So call me your sugar. (Tags Demi)

[Requiem]

Yeah well, he'd always known that this woman wasn't likely to be scared away...just teasing her for a reaction. Definitely all predator and confident about it. He refused to let it unsettle him, even though he was getting a queasiness in his stomach at the thought that Elysia could really force him to do pretty much anything she wanted. Not that it would fit into her game, from what he'd read of it so far; she seemed to be looking for willing submission. Holding onto that thought, he managed to shore his confidence back up. As long as those were the rules, he could out-stubborn just about anyone. Not sure which side of the family tree he got it from, but he'd definitely inherited it in spades.

Unlikely she was talking about dancing, but he didn't give up any ground, pulling her tighter in what was really an act of defiance. Bring it. He let her pull back without resistance, however, his merciless chuckle biting. Yes, definitely sensitive about the age. (And why shouldn't she be? Tall as the harper was, everything else about him said clearly 'boy,' from his willowy frame to the young face. Elysia certainly wasn't an old woman, but no one would mistake her for a girl. No one with a brain.)

Her response...no he was going to take that as teasing rather than actual knowledge that he'd never used a knife in self-defense - much less to attack someone - in his life. Fortunately, she saved him from half-stumbling over a partially formulated response; her attention was turned elsewhere. Whips? He knew he didn't school his expression fast enough, even if he kept himself from shying back from her. Something told him that the flicker of apprehension others wouldn't have noticed she'd pick up on right away. Dmitri only half-listened to the smith as he spoke. "A lot of these are Telgar whips, made from the runners we breed on the plains, though if you're looking for something of higher quality..." Moving back to gesture at the several whips in varying lengths ranged on the wall, he added, "we also have managed to acquire several Ruathan whips, taken from wild runners or wherhide, and cured by the expert tanners there. What specifically were you looking for?"

Having expected Elysia to continue her discussion - and staring at the items the smith had pointed out with a slight frown - he jumped a bit when the greenrider turned to him of a sudden with blade in hand, mentally cursing himself as he saw it was being offered hilt-first. Reaching out slowly, his hand curled awkwardly around the blade. Could blame it on having to use left, but he'd likely have been just as clumsy with his right. Dmitri met her eyes squarely, then, keeping his hand steady enough to take the blade from her without mishaps. He wasn't the type to lie...mislead, sure. Omit. Definitely. But outright lie when it was obvious he was lying? No. "Not once," he returned, letting a small half-smile quirk up one side of his face. "Don't suppose you'd be willing to teach me how to fend you off for the sake of a challenge?" The question was infused with amusement and not entirely joking.

Then, because the purpose had been to find a more utilitarian blade than his sliver, he turned to the smith and said simply, "I will take this dagger, a belt sheath, and whatever monstrosities the minx here takes a fancy to." Turning back to Elysia, he lifted a brow. Her play. His unease with the whips couldn't have gone unnoticed. He was definitely interested to see whether or not she'd be willing to place herself further in his debt...

[Rei]

The twitch from Dmitri was in fact noted. A not so nice smile flitted across Elysia’s face at the reaction. Oh he didn’t know that she used a whip as a weapon. That could be oh so fun. Shifting her body she leaned forward to purr at the shop keeper. “Telgar ones I am not to interested in.” Not at all. Runner hide was not to her liking. Never had been. Her dark eyes flicked back to the others he indicated and she smiled happily. Oh yes the Ruathan ones where much nicer. Raising a hand she gestured to a particularly nice wherhide one hanging at the back. It looked to be about five feet in length and was just about perfect for what she had in mind. No doubt it would be a bit more expensive than she could currently manage though. Tsk. Well at least she would get to handle it.

However she had more pressing matters than marks at the moment. The greenrider raised an eyebrow at the harper’s sudden jump when she turned. Had he seriously thought she would stab him? A smile played over her lips. Jumpy wasn’t he? As he took the knife Elysia shifted her weight and put her now unoccupied hand on her hip. Well at least the handler had been honest about never handling a weapon. That still gave her the advantage. Hmm.

“For the sake of a challenge? No. But I will teach you. In return for you buying me dinner tonight. That will be more than enough to pay off the debt.” It also meant more time with him. Dmitri had set himself up very nicely that time. Not only was she going to get out of the debt she owed but he would be forced to spend more time around her. Poor thing. She wasn’t in a forgiving mood either. The terms where already set now. No protesting. “I find that a completely fair trade. I’ll meet you in the evenings after you’ve had dinner or breakfast or whatever you wherhandlers call it.” The greenrider flicked her wrist in a dismissive gesture and then turned to the stall keeper again.

“May I?” Elysia said sweetly. Again gesturing towards the whip. The man had just handed it over when Dmitri made his purchases and then proceeded to add that nice little offer on the end. Minx? Well she preferred vixen but it was all the same in the end. Shifting slightly she ran her hand slowly down the weapon’s length and then took a couple steps back. Perhaps things like this where not practical in a dress but she was confident in her control. Gripping the hilt of the weapon with practiced ease, the greenrider took a step forward and swung it in a few practice swings. The whistle of displaced air followed by the crack made her smile. Especially because of the fact that a few passerby jumped in surprise.

With a casual flick the whip coiled about Dmitri’s upper arm like a snake. Caught. Elysia yanked him forward, her other arm snaking about his waist as she pulled him roughly against her. “Thanks for the offer darling but I don’t need your marks.” She whispered into his ear giving it a slight nip for emphasis before stepping back at the same time uncoiling the weapon from his arm and giving it back to the shop keeper with a flirtatious look. “Thank you ever so much for the lend. It’s a very nice piece. Are you quite done Demi darling?”

[Requiem]

He stared at her openly, the smile fading almost completely before it revitalized into a full-blown mocking smirk. Self-mocking, but she didn't have to know that. Had to hand it to her, she'd clearly stolen the upper hand from the moment they neared the weapons, and he wasn't likely to snag it back anytime soon by the looks of things. At least....not while they were still at the weapons stall, unless he managed to sort his nerves out enough to do more than play defense. Couldn't just play defense with Elysia...then you ended up roped into seeing her for many nights instead of just one, and he didn't think protesting or hiding was going to get him out of it. Tch.

Feeling the hairs rising on the back of his neck at the whir of leather cutting through the air, he refused to look, knowing that would make it worse, and instead set to looking over the rest of the items for sale. Where was a full-scale suit of armor when you needed it, hm? Not that this was likely to help him any. The only reason he didn't jump half a foot when the crack sounded was he wasn't so sheltered as to not be fully aware it was coming. Still, he knew he'd twitched, if only a little. The calm, quiet stallkeeper looked to be just on the edge of an amused smile as he glanced at Dmitri, which made the boy irrationally want to throw something at him. Not funny. Really...it wasn-

His eyes widened at the feel of leather on his bare arm, pulling him around and off-balance, stumbling a couple steps toward her. The boy's heart had already risen into his throat, his face going instantly neutral, though the pallor that made his freckles stand out more than normal had to be obvious. A flash of irritation was released in a soft hiss, more in response to the whole thing than anything else, though it followed her words and the nip at his ear. Okay, calm down...better. He could feel the blood in his skin again, at least. More the surprise of the whip coming out of nowhere and the instant acknowledgement that yes, she knew how to use it. So not a bluff. Information, yes, that's what it was.

He flipped the marks at the man, glancing down at the belt sheath and wrinkling his nose when he realized it wasn't obvious how to attach it. At least to him. Whatever. He stuffed the sheathed blade into his belt and left it at that. Ignoring the more than blatant amusement from the stallkeeper, he sniffed mildly. "Yes, I believe so." Yes, please. Away from here. The boy didn't wait for an invite, slipping back into the crowd and not waiting for Elysia to follow. Not picking a route that she could follow terribly easily, even. Until he suddenly turned on her, jerking her with him back between two stalls

"Let's make something clear. I chose to come, because that's what I said I'd do. I know what you're after...and I know it doesn't fit into your game to force it. Yeah, I'm just a kid, and no, I couldn't do anything if you decided to come after me; I'm not a fighter and probably never will be. But I will not...will not...play your game if you insist on jerking me around with whips or threatening me violently in any way. It's not fun for me." He pulled back, eyes narrowing on her. "I don't think that's too demanding."

[Rei]

Elysia was just as amused as the stall keeper. Probably even more amused. Especially as Dmitri just stuffed the sheathed dagger into his belt and rapidly stalked off. Oh ho. Losing his cool a little wasn’t he? The greenrider blew a kiss to the man behind the counter before setting her feet after the harper. She didn’t rush, but nor she did quite dally either. Instead she just adopted that graceful sweeping stride she had that seemed to cause her to glide over the ground. As the woman drew closer she started to lean in to say something but was roughly grabbed and jerked back between the stalls. Immediately Elysia stiffened, shifting her weight so it would be easy to tear herself away if she needed to. Icy eyes flicked to the harpers face as she resisted the urge to growl.

His words where registered with the same cold expression and she shifted to press a knee against his groin. More to put distance between them than any actual threat. “Lets make another thing clear. Don’t presume to know what ‘games’ I am supposedly playing or what I want. You know nothing about me.” Elysia’s dark eyes narrowed then and she stepped forward. “You owe me this night as payment for a debt. You can always back out if you want.” This response to her little show, hadn’t been expected. Willing her rising anger away, the greenrider dug nails into her own palm. Pain was mind clearing.

“You don’t have to play at anything Dmitri. I’m not asking you to play.” Her voice softened a bit on the last two words and she raised a hand to touch just under his chin. “You’ll get your wish. No more violence.” Elysia’s voice again came out cold. Her finger trailed down the handler’s neck as her other hand flicked to his hip and deftly attached sheath to belt. That done she gave him a soft push and simply strode away. Distance. She needed distance now.

Not fun for him huh? Elysia bit her bottom lip and flung her head back, schooling her features into the near emotionless mask she wore all to well. If he wanted to follow he could. If not, she didn’t really care. Let him believe that. Inwardly her emotions where all scattered about and she hated it. Why did she let this brat rile her so. What gave him the right? As she stepped back out into the crowd she paused for a moment. What now? Back to Onyth?

The greenrider steadfastly refused to look back to see if Dmitri had decided to follow or not. Instead the rider’s dark eyes flicked across the crowd and Elysia placed one of her hands on her hip. Giving the impression from behind that she was waiting for someone. Let him think she was expecting him to follow. That would probably give him enough reason to bow out. Then she could hold it above his head every chance she got.

[Requiem]

Didn't like that much, did she? He probably should have been less coldly pleased by the expression, the knee nudging against him and the cold bite of her words. Should have. Might have. But no, the clear anger in her reaction meant he'd struck somewhere, and she could say he didn't know her all she wanted; Dmitri saw no evidence to contradict anything he'd said. Of course it was a game she was playing, and if it wasn't then she'd already lost, now hadn't she? Hard to be in control when you started letting your emotions get involved. Dmitri was far too northern not to recognize games of dominance. Far too northern. Her particular one was more subtle than most, but then, she was female. That was almost a necessity. Dmitri was weaker than her, but that didn't mean the majority of the prey that had been at her disposal were similarly weak.

His eyes narrowed as she advanced into him. Dmitri didn't touch her, still beneath her touches. He managed to pull off icy a good sight better than the woman, if only because his particular set of personas went that direction and hers didn't. The boy did, however, yield to the push that set him a step back, glancing down at his hip to see that she'd attached the knife to his belt properly. He followed her movements through the crowd, absently toying with the sheath. Not difficult to get a ride back with Eikane, if he chose. The goldhandler would be here through most of the Gather, and Dmitri certainly could afford a night or two of lodging here if it came to that.

Somehow, though, he found that he couldn't quite just let her go like that. Sharding curiosity. Her response had been rather more volatile than most would have expected. Slipping up beside her, he threaded an arm through the one on her hip. "You forget," he commented quietly, bending slightly to keep the words private. "That you still have a debt to me, greenrider." He began moving forward, bringing Elysia with him unless she decided to pull out and extract her arm. But that would be admitting defeat, and he rather doubted the woman would ever do that. No matter how upset she might be, she'd want him to back out first. Quite a weakness she had there, even if she didn't realize it.

"I must admit, though, I'm rather curious. If this isn't a game you're playing, then what, exactly, is it? Not the payment of a debt. You chose the stakes, after all, and this is merely a continuation of what we started in the baths." His eyes slid toward her cunningly, flicker of a half-smile on his lips. "I rather doubt you're taken in by my 'boyish charm.' " Heavy sarcasm there. Poor thing, really. And she'd had the upper hand, too. That was now all but eradicated, what with her mini-hissy a moment ago. Even moments of anger had to be controlled, no?

Here they were, at the dancing square. He smiled and stepped back into the circle, extending his hand and lifting a brow at the same time. "Had enough time to digest yet, Ely?" he questioned. The musicians slipped into their next number while the harper waited patiently to see if the predator would take his challenge or not. Rather a shame if she admitted defeat already; he'd been rather enjoying himself. Short of the whip, of course.

[Rei]

Elysia kept completely still as Dmitri threaded his arm through hers. The desire to detach herself rose and she momentarily debated pulling away and just leaving. However she wouldn’t allow herself that. It would mean a loss, and she didn’t lose. The harper’s words caused a soft growl to emerge from her throat but she didn’t resist when he moved forward. Instead she strode beside him, matching him step for step. Her cold aloof mask still completely intact. It would remain that way for the majority of their time together too. At least if she had any say. The greenrider had let a bit too much of herself unintentionally slip out already. Sharding brat. As Dmitri continued to speak Elysia kept her expression blank. Curious? Let him be. It was a game. One that she intended to win…eventually. He was far too amusing to let go this early. It would be worth it in the long run she was sure. However he did not need to know that. He could guess at it all he wanted.

Tossing her hair back she half turned and eyed him with mild interest. “I do not see how this isn’t the payment of a debt. You do owe me. An entire night. Per our bet. However if you wish to bow out.” She made an expansive gesture. “Go ahead.” A flicker of amusement sparked in her dark eyes at his last comment and Elysia snorted. “Boyish charm? Please Demi. I wouldn’t call what you give me charm.” Not at all, more like infuriation and amusement. “Tell me are you this ‘charming’ to all the women you meet?” Because if he was it was no wonder he couldn’t find a partner when he needed one. Infuriating he was. Purposely. Although he was obviously that way on purpose. He actively tried to be a jerk. Why was the question. A attempt at self defense probably. To what end though? It was intriguing to her. In more ways than one.

Further debating in the subject was dropped when they entered the dancing square. Giving her date a bland look Elysia stepped forward and lightly placed her hand in his. “Just don’t step on my feet Demi.” She countered evenly. The use of her new ‘nickname’ was noted and she acknowledged it by using his in return. Demi. It sounded puppyish. It didn’t fit really. Really should come up with a better sounding one. Especially if she sought to terrorize him more.

Unfortunately for the moment the woman found herself a bit trapped. She was in his element now. Just as he had been in hers back at the weapon’s stall. Because of such she kept herself a bit more closely guarded than she had previously. She had to allow him to lead her into what moves he wanted. Which was a tad disorienting to her. Elysia was used to calling most if not all of the shots with those she chose to torture.

With Dmitri it was different. She actually had to work to keep control. It was a new experience. Not a bad one. Fun really. Despite his little hissy fit back at the weapons stall she had to admit to herself that she actually was having a fun time. Which was a first. Couldn’t remember the last time she had actually enjoyed someone’s company. Brat. He was a worthy challenge, that was sure. It would make it all that much more pleasing when she finally went in for the kill. The greenrider couldn’t help the slight smile that curled the corner of her lip at that thought. Yes breaking him would not be easy, but it would be enjoyable. It was all a matter of careful timing.