<div class="floatleft">(http://i.imgur.com/bUvpHLC.jpg)</div><strong>Name:  Stephen Downing (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=266077.msg13137161#msg13137161)</strong><br/><br/><strong>CLIENT</strong><br/><br/><strong>Situation:</strong>Entering the One-Night Bride for the first time, desperately in need of something - or more accurately, someONE - to be in control of<br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><strong>Tagging:</strong>Open<br/><br/><strong>Content Warning:</strong><em>None</em><br/><br/><br/><br/><br/><hr/><hr/><br/>Stephen had been in The Bazaar for several years. It took some getting used to, but starving was a great motivation for him to get up to speed,<em>fast</em>. He'd stolen some food on his first day... badly. The owner of the fruit stand was a woman who was larger than anyone he'd ever met in his life - someone who could pick him  up with one hand. Which is exactly what she did. Fearing for his life, he was startled when she<em>realized</em>that he was starving, and gave him a handful of fruits and nuts, grumbling that he should pay it back when he could manage it.<br/><br/>He had long since paid off that debt, but every day was a new surprise, a new unexpected trap, a mistake, an accidental stepping on the wrong toes - he always seemed to be in trouble, and it was evident that casual violence was something that happened here. Thankfully, he turned out to be useful. The mechanical engineering skills that he had from his American degree turned out to be a valuable talent in this place.<br/><br/>Over the next few months, he made somewhat of a name for himself as a mechanic. He dealt with steampunk widgets, magitech gadgets, and a wide range of other devices, from near-stone-age simplicity to a fascinating degree of technology far beyond anything he'd ever seen at home. He was able to apply his skills, and gained a new awareness of things he'd never seen before. Magic, in particular, was something beyond him, but he picked up connections to other crafters who could handle magic. Over time, he even came to understand that there were a thousand<em>different kinds</em>of magic - all of which were beyond him.<br/><br/>His mistakes cost him money. His successes gained him money - a wide range of bills and coins from places he'd never heard of. It was a mystery to him how they could all be useful, but some of the bigger businesses seemed to flow through the money as though they understood the heartbeat of every world the money came from.<br/><br/>Finally, after several excruciatingly difficult tasks that took the better part of a week to finish (to the increasing frustration of his customer), he felt like he'd been through the wringer. "Right," he said, angrily proud that this strange whirligig now worked as expected and to the satisfaction of the customer. "If I'm done, pay me." He didn't specify a price. Everyone knew what their work was worth, it seemed.<br/><br/>This time was... different. The man dropped a sheet of paper in his hands and walked away laughing. Frowning, Stephen opened the paper, to read:<br/><br/><span class="bbc_font" style="font-family: andale mono;">Madame Celeste, <br/>For this young man's service to me, I will vouch for one night of this man's visit to your Establishment. <br/>Food, drink, a good lady - it looks like he needs the latter, especially. I will cover the cost. <br/><br/>Tyrian MacCobble, Trader Extraordinaire</span><br/><br/>He frowned. He had no idea who Madame Celeste was. He trotted over to the fruit-peddling giantess, who had turned into somewhat of a friend. "Skybelle," he said, looking up at her. "I have a question. A customer just gave me this as payment for a job," he held up the paper, "and it's just a letter to some person named Madame Celeste. Do you know who that is?"<br/><br/>The giantess leaned down and gently took the piece of paper from him, looking at it with a far-sighted squint. "Ah..." Her eyebrows rose as she realized the implications of the letter. "That would be the One-Night Bride," she rumbled. "I have heard nothing but good things from people who have been there, but I have never been there myself. It is against my lifepath." She looked down at him. "I think you may have been overpaid."<br/><br/>Stephen blinked. "Overpaid?" he said in a huff. "This job took over a week to finish."<br/><br/>Skybelle smiled. "Then you were most certainly overpaid." She handed the paper back to him. "I mean no disrespect, Stephen," she said quietly, "but I know of noone more in need of a good fuck than you. While I would be willing to help, I believe that I would break you."<br/><br/>Stephen blushed. He'd never heard Skybelle say anything that crude before. But after a moment, he nodded. "Okay," he allowed, "maybe you're right... where is this place?"<br/><br/>She gave him brief directions, then finished, "Ask for more than the note says. A night includes renting a room," she opined, "and you, my friend, desperately need a<em>shower</em>."<br/><br/><hr/><br/>It was nearly an hour later when he arrived at the One-Night Bride. He walked in nervously, feeling out of his depth with the obvious luxurious glamour of the establishment. He looked around for a moment, then spotted a waitress and waved her over. "Excuse me," he told the pretty, petite woman, "I think I'm looking for Madame Celeste?" He showed her the letter, and waited for directions, or instructions... and half-expected simply to be kicked back out.