Who: Rose Hathway and Percy Blakeney What: Random meeting Where: Local bar When: First week of January Rating: PG Status: Complete
The stress of the holidays were over and the New Year had begun. Rose wasn’t the type of person to make resolutions, but she was doing her best to try and grow as a person this year. And part of that attempt to grow was to go out with her friends and get out of the gym more. She absolutely loved the gym and having something to do with her time, but it really left her no time for a social life. Tonight had been a random decision by one of her fellow gym rats that they all needed to get out and she was more than happy to tag along.
The bar wasn’t one she normally went to, so she was also fulfilling an attempt to explore new places. Getting out of your comfort zone would help make you a better person, right? Whatever it meant it just meant that Rose was going to be slightly out of her element. But thankfully Rose was a master at blending into new situations and she was quickly making friends with some of the other bar-goers as they played a round of darts. Unfortunately, when she lost she was sent to the bar to get another pitcher of beer.
Which was where she currently was, empty pitcher in hand, and attempting to squeeze her way through a couple guys and get up to the bar. There may have been elbows involved by the time she bellied up to the bar and set her pitcher down on it and tried to catch a bartender’s eye.
- Though the new year was already a few days old, Percy still found himself thinking on the year that just ended, unlike, as it would seem, the rest of his colleagues. The majority of them were already talking about the cases they were waiting for this year to give them, some were trying to forget the cases they previously had. Percy wasn’t the type to allow himself to wallow in the past, but some things weren’t so simple to dismiss.
The previous year had been eventful, to say the least, even though the most eventful parts only started when the year itself was nearly done. After his intern and friend had disappeared and Percy followed him to California to make sure he was alright, everything in his life started to change. The strange, memory-like dreams that people in Orange County began to happen to him, he witnessed people falling comatose or suffering from horrible hallucinations and nightmares. However, the one thing that stood out to him the most was Marguerite. She was something else entirely, a positive that countered so much negative.
But while he refused to forget what had happened, he refused to stay stagnant. So Percy moved forward into the new year, and that was how he found himself at this bar, accompanied by his colleagues. Percy did love being out, being in a group, having always been a social person, and the beginning of the year little celebration they always held in this bar wasn’t something he would have missed. What he could have missed was one of the newer partners making a complete fool of himself.
Deciding to escape the noise and secondhand embarrassment of the table, Percy made his way over to the bar proper, coming up to stand next to a woman who had placed an empty pitcher on the counter. He glanced over at her and back towards a bartender before the wheels in his mind kicked in. “I believe we’ve met before, haven’t we?”
- All Rose could immediately think was, ’Oh god, what kind of pick up line is that. Please don’t let this guy be a complete creeper.’ the moment the words were uttered. It took some self control to not let herself shudder visibly because she absolutely hated when guys used lines on her while in a situation like this. The retort of never having met him was right on the tip of her tongue as she turned her head towards him and… came up short. He was an attractive man, but in honestly she did recognize him slightly. She doubted that the two of them had actually spoken to each other in whatever the situation had been, but they had certainly seen each other.
The look of confusion passed over her face and she narrowed her eyes slightly as she studied his face, “You have a familiar face. I don’t think we’ve properly met though. What kind of places do you go to?” Way to go with the awkward questions, Rose, but it was the only way she could possibly figure out a situation that the two of them would have come into contact. He didn’t look like the kind of guy to go to her gym, so unless it was work-related she wasn’t sure.
Her thoughts distracted her and it took the bartender clearing his throat for her to realize that it was her turn to order. A pink tinge colored her cheeks as she quickly turned back around and ordered the new pitcher of beer. And then her attention was back to the strange man beside her as she waited for the pitcher to come back.
- Percy quickly studied her, not in an obvious way, just making sure he was remembering her right. Having been around the block quite his fair share of times, Percy was aware of how much of a line that sounded like, but with any and all his romantic feelings tied up in his mysterious Faery Queen, it was the furthest from his intention to be hitting on her. On any given day, he had the tendency to meet a large number of people, from new, prospective clients, their families, juries or just people on the street. Nevertheless, Percy had found it never hurt to forget a face and name if one went with it. More times than he could count, his large pool of friends and acquaintances had ended up proving helpful with cases.
That said, outside of the obvious familiarity to her, Percy couldn’t remember anything substantial. “I’m thinking we might not have,” he replied with a smile. Her rather forward question got a little bit of an amicable laugh out of him. “I do come here more times than I should, but I could have sworn I remember you from a charity event that was held…,” Percy paused, trying to remember the exact date. “December twelfth, if I recall correctly.
The bartender unceremoniously clearing his throat drew Percy’s attention as well, though he was taking her order and not his. Percy didn’t miss the slight colour brought to the woman’s cheeks, but he didn’t make any move to comment on it. “Allow me to introduce myself properly, since I failed to before. My name is Percy Blakeney.” Smiling, he offered his hand, more out of tradition than a need to be formal.
-
December twelfth. December twelfth. Charity event. The words repeated a couple times in her mind as she tried to think back to what she was doing that night. Ah-ha! There had been a charity event that she attended that evening, but it hadn’t been as a guest. It was another night of doing private security work and it hadn’t been too awful of a time. She had enjoyed herself, but if he remembered her from that evening then she wasn’t doing the best job blending into the background, but it was slightly flattering.
And then he was introducing herself and she quickly moved her body, so she could take his hand. She shook it and smiled, “Rose Hathaway. Nice to meet you. And yes, we were most likely at the same event. I was working security, so we wouldn’t have been able to actually interact. I must give you props for recognizing my face.” It wasn’t something that happened much, but it amused her to no end.
The pitcher appeared in front of her and she handed over her money with a tip and flashed another smile to the bartender. She allowed the bartender to move along to Percy and waited to ask her next question, “So, what were you doing there? For business or for pleasure?”
- “A pleasure,” Percy replied amiably as he dropped his hand back down to his side. “It’s always been an asset, my ability to remember faces. But I appreciate the props.” Echoing the very American slang with his English accent sounded comical in his ears, which in turn drew a quick laugh from him. “It might be best if I never say that again.”
Quickly ordering another one of the on tap beers he had grown to like over the years, he turned back to Rose while the bartender moved around behind the bar. “A little bit of both, actually. I belong to that group over there.” Motioning at the group he had just stepped away from, he saw their behaviour hadn’t changed all that much since he had walked this way. If Percy had to make a guess, none of them even noticed he was gone, which was just fine; the last thing he wanted was for any of them to begin shouting across the bar. “Unfortunately, I’m not as young as I used to be and don’t quite find the same amusement in this as they do, yet it’s tradition.”
Turning to lean back against the bar, he studied his group of business partners before turning his attention back to Rose. “And what brings you here?”
- The word did sound strange combined with his accent and she couldn’t help but giggle at it. Especially when he declared that he would never say it again and she gave a very solemn nod, “That would probably be for the best. We will never speak of it again.”
She glanced over to check out the group of people that he had come here with. They certainly seemed like the young professional types that liked to get let loose and get rowdy while at the bar. It made her grin because she saw a lot of those guys out and about whenever she hit up the bars. They tended to get a little crazier than the usual bar patrons, but they weren’t too bad. Percy, from her initial meeting with him thus far, didn’t seem like that type, but it made sense the moment he said it was tradition. “Oooooh…. well I’ll make sure to try and keep an eye on you. Your group is getting a little crazy. Coworkers or fellow friends?”
“And just out with some of my friends. I lost a game of darts, so I had to go get the next pitcher of beer,” She commented with a bit of a laugh as she indicated the pitcher that was sitting on the bar.
- “I appreciate the confidentiality,” Percy replied with a smile. A self-deprecating sense of humour was the key to happiness under Percy’s understanding, and it had always helped him out. If one couldn’t take a joke, he believed, they were setting themselves up for more stress than necessary. Understanding, learning from mistakes and laughing at yourself prevented one from falling victim to them. The last thing Percy intended on letting himself become was a victim.
As Rose studied his companions, Percy looked between them and her. She seemed an interesting individual, and the fact that she had worked security was something he found particularly so. It wasn’t that he thought she was in any way under-qualified, no. With the people he usually met at events and how specific they were about security, Rose no doubt had met or exceeded expectations. Percy always saw people as stories, and he figured hers must be quite a tale.
“That may not be a bad idea. Who knows what could happen to me over there,” he joked. “Both. We all work at a firm together. The rowdiest of the group, if that can be determined anymore, is the newest to join us and he’s certainly making an unforgettable impression.”
Hearing that she had come to the bar because of a lost game, he nodded in understanding. “Ah, there’s an art to that game. An art I, unfortunately, have no talent for. I’ve been in your place quite a few times because I’ve been challenged and lost a game myself.”
- The fact that the rowdiest was the newest to the group made her wince, “Wow. I should have expected that. The poor guy is going to completely make a fool of himself and ostracize himself from the rest of you if he keeps this up. That’s the bad thing about new people, they think they need to make a name for themselves, but it would probably be a better idea to just blend in.” She felt bad for the poor guy because he certainly seemed well on his way to become known as the guy who puked all over a coworker’s shoes.
“And yeaaaah, I’m discovering that I’m not very good at darts. I’m better at pool if I had to pick a bar game. But, alas, I never back down from a challenge,” Rose cursed her stubborn nature, but at least she was able to admit when she wasn’t the best at something. There were many other things she could be doing that she was good at.
“So, I should make my way back to them with their beer. Did you want to attempt to merge groups together or would you like to cross over to enemy lines?” There was a playful look in her eyes when she said that. Obviously she wouldn’t consider the two enemies, but they weren’t from the same group. Besides, it sounded like a lot more fun when you phrased it like that. She had no issue joining other groups if that’s what he wanted instead. She was curious about him and there was a potential for a fun conversation she didn’t want to see disappear right away.
- “I did,” Percy admitted, sparing another glance for the young man currently making a spectacle out of himself. Rose was entirely right with her statement and Percy nodded in agreement. “Some people mistake being unforgettable with making a lasting impression.” Since becoming a lawyer, Percy had seen people like their newest partner. At one point, their behaviour outshined their talent and usually, they faded and eventually left. He could only wonder what would happen with this young man.
Percy laughed. “I can’t say I’m rather good at that game either. Understanding the mathematics and actually applying them are completely different things. Perhaps in a theoretical game of billiards, I would have a chance.” Of course, not everything was about winning, and if a person could have fun while losing, it was a sign of how they handle other things in their lives. “Though I can’t turn down a challenge either.”
At her offer, Percy genuinely considered it. While he would eventually have to gravitate back towards his group of coworkers, he hoped to do so when their noise level and drunkenness began to wane. He hadn’t lied when he commented he was getting a little too old for their idea of drinking, and though this was a work-tradition, he didn’t want to spend the majority of his night feeling like he was babysitting. “If you believe your friends could handle them, then I would not be adverse to it.” Merging or abandoning ship altogether, as long as Percy did not have to sit there like the aggravated parent of a group of hyperactive children, he could still salvage his enjoyment of this night.
- “Surprisingly I am halfway decent at applying the mathematics part to the game. I usually rely on some skills and some luck when I play. But occasionally I’m able to see trajectory and such in my head and can figure out if it’d be a good shot or not. And you can’t turn down a challenge, hmm…, I feel like that is good knowledge to put away for later use,” Rose couldn’t help but tease a little bit. She was basically the same way when it came to challenges. She wasn’t sure if she would ever spend a lot of time with Percy, but this way she knew at least one fact about him.
Combining groups would help diminish the idea of babysitting a respective group. If more people were involved then they would hopefully start to police themselves and he would be able to just relax a little more while still being around his original group of coworkers. Besides, she had a few more girls in her group and could easily distract some of his coworkers into possibly being quiet and paying attention to something that wasn’t a beer bottle.
“I think they can handle it. If not, then I apologize for any kind of fight that breaks out. We’re all a bunch of gym rats,” She explained with a polite laugh as she pushed her way through the crowd behind her and started to make her way from the bar to her group, “So, smoothly move them over to us and we’ll all be good.” - “Remind me not to test my chances then,” he joked with a smile. “Though I could stand to learn a little more of the application.” Rose’s teasing comment drew a laugh out of him. “Perhaps I should have kept that information to myself.” All in good fun, it didn’t matter much to him if she challenged him to anything here and he lost.
Percy couldn’t help but wonder if his party would learn to restrain themselves and act with some kind of decorum if they merged groups. If they realised how they were embarrassing themselves, even better. Lecturing them wasn’t what he wanted to do with this night, so if they learned their lesson on their own, he would much prefer it. He felt as if that would make the lesson more poignant besides.
“If a fight breaks out, I should hope I could talk my friends out of it. If not, I’m sure they would have deserved a punch to the nose anyway.” Nodding, Percy trailed behind Rose long enough to say, “I’ll pull them over. With a warning to behave themselves, of course.” Before weaving his way through the crowd to return to his table, he told Rose that he’ll have them over shortly. Now, his mind was focused on trying to reign in his group, not willing to have them embarrass him or themselves more.
-
"Oh don't worry, I can totally take anyone who tries to start a fight. And so can most of my people, so if anyone starts something then you know that they're not the smartest one in the office," Rose pointed out with a small laugh. It was completely honesty because they would be up against people that spent basically their entire waking day in the gym.
It was also a good way to weed out the more obnoxious of coworkers. "But, I'm sure we will be fine," she assured him of that much before they talked about how they would be coming over shortly. So, as he prepared his group she went back to her group to prepare them as well. She didn't think they would have anything to worry about and the night would go smoothly.