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Black Pearl	The Chateau of Resplendant Delights was not always like this. But the house of pleasure was taken over by one of the Realm's Dragons, and the quality has risen. Anything is available, from simply an excellent meal with performers, to various drugs and narcotics in more hidden areas. A high-quality brothel is in a different wing. As for the proprietress, she goes by Black Pearl, blessed by the Dragons with exquisite beauty, with ebony skin and pure white hair, all with a slight iridescent sheen. Currently, she is at a table overlooking the dining area, sipping from a glass of wine, watching the current patrons as they enjoy themselves
Amethyst	Normally she doesn't wear silk, but when going to meet another of her kind, especially one from the Realm, she wants to look nice. Amethyst walks into the place wearing fine and decorated silk, covered in various symbols and patterns that evoke the sorts of alchemy she conducts. Her mutations are all well hidden, with the sole exception of her ears, which pivot and scan around, searching just as much as her eyes. Her own skin is a violet tinged with colorful prismatic tattoos written in a runic form of Old Realm, complete with a streak of cyan that runs through her violet hair like a riptide. Yet, she is young, many years Black Pearl's junor. But her eyes are focused as she finds the Black Pearl and walks towards her. "<<Good evening.>>" she speaks in High Realm.
Black Pearl	Her approach is not stopped. Indeed, Black Pearl has given instructions to have Dragon-Blooded escorted to meet her, if convenient. She looks at the younger woman, and nods. "<<And a good evening to you,>>" she replies. Her own dress isa deep blue with silver embroidery running through it in patterns that are almost symmetrical, but never quite. "<<Please, join me, and tell me what brings you to my modest establishment.>>" Her smile is warm, voice as clear and rippling as a brook.
Amethyst	Amethyst takes a seat and breaths deeply, looking at her fellow. It's not often she gets to see one of her own kind. "<<I've come to both meet with a fellow Child of Daana'd, eat, and maybe do some business. My name is Yim Amethyst.>>" Her ears perk as she smiles and extends a hand.
Black Pearl	Black Pearl takes the hand and greets warmly. <<It is a pleasure, Yim Amethyst. And business is certainly in order, even if most of the business here is pleasure.>>" She grins slightly and then gestures to one of the seats. <<Please, sit, and tell me what delight I can help you fulfill.>>"
Amethyst	Amethyst nods and produces a vial of some sort of violet liquid. "<>"
Black Pearl	Black Pearl's eyes widen a bit. "<<Oh? This is rather interesting. And I know that the original is addictive. Is your new variant as well?>> She leans back and takes another sip of wine. "<<This has many possible uses that I could think of. And, of course, this leads to why you come to me: you believe that I have access to Bright Morning. Am I right?>>"
Amethyst	"<<Perhaps slightly moreso. The vital essence amplifies its latent properties.>>" The alchemist has a wolfish grin on her face as her ears are back. "<<And of course I'm sure you have access to Bright Morning. It's quite useful in making pleasurable experiences more interesting, is it not? Feel the mixtures of essence flowing around you as you lose yourself in ecstasy. Or at least that's why book says on the matter.>>" She follows with a more polite grin, a subtle gesture of 'Not that I would know what it's like'
Black Pearl	"<<Interesting indeed. Perhaps you could show me some time just how intense it is. Were I to supply you with Bright Morning, what would you offer in return?>>" Black pearl is still polite, warm and friendly, but not too eager. Yet. Negotiations can certainly fail that way.
Amethyst	"<<Of course, I'd offer you both my modified liquid form as well as the concentrated form. In exchange for keeping some amount for my own purposes.>>" Amethyst says. And then she produces some detailed notation. "<<The wood essence I can supply myself. As you can see, you get about a 150% yield for a typical dose of Liquid Bright Morning, and an 80% yield for the intense variant. And if you want to try it, bring me some dust, a mug, and a pair of shot glasses and I'll show you right here and now what it's like.
Black Pearl	<>" Black Pearl says, and muses. "<<Out in public is so.../plebian/.>>" The tone of her voice suggests the natural superiority of the Princes of the Earth over the rest of Creation. <>"
Amethyst	"<<A private suite sounds lovely.>>" Amethyst replies. "<<Speaking of, I wouldn't give this stuff to mortals. It's liable to kill them. The Dragons don't protect them like they do us.>>" A subtle nod that despite being so far from the Realm, she does still think in terms of the Immaculate Dragons. Her accent is also spot on, like someone native of the Blessed Isle.
Black Pearl	Black Pearl is curious, of course, but also knows well about hiding one's name. There are always ways to learn...later. "<<Very well, come with me.>>" She stands and nods to one of the servants, switching to Riverspeak. "We are headed to the Wellsprings Suite. Standard privacy." She then leans close to whisper in his ear. The man bows deeply, says "At once, Mistress" and goes off. "<<There...shall we?>>" She offers her arm to the silk-clad alchemist.
Amethyst	The alchemist rises and takes her arm. She chuckles. "<<Let's go.>>" Ears are perked and she looks quite excited to display her alchemical prowess.
Black Pearl	The hallways are tastefully done, and there are several larger suites, as opposed to the smaller rooms that most enjoy, and this one takes advantage of spring to provide a deep tub in polished stone. Other comforts are not neglected: an opulant bed, a cabinet filled with various bottles, fresh fruits and cheeses left. "<<Here we are. Someone will be here shortly with the powder, and you can show me results. In the meantime, there are a variety of liquors and wines. Or we could simply enjoy the waters...>>"
Amethyst	"<<The water always sounds like a good idea to me.>>" Amethyst says with a little giggle. "<<It's always a pleasure to be in the water, isn't it?>>" Then she goes over and gathers the other materials she'll need for when the powder comes, filling a glass with water, and getting a pair of shot glasses ready for them to sample once she's done. "<<Now then.>>" She gestures towards Black Pearl to be the first in the water.
Black Pearl	"<<Indeed. Refreshing, comforting. To sleep all night, if need be is glorious.>> Black Pearl smiles and slips out of her shoes as she walks towards the tub, and then undoes her silken dress, letting it shimmer as it falls down to puddle around her feet. The only thing left on is an amulet around her chest, blacker and shinier than ther skin, and she steps into the large tub, settling down until everything below her shoulders is submerged.
Amethyst	"<<You know, when I had my shop rebuilt, I really should have thought of installing a tub like this.>>" The alchemist muses, and strips down likewise. Doing so reveals the sheer magnitude of the tattoos she has, shimmering in the light, changing between vibrant blues and violet to greens and yellows and reds, like pulsing waves of essence traveling around her body. It also reveals her flipper-like feet and her webbed hands. And then she sinks in the water and stretches out her body, a body that looks well designed for the water even beyond her status as a child of danaa'd.
Black Pearl	"<<Eventually, you can do that, or find a new place with suitable geomancy to work it in from the beginning.>>" Black Pearl's eyes widen a bit as she sees the tattoos, the extent of them, and the hands and feet that match those expressive ears. "<<Now here is a mystery...how did one who speaks as though raised on the Isle come to have your...features? You were hiding them earlier, but now are showing them off? I would hear this tale.>>
Amethyst	The alchemist grins and sighs. Her ears droop as her tone turns more sorrowful. "<>" "<<As the years ticked by and I didn't Exalt, we had to face the possibility I might never. And when I managed to initiate myself into sorcery and still remained but a fae-touched child, the reality that I would need to find a source of strength besides that of the dragons set in. But then as the wyld tried to take the last things from me that I valued, at last the dam broke and my dragon-blood came flowing out. These tattoos? They're the result of me tapping into my fae heritage. In the wyld I am safe, and I have some ability to shape it as though I were one of the fae myself.>>" "<<You are the first Dynast I have ever spoken to.>>"
Black Pearl	Black Pearl listens, and slowly nods, considering, pondering. For a long while, all that is heard is the faint trickling of water. "<<Very trusting, you are. Or perhaps lonely?>>" A faint smile, "<<What would you do now? What goals do you have? Do you seek vengeance, or simply making a better life for yourself? Some say that living well is the best revenge, after all.>>"
Amethyst	There's a lot of surprise on her face when she realizes she just told her complete life story to someone she's literally just met. She rubs her head a little bit, "<<Right. Um... Yeah.>>" There's another moment of silence. "<<I'm naive, I think my mother would say. Too trusting of those around me. As for what I intend to do? I dunno. My father is pretty sure it was Anathema, but I'm pretty sure that the other houses were just looking for an excuse to descend upon us. Why? That I don't know. But if there's anything I've learned through the books I've read is how ruthless the Great Houses can be. And of course I'd be considered a lost egg if I were to set foot on the blessed isle. And with the Empress missing? My fate would be unknown. My only hope would be adoption and who the hell is going to want a Dragon tained with wyld blood? And so I don't know if I'd like to burn them down, but I would love to know what really happened to my family. Who set the fire, who stopped them from escaping, and why.>>" There's definitely the glimmer of spite in her words. A spark of hate for the Great Houses. Though she has little go go off of, it might not take much to convince her if she had evidence of the wrongdoing of the other houses against her family.
Black Pearl	"<<Trust and openness is not a part of the culture I was raised in. But secrets..finding them, keeping them, and then using them appropriately for the proper goal at the proper time...It is far away, but I do have...collegues and family who might look into this for me.>>" She smiles, her electric blue eyes warm. <<Of course, that would use up favor and influence I have with them...what would you be willing to offer in return, Yim Amethyst?>>" She sits more up and leans forward... And that's when a servant opens the door and brings in several doses of Bright Morning. She says nothing, moves silently and gracefully, then withdraws.
Amethyst	Amethyst's deep violet eyes widen as she's offered this chance to learn what, exactly, happened. Her ears are still and contemplative. All these years she wondered how she might find something out about her past, maybe even one day redeem herself in the eyes of House Peleps. Though that particular ambition has been washed to the wayside, that chance at revenge, it lightens up the storm behind her eyes. "<<Well, you know my trade. I am quite a capable alchemist. And I'm sure you could make use of my services in ways beyond simple drugs. More complicated drugs, poisons, explosives, minor magical wonders, I can make many things. Though somehow I don't think you'll want everlasting alchemical lights for your business here.>>"
Black Pearl	g"<<Of course, and I would be delighted to have an exchange of drugs and poisons for the drugs I provide. But for this, for news of your family...to know, and perhaps to take revenge..." She leans forward, and now her face has a grin like a shark's on it. <<Still...the materials have arrived. Think about this...take your time. Think about what you truly want, and what value it has. And then come back. For now, I wish to see your expertise, if you please.>>"
Amethyst	Amethyst contemplates and considers. And she nods, rising from the water and then going over to the table. She grabs some tools from a pouch, and begins working. As she does so, a violet anima surrounds her, tinged with the same colors of her tattoos as the edges, a sign of the wyld that is woven all of the way into her very soul. She grabs more shot glasses, dissolving the powder into two of them. In another, she adds grain, and pokes her finger into it. The spiritual energy around her feels heavier as her tattoos swirl. And just like that, the grain-water solution is now this glowing lively green color, brimming with the essence of wood. She cups the glass with her hand as little flames erupt from her, and she adds each of the materials in turn. First one dose of the dissolved dust, then the wood essence, she mixes, and adds the remaining dose of dissolved dust. Finally, she sets down the mixture, and adds one more ingredient: It's a little silver canister that she breaks open. A little explosion erupts from it as some sort of rainbow colored dust falls into the mixture. Waiting a few moments, the mixture begins to glow with a soft eerie violet light. One can almost see the essence just around it, illuminated by that light. She pours a shot for herself, and then one for Black Pearl, and beckons her. "<<Impressed?>>"
Black Pearl	Black Pearl rises from the waters as well, watching and fascinated by the display of skill, and the visible flow of essence. Still, she knows to not interrup, and so she simply waits, quietly, until the performance is done. She gives a nod. "<<It is always a pleasure to watch someone skilled at an art use it.>> She walks over and takes the shot glass. "<<Curious as to what the rainbow dust was, but everyone should have her secrets,>>" she says playfully. "<<So...let me experience this.>>" And she drains the dose down.
Amethyst	Amethyst drinks down with her, and the very first thing that becomes apparent is both are plunged into a sea of essence. Like drifting further and further underwater, the world takes a darker, more violet sheen to it, with essence and immaterial things standing out like beacons. Even at its lowest level, Amethyst's anima banner burns with an intensity that almost feels like real water from an icy ocean. And then there are those essence laden tattoos that almost seem to orbit around her. And each step, each movement feels like one is moving through a sort of light mist. "<<Hey, look at this!>>" Amethyst's voice has a sort of reverb to it as she slowly takes out another silver canister, tosses it into the air and focuses. The essence around her hand solidifies as her tattoos pulse and swirl. It's like being hit with a wave just from her focusing! And then the canister opens, exploding like a firework of essence that dances around the air before finally fading and settling. Oh, and there's a vague pain all over both of their body's. It's dull and not exactly crippling, but it's present. This stuff is perhaps a little bit dangerous if one were to use it at this intensity on a regular basis.
Black Pearl	This is not the first time Black Pearl has been under an intoxcant's effects, but it certainly is the first time this poent. Her own essence srrounds her, drifting lazily, but almost protectively--cool and refreshing. The pain is...an annoyance, but the beautiful glory of visible Essence is marvellous to behold. Her head turns to watch that canister, and then the rainbow of fireworks that fade into the air. "<<Definitely intense,>>" She says, breath sped up. "<<A courtesan could use this, truly see the body, and help realign the flows of essence to cause spectacular results...>>"
Amethyst	"<<Indeed. And this is simply amazing, isn't it?>>" Amethyst asks, giggling. She breaths in and out as waves of essence flow to and fro her. "<<And if you use this on someone unprepared, and I can't think they'll have a good day. What do you think, do we have a deal?>>" Amethyst offers her hand to Black Pearl.
Black Pearl	Black Pearl takes the hand firmly and nods. "<<If unprepared, it would be horrific. If prepared, it could be beneficial...to them. As for us? We have a deal, and perhaps a second, depending on what I find out.>>"
Amethyst	"<<And I will poke through and see what I could offer a lady for such juicy information.>>" Amethyst says. "<<Worry not, I'll find something. Or I'll just invent something new.>>" There's a determination to her words, she's definitely hooked on the idea of using her means to help Black Pearl in exchange for this information.