Chapter 3: In the Tavern, With The Emperor

Evanara  

  I walked quickly to the tavern. There was another showcase today and so I could not dance at the Circle. So rather than go back home empty handed, I went to a few inns and danced. I was lucky to get thirty coins and a silver coin. I had sixty more to go and with that,I could get Kevan some new clothes.

   The Narva Tavern was the biggest and most influential of them all. Peasants were not allowed in the tavern. It was a place high nobles frequented and on rare occasions, the Emperor as well.

   I had come here in the early hours of the morning and the owner had told me to try back in the evening as there were a few dancers performing there. Well,there I was.

   I pushed the door open and the strong odour of alcohol and sweat hit me. I let the door go and turned around, eager to drink in as much air as I could.

   When I was sure i was fine,I went back inside. Anything for Kevan. Anything. I repeated those words to myself as I walked in. I noticed the owner flirting with a couple of men who seemed entranced with her generous bosoms.

   Her big black eyes landed on me and she straightened then dropped the tray of drinks she was holding.

   "You are here early." She said as soon as she was in front of me. I gave a docile smile and nodded. "Yes ma'am. I am in dire need of the money. "

  She smirked. "Aren't we all?"

When I didn't reply, she inclined her head toward the podium where a couple of women danced. "Take off your scarf and loosen up a bit. Join them when you are through."

  Take off my scarf? Loosen up? I eyed the dancers on stage and they weren't in as many clothings as I was. It... I've never worn...less.

Needing to maintain my sense of preservation, I came up with every nasty excuse in the book.

"Madam Penelope,can I not do any of those? My hair... It is in a very bad state. I had a severe case of flea infestation and i had to shave a fraction of it off. I do not think it is a sight anyone would want to see. Plus I go very clad for a reason...my skin..."

   "It is alright. Do as you like. You may not get as much money as you want if you do not do as I say...but I have no objection to it, as long as you pay my cut in full." Madam Penelope said and I smiled--or tried to.

   She turned around and murmured something under her breath. I could not catch it all but I heard a little.

   "Yer’all end up in the same place every night...she tries to act decent in a tavern. Ha!"The big woman snorted as she walked away.

  I frowned but said nothing. I was not in it for the pleasure or the attention from the men. Being a dancer wasn't equivalent to being a courtesan. The entirety of Astros needed to understand that.

   I walked up the diaz and dropped the tin I always held down in front of me. The others had a bag on them for their money but I carried this tin on purpose. That way, the men had little opportunity to lay their gnarly fingers on me.

    When I started dancing,the men's eyes zeroed in on me. Their attention shifted from the other two beside me causing them to glare at me as they moved. I replied with an acid-sweet smile. It was good for me so I did not care. I may not expose as much flesh as they did but I knew how to move my body the right way. In dancing, knowing one's body was the biggest advantage.

   Slowly, they came forward and dropped coins in my tin. While they dropped I counted. It was way better than dancing at the Circle. The men usually went for Gaia and Erika more than they did me. It was the other way around.

   For a few more hours, I danced, twirled, made splits--not so much of the latter. A man dressed in fineries fit for court man approached and dropped ten coins at once, inclining his head toward me in silent appreciation. I nearly screamed with joy. I had needed just two more but now I had sixty eight coins! Eight extra coins!

  I curtsied, ending my dance and an applause followed. Grinning from ear to ear, I grabbed my tin and made for the door.

  My eyes were searching for Madam Penelope when a loud voice cleaved the air. "His Imperial Highness,Emperor Gawain has arrived. Vacate the Tavern immediately."

   Panic hit me and I moved, desperate to leave the Tavern.

   The men inside and the women serving the drinks ran past me and soon, it was a ruckus.

   They pushed me back as they ran through the door until I lost my balance and fell. I remained like that until almost all of them were out before I struggled to my feet. As I reached the door someone gripped my hand firmly and spun me around. Madam Penelope looked at me with a huge frown on her face.

   "Is this how you repay me for the help I gave you?" She asked.

The heat, the noise, her grip on my hand, everything was starting to irritate me. "I was looking for you to--"

Madam Penelope snatched my tin and peered inside. Her furious expression was replaced with disdain. "What is this? This isn't even enough to pay me for letting you in!"

My brows furrowed. "You said half--"

"I'll make do with this as payment." She murmured and half turned before I grabbed my tin from her swiftly.

"No. I worked for this, it is mine. I will pay you half as discussed and--"

She laughed and it was a dreadful sound. "You do not seem to realize who you are speaking to. Should I wish it, you and your brother will be evicted from that excuse of a home you hide in. You will either give me all of it or you will get up there and perform to entertain my guests."

My heart plummets. "You did not inform me of--"

"Do not test me, woman," Penelope snaps her fingers and clicks her tongue. "Which is it? Shall I take the tin?"

My grip on the tin tightened and I looked up to the stage. I couldn't hand her the tin. It was important.

I let out a shuddering breath and said, "I will dance."

"Good. Get to it. The Emperor doesn't like to be kept waiting!" She bellowed.

My heart stopped beating. "What? I'm--i'm entertaining the Emperor?!"

She didn't deem my question fit for a reply and pushed me toward the stage.

   I sped up there quickly, while glancing out the window. It was going to be midnight soon. I could only hope the Emperor would not stay long. I had to help Kevan prepare for his journey. I promised I would.

The Tavern's door creaked open and I resisted the urge to look. Meeting the Emperor's gaze was a huge crime and its punishment was as grave as the punishment for treason. We would never raise our heads until we were asked to.

   With my head still low and my eyes still on my bare foot,I started dancing. I heard footsteps. Three heavy footsteps. He was not alone.

  A wonderful fragrance of lavender and rose suddenly filled the air and I was certain he was close by. Only higher nobles wore perfume.    "Your Imperial Highness." Madam Penelope cooed and I found it very irritating,so much so I snorted. I silently prayed that none of them heard that but when I felt eyes on me,I knew immediately that my prayers had fallen on deaf ears.

   "Who is she?" A deep masculine voice boomed across the room even above the sound of the music. It held so much power in it that I nearly fell to my feet and yet,it was nothing harsh. I stabled myself and stopped dancing. I was in trouble for sure.  

  "A dancer your Imperial Majesty." Madam Penelope cooed  again.

"Your taste seems to have dropped since I last  came here Penelope..." Anger slowly seeped through me. I did not meet his taste of dancers, so what? At least I was not all over him like the rest. Arrogant.

   "...it is a good thing though. The rest were quite... disgraceful." He said and the anger I felt disappeared. I was wrong. Perhaps, he was not as bad as I thought.

   "You seem interested, Sire." Madam Penelope said and what followed was laughter. The most wonderful sound I had ever heard and I found myself smiling.

   "Penelope, you know I have no interest whatsoever in peasants." My heart broke again. For a while here,I had forgotten my status.

   I wanted to see what he looked like and although my brain kept telling me not to,I looked up. Luckily,he was not looking.

  I had never seen such beautiful eyes.

 . So blue they matched the color of the Assarian river. When he laughed, they glittered so much like the stars in the sky. He jaw looked so strong and his lips looked impossibly soft and red. His hair was the colour of the golden sun. He was not in his full armor. On the contrary, he was in a black lush tunic and pants. More like he did not want to be noticed.  The tunic brought out his biceps and my stomach gave the disturbing feeling that I always had when Adrienne touched me,making me ask if I was alright. He was so manly and yet, he was...beautiful.

   My glance shifted to Penelope whose gaze held mine with a very mischievous look on her face. She must have seen me taking His Imperial Majesty in. Although that did not explain her smile.

   I resumed dancing and Penelope excused herself saying she was going to get him his special drink. I stole a glance once more and noticed him wave his hands at the two knights that stood by his side. They curtsied and went out of the Tavern. I felt extremely shy all of a sudden. Here I was fulfilling the dreams of a thousand women out there and it did not bring any ounce of joy to me. For a second, I imagined Adrienne in  front of me. He always loved it when I danced for him alone. He would smile and his grey eyes would sparkle.

   My heart thudded in my chest as thoughts of Adrienne filled my head, so much so, I missed a step. I stole a glance at the Emperor as I adjusted. He hadn't seemed to notice.

   Madam Penelope soon appeared, holding a cup of something. It smelled oddly familiar. Herbs and liquor. I must have come across the herbs for the beer before but where?

    "I will be back,Sire." Madam Penelope said and suddenly walked towards the door. Where was she going? Did she honestly think I would remain here until she got back? Not if I can  stand it.

   On reaching the door,she turned slightly and smiled coyly at me. "Have a wonderful night,Sire." She said with her eyes on me.

   Emperor Gawain turned but when he did,she was gone already, closing the door behind her. I danced dryly while the Emperor had his drink quietly. I stole a few glances but our eyes never met. He seemed sad. Very sad and lost in his worries too.

“Cease the movement. It is giving me a headache.” He finally said, breaking the silence. My heart plummeted and i stopped at once. I had displeased him. My lips quivered as several thoughts crossed my mind on how i would be punished for displeasing the Emperor.

“Come. Drink with me.”He said, without even looking. My lips quivered and i looked at the window again. Midnight. I did not have the time to take a drink.

“Your Imperial Highness, forgive me, i deserve to be punished for this, but i must decline.”I said. He paused and for the first time, he looked at me, baffled.

“What did you say?”His blue eyes danced with amusement and arrogance and the mixture was not very good. I was scared and my palms grew clammy.

I wiped them on my gown and held my gown. “Forgive me, Your--”

“Gawain. Call me Gawain.”He said and poured from his cup into another cup. “You are the first woman i have met that has declined a drink with me. I find this rather peculiar.”

I remained quiet, unsure of what to say.

He inclined his head towards the bench opposite his. “Sit.” He said and it was anything but a request. It was an order. I trembled as i climbed down and took my sit. He pushed the cup in my direction and i looked at its contents.

I knew the smell of what was in it but i could not remember it, for lack of better word. My hands shook but i took the cup and drank from it.

“Your name?”He suddenly asked and the ail went down the wrong hole. I coughed. “My Lord?”

His blue eyes locked with mine in a penetrating glance. “Your name? Do you not have one?”He asked. I suddenly felt hot and my throat went dry. I coughed and absentmindedly fanned myself. It was getting incredibly hot and i wanted to take my clothes off. “What would an emperor need a peasant’s name for?” I said amidst coughs. I looked for water. I needed to drink or pour some on myself. I was thirsty. My vision grew hazy. Air. I needed air.

   Emperor Gawain downed the last of the cup's content and he began coughing. I paused and glanced at him.

  "Could you get me a glass of water?" He asked ,still coughing. I sped to the bar's table and searched for water. It was just alcohol and nothing more. Then I found a wooden bucket with water in it. I grabbed a cup and took some water from  it before running back and handing it to him. He grabbed it and  his hand touched mine slightly. It felt very hot and I proceeded to put the back of my palm on his forehead like I would when Kevan was running a fever.

   Half way through,he slapped my hand off. "Do not touch me,Peasant." I was not expecting that but nonetheless, I still touched him. He was burning up. Just like i was. More so, i was starting to ache in places i did not know existed. I saw red and knew something was very off. There had to be something in the ail.

   I grabbed the cup from the table and brought it to my nose to sniff it. I coughed when I did as the smell was really strong. Recognition hit me and I gasped when I recognized the smell.

   One time I had been gathering herbs for father,I had picked the wrong one. That day, I picked the La La leaves. When I took them home and father took a whiff of it,he scolded me. Told me they were herbs that induced sexual activity. Even the littlest amount would make them very horny. So horny they would forget where they were or who they were with. He instructed that If I ever found myself in that situation, the only thing I could do was to flee. 

    The cup dropped from my hand and I sped towards the door. I tried pushing it but it would not open. Then it dawned on me. This was Madam Penelope's plan all along and the Emperor helped with it too. That was his 'special' beer and now,I was going to be a peace offering. That was why he cajoled me into drinking it. Hoping i would lose myself completely and he would have his way with me. I banged the door severally but no one came for me. I found myself crying and praying to whoever loved in the skies to help me. If only I had listened to Adrienne. I heard Emperor Gawain groan and I looked back. He was sweating hard and pulling his clothes off. I looked down and noticed his erection.

   "Help! Someone! Help me!" I cried as I kept hitting the door but as I suspected, no one was at the other end or probably, Madam Penelope was but she chose not to.

   I heard a footstep behind me and I dared a look back. He was right behind me and I screamed with fear.