Checking In

[Swami M]

Rostam pauses for a long moment outside the club. One more time he digs into a pocket, pulls out a wrinkled flyer and studies it. "THE JAZZ ASSASSINS. LIVE. ONE NIGHT ONLY. AT THE BLUE NOTE." But he's not here for the show. He'd be a day late for that anyway. What interests him is the coded message embedded in the poster's text, words that can't be seen by mundane eyes... He's been in town long enough to find a place and even get a lead on a job. Now there's other business to attend to. He's already felt the occasional flicker of mantles and noticed a few intent and unfriendly stares. New in town. And unknown. That's going to be a problem. He's less than eager to jump into the tangled politics of another Freehold, but he's lived among Changelings long enough to know that in their world the old Japanese proverb applies. "The nail that sticks out gets hammered down." He's already seen the advertisements... both mundane and otherwise... for the Quicksilver Gate. But first things first... Maybe the Winter Court here will be more willing to stand up for its own. Maybe.

Well, it's not going to suck itself. Time to get this done... Rostam takes a deep breath and walks inside.

[Malcolm Green]

The Blue Note was quiet. Quiet, but not dead. Sure, the clientele was down but the vibe still hung in the air like a smokey after-glow. In truth, the bar seemed to be sighing in contentment, as if it perceived itself taking a well earned break after the success of the night before.

And it had been a success, Green could attest to that: he had been working the door. Tonight he was not off duty. Tonight he had come to relax. He had found his favoured booth empty, and had claimed it. He had his favoured ale in a jug before him. And the regulars knew well enough to leave him be. He was content.

And then the unknown Ogre appeared, with the luxuriant beard, wreathed in the Mantle of Winter.

"Huh?" Green rumbled. Inwardly, the thought crossed his mind: what? Another one?

[Swami M]

Rostam follows the tingle of Mantle to Green's booth. He's a bit surprised to find another man his size in a Winter hangout. Well maybe here they don't let the Summer jocks push them around so much... He approaches and introduces himself. "Hello. My name is Rostam, and I'm new in town. I'm here to reply to your, uh, advertisement..." He sets the concert poster down on the table in front of him. Well here goes nothing...

[Malcolm Green]

Green blinks and remains resolutely still. His mind works slowly, trying to come up with a suitable response, clothed in double speak, but it just doesn't happen. In the end he simply draws the advertisement over to his side of the booth with a single, sweeping gesture.

"Uh. Yeah. Well, you see... you missed out on that one. But there always other events coming through if you keep your wits about you. But since you're here... uh... why not pull up a seat and relax a while, yeah? We can talk about... um... our lives... and maybe we can fit you into one of the events we got coming up?"

His language sounded a little strained, a little forced, even to his ears. I hate doing this? Where are all the chatty spring types when you need em? Where's the Queen? Oh yeah. Right.

With his other hand he offered the big newcomer a seat, eyeing the big Ogre curiously as the tastefully low light shivered and dimmed in his mantle's aura.

[Swami M]

Rostam settles into the offered seat. He hates this part, all of the painfully indirect discussion that is required in settings that are less than completely private... "I've been back in the country for about two years. When I got back I joined the,uh, chapter up in Redding. But Redding... is a very small town. It was time to move on. I've been in Sacramento for a couple of weeks, and I'd like get registered with the club here. I've got a place and a good line on a job, so it looks like I'll be staying here a while..."

[Malcolm Green]

Green toyed with his drink, trying to work out the best words.

"Well... I think we're part of the same tribe," Green began slowly. His eyes slid to one of dimmed lights. A 'Ling knew how their mantle worked and the Elemental hoped the newcomer would be able to join the dots. "Er. The chapter has a bit of a presence at the Quicksilver Gate. It gets a bit crowded up there, though. Hard to speak easily, if you know what I mean." He raised his jug and quaffed his ale. "If you're sincere about the work and job stability... why not stop by here a bit more. Become a regular, you know. Its a quiet club but you never know who turns up. Maybe you'll meet a right regal ice queen..." He smiled as if he was making a private pun or joke.

Setting down his beer, he waited for the Ogre to reply. In an attempt to look less conspicuous, Green toyed with the poster a bit, like he was looking at it.

"Can I get you a drink, friend?" All of a sudden, the Elemental remembered they were in a bar.

[Swami M]

"Just coffee please. Thanks." Rostam glances around the club. "Yeah, I'm definitely into winter sports. And this looks like a nice place. I could see myself hanging around here quite a bit. But is there anything else I need to do? Appointments to make? Anyone in particular to see? I know some chapters are very... particular... about independents in their territory. I just want to be sure we're all on the same page..."

[Malcolm Green]

Green frowned. "Coffee? Well sure..." He sounded dubious but went ahead and did his best to acquire a pot.

Continuing their conversation, Green tugged at his beard. "Well... ah... Quicksilver Gate has a certain reputation as a preferred meeting place for the... uh... in crowd, you know? Kind of the in thing to go and be seen there. I don't think much of the place myself, but there it is. A bit too... open... if you take my meaning. But if you keep your wits about you, you'll learn where to go and how to fit in. And most of all, you'll know when the big party's are due. There is one every season." He let the weight fall on his last few words.

"As for things to do first? Hmmm. Thats a tough one, yeah? But if you like spicing your crib with a few trinkets of guaranteed vintage, you can't go past Treasured. Seriously, its probably the first thing to do. I know the owner. Bit of an ice queen but she never misses a thing. She's in the know. So. If you catch her in the right mood you might find a way in, yeah?"

[Swami M]

Rostam sips at his coffee. He's... had better. Serves him right for ordering coffee at a bar this time of the afternoon. It's probably been stewing in the pot since this morning... "I will definitely check those places out. Thanks for the tips. So how long have you been in the city? Are there many more winter sports enthusiasts around?" He's not sure if there's really much more to say, but a certain level of smalltalk is expected in situations like this. If he's lucky, he might even learn something...

[Malcolm Green]

"Handful. Maybe two. Hard to tell. A lot of winter sports enthusiasts are loners who keep their thrills to themselves, you know?" A faint smile was etching itself onto the mountan's features.

He was starting to enjoy this.