[OPEN]

[baisant]

A. GUILTY PLEASURES
Jean-Claude sits at his usual place at the corner of the bar at Guilty Pleasures. However, that's probably the only normal thing about it. Where he would normally be surveying the crowd, trying to ascertain whether the crowd is enjoying itself and trying to do what he can to see that they do if not, he has other things on his mind at the moment. There are hunters in Islington, attacking his people. Raymond had formed an alliance with Midnight, and then Redbright had called in her dogs and effectively eradicated them.

Jean-Claude is willing to bet that Raymond isn't going to be happy about this. He's just waiting for the next pin to drop. And questioning what there is exactly to do about it. And when. When should he make his move. When should he gather his people and put a stop to this. Preferably before they come to regret not having done so. But only hindsight will allow them such knowledge, and Jean-Claude is not about to make the same mistake twice.

He will admit, however, it's making him very distracted. And nowhere near as fun as he normally is.


B. A BREATH OF FRESH AIR
There's only so long that Jean-Claude can dwell by himself in his own club before he recognizes that the patrons might catch on that something is the matter, and so it is that he decides to go for a walk. To try and clear his head, or that's the idea at least. It is more accurate to say, as Jean-Claude makes his way through the streets of London, tugging his frock coat closer against himself against the night air, that at least he's getting his heavy thoughts out of his club and away from public view.

He is perhaps thinking a little too hard for the environment he finds himself in. But he doesn't exactly anticipate that he should be running into anyone to interrupt his thoughts. Not at such a time of night, not in such a place as this. Perhaps he should have been paying more attention, however. If he had then he might have remembered the mention of hunters in the territory and therefore been instantly more aware of his surroundings and the people -- or creatures -- he may find around him.

But he had excused himself and his thoughts out of the club for a reason, and as such is entirely unaware of whoever he might run into on such a night as this.


C. Choose your own adventure!
Do we have another reason to thread? Just write your intro here! And/or hit me up via PM/plurk @ lycanthropy101 to talk it out! c:

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[baisant]

Jean-Claude quirks something of a smile at her in response to her greeting. She is not the first one to address him as such, and while another older vampire might grow irate at the bastardization of his name, he in turn finds it rather endearing to have acquired such a nickname. Not everyone can pronounce it near as well as the French anyway, so why bother forcing them?

"A private audience?" he asks the other vampire, quirking one eyebrow higher than the others slightly. "It must be serious," he jokes, but then again he knows all too well just how serious the situation is at hand. After a moment, he pushes himself up to stand and gestures towards the door to the Employees Only hallway and his office beyond. "My time is yours, if you require it, ma chère."

[freelife]

She liked the nickname, honestly. A lot snappier than Jean-Claude, honestly. Something that was more befitting his type of man, the sort that owned strip-clubs in the first place.

"Am I ever anything but?" Her brother certainly would say so, though he was the one that got to see her softer side. So the irony was certainly lost on her companion. She nods, and steps into line with him to walk through the door.

"Thank you. I appreciate you taking time out of your busy schedule to speak with me. I spoke with a young vampire out there earlier," she gestured to the bar that was now behind them. "I told her I recommended Francois." She may or may not have looked a bit more than she'd like to admit. But it's something they had in common, now.

"How is Cherry doing, by the way?" They arrive at the office door and Evie waits patiently for him to open it. Once inside, they can have a real chat.

[baisant]

Is she ever anything but serious? He isn't certain, she's the one who's calling him JC instead of his full name, after all? But that is neither here nor there, he supposes. He doesn't mind it nearly so much from her as he might from someone he disliked, after all.

He glances aside at her as he opens the door to his office and gestures her inside. Deciding not to head to the desk -- unless she insists on the formality of such a meeting, but calling him JC as she does, somehow he doubts it -- but instead to the lush couch and chair he has set aside in there as well for exactly these purposes.

"She is well," he responds. "She does not work as many nights as perhaps she once did," he adds, folding himself into the corner of the sofa, before glancing up at her again and adding, "I think that has more to do with her day job being more successful than it had once been before, however." He tilts his head at her. "I can let her know you asked. I'm sure that would please her."

[freelife]

"Good- I'm glad to hear she's alright." She doesn't blame her, working less. What she'd gone through had been traumatic. She did hope, however, that what Jean-Claude said was true. "Please, do."

She takes a seat on the chair, rather than sit across the sofa from her ally.

"She isn't what I wish to speak about tonight, however. I wanted to run a possibility by you: I wish to speak with those in charge of Hillingdon. And ask for their aid, when it comes time. And to let them know that not all of us see eye-to-eye with our new Mayor."

[baisant]

Jean-Claude raises something of an eyebrow at that. Of course, he had assumed that whatever she might have wanted to talk to him about, it would be serious, and potentially political in nature. Such was her character, after all.

He had made a similar attempt to speak to Sylvia on such matters. It should probably have come to no surprise that it did not necessarily go anywhere, his negotiations with the Night Council President. But his attempt should have set him on the political map in her eyes, which was half of his reason for doing as much. But speaking to the hunters on the matter...

"That is a bold move," he replies neutrally. "And placing a lot of trust in said hunters." He'd like to hear more of her pitch, of course. Her motivations behind the thought, and why she thinks it might work.

[freelife]

"I am aware," she says, non-plussed as ever. "But desperate times call for desperate measure, and they, too, have been growing bold. I believe an alliance with the hunters would spare us much unnecessary bloodshed in the coming months. At the very least, perhaps it will stay their hand perhaps for just a moment before staking any one of us through the heart; to let them know that we're not all blind supporters of Harris' politics.

"And perhaps with them behind us, it would be easier to get the eventual support of Redbright." She doesn't know he'd spoken to Sylvia, but she knew enough about these sort of things to know that they were a very powerful ally to have, especially given how they'd wiped out those poor Midnight witches. She had yet to speak to Natasha about it, given her friend's employer.

"Your name need not even be mentioned." The fae knew he was the man they'd fingered for the job, but Eames had been thinking the same thing of his own accord.

[baisant]

Jean-Claude considers the suggesting she is offering carefully. "It will be a difficult sell," he says. "The hunters are not fond of vampires. I would not want you to risk your life for the benefit of a hopeless cause, mon amie." He runs his hand through his hair as he thinks for a moment. For that is not to say that this is strictly a hopeless cause.

"There are those within our own ranks that would not take kindly to a permanent alliance with the hunters either. They would not trust such a thing, nor would they trust us for so long as that either. I think... If you were to approach them with the offer of a deal. A truce as we join forces to fight against those of our kind who are the greater monsters in their eyes, then perhaps that may work." He glances up at her. "And you would have my permission. And my blessing to mention my name in conjuction with such efforts, although I do not know whether you would want to. It would be your success, should you pull such a thing off, mon amie. I am... Too high a profile to make such an attempt at such a juncture."

[freelife]

"Oh, I won't be risking my life." Evie was confident in her abilities, even against multiple hunters. It wouldn't have been the first time she'd have been in that position. "I've worked with Hillingdon some years ago," she went on to explain. "Turn of the last century." No one there now would remember her, but the history did give her a bit of a leg up.

She presses her lips together, considering this. "Yes, I believe that's the best way to phrase it, thank you, Jean-Claude. An enemy of an enemy, after all, is a friend." She makes careful note of his willingness to use his name. Having a name to back it all up, that was important.

"I hope that I do your good name justice, in that case."

[baisant]

Jean-Claude raises his eyebrows slightly at that. "No," he replies, "I dare say, none of them would be around anymore to remember such a thing. Unless they were to look it up in their records. The turn of a century is a long life, for a mortal, and longer still for that of a hunter." Sooner or later, an older hunter usually finds themselves being hunted after all.

He huffs out something of a laugh at the idea of 'his good name' however, and leans back slightly in his chair at that. "We shall see whether you are right in that or not, mon amie," he replies. "There was a time that being associated with the likes of me was more of a curse than a blessing. I hope that the opposite shall hold true for our endeavors now, however. For all of our sakes."