~~Felix Clothier's~~

"Ah, Felix," Ruscoe broke out into a large grin, placing a hand on his chest, "Of course I can pay and I will, I can't go to the ball like a king in imaginary robes!" Ruscoe allowed a pause for laughter, most of which he loudly provided. "But try to understand, you know, people in my kind of business, the paycheck doesn't come at monthly schedule. So if it'd be alright with you, I was just wondering if I could give you the whole payment the day after the ball. I wouldn't leave you here with nothing, I'll give you half now and after the ball, the other half. With an interest of 5%, of course." The PI kept up the grin and stuck out a hand to shake, "That sound fair to you, Felix?"

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{Marcus Q. Maximus}

_Saura's Room_


“Ginger Peach?” Marcus questioned as he was taken by surprise by the choice. He hadn't had that particular one in quite sometime. His glaze was on the table now away from others. A few memories popped into his head, a royal crest, a noblemen with blank expressions, and his own bloody hands. “ What was three, now only two remain...” He muttered under his breath commenting on his past. Poppy's attempt to prod further about Saura's incident jarred Marcus from his daze. He shook his head and commented “ Poppy, the house of Eileed is also known as the House of Secrets. “

Marcus then turned to over Poppy. “ She had already said what she was willing to say. “ He mentioned on the subject, choosing his words carefully. “ Through a word of advice, Saura and this is speaking from experience. Past Mistakes will always haunt you unless you act upon them.” He said as he stared directly at Saura. Reaching into his pocket, Marcus pulled out an old silver toy. It was a robot, and on it, its chest plate to be exact was something written in German. Marcus placed the toy on the table and wound it with the tuning key, he had on his person. “The sooner, the better.” He added as he twisted the key several times.

The tiny tin robot clicked and clanked as it walked. Its arms moved up and down, the hands spun around, and its eyes sparked orange sparks. “ Or else it will get worst over time and the price you will pay....might be fucking horrible.” He lectured with a slight pause.

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"Fate smiles on the strange. So its a good thing, I'm the strangest of all." - William Livingstone, Cirque de la Nuit

~School for the Gifted: Saura’s Dorm---- tea and secrets?~

Saura blushed at the passionate way Poppy spoke of defending her honor. It was just like the books that laced one of the walls in her room. She watched him intently almost forgetting that she was pouring a cup of tea. A gasp escaped her lips as she came back to reality barely stopping before overflowing the tea cup.
" Ginger peach is," she paused for a second to catch her breath, " it's one of my favorites, but i have others if you would like," her eyes focused on the tea cups as she poured Marcus' cup. Poppy's question had made her fairly uncomfortable, luckily Marcus was willing to weed those question from needing to be answered. It only figured that it would come for a price. She sighed, and listened as he spoke, pulling out the little robot. He had done well to keep her attention, until he pulled that out.
" That is beautiful," she exclaimed as loud as she could," did you make it?"

~ Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Kitchen ~

The doctor glanced back at Marie, just for a moment, his expression as impenetrable and distant as her own. The instant waned, though, and there became detectable a certain wideness about his eyes – barely there, but noticeable if one strained hard enough – that seemed to convey a measure of surprise.

“Right you are.” He replied, bringing the sombre trilby to his side just as the door swung open.

Cut against the dim candlelight of the cathedral was the young man from earlier, Father Alexander standing off to his side, his priestly vestments making him seem like a long shadow thrown by some outcropping of the building’s architecture. The gears in Michael’s head buzzed. He could have been startled, perhaps insulted, by an intrusion upon the delicate matters he was attempting to handle there in that room, but he wasn’t. He trusted the Father to understand at least an inkling of what was going on.

And so, if his trust was not misplaced, this young man before him was in the same rickety little boat as Marie.

“Callaghan.” He intoned, as the request for his name tumbled towards him. “Michael Callaghan.”

Normally, he’d have just tipped his hat, but seeing as it was presently untippable, he extended a hand instead.

_________________

{Marcus Q. Maximus}

V[V_Saura's Room_V]V

Marcus lifted up his tea cup to sniff the Ginger Peach tea's aroma. However, before he could and to his annoyance, she questioned him about his robot toy. “ Yes, in much better times.” He said as his answer. “ It was a gift, to an old nocker friend of mine. So we could compare notes on mechanisms.” He watched the toy robot move closer to the edge of the table. It stopped close to one millimeter in front Saura. “ Its no longer a gift, but a reminder. However, I understand now, my friend is truly gone.” He added, he then raised the tea cup of hot tea to his nose to fully take in the aroma of peach before he takes a sip.

“You're welcome to have it, Saura.” Marcus offered as he felt it the toy robot would be in better hands with a child. He takes a sip and then sits it back down on the table. Marcus reaches for his tuning key and sets it on the table. “I need to look into the future a little more than the past.” He mentioned “ That and a toy should belong in the hands of a child.” He raises his tea cup again to take another sip. The ginger certainly brings out the flavor of the tea.

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"Fate smiles on the strange. So its a good thing, I'm the strangest of all." - William Livingstone, Cirque de la Nuit

~ DuBois Estate, Lillian's House, Kitchen/Dining room ~

The young girl's eyes twinkled, and she gave a firm nod. "I'll go get them. I have to apologize for last night anyway." Only a child would cause a ruckus and not apologize for it, and Arietta was most certainly mature. To accentuate that fact, before leaving the kitchen, Arietta offered a small curtsy. "Thank you for listening to my ramblings, Miss Lillian."

She stepped through to the dining area only to stop abruptly when her eyes met with a familiar sight. Victor sat at the dining room table with a look of intense concentration, his signature weapons organized in pieces and separated into parts, being cleaned individually with a sort of delicate care that seemed uncharacteristic of the man if Arietta didn't see this sight every day. The soft clinks of tinkering that wafted through the air eased the girl's tension for a brief moment; she was used to falling asleep to these sounds. She snapped out of it suddenly; how long was Victor sitting here? Arietta pursed her lips awkwardly. Knowing him, as well as his exceptional hearing, he likely heard everything she had confided in Lillian just moments before. Arietta huffed. She stepped up to him and crossed her arms. "Idiot. Don't muck up the tablecloth with your stupid dirty pistols." Arietta paused, looking conflicted, her brows narrowed. Right. She was supposed to be apologizing, but she couldn't shake the desire to scold her guard for eavesdropping. She averted her gaze from Victor. "Y-You...t-that is...i-if you heard anything from the kitchen...j-just forget everything. It's not your concern." She coughed and shifted her weight between her feet. "A-And about yesterday...s-sorry. N-Not that you weren't to blame either! Stupid!" There. She apologized. Good enough!

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-- Sketch Blog -- My Art Thread -- DeviantArt --

~ Behind the Curtain ~

"Booklets?!" The androgynous counter clerk replied incredulously, pouting at Lothian and slipping out from the seat she(?) had occupied, to snatch back the comic book. "This is a comic book, my friend! It's only the height of American creativity and ingenuity in literature!"

J glanced back to Kate as he(?) slipped behind the counter again, long-fingered hands with black-painted nails moving to gather the strewn-about comics and stack them carefully.

"'s my boss. Aurilye. She owns the place."









The tattooed woman chuckled softly and took the letter Pepper offered her, running her fingers over the flawless calligraphy, a soft, ethereal smile curving at the corners of her lips.

"Ah, yes, the ball." She tilted her head, looking at--or through--Pepper for a long moment before she offered the invitation back. "Follow the rabbit, child. Don't forget to have the roses painted, either."










~ Felix's Clothier's ~

Felix smiled, bobbing his head in a repetive nod to the photographer and the detective. "Good, good. And while I usually charge full payment on pickup," he mused to Ruscoe, tapping his chin with one finger, "I think I can make an exception in this one case and give you a little financing. You seem pretty trustworthy."

He abandoned the wall of fabric, pulling the measuring tape from his neck. "I'll just need to get measurements for the both of you. Who's first?"










~ Rose Apts, Shadows' Apartment ~

Angel smiled softly and patted Claire's shoulder, turning to her lover and guest. "If you'll excuse us for a moment...Lyle, sweetie, if the oven timer goes off, can you take the muffins out for me?"

She assumed that his answer would be positive, apparently, because she untied her apron, setting it on the counter, and moved to lead the grey-haired girl toward the bathroom, opening the door and retreiving a towel from the linens cupboard, setting it on the marble sink.

She didn't look at Claire, smoothing the thirsty cloth of the towel. "Did he hurt you?" she asked softly, so that her voice wouldn't carry to the rest of the apartment. Angel was a very perceptive woman, able to glean an idea of what was going on through her experience with the Fang siblings and the way that the girl was acting now. "I can help you bring the matter up to your Grand Elder, if you like...I'm sure this sort of thing is against even his moral code..."










~ Sept of the Silver Snow, Bawn, Silver Fang Mansion, Kitchen ~

Jeremy blinked, dumbstruck by the other young man's words. Kane was so bold...He kind of reminded Jeremy of his friend Aaron. So self-assured and unaffected by the world. He looked back at the unfinished necklace, taking a deep breath and trying to find his resolve. Aaron had been the one to show Jeremy that he needed to have a backbone, even if he was only Kinfolk.

No, Jeremy reminded himself, he shouldn't even use the word 'only,' even in his thoughts. He had to have confidence. He needed to be a man.










~ Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Kitchen ~

The priest smiled softly, clasping his hands behind his back as the two visitors to the church formally introduced themselves.

"May I offer either of you coffee? Marie here percolates an excellent blend."

The girl in question set her freshly-rinsed mug in the strainer by the sink and padding barefoot past the priest and his guest with a soft, "Excuse me, I'll be right back."

Father Alexander shifted to let the mousy girl through the door, looking at Thomas, though, while she was passing. He had a small smile curving at his lips, as though he were waiting for the rest of the world to realize something he already knew.









~ DuBois Estate, Lillian's House, Kitchen ~

Lillian smiled softly, busying herself in the kitchen cleaning up the dishes that had been used to cook. She could hear the conversation from the dining room, though she couldn't discern the words, and she knew her presence in there at that moment would be more of a detriment than a benefit.

It was nice to have company other than the cats, and if that meant doing the dishes while her guests had a little discussion, she was more than willing to put the labor in. In fact, she was happy to do it, humming softly as she scrubbed the charred remains of batter from her crepe pan.

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Official Forum Mom

~ Behind the Curtain to Felix the cat hat~

Pepper gasped, and smiled. The dazzle, and sparks twirled around. It was so clear. T'was brilling! Honestly brilling, her savior had come through for her. Then again there was never any doubt for that, was there. Her own manxome foe had be snicker-snacked, and now it was time for her to go Galumphing back.

"Calloh, Callay," pepper exclaimed," It should be My Way, My way is perfect. Oh Eyes You Always know the Mimsy." The redhead girl reached out and hugged her friend. The bread and butterflies floated out of the Pigeon as the girl turned to skip out of the place with out a care or hint of acknowledgement to the other mome raths in the room. Her toes were pointed in one direction, and her obsession must be perfect. She hoped with her endorsement there was no way Mr. Magic Bag could not go her way. With a big smile the girl skipped whistling the chocobo theme to herself making her way to her good friend.

~ Sept of the Silver Snow, Bawn, Silver Fang Mansion, Kitchen to theEmerald Tower~

Kane trudged to his room and got dressed. He placed his cell phone and the mystery cell phone in his pocket and looked around. It was odd, for ten years he had spent ninety percent of his time with the girl and today was one of those few when she refused to see him. A deep sigh escaped his lips, and the man made his way out the door. He wasn’t even quite sure who he should go talk to, or what he should do. He did know though that he needed to do it soon. Where should he go other than the horses mouth itself, which meant back to the Emerald Tower. With out a second thought the silver haired young man was on his way to the ET.

~ Rose Apts, Shadows' Apartment ~

The girl smiled at the comforting touch.  Angel was so sweet, and understanding. She was everything the girl had missed since  her mother's death. Even the muffins reminded the girl of what her mother would have been. She sighed bitterly and walked with her.

"Thank you, Angel," she smiled softly, "I really appreciate this, and I'm sorry. I just didn’t know where else to go where he couldn’t find me. I will be fine. As long as everyone else is okay, I'm okay." The girl spoke in the same hushed tone as her host.  She thought for a few moments about Angel's suggestion. He had done things like this before. It was never a really big deal; boys will be boys, you know. Who was she to say the way he was acting was wrong. Though, there was that close call the last time. He had been there for her so much, though, that she just couldn’t rat him out.
   
"Thank you for your offer, but it doesn’t really matter unless..." She paused, not wanting to bring that up again. "It doesn’t matter at this moment. Maybe later, but not now."

~ Behind the Curtain ~

As Pepper hummed and skipped her way about, another humming voice joined her.
A woman dressed in dandy, professional clothing. She wore somewhat dyed reddish hair clipped up, and red-framed glasses on a dignified and attractive face. Each step carried her the same distance in a motion regular enough to keep time by. At her side, she carried a robust silver-gray suitcase.

She nodded and smiled curiously, looking her way and humming as she walked by. A glint of light traversed her lenses, uncovering brilliant violet eyes. But as for Kate, she strangely took very little notice. Perhaps Pepper's odd behavior was more interesting to the stranger.

The woman drew a partially cupped hand to her chin, slowly, as if unfolding a fan.
"Hmhmm... it's awfully lively in here. Perhaps I should come at another time."
There was an unnatural, electrifying aura in the air surrounding her. It seemed as if the woman was surrounded by a field of subtle static. But it was transient, disappearing and appearing as soon as one felt it.

More enduring was the hint of chypre, citrus and sandalwood, that followed her wherever she went.

~ DuBois Estate, Lillian's House, Dining room ~

Arietta's approach made Victor stop what he was doing. When she reprimanded him, he began to gather up the parts of his guns in careful haste.
"I am sorry, master."

He hadn't intended to eavesdrop. But with senses as finely honed as his, how could he not? Besides, he was curious... and worried. Still, he could not do much else but accept Arietta's scolding.

Soon, however, as he had grown used to, Arietta's tone changed subtly. She whispered a quiet apology for the other day while fidgeting.

"I am sorry, master." he said once more, but his tone was entirely different. There was a quiet, kind glow in his words as he smiled. Though they could no longer feel the sun on their faces as they awoke, his smile was reminiscent of that comforting sensation.

Then Victor took an oily palm and patted Arietta on the head twice, turning back to his work.

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FUKKATSU

~ Behind the Curtain ~

Kate just nodded, sparing another couple of seconds to look at the woman. "Well, someone has to run the place after all." Had she implied J wasn't good enough? Her words came with a glimpse of evilish shine on her eyes, but she didn't press on the matter. Whatever she was about to say got interrupted when yet someone else entered the place. "Lively, yes", muttered more to herself, since the other woman hadn't really talked to her, that she knew; people today seemed to look through her, which in her case was a bliss of sorts.

Grinning at J, Kate leaned a little on the counter. "One more person and you might even sell something."

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~ Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Kitchen ~


Thomas turned to look at the priest at his request, but then turned back toward Marie as she walked out the door.

" No thank you, Father." He said feeling uncertain of himself. He felt as though powerful things were in motion. The Priest also had a knowing look that was unsettling to Thomas. He didn't know what the look was about, but it was as though, he knew things men shouldn't know. Hell I know things one shouldn't know. Then again the knowing look could be about him, and he wasn't sure if that was better or worse.

-Felix's Clothier-

Ruscoe slowly blinked and his mind faded away from reality for a moment.

Wow, did I just talk my way into a lower and delayed price? I must be smoother than I... waitaminute... this isn't the sort of thing where he pins me into some sort of legal trapping and blackmails me into doing... sort-of favors... is it? I mean... I am incredibly dashing. And he is remarkably gay. It is the perfect combination. Or rather the worst possible combination ever. Whenever things start working out too well, that usually means it's not.

But I need that god damn suit.

I need leverage.

Ruscoe blinked, inhaled gently and then glanced to his left, leaning into it a bit as he asked quite innocently. "You might as well take," Ruscoe waved a vague hand in the direction of the photographer whose name he never remembered to get or just never remembered, "I've got to find a bathroom." He looked back at Felix, all smiles, "Got one?"

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~~Felix Clothier's~~

Torin continued to look at the many rolls of fabric, starting to wonder what the tailor might have in mind for him, when he suddenly realized something. Luckily for him, the other man was directing the tailor to work with him first. "If tha's the case, Ah have no problem goin' first. Ah dinna wan' a kilt, Ah'll have no one mistakin' me for a bloody scotsman. Tha' has happened too many times already, people canna tell the difference between an Irish boy an a Scot anymore, apparently." The last part was muttered to himself, though it would be quite audible to the other two in the room.

_________________
Zath: Behold, Karo: The only woman in existence who can make Fenix shut the fuck up.
Redsnow: That, and, frankly, if Karo doesn't like you that much, your character is probably going to die soon after his acceptance anyway.
Keiran: Bad RPs don't get picked, unmemberable RPs get ignored.
Zelosse: I don't usually laugh at blatant attitude, but when I do. It usually involves Karo.

~ The Emerald Tower, Hallway ~

Aubrey quietly observed his surroundings and the three about him. It seemed that the women of this tribe were the ones to earn respect from... they had held high opinion of themselves to date, as was evident from his earlier conversation with Melissa, and now the bold telling off from Rachael. Such actions pointed toward a firmly established matriarchy. Anyone could have noticed it if they listened carefully to the tonality and underlying emotion being put out there for all to see, but most apparently did not interpret speech in that way.

He silently approved of this internalized realization. He preferred dealing with the opposite sex rather than other males. Experience with men taught him to be "competitive". His father once thought that a healthy thing, but when people started needing medical care from his 'competitions', it showed that it could be unhealthy too, for any party.

He raised a quizzical eyebrow at Vincent when he attempted to announce himself in a tribal fashion. "I see," he replied flatly. Ragabash... he inwardly sighed to himself. He knew that he did not mean disrespect, but the words felt a touch mocking nonetheless.

He faced his new teammates, Vince and Rachael: "The long standing law of my strong people states 'Do not forsake Gaia, Gaia will never forsake you'. I doubt the lot of you will disappoint Her, but I think it fair to warn you, should I see you falter... expect my Wisdom to correct you. My opinions of you will come with time and effort, and I expect you to do the same. You shall see I will not let you two down. As for hate... that is not something you have earned from me yet."

Although it was spoken cryptically, it showed a slight approval of the pair. He subtly took in a slow, relaxing deep breath. It was a lot of talking for him and he felt the need to center himself again.

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A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving. ~Laozi

-Outside DuBois Estate-

The hours ticked by slowly. No, very slowly. No, infuriatingly maddeningly slowly. All had been quiet on the DuBois front, too quiet. There had been no movement in or out of the queen’s castle since he got there. “I knew it. Damn it, I knew it.” He grumbled to himself, pacing back and on the sidewalk furiously smoking a cigarette. “I knew this would be a big waste of time, and yet here I am, still grasping at Ruscoe’s straws.” He fumed, resisting the urge to slam his head against the wall. He partner's dumb luck be damned. “These people are either the biggest night owls I’ve ever met, or just too damn rich to care. Unless they’ve decided to use Ruscoe’s imaginary underground escape tunnels that is. Wouldn’t that be something? Yes, a total load, but still, something.” He sighed and spit the remains of his cigarette to the ground. “Damn it.”

Marshal stopped his incessant pacing back and forth to look at his watch. It was creeping ever closer to his scheduled meeting with Atimida, and the closer it came the more agitated he became. Why be here when he could be out putting the pieces of the case together, talking to the locals, and any number of a thousand useful things, or simply getting wasted at some local bar. Even that would be better than sitting on his hands here. “You know what? Screw it. Nothing’s going on in there, I haven’t heard a peep from Ruscoe and I have that damn meeting to get to. Screw this, I’m outta here.” Without so much as another glance at the entrance to the estate Marshal revved the engine, flipped the radio, and got the hell out of there.

~School for the Gifted: Saura’s Dorm----How Nice~

When he was asked to hold his tongue, Poppy did so without complaints, though he still remained curious. He watched Saura poor a little bit too much tea in a worrying matter. It looked like it was about to overflow. Biting his teeth, Poppy warned the young girl quickly, ”Watch out you’re going to-!” It was too late. The poor dear spelt it. But luckily, now they were going to have an alternative other than black tea. It wasn’t anything personal. He just didn’t like the taste of it all. But ginger peach well, it was a much better choice in his opinion. He wondered if it was going to taste anything like ginger ale. ’Which reminds me, I really haven’t had that in awhile…’ he thought.

While he was thinking about ginger ale, Marcus had done something Poppy would’ve never expected from him. He gave a toy to a little girl. That one act made Poppy’s heart brighten with joy, just to see his buddy do something other than act like a grouch. Maybe there was some heart in the grumpy fellow after all. ”’Ey! You’re being nice! I never would’ve thought I’d live to see the day. Maybe there’s a soft spot in you after all!” Poppy said almost jokingly. You can tell he was more than happy that his friend had chose to reveal this other side of him. In fact, he was fully proud of him, and proud to be friends with a man who made toys. It explained all those toys in Marcus’ apartment, and the mask. Honestly, only a toymaker would make a mask that creepy. He was sort of nervous that the nocker built something trivial like chairs instead, what a relief that was. No, Marcus’ buddy built fun stuff. Who else could say they were best friends with a toymaker?

Unfortunately, Poppy didn’t seem to get a chance to be happy for any longer when the mood had once again turned for the negative. Really, there seemed to be a pattern for this sort of stuff lately. Poppy listened as Marcus spoke of the lost of a friend. It made Poppy feel sad, losing a friend could only be one of the most horrible things a man could go through. The poetic heart he harbored couldn’t take the tragedy of it all. He couldn’t help but feel sorry for his friend. ”A sad thing it is, to lose a friend. Bless ya mate!” Out of nowhere Poppy blew into his long coat like it was a handkerchief. ”Excuse me it’s just its so touching. Well, don’t ya worry, I’ll be sure to be the greatest friend ya ever had in yer life! Ya won’t need to be regretin’ anythin’ with me pal!” He seemed serious, he may not be able to change anyone’s pass but he could sure make up for it. He ended his small speech with a slight smile. His tears seemed to be gone for the moment. ”By the way, nice tea ya got here. Ginger adds a nice touch.” he added, this statement directed to the girl.

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Musicmac: "Sam4Books: Always ready to cheer things up with awesome art. Terms and Conditions apply."

~Emerald towers~

She blinked somewhat, amused by his deduction. It wasn't everyone who called her almost being killed 'getting along', but that had just been one out of several. Enters hadn't been so bad and no one else had her pecked as a loser yet. Hm... Vince did have a point.

" I would exactly call whats happen so far getting along. But I'll concede to the fact that I haven't pissed off everyone yet." If one read between the lines they'd actually get the fact that she was being nice to Vince. "If you can manage to tolerate me I guess..." [/color She paused for a moment, [color=#8000FF]"Being on a team with you isn't so bad " She conceded. "Though its doubtful we'll get along, I won't go out of my way to annoy you." she added quickly.

Though she had to wonder if Aubrey always spoke in riddles. If he did then she doubted her patience would last . Already she felt like reneging on her previous promise. Instead she turned to Vince""So your gonna be the leader of this team of socially in-adept people. I almost fell sorry for you" She smirked, almost mockingly as she patted the male on the back.
\

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The Dinobots can combine! What they combine to is death!

http://tfwiki.net/w2/images2/d/d2/The_B ... 2_full.jpg

~School for the Gifted: Saura’s Dorm----Shock and Awe~

Saura glowed, almost purring when he offered her the toy. It was so sweet. Such a sentimental thing he offered her. She was so entranced with it that nothing else honestly mattered. She did not miss Poppy's mention of a soft spot. It took a moment, but sure enough a soft blush rose to her cheeks. He honestly had a soft spot for her. How romantic. Until of course her companion blew his nose on his shirt. Her face twisted in utter shock and disgust. How was she to react to this. Her bottom lip drew into her mouth as her toothless gums nibbled on it gently. Hesitantly, her hand reached into her sleeve and pulled out a hanker chief offering it to the male. It took the mention of the tea to make her realize one of his earlier comments.

" I apologies, I did not realize what exactly you meant by, not your usual choice of drink. If you would like something a little more adult, I know a place where we can go that you may enjoy, it has open mic night on Wednesdays. It is the place where the ball will be held,'' She paused for a second," oh before we go, if that is what you would like too do, may I ask what it was that you were planning to go to the ball as?"

~ Behind the Curtain ~

Lothian gave J a confused stare as she(?) organized the comic books, every few seconds his eye would give a small twitch as he stared at her. "The height of American creativity and ingenuity is a fragile booklet with weird pictures and bad dialogue?" He shuddered a little bit knowing full well he was about to get into an arugment. "I beg to differ... uhh...", he stopped mid-sentence, <Sir or madam, sir or madam, sir or madam!?> his eye gave another twitch before continuing, "Person of undistinguished gender!" He sounded a tad bit loud as he spoke, making elaborate and unnecessary hand gestures, ending with pointing directly at J. <Smooth, Lothian, real smooth.>

"The motion picture is much more creative than these comic books," Lothian gave one of the comics a little flick as he spoke. His thick foreign accent making it obvious that he had little experience speaking English as a primary language.

~Apartment Complex~ Shadow's Apartment

Vivi had entered her own little world before Claire had entered the room, not noticing the girl introduce herself. She remained in that trance as she played the song on her violin, unwelcome memories of her sire, Vincente Belagosi, rushing back to her.

"Come now, girl, my patience has run out." A tall man circled Vivi as she sat alone in a barely lit room, his Italian accent resonating through the room, "You said you wanted change, a metamorphosis," his head hovered over her left shoulder, "So I gave it to you, in return for being my little pet." His long fingernails slid through her hair for a moment before letting it fall back to her shoulders, "It would be a real shame to let you go to waste, such an intelligent girl, now complete your metamorphosis, just like I showed you."

"This isn't want I meant," she said quietly, hanging her head and looking down at her skirt, "I was happy before."

Vincente scoffed as he listened to her. He stopped standing across from her and rolled his eyes, "You were alone, no friends, no boyfriend, your family halfway across the world, and they haven't spoken to you in how many months now?" He folded his arms and narrowed his eyes at the girl, "I never let a childe live long if they don't appreciate the gift I've given them, Viviana, and you're dangerously close to becoming another one of my expierments," he stopped pacing and stared at her for a moment. He slammed his hands down on the table and glared at her, his monstrous face now being illuminated by the light, "If you don't use your gift by the time you return with your pack I'll reduce you to a gibbering husk. Now begone."

The fiend snapped back to reality with the sound of one of her strings snapping, she cursed in Romanian and put the instrument down. She held her head in her hands for a moment and gave a sigh before looking back up towards the rest of the group, "I'm sorry, I wasn't all here before," she put her instrument in its case and looked about the room, feeling a bit embarrassed.

She spotted Claire and gave a bit of a smile at the girl she had inadvertently ignored, "I didn't mean to be so rude," she said standing up"I'm Viviana Ardeliu, but most people call me Vivi."

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~ Behind the Curtain ~

"Hey, I get paid no matter what, sweetie," J replied to the woman before Lothian's words made her(?) twitch. He(?) turned around, pointing a finger in the man's face, mouth wide to berate him, but was cut short by his boss.

"It is good that you have all come. Please, do follow me," the dreamy-voiced woman said as she moved to walk through the stacks. "The days ahead will be troubling, but your presence has been foreseen, as I told each of you in the letters I sent," she said, even if no one followed, reaching up every now and then to pluck seemingly random books from the shelves. "There is great turmoil in the political atmosphere, here, and the haven we have from the clutches of the Technocracy is threatened."

She wandered back to the counter after she'd picked as many books as there were new visitors to the store, and began to hand them out, in the order the people had walked in. Lo and behold, she'd somehow picked a book that pertained to each person's personal or magickal interests.

"I have arranged lodging for those of you who need it. As well, you will need these." She held a hand out to J, who blinked for a moment, then ducked behind the counter, head and hand popping up a moment later with a small stack of linen envelopes.

The pale woman took the stack and offered them to each of the mages that stood before her, smiling cryptically. "I do hope you like masks."









~ Rose Apts, Shadows' Apartment ~

Angel's brows furrowed slightly, but she nodded as Claire made her decision.

"I understand...But...If he touches you again, any of you, it might be best to have Lyle enter the scenario, even if he is your brother," she said softly. The tone of her voice was at odds with her words, as if she were still comforting the other woman, rather than suggesting that her vampire boyfriend execute the young man.









~ Emerald Tower, Residential hallway ~

"Oh, about that whole leadership thing..." Melissa interjected, having quietly observed the meeting between her three new operatives, "We have one more operative on her way, and in light of her resume, we might...shift positions around a bit."










~ The Bamboo Tower, Lobby ~

Atemida, who would be impeccably dressed save for the fact that his tie hung loose around his neck over his pristine white dress shirt, pulled back the cuff of his jacket and sleeve to check his watch, a small amount of annoyance showing on his face.

"Fucking gaijin...Never early..."









~ Felix's Clothiers ~

The flamer chuckled softly, motioning Ruscoe in the direction of the back left of the store, where there was a single door marked 'Powder Room,' instead of the usual two doors marked with male and female symbols.

His attention focused on Torin, who he led to the little dias in front of the bank of mirrors, gently pushing his arms up so that he stood like a scarecrow. "Stand normally, now."

He went about measuring various parts of Torin, each time scribbling the numbers down in a little notebook that he pulled from his pocket.

"Oh, don't worry, cutey. I'd probably have the IRA on my head if I did that to an ass as cute as yours." Even though he seemed to be flirting in words, his hands were all business, even when it came to measuring the Irishman's inseam.

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Official Forum Mom

~ Behind the Curtain ~

The woman in glasses chuckled to herself, placing her free hand on her hip.

"'Haven' implies that this town is a safe place, which no place is. And, well, 'turmoil...'"

She leaned a bit more towards the proprietor. There wasn't anything unfriendly in her voice, but the way she carried herself made her seem far too amused to be taking things seriously.

"That's just the natural result. The kind of 'crowded' this city has, and the kind of 'crowded' this store has are two different things. 'Colorful' too can describe the lively folk flowing through this city."

The silver suitcase at her side shifted in her grasp. She tipped her glasses, as if it would help her peer deeper into the heart of the turmoil in the town.

"But, and I don't mean to be rude, nor do I mean to disappoint you, I'm a questionable choice for whatever you've got planned."

Though it was vaguely ostentatious, the woman raised three fingers before her in an appropriately dramatic gesture to match her stylized tone.
"One: I don't particularly value 'colorful' people over others. Two: I don't have any interest invested in this 'crowded' city's status quo. Three..."

As she folded down each finger, she reduced three extended fingers to one extended thumb, and jabbed it at her chest.
"I'm fickle. Shouldn't come as any surprise to you, but people like us often are, you know."

Shifting her hand inside her pocket, she smirked confidently. "Just letting you know. As a professional to a professional, anyway. If you foresaw that far, I'm certainly fine with anything. Negotiation, information gathering, information dissemination, maybe even a little fisticuffs..."

Her eyes widened slightly as she bared her teeth in a grin.
""...as long as it doesn't bore me."

She took the envelope.

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FUKKATSU

-The Bamboo Tower, Lobby-

A few blocks and a pack of beef jerky later Marshal arrived once more at the Bamboo Tower. He was right on time. “This Atimida guy better be here this time around.” He grumbled to himself. The man was in too foul a mood to be blown off now. This was his only lead, and he was going to squeeze every last drop of information out of him. Marshal brazenly marched through the lobby doors and right up to the receptionist’s desk, carefully scrutinizing the others in the room as he did. “Name’s Marshal.” He announced. “I was here yesterday. I should have an appointment with a Mr. Atimida. Do you know where I can find him?”

~~Felix Clothier's~~

Torin stoped before the dais for a moment, popping his camera case off of his belt and set it down on the ground by the mirrors, where it would not be in the way. After that he stepped up into the dais and held his arms out, his posture completely straight. It wasn't like him to slouch anyhow, not unless he was doing it for a specific camera angle. He didn't seem bothered at all by the gay man taking his measurements, even in the most awkward of places. Torin had dealt with tailors before, he had to, since it was hard to find pants that fit his long legs in regular stores sometimes. "I dinna think tha' anyone has referred ta mah ass as cute before."

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Zath: Behold, Karo: The only woman in existence who can make Fenix shut the fuck up.
Redsnow: That, and, frankly, if Karo doesn't like you that much, your character is probably going to die soon after his acceptance anyway.
Keiran: Bad RPs don't get picked, unmemberable RPs get ignored.
Zelosse: I don't usually laugh at blatant attitude, but when I do. It usually involves Karo.

-Vince, Emerald Towers-

Vince had to admit, Rachael’s response was an interesting one. It highlighted a mischievous streak that he didn’t think she had in her, sarcastic remarks in the face of a psycho wanting to tear her limb from limb aside of course. “Really? Well thanks!” His grin quickly changed into a full-blown smile. “Hm, I dunno, you seem like an interesting person to work with. You’re probably right about not becoming best friends forever, but…” Vince shrugged and turned his attention to Aubrey. It would probably be best to shut his mouth before he made any more mistakes.

He seemed to be…put off at the idea of working with a Ragabash, or maybe that was just his imagination? It was more of a gut feeling than carefully analyzing everything about Aubrey to try to get an idea of what was on his head.

Vince kept his expression blank as Aubrey spoke, he didn’t want his newest teammate to take offense or anything. The guy just sounded…well, maybe not quite arrogant, but he definitely had a bit of en ego to him. Things like “my strong people”, and saying that his “wisdom” would allow him to point out whatever he felt was wrong about them. Was the law he mentioned a subtle slam against the Glasswalkers, or was he just being paranoid? Vince was well-aware that he had a tendency to get that way around other Garou sometimes.

“Um…very nice introduction.” Well, what the hell else was he supposed to say to that?!

“Only almost?” Vince grinned wryly as Rachael patted him on the back. There was definitely some sardonic intent in it. “I don’t suppose sobbing in a corner somewhere would change that?” Not the best joke in the world, but whatever. Things were going way better than they were last night!

“Really?!” Vince looked at Mellissa with a hopeful expression before he caught himself and recovered. “Oh…I mean, yay…” He looked down at the floor, embarrassed. How he felt about being blindsided with the leadership position probably wasn’t much of a secret anyway, but it really was improper for him to act out how enthusiastic he was about not being responsible for other peoples’ lives. Call it self-esteem issues, but he wouldn’t be comfortable with that kind of responsibility while he was still so inexperienced.

“Sorry. Well, can’t wait to meet her.”

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Emerald Towers, Parking Lot to Lobby

The car that pulled into the Emerald Tower's parking lot looked as if it had just driven out of the pages of an upscale advertisement. It gave no hint to the hour-long journey it had just completed, and the driver looked similarly unruffled as she shut her door. She shook tendrils of pale hair out of her face and unlocked the backseat to pull out what looked like a garment bag. Her motions were jerky, and her posture was perhaps a bit too rigid as she gathered a few more things: a matching overnight bag, a piece of rolling luggage, even an old-fashioned hatbox. Apparently whoever had packed her clothes had an odd sense of humor, or at the very least watched too much tv.

The girl's expression was distant, her face smooth in the way of someone thinking very hard on the next few tasks on their checklist. As much as her body language suggested her displeasure with having to carry her own things, she did so with a strange ease. Even with the four bags (five, if one included her purse) piled over her slender frame, she managed to make the act of walking in four-inch stilettos appear an act of pure grace.

The closer she got to the tower, the more her annoyance melted away; Eve had played this game a thousand times, and was likely to play it a thousand more. Besides, it wasn't as if any of the people inside were society people... She paused just outside the door to check her reflection in the mirrored sheen of the building. The silvery substance showed that her make-up was just as she wanted it, and not a single hair hung out of place. A satisfied smile lit her face, and she gave her reflection a small nod before she resumed her pace inside.

Her rolling luggage let out a soft whirr to offset the distinctive click-clack of high heels. The receptionist looked up from her book with an expression of boredom that quickly morphed into confusion at the sight of the woman striding toward her. She'd seen a great many strange and... strange things during her time at the ET -- but the blonde striding toward her looked like either an eccentric heiress, or the high-priced call-girl come to stay. Her gaze quickly swept over the full designer ensemble of mixed black and magenta, topped off by impossible magenta-hued heels, and she stifled a snicker. Geez, maybe both.

She managed to entirely swallow her laughter, but the smile she gave the blonde still held a certain bit of laughter. "Is there, ah, anything I could do to help you?"

Eve's responding smile was brittle in the way of glass: both brilliant and sharp, the second quality matched by the the narrowing of her eyes. "Indeed there is. You can call Ms. Anderson and let her know that not only is Genevieve San Severino here, but she extends her most sincere apologies for the late hour of her arrival. If you'd be so kind." The words were uttered in the most mild of tones, save for a sarcastic bite at the end which Eve accentuated with a cool nod. It was a taunt for what the receptionist saw as some imagined slight, but she at least waited until Genevieve turned her back to speak into her headset. It would really ruin her night to have some prideful Garou bite off her head this early, even in a figurative manner.

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Why follow me to higher ground?
Lost as you swear I am...
-- "December," Collective Soul