Seeking Solace

With a playfully arched eyebrow, Tits moved to the sideboard to pour them each a glass of brandy. "So, not to brag, but this is from Dad's fifteen-year-old Imperial fancypants stash. He's more of a brandy drinker than me, so I assume he knows what's the good stuff," she added with a shrug, passing one of the snifters to Aubrienne.

She lit a little cone of dreammist and placed it into a delicately-carved stone holder so that its smoke would gradually diffuse throughout the room. "I hope that's all right," she said, "but I figured if you wanted to dance, holding drinks and smokes might be a bit cumbersome."

"Well, I'd assumed these things would proceed in succession, rather than concurrently," Aubrienne replied with a smile as she took the proffered drink.  "Better to take one's time and do them right."

She took a long sip of the brandy and gave a happy sigh.

"Fancypants indeed.  My complements to your father...or more likely his steward, I suppose.  Either way, it's amazing."

Aubrienne slid into a seat on the comfiest-looking sofa, sprawling a little while certain to leave room for Titania.

"I love your place, by the way.  The view is gorgeous.  How long have you lived here?"

"About three years," Tits told her, settling in beside her. "When I first moved out, I was a teenager, and it was this huge deal, like I'd decided to secede from the country or something. Probably you remember the tabloids, and even the serious papers, getting all up in arms about whether I was being 'reckless' or 'headstrong' or 'foolish'... I just wanted to try and have a normal life," she said. "So I probably made it worse by insisting on having a normal apartment to go with it. I should have realized it was futile - like any house was going to be 'normal' with my dad's soldiers and Gabby's dad's spies all over the place, trying to pretend they weren't keeping an eye on us. Eventually we compromised on this - it's got security, it's posh enough that it doesn't look like we're 'slumming' or whatever the Scourge wants to call it, and, once the club was doing well enough, I could pay for it myself - that was enough to get them to back off."

"Sorry," she said, with a sidelong glance at Aubrienne, "that was probably more information than you needed - I guess it still bugs me. But it does have a nice view," she conceded.

"As I said," Aubrienne agreed, obviously more interested in the view she currently had. "And I can't speak to what information I need, but I'm happy to hear more about you."

She smiled contentedly.

"Clearly, you've had a bit crazier life than I have, and I am a fan of new experiences."

Aubrienne shrugged.

"I'm seeking the limelight, and I'm not sure I can imagine that level of public attention. I hope you have at least some chance to get away from it, if only a little."

"It's better than it used to be, in some ways. Honestly I think the war helped... Other things for everyone to worry about than a princess who wasn't behaving the way she was supposed to." She paused, looking over to Aubrienne apologetically. "I mean, obviously the war was terrible... I didn't mean..."

Aubrienne looked away, quicker than she would have preferred. She took a moment, biting her lip, making sure she didn't tear up again. She knew Titania hadn't meant anything by the remark, but she was still raw from her visitor earlier in the day.

"No, I know...the war meant different things for everyone," she replied, her voice a little rough. "I can...I can imagine it would be nice to not be the center of attention for a while."

Aubrienne took a sip of brandy, her gaze staying with the glass in her hand.

Titania set down her glass, reaching over to put a hand on Aubrienne's arm. "I'm really sorry. My cousin Ruchard was in the war - I don't want to pretend like it's the same, but... we all grew up together, my cousins are practically like other siblings to me... I was scared for him, so much, and he was lucky. I didn't mean to trivialize what that's like."

Aubrienne glanced over at Titania's hand on her arm, her gaze following it up until she was looking her companion in the eye.

"I know," she responded after a beat. "It was a horrible time for everyone."

She looked away only long enough to set down her glass.

"One, I believe, we were trying to forget for the evening."

Aubrienne gave Titania a grateful smile, still slightly sad, reaching her other hand up to rest on her friend's.

"Luckily, you have a habit of keeping my mind occupied."

Titania smiled to Aubrienne, then perked up as a more cheerful song came on the radio. "Well, how about that dance? That ought to lift our spirits."

She stood, offering her hand.

Aubrienne took the offered hand, standing as well. She hoped Titania didn't mind following, as she was more used to the lead, but she was sure they'd sort it out.

"How did it only occur to me now that you've probably had tutors for this?" Aubrienne asked with a good-natured laugh.

"Oh gods, dancing lessons were so boring! First of all, having to dance with either one of my brothers, or with Ruchard - no thank you!" Titania let Aubrienne take the lead as they moved to a clear space in the room. "And then, they mainly taught waltzes and quadrilles and things that people used to dance fifty or a hundred years ago, because things change slowly in high society," she said, wrinkling her nose. "And then half of formal dance lessons are really etiquette lessons - how often you can dance with the same person without being rude, how to accept and decline invitations gracefully, all that sort of thing."

It was evident that she was more than capable of dancing well, but also that she was ignoring most of the formal rules that she'd been taught, as she shimmied suggestively against Aubrienne.

"Okay, yeah, that does sound awful," Aubrienne commiserated with another laugh. "Where I'm from, it's not really a choice either, but it's not formal or anything. Just, everyone learns to dance at some point. Weddings, wakes, holidays...somebody pulls out an instrument and everyone just kind of goes to it."

Aubrienne kept one hand wrapped around her companion, as low and tight as height and some level of decorum allowed, leading them gracefully through an otherwise basic dance.

"We got a little bit more formal when it came to the USO dances, but then you've got sort of an agenda, I guess. They were fun, but a big part of it is just making sure everyone's got a dance partner, so I guess a little like your etiquette lessons disguised as dancing. Though sometimes declining dances could turn from polite to a drink in the face real fast."

Tits laughed at that. "Drink-tossing wasn't covered in my lessons, I'll admit, although I'm sure it happens. It'd be a fast route to a duel, though. Did you like being in the USO?"

"Yeah, it was the tops," Aubrienne replied cheerfully, though she raised an eyebrow at the "duel" line. "I performed a little, but mostly I just volunteered for dances and dinners and the like. A lot of lonely troops needing comfort back on leave." She grinned conspiratorially. "Somebody had to make sure they felt at home."

"I bet you were good at that," Tits said, resting her head lightly against Aubrienne's shoulder as they danced.

Though Titania couldn't see it now, Aubrienne beamed as the other woman laid her head on her shoulder.

"Well, I like to think I know how to show someone a good time," Aubrienne replied, sighing contentedly. Aubrienne simplified and slowed their dance to little more than swaying together in a vague circle, content to silently enjoy the sensation of Titania in her arms for a while.

"This is definitely a good time," she agreed wistfully, enjoying the moment. Clouds of the scented smoke drifted around them, helping both to relax.

As the song came to its end and another began, however, Titania looked up for a moment at Aubrienne, her expression more pensive. "One more? Or would you like to sit down again and finish our drinks?"

Aubrienne smiled back dreamily.

"Much as I would like another dance, I'm worried this good 'mist of yours is going to make me less than graceful. Maybe sitting is a good idea for now."

Twirling slightly to let Titania lead the way back back to the couch, Aubrienne kept a hand on the small of her companion's back as they made their way. She slid into place at the corner, one arm resting across the top of the sofa, her positioning and expression clearly inviting.

Titania hesitated for a moment before sitting, and though she leaned affectionately into the curve of Aubrienne's arm, there was a slight tension that hadn't been there before. "I should probably say, before it gets awkward or anything... I try not to sleep with people who work for me." She looked up to Aubrienne, clearly a bit concerned. but still with a twinkle in her blue eyes. "I can't say I've always succeeded at that goal, mind you, and sometimes it's turned out fine... but I've occasionally had cause to regret it before too. So I guess I wanted to see how you felt about the idea."

"Well, I like to think I'm worth breaking a rule over, but I don't want to cause trouble," Aubrienne offered affably. She paused a moment, then groaned, gently pushing Titania to a more upright position.

"I should be more sober for this talk, but I guess I rarely am." Aubrienne took a breath, making sure Titania was situated so she could look her in the eye. "Normally, I'm used to this conversation being for the benefit of the people I'm with, but this is more for me."

Aubrienne laughed and shook her head.

"Gods, that sounded heavy. Look, I think you're amazing. You're fun, and gorgeous, and you make me smile whenever I see you."

Aubrienne's smile took on a fragile quality.

"But you are also my boss. I love the club, and I love working there, and I don't want to endanger that. On top of that, you're my friend, and I value that, and I don't want to mess with that, either."

She shrugged.

"So here it is: I care about you, and nothing is going to change that, no matter what happens. I'm not asking for anything here. You want me, I'm yours. If not, I'll question your judgment a little, because I too am fun and gorgeous and smile-making, but I'm happy being your friend."

Aubrienne leaned forward to grab her drink, taking a sip to give Titania a moment.

"As long as things don't get too weird, I wouldn't let ...this, whatever it is... impact your work at the club," Titania said slowly, trying to put her thoughts together somewhat coherently (which was challenging under the circumstances).

"I mean I'm not going to make you the star headliner just 'cause I think you're gorgeous - but I'm also not going to fire you if you decide later on that you'd rather just be friends again, or if you take up with someone else, or anything like that. I don't seem to know how to do 'jealous', but I also don't know how to do 'serious relationships', and I think you're sorta the same way," she guessed with a slight smile.

"So probably the only way it could get uncomfortable at work is if other people find out about it and think you're getting special treatment, or get jealous themselves. If we can keep that from becoming a problem, then... well, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't interested." She rested her hand on Aubrienne's leg, turning to see her response. "I'll understand if you aren't interested in keeping things on the down-low. We can finish our drinks and say goodnight, and things'll be back to normal at work tomorrow."

"I have to admit, I'm not used to be someone's little secret," Aubrienne said teasingly, "but I think I can play the part. Sounds kind of hot, actually, done correctly."

"And you're right; I don't do jealous, and I don't really do relationships for that matter."

She gave Tits a long, openly appreciative look.

"All I want right now is tonight with you."

Aubrienne leaned forward, raising her hand to Titania's cheek, brushing back a stray strand of her silver hair. She stopped just short of kissing Titania, her voice a whisper.

"What do you want?"

By way of an answer, Titania gripped Aubrienne by the front of her shirt to pull her in for a kiss.