Young Writers Society

A moment of vulnerability from this Aracelis. Was it genuine, or a ruse to get him to lower his barriers?

Corrick inwardly sighed. This was one of the reasons he had left the game initially: having to second guess his second guesses, and never learning to trust people. While it worked in his trade, it made actual life downright unbearable. It felt like his entire adult life had been completely ruined just for him to be an adequate tool for others to use. His maturity, his suave-ness, his everything was a pure fabrication.

Real connections? That was out of the picture. He didn't know how to be a person. He was just a spy. An assassin. An asset. Or a liability.

"Honestly, he's so busy lately trying to run an empire," she said, rambling slightly, "that it's a wonder he gets any time to sleep, you know?"

She sighed again, and then realised that Corrick didn't appear to be listening. Ace frowned at him, tilting her head as she noticed that his gaze was distant. Oh, he definitely wasn't listening. In fact, he appererd to be thinking. Ace squinted at him, then moved to throw an arm around his shoulders, leaning against him heavily.

"So," she said, very casually, "you seem distracted. Wanna share?"

Aracelis's physical contact jerked him out of his thinking. Damn, he was rusty.

He offered her a reassuring smile, and gestured to the band, clapping along lightly with the rest of the crowd as the song ended. Over the commotion, he leaned into her already close face. "Let's get a drink. I think the ballroom has outstayed its novelty for me."

Ace scoffed at the band, flapping a hand in their general direction before turning to press her cheek to his shoulder, sighing. She grinned. Well, well, the man knew how to have a good time, and how to make a not-exactly-above-board girl happy. That was an excellent idea!

"I would much prefer a drink," she said slyly, snorting at a noble off to the side giving them both dirty looks. "The ballroom has definitely outstayed its novelty."

As part of his scouting, of course Corrick had seen the bar. It was the perfect area for bored adults to spill more than just drinks. It was a part of the job.


He led them to the bar, weaving their way around the now just meandering royals as everyone waited for the band to start another song. He noticed Aracelis' hand float its way from his shoulder to his hip as they walked. While she was definitely unused to royal behavior, this kind of behavior felt much more natural to her. There was a part of Corrick that believed her. Believed that she was just a cousin to the Emperor who didn't really belong.

Then again, her hand was right on top of a concealed poison of his. Corrick and Aracelis separated and he leaned against the bar counter. "Pick your poison," he said.

She had palmed the little hidden vial she'd found. Ace smiled and flipped the little bottle up into the air, then caught it again. She squinted at the bottle, looking for a label of some kind. Unlabelled, ugh. Of course it was unlabelled.

"Mmh, something strong." Ace tilted her head, turning the bottle one way and then the other, trying to figure out what it might be. Probably poison. Corrick was a man of many mysteries, it seemed. She slanted him a sly look, smirking a little. "What's this? A secret ingredient?"

Corrick cocked a sly smile on his face. Well, that answered that question. "Something from my private collection." He waved the bartender over. "Two Dragon Eggs on the Rocks." As the bartender walked away to make their drinks, he turned his attention back on Aracelis. "I find that these 'official function' type drinks are too mild for my taste. Back on the wine farm, we have the good stuff." He raised a brow. "One of these days I must convince you to come by, true some true Synuan wine." Let's see if she takes the bait.

She eyed the bottle for a moment longer then snorted and tossed it back to him. Had he just tried to goad her into drinking poison? She wasn't an idiot. Besides, she didn't need it. She had her own....back in her room. Definitely not on her like he did. Did he know she wasn't just some bored noblewoman yet? Probably..

"Wine farm? Don't you mean vineyard?" Ace grinned, moving to lean against the bar, facing him. "Gods, you're such a country boy, aren't you?" She giggled at her own observation. "And yes, these so-called 'official functions' have shit alcohol, don't they? My cousin's banquets put this to shame.... Not that I've attended one in years, so he might've eased off on the strong stuff."

Corrick chuckled at that. "Yes, I suppose I am. Is that an insult to nobility. I mean, it's true, but should I say no and be offended?"

The bartender came back with two tall, thin glasses with red juice and circular ice. Corrick grabbed his and hers. He made a show of dripping the poison vial in both of their drinks. All for show, of course, (the vial was still stoppered) but he wondered how far she would go. He handed Aracelis' drink to her and raised his own. "Cheers."

She watched him carefully as he spoke--and as he 'pretended’ to spike both their drinks with the posion. Aracelis snorted, rolling her eyes. The vial was still sealed. Did he think he was fooling her or was it just a poor attempt at humour?

"Perhaps," she said airily. "Perhaps not. I suppose it depends on the person, really." She raised an eyebrow, accepting the glass with a tiny smile. "You do whatever you want." She raised the glass, grinning--and then winked at him. "Cheers, Corrick, darling." Then she deliberately took a sip.

Corrick watched her with a wry smile. No matter if she was a fellow assassin, she had a sense of humor. He'd give her that. Never leaving his eye off her, he gulped down the drink, downing it completely in a few seconds. He set the glass down with a satisfied sigh. The alcohol taste wasn't even there, so it just tasted like a slightly bitter children's drink: full of sugar and not much else. He watched her down her drink in a similar fashion, flashing him a cheeky smile.

"Bartender," he shouted, still keeping his eyes on her, "another."

Ace set the glass down gently, grinning. "You know how to have a good time, Mister Malair," she said, inclining her head to him. "Life of the party, aren't you?"

The bartender was giving them both weird looks. Ace ignored him. She also ignored the nobles giving them even weirder looks. They probably felt awkward with all the flirting she and Corrick were doing. That, and probably the fact that she was clearly from Asturia and he was not. Asturia was not exactly known to be well-loved outside it's Empire.

"Just how drunk are you planning to get tonight?"

That depends on how much I'll get out of you. Corrick smiled coyly behind the rim of his new drink. "I guess we'll see when we get there." He sipped his drink, looking Aracelis up and down over his glass. He noticed a redhead, smug looking noble step behind Aracelis, ordering a drink of her own while being very nosy and sending dirty looks their way. Corrick took this moment. With his drink in his off hand, he caressed Aracelis' waist and turned her around so they were both facing the uptight ginger. "Did you know," he started, somewhat slurring his words, "that this beautiful lady is a c-cousin to the Emperor?"

He brushed his hand against Aracelis' bare mid back and found a small pin hidden underneath the straps of the top of her dress, in between her shoulder blades. Quietly fishing it out while rubbing her back, he feigned looking back to the bartender (to order another drink) to see that it was a widow's bite: a pin infamous amongst assassins because it was marked with runes smaller than the eye can see that will poison a person when it feels blood. Corrick tossed it into an empty glass and turned his attention back to the ginger, who was visibly appalled by their lack of decor. "I asked her if I could see the Emperor after we landed."

She caught on quickly, turning with him and biting the tiny clink of something metallic being dropped into glass. Had he found her little widow’s bite? Probably. It’s not like she tried to hide all of them that well. The needles that were easily found were very good at making people overlook any others she might’ve squirrelled away elsewhere.

The redhead was giving Corrick a disgusted look. Ace turned towards him and gently gave him a pat on the chest. “Don’t worry about dearest Corrick here,” she said, then lowered her voice conspiratorially, leaning towards the redhead. “He’s just had a little too much to drink.” She gave him another pat to the chest, her other hand snaking up beneath his corset to palm yet another vial. She raised her voice, letting anyone nearby overhear then. “Isn’t that right, darling?”

"I could show the Emperor my moves! I heard he's quite the dancer. Look!" Corrick grabbed Aracelis and pulled her to him, staring into her eyes with a ferocity that no doubt betrayed his act of being drunk. He swept her up and they both twirled around. While they twirled, he pulled out a hidden blade from her pinned-up hair. He bowed down with her, stared into her eyes for just a moment, and for just a moment he saw something in her, something ignite within her soul. In that moment, perhaps she wanted nothing more than to see him dead, his throat slit, him lifeless on the floor. And in that moment, more than any other time, he knew she would be able to do so. Something stirred within him, and he wanted to learn more about her, know everything about her.

In that moment, he learned more about her than he had since they started talking.

He locked lips with her. It was a fleeting moment, and he didnt' know what overcame him, but it happened.