You're out of the shower, drinking coffee and what, relaxing? Reading? Sketching? What do you do to pass the time alone when you're clean?
"Ahem." It's Velvet. He's got a sly smirk on his face. He loves sneaking into places. He's dressed in a pair of distressed jeans and a dark v-neck cloth shirt. you can tell from his smirk he has good news for you.
I don't normally need to do anything to pass the time when I'm clean- it doesn't usually last long. Hah. I clean up around my room- straighten up and whatnot.
Velvet looks at you with that sly smirk, then looks at the closed door. "Thanks for letting me in, darling." He'd already let himself in, another thing he loves to do. It's gotten him in trouble before, hasn't it?
He walks up close enough to be able to converse quietly, his normal preference. "I have keys to Onida's flat. 'The little engineer that could' doesn't know, I made copies." He holds up his right hand, showing you the keys on a ring with a lucky rabbit's foot, and drops them into your hand. "He has access to the entirety of Armour from that flat. It's impressive, the little man is quite the burrower."
I nod at his thanks. "Of course." It has gotten him into trouble, but mostly I spread around some jingle to keep folk quiet. And maybe it doesn't even take jingle- yeah? A person who knows the right thing... that's the position I like to be in.
A wicked grin spreads over my face. "You have been a busy boy." I pocket the keys. "See anything good?" I know he looked.
Velvet is so damn close to earning out, this might just tip him over.
Velvet arches a brow with a superior air and says, "Oh, the man has a few skeletons in his closet. Or rather, his sub-levels. Literal ones. I don't know if he hides them for others or if he put them there. If I were a betting man, I'd say he hides them for other folks, though. He doesn't seem quite brave enough to go out killing."
Velvet heads over to your desk, pours himself a drink, then another in a glass you like. He doesn't offer it to you, he knows you'll drink if you want. "There's more down there, including a locked door I haven't bypassed. I'll keep looking." He takes a sip, turns back to you, grins a little, waiting for your reaction.
Velvet clinks glasses, and takes another sip, watching you over the glass as he does. Once he swallows it down, (what is the drink, by the way?), he asks, "How are the rest of them?"
How is his relationship to the others in your crew?
The drink is whiskey, though this batch isn't very good. I've thought about dipping my toe into distilling- it'd go well with my establishment.
Velvet gets along ok with most of my crew, though he gives Silk a wide berth. "They are a mixed bag, as usual. Tulle broke her tooth so Chiffon is taking her to Trench." I reply.
Velvet huffs a little laugh, "Should have them pull all her teeth, give her dentures. Then she'd be less dangerous... to herself." He swirls around the last of the whiskey in his glass, looking down at the pattern, "So, you passed on Dulux's offer for Velour? How come?"
"Hah." I say. I actually have a bit of a soft spot for Tulle, maybe I overcompensate and am a bit hard on her because of it. I don't like getting too attached to my crew- they come and go and don't give a shit about me past being the one that hands out the jingle at the end of the night.
"For now." I answer. "She's worth more here. If she was chomping at the bit for it to happen, maybe I would have." I shrug my shoulders. I don't like to keep performers who are desperate to leave- though that won't stop me from maximizing the jingle I get out of 'em.
"So Proper..." Velvet says after taking another sip, his glass nearly drained. "What's your end game? What's the next step? Can't do this forever, can you?"
I sip at my own drink. I've given it some thought, of course. As much as I like to pretend I'm going to live forever, I know I won't. "Who knows." I answer. "Being surrounded by dancers in my old age doesn't sound so bad..."
I take another sip. "What about you? Nearly earned out. What's your plan?"
Velvet chuckles lightly at the thought of old you surrounded by dancers. He finishes off the whiskey, then, "I'll stick around for a while, build up a nest egg. The work's fun, I like the company, it's not a bad living and I couldn't handle it on my own or setting up a new crew." He holds out the glass for a refill, "I'm yours, while it still suits us, Proper."
I nod at his statement and pour more whiskey in his glass. "That's all a businessman like myself can ask for." I clink his glass. "While it suits us."
And if either of us would stab the other in the back for enough jingle, at least we don't make pretense about it. I do feel a bit closer to him after this evening.
What's a typical show night like for you, Proper? Do you work behind the stage, keeping plates spinning? Do you glad-hand with the audience and try to set up private dances?
Oh and by the way, Tooheys is back stage tonight, she's already working for Silk.
It depends on the show, though I normally like to be out in the audience making sure the regulars are taken care of. I have a mostly hands-off management style until someone fucks up.
Tooheys isn't dressed for the show- right? Just propping up Silk's ego, I'd assume.
Alright, cool. Let's say you're out with the crowd.
What's this place set up like? I imagine it's underground, for more space. Is there an actual stage? Seats around the stage? Tables? A bar? Private dances happen where?
How busy is it most nights? Other than your regulars, of course.
Every show is in a new place and people get invites via passwords, so it's more of an intimate affair than a big show. Sometimes it's in one of the containers, mostly it's underground. Tonight's show doesn't have a stage, but it does have a decent backstage area. Private dances happen in the two rooms off of the main one- there's only one door out to the hallway from the main room. There's a sort of bar- I've got a couple people who rotate bartending for me.
Most nights there's enough patrons past my regulars- tonight's a lighter night, but we've got a big show coming up in a couple days so it'll balance out then.
Toyota and Onida are having a grand time with Tulle, who is loopy as hell on pain meds, but she's a trooper. Velour ends up doing her old act. Chiffon didn't have time to practice the new thing she worked out. Silk's number brings down the house.
But by the end of the night, you barely break even, after the bartender takes his cut, you're almost down a bit. Nobody took any private dances except for Old El Paso and Satin, it was a bad night.
I kept my host smile on all night, but I'm sure it looked fake as hell by the time I paid everyone. I ended up digging into my own damn pockets and that is not frakking cool.
Once all the customers have gone I stalk back to my room, leaving cleanup to my crew. I'd normally stay and mostly direct, but listen to their after show chatter and offer my thoughts. I wasn't even thinking about frakking any of them during the show- that almost never happens. I mean- some are a better lay than others, but sometimes you want a different experience, yeah?
It's this damn town, I think. I haven't changed the crew out in a while, maybe clients are bored. The problem is getting new crew is damn hard and expensive as hell and I'm not going to spread a bunch of jingle around on the hope Armour will pay out for me. I'm going to have to move the show. Maybe the Ascendant- I heard a rumor there's been a change in management. If Bran's gone it might be a flash place to settle.
I pop one of the Glitter pills Satin gave me for Silk- yeah, you didn't think I'd give Silk all of em? and lay back on my bed.
As you drift into the glitter haze, you see yourself floating above your own body, Proper. Then higher, through the ceiling, into the containers above, through Armour, through Touch o Gold's restaurant and higher.
Then you fly, literally fly like a starship, following the scrubland east until you're following the path of the Ascendant as it crash down on Junk World. You see Branigans riding with Nezzy and the gang to kill the scavs, and the slaughter than ensued. Branigans burned one of his own terribly, then sent his new pawn west to hide.
Time speeds as you see people flocking to the wreckage, building, growing it until now. You see Kiddo shoot and kill Branigans. You see Branigans blood soak into the deck, and drip down on the heads of a half dozen people in the ship. And he fades.
You see there are threats coming for the place, but there are definitely opportunities as well. And a heavy appetite for entertainment, lots of jingle to go with it.
I wake up on my floor near the foot of my bed- a nearly naked Satin on top of me. I roll her off gently- she's still sleeping. I run my hand through my hair and stand up to find Velvet in my bed, his wrists tied to the headboard. Wow, I hope I remember whatever we did.
I sit down at my vanity and light up a cigarette and finish off a a whiskey glass.
Comments
"Ahem." It's Velvet. He's got a sly smirk on his face. He loves sneaking into places. He's dressed in a pair of distressed jeans and a dark v-neck cloth shirt. you can tell from his smirk he has good news for you.
I smile at his voice. "Yes, Velvet. Come in."
He walks up close enough to be able to converse quietly, his normal preference. "I have keys to Onida's flat. 'The little engineer that could' doesn't know, I made copies." He holds up his right hand, showing you the keys on a ring with a lucky rabbit's foot, and drops them into your hand. "He has access to the entirety of Armour from that flat. It's impressive, the little man is quite the burrower."
A wicked grin spreads over my face. "You have been a busy boy." I pocket the keys. "See anything good?" I know he looked.
Velvet is so damn close to earning out, this might just tip him over.
Velvet heads over to your desk, pours himself a drink, then another in a glass you like. He doesn't offer it to you, he knows you'll drink if you want. "There's more down there, including a locked door I haven't bypassed. I'll keep looking." He takes a sip, turns back to you, grins a little, waiting for your reaction.
I head over to the desk and pour myself a drink, standing quite close to Velvet. "That's my boy." I hold up my glass to his. "Cheers."
How is his relationship to the others in your crew?
Velvet gets along ok with most of my crew, though he gives Silk a wide berth. "They are a mixed bag, as usual. Tulle broke her tooth so Chiffon is taking her to Trench." I reply.
"For now." I answer. "She's worth more here. If she was chomping at the bit for it to happen, maybe I would have." I shrug my shoulders. I don't like to keep performers who are desperate to leave- though that won't stop me from maximizing the jingle I get out of 'em.
I take another sip. "What about you? Nearly earned out. What's your plan?"
And if either of us would stab the other in the back for enough jingle, at least we don't make pretense about it. I do feel a bit closer to him after this evening.
What's a typical show night like for you, Proper? Do you work behind the stage, keeping plates spinning? Do you glad-hand with the audience and try to set up private dances?
Oh and by the way, Tooheys is back stage tonight, she's already working for Silk.
Tooheys isn't dressed for the show- right? Just propping up Silk's ego, I'd assume.
What's this place set up like? I imagine it's underground, for more space. Is there an actual stage? Seats around the stage? Tables? A bar? Private dances happen where?
How busy is it most nights? Other than your regulars, of course.
Most nights there's enough patrons past my regulars- tonight's a lighter night, but we've got a big show coming up in a couple days so it'll balance out then.
But by the end of the night, you barely break even, after the bartender takes his cut, you're almost down a bit. Nobody took any private dances except for Old El Paso and Satin, it was a bad night.
What do you do?
Once all the customers have gone I stalk back to my room, leaving cleanup to my crew. I'd normally stay and mostly direct, but listen to their after show chatter and offer my thoughts. I wasn't even thinking about frakking any of them during the show- that almost never happens. I mean- some are a better lay than others, but sometimes you want a different experience, yeah?
It's this damn town, I think. I haven't changed the crew out in a while, maybe clients are bored. The problem is getting new crew is damn hard and expensive as hell and I'm not going to spread a bunch of jingle around on the hope Armour will pay out for me. I'm going to have to move the show. Maybe the Ascendant- I heard a rumor there's been a change in management. If Bran's gone it might be a flash place to settle.
I pop one of the Glitter pills Satin gave me for Silk- yeah, you didn't think I'd give Silk all of em? and lay back on my bed.
OOC: Open your brain incoming.
(Rolled: 2d6-1. Rolls: 3, 6. Total: 8)
Then you fly, literally fly like a starship, following the scrubland east until you're following the path of the Ascendant as it crash down on Junk World. You see Branigans riding with Nezzy and the gang to kill the scavs, and the slaughter than ensued. Branigans burned one of his own terribly, then sent his new pawn west to hide.
Time speeds as you see people flocking to the wreckage, building, growing it until now. You see Kiddo shoot and kill Branigans. You see Branigans blood soak into the deck, and drip down on the heads of a half dozen people in the ship. And he fades.
You see there are threats coming for the place, but there are definitely opportunities as well. And a heavy appetite for entertainment, lots of jingle to go with it.
Where do you wake up? Who joined you?
What do you do?
I sit down at my vanity and light up a cigarette and finish off a a whiskey glass.