Manhattan - Blue Note
The Blue Note harkens back to the early days of jazz, when experiencing and sharing the polyrhythms and strains of improvisation were meant to be intimate. It's an old, but fair sized jazz club, with an elegantly simple sign hanging over an equally elegant yet simple door of midnight blue decorated with sparkling silver quarter notes.
Stepping inside is like stepping back into those earlier, more classical times. The walls are dark blue and decorated with black and white and color photographs of the jazz and blues greats who've either played the club or visited back in their hey day. Interspersed with that are colorful posters of past (some framed and well preserved) and upcoming events and entertainers. The color of the wood inside, and there's plenty of it from the trim, to the booths, to the bar to the high beams and the tables, matches the dark colored walls. The wood is a teak, stained to black, time worn with history but not care worn.
Directly across from the main entrance is a short stage made of the same dark wood, then painted over black and tiled in ceramic tile of black, swirled through with white and blue, almost reminiscent of marbling. The centerpiece of the stage is the grand piano, but there's more than enough room for a band to set up around the piano. A few steps lead up to the stage which is lit by a spotlight and sometimes smaller lights of pale blue or red.
The bar is situated against the right wall, and the front wall and left wall are dominated by eight booths. Three on the front wall, five on the left wall, each with a small step up granting access to the booth. In the floor area between, small cafe style tables with two to four chairs have been set up. The centerpieces of each table are blue, red, or gold glass globes holding a single votive candle for a bit of mood lighting at the tables.
Aside from the spotlights on the stage and the lighting around the bar, the lights are dim to enhance the feeling of intimacy in the atmosphere of the club.
Characters
 |
 |
| Brooke Bishop | Rhett Harper |
It's been several days since Kieran told her all about his needs as the specific… race? breed? birthright? of vampire that he is. Brooke has had time to think about it, and while she knows that his screwing around is necessary and that it's not at all about the romance of it, but a feeding, she's still not sure quite how to handle it.
Enter the fact that she's recalled that a certain sorcerer has had a relationship with a vampire before, and would be the perfect person to pick the mind off.
Add to that the fact that she's got to make it look as though, publicly for now, she is not dating Kieran Collins, and she's decided to invite Rhett Harper out for an evening at the Blue Note. It's a Monday, and not generally considered a 'date' night, but she's dressed to the nines regardless. The feathered skirt might be a bit over the top, but it's a slightly younger style and the fringing makes her feel like a mixture between modern day dresses, and something right out of the twenties.
Despite the fact that she //knows/ she looks good, with her red hair spilling about her shoulders, she's just as nervous as she would be if this were an actual date and not just an excuse to talk and dance to some great music.
**
Rhett is punctual, and arrives on time. He's not dressed in the theme, instead wearing a simple pair of dress slacks and tailored shirt beneath a well made, expensive suit coat. Instead of a tie, he's wearing a bolo, and on his feet are pair of ankle cut black leather boots. He was a bit surprised to receive the invitation out from Brooke, but he likes the witch and has no qualms about spending an evening out with her.
He spots his 'date' the moment he arrives and greets with a nod of his head and smile, his eyes appraising her. "Miss Bishop. I hope I didn't keep you waiting"
Beat.
"You look absolutely stunning."
**
Men can get off so easy when dressing. A simple, comfortable outfit and they're ready for anything. Brooke does envy the man that, and she gives him a decent appraisal as well.
"Please, it's Brooke," she says, moving forward to hug him. Brushing her lips over his cheek, she smiles and steps back. "Thanks. You look pretty amazing yourself."
Settling back into her chair, she motions for him to sit beside her. She's got a decent table, facing the stage. "Would you like something to drink?"
**
The sorcerer returns the hug, and takes the seat beside her. "I think I'll have a drink," Rhett says, motioning to the server. He turns his seat a bit, so that he can see Brooke a bit better, but still keep an eye on the stage as well. "How was your summer, Brooke? Did everything work out for you after our … talk?"
**
"Yes… and no." Brooke fidgets in her seat, because this wasn't how she wanted to start things out, even though it's the reason she called Rhett down here. "You're too damned perceptive," she says with a slight laugh.
"It's caused quite a few issues within the Coven, so I'm left essentially spying on him." There's a slight frown, and then a sigh. "Well at least according to the Coven that's my position."
Beat.
"Did you manage to find a nice gift for your mother-in-law?"
**
Rhett chuckles softly and reaches out to pat her hand soothingly. It's a friendly gesture, nothing more. "I'm not so much observant as I am being polite and interested. You were a bit out of sorts, and you do seem to have recovered."
He orders a beer, whatever is on tap, and gives the server a wink with a flirty, "Surprise me," which has the young woman walking off with a grin on her face and a lightness in his step. She's young enough to be his daughter, probably doesn't understand the appeal of a good jazz performance, but Rhett knows how to keep s server happy and will tip well.
"Yes, as a matter of fact I did. The men in her life gave her a day of pampering at the spa, but I also got her a framed portrait of myself and my son. The last one she had was from Chance's high school graduation. I think she liked the upgrade." Small understatement. Flores liked the portrait more than she did the spa certificate. She also liked the fact that it came with a certificate for a photo sitting with all four of them, that they'll be following up with at Christmas time.
**
"That's a brilliant gift! She's a lucky woman to have people pamper her in such a way, and I can imagine she loved the portrait." Brooke was right. Give the woman a gift from the heart, and she'd appreciate more than anything money could buy.
"I'm still honestly a bit out of sorts. The Coven ensures that we don't know a whole hell of a lot about vampires, because they try to keep us away from them. Bad blood somewhere down the line, I'm guessing."
Beat.
"No pun intended there."
**
"They're vampires." Rhett shakes his head with another laugh. "There's got to be plenty of bad blood a whole lot of places where they're concerned." Rhett isn't a fan of vampires; he just happens to know a handful - a small handful - who are a decent lot.
"Maybe I can help you out, tell you a little of what I know. Separate fact from fiction."
Beat.
"Or is that why you asked me out tonight?" The sorcerer isn't offended in the least, and is still smiling at her. He knows that sometimes you have to go outside of known sources to get answers, and it is a good excuse to spend the evening with the woman.
**
"Partially."
Brooke has the good graces to look slightly embarrassed, but she reaches for his hand. "That, and it's this whole mess of putting on public appearances of seeing other men. Besides which, I do happen to enjoy spending time with you and talking with you, and enjoying good music while we do it seemed like a great idea when I called."
Smiling, she shifts her chair a little closer to hers, and grins. "That, and I was curious if you'd dated Sera in the past."
**
Rhett backtracks the conversation and nods, lowering his voice. "You and Collins are back together, but not officially together because it will piss the Coven off?" That he can understand. He doesn't imagine that the Dynasty would have looked favorably upon his involvement with a vampire all those years ago, however fleeting and not serious it might have been.
"I'm flattered, Brooke, I really am." He pauses while his beer is delivered, in a tall frosty glass, and then resumes conversation. "I do like your company as well. I am never one to argue with good music and the company of a beautiful lady." He gives her a rakish, charming grin and settles in his seat.
"Sera … Roche?" Rhett asks. A ripple of surprise shows on his features, dropping into confusion. He's scrambling to figure out why Brooke would ask him that, but given the nature of their conversation, he has a suspicion. Still, he's going to tread carefully, if only because he doesn't want to out the vampiress if Brooke is taking this in a whole different direction.
"We were younger," Rhett says carefully. He was younger; technically, Sera was as well, but not by so much, relatively speaking. Also, he didn't know her as Sera. Sera, at least that identity, likely existed, but she wasn't using it actively then.
**
"Thanks in part to my conversation with you. I decided to give him a chance to explain himself. Regina Young is none too happy with me, I'm afraid." Especially as it's her second strike in regards to her choice of beaus.
"You are far too charming for your own good, Texas. I've got to say that if I weren't currently involved with Kieran, I'd quite likely be pursuing you." She has no shame in being honest about it. Brooke does find the older man sexy and charming, even if she's closer in age to his son than to him.
"Sera told me what she was before she asked me to work for her in a PR capacity."
**
"I'm not sure whether or not to say that I'm happy it worked out," Rhett winks at Brooke with a flirtatious smile. He lifts her hand and teasingly kisses the back of it. "It means the male population of New York, myself included, is missing out."
Rhett sighs and nods. The truth is out there and he isn't going to deny it. He is, however, curious. "Yes, I did date her … but how did you go from finding out what she was to wondering if I dated her?"
**
"A lot of guessing and a bit of conversation with her, in which I mentioned your name and she mentioned knowing you. She is the most human vampire I have ever met, so it made sense that she would be the one you were talking about."
Brooke blushes at the kiss to her hand and smiles at him in a friendly, flirtatious manner. "Well you don't have to miss out completely. We can see each other publicly every so often and you can make everyone jealous." Likely including Kieran, but that's got to be a moot point for now.
**
"Then I will do my best to be the charming man on your arm that every man envies," Rhett winks at her.
The sorcerer combs a hand through his hair with a sigh and a nod. "Got it in one. She was the vampire I was talking about. She fooled me for a good few weeks before she came clean and revealed herself. I honestly didn't believe it when she told me, until she showed me how serious she was." Rhett as in a different place then, and there was no panic on his part. Just a deep, abiding curiosity and thrill at the implied danger of having a vampire in his bed.
**
"So, how did you deal with it? With her being what she is?" Brooke lifts her glass of Chablis up to her lips. Sipping from it thoughtfully, she twists her hand and murmurs a few Latin words against the rim of the glass. A simple privacy spell to keep their words masked.
"I don't mean the vampire part. I mean dealing with the need for the lust and sex. The feeding of it."
**
Rhett takes his time and considers the question before answering it. He takes a long drink of his beer and then holds the mug between his hands. "I can tell you how I dealt with it, but I think my situation with Celine, I mean Sera, was a little different from you and Collins."
"Sera was a fling, a short lived affair and we both knew that going in. I wasn't looking for anything serious and neither was she. I knew that eventually, we'd both go our separate ways, especially once I found out what she was. Even then, it took a while before she told me about her special needs."
Rhett pauses and thinks for a moment. Despite the casaulness of their relationship, there was some jealousy on his part initially, but she assured him that it was no different from her need for blood. Then things got a bit more interesting but he doesn't think Brooke really wants to hear about threesomes with his vampire lover and her meal.
"I'm not gonna lie to ya. I was hella jealous at first. Even if we weren't going to get married and stay together forever, I was dating her, and I didn't like the thought of other men or women being with her. She told me that it was just like her other feeding, that I should think of it like having a steak."
He takes another drink of beer. "I … tried to treat it like that. But I laid a few ground rules. One was that I got to see her and be with her on days before and after a feeding. One was that she took at least one feeding from me. Sometimes, I found my own diversions while she fed."
Beat.
"Sera was flexible, and agreeable. I don't know what Collins is like, so I can only tell you what I did."
**
"How do you figure it's different from Kieran and I?" Brooke is curious as to why he views the relationships as different. "It's not as though I could marry him, or that he'll want to bother staying with me forever. He's a vampire. He'll grow bored." He says he won't, but the witch doesn't believe that for an instant. She's willing to buck the system and stay with him while she can, but she knows that she can't have children with him and the only future they can possibly have together is if she allows him to turn her in the next year or two before she starts showing signs of her aging.
"I don't like the thought of him having sex with other women while we're together," she says truthfully. She's jealous, but he says he needs it and she doesn't want to upset him.
"I can broach that with him. I've already told him he could feed once a week from me." Beat. "I think Kieran is a lot more possessive than Sera would've ever been. It's his nature."
**
Rhett holds up his hands in surrender. "Whoa, I didn't mean any offense. All I meant was that I don't know what your relationship is like and I wasn't going to make any assumptions. Assumptions get people into trouble. For all I know your relationship could be very different and you could be waiting for the primetime and opportune age for him to turn you. I don't know."
"Is it worth it to accept it to be with him?" Rhett asks gently. "If you could think of it as just sex? I honestly don't pretend to understand it, not entirely, but Sera said that there was a line between intimacy and sex." He didn't question it much and took her at her word, because whatever it was, when they were together, the sex was mind-blowing.
"If it helps, he's not just making it up. I asked around and did a little research. Sera's bloodline, and I assume Collins' as well, are known as succubus and incubus vampires. They really do feed off of sex and lust."
He gives a small wistful smile, "I think that Sera is … uniquely different from many vampires."
**
"I'm not offended, I'm just curious as to why you'd think it was different." Brooke lifts her shoulders up, and exhales a heavy sigh. "I obviously don't know him as well as I thought I did. He's revealing new facets to me now, but that doesn't mean he's showing me what he truly is."
The witch raises her brow, and laughs. "Kieran said the same thing. That there's a line. That it's just sex with the others, so I shouldn't care."
Beat.
"I think she is too."
**
"What is it that you want him to show you?" Rhett asks gently. "He's a vampire, Brooke. You know that he feeds on blood. He told you that he feeds on lust and sex, I'm assuming. What more is there to know? At his core, he's not human. They look human, they act human, but they don't really think like we do. They're ruled by drives and motivations that we don't have and most of us can't understand."
Rhett smiles softly at her. "Maybe that's all it is to him then, too." Maybe the vampire is lying through his teeth. Rhett doesn't know Collins and can't make a judgment. He knows, or knew, Sera, and it was a lot more acceptable when he was part of her feeding.
Beat.
"I hear she's dating Bryn Blackwell." It's a casual observation.
**
"Yes. New York really is a small world, considering that I dated him when we were younger." Brooke exhales a sigh, and makes a face. "I really don't know what I want him to show me. Everything he feels he can trust me with, I suppose."
Her fingers tap at the bottom of the wine glass, and she nods. She can understand the different drives and motivations. She can understand some of his needs. Accepting them is different.
"Kieran Collins is Sera's Maker."
**
"You did?" Rhett raises brows at that, curious and surprised. "It really is a small world." Sera appearing here, too, when he knew her in a different state and left never thinking he would cross paths with the beautifully tempting vampiress again.
"Unfortunately I don't have any advice for dealing with what he reveals or doesn't reveal." Rhett reaches across and rests his hand atop hers. "From what I learned from Sera, they don't open up and reveal anything easily. It's a facet of what they are and how closely they protect themselves."
Beat.
"I did not know that." Of course, he knew she had a Maker, but he never inquired after the vampire's Maker. It never seemed important. He frowns at Brooke. "Is that a good thing or a bad thing from where you're sitting?"
**
"Bryn Blackwell was my first boyfriend." Brooke knows that despite how large the city is, it really is small when one considers particular circles. "It is. The Knight's daughter is my mentoree, and she happens to be good friends with your son from what I've heard."
There is a moment where Brooke considers bringing up her plan with the man, but she doesn't know him all that well yet.
"I can't say that I blame them. Vampires may be all the craze still these days, but that doesn't mean people want to meet one face to face." Lifting the glass to her lips, she shrugs again. "I haven't decided. I get the feeling that she grounds him, but at the same time knowing that they're still intimate isn't something I've come to terms with yet."
**
Rhett takes a long drink from his beer. "You're mentoring Siobhan Knight?" Probably not a bad thing. Rhett knows that Robert and Dawna have worried about the girl and her powerful magic over the years. Though it strikes him as odd the Brooke would be mentoring the girl when she has perfectly good parents at home. Unless Brooke is more powerful than Dawna, which is entirely possible.
"Yes, and they met by accident and she tried to actively dislike him for quite some time. On general principle that he was a sorcerer." Rhett is clearly amused. "And now he's dating her best friend."
Rhett pauses on the verge of taking another drink. "They are?" Beat. "Collins wasn't a part of Sera's life when I was involved with her. She mentioned that her Maker was in New York once or twice, but we never really discussed anything about him. Or her, for all I knew. She was in Miami. I really didn't know anything of their relationship or how intimate it is, or isn't."
Beat.
"Have you asked her about it?"
**
"It's another of Regina's little jokes, honestly. After the incident on the fourth of July, she decided that one black sheep should be mentoring another." Brooke shakes her head, figuring that there's more to it than that but she's going to accept it at face value until she finds out a little more.
"In the Undercity. He helped her and her friend out. Like I said, the city is rather small when you think about it." The witch had heard that Chance was dating the Donovan girl, but hearing it from his father cements it. "I did happen to see them together in passing at the Mid-Summer ball. I have to say they make an astonishing couple."
Beat.
"From what Kieran was saying, they are. I don't know what it entails, something about feeding, and it lasting longer. I haven't spoken to her about it yet. Honestly, I needed another human's take on it, and Bryn's view might be a tad skewed considering he's half in love with Sera."
**
"I suspect the joke will be on Regina in the long run," Rhett winks. He doesn't know Brooke all that well, but at a guess, he'd say she's not going to hold back what she teaches Siobhan.
"She's a wonderfully sweet girl," Rhett says with regards to Jenna. He then goes on to tell Brooke about the birthday celebration for his mother-in-law. "I worry that she might be too sweet for Chance and might get hurt. My son took after a few of my bad habits, and isn't known for his long term committment." He hopes Chance is outgrowing that, but it's too soon to tell.
Rhett is quiet for a moment, and finishes his beer in the ensuing silence. "Half in love or not, he's human. I can't imagine he's pleased with the situation."
Beat.
"Would you really like to know what helped me deal with it?"
**
"I suspect it will be. I have no qualms at all teaching her what sorcerer magic I know." Smirking, Brooke knows that Rhett's got her figured out. "Though I am doing quite a bit to help her push her excess energy elsewhere. Safest thing for her until she gets a handle on using both types of magic."
The witch listens intently as he tells the story, and smiles. "Most people aren't about long term commitment at that age. Hell, I can't even say that I've been in a serious long term relationship since Bryn." So to be fair, while she might feel for the girl and worry about Siobhan's friend, she's not going to stress over it too much.
"I don't know. He could be quite pleased with it. He wouldn't have been twelve years ago, but it's hard to say now."
Beat.
"Yes."
**
Rhett shakes his head thoughtfully. "I find it hard to imagine that anyone would be one hundred percent comfortable with the situation." However, it's not really his business to judge, and to each his or her own.
He stares down at his beer for a long minute. A part of Rhett isn't comfortable with what he's about to reveal, and doesn't know if Brooke will want to hear it or if it will help her. It's certainly going to change her opinion, though if she's actively and willingly dating a vampire, then she's already coming to this from a different point of view. Or she needs to be.
"I was there," Rhett says lifting his eyes with a wry smile. "When she fed. I was there sometimes."
**
Brooke agrees with that, because it is difficult to be a hundred percent comfortable with things. She can understand them, but like she's said. Accepting them is something different.
"You were… there. You watched her feed?"
Beat.
"Did you… join in?"
**
Rhett holds her gaze and nods. "Yes, I did."
Beat.
"Sometimes."
**
Squirming on her chair, Brooke shifts just a little closer to Rhett. The privacy spell is in place, but she wants to keep her voice low regardless.
"What was it like? Watching her feed… joining in? Did you ever join in when she fed from a male?"
Beat.
"Sorry, I know that it's rather personal, but you're really the only one I can ask about these things."
**
Rhett takes another drink from the mug of beer. "Are we talking about the blood, the sex or both?"
Beat.
"The blood was … for me that was a bit hard to watch at first. For some reason it was easier to be fed from than to watch her feed. The sex was … sex. I couldn't tell she was feeding, so it was more like watching porn. Live action in 3D."
The sorcerer rubs the back of his neck and lifts a brow. "That is personal and really has more to do with my sexual preferences than Sera's feeding habits, don't you think?"
Beat.
"Yes. I joined in when she fed from a male."
**
"Both."
Beat.
"I think that would be difficult for me to watch too. The sex… I don't know. I'm not a voyeur." Brooke glances at him, and blushes. She would watch if Kieran told her to, she knows she would.
"It is, and I know it is, and I know it was rude of me to ask." The witch does have enough good grace to look embarrassed at putting him in that position.
"Thank you." Reaching over, she takes his hand and squeezes it. "Thank you for being so open and frank with me."
Beat.
"And it was your choice. She didn't glamour you into it?"
**
"She offered. I accepted." Rhett gives Brooke a wry smile. "What warm blooded heterosexual male wouldn't want to be in bed with two beautiful women?" Because it was women at first, and Sera does like those she feeds from to be pretty.
Or three beautiful women. Sera also tended to sometimes be a little insatiable.
Later … well, it's not important how men came into the equation.
"I think," Rhett places his hand over the back of Brooke's, "What's important is what you want to do and how you want to handle it with Collins. I can't give you any advice on that. You have to go with what feels right for you. Whether that's watching, participating, or screwing someone else while he's otherwise occupied, you have to figure that out."
**
"Fair enough," Brooke replies with a laugh. She knows men, hell, she's had to drag some clients out of situations like those to prevent the scandal.
"I have no idea what I want to do. Right now, I understand the need and I'm trying to accept it, and that's really all I can do." She knows that she needs to accept what he is and what he needs to do for the relationship to work.
"If I'm being honest, I've no idea what would make me feel comfortable. The latter would be easiest, but unfair to him. He's not doing it because he wants to, but because he needs to and the fact of the matter is that I don't need to, but there do happen to be a few people I'd consider for it."
Finishing her Chablis, she sets the glass on the table and pours another.
"Would you come with me, sometime, to talk with him?"
**
Rhett gives her hand a friendly squeeze. "It's a lot to take in and figure out. You should be commended and congratulating yourself for dealing with it at all and not running for the hills." Which tells the sorcerer she must really like the vampire in question, unless she's only after sex and a thrill, which she clearly isn't. It's another difference between their situations; his relationship with Sera was about the thrill and the physicalness of it all. It's not a slight to the vampiress, while she is good company and intelligent and fun-loving, but there was that edge of being with a vampire.
Rhett holds up his mug to the server, and gives Brooke's hand another squeeze. "He must think of you as something more than a passing meal to share with you, I assume."
Rhett stares at the witch for nearly a full minute when she poses her last question. He back tracks the conversation, wondering what he's missed. "I …" He can't even formulate an answer because he's not one hundred percent certain what she's asking of him.
Beat.
"Why?" Rhett exhales a sigh and rubs his forehead. "I don't know Collins. I'm not sure what I could possibly help you say or add to the conversation. I'm not sure … what you're asking of me."
**
"Ah, but I did run for the hills," Brooke points out. At least at first. Then she tried to accept it because she does care for Kieran, and she can't fault him for what he is when he's treated her with nothing but caring and respect.
"I think he does," she says softly, a smile coming to her face.
"I honestly don't know yet. I'd like for you to meet him is all. Besides which, if we're going to be seen out in public together, I don't want him getting jealous and trying to punch you or something foolish."
**
The smile speaks volumes and Rhett can't help but smile back in return. He's not going to be one to judge, not when he technically doesn't have a leg to stand on. The witch is involved with, deeply so whether she's aware of it or not, a vampire.
Somehow Rhett doesn't think Collins will settle for punching. Vampires tend to be possessive and not pleasant about it. He doesn't say a word about that, instead nodding his head. "I'll meet him sometime, then. Just to let him know that I'm only protecting your ruse."
**
"Thank you, Rhett." Brooke leans up in her chair and places a chaste kiss to his cheek. After removing her lips, she uses her thumb to rub the little smudge of lipstick that she's left behind. "I appreciate you being willing to do that for me. I don't know what I could possibly offer you in return, but I'll think of something."
Beat.
"Care to dance for a bit?"
**
"That depends on how reckless you'd like to be," Rhett says with a devious smirk. "I have a corporate function in October of which my intention was to go stag. However, I could use a lovely, if somewhat scandalous, escort on my arm."
Beat.
"Don't feel obligated. I know that might get you into hot water with Regina further, and I don't want that. However, you could always tell her better a sorcerer than a vampire." Rhett winks at Brooke.
Beat.
"I would be charmed and delighted to dance with you." Rhett pushes back from his chair and stands, then extends a hand to Brooke.
**
"Provided that it doesn't interfere with anything else in my schedule, I'll gladly do it." Brooke glances back at him with a mischievous grin. "Regina can suck it up. I'm already jumping through hoops. I don't plan on jumping through any more."
Laughing, she brushes her fingers over the back of his hand. "I don't feel obligated. It sounds fun. Especially if the event involves a lot of sorcerers. It would be like thumbing my nose at RINC, AND the Coven."
Brooke may be submissive, but there are a few parts of her that are a little more dark than she'll ever admit.
Taking his hand, she stands gracefully. "Show me your moves, Texas."
