[Sodium_noir] At the Temple

[Liz Oleksyn]

Jack, Christine
Spirit Entity, Orphan Mage
Temple of the Five Dragons
Late evening

"Oh fuck! Forgot about the goddamn Sinclair shindig! 
Balls!"  Christine's expression clouds then
mercurially brightens. She snaps  her fingers.  "Hey,"
she points at Jack, smiling from ear to ear.  "Want to
come to a party?"

“Party?  Is it fancy?”  He screws up his nose, trying
to avoid confessing that he’s never been to one.  “Not
sure my clothes will be good enough.  Do we need
invitations?  I mean, if it’s okay...”  

Jack grins.  “Yeah, that’d be great!”

 Christine's face rumples in thought for a second.
Well, she hadn't had any suitable clothes for this
party either. Until she'd bumped into Mitsuko and made
the acquaintance of her astonishing wardrobe.

She eyes Jack and his 'modesty' blanket.

"Can you drape that so as to be mobile?"

She glances around the small, minimalist cell and
spots a plain robe folded on a low table, one of the
few bits of furniture that seem to come as standard.

"Hah!" Christine pounces on the garment and throws it
at Jack with a grin. "Even better. Come on - I have an
idea."

Christine makes sure Shang Mio has shuffled off out of
sight down the corridor. The old monk probably won't
approve of a temporary 'guest' rifling through the
possessions of an important permanent resident but
hey, the hell with him. Christine will make her
apologies to Mitsuko in person. She tiptoes out into
the corridor and winds her way through the dimly lit
Temple, flickering a conspiratorial smile back at Jack
and beckoning him to follow.  After a few false turns,
she finds the ornate dark wood doors writhing with
dragons and lotus flowers that denote Mitsuko's
quarters . . . and which open easily with a fingertip
push. Christine takes this as a good omen and, peering
briefly round the door, she enters the room. The
lights are dimmed in here too, most of the light being
thrown out by ornate braziers which also serve to warm
the air and perfume it delicately. Something floral.
Christine guesses at jasmine.

Christine grabs Jack's hand and drags him into Mitsuko
Miyana's room.

"She won't mind," she assures him with a grin,
mentally crossing her fingers. "Come and look at
this."

Christine pulls him toward the enormous wardrobe that
dominates one end of the room. "You gotta see this;
it's amazing!" She opens the doors, revealing
Mitsuko's breath taking collection of garments - every
colour, every style, every occasion. Christine runs
her fingers lightly over the long, long rail of
clothes, feeling the different textures - silk,
leather, cotton, fur, vinyl, chiffon - even feathers. 

Jack frowns, raising a skeptical eyebrow.  “Looks like
nice stuff, Christine, but I’m not sure I could pull
off something...”  He searches for the word. 
“...androgynous.”  In the back of his mind, he’s
waiting to be found out, to be caught snooping and, as
a result, sanctuary and aid are withdrawn and his arse
kicked to the pavement.  His paranoia is rewarded by
the clearing of a throat, somewhere behind them.  Jack
spins around to see one of the monks standing in the
doorway, holding a dark bundle in his arms.  At second
glance, Jack recognizes the clothes he’d been wearing
when he’d arrived at the Temple, though, in their
present state, appearing much cleaner and infinitely
better smelling. 

The monk, to his credit, says nothing.  His expression
is calm, neutral and, despite Jack’s expectations, no
chastisement is forthcoming.  The monk extends the
garments and bows his head.  Jack takes a few steps
forward, retrieving the clothes, and bows his head in
return, mumbling ‘thank you’ in Mandarin as he does
so.

After the monk retreats, Jack looks to Christine and
shrugs.  “Well, maybe it’s for the best.  These aren’t
the classiest duds, but I could always pick up a
jacket somewhere on the way.”

Christine is privately looking forward to seeing Jack
dressed and spiffy fine. Not, she reflects, that he
isn't very appealing half dressed and just out of bed
. . . Steady, McAbee! Don't get carried away, here.
Christine grins, faint and self-deprecatingly and
backs off, leaving Jack a little privacy. She
disciplines her curious  gaze to fall on other details
of the room. Seems Mitsuko has an impressive looking
book case too. She wanders away to examine that,
staring at the book bindings with slightly more
attention to detail than is strictly necessary.

 Minutes later, Jack is dressed and the pair are
making their way to the street outside.  He’s very
much looking forward to a night out and the promise of
adventure and potential debauchery, especially in the
company of Christine.

“So... s’pose we should ring for a cab, yeah?  I can’t
imagine this Sinclair party is taking place anywhere
in this vicinity.”

(tags)


(joint post by Jennie and Liz)


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