[COMPLETED/CLOSED]
Characters: Anubis (dogofthedead) & Helen (helel) Date/Time: June 17th Location: The brothel Rating: PG-13 Warnings: Your mom Not really? Idk? There's talks of brothelyness? sdknfd. Summary: A first meeting between the brother of the sultan and a courtesan.
Helen was a beautiful woman, she was slim, delicate looking (but beneath that delicate way she was anything but, she had an iron will and a way with men that was intended to dominate them.) She wasn't pure iron, she was smiling, had a sense of humor and a ton of pride. Those who contracted her services wanted more than looks and skill, the wanted someone intelligent, pillow talk - it depended but she was used to those who just wanted fun. Of course most couldn't afford her, and Helen? She was fine with that.
She undid a pin, allowing her blond hair to spill over, a sigh and she was moving to her closet to pick out something. It would be a long night ahead of her.
Admittedly enough, Anubis wasn't one that frequented the brothels or spent much time away from his work or the castle. Today, he'd been coaxed into agreeing to come out of his comfortable little graveyard by a few of the friends he'd made outside the castle. He'd picked out some of his better clothes at their urging and would do his best to appear less uncomfortable.
Chewing on his lip, Anubis adjusted his clothing for what felt like the hundredth time. This was going to be awkward. He would do his best not to be, but he knew that it would take a vast amount of effort. After a few moments, he waved off the man that had helped him dress (why he needed him, he didn't know, but the man insisted and often looked like a kicked puppy if rejected, so Anubis gave up that fight after a while) and left the castle.
When Helen stepped down to the main hall, eyes turned to her and she preened. The stage wasn't hers tonight, but that didn't mean she had less attention as she moved to her usual table where a few other girls were chatting. She made herself at home there, and leaned back watching the spectacle on the stage. She let people buy her drinks and tossed morsels of attention here and there, but there was nothing that really called for her attention.
The moment Anubis stepped into building, he felt his level of discomfort rise, which manifested in more of a slight scowl than anything else. He tried to ignore his friends' teasing and went to find a seat, eyes casually scanning the room. There were plenty of beautiful women in the room and he might have had any of them. He was the brother of the Sultan. Money wasn't a problem. The problem was finding someone who wouldn't treat him like a person entirely run on hormones.
The table chosen was one near the stage (perhaps meant to make him watch the show or bring some interest). He meant no rudeness by neglecting his duty to pay attention, but he was still adjusting. Drinks were brought to the table and Anubis relaxed a little, allowing himself to look at the stage before turning his attention back to the room around him. Maybe he'd find someone he knew.
Of course the brother of the sultan would attract the attention of the establishment, Helen was made aware by a whisper in her ear from one of the girls. And she turned her attention in his direction. For her part, Helen didn't know what to make of him, he wasn't particularly...anything. Besides the fact his brother was ruler, he could've passed as an ordinary person. His clothes were fine, though he woul look better in something simpler.
Helen took a sip from her drink, and rested her chin on the back palm of her hand observing him and his crowd. Eventually she decided to join them, walking with that singular grace that was natural to Helen, "Gentleman, will you not invite me to join me? I'm hurt." She laughed, sweet and inviting and one of the young men by Anubis began apologizing and offering his own chair and a drink.
At the appearance of one of the women, Anubis' attention was drawn away from the room and he glanced up, doing his best to appear relaxed and not suddenly awkward. He was glad one of the others spoke instead while he tried to pull himself together enough to speak. "Forgive us, of course." It was formal enough, which felt weird to him. He was not his brother and he was really far more comfortable in his graveyard with the dead or those men that worked there.
Offering her a slight smile, Anubis admittedly allowed his gaze to trail over her a moment. She was...different from what he could tell. Nothing bad. No. It was something about the way she held herself and her boldness. Women weren't his strong point in the slightest, but it would be okay...somehow. His mind thought over multiple ways to phrase the question he wanted to ask, some formal, others not. After a moment he settled on. "What's your name?" It was better than 'What are you called' or some other overly wordy way of going about it.
Helen seemed unperturbed by the awkwardness, instead she turned her full attention to Anubis. "Helen, my name is Helen, and you?" She was assessing him, thinking, turning him in her mind and deciding - she felt her mind blank a little. There was nothing clear to deduce so instead she just smiled back easily. "You're not someone we see around her much."
"Nice to meet you, Helen." He wondered if he shouldn't sound more royal sometimes, but it was no matter. It would be more awkward to force it. "I'm Anubis." There was another moment of awkwardness as she smiled back at him, but he recovered quick enough. "No. I'm usually making sure things are running smoothly..." and here he might have said 'in the graveyard' but he wasn't sure if he should, so he finished with "Elsewhere." Which was no less awkward. Maybe he should have stayed in the graveyard. At least he knew what to do there. "My friends here informed me I work too much and needed to come with them, so here I am."
She was offering a sweet smile, trying to lure him into a comfortable area, she wasn't sure she could do this out here though. "Your friends were possibly right, you look excruciatingly tense, darling. Why don't you come have a drink with me upstairs." With a flick of her wrist she indicated a balcony that overlooked the stage still but was far more private. "It is not reserved tonight for anyone, why don't you join me for a drink? We can make fun of the dancers, or sit in silence and watch, if this is your break you should at least be comfortable."
She wasn't doing this out of the kindness of her heart, he was someone she wanted to wrap herself around and learn to read. The fact she looked at him and couldn't tear him apart like he did most men made her feel vulnerable. Helen didn't like it.
Clearly his efforts at appearing less awkward were not working. Damn. Ignoring the snickering from his friends, he focused on Helen, looking up where she pointed. Oh, for the love of Horus. He shouldn't feel this uncomfortable around people. Oh well. There wasn't much he could do for it. He nodded slightly, not entirely sure why he was agreeing to this at all. He could just say no and excuse himself, but for whatever reason, he was allowing himself to entertain the idea of going up to a balcony alone with one of the courtesans.
"That would be nice." Maybe. His brow furrowed for a moment before he stood. "Lead the way."
Hey, she was lovely company! Helen just smiled and lead the way, she knew perfectly well the best way to pass through the tables unnoticed, muttering a few things to a boy waiting by. "We'll have drinks and privacy." She pushed the curtains aside. The balcony room was comfortable, pillows, low tables and soft lights, there was a pleasant incense smell - Helen took her spot on the left side and made herself comfortable.
"Please." She patted the cushions by her side playfully, "Or across from me if you prefer."
Anubis bit down on his lower lip for a moment, debating where to sit. Of course it wasn't really a difficult decision, but he always overthought things. After a moment, he sat down next to her, giving her the benefit of the doubt. There would be drinks, privacy, and hopefully some interesting conversation. If anything else happened, well...he'd figure that out when he got there. He smiled over at her briefly. "I hope I won't prove entirely boring." He almost said he didn't talk to a lot of people, but he didn't want to sound entirely pathetic. "I'll do my best."
His words made her look favorably at him, "You know most men don't say that, they usually expect me to entertain them." She shifted her position slightly turn properly to him, the bracelets in her wrists making a soft chime."Why don't we start small? I won't judge you until a few hours into the conversation." Helen teased with a smile, "Maybe you'll make me forget entirely to do that." And though it could be taken as a suggestive thing, she was careful enough to let it go there, she was not an easy woman after all.
"Ah." He should have expected that to be the case. "I'm sure you're perfectly entertaining and rather good at it, but I'd feel a little silly if I just sat here like a lump and didn't bother to try." He'd been a part of one-sided conversations and they were never entertaining, no matter how amused the other person appeared. For the person driving the conversation, it got trying. "I hope it won't be a terrible outcome, your judgment of me." He did try sometimes. Given the fact that she didn't appear to have a lot of men interested in entertaining her in return, he'd just have to try harder.
"It may not sound...like a job that fits my station, but I oversee the graveyards. Make sure things run smoothly and that everyone's taken care of." He shrugged slightly. "I used to spend a lot of time around the graveyards when I was younger, so I guess my brother saw fit to give me control over their operation. Nothing terribly glamorous but the dead need to be treated with as much respect as the living and I don't mind being the one to see to it." There was a pause before he asked, "And what do you do when you're not...working?"
Helen didn't mind that he was unusual, that was even better. "We'll see." She paused as new drinks were brought for them and then her full attention was on him - attentive to him and his words. "Unusual, spending so much time with the dead." She nodded, "I understand. Well, I'm glad someone so thoughtful and understanding takes care of our passed loved ones." She smiled widely, "So you prefer quiet company, well, let's see what I can do to change that, at least in regards to myself."
"I like the world I live in too," She went on, "The lights, the night, the spectacle." A brief nod was given in the direction of the stage. "Of course I understand it not to be to everyone's taste. What I do when I'm not working?" The question was confusing, "I don't know, I never really stop working, this is a full-time job." If she wasn't with clients, then she was dressing up or finding outfits or- "I am clearly more of a workaholic than you." Talking to Anubis was easier than expected, and Helen didn't feel like she had to pretend being interested in him either. Perhaps he was trying to be interesting, or perhaps not, she didn't think it mattered too much because she was engaged in what was going on.
"Yes, I suppose it is a bit unusual. It's only obvious to me when I'm talking to others about it. Otherwise I barely notice." He liked the dead and he liked the quiet. That wasn't to say he was entirely against people who weren't quiet. Horus wasn't exactly quiet himself but he wasn't entirely loud either. "I do my best and I'll give you the benefit of the doubt." Though, truthfully, Helen was already interesting to him.
Her response gained a soft laugh and Anubis shook his head a little. "Absolutely terrible. Perhaps we can see about working on your workaholic tendencies next time." If there was one, but part of him hoped there might be. "I believe there are a lot of interesting places and things to see outside of here...even if you do enjoy it so much." He wouldn't mind walking around, showing her places he'd found. He would probably leave the graveyard out of the equation unless she asked to see it."Maybe we'll both discover something new."
He laughed, Helen considered that a win- of what kind she didn't know. "Perhaps we should work on my workaholic tendencies." Although even if she was with him...well that was part of her job too, she didn't - couldn't - see him as a friend or anything else. "It sounds like a plan, I'm going to be holding you to that promise. Her fingers rose to tap the back of his hand, light and intimate but without any pressure or expectations.