2656/A Vampire and a Mutant Walk Out Of A Club One Night....
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
| A Vampire and a Mutant Walk Out Of A Club One Night.... | |
|---|---|
| Date of Scene: | 28 July 2020 |
| Location: | Good Room Club, Brooklyn, NY |
| Synopsis: | Nicole and Ariah meet at the Good Room. There is music and a moment. |
| Cast of Characters: | Ariah Olivie, Nicole Adams
|
- Ariah Olivie has posed:
After the events that had occured in the astral, in worlds between the world, things in New York City feel... just a little bit brighter. The soul of the city, literally and figuratively, is healing. People are feeling more upbeat, and on a late summer night, people are up having a good time well into hours past dark. The Good Room is packed, and an advertisement for an open mic night has been sent out between social media and stapled to posts. Music filters out onto the streets, local bands offering their talents for those who wish to sing, while others will find solace in the offerings of the digital MixMaster2000 if they just want to sing something in the canned list.
Waiting for her turn, or perhaps taking her time to sip some liquid courage, a short woman with white hair that seems to wander around these venues is sitting and drinking something colorful. Ariah watches the current act with dull grey eyes, though there's a flicker of a smile tugging at the corner of her lips before taking a long draw from her beverage. Almost time.
- Nicole Adams has posed:
It was a look Nicole had seen many a time before on open mic nights. There was always at least one that needed a long pull of liquid courage to go on stage. After making what must surely have been the hundredth mojito that night, she turns her peridot gaze towards the snowy-haired woman. That in of itself was striking. Very few dared to display even the smallest speck of snow on the rooftop, let alone an entire head full. Still, it was rather striking.
"You'll be fine," she says to the woman with eyes of silver hue. Her lips tug upwards in a smile, one that in recent days seems to appear a bit more often than not. She's dressed in a crisp, white button-down blouse, long straight-legged black slacks, and black wedge sandals. Her hair is caught up in a simple ponytail, enough to keep it off of her neck in the warmth of summer.
- Ariah Olivie has posed:
For Ariah, it's a Tokyo Tea. A nice, sweet bright green concoction. It's almost empty. The shorter woman blinks owlishly at the pretty bartender, looking between her and her glass then back up. "It is... not my first rodeo, oui?" she says in cold, clear tones, thickly accented in French. "This is, however, a new venue for me to visit..." the girl explains, ghost of a smile tugging at the edges of her mouth.
She's wearing attire fitting for a night out, herself. A corset top with shoulder straps, leaving her arms completely bare, with a long flowing skirt over some sensible shoes. The corset is in black and blood red while the skirt itself is as stark white as her hair.
She glances up as the current act finishes, the crowd, or at least the ones paying the most attention, give a rousing cheer for the group.
- Nicole Adams has posed:
"Ah. Je suis désolée, madamoiselle." Nicole smiled warmly at the woman, dipping her head briefly. "You didn't seem familiar. Think I'd have remembered seeing you before." As she swipes a soft white cloth across the top of the bar, clearing away bits of debris and junk that tend to accumulate over a raucous evening, she takes a moment for a brief, if thorough, visual appraisal of the erstwhile songstress. "Especially someone with such a striking fashion sense."
- Ariah Olivie has posed:
There's a surprised look from the diminutive woman, and she blinks at the phrase. Her ghost of a smile grows into a partial smile now. <<No need to apologize,>> she speaks in her mother tongue, fluent and easy as one who had grown up speaking it would. She finishes her drink and stands up straight, pausing as she feels the appraising gase. "Merci," she nods, letting the bartender get as much a look as she wants. "<<I will return after I am done. I hope you will enjoy, yes?>>
Her voice is so soft, though. It's a winter breeze, cutting and cold, measured and spoken just loud enough to be heard over the din of the crowd. And then she sees the signal and moves towards the stage, taking her place and standing with the mic. She stands stock still, eyes closed, one hand gripping the stand as someone working live synths on a keybord works in tandem with a drummer to get things started. The short, white-haired girl doesn't look nervous, but she doesn't look like much at all. If not for that striking hair and attire one could almost forget she's even there on stage.
- Nicole Adams has posed:
While Nicole's command of French is perhaps a little less fluent, she does at least attempt to reply in the language. <<De rien. I'm sure I will enjoy your music.>> Her accent is not that of one who claims the language as their mother tongue, yet her pronunciation is at least acceptable, and understandable. <<Bonne chance!>>
Now, how could a voice so soft cut through the din of the room, she wondered to herself. If just a few soft-spoken words, yet they were clear as day, as if spoken in an empty room. This one would likely not need a mic to be heard. When Ariah finally took the stage, thankfully the area around the bar had fewer customers, leaving Nicole a rare few minutes to watch and admire the performance to come.
- Ariah Olivie has posed:
Several seconds pass, the tempo of the music being set, and then there's a sharp snap as the drummer hits the cue and Ariah's eyes open. She sings, clear and bright, that cold, quiet voice given way to something that rises thoroughly thanks to the microphone. "When I look up at the sky, what meets my eyes? Can I just stand by while the world dies?" There's a little bit of backing echo that follows her as she sings, though her gaze is distant and not looking at anyone or anything in particular, as if she's seeing through the crowd.
"A starship idling nearby, is it my time? I crawl inside and turn the cockpit clockwise, towards the sunrise..." she brings her eyes back to the here and now, meeting the gaze of everyone that might be watching her directly, each in turn. "I hear a voice in the back of my head, screaming 'this is suicide, did you hear what I said?' But then it fades into nothing with the rest of the light and sound...." the music is down to a simple beat with a thrum of bass, as if to emphasize her words.
"I'm on my way out..." she lifts her arms as the band rises with her, "Lift off! The firestorm ignites, last thoughts of a life by candlelight, inside this speeding sattelite!"
- Nicole Adams has posed:
Nicole grins from one ear to the other, her fingertips beginning to drum out a rapid triplet cadence right along with the musicians on stage, the golden-haired barkeep leaning forward to better take in the performance. This was one rare instance where she wished she was not on duty--how could this woman have possibly known it was one of her favorite music videos? Like so many others in the audience, she finds herself drawn into the music, singing along with some of the words....
"Halfway between the black and gray
Is no place for a life to waste away
I'll take the road with all the stakes...."
- Ariah Olivie has posed:
The rhythm is delightfully easy to keep up with, especially for a fan of the song. The drums have a synthy distortion to them, and the guitarist on the stage takes his cues and wails when the time is right. Ariah herself, for one who was so cool and calm, is smiling up here, too. Her eyes catch Nicole's lips moving, meeting eyes for a moment, showing her that smile before it's her turn to trade words while the band's tempo eases for the next portion of the song.
"Today.... so many moons away.... I safely say..." that echo follows her voice again as she sways with the tune, holding the stand in both hands. "We stand as one, a bond beyond the vast wave, until the last grave..." Her gaze turns intense again as the words trail off, and she leans forward, the stand having had to be shortened to fit her stature.
She curls the fingers of one hand into a fist and pulls it to her chest, "The mission orders typed and lights up our screens, ignition flights, a thousand minds move simultaneously. Into the night a fleet of firelight engines scream, turn the key..." and up goes that arm, eyes on Nicole again. "This is my destiny!"
She reaches towards the roof, something in her arms starting to glow. Runes etched under her skin, in her bones, ignite in a bright blue-white, bathing her limbs in that shine as she sings. "Last flight! I'd gladly give my life for one night as a justice acolyte! Light shines only for the blind!" She pulls her arms down, wrapping herself in them, the curtain of light starting to dim. "Escape the endless dream of space: black seas that I can't navigate... Locate the great Starlight Brigade..." her eyes go downcast and the band picks up the slack as a wail of guitar echoes out.
- Nicole Adams has posed:
Okay, now /that/ was decidedly unusual. Runes, check. Tattoos, check. But tattoos flaring to life in lines of scintillating light like that of a new-born star, from flesh and bone? Either that was a masterful special effect, or Nicole was witness to something else entirely. But was anyone else seeing it? She glanced about quickly at the rest of the audience, who seemed to be enthralled with the music. Was she seeing things?
Still, the music was too powerful to ignore. Oh, this singer was good. She was very good. With an arched brow now accompanying her smile, Nicole joins in along with others of the audience, at least for a few lines of the thrilling song.
"We have come so far
Beyond the most distant star
Starlight within will guide us to the other side...."
Hers was but one voice of several, and likely lost among the pounding drums and the wail of the guitar, the perfectly distorted synth and the cheering of the crowd, but it didn't matter, at least for one moment. The music was all that mattered.
- Ariah Olivie has posed:
It's not even tattoos. The marks aren't on her skin, and it's coming from beneath, shining through muscle and flesh. Everyone's seeing it, but with all of the wild stuff going on in New York recently, one might be hard pressed to be weirded out by it. Even if there's anti-mutant agitators in the crowd, the energy of the vast, vocal majority is far too positive for someone to act on right here, right now. Right?
Ariah is silent, letting the other voices be heard, but she's still got a smile aimed at Nicole. The band works with the crowd, vocoders adding a robotic buzz to the lyrics as the enthralling witch sways to the music. Then the guitar rises, solo rolling like a wave that crashes at its peak and Ariah stands straight and as tall as she can, thrusting an arm skyward. The runes blaze brighty again, wreathing her arm in blue-white light.
"Lift off! The firestorm ignites! Last thoughts of a life by candlelight! Inside this speeding satellite.... Halfway between the black and gray is no place for a life to waste away! I'll take the road with all the stakes..." The guitarist with the vocoder gladly hams it up as he adds his part, (Starlight Brigade!)
"Black knights and dark side battlecries all die once they're in my line of sight..." Ariah pulls her hand back, flat and pressed to her chest, the inner glow pulsing not with the music, but her pounding heart. "This fight is all I know that's right..." (Whoa yeah!)
"No fate but that of which we make, noble as the oath we undertake..." she seems to be speaking directly to the crowd now, her smile radiant. The quiet, drink-cradling seemingly wallflower, or the silent woman waiting for the music to start is shining as bright as the magic carved into her bones. As if she can set herself free on stage. She snatches the mic from its cradle as the song reaches its peak, and holds it up towards the crowd.
"We are--....!" and she lets everyone finish.
- Nicole Adams has posed:
"...the great Starlight Brigade!"
Right along with everyone else, Nicole's voice rings out clear. The bottles and glasses in her immediate vicinity shimmy and shake, but one might possibly chalk that up to the sheer volume of the music. Her smile echoes Ariah's, as her applause joins the rest. There had been many a good performer on open mic nights during her time as barkeep at the Good Room, but this one would stand out and be the topic of conversation for some time to come, of that she was certain.
Curiosity about the markings of light would perhaps have to wait for another time. Who really cared about it in the moment, indeed? There were better things to do, such as surf the wave of positive energy rolling through the club, picking up speed and force like a tsunami preparing to break on shore.
There were worse things, for sure!
- Ariah Olivie has posed:
The mic is put back on the stand, and Ariah gives a deep bow with both arms behind her back. The band plays out the rest of the song, and it ends how it started. The keybord synthist does a rapid series of low notes, dooting the song to its end. And just like that, the lights in the witch's arms are extinguished, but she can't keep herself from smiling. A gesture to the rest of the band, hands shaken, before she's making her way back to the bar, and Nicole.
"Victories should be celebrated, non?" she asks as she retakes her seat, potentially through a sea of pats on the shoulder and loud cheers. "....another Tokyo Tea, s'il vous plaît?"
- Nicole Adams has posed:
"A song like that, call the tea on me, madamoiselle." Nicole grins at Ariah as she turns about to get a highball glass and plop a few ice cubes into it with a soft, delightful little -clink- each time, each bit of frozen water held in glistening perfection within the glass. Vodka, gin, tequila, rum, triple sec, and melon liqueur in equal parts are added to the glass and stirred, finished with a healthy splash of soda water. A slice of lemon and a bright red marischino cherry top it all off, the drink colorful and effervescent, much like its intended recipient.
"Where'd you learn to sing like that?" she asks, as she slides the drink over to Ariah. "You were amazing!"
- Ariah Olivie has posed:
"Oh...? Merci..." Ariah says gently when the blonde tender says the drink is on her. She watches the woman mix, leaning against the counter. She's about as enthralled with the mixing process as the crowd had been with the music, truth be told. Though it could be equal parts the mixing itself and the woman making the drink. She takes the glass gratefully, and there might be a hint of a blush to her cheeks. Just a tiny shade of pink. Another act seems to be getting on stage, the music rising in the background now.
But Ariah, her attention is on Nicole. "Ah... classicly studied... now it is a hobby..."
- Nicole Adams has posed:
"Pas de quoi," Nicole replies, smiling. It's prime time at the club, with open mic night long since underway, and closing time not yet to come for a couple hours. So the drink orders are still coming fast and furious, in a seeming flurry of requests for this bit of liquid courage or that, forgetfulness in a glass, or celebration in a cup. Somehow, the blonde barkeep manages to keep up with them all, even occasionally balancing upon one fingertip a very thin slice of lemon or orange to garnish one drink or other.
But that should not be possible. And those slices of citrus should definitely -not- be twirling about slowly. But, the customers didn't seem to really care, not tonight. Not with all the good vibes in the Good Room.
By the time Nicole is able to focus her attention once again on Ariah, she's managed to clear out some of the patrons with drinks of their own, leaving a few moments of breathing room. "There could be worse hobbies than music," she replies. "I sing a little, and I've loved playing piano since I was a kid."
- Ariah Olivie has posed:
For her part, Ariah stays in her spot. For her size and the drinks she's had, she doesn't at all seem wobbly. Her speech is still perfect, albeit her English it tinted with her accent quite thickly. But she stays there, and she watches Nicole work. The odd tricks here or there don't seem to go unnoticed, but they aren't called out either. Especially not by the witch who had given the entire place a laser light show worthy of TWRP and Dan Avidan.
When Nicole is able to talk though, Ariah listens, and she takes in her words, nodding slowly. "Ah... piano? I play violin. There is a cafe... if you are the sort to do..." she gestures to the stage. "...public things? Violin and piano make.... such magnificent music together."
- Nicole Adams has posed:
"They do," Nicole agrees, bobbing her head in assent. The motion sets her honey-gold tresses to rippling and shimmering in the ambient lights of the club. "Don't suppose you know the theme song for Mononoke Hime...?" Well, at least if Ariah was starting to put two and two together, she had the grace to keep it to herself. "Club closes at 4. When's this cafe open that you're talking about? Maybe we could check it out when I'm off-duty."
- Ariah Olivie has posed:
Ariah's hair is too short to really bounce, so she's rather fixated on Nicole's golden locks when they move and shimmer. So much warmth compared to Ariah's chill. Even with all that radiance on stage, she seems to have shifted back towards a more withdrawn air. At least, with others around them. Her attention on the bartender is rapt, and she nods an affirmitive. "Ah... the last time I was at the cafe, the pianist and I performed a medley of Ghibli's works... his animations are joyful and his music uplifting...." she says quietly, then takes another sip of her third or fourth or fifth Tokyo Tea by now. She certainly has the money to pay for it. At least, her credit card is good. "I...do not recall when it opens or closes... I have only been there in the evening.... but they are open every day."
- Nicole Adams has posed:
"That one is such a haunting tune, though. And even more so when you hear the English translation." It wasn't very often that Nicole came out singing on her own--indeed, most of the patrons could probably count on one hand the number of times they've heard her sing at all--but this time, something about Ariah drew the music right out of her.
"In the moonlight I felt your heart
Quiver like a bow string's pulse
In the moon's pale light you looked at me
Nobody knows your heart
When the sun has gone I see you
Beautiful and haunting but cold
Like the blade of a knife so sharp, so sweet
Nobody knows your heart...."
High and clear, yet soft enough to be almost drowned out by the din of the club, the honey-haired barkeep continues to sing, not missing a single beat as she wipes down some glasses to stack back on the counter behind her, and some in the hanging rack encircling the air above the bar itself.
"All of your sorrow, grief, and pain
Locked away in the forest of the night
Your secret heart belongs to the world
Of the things that sigh in the dark
Of the things that cry in the dark...."
- Ariah Olivie has posed:
It's not often that Ariah is taken aback. Almost never, in fact. The things she's seen and done. But Nicole. Nicole's voice. And then the words. She stares, near-empty glass in hand, listening. Listening intently, really. She hangs on to those words, lips pursed. She focuses her hearing, drowning out the club to a dull roar, the bartender's voice being what she hears the brightest and the loudest.
"...had I not already known the words, I would almost presume to say that you were singing that song to me personally..." she says, revealing a little more of herself. She is rather icy, generally, and perhaps she can be a little haunting. Her heart only coming out when she's singing.
- Nicole Adams has posed:
"Maybe we both know a little bit about being cold, about holding back," Nicole replies, her smile turning perhaps just a tiny bit sheepish. "You know, all this, and I've never even told you my name. It's Nicole Adams." She reaches out with one hand, her slender fingers hiding a surprising strength for their delicate appearance, the tips of her fingers slightly needle-pricked and rough. "Glad to meet you, miss....?"
- Ariah Olivie has posed:
"Olivie..." the witch takes the hand. Her skin is... flawless. It's unnatural how her hands feel, especially with the strength hiding in them as she gives a squeeze. "Ariah Olivite..." she introduces herself finally, in return. "Ravi de vous rencontrer, mademoiselle," she says on reflex, bowing her head politely.
- Nicole Adams has posed:
"Tout le plaisir est pour moi, madamoiselle," comes the reply, Nicole bowing her head in turn. The cool touch of Ariah's hand sends a light shiver down the barkeep's spine, yet she does not draw her own hand away for some moments. "I have to tend to my duties here, but when my shift is over, perhaps we could find somewhere to get a bit to eat, or something like that? If you like, I could give you my number, in case we lose track of each other."
- Ariah Olivie has posed:
Ariah flushes just a tiny bit, still rather off-balance from everything just yet. The hint of pink might've been at the mention of 'bite' but she doesn't elaborate on her reaction. "I prefer the night," she says quietly, leaving hands touching until Nicole actually pulls away. She's not... super cold. Maybe it was the drink glass she'd been holding. Or maybe she forgot that she's supposed to at least pretend to be warm and alive, but she'd basically temporarily lost herself. Not a normal thing for the little witch. "...and I have nowhere else to be. If you and your employers do not mind, I can stay here until you are ready to depart. I have had my fun," she nods to the stage. "...and I wish to stay in your company."
- Nicole Adams has posed:
The rest of the night passes with snippets of conversation eked out from the time taken by Nicole's job at the bar. But soon enough, the Good Room closes down for the night. Glasses are cleaned and put away, bottles of liquor are stashed back in their proper places, and the bar itself is cleaned up by a caring hand. Shouldering her messenger-style purse, Nicole flashes a warm smile at Ariah, nodding towards the door. "Shall we, madamoiselle?"
- Ariah Olivie has posed:
By the time the night is over and last call is called, Ariah has had quite a few drinks but there's no ill or odd effects. She waits until shifts are over, staying at her spot, watching Nicole work. She even offers to help, for what allowance or not she might have for it. Finally though, the time comes, and she stands up straight and slides her stool up to where it belongs. A small, pale hand is offered to Nicole. "Oui... where to?" She has no bag with her, no nothing, really. Seems she'd just brought herself.
- Nicole Adams has posed:
"We could just go walking, or maybe there's somewhere open to get something to eat at this hour." Nicole cants her head slightly to one side, fiddling with the strap of her bag as she settles it on her shoulder. The seedling of an idea begins to take root in her mind, which she swiftly attempts to uproot and dismiss entirely. She'd just met this person. Should she even be considering bringing a near-stranger into her home?
After a moment more of thought, she shrugs, and smiles. "It's not much, but my place isn't far from here if you like?"
