Bloodwort Martinis

Lauren ventures in to the Cat’s Cradle.

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Erin: The Cat’s Cradle itself was an odd little shop, with an old fashioned wood sign of a grinning black cat and the name. The windows were piled high with toys, and they were an eclectic lot, everything from realistic RC planes, to game sets, to stuffed toys, to kites. It was all set about the shop in a state of pleasant mess, as if one had stumbled upon a forgotten treasure trove in the attic, a child’s dream shop. There was also a number of chairs, and a kitchen shoved off in a corner, with shelves upon shelves of drinks. It was night, so the regular Jamaican employees were gone, instead replaced by the night shift. Ajay and D’Angelo did not care for vampires.

Erin: The Private Lounge was in the back, through a door that had a lot of bolts on it. It was a well lit, classy kind of place, not too bright and not too dark, with polished wood counters, comfortable couches, and red carpets. There were light panels installed in the walls, glowing yellow from well polished wood, and glass lights hanging from the ceiling on brass chains. There were pool tables an darts and a television to the side, though someone had modded the TV and all the game systems to fit in with the rest of the decor. Near the center of the ceiling there were clustered, tiny glass lights, gathered up like stars.

Erin: All the windows back here were stained glass. Opaque stained glass. No prying mortals would be looking in here.

Erin: Currently the lounge was neither too empty nor too full, with enough people that it didn’t feel deserted, but few enough that one could keep to one’s own company easily. The place was staffed by a number of people who looked mortal enough, certainly, but didn’t seem to mind strange company.

Lauren: Lauren figured it was high time she started making use of the business cards she’d accumulated at the Jack’s birthday party. Most of them were from changelings, which promised to be interesting, if nothing else. The Cat’s Cradle, from the outside, appeared to be a very well-stocked toy store, which explained why Lauren had never heard of it before. She entered the store and glanced around, noting the kitchen and tables. It was an odd combination, for certain. She poked over a few of the toys on display, then went looking for an employee, or better yet, the woman who’d given her the business card.

Erin: Asking around for the proprietor got Lauren shuffled into the Private Lounge, where Erin was sipping on… something. It smelled nauseatingly sweet.

Erin: “Good evening,” the small woman greeted. Outside of the Hedge, Erin appeared to be a tiny, unprepossessing woman, with brown hair and brown eyes. Someone Lauren never would have looked twice at on the street. There was something cute about her, but Lauren couldn’t really name any feature in her face that made her so. Her cheeks were a bit round, perhaps, or her eyes a bit big.

Erin: “Miss…. Darrow, was it? I am glad you came by now. I am not too often in the habit of being up very late, I wouldn’t have been here to greet you.”

Caelan: A young, pale woman with freckles and red-rimmed eyes was one of the patrons of Cat’s Cradle at the moment. Of course, she was in the lounge next to Erin, looking rather shy as she sipped a deeply red beverage. The two seemed to fit together well, nearly the same size and build, almost the same coloration, though Cae was pallid and Erin was a bit more yellowy of complexion.
Caelan looked up at the entrance. She smiled vaguely at Lauren.

Lauren: “Hello!” Lauren greeted cheerfully. Honestly, she wouldn’t have recognized Erin at all had she not been pointed to her. Now, though, she could see the similarities. She walked over and sat down with a smile. “Your shop is lovely, Ms. Lamothe.” Then, she turned to the woman next to Erin. “Evening, I’m Lauren Darrow.”

Caelan: “Hi, I’m Cae,” Caelan replied in the general Londonish accent that many young people did in the 21st century. “You know Erin here?” She looked Lauren up and down out of simple curiosity.

Erin: “Thank you!” Erin replied cheerfully to Lauren’s compliment. There was something funny about her accent, when heard in comparison to Caelan’s. It sounded a bit rounder, somehow antiquated.
“We met at the Jack-of-Crows’ birthday party,” she explained, turning in her seat to better look at Lauren. “Though not for very long. Please, have a seat, Miss Darrow. I can get you something to drink, if you like.”

Lauren: “Yes, we didn’t talk much, but I wanted to come see your shop. It’s exceeded my expectations.” Lauren sounded genuinely impressed and was looking around the lounge with an awed expression. “I wouldn’t mind a drink, if it’s not too much trouble. And you can call me ‘Lauren.'” She smiled.

Caelan: Cae grinned. “You’ll just have to suck it up, it’s Erin you’re talking about.” The names were excruciatingly hard to change with this woman, after all.

Erin: Erin looked at Cae and blinked, slowly, as if she wasn’t quite sure what Cae was talking about.
“Certainly, Miss.” Erin stood, heading off to the bar. Apparently she’d meant getting something to drink very literally, as she ducked behind the counter and usurped the barman for this particular order.

Lauren: Lauren watched her go with a puzzled expression on her face. She turned back to Cae and frowned. “She’s always like that? I mean, I don’t want to impose…”

Caelan: “Yes,” Cae said. “She is always like this.” You could practically hear the marking of the word in her voice. “It’s…how she was raised, I guess you could say?”

Lauren: “I see.” Lauren shrugged. “You’ve known her a long time?”

Caelan: “A few years,” she shrugged. She did not add ‘through weird means’ since that was how she met almost everyone.

Lauren: Lauren looked at Cae consideringly for a moment. “How old are you, if you don’t mind me asking?”

Caelan: “Uh.” Cae looked embarrassed in eye more than cheek. She counted on her fingers. “23.” She did not sound too sure as she forced it out of her slightly-stained mouth.

Erin: Erin returned with a tall slender parfait glass, only this was filled with something red and viscous that smelled like sugary iron. It was garnished with something that looked like mint but didn’t smell like it.
“Here you are. Please enjoy, miss,” she said, setting it down in front of Lauren.

Lauren: “Oh!” She was quite young, then. Possibly younger than Lauren, which would be a first as far as vampires went. Then, the glass was set down in front of her, and she laughed. “Thank you. This is so nice. I don’t think I’ve had anything this pretty since I was embraced.” She held up the glass and admired it before taking a sip. “Which was over six years ago, by the way. What about you?” she asked, looking at Cae again.

Caelan: Caelan slowly turned her head to Lauren, hiding her surprise not so well. She hadn’t bothered to check, truly. If it was a friend of Erin’s, she was probably trustworthy. Actually, no, unless Erin had gotten her weird promises out of her already.
There were times that Cae simply ignored her powers of perception. It made her feel more normal.
And then Lauren had to bring that up. She would have sighed. “I was 17,” she said softly.

Erin: Erin blinked, her expression going perfectly blank. She folded her hands together – long pianists fingers, now, one adorned with her ring – and looked at Lauren silently.

Lauren: Lauren glanced nervously from Erin to Cae, wondering exactly how badly she’d misstepped. “Sorry. I’ve never met any kindred close to my own age, let alone younger than me. I was just curious,” she said quietly. She cast her eyes downward and sipped her bloodwort.

Caelan: “It’s okay,” Caelan forced a smile. “I don’t know many either. Only a few much older, you know? It’s just…I don’t know my Sire.” She took a breath this time, sounding like someone coming up from water for air. “I don’t really know why he did it. If it was really even a ‘he’. What about you?”

Lauren: “Oh.” Lauren pressed her lips together. “I’m sorry,” she said again. “My sire is Vincent Moon. He’s really weird and insane, but I love him anyway.” She smiled wryly. “He saved me, actually. I’m mostly his assistant.”

Erin: Erin blinked once more, then tilted her head at an odd angle. “Vincent Moon?” she asked, giving Lauren a curious look.

Caelan: Cae glanced at the silent Erin and nudged her with an encouraging smile. “Vincent Moon, huh? Have I heard of him? I don’t go out much anymore.” She was looking at Erin full-on now. Curiously, she seemed much happier. As if she’d just remembered something quite warm and friendly.

Lauren: Lauren cocked her head. “Yeah… Uh, you’ve probably heard of him. I think he causes trouble for a lot of people.” She tapped her glass with her nails, frowning.
Lauren: Then she got a strange look on her face. “Er, uh, I love him like a father. Not… what I think you’re thinking…”

Erin: Erin blinked again, and then tilted her head the other way, still staring at Lauren.
“Does he?” she said.

Caelan: Cae sort of snort-laughed. “Uhh, oh? I wasn’t really assuming.” Which was true. She was very much not focusing on the colors at the edge of Lauren’s head, the kind that burst out if she stared at the negative space long enough. “I still don’t think I remember any Moon…”

Lauren: “Oh, well, oops.” Lauren smiled at Cae. “I’m kind of surprised, most vampires know about him. He’s an elder.” She frowned and turned to stare at Erin, scrutinizing the colors that surrounded her. “Has he caused trouble for you, Erin?”

Erin: “Miss Brennan usually sticks with us instead,” Erin replied, rather fondly.
She blinked calmly at Lauren, a slow, deliberate movement. “No,” she replied. “He was very kind to me, when we met.”

Caelan: Caelan avoided eye contact with either woman, though she smiled at Erin’s comment. “Kindred…” she trailed off. Creep me out, she was going to say, before thinking better of it. Even Abonde. Okay, especially Abonde.

Lauren: “That’s good.” Lauren pursed her lips. She didn’t quite believe Erin. Well, either that or Erin had an odd definition of kind. “He isn’t often very kind, by most people’s definition of kindness,” she said quietly.
Lauren: “What about kindred?” Lauren gave Cae a curious look.

Caelan: “Errrrm,” Cae faltered. “They’re kind of…not my … um,” she looked blankly at Lauren. “Not so much my cup of tea.”

Erin: “No?” Erin asked, doing the thing with her head again. “But you love him like a father,” she said.
“I doubt he even remembers me. But he spoke to me, and he was kind, and he was interested in me, or at least pretended to be. He was one of the first people who ever was. So I do not forget, even if he does.”

Lauren: Lauren blinked at Cae. “That must be… hard. Is it the way things are run? I mean, the way kindred society works.”
Lauren: She was clicking her nails against her glass again as she looked at Erin, a pensive expression on her face. “I do. He’s done so much for me…. and I can rely on him.” She paused. “Fathers aren’t always kind. But I’m glad he was kind to you.”

Caelan: Cae shrugged and let the other ladies talk. Two conversations always ended up in gridlock, or crashes, or something.

Erin: “Aren’t they? I wouldn’t know,” Erin replied, simply.
“You’re welcome to come here, if you need some kindness. I spoil my customers, yes?” Erin turned to Cae, as if this were an actual question.

Caelan: Cae raised her eyebrows. “Of course.” What a silly question.

Lauren: Lauren’s lips curled into a small, strange smile that didn’t quite meet her eyes. “Thank you.” She continued to sip at her drink.