“Touche,” Fernand offered with a chuckle, shaking his head. Maybe Maki wasn’t much to look at from the viewpoint of a Lician bigwig, but Fernand knew better. Not only was he paid to know better, but he depended on knowing better for his own survival (and general peace of mind). He had a way of being able to tell when something intriguing was also entirely irrelevant to his interest, and somehow, though he knew nothing of Maki, he had the feeling that the silver-haired young man did not fall into that category.
He decided it may turn out to be in his best interest to get to know the stranger better. It didn’t seem that it would be hard to get in his good graces, at least. He waved the waitress back over to pre-emptively order Maki another round of drinks, gladly taking the bait to change the course of conversation. He had no intention of sharing his knowledge of dagger wielding, reckless or otherwise, but he had a feeling that Maki would be a bit looser tongued. If not now, that could be remedied with a few more drinks.
“Jus’ killin time afore my girl shows up. Truth be told she’ll probably take this back then and I’ll only have this gorgeous mug to lure them in with.”
“Have a girl, do you?” He smiled. Although the gleam in his golden eyes suggested he was more than just innocently intrigued by the statement, the mirth that caused his teeth to peek out from between his lips was sincere. This Maki sure was a character. A despicable sort of character, but at least at the moment he appeared to be the harmless sort of despicable.
That could change at any moment, given the power that he had at his disposal, and Fernand had a cynical enough of an outlook on human nature not to count on that happening. Still, if the worst he was planning on doing with that charm of his was make a handful of women melt into a puddle at his feet, Fernand saw no cause for alarm.
“You’re certain she won’t give you Hell, finding you like this?”
The question served multiple purposes. Curiosity, for one thing. What kind of woman owned a magical, power-amplifying dagger she’d willingly lend to her significant other—and didn’t mind when he took advantage of it to flirt with other women? And what kind of man wasn’t afraid of the consequences, for that matter? There was also the perk of just knowing things. One never knew when any sliver of interesting information could come in handy. Information was the best way to get yourself both in and out of tricky situations. Fernand knew that just as well as Maki. And fortunately, he wasn’t so fickle with where he placed his attention.
As interested as he was to learn more about the dagger itself—where it came from and the extent of its power, for one thing—he kept his eyes pointedly off of it until Maki had it re-sheathed. He didn’t want to seem as if he were gearing up to try swiping it. Fernand knew when he should pick his battles.
Fernand gestured toward the herd of women surrounding them. They were a few short, now that he had dismissed the two that had been fondling one another, but where they had left, the other squirmed eagerly, pleased by the fact that their competition had dwindled.
“You hold her in a much higher esteem than this bunch, it seems. She must be something particularly impressive. Not that the dagger itself wasn’t enough of an indication to that fact. I don’t suppose she’s bringing any friends?”
Job or no job, he was intent on having fun. And more than that, he was hoping the light conversation would encourage Maki to continue being so eager to share. His secrets, not his women. But well, Fernand wouldn’t complain about the women, either. If Francois were still here, listening, he’d chastise him.
Night off or not, we’re on a job, he’d say. You can’t spend the night with anyone. They might see one of us later at the school and it would complicate things. You don’t need me to tell you that.
It was true: he didn’t need Francois to tell him that. All joking aside, he didn’t have any intention of picking up a woman and it was a great comfort to know that the ones he was currently surrounded with were so dazed and intent on Maki they’d likely forget his face before the night was over. Still, that didn’t make it any less fun to think about. It had been awhile since he’d had the free time to even so much as entertain flirting.