14813/A Chancey Encounter

A Chancey Encounter
Date of Scene:	30 April 2023
Location:	Somewhere In Weschester
Synopsis:	Mando meets Jubilation Lee, who reluctantly takes him on as a vampire's Familiar.
Cast of Characters:	Jubilation Lee, Mando

---

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Another glorious night in upstate New York. While it might lack the cosmopolitan appeal of Manhattan or the rich, spooky history of a similarly named city in Massachusetts, the seat of power of the Great Vampire Nation of Westchester is not without its charm. That is, of course, if you're looking for something interesting, exciting, or fun to do. The Duchess herself declared that it was time to breathe some life into this joint, a phrase that didn't win her much support, and that the tourism board should get to work on a new brochure. Shortly after learning there wasn't a tourism board, Jubilation Lee absconded to the Japanese Stroll Garden, a 7-acre stroll garden in North Salem, to do some serious thinking. It's possible she said 'serious drinking' but no one asked her to repeat herself.

    "'Escape to Westchester, New York, where the undead can find the perfect blend of luxury, mystery, and....discretion!'" Jubilee announces to herself, scribbling the sentence in a magenta-cover composition book. She taps the tip of her Lisa Frank pencil on the front of her teeth. Tap tap tap. She sits on a stone bench on one of the carefully manicured pathways that line the stroll garden. Though it's certainly a more popular daytime destination, the stroll garden remains open late for moonviewing. It's a perfect destination for anyone who might appreciate the Japanese evening tradition of Otsukimi. Plus vampires.

    "'From taking a stroll through Sleepy Hollow Cemetery... And...." Jubilation sighs and briefly looks upwards as if it might make the thoughts and words flow faster. She groans. "Ugh, what is that stupid place called...." She scribbles something, writes something else to replace it, and stares down at the page. "'For those with a thirst for knowledge, the county is also home to various museums, galleries, and libraries.'" Jubilee sticks her tongue out and begins to scribble out that line with extreme prejudice. "Barf. No."

    Jubilation sets the composition book down on the stone bench and slams her pen on top of the cover. She looks down at the unicorn pencil topper that covers the eraser and frowns at it. "I deserve a break," she says. The pencil topper stares back lifelessly. So does Jubilee.

    In a single motion, Jubilation rises to her feet and produces a clear plastic pouch filled with a deep, red liquid. She slams a little yellow straw into the pouch, as many school children have done before to their Capri Suns. Slurp slurp slurp. Just a little break. Just a----BUMP.

    "What the hell!"

    Three teens from Salem High School, each in a classic football letterman jacket, stand in the middle of the path. The lead student, a bleach-blonde standard rich type, stares down at the plastic pouch of blood at his feet. His designer jeans are splattered with the dark liquid. "What the hell is this, you freak!? Is this blood?!" Uh oh.

Mando has posed:
Mando has been sent on a number of nightly quests as of late in search of new venues and old artifacts.  Why it couldn't be done personally?  Well what is a familiar for?  After spending the afternoon going to estate sales in Westchester of all places, he has found himself at the location for scouting.

The pudgy man has some wrinkly parchment in his hand which he smoothes out a little and turns to catch some light.  "No werewolf piss..."  He looks up, looks left, sniffs, looks right, sniffs...and spots the pouch drop.  He rocks back onto his heels and slips the parchment into his hoodie before strolling over.

"Whaaaat?  No.  You got the new flavor?  Ruby Bloodpunch?"  Mando scoops up the pouch before any of the teenagers can get it.  "Nice-wait," Mando starts to crack up at the sight of the teens.  "What the hell are you stooges doing strolling through the garden?  Coming for tea?"  He could do better, he thinks, though he knows he can't.  Is he trying to save the kids or protect her?

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Well, this sucks.

    Context shifting is a real thing and Jubilee just spent the last couple hours among the ancient, powerful vampires of her court. They show her only the minimum amount of respect they're required to and, even then, it's all with a thin veil of superiority and sarcasm. And so, this is the Jubilee who stands in the moonlight with a thin, yellow straw dangling from her bottom lip, loosely stuck on a spot of dried, sticky blood, while she stares at the three teenagers with a deer-in-headlights look on her face. She doesn't respond right away.

    The bloodied teen steps forward and reaches down to pick up the blood pack but he's too slow. Mando's got it. "Hey, give that to me you dweeb!" he demands, standing up straight to assume his role as muscular jock in the social hierarchy that he assumes applies outside of school. The other two boys laugh and snicker at Mando, fulfilling their own roles in this endless tradition. One reaches out and snatches Jubilee's magenta composition book. He stares at the cover, flips it around to check out the back, flips it over again. He stares at the title on the cover and the monogrammed seal of Jubilation Lee -- a circular outline with a silhouette of a bat and three firework explosions. "---Yo, guys, check this out. 'Vampire Business'!" he announces the words on the cover, causing all three boys to laugh, easily forgetting about the blood pack or the bloodpunch or whatever it might be. The lead boy rips the book out of his friend's hand and opens it to a page in the middle.

    "Idea for this year's Haunted Hootinany," he reads, cocky smile growing with each word. "Vlad the Impala. Tours of historic Westchester in Mr. Williamson's Chevy Impala...five bucks a pop...Ask him if he would change his name to Vlad." More laughter. "Guys, get some pics of this..."

    Like clockwork, the teenagers start taking as many photos of the notebook, of Jubilee, of Mando, that their little smartphones will allow. Jubilation stands there, motionless, not quite sure what she should do. It's the evening's eternal conflict. Every fiber of her being tells her to just end the miserable lives of these three little pigs. Do it. Put an end to this. How dare they? Jubilation turns her head and stares at Mando, the mysterious stranger, with an almost helpless, doe-eyed take on the situation. She's holding back her vampire nature for now. But how long can that last? How long can she?

Mando has posed:
This isn't the first time someone has picked on Mando, certainly not the first time he's been picked on by teenage boys.  But this time, he's not defending himself.  He's defending something he believes in.  He never knew why Bellatrix always insisted he carry one of her old dowdy umbrellas.  It looks like something out of some 19th century cosplay.  Overly authentic as if it were well taken care of.  He never knew in the past, but he's about to find out.

Suddenly Mando swivels the umbrella from under his arm and whacks at the phones like he's playing whack-a-mole.  The tip of the umbrella ends up just underneath the jock's chin, pressing against the soft part.  "Give the lady back her book and erase those photos.  Now.  Or you will not live to regret this."  It isn't an empty threat.  He knows what will happen.  "Walk away now."

Just by being here, Mando knows he risks his life.  If this vampire goes into a rage, she wil-she already only sees blood bags.

Mando's beady gaze drills into the designer jeaned jock.  He takes a step back, easing the pressure on the guys throat to create some distance.  It wouldn't be good to get picked up for assault on a kid when all he did was poke his throat a little.  A ray of moonlight catches the side of the umbrella handle and Mando reaches his thumb to slide it along and-shhhhhck!  A little 3 inch blade slides out of the tip.  Oops.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    While all of this is going on, Jubilation bends forward, both hands extended towards the gravel pathway of the strolling garden. "Aw jeez, my bad!" she calls out, quite literally while clouds of colorful explosions engulf the phones. She holds that position as the explosions continue to void warranties. "Oh, jeez, what crappy luck!" Snap. Crackle. Pop. "...Oh, darn it....!" Jubilation rises back to an upright position with an eerie grace that all but confirms her supernatural nature. She leaves behind three scorch marks, each with a pile of electronic components in varying states of repair. Ruined.

    Jubilation turns to watch Mando making quick work of the boys. The leader stands frozen, throat quivering against the tip of Mando's umbrella. In an act of solidarity, or perhaps just out of sheer terror, the two sidekicks flank their leader's sides, staring at Mando with a similarly stuck flight-or-fight response. Taking full advantage of the moment, Jubilation steps forward and swipes her composition from its captor's loose grip. "Thank /you/," she sings out sarcastically with a big fangy smile.

    The sharp edge of the blade emerges from the umbrella and gently pokes the footballer in the throat. It's barely more than what might happen if he slipped with his razor, but it's enough to draw Jubilation's attention. "Let's get out of here, boys," he demands, staring at Mando while his friends stare at Jubilee. "This place sucks, anyway!" The three football players back up a few feet and then turn to walk away with some haste. It's a brisk walk at first, but the sound of sneakers scraping against gravel pick up in intensity as they transition to a full-speed run back to their car.

    After watching them run off, Jubilation clutches the composition book against her chest and turns towards Mando. She doesn't say anything. Yet. The yellow straw still dangles from her bottom lip.

Mando has posed:
Mando keeps his cool, but purses his lips and lifts his chin to stare 'down' his nose at the footballer.  He doesn't dare look to the vampire.  Nope.  "Oops," he echos Jubes sentiments for what has become of the boys' phones.  "Looks like you boys are ready for upgrades."  He regrets that.  Less is more, less is more.

"Sorry!  I didn't even know it had a blade!"  Mando sounds so genuine it could be sarcastic.  It isn't till the boys have started running that Mando lowers the umbrella and then shakes out his arm.  "Whew," is exclaimed under his breath...from having to hold out the umbrella so long of course.

"That was a close-" the man begins before turning to see those eyes. and the straw.

"Oh.  You're thirsty," Mando fumbles with the umbrella, finally getting it to retract and reaches out slowly with forefinger and thumb with the intention to pluck the yellow straw and stab it into the pouch before offering it back to her tentatively...after all, he's just a bigger one of these.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Those eyes cross slightly as they watch Mando's hand reach in and pluck the yellow straw from her lip. Jubilation's eyebrows rise, betraying her sudden curiosity. He's alive, sure's sure of it thanks to the thumping inside his chest, but he clearly knows what she is. The tentativeness is obvious, but it's not exactly fear. It's certainly not hatred. It's certainly super weird.

    "I'm...not..." Jubilee protests gently. Still, she takes the pouch and raises the straw to her lips. After taking a quick pull from the straw, Jubilation lowers the bag and smiles abruptly. Every sip of blood to a vampire is like Double Soup Tuesday to kids in an orphanage. It immediately cheers her and the vampire that threatened to make an appearance defers, once again, to Jubilation Lee. "Due for upgrades! Nice!" she gushes, grinning from ear to ear. Mando might be broadcasting regret for it, but Jubilee certainly liked it. She grins at the stranger again before taking another hit from the blood pouch. She glances at it briefly before hesitantly holding it out for Mando to take, should he want some. /Does/ he want some? He's not a vampire, that she's sure of it, but... this is all a little weird, so, anything is possible!

    "Thanks for, like... You know," Jubilee tries. She's not going to come out and /say/ it, just in case this is all just a coincidence, but the situation is pretty damning. It's the middle of the night. She looks like a vampire. She's drinking blood. She has a composition book with her official seal. It says VAMPIRE BUSINESS right on the front.

Mando has posed:
A finger lifts to push his glasses up and then Mando tries to put his weight on the blade to get it to go back into the umbrella...with mild awkwardness.  "Not anymore," he brandishes a shining grin that begins to fade slightly at the offer of the pouch.

Mando certainly does know what Jubilation is, but certainly isn't expecting a vampire to offer him blood, and so that's not how he reads it.  Instead, like a reverse house elf, he realizes this vampire must want him to hold the pouch for her.  He swallows, knowing that to refuse an offer could be his last action, but what of the vampire he left at home?  At the Shadow Manor.

He has no choice, Mando decides, and takes the pouch with a renewed grin, but does not drink from it.  Yep.  Human cupholder.  At least this vampire seems nice.

This vampire seems nice.

The grin is slightly more plastered at the thought of a /nice/ vampire.  The thought chills him to the bone.  "Yeeeah.  No problem...Did you really like my line or were you being sarcastic?"  He risks her ire, but, he needs to know if she's on the verge of a psychotic bloodthirsty episode or not.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "Yeah, hope they got the extended warranties!" Jubilee adds with a grin, even glancing in the direction that the kids ran to. It's an overly lighthearted moment considering that three kids are now running back to their parents insisting they saw whatever they saw. Chubby guy with an umbrella knife. Asian girl writing vampire fan fiction. Who knows?! Jubilation watches Mando with the pouch, watches the blood inside it not being drunk. Watches it still not get drunk. Still. Not. "So, uh, what are you waiting for?" she wonders, giving the idle pouch a vague gesture with her index finger. "Do you not like it or...?"

    She's still not saying what's in there.

    When Mando second-guesses his own quip, Jubilee gives him a 'what are you kidding?!' look. "I really liked it, duh! It was great!" she insists. That's all she says for a solid couple of seconds. "What, uh, brings you out so late?" she tries.

Mando has posed:
"Huh?"  /What/?  She expects-oh.  Is it impolite to refuse?  This feels like a trap.  This vampire is too perky.  Something's wrong.  He lifts the straw to his lips and gives it a tiny suck.  "Mmm wow," nope.  He presses his mouth together at the coppery taste.  It isn't bad.  It's just he hopes he doesn't get eviscerated for stepping over a line, and maybe it's not the first things on his list to do while /still/ human.

"Thanks, but I wouldn't want to put you out a meal."  Sip, sip, pass right?  Mando offers the pouch back to the vampire.  "I was here for an estate sale and I was seeing about the place for a friend."  He isn't really sure what it is for.  Just play it cool Mando.  Play it cool.  He straightens up a little suddenly, a small quirk.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Perhaps the first clue that she's not a complete dope, Jubilation's eyes narrow a little at Mando's explanation about an estate sale chore for a friend. "...A friend," she repeats. Jubilee taps the corner of her mouth a couple of times, as if to communicate that she's trying to remember something. The truth is, she knows nothing of an estate sale.

    "Who?" she asks, her tone suggesting that she's owed an answer. It might be a clue that she's not a member of the local rank and file. It might also just be that she's a nosy American who has no problem with being super forward with a person she just met.

    Jubilation takes the pouch back and frowns at it. She had expected a refusal. Typically, people who knows what she is and have heartbeats still do not drink the blood themselves. Jubilee looks up and stares at Mando. STARES.

Mando has posed:
"Bellatrix LeStrange?" Mando says as if he doesn't really expect her to know.  He shrugs.  "I'm not sure if her ravens are making it...this far.  Some of them have had some colds and a few dropped dead from some kind of bird flu going around.  That's why I'm here.  Well not because of the bird flu, but because she couldn't reach the someone to ask some simple questions."  He falls quiet, sweat beading his brow even in the cool night air.

"If-um, why did you offer me the blood?" Mando knows this vampire could end her and could have ended the high schoolers in a moment if she really wanted to.  He needs to know why she offered if he's going to die in the next two seconds, if he's angered her that much.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Jubilation does, in fact, know Bellatrix. It was a brief meeting and, frankly, that was a long time ago and she was a different vampire back then. "Bella!" Jubilation replies, eyebrows rising with astonishment. Calling her Bella is a clear indicator that Jubes has, in fact, met the Tempest and isn't just recalling the fictional character from the Harry Potter mythos. "Huh. Haven't seen her in, like, forever..." Jubilee's valley girl trappings are on fine display, a stark contrast to what Mando might be used to dealing with. Forever might be the wrong choice of words, considering the timelines that vampires keep, but Jubes is a baby. She doesn't comment on the ravens. After all, she doesn't know about ravens that don't get to her and, presently, her Master of Whispers has been, notably, shitty.

    Mando's question about the blood forces Jubilee's head to tilt towards one shoulder. "...Huh? Like, sharing is caring!" she explains. "Why'd you do the whole knight-in-shining-cotton routine back there?" she asks in return, pointing a finger at Mando's hoodie. The straw returns to her mouth and a healthy sip is had. Jubilation closes her eyes, sighs softly, and reaches up so she can rake her fingers through her hair. It's been a night.

Mando has posed:
"It's just-" Don't push your luck Mando.  "Yeah Bella.  Have you known her long?  You don't seem like her."  Like, doesn't seem to have a permanent stick somewhere no one can find.

"Can I ask who you are?  My name is Armando..."  Mando does have more to his name, but a sudden gust of wind seems to be stubbornly carrying it away, clipping everything out to where it just sounds like 'Mando.  "Well, they were being little punks and-"  He's trying to avoid the topic of...he gestures, taking two fingers and turning them sideways as he tilts his head to pantomime a bite.  "It was the right thing to do.  I mean, you weren't bothering anyone," he says as he lowers his head and pushes his glasses up further on his nose.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "No, I don't think so," Jubilation answers, looking to the side as she considers how long it's been since she met Bella that time. Finally, she shrugs. "Oh, well, that's not shocking since, like, I'm not her," Jubes replies with a fangy grin. If Mando's used to vampires who hide their fangs, this is one who doesn't. "What's Bella doing sending you to Westchester? That's weird!" Is it? Not really. Estate sale, Jubes! When Mando introduces himself, Jubilee squints again. She heard Mando but... wasn't there more? She's not used to missing little noises anymore, but there was just something unremarkable about the first part of what Mando said. Oh well. "Mando, huh?" Jubilation repeats slowly. "Huh. Sounds fake." She shrugs.

    When it's her turn to introduce herself, Jubilation lifts her hand over her head with a limp wrist. She shifts her weight to the opposite hip and poses for maximum effect. A bit of blood drips out of the straw as its turned upside down. "I'm Jubilation Lee. Jubilee if we're sticking to our weird one-name thing. Mando. Jubilee." Jubes lowers her hand and grins a bit.

Mando has posed:
"That's what everyone calls me," Mando says with a sigh and a shrug.  "Jubilee.  Cool.-I don't know.  She wanted me to buy this old inkwell."  He shifts and a satchel is opened as he hefts out an antique emerald colored crystal ink pot with a tarnished silver cap.  It isn't a well, but Jubilee wouldn't know that either.

"I guess I'll find out if I'm right when I get back to the Manor..."  Mando's eyebrows hike momentarily as he leans to turn and then simply pivots back in place.  "Did you say Jubilation Lee?  As in the Duchess of Westchester Jubilation Lee?"  He doesn't have any presents!  Of all the people he should have avoided tonight.  He's in her territory.

Mando straightens his hoodie and swallows.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "Did you say Old Inkwell?" Jubilation replies, doing her absolute best to mimic Mando's excitement without making fun of it. She even does the same turn-pivot move, though hers ends with an extra spin with her arms stretched out in either direction. "I'm just kidding, I don't care about those. I'm more of a Lisa Frank gel pen kind of girl, myself..." She shrugs one shoulder and smiles good-naturedly. "Yep, Jubilation Lee. I'm the sheriff in these here parts," she explains, rocking from side to side with knee-locked legs, pretending to be some kind of old west gunslinger. "...I'm just kidding. You, like, you were right. I'm the Duchess thing. But, like, it's not really a duchy, I'm told, but, like, who cares, right?" Westchester is no mere duchy but local tradition born from ancient ignorance dictates that its figurehead is called a Duke. Or, most recently, a Duchess.

    Maybe it's her own incompetence or, perhaps, Jubilation is heralding a new era of vampire leadership. The Great Vampire Nation of Westchester is her territory, but she approaches it like she's the mayor of a town rather than some kind of liege lady giving out parcels of domain to her vassals. Mando coming by for a visit to score some dusty old inkwell doesn't bother her one bit. Suddenly, Jubilation sets the blood pouch on the bench. She has an idea! "Hey, Mando, could you tell me what you think of this..." she requests, quickly flipping to a page of her composition book. "'Whether you're in search of a quiet retreat or a thrilling adventure, Westchester offers something for every vampire. So, pack your cape and fangs, and come experience the ultimate vampire getaway in Westchester, New York.'" She looks up from the book and watches Mando's reaction.

Mando has posed:
"Right," Mando chuckles awkwardly at Jubilation's sheriff bit.  "-Lisa Frank?"  He interjects himself with a tilt of his head and a press of his lips together.  "Me too, well not a girl but.  They're so much more fun right?  I don't care if they're ripping us off with how much ink is in them."

"Me?  Tell you..." what I think?  Mando actually looks over his shoulder, half expecting someone else to be standing there.  "Oh, um," he clears his throat and his expression remains pursed, his brow drawn together sincerely as he listens.  "Well.  Everyone knows it can be...sleepy around here.  Maybe you need to be more concrete?  Instead of just saying adventure, what specific adventure?  Perhaps there are particularly historical hunting grounds or-" he shrugs.

"Perhaps let vampires know if there are friendly lodgings available for overday stays?"  Mando suggests, sheepishly shrugging.  He can't help himself.  He's friendly to all vampire kind, much to the ire of Bella, no doubt.  "But, you would know best," he adds.  "You live here."

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Blink. Wait. "....They are?" Jubilation questions, staring at Mando for a moment before glancing down at the gel pen tucked in her composition book. Is she being ripped off? Probably.

    When Mando shares his thoughts about her copy text, Jubes looks down at the gravel walkway, focusing just on the the feedback itself. "...Specific.... Yeah, like, that makes sense," she agrees. "Though, it's not like we really have any real adventure... I mean...."

    Jubilee uncaps her pen by biting down on it. "Hold on, hold on, slow down. Overday lodgings.... " Her words come as slow as the letters themselves. "...Good idea!" she exclaims after dotting the i with a heart. Jubes jams the pen back into the cap held by her teeth. "Thanks!"

    "You're pretty good at this!"

Mando has posed:
Ohhh, did he destroy her gel ink innocence.  Mando realizes just how young Jubilation is, and that yes, he probably did.  "I mean aren't they?" he asks with a knowing whisper, his head tucked forward slightly as if someone might hear.

"You're advertising two different things.  Adventure and a quiet retreat.  Without being specific on something, the retreat people, the people that would really enjoy the sleepy vibe, would probably be scared away, thinking it's all wilderness binge drinkers and the binge drinkers who drink on them, right?"  Oh, did he go too far?  His slightly widened eyes are communicating he thinks he has.

"Oh," Mando doesn't expect a lack of criticism.  He's not expecting her to write it down.  "...Yeah...I am?  Thanks."  He keeps waiting for the other shoe to drop.  "You're not like other vampires...I suppose that means you're not looking for a Familiar or anything like that...unless your position came with them?"

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Jubilation squints. She reaches up and yanks the pen out of its mouth-bound cap again. Scribble scribble. Scribble. "Hold on, hold on, Mando," she requests, words slightly muffled by the plastic cap. "Okay, okay, got it..." She looks away, massaging the idea that Mando's suggestions have spurred. "....Okay, so, this year's brochure will be the sleepy vibe... C and B's and all that..." Coffin and Breakfasts. "...Maybe the whole Sleepy Holly thing..." Jubilee looks back at Mando and waggles her eyebrows. "/Next year/ will be the B.S. about adventure!" Pen re-capped.

    "Yeah, you're a natural!" she adds, head bobbing up and down with appreciation. Jubilee tucks the pen under the composition book's cover again.

    There wasn't a Familiar given to her, as the previous administration preferred to keep all of that in-house. How does she explain the Familiar situation without calling attention to what happened to the previous figurehead? What she did to him. "...Oh, uh, no, I don't have one. But, like, everything gets taken care of by my----" Jubilation's excitement fades suddenly, realizing what she's accidentally done to Noriko Ashida. "....Nori..." What's a Nori?

Mando has posed:
"Yeah and that gives you an excuse to sample it all!"  That sounds like so much fun, Mando thinks to himself, even the Coffins and Breakfasts.  "Who knows, you might find out there's more adventure out here than you thought.  Sleepy Hollow I think is what it's called," he adds the last bit deferentially.  "You're too kind.  Really."

"Nori?  Is that like an Asian version of a Familiar or something?"  Mando tilts his head.  "What's wrong?"  Who /is/ this competition?  Why does he care?  Sounds like the position is already filled.  Of course it is.  Mando allows himself a private woe-is-me tiny violin concert.

Oh what he would give to-does the Duchess have to wear formal attire for certain occasions?  Like, legitimate ones?  Balls?  He sighs wistfully at his fantasy.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "Right, right, Hollow. Whatever," she shrugs, her grin betraying her lack of reverence for the whole thing. She was not a good student in life and is hardly better in death.

    Mando's mistake about a Nori being a Japanese familiar earns a sudden course correction. "No!" she exclaims, though her tone is not one of anger. It's just a reaction born from the absurdity of thinking of Noriko as her servant. Though, in some ways, isn't she? Jubilee worries about that for a moment and, unless something changes, likely the rest of the night too. Jubes finds her inner serenity and explains.

    "Nori is my fiance," she explains simply. Her feelings about this mysterious Nori are absolutely obvious, as each new word in that sentence seems to add to that lovey-dovey expression plastered on her face. As fun as it might be to linger there, Jubes composes herself so she can set the record straight.

    "Nori is not a Familiar," she states plainly, though there's some worry there. Noriko Ashida is not her Familiar, but if she was to describe everything Noriko does for her, it would be easy to mistake her for a Familiar This haunts Jubilee to her core.

Mando has posed:
"Oh...well, some people might consider her one or think she's one."  Mando has /so many questions/, like does she drink your blood?  Does she only do errands you can't do during the day?  So many...wholly inappropriate questions about to bust at the seams.

"Congratulations!" Mando says with a kind of shining exuberance.  "You know, if you need someone to take over some of those Familiar things, now that you've transitioned, I can always come over, lend a hand.  That way maybe the lines won't be so blurry, and you two can spend more time together."  Time.  What Jubilation will have with Noriko will be a blink of an eye to her, and he knows that, since it sounds like Noriko is a human.  At the very least, he knows she isn't a vampire.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Jubilation frowns at that. "...No, no one thinks she's a Familiar," she insists. Maybe. Probably. Jubilation watches Mando struggling to contain all of this, rocking back and forth on the balls of her feet, waiting. This is like an excited dog that just needs to get it out of its system.

    "There's nothing to take over, Mando, since she's not a Familiar," Jubilee reminds, stubborn about this little detail. After the sales pitch, Jubes frowns. She seems suspicious.

    "Why do you want to want to do that?" she asks, clearly not finding the role of Familiar to be one that a person would want to aspire towards.

Mando has posed:
"Right, she's not a Familiar," Mando continues to accept this fact and continues to explain, "I just don't think others-"  He's struggling just to put this in a way that won't continue to pick that this proverbial wound he's started, or found.

"Oh, well.  The whole idea is that a Familiar works for some amount of time with the idea that eventually the vampire would make them a vampire.  Like an exchange.  Helps vampires co-exist more easily and peacefully."  He may have added that last part based on personal opinion, but he presents it like a humble librarian.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Jubilation stares at Mando. Stares. STARES. She's just in utter disbelief. There's a long, uncomfortable silence that she eventually breaks with a single word. "....What?" Though she might be a duchess, no one ever said Jubilee acts like one.

    "That's stupid. Why.... Why would you /want/ to be a vampire?" she demands. It just doesn't compute for Jubilee. It makes no sense to her. She doesn't bother explaining the waking nightmare that is the danse macabre of modern vampire living.

Mando has posed:
"Immortality?  The ability to move really fast?  Special powers?  It's the only sure way to that.  I mean unless you want to take a chance dumping yourself in a vat of chemicals.  Vampires are cool and have been around for ages."  Oh Mando might as well be glowing.

"Look.  Some people's lives kinda...well they kinda suck.  And it's like, would I rather work at Panera Bread?  Or be a vampire?  I mean sure it's messy, and sometimes violent, but it's also kind of...well, exciting."  He sounds like a retiree getting away for the weekend to play golf.  Something that makes him feel young in his prematurely musty trappings.

But then Mando realizes that Jubilee said it was stupid.  He looks down.  "I guess you'll never get a Familiar then...if you think they're stupid," he mumbles.  "It's cool.  It's not for everyone," he says and then starts to turn to walk off into the night.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Mando earns himself a roll of Jubilee's pastel-accented eyes. "Yeah, and, like, you can't chew gum anymore. Dogs hate you. Say goodbye to selfies. And every time you go into a Hot Topic, they think you're the manager. Oh, and like, I guess also..."

    Suddenly, Jubilation comes around an impossible corner, now standing in /front/ of the retreating Mando, taking his attempt at reverse psychology head-on. How did she do that? Vampire creepiness. "Everyone you've ever known and loved hating you for no reason, suspicious of everything you do even though you didn't mean to kill that horse, and the knowledge that the time you're going to spend with the love of your life will amount to be a microscopic droplet in an unending ocean of time!" Everything Mando might expect from a vampire is on display -- the sudden ferocity, the subtle trappings of a monster, all of it staring him right in his chubby face.

    "What makes you think that I'd /ever/ subject someone to /that/?!" she shouts, blocking Mando's path back to the parking lot. And then, the horrible truth becomes all too clear to Jubilation. Some other vampire probably will.

    The subtle shifting of perspectives that Jubilation's supernatural nature can cause starts to normalize. The larger-than-life horror subsides to just Jubilation's normal larger-than-life nature. Totally un-scary. She realizes that in order to save Mando from this cruel fate, she'd have to tell a little fib.

    ...

    Jubilation glances away, pretending to consider something. "...You passed the test," she lies.

Mando has posed:
"Well maybe they don't have all of that to begin with," Mando says simply.  Yeah maybe dogs already hate them, they don't have the love of their life, they don't know any horses, never took a selfie before, haven't set foot into Hot Topic in their life, could take or leave gum.  He wants to ask, and?

"Sounds like you have a lot of stuff you have to deal with."  With each word, he seems smaller, less of a threat, nothing more than a mumbling in the face of Jubilation's ferocity.  He knows she'll never go for it now, so he starts to walk off again, hoping she'll let him live long enough to get back to the Manor.

"Huh?"  Mando looks over his shoulder.  His eyes are hopefully wide behind his spectacles.  "Was that an interview?"

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    That didn't feel right. Jubilation has always kept the united front on what it's like to be a vampire. It's great. Nothing's better than this! We're part of the natural order. We're the superior creature and the Earth belongs to us. She has always kept the lie going and never slipped that it's actually really horrible and that someone would have to be really stupid to want it for themselves. Really, really stupid, she thinks, while staring at Mando.

    "Yeah, like, we can't just let anyone in," she lies. "Not everyone can handle the exciting, unending adventure that is being a vampire's Familiar. I had to make sure you wouldn't buckle under the pressure. You got moxie, kid. You got spunk."

    Moxie. Spunk. Those are the two old timey words Jubilation remembers from television. Vampires watch a lot of Nick At Night and she remembers that Mary Tyler Moore's boss said she had spunk and that, as it happens, he hated spunk.

    "Okay, like, uh, bend the knee," she says, bending and unbending her index finger towards the gravel path beneath them. She also watches Game of Thrones.

Mando has posed:
"Oh."  Cool kids club, Mando thinks.  Maybe this is what it's like to be around a vampire made sooner.  "Moxie?"  He doesn't know that word.  "Spunk?"  Yeah he's heard /that/ word.  But Mando doesn't press.  He's used to archaic culture, just not this kind of archaic culture.

Mando squints a little and then shrugs before he kneels down on the gravel path.  Hopefully this isn't a setup for a decapitation achievement or something.  "Right here?"  The gravel grinds into his knees.  Worth it.

Mando has already proved he's smart enough to help polish up Jubilation's brochure, but he certainly seems foolish for a mortal.  The odd ability to house two attributes that are usually at odds with each other with such harmony is...well it can be disconcerting to some, but it is quite valuable.  He bows his head slightly, expecting that to be a part of the ritual.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    This might just be a perfect pairing, considering that Jubilation was foolish as a mortal, too. Plus, she's foolish as a vampire. Basically, whatever she is, she's the foolish version of that. The next thing that Mando feels is the gentle tap of a plastic Lisa Frank gel pen unicorn topper against each of his shoulders. "Okay, uh, /rise/, Mando the Familiar," she announces.

    Jubilation looks away as she says it, conflicted. On one hand, she's saving Mando from a fate worse than death. On the other hand, she lied to him. Not only does she have no intention of ever turning him into a vampire, she also has no clue how to do it. Mando also probably assumes he's getting hitched to a vampire of some reknown. While she's the Duchess of Westchester, Jubilation might be the worst vampire /in/ Westchester. Her fangs aren't visible because she's trying to make a statement. She forgot how to retract them. She can't even turn into a bat properly. Mando is, in some ways, no better than a homeless person's dog.

    "Okay, okay, get up. The Familiar of Westchester kneels for no one," she fake-scolds. She also just made up a new title out of thin air.

Mando has posed:
Mando can't help but smile a little when he hefts up to his feet.  "I can't believe it's-" but he shuts himself up.  That's unprofessional.  He's a Familiar now, a real Familiar and no one can do anything about it.  Step one, complete.

Mando brushes off his knees, none the wiser in terms of who he just hitched his wagon to or the inherent deceit Jubilation now has to shoulder.

"Noted.  Is there a dress code?  For court and the like?  I assume you hold it," though he hasn't heard and each vampire to their own right?  "Any ground rules?  Do you have a cellular phone or anything?"  He doesn't want her thinking he means a battery cell, so he uses the full name.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Mando's stuffiness has already gotten on Jubilee's nerves. "Relax, Mando, relax," she tries. "Just, you know, go with the flow. Wear what you want." Jubilation is, in fact, heralding a new era of vampiredom, though it might spell the death of her. Who knows!? The question about her 'cellular telephone' gets a knee-jerk disgusted reaction, but she does nod. "Gimme yours," she suggests, holding her hand out to take it from him if offered. She'd then key in her phone number and send a message to herself with it. Jubilee would make a point to send a proper text later on in the evening: a bat emoji and a firework emoji. Mando will learn soon enough what that means.

    "Look, I gotta get home. There's someone I wanna snuggle up with and, no offense, it's not you," she jokes. She lowers her eyes and forces her brain to invent some Familiar busywork for poor Mando. "So. Your homework... To prove your loyalty..." She thinks about it. This could be a moment for cruelty. Something that might seem familiar to the poor guy. But, that's not what happens. "...Please take a trip to Coney Island. Ride the Cyclone a bunch of times until you know which row is your favorite. It's very important."

Mando has posed:
"Cool.  Yeah."  Mando nods and puts his hands in his pockets.  "Alright."  Yeah.  Mando's going to need a little time to relax even as a human clearly.  He can tell that he's not getting off on the right foot.  That disgust.  He's familiar with getting on people's nerves when they are forced to acknowledge him.  It is actually what feels the most familiar about the entire situation.

Mando hands over his cell phone.  It's nothing super fancy and the screen is sporting a spidery break that threatens to take over the whole screen with each press.  It's inevitable.  "Alright.  One sec."  He writes it down on a little memo pad. 'Coney Island.  Favorite row of the Cyclone.'  "Got it."  He may be hiding a little disappointment at his homework having nothing to do with taking on new responsibilities, but this is what Jubilee wants.  "Bye bye."  He says with a little wiggle of his fingers before he nearly skips off into the night.  He at least waits till he's around a corner.