Who: Inara Serra escort & Haymitch Abernathy drunkstrategy What: A first meeting When: Backdated, Friday, August 7, night Where: The Need/Want Rating: Audience Discretion is Advised Warnings: Inara is a professional companion, Haymitch is a reformed alcoholic, and they're in a literal den of iniquity. Status: Closed/Complete GDoc
~*~
Choice was an interesting operation in the escort industry. It depended on what the agency's policies were as to whether or not an escort could refuse a paying client a date; in private industry, an escort could choose to say no, but her client could also choose to ignore her choice and she might very well have no back-up to protect her if that happened. Brothels were legal in some states where escorts were straight-up sex workers. Those groups point-blank stated a woman could not decline a paying customer so long as he was willing to pay her set fees.
Inara Serra was not a whore, a sex worker, or an industry escort.
She was an entrepreneur in the personal companion business.
Her business was selling her company, nothing more, nothing less. What kind of company she chose to keep with each client was always her choice while the price of her company was also a choice she could make---everything was debatable for her. Inara contracted with The Need/Want because she liked Kenya Rosewater. She did not need to club as a place of business. Money was not and had never been an issue for her in her life. Inara chose to work as an escort because she found it to be the best way for her to pursue personal enlightenment.
"Namaste," she greeted the man seated away from the main club, "May I offer you my company?"
Inara pressed her palms together to bow slightly in the Indian way of greeting to the man whose name she knew to be Haymitch Abernathy. His was one of few names to be on a certain list which she happened to cater to at her leisure. She wore a simple red and gold sari in the Nivi style which bared her midriff while simultaneously covering it with the crisscross of the saree fabric over her left shoulder. No pins held her garment in place though it was fitted, pleated, and positioned perfectly.
Appearance was something one had to take seriously in the escort business as well as a matter of pride for Inara who chose the clothing of her home country over the one she held birthright in.
~*~
Haymitch enjoyed his visits to The Need/Want, he felt comfortable there and didn’t need to put on any mask. He was accepted by the girls and enjoyed their company and conversation. He respected Kenya and her business, as well as all the women there.
Smiling at the attractive composed woman who greeted him he nodded, “I’d be delighted” he said, “Haymitch” he informed her holding out his hand, “I don’t believe I’ve had the pleasure before” He would have certainly remembered her, she was incredibly sophisticated - not that the other women weren’t of course but there was something in the way she held herself which was classy and appealing.
~*~
"You haven't," Inara answered easily as she settled onto the chair closest his own, "My company is only offered to those who reach a certain list and then it's only offered to those names if I choose to offer it."
It didn't bother her to admit she was selective. Inara felt many times a client appreciated feeling special. There was something appealing to everyone about being given a gift no one else could purchase off the shelf. She was distinctly one of a kind; there was no buying her from any rack. A custom design was what Inara offered when she offered to be someone's companion of choice. They were never treated as a number nor were they ever disrespected. Their arrangement would suit both their needs while serving to help them each to achieve the highest enlightenment they could together.
She nodded her thanks as one of the girls brought over a tray with her favorite tea service laid out on it along with two cups and saucers. Inara always offered tea to her clients as a first greeting. It was as much a part of the ritual of getting to know her as asking her name. There was something sacred in the ancient art of serving tea to another which Inara respected on a deeply spiritual plane. She lifted the lid to one pot to hold it up for Haymitch to smell the aromatic brew. Men tended not to respond well to offers of floral teas which was why she'd settled on a vanilla chai: welcoming, warming, and winsome without being watery.
"The art of serving tea is very, very old, Haymitch. This is a vanilla chai blend from my home in India. Would it please you to sample a cup?"
~*~
“Well in that case I’m honored you’ve chosen to keep me company” Haymitch told her, she was obviously somewhat different to the other women in more than one way. But she was intriguing. Haymitch instantly wanted to know more about her.
Oh yes, being made to feel special was appealing. She was definitely correct there, but then she obviously knew that. And it wasn’t often, or at all, that Haymitch felt particularly special especially not by such an appealing woman. It was what attracted him to Kenya’s club in the first place.
He leaned in to smell the tea and found it rather appealing, “That is nice” he told her, he’d never really believed or participated in any ritual but he smiled as she spoke to him. “It would please me a lot. Thank you” he replied, “I’ve never been to India, but I imagine it must be an incredible place”
~*~
Inara carefully poured a serving of tea into one fragile cup, lifting it with both her hands to nod to him to hold out his own to accept it. She made certain he had a good grip on it, allowing her fingers to trace his before smoothly removing her touch. It was all a part of the ritual, of the art of relaxing a person into accepting touch from another, but it felt nice to be back into it all the same. Inara hadn't taken many clients since she'd returned from her last bout with cancer. She hadn't felt as if there had been enough of her to offer anything to her clients.
She felt as if she could offer a great deal to Haymitch.
"I am Inara Serra. Inara to you as I hope we will become close. I have heard you are a man who has survived many trials in life. I am a person who believes our struggles make us stronger and the more trials we face? The more we become the best version of ourself we can be."
Inara poured a small amount of cream into her tea to emphasize the spices in the chai. She liked the sweet with the savory. It was a personal preference which said much about her as she sought balance in all aspects of her life. Inara did not use it as a means to draw more understanding from a client however as tea meant more to her than it did to most New World people. Her acceptance of ancient cultures was one she knew to be a personal choice. Inara did not fault others for not seeing the world the way she chose to see it.
"Would you like cream? I find it enhances the flavor of the spices for me and I do not care for sugar in my chai. I have both cream and sugar depending on your preference. I like being pleasing to those I find preferable."
~*~
He watched her, her movements graceful and smooth. She was sure in everything she was doing but not forceful. He took hold of the cup carefully, worried his more heavy handed way would break the cup but her touch was comforting, not at all jolting as it could have been. He had never been an overly tactile person but it was within him to be.
When she spoke he found he didn’t tense when she mentioned his life, not many people knew his history though he suspected Kenya had done her research. Not that he could blame her, she needed to guarantee nobody would hurt her business or her reputation. But Inara wasn’t judging, far from it she was understanding. He liked her serenity and overall sense of calm she projected. She’d been through her own struggles, he wasn’t sure how he knew that but he did.
Here he could believe her words, but the Haymitch from his dreams had faced trials and instead of becoming the best version of himself he had allowed himself to fall into despair and drink. Here, in this time and place Haymitch was determined that it wouldn’t be his fate.
“Sure, cream would be good” he nodded, he never took sugar. His palate couldn’t stand anything too sweet. “I can’t imagine you ever not being pleasing” he added.
~*~
Smiling while she added cream to his cup, Inara admitted, "I try very hard to be good at my job, but no one is perfect. Myself included. There have been clients who have requested the company of someone else after meeting me. If everyone's taste was the same, the world would be a very dully place, I think."
It had never offended her to be turned away by a client. There was something comforting in knowing she still had enough individuality to be an acquired taste rather than someone who could be enjoyed by anyone at all. Inara worried some nights when she was alone too long, had she become too much of a chameleon? Was it possible to lose her ability to become enlightened while walking what she thought was the truest path toward enlightenment. She wanted to be the best version of herself she could be, not the best companion.
"Please tell me if your drink isn't to your liking. I can get you something else. This evening is about ensuring you feel well-treated. The Need/Want takes pride in making certain our clients feel appreciated. I am available to offer you whatever companionship would please you most."
There was no reason to mention Inara's companionship had its costs. Haymitch was merely a man enjoying a drink with her in the club. Should he want something more intimate? Details could be worked out as they were needed.
~*~
“Well I have to say I believe you’re right there, our differences are what make us interesting” Haymitch nodded, even if he did happen to think anybody who didn’t want to see Inara again were fools who were obviously missing something.
But then Haymitch had already taken a shine to her, he liked her attitude and demeanour. Of course he couldn’t deny that he found her attractive too.
Taking a sip of his drink he considered it before smiling, “It’s lovely” he told her, “As is the companionship, I feel appreciated just by you deciding to talk to me so please don’t worry about that” he added, because he did. He liked hearing her views on the world. That kind of conversation wasn’t a type he was able to have very often. Haymitch was well aware of the costs which could be incurred but it wasn’t something which overly concerned him.
~*~
For the evening, Inara had not bothered with a wig or extensions. Her hair was close-cropped to her head which gave her what she felt an almost alien appearance. It also gave her nothing to hide behind when she lowered her gaze slightly, wishing her skin weren't the type to show a flush easily.
Her experience in the work she did was one thing; being back at work after all she'd dealt with from cancer was another entirely. It was strange to have a man become attuned to her quickly without asking for more than a conversation. Inara knew she didn't have the beauty she'd once possessed. Her age was beginning to show in places and, in others, the disease had taken its toll on her figure. When she'd been younger, it had been nothing for a man to offer to pay for an evening where the only contact he was allowed was the opportunity to sit beside her while she dined.
Inara was a long way from that woman now.
"You flatter me, Haymitch. I don't know whether to be concerned you're not interested and are only being polite or feel excited someone looks at me as if I were the young woman I once was a long time ago in a faraway land from here."
~*~
Haymitch found the flush rather endearing and he liked her hair as it was. It suited her and did nothing to lessen her attractiveness.
His own experience with women was limited, during his drinking days he’d gotten around - most times he barely remembered - and since then there had a been a few fleeting interests but nothing prolonged and nothing of any true meaning. He was bad at dating, very out of practice.
“I can assure you I am greatly interested in you” Haymitch told her, he hadn’t meant to suggest anything else and felt terrible that she may be thinking he wasn’t interested because he very much was. He felt a strange kind of connection to her, which in itself was dangerous particularly here but still it was there. “You are an extremely beautiful and interesting woman who I would very much like to get to know better”
~*~
"Flattery aside, I can assure you, I'm available for you to get to know as well as you would like seeing as my schedule is flexible."
It was flexible according to her whims. Inara could have sought out clients through varying options. She wasn't as young or as beautiful as the girl she'd been when she'd started, but her poise allowed her to have more sophisticated clients than younger women could manage. There was also the fact she could work solely as a companion which proved beneficial to certain quite eccentric, yet very generous clients.
One gentleman only wanted her to come to dinner with him on Tuesday nights at his favorite restaurant. They would eat in the same booth. He ordered the same plate every time while encouraging her to try something new. Inara would act as if she'd never tried the wine before though he preferred only one vintage. At the end of their meal, he would lay his arm across the table with his palm up to her for her to let her hand rest in his. They would hold hands for a few minutes while he told her how much her company meant to him---then they would leave separately until she saw him the next week.
Inara would never disclose how much he paid her for those meals, but it was enough to afford the clothes she wore to the restaurant very, very easily.
"Would you like to make yourself a part of my schedule?"
~*~
In complete honesty Haymitch was a little out of his depth with Inara, not that it was going to stop him of course. He was very interested in being part of her schedule, in whatever capacity that ended up being. While he enjoyed his visits here, the talks with the girls, the flirting and of course he naturally enjoyed watching the dancing, he had a feeling things with Inara would be different. She was obviously more sophisticated and experienced, he may not know everything that went on here but he wasn’t an idiot and perhaps having somebody who would accompany him to the social functions, he got invited to, would actually make him accept them. It would be good for business if nothing else. Though he hoped for more.
“I would very much like that, if you would be agreeable to that” Because while he was successful he was not as attractive as he had once been either.
~*~
Hesitation was natural with a new client. There was always a fear of condemnation, worry of breaking the law, legalities could be tricky, and many people were reticent to ask what they could actually buy from a professional companion. Inara was not a courtesan. She had limits to what she sold. For her, the act of trading time for currency was its own form of secret reward. It made her feel as if she had spent the time well. Lived fully. Reached as far out for enlightenment as a modern woman could.
"The pleasure would be all mine."
She smiled at him as she drank a bit more of her tea. It was a soothing comfort. Things might change, but the tea she drank was the same as it had been a hundred years before when it was first mixed. The ingredients were as they had always been. It was a luxury out of time---like Inara herself in many ways.
"Would you like some reassurances up front on what is and is not expected in our potential professional relationship? Some people like to know immediately while others prefer to keep it all a mystery until they want to peek behind the curtains."
~*~
Haymitch’s worries were less about condemnation or legalities, he couldn’t care less what anybody else thought, no for him it was more about the woman and not overstepping the mark. He didn’t want her to think he was disrespecting her by saying or doing something wrong. Particularly this woman, because he had a feeling they could be very good friends.
“I’m not so good with surprises” he told her with an almost apologetic smile, “So perhaps ‘reassurances’ would be best”
~*~
"I sell my time. I offer exactly what I advertise: professional companionship. How we spend that time is a choice which involves the agreement of both parties and, should we become lovers or sexually involved, it is understood you are not paying me to have sex with you as I am not a prostitute or a whore. I am a free woman who is willing to share my freedom with others for a fee. Paying me for whatever need you might have for a professional companion in no way breaks any laws or is prosecutable in any state."
It was a speech which Inara had given more than once. She smiled the entire way through it, a calm lull to her voice as she went through to the end. The act of repetition was soothing for her. It reminded her she was a professional, this was not the first client she had entertained, this man was interesting yet he was still only a man. All her insecurities faded away to allow her to sit straighter in her chair as she finished speaking.
Haymitch Abernathy seemed a man genuinely interested in her.
She hoped he remained so---and decided to emphasize some of her better qualities before giving him an opportunity to offer a rebuttal.
"I have little to no body shyness. I am not a young woman of twenty-one any longer. My body has scars, flaws, signs of life. To me, they are badges of honor for having made it this far through my journey in this incarnation. If you want nothing more than to have me entertain you in the nude, you can certainly ask for it and I will proudly deliver it. Photos are acceptable under certain specific terms and come with a nondisclosure agreement from both sides. I do not allow videotaping of me at any time. I speak many languages, am experienced in more forms of dance than I am comfortable stating out at once unless dance is a particular interest of yours, and I have more than an adequate wardrobe to make me a fit companion for any social event from a formal red carpet walk to a quiet evening with friends. I will gladly go along with any fantasy scenario you have so long as we have made arrangements up front for any physical contact which might or might not occur. I also do not dabble between professional and personal. If the lines blur between us? I reserve the right to terminate any agreement we have immediately with the understanding any fees for services not rendered will be returned to you without question. I hope you feel reassured, Haymitch. I am very interested in getting to know you."
~*~
Haymitch listened and found, surprisingly, he was reassured by her words. As long as he knew the boundaries then he could stick to them and having her on his arm for social events and maybe even just nice quiet nights in was incredibly appealing. He would happily pay for her time and company. He couldn’t deny that if they did become intimately involved he would welcome it but that could come on it’s own naturally and he was content to let that be.
“Thank you” he told her, “I am much clearer now” he smiled, “I have to admit I get invited to a lot of social events which I should attend, networking and all that, but I don’t. With yourself however I can see they would be a lot more appealing” And he couldn’t deny as he was getting older that loneliness was becoming more of a thing than it had been before, companionship was something which would be incredibly welcome.
“I am looking forward to getting to know you better, Inara”
~*~
"Likewise," Inara agreed smoothly.
She tried to imagine why Haymitch would avoid social obligations given his line of work and found she didn't want to presume anything. They had only met. He would tell her or he wouldn't. Inara wasn't paid to speculate on her clients. She was paid to accept them as they came.
"Try to give me at least an hour's notice before an event. I'm good at making myself look acceptable, but not that good."
Inara grinned at him as she settled back into the seat to allow herself the simple joy of sharing time with him. This could work out very well she thought. It could work out very well indeed.