World of Darkness: Balance of Power - [Fic]Meetings in the Dark

[Daven_OOC NPCRM #1]

January 2nd 9pm

Lord Ezekiel Johnson sat in the office he had in Gregor's household. He finished the form he was working on and added it to the stack. Standing up and walking to the window he surveyed the city that the Alder Prince had chosen. Ezekiel did not really care what city he was in. Still, it was taking longer to rebuild his network here then he would of liked. He wanted to help Gregor in any way he could. Normally he mostly dealt with Invictus affairs. He supposed this was in a way but that wasn't important right now. A knock on the door brought him out of his musings.

"Come in."

The door opened and Ezekiel's chief ghoul stepped in to the room.

"They are here sir."

Ezekiel gave a nod and pointed to the stack of papers on the desk.

"Take those and file them. Send them in and I will not need you anymore tonight."

The ghoul nodded and retrieved the stack of papers before leaving. A moment later Puck and India entered the room.

"Mr. Puck, Ms. Hamilton, welcome and thank you for coming. Please have a seat."

Ezekiel walked across the room and pulled out India's chair for her.

"I want you both to know this is a mostly informal meeting. There are some concerns that I wished to speak to you about. This is in no way a trial of any sort and I am hoping we can keep this civil. I in no way have the authority to deny you recognition in this city Ms. Hamilton, that will most likely happen no matter what happens at this meeting. The Alder Prince has agreed to hold that recognition until we could have this chat."

As he spoke it was clear there was little emotion in his voice. This meeting like every other was simply another political necessity. He walked around the table and sat in his own chair.

"Before we do get to my concerns I do wish to welcome you to the city. Do you have any questions for me before we truly get started?"

Ezekiel started to wonder when he had joined the ranks of those Invictus who were nothing but the job anymore.

[India Hamilton]

India and the rest of the family, much to Puck's delight, had gotten settled in immediately with the younger additions to the group. India had insisted that no blame be laid by the older members of the family at the feet of this newer, younger generation - after all, not only was it not their fault that their parents hadn't been instructed properly and therefore hadn't passed that information along to them, but they had welcomed and cared for Puck since his awakening - even if it had ended up taking far too long, In India's opinion - to reunite.

Besides, arguing amongst the family was the last thing she wanted happening, now that she was back with Will - with Puck, and so happy with her afterlife again. The only thing to deal with now was this pesky meeting situation. She hadn't the foggiest what concerns this Lord Ezekiel had about her, and she was anxious to deal with it and move on with settling in to Kansas City properly. So when he welcomed her to the city, pulling out her chair for her and acting the gentleman, she was nothing but proper and ladylike in return. She took the proffered chair with a smile and shook her head politely at the query.

"Thank ya' kindly, Lord Ezekiel, for the warm welcome, and the offer. But I haven't thought of anythin' yet that my sire hasn't been able to catch me up on. Of course if I happen across anythin', I won't hesitate to seek out your knowledge, sir, and it'll be most appreciated. I wish, for now, merely ta' hear your concerns, so that they can be addressed properly and set your mind at ease, whatevah' the situation. Ah confess that I don't have a clue what it is. Ah've never been one ta' cause any trouble, ah'm just a social girl, an' I like to keep mah' afterlife free of too many complications."

Her manner was sweet and charming, demure with just enough flirtation to be flattering. It was obviously a habit, like breathing or blinking would have been for the raven-haired beauty once upon a time, and not so simpering as to come across as annoying.

[Shosuro Miren]

Puck took up a seat next to India, watching Ezekiel with a curious and carefully crafted casual air. He let the two of them speak for a moment, idly running a hand over the lace of India's sleeve. Now that she was with him again he found it hard to think about her anywhere other than at his side; the sheer pleasure of just knowing he could touch her had kept the Toreador in an almost euphoric state since his awaking this evening. Even having to meet with this Invictus lackey of the Prince (and so be involved in city politics and away from his family for at least part of the evening) had not really dampened his spirits. The Invictus were like chess pieces: capable of creating vastly complex games of intrigue, but individual rather predictable once you knew what piece they were.

His lips twitched in mischievous amusement as the question crossed his mind as to whether or not Ezekiel was a queen. His eyes ran up the line of austere Nosferatu, a once over that could hardly be ignored or misinterpreted. Most Invictus need to just to relax...what's the term now - unclench. Hmn...yes, Lord Ezekiel seems as though he could use a great deal of...unclenching. His own cerulean eyes eventually met the chilled brown of the Prince's courtier; Puck challenged him without a word to get to the point or move on to more engaging entertainment for the evening.

[Daven_OOC NPCRM #1]

Ezekiel couldn't help but chuckle at India's last statement. Without realizing it she had directly stated the problem.

"Yes, the two of you are quite the social bunch." Ezekiel opened up a drawer and pulled out a rather thick folder. Putting it on the table he opened it up. "Mr. Puck, this folder contains your movements as seen by my network since you moved to Kansas City. I have similar files on almost every kindred in the city. Part of the reason for this is so we can spot breaches of the Masquerade before they become serious. You can see it is fairly thick for having just been here for three months. That is mostly because they have found you easy to track. This is not really a problem but it does raise some concern."

Ezekiel closed the folder again. "The concern is simply this. You are extremely public. If a member of the Lancea decided to start a war by taking you out they would need to spend a night or two to find a good time to attack you. If a hunter were to locate you he could follow you to every Elysium we announce."

With a sigh he leaned back and looked at the two of them. Up until now his tone had been completely professional. He didn't seem to be the type to make open accusations, or have any real malice. He spoke as if he were reading off the stock report. Now his voice changed slightly and showed some concern.

"William, even before I describe the potential threat that can make to the prince there is a concern about you and your childe here. Although you have shown us more than enough discretion to carry on in this manner if she makes any mistake, released or not, some blame comes back to you. I would rather not see any harm come to either of you."

[Shosuro Miren]

Puck had been mostly relaxed throughout Ezekiel's speech, even nodding in agreement at the mention of how public he and India were with their lives. And then Ezekiel made a mistake.

Puck changed, the casual party boy melting away like a paper mache mask, revealing old bones and old scars. "Lord Ezekiel," his voice was a finely honed flint, "I assure you, my childe has not survived the many years of her Requiem by being careless. We live as we wish, within the laws of the cities we inhabit and with the sheer common sense that is the Masquerade."

Her pursed his lips then, taking a half moment to reign in his temper and maintain the civility necessary when wanting to leave an Invictus meeting alive. "And if you would please tell my mother once again, I do not appreciate her interference in my life. However subtle she may think she's being. If she wants to comment on my life and my choices, she can either learn to use a cell phone or come here and say so herself." The challenge in his voice, along with the anger and the undercurrent of annoyed embarrassment, was mirrored in his expressive eyes.

[Daven_OOC NPCRM #1]

Ezekiel leaned back in his chair and listened to the short rant. When Puck was finished he looked between the two of them. After a few minutes it was obvious India had nothing to add. He was a little curious where this animosity came from.

"My liege has nothing to do with this meeting. Unless she has sent her own people she is aware of little except that you are in this city. The intent was not to raise your ire.

If you truly believe that there is no problem here then I suppose there is no reason to continue this meeting. Just be careful Mr. Puck, Ms. Hamilton. Have a good night."

He may not of acquired what he was looking for but he had learned something else. This dislike of his sire could prove useful. He leaned forward again and pulled out a still unread report, and began reading.

[India Hamilton]

India had stayed quiet after Puck's response, content for the moment to play the demure childe for the duration of the meeting. After all, it was a bit insulting - she had gone for a long time from city to city, finding places to stay and enjoying her afterlife to her heart's content without causing any sort of problems or breaching the masquerade, and it had taken a fair amount of effort to keep from letting her impatience show. She didn't have the clout yet, and she didn't want to tarnish Puck's name by putting her sometimes hot-headed tendencies on display with days of her arrival.

She nodded politely to Ezekial as they left, and followed Puck out the door quietly, looking thoughtful. After they had made their way out of the building, India glanced over at her sire and tilted her head, studying him for a moment.

"So what was that all about, darlin'? You think your Momma has somethin' ta' do with this little 'warnin'?"

[Shosuro Miren]

"Quite," his tone was still hard, the rough lines of his anger apparent in his sharp movements. Normally, Puck's ways were as mortal as possible, a secret of blood or careful attention that India herself had yet to master as well as her sire, but for now he had shed his normal pretense: his eyes did not blink, he took breath only to speak, and the fluid grace of his movements, however beautiful, had the unnerving perfection that living muscles had no ability to achieve. He glanced over his shoulder back towards the meeting room, and shook his head sharply. "His liege!" he hissed from clenched teeth and clenched fists.

The last time Puck had been this upset he'd been holding the draft orders for half the family, and facing the dozen or so of India's descendants that were actually intending to follow them.

Once they reached the street common sense gained ground on his anger, reducing it to a great irritation and reinstating his usual flushed look and mortal ways. He took India's arm, guiding her not to the car but towards the heart of the city. He needed to walk and was fairly certain he'd break something as delicate as a car if he attempted to use it at the moment. "If it involves an Invictus, it almost certainly leads back to Mother. And for there to be a member of her immediate fealty chain in a position of authority here....it's not out of the realm of possibility to be a coincidence, but she'll use it either way." He ran a hand through his hair, "Damn! It's almost enough to make me want to leave."

He closed his eyes and took an unnecessary deep breath. "But I really like it here, India. Isn't that strange? Some little cow town out in the prairie after centuries of wandering about this fiery young nation. Not San Francisco, not New Orleans or Atlanta or Miami. By any god you care to name, not New York! Here. I don't want to leave, not yet." He pulled her two him, his arms wrapping around her as he laid his cheek against her hair. He chuckled, "Look a me, India. I'm becoming all maudlin and sentimental in my old age."

[India Hamilton]

She reached up and rested her hand against his chest with a graceful gesture. There was a touch of concern in her voice, though she tried to make it sound teasing - a concern unspoken that perhaps he hadn't fully recovered from his previous heartaches.

"Oh, I don't know about that, darlin'. You've always been a little maudlin and sentimental, it's part of what I love about ya'. You're not so wrapped up in Kindred politics you forget how to do any feelin."

He could hear a touch of the old ache in her voice, the frustration that she was voicing a sentiment that she wanted desperately to be really true. She pulled back just enough to look up at him and slipped the hand up to his cheek, brushing her thumb over the smooth coolness of his skin.

"Besides, I can't say I'm sorry ta' hear it. Ah've been all over since you went ta' sleep, darlin'. East coast, west coast, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York. They're all different, but when you move back and forth, from one place to another, never staying very long.. ya' never really get to know 'em. After awhile they all kinda start to look the same.. especially these days. None o' these buildings have anythin' in the way o' personality anymore, all concrete an' steel an' windows. You wanna stick aroun' this prairie town, we'll stick aroun' as long as you like, an' I'll enjoy every minute of it. 'Sides, we don't need ta' go runnin' off, just cause your Ma's pokin' her nose about. We'll deal with that when, and if, we have to."

[Shosuro Miren]

He leaned down and kissed her, demurely for his standards but his mind was on other things. "You're right, my love, as usual. Perhaps it's time for all of us to grow up a little. Walk with me, there's something I've been meaning to teach you for a while...."