The Oldest Profession [Anton]

[Vanessa Quill]

2 Ash 121

Zaichaer, East End, The Knob

The brothel didn't look like much from the outside, but that certainly was the point. Drawing unnecessary a attention to such an establishment was always trouble, even if the ZADC didn't strictly forbid the profession. It was instead a tall brick building that had at one point been a hotel before its rooms had been used to fulfill more immediate needs than a night's rest. It was well maintained and clean, with a sign above the entrance in beautiful script noting the building as The Loving Embrace. The curtains were drawn in all of the windows, and the windows themselves were latticed with wrought iron bars as was standard for most places in the Knob.

“Well, there she is.” Vanessa said, looking to her left down at Anton. “Now come on, let's get you a girl or three to get you sorted.” She was confident, excited even. To a woman like her, this was possibly the mort important rite of passage an adult could undergo. His debut might have been his introduction to the world, but this would be his introduction to life.

Vanessa linked arms with Anton, unsure if he would be able to navigate an unfamiliar location as well as he could manage within his own estate. She ascended the stairs to the double doors slowly, always keeping a close eye on her charge to ensure he was not about to wipe out by missing a step.

Two beautiful women standing inside pulled the doors open for them, and the interior made the exterior seem woefully inadequate. Even just the main hallway was lined with extravagant paintings and lit with filigreed chandeliers. Incense and perfume were an almost overpowering contrast to the almost industrial scents elsewhere in the Knob.

“Oh, Nessa...” One of the women cooed, already hanging off of the bodyguard's free arm and drawing the duo in through the hallway and towards the main room on the first floor. She was dressed well, giving a good impression of being a courtesan despite clearly not being one if Vanessa could regularly afford these visits. “You didn't tell us he was so handsome. I know your standards are high, but surely you see it too?”

The words flowed like honeyed water from the prostitute's lips, and already her companion had placed herself opposite Anton, walking her fingers up his arm. “It's just like her to undersell and over deliver, though...” The second woman said with an exaggerated but well practiced pining in her voice. She drew closer to Anton's side, erasing the small space between them quite boldly. She was shorter than Anton, with light brown hair tied into a neat bun. “What's his name? 'John' just simply won't do. Not for someone like him.” Though they were ostensibly speaking to Vanessa, it was clear Anton was the intended recipient of their amorous attention.

Vanessa had expected this, and had of course told Anton he was welcome to use an assumed name while here. It would at least add another layer of security if he feared being found out as a whoremonger.

[Anton]

"It looks lovely," Anton deadpanned as Vanessa brought him before The Loving Embrace, the lordling never getting tired of that particular joke. His family and circumstance expected him to be properly dour about his lot in life, so any opportunity to make light of the situation was immediately seized upon. Plus, he knew Vanessa would find it funny, and as entertaining as confused shock could be, a change of pace was always welcome. "Is it safe?" he asked as they climbed up the stairs, the whispered question containing a rare triple meaning.

Regardless of the answer, he refrained from immediately making use of his magic. It was good practice to experience a place the mundane way regardless, not to mention that he was already overwhelmed by the flood of sensation. Scent and sound blended together in his aether-scoured mind, daubs of color flashing before his eyes - every shade of crimson hued flesh. His own responded in kind to the false feelings, cheeks reddening at the raw knowing of what took place behind this building's doors. Perfume washed over him, waves of promised bliss that threatened to overwhelm him. Daggers of honeyed words raced forwards to deliver the fatal temptation in their wake, a combination that had felled many men before him. While Vanessa was clearly enjoying this, Anton was far more conflicted, the sheltered man having been pushed far beyond anything he had expected to happen to him.

For once, his lack of sight proved itself a boon, Anton turning his head against Vanessa's shoulder with a listless expression as he composed himself. Dressed down in a clean but roughspun set of clothing the pair of them had purchased at an East End shop the day before, he looked every inch the cowed cabin boy he hoped that most would assume he was. That was the plan at least, that he was nothing more than the daring captain's latest conquest. Certainly not a scion of an ancient and noble house. Certainly not.

Strangely, to the prostitute at least, the young man did not flinch away at her touch. He didn't seem to react much at all, ignoring what was certainly intended to be the murderstroke with a casual ease. After a lifetime of being touched and manhandled by nurses and caregivers, something as passe as grabbing onto his arm and pressing her body against his was as shocking as a handshake. The intent behind her touch was certainly different, but that could be reasoned down in its own right. After all, the real purpose of this place was to take his avens.

"You can call me Konrad," he replied in a soft whisper, the noble scion selecting one of his superfluous names effectively at random. That way it wasn't, technically, a lie. For some reason that eluded him, that veneer mattered to him.

[Vanessa Quill]

Vanessa barked a laugh at his joke, as she always did. And when asked about the safety, Vanessa fixed him with a stare that did her no good to his sightless eyes. "Look, I knew a couple... lads like you." She dared not even whisper the word. "Never had a problem. It's on your back, yeah? Just make 'em get on top. " She shrugged, as though that simple solution solved all of his concerns.

Down the hall they went, more women looking out from their rooms and chatting quietly amongst themselves. A few women leaned against doorframes, and they reached out to brush their fingers along Anton's chest as he passed and offer airy little praise to both him and his handler. The woman at his side did find it curious he didn't seem to react at all to her attention. Certainly there were men that put up such a strong façade, but never had she been so stonewalled by one so young! That curiosity had such a way of tickling the brain though, and she reasoned that she simply must redouble her efforts. "Konrad." She said, huffing the word with a practiced ease into his ear. "Such a lovely name." she added simply to give reason to why she had practically moaned his name. Perhaps she ought have went into acting, for how well she played her part.

"Now, now, Meadow." Vanessa interjected. "We've got to give the boy a choice" She said, giving Anton a playful nudge with her elbow. "Let's at least get him to a sitting room.?" She offered.

"Nessa, exercising restraint?" Meadow, the whore at Anton's side whose hands were currently wandering down his chest, said incredulously. "My my, you must really be something special, Konrad." Though there was a poutiness to her tone, she offered no real complaint.

Privacy was at a premium in brothels, but the two were nonetheless led down the hall and to one of the refurnished hotel rooms. It was not large, and there was only a chair, and overstuffed couch, and a side table as far as furniture. The room smelled even more intensely of incense, multiple burners leaving the room heavy with smoke that seemed as eager as the women were to cling to Anton as Vanessa guided him to the couch There was a window as well, but the heavy red curtains were drawn and it faced away from the main street.

More perfume announced the presence of more women, each one poking their heads in and offering a dainty little wave and their names before passing by. They all used patently fake names as well, so at least Anton was not alone in that regard. While they were not aware of his noble birth, both his closeness to Vanessa as well as merely being a fresh face afforded him nearly as much luxury as if they had.

"Now, don't just describe me, but what kind of girl do you want, Konrad?" Vanessa said, and oh how both prostitutes laughed cloyingly at the joke, the one hanging off her arm practically falling against her for support. "Fat tits, redhead? Look, I swore whatever you said, I wouldn't laugh. I stand by that." though inwardly she was practically begging him not to say something that would embarrass her.

"Precisely." Meadow said. "It's a business doing pleasure with you." she said, reciting the establishment's motto with a coy smile. "So please, don't be shy. Doesn't suit a brothel."

[Anton]

"Captain Quill has always been attentive to my requests. Except when she hasn't," Anton deadpanned in response to being called special. It wouldn't do to give too much away too soon after all, and he hoped that the ladies of the night would simply assume he was Vanessa's newest favorite. Who knows, they might even feel sad for when she'd inevitably discard him.

Neither the caressing hands nor the flirtatious words had much of an effect upon him as he made his way deeper inside of the former hotel, the "cabinboy" remaining as implacable as he had been to Meadow's touch. The incense, however, was a different matter. Heady waves of aerosolized bliss wafted over him like a lover's touch, Anton more dropping upon the couch than sitting. The accompanying perfumes that broke through the fog were more help than harm despite sinking him deeper into the confusing mixture of sensation. Each woman brought a different scent to the room, and the work of differentiating one from the other gave his struggling mind something to focus on.

And then Vanessa spoke. She could not have found a better way to free him from the spell that the brothel was beginning to weave upon him if she had intended to do so. Of course she had to ask him what he liked. And then acted like he had preferences on what a woman looked like. Shaking his head as if it would free his senses from the incense and mingled perfume, he briefly - but only briefly - shot a sour look in the direction he had last heard the pirate's voice.

Meadow, at least, was good enough at her job to bring him back into the waiting embrace. The combination of bluntness and wit served to dismiss his annoyance with his bodyguard, for now at least, and focus his mind upon the task at hand. "I will not pretend to be particularly... experienced," he began slowly, deciding that a measure of honesty was likely the best approach open to him. In truth, between his illness and sheltered upbringing, inexperienced was putting things lightly. The occasional bout of infatuation never lasted long, and he had been raised strictly enough - and had accepted enough of that upbringing - to find the notion of impropriety with servants of his family anathema, which meant that he had little in the way of past taste.

By the Empty Throne, Anton, you idiot, he thought to himself as he realized that was not entirely true. "Besides, they all seem equally lovely," he said instead, a joke of his own to give Vanessa a taste of the experience she had forced him into. "I do have some things I'd say I like. Not in the way of looks, though." He hesitated for a moment, uncertain just how much to say, before deciding that Meadow was right. He was in a brothel. "Blunt. Witty. Would cut me if she needed to. Might anyway even if she didn't." He paused for a moment, looking again at Vanessa before giving her a shrug. "Sorry, I know you said to not just describe you."

[Vanessa Quill]

That sour look struck Vanessa like Anton had lanced her through the abdomen. A sudden, stinging jolt to her senses that was only remedied by how quickly it was over. She was glad then that he seemed to be avoiding using his magic even now, grateful that he was not able to sense in her that sudden sinking realization that she had pushed too far. The knot in her chest was thankfully kept from developing further as she was drawn back to her other senses at the wandering hand of a prostitute.

"Captain Quill," Meadow echoed playfully. "Goodness, and he's still so polite, too! You work him to the bone, and he has nothing but praise." She said, vaguely addressing it towards Vanessa, though by now it was clear that Anton's bodyguard was simply a way for Meadow to praise Anton without being direct. It was an easy way to keep new clients from getting uncomfortable. Meadow had now erroneously taken Anton's lack of reaction to her more obvious displays of affection as being entirely due to nervousness, and so she was blessedly doing what little she could to try and make him more comfortable.

Then Anton cited his preferences, and even if they were a joke, the words made a heat rise to Vanessa's cheeks. Her breathing quickened, heartbeat following suit. Her body froze too, though the woman on her arm simply brought herself in closer as a result. After the agonizingly long few seconds, Vanessa took a steadying breath and pushed the thoughts from her mind. Letting them linger, regardless of the warmth they might have afforded, was not a luxury Vanessa could afford. besides, Anton was here, and that meant he was interested in the whores, not her. "Like ya' said, Meadow. Nothin' but praise." She said, then cleared her throat. He was just getting her back for the earlier comment. That was all, surely.

"Well, I can't swear that I'd cut you without cause" Meadow put in, now laying her head on his shoulder while her hand moved down his stomach towards his lap. "That's just terrible for business" her laugh was airy and soft in his ear, the breath tickling across his skin. "But is it blunt enough for me to say I hope you don't just ask for a private room with Captain Quill for the evening?" Meadow's eyes studied him now, her prior assessment of him changing slowly. "That's also bad for business, though admittedly less so," another giggle, and now she was admiring his hair, twirling a lock of it around an index finger while the other hand still sunk lower. The newfound closeness made her perfume easier to draw out from the rest. It was more subtle than the rest, only so distinct now due to their proximity. She smelled of roses and honeysuckle, but only so much as her namesake did. It was a far cry from the overstated perfumes the others wore to draw the attention of less perceptive men.

[Anton]

"One wouldn't want to be too keen on cutting things short I'd imagine," Anton said in a soft voice, nominally in response to Meadow but he wore a wry smile pointed in Vanessa's general direction. "And as far as praise goes, I seem to still have much to learn from the experts," he trailed off, voice growing unsteady as he associated the scent of the courtesan's perfume with his mental idea of her. He was finally beginning to react the way that someone in a whorehouse for the first time in their lives was expected to, but the slowly lowering hand had nothing to do with it.

"Are you interested in finding what she's left of my virtue?" he managed to tease, his voice breathy and strained as his head began to swim. "You could just ask her, but something tells me that would take the fun out of it for you," Anton mused aloud, trying to focus himself as best he could as Meadow worked her trade upon him, doing her level best to prevent such coherent thought. "Not to mention that I would hate to get in the way of her own... entertainment," he murmured as an afterthought.

Hesitantly, almost mechanically, the scion let himself rest against Meadow's body, the action more for Vanessa's sake than his own. She seemed insistent that he enjoy himself, regardless of what he thought of the matter, and he could at least give her the dignity of thinking she had succeeded while he thought on how to handle this situation. It was his fault, in a way, he of all people should've known she wouldn't have considered the awkwardness of the entire affair. He almost wished that the Order had found him out and were bringing him in to be burnt at the stake, but only almost. "Show the way then, Meadow?" was all he said instead, hoping that the unease in his voice would simply be chalked up to nerves.

[Vanessa Quill]

"And we have so much to teach you, young man." came Meadow's reply, soft as silk in his ear. She was glad to have finally gotten a reaction from him. Was he the sort of man that wanted the more romantic experience, then? That was the conclusion that Meadow was leaning towards now, though still there was something about the way he acted that eluded her. She had done business with nervous wrecks, some even from Vanessa's own crew, but this was different. The nerves that came from being too excited to bed a woman was not the same she was feeling now. That conversation was not for Vanessa or any of the other women to hear though.

"You're the first man to have come in claiming virtue that I actually believe." Came Meadow's reply, and it sounded more genuine than the words that came before. It had a sweetness that was as subtle as her perfume. There was a warmth to her voice, the smile obvious on her lips even to one without sight. "And you're right, I could just ask her, but given how she's been looking at you since you walked in? She'd talk my ear off all night, honey." Was Vanessa really that obvious? To a woman who made it her trade to read and understand people's desires, certainly.

Vanessa was hardly looking at the whore hanging off her arm, despite the woman now having gotten halfway undressed. Her eyes were fixed on Anton, and for good reason. She was here to make sure he had a good time, but she was also his bodyguard. She was somehow managing to take her duties too strictly while ignoring his obvious desire to vacate the brothel as quickly as possible. If Anton was convincing anyone that his unease was nervousness, it was Vanessa. "Meadow, you're torturin' the poor boy." came Vanessa's reply, an attempt to save face after having been so utterly called out.

"Torture? Perish the thought." Meadow preened, and looped her arm in with Anton's. "Right this way, dear. You two stay here. This is a private affair." How easily she had slipped into the sweet little pet names. She guided him up off the couch, out the room and down the hall. She was not quite as good a guide as Vanessa, though considering she did not know she was guiding a blind man, she was doing well enough. Through the main sitting area and down another wing of the brothel, Meadow found the room at the far end and led Anton inside.

It was larger than the one before, and the scent here was far more akin to Meadow's own perfume than the overpowering incense that all but clogged the senses outside. Within was a large bed with the sheets neatly made and pillows fluffed. There were chairs and a desk too, but Meadow led him over to sit on the foot of the bed while she stood before him with her hands resting on his shoulders. "Now, before we begin, is there something you need to tell me? Aside from the blindfolds, of course."

[Anton]

Yet again Anton was pulled out of the fog that the brothel had mired him in, this time by surprise. He, naturally, had no idea how Vanessa was looking at him, and the news that it was in any way noteworthy had caught him entirely off guard. Had he done something wrong? Was she having second thoughts about having him out of her sight? Or... No, that would be ridiculous, he assured himself. This entire operation was her idea anyway.

The bodyguard's voice brought him a measure of reassurance, Anton reasoning that if something were truly wrong Vanessa would simply pull him out of the room. Surely she was just getting in her last teases on him before they parted ways for the time being, the pirate was far too blunt for it to mean anything else. So he assumed, at least.

"Well, you'll know where to find me if I start to scream," the lordling said with a smile in Vanessa's direction as he too stood up. It was a weak rejoinder, even by his standards, but it was the best he could manage at the moment. Meadow gently, but firmly, guided him out of the room, a parting wave the last the bodyguard saw of her charge.

Entering Meadow's room was something of a relief, her subtle perfume working itself upon him in a far quieter fashion. He was already being lulled into a trusting relaxation to begin with, and the waves of that gentle scent only encouraged him to do precisely as she asked. Anton didn't even notice when he sat down upon the bed, the first hints of a flush appearing on his face as he listened to her question. "Ah, I'm that obvious. I see. Well, this simplifies some things," he replied, blinking his mind clear as he ordered his thoughts.

"Coming here was never my idea," he admitted, placing his hands in his lap as his focus lapsed and his eyes stared off into nowhere. "Vanessa had decided I wasn’t man enough without some conquests," he continued, smiling despite himself. "She has a very specific sense of what I am supposed to do and who I am supposed to be. I know she means well, but... I don't think anyone can tell Vanessa she's had a bad idea. Well, tell her and get away with it at least."

[Vanessa Quill]

“You two have fun now.” Vanessa said, now taking the spot he had been occupying on the couch. As soon as Anton had been tended to, more working men and women made their way into the room to replace Meadow, and it was not long before Vanessa was surrounded by her choice of prostitute. Each of them vied for her attention brazenly, knowing exactly how well the dread pirate paid for their time.

In the private room, Meadow's suspicions were confirmed. If the potential loss of a customer bothered her, she did not let it show. "I suppose that is a small comfort. I was starting to think I had lost my prowess!” She still had that gentle, kind smile and an equally understanding tone. Her hands left his shoulders then, letting her arms instead rest at her sides.

And then regarding Vanessa, Meadow had to agree. "Nessa always thinks that she's right. Have to be strong-willed to be a captain, I suppose. I'd bet a week's wages that she's dragged you and yours from the jaws of death with the same conviction that convinced her to bring a blushing boy to a brothel.” Even now, with Vanessa nowhere to be seen, Meadow was extending her kindness few did. Whether that was out of genuine respect, or the knowledge anything she said might make its way back to her was anyone's guess.

Vanessa passed by their room a few minutes later, her tromping footsteps unmistakable when put against the much more delicate strides of the workers of the brothel. There were others with her of course, but the commotion faded away quickly as the entourage and her moved up to the second floor.

“Well, “ Meadow began after a small pause to consider their options. “I see no reason we don't at least use this time for a bit of myth-building.” she said, her grin returning. She sat herself beside Anton, though now she did at least respect his personal space. “What do you think? Wrinkle up your clothes, get a proper sweat worked up, mess up your hair, don't leave the room for an hour? Nessa will be undressing you with more than just her eyes once she sees that!” Meadow's voice no longer had that seductive tone, replaced with something a bit more conspiratorial though still altogether kind. Meadow, in her own way, was trying to help Anton. Thinking him the captain's new favorite, it only made sense for her to try and build his reputation in Vanessa's eyes.

[Anton]

"I can promise you, Meadow, that you are the most intoxicating employee I have met today," Anton said truthfully, her subtle scent still lingering in his mind. Though her physical touch receded, her perfume still pressed itself against him as intimately as any lover, dragging him down to trust her regardless of what he should be doing. If only he could remember just what it was that he should be doing instead of babbling on and on.

"And you would win that bet," he admitted without much thought into the matter. No doubt Meadow had a much different imagined idea of how things had actually occurred, but he could not deny it. Vanessa had already saved his life once - that was why she had been hired in the first place. "What was worse than her being so certain though was the fact that she was excited. You don't say no to Vanessa to begin with, but you definitely do not disappoint her." This, also, was no lie, the woman's contract was broad enough to give her little to complain about so long as he himself remained whole and alive.

The offer finally knocked Anton out of his thoughts, a conspiratorial smile swiftly blossoming on his face. "Well, it'd only be proper for me to rise to meet her expectations," he replied with a soft laugh. Having surprisingly little shame for someone who didn't want to enter a whorehouse in the first place, he immediately went to work mussing up his clothing and hair. Until his brain caught up to the rest of Meadow's words, and he had to fight back the urge to ask her just what exactly she meant about Vanessa undressing him. Surely she just believed their cover story and assumed that this was all some sort of elaborate preamble on the pirate's part. Surely, yes.

"We'll have to find something else to fill an hour of our time," he said, mostly to change his mind from the topic.The coy smile returned soon afterwards as he threw himself into the notion of making their farce as realistic as possible. "I don't suppose you would mind being just a bit vocal the next time we hear her boots tromping by?"