11446/Lounging in a Dungeon

Lounging in a Dungeon
Date of Scene:	02 June 2022
Location:	The Dungeon - Hellfire Club
Synopsis:	Tessa and Rose start a...rivalry?
Cast of Characters:	Rose Wilson, Tessa

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Rose Wilson has posed:
The Dungeon is not SUPER crowded at this hour. Just warming up really. Some club goers, some regulars. Some just here to see if the Hellfire Club is /really/ all their dues have been paying makes it out to be. For her part, Rose is sitting at the bar. She's old enough....if you don't look TOO closely at her ID or ask too many questions. Which is how she prefers things anyways. She has a drink sitting in front of her, but it doesn't look like she's touched it. Maybe she bought it to be polite?

Rather, she's leaned back against the countertop, seemingly considering the people out on the dance floor. The bump and grind is interesting, sure, especially with the outfits the Club encourages -- for her part she's in something a bit more revealing than her usual outfit: a leotard with a low cut down the front, no pants, nice tall boots -- but that does not seem to be what she's watching for. She seems to be looking for someone in particular. Or something. Failing to spot it, she turns back to the bar and looks down at the drink in front of her, as if considering taking a swig of it. It's dark blue, and a haze of fog is coming from it.

Tessa has posed:
The goth-y, fetish-y aesthetic favored by many of the clubgoers is not shared by one. Tessa Fox is a Hellfire Club VIP -- one of those people where many of the Club members have heard her name, or seen her at functions, but very few of them could tell you a damned thing about her. She stands out in the crowd here in the Dungeon, because she's wearing an elegant, backless purple evening gown. She looks suitable for London Fashion Week or an awards show, not dancing her ass off.

And maybe that's why she's NOT dancing her ass off. The dark-haired woman approaches the bar, ending up next to Rose by coincidence. She orders a glass of something with a French name and a vintage dating back decades. When it arrives, it's a glass of red wine.

Rose Wilson has posed:
Rose Wilson looks over as the very expensive sounding wine is ordered. She gives the woman in the far too elegant for a club like this a long looking over. Maybe it's her she's meant to meet? Or stalk? Or whatever it is she's doing here? Either way, Rose looks down at her drink, and then takes a sip of it. She frowns, "Knew it," she says, and then turns back towards the front of the room, hands resting on her hips. She seems restless.

"I think you're in the wrong place," she says offhand to Tessa. "It'd be a shame if someone spilled a drink on that dress or something. And with all the drunks here..." she motions to a pair that are a little more into each other at the moment, than where they are going, who miss Tessa by mere inches in their staggering to the bar. They are not there for long, obviously off to find a booth to continue their conversation, but...it's the close to disaster bit Rose seems to be concerned about. For the dress.

Tessa has posed:
Tessa has a sip of her wine. She seems completely unconcerned with the pair who nearly stagger into her. She doesn't flinch, doesn't even twitch. Instead, her attention is entirely upon Rose... and very discreetly, she moves herself one inch to the left, as if adjusting herself to avoid the drunken pair's trajectory. She makes it look effortless. It might actually have been effortless.

"It would indeed be a shame, Miss Wilson," Tessa says. She speaks without an accent, without a dialect, without any inflections or vowel sounds that might give away where she comes from. She has a flat affect, putting zero emotion into her words, her facial expression almost blank. "Fortunately, I own other dresses. I trust you're enjoying yourself tonight."

Rose Wilson has posed:
"I will be later, when I'm in someone's bed." Beats sleeping on the streets, or at home. "Right now, just watching the world go by." If she's impressed by the very elegant woman knowing her name, she doesn't show it. Though she adds, "Don't use that around here, would you? I would prefer people not associating me with that name right this instant."

She then glances back at the dance floor. Nothing doing there. So, back to Tessa, "What brings you down here to slum it this evening..uh...lady who I've seen around the guy who I think runs this place? Don't you have, like, important things to do? Those dresses don't grow on trees last I checked."

Tessa has posed:
When Rose asks Tessa not to drop the W-word, Tessa responds by not emoting in the slightest. It's as if Rose had simply commented on the weather. "As you wish."

One hand is extended Rose's way, though. A shake, if Rose takes it. "Tessa Fox," she says, giving her name, since 'lady who I've seen around' is a mouthful to keep saying over and over. "Is it not important to take advantage of all the pleasures that the Hellfire Club offers?"

Rose Wilson has posed:
The hand gets a bit of a look, before Rose takes it and gives it a firm shake. "If you're one of the pleasures of the Club, then, yes. Yes it is important to take advantage of them all," she replies, not releasing the hand yet. Maybe she's waiting to see what Tessa does. Maybe she just likes Tessa's hand. Either way, she's holding on to it for now. "Though, now I wonder if I'm meant to be a pleasure for YOU, or if you mean the Dungeon as a whole." She considers this for a few moments, still watching Tessa more than the dancefloor.

"I'm going with me, the Dungeon doesn't seem really your kinda place. Too busy. Too raucous. You probably like watching the cameras when there's something interesting going on, but actually coming down...needs to be a good reason. So, what you lookin for tonight?" Rose reasons, apparently not minding that she's blathering to the woman who is dressed miles above even the best payday she's ever had.

Tessa has posed:
Tessa doesn't display any more strength than one might expect from a physically fit young woman. When her hand is kept, she doesn't fight it. Her arm doesn't quite play dead, but she relaxes the tension in it, denying Rose even a hint of struggle. When asked if she's one of the pleasures of the Club, Tessa doesn't smile, just arches one eyebrow a little bit. Then she has a sip of her wine. "Anything is possible within the Hellfire Club, Rose."

Tessa's hazel eyes then scan the dancefloor. She watches the bodies in motion like a scientist monitoring a lab experiment. "Watching something through cameras is hardly a substitute for experiencing the real thing."

Rose Wilson has posed:
"Anything is possible? Anything?" Rose asks, quirking a brow at that comment. She considers for a few moments, but in the end seems to take that for what it is. "I think in some places in this Club, sure. Not here, though. This is a distraction." The hand is still held onto though, before she turns hers so that Tessa's isn't held at such an awkward angle any longer.

"I dunno, I'd rather watch what I do through a camera than experience it. It's..." she trails off as she considers, "not pleasant work. I'll put it that way. Sometimes it feels like I'm watching through a camera. Those times are the best. You don't hear or smell anything, you just do it. Unthinking."

Tessa has posed:
Tessa shows no protest to her hand continuing to be held. She doesn't make it any easier on Rose, though. It's like her hand is playing dead, rather than responding in any real way to Rose's touch.

"Compartmentalization is an effective strategy," the dark-haired woman muses. "If we are faced with things that seem to be beyond our limits, then we must make ourselves into someone who lacks those limits. At least, for as long as such a persona is effective." Another sip of wine follows.

Rose Wilson has posed:
"What?" Rose asks, seeming a bit shocked at the cold way in which Tessa describes what she just talked about. It matches the way Tessa's hand is functioning at the moment. She seems...not confused, or disappointed, or taken aback at the entirety of the display, but rather like she had expected one answer and gotten another. The girl gives the hand a squeeze then drops it, perhaps the game now being over.

"I mean, I guess? But, is there a reason you're down here? Just to watch? Is that what you're into? Or like your friend got some sort of work for me? Or...?" Rose asks, tilting her head a little as she looks back at Tessa.

Tessa has posed:
Tessa's hand comes back to life when it's released. She rests it on the countertop. Her body language is unusually precise. She's casting herself as relaxed and at ease. Anyone witnessing them from afar -- or, say, via camera -- would see Tessa amiably chatting with a glass of wine. Her tone of voice is much different. When she speaks, it's like she has ice in her veins.

"Perhaps. What sort of work are you looking to attain, Rose? You don't sound very satisfied with some tasks." Tessa waits half a beat before adding, "Dissatisfied workers often produce unsatisfactory results. So it's in everyone's best interests to match the person to the job."

Rose Wilson has posed:
Rose Wilson does not fail to catch the sudden movement of the hand, nor the distance between the amiable chatting she carries on, while still having an ice cold tone of voice. "That seems like a discussion I'd be having with someone further up the chain, I mean, you're just the secretary aren't you?" Is she trying for a reaction? Or does she just like pissing important people off?

"He knows what I'm looking for, we talked. He knows I'm looking for something." What that is she's very cagey about, as she does not mention its name. "I'm just here so he knows I'm back in town and looking to get back to it. He also mentioned a promotion. In on the real action around here. Not just...this." She motions towards the dancefloor again. It does not take a keen listener to realize her tone has changed, and she's almost switched personas, going from vulnerable girl to aggressive businesswoman with the flick of a switch. Her accent has changed as well, maturing, turning harder, sharper.

Tessa has posed:
When she's labeled the secretary, Tessa lifts her brows. She even flashes the smallest of smiles. "That, Rose, is an excellent question." One which Tessa doesn't actually answer.

While Rose's tone has changed, Tessa's hasn't at all. She seems calm and self-assured throughout. So far, she's failed to take any bait set out in front of her, if bait is indeed what it's been. "I will make sure that he's aware of your desires." She finishes her wine and sets the glass down on the bartop. "Where do you see this road leading you, Rose?"

Rose Wilson has posed:
Rose Wilson downs the rest of her drink, and then goes to leave, brushing -- and she makes sure this happens as best she can -- right along Tessa, seemingly enjoying invading her personal space a bit just to see if it throws the woman off, "Aint nowhere anyone wants to go. Queen Bitch of my own island maybe. Somewhere warm. Lotta money. Lotta girls, guys, whatever. All the...chemicals I might want to ingest. And no more head games or jobs or any of that. But, gotta get there first, y'know? Maybe I'll start as a secretary." She's stopped, well within Tessa's space, pressed slightly against her, eyes locked on hers, perhaps challenging her.

Tessa has posed:
Tessa actually responds to this. She turns her body so that she's front-to-front with Rose -- if Rose keeps pressing to her even slightly, any observer would be forgiven for mistaking it as two women brazenly seducing one another in close contact. She even sets one hand on Rose's hip, and doesn't break eye contact. All of this is done without hesitation.

"You have big ambitions," Tessa says. Her tone of voice hasn't changed at all. "Perhaps you'll achieve them." She inches her face a little closer to Rose's. "It won't come without pain."

Rose Wilson has posed:
Rose Wilson whispers something back to Tessa that is probably well beyond the rating of a nice family place like the Dungeon, but, with Tessa's hand on her hip and the woman pressed to her, she does not move. Is this what she's going for? Seducing the woman? Or, again, is this a mind game of her own? She stays still, watching Tessa closely. She is not tensed like she is about to strike, but rather has a very calculating gaze, as if she's trying to figure out just what Tessa's game is, and how to play it, and if it's worth her while.

Tessa has posed:
Tessa inclines her head to listen to the whisper, and then whispers something back, into Rose's ear. Whatever game she's playing, she's not keen to let anyone else know the rules.

Rose Wilson has posed:
Rose Wilson backs away slowly, and then motions Tessa to lead, "Let's see who blinks first then," she replies. She follows the woman out when she does.