Private Of Memories & Spice

[Quinn Varanin]

//: Mercy //:

Quinn's brow furrowed at the remark of her screaming Mercy's name. Of course, it wouldn't be the first nor the last that she shouted the woman's name, but in this context, and what the Knave was hinting at was uncouth. How dare the woman even fathom those thoughts?

She chewed on her lip as she watched Mercy do Mercy things. The woman easily knocked back the ale, half of the pint nearly gone in one gulp past her near perfectly pouted lips. The alcohol hung on her upper lip, and Quinn found herself staring a little too hard at the bow that curved on her upper lip.

It seemed the delicate pout of the former princess's upper lip was the perfect place for the foam of the bear to collect. Quinn instinctively grabbed a napkin and leaned over. Her hand moved, unnecessarily graceful as she wiped the upper lip of her new boss. Her tongue clicked softly against the roof of her mouth as she finished and looked at Mercy for a moment.

"I understand we are in the underworld, but still, we have manners." There was a little smugness to it, mostly behind reminding Mercy slightly that at one point in their lives, they were cut from the same cloth.

"Better," she said, giving the fiery woman one last wipe. She then returned her to her seat and looked at the beer. She wasn't going to be as brash about drinking it like Mercy, but it seemed to be an item that you chugged and not savor.

Interesting.

Quinn wondered if this was what people did who weren't nobles or royalty — drinking was a form of entertainment. Exhaling, she almost went cross-eyed looking down her nose towards the alcohol.

"Okay, I just dive right in." Pausing, she looked up at Mercy and stuck just the tip of her tongue out.

"I'm not haughty, I was just confused." Shaking her head, Quinn grasped the pint glass and paused. The same napkin she wiped Mercy's lip with, she wiped the condensation from the glass. The last thing the poor girl needed was to drop her glass all over her.

Quinn left the glass and began to drink from it. She felt like she was drinking a blended-up vat of some of the worst bread possible. But people seemed to like it enough. She wondered if it was cheap, which is why the bar was packed with beer patrons.

Her eyes slowly looked towards Mercy's glass. The woman drank half, so she would have to drink more — to beat her and to show her who is really on top.

The halfway mark of the glass passed, and Quinn continued to chug until she couldn't anymore. The glass hit the table as she covered her mouth with the moist napkin. Quinn's cheeks puffed as she did her best to try to force the thick and slightly acidic liquid down her throat. Her body protested, her belly already felt full — but she did it.

Finally, when her mouth was empty, she wiped her lip and smugly looked at the Knave.

"I drink beer better than you do."

 

[Mercy]

Quinn Varanin

Mercy fought the urge not to bite Quinn's fingers when they strayed so close to her mouth, but she didn't want to give the woman the satisfaction of knowing she coaxed out the reaction.

Besides it would be more reward than punishment anyway.

"I know my manners, darling, I jus' don't want to employ them." She drawled lazily and then watched as Quinn just... drank... that whole glass. Her eyebrows rose up with every bit of the glass being emptied. "My oh my, someone was thirsty." Smirking a little but then inclining her head, the universal sign of yes, you won this round.

She finished her own glass and then poured them both another one.

"When was the last time we got smashed together? The time we raided your mother's liquor closet?"

 

[Quinn Varanin]

//: Mercy //:

"Quinn." The Princess hiccupped and covered her mouth. Mercy had a habit of calling her everything but her name. Though at least she didn't call her Noelle or Ibaris. That would be an insult in itself. She watched as the woman poured them another glass. Quinn adjusted herself in her seat and hiccupped again.

Maybe she drank a little too fast, but she wanted to beat Mercy.

"How do you not employ your manners?" She slid the beer closer to her as she examined it. There was less foam this time, and she wondered if it was because the pitcher was fuller. Or maybe she just stopped caring about the awkward foam head.

"I don't even know how you get dates if you can't behave." She offered a nonchalant shrug, the words were matter-of-fact.

She sipped the beer this time, not wanting to fill her stomach to capacity again. As the other woman brought up the past, the Princess smiled.

Thankfully, it was hidden behind the rim of the pint.

Quinn remembered that time; it wasn't the greatest time for her emotionally, but Mercy had done her best to be a friend. Drinking till she forgot was precisely what she needed.

That night, she remembered laughing for the first time again; she also remembered going to bed nearly in tears, not because of Vesta, but because of Mercy.

The pint found its place back on the table as she looked at the woman. She hated that, after all these years, she still found that stupid lopsided grin attractive.

"It's been a while. I remember throwing myself at you — and after all the taunting and teasing, you still turned me down." Her brow arched over the rim of her pint.

She had always wondered why, but she didn't dare ask.

 

[Mercy]

"I don't even know how you get dates if you can't behave."

"Who said I go on dates?" Mercy drawled lazily as she leaned back again, taking a deep gulp, but notably again not finishing the full glass. This round had gone to Quinn Varanin , she deserved her victory and Mercy wouldn't try and one-up her with it. "I am far too busy working, darling, causing general mayhem and carving my place into this sick Galaxy of ours."

Which was not to say that Mercy didn't get around.

Just that she wouldn't call that dating. Not when it was just there to scratch an itch and then move on again.

Mercy did not expect Quinn to go there. It raised her eyebrows as she watched the Princess. Sometimes Mercy forgot that there were several years between them. It was easy to forget, since Quinn was powerful in her own right and already accomplished much. It was only in these moments that Mercy got a reminder of it.

She shrugged to the question tucked away in that statement.

The answer... it might completely baffle Quinn, it might even make her angry, but Mercy said it regardless.

"You were drunk." She answered matter-of-factly. "And you were and are a friend." Or as close as a friend someone like Mercy could have, but that was too much vino veritas.

And the day after that Quinn had run off to the Sith Empire.

Only now Mercy started to connect the dots however. Her head tilted there as she began to realize that maybe Quinn didn't run off to the Academy to piss her mother off, or at least not entirely. Maybe, just maybe, her rejecting her had forced her on that path. Frowning Mercy glanced back on the beer to take a deeper swig.

Even the smallest things could create big waves.

 

[Quinn Varanin]

//: Mercy //:
//: Attire //:

Quinn continued to sip the beer. She did her best not to look at Mercy when she answered her question. While it wasn't the answer she had expected, it was the one that she had hoped for.

Between the lines, it meant that despite how promiscuous the Knave was, the woman still saw value in her relationship with the Princess. Honorable, but she wouldn't tease Mercy about — not now.

"I appreciate it." Quinn finally said as she set the pint down. "For all of it," She paused and let her eyes wander for a moment, trying to think of something witty to say.

Nothing of value came to mind, and she let herself look at Mercy again. Wheels were turning in the woman's mind; she could almost hear them.

Slowly, Quinn realized the timing of everything. The answer was yes; she left because looking at Mercy after the rejection was too much. Even now, remembering it, she couldn't look at the woman.

Was it an embarrassment? Or something else? Quinn was never able to figure it out, but that was the past.

The reminder was enough to let her look at the woman. Another sip of the ale, she let the thick ale fill her as she finished half the glass and wiped her upper lip delicately. She wondered if she should press it; there were curiosities, but she didn't know if she was in the mood to hurt her own feelings again.

Screw it.

A soft chortle. A shake of her head. Her hair fell back perfectly into place, framing her face the way it always did — privilege had its perks.

Her eyes softened as she rested her head in her hand and looked to the Knave.

"So, my Herunín," Quinn leaned onto the table and let a devious, slight smirk curl at the corner of her lips.

"Does it ever cross your mind," her head tilted slightly, "What it would have been like?"

 

[Mercy]

Quinn Varanin

"Oh, darling núro, it crosses my mind every time we spend time together." Mercy drawled warmly and without any hesitation. In fact, reaching out and lazily stroking the line of Quinn's jaw.

"Mm, why do you ask? Wanting to compare... notes?"

Maybe that was a lesson to Quinn. No matter how much she tried, she could never get under Mercy's skin that way. She was far too dominant, hungry, she didn't fluster easy. Any fluster that appeared disappeared just as quickly, like when she first saw Quinn in that dress after so many years. Easily adaptable in that regard.

She slid around the booth and an arm wrapped around Quinn's shoulders.

"I could tell you a lot about my... thoughts." Whispered in Quinn's ear.

 

[Quinn Varanin]

//: Mercy //:

Quinn's jaw tightened when she realized she had lost again. Mercy seemingly was impenetrable to any of her flirtatiousness. Maybe beyond just being a drunk friend that day — it was the reason why she always teased the Princess.

The moment Mercy reached out and ran her calloused finger against the tender flesh of her jaw, Quinn relaxed. Her eyes narrowed as she realised the shift in her tension was from the way Mercy easily disarmed her.

In response, the woman continued to poke at her. Comparing notes, she scoffed at the idea. Quinn didn't think often about the Tionese woman, no, never. She rolled her eyes at her own lies as she had quite frequently wondered what that evening would entail.

"Maybe…" Her voice was quiet as she took another sip of the beer.

Mercy made her way over and squeezed into the booth with the Princess, her arm wrapping around her quickly and easily, as if it was meant to be there. She didn't mind the contact; even so, she leaned into her childhood friend and continued to finish the pint she had started.

Setting it down, she looked at Mercy from the corner of her eye as she finished.

Quinn decided to call her bluff… if it was one.

"Well then, Knave, tell me — tell me about all of your thoughts. I know you're not shy to share."

She would never admit to it, but she was curious.

 

[Mercy]

Quinn Varanin

Mercy smirked the way and the way she leaned in, running her nose along Quinn's ear, it was quite clear. No, it was not a tease.

Not at all.

Definitely not once Mercy began to whisper in Quinn's ear. She seemed to be getting really into it too. Getting graphical, getting visual about it. It would put to shame even the writings of the honorable Lady Velvet, Corazona von Ascania 's alter-ego, and her romance novels. But perhaps it shouldn't have been that surprising.

Mercy was not one to deny herself the finer details of pleasure.

And certainly not the ability to make Quinn stutter and blush.

 

[Quinn Varanin]

//: Mercy //:

There was a part of the Princess that didn't think Mercy would indulge her. She figured the comment of her thoughts was just there to tease and potentially drive the Echani a little insane. The girl was known to have quite the imagination.

When Mercy leaned into her ear, the brush of her nose and the sudden warmth of her breath made Quinn pause. Were there thoughts about them being together? She had assumed that the fact that she was Ashin's daughter, the daughter of Mercy's master, would make the Knave second-guess these thoughts.

Quinn was wrong on all fronts. The whispers that lingered against her ear.

Every.

Single.

Detail.

Quinn forgot how to breathe as her throat and chest tightened. Her blush only bloomed, traveling from her face to her ears and neck. There was no mistaking it for a drunk fever.

As Mercy finished, Quinn took a moment to gather herself. She was an avid reader and fan of Lady Velvet books, but this was something she had never experienced. Another round to the Knave.

The Princess pressed her lips tightly together as she pondered her choices. She could let Mercy win and just sit here in silence, mulling over the vivid details of her thoughts or…

"Show me, then."

Her gaze stayed forward, only flicking toward Mercy from the corner of her eye. Quinn wanted to call Mercy's bluff. She knew the Knave enjoyed flustering her. It was part of the game, and that's what this was.

Quinn was determined to win.

 

[Mercy]

Quinn Varanin

A soft warm chuckle and an arm slung around Quinn's waist.

If no resistance was given, she'd slowly guide her into her lap, until they were nose to nose.

"Show me, then."

"Mm... bold words from a bold little one..." Mercy murmured warmly there, pondering on it. She could. She certainly could. They weren't kids anymore and Quinn wasn't drunk... or at least not as drunk as she had been on that fateful night when everything snapped. "But, darling, I hear that you are no longer available..."

Mercy drawled there lazily, thinking back to the words of Ana and how she had remarked that Quinn already had someone at home.

"Or are you telling me you are not..." And she snatched Quinn's chin, tilting her head up a fraction. "Exclusive..." Leaning in to run her nose along her throat and breathe her in.

 

[Quinn Varanin]

//: Mercy //:

Quinn let herself be moved, legs straddling Mercy's lap. It was a comfortable position, one that they had sat in at some point or another. But never in this context, as far as she knows. The Princess did not know boundaries well, especially when they were young. How did Mercy ever tolerate her?

A question for another game.

The closeness was something the little Echani enjoyed, something she craved near addiction. Through it, she was able to read and understand the other person. Feel the things they wanted to hide or were unable to fully express.

She let her hands fall, resting against the other woman's core as she listened. Of course, what she heard was something she didn't expect.

"Hm?" Her head tilted as she mulled over what Mercy had mentioned.

How did Mercy find out? Not even Ashin or Spencer knew, for good reason.

Mercy would have found out either way; the more people who protected what she held precious, the better.

"The latter." Her voice was quiet; no one else needed to know her secrets. It seemed enough people did already. The thought annoyed her.

"You're quite talkative. Didn't expect that," she teased, not wanting to think anymore about who had decided to air her secrets to the public.

Quinn held Mercy's wrist as she pulled it from her face. She kept her neck exposed, letting the woman indulge in the bouquet of honey and rose.

As Mercy was occupied, Quinn kissed her hand lightly and enjoyed the closeness. Mercy was someone who knew her past and didn't judge her for it.

A part of her regretted running, but it was what she was good at.

 

[Mercy]

Quinn Varanin

"Mm, I used to not trust words, only actions." It had felt too much like the lessons that her mother had tried to impart in her. To rule by sly tongue and manipulation.

It was something that disgusted Mercy still.

But she had learned since that she enjoyed to talk. Really, it was enjoying the sound of her own voice, but that was something Mercy didn't think about too loudly. Instead she allowed herself to enjoy Quinn's presence. A close proximity that they hadn't experienced in a long time. Not since she put her down on her ass or pinned her back against the wall for luring an emotion out of her.

"But I am starting to enjoy using my tongue-" And then before Quinn could respond, Mercy drew her in and kissed her. It was a kiss that had history behind it.

Years of them knowing each other and even more years of them never even talking to one another.

All over a misunderstanding, how infuriating, but perhaps it was for the best. It had given them time to learn, to master themselves. It could be better this way.

 

[Quinn Varanin]

//: Mercy //:

Quinn had something smart to say in retort, one that might have won her this round of banter. The thought came quickly, and the impish grin tugging at her lips betrayed her before she could even speak.

Her mouth parted, ready to deliver the quip — only for silence to follow as Mercy stole the moment, kissing the Princess into stillness.

Years. They had known each other for years, and Mercy had never taken this chance. Even when Quinn had offered, the Knave turned her away. That first rejection had stung, and it lingered. But now? Now it melted into nothing with one simple gesture.

There was no resistance, only acceptance. She leaned in, letting herself fall into the kiss. It wasn't what she expected — no aggression, only tension snapping into a thousand new sensations. Slender fingers slid into Mercy's short hair, softer than she had imagined, as a muffled sound escaped the back of Quinn's throat.

She swam in it — the affection, the haze of ale, the ache of years between them. She wished they weren't in public. Quinn longed to be somewhere, anywhere, but the bar.

Still, Quinn allowed herself to enjoy the moment. Her hands roamed before settling at Mercy's face, thumbs brushing gently along her cheeks.

When she broke the kiss, she lingered with her forehead pressed to the Knave's, indulging in the closeness.

"So, my Herunín," Quinn breathed, a sly smile curving as she noticed her lipstick marking Mercy's mouth.

"Tell me — am I supposed to admit you're more than talk now?"

 

[Mercy]

The kiss was everything Mercy had been postponing.

At first it had been that Quinn Varanin just wasn't her type. Arrogant, haughty, clearly in love with herself in a way that meant she'd never be able to worship Mercy the way she deserved. Then it became habit. A game between the two that ended up escalating farther than either one of them had the tools to handle, too young, too stupid.

She left for the Academy, Mercy took it as a message and left it at that.

Now they were kissing and the hunger she felt was poured directly into the Princess' mind, letting her know exactly how much a creature like Mercy demanded and desired.

So, my Herunín," Quinn breathed, a sly smile curving as she noticed her lipstick marking Mercy's mouth.

"Tell me — am I supposed to admit you're more than talk now?"

Mercy smirked and let her thumb run along the lipstick marking her. Watching the red on the pad of her finger, then glancing up at her. Something moving between those eyes... before Mercy slid her thumb between her lips and bit hard. Enough to draw blood... and then she brushed the corner of Quinn's mouth with it. Leaving a smear of crimson like lipstick.

"Ancient witches used to mark that which they owned with their blood... so they would never lose it again." Mercy murmured softly, meaningful, eyes on hers. "Is that enough action to make you admit it, my núro?"

 

[Quinn Varanin]

//: Mercy //:

The weight, the burning of Mercy's thumb against her mouth as it smeared her mark, grounded Quinn. She knew what had been done, having learned and done so before herself. Never had anyone marked her before.

It was the way that Mercy explained the blood trail that kept Quinn's gaze locked to hers. She knew the meaning behind the explanation — Mercy didn't have to say it.

There was no protest as her body remained relaxed through the trailing.

The burning faded as she was impressed with its placement. Easily concealed beneath lipstick, placed somewhere intimate and rarely touched.

Quinn smiled as a hand touched lightly where Mercy's thumb had been. The action touched something more profound in her, giving Quinn something she didn't know that she needed at this moment. She would never admit it to Mercy, wanting to avoid her teasing, but even then, their game —the teasing and attention — Quinn craved it.

Still, she leaned forward. Her lips kissed gently along the curve of Mercy's chin, down her neck. Quinn paused only for a moment to answer, "It does," she murmured into her Knave's skin.

Each kiss, each touch carried a quiet reverence. Quinn wondered if the shift was inevitable, something that was bound to happen the moment they came together in such a way.

She pulled away, hoping that the shadows of the bar hid whatever blush burned against her cheeks. Her mind lingered on the words Mercy whispered in her ear when she had attempted to call the woman's bluff.

A hand gently fixed the lapel of the redhead's suit as the Princess did her best to keep her composure as she asked quietly, "Will you leave with me?"

 

[Mercy]

Quinn Varanin

It burned for them both and now everytime Mercy blinked she could still see Quinn's outline.

Perfect.

She leaned into her touch for a brief moment before those words reached her. For a moment Mercy was thoughtful, smiling wistfully, before inclining her head without further hesitation.

"I do believe I have teased you long enough..." Snatching her chin again, tilting her head up so Mercy could look down at her. "...years of teasing, you have been so patient..." Mercy whispered warmly there before leaning in and kissing her brow softly. "Yes, I will leave with you." And then her arm wrapped around Quinn's shoulders.

Keeping her close to her even as they settled into the walk.

"Show me how a Princess of the Sith lives, darling." Smirking there at that idea.