new orleans ♔ you ain't been to heaven til you been down there

[postergirl]

♬ New Orleans - Louisiana Gator Boys

WHO || Mark, Dumage, Kat, Gar, Buffy, Spike, Myri, Martha, Arthur, Finnick, Des [closed]
WHAT || All work and no play make Knights stir crazy. Various downtime shenanigans.
WHERE || The hotel / all around New Orleans / at the bar / in an alleyway / ETC
WHEN || Various dates during the course of May
HOW || w/e you want, bb

[ This log covers any non-work related shenanigans the Knights have while staying in New Orleans. Because we haven't finished out the other two logs yet, assume some time has passed since then, in case anyone was injured, so that they've had sufficient time to get better.

As for work stuff, you can assume they've been busy with establishing Finnick's fake rock star cred, and investigating some of the intel they'll uncover in those other logs that we haven't quite gotten to yet. JUST DON'T TALK ABOUT WORK and all will be well.


Make your own threads, don't fuss about tag order, feel free to threadjack multiple people into one thread for hang-outs, ask me if you want a certain scene with an NPC, etc. forever whatever.]

Comments

[slay]

Takes the edge off, at least. [ she cants her head thoughtfully. ] Plus general superpowers. Except ... I'm pretty sure the ftttz thing isn't supposed to happen. [ she makes a gesture like a tiny explosion at her temple along with her 'fttz' sound effect. ]

[bigbad]

[Ftttz. Oh, Buffy, you are insanely endearing. It's not fair. Spike nods in agreement, touching his head thoughtfully.] Wouldn't it make sense, you know. Even if I had any interest in eating people, the migraine thing'd make it impossible. Doesn't make sense, for a vampire.

[slay]

Well ... [ she trails off, fidgeting with her fingers and staring down at the table with a little bit of a shrug. she cants her head to the side some, voice growing especially infantilized. ] Maybe you're a good vampire.

[bigbad]

[He stares at her like she's grown a second head.] Did I just hear that right?

[slay]

I said maybe! [ it's a little on the childish side of defensive. ] Just. You know, like a failsafe. You get hungry, it buzzes you to remember you're on a diet.

[bigbad]

[He stares at her a little more, then settles back with his beer.] Some sort of string around my wrist might have been kinder. Might keep me from eating people, but it also makes me bloody useless in a fight.

[slays]

I think by vampire standards, not fighting at all is safely in the "good" side of the continuum.

[bigbad]

But by knight standards, it's on the "useless" side. [Never mind that there are plenty of knights who specialise in non-combat things. Spike's a fighter. He knows it in his bones.] What am I supposed to do, join the diplomacy branch? [Diplomacy is useless in the Spike dictionary.]

[slay]

Well, if you didn't offend every living person you speak to on a regular basis, I'd say it'd be a good way to still help. [ she arches her eyebrows at him and then takes a drink. she lowers the beer before shrugging. ] There are other ways. Dragon's Hoard does technology. A-And, Dragon's Light? If it weren't for Kat and her healing potions, I woulda been single-handedly responsible for killing King Arthur. And maybe myself, too.

[bigbad]

I don't know. I'm no warlock, and I've got enough technical know-how to install Angry Birds on the phone, and no more. [He glances down at his beer.] Assuming I ever get past the squire part.

[slay]

Well, if it's any consolation, you'll probably beat me to knight. [ there's a wry look. ] Jack's ... He's great. He's not exactly overflowing with time to supervise. S'why he's not here. Dragon's Claw, and all. [ mentioning him reminds her that she misses him, and she finishes that off with a distant look. ]

[bigbad]

[He looks sympathetic.] Lan's not here cause he pre-dates airplanes. And I'm glad of it. [His tone softens.] Least you get along with yours.

[slay]

You're right. [ she sets her beer down decisively. ] No more mopey Buffy. It could be worse -- much worse. I could be stuck with Dumage and have to see her all the time. Not getting to talk to Jack as often as I'd like when I'd actually like to ... that's so dealable.

[bigbad]

Dumage isn't so bad. [Though she doesn't like Buffy any more than Buffy likes her. Which Spike had sort of appreciated when the vampire thing came out, but even then he had defended Buffy. Now he's glad he did.]

You should write him.

[slay]

Uh huh. [ her tone is flagrantly doubtful. ] And which brain came to that conclusion, exactly? [ spike you just think she's cool bc you think with your dick. also she's cleverly avoiding talk of writing jack because she's just ... not going to touch any of that. if he had time, he'd be in touch. he obviously doesn't. she's not going to interrupt his serious dragon's claw business for a whiny text. ]

[bigbad]

[He raises an eyebrow at her.] The one that's talked to her. I know what impression she gives off, but she's all right underneath all that.

[slay]

[ she snorts at "underneath all that" because phrasing, spike, phrasing. ]

And why am I not surprised she's let you see underneath it all? [ her tone is dry. sorry, she just really is not a lover of dumage, ok. besides she seriously doubts she's let spike see ~underneath her impression~ because either a.) the impression is all that's there or b.) she's a big fat liarface and isn't going to let anyone in. possibly a combo. ]

[bigbad]

[Yeah, he's getting that. :-/ And he's not sure how much he can argue for Dumage being a better person than what she acts like because the fact is, he doesn't know her that well.]

When she found out what I am, she didn't judge. Didn't care at all. [Unlike Buffy, but that doesn't really need to be said.] It was... I appreciated it.

[slays]

[ she steadies a look on him that has tinges of guilt to it but is definitely not actually guilty. because she knows she shouldn't feel guilty. vampires are evil. she had reason to react the way she did, it's not like she just demonized him for adopting puppies. she demonized him for being a demon.

he apparently doesn't see it that way, though. she ducks her head. ] I -- You know, I don't think this was a good idea. [ she pushes her drink away and starts to slip off the stool. ]

[bigbad]

[He catches her arm.] You don't have to-- I wasn't-- [He shakes his head, dropping his hand.] I didn't mean it like that.

[slays]

Yes. You did. You meant it exactly like that. And, I don't blame you. I just ... [ she deflates from the steady and confident look into something more honest about the fact that it hurts. ] Thought that maybe you didn't blame me, either. [ she inhales to push back the look and drums up a smile. it doesn't quite reach behind her eyes.] And, that's okay. It's just ... You know, I never did get that alone time.

[bigbad]

I did. [It comes out quietly, and honestly. If she's going to admit it bothers her, he can admit that much.] And it hurt. [He looks up, meeting her eyes. He's not smiling, but his expression bears no ill will. It's open, and honest.] But that's the past. And if you can get over me being a monster, I can get over your anti-monster bias. [And honestly, it's not that he doesn't get it. Vampires eat people. But he can't change what he is, no matter how much he'd like to, so it just sucks all around.]

[slays]

Bias. [ there's a scoff in her voice that says she can't believe he just called it that. ] No. [ she shakes her head. ] No, I don't think it is the past.

If Dumage didn't care, it's not because she's a saint, it's because she's an idiot. This isn't just some ... racism thing. I'm not a bigot for not trusting you to not eat my friends after you lied to me about who you are. You're not some martyr, so stop acting like I crucified you.

[bigbad]

[They'd been getting along so well. :-( She's so freaking infuriating. He'd been about 60% sarcastic when he called it a bias, but her defensiveness brings out the 40% seriousness. Plus some added defensiveness of his own.]

You hated me for what I am. That's the bloody definition of bigotry. I'm not saying you didn't have good reason. Like I said, monster. Still hurt. Or do you want me to lie and say I loved that look of horror you gave me when you first learned what I am? Or hearing I don't have a soul? [He scowls.]

I don't know what I did before I came here. I could be every bit the monster you think I am. Maybe I'm not. [Spoiler: He is. He was definitely going somewhere with that, but he... sort of gets distracted by thinking about that. Has he killed? How many? Who was he exactly before he forgot everything? He knows he likes fighting. Doesn't really scream of good guy. But there's the whole head pain diet thing Buffy had suggested. He'd rather believe that. Seems a bit of a stretch, though.] Sometimes I'm not sure I'd want to know.

[He would, though. Ignorance may be bliss, but it's also hell, in a way. And if he has killed... doesn't seem fair to just forget. Seems like the sort of thing that should haunt him. Forever, if not longer.

He suddenly would very much not mind Buffy leaving. He quiets, staring down into his drink.]

[slays]

[ well, that stabs a pin right into her ballooning self-righteousness. her shoulders slump and she leans against the table, sighing. ]

Knowing or not knowing wouldn't change anything. It'd just make you ... feel crappy. What I know is that right now, right here, you're not acting like a monster. And, you don't want to be one. That's what counts.

But, that doesn't mean you can hold it against me like some ... moral superiority trump card for Dumage to have that she kissed your booboos when I delivered what may have been an overly harsh reality check.

I'm not saying lie to me, that's what did this in the first place. You lying to me. But, you could try getting over it and realizing that maybe I wasn't wrong to feel the way I did. I'm giving you a chance now, aren't I?