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 Posted: Wed Jun 05, 2013 9:48 am
Things had gone smoothly enough as far as Amethyst was concerned with regards to the events leading right up to the appointment he had made with General Ilmenite for the evening. Although he wasn't able to leave the hospital on the dot at 5pm as planned, he figured that knocking off at 6pm didn't exactly put him in a worse position either. He had picked up something for dinner on the way back to his apartment to save himself some time and was already out of the house by the time the clock ticked five minutes to nine.
Given the circumstances, it should come as no surprise then that the young Lieutenant would arrive at the agreed upon meeting point much earlier than he was supposed to at ten minutes past nine. With the amount of time he still had till he was due to meet Ilmenite, he scouted the area for a bit, making doubly sure that he was at the right place before situating himself at one of the blind-ended side alleys to wait for time to pass.
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Posted: Wed Jun 05, 2013 7:22 pm
He'd know when the General arrived -- not because he approached in plain sight down the street, not because the familiar green of his coat caught the light, but because a blip of chaos would come up on his radar.
It'd come up inside the bar.
Ilmenite knew the place, so instead of fighting with IDs and trouble at the door, he'd teleported directly into the bathroom. And he'd wait inside, considering the glow of Lieutenant outside and sidling up to the bar to get a drink while he waited for the newbie to gather the guts to come meet him inside.
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Posted: Sat Jun 08, 2013 2:54 pm
Amethyst straightened his form when he sensed the familiar surge of energy that could come from none other than a Negaverse General, glancing expectantly towards the direction of the main street every now and then as he kept a tab on Ilmenite's position to gauge if he was coming to seek him out as he mentioned that he would. Five minutes ticked past and still the General had stayed put more or less at his initial position which would place him, if his sense of direction and distance were accurate, directly within the bar itself.
Amethyst honestly wasn't very sure as to what he should make of this, a variety of possible scenarios that could account for this beginning to take form in his own mind, the worst of which consisted of the General being incapacitated for some reason still unknown to himself though he had every intention of finding out by making his way over instead. So here he was at the door, waiting in the line for his turn to go in when the bouncers looked him up and down after waving the person in front of him in, almost as if they were sizing him up and trying to decide if he was the kind of character the bar was inclined to serve as a patron.
Shifting his weight from one foot to another, he gave them another couple of seconds before posing them a question in a barely discernible tentative tone. "... something wrong with my uniform guys?" You know, the kind where you could tell that the other person was totally new to something like this and had no idea as to what he was doing.
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Posted: Sat Jun 08, 2013 5:42 pm
For a bit, at least, Ilmenite was going to let him flounder -- mostly because he was at the bar with a vodka tonic, and flirting in an absent sort of way with the bartender. Zed probably wouldn't be amused to find out, but Zed wasn't there, and it was harmless, besides. He'd never act on it, other than to slowly draw energy out of the man as he worked, a small enough amount, perhaps, to be covered by his hard work and the pressing crowd.
No. Amethyst would have to deal with the bouncers himself. They didn't seem hostile, at least, just amused, the one raising his eyebrows at the kid as the other moved down to deal with more of the line. Arms crossed over his chest, his tone held more amusement than annoyance. A holdup, not a full stop.
"Is this fancy dress or somethin'? Or is this just the kind of thing you wear."
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Posted: Mon Jun 10, 2013 8:17 am
"It's not a costume if that's what you're asking." Now this was getting awkward fast. Amethyst frowned to himself, having no idea at all as to how he was supposed to get himself out of this situation and with any luck, into the establishment for his meeting with Ilmenite. The bouncers hadn't refused him entry outright at least so that meant that there was still hope so long as he played his cards right from here on.
Right?
"Look. I just got some time off from the base and am looking for some place to chill for the evening. I won't cause any trouble if that's what you're worried about." He opted for a reasoning approach, his voice calm and even as he puffed up his chest a little to try to look the part of the military officer whom he was supposed to be. "Besides, I don't see it mentioned anywhere on the signage that men in uniform are not allowed in."
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Posted: Tue Jun 11, 2013 1:03 pm
Amethyst was cute, and he was entertaining, and that [combined with Ilmenite's choice of location] was what saved him. Instead of puffing up and sending noisy, weird kids away, he laughed -- half-turning to say something quiet to the other bouncer, who grinned at Amethyst and shrugged --
and like that, he was inside, in a bar loud enough that the music covered nearby conversations. People moved in duos and trios, small groups, relatively intimate. Huddled in booths, lined up at the bar, dancing on the small dancefloor...
Ilmenite stood about ten feet away, leaning back against the wall and watching the door. He grinned at Amethyst as he came in. "Held up? I was worried I might have to come out."
There was still half a drink in his hand.
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Posted: Wed Jun 12, 2013 5:38 pm
The bouncers weren't buying it. Amethyst could tell from the patronizing look that they were giving him even before he was done with his piece, already psyching himself for an outright refusal of entry into the bar when they suddenly surprised him by doing the exact opposite on the contrary. He blinked, for a moment staying put and wondering if he had heard wrong until their waving him through a second time reaffirmed the fact that he was good in their books.
Proceeding into the establishment, he located Ilmenite easily both via direct visualization and homing in on his aura, wasting no time at all in crossing over to join the obviously amused General as his face took on a sheepish expression at the reminder of what had just happened at the bar entrance. "Just for a bit. Yeah..Sorry for being late, Sir."
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Posted: Wed Jun 12, 2013 7:36 pm
"Do you drink?" It was somewhat lazy, gentle -- tipsy, most likely, or at least with enough alcohol in his system to make everything a bit smoother around him, easier to deal with. It was entirely possible that this wasn't Ilmenite's first drink.
He straightened himself, though, polishing off what was left in his glass and nodding toward the bar. His intent was obvious: for the Lieutenant to lead the way, so that Ilmenite could step up next to him, abandoning his empty drink on a tabletop as he went, and wrap an arm around his shoulders.
"If not, you can order a soda or something. Chat with the bartender. He's a little woozy, already, but you should be able to feel what to do. It's like an aura, and you just tap into it. Draw the energy away..."
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Posted: Thu Jun 13, 2013 3:36 pm
"I'll get myself a drink. Do you need another glass of whatever it was you were having?" Amethyst offered to pick up the tab for this round, his gaze lingering on Ilmenite for a while longer to make sure that he was still able to get around without requiring any assistance before making his way directly to the bar.
He was of course relieved to find the General in a good mood though obviously buzzed from the effect of the alcohol itself, his attention focused entirely on the other once again when he began to instruct him on what he intended for him to do next. "Woozy? ... but how am I supposed to tap into it and then draw it out? Do I need to touch a specific part of his body in order to do that?"
Lifting a hand to wave the bartender over, he gave the civilian a smile and attempted to chat him up as instructed to. "Hi... how's it going? I'm in a bit of an adventurous mood tonight and I was wondering if there's anything on the drinks menu that you could perhaps recommend?"
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Posted: Fri Jun 14, 2013 2:08 pm
"You don't have to touch him at all." This was soft, meant only for Amethyst's ears -- but came out a bit louder than Ilmenite intended. The bartender raised an eyebrow, overhearing, and winked broadly at Ilmenite, who grinned right back at him. Maybe he'd been doing more than just a bit of flirting before the lieutenant had been there. In fact, if Zac weren't an issue --
He just had to think the name and he settled down again, shrugging at Amethyst as the man offered up a couple suggestions: sweet and girly, maybe because of how the young man looked. He wasn't going to suggest a hearty stout for such a newbie. As he stepped away to let Amethyst think, Ilmenite spoke up again.
"It helps if you do, at the beginning, just to establish contact, but he's really friendly, so you could probably just shake his hand and linger a bit. It's not a mechanical thing, it's...internal. I don't know quite how to explain. Try it and see, you'll feel it."
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Posted: Tue Jun 18, 2013 6:39 am
Somewhere deep inside Amethyst, a part of him sputtered then curled up and died at the look that the bartender shot both Ilmenite's and his way, leaving no doubt at all to the Lieutenant's mind that he must have overheard what was originally meant for his ears alone from the General himself. What could he say really? Get up from his seat to clear up the misunderstanding and risk blowing their cover as to the real purpose behind their visit this particular evening? He didn't think that that would be a wise move on his part really.
A glance in the bartender's direction had the man over in a jiffy with Amethyst giving him his order following which both Negaverse agents were left to their own devices again. He thought long and hard on what Ilmenite had to offer in terms of guidance on the matter of energy extraction. Not that it was much to go with for now but he supposed it wouldn't hurt to put his best foot forward with all the encouragement he was getting.
"... alright. I'll give this a shot then." Tossing a small smile that belied his own nervousness on top of the awkwardness as a result of the overheard statement from earlier on at Ilmenite, he gave the bartender an appreciative nod when he returned with his drink, waiting for him to set the glass down before reaching out to slide both his hands over the other's. "Um... you got some time to talk for a bit?"
His cheeks felt as if they were on fire as he smiled at the man, his demeanor tentative like that of a small puppy bracing itself for the kick that was about to happen anytime now. At the same time, as distracted as he was with trying to remember where his hands were and what he should do so as to keep the conversation going, he dropped his gaze to the ground and willed himself to focus on feeling for the civilian's aura, trying to picture in his own mind how it might be like. "Like how long you've been here and how this place is like..?"
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Posted: Tue Jun 18, 2013 8:54 pm
It was perfect; without physical contact, it might be a bit more difficult for Amethyst to draw out the energy at this level, but. Learn how to it the hard way, and the easy way would be all the easier. Plus, of course, Ilmenite couldn't quite imagine Amethyst taking the man's hand, or drawing him into the crowd for a dance, or leading him out into the alley --
Well. Let him learn. While he distracted the bartender, Ilmenite leaned behind the bar and stole a bottle of whatever was handy to refill his glass surreptitiously. He put it back in the wrong place and watched, absently, from a bit down the bar.
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Posted: Wed Jun 19, 2013 5:37 am
The bartender smiled wide at Amethyst, eagerly obliging the Lieutenant's request as he removed one of his hands from beneath his to slowly brush the pads of his fingers across the back of the other's hand. A feather light non-intrusive gesture as if he was testing the waters. Amethyst shifted slightly in his seat, the flush on his face deepening a shade at the same instant as he barely quelled the instinctive urge to pull his hands back immediately.
He realized that he was walking on very thin ice here for the longer he took with this, the more and more likely the other man would be inclined to do more than just chaste touches at the rate he was being 'friendly' with him. Nodding a few times as the bartender introduced himself then proceeded to point out the various sections of the bar for his benefit, he pretended to listen with interest, a look of intense concentration crossing his face while he probed with his mind for the other's energy source through the maintained physical contact.
Nothing.
Diving deeper, he thought he felt an energy pulse when his mind registered a rather firm squeeze of his hand by the rather concerned looking male. "You alright? You looked like you were spacing out and you haven't even touched your drink yet." Oh. Right. Conversation. Blinking a few times, he nodded quickly, not wanting to alarm the other when it seemed like he was so close to getting the hang of this. "Yeah. Just a little lost since it's my first time here." An incline of his head in Ilmenite's direction so the bartender knew who he was referring to. "It was my friend's idea to come check this place out you see."
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Posted: Sat Jun 22, 2013 2:38 pm
As the bartender shot him a look -- considering, calculating, maybe wondering at why the two of them would come in and start tandem hitting on him -- Ilmenite raised his glass in a little salute and finished what was left inside, before sliding it toward the man again. The bottle, by this point, was back where it belonged, and Ilmenite was left chomping on glass and just watching the pair of them.
He didn't think it had ever taken him this long to get the hang of it, but maybe it was simply a fear of intimacy on Amethyst's behalf. Or fear of a certain kind of intimacy, perhaps. Maybe it would have been easier had the bartender been a girl, but that also would have been considerably less fun.
In any case, Ilmenite stepped in easy to occupy the man; telling him a funny story about one of the bouncers that was almost certainly made up [or, at least, was about someone else], and involved a lost pair of boxer shorts. It would drive the line at the bar crazy, leave them grumbling as the other tender struggled to keep up with demand, but it'd also give Amethyst time to get a feel for riding the horse, hopefully.
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Posted: Sat Jun 22, 2013 11:04 pm
That all hadn't been an act really but more of a case of fearing something he had no prior experience with and being terribly self conscientious about it that accounted for Amethyst's lackluster performance thus far. It wasn't an issue with his sexual preference so even if the bartender had been a lady dressed in nothing but cat ears and sexy lingerie, it wouldn't have made a difference in his case really. He was relieved nevertheless with the diversion that Ilmenite stepped in to provide, taking a few sips from his glass as he tried to regain his composure so that he could pluck up the courage to try again.
Setting the half emptied glass back on the counter, he gave the man's hand a long almost lingering look, the alcohol in his system making him bolder as evident by the lack of hesitancy with which he slid his hand over the other's and pinned it against the counter as he searched for that pulse of energy again. It only took him half as long as his initial attempt now that he wasn't left floundering about and lost entirely, Ilmenite's words coming back to him as he latched himself onto it and then started to draw the energy towards him, his body pressing up against the man from behind so as to maintain the physical contact the entire time.
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