{Marcus Q Maximus}

_Hallway

Marcus placed his tea cup on the plate like Saura instructed and followed her through the door. As Marcus left, he sighed in defeat as he listened to Poppy's cheerful rebuttal, you can't even threaten him, were his thoughts. Poppy was a force to be reckon with and a force that Marcus can't hope to defeat. Beside the floral decorated plate was a wind-up key and a tiny tin contain of oil that Marcus was kind enough to leave behind. “By the way, Saura, when you play with the toy, make sure you wind it seven times with the wind-up key.” He mentioned, he rather the toy last a long time than just a few days. Which speaking of keys, Marcus suddenly remembered an objective of his. He snapped his fingers and said “ Right, I can't believe, I fucking forgot. I need to make copies of the mechanical lab keys.”

He stuffed his hands into his stained red flock coat. “ I'm going to need a lot more gadgets than my mask for that celebration.” Marcus added as he thought about the party. “ Yet another “grocery” list for this week.” He mentioned as he rolled his eyes. “And Detective work is what I'm trying to seek within Tarry-town. Well more likely with a certain agency. “ He answered when Poppy mentioned he would make a good detective. “ And if that doesn't pan out, then I have to wonder if this school has an apprentice program for Bamboo Towers.” He added.

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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

Emerald Tower, Lobby en route to the Residential Floor

"Y-yes, m-" Kate was already talking to empty air before she could get out her response, but that had ceased to bother her a long time ago. Clearing her throat, she pulled out a plastic card from the pile of papers that took up one side of her desk. "Ah, Miss San Severino, Ms. Anderson said to go on up." She held out the card with a tiny flourish and finished, "You'll be needing this to use the elevator."

Eve raised her eyebrow in Kane’s direction, and she shook her head slowly. Mischief made her dark eyes gleam, and her cheeks dimpled perfectly as her lips spread into a genuine smile. He reminded her so much of many of the people she’d left behind in Manhattan. She glanced back at Kate and held up a finger as if to say, “one moment.” The act of picking up her bags put Eve closer to the silver-haired youth, and she chuckled, "You are good-looking, I'll give you that. But I prefer for my eyecandy to have a sense of discretion." She seemed to have bounced back from her earlier ire, and she made her way back to the receptionist’s desk with a lightness to her step.

Her manicured fingers paused over Kate’s briefly to grasp her keycard, but she didn’t stop walking. “Thank you,” Eve called over one shoulder. It was difficult to tell if she actually meant it, or if the phrase was simply reflexive -- but she felt she get points for at least saying it. Her heels were making a rapid, clicking rhythm on the floor, but that stopped once again when she stopped in front of the elevator. With her free hand, Eve slid her card in the slot provided. The LED on the keyslot glowed a welcoming green, and the doors whispered open for her. She settled into the metal box as the doors closed in front of her, but neither did her grip on her bags nor the rigid straightness of her posture change once she was away from the others.

The elevator’s music drew her curious glance upward, but she pushed it out of her mind with a shrug. Musical whimsy was hardly the matter at hand. In fact… She set aside her bags to start unzipping her coat. Pulling it off entirely wasn’t exactly the key -- it contrasted the dress underneath well, and would provide a nice frame for the custom-tailored garment. The elevator stopped as she finished smoothing whatever wrinkles may or may not have been in the fabric, and Eve had everything in hand once more when the doors opened.

She approached the small group with a small swing to her steps, thanks to heels that for anyone else would have been too tall. The hallway’s subdued lighting played up the magenta and black of her clothing, and it helped with the subtle illusion of her make-up -- that she wasn’t actually wearing any, she just naturally had a complexion that flawless, with wavy hair of pale gold to crown her head. Her rolling bag paused as she stopped, and she looked at Melissa and Vincent with an unreadable expression. “Good evening. I hope I didn’t hold up activities too much.”

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

~ Rose Apts, Shadows' Apartment ~

Angel's smile hardened, just a touch, though the overall look on her face was still sugar and rainbows, as both of them declined to join her and Shadows pulled away from her to clean his gun.

"Oh...Well...I guess I'll just have Claire help me, then." She turned, somewhat stiffly, and returned to the kitchen to place the muffins she'd made into four large boxes, glancing back at the two vampires in the living room every now and again. Each time she did so, she was smiling, but she was just a touch stiff in her movements.











~ Bamboo Tower, Lobby ~

Atemida arched a brow in a manner that was astonishingly like Leonard Nimoy, the rest of his face showing no emotion at all. He stayed that way for a moment before inclining his head a touch, as if waiting for more words to come. When none did, a look of annoyance passed his features, and he waved a hand in an impatient manner.

"Ask your questions, then. I am a busy man, Mister Marshal. I do not appreciate having my time wasted."

At least he was a bastard to his face, though, right?









~ Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Kitchen ~

Marie nodded and stepped forward to Micheal's side. As she passed Thomas, though, his eyes would be drawn to the cap she wore, or rather a small detail about the cap she wore. Just above her left ear, there was a small pen drawing.

To anyone else, it would just look like a simple set of scales, such as would be seen on a statue held by a blindfolded woman outside any courthouse in the country, but to Thomas and any other Imbued, it marked Marie as not only one of them, but a follower of the Judge's Creed.

"I'm ready...Did you drive, or should we take my truck?" The one with the ballista in the bed...









~ The Eclipse, Basement - Elysium ~

There were few patrons in the Elysium at this hour...A blonde man wearing a pair of rainbow boxers sat playing Indian Poker with what looked to be a preeteen girl in pink bunny pajamas. They were seated under the Malkavian table, with their cards held up at their foreheads, staring at each other intently.

At the Nosferatu table, a heavily cloaked figure sat with a large dusty book in front of them, slowly turning a page with a hand gloved in black leather.

At the Toreador table, a woman in a too-large black frock coat sat, picking dirt from under her fingernails...the tips of her fingers were stained red-orange.

The stage where the piano rested was empty and quiet, as was the throne on the dais at the back of the room...but Saro sat at the Ventrue table with a shrewd-faced man with chestnut brown hair, both of them leaning over and quietly discussing what looked like a ledger book.




Outside, Knuckle Cracka stood stoically at the door, dressed in what seemed like the only outfit he owned.












~ Emerald Tower, Residential Floor ~

"Ahh, Miss San Serevino." Melissa addressed the impeccably dressed new woman, inclining her head in a curt and businesslike nod as she reached into her coat and offered her a key on a ring with one keychain on it. The keychain proudly displayed a room number.

"Vincent Price, Genevieve San Severino." She motioned between them after Eve had taken the key. "I will leave you to get acquainted...I have a few things to do before we begin your first team-building exercise later tonight."

She gave them both another curt nod before she left them in the hallway, walking to the elevator with her heels clicking sharply with every step. Somehow, the sound of her heels was different that that of Eve's, sharper and with more finality to every step.

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Official Forum Mom

~ Dubois Estate, Lillian's House, Fuwafuwa Dreams ~

Life is beautiful. And when life gives you beautiful, you make crepes. That crepe smell must be beloved by all, even life itself, right?

Lucy swam through the light, fluffy lake of whipped cream (it's not real water, so she can totally swim in it, for sure) while appreciating the multi-berried skies above and its warm, fiery backdrop. Her destination was the mountain of hardy breakfast toppings, comprised mostly of well-sculpted scrambled eggs, but with the occasional outcropping of ham cubes and forests of flaked tuna. She knew it would be a difficult journey up to the delicious precipice of molten yolk, but it will be worth it. It'll be fine so long as she cautioned herself against the dangerous, rolling boulders of Italian sausage. She had no fear for Hollandaise sauce nor for the green wheels and flakes of garnish.

Thump thump.

The mountain quivered. The delicate bond of the fluffy, golden eggs shook under the force of the intruding quake, the two initial waves hitting almost together. Lucy couldn't remember if this indicated a more dangerous foodquake or not. Either way, the graveyard of the noble Eggy civilization was in peril! But what could she--a single, normal human--do against a great clamity that was foretold in the berries since the dawn of sliced bread?

Ah, but there it was. The key to salvation! General Tao's Golden Ladle, which has been used to avert disasters since the days of Demae Itcho's birth, and was last used successfully by Colonel Sanders! Yes, this is what Lucy needed, and to think, it was sitting within the very coagulate of this great mountain! Lucy needed to act fast, should the peace of the world across the seven creams and 4 syrups be saved. With a single jump, she lunges right hand first towards the prize, across a frightful chasm of dangerous char, smelling of obliterated crepes...!

....

Arietta hears a loud thump of a person falling from their bed onto the ground. She also hears what is probably the DVD menu to a fantasy film looping endlessly. Even here on the second floor, the smell of crepes was obvious, soon followed by the smell of Arietta's cooking.

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Twitter | Transistor Glamor | Tumblr | MAL

~ Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Kitchen ~

With a quiet but sharp intake of breath Thomas tore his gaze from the symbol on Marie's hat. Starting quietly but with growing strength, He turned away and said " We're more alike than I thought. Both of us judge "them", decide their fates, and, more often than not, mete out the punishment we see fit, though I imagine this is where the similarity ends." He turned and continued. "But when the time comes, who will judge us and our actions? How do I know that what I do is right? The messengers only give us the power they don't tell us how to use it. There is so much I didn't understand before. They opened my eyes, but even with all I have learned I still know exactly nothing. I... I sound pathetic, don't I?" He finished with an annoyed "tch" sound. "I'm sorry, forget that I said anything. You undoubtedly have more important things to deal with than my personal problems."

~ Theatre of Dreams ~

Saturday Night. Rave night at the ToD. The line wrapped around the building and trailed into the parking lot, though every now and then someone walked right up to the big muscled doorman and was waved right on in. They were 'Regulars,' most of the crowd waiting in line knew. Those few who were Enchanted could see that every person (or at least one of each group) that bypassed the line was a Changeling of some kind, and the bouncer himself was an impossibly tall Troll.

Inside, the lobby was decorated with blacklights and colored strobes that thumped to the music inside the theater itself. The concession stand was selling bottled water for cheap, along with the standard rave fare of glowsticks and various brightly-colored paraphernalia, including pacifiers, and they were absolutely and completely slammed.

Thankfully, there was a path separated from the crowd with gold stanchions and red velvet ropes that led directly into the theater, where in the flashes of light, one could see that all of the seats of the main room had been removed, and bars had been set up along two walls, complete with mirrored shelves behind them. It was a large room, but it looked smaller because of the crowd that packed into it, mostly congregating in the center of the room, dancing to the pounding baseline and musical stylings of none other than the Emerald Tower's Micheal Anderson, who stood up on stage behind the DJ's platform with a pair of headphones covering his ears (a very good idea, since the stage was also where the massive speakers where placed).

His black hair was touseled like he'd just crawled out of bed, and he wore a black t-shirt with a stereo equalizer on it, the green and red bars lighting up in response to the music he was mixing (which was actually rather technically academic, if anyone in the crowd happened to be a music student), and both forearms were covered with various brightly-colored jelly bracelets that glowed neon in the blacklight.

The scene was not one for minors, or anyone calling themselves 'straight edge,' because on the tables pushed against the walls and even at the bar itself, people openly did all sorts of drugs (though none of them seemed to involve needles), and numerous people were apparently feeling a good happy vibe from the party, because tucked here and there were couples (and sometimes a trio) of people that were making out...or worse.

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Official Forum Mom

~ Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Kitchen ~

Marie stopped, frowning softly as she turned to regard Thomas. "God will judge us. I don't know about you, but I hear His voice, guiding me to do as He bids. I'm not afraid of judgment. There aren't any 'messengers.' There's just the Lord."

She sighed, tilting her head to give Micheal a quiet sidelong look before she grudgingly spoke. "Would you be averse to taking him with us? I don't want to leave him to run amok if he's having a crisis of the faith."

"The choice is his, Marie," Father Alexander admonished gently, moving to drop a hand to Thomas's shoulder. "My son, you may stay and speak with me on the...morality of what it is you do, or you can accompany Marie on her jaunt. Either path leads the same direction," he said gently, his mouth curved in a reassuring smile. "You are among friends, here."

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Official Forum Mom

~ Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Kitchen ~

As many strange things that have happened to me and the mention of God still makes me uncomfortable, as though traditional logic and reason still operate in the world I know now. I lost trust in my faith so long ago, that I hadn't even considered that God might really be a possibility in all this. Whether or not God does has anything to do with me, I'd rather not have to stay here and talk about Him.

"I'm sorry Father but it seems the moment has passed. I'm normally not prone to such outbursts, butI'd rather not talk about it, and I really don't know why I said anything at all." he said sheepishly. "If I don't get out and do something I'm gonna go nuts. As long as you don't mind doctor."

~Shadow's Apartment~

Viviana frowned as Angel walked off into the kitchen. She looked back towards Shadows as he began to clean his gun, then back towards Angel. Viviana sat on the couch and made sure all of her personal belongings were in her violin case before locking it and pulling the strap over her shoulder.

"I'll go with you Angel," Vivi said looking back at Shadows. Vivi pulled her leather gloves over her pale hands and smiled, "Wouldn't want anything to happen to the two of you, and its more fun with more people right?" The fiend spoke confidently despite the torrent of anxiety bubbling up in her chest. If they encountered any other kindred would they hate her? Shun her? Attack her?

Vivi turned away for a moment as she tried to ignore the paranoia that began to overtake her, "I'll be waiting by the door whenever you're ready to go," she said with a hint of fear in her voice as she stalked off to stand by the exit.

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-Emerald Tower, Residential Floor-

The new team member wasn't exactly what Vince had been expecting. She looked more like Miss America contestant than anyone who'd be be allowed in the same building as a spec-ops team, or anything that involved actual risk for that matter. Oh well, appearances could be deceiving, and Melissa certainly seemed to know how to do her job. "Well, it's nice to meet you, Genevieve. Sorry about the others not being here, I think they've been having a rough time lately." Vince offered her his hand as he spoke. It was hard not to feel self-conscious around her, especially after everything that had happened last night. Everything about Genevieve seemed to be high-class, even her name.

Hopefully she wouldn't turn out to be a huge snob or something, the team was going to be under enough stress without someone else adding strife to it as far as he could tell.

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~ Rose Apts, Shadows' Apartment ~

"No, that's alright," Angel called to Vivi, her voice only just barely thin. If one weren't paying attention, they'd easily be able to miss that Angel was upset about something, because she covered it well.

"You're supposed to stay with Lyle, and I'm sure he has better things to do than play beast of burden for me."

She closed the boxes up and moved to the hallway. "Claire, honey, are you ready to go? I'm going to be late with my delivery if we stay any longer."

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Official Forum Mom

~~Elyslum: Entrance~~

Torin grinned as he approached the Elysium entrance, spotting the large brujah he had met the night before. He waved at the man and continued his approach, his long strides allowing him to reach his destination rather quickly. "Good evenin' ta ya, mah friend. How are ya farin' on this fine night?" He slipped the two packages out from under his arm and handed the top one to Knuckle Craka', still grinning. "Tha's for ya, as a thanks for allowin' me ta take yer picture."

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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.

-Bamboo Tower, Lobby-

Marshal smirked. “Very well then.” He replied, his voice betraying his mock indignation and amusement and the man’s inpatients. Atemida may be the most arrogant asshole on the planet but at least he didn’t screw around. “I’m in town working on a missing persons case.” While he was speaking, Marshal pulled a picture out from his coat pocket and held it up between his index finger and thumb for Atimida to see. “This missing person to be exact.” He held it out to the man, gesturing for him to take it if he wanted a closer look. “Her name is Elise Mayfield, or Pepper if you don’t recognize the name. Girl apparently goes by that now. She disappeared a few years back and has been spotted in town recently. I’ve heard that you might be able to help locate her.” Marshal studied the man as he gave his spiel, looking for some sort of reaction, a hint of recognition, anything. “So tell me Mr. Atimida, have you seen her?”

{Marcus Q. Maximus}

_Theater of Dreams_ Rave

“Open mic night, huh.” Marcus commented as his group was let in by the bouncer disguised troll. “ Looks like I wasn't the only one to be confused by the date.” Marcus shrugged as the music blasted. He truly despite these kinds of places. He reached into his pocket and pull out sets of ear plugs. He had learned from his time spent with Faith, that it was better to wear theses than to go deaf in one of these places. Marcus handed a set to both Saura and to Poppy, before plugging his own ears from the loud music and blinding colorful lights. Looking around, Marcus truly didn't feel comfort with having Saura being here and he cared for it even less.

They were filth to Marcus as he walked closer to the bar. He watched some take drugs, others dry hump, and some suck on those pacifiers. Marcus shook his head in disgust as he was ashamed to be the same room with this people. However, he ventured, not because he wanted to, but because of one man, he spotted. Micheal Anderson of Emerald Towers, another place, Marcus has interest in. The reason is because of "Bandwith Enterprises", which was another company, he hoped had an apprentice program if the other didn't.“ POPPY, watch the girl!” He shouted to Poppy over the loud music. “ Fucking people, hope all these bastards go deaf.” Marcus complained.

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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

Entering the Theatre of Dreams

Faith popped open her door almost before Alex had finished parking the car, and a delicately boot-clad foot descended as if to touch down on the street below. The troll let out a sigh of impatience at the pooka's impetuous behavior; she was always doing things like this, and one of these days... However, even if Faith had heard, she spared him none of her attention. Her gaze had already come to rest on the building in front of them, and a small smile played over her lips.

She shoved the rest of the way out of the car and wrenched Reena's door open. "C'mon, Ree, we gotta hurry or we'll be late!" Dancing from one foot to the other, she ushered the princess into the street and began walking arm in arm with her toward the Theatre. Reena merely laughed in response and refrained from pointing out that technically, they already were late, even if a few minutes wouldn't hurt anything.

The girls had been apparently been dressed with the idea of matching in mind. Even if the outfits themselves were technically nothing alike, they had the same color scheme of silver, black, and purple. Reena's was surprisingly modest for Rave Night, even in spite of the low neckline. Her shirt was long-sleeved and of a shiny silver material, decorated by a flower-and vine pattern on one side in black thread and a row of glittering black buttons running up the front. The skirt was also black, a mix of tulle and lace layered over a more opaque fabric. Dozens, possibly hundreds, of tiny jet-hued rhinestones sparkled in the light, and a wide band of purple ribbon acted as a "belt," adding a tiny touch of color to the ensemble.

Faith's base color was purple -- and while it actually should have clashed with her raspberry hair, sometime between last night and now, she'd thrown in a handful of other colors, reds and purples that ranged from near-black shades to swipes of palest pink and lavender. Her top was a faux-corset camisole, the silver lacing up the front contrasting strongly with the garment's deep purple color. She seemed to be wearing the same skirt as Reena... if the skirt had been the subject of a tug-of-war. The length of it had been slashed nearly to ribbons, and a pair of purple-and-black striped tights kept her from showing off more than she intended.

Alex walked along behind them, clad in a plain pair of jeans and a long-sleeved shirt over his ever-present snarky t-shirt. His posture was casual enough, but he scanned their surroundings with a watchfulness that just bordered paranoia. The bouncer inclined his body in a movement that was practically a bow, which she returned with a graceful nod and a smile. The trolls traded their own nods of respect before the trio found themselves in the shrieking behemoth that was the club. A small frown marred Alex's stoic expression at the onslaught of the music, while Faith laughed and swayed from side to side, pulling Reena along into the impromptu dance.

The pooka's expression brightened at the sight of the school's newest students, and she closed the distance between them in three skipping steps. As if she had some ironic sense of Marcus's thoughts, she launched herself onto his back in an affectionate glomp, trilling, "Well, speak of the devil~"




Emerald Tower, Residential Floor

Genevieve returned Melissa's nod as she accepted her key. "Thank you," she replied quietly, and the small object disappeared somewhere in the folds of her coat. The woman's mention of an "exercise" later tonight brought a positively wolfish edge to her smile, but she managed to tone it down a bit for Vince's benefit.

She accepted his hand with one of her own. The look of it would likely do nothing to deter him of his previous opinion of her: her nails were well-kept, with a shimmering clear gloss on them. The shine had nothing compared to the ring that adorned her ring finger, though. A large pink diamond graced a pale band, the jewel flanked by a ring of smaller black ones, with opal inlaid into the band itself. Genevieve shook hands with a gentle pressure, and though her skin was soft, Vince would possibly notice that her fingertips had a slight rough to them that no simple heiress would have possessed.

A slight chuckle escaped her as she straightened, and she shook her head. "What an interesting name." When he mentioned the others, she flicked a hand in the air carelessly. "It isn't your place to make apologies for them, but the thought is appreciated." The smile she had as she said it wasn't entirely a friendly one, but it vanished as soon as it disappeared. "I'll be gone a moment to put down my bags in my room, then we can, ah, talk or something." It didn't sound entirely like a dismissal, but she turned her back on him without a further thought.

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

~ Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Kitchen ~

“I don’t drive.” He replied to Marie. “I’m, uh, very green.”

The doctor offered Thomas one last, seemingly cursory glance, before something inside him seemed to cave in and he turned towards the exit.

He didn’t want to bring the man along – it didn’t seem reasonable to be taking his chances with too many of these people. There were surely those with respect in them, surely those who commanded a measure of understanding – at least enough to moderate themselves somewhat – but there were plenty of the other sort too. Michael was leery of bringing a pair of potential assassins before the princess of Tarrytown’s court.

He only relented because there was a measure of trust to be established, and he knew that, as always, someone had to go out on a limb for the sake of it.

“You can come along.”

As he approached the kitchen door, a stray bolt of humour struck him, and he smiled at the very corner of his mouth.

“Provided you don’t mind a night at the theatre.”

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~ Theater of Dreams~

Saura locked the door behind her, and followed the men to the theater. Her face twisted with an odd mixture of despair and bliss when it was discovered the day was not as she said, " what's the point of keeping tack of the days when you all end up in the same place anyway." Her voice, barely a whisper, held a tint of bitterness of undetermined origins. " It is a shame though," she looked around the main room with nothing but disappointment smeared on her face. Her body stiffened some as she looked around the rooms. The atrocious acts occurring around her, not only at the bar, but on the dance floor made her uncomfortable. She tried to pull closer too the men as she played with her lace cuffs, but was interrupted by an incomer. With the music blaring, the girl walked up to both of the boys and whispered in their ears, “ I'm not suited for this type of interaction. I am going to the green room in the back. You are welcome to join if you would like."

~Rose apartments , Shadows place~
The girl stepped out of the bathroom, half of her hair still wrung in the towel. She nodded softly returning once more to hang up her towel. She did feel it was necessary to be a good house guest even if you host wanted to leave. The next time she emerged from the bathroom, a mere minute later, the girl had her shoes on ready to go. Knowing something had happened, she walked into the kitchen to grab the muffins and turned to her friend, "Ready to go." She smiled hoping to find out what had happened but not willing to press the issue. If angel wanted, or needed, to rant, she would be an open ear.

~ Emerald Tower, lobby ~

The Muscular male paused and listened to what the woman had to say. He smirked at her comment and softly to himself once the woman had entered the elevator, " I am when I need to be." His hand reached into his pocket drawing forth the pair of cell phones. He wished he knew where she was. A sigh escaped his lips, it was apparent to any on looker the object Kane was holding filled him with distraught. With one more deep sigh, he shoved them back into his pocked and made his way to the elevator. It was odd, but the elevator seems to be the most insightful about the occupants of the tower. After he stepped in, and the doors had shut, Kane opened his mouth. He hesitated only a second before speaking, " Um, Elevator," he paused again ," Do you know where Claire DeLune, or Micheal Anderson are?" He felt stupid talking too inanimate objects, but took solace in the fact that no one was around. This was ,unless, of course, there were security cameras, But the boy was never hailed for his brains. The thought of security cameras never crossed his mind.

~On The way to grandmothers house, Distracted by the wolf~

The lights of the city flittered by as pepper walked around. She had set out in earnest to find her flippant friend, but got distracted as she often did. This time the daft damsel worked her way to the boutique for her engineering of her extravagant ensemble. Her excitement had grown when she had stumbled upon one of the local skittering through an alley way. It was a chance for her to tell the creative costume she had come up with. She was no longer the queen, but the curious child chasing the bare tailed little fellow through the twists and turns of the alley ways. Before she knew it the rash redhead found herself in a concrete jungle, she was no longer comfortable in. The scents in the relative area smelled frighteningly familiar. She knows. She Understands. How could she get what they wont even try to comprehend. Here body trembled remembering the shovel.

That was a very dark place. The small cell phone, which had rested against her bosom, burned it's self in her mind. It ached to be retrieved, or was it she? The girl released a deep breath as the electronic was extracted from it's enclosure. Her eyebrows furrowed as the figments of her imagination, the shaking she had once experienced manifested itself in the real world. What if there wasn’t a real world. What if someone had pulled a matrix on her. Or worse, what if there was no imagination. Her head cranked around searching for the insightful, all be it, scary witch she had experienced in this area earlier. There was no more time for this, Her hand pressed the speed dial button for the one person she could always depend on. The one person who crawled from the earth with her under the witches spell. She needed him now, and prayed the busy fellow would answer his phone this time.

~Theatre of Dreams----Bon Vivant + Babysitting = Disaster Waiting to Happen~

Poppy was severely enjoying himself. The dancing, the loud music that filled the air, the smell of sweat, people passionately making out in every corner, the BAR. This was the sort of place he dreamed about. Theatre of Dreams indeed. As he and Marcus walked past the crowd, the satyr couldn't help but walk in sync with the music's beat, his eyes glancing towards a random lady every now and then. This was almost the perfect chance to find for himself a date for the ball, if chance was willing. There was bound to be some gorgeous single lady in the crowd somewhere, waiting for someone to do the honors.

When Marcus handed him the ear plugs, Poppy looked at him quizzically. What on earth did he need those for? The satyr shrugged, and put the ear plugs in his pocket, planning to dispose of them once he had the chance. He honestly didn't find any use for them, and why would he? The music was so wonderful, there was absolutely no need to tune it out. But that was just him.

He was disappointed however when he heard Marcus say that he wanted him to play babysitter. While he was sure hoping Marcus was making a funny joke, he knew somehow that Marcus was being serious. That made him slightly disappointed, because his hope to find a lovely date was plundered. He couldn't babysit, he had no idea how. It wasn't like he had any younger siblings to take care of. As far as he was concerned, he was the youngest. Although that sort of stuff got confusing when your mother jumped from guy to guy. Still, he couldn't even believe someone like Marcus would TELL him to do something like that. What was he thinking? Did he honestly think he could babysit someone?

And then, Faith entered the scene. To tell the truth Poppy was REALLY happy to see her, and even MORE happy to see she had brought along a friend. She really did look lovely, the satyr was about to compliment their matching outfits when she had glomped Marcus in an affectionate matter. All hopes he had of dating her in particular disappeared from Poppy's mind. Well, there goes another one.

It wasn't to say he wasn't happy for his friend though. For Poppy truly considered that this new development would surely mean happiness for his grouchy friend. And once he considered this, Poppy decided to compromise the lost, and perhaps cheer his friend on. "Look at you! Gettin' the girl without even tryin'!" he commented the nocker. At least Faith brought a friend (who wasn't bad looking herself). Perhaps he would get lucky.

But unfortunately, that ever lame duty of babysitting had to get in the way of everything. He sighed when Saura whispered in his ear. A perfect opportunity, wasted. He turned to Marcus and Faith, "Well, I guess I'll let you guys have yer fun." Then he said to Saura, "You mind if I buy a drink first?" He knew he'd already had tea to drink, but he thought that some beer wouldn't hurt. Much.

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

{Marcus Q. Maximus}

_Theater of Dreams_Rave

Marcus stopped in his tracks for a moment and looked again at the stage. "Hmm, was leaving Poppy to take of Saura, a good idea?" He pondered. The decision to make Poppy a babysitter, started to look less and less of a good idea to Marcus. In this sort of environment, Marcus knew it was ideal to Poppy. It had the elements from what he knew of the man, preferred. However, Micheal Anderson, wasn't someone you could just bump onto the street to meet and this was a golden opportunity. " He probably screw up within ten minutes." Marcus figured as that seemed like a good estimate of time for Poppy to screw up.

Yet before Marcus had a chance to think about his methods to approaching Micheal, someone latched onto his back. Before he could inquiry who with his usual style of asking, the answer came in a high pitch voice. Said voice, caused Marcus to growl the mysterious hugger's name"Faith..." She had a way to piss him off. "You must really enjoy pissing me off, don't you?" Marcus questioned as he wasn't the sort to enjoy hugs like Poppy. "Through, I must admit this what I get for giving you praise." Marcus said. To Marcus this what he gets when he knocked on the proverbial wood.

Marcus then muttered a curse word under his breath at what Poppy said. In one aspect, Marcus was glad he was doing what he asked, but on the other hand, he didn't care for the message Poppy received. " Alright, enough of this, Faith. You do know, that horn-dog really cares for you, right?" Marcus said " I hardly, need him crying in his beer." Marcus then looked back up onto the stage and mentioned "Plus, I have business to discuss with that gentlemen there. The question is how I make the approach."

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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, In Front Of Lucy's Room ~

Arietta pursed her lips. Was Lucy still asleep? Should she knock? What were those loud bashing noises? Was she venting her rage or something? Arietta narrowed her eyes. There was music looping, sounding like something from one of the blockbuster fantasy films from a few summers before. Arietta blinked. Wait a second. Wasn't that Lord of the Round Table? That epic movie with the dragons and the ground breaking CGI that her one friend from school wouldn't shut up about for a month straight? Arietta took a deep breath. Well, at least they had a subject they had in common. If the girl didn't break her neck falling off the bed, perhaps a pleasant conversation was possible after all. That is, if she wasn't too ticked off by Arietta's uncouth demeanor the previous night.

Taking a deep breath and throwing caution out the window for at least this moment, the young girl knocked three times on Lucy's door. "Lucy. It's me, Arietta. Lillian and I made food...i-if you wanted some." She paused for a moment, steadying herself. "Um...m-may I come inside?"

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

Theatre of Dreams

Faith looked down at Saura from her perch but stayed uncharacteristically quiet, the rave's flashing lights making her expression difficult to read. Poppy's words about Marcus "getting the girl" made her laugh. Apparently she had wreaked whatever havoc she felt to be appropriate, because she launched herself from the Nocker without pause. Wriggling from side to side to the wicked beat of the music, she laughed in response to Marcus' question. It was uncertain he even heard that or the airy trill of her reply, "I might~"

She didn't stop dancing as he continued to speak, but the blissful, vague expression on her face sharpened into something more thoughtful. "He does? Oh, that won't do at all..." Her smile took on a sweet cast with the comment, and it widened into a grin as her attention was pulled to the stage. "Mikey, huh? As to your approach," she chirped, twirling around as if she were going back to the entrance, "I have absolutely no idea~" She quirked her head in a Follow me gesture before making a beeline for the water stand.

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

~ The Rose Apartments , Shadows Apartment ~

Shadows was not aware of exactly what was wrong, but knew Angel enough to realize that she was not pleased... perhaps he-once again-did something that upset her. He might be a 'professional' in a number of tense situations, but his knowledge of relationships were painfully lacking in comparison. Keying in on the mistake, he rose, leaving the dismantled magnum on the table next to the cleaning kit. "We can all go," he said, trying to act for all the world everything was alright. "Give me a moment to grab a few things."

He quickly slipped into the bedroom and drew out one of his many gun cases. Seeing that his preferred firearm needed more time for cleaning then he had, he needed to switch up his arsenal. After locating a proper replacement, he returned to the living room, saying "Let's go." He face resumed its business-like, stoic demeanor.

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