By the time the carriage stopped at their final destination, Gianna’s tailbone was screaming for liberty. She might have hauled herself out of the carriage if not for the bum ankle. This, when Tallis reached for her once more, Gi happily leaned in, grasping her neck with her arms, quickly sucking in fresh air as she was taken out of the boxy prison.

A snark remark about who might be in there was born and died on her tongue. She decided to wait to speak—a rarity in her life but there it was.

Cezar often had a hard time sleeping if Tallis wasn't home, he worried about her, rightfully. They were in dangerous times right now and Tallis could get a little excited and didn't often think through the logistics of some of her actions, eager for action instead of careful thought. He sat by the fire with a glass of amber liquid swirling absently as he stared at the flames, trying to numb the concern that was starting to build up.

At the sound of knocks on the door he furrowed his brow. What reason would Tallis have to knock? It must be someone else. He moved to the door but when he opened it he was surprised to find it was Tallis but she was carrying someone in her arms, a young girl. He quickly stepped out of the way, holding the door open so the two could enter out of the cold. He didn't start asking all the questions that came to mind but closed the door behind them once they were inside and simply offered Tallis a lifted brow in a questioning expression.

Tallis grinned as the door opened and Cezar came into view. It was comical how objectively handsome he was—there, shirt unbuttoned, backlit by firelight. Tallis nearly rolled her eyes at the whole thing, but affection and relief at being reunited with her twin won out. Her reason for knocking had been a practical one: you couldn’t open a door with your arms full with a grumpy teen.

With a smirk, Tallis indicated for Cezar to step aside. She held Gianna securely as she stepped over the threshold into the sitting area by the fire. It was no mansion they lived in, but it was certainly a respectable, stately home, outfitted in a way that reflected their success as people of business. Tallis draped Gianna in a chair.

“Gianna, this is my husband, Cezar. Darling—” Tallis delivered the endearment as one would an inside joke, looking at her brother with sparkling eyes, “This little bird has lost her ability to fly. If you could help her…” Tallis patted Gianna’s ankle to indicate the source of her injury, which would undoubtedly hurt.

“You drink whiskey, Gianna?” Tallis asked, shucking her jacket off and tossing it over a chair, “Should also probably eat something. You’re hungry, aren’t you?”

Indeed, Cezar was a delectable piece of meat that Gianna was half in love with as soon as her eyes fell on his manly form. Her lips parted slightly and she immediately hoped that he’d have to touch her to help. Maybe even hold her…

Tallis’ tap on her ankle made her bark in pain. She scowled at the woman, now knowing full well that it was her who had caused the pain in the first place. Bitch.

It was a disappointment to hear that the man was her husband. He was much too pretty for her. Dejected a little, and in a pouting voice, Gianna said,

“Yes, I drink and food has been deprived of me for some time so do be quick about fetching it.” Not the kind of respect she should have been showing, but perhaps Tallis had met her match in the catty young woman in her arms.

She moaned a little from the chair, turning her big browns up to Cezar Scorza so he’d be quick about tending to her.

Gianna. He had a name but no real information about her, not that he expected to be given the girl's life story right this very moment. She looked quite young, old enough to get married but he'd guess only just barely. He was very curious about what circumstances brought her and Tallis together and how the girl ended up injured and sitting in front of his own fireplace.

When Tallis indicated the girl's injury and the girl yelped in pain, Cezar was quick to move towards her in order to help. He'd always had a natural tendency towards his need to help others and associated that as a built in personality trait due to being born with his particular gift. However, as soon as the little girl spoke with such impolite words he stopped as faced her with a stern frown and crossed his arms over his chest.

Yes, her big brown eyes did tug at him a bit but his twin meant more to him than anything else in the world and he wasn't about to stand by while someone disrespected her like that. "Being in pain is no reason to treat others poorly," he told her, the muscles of his arms accentuated by the way his arms were crossed. "Especially those who are trying to help you. So why don't you try that request again and then I'll help you to feel better."

Though Cezar stepped in to defend her, Tallis cackled at Gianna’s rudeness. “She’s a sour little thing, isn’t she?” She said, with all the joy of one who had acquired a particularly delightful new pet—for wasn't that the case?

“She’ll learn soon enough. Until then…” Tallis said, pouring out the whiskey and thunking two glasses down next to Cezar and Gianna, “Your wish is my command, your majesty.” Sarcasm dropped from her every word as she gave Gianna a little bow and exited to the kitchen.

[ EXIT TALLIS FOR NOW ]

Gianna wasn’t sure whether Tallis’ husband’s rebuke angered her or turned her on. Where normally she might tip back her head in defiance, she didn’t, only looked on at him with sharp eyes. Before she could respond, Tallis did, and then she left.

“You aren’t as easily charmed as your wife.” Gianna observed aloud, daintily plucking up the glass of whiskey, swirling it, and then bringing it to her lips. She wasn’t sure if she even drank any before her eyes watered and she began to cough. She had never actually had it before.

Seeing the delight in Tallis as she returned briefly helped to clue him in on where his twin's mind was at with this one. Something about this girl had clearly entertained her enough to want to keep her around for a bit and while internally amused at Tallis' antics and delight, he showed none of this on his face.

As Tallis left the room he returned his gaze to Gianna and observed her as she attempted to drink the whiskey. Ah, what a cute young thing. He let out a huff of a chuckle as she started to cough and considered getting her some water but changed his mind before he made any actions to do so. Instead he placed his hand on the arms of the chair around her and hovered over her. "And you're not as tough as you pretend to be." He looked at her for a long moment before he gave her a wink and stood once more, snagging his own whiskey glass and taking a long swallow.

He set the glass back down and pulled up a stool to sit in front of her. "So, what seems to be the problem?" he asked, indicating her ankle with a brief glance in it's direction before looking back to the young girl.

Gianna sank into the chair, away from Cezar as he however over her. His words were true, but she railed against them internally. She was strong. He had no idea what she had witnessed. What she had survived. Her glare up at him was powerful and passionate. If looks could kill.

Her untrusting gaze followed him as he went for whiskey. He didn’t drink his any differently and yet he hadn’t coughed. She supposed it was an acquired taste…

“Your wife was the problem.” She said, and that should be explanation in and of itself. “Bummed out my ankle when I was trying to get away. Promised me you’d fix it.” She was growing impatient.

(Sooooo sorry for this delay!)

Cezar was unbothered by her sour expression but his curiosity about her only continued to grow. What exactly had happened to bring her here and what was it that Tallis was so intrigued by? He had every intention of finding out but he couldn't help but chuckle when Gianna admitted that his twin had been the cause. "That sounds about right," he said, his own expression softening a bit as he pulled over a small ottoman and sat down in front of Gianna.

"Do you mind?" he asked as he made a move to reach for her foot and waited until she offered some semblance of approval. If she did then he would carefully lift her leg to rest across his knee and adjusted the hem of her skirt to uncover the ankle as he would work to remove her shoe. (Can you clarify if she's wearing socks, tights, or nothing under her shoe? )

Gianna nodded, lower lip curling into her mouth to become a victim to her teeth as a grown (hot) man took her leg into his grown (hot) hands and set it on his grown (hot) knee. Her entire face flushed, down to her throat, past the hem of her dress, the warmth spreading to the deepest parts of her. Gianna had been touched by men, but always against her will and always in ways that served to demoralize and dehumanize. This was entirely different. This was sincere concern. At least, that was what she perceived it to be. She had to curl her stomach into a knot to keep from turning into a pile of goo. Literally.

Beneath her shoe was nothing but a dirty foot. She was clearly not the pampered princess she pretended to be. In fact, the foot's bottom had calluses, signs that she often went barefoot, and the shoe itself was actually too small, causing her poor little pinky toe and the tip of her big toe to be red where they were forced to remain within.

She looked away, clearing her throat, casually raising a hand to her throat to try to hide the blush.

To be honest he was surprised by how quiet she became once she let him have control over her leg. Trying to read her expression he noticed the way she drew her lip in to her mouth but didn't try to guess what that was about. Whether that be nerves, or something else, he was simply determined to be cautious with her. He was also surprised by what he found beneath her shoe. This was not the foot of a fine noblelady. This was someone who acted like she was higher and mightier than she actually seemed to be. As annoyed as he had been by her, it was a trait he actually admired. Why should she not claim the life she wanted? No title could hold her down if she was determined not to let it.

He set down her shoe softly and tenderly ran his fingertips around her foot and ankle, his hands warm and calloused from his many blacksmithing years. "Does this hurt?" he asked, gently rotating the joint in a few different directions to try to gauge how badly she'd really hurt the ankle.

Gianna didn’t need to reply with words, she sucked in hair through her teeth, grimacing as she instinctively tried to pull the ankle away.

“I’m sure your wife knows exactly what she did to me.” She grumbled impatiently, not sure why he had to torture her to fix it. Tallis had said he could fix it, so she expected him to do just that. And quickly.