The Duke looked at Muijh in surprise. “Oh, so now the stakes have been raised? I shall accept this proposition as well. I shall have to think upon my part of the bet first, but do tell me first, does it only have to be a ‘nice’ restaurant?†he asked with a clever light in his eyes. He could actually do somewhere outside of Eorzea and barely dent his finances, but it would be best to not let her know that. He had a feeling he was likely to lose this bet, but it did not matter to him if he won or lost as the fun for him was in just waiting to see how chance played out for him…
A’ih quickly made her way through the crowds and retrieved the water from the storeroom again as she had done only a little while ago. It actually was not any different than the water available from the external drink selections other than the fact it was simply in a different room, but the Duke had made it a specific command to her that all of the drinks she fetched must come from the stockroom instead of the external bars. As she silently closed the door to the side room, she heard a voice speak to her.
“M’am, er Miss…†It was just one of the servants that had been hired for the event, specifically a female Raen one. She had power to command all of them, but so far they had been well-trained enough to handle their own to the point she barely had to bother with them.
“What is it?†she said gently and blankly, though gesturing to her with her free hand to follow quickly. She did not want to tarry any in fulfilling the Duke’s command.
“If it isn’t out of line, I wanted to know how it’s like working as a personal servant.â€
This question stopped her tracks briefly, but she started up at her fast pace again as she gave her brief response and never let the plate in her hand wobble once.
“You get used to it.†It was not really an answer, but it was what she could answer from experience.
She continued on her way, without the servant following behind until she reached Duke Rhett again. He had just finished a statement as she arrived at his side and brought the plate back down to her waist in her habitual manner. He did not look at her, but retrieved his wineglass, took a sip from it, and promptly began a new command.
“A’ih.†He was using more verbal commands? This was an unusual day for her, but then again, the Duke rarely ever held any events like this.
“Yes, Duke?â€
“Can you see that guest with the avian mask and the azure accents? Bring her to me as well,†he ordered in a calm voice.
“Your wish is my command,†she replied, though she was experiencing some unfamiliar feelings at the idea of another Miqo’te being invited over to talk with him. Perhaps it was just general concern for his public appearance?
A’ih began her stride yet again, leaving the Duke with his glass as he proceeded to take another sip from it. She kept a mostly straight path towards this peculiar Miqo’te, only having to weave her path whenever someone was passing by. By the time she reached the guest, she already had turned around from the bar with the icy beverage and was looking almost in her direction. She kept her familiar and brisk pace all the way up until a few steps before the other woman where she lowered her momentum for more graceful stop.
“The Duke requests your presence. Please, if you would, do follow me,†she instructed the masked guest in her quiet manner.
The young Hyur girl almost wanted to roll her eyes into the back of her head as another man, an Elezen this time, approached her table with…more ridiculous looking facial hair. Her hearing almost blanked out from disbelief, but she was able to catch the most of his greeting. The smile combined with that initial comment did not sit well with her. She was not from the high society, the dress was the only thing that gave the impression she was, and so far she was finding them to be more presumptuous than whom she generally worked with. Maybe he would set his sleeve on fire too. It was a long shot, but maybe.
“A prince? What would you have to do with just a simple girl and a glass of wine?†she asked with a precisely placed undertone of sarcasm. Rich people were testing her patience tonight and she was hard pressed to resist the saucy responses coming to her brain.
The girl would lament having worn this risqué dress as it seemed to be pulling so many of these similar encounters now, but she would have been lamenting about the restriction of other dresses had she done otherwise. There was developed a preference in her for the…freedom, though she still did have to deal with the knowledge that certain people would be looking at her for a little longer than they should.
It also did not help it was low in the back too. She realized that mistake a little too late as well.
~*~
A’ih quickly made her way through the crowds and retrieved the water from the storeroom again as she had done only a little while ago. It actually was not any different than the water available from the external drink selections other than the fact it was simply in a different room, but the Duke had made it a specific command to her that all of the drinks she fetched must come from the stockroom instead of the external bars. As she silently closed the door to the side room, she heard a voice speak to her.
“M’am, er Miss…†It was just one of the servants that had been hired for the event, specifically a female Raen one. She had power to command all of them, but so far they had been well-trained enough to handle their own to the point she barely had to bother with them.
“What is it?†she said gently and blankly, though gesturing to her with her free hand to follow quickly. She did not want to tarry any in fulfilling the Duke’s command.
“If it isn’t out of line, I wanted to know how it’s like working as a personal servant.â€
This question stopped her tracks briefly, but she started up at her fast pace again as she gave her brief response and never let the plate in her hand wobble once.
“You get used to it.†It was not really an answer, but it was what she could answer from experience.
She continued on her way, without the servant following behind until she reached Duke Rhett again. He had just finished a statement as she arrived at his side and brought the plate back down to her waist in her habitual manner. He did not look at her, but retrieved his wineglass, took a sip from it, and promptly began a new command.
“A’ih.†He was using more verbal commands? This was an unusual day for her, but then again, the Duke rarely ever held any events like this.
“Yes, Duke?â€
“Can you see that guest with the avian mask and the azure accents? Bring her to me as well,†he ordered in a calm voice.
“Your wish is my command,†she replied, though she was experiencing some unfamiliar feelings at the idea of another Miqo’te being invited over to talk with him. Perhaps it was just general concern for his public appearance?
A’ih began her stride yet again, leaving the Duke with his glass as he proceeded to take another sip from it. She kept a mostly straight path towards this peculiar Miqo’te, only having to weave her path whenever someone was passing by. By the time she reached the guest, she already had turned around from the bar with the icy beverage and was looking almost in her direction. She kept her familiar and brisk pace all the way up until a few steps before the other woman where she lowered her momentum for more graceful stop.
“The Duke requests your presence. Please, if you would, do follow me,†she instructed the masked guest in her quiet manner.
*~*~*
The young Hyur girl almost wanted to roll her eyes into the back of her head as another man, an Elezen this time, approached her table with…more ridiculous looking facial hair. Her hearing almost blanked out from disbelief, but she was able to catch the most of his greeting. The smile combined with that initial comment did not sit well with her. She was not from the high society, the dress was the only thing that gave the impression she was, and so far she was finding them to be more presumptuous than whom she generally worked with. Maybe he would set his sleeve on fire too. It was a long shot, but maybe.
“A prince? What would you have to do with just a simple girl and a glass of wine?†she asked with a precisely placed undertone of sarcasm. Rich people were testing her patience tonight and she was hard pressed to resist the saucy responses coming to her brain.
The girl would lament having worn this risqué dress as it seemed to be pulling so many of these similar encounters now, but she would have been lamenting about the restriction of other dresses had she done otherwise. There was developed a preference in her for the…freedom, though she still did have to deal with the knowledge that certain people would be looking at her for a little longer than they should.
It also did not help it was low in the back too. She realized that mistake a little too late as well.
