Participants:
| Scene Title | Bar Full Of Tattoos |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Cardinal owes Gillian a drink, a former Company agent walks in, and there's a lot of talk on a lot of subjects, including the Abigail, the best tattoo artist in the world, Gillian's ex, Vanguard, Phoenix, a Precog… And future drinks. |
| Date | July 27, 2009 |
Old Lucy's has a vibrant and lively feel to it, from the dark wooden floors to the shady crimson walls lit up by neon lights and many times, the flashing of cameras from the oft-crowded floor. The mirror behind the bar reflects prices of various drinks, bottles lined up, as well as the entire saloon as seen from the bartenders; bolted-down stools line the other side, and there are loose tables and chairs placed all around, though many times they find themselves pushed back for more space within the center of the saloon. A few speakers are placed at strategic places and around a raised stage to the far corner from the bar. Above the counter, an obviously well-used bar is hung; it is this that the girls working will use should there be dancing, which is one reason many patrons choose to come aside from the drinks. Across the bar and near the back, there is a door that leads to the owner's office and just inside a stairwell that leads a apartment on the floor above the bar.
There's nothing left of Arthur Petrelli save a faint crust along the edge of Cardinal's boots, official investigation is discovering some of Pinehearst's crimes, and most of the people who were supposed to survive the whole operation… did.
So Richard Cardinal owes someone a drink.
A phone call's set it up, and at the appointed hour - early in the evening, rather than later - he's leaning back against the wall outside the door, to the opposite side of where the line usually forms. A loose tan jacket's worn, draped over a black shirt, black jeans, all of the above except the jacket new and clean. As he waits, he's chatting with the bouncer, with whom he seems familiar.
"Can't believe the Nun's in charge," the bald, butch woman chuckles, shaking his head.
"Tell me about it," Cardinal admits wryly, "I mean, I adore Abigail, but… well."
The people who needed to die, died. That's the way people should look at it. The young woman who walks up from down the street doesn't look to be in the best of all moods, but Gillian's been through a lot. Not quite dragging her feet, she only bothered to dress up if one considers jeans and a dark blouse to be dressing up. The neckline dips just enough to catch the edge of a tattoo that must continue down to the outter edge of her breast, but it's difficult to tell exactly what it's supposed to be. Or what it was supposed to be.
Thick eyeliner, red lipstick, she did take some time to get done up, at least, but that doesn't mask the slight slump to her shoulders. A quickened step brings her closer to the door, where she spots the man she was supposed to meet, as well as the bouncer. A twitch of her wrist gives the illusion she wants to look at a watch that isn't there. Habit. "Glad you picked a bar that wasn't on the other side of town," she says in greeting. "I don't get around as easily as I used to."
Oh travel based powers, her feet miss you.
"Hey you." A push off from the wall, a smile curving crooked upon Richard's lips as he brings one hand up in a casual wave towards the approaching young woman before letting it fall back to his side. "Trust me, I know the feeling." He's not used to things like doors getting in his way. Or walls. Or the laws of physics.
The sound of rowdy, lively rock music rattles from behind the doors as she draws closer, and he turns a bit to gesture to the door— observing with a wry note in his voice, "Believe it or not, this is Abigail's bar."
As he's one of the few people who actually would know the feeling, Gillian actually smiles, dimples appearing easily on her cheeks, even if the smile doesn't reach her eyes. Dimples happen easy with her, no matter how she grins. The laws of physics suck when someone had found a way to defy them, and then lost it.
"Abigail?" It's asked a question, as if she doesn't quite— and when she realizes it's pretty obviously. She straightens up, she looks at the bar, eyebrows raise. "Abby? Blond Christian Girl Abby? Is she even old enough to drink legally?" Not that that stops people from drinking— certainly didn't stop her, but— how old is Abby exactly?
"That's the one…" A chuckle threads through Cardinal's voice at the admission, "…it got left to her in the owner's— well, the owner's will." Just a hint of tightness in the last words, said a bit quickly, and with them the bouncer glances away across the street with a frown of her own. Still, it doesn't last long, the door shoved open under the felon's shoulder as he turns around, backing it open and flashing a grin back to her, "At the very least, it means I can get a discount here."
Oh. Will. Gillian nods slowly, looking through the open door and then stepping closer to him so she can slip through the door, taking the motion as him holding it open for her. "I think I would get a discount too, considering she's currently dating my brother." And ran off down south with him, where no bases will be ran, she's sure. "This is making me wonder if she's just playing at being all good and perfect," she adds, glancing over the interior once she gets far enough in to see. "I doubt it, but this— fuck, it's like some big cosmic joke or something."
It's an accurate assumption, as Cardinal holds it open for her passage; stepping along after her, he lets it swing closed behind him before stepping along after her once she's inside, hand briefly brushing to the small of her back as the other gestures towards a table off to one side. As he leads the way over there, he brings a hand up to wave to the tenders at the bar.
"There's been stranger things that've happened… not many, admittedly," he allows wryly, "But stranger. She's dating— Brian?" A double-take that causes him to nearly trip over his feet, staring at her in startlement.
Having two brothers is new to her. Gillian makes a face as she settles into a chair at the table off to the side he gestured to. "No, she's dating Victor— my brother in the family I was adopted into. I only found out I was related to Brian a while ago." Getting comfortable in her seat, she reaches up to push hair out of her face and behind her back. There's a tattoo behind her ear too, and one visible on her wrist. Both have something wrong with them, chunks of ink missing, like someone decided to burn a hole in places and the skin healed normally, but without the ink.
"She dragged him off to one of those southern states, for which I'm grateful. I already had one brother involved in that shit, I didn't want to involve him too."
It's close to the Hangar, it's crowded, it has more than one exit. Minea needs noise after the quiet of the foxhole. It's proximity to the Village Renaissance in case she gets called there by phoenix makes Old Lucy's appealing. Felix mentioned once that he comes here. So the tank topped, tattoo's other woman, older than Gillian but dark haired as well worms her way in. Gillians seen her around the fourth floor of the Village, one of the many that Cat's given refuge to.
"Oh, oh…" A chair's claimed beneath Cardinal's hand, and he pulls it out before dropping into it, leaning forward with both arms folded on the table's edge, a wry smile curling to his lips, "…gotcha. I think she mentioned him before, didn't realize that he was your brother. Yeah. I bought her the plane tickets, in case shit went bad at the place." Vaguing the details up, just in case there's someone listening to them.
As he notices those tattoos, he lifts a brow at the sight, observing, "Ink got messed up in the fight?"
"I'm glad you did. And I'm glad I didn't visit him before Abby invited him along, too," Gillian keeps her voice down, even as she slumps into her seat. Keeping her hand raised, she looks at the tribal tattoo with a rose— or more accurately pieces of a tribal tattoo with a rose. So much if it is gone. "My tattoos didn't grow back with my skin. I lost all of them on one of my legs. Wrapped me in one of his shadow clones and nuked me at the same time." That'd be why she's talking soft in her husky whispered voice. Such conversations would make anyone look over and wonder if they should call Homeland Security.
Speaking of Homeland Security… she glances toward the door and raises her eyebrows, but doesn't know her well enough to do more than look.
That's former and defectedhomeland Security. Which accounts for why she's been up on cat's floor. There's a big glass of beer ordered, a bill passed across the counter before the ex-agent looks around.
And Gillian is spotted, confusion, a glance to her guest at the table. Well fuck me. It's the… Guy from Staten Island, the one with the tattooist. Mine just dips her head to the two of them and takes a long pull.
The mention of shadows doesn't bring a wince per se to Cardinal's features, but there is a subtle tightness around the eyes. "Sorry," he observes in a low, rueful tone that doesn't carry through the music and noise of the bar very far, "Anyway, there's a tattooist down in Chinatown - Green Dragon Tattoos - she can fix it up for you, no messy healing or anything, just mention I sent you. How many tats you got, anyway?" The last is more playful in tone, though at the glance towards the door he looks over as well.
"Hm," he observes curiously, "Wonder what she's doin' here. Not business, I hope."
"I— Cat knows her," Gillian says in the same whispered tones, looking away from her so as not to completely stare. Even without a perfect memory, she can recognize her face at least. "She did some stuff for them, but I'm not sure exactly what. Maybe she's just here for a drink… Or stopping in for a drink while leaving the Village." Shifting, she reaches into a pocket to pull out a small pad of paper with an attached pencil and writes down the Tattoo parlor name. "I got used to not having to write this shit down," she admits, a little frustrated. "I had thirteen. Now I have like… ten and half."
Ooooh they're talking about her. Briefly, Minea knows that. But for the moment, she just watches them back. Curious. She knows the other woman is pheonix, but the guy? There's another long pull from the cup that's interrupted as someone inquires about her own tattoo's but that's attention soon thwarted with a 'bugger off'
"Really… she was doing some work for Cat?" There's a deeply intrigued note to Cardinal's voice as he watches her for a moment at the bar, before turning his head and attention to Gillian, a grin curving his lips, "I've got a few myself… what d'you want to drink? I'll go fetch it from the bar."
"Don't think it was the safe kind, either," Gillian says, leaving aside any details she might have picked up on the situation surrounding her. It's Phoenix business, after all. Secrets aren't her favorite thing in the world, but what little she knows isn't really worth sharing. She'd been too busy trying to train for kicking Arthur's ass to really ask much on her. From the slight once over she gives him, she's looking at him differently now that she knows he has a few tattoos, even more than the fellow woman of many tattoos. "I'll just have an electric lemonade. Hopefully they know how to make it. If not, you can surprise me."
First beer finished in record time, Minea turns to order a second, waiting her turn at the bar for another from on tap. The bartender present work darned hard, she knows that. She's not got super hearing, she doesn't have extrodinary senses even. Just money and she wants another beer.
The once-over is recognized, a grin curving to Cardinal's lips as he pushes himself up to his feet. "Electric lemonade, got it. I'll show you a few've the more public ones when I get back," he offers casually, stepping around his chair to cross the room through the bodies and tables in his route, a weaving path that brings him closer to the bar.
"Oi! Brenda! Get me an electric lemonade and a godfather, would you, hot stuff?" He bellies up to the bar not far from Minea, slanting a look to her and asking casually as he waits for the drinks, "How's Varlane?"
"Most my public ones are already visible," Gillian says with a mild smile, before she leans back into the chair and watches him move over to the bar. Just watching the guy she came to meet, but her eyes stick to the tattooed woman as well. No more ability to easedrop, she'll just have to settle with snippets of conversation over the music and other noise, and watching their faces. For the moment.
"Nursing some swollen testicles and learning that when they say defection, apprehend with caution, not to stand there and try to make nice" Minea lifts her chin towards him. "How's your drinking buddy. Never pegged you for one of her group" There's a glance over her shoulder towards Gillian and a lift of her chin in greeting.
A low chuckle stirs from Cardinal at that statement. "Sounds like him." At the question, he glances back to the table, then to Minea with an amused smile lingering to his lips, "I'm not. I freelance." The bartender's just getting to their drinks as he adds, "Defection, mm? One frying pan to another, in my opinion. But you didn't ask it."
"Freelance. Guess i'll have to turn to that when all is said and done huh. You should get back to her. lest she, augment you to heaven and back if you have an ability. She's a spitfire, I tell ya" Minea smiles, remembering that little phoenix meeting so long ago. "Question. You freelance for her friends?"
"I don't think I've got to worry about that." A twitch of Cardinal's lips, noting with a brow's lift, "Occasionally. If I think it's something I can get behind. I don't mess with politics, if that's what you're asking."
"Noope just asking, Hadn't seen you go walking through the doors is all" Minea finally gets her own beer, thanking Brenda behind the bar. "Take care Staten" Since she doesn't know his name. "Maybe i'll see you around:
"See you around, Company." The drinks served up are claimed, and Richard flashes her a roguish smile before turning away from the counter, heading back towards the table and the woman waiting at it. A few moments later, he's sliding one over the table with a chuckle, "An electric lemonade… just like you ordered."
It took some time, but when he makes his way back over, Gillian looks back down at the table and finally remembers to put up her small notebook and attached pencil. She'd forgotten about it while trying unsuccessfully to easedrop on their conversation. "Thanks. The woman— I guess you know her too?"
And Minea's back to drinking and not paying attention to the pair. She just wants to finish her drink in a timely but relaxed manner and make her way back to her resting/hiding spot. Unless she's stopped.
"I know who she is," replies Cardinal as he eases back into his seat, shifting to shrug out of his jacket to let it drape back over the chair. It's too hot for it anyway. The short-sleeved shirt that he's wearing beneath it reveals the serpent coiling down one forearm, and the jagged 'thorns' of the vine on his other upper arm sneak out from beneath the hem. "Company girl. Apparently defected, though."
"Seriously?" Gillian looks away at the mention of the Company, though the tattoos held her attention for a moment. "Fuck," she curses as she looks towards the woman moving away to her hiding spot. There's no move to stop her, but she grits her teeth quietly. "I didn't know that part. If she defected, good for her, but— those guys bug me." Not enough to launch a campaign and try to destroy them while she had more power than people could shake a stick at, though. Eyes shift back to the tattoo, the serpent, and the thorns. Critical eye, she rolls her wrist over to show a yin/yang tattoo in tribal that has a jagged scar straight down the middle of it, and unlike the other mangled tattoos, that one actually is a scar. "They the work of the person you recommended?"
"Black hats'n mirrorshades, never cared for them, federal or otherwise…" Cardinal's own drink is brought up to his lips as he makes the wry admission, taking a swallow thereof before setting it to one side. The man's gaze drops down to that tattoo, a brow lifting a little at the scar— and then he glances down to his arm, "These? Oh, no, these're old… got 'em years ago, before the Bomb even."
"Yeah, a lot of mine are really old," Gillian says, taking the first drink. It's a small sip at first, but then a deeper one. The bartender must have got it right. "I used to get them touched up every few years, but that became more difficult after the bomb. And some of them are in places I need to know the tattoo artist really well to let them touch." There's a hint of a laugh to her voice. "Luckily those remained more or less intact."
"She's the best tattooist in the world," claims Cardinal, his lips twitching in a grin, "Guaranteed. Of course, now you've got me curious, babe…" A hint of sly amusement twinkling in his eyes, he gestures with the glass, "So how'd you get involved with all've this shit, anyway?"
A rather long drink from her glass, and Gillian stares down at it a moment. "Someone attempted to kidnap me in a park. Two guys in suits. One with an ability… Kick and scream as I did it really didn't matter, you know? They shoved me in a car, and then this other guy saved me, took me somewhere that was supposed to be safe, and said that it was a government agency trying to take me off, which I came to think was the Company, and that he was part of PARIAH. Gave me a way to contact him…"
She pauses to take a long drink. "Only I didn't play along. I ran off with a guy who lived down the hall from me, left my job and my family… You know Eileen, so I figure you know about Vanguard. The guys who attacked me, the guys who saved me, and the guy I ran off with… all of them were with Vanguard." That doesn't quite explain how Phoenix got involved, but… background. "The guy Eileen was trying to save— get his body back? Did that work?"
"That sounds like the Company's MO, from what I understand…" Cardinal's elbow rests against the table, the glass in his hand that he sips from idly, watching her with a serious expression as he listens. A bit of a nod at the mention of the Vanguard, affirmation, before grunting, "Volken. Whadda guy. And— I'm not sure." A pause, "I haven't gotten a chance to check in with them yet. I was told everyone got out okay, though. Who was that guy?"
There's a shuddered exhale of relief at the mention of everyone getting out okay. Though Gillian'd only really been concerned with the one they went to rescue. "He— was the guy I ran off with. He's the reason I'm with Phoenix. He— fuck, trying to explain it would be impossible." Another generous drink from her glass, she looks back across the table. "He's complicated… But to me— we lived together on and off for a while. But we're not together anymore. That is complicated too."
Perhaps more complicated than she's willing to share. "I joined Phoenix to help them fight Vanguard when all of the ones who are hanging around still decided to turn face— when they found out what the fuck Volken was up to. Then I ended up staying with them a while longer cause of Teo— and cause I didn't like the idea of people being locked up in prison cause of their abilities."
"I can see that." Cardinal's thumb brushes back and forth along the rim of his glass, considering the drink in it for a moment before looking back up to her with a somewhat wry expression, "And it's all pretty fuckin' complicated, isn't it? Me…" A thoughtful pause, "…I got involved 'cause I walked into a bar at the wrong time, to find Deckard with a gun to Laudani's head. Then Agent Ivanov came in. Shit got interesting, I got curious…" He shrugs, "Deckard hired me to find Abigail, when she'd been kidnapped. Phoenix got involved in saving her. I've neved signed up, though."
"I didn't get dragged into the Abigail thing. After the bridge collapsed I kinda went reclusive for a while— they didn't really call on me til the prison break," Gillian explains softly, leaning back into her chair as she stops nursing her drink for a while. There's a growing difference between the drinking now and her drinking in the few months past— she's feeling it more. "I said I'd help them as long as they didn't actively hunt him down— or hurt him. Back when I first made the deal it'd been a legitimate concern. Some of the rougher members of Phoenix were thinking he needed to die."
At that last statement, Cardinal's brows both leap upwards in surprise, the drink in his hand pausing on its way to his lips. "…seriously? They're usually pretty damn care-bear about shit like that. What the hell'd the guy do that they'd be thinking they need to kill him?"
"He'd been involved in some pretty bad things for a while. Killed people, tried to kill people. I don't know for a fact if they could have killed him, but before the bridge collapsed I almost left Phoenix all together cause one of the guys decided it would be all in good fun to start punching him in the face while he was down and powerless." Gillian mutters softly, leaving out a lot of details. Complicated. "But I did want to be in on Moab. Locking people up is the reason I left my job and am still missing. I don't think people would let me stay free if they knew what I could do."
Richard's starting to get used to complicated. And his life used to be so simple, too. "Moab was one hell of a clusterfuck, I'll admit that…" The drink's set down, and he brings that hand up to scratch against his cheek and the stubble shadowing it there, "…so you were running with the Vanguard for awhile?" There's no anger or accusation there, simply honest curiousity— and, perhaps, something more urgent glinting behind his eyes.
"No. I was living with Gabriel. He taught me how to control my power, and— Vanguard was trying to manipulate me into doing something, I'm not sure what cause I didn't do whatever it was…" Gillian takes another smaller drink, still leaving out important details. "At first Gabriel was lying to me, working with them… and then it changed. I guess in a way he had been protecting me from them the whole time, too. So no, I wasn't ever with Vanguard."
"I wonder…" The words trail off, then, as Richard's colour turns a few shades paler as something clicks in his head, "…oh. Oh, Christ. You're an augmentor…" Oh, look, he's still got a drink. The glass is swept up, and he takes a hard swallow thereof before leaning back, his eyes closing as the liquor burns in his stomach, "Shit. I think we should all be glad he never got his hands on you, Gillian."
"Yeah… we saw what me touching Edward Ray's hand once did— though from what I understand of Volken's power, he probably would have killed me before he could do much else with it except expand his range." Gillian takes a long drink, finishing the glass off in fact. "Well, you kept your word on the drink, at least. Better man than most. Some don't ever call even when they say they will."
"Mmn. I just hope Abigail's right, and that… infection's gone for good," Cardinal mutters under his breath, the glass set aside now-emptied to be pushed away a few inches, a wry smile flashed over to her as he observes, "Don't see why any sane man wouldn't call, unless they thought you were out've their league, babe."
Compliments are nice. They lighten the dark mood. Gillian smiles, lopsidedly, a dimple appearing on both cheeks even. It's more genuine than before, actually touching her eyes, but she doesn't blush. "I dunno. I've met a lot of guys who'd rather have pretty little blonde girls who seem to shine with light and goodness." And she's not just meaning Abby. "I do hope Kazimir stays gone. But— " That smile settles down a bit. "Things don't look too good. Not saying we're fucked. If nothing else is true— the future is always changing. Quite literally."
A brief chuckle rattles in Cardinal's throat as he observes wryly, "Can you see me with a pretty li'l blonde that shines with goodness? Seriously…" His head sways in a slow shake, hand coming up in a dismissive brush before it falls back down to the table. Then he pauses, looking at her with a sharper look, "What do you mean? About Kazimir coming back?"
No, he doesn't strike her as the kind of go for blonde and light and goodness, from the way Gillian's lip twitches to that smile again. But Kazimir's more important. "The person I got the precog power from, the one where I dreamed about you— she's been dreaming about Kazimir a lot lately. She dreamed about him a lot in the past, too. But— there's something that's going to happen, if her dreams are right and if it's not stopped, it'll be bad. If what she saw is literal, worse than the Bomb, even."
"The one that you mentioned, yeah…" Cardinal's lips twitch in a slight grimace, "…I was hoping I was wrong. I was hoping… shit. I'm glad I talked to the old man." He brings a hand up, rubbing between his eyes, "Yeah, I'm gonna need to meet her, I think."
"What old man?" Gillian asks, eyebrows lifting a moment. "You'll meet her. I'll introduce you soon. She usually sends off her visions to Phoenix, but I don't think she likes only having them to go to. Sometimes it takes them a while to do anything about it— and sometimes it was probably never for them anyway. At least with whatever you're doing, she'll have an alternative where things will still get done."
"Flint." Cardinal nods just a bit, leaning back in the chair with a wry smile, "I just need to convince some more people to follow along with what I am doing… if I can get a reliable core of people that think along the same lines, well— hopefully I can. I'm getting tired of running all over damn town to find people for every little thing."
"I can understand that," Gillian admits, though she's frowning as she's trying to recall where she heard the name Flint before. A few days ago she probably could have dragged up the memory quickly, now… She shakes her head. "Well— I'll help you. We worked pretty well as a team a few nights ago. I'm surprised it went as well as it did, honestly. I have to go apologize for a preacher for using his ability when I promised I wouldn't, though."
At that, Cardinal's lips twitch in a faint, wry smile. "I think the good father'll understand, whatever you used it for. He's nothing if not understanding." His hand drops down to his knee, his expression softening, "Must've been hell for you, though. I know you'n your dupes took a lot of hits…"
There's a laugh. What would've happened if she didn't might have been worse. Arthur might not have been so distracted. Gillian'd planned for that, if he'd ever touched her— been planning it for weeks, in fact. So much she practiced without telling anyone. Another thing she'll have to apologize for. "Not many people besides Brian can say they died…" There's a pause as she narrows her eyes and actually starts to count off on her hand. One, two, three, four… "Four times and lived to tell about it. I actually saw myself die a hundred or so times once, but I didn't have to experience it. Kind of a 'these are all the ways you could die.' I get deja vu sometimes and think 'Man, I must've died here in one of those possible timelines.'"
A low whistle passes pursed lips, Cardinal's head shaking ever so slightly. "That's pretty fucked up," he admits, two fingers rubbing against his temple as he manages a twist of a smile back to her, "At least you can't say your life's been boring, eh? May You Live In Interesting Times, as the curse goes…"
"Certainly not boring, no," Gillian says with a husky chuckle. The way she moves to stand up, running her hand over her pockets as if to make sure she has everything. A little bit of a buzz, but enough to get home, at least. "Sometimes I wish my life would go back to boring, other times I'm just glad to have finally been proven wrong. You were going to pay for the drink, right?"
"It's on my tab," admits Cardinal, one hand planting then to the table's surface to lever himself up to his feet with, a lopsided smile flashed back to her, "I know the feeling, there, honestly. You gonna be able to get home alright, babe?"
"It's not too far, and it's not like I'm about to run off to Staten Island, or anything," Gillian says with a light chuckle. Her eyes divert for a moment, before she looks back. "I'll call you for the next round of drinks, maybe with my precog friend— or at least give you her address so you can meet her. Knowing her, she'll probably already know you're coming."
Wry, "I'm starting to get used to that. I think the time I spent working with Edward'll have me paranoid for the rest of my life, actually." Cardinal's chin tips up to her in an easy nod, "Sounds like a plan. With or without your friend, just give me a call."
Eve and Edward. Two Es, both see the future in a way, both saw a lot more than normal when they touched her. But Gillian is glad one of those Es is dead (twice over) and thinks of the other one as kind of an older sister-type. But they both treat it all as a game. "I will, definitely. I might even ask to see some of those less public tattoos." There's that smile, lopsided and teasing, as she backs away and moves to turn.
A laugh, as Cardinal snags the jacket off the chair's back and drapes it over one shoulder. "I'll show you mine," he teases, heading for the door himself, "If you show me yours."
That makes another laugh, though Gillian slows down enough to look over at him as he comes closer to the door. "Going to need more than one drink for that, I think," she adds on, before opening the door first this time and holding it as she passes through.
"I'll take that as a challenge," Cardinal replies with a grin, stepping through with her, and to the night beyond.