Participants:
with Brenda
| Scene Title | Coincidence or Fate? |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | When the worlds are so close, is it any wonder that familiar faces and names pop up? |
| Date | November 12, 2011 |
Isabelle's Lucky Lady
It’s always hard to tell what time of day it is down in the The Hub and that doesn’t really matter because it’s always drinking time when it’s the end of the world.. Again. Lucky Lady is near empty at the moment, tucked away in a corner in The Hub people came for the moonshine and to stare at the two bartenders, one of them being the owner. There are candles lighting the small room up, mismatched chairs and a couple bar stools are all that there is to sit on or a box or crate. There’s a radio that plays mostly static in the corner.
Brenda sits at the bar, clearly not working but laughing as she knocks back the last of her moonshine expertly. She grunts and slams the glass down on the table, “Goddamnit, you made this a tad bit weaker girl.” Brenda’s usual pink or multi color dye job has faded to it’s blonde natural coloring something she’s not really that happy about but she’s alive so there’s that. The young woman holds her glass out and shakes it in the direction of her friend and boss. “Come onnnnn I worked the past two days, you owe me.” Cuz she sure as hell ain’t paying her, though you could say Brenda tagging along here to the Hub was payment enough, for life. “Just like, fill it up over the rim,” Green eyes meet blue ones as Isabelle Ashford laughs and swipes the glass from her long time friend and partner in business.
“You’re gonna be dry humping K-Mart’s leg in under an hour. Drink slow,” her blue eyes crease in laughter as she slides a really full glass over to Brenda who grins and winks over at Izzy, “That’s more of your department. But that Ruiz.. or hell even Edward. I bet he knows exactly where to touch. With his noggin and all.” Isabelle roars with laughter at her friends and slams her hand on the bar before taking a sip of her own glass of the clear liquor. Choking, she wipes her lips with the back of her hand. A shiver still passes over her body, being negated sucks. She feels the cold now but dying sucks even more so, Brenda loses her pink locks and Izzy’s nipples get hard now but they are alive.
The raucous laughter is actually something of a surprise to the buzz-cut blonde who steps in the door. The rumors have abounded for nearly a week about the newcomers, but until now, this one hasn’t found her way to the watering hole. Elisabeth looks around and pauses, her eyes falling on two faces that she knows very well. The last time she and Brenda laughed together, it was because Brenda had papered Abby’s bar in fornication wallpaper. Naked people! On her walls! Abby’d nearly had a heart attack, and the memory brings the first genuine chuckle of amusement Liz has had since her arrival.
When her eyes fall on the other woman, though, there’s a flicker of wariness. She and Isabelle only met one time — And the woman had burned Peter Pan, AKA Baxter. The only thing she really knew about the woman was her power set and that she’d been a lover of Richard’s. And that she had sent Izzy to Moab. Thank God for small favors, in this timeline her analog died before any of that happened… so she won’t get her ass roasted over an open flame today.
Clearing her throat, she makes her way toward the bar. “Afternoon,” she greets quietly.
The laughter dies off as Brenda and Isabelle turn to look at the newcomer. Brenda’s eyes raise and she tilts her head. “Ah. One of those new guys?” She looks suspicious and leans back, “You not gonna get us sick are ya Honey?” To which Isabelle snaps a dirty towel at the blonde bartender. “Ow!” Brenda rubs her arm where it struck. As Isabelle shakes her head with a roll of her eyes.
“Use your brain B, Ed might have not let them in correct?” She throws that question to Liz as well with a raise of an eyebrow thrown her way too behind Brenda’s back. People are scared enough as it is, this be the signal to say something like Naw Honey we’re all good.
“Name’s Isabelle, this worry wart is Brenda.” The brunette woman makes a gesture to Elisabeth to sit on the other stool. “Drinks on the house for a newcomer.” Drinks on the house for just about everyone if you have nothing to barter with. Her half lidded gaze studies the blonde woman she doesn't know.
Taking in her appearance, nope doesn't know her. You can never be too sure.
Elisabeth immediately reassures Brenda, even as Isabelle answers. “Definitely not,” she tells them. “No chance that I can get you sick.” She moves to join them, sliding onto the stool, and she smiles just a little. “Much obliged. My trade options are pretty limited. Unless you need an occasional bouncer.” She looks around the place. “Or you want a singer. That I could manage.”
She offers her hand. “Liz,” she tells Izzy and Brenda. “Real nice to meet you both. And a drink would be… most welcome.”
It’s a strange juxtaposition of faces and places for her… Abby knew Isabelle, worked for her. Liz knew Brenda. But no one here knows her. And that, for now, is how she’d like to keep it. At least for a little while longer. “So… what’s good? The moonshine, the boiled piss in the jar, or the distilled mud puddle?” she asks with a grin.
Brenda relaxes at Izzy and Liz’s instance that there will be no sickness spread. “Alright well new faces make you nervous ya know, after Tanya..” the blonde looks sad at the thought of their fallen friend. “We let a new guy into our our hideout. Tanya thought he was a nice soul, he was. But he was sick.” Her lips press into a grim line and Isabelle lays a hand on her arm and squeezes with a sad expression on her face. She's angry, but that's just what Izzy’s been running on nowadays. Pure anger. And wanting to keep Brenda safe.
“I'm sure Liz has just as many tough stories as we do,” there's a sound of liquid being poured into a glass and it's slid over the surface of the bar to Liz. The stuff isn't good but it will do the trick. “To new faces? That won't get us all killed.” A wink is given to Liz and Brenda as she cheers them both and takes a deep gulp from the moonshine. The glass is half empty and she slams it on the counter top her eyes widening and her mouth hanging open. “Shiver my tiddies woo!”
Brenda chokes down more of the stuff with a grin and licks her lips. “Man.. we need a goddamn jukebox. You should let Liz sing sometime.” Anything to stop the resident poet Jerry from droning on and on again.
“Jerry likes to read aloud Edgar Allen Poe,” the pyrokinetic offers to Elisabeth with a shrug of her shoulder and a glare in her eyes. “If I could just..” she reaches a hand out and closes a fist but chuckles. “You know not having our abilities down here can be really off putting.” She rubs a hand over her arm to get more warmth in there. She's never had that problem before, it's partly why she drinks so much. Keep the belly warm.
“Where are you from Liz?”
As she belts down the drink, Elisabeth visibly shudders. The burn rips down her throat and through her guts like fire, ironically enough. But damn it’s got a kick. Shaking her her head briefly and blowing out a ‘whoo!’ breath, she wheezes a little as she answers, “Everywhere, seems like. There’s noplace left that has a name. Not really.” Which is the truth, from a certain point of view. “But hey… I need to earn my keep somehow. If getting Jerry off your stage a couple nights a week will do it, I’m in.” She grins a little bit. Liz has no intention of settling in for the long haul, but… we all know what the road to Hell is paved with.
She is, however, sorry to hear about Tanya. She vaguely remembers the other woman as being Brenda’s friend — she didn’t know her well, though. “I’m sorry about your friend,” she tells the women sincerely. “It’s a shitty thing, when someone risks others like that.”
“Please!” both women scream in unison and crack up laughing. “If I have to hear Poe again I'll sit on Jerry’s face to take one for the team, shut him right up.” Brenda snorts into her glass as Izzy howls, her blue eyes wide at her friend. “You..” she chokes and takes another sip of the moonshine which doesn't exactly clear her throat. “You slut.”
Waving a hand towards Liz, Isabelle shakes her head. “We’re a bit rambunctious. Ed likes to keep us in the back.”
“Yea Backdoor.”
“Brenda! Jesus. Didn't you just get laid?”
“His dick was a metaphor I don't know Iz.”
Isabelle snickers cracks up and looks over at Liz with blue eyes. Liz seems friendly enough, she can sing. That's a lot of points in Isabelle’s book. And maybe she's just in a good mood today.
Nobody has gotten punched in the mouth yet. “So.. you're a New Yorker?” No blinking.
“Born and bred,” Elisabeth agrees with Izzy, unable to help herself as she laughs along with the raunch. Abby hung out with these ladies? Wow. The mental image boggles her, but it brings back so many good memories. Tipping her glass to the girls, Liz admits, “I like the people who keep to the back and the shadows. They tend to be a hell of a lot more honest in their dealings.” She throws back a swallow and holds her glass out. “May I?”
Drily, she adds, “Just be careful where you take one for the team. Who knows what-all will get passed around down here in the bowels.”
Tipping the large bottle of moonshine over to fill Liz’s glass again Isabelle nods. “That's what I like to hear.” Izzy clinks glasses with Liz again and takes a sip this time, licking her lips and sucking her teeth she regards Liz carefully her blue eyes alight the flames reflecting off of them. She cracks a wide grin and nudges Brenda with her elbow, “Yea no herpes passing around B.”
“It was a hair bump thank you very much.”
“How in the hell did you survive out there? Can you make force fields or something?” Iz looks intently at Liz, she loves a good survival story. Isabelle had at first taken to burning the air around her and her friends like an airlock. That didn't last forever.
“Nah,” Elisabeth replies, taking a slower sip this time. She can’t afford to screw up and talk too much. “Would you believe me if I said we actually found some crazy asshole’s fallout shelter with its own filtration system and stocked and everything, and just locked the door for a couple years?” Shaking her head. “Stupid luck to know a doomsday prepper in the middle of New York City.” She shrugs. “Eventually, though…” Gotta come out of your hole, right? If Elisabeth is lying, it’s definitely not easy to tell. ANd she’s sure Jaiden will forgive her for claiming she stayed at his place for two years. It’s what he was prepping FOR, after all.
“Lucky duck.. ducks.” Isabelle nods her head and takes another sip of her drink before throwing another look Liz’s way and smiles. “Boyfriend yay along with you? Girlfriend?” she's not saying…. You're a lesbian if your hair is short or anything, you just never know nowadays.
“Watch out Richard and K-Mart aren't enough for Isa,” Isabelle sighs and flares over at Brenda. “I am innocent.” She really is. “I'm just trying to get to know our new blondie buddy here, she might be replacing you.” Izzy sticks a tongue out and Brenda reaches over to swipe at her face the pyro leaning backwards with a sinister grin on her face.
There is a disgusted snort. “Definitely NOT my boyfriend. I'd rather eat glass,” Liz retorts in a scathing tone. But it takes every bit of control she has not to inhale the sip of alcohol she just took when Brenda speaks. Swallowing it down hard, the blonde tilts her head and seems thoughtful. “K-Mart? Yeah… I guess I could see that. Cleaned up a bit, he's probably cute enough. And hell, long as he's good in the sack…” She grins a bit.
And all the while, her brain is moving a million miles a second. Richard. It makes her heart hurt. But…Before Irving. Before the bridge and Staten. Before the 36. Because she knows what he was like when she met him in her timeline. Had she ever arrested him when she was a cop the first time? She doesn't think so…
She takes another swallow of her drink. “If you want him, you can have him,” she tells Izzy about Magnes. “But I wouldn't advise it.”
“That bad?” Izzy and Brenda laugh together and Isabelle smiles at Brenda, “Send him Brenda’s way, she takes about anything.” Another jab, these two are like sisters.
Isabelle’s eyebrows raise as Liz mentions K-Mart and him cleaning up. Aha, she knew K-Mart from before… It's not that Isabelle doesn't trust anybody. But she doesn't trust anybody. She laughs again covering that eyebrow raise as the prelude to a snort. “He's cute enough when he's not whiny.” She leers with a waggle of her eyebrows and arches her back, speaking of stretching.
She lifts her arms above her cracking her neck and shoulder joints with audible pops. “What's the name of your Not Boyfriend? It'll be fun to creep him out by saying his name when I see him.” Izzy cracks a smile towards Brenda. They like to play games, it gets boring down here.
“Magnes,” Elisabeth tells the women, swallowing a little more of the swill we’re calling liquor here. She notes the way they are talking, and she didn’t really expect much different. What she knew of Isabelle was that she was a cut-up of the first order. And she already knew that about Brenda. But… if they’re going to be here a while, they’re going to have to figure out some way to do it.
“K-Mart’s the one who found us out there,” Liz says. “I guess we should be really grateful for that. Figuring out where the hell to hide and how to NOT get sick would have been a real bitch.”
That name causes both women to stop. Brenda looks nervously towards Isabelle before adding, “Did you say Magnes? As in Magnes Varlene?”
Isabelle’s eyes flash as her grip tightens on her glass of moonshine staring ahead purposefully not looking towards Liz. If she wasn't negated that hand holding the cup might have burst into flames. But she is not and it's lucky for everyone in the bar that she is negated. “We thought he was dead.” Izzy doesn't like to think about dead friends.
The bar owner tips the rest of the moonshine into her mouth and holds the liquid in her mouth. Eyes closed as she thinks. She swallows the moonshine down after a few seconds but remains quiet. “I haven't seen Mags.. in..” Izzy places the glass down gently on the bar and grips the sides of the bar. “It's been a long while.” There's moisture at the corner of her eyes but if anyone were to make mention of it they would get punched in the face.
“I'm.. very happy to hear he's alive.” It's probably the best news that Isabelle has gotten in a long time.
There's a lull of discussion before Brenda adds, “He has a unique way of doing things so I hope he doesn't get us all killed!”
Shit. Shit, shit, shit! Elisabeth had no idea that these women would have known Magnes from before the virus, and therefore might have reason to believe that her story is a lie. Swallowing hard, the blonde makes a point of taking a long drink and observing, “Try living nearly two years in the same place with him. TALKING all the time.” She smiles a little, though. “I’m sure he’ll be thrilled to know that some of his friends made it and remember him.” She’ll need to warn him about them, so he doesn’t slip.
It’s going to be a hell of an interesting time around here with the more people who recognize either of them.