[open] FAE HUNT

[falsify]

17TH // BROMLEY

The reports come his way in the morning. Losing fae to the vampires is... Unfortunate, but not unexpected. Not with Harris in charge. This is different however, and an urgent call has him making his way down to one of the community centres long before he'd think about leaving the house under usual terms.

Having a couple of fae tell you all about the night they had, being caught by vampires, watching another die, one with bites on their neck, etc. etc. It puts a real damper on your day. At first, he chalks it up to general vampire cruelty and plans to phone in a bounty to Hillingdon, but they just keep coming. Fae with burns from iron cuffs, missing fae, dead. It's like something just happened overnight.

He can be found more than once over the course of the evening, having a hushed conversation in the corner of a bar that looks like it could easily come to blows if not for the way Eames excuses himself abruptly and none too friendly.

Maybe you're curious, maybe he bumps you as he leaves looking fully like he intends to kill someone. Or maybe you just have a weak spot for men with clenched jaws nursing drinks alone at the bar. Either way, he's about.

18TH ONWARDS

It takes a couple days, and even then it's slow to start, but sure enough security starts tightening up around the two Fae boroughs. Anyone with a particularly keen eye for patterns and a lot of free time will notice the patrols and any vampire who enters the area might notice how it feels like they're being followed. Not just watched, like they usually would be.

A week in, it wouldn't be entirely incorrect to assume every other fae is carrying a stake, but that's not the only change in faeville. Eames is powerfully unhappy with this, and he's really not too pleased to speak to anyone who isn't a fae. He doesn't think the handful of vampires he's friendly with are involved, but he doesn't care to see them, and in his estimation humans are a bunch of useless hypocrites. Any conversations are strictly business.

Despite the danger, he's totally unafraid to wander into vampire territory, (though by the 25th he's constantly flanked by a burly looking pair at the behest of another Lord,) and some might say he's actively looking for a fight. There's more than a few scuffles if one fancied joining the fray. Vampires he sees getting a little too close to a fae, or maybe they try to round on him instead.

It wouldn't be silly to assume he's looking out for his people, but really he's just looking to vent some of his frustrations at the source.

29TH/30TH

There may be plans to deal with Harris, but that doesn't put Eames any more at ease in the interim. They're being hunted by vampires, and they're increasingly at danger of the whims of witches as Samhain approaches. It's not exactly a great time to be a fae in London.

He's not been in the mood for sex (shocking, isn't it,) drinking is at a minimum, and he can't exactly fight his way across the city just because he's in a shitty mood. Much as he'd love to. Doesn't leave many outlets to keep his mood even, but there's always a spot of fun to be had with a game of cards.

They're not as numerous as they used to be, (ah, the good old days,) but there's still plenty of back room gambling dens around London if you know where to look. And maybe it's a little unfair to hang out in the ones not frequented by magical types, but on the other hand Eames doesn't give a fuck. He needs to unwind a little, relax himself before the big night that hopefully won't be a huge fucking disaster. If that means clearing a bunch of mortals out, then so be it.

Go ahead, confront him about it. He'd love the fight.

ETC;

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Comments

29th/30th

[dirtyredneck]

Daryl wasn't there for cards. He'd been given a job to investigate a certain mortal 'medium' and looking into her staff had led him to the backrooms for those who might cater to certain vices. Ones that weren't magical in nature, but very, very, very mortal.

He did, however, know how to get himself involved in said cards when he needed to. Two of the stage hands were on their second beers and starting to get loose tongues. A spot had opened as one of the others stepped away. Daryl had expected another regular to step in and take the chair. Seeing the Lord of Autumn sit down had him freezing and staring perhaps a bit too long before he snapped out of it and took his cards as the first bets were thrown out.

[falsify]

Eames catches the staring, it's kind of hard not to, something familiar about the shifter across the table. Eames doesn't fuss about it though, it's not like anyone else here would even believe him if one felt like blurting that there's a fae sitting at the table.

He seems plenty jovial as he sits, and known to at least a couple of people here, clapping the guy next to him on the shoulder and setting out his chips with ease and confidence.

"Alright," Eames tosses a few chips in the middle, "what's the buy-in? A grand?"

Time to clean up, eh.

[dirtyredneck]

"1500," the dealer replied with a bored tone and waited until all chips had been added before he started passing the cards around.

The price wasn't one Daryl had been pleased with, but he needed the information and he could bill the costs to the Night Council later as part of his post-job expense listing. He really should have been keeping his attention on those he'd come to pump for information, but his gaze remained pretty steady on Eames when he wasn't studying his own cards. It was possible the fae Lord wasn't going to use magic to cheat. But it was equally possible he would and Daryl really didn't have the extra money to lose.

[falsify]

It's possible, but he doesn't. Not in the first game anyway. Eames only knows a couple of people here; enough to get him in the door without scrutiny, but not enough he knows anything about the people around the table. That's gonna take a couple of games, he has to learn their tells, betting habits. Who folds when the ante gets too high and who gets excited by the thrill of a fat pot.

He puts on a good act; might be watching everyone keenly, but he masks it with general chatter with the people around the table. Joining in on jokes and laughing at anecdotes, seemingly uncaring as he tosses his chips in the middle. He's going to lose this game, Eames hasn't got anything close to a winning hand, but it's important he seem to be here for the fun rather than the money.

And, well, he didn't cheat for himself anyway, but the next time Daryl blinks or looks away from his hand, he might notice he's got a royal flush looking back at him.

[dirtyredneck]

The problem with the help he'd suddenly gotten was that he had no guarantee it would remain in his hand when he went to reveal it should he bet on it. He could throw his whole 'fortune' into the matter with something like that and if his bluff was called and the other gentleman decided he wasn't feeling that generous, end up with the worst hand on the table. An easy way to eliminate a rival from the playing field.

But it also meant he couldn't reliably bet in any way because he didn't know what he might have at any given moment.

Frowning, Daryl looked up from his cards to cast a glare at Eames and shake his head very slightly. Enough that he hoped he could get across the concept of 'Thanks but no thanks, I don't want the short end of whatever deal taking your help tonight will give me' or even the simpler 'Hoe, don't do it'.

[falsify]

If he notices the look on Daryl’s face, it doesn’t show, raising an eyebrow when the shifter catches his eye like he has no idea what the guy’s on about before he lets his attention fall back to the people around the table and some joke or other about something that he does an amazing job of pretending to be engaged with.

Truth be told, it’s not a boon. He’s fairly certain he’s seen this guy around Hillingdon, and moreover he doesn’t seem like the sort who comes to random poker games just for the fun of it. A winning hand keeps him in the game; hard to just bow out after a win like that.

18th-ish

[specifiercity]

Arthur finds Eames one night while he's chasing a lead in vampire territory. He's clearly a bit roughed up but Arthur can't see any reason for real concern as he spots him from his alleyway across the street. Eames is alone, which Arthur thinks is foolish all things considered, so he watches him for a couple blocks before he decides he doesn't really look like he's going anywhere so much as he's just wandering around looking for trouble.

Well, that doesn't do at all.

Arthur follows him quietly, trying not to draw too much attention from any vampires that might be drawn by the smell of a powerful fae walking down the street, but when he gets closer he jogs a few steps to catch up.

"Eames."

[falsify]

He thinks he's seen one with a bag rattling as he walks, the kind of rattling that could well be chains, and Eames watches intently. From a distance it might seem funny, watching Eames follow this vampire while Arthur follows him, but as soon as he gets that prickling feeling of being watched, it only makes Eames more annoyed.

Stopping, if only because he's not going to get anything done with Arthur here, Eames glares at Arthur once he's caught up. Happy to see him? Not at all. As far as he's concerned, half the reason Hillingdon even exists is to prevent this kind of thing, and now here comes their second to tell Eames off.

"What do you want." It's not a question so much as a thinly veiled 'fuck off' but he's stopped going after this latest vampire regardless.

[specifiercity]

Arthur is visibly insulted by the complete lack of a warm welcome and he actually scoffs. He knows Eames is in a bad mood but also wow rude much?

"I'm just wondering what the hell you're doing," he says, "other than asking to get killed."

[falsify]

"I don't see how that's any of your business," Eames answers flatly, watching Arthur with a kind of almost dismissiveness he's honestly never had when talking to him before. But if Arthur could leave right now that would be excellent.

[specifiercity]

That look makes Arthur a little furious, and he takes a steadying breath. Maybe he should have more respect for the Lord of Autumn standing in front of him, but he's known Eames too long to have any real reverence for him.

"Well, I would have to live with what would happen if the vampires managed to take you out," he says harshly.

[falsify]

Hilariously, Arthur couldn't get much further away from the right thing to say. Eames clenches his jaw for a moment, working it harshly while he wills himself not to just turn around and leave.

"Mm. Be a shame to inconvenience you, wouldn't it?"

[specifiercity]

"That's not what I meant," Arthur says, but he's more chastising than backpedaling. He can see how angry Eames is and he doesn't mean to make him moreso, but him being angry makes Arthur impatient and he's not very good at hiding that.

"It's just, you get reckless."

[falsify]

"Oh, do I?" Eames raises his eyebrows like Arthur's told him some new, interesting fact, and then he abruptly turns on his heels to leave. "Thanks for letting me know."

[specifiercity]

"Hey," Arthur says sharply, following quickly enough to put his hand on Eames' shoulder to try and get him to stop. "Eames, you're going to get yourself hurt."

[falsify]

Eames shrugs off Arthur's hand pretty much as soon as it lands, not stopping walking. He's probably going to go home, actually, but still.

"Thanks for your concern, Arthur. But I can handle myself."

26th-ish

[specifiercity]

Arthur's got some pride issues. There's no question about that. But still, he finds himself obsessing about what a jerk he was when he ran into Eames on the street just over a week before. He knows his feelings were justified and that he was both worried about Eames on a personal level and in terms of political stability, but he's not very good at expressing it.

So here he is, at Eames' door, ready to make an attempt at some kind of apology. it might not go so well, but he's going to try. He rings the bell and waits with his hands shoved into his pockets and that signature frown on his face.

[falsify]

Eames opens the door with a suspicious expression, like he's about to get grilled about his behaviour being unbecoming of a Lord again. He frowns right back at Arthur, waiting to hear what he wants, but at least he doesn't just close the door in his face?

[specifiercity]

He was at least hoping for a hello, but obviously he's not going to get that, so he works his jaw and sighs through his nose. Guess he's just going to jump right into it.

"I was a dick," he says.

[falsify]

Eames... Well, he looks totally stunned by that. He's quiet for a moment, and then opens the door fully, gesturing for Arthur to come in if he wants.

"Yeah."

[specifiercity]

Arthur glances inside, clearly thinking about taking the invitation, but he sighs again and shrugs. It's not that he's turning it down he just wants to clarify that there isn't much more to it.

"I just came over to say that."

[falsify]

"Got it." He's not gonna push Arthur for some grand apology. For starters he's way too fucking exhausted for that, but also Arthur is pretty low down on the list of things actively pissing him off.

Plus, he recognises the effort.

He glances back in the house, and then at Arthur, "want a drink?"

[specifiercity]

Well that's something he can get on board with. "Sure," he says, still sounding a bit embarrassed about the whole thing. He steps inside and starts to take off his coat, at a bit of a loss for what to say next.

[falsify]

Eames walks through to the kitchen, coming back through with a couple of beers — it seems more like a beer kind of evening than anything else — presenting one to Arthur. He might've noticed the lack of dog, or just the general stillness indicating Eames hasn't been home much at all recently.

[specifiercity]

Arthur definitely notices something is off, but he doesn't say anything because he doesn't want to open that can of worms right now. He just thanks Eames for the beer and sits down on his couch.