7969/Different Bar, Same Drink

Different Bar, Same Drink
Date of Scene:	20 June 2019
Location:	Luke's Bar - Harlem
Synopsis:	Jessica Jones, Silver, and Johnny Blaze end up in Luke's bar for drinks
Cast of Characters:	Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Silver Sable, Ghost Rider (Blaze)

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Jessica Jones has posed:
Jessica haunts so many different bars about Manhattan, it's no joke, but none consider her more a regular than Josie's, by virtue of close proximity to Alias Investigations. Today a case of a false accusation, brought her to investigate about Harlem, and oh what luck, that Luke's Bar should be right there to enjoy a drink after all her hard work.

Jessica walks in and immediately heads for the bar without hesitation, slipping into an open spot, before calling out, "scotch. Whatever you got..."

Luke Cage has posed:
There's an older white man behind the bar. He comes down as Jessica takes a seat and nods to her. "Scotch it is," he tells her. He moves over to pour the drink, while the door to the back opens. Luke Cage comes out, wearing jeans and a knit shirt with boots. The shirt snugs to his body just enough to suggest at his build, and has some fray marks around the collar and a little hole here and there on the sleeve. Just enough to suggest a favored shirt that he couldn't quite make himself part with yet, but not so worn as to appear trashy.

"Roy, you want to call it a night?" Luke asks the other bartender as he walks over. The older man nods his head. "You bet. Chance to me to go home to my wife. You really do hate me sometimes, don't you Luke?" he asks with a chuckle. Luke clasps the older man on the back as he heads out from around the bar.

The clean-shaven black man turns to look down the bar and see if anyone requires drinks. His eyes move back to the raven-haired young woman with the scotch before her. "Evening," he tells her.

Silver Sable has posed:
Designer boots scrape against the ground and a silver-haired woman in her late twenties settles onto the stool next to Jessica. "Jessica Jones," she says, bemusement in her Symkarian accdent. Silver knocks a knuckle on the bar and lifts a finger at Luke, indicating a drink for herself as well.

"It's been a while since I have seen you, my friend. Is this a new drinking hole, or just the last bar you haven't started a fight in?" she inquires, eyes dancing merrily.

Jessica Jones has posed:
"Evening," Jessica murmurs back at Roy, looking a bit annoyed at the joke over his wife's expense. At least she didn't comment anything outright. Her gaze does shift towards Luke, who is rather easy on the eyes. Though he does get a quipped, "you know, every now and then Sears has sales, I bet someone with a job could afford a shirt free of holes..."

When Silver enters and speaks to her, Jessica takes a moment to place the voice, before turning to look at Silver and recognizing the woman in an instance. "Well look who it is, found me have you?" She smirks, "I don't keep to one place, that way a full rotation make them forget all about me, before I get banned...I'm clever like that. Did you start dating the God of Thunder yet?"

Luke Cage has posed:
When Silver comes in and makes the gesture, Luke moves over to pour a second glass. "One scotch, coming up," he says as he gets the bottle to pour a healthy dose of the warming liquid. Luke looks up and over to Jessica as he replaces the lid on the bottle.

"That depends entirely on the size of the tips of my generous customers," the man tells her with a faint smile. He sets the glass down for Silver, glancing at the woman's stark silver hair before picking up a clean bar rag and putting it to use, wiping down the beer taps.

"Luke, need another round back here," a man calls from the other end of the bar. "Coming right up, Gus," he calls to the older black man. Luke gets a trio of glasses, holding them under taps as he pours all three at once.

Silver Sable has posed:
"Blew him off," Silver tells Jessica. "Handsome enough, but he's probably not my type. I like men who are a little more self-assertive, and, you know. Not /engaged/," she says, pointedly. She sips the scotch, grimaces, and pushes her hair back from her brow.

"Though I understand that the engagement might be over. I don't know. I get the sense he is... as you Yanks say, a 'player'," she tells Jessica. "I'm not a conquest." She taps the shotglass on the bar to get Luke's attention.

"Are you available for some work?" she inquires of Jessica. "The pay's good. It shouldn't be too dangerous and won't take you long, either."

Jessica Jones has posed:
"Is that another way to suggests having holes in your shirt tends to have a direct effect on tips?" Jessica muses with a grin, "because that I can understand," she raises her glass to clink with Silver's "to hot dates with gods?" She offers a toast half jokingly, before Silver enlightens her to a very surprising fact. "You blew off a god?" She seems a bit surprised, before drinking some of her scotch. Clearly, she doesn't know many who would do such a thing.

Jess laughs at the 'engagement' mentioned, "I never bought that stuff, I bet you it's all media made. Either way, not a conquest myself, but I'd sample a fucking god, y'know? Maybe he brings the 'thunder'..."

The mention of work gets Jessica to look a tad more serious, "what's it about?"

Luke Cage has posed:
Luke Cage delivers the beers down to the men at the end of the bar then returns to pour more of the strong shot for Silver. The man's lips pull back in a bit of a grin one side at Jessica's comment to him. He looks down at the little hole in one sleeve, a tiny one, but visible. "I guess I'll find out," he tells Jessica, the man's voice deep but calm, and sounding more well-spoken than some might expect in Harlem's residents.

He goes back to work wiping down the bar, the comments about Thor drawing just a brief glance, but not so much as to feel like the conversation is being eavesdropped upon.

Silver Sable has posed:
"He was wooing me, while engaged. I don't find that particularly attractive," Silver tells Jessica, nose wrinkling. She glances sidelong at Luke as he walks past, discreetly checking him out. Speaking of bringing the thunder...

She looks back at Jessica and lifts a silver brow in a silent 'mmhmm' expression. "His words were..." She bites her cheek. " 'I had considered wooing you, Lady Sablinova'," she says, trying to mimick his barrel-chested voice.

"First, I do not appreciate someone telling me they 'considered' wooing me. Second, make up your damn mind," she scolds a non-present Thor. "Either I am worth pursuing or I am not. I am not a ... consolation prize." She eyes her scotch, grimaces, and waves Luke over for a refill.

"But work. Twenty thousand dollars, a week's surveillance? I have competition trying to snake my contracts in the city and I thought you could help me find some useful intelligence on them."

Jessica Jones has posed:
Jessica only casts a cursory glance at Luke, not giving any tells if she's aware he's listening to her conversation with Silver or not. Could be she's just following up on her own suggestion, determining if there's enough holes in that shirt of his to warrant increase in tip.

"That's a fair point if true," Jessica agrees with Silver, though she doesn't give a vibe of someone well versed in the dating game. "Oh...surveillance with that kind of pay? Is it a potentially dangerous target being shadowed?" Jessica wonders, before nodding her head, "I think we can do something with that. Though I generally talk business within Alias." Downing her drink, she points, "bars are more for drinking, speaking of which..." she signals at Luke, "can I get another?"

Luke Cage has posed:
Anyone who pays attention would might see Luke's cleaning of the bar being more than just the rote duties of a worker. There's care that goes into it. The signs indicate this place is more to the clean-shave black man than just a job, should any notice them.

He moves back down the bar, having left the bottle out after the last time. He pours both ladies their new drinks. He seems to have caught the last part of the conversation, saying, "You don't have to pour your own drinks at home though," he offers.

Both glasses are topped off. The door opens, a pair of men coming and moving to the end of the bar nearest to Silver and Jessica. "Two beers," they order. One of them glances down at the two ladies, giving a smile and an up-nod, while Luke goes to pour their drinks.

Silver Sable has posed:
"I'll come by your offices and we'll talk about it," Silver promises Jessica. She understands the need for security. The two strangers give the women an upnod, and recieve a flinty look from Silver. A head to toe examination, less 'what's in your pants' than 'checking for concealed weapons'. From the scars on her knuckles, Silver doens't look like just another a bar bunny.

She looks at Luke, though, and flashes a smile at his joke. "And I don't want drunken strangers in my home, but they are fun to be around once in a while," she tells him with a wry tone of voice.

Jessica Jones has posed:
Being a P.I., Jessica is certainly the type of person that notices things. "To be fair," she quips at Luke, "I don't bother with pouring at home, straight from the bottle is the go to method. Saves time and washing of glasses," Jess is notorious to not quite doing dishes. "So I take it you'd be Luke?" Jessica asks Luke, his level of care indicates owner, name of the bar provides the rest. That aside, she's sure someone called him by the name while she was sitting there.

Jessica, in her incomparable generosity, does inclines her head ever so slightly at the newcomers giving a smile and nod to Silver and herself.

"Hey," Jessica calls out at Silver's quip at Luke, "I don't get drunk, ok? I just drink. Professionally."

Luke Cage has posed:
The newcomers get their beers poured and Luke takes them down to them, taking their money and moving over to an old-fashioned registers that even dings when he opens it. He deposits the money and turns back to Jessica and Silver. "The best ones can be fun, at home or elsewhere," he counters to Silver with a soft grin.

Luke rests his hands on his side of the bar, his towering form leaning on it slightly as he nods to Jessica. "I would indeed. Luke Cage," he tells her. Even if Luke and Jessica have not met, it's quite possible she might have heard of him through the Defenders who he has worked with before. Or via Heroes for Hire. Though Luke's direct involvement there was very short-lived.

Luke glances around the bar and says, "It's a small little place," before looking back to the two ladies sitting nearish to the door. "But it's mine," he says with a gesture of his head and a smile.

Ghost Rider (Blaze) has posed:
Speaking of professional drinkers, Johnny Blaze walks through the front doors of the bar. Looking worn out and slightly tired facially, he appeared to be in good spirits. Of course, thats just because he just made a Wrath demon regret it ever briefly escaped its infernal home...thankfully it didn't get any blood on Johnny.

But, he walks over to the bar, pulling up a free chair and sitting down. He rests his gloved hand against his forehead before he straightens out a well-worn leather jacket. He turns his head to look at Jessica, Luke, and Silver, just giving them a gentle nod in customary greeting before he ponders what he should have to drink. Its been a long night for the Ghost Rider.

Silver Sable has posed:
"Silver Sablinova," the silver-haired woman says. She digs in a pocket and sets a business card on the counter. 'Sablinova International, CEO'. It's not quite a household name... but it's on the Forbes 500 list.

"It's a nice bar, Luke Cage," she says, looking around. Silver can see those subtle hints of things well cared for in ways that staff would generally overlook as 'cost of business'. Mending and repairs done by somewone who takes pride in the appearance of their establishment. She grins at Jessica, though, and tips the glass towards here. "Here's to professionalism, then," the mercenary suggests, and downs her scotch.

Jessica Jones has posed:
"Professionalism is very important," Jessica concurs with Silver as she raises her second glass, before downing it much quicker than the first one, giving Johnny a bit of a look before returning that nod. Just polite acknowledgement. "I know the feeling," she mutters to Luke, "I have my own place, also keeps my sanity in tact. Busy work is great to keep the mind from wandering too much..."

Luke Cage has posed:
Luke Cage takes the card offered by Silver. He glances at it and the Harlem native's lack of familiarity the large company shows as he asks, "What type of business does Sablinova International do?" he asks. He slips the card into a back pocket of his jeans as he tells the silver-haired woman, "Thank you. It was very busted up when I got it. Has taken a lot of work to get it to where it is today," he tells them. He smiles over to Jessica as she indicates she has similar feelings. It's great to have your own place with a name on the window. If you can keep it from being broken.

Luke moves down to the bar to where Johnny has stopped. "Hello, welcome to Luke's. What can I get you?" he asks the man. Luke goes down a quick list of the beers that are on tap, a decent list, many that one would expect, and one or two nice quality beers that are less common to find in draft.

Ghost Rider (Blaze) has posed:
Johnny looks to Jessica as she returns the nod, before his eyes look to the large man known as Luke Cage. "Thanks. I'll just take a whiskey, please." Despite his gruff appearance, at least he has some measure of manners. He seems appreciative of Luke giving him the run down of all the great beers, as well.

"I take it you're Luke?" okay, maybe he was evesdropping a little bit on the conversation between Luke, Jessica, and Silver. But hey, when they were RIGHT THERE, its not very difficult to listen in a little bit.

Nevertheless, Johnny extends a hand. "Johnny."

Silver Sable has posed:
Silver pauses with a blink when Luke doesn't recognize the branding. A smile curls her lips and she relaxes. No one here's gonna out her, it seems. "Security consulting," she explains to him, rolling a shoulder in a shrug. "Bodyguard work. Personal security. Some international operations. We do a bit of it all," she tells him. Her eyes flicker up and down Luke again as he turns to tend to Johnny. That fellow gets a look as well, but it's cautiously non-committal. Being polite, but not really friendly. "You look like you can handle yourself in a fight, Mr. Cage. Ever thought of picking up some weekend work in the security field?"

Jessica Jones has posed:
"Welp...this is my cue to leave," Jessica notes as she leaves Luke some money on the counter, if he checks it out, turns out Jessica was serious about her earlier comment about tip incentives. "I have some work to do, I'll see you later on at Alias, Silver, sure it would be a fun project." She gives a rough wave at any who cares, and departs.

Luke Cage has posed:
Luke pours Johnny two fingers of whiskey in a glass and brings it down to him. He leaves the bottle set out nearby as he tells Johnny, "Yes I am. Luke Cage," he offers. The question from Silver causes Luke to wander back over in front of her. He eyes her for a moment, and there's a faint bit of amusement showing on his face before he gives a slow shake of his head.

Luke reaches up a hand to rub at a well-groomed goatee that wouldn't make Tony Stark jealous. But it should. Have you seen that man's goatee? "I've given that a try before. I didn't find it much to my liking," the co-owner of Heroes for Hire tells her, the amused look giving way to a small frown and shake of his head that suggests some bad memories.

Ghost Rider (Blaze) has posed:
Johnny looks at Luke and he gives a light nod to him. "Thanks. Nice to meet you, Luke." Though he shifts his attention to Jessica as she walks out, he gives her a nod. Was she friendly? probably not, but...hey, we've all got problems.

He does spot Silver though as she explains her personal security operation going on, and he simply chuckles. "Oh boy, thats always a fun time." he mutters under his breath, though seems happy that Luke isn't much about that life...besides his Heroes for Hire business.