Who: Farrah Spell & Laura Proudfoot What: Brunch in Vegas When: EXACTLY TWO MONTHS AGO because this thing only got finished earlier this week... Where: Bloody Mary bar, The Lucky Leprechaun Warnings: Booze, Boys and Brunch ahead... and some swears. Because drag queens.
If drag queens had a working reputation, it was for sleeping late and generally being late. However, living as another particular set of stereotypes, Farrah Spell also was into booze, boys, brunch and gossip. She already had one of those sleeping off a late night in her hotel room, and so she was hoping to find at least two of the other three on this, her one day off this week. It wasn’t often that she dragged up to go out on a day off, to tell the truth, but she’d seen the gorgeous purple kaftan, an as-yet unworn new addition to her wardrobe, and put it on with a shrug. Why not? It looked good, she looked good, and going off to brunch as Farrah (rather than Andrew) kept up that slight wall she sometimes needed when many of her fans were still in the area. Magical Vegas was not a large place, though it was larger than life, and her boy self could wait until she was back in Manhattan.
While she’d completely ignored her manager’s suggestion to make more in-drag public appearances outside of show related matters, it would be wrong to suggest that Farrah didn’t actually enjoy the attention she received while out and about. One may as well, she supposed, given that she stood 6’7 in the gold, high heeled sandals she wore tottering into the brunch bar of the hotel. Spending a couple of minutes chatting to some of the fans who’d been at last night’s show, signing some autographs and taking pictures, Farrah was in good spirits as she moved forward, and was seated alone at a corner booth while she had time alone with her thoughts.
There had been a small part of Laura that had gone into this weekend thinking that she was going to feel like an old woman, even though she knew she wasn’t. There was just something about being in a place like Las Vegas, as a married woman, that just seemed a little … wrong? No, that wasn’t quite the word. Still, the weekend had been far more fun than she’d expected, especially when it came to her husband.
She really had no idea what had come over her that first night. They had been in the casino having a bit of fun, when she’d just been overwhelmed with the thought of starting the family that they’d so often talked about. She hadn’t been able to take her hands off of him since, which was part of the reason why Ethan was still passed out in their hotel room. Paired with the injury on Thursday, he’d had a very exhausting few days, which was why she’d let him sleep while she’d gone in search of a bloody mary or three.
She was about to settle into a booth and browse the brunch menu when her eyes landed on Farrah. It wasn’t often that the young woman was star struck, but after last night’s performance? Well, she couldn’t help it. Thankfully, Laura was not a shy person, which was how she ended up approaching the queen’s table. “I hope I’m not interruptin’’, but I just had to tell you how amazin’ your show was.”
Not exactly the oblivious type, Farrah noticed the young woman approaching to her left before she got too close. You didn’t get to be in this business for over a decade without developing something of an advanced awareness for whether a person trying to talk to you was friend or foe, but fortunately, the pretty blonde seemed to be the former.
Setting down her own menu, which she’d been using as a fan while waiting to order some damned coffee, the queen turned on the charm, slowly lifting her gaze from underneath her lashes, the heavily lipsticked mouth spreading into a wide smile. “Well, that’s very kind of you to say so,” Farrah replied, her distinctly Canadian tones at odds with Laura’s distantly more southern ones. “Last night, was it? And no, you’re not interrupting anything over here,” she continued, briefly pausing as a waitress came over, levitating a coffee pot before her. “You know how it is. Needs must, where brunch is concerned.”
She could definitely understand that. Brunch was an exceptionally important part of one’s weekend, especially when one was on vacation. “Darlin’ I completely agree. What’s a weekend without brunch, a few mimosas, and great conversation?” Extending the hand not currently wrapped around the bloody mary, the southern blonde smiled. “I’m Laura. Laura Proudfoot. We’re here celebrating a … coworker’s twenty-first birthday. I figured it was a good excuse to get me and my husband out of the house for the weekend.”
There was no missing the slight lovesick look that Laura got in her eye, thinking about Ethan. Most people would tell you that those looks go away, after a while, but Laura disagreed. “Anywho, that was my very first drag show, and I have to say? I loved it.”
Farrah's smile grew wider as she shook Laura's hand, the long, perfectly manicured nails and jewellery feminising the gesture. She was experienced, and subtle enough, to mirror the women she spoke to, helping her cover her true self.
“Well, it's nice to meet you, Laura Proudfoot. Sit down, why don't you?” she replied, gesturing to the seat opposite her. “And judging from his absence, I'm guessing your man is sleeping off the fun, just like mine” the queen added, a twinkle in her eye.
“Ah! A virgin!” Farrah cackled, her eyes crinkling with the gentle teasing. “Well, I'm glad about you enjoying it, anyway. We've done a lot of work on this residency.”
She gave Farrah’s hand a squeeze, grinning as she sat down across from her. “He’s restin', yeah. Between the excitement of the weekend, and the week he’s had? He deserves a little break.” She was still worried about him, after the incident with the brambles, so she was more than willing to let him sleep as much as he needed.
Laura couldn't help but laugh. "Can't say I've been called that in a while." There was a great amusement that danced in the blondes eyes. "Your work really shows. It was easily one of the best damn things I've ever seen."
“Well, sounds like a story there,” Farrah replied, leaning back into the cushion of the booth, relaxing into the presence of her new companion. “Possibly related to the not-virgin thing,” she cackled, waving one of her strong, dancer’s hands over the coffee cup, heating it up again with wandless magic. That was one of the things they needed here, she thought. Better cups. While she waited for her food, she definitely needed the coffee to keep coming and stay hot. “No story with mine, though. Just good old-fashioned worn out,” she replied, teeth showing at the back of a sharkish grin.
Looking pleased with herself, more than a touch of smugness in the corner of her eyes, Farrah flipped the hair that had fallen over her other shoulder, the thick blonde waves now hanging elegantly down her back. “Any queen worth her salt doesn’t do things by halves, honey. I got moves, so I use ‘em. My sisters are more about that comedy life, so they go by the rule of ‘go hard or go home’.” There was another sip of the coffee. “There’s nothing like the buzz of being in front of a crowd and going for it with the acrobatics, though, for me. And to have other people really get into it too? Yeah. There’s really nothing better.”
“The silly man got in a fight with a bramble bush that decided to pop up in the middle of our hometown. It roughed him up rather badly,” Of course, that was only part of the story. “And then we decided to take this weekend, and woo-boy, it’s been an interesting one.” She fanned herself a little, picking up the bloody mary and taking a long drink from it.
“The only moves I have involve putting books on shelves, and lifting a glass of wine.” Of course, that wasn’t entirely true, but Laura tended not to tempt fate when it came to dancing. She’d seen what a veela’s magic could do, and that was not something she was willing to risk (even though she’d never consciously do it). “Still, your energy? Infectious.”
Farrah sat a little further forward at that, somehow intrigued at the actions of a man she’d never met. Hunched over a little, her elbow on the table and her chin propper up on her upturned palm, she replied with intrigue. “The fuck happens in your hometown that brambles pop up out of nowhere? And how big was it if your husband still has the effect of it?” she asked, handing her menu back to the approaching waitress, making a selection wordlessly with a point here and there, eyes on Laura.
She clicked her tongue in amusement at the comment. “No dancing? That’s almost criminal, girl,” she joked, taking in her brunch companion’s pretty face, stature and gorgeous mane of blonde hair. “But wine, that I can get behind.” The queen set down the coffee cup, making room for the food that would hopefully not take too long. She was getting hungry. “You work with books?”
“It wasn’t a normal occurance, that much I can tell you. I don’t know if they ever figured out exactly what caused it. This thing was huge. Blocked off most of the main street. It was almost like a scene from that no-maj movie - what was it called? Sleeping Beauty?” She’d gone on several movie watching binges with Rory over the years. They amused her.
Laura’s eyes fell to her drink as she idly stirred the bloody mary with her straw. “Less than stellar things tend to happen when I dance.” It was her veela side coming out, and Laura wasn’t entirely a fan of it. She’d never been one to be able to control what happened whenever she’d danced, so she’d pretty much stopped entirely. “I’m a librarian. I work on a wildlife preserve in Montana.”
“I know the one you mean! Wanda loves Disney. So do my no-maj cousins, actually, but mama’s definitely made us sit through a few in our time,” Farrah grinned, taking another sip of coffee. “More than one queen has taken inspiration from those gowns, let me tell you.” There was a pause as she set the cup down, contemplating Laura’s predicament. “That’s fucking weird, though, that they don’t know what caused it. Maybe an environmental thing? I’ve never seen anything that messed up happening with the plant life in the cities,” she shrugged, wriggling in her seat for comfort and adjusting her kaftan.
When the other woman talked about dancing, though… there was definitely something there that didn’t sit quite right. Farrah filed it away for further reference, knowing that while she might be able to find out more, now wasn’t the time to push. Too hard, anyway. “Can’t be that bad, honey,” Farrah replied. “Nobody sucks that badly at dancing,” she added, a cheeky grin showing that she wasn’t really shading the younger blonde’s dance ability. “And libraries on wildlife preserves, huh? Never knew that was a thing. The more you know, mmm?”
"It was very weird, but it was fixed fairly quickly. Not before Ethan decided to try and fight it, or whatever it was. I'm still unclear on what happened." She was just glad that he was alright, honestly.
"It isn't so much that I'm bad at it, I suppose. Things happen. Things that are out of my control." Laura looked down at the bloody mary. How strong had the bartender made this thing? She didn't normally bring this up, especially with strangers. There was just something about Farrah Spell, however, that Laura just felt like she could trust. "It's a thing at Brightstar, anyway. There is a lot of research that goes on, and someone has to make sure the books stay in order."
“Well, that's good. I'm sure there's plenty of folks up there who people would rather be in one piece, rather than stuck in some kind of horticultural nightmare,” Farrah replied. She picked up a piece of bread from her side dish and nibbled carefully from the corners, aiming to keep her lipstick in place. “Sounds like it’s more exciting than people might expect from small town America, though,” she added, notably using the nonmagical term for the country they happened to be sitting in.
There was little Farrah could do in response to Laura’s next remark, though, apart from sit back as one of her perfectly drawn eyebrows arched its way upwards in surprise. Now there was something she hadn't expected in reply, and even though she'd promised herself not to push it, she'd be a dirty liar if she said she wasn't curious. “Out of your control, huh? Sounds like some queens I know when they attempt choreography,” she grinned with a wink, alleviating the tension and giving Laura an out if she wanted one. She could, of course, continue down that path if she chose to, but Farrah was nothing if not a good hostess.
“Well, that makes sense. Got to be plenty of folks interested in creature research, eh?” she nodded, taking it all in.
"It can be an interesting place. I love it, though. It's such a quiet little community, but not overly far from a larger city if you need it." At least, it wasn't far when you could apparate. "It's the perfect little getaway, or a great place to raise a family." Something that Laura had been thinking about more and more, lately.
Moving to take another sip of her drink, she frowned slightly as she realised that three glass was empty. When had she finished it? Waving down a passing server, Laura ordered another, but not before asking Farrah if she wanted something as well. Drink orders placed, she waited until the server had left, before picking up their conversation again. "Being half-veela has its drawbacks - especially when you're not entirely sure what you can and can't do."
Nodding, Laura leaned back in her seat. "Research is how I met my husband," she said, thinking fondly back on that little memory.
Having had her fill of coffee, Farrah was now on a cocktail of her own, the mimosa glittering in the light of the restaurant. A queen to the end, even her drinks had the camp factor, and she was quite content as she sipped on it, listening to Laura talk. “It sounds cute,” she offered, speaking truthfully, although she knew little about these sorts of places. “More, kind of… cosy, I guess, than the places I’m used to.”
When Laura made her particular revelation, Farrah made a definite pause before she spoke. Her heavily-lashed eyes flicked from side to side as if checking nobody was listening in. “I understand,” she replied delicately. “Must admit it’s not something I know much about, but I can see why a lack of awareness is an issue,” she added softly.
“Ooh!” Farrah’s response was definitely more excitable in tone, her eyes with a glimmer of intrigue as she regarded Laura’s face. “Never would have thought academics would be that exciting.”
The conversation seemed to flow easily between the two women. The longer they talked, the more at ease Laura became with her new found friend (though it could be speculated that the bloody marys and mimosas helped that along as well). She found herself opening up about a lot of different things - her family, how she had met Ethan, and even just about general life. She definitely thought that this was going to be the beginning of an absolutely wonderful friendship.