An Architect calls

[Jean-Jacques]

Jean-Jacques stands by the wide street and casts his eyes left and right, there is no movement. He strains his senses, there are distant sounds of hooves and carriages upon nearby streets, the occasional cry, the night is otherwise uneventful and quiet.

He turns on his heels, almost instinctively in regimental fashion and looks up at the house, it represents a fairly nondescript property in the Georgian style, made of Bath stone, it’s sandy colour familiar in the city. The front garden boasts a small magnolia tree in the centre of a small well appointed lawn, which is perhaps 10ft square. The entrance is a two stepped porch, set on either side by a classical doric column, whose pediment top provides a little shelter to visitors from any inclement weather. The door is thick wood and painted red, with a golden lion knocker on it.

He walks inside And into a hall which is tiled in black and white floor tiles, approx 3 inches square, which form a geometric pattern.

He walked through the rooms to ensure all was just so, he recalled the rather grand surrounding at Sheriff Dukes, and wondered even whether the guests had actually taken his invite seriously.

Downstairs there are four rooms, a living room, a reception room a dining room and a kitchen. A heavy duty wooden door leads from the kitchen into a small courtyard garden, ,which has a back door opening onto the street. An outside coal scuttle is visible and the place has an access point from the inside to what is presumably a cellar.

He takes a seat in a worn leather chair, in fact the decor is tired and suggests a lack of attention to detail, shelves are adorned with books and loose papers.

He picks up a book, and regards the array of mismatched glasses and small decanter of mixed blood and brandy on the worn card table, and begins to read.

[L .]

"Just stay still and clench with your calves dear, not your knees. Only invalids need the stirrups when you can just extend down with your - Niketas! - extend!"

Aurelia clenched her own legs now, in a panic, the muscle groups of her thighs bunching up beneath her jodpurrs as the distressed mare spooked to one side. Aurelia wasn't sure if the vice-grip around her waist was her imagination of Dukes, or just the phantom echo of the ride here. Turning her head she was relieved to see him still aboard. In a moment of clarity Aurelia conceded that she might have underestimated how tetchy the horse was. Aurelia'd taken an immediate shine to her, for that reason alone. Who cares if a nag bites? Vices were the hallmark of good experience.

They get eventually, in fits and starts, to an astonishingly underwhelming property. Tucked away in central Ventrueland, Aurelia isn't sure if they're even at the right place; then she spots the house number. Aurelia sniffed slightly. What was worse? She won't have vengeance at all - there is no stable.

"Oh no," she mutters tiredly. "What are we going to do now."

The white mare clip-clops soundly across the street, good with her feet despite her abusive temperament. "I think I will call her Silver Linings, after the whole debacle, what do you think? Silver for short."

"I would swing my legs over and go to the door, but it might be easier if you... Could you go knock? I have just had a sudden moment of inspiration."

"Make sure it's that damn neonate who comes out, though." Aurelia bats her lashes theatrically, twisting in the saddle to partially face Dukes. They did, of course, make an outrageous scandal, dressed and sat as they were. Fortunately police seemed uncannily to avoid them, and mortals turned to look the other way.

[Valentina Audley]

Valentina is walking, working women do not take hansom cabs everywhere despite Hamlyn's wish to keep her safe by containing her so.

He is walking with her at the moment and unlike her takes seeing Aurelia astride a horse in his stride, unlike Valentina who halts briefly in mildly horrified surprise. Hamlyn nods to her and bows to the elders, then backs off to allow her to approach alone.

Valentina recovers her wits and heads closer, skirting round the horse carefully and curtseying to Aurelia and Dukes. "Good evening Elder Aurelia, Sheriff Dukes. I see I have located the correct address."

She smiles at them both, politely refraining from asking why the horse? Though her aura speaks it loudly in it's curious flare.

[Jean-Jacques]

He hears the horse walking up the street, and rises more out of curiosity, as the horse appears to be closing on his house and stopping, he decides to head to the door, perplexed at what he is hearing.

He opens the door...

Time seems to pass slowly as he takes in the image in front of him, his beloved Marshall Ney, ridden by the two elders, stand expectantly before him.

Attempting to recover his composure

“Elder Aurelia, Elder Dukes, eet ees my pleasure to greet ze to my ‘umbell’ouse”

He gestures, rather more proudly than the house justifies, to the rooms beyond the door.

“Ancilla Audley, eet ees a pleaseur to inveet ze ‘ere also, please do come een”

[alanwrotethis]

"I'm sure there's a joke about being whipped in there somewhere."
Niketas turns to Aurelia, a challenging smirk, daring a response.
His gallantry falters some when he almost topples from the horse, cursing in Greek. He is easily the least graceful creature in front of the house.
He sighs, approaching the door, a stray hand plucking at the new, better tailored shirt.
"This is friendly fabric, where did you get it?" he asks Aurelia.

[L .]

Aurelia purrs delightedly at Dukes. "A tailor in London who recreates in the style of the Byzantines, though we need to get you to Audley by the next month or I will have to - aha! What timing. Look Niketas, there she is." Aurelia pulls the mare up, who jerks her head and paws the ground in an aggresive spark of iron.

"Good girl." She pats the devil thing.

"And an evening it is, Envoy. A pleasure to see you again! We were just discussing getting robes from you - tunics, too actually. And I sorely need boots. Do you take commisions for Prestation, and if so, do you have any time in the next month? That would be easier than British currency."

Jean-Jaques comes out of the haven, Aurelia presumes, because he prefers to die out in the open.

"The horse is coming in," she states, fixing a very unmoving stare on the Brujah. "Recently, you brought this deranged creature as a gift to my paramour's abode, expecting him to stable and function it for you. Well - I would like the same now. I'm sure you have a room you could cut the door in half for, or turn-over some desk to keep her seperate from us, but visible. I've taken quite a shine to her, you see, and she is to be treated with the same respect as you would me. I have an excrement bag for her dock, so you will only need supply the basic necessaities. Water... perhaps some hay. She likes sugar lumps, I've noticed. And flesh."

[Jean-Jacques]

Listening quietly to Aurelia he quickly rushes inside and returns with a sturdy looking bench

“Elder Aurelia, excuse moi ee ‘av ze dismoonteeng stool for ze ‘ere”

He places the bench alongside the horse and take a hold of the reins in an attempt to calm the animal should she wish to dismount.

“Elder...”

he pauses and looks at Aurelia and back at the horse

“Elder Tart”

“Eef you desire ee as a pleasant ‘Ouse ‘ere, ee should like to offer ze Elder Aurelia ‘ere ze chance to dismount eef she weesh ees”

He looks back to Aurelia.

[Laurence]

Laurence approaches along the street at an unhurried pace, hoping that Jean hadn’t said or done something else in the time he’s been left unsupervised. As he approaches the words that drift to him make Laurence’s eyes widen in horror.

Elder Tart

Looking upon the scene, there is no obvious bloody spot where Jean had been wiped from the face of existence, so that was a good start.

[L .]

Aurelia rounds on him so fast that she nearly got whiplash. Her aura extends - pulses dangerously - but then contracts again, and she is left with a lethal smile.

"Her name is Silver actually, short for Silver Lining, but you're familiar enough with her for the shortened form, I imagine. Since you have understood my request quite so well, I will forgive - on her behalf - the misuse of her Christian name. Don't get it wrong a second time, Marchaux. There is no Elder Tart here. She is somewhere else."

"Elder Silver, this here is Neonate Jean-Jaques Marchaux, of Clan Brujah, to whom you have been formerly introduced and previously domiciled. He offers you Hospitality tonight while you carry my patronage. I hope this is suitable, I realise you have been through trying times my sweet."

It's a task to keep the animal still while Aurelia dismounts, but she's clearly a born horsewoman despite how much she feints otherwise, leaving the Brujah with the bulk of the work to get her off. Aurelia tsks something under her breath that sounds strangely horselike and, with an unfortunate backleg out, the stool goes careening across the street as Silver lashes at it, just after Aurelia is clear of it.

"Oh dear, this will not do. The Elder is clearly agitated. We should away at once, to the house."

Aurelia hands the reins to Jean-Jaques and casually tugs off her gloves, already en route up the drive. "She will be more settled inside. You might want to get your stool."

[Jean-Jacques]

jean-Jacques bows to the horse,

“Eet ees an honour to welcome you, Elder Silver, to mine ‘Ouse, ee ‘trust ee weel find comfort ‘ere”

He then waist for Aurelia and Dukes to move towards the house, then pauses as he appears to be mentally calculating something.

He sees Dukes go in and notices Aurelia remain outside.

He cast a glance towards Where Valentina stands and also see Laurence and nods toward him,

“Ancilla Laurence, welcome ‘ere”

He then walks around so the rear of the horse is facing the door and begins coaxing, like he has on countless occasions, his long time companion into the house rear first, conscious that he should not enter first.

The horse moves through the door, not without some distress at the process, nostrils flaring.

As the horses necks comes t the threshold, he whispers something in its ear,

“Elder Silver, eet would be a pleasure, in exchange for a trivial boon, eef you would keenly bow for us to show zy talent once more, eend also continue into ze ‘Ouse ere”

He makes a motion with his hand, the bends its head and continue to inch its way inside, into the hall way, its shows making a metallic clack upon the flooring.

As the horse passes under the lintel, he extends the rein slightly to allow it further access into the hallway, which is near full with the animal by this stage, with little room either side.

He turns two face Aurelia,

“Elder Aurelia, eet ees my pleasure to welcome you to zis ;Ouse, “