravesite.”

“Well, we didn’t find bones.” Em cut in. “Research on the site suggests Thayne worship, but of course, without more study and digging it’s impossible to know much else.”

They gave him a moment to take it all in before the sisters spoke again, this time in unison, though their words were quite different.

“I trust your employer is interested?” Emeline asked.

“Would you like a drink?” Esme asked.

Neither apologized for speaking over the other, and both watched expectantly.

[Lavinian Ambition]

Thayne bless it...

Of course it would not be that simple. He kept his face as neutral as possible, looking upon the girls before he smiled and spoke, “I would definitely say my employer is interested in the artifact. As for that drink, I would be honored.”

He was intrigued by her keen interest. When he had first entered the room, she seemed almost bored of the prospect. Merely going through the motions. Now she was alert, active, studying. Him was all he could guess, but then again he had been known for failing to read a woman in the past. Reine and Kyo immediately came to mind with his previous trysts. While he thought they had been in it for the long run, both had disappeared on him, and he knew that he would be lucky to even glimpse them nowadays.

Which made the smaller of the two all the more facinating to him. Perhaps his was his knight in shining armor complex, one his sister often chided was ill fitting. He wanted to see what this woman was about and she was keen on being demure and distant, except for that interest.

Suddenly it was as if the world had come to a standstill, when he realized while he knew the doll's name, he didn't know her sisters. “I'm so sorry, my employer would cuff me for my bad manners, I'm Jared. I believe you introduced me to Esme, but your name madame?”

[Whiskey in the Willows]

They erupted in giggles, their youth more powerful than their professionalism.

“As I said,” Emeline said with a grin, “I am Emeline.” She was the one who stood and pulled a decanter from the bar behind the desk. It was nestled against the wall, and with the cabinet open, there were more jars of dried herbs than there were bottles of alcohol. She poured an amber drink, and hesitated a moment before saying, “Ah, my apologies. We’ve neglected the ice, but hopefully the quality will speak for itself.”

The short-haired sister glanced over her shoulder at Esme. Their brown eyes met and there was a tiny shake of the head as Esme smiled. It was near imperceptible. Emeline nodded and a glass of good bourbon. “I prefer to drink it neat anyway,” she added with a wink.

Emeline mixed one for herself, and then sat down and raised her glass before taking a generous sip.

[Lavinian Ambition]

Of course she had, and had Jared been paying attention, maybe he would have remembered that. Trying to keep the embarrassed heat from his cheeks he sipped the drink and sighed contently. For once he was dealing with something stronger than piss water and was appreciative as he nodded thoughtfully. While not Lavinian Ale, it was enough to cause a pleasant burning down his throat, “This is marvelous. I must say you have great taste in alcohol miss.”

He moved to inner thoughts as he tried to take in the few details he had taken in. A narrow hallway, which boards creaked when stood upon. He carefully opened the box once more to look upon the artifact and drank in its details. He was also carefully weighing the box to determine if he could swap out the artifact for something else, but decided that wouldn't work for various reasons, the least of which was the lack of something suitably small and the proper weight.

Rolling his shoulders he looked at the two of them before he spoke, “I would have to talk to my employer to figure out what offers we're willing to do. Perhaps I could meet with one of you later to discuss terms of the transfer and perhaps future business propositions?” His eyes lingered on Esme for a little bit before he turned to the other woman, the one who was the negotiator and shrugged offering up the idea.