Private Looking-Glass House

[Bella Drayson]

Location: Coruscant - [Jade De Mar Residences]
Tag: Shai the Jaded

Rain fell from the sky so hard that she could hear it plinking drop by drop off of nearby rooftops from the open balcony doors. The WeatherNet had promised some rain to provide the aqueducts some form of relief but this was getting a little ridiculous. It wasn't often that she could be found away from Blackfyre Court when she was planetside due to various political squabbles—But she couldn't shake the feeling of being watched, lately. Even in her own offices.

It was unheard of.

That was the one place where the Queen of Hearts should have felt safe to conduct business, but that was no longer the case. Just when she'd put Black back in her place, truly, this was a nightmare. The flame-haired woman leaned against the inner frame of the double doors with a half-full crystalline glass of Maldovean Burtalle. The Jade de Mar was a luxurious Sky Hotel made with permanent residents in mind. As soon as she'd been able to create the proper identity and documents, she'd chosen this space for a safe house. The security was top-notch—They didn't ask questions.

No one would expect a Heart to step foot here. It was too posh, too clean, with not nearly enough debauchery going on to keep them entertained. They preferred loud establishments that catered to those with deep pockets that got chatty, and generous when they gambled the night away on a rigged game of sabacc. Her shoulders were still strung tightly together, however.

The northern-most wall of the suite displayed a holo-map with certain points pinging all over Galactic City. She had dozens of Jacks, hundreds of Numbers, and a handful of Aces. She hadn't noticed it at first. They came and went as they pleased, save, for checking in after a designated mission. That required a full report that she demanded happen in person. Several of them missed their check-in.

That in itself wasn't unusual; if it were only a few.

Bella had over two-dozen cards unaccounted for. Two dozen, that had gone radio silent. That may have happened to the former Red Queen or to the reigning Black now—But it had never happened to her. She made sure that her people were protected, well cared for, and that was part of the reason she was able to retain control of the court. They perfected their craft, and performed as expected, then rewards and favors were issued. Within the walls of the Court, they were safe.

She couldn't tell what was happening. The Aces were quietly investigating so as not to cause alarm or instability—but it only turned up more questions than answers. Belle had recently discovered a bug in her private quarters in the Court. She didn't know who was listening; or why, but until she found out the place that she called home was no longer safe. Her people weren't safe. She couldn't even start surreptitiously pulling them out or Black would have a field day.

Crimson lips pulled into a frown before she raised the glass to her lips and took a long, slow taste.

There were, of course, people she could turn to. Friends.

Friends.

Companions who could all be working against her for all she knew. While getting ready for a meeting across town she'd realized with clarity that the number of people she could trust outside of her cards was dizzyingly low. She owned, others. Through blackmail or otherwise. They did not often stand with her by choice. Everyone wanted the crown, especially, with the reinvocation of the Black Sun. The King of Blackfyre was traditionally a member but even that was…Strange.

This led her to call for the one person she was loathe to reach out to. He was unpredictable, hedonistic, and impulsive. He didn't think before acting. Either that, or he didn't care. The only saving grace was that he would have had plenty of opportunities to kill her. To scam her, politically, and he never had. Perhaps he was waiting for the right moment to strike…

Or—Against all odds, he was actually trustworthy.

Belle rolled the dice and that led her to leave him a series of complicated calling cards to find her. He had done so once on Denon—She was certain that Shai could do so again. In the interim, she waited. Cursing the gray sky, the Black Queen, the King, and everything else in-between. She didn't like when things were chaotic. It felt like the world had upended and turned upside down, no matter how hard she tried to right it.

Everything was out of control. That, couldn't stand.

 

[Shai the Jaded]

Bella Drayson

Complications.

It's the one thing Shai truly loathed and presumably also why he enjoyed being an enforcer for the Black Sun. Your entire job was removing complications, one digit at a time, and Shai did that well. But the way Bella was behaving right now? Complications coiled into mysteries. He had called on her a few days ago and was met with a wall of silence.

The usual chatty Jacks giving him nothing but silence.

Even when he pointed out this could be official business from the Sun - deadly silence.

Then came her calling card.

Part of him wondered (the very petty part) if he shouldn't just ignore it. Let her chase him a little bit. Make it known that Shai the Jaded was annoyed and then some.

But her scent was attached to the card... and Shai could never resist a good mystery. Even if he loathed them at the same time. So it was that the infamous street samurai wandered into the Jade de Mar hotel. Fancy as kark and Shai stood out. Perhaps that was why Bella led him here. To underline their worlds were parsecs apart.

Quite catty.

He didn't have to say anything, the attendants were already on look-out, slipping him a pass and the floor number. So it was that Shai knocked on her door before letting herself in. The knock having that characteristically haughty tone to it. "You know, there are easier ways to get in touch with me, if you want to share a hotel room for the weekend." Shai drawled while the doors hissed shut behind him.

"You don't usually fade out of existence from your usual turf, darling, what's the matter?"

 

[Bella Drayson]

Location: Coruscant - [Jade De Mar Residences]
Tag: Shai the Jaded

Shai arrived as if by clockwork.

Belle could usually feel him when he drew near. Not his essence, perse, but there was something in the air that shifted in subtle introduction. Today…She missed it. Her body didn't move from the doorway of the balcony, save, to raise a blaster in the direction of the entryway. At this proximity, she didn't need to be a good shot. She had a battering ram, ready, and able, to hit the broad side of any barn and blow it inward. His snark was noted.

Reassuring, in its own way. She sucked air in between her teeth, almost criminally reminded, that she loved to hate it. The weapon held firm as he kept speaking. It might seem like she initially doubted he was who he claimed to be. Or—That she was incredibly angry with him.

Either scenario was equally probable.

"If you're going to be an ass—Leave, Shai."

The blunt words that left her were stark and exceedingly unusual. As was the lack of presence from at least one Jack in her vicinity. Rather than seem threatening, however, they almost seemed tired. As if she hadn't slept in quite some time. She retracted the blaster and put it back in the holster that ran tight along the outside of her thigh. Partially hidden by a red, flouncy business skirt. That was also new.

She didn't bother looking at him for a long moment. Instead, her arms came to cross beneath her bosom and her focus turned back to the pouring rain outside. The scent of petrichor and ozone brought her some measure of peace but it was only momentary. She refused open another pack of cigarettes that she typically avoided on the sheet basis that she wasn't willing to do the work for her enemies and kill herself on their behalf. Thus, the liquor. She was slower with that. More responsible. "…Do you mean to tell me that you don't actually know what's going on?"

He lingered at Blackfyre so often that there were rumors as to whether or not he was going to join Black or Red when the time came. As an Ace, perhaps. Some even whispered King with how Belle and her competition had nearly clawed one another to pieces over him. Despite the fact that their war had been virtually silent—Everyone knew that the Red Queen made the Black Queen pay.

She was only lucky that it hadn't been with her life.

"…There's no order in the Court."

A sardonic laugh.

Her head nodded toward the Holo-Board that depicted her dilemma. Not all of it—But the last known whereabouts of many of the Jacks and Numbers. "My cards are going missing. They aren't reporting in. I'm being watched, closely, and in ways that can only be from someone IN -my- Court."

She breathed, slowly, and blue-grey eyes turned toward him for the first time. There was an unspoken light to them. Something, that hadn't existed before. Before his incident with her competition, she wouldn't have thought to question his motives. But, he had been the only one in her quarters unsupervised. It would take a moment for it to sink in…The oddness about her, the distance, was hurt. She kept trusting him despite every act that should direct her otherwise.

"…Or you."

 

[Shai the Jaded]

Bella Drayson

The blaster didn't lower.

...and she was rather feisty.

Hm.

"I thought that was my main asset." Perhaps it was a futile attempt, but sometimes he did manage to make her smile and it was always a pleasant moment to enjoy. It did not seem like today was going to be one of those days. Not with the drink in hand, the blaster only marginally lowered and that question posed to him.

Do you not know?

A little shrug as Shai settled in next to her.

He carved the space between them in a matter of moments, quiet and whisperlike, and by the time he filled that space? It was almost like he had never left it to begin with. Like a Nexu.

"I have heard rumblings." That was an understatement. "But... since my help was not requested, I did not see a reason to stick my nose where it did not belong." Perhaps the main reason why he had come out of that minor silent war between Black and Red without so much as a scratch. Well, perhaps a few pointed scratches, but nothing too deep that wouldn't heal.

If Bella was calling him however? It was serious.

Once again Shai cursed the fact there was no Underlord. Nobody who he could bring this to and have it be fixed.

"Me?" Bemused there once he glanced to her. That amusement was gone quite quickly once Shai realized she was being serious. Part of her... a larger part than he realized was still suspicious of him.

Rightly so.

"I don't have a mind for politics, darling." Murmured softly as he stroked the line of her shoulder with a single digit. "I play around, fool once or twice, but I would never interfere with your hard business, you know that."

 

[Bella Drayson]

Location: Coruscant - [Jade De Mar Residences]
Tag: Shai the Jaded

Her finger twitched. Any other day, she might have shot him a half-smile coupled with an eye-roll at how bad of a joke that was…But today? She was tempted to shoot first, as questions later. Belle hated that he got so close so quickly. That she let him get that close. He could have come of his own volition—Or because he was on the payroll of someone that wanted to keep tabs on her. Keep her close.

Shai was nothing, if not close.

If he wasn't she would have never let him touch her again after his transgressions. Shai viewed it in a way that was full of something akin to a childlike naivety. She wished she had that freedom. At the notion of rumblings, her eyes closed, and she let her head thud back against the doorframe. More than once. As if the slight discomfort might end her frustration, the chaos, and the unanswered questions. "…It's not rumblings…It's a skyquake—It's a karking nightmare."

Bella couldn't quite argue with his reasoning about staying away from the situation, but, the almost paranoid frame of mind she had developed over the last few weeks wouldn't let her completely dismiss it. She couldn't. That was how people died. Trusting someone that had no tether to them and nothing to lose by the association. This was what she was careful with her lovers. Chose those that she could keep close to the chest—That would sooner die than betray her. They were simple. She could cut them off in a heartbeat. Shai…Shai had already survived the ultimate, sin.

The little death, with the Black Queen.

"You…You're the only one. You're the only piece I can't move. The only one, that isn't mine."

He seemed to have noticed that she wasn't in the mood for fun and games and some part of him sobered up. Flitting between Red and Black had caused immeasurable damage to her reputation that she had been forced to shore up immediately. Wagging tongues in the Court was more dangerous than any weapon. He likely wouldn't understand that she didn't want it to be him. Belle hadn't wanted to believe the Black Queen either, but that was her mistake. "I don't know what to think right now."

"My people are in danger. I don't discuss business in my private quarters but if there was a bug there—It stands to reason that my offices were tapped as well. My Jacks, my Numbers… If I didn't know any better, I'd say that they're…That we're being targeted.", she murmured carefully, not pulling away from him, but not getting any closer either. She just didn't know.

What she didn't know would most definitely kill her.

"I know every enemy they have. I have eyes in every camp—Even the Black Sun.", her eyes turned away from the rain and finally turned to face him. She hadn't been crying, no, because that was far too weak for someone like Bella Drayson. But she was worried, to a degree. Resigned to another. "If it goes on much longer, I'll have to move. Which, would be open war in the Court."

"It won't stop there, either. My Jacks are furious and want the entire Corridor to feel it. And that will draw eyes I can't afford."

 

[Shai the Jaded]

Bella Drayson

His fingers tapped on the railing with soft delicacy.

A hint that beneath the rough brute he could be careful... and deliberate when the times called for it.

"Mm, quite a pickle..." Muttered softly as he looked out across the skyline and ordered his thoughts with caution. This was a... concerning situation. His first and foremost loyalty was to himself, of course. But his second loyalty should be to the Black Sun at large. It was a matter of excising complications before they could grow out of control.

This?

A clear complication.

The solution was pretty obvious too. Execute Bella on the spot. Slip into the Black Queen's offices and execute her too. Let the Court burn itself down in the ensuing turf war. It would be messy, but it would prevent a tit-for-tat escalation that could threaten the entire delicate ecosystem the Black Sun was trying to build. They could not afford any distractions, especially if the Red Jacks went on a warpath and started slinging damage outside the Court as well.

"So we have a limited amount of time..." Shai murmured before sliding lightly towards her, until his hip touched hers gently. "...and all the incentives in the world to find whoever is targeting your people."

Ah, kriff, he was going to get involved and be stupid about it, wasn't he?

"If you can trust me... I can help you find whoever it is."

There he went.

Thinking with his head instead of his brain.

 

[Bella Drayson]

Location: Coruscant - [Jade De Mar Residences]
Tag: Shai the Jaded

“The only thing keeping them from moving, is me. They’re more afraid of what I’ll do versus what’s being done.”, she intoned, quietly, and keenly aware that Shai hadn’t addressed any of her concerns about him. He wasn’t as carefree as wanted others to believe. Drifting, this way, and that like a leaf on the wind. Bella often believed he knew exactly what he was doing. “The threat of the King isn’t what it used to be. I suppose, if we cannot have love…”

Fear was an acceptable substitute. If she could keep the Jacks in line out of fear? So be it. Bella would deal with the consequences of that at a later date. Shai kept getting nearer and she sighed quietly.

“Very limited. The Black Court seems to know nothing. If anything, they’ve started increasing security in their day-to-day. They’re just as frightened as the Reds are angry.”

Bella drew the shining tumbler up to her lips and drank the rest of it rather smoothly. She could hold her liquor, but it was just about the only thing keeping her from biting his head off. She would be an idiot not to know his loyalties. Which, meant she was truly a moron. The crimson-haired woman had called for the one person she knew couldn’t be what she required. The fate of Blackfyre was tilting this way and that on the edge of a knife and someone out there knew it.

Someone, the Black Queen, or any other crime syndicate in the sector for that matter wanted to take advantage of the reappearance of the Black Sun. Shai spoke of trust and her jaw tightened immeasurably. Her gaze slipped past him, to some invisible point, that didn’t have the handsome lines of his face nor a particular tone while he offered to help.

“Would you trust me?”

It would have been so easy to turn into him rather than the chilly evening air. There was a danger to him. That was true. But, there were also moments when he almost felt like something else. Bella pulled away from the doorframe and drew back her arm to let the empty tumbler fly and disappear down through the skylanes below. The moment of irritation and frustration burned bright and flickered out just as fast. It was a scream, a shout, and everything else in-between.

Her head tilted and some part of her seemed to have settled. Anger out, focus in.

“I’ve been doing this for years without incident. We don’t cross the other syndicates. Why, now?”

 

[Shai the Jaded]

Bella Drayson

Very limited... and the Black Queen was scared?

Perhaps the Red Queen put a healthy fear of God into her, since that quiet war had been... quite something to behold. Beautiful to watch from the sidelines and being so smug about knowing it was all because of him.

"Mm, well. I did ask you to trust me. It would be a bit... unfair, if that wasn't reciprocated, wouldn't it?" Which wasn't an answer. It usually wasn't with him and that was presumably part of the fury he elicited from her. If there was any doubt before? The way she threw the tumbler out into the sky and then below?

Shai's brows raised as he glanced over the edge, until the glittering item faded out of view.

"Let's hope that doesn't land on anyone's head." Murmured slyly before gently wrapping his fingers around her wrist and pulling her in. "Come now, I know you are furious, but believe me... it might very well be that the only people we can trust... is each other."

And wasn't that its own kind of joke?

The Red Queen and Shai the Jaded.

He wouldn't stop until she was pressed against him, his nose running along her jaw until his lips reached her ear.

"You wouldn't have reached out to me if you had any other options..."

There was an option right there however. Just... one little shove... and she could take Shai out of her life forever.

 

[Bella Drayson]

Location: Coruscant - [Jade De Mar Residences]
Tag: Shai the Jaded

Bella had done her best to ensure that the Black Queen would think twice about gravitating toward things that didn't belong to her, ever, again. It was a well-known fact that Reds were all incredibly possessive and none moreso than their Queen. Roxala had been a crone when Bella had still been considered a youngling. Granted, the woman aged exceedingly well—But the thought disturbed her more than she wanted to admit. She would be damned if that wretch ever got near him again.

It took her a moment to realize that her fury was building, all over again, for a slight that should have been buried and forgotten. Should have been. Especially, when Shai made a word game out of trusting him in the moment. "Fairness was never on the table.", which, was the truth. He aimed to win. It didn't matter how he got there.

Her expression was entirely withering when he commented about the glass she'd thrown over the railing. If that was the largest sin she'd committed? It was a good night. It remained steadfast when Shai tugged her near and she stood up straight, closed off, and unbending against him. Bella didn't want to give in to him, nor, did she want to let go of her anger. It was easier to feel aimless fury.

Then she didn't have to think about what was happening to her missing Jacks and Numbers.

"It might be. But, the deck is stacked in your favor. You don't need anything from me."

That was the basis of "trust" in her world. Or what passed for it. Some level of "security" could only be obtained when one party was equally indebted to the other. Things were only ever remotely close to "fair" when the threat of mutual destruction was assured. She breathed in sharply when Shai got too close, too easily, with his words causing a dichotomy of reactions. Every part of her wanted to fade into him and forget what a terrible day it had been but something about his insinuation irritated her to no end.

Bella did shove him. Lightly. While he might have contemplated the benefits of removing her from existence—That had never crossed her mind, in turn. Her actions wouldn't be enough to move him. Instead, he would have to face gun-metal blue eyes that were all too defiant. For the second time, she swore, balefully calling him on his chit, though the insult was less harsh this time. "You are such an ass."

That was a fact. An easy one, at that. The lowest of the low-hanging fruit.

But…Was he wrong?

The flame-haired woman settled him with a half-hearted glare and found her hands rising to rest against his chest. It was familiar. Briefly, the air around her hand seemed to shimmer in a shade of red that could almost be called magenta. Her hand turned into a fist to stop it. She did need his help. It just pained her to ask, even more, than it pained her to hear him offer. It seemed so pathetic.

Since when had she required anything but the Court and the Crown?

"…What do you want, Shai?", Belle questioned softly. She wasn't defeated…She was accepting of her current reality. That didn't mean she had to like it. "Payment. Don't say a favor. If I accept your help—You'll need to be paid."

So she didn't exist in his debt.

 

[Shai the Jaded]

Bella Drayson

She did shove.

Lightly.

It was still enough to draw a smile from him. She was fire and lightning, incarnated and joyous, in her rage. Perhaps that was why Shai enjoyed so much to get a rise out of her. Things simply weren't the same when it was peaceful and quiet. This was presumably unfair of him, but Shai was nothing if not an honest creature to his own instincts.

"Mm, I am, but I have never once tried to hide that." He drawled in response as he traced a line against her back with one finger tip. Just enough to reminder her of his presence, but not to escalate.

She could still decide to throw him off the ledge after all.

"You know me so well." As Shai chuckled and leaned back against the railing. Himself drawing a new cigarette out to light up and smoke. There were no nerves to calm, but there was something nice about filling your lungs with something poisonous. It reminded you of your own mortality. This was something that Shai could frankly use every once in a while.

"I was going to say favor." Murmured softly as he leaned in and kissed her cheek. "But I suppose I can ask for something else... hmm... what is it that I can get from you that I don't have yet?"

Playing with her even more.

Another trace, feather light and soft.

Then another chuckle. "You can buy me a drink when this is all over." Just as sly as ever, so pleased with himself.

 

[Bella Drayson]

Location: Coruscant - [Jade De Mar Residences]
Tag: Shai the Jaded

Shai smiled.

Of course he, smiled.

Bella wasn't sure if she wanted to kiss or kill him at that moment. It was an irritating, grating decision, that only worsened because of the Maldovean swimming merrily in her veins. She glowered at him while he accepted her insult with grace, as always, seeming more amused with her fury than afraid. Everyone in Court cowered when she was in a foul mood. But, Shai?

He encouraged it—As if he had a death wish.

The flame-haired woman pointedly ignored the light touch that ran up her spine. She wouldn't give him the pleasure of getting a rise out of her any more than he already had. He hadn't earned that, yet. Eyes of gray-blue steel watched him while he leaned against the railing. Everything was so casual. As if things weren't falling down around her. "I know you well enough."

It would be to her own detriment not to know the man who shared her bed as often as he slept with the enemy. Not for the first time, she felt like a mouse, spinning wheels in a very carefully constructed cage. Bella was more than certain he would have asked for a blank return. Something that he could cash in on at any moment and she would be entirely unable to refuse. The kiss to her cheek mollified her frown—If only slightly. "An ass and a greedy little troll…", she intoned, a touch cross, but her fingers found his so that she could snake the cigarette from him.

"I was trying to quit."

Red lipstick stained the filter while she took a slow drag. Holding, before letting the smoke curl from her lips in small ringlets. It didn't remind her of her own mortality.

It reminded her that she was pissed off.

When Shai asked for a drink, she growled at him and gave him another little shove. Still, nothing that would send him tumbling to his death. It seemed that she liked having him around a lot more than she let on. "Get your own drink.", she snipped, gesturing toward the expensive bar that seemed to be filled with anything one might desire.

"I'll just surprise you then."

Bella ignored the fact that there were few things that he could take from her that she hadn't already freely given. Slowly, she leaned back against him, fully, and found herself staring at nothing while quietly enjoying his cigarette. It was strange. Ever since she'd absconded from Court and essentially went dark, she'd been fighting the feeling of her heart hammering in her chest. Whether from anger or nerves she couldn't say. For the moment, it quieted.

A slow sigh.

"Fancy a pony?"

 

[Shai the Jaded]

Bella Drayson

His eye went to the expensive bar and Shai smiled.

"Nah, I am good where I am right now." That mouth of his had a tendency of causing him trouble. Issues. A rise or two. But that was exactly the way the Mirilian enjoyed it. If it was easy, it wasn't worth the effort. If it was hard? Oh, that made it more interesting by a lot. She shoved him again and this time Shai stayed put. Instead letting her apply force to an immovable object. Sharp crimson eyes looked down on her and cupped her jaw. "Oh, I frustrate you so much, dear darling, don't I?"

Withdrawing his hand again and kissing his finger tips lightly. As if the echo of her jaw could be reached by it.

"A... pony?"

It was not often that anyone could surprise Shai. So when it did happen? He savored it. Letting that roll in his mouth before laughing lightly and musically in twofold ways.

"I do enjoy a good ride, but I don't need a pony for that, do I?" Slowly shifting around until he was again at her back. Wrapping one arm around her waist, while the other snatched out and took his cigarette back from her. A very slow draw there himself as he watched the horizon over her frame and mused once again about how dirty Coruscant looked. Even in one of the luxurious districts.

"Why don't you accompany me on my errands? You have been cooped up here enough. I will keep you safe... and we can figure out who is killing your people together. Wouldn't that be fun?"

When was the last time that the Red Queen stepped off her throne and sullied her fashionable heels with the touch of the dirty underworld grime?