Goin' to the Chapel! (open: partygoers)

Jin paused at the entrance to the room and looked around. He spotted Sorcha and Emir at a nearby table, took in the band playing and the other people milling about.

Leaning towards Mara, he asked.

"Should we join them or would you like to pass by the tables first?"

Of course the third option would be to find an entirely separate table. Divide and conquer or something like that.

He considered his daughter's question carefully and refrained at the last minute from shaking his head.

[I am not sure. Vampires have had a unique hand here. Perhaps we'll find something mentioned in the archives. Do you think it is important?]

Mara let out a soft sigh when she glimpsed her creator. There was nothing more she wanted than to wrest the collar and leash from Sorcha's hand and leave with Amir in tow, but that wasn't going to happen. Letting her gaze slide over the red-head and her canine companion, Mara looked for anything of interest, any point at which to begin their evening.

"It doesn't seem fair to join them," she said softly to Jin when he asked. "We're not here for pleasure, after all. Perhaps later."

She didn't mean that her current company wasn't pleasing; although she didn't know Jin well he seemed perfectly companionable. But they did have a purpose here and business should always come before pleasure. It would be wiser to walk the room first, get a feel for the space, check out any exits and entrances. Mara could see more than just the one door and her cat-like curiosity was immediately piqued.

"What's through there, I wonder?"

As more and more people filtered in, Amir was both grateful and repulsed by the opportunities his form provided. On the one hand everyone who passed by him wanted to pet him. On the other hand, everyone who passed by him wanted to pet him. You'd have thought they'd never seen a dog before. Still, it gave him a unique chance to really sniff at each extended hand, using his jackal's heightened senses. He remembered to wag his tail, something not natural to him in either form, and suffered through various cooing voices and scratches behind the ears.

He could smell marijuana on several people, cigarette smoke on others, alcohol on several even though they'd just arrived. Most of the people who approached him had pets of their own; the scents clung to them. Two or three didn't. Many of them were men which wasn't surprising considering who held the other end of his leash.

Amir didn't glance at Sorcha when she sent to him but instead responded, [No thank you. Unless the waitress at the end is free.]

Amir seldom ate; what was the purpose? The only thing at the table that held any appeal for him was the cheerful hostess. She'd do.

As more people wafted by, a strange, almost tangy scent caught his attention. He flared his nostrils, trying to pinpoint its origin. It was odd in the sense that he was unable to identify it immediately. He couldn't even tell if it was coming from a person or not. He let his ears perk forward, unable to initiate dialogue with Sorcha himself but plenty able to communicate via body language.

Jan smiled at the crowd gathering in the room, a slow lazy curling of the lips. He was rather pleased Nox Æternus was asked to play tonight. Though he did have to agree that it was more likely to do with Gothic reputation of the band than any sort of following.

It was sad what a lack of working daylight hours did to a person's career.

He strummed the acoustic guitar and began the next song.


"The greenwood sighs and shudders,

the westwind wails and mutters

Grey clouds crawl across the sky,

the moon hides her face till sunlight dies

And mankind soon shall realize

the bringer of storms walks tonight"

No mortal dare to meet the glare
of the Eye of the Stormbringer,



[It is hard to say with ghosts. Believe it or not, sometimes they like a bit of idle chit chat.]

Sorcha was a bit disappointed that Jin did not have a ready answer for her but she was mollified that he intended to at least help in finding out later. Her glance glided past Jin and his companion but she took in what details she could in those few moments.

Pretty, not so tall as Jin but almost. She seemed to have a good sense of style and probably liked cats or identified with them in some way, given the small ears on her head. After all who voluntarily chose a costume they didn't like?

Rio crossed her arms and rolled her eyes, leaning against the table.

"Why are you wasting your time and his?"

Her glance flickered down to the vampire sitting next to her.

"I..."

Sorcha turned away from the sister that no one else could see.

"Jin barely knows her. Now, don't you have some work to do. Or is it all about you tonight? As usual."

She turned her attention back to Amir, all the better to ignore her sibling. He had been quite the attention getter and had dutifully sniffed and wagged his tail at each person who came by. Sorcha was amused that he didn't lick them. Ah well, She supposed there was only so far he was willing to go.

She smiled down at him and said.

[Maybe later we can go over and see if she wants to pet you.]

Turning to look out through the crowd again, she added.

[And then you can bite her on the hand.]

After a few moments, she noticed that her companion was leaning forward with that alert look that canines get when something has caught their attention.

[Where is it that you would like to go?]

Best to know what he wanted first so that she would know what kind of excuse to give in order to get them their. Were they wandering this room, heading to someone specific or leaving the main room for one of the others?

For he is the lightning slinger
the glory singer,
the gallows reaper

Jin replied to Sorcha's answer with an inward sigh.

[Well hopefully someone will elaborate.]

He was not sure if his daughter truly saw spirits or if it was her very quick mind and vampiric ability giving her information in a way that best suited her. It didn't matter to him anymore. She was fairly reliable and the visions she saw were sometimes more helpful than his speaking to someone for hours.

Smiling at Mara, he said.

"True enough."

He turned his gaze outward and smiled at several other people in the room, giving them a friendly nod of greeting whenever they noticed his regard.

His companion indicated a door and Jin gave her a shrug in answer.

"Only one way to find out."

Amir sat back on his haunches once more, licked his lips to try and clean them of the clinging, tangy scent, and glanced at Sorcha. [Not sure,] he said. [Whatever that scent is, it's moving around. Must be on someone.]

He was looking for anything unusual, but that was probably going to be pointless. Anyone good enough, skilled enough, to have Mai worried was good enough to hide themselves from vampire-kind. He lowered his guard slightly, well aware that his second function here was to escort Sorcha and help guard her - which hadn't, according to Jin's request, included stifling her evening and keeping her locked down unable to have any fun at all.

[What about you, Sorcha? Was there someone here you wanted to see? Would you like to walk around?]

He wondered briefly if she thought he might take umbrage at being leashed and led all evening so he made the offer to accompany her. The costume was reasonable; it made sense. He didn't mind the collar and leash get-up this one night.

Moving around might help him sort out the scents as well. As more and more people filed into the room they each brought their own unique bouquet. It was enough to make him nauseous. Who wanted to smell this many humans all the time? Not that some of the vampires or werewolves were any better... Amir wasn't foolish enough not to think they were in mixed company. Some of the people here he recognized - others not so much.

It was true but it didn't make her all the happier. Mara would rather have been in Sorcha's position; better yet, there was room to dance in here and she very much wished her creator wore two feet. There was no better partner than the one you'd been dancing with for centuries, even if his experience had been browbeaten into him. Perhaps Jin... well, later. Business first, as she'd just said herself.

She turned a twinkling smile on her companion and said, "My thoughts exactly."

There was no hiding her sense of curiosity. In Mara, her need to know -things- was what drove her. Closed doors were practically glowing in neon "open me" signs. Locks, too, begged to be broken. Red buttons must be pushed.

The search proved uneventful, which was disappointing, but at least they had the satisfaction of knowing what was behind the closed door. A little private area, decorated, also with food. Mara wondered if it was reserved for a party or if anyone might use it.

"That wasn't nearly as exciting as I had hoped," she said with a little sigh, still happy to know, at least.

"You would think, some day they would notice that a lot of this food goes to waste."Â?

Pak observed. Although it was pretty enough. Still seemed a shame. Oh well.

Since 'meeting' Bao for the second time out in California Pak had been a little leery in situations where she didn't know a lot of people. She was getting better; considerably better, she would even go out by herself again and give even chase to rice throwers. She'd even tackled meeting the monster head on and was getting to know him. But that didn't mean she wasn't keeping an eye on the crowd and sticking a bit close to Artemis.

"I think dancing is out,"Â? She eyed him speculatively, "Well maybe later so long as you promise not to scuff up my shoes. That leaves mingling for the time being."Â?

And it was hard to mingle with people you didn't know and who you probably had nothing in common with.

It was hard to scan the crowd, even with her heels Pak was not exactly tall. It was a fluke of the parting crowd that let her see Mara. Pak's first impulse was to scan the room for Kem and make sure he wasn't around. After that though she grabbed her date's hand and simply towed him off in the direction of her friend.

"I didn't expect to see you here tonight."Â?

They had completed their investigation of the other rooms. Jin was slightly happier knowing that no one was lurking there for nefarious reasons; though he doubted such a thing was likely.

Smiling at Mara, he said.

"Yes, its not exciting now. That is more likely later when people wish to be alone."

Not that he intended to interrupt such events. Jin did think that it was unwise to engage in intimate activities in public with the expectation of not getting caught. However, people never failed to do such things; he had seen it quite often through out his long history.

He looked up to notice that Mara's attention was being sought. Jin smiled at the person greeting his clan mate.

"Ah, my rival flower girl. Good evening, Pakpao."

Jin looked around for the Asian woman's likely companion. Artemis really wasn't hard to spot in most crowds and the Roman had made that easier by adding nearly another foot of height with the addition of a top hat. Shaking his head, Jin smiled at the Evenhet.

"Artemis, You have made it out of the well equipped closet. Wonder of wonders!"

Vaughn was still chuckling at Therese's commment when they entered the chapel. He had to admit that the place looked very nice considering its normal function. The decorations were at least classy while adding the spooky atmosphere that was expected for the day. It could have been paper bats and sponge pumpkins.

There was no one that he recognized and he thought of taking a seat and letting others join them if they were so inclined, however he would see what Therese wanted to do.

"Hungry? Or shall we find a place out of the trample zone?"

Seeing a very tall redhead stand up and leave a table. Vaughn realized that she had left her things behind. Looking at Therese, he nodded his head in the direction of the woman and then went to retrieve the little sheep and crook that the shepherdess had abandoned.

Catching up to the woman, he presented both and smiled.

"I am sorry but I believe you have lost your sheep."

Vaughn turned and looked for Therese, hoping that she had seen where he was going and why. He would hate for her to think he had just abruptly abandoned her for no reason.

Amir the Dog appealed to Sorcha with an expression he hoped conveyed sufficient irony. [Conversation is largely overrated,] he said.

He stood with her and stuck close to her side as she rose from her chair and left the direct vicinity of the table. [I know some of them,] he said, [but managing an introduction like this might be difficult, I regret.]

It was as close to an apology for anything as Amir ever came. He knew who he knew, and he was here as a favor. He hadn't promised to do any more than accompany Sorcha and he hadn't been asked to, but she was pleasant and Amir respected her creator.

He heard the approach before it registered, really, and swiftly moved between the approaching man and his charge. Seeing the crook and the sheep in the man's hand, Amir realized the reason he had come up to them and gently retrieved the sheep in his jaws, careful not to harm it, so that Sorcha could have her crook back.

Jin's words made Mara recoil slightly. Alone? Here? Would people actually do that here? How... tasteless. "I... don't care to speculate," she said softly. "How intriguing."

She was saved from being forced to speculate anyway by her own curious mind when Pakpao appeared from the crowd. "I didn't really expect to be here tonight," she said with a far more relaxed smile than she'd worn all evening. "I'm glad to see you."

Which she actually was. Mara had very few friends but Pakpao she was fond of. "How is Mongkut?"

She remembered Pak's name for the kitten she'd brought her. "Is he growing to be strong and ferocious?"

Jin seemed to know Pak too, as well as the man she was with, engaging him immediately. Mara was saved an immediate introduction and had time to shift herself to slightly behind Jin, more toward Pak and as far away from the new man as she could get without being rude. Damn Amir's logic, and his requests. She hated parties.

Upon his shoulder, ravens,
his face like stone, engraven
Astride a six-hoofed stygian beast,
he gathers the fruit of the gallows trees
Driving legions to victory
the bringer of war walks tonight

Jan finished up his song and looked around the room. Was that Carol? It was hard to miss the blonde in the slip dress. This must be the new boyfriend; they looked cute together. He wondered if his father missed the energetic, 'tell it like it is', spirited beauty that was Carol Hedley.

Not that Ellis didn't have her charms...she did. In a way Jan wasn't surprised that Simon and Ellis were back together. You just didn't get over centuries of companionship very easily. Especially since, try though they might to hide it, Jan was certain they both loved each other. He just thought Simon seemed so at ease and happy with Carol.

It was the difference between a nice relaxing Sunday drive along the beach to racing in the Daytona 500.

Ah well, who was he to say anything. It wasn't like he had a great dating track record. Jan finished with the song, took a step down from the stage, and went to find his glass of wine. Maybe he'd let Carol find him. She might find it awkward talking to Simon's son...then again this was Carol and he really doubted anything could make her uncomfortable.

((OOC: Song is Stormbringer, lyrics by Philip R. Obermarck. ))

Lothias pulled his arm away from her shoulder and shoved his hands into his pockets. He was uncomfortable with parties and Carol could see the tense awkwardness in his features as he did his thing, his eyes scanning the chapel area as they entered. Turning away from him, Carol shut her eyes tight and shoo'd the inevitable thoughts of who and what he was. Distracting her as well was the unnaturally smooth purr of a voice from Jan and his band. Clapping her hands together, she began to bounce in her heels.

"Like the band, I take it?" Lothias said with a laugh.

"I know him!"

"The...singer?"

Carol didn't answer but fluttered away toward the stage as Jan wrapped up his song and stepped off. He was just reaching his glass of wine when Carol yelled his name.

"JAN!!! What. UP!"

Flinging herself at him, Carol wrapped her arms around his neck and lifted her legs off the ground, forcing him to catch her. It had been ages since she had seen Jan and was thoroughly thrilled to see the cutie patootie. To prove it, she landed on her feet, took his face in her hands, and kissed him right on the mouth. No tongue though, Jan was like a brother.

"It is so great to see you!"

His uncle and Vivienne had walked off in another direction as they all entered the chapel area. They turned a corner as Vivienne crossed her arms and exhibited some of the coldest body language he had seen her give his uncle yet. The Commander on the other hand, he seemed to be enjoying himself, walking close to her, irritating her with his happy smile and lingering looks at her and any other female that passed them. With a sigh, he prayed they didn't kill each other.

Carol seemed to be enjoying the band when suddenly she said something about knowing the singer and running off. LT watched with a confused look as Carol ran off to meet the singer as he stepped off the stage. Following behind her, his one step equaled two of hers, he came up on them as Carol flung herself into the singer's arms and planted a kiss on his lips. This was Carol, he decided. Overly affectionate, outrageously silly, and overtly sexual in everything she did. He waited for her to let the poor kid come up for air before introducing himself.

"Hi," he said waving at the younger man. "I'm Lothias. I guess you're a friend of Carol's?" He held his hand out to the man giving him a polite nod.

Jan's hand paused just as he was about to wrap it around the rim of the glass. Looking up, he saw Carol heading towards him. He turned leaving the wine where it was and that was a sound decision.

Before he knew it his arms were full of vivacious blonde. He caught hold of her easily and returned the hug. Instinct had him looking for his father to make sure Simon wasn't upset before his head caught up with the gut reaction.

Carol, landing once more on the floor, took his head in her hands and planted kiss square on the mouth. A part of him thought she had nice soft lips and excellent choice in gloss. Tasty! The rest of his thoughts were back on track and now they were telling him that he better be looking for the tall guy that she came in with.

Sure enough, the man had followed his blonde companion at a more leisurely pace. Jan was grateful to see that the stranger didn't seem at all surprised by his date's actions. Jan wasn't terribly worried about himself in a fight but he'd hate to mess the place up before the party really got going.

Maybe later.

Giving Carol another hug with one arm, he held the other hand out to Lothias.

"Yeah, I can't deny it." Looking at the blonde next to him, he quickly added. "And wouldn't! Carol's lovely cheerful self in the morning is that of an angel...a sometimes foul mouthed,ill tempered angel...but welcome none the less."

She had been the face of the industry and Tacharan for a while. It still wasn't the same without her cheerful greeting or requests for the latest gossip. Not to mention Carol always knew more about what was going on with everyone than anyone else he knew.

"I do some side work with Duibne."

"Well, it's nice to meet you."

LT politely nodded and slipped his hands back into his pockets. He wouldn't presume to guess what kind of side work Jan did with Duibne, so he filed that bit of information away and moved the conversation along.

"It's funny...I don't think I've ever heard anyone talk about the cemetery before. Usually you can get some good local ghost stories, but this party on Halloween does seem appropriate to advertise it more."

Carol bounced and giggled a little bit more, holding Jan's hand with both of hers. He couldn't help but smile at her, seeing how happy she was to see her friend.

"Nachton is all about the hip clubs and murders. Highest per capita!"

She was pleased Lothias wasn't the jealous type, but then it had been a while since she had been with a man who did get insanely jealous with her sexual familiarity with people. He just smiled sheepishly at her and was her comfy big bad wolf.

Mentally she winced at the thought but then moved on.

"I'm so happy to see you!!!" Carol sang, rather off key and proud of it. "Have you seen Nova anywhere? Or Kyle? I haven't seen the former in for-ev-er and the latter in months. It's not like Kyle to be all undercover and not involved in an explosion of some sort."

Carol held her hand up to her mouth and 'ooh!'. "God if he shows up, I bet you money something blows up."

Frowning in thought, Jan considered the cemetery a few moments before replying.

"Well, you know how much advertising do they really need? They deal in dead guys. Crazy Eddie's half off burial sale! Its insane!! These plots won't last long so bump off Gran while you can!"

He rubbed his chin thoughtfully about the rest of Lothias' statement.

"I don't know though. I guess there are so many places in Nachton that are said to be haunted that this one doesn't get much press. Its all expected and such."

Carol mentioned the crime in their fair city and Jan felt compelled to defend his urban playground.

"Now, now. Don't you believe the media. Nachton is a perfectly safe place. Wonderful for raising kids, lovely educational system. Its just oozing family values."

Jan grinned wickedly at the both of them, not believing a word he had said. It was a big city and like all of those, crime was a staple. Never boring though; he had to admit that.

"Its great to see you again too. I've missed all the juicy info without you around to tell me what's what." He thought about his sister, Nova for a moment and then shrugged his shoulders. "Nova was visiting her relatives out west. I guess she's still out that way. I haven't seen Kyle in ages though."

Jan was amused at the thought of Kyle and Nova and how much of an odd couple they were. It had always seemed to him that they would either kill each other or were perfect together. He laughed out loud at Carol's mention of Kyle being involved in something that would end in an explosion. So true.

"You've got a point. I'll keep my eye out for him from the stage. If he shows up. I'll let you know so you can duck and cover."

Thérèse shook her head slightly. No, it was too early to eat. It was probably a terrible habit, ingrained from one too many hunts but even at a party it was her habit to circle the room one or twice to determine what exactly was going on.

"We shall improvise."Â?

Slowly trailing along in Vaughn's wake she noticed the other costumes. Part of her hoped to see Nikhila here tonight, but that was a slim hope. The professor tended to be retiring. Rather than dwelling on who she hoped wouldn't be there she noticed the costumes. It was an odd mix, as with any party. Some where quite outlandish or revealing, some more subtle and some even appeared to have no costume.

As she caught up with Vaughn it was impossible not to notice the woman's dog. Very well trained, and apparently protective. She frowned when the dog took the sheep with out any prompting. It was odd. Thérèse attempted to dismiss it. It was probably had an excellent and logical explanation.

"He's very intelligent isn't he?"Â?

She'd almost made a comment about being well trained but at the last second changed her mind.

"I suppose that depends on your definition of wasted. We may not eat any of it, but we can certainly make sure it isn't wasted."

Artemis gave Pak a devilish grin and a wink. Using his height as an advantage, he proceeded to look around the room. Several groups had already begun forming, as partygoers met up and started various conversations. He noted the band and paused for moment to listen to the music. They had a nice sound. He hadn't realized that he was nodding his head slightly to the rhythm until the moratorium on dancing was mentioned.

"What if I promise to keep the moves to the last 5-10 years? And of course, no scuffing."

He had barely gotten the last word out, before he was being hauled through the masses. It took some effort, considering the height difference, for him not to look like a gangley freak stumbling along behind her. Or, like he was completely whipped. To further add to the confusion and discomfort, he wasn't quite sure if he should tip his hat at the innocent bystanders as this disfunctional two person train railroaded past them.

"Excuse me."

"Pardon me."

"Top of the evening to you"

"Ah, wine. Thank you"

When they had finally come to a stop, Artemis took a moment to look behind them to make sure the carnage wasn't too bad. As he did so, he spotted an attractive blond charging toward the singer as he exited the stage. It was hard not to cringe at what could be inevitable. That could be painful. Not waiting to see the final collision, he turned and handed Pak one of the glasses of red wine procured from what he hoped was a waiter. Hearing the familiar voice greet him, he looked up from his date and smiled.

"Yes, it was difficult. But, some shows are best seen live"

Reluctantly, Artemis let go of Pak's hand so that he could shake Jin's in greeting.

"Who is you lovely friend?"

Artemis wasn't sure if it was his height, his hat, or the manor of his arrival that made the lady uncomfortable, but it was hard to miss her moving away from him. In an effort to put her more at ease, he took a step back to give her some space and then smiled politely. Sometimes, big tall Romans in top hats require getting used to.

"Would you like this glass of wine Mara? I can always brave the gauntlet again to find one for Jin and myself."

"That rules out the moonwalk and the hustle... where does the macarena fit in that time line?"Â?

It might be nice to actually dance. Looking up at him Pak threw caution to the wind.

"So long as I get veto power if you try and line dance or something, I think we can manage something."Â?

Of course she couldn't remember how long it had been since she had danced and there was a good chance Pak would wind up looking like an idiot but too late now, besides, she didn't need her pride.

It had totally slipped Pak's mined that she fit in much smaller spaces than Artemis. Once she realized that she looked up at him a little chagrined. She'd work on that.

Absently, Pak half positioned herself between her date and her friend before grinning in response. She and Mara had never actually been seen out and about together, but this was just a coincidence so there was nothing wrong with it.

"He is trying to eat my fish."Â?

She said somewhat dismayed. It didn't seem to mater where she moved the beta to, Mongkut seemed to find it.

"Jin. Love the ears."Â?

Absently Pak reclaimed Artemis' hand. It wasn't like she was going to lose him in the crowd, even without the hat, but she did.

"Sorry. Mara Artemis, Artemis Mara. She's a friend of mine and... he is... well..."Â?

Pak looked a bit flustered, after all, it hadn't been that long ago that Mara asked Pak a relatively direct question about why she was single and her only answer had been 'its complicated'. Well, meet the complication.

Jin listened the conversation between Pak and Mara. Apparently there was a something named Mongkut, a boy something given the name. It was hopefully growing up fierce and strong or something like that. Whatever it was likes fish. Jin figured the something was a cat or a small child.

He gave Pakpao a little bow in response to her compliment.

"Yes, in lieu of the pink dress with tiny flowers I thought I would make a more subtle fashion statement tonight."

Once Artemis arrived bearing wine, Mara took a step backwards. Jin tilted himself towards his companion and placed a comforting hand on her upper arm. He did not want to be overly familiar or to make her think he was holding onto her but it was a gesture to let her know that he was here for her and that everything would be okay.

Leaning towards her, he whispered softly, knowing the others could hear.

"I believe Artemis was feeling a little self conscious about his lack of height. Its a shame really. We all keep telling him that its sparkling personality that we all adore so."

He smiled at his tall friend who was doing his best to be less intimidating by taking a step back and offering to get some more wine for everyone.

"Has anyone seen Aishe?"

Jin peered turned to look behind him and then peered around Artemis and Pak.

"I can get the drinks this time if you like but if you're intent on wading through the crowd again a glass would be wonderful."

"He is a cat," Mara pointed out gently to Pak. "I would worry if he wasn't interested in fish."

As she said it, her own cat's eyes took on a slightly predatory gleam even behind the contacts she wore and she smiled knowingly.

Jin's hand on her arm was, to her, tacit permission to touch. So she wrapped her hands around Jin's arm in return and drew closer to Artemis as Pak introduced him, remaining close to her escort's side.

"It's nice to meet you Artemis. Pak has spoken about you." The gleam behind her eyes faded rapidly to something a little more Mara, a little mischievous, and she stepped out from behind Jin slightly to offer her hand before regaining her place.

Mara was horrible at events like this. She hated them, but Amir had wanted her to come. She did her best to focus on being observant instead of being high-maintenance. Shaking her head at the offer of a drink, she said, "No thank you."

She glanced around when Jin mentioned Aishe's name. Was Aishe supposed to be here? That would be terrible. With Aishe came Kiamhaat and that would make her night difficult, indeed. She looked to Pak and raised her eyebrows. Pak would surely know whether or not the couple had planned to be here.

((ooc: permission to glomp onto Jin))

Sorcha smiled at Amir's words and understood the frustration of sometimes being unable to express one's self the way that you would like.

[I sympathize with your plight. It is alright. I'm sure we could get ourselves into plenty of mischief with people we don't know just as easily.]

She was about to wander more around the room when a gentleman walked up with her stuffed lamb and crook. Oops! Sorcha had totally forgotten those accessories that she had brought. Ah well it had served as an aid in meeting someone.

As Sorcha was signing a thank you, Amir had moved protectively in front of her and took the plush toy from the man's hands. She smiled graciously and held up a hand. Getting out a pad and pen that she always kept on her, Sorcha flipped to the first of the book. The first page had written:

I cannot speak but I can hear you.

[I][I]She then flipped a few pages over to another and held it up.

[/I] [/I]Thank you

[I]Turning to the woman who arrived just after the man, Sorcha smiled. Finding a blank piece of paper in the pad, she wrote. [/I]

Yes, he is. Very intelligent and quite well trained.

She then sent to Amir telling him what she wrote since the pad was above his head.

Vaughn was a bit taken back by the canine who took the stuffed toy without prompting. The woman did not appear to be injured in any way so it seemed unlikely to be something he needed to be trained to do. Then again, perhaps it was simply his toy and he wanted it back and thought Vaughn was handing it to him.

He smiled at the animal who looked like some German Shepherd mixed with something, fox maybe? If his colouring were different Vaughn would have said the animal before him was a jackal. The ears and size were just right but the colouring was completely wrong. Had to be a mix, was smart like a mixed dog as well. Most time breeding for cosmetic traits took the intelligence right out of an animal.

Seeing the woman's thank you sign, he signed by "You're welcome". Both gestures were part of the few that he knew from the American sign language and with the use of it he had exhausted that means of communication. He hoped she didn't take it to mean that he would understand much more.

Reading her note, Vaughn realized she wasn't deaf. That made it somewhat easier to converse. Smiling, he gestured to Therese and himself.

"It is good to meet you. I am Vaughn and this is Therese."

Vaughn turned and gave Therese a friendly smile, reaching an arm out to her in invitation.

It took a second longer than it might have and out of habit Thérèse did read what had been written twice. She remembered a time when it would have been quite difficult to deal with both the writing and the English.

Careful of her dress, had she mentioned that she loved this gown, Thérèse knelt down to the dog's level and offered him her hand. It seemed rude to simply pet him without either his permission or the woman's.

Even though the woman wasn't deaf Thérèse still had to assume he was a service animal of some kind, but there was no harness, no real indication that he was working. Well, perhaps she was wrong or perhaps he didn't require it, or perhaps the woman had made a substantial donation to the right people and a blind eye was turned. The possiblities were endless.

"I'd imagine he must be well mannered to be out in this press. What is his name?"Â?

Rising to her feet she again resumed her hold on Vaughn's arm. It had been very easy to get used to that. And certainly if he didn't mind she wasn't about to complain.

With a cheerful smile she inclined her head as Vaughn introduced them.

"Bonsoir, it is a pleasure to meet you both."Â?

Artemis was sure he had a perplexed and confused look upon his face. What was a Mongkut? It had only been a short time since his return to Nochton. There had not been time for the long talk with Pak that was inevitably coming. Apparently, he wasn't the only one with stories to tell. Thanks to the insight provided by Mara, Artemis was relieved to learn that a Mongkut was in fact a cat. Cats he could deal with. One just had to sit an wait until they were ready to talk. Or simply leave a message and come back later.

Artemis smiled as he listened to the introductions. He could understand why it would be difficult to explain their relationship to others. He wasn't entirely sure himself. He hoped it was somewhere between friend and slightly more than friend.

"It is nice to meet you as well Mara. I hope you are enjoying the party."

Turning to Jin, he eyed the extra pair ears on the man's head. No words were necessary. The amusement in Artemis's expression gave his thoughts away. If only he had been able to install a miniature camera inside the toy mouse in his pocket. Alfarinn would never believe this.

"I have plenty of personality. It's just I promised Pak that I would at least make attempts at behaving. I am doing well so far. Nothing has exploded, no alarms have gone off, and there are no sirens."

Artemis handed Jin the glass of wine that Mara declined.

"Here, please take this one. I shall brave the masses once more."

In a show a great gallantry, while holding his hat in place, he bowed to Pak and placed a gentle kiss on her hand.

"Wait for me"

With a deep breath, he prepared to wade back through all of the people he had trampled earlier. All in the name of wine and friendship. Fortunately, he saw the waiter coming before he actually tripped the boy. Taking a glass as the young man walked by, he returned his attention to his companions and shrugged.

"Knightly chivalry only works if the servers play along."

Mongkut's identity was solved and Jin was amused. He was never a big fan of fish really. It was alright but it was hardly a delicacy that he would ever go wild over. Now a fast moving deer...that was a different story.

Speaking of felines, Jin's arm had now been thoroughly confiscated just like a cat with a ball of yarn. He turned his attention to Mara and gave her a warm smile as she moved closer to the conversation again.

"Thank you, Sir."

He took the wine from Artemis and watched his friend's grand display of gallantry as he set forth to brave the crowd once more. The waiter made a timely appearance and such courage turned out to not be necessary after all.

Jin held up a hand to the man with the tray as he passed by. Turning to Mara, he said.

"Are you sure you don't want one? Would something else be better?"

((OOC: Glomp away! He'd never turn down the chance to be clung to by a pretty cat girl. ))

"But I like my fish. I don't want him eaten."Â? Pak paused for a second, "by any one."Â?

She added meaningfully to Mara. She could take the beta down to her office, but that would have been admitting defeat. Well if Mongkut took trying to eat the fish as a challenge Pak took trying to keep him from being eaten as a one and she wasn't about to lose to a a kitten.

"Well I can see where you'd want to keep the dress for a truly special occasion and it certainly doesn't seem to fit the ambiance."Â?

With a less than delicate snort Pak rolled her eyes.

"I know, I know I'm demanding but I thought we try an outing with some semblance of normalcy, just to see what it is like."Â?

They had yet to manage that after all. They'd had scary people interrupt them, bad dancing, smashing conversations about making new vampires and disappearing acts. Normal was actually a shocking change.

Understanding Mara's concern immediately Pak shook her head.

"I don't she'll be here. Last I heard she wasn't planning on it."Â?

She would have alerted Mara to Kem's appearance or possible appearance much sooner if they were planning on making an appearance.

Distracted from her job as look out Pak smiled almost shyly at his excessive show of gallantry. She wished for a white handkerchief to wave delicately.

"Be safe."Â?

She hoped the crowd would forgive him, after all she'd been the one driving last time. Luckily for all involved it turned out to be less of an ordeal than thought. Pak giggled at the expedition turned non-event.

"It is the thought that counts. You get an A for effort."Â?

Carol squeed at Jan, still so happy to see him, and she grabbed his arm and hugged it tightly.

"Well ok. I suppose you probably have to get back to your awesome singing. You know what would be so awesomesauce? If you sang at our wedding!"

Lothias began to choke on a drink he had snagged from a passing waiter. She stuck her tongue out at him as his face turned red.

"He's marrying me and he knows it. I don't know why he's surprised." Carol shook her head sadly at her man.

LT felt himself smile at Jan's sarcastic humor. He seemed like a nice kid and his music was interesting. The array of people that Carol seemed to know was literally from one end to the other, but then that was Carol's personality. She was a happy golden retriever who loved everyone on sight.

A waiter slowly passed by with a tray of drinks and LT reached out and grabbed two flutes of champagne. He was just tipping his glass back and taking a healthy gulp when Carol asked Jan to sing at their wedding - which was fine, he just hadn't asked her yet, much less talked about marriage.

His eyes grew wide and he inhaled the healthy swill of expensive champagne and began to choke on it. Carol's matter-of-fact admonishing only made him laugh while trying not to drown on the three hundred dollars a bottle champagne.

Covering his mouth with the wrist of the hand holding his glass, he held out Carol's glass. She took it and sipped delicately from the flute.

"You should really wait," cough, sputter, "until I ask you to marry me," more coughing, "first, babe." With a final clearing of his throat, he barely caught Carol jumping onto him from Jan, wrapping her arms around his neck and dangling.

"You're going to ask me? Wait, where's my ring??" she demanded with an incredulous look.

Twisting so he could see Jan, LT nodded to the young man and smiled. "Very nice meeting you, Jan."

Jan chuckled at Carol's happy squee and gladly returned the extra hug. He nodded and was about to lament that, yes, they had paid him to sing so he probably should get back to it. However, Carol then suggested that he sing at her wedding and Jan was afraid poor Lothias was going to choke on his champagne and need first aid.

"Just say the word and I would be happy to. Might be better if he actually gets to ask though."

He winked at the blonde and gave her companion a return nod.

"It was nice to meet you. You guys have fun. I will keep a look out for trouble from the stage."

Jan doubted there would be trouble but who knows anything could happen.

Viv kept her hands to herself, which said a lot considering.

Brig seemed to be enjoying himself, escorting Viv into the chapel area and staying nearby, although not as attentive or affectionate as he usually can be. No, tonight they played their parts - out of place brown girl and seductively charming tall drink of water. Viv ignored the fifth female who just so happened to innocently cross paths and give him their number after flirty smiles and stupidly delivered flirtatious quips. Raising her eyebrows, Viv closed her eyes and sighed as she moved away from him to finish his business.

Girl #5 was properly dissuaded till after the party, but digits in hand, Brig made his way back over to Vivienne's side.

"You know, it's like they don't even see the better looking brown woman walking with you."

"Jealous much?" Brig said with a grin as he looked around the room.

"Hardly. I'm just counting the STDs you'd probably get from these over dressed, over sexed, pieces of meat they have walking around like they have a neon sign over their head that says, 'Available and stupid - cheap'." Viv shrugged.

"If you didn't look so pissed to be with me, you'd probably get bites yourself."

"Oh so you're encouraging me to flirt?"

"Well, no..."

"Too late."

Viv turned and left Brig standing as she walked to the opposite side of the chapel area. He caught up to her with his damned long legs and pulled her arm gently around a less populated corner.

"What I get 30 seconds to fish? I'm good but I'm not that good."

The corridor he pulled her into was filled to the ceiling with people, fortunately enough none of them were alive. Brig smiled down at Vivienne and her rather put out expression.

"Oh I have faith in your abilities, the second you walked away from me two guys made a bee line for you."

Viv peeked around the corner and looked, "Oh anyone cute?"

"Oh that's just not nice." Pulling the scraps of paper and business cards out of his pocket, he slid them into one of the flower fixtures on the wall. "There, now Mr. Jacob Williams can benefit from my skills."

Viv flicked her brown eyes up at him and gave him a small smile. Not being able to resist himself, Brig reached out and cupped the side of her face, pulling her close and kissing her softly. Her soft giggle only encouraged him and he parted her lips with his tongue, deepening their kiss. Viv let out a soft moan but then pushed him away.

"I'd rather LT and Carol made some person's day by being first to copulate surrounded by dead people."

"Yeah," he wrinkled his nose in slight disgust, "that would be kinda creepy."

"I'm not against making out though."

"Oh, ok," he said, grabbing Viv by the waist and kissing her again.

Sorcha wrote more words and turned it around for the two of them.

My name is Sorcha and I call him, Fritz.

Amir was probably not going to approve of the name but given the spur of the moment she felt she did fairly well. It sounded like a dog's name, It was a German nickname for Frederick; Which meant, if she remembered her suffix correctly something or other ruler. Peaceful...powerful... whatever it was bound to be something good.

Sorcha's attention was caught by violin music. It was beautiful and sad. When she looked through the crowd she could just see a ghostly looking man. He was dressed in what looked like well worn pants, a shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a vest. His hair was long and pulled into a tie at the back.

He looked up from his playing and looked at the woman in the evening dress in front of her.

"Ma Cher, She is lonely."

The man went back to his playing for a moment or two and then paused. Tuning the instrument, he continued his discourse without looking up.

"Tell her she's not alone and that not all the spirits are bad. Some of us, we look after her, non? Je m'appelle Gerard, Madamoiselle. Dites ça, s'il vous plait."

Sorcha sighed but nodded her head. The woman was likely to think she was as crazy as a loon. And who could blame her.

Writing furiously on a piece of paper, Sorcha then turned it towards Therese only.

I know this seems strange. But a spirit here asked me to tell you that you are not alone and that not all the spirits are not bad. He said that he is looking out for you. He said his name is Gerard. I would not bother you except that he requested I let you know.

Sorcha shrugged rather helplessly; she couldn't make the spirits understand that not everyone was okay with their conversations. In fact most people didn't even hear their chatter.

"Bon. Again, a pleasure."Â?

At least it was not a stupid name. She couldn't abide it when people called their dogs by idiotic names. That one blond... thing... calling a dog Tinkerbell. Of course to Thérèse's mind anything that size didn't count as a dog, it was a rat. Or a snack depending on her mood and the phase of the moon. But she digressed.

She watched patiently as the woman wrote. It had to be a cumbersome and time consuming way to communicate. Thérèse wasn't sure if she felt sorry for Sorcha or was impressed at her tenacity. Apparently she wasn't here with anyone but the dog and yet she wasn't letting her disability hold her back.

Furrowing her brow, slightly confused as she but not Vaughn was offered the paper she read, but was clearly confused.

"Merci. I do not know anyone by this name but I... ah... thank you."Â?

What did you say to something like that? It was...

Thérèse felt, or thought she felt, something cold on the back of her neck and shivered slightly. It was an old memory and had taken her several seconds to remember, but she had had a great uncle Gerard. He had been quite kind to her and an excellent story teller, but she hadn't seen him since before her Gifting. He had challenged her grand-père's authority. Unlike her brother, however, he hadn't backed down and had paid for it. She no longer had a great uncle.

Slightly unsettled she would have been happy to walk away at that point. As it was it took everything she had not to glance over her shoulder. She would -not- be attending any further parties in cemeteries.

"I had... forgotten about him. Thank you... again..."Â?

She thought. She wasn't sure. It was not normal some one else knowing about her great uncle, but Thérèse believed her.

Vaughn looked down at Fritz and wondered if he was a peaceful ruler of sheep. Sorcha seemed to have her attention caught by something in the crowd. He tried to figure out who or what she was looking at but he didn't see it.

She turned back to the conversation and then started writing on the pad again. He waited patiently to see what she had to say only Sorcha didn't show it to him. Apparently it wasn't meant for his perusal and that was fine.

He watched Therese wondering what she had to say in response to the private message. At first she seemed confused and then he saw her shiver. Whatever it was on the paper appeared to have struck a nerve.

She was handling it well though. Vaughn wrapped his other arm around her in silent support. According to her response, the note seemed to be about a person. Interesting. Perhaps she would be willing to tell him more about it later.

Leaning down to her, he asked quietly.

"Is everything okay?"

Looking between the both of them, Vaughn felt compelled to say something to break the suddenly somber mood.

"Would either of you care for a glass of wine." He smiled and winked at Therese. "I can even see if they have the cheap stuff."

Mara stuck tight to Jin's arm since he didn't seem to mind; although she loosened her hold a bit so as not to constrict anything, she remained glued to him as if he were Amir. Now that Pak was also present she was warming up, and she knew Amir wasn't far. She couldn't see him through the crowd but he was certain not to be far.

"It is the thought that counts," she said regarding Artemis' thwarted wine expedition, agreeing with Pak's sentiment. "it's not your fault your chivalrous gesture was prematurely halted."

Then to Jin she added, "Thank you. Maybe... something sweet?" She didn't drink often, alcoholic or not. She wasn't opposed to it, but she also wasn't very familiar with modern drinking trends. Wine wasn't usually to her taste; too dry, too acidic. If she was going to drink something here, she'd rather it be pleasant. She was tempted to leave it up to her companion and the waiter at hand to make suggestions but she realized neither of them would know her preferences; not that there was anything to add as she currently didn't have any aside from "not wine."

"That looks interesting," she said, not wanting to cause trouble, pointing at someone holding a drink that looked fruity and creamy at the same time; something with a little parasol in it. She would enjoy a drink with a parasol in it. The cat in her found endless amusement with little toys of that nature.

She arched her brows at Pakpao's statement about her fish, too, understanding the unspoken message. "I would not eat your fish," she said tritely, turning her nose up slightly, her eyes twinkling playfully. "I would just toy with it for a while."

Maybe she should show Mongkut how to really catch a fish. Hmm... but then, she was certain Pak would stop letting her in.

Why did spirits follow her around? They had for years. Thérèse was convinced of it. This was one of the more normal experiences she'd had, well perhaps with the exception of the red headed amazon acting as a medium. But oddly enough that only made it more real.

She would have managed on her own, but feeling Vaughn wrap an arm around her helped. It kept her grounded and from jumping at even more shadows. She was slightly embarrassed to be caught in such a moment of weakness and smiled brightly, trying to dismiss it, but her eyes were still a bit worried.

"Oui. It is nothing. Really... memories. Nothing more."Â?

Just very powerful memories. If Thérèse had ever been inclined to challenge an alpha that would have changed her mind permanently. That her grandfather could do that to his own brother... She shook her head laughing at his joke. Grateful that he was breaking the mood.

"I think since it is their dime we should splurge on something with slightly more class. But yes, please I should love a glass."Â?

The woman was predictably upset. Not for the first time she wished there was some way to take "Time Off" from seeing dead people. Sorcha sighed inwardly and smiled at the gentleman for changing the subject. She nodded her head and signed again a thank you. He had understood that sign the first time and she was thankful for one less thing to have to write.

Reaching down, she pulled the little sheep away from Amir with a loving stroke of her hand down his back. Tucking it under one arm, she gave him a small smile.

[Not exactly getting very far around the room, are we?]

She thought about taking off the leash and letting him roam about on his own. Most of the party goers wouldn't think twice about him in his present form but she knew that some people were afraid of dogs, even a medium sized one like Amir. She didn't understand it personally but then she had a better understanding of canines than most. Rarely were they out to cause anyone problems and when they were a problem more often than not they had been provoked.

Sorcha cast a glance at her creator and noticed that as usual he was surrounded by a large group of people. He was smiling and laughing with complete ease.

[It seems the Cats are doing a better job of mingling. Who would have figured on that?

Not exactly the animal known for its social behavior. Sorcha wasn't sure what Amir would think of her humor but since he was one of two people here that she felt comfortable sending to that made him a likely target for her inner conversation.

[I will excuse us in a few minutes. I don't feel good about shocking the poor woman and then leaving immediately and it would seem odd. I am sure she already considers me completely barmy.]

Though claiming to have seen her dead relative was pretty damn odd all on its own.

Jin followed Mara's gaze to the fruity drink being held by one of the crowd. Nodding his understanding, he made his way through the milling people. It was much easier when not being towed along and he only had to ask half a dozen unobservant people to move.

On second thought, perhaps being pulled after someone had its advantages.

After arriving at the bar, Jin pointed out the lady with the drink and made his request. He came back to his group, drink in hand and a quizzical expression on his face.

Handing the drink to Mara, he said.

"I am told it is called Sex under the sun."

The man had then winked at him and suggested they try such a thing later if he was interested. Jin was not upset with the offer, though roasting while being intimate did not sound pleasant, he was just surprised at the man's forward nature while on duty.

"I hope the drink is more enjoyable than that."

((OOC: Using the handy dandy Mixology app on my itouch this one came up while I was spinning the little rolodex thing and I couldn't pass it up. ))

Amir dutifully wagged his tail when Sorcha retrieved the sheep, relinquishing the toy and trying to ignore the fact that he had bits of wool on his tongue. Delightful. Good Fritz.

[Speed is as speed does,] Amir returned philosophically to Sorcha. [Perhaps we'll gather more information without being surrounded by a crowd of admirers. The irony is not lost on me, however.]

In fact it was particularly interesting as Mara was known for her ability to mingle and socialize well. She appeared to be holding up just fine. Jin stepped away for a moment and returned shortly with a colorful drink which he handed to Mara. Amir had to wonder what was in the glass... but he had a feeling the paper parasol in it was the primary motivation.

Another tangy whiff of scent slipped its way up his nostrils and he sneezed suddenly, four times, in rapid succession. It was an unpleasant sensation and left him slightly disoriented for a few moments.

[Maybe when we're free we can figure out what that smell is,] he grumbled. [And then I can napalm it.]

((ooc: Boy is he going to be embarrassed when he finds out.))

Mara smiled softly when Jin opted to go search out the drink in question rather than task it to the waiter. A man of action, apparently. She thanked him when he returned with the colorful beverage and sipped at it experimentally, regaining her position close to her escort's side.

She gave it a moment while the taste sank in, closed her eyes, and said, "Hmm." Swallowing, she added, "It doesn't burn as much as I would have thought."

The paper parasol was the most interesting part of the drink, mostly because it was tiny and colorful and fun. Mara plucked it from the drink, sucked on the end for a moment, and then poked it into her hair to sit against one of her little black kitty-ears.

"What do you think?" She asked the group. "Is it halloween enough?"

Artemis watched as Jin made his way to the bar for Mara's drink. Leaning done to Pak, he whispered in her ear, so that only she would hear.

"Is it too wrong of me wish for a little bit of mischief? After all, I only promised that I wouldn't start it."

He gave his Alice a wink to let her know that he was mostly joking. Mostly. Jin returned without incident, and Artemis did his best not too look too disappointed. Although, if he had accidentally knocked someone into the punch bowl on the way back, that wouldn't have been so bad. Smiling at Mara as she placed the little umbrella behind one of cat ears, he nodded his approval.

"Its lovely. You can be a Harajuku Kitty"

He truly hoped she didn't ask for more clarification. Aside being familiar enough with the term to recognize the look, he really didn't know much about fashion. Just enough to stay current and moderately comfortable. Present attire excluded of course.

Artemis glanced toward the stage. It looked as if the band might start playing again soon. Or at least that the singer had survived his run in with the groupie. The earlier music had been intriguing, and he wouldn't mind moving a little closer to hear more.

"Would you all like to move closer to the stage? The band is actually quite good."

Turning mostly toward Pak, he continued.

"Perhaps we can get them to play at Meridian's next Christmas party."

(ooc: Sorry it took so long. The stubborn pain in the butt wasn't cooperating.)

Vaughn smiled at Therese and approved of her wine tasting strategy. It was much better to enjoy good wine that someone else paid for. He would look around for something he had not tried and hopefully it will be a new experience for everyone and a good one.

Nodding to Sorcha, he acknowledged her wish for a glass. Vaughn found himself reluctant to let Therese go but he was the one who suggested the distraction. Slowly pulling his arms away, he turned and looked for the bar.

Vaughn returned with three glass stacked in a triangle so that he could carry them all. He supposed he could have enlisted the aid of a waiter but he was still accustomed to doing things himself.

Presenting the first one to Therese, he said.

"It was a white wine that the bartender swore on his reputation as a provider of alcohol was very good."



((OOC: The Wine)

Pak giggled and grinned a little. She could sympathize, stuffy events were not her style and so far this was a little too stayed.

"You may wish for, encourage and even promote. If it is mild instigating might not even go totally awry. Or you could ask me to dance and take your mind off it."Â?

All joking aside Pak didn't think any one could be -that- bad a dancer. And it wasn't like she didn't want to spend time with Mara, but it might be better to avoid too much of an association with her, at least in public. Although she was probably being paranoid.

She laughed a bit at Mara's umbrella.

"It is cute. If I wind up with an umbrella in my drink tonight I'll save it for you. Then you'll have a pair."Â?

Not being overly musical she hadn't even really noticed the band. Well at meant they weren't horrible at any rate.

She smiled wryly. IT had a party of sorts but it happened in spite of her rather than because of her.

"You figuring on planing a big shin dig?"Â?

It was a touch awkward that Sorcha couldn't speak. It wasn't that the woman appeared any less than intelligent, but to make her write everything out...

Still. She took advantage of Vaughn's brief disappearance, to ask.

"He is still here? He did not... continue on?"Â?

She worried that her uncle hadn't completed his journey. Thérèse didn't expect Sorcha to know -why- he hadn't but it would be nice if she did. The idea that any of her family was lingering bothered Thérèse. And that her great uncle would have followed her this far, it must mean something. But she had learned long ago that the spirits told you things in their own time.

Vaughn's return was a welcome reprieve. She didn't have to think about dead relatives any longer. She happily accepted the glass.

"Merci."Â?

She lifted the glass to the light to study it before delicately and deliberately sniffing at it. The nose was excellent, the jasmine notes were particularly engaging.

"We may have to assume his reputation is a good one."Â?

Thérèse said with a bright smile.

Jin smiled at Mara and dramatically wiped a hand across his forehead in relief over the lack of trouble from the ill named drink.

Raising his eyebrows at the placement of the little umbrella, he said.

"It is very pretty and at least one ear will be protected from the rain!"

Jin gestured with both hands at Pak's suggestion.

"Ooh and there you are, both ears will be safely dry."

He looked at Mara for her input on moving towards the band. They sounded very goth which he supposed made sense for the party. Jin thought the lead singer was wasting his talents with the rest of them and could have a decent solo career in a heartbeat. The kid's voice was unreal in its clarity and emotional range.

Perhaps getting closer to the stage wasn't a bad idea.

"What do you think, Mara? Sound interesting enough to take a closer look or shall we nose around elsewhere?"

((OOC: I am all for either. We can be nosy where ever! I will also come back and tag again after I get through the maze in eq2 ))

Mara smiled at Artemis. "It wouldn't be too far a stretch," she said with a soft laugh. Perhaps later she would demonstrate, but for now she'd just have to remain a halloween kitty.

Listening to the band play, Mara was already nodding her head along with the music. While she adored traditional dances, she had a dance for pretty much every occasion and could be tempted to do them at the drop of a hat.

There was definitely enough room here to be dancing, and the band had shown plenty of talent, particularly the singer. Mara wondered if they would play something good for dancing to if enough people showed interest.

Taking another sip of her drink she nodded to Jin. "I would love to listen." She almost added, 'and dance,' but Jin hadn't offered to partner her for that and she didn't want to assume. She wasn't sure her escort's company extended to dancing. Besides, one should have a willing dance partner after all and if Jin wasn't, she wouldn't force him into it. She simply kept silent on the topic and went along in the same direction as everyone else.

Well, that was a surprise. Pak asking him to dance? The party must be a snoozer if she was already willing to brave the dance floor.

"Dancing? Are you willing to risk it? What about the shoes?"

Artemis bent down to give Pak a quick peck on the cheek before taking her hand again. He wasn't too worried about the dancing. Had years of practice. He should be ok so long as he didn't ham it up, and remembered that the shoes were sacred. Still, he couldn't resist pushing that button just a little bit.

"Perhaps the band will play a Goth version of the funky chicken. What do you think?"

He gave her a wicked grin before turning his attention to the others. It was unlikely that they would understand the inside joke between he and Pak, but it was likely that Jin might have a few suspicions. Artemis smiled as he gestured toward the stage.

"Shall we?"

Looking through the crowd to determine the best path, he spotted a tall redhead with a dog. Pointing discreetly in that direction, he chuckled.

"Look, someone brought their pet dog with them. That is the way to travel through a crowd. I am sure people move quite efficiently when they fear a bite to the rear. The tall redhead reminds me a bit of my friend Morrigan. The shade of red is off a bit though. What do you think Jin?"

Having chosen the best route to take, he didn't give the partygoers who were not in his direct path another thought. Those who were, were another matter. With Pak's hand in his, he led the way toward the stage. He was very careful to make sure he didn't run her into anyone or accidentally step on any toes. Though, once or twice, it had been tempting. Humans these days could be so rude and inconsiderate.

Sorcha considered for a moment the best way to explain the things she had learned over centuries of conversing with the dead. Frowning in concentration, she wrote carefully hoping to convey clearly a subject that tended to be surrounded in mystery.

He has moved on but he watches from that place. Sometimes they come closer to observe something as it happens or to try to communicate when they feel it is important.

Or they know they have a receptive audience, Sorcha added to herself.

I believe your uncle felt it important enough to let you know that family was looking after you.

She shrugged again. Sorcha did not know Therese so she could not say why such a message would be necessary enough to come back towards the living in order to send it. Sorcha did not feel it necessary to pick one religion or another to explain the after life. She was amused to know, from reliable sources, that many beliefs have it so turned around that it was almost backwards. No one religion was really wrong but neither were they all perfectly right.

A notepad was no place to go into such a discussion though.

She accepted the glass from Vaughn and took a delicate sip. It was very tasty, crisp but not too dry. She happily took another sip and nodded her head in thanks.

"There are no zombies and we aren't running over roof tops so as long as you're careful the shoes should be safe. But I've only gotten to wear these a few times so..."Â?

It had taken Pak a few months but she'd eventually forgiven Kem for those shoes. Funny old world she'd been less concerned about schlepping barefoot through the sewers than losing those shoes. Ah well.

She raised an almost menacing eyebrow at that suggestion. It wasn't at all convincing. It also seemed like a very bad idea to mention she hadn't really danced in ages and wasn't at all certain she remembered how. Besides, the only dances she knew were probably at least a hundred years out of date. But there was no time like the present to learn.

"I think I need some chains and more eyeliner for that."Â?

The dog did seem totally out of place. If it hadn't been so small and so clearly not one Pak would have suspected one of the wolves had come ... er... in costume? Not much on the subject had been said lately, but she knew the data base she'd put together was being used. But no official news was good news.

"Jin remind him he has a mouse in his pocket."Â?

Pak said with a grin.

Fortunately Artemis was a much better driver than she was. Of course Pak was used to weaving through large crowds that would mostly taller than she was. And she wasn't above giving a mental shove when she needed, but there was no need. Now, if he just did this well while they danced they'd be golden.

Well it seemed like the bartender could keep his job without any complaints from this group. Vaughn took a sip of the wine and found it worthy of the praise it had been given.

He slid one arm back around Therese; finding it almost natural to do so. Not so much so though that he wasn't immediately worried that she might find it too much. Vaughn turned and found her gaze, silently asking that question of propriety. All the while he tried to convince himself the gesture was innocent; so far he wasn't quite succeeding.

Vaughn realized that Sorcha had gotten up to go somewhere and it was quite probable that he had interrupted her from that task.

"I'm sorry. You had somewhere you are going. Are we keeping you from someone?"

Not wanting her to feel that he was tiring of her company, Vaughn gestured to the tables that Sorcha had left.

"We can take a seat and you can join us whenever you like."

He gave her a smile that he hoped conveyed genuine appreciation of her company. It must be hard to find people who weren't made uncomfortable by something outside what was normal for them.

It all made sense to Thérèse and somewhat reassuring.

"Ah, bon. I should hate to think he was ..."Â?

She shook her head not really wanting to try and explain it any further. While it seemed almost natural to explain thinks to Sorcha, who she barley knew, she didn't want to appear to odd or weak to Vaughn. Thérèse told herself that it was because he was the Alpha, and didn't want to think about it further than that.

"If you... see him again do extend my thanks."Â?

It was surprisingly natural that he would again place his arm around her and it was not at all unwelcome. Catching the small question in his look she only smiled an affirmative.

"Ah oui, I am sorry it was rude of me to hold you hostage."Â?

Certainly she must have come with some one. She had no call on Sorcha's time no matter how much she wondered why her great uncle would chose to speak to this woman.

Jin hardly needed to look where Artemis was pointing but did so any way With supreme calm he nodded his head in affirmation of what the Evenhet had suggested.

"Yes, but as a friend of mine once said, all redheads are related. Apparently, it is much like all Asians are Japanese."

He gave Sorcha a thoughtful look and shrugged slightly.

"Though I agree she is rather tall. Morrigan must be quite pleased that her height is becoming more common."

He smiled at Mara and gave her a small bow, extending the crook of his arm in invitation.

They followed behind Pak and Artemis towards the stage, enjoying the wake of clear space the othercouple created. His eyes casually scanned the crowd and he was pleased to note that his companion'sgait was as smooth and graceful as his own.

Leaning towards, Mara as they moved through the forest of people, he asked.

"Would you also care to dance? I can honestly say that I believe your shoes will be perfectly safe. I vow that I have never accidentally trod on a pair of footwear in my life."

Sorcha shook her head, no, Therese's uncle was not forever haunting the living world. She was relieved when it appeared that the other woman was going to take her word on this explanation. Many seemed quite determined to stubbornly cling to the idea that their loved ones were somehow in great distress in the here after. Sorcha was personally always cynical about the motives for such behavior; it seemed often times to be more about their own vanity and drama than anything actually having to do with the deceased.

She nodded in a confirmation of Therese's wishes though she had no way of knowing whether she would see the uncle again.

Instead her own relative made another appearance, Rio stood next to her and peered off through the crowd of people.

"It should come as no surprise that you are once again causing trouble."

Not looking at her sibling, Sorcha mentally retorted.

"What are you talking about? The uncle asked me to tell her. Now you want me to stop doing what you spirits ask? I have good reason to know that advice will change later."

Rio sighed dramatically and looked at her like she was speaking to a particularly dull child. She then pointed towards the last place Sorcha had seen Jin and his companions.

"Not paying very close attention are you? You have been noticed by the tall guy over there; The one in the top hat. He seems very curious about you and Amir."

Sorcha resisted the urge to look back over at the group. Instead she sent to Jin.

[Anything wrong? My sister seems to believe that I have committed some grave error by being present tonight. It had something to do with the guy with you.]

Bringing her attention back to Vaughn, Sorcha nodded, yes, and then had to go back through the conversation to piece together just what she had agreed to. Oh, she had been going somewhere. Too late to explain that it was nothing important.

She wrote in her book and showed to the couple

I wanted to look around. I will be back shortly. Thank you for the invitation to join you.

She looked down at Amir before leaving.

[It would seem you get your chance to find some answers.]

((OOC: Artemis and/or Jin empathized with permissions! ))

Mara looked in the direction of the red head in question and noted that it was Sorcha, which made sense - she was rather easily distinguished in a crowd.

"He does seem very well-behaved," she said to Artemis when he pointed out Sorcha's companion. It was second nature to her to stick up for Amir even when he didn't need it. Which was most days. She did it anyway though.

Mara happily tucked the hand without the drink in it into Jin's offered arm. She knew they were here to accomplish... well, something... but really she was here as Jin's companion, and if he determined that they were to socialize and that socializing included dancing, who was she to argue?

She practically skipped a step right there when Jin asked her if she wanted to dance. "I would love to dance," she said, giving him her first real, genuine, happy smile of the night. "I'm not worried for my shoes, but I'm happy to know you're thinking of their safety."

As they hit the floor Mara was already moving. She listened to the song lyrics for a moment before recognizing the tune and laughing heartily. Knowing she'd require both hands for this dance, she quickly knocked back the remainder of her brightly-colored drink and left it with a passing waiter. Then with a bright smile she fell into an energetic dance, mixing together some twist and a few swing steps, trying to gauge Jin's level of dance ability. He certainly seemed light on his feet, but that did not always equate to having extensive knowledge of various dance steps.

((ooc: Song is Vampire Club by Voltaire, according to Jan))

Artemis half turned and looked at Jin over his shoulder in mock surprise.

"You mean you aren't Japanese Jin? The ears had me completely fooled."

If his friend had been telekinetic like his date, he probably would have earned a sound thump for that one. As they reached the stage, Artemis gave the redhead and her canine companion one last look. True, Morrigan probably would be pleased that the stature of women had increased on multiple levels over the years. Directing his attention to Mara, he smiled and nodded.

"Yes, he does. Definitely well trained."

He might have added that he was more of a cat person, because he was. But that might have been misunderstood both by the lady dressed as a cat and the lady dressed as a fictional character that had cat issues. There was certainly a bit of irony there. Instead, he listened to the music to find the rhythm. Recognizing the song, he shook his head and grinned before beginning to dance. Taking Pak's hand, Artemis completed a triple step pattern before passing her under his raised arm in a twirl. Pulling her back in, he lifted her up a couple of feet and spun around before putting her gently back on the ground. He had been mindful not to lift her too high, certainly not as high as his height and strength would allow. With both of her feet on the ground, he took her hands in his and pushed her gently away from him and then pulled her back in again. The music was lively, if not his style. However, the lyrics were oddly appropriate.

"I suppose we should be grateful they opted for this song and not Zombie Prostitute."

Watching Mara finish off her drink with gusto Pak was a little surprised. So much so that she totally missed her opportunity to 'accidentally' step on Artemis' foot. While she didn't know for sure Pak suspected Mara didn't drink too much. Still, what could one drink do to a vampire?

Suddenly she was regretting her hint they should dance, she was so in over her head here. But Artemis didn't give her much time to dwell on it and suddenly she was dancing. Apparently A) he was a better dancer than he'd let on and B) if you just didn't obsess about it even Pak could mostly manage this.

Just as she as starting to think she was getting the hang of things her feet left the ground. Fairly certain he hadn't cleared that with Air Traffic Control she clung to him once she'd landed, well after the landing and the spinning.

She giggled, partly at herself and partly at him.

"And how do you know that isn't up next?"Â?

Now that she had an idea what he was capable of Pak was able to relax and go with it. He'd just caught her off guard was all.

[Answers are good,] Amir replied, trying to resist the urge to run off yelping to the restroom so he could find a tissue and clear his nose of the cloying scent. [Is someone burning incense?]

He wasn't used to having his nose messed with, but then again he rarely took this form in a venue of this sort. So he made his best guess under the circumstances. Careful to stay in character, he continued to wear a canine grin plastered foolishly onto his face, wagging his tail as he stood next to Sorcha, prepared to go wherever she wanted to.

[She seems to have some trouble with the idea that her uncle is looking over her,] Amir sent as he regarded Therese. He shrugged it off though... it didn't really matter to him how she felt, one way or another. Her jumpiness on the topic was intriguing though. He wondered how she'd feel if she knew who Sorcha was. And who Sorcha's dog was. The idea amused him greatly.

His eyes darted to Sorcha at her sending and then went back to the cleared space near the stage. He was not about to explain Artemis to her at this particular moment. At least not fully explain.

[He noticed you and mentioned that you looked like Morrigan. He used to be Anantya but is now Evenhet. I don't think it was more than passing curiosity. No need to worry.]

His companion readily agreed to dance and that made him rather happy. He would have been disappointed to stand around and watch Artemis having all the fun.

Jin raised his eyebrows at Mara's knocking back the rest of the alcoholic brew. There was more hard liquor in there than it seemed; he watched the bartender make it. He supposed it was a good thing she was a vampire or he might have been scooping her off the dance floor in a few minutes.

He gave her a wide grin in return for the one she gave him. Dancing was something that especially suited his abilities and periodic role within his Order. Being a good dance partner had brought about plenty of helpful information and it never suited to have a diplomat (or spy) gain notice by embarrassing themselves in a ballroom.

Beyond all that, he really actually enjoyed the activity.

Jin didn't know the song at all but the beat was easy to pick up on. Mara had started the twist and it certainly suited that style of dancing. He took her hand and pulled her close for the fast paced jitterbug. Starting off with something light, Jin did the basic swing side to side and rock step before giving her a slight pull towards him, letting go with one hand. She got the hint and he gently pushed her away for a spin, collecting her hand again for a round of dancing side by side and then going back into the basic pattern.

It seemed Artemis was planning on laying any further mention of dancing trauma to rest. He did know that the man was fairly well acquainted with a variety of dances and comported himself with a decent amount of grace...despite his unfortunate height.

Jin smiled at Mara and nodded towards the other couple.

"I suppose we have feline honor to uphold. If you're up for it."

He gave Artemis a quizzical frown as they passed close together.

"A zombie prostitute? That doesn't even sound remotely appealing."

((OOC: Permission granted to move Mara..its hard to dance otherwise O_O ))

Mara couldn't have been more pleased with he music selection, really. Cheesy lyrics aside the swing in any form was her favorite type of dance. Possibly some influence by Shades in there, she thought, but whatever the reason she loved to swing. And Jin appeared to be no slouch. He was fast on his feet and seemed to be testing the waters with his steps the same as she.

Polishing off her drink quickly had given her a pleasant sort of buzz and had served to quell any inhibitions she might have felt dancing with someone she didn't know very well at a party full of near-complete strangers. So Mara's bright smile remained firmly in place when Jin noted the gauntlet had been thrown down for them.

"I think we should take them out," Mara said with ruthless good nature, glancing at Pakpao and flashing her a wider grin for a brief moment. "There's no way the Mad Hatter's dancing could be better than the cast of Cats."

She was tempted to fire off her own series of steps but that wouldn't have been polite. Mara knew the rules and played well by them. The male partner lead the dance, and that was that. She kept pace easily with Jin as they continued their basic pattern with a few variations, attentive to the pressure of his hands to let her know what was happening. She wasn't concerned with keeping up with him.

The subject of a zombie prostitute had come up, and Mara nodded in agreement with Jin. "This is far better," she said, "even if only for the irony of it."

It was ironic on multiple levels... obviously for the company they were currently keeping but Mara herself spent a lot of time in just such a club here in Nachton. As far as she knew, Shades had never played this particular song though. She wondered how he'd react if she made a request.

Vaughn nodded to Sorcha and said.

"We'll be over there then."

As the other woman turned to leave, he looked down at Therese.

"It appeared to me that she had something to tell you. I don't think you inconvenienced her."

Nodding his chin over at the table, Vaughn asked.

"Shall we?"

Reaching the table, he pulled out a chair for Therese and then took a seat himself. He looked out over at the dancing that had started up with the lively song that had begun. Raising his eyebrows at the lyrics, he looked at his companion.

"I wonder what we have walked into."

He watched the several couples that started the activity on the floor. They both seemed very good and Vaughn wondered if they had just been waiting for something faster paced to be played so that they could cut loose with the swing.

Taking a sip of his wine, Vaughn leaned towards Therese.

"Would you care to dance? If they should play something more appropriate to our attire."

He was no stranger to the fast paced dancing but Therese was in a ballgown. Doing the jive while wearing floor length fabric seemed difficult and awkward and he had no want to make Therese uncomfortable.

However, if the band could be persuaded to do a slower song then she would look stunning on the dance floor. If his companion was not interested in dancing then he was just as happy watching from the sidelines. They could even keep score.

"Or we can stay here and be dance critics."

He gave her a rare wicked grin, his eyes full of lighthearted mischief.

((OOC: Because we both need two dancers on the floor, right? ))

"I hope not."Â?

Thérèse agreed trying to shove the whole encounter out of her mind. It was a bit odd and had left her feeling just a half bubble off. She didn't know if she'd like to talk to Sorcha again or not. Perhaps.

It was very easy to be distracted by Vaughn though. He was quite charming, even that little bit of manners pulling out the chair for her was appreciated. Of course, this was all perfectly innocent though. He was just being polite to a new arrival.

"I suspect we are quite out numbered, but until I see a stoat or a jackal we will have to assume it is simply a party."Â?

She said with a grin. Although, she didn't much feel like letting her guard too far down. The encounter in the preserve combine with the 'visit' from her great uncle had left Thérèse a bit more alert than usual.

Thérèse nearly beamed when he asked if she'd like to dance. She loved dancing, although she did have to agree something slower would be more appropriate under the circumstances.

"Yes, I think I should. Had I known the band was going to be this energetic I should have worn something... more appropriate."Â?

She'd almost said 'short and revealing' but she was trying to keep things polite and innocent so that hardly seemed appropriate. And while she would have been perfectly at home with the dance, if nothing else, she was afraid her wig would fall off. That would be terribly embarrassing. No, his suggestion was more in keeping with their costumes.

Thérèse smothered a laugh behind her hand, not wanting to attract too much attention. But her answering smile was every bit as wicked.

"That could be entirely too entertaining."Â?

Music this lively would undoubtedly make for some fantastic follies.

"Where shall we start?"Â?

There were too many choices. There was what had to be the Mad Hatter and Alice and then two cats, and at least half a dozen other couples with varying costumes.

Artemis grinned down at Pak as she clung to him. He was truly enjoying himself. Not just the clinging, but the dancing too. It had been a long time, too long, since he had let himself have this much fun.

"That is fine. But, I refuse to line dance"

He had once allowed an evening meal to take him to a club on Halloween. Voltaire's ghoulish music was playing. When he saw the line dancing, he knew instantly that it was one style that was not for him. Honestly, he had to fight the urge to nudge one of the dancers to see if they would all fall like dominoes. It was one of those twisted passing thoughts that everyone has but never really acknowledges. He had 'suggested' to his date that there were better things to occupy their time.

Artemis couldn't help but laugh at Jin's response to the song title.

"Well, the zombie prostitute might not appeal to you, but apparently the song's creator had quite a thing for her."

Or was that an 'it'? Artemis wasn't quite sure. Fortunately he was distracted from further contemplation by the dancing challenge. Giving it his best pout, he tried to look dismayed without laughing as he pointed to Pak's shoes.

"No fair! I have been instructed to be careful with the shoes. I vowed no scuffing."

With a laugh, he picked Pak up by the waist and then set her back down so that her feet rested on top of his. He then went into a basic pattern for the east coast swing. Side step. Side step. Then back. Whenever Artemis stepped back, he would shift Pak's weight in his arms so that she was only standing one of his feet. After lifting her up and spinning around one more time, he set her down. Ending in a dip, he gave her a small kiss on the tip of her nose.

"It would seem, that the kitties want to play. What do you say?"

Either Mara was having a very good time or the drink was affecting her just a little bit. Pak's eyebrows shot up as the challenge. OK so of the four of them she apparently had the least dance experience, or ability even, but still!

She was quite happy to dance on Artemis' feet for a moment. If anyone in her department were to see her, her T-Rex image would be shot, but her shoes were safe and he was doing an excellent job of making her look like a competent dancer.

"I never did like Cats, the story is too muddled."Â?
The dip, given the difference in their heights was no mean feat. It would have been hard -not- to have a good time . With a grin and having too much fun to care if she was being forward or not Pak quickly gave her dance partner a kiss on the cheek.

"Never give up, never surrender. And no way is my excellent taste in footwear going to get you out of this."Â?

Standing up she half trotted half hopped off the dance floor, removed her shoes and hid them under a table. If some one stole them there would be hell to pay, but she was willing to risk it. Returning, now barefoot, she just looked at Jin and Mara.

"Bring it on."Â?

Sure she was now three inches shorter but even if she had to regenerate a limb, the shoes would be safe. But you just couldn't let a challenge like that go unanswered.

Jin just shook his head at the explanation Artemis gave of what was apparently another song.

"Sounds unsanitary."

He smiled at Mara's willingness to accept the dancing challenge. When his friend claimed no fair on account of precious shoes, Jin just grinned. The handicap wasn't placed by him so he felt no remorse for the Roman's situation. Artemis had a solution though so it hardly mattered.

Jin watched Pak run off and come back shoeless. Apparently now it was on.

He turned his attention back to his partner and, after one rotation of the basic step, let go of one hand, guiding Mara through a turn that passed under his arm. Jin then executed the same move under her's. After the next rock step back he pulled her close and scooping a hand under the back of her legs, Jin flipped her up and over his shoulders sideways so that she dropped down, landing next to him. The placement let him take her hand again, spin her out and be in position for the basic step again.

Jin paused the flair long enough to regard Mara's expression.

"Having fun yet?"

Mara arched her eyebrows at Pak. "It's a wonderful story," she sniffed in mock disagreement. "I'm hurt that you don't approve."

Pak knew full well who she was talking to. Mara knew Pak would understand that she was teasing, so she feigned injury in the interest of fun. She watched as Pak ran off to get rid of her shoes. When Pak returned, Mara smiled and shook her head.

"That's not going to help you."

The fun of dancing swing, as Mara always noted with Amir, was that you could be thrown all over the place repeatedly. Mara's agility certainly extended to mid-air, and when Jin placed his arm behind her back she knew exactly what to expect. Two vampires made for an exciting display of seemingly effortless aerials. Mara sailed through the air and landed lightly beside Jin with one foot up and ready to step into the next move. She spun lightly, quickly out, flashed Jin a little grin, and spun back into him.

"This is perfect," she responded happily. If she'd known there would be dancing she'd never have been so reluctant to come.

Mara's face was flushed and her smile was completely unforced now. It had very little to do with her drink and everything to do with enjoyment. She glanced at Pak and Artemis to see where they stood on the 'impressive moves' list but couldn't spare too much attention before Jin spun her once again, this time to face him, and they lightly danced a series of complex foot-patterns with feet that barely seemed to touch down.

((ooc: Vampiric abilities - not just for sneaky black ops anymore!))

Vaughn considered the dancers for a moment before answering Therese. Taking another sip of wine, he said.

"I say we have a score for creativity and effort and one for technical merit."

He smiled at one guy who was squatting awkwardly, nodding his head and thrusting alternating thumbs up into the air. Vaughn wasn't entirely sure what dance the man was doing or even if it was an actual dance but his date looked properly mortified.

Nodding his head in that direction, he said.

"Definitely more creative expression going on there than any actual skill."

His eyes wandered over to the two couples that were outshining the rest.

"The guy in the top hat and his date are really doing quite well in both categories though I am not sure..."

Vaughn was about to say he wasn't sure why the woman was dancing on top of the man's feet but then he saw her leave and come back without shoes. Odd really, the tall man didn't seem to be bad enough to be worried over scuffing the shiny things but then again he supposed accidents did happen.

"Well, I guess that answers that."

He thought it did anyway.

"I'd be more worried about my feet than my shoes but living with a fashionista has taught me to never underestimate the lengths a woman will go to for the sake of fine vestments."

Thérèse cocked her head at the thumb dancing. Sipped at her wine and repeated the process. It did not get any better. Finally she made up her mind and just laughed, although she felt rather bad for the woman involved. No one should have to put up with that kind of dancing.

"I do not belive there is even must creativity. I think, perhaps, that is too much champagne and a lack of inspiration. I will be quite disappointed if you cannot do considerably better."Â?

Her foot was absently tapping along with the lively beat and, lyrics aside, she was enjoying the music.

It didn't take long to settle on watching the two couples that seemed to be most into and capable on the dance floor. She thought perhaps the edge in technical merit went to the cats but creativity may have gone to Top Hat and Headband. She hadn't danced on anyone's feet since she was five, maybe six, years old. Given how short his partner was it was rather charming.

It was impossible to repress another giggle as Headband ran off the floor to store her shoes.

"Good shoes will last forever if you take care of them. And patent leather is impossible to fix once it is ruined."Â?

Thérèse defended Headband's actions. She wasn't poor, but she didn't have the latest and greatest shoes. Still Thérèse was quite happy to save up for one or two perfect pairs per season.

"Besides, maybe they hurt her feet. Those heels are quite high."Â?

She grinned at Vaughn, teasing at the same time she added her own point of view. The fact that Thérèse's heels tonight were every bit as high as those wasn't something she was going to mention.

The other couple was quite impressive. The woman was very early boneless as she perfectly flew with her partner. She probably had more experience than Headband.

"Mmmmm I do hate to say it but I think the cats might be winning, at least on technical merit. They really are quite good."Â?

They were both ridiculously light on their feet. Even Thérèse had to envy their foot work. Next time she was wearing a shorter dress.

Artemis watched with amusement as Pak removed her shoes and hid them under the table. He had half expected her to tie pieces of the silverware to them as some sort of makeshift shoe alarm. Perhaps he should suggest it.

When she came back to him, he just grinned temporarily forgetting the other couple. With her in his arms, he moved side to side slowly, allowing himself to enjoy the moment. Then picking up the beat again, he started moving them faster in time to the music. A wicked grin spread across his face.

"Ready? Feel free to smack Jin while you are out there."

With that, he spun Pak out and waited a moment before pulling her back in. Picking her by the waist, he passed her halfway through his legs while she was in the plank position. Adjusting his hold, he flipped her horizontally. Pak had completed a 360 twist before he caught her hands and pulled he back up. Artemis laughed as the song came to an end. Wrapping his arms around Pak, he gave her a warm and playful hug.

Now that the shoe problem had been resolved, and before the next song began, he was sure he needed to find out what other limitations and boundaries there might be. He was almost certain that "no backflips" was one. Still wrapping her in his embrace, he lowered his head to ask.

"So, before the next song, and ground rules?"

Pak sighed and relaxed for just a second as they danced slowly for a moment or two. Maybe the next song would be a slow one. But she quickly picked up the beat long with him.

"Wait? I'm a weapon now?"Â?

Of course she thought she was more or less a weapon as it was, her dancing was only passable and with the fancy steps it would be really easy for Pak to lose control and double a a missile taking out several couples. It was probably a very good thing she'd left her shoes under the table.

There wasn't much time for thinking, at least not about anything but the steps. It had been a very long time since she'd danced like this, or at all. This was one of those times when being tiny had its advantages, Pak was historically very easy to toss around. Although, her own acrobatics were not nearly as good as Mara's. Of course vampire strength had its advantages, Artemis was able to pull her through with a minimum of dropping, stumbling and unintentional flying.

Laughing she looked up at him slightly incredulous.

"-Now- you ask that?"Â?

She shook her head before resting it on his chest.

"If you break me you've bought me."Â?

Jan looked back at the band and shrugged. He had paused their normal overly serious dark music and sang something silly for the sake of the event. He didn't think that would inspire dancing.

Nor did he know Voltaire had quite this diverse of a following. Some of these people looked like they went to PTA meetings and drove supposedly sensible cars with more seats and cup holders than any one family had a right to need.

While singing, Jan watched the people dancing down below. He heard the comments about the little contest between the two couples that started the little dance craze. He had to say that they both gave it a good showing and other people had tumbled onto the dance floor as well. Now there was a nice grouping of moving couples. Jan figured he should sing something romantic.

....Nah.

Pulling the mic close, he grinned.

"Since you liked that one so much then here's another."

With that he added the second Voltaire song of the night, "When you're evil."

Amir did lead the way, away from the dance floor. He was following the scent that threatened to overpower his oversensitive nose. Most people cleared the way, seeing Sorcha walking him through the crowd - once they noticed him, that is. Amir was not a large animal in this form. Granted, forty pounds was on the large size for a jackal but it still made him a smallish shepherd mix. Sorcha's striking height and bright hair were probably attracting more attention, until they noticed her "wolf" was alive.

They followed the scent all over, Amir trying to be subtle about it. He finally realized it was everywhere, throughout the room and probably the entire building. All over anything wooden.

[Sorcha? Does this thing smell familiar to you?]

Amir felt a sudden misgiving. Sometimes scents, amplified by thousands of times, threw him off. It could happen to anyone, he found himself thinking defensively, when they weren't used to smelling things in such magnitude. Anyone!

He was going to feel very guilty about dragging Sorcha around if his hunch proved correct.

Jin beamed a bright smile at Mara as they finished up the dance. The singer paused to talk before the next one and he reached out to draw his companion up next to him while they both faced the stage.

With the dancing that had started Jin wondered what the band would pick. Apparently it would be another by the same person they covered before. He was prepared for another fast paced dance but the sound of the music from the violin was definitely -not- a swing.

"Would you care to tango, Mia Gattina?"

Stepping away from Mara but still holding her hand, Jin then pulled her close, letting her turn into his arm until her back was pressed tight up against him. He ran his cheek slowly and gently from the tip of her shoulder up her neck, tilting it slightly to the side as he came to rest cheek to cheek with her. With the next strong beat of the music, Jin pushed her away and regarding her intently as they came back together for the tango's close embrace.

Vaughn was not at all surprised that Therese agreed with the other fashionable women that he knew. Apparently the price for looking good was almost never too high. He did agree that a good pair of shoes would last you a long time though.

"Yes, and there are some things you can be cheap with but, in my opinion, shoes are not one of them. It leads to suffering and misery and that is not worth what you saved by buying something ill fitting and out of cheap materials."

He watched the two cats finish their dance as the music ended. Vaughn smiled at her and silently agreed that they were good.

When the violin started playing on the next song, He pushed his drink away and stood.

"Shall we go and give them more competition?"

They might not be any match for the unnatural grace that the couple on the floor was displaying but at least he was prepared to try. Vaughn felt confident that he'd at least not embarrass either of them on the floor. He was a dancer's son after all and she started teaching him at a very early age. Of course, after his father died Vaughn was sent elsewhere for lessons among the other performers in the Kumpania but he still went to them because dance was important to his mother.

((OOCL: splitting our posts into two parts so it flows..don't kill us for double replying ;) ))

For one reason or another Thérèse was quite pleased that Vaughn understood the shoe issue. Perhaps not agree, perhaps he didn't understand 100% but at least he had the right idea.

The violin in the first song and the opening violin in this one had captured her imagination just a bit. Thérèse had every intention of seeing if she could duplicate these sounds. A bit of research on the internet and she should be able to dig up more information of the original artist.

She grinned slowly very pleased he would ask if she wanted to dance. Yes, of course she did. She'd been dying too.

"Oui. I think we should."Â?

At least from these few opening bars she should be able to manage in this dress. While long the skirt was full and would allow a good range of motion rather than hamper her.

Standing as well she offered her hand to follow him out to the floor.

Mara was disappointed when the swing ended but her spirits were soon restored when it became apparent that her partner wasn't quite ready to leave the floor. This particular dance might have caused her to shy away with another man but Jin had Amir's approval as Mara's escort and in Mara's mind that made him as trustworthy as her creator. So she leaned into the racy dance hold and schooled her features into something a little more appropriate than a bright smile. Her eyes still sparkled with mischief as she executed a square-pattern step around Jin, small feet kicking up behind her. It would have been more appropriate to be in heels rather than ballet flats tonight, but she rose up onto her toes to give the moves the proper flair.

"Un piacere, mio gatto," she responded in kind, one cat to another, pulling her hand away for just a moment to playfully tweak Jin's fuzzy white ear.

She hadn't expected Jin to be such an adept dancer so she was, indeed, finding his company pleasurable. She had expected to make uncomfortable, strained conversation with people she hardly knew tonight. Discovering Pakpao here had been good for her and the surprise of Jin's company made it much better. On the dance floor Mara forgot about any onlookers. Here it was really just two people and a song and that was the most fun of all.

Pak seemed rather taken with her date and Mara, with her endless curiosity, resolved to pay her friend a discreet visit soon. She wondered how 'complicated' would work out tonight but it seemed to be going well so far. For her own part, she wound her arms around Jin once completing her own little demonstration and closed the distance between them, poised to once more follow his lead. It was a much easier thing to do in this particular dance than in the swing where both partners moved out and back so frequently and improvisation ruled. Granted the argentine was all about improvisation itself but the amount of contact between the dancers made it quite simple to read each others' intentions.

Artemis laughed. What an interesting offer. Most women required jewelry.

"What would you do if I decided to take you up on that offer?" Looking a bit thoughtful for moment, he added, "Hmm. Probably shouldn't ask what constitutes breaking, huh?"

Still chuckling, he stepped back as the next song began. Listening, he recognized the rhythm. As the lyrics began to sink in, Artemis couldn't help but grin. Clearly the lead singer had a bit of a twisted side to him. They definitely needed to have this band play at an Evenhet party. Still smiling, he returned his attention to his date.

"This next dance is a bit slower and um...shoe appropriate. If you would like to retrieve yours.

He waited as Pak went to fetch her shoes. The tango was quite intricate and intense. An instructor had once told him that the tango was a conversation between lovers. Some lovers told jokes, while others 'argued' through the entire dance. If Pak was still angry at him, he could be in trouble.

When she returned, he took her hand his and slowly placed her other hand on his shoulder. Then very deliberately he place his free arm around her wait, pulling her close. As he stepped back and to the side, beginning the basic 8-step of the tango, he brought them nearer to the other couple. Close enough to hear them speaking Italian. The Roman wasn't sure he should be amused or offended. He shook his head and laughed before speaking to Pak.

"I feel like I should say something to you in Chinese. Moo Goo Gai Pan?"

Having completed the 8-step sequence, he began it again. This time, before completing the second half, he walked around in a circle allowing her to pivot on one foot. Afterwards, he completed the sequence and began again. The man could lead, but a lot of the flare from the lifts, turns, and other embellishments came from the woman. A lot would depend on Pak's mood and knowledge. Uncertain of how familar she was with the tango, he leaned close to her ear and whispered.

"The tango is all about the tension and the passion. So, pretend you are both madly in love with me and really pissed off. Just don't kick anything vital"

Leaning back, he grinned at her. And the dance continued.

Jin held back the urge to ask Artemis if he was hungry. Button mushrooms and chicken slices indeed! Paying attention to the Roman and his talk of overly sauced American Chinese food would take away from the intimate nature of the dance. Perhaps he would seek verbal revenge with mention of Fettucinni Alfredo after the song had ended.

Giving Mara his full attention once more, Jin travelled with the basic step forward. He never took his eyes off her's but let his peripheral vision take note of the movement of her footwork. He took one step back and then on the next lunge he paused with his left leg extended behind him and slid Mara onto the right one. Letting her use it as a perch, Jin lowered her into a dip. He lifted her up and set her down again in front of him. He stood still for a few beats to let her have some fun with the lead role.

Pak's expression was very clearly a dare. No, he probably didn't want to know what constituted breaking. Besides which, she was a very pricey purchase.

The suggestion of shoes was well received, especially as her toes were suddenly cold. Pak -hated- the cold. Rather than trotting and hopping she put them on before returning to the dance floor. Studiously ignoring the odd looks she got from one or two people who had seen put the shoes back on.

She really wasn't much of a dancer, oh she wasn't terrible she had danced before, but in the grand scheme of things she wasn't an expert. Although, while she wouldn't admit it, she had watched several seasons of Dancing With The Stars. About the only thing that really got her was the ability to recognize what dance with what music. The whole tango thing was worry some. At least with the swing/jive thing she could hang on for the ride to a certain extent. This could get awkward fast.

And then Artemis started speaking Chinese Carry Out. Pak blinked, totally confused and came very close to rambling on in Siamese at him.

"I would rather have the Peeking Duck."Â?

Taking a deep breath she decided the best she could do was fake it.

His advice brought a wry smile.

"You might want to define vital."Â?

By the time she'd finished those few words her expression was a study in sweet, innocent, and perfectly harmless. All joking, or threats, aside she did do her best to follow his lead but only occasionally felt comftorable enough with the dance to add any kind of flash. She was sure only Bruno would like it.

Mara followed Jin's lead and ignored the friendly jibe from Artemis. This was a tango, after all, and she would not be deterred from dancing it properly. Molded to Jin, she danced along with his basic step and then slid like liquid silk into a smooth dip, her back arched and one arm and leg extended gracefully, giving her the appearance of being in possession of much more height than her actual 5'4". As Jin lifted her up once more she remained loose, leaning back, allowing her hips to touch his first before slowly rolling herself up against him.

He stayed poised and Mara took advantage of the opportunity, fixing her cat's-eyed green stare upon him, unwavering, her ballet-shoe-clad feet sliding easily on the floor as she played with the feel of the tango. Keeping the contact close Mara kicked one foot up around Jin's leg then pivoted with it so she had her back to him, still against him. Then, executing a complicated spin she managed to dance two turns around and over his foot, twining one of her legs with his on every half-turn.

She wound up pressed against him once more, her back to his front, her head turned so that their cheeks touched and their lips nearly brushed. She hooked her leg around his extended one and took his offered hand; he stood straight. She kicked her bent leg slightly, freeing it from his as he gave a small push with his hand. Mara, with that small toss, turned around in mid-air, arms settling around Jin's neck as he caught her, and linked her leg back around his as she slid down his body. He bent as she descended so that she never stood straight; she raised one leg in an arabesque while the toes of the other stayed on the ground and glided out behind her. They held the pose momentarily and then Jin stood once more, pulling Mara back up from her backwards dip.

This time Mara's smile was back but it was sultry and soft, as the mood of the dance demanded... and as her own mood reflected. There was nothing like this to relax you, really, and her body language quite clearly conveyed her enjoyment to her partner without the need for words.

((ooc: permission to move Jin))

Vaughn was certain he was going to some sort of hell for reveling in the feel of Therese pressed against him. In all his years of dancing in the Kumpania he had never enjoyed it this much. The two of them might not be as agile as some of the people on the floor but he really wasn't dancing for them, nor even noticed they were there, except as obstacles not to dance over.

Repeating the basic eight step of the tango, he delighted in how statuesque Therese looked and how fluidly she moved through the dance with him. Being the wolf that he was, Vaughn found himself closing his eyes for the briefest of moments and slowly drawing in the delicate feminine scent of the woman pressed so temptingly against him. Knowing that it might now be forever marked in his memory and would return on lonely nights to haunt him, he felt a small shiver run through him. Vaughn pulled back as they traveled into the next pattern that had him advancing purposefully and stepping Therese backwards along the dance floor. He regarded his companion with all the passion that he possessed. Vaughn felt no shame in it, the dance called for such intimacy and would gracefully explain away his indiscretion. It might be the only moment he ever had to reveal his emotions and he seized it with a reckless abandon that was quite unlike his normal cautious behavior.

((OOC: Yes, obviously permission to move Therese. Hard to dance any other way. ))

Sorcha sat down on the pew and ran her hand across it. Looking at Amir, she sent.

[The bench?]

Wrinkling her nose, she sniffed delicately and tested the resulting information. There was nothing out of the ordinary. Whatever Amir was smelling it had to be faint because she didn't detect it over the smell of the cleaner that had been used recently to dust and polish the pew.

That didn't make any sense. She was sure his senses were amazing in his present form but Amir had been tracking whatever this odor was from across the room. It couldn't possibly be too slight for her to even notice. He had said it was tangy and sharp.

Sorcha pressed her lips tightly together to keep the smile hidden. Gazing out over the crowd of dancers, She idly watched her creator and his seductive partner move across the floor with fluid ease.

Turning her pale eyes back to Amir once her mirth was subdued, She said.

[All I smell is the Lemon Pledge that they've cleaned the wood with.]

"Poor guy, no wonder that had him running around in every direction. There's wood all over the place."

Marcus sat on the pew next to her, his eyes twinkling with the amusement that Sorcha was trying desperately not to show.

"Hush, Marc, He's trying and I -am- trying not to embarrass him."

The apparition nodded his consent to her wishes. Crossing his arms over his chest, Marcus looked around the room instead.

"Jin seems to be enjoying himself."

Sorcha took a sip of the wine that she still had in her hand.

"Yes, he does."

Marcus made some noncommental sound of acknowledgment. It didn't tell her whether he approved of Jin's dancing or was unhappy about it for some reason.

She sighed at the unhelpful sound.

"Does it really matter, Marcus?"

Her ghostly companion turned his full attention to her. Her breath still caught after all these years at the piercing nature of his gaze. He held her eyes with his own for a moment that seemed to last forever and then his regard shifted lower...to the canine just in front of her.

"It might to him."

Oh? Oh... Sorcha looked up as Mara, clinging to Jin, slid down him. Well then that's not good. Right, bloody hell. She stood up and sent to Amir.

[Perhaps we should take a look around the grounds. I don't think we're suited to socializing but we are both very capable of snooping.]

Amir tucked his tail comically between his legs as Sorcha confirmed what he had suddenly suspected, the gesture clearly indicating that he was all right with levity.

[Anyone would have made that mistake,] he insisted lamely. He had his pride, but even Amir could see the humor in the situation. He was, however, as he'd observed he might be, embarrassed to have yanked poor Sorcha all over the place in his hunt for the wild Lemon Pledge Monster. [It smells different from here.]

He sighed and his eyes followed Sorcha's toward the dance floor. In the back of his head he noted the music. Tango. Very nice. One of Mara's favorites. She was, in fact, dancing it with Jin. Amir felt a momentary little spike of jealousy which quickly dissipated. He'd asked Jin to accompany Mara here. He wanted Mara to be seen with someone else.

If that someone else turned out to enjoy her company, well, all the better for it. Mai had warned Amir that he was a target now. It would do Mara no good to be near him and all the good in the world to have acquaintances, friends, in other people. Jin was infinitely trustworthy, a Nightsman like Mara, and a good Clanmate.

Yup. All that was true, but he still had a flashback of standing up at Vesper and letting Mara slide down his front - just... like... that... Gah. Down, Fritz. Amir reminded himself that Mara was not his, no matter what odd urges they both seemed to have suffered from lately.

[Yes, I'm ashamed to have to agree with you. I can't smell anything in here aside from the Lemon Pledge Monster,] Amir sent to Sorcha. [Maybe outside we'll at least run into something interesting. You're sure you don't want to dance? You may not think you're good at socializing but you've attracted plenty of attention from several would-be dancers.]

In his job as guardian, Amir had taken care to note anyone nearby and several of those not-so-nearby. Judging by the looks of interest Sorcha would have no trouble finding a dance partner if that was what she wanted.

Artemis's expression changed briefly to one of mild shock. Define vital? He thought it was fairly obvious himself. The grin that was spreading across his features grew into quiet laughter. He had certainly walked into that one. Still laughing, he made a small show of moving their dance a little further away from the other couple. Just in case his date decided to emasculate him further.

"Vital would be anything that one or both of us might have use of in the future."

He also knew her response was likely to be one he wasn't expecting. Still, after that one, he had to give a little of it back. Schooling his facial expression to something a little more dance tango appropriate. Artemis moved them around the floor with practiced ease. He wasn't too concerned with flare or stunts. The passion in this dance didn't really require all the extra. A quick glance at the other couple indicated that perhaps they were equally wrapped up in their own dance. Maybe Jin had found himself someone special. Good for him. Artemis thought his friend deserved to be happy.

Focusing once again on his own date, he wondered if she was enjoying herself. She seemed to be, but still.

"Are you having a good time? If you like I can teach you more of the tango some other time."

[of course they could.]

Sorcha helpfully agreed but the defenses cracked at the very adorable look of canine embarrassement. She just couldn't help it; she smiled. Sorcha did at least stop herself from reaching out and hugging him like she would have done with Gwyn after he had done something he was certain she wouldn't like.

Instead, she placed a comforting hand on his shoulder and nodded.

[No doubt getting some fresh air might be a good thing.]

She couldn't imagine what it would be like to have a nose full of the strong polish scent. Normally Sorcha found it oddly comforting. It reminded her of the Convent and all the wood that was lovingly cared for by the nuns.

She stood and then looked towards where Marcus was sitting in confusion when Amir said something about dance partners. Could he see the Roman?

Marcus shook his head and regarded her with amusement. He nodded towards a group of gentlemen not far away and another man near the tables of food. Sorcha blushed and considered the possibility for a moment before deciding against it.

[No, I don't think I feel like dancing tonight besides most men find me way too tall.]

Gliding through the crowd, Sorcha led them outside.

((OOC: outness for Amir, Sorcha and various ghosts))

Pak blushed faintly. It was an unusual thing for her to do. Typically Pak his behind her subterfuge so well that only one, maybe two, people could guess what she was thinking. But she felt a bit more open around Artemis and had unconsciously let that particular gift of hers drop.

She recovered fast enough and was able to retort.

"I'm glad you've been planning ahead."Â?

It had been say that or take out his knees. And since she was enjoying the dancing so far the whole knees things seemed counter productive. Still she was a little surprised at her own boldness, but she didn't take it back.

Again she was grateful he was a good dancer. It was much easier to manage when you had a strong lead. Despite the best of intentions though she did step on his foot once. Stumbled, tried to correct it and stepped on the other one. Maybe she should have left the shoes under the table. Pak cringed, embarrassed, usually when she stepped on peoples feet it was because she meant it. Or at the very least they deserved it.

"Of course. I might need the lessons but if your feet hold out..."Â?

She was a little worried that he might be wishing for a better partner. One who didn't step on his feet and half threaten him. But she didn't want to dwell on it right then.

As the song came to an end, he turned and pointed to another on the list of practiced songs. Ash nodded and passed the info back to the others. The tango had been interesting. Jan personally wondered how many of those still on the dance floor were immortal. This day and age, how many people learned such things?

To be fair, he wasn't in his typical club setting and these were people used to socializing in a more upscale environment so perhaps more of them did learn proper ballroom dancing. It made more sense than assuming all of the ones not gyrating in some random fashion were crusty old vampires who remembered when these dances were fresh and forbidden.

He laughed to himself and definitely ruled out the drunk girl waving her arms languidly above her head as a potential ancient. An inner voice told him not to judge a book by its cover...who knows perhaps she was from ancient Egypt and that drunken arm waving was really some popular fad from the second century BC.

Tilting his head up to the ceiling for a moment, Jan waited as the music began behind him. It was slow and soft and he swayed slightly with it. Bringing the microphone close he drawled the opening lines of the song.

"Come to me run to me
do and be done with me
(cold cold cold)
Don't I exist for you
don't I still live for you
(cold cold cold)
Everything I present
giving with tenderness
wrapped in a ribbon of glass
Time it may take us but God only knows
how I've paid for those things in the past."

((OOC: Song is Cold by Annie Lennox ))

Jin found himself forgetting for the moment that he and Mara were here to socialize with the other people at the party. He was having a hard time remembering that she was Amir's daughter and that he was supposed to be escorting her to the event and nothing more.

He watched her as she moved around him, her leg twining with his. Her movements were hypnotic and Jin found himself enjoying the brief pause so that he could simply watch her dance. His breath caught in his chest as she clung to him and slowly slid down his body. He bent forward with her, bending his partner backwards in a dip.

Noting her soft smile, Jin leaned forward, touching his cheek to her's, his voice barely above a breath.

"I hope I have made a proper play thing for the beautiful feline."

Pulling away from her slightly, Jin gave her a languid smile of his own. Watching her with half closed eyes as the song came to an end.

"And that she will -perhaps- consent to play again some time."

Mara gave a slow blink when Jin's cheek touched hers and she heard his voice ever so faint in her ear. Right about then she realized she was dancing with someone she had barely just met and having a ridiculously good time at it. Impulsively she twined her arms around Jin's neck and rubbed her cheek against his, like a cat. As he pulled away she gave him an open, pretty smile.

"Most proper," she agreed softly, "and I think there is merit to mixing some pleasure with business."

Her eyes twinkled merrily behind their green contacts and she briefly wondered how Jin would enjoy the atmosphere at Shades'. Mara straightened, sliding her hands down Jin's back into a more formal hold, since the new song was a waltz. Another favorite; who didn't like a waltz?

Jin's words had seemed to imply that they should move off of the dance floor but the music had started and it did no good to stand there doing nothing, so until they settled on another course of action, well, she was going to milk the dance floor for all it was worth. They were here to socialize, after all, although Mara assumed that had meant 'with other people' and not with each other, as surprising an event as that had turned out to be. And a shame, too, because she was enjoying Jin's company and wouldn't have minded talking to him more.

The waltz seemed to be moving them further away from Pakpao and Artemis, but Mara suspected the two of them were doing just fine on their own, and if she and Jin were supposed to be social butterflies tonight they needed to visit a few more flowers.

It didn't seem like quite the odious task anymore.

Vaughn sighed as the song ended. He found himself unwilling to let Therese go and knew that he was standing there holding her in the silence between the songs. His thoughts flashed back to the look in her eyes; the passion that matched his own.

He hadn't felt like this in decades. His hands were shaky and his heart was beating so fast he was sure a change was about to happen. That would be...awkward. At least Therese would understand though it would be embarrassing to explain the reason behind it and the mad rush for the door.

Taking a deep breath, he slowly slid back so that he could smile at her. Vaughn said.

"You do Mrs. Kelly proud. Shall we dance another?"

He listened to the song as it began and arched his eyebrows in surprise. The kid singing seemed a little young to be a fan of Annie Lennox but Vaughn personally loved this particular song. He twisted his hips suggestively and gave Therese a very uncharacteristically naughty grin.

"Care to rumba with me, Mlle. DuBois?"

That was highly disappointing. She hadn't expected to song to end quite so soon. She was trying to tell herself that it was just the dance that she had enjoyed. She hadn't had a chance to tango for, goodness, months? Years? She didn't remember. Thérèse also knew it wasn't just the dance she'd enjoyed.

No, it was the company of a married man and her Alpha. Some evil little voice reminded her Thérèse violently squashed that little voice. It could haunt her tomorrow but she was going to pretend those two complications didn't exist right now.

"Ah but you put Mr. Grant to shame."Â?

A slow smile spread across her face when another song started and he didn't leave the floor. She might just like this band. A lot.

In a shamelessly flirtatious manner Thérèse looked up from under her lashes.

"I thought you would never ask."Â?

A slower dance, no less passionate, just a quieter passion. Her hips swiveled to to match his and the both easily stepped into the dance.

Well, he had figured that her response would be one that he didn't expect. And, he certainly wasn't expecting that one. He wasn't complaining either. This one left the door open for possibilities, and that could be a good thing. The cats may be dancing on another part of the floor, but he was the one grinning like a Cheshire.

"I am a scientist. It is my job to plan ahead."

Granted, his planning ahead generally required safety goggle, Hazmat suit, or a blast shield. His smile and good mood remained as they continued to dance. Only once or twice was it a little more plastered than normal. He tried his best not to visibly wince and she stepped on his feet. She was dancing with him, and that was all that mattered.

"Don't worry too much about my feet. Maybe we will get lucky and the next dance will be the Jive. That one is all hopping on one foot or the other. No one will ever notice."

Artemis gave Pak a light kiss on the cheek and stepped back as the song came to an end. He was pleased, and a little relieved that the next song was a slow one. This type of song allowed for a slow dance with a bit of slink to it. However, Artemis was willing to keep things simple if Pak was still in the mood to dance. He held out his hands to her.

"One more dance?"

She giggled at his grin. Some one looked far too pleased with themselves. Maybe he was still interested after all. That could be a very good thing.

"Oh hush, they'll grow back and you know it. Besides, you might look dashing with a peg leg."Â?

It was as close to an apology as Pak ever managed. She did feel bad about the whole foot thing and was rather relieved he was letting her off the hook. She'd make it up to him later. Wait... no... that could possibly sound... oh too late. At least she hadn't said it out loud.

Finally, a song with a tempo and a beat she could probably manage and he was still offering. Pak beamed and nodded before settling back into his arms.

"You're either brave or a masochist, possibly both. But either way I don't think I get to make fun of your dancing any more."Â?

She could live with that too. A random neural firing caused Pak to wonder how Artemis felt about opera.

But after that she spent her time concentrating on the dancing. His feet were in less danger this time. Although, part of her was tempted fall so he could catch her. But she might save that for another night too.

Jin smiled at Mara. She had not exactly said, yes, to going anywhere or doing anything more at some later date but she hadn't said, no , either.

It was tempting to dance for another round, especially when the slow blues melody began. He could see new couples moving to the floor, encouraged by the slow beat of the song. If nothing else it would be easy to sway to for those less athletically inclined.

He looked up and around the room for signs of his daughter. Jin's brow furrowed when he noticed that she was not where he had last seen her. Hmm, he supposed that she and Amir were off doing what they had all come here to do.

"Perhaps we should mingle some more. Artemis and Pak are lovely but I think we should see who else is about."

Jin nodded toward the food table. It was a good place to start and it gave them something to do while watching the other people in the room.

"Shall we get a bite to eat?"

Mara nodded at Jin, sorry to leave the dance floor and hopeful that if the night proved uneventful they might return to it at a later point.

"My thoughts exactly," she said when Jin's words did, indeed, echo her own reluctant sentiment that they were here to do just that.

Her green eyes traveled over to the banquet tables and she nodded again. "That sounds like a plan."

It seemed considerably easier for she and Jin to navigate the pressing crowd than it had been for Artemis, but then again sometimes small stature and an unnatural ability not to get stepped on were a great advantage. There was a way of moving in a large crowd that anyone who spent time in them would know, where your body seemed to move in a rhythm around the people in your way yet not at odds with the pack of humanity. She performed it well, and Jin did too.

They found themselves eyeballing an impressive array of food in short order. Mara was, as cats are wont to be, a very finicky eater. She didn't eat much on a regular basis, but she did enjoy certain things. She wandered along the tables, taking judiciously small pieces of fruit that appealed to her; a strawberry, a slice of pineapple. Then she reached the meat and her eyes grew slightly wider as she found a slice of steak tar-tare and her favorite, ahi tuna lightly seared and raw inside.

Helping herself to those as well, Mara disdained the vegetables and breads and waited for Jin to make a selection. Glancing around and hoping it wouldn't be too unmannerly in this crowd (they seemed fairly laid-back), she lifted her plate and forked a tiny bit of steak into her mouth like a guilty child stealing a cookie.

"Dying is easy it's living that scares me to death"

Vaughn watched Therese as they moved through slow sultry dance. The twisting hip movements and slow turns accentuated his partner's long beautiful legs. The silver fabric of her dress hiding and revealing curves with each step and sway.

He smiled softly at her and continued to serenade her with the song that the young singer had so artfully chosen.

"I could be so content hearing the sound of your breath."

Perhaps he should feel self conscious singing; he almost never did so in public. Vaughn tended to hide behind the guitar but he sang for himself from time to time and enjoyed it. He had already done more than he should, shown more of himself than was wise...so why stop now?

"Cold is the color of crystal the snow light
that falls from the heavenly skies.
Catch me and and let me dive under
for I want to swim in the pools of your eyes."

Jin picked up a plate and watched Mara pick and choose everything so very carefully. Definitely a finicky cat. He smiled and also took some of the delicious looking steak and then found a few pieces of sushi

"Mmm sushi. Since I am Japanese then its a good thing I like this stuff."

He winked at Mara and then pointed to one of the benches nearby where they could watch the dancing while eating and talking. They might be able to slide into some of the conversations that were going on around them and if not then at least they could entertain each other.

"Actually sushi originated in China like most good..."

His train of thought was interrupted by Sorcha's mental confession.

[You what?] He sighed [Amir is there,yes? Do you need me? What happened?]

Jin had half risen off the bench and then turned to Mara.

"It would seem my daughter has caused something of a stir."

Like many a father he worried over what he should do. He could rush out there to protect her and find that she didn't need him. Sorcha would be furious with him for overreacting but to not go when she called to him and have something happen to her...well, Jin couldn't bare that thought either.

"Should we go? Stay? They have...company."

Mara's eyebrows twitched up in amusement. "I thought you only ate button mushrooms and chicken," she teased Jin lightly.

Whatever he was about to say about sushi was cut off as he seemed to unfocus momentarily. He sighed. Mara tilted her head, waiting. When Jin rose partway and stopped, she rested a hand on his forearm and looked at him questioningly. He seemed concerned.

"Did she seem all right?" Jin wasn't dropping everything and running, so she assumed no one was injured or in grave danger.

His indecision made her curious. But, then, she too had a creator who would have quite possibly reacted the same way... if he weren't out the door already by this point. Jin's restraint was admirable, his obvious confliction endearing.

"Amir is with her," Mara said, as if that spoke volumes. "He won't leave her."

She smiled; Amir had a job to do tonight. He was going to do it or die trying. That was just Amir. She put herself in Jin's shoes, however, and rose to her feet. They were on the far side of the room.

"I imagine we could people watch quite easily from that table by the door," she suggested softly, indicating the table she meant with her chin as she nodded.

It would place them close enough to the door to get out in a hurry if need be. If there was trouble outside, Mara would be hot on Jin's heels but she had faith in Amir, and therefore Sorcha.

Artemis smiled as she commented on his bravery. Really, she wasn't that bad of a dancer. She had only stepped on his feet a few times. That was to be expected with an unfamiliar dance. The most important this is that she didn't kick anything....vital. If he could survive the tango, anything else would be a breeze.

"Probably a bit of both. Though I don't think they give out medals of honor for dancing.

As they settled into the slow dance, he was content with the silence. Just listening to the music and moving together. He didn't always have to be the clown or the prankster. Those times when he could just be were a good thing. He kept their movements simple. No flash. It was very eighth grade dance, but that was fine with him. Artemis lowered his head so that his cheek rested on the top of hers. Closing his eyes, he savored the moment.

Glancing up, he noticed that the Jin and Mara had left the dance floor. The dance was not quite done, and he was in no rush to end it. Deciding t a be gentleman, he would ask Pak what she wanted to do.

"The cats have left the floor, does that mean we win by default?" After winking t her he said, "Would you like to join them, or did you have something else in mind?"

"We can talk about your masochistic tendencies later."Â?

Although if he did have them, that would probably help things. Pak had very few illusions and knew she was a challenge, to put it mildly. She willed away more serious thoughts and since the dance had taken on a more regular pattern, and wasn't as scary as the tango (stupid tango) she was able to relax and just follow along. This was much more her speed. You'd think in nearly three hundred years she would have learned more about dancing. Oh well.

She'd totally lost track of Mara. Which, Pak decided was fairly rude of her. She didn't get to see her friend very often as it was and to just forget about her seemed wrong. She'd have to apologize later.

"I think that maybe we should call it a tie."Â?

Not wanting to clutter the dance floor much longer, some of the folks were -much- better, Pak looked about the room. She wasn't much of an eater. Some times, but not often.

"How cold do you think it is outside?"Â?

Fall could be a problematic season. Some nights would be warm and some would be down right cold, or at least cold by Pak's standards, but she wouldn't mind some fresh air.

"You can tell me how you know Jin."Â?

The dance was over far sooner than he would have liked. Vaughn gave Therese a shy smile feeling far more self conscious about the singing, and the dancing for that matter, now that the music had ended.

He looked up at the young man on stage to see what might be in store for them next but there seemed to be a momentary pause. With far better than average hearing, Vaughn was able to listen to the singer engaged in a quiet but fierce conversation with one of the band members about her over consumption of alcohol this evening.

Turning back to Therese, he shrugged.

"It would appear that we might have to wait for the next song. Shall we find another glass of that wonderful wine?"

He suddenly had a hard time deciding what to do with his hands. It wouldn't do to presume but at the same time he didn't want to seem in a hurry to put distance between them either. Finally he settled on a compromise and offered her his hand. It wasn't what he wanted to do but he had no right to do what he -wanted- to do.

((OOC: Vaughn and Therese out to trip the waiter... :wolfgrin))

Jin nodded to Mara and stood. He led the way to the bench by the door that she had indicated. This was close enough to be there in the event of serious trouble; at least he certainly hoped it was.

He listened to the description of what happened and sighed inwardly. Sorcha had been trying to help someone and that made it difficult to be angry with her over the whole situation.

[Please be careful. We will watch for him. Continue speaking to him if you can. I don't know what more we can do until we know what the whole situation is.]

Turning towards his companion, Jin spoke in Arabic, a language he felt it likely Mara understood. He hoped that very few others in the room would also possess such knowledge.

"It would seem that they met a couple at the door. A dark haired woman and a blonde young man. Sorcha says there is something going on between them. She believes he is in trouble."

He shrugged and continued.

"My daughter is soft hearted. It would appear that she was trying to comfort the young man and found out quite by accident that more was going on than she had at first expected."

((OOC: Jin and Mara out to a new less cluttered thread ))

As the song came to an end, Artemis was a little disappointed. He had hoped it would last a bit longer. It had been nice to dance that dance without any real pressures to perform. The corners of his mouth twitched in what might have been the beginnings of a smile. Great. Performance anxiety, just what he needed. He quickly squashed those thoughts and turned his attention to his date.

"I suppose we can be generous and concede a tie. It will make them feel better."

He seriously doubted that Jin and Mara were all that concerned about the impromptu dance competition. But, it would serve as excellent fodder later. Not only with Jin, but with Alfarinn too who would no doubt be sorry he missed it. Especially after Artemis embellished the story a bit. Stepping back, he considered the weather as she looked around the room.

"You can always borrow my coat if you get too cold." Artemis let loose with his most wicked of grins and said, "Of course I might then get the impression that you only come with me to these parties so that you can strip me of my clothing."

Wrapping an arm around Pak's shoulders, he winked at her. He knew payback for that comment was coming. He just had to wait for it. A quick glance toward the stage told him that the band was busy at the moment. Artemis had wanted to speak with them and get some contact information, perhaps even leave one of his cards. A holographic business card of course.

"Lead the way. Though I would like to talk to the band later. I was thinking about a Tim Burton themed Christmas party at Meridian this year."

That said, Artemis couldn't wait to hear Pak's thoughts as she led them off the dance floor.

((OOC: Artemis and Pak out. I don't know where to, because Pak is driving again))

Jan pointed forcefully off the stage to his inebriated band member. He wasn't entirely sure what had gotten into Ash but he would find out later. Normally she was much more professional than this.

Sighing philosophically, he figured that every artist had their off days.

Once Ash, with a dramatic pout and flounce, left the stage. He turned back to the rest of the band members. They would just have to do without her.

((OOC: Jan out of really freakin long thread ))

"Sheesh, it feels like we've been making out for like a month." Viv tried to fix her lipstick but realized there was none left. Digging into her small purse, she pulled out her frosty mocha lipstick and reapplied it as Brig watched with a small smile.

"I'm just going to take it off again. Should just stick to lip gloss."

Viv rolled her eyes and reentered the party. "Looks like this sock-hop is slowin' down. Let's find LT and Carol..."

"Here we are!!" Carol sang from behind as she held LT's hand. "What's LT?"

"Lothias Timothy - quicker to say," Brig replied kissing Carol's free hand.

"How many Lothias' do you know, though?" LT made pulled a face, "I like my name."

Carol tugged at LT's arm, "I do, too, pookie."

"Pookie works, too," LT smiled.

"All right, let's blow this popsicle joint?" Viv asked as she tucked her lipstick back in her purse and turned toward the door. Brig came up beside her and hooked his arm out. With the appropriate roll of her eyes, she roughly took Brig's arm and flicked a look at Carol who was cheesin' it so hard Viv was sure her face would crack.

((OOC Viv, Brig, LT, and Carol out))