#[ to keep the alliteration i wrote pearls... i really hope jujuice works with pearls on occasion ]

[croupiex]

⋯　pretty in pearls

( a starter for @kadeuxhyeonju )

Cassius’ most recent meeting with Emmeline had left him with three things: a limp, a weighted pouch of golden coins, and instructions on exactly when, where, and how to spend the money. When? Immediately after leaving her home. Where? A jeweller in the heart territory. How? A commission for ‘something pretty’ for his neck and the two piercings on his chest. Some might find the instructions demeaning, but Cassius is used to them and quite frankly, he doesn’t mind the insinuation that he’s more eye-pleasing object than person; it strokes his ego rather pleasingly.

(what he does mind is the fact that he won’t be able to stop by a healer until after he’s made the trek to the jeweller).

Upon entering the store, it’s easy for Cassius to identify the owner, the man hunched over an ornamented worktable in the middle of the display floor, busy at his craft. Acting as if the remnants of Emmeline’s physical work on his body weren’t there, Cassius takes confident (albeit uneven) steps to the central figure, trying to put on an act that he belonged in the clearly highranking landscape. He has yet to properly see the other’s face, and briefly the human wonders if the craftsman’s looks match the calibre of their jewellery.

Possessing a grace he does not truly feel, Cassius sets the satchel of coins onto an empty area on the workspace countertop, providing proof of payment before the jeweller could even question the lowranker’s ability to pay on account of his rank. Cas clears his throat and casually glances over the display cases in the shop, admittedly rather impressed by all the glitz and glam. “I’m interested in commissioning two pieces, built to be rather… sturdy if possible. Let’s say, an item that could withstand a strongarm’s interest”. It’s a polite way of saying that he’s looking for something that Emmeline won’t be able to break upon first tug, it should last for at least two.