Re: Mariner's Inn: Jeze C/Max M
[Max shook her head.] My days of trying to make choices for other people are done. I was never very good at it, and I can't think of one time it turned out well when I succeeded. [She had to grin, though, at Jeze's explanation of her pretense, and it was true enough. Being a woman here was a challenge in general. Max did alright, but it was fear that gave her the freedom she had; men feared her. But Jeze was pretty, and that was a mixed blessing in a place like this.] If you were a fat, ugly fishwife, you'd do fine. [Max said it with a grin, because the double-standard existed, just like it did in the modern world. But Jeze was smart, and used it all to her advantage. Max would have slit someone's throat by now had their roles been reversed.]
Do you mind a trip to another door? [It was casual, and it would be fine if Jeze said no. Max wasn't going anywhere herself; her desire to revisit the past was waning with each moment. But she held out the chain and the ring.] Take it to Luke? They always need money. They have too many mouths to feed and only one salary to do it with.
[Then, Max stood, nudging at the pretty girl and ruffling her hair with a gruff, manly sort of affection. The corset received a scowl, and Max shook her head.] Rest first. Then the corset.