[Midnight Hotel] May catch-all

[gistful]

Characters: Anyone, everyone.
Date: Month of MAY, 2016 (2017 in-game).
Location: The Midnight Hotel.
Situation: Catch-all post! Feel free to use this post for anything that happens within the Midnight Hotel during the month, using the subject header to label specific rooms or for specific people. See also the OOC note at the bottom.
Warnings/Rating: Mark your threads if content warnings become applicable, please!

The overtone in the Hotel this month is rather melancholy. Anton is back on full-time duty with his usual courtesy after the visitors have left, though he rarely smiles, unless looking at some particular pictures. There have been a few other notable changes.

For one thing, Anton will not wear his usual funeral-director’s suit this whole month. He will, in fact, wear colour. For the most part he wears a three-piece suit of understated purple, accompanied by various complementary shades in shirts and waistcoats. (It was a gift.) Occasionally he breaks out, grudgingly, a kedanese variant of a traditional three-piece suit, though admittedly still dark in tones.

For another thing, the tablet at the desk which habitually chimes with a perky voice is gone, but there are a multiple of photographs pinned to various places at reception (to say nothing of his private office). All of these photographs are of the same group of eight men—Anton included, as well as Erskine Ravel and Skulduggery Pleasant—in various states of handymanship, craftsmanship, and physical labour as they renovate a building (in various states of completion). None of the images are posed, and some of them have an air of wistful uncertainty, but others an air of unthinking camaraderie, where the laughter is free.

The third and possibly most noticeable change is that the resident janitorial cleaning faery, Erskine, has apparently moved out. It is for that reason that Anton is regularly not available in the late evenings, since someone has to check up on Erskine now he’s living on his own.

Other than that, the actual Hotel’s workings remain as normal. The restaurant begun in April is continuing with reasonable popularity, running a little more smoothly than it did in the beginning. There is slight tension in the kitchen, as some of the kedanese cooks work out the hierarchy, but it never reaches a point where Anton has to step in. Still, there are some jaundiced glares being thrown around the kitchen and dining hall.

Meanwhile, the sleeping-bags are packed up and stowed away, and the commons are returned to their usual states after having been appropriated for the giant slumber-party.

[ooc: The Midnight Hotel’s status page is available here, with the rules at the top. PLEASE POST TO THE STATUS PAGE IF YOUR CHARACTER WOULD LIKE A ROOM, JOB OR AREA IN THE GARAGE, OR ARE MOVING OUT. Anton will manufacture means of payment until Foreigners are able to properly offer recompense or choose to move out.]

Comments

Roof!

[badly_behaved_priest]

Sanzo had purposefully been making himself scarce whenever Alley was anywhere nearby. He didn't need a continuation of their near-fight in the library. Still, having to duck out of sight was starting to grate on him. To say they had gotten off on the wrong foot would be putting it lightly. If she was going to live here he'd have to swallow his considerable pride and do something about the potential aggression.

A peace offering perhaps? Or at least an attempt to make peace at all.

He'd seen her go up to the roof five minutes or so ago and he watched the pull down stairs for a while. Well, no point putting it off. He had intended to head up for a smoke anyways, at least he could pass it off as that if she got annoyed.

He wasn't in his robes this time, just what he usually wore under them. That and a small bag on a shoulder strap, resting on his hip. It was a bit more convenient way to carry the sutra while out of uniform. The first few pick-pockets had received resounding blows to the skull and that seemed to discourage most others.

Sanzo acted like he didn't know Alley was there when he reached the roof, immediately heading for the nearest edge and pulling out a pack of cigarettes.

[inquisitor_lavellan]

Alleyana was up there tossing a rock off the edge. It came back as though bounced, each time, and she caught it in her one, gauntleted hand before tossing it again. Apparently poking at wards was a good pass-time?

She was, in fact, making a slow circuit of the rooftop, curious as to whether she'd find any holes or not. So far, nothing. But the Inquisitor was known for nothing if not known for poking at what didn't necessarily need poking at. Wasn't that how it had all started; her crazy last few years?

The elf glanced at Sanzo, and rolled her eyes a little at his act. Like she was any less conspicuous without the glowing hand than she had been with it. Alleyana passed by him on her circuit, deciding she didn't care enough to test the spot he was occupying. This wasn't a real attempt at anything, anyway; just a poke. And a poke, and a poke. Why?

Because.

[badly_behaved_priest]

Sanzo was at least going to light his cigarette before dealing with this potential explosion. Tactful, he was not. As for what she was doing... Whatever, let her have her fun. It wasn't until he released the first trail of white smoke into the air that he bothered to speak.

"I didn't come up here to be an asshole." A very important thing to note with Sanzo, really.

[inquisitor_lavellan]

"Well, that's something," Alleyana paused mid-toss, the rock still in her gloved palm. She hefted it, then tossed it onto the rooftop where she'd found it. Pah, this prodding at the shields was pointless anyway. And what would she do if she found a hole? With her track record, she'd just go tumbling through it.

Come out the other side as spaghetti, maybe.

Whatever.

Alley folded her arms. Well, her arm and her metal rod. She didn't bother to watch Sanzo, opting instead to gaze out into nothingness. There was no reason to assume his statement was the opener to anything, after all.

[badly_behaved_priest]

Sanzo was pretty bad at apologizing to begin with and he wasn't even inclined to. He just needed to make sure he didn't get him and Amberdrake kicked out. Not that any of this was easy for him, what the fuck was he supposed to say?

"You smoke?" he asked, looking over to her. Peace offering it was, unless that somehow offended her. That would be his luck.

[inquisitor_lavellan]

"Only when I get lit on fire," Alleyana said, absolutely dry. "Or come stumbling out of the Fade."

She had no idea what a cigarette was; not a single ounce of recognition.

[badly_behaved_priest]

Sanzo looked away briefly, trying not to laugh at that. At least he'd only been set on fire once or twice. The last time had been pretty bad but-

He looked back and held up his cigarette. "I meant one of these. I guess you're not used to them." He didn't sound any ruder than he did by default. "Some old fart convinced me they're a good idea. Turns out they're pretty good for your sanity. At least if you're the type to get covered in blood regularly."

No doubt she was. Why still walk around in full armor otherwise?

[inquisitor_lavellan]

Alley... approached, slowly, one sharp eyebrow arching. "I don't know what could have ever given that impression," said the one-armed woman, her tone so dry it could have crumbled away in the slightest breeze.

"Sanity, hm? If they addle your brain, then I'd pass." Maybe that explained his personality the other day.

[badly_behaved_priest]

Okay he could only keep up a mildly pleasant act up for so long. Another tendril of smoke rising up against the barrier that surrounded the place before he replied.

"I'm not stupid enough for that," he snapped. "It's just to relax and do something other than sit in a room or in that damn library. I'm trying to make some peace here, not get you high. I rather not get kicked out of here."

[inquisitor_lavellan]

Alleyana snorted, but it was an amused one, and held out her gauntleted hand. "Fine, I'll try one. Can't be worse than the stuff Bull's Chargers like to get me to me drink."

One of those drinks would, as Bull liked to put it, 'put chest on your chest'. It had tasted about the same as it sounded; god awful with a hefty side of why did I just drink what he handed me.

[badly_behaved_priest]

Sanzo offered her one and was even nice enough to light it for her. Not that she could have otherwise. He wasn't going to hand off his current lighter to someone wearing gauntlets!

Now was he going to explain anything or see if she could follow by example? He chose the latter, an asshole to the bitter end, he was. Besides, she seems smart enough to figure it out.

"I have shit that's milder than whatever they got you to drink but I don't carry that around." And he still wasn't sure if he could do more than have a drink in his own room as it was. "Just try that instead."

[inquisitor_lavellan]

"Hn," Alleyana plucked it from his fingers nimbly enough with the pointy-tipped fingers of her one gauntlet. She eyed it dubiously for a moment, then stuck the not-on-fire end between her lips and inhaled.

Carefully, because she wasn't a moron.

She let the smoke out a bit faster than a veteran would have, but did not cough! This wasn't any worse than breathing around dragon-fire, after all. Not much more pleasant either, though. The elf made a face -- which was saying something, with her face.

"You like these?" She asked, with it still dangling from her lips. "It tastes like a dragon ate a barrel of gaatlok and then belched it back out." Which, since dragon fire was one of the secret ingredients to the gaatlok she'd encountered, meant regurgitated dragon fire. Kind of. It was hard to put one of her remaining fingers on it.

[badly_behaved_priest]

It was a true struggle to not laugh. Not wanting a gauntleted fist to the face was good motivation to contain himself, at least. She didn't cough, that was something.

"Better than nothing," Sanzo replied, turning his head to hide his amusement. "At least someone else has run into a damn dragon..." Completely different kinds of dragons, maybe, but he would take what he could get.

[inquisitor_lavellan]

"Ran into them? Sometimes literally." Alley took another cautious pull from the stick, curious about what was supposed to appeal in them. Nope, still tasted like shit. "...Ugh, it tastes like the dwarves tried to brew ale from another form of lichen, realized it was crap, dumped it in a cavern, and let this nasty, bitter mold just grow all over it. Which you then put in paper and lit on fire."

[badly_behaved_priest]

Honestly he'd take the chance at getting a punch to the face if he wouldn't then have to deal with Amberdrake's fretting. Sanzo was pretty damn sure that Alley could break his nose. Easily.

"It's a better habit than licking mold or whatever you've done to know what that would taste like." A weak attempt at a joke but he was trying to not be too much of an asshole. "What the fuck are dwarves? Other than short." That part was easy to guess. He was still mildly curious at to what species she might be. The ears still made him think youkai, but he doubted that was the case. No claws or fangs to go with.

[inquisitor_lavellan]

"Short, yeah. And drunk," Alleyana made another face. Which was still impressive, with her face. "An entire race that dwells underground. Campaign with them a while, and you end up drinking what they drink. And I campaigned with the Legion of the Dead... where the dwarves send their unwanted and their criminals to 'die with honor'. They don't exactly get premium rations, so we may as well have been licking mold."

Of course, she hadn't actually drank a whole lot while chasing after the Titan, but she'd given a flask an experimental sip when it had been offered. Alley rarely flexed any diplomatic finesse, but even at her least level of political effort, she knew better than to turn her nose up at a dwarf's brew.

Even if it had tasted like paint thinner. At least they didn't mind her saying as much; the Legion tended to be pretty free of posturing.

[badly_behaved_priest]

"That's a pretty shit deal." To say the least. What he was saddled with wasn't exactly fun but it afforded him more privileges than that. "At least when we had food it wasn't that shit."

Something told him that he couldn't really complain right now. His journey had plenty of shit involved, but they had eaten well enough when they had access to food. Goku and Gojyo's resistance to raw deer aside.

"Bet it's something to watch you in a fight, with scars like that. How damn big are these dragons are you running into? Or whatever the hell you run into underground." A delayed question but he could afford to show some curiosity while being "friendly."

[inquisitor_lavellan]

"Mn," Alley considered for a moment how to condense down the time she'd spent in the deep roads... and deeper. "The dwarves are good at shit deals," she said, "they treat their own people like crap. Not generally the friendliest to other people, either. Except the Legion; they don't care if you're a surfacer or not; they just care that you can get shit done."

Which she did.

"That wasn't about dragons, that was about finding out the reason for these big earthquakes that were burying dwarves and crumbling the surface. Fought darkspawn, of course," like he knew what those were. She knew he didn't, but the name implied enough, she figured. "And the Sha-Brytol; ancient dwarves bonded to and tasked with defending the Titan... and eventually the Titan itself."

All of which sounded like tons of fun, didn't it?

"High dragons? They're bigger than this rooftop. I don't like killing them, aside from the challenge. But it has to be done, or they move in, and breed, and over-run everything else living in their range. Kind of like humans."

It wasn't even a dig, just a fact. Humans subjugated everything they could on her world, including her own race.

[badly_behaved_priest]

Well that sounded like a lot of nasty shit. There was plenty of things mentioned he didn't have a clue about but it was easy enough to get the picture. Sounds like a world as fucked as his own, if not more so. That was something. This place was awfully bland for what he was used to.

"Humans are pretty crap," he agreed, showing no sign of being offended. It's not like he was fond of other people, human or otherwise. He didn't even like himself, liking other humans was a bit of a tall order. With the exception of a few. Very few. "So would you gut me if I asked what the hell you are?"

[inquisitor_lavellan]

"No, I wouldn't," Alley replied with the faintest smirk around the still-smoking cigarette. But she didn't drag the joke out. Alley reached up to flick grey ash off the end of the cigarette in her mouth with one gauntleted fingertip, instead of taking the stick out and shaking it loose as an experienced smoker would have. "I'm an elf. Dalish elf, to be more specific."

[badly_behaved_priest]

Other than fantasy stories, the word didn't mean much to him. Even then, she was from a completely different world. And "Dalish"? That meant even less. Well, he was the one that asked.

"Are elves built tough as shit? You look like some of those dragons used you for a chew toy." It wasn't really an insult, she didn't seem like the type to give a shit that she was scarred up as hell.

[inquisitor_lavellan]

She was hardly the willowy, delicate stuff of most fantasy stories, to be sure. "I'm tough as shit," Alleyana agreed, amused, "but it's got nothing to do with being an elf. We bleed the same amount humans do. More, in many cases."

There, she thought of the city elves, living under the whims -- and chains -- of humanity...

"Life just forges some people a certain way. I'm definitely a shield." Alleyana took another pull of the cigarette, and made another face before continuing. "...Dented and gouged, sure, but still sound enough. I get the job done."

[badly_behaved_priest]

"Worked out for you." Sanzo didn't know what to say to that, really. He was so used to the way he was, he hadn't really noticed how insanely durable he was. Death would have claimed most other humans, at least from his world, that faced even a fraction of what he had. He had a youkai prince shocked he'd pulled through getting partially roasted.

"You take that shield thing damned serious." Something to respect, really. She reminded him of Sharak Sanzo in a lot of ways. No bullshit, covered in scars, could certainly kick his ass, plenty enough similarities for him. "That's not a bad thing. Unless this damn turtle in bringing in useful people for a reason."

[inquisitor_lavellan]

"I strongly suspect I was sent here, not summoned from here," Alleyana grunted, "it'd be real convenient for that damn wolf if I'm not there to trip him up."

She didn't elaborate, though, instead sizing him up side-long.

"You're skinny and you wear robes. On my world, that screams 'mage'. But you didn't pull up magic to defend yourself in the library; not even a barrier. You went for a weapon instead. Held it like a crossbow." They didn't have guns on her world, but between Bianca and the Sha-Brytol's even more lethal crossbows that burned what they punched into, she was familiar enough with projectile-firing weaponry.

(...Well, there were possibly guns, but they were cannons if they were anything, and only the Qunari had access to them if they existed at all. Rumors, speculation, but nothing Alley had laid eyes on personally. Nor had she ever asked Bull about it, even after he'd gone Tal-Vashoth.)

[badly_behaved_priest]

Sanzo smelled a sore subject with that wolf comment and he was not touching that one. There were two possible reactions he could see out of asking and he wasn't eager for either. He didn't care enough to risk the one that might end up with broken ribs. Again. Especially not with her eyeing him like that.

The skinny comment wasn't appreciated. At least she didn't call him a "twig". He'd get pretty salty over that one.

"It's called a gun," he said, choosing, wisely, not to let his tone grow brittle about any implications she may or may not be making. "It'll kill you just as well as magic. I'm not a 'mage', I'm a monk." Ugh, he hated explaining it like that but he also didn't want to explain his title. "My 'magic' takes a few seconds. A gun is instant. I went for the efficient option."