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1.

It was the longest day of the year. Which, naturally, meant it was the shortest night of the year. Which meant that any hunting Thomas wanted to get in, he'd need to work fairly quickly. While there still were plenty of hours in the night, naturally, he had to keep human behavior in mind as well. If he waited too late, then there wouldn't be too many people hanging around. Adding in the fact that he liked to flirt and charm people into going somewhere private with him to feed…well, those things took time, and seeming too determined to be alone with someone could make them suspect something was up.

And so he had to work fast to make sure he didn't seem like he was in a hurry. In the last few hours before sunset, he'd showered, shaved, and made sure all clothes and wig were neatly groomed and in place. Just a bit of wig glue around the outer edges to make sure nothing too embarrassing could happen, and he was up and ready to head out the door.

As he was heading to the nearest bar to start his rounds, however, Thomas caught the sight of someone cutting through an alley. Curious, he decided to check things out. If he was lucky, he'd find he was able to cut his hunt short tonight. If that wasn't the case…well, he could always move on. With his vampire strength and healing, he wasn't exactly concerned with muggers and other potential threats that lurked in the shadows, after all.

2.

He'd never been here before, but with a name like that, how could he not check it out at least once? While Thomas generally preferred women to men, it was less of a rule, and more a general guideline for when all other things were equal. Like how he preferred sleeping with humans to other vampires, or urban fantasy in his TV shows to historical fiction. If it was good, he didn't really care which he was getting. Jean-Claude, for example, had been one such individual whose good looks and charm would be enough to make Thomas ignore two of his typical guidelines. The dancers that were hired here? Each one was also easily attractive enough to fall into that category as well. Clearly, whoever did the hiring had a very good eye.

Ordering a beer, Thomas decided to settle down and enjoy the show, drinking in the sights. Though the beat of the music drowned out the sound of the dancers' heartbeats, sometimes the steady rhythm almost reminded Thomas of the sound of a pulse, and he pictured the blood pumping through their veins as they poured their energy into the dance, and that made them all the more enticing.

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"Having an in with the management probably doesn't hurt either," Natasha says lightly, tipping her head in agreement with his point; it's not vanity, but she knows what she looks like. She also knows she'd never really do it, but sometimes it does seem tempting.

So much more simple than her real jobs.

"I'd offer to put in a good word for you too, but somehow I don't think you'd need it." Because she assumes he already knows Jean-Claude himself or because he was more than attractive enough not to need help getting this sort of job. Either way.

"Somehow, I think you're right."

Though he doubted the requirements went beyond looking hot and being able to dance in an enticing way, both of which he could do. The fact that he rather enjoyed that sort of attention was a bonus, of course, but he still wasn't planning on going for it if he didn't have to. After all, it seemed like the sort of thing that would be less fun if he had to do it night after night.

"So do you know the management from spending a lot of time here, or something else?"

"I've only been here a few times, but somehow I keep running into him. Small world, I guess."

She sips her beer again.

"There's a few people like that, it seems. But the community is only so big... And I guess I've been swinging by here since then, so some of it's on me."

"Oh, but who could blame you? When he clearly has such talent in casting his dancers?"

Thomas, after all, was probably going to frequent this place more often, now that he'd seen it once. As for the community...well, she could be referring to quite a few communities, though he suspected she was either referring to the vampire community, or the fact that all of England seemed rather...closer together than he was used to.

"Small country, at least. I'm guessing you must get along with him fairly well, to hang around his establishment like this."

"He's a flirt," she says, which isn't really an agreement or a denial, just a statement of fact. Maybe an implication that he's easy to get along with, he makes the effort. Or that he's hard to take seriously.

"I don't know that I know him all that well yet, but I did a little work for him a while back. I think we're on good terms. What about you?"

Now, there was a difficult question to answer. Mostly because while he didn't know with any real certainty who the management was, he suspected from a few things she said that the management was a vampire, and had mostly been fishing for enough information to confirm that suspicion. After all, someone who was part of 'the community' who would have reason to hire someone who, despite their earlier discussion, was likely not taking up work as a stripper, pointed to someone who was involved with more than strip club. Add in the fact that she clearly assumed Thomas knew him...well, he was thinking Islington.

"Now, that's a bit tricky. Because while I'm assuming from the fact that you assume I know him he's from Islington, in which case I probably do know him, but I don't actually know who runs this place."

Seeing as he'd actually just come here to hang out. Besides, the most likely vampire to fit the 'bit of a flirt' description who seemed like the type that would run a strip club, he'd only really spoken to in regards to the Southwark territory claim as of yet, which wasn't really 'bring up your strip club' discussion matter.

"You just happened to come in here?" It's funny, if Natasha decides to believe it. And she has to admit that she doesn't have any reason to disbelieve him. He seems like the kind of guy who would just wander in to a strip club that tends to cater to the supernatural, and who'd do it without knowing who was in charge.

"I got the feeling that most people know who runs the place. And yes, he's with Islington."

"Yes."

Sometimes, people deciding to hang out at a strip club was just people deciding to hang out at a strip club. Even if they were vampires.

"And that's entirely possible, but this place has never come up in conversation. I do know who seems like the most likely type of person to run a strip club." So that was something. "But just to confirm, what's his name?"

Natasha leans back a little, considering how to answer that. It's not as though it's a secret—Jean-Claude makes his position as a businessman pretty clear. There's a reason she expected him to know.

"Jean-Claude?" she suggests, tilting her head. "Like I said, a flirt. Maybe a little campy."

And that a little understatement.

"Oh, him," Thomas said with a delighted grin. "I like him. We only talked about some stuff with Southwark, which is probably why this didn't come up, but I got a very good impression."

Enough of a good impression that if Jean-Claude wanted him to help with any other endeavor, he'd jump at the opportunity. But then, flirty and a little campy was exactly the sort Thomas could appreciate, add in the fact that he was sane when everything was going crazy, it was the perfect combination.

"Did you have someone else in mind?" She has to wonder, considering how he says it. It's hard to say if he's surprised or just... pleased? Maybe Natasha isn't used to seeing people genuinely pleased. Especially vampires.

She leans in a bit closer as she asks, considering his face.

He shook his head. "No, it's who I was expecting. In this case, I just like being right."

And liked that it was someone he had a high opinion of. Granted, Jean-Claude had been the only one he could think of who was flirtatious, and considering his appearance and demeanor...it had made him the only possible candidate to come to Thomas's mind as a person likely affiliated with this place.

"I'm glad you like the answer." She leans in slightly, smiling as she does. She files away his earlier comment about Southwark for later. "I'm sure he's probably around here somewhere, if you wanted to talk to him again."

"I'll keep an eye out for him," he said. Sure, he definitely would enjoy speaking to him again, but intentionally seeking him out seemed a bit pointless, since he didn't have anything in particular to say. It would make him seem foolish, which was not the impression he'd want to make at all.

"For now, though, I think I'll watch the show."

"Fair enough. I can leave you to it, if you want?" Whether or not people liked watching something like this alone seemed private. Plenty of people enjoyed doing it in groups—bonding in the absurdity and the sexualization. But she wasn't here to force him to socialize if he was more interested in watching the show.

He shrugged. "That's entirely up to you. I don't mind your company, as long as you're fine with me being distracted. But if you'd rather not watch me watch men get sweaty, that's perfectly fine as well."

Though he certainly was interested in the information he was given so far. The fact that Jean-Claude owned this place was good to know, even if he didn't want to seem too overeager. It would also keep him from saying anything foolish should he run into him, and he'd certainly welcome any more information that he could get. And if Nat wanted to leave...well, he'd just sit back and enjoy the show. It was really a win-win situation.

She can't hold in a laugh at his comment. "Well, that's one way to make a girl feel welcome. I don't expect you not to be distracted though—that's just about the only reason to come to a place like this."

"I apologize. You're definitely welcome, but I didn't want to make it awkward if you were trying to leave."

After all, he'd understand completely if she didn't want to stick around while he was paying more attention to the dancers than her. Not that she wasn't attractive, but she wasn't dancing nearly naked on a pole.

"Nothing to apologize for." There's a warmth in Natasha's voice as she responds, a wry humor, making light of the situation. "I could make an exit without making it awkward if I'd wanted—but mostly I thought I'd just say hello."

Edited 2016-07-07 02:25 (UTC)

"Well, it is nice to see you again. Though I must admit, you do seem to spend a lot of time around Islington vampires. If I didn't know better, I'd almost think you wanted to join us."

Sure, she wanted to avoid nest politics, she'd told him that. Still, he did find it interesting that she apparently, from mentioning that she came here several times and knew Jean-Claude, must spend a fair amount of time in Islingon territory.

"Oh no, not looking to join. Just..." She shrugs one shoulder, considering how to explain that or dismiss it. She's not going to go into detail on her thoughts, the fact she'd considered avoiding the nest entirely but it hadn't worked and would be unsustainable.

"Maybe make a few friends."

"Well, I can certainly understand that. After all, quite a few of us are very fun to be around and it's always nice to have someone who understands your appetites. But I can certainly see why you wouldn't want to become a part of our politics. Especially now."

Thomas took a drink, pausing for a moment before confessing, "Somehow, I'm beginning to wonder if it will be possible for me to stay away from them indefinitely myself."

Actually, he already knew the answer. Reasonably, he couldn't. With Millicent it had been a possibility, but if this continued...he doubted he'd be lucky enough for the consequences to completely fall on their leader alone twice. The only way he could see to avoid having politics effect his life was to help a leader get power who was sane and reasonable. Someone he could trust with the nest, so he didn't have to worry about it.

"You can never stay out of them. Not forever. It might take another ten years, but eventually something happens." And Raymond Harris seemed like a pretty big something. Even young vampires weren't going to be left out completely in times like this.

"But you can always take a break."

She flashes a smile then, directing the conversation back. "But you're not wrong. Sometimes it's just easier to be around people who know what it's like." Then a rueful snort. "Even if in my case it's a little like someone in AA hanging around alcoholics."

"I'm beginning to see that."

He'd had a good thirteen years before he'd had to pay any real attention to the politics around him, he supposed, so there was that. It was the second part of what she said that really surprised him, though.

"What do you mean?" he asked, thought there was really only one thing she could mean. "Because if you mean what it sounds like, that would be more like a shark giving up fish than AA. I like people just as much as anyone, but there's no reason they can't be friends and food."

"I notice sharks and fish aren't friends much." Natasha comments, but without any bite. Mostly, she sounds tired. "I can't think of a better analogy though. Some people drink and they can stop at one or two, they don't do things they regret. Other people don't have that skill."

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