[ P ] Something New

The cottage had been easy enough to clean up, and it seemed to have drawn at least one client in. He felt a sense of pride in his business, knowing that it would soon blossom. He would prosper, and therefore so would the women he held sway over. Well, woman, at the moment. But that would not be a simple fact forever, for he knew Aurelia had done at least a little in trying to find both clients and possible new courtesans. For the moment, Danya found himself outside, picking over a hare he’d caught. Another rested inside, waiting for Aurelia to have whenever she pleased. She had gotten her first client and thus had been rewarded for it. Danya lay across a rock that jutted from the ground, basking in the warmth it held as the sun slowly sunk below the horizon, the sky a thousand colors, a fine gradient that faded from blue to orange to pink, and eventually into deep indigo spotted with stars beginning to become visible as the night and moon rose towards the sky. The coldness of winter was beginning to leave, the coolness of spring taking hold. While he missed the cold, he knew that the warmer months would be more prosperous – for him, his business, and would bring newness of all types. He awaited it, eager for progression, hungry for growth. In the distance, the Imperatorian man could hear the gargle of the river as it coursed along its split path, and even farther, he could hear the dying din of the village they had settled close to. This place was a good choice, Danya decided. He glanced back towards the cottage, moss, and vines beginning to hold green against the weather-darkened stones of the walls that still stood strong, despite a few places where the stones had tumbled out. Danya had marked the place religiously, claiming it in a fashion that left no question as to who it belonged to. Movement caught his attention, coming from the direction of the village. Danya tilted his head to the side, watching the figure with curiosity as they began to approach. The breeze betrayed him as it blew away from him, taking from his the courtesy to know who was approaching. A larger figure, to say the least, reddish in hue. There still rested the feminine shape, however, and Danya assumed it was a woman approaching. His head tilted curiously to the side, waiting for the woman to grow closer, and speak her piece. - you know that it's not over -

@Evangeline

L

eaving was easy when one had nothing, and no one, to leave behind. Following the days of her meeting Aurelia, Evangeline had thought hard about what she was doing and where, exactly, she planned on going. What was keeping her here in this place with its bitter patrons? Looking to the limp rose before her, she thought of a particularly compact, blue-eyed someone and banished the thought quickly. She’d already taken care of that; having left a note for him should he look for her. Not that she thought he would, but she’d been unable to shake the guilt of disappearing without warning. Picking up the withering flower, Evangeline began the trip Inverness.

The cottage looked too homely for the untoward things she knew must be happening within it. As Evie drew closer, the very distinct scent of possessive marking hit her senses. She had to pause, shaking her head slightly as she’d been taken aback by it. The grounds were expansive, she supposed. Were it her, she would have wanted it to be clear who they belonged to as well. The fae licked her lips, still tasting the meal she’d grabbed in the village a mere hour before as a male figure came into view.

Approaching him, Evangeline walked with all the grace of a cave cat. It was learned behavior; her experience in acting allowing her to paint a demure picture as she approached and stopped a short distance from the male. “Hello, are you Danya? I met girl named Aurelia just the other day and she told me about this… place,” she said, thinking that it didn’t look all that much yet. Her silvery gaze flicked over him, taking the dark fur covering his large frame and dual-colored eyes into account before she spoke once more. “I’m looking for work and, seeing as I am in the same profession as Aurelia, I was wondering if perhaps you’d have need of me?”

@Danya

art and code by Yahtzee-Penguiduck