16341/Of Blood Ties and Old Friends

Of Blood Ties and Old Friends
Date of Scene:	04 June 2024
Location:	Club Lux, Melville
Synopsis:	Dracula stops by Lux for a random visit.
Cast of Characters:	Lucifer, Dracula, Sinister

---

Lucifer has posed:
It's a pretty quiet night for a Monday - but then again it's always quiet during the week. One would think that Lucifer would only open his club on the weekends where the big money is. Truth be told, he's flirted with the idea...but people like coming to the club. To unwind, to hook up, to be entertained. Plus, he really does enjoy even the little breaths of sin he can take in when it's slow.

It also does not stir him from standing at his usual perch. An alcove aside the spiral stairs that link the first floor to the second. This alcove gives him a perfect view of the club above and below - and he'll stand here for as long as he feels he needs to. Or unless something or someone calls to him. Dressed immaculately in black with a crimson undershirt, black tie and crimson handkerchief tucked neatly in his left breast pocket - a 3-piece suit tailored just for him. Hair is somewhat messily slicked back and blue eyes take in all that he can see.

As a waitress walks by, he plucks a glass of whiskey off her tray in a fluid motion before lifting the glass to his lips for a sip. Everything is going wonderfully for the moment. He likes it this way.

Dracula has posed:
Lux is... well, it's definitely a place where things happen. Anything can, and has probably, happened here at one point or another. Especially for those in the know of the more. esoteric and obscure history of the owner and his lineage. Dracula is nothing if not very studious of the various events and happenings around. Especialy those with a possibly religious tie, as he and the Big Guy Upstairs haven't seen eye to eye in a long time, since he picked up the curse of vampirism so long ago. He's come to peace with it, but forewarned is forearmed and Dracula is not about to enter into a fight he can lose

Tonight, however, it is time to mingle, see how the common folk live, and he is dressed in what to him is common, a tailored suit, something bespoke but not by one of the big names, just a local tailor as in this day and age the common folk love to support the little guy. Something about how big business is ruining the planet, but then, he's got a stake in the big business so its a win win for him.

He lets out a chuckle, setting his course towards the bar as he steps furher into the club, eyes going over the crowd to see who decided to come out tonight.

Sinister has posed:
They are many and they are varied, from the student with aspirations, to the high class hooker who may well escort someone upstairs for the right price, to the high fliers and wheeler dealers of the world and those that just want to escape the monotonous grind of the Nine to Five. Or their life. Or their wife. Or their... you get the picture.

But it's always a quiet experience on a Monday, except when it's decidedly not. Luckily those times are a rare bird, only glimpsed through distant binoculars.

Speaking of rare birds -- Sinister /is/ here. But it would be very hard to tell where, or to find him without concentrating immensely on the space where the noise blends the most and where the eye doesn't quite want to settle at all. It's at an alcove just overlooking the dance floor, piano and the entrance. He's watching something on a tablet set infront of him, dressed sharp as sharp can be, in black on black, with embroidered cuffs and vest. Moleskin trews, wing-tipped shoes and not one single hair out of place. He narrows eyes at the screen, adjusting the pink spectacles on the bridge of his nose slightly.

A moment passes, where he plucks a drink from a tray that just ended up in his orbit, then he looks up. And around. Familiar feelings do make a fellow curious.

Lucifer has posed:
There is just something about a Vampire Lord and his presence that makes the Devil take a look. He grins ever so slightly and finishes his drink in a few swallows. Then it's one step, another, and he is behind the bar right where Dracula was going to take his seat. "I never thought I would see your face again, old friend." He says, as if they had spoken a few weeks ago or so. Something like that.

"I have kept something on tap for you that I think you will enjoy. Care to try a glass? As always, first drink is on the house..." So there'd be no harm in trying something, yes? They had spoken about it in the past. A synthetic blend that could mimic the properties, taste, and even vitality of drinking human blood. It's a very good thing that Lucifer has a Doctor on hand - and not just any doctor either.

"Also, what brings you back around these parts?" Is curiously requested information.

Dracula has posed:
For thos who measure centuries like mortals measure years, it may just feel like a few weeks that Dracula was last here. The Count lets a smile as he considers the statement of something that he could enjoy. "Always willing to try new things," he says, "And after talking to the Mistress of Reality Manipulation about what she thinks her Magical Menagerie can try and pull of about bringing me back to life then perhaps finding alternatives to my free range feasts may be an idea," He says and laughs a little to that concept.

"As for what brings me out... well, my car is in the parking garage downstairs," he adds with a chuckle again, "But the why.. well, people come to places like these when they're introspective, no? And I mean who better to understand that question of if you had the choice to live a life, free of all the chaos, all the stress... all the... limitations that your life gives you, would you give it up to live like the mortals do, with no way back, and nothing to make you special again?" h says, his voice somber as he spits that out.

Sinister has posed:
What a curious thing to be observing. Sinister rises from his seat, setting the tablet into a case with narry a glance, so that he might silently make his way closer. Holding back only so that he might idly see just how the Count might like the aforementioned concoction, he sips on the drink he procured, one pinky raised and eyes fixed across the top of the glass at the devil and his old friend.

There's a smile when he lowers the glass, sets the empty on the tray for washing behind the bar, then leans like the marlboro man, all hipshod and silent.

He'll appear as if he'd always been there, fading from the background into the foreground, suddenly just -there-. "That's the kind of question that will beggar a man to answer it honestly, I'm sure." His cigarette case is set on the counter, flipped open and a clove removed. It remains open, apparently in invite.

Dracula has posed:
Dracula looks over at Sinister as he offers his comment to the conondrum. "Well, if that ain't the honest truth. I mean," he repllies and then glances at the cigarette pack and smiles. "Those things'll kill ya," he replies before taking one, "But what have I got to lose these days," he offers, bringing it to his lips . "IT's not like..." he pauses and then glances at Sinister for a long moment, "Life is going anywhere for me anyway."

He sips the drink Luci got for him, swirling it around slowly. "Not a bad consistency, decent palate, a bit of a fruity aftertaste.. I could see it catching on."

Sinister has posed:
"It's a little of this, a little of that and a good deal of herbs and rare ahh... vintages. Gives it a kick of heat, goes down well... I've fine tuned it for a while now," A little of this, a little of that, some cloned plasma and cultured platelets and low and behold. It also keeps quite well, as long as you don't let it clot. Ahem!

"I've never been one to let a tricky thing like death get in the way of enjoyment. It's the simple things that make it worthwhile -- a good vintage, a flavourful smoke, an excellent mani-pedi and delectable advancements in forensic law..." his smoke is lit, sucked upon with the sweet perfume of clove lifting but not going all that far.

"So, would you? If honesty is the best policy, I can imagine a life less ordinary is simply... the status quo for your particular peculiarity, your Grace."

Dracula has posed:
Dracula hmmms a little and closes his eyes, head looking down at the bar. "Well..." he offers and frowns, considering, "I have been thinking a lot about the sunshine and just seem the Day again, being out when it is up and all that," he says and shrugs his shoulders. "THere's a lot of... draw to all the money, power and the like, but having to disguise myself before I go out, in part to all the media putting my name out there and making me the monster." He pauses and chuckles, "Not to say I didn't probably do a slew of bad things, but humans kill other humans, they destroy the planet, they wage wars killing thousands... why is the draining of one a cause for red alarms?"

Lucifer has posed:
There's some shouting for a moment, and a sudden departure from Lucifer. As in, the man simply vanishes in a plume of smoke that reeks of sulphur. The screaming match continues for a few more moments and then it suddenly, perhaps almost errily, goes silent. Of course there was music playing this whole time but that is also the sign of a slow night. One can hear practically everything that's going on.

In a heartbeat, Lucifer returns, wiping his hands off on a towel that gets tossed behind him once done and he lifts a glass of whiskey like nothing had happened. He also takes a clove cigarette and sets it alight with the snap of a finger.

"The problem with your question is that... I have the best of both worlds. I just won't tell you how. Would I trade all of this for a life of dull mortality? No. Absolutely not. Mortality is overrated..." Then he shrugs a single shoulder. "But..." cause he returned in time for what Dracula was saying. "I can understand why you would. And you've lived long enough, yes? So become mortal, enjoy some years in peace, and then return to dust." Also, "It's because it's not normal. War is normal. Humans killing humans in normal. Finding a dead corpse in a park with puncture wounds in their neck. Not so normal. Unless you live in Sunnydale - but then you have to deal with the Slayer..."

Sinister has posed:
"Ahh, well, that's easy to account for," Sinister replies, flicking clove ash to the tray that's somehow... here. He shaves the tip to a cone, smiles at his work and lets the end slowly smolder as it's rested in the groove. "There's nothing quite like being the apex predator in a world you dominated, to really put the absolute fear of things that go bump in the night into your bones. Humans /do/ so love to think they're the top. ANd when they're not, they get terribly upset."

He picks up the cigarette again, draws deep and with satisfaction on it, blowing out of the corner of his mouth. "Also, what Lucifer said. But chiefly, humankind gets extremely pissy about not being collateral damage to anything but themselves." He finishes off his smoke though, surrendering it to Lucifer with a smile.

"I'm going to go and clean up. Do have fun, hmmm?" He doffs an invisible cap and bows a little to Dracula, winks to the devil and heads toward the elevator. There's a lingering sense of him that hangs around after he's gone though -- cloves and cologne, with just a hint of diabolically good vitae just beneath the surface.

Dracula has posed:
"Well... Dealing with the Slayer," Dracula pauses and smiles, "I did hear rumors of her and a vampire boyfriend... I mean, word travels through our circles." He chuckles and nods. "Again, I take pleasure with a mortal, be it female or male and..." he says and laughs, "Guess if they've got tits everyone overlooks it," he adds and laughs, "OR a good PR firml."

He watches as Sinister leaves and smiles, "Well, that was... typical. Come, inject a little of yourself and go, typical male maneuver," he adds with a chuckle.

Lucifer has posed:
Lucifer chuckles. "He's had a long weekend. I'm just glad he came down to the club at all. The next step is to take him outside for a little while." Saying this much but then he gives a shrug, and Dracula gets a refill. "I used to take pleasure with mortals... really with any sexy thing that walked into my club... but then he walked in and..." There's a cheeky chuckle and a shake of his head. "It was hook, line and sinker before I was able to catch up. So I remember my nights of sexual exploits with a fond memory." Then he grins.

"Course, if you wanted to use this place as a ground... I think we had a bit of a deal going on. If I needed any...riff raff taken care of... you would dispose of them. It was always troublemakers, no sense of ties to anyone. Expendable as it were." He pauses. "So is that the goal tonight? Finding a pretty thing to take to bed with you?"

Dracula has posed:
Dracula laughs a little and considers. "Well... " he says and glances to the door and then back to Luci. "Everyone needs that someone to make their house feel a home. For those who are ageless, it is hard to choose a mortal for more than just a night," he admits and then sips from the drink and pulls out some money from his pocket to set on the table, more that should be required to settle any tab.

"Well, goal was always to find someone or something to occupy, to make the nigt that much more... enjoyable than watching whatever the humans call modern cable entertainment these days. I swear, a dumbing down must have happened after cinemas and home televison where they no longer needed to think for themselves. And then this internet.. Well, there's some benefits to that I suppose."

Lucifer has posed:
Lucifer gives a little smirk. "Well, lucky me that the person who I've fallen in love with is effectively immortal.." He gives a little shrug then before looking at the money placed on the counter. Taking it, he'll set it next to the register and settle the bill once Dracula has made his exit. "But you've absolutely hit the nail on the head. Mortals are expendable, sadly. But also perhaps deliciously so." That much more commented before he turns the cigarette Sinister handed him to nothing more than dust that seems to completely disappear. He also takes a long drag off his own clove, breathing smoke out his nose and mouth almost at the same time.

"Ah. Yes. Television and movies. How they have changed the world. Entitlement knows no bounds these days, especially with the internet. Though it does seem to make a few things more...tolerable." He pauses in consideration. "So. Have you been up to much these nights? Or is it just idle wandering most of the time?"

Dracula has posed:
Dracula smiles a little more and chuckles, "Oh, I've found some fun times, I was appreciating art when I talked to the Maximoff woman, and before that, well.. I was out visiting some of the othr mutants," He offers and nods, "Speaking of, mayber I should go pay some visits to some old friends and clear my head in others ways," He offers and laughs., "A distraction to the life issues."

Lucifer has posed:
Lucifer nods. "Likely a good idea, if you truly think your name and/or reputation have been besmirched..." Offering this as he polishes off his whiskey and finishes his cigarette. "Ah, is that the Scarlet Witch? I believe I have met her, or at the very least heard of her." This much more before he looks towards the door and back again. "Well. Depending on how things go, do know that you always have a place here. For a drink, a feeding, even a place to rest your head if needed." This and then he takes a step back. "Are you off again then or do you plan to stay a bit longer?:

Dracula has posed:
"I think for now... I am off," offers Dracula and then nods. "The Scarlet Witch, we talked about morality and mortality, and whether a soul could exist for a thousand years without its body and other philosophical disccusions like that," he sas and stands. "But for now..." he offers and smiles, "I think I will go stretch m wings and see what I can see, have a little fun of a different sort." He starts walking towards the door, leaving the club behind him for the night.