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Tweak says, "Mitchell!"

Amanda will steal the shiny things (immortal_raven) wrote in ridgewayresort,
@ 2010-05-05 23:23:00

Entry tags:

amanda, eliot spencer

Who: Amanda & Eliot Spencer
Where: The stables
When: Late night/early morning-somewhere around 4am
What: Amanda wants to escape for a few minutes
Ratings: TBD
Status: In progress

Amanda loved this time of night, when it was o-dark thirty and the world was asleep. To be honest, she also loved when everyone was awake and the world was rushing by. Those thoughts, however, made her miss places like New York and Paris. And Duncan, but she wouldn't dwell on him, not now, not here.

Because it was the middle of the night and it had been more than an hour since she'd rounded up the last of the current guests and made sure they found their rooms, she decided to go for a short walk. Nowhere too far, of course, but she didn't feel like staying cooped up in the hotel itself. Slipping out, she began to walk down the path, her dark eyes idly studying the stars high above. She decided that it was the stars that she liked the least here. They were too different here, alien. She'd been all around the world and looked at a thousand different skies, and this one was nothing like anywhere on earth. She bit back a sigh, lowering her head as she heard a soft whinny up ahead, and realized she was nearing the stables.

She smiled a little and picked up the pace slightly. She'd always had a soft spot for animals, particularly horses-they were so wild and free even when bridled, that she couldn't help but respect them and their power. Amanda missed the horse she'd owned for a short time just a few short years ago. The Double Eagle hadn't been the first horse she'd owned, of course, only the last. She just missed horses in general, she decided.

Without paying much attention to her surroundings, Amanda stepped into the stable and walked over to the mare she'd ridden recently, reaching out a hand to lightly pat her nose. "Easy, girl. I know. It's almost too quiet, isn't it?"

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doesntlikeguns
2010-05-06 04:03 am UTC (link)

There was a different feel to the freedom that came with an early ride. The sun rise was still a few hours off, most of the staff and the guests were down for the night. The night sky gave the impression that the country club prison had no limits, the cool night air, the peace. There wasn't a lot of that around anymore. The questions, the praise. Though it remained unspoken, Eliot was certain there had to be something wrong with the people who were fans of what he did.

As he approached the barn, Eliot pulled back on the reins, bringing the horse to a stop. Swinging down, he led the horse towards the back door he'd left open a crack to get back in. The horse nosed him impatiently, almost as if he was in a hurry to get back to his stall. Maybe Eliot didn't need that much sleep, but the animal might have. "Knock it off. I'll get you back there soon enough," he murmured.

He stopped in the aisle, catching a sound he hadn't expected to return to. Not at this hour. As his eyes adjusted to the meager light, he could make out someone standing outside of one of the stalls. The closer he got, the more he could tell. Female, then familiar, then recognition as one of the employees that he had taken out on a trail ride before the guests arrived. Amanda.

"Makes sense. Everyone's in bed, except the crazy people."

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immortal_raven
2010-05-06 04:16 am UTC (link)

She wasn't concerned when she heard the footsteps approaching. And when she heard the familiar voice, she relaxed, glad that it wasn't one of the guests up and about at too early of an hour. One hand still on the horse, she shifted towards the man, and gave a smile when she saw it was Eliot.

"And those who are working, but taking a break." Her shift would be over soon anyway, so it wasn't really cheating. Amanda studied the way he was dressed, and one eyebrow quirked slightly. "Bit early for a ride, isn't it? Is that really safe for the horse?" Funny, that her first concern would be for the horse and not the man. Though she didn't hide the fact that she was checking him out, as well.

She could have hid it if she'd wanted to-after all, she did have nearly 1200 years of experience in seduction under her belt. Literally.

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doesntlikeguns
2010-05-06 12:02 pm UTC (link)

"They're in the minority," Eliot replied dryly, grinning lazily. That had been his second guess, beyond being unable to sleep. He stopped beside the stall, shifting the reins behind his back to his right hand as he glanced in the stall to see which horse she'd come to visit.

"There are a few smooth paths around here. As long as you don't push and trust the horse's instincts as much as your own, you'll be fine." He reached out to pat the horse's side. "Ain't that right?" The horse snorted softly and gave him another nudge in the back. Damn, maybe he'd found an animal to match him in patience.

He glanced over at her, expression slightly amused. The check out was mutual, a brief glance for dual purposes. Old habits. "Can't be too bad at night. Most of the guests must be passed out after spending all that energy asking dumb questions."

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immortal_raven
2010-05-06 03:00 pm UTC (link)

"True. There aren't too many people who work nights around here." Her hand fell away from the horse, but she didn't want that, and brushed her nose against Amanda's shoulder. With a smirk she returned to petting her lightly, her gaze shifting back to the beast while Eliot spoke.

"I'll have to check them out sometime soon, then." Amanda figured that maybe the horses knew this land better than the humans, since they were a part of it. She doubted the manager would let them get hurt. When she heard the snort and glanced over to see his horse nudge him, she grinned lightly.

"You're right. Most of them retire early, though there are a few stragglers I have to round up-usually those who get too drunk for their own good over at that club." Amanda gave a light shrug. "I like this time of day the best, when everyone's asleep."

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doesntlikeguns
2010-05-06 04:01 pm UTC (link)

"Not too many nighttimers." With the revelation that there were vampires around - that they actually existed - Eliot had wondered how that was going to work. Or if any of the incoming were similarly heliophobic. (Then there was the sparkling. What the hell kind of predator sparkled?)

"Just give me a heads up before you do. The big man would probably take it out of my paycheck if anything happened." Not that Eliot cared. There were enough well to do guests around here that he wouldn't feel bad about relieving them of enough money to stay fed and get a beer after a long day. That and they owed him for all the questions. "Not that I care if he gets mad but everyone else would pay for it. No sense in someone else stuck in this mess getting hurt either."

He started past her, heading down two more stalls to where he could tie up his horse. "The drunks have to be fun. Not many of them have enough of a filter as it is. I can't imagine what they're like when they got nothin'," he said, raising his voice slightly. "Be the perfect time for a staff gettogether."

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immortal_raven
2010-05-11 03:48 am UTC (link)

Amanda nodded in reply. "Oh this girl wouldn't get me hurt. We'd take good care of her." She showed a versatile knowledge of horses as she returned her gaze to the restless mare, gently calming her. She then turned to watch him as he led his own horse to a different stall, and she grinned faintly at his words.

"Dealing with them is certainly interesting. I'm not much of a 'security' kind of person, so it's pretty new for me. Though I once was a security guard for a rock star. Lot more boring than you'd think." She gave a light shrug, then walked over to the stall to watch him.

"Are you thinking of throwing a party, Eliot?"

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doesntlikeguns
2010-05-11 04:24 am UTC (link)

"Any given day," he called back. From what he'd seen, she handled herself well around horses, enough that she probably would have been fine on a solo nighttime ride. It was the resort he didn't trust. After the big man had pulled a rain storm out of his ass that had left Eliot soaking wet for days, he didn't put anything past him or the place. Even on a quiet ride.

"Makes you wonder how many of us are suited to our jobs." Eliot settled the left stirrup up on the saddle before beginning to undo the cinch strap. "Most of us show up here and get handed a job like we're some kid looking for a summer job. I haven't worked with horses since I was a teenager." He pat the horse's neck. "I guess it could have been worse." He quit working at the strap to look over at Amanda. "You must have gotten one that knew how to behave then."

He laughed at her suggestion, shaking his head. "Hell no. I just sympathize. We're surrounded by people who paid to come here because they know all the little details about our personal lives that they've got no right knowing. A little alcohol and downtime sounded like a good idea."

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immortal_raven
2010-05-11 03:57 pm UTC (link)

"Most of us? More like all of us." She leaned lightly against the edge of the stall. "Well I can tell you haven't forgotten how to take care of them." At his comment on the rock star, she gave a light grin. "Yeah, he wasn't so bad. Been around many rock stars yourself?"

The grin became more of a soft chuckle as she thought over his words, and gave a small nod. "I'm not one to say no to alcohol and downtime. Maybe we should do that. Soon." Not that she was implying that they should do that with a large group of people. Or at least not for the first time. Yes, she was flirting like crazy. It was more out of loneliness than anything-though it usually was.

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doesntlikeguns
2010-05-11 04:56 pm UTC (link)

"There's a couple of kids here, kidnapping aside, that probably would have worked these jobs," he replied, shrugging. "Age doesn't matter when none of us got a choice in the matter anyway." He was still determined that, if face to face with this Manager guy, he was going to hit him. If the past couple of days before he'd ended up there wasn't bad enough, the weeks after hadn't helped. Eliot pat the horse's neck. "Guess I didn't," he murmured.

"Not really." Once the cinch strap was undone, he slid the saddle and blanket off the horse's back and headed over to the stall door. Setting it on the door to take back to the tack room after he was done, he leaned against the seat, looking over at her. "Things keep up the way they are, it'll be sooner rather than later," he replied with a hint of a smirk. There was a slight hesitance when it came to flirting. When it came to coworkers, it was a different set of rules. He wasn't even sure how to classify his current situation. But the flirting itself, that wasn't hurting anything.

"So Amanda, what did you do with your time before you were hired to work security at this classy place?" he asked, pushing away from the door.

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immortal_raven
2010-05-11 05:06 pm UTC (link)

"Good point." She gave a nod to concede to him, then reached out to give the horse a light stroke on its nose since it was being so good for Eliot. She then smiled at him when he said the drink and downtime would probably be sooner, and straightened herself.

"Oh, a little of this, a little of that. I didn't have any particular job. I traveled around a lot." Which they had already discussed. "I guess you could say that I usually worked as a..." how could she put it nicely? "An art appraiser. I can tell when something is real or a forgery, and how much it's worth, just by looking at it." And then she usually stole it.

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doesntlikeguns
2010-05-11 08:55 pm UTC (link)

Eliot started working on the bridle as he listened to her. The horse's eyes were fluttering, the animal looking content with the treatment he was receiving from Amanda. A light snort followed. He shook his head and undid the buckle. "He likes you," he said, nodding to the horse. "At least he knows to treat a lady right." He'd given him enough shit earlier.

He slipped the bridle off and laid it over the saddle seat. The halter came off the peg he'd left it on and he slipped it on. His motions slowed as he listened to her answer. Her job almost sounded like Maggie's but the lack of attachment to any one group or establishment caught his attention. He picked up a brush, glancing her way. "So you're an independent contractor?" he asked.

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