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Kassidy, from the seat he was currently perched on, noticed the doctor watching the crowd. Which, wasn't that big a deal... but he'd also brought three feminine twenty-somethings into the club and was a middle-aged scholarly type. Kassidy hesitated, than shook his head and went back out onto the dance floor - hopefully the Doc could keep from being noticed.
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Dr. Swift's degree was in archaeology. Of course, as any student of the social sciences could tell you, archaeology was a sub-category of anthropology - the study of people. So, at his place in the corner he felt quite at home simply watching, observing, studying.
People came to such places for many reasons. They came for the entertainment, for the music, for the dancing. They came to celebrate, be it birthdays, marriages in the form of bachelor and bachelorette parties, simply the fact that the weekend was around the corner, or just life. They came to forget the realities of a harsh world and to be around others. The came to hook up, for a cheap or easy thrill, or to find someone to make them feel less alone. For good or for ill, they came, not for logic or reason, but for emotion and for instinct.
This was humanity.
He wasn't concerned about being noticed. Sure, it might seem strange to some that he'd arrived with three younger people and simply went for a drink of water while they danced. It wasn't like he looked that old, in any case, but mid thirties sometimes came off older than it was when you were surrounded by barely 21s.... Those who did wonder would chalk it up to money or simply damn good luck. They would never suspect that a pack of predators had just infiltrated their herd, and only to see and remember what it was like rather than to hunt.
After some time he stops his musings and moves once more. He replaces the cap on the bottle of water in front of him, only a sip or two seemingly gone. This place was full of humanity, true, but it wasn't quite right. He hadn't expected them to find the spirit of Bacchus on their first stop, of course, and so he readies to move on. Catching the others' eyes he nods to the door and makes his way back into the street.
A mortal might notice and even welcome the cool breeze on sweaty skin after an hour in a overly warm, humid, and stuffy club, but Dr. Swift barely registers the change.
When the others catch up he nods and begins down the road toward their next destination, giving them apple opportunity to comment, question, or simply walk in silence.
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Claire follows her current hierophant out of the club, the chill air registering against her blush, and looks for eye contact before asking, "Do we have the next location already planned? Please lead us onward."
She leaves the thought unsaid, that You should endeavor to be less like a chaperone next time. It might be a little less off-putting.
Such considerations well by the wayside, as she occupied herself with assuring her outfit was not excessively rustled by her dancing so soon into the evening. That might give the unfortunate impression of inebriation at their next destination.
When the others exit, she asks them, "Are you having an enjoyable evening so far, ladies?"
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OOC
"It's not a bad night." Kassidy gave a shrug, trying to figure out his odd experience on the dance floor. Well, there was no harm in asking a question, though what did he want to ask? Well, better to question the part that stood out the most.
"Hmm... Though, a thought occurred to me on the floor. It's a bit random, but has ... prostitution every been associated with worship? For some reason I can't really recall if I've ever heard anything to that effect before or not."
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Claire pauses in recollection, answering Kassidy, "Some Pagan faiths had temple prostitutes, yes. Do you know more about that particular subject, Doctor?"
She looks back and forth between the petitioner and the possible keeper of answers, but her eyes wander back to Catherine in hope of an answer to her own prior question.
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“Sex has always been considered a form of Worship.” Catherine said with a slight question in her voice. “The form of the goddess was worshiped in temples across mesopotamia. At one point in time all priestesses were prostitutes and all prostitutes were priestesses, depending ,of course, on the location. The Fertility Goddesses, would be the most obvious sort to have them, however it was not only those that claimed Fertility of their purview to have temple prostitutes.”
She spoke as she walked, leaving space for Dr. Swift to speak if he wanted to. “In at least one culture the act of straight sexual intercourse is called. ‘worshiping the goddess’, because of the labour of the man to please the woman.”
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Dr. Swift smiles to himself as the conversation once more turns academic. He nods as Clairegives a brief but accurate answers to Kassidy's question. Ms. Keyes addition draws a further nod.
"Quite right, quite right," he says in addition to the other's replies, "But it might be a touch too broad to say that at one time all prostitutes were priestesses and vice versa. The practice of Sacred Prostitution - or Temple Prostitution - was more common in some regions and religions than others and some areas have never seen the practice." He chuckles, "And there has always been secular prostitution."
Dr. Swift wasn't certain he'd ever heard the 'worshiping the goddess' concept outside of a Dan Brown novel, but that didn't mean it wasn't correct, so he didn't bother to correct that particular statement.
"And, it bears mentioning," he added, "That contrary to popular believe, not all Temple Prostitutes were women. In some cultures men also served at such temples and both men and women may have seen to mixed congregations."
As they walk down the street toward their next possible destinations he spreads his hands. "And it still happens in modern nights. Sure, we don't have brothel-temples, and prostitution is illegal, but both men and women seek out others for comfort and in search of something greater than themselves."
The doctor comes to a stop just outside the next couple of bars on the list. Only a few hundred feet and a street away from each other are two very different venues. One is a classy, looking establishment with a line even on a Thursday night bearing the name MIX. The other is a much darker looking establishment with a rather wide spectrum of patrons, from "normal" nightclub goers to obviously gothed out patrons and metalheads.
"Alright, folks, decision time," Swift says with a smile. "Where would you prefer to continue our search?"
OOC Note: The second establishment is a nightclub named Asylum, but it is not the same Asylum owned by Prince Asa Clarke. (Our wiki has it in a totally different location than this club.) I left the name out of my post to avoid confusion as it may in fact have a different name in our version of reality...
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Claire rolls her eyes at the lower brow (Sloping?) suggestion, but attempts to mask her outright distaste somewhat when she says, "I believe that MIX is more my taste, Doctor. Shall we proceed there?"
Her question is rhetorical, of course, as her eyes and tone have made up their mind, and even her feet are pointing towards the classier location.
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Kassidy listened intently until the mention of Male temple prostitutes. At that moment, a little smirk graced his lips, his back straightened and his shoulders squared; he bounced on the balls of his feet to complete the demonstration of how one preens without the use of their hands. If he joined the Temple, would that make him the Temple Whore?
"Not that illegality ever stopped anyone paying for such a service..." At this point, Kassidy slipped the bump out of his pocket, reveling that it was a wad of money then sliding it back into the pocket and examining the two lines. For a brief moment he thought he recognized someone in Mix's line, but the face was gone before he could place it.
"Longer line, I say."
Draft this Post
