Talking About the Weather (RP)

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Sep 19, 2024 8:30 am
"Far longer than I can remember," says Benji, taking a seat on a plush bench nearby while Emma looks through the clothes. He holds his violin case in his lap, hugging it to his chest. "I play a bit of piano too, sometimes, just for my own amusement, and I’ve dabbled with a few other instruments here and there, but the violin is my truest purpose. When I play, I feel… whole. The Hunger fades and the music rises in its place and, for a brilliant, shining moment, I feel like myself. As I was. Or… as I think I was, at least." He smiles and cocks his head at Emma. "What about you? Do you play any instruments? Or paint? Or sculpt? Or write?"
Sep 19, 2024 7:18 pm
"I would love to hear you play sometimes" she said softly, trying her best not to dwell on how sad it was that he was constantly tormented by pangs of hunger, or that he was starting to forget what it was like to have been alive. Maybe being a vampire wasn’t such a bargain after all.

"I always wanted to learn how to play the piano" she mused "but my mother could never afford to pay for lessons" she turned to look at him, her smile masking the pain from distant memories " – or a piano. But I write. I published my first novel a few months ago. ‘Under a Blood Red Moon’?"

Benji didn’t strike her as someone who cared much for erotic horror stories, so she didn’t expect him to have heard of the title. But who knows? The vampire was full of surprises. "It’s about Vampires. From before I knew they existed. Now that I do, I’m trying to portray them more accurately for my next novel" it was so very hard not to start peppering him with every question she had about his kind; she was quickly getting to the point where she would prioritize sating her curiosity more than her manners.
Sep 20, 2024 12:15 pm
"I would be honoured to play for you," responds Benji. "I play every day at Piccadilly Circus station. You’re very welcome to come and listen, whenever you like."

He’s absolutely delighted to hear that Emma is a writer. "Really? That’s terrific! I’ll be certain to read it. Is that why you’re mingling with Elliot, then? Research for your next book?"
Sep 20, 2024 4:12 pm
"Mm-hm" she hummed in the affirmative "I was hoping to get some answers from him, but mostly, he's only interested in talking about himself" with a slight tug of her shoulders, she went back to the dress stand "He makes it sound like every Vampire in London must kowtow to him. Is that really the way it is?"
Sep 21, 2024 12:48 am
"He controls a chunk of territory within the heart of London, but certainly not the whole of London. The borders are a bit fuzzy and shift around a lot but, as I understand it, his territory encompasses parts of the West End and most of the City of London," Benji answers. "The, er, ‘kowtowing’, as you put it, is not universal among Vampire Lords, but a reflection of Elliot’s idea of power. The vampire who controlled this part of London before Elliot was much more ‘hands-off’. She mostly ignored me and I her and that suited us both very well. She controlled a far larger territory than Elliot does today, so I think she felt less need to throw her weight around and assert dominance at every opportunity. Elliot killed her with the help of a few other aspiring vampire lords fifteen or so years ago and they divvied up her territory."
Sep 21, 2024 6:24 am
"How often does a 'coup' like this occur?" Emma struggled to understand why anyone in their right mind would want to be a 'Vampire Lord' to begin with. It was like painting a bullseye on your back. Make yourself a lot of enemies, all out for your blood. If SHE were a Vampire, she would find something much better to do with her unlife. Something much more...fun.

"I think I got it!" The short dress Emma pulled from the rack was the color of crimson. A very deliberate choice on her part "I HAVE to try this one out. Give me a couple of minutes, OK? Oh; and if you see Bev, tell her I'm in the fitting room"
Sep 22, 2024 7:30 am
"Not often," Benji answers Emma’s question. "Elliot’s predecessor was in power when I was turned, and that was quite some time ago…"
OOC:
Good time to bring Bev in?
Sep 22, 2024 8:03 am
- Benji -

A short while after Emma talks about someone called 'Bev', the discrete bell above the door tinkles and you see the Bev you know enter the store. Checking her watch, Bev looks around for someone, but does not see you where you are seated on the waiting-bench, she has a quick word with the attendant who points in your direction.

The Pinko's staff don't look any happier to see Bev —looking disheveled and wet in her hospital scrubs— than they did you or Emma. Someone may need to have a word with them before they get too antsy, but Bev is already making her way over to the fitting rooms.

What do you do?
Sep 22, 2024 11:27 pm
"…Bev?" Benji belatedly wonders aloud as Emma disappears into the changing room. He glances over his shoulder at the sound of the bell and is startled to see the Bev he met a few days ago walking into the store.

"Oh! Bev!" He waves to her from the bench, suffering a rare twinge of embarrassment as he recalls the last time he saw her. "What a lovely coincidence! You know Emma?"
Sep 23, 2024 1:11 am
- Benji -

"Benji?" Bev exclaims in surprise. "What are you doing here?" She looks uncomfortable and self-conscious about being seen by you, but tries to cover it up.

"You know Emma?" She asks, looking around for where she might be.

What do you do?
Sep 23, 2024 1:09 pm
"Well, I only met her yesterday but I was asked to take her shopping," Benji explains, awkwardly. "She’s in the fitting room."
Sep 23, 2024 8:13 pm
https://i.imgur.com/SVsIoH3.jpeg On cue, Emma walked out of the fitting room wearing her risqué blood-red dress. She loved the way it looked on her when she checked her reflection in the mirror, but she was worried that maybe it WAS a bit too much for the ball. She really had no idea. Good thing that Benji was there to keep her honest. And Bev. "Bev! Good morning!" the blonde broke into a smile upon seeing her friend "You got here just in time. How do you like this dress?"

She stopped to eye Benji, the smile turning into a crooked grin "I mean; how do you like that dress on me"
Sep 24, 2024 6:30 am
- Emma -

Bev's consternation around the coincidence of her meeting Benji day-before-yesterday and now him saying he met you yesterday is interrupted by your arrival.

For a few moments Bev is speechless. Then she rallies and makes a show of exclaiming! "Wapow! That is some dress!" She is trying to make a joke of it, but she is also having a hard time keeping her eyes off you.

"Can you afford ... anything in this place?" She asks conspiratorially. She wants to ask why you are 'buying dresses with Benji', but does not know how to broach the topic.

What do you do?
Sep 24, 2024 6:43 pm
"I couldn’t afford not even those wool hats they have on sale without taking a second mortgage" it was a hyperbole, but it conveyed the right message. Money was a bit tight these days, and she couldn’t afford to spend it on flashy clothes with pretentious price tags. Luckily, she wasn’t the one who would be footing the bill: "Mr. Parry invited me to the ball tonight, so he’s the one paying for the dress. And the shoes"

She just had to get those matching red heels to go with the dress. She couldn’t show up in her black ones and commit a fashion faux pas "Anyways; I’m glad you liked it as much as I did. Do you want to see me try out the black one too?"
Sep 25, 2024 2:09 am
"Yes." Bev says, looking around the store and clearly agreeing about the mortgage level prices.

"'Parry'? He's the 'vampire lord', right?" Bev says, looking between Emma and Benji, clearly curious, but not asking.

"I can't think how anything could be better than the red." She speculates, assuming that vampires must like red. "But let's see the black." She readily agrees.

What do you do?
Sep 25, 2024 4:47 am
Emma couldn’t imagine anything could surpass the red dress either, but that didn't mean she wouldn't jump on the opportunity to try out a few more expensive outfits. The thrill of shopping was all about exploration, and it wasn't like they were in a hurry. She spent the next hour slipping in and out of one dress after another; the classic little black dress, a sleek white bodycon, and even trying a different look altogether; that of an edgy leather jacket and tight leather pants. Eventually, the sales assistant’s lingering stares grew increasingly uncomfortable.

Back in her street clothes, she gathered the red dress (and the matching heels) and brought them to the counter just before she was asked if she was 'going to buy something'.

"That would be all" she said cheerfully, and then hinted at Benji, who she assumed was there with Eliot’s credit card
Sep 25, 2024 8:22 am
It takes Benji a few moments to figure out what Emma is trying to signal to him and then a few more to realize, with poorly-concealed alarm, that the whole reason Emma brought him along was probably to facilitate this transaction. Any member of London’s supernatural community would recognise Elliot’s name and authority, and trust that Benji wouldn’t be stupid enough to leverage that without Elliot’s permission, but this doesn’t seem like that sort of place.

Not wanting to embarrass or disappoint Emma, Benji begins rummaging through his pockets as he frantically tries to figure out a solution. "Oh! Um… Of course. Let’s see…"

He came straight from the train station so he is still carrying his earnings from this morning, --mostly in the form of coins and £5 notes-- but he suspects he doesn’t have nearly enough to cover the cost of the dress, let alone the shoes too. "Oh dear, I, uh… I must have left my money in the car. Wait here. I’ll be right back."

He sprints out of the store and returns a few minutes later with an old shoe box (circa 1920, if one had to guess), having retrieved it from his lair under Piccadilly Circus Station. He sets it down on the counter, brushes off the dust and cobwebs, and opens the lid. Inside, there are a lot of pre-decimal coins and bank notes that are no longer legal tender, a dead mouse, and a few definitively not-dead spiders, but among all that, there is enough actual money to pay for the dress and the shoes – 200 years worth of savings. "And that mouse is worth a few pence too, at least, if you ask me," Benji adds, hastily recapturing the spiders before they can get squashed and putting them in his pockets.
Sep 25, 2024 10:20 am
Emma smiled apologetically at the older woman at the cash register as Benji darted off. Though it only took him a few minutes to return, it felt like an eternity to her. When he finally appeared, clutching his shoebox, her flush of embarrassment quickly drained away, leaving her face pale.

It was one thing to scrounge off Eliot, who had more money than he knew what to do with, but Benji hardly seemed able to afford clothes for himself, let alone a ridiculously expensive dress for someone else. That shoebox was filled with coins and bills from decades—or even centuries—ago. She could only imagine how long it had taken him to save that up.

She knew what it was like being poor. She remembered what it was like to save every penny just so they could afford food. Going to bed hungry was a familiar part of her childhood.

There was no way she could let Benji foot the bill for that dress.

"Benji, it’s okay. I’ve changed my mind—I don’t want the dress" she said, pushing the bag back across the counter with a heavy heart.
Sep 25, 2024 11:50 am
Benji furrows his brow, surprised and confused. "You don’t? Are you sure? I’ll get Elliot to pay me back, if that’s what you’re worried about. It’s really no bother at all."
Sep 25, 2024 2:11 pm
"Will he though?" Emma wasn't sure it was going to be easy to get Eliot to pay him back. The Vampire lord didn't exactly go out of his way to make things easy for Benji. She was ready to leave the dress and the shoes in the bag and walk out of the store empty-handed, when it occurred to her that Benji might get into more trouble if she didn't look her best at the ball tonight.

"Fine" she sighed "But let me know if he doesn't"
The entire experience left a bitter taste in her mouth. She couldn't wait to walk out of the store and get on with her day.
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