F01-OP Blackbook, Grand Opening

[Jevi 0]

"I gotta better idea."

The redhead was suddenly much closer to her than she was too seconds ago. Knees and shoulders bumped awkwardly as she entered Jevi's space, practically leaning into her as she scoured her inventory for something. Sipping from her drink, she watched over Mari's shoulder as a finger scrolled through the massive list of items. The names of various equipment and consumables flew by, too fast for her to make out anything eye catching. A familiar looking crystal materialized into Mari's open palm, she recognized it as, basically, a camera crystal. A selfie? she thought to herself, was Mari taking her suggestion and snapping a pic for her husband? 

And it seemed like she was going to be a part of it. 

The sweet perfume of citrus and spice had been masked by the bite of whiskey but, now as Mari faced her, the intertwined aromas were intoxicating. Tips of her fingers scathing the skin of her temples, sending a chill down her spine as Mari rounded her ear to tuck some loose hairs away. Eyes of gold studied Mari's icy gaze, the way they smiled as she admired her handiwork before turning away once more. 

The pressure of Mari's rear, sitting partially on her thigh nearly caused her to choke on her drink. Right, they were posing for a picture.. she had nearly forgotten. Wiping the corner of her lip with the pad of her thumb, she turned her attention to the crystal standing upright within the bartender's hands. A cautious hand rested on the back of Mari's shoulder - just to support her so she doesn't fall, right? 

"live in the moment. Take what you want." 

Mari's words repeated in her head. Would that be so bad? Palm lifted from Mari's exposed, freckled shoulder before the tips of her fingers slowly trailed down her side. Finding a new, more comfortable place on Mari's hip. Her lips curled into a flirtatious smile as she leaned into Mari's back, eyes on the camera. 

Not as much flare as taking a picture with an actual camera, but it did its job. 

Then she watched as Mari sent the image to her husband, an attempt to bait him into coming. 

Jevi forgot that that was the plan all along, and a twinge of guilt started to set in. 

"I'd actually love one, thanks." The image appeared in her messages a moment later. Jevi looked over it for a moment, wistful smile on her face, before waving the menu away. 

Feeling the need to turn her attention away, she shifted in her seat to look at the stage behind her. Past the dancing and the mingling couples, at the duet on stage. "Hm.." Jevi hummed twirling her drink in her hand, "Thought they would've.. y'know.. switched partners or some shit with the new song." Her words slurred as she rolled out her question. "Maybe Oscar got bored of playing matchmaker." Not that Jevi was hoping that the darkness would whisk her away into someone else's arms, she was enjoying Mari's company. On the other hand, maybe she'd stop fawning over a married woman that she had just met if she had someone else to distract her. She rose her glass for another sip, but only found ice in her cup. 

“Che cosa pensi?”

The unfamiliar voice of a man talking to her from across Mari caught her attention.

"The fuck you say to me?" 

Blunt.. and charming as ever.

@Mari@Lancaster

[Mari 1]

Mari was still close to Jevi, thighs still touching. As expected, she hadn’t received a response from Lancaster, he was probably resting. “Switch partners….” Mari slurred as she rested a head on Jevi’s shoulder. “I am enjoying yours though….I’m not really one for dancing.” A hand lifting up to fix V's hair. Mari rarely admitted to enjoying someones company, it was probably the alcohol.

Mari felt the presence of another join them and her smile faded, barely glancing at the man. She didn’t really feel like being hit on by strangers. “Don’t you just hate unwanted guests…” Mari began in an annoyed tone, shifting closer to V. Doing her best to give whoever was behind her the cold shoulder.

"A Sullivan's Cove, on the rocks... straight."

Mari visibly stilled, goosebumps erupting on her skin. Her heart beat just a little harder, it felt like it skipped multiple beats at the tone of his voice. Memories of being burned alive flashed across her mind, lie after lie after lie…lies…

Not real…..this one isn’t real…

Mari’s fingers curled inwards into a fist as she suddenly found it difficult to breathe. Dots danced in front of her vision. Who had the audacity to pretend this time? In a quick and messy motion, stumbling over her stool Mari turned to face the man. Who is it? Is he real? Is he mine? 

Wide blue eyes stared at the man before her, wearing a cocky smile she couldn’t mistake anywhere…but…but…Mari had been burned before…literally. Her right arm is a testament to that. Mari wanted to believe it was him…So terribly and irrevocably so…but…why was he here? Was someone somehow reading her messages? Was it a coincidence? “You’re…?” Disbelief as a trembling hand reached out, a tender cup of his cheek, thumb grazing his skin. Feeling the slight mark of a scar unseen, left by her, before Mari’s other hand joined on the opposite side. Was this her Vincent? Or just another imposter. “A-are you real?”  A question she would ask him every single time they’d meet after time apart.

Then a sudden jerk forward, as she pulled his face closer to hers, inspecting his eyes, name and icon hidden by his mask - but those same too flecks of green in his eye, then without missing a beat she’d jam a thumb into his mouth forcing it open. Tongue ring…back left wisdom tooth missing, but not the right. Small things no one could possibly imitate.

“Ah…”

Mari quickly let him go. “I gueshh….he came.” Mari breathed, words meant for the dark skinned woman behind her. A stuttered and deep breath in and a long and low exhale to calm her shaken nerves. Of course it was him. No one was monitoring their messages. No one could imitate the warmth that grin held… the intensity of those burning eyes. Mari would offer him a smile as she picked up his glass, drawing deep from its golden allure.

Then, a tug on Lancasters tie to pull him down to her level. Decorum be damned, she needed to claim what was rightfully hers, in front of everyone. A press of her lips to his, and a flood of alcohol passed them into his. Mari gave the man no room to breathe and waited for him to swallow before pulling away, licking her lips.

Mari would almost fall over as she took a seat back on her stool, placing a hand neatly over V’s, patting it a few times. “Thishh…is V. Ahh.. uhmm…” Worries washed away by the knowledge her husband was here, Mari was settling back into her calm near drunken state. “una bella fa…farlll…farlla in una trappola.” Mari would laugh, resting a head against Lancasters shoulder.

“You shmell good.”

Oh....She lifted her head from him and turned to V, "Thish,...her name is V. She's very nice."

Edited 17 hours ago by Mari

[Morningstar 0]

#

[Lysette 0]

Lysette hadn’t really known what to expect when the song began. But by the time they had got into it proper, she could tell that her duet partner was a very skilled musician. His own personal flair had been sublime. His voice even more so. Though she wished that he might have leaned a bit more into it. They finished their number far more quickly than she would have hoped. It was a rare pleasure to find such a fantastic duet partner. Their number was met with a smattering of applause. Lysette noticed that the crowd had thinned somewhat. Perhaps they were availing themselves of the Upper Rooms? The back-up musicians filled the silence as they recovered from their song. A bright smile was plastered on her face as they stepped out of center stage.

“For sure! That was sooo fun!” Lysette’s reply was more chipper than it usually was. She hated her career, but she loved the music. And that shared love was infectious. Two people - sounds rising in harmony - just tickled a part of her brain she couldn’t truly articulate. “I wish I could sign that guitar or something though. You were so fucking awesome! I’d love to jam out with you. And I definitely owe you that guitar when we get out of here.”

Lysette had been so swept up in the moment that she’d almost forgotten about Abellio still milling about on the dance floor. Her gaze flicked over towards him. There was a glimmer of something in her eye, her smile cooling to a mischievous smirk. Her gaze flicked back to Jomei.

“Between you and me,” Lysette began. “He’s too nice of a guy to do anything inappropriate. We’ve held hands and kissed, but nothing really physical.” She was probably oversharing. But the night was about desire as much as it was about music. Lysette hoped that Jomei might forgive her blunt response.

“I got one more song in me for the night so I guess this girl’s just gonna have to take charge.”

—

Lysette took to the stage again. The musicians quieted and she cleared her throat with a soft cough.

“Thank you for being such a wonderful audience! It seems like everyone’s having a good time. This is gonna be my last song, so I’m gonna dedicate it to a special someone. He knows who he is.”

The band started playing. More soft tones - smooth. A pleasant melody. Lysette’s voice joined the instruments. Just as smooth, just as melodic. Haunting, even.

I put a spell on you/
Brought your fantasies to life/
Like you never knew/
Had to go and blow your mind/
Oh, oh, oh/
I, I did what I always do/
I put a spell on you/

And then the music switched. High tempo techno beats. Pounding bass. Most assuredly not in keeping with the tone. But, she had always planned on ending her little set with a bang. Though she didn’t think she would be singing it with Abellio in the room. And perish the idea of singing it to him. As the tone of the music shifted, so too did her own cadence. 

Get it up, get it up, keep it up/
Sucking it down like Dracula/
Giving him brain like amygdala/
Ain't no tricks, just abracadabra/
I make that cauldron bubble/
Double, double, toil she trouble/
Grip the wand, 'cause I ain't no muggle/
Go drip, drip, drop and I leave 'em in a puddle/

She didn’t work the crowd as she did with the previous song, but she did add her own flair to the number. Gesticulations with her hands, rolling her hips. Lysette really couldn’t have cared less if she had the room’s attention. It wasn’t for them. It was for Abellio. A very clear sign that not even that adorable idiot would be able to miss. She pushed through the song, barely able to keep her voice and her movements in time with the music. Really, she just wanted to hurry up and be done with it. Before she lost her nerve or he did. Her eyes sought him out in the crowd, her gaze locking onto his. She thought it was so fucking adorable how wide-eyed he was. Clearly, she’d had the intended effect.

Time to hammer it home.

Give him head like guillotine/
Haunted house, I make him scream/
Trick or treat 'til he explode/
Now he got a Hallo-ween/
Hope somebody checks on the boy/
Had to put an oral hex on the boy/
What's next for the boy?/
Depressed and destroyed/
Had the best and the worst, just the rest for the boy/

She broke her gaze, returning to her dancing as she finished the rest of the song. And as she sang her final lyric, she brought her hand up to her lips and blew a kiss to the audience.

“Thank you all for coming! Good night!”

And with that, she rushed off stage - allowing the band to take over for the rest of the night.

Song Three - Oral Hex

[Oscar 0]

“Ah I’ll never get used to being called a gentleman,” Oscar replied. He wasn’t. Though he certainly cleaned up well. All that being said, it was difficult to feel as he was a gentleman with his hand still wrapped around her waist, her body pulled flush against his - frozen in a half-state of falling. A smile crept up to his face as he maneuvered her smoothly to her feet. His fingers coiled around her hand as he rose to his full height. His previous dance partner had helped him shake off the rust. And this Oscar was a bit more bolt than the young and dumb boy from prom night.

“I wouldn’t consider myself a chaperone either,” he continued. He led her through the steps, a bit more at ease now than with his last dance. Oscar, generally, acted in good taste. Not necessarily because he didn’t have any sort of lascivious intentions, but because it was simply expected. Even at a time and place such as this, it was faux pas to simply go for the throat. Though he might have found it easier to cut to the quick, he would not let it be said that any of his connections were “easy.”

But seeing how the crowd began to ebb, flowing towards the stairwells to the sides of the main floor, Oscar found himself compelled to lean towards misbehavior.

“I find that they often get in the way of intention,” Oscar added. He guided Winnie into a spin, arm extending outward with hands still entwined. He pulled her back at the apex of the motion, twirling her back into his arms. In the same motion, he dipped her down low, holding her hips to his as he brought her back up in a wide, sweeping arc. “Speaking of intention. What are yours for the evening?”

A simple question. An invitation and request for honesty. The night was about desire - at least as far as Oscar thought. Simple, burning, primal. That ever-present need to find someone to sink your fangs into. That need that - in a civilized world - one had to shy away from. But with the masks and the darkness and the clarity of intent he’d cultivated, there was no need. Even if they dolled themselves up in fancy gowns and three-piece suits, the true interest was of what lay underneath.

“Because I’ll tell you mine,” Oscar said. "If you'll indulge me. If you ask me to."

A promise. A threat in some ways, if his tone was to be believed. Low, husky. A whisper just loud enough to be heard over the music. Their dancing had broken the ice. While he would not go for the throat right after meeting someone, when the opportunity presented itself…

“Interests seem to have diverged,” he continued, looking around the room. “The dance is carrying itself upstairs.” Oscar shifted his gaze down. There were many beautiful people here tonight, but he wouldn’t let the one in his arms be confused about where his attention was. “Which are you looking for? A partner for the song, or for the night?”

 

@Winnie

 

[Ceres 0]

<<Saint Mask>>

Ceres was terribly late...

But sometimes, that wasn't entirely a bad thing, now was it? It meant she could blend right into the crowds. Maybe have a drink or two, listen to some nice music, and not have the icky feeling of being the first one there. Fashionably late she was... One of the main reasons Ceres had been late in the first place is that she had been turned away for not wearing the correct attire. So the woman had to go back to town and find a tailor - then an outfit. The person stationed at the door sighed heavily. Seeing that she changed the colour of her outfit, but she was still not quite dressed for the event.

Realizing that getting her to listen long enough was an act in futility the man ushered Ceres inside, she picked up a white mask in her hand, not quite putting it on as she walked right smack bang into the middle of the dance floor, accidentally bumping into a pair of people on the way in - a green haired man and a tall pretty lady. "Oh...Sorry!" Ceres said in her usual airy tone. 

Ceres side stepped another pair of players. Now, she was standing in the middle of the dance floor, both hands clasped over her chest, holding her mask tight as she kept looking about. Confused. It seemed that a few of the others changed partners when the song changed. Was she...supposed to do that too?

Was she supposed to dance?

Where was the food? 

Who were all these masked people?

"Uhmm, Dancing Master?" She called out, to literally no one in particular. "Who am I supposed to go to?"

As though some unseen entity in the sky would shift her, but the thing she was staring at was nothing more than a yellow light.

Vanity tag: @Vanta @Hirru