Guilty Pleasures (Thimb, Ka'Ri)

[Continued from The Definitely Not A Date To Go Buy A Porn.]



The temple compound in Brilight can be accessed from four sides. Two sides border the Sun District--the heart of the city where the rich and noble live their lives and play their games--while the other two sides border the Southside slums for the commoners to access the temples. It is near one of these southern gates that Thimb now leads Ka'Ri: a long walk from the Northside Marketplace, yes, but the market is close to Thimb's house outside the walls and where she is used to shopping for groceries.

The peddler's stall ("Guilty Pleasures") is just inside the southern gate, technically within the temple compound but easily accessible for anyone from the slum side. The placement is optimal for sales; nobles who are afraid to go out into the slums can buy their indulgences while "at temple", and children who run about freely around the temple compound can spend their coppers there. The stall sells bardic romances (of highly varying degrees of debauchery), candies in two dozen varieties, pleasure-sticks for smoking, fire-sticks for lighting the pleasure-sticks, and various other sundry goods.

Today it is a human woman handling the stand, though Thimb has also met her husband before. She is selling spun sugar candy to a group of excited children but nods with a warm smile as the two women approach.

(OOC, but are the books in any type of sorting system or is it like a con and it's all jumbled together and random?)

[OOC: They were probably in order this morning when she opened. They are not now.]

Thimb waved, "Afternoon Annabelle!" she chirped, walking over to her. "This is Ka'Ri," she said gesturing, and then wondering if they should have decided on fake names. Well, Annabelle knew her, so it wouldn't have done much good, but maybe for Ka'Ri? Too late now, she supposed. "Ka'Ri, this is Annabelle. Anything new in today?" she asked, letting her gaze linger on the candy but all three of them knew damned well she meant bardic romances. Hamish, however, was very interested in the candy.

Ka'Ri waves back as well, thumbing idly through the stacks, while letting the corners of her eyes scour the setup and security.

(So, Ka'Ri's looking for how transactions go, is there a receipt system and if so, where does she store them. She's also looking for general crowd density (she's going to guess high given it's position near the Temple and Slums), as well as quirks from Annabelle in conversation that might lead to an opening questioning her deeper).

Investigation or Perception?:

[Rolls are noted and will be incorporated as we go.]

"Hey, babydoll," Annabelle says warmly to Thimb; the human woman, for all her many good traits, is terrible with names and doesn't bother to try to hide it. "An' hey, you. You're a tall glass, aren't you?" Her eyes dance with easy friendliness. "What're you in the mood for? I got spun sugar, I got caramel squares, I got sea-taffy. I even got Jewelness chocolates in stock. Came in from the harbor."

Grinning, she waits just long enough to make Thimb squirm, then takes pity. "An' I got a new chapbook in with a wee halfing sorcerer girl and her bandit lover. Set it aside for you, an' everything. Wanna see? Oh, hang on," she adds with a chuckle as two teenage boys nudge their way forward to pay for their smokes. "That'll be two silver a pack, thank you. Yes, I know, the quarantine is upsetting everyone. You can still afford my prices, your lordship. Now off with you, before I call your mother." No receipt is taken for the boys' purchases.

Ka'Ri blushes at the compliment and the er... relevant book mentioned to Thimb and her mouth drools at the thought of the candies. She hadn't eaten anything since the single muffin this morning and could feel her stomach growling at the thought of sweets she hadn't tasted in years.

Sensing an opportunity, Ka'Ri put on her best face and smiled cheerily at her. "Yes'm. Still feeling out the city since I suppose we'll be in port awhile. You get many sailor types all the way out here?"

"Oh goodness, do I," Annabelle chats easily with Ka'Ri, carelessly tidying her stock without looking away from the elven girl. "Seems like every sailor in Brilight passes through this gate on their way to pray to Osprem or Umberlee. Good business for me; they love to spend their coppers on candies. I reckon it's nice to have a sweet or two after months on sea-rations." Her lips twitch, amused. "An' course the girls like my books and the boys like the ones with pictures, so that's good business too."

"Ah, wow, really?" Ka'Ri replied playing every part of the easily excited sea bumpkin, she had seen in too many ports. "That must mean you've met my best mate Korgie. You'd remember him, he's a tall half-orc and he (proceeds to describe his identifying physical features). Ah man, that guy is a card, I tell you what. Well blow my sails, I thought I was gonna be out of place here."

Deception:

Annabelle gives the girl an odd look as she describes perfectly the man whose face can be seen in every back-alley on wanted posters; Ka'Ri's flawless lying seems to engender more 'pity' than 'eager agreement'. "Sweetheart, I'd not go around dropping that name unless ya want to explain yourself to the nice soldiers of the city guard," she says, a touch gently. "But, yes, he's a good boy. Done well for himself, I hear. I remember when he were just another little 'un trying to steal from my cart," she reminisces with a chuckle.

Ka'Ri hides her internal wince. She didn't know why she was so terrible with lying of late, but it was starting to worry her. Nonetheless, she had created a character and it was important to keep that up lest she draw additional suspicion and ruin the mission. But she could at least shift from the lies to something closer to the truth.

"Ha, really? Small world, eh? Yeah, I saw some of his posters on the way over, what's that all about anyways? Kor-er... my mate always shrugs and plays modest when I ask 'im. Like I know he's a bit of a character, but that bounty seems way high to me." She adopts a slightly hurt look as if she can't believe a person she considers her best mate would lie to her even if he's a famous liar.

"Oh, but where's my manners, my new friend Thimb brought me along cause she says you're the best seller in town for bawdy stories. I've heard some great stuff about that Thea Starguide series. Apparently they are hot enough to sink a ship, ha."

She adopts a chagrined and innocent but excited tone. "Sorry, I tend to run my mouth something awful. But yeah, you happen to have any of them?"

Annabelle chuckles warmly. "Ah! A Thea fan, are you? I've got the whole set by Shardstone, sure enough, including the latest." She digs out seven chapbooks, fanning them in a spread on the table. "You'll want to buy the whole series; this latest run is going fast since the love triangle started heating up. And if you like one-offs, I've got another dozen or so by other authors. None of them write as prettily as Shard does, though." She sighs happily. "Shame. That bard could make me a bank if'n the material just came out faster."

Shaking her head, she goes back to tidying. "As for that bounty, well. I mind my own business, dear. He were a good kid back in the day, all wide eyes and sly grins hanging around the temple grounds looking for rich patrons with purses to snatch, and I daresay growing a few years didn't take all the good out of him. I'll ask him if'n I see him sometime; I kin tell him ya said 'hi'. Kary, was it?"

"It's Carlie, actually and that's mighty nice of you to offer, but I wouldn't ask you to trouble yourself like that. Besides if he wouldn't tell his mate..." Ka'Ri adopts a slightly hurt expression and shakes it off. "Nah, don't worry about it. Anyways..."

She interrupts herself with a gleeful slapping together of her hands and a devilish grin. "ooh boy, that's a nice spread you've laid out for me. Let's check this out."

She goes back to looking through the books and acts excited about the volumes. Okay, Plans A and B failed, now to think up a good Plan C. I think Thimb should take the lead on this one.

She sidles up next to Thimb in the guise of showing her the latest Thea Starguide and whispers into her ear too quiet to be overheard. "All right that part was a bust, we need a backup plan. You know Annabelle. Do you know how to get her gossiping on past customers like Gwyn?"

Thimb did not, but what she did have was gumption and the assumption that she was an innocent angel working for her.

Ok. Thimb. You can do this.

"Ok, so, I need help picking out a gift for an adoptive cousin of mine. Her birthday is coming up," Annabelle knew about Thimb's hilariously sprawling family tree, although if she remembered was another issue. "I love buying books and was sneaking a peek at her bookshelf and saw a lot I recognized from you, so I was hoping you could steer me away from buying one she already has? Pretty little blond thing, about yay tall," she used mage hand to gesture the height, and gave a mostly accurate description of the girl, though she withheld the name. She couldn't imagine someone like Gwyn offering it up (besides, Annabelle wouldn't remember it anyways). "Know who I mean? Have any suggestions? Oh!" she bonked her forehead with the palm of her hand, "I think one of the others might have stolen my idea. Uncreative lot, sometimes. There anyone I should be giving a hard time to about that?" she asked with a wry grin.

Hamish, when Thimb was perhaps a little less convincing, tried to be distracting by being especially cute. Also they were hoping that they might get a treat from the nice lady.

"Blondie?" Annabelle asks, brightening. "Course I know her; she been coming to temple every week since she was no bigger'n her ears. How's she doing? Got back from her trip? Hang on."

Turning, she sorts through her stock. "There's the latest Thea, of course. She's gonna want that one. The Star-Crossed Generals still hasn't updated, more's the pity. Oh! But I got a new one with a noble elf lady and a rogue halfling; she'll like that one. Oh, and another with a commissioner and her minstrel boyfriend. That one's not a Shardstone, but it's still really good."

Hamish, successfully distracting her, manages to wheedle a fruit candy dot.

"Trip?" asked Thimb, trying not to seem too eager "I haven't been by for awhile, been busy with the ranch, I don't think she had a chance to tell me about it, but now I'm terribly curious..."

Hamish is very pleased with his fruit candy dot.

"Well, I assumed she was going on a trip," Annabelle says slowly, though now that she comes to think on it she's clearly not so sure. "I mean, she hasn't been by in weeks. And last time she was here, she bought up a whole armful of books. Seven or eight, I think. So I just assumed she was going on a long trip or something. Rich girl like that, isn't that what they do? Travel by sea to Jewelness and find a fancy husband in the capital? Poor duck always had eyes for the grungy ones, though. 'Slumming', we called it when I was young," she observes with a chuckle. "Got my first daughter that way."

Thimb laughed, trying to play along, "Oh, no. Anyone I need to give her some... guidance, on?" as if Thimb of all people was a reasonable source of guidance away from slumming. As if Thimb knew how to slum.

"Tish-tosh," Annabelle scoffs, throwing her hair over her shoulder. "She's a girl, innit she? Girls got to be allowed to make a few mistakes, otherwise what's the point of life? If you haven't had a big strong rogue between your legs--or a tall drink like that one," she adds, winking at Ka'Ri and nudging Thimb playfully in the shoulder, "then what's going to keep you warm at night when your noble husband's drunk and snoring again?"

She hesitates then, frowning at Ka'Ri as though a memory has been jogged. "Although... It's funny you should mention it..."

Don't get too excited don't get too excited Thimb you are WORKING you can DO this!

"There's a good time," said Thimb trying not to blush too hard at the elbowing, "and there's too good a time, if you know what I mean," she winked and prayed it was believable. At her memory being jogged Thimb tried to look conspiratorial and not suspicious, "Mention what?"

NATURAL TWENTY

Thimb can do the mischievous eye sparkle thing and everything.

Annabelle hesitates, frowning slightly. "Well, it's just... I'd not have thought of it, had your friend here not mentioned knowing You-Know-Who. You know he still visits the temple when he's in town? Which isn't often these days, I'll grant. Life on the sea, an' all, eh? But when he does get to town he always drops by. Make a prayer to Osprem and Umberlee, stop by Olidammara to give tithe, that sort of thing. Last couple of times he was here, he bought paper flowers at my stand--and I'm almost sure I saw him give them to your Blondie. I remember they was pink, like her dress. She always wears pink, bless her."

She shakes her head, smiling again. "But that don't mean nothing, you know. That boy flirts with anything has got a pulse. He could have his pick of the city, famous as he is. Or is it 'infamous'? Even when he was a boy, he'd buy candy bags from me and give 'em out to all the girls."

Ka'Ri continued to pretend she was absorbed in the various texts and to be fair, she was somewhat overwhelmed by the sheer number of pirate stories there were. She had no idea that there were entire fetishes about those like her and she felt somewhat exposed by it all.

But her ears were keen and she mulled over the information Annabelle was dropping to Thimb.

So, there's a confirmation that he aimed to seduce her at the bookseller's and is at the very least in heavy communication with Treygis. I feel a lot more confident about raiding his place.

"Of course not," said Thimb, "still... you can't give me that much of a story and not the rest," she was pretending this was one of the salacious bardic tales they both read and not, you know, the potential safety of a girl, because if she did that she didn't trust herself not to just tell Annabelle everything and beg her to for any information. She didn't think Luther would approve of that.

Annabelle's smile gentles. "Babydoll, I'd give you more if'n I had more, but that's all's I saw: a pretty boy giving paper flowers to a pretty girl. If they snuck behind one of the temples to kiss, I didn't see it. Got a stall to run, eh? But I could swear it were more than once," she adds, frowning in the attempt to recollect. "Yes. Now I come to think on it, I remember because her eyes got all wide the first time, an' she blushed the second. Cute as a button. The third time... or the fourth? I'm not sure. But the last time, I remember thinking she didn't look so happy. I wondered if maybe she'd seen him kissing on someone else. Boys do that, babydoll. 'Swhy you're wise to go after this one," she adds with a chuckle and a nod at Ka'Ri.

She shakes her head then and feeds Hamish another fruit candy. "Well. If'n you see your cousin, and if'n she's not married off to some Jewelness fop--or, well, I reckon even if she is--you tell her pirates don't settle down. They're good for a tumble, and you'd might as well tumble with 'em coz you'd hate yourself if you had the chance and didn't, but they don't settle down and marry and make cute fat babies. Here. You give her this one on the house," she says, handing Thimb the latest Thea chapbook. "An' hug her tight, just in case that boy broke her heart. Even good boys do that, without even meaning to."

Thimb turned an adorable shade of pink as Annabelle once again implied someone like Ka'Ri would go for a tumble with someone like Thimb. She was a little flattered that she thought not only did she have a shot, but she had already closed the deal. That however was secondary, "That scoundrel," she said with honest venom.

So he had wooed her to get enough information on how to grab her, and then... Had she found out? If she had been a willing accomplice to her kidnapping he wouldn't have had to drag her off unconscious, which meant... She gave her head a shake and grabbed a few other books that Annabelle had suggested without really thinking about them, and an assortment of candy because Hamish would never forgive her if she didn't. "I'll do that," she said with a smile, "thanks for the gossip, and, uh, advice."

Hamish having now gotten two whole candies was very pleased and rubbed into Annabelle's hand, having learned he could repay people for things by being cute at them from one of the barn cats.

"Mary?" she said, trying to stretch the name even further from what it had been, "you about ready to go?"