Path of the Vampire forum

[for_peace][/for_peace]

Doc took the present that Lizzie had thoughtfully procured for the children, that was to be ‘from him’. “What did I get them? A video game?” He shook it. “It’s a video game isn’t it? What if they don’t have the console. They will ******* hate me…” He teased her unashamedly, while he found an open spot to stick the blue and silver box. Task complete, his full attention was returned to Lizzie, “No.. I haven’t seen him. My guess is, he is waiting for a strategic photo opportunistic entrance. My guess is that it will involve that ‘photo booth style room’ somehow.”

He noticed Lizzie’s attention on Amalea along with the woman with her while he had been toying about with the present. Lizzie took his arm, and made a straight line through the crowd to Amalea. She was a woman with a mission. What the mission was, that made her eyes glint with quiet determination, he couldn’t guess. It was barely a moment a later, that Doc found himself standing across from Amalea and a rather attractive Asian female. The Asian female that Lizzie called Amalea’s date. A slight frown marred his brow, only briefly before he schooled his features to be impassive.

Looking from Lizzie to Amalea, he gave Amalea a quick wink, before once more assuming the blank, but polite look on his face. Normally he wouldn't go to so much trouble to be blank and expressionless, but, there were a plethora of cameras and press about the room. Photos were being taken left and right, and anything less than a pleasant or blank look would or.. Could cause speculation. Speculation could quickly become rumor, then rumors could lead to false accusations, and the election would burn. But.. that did not have to be a bad thing, merely a kink or bump in the road. When things went too smoothly, you were far more likely to be blind sided. So he remained silent and resolute, being the perfect date. The silent kind that his his woman’s back… even if he had no idea what she was up to.

[for_peace][/for_peace][for_sirens][/for_sirens]

[for_peace][/for_peace]

[for_peace][/for_peace]

Doc inclined his head politely to the Asian female as she noted what an attractive couple Lizzie and he made. It was that latter comment to caused a slight perking of his left eyebrow, ‘public liaison for the Hebigumo Foundation’, interesting. For the last few weeks he had been trying to find who was the mouthpiece for Hebigumo, and here she was. She.. he couldn’t help but appraise her more closely, and he wasn’t unhappy with what he learned. His next action was stalled as there was a sudden uproar and jostling of the crowd.

Doc watched the commotion of Elves darting through the crowd and unleashing the sprays of mistletoe over random females’ heads. One of the first was Amalea’s head, and the Asian female he had just appraised, locked lips with Amalea. His look of interested intrigue become one of bemusement, which then immediately turned to one of lascivious amusement as a sprig of mistletoe was dangled just over Lizzie’s head.

The calculating look that Doc had worn was wiped clean, as his lecherous side took control. He gave Lizzie a grinning leer, “Oh baby…” He turned and in doing so, turned Lizzie to face him. Pulling her to him, he bent to take her lips in a slow sensual kiss, his mouth closed over hers, the palm of his hand splayed over her back and held her against him. His lips were slightly parted as they pushed into hers, deepening the kiss, giving her a hint of things to come later. Pulling, reluctantly, free from the kiss, he whispered, “Merry Christmas, Lizzie.”

Casually, as though he did that sort of thing all time, his hand moving to curl about Lizzie’s waist, as he directed his gaze back to the Hebigumo Liaison and Amalea. He gave Amalea a thorough assessment, head to toe. “You look exceptionally lovely this evening, Amalea. The color suits you.”

(OOC: Techokesis, plus hacking to see what, if anything Elizabeth can procure on the world of the interwebs about Ayuka Mori? >.> )

[for_peace][/for_peace]

Going to the mayor’s Holiday Ball had been her idea, and yet she still felt that sense of dread. What if they didn’t know anyone? What if they didn’t enjoy themselves? What if they managed to cause a scene? Even as she applied her lipstick, the doubts kept resurfacing, rising like a tide. When her lips matched the berry shade of her dress, she replaced the cap on the tube of lipstick and dropped it into her makeup bag, where it would remain until she eventually tossed it out, just like almost every other tube of lipstick. Clo stared at her nonexistent reflection, and then she turned off the lights in the bathroom. During the elevator ride to the main floor, she took off the earrings she got to go with the dress and put them in the clutch she carried, along with the matching ring. She only wanted her wedding ring on, just her wedding ring. And they were going to have fun, she defended -- they were going to have an evening of dancing and laughter and pure goddamn fun.

The dark-grey Lexus sat outside of the building, its headlights shining out into the cold, dark night. She’d sent Jesse ahead only minutes before, just so he’d see the image of her walking to the car, all put together, rather than struggling to finish getting ready. He hadn’t seen her in the dress. He hadn’t seen her in her shoes. As she walked to the car, she smiled at him. The driver had already opened the door to the backseat, as he must have done for Jesse, and she slid into the backseat. When the driver closed the door, he circled around the back of the luxury car and got back into the driver’s seat. She or Jesse could have driven, or even taken another form of transportation, but she’d asked for a driver and demanded the man drive a nice car. When the car started moving, she finally relaxed back into the seat, but she still clutched Jesse’s hand.

What if they didn’t know anyone? What if they didn’t enjoy themselves? What if they managed to cause a scene? Clo threaded her fingers with his and they spoke to one another, but she couldn’t pay much attention with the way her stomach rocked, her gut suddenly a castaway. She didn’t notice when they arrived. The last she’d seen, they had been passing tree after tree, traveling back into River Rock from the outlands. The driver circled around the vehicle, opened the passenger door, and handed off the black gift bag, its bright red tissue paper arranged just so. The tissue paper itself concealed the art supplies from view. Hopefully, a boy or girl would enjoy them, would turn out to be quite the artist. The driver made a motion to the cars parked off to the side of the building and mumbled a few words to Jesse, but Clo just kept staring at the fine building. And when she looped her arm through Jesse’s, she continued staring, even when they were within the large ballroom, its gold embellishments taking over the roles of the stars in the sky. Everything seemed so surreal. Someone came up behind her and offered to take her fur shrug and her clutch, both of which she relinquished to the worker. She had nothing there she would ever miss, if something were to happen to her belongings.

“This place is beautiful,” she whispered to her husband. When she saw a few other guests deposit their gifts beneath the large Christmas trees, Clo made a point to motion to the trees. Someone was going to love their gift. The wrapped box concealed beneath tissue paper contained an art kit with pencils and paints and crayons, every little thing a beginning artist could want. “You look so handsome in your suit,” she told him, not for the first time that night. “**** -- I mean, um, darn -- we’re going to have a good time tonight.” An old woman scowled at her when she let the f-bomb slip, so Clo quickly corrected herself and flashed the old woman an apologetic smile.

[for_peace][/for_peace]

”She is quite the formidable woman.” The red-head agreed easily. The goddess was well known for being a twin, though she wasn’t defined by that as most women in early history might have been. Rather, she was a lady of many talents and of great resolve. Her dedication to her chastity and her dealings with those that attempted to place it in peril were legendary. Most were unaware that the goddess was a protector of female children. It was from that that the blood thief suspected her affinity for the goddess sprung; her childhood had been anything but normal.

”After Longslade, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was a publicity thing,” she sighed softly. ”Goddess knows he and the city could use some good PR after that mess. At least, no matter the reasoning or what occurs this evening, the children benefit.” If pressed, she would be the first to admit she had security concerns for the evening. There seemed to be a distinct lack of trained guards around. Sure, she had seen some that must be security elves, but they seemed to be more for show than practicality. There was the suspicion that a ritualist had not had been contracted to ensure the night remained violence-free. Had she considered the idea earlier, she would have done so herself.

”A true friend is an exceptional rare treasure. Those are the friendships that should be nurtured.” She knew precisely what the woman meant. It was a hard, painful lesson she had learnt many times throughout her childhood. It wasn’t that she was ignorant; it had more to do with the fact that her peers found newer and crueler ways to torment the red-head. ”There’s honestly not much to tell. I spent a great deal of time in boarding school or summer camps. Once a year we’d take a vacation, but that was about the extent of it.” She wasn’t about to bore the woman with the reasons as to why it had been that way. Nor was she going to allow it to spoil the night. There were plenty of people to greet and chat with which was a more pleasing prospect. While her companion had been sizing up the Santa, she had slipped into the photo room to find the perfect clip for her hair.

A single eyebrow rose at Ayuka’s statement that Every’s dress would look like a sock on her. The blood thief was fairly certain that that statement was false. ”I don’t think I could pull it off, either.” She knew she couldn’t; she didn’t have the confidence or poise that such an outfit required. Her lips twitched into a smile as she watched Doc and Liz head towards the tree to drop off their gifts. Secretly, she was glad to see that they had come together despite the concerns she knew the English woman had had about the arrangement.

The falling tinsel reminded her of a much prettier, warmer version of snow. She knew without looking that her hair was now adorned with the shimmering strands adding a bit more festive spirit to her chosen outfit. First the beads and now the tinsel; the red-head had to wonder if Bancroft or his staff was trying to compensate for more than just the Longslade incident. Or perhaps, he just really liked shiny things like a niffler? Or even a magpie? She brushed some of the strands from her dress, particularly the flapped over section, allowing them to join their cousins upon the floor. She didn’t mind the tinsel, she just didn’t want to be fishing for it later.

She was a bit surprised that her companion removed her mask so shortly after donning it though she supposed the tinsel more than made up for it. There was no doubt that the woman would still look quite festive and eye-catching in any pictures she happened to end up in. The arrival of Liz and Doc freed the red-head from her contemplation with a smile. ”Evening,” she greeted the pair simply, not quite sure what name Liz preferred in such settings, so omitting them for simplicities sake. ”Thank you. It pales in comparison to your own. You both look amazing.” She laughed lightly, though she was quite sincere; Liz looked fantastic in her dress.

Date? What on earth was Elizabeth playing at? Surely the elder had been aware that the red-head had intended on attending the ball without a date or even an escort. The wink directed her way by Doc set her at ease as she wondered how best to answer the question, even as her companion introduced herself to the couple. The quiet that seemed to spread through the hall for a moment before hell seemed to break loose made her suspicious, distracting her from replying to the unspoken question Ayuka had posed, before she spotted the mistletoe-bearing elves. Her eyes widened as she saw a pair head their way.

The dangling plant coming to rest above her barely registered before her companion made her move. There was no doubt to the woman’s intentions given the placement of her hands and that soft, yet gentle squeeze that spoke volumes. She was aware that she could stop it with a single word or even a single action, but it was the holidays, wasn’t it? There wasn’t much harm to come from a mistletoe-inspired kiss and everything to lose if she refused and caused a scene given she had no doubt that the press had already descended like vultures. Besides, kissing a pretty woman was hardly an imposition.

Her hand reached out to rest on Ayuka’s hip slightly tugging the woman a touch closer. She leaned in to meet the kiss tasting cinnamon and spice. The old nursery rhyme that questioned what girls were made of sprung to mind* and she found it an apt description for this mystery of a woman. It was certainly an unique experience to match the variety of expressions that seemed to play out in the moments when their lips met. Whatever she expected, this blew them out of the water. As it ended, she slipped her hand off of the woman’s waist nearly in time with the fingers slid from her hair. ”Happy Holidays.” She replied as she turned slightly to eye the couple just breaking apart from their own mistletoe-fueled lip lock.

”Indeed, she is a lovely woman and a brilliant conversationalist.” The red-head grinned as she finally answered Liz’s earlier question. Her eyes twinkled in amusement as they took in Doc’s hand curling around Liz’s waist and their close proximity. ”Thank you. I didn’t want to go with a cliché red dress and I can’t really pull off most green dresses so went with something winter inspired. You look great, yourself.”

* What are Little Boys Made Of?