undergrounds | walking with strangers (March & April Catch-All)

[True to her word, Skip is at Nancy's door within forty-five minutes of her text. With her is a carrier of multiple kinds of liquor.

A few good knocks is all she gives.]

[Nancy answers the door, clad in a t-shirt, skinny jeans, and no socks. Her toenails are painted a dark purple that stands out against her pale skin on small feet. It may be the first time Skip's ever seen Nancy not dressed up, she doesn't know.]

Hey! Welcome! [She greets her with a hug and ushers her inside.] Let me take your coat, or some of these drinks. [Always so helpful.]

[Skip smiles a bit. After all, it's good to see Nancy. Even if it had taken her awhile to reach out after the Valentine's mess.

At least they were both alive.

She offers the bag of liquor.]

There y' go.

Hope y' don' mind me droppin' by.

[She didn't blame her, not at all. That was a mess, her life with Fagin had been even more of a mess. They both had their lives.]

Thanks.

[She accepts the bag and walks to the living room.]

No, not at all. I was in tonight. [She gestures at a few of the books she'd gotten her hands on. Research. About werewolf curses.]

Have a seat, what do you want to start with, love?

Let's start with the vodka. It's that kind of night.

[Easy enough to say, especially to someone like Nancy.]

Got somethin' I wanted t' ask about you. Might be too personal. So feel free t' tell me t' go t' Hell.

Vodka coming up.

[She points at her cabinets, and they open, two glasses floating out and on to the coffee table. This leaves Nancy to move some of the books and papers out of the way and uncap the bottle.]

Do you want something to cut it with?

[She didn't particularly need it. Especially not with a lead-up like that.]

Sure. I can at least hear it.

[Skip pours liberally for them both and raises her glass in a toast before taking what is about the equivalent of a shot.

She really doesn't want to get thrown out, but she... kind of feels like she needs to know. Just to satisfy herself.]

Th'-- The first time y' did someone-- t' get somethin'--

Like actually get somethin', not just a present or somethin'--

D'you care? It bother you? Or was it jus' somethin' y' did?

[Nancy takes near the same amount as Skip, and lets it burn down her throat as she chews over Skip's words. How she'd answer them. Her story, her venture into prostitution wasn't the great, positive story that so many modern women wanted to hear about sex workers. But Skip asked, so she wanted to know.

Nancy took another drink.]

The first time? Skip...

[She swallows.] I was scared, the first time. I knew what was happening, what I was doing. I just...

[She drops her head, can't look at her as she admits it:.]

I was thirteen.

Shit.

[Another drink.]

Knew I shouldn' have said a fuckin' thing. Forget it.

[Because a kid? Oh fuck no. Nope. Imagining that happening to her? Skip can't without getting intensely angry and wanting to hunt down the fucker.]

[Nancy pressed her lips together, and nodded.]

I'm sorry.

[Because she was. But she couldn't lie to Skip about something like that. It wasn't fair to spin her some sort of fanciful tale. It wouldn't help anyone, if the truth eventually came out. She deserved to know.]

Why did you want to know?

[Now she's curious.] And if, uhm- if you do have questions... you can ask. I won't judge. [She offers the smallest bit of a smile and goes to pour them more vodka because god damn it she needs some.]

'Cause I kinda did it.

[And she's trying to figure out how she should feel about it. Especially since one source of judgement didn't happen. She doesn't feel like there's anything wrong with it, but she knows most people would see it as a problem.

But--]

Aunt's puttin' somethin' to th' Night Council with the election an' all.

So I fucked the Vice t' get his support.

Oh.

[WELL that she hadn't expected. Swallowing thickly, she turned to Skip.]

Alright.

How do you feel about it? [Because now she's curious, and maybe asking her to put words to the feelings would help.] I mean, do you regret it?

I regret how fuckin' dull it was.

[It sounds flippant, but Skip seems actually sincere.]

Had t' pay a friend a visit to actually get a proper screw.

But doin' it? For somethin'? An' havin' that all laid out?

[She shakes her head and takes a drink of her vodka.]

Not at all. Jus' felt like sex. Jus' with clearer expectations an' all.

[Nancy gestures towards her friend.]

There you have it. That's how you feel. That's how you should feel, because what you're feeling is completely normal. There are different reactions to it. [Without getting too specific...]

Some women feel cheap and used. Others feel this amazing sense of... power.

[She was growing into the latter, having started as the former.] It's sex, you can get off. There's nothing wrong with supply. The problem comes from the demand.

[Seriously, the men who would take her up on her offers were generally creeps. Generally.]

[Skip can't help but smile. It's nice to hear, at least, that there isn't something wrong with her just because she doesn't care about what she did.]

Hopefully you can get off.

[It's easier to smirk and offer up a bit of a joke than let herself think and talk about it seriously for too long.]

This guy couldn't manage that.

Like, seriously. How can someone his age be so bad at sex?

Hopefully, [she returns, but knows that it isn't always the case. But it's a job, when she's with someone. It's different, it doesn't really matter.

One of the reasons she doesn't kiss her clients. And only wears bright red lipstick when she's on the job.]

You'd be surprised- they grew up thinking the only person that matters in sex is them and their pleasure. You're a tool for them, not a partner in it. But if that's what they want... [She shrugs] That's what they're paying for.

An' if that bastard doesn't deliver? I'm spreadin' it to every tabloid that'll listen.

[She flashes a grin.

Really, she doesn't care that much. It was sex. Trading it for something as important as his vote? Honestly seems kind of pointless to her. But men don't think with their brains. Especially not powerful ones.

She holds up her glass in a toast then drinks it.]

Atta girl!

[Nancy raises her glass to that.]

I wish I could do the same with Norrell. But my word against his? I'd be torn to shreds.

Hardly. [Skip shrugs her shoulders and takes another drink.] Th' public? They love a good sex scandal.

I know.
[but]

But I'm a nobody. A Midnight witch, at that, blood-worker. Raised by fae. I don't exactly scream as the most trust-worthy person out there. [She'd discussed this with Eames.]

Makes it all the more scandalous. Him slummin' it? An' with a Midnighter? You could really screw 'im.

[She threw her head back and laughed.] good god- alright, we'll see how the election goes. Then maybe I'll come forward.

What's the worst that could happen?

Worst? No one believes ya, an' that's 'bout it.

[Which, to Skip, isn't really a bad thing. Just means nothing changes.]

I guess, yeah.

We'll see how the election pans out, alright?

walking with strangers (March & April Catch-All)

April 15th, late afternoon

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tw: child prostitution

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