Meredith Delany (band_chicka) wrote in btvsal, @ 2009-11-01 12:40:00 |
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Current location: | Eden, then a tattoo parlor |
Current mood: | cold |
Entry tags: | gwen morrison, mere delany, place: la, sarah varone |
Fixing the Past
Who: Mere and Gwen
Where: Eden
When: Thursday Night
Ben had talked them into doing a surprise Halloween concert at Saints & Sinners for Halloween, but, for tonight, instead of doing more rehearsing, Mere had decided to go out on her own and enjoy a night out. Of course, nothing ever works out for Mere when she wants a night alone. Not that it ever ends up being terribly bad, but nothing ever goes to plan in Mere's world. This time, she spotted Gwen walking into the bar after people watching from the bar for about an hour. Of course, it was late, but Slayers kept the same hours as vampires did. She didn't look like all alcoholic drunk right now, but she still didn't look right, to Mere's discerning eyes. It sucked that two of her best friends were at war with one another. Mere was at least trying to be neutral, although she saw the point of both sides of the argument. What a screwed up development this is.
To her credit, Gwen had steadfastly avoided talking to almost anyone who'd been a mutual friend of the couple. She didn't want to put anyone in that exact position, and figured if someone wanted to talk to her... they could come to her. And since she wasn't drowning her sorrows in booze every night anymore, one bad part of it was that she realized hwo bored she was now. Sure, she had Patience and Marlowe, but Patience was on her honeymoon, and Marlowe couldn't spend every waking moment with her. Girl still had a life of her own too, after all. So Gwen got alllll kinds of dolled up tonight. She threw on a black-and-white checkered, pleated mini, thigh-high black stockings with black high-heeled boots, and a second-skin white tank-top, with a skull-and-crossbones design on it. Her hair was slightly curled at the ends, just enough to frame her face better, and she wore a silver choker around her neck. Trying her best to enjoy the music, she leaned against the bar and waited for her drink to arrive. Hey... she wasn't getting hammered anymore, but it didn't mean a girl couldn't get a beer.
Well, there was no reason for Mere to really avoid Gwen, after all. As long as Gwen understood that there should be very little Skylar and Ben bashing, then things would be fine. When Gwen made herself at home at the bar, Mere moved over to her. "Hey there gorgeous," she said to her friend, sipping at her own cocktail. She had developed a taste for Brandy lately. No good reason why, but she had. "What's shaking?"
"Mere. Hey." Gwen gave the girl a semi-forced grin, not exactly sure how the vampire stood in all this mess. "Surprised you're talking to me. Most of the others in 'the gang' have been avoiding me like the plague." True enough, Chloe and most of the others that Gwen and Skylar had hung out with together had barely acknowledged Gwen's existence since this all went down. "As for how its going.. Eh. At least I'm not destroying my liver anymore."
"Not everyone has the non aging liver that I do, so that's good." Slayer healing could only do so much, after all. "And I'll talk to whomever I damn well please. Skylar and Ben might be my friends, but so are you, and I hope that's the way it's gonna stay." Mere might have been the least likely person in all of this to be neutral, but there you go.
"Yeah. I.. I really want that." Gwen felt a wave of relief wash over her there. "I didn't wanna come to you, because I hate putting people in the middle of this shit. And I figured her bandmates would... just sorta automatically side with her anyway. Chloe hasn't said two words to me. I hate all this... this drama. I just wish there was some way we could just keep our problems between us, and have everyone else stop walking on glass around us."
"Well, that's kind of what everyone's going to do for a while," Mere pointed out. "The walking on glass part. It could always be worth trying to talk to Chloe, if you wanted to. At least then you'd know where you actually stood. Besides, you and I have been friends since you moved to Sunnydale. Nothing's gonna change that."
"I almost tried to seduce you a few nights after everything went down, just to stick it to Skylar... but I knew it wasn't right to use you like that. I hate myself for hating HER so much, you know? I mean, everyone's vilifying her, but no way can it be all her fault. I mean, somewhere in there, I had to have done SOMETHING. No breakup's ever one person's fault." She sighed loudly, gulping down part of the beer. "I decided to give her the cat back. I bought it for HER, after all. I just wish I'd never have given her my heart. But you love and learn, right? From now on, I'm done with relationships. I'm gonna get every piece of ass I possibly CAN."
"I ran away from a succubus, so there's no seducing me anymore," Mere pointed out. "I'm a one person gal now. Ain't life freaky like that? I'm glad you decided not to try and use me just to get to your ex, though." Mere knew that she would have seen right through it. So, now worries there. "I'm glad you're giving her the damn cat back. That's some real maturity, Morrison." She smiled at her. "Do what makes you feel good. Always been my motto, anyway. If chasing tail makes you feel good right now, go after it."
"Forget NOW. More like, from now ON." She corrected. "Faith said it best: monogamy's for chumps. You give your heart and soul to someone, and it just gets run over like a god damn steamroller in the end. I still have her fucking NAME tattooed on my back, Mere!"
"Well, that is something that should be fixed," Mere said. "No good reason to run around with a name of your ex on you." She took another sip of her drink. "Want to go and get that fixed now?"
"Hah!" Gwen snorted, rolling her eyes. "That's expensive, babe. And you forget: without Skylar? I'm poor white trash again."
"Tabs on me tonight," Mere said. "I earn my own money now, remember?" It was band money, but it wasn't like she was paying rent or anything crazy like that.
"Hmmph. Fine. but I warn you, I'm getting it covered with something ELSE. So it ain't gonna be cheap." Besides. Not like she'd say it, but there was something funny about one of Skylar's best friends paying to get HER name removed from her ex's body.
"Nah, didn't expect it," Mere pointed out, paying her and Gwen's tab and hopping off the bar stool. "If you care, pay me back at a later date. I don't care. It's what friends are for."
"Awesome. Let's get this shit off me then. Already got some ideas for what I want to have there now." She hopped up, ready to get away from this place, and enjoy some time with an old friend again. "So... seriously? No chance of any sexin's going on?"
"Nope," Mere said to her. "Fell in love." She wanted to point out that, if it could happen for her, then it really could happen for anyone, but decided to let her example speak for itself.
"Mere... while we're on our way to this place... can I ask you something? And I mean, I need total, no-shit honesty?" This had been eating at her all week, actually.
"What's that, babe?" Mere asked her.
"That guy you sent me to. Kermit the Demonic Frog. How legit ARE his visions?" Yes, she was still obsessing a bit over what he'd told her. And how vague it was.
"Pretty damn legit," Mere pointed out. "Helped keep me from becoming your average regular nasty vampire, which I think makes him to true deal. He tell you something crazy?"
"Dude. He told me there's someone out there that loves me, and the person is closer than I think. That I just have to really look." She scrunched up her face and pouted. "What the fuck? I mean, does that mean someone's already in love with me? And if I don't find them soon, will it change? And I mean, does the person even KNOW they're in love with me?" Gwen stomped cutely, almost throwing a fit. "That's bullshit, Mere!"
"Then it's true," Mere said simply. "That person might be someone around you that might be about to fall in love with you or something. Lorne's never been known for his clarity. Says that being clear would take all the fun out of finding out."
"Yeah, well... it had me wantin' to beat the green outta him. I mean, Mere... I've been finding myself making a list of every freakin' person I *know*." She admitted shamefully.
"That's a lot of green to beat," Mere said, leading Gwen to her car. "Who knows? You're thinking too hard about it. Just keep yourself open to it and it should come. That's sort of how it works."
"I just... he made it sound like someone I *know*." She didn't seem about to forget this anytime soon. "I mean, who the HELL? Most of the people I could see it being are TAKEN. And come on... like its gonna be Andrew. Or Faith. Oh, or maybe Wesley's gonna profess his undying desire for me..." she said with a snort, trying to think of the most unlikely examples she could, just to prove her point.
"Well, Andrew and Faith wouldn't be bad choices, although I think Wes professing his undying love for you is like me...oh wait, never mind, bad example." She was going to say 'me sleeping with just one person' but realized how bad of an idea that was. "Well, I don't think Wes is going to do that, that's what I'm saying."
"Well, I hope not. Because that's way closer to incest than I'd EVER go, dude. And come on. Andrew? I'd break him in half. And Faith? She might be more anti-relationship than *I* am." She scoffed, shaking her head. "Part of me thought of Marlowe... but we tried that already. I love her, but I don't wanna get hurt twice. I *wish* it was Patience, but... sadly, that ship is long since sailed."
"Both of those ships are probably sailed," Mere told her, hopping on her bike and handing Gwen a helmet. Mere didn't need it, but even Slayers could get head injuries. "Faith hates men only and Andrew adores you, even if he's a shaky little nerd. Two things in your favor for them, and there are other people, too."
"I kinda met a girl recently, too. We've been hanging out, flirting up a storm... but she's a normal, you know?" Gwen honestly barely knew how to deal with people not in the loop about the supernatural anymore, and how pathetic was that? "Not even sure how to deal with that."
"Normals can be a bad thing, or a good thing," Mere said with a shrug. "Depends on if it's worth it. Kind of hard to find normals in our circles now. Might make her mind melt for her to learn that one of your closest friends is a vampire and you're born to kill them."
"Bingo." Thank god for their enhanced senses. They were able to carry on a normal conversation while riding on a fucking motorcycle. "Plus she's a singer. Totally different type of music, but... what's that make ME look like? Bounce from one singer to another..."
Mere laughed. "Makes you look like a groupie," she told her friend bluntly. What, Mere isn't really much of a word mincer most of the time. "Still, if you really like her, don't worry about that."
"Well, we just met. Let's see where it goes. If nothing else, she's a nice girl, and probably a nice lay." Like Mere, Gwen didn't hold much back either.
While Gwen couldn't see her, the smile was evident in Mere's voice. "Aren't we just the classiest chicks ever?" When she hit the parking lot of the tattoo parlor, the motorcycle roared to a stop. "Come on, a chick I know is the main tattoo artist in here. Once you get a look at her, you'll see why I'm trusting you to her."
"Good-looking enough to be a potential candidate?" Gwen asked, only half-kidding. Yeah, she was going on about never-again-bla-blah, but clearly, she missed feeling loved.
"Well, yeah, but she's also a stripper covered in tattoos, so if you're looking for that, have at it," Mere said. When she had her bike parked, she led Gwen inside.
Sitting on a stool, flipping through a motorcycle magazine was a tattooed covered girl. "Hey, Sarah! Brought you a fresh case!" Mere said as she walked in.
"A fresh case? What am I, hamburger meat?" Gwen complained as they walked in. She wasn't trying to be grumpy, but this was like the final sever in the relationship. So... yes. She was a tad irritable.
Sarah looked her over. "She means someone I've never worked on before," she said. "I'd do stuff for Mere, but we're not sure if it'll stick, you know?"
"Rather not sit through the pain for it to only not work," Mere pointed out. "So, tell her what you want."
"I want this shit off my back." She jerked a thumb behind her, pointing at the large tattoo. It took up the majority of her back, actually. "The sword can stay. But the name down the blade? I want that fucker GONE. And...." she thought for a few minutes. "Replace it with the words 'I Stand Alone'. Just, you know, smaller letters, obviously. Is that doable?"
Sarah looked over the tattoo for a few minutes. "I *might* have to go over it with a different color first," she said finally. "That's some intricate work you've got done there, though. I'm sure I can fix it up for you. Got a while?"
"Honey, I got nowhere better to be." She sighed, unfortunately meaning it.
"We've got all night," Mere said to her. "I'll pay you extra for the overtime, too."
Sarah shook her head. "Nah, we're twenty four hours, remember?" Only a tattoo shop in LA could be twenty four hours, but Sarah herself liked to take the night shift when she could. All sorts of things happened during it.
Gwen gave a resigned sigh and closed her eyes. This was it: the final nail, so to speak. "Alright, whaddaya need me to do?"