The damp floor did not bother her. Having decided to forgo footwear of any kind Eleanor felt light and elated. She had worn the diver suit for several days causing a kind of claustrophobia. But between her beautiful light dress and naked feet… well she felt free. Unfortunately for Perrier, his feet were just plain cold. As they had been walking through Fontaine Futuristics, he had noticed Eleanor's lack of boots or shoes. He was forced to accept her answers, "Because I did not have any," and "I felt like it." After a short pause Perrier did likewise set aside his shoes aside on a dry tile. "If ze lady goes without shoes zen so will I." If Eleanor had paid attention she would have noticed the man's strange walking pattern as he dodged puddles and cracks on the floor.
The scenery was deadly silent and the soundless lull that past between Eleanor and Perrier was even worse. Nothing but the sound of dripping water.
Perrier decided to break the silence. "You're wearing a very lovely dress. It suits you much more than that horrible diving get-up."
"Oh, thank you. I just borrowed it from Max. I don't think my mother would like it though." Mother, she thought. Did she even have a right to call the real Eleanor's mother her own? Lost in thought, Eleanor did not hear Perrier's next question.
"Ehem," Perrier exclaimed trying to regain the girl's attention. "I waz just wondering what did you do before all this happened?"
"All this?"
"Uproar, turbulence, ze splicer rebellion that started it all."
"Oh… Oh! Well I was um… you know," Eleanor replied hesitantly. She could have said she was sucking the Adam out of half rotten corpses and being chased around by insane splicers but she could not, did not want to. "Nothing really."
The silence continued albeit reluctantly.
As they walked Eleanor suddenly remembered Fred and Billy. She prayed to the sisters of fate that they were safe and sound… especially sound. She realized how much time had passed since she had left Pauper's Drop, how much Fred probably missed his boys, and how much she wanted to give Billy a haircut. Eleanor pictured different hair styles and giggled at the thought of a couple of them.
Perrier immediately noticed her merriment. "What iz so funny? Is there something on my face?" The man pulled out a mirror and checked himself over. All he could find was a loose hair drawing small scowl across his face. They walked around a security station and down a flight of stairs. "Ah, we're here," he announced regaining his cheerful composure.
It was the main lobby where they had first entered. Hardly a day had passed since they had escaped deaths grasp only to receive a rude welcome within this hall. But now it was peaceful and silent. Only the wreckage and ruins remained to tell the tale. Eleanor slid her hand past the massive globe as she past it.
Meanwhile Perrier was retrieving an item from a hidden crack in the side of the stairs. He briskly returned to Eleanor's side with object in hand. It looked like a bundled piece of cloth.
Eleanor looked at it quizzically. "What is it?"
Carefully unraveling the piece of cloth, which turned out to be a table cloth, Perrier revealed a loaf of Italian bread at its center. He handed the golden loaf to Eleanor while he spread out the cloth. "It'z only a three dayz old," he explained. He then grabbed the champagne and glasses from where he had sat them down. "Penelope tried to buy up all the bread from an anonymous who lives in another part of Rapture but I secretly bought a loaf behind her back. The little oaf would be simply furious if she knew."
Eleanor giggled at his charade. Then her stomach growled at the thought of the bread in her hands.
(Pop)
Eleanor looked over and saw that Perrier had pulled out the stopper on the bottle allowing it to momentarily foam over beside him. He then poured a glass and held it toward her.
"My sweet Cherie, please allow me."
Eleanor traded the bread for the goblet. Now having the bread, Perrier broke it in half and offered one half back to her. Setting the bread on his lap, he then poured his own glass.
"Now, do as I do," Perrier stated dipping the torn half of his bread in the glass allowing the champagne to soak in.
Eleanor immediately followed suit then put the soaked end in her mouth. The bread was sweet and tingly to her tongue. She loved it. The bread melted in her mouth and the tingle went from the tip of her tongue to the ends of her fingers and toes. She began laughing in delight.
Perrier laughed with her. "Do you like it?"
She shook her head. "I do, I do. It tastes wonderful."
Soon they began talked merrily between bits and sips or both. Perrier asked questions about Eleanor who answered them without regard. Most answers Perrier thought absurd and laughed even harder until champagne came out of his nose burning his nasal passages and causing Eleanor to laugh even more. Soon they ran out of bread but their glasses never seemed to empty.
"You know Eleanor," Perrier began, "You are such a beautiful woman."
Eleanor blushed red and giggled from behind the sleeve of her dress. She shifted over to him and looked him in the eyes. "Oh, and just how am I a beautiful woman, Monsieur."
The held each other's gaze for a moment then broke out laughing again. Then Perrier reached out and pulled one of Eleanor's legs toward him.
"Your legs are like delicate stems blowing in the wind."He then clasped one of her hands. "Your handz are like ze soft leaves reaching for the sun. And…" He held her chin in one hand and gently pulled her closer. "Your faze is like blossom with jet black petalz drawing all around to… it'z… beauty."
The distance between their faces, their lips drew smaller but time itself seemed to stop. Eleanor felt a kind of heat rising from her chest stirring her up. As they were about to kiss the heat emulated throughout her entire body except for one spot.
The spot felt cold, clammy, and foreign. If she had been any more inebriated she probably would not have taken notice or cared but she did. The moment before their lips touched her eyes lowered to a spot on her leg were something seemed to be moving underneath her dress. Her first thought was that it was a snake crawling up her dress. She jumped away as best as one sitting could and frantically brushed the snake out from under her dress.
Perrier, who was just as startled, jumped sideways as well and retracted his one hand from her chin and recoiled his other hand from under her dress.
Eleanor started panting heavily. She cupped her head as the room started spinning round and round. In concern, Perrier held her shoulders but she immediately shook him off.
"Are you okay my chérie?"
Still breathing heavily, Eleanor turned and looked at what was really the snake. "Y-your hand."
"My hand?"
"I thought it was a snake crawling up my dress."
"Ah, so that is what startled you," he laughed lightly. "I'm am truly sorry. I got lost in the moment. Now where were we?"
Perrier tried to embrace Eleanor again but she threw him off. "You are a feisty woman. It makes you arousing. But here, have another drink perhaps. Your heart beating that fast cannot be good for you."
Eleanor held her refilled glass and stared at its contents. For a instant she hesitated and put her lips to the glass. But as the liquid touched her lips it made them feel cold and clammy just like his hand. Her eyes flashed toward Perrier. "You. You are the snake," she exclaimed. "And this is your venom," she yelled slinging the champagne at Perrier ruining his clothes.
With drink in hand, Perrier shot to his feet clearly outraged and for a second and a half did nothing but fume. His empty hand drew back ready to strike. "You- you wench," he shouted swinging his hand towards the girl at his feet. But his hand never connected nor even moved. Perrier, in his drunken stupor, had hardly realized his hand was not moving until her looked at his arm and saw someone holding it back. That someone was Mathew Parks.
