Liability (Geralt x OC)

Chapter 1

Nothing ever changed between the days that passed. Men came and went like the pigs they were. I, in the meantime, had to keep a smile on my face and my voice sweet to keep the coin coming. Even now, as I stand at the edge of the main room, I maintain a demure smile on my face as the eyes of customers roam their options.

"Sometimes it feels like we keep seeing the same faces over and over again." I didn't have to turn to know who had stopped beside me.

"Regulars is what keeps the coin flowing, Amrynn. Isn't that what Marquise always says?" Amrynn scoffed at the comment but maintained a perfect smile. Eyes were everywhere. Even as we spoke quiet and hateful words, we remained poised and alluring.

"Sometimes I question whether or not I made the right choice, being a strumpet," Amrynn muttered, a man passing by and sending a provocative wink to the elf. She tucked her blonde hair behind her pointed ears and smiled sweetly at the man in response.

"Better than being stuck in the other brothels, in my opinion. At least these men can afford to pay the price," I whispered between a tight-lipped smile.

"But we're still-"

"I know." Our conversation ceased after that, Amrynn moving to another part of the room to convince some men to spend their coin on her. I am not proud of my line of work. In fact, I'm downright disgusted by it. No woman in her right mind wanted to sell her body to strange men for their pleasure. But these women, they don't have a choice.

"How much for this beauty?" I turned and peered up through my lashes at the man who approached me. He was a regular customer around here. I wracked my mind for his name, but I had never bothered to remember it. My body fell into its usual routine without much thought on my part. A sweet but seductive smile, the torso bent towards the customer, and the eyes raking their body as if it's all you desired. Simple, but effective.

"Who, me?" I purred in a voice that did not feel like my own. The man seemed to like this and readily pulled out a purse of coins. He leaned forward so that his lips were next to my ear.

"Yes, you, little fox," he growled in an unpleasant tone. I swallowed any disgust I felt and ran a finger down the front of his tunic.

"I'm flattered." I held out my hand and the man dropped the coin purse in it.

"Follow me."

~~~

Slipping on my outfit over my undergarments, I left the room uneventfully to deliver the coin purse to Marquise. The man, whose name still leaves me, was sound asleep on the bed. He had paid enough for the room, so I didn't bother to wake him. I found Marquise sitting at a table with a glass of something strong. The older woman had pulled out her book of expenses and was making a note of something.

"Here's for the nobleman in the green tunic." Marquise took the coin and began counting what was inside.

"He paid for the room as well." Marquise nodded and made a note of that in her book.

"Did he give you any trouble, Tanea?" Marquise asked, glancing up briefly. I shook my head in response.

"Nothing out of the ordinary, no." Marquise nodded before taking a sip of her drink.

"Marquise." Both of us turned at the call of her name to find Amrynn waiting there. "Word is that there's a witcher in Novigrad. And, he has plenty of coin to spend." My eyebrows rose at the news. A witcher? I had never met one in person, but I always heard stories of cold and ruthless witchers who killed monsters with ease. I shuddered at the thought of having to face a kikimore or an endrega. Even for payment, I couldn't imagine it possible.

"What makes you think a witcher would stop by Passiflora? I thought they didn't have emotions, or something of that sort," I commented. Marquise shook her head and stood from her table.

"Witchers don't normally display much emotion, but that doesn't mean they don't feel lust. They may be mutants, but even monsters must breed." The woman shut her book and grabbed her drink.

"If the witcher arrives, treat him like any other paying man. I will not tolerate the loss of money because of silly prejudice." Amrynn and I nodded as Marquise left to speak with other strumpets, most likely warning them about the possibility of a witcher.

"Have you ever met a witcher?" I asked Amrynn curiously.

"No, but my brother hired one to get rid of a nekker infestation in his village a long time ago. He said he was rude and curt, but did the job well enough." Amrynn shook her head with a tut. "Witcher or not, I won't be tolerating any form of disrespect if that witcher comes strolling in with an attitude." Once again, our conversation was put on hold as another nobleman approached to 'talk' with Amrynn. I let the two be and wandered away to lounge delicately on a chaise. The night was coming close and more drunkards would be coming as the night passed on. I let out a small sigh and let my gaze wander to a tall window. Even though I had a roof over my head and coin in my pocket, I knew this wasn't the life I wanted to live. But what choice did I have? It was either this, or starving in the bits. Or worse, stuck in Velen.

My mind began to wander back to the witcher in Novigrad. Everyone knew the horror stories of children being taken away to train as monster hunters. Though few and far between, witchers gained their infamy from word-of-mouth. Everyone seemed to hold a distaste for the whole lot of them, calling witchers mutants and non-humans despite the fact that a fair amount were humans by nature. At least, before they became witchers.

I was taken from my thoughts when Marquise passed by me and snapped in my face.

"He's here," was all she said, and I knew what she meant. The witcher was in Passiflora.