Post by Xavier Darnai on Mar 10, 2014 6:10:19 GMT
Xavier Darnai: It was rare for him to let business get under his skin, but the situation he had put himself in with his attempted third for the DeValois gala had managed to irritate him to no small amount. Worse was the fact that he truly had brought it upon himself. Shortly after sunset he headed out to try and clear his head, or at least distract himself with other activity. Not wanting to bring unwarranted attention to himself at the range right now, he decided it best to fulfill his strongest vice. Going for a meal and a drink at the Belyi was easily the best way he could think to pull it off. The amount of focus required in something so simple was enough for him to stop thinking about the horrible faux pas he'd made. Ignoring the rain as he parked the Bishop in the back lot down the alley around the corner, he came in through the front and gave Natasha a nod, asking for the Daily Specials menu. He was in need of a few people, and it was always better to answer an ad that was already there than it was to put an ad out. Taking the menu, he rounded the corner of the common eating area into the back bar, taking one of the more private booths.
Strange Hex: It wasn't beyond the imagination that she needed food, and quite often at that. But, tonight, there were other reasons she'd opted on the Belyi for her meal. It was one of the easiest places to find Xavier without having to pick up a device to locate him. The GTO cruised by both the Belyi lot and a couple of the other nearby lots to find the Bishop. Sure enough, she found the master vehicle and looped back around to claim a spot at Belyi's lot. She was hoping to catch the eye of a certain black SUV that had been peeping tom recently, so she could perhaps get a few questions answered. Thus far, she'd not seen the SUV, but the night was young. Rain be damned, she stepped out of the sup'ed up vehicle and rose from the leather bucket seat with a hip check to the door and keys in hand. Black heeled boots clacked their way to the door of the diner where an only semi-hasty entrance was made before the black-blue-black layers of short hair were too damp, and the alarm was set on her precious sports car with a high pitched chirp. Only a glance given to Natasha in passing, responded to with a nod and tilt of her head in the proper direction, she untied the belt of her dress coat en route to the more private sector of the eatery's seating.
Xavier Darnai: Hex rounded the corner just in time to catch the sound of his lighter being struck and brought to a flame. Pulling in the first hit of his cigarette, he dropped the lighter to the bar and reached for the tray at one end of the table. Pulling it closer as he disposed of the first touch of ash, he sat back in his seat and spotted the woman. Bringing up his right foot, he crossed it over his left knee and exhaled the smoke around him slowly before tapping his left thumb against the thick wood of the table. The bandaging he wore did plenty to keep it from being an obnoxious sound, and muscle control did the rest. "Evening, Alexandra." There were still cracks in his otherwise demure presence of being that it would take a very sharp study to notice. He was still exceptionally bothered with his failure.
Strange Hex: If heels were a give away, then he should have expected something professional beneath the dress coat. A black suit coat and pencil skirt, all just snug enough to border not quite appropriate in the eye of most women, but fetching enough that men wouldn't care. Admittedly, if she was going to dress the part, it was more fun to do so and get under somebody's skin than be boring. The coat only made it as far as untied at the waist due to the long black box, unlabeled, under her right arm. "Good evening, Xavier. You still seem a big glum." Keen eye or perhaps she just knew the signs well enough by now. Perhaps a mixture of both. The box laid to rest on the table, she shrugged out of the coat, which was made to lay over the back of the chair to the left of her chosen seat, of which she eased onto with some sense of lady-manners. "You really should have gone for the bromance. He might have perked you up a bit." Despite her jab, there was a sense of concern there as dark eyes regarded him.
Xavier Darnai: In all of the ways that Xavier had been unpredictably predictable, Hex was predictably unpredictable. He had learned that trying to guess the woman's attire based on any individual piece of information had been a fool's errand, and had decided a while ago to stop guessing. Still, she never failed to impress, and she always looked sharp in her professional attire, even if it wasn't always her preferred attire. "Mh." Glum might have been a way to put it, but as skilled as he could be dealing with seven different Markets, four different Syndicates, and more free agents than-- as the expression went --he could count, he still managed to trip over himself in his personal life. It was also the aspect that people knew the least about, and for good reason. Taking another hit off the cigarette, he tilted to the side in the booth just enough to see if one of the staff was making rounds this way just yet. "It'll be fine. Isn't like I'd forgotten an anniversary or the like." In fact he had, but she had as well, so it was a net wash on that particular front.
Strange Hex: Had she forgotten an anniversary? Really? She just smirked, settled with legs crossed in fashion to go with her look. "Are you sure you've not forgotten an anniversary?" Brow arched slightly, she eyed him skeptically then pushed the unlabeled black box towards him. It was the right length to contain a bottle of liquor of some sort, but he'd have to open it if he wanted to find out what it was. However, she wouldn't force it on him. "I am going to surmise that you received the e-file I sent you earlier." It wasn't a question. She knew he had. Perhaps she'd be getting to something that might cheer him up. Only time would tell. The passing waitress was motioned for two glasses with ice, but nothing else. It was her turn to share.
Xavier Darnai: Another hit off the cigarette and he reached over to the ash tray to tap the end of his filter as he mumbled. "Irrelevant." Bringing the cigarette back for an immediate follow-up hit, he nodded, speaking through his exhale. "Read it in the car on the way over." The Bishop had some toys, after all. She'd done a good bit of thorough research, and he was impressed as always. "Has she tried to keep her nature out've the limelight, or's she more open with it than others." It could be difficult to tell with some, but it was a telling piece of information. A good deal of his opinion on the majority of leeches he had met had to do with whether or not they were braggarts.
Strange Hex: "She attempts to keep it more hidden than that of her Cain cousin does. The Lady Cain is more outright with it without tattooing it across her brow or bearing evidence of it to every tom dick and harry to walk through the door." A very slight shake of her head followed the statement. "Unfortunately, while Cain is a bit more free with her nature, her endeavors are better hidden. I suspect she might very well be at the gala in Madrid." With the two glasses delivered, fresh ice included, the box was pulled close and opened to withdraw the bottle of Russo-Baltique Vodka. It wasn't in the designer bottle that fetched the most luxurious price, but the bottle itself was fashioned of crystal. The bottle was set on the table with a motion to Xavier. She found it as entertaining as she did intriguing to watch his ritual of opening liquors.
Xavier Darnai: "Brilliant." Letting out a huff of a sigh after taking his last hit, he snuffed the filter out in the ash tray and sat back, rubbing at the bridge of his nose. "...bloody vampires." When the bottle was set down, he lowered his arm as well, glancing to it for a moment with a raised brow. Vodka. There was a certain air to it that was impossible to mistake, even if he hadn't been able to recognize a label. This was something altogether special though, the design of the bottle simply screamed opulence. Russian, definitely. Lifting his left, he took the ornate cap between his index and thumb and gave it a simple test of tensile strength, twisting and pulling away as he removed the cap. There was craftsmanship in the all gold bottle, and when he set the cap down between the glasses, he picked it up at the curve of the neck before bringing it forward to take a long sniff. There was a smirk as memories came flooding back. Not all of them were pleasant. Still, he tilted the glass over one tumbler, twisting and lifting once and turning the spout to fill the second glass. Resting the bottle down on its base again, he pulled his bandage assisted grip away from the bottle and took his own tumbler, lifting it in salute. "Do poslednego vystrela."
Strange Hex: She was keenly aware of what he'd mentioned the night prior in regards to vodka, but she highly doubted two fingers worth in a glass was going to bring out the worst in him. He'd taken liberties in sharing his scotch, she could return the favor. Watching his ritual, she sat in silence with a ghost of a smile. When both glasses had their fill, she reached for her own and tipped it towards him. "May it come with all the secrets of the universe." The rim of the glass tipped against her lower lip, and further more to allow the clear liquid to spread across her tongue and roof of her mouth. Held, savored, and slowly swallowed. "Enjoy it. That's the only glass of it you'll get." Her smile broadened just enough to recognize, clearly joking.
Xavier Darnai: "It typically does." After the clink of glass he tilted it back and took a long pull of it. It had been a very long time since Xavier had a glass of vodka for any reason. Still, the taste of it on his tongue, the familiar bite and kick in the back of his throat had been hard to forget. A long, slow breath came in after he swallowed it down, bouncing his eyebrows once before staring into the ice laden alcoholic minefield. "Appreciated, but something tells me I'll manage to live through it." A quarter of a smile played at the corner of his mouth as he gave the glass a slight shake, tilting the ice around with a clatter. "This's quite the bottle you've managed to acquire. I imagine it set you back quite a touch."
Strange Hex: "There's really only one secret I'd like the answer to." Mentioned offhandedly after her first drink from the glass. A smaller drink was taken and held on her tongue while listening to him, her glass set to the table top with a subtle click of the glass, and a shrug to his mention of the cost of the bottle. "I received a good deal on it. A friend of a friend and a favor repaid." No need to go into further detail than that regarding the price of the drink. She'd managed to make up for the gap it caused in her finances a while back. She'd been waiting for a chance or reason to open it. It was never much fun drinking alone.
Xavier Darnai: The explanation of it's acquisition was more than sufficient, really. Tilting the glass back again, he took another pull of the vodka. Sitting back in the booth, he took a long, slow breath, straightening his tie out as he glanced at Hex. "And what question'd that be, Alexandra." The statement did have him reasonably curious, after all. Considering she was such a capable investigator, if there was something she wanted to know it was either a matter of privacy, or out of her field. He did not consider there to be much out of her field, really.
Strange Hex: If she had such a question, it was one she'd keep to herself. But she could play a game as well as anyone else. Leaning forward to rest he elbows on the table, she sighed and took on a completely serious aire about herself with her mouth set in a thin line and slight lower of her brows. "I want to know why the mass percentage of men always sleep with their hands holding their goods. Is it genetic, or is it something they learn from their fathers?" It was, quite possibly, the most random thing to ever come to mind. She liked random sometimes.
Xavier Darnai: By no rights was that a question he could have expected, but the fact that Hex had an ability to keep him guessing was part of her charm. A quiet scoff of laughter was put out as he took a look into the vodka, stirring it around the soft clatter of ice and glass. "If I had to guess, it's probably because so many've'em're trying to keep what's important to them close at hand." Out of experience he couldn't say much. He didn't know what one arm was doing while he slept, and the other tended to be within reach of a weapon. Setting the tumbler down on the table, he gave it a slow turn before shaking his head once. "But I couldn't say anything about where it's learned."
Strange Hex: Hell must have been freezing over if she got any kind of laugh from Xavier. Even if it was by half, or a simple scoff, it was good to hear. It was healthy for him. Plucking her glass from the table top, another small, savoring drink was taken while listening to him. As the glass lowered, a quiet laugh emitted. "Even men don't know why men do things." Though, the theory that men wanted to keep their goods was a decent enough on, if they felt they were in danger of losing them to begin with. A man with a vindictive wife had the ultimate reason.
Xavier Darnai: "To be fair men don't typically know why women do anything either." Lifting his glass again, he tilted it towards her in punctuation to his point before moving it to drink from. A long sip drained out the rest of the vodka, leaving only the ice in the empty tumbler. "But some've us're a bit better at reading than others, neh?" Grinning wholly, he set the tumbler down and held his bandaged left out to catch the attention of a waitress as she came around the corner. Looking up to her for a moment, he gave a nod. "I'll have the Auchentoshan Triple Wood, and the strip, rare." Glancing to Hex for a moment with an inquisitive brow and a slight nod, it seemed like he was covering dinner.
Strange Hex: She chuckled softly, shaking her head. "Yes, but I know why men don't know why women typically do anything. I don't need those answers." Silly man. "I'm not sure those are the answer that come with learning the secrets of the universe, though." She actually sounded moderately disappointed by that possibility. Comments of reading others drew her attention from the contents of her glass to Xavier with a slight rise of her brow. "Some of us can, yes." Was she implying something? Only in jest. Short manicured nails clacked against the glass in a cadence of four, she looked to the waitress. "Caesar chicken salad, please." That would do for the night. She intended to go home and sleep after leaving the diner.
Xavier Darnai: Another nod as the waitress took off with their orders, and his empty glass, he leaned back in the booth again. "Truth've it is Hex that the answers the universe has aren't the sort that anyone's going to want to hear. Either because've what they are, or how you get them, there's no way to shape the fact that they're going to be bittersweet." Shaking his head slightly, he couldn't help but keep his grin. It was a melancholy sort of sentiment, but he seemed to have some experience with the subject.
Strange Hex: Xavier was wise. Perhaps beyond his years. Chin propped in upturned palm, she smirked to his comment. "Bittersweet is usually the answers that stick with us the longest." She had minimal experience with it. It went along with the hardest lessons to learn always came from those you trusted the most that hurt you the worst. Meh. She glanced down at her glass, reaching for it with her free hand to pick up, tilt this way and that to watch the liquid move within.
Xavier Darnai: The amount of life that Xavier had lived in his years was far more than he would wish on most. To be honest he couldn't say for sure if he would have wished a different life on himself, this was all he knew. His views on regrets were fairly straight forward, and while not everyone knew what they were it was easy to pick up after spending any real time with the man. "Failure's the best teacher, neh?" He smirked, nodding his thanks when his glass was set down in passing by the waitress. Taking up the glass in his left, he stirred it around the glass once slowly before lifting it for a quick sniff and sip.
Strange Hex: "Hm..." Dropping her hand from the propping position, she leaned back, looking at Xavier with a nod. "It's a cruel teacher, but it teaches well enough. One failure is usually enough to not make the same mistake twice." Her glass was picked up and the remaining contents drained. The glass was then set aside. At least for the time being. Damn bottle cost more than any two of her vehicles put together, it was best to not just chug it down. "It's all part of life, though." And, as part of life, it was either accept it and move on or let it drown you.
Xavier Darnai: "That'd be one way to put it." Eyes closed as he spun the glass in his fingers, raising his brows in quiet acceptance and thought of it all. Thinking back was almost never beneficial. You could review to learn, but trying to think about what would be different if you had acted differently was hardly productive. Keeping his thoughts forward was the better distraction regardless. A little twitch of personal annoyance was evident in the corner of his eye as he opened them again, bringing his glass up for another sip. "There're few mistakes we've got the luxury of making twice."
Strange Hex: "I find little use in making mistakes once, much less twice." The subtle smile given was sincere enough. It was a topic she was ready to move away from. However, she did not want to raise annoyance. Had he been up dwelling on the lack of a third for their trip to Madrid? She had no way of knowing. However, given his penchant for perfection and, like her, having it done right the first time, she'd guess it might have gotten to him just a little bit. It was a touchy topic. "I can surmise by your lack of commenting or informing, that it will still be only the two of us going to Spain." Ah, perfect. Their meals arrived.
Xavier Darnai: "I'll be arranging for a pilot, but no third." Setting his tumbler down, he took the knife in his left and skillfully manipulated it through the steak to quickly cut out six bites, leaving the last on the tines of his fork before bringing it up to bite. Chewing quickly and swallowing down, he rest the knife on the edge of the plate, he picked up his glass again. The flow of constant motion was rigidly fluidic, but it was safe to say he didn't care for having an empty hand. "I'd been looking over the Daily Specials for someone who'll work for it. I'd rather not go with a commercial contract if I can avoid it."
Strange Hex: Her fork picked up after a nod of thanks to the waitress, she added some fresh crushed pepper then tossed it around a bit before spearing a bite of the grilled chicken. Listening to him, of course. "Then it will just be the two of us. It might be easier done to gather information if it's just the two of us. One less person to have to worry about." Mix of salad fixin's and chicken captured on the tines of the fork, she paused to look across the table to him. "And there is the possiblity of our third not being directly involved." She had Francia on standby for that night.
Xavier Darnai: There were worse plans, honestly. Having a third in the wings with an ear on everything was beyond useful, but it was freeing, definitely. If all else failed and things went to hell, he trusted Hex to take care of herself, leaving him to do as he needed without needing to see to his people. Francia had been a reliable scout and offered plenty of valuable intel, but there was a question that still needed to be asked. "How'd she handle the contact." Taking a locket of hair was no doubt intended to be an intimidating factor, but it's intention can be lost if you're passing the message on to the wrong target.
Strange Hex: In the silence that passed, she consumed slow bites of the chicken and salad. When the question was posed, what was in her mouth was consumed before she spoke with a shake of her head. "She was very hard on herself for having slipped. Harder on herself than she was worried about being discovered. Guaranteed me it wouldn't happen again." She hadn't dwelled on it long. Only given Francia a nod and the fairly expected Let's not have it happen again sort of statement.
Xavier Darnai: "Good." That was all he needed to know about it. Hex' assessment told him enough to know that it wasn't going to be a point of exposure, leverage, or variable weakness on this. At his core he didn't believe that this gala was going to be a trap, but he did not care for the idea of having an anti-ambush superseded by an actual ambush because someone was trying to overcompensate. Moving through the bites of steak, he varied the pattern of consumption by occasionally mixing in through the vegetables and his Scotch, but he was a slow eater these days. A bad habit broken too far to make a whole new bad habit in its place.
Strange Hex: A simple nod in response of his single word. She was actually fairly hungry, so the course of the meal itself was likely to be a quiet one. Nothing wrong with that. At some point she'd requested a glass of water, which was used to wash the meal down with once little more than three quarters of the salad and all the chicken was gone. The dish then pushed aside, along with the fork, in exchange of her glass. "Well, if nothing else, it should prove to be interesting. I don't think I've ever been to a formal gallery event."
Xavier Darnai: "Imagine a fire fight were every spent round is a snipped comment, and you're more worried about your reputation than you are being shot." Xavier had been to more than one, and he had seen his fair share of them from both sides. "I'm not fond've'em myself." By the time she finished he still had a few bites of steak left, and half his pile of potatoes, but he was still picking at the meal as it got cold. "You'll do just fine. Feel free to show the peacock feathers."
Strange Hex: She considered those words and just smirked. "It's a good thing I don't intend to let this little event affect my reputation." She'd much rather let it speak for itself, and anyone who attempted to tarnish it would help prove it. The water lifted for another glass, she looked at him with one of those Alexandra-smug smiles. "You'll wish you weren't married." And chuckled softly. "My feathers are dripping with champagne diamonds."
Xavier Darnai: Her joke was well received, earning another quiet scoff. Picking up the glass of Scotch, he stirred the remnants around in the basin of the tumbler before draining it entirely. "It's safe to say that women do have an advantage when it comes to a glamorous display of self being." Smirking once, he set the glass down and sat back again. "I'll have to see about lighter concealment, unless you've got some sense've what security's going to be like at the event." Getting through a metal detector could be problematic for him on occasion. Another advantage to flying private over commercial, no having to explain to security why he was setting off all their machines.
Strange Hex: Subtle smirk displayed. At least he could still appreciate her humor. She'd already found what she'd be wearing. It was being taylored just a bit for a better fit. She had to get the shopping experience over with as quickly as possible. "I am not sure of their security for that night. I've researched the galleria and the only security hey have under normal circumstances is fairly typical to ensure the safety of the art, but nothing about weapons on the premises."
Xavier Darnai: "Right then." He'd make sure to have his proper carry permits for Spain just in case, but that did remove some of the concern about needing to change his variants. Either way, it wouldn't hurt to have an ear on security the day of. "Is Francia already in Spain, or is she going to be flying in for the day of."
Strange Hex: "She'll be leaving tonight." Twist of her glass holding hand to check her watch. "In about an hour and half. She's going to contact me when she gets there and established." Glass rose for another drink, then was set down.
Xavier Darnai: More than once he'd come to the opinion that telling people they reminded him of a few years ago was an insult, but he'd be damned if it wasn't true of Hex. Her particular forethought left him thinking about his own time as head of security for Redcastle. Quick, well informed, sharp as a tack made of snapped glass. With half a smile, he gave her a nod, taking another bite of his steak. "Well done."
Strange Hex: Nothing more than a nod to his words of praise. He expected nothing less of her. She expected nothing less of herself. She'd learned from the best. "I am going to have Ze and a couple of guys looking into it more, but I wanted to inform you that Ze tracked one of the black SUVs last night when he left with the truck. He tracked it to an elementary school in the more well-to-do district. Said that they pulled around back but when he went to investigate, the SUV was gone." The bottle of vodka was returned to the box and the box closed. She still had a few small things to tend to before they left for Madrid, and she'd rather have them taken care of than leave them as loose ends to concern over while gone.
Xavier Darnai: A school, that gave him pause. Schools covered a lot of land, and nobody questioned official vehicles on the premises. "Have him send me the address of the school, I'll see what I might be able to pull from satellites in the area. There're always one're two in the skies I can pull strings for." Stroking at his jawline once, he reached for the fork to steal another bite, slowly picking away at the remnants of a proper dinner for nothing more than the taste of it. "They'd decided to leave just as I'd left the shooting range that evening, but if we're being watched, I'd like to know why before deciding to go dark."
Strange Hex: A nod. She pulled her phone from the side pocket of her jacket and set a text to Ze, asking him to send the address of the school to Xavier. He'd have the address in under a minute. The phone returned, she looked at Xavier. "I'd like to say that if they're involved with an elementary school, they've got their wires crossed. They've been terribly obvious about watching us or you or whomever they have interest in." It was warning without warning that she hoped he'd be careful. He almost always was, but she was far more leery of people who made things like that obvious. They were certainly up to something.
Xavier Darnai: "My own profile's been a touch high as've late." A necessity for his plans lately, but it had left him exposed. "After securing the Sudanese lifeline, and figuring out what it is DeValois might be playing at, we'll see about toning down operations. I can't afford for too much've this to blow back on what I'm trying to do in Ukraine right now." That whole affair was a bloodied mess waiting to get bloodier, and he had no desire to worry about a U.N. investigation dealing with supposed smuggling operations.
Strange Hex: Standing, she picked up her coat to pull on. "When it rains it pours. Whatever information Ze comes across, I'll route it to you. Though I don't expect it to be much with us out of town." For however long that would be. She didn't expect it to be more than a full day. The coat pulled around and the belt tied. "Don't go getting all glum again. I worked damn hard tonight to cheer you up. I will beat on you if I have it." The box picked up in her hand, she flashed him with a cheesy smile and headed for the door, withdrawing her keys from her pockets. "And your tux for the gala better be fantastic. After all, you will be my arm candy."
Xavier Darnai: Rust red eyes tilted up to look at her with a bit of a grimace. It had been a long time since he had been anyone's arm candy. Still, it was hard to avoid being amused at the sentiment. "Only so many ways a Brit can go wrong with a tux." Being chased by Russians tended not to hurt. "Besides, you've never seen me truly clean up." He might even have to do something about his hair.
Strange Hex: "Then it will be a surprise on both our parts." He'd seen her cleaned up, but never for anything this formal. It should be quite the interesting night between that and being in the viper's pit. A wink cast to Natasha in passing, then it was out into the rain, to the car, to....do girlie things.
Xavier Darnai: It would be repetitive to point out the women in his life would be the death of him, but there was no doubt that the sentiment remained the same. Watching her go off, he shook his head once and rubbed at his jawline.
Strange Hex: He liked it. If he didn't, he'd employ more men.
Xavier Darnai: A valid theory. Finding competent men in the industry was proving more difficult. Too many egos.
Strange Hex: It wasn't beyond the imagination that she needed food, and quite often at that. But, tonight, there were other reasons she'd opted on the Belyi for her meal. It was one of the easiest places to find Xavier without having to pick up a device to locate him. The GTO cruised by both the Belyi lot and a couple of the other nearby lots to find the Bishop. Sure enough, she found the master vehicle and looped back around to claim a spot at Belyi's lot. She was hoping to catch the eye of a certain black SUV that had been peeping tom recently, so she could perhaps get a few questions answered. Thus far, she'd not seen the SUV, but the night was young. Rain be damned, she stepped out of the sup'ed up vehicle and rose from the leather bucket seat with a hip check to the door and keys in hand. Black heeled boots clacked their way to the door of the diner where an only semi-hasty entrance was made before the black-blue-black layers of short hair were too damp, and the alarm was set on her precious sports car with a high pitched chirp. Only a glance given to Natasha in passing, responded to with a nod and tilt of her head in the proper direction, she untied the belt of her dress coat en route to the more private sector of the eatery's seating.
Xavier Darnai: Hex rounded the corner just in time to catch the sound of his lighter being struck and brought to a flame. Pulling in the first hit of his cigarette, he dropped the lighter to the bar and reached for the tray at one end of the table. Pulling it closer as he disposed of the first touch of ash, he sat back in his seat and spotted the woman. Bringing up his right foot, he crossed it over his left knee and exhaled the smoke around him slowly before tapping his left thumb against the thick wood of the table. The bandaging he wore did plenty to keep it from being an obnoxious sound, and muscle control did the rest. "Evening, Alexandra." There were still cracks in his otherwise demure presence of being that it would take a very sharp study to notice. He was still exceptionally bothered with his failure.
Strange Hex: If heels were a give away, then he should have expected something professional beneath the dress coat. A black suit coat and pencil skirt, all just snug enough to border not quite appropriate in the eye of most women, but fetching enough that men wouldn't care. Admittedly, if she was going to dress the part, it was more fun to do so and get under somebody's skin than be boring. The coat only made it as far as untied at the waist due to the long black box, unlabeled, under her right arm. "Good evening, Xavier. You still seem a big glum." Keen eye or perhaps she just knew the signs well enough by now. Perhaps a mixture of both. The box laid to rest on the table, she shrugged out of the coat, which was made to lay over the back of the chair to the left of her chosen seat, of which she eased onto with some sense of lady-manners. "You really should have gone for the bromance. He might have perked you up a bit." Despite her jab, there was a sense of concern there as dark eyes regarded him.
Xavier Darnai: In all of the ways that Xavier had been unpredictably predictable, Hex was predictably unpredictable. He had learned that trying to guess the woman's attire based on any individual piece of information had been a fool's errand, and had decided a while ago to stop guessing. Still, she never failed to impress, and she always looked sharp in her professional attire, even if it wasn't always her preferred attire. "Mh." Glum might have been a way to put it, but as skilled as he could be dealing with seven different Markets, four different Syndicates, and more free agents than-- as the expression went --he could count, he still managed to trip over himself in his personal life. It was also the aspect that people knew the least about, and for good reason. Taking another hit off the cigarette, he tilted to the side in the booth just enough to see if one of the staff was making rounds this way just yet. "It'll be fine. Isn't like I'd forgotten an anniversary or the like." In fact he had, but she had as well, so it was a net wash on that particular front.
Strange Hex: Had she forgotten an anniversary? Really? She just smirked, settled with legs crossed in fashion to go with her look. "Are you sure you've not forgotten an anniversary?" Brow arched slightly, she eyed him skeptically then pushed the unlabeled black box towards him. It was the right length to contain a bottle of liquor of some sort, but he'd have to open it if he wanted to find out what it was. However, she wouldn't force it on him. "I am going to surmise that you received the e-file I sent you earlier." It wasn't a question. She knew he had. Perhaps she'd be getting to something that might cheer him up. Only time would tell. The passing waitress was motioned for two glasses with ice, but nothing else. It was her turn to share.
Xavier Darnai: Another hit off the cigarette and he reached over to the ash tray to tap the end of his filter as he mumbled. "Irrelevant." Bringing the cigarette back for an immediate follow-up hit, he nodded, speaking through his exhale. "Read it in the car on the way over." The Bishop had some toys, after all. She'd done a good bit of thorough research, and he was impressed as always. "Has she tried to keep her nature out've the limelight, or's she more open with it than others." It could be difficult to tell with some, but it was a telling piece of information. A good deal of his opinion on the majority of leeches he had met had to do with whether or not they were braggarts.
Strange Hex: "She attempts to keep it more hidden than that of her Cain cousin does. The Lady Cain is more outright with it without tattooing it across her brow or bearing evidence of it to every tom dick and harry to walk through the door." A very slight shake of her head followed the statement. "Unfortunately, while Cain is a bit more free with her nature, her endeavors are better hidden. I suspect she might very well be at the gala in Madrid." With the two glasses delivered, fresh ice included, the box was pulled close and opened to withdraw the bottle of Russo-Baltique Vodka. It wasn't in the designer bottle that fetched the most luxurious price, but the bottle itself was fashioned of crystal. The bottle was set on the table with a motion to Xavier. She found it as entertaining as she did intriguing to watch his ritual of opening liquors.
Xavier Darnai: "Brilliant." Letting out a huff of a sigh after taking his last hit, he snuffed the filter out in the ash tray and sat back, rubbing at the bridge of his nose. "...bloody vampires." When the bottle was set down, he lowered his arm as well, glancing to it for a moment with a raised brow. Vodka. There was a certain air to it that was impossible to mistake, even if he hadn't been able to recognize a label. This was something altogether special though, the design of the bottle simply screamed opulence. Russian, definitely. Lifting his left, he took the ornate cap between his index and thumb and gave it a simple test of tensile strength, twisting and pulling away as he removed the cap. There was craftsmanship in the all gold bottle, and when he set the cap down between the glasses, he picked it up at the curve of the neck before bringing it forward to take a long sniff. There was a smirk as memories came flooding back. Not all of them were pleasant. Still, he tilted the glass over one tumbler, twisting and lifting once and turning the spout to fill the second glass. Resting the bottle down on its base again, he pulled his bandage assisted grip away from the bottle and took his own tumbler, lifting it in salute. "Do poslednego vystrela."
Strange Hex: She was keenly aware of what he'd mentioned the night prior in regards to vodka, but she highly doubted two fingers worth in a glass was going to bring out the worst in him. He'd taken liberties in sharing his scotch, she could return the favor. Watching his ritual, she sat in silence with a ghost of a smile. When both glasses had their fill, she reached for her own and tipped it towards him. "May it come with all the secrets of the universe." The rim of the glass tipped against her lower lip, and further more to allow the clear liquid to spread across her tongue and roof of her mouth. Held, savored, and slowly swallowed. "Enjoy it. That's the only glass of it you'll get." Her smile broadened just enough to recognize, clearly joking.
Xavier Darnai: "It typically does." After the clink of glass he tilted it back and took a long pull of it. It had been a very long time since Xavier had a glass of vodka for any reason. Still, the taste of it on his tongue, the familiar bite and kick in the back of his throat had been hard to forget. A long, slow breath came in after he swallowed it down, bouncing his eyebrows once before staring into the ice laden alcoholic minefield. "Appreciated, but something tells me I'll manage to live through it." A quarter of a smile played at the corner of his mouth as he gave the glass a slight shake, tilting the ice around with a clatter. "This's quite the bottle you've managed to acquire. I imagine it set you back quite a touch."
Strange Hex: "There's really only one secret I'd like the answer to." Mentioned offhandedly after her first drink from the glass. A smaller drink was taken and held on her tongue while listening to him, her glass set to the table top with a subtle click of the glass, and a shrug to his mention of the cost of the bottle. "I received a good deal on it. A friend of a friend and a favor repaid." No need to go into further detail than that regarding the price of the drink. She'd managed to make up for the gap it caused in her finances a while back. She'd been waiting for a chance or reason to open it. It was never much fun drinking alone.
Xavier Darnai: The explanation of it's acquisition was more than sufficient, really. Tilting the glass back again, he took another pull of the vodka. Sitting back in the booth, he took a long, slow breath, straightening his tie out as he glanced at Hex. "And what question'd that be, Alexandra." The statement did have him reasonably curious, after all. Considering she was such a capable investigator, if there was something she wanted to know it was either a matter of privacy, or out of her field. He did not consider there to be much out of her field, really.
Strange Hex: If she had such a question, it was one she'd keep to herself. But she could play a game as well as anyone else. Leaning forward to rest he elbows on the table, she sighed and took on a completely serious aire about herself with her mouth set in a thin line and slight lower of her brows. "I want to know why the mass percentage of men always sleep with their hands holding their goods. Is it genetic, or is it something they learn from their fathers?" It was, quite possibly, the most random thing to ever come to mind. She liked random sometimes.
Xavier Darnai: By no rights was that a question he could have expected, but the fact that Hex had an ability to keep him guessing was part of her charm. A quiet scoff of laughter was put out as he took a look into the vodka, stirring it around the soft clatter of ice and glass. "If I had to guess, it's probably because so many've'em're trying to keep what's important to them close at hand." Out of experience he couldn't say much. He didn't know what one arm was doing while he slept, and the other tended to be within reach of a weapon. Setting the tumbler down on the table, he gave it a slow turn before shaking his head once. "But I couldn't say anything about where it's learned."
Strange Hex: Hell must have been freezing over if she got any kind of laugh from Xavier. Even if it was by half, or a simple scoff, it was good to hear. It was healthy for him. Plucking her glass from the table top, another small, savoring drink was taken while listening to him. As the glass lowered, a quiet laugh emitted. "Even men don't know why men do things." Though, the theory that men wanted to keep their goods was a decent enough on, if they felt they were in danger of losing them to begin with. A man with a vindictive wife had the ultimate reason.
Xavier Darnai: "To be fair men don't typically know why women do anything either." Lifting his glass again, he tilted it towards her in punctuation to his point before moving it to drink from. A long sip drained out the rest of the vodka, leaving only the ice in the empty tumbler. "But some've us're a bit better at reading than others, neh?" Grinning wholly, he set the tumbler down and held his bandaged left out to catch the attention of a waitress as she came around the corner. Looking up to her for a moment, he gave a nod. "I'll have the Auchentoshan Triple Wood, and the strip, rare." Glancing to Hex for a moment with an inquisitive brow and a slight nod, it seemed like he was covering dinner.
Strange Hex: She chuckled softly, shaking her head. "Yes, but I know why men don't know why women typically do anything. I don't need those answers." Silly man. "I'm not sure those are the answer that come with learning the secrets of the universe, though." She actually sounded moderately disappointed by that possibility. Comments of reading others drew her attention from the contents of her glass to Xavier with a slight rise of her brow. "Some of us can, yes." Was she implying something? Only in jest. Short manicured nails clacked against the glass in a cadence of four, she looked to the waitress. "Caesar chicken salad, please." That would do for the night. She intended to go home and sleep after leaving the diner.
Xavier Darnai: Another nod as the waitress took off with their orders, and his empty glass, he leaned back in the booth again. "Truth've it is Hex that the answers the universe has aren't the sort that anyone's going to want to hear. Either because've what they are, or how you get them, there's no way to shape the fact that they're going to be bittersweet." Shaking his head slightly, he couldn't help but keep his grin. It was a melancholy sort of sentiment, but he seemed to have some experience with the subject.
Strange Hex: Xavier was wise. Perhaps beyond his years. Chin propped in upturned palm, she smirked to his comment. "Bittersweet is usually the answers that stick with us the longest." She had minimal experience with it. It went along with the hardest lessons to learn always came from those you trusted the most that hurt you the worst. Meh. She glanced down at her glass, reaching for it with her free hand to pick up, tilt this way and that to watch the liquid move within.
Xavier Darnai: The amount of life that Xavier had lived in his years was far more than he would wish on most. To be honest he couldn't say for sure if he would have wished a different life on himself, this was all he knew. His views on regrets were fairly straight forward, and while not everyone knew what they were it was easy to pick up after spending any real time with the man. "Failure's the best teacher, neh?" He smirked, nodding his thanks when his glass was set down in passing by the waitress. Taking up the glass in his left, he stirred it around the glass once slowly before lifting it for a quick sniff and sip.
Strange Hex: "Hm..." Dropping her hand from the propping position, she leaned back, looking at Xavier with a nod. "It's a cruel teacher, but it teaches well enough. One failure is usually enough to not make the same mistake twice." Her glass was picked up and the remaining contents drained. The glass was then set aside. At least for the time being. Damn bottle cost more than any two of her vehicles put together, it was best to not just chug it down. "It's all part of life, though." And, as part of life, it was either accept it and move on or let it drown you.
Xavier Darnai: "That'd be one way to put it." Eyes closed as he spun the glass in his fingers, raising his brows in quiet acceptance and thought of it all. Thinking back was almost never beneficial. You could review to learn, but trying to think about what would be different if you had acted differently was hardly productive. Keeping his thoughts forward was the better distraction regardless. A little twitch of personal annoyance was evident in the corner of his eye as he opened them again, bringing his glass up for another sip. "There're few mistakes we've got the luxury of making twice."
Strange Hex: "I find little use in making mistakes once, much less twice." The subtle smile given was sincere enough. It was a topic she was ready to move away from. However, she did not want to raise annoyance. Had he been up dwelling on the lack of a third for their trip to Madrid? She had no way of knowing. However, given his penchant for perfection and, like her, having it done right the first time, she'd guess it might have gotten to him just a little bit. It was a touchy topic. "I can surmise by your lack of commenting or informing, that it will still be only the two of us going to Spain." Ah, perfect. Their meals arrived.
Xavier Darnai: "I'll be arranging for a pilot, but no third." Setting his tumbler down, he took the knife in his left and skillfully manipulated it through the steak to quickly cut out six bites, leaving the last on the tines of his fork before bringing it up to bite. Chewing quickly and swallowing down, he rest the knife on the edge of the plate, he picked up his glass again. The flow of constant motion was rigidly fluidic, but it was safe to say he didn't care for having an empty hand. "I'd been looking over the Daily Specials for someone who'll work for it. I'd rather not go with a commercial contract if I can avoid it."
Strange Hex: Her fork picked up after a nod of thanks to the waitress, she added some fresh crushed pepper then tossed it around a bit before spearing a bite of the grilled chicken. Listening to him, of course. "Then it will just be the two of us. It might be easier done to gather information if it's just the two of us. One less person to have to worry about." Mix of salad fixin's and chicken captured on the tines of the fork, she paused to look across the table to him. "And there is the possiblity of our third not being directly involved." She had Francia on standby for that night.
Xavier Darnai: There were worse plans, honestly. Having a third in the wings with an ear on everything was beyond useful, but it was freeing, definitely. If all else failed and things went to hell, he trusted Hex to take care of herself, leaving him to do as he needed without needing to see to his people. Francia had been a reliable scout and offered plenty of valuable intel, but there was a question that still needed to be asked. "How'd she handle the contact." Taking a locket of hair was no doubt intended to be an intimidating factor, but it's intention can be lost if you're passing the message on to the wrong target.
Strange Hex: In the silence that passed, she consumed slow bites of the chicken and salad. When the question was posed, what was in her mouth was consumed before she spoke with a shake of her head. "She was very hard on herself for having slipped. Harder on herself than she was worried about being discovered. Guaranteed me it wouldn't happen again." She hadn't dwelled on it long. Only given Francia a nod and the fairly expected Let's not have it happen again sort of statement.
Xavier Darnai: "Good." That was all he needed to know about it. Hex' assessment told him enough to know that it wasn't going to be a point of exposure, leverage, or variable weakness on this. At his core he didn't believe that this gala was going to be a trap, but he did not care for the idea of having an anti-ambush superseded by an actual ambush because someone was trying to overcompensate. Moving through the bites of steak, he varied the pattern of consumption by occasionally mixing in through the vegetables and his Scotch, but he was a slow eater these days. A bad habit broken too far to make a whole new bad habit in its place.
Strange Hex: A simple nod in response of his single word. She was actually fairly hungry, so the course of the meal itself was likely to be a quiet one. Nothing wrong with that. At some point she'd requested a glass of water, which was used to wash the meal down with once little more than three quarters of the salad and all the chicken was gone. The dish then pushed aside, along with the fork, in exchange of her glass. "Well, if nothing else, it should prove to be interesting. I don't think I've ever been to a formal gallery event."
Xavier Darnai: "Imagine a fire fight were every spent round is a snipped comment, and you're more worried about your reputation than you are being shot." Xavier had been to more than one, and he had seen his fair share of them from both sides. "I'm not fond've'em myself." By the time she finished he still had a few bites of steak left, and half his pile of potatoes, but he was still picking at the meal as it got cold. "You'll do just fine. Feel free to show the peacock feathers."
Strange Hex: She considered those words and just smirked. "It's a good thing I don't intend to let this little event affect my reputation." She'd much rather let it speak for itself, and anyone who attempted to tarnish it would help prove it. The water lifted for another glass, she looked at him with one of those Alexandra-smug smiles. "You'll wish you weren't married." And chuckled softly. "My feathers are dripping with champagne diamonds."
Xavier Darnai: Her joke was well received, earning another quiet scoff. Picking up the glass of Scotch, he stirred the remnants around in the basin of the tumbler before draining it entirely. "It's safe to say that women do have an advantage when it comes to a glamorous display of self being." Smirking once, he set the glass down and sat back again. "I'll have to see about lighter concealment, unless you've got some sense've what security's going to be like at the event." Getting through a metal detector could be problematic for him on occasion. Another advantage to flying private over commercial, no having to explain to security why he was setting off all their machines.
Strange Hex: Subtle smirk displayed. At least he could still appreciate her humor. She'd already found what she'd be wearing. It was being taylored just a bit for a better fit. She had to get the shopping experience over with as quickly as possible. "I am not sure of their security for that night. I've researched the galleria and the only security hey have under normal circumstances is fairly typical to ensure the safety of the art, but nothing about weapons on the premises."
Xavier Darnai: "Right then." He'd make sure to have his proper carry permits for Spain just in case, but that did remove some of the concern about needing to change his variants. Either way, it wouldn't hurt to have an ear on security the day of. "Is Francia already in Spain, or is she going to be flying in for the day of."
Strange Hex: "She'll be leaving tonight." Twist of her glass holding hand to check her watch. "In about an hour and half. She's going to contact me when she gets there and established." Glass rose for another drink, then was set down.
Xavier Darnai: More than once he'd come to the opinion that telling people they reminded him of a few years ago was an insult, but he'd be damned if it wasn't true of Hex. Her particular forethought left him thinking about his own time as head of security for Redcastle. Quick, well informed, sharp as a tack made of snapped glass. With half a smile, he gave her a nod, taking another bite of his steak. "Well done."
Strange Hex: Nothing more than a nod to his words of praise. He expected nothing less of her. She expected nothing less of herself. She'd learned from the best. "I am going to have Ze and a couple of guys looking into it more, but I wanted to inform you that Ze tracked one of the black SUVs last night when he left with the truck. He tracked it to an elementary school in the more well-to-do district. Said that they pulled around back but when he went to investigate, the SUV was gone." The bottle of vodka was returned to the box and the box closed. She still had a few small things to tend to before they left for Madrid, and she'd rather have them taken care of than leave them as loose ends to concern over while gone.
Xavier Darnai: A school, that gave him pause. Schools covered a lot of land, and nobody questioned official vehicles on the premises. "Have him send me the address of the school, I'll see what I might be able to pull from satellites in the area. There're always one're two in the skies I can pull strings for." Stroking at his jawline once, he reached for the fork to steal another bite, slowly picking away at the remnants of a proper dinner for nothing more than the taste of it. "They'd decided to leave just as I'd left the shooting range that evening, but if we're being watched, I'd like to know why before deciding to go dark."
Strange Hex: A nod. She pulled her phone from the side pocket of her jacket and set a text to Ze, asking him to send the address of the school to Xavier. He'd have the address in under a minute. The phone returned, she looked at Xavier. "I'd like to say that if they're involved with an elementary school, they've got their wires crossed. They've been terribly obvious about watching us or you or whomever they have interest in." It was warning without warning that she hoped he'd be careful. He almost always was, but she was far more leery of people who made things like that obvious. They were certainly up to something.
Xavier Darnai: "My own profile's been a touch high as've late." A necessity for his plans lately, but it had left him exposed. "After securing the Sudanese lifeline, and figuring out what it is DeValois might be playing at, we'll see about toning down operations. I can't afford for too much've this to blow back on what I'm trying to do in Ukraine right now." That whole affair was a bloodied mess waiting to get bloodier, and he had no desire to worry about a U.N. investigation dealing with supposed smuggling operations.
Strange Hex: Standing, she picked up her coat to pull on. "When it rains it pours. Whatever information Ze comes across, I'll route it to you. Though I don't expect it to be much with us out of town." For however long that would be. She didn't expect it to be more than a full day. The coat pulled around and the belt tied. "Don't go getting all glum again. I worked damn hard tonight to cheer you up. I will beat on you if I have it." The box picked up in her hand, she flashed him with a cheesy smile and headed for the door, withdrawing her keys from her pockets. "And your tux for the gala better be fantastic. After all, you will be my arm candy."
Xavier Darnai: Rust red eyes tilted up to look at her with a bit of a grimace. It had been a long time since he had been anyone's arm candy. Still, it was hard to avoid being amused at the sentiment. "Only so many ways a Brit can go wrong with a tux." Being chased by Russians tended not to hurt. "Besides, you've never seen me truly clean up." He might even have to do something about his hair.
Strange Hex: "Then it will be a surprise on both our parts." He'd seen her cleaned up, but never for anything this formal. It should be quite the interesting night between that and being in the viper's pit. A wink cast to Natasha in passing, then it was out into the rain, to the car, to....do girlie things.
Xavier Darnai: It would be repetitive to point out the women in his life would be the death of him, but there was no doubt that the sentiment remained the same. Watching her go off, he shook his head once and rubbed at his jawline.
Strange Hex: He liked it. If he didn't, he'd employ more men.
Xavier Darnai: A valid theory. Finding competent men in the industry was proving more difficult. Too many egos.
