Logfile from Brass&Steel. Zach goes off to get blankets and hot water...;P Harriet says, "Hehehehe." Lucian says, "Breathe! BREATHE!" Harriet says, "I think it's at this point that the woman starts getting homicidal. *significant look at Zach and Lucian*" Lucian points a finger at Zach. "Get him, I'm sure it's his fault." Zach says, "Wasn't me!" Zach points at Eli. Lucian agrees. "Blame the Absentee!" Zach | Eli points at Song.... Harriet chuckles. "I believe the appropriate phrase here is kill 'em all and let God sort them out? Harriet has a crossbow. :) Lucian says, "Uh oh." Zach | Song points at Dominic... Zach hides! :) Harriet says, "/Anyway/, who would like to start the scene posting...DOMINIC? Jeez!" Zach | Song is a gri..er..Watcher and will blame the Cloak for Everything(tm)! :) Harriet says, "Then again, Harriet does tend to be attracted to the seriously uptight. So...gah! Take away these sights from mine eyes!" Zach | Song says, "See? SEE?? Now Eli, my man - how 'bout that X2000 Cloakbuster?" It's a Tuesday night at the Bluebird, which means it's a bit quieter. Still, there's a good sized crowd on the floor. For once, though, Lucian has beaten the crowd and does not have to struggle through it, as he is perched at the bar, a Bloody Mary in hand, watching the crowd with a smile on his face. Zach is lounging at a table in comfortable silence, nursing a whiskey and listening to the music with eyes half-closed. Harriet swoops in through the door, with a feverish light in her eyes, and a slightly mad grin plastered to her face. She heads for the bar with speed, not even pausing to keep pulling down the hem of her dress. Lucian says, "Heaven save us, she's got The Dress!" Harriet is a woman in her early twenties. She's below average in height, and thin and pale, as if she doesn't get out much. She has short-cropped, unruly, dark brown hair, and green eyes. Her round, open face seems as if it's used to doing a lot of smiling. A pair of gold-rimmed glasses perch--slightly askew--on her nose. Harriet is wearing what is quite nearly a dress of soft, black leather. It's held up by the thinnest of spaghetti straps, connecting to a plunging neckline and a back that, well, isn't. The lower hem falls just above mid-thigh, revealing the petite, pale length of her bare legs. On her feet are black leather sandals, with Greek-style straps that wind almost all the way up to her knees. For once, her lips are touched with a hint of glossy red, and her cheeks have a rosy glow. Whether this is from rouge or more natural sources is anyone's guess. Harriet grins, and preens. Zach shortcircuits! Harriet oopses and calls paramedics. Lucian raises his eyebrows as he watches Harriet approach the bar... in The Dress. His eyebrows creep progressively upwards, and finally, he just blinks, watching her approach, rendered rather speechless by the vision in black leather. You paged Lucian with 'What do we do if Andre shows up to steal our girl?'. Lucian pages: I'll Invoke. Yours would just steal her from Andre and us both. Zach notices a person streaking by from the corner of his eye, and turns his head a bit to see. He promptly gets an epiphany and just stares unabashedly at the Vision. Long distance to Lucian: Zach nods. Sad thing is - BOTH my bosses would do that. :P Hmm... I could blow essence and get Larry? Or Novalis? Harriet doesn't notice either of the men in her headlong charge for the bar. Nor, indeed, does she notice the fellow who stammeringly abandons his seat as she approaches, except to give him a rather abstracted nod. As the bartended passes by, she leans over bar...doing deeply interesting things with hemline of The Dress... and lays her hand on his arm. With a brilliant smile, she asks, "A glass of champagne...please?" Lucian pages: Hmmm. In that same vein, I could grab Baal or... worse yet... Beleth. I KNOW Beleth won't steal our girl. :p Lucian spins on his barstool, watching her hurry past. Cocking his head to the side, he finally clears his throat, and calls to her, "Harriet?" Long distance to Lucian: Zach heh. Haagenti would be easier to get, but he'd EAT our girl and we can't have that! At least Larry'd be honorable! (But then there's Our Girl's fondness for pokerspines... *scratches Larry*) Lucian pages: Yeah. She's as bad as a Bright Lilim that way. *sighs* That's it! Lilith! She'll distract Andre away! Lucian pages: And I've got the Essence to burn for THAT. :p Zach gulps down a mouthful of scotch and just sits back to enjoy the Vision for a sec. Not even the vision of smarmy professors manages to break the spell yet. Long distance to Lucian: Zach hi5s Lucian!! Good thinking, man! :) Harriet spins on the stool, looking for whoever called her name. She sees Lucian, and her grin widens, if possible. "Lucian," she says calmly, her eyes aglitter. From afar, Lucian flips through his Infernal Rolodex. :) Lucian chuckles. "You have named me," he says, executing a half-bow with a smile. "What has you in such excellent spirits this evening... and in such excellent clothing?" He gestures towards the dress. Harriet's eyebrow quirks as she watches Lucian's bow. "Excellent spirits," she muses. "Am I in excellent spirits? I'm not sure. But I'll take what I can get..." her drink arrives, "and with bubbly!" Zach ogles Harriet's hemline shamelessly and idly starts to get about waving to her to get some goddessy attention. Harriet pages: Let me guess. Standing wouldn't be polite for him right now? ;P Harriet just looked at you. You paged Harriet with 'No comments! :)'. Harriet scans the room, her eyes intense and slightly narrowed. Upon seeing Zach's wave, she raises an eyebrow and waves back at him, in a 'come over' gesture, before sipping from her glass. Lucian frowns, as Harriet waves to Zach. He sighs, and takes a long swallow of his drink. This may require it... You stand and leave Table 6. Zach grins at Harriet, grabs his glass and moves over to the bar. He doesn't bother to hide his admiration at all. "Harriet! My goodness are you ever a vision tonight!" Harriet chuckles, downs the remainder of her drink, and passes it back for a refill. "You're too kind, both of you." Her eyes dart from one to the other, while one hand beats a frenetic rhythm against her bare thigh. "I," she says, taking a deep breath, "have a showing. End of the week." Lucian smiles broadly. "That is excellent! Is it here, in Kansas City?" His eyes light up, and he shifts, form intent. He's even ignoring Zach for this. Zach beams like a lighthouse! "Well dancing rodents! This is great news! Where?" Harriet nods, a swift jerk of the head. "Here," she confirms. "There's a great deal to be done, and damned little time to do it in." She shakes her head. "But anything I tried to do now would just explode. Hence the out-and-aboutness." Her eyes go distant. Lucian nods his head, sighing. "Of course, the exultation of success can interfere, sadly enough. It can be rather a vicious cycle." He chuckles. Zach laughs merrily. "Celebrating is good for you!" "This isn't exactly celebrating," Harriet says, with a short, sharp laugh. "This is a combination of nerves, giddiness, and sheer terror." Her replacement drink comes, and she downs a quick swallow. "I'm not actually fond of shows." Lucian frowns, and cocks his head. "Why would you not be fond of a show? Is it not the ambition behind it all, to exhibit your work to the public?" He blinks, a touch confused. Zach also seems a bit thrown by this at first, but quickly gathers his wits. "Wanna tell us about it, princess?" Lucian pages: Careful, Zach, we've agreed for more than 3 poses running... :p One of our Superiors may bust us for thinking too much like the enemy. ;p Harriet's lips purse. "This isn't the public. I /like/ the public. Shows are filled by," she shudders, "critics. People who think that they can grade your soul and diagnose your childhood neuroses by looking at bits of plaster, and have the sheer, unmitigated /gall/ to do it in your presence." She takes another swallow, and sighs. "It's...stressful, you know?" she says, in something approaching her normal voice. Long distance to Lucian: Zach grins. Zach nods and is enlightened. "Oh yeah - /those/. Most of them don't even know what they are talking about." "I can appreciate that," Lucian says finally, with a small nod. "I have every confidence, Harriet, that you will do quite well at this show. Will it be open at all to the public? Perhaps I can attend, as a sort of... moral support?" He smiles at her. "Other people believe they do, however," Harriet says to Zach, with a tight smile. "So one must smile, and nod, and try not to spill anything on one's dress when they something deeply stupid." Then she nods at Lucian. "I'm not sure, actually, but even if it isn't, I can damn well get invitations for any of my friends that want to come." She chuckles. "That's my usual demand for attending, anyway. So if either of you are interested, it's Sunday night at (gallery name)." Harriet says, "when they SAY something..." Zach says, "....MORAL support??? Eeeee!!" Lucian grins evilly. ;) Harriet says, "Tell me about it. *shudder*" Zach smiles. "Oh wow! Thanks, Harriet. I'll certainly try to be there!" Lucian nods with a smile. "I shall ensure there is room on my calendar," he says warmly. "I would not miss this for anything." Harriet sighs, and seems to relax a little as she smiles at them. "Thanks, guys. I haven't really ever had anyone attend with me, before. A couple people pop in and out, sure, but..." she shrugs. "It's nice. Thank you." Lucian reaches out to embrace Harriet. "You are completely welcome, my dear." He smiles. "I have not been to an art show in a very long time. I look forward to the experience." Zach grins and downs his whiskey. "I'm looking forward to this!" Harriet returns Lucian's embrace, a bit absently. "I'm glad someone is," she says with a wry smile. She crosses her legs and looks at the two men. "So. What brings y'all to the club tonight?" Zach smiles and signals the bartender for a new drink. "Me, i'm here for the music and to just relax." Lucian smiles, and sloshes his drink. "I keep finding reasons to come back here," he says with a chuckle. "It is unique in its mixture of music and individuals." You say, "Aww.." Zach grins. "Very good music," she agrees, eyeing the small amount of liquid left in her glass before downing it. She turns her stare to the dancefloor, before turning her eyes to Zach, one eyebrow raised questioningly. Harriet says, "Awww?"" Lucian echoes, "Awww?" Zach smiles. "Aww," he confirms. "It's so nice to hear Lucian confess to nice stuff." Lucian arches an eyebrow and fixes Zach with a disbelieving stare. "You, Mister Ellis, are quite peculiar for a human being," he remarks, shaking his head. Harriet raises an eyebrow. "Was he confessing to nice stuff? It's so hard to tell..." she shakes her head, and frowns to herself. Zach happily gets his refill and downs some of it. "I certainly am, and please allow me to return the compliment." Zach says, "That was to Luci, of course. :)" Lucian chuckles, and shakes his head, saying nothing. He takes another swallow of his drink, and places it down on the bar with a sigh. Harriet recieves her replacement drink quite quickly. Must be The Dress. "And for the record," she says as she sips, "I find you both quite peculiar," a barely perceptible pause, "for human beings. Luckily, I'm rather fond of peculiar." Zach swirls his drink as he nonchalantly leans on the bar. "Everything and everyone is peculiar if you look closely enough.." he says sagely. Lucian nods his head. "Uniqueness abounds," he says. "It is the miracle of Creation, nu? It is a shame that there are those so Judgmental as to attempt to force it down specific sorts, and reign in such wild impulses." He nods firmly, off on a philosophical tangent. "This is very true," Zach heartily agrees. You paged Lucian with 'Especially nasty bals who force false realities on people! :)'. Harriet narrows her eyes. "Some people are a great deal more peculiar than other. Almost...unbelievably so. Or so I'm told." She remarks, serenely as she drinks from her glass. "And if you two are going to start up, then you can damn well go over there," she indicates the other end of the bar, "because I am not in the mood." From afar, Lucian;;;) Zach grins innocently. "We ain't starting anything tonight, Harriet. Except maybe from lyrical praises of your beauty." Harriet has disconnected. Zach hmf! Lucian says, "Sure, you trotted out the old 'lyrical praises' line, and look. The lady ran off. :p" Lucian says, "At least it wasn't your pants this time!" Zach says, "What's wrong with lyrical praises?" Harriet has connected. Lucian passes Harriet the Duct Tape. Harriet growls. "AOL is Evil. What kind of internet service crashes when you try and save a TEXT file? There went my log, anyway. Blast it. I didn't hear anything after what I said, alas. :) Lucian chuckles, and says nothing. Harriet stares at both of them for a long moment. "Ten feet," she mutters, then looks down at her drink again. "Possibly dangerous to go any farther with this," she says, swirling the gently fizzing liquid. Lucian raises his eyebrows. "It would be dangerous to go any farther than ten feet?" He looks, confused, first at her, then at Zach, to see if HE knows what she's talking about. Zach raises an eyebrow. "You want a pole, Harriet?" "The hole, and the alcohol. I haven't eaten today. Too nervous," she says, and takes another drink. She frowns at Zach. "A pole? Not at the moment. Might need some spikes eventually, however." Harriet is going for the Word of Befuddlement. Zach orders nuts and pretzels for Harriet, as he has no illutions about getting her to eat real food. "What do you need a ten foot hole for? It's supposed to be ten foot /poles/." Lucian blinks. "What hole are you discussing?" He cocks his head, and surveys the crowd, suddenly, with narrowed eyes. "What on earth could you need spikes for?" "I don't want a hole," Harriet bemoans. "But people seem intent on digging one." She smiles, suddenly. "And that's what the spikes are for." Zach makes a gesture to the bartender. No more alchohol for the lady! Even if the Gabriel-babble is kinda Cool... Over Harriet's head, Lucian fixes Zach with a glare that clearly demonstrates where HE is putting the blame for this. You paged Lucian with 'What?! You think I transubstantiated her DRINK??'. Harriet is making perfect sense. To her, anyway. She drains the rest of her glass, and turns around, and blinks in confusion as she can't seem to catch the bartender's eyes. She looks down. Yup, still wearing The Dress. She frowns. Zach grins to Harriet. "So lemme guess: Spikes go into the bottom of the hole to make a nasty pit-trap?" Lucian rubs his chin, and decides to let Zach try to figure this one out while he watches. He merely smiles and nods at Harriet. Harriet pages: Yup. Ever heard the phrase "You're digging a really deep hole for yourself, here?" The bartender knows his business and eventually brings Harriet a sparkly drink with no alcohol in it whatsoever. It's refreshing, though. You paged Harriet with 'Did you really mean to page that? :)'. Harriet smiles happily at the bartender, then at the two men as she sips her drink. "This is nice," she says. Harriet pages: Ah, hell. I thought you'd paged me! :) Zach says, "Lucian, get more hot water! Breeding abounds again!" Lucian blinks confoozledly. "Where?" Zach points at Harriet. :) Harriet blinks at Zach, and nods. "Yup. For the whole you two are digging for yourselves. Which is ten feet deep, at the moment." She grins a not-entirely-sober grin at them both. Harriet says, "I didn't typo. I misread! That's an entirely different...looks at "whole" for "hole"...crap." Lucian raises an eyebrow. "We are digging a hole?" He cocks his head. "What leads you to say that?" Zach idles briefly to make breakfast. Do carry on. :) "The shovel, silly," Harriet says, and giggles. "Elevator go down the hole..." Lucian glares at Zach again, and then looks around the crowd. "Have you, perhaps, had a bit too much to drink, Harriet my dear?" He smiles at her, just a touch condescendingly. Harriet glares at Lucian, her green eyes snapping. "I've certainly had a bit too much of /something/." Her gaze drifts out to the dancefloor, and suddenly she's all smiles again. "Dance with me, dearheart?" Lucian says, ":blinks, surprised. "Are you certain you will be steady on your feet?" He extends a hand to her nonetheless." Lucian says, "Gah!" Lucian says, "ooc Er, Gah!" Lucian says, "Damn Autosay." Lucian blinks, surprised. "Are you certain you will be steady on your feet?" He extends a hand to her nonetheless. Harriet hands blankets and hot water to Lucian with a smile. Lucian says, "I'd love to know how I managed to turn THAT on. *sigh*" Harriet takes his hand, and hops down from the stool nimbly enough, although she ventures perilously into indecent exposure territory by so doing. "I'll be fine, Lucian. I want to dance." She smiles up at him. Lucian raises his eyebrows as The Dress slips. Finally, he rolls his eyes and nods. "Dance we shall, then, Harriet," he says, leading her out to the dance floor. With a sigh, he shakes his head. Harriet raises an eyebrow at him as they take the floor. "You don't want to dance with me, Lucian?" Lucian says nothing as he leads her into the dance, trying to keep a close hold on her... and the dress, if possible, so that Harriet doesn't try anything that will separate the two. Zach watches the repartee with amusement. He doesn't seem to mind the exposure.. Harriet stops, stock still, and looks up at Lucian. "If you don't want to dance, you can return to the bar. I'll be fine on my own," she smiles benignly at him. "That," Lucian replies, "is a somewhat debatable point at the present moment." He looks down at her coolly and sighs. "However, I have not yet turned down a request by you to dance, and I do not believe I shall begin such now." He tugs at her, attempting to resume the dance. Still smiling benignly, Harriet removes herself from Lucian's arms. "I don't want to dance with anyone who doesn't want to dance with me." She pivots on her heel, and returns to the bar. "Freely offered," she mutters to herself. Lucian sighs heavily, and follows her back, muttering something dark in his native tongue under his breath. Zach tries somewhat unsuccessfully to hide a smirk at Lucian. Then he smiles to Harriet. "Would you care for a twirl around the dancefloor with me, then?" Harriet looks at Zach suspiciously. "Do you /want/ to dance with me? Or are you just being nice?" Zach leans over and whispers in her ear. Lucian says, "Oh, the temptation to Resonate evilly. ;p" You whisper "How could any sane man not want to dance with you, Harriet?" to Harriet. Zach out loud he then says, "Yes, I'd love to dance with you." Zach says, "*sigh*" Lucian says, "Nah, not just yet. ;)" Harriet says, "Right, then. Blankets and Hot Water all around!" Zach says, "Gah! The indignity!" Harriet says, "You're just worried that I'll resist /again/." Lucian says, "Oh hush up and wear your blanket." Lucian says, "I haven't been CD6'd by ya, at least." Zach grins! "Now that's just a matter of time, Luci!" :) Harriet says, "We should start calling that DeepSixed for Lucian." Zach hods out his hand to lead the lady onto the dancefloor. Harriet grins brightly and takes his hand, letting him lead her out to the floor. Harriet senses "Zach grins and mutters, "Straighten your dress, dear. This dance will have us thrown out if you don't."" Lucian watches, sighing and muttering. Zach proudly walks Harriet over and gets them into position for an exuberant display of rythmic motion, style and flare! Harriet wiggles and smooths the dress back into mere risqueness, and smiles at Zach. "Thanks. And definitely no airtime. I'd flash the entire club." Zach heroically resists thumbing his nose at Lucian. :) Lucian says, "Thppt!" Lucian gestures towards the bartender for another drink, waving his empty glass meaningfully. With a glower, he watches the pair dance. Zach smiles and takes Harriet through the first few steps and twirls. "As you command, my princess. No airtime." He dips her with much pathos. Harriet giggles up at him as she is dipped. Contrary to Some People's expectations, she doesn't seem to be tipsy...physically, anyway. "I'm not a princess," she rebukes with a smile. "I'm a sculptor." Lucian, who of course wouldn't know which People could EVER think that, folds his hands and watches the pair at work, still saying nothing. His eyes, however, narrow. Zach keeps a steady control on Harriet and yet again makes her shine on the dancefloor. Not that it's hard tonight, what with The Dress and all... "Aww... But sculptors are like royalty in my book. Hell, they're miles better even! So, my Artiste - I am your humble servant and will do as you command by whatever title you claim." Harriet's eyes sharpen and glitter. "Whatever I command? Like telling me what's going on around here?" Harriet senses "Zach is very, very agile and extremely sure-footed. It's as if he was a professional dancer or something..." Lucian would, were he able to see the conversation, cringe. Fortunately, he's not that good a lip-reader... Zach smiles and draws her close. "Maybe. Depends on whether you're a good girl or not. Good girls don't get to know..." Harriet gives Zach a look sharp enough to draw blood, and steps on his foot. By accident, of course, maybe she /is/ feeling the effects of the alcohol... "Twelve feet," she mutters to herself. AutoJudge: Zach rolls: 4 + 6 = 10 . Check die: 3 Lucian resists the urge to thumb HIS nose back. Lucian watches her stumble, and shakes his head. The woman really is in bad shape tonight, he tells himself. Who knows what sort of trouble she'll get into? Zach winces just a little bit as his foot gets stepped on, but picks up the pace again without more ado. He even makes a few extra-flashy moves for them to cover it up. He whispers something to her. You whisper "It's not for tonight, Harriet. And I'm being very serious here." to Harriet. Harriet heaves a sigh, and relaxes back into the dance again after a moment, giving Zach a long look before she tilts her head up to whisper something to him. All this whispering. My word. What COULD be going on out there? Lucian sighs, drinking his Bloody Mary. After another sip, he removes the celery stalk and chews on it thoughtfully. Harriet whispers "I'm tired of being lied to, Zach. If you don't want me to pry, then tell me that it's none of my business, but don't act like nothing's there." Zach leads Harriet into the final moves of the dance. They totally rule the dancefloor! As he dips Harriet into the final dip, he mutters to her. Harriet senses "Zach smiles with kind, green eyes. "There is stuff, yes. But it's serious stuff. And knowing it will change your life. It's not for tonight, trus me on this. Please."" Harriet sighs again and nods. As she comes out of the dip, her eyes flicker briefly towards Lucian, and she mutters something to Zach. Harriet mutters to Zach. Harriet whispers "Hasn't it already?" Zach smiles a tad sadly to her. "It might have.. Want another dance?" Lucian catches the flicker, and he frowns, celery stalk dangling from his lips like some odd cigar. Harriet shakes her head, but smiles up at Zach. "Nah. I think maybe I have had a little too much to be doing those swoops and twirls, fun though they were, you know?" Zach chukles and takes her by the hand to lead her off the floor and over to celery-dude and the bar. Lucian, possible petitioner for the Word of Infernal Celery, watches them return. "Did you have a good time?" He looks them over with a raised eyebrow. Harriet grins at Lucian, as she clambers back up to her seat. "I had a very good time," she says, sounding satisfied with herself. Zach beams happily. "The dancefloor was very good tonight. And Harriet is a joy to do the swing with!" Lucian nods his head. "I could not argue with these points," he allows. Harriet beams at them both, and sips from her fizzy drink. "I'm glad you guys were here." Zach smiles and leans over to kiss Harriet's cheek. "I'm glad you're glad, hon. I gotta scoot off now, so have a lovely night. And a good night to you too, pro." He winks at Lucian. "May your travels take you far, Mister Ellis," Lucian says, tone bland. Harriet smiles and waves to Zach. "Be safe," she says fondly. Zach smiles and waves as he takes off. You step outside.