The Eye of the Storm

Ysabel had taken a break from her arduous task of unpacking (Oh be fair, she told herself. It was hardly arduous and you barely did anything at all... you're just being lazy) and had assured Dayle she was going to take a walk and would not get lost in Nachton. Not that she couldn't have handled that, but Dayle was... well, Dayle, and lovably protective of her sister.

She had seen Vesper Gardens as they drove into the city, a little bit of peace and quiet in the midst of the thriving city. It had appealed to her, and wasn't very far from their condo. Art galleries were well and good, but there would be plenty of time for those later in the week. So Ysabel had made Vesper her destination for that evening, for at least a short time before tackling her unpacking again.

She now strolled happily amongst the blooming plants, stopping here and there to gently lift a blossom and inhale the scent but very careful not to harm them at all. She loved flowers. Her experience at gardening was limited, and most of it was related to trimming back and pruning certain plants as was befitting of a lady. Still, she'd enjoyed it so she at least knew what she was looking at, if not how to really care properly for it.

It was all Dawn’s fault, but Ambrose had taken to wearing his duster again. It was still cool enough out that he could get away with it, but it earned him a look now and then, not that he cared.

He’d been hanging around the gardens the past few evenings looking for dinner; being between gigs always made hunting harder. He hated himself for it but tonight he’d played up his limp and the cane and gone for the sympathy angle. Damned if it hadn’t worked though, in a surprisingly short time he’d attracted the attention of a good hearted young woman, engaged her in conversation, had dinner and sent her on her merry way commanding her to forget the whole encounter.

Satisfied his snack seemed sufficiently fuzzy and forgetful and he wasn’t going to have to worry Ambrose had perked up considerably and was thoroughly in the mood to enjoy a nice stroll through the gardens; maybe even find seconds. Rounding a corner he was just beginning to think how good his luck was tonight when he made a closer assessment of the lady in front of him. Beautiful, yes but the way she was dressed he had a strong suspicion she would not appreciate him trying to make a meal of her. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t introduce himself.

Working at keeping his weight off the cane, something that did take a lot of effort for him, he walked casually up to her but stopped at a respectful distance and offered her a polite nod. He would have tipped his hat, but he wasn’t wearing one. It was odd to be reverting to such old formalities, but even from a distance, she inspired it. It must be her sense of fashion, Ambrose reasoned.

“Good evening miss. Pleasant night isn’t it?”

OK so pick up lines were never Ambrose’s strong suit but it was still better than ‘Hey Baby what’s your sign?’.

Ysabel glanced up from the nicotania, whose lovely scent had drawn her down to the bush, to see a gentleman with a cane standing there. She hadn't even seen him approach, lost in her thoughts, but her sociable instincts came to the fore and she gave him a warm smile.

The gentleman was fairly tall, of average height and build, with slightly longish dark brown hair that looked like it might have a few strands of silver in it... but he didn't really look old. He had addressed her as miss, which was polite enough for Ysabel. She would have preferred Lady Yolgrave, but of course he couldn't know that... and anyhow it was Elsa's turn to be the official Lady Yolgrave.

"Good evening, sir." Ysabel responded in kind. "It's a pleasant evening indeed." She didn't have much basis for comparison, not sure what the weather in Nachton was normally like at this time of year. That put her off a little bit, as the weather was normally a safe, trivial topic, but she didn't show her discomfiture.

She hadn't seen him walk, so she wasn't sure if the cane was merely an accessory or a necessity. Ysabel wasn't about to pry, however. Since she wasn't comfortable enough with Nachton to make idle chatter, she simply kept up her smile and waited for the man to speak, offer his name, or whatever he had approached her for. It wasn't as if she hadn't had humans hit on her before.

In fact, he did look... tasty. She'd fed recently but she wasn't opposed to a light snack when the opportunity arose.

He wasn’t sure if he was being dismissed or not. He rather hoped not as her accent even in those few words had been refreshing. Some people might complain about English food but Ambrose found it was often a nice change of pace. Still the cloak, the dress, the were just off enough to bring him up short and keep him from even attempting to accost her, for now.

Offering her an open and honest smile Ambrose tried to think of what to say next. He couldn’t figure out why he was this flustered. What he did know was that he never liked the term sir.

“Ambrose Townsend.”

Taking the few short steps forward, he extended his hand to her.

Finally deciding they were getting nowhere fast at this rate he plunged ahead.

“Could I talk you into taking a short walk with me?”

If nothing else he might get a better idea why she was out dressed completely anachronistically wandering through the gardens alone this time of night.

((OOC... discription of Ysabel's cloths given by her player))

Ysabel couldn't help but notice the awkwardness of the man's gait when he stepped toward her with his hand outstretched. She made note of it but paid it no undue attention, for that would have been grievously rude of her and she could tell he was trying to be polite as he blurted out an invitation to join him for a walk.

"Mister Townsend. A pleasure," she said.

Her coquettish side, admittedly the most cultivated facet of her nature, rose to the fore and instead of gripping his hand to shake as Dayle would no doubt have done, Ysabel met his eyes firmly, almost challengingly, with a small smile, and offered her hand palm down for him to kiss or bow over, like a courtier.

She wondered briefly if he would rather sit as there was obviously something wrong with his left leg, but he was the one who'd proposed a walk. Perhaps he'd broken it and was trying to excersize to regain strength. It wasn't Ysabel's place to conjecture.

However, even with that in mind perhaps she might get him into a dim corner and sample the menu here in Nachton. She had told Dayle she'd find out all about fine dining, after all.

"I should think you wouldn't need to do very much talking. A walk is exactly why I'm out here, and I certainly don't mind company."

It wasn’t odd for people to stare at him when he walked and Ambrose was used to pretending it didn’t bother him. Although occasionally he would snap and tell the lookey loo where to get off, but she hadn’t said a word. Awfully decent of her.

When she didn’t take his hand, he was surprised and it took a second to realize she had offered her hand and then another half second to take any action on it. Remembering his manners, one bowed to the lady’s hand one did –not- raise her hand to you, he very lightly kissed her knuckles.

“The pleasure is all mine Miss…?”

He was even more intrigued now. Mad blond hair, striking blue eyes, a crisp accent, old fashion clothing and old school manners; just whom had he run into this evening.

He offered her his right arm, his left being occupied.

“As long as I’m not imposing I’d appreciate the company myself. I’ll admit gardens are something of a mystery to me.”

Oh, delightful! Someone had given Mister Townsend a thorough grounding in basic manners, at least, for he bowed mover her hand and lightly brushed his lips across her knuckles. Ysabel found her habits weren't always understood, and she enjoyed it when anyone stepped up to the games she'd been so accustomed to playing over the years.

"Ysabel," she offered. "Miss Ysabel Margarette Yolgrave." Her smile remained. He must be a believer in first impressions... or perhaps he was just that rare bird, polite and amiable right off the bat.

When he offered his arm to her she very gently placed her hand at the crook of his elbow, touching-but-not-touching as was customary. With her free right hand she gathered up the folds of her gown just a bit, as they were long enough to touch the ground. She raised them just enough to keep them from getting dirtied, as they had long since passed the time period where it was either fashionable or economical to wear a gown once and then hand it down to a lady's maid. Ysabel had learned of the wonders of dry-cleaners long ago.

She turned her attention up to her companion and gazed directly at his brown eyes, and then let her gaze flicker away modestly.

"You are not imposing. If anything, my sister will be pleased to know I have found someone to keep me safe for the moment instead of wandering through a strange city alone."

She had to wonder how far his lessons in ettiquette had gone. If they had truly been instilled in him at a young age, she may as well look elsewhere for a snack... no truly well-mannered gentleman would let her pin him into a corner for the kind of game she would have to play to get a nibble in.

Wearing a black satin corset and an off the shoulder, dark red poet shirt, Yuu tightened the embroidered wrap around her shoulders. She stood glaring at the night blooming orchids with her arms crossed and hands tucked tightly into her arm pits. A little unlady like, but it helped her insane urge to reach into her purse and grab a cigarette. She should just throw them away, but with the price of a pack these days, it felt almost criminal. Instead Yuu used it as a reminder to work on her impulses.

Speaking of which, her latest impulse had been scarce as of late. She hadn't spoken to Tai since the hospital. Gingerly taking a deep sigh, she winced at the pain from her ribs as she thought about him. He was a fun little roll in the hay, at least, that's what she kept telling herself. Granted now that roll in the hay with the god damn sexy tattoos might not be what she thought he was. What she hoped he was.

What did she think Tai was?

Shaking off the thought she turned and walked down the path, deeper into the gardens. She wasn't even sure why she had come to the Vesper Gardens. Maybe because it reminded her of the night Tai and her finally...well...hit it.

With a disgruntled snort, Yuu turned the corner and happened upon a rather handsome couple. Her eyebrows furrowed when she saw the woman's outfit. A cloak? Boy that's a throw back, but it appealed to the gothic flare of her wardrobe, having quite a few velvet and satin ones from a couple years back. She looked at them, feeling a little under dressed, but her long black satin skirt wrap was brand new, much to her delight, and figured it was proper evening wear. Yuu slowed, not wanting to be rude and just briskly walk by the pair on the narrow path. With a nod she gave them a smile.

'Evening.'

“Thank you for accompanying me then Miss Yolgrave.”

Again, he couldn’t explain the formality she inspired in him, usually he was a first name kind of guy. But she’d called him Mister Townsend so he’d keep going in that vein.

He noted the practiced way she picked up her dress so it didn’t drag, it looked like a old and well established habit, especially when combined with the way she took his arm. ‘She’s a re-enactor.’ Ambrose told himself firmly, he knew some of them did excellent jobs with their parts and enormous amounts of research. She was one of them that had to be it. But damned she had the part down, that little eye catching/flitting flirt was…

“Of course I’ll have to keep you safe. I’d hate for something to happen to a lady like yourself, something that would keep you from visiting Nachton again.”

It had been a while since Ambrose had flirted with any delicacy and he hoped he wasn’t making a fool of himself. Although given the way he was grinning, which was slightly stupidly, he was failing.

Breaking eye contact with her before he said something stupid, he looked down the path and noted another young woman. Why had he not come here to hunt sooner? He greeted her with a less idiotic smile and slight nod.

“Good evening.”

Aaron stood on the outskirts of the Park, hands in the pockets of his brocade coat. He had originally intended to go right home after the incident with the muggers, but had decided that a walk would though Vesper would be a bit better. He hadn't been here in a good month, and felt that was a situation to be [COLOR=black]rectified[/COLOR].

After properly disposing of his cigar, which by no means belonged in the lovely garden, and stepped onto a path and began to walk. The strangely dressed man got quite his share of stares as he moved, which he met with a smile and nod as he always did.

After several minuets of mostly uninterrupted walking he caught a glimpse of Ysabel, Ambrose, and (walking in the opposite direction) Yuu on an adjacent path, blocked off by a bit of foliage. His smile widened a bit and he began to search for a way to intercept them. The woman's garments were a bit younger style wise than his own, but it still succeeded in piquing his interest.

He located a point where his path intersected with theirs up ahead a ways, and quickened his pace so as to reach it before them. Tonight really was proving to be interesting...

Vesper was a popular place, Ysabel thought as she moved off lightly on Ambrose's arm. Her companion seemed more than willing to play her game right back with her, and that always put her in a cheerful mood. She still wore a soft smile on her face as they passed a young woman of Asian heritage who slowed and greeted them with a quick, "Evening."

Ysabel took in her style of dress; sort of retro, sort of gothic, a modern trend she actually liked. It wasn't for her, of course, but fashion trends that went in her general direction of preference usually appealed. And this woman had done it properly; plenty of golden skin showing at the breast and neck; ankles and feet well-covered. Ysabel knew it was old-fashioned of her, but in spite of her many other adjustments to this era, she still believed in being covered modestly.

Those thoughts went through her head quickly, and she pressed Ambrose's arm just a bit to pause and reply, "It is evening indeed, and a lovely one at that. It seems the Gardens are the popular place to be tonight!"

In fact, it was fortunate they had slowed for they were on course to intercept another gentleman just up the path. Ysabel couldn't quite make out the details of his face from where they stood, for they were near a lightsource, a small lamp by appearances, and she couldn't look in its direction long at all in spite of the fact that it was quite dim by comparison to a normal light... but even so, she thought the man up ahead was dressed in a brocade coat. How curious!

"I had no idea there were so many walkers out this late," Ysabel murmured. That thought too cheered her, for as it appeared that Ambrose's manners were indeed that, she could give up on him as a snack source. He would most likely be far too polite to try and get in a grab in a corner, which would have been the easiest way for Ysabel to feed.

It seemed that finding food in Vesper tonight would probably not be too difficult though, and Ysabel found herself focusing more on the personalities of the people around her now instead of how best to entice them into a dark corner.

Addressing both the Asian woman and Ambrose, she asked, "Is it always this crowded here?" Aside from them and the man on the path ahead, they'd passed several others along the way and she could hear voices all around.

Yuu turned, catching a glimpse and a noise. She was surprised at the sudden appearance of yet another rather...regally dressed gentleman. Was there a costume ball she was missing somewhere? Pulling a stray hair that had gotten caught on her lips, she tucked it behind her hair and smiled.

'I'm not sure, I'm new here in Nachton. I've only been here one time before with...a friend.' Why did she pause like that? Mentally she kicked herself for acting childishly. She'd worry about Tai another time.

'It's been a busy couple weeks for me, figured the walk would relax me a bit.' Yuu paused, shifting her wrap so it lay lower on her arms. 'I have to say, that's an absolutely striking gown you're wearing. Just coming from...a party?'

Ysabel's face lit up. "I'm new here too, very recently arrived from England." She waved her free hand dismissively; that much was obvious by her accent.

When the woman asked about her gown, she felt her eyes grow wide. "Wear this? To a party? Goodness, no!"

Intuition had her about to point out that her day-gown was by no means fit for any sort of party. The trim was modest at best, there was very little in the way of decoration, and the cut was entirely too mundane for a party.

Habit, however, was fortunate enough to take intuition with a firm hand early enough so that her surprise might be taken the other way; that she felt far too fancy for a party. Normally, she didn't care who thought what of her dress... but normally, she lived in a town that was used to her habits. Living in Nachton called for some more discretion.

Ysabel shook her head. "I've a job with the Nachton Historical Society," she said. "I give tours through the old houses. It's appropriate."

It certainly was appropriate. Just because she hadn't started working there yet didn't mean she wasn't going to... and she would be expected to dress like this when she did.

"I have to confess, it's quite comfortable. And with the way trends are nowadays, I wouldn't be surprised if this becomes commonplace."

By now Ysabel was feeling suitably embarrassed that no introductions had been made, and since this woman was another potential food item, Ysabel held her hand out much as Mister Townsend had just a few minutes ago for a shake.

"My name is Miss Ysabel Yolgrave. My companion is Mister Ambrose Townsend. You're welcome to walk with us if you like. This looks like the perfect place for relaxation."

Ysabel glanced up at Mister Townsend for confirmation; he had, after all, invited her along on this walk.

Then looking over at the man in the brocade coat, Ysabel wondered if he were interested in their conversation, too, or simply shy. She couldn't help but wonder about him, since he was dressed, as she was, out of the times. Perhaps that's why he'd stopped.

He wasn’t at all surprised to feel a gentle pressure on his arm indicating he should stop. It came as no surprise that Ysabel would be social and pause to make polite conversation. Ambrose was rather reminded of the few times Sarah had had him follow along when she made her calls. His job was to play the gentleman and let her set the pace. It hadn’t been a bad way to kill a morning, even if he did start getting edgy by the end of it.

“Well then we’re all relatively new all the way around.”

Ambrose smiled cheerfully. It would helpful if he knew more about the city, and while he wouldn’t be the best tour guide, he wouldn’t get anyone lost. Although he did hope the gardens were busy, it would be to his benefit if they were.

See he’d been right, a re-enactor. Even so there were too many people around for him to celebrate that little victory. It didn’t seem quite right, but it was a good enough reason for him to stop thinking about it.

Realizing Ysabel expected some response from him he smiled again nodded his consent.

“Of course that sounds like a fine idea. Would you care to join us?”

Especially as there seemed to be other, perhaps more… eccentric folks around. He’d gotten just a quick of another gentleman also rather creatively attired. And while he didn’t find that alarming in Ysabel, from the guy it felt off; but maybe Ambrose was over reacting.

Yuu nodded slightly, amused by Ysabel's sense of role play. 'My name is Shiroi Yuukaku...Yuu for short.' She pulled her wrap back over her shoulders as a slight wind gusted by her. Looking off at the direction of the newcomer, she nodded in his direction.

'Seems we have another coming our way.'

Yuu was recovering rather well from the explosion, although from time to time she'll get an ache in her side. No doubt her ribs complaining about something. A small walk would probably do her some good and she looked forward to chatting with what seemed like the eccentric upper crust class of Nachton. Her ability to meet rather unique folk in this town was uncanny, apparently.

The small group had noticed him. All three had noticed him. He really needed to work on his subterfuge, but then, what could one expect from a man dressed in 16th century attire, with a Rapier belted to his side? 'I'm rather difficult to miss, I suppose,' he mused silently to himself. 'and I wouldn't have it any other way,' this was thought with a slight grin, and he slowed himself down a bit so as not to appear threatening by rushing up to them.

When he was about two or three yards away, he raised a hand. "Bonjour!"Â? was said with the accent of one who had practiced the language profusely, though was still (if only slightly) off from perfectly fluent. "I do hope I do not interrupting any engagement's that the ladies and gentleman might have?"Â? This was, decidedly, his native language. Aaron's voice dripped of British as he spoke, there was no mistaking his nationality.

Ysabel took it upon herself to perform introductions once again. She was already liking this city, with its pleasant, sociable hors d'ouvres and its busy night life.

"Good evening sir."

Still maintaining her light touch on Ambrose's arm, she dipped into a graceful curtsey. "You're not interrupting at all."

Rising, she tilted her head at him. Now that he was closer, and not in the light, she saw his manner of dress was indeed a bit outdated. It made her wonder if he was not to be snacked upon, but just because someone was wearing odd clothing did not make them a vampire.

"My name is Ysabel; these are Mister Ambrose and Miss Yuu. We were just discussing the fact that we're all new to Nachton and we all seem to have bumped into each other here tonight."

She raised her eyebrows just a bit, with a small smile. "I don't suppose you're any more familiar with the area than we are?"

Aaron brightened up quite quickly, stoping about three feet away from them and droping into a low bow.
"Aaron Rigson, at your most humble service, M'ladys and Sir." He rose back up and shifted his attention back to Ysabel.
"Actualy, Mon Fille, I immagine I would be, if only slightly, more aquanted with it than you. I have, after all, lived in this city for the most of my life."
'"Most of my life" beeing several douzen decades, of cource..." He thought, though didn't voice. He was getting strong "I'm a vampire" vibes from the lady at least, though he knew better than to raise those susspicions himself. For one, it would be rude, and for another, it would quite likely get him fired if He was wrong. Instead he simply lapsed into a respectful silence, waiting for the other two to speak, if they so desired, or for Miss Ysabel to grace him with that voice again... 'Thats a good one!' He mused 'I'll have to remember that for later...'

“Remind me not to come here to get away from it all.”

He half laughed at Yuu’s observation. Actually, Ambrose had been all in favor of escorting the ladies away from the… well the… history lesson. There was no way on god’s green earth that this guy was part of any historical society, at least he didn’t think so. The cloths were too far out of date. He would have let it all go if it weren’t for the sword.

Doing his best to look at it without looking –at- it he would have dropped his hand down to where his gun would be except Ysabel still had his arm. Since he no longer carried his guns around with him, he let the lady keep possession of the limb while smiling at this Aaron. He might not think much of guy’s fashion sense or the way he was throwing the French around, but he wasn’t going to pick a fight in front of the ladies. Later was another story.

“Nice to meet you then Aaron. Although you might regret it, you could get roped into playing tour guide.”

Yup, he was being pleasant and charming. Primarily because he’d graduated from being Mister Townsend to being Mister Ambrose. It was a step in the right direction, even if adding another member to the party wasn’t.

Aaron's eyes darted over to Ambrose. He kept up his smile, though his empathic powers coudln't help but pick up the spike of slight anmosity directed at him. He frowned inwordly, though outwordly he continued to smile genuinely. He wasn't to keen on letting one sore sport get in the way of a bit of socilization.

"Well, I would not mind showing the three of you around."

'I would, however, mind if you hit me in the face.' He thought, hand drifting down to rest on his sword pommel, though it merely appeared as though he was giveing the hand something to sit on. The sowrd was quite real, and sharper than a razor blade at the tip.

"Though I would frankly much prefer a nice walk, with company, If I would be allowed."

Ysabel shrewdly noted the way Mister Rigson bowed. Of course she couldn't help but wonder if he were the same as she. She did give a little inward sigh... if Ambrose was too well-mannered and Aaron was a vampire like she, that left only Yuu for potential snacking, and Ysabel's chances there were probably slimmer.

Perhaps her snack would have to wait for another night. She didn't mind. Making new friends was generally a fairly high priority for Ysabel regardless of how hungry she was.

She looked from face to face with a smile, noting they now had the right number; two men and two women. Turning back to Aaron she said, "A walk is exactly what we're here for, and I believe we'd be glad to have you, Mister Rigson. Shall we?"

Ysabel began to walk again, moving deeper into the Gardens. As she did, she addressed her question to everyone in general.

"Well, you know that I work for the Historical Society, but what brings such a cross-section of people here to Nachton, I wonder? It is rather diverse, I admit, but I'm also curious, if you'll forgive me!"

She was particularly curious as to what Aaron did for a living... perhaps she was entirely wrong and by some fluke, he also did some type of re-enacting.

Aaron began to follow Ms. Ysabel, keeping a respectful distance from Ambrose, who didn't appear to like him much, and walking a bit closer to the quieter woman of the group. 'Yuu wasn't it?' His hand left the hilt of his sword and joined the other one behind his back.

"I work for Meridian Apex Enterprises, myself... Negotiation, diplomacy, monetary setlements... a lawyer, if you like."

He was rather begining to like Ysabel, and she seemed to be opening up to him as well. The other woman seemed a bit confused by him, though not showing any anamosity, as Ambrose was. His smile widened a bit as he realized, not for the first time, how very useful his Empathy was. He had gathered the moods and aditudes of all those around him without more than a glance.

((Occ: Permission to sense granted))

Not at all pleased with the way Aaron moved Ambrose had to grit his teeth. He cursed himself for being helpless. There was no way he was going to carry a weapon in this day and age and being short a leg left him at a distinct disadvantage in most other confrontations. What happened to the good old days when you could just shoot each other and be done with it? He’d just have to be alert, that was all. At least Ysabel seemed at ease in all this.

“A walk it is then.”

It was easy enough to let Ysabel start them off down the path, what wasn’t going to be so easy was being polite. Still he’d manage.

Yuu’s silence was a little odd, but he didn’t know here well enough to know if it was out of character or not.

Smiling cheerfully, Ambrose did have a good poker face, he shook his head.

“Nope couldn’t do it. Seems far too confining. But to each his own and I’m sure it keeps you busy and if you enjoy it so much the better. What about you Yuu?”

He had no desire to talk about himself at this point. Not with the sword toting fella over there around.

Yuu's ears perked.

'A lawyer?' She said with renewed interest. 'I work for the District Attorney's office here in the city. It's a small world, isn't it?' Yuu gave him a small smile, but now was scrutinizing his every word. That's the bad thing with lawyers...they're hyper critical of their own.

'I haven't heard much of Meridian, only that they have magnificent towers downtown. I'm trying to get a place in one of their residential properties. If you have any tips on getting into one quicker, you let me know.' Yuu was pleased to meet someone else like minded but not in the same social circle she was limited to. City lawyers here were much different than in LA and apparently in more ways than just mannerisms, Yuu thought eyeing his sword again.

Ysabel found Ambrose's avoidance of the topic at hand interesting. He'd sidestepped it quite deftly, and now she was doubly curious. It would have been rude to press, however, so she let it be. Perhaps she would have the opportunity to speak with him another time and draw him out a bit more. She squeezed his arm lightly and glanced up at him questioningly, to let him know the avoidance hadn't gone unnoticed.

"You're both lawyers? You must be very intelligent. I'm not sure I could handle it, myself. Courts of law have a way of twisting and turning everything, until you're never certain what's up or what's down." Ysabel's tone was respectful; she knew the amount of schooling it took to become a lawyer. She had plenty of experience in other courts, of course... but law? Not her forte.

She wasn't sure about lawyers with swords, either. She'd be inclined to acquiesce to just about anything in that case.

Aaron sighed as his sword got another two glances. He was begining to curse himself for not dropping it off at home first, but it was to late now. Anyway, his intrest had just been re-piqued (if that was even a word.)

"Indeed?" He said, speaking to Yuu. "How very interesting..."

He gave a small bow of aknowlegement when Ysabel complemented him, but continued to adress Yuu.

"I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to assist you in any endevor such as that, unfortunately, though I could probobly get you a job if you ever needed one." He smiled and winked a bit at her. "not that you likely will." He offered her his arm, just as Ambrose had done for Ysabel (or was it the other way round?).

"Might I be so bold?"

Two lawyers, wonderful this evening just got better and better. Sarcasm was a wonderful thing, especially in an internal dialog. No Ambrose didn’t like lawyers, he liked prosecutors even less.

Feeling a squeeze on his arm he looked to Ysabel, she’d noticed he hadn’t answered. He smiled but given their present company it was very reserved. He didn’t for one second believe the lady he was escorting couldn’t keep up in a courtroom. She’d been the one to carry the social aspect of the evening, she’d seen his avoidance, she wasn’t unintelligent by any means. That was Ambrose’s assessment and he was sticking to it.

“I’m surprised the two of you haven’t run into each other before.”

It was idle chatter. The city was big enough and if they were in different types of law, it was no surprise at all. But keeping his mouth shut could be seen as anti social or even hostile, so better to say something.

Yuu gave Aaron a smile and took his arm. She then turned and answered Ambrose.

'Well I just got into town, just in time to get invited to the ball at the Mayor's mansion and just about killed. I'm the replacment for the previous assistant district attorney that was murdered several months ago.' Yuu blushed. 'I'm sorry, that's not exactly light conversation, is it?'

'I'm sure my path will cross Aaron's here in the near future.' Yuu leaned closer to Ysabel. 'I'd very much be interested to see you at the historical society, Ysabel. If anything to see the costumes, they're quite beautiful.'

Ysabel paid attention to the conversation while at the same time being attentive to the man she was with. Ambrose had seemed rather outgoing at first, but now he had grown more reserved. Perhaps he was shy, after all? Or, more likely, it was just the presence of the other two that made him so. She hadn't been ignorant of the undercurrents that had passed between Aaron and Ambrose, but her place was to smooth them over, not to analyze them publicly, so she'd attempted to do just that.

Then she heard Yuu's words and turned with wide eyes to the other woman. "Nearly killed? Oh dear. I'm so sorry! You look well, considering, but how frightening!"

She wasn't going to pry at all, but she could see why Yuu was out to relax a bit. "You should forget all about it and just enjoy the gardens like you'd planned. You're well and alive, and the night is too beautiful to dwell on death!"

What ironic advice, from the undead woman. Yuu had changed the subject though, and Ysabel went along quite agreeably. "You're welcome to stop by any time for a tour. I only work nights. I can show you my wardrobe sometime if you like, as well. I have quite the collection of vintage gowns."

Having said as much, Ysabel once again glanced up at Ambrose. She wasn't sure why she bore any concern for this particular human in his strange coat, but she was curious about him and she liked him. Maybe he could still be a snack for another time. He was, at any rate, something of a challenge now. Ysabel was hoping to draw him out of his shell just a bit more. She let her hand rest more heavily on his arm, rather than just brushing it as she had before.

It sounded like there were a few other people in town who also didn’t much care for prosecutors. Ysabel had better words of encouragement, support, or what ever it was than he’d have though.

“I read about that in the papers, glad you’re still with us.”

Ambrose smiled warmly at Yuu, his smile was a little bigger than he’d intended but that was because Ysabel, even though she wasn’t speaking directly to him, obviously hadn’t forgotten him. It seemed like it would be easy to be over shadowed by an extremely eccentric lawyer and one who had nearly been blown up.

She only worked nights huh? Well that could be because she had a day job and went and volunteered after hours. Either way he found himself quite interested in the historical society all of a sudden.

“Do have a lot of folks come through in the evenings?”

He thought that sounded innocent enough. Mostly innocent at any rate, but maybe he could wander by some night and maybe take the lady out properly.

Ysabel beamed up at Ambrose when he asked about the historical society. Almost belatedly she realized she was going to have to lie to him again, which had never bothered her before but somehow sat uneasily with her now. She'd lied her entire life, about who and what she was. She'd lied from here to England and back again, in every Court, about every little thing. Those were the games people played.

But much as she liked to flirt and socialize, Ysabel was entirely aware that these were different times. So it was with a trace of bitterness well-concealed that she kept her smile on her face and said, "Oh, yes. Most people like to see the houses at night; they think they're haunted, or have some special kind of supernatural history." She waved her hand. "It's rather silly, but as long as they're happy I can do my job."

Ysabel made sure to include Aaron and Yuu as she spoke, turning frequently to smile at them both. "You should all come visit some time," she suggested. "Only, I'm still new so perhaps not too soon. I still forget my lines."

She was actually fairly well-read on the topic, the Historical Society having sent her several booklets on each house and each tour so that she could start her job with some knowledge. Ysabel enjoyed acting and was looking forward to being able to say what she'd said honestly.

'I've been to something like that in California. The Winchester mystery house, I think it's called. Down in San Jose, the heiress to the Winchester fortune began to build a house and...never stopped. Doors leading to nothing, 18 bathrooms, several kitchens...it was interesting in an...obsessive compulsive kind of way.'

Yuu giggled, it was an interesting tour she had gone on when she was a child with her parents. She wagered the historical society's tours in Nachton were much different.

'I'll definitely stop by one evening to see you, Ysabel. Thank you for the invite.'

She remembered again that she was firmly latched onto the sword carrying gentleman, Aaron. The atmosphere tonight was so much different than she was used to, at least recently with Tai. Her overwhelming urge to be incredibly snotty had subsided. Yuu supposed she was just lonely. With Tai in her life...

Yuu blinked. She had never considered Tai 'in her life'. The explosion must've rattled bits and pieces loose in the 'I don't need anyone' department. Yuu unconsciously hugged Aaron's arm and sighed.

Aaron nodded, he would love to visit Ysabel, though more to see her than to see the houses. He had to admit, he was getting more and more interested in her... 'only works nights... seems we may be more allike than even the obveous.'

"That, I think would be quite nice. I'll have to stop by some night when I'm not working."

Aaron smiled a bit when Yuu mentioned the Winchester House, something he had actualy heard of... and he was apt to jump on any conversation point he could get his hands around.

"I think I have read a bit about that place, actualy... didn't the lady consult a medium, who advised her to construct the house in that way? I might be thinking of something different, but that was what I recall reading..."

He smiled a bit as Yuu increased the pressure on his arm, something was bugging her, but he was content to allow her stay quiet, untill she decided to bring it up, if she ever did. Though he had to admit that the increased pull on his arm was slightly comforting, it reminded him vaguely of Jenea... He shook his head. Jenea was dead, he needed to stop dwelling on her... It was bad enough that fire rendered him neigh catatonic with memorys of her death, he didn't need memories poping up durring everyday life.

Haunted houses, what an idiotic notion; at least to his mind. It was amazing how gullible people could be. He’d appreciated the invite and thought it was rather gracious of Ysabel to extend it to all of them, but when Aaron spoke up Ambrose made a promise to visit far too soon. This sword-toting yahoo wasn’t going to get a chance if he had anything to say about it.

He almost missed the change of topic but it was welcome. It was a subject he knew something about. He turned to smile openly at Ysabel before responding to the group in general.

“The old lady was heir to the Winchester rifle fortune. The psychic or medium or whatever you want to call them told her that the sprits of everyone killed by a Winchester would haunt her and try and harm her because she’d earned her money from their deaths. And the only way to keep the spirits at bay was to always be building something, twenty four hours a day seven days a week three hundred and sixty five a year. Nutty old gal believed ‘em and as soon as she moved into the place started renovations, I guess they didn’t always have plans but there was always something being built until the day she died. At least that's what I remember of the history, its been a while.”

Ambrose grinned slightly sheepishly, embarassed he hadn't paid more attention.

He’d seen the place before the lady died, it was a wild story and Ambrose had never understood why Mrs. Winchester had believed it. Did she think the hammering was terrifying to spirits?

It had been one hell of a rumor at the time and, being the proud owner of a Winchester or two, he’s felt the need to see it for himself. He’d seen it once since and it was still something else.

'You both are correct, it was a beautifully landscaped plae, last I visited.'

Yuu was growing tired and felt like it was time to take her leave. With a smile she disengaged from Aaron and stopped. 'I think it's past my bedtime. I'm going to head on home. Thank you for the pleasant walk and company.'

With that Yuu turned and head back towards the main gate to grab a cab. She would definitely stop by and see Ysabel sometime at her work. As for Aaron, she was sure to cross paths with him eventually on a professional level. With a wave she bid them good night.

((OOC - Yuu out pending responses))

Ysabel listened to the passing ghost tales silently, not intending to add anything to that conversation... she found it amusing, however. She really didn't believe in ghosts though. Not after playing the part of one for a few years. Every time she heard a ghost story it brought on a feeling of amusement that some vampire with a sense of humor somewhere was probably having a good laugh at some mortal's expense.

Ysabel was sorry to see Yuu go, but that at least left her with both men... never all that objectionable a situation, in her opinion. Of course, Aaron now had two free arms. And Ysabel had one free arm. That, by her math, meant that she could be occupied on both sides. And perhaps be a buffer for the tension that seemed to be passing between both men.

So, turning to Aaron, she offered up her free right arm and said, "There's still plenty more Garden to explore, if you'd like."

“Have a good evening.”

He managed to sound pleasant enough, but was certainly not happy with this turn of events. Why did the other woman have to leave? At least when they were four Yuu had given sword boy something else to think about.

Not used to being in competition for a lady’s attention Ambrose tensed when Ysabel offered her other arm to Aaron. Apparently he was going to have to beat this guy at his own game, so he would be as charming as possible. To that end he smiled warmly at Ysabel.

“I certainly don’t have any other plans for the evening.”

"Good evening, Miss Yuu."

Aaron waved pleasantly, he really was sorry to see her go, they barely had any time to talk at all. He smiled broadly at Ysabel when she offered him her arm, takeing it with a small bow.

"Delighted, Madamoiselle."

He glanced across at Ambrose, and frowned for about a third of a second, before replaceing his pleasant smile. 'don't like him ruin the night, just pretend his surface immage is truth.' Whatever it was he had done to piss this man off, he honestly hadn't ment to...

Ysabel could not complain about having a handsome man on either side of her. Her gregarious nature usually led her to seek out the company of people who talked and moved with confidence, and thus far she had yet to be disppointed.

Trying not to favor one over the other, she headed them all deeper into the twisting paths of the Gardens. She was delighted to see such a peaceful bit of tranquility in the middle of the city, and she knew without even thinking about it that she would be walking here often.

"So, you have both been about Nachton for longer than I have, even if by just a bit." The last part she said with a little tilt of her head to Ambrose. "Can you reccomend anything to me thus far? Entertainment, music, food? Although I do have my job to concern myself with, I'm determined to enjoy being in a new city. It's very different from England so far and I think I'd like to do everything Nachton has to offer."

She looked from Ambrose to Aaron and back again, figuring this to be neutral ground at least.

Neutral ground; that what she seemed to be aiming at. That was Ambrose’s conclusion for Ysabel didn’t seem at all put out to be between both he and Aaron. Hell maybe he was the only one cross about this turn of events. That certainly wouldn’t be any fun.

“I’ve never been to England so I couldn’t say anything was different, but maybe I could make a few suggestions.”

Out right asking, her out didn’t seem like a good idea. It just wasn’t very tactful and bordered on being rude. So what did he know about the city? Food was out, his meals tended to be ‘to go’ as it were.

“The opera here seems to be a step above average, but I’m not certain what or when the next production is.”

Opera, that had been Damaris’ doing. Once they’d left Tombstone for some reason she’d insisted on introducing Ambrose to culture, some of it he’d liked better than the rest. He’d taken an odd liking to opera.

Ysabel continued to steer the conversation carefully back and forth between Aaron and Ambrose as they walked, keeping it intentionally neutral. From their conversation she managed to gather the names of more than a few decent restaurants and one or two attractions she thought Dayle might want to go see with her.

By the time they'd reached the center of the Gardens as well as wound their leisurely way back out, Ysabel was more than ready to impart her newfound knowledge to her sister. With a few parting words she bid farewell to the polite and informative Aaron, surprised by Ambrose's invitation to walk her home.

With her hand still on Ambrose's arm, they made their way back out to the strip.

((ooc: All done (and out) with permission, due to Aaron's being busified IRL (I made a new word, yay!)... hopefully to be continued in another bat-thread at another bat-time! Permission from Ambrose too. Permissified. Permissionated.))