Who: Cian & Seloria What: Seloria where she shouldn’t be Where: Nobles’ District When: Backdated: 7/24 Rating: PG-13 for language but mostly harmless Status: Complete!
There were plenty of reasons that Seloria took up unconventional partners. Most would expect a girl of her station and refined tastes would only allow herself to be doted upon by nobility alone. Other than the fact that she learned more about a city in the lower levels than the upper echelons, she got to get away with little things like this. She had snuck onto the Miliona Estate after asking a friend to keep an eye out on the butcher street orphanage to see if a well dressed man had come by. Then if he did, to try and figure out where he came from. That’s why she was near the servant’s entrance, with her finger running along the inside of the man’s lapel. He looked nervous, but interested.
She was droning on about how nice it was of him to come down and help one of the children find a better home. To his credit, he wasn’t sweating. He just smiled and leaned in a little more as her voice dropped to a huskier tone. She went on about how she loved a man who knew how to get things done properly, who knew how to serve so well, and he pressed closer against her body, looking around to see if anyone was watching. A man of his station with such a young noblewoman? It wasn’t unheard of, but such activities were usually carried out much more discreetly. Seloria wasn’t lying. She did admire all those things in a man. She could even find it in herself to admire them in this man, if she wasn’t trying to manipulate him.
Her note of arousal had been slipped into her voice. It was all in how much breath she put into her words, and the way she arched her body into his invitingly. The door almost opened, but he caught it with his hand to hold it. There was some cursing on the other side, before he poked his head inside and had a curt, but clearly frustrated conversation. The dancer smiled, but that quickly shifted to a look of confusion when he looked back at her and then not so feigned disappointment when he disappeared inside.
He’d been so fast at gripping the door that she’d been hit by an adrenaline spike. It didn’t matter who caught them really, as long as she wasn’t told to stop fraternizing with him. She’d read the way he’d reacted to her words. He hadn’t denied any of it. He’d been nervous at first, but the more she distracted him with hints that she found him irresistible, the more open his face became. There hadn’t been time to get any details out of him, but she was a patient girl.
She looked at her watch, resting against the underside of her wrist briefly. She had nowhere to go for the time being. She entertained paying a proper visit to the family through the front door. That would be fun and interesting.
From the shadows, Cian watched the interaction with raised brows. He’d had this particular man tailed -- discreetly -- and what had been brought back to his attention was sufficient to have him taking an evening out of his day to follow. His people were capable, but the things they’d seen were a puzzle, and when it came to solving puzzles, the syndicate leader was one of the best.
This, though, was an element he hadn’t accounted for. The fuck was lady fine and proper doing with this guy? The interrupted tryst played all wrong to his eyes; she wanted something that had nothing to do with what she might find in the guy’s trousers.
And why the hell was this chick popping up everyfuckingwhere anyway?
She stood now, looking pensive, and he wondered just what she might do next. Didn’t seem the sort for lockpicks, and indeed, she didn’t go for the door. Before she could decide to wander off, he’d already made his decision -- he’d overheard only a word or two of the murmured conversation, but considering what else he’d seen tonight, it had piqued his interest. All things considered, there was no harm in showing himself.
He emerged from the shadows, small smirk firmly in place. “Men are such pigs, aren’t they?”
Seloria turned toward the familiar voice. What the hell was he doing here? She widened her eyes wide to look surprised, but didn’t bother to bring her hand up to her chest as if she were startled. “Mr. Wilde.” Her surprised expression slipped into a happier one. It was genuine if not slightly guarded. “What an unexpected pleasure.” He always did show up when things got interesting, didn’t he? Seeing him at a party as the date of a dancer was one thing. Seeing him here now was something completely different. “I find that piggish men have a certain level of usefulness.”
He’d clearly seen everything, so there was no point in denying the situation. She had been mostly honest the last time he’d caught her doing something similar to this, except now her hair and face weren’t smothered in soot. “What brings you here?” She probably should’ve just walked off by now, but she was genuinely curious. It was an attribute fed by her youth. She felt like she should have been more wary of Cian, but there was something about him that put her at an odd sense of ease.
“Anyone can be useful,” Cian said with a shrug. “If you can’t find a use for someone, chances are your creativity is lacking.”
Even if the best use for some people was target practice.
He considered ignoring her question altogether, but settled at last for, “Probably not the same thing as you, though your piggish admirer does seem to have his hands in a few pies, so I guess we can’t say for certain.” He grinned. “For now, let’s assume I was just taking a walk and saw something interesting. Wouldn’t do to pass by an acquaintance without saying hello.” A pause. “Wouldn’t be polite.”
"True," Seloria didn't bother to argue. It was one of the skills she'd picked up with all the constant charity work, how to place people where they'd be either of the most use or of the least inconvenience if they insisted.
"That is a very civil outlook to the situation, Mr. Wilde," she said with a smile. Wouldn't be polite. He did seem quite out of place in the noble's district, not wrapped in finery. She herself didn't bother to dress down. She was young and would look like a foolish girl interested in an older man, possibly attempting to piss off her parents or Aspel or Rictor most likely. "But I do like pies," she transitioned smoothly. "I would love to hear what kind he enjoys." He could share. He could not share. She was hoping for at least some sort of vague statement that confirmed her suspicions.
Gwynn would not have passed her that note for no reason.
“The sticky kind,” Cian replied promptly. It could mean any number of things: that the man’s hands were dirty (they were), that he was a lecher with a taste for pretty young girls out of his pay grade (he certainly seemed to be), or perhaps simply that the gambler was teasing the dancer (and he was).
If there was more to say, he kept it to himself.
“In the name of civility, then,” he said, nodding his head, “have a nice night waiting for your friend. Might be a long wait -- you should have someone bring you a cushion at least.” Definitely teasing. “I’ll be on my way.”
He had a few things to look into, and the action was not here for the rest of the night, at least not for him. Whatever her aim was, it was curious but for now somewhat irrelevant. He was getting somewhere, and didn’t need to derail his momentum wondering what she was into now. Not his problem.
Seloria took his words into consideration. The sticky kind. There was no attempt to hide that she was taking in his words seriously; concerned.
Then he added the second bit and she just blinked. “As always, your attentiveness appreciated, Mr. Wilde.” He was teasing her, but she was certain the part about sticky pies was true, especially if they had something to do with the children. She didn’t know if Cian had anything to do with that sort of business, but it would not have been safe to ask considering they were quite isolated at the time. She would corner him in a more public venue. The dancer didn’t believe he was, but it was an end to tie up. “Good day,” she said to no one as he’d already gone.