Worlds Collide

[Danielle Vida]

Danielle smoothed the dress down that she'd worn for this occasion. She never dressed up, not even for Ash, but this once, for the woman known as Celeste, who seemed to know everything Danielle hoped and desired, she had made a special purchase.

She'd stood at the dressmaker's for hours whilst being fitted - she could not have some clothing that simply hung on her form. What would Celeste think of it? Did Valentino's gowns simply come in a size 4? No, they were tailored, as -she- deserved. Gown was a bit of an overstretch, though, for Danielle had gone with a simple dress, chosen in virginal white, finally, which spoke volumes of what she thought of herself, and Celeste, and in some forms, Ash - and where she stood with all of them. This was wrapped in her subconscious, of course, so to Danielle, she had chosen white simply because Celeste reminded her of an angel, and angels liked white.

She walked, the skirts playing at her shins. It was flowing, but not floor-length, with a top that had an almost bodice-like quality and thin straps. She looked practically ethereal, with her vanilla blonde hair and some cream-coloured eyeshadow (yes, she had on MAKEUP). She sat down at the bar, awaiting both Ash and Celeste, as she had arrived early to try and calm her nerves. A drink wouldn't help, but the lounge as a whole seemed to ease her.

She glanced back as Papa Aristide himself strode towards her, and she stood to greet him. She was going to request that they be given a slight privacy, but she knew he didn't play favourites, so she didn't know how well this would go.

[Ash Leone]

Papa Aristide didn't play favorites, that was true, but he did play a game.  The rules just weren't apparent to the other players.  Thus, when he saw Danielle Vida again, all dressed up for a change, he was already willing to put her and her party into a more secluded corner.  He'd approached her personally because of the last time she was here, with her Triste friend.  They didn't need another show like that in the Lounge.

"Come wit' me, petite blanc," he told the young witch in his deep, rumbling voice, gesturing for her to follow him to a roomy table in the furthest corner of the establishment's main room.  "Dey won' keep you waitin'."

With that said, he turned and left, not specifying if he meant her guests or the server, but either way, Ash appeared in the room a moment later.

It wasn't at all difficult to locate Dani even in the Lounge, considering his power level was back up to normal, and he approached the table with the smooth grace that he wasn't even really aware of.  His initial time as a shifter was so messed up that he hadn't even taken notice of any changes in his movements.  He was just glad to be somewhat back to normal.

"Good evening, cherie," he said to Dani with a smile, though it faltered ever so slightly when he saw that she was all dressed up, make-up included.  She was beautiful, but he didn't dare think that she'd done it for him.  That was for this vampire, he would bet his life on it.  He fixed the smile, even brightening it, and took his seat at her table.  "You look amazing.  I didn't know you owned a dress like that."

If he had, he might have requested they go somewhere for her to use it earlier.  Of course, before everything in his life had gone to Hell, he'd held a much more aloof, distanced sort of mentor relationship with her, even if he loved her.  It was as though Morfeus had managed to knock him down a few pegs, whether he liked it or not.

[Charles Hawthorne]

C?leste had also dressed for the occasion, though the reason behind it was... different. She knew that she was meeting Ash today, you see. Though 'meeting' might be the wrong word, as she already knew him.

That, actually, was one of the things that she had been out to make him think of.

She wasn't quite in her usual outfits, and that was for Danielle's sake - but she wasn't dressed in white again. No, it was dark colors this time, mainly a rich brown so dark that it could almost be mistaken for black, though with threads of cream and black in complex, beautiful patterns, to accent it. The skirt was long and, unlike Danielle's, was not at all billowing. It was, however, slit over both legs almost the entire length of her leg. The bodice, however, was closer to what she usually wore. That, and the dark color both, was for Ash.

She looked very dramatic, her black eyes accentuated by both eyeliner that spiraled off into the usual exotic pattern and dark brown eyeshadow - to match the dress. The rest of her almost looked like it was made of porcelain, it was so fair in comparison. She looked very dramatic, the white of her skin and hair against the dark of her clothing.

She walked gracefully into the lounge, strolling in with a graceful, beautiful, confident air, and then looked around for a moment before she was directed to the two who were waiting for her. She almost danced up, the movement was so graceful, and looked at Danielle first.

"Hello, petit ange," she said with a smile. "You look wonderful!"

And then she turned to Ash and, before sitting down, she sank into an elegent curtsy. "Ashtaroth Leone, yes?" she asked with a pretty smile after rising. "Ash? I am pleased to meet you."

She gracefully sat down, and then smiled over at Ash. "I always think it's so important to show someone you've just met the proper respect, don't you?"

~*~*~

And so it begins. *cackles*

[Danielle Vida]

Danielle leaned across the table and gave Ash a small kiss, one that was hidden by hair hair as she moved so quickly none could see what she had done.

"Thank you," she said graciously, seating herself. "I didn't actually own one like this until this afternoon, to be honest. It had final adjustments that needed to be made, or I'd not have left until much later." She'd been sitting around the Hollow all day doing a lot of nothing until the woman who was fitting her dress called to make a last-minute alteration. She'd been furious. She had wanted to get it and go, not stand around and be a blonde pincushion.

As C?leste approached, Danielle stood again, smiling so much she felt her lips begin to twitch. And she thought that she looked wonderful, did you hear that? Danielle nearly burst with pleasure.

"As do you, C?leste," she said warmly, leaning forward to kiss her on the cheek. Danielle had suddenly snapped from somewhat-lax Vida hunter to Little Miss Muffet with her formalities and twinkling laugh. It was as if she was two different people, one with Ash, and one with C?leste. This evening would prove to be very difficult.

[Ash Leone]

He should have known better than to trust the idea of meeting a vampire, but he'd never expected to find this particular vampire sitting at the same table as him, ever.  In fact, he was positively floored just at the sight of her, and it showed on his face.  If he'd been pleased with the quick kiss he'd received from Dani, seeing Celeste was the exact opposite, to the point that he actually pushed his chair back a few inches with his initial shock.

"Celeste," he said softly, not exactly as a greeting so much as confirmation that it was, in fact, her.  Dani's reaction to the vampire only made the whole situation feel even worse.  It was like he was with a stranger and this vampire, and that was the last thing he wanted.  After the reminder about respect, of course.  

"I always think it's so important to show someone you've just me the proper respect, don't you?"

He nodded to the vampire, forcing the verbal response he'd been trained to give back down and staying where he was seated.  He wasn't going to give her what she wanted.

[Charles Hawthorne]

C?leste smiled the same honeyed, pleasant smile that she had used before, when she was training him, at Ash, resting her slim white hands in her lap as she blinked at the triste was huge black eyes.

"I am glad to be able to see you," she said. "Really though, I feel almost as though we've already met. After all, I've heard so much about you. You're a triste, yes? And a white tiger." She smiled fondly. "I must say, Danielle is lucky. They are beautiful cats. I used to have one as a pet, actually, but no more."

[Ash Leone]

He couldn't take his eyes off of her, despite the way his mind kept telling him that he needed to ignore her and pretend that nothing was wrong.  She was smiling at him just the way he remembered from the training she'd administered in that dungeon, and he knew she wouldn't like it if he looked away.

He shouldn't have cared, but he did.  He'd be punished if he made her upset.

No, she can't! he told himself, his shock turning to a glare.  She was doing this intentionally, just to mess with him.

"I'm a Triste, yes," he agreed, deliberately leaving out anything about being a shifter.  He didn't want to address that with her, considering the fondness she had with felines and the fact that he was betting he was the tiger she was talking about.  "Yes, and what happened to this pet of yours?"

He really only asked for the sake of making conversation for Dani, but Celeste was his true concern right then.  He wanted to get out of there as soon as possible.

[Danielle Vida]

Well, lucky for Danielle she had no idea that anything had transpired between them previously, or she might not have been the easiest person to deal with at the moment. No, she chalked Ash's unease up to the simple fact that Celeste was a vampire, and nothing more - stupid Danielle.

"Used to? I didn't know you had another big cat besides Liliane," she remarked, surprised. "I didn't think she'd take well to having competition," she offered with a smile.

[Charles Hawthorne]

The pale vampire glanced over at Danielle with a smile and a little laugh, the same pretty, innocent, bell-like sound. "Oh, I haven't had Liliane for that long, actually. She's fairly young yet." Which was true, when time was seen from an immortal standpoint. But, of course, her audience wouldn't know that. She sighed slightly, leaning back a little. "I will agree that she's very vain - but she's a cat. What can you expect?"

She looked over to Ash, and the action appeared perfectly innocent; as if she were merely including him in the conversation. "She's not my only big cat though," she said and then smiled warmly at Ash, pausing slightly in her speech to do so. Danielle wouldn't notice it, C?leste was sure - but she was equally sure that the triste, who was sure to be hyper analyzing every move she made, would draw conclusions from it.

After that second she turned back to Danielle, and laughed the same musical laugh. "I did tell you about Sara, didn't I?" She smiled, as though thinking of her. "She's like Ami, cherie. She loves me more then life itself. All my pets come to love me, though. All you need to know is what to teach them, and how."

"It's really a pity that some are so badly behaved at first," she sighed as she repeated almost the exact same words she'd used down in the dungeon, not even glancing at Ash as she said it. She hardly thought that she would need to in order for him to pick up on what she said and suspect something. As she intended. "But it rarely takes very long, if you know what to teach them."

[Ash Leone]

Dani certainly didn't know about what had happened, or he didn't believe she'd be so calm at that moment. Of course, he was also wondering what had happened to his Dani, and why she was acting like this as it was.  He was horribly confused.

He tried to tell himself that she wasn't talking about him when she spoke of her cats, since that just made him paranoid.  She had a thing for felines, so she probably had lots of them.

Nevermind, he wasn't just being paranoid.  When she looked at him as she declared that the feline Dani had mentioned wasn't her only big cat, it was obvious to him what she'd meant by that.  She was tailoring her words to try to make him react, but other than shooting her a glare when she said it, he didn't give her the satisfaction.

At least, not until she mentioned pets being badly behaved.  Hearing those words, nearly the exact same ones she'd used before beginning her 'training' of him, his whole body tensed and his mind couldn't help but shoot to that moment, the last time he'd seen her.  For the first time since Ian had allowed him to go off on his own again, he was afraid.  She was trying to force him back into that mindset, and while it wasn't working completely, it was having an effect other than simply informing him that he wasn't as rehabilitated as he'd told himself.  

"And does any of that teaching involve torture?" he asked, trying to keep his voice level and casual, despite the harsh implications of what he'd said.  He was skating on thin ice where Dani was involved, but he already knew the answer.  Celeste was just going to lie, and puni--no, she couldn't punish him.  She couldn't do anything to him, not anymore.

[Danielle Vida]

"Ash," she said harshly. She got that he didn't like Celeste, fine, but wow, calling her out like that was kind of snotty right at the moment. She recalled asking him NOT to do just that.

"I met Ami, Ash, and Liliane, and dozens of other people at Celeste's manor. None of them acted beaten or abused," she snapped. "Ami was very gracious, and I was even able to speak with her. She didn't have even a scratch on her, nothing."

It was strange to see Danielle so defensive; she may have defended Aurashka in the same ways. It was hard for the huntress to find company like theirs. Especially Celeste. She understood Danielle. She knew what Danielle wanted, what she needed, and she wasn't afraid to give it to her, or to tell her how to get it. Why was Ash being such a twerp?

She huffed softly to herself; it wasn't even like she could get a drink.

[Charles Hawthorne]

She could feel the triste react as she aimed at every tender area she could think of, and the reaction pleased her. Not as much, though, as Danielle's immediate reaction to Ash's subtle accusation. Because it was more then just a question, and everyone there knew it.

Still, she decided to answer it even so. "Do you suppose," she said in a soft, almost-sad voice that was entirely for Danielles' benefit as she blinked at the tiger with her large, long-lashed eyes, "that they would love me if I tortured them?" She raised a hand towards Danielle. "As Danielle said, she met and talked to Ami - I even left the room, just so that she could be sure I wasn't influencing her at all. She can tell you the same, she can tell you the manner of questions and answers."

Which really, wasn't an answer to the question, but would Danielle pick up on that? Probably not.

[Ash Leone]

He actually flinched when Dani said his name that way, immediately shutting up and dropping the glare, though only because of her reaction.  He believed what she said, but he knew better, he knew how this vampire had worked.  He remembered, but it was impossible to say that to Dani.  She'd never believe him, would she?

It took an effort for him to push himself back out of the mindset both women were slowly pushing him back into, but some of the harshness had left him as a result of it all.  "They would love you if that was what you taught them.  They would think whatever you want," he responded, thinking back to Morfeus despite himself.  He'd called for Morfeus when he was with Celeste, and he'd been terrified to leave him for Ian.  He had no doubt that Celeste knew what she was doing enough to make her slaves love her, regardless of her methods.

[Danielle Vida]

Danielle slammed her hand down on the table. She refused to believe Celeste would do something so horrible - after all, Ami had said so herself, the Mistress just wanted what was best for her. And what had Ami been without Celeste? And Liliane? And the birds? Just useless creatures to society, in a cage, or a zoo, or hunted. Celeste had given them a purpose, a home, love. Who could call that evil?

"Ash, stop," she snarled. "This is exactly what I asked you not to do. I wanted you to meet Celeste because she meant something to me, but if all you're going to do is grill her, I'm going to go home and leave you to it."

She stood abruptly, pushing back her chair with a loud noise. "I don't even know who I was kidding, thinking that you actually cared." She was so hurt, so upset. Why couldn't Ash see that? Celeste was important to her, and here he was, practically accusing her of, well, Celeste just wasn't that way!

"Celeste, I am so sorry I asked you to come. If I had any inclining that Ash was going to be unable to contain himself..." she let out a shaky sigh. A tear slid down her cheek, and she took a deep breath. Oh, but she was poetry in motion, her reaction so natural, and yet what might it illicit from Ash? Celeste hadn't had to do much at all to work Danielle, and then, well...

"If you'll both excuse me for a moment," she said, and turned swiftly to leave.  

[Charles Hawthorne]

"Danielle, please," she said as she rose as gracefully as a butterfly, sweeping over, "please, don't." A tear slid down the witch's cheek, and C?leste's face turned more sorrowful. "Cherie, I never meant to start a fight. Please, don't worry so much about it. I suppose that it's only natural he should mistrust vampires. Even... even me."

But the witch left despite her words - which honestly, was rather what the vampire had been hoping for - and so C?leste sighed a little and slid back into her seat, and then watched her walk off. And then, as soon as the Vida could no longer see the table, her manner changed completely. She looked back to Ash again, but now there was a hint of a cruel smile playing on her lips and her attitude had become sleek, predatory. And ever, ever so much more reminicent of Midnight.

Well fancy meeting you here, pet,[/b] she thought at him with a cruel smile. Morfeus sends his regards, and says it won't be long now. Ready to come home, kitten?

As she lounged - obviously a Mistress of Midnight utterly in her element (but then when was she not? Never, no, she was always in control) she very, very carefully listened for the flavor of Danielle Vida's mind. When the little witch came back again this front would be gone as though it had never existed, she would be the sweet vampire with the cat and the birds who adored her, the one who had promised to help Danielle.

But for now... oh, for now....