11075/So...this is awkward...

So...this is awkward...
Date of Scene:	15 February 2020
Location:	Apartment 214, Hugo Building
Synopsis:	Thomas and the Scoobies have breakfast and invitations to a party are made.
Cast of Characters:	Thomas Raith, Willow Rosenberg, Buffy Summers, Winifred Burkle

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Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith had speant the night with Buffy, so now with it being fairly early in the morning he slips out of her room, still shirtless, and heads to the kitchen. He has yet to meet his lovers room mate, and isn't thinking of her yet as he moves to prepare coffee.

Willow Rosenberg has posed:
Willow Rosenberg comes out of her room in a pair of sweat pants and a sports bra, her hair pulled up into a haphazard topknot of reddy redness. She's stretching and scratching under her armpit when she suddenly finds herself looking at a shirtless Thomas.

"Um. Hi. You're new. Well, new to me. You might've been here a while. You're a, uh, guest of Buffy's, I guess?"

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith blinks a bit and grins slightly. He brushes some of his long brown hair away from his deep blue eyes and offers the young woman a Cat with a belly full of cream smile. "I suppose I could say the same thing about you, hmm? I'm Thomas." He says offering the girl his hand and seeming completely unself conscious about walking around in just a loose pair of sweats. "If I were to guess, you'd be Willow? Buffy mentioned she had a room mate but said you were traveling.

Willow Rosenberg has posed:
Willow Rosenberg takes the hand, although she's a bit awkward at shaking hands. Not for any particular reason other than just because she's Willow and awkward is kind of what she do. "Yeah, I've been in England for a little while for...reasons," she says. She's not sure, after all, just how in the know the new guy is or what level of covert they're being at this point so she's just going to assume innocence until proven informed.

"I got back a few nights ago, but I still haven't seen Buffy yet. Just...ships in the night, I guess."

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith smirks a bit glancing at the bedroom, "Well she's in port, but I think she is docked fore resupply at the moment." He says with a wry grin. Shaking Thomas's hand is...nice. Very nice actually. Some men don't /kiss/ as well as Thomas shakes hands. "So are you one of the things that go bump in the night, or one of the things that bump back?" he asks with a grin. "And how do you take your coffee?"

Willow Rosenberg has posed:
Willow Rosenberg wiggles her fingers a little bit after the shake. Huh. That was unusual. "I do my share of bumping. I mean, y'know, magic wise," she says. "Lots of cream, lots of sugar," she says, taking a seat at the breakfast nook and propping her head up on an elbow, "Sounds like you're not exactly a civilian. Aura kinda tells me the same, though I'm not sure I've seen one like that before."

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith says, "White Court." He tells her, and then assuming she's never heard of such a thing he adds "Sex vampire, basically." He says in amused tone. "Closer to Incubus really, but vampire is easier for most people to get their heads arround.""

Willow Rosenberg has posed:
Willow Rosenberg blinks, "Sex...vampire. Okay. I mean, sure, that...I totally knew that was a thing," she says, blushing a bit. Explains the tingly fingers, that's for sure at least. "I guess you've passed the basic 'not evil' standards that we usually hope for Buffy boyfriends. Not that she always sticks to that," she mutters.

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith smiles a bit and hands the woman a steaming cup of coffee, turned almost white with cream and with enough sugar she may have difficulty stirring it at first. "Less evil then most, more evil then some." He says with a shrug. "I mean technically I'm her boss so I'm dating my employee. That's pretty evil, right?"

Willow Rosenberg has posed:
Willow Rosenberg takes a slow, careful sip of the coffee, which she can almost taste through the sugar and milk. Which is how she likes it, frankly. "I think the technical term for that is 'unethical'. I don't think it quite reaches full evil stages. But I'm not your HR rep," she says with a hint of a smile. "As long as Buffy is happy, I'm happy. I won't give you the usual best friend spiel about what happens if you hurt her. She'd kick your ass before I got a chance to anyway."

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith chuckles a bit, and considering I'm close to Human+ more then Super human, she could do it quite handily." He says with no small amout of amusement, Adding about half as much milk, but every bit as much sugar to his own coffee. "You mentioned magic. Are you a wizard?"

Willow Rosenberg has posed:
Willow Rosenberg scoffs, "Wizard? Me? Why that would be silly? I don't even own a magic wand. I'm a witch. Much more sophisticated. Although I do still wear stars on my clothes, cause stars are cool," she says. She sips on the coffee, drumming her fingers along the side of it.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers steps out of her bedroom, wearing a man's shirt...And nothing else. She yawns and stretches as she heads for the kitchenette, mumbling something to herself. "Ugh....Need coffeee." she groans, wondering why things are all rearranged and....Oh..She's not alone. There's Thomas and.."Willow? Err..." she laughs nervously as she sees Thomas is still here too, still wearing nothing but briefs. "Um..You're back early!" awwkwaaard...

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith looks up as he sees Buffy coming out of the room, and smirks slightly. He is of course immune to nervousness and embarrassment. He stands moving to the pot, though pausing to give Buffy a quick but heated kiss on the way past. "Cream and sugar?" he asks playfully.

Winifred Burkle has posed:
Fred wakes up late...and walks out of Willow's room, of all things. How she got in there, or why, she doesn't say. But the second she sets foot outside the room, she feels it again. That pervasive aura, and sort of whines at Willow. "Can you put a spell up for that or something? I can't think clearly." Which is a big problem, at least from Fred's point of view. Hopefully it gets taken care of.

Willow Rosenberg has posed:
Willow Rosenberg blushes very deeply and clears her throat, "A spell up? I mean, I, uh, I can look into it, I guess," she says to Fred, taking another quick sip of her coffee. "Research. Love doing research. Me and books, best friends forever," she says, hopping off her stool and regarding Fred with a smile, "Oh, um...hi again," she says.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers blushes a bit, managing a nervous smile for Thomas. "Mmm morning...I see you've met my room mate.." she smirks, "Well I suppose I may as well, now that we have some sorta...Party going on.." oh hey, there's Fred...Coming out of Willow's room. Okaaay..."Umm hi Fred! Didn't know you were here too..Anyone else hiding anywhere?" she peers around warily.

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith grins a bit, "I sure hope not. I'm kind of enjoying the pretty girl to Thomas ratio we have going on here." He says amused handing her the coffee cup and looking over at Fred. "Same rules as before, only in this case I'm Buffy's guest. which means if I were to do something to you, she'd be within her rights to go all Slayer on me."

Winifred Burkle has posed:
Fred, still clearly not thinking very well, "Should be something...virgin goddesses Athena, Artemis, Hestia...Research sounds like a great idea..." Maybe if she was on the other side of the door with it shut, she'd be okay. As it is, though...the big cow mooney eyes she had the last time...fight it as she will, try as she might...her willpower just isn't sufficient to fight it off...and she finds herself staring at the vampire again. "Guest doesn't make me any less vulnerable..."

Willow Rosenberg has posed:
Willow Rosenberg grips at Fred's wrist a bit firmly and leans in to give the other nerd-girl a kiss on the cheek. Almost platonic. Almost. The wording gives her a sense of what it is that she's having trouble with and she turns Fred's face to hers, "Just breathe, first and foremost. Have some coffee. Black, I think. I'll see if I can come up some makeshift warding. I have a few things in my room that'll help. And I'll get dressed," she says.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers sighs, rubbing her eyes tiredly as she flops down on the sofa, sipping her coffeee slowly. "I'm sorry Willow, Fred. I should have warned you I had a...A guest over. I mean..Wasn't really expecting to..Ahh...You know.." more nervous laughter, "Heey, so um..Don't worry Fred, you're safe here as much as at...The Blue Lady.." Hmm.. So Fred and Willow are...? She can't help but smile. Seems she's not the only one with surprises.

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith gives Buffy a playfully wicked look and nods. "So i was planning on making omlettes for us, but I can make four as easily as two." He says moving to the refidgerator to fetch ingredients. "So what are people's plans for this afternoon? There is apparently a surprise birthday party the staff is throwing for me later. You can all come."

Winifred Burkle has posed:
Fred goes to prepare herself the black coffee...but it's not helping. She still feels like a sheep to the slaughter. And breathing and trying to clear her head...it's just not enough. It won't go away, like an insistent fly that can't be swatted, endlessly buzzing, drawing her eyes back to the vampire no matter what she does. She feels coquettish, almost, when she looks at him, and yet she doesn't want to, and she does it anyway. "As long as Willow gets that spell sorted out, I guess I can come." Thinking clearly is very valuble to Fred.

Willow Rosenberg has posed:
Willow Rosenberg comes in having changed into a pink King Princess t-shirt and a pair of jeans, padding around in her Care Bear socks. She has under her arm a small wooden case, like the kind some people keep for jewelry, only this one has a pentacle on the lid and is more for worthwhile mystically attuned odds and ends.

"Okay, one naughty influence charm resistance bracelet coming right up. It'll be a little generic, but it should at least take the edges off. It's not that strong for me, thankfully, just enough tingle to let me know he's magic."

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers smiles, "Awwe Wil, it's good to have you back. I really missed you." she watches Fred with some sympathy, realizing she's even more a nervous wreck than Willow, "Fred, why don't you come sit over here and take slow breaths? I think some sort of calming spell will do her good." Ooh, a naughty influence charm is even better. "Niiice..." as for Thomas, she just she smiles and nods to him. "Thanks, I think we could all do with some food in our stomachs.." Buffy does pout a bit as he seems all too aware of the 'surprise party' they had planned for later. "Awwwe how did you know? I got the place all decorated..I even got you some gifts and I talked Karrin and Harry into coming.."

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith smiles a bit and leans over, giving Buffy another soft kiss. "I know you.. Also when I was checking the monitors last night I heard you talking it over with Yosa." He says playfully. "Any dietary resrictions? I'm planning veggies and sausage and cheese. Speak now or forever hold your peace.

Winifred Burkle has posed:
Fred eagerly awaits the charm resistance bracelet, and, "Anything helps. I'm a scientist, I don't like having my thoughts muddled with. Thinking clearly is how I thrive as a person." So, she super hates this. So her nerdy self is all askew. "It's probably because magic is part of you. It's science that's part of me, and science doesn't help with this." And oh how frustrating that is. If she could invent a clear thinking device she'd feel so triumphant right now. Alas, she hasn't managed it yet.

Willow Rosenberg has posed:
Willow Rosenberg considers, "It might also be an attraction thing. I don't know your personal orientation, so if you like boys, too, he can probably affect you better than he does me. Or it might be the witch thing. Or maybe you just have, like, sex vampire hypoglycemia and you're just really vulnerable to him."

She finishes knotting a bit of cord, tying in a few stones and a quail feather, using the point of an Exacto knife to etch in a few runes, "Okay, one last thing, gonna need a hair from your boyfriend slash boss's head, if you please, Buff."

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers smirks at Thomas, "Heh, well that's not creepy at all, is it.." she sighs, "Well I was hoping to surprise you, but...At least you'll never know what I got you for a gift, but now you'll have to wait til later.." she grins and winks at him, "No allergies over here.." and there's that word again and she sighs, "Really, do you have to use that word? Can't you just say Psychic Vamp or something?" as for pulling out a strand of his hair, she just shrugs, "That's up to him if he minds.."

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith makes a face, "I'm generally agienst giving my hair, blood, or toenail clippings to anyone who uses any sorts of magic. Too many ways it can be used agienst you." He says with a bit of consternation, "But if you are willing to swaer, by your power, that you will use it only to the benifit of Ms. Burkle.." He lightly plucks one of the brown silken hairs from his head and offers it over. He then turns to Buffy adding "Oh that wasn't my present earlier? Goodie!"

Winifred Burkle has posed:
Fred's head isn't quite clear yet, but there's hope in her soul that she will soon be thinking clearly again. "Before...before they abandoned me...I liked Gunn, and even Wesley. They...were vying for me, I think. Then they both abruptly abandoned me along with Angel, so..." so there are no boys in her life now, but there were. There could be again, really.

Meanwhile, she backs Willow up. "Oh, absolutely a sex vampire, and a mind control one too, and even though I keep trying and trying I can't turn it off. He could drag me into your room, Buffy, right in front of you, and I couldn't tell him no." She turns her eyes back to Willow...PLEEEEEASE bracelet!

Willow Rosenberg has posed:
Willow Rosenberg nods, "Consider it sworn," she says, lacing in the hair, "A single hair really doesn't offer a lot of power anyway. I'd need decent clumps to do anything that would hurt you. If it were that easy, most baddies could be defeated just by stealing their combs," she says. "This just gives me enough of your resonance that I can attune the ward closer to your frequency."

"There we go. Try that out," she says, offering the bracelet to Fred. "And he told me he was a sex vampire, straight from the sex vampire's mouth."

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers laughs a bit, shaking her head, face a bit red, "What? Nooo, I have something else in mind..Although maybe some alone time later would be nice too.." she smirks, "But you'll just have to wait and see at the party.." as for Wil's spell, she just shrugs, "It's okay, you can trust Willow, she's a good witch.." well, so far anyway. She glances back at Fred again, shaking her head, "Geez, you've been through sooo much Fred, my heart really goes out to you. I know I said you could stay here while Willow was in England but..I didn't realize she'd be back so soon. Ummm...Not really sure how to fix that now.." she sighs, laying back on the sofa, listening to all this sexpire talk which just makes her feel terrible, like she's just another lamb to the slaughter..

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith nods aa bit, "I'm sure. But at the same time I'm also pretty sure with that same hair Harry could trail me from here to the Empty night if he needed to," He says honestly. moving into the kitchen, and more importantly away from Fred to give the female witch room to work her magic. Literally. "And don't worry Buffy, I'll act all shocked and surprised when I come in. I promise.

Winifred Burkle has posed:
Fred puts the bracelet on...and immediately the world shifts before her eyes. Her sight clears, her head clears, that insistent buzzing that won't go away clears. He gaze feels sharper, all of the sudden, and her mind regains its normal sharpness. She feels less like a lamb, and more like a lion. A lion of science, anyway! And with the world clear, and her heart free to follow its own path once more...Willow gets a big smooch for that one, and it isn't even pretending to be platonic.

"...Finally. The buzzing's gone away. And I feel less like prey, and more like myself."

Willow Rosenberg has posed:
Willow Rosenberg pats Fred on the shoulder, "Good," she smiles, putting away her box of trinkets for the moment, securing it in her room before she comes back out. "I, uh, think Fred and I kind of worked out arrangements for now. She can stay. I mean, if she wants to. I didn't actually ask if you wanted to," she says, flushing a little and looking over at Fred, "Not officially anyway. I know that's kind of a joke about lesbians moving in together right away, but, uh, do you want to move in right away?" she grins.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers rolls her eyes, "Oh sure, I'll just pretend to surprise you then.." she smirks, "And really, why would Harry want to track you to the ends of The earth? Sure he distrusts you but you haven't done anything to, uh, anger him lately, have you..? " Buffy shrugs, watching the exchange between the two girls with a faint smile, "Wow, nice work Wils! Soo um...You two..Are you...?" she quirks a curious brow. Willow could be good for Fred honestly, but didn't they just meet..?

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith is pretty sure he could burn out Willow's charm if he wanted to. He doesn't but is pretty sure he could. "In answer to what you said earlier Willow, it's a little of all of the above. It's harder for me to, lets call it a whammy. It's harder for me to whammy a strictly lesbian female then a straight one. Nearly impossible for me to whammy a man, regardless of gender because my own orientation doesn't swing that way. I have a gay cousin, and he has the same problem with women, but I've seen him take men that were a hundred percent heterosexual and make their heads turn just a bit. Magical talent isn't a big hindrance, but knowledge is, so yes that could be a factor." He sets the first omelet in front of Buffy, and a second in front of willow. "Lastly, yes some people are just more susceptible then others. Fred's had allot of psychic trauma. She would be."

Willow Rosenberg has posed:
Willow Rosenberg smiles at Fred, "How 'bout we just see how it goes for a bit and, if you feel totally wrong and bad and immoral about it, I'll even help you move into whatever apartment you find on your fancy superspy salary," she teases. And yes, she knows Fred's not really a spy, but she has to tease her a little bit.

At Thomas' words, she raises an eyebrow, "Well, it's good to know what you're capable of. I shouldn't have to remind you, but I'm going to, like, a lot, that you shouldn't be using your powers on people who aren't into you, whether for reasons of gender or...like, any reason, because it's totally not cool and in fact really really bad. So, like...don't do that."

Winifred Burkle has posed:
Fred pretends to consider. "Well, let's see. Option 1: An empty hotel full of friends that all abandoned me for unknown locations. Option 2, a cute girlfriend. No, scientifically, we're probably jumping into this way too fast, and I should probably get an apartment somewhere else so we're not just diving into it. I mean, I have SHIELD salary, I can afford anything I need to afford. ...but it feels so warm, and I don't really wanna be bothered with doing the healthy thing. It's like eating a bag full of candy, but..."

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers peers at Thomas, "...Wow. That was way more information than I wanted to know.." she does dig into the omelette though, which tastes pretty good, "Mmm can I just hire you as my full time cook?" she smiles, glancing between Fred and Willow thoughtfully. "Hmm well I'm not here all the time so you can always crash in my room if need be..." she does glance over at Thomas thoughtfully, "Well I really hope he won't be doing that anymore..But I do t think it's something he can just switch off either.."

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith smirks a bit, "You just have this fantasy about keeping me wearing nothing but an apron." He says playfully amused as he gets to work on omlettes for himself and Fred. "The attraction thing? no I can't help that. And the Hungrier I get, the harder it is to control at all." He says casually, holding up the coffee pot for refills. "And I never push it all the way. Some of my family will, but at my worst, I never lowered someones inhibitions past "Oh my god what was I thinking." Never as far as "How did I get here and who is that?"

Winifred Burkle has posed:
Fred nods at Willow, "We probably are going too fast, but...that seems okay for now." Fred hasn't been shopping much, and doesn't actually have a lot of stuff, despite her much improved bank statement. She's gonna have to remember to shop properly later. Still has some Pylea in her where she wasn't allowed to own things. Thomas isn't at all wrong about that psychic trauma. Being enslaved will do that.

"If someone says, What was I thinking, that's already too far. Remember, normally people can't tell you no." In Fred's opinion anyway. She holds up that bracelet to remind him about 'can't tell him no.'

Willow Rosenberg has posed:
Willow Rosenberg nods to Thomas, "It sucks if you can't control it, but you can still control what you do. And if it's a hunger thing, like you said, I can try and figure something out. I mean, I haven't been able to cure regular vampires yet, but who knows? I'm always hearing rumors about stuff. There's some legend of a dhampir going around on the West Coast who uses some sort of serum to stave off his hunger for blood. Supposed to be kind of cranky, though," she sighs.

In truth, it still sounds a LITTLE shady to Willow, but she's shy enough not to push the point. Especially since Buffy seems to like the guy enough to have him around. Hopefully he really would be a good guy and not like...well, every other boyfriend Buffy's had.

"I guess we'll have to get your stuff to move you in, then," she says to Fred. "Maybe Xander's pick-up is still at his house. Probably not, though." she frowns.

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers hmmms, "Well I'd love to see you in a cute heart shaped apron..Who knows, maybe I got you one too, Hmm?" She wriggles her brows at him playfully, holding out her cup so he give her a refill, "..But you shouldn't ever be hungry again, right? At least if I can help it.." Buffy watches Fred and Willow some more as she nibbles on her breakfast. "Well good for you two, maybe it is a bit too soon but I dunno, sometimes you just *know*, sometimes it's just meant to be, regardless of time..But it can't help to get to know each other a little better.."

Thomas Raith has posed:
Smiles and rather then looking suave and seductive, as he did when talking about freaking omelette's, he looks a bit dopey, as if twitterpated. "That's the plan now isn't it?" he asks with a smile before setting a plate in front of Fred and taking a seat again next to Buffy. "I've never forced someone. Never taken away their ability to say No. I've just...put them in a mind set that makes them more inclined to say yes. I may count the cards, but I don't stack deck. Believe me i've gone hungry many nights in the past.

Winifred Burkle has posed:
Fred's starting to wonder if maybe Buffy needs a bracelet too. She might be a slayer, but maybe it's also giving in to the aura that bothered Fred so much. Just because Buffy seems to be enjoying the side effects doesn't mean she isn't still food in the literal sense. That's how a sex vampire works after all. Well, Fred might have to work that out later. Would Buffy really be in love without that nudge? Or is she in love at all? Well. Ponder ponder. Fix it later. Enjoy girlfriend first.

"Maybe. All I know for sure is, I couldn't have said no no matter how much you protested I could have." But that's just her, maybe...

Willow Rosenberg has posed:
Willow Rosenberg is also not entirely sure that's very much better, even if Thomas thinks it is, but that's something she's going to have to wrestle with another time. She just got back after all and, while she thought that was a little skeevy, she didn't consider it a threat. Not right now anyway. She might have a talk with Buffy about it sometime, though, later down the line.

"I think we'll manage just fine," she says, taking Fred's hand, "I heard we're pretty smart cookies."

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers grins and winks at Thomas. "Maybe. Guess you'll just have to wait and see!" she casually rests a hand on his thigh as he finally comes to sit next to her. "It's okay, I trust him. I think he can make a girl lust after him, but he can't make a girl love him.." she sighs, "Although sometimes it can be confusing, I think I know the difference now..."

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith nods his agreement to Fred. "You are probably right, which is why i personally wouldn't have gone after you. Plenty of white Courts would have mind you. My cousin Madeline for instance would have found you irresistible. That's where the line is for me." he shrugs. "There is a difference between nudging someone towards 'Yes', and taking away someones ability to say 'No,". the first maybe distasteful to some, though similar to trying to get someone drunk. the other is abhorrent." unconsciously, Thomas' hand comes down to caress Buffy's gently. "But since I now appear not to /need/ a hunting ground, it changes the rules significantly."

Winifred Burkle has posed:
Does she? That's a bet Fred would take, but maybe later. She'll have to convince Willow to make a second bracelet, later. Or maybe something more subtle that Buffy wouldn't even notice was a magical blocker. If she thinks she's in love, she might not want to wear it after all. Particularly if she knows what it does. Ponder ponder. Well...maybe later.

"I should get ready for work. They keep excellent track of time where I work now..."

Buffy Summers has posed:
Buffy Summers yawns tiredly, giving Thomas' hand a squeeze, "Yeah, I should get going too.." she leans over to give him a peck on the cheek before climbing to her feet, "You're welcome to stay as long as you like. Otherwise, I'll see you later at the party?"

Thomas Raith has posed:
Thomas Raith sighs and streaches slightly. "Yeah I should go and actually get some work done, since I'm going to be ditstracted later." He says amused and stands as well to get ready to head out into the Febuary Chill. "You two are both welcome if you want to come to the party later."