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Daniel Hawthorne:
The evening was relatively young and Daniel had laid claim to one of the tables in the main part of the Elysium, a fresh cup of tea resting nearby as he scrolled through his phone. The Haunt was well dressed as was his wont, sunglasses in place as always.
Guy Dagenham:
One Guy makes his way into the Hotel Elysium, looking as unflummoxed as always. Spotting Daniel he waves, and gives a little nod before walking over.
Daniel Hawthorne:
Daniel glanced up from his phone at the new arrival, giving Guy a nod and motioning to one of the open seats at the table. "Hey. How's your night going?"
Vincent Drake:
Vincent walks in, not really having anything to do tonight he thought stopping by Elysium would be best, bored ill suited him and while it may not always turn out good for him, at least interacting with other vamps has proven interesting before.
Guy Dagenham:
“Well enough,” he says easily, carefully pulling a chair to sit down in. “How are you?”
When Vincent enters Guy nods to him, giving enough of a wave to indicate Vincent can join them if he likes.
Daniel Hawthorne:
Daniel's gaze turned to Vincent upon his entry, his expression inscrutable as he looked the neonate over. "Evening."
"Doing well enough. Taking a break from things at the studio this week on my sister's insistence, so been catching up on other things."
Vincent Drake:
Vincent sees the invitation and nods, sitting down, "Evening gents, how's the night treating you?"
Guy Dagenham:
“It goes pretty well. How about you, Vincent? The night treating you well?”
Guy puts his feet up on another chair and leans back a bit, stretching out.
Daniel Hawthorne:
"Well enough." He picked up his tea and had a sip, a thought rolling around in his mind as he mulled how to voice it.
"Heard about some of your New Years Eve activities." He finally remarked, looking Vincent over. "You may want to lay off on flirting with people who are already in relationships going forward. She was not happy about having her personal boundaries stomped over."
Vincent Drake:
He blinks, "What?" He asks, visibly confused, "What did I do, I saw and flirted with alot of people that night. . .fuck what did do?" He face palms,
Guy Dagenham:
Guy looks between the two. “Mmhmm…interesting….”
Daniel Hawthorne:
"Polly, the musician; you ran into her with Jane at a cafe somewhere that night. And you apparently pressed your luck and upset her pretty badly. I'd avoid treating her - or people in general - like that again."
Vincent Drake:
He thinks, "The musician. . .yeah, I used one throwaway line about if their looking for groupies but that was it, hell I left after that due to sun up coming, like it was a joke more than anything. . .wait how did you hear about this?"
Guy Dagenham:
Guy chuckles softly, shaking his head. “Ah to be young again, unconcerned with mortality or the feelings of others,” he murmurs. “Hmm. I feel like I should be having a drink right now,” he says as he sits up a bit.
Daniel Hawthorne:
"Some of us still have a sense of propriety." He commented to Guy before looking back to Vincent. "lt came up in a conversation at Maddy's last night. What you saw as a 'joke' cut deeper than you thought; something to keep in mind going forward."
Vincent Drake:
"One fucking joke line," he mutters once again having his hand in his face. ., "So, what's that voluntary coma called again, I want to hide in a corner for the next 200 years."
Guy Dagenham:
“You’d be down for a few weeks, I’d imagine. But in any case, instead you should stew on the thought that to other people, their romantic lives might not be a joke, and that you now live in a community where extreme violence is a common response to people who are perceived as a personal or societal threat.”
Daniel Hawthorne:
"You're new to all of this so you have a little leeway with us, but the others won't care about that. They just see someone acting a fool and will respond accordingly."
Vincent Drake:
Vincent is just burying his hands in his face and wondering if a sun tan might be the best option at this point.
Guy Dagenham:
Guy looks from Vincent to Daniel, shrugging. “I think there’s probably a tasteless joke about a Daeva feeling shame to be made, but it would be a bit hypocritical given what we’ve just been talking about.”
Daniel Hawthorne:
"Just a bit." He nodded, looking Vincent over. "Look at it as something to learn from and carry forward rather than beating yourself up over it."
Vincent Drake:
"What the hell I'm I supposed to do when I spent the last few weeks trying to establish a somewhat decent reputation and one stupid joke completely destroys it?"
Guy Dagenham:
“Spend a few months establishing a good reputation? Keep your head down, avoid making tacky passes that no one else thinks are jokes, do some work that benefits other people around town. You know, the way you build a reputation.”
Visigny:
When questions of matters of etiquette arise, it's almost assured to draw a particular fly to the wall. Visigny makes his entrance after some conversation with the door ghouls. Once inside he offers a simple, "It is I, Visigny. Good evening, gentlemen." It's followed by a slight bow.
Daniel Hawthorne:
Daniel remained quiet for the moment, barring a light click of his tongue and a slow breath as he put aside the comment that had immediately come to mind. Spotting Visigny's arrival he gave a polite nod, looking back towards Vincent for his reaction to Guy's advice.
Vincent Drake:
Vincent sees Visigny arrive and gives a polite nod, "I'm.. .going to avoid people for the next few weeks. . .I'm going to focus on work for a bit."
Guy Dagenham:
Guy offers Visigny a nod, then replies to Vincent, “What…are you doing for work? Mundanely, I mean, I’m sure the Invictus are having you recruit your first three members or whatever.”
Visigny:
Visigny, who definitely considers himself a people, points at himself as if to say 'moi'? His lips twitch in a pout of 'suit yourself' before the Frenchman ambles towards a chair and claims it, crossing his legs with his cane in his lap. He's catching up to the topic, watching the speakers with intent interest. When the question is put to Vincent, Visigny spends a silent second smiling at Vincent blandly before ticking his head over to Guy, "He has an eye for artists, if nothing else, sir. And a gift for following leads down. Took it upon himself to chase down a lead in this VII business, too. He'll find his sea legs yet."
Vincent Drake:
Vincent looks to Guy, "Reputation management and block chain technology, " Then glances at Visignys words and motions to the carthian, "What he said. . .and I meant none kindred Visigny, I'm going to avoid them for awhile. . .wait, Visigny, have you ever made what you thought was a harmless joke but to others you stabbed them?"
Daniel Hawthorne:
"I'd recommend against that." Daniel chimed in, eyeing Vincent. "Going long enough without human contact can make things a little...shaky for your own mental state."
Visigny:
What an interesting question to put to a Spina. He had to take some time to think it over and finally decides to reply with, "There have been numerous occasions where my proper intentions were poorly communicated, yes."
He glances from face to face to face before suggesting that most forbidden of all vampiric behaviors, "Have you attempted a sincere apology?" He nods his agreement to Daniel, "Plus, I imagine you'd get rather hungry? By the end?"
Vincent Drake:
"I don't even know where to find this person. . .true I would starve," he sighs, "Your right, it takes a real man to apologize and I guess we all make slip ups now and then."
Guy Dagenham:
“Damn, we’re all gonna make each other better yet, at this rate,” he says with a little shake of his head.
“Just be careful about upsetting the other supernatural groups. I’m sort of a diplomat, and I like the relatively peaceful outlook they have on us at the moment.”
Daniel Hawthorne:
"I'll see if I can get you in touch with her." Daniel nodded, looking...relieved, almost, at the neonate standing up for his behavior.
Visigny:
"It's true. I can walk the racks without running into some flea-ridden ruffian accosting me and demanding to know what I am doing on 'his streets', or some navel-gazing fascist threatening to transform me into lawn furniture. We have it quite good, here." Visigny may not be as old as Guy, but he's been in the old country enough to know.
Vincent Drake:
"Yeah that would be nice-wait do mean the lawn furniture thing literally?"
Guy Dagenham:
“Depends,” Guy says with a drawl.
“You’ll find that the shitty people make us play to our worst, and it’s a whole vicious cycle. Which is why us playing nice is so important—if others are playing nice in kind, we get to hang out and be part of a society with them, instead of being the wolves they’re trying to exterminate.”
Daniel Hawthorne:
"With what I've seen some of them do I wouldn't be surprised." He replied to Vincent, smirking a touch. "But yeah, we have a pretty solid set up here when it comes to the Others. Not upsetting that would be ideal."
Visigny:
Visigny smiles tight and widens his eyes in a nonverbal, 'kid, we could tell you stories.' But Guy's handling it, and so he lets he and Daniel do the speaking parts.
Vincent Drake:
Vincent looked like he realized something, "Hey. . .something happened this week that's been bothering me. . .how do you prevent someone from. . .well brainwashing you?"
Guy Dagenham:
“Dominate, Majesty, or the old fashioned way? The first two my answers involve proprietary threat response techniques. As for the third, I’ll let you in on the biggest secret in the world of social interaction if you like.”
Daniel Hawthorne:
"What happened that brought that about?" Daniel inquired, an eyebrow arched.
Visigny:
"Don't make eye contact. Nose. Lips, if you can't help yourself. Shoulders if you think there might be trouble. I've found developing an overly deliberate personality helps. And if all else fails, I've found a maine-gauche through the eye to be sufficient statement of my displeasure." Visigny adds with a smile, "It's very rude."
Vincent Drake:
"I. . .was investigating something with my partner, we go caught and I was told to kill them. . .and I listened, not speech, no reason. . .just kill them, the person I loved. . ." he looks deflated, "How the hell could I have, am I mentally weak, do I need to learn how to do it to become immune?"
Guy Dagenham:
“That would be Dominate then. It’s not you, per se, though there are some ways to resist. Training yourself to avoid eye contact can help, as he said,” he says with a nod to Visigny. “The power of your blood and the fortitude of your mind are the resistances otherwise. Flying into a frenzy can force them to try to redirect you, but only some of us can do that on demand.”
Daniel Hawthorne:
Daniel nodded in agreement with both Visigny and Guy, his thumb idly rubbing the side of his finger. The gift of the Lords was something he was quite familiar with, after all, but they had covered the bases pretty well there. "Do you remember anything about the people who caught you?"
Visigny:
Visigny smiles companionably at Vince for a moment. Then, "I believe you can handle it from here, Master Drake."
Visigny once more rises, and offers a slight bow. "I should ensure the staff have had their lunches. Good evening, gentlemen." Visigny and his ghoul doting.
Vincent Drake:
Vincent nods to Visigny, "Thanks, see you around," he turns to the other two, "Yeah, I thought they where vamps at first but they weren't, have you two ever heard of owl demons called Strix?"
Guy Dagenham:
“Evening,” he says to Visigny, before focusing on Vincent.
“I have. They are ancient enemies of our kind, and extremely dangerous.”
Daniel Hawthorne:
"Have a good night." Daniel nodded to Visigny, then looked back to Vincent. "You're lucky they left you in one piece, from what I've heard of them. Is your partner alright?"
Vincent Drake:
"Yeah, that fight. . .drained them but we got through it, I owe some Lost now," he shrugs, "That bad huh, one got away but I called some Ghouls to pick up the other, they should be questioning her most likely. .. if their so bad then how the hell did I survive?"
Guy Dagenham:
“Couldn’t say, but if your allies are strong, or you got lucky…there are a lot of factors, what matters is that you made it.”
Daniel Hawthorne:
The mention of the Lost earned a quick quirk of the eyebrow but he nodded, taking a moment to polish off his tea before it got too cold. "Here here."
Vincent Drake:
"So, what can you tell me about the owls?"
Guy Dagenham:
“They hide in bodies, have many strange powers, and hate us. I’m not much of an expert, to be honest. I’ve been meaning to ask around a bit to see if there are more knowledgeable people locally.”
Daniel Hawthorne:
"Neither am I, I'll admit. Did it seem like they were connected with whatever you were looking into, or just in the right place at the wrong time?"
Vincent Drake:
"Yeah, I think they are. . .well I was looking into those murders with the, well the number after six, and I found how they got everyone's names and phones."
Guy Dagenham:
“Some of us don’t hide them much, but I am curious as to how they got others.”
He pauses. “Is there some aversion to saying the number seven?”
Daniel Hawthorne:
"Ah...been curious about that, but I'm just technically inclined enough to know I wouldn't know how to track that kind of thing down."
Vincent Drake:
"Oh, I thought seven was a bad word around here, anyway they hired a mortal tech company to hack your phones, they where told it was some meta city wide roleplay and advertisement campaign."
Guy Dagenham:
“The Seven are not often spoken of, that’s true. The number itself is fine.” He taps his chin. “Mmm….someone should see to that tech company, can’t be having that again…”
Daniel Hawthorne:
"Agreed. Can talk with Alex about that, wager she'd like to take a crack at it."
Vincent Drake:
"I'd do it sooner or later, since I was caught leaving I don't know if they'll scorch earth it, they did keep i on retainer so it might be worth looking into, Rossi Technology Solutions was the name, the man I followed to it said he never met their employer cause he never works nightshifts."
Guy Dagenham:
“We’ll let Alex take a crack…I could probably trash their office and make off with some hard drives, too.”
Daniel Hawthorne:
"Noted. I'll pass that on to her."
Vincent Drake:
"Glad to be of service gentlemen." he gives a small nod
Guy Dagenham:
“I’m going to dip out for the night. Thank you both for the chat, let me know if there’s any more trouble, or if you need a hand with something.”
Daniel Hawthorne:
"Will do. Have a good rest of the night." Daniel nodded to Guy, then looked to Vincent. "I have to ask, and feel free to not answer if you don't want to: how much guidance have you been getting about all of this so far?" He motioned around them briefly for emphasis.
Vincent Drake:
"Well, Mr.Wrights been teaching me on Covenant things, Titania has been. . .if anything a cautionary tale, and Visigny has been helpful teaching me how to hunt and fight," he shrugs, "It's been a 'takes a village' situation."
Daniel Hawthorne:
"I see." He nodded quietly. "If you ever need to talk with someone who's been in a similar situation in regards to how you were brought into things, feel free to reach out. I know it's rough at the start."
Vincent Drake:
"Thanks. . .I guess the hardest part is. . .I'm going to see my sister die one day, won't I?"
Daniel Hawthorne:
A brief flicker of emotion crossed Daniel's face at that question, the thought one he was all too familiar with, before he gave a slow nod. "Most likely, unless you bring her in under the bond."
Vincent Drake:
"I refuse to drag her into this, she has a chance to do better than I did and I'm not going to fuck that up, as far as she's concerned I've just been under the weather."
Daniel Hawthorne:
"You two live together, I'm guessing?"
Vincent Drake:
"Not anymore, she's doing dorm life now but. . .I basically raised her for the last ten years."
Daniel Hawthorne:
"That makes it a little easier, at least." He gave a nod, settling back into his seat as his thumb idly began rubbing the side of his finger. "My siblings and I were raised in the First Estate, so my sister knows everything. My family expects that I'll bring her in 'properly' at some point, but we've discussed it and neither of us want to let the blood warp the relationship we currently have."
Vincent Drake:
"Wait. . .your in the Estate too?" he asks, raising an eyebrow, "But yeah, I can imagine it, I promised myself I would never feed from her, too many bad undertones."
Titania:
There was one more stop Titania had to make tonight before she was done and could return to her studies. So she walked up the stairs in the Hotel, using the approved entrance. A nod to Daniel.
"Thought I should drop these off." As she drops a set of keys and an address in Vinnys lap.
Daniel Hawthorne:
"I was while I was in Boston but not currently. I joined the Academy not long after moving here, but I still maintain ties with the Estate."
He looked towards Titania as she entered, giving her a respectful nod. "Evening." The keys earned a curious look, eyeing Vincent in response.
Vincent Drake:
he winces as Titania approuches but when he examines the keys, "Oh. . .oh thanks," he says surprised and sincerely, "Thank you for the Haven, I'll make it up to you."
Titania:
There is a smile at the greeting "Evening Daniel. Just had an errand to do. I'll be heading home now."
She chuckles at Vinny. "I should hope so. Have a good night."
Then she wanders back down those stairs and out into the night.
Daniel Hawthorne:
"You as well." He gave the departing Gangrel another nod, then gave Vincent a quizzical look, eyebrow arched.
Vincent Drake:
"Um, I did something for her and in return she has given me a Haven, I'm kinda squatting now so it's a huge favor." he says, not wanting to delve any further
Daniel Hawthorne:
"Ah." He nodded, familiar enough with that sort of transaction. "Something more stable housing-wise will do you some good, especially as far as establishing a feeding pool and whatnot."
Vincent Drake:
"I usually hunt night life. . .but maybe I should look into a stable herd, their are folks who are into the Kiss right?"
Daniel Hawthorne:
"Mmhmm. I have an arrangement with some of the models I work with on a regular basis myself, but you can draw from just about anyone that suits your particular tastes."
Vincent Drake:
"Models, what work do you do?"
Daniel Hawthorne:
"I'm a clothing designer. I run a design studio off of Rittenhouse Square."
Vincent Drake:
Vincent whistles, "Fancy, and your schedule works with the whole nocturnal lifestyle?"
Daniel Hawthorne:
"Mmhmm. My sister handles most of the daytime business, and I'm free to do some of the more nitty-gritty parts of the work at night once the rest of the staff goes home."
Vincent Drake:
he nods, "Sounds like a nice set up. . .I'm getting a foot into the city's underground and thinking of starting some kind of herd in that sphere."
Daniel Hawthorne:
"It's worked well so far." He offered a nod. "Not a bad idea."
Vincent Drake:
"Yeah, might be a good avenue." he nods, standing up, "I got to get going, I'll be seeing ya around." he nods and heads off
Daniel Hawthorne:
"Have a good night."
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