The doors were iced shut at the Inferno Nightclub.

No matter how they’d chipped, heated, poured, and salted… nothing. The freezing rain had come in sideways last night and the ice was clear and strong at 2 inches thick. They had to wait for it to thaw. Or, they needed to generate some heat.

"No, no you see it's the perfect excuse." Haley Vaultami, AKA Secret Keeper was typing at her laptop at the bar in the deserted club Inferno while only one of their typical two bartenders was behind the bar drying clean glasses in case they opened. The other bar tender hadn’t been able to get through the door.

“We need to have a members’ only night. Devon’s sort of hinted at the idea, but he’s always so busy and he tries to make everything so perfect. He would overthink it. There’s too many new faces lately. There’s no way everyone knows everyone else. Maybe not even Devon.”

”Devon isn’t welcome to party around here.” Noel paused in her practice. Apparently she’d already learned to dance once or twice in her life. She just needed to remember.

“Tempest.” Haley hissed her correction. ”I mean our Devon Hadden.”

Oh. Right. Noel lifted her arms and went back to practicing.

“And you can’t dance alone!”

So she sent the email she’d been typing to all members of Haven living in the building or not. They would find a way to get everyone in there by trickery or bribery if they had to.

HAVEN NEEDS YOUR HELP Dress in your trendiest clothes and meet at Club Inferno at 7pm sharp for an important mission assignment.

That gave them just under two hours to get food and make it a mixer worthy of Mr. PartyPlanner himself.

Noel’s phone chimed and she pulled it out of her pocket to read. ”You didn’t--.”

”I did. And now I need your help to pull it off.”

---

Noel had never helped host a party before. Not any she remembered, anyway.

”We’ve got pretty much everything that was left in the kitchen. Pickles, cheeses, and whatever all the rest of this is. All the foods that don’t need a plate.” She set down a tray with little bread slices between the chips and salsa/queso and the things that needed toothpicks. She was careful to sample the spread from the back so it wouldn’t mess with how it displayed.

Haley had insisted that Noel dress the part in an actual dress. Trendy apparently meant short, form fitting, and made of sequins. There was no DJ today, but there was music and with the lights going and the bartender still working behind the bar, it looked like they were in business. Haley somehow still got to wear pants. Maybe because it would be her job to tell people at the door that it was their mission to get to know one another.

Now they just needed people to show up.

((OOC: This thread is come and go If you are in this thread, I think it’ll be safe to assume your character will have met everyone else who makes it to this thread even if you don’t directly interact.))

Jack had actually come down before the party proper. She was the manager, after all. The frozen doors rose her ire-- how the Hell could she do her job if she couldn't open the goddamm door?! She had half a mind to blow the dam things off their hinges, but thought better of it. Jack was mid-phone call to Devon and almost back to her apartment when the vibrating notification of an email reverberated against her chitin. An impromptu night off, huh?

She wasn't much for trendiness, but she did have a few nice vests with slacks and ties. Tonight's ensemble was predominantly black, with a midnight blue shirt. Her surgical mask was a solid black, too. Overall, she looked very dapper. The prawn stepped lightly towards the door, where Haley stood. Jack thought of her as a shadow-king, the backup for when Devon was out, though she knew Haley was, more specifically, Devon's assistant.

"Apologies for the lack of forewarning, Jack. Weather froze the doors shut, so we decided to make the best of it... you saw the invite, I hope? If you don't know someone, get to know then. And welcome in."

The prawn huffed and nodded. She much preferred managerial stuff over socializing. Ah, well. The prawn stalked over to the bar, her antennae lifting at the sight of the bartender.

"Evening, Chief," the bartender greeted.

Jack nodded. Without any further words exchanged, the bartender understood precisely what Jack wanted to drink. Jack leaned upon the counter while he worked, her eyes sweeping the floor. There was one other person there, a vaguely familiar woman in a skimpy dress. Jack elected to get her drink first. Then she'd think about being social.

Celeste had a pretty normal day going on - she was writing her final paper for one of her classes (yes, her final paper already.) She didn't really have anything else to do. She couldn't cook, she didn't really need to go anywhere, she was off today and the library was probably closed due to the weather. So she was stuck in here, with nothing to do besides actually getting ahead.

Luckily for her, an email came through. Haven had a special mission - one that involved trendiest clothes? She shrugged. It was a way to get out of the dorm room, at least.

She quickly took a shower, put on a red, lacy dress with black heels, and did her hair in a slightly less messy bun. She checked herself for a bit before she checked the time - it was time to go.

After a bit of time, she finally arrived in front of Club Inferno. She wasn't expecting to get nervous, but she suddenly was. She had only just been initiated into Haven - she knew most of the people, but not well. Really, Nate and Devon where the only ones she really knew.

Haley was at the door and welcomed her in, telling her she hoped she had a good time and telling her what the mission was about - get to know your colleagues. Celeste stomach dropped a little, not expecting her first mission in the group to be a friend making retreat. Either way, it was going to be good! She was sure she'd get along with all of them, particularly in a more friendly setting.

Once inside the club, she saw a woman wearing a beautiful short sequin dress and Jack or Chief, is what she believed her name was. She couldn't exactly remember. With that, she awkwardly made her way into the club before finding an empty area of chairs where she sat, crossing her legs. She wasn't the greatest at group gatherings.

Ugh. Summoned to the office...well, the club that was technically a part of the office. That was something that Quin had never had to deal with..she also hadn’t ever had to worry about wearing anything “trendy” to such a meeting. She supposed it was par for the course though, this was a huge humanitarian organization. People needed to dress to impress if they were going to woo donors and the like. Still...Quin had already pulled on sweats, piled her hair in a messy bun, and dug into a pint of her favorite fancy ice cream. Archer, party of one.

The whole anti-social thing had gotten a little crazy, Quin decided 10 minutes later having texted Nate to find out if she actually had to go to this thing. Apparently she did.

It had been literal years since Quin had worn anything that could remotely be considered trendy, but after pulling nearly everything from her closet Quin found something that could probably be considered trendy...as long as trendy still meant low cut on top, high cut on bottom, and kind of ruffly and decorated. Quin looked over at the clock and groaned, to make it by 7:00 she was going to really have to hurry...where was her makeup? Business casual for day-to-day work was one thing, but if she was actually going to get dressed up she was going to do it right .

What seemed to be a very short time later if anyone asked Quin, she was making her way out of her apartment wondering how she had ever felt that heels were an indispensable part of her wardrobe.

Another short time later found the redhead making her way into “Inferno.” Quin had known the place existed and that she was allowed some kind of exclusive membership based on her role at Haven, but she’d never taken advantage. Activities similar to the one she’d been engaging in when the call had gone had had been much more interesting. Quin’s new job and the cutting loose of old baggage had completely changed her life...but some habits die hard and it wasn’t like she needed to troll the bar for men.

As she entered the club, Quin wondered what could possibly be important enough to call everyone in at once.


....apparently it was a party. Or at least it looked like one…

There were lights...and music...and Hors d'oeuvres...and a bartender. Thank GOD there was a bartender. Quin made her way over there and got a drink. A real one, it had been a while since she’d done that too.

Apparently 7:00 on the dot was left open for interpretation because there simply weren’t very many people there yet. The people who were there were people she didn’t really know, but had definitely been introduced to at some point. Still..she didn’t remember names. Wait...was that Noel? Oh man...socializing was too much to ask at this point. Quin found a seat and sat.

Where was Nate? If she had to be here...he’d better too.


OOC - Make sure to tag me on Discord if you talk to Quin!

The weather was horrible out, some sort of ice storm. But apparently that wasn’t enough to stop Haven, seeing as Lee got an email about some sort of mission assignment to be given out at Club Inferno that night. Lee was quite curious about what it could be, especially given the short notice, location, and clothing expectations, but she knew that when something came up, there were times that you had no time before you had to act.

So Lee had called Blaine, thinking that if she had to dress up and head out like this, to the club no less, they may as well try to turn it into a bit of a date night if they could. Which, apparently, would be easier than she thought since Blaine had gotten the same email. After a quick chat and making their arrangements, Lee went to her closet to get ready.

That was a bit of a problem, though. Lee didn’t dress ‘trendy’, that was more Rachel’s thing. Finally, Lee just shrugged and threw that word away as she chose her clothing. It may not be trendy, but Lee definitely liked the black top and blue skirt she settled on.

A while later, Lee was just finishing straightening her hair in the bathroom when Kevin came running in. ”Mummy! Hurry up, Blaine’s here!” He exclaimed, bouncing through the doorway. ”He looks weird.”

Rolling her eyes slightly and smiling, Lee looked at her son over her shoulder. ”I’m sure he looks just fine,” Lee replied. ”Can you tell him I’ll be right out?”

It only took Lee about another minute to finish her hair, and then she made her way out to the hallway.

And she stopped dead when she saw Blaine standing there dressed like she’d never seen him. All she could do was stand there and stare, a small smile on her face.

”Yes, I’m wearing sleeves.”

Lee blinked, shaking her head slightly as she slowly stepped toward Blaine. ”You look really good…” She whispered, then looked him up and down. ”Damn…”

”Too bad we’re going to a party, huh?” Blaine asked with a smirk.

It really was too bad, Lee thought as she bit her bottom lip, her eyes fixated on Blaine. ”You know, the world probably won’t end if we’re late…”

"Probably not. But if I get undressed I'm not putting this shit back on.”

Lee couldn’t help but laugh a bit at that. ”Fine, but we better get going before I just say screw it,” she said, turning to grab her coat and purse. ”There is the whole night after that, though…”


((OOC: Godmoding/posting of Blaine's speech is done with his permission.))

Blaine had gotten...an email. He never got emails...but here he was. And it was for some party thing. Great. He hated parties. He planned on just ignoring it, going about his day, maybe spend the time with Lee instead, but...it wasn't long after that he got a call. Double great. Well, if Lee wanted to go, then he guessed he was going. Besides, he could always hang around her in lieu of mingling, right? Or maybe he'd find someone worth talking to. Even still, Lee was the reason he found the only suit he owned in his closet. It wasn't very trendy, but it was close enough. Truth be told, he only had it because of his time as a bodyguard, and from working the more...upstanding clubs.

The walk to Lee's went smoothly, though he did get what grumbling he had to do out of his system before he got there. And since it was a pretty long walk, that gave him plenty of time. When he got to Lee's...she was absolutely stunning. So stunning, he wanted to go out even less now. But alas, he did anyway, and they got going.

If the walk to Lee's went smoothly, then the walk to Inferno went smoother, if only because he had company this time. Once they got there, the big man did the very gentlemanly thing and held the door open for her before looping his arm in hers and walking inside. Despite how it looked, he'd let Lee take the lead.

And thankfully, they went straight for the drinks. Thank God, or whoever the hell was out there. Since today was fancier, he went for a bourbon instead of his usual beer. Sipping his drink, he looked over at his drop dead gorgeous date with a smile.

Maybe tonight wouldn't be so awful after all...

The air popped as winds snapped about Tempest, flinging him forward. Such pressure had built within him, his head pounded, but the thunder was little cause of it. Lightning still raced over around him as he sailed through the river of Lovecraft’s echoes and sent forks of electricity out from both arms at all before him. He didn’t stop, soon a blue-white blur in the darkness as he flew out of the garage and marveled at the truly horrid sight above.

Black eyes watered as unnoticed tears flew away from him. Devon may have hesitated, but Tempest did not. A voice continued to scream at the back of his mind, warning and pleading for him to turn back and help all those in jeopardy. It ranted and railed against him, but the Tempest was spurred on by the building force and power of the storm. Up into the sky he flew with disturbing force, cars near the edge of the higher levels flung as he passed. Tempest thrashed about with wind, ice, and lightning at the malevolent mental horrors of the sky. He screamed at the creatures assaulting his mind and body.

Alone, the young man flailed in the quickly churning clouds, a series of brilliant myriad flashes in an unseen war. He rallied the storm to him, surging winds to hold back the tide. Murderous lightning flayed the creatures but still they came. Still the voices screamed to him, a constant tone urging him to snap out of it, but he could not. All his energy, all his attention turned on these hideous beasts from oblivion. They would freeze; winter would consume them. Jack Frost shivered in fear at the Tempest of the north.

Ice would take them all.

Devon jolted upright, nearly falling out of his chair as he jumped to his feet. He looked around in sudden confusion as the siren’s warning continued to beep. The light was dim and the sky out the windows gray. Last night’s storm had turned colder; the rain had iced, clinging to the buildings of the city like skeletal fingers reaching from the grave.

Grim and dark was the thought as he shook it away. Was it evening? How long had he slept? His nightmares had absorbed the alarm from his computer and phone. Yes, the pounding of his heart was for nothing. He glanced at the clock, glanced at the computer… He’d fallen asleep in his personal office.

Pulling out his phone he eagerly entered his security code and quieted the alarm. It was a Haven email, an alert for action from Secret Keeper. His eyes scanned it as the silence of his apartment settled back into a smothering weight.

The Inferno and trendy clothes? Devon hung his head, but he smiled…

---

As Devon entered the double doors of the Inferno he wore a bright smile. He knew the darkness that sat under his eyes and the disturbing doppleganger that remind him. Thus he’d added some night cream and concealer. He’d never bought make up before; it seemed foolish to be embarrassed about it. But it hid the shame he’d acknowledged with Celeste; he was trying to move past this but it would take time.

Of course he greeted the panted Haley first, smirking but then grinning with true amusement. He embraced her, though one hand clutched still at the cane he’d brought. If he had to be trendy and wear another one of these fancy PR-friendly ensembles he might as well have some cool accessories. “You nearly gave me a heart attack with that email,” he murmured.

“Good,” she chuckled and playfully punched his shoulder. “You need to get that heart racing with more than a run and even more training.”

His eyes narrowed. What was that supposed to mean?

She smirked back at him as if he didn’t know.

The blue eyes rolled. Haley gestured on into the club.

Devon’s attention passed all looking in the direction of the entrance. A quick wave, a small smile, a brief nod, but he went in the direction of the Midwestern red-head. He’d only talked to Ms. Archer at her introduction and then upon her true entrance to Haven with Secret Keeper and Nathaniel.

“Ms. Archer, I’m glad you could get here! And in those heels,” the young man nodded with impressed wide eyes. "I hope you’re feeling and doing just as awesome,” he smiled. “My apologies if it was difficult though. Those meteorologists never can seem to get things right with those forecasts,” he winked. “But really, how are you?”

Sveta had to look up what "trendiest" was supposed to mean. Once, for basic dictionary definition (that was not even grammatically correct), and once for an idea of what on earth Haley could have meant by that dress code. It was vague, to say the least. Haley, since she recently became part of the Inner Echelon, has purchased some new outfits - solely because they were a real, tangible reminder that she was turning over a new leaf. Finding a home. Doing something important. And looking damn good doing it. It was an added bonus that she was not the public figure; there was something reassuring about being stylish behind the scenes.

She highly doubted an actual mission would call for trendy outfits. Her suspicion was confirmed when she walked into a party. Everyone else looked the same, so unless this was a very bad prank on Devon's part, or maybe an event to roll out new Haven superhero uniforms of something (she would have known) it was exactly what it looked like: A party.
Not that Sveta minded.

Adjusting the long gloves that went with her outfit, she smiled as she walked over to Noel and stopped a respectful distance away.

"Dancing already? Did I miss the first round of drinks?"

Quin had been right. 7:00 sharp had meant different things to different people. The longer the redhead sat perched on her seat, the more people trickled in. It seemed that the summons had worked like a charm and the members of Haven were braving the bad weather to...socialize? Quin sipped her drink and had to wonder if there was more to the gathering than met the eye. Would there be an announcement later? Was this just a carrot on a stick to ensure people stuck around?

Again, Quin wished she’d paid more attention during the introductions. She’d let her Detective skills take over during the process and she’d only put energy into committing names to memory if the people would be important to her daily duties. She wasn’t Sherlock Holmes, she didn’t have a photographic memory, and she definitely wasn’t going to know everyone in the organization.
Time passed and Quin continued to sip her drink, eyes scanning the crowd for familiar faces. After a time, one approached. This face, Quin had made sure to memorize and attach with a name, the big boss himself had decided to converse. Quin resisted the urge to pull down the hem of her dress...or pull up the neck...old habits dying hard again. A dress like this would have drawn disproving scowles from the upper brass of the NYPD...this wasn’t the NYPD though, and Mr. Hadden appreciated Quin’s footwear. The redhead grinned and extended her leg at the knee to better show off the heels.

”The message said trendy and I don’t do things in half measure.” she explained, ”Though, if I’m being honest, halfway here I was wishing I’d simply worn my snow boots. I managed well enough though.” The redhead’s smile turned conspiratorial, ”To be honest though, I cheated. The bottoms of these things are plastic and I grew myself some spikes for traction.” The modifications had been necessary, it had been years since Quin had worn heels that tall and she hadn’t wanted to break her neck.

Mr. Hadden’s knowledge of her name was honestly impressive. It went a long way to explaining the man’s success that he made a point to know the people he employed...and he wanted to know how she was? ”I’m good. Wasn’t planning a night out on short notice...but now that I’m here I’m sort of glad. I’m really wishing I’d paid more attention to names on my tour though.” More candor...Quin just wasn’t good at mincing words.

”How are you Mr. Hadden?” she said, throwing the pleasantry back at her bosses...bosses...boss? Was that enough bosses? She’d have to ask around to find out.

An email at 1700 hours for a meeting at 1900 hours. Ranger felt like he was dealing with JSOC again for a moment. Regardless, the timetable left Ranger with just enough time to finish up work at Blac-Tac before driving back to Haven to get dressed and show up slightly late. He was not one to dress trendy or in any way fancy if avoidable. This meant that while he may have suits and other fancy attire at Blac-Tac to change into for meetings he did not have anything appropriate for Club Inferno.

After arriving back at his place at Haven Ranger took a quick shower to remove the smells of work. While gunpowder and elbow grease were normal scents to him, others might object. That done he donned what he deemed appropriate. Starched, dark Wrangler blue jeans, a pearl snap button up that he rolled up the sleeves of, a dark leather belt, and his nice pair of black cherry Lucchese dancing boots. Club Inferno likely wouldn’t be playing music that he normally would dance to, this could be the night they play a song or two. Not to mention most songs are 4/4 and can therefore be two-stepped to.

As he walked out the door, Ranger grabbed his black felt Resistol hat. He was told to dress trendy, they didn’t specify trendy for where.

Haley stood by the entrance to Club Inferno and waved Ranger over. She gave him the mission… Get to know everyone. Not the high speed type of mission he was used to. Ranger nodded to Haley and made his way in.

As he was a little late, many other Havenites had beaten Ranger there. While he recognized them all, he had not met them all. Being head of security sometimes felt like he was Big Brother. He had seen files on virtually everyone who was a member so he would know what they look like and had seen them all on the security cameras as they made their way around Haven from day-to-day.

Ranger noticed Noel across the club and waved when he caught her eye. He took a moment to take her in wearing a dress before turning to carry on with his mission. He also noticed Quin at the bar. He knew she had joined Haven, but had not had a chance to interact with her since. Quin was speaking with Tempest. He noticed Lee, it had been a long time since he had seen her. Had he not seen her file to spark the memory when she joined Haven he might not have recognized her. This left Svetlana, Blaine, Celestina, and Jack.

Deciding to kill two birds with one stone, Ranger went up to the bar near Jack and ordered a beer. Jack was the manager of Club Inferno and Ranger wasn’t sure how he had been running security this long for Haven and not had time to meet her.

”Howdy, Chief. Glad t’ see y’ here, been tryin’ t’ find a time t’ make it down here t’ meet y’.” Ranger said, remembering the nickname listed in her file. He extended his hand, ”Michael Hunter, head of security. ”

Being part of Haven made life feel weird and disjointed at times. On the one hand, they were preparing to take major stances against SUPER and the threat they posed on two New Yorks. On the other hand, the secret keeper was arranging some kind of themed party for the Havenites. It was the odd world between being an activist and a socialite. It was an odd new life, but Nate was just going to figure it out as he went along.

That being said, if he was expected to make an appearance at the party, (and as a member of the Inner Echelon, he was,) he was not going to suffer alone. When Quin asked if she had to show up in a text message, Nate made the very conscious decision to tell her she did. To his knowledge, the event was not mandatory, but it would sure be more fun if he had Quin around.

Nate’s closet had grown to include plenty of suits thanks to his work, to the point where he considered a party a chance to dress down a little bit. His neck got the night off from ties and fully buttoned shirts, which was a nice change of pace. Nate thanked his babysitter for coming by on short notice, gave Norah a goodbye kiss on the forehead, and left for what he hoped would be a good time.

His arrival was a bit past seven because he knew better than to arrive on time. Arriving early meant being one of the first ones at the party and subject to people gathering around you. He could scan the room and decide where to go, and sure enough, his eye was caught by a familiar gorgeous redhead in a cute black number. She was already sitting, which meant she beat him there, realized she was roped into a party, and he likely had a lot to answer for.

No time like the present to start with that! Nate casually strode over like he didn’t trick her into making an appearance, bending down when he arrived at the table to give her a kiss on the cheek. ”Quin! I hope I didn’t keep you waiting long. I had to tell the babysitter that…”

Looking up, Nate realized Quin had not been alone when he made his approach. She was evidently chatting with Devon, otherwise known as Nate’s friend and pretty much everyone’s boss. Nate froze for a moment. He definitely told Devon that Quin was his ex-girlfriend. Good foresight. Did he mention that they were currently sleeping together? His memory was hazy on that front. He could feel a stern talking-to with HR in his near future. ”Evening, Devon. The party looks great, right? I see you’ve met Quin.” Smile and keep talking and everything will work itself out; Con-Man 101.

>> ”The message said trendy and I don’t do things in half measure.”

Devon chuckled, nodding, “I see that.” He grimaced about the snow boots need but in a friendly, almost apologetic, way. His eyes widened again and he grinned to hear she’d modified the shoes herself. She could modify synthetic material if he recalled correctly. Interesting that a mutant with such an ability born in an older team wouldn’t have seen much use of their ability.

>> ”How are you Mr. Hadden?”

“You can certainly call me Devon,” he nodded. “And I’m fairly well if a little tired,” Devon admitted with a grin. “Too much work, maybe… But here we are socializing. Good for the soul and mental well-being they say,” he nodded.

“I’m glad you came out too. I’m glad so many have really,” he glanced about once more, noting the arrival of Sveta, Ranger, and there was Nate hurrying over. That completed the Inner Echelon’s presence at least for now anyway…

>> ”Quin! I hope I didn’t keep you waiting long. I had to tell the babysitter that…”

Devon was grinning, eyes moving from Quin to Nate and back again. He’d come right to her… A quick kiss and an apology for his delay… The man wasted no time, did he? Devon’s grin widened and brightened as Nate finally turned to greet him.

>> ”Evening, Devon. The party looks great, right? I see you’ve met Quin.”

Devon nodded and chuckled, “Yes, good to finally get acquainted besides our Secret Keeper welcome in business.” He glanced her way and then to Noel, “I think our hostesses did a wonderful job. And you did too. I almost went no tie.” He pulled slightly at his neck and the cravat of his ensemble. “I have a few of these now and they’re really over the top but Haven PR is so into this whole presentation thing…” He shrugged his shoulders and bowed his head, “I shouldn’t complain. Sorry.”

A gesture went Quin’s way, “We were lamenting the weather, admiring Ms. Archer’s ensemble, and appreciating the attendance this evening.”

More and more people filtered into the party and Quin was surprised to see familiar face. She’d known that Michael was working for Haven in some security capacity, that much had been covered in the company tour, but she hadn’t run into him yet.

It had been a while since they’d spoken, since he’d kicked her ass at her dojo in fact. They’d have to catch up. Thanks to Mr. Wong and her sessions at several local gyms, Quin had learned quite a lot. Maybe they’d even have to spar again sometime.

Mr. Hadden...Devon...continued to speak and Quin had to keep smiling at his easy manner. ”Okay...Devon.” she interjected. Again, it was clear why this venture of his was so successful. He was tired, the redhead could empathize, but didn’t mention her sweats or fancy ice cream. Socializing was good for the soul, she had to admit. Tonight might just be worth the effort it had taken to make it.

A familiar form made his way into the room and Quin smirked just slightly as he made his way over and kissed her on the cheek. How did he manage to wear clothes so easily? Had he even had to try? It didn’t look like it… Casual elegance...that was the word.

Devon pointed out their current topics of conversation and the redhead preened a bit herself...everyone liked a compliment.

”Not too long…” she replied, ”But you would have been in trouble if you’d told me I had to be here and then failed to show. I assume you had to wait on a sitter, so I’ll forgive your tardiness...maybe Devon will too.”

As for his clothes, Quin finally gave the boss-man a thorough once over. If Nate looked casual in his clothes, Devon looked like every speck of clothing had been chosen with a purpose in mind, right down to the rather impressive cane he held in his hand. ”We are a good looking bunch in all of our finest, that’s for sure.” she said, taking a sip of her drink. Maybe social events weren’t so bad after all.

Having already grazed to satisfaction, Noel went back to the dance floor. Didn't matter if she was the only one, she was used to being the weirdo.

> "Dancing already? Did I miss the first round of drinks?"

"Sveta." She smiled in welcome and could have hugged the woman, but Noel stopped short because her breasts had windows. Her dress was gorgeous in a va-va-voom way that left Noel's general lack of anything but hips lamentable. "Uh. I. Hi. It's been awhile. I guess you managed to get out and back around town." Had her breasts been in windows last time? No. Definitely not. Noel made a concerted effort too look up at Svetlana's eyes.

"I need the practice. If I don't practice, I lose my skills. Haley said we need to generate some heat in here so hopefully we'll get some more dancers."

Michael stood in the doorway for a moment, flashing her a short burst of appreciation. Noel was just glad he'd shown up in clothes. That man didn't seem to like being told what to do and "dress up" was just the sort of mandate he would deem safe enough to break. She raised her hand in a little wave and that was that. He was off to finish his mission ASAP, no doubt, so he could go home and take off those fancy duds.

"So who do you know in here, exactly? Hadden, obviously. And me."

The bartender slid a rocks glass towards the prawn. Jack nodded appreciatively, lifting the glass to swirl the drink contemplatively. She turned to face the club proper, which had at this point accumulated a few more attendees.

Socializing. Yeah, no problem. No problem at all. Jack unhooked her surgical mask, and took a sip. Jack was more inclined to seek out a familiar face. Devon had arrived, and… was that Nate?

In her bout if indecision, someone else found her first. He looked very… Western. And he seemed to be familiar with Jack.

>> ”Howdy, Chief. Glad t’ see y’ here, been tryin’ t’ find a time t’ make it down here t’ meet y’.”

Cool lavender eyes studied the man. Was he a former Chrysalis patron? No, he had to be Haven, that's why he was here.

>> ”Michael Hunter, head of security. ”

Oh. Jack extended her hand, exchanging a handshake.

“'leasure to neet you,” she clicked. She wasn't much for conversation, so she cleaved to something they had in common, “You know, I used to work security at a-nudder nightclu’, 'e-sore Hadden snatched nee u’. Was dere sore years.”

It probably wasn't hard to imagine, given that she had over a foot of height on the man in front of her.