Alayne Lombard
Citizen
Employee at the Bath House
Lost child of the Deveroix household.
Posts: 329
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Post by Alayne Lombard on Aug 13, 2011 19:55:09 GMT -5
Continued from the artisan's district.It hadn't taken long before we'd exited the Artisan's district and hopped into Night's Doorstep – just a little ways away, a skip and a dance if you knew what back alleys to take, which I did. Growing up in the bowels of the city did have its advantages: it can't only mean bad things, can it? When we entered, Liana found a table almost immediately, and I nodded, sauntering through the loud throng of drinkers – even in broad daylight, the Cockeral was always very busy. Even with war. Even with Hal gone, with Yves gone. I hadn't been here since Hal had punched a man in the nose on my behalf. Thankfully, with the crowd there was there, I'd be a bit less noticeable. So as not to lose my unexpected benefactor, I grabbed Liana's hand and led her to the table, before I flopped on the chair, skirts galore. “Better,” I said as I leaned into my seat. “It's busy, aye?” A man with enough teeth not to be completely undesirable grinned at me, and I winked back. “I'll see you at Madame T's, darling,” I called, before I turned my attention back to Liana. “-- are you alright?” She looked a bit lost.
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Post by Liana nó Valerian on Aug 15, 2011 17:01:32 GMT -5
I sighed as I sat down, large crowds always made me nervous. "Yes, I am well, thank you." I replied, "I just wasn't expecting it to be so very busy" I had to raise my voice a little to be heard over the throng. "What would you like to drink? Can you recommend anything?"
As I waited for Alayne's reply I looked around for anyone waiting tables, but couldn't see anyone amongst the busy bustle of the establishment so it looked like I had to brave the seething mass at the bar.
I glanced at Alayne curiously, she'd mentioned Madame T's to someone that looked like he'd spent a good number of his years at the wrong end of a fist.... or several. I knew the name, if I recalled correctly, it belonged to the woman that ran the local bathhouse here in Night's Doorstep. I didn't know much about it, but I knew it had a seedy reputation as a brothel. Alayne's comment may have meant that she worked there. If she did I was curious to know more about her. I'd heard the type of things that went on in such places, we adepts signed up for such things, people that worked in the brothels likely had no choice.
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Alayne Lombard
Citizen
Employee at the Bath House
Lost child of the Deveroix household.
Posts: 329
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Post by Alayne Lombard on Aug 15, 2011 22:36:40 GMT -5
The potential john – had I had him before? I couldn't remember – at any rate, the gawker looked satisfied, and I turned my attention back to Liana.
“Well,” I said, chuckling, “pretty much everything here is bad. Not as bad as the Poulet Gauche, but close. So I'll suggest wine, because there's one chance out of two it won't be vinegar. Since you're fancy and all. I'm having ale, though.”
A pause, because I'd never considered it.
“The mead might be alright. I've never had it. Too expensive.”
I chuckled, and leaned closer to whisper. “Relax. You look like you've never been here before. They can smell it.” I winked, patted her knee a little. “Don't think any of them can afford you, though.”
She was much too elegant – and it was said an ordinary man could never afford even a night on Mont Nuit. I was willing to believe it.
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Post by Liana nó Valerian on Aug 16, 2011 9:40:02 GMT -5
When Alayne patted my knee and told me to relax, I realised how tense I was. I willed myself to relax and smiled at her apologetically. "Do I stand out that much?" I asked, I didn't need to hear her reply to know the answer.
"I'm willing to try the mead, if you are?" I stood up and straightened the folds of my dress, whilst I waited for her response. I was wearing a nice dress, not one of my best and not in the latest fashion either, but I was suddenly conscious of how low cut the back was and how much it showed off my still incomplete marque.
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Alayne Lombard
Citizen
Employee at the Bath House
Lost child of the Deveroix household.
Posts: 329
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Post by Alayne Lombard on Aug 17, 2011 22:40:32 GMT -5
I shook my head reassuringly. “Adepts come here all the time,” I told her. “I think it's more about how tetchy you are – take it easy, breathe. They wouldn't do anything funny, and besides,” I grinned wolfishly, and chuckled, “they would have to contend with me.”
I was no fighter, true – but I'd once seen a man beaten to a pulp, here, because he'd treated me poorly, and word got around. Never mind that Hal was out to war – they didn't need to know that my Skaldi friend was gone to fight in Camlach. Sometimes one's best protection is rumor.
(Oh, Kushiel, I hoped he was alright, and safe. No news had come of him, and I was growing worried. But not now, Alayne - focus on here and now, on your conversation with the nice Valerian adept.)
“And if you'd like the mead, sure, though it's a bit expensive – wouldn't want to empty your purse...”
I'd be happy for something stronger, though – something to settle my nerves before I wandered over to the Traveller's Inn. Elua knew – the barkeep might not even want me in, after last time's scene. Maybe I'd have to argue my way in.
I'd cross that bridge in due time.
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Post by Liana nó Valerian on Aug 18, 2011 4:49:08 GMT -5
I nodded, smiled and made my way to the bar, ordered two glasses of mead and came back to the table one in each hand.
"Well I made it in one piece!" I laughed, "Only one pinch and several leers." I grinned, a good deal more relaxed than when we'd come in.The pinch had taken me by surprise, albeit briefly, but then I had to laugh. I think the fact that someone had pinched me somehow made me feel more comfortable. Strange. I smiled inwardly at myself.
I placed a glass in front of Alayne. "Enjoy, with my apologies" I said as I took my own seat.
"Do you come here often?" I said without thinking and then winced at how corny that sounded. I hoped Alayne would take my meaning and not think I was trying out cheesy chat up lines. Anyone would think that'd I'd never had a conversation in a social situation at this rate! I shook my head ruefully and took a sip of my drink, it was a lot more pleasant than I had anticipated....and a good deal stronger too. I'd not had much to eat yet so I hoped it wouldn't go straight to my head.
The last thing I needed right now was to turn up to Valerian house drunk!
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Alayne Lombard
Citizen
Employee at the Bath House
Lost child of the Deveroix household.
Posts: 329
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Post by Alayne Lombard on Aug 21, 2011 3:01:27 GMT -5
I'd observed Liana's trek to the bar and back, both slightly worried and entertained by the attention she was getting, a tad jealous, too, also a tad relieved. No such situation beckons simple emotion, I guess.
I laughed with her and accepted the glass, lifting it up in a quiet toast of thanks before I took a sip of mead. It was much sweeter than I expected, and I probably looked surprised, but that made me chuckle at myself. Well then – I was still capable of awe. Well then.
“Often enough,” I replied, chuckling. “It's a good place to rake off johns, as you noticed.”
I put my glass down, nodded at hers. “How's the mead?”
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Post by Liana nó Valerian on Aug 24, 2011 3:41:56 GMT -5
"It's nice." I replied, taking another sip. I grinned, "I'm hoping it doesn't go to my head though. The last thing I need right now is for the Dowayne to catch me drunk!"
I looked around at the teeming crowd, there were a few arguments brewing and several people eyeing our table. I hoped that the two weren't related. I could do without being the centre of attention too.
Trying to ignore it, I turned my attention back to Alayne. Time to ask the question, that I wanted to ask since she'd mentioned where she worked.
"Excuse me for dying of curiosity" I began "but do you enjoy it where you work? I mean, I've heard the rumours and we Valerians sign up for such treatment, but I'm guessing you have no choice?" I finished awkwardly, hoping she wouldn't be offended at my bluntness.
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Alayne Lombard
Citizen
Employee at the Bath House
Lost child of the Deveroix household.
Posts: 329
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Post by Alayne Lombard on Aug 24, 2011 22:43:45 GMT -5
Liana was talking and shifting from one topic to another, and I chuckled, shaking my head. “No choice? Well, it's heresy to take one by force at the bathhouse as much as anywhere else,” I replied, shrugging. “So I don't know what you mean by having no choice. Nowhere else to go, aye, I'd agree. But you can always say no to a john.”
I rarely did, though – but that was also my choice. And besides, men who came to the bathhouse asking for me specifically came to be yelled at, resisted, lashed at, kicked and bitten. I made a show of it, and I enjoyed the harshness – though it never would go as far as binding.
“Is it true,” I asked in return, “that Valerian adepts enjoy being beaten?”
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Post by Liana nó Valerian on Aug 26, 2011 4:21:42 GMT -5
I nodded. "Some more than others and there's varying degrees too. We're fortunate that we can make contracts wherein both parties agree as to the level of conduct." I paused to take another sip while I thought on it. "I personally don't like to be whipped or cut and as an extra safeguard we use a signale for extremes. But otherwise pretty much anything goes. We're taught that there is no pleasure without pain." I smiled at Alayne and asked curiously. "Why? What had you heard about us Valerians?"
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Alayne Lombard
Citizen
Employee at the Bath House
Lost child of the Deveroix household.
Posts: 329
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Post by Alayne Lombard on Aug 28, 2011 9:25:45 GMT -5
“I heard about the lashing, the cutting, even biding and gagging,” I said. “One john once bragged to me that he had several adepts in the same bed, even males.”
The latter was new and odd to me – there were no male prostitutes at the bathhouse. I'd met some male adepts, of course, but it was always a bit odd for me to think of.
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Post by Liana nó Valerian on Aug 30, 2011 17:37:53 GMT -5
I nodded at Alayne's comment. "Yes, all that is true and we have both male and female adepts. We can choose whether we cater to either male or female patrons, or even both, sometimes both at the same time." I smiled wistfully remembering some of the assignations I'd been privileged to take part in. I shook myself out of my reverie lest I revealed how arousing those memories were.
"Does the bath house not have any male...." I paused wondering how best to word it without offending Alayne. "um...any males that cater for....um...Johns?" I finished awkwardly. Honestly! You'd think with the all the experience you've had with sex and such, Liana nó Valerian, you could come up with a better sentence than that! I shook my head inwardly at myself, maybe the mead was having a quicker effect than I first thought!
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Alayne Lombard
Citizen
Employee at the Bath House
Lost child of the Deveroix household.
Posts: 329
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Post by Alayne Lombard on Sept 1, 2011 23:16:55 GMT -5
I couldn't help but snicker at Liana's hesitation – in fact, I was rather amused by the way she reacted to the very words. “Nay, no boy tricks, if that's what you mean,” I drawled easily. “Johns come for girls, and that's that. I s'pose it's because they don't want any messing around, though there's still plenty. Really, can't actually figure out why, s'just the way it is.”
I took a sip of mead, deposited my cup on the slightly wobbly table, and leaned over conspiratorially towards my new tablemate. “So,” I asked, “you ever had a lady patron? How's it?”
For myself, I didn't feel the inclination – though I knew some who did. But it had never really been discussed, and I was kind of curious – and even more curious about how that went down at House Valerian.
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Post by Liana nó Valerian on Sept 14, 2011 13:32:53 GMT -5
"Yes, I've had lady patrons. They can be more......inventive than most men" I replied with a knowing smile, regaining some of my lost composure. "I do not mind whether I have male or female patrons, I have no preference, one way or the other" I replied easily. "Some in our house do mind though and we're allowed to specify which patrons we take." I sipped some more mead and leaned forward towards Alayne mirroring her conspiratorial posture. "Have you never wondered what it must be like to be with a woman?"
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Alayne Lombard
Citizen
Employee at the Bath House
Lost child of the Deveroix household.
Posts: 329
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Post by Alayne Lombard on Sept 19, 2011 19:40:50 GMT -5
I found myself blushing for the first time in a long time – though it wasn't uncommon outside the bathhouse, and though I suspected some of the girls liked to... comfort... each other sometimes, I'd never had the opportunity to consider it.
“I suppose I do wonder,” I replied, trying not to look to flustered. “Y'know, how things go, and all. Well, I get the picture, got the imagination going and all that. But still, I s'pose I'd like to know once.”
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Post by Liana nó Valerian on Sept 20, 2011 4:06:56 GMT -5
Her flush told me her answer before she spoke. I smiled inwardly, Alayne had been so self-assured up until now, it was nice to see that I wasn't the only one to blush today. Before today I'd honestly never considered who goes to a bath house or who would work there. Being an adept, all those needs were taken care of on our premises so we had no need to visit a Bath House and as such I'd never seen one or really had any idea what went on in one. I'd heard talk about the bath houses, to be sure, but never really stopped to pay it any mind. But meeting Alayne gave me the opportunity to ask, or maybe even find out first hand. "Do you never have women visit the bath houses?" I asked with genuine curiosity. "and, if I went there with you, would I be the first?" I asked with an impish smile, in part just to see her reaction.
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Alayne Lombard
Citizen
Employee at the Bath House
Lost child of the Deveroix household.
Posts: 329
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Post by Alayne Lombard on Sept 22, 2011 11:21:32 GMT -5
It wasn't that Liana wasn't pretty – on the contrary, I thought she had all the hallmarks of a chic luxury hen. Just the way she'd ordered the mead showed how classy she was. “Well,” I replied, “I was never really told why, but the services are only available for men. And we're not dedicated to Naamah either.”
That, I'd always found odd, and had never dared ask Madame Moreau back when she lived, and much less Tigris, after our last dramatic argument. I chuckled. “So I guess that means you probably wouldn't really... be coming as a customer.”
But as a friend? I guessed that was alright. Maybe the guards would turn a blind eye. Maybe. It was hard to tell, with Yves away at war.
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Post by Liana nó Valerian on Sept 24, 2011 14:03:13 GMT -5
I'd never really thought about it before but now we'd been talking about it, I was burning with curiosity to see inside a bath house. Alayne's uncertain tone seemed to indicate that visitors who didn't require the services of the bath house weren't a regular occurence and it seemed women visitors were a very rare thing indeed. For some reason that thought made me even more curious.
"Well I wouldn't like to get you in trouble...." I began, noticing with surprise that my glass was almost empty. When did that happen? "but I am curious to see where you work. I've never been inside a bath house before. Do you think I could come visit you one day?" I finished my mead and tapped the glass.
"Would you like some more of that mead and maybe some food?" I asked, "if you've nowhere urgent to be, that is. I'm really rather enjoying myself". I said with a grin.
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Alayne Lombard
Citizen
Employee at the Bath House
Lost child of the Deveroix household.
Posts: 329
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Post by Alayne Lombard on Sept 25, 2011 17:01:09 GMT -5
Seeing as I probably wouldn't be able to vent my anger on Florian today, and I did have a day off, well, I supposed getting to know Liana better was probably not a bad way of spending it.
“You're very sweet,” I told her. “Aren't adepts supposed to be careful with money, seeing as you have the whole Servant of Naamah thing going?” I thought of the rumours about Elodie, who they said was having an incredibly hard time with her own, seeing as she'd been thrown out of --- I couldn't remember. Was it Jasmine? At any rate.
“And I s'pose I could try to find a way to show you – how about Valerian? Think you could help me get a look inside?”
I didn't expect it was possible at all – but still, it was worth throwing it out there.
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Post by Liana nó Valerian on Sept 29, 2011 3:28:14 GMT -5
"I think I can show you around Valerian house though there's obviously some places that are off limits unless you're an adept or a patron...but i'll see whether I can get you a sneak peek."
I sighed. "yes I'm meant to be frugal with my money, but you've still got to live a little right? I'm sure I can stretch to a meal for two....providing you don't order caviar or something equally extravagant....not that I think that they'll do that here." I grinned at Alayne and glanced around the room as I spoke. "so what are you having?"
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Alayne Lombard
Citizen
Employee at the Bath House
Lost child of the Deveroix household.
Posts: 329
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Post by Alayne Lombard on Oct 1, 2011 1:19:29 GMT -5
I kind of liked her – she was fancy schmancy and she had class, but Liana didn't flaunt it and try to make you feel like you were some kind of pauper or whatever it is aristos call us. Really, she was just like me, but better spoken like. And I bet she could spell much better than I ever could.
Still, that worked, and I nodded.
“Well, I think I'll have just cheese, if that's alright, and bread. I don't really feel like a big thing anyway.”
Besides, she'd already paid up on mead, I didn't want to be a soaky spongey.
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Post by Liana nó Valerian on Oct 2, 2011 12:42:28 GMT -5
I nodded. "Then cheese and bread you shall have whilst we come up with plans to sneak each other into our respective abodes." I replied with a mischievous grin. I hailed a passing serving girl and ordered a platter of cheese for two and some bread rolls.
A thought struck me whilst we were waiting for the food to arrive. "Do you live at the bathhouse too, or is it just where you work?" I asked. "I live and work at Valerian House, though some assignations take place outside of Valerian at the patron's choosing of course."
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