(no subject)

[dangeroushabits.livejournal.com]

Time: January 7, 2002 - Morning
Status: Public (John, Kit, Famine, Bast, Loki, Anathema, Others?)
Place: Restaurant and Touring the Manor
Summary: Kit gets the grand tour.



He was trying not to fidget as he waited for Kit to come down to breakfast. It was a losing battle.

Having awakened only mildly hung-over and more or less in possession of his faculties, John had gone to more trouble than usual to look respectable this morning, shaving with a fresh razor blade and carefully straightening his tie. Utter bollocks, he knew--Kit would barely recognize him, but maybe that was part of the point. Or maybe he just needed to keep himself busy by whatever means presented itself. He was just glad he'd managed not to accidentally slit his throat.

He'd been over the breakfast menu several times since he'd arrived (slightly early, for lack of anything else to divert him up in his own room,) and damned if he had any idea what was on it. Probably just wind up ordering whatever Kit did. She'd never steered him wrong when it came to food. Or alcohol. Or other controlled substances. Which he could really use right now.

And why the fuck had he been daft enough to order coffee?

Comments

[no-npc-here.livejournal.com]

The bloody room smelled of Silk Cuts.

Kit could only assume it was because John had occupied it for some time before her, though there had been a moment, after she'd opened her eyes, but just before rationality had set in, that her sleepy mind had only been able to supply a different reason for this: and that reason had been both a terrifying and appealing one.

She couldn't help but wonder, as she closed the door behind her and started down the hall, just what Adam was playing at, putting her in this room. Wee trickster he was turning out to be.

Fortunately, she'd made it to the lobby and was entering the restaurant before she had time to consider just why she'd accepted it.

John was already there, and had made it through a pot of coffee without her, judging by the way he fidgeted in his seat before catching sight of her. She smiled as she approached the table. "Mornin'," she said. "I hope you haven't been waitin' too long..." The generic pleasantries were no less awkward after a night's sleep, she noted, and took her seat, waiting to see what was to come now that they'd both had time to chew things over.

[dangeroushabits.livejournal.com]

"Morning," he answered, and caught himself just as he was about to stand up to greet her. This was getting ridiculous. It was just Kit, for fuck's sake. If he started acting like a gentleman around her she'd think he had lost his mind. Which, granted, might not be too far from the truth. "Sleep well?"

[no-npc-here.livejournal.com]

"Well enough," Kit replied, with a casual glance over the menu. "It's too bloody quiet out here, though. Nothing like London." She looked up, quirking an eyebrow at John's surprisingly neat appearance; she decided against mentioning it, though, and simply returned, "You?"

[dangeroushabits.livejournal.com]

John shrugged one-sidedly. "As well as ever. You're right though, it's nothing like London out here." He looked up from his own menu with a slight smile. "I'd have thought you'd like that. Last I remember, you weren't so fond of London..."

[no-npc-here.livejournal.com]

"Just takes some getting used to," she said, taking a sudden interest in their choice of beverages to avoid meeting his gaze. A bit irritable at the new topic of conversation, she wasn't sure if it was more at her own slip up or at John for pouncing on it. "Dunno how much of it you actually saw, but Belfast isn't exactly a wee place, either."

[dangeroushabits.livejournal.com]

"I guess," John said vaguely. All he remembered of the place was a churchyard and a big tree, and those were blurry. He gestured at the coffee carafe. "Still some coffee left here, if you want it..."

[no-npc-here.livejournal.com]

Annoyance subsided at the note of uncertainty in John's voice; Kit again glanced at him over the top of her menu. Either he was pulling off a surprisingly convincing act, or he legitimately didn't remember anything about Belfast. Neither option was particularly satisfying, though, as both led to more questions with answers that likely neither she nor John were prepared for.

She accepted the coffee with a quiet nod, pouring herself a mug of the dark liquid. "What's on the agenda for today, then?" she asked neutrally.

[dangeroushabits.livejournal.com]

"Thought mebbe you'd like to see the greenhouse first," John suggested. "It's a shame you're here in January, the gardens aren't much to look at right now. But there's some interesting stuff in the Manor proper." He hesitated slightly. "And interesting people. Figured I'd introduce you around." Before you run into any of them unawares...

[no-npc-here.livejournal.com]

"Sounds nice," she said, taking a sip of coffee; the drink was passable, if weak for her tastes. "So how is it you came across this place, anyway?" she asked with genuine curiosity, remembering the few vague explanations garnered from Chas on the trip to Tadfield. So far, the manor didn't seem like it was quite John's speed, and she wondered what draw it had on him.

[dangeroushabits.livejournal.com]

"Well, I found out Crowley and a friend of his had got themselves in a spot of trouble and wound up at the hospital here, and came up to drop something off for 'em," John said, choosing his words somewhat cautiously, "and to make sure they were all right. Turned out there were some pretty interesting folk around, so I hung out for a bit, and then a bit turned into a while and Bob's your uncle." He shrugged. "Place is a little upscale for my tastes, but it's not as expensive as you'd think, and the bar's well stocked."

[no-npc-here.livejournal.com]

"Aw," and she grinned, "the well-stocked bar. Deciding factor of any regular haunt." And really, she was only half joking; some of the most contented moments of their relationship - and of their friendship before - had been in the quiet corner of some quaint pub with an amiable atmosphere and decent selection of liquor. "Seems like a nice enough oul' place, though."

[dangeroushabits.livejournal.com]

"Too right." John grinned. "And it is, nice enough, mostly. I gather it was mostly gutted and redone after a fire some years back." Apart from a few interesting items in the basement that seemed to have been overlooked.

The kid who'd been bartending on New Year's appeared to take their orders, and John picked the first item on the breakfast menu: bacon, sausage, fried egg, tomato, mushrooms and fried bread with toast, jam and marmalade. How much he'd actually eat was anyone's guess, but it hardly mattered, as he was unlikely to taste it anyway.

[no-npc-here.livejournal.com]

Kit registered little surprise at the amount John ordered, but, with a faint smile at the lad who'd come over to wait on them, requested something a bit more modest for herself. There was a lapse of silence once they'd placed their orders, and she sipped at her coffee, her eyes tracing the pattern of the table cloth.

"Talk to Crowley last night?" she asked after a moment, attempting to keep a casual air despite the tension in her shoulders that spoke to the contrary. Sleep hadn't changed anything; it was still John sitting across the table from her, looking seven years older and just as confused as she felt.

[dangeroushabits.livejournal.com]

"Hm? Oh, yeah," John said. "We talked a while. He's convinced you must think he's a prat." He smiled. "Which he isn't, by the way, or at least not most of the time. He's just not what you'd call a big people person." Unless he's playing you, he added privately, in which case it's all an act, but you'll never know. But with all the seemingly endless things he had to worry about, Crowley playing games with Kit wasn't even on the list.

The cautionary things the demon had said the night before came back to him, though, and as unlikely as it seemed that this was anyone or anything but the genuine article, he tried to think how best to verify that without offending or weirding her out. Well, he had some time to think about it while they ate and wandered around.

"You'll have to meet Chicago. His cat," he added, somewhat randomly. Kit liked cats, didn't she? Wasn't that why Brendan gave her the nickname? He wasn't sure anymore, to his dismay. It tugged at something painful to think he could have forgotten anything about her, whether due to the fiend or to the ordinary passage of time. "There's a few other animals around too. They mostly have the run of the place. They're all pretty well behaved, or else kept corralled."

He hoped that'd be enough to pre-empt any alarm if she heard Roman howling--the full moon was coming up in a couple of days. There really wasn't much he could say that would prepare her for running into Bast, though, so he'd just have to hope he got a chance to talk to the cat-lady before that happened. At least Sugarplum was kept out of sight, and the big black dog he'd glimpsed wandering the grounds once or twice seemed friendly enough. Adam wouldn't allow a vicious animal to run loose, he was certain.

[no-npc-here.livejournal.com]

There was more to John's casual comments than he let on, she knew, and really, that was only to be expected. What made it frustrating, she realized, is that she had no idea what his real meaning might be: there had been a time, perhaps, when she had been able to read his expressions and the tone of his voice quite easily. But that had been years ago, and she'd known that John in a way she didn't know the man sitting across the table from her now.

"Not a prat, no," she replied. "Haven't seen much of him but the back of his head. I'm not sure that qualifies me to say much of anything about him, either way." She returned his smile to show she meant his mate no offense, no matter how odd his behavior had seemed thus far. "Are Crowley and Chicago goin' to be part of the tour, then?"

She smiled against the rim of her cup as she took another sip of the cooling liquid. "Is that just a general observation, or are you trying to tell me I should watch where I step?"

[dangeroushabits.livejournal.com]

"I dunno. Maybe, if you want." John cursed inwardly as he realized his mistake--talking in the future tense, as though Kit was going to be around for awhile. Hardly a foregone conclusion. "Hadn't really planned it that carefully." It's not like I had a lot of time for that sort of thing.

At her question, he snickered. "Well, that's good advice no matter where you go. But nah, I'd have told you if that was a big problem 'round here." He picked up his coffee cup and smiled at her over it, mischievously and maybe just a touch maliciously. "Honest."

[no-npc-here.livejournal.com]

Now that look she knew. "That's awfully encouragin', John, thanks," but she was grinning back at him in spite of herself. "I'll just be sure to let you go first, then, right?"

She glanced up in time to see their waiter returning, her eggs and toast in one hand while he balanced John's order on two plates in the other. She smiled as he set her order down before her.

Refilling her cup, she looked back to John, asking a bit cautiously, "See much of Chas these days?" She knew, of course, that John had at least been in contact enough for his friend to know where he was; but while the cab driver had said nothing to suggest their friendship was under any strain, the idea of John palling around so closely with someone else made her wonder nonetheless.

[dangeroushabits.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, he's been around. He's been almost the official Manor chauffer service lately, in fact. And I get 'round to the pub pretty regular." Not so much as Kit would remember, but still fairly often. He occasionally missed seeing his blunt cabbie friend on a daily basis, but it was also something of a relief to be at a slightly greater distance, and therefore not quite such a potential threat to Chas's safety. Renee was also loving it, by all reports, which could only be a good thing for Chas. "I s'pose he was the one tipped you off where I was, eh?"

[no-npc-here.livejournal.com]

Kit watched John for a moment before making her reply; she didn't want Chas getting in trouble for her actions, but at the same time, what truth there was in the matter was so shaky that she wasn't sure she could manage a decent cover. "Aye," she said, "but not... well, not without lookin' out for you."

She stabbed half-heartedly at her eggs, suddenly preoccupied. It was perhaps, in its vague way, the closest she'd ever come to admitting aloud how she'd hurt John, and it left a hundred questions and explanations fighting to be spoken next. But when she looked up again, all she managed was, "He's a good mate. I'm surprised he didn't ring you the second I hung up."

[dangeroushabits.livejournal.com]

"He did," John said mildly. He wasn't angry with Chas; would've been more upset, in fact, if Kit had called and Chas had turned her away. But the cabbie knew his business, and John never doubted his loyalty for a minute. "And he is. I just didn't get his message 'til after I'd already seen you."

He turned his attention to his own breakfast, tucking in with more of an appetite than he'd expected, glad for something other than talking to occupy his mouth for a bit. He hadn't missed the undercurrent of confession or regret or whatever it was beneath Kit's words, and it summoned up a legion of answering accusations and long-overdue defenses. But there'd be a time and a place to address all that, and instinct was warning him this wasn't it. Too public, and too bloody early.

[no-npc-here.livejournal.com]

"Oh, aye," she said in return, but it was not a question, and she expected no answer. It was odd to suddenly perceive herself as something that carried with it a danger - the incoming storm for which other people needed to be warned.

She wondered now what exactly those seven years had entailed for John: what burdens he still carried, what Chas had been trying to protect him from. But somehow, even under more appropriate circumstances, she couldn't imagine the questions ever forming on her lips.

However, John seemed content to eat in relative silence, and for the moment, Kit could think of no better course of action.

[dangeroushabits.livejournal.com]

Breakfast passed quietly in an atmosphere of subdued uncertainty, and John was vaguely relieved when the meal was finished and they rose to go. It was a sharp contrast to the luncheon they'd shared the day they'd met in London some nine years ago--he remembered talking practically nonstop the whole time, then. Catching up on things and remembering the old days. Funny how even the small things, like simple conversation, could be so drastically altered by circumstances.

The quiet persisted as they made their way out to the greenhouse, but the exotic flowers made Kit smile the way she did when she was thinking of painting something beautiful, and John finally managed to latch onto a suitable conversational topic once they were there: Pepper, who tended the place. Although even that required some creative editing. The girl's fondness for the Sex Pistols and her propensity for throwing things at Adam when provoked were relatively safe subjects; her colorful history involving the thwarted Apocalypse, War and Roger, not so much.

At least Kit's arrival had done him one favor: he could think about Pepper now without the pang of reluctant attraction he'd been fighting since he met her, a foolish and completely inappropriate reaction that he'd known right along stemmed directly from her superficial similarities to Kit. Very superficial, he realized now with the reality walking alongside him again, and thankfully laid that small but troublesome issue to rest.

The place wasn't all that big, and nobody was about at the moment, so they didn't linger a long while. On the way back to the Manor through the crisp January air, a slender figure in black came into view on the path, and John found himself checking his watch wondering how long until lunch time.

Peachy. He hadn't been hoping to avoid this one, exactly, but he sort of wished the bloke had waited to appear until after they'd had time to properly digest their breakfasts...

[polldancer.livejournal.com]

Famine was on his way to the greenhouse as well, to take a look at what was growing in there, when he spotted the pair coming towards him. He didn't recognize the woman and figured that she must be new. He nods to them politely and smiles as he approaches, he's not conciously trying to affect them, it's just part of what he is. "Good morning."

[dangeroushabits.livejournal.com]

John nodded back. "Morning. Nice day for a walk." Despite the chill weather, he wasn't being sarcastic; winter was, after all, historically a time of scarcity.

Unlike his colleague Pollution, John had no particular opinion of Famine; granted, he was one of the great scourges of humanity, but the Horseman couldn't help being what he was, and he'd caused no particular problems for John or any of his friends the few times they'd crossed paths at the Manor. Still, without his conscious intent (and he would have squelched the impulse, had he been aware of it,) he angled himself slightly as though prepared to step between Famine and Kit even as he started to make introductions.

"Like you to meet someone. This is Kit. Kit, this is...uh...." And there he stopped, realizing belatedly that unlike some of the other Manor residents, this entity's real name wasn't one that could be made to sound remotely normal, and he had no idea what pseudonyms the Horseman might use.

[polldancer.livejournal.com]

"Indeed it is." He smiles, uneffected by the cold despite his coat hanging open. He notices John's defensive maneuvering but doesn't comment on it; he quickly catches on to John's dilemma and cuts in with a suave smile and an extended hand. "Raven Sable, pleasure to meet you."

[no-npc-here.livejournal.com]

"Hello," Kit said amiably, accepting the proffered hand with only a quick sidelong glance at John for his blunder. "Friend of John's, are you?"

Despite what John might assert, it was still a bit suspicious that the majority of his acquaintances here seemed to be trim, attractive men in nice suits.

[dangeroushabits.livejournal.com]

John rubbed at the back of his neck and smiled affably. "Friendly acquaintance," he clarified, although even that might be overstating the case a bit. They weren't enemies, at least. He wondered how the hell he was going to get through an entire day of this if he couldn't manage a simple introduction without stumbling all over himself.

[polldancer.livejournal.com]

"Exactly." He probably would have described it similarly. He smiles at Kit again, not envying John the job of introducing around someone who apparently didn't know about the sort of beings who congregated here. "I don't believe I've seen you around here before. Have you just arrived?"

[no-npc-here.livejournal.com]

"Aye, just got in yesterday," Kit replied, though she had nothing to add about how long she'd be staying.

She supposed that, as much as they'd been avoiding it, she and John would have to discuss that at some point. She just... just... she really shouldn't be so hungry when they'd just eaten breakfast, should she? Ignoring the sharp pang in her stomach, Kit asked, "You've been here a while, then?" Odd sort of place, she thought, a hotel where people checked in only to stay.

[polldancer.livejournal.com]

He's not conciously intending to effect them, it's just a hazard of being around him. "A while, yes. I left for a while to take care of some business," he did like getting hands-on with his work now and again, "but I've been back for about a month."

[no-npc-here.livejournal.com]

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Mr. Sable." Kit wasn't entirely sure what else to say. See you around the place? No guarantees she'd be there long enough for that, she thought, her gaze flickering towards John.

[dangeroushabits.livejournal.com]

John took that as his cue and said, "I've just been showing Kit around the place. Pepper's been doing a pretty nice job with the hothouse." He smiled wryly, wondering if the plants would find themselves desperately in need of fertilizer after Famine had visited the place, and made a note to suggest that the girl check later. "We're off to the basement next, I think. See you around."

[polldancer.livejournal.com]

Famine smiles at John's comment. "Has she? How nice." The plants will almost certainly need a little help after he leaves. "See you around. Enjoy your tour, Kit." He smiles at them again before continuing on toward the greenhouse."

[first-catwoman.livejournal.com]

((Is this thread even still open? Gawds, I haven't been around in ages...should've asked you last night, john-mun. Sorry?))

Taking advantage of the warm day - in fact, the first warm day in what felt like a long while to her - Bast had resolved to spend the day outside teaching Chicago the finer points of hunting. The kit had talent, yeah, but sometimes that wasn't enough.

She came downstairs and out the door, human-formed and fully dressed. She could feel Chicago waiting somewhere by the wall, and was so focused on her that she nearly walked straight into Constantine. "Watch where you're- oh, hey, John."

She spotted Kit, and gave a sly feline smile. "New girlfriend?"

[dangeroushabits.livejournal.com]

(Yep it is, and I was gonna post to the attention of you and Sirius, you beat me to it.) XD)

"'lo Bast. Uh, no, not exactly," John said, smiling and rubbing the back of his neck. For a second all he could think was oh dear Adam THANK YOU she's human and wearing clothes! "This is Kit. She's...just come in from Ireland for a visit. Kit, this's Lady Bast." It was no good; by the time they'd made the rounds, there was just no way Kit was going to not notice people around here had weird names.

[first-catwoman.livejournal.com]

"How cute." She didn't mean to sound standoffish, but what Bast knew about Eire could be written on one whisker in over-sized hieroglyphs. She hoped they'd think it was the name she found cute. Smiling, she turned to Kit. "Just Bast, really. Haven't been an offical Lady in a long time. So what do you think of this crazy little place so far?"

[no-npc-here.livejournal.com]

Cute? Well, she'd heard her home described in much less flattering terms.

"Nice to meet you, Bast," she said, offering a hand politely. The name sounded familiar, though it took her a moment to make the connection with Egyptian mythology; and indeed, took another moment for her to remind herself that, no, having the name of some ancient deity was not enough to put this woman square in the middle of her mental category labeled 'John's bad shite.' Not without reason, anyway.

"It is a lovely oul' place," she added in reply.

[first-catwoman.livejournal.com]

Bast stared at the hand for a second before she remembered she was meant to shake it, which she proceeded to do so with great aplomb. Then she grinned, nodded, covering up the flash of old gold to her eyes. Interesting secrets, this one. "It is that. Hope this boy's being a good tour guide for you, hon. How long you staying?"

[no-npc-here.livejournal.com]

Kit withdrew her hand, hoping she hadn't offended with the gesture after the way Bast had stared. But that was quickly overridden by the woman's question. How long was she staying? She wished she had an answer; not for others, necessarily, but for herself. For John.

But she didn't, of course. A week, a day... a few hours, depending on how the rest of this tour went.

"Oh... not sure, actually," she said, straightening the sleeve of her blouse for some excuse not to look at John as she said it. "It was a bit of a... spontaneous trip."

[dangeroushabits.livejournal.com]

John glanced sidelong at Kit, his expression carefully neutral. Maybe it was a good sign she hadn't made up her mind yet. Or maybe it wasn't. It would have helped if he was really sure whether he wanted her to stay on awhile or not. In any case, he definitely didn't want her to get weirded out and bolt, and he was grateful to Bast for her gracious welcome. "Always a bit unpredictable, our Kit," he couldn't resist saying. She's always seemed to appear and vanish from his life without warning.

so, so sorry for late postage...

[first-catwoman.livejournal.com]

She wasn't as dim as she acted, not at all - she realised quite fully the awkwardness her quetion had caused. And so to make light of the situation, Bast laughed. "And you say that like it's a bad thing!"

She shot a sly grin at Kit. "It's up to us girls to keep to the boys on their toes, hmm? Otherwise, they'd be all over the place!"

[no-npc-here.livejournal.com]

Kit mustered up a smile, despite the awkward airs tense between them. "This one especially, I think," she said with a nod at John. She didn't dare look at him once she'd said it; it had felt far too familiar, like something she no longer deserved to say.

"Well, Bast, it was nice meeting you...

[dangeroushabits.livejournal.com]

John cast Kit a sardonic glance but said nothing. She had no business saying it, yeah, but he would have minded a lot more if there hadn't been more than a little truth to the statement. "Yeah, we got other stops to make. Oh, while you're here though, Bast--do me a favor and ask the kid to come get me if there's any big issues next door, would you?" There was only one 'kid' around the Manor the cat goddess had any reason to be interested in, as far as he knew, so hopefully the coded request would come through intelligibly. If Crowley was going to shut himself away and play hermit in the aftermath of his unscheduled trip to Hell, John wouldn't scruple at recruiting his own cat to spy on him.