Hope for the Future

Sebrina stood in front of the door that she had led Mikax to earlier, her hands were shaking because of her nerves. The older gentleman stood nearby making sure she did as she was told. He was also present to ensure that she made it there in a single piece. She was wearing nothing but underwear and a bra with a very see-through slip-over top. Taking a final deep breath she inserted the key and opened the door, once inside she closed and locked it as Mikax had asked.

She was surprised to see Mikax wearing casual-looking pants and a shirt and not naked on the bed like so many more men had before him. He turned his head to look at Sebrina, he gave her a slight smile before looking back out the window.

"That doesn't look more comfortable than what you were wearing earlier, to be honest." Mikax assumed she was being forced to act this way, the woman he had just spent the last few hours conversing with didn't give him this type of vibe. Taking that into consideration alone wasn't enough but he could feel the man she called her boss watching them most of the evening as well.

Sebrina made her way behind Mikax and stopped, "We here at the Violethedge Inn want you to be satisfied with any of the services you've paid for."

"We? Or do you mean your boss?" Mikax didn't pull his punches with the woman. He pulled out a simple-looking cloak and placed it over his shoulder. "Please put this on."

Sebrina took the cloak and was surprised. She had expected it to be a part of some weird fetish that he had but this was just a cloak made from silk which was a rather expensive material by itself. Sebrina didn't disobey his request though as she removed the see thru slip and placed the cloak around her. Once she had finished covering herself Mikax finally turned around to face her.

"I don't pay for what you and your boss are assuming. Where I came from that was illegal almost everywhere." He looked the woman directly in the eyes, "I paid for your time, not your body."

Sebrina felt a wave of relief wash over her that she hadn't misread the man she had spent time with earlier.

"So what would our time now consist of?" The woman was genuinely curious about what Mikax expected of her.

Walking towards the large bed in the room Mikax shrugged, "You are welcome to do whatever you want, I'm going to sleep." And with that, he had climbed into bed.

Knowing that she would lose her job if she left the room only minutes after entering she walked around towards the edge of the bed opposite of Mikax and climbed in herself.

Her mind was racing as she tried to figure out what was going on. Why had he paid so much for her time just to sleep? She was only making around 50 coppers a day normally, she couldn't begin to fathom his spending habits for her 'time'. Within a few minutes, she could hear a distinct change in Mikax's breathing as he had drifted off to sleep.

'He meant it when he said he was going to sleep.' This thought repeated through her head over and over like counting sheep. Shortly after, she had also fallen asleep with a confused look on her face.

~~~~Redgate~~~~

Since the first public performance Kydorzia had given they had begun advertising and selling entry each evening following dinner in the guild hall. The performances had been going extremely well and each time Kydorzia had improved her abilities. If Mikax was present he would be able to pinpoint them to be between 4th and 5th tier spells. Her only downfall was still her lack of control over the people who would be affected.

Due to her new evening task, she had taken over breakfast and lunch for Zed. The first meal after her initial performance he had kept quiet, how was he supposed to approach her? If anyone knew he was being shy they would have laughed themselves to death.

Once lunchtime had come he had steeled his nerves. "Your song yesterday was beautiful", he had only said this as the door to the cube was closing leaving Kydorzia wide-eyed with her mouth hanging open as it sealed shut. No one but Mikax had known that the demonic fox's hearing was good enough to listen in on most things below him.

Over the next few weeks, Zed and Kydorzia would interact a little more during meal times. They had slowly become very awkward friends. She would ask him each morning what he thought of the night before and in opposition to most of the other members of the guild told her his honest opinion.

They had begun trusting each other enough that every so often Kydorzia would sit and eat with him for a few minutes. While talking about the night before and how it could improve.

Although a few of the other members of the guild weren't huge fans or even liked Zed, they wouldn't judge Kydorzia for reaching out to him in this small way. No one else but Mikax was able to help her and it was clear that these conversations had improved her ability little by little.

~~~~Mikax's room at Violethedge~~~~

The morning had come quickly as Sebrina had slept better than she had in years. She didn't have to wake up at the crack of dawn and had eaten and drank more than her usual fill the night before. Listening to Mikax's deep sleep and lulled her into a peaceful slumber that she had missed since her husband had passed.

With her eyes still closed she noticed she could hear Mikax's breathing and heartbeat much more loudly than normal. She took stock of herself and realized she could hear them this vividly because her head was currently resting on his chest and his arm was wrapped around her resting on her shoulder. Sebrina's eyes darted open and she sat upright in a hurry slowly moving away from the man beside her.

"You're finally awake. You were sleeping so well I didn't want to disturb you." Mikax playfully teased the woman who was clearly out of sorts.

"Mr. Spellman, I'm so sorry I was asleep and didn't realize I was invading your space." Sebrina apologized over and over as she tightened the cloak that she was given around her.

Getting out of bed Mikax began to get dressed ignoring her apology. He hadn't minded at all, it was very difficult for him to not have tried to push for something more when he had awoken with her cuddled up beside him. Getting fully dressed and ready for the day was his way of committing to not taking advantage of her situation.

"You can keep the cloak but I don't think you can show me around town dressed like that." Mikax tried to interrupt her constant streams of 'sorry' and bring her back to reality. Luckily it had worked and she hurriedly left the room to get dressed.

As Sebrina made her way to the ground floor the old man appeared again and began questioning her about the night before. If she had satisfied his every need and if she had gathered any information on who he was. She told him everything that had happened in the bedroom which wasn't a lot. It was clear the man was unhappy with the results and blamed her for more not happening but as of right now he couldn't do anything to punish her.

After changing she found Mikax waiting for her near the front desk. Instead of eating inside today, he wanted to wander the town and see what they had to offer. As they came through the doors to the Inn Sebrina didn't understand what was happening. Since she had been with Mikax all afternoon and night she was unaware of the destruction of the town walls.

The two did their best to go around town and enjoy the stalls but most of them had increased their prices or closed completely to leave. No one was optimistic about Westbank's future ability to defend itself now that it had no outer walls. Unknowingly, Mikax had given the town of Redgate a gift when he had lashed out at the entire town for restricting his entry.

The day had gone by quickly and it was soon mid-afternoon. They made their way back to the Violethedge Inn before going inside Mikax stopped Sebrina, "If you ever get tired of this lifestyle make your way to Redgate, The Misfit Toys will always welcome you." He took her hand and gave her one of his gold coins from E2. "Don't give this one away to your boss."

Mikax took off the mask and put it back inside his pouch. The older man watching from inside the inn was startled, he recognized the man that everyone was looking for currently. The rumor going around was that he was solely responsible for the destruction of the wall.

"My name is Mikax by the way. If you tell them that I sent you then you'll be accepted anytime." Moments later Mikax had disappeared from in front of Sebrina like a ghost. She stood dazed at what had occurred in front of her. She hadn't unclasped her hand from the coin and at this point didn't intend to. She was trying to think of a way to get all of her stuff from inside without having to cross her boss's path.

Feeling the cloak around her catch a slight breeze had made her come back to her senses. She began running towards the eastern gate a full speed. Sebrina had made up her mind that if the guild was even half as kind as Mikax had treated her then she would go there. She had the funds in her hand to buy safe passage to Redgate as long as she got to the gates before anyone from the Violethedge had caught up with her. Screw the items she would leave behind, none of it held any true meaning.

This was the first time since her husband had passed that she could feel hopeful for her future, like she had somewhere she could possibly belong.