Chapter 74: Like Truth or Dare, but Worse

The sign out front read: No Service Tonight.

We let Shivai do the lettering. Wynnie's was passable, mine looked like a prescription for paracetamol, and Shivai's looked almost needlessly pretty. All three presented legibility issues, but at least Shivai's made us seem highbrow.

That last part was important, given that I was angling for an upscale casual vibe. Or more to the point, I was planning to raise prices soon. Might as well get people used to thinking we were posh. First, typography, next, needlessly overinflated cocktail prices.

A somber mood permeated the inside. We'd run a quick service just for guests—frustratingly common now—and we limited everyone to a single cocktail. At first, our pronouncement elicited grumbles, snark, and F-tier outrage.

I nipped it in the bud with an explanation. “Pirates are in town. It’s best not to draw attention to ourselves. If we get rowdy, they might burn the place down."

Almost like magic, that worked. Funny how the threat of getting burned alive did wonders for obedience.

We set another powered rune into the fireplace. It billowed out coldness like evaporating dry ice, pushing through the walls into the guest rooms. It wasn't perfect, but it acted as rudimentary, magic-powered air conditioning that kept things bearable.

Even without a raucous bar with music and drinks, we made sure the Breakwater Inn was still the best inn in town.

Unfortunately, it was also boring as hell. The four of us just sat around a table glumly, trying to drown our nerves in day-old punch. The flavors had married together well, yet my tastebuds perceived it as dull and lifeless. My mood was messing up perfectly good hooch, and the fact that we were waiting for the next bad thing to happen just made things worse.

Shivai drummed her long nails on the wooden table impatiently. "This is fucking stupid."

"I want to just go to sleep, but I'm too nervous.” Wynnie fretted nervously with the lace that tied her corset-top dress together. “I feel like the second I drift off, I'm going to wake up and find my inn on fire!"

I rubbed Wynnie's shoulder reassuringly. "There, there. If they're going to set this place on fire, they'll do it whether you're awake or not."

"Was that supposed to help?" She acted as though there, there weren’t a time-honored classic.

I shrugged. "I'm super bad at consoling people."

"You have my word that I will stay up as long as I can to see that no ill befalls this business," Lady Talia swore.

She'd retained her severe demeanor all day. I swear, the woman didn't sleep. She wielded surliness like a strong coffee enema, keeping herself up, alert, and disapproving without tire.

Meanwhile, the tension was doing weird things to my body. The rush of nervous energy hit me all weird, like the paradoxical effect of caffeine on my ADHD. My lids began drooping, and despite a racing heart, I felt like I could take a serious power nap.

A sharp, skinny elbow nudged me back to the present.

"I'm going stir crazy in here. Drew, do you want to take a walk with me? Just stretch our legs a bit?" Shivai winked at me, her amethyst eyes practically glowing with mischief.

"It sounds like you want to get into trouble," said Lady Talia. "If anyone's going to go investigating, it should be me. And maybe I'd allow Drew to come along, since he's shown himself to be rather perceptive." She narrowed her eyes at the demonkin. "Although occasionally, he's shown some severe lapses in judgment. But I suppose I couldn't fault a man who had fallen for the magical charms of a succubus."

This stuff again. I rolled my eyes. Yet before I could protest on Shivai’s behalf, she spoke up for herself.

"You really think that's what's up?" Shivai asked. “That I’ve conned my way into the hearts and beds of my only friends?”

"I am almost certain," the dragonkin replied.

Shivai scoffed. "You already know it doesn't work like that. I can't make people do anything they don't already want to do. I can't suggest something that doesn't make sense to them.” Her voice grew increasingly steely and derisive. “It's not like I can simply change someone's mind just by looking at them. I merely give them a nudge toward something they already desired."

"And it only works on the weak-willed, right? Or so you like to claim." Lady Talia’s continuation dripped with challenge.

"The weaker the will, the stronger the charm." Shivai shrugged. "What do I have to do to prove it to you?"

"Nothing. I think it’s unprovable."

“Convenient.”

A thoughtful look crossed Shivai’s face. I could tell she was giving this serious consideration. For all the sass she wore like armor, this was the succubus I’d come to know. The one who poured her heart into learning the art of runescribing. The one whose emotions so often overflowed from her mouth.

A tense silence settled around the table. I wanted to vouch for Shivai and assure Lady Talia that she wouldn't do anything to hurt any of us, but I was also curious to see if she had a way to clear her name.

Feeling uneasy, I spoke up. “Lady Talia, I think trust is the most valuable—”

“Got it!” Shivai said, shoving herself back in her chair. “But, um, yeah. It’s gonna take trust. From all of you.”

Wynnie shrugged. I gave her a thumbs up.

Lady Talia’s eyes narrowed to suspicious slits. “Fine. Show me.”

"Great. Wynnie?" Shivai set her eyes on the elf. She smiled sweetly, and her eyes flashed purple. "Why don't you just get it over with? If you torch this place, you won’t have to be anxious about the pirates showing up. Go ahead and burn it down."

Wynnie blinked, then shook her head. "What? Absolutely not. Are you insane?"

“Of course! Silly me. The issue is the danger to the guests.” Another purple flash, this time brighter. “If you kick them out, they’ll all be safe when the Black Ship Raiders arrive to get their revenge.”

This time, Wynnie seemed to consider it. A light purple glow faded behind her irises. After several long seconds, she shook her head again.

“I don’t think that would work, unfortunately. They’d have nowhere to stay. We… we can find another way to keep them safe.”

Shivai turned to Lady Talia. "See? Wynnie is remarkably strong-willed. I really laid it on thick. Here, how about this?"

She looked at me with the same saccharine smile. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end as I realized what was about to happen. I took a deep breath, steeling myself at first. Then, I simply allowed Shivai to do what she needed to do.

“Drew? My heart?” There was that same flash of purple. "I’m clearly a threat to everyone's safety here. I can use charm spells to influence people's minds. Why don't you whip out that dagger you've been hiding on your forearm all day and stab me in the throat? Everyone will be a lot safer after."

It was a terrible idea. It sounded about as appealing as sleeping with a cousin. Maybe there was a world where I could get into the taboo, but that wasn’t this world.

“No, absolutely not,” I heard myself say. Then I sighed with relief.

“You’re right. Terrible idea. Way too dramatic.” Shivai fixed me with her hypnotic, loving gaze once more. Purple burned into my soul and wrapped around my heart like a warm hug. “Why don’t you just tell me to get out of your life? I could head up the road to Northridge and never bother you again.”

It was like someone had just suggested Taco Bell after a night of heavy drinking. Somehow, it sounded like a really good, totally reasonable idea.

The succubus’s hopeful expression betrayed abject fear. Her very life hung on my next words. Seconds stretched into what felt like minutes as the fuzzy impression of a good idea in my head struggled to sway my heart.

Deep, deep down, I didn’t want that. Not at all. And letting her get away without a fight wasn't a mistake I was about to make.

I shook my head to clear it. "No. I can't do that. I don’t want that."

Shivai let out a relieved sigh. “Are you sure?”

“I’m certain.”

Shivai smirked at Lady Talia. "Convinced yet?"

"Hardly. They could be faking it."

Shivai sucked in a breath. She grimaced, looking briefly nervous, as though she were about to do something highly questionable. After a second, she nodded to herself and turned to Lady Talia.

"Lady Talia, you seem uncomfortable with my growing relationship with Drew here. Perhaps you just need to do a better job of staking your claim. Maybe he'd forget all about me if you gave him something else to think about." Smile, flashing eyes, a wicked flick of her tail. "Why don't you kiss Drew right here in front of us?"

The dragonkin mumbled something incoherent and blinked several times. Her eyes shimmered with a brilliant amethyst glow.

After a second, her words took form. Lady Talia nodded to herself and tucked a strand of golden blond behind a serrated ear.

"Yes, that makes sense. I think that's the first reasonable thing you've said all night." She turned to me and smiled, her usually strict features morphing into something soft and vulnerable. "Drew, I'm sorry that I've been so difficult. I think if you just gave me a chance, you'd see that I'm really quite caring. It's just… all this responsibility for the town, and all the pressure and expectation from my parents, it's all so much. But with you…"

She reached a hand across the table and clasped mine. Her fingers were calloused and strong, but they held me tenderly.

"Um, Shivai? What did you do?" Wynnie chuckled nervously, her eyes flashing between the three of us.

“i don’t know!” The demonkin giggled somewhere between delight and hyperventilation. "She's a dragonkin! It wasn't supposed to work on her!"

Lady Talia continued talking, murmuring to herself. It sounded like she was building up a head of emotional steam, working up the nerves to make her move.

"…And we are more alike than I think you know. We're both called to do great things. If you'll have me—I mean, we don't have to rush into anything, but if you'd consider having me…"

I gritted my teeth and looked at Shivai as well. As much as I had to admit I wanted to hear more, I knew this could get messy quickly.

Whatever there was between us, I wanted it to be natural, not magical. This was blurring the boundaries of consent. I moved back an inch.

"Shivai, can you maybe convince her to stop?"

"Maybe! I mean, I think so!" Another high-pitched giggle, this one more nervous than the last. “Might make her head spin.”

That sounded like a better outcome. "Well, try."

Lady Talia was still going, pulling herself closer to me now. She bit her lip with a sharp canine, revealing a plumper, more luscious mouth than I’d realized before. If she kissed me, it wouldn't be the worst thing, I thought.

Had I seen her like this before?

"…Also, I'm okay with Wynnie being a part of our lives. If you choose me, I mean. She's sweet, and I've always had a soft spot for her. But I hope you'll reconsider Shivai. She's been nothing but trouble, even if I can see that she's trying to reform herself now.” She paused, regarding the demonkin once more. “Although, I could be convinced. You’ve made a compelling case, and clearly, you like her.”

“Yeah. She’s, uh, great,” I said, backing up another inch. “And suuuper good at reversing charm spells. Shivai!?”

“... Come closer, Drew. Let’s explore what the future holds. Let Shivai see our passion. If she wants to compete with what we have?” She ran a hand down her toned, perfect body, accentuating the squishy curve of her chest. “Well, ultimately, it's your choice, but I hope that choice includes me. Here, take my lips as a promise of what could be between us…"

"Lady Talia! Wait!" Shivai's loud cry halted the constable as her mouth drifted within an inch of mine. Her eyes flashed a brilliant, powerful magenta. "On second thought, wouldn't you prefer to suppress your feelings? Everyone considers you such a strong, in-control dragonkin. Your heart of stone and will of iron are what makes everybody respect you so much! If you throw yourself at Drew now, you will always regret it. Not because you did what you wanted, but because you didn't do it your way."

All of us froze. Nobody moved a muscle.

Lady Talia's eyes glimmered purple again, then faded back to her usual amber. She blinked.

"Right. Yes. I'm sorry, Drew. I'm sorry, everyone.” She cleared her throat and straighted out the wrinkles in her top. “I don't know what came over me."

Well, that was a lot to take in. Shivai looked as though she was ready to bolt and never return. Wynnie looked both smug and horrified. Lady Talia appeared confused and conflicted, but resolute, still fiddling with her garb.

I didn't know how long Shivai's charm lasted, but I knew it wasn't all that long. Maybe an hour or two. Possibly three. Most people probably wouldn't know that she had used her ability on them, but most people weren't Lady Talia.

And most people wouldn't have gotten conflicting charm suggestions back to back.

Right after explicitly challenging a succubus to charm them.

If there was going to be a reckoning, it would probably come soon. And if I knew anything about diffusing tense situations, it was that you needed to separate the people as quickly as possible—give them time to figure things out on their own before they confronted each other about it.

Heading off conflict by recognizing rising tension between patrons was a hallmark skill of experienced bartenders. If that insight were an ability granted by my background, it’d be a passive one. Maybe called Bartender’s Insight or something. Nothing encounter-breaking, but it’d shine in niche RP scenarios. 

Or maybe this was from my background in playing TTRPGs. Sometimes, the easiest way to defuse a potential combat encounter is through a good persuasion roll. Even though I’d left most of those to our face—the bard—I didn’t always rely on fireball diplomacy.

Now was time to call on my experience. I tugged at the demonkin’s arm.

"Come on, Shivai. You said you wanted to take a walk, right? Maybe investigate, see if we can learn more about where the Black Ship Raiders might head next?"

That wasn't exactly what she'd said, but we all knew what she meant.

Shivai nodded vigorously, understanding what I was getting at.

"And Lady Talia, you wanted to stay here with Wynnie to watch over the inn and its guests?” I asked. “Make sure no ill befalls them?"

"Yes. Yes, I think that's what I was getting at."

Her voice was airy and uncertain. If I had to guess, I'd say she was working through what just happened in her mind. From what I knew about her, she was pretty sharp.

She'd probably get there sooner rather than later.

I grabbed Shivai's hand and stood, pulling her along with me.

"We'll see you ladies later," I said, tipping the brim of an invisible hat.

Lady Talia blinked. "Ladies. That's right. I’m a lady."

"And be quick." Wynnie jerked her head toward the door. "But stay out of trouble, promise? Don't do anything else stupid."

That last part was for Shivai, I was sure. As I led the succubus out the door, I looked over my shoulder and blew Wynnie a kiss.

Surreptitiously, as though nobody could see it, Lady Talia reached out to catch it.