Putting out Fires with Gasoline [Sitara; Crimson]

[Skye LeCroix]

[2:15 AM]

Skye sighed heavily as she began breaking down her rifle. She looked up at Sitara, who hadn't even made headway of her own weapon yet, and instead was enjoying some tea before she started. "You know, I don't know how you still stay up this late," she said to her partner, shaking her head. She looked down at her hands, which were black from god-only-knew, and picked up a cleaning brush. "I think Nick's been slipping me something for the past few months that automatically starts to shut my system down after midnight," she joked. It was nearing one in the morning, and she was ready to crawl into bed. Normally, she knew she could stay at the guild house, but after the baby, it was more enjoyable going home and seeing her family - not that seeing Nick wasn't enjoyable either.

Nick usually hadn't shit his pants and was waiting for her to clean it up, either.

"Not a bad night. Kind of quiet, actually. You notice that, or was it just me?" she asked, glancing up again. Sitara had finally put her tea down and was rummaging through her own rifle bag, and Skye pushed some of the cleaner to the middle of the picnic-style table they sat at. It was only the two of them in the weapons area, for once. Usually the place was packed, but it seemed like everyone had other things to be doing.

[Sitara Rashana]

Not in any rush to get into the thick of things, instead taking a few moments of 'zen time' with her cup of tea and just Skye's flurry of movement to interrupt her peace.  Her friend wasn't a bother in the least, so it was rather pleasant to have the room to themselves for a few hours, though she thought it was rather odd.  Having Skye point it out made her feel slightly better about it, since it meant that it wasn't just her wondering what was going on.  She supposed that Crimson was allowed to have a night that didn't have people wandering its halls at all hours and causing trouble, but it still struck her as slightly unlikely. 

Who was she to complain over it?

"It's not just you, I was wondering, too.  It's a nice change, though," she said positively, smiling and taking a last sip of her tea before setting it down to tear through her bag.  She had to break her rifle down and get it cleaned before bed, so she might as well get it out of the way while she was still awake enough.  If she waited, she wouldn't want to do it, she knew better.  It had happened before, and she loved all of her guns too much to neglect them that way.  Although this particular rifle was easily her favorite, Sitara didn't discriminate.  She loved all firearms, and though she was proficient in all of the weapons that Crimson required, it was guns that really did it for her.  She carried handguns on her person at all times, even when the rifle just wasn't realistic.

She was still of the opinion that those moments were rare, but she and society had to agree to disagree on that one.  Disagreements aside, she left the rifle behind to avoid scenes unless she had a plan.  Tonight, there had been a plan, and it had gone marvelously, her and Skye clearing out a poorly guarded nest in no time.  They'd had Frank with them on the off-chance that they'd needed him, but he'd been mostly bored the whole time.  That hunt had been for the girls, and they'd handled it just fine.

"Honestly, my schedule is getting pretty skewed, but Dev is the same way.  I bet he'll still be awake long after you and I are lost in dreamland, and somehow Indrani sleeps like a normal person.  I don't understand it," she offered, shrugging and shaking her hand as she pulled the rifle apart, brushes and oil quickly being put to work.  "I'm surprised you're taking these late hunts again so soon, you know.  Nico's still so young."

[Skye LeCroix]

"Indrani is a psychologist," she said matter-of-factly. "At the end of the day, she's got a switch to turn all that shit in her brain off. What I wouldn't give for that," she laughed. She looked up as the door swung open, interrupting the sniper pajama party. "Hey, have either of you seen Connor? Hi, hey," he repeated again. Harvey Greenfield, the resident batty chemist/nerd, gave a small wave before nervously tucked his hair behind his ear and fussed with the sleeve of his sable-coloured sweater.

Skye glanced over her shoulder and smiled. "I haven't, but I'm sure he's around somewhere. Why, what do you need?' she asked curiously. She set part of her rifle down and relaxed a little in her seat. Harvey was usually there late, but he'd never asked to see Connor before, and for some reason, she got a feeling something had happened. "Did you blow something up?" she asked, tilting her head a little and giving him a look like a mom knows how to give.

"Blow something up? Oh, no. No, my wife was supposed to be in to work and I've been texting her and she's not been responding. Getting a little, heh, nervous." He leaned against a file cabinet that was empty and managed to move it a few inches, causing a loud noise that made him jump and stand up straight, thrusting his hands into his pockets.

Skye glanced at Sitara, a brow raised, and then back at Harvey. "If she's at work, then wouldn't she be busy?" Skye asked slowly.

Harvey shook his head. "Oh, she's a bartender at Hellcat's Hollow. She's usually able to go on break every few hours. She was swapping a shift tonight with Darren. I wanted to make sure she remembered, but she's either in a deep sleep or she's at work. Either way, I like to know," he admitted.

"Sometimes you rival my child in levels of cute. Don't worry, I won't tell anyone that our mad scientist has a crush on his own wife," she said. "If Connor is still here, he's not going to be in his office," she said, assuming he'd already looked. She glanced at her watch, and then grinned. "He's probably with Anya and Katya in one of the quiet rooms upstairs. This is about the time he's been complaining Anya's started to wake up at night. My guess is that Katya just got fed up and brought her in," she said. That Katya and Connor were bonded was not common knowledge; that Katya was glued to baby Anya was. It was easy to assume that having a vampire nanny who had a near-outstanding history would be a good idea.

"Right. I'll head there, then. Have a good night, ladies," he said, again with the short wave. He turned and ran into the door on his way out.

Skye glanced over at Sitara, her brows lofted. "I wonder how long that will last," she said with a laugh. "Eh, who am I kidding?" She began cleaning again, eying the half-empty cup of tea Sitara had. "I still feel all warm inside when I see Nick or Nicole, so I guess it hasn't worn off on me yet. Maybe hunters just know how to love a little more than most people." She paused. "I sound like Dr. Phil. What kind of tea is that? I think I want some. As for the slow night, it is a nice change, and well deserved. We've gone twenty-four hours before, so I guess I should count my blessings."

[Sitara Rashana]

Skye's response about Indrani and her sleeping habits was only too true.  When Sitara laid down, she could say for certain that she had ridiculous thoughts running around her mind, from perfect sniping nests in the city should she ever get the opportunity to try them out, to what her plans were for the next day.  She couldn't always just lay down and let it all go, especially if it had been a fairly easy, boring day.  It left her with far too much energy.  Then, there was the fact that her schedule was just unpredictable.  If she was going to be spending most of the night out on a hunt, then sleeping until 2 in the afternoon the next day, she wasn't going to be back to a 'normal person' schedule within the week.  Indrani had the luxury of mostly normal hours, and Sitara could only assume from what she'd always gleaned about Dev that his hours reflected any other hunter's rather than his wife's.  She sure as hell knew that he wasn't kept awake by guilt or anything of that sort.  Dev enjoyed his work far too much for that, and enjoyed the results. 

Harvey was a different kind of hunter altogether, so geeky and positively reeking of the mad scientist vibes that Skye had called him on that he would almost be cute.  He wasn't Sitara's type, but she could appreciate the cuteness.  His concern had her wondering, however, since he didn't usually seem like he worried needlessly.  Sure, he was clumsy and a bit awkward, but he had never struck her as the sort to worry over something that wasn't worth worrying over.  If his wife was a creature of habit, and that habit included contacting him a few times over the course of her work shift, then it might be cause for concern if she hadn't.  Sitara couldn't blame him, knowing that if she had someone that she cared that much about, she'd worry, too.  Of course, even knowing her line of work as she did, she understood that 90% of the time, being unable to get in touch with someone just meant that you'd missed them, or they were busy.  It was that 10% that you had to watch out for, because it'd bite you in the ass, but she wasn't jumping to Harvey's aid because they really hadn't no reason to assume that there was anything really wrong.

Oh, if only they knew. 

Besides, she worked at Ash's place.  It was one of the safest places in the city, as long as you were friendly with the triste.  She knew Leone through Connor, and had always liked him.  She knew that he would do anything necessary to keep someone who worked for him safe, so that was a point in favor of Harvey's wife being fine.  Sitara wasn't really sure what he expected Connor to do about his wife not answering her phone, but she supposed he was one of the best people to go to with a problem.  She'd certainly done it before.  She wanted to tell him that Connor was either where Skye had said or at home trying desperately to get some sleep, but she figured that she'd let him try Skye's idea, first.  Hopefully, she'd be right.

"Wow, waxing poetic on me?  Naturally, tea is the perfect accompaniment," she offered with a roll of her eyes, but she smiled anyway.  "I don't really care for the tea we have hanging around here, so I have a plastic baggie in my duffel with some tea bags in it.  They're much tastier, go ahead."

[Skye LeCroix]

"He wants Connor because I'm betting he's got Darren's number," she said with a grin. "I've been there once or twice, but I don't make a habit of it. Stella likes to go there a lot, and she's fond of Darren, which I think bothers Jason a little," she added with a laugh. To Sitara's offer of the tea, she rose and went for the bag, heading for the microwave/sink area. She grabbed a coffee cup and washed it out, then threw the combination into the nuker and turned around, folding her arms and leaning against the counter.

"When are you going to find someone to be cute with?" she asked. "I could always set you up with someone. The only single guy I know right now that I can think of is a lion, though, and people already think you and I are too alike as it is," she said with a laugh. "It's bad enough when we're geared up they think we're one another, I don't know if I want to give them any more reasons." Whoever said snipers were loners and cold could bite Skye's ass - she and Sitara may have preferred alone time, but they were social creatures, too. Just... when it suited them.

When the timer beeped, she scooped the cup out of it and retired to the table with her comrade again, diligently cleaning her weapon. She had taken good care of it thus far, and was pleased that she found little to no build up in it. She took a sip of the tea after allowing it to cool, and nodded. "Oh, wow, this is delicious. Where did you get this?"

[Sitara Rashana]

It was a good plan, looking for Connor to get Darren's number, but if it was her, she'd have just called the club.  Someone would eventually answer, right?  Of course, she didn't know that a lot of the places that had people at risk for attack were mobbed at the moment, so it wouldn't have even occurred to her that anything could be out of the ordinary about any of it, or that calling in might not really get much of a response.  She just nodded her agreement, grinned at the idea of Jason's 'jealousy' and wondering exactly what that would look like on such a sweet kid, and felt the gears in her brain suddenly switch with Skye's questions about her finding someone to be 'cute' with.

"Oh, I'm in no hurry," she laughed, shaking her head.  She hoped Skye didn't really think that she needed to set her up with someone.  "I guess that when I find the right one, or at least a good imitation of him, I'll give him a try, but I'm not actively looking.  I have enough to keep me busy here."

It was probably for the best that she didn't have a significant other, since it had definitely made it easier for her to pick up as much of the slack during Skye's maternity leave that she was physically able to.  There were only so many hours in the day.  Talk of the tea was better.

Skye's obvious enjoyment of the tea prompted a pleased smile out of Sitara.  She'd never really be a 'people pleaser', but she liked when it happened, especially with the people she liked, Skye being one of them.  "That one specifically?  It's a Chinese Jasmine blend.  I'm getting near the end of my stock on that one, so I may need to see if Connor has any excuses for me to head out that way again on business," she explained happily.  It was a little known fact that Sitara actually really liked tea, but it had to be something interesting.  She'd pass on the Lipton tea bags and such. 

[Skye LeCroix]

 Skye laughed into her cup. "What, you mean you actually go and get it rather than order it?" she asked. She shook her head. "I should have known." She stretched back a little. "You know, they don't like to use it as a selling point, but being a sniper really has some perks. Your job requires a lot of travel to exotic places," she said with a grin.

She leaned lazily against the table with a contented sigh. "You will never actively look. Hell, I didn't actively look. How Nick and I met is one of my favourite stories; can't wait to tell Nicole some day when she's old enough. I just think it'd be nice to show his friends that my friends can be both female and attractive," she said, tilting her head a little.

"Whatever, I'll get you out some time when you can't say no." She nodded firmly.