4523/Tonight we drink in HELL.

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Tonight we drink in HELL.
Date of Scene: 29 December 2020
Location: The Public House - Hellfire Club
Synopsis: Two rich heiresses share their troubles over excellent drinks.
Cast of Characters: Natasha Cranston, Lara Croft




Natasha Cranston has posed:
    Evil may never sleep, but Natasha has a cover to maintain, which includes being seen clubbing on a regular basis. And where better to do so than at one of the most exclusive places in Manhattan?

    Tonight she's wearing sleek black leather pants and a much looser silk shirt of the same color that generously leaves her arms bare, and she's currently at the bar sipping on something terribly expensive and fruity while she looks around the room...

Lara Croft has posed:
As it so happens for Lara, this place is not far off the way between work and home, so she stops in here someone commonly before heading further south to Greenwich Village. Tonight was one of those nights. She'd worked through the Christmas holiday and was now taking a night off to unwind here at the Club.

Lara arrives and walks toward the bar, wearing a black leather jacket over a black button-up dress shirt, and a pair of dark grey work slacks. She looks business-casual, considering the leather jacket is worn over the more professional clothes beneath it. Her hair is tied back in to a loose ponytail and when she sits down she takes a moment to pull her jacket off and drape it over the back of her hciar.

She places an order for a drink and then leans back in her chair to just exhale heavily, one hand going up to the side of her face to push her loose brown bangs out of her eyes. She glances up and down the bar, offering Natasha a slight smile and a light nod.

Natasha Cranston has posed:
    Natasha notices Lara's nod and looks the woman over for a moment before smiling back, raising her glass briefly in salute, the girasol ring on her finger glittering in the light for a moment. "... Lady Croft, isn't it? You made quite the splash, earlier this year." she asks, nodding to herself as she confirms it to herself. "Good evening."

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara's eyes had gone back to the bartender who'd brought her the drink she'd asked for, but they go back to Natasha when she hears the woman address her by name. It's not terribly uncommon for her, though it does often still surprise her. "Oh, ah... Yes." Which incident is she referring to? That's yet to be seen!

"I promise I didn't mean to." Lara decides to settle on a joke for an answer, accompanying it with a smile followed by a sip from her drink. "But please, 'Lara' is fine. The title is bound to only bring trouble." She states, showing a bit of a grin then.

Natasha Cranston has posed:
    "That's fair; I'm Natasha, then," Natasha replies, then smiles slightly more widely. "From what I've read, you get into more than enough trouble just by yourself..."

    She chuckles briefly at her own joke, then tilts her head. "I hope that at least you're not having any trouble currently? This seems entirely too nice a night for troubles."

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara releases a light laugh at the other's words as she places one hand at the base of her drink glass and the other goes up to cup the side of her face with her elbow planted on the bar now. "No trouble, Natasha, none at the present anyway." She shows a light smile back. "Just... enjoying a drink before heading home to a dark and quiet flat here in the city." She glances toward the bar where there's a television on behind it, but her eyes go back to Nat's a chair down from where she is seated.

"You're right though, trouble seems to be thickly attached to me at this point. I'd say it's the nature of my job, but I know for a fact that most archaeologists live very boring lives. So I suppose I'm just uniquely... cursed?" She smirks then. "What about you? Quiet lifestyle, I hope?"

Natasha Cranston has posed:
    Natasha laughs. "Just enjoying a quiet drink before heading home to a quiet dark manor," she replies with a sigh. "It's not nearly as fun as it sounds, I promise."

    She takes another sip. "Archeology sounds absolutely fascinating, though. Going to interesting places, digging up forgotten stories, finding secrets in the past..."

    She smiles wanly. "A great deal more interesting than board meetings and executive discussions, at least..."

Lara Croft has posed:
The word's Natasha use there paint a picture inside Lara's head. Of her own home, her own 'manor' back in London. It's still in dire disrepair and she needs to address it. One of those 'things' on the back of your mind... ever lingering and weighing on you.

A quick inhale, follows a light exhale as Lara smiles faintly to Natasha and dips her chin in a single nod. "I would think so." She says in response. "It certainly has its moments. Even the more mundane sides of it. As a community though, it can be rather frustrating trying to push new ideas about the origins of... all of us. Those rooted deep in to the science, are quite... stuck in their ways. Being a 'new and up and comer' has challenges itself, because of that."

"But, I wouldn't dare complain. Even with all the trouble, I still enjoy my life. Some elements of it at least. As I'm sure you certainly do, especially if you've a manor to call your own." She states that last part with a sly grin before sampling her drink once more.

Natasha Cranston has posed:
    Natasha smiles. "Being rich does have its perks, absolutely," she agrees, gesturing around the room with her glass. "I don't think I'd care to give them up if I didn't have to."

    She nods at Lara's comment. "Mm. That, at least, is similar -- a lot of the people I have to work with don't like to take orders from someone under thirty-five because we can't possibly have anything useful to contribute."

    She snorts. "And then you fire them, and suddenly you're a tyrant, /and/ you need to replace them with someone else..."

    She sighs and sips again. "I know, I know. hashtag first world problems..."

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara is a good listener, and quite attentive at that. Her eyes are on Natasha as the other speaks, only drifting now and then so as not to awkwardly linger them. At the mention of 'under thirty fives' and such, Lara openly laughs shortly again.

"Well, yes. But, all hashtags aside, most people under the age of thirty five really don't know much of anything about anything. They're not required to in this society. They're raised... sheltered, cared for, comforted and coddled. There isn't anything... /wrong/ with that per-se. But it isn't doing them any favors for setting them up for a successful future, especially when it comes to working with others."

She then shows a slight grin. "I had a bit of an unorthodox upbringing though. So don't pay much heed to me. I'm 'weird' as they used to call me in school, and other similar social circles." She takes her drink up again to have another sip from it. "You're a successful businesswoman then? That's impressive." She adds.

Natasha Cranston has posed:
    Natasha nods understandingly. "Boarding schools sound a bit old-fashioned these days, but at least I got a good education out of it," she replies. "Uncle Allard felt it'd be better for me than 'coddling'. I don't disagree..."

    She chuckles. "Successful? That still remains to be seen -- after all, I inherited my position, rather than earn it."

    She smiles a bit wider, eyes glinting with just a hint of mischief. "Natasha /Cranston/. Pleased to make your acquaintance."

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara's eyes go back to the bartender as they move past to gather some drinks for some others at the bar. Though he does stop to ask both Natasha and Lara if they're good, to which Lara smiles and nods an approval of being so.

It's there-after that Lara's eyes go back to Natasha. "Of Cranston Shipping?" She asks, clearly familiar with it. "You've got footholds in every major port in the ... well... civilized world, likely some less than civilized places too." She smiles softly then. "Now I know who to talk to when I have something valuable, or breakable, that needs to be moved with tur assurances on it not being broken to a million pieces upon arrival." Lara states with a playful grin. "Wouldn't happen to have a business card with direct phone line numbers on it would you?" She's teasing, of course.

As she raises her drink up to her lips for another sip though, she adds on. "That really must be a stressful situation. I'm surprised you even have time to sit at a bar and enjoy a moment's peace."

Natasha Cranston has posed:
    Natasha smiles and - of all the cliches - pulls a business card out of her decollete between two fingers and offers it to Lara. "By all means. Even if I'm out of the office, someone'll be able to answer this. I'll make sure they know to expect word from you."

    "Every major port; quite a few of the smaller ones. Although most of that was accomplished by my forebears; I'm just the lucky woman to have inherited the fruits of their efforts, as most tabloids will be happy to inform you."

    She chuckles. "In truth, most of the directors probably prefer if I stay out of the office and leave them to their work; the last thing they want is the young spoiled heiress getting her nose in their business..."

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara shows a humbled expression of 'thanks' to the woman when she offers the card to her. She reaches her left hand over across the space between them to take it. "That's very kind of you. Thank you." She tells her in her London-flavored voice. She gives the card a look before she lays it on the bar beside her phone.

Her eyes go back up and over to the other, and a sympathetic smile. "I assure you, I can understand those kinds of pressures. Though unlike you, I've somewhat run away from my family's legacy. I'm still keeping up with the requirements of the Title, of course, but yes... My own Uncle is quite dismayed by me residing here in Manhattan now, rather than the family home that he so desperately wishes were in his name now."

She takes another small taste of her drink and reaches her hand up to pull her ponytail up and over her right shoulder to let it drape down her front rather than dangle behind her.

"So yes, I admire you for facing the inheritance head-on, and attacking it with your all. It's more than I could do with my own."

Natasha Cranston has posed:
    Natasha smiles. "From what I've read, you manage quite well for your own. Your father was quite the archaeologist himself, wasn't he?" she asks.

    She tilts her head. "Your uncle is after your inheritance, then? That seems... Blatant, if you'll forgive the expression. Have you talked to a lawyer or two?"

Lara Croft has posed:
Lara shows a slight smile at the mention of her father. "Yes, he was. An adventurer, an explorer, of the most classical variety. His legacy has... sadly been mired by controversy, but, those who knew him always yet still speak fondly of him." It being well known that Richard Croft supposedly committed suicide after years of grief over the plane crash that killed Amelia Croft, Lara's mother.

At the follow-up question though, Lara nods her head. "Yes, and yes. I actually have to return to London sometime fairly soon to speak on my family's behalf. But my Uncle, on my mother's side, believes that the family Title and land should pass to he and his, since I am the 'last of the Crofts' and, in his words, 'illegitimate to the inheritance'. He claims there is no legal documents passing the family legacy to me, and that my father simply didn't have his affairs in order when he passed. But, I find that rather hard to believe. So, yes, I'm at odds." She shows a faint smile, one that is more expectant than earnest in nature. "On one hand, letting it go would be a burden off my shoulders. But on another? Well... it'd be a great insult to my parents, let alone my family before them."

A quick grin is shown then as Lara shakes her head side to side once. "I apologize for the sharing of far too much information." She says then with a light laugh to follow it.

Natasha Cranston has posed:
    "Protecting what's yours to keep... I can certainly understand that," Natasha nods, the glint in her eyes becoming just a bit more vicious -- and is that a hint of triumph? "Legacies are important -- it helps us remember who we are. Gives us roots."

    She smiles again. "You've a name to be proud of. Wear it. Honor it."

Lara Croft has posed:
The response from Natasha garners a more sincere smile across the Briton's lips. She gives a slight dip of her chin in a respectful nod of agreement. "I couldn't have put it better myself." She replies before reaching forward and raising her glass up to offer a toast to the other woman across from her on her left. "To our family's legacy then?" She says, gently raising her dark eyebrows up, still smiling too, of course!

Natasha Cranston has posed:
    Natasha smiles again - more warmly, this time - as she clinks her glass against Lara's. "To our families' legacies. May our ancestors be proud."