The Universe's Mixer

(happens the night after this)

Pam sat in Eric’s office, or more their office. She often used the room for business; at least she had until they came here. There wasn’t much need for it now. The petite vampire was still getting used to that idea. She wasn’t one given to pacing, so when she needed to think or wait, she would sit or stand perfectly still and...wait. There was no blinking, no twitching; she seemed a vampy little statue.

It wasn’t until he entered the office after seeing the woman off that Pam actually moved; actually, it wasn’t until minutes after he had entered the office she decided to move or speak.

“That woman is not human.” It was a simple statement.

“She feels old. And she has magic.” Two more statements.

“You were jealous of her. Of her and the boy.” She finally turned a little to look at him. Her eyes focused definitely on him. “What is she to you?”

She’d gotten very little information about this Baba, and she was beginning to wonder if Eric wasn’t developing a strange name fetish. She supposed it was better than other fetishes she’d found in the vampire community.

( ---- )

Pam glanced back at Eric as she started seeing Beauty, what a ridiculous name. At least it actually meant something, rather than other certain people's names. She had been pleasant enough while Eric introduced her to "Beauty," and at first, Pam had actually thought that maybe something had infected Eric's brain and picked that name. A spell perhaps, but then she realized that was the woman's moniker. Well, at least it wasn't exactly false advertising.

She'd stepped away after the introduction long enough to call a cab, and was soon back in time to see Eric place Beauty back on the floor much like he had put her on the dais. She hadn't said anything about it, but Eric did get a slightly bemused smile with a hint of brow lift.

"Don't worry. We won't let anything too nasty bite you." She said almost flatly as she shooed a few of the curious away. The little human girl had garnered some attention from the tourists anyway; she was a human, and she had sat on Eric's throne! The petite vampire just shook her head and continued to get them out of the club to the waiting cab.

"What's your address?" The question almost seemed as if Pam was just going to drop the girl off in the cab and be done with it.

Fangtasia

Once Beauty got an idea in her head, it was difficult to sway her. She went about her plans methodically, first setting up a goal, then planning each step as meticulously and carefully as she could, missing nothing. Planning had been one of her strengths at home, and it'd served her well when her father's fleet went missing. Taking care of her sisters and father required quite a bit of planning.

And planning is how she ended up in what she thought was a daring dress, hair brushed to a glossy shine, makeup darkening her eyes and paling her skin, walking straight for the neon sign and its awning beside it. She didn't know what she'd find, exactly, once she went through those doors. But she knew that this is where she needed to be to have the best chance at finding Eric.

After thorough research at the library, and not a few magazines and books, Beauty thought she knew how to achieve her goal. The first thing she did was pick a mark, someone she was sure had no intentions toward her (even though Baba seemed to think otherwise). The second was to find out what he liked. If he owned Fangtasia, then he must like it. She learned more than she cared to know about nightlife, then shopped until she found the dress she was wearing now. The third step was to find and engage Eric, then use the advice she'd learned from her research at the library.

Fangtasia.

Lestat told her once that she should never go here. She hoped that he was wrong.

Hannibal had been curious about the bar named Fangtasia since it arrived. The flyer for it had stated it was a vampire friendly bar. He had no doubt that Lestat had already explored this place, the vampire wouldn't have let his curiosity slide as long as Hannibal had. He had no real excuse for waiting, he just had.

Baba's mention of an old vampire had whet his interest further, and finally Hannibal's curiosity was just too overwhelming to let it go. He did try to call River to see if she would like to explore as well, but he only got voicemail, and realized that she was probably off dancing. He didn't want to interrupt that, he knew how much it meant to her.

So he was off to the bar on his own. It would be his first step in exploration. There was, after all, still Caritas and The Roadhouse to experiment with as well. He'd yet to hear much about the latter, but if he was going to one, he might as well do all three. Caritas boasted a green demon, from what he'd heard. And something about karaoke.

The building itself was red, with no windows at all. On one wall was a big red neon sign reading Fangasia, which he supposed looked fairly gaudy during the day. The door was thick glass that Hannibal couldn't see through even in the smallest way. There was a line outside, almost to the street. That he hadn't expected. There seemed to be somebody standing outside, under the red awning, deciding who could go in and who could not.

Hannibal thought of somebody else who might be interested in being here. Not because she hadn't been already, but because she would appreciate seeing his reactions. He could picture her teasing and playing with him while he inspected this new world around him. She had told him how best to get a hold of her when they'd made the sacrifice to work her spell on the City.

Putting his thumb to his mouth and using the edge of his eye teeth, Hannibal bit until he drew blood. He let it drip onto the concrete, perhaps an unwise choice in front of a vampire bar, but he didn't care. Doing this, he thought her name, and thought of where he was, and that he would like to see her.

The dress was the usual vamp vamp. She didn’t feel ridiculous in it; it was just another outfit. She’d get to wear her more comfortable clothes once her shift was done; plus, she had to things to do at the bar. Business. She had a mind for it, even if her father hadn’t thought that way so long ago. There were times she actually thought about him and how very odd he’d find her life, even if she weren’t a vampire. Then again, if she weren’t a vampire, she’d be dead, or deader than she already was.

Pam gave a slightly fangy hiss at some silly human, then had to stop herself from rolling her eyes as the silly thing squealed and pointed. She would have been happier if the squeal wasn’t a sound of joy. Well, in this case anyway. She liked it when her food when it actually understood she could hurt it, or them.

She’d noticed that the bar felt a little strange; the humans were..docile. They felt off. She glanced around the main room. Something didn’t work. She hadn’t expected to see Eric at the throne, as it wasn’t his night, but she would have felt more comfortable to see him there, ( feeling just as bored as she. )