Among royalty (SG)

[Ethereal]

Adrian Bane had always like the palace. It was a symbol of power that stuck out among the dunes like a trophy. The gardens and the palace itself were both beautiful, just like the duchess. Adrian liked to think that passerby's were impressed by her wealth and were jealous of what she had. The palace was hers alone. She liked it even more now she she lived in it without her bothersome family. Yes, now she could do as she pleased.

She had to admit that it got a little lonely at times, living by oneself. Every now and then she would drag an unfortunate soul into her palace for her own enjoyment, but every day she would wake up alone, and every night she would go to bed alone. Sometimes she longed for someone to share her life with - or at least she would if the word share wasn't present. Sharing was not one of the duchesses' talents by any means. What belonged to Adrian was hers, and would never belong to another, even partially. So, in place of real relationships was the occasionally fling to satisfy her desires.

The sun was setting now, and it was as gorgeous as ever. Beams of light were thrown off the small orange globe as it sunk down for its nightly slumber. Adrian had seen the sunset from her window in the palace and had decided to come down to see it outside. One wouldn't expect it, but even Adrian appreciated nature's splendors. She sighed and looked out to the dark red desert.

[Admiral Striker General]

Some way out in the desert, a young man was walking the wastes with a Gligar hovering at his side. Under normal circumstances, he would have his Luxray at his side, and earlier he had. However, the desert sun had proved much too hot for her, at least to walk so much in, and he'd worried about the possibility of attack by Ground-types anyway. Not to mention the terrain was perfect for Glydre, so Glydre it was.

Alaric found himself now having trouble keeping a steady pace for the distraction of this glorious crimson sunset. He had always been uncannily fond of them, but he had never really spent much time in the South before, having only come here today in search of Pokemon. He still thought an oceanside view was best, but damn if this didn't give it a good run! As it was, he'd wandered closer than intended to the local Duke's- or was it Duchess's?- estate, and didn't expect he'd find anything until he got further out again anyway. Rather than this providing him motivation to get moving again, it played out in his mind as something of a 'safe place' and actually encouraged his dawdling.

Glydre, of course, couldn't care either way what they did. He was simply happy to be spending some quality time with his trainer. Yes, for once it was just him and his Alaric. No Honey, no humans, no competition. While the Gligar had to admit the blood-like color it cast on the sand was appealing, he didn't really care for the sunset itself. However, if that's what kept his Alaric all his, it was the most beautiful thing on the planet. Yes, today was a good day, and nothing was about to take away this perfect moment~

[Ethereal]

Adrian's mind wandered to the shadow pokemon factory. Would she get it up and running? Oh how she desired to have more pokemon like her Xerxes. He was powerful, and with more she could dominate. As far as Adrian knew, no other noble had shadow pokemon - which was just the way she liked it. Adrian planned on hanging onto the factory and to keep others from using it. She had confidence in Yue, and if he ever failed her...The duchess smiled wickedly while folding her hands together. Well, he had better not go against her wishes.

She ran a hand through her hair absentmindedly. A rare gust of wind had whipped up and was blowing sand about. The wind also scattered the aromas of her desert garden and Adrian savored it greedily. No other place in the desert boasted such beautiful plants. Adrian wasn't sure how the garden began, but it was far before her time. Did one of her ancestors work hard to plant it or was the placement of the palace decided by the most lovely spot in the desert?

The sun blinded her for a moment with its last powerful rays. She put a hand over her brows to shield them from the light, and then was able to see movement in the distance. It was decidedly human, the figure in the desert, and he was alone. Adrian squinted, no she was mistaken, he had a pokemon with him. The duchess would need entertainment for the night, so why not take advantage of an opportunity?

Adrian hadn't brought her bag of pokeballs with her, but while she was at home she mostly let her pokemon run free. With a couple fingers at her lips, the woman was able to create a high pitched whistle. Her dragon pokemon would recognize its individual call and would come on command.

As expected, the salamence flew in from behind the palace and lighted down beside her mistress. <Yes?> She asked, wondering what Adrian needed.
"Legacy, go fetch me that play thing out there. Be gentle with him, if you please." With a nod, the dragon pokemon took off into the sky.

Legacy used the thermals to save energy and leisurely rode the air currents all the way to where the man stood. This wasn't the first time she had to run this kind of errand. The salamence hovered above the human then dove down to grab him in her claws. As soon as she got a hold of him, Legacy would hurry back to the castle because she knew how Adrian hated to wait.

[Admiral Striker General]

Alaric sighed. The sunset was fading into twilight now, and while beautiful in its own right it was not the time he so adored. Thus, he began to move on, wondering if he may see his desired prey tonight now that night was fa--

Hm? That was odd.. Where did this Shadow come from? Alaric didn't imagine a cloud would do this a this late hour, and looked up for the sou- HOLYSHITADRAGON! His eyes grew wide, and he took a step back in shock, but that was about all the reaction he had time for before large talons had locked around him and lifted him from the earth below.

It took Glydre some moments to figure out what had even just happened, at which time he spazzed. Eyes slitting to nothing, he rushed after the larger creature with all his energy, fully prepared to fight to the death for his trainer's safety if it came to that. ...Unfortunately, a downward wingbeat from the Salamence's normal flying actually knocked him down surprisingly hard, having caught the scorpibat completely off-guard. Were Alaric's arms not a bit pre-occupied, he would have facepalmed.

Looking at his surroundings now, he realized the dragon seemed to be carrying him toward the palace. Well, unless a nest of hungry Bagon had eluded the noble's notice, it seemed at least this wasn't a random wild encounter. Not that he had a good feeling about it either- in fact, the idea that someone might have asked this Salamence to come randomly carry him off pretty well pissed him off- but he was willing to wait to find out the truth so long as his life didn't seem to be in immediate danger. Maybe, just maybe, this Salamence was just mischievous and acting on its own, even. ...Well, if no other good would come of this night, technically he was flying with a dragon at the moment, and that much was pretty badass.

As Glydre came back to try again, then, Alaric called out to him. "Glydre!" Shocked at the scolding tone, the Gligar stopped dead, frantic at what he could have done wrong. "Just get in your Ball," he told him in a softer voice. "I'll call if I need you, but I don't want you to get hurt.." ...Well, that, and if the dragon dropped him at this point it would be worse than any immediate consequences of waiting for it to land, so... After a few moments' hesitation, Glydre reluctantly nodded and did as he was told, beaming into Alaric's belt. Leering at the ground below and anxious to learn just what was the cause of this strange occurrence, he awaited their landing.

[Ethereal]

Legacy flew on, mostly ignoring the slight nuisance that was the gligar. She looked down curiously at the man she carried, expecting some sort of a struggle. The dragon was surprised when she didn't feel movement and the human appeared to be at ease. <Well that makes things easier.> She commented, happy that she could return to her baby once this task was finished with. The salamence took well to being a mother, but she would leave her offspring when Adrian called.

Once she was close to the palace Legacy began a graceful dive. Normally she would drop her passenger and continue flying, but Adrian had specifically ordered her to be gentle. Legacy was not about to disobey a direct request from her trainer, so instead she landed lightly a few feet in front of Adrian, then set Alaric free.

The duchess had watched Legacy become a speck in the sky then return with a man in her claws. Once the dragon pokemon opened her talons, Adrian took a good look at her new toy. She approached at a languish pace then stopped in front of Alaric. Adrian couldn't help but notice that the man was attractive, which pleased her all the more.
"Hello." She greeted him casually, "I hope your flight was comfortable." Adrian uncrossed her arms, revealing a very voluptuous bust line only partially covered by a thin black tank top. Living in the desert made one accustomed to showing skin, making any humility Adrian might have had vanish. Adrian offered a hand to her guest, "My name is Adrian Bane, and if you don't already know - I am the Duchess of his lovely desert."

[Admiral Striker General]

Alaric held his breath and grit his teeth as the dragon dove down, trying to fight the lightening feeling it produced. It seemed to do little good, though, and when the Salamence released him he promptly fell to his knees for several moments. Once he felt he could both hold down his lunch and stand stably enough, he rose to his feet to see--

...... Apparently, he was wrong, as his knees grew weak again at the sight of the woman approaching him. She.. was.. Alaric felt a sharp pain as his heart skipped a beat, most likely due to his blood suddenly rushing... Well, generally rushing- particularly to his face at the moment. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he hoped the desert behind him still looked red enough to help hide it. At one point he opened his mouth to try to speak only to find his throat didn't seem to want to open, nor did his mouth wish to fully close again once he'd realized it wasn't going to work.

As she began to speak, he found himself prepared with a rather caustic and even angry comeback at the line about his 'flight', but somehow as she shifted he seemed to lose it, along with his entire train of thought for that matter. Well, at least he wasn't staring, or not completely. Rather, his eyes couldn't seem to pick a feature to focus on. The entire picture was... near-frightening, really. If she were a few inches taller, he honestly literally would be afraid; as it was, she was just enough to be intimidating without making him completely uncomfortable. ...Well, the wrong kind of uncomfortable. This he didn't mind so much, actually.

Some ten seconds or so after her introduction, it seemed to click just what she had said, and he snapped most of the way back to reality. "ER-pleasureameeyu--" he sputtered out before biting his cheek. She was just a woman like any other, he told himself; no need to get all flustered. ..No matter how powerful her presence.. or revealing her clothing... or... This wasn't helping. Shaking his head hard once as if to clear it, he cleared his throat and began again. "Ah, forgive me.." he said softly. Kneeling down, he took her extended hand and kissed her fingers gently. "I was just.. so caught off-guard, I suppose.." Bowing his head now too, he went on more confidently. "It is my deepest honor to meet you, my Lady." Gazing back up to her with a gentle, though just a bit goofy, grin, he finished, "You can call me anything you want~ ...Though Alaric seems to work pretty well." He chuckled lightly.

[Ethereal]

Adrian couldn't have been happier with the way things were going. She had planned on spending the night alone, maybe taking a long bath or reading a good book. Her plans were not completely changed, well maybe only the latter had changed. She couldn't help but feel taken by this man's charming demeanor. Not only did he stroke her ego, he also made Adrian want him to stroke other things as well. At first she tried to keep her thoughts clean, but the second his lips touched her skin those intentions went out the window.
"Ah Alaric." She sighed pleasantly while looking down at his blond head. "A gentleman such as yourself wandering the desert is rare indeed. I seemed to have made a lucky find." She chuckled. If Alaric kept this up, Adrian might keep him around for a while. It would take quite some time for the duchess to tire of flattering remarks or ogling eyes.

Legacy the dragon grumbled impatiently. She would wait for her trainer to finish, but it appeared that the duchess had completely forgotten her presence. <Maybe I can sneak off without her noticing...> The Salamence wondered then hovered cautiously off the ground. No comment from Adrian on that, so perhaps the duchess wouldn't mind if she return to the care of her young hatchling. Legacy had already made her mind up, so she took off for her nest.

Adrian had in fact noticed her dragon's departure but thought little of it. Most of her attention was locked on the handsome face of her guest.
"It's getting late," She commented, looking up quickly at the light purple sky. "Please, do me the honor of sparring some of your time for a visit." The dark haired woman turned away from Alaric, "Do come inside." She prompted then began walking toward the palace doors, expecting him to follow.

[Admiral Striker General]

The honor of-.... ...I just got kidnapped by a gorgeous woman inviting me into her palace for the night... No matter how many times he thought it or how he tried to word it, he couldn't do so without being torn between laughing and utter disbelief. Honestly, things like this just didn't happen: it felt like the beginning of a bad porn plot. ....Okay, so it just felt like a porn plot. But hey! Who the hell was complaining?

He stood as she turned away, and at her invitation followed her inside. A small part of him was still incredibly skeptic, and half-expected to walk in to find a fanatical cult ready to drink his blood or a room full of scorpions or..something. Hell, he'd known this woman literally like 45 seconds. Maybe two minutes tops now. She could be bat-shit insane, plotting to take over the world, or hoping to make him her seventeenth dead husband, or planning to make him her slave, or--.... Actually that last one didn't sound so bad.. >> <<

Either way, no matter what doubts crossed his mind, he found his gait didn't falter for a moment as he followed her, apparently entranced. Getting his thoughts on something else a moment, he grinned in a bit of a late reaction to her earlier remark. "So you said a guy like me is a rare find?" he teased. "Do you abduct random passers-by often?"

[Ethereal]

Well Alaric was being quite obedient. That was just the way Adrian liked it. The duchess loved her position of power, because it not only gave her the ability to control others, it gave her the right. Now that the man was inside her home, she could do whatever she wanted without interruption.

Adrian led the man past the main entrance way. She put a little extra sway in her step, knowing that he was behind her and hopefully enjoying the scenery. The duchess paused for a few seconds, unsure whether to take Alaric to the dining hall or the parlor. She decided that the parlor would be a more intimate spot where she could speak with him in closer quarters. If they sat in the dining hall then most likely there would be a huge wooden table between them, in the parlor there would be less of a separation.

While walking into the sitting room Adrian heard his question. Well, seeing as the palace doors were already shut, she might as well tell him the truth.
"Sparingly," She said with a wave of her hand, "Whenever I get a bit too bored or lonely." Adrian sat in a large red recliner and smirked, "Tonight it was a bit of both."

A small growl was heard coming from nearby. Adrian turned her head to see her shiny houndoom sitting beside the stone fireplace. The pokemon shot a few embers at the stacked wood in the pit, lighting a nice fire that gave the room an orange glow. Adelina did not approve of having a stranger in the house, and wanted him out immediately. Adrian wasn't going to tolerate her inhospitality,
"Adelina, leave." She said dismissively. The blue houndoom slunk from the room reluctantly while eyeing Alaric.

With her pokemon gone Adrian motioned to a seat across from her,
"Sit." She ordered politely. "Now tell me more about yourself."

[Admiral Striker General]

"..Eheh.." He wasn't actually sure if that was more amusing or disturbing... But then, well.. She was being hospitable enough toward him so far, right? And thinking a little more on it, he imagined a Grand Duchess wouldn't exactly be keen on wandering out into the wastes herself to invite passing strangers in. So the whole 'abducting' thing, that was just a necessity to get them close enough to offer her hospitality.. right? Yes, that sounded a good enough explanation; he was going to stick with that until she proved him wrong. And that definitely put it on the amusing end of the scale. Yes..

Alaric didn't seem at all bothered as he looked to the source of the growl, and even put on a bit of a pouty look as the hound was ordered out. "She was fine.." he mumbled, but he did not make an issue of it. Not that he would've really had time to, as she had soon ordered him to sit, and he had to comply.

Shrugging, he started, "Well, there's not much interesting to tell, really... Wha'd'you wanna know?" Leaning in, resting his elbow on an arm of his chair and his chin on his hand, he pulled at his beard idly, suddenly a bit annoyed to realize just how bad his stubble was getting and mentally cursing himself for not shaving that morning before heading out into the wastes. Still, this thought was momentary and only in the back of his mind then; first and foremost, he concentrated on watching the duchess's face. With an interested, somewhat dark grin, he added, "Really, I'd rather hear about you.."

[Ethereal]

Adrian was a bit annoyed by Alaric's argument when she sent her pokemon out. She was doing him a favor by getting rid of Adelina. Her foot tapped on the wooden floor while she looked at Alaric.
"Would you like me to call her back in?" She asked with a cocked brow.

When he began talking, Adrian relaxed and was put into a much more serene mood. She liked the way this man spoke and found him quite intriguing. She wanted to get to know him, find out his strengths and weaknesses, what he did in his spare time, who his family was...what his turn ons were.

"Hm.." She mused thoughtfully, crossing one leg over the other. She was actually self conscious about her legs and hoped Alaric had been paying more attention to the rest of her body. "How about what you do? I saw you had a pokemon with you earlier? Do you train them?" Perhaps he would be interested in joining her army. Adrian imagined him as a personal body guard and smiled devilishly.

Alaric had put himself closer to the duchess when he leaned forward and she enjoyed the proximity. She thought quickly about asking if he was single, but that wouldn't matter anyway. Adrian would get what she wanted out of this man, whether he liked it or not. The idea of Alaric -whom she thought of as her own property at least for the moment - in the arms of another woman greatly upset the duchess. She didn't let this displeasure show on her face however, and she listened to him speak.

He wanted to know about her? This immediately made her feel a bit defensive, but she let those feelings go. She hardly had anything to hide.
"It would be rude of the hostess to talk about herself, but if that's what the guest wants..." She let the rest of the sentence hang in the air while she thought about what to say. "My name is Adrian Bane. My parents were the duke and duchess, and after they fled out of fear of the revolution, I took their place." She looked around the palace, "Do you like it? This palace was made quite a long time ago, and I'd be happy to give you a tour if you'd like."

[Admiral Striker General]

He considered this offer thoroughly. He certainly wouldn't mind seeing, but then... Oh, she was a duchess; he shouldn't have anything to worry about. After some moments, he replied, "It certainly is lovely. I'd love a tour a little later, if you wouldn't mind? It's just I've been out walking most of the day..." He grinned sheepishly. "And it's nice just sitting here with you~" Equally read, 'it's nice just sitting', of course.

To her question, he replied, "I train a bit, though I've only really become serious recently. In fact I was out this far today looking for Pokemon. I saw a few, but only some common ground-types. I have my dear Gligar for that, and I really don't want to catch too many Pokemon that I won't train." Deep in the mysterious depths of his PokeBall, Glydre gave an unheard fangirlish squeal at being called 'dear'. "I actually have all the Pokemon I own on me, not counting a few back home that belong more to my whole family. You could see them all if you like," he offered casually, trying not to seem too enthusiastic or insistent about it. "You seem to be a fair trainer yourself from what I've seen so far."

[Ethereal]

Adrian nodded. She was comfortable herself beside the fire. It crackled a bit and a stray spark escaped the confines of the stone. The heel of her boot quickly put an end to the would-be-fire's life.
"Oh, but of course." She replied, "I didn't mean now, the offer stands for whenever you'd like." The duchess smiled genially, "There's no rush."

The woman listened to Alaric tell of his pokemon. Was he a novice trainer? Before having him as a body guard, Adrian would need to be certain that he had powerful pokemon. She didn't hold gligars to the highest esteem, and if he only had a few pokemon beside the gliger, well that just wouldn't do. I could give him a shadow pokemon once the factory starts producing them...She thought vaguely to herself, then reconsidered quickly after. All shadow pokemon were hers, and she would only loan them to other trainers.

"Yes, I have a passion for training pokemon. As a duchess, naturally, I want my pokemon to be of the highest quality and I work toward that goal." She paused, wondering if she would like to see his pokemon now, "How about I see your pokemon later, and we have a nice battle?"

Adrian laughed quietly to herself,
"I have a full team now that the salamence you met earlier has produced a baby pokemon." She paused, toying her a strand of hair, "I caught an electrike the other day. The little guy peed on my assistant and I knew that I had to have him."

[Admiral Striker General]

Alaric laughed a bit at her offer in a manner of 'you're joking, right?', but she didn't seem to be, as she just went on. Granted, the small laugh could have been indication it was a joke, but somehow he doubted it. He listened to her tell of her recent additions, then, and laughed awkwardly at the end. "...Lucky assistant," he finally said dryly.

He sat back a bit and gave a skeptic look. "As far as a battle, I guess I couldn't deny the Lady a simple request." He hesitated and half-grinned sheepishly. "I just hope you don't expect too much... Heh. I've battled competitively less than I've trained," he admitted with a short laugh.

Realizing how this could sound, he quickly decided to add a bit. Alaric liked to appear humble, but there was a line between humble and pitiable he'd like to stay on the better side of, too. "Not that I'm carrying five Magikarp or anything either, of course. My beloved Luxray definitely holds her own," he somewhat bragged. He liked to seem humble, but Honey was one thing he'd never try to play down his infinite pride for, and she certainly wasn't much on humility herself. Within the Gligar's PokeBall, a heart sank. Sure, he was 'dear', but she was beloved... In fact, a skilled empath just might have been able to feel the beaming of superiority from the Luxray's toward the Gligar's. Of course, Alaric himself remained oblivious to this. "Oh hey. And then talk about luck- I actually caught a wild Kingdra the other day!" The proud look quickly regressed to a somewhat childish grin as he admitted, "..Of course, I have no idea whatsoever what he's like in a battle unless splash wars count, since I didn't even battle him when I caught him.. Hehe."

[Ethereal]

Adrian could tell that Alaric wasn't as entertained by her story as she was. This disappointed her to some extent, and she assumed that it would be better to change the topic.

Pokemon obviously wasn't this man's forte - which was something uncommon. It certainly did make Adrian respect him less and if he wasn't so good looking she probably would have kicked him out. Still, seeing as he was an amateur trainer it didn't seem to be a good conversation piece.

From his appearance, Alaric could pass for nobility. She wondered if he had some royal blood. It was something that they would have in common that had the potential to keep the duchess interested.

"How lucky." She commented airily. Adrian was almost impressed by his story, but then she held back the urge to laugh. He beat the pokemon not in a battle, but a splash fight? How ridiculous! The image of having Alaric around as a body guard vanished and was replaced with him being the court jester.

The duchess leaned forward, deciding to switch gears.
"So, where does your family come from?" She asked, genuinely interested. His answer would most likely dictate how seriously she took him in the future.

[Admiral Striker General]

"Ah-.." Alaric didn't tend to like bragging about his nobility- except in cases where it clearly was actually bragging due to some specific turn in conversation that made it more 'bwah?' or chivalrous-sounding than just mentioning it normally- but then, directly asked by a higher noble, it'd be more disrespectful than anything not to answer. ...Though that didn't mean he couldn't have any fun.

Alaric smirked. "Era," he said flatly, then fell silent for a few seconds as if serious before finally chuckling. His urge for a bad joke satisfied for the moment, he shrugged nonchalantly. "No, my father is a Count- the Egilart family in the East if you know them." Odds were thankfully slim, of course; Adrian only looked about his age and couldn't have held her rank more than a few years at most, while his father wasn't exactly the most social noble, generally interacting only with Duke Rossi to communicate orders or others when he absolutely had to. She may know of them, though- his family had been in its position for longer than many- and it sounded nice and conversational at any rate.

"What of you, m'lady? I haven't kept much track of politics in the other regions in recent years." Or his own region, or in any years, but leaving those out technically wasn't lying either. "How long have the wastelands boasted such an exquisite desert rose?" The words were nearly purred.

[Ethereal]

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[atrb=background,http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a190/lilDiablo_/adriantablemid.jpg] [scrolly:h(300),w(211),sy] Adrian found herself growing much more comfortable with Alaric. He was a noble, which meant he was worthy of enjoying her company, but at the same time he was a seemingly unskilled trainer which made him nonthreatening to her. Yes, she could toy with him for a while yet and not grow bored. Not only was he vaguely interesting, he was also adept at paying the duchess compliments. She nodded, exaggerating what small amount of interest she had in the subject of his family. All that really mattered was whether or not he was of noble blood. "Ah the Egilarts..Yes the name sounds familiar." She paused wrapping a finger around her dark curly hair, "Of course if you were were part of the western nobility I would be more familiar with your family." She smiled alluringly, "Not too long." She admitted, "My parents fled Era just as the uprising began and left me in control of the south." The woman stretched out with her hands behind her head, "But I've taken to the job quite naturally...And now my goals are set even higher." Adrian winked at the man sitting across from her.

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[Admiral Striker General]

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[ Alaric ]

Hm? Now why the west... ... Shit. Alaric got the vague idea there may have been some pretty major political conflict if she had such ties outside her territory. That was, something he probably 'should' have known about. And.. who was the even in charge in the West anymore? Back when he was a kid, it had been that... person who... yeah even that name escaped him now.

The young man breathed a heavy mental sigh of relief when the subject turned back to her personal life, though that wasn't to say it became comfortable entirely. That smiled helped greatly, but.. Higher goals, she said? Great. So she was one of the ambitious ones then? Despite his heritage, Alaric was rather more a loyalist than supporter of nobility's rise. ... Still... if Adrian were queen, any new royal imagery would certainly be more appealing, wouldn't it~ Heh.. (On that note, he found himself wondering if he'd actually seen the previous young queen in her short rule, or more than once if he had.. Bah, pay attention!)

All this had flashed through his mind over just a moment or two even as she was finishing speaking, and his self-reprimand came just in time to catch the wink. In response, he raised an eyebrow slightly in a bit of a question. Well now~ He did briefly consider continuing the current subject; he didn't technically know for certain her 'higher' goals involved the crown, but then, he found he honestly would rather keep it that way. She gave off such an alluring aura so far otherwise; why risk tainting that image? He'd find out eventually if he was around her enough anyway, so no sense in rushing it.

Instead, then, Alaric moved from his seat to kneel on the floor, one hand on the ground and the other arm across his chest. "My apologies, my Lady.." On the surface, his tone near-surpassed sincerity, even came off somewhat sad, but as he continued, some subtlety in his inflection implied something rather less formal. "It isn't my place to have such thoughts, so I feel I should warn you, if you continue with gestures like that, you're going to give me the wrong idea..." he informed her fairly flatly, though a hint of a glint played in his eyes as they alone looked up to her. "I pray you can forgive this weakness, but I'm afraid as a mere man it's difficult not to be captivated by such beauty as yours.."

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[Ethereal]

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[atrb=background,http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a190/lilDiablo_/adriantablemid.jpg] [scrolly:h(300),w(211),sy] The duchess was pleasantly surprised by the man's movement and the words that followed. She became visibly aglow with self-confidence as he inflated her already grandiose ego. Yes, things were progressing just the way she wanted, and at a decent pace too. Occasionally Adrian took time out of her schedule of training, scheming, and other duties to seek entertainment...And she was glad she did. Her dark eyelashes fluttered as she listened to Alaric. The woman wanted to know just what thoughts were running through her guest's mind. "What thoughts, sir?" She interrupted him almost sweetly. After he finished speaking the duchess rose from her chair to stand over the kneeling Alaric. "Perhaps I should be the one to apologize for..tempting you so. But since you're being wonderfully honest with me, I'll do the same for you." Adrian bent down so that her lips were beside his left ear, "I'm not giving you the wrong idea." She whispered, "For I find myself thinking those same things..having those same desires."

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[Admiral Striker General]

[atrb=style,width:475px;color:goldenrod;border:3px goldenrod ridge;][atrb=bgcolor,#94701A]

[ Alaric ]

For a few rarest of moments, Alaric found himself truly blushing, eyes wide and thoughts generally flustered. He-.. It was nothing new to succeed in drawing a woman's attention but... Hot damn the fucking duchess was all but throwing herself at him. The young, intriguing, gorgeous duchess.

Of course, given Adrian's position, those moments went unseen, and soon enough they had passed, and when they did, only one thought stood out in the noble's mind: That was entirely too easy. Disappointingly so, even. If that was all the fun she was going to let him have with subtleties, he supposed he'd just need to change tactics to prolong things, mm?

"M-..my Lady," he stammered, moving back a bit to show a face something between afraid and concerned. "I... I didn't mean to make it sound like.." He swallowed here- very fake, but very convincing. "You are... intoxicating, your Grace. But I... I was only concerned that you'd give the idea you were lowering your standards being so casual with someone so lowly as I... No.. 'desires'.." He faltered here just a moment, then went on, "I am nobility at least, but don't even hold a title..."

Oh yes... This should be nice.. And what was she going to do, he wondered? Unlike his own implications, there was little else one could perceive from her actions and words, neh? Yes... He'd play with her head at least a little more before making it clear.. Hehehe.

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