O Love, your eyes lose lure - Jy 31st - Eveningtide 1st Mark

[Ashari]

The office of the Caesar was spacey, an impression that was strengthened by the fact the room was fairly empty. It contained an enormous dark smooth desk, with comfortable chairs around it. In the corner was a small settee and some chairs arranged in a sitting. In the small well worked cabinet of Dortenese make there was a selection of strong drink. It included Islay whiskey and of course brandy, a staple product for the new Caesar.

She'd left the company of her once employer as a newly free woman. Ashari could be his mage for hire - but it would be she who decided what she would do. The debt she owed to Tom had been negotiated, and once more she was free and clear. The Citadel's air tasted sweet. She'd walked through her tattered and rough garden into the form and structure of the Palace gardens. Her relationship was known by Preston Summers, and he, thankfully, was most of the important men who could know it, as it gave her access to the Palace itself.

The Guild Mistress swept in through one of the rear entrances with the nod of a guard, her skirt billowing behind her as she ascended stairs and made her way toward her first assumption of location of Andolin with the great Palace.

Ashari didn't knock. She'd long since left behind such subtleties. Now, she waltzed into his office donning a smile and carrying a basket adorned with a metallic green ribbon that matched her dress. "All work and no play makes Andi a dull boy," she said strutting in and setting the rectangular basket politely on the settee. Typically Imperial in dress, her breasts could've spilled from the bounds of her many-layered earth-tone inspired ensemble and they were all the more noticeable for the many diamonds that glittered across them thanks to his gift.

"I don't suppose you'd like to get out of this stuffy office, would you?" The fact that his eye wandered did not get past the sharp Mind Crafter, and she was fully willing to remind him of where he ought be paying attention.

[Andolin]

He had been in with his Steward signing papers, but Andolin's attention was often distracted as he looked out the small window to see the city below. Much had been on his mind. There was the visit from Thorkatla, the parade of princesses that had just started, the negotiations with Dragon Keep to formalize a betrothal, the discussions with a wary Duke of Dort, the arrival of the Rafao's pleasure servant to expect, intrigues in World's Mouth to plan, and the awkward meeting he would need to have with Kitya before long to discuss the Imperial Scouts.

There were never enough burns in the day to move his plans forward. He had to set small expectations. The stress gnawed at him and his favorite pastime was to see the arms of a beautiful lady. Ashari had been a favorite of his; but, he had never been the monogamous type. How could he, when he planned to take many wives, as well as dally. Ygraine had tried to share his bed, but he had mostly avoided her, for she was too transparent in her greed. Etain was being brought along slowly as he tried to get her comfortable that sex was a good thing. He would assign his pleasure slave to assist in that regard. For a man that was about to be drowned in wives and lovers, he found himself rather alone in the days before the storm. That made him especially happy to see Ashari when she showed up unexpectedly.

"Someone has to do the work around here," he quipped in reply as he glanced at the basket and then the barely concealed bosom. He was not in purple today. Instead he wore a silk shirt of forest green, with his favorite black breeches.

Putting his feet up on his desk and his arms behind his head in a cocky posture, he dismissed the Steward so that they could speak privately. "What did you have in mind?"

[Ashari]

"Oh, isn't this charming, we coordinate," she volleyed with a smirk. It would be the last thing the steward heard from her sultry lips before departing. Ashari toyed with the low hem of her dress with a smile, considering his question.

"I have.. so many things in mind, dear," Ash said. "But I thought you might like a walk in your gardens?" Here, she crossed the room, placing her hands on his shoulders. She leaned in close, whispering while giving his tense muscles a gentle massage. "I wouldn't want you to forget what the world is like outside of the Citadel. There is a world out there, lover... waiting," ...to be taken over. She would've liked to appeal to his true nature, but she didn't want to be too forward in that regard.

Lifting her heavily kohled grey eyes she glanced at the basket and then placed a soft kiss on his jaw before standing up, her fingers still working their mild magick on his tender flesh. "I brought along some provisions," she continued. "I've even a bottle of brandy in there for you, though... I don't think I'll divulge the rest of the secrets in my basket of loveliness," her tone was playful.

"Don't want to ruin all the surprises, do we? So, what do you say, shall we escape all this for a mark or two?"

[Andolin]

"So many things?" he replied with interest. He sat forward to allow the kiss and touch. "Why not start with an exploration of your own garden right here," he laughed, "then we could walk in the royal garden." The tool to till her garden was stiff from a rare abstinence.

"You can keep the contents of the basket a secret, unless there is something deadly in there of course," he declared with his paranoid humor. "But my gardens are within the Citadel. If you want me to do something spontaneous outside the walls, I do hope you have plans that would accomodate a dozen bodyguards." He gave her a lazy smile. "Life's simple joys are mostly beyond me, I think," he mused aloud, "but I can more than make up for them by exercising Imperial power."

"So what shall it be? Do I indulge you first and then we end up under satin covers, or do we retire for for a ... nap, and then go on an adventure? I do want to know what you might pack in a basket of lovliness."

[Ashari]

Ashari smiled at his jests and his boasting laugh. It was nice to hear him laugh, he'd seemed stressed lately. All that work of finding proper wives, I imagine. She tried to squash that thought, it was poisonous to his enjoyable company, though she couldn't help that it leeched through her, into her, both a desire for him and a desire for him to be hers alone. Ash didn't much like sharing, and it was proving more and more difficult for her to listen to his seductive and playful tones only to realize that they were mirrored onto other ladies - perhaps even earlier this very day.

If only she'd mentioned his rare abstinence, she would've liked to laugh along with him at that notion. As it was, she listed to his gardening analogies with a smirk. It was a very clever idea on her part, the more she thought on it, to take a walk about, for atleast it would give them plenty of fodder for their bantering. "I imagine everything in my basket is deadly, but, that is so true of vices when taken to excess," she said.

"I believe your guards might ruin the tone, dear. Let's remain in the Citadel Gardens where you feel properly protected." There was very dry humor wedged into that statement. The most powerful man in the Seven Isles and he couldn't even bear to sneak out of his own Palace. Shame, truly. "Be a gentlemen - indulge your lady first so that she may indulge you after." Ash let go of his shoulders and walked around his desk to face him. "It'll be fun. Get some fresh air. It will do you good. The weather has been beautiful, and.. I'm not sure if you know about it, but there is this giant orb in the sky that radiates heat," she said with a wink. "Quite the golden treasure to behold, Caesar," she grinned.

[Andolin]

"Taken in sufficient quantity, I am sure they are deadly," he laughed. Though not as deadly as the woman who brought the basket. "Vices merely prove that we are human," he tried to defend. He had but one vice, unless one counted a thirst for power.

The truth was that Andolin never felt protected. He feared that someone would understand his true ambitions and kill him in the name of nationalism, patriotism from another land, or simple anarchy. It was a world of dark powers and dark gods. Steel could not protect him. Mental shields could not protect him. Even the presence of a mind mage beside him might not protect him, especially if she could be enticed against him.

"I will indulge you, my dear," he pledged. "I am anxious to learn about this bright ball in the sky. It hurts my eyes to peer at it overlong," he joined in her tease. "But, it shall make your hair and countenance radiant in its caress," he flattered.

Leaving behind his paperwork, the Caesar offered his arm to the guildmistress, mage, thief, and underworld figure that he had chosen as his mistress. They walked down the flights of stairs into the gardens with Andolin knowing that his private guard would position themselves at a distance with bows, overlooking the gardens.

"Such a lovely time of year," he commented to her as they walked, eyeing the basket of loveliness as they went. "It has been too long since last you called," he lamented. It had been too long since any pretty woman had spent quality time with him, but he was not about to confess that. "What have you been doing to keep yourself happy. I have no doubt that you are as bad as I in freeing yourself from the place you are building. Does all go well?"

[Ashari]

"But you are not human," Ashari said, taking up to Andolin's side and picking up the basket on thier way out of the room. "You are Caesar," she reminded him with a smile. His position was much more than one of body, it was one of spirit and soul as well. He had pledged himself not only to rule the country, but to serve it's people - in that way, he was just a step below the Gods.

He played further off her jest and she allowed a peal of laughter and gave a gentle prod to his ribs, giggling and blessing him with a quick peck. Her smile could be felt in her lips, and in the brushing of her cheek against his.

Whilst making your way towards the Gardens, you wonder if you did right following the Herbal & Vegetable Garden-sign. Because the only thing you can see so far are two decrepit walls, thickly overgrown with vines and give you the impression that you are wandering towards some ancient ruins. And that with the magnificent Citadel in view. Surely the fabled Gardens would be walled with white marble walls?

'Ah, at last!' Upon rounding the corner you see a large black metal gate, fitted tightly into a warm yellow plastered porch. Through the opened gates you see a swirling mass of colors, inviting you to tread closer. A soft breeze, from the Garden, brings you several distinct odors and scents which would surely escort you to higher spheres if you were in the right mood. As you enter the Garden under the arched Porch reading :

The Citadel's Herbal & Vegetable Garden

It becomes apparent that there are three directions of moving into the Gardens. Two of the three red paved trails lead deeper into the Garden, but the one to the far left leads toward the Gardener's Shack (if it is to be called that way, for it is an enormous building with an Altar attached to the back). The one to the far right swirls through the Garden itself toward the Herbal section and the one straight ahead will lead you to the neatly tended to Vegetable-Garden.

Once outside Ashari took a deep breath of the sweet air, following the red paved walkway that presented itself before them. "It is - isn't it?" She relished in the sun upon her face, shoulders and cleavage. "Has my distance made your heart grow fonder?" She asked him.

"Much of my time has gone into refurbishing my mansion," she agreed. "It is almost complete, now, and my eyes head toward expanding on my own garden. This is a beautiful experience for me to see your Gardens and divine inspiration from them. My happiness beyond that has been through my students. They are.. so fresh, it's hard to describe. They revive me with their exuberance. I fear I've grown jaded of many things in this world. They remind me to not be so. They bless me in that way."

[Andolin]

His relationship with Ashari was such that Andolin did not summon her, like he might a mistress without status. Though it might irk her at times, he treated her more like a cat -- independent and waiting to see when it would come to him to be petted and fed before it ventured off again to do what it preferred to do. There were others in the palace that e would avail himself of, but not Ashari. Perhaps it was a measure of respect that he treated her thusly. He knew that she knew that he was more like the proverbial alley cat himself -- apt to satisfy his lusts in a ... broader universe. As such, it was a treat when she called upon him, and it earned her greater attention for it.

Like most paranoid, powerful types, he was constantly on alert to see if her visits coincided with her needs for him to do her favors. No person that was powerful and wealthy ever appreciated visits that were tied to fiancial need only. Perhaps the same was true for parents as well.

"Of course I missed you all the more," he played along. "I left very important treaties and contract negotiations on my desk to walk with you. The fate and safety of the Empire has been set aside so its Caesar may spend time with you instead," he told her with a knowing smile. Some of those papers dealt with betrothals, but he would withhold that topic until the moment was right and he could test her with it. It was possible that the moment might never be right.

"Sounds as if you have come into some money," he noted as she described her ability to refurbish her mansion, as well as rebuild her guild. "Tell me that you have broken no laws in gaining it, so I don't have to chain you up alone in a cell ... naked ... and have to spend time loosening your tongue until you confess all and submit yourself to my mercy," he teased. "Come to think of it, tell me that you have violated many laws," he laughed, the image of her and he alone in a cell causing the predictable rise in his ardor.

"Jaded? Why I am not jaded at all myself," he joked. "I am an eternal optimist. I just know that everything will turn out well for me." Though the last sentence might seem a jest, it wasn't. It was his unflappable confidence speaking. "If you stay near enough to me, all will be well for you too." He gave her a smirk as he kept walking, leading her past the interesting flora.

[Ashari]

"Oh, no matters of the state can be more important than satisfying the needs of it's Caesar," she purred in response to his attention, though she couldn't help enjoying the thought of some great negotiation being put on a hold merely because of her arrival.

When he suggested she'd come into money she laughed, shaking her head with a sigh. "Sadly, no, I've not come into so much money... and sadly for you, what money I have is entirely on the books. You'll have to pay special attention to me to give reason for the lashings you fantasize of, your majesty." Her voice dropped, sultry and breathy. "Though maybe I'd tell you I'd done something naughty just for your undivided reprimands," she laughed at the end bit, unable to maintain the predatory tone, giving over to her normal light laughter. Ashari continued to walk the red paved path and was sure to keep her sharp grey eyes open for a private nook they might sneak into. None had appeared so far, but, that was perfectly fine with the guild mistress as she was enjoying his talkative nature.

"Do you think that optimism is contagious? If so, I should like to stay very close by you." On their way by a small red flower Ash plucked it and tucked it behind her ear. The perfume of it's blossom drifted around them, as well as the many scents of the other blooms that they passed. It was an intoxicating brew. Ash took a deep breath through her nose. "Here now, stop.. take a breath." She closed her eyes, paused and breathed again, sighing out deeply through parted lips.

"This is what you miss being all stuck up in your office, Andolin."

[Andolin]

"You tell the Council that, will you?" he laughed at her declaration of his interests taking precedence to the the needs of the Empire. He happened to agree with her but there was little need to voice it.

"A pity," he remarked when she confessed to no crime. "Yes, something naughty. We'll have to give that further thought." Already he was conjuring an image of Ashari being his prisoner of love. It had a predictable warm effect on him.

Not looking for a nook really, as Caesar was not likely to gain very much privacy, he was content to walk leisurely with the beauty at his side. "Oh yes, it is very contagious," he warned in jest. "We might have to keep you in isolation with me, just so a plague of optimism does not strike the city unprepared." He gave her a cheeky smile.

As she took a flower and put it behind her ear, he smiled and uttered,"taking a flower from the Imperial garden is probably a crime." His voice had feigned seriousness. "Of course, having your hair unadorned with flowers is an even greater crime," he noted. He plucked a white flower and placed it behind her other ear, smelling the pleasant fragrance as he did so. After a deep intake, he provided a contented sigh.

"So, you came all this way to tell me I need to take time out to smell the flowers?" He laughed. "Frankly, you are the finest flower in my garden Ashari," he flattered. "Since you are the expert on flora now, what flower do you think I should adopt as my Imperial flower? I was thinking a golden lotus. And you, my dear, if you could have a bouquet of flowers, what would you have in it?"

[Ashari]

"You arrange for me to be before the Council and I will tell them anything you wish me to, your majesty," she said with a joking tone, though it was quite true. Sadly, he didn't realize how persuasive her words could be.

Ash giggled as he suggested he should need to lock her away with him. "Perhaps that's not such a bad idea," she said. "In the West the King has a summer palace in Roque where he can relax and recouperate from the day to day troubles of leading the country. Does the Empire have such a place?" Of late the Summer Palace housed the mistress of King Balthasar and her recently born child. Ashari could do well in such a situation with a mistress' salary.

Andolin, tucking the flower behind her ear with all his undertones, was given a smirk by the young minx. "Does it suit me, your majesty?" She asked and lifted her chin while her eyes narrowed to sultry slits of thick lashes and barely visibly irises that watched Andi closely only to give over to more laughter. "Yes, I did ask you out here to smell the flowers." Ash blushed at his compliment.

"Golden Lotus? Of the destroyed Amun Rah? I'm not entirely sure that is your finest option.. is there not something from Sierra that would be more appropriate?" She asked, actually giving it some serious thought. "To recognize it's new importance in the Seven Isles now that the University of Magick calls it home."

"If I could have a bouquet of flowers... I'm not sure, I don't recall the last time I even received flowers," she said. Spotting a break in the hedges Ash lead them inside to a fragrant oasis with a small reflecting pool surrounded by grass. "Would you like to examine my basket of treasures?" She lifted the wicker container a bit and smiled coyly.

[Andolin]

"I just might do that," he jested in response. If he had known of her talent, he would, indeed, give it thought. Rather, he had thought his own talent to be rather extraordinary in that department.

"Imperial palaces? I really can't say. I shall ask my Steward to give me an inventory of our palaces. I would be quite distressed to find that we do not own at least one palace on each island in the Empire. A palace for every season, if not every month," he declared as he eyed the flora nearby.

"The Lotus has a mystical quality," he began, before realizing that he professed no knowledge of magical dealings, "or so I am told." Hew couldn't very well mention the black lotus, which he had been taught was useful in the dark arts. "What flower would you select that would be a combination of grandeur, power, and mystery?" He could not think of one; but, then, he was not expert on flowers.

"Very becoming ... like the twinkling star beside the majesty and mystery of the moon upon the darkest night," he mused aloud as he sought to flatter her again. He had already planned to send her a bouquet, but her words made the urgency all the more. No woman should ever find herself in a position of not receiving flowers from an admirer, especially one as talented, beautiful and charming as Ashari. He would order a medley of every flower that could be found and send it to her at once.

Following her lead, Andolin went between the hedges. "I should love to examine your treasures more closely," he responded with a ghost of a smile. "And, your basket too." To that he added a chuckle.

[Ashari]

"Would be very interesting to know, I should think - for holidays and the like," she said concerning the palaces.

"Mystical qualities..." her voice trailed off and appraised him closely. "Why, I don't really know anything about such, but if it would please your majesty I will look into it and see if I can't come up with something appropriate." She gave him an earnest smile to prove that she could do this for him, and would.

Andolin was in rare form, Ashari thought to herself, as he continued with his flattery and generous attentions. He was rather focused on her, she realized, and that, too, was uncommon. The Caesar could be rather self-centered. Rather, that's the way his paranoia and fear of letting people in came across. Today, he was quite unlike that and was both open and approachable, though their conversations were leaning heavily on sexual inuendo and general pleasantries.

"Come on then," she moved over to the open area of the grass and set down the basket and patted the ground next to her giving him a wink before opening up the basket which she'd set down next to her. "Would you like a drink?" She asked and retrieved a small cut bottle of brandy from her little trove as well as a pair of glasses which were wrapped in white cloth napkins to protect them. She handed him the glasses and undid the fastening of the brany to pour them each a generous portion. Once that was done she relieved him of her glass and raised it. "To smelling the flowers?"

[Andolin]

"Few things would please me more," he flattered as he set her the task of suggesting a flower and researching lotuses. It would give her something to study, that might even benefit her guild somehow.

The Caesar of the Empire was a selfish man. There was no argument with that. He was becoming a hedonist as well. Yet, he was not entirely jaded, though the mask suited him. He bottled up other feelings to divert his passion to power politics on a global scale. His focus on power whispered forebodings of betrayal in his ear. The further up the stairs one climbs, the more enemies they gain thereby. Envy, jealousy, and greed would bend a friend and turn them against you in time. If not, then an enemy would hurt them, as a proxy for hurting him.

Even as Ashari poured the brandy, his mind was alert for betrayal. What if someone had paid her the money for her house in return for slipping poison or a potion into his brandy? Was that the reason she wanted to be away from view. so his guards could not intervene? Yet, he thought Ashari harder to turn than simple money. He would need to do something to hurt her to turn her from him, he surmised. He had no imtention to hurt her; but, women could be hurt by acts of omission as much as sins of commission. Men were often blind to the slights they visited upon their women.

Nevertheless, Andolin sniffed the brandy before her drank it. Brandy was his drink of choice and he flattered himself with the notion that experience would tell him when a brandy was drugged or poisoned. Part of that experience was sniffing brandy, or wine, before he drank it. It would seem a harmless enough gesture -- testing the aroma to determine its quality

So it was that he smelled the flowers and the brandy together, before consuming a sip, pronouncing it most excellent. "Yes, good health. Have I converted you into a brandy drinker now? And what have you brought to go with the brandy I wonder?" he questioned aloud as his eyes moved from the basket up to her eyes.

[Ashari]

Ashari, not being fond of poisons hadn't considered spiking the Caesar's choice beverage. It would've been more fun to give him some manner of truth serum, but she had none available. When he gave a deep waft of the drink all he got was the scent of a hors d'age brandy that was cool to the touch of the glass and clung to the sides of the glass as well as gave a nice full mouth feel. There was no burning sensation of a lesser liquor. She'd gotten this bottle from Hadvin, the wonderful master of import.

"I have grown fond of it - though more fond of you, and knowing how it pleases you pleases me," she said as her gray eyes shifted to the basket and then back to him as he referenced it. "Oh, I have a few different things in here... It depends on what you're looking for, your majesty."

She took a generous sip of the alcohol and allowed it to wash around her tongue before swallowing. "Do you long for something in particular?" She flipped open the top of the basket but all that was visible were a few other cotton napkins and some glass bottles without any labels. One looked like olive oil, golden in color, while another was a thicker milk-like substance and then a smaller round dish with some sort of cream in it. "I have cheese and bread and butter and grapes and spiced oil... all manner of things for an early snack."

[Andolin]

He hadn't expected poison, but habits were hard to avoid. After all, that is why they were called habits.

"I'd rather have you grow fond of me than the brandy," he admitted. "And, I find myself too fond of you, though I doubt you would find such a state possible," he teased. As she offered whatever he might, only for a moment did his blue eyes lose their vitality. "I doubt you have all that I am looking for in that basket," he stated somberly. "But, in truth, I look for ... much. Too much, I suppose. Yet, one of the things I look for may have accompanied the basket," he added with a renewed twinkle in his eye. Ever capable of flattery to the creatures he admired, Andolin found renewed vigor in such courtly and intimate banter.

"I shall try each item that you have brought, my dear, for I crave a taste of everything life has to offer. There is so little time afforded we mortals. But, I shall need to cleanse my palate with a sip of brandy and the taste of your lips between each item of this early snack," he declared in a feigned serious voice.

[Ashari]

"Too fond of me? Hahah, no, I don't believe there is such a thing," she laughed along with him but her smile faded as his tone dropped. Her eyes softened but met his as he made his sullen comment. "Is there any such thing as too much for a man such as yourself, Andolin?" She asked with a smile touching her full lips as his bright tone returned.

"Cleansing your palate is a very smart idea," she responded, and once he'd had a suitable sip of his brandy she blessed him with a smooth kiss, brief and tantalizing, but a promise of deeper, longer kisses to come. "Let us start with something savory, then, shall we? That way we can finish with something sweet..."

She rummaged about in the basket with her free hand to a small parcel of sliced rounds of bread. "Hold this?" She gave him her glass and procured a flat knife and pulled out the bowl of white cream. It was a smooth cheese, strong in aroma as she removed the glass top of the container. Small bits of greenery had been mixed into the cheese making for a nice look. Ashari used the knife to spread the cheese onto a few of the pieces of bread and offered one to Andolin in exchange for her drink.

It was a smooth and creamy taste, the bread was herbed on the crust with pepper and some red spice, though not overwhelmingly so. It complimented the soft cheese well. "How go the affairs of the Empire? I trust you are not too overwhelmed by the needs of your people." It would be nice to afford him the chance for some simple talk that still pertained to his position, or so Ashari thought.

[Andolin]

A ghost of a smile crept to his lips as she queried whether there was such a thing as too much for him to want. "Having a limitless ambition means that I shall never grow bored," he jested.

Only too happy to comply with her request that he hold things for her, Andolin watched as the cheese was spread, and smirked at the kiss that occurred just prior. Handing the glass back to her, he sampled the bread and pronounced it good. "What kind of cheese is this?"

"Ah, the Empire," he mused in reply to her question. "Just the usual rebellions, threats of evil, opportunities for war, Council politics, and the needs to raise more money for the army and navy." He chuckled to demonstrate that he was not complaining. "I need to create some duplicates of myself to do all the tedious work, so that I can lounge around," he laughed. He was really not the type to lounge around long. He was a man with a mission.

"And you? How many students have you enrolled? How long until the first graduations? You've found those responsible for burning your place?" he asked softly as he sampled another bite.

[Ashari]

"It's an import from Brie," she said with a smile. "Traveled through a portal to get here - and all for you, your grace," she purred. In fact, she had quite a little storage effort going. Ashari had grown fond of collecting all manner of things from places foreign, particularly from the Western Kingdom. It made her feel closer to home, something she yearned for and hadn't felt in this city since riding with Ulder.

"Ohh, threats of evil?" Ash couldn't help being intrigued by such, seeing as she was a hero herself and enjoying vanquishing malicious foes. "Any of interest?"

To the question of students she smiled. "Just four right now, but, I anticipate more, soon. I enjoy the small number of them - allows for more personal training, like an apprentice of sorts." The fact that her most apt pupil was Aerin, and only so because of the darkness within her wasn't a topic for light conversation. "Graduations will be some time off, still. They have much to learn, but they are ready to be released into society. I've gotten them Risque tokens, so they might mingle with the proper society persons - the young elite of the city. It will be a good practice ground for them."

The matter of the burning of the Guild was still a tender one. "I've had a few leads, but no promising advancements yet. There is a rumor it was a gentleman enacting a revenge upon me for an old association of mine," she said with a frown. "Troubling matters. He is a powerful man, and I don't much enjoy having enemies." She had a bite of her bread and chewed thoughtfully, saying after she swallowed: "I'm starting to think it's a matter best left to rest." She wasn't sure if Andolin would ask more on the subject, but she wasn't going to say more unless inquired.

[Andolin]

He had heard of Brie, but had never been there, or anywhere in the Western Kingdom as far as he could remember. But then, his amnesia was an impediment to remembering anything before he became a teenager. He nodded as she mentioned the location. The cheese was tasty.

On the subject of evil, he managed an amused smile. "Just reports of a new dark sorcerer in the Citadel. He tried to make light of it, but he sighed. "People never learn. You know hard it was to curtail the demon you helped defeat. Why would anyone want to find a rift for another?" Thorkatla had come to him with most unwelcome news.

Surprised at the small size of her classes, he remarked, "so you are more a personal tutor. I could use some personal training at your hands," he announced playfully. "What is it you think you should teach me?" He might need a lesson in humility; but, he was unlikely to sign up for that program.

"Powerful man?" he asked idly as he looked in the basket for more treats. "Need some help with him? I don't like to think that someone can push you around and get away with it," he whispered with a hint of menace.

[Ashari]

"Dark sorcerer? Who?" It was fairly obvious how easily interested Ashari was by the thought of such present in the city. Her own powers were derived from a place considered dark, but because of that she had an inward drive toward ridding the world of those menaces - as if to prove that she were not one of them, though nightmares had plagued her and suggested that she were more of a beast of the nether than she cared to admit. "Where? A demon? Will they never learn? Sorcery I can understand, even dark sorcery, fine.. struggle with your powers, but it's the short cuts with demons that I just can't get my head around. It proves them to be lazy evil-doers, not willing to put in the proper time to honing their craft." For that alone she enjoyed vanquishing them. "And it almost always ends up being someone else picking up the pieces. The Divale and the Changer was nether on Tazlure," she said frustratingly, unable to properly describe to Andolin the horror of the demons she'd faced.

"Yes, small classes. I enjoy it," she said. "I wouldn't presume to suggest you need any teaching, your grace," she said with her own measure of humility. Ashari was fast learning what it meant to be in these higher circles, and knew she wasn't born worthy enough. "But a refreshing course in relaxation might do you well, perhaps you fancy a proper massage to assist?" She smirked and her eyes drifted to the basket catching on a bottle of smooth emoliant for just such a fun occassion and then allowed her eyes to saunter back up to meet his sparkling with fun. The mage spread cheese over another piece of bread and offered it to the Caesar, making herself another as they chatted.

"My, aren't you protective?" She giggled, surprised at his typically masculine response. "Ledoc," Ash said. "When I first came to the city, before I met you and you gave me help I was sponsored by a gentleman that Ledoc doesn't like... and is trying to get out of the city to make way for his... illigitimate business - which is fine, I'm not one to stand in the way of commerce, but he has linked me to him somehow, even though I've since repayed the debt and we've no more business together. Ledoc has somehow gotten a recent surplus in spending money from another source, if that was quashed for a while and he had to actually just do his business I'd be able to properly get on my feet without worry. Do you think you could discover who is backing him?" It hadn't occurred to her that Andolin might have another avenue of preventing Ledoc from his spreading business.

[Andolin]

OOC~ Just been waiting for the Thorkatla thread to play out more in talking about dark powers. Permit me to delay focusing on that aspect of the conversation while I focus on the others.

Her talk about relaxation certainly sounded enticing. "A massage? That would be nice. Do you have as much magic in your fingers?" he jested.

"Of course I am protective of the things I care about," he explained with a smile. "I should think that you would be disappointed if it were otherwise." Listening to the tale as he nibbled on the piece of bread offered him, he replied, "sounds to me like he is a criminal. It is my duty to put an end to crime in the Citadel. Tell me more about this Ledoc. Has he a last name? Where can he be found? Do you want him arrested? Just how much do you know about the underworld of the Citadel?"

[Ashari]

OOC: Sure, when you know more feel free to pipe in with what you want to share! I was beginning to think you'd grown bored of me...

"I have some," she said in reference to the magick in her fingers. Ashari put down the glass of brandy next to her basket of goodies and finished off the piece of bread she'd been slowly enjoying to wiggle her body behind the Caesar and place her hands on either side of his neck, though more in the slope between shoulder and neck. Her long fingers applied some pressure to his collar bone, though it was gentle and then began to work on the tender meat directly above it. "So many fussy layers you've got on... might make it difficult for me," she whispered in his ear, a smile touching on her full lips as her index and first fingers gently compressed the muscles against her firmly placed thumbs. These three fingers advanced outward to his shoulders as they continued to speak.

She could see the smile over his shoulder as it pushed up his cheeks and crinkled the edges of his eyes. "Quite so, it just surprises me. I'm a big girl, I didn't think you'd be so worried after me. Thank you, though. It's sweet." Sweet and surprising. When he questioned about Ledoc she gave a large sigh, one that pushed at the hair at the nape of his neck with a hot rush. "That... that is his last name," she said hesitantly and hoping she'd not have to drop the ball on her own after he'd suggested arresting the criminal. "Guilhelm Haut-Ledoc would likely be what you know him as. On the streets they just call him Ledoc." Once that was stated it was likely the rest of his questions were answered excepting for what she knew of the Underworld of the Citadel.

"I know some, not as much now since I've been caught up with the Guild, not as much time to be skulking about in seedy taverns picking up information," she, too smiled, but it could only be heard in her voice as she was behind him. "What do you want to know? I'll answer what I can." It was only fair. If there was something he could do to slow down Guilhelm then she owed him whatever information he sought.

[Andolin]

Sighing as he felt the magic in her fingers, Andolin attempted to relax, so he could benefit more fully from the massage. There was a moment of contentment until the name Ledoc was explained.

"Oh, that Ledoc. He is a completely different creature altogether. He is a noble you know. Nobles cannot be arrested lightly. His daughter and daughter-in-law are ladies of the court." His daughter had been in his bed, even as he worked to get his daughter-in-law, Etain, to do likewise.

"The man has promised to help me clean up the crime in the city. There are some gangs in the city fighting each other, causing violence. Perhaps I should let them kill each other, but I thought to find one person capable of destroying the criminal fiefdoms in the Citadel and restore order. If that gives one man control of it all, then why wouldn't I favor a man who is here at court where he can be watched, and I have a hold over his family?" he asked as his muscles tensed a bit. "Still, I could order him to leave you alone. If he was smart, he would know of us and already be backing off."