[Flashback] Scary lady is scary! (Tessa)

[Bob Barton]

6th day of Winter 510 AV

Continued from "A die in the hand's worth two on the table"

After Tessa left the night before, Bob just continued to roll his dice. It was good, Tessa was not his lady luck since he just kept on winning and winning even without her. The strumpet with him also wised up and left the game, however she stayed on the table with Bob having got him wrapped all around her little finger. Very good, Bob got home with a lot more mizas and accompanied by the attractive female at his arm. But the next morning was horrible. As Tessa had said he had gotten some sort of unpleasant and itchy surprise throughout the whole day. Probably some sort of divine retribution.

But as promised Bob found himself at the White Swan. It was a nice place. A lot nicer than the dump Bob was living in. From the way Tessa brought herself in the Spinning Coin the day before he would not expect to find her in a place like this. There must be more to her than meets the eye. Even the employees who pointed him to her room had a praise or two about her, that should be saying something.

Unfortunately all the praise in the world cannot take the image of what happened last night with the woman. Hypnotism gone bad thats what it was. And Tessa nearly went crazy, very scary considering he is right at her door. Bob stood staring at the door for a while thinking if now would be a good time to run. She was just a woman he met at a gambling table. Whats so special about her besides the fact that she saved Bob from a sailor and he only returned her good will with messing with her mind?

Well, a deal is a deal and Bob did offer her dinner. And since he passed by some sort of restaurant on his way up here they won't have to get far. Just be done with dinner for the night and leave before any more problems happen, thats all Bob wants. With his mind made up he knocked on the door.

[Tessa Poe]

Tessa had crawled into bed as soon as she'd gotten back to the inn, sound asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. The night had proved dreamless and she'd slept in too, which was strange for her, usually she was up when the sun rose. As her eyes cracked open she found her head was aching, as if she'd had one too many the night before, but that couldn't have been it, she'd not touched a drop had she? She squinted against the sun light as she sat up, trying to remember what had happened last night. There'd been the game, she'd been doing fairly well, then... had she really done that? Had that all actually happened? She couldn't quite believe it. No wonder her head hurt. For some reason though she couldn't really remember what happened afterwards, or how she'd got back here at the end of the night. She remembered Bob taunting her, and then she'd called him out stupidly, but after that it was something of a blur. She'd been angry with him, she knew that much, but she had no idea why.

"Pox on it, better see if there's anything to eat still, can figure this out later." she muttered sourly as she tried to stand, but as soon as she did the room started to spin wildly, leaving her with no choice but to collapse back down on the bed with a moan of frustration. Maybe resting a little longer would be a good idea? It wasn't like she had anywhere to go today, she had the room for another couple of nights at least. It didn't make sense though... either that drunk had hit her harder than she thought or she'd ended up getting sick last night, had anyone looked particularly sick? She didn't think so... none of this made any sense! She sighed as she eased herself back into bed, her eyes drifting shut as she slept once again.

******

She woke again to the sound of someone knocking at the door, her eyes sliding open bleerily as she tried to figure out what was going on. The room was very dark for some reason, why was it so dark? It was then that Lethe peered past the clouds, lighting the room a little and she started to realise what had happened. Had she slept the entire day away? That... wasn't possible, she never did that. Ever. She groaned as she sat up, at least her head didn't seem to be quite so sore, and the room wasn't trying to make her throw up with its spinning, that was good. Now why had she woken up? Oh, someone was at the door weren't they?

"Just a minute!" she called, her voice still tinged with sleep as she swallowed and tried to get some moisture in her mouth to get rid of the bitter taste that always came after she'd slept too long. She crawled out of bed, hands fumbling for the candle by it before realising she had nothing to light it with. On the plus side she seemed to have fallen asleep in her clothes, boots and all so she wouldn't have to answer the door wrapped in a blanket or something equally embarrassing. She staggered over to the door, dragging it open and looking over the top of whoever had knocked's head before her eyes flicked down to see... Bob? What was he doing here? How did he know she was here at all? What was going on?

"Ummm hello there... Bob... I wasn't expecting to see you again." She wasn't quite sure what else to say to him, her surprise at seeing him here of all places stealing words from the tip of her tongue. What was he doing here!? Did something happen last night? Other than that drunk slapping her when she tried to protect him? What the in the hells was going on?

[Bob Barton]

Bob was shivering with anticipation when the door creaked open. It was not the dinner which was on his mind but rather what would Tessa do. Has she recovered from her earlier ordeal? And what would she be glad that Bob remembered and not go crazy? Yes these were the things going over and over in the tiny man's even tinier mind. A minute to reconsider if there is still a chance to run or not if Tessa still had the wits to tell the time.

He was met with disappointment. Today he had spent most of his time getting ready after he got rid of the strumpet, dressing and grooming himself so that he would not offend the next scary woman on the agenda. But apparently she did not think much of Bob, admitting that she did not even expect to see him. When she greeted him at the door, it was with her crumpled clothes and messed up hair like she just got out of bed. Bob just stared at her with a little shock. He should have just went back home and forget about this entire plan. Even Tessa did not seem too keen on the night eventhough she seemed a little happy at the offer yesterday.

After when he got back his senses he thought for a little on how he was going to go about with this. Carefully now...or she might go crazy again. Softly he reminded her "Dinner...remember? But I can see you are not ready yet. My bad. I'll get a table and wait for you downstairs."

Without giving her anytime to reply he turned to the side and started walking off fast in a fast trot towards the restaurant. Petch, that was scary. That little moment of silence between them in their mutual surprise was a little intimidating for Bob. He stood waiting for Tessa at the entrance. The nervous habit of twiddling his thumbs and fingers starting to surface just waiting for it all to be over.

[Tessa Poe]

Surprise turned to shock as Bob mentioned dinner, she vaguely recalled him saying something of the kind, but she'd said no, hadn't she? She couldn't remember, she just couldn't remember. She blinked as he simply turned and walked away, saying he'd get them a table and she just stood there watching him go, lips flapping with not a word coming from them. He... she... dinner? But... what had she done last night?

Half in a daze she reached for one of the lanterns hanging outside her room and carried it back in with her, using it to light a couple of the candles before replacing it where it belonged. She didn't want to annoy the staff that worked here, it really was a nice inn and she'd always had a warm reception when she'd turned up. Still in that same slightly unreal daze she found her coat and dug through it, turning the small mirror she'd produced to catch the light in the best way and running her brush through her hair, stroke after stroke, clearing away the mess it'd been left in by her long hours asleep. As she brushed she noticed there was a faint bruise showing under her eye and across her cheek, the legacy of that drunk's hand. Gods what would people think if they saw her with that on her face? Could she really go downstairs with it? And why was she even doing this again? Maybe it'd just been the hurt expression on his face, he'd obviously gone to a lot of effort over his appearance for tonight, maybe he'd been really looking forwards to it? She'd have to at least go down there and explain, or at least try and explain what had happened, and to apologise to him.

There might not have been much she could do about her face, but at least her other set of clothes was freshly laundered and pressed, they tended to manage wonders here with her clothes. It was exactly fancy, but it was clean and uncreased and she didn't have any other options. She washed her face in the bowl provided, the clear, cool water dispelling the last little sleepiness and bringing a pretty flush to her cheeks. Gods she'd needed that, it seemed to help her finally clear her thoughts again. She dressed quickly, reaching up to gather her hair into its usual pony tail, her hands poised to grasp hold of it, but she let them drop, shaking her hair out and letting it fall loose around her shoulders. If she was going to have dinner with him then she might as well leave it, it wasn't like she was going tramping through the forest where it'd get caught in a bush or anything. Besides, if she placed it just right it did a lot to hide the bruise, and that would have to do for now.

All in all it only took her a couple of chimes before she was ready and before she knew what she was doing she was heading for the stairs, still trying to figure out exactly why she was doing it at all. Yes he'd clearly gone to some effort, but she hadn't exactly been friendly to him, had she? And he'd seemed perfectly happy with that other girl hadn't he? So why was he here now? Was this what he always did? Jumped from girl to girl? Did that even matter though? It was just dinner, and maybe she could ask him about last night, and what had happened before she'd left? She came slowly down the stairs, catching sight of Bob standing there waiting for her. He seemed... nervous? He was fidgeting as he stood there, so that might be it, or maybe he was impatient, had he expected her to be waiting at the door for his knock?
"Ummm... hi... Bob... I'm..." Tessa tongue seemed to be trying to tie itself in knots as she hesistated on the step above him, before realising that that just made her even taller than he was and stepping down from it. "Look I... that is... I'm sorry. I... barely remember half of last night, I guess that drunk must've hit me harder than I thought, I honestly didn't mean to offend you..." She stood there, confused and worried, hoping that he'd at least accept her apology. If only she could remember what had happened last night! She might have had a better idea of what she was supposed to do now!

[Bob Barton]

As Bob was waiting for Tessa to come down he had a little conversation about the White Swan with one of their employees. Oh yes, it was really nice and now Bob knew why after that. Simply put it was expensive. One night here can pay for nearly a third of a season where he lived. And gods, the dinner is going to cost him a lot more than whatever he won yesterday especially since its for two. Money, money, money! Why is he doing this? Guilt is one thing but it shouldn't be so petching expensive. Heck if Tessa can afford to stay here, why is he playing so out of his league? She most probably is from some rich merchant's family.

Even as he talked with the employee it was uncomfortable. His arm was now red from all the scratching on it. The damned itch, it was jumping all around his body the whole day. Perhaps he caught a bug or something. He can't stop scratching for long, eventually it will drive him to scratch more intensely from the discomfort. Too much of this is bad. What if the nails went beyond the skin. Would he start bleeding out halfway through dinner? Still its not that bad a way to go, in such a nice place like this. The beautiful music can serenade him into his eternal slumber.

But with what happened next who could think of dying. His companion for the night came into the room looking better than ever. The hair down made a lot more difference. Tessa looked a lot more feminine compared to that wild woman who nearly pummeled another the night before. Bob no longer found himself scared but more interested in her and started smiling, even forgetting about that god forsaken itch.

"No need to say sorry, and last night was nothing good to be remembered." She seemed like a nervous wreck. Bob hoped that his words might assure her its only dinner. And how could he be offended now especially seeing that she looked completely attractive. Extending his arm to the restaurant Bob gestured to lead "Shall we?" and started heading there himself as he requested for their dinner from the waitress.

[Tessa Poe]

Still more than a little confused Tessa found herself linking arms with Bob and following him towards the table he'd gotten for them. If she wasn't so preoccupied she'd have been wondering what the other diners thought of the pair them, she was about a foot taller than him as far as she could tell. Thankfully that particular worry was somewhere at the back of the queue behind her more immediate concerns. His waving away of last night irritated her, it might not have been a big deal for him but she was missing a few memories, including the one about when she'd agreed to meet him, not to mention how she'd felt this morning. It was all just... so very strange. As they reached the table Tessa simply sat and settled herself without a second thought. She wasn't one for standing on ceremony and there were things she had to ask him. The sooner they were seated the better. At least she didn't have to go through the menu, Bob was taking care of that apparently. Was he paying for this? Should she ask about it? She didn't want to seem rude by just expecting him to pay. She really didn't know what was going on, or what he expected to come out of tonight. Was he hoping to come back to her room? Gods... what would she do if he did? Too many questions and just not enough answers. On the plus side he was nothing like the leering little toad he'd been last night at least, she was particularly grateful for that.

She looked across the table at him, finding it a little funny that this was the exact same position they'd been in last night. She wasn't quite as angry as she'd been then though. "So... are we splitting the bill? I... really don't remember what happened last night, not after I called your bid and lost after that drunk, well you know. I... it's weird... I didn't have a thing to drink, and he can't have hit me that hard, but I woke up feeling like I'd had a skinfull of wine..." She wasn't sure why she started in with that, it was sort of asking the questions that she really wanted answering at least. What happened? What had she done? Why couldn’t she remember any of it? It was both worrying and frustrating that she didn't know, nothing like this had ever happened to her before. Not even the time she and a couple of kids from a family travelling with the caravan had stolen a bottle or two of some clear spirit and drunk the lot between them. She’d been so sick the morning after that too. She sat patiently waiting for him to reply, hoping that he had the answers she so desperately wanted at this point.

[Bob Barton]

That was a good sign when they linked arms. It meant that Tessa at least accepted Bob's company to some degree. Bob ignored the looks that the pair had gotten from some of the other diners while they walked to their seats. He had more interesting things right now, namely Tessa and he could not give a shyke what everyone else thought about it. When they reached their seats Bob paused for a while wondering if he should pull out the seat for her. Normally he wouldn't hesitate in times like this but face it, Tessa still scared him. And during that short lapse of time Tessa apparently made the decision to seat herself.

Across the table his companion had this questioning look on her face. Bob won't be offended with just that seeing that, everyone would do well not to trust him. But it still killed something inside him that a woman will question his intentions for something as simple as dinner. There should be something he can do to change this and the chance came when she asked about the bill. "Now what sort of a man I will be if I get the lady to pay after offering her dinner?" with a little smile to try and keep her off guard.

"Hmmmm..." Bob was thinking over what Tessa had said. Apparently she had forgotten about everything after the drunk fiasco. Bob was just a novice at the arts of hypnotism. Only using it to give him a slight edge in his games of chance. How could it have such an effect on Tessa? He had never encountered something like this before. It was going to be a little hard to think of how to tell her without letting anything slip about his part in it.

"Well uhmmm...I think you gotten a bit too excited after the drunk, maybe?" Bob leaned forward over to Tessa and in a softer voice explained the next bit "You started to get hostile with one of the other players at the table too...lucky you left without any further incident." There was nothing more to be said unless Bob wanted to risk Tessa going nuts in here or leave, so he reached both his hands to the wine glasses which provided as part of their meal giving one to Tessa before moving back to his seat. It was time to stop dwelling on that unpleasant experience and Bob raised his glass in a toast. "But enough about that. Why should we ruin this splendid dinner remembering that horrid encounter. Its time for a new start, I'm Bob. Why don't you tell me more about yourself Tessa?"

[Tessa Poe]

She breathed a sigh of relief to hear that there'd been no major incident, that she'd just left, though as far as she could remember it had been Bob she'd been angry with. Was it him? Was he the one she'd been horrible to? If that was the case why'd he asked her to dinner again? She accepted the glass he offered her absentmindedly, still trying to unlock the memories of last night, to figure out what had actually happened. It couldn’t have been him, if things had gotten as bad as he seemed to be hinting they had then surely he wouldn’t have pressed his invitation. Her eyes were focused on the surface of the wine, her oddly distorted reflection in it matching the picture Bob was painting of how she’d been last night. Come to think of it if she’d been that bad last night why’d he asked her to dinner at all? Was that the person he wanted to meet? Did he want her to be horrible? Gods she should never have answered her door.

“Oh! Oh yes, ummm… to a nice meal?” She came out of her thoughts as Bob’s toast broke through them, blinking rapidly as she finally came back to the here and now, mind fumbling for an answer to his question. “About me? I’m… really not that… interesting…” She was stumbling over her words, hesitating the whole time, mostly because she had no idea what to say. She doubted he wanted to hear about camping out in the woods most of the time, or her occasional jobs as a caravan guard, it really wasn’t that thrilling a life. She sat there in silence for a moment, feeling it stretching, growing more and more awkward, Gods she had to say something, anything. “I guess… you just get by, you know? Don’t get tied down, don’t stay in one place too long, take jobs when you need them but otherwise just do as you like….” and apparently babble like someone who’s taken one too many blows to the head. Tessa finished the sentence silently, her eyes dropping back to her still untasted wine and wondering if he was regretting asking her to dinner already. Well… all she had to do was get through the meal, be polite and all, and then he’d leave and she’d probably never see him again. In the meantime… well she’d probably make a fool of herself, but there was nothing new there now was there?

[Bob Barton]

Apparently someone was losing his charm. How sad. Tessa seemed to be paying more attention to her wine more than Bob. How can wine be better than Bob? Its unheard of! Sure wine is the only alcohol worth drinking, the price speaks for itself but it still...this is Bob we are talking about! He gave a quiet sigh with that thought in his head. Either Tessa hasn't recovered from last night or she still blames Bob for it. In any case, Bob had the whole night to change that. Or that is what he hopes for anyway.

And eventhough someone had admitted that she was not that interesting, Bob thought otherwise. Tessa may have been hesitant and a little bit jittery then, but her words had captured Bob's attention fully as he listened. She reminded himself of...him. Getting by while not being tied down or staying in one place too long. But jobs? That was another thing entirely. There is no point working unless there is something really worth it in the end. Like the prize Bob was aiming for now in front of him.

"That is all very interesting. I travel quite a bit myself. Still haven't found that place for myself. So tell me, have you found anything interesting in your travels? I know I have..." Reaching the last sentence he was eyeing Tessa intently. Bob was going to have to keep things moving if she was going to stay. It really looked like she was getting disinterested. Like a fisherman he will throw her a line and reel her in slowly until he has her in his hands...

[Tessa Poe]

Tessa's eyes flicked up as Bob finished his sentence, more than a little confused about what he meant. Maybe he was like her? He just liked to travel and had some stories far more interesting than hers to tell? If she could get him talking about them she could just nod and smile her way through the meal, that wasn’t too bad a plan. He seemed far more at ease and ready to talk than she was at least. Just how often did he do this? Invite strangers to dinner that is. Her eyes met his staring across the table, glittering a little in the lamp light of the room and suddenly she was reasonably sure that he’d been referring to her with his last comment. At least that’s what his expression seemed to be hinting at, what was he doing here? Why was he spending so much time and money on someone like her? Someone who’d apparently been a complete cow the night before at the dice table. None of this made any sense.

She took a hasty glug of wine to cover her confusion... which was probably a mistake. The wine burned as it went down the wrong way, leaving her spluttering and coughing. Her hand was shaking as she concentrated on setting the wine back on the table, managing not to spill a drop somehow. Her other hand was clapped over her mouth, trying to hide the sight of the wine dribbling uncomfortably from her nose and trickling from between her lips. She couldn’t imagine what she looked like at that moment. Her cheeks were flushed with the effort of trying to control the choking fit she found herself locked into, tears leaking from her eyes that she couldn’t stop. She reached for a napkin, desperately dabbing at it all and to clean herself up but not entirely sure why she was bothering. It wasn't like he was going to stick around after seeing her in this state was it and in the midst of fighting for breath she wasn't sure if that was a good or a bad thing.

Finally she got herself under control, the last wracking cough finished, the mix of wine, phlegm and snot wiped clean and leaving her with a quite disgusting napkin that she had no idea what to do with, so she just kept it in her hand for the moment. It may have only lasted for a few moments but it had felt like an eternity. "Ummmm... I'm sorry... I..." What exactly were you supposed to say about something like that? Her cheeks flushed brighter still as her embarrassment at what had just happened built. She wiped at the corners of her eyes, clearing the last of tears born from her coughing fit and blinking rapidly, trying to get her thoughts straight again. “Things like that always seem to happen at the worst times don’t they?” She managed, her voice a little strained as her throat rasped uncomfortably. Gods what a mess, it might be best to just excuse herself, save them both the bother of finishing this meal. If she did it before the food arrived maybe Bob wouldn’t be too out of pocket, and if not she could always leave a contribution to the bill.