CW - Some adult themes.

The brothel had never been more popular than it had been and Ginnie was feeling tired from the extra work. There was more money in her pocket than she'd had in a long time thanks to how much business was happening after the changing of the guard. The only problem she faced was that the Madame wanted her to try some new things that made her feel as if it was time to look elsewhere for work. She was not sure she wished to do this job in her underthings.

Indeed, it seemed a bit too much for her sensibilities, and she thought she had numbed herself to the goings on of the place. She was also being asked to become one of the ladies of the night, something else she was not keen on doing. She sat in the empty bar, sitting at the counter as the barkeep wiped down the bar top. "I don't know if I can do it," she said in a scandalized whisper to her friend. He glanced over to her and said, "Then don't. Just because you came here for a job, does not mean you need to do it on your back. I know why they want you, you are a dark beauty and would bring in a fair amount of money if you tried even half as hard as some of the girls."

She wrinkled her nose and shook her head, "No thank you. I'll stay as long as I can without losing my dignity in the process. I didn't sign up to be a sell out." She thanked him as he sat a glass of tonic, as well as her meal for the start of the work day once the cook brought it out. It was just some stew made for the support staff. She began to eat thoughtfully, "Besides, I shouldn't have gotten work here, but I was desperate. But I think I have saved enough that I can afford to look somewhere else before I bow out gracefully."

She didn't know where Pony had gone, though she had reason to believe he was always on the move, for he did seem the restless sort. She knew he would probably return after a time. She did miss him, but she was reluctant to call him more than a friend at this point and she wasn't sure what it was they even were at all. It wasn't as though they shared enough time to figure it out. Ginnie wasn't sure if she wanted the same thing as he did, and she would not push for something... yet it couldn't be denied there had been part of her that hoped he liked her in the same manner she liked him.

She ate thoughtfully as her eyes stared down at her meal, taking her time since she was usually early most days to help with the set up.

Pony didn't know how he'd ended up there, he hadn't been working there for a bit. They had plenty of help so he'd gone off to figure out what to do with himself. It was good to be alone and clear his head with thoughts about the future. Unfortunately, he had no answers. The crumpled letter in his hand had certainly not helped. It was a good thing he'd been recognized as had been working there for a short bit so they let him in despite the hour.

He hadn't even noticed who was there when he came in and slumped at a seat. "I know it's after hours, please.. just give me something to drink. Anything." He nearly begged the guy at the bar before slumping forward and resting his head on the bar, burying his face in his arm. The red haired man was so conflicted between being furious and wanting to wail at losing the only family he had left.

The tender did as he asked, knowing who it was and cutting him some slack. Just because he no longer worked there, didn't mean he didn't have some loyalty. Ginnie saw him and frowned. It wasn't because he didn't notice her, it was because he looked sad and stressed. He gave Ginnie a look, knowing she kind of had a crush on Pony and that she probably needed to have that time without someone listening. She looked back, nodded and then moved to set a bowl of stew in front of him along with some bread. Then she sat on one of the stools closest to him, swiveled and gazed at him softly.

He'd probably feel her knees brushing against his leg as she did so, but that was the whole point. She waited silently then for him to start talking. She wasn't going to yell at him for disappearing on her, he never spoke of being more than friends and she would respect that no matter what she felt. Her hand moved to touch his arm gently regardless of when he looked up or not at all. It was a gesture of comfort.

Pony heard the bowl be pushed before him, he could smell it too. On any other day, he'd be ravenous after smelling such delicious food. Right now, his appetite failed him. He slowly sat up though and kept his head hung low, and seemed in his own world even after feeling the gentle touch of her knee. But slowly he opened his eyes to stare at nothing. Very slowly, he reached over and held out the nearly crushed letter to her, and in a small voice that seemed too weak even for him, he spoke before grabbing his drink.

"She's gone."

She wasn't offended that he didn't go for the food, and didn't say anything as he took hold of his drink. He held out a crumpled letter and she gently took it from his hand if he let her. From there, she would smooth it out quietly and gaze at him for a moment before reading the letter. Ginnie bit her lip, folded the wrinkled paper and slid it to a spot in front of him on the bar.

What could she say? She knew it had to be hurting him, so telling him she told him so would not have been right. She just moved a little closer so she could touch his shoulder, "I know it hurts, Pony," she whispered to him. She had only ever met his sister a few times before, she seemed like a kind hearted person but Ginnie didn't know her. "And I know you might be angry too... But it's done. You cannot change it. You being angry isn't going to do anything but give you a headache. And she isn't here to hear you yell. If you need to yell, though, I am here. And if you don't want to yell, I'm here."

Pony frowned more and shook his head. "I'm not-... it's not like that. I always wanted to take care of her and help her. But she did wild things and never thought ahead or be patient. I was disappointed and..I admit I got angry. I've spent so much time trying to help so she wouldn't end up in a bad situation on the streets. Who knows whatll happen in America. She always thinks she knows best when she's never had to struggle on her own or live through the hells I have."

He hung his head and sighed downing almost half of his drink quickly. "Now she's out of reach and I can't help her. I just have to hope she's right about that man she stumbled into like she did with her first husband." He frowned more and slumped into his seat looking down.

"That's the thing, Pony, she wanted independence from that, from being taken care of by you all the time." She paused and thought about how she could word it so it made sense to a man. Problem was, she had little experience with that. It took her a few minutes to think of something, "For instance, if I had a brother, I would be overwhelmed if he continued to be more protective of me than allowed me to spread my wings, does that make sense? Women have it different than men. You are all allowed to do most things, where we have to fight for a lot of things for us to be able to do. We are beholden to a lot more rules than you have, we aren't allowed to stretch our wings the way men are encouraged to. In this case, all she wanted was to have the freedom to do with her heart what she wanted and you were telling her no. And when you weren't happy for her happiness, she was hurt by you. She wanted so badly just for you to be happy that she was happy, and you fought her every time, from your own words to me once." She was calm and not judging him, that was clear, and hopefully he wouldn't get defensive. She knew him well enough to know it could go sour, but it needed to be discussed.

Pony shook his head as he took his drink and downed some more. "You don't get it. Of course she wanted that. I would have wanted it for her under more careful circumstances. I wanted her to be safe. I wanted her to be careful. I know very very well how women are treated. I've spoken to women like the ones working upstairs and the ones on the street. The ones most women would rather starve than 'lower themselves' to. It is completely pure luck she was not put in a similar place. She barely knew her first husband when they became lovers. He could have been lying to her, it happens all the time. One person against her could have spilled what was going on and she'd have been called names and hated by most of the people in town, thinking she'd be going for their husbands or sons. It happens all the time."

He shook his head and sighed hanging his head. "It was pure chance she turned out okay. And then she wanted to date again. And of course, I'm always wrong for not approving how she did things. For wanting caution. So she'd be safe. Of course I got upset. In the end, I would have always been her brother. But in the end, my worries and my words of caution didn't matter. I didn't matter to her. Less than some guy she ran into in a pub one day. Of course I"m furious. You can't understand my pain." He said with a sigh and closed his eyes, gripping the glass dangerously tight.

"That is what I am trying to tell you, though. For you, you're not looked down upon as bad if you barely know a woman and then have relations with them, but we get reckless and we get condemned. The thing about love..." she paused for a moment to think about it, then lifted her brows and licked her lips, "The thing about love is that it doesn't have a set time. Not really. Love can take a long time or a short time. Love can cause both good and bad. People have warred over it, people have done silly things in the name of it. She did not do it to hurt you though." She went on, "It's not that you cared or that you were protective as much as her wanting to figure out for herself how to move through life. If you keep a bird in a cage, it will never be able to live out in the wild since it relies on you to feed it and cater to it's needs. She wanted you to let her fly and sometimes when birds first fly, they fall. But they were her mistakes to make and I doubt she was doing them to make you unhappy, but rather, to figure out for herself how to navigate the world. At least that's what it seems like she was trying to tell you. Every time you and I have talked about her whenever you are upset, it's always about how you feel she should act, or how you want things to be for her. The more you fought her about it, the more it seemed she pushed back, don't you think?"

Pony sighed and kept his eyes closed as he drank slower the remains of the glass. "I know that. I know all of that. If love is fast or slow doesn't mean one should rush in. They should still love someone in one week and in a year whether or not they jump into each other's arms immediately. No one gets that." He sighed and folded his arms and hung his head. "It is like having a bird and trying to just let it out on a leash so it doesn't fly too far because you can see the hawks and foxes just on the horizon but the bird just keeps wanting to break free and fly right into it. It's hard and frustrating. Maybe it is just because me and her are such different people. No matter how much I loved a woman, I would never jump into bed with her until I was prepared to marry her. I'd care about her reputation too much and would never want to give her a hard time." he said with a shrug and frowned looking into his glass after he drained it.

"Though it doesn't matter. I stayed in that house after experiencing true Hell, just so I could get her out too. I should have ran out on my own, since she could take care of herself." He said, not being bitter at all, nope.