[WoD] And All That Jazz.

[Fiona Devlin]

"Something like that." she said with a wink.

:: she reached into the backseat and grabbed her guitar case, then locked the door and walked to the back entrance ::

[Michele Hawkins]

Was why Fiona bringing her guitar? Oh, I know! I bet it's part of my surprise!

Well, there was only one way to find out. I got outta the car and went after Fiona. How cool was this? We're going inside the Succubus club through the back door.

My hands started to sweat since I was getting nervous. Good thing Fiona was going to do all the talking. I'd probably fumble over my words and look like a fool.

[Fiona Devlin]

:: Fiona walked down the alley, straight up to the door where two imposing Brujah stood with arms folded. She looked over her shoulder at Michele ::

"Wake up, you."

[Jonas Bellinger]

Jonas smiled.

"Silver Hand? Well, I was attacked a few months ago....Or actually, someone attacked the people I was informing, and they wanted me for extra information. Didn't know the deal, until two of the five blubbered like children. One good right hook..."

Jonas faked a right hook.

"...literally spun their heads backwards. You could hear the pop of spinal fluid, the snap of the spine casing, and the crunch of cartilage: music to my eccentric ears. And then this one bitch rushed me with katars......got me once, and they were silver. Left a nice scar. Of course, she got it in the end, on the end of a nasty prick....a sword that one of the others was carrying. I simply backhanded her with the right, and she went flying, landing on it while it was still in the dude's hand......One fired off two shots, thirty-eight, silver. Only one hit. The last one, which he fired in his death throes, while his windpipe was being crushed, and his jugular pierced. And the sword guy left a nice scar, too, before I gave him a little headache.....Or should I say, alleviated it for him...."

All the while, Jonas breathed slightly, naturally for breaks in the sentence. Nothing could've noted that he smelled another vampire. This one, accordingly, had fed recently, and was just outside the window that indicated the Lasombra. Right next to the dumpster. And Jonas was pretty sure it was female.....

"Maybe they were of the Silver Hand. I didn't see any markings on them.....And irregardless, they are bad for business on all sides of your little conflict. And chances are, if they are hunting the kind Kindred, then they are most likely out for me as well. Or an added, uncalculated bonus."

Jonas nodded to the window, indicating a direction.

"I haven't heard anything about them at all, the name sounds cool, but I haven't heard a thing. But, according to you and your body language, this info is important, and if the others found out it would be bad. Man, sounds like a bitch of a situation to be in......"

[Ezra Khaine]

Ezra listened with hidden interest. Normally he was not one for gruesome details, even if he was a vampire. This time though he was listening to every last detail. If this was in fact the Silver Hand then Ezra was glad for their deaths. His only hope was that the Lupine had not killed them all. The ones he had run into seemed intent on killing werewolves. The ones that had engaged him and his kind had been armed for fighting vampires; crosses, steaks, bright torches, garlic, and all sorts of anti-vampire weaponry just short of holy water. Ezra had managed to kill his attackers but the rest of his little coven had perished. He was going to finish off the rest of the Silver Hand himself.

The Lupines final words caught Ezra's attention. The look in the man's eyes gave most of the secret away, but his words confirmed it and more. Ezra did not look towards the window but instead raised his hands and cracked his neck, his eyes remaining on the werewolf the entire time, "Hmm, sounds like it could be the same blokes. Where did you run into them?" He asked and then made 'stay here' motion with his hand, only barely moving it in the process. With that he closed his eyes and the shadows danced a little and Ezra's body melted into the very shadows he was standing in.

Moving through darkness was not so bad; it was coming back to the prime material world that made you sick. It was like the biggest sneeze in the world, only backwards. He emerged from the shadows behind the spy. There was a click and a the silken noise of sliding steel as Ezra twisted the handle of his hand and pulled the sword out from the hollow case. He poked the blade against the woman's back, "Give me a reason not to kill you."

[Sierra]

“Because we're on the same side? Some of my boys got bitchslapped by the Silver Hand... left a nice big imprint on the Pack.”

That's not 100% true, but it's close enough. I respect the Lasombra, don't get me wrong, but I've got no love for them. As much as I'd rather not get pally with one of the bogeymen, if it was going to lead me to the people who messed with the Pack, I was willing to make a comprise. Just think of it as choosing a lesser of two evils, I guess.

[Michele Hawkins]

I must've just been standing there staring at the building awestruck. My cheeks begin to redden and I say nothing to avoid sounding dumb with an apology as I catch up to Fiona.

[Fiona Devlin]

:: Fiona turned back to the two Brujah again ::

"Alright guys, give it a rest."

:: The two grudgingly seperated and let them pass ::

[Michele Hawkins]

I was pressed up against Fiona's back as we passed by the bodyguards. I mean, I know they weren't going to do anything me. Not with Fiona there, but they had this look behind their eyes as if they wanted to devour me.

It sent a shiver down my spine and I was thankful to be inside away from them. And wow! The backstage was a bustle of servers, stage hands and general hands moving various boxes, equipment and who knows what else about.

My fingers slipped into Fiona's hand so I wouldn't get lost.

[Fiona Devlin]

:: Fiona clicked her tongue as she looked back past Michele at the doorway ::

"You know, eternal life is no excuse for not flossing."

:: She gave Michele's hand a playful tug as they walked into the club ::

[Michele Hawkins]

I felt myself get dragged for a moment. I didn't realize Fiona was on the move again and took two hard steps before I was walking normal again and feeling completely out of place. Besides the servers wearing uniforms, most of the patrons tonight were wearing business causal attire. Everyone smelled of money and here I was looking plain in my black slacks and tan sweater.

"Um, Fiona?" I lean against her for support. I get this sense that everyone is staring at me, wondering who I am and why Fiona brought me here. My excitment turned timid in a hurry.

[Fiona Devlin]

:: She turned with a raised brow ::

"Whot?"

[Michele Hawkins]

"I ..." I sigh, grumbling and looking away. It's hard to put into words how I feel. Just, I never felt comfortable around these sorts of people. Perhaps it's because of how I grew up, being passed around foster homes like a basketball. I've always been shy and never knew how to take a compliment. Always feel as if everyone is judging me and having zero self confidence in social gatherings never help, especially with the unfamiliar.

[Fiona Devlin]

"Hey ..."

:: Fiona touched her face and looked her in the eye. She'd been around long enough to read people pretty well ::

" ... you're here to enjoy yourself, and I'm gonna play tonight. You can join me onstage or hang back and relax. Whatever You want."

:: Her eyes were full of fun, and love for her friend ::

[Ezra Khaine]

"Same side?" Ezra questioned pulling the blade point from her back, "I have no side. I'm a one man show,” Gangrel, by the look of her. Ezra had spent so much time with all varieties of vampires that he had come to notice that little things that separate the clans. The Gangrel where little better then animals and in his mind they were like werewolves with fangs and a bloodlust. They were deadly foes, that was sure, especially since most of the clan was allied with the Camarilla.

"Why should I give a care what happened to you, because last time I checked the Camarilla where not my list of allies," He had to resist the urges to just remove her head right there. Ezra was no fighter, he was a thinker, but right now his nerves were a little too frayed to allow him to think clearly. All he wanted was to kill the Silver Hand. He didn't care who else fell under their fist.

[Martin Le Roux]

Unlike Fiona, Martin simply smiled politely at the burly pair and was let in. He was something of a maverick in the Chicago Kindred community. While not exactly thumbing his nose at the Prince, he had turned down the title of Primogen for his clan more than once, very politely, maintaining that he was not interested in politics.

The exact opposite was true. Martin played Camarilla politics all the time. Not being in a position of offical power but being highly respected was part of the game. He had a reputation of unpredictability to maintain. Showing up at the Succubus Club was part of that. In reality, he was mostly here because Fiona had asked him to be. She had, in fact, threatened (jokingly) to withold a book he had waited on for ten years if he did not show up.

Unlike some of the other goers, arrayed bussiness casual, Martin wore strictly casual clothing of well worn jeans, a fur lined brown leather jacket, brown shoes and a nice button down shirt, worn untuckted. A camera bag bounced off his hip.

His footsteps were easily lost in the bustle as he approached Fiona and... well, she was someone not seen before.

"Hello Fiona. I'm here unfashionably early this time." He said with a wink and a hint of a smile.

[Jonas Bellinger]

Jonas watched as the vampire disappeared into the shadows. It was amazing to watch him just meld into them. And it was as if he were invisible. The smell of him lingered, but it wasn't strong enough to pinpoint. The reason was that he wasn't even on the same plane of existence. Much like the Garou's ability, with training and meditation, to pass into the spirit world of the Umbra.

Hearing all of the conversation between the two, Jonas walked ten feet, and went to the door that would lead into the alley. That's all the vamp had to do....go through the door. But the trick was nifty....

Thinking about something, Jonas spoke to the Lasombra.

"Oh, and I mentioned the people I was informing. Well, they were Kindred. And the first two, whose heads I reversed....they were wielding torches and thirty-eights. So, like I said, I was a bonus. They seem to be after the Kindred, though Kindred and Garou have weaknesses in common, so they could hunt both..... So like I said, bonus."

Looking down, Jonas noticed the other vampire. She seemed feral. Probably Gangrel, maybe Brujah. And she was hot. For a cold fish.

"Damn, not bad!"

Jonas turns to the Lasombra.

"You've got vixens like this stalking you!? Wow! What a fan club!"

[Michele Hawkins]

I slowly feel the sides of my cheeks rising in a smile. She always knew the right thing to say to make me feel at ease. I still wasn't fully comfortable around here yet but at least I didn't have to be on stage.

Before I could say thanks, a man who looked out of sorts but held confidence with each stride walked up to Fiona. They knew each other?

I looked to Fiona with a curious stare, wondering who her friend was.

[Sierra]

No longer pinned against the dumpster, I glanced back over my shoulder. Shovelhead there looked like he was about to explode. It was unusual to see a Lasombra so rattled. Hell, it was even more unusual to see one 'stooping so low' as to ask a Lupine for help. Obviously, this was a man on a mission.

“You put that pretty piece of yours away and we'll get to talking about what I heard about the Silver Hand.”

[Fiona Devlin]

:: She kissed Michele on the lips, just as Martin walked up to greet her. She turned, a bit suprised ::

"Martin!!! Glade you made it."

:: she gave Michele's hand a squeeze as she made introductions ::

"Martin Leroux, Michelle Hawkins. Michelle, meet Martin Leroux."