There's a place I know I can always go (Open)

[longterm]

It's been a while since Cesare was last in London. He had...other issues to attend to in other countries. But now that he's back, he wants to immerse himself in his surroundings. Cesare is not exactly the type of man to spend any extended period of time with strangers so voluntarily, but he wants to pick up the pulse of London again, see how it's moving nowadays. And where better to do that than on his home turf?

Cesare is lurking in a corner of a lounge at The Angelo, sitting in an armchair and sipping an Old Fashioned (the irony isn't lost on him). He doesn't look particularly remarkable, at least when compared to the hotel's typical clientèle of businessmen in suits and high flyers with a little too much time on their hands. In fact, Cesare has gone out of his way to blend in. He holds a paper as if he actually cares about standard current affairs and looks at his phone every so often as if he finds it useful and not newfangled and pointless. You would probably have to know who Cesare was to spot him. Constantly, though, he's watching.

A. Can I buy you a drink?
Eventually someone catches his eye at the bar. Are they familiar? Does Cesare know them? Perhaps. Do they just seem interesting? Just as possible.

Cesare leaves his paper on the lounge chair and sits himself down next to them. He smirks, his manner calm and collected. You're in his home. He's comfortable.

"What do you drink?"

B. What are you doing here?
Someone is here who shouldn't be. They could be an old foe who has grown over confident with Cesare's absence. They could be the wrong type of person for this type of hotel. They could simply not have paid.

Either way, they shouldn't be here. Cesare quietly makes his way up to them. When he speaks, his tone is polite and cordial but there's something slightly too piercing about his gaze and he's standing a little too close to them for comfort.

"Something tells me you might be lost."

C. Can I speak to a manager?
Someone isn't happy. In fact, they are really quite frustrated. One of the hotel staff has messed up royally and someone is demanding that they speak to a higher up about it. This needs to be fixed. Something has to be done and Cesare is happy enough to oblige. With his façade of a casual hotel guest ruined he smiles as the waiter anxiously frets.

"I'm certain that we can sort this out."

D. Pick your own adventure! Choose something else!

Comments

[longterm]

Cesare can't help but laugh: a quick, suppressed snicker at Thomas' exceptional confidence.

"You seem quite assured." Although, in truth, Cesare himself isn't much different. He just isn't quite so loud about it. Having someone to eat for the night isn't exactly difficult when you have a decent face, considerable power and even more money.

The part where they do differ is what appears to be Thomas' interest in keeping his prey alive. Cesare is a man who likes to finish his plate, so to speak. If Thomas wants to do that too, Cesare certainly isn't judging.

"Accidents happen. If they do, leave a message at the lobby. Maintenance will come and help."

[loveconquersdinosaurs]

"But of course," Thomas agreed with a smile, "But you have to admit, I'm also right."

He had enough experience to know that it was remarkably easy to lead people off from the crowd with a pretty face and a friendly smile, after all. As for the offer...Thomas is grateful, though he honestly hopes he won't have to take advantage of the offer. He hates killing people, but at the same time is glad to avoid being hunted down and killed for his mistakes. He'd rather someone stop him before he make such a mistake, but he didn't think that would be an issue here.

"Thank you, but I'm hoping that won't be necessary. I do work on my self control...and I'm sorry, you've been helpful, and I've forgotten to ask your name."

[longterm]

Cesare shrugs as he swirls about the liquor in his glass.

"We have a new leader. Rules have changed. It seems you don't even need to bother with self-control nowadays."

He looks to Thomas. "Any regulations here, I'm afraid, are merely mine in a desperate attempt to keep things clean." He gives a slightly apologetic look, as if to say sorry for spoiling Thomas' fun, before smirking and holding out a hand.

"Cesare Borgia, Earl of Angel and prodigal son." He grins. "I left London to fend for itself for a while. Tell me: how has it been doing?"

[loveconquersdinosaurs]

Thomas took a drink of his beer. "I know. I prefer to have control. And I admit, I prefer a more relaxed, friendly environment when I go out to eat. It's a little harder to do that if everyone's used to messes being left behind."

And so as far as he was concerned, Cesare wasn't ruining Thomas's fun at all. If anyone was, it was this new leader.

Thomas shook Cesare's offered hand. "Thomas Raith. And it's been...doing things. I haven't been here that long, either, but considering the sudden and abrupt change of leadership, I'd say not well."

Well, that, and the fact that the new leader seemed to be completely insane, as far as he could tell. If it wasn't for that part, he wouldn't have even cared.

[longterm]

Cesare shrugs. He appreciates Thomas' opinion, but he doesn't quite share it. There are always plenty of people, he finds, who have no idea what is about to happen to them, and by the time they figure it out it is usually too late. Cesare doesn't feel the need to make things harder than they already are, not when it comes to feeding anyway. Cesare knew what he was getting into when he became a vampire. He has made peace with that.

But the comment about the new leader makes Cesare smirk as he takes a swig of his drink.

"You're not keen on sudden change, Mr Raith?" The Mr is a habit from his days of My Lord and My Lady that he isn't quite over. You can take the man from the Renaissance but you can't take the Renaissance from the man.

"Maybe from all these flames we will see new growth?"

[loveconquersdinosaurs]

Thomas just assumed that Cesare was being formal, which was probably for the best. If he'd known that Cesare's choice of words came from an impulse that was in any way derived from a desire to refer to him as something like 'Lord Raith', he'd have been slightly disturbed by it. After all, that was what his sire went by, and the relationship between them was complicated at best.

Still, even thinking it was just formality, Thomas saw little need for it. "You can call me Thomas. Most people do. And whether I like change or not depends entirely on what those changes are. I'm not a fan of dealing with retaliation."

Which if they went too crazy was exactly what they'd have.

"But who knows, maybe you're right."

Maybe the new leader being so young and reckless would give them a chance to get a better leader in place to take over. At least, young by most vampires' standards, as it still seemed strange to Thomas that someone over a hundred years old would be considered young. Still, the fact that there were meant that many vampires might be quick to fall behind someone better.

[longterm]

Cesare is tempted to explain that he isn't concerned by the threat of retaliation. Vampires have lasted a long time. They will last through this too. They are resilient enough to deal with it.

But that's not exactly the type of conversation to have when you've only just met someone and so he just about manages to hold his tongue. Instead he deflects with jokes, smirking behind his glass as he takes a sip.

"Maybe we could learn a few things from the other factions. I've heard the wolves are great at digging and the witches make delicious stews. I've become rather sweet on the fae, though I wonder if that's more appetite than anything else." Once you've tasted fae blood, it's very difficult to come back from. That's how it's been for Cesare at least.

[loveconquersdinosaurs]

Clearly, this wasn't a concern Cesare took too seriously. Although that last point was a little bit worrying. He'd heard some very unpleasant things about what fae blood could do to a vampire, once they became addicted to it. Then again, he wasn't sure if that comment was just talk.

"Have you actually tasted..." Then, after a moment he decided better than to ask. It didn't matter, this man's choices were his own after all. "Nevermind. And call be crazy, but I'm fairly certain the other factions are capable of doing quite a bit more than that. After all, I doubt we've had the restrictions we've had for so long because our gardens could get dug up."

Not that it really mattered what this vampire thought. After all, it wasn't his opinions that were the problem. He kept things clean enough in his own hotel, after all, and whatever he did or did not do, it really didn't make a difference when neither of them would likely be the reason for any retaliation.

"Though I guess I might as well not worry about it. It's not as if though my actions will influence them one way or the other."

After all, even though he wasn't harming anyone, there were plenty of vampires that were. Ultimately, it was the vampire at their head that they'd suffer or not suffer for.

"Besides, I came here for dinner, not politics."

[longterm]

Cesare holds up a hand and bows his head slightly.

"My apologies. This conversation is unbecoming for us both. It's late. I'm sure you're hungry and don't want to be talking about government policy with some old man."

Cesare himself needs to find himself someone to eat, though he isn't quite as kind as Thomas. Cesare is a traditionalist, believing that he signed up to drink humans dry and that it's par the course. Killing others is just what happens when you're a vampire. That's just how it is. Control isn't exactly Cesare's strong suit, not that he's ever much tried it.

[loveconquersdinosaurs]

"I hope you don't mind too much if I admit that you're right on both accounts?"

Sure, Thomas might not mind making his opinion and concerns known, but beyond that he didn't see much point in discussing it. It was clear that the two of them had differing opinions on how much of a threat was posed by pissing off other factions. It wasn't like a vampire that was as young as Thomas could really have any place telling a much older vampire what was and wasn't dangerous, and depending on the age of the other vampire, things that seemed quite deadly to Thomas may only be small obstacles to him. It was, quite simply, not a discussion worth having.

"I suppose I'll see you around."

Already Thomas's eyes were locking in on someone who looked rather lonely, all by themselves. Getting up, he decided to head over and give them some company. He fully expected the interaction to be mutually beneficial. He'd give them a fun night, they'd give him blood.