The Night Train

[undergroundmods]

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It's the 22nd of January and the sun has disappeared behind the horizon. You're waiting at your nearest station when a sleek, metallic grey train pulls up at the platform. No one else can see it, only those who are aware of the supernatural world. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Night Train. Tonight the leaders of the Night Council will be making their annual introduction to the supernatural community – aboard a train that will make stops in every borough with a significant supernatural presence. Hop on and off whenever you like: this event is designed to be open to all. (Though for some reason the train won't be passing through East End or Seelie/Unseelie territory...)

The event takes place from 7pm-12 midnight Sunday 22nd January.

Rules of entry
• No weapons. Any weapons or objects that could be used as weapons will be confiscated.
• No drugs or alcohol except that provided at the event. Don't try to sneak any in.
• No violence. The train is cursed with a hex that will punish any trouble-causing passengers with a lightning strike. The Council doesn't mess around here.

Carriages
The train has five carriages, each one with a different theme. While the Night Council members are dispersed throughout the train, they are under no obligation to stay in their carriage and will likely move around to network and meet fellow members of the supernatural community. There are cameras and security guards in every carriage to ensure there is no trouble.

1) PRESIDENT / VICE PRESIDENT. At the front of the train is a carriage decked out as if for royalty. Surprisingly spacious, the carriage is decorated with gilt trimmings, a thick wine-red carpet and leather seating. Portraits of previous Presidents and Vice Presidents line the wall. Coffee, tea and wine is being served at tables interspersed throughout the carriage and finger sandwiches are available.

2) WITCH REPRESENTATIVE. The next carriage along belongs to the Witch Representative. It's rather like walking into a greenhouse: the entire place is full of herbs and other plants, and there are tables where you can sit and ask for advice or magical favours from witches with varying specialities: a healer, a herbalist, a psychic, a medium and a potions maker. Magical butterflies flutter along the ceiling and among the flowers like colourful lights. A small bar at the end of the carriage serves a variety of herbal teas.

3) VAMPIRE REPRESENTATIVE. The next carriage along belongs to the Vampire Representative. Decorated in a tasteful dark red, about half the carriage's length is taken up by a wine bar that serves a variety of alcoholic and blood-based drinks and snacks. The other half consists of leather seating where the seats face each other to allow guests to talk while enjoying a drink.

4) SHAPESHIFTER/META HUMAN REPRESENTATIVE. It seems that Yasmine decided her aim for the night was to let loose and avoid talking, since this carriage is basically a narrow dance floor. Club music blares out from speakers on the ceiling, there's a disco ball and strobe lighting, and all the windows are blacked out. A magical seal ensures that the noise is contained within this carriage, so you won't hear any of it until you step inside.

5) EMPTY CARRIAGE. There's nothing here apart from rows of seats that you might find on any ordinary train. A sign on the door says "WARNING: THIS CARRIAGE IS HAUNTED. KEEP OUT." If you ignore the sign and go in anyway, you might feel a sense of unease. The shadows seem unnaturally long and the lights will flicker on and off. Magically sensitive types will feel a strong sense of impending death and may experience visions of the seats being ripped apart and blood spattered on the walls. If you stick around even after that, the most magically sensitive person in the carriage will experience a vivid hallucination of their own death at the hands of a vampire. If you manage to endure that without fleeing, PM the mod to continue. (Don't worry, no one will die.)

Comments

OTA

[dirtyredneck]

Vampire Representative
Daryl was tucked into the corner near the door, where he could sit comfortably on the leather couch and just watch the comings and goings. He wasn't much for the alcohol or atmosphere in the car, but he did want to learn more about the newest Vampire on the council. And maybe keep an eye on a certain vampire in particular **coughJean-Claudecough**.

Maybe.

Empty Carriage
The only other car Daryl felt half-way comfortable in was the supposedly haunted one. He didn't see any ghosts when he first stepped inside, but it was quiet and didn't have the headache inducing noise of the car that claimed to be for the shapeshifters and metahuman representative to entertain people. Not really entertaining. And the other cars? Both run by witches? Not really places Daryl felt safe in.

The haunted carriage didn't really feel that safe either, a strange feeling coiling in his gut after he stepped inside. But it was quiet and isolated and he needed that.

aaaa 1

[ghoulaid]

Surprise, what Daryl gets is a Ghoul dropping down onto the couch just opposite his own. He's only passing through this car until everyone gets drunk enough to not care that he's there, but he recognizes this guy and has been meaning to ask, "Greased Lightning make it back home okay?"

[dirtyredneck]

Daryl frowned at the sudden intrusion into his perceived personal space. Not that it was, just that he'd made himself very comfortable. Alone. A small growl escaped him before he managed to get his proverbial fur to lay flat, eyes narrowing to focus on the kid. A moment after, all obvious hostility left him.

He nodded, "Yeah. She got back to where she like's being. What about the ankle biter?"

[ghoulaid]

Ghoul's feeling a bit more self-assured during their interaction this time, if his posture and easy half-grin are anything to go by. This isn't Daryl's area, so fuck him and all this space that isn't his. Granted, it's on a train packed full of vampires and witches, so. Not exactly a clean win. Still, even seeing someone he vaguely sort-of-met-one-time seems to have put him a little more at ease.

It may be a den of snakes, but he has at least seen this particular snake before. "Delivered in one piece. You ain't still mad about that territory thing, are you?"

[dirtyredneck]

Daryl's eyes narrowed a little further and he tilted his head the other direction. His lips pursed. He stared for a long moment, blinking a couple times before he asked, "You thought I was mad?"

[ghoulaid]

"Weren't you?" He quirks a brow. It'd been a fair assumption at the time, he thought, even if it didn't end in a scuffle. He came across as a little mad a couple times- or at least annoyed.

But maybe that slightly menacing vibe is just his default.

[dirtyredneck]

He snorted, lips twitching in a smile that he was trying not to let show. It came through in his eyes, though, and his voice as he shook his head, "Nah. Not really. You was there for a reason and you didn't linger. Didn't cause no trouble, neither."

[baisant]

Of course Jean-Claude was there. He had campaigned for the position of the representative himself, although he could not say he was not happy with the end result. John Cooper might be young, but he was a good choice for the position. He would do well in it. Jean-Claude made a mental note to send the man a gift of congratulations, lest the other vampire get it in his head that Jean-Claude was jealous of the win. He had made it a vote for a reason this time, and he was happy not to have full decision making power for the vampires in his hands in the end.

So yes, he is there. And yes, he notices that Daryl is as well. He notices too, the way that the shapeshifter's eye seems to keep gravitating towards him throughout the night. He's noticed how the man has seemed to avoid him, over the past month. And he's noticed now the fact that he can't seem to keep his eyes away. Jean-Claude smiles to himself and makes his way over to the other man's side, folding himself into a seat beside him on the leather couch and offering Daryl a smile of his own.

"It has been a while, mon ami," he says in greeting. "I have missed you. Have you been avoiding me?"

[dirtyredneck]

Daryl's back straightened immediately and he scooted to the side, pressing closer to the door. It could either be interpreted as running away or making more room for the man. Daryl himself wasn't all that sure which it was. He gulped and cleared his throat, arms crossing and fingers curling tightly into his vest as he coughed out a quick "No."

Another quick clearing and he went on a bit calmer, "Ain't been... been busy. You have, too, right?"

[baisant]

Jean-Claude is happy to interpret it as the latter, for he's quickly moving to fit himself into the space created for him nonetheless. Regardless, he tilts his head at the other man and offers him a smile as the other man speaks and fidgets with his vest.

The truth is that he has missed Daryl. He has not seen him much since he'd ascended to the role of Duke, and he was half afraid that Daryl might have assumed his interested had ended when he'd not needed the support of the other factions to help him climb further. While he didn't need the manpower anymore, that much was true, that doesn't mean that his business is done with Daryl though. Not by a long shot, not if Jean-Claude has anything to say about it.

"It has been, yes," he replies. "New faction, then a campaign for a seat on the Night Council. Busy indeed." He tilts his head at the other man again. "But you know about those things. Tell me about your time. How have you been spending it? How have you been busy yourself, mon ami?" he asks, a clever smile spreading its way across his face as he does.

[dirtyredneck]

Jean-Claude gets in close enough he could probably hear Daryl's heartbeat speed up along with the heavier, more nervous breaths he was taking. It wasn't exactly subtle, as much as he tried to keep it from being obvious he was affected by now very near the man was.

"You know," he said, shrugging and trying to play it off as not worth talking about,"work. ...and stuff."

Prowling around at dawn and dusk to keep his territory clearly marked as his, patrol for anyone and anything making trouble near his home, hunt a few dozen pigeons. Stuff. Stuff Jean-Claude didn't need to know the details. For reasons.

"You uh... having a good time? Happy with the election?" Get the topic back on the vampire and off of Daryl.

[baisant]

"Stuff," Jean-Claude repeats, with a smile, raising his eyebrows slightly in response to the other man's words. No, he is not certain he does know exactly, but he's willing to let it slide. He can hear the way that Daryl's heartbeat is speeding up, after all. The more nervous catch in his breathing. And he can't get enough of it. The way he knows it has a direct correlation with his proximity to the other man. The way he knows he affects him.

How he longs to do more than simply sit beside him, but he knows to be gentle with Daryl. To be slow and careful with him, lest he scare him away. He knows he has his attention, he knows that the other man wants him. There is no need to rush this time together. He is immortal, after all, or close to it. Time will never be a problem for one such as himself.

He allows the shifter to direct the conversation away from himself, understanding what it is that he is doing and going along with it anyway. He glances around at the people there gathered around them, giving a moment to consider his response, before he replies, "If you desire," yes, that was in fact a deliberate word choice, "my honest opinion on the matter, mon ami, I believe the people chose for the best. We have seen before what happens when too much power was allowed to go to one vampire's head." He turns to smile at Daryl, and the look in his eye is older, and a bit more serious than the normal flirtatious glint he offers as he continues, "I would like to keep mine attached for the time being, if it is all the same to the rest of the city."

[dirtyredneck]

Jean-Claude got a very visible (well, if Daryl's hair wasn't acting as a curtain to hide his face and his shoulders weren't up to his ears hiding his neck) gulp at the word 'desire'. There was a lot he was desiring right then and there and it wasn't anything publicly decent like an 'honest opinion'. Not a reaction he was used to experiencing and it made him squirm a little to get more comfortable. Pull his legs up to his chest so he could wrap his arms around them while one thumb went to his mouth as he let out a "Mmm" and nodded. Did his best to make the whole thing seem casual and not like his thoughts were going places better left to the bedroom.

"Sure they appreciate that," he said when Jean-Claude was done. "You keeping your head attached, I mean. The vampires, anyway. Know you ain't exactly welcome in Hillingdon right now, either, but most of us appreciate the hunt being called off so you got a little bit of support in that way. Still a vampire, but... you know... it's something."

He felt like he'd just put his foot in his mouth, but he was trying to be supportive and show Jean-Claude his efforts were appreciated without being dishonest about how much they were... outside of himself.

[emotioneater]

Cooper, despite having a drink in his hand and a ready smile on his face, has been taking careful note of who has been coming in and out of the train car. When the man who looks like he's in desperate need of a haircut shows up and takes a seat without talking to anyone, Cooper notices.

Eventually, the car's occupants thin out a little, and Cooper has a moment to himself. Time to find out about the fellow who's sitting there. He sidles over to where Daryl is on the couch. He remains standing as he asks, "Don't suppose I could get you something t'drink?"

[dirtyredneck]

Daryl eyes Cooper long before he stops in front of him. It wasn't that hard to tell the man had been walking with purpose toward him and not that hard to figure out why, either. Daryl was pretty out of place hanging out in the Vampire's car without any obvious ties to the Nest or vampires in general. He figured he was going to be asked to leave eventually.

The question about the drink came as a bit of a surprise, but Daryl didn't let that show. Much. He did raise his eyebrows before shaking his head, "No."

It wasn't like he couldn't get up and get one himself if he was thirsty.

"Ain't here to drink."

[emotioneater]

Cooper eyes the man up and down. Mussed hair, clothes that looked ripped and torn from use rather than purpose, and a don't fuck with me attitude. He reminded the vampire of the nest he'd left back in Pemkowet, all full of rough biker sorts that would soon as look at someone as drain them dry. "No, you look more like the type to be here out of curiosity. I'm Cooper, the new Vampire Representative." Daryl probably already knew that if he was in the car, but it never hurt to put some heft behind the title he'd worked so hard to achieve.

"And you are?" He held out a hand for Daryl to shake, a subtle test to see how the man reacted. If he decided not to shake, Cooper was going to definitely peg him in the category of unfriendly and possibly an asshole.

[dirtyredneck]

Daryl's eyes swept from Cooper's face down to the offered hand. It was real tempting to let that hand sit there and go unshaken, but he was trying to be on slightly friendlier terms with vampires that supported Jean-Claude and Jean-Claude had already told him that he was happy with Cooper being voted in. So it was with a slow reluctance that Daryl uncurled himself enough to reach out and take the hand. Give it a single, firm shake. Then bring his hand back and settle it into his lap.

"Daryl." He was going to leave it at that. Not many obvious Americans named Daryl among the supernatural community. He was easy enough to find and identify if asked about.

"I know who you are," he went on, eyes now focused on the man's face. "That girl been hanging off your arm all night, she a friend or something else?"

[emotioneater]

Cooper shook the man's hand and his first impression of him grew slightly. So he wasn't so unapproachable as to being adverse to some social niceties. It was hard to really pick up much in the way of his emotions, even when he was this close. Cooper's abilities allowed him to read emotional states, not minds, and he was still getting used to it.

Cooper couldn't hide the way his eyes lit up when Daryl mentioned Nancy. "She's my girlfriend. Nancy. She's a witch." Vampire-human relationships weren't rare, but it was unusual to find one where both were involved in an equal partnership. Too often, vampires treated their partners like they were little pets, more of a possession than a person. He'd never done that with Nancy, not even at the beginning when he'd been paying to feed off of her.

[dirtyredneck]

The way Cooper's face changed, so honestly and with such joy when he spoke of Nancy was surprising. He was used to vampires being more cagey and hidden with their true affections. Cooper looked completely open.

"I know," Daryl said, keeping his expression mild, though he was internally impressed by the man by his reaction. "I know her. Was at her trial."

empty carriage

[falsify]

Eames isn't exactly antisocial, generally he feels quite at home at these sorts of things, but tonight he hates almost everyone on this train and honestly whatever's going on in here is a lot more interesting than the pomp and facade everywhere else.

He'd like to have a poke around on his own, shame there's someone else in here. At first he assumes it's the ghost, but the magic is different-- a shifter, he'd wager. Or a wolf, maybe. Hard to say without getting a look at them.

With a sigh, Eames looks up as the lights flicker but ultimately decide to stay off. Fantastic.

"Don't suppose you're an electrician?"

empty carriage

[dirtyredneck]

Daryl is curled up on himself half-way down the carriage, legs tucked up against his chest and arms around his knees. He'd been in there for a little while trying to get settled but having little luck with how much his hair was standing on end. It was a creepy place. He hadn't seen a ghost yet, though.

"Nah. Mechanic," he answered, sniffing the air as his eyes readjusted to the change in lighting. He recognized that face.

"You got magic, though, don't you?" he went on a moment later. "Can't you just make something of your own to light the place up if you need to?"

[falsify]

Ooh, someone who knows him? He doesn't recognise the voice and his eyesight isn't much in this dark, but they can do re-introductions later. In the meantime, Eames moves to look out a window.

"Don't want to mess with the magic in here already," he answers absently, with a dismissive wave of his hand, "not until I know what's causing it."

[dirtyredneck]

"Sign says it's haunted," Daryl stated the obvious. "Can't be much magic in that that someone like you couldn't deal with."

[falsify]

"Ghosts complicate things." Eames isn't a fae who's very attuned to the dead-- he can sense them and talk to them, sure, but beyond that? Not his wheelhouse.

[dirtyredneck]

Daryl shrugged, "Wouldn't know. Magic ain't really my thing." He watched Eames carefully in the dark. His eyes probably catching the light and glowing a little if the man turned a looked back at the right moment. Cats eyes. A trait he rarely tried to hide.