"Torture, is it?" Vex repeats the word, wondering if that's meant to be flattering, if she should take it as such. Of course, whether or not she should doesn't determine whether or not she does.
And the idea that waiting for her is torture is flattering when he's more or less just come from having her is quite flattering.
"And is there anything that might ease your hardship?"
It is not, as a point of fact, torture, and he well knows the difference - but making light of the subject might keep her from the truth of his scars. He'd had no trouble with them among prior groups, if only because no one actually wanted to share the details of their pasts...but Vex'ahlia is chatty. Inquiring. And she's seen more of him than he hopes most of her comrades will.
It's a dangerous game to play, deception, but he's gotten better at it over the last few years.
Also dangerous: overtures. He's can tell he's trifling with fire here, and yet he can't resist the opportunity to burn his hands. "The, ah, pleasure of your company?"
"Is that so? It seems to me you're enjoying the pleasure of my company as we speak." Her brow arches a little, teasing but lightly. There's no effort to discourage him. More playful swiping.
"I am," he agrees, granting himself a moment to drain the last of his ale. It's precisely the sort of courage he needs to set the tankard down and slide an arm around her. "And I'd like to continue to enjoy it, if I may."
This entire night has taken a wonderful, surprising turn, and things feel like they're continuing to move in his favor. And why not pursue that? Her interest feels limitless at the moment, even with the way her gaze shifts toward her brother occasionally. He's still occupied with his cards, so far as Percy knows - and his opinion hardly matters anyway, under the circumstances.
The limitlessness of Vex's interest might prove treacherous; the sky can seem limitless too, when you're standing at the edge of a cliff.
The evening has been fun. More than fun, if Vex takes the time to examine it. (Which she'd rather not.) Percy's company fills a space in their little party that Vex hadn't realized was sorely missing: someone smart, sharp, someone she could see herself holding a real conversation with, who could keep her interest. His inexperience and occasional awkwardness lend an air of authenticity to him, and soften the edges that could be called pompous or abrasive.
The fact he's so willing to be fascinated by her doesn't hurt—him, so obviously coming from money and respectability, fascinated by her. It might say something unflattering about her just how much she is flattered by it.
But that arm is a step forward, and it might leave both of them in empty air.
"You know, I think I could use another round myself," she says, slipping away before the limb in question has time to settle, to become a restraint.
"I -" he begins, caught off guard by the question. But this is a barroom, they're here to drink, and their little trip to the baths have them time to sober. "Yes. Thank you."
It's reasonable for her to get up and kind of her to fetch the next round. Nothing about this should be a concern to him. The slightly unsettled sensation in his chest isn't an instinct worth listening to - but it is there.
And so he lets her go without hesitation and only looks a little nonplussed, and when shes away, he only gives his shirt collar a single, surreptitious sniff. (Awful, as he'd expected. Perhaps that's the problem.) By the time she returns, he's pulled out a scrap of parchment and the stub of a charcoal pencil from among his things. The beginnings of a sketch - likely abstract to anyone not intimately familiar with the inner workings of a pepperbox - are taking shape, if more shaggily than usual.
Vex moves lightly, her expression faltering only slightly as she heads to the bar. Her smile is back in place, good mood thoroughly restored and back in place by the time she returns. There's a full tankard in each hand when she swans back to him. She sets one in front of Percy (careful not to disturb his sketch), and then resumes her seat.
Just slightly farther away than before. Enough that it's inconvenient to put his arm around her again.
At the same time, she leans toward him, her head tipped forward conspiratorially.
"There we are. You're very welcome, darling. Best enjoy it while we can."
See, he tells himself, it's fine. Vex is certainly in a fine mood, still of a mind to tease him as she sits back down. If there's slightly more space between them, Percy has yet to notice.
And so that moment of concern is forgotten as quickly as it started. Shoving the parchment and pencil back into a pocket, he gives her an easy smile. "Why is that? Are we traveling to a city without beer tomorrow?"
The swig he takes is a judicious one despite the joke; if savoring is what she advises, he's willing to listen.
"Are you kidding? Grog would riot." To say nothing of the rest of them. They are, as a team, one that benefits from a little social lubrication. (A comment Vex would never say aloud out of caution Scanlan would hear.)
"But we will be leaving town, and we'll have several days sleeping rough before we get to the next town worth naming. Less comfort. Less booze. Less privacy."
He'd expect nothing less of a man called Grog, truthfully. Or of the ready of the group - his first impression hasn't been one of sobriety or moderation.
"Then we'll have to make the most of what we have tonight," Percy says. Easy to say and, he thinks, not much more difficult to accomplish. "I don't suppose we could commandeer a room while the others are occupied."
If they bar the door, that's privacy enough for the span of a night.
"Darling, I do appreciate your ingenuity, but you do have to realize we'd have a mutiny on our hands if we took one room all to ourselves." She says it lightly, like it's a joke. There's an airiness to it. Can you imagine?
She takes another drink, long and savoring.
"Besides, it would rather defeat the purpose of having privacy if they'd be able to guess what we were up to."
"Ah." His expression grows less open by degrees, the almost boyish smile slowly dissolving back into something more guarded. Without thinking, he reaches for his beer and takes another, longer sip. "Er - you're quite right."
She is, after all. It's common sense that their coin - the charity he's currently drinking away - will only stretch so far. And he's seen her glance over in her twin's direction repeatedly tonight. Even a bit inebriated - and God, does he suddenly wish he were more so - Percy can put the pieces together. She doesn't want the others to be aware, and she particularly doesn't want her brother to know. Any interest she might have is finite, its boundaries limited to the margins of the world where no one else is looking.
It's sensible and likely wise; it'll keep everyone happy and preserve all the interpersonal dynamics he doesn't know anything about. She's keeping him from making his time with her comrades a short one via his own stupidity. He really ought to be grateful.
It's a pity, then, that all he feels is a cold, heavy stone lodging itself in his chest.
"Well," he adds, trying and failing to summon back that elation of having been the subject of someone's affection, "I'll, uh, I'll look forward to our next town."
There's a little pang of guilt when she sees Percy's expression fall. Vex pushes it away ruthlessly. They've known each other a very short time—not enough time to get Percy's clothes properly laundered, let alone replaced. If he saw more in this than a fun little addition, something to make their—again, very new—arrangement as pleasant as possible, then that isn't her fault.
What harm is there in keeping things to a tryst here and there?
"No need to get so ahead of ourselves. We were just discussing breakfast after all."
There's no helping it: she's clearly seen right through him to the disappointment hiding behind his eyes. It's embarrassing - no, mortifying. No, it makes the prison cell seem downright cozy compared to the misery of having his own moronic hopes on display in full view of someone who doesn't share them.
The worst part of all of this isn't even the awareness that she'd rather not be more entangled than absolutely necessary. He can live with that. It's the fact that she finally seems to have noticed just how pitiful he is, and she's responding accordingly. Darling is a welcoming sound from her right up until it's meant to mollify him.
"It's fine, Vex'ahlia," he tells her, and in his attempt to sound even-handed, the words are slightly clipped. At the moment, he doesn't notice. The back of his neck is burning. "Please - forget I said anything."
Another sip of ale as punctuation. The sooner he can finish this pint, the sooner he can escape to whatever flea-ridden straw-tick mattress will be his tonight.
"Percy darling," Vex says, a little waver in her tone as though she can't quite decide on the note to strike. Should she be sympathetic, gently setting the record straight? Should she laugh it off, as though it's some joke or misunderstanding? Is she stung by the change in his demeanor, so flattering a moment before?
She clears her throat and shifts slightly. Her gaze dropping to her beer before taking a drink.
If anything, her posture turns more conspiratorial.
"You think this is a rejection?" Better. Confident. Understanding. There's no tint of nervous laughter coloring the words this time.
He's too caught up in his own feelings to read hers accurately. Mistakes are inevitable in any life, but they're far more tolerable at the worktable. At most, he finds setbacks annoying. When it comes to moments like this, when it's evident that his assumptions have marked him out as a naive fool, erring is unbearable.
And so, what he hears in her voice is pity, more than anything. She's confident and conspiratorial, and in the moment, it feels like an attempt to pacify him.
"I think you've made yourself quite clear." Percy stares down at his tankard, wondering idly if he might be able to will the earth to swallow him up, so he might escape this conversation. "It's fine - really."
He looks up at her then and finds what looks to him like annoyance. It's better than pity, but not by much, and he'd still rather sink down into the floorboards.
But he's here, and she's looking at him with a kind of frustrated expectation, and he does owe her a response. She deserves that much, after all she's done for him tonight.
"You'd like to be as discreet as possible, and you'd particularly like it if your brother had no idea," he says...and when he puts it like that, there's no reason whatsoever to be upset about it. Those are perfectly sensible desires to have. This is all a matter of bruised ego, and he's being an idiot - but that doesn't mean the bruise doesn't still ache. "Unless I've misunderstood."
Honestly, when he says it back to her Vex does have some trouble understanding the issue. It sounds as reasonable aloud as it had in her head. It's not a proposition that she'd expect anyone to scoff at.
Especially not someone she's just bloody met. It's not like she's asking him to hide the fact they're engaged.
"No, it turns out you've understood more or less exactly." She sits a little straighter, gathering her dignity. "Perhaps you'd care to tell me which part of that you object to?"
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2025-05-20 05:35 pm (UTC)And the idea that waiting for her is torture is flattering when he's more or less just come from having her is quite flattering.
"And is there anything that might ease your hardship?"
no subject
Date: 2025-05-20 05:45 pm (UTC)It's a dangerous game to play, deception, but he's gotten better at it over the last few years.
Also dangerous: overtures. He's can tell he's trifling with fire here, and yet he can't resist the opportunity to burn his hands. "The, ah, pleasure of your company?"
no subject
Date: 2025-05-22 06:03 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-05-22 09:42 am (UTC)This entire night has taken a wonderful, surprising turn, and things feel like they're continuing to move in his favor. And why not pursue that? Her interest feels limitless at the moment, even with the way her gaze shifts toward her brother occasionally. He's still occupied with his cards, so far as Percy knows - and his opinion hardly matters anyway, under the circumstances.
no subject
Date: 2025-05-23 03:20 pm (UTC)The evening has been fun. More than fun, if Vex takes the time to examine it. (Which she'd rather not.) Percy's company fills a space in their little party that Vex hadn't realized was sorely missing: someone smart, sharp, someone she could see herself holding a real conversation with, who could keep her interest. His inexperience and occasional awkwardness lend an air of authenticity to him, and soften the edges that could be called pompous or abrasive.
The fact he's so willing to be fascinated by her doesn't hurt—him, so obviously coming from money and respectability, fascinated by her. It might say something unflattering about her just how much she is flattered by it.
But that arm is a step forward, and it might leave both of them in empty air.
"You know, I think I could use another round myself," she says, slipping away before the limb in question has time to settle, to become a restraint.
To be seen.
"Do you want another while I'm up?"
no subject
Date: 2025-05-23 03:53 pm (UTC)It's reasonable for her to get up and kind of her to fetch the next round. Nothing about this should be a concern to him. The slightly unsettled sensation in his chest isn't an instinct worth listening to - but it is there.
And so he lets her go without hesitation and only looks a little nonplussed, and when shes away, he only gives his shirt collar a single, surreptitious sniff. (Awful, as he'd expected. Perhaps that's the problem.) By the time she returns, he's pulled out a scrap of parchment and the stub of a charcoal pencil from among his things. The beginnings of a sketch - likely abstract to anyone not intimately familiar with the inner workings of a pepperbox - are taking shape, if more shaggily than usual.
no subject
Date: 2025-05-24 03:36 am (UTC)Just slightly farther away than before. Enough that it's inconvenient to put his arm around her again.
At the same time, she leans toward him, her head tipped forward conspiratorially.
"There we are. You're very welcome, darling. Best enjoy it while we can."
no subject
Date: 2025-05-25 02:12 am (UTC)And so that moment of concern is forgotten as quickly as it started. Shoving the parchment and pencil back into a pocket, he gives her an easy smile. "Why is that? Are we traveling to a city without beer tomorrow?"
The swig he takes is a judicious one despite the joke; if savoring is what she advises, he's willing to listen.
no subject
Date: 2025-05-25 03:31 am (UTC)"But we will be leaving town, and we'll have several days sleeping rough before we get to the next town worth naming. Less comfort. Less booze. Less privacy."
no subject
Date: 2025-05-25 03:43 am (UTC)"Then we'll have to make the most of what we have tonight," Percy says. Easy to say and, he thinks, not much more difficult to accomplish. "I don't suppose we could commandeer a room while the others are occupied."
If they bar the door, that's privacy enough for the span of a night.
no subject
Date: 2025-05-25 05:09 am (UTC)She takes another drink, long and savoring.
"Besides, it would rather defeat the purpose of having privacy if they'd be able to guess what we were up to."
no subject
Date: 2025-05-25 09:34 am (UTC)She is, after all. It's common sense that their coin - the charity he's currently drinking away - will only stretch so far. And he's seen her glance over in her twin's direction repeatedly tonight. Even a bit inebriated - and God, does he suddenly wish he were more so - Percy can put the pieces together. She doesn't want the others to be aware, and she particularly doesn't want her brother to know. Any interest she might have is finite, its boundaries limited to the margins of the world where no one else is looking.
It's sensible and likely wise; it'll keep everyone happy and preserve all the interpersonal dynamics he doesn't know anything about. She's keeping him from making his time with her comrades a short one via his own stupidity. He really ought to be grateful.
It's a pity, then, that all he feels is a cold, heavy stone lodging itself in his chest.
"Well," he adds, trying and failing to summon back that elation of having been the subject of someone's affection, "I'll, uh, I'll look forward to our next town."
no subject
Date: 2025-05-25 08:16 pm (UTC)There's a little pang of guilt when she sees Percy's expression fall. Vex pushes it away ruthlessly. They've known each other a very short time—not enough time to get Percy's clothes properly laundered, let alone replaced. If he saw more in this than a fun little addition, something to make their—again, very new—arrangement as pleasant as possible, then that isn't her fault.
What harm is there in keeping things to a tryst here and there?
"No need to get so ahead of ourselves. We were just discussing breakfast after all."
no subject
Date: 2025-05-25 08:36 pm (UTC)The worst part of all of this isn't even the awareness that she'd rather not be more entangled than absolutely necessary. He can live with that. It's the fact that she finally seems to have noticed just how pitiful he is, and she's responding accordingly. Darling is a welcoming sound from her right up until it's meant to mollify him.
"It's fine, Vex'ahlia," he tells her, and in his attempt to sound even-handed, the words are slightly clipped. At the moment, he doesn't notice. The back of his neck is burning. "Please - forget I said anything."
Another sip of ale as punctuation. The sooner he can finish this pint, the sooner he can escape to whatever flea-ridden straw-tick mattress will be his tonight.
no subject
Date: 2025-05-29 12:20 am (UTC)She clears her throat and shifts slightly. Her gaze dropping to her beer before taking a drink.
If anything, her posture turns more conspiratorial.
"You think this is a rejection?" Better. Confident. Understanding. There's no tint of nervous laughter coloring the words this time.
no subject
Date: 2025-05-29 12:44 am (UTC)And so, what he hears in her voice is pity, more than anything. She's confident and conspiratorial, and in the moment, it feels like an attempt to pacify him.
"I think you've made yourself quite clear." Percy stares down at his tankard, wondering idly if he might be able to will the earth to swallow him up, so he might escape this conversation. "It's fine - really."
no subject
Date: 2025-05-29 04:02 am (UTC)(She is also beneath him, something they'd both realize if he were thinking more clearly and not fresh out of prison, she's sure.)
"Is that so? Because it seems that I've been misunderstood."
no subject
Date: 2025-05-29 12:54 pm (UTC)But he's here, and she's looking at him with a kind of frustrated expectation, and he does owe her a response. She deserves that much, after all she's done for him tonight.
"You'd like to be as discreet as possible, and you'd particularly like it if your brother had no idea," he says...and when he puts it like that, there's no reason whatsoever to be upset about it. Those are perfectly sensible desires to have. This is all a matter of bruised ego, and he's being an idiot - but that doesn't mean the bruise doesn't still ache. "Unless I've misunderstood."
no subject
Date: 2025-05-30 05:47 pm (UTC)Especially not someone she's just bloody met. It's not like she's asking him to hide the fact they're engaged.
"No, it turns out you've understood more or less exactly." She sits a little straighter, gathering her dignity. "Perhaps you'd care to tell me which part of that you object to?"