15867/Chasing the Odds

Chasing the Odds
Date of Scene:	16 September 2023
Location:	The Victorian Restaurant - Hellfire Club
Synopsis:	Trouble!
Cast of Characters:	Felicia Hardy, Jennifer Stavros, Mary Jane Watson

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Felicia Hardy has posed:
Friday nights should never be dull. Membership at the Hellfire Club ensures that they at least promise drinks and good meals, even if the company doesn't measure up. Tedious conversations among men older than her father is the norm for seating at the bar. So is smiling prettily while celebrities posture and angle for invitations.

Felicia is actually quite good at it, more than a little. Wearing a scarlet inkspill of a dress propositions wandering eyes, the glamorous snow-white waves evoking hints of Marilyn, Hedy, Jean, and other starlets. A glass of wine dangles from her fingers, something to pair with the chef's choice of hors d'oeuvres. In this case, thinly sliced scallop dances around a wheel of brown butter dashi, a disk of translucent elegance that adorns a pretty little plate. The Bollinger champagne is hardly anything to fuss over, fizzy and French, the expense enough to pop sparkles on her tongue. Perfectly to accept for casing the place and its guests, marks or fools all.

For a reason not to be dull.

Of course, with the huge waitlist on reservations, it's her gilded luck that assures she can secure a table for two at all. Or perhaps she has standing reservations every other Friday through the autumn. Also plausible.

"Darling, I simply cannot endure another sip of this." She drops the flute onto the table, pushing it toward a server that all but manifests from the corner. "Let's insist on a better pairing." /Savage/.

Jennifer Stavros has posed:
Oddly enough for someone as conscious of her appearance as Jennifer, she adores letting Felicia receive all the attention. Old men are not her gig. Still her long blonde hair, perfectly coiffed to look carefree, shines in the low lights at the bar. As luck would have it, she scored a cocktail dress for nothing at Bergman's. She looks poured into the silver strapless sheath covered in shimmering beads. Her long crossed legs receive more admiring glances than she acknowledges. She has practiced being blaise among the superrich.

As much as she would like to pretend sophistication, her vivid blue eyes sparkle with excitement. The food is divine and the champagne, too. Leave it to Felicia to make the wait staff snap to it and bring them something better.

Felicia Hardy has posed:
The slinky number hangs suspended from Felicia's raised shoulders, a confection of geometric straps sliding into that burgundy number that sweeps and curves almost to the ground. All the better for lounging on bars or leaning with ideal effect upon the table, rather than sitting there stock upright and deeply uncomfortable. Such things would signal to everyone else she is prey, not a predator, or a fine laughingstock.

Jennifer being as comfortable as she seems to do quite well with making the evening roll along well. Even if the Grand Annee proves completely insufficient for her tastes. She reaches for the fork and takes a morsel of the scallop up to her lips, eyes half-closed in overt amusement. Blase attitude from the blonde, and feline pleasure from the white-haired one.

"Red? White? Trust the chef again?"

Jennifer Stavros has posed:
Jennifer's blue eyes lid as she throws Felicia a sidelong look, wondering who the woman is stalking tonight. Lounging against the bar, she watches the room reflected in the bar's polished mirror, trying to pick out who she might have in her sights. Hopefully someone with diamonds on their shoes, escorting a man under thirty. A girl's got to have fun.

After finishing her plate of scallops and pushing it to the side, she drinks the rest of her champagne despite Felicia's hypercritical tastes. Despite her gift, she ascribes to waste not, want not.

Mary Jane Watson has posed:
Mary Jane Watson would head in with a click in oversized heels, wearing a green cocktail dress. She had been at an event as 'arm candy' for a politician that SHIELD suspected was on the 'take'. So, after three hours of playing pretty when the man had been trying to play pattycake with her, she had finally gotten off right as the politician had been made to 'vanish' as soon as he went out the front door to an event which would lead to some interesting news articles on the morrow.

Looking dead to the world, she would let out a groan and crack her knuckles. Eyes would flit about and settle about with a glance and then see Felicia. A familiar'ish face at least. Mary Jane would give a toodle-loo with her fingers in a request to come and join her.

Felicia Hardy has posed:
Ample marks to be interested in. The press agent and his preferred partner to round up gossip in a corner, a pair of Spanish millionaires biding their time before returning to Barcelona for some round of European acquisitions. Fancy cufflinks, very shiny. Some nepo baby star trying to get attention, the bored musician with him casing her phone. Take one's pick.

Felicia makes a mock pout for Jennifer. She glances past the server and waits for his return with a libation more to her tastes, or whatever the second tasting round might pass for. Probably another seafood garnish; there's a theme of delicately prepared scallops, nearly raw; a slice of oyster on a chive-dusted cracker, blinis featuring roe purportedly sturgeon, possibly Atlantean. Who knows? She taps her finger, and drawls, "Are you not finding anything to your liking?" The amused sound deepens, drawn out, lilting and blithe. "It could be worse, we could be at a press conference. No fun there."

Her perusal makes it easy for her to spot others -- say, MJ. Alerted to the incoming redhead, she doesn't stop smiling.

Jennifer Stavros has posed:
Tracking Felicia's gaze, Jennifer marks the marks in the room, lingering on the baby star, nepo or not, he's cute and she just wants to have fun. Hey! at least she has heard his music. She stares long enough for him to look up at her, then looks away, in time to see MJ heading their way. MJ merits a smile and a finger toodle.

Mary Jane Watson has posed:
Felicia is a known entity. Jennifer's not one she recognizes. Jennifer doesn't look like a mark that Felicia's playing, so maybe an associate? Mary Jane makes a couple of assumptions as she goes to slide in a seat at the table. "Hey, good to see you. Been ages." She leaves this open ended - Felicia may not have given her name to Jennifer, and it would be rude for MJ to spoil things if the Cat was in the middle of a setup.

Going to rub at her shoulders, "And first time I've been here, anything you would recommend?" This would cost like a month of her living allowance, but she was exhausted and having some actual fine dining for a change over cafeteria food and vendor carts would make for a nice change o fpace.

Felicia Hardy has posed:
Pearly brows sculpt a curious arch and the pleasantries bound to ensue as a calculated dance of introductions are withheld for only a moment. This one. For the sheer amusement of seeing what comes to pass, at any rate.

Two glasses brought for Jennifer and Felicia amount to a delicate testament for French ingenuity, a properly exquisite presentation of a Tibourin rose blend from the Cotes de Provence, besmirched by the faintest undertones of grenache woven through the underbelly of flower petals, red currants, and a satisfactory cherry bite to overcome the latent sweetness with a tart note. Something to properly savour, staining the full lips with. "Oh, a little of this, a little of that. We're being wicked and salty." Joking around the small plates coming and going across the table, at least.

"Tasting menu. The choices aren't up to us. Do you prefer living on your luck or with what they lay out? I'm sure there must be a regular menu somewhere," she adds for MJ's benefit, spreading her hands.

Jennifer Stavros has posed:
"Oh, we are lucky tonight," Jennifer adds, sizing MJ up. "I really like the tasting menu. Though sometimes I want seconds. I mean, tiny is chic, right? But not always," she adds with a smirk, then twirls the new glass of wine admiring the glints of pink and gold.

Leaning toward Felicia, "What do you think of him?" She indicates the rising star and his date with a subtle nod across the room. "Think she is into him or just out to be caught by the photogs?"

Mary Jane Watson has posed:
Mary Jane Watson would muse over to herself, "Well, I can't say that I feel particularly lucky.. So can I borrow some from you then? I'll give it back.. Maybe." Teasing over and skimming over things. "I don't think I'd have the slightest idea what many of these are. I'm alas not a particularly cultured girl. So I'll put my fate in your finicky fingers then." Amused as she would close her eyes to appreciate the scent of the wine.

"Also, randomly did have something for you. I got it ages ago, just haven't had the opportunity to give it over." She goes to reach her other hand down into her purse to take out a small package and a partially crushed box from having been in purse too long to offer it over to Felicia.

Then looking over at the man, evaluating him for a moment as Jennifer gestured over at him. Seeing if he rang any bells in her head from her very, very, very minor acting jobs. "Take it you're not allowed to actually check his pictures on the Internet?" There were rules after all to it.