In fact I have been all over town

[outstandingbalance]

I. Hoar's Head (Closed to Evie)

Who is Natasha to argue with good atmosphere? Evie described the place as Marie Antoinette's attic, which is both amazingly accurate and misses its exact charm. It feels private, which Natasha respects, and there's something about it that's not as masculine as a lot of bars. She doubts she needs to worry about fights breaking out over a girl or the latest football match.

As she walks toward the bar, she scans the room for Evie. She couldn't be the first one here, could she? It's five past ten now, and Evie didn't strike her as the type to be late.


II. Guilty Pleasures (OTA)

It's been a while since Natasha said she'd stop in, and it might be too late now. She's heard that Kenzi's not around anymore and that was supposed to be her reason, right? Keep an eye on the girl. Give her a friend, someone who knew what she was going through. Someone who wasn't her sire to help her adjust. Natasha considered not even coming in...

But here she is now.

If nothing else she's hoping to see how Cherry's doing, that she was safe and comfortable since Natasha and Evie rescued her last month. Make sure that she's back to normalcy. That's why Natasha comes in on Lady's Night. Or it's a good excuse to come in on Lady's Night. Either way.

It's well into the evening when she shows up, taking a seat at a table near the corner with a good view of the room and orders herself a gin and tonic. She keeps an eye on things from there, not asking after Cherry directly or looking for Jean Claude. If either of them actually want to speak to her, she imagines that they'll know she's here before long. Maybe it was a passive approach, but she was fine with letting them decide whether or not they wanted to talk to her again.

In the time being, well, she has plenty of money.


III. Dark Corners (Closed to Arthur)

Natasha tries not to think about how long it's been since she fed, but it's not very successful. The thirst won't let her forget it. Even if it's not at the front of her thoughts, it's always there somewhere in the back of her mind.

It's been about the same length of time since she's had sex. Not unrelated. The two things had often gone together for her, and while she'd played with the idea a little, even gone on a date or two, but it never went anywhere. Natasha wasn't in the place for a relationship, and she hadn't wanted to lead anyone on. But there's no reason she shouldn't have some fun.

Tonight, she doesn't intend to give anyone the wrong idea. She walks into the bar knowing what she wants. It's a little bit more upscale than most of the dives she frequents, and the dress she wears could be shorter, could be tighter, but she's dressed to attract attention rather than deflect it. If she turns heads, it's intentional.

She smiles when she spots a familiar face. She remembers Arthur from Lancelot's birthday. Their chat had been fine—and he was certainly attractive enough. Internally, she shrugs. Why not? She could do a lot worse. She'd even considered making a play for it at the time, but Arthur had left with another woman and no hard feelings that he had.

But if she's going to get a second chance?

Natasha sits beside him at the bar, crossing her legs pointedly as she swivels an eight of a turn toward him. "The accountant, right? You might not remember me..."



IV. Fresh Air (Closed to Eames)

On the street, panting warm night air and trying to calm a raging thirst: not Natasha's finest moment. She's not even sure what she left behind her. She thinks Arthur was saying something as she disengaged and chased herself away from the situation, but she hadn't registered what he was saying over the pounding in her ears. Perfect.

She leans back against the brick wall behind her, steadying herself.

"Shit." She is a mess.

And now she has an audience.



V. After Hours (Closed to Daryl)

Looks like Natasha is going to have a chance to do some of the tourist things after all. Maybe she should have begged out, but Daryl and asked her if she wanted to go and she'd said yes. It's not like she really had anything better to do. It's not like she doesn't want to spend more time with him. Daryl has been good for her, refreshingly nonjudgmental for all his awkwardness.

She waits for him to meet her on the street near near the Redbright Institute. She's still not entirely sure this is a good idea, but as far as bad ideas go, she's had a lot worse.



VI. Grocery Delivery (Closed to Alex))

Alex has been relocated to a nondescript little apartment in a bad neighborhood, paid for in cash by Natasha with a little extra to keep quiet. The landlady is a Russian woman in her sixties, and after a hushed, serious conversation in their native language, Natasha was confident that money wasn't the only reason she wouldn't mention the suspicious circumstances of her new tenant's arrival.

It was a good move, for the short term at least, and Natasha was starting to think that she might just be able to keep the werewolf alive through the end of the month.

After a few days in the new place, Natasha checks in again. She brings two bags of groceries, since Alex still shouldn't be outside where she can be seen. Even during the day, there were too many ways word could get back to the nest if she were spotted. Or that word could get back to the Night Council. Either way, the end would be about the same outcome for both of them at this point.

"I brought you a couple of steaks," Natasha says as she brings the bags in. "I wasn't sure what else you'd like, so I went ahead and guessed." Her tone is light, inviting Alex to let her know if there was anything in particular that she'd like in the future. "There's a book of sudoku, too."

Once the food is on the counter, she turns and takes in the flat quickly. No sign of trouble, at least.

"Anything else you need before I get out of your hair?"



VII. Choose Your Own Adventure

(Don't see anything here that strikes your fancy? Then let's do something else. Hit me up on plurk at sarosaron!)

Comments

[falsify]

He didn't see who it was she left (otherwise he would be laughing up a storm,) but that's a pretty telling exit, especially with the outfit. That's an 'I can't do this' exit, and it doesn't take a genius to figure out what, exactly, it is she can't do.

"Smooth," comes Eames' voice as he approaches the bar — low, but he knows she can hear him — hands in his pockets and a light smirk playing over his face as he stops in front of her. It's a fairly good guess that smooth is the last thing she was.

[outstandingbalance]

Natasha closes her eyes when she hears his voice, biting her lip briefly. Does it make it better or worse that she knows him, and that he could probably infer more or less the chain of events that led to this moment?

Not better, she's pretty sure of that.

Worse, still TBD.

"You know," she says hollowly, the humor ringing false, "We have got to quit meeting like this."

[falsify]

"Oh, I don't know about that." Much as he doesn't hate Natasha, it is always great to see a vampire having a rough time, and he's enjoying this.

Not that he's gonna rub salt in the wound, but, "my capacity for schadenfreude is pretty high."

Maybe a little salt.

[outstandingbalance]

"At least someone's enjoying this."

Natasha runs her hand over her face. She's not used to being embarrassed, and she doesn't find she likes the experience. Especially considering it's proof she can't control herself as well as she'd thought she could.

"Not worried you're going to end up on the menu?" It's an empty threat. And he can probably see that as well. Her control had been slipping with Arthur, but it wasn't like the last time they'd met, with blood in the air.

[specifiercity]

Arthur's here on business tonight, and not accounting business. He tends to meet his contacts in busy places, to keep from being overheard, and tonight is no different. He's been done meeting with his contact for a little while now, just staying to finish off his drink, but when he sees Natasha he cracks a smile and turns toward her.

"Of course I remember," he says, raising an eyebrow at her. He certainly wouldn't forget a face like hers. Part of him wishes he had gone home with her that night, despite the fact that his night with Eames had ended rather well. There probably wouldn't have been a fight with Natasha, though.

"I'm happy to see you again."

[outstandingbalance]

"That makes two of us," Natasha says lightly. "I was hoping to catch you again before you left the party—I realized I hadn't given you my number."

She leans on the bar to order a drink, but her attention only shifts off him briefly as she asks for an old fashioned. Her smile flashes briefly at the bartender, then back at Arthur.

"I could give it to you now, if you were leaving. Or I could get you another drink?"

[specifiercity]

Arthur smiles down at the bar bashfully for a second before he smiles up at Natasha. It's that smooth kind of practiced bashfulness that his dimples sell so well, although it's not like he expects every beautiful woman to walk up to him and offer him their number as a rule.

"I wouldn't say no to another drink," he says, "or your number, while we're at it."

[outstandingbalance]

Natasha might not be drawn into it—she knows this dance—but it's exactly the kind of response she was hoping for. She leans closer, one arm across the bar, her eyes steady as she watches his face. Those dimples are endearing.

She brushes the pointed toe of one high heel against his leg.

"What are you drinking?"

[freelife]

Evie was settled in a corner in the back, and, seeing Natasha's unmistakable hair, raised a hand to show her where she was. A few couches and overstuffed armchairs stand in the way of her and Natasha, but it's not too hard to navigate through.

When Natasha finally arrives, Evie gestures for her to sit. "it's funny-" she begins immediately, "-hoar means 'old' and 'grey'. Whomever named the place clearly thought they were being clever. But I've been in bars where the names make even less sense." Once Natasha was seated, she continued on.

"I wasn't sure what you wanted to drink, or I would have ordered it." They'd had wine the last they were drinking together, when they first met. But this was a casual night, and maybe Natasha wanted to do shots or cosmos or something. It's not like the alcohol did much to them anymore, anyway. Not unless they drank a lot. "You're looking well."

[outstandingbalance]

"I appreciate the thought anyway," Natasha says smoothly, meaning that Evie might have ordered for her, but it could refer to the comment on her appearance too. Especially when she follows it with, "I'm doing better than the last time you saw me, so there's that much at least."

She takes a seat, making herself comfortable in one of the armchairs and getting the attention of the server to ask for an whiskey neat. She wants something strong enough to take the edge off.

"Hopefully I didn't actually worry you?"

[freelife]

"Good." Said calmly, matter-of-factly. When the server appears, she echoes Natasha's order. Whiskey sounds perfect to her right now.

She waits for the server to leave before she actually speaks to Natasha's concern, and therefore, her own. "I was." Because that's the type of woman she was. She cared, she worried. Bits of her humanity she would never let get stripped away from her. "What happened? You know it's dangerous to do a job when you're like that." Whatever that was.

[outstandingbalance]

Natasha, on the other hand, is not a woman who's used to having people worry about her. While she doesn't wear her confusion openly, it's an undercurrent in her expression and her words when she speaks.

"For the time being, it's less 'when I'm like that' and more 'how I am now.' New normal." Much as she might wish otherwise, that's the price she pays for trying to get off human blood, even if only for a while. "I didn't mean to worry you though. If I'd have known I'd be that slow, I'd have warned you going into the job."

II

[baisant]

Jean-Claude finds her. Of course he finds her, a familiar face in the crowds as he silently works them. Quirking a smile as he makes his way to her table and slides his way into a seat across from her.

"It is a pleasure to see you here again, mon amie," he says, leaning forward as much so that he does not have to call out too loud to her across the noise of the crowd as to have the excuse to do so. "Though I must admit, it is something of a surprise as well."

[outstandingbalance]

"It can't be that surprising," she says smiling, the smile a little awkward. Maybe she shouldn't have come? She leans in a little herself, though, her body language inviting him to stay. "I've been meaning to come in for a while now. But maybe I waited too long?"

[baisant]

Jean-Claude's smile sobers slightly, and he cannot help but glance over to the bar before back over at Natasha. Perhaps she doesn't know about Kenzi, but more likely than not, with a comment like that, she does. Considering the fact that she is conspicuously absent from the bar on such a night as this, after all.

"Not for me, you have not," he replies, offering her a different smile instead.

[outstandingbalance]

"That could still be one reason to stop by." She returns his smile, willing to play along with his manner and comfortable enough that he's not going to turn on her to relax her guard slightly—it's a token of something. She's not entirely sure what her own angle is here, cultivating another contact in Islington. She tells herself she could use a friend, but that's an explanation that leaves her suspicious of her own motivations.

It had been easier to figure what Kenzi was to her. Her eyes go to the bar, then to the stage. "I had a few."

After Hours

[dirtyredneck]

Daryl had never been to Buckingham Palace. It was a touristy thing to do the whole tour of it, but those were suppose to end just a little after dark. Part of his reward for both finding the technical princess and keeping his mouth shut was a private visit for him and a friend or two. Since Natasha had been the most helpful and since he figured she didn't get a chance to do a lot of stuff around town, he'd figured this would be something to make up for the last not-a-date and the lack of any real communication between.

He pulled up on his bike, dressed in those nice clean slacks and button up shirt he'd had on during their dinner. Which was probably a dead giveaway it was his only 'nice' outfit. But he did look good. As cleaned up as he could be.

Daryl didn't turn off the engine, just turned around and dug his spare helmet out of his saddlebags and held it out for her, "You uh... you look good."

[outstandingbalance]

Natasha flashes half a smile at that, taking the helmet. She's not dressed especially nice—she had a pretty good idea how they were going to be getting there—but she's neat and presentable. And she wears it well.

"Thanks, I think."

She puts on the helmet, adjusting it a little before she climbs on behind him. "I take it this means your kidnapping went well."

[dirtyredneck]

"Yeah," he answered, tossing a smile back over his shoulder at her. "Enough to get a small favor. Tour we're getting comes with a couple perks. First one is that it's after hours. Second is that it's private."

Which meant that whoever he'd rescued, or their family, had some sort of pull in the way the tours at the palace were done. He'd already told her they had connections and were well-to-do. Having influence on relatively small-time government operations was well within the realm of possibility for more than a dozen families. So Daryl was positive Natasha wouldn't be able to guess which one was the one he'd been dealing with just based on those clues.

He felt it was safe telling her as much as he had.

[facethewolves]

Alex hasn't seen anyone except the landlady for days. She's done about a thousand push-ups for lack of anything better to do. By the time Natasha shows up, loneliness, boredom, and cabin fever have set in, and the vampire's arrival is like a breath of fresh air.

Not that Alex is happy to see a vampire. Not that she wants to hang out with a vampire.

Except that she kind of is and she kind of does. But she's not going to admit that ever.

"Steaks are great. I'm not, uhm. I'm not picky, whatever you got is fine. Thanks." She has to think of a way to get Natasha to stay for a while without admitting that she really wants some company. "I... I don't know how sudoku works. How do you do it?"

[outstandingbalance]

"I tried to stick to safe bets," Natasha says, taking some breakfast cereal out of the grocery bag and setting it on the counter, then a bag couple of cans of mandarin orange slices. It really is just guessing, a few things from this aisle at the store, a few from that. At least Alex won't die of malnutrition.

She takes out the game book a moment later, flipping through it. "I haven't played them much, but they seemed like more fun than crosswords. It's a number puzzle."

[facethewolves]

"Numbers, I don't..." She's okay with numbers. Well, she's okay with computers, which sometimes involve numbers.

"I haven't taken a math class since middle school," she says, secretly proud of the effort she put into learning the American education system, "so, uh, if it's long division or anything I'll have to pass."

II

[longterm]

It just so happens that Cesare strolls up to Guilty Pleasures with the intent of visiting a friend too. Jean-Claude had handed him a card and suggested he visit. It would be rude for Cesare not to oblige. That and he is exceptionally fond of women. He will rarely turn down an opportunity to look at them.

In his earlier years he had been critical of the more lascivious industries, shunning whorehouses and the like, but he has relaxed with time. He knows he can do little here: he does not wish to be the desperate john and it would be very rude to drink one of the girls. Instead, he's just looking, enjoying the performance. Cesare is merely window shopping.

He looks about the room for Jean-Claude and spots Natasha instead. He smirks and sits himself calmly at her table.

"I feel like I should have seen this coming."

[outstandingbalance]

"Just what should you have seen coming?" Natasha answers without pause, though her gaze lingers on the woman on stage a moment longer before she pivots slightly in her seat to face him.

Her tone is light and reserved, not offering much of a challenge. She hasn't entirely lost her healthy respect for his age and potential unpredictability. On the other hand, it's already pretty clear that her caution doesn't extend as far as putting on a diffident air.

"I'm curious."

[longterm]

If Natasha thinks her words might make Cesare shy or backpedal, they won't. Despite himself, he has a tendency towards frankness and honesty. He would rather tell someone exactly what he thinks of them than lie. Besides, he's a terrible liar anyway. And so he holds no qualms about answering her question, shrugging as he orders himself a drink.

"With your..." Belligerence? Recklessness? Audacity? "Distance last time we met. I'm not your type."

It certainly makes sense to him at least. He is happy to accept that he's wrong but it would explain why Natasha didn't concede to his requests so easily. His power seemed to leave her unphased and now it seems that any attempts at charm were misplaced too.