It's called... Presntation! (Alexis Jackson/invite)

[Zodiac]

'Did she just squirm?'

Zodiac looked Alex full in the eyes again as the machines spun again as she kept her question to herself. It was obvious the stools used for the slots were not the woman's usual 'throne' of choice to pose in. She could not quite find her comfort zone in them. Zodiac, on the other hand, felt right at home in them. Her heels hooked on the support rails while she perched herself like a violet vulture on the edge of the seat. No, Alex, despite being one of the lords of this domain was not use to this particular province of it.

Why did she squirm? Air conditions within were kept at optimum comfort levels, the lighting soft, but not sleep inducing, the sounds a pleasant symphony upon the ears. The place was tailor made to keep everyone perfectly comfortable, except Alex.

The three machines hit duds again. Zodiac bent over her outtake bucket and blew a large dose of smoke on the coins before going into her act again. Suddenly a thin smile, part embarrassment and part delight spread across her lips as she dropped three more coins in. She looked at the woman as she pulled the levers.

"Am I..... disturbing you, Miss Jackson?" she asked softly. Not a trace of malice on her face, in her eyes or mindspeak. She was flattered of course, if she was right. Usually it was the other way around in some of her encounters with others. Zodiac stopped her antics and just looked at Alex, until the alarm went off.

Machine three began to flash and sound like a braying electronic mule. Bells sounding more like a klaxon as the machine began to let go of coins like a fountain gone amok. The sudden blaring of sounds startling Zodiac backwards hard. The stool tipped as well and sent the mystic flat on her back on the floor as she watched the machine having a small party as coins slipped out of the catch tray and began to fall upon the floor by her feet.

"LILITH"S TITS!" she shouted mentally as she sat back up. Her jaw hanging open as the torrent of coins finally began to subside. She looked around at the amazed vultures who were practically going wild. Someone stepped between them and the prone gypsy and was keeping them back. "Security?" she wondered. One of the floor workers crouched next to her and inquired if she was okay, then offered to help her up.

As she rose, she looked at Alex again and began to wonder as the girl began to explain what they could do for her. "Did she do that? No, why would she? She is wondering if I could break the bank or not so why rig a slot? Easy to do if everything is wired and monitored, but why?" her mind chattered on as the girl made a count of the coins into a bucket. The girl then explained the winnings could be picked up in cash on her way out and offered her a receipt book to sign.

"NOT too shabby!" She was still surprised. Zodiac opened her wallet and pulled out one of her alias ID's and handed it to the girl to copy the details from, and with a confident flourish, the mystic signed a dead match signature to the paperwork. She took the ID and slipped it in her dress pocket (to be sure she showed the right one when the time came) and then looked into her out take bucket that somehow had remained clenched in her hand when she fell. She took two of the chips, a black and yellow striped, and a blue and white stripped, and placed them in the girl's hand. The woman began to protest, but the mystic clasped her hand around the girl's and smiled brightly for her-encouraging her to keep them. She then flipped another black and yellow one to the security person once the situation had calmed down. Both thanked her and the guard followed the girl back to the teller booth.

Zodiac turned to her 'flock' and shrugged her shoulders, then turned back to Alex.

"Well, I guess the party is over for tonight." she sighed as she grabbed her winnings bucket and picked up her chicken foot. "Pity, actually. I was just starting to have fun." She could have continued, but the slot crowd was too worked up now. Zodiac knew the meaning of low profile and her business alone pushed that point as it was without causing a riot in one of the cities biggest casinos. "I'll be back in a few weeks when this all is forgotten about. Meeting you was certainly a bonus in this as well, Alex. I hope you will return the favor and come visit me in my web." she added with a soft smile. An interesting choice of words there. Web.

"Said the spider to the fly."

[Alex]

"Am I..... disturbing you, Miss Jackson?"

How to respond to her question. She began to chuckle when it hit her, that the woman had used her last name and Alex had only given her first. Had she already known who she was prior to coming into the casino? Had she done her research? Or had she merely gleaned it as she was speaking telepathically. They were all interesting questions indeed. The thoughts popped into and out of her head very quickly, so quickly that there really had been no interruption in her chuckle before she responded, "Hell yes!" It was meant in a flirty way, though honest.

Suddenly the alarm on the machine went off. Zodiac had won the jackpot for the machine. Given that she was playing the dollar slots, the jackpots varied between one and ten thousand dollars. The machine in question though, it was a five thousand dollar jackpot. She was used to hearing the klaxon from across the casino, but never had she heard it from right beside it. With the enhanced hearing that vampires were 'blessed' with, it sounded so very loud. Her hands went to cover her ears, then she saw Zodiac falling, almost in slow motion. She reached to try and catch her but was too late.

Sam and his team were there in a moment, things of this nature something that they were used to helping with. He kept the onlookers from swarming in to take the winnings. Alex rose then just stood back and watched as the fuss was made about Zodiac. There was an amused smirk upon her lips and once more her eyes danced. Her own bewitched human, who acted as a personal assistant to her, showed up and began to help her companion up and gather the coins that spewed out. The machine could only handle so much and so after part of the money had paid out, it had stopped. Arimil had the voucher book. The only caviat with winning over a certain amount at once was that the government took its cut. Though Zodiac had won the five thousand dollar jackpot on the machine, a percentage would be kept to be paid to the government and a tax form would be given to Zodiac for filing at tax time.

While Sam had come out, Robby had come as well, doing his job. In the mass of people that were congratulating the winner, helping her up, explaining the cash in rules and everything, he was able to unobtrusively check the machine over. He gave Alex a nod, to tell her that everything was on the up and up, not that she expected it not to be, then he moved away, back to his cameras. As he moved on, Alex spotted Zodiac pressing $101 worth of chips on her assistant. As Alex would expect, Arimil protested. She was very good at her job though, and never once complained so it was a well deserved bonus for her. Then the same amount was tossed to Sam and he was truly surprised. He never got tips. He glanced at Alex, who once more nodded in approval, then the pair of them moved off.

Before she knew it though, Zodiac was talking as though she were leaving. Alex really didn't want her to go just yet. Thinking as quickly as she could, she spoke up, "Surely you can't go so soon. It will take Arimil a few more minutes to get the paperwork processed so that everything is in order. Perhaps I can ensnare you to stay longer within my own web?" she asked teasingly. She tipped her head slightly to the side, her body inclined just a little toward the woman. "Would the Mistress care to visit my office? Step out of the prying eyes of everyone around here... and security?" she asked softly, offering her arm up, so that she could escort her.

[Zodiac]

Taxes. Ugh!

Zodiac knew the tax sluts would be sticking their hands out for a cut before the last coin had fell from the machine. In her limited lifetime and beyond she had proven the death part of the axiom that Death and Taxes were the two eternal constants was not quite true, so there was hope one day she'd find a way to under mind the taxes part, but not today. 'Pamela Carter' (the name on the false ID she had provided) would loose again to the government and one day some bean counter with nothing better to do will wonder why Mrs Carter never filed a return and if he or she would track the point it would lead to nowhere. Before the night was over, the ID and the few papers she had as proof the person supposedly existed would be ashes somewhere on the four winds.

As she walked along, Alex seemed intent for her to stay. "Oh, I was not suggesting I was leaving the building or anything like that," her thoughts explained as she smiled. "I am just saying doing anymore mind games with the locals on the subject of slots might get out of hand very easy now and you and your staff do not need such problems. Besides, does no one any good to attract too much attention to people like ourselves. People with our...condition?" She hoped the brown eyed woman got her meaning. Sometimes she was loathed to say vampire, especially when she was having fun and loosing herself in the illusion she was herself again.

A single eyebrow arched when Alex suggested a more private encounter. She had just caught the 'Hell, Yes!' just before the machine scared the crap out of them both. Zodiac understood what Alex was and the vibes she gave off, and in a room full of distractions, she was able to ignore and deflect them with ease, but alone in a less distracting atmosphere?

"How about you show me around a bit first," she suggested as her eyes caught the roulette wheel. "Haven't played Rollerball yet. I always play Rollerball." She approached the table and took an empty seat. One of the workers offered to turn in her win bucket full of coins in exchange for chips. The mystic pulled out the few chips she had originally got and handed both her intake and out take buckets to the person and began to look over the setting. Roulette was a game of chance to her. Granted it could be rigged electronically, but her technokinesis probes found nothing to suggest the wheel was nothing more than a wheel, so she relaxed. Single numbers averaged 37 to 1 against with a average payout of 35 to 1. Rows, Splits, Baskets and Streets varied with better odds but less payout if you hit. She had learned all of these (then) useless facts when she was a child from a man who traveled with the tribe for a time. Zodiac did not recall his real name, but most simply called him Diamond. He made his living on games of chance as a norm. He taught her how to play poker and other card games as well.

The worker returned with her chips, and the mystic took 4 of them and handed them to the person with a smile of thanks.

"Place your bets," The dealer (or 'Crouiper' as Diamond had told her the proper name was back in the day) announced as he sent the ball along the track. She watched several people begin to select their marks for a few moments, then took five chips and sat them on thirteen just before the call. "No more bets." (or 'rien ne va plus' again thanks to Diamond. Zodiac let a few of her thoughts drift to Alex if for no other reason than to show she wasn't a total rube when it came to gambling.) She took out her lighter and relit the Havana she had and took a slow drag from it while she waited.

"Just have to play the stereotype a few times, ya know. I got an image to keep up." She smiled and winked at Alex.

[Alex]

At Zodiac's reassurances that she wasn't actually going anywhere, just shifting spots within the casino, Alex let her arm fall so that she'd not look like she had a chicken wing sticking out. When she was a teen and had hit her growth spurt, she'd been skinny, but hadn't developed as a woman so much. That coupled with her nerdiness made her the target for bullies and mean kids. Chicken Wing was but one of the many cruel nicknames that she'd acquired, that she was glad to be rid of. Now she was all grown up, she had curves in all the right places, a smile that could melt the hardest of hearts, sex appeal that could make just about the anybody stray and the savvy to know what was going on. Hell, she'd been back in town for a couple of years now and only one of her classmates had recognized her at all. Most either walked right passed her or, better yet, they came in and lost their money. Since she was the Lead Casino Host, she received a percentage of every loss that one of her whales made at the casino, but as the Manager she also received a consistent salary on top of that. To know that she was taking the money off of those cruel kids was icing on her cake.

She smiled as she heard what Zodiac thought on the subject of slots and her crowd of onlookers and nodded in understanding. Half of Alex's job was staying silent and waiting for others to put their foot into their mouths, and the other half was in using her charisma to wrangle a person out of their money.

A smile graced her lips as her eyes met Zodiac's at the implied condition. It wasn't something she liked to think about, the fact that she was a vampire. Oh it was pretty cool that she'd never get older, that she could actually appear younger, if she wanted to work on that aspect, but she was just as alone as she'd been in Vegas and now she had to drink blood. Thankfully, when she was turned into a vampire she was led down the path of the Allurist. She might go crazy if she was basically immortal and could never have a piece of chocolate ever again! She'd worked at it and now she could eat most anything she wanted to eat. On the downside though, she couldn't go outside during the day and she couldn't enter other casinos as easily. Most casinos had mirrors in a great many places. They reflected others having so much fun, a guest could see other games that might interest them, and it made the casinos look bigger. Chad had been smart when he built the CW. He'd had their kind in mind. While most casinos had mirrors, he had pieces of art instead, or more games. She could only imagine what someone might think if they saw her reflection in the mirror now. Other Paths would appear as they were, or not appear at all, but an Allurist reflects the way that their body would look, right then. In essence, her body would appear to be decomposing with longer hair and nails, her skin off color and so much more.

Easily she moved along at Zodiac's side. She had been hoping to get the woman alone, given that they'd both flirted a bit. She wondered if there was a reason that she didn't zero in on the alone time aspect of her office, but she wasn't the sort to dwell on things. Dwelling only served to cause stress and not live in the moment as much. She had to keep on her toes, in her line of work. She needed to stay on top, despite the fact that she never travelled to Vegas or Atlantic City anymore.

She'd heard the term Rollerball before and it always amused her. Willingly she followed Zodiac over to one of the roulette tables and she stood beside her as she got comfortable. It was one of the five dollar tables, where each chip was worth that and if you wanted to bet more you simply had to add to the pile. Alex was used to her high roller tables in the other room, where each chip was worth a minimum of a thousand dollars. Despite that, most of her clients upped it to a minimum of ten thousand. It was interesting to observe everyone around her in this section of the casino.

The dealer was one that had been hired since she'd been there, but hadn't been part of her crew in Vegas. She'd met him a few times, spoken a couple of times, but they weren't on friendly terms. He'd looked at her inquisitively and she merely smiled and shot him a playful little wink. She did note how helpful that he'd been, exchanging slot and roulette tokens for roulette chips. Each player at a roulette wheel had their own color chips, all chips equaling the minimum the table allowed, so in this case, five dollars. He'd given Zodiac the purple stack and Alex couldn't help but chuckle at how much that suited the woman. That was when she caught the drift of her companion's thoughts. It was an aspect of telepathy that she'd not had much experience, simply hearing another's idle thoughts, rather than pointed conversation. Zodiac knew the terminology, she'd give her that, but roulette was a true game of chance.

She chuckled and returned the wink to Zodiac. That was when the ball dropped into a slot. It landed on red twenty-six. "Better luck next time," she said with her lips twisted in sympathy. She watched the dealer collect the losses, but pay out to someone else that had bet on just red. Doing it that way ensured that you had a better chance at winning something, fifty-fifty, but the win was small. Do bid on a specific number was taking a larger risk and so the payout was bigger to match.

Taking a puff on the cigar that she still smoked, she asked, "Any other games you like? I'm a Blackjack fan myself." Of course she knew that Zodiac wouldn't be answering aloud so she knew that it was going to look stranger now, since there was someone there to witness their seemingly one sided conversation. Were they to move to a Blackjack table she would probably guide Zodiac into the private high roller section and deal to her herself. Of course, some people preferred Blackjack when there were others at the table, so that could be a hindrance to that idea. Really, she could deal any of the games that the CW featured, she had her dealers license, but she paid dealers for a reason, didn't she? She was only thinking about doing it so that she'd get some quiet time, away from the eyes of her employees, well unless the security camera eyes counted. The only places that didn't have cameras were the bathrooms and her private office.

"I can arrange a private table, if you like," she offered in a light mental tone, the smile still upon her lips. She was a bit more tentative with that power, as she'd not used it much and wasn't as confident with it. She just thought that it might be easier for them to talk if they had privacy. The other side of things could look awkward to the humans around them too, sitting in silence but seemingly reacting to each other as though in the midst of a conversation.

[Zodiac]

"What?" she laughed as her bet missed. It was simply a throw away bet to prove she had no 'magic powers' over the wheel.

She passed a round and considered her options quickly. The next round, she did a Column bet on row 2, and hit when 32 red landed, then followed with a second Column on row 3, which paid again when15 black landed. She pulled her chips back then motioned for a moment. Quickly, she jotted down her request to the Dealer / Crouiper, inquiring if they allowed the Snake bet. The man shook his head apologetically, explaining he knew what she meant, but it was not allowed here. Zodiac nodded. Not all casinos allowed it. She played a final round Passe and hit on 20 black.

Again, several chips were passed to the Dealer before she gathered them up. Being a soothsayer did not hurt when one considered the odds, probabilities, and risks as well. But as she had discovered, the longer the played, the harder it was to spot the patterns. Three hits in a row was among her best attempts so far, so it was time to fold in before again, she drew a crowd. She recouped a percentage of the loss from number 13, and technically was still ahead of her original investment at the door when she entered and there was the matter of her slot winnings as well.

She turned to face her new shadow and cocked her head. A subtle hint for her to follow along. If they were in motion, the one sided convo of Alex answering nobody did not look so obviously wrong or out of place, simply because of them drifting in and out of people's earshot no one could say if she was not simply answering a question they had not heard spoken because it was asked before the pair drew near.

"So where can we go and continue talking without you looking like you talking to yourself?" She asked. "I know part of your job is to get the rest of these chips, and more, out of my hands, but trust me that isn't going to happen. Tell you what, you can buy me a drink and we can finish our cigars and just talk. Sound good?"

[Alex]

Despite her offers of private time, or even a private table, her new friend declined. Instead, Alex was resigned to stand back and watch as the woman played roulette. Her eyes drifted away from the table, toward the poker tables not far off, and blackjack tables, they lifted toward the cameras and over toward the cages. Her main priority was the high rollers, but as the manager, she had to keep on top of everything. She had a good group of loyal people that had come with her from Vegas, despite the colder climate, and the others quickly learned their place. She wasn't a witch of a boss, she kept things fun, which was part of the loyalty she garnered.

She glanced back just as the croupier denied Zodiac's request. Leaning in, she caught a glimpse of the request and she couldn't help but smirk. Some casinos allowed it and the CW typically didn't, but all the woman would've had to do was ask her and she could have given the go-ahead. Rather than take advantage of the asset right there though, she had stuck with the rules. Interesting. Here was a woman that seemed to do her own thing, that seemed to be repelling Alex's advances, yet acquiesced to the rules. It wasn't what she expected.

When she turned toward her, Alex could see by her body language that she was ready to move along and so she turned away from the roulette table and toward the east side of the casino. Then came the question and she couldn't help but chuckle softly. Zodiac already seemed to have an aversion to going to Alex's office, so she decided to do the next best thing. She held her hand out to motion which direction they should head, then she led her into the high roller area. Since she had no whales that evening the area was deserted, with covers over the tables. The lighting was reduced and there weren't any dealers. In fact, on a night like that, with no high rollers, the only ones allowed in the area were herself and her assistant and Gary knew better than to stomp in unless he knew she was alone.

The high roller area was set up with a few slots in a corner and an array of table games, but then off in one area was a little corner lounge area with its own private, fully stocked bar. She stepped over to the bar and poured herself a scotch, neat, and since she knew that Zodiac wouldn't be able to drink anything in actuality, she simply poured her up a sparkling water with a lemon pinwheel off the side. She also glanced at the nearest camera and made a little motion with her hand. She knew that Sam would be watching and that hand signal was to tell him to switch off the cameras in there. Oh sure, she knew that he'd have the entrances to the area covered, but he would turn off the cameras in that area and leave Alex there for her privacy with her guest.

Bringing the drinks over, she settled them on a little end table between the plush couches as they were cattycorner to one another. There was an ashtray on the table so they should be set. She kicked off her heels and brought both of her legs up onto the couch she settled on, her feet off to the side as she took a puff. "Is this more to your liking Mistress?" she asked in a sultry tone. Her eyes danced as she teased the other woman.

[Zodiac]

'Ah, so I get a tour of the shark tank. Nice.' the little mystic thought as she followed the woman. Normally, Zodiac avoided this part of the establishment as a rule. The more level people seemed to snap at her tricks with the expected results. Nothing she did in any casino to relive her boredom ever put (much) of the casino's money in her pocket at all. However, the casino's seemed to reap the benefits of her mind games with others.

No, her bonuses came when those who played sought her out in her own 'web'. Leaving a few business cards to be discovered by other players next to the slots was easy PR to play out, and once they came to her she could begin. Ironically, she was in the business of helping others and sometimes she was reduced to such showboating and grandstanding to get people to come for the help they needed so badly. 'No, I can't teach you how to be rich, but hopefully I can show you why you are better off as you are.'

Now the sharks (or whales as Alex kept calling them) were a different breed. Having money to burn often made most of the living think they had no issues some healthy spiritual guidance could cure. Anything she did among them would be suspect as cheating (because of course, those that have money would assume she was. She'd have to be. They were rich and important and she was some fortune telling ragamuffin so if she won it was their duty to scream for security) Zodiac had been thrown (literally) out of a few places like this in her time, so she knew what waters to fish in and which ones to avoid.

She relaxed as she saw no one was inside trying to play 'I am the most important person in the room' and she followed the woman to a corner lounging area. Part of her frowned when Alex returned with a water with lemon. She was honestly getting a tad 'thirsty' but she doubted a place like this had anything 'on tap' she could consume. Zodiac took a sniff of the water and tapped the ashes off the end of her cigar. Seeing the woman make herself at home, the gypsy did the same. Her sandals were removed and she wiggled her toes in the deep, plush carpet. ('Cripes! I could swim in this stuff!') as she leaned back into the couch. She sat her bucket of winnings next to her.

Mentally her eyes rolled at Alex's comment. 'The girl just don't stop, does she?' she smiled regardless.

"Well, at least like this, everyone won't think the butter done slid off your noodles by having one sided conversations with me," she replied as she took another puff. "Is a condition I cannot help. Never been able to say a word since I was born. Well, I can make sounds but it's....embarrassing to say the least. I end up sounding like some animal dying on the side of the road or something."

"And yes, I know there is a type of surgery that could have fixed that. But that would have been best done when I was a child and the way I lived, that wasn't going to happen and now?" she continued. The idea of a mortal doctor working on her was bad comedy at best. That is if a physician could get past the fact his patient had no vital signs at all. A vague notion occurred to her that she filed away for later.

"You like that 'mistress' business, don't ya?" she grinned. "Blame my Nana for that one. Not the whips and chains type of mistress at all."

Yes, this was quite the little operation, and her hostess seemed to run it all. "So what do you do when you ain't doing this? I mean, you got a home? Loved ones? Friends? Right? Don't tell me this is your life 24/7."

[Alex]

There was a slight shadow in Zodiac's eyes as she took in the water she'd been brought. The casino didn't keep blood on tap or anything, since humans weren't supposed to know about their kind. She did have her assistant, Arimil, that Alex drank from most days, to keep from being seen feeding. Should Zodiac wish something to actually feed upon, Alex supposed that she could call Arimil. The girl was nice, and always accommodating, plus she was bewitched. For some reason, by always feeding on the same person, she was able to sort of separate the rest of the population, in her mind, from the idea of food.

Laugher erupted from her at the wording that Zodiac used, about butter and noodles. It was one that she'd not heard before and that was rare. Having lived and worked in Vegas she had interacted with people from all over the world, all walks of life, and each brought their own little sayings. 'Everyone won't think the butter done slid off your noodles.' Alex rolled that one around in her head, half savoring it and half picking it apart. There had been a bit of an accent to her mental tone as she said it, implying that it was regional in origin. The wording was fitting though, for she was sure that they were already getting some weird looks for it, though that could have been due to Zodiac's win too.

Alex took a sip of her scotch, savoring the flavor in her mouth, rolling it around to the different taste buds before she let it slide down her throat. Food and drink were one of the things that she'd made a conscious effort to learn how to consume. Only Allurists could eat and drink, of all of the Paths of Vampires, but in her line of work, while entertaining clients, were she to refuse to join them on occasion it would look suspicious. The client wouldn't trust her as much, they'd go elsewhere and she'd lose out on all of their lovely money. It was definitely worth it to her to learn the trick. Not all Allurists bothered to learn how to eat and drink. For her though, not only was it an inroad to money but it made her feel more human. None of it gave her sustenance, got her drunk, but she could still enjoy it.

As she had taken her drink, then subsequently put the glass down again, she listened to Zodiac share about her speech issue. Alex's eyebrow arched upward at the idea of a doctor trying to correct the fault in her new friend's throat at this point in her... well life wasn't exactly the right word, but neither was death. Perhaps if the woman were to explain exactly what she was and what she wanted, then after the procedure she could kill the doctor and anyone that might have noticed the no pulse thing... The Allurist gave herself a shake at even having thought of that, the idea of killing anyone wasn't something that would have come to her mind a couple of years ago and now it seemed to pop up more frequently. Alex wasn't a fighter. Sure she had her gun, Sexy, but she only used that when she was fighting off the gangsters that would occasionally come into the casino.

She was shaken from her thoughts by Zodiac's question. That caused a rush of the blood from her last feeding to move up to her cheeks, appearing almost as a blush. She'd fixated upon that one part of her companion's name partially to tease her and partially to flirt. In most cases the only reason that Alex flirted with a woman was if she was the whale, trying to encourage her client to bet higher, to keep going. Oh she'd been with a woman now and again, but typically she was more attracted to men. Perhaps it was something about Zodiac's split-colored eyes, or maybe it was the intimacy of hearing her voice in her mind, though the fact that the woman had a rocking hot body didn't hurt. In any case, Alex couldn't seem to keep from flirting.

She took another sip, grinning at her mental observation of the woman sitting near to her. Then came the personal questions about herself. She'd gotten away with letting Zodiac share her own life information, with watching her put on her show, but now it was time for her to turn things around and ask about Alex. Most of the time Alex sort of kept people at arms length. It was easier to do that than to let someone get close, only to hurt her or disappear on her. She'd let one or two get close and then she lost them. One of those two she had given her heart to and not only had they betrayed her, but they'd turned away when she was at her weakest, just after she'd been turned.

Putting those thoughts aside, she smirked and shrugged her shoulders a bit before she replied, "Casinos were my life before I became a vampire and it is what I know." She took a deep, unneeded breath, as she tried to put her thoughts into some semblance of order. After another moment she continued, "I've mostly just been living out of my office, though I have just bought an apartment. Next up is to find a decorator." She took another sip of her scotch, buying a few more moments, before she went on, "As for loved ones... Well I used to have someone that would look in on me, but life, as it were, is a fickle mistress. I don't have any connection to my 'family,' as it were," she brought her fingers up in air quotes for that one word, "so I work and continue with my title as the Best Casino Host in North America. Chad isn't around much, he owns the casino, but I manage it." She shrugged her shoulders as if to say that the rest didn't matter.

[Zodiac]

Why was it that some simply didn't care about things? Zodiac had pondered that since her earliest days of reading the cards for others. 'Oh well, that is just how things are-*sighs*' She would not expect anyone to be all whine whine, my life so sucks as a rule, but indifference was a quality she found alien. If her host was living (as much as 'living' as any of them were) in such a narrow box despite the possibilities that could be had if one only reached out, then she could see little, if anything, she could do to assist. 'If someone is drowning and you throw them a rope and they choose not to grab the rope-what do you do? Drown as well trying to save them?' one of her grandfather's expressions crept across the back of her mind as she considered it all.

Chad?

If she had actually been able to drink, she would have choked at the mention of the name and been embarrassed cause she could not have stopped sputtering and laughing at the same time. The so-called 'head of the line' of the entire lot of them whose origins stemmed from the name Worthington had not made a large impression on her the few times she had been in the same room with him. He was a snake oil salesman at best, in her opinion. A carpet bagger. She never could figure out how so many of them were all moon eyed over the man. Well, she had issues with males period, but that was beside the point. She hid the smirk behind her hand as to not offend Alex. One of her own pet phrases from the past came unbidden to her thoughts. 'Worthington by birth, Sangue by the grace of Scorpia' She kept her comments to herself. No sense in angering a possible fanatic.

"Casino host? Ah, so you were the reason I got thrown out of Reno then." she laughed. "I did pass through Vegas once, but my nose was still broken from Reno, so I declined to stop in any of the big clubs."

"However..." she rummaged through the over sized purse that she carried and finally pulled out a small photo book. With a snap of her fingers, a different business card appeared and she handed them both to Alex. "Some of my adventures in interior design. I don't do this as a mainline business like some do, but I have had no complaints so far. I like working on one effort at a time myself. Sometimes people want something and don't realize they have the majority of the parts for it sitting in storage somewhere and all it needs is a few adjustments or a fresh coat of paint. With that in mind, it reduces the cost of the project, so I can be a cheaper alternative for some."

she leaned back onto the sofa again and let her toes enjoy the shag carpet again."Of course, someone with a job like you have could probably afford all new stuff, but some like the more homey touches to their places. Original, unique, one of a kind. Like that."

[Alex]

Trained as she was, to catch little nuances, changes in her clients, she noticed a change in expression, despite Zodiac's attempt to hide it, but she didn't comment upon it. Everyone had their own opinions about everything and everyone. What little time she'd actually spent in Chad's company had been pleasant, and there had been some mild flirting, but for them it was a friendly professional relationship. She'd learned that he was married and so even if they were to get closer, she wasn't the sort to mess up a relationship. She was a flirt that rarely got to get her own kicks.

Zodiac's joke about Reno had Alex chuckling, her eyes dancing as she smiled warmly over at the other woman. She'd been to Reno before, but Vegas had always been her home, since she'd first left Harper's Rock at eighteen. The casino community was an interesting mix of people, some owners being in it for the thrill, others to wash money, still others just maintained something they'd inherited from family. The thing that tied them all together was their senior staff, specifically their department heads, and the Lead Casino Host in each location was the one with all of the connections, traditionally the owner's right hand person. Most hosts had one Lead that they looked to, then as that Lead gained notoriety, neighboring casinos would look to them, or even try to lure them away. The casino that she'd made home in Vegas had been fantastic, but that didn't mean that she hadn't had offers left, right and center. The entire city was surprised when she'd up and moved to Canada, and taken a number of the staff with her. Despite her defection, and transition, she'd maintained her title and planned on keeping it.

Alex watched as Zodiac thrust her hand into her bag and began to search for something. After a few moments she pulled out a photo book, which was a surprise for anyone to carry around anymore, in the age of smartphones. As she extended the book, along with another business card, Alex took them and looked at the card. This one read interior designer upon it and so Alex chuckled, slipping that one, with the original one, into the top of her dress. Leaning against the arm of the couch she was upon she opened the book and began to slowly look through the array, pausing on a few to look closer at the details. Even as she perused the woman's portfolio, she listened.

Still looking through the book, she spoke up saying, "My Mother was a hoarder and it killed me, literally." Her lips twisted in a grimace at that memory. For a bit she had blocked out the last few moments of her life, but she really did recall it in vivid detail now. She'd been cleaning out her dead mother's packed garage, dancing to some music as she did so. A section shifted as she pulled something out and the pile came sliding down. On top of that pile had been a coat of arms that her Mom had picked up at some garage sale or something. It slid down and skewered her through the chest, pinning her down, leaving her to bleed out. There had been an intense pain and then she began to feel cold, and everything began to get foggy, then it stopped and Isabella was there.

Shaking herself from her reflections, she continued looking through the book as she continued on, "As such, I live minimally. I don't have anything in storage. I sold or gave away everything that she left, even sold her house." Part of the selling of her mother's house had been to push the memory of her death away, and to try and put the thoughts of the one person she'd loved, into her past as well. He'd hurt her more deeply than that sword ever did. The whole indifference that she practiced was a shield of her own design, one meant to protect her heart from being broken again. If you didn't let anyone get too close then you didn't have to worry about getting hurt.

Closing the book, she placed it on the corner table between them. Now to put on her game face, mixed with a bit of flirting to try and affect the outcome. Smiling winningly she looked into Zodiac's interestingly colored eyes and asked, "So how much for your expertise Mistress Zodiac?"