Theo nodded.
"Fae love to manipulate -- they love to do the most of their work by proxy. I find that you would be harder to manipulate, your emotions feel all muddy and gross, so I think you have something protecting you on another level. But that would just mean they'd probably take another route. Fae are lazy and they wouldn't go for someone like you who would be a LOT of work if they could help it."
Theo grinned, "Since that contract is written in glamour, instead of being written in any of your Mortal languages, it's funny to see how your brain translates it. My brain reads that entirely different, basically says that you can't MAKE a district law that is impossible for me to follow -- in order to try to get me to break the contract and suffer the consequences of breaking the contract." Theo gave Jake a moment for the words to sink in.
"Basically, if there is a district law that is created that is impossible for me and mine to follow, and that law was created in good faith to the city as a whole, then we would have to find a compromise that is possible."
Theo poured themselves some tea, holding the teacup with both hands. "Regarding the part about my service, Fae are able to 'take' people. It means different things for different Fae, but you can consider it traditional the-fairies-are-coming-to-take-your-children-to-their-realm. The difference for me is that the people that I 'take' work at my bar, protect me from people who would try to cut off my head," Theo blows a raspberry teasingly towards Jake and then lets out a soft 'oh!' and turns their tea into raspberry tea. "... and I think you get the point. When someone is in my service, it is nigh impossible to turn down a command that I give them, but as you can see with that one over there..." Theo jerks a thumb to Rohan, who is mockingly tilting his head side to side as he mimicks Theo's speech, "... I give a rather long leash."
Rohan is throwing towels, yet again. "You wish you could leash me, softie." Theo merely rolled their eyes, smiling despite themselves.
"The drinks caveat, while put in a fun manner, is more a protective clause. It ensures that we are meeting up regularly. Fae don't create contracts without some form of timeframe on them. Well. They can. But the magic gets weird, unpredictable. That's the last thing we want. It's not technically required, but it'd be like if..." Theo thought to themselves. "Like if you were to hotwire your car every time you drove it. It may do in a pinch, but you'd probably just use the key if you had it."
Theo paused and considered. "Props are complicated to explain, but we'll summarize it as an extraordinarily powerful magical item. It'd be easier to give an example of the power of a Prop. Excalibur was one." Theo thought to themselves. "Oh, the notebook used by the person who created the atom bomb was a Prop. There are other ones that haven't been world-shattering, too. Like jewel that produces an endless flow of water. Or a blade that can cut through anything -- even its own scabbard." Theo drummed their fingers on the top of the bar. "The Prop has an ancient and powerful magic tied to it -- a word... a concept. It then has power given to it by Arcadia to embody that concept entirely. The Fae have to make a huge personal sacrifice to make one, so to say they are rare would be an understatement. That I am offering one is probably much bigger than you realize, but it drives home that I intend to keep my end of the bargain."
Theo altered the contract to fit their agreement. "One thing," Theo said, "I will update it so that it says I will support your bid for the district and that I will not offer support for Ben's bid for the district; however, if he wins, I will be able to work with him in his new capacity."
