Morningstar Manor

Rhiannon stood in line in the Mocha in a pale yellow sun dress, smiling down at Harvey who refused to answer any questions about the necklace constructed of blue and green yarn woven together, with a big, orange construction paper heart hanging against his chest. Arms crossed, he scowled when Rhiannon prodded him gently.
"Is she pretty?" She asked.
"I hate girls!" Harvey announced, cheeks pink.

***

Smith was on his way into the lobby, still shaking his head about the day at work he'd had. He was a security person - not a nanny. People were so goddamn ridiculous sometimes.

***

Niles sat out in the garden with his guitar laying beside him forgotten as he frowned at some paper work in his lap. It seemed as though his father was in some financial trouble. Why anyone expected him to care was beyond him, though he didn't throw the notice away immediately. Fuck.

***

Declan was up in the hot tub, blatantly hogging most of it as he yawned and attempted to relax. It had been a long, long day.

***

Sterrin was in the mail room, taking her time in sorting her mail from her brother's and Jack's. She really needed to get her own place soon.

Niles was sitting in the Mocha, sprawled across one of the couches staring with an entirely confused expression at the cook book that was open in his lap. He'd been kicking around the idea of surprising Elspeth with something nice and boyfriendy. Someone had suggested a romantic dinner. He didn't know how to cook much other than Cajun food, which he prepared for them all the time. So... Something different? And how the fuck did anyone find a keish appetizing?

Smith was on his way from the garage back into the Manor, tugging impatiently at his tie. Who the hell decided formal dress on a day as hot as this was a good idea? Suits made him feel suffocated on the best day, and that feeling was only quantified when it was hot enough to melt balls outside. Disguested, he tugged his jacket off too for good measure and caught sight of the awesome wet rings under his arm pits from sweat in the reflective doors of the elevater. "Brilliant," he muttered to himself.

Declan was out in the garden, though he was safe in the shade as smoke billowed from his mouth while he talked on his cell phone. The daughter of someone his mother had known had recently gone missing and apparently they suspected the same person that had left the governor's daughter spread all over the City in little bits. Pinching the bridge of his nose, he muttered a series of "uh huh" "yes, mother" and "I will," as he promised to keep a closer eye on Sterrin. As though that were possible.

Drew stood in line in the Mocha, still in his hospital scrubs as he rubbed warily at his forehead. He was glad these scrubs, the rather unbecoming shade of green that they were, were at least comfortable and lightweight. They made days like today, after he'd had an especially bad day, more tolerable. Yes, it only meant that he didn't have to fuck with a button and a zipper when he was ready to crawl in bed, but sometimes you just had to appreciate the little things in life.

Seamus was in the lobby, having just come from visiting Conn to discuss something about the Lamb. Bloody hell, this place was swanky. It was the sorta gig that made him feel like he had to take his shoes off at the fucking door or something equally ridiculous. Shaking his head, he paused at the door to the Mocha and contemplated running in and getting a muffin before he headed back to the Lamb. He'd have to eat quick, though. Otherwise Dermot would get his grubby little dick-skinners on it and he'd never see it again.

Callan was in the Gardens, checking his cell phone while Amelia pranced around and slowly went about doing her business. He'd never understand the mindset of dogs. He certainly didn't play hopscotch before going piss everytime he went into the bathroom, but maybe he was going about it wrong. He waved to Declan who waved back, but looked entirely flusterd on the phone. Wiping at the sweat on the back of his neck, he muttered to the dog to hurry up.

Jude was in the Mocha, sitting relaxed and casual and alone at one of the tables while looking at a test run of one of the new roller coasters they were designing for the park. It was based off of one of the last movies, something about a frog that could dance, but somehow they could never get the roller coaster's safety bars to stay down when it went through the first loop. The human sized dummy fell out every time. Smirking a bit to himself, he contemplated suggesting to put the ride on through as is. It'd be a nightmare in one aspect, but in another...

Smith was an utter failure at cooking, but he was a fucking champ at ordering out. So, when he sat Laura's carton of Chinese carry out in front of her he gave her a little smirk before plopping down next to her.

Everything was chopped, the water was almost boiling for the pasta... just the damn shrimps needed peeling. Emily was a startlingly nice woman and a superb cook, but goddammit why had Laura listened to her every professional advice? She could have bought ready peeled shrimps, but instead here she was fumbling with the damn things.

"I mean, you should have seen her. She was in the front row in her tiny little top being all wannabe teachers pet, but in truth even Fran was frustrated by her," Laura kept ranting about the new girl on tai chi class while she was cooking for Smith.

Anastasia sat at a table shifting through her sketch book with a wrinkle between her brows. Her sketchbook was full of small, intricate paintings that once again, she didn't remember doing. What the hell was going on?

Niles sat sprawled out on a couch, fiddling with his new iPhone and writing a happy song on the iPhone's piano app. Things were good. So good, in fact, that he didn't even notice the pretty, but sad looking blonde woman that flickered in and out of sight beside him.

Isabella sat at a table staring at a slip of paper in front of her. It was a prescription for prenatal vitamins handed to her by her doctor this morning when she'd gone to confirm that the three pregnancy tests she'd taken on her lunch break Monday morning weren't lying.
She was pregnant. She didn't think she'd be a good mother. How could she bring a baby into her life where there would be so many people, like her father and Max, to protect it from?
But oh, a baby. Micah's baby. Smiling just a little, she put a hand on her stomach and tried to figure out how she was going to tell him.

Smith stood in line, staring at the back of someone's head that was in front of him. Man, he really didn't like that guy. It probably even showed on his face, not that he gave a shit.

Bea sat at a table with her laptop open in front of her, composing a blog for her website. She'd made her website more interactive and started blogging, which seemed to be going over well with her fans. There were some bizarre ones, but weren't there always?

Declan sat at a corner table on his phone, rubbing at the bridge of his nose. "Well, I can't crap out a deal for him, Mike. Tell him to call back after lunch and I'll give it a try." He hung up, but smiled to himself. He was still in too good of a mood from last night.

Olivia sat on one of the couches, idly flipping through a tabloid. Things were so different from the times when she'd been in these things constantly, she realized. That was a good thing, though.

Sterrin stood in line, ignoring everything around her as she shifted through some pictures on her phone. She hoped she never lost this anywhere, or at least hoped that with all of technology's advances they'd invent a self-destroy option for the phone soon for when people did.

Drew was in line as well, and he could feel eyes on the back of his head. When he turned around, he saw Laura's serial killer looking boyfriend giving him a stare down. He faced the front again and sighed internally. Awesome.

Kate sat at a table sipping cofffee and countng the chocolate chips in her cookie. This was supposed to be a double chocolate chip cookie, but it seemed average to her. "False advertising," she muttered to herself with a frown.

Rhiannon sat at a table with Harvey who'd decided he was going to wear an Optimus Prime helmet all day. He pushed it up just far enough to take a bite of his cookie and Rhiannon smiled as she flipped through a magazine, attempting to think of an idea as to what to fix for dinner tonight since her boyfriend was coming over. Boyfriend. It still made her feel a little giddy.

Smith wasn't really a 'club' sort of guy, but he figured it was long past time he take Laura on a real date. For all her posturing and feistiness, she was still a woman, his woman, and occasionally needed something from him that wasn't dangerous or a roll in the sack in between their shifts at their jobs.
They'd went for dinner at the Indian restaurant and he'd thought a stint in Babylon would be something they'd enjoy. They could drink, have privacy when they wanted it, and there'd be masses of writhing men and women for Laura to laugh at when they didn't.
Now, dressed in a tight black button up with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and a pair of dark grey slacks, he leaned against the bar and watched Laura watch people.

Laura only had a vague idea of how long she had been in the room. It was always dark, the room had no windows and no furniture, ( and only one very sturdy door. )

It was official. All signs pointed to yes and worst of all, he could feel it in his gut. Laura was missing.
He'd called her several times, but her phone went straight to voicemail. The members of his team that were supposed to be watching her hadn't seen her. Her car wasn't in the garage. The last time anyone had seen her was when she'd left for work on... Saturday?

She'd been missing for two days. He felt fucking sick. They had to have her, and God knew what they were doing to her.

He went to his boss to tell him his concerns, and everyone agreed that Laura had likely been taken. There was really only a few places she could be and he would rip each one apart, and every person inside, until he found her.

Ever since being threatened with a knife and everything all because of Smith and his job, Laura had not known anymore what to do with him. She had decided, however, not to let herself be scared away from living her life despite the threat on her well-being or even life. Nevertheless, now that she was walking closer to the Vine Square from a drink bar she had been spending time with her colleagues after work, she could not help but hurry her steps to reach an area with more people around. She felt a little paranoid; keeping an eye on everyone around and thinking that anyone could be following and stalking her.

She knew that the Vine Square was just a few blocks away anymore, and she would be rid of this quieter dark side street. She saw the brighter lights and heard the noise of the busier traffic from the roundabout ahead, and was already starting to feel more at ease. Laura registered in her mind the heartbeats of three men she sensed behind the next corner, but because she concentrated on the Vine Square looming ahead, she ignored the group. Only a few steps ahead she already regretted letting her guard down, because when she had barely passed the corner, two of the men suddenly emerged. Before she knew it, they had grabbed her arms, and put hands over her mouth to muffle the scream she let out when they quickly dragged her to the side street.

Laura stepped out of the elevator to the 7th floor with her black jacket open, carrying her bag in her hand, and looking grim and exhausted. She stopped behind Smith's door and stared at it without knocking for a while. What should she do? It was clear now that she was in serious danger just for dating him - should she really break it off with him? Would this ever stop?

In any case, she did have a message to deliver. And even though she knew she was crazy for being with a man like Smith, she really needed to be in his arms right now, even though he was the reason she had been in a life threatening situation in the first place. Finally she knocked, and hoped he was home.

The slim dark figure of Laura in black skinny jeans, boots and a tight-fitting sweater appearead at the door of the Mocha, where she stared at the ghastly yellow poster attached to the glass door.

"Like I'd have time..." she muttered after reading it through and continued through to the coffeeshop and joined the cue, only keys dangling from her long fingers as waited to get to order her latte.

(OOC: Easy start... :D)

Kate sat in the Mocha again by herself at a corner table, people watching with a confused look on her face. People were fascinating creatures sometimes, she pondered as she watched a gentleman walk by with what looked like fist-sized holes in his ears. "Why would he do that?"  she said out loud to no one in particular, not disgusted or anything like that. Just... Confused.

Declan was definately not in the Mocha or even anywhere close to the Mocha. He could kill his sister, he decided for about the millionth time since last Saturday as he puffed on a cigarette up by the pool. He hadn't had coffee in days aside from the swill he'd tried to brew up on his own and it was just - not working.

Olivia was down in the laundry room tediously folding a stack of her intimates and singing along with a surprisingly good voice to the Yeah Yeah Yeahs song that was playing through the one iPod earbud she had in.

Smith was down in the gym currently pounding the crap out of the punching bag with a knife wound he'd stitched up himself on his right bicep. He felt restless and uneasy and was snapping quicker and easier now, which had lead to the fight that had caused the wound. He hadn't seen Laura in forever, however he was keeping tabs on her to make sure she was staying safe. Had he seen her, the stitches might have been a little prettier.

Drew was a little drunk, he decided as he made his way into the lobby. He'd had a few Ketel One martinis and while they might look  like pussy drinks - whoa, was he trashed. Smiling at Frank, he tipped an imaginary hat and ripped down a bright yellow flyer that he'd seen other places in the City. "Motherfucker," he murmured to himself.

Smith was alone in the gym, currently bench pressing three fifty without a spotter. It was dangerous and he shouldn't have started it, but he would've felt very much like a Nancy had he been standing outside the door and beckoning big, tough guys to come in and spot him or pretty women to come in so he could show off.
So, beads of sweat covering his skin, he brought the weights down to his chest and pushed them back up again, loving the burn.

Bea was sitting in the Mocha with her sketch pad in front of her wearing a black and gray top, a pair of dark blue skinny jeans, and a pair of werewolf heels to add to her monster collection. She'd also had her extensions taken out and the side of her head freshly shaven, so she didn't feel like so much of a Barbie doll anymore. To celebrate, she was currently drawing such a graphic sex scene that she kept checking over her shoulder to make sure that there weren't any children, priests, or grandmothers standing there.

Niles was walking through the lobby in his black winter coat, his head down, and thinking about heading to the library. He needed to think, to bounce his ideas around and since he currently had no one to bounce them off off, the silence in the library would be good. He wanted to do something for the people still struggling with Katrina damage in New Orleans for Christmas, but what?

Anastasia sat at a table by the window wearing a pale yellow sweater that bared both shoulders and a pair of jeans. She stared out the window, not paying attention to the coffee or the donut in front of her. It seemed she thought more than she did anything else anymore.

Niles stood in line in a gray t-shirt that was inside out and a pair of busted jeans. He'd put the shirt on inside out on purpose, dammit. He'd decided that after the third person pointed it out. He was a big boy. He could dress himself.

Isabella stood in line in a deep v-necked red sweater dress and a pair of knee high black boots, her jaw firm. She'd had a nice weekend with her mother, but as soon as she'd gotten up this morning her father had started blowing up her phone which always put her in a bad mood. On top of all of that, she was going to have to reprimand Sterrin today. She didn't like scolding anyone or acting like a badass, but it had to be done.

Smith sat in one of the armchairs working a Sudoku puzzle. It was a complete waste of time, he decided. He should be doing research or working out or something, but instead he sat here, glaring at the sudoku section of the paper and letting his coffee get cold.

Bea sat at a table in the corner reading through a folder of legal papers concerning her comic. Apparently they wanted to make more Stiletto-inspired merch, t-shirts and dolls and stuff like that, which was fine with her. Someone had even expressed interest about making it into a movie, which made her laugh. They'd have to make it XXX rated just to do it justice.

Declan sat at a table, flipping through the latest issue of Smashing. He'd already seen and been involved in the process of putting everything in the magazine together, but he still liked to look at the finished product. Tugging on the black scarf around his neck, he flipped the page.

Olivia stood in line, texting her boss. Julian had decided a long time ago that he didn't like talking on the phone,  so all his orders would come down through text message. Olivia hated it. She missed the satisfaction of being able to raise her voice or hang up on him to convey her annoyance, but it seemed she was stuck thumbing out a five-minute paragraph that would have taken her 30 seconds to type on the computer.

Sterrin sat curled up on the couch in front of the fireplace wearing a white off the shoulder sweater dress and  a pair of brown boots, smiling wickedly back at Joy who was glaring at her. There was a gentleman sitting at the table in front of her that couldn't seem to stop staring, so she looked in his direction long enough to shoot him her best smile. She wouldn't date him in her free time, but if he wanted to make a move she'd be more than happy to give him her De Rossi card.

Hey Playboy, I've got a really bad movie that you should come and watch with me. This is by no means a way to get you here so I could tell you the result of the pregnancy test.

She actually had taken a test but only to confirm what she already knew. Maybe it had been a little cruel to keep the poor man in suspense over the matter but Laura thought of it as revenge for breaking up with her.

After much introspection - in her case curiously enough it was the physical kind of introspection - Laura finally decided to head up to see Smith. She was relatively certain she had nothing to worry about, but it was enough that they had almost gotten themselves in a very tricky situation. In a loose dark purple sweater and tight black jeans she knocked on his door but she really had no idea if he was at home or at work.

Declan stood outside of the Mocha in the garden, wearing a casual black sweater with the sleeves pushed up and a pair of jeans. His phone was pressed to his ear and his head was in his opposite hand that also held a lit cigarette. On the other end of the line his mother was informing him that his sister was coming to stay with him whether he wanted her too or not. His sister was a grown woman, but apparently she'd gotten in some trouble and needed a change of scenery. Declan loved his sister and they'd always had fun together, but he'd never had to be responsible for her either. 

Smith sat in the back corner at a table with his back against a wall out of habit. One might say that he looked grumpy and they would be right. He was miserable and completely pissed off, which was a bad combination. He wanted to beat the shit out of something, but he'd already pounded the punching bag in the gym to dust more times than he could count this week. He missed Laura. He wanted her back, but how did he get her? He'd pretty much burned that bridge the last time he'd seen her. Sighing, he took a sip of his coffee and glared at the world in general. 

Oliva was sitting on one of the couches with her legs tucked up beside her and her shoes on the ground in front of her, wearing a dark blue sweater dress that draped to bare one shoulder. There was a bag next to her from a Halloween shop in the City and a large photo book in her lap that was all about the works of Alberto Vargas and his pin-ups. She adored retro pin-up art, and she was looking into buying one of his paintings. What better way to make an informed decision than to read up and look at all of his work?

Isabella stood in line with her hands tucked into the pockets of her new, cream colored coat. She smiled at everyone that looked at her. She was in a fabulous mood and had been for over a week now. Micah and her were getting along amazingly well, her mom had come out of her surgery okay, and things were just... Good. Almost frighteningly so.

Having brought his laundry back to his apartment, Robbie decided to grab his wallet and leather jacket and head back downstairs to the pub. He didn't know which way to be or what to do with Olivia, and he felt that a Guinness always provided good guidance. After exhanging friendly words with the familiar bartender over and exchange of a beer and a few bucks, he settled down on a stool and waited for the black brew to settle in the pint.

Laura had not seen Smith for a week, so after another Tai Chi class without him she decided to go up a floor from her apartment to his. She¨put on a black jacket on top of her white long shirt, grabbed her keys and walked up the stairs to the seventh floor on her high heels.

She knocked on the door half-expecting him not to be at home - she figured he was just busy with work, but that didn't stop her from missing him and hoping to see him.