Medieval Times
Temperature: 87.8F/31C Wind: 7mph S Observations: Cloudy
Before even entering the building, one can leave the city behind.
Ivy-covered towers of the Dallas Castle give the locale some majesty. Along with the ivy covered walls is a large moat filled with schools of live Koi.
Once past the doors, the lobby, and the ticket booths, one can get their picture taken with a member of the King's court. Just beyond this is a small shopping area, accompanied with a bar, and a viewing area to see the livestock before the show.
Immense oak-wooden doors that sit on cast iron hinges open to a cavernous entryway, decorated with pennants, pinions and standards that hang upon the wall. Large bronze sconces are attached to the stonework walls, their fires lighting the path to the main dining area.
The dining area is decorated much the same, though tapestries sit on the walls rather than the heraldric pennons. Large rough oaken tables are set around the room, all ringing a large sand arena. Bronze candelabras sit on each table with beeswax candles set and lit when the restaurant is open for business.
The arena is covered with dark tan sand; something that will keep moisture for the proper footing of both horses at the joust and for soldiers at the sword. At either side of the arena are large iron gates that lead into the deeper recesses of the restaurant where the horses are housed and holding rooms are located. Only those with clearance may access those areas.
Saturday night at Medieval Times. The evening is warm and humid, clouds obscuring the pinpoints of light and most of the waning moon. The fact that this restaurant is one that has air conditioning is certainly a draw, and dinner theatre is the icing on the cake.
The crowds within are milling about, getting ready to sit down to the tables assigned earlier. Photo opportunities abound, and the 'serving wenches' are more than happy to pose even as they finish their preparations for the evening's contest. This is the early show crowd, where breathers are welcomed and encouraged.
Off to one side, settled at a table with a fashioned 'goblet' before him is Marius, dressed as he always is rather than 'in costume'. Black allows him a little lee-way with his meals, and the fact that he's not wearing the attire of the establishment indicates that he is not necessarily employed here. The seats around him are empty, but it doesn't seem to be out of 'deference', rather.. the crowds haven't yet made their way to all the seating areas; nothing more.
—-
The restaurant and dinner theatre, such as it is, is geared for and caters to…a specific type of clientele. Those who have a desire to pretend, for the space of an evening, or only for a few hours, that they live, not in the modern world, but in a rarified vision of the days of knights, lords, and ladies.
And so, when someone steps inside that seems to be standing with two feet firmly in the modern world, it does draw a few looks, more from the other patrons, who may or may not be wondering if they've now dressed rather ridiculously, than from the staff. Still, the small brunette who steps in pays attention to little, it seems, except finding her way towards the front and the hosting area.
"Yes, I am looking for a gentleman named Marius. I was told that I might be able to find him here." As smooth as the speech, is the business card she offers over, along with her name.
—-
"This way, please." The hostess isn't a vampire, and the 'name dropping' does something to her manner; she's more on her 'p's and q's' as it were. After all, the man in question is a friend of the owner and is given some deference as such. And, she is very much aware that the man in question is a vampire.
Winding her way between the dressed-up tables, the employee clears her throat, her fingers entwining before her as she stops before the table. She assumes the attourney of the well-known firm is behind and following. "Sir.. Ms Savoy wishes to see you?"
Marius holds the goblet in hand but lowers it once more and pushes it away slightly, and cants his head, looking up. "I see." The words while not 'dismissive', they are taken as such, and the hostess smiles tightly to the small brunette, "Have a good evening, ma'am. If there's anything you wish, I'll have a server see to it."
—-
Mignonette is, once the necessary introductions and instructions have been handed over, silent, as she follows the hostess' lead through the restaurant. Quick, attentive eyes taking in the surroundings, as well as the people, marking each table on the way to the one occupied only by the tall german.
"Thank you, I'm certain I will be fine." Mignonette waits, attention focused on Marius, briefcase casually settled over her shoulder, until the hostess has stepped away from the table, before she speaks, "You wished to see me?" A handshake is not offered, following the vampiric traditions, but she does offer a polite, respectful nod of her head. She does not, however, attempt to take a seat at the table.
—-
"I did."
Marius indicates a seat that she may take with a glance, given more due to the fact that she's human and isn't really capable of picking up vampire nuances. His voice lowers, his deathmask easily in place, his gaze reflecting nothingness. "I am interested in retaining your services, if you can explain yourself more as to how beneficial your .. unique ability is to your choice of career." He hasn't forgotten the fact that the attourney is a seer.
Of course, the chances are good that vampires have a reasonably long list of lawyers from which they can draw, but there are a few things Marius prefers to do himself. "Unless that does not affect you to your benefit."
—-
"Thank you," comes the woman's reply, as Mignonette settles into the seat indicated, her briefcase set on the table closer to her hand. There's no attempt to find a comfortable medium, to mix business with small talk. The meeting is precisely what it was intended to be. "Unlike other psychic abilities, my clairvoyance is not something that I can turn on and off like a switch. Normally, I have dreams when I sleep and record them when I wake. It used to be that occasionally, I would have a waking vision, usually if the event was particularly violent, or important. I have been working, for the last few years, on gaining more control over the times when I do have visions. Attempting to teach myself to call them up if I need to." It seems like a roundabout way to answer the question, but clearly the woman seems to feel that explanation is required.
"Since I developed the gift, I have found that familiarity breeds a better connection to my gift. I received visions of my cousin, for example, often enough and pertinent enough that I was able to warn him about future events when he was on the battlefield. The more I become familiar with someone, the more likely it is that I will have a vision that related to them, whether it be a event in the past, current or future, and potentially assist them in some way. It works the same for my clients as for my friends and family. The better I know a client, the better my gift seems to connect to them. The more likely I might be able to see an event that concerns them, for good or ill."
"My gift, however, is not guaranteed. Though I am working to perfect it, the visions, at this point, come or they do not. They are a tool in my arsenal, but not one that I can rely on with unfailing certainty, unlike my ability to practice the law, and to keep abreast of situations that affect my clients."
—-
Marius listens to the explanation, taking it all in, deciphering it such that he can understand what it is she's telling him. Visions. Portents. Those existed in his lifetime and throughout the centuries before and after.. and he's got something of a basis from which to work.
"Then I would wish to speak with you further regarding your work." With the warnings given him by the Lady, there may perhaps be a need for services before it is known that they will be necessary.
"There is one, it is my understanding, who is seeking to become a leader in this city who.. does not believe vampires should be allowed the .." Marius searches for the word, his expression shifting towards something more.. human, but there is still no doubt as to what he is. It requires an effort on his part, and it's a matter of deciding whether he thinks it necessary. "… freedoms we currently enjoy." His eyes narrow as he sits back in his seat, his tones lowering more, though the clipped accent is still very much obvious, "I would that we may continue to move as we do."
—-
"Savoy and Savoy prides itself on handling all of the needs of our clients. Both within the courtroom and without. We offer a variety of services, from legal counsel, which, in the case of your kind, is a necessity, given the rapidly changing state of the laws regarding your rights, or lack there of, to financial assistance, and…protection…of your assets." There's a particular emphasis on the word protection, as though it meant more than simply knowing which bank to put it in. "Something which is becoming increasingly important as the tax services of this country are beginning to attempt to eat into the monies that your kind has managed to accumulate over the years. A number of our clients have retained us to…protect their assets from human laws."
Mignonette takes a moment, settling into her seat, allowing the vampire time to process, before she continues, reaching into the briefcase to slide out one of her sketchpads. "But when we take a client, it is also part of the service we provide to see that our clients…and their business, whatever it may be, continues to run as the client requires. By whatever means is necessary." Again, that slight emphasis, this time on the word 'whatever'. "We are not afraid to get our hands dirty, if it is in the interests of the client."
—-
There's a moment when Marius' expression shifts to blank once again as he makes the attempt to digest everything told to him. He's.. a soldier. A warrior. A veteran. Only now has he re-stepped foot into City life, and as far as assets are concerned, well.. he has none.
Zero.
The shirt on his back.
Of course, what he is concerned with is exactly that which he's said. The vampires will have to be a little more careful, and a proper face must be maintained. That will mean, of course, his hands become dirty.
Bloody.
"I have nothing like that." There is the admission.
Now, the difficulty. Marius is not someone who can really beat around a bush. He wanders right in and smashes whatever it is he's looking for, killing the vegetation in the process. "I wish to be assured that our actions are allowed then as now." Assuming Zane is elected, that is. And with the assurances, Marius' job will be easier in that there will be less that must be hidden. "By human law."
Now, Marius is whipping the 'we' and 'us' and 'our' around, and he knows it too. "I do not speak for all vampires in this city. Only myself, and some that I associate with."
The sketchpad slides across, and a pale hand lays upon it, palm down. With her expressing her firm's .. beliefs, Marius inclines his head. "Then we will speak further another night." There's a great deal that he has to work out and figure out.. and talk out. Everything sounds right, but there are, obviously, others more suited than he to choose representation should it be required.
Ah, city life.
—-
"Everyone has something they do not wish to lose. For some it is money, for others property. Others are more variable. I do not make judgements about what it is, only that they are protected. In your case, it seems to be your freedom. That requires a firm that is willing to dirty their hands when the need arises." Mignonette pays no more attention to the pad, once it's handed over. A trifle, really, for all intents and purposes, "I may be young, even by human standards, but the firm has a quarter of a millennium of experience behind it. We bring all of that to bear when the need arises. And when we play, we play to win. By whatever means necessary." A nod, as Mignonette slides back from the table, rising from her seat as she reads the dismissal for what it is, and seems neither pleased nor displeased by it, "I have left my work and my home addresses with you, as well as my contact information. I will be available at your convenience. Good evening, Marius."
—-
"I will be in contact."
Perhaps not in a day, but a week? Certainly within the month as time grows ever closer to the elections. Not that Marius actually follows such a thing. It is as he is told.. and all signs are telling him that protections are necessary, and a seer isn't a bad place to start.
While it is a dismissal, it isn't one that is given in anger, annoyance. Now, the vampire simply needs.. time. Time to understand. Time to work everything out. More pieces to a puzzle, and puzzles aren't something he's particularly good at.
"Good evening."
