the formal (icon of hell optional)

[molotovmartinis.livejournal.com]

WHO: [OPEN]
WHERE: the Brandt Banquet Hall
WHEN: Sunday March 29
WARNINGS: B|
SUMMARY: the superhero formal. Will things explode?
FORMAT: whatever you feel like


There are extensive tables for hor d'oeuvres, small desserts, and champagne as well as an open bar. Room for dancing is obvious, flanked by a small group of musicians. And there are alcoves for the shy, the hiding, the amorous, the machinating, or the creeper lurking.

Comments

[meowminx]

Well. There was a face Selina certainly hadn't expected to see here. And certainly not so sharply dressed.

She made her way across the hall, fresh glass of champagne in hand. "Knives," she said by way of greeting, managing to keep almost all the amusement out of her voice. "Nice tux." She nodded at his... date? A dark-haired woman she didn't recognize.

[returntoeven.livejournal.com]

Knives's eye twitched ever so slightly at the greeting, catching some of the amusement, filtered though it was. He'd rather hoped she wouldn't come talk to him--or even notice him for that matter--but that would have been too easy.

"Selina," he greeted, just managing to keep his voice level with forced patience. As for the compliment, it was difficult to appreciate something like that when he personally hated the damn thing. Still, he got out a brief 'thank you' regardless...at which point he remembered his 'date'.

Attempting to be polite, Knives introduced them. "This is Claire," he said, looking from one woman to the other. "Claire, Selina."

[easytochop.livejournal.com]

Selina.

So it had been worth coming here, after all. Lust withheld the excitement from her face as she looked up at the other woman, putting a blandly pleasant smile there in its stead.

"It's nice to meet you," she said, her voice soft and modulated. It was an easy persona to put on, the sweet and unassuming girlfriend--she had gotten a lot of practice with it, shortly before her death. "You're a friend of Knives'?"

Would she recognize her? She had made multiple video posts, so it seemed inevitable, but the prospect of Selina realizing who was with her friend was even more exciting.

And if the boys came out of the woodwork to defend her, it would just be perfect.

[meowminx]

The voice set off a little alarm in her mind. It took Selina a minute to place it, to realize she had seen the woman without those glasses.

Damnit.

None of these thoughts reached her face. "I doubt he considers us friends," she replied, glancing at Knives. "But we do have a number of mutual acquaintances."

[easytochop.livejournal.com]

"I see," she said, her expression composed as ever. If she was lucky enough tonight, Lust might be able to tell Hush to go shove the information fee up his own ass--not in so many words, of course. Contrary to people's expectations, perhaps, she wasn't vulgar.

[returntoeven.livejournal.com]

He watched the exchange between the two women, a single eyebrow lifting every so slightly in response. There was an undercurrent of tension between them for some reason he couldn't readily identify. It was curious, to say the least, and almost made him wish he'd done a little more research before coming.

Still, the mention of 'mutual acquaintances'...yes. They did have a fair number of those, he supposed. And he didn't really consider her a 'friend'--not that he considered anyone his friend, but that was beside the point.

He looked at her, fingers drumming a little on the table. "Any word from the one who left?"

Of course, Knives was asking about River, but he didn't feel it necessary (or prudent) to drop her name in the conversation.

[meowminx]

It was a moment before Selina realized that Knives was talking about River. The one who left... her mind had gone to Batman at first. But while Knives knew Tim, she was pretty sure he'd never met Bruce.

"She hasn't called for help, which I assume is a good sign." Her attention was focused on Knives now, as if Lust didn't concern her. "I think Tank Girl's been visiting her."

Selina wasn't sure what to think of that. But she guessed the conversations were... interesting.

[easytochop.livejournal.com]

As the two of them talked to each other, Lust returned her attention to the rest of the room; she couldn't be sure whether Selina had recognized her or not, but it was safest to assume she had. Lust knew, from her own painful experience, just where underestimating your enemies led you. Better to scan the crowd again and pick out the boys. She went through more carefully this time, holding her glances longer and searching for any distinguishing factors that might set them apart.

Hmm, she thought. There was a boy near the snack table wearing what looked like particularly Xingese clothing--or whatever the equivalent was here. He seemed to be accompanying a shorter girl, who was eating but looked... a little uncomfortable, in a hard-to-define way. Something about her bearing was stiffer than it should be, and as she turned more into Lust's point of view, her features--

Oh.

Oh, this was just too much. She couldn't be sure, as always, but the height and the face were enough of a give-away for her to assume the worst. She felt like laughing, for the first time in years, but held the urge back and kept her face impassive.

[returntoeven.livejournal.com]

It was a good sign, but honestly, the news didn't satisfy him in the least. Perhaps it was because he was still angry with River's decision to incarcerate herself, or maybe he was peeved at himself for terminating their last conversation so abruptly. It was difficult to tell at this point, and honestly, his feelings on the matter were tangled up anyway so he really didn't care to examine them very much. As for this 'Tank Girl'...well. It really wasn't his business. Not anymore.

"I see." A pause, then, as he realized that he'd just drained the last of his champagne. Suppressing a sign, he rose smoothly, and after a brief "I'll be back", promptly went to find another glass. He wouldn't be gone that long, and in the meantime, he'd keep an eye on Selina and Lust out of the corner of his eye.

[meowminx]

Selina nodded at Knives as he departed. Which left her alone with Lust. She gave the other woman (if you could even call her that) her best little socialite smile. The one used when gossiping about this and that scandalous thing.

"Claire, right?" Nothing in her voice or face gave away that she knew just who she was chatting with. "I have to say, I'm a bit surprised to see Knives here. He doesn't exactly seem like the formal date type."

[easytochop.livejournal.com]

"I wouldn't have thought so, either," Lust said; so far, she was telling the truth, "but it appears he has another side." She paused to take another sip of champagne, maintaining eye contact with Selina over the glass. "He asked me, actually. I wasn't expecting it at all."

She pushed the glass away, noting that Ed and his friend had moved away from the snack table, and smiled a little at Selina.

"It seems like there are things about Knives one wouldn't expect."

[meowminx]

"Oh, I'm sure," Selina replied, a hint of mischief in her voice. It had been a while since she played this role, but she had no trouble falling back into it. "Where did the two of you meet?"

LOL THE WORST TAG EVER

[easytochop.livejournal.com]

"Work," she said, simply. It was true, wasn't it? "How did you get to know him, Selina?"

[meowminx]

"Like I said, Claire." Selina took a sip of champagne. "Mutual acquaintances. Don't exactly know him all that well, truth be told."

[easytochop.livejournal.com]

"I see," Lust said, taking another sip in a mimicry of Selina's motions. This could become very awkward very quickly, but she couldn't really say she cared. "I feel like I've seen you around before, actually."

[meowminx]

"Really? I don't think we've met before." A slight tilt of the head, as if examining her companion. "Maybe out shopping or something?"

[easytochop.livejournal.com]

Oh my god, they were dancing.

She tapped her chin and rolled her eyes upward, frowning a bit, as though trying to recall something. "Perhaps, but I don't suppose so. You must just look like somebody else."

[meowminx]

Selina shrugged, took another sip from her glass. "Maybe I just have one of those faces," she agreed.

She followed Lust's gaze out onto the dance floor and it was a damn good thing she knew about Ed's disguise in advance. Still, it helped having an excellent poker face. "Nice decorations."

[easytochop.livejournal.com]

Ed and his Xingese friend were moving closer and closer towards their table--on purpose, obviously--but she kept her features composed and calm as always. There was no sense in letting them know Lust could see through them just as easily as they through her. Much better to let them come to her, to let them think that she was stupid enough to fall for their little act. Alphonse was another matter; he was probably there as well, tagging along as he usually did, but she hadn't spotted him yet. Taking another sip, she smiled slightly.

"They are pretty nice, aren't they? I wonder who did them."

[meowminx]

"You'd have to ask our host," Selina said absently, eyes scanning the room, the crowd. Nothing in particular caught her eye. She let her gaze skate over Ed and his "date" as if they were just another part of the scenery. "I don't know the guy myself. Nice of him to put all of this together."

[easytochop.livejournal.com]

"It was," she agreed. "He certainly doesn't seem to want to stand out here, though. I wonder who he is."

[meowminx]

"Someone who likes a good party, I guess." Selina wasn't about to give Lust any useful information if she could avoid it. Of course, pointless small talk with psychos was only tolerable for so long.

Her glass was almost empty; she quickly drained the rest. "Oops, looks like I'm out too," she told the other 'woman'. "If you'll excuse me... Tell Knives I'll catch up with him later."

Rising from her chair, Selina made a beeline for the bar. Time for something a little stronger than champagne.

[easytochop.livejournal.com]

"Of course," she said, smiling at the woman as she made her retreat.

Had she known? It was entirely possible; the fact that Selina hadn't shown any signs of recognition or nervousness made her much more interesting in Lust's eyes, to be perfectly honest. People who gave the least away were always more rewarding to break down later. But there were more important things to think about, for the moment--the boys, for one thing, and her "date" for another--and empty conversation was something she couldn't tolerate for too long.

Relaxing a little, she finished her drink, but made no move to get more. One thing nobody here needed to know was that homunculi could, in fact, become intoxicated.