Demiurge says "Okay. You pull out of there at high speed with Tania."
Daimon does not swear. He does give her a shining grin, and says, "Hey, I've picked out a nice resturant."
She grins, hopefully. "Cool. Hey, that friend of yours had _neat_ hair. Lovely red."
Daimon says, "Oh, I just met her while I was waiting for you."
She blushes. "Cool. So where's the restaurant?"
Daimon names the name of the cushy, artsy, Kaffeeklatsch. "Just around the corner."
She says, "Ooh! Wonderful. I know that place."
Daimon says, "Oh, cool." Daimon drives at a more calm manner, looking for a parking spot.
She looks nervous. "Oh, and we had a _Burglary_ last night. They killed Props."
Daimon turns at looks at her. "You're kidding me. First the mirrors, and now a Burglary? This is starting to sound like Macbeth."
She shrugs, looking embarassed. "Yeah, well, they had the police in, and people were using gas on the security guards. It is _so_ weird."
Daimon says, "Woah, that is pretty bizarre. I swear, your opera is haunted."
She droops. "Yeah, I'm beginning to worry myself."
She brightens a bit. "Still, maybe it'll frighten away Victoria - she's the heroine, you know - and then I can sing her part!"
Daimon falls quiet, while he parks.
Daimon stops the car and climbs out. "Really?"
She nods as she climbs out. "Well, probably not. But it's the sort of thing you dream about, you know? Getting to sing the main part on the first night."
She waves her hands. "You know what I mean."
Daimon radiates for Tania's current Needs.
Demiurge says "Roll?"
<
Demiurge says "She yearns after your body, your style, and your ability. She thinks you're so cool.
She wants to be the lead soprano and save the day. She wants to get rid of her spots. She wants
her teacher to let her sing in public."
Daimon wonders if he can do her in the back seat, and get back in time to meet Liz. Ah, probably
not.
Daimon will coolly lead Tania into the resturant.
She follows, with big eyes.
Daimon waits to get seated at a table.
Demiurge says "A hovering waiter shows you to your seats, in a suitably deferential way, and
brings menus and things."
Daimon looks over his menu in a cool sort of way. "So, how is rehearsal going?"
She fiddles with her menu, with the air of one wanting to choose sophisticated stuff but not being
sure what it was.
Daimon picks out suitably sophisticated STUFF.
She says, "Well, rehearsal went okay. There was a lot of gossip about things like last night. You
know. People are nervous."
Tania orders a similar meal to Daimon's, while trying not to copy him too slavishly.
Daimon goes into coolness overdrive.
Daimon says "Did they ever find out who broke the mirrors?"
Tania shakes her head. "Nope. They were wondering if it was one of the gang from last night, if
they got in somehow and did vandal things."
Daimon furrows his brow. "That would be weird. You know, they break in one night and break
a bunch of mirrors, then they break in _again_, and kill some poor guy and spray weird gas. That's
a little too bizarre for me."
Tania shrugs, as the waiter brings across the elegant cool sandwiches and drinks. "Well, it's a bit
bizarre for me too, but, I mean, what are you supposed to think? That we're haunted?"
Daimon picks at his sandwich. "Have you ever heard about the productions of Macbeth?"
Tania winces. "The Scottish play. Yes. Everyone knows about that."
Daimon says "Not the productions themselves, but that they have a penchant for being haunted.
Apparently it even started back at the Globe Theater in England during the original production,
when some poor guy got stabbed in preproduction. Even today, no major stage will carry a
production of MacBeth, because someone always dies mysteriously. There are tales of deadly
sandbags, and people just getting offed in weird ways. Maybe your Opera is similarly haunted.
Does the story have alot of mayhem and murder?""
Daimon says "Wait, the original playwright died a month ago. Maybe - maybe he's _haunting_
your opera."
Tania shudders, putting down a sandwich. "Well, yeah, some, but almost all operas do. The
despot dies at the end. And he has some people killed in the middle."
Tania goes quite white.
Tania says "You're joking, aren't you?"
Daimon grins, and takes a bite of his sandwich.
Daimon says "Even Klingor dies in Parsifal."
Daimon takes another bite of his sandwich. "Yeah, I'm kidding."
Tania takes a long breath. "You shouldn't _do_ things like that to me."
Daimon says "Have you seen a ghost? Any rumors of poltergeists?"
Tania hesitates. "Well, no, not me. My mother always used to say she did, and that it was a family
thing, but I never have."
Daimon raises an eyebrow, and knows that he knows perfectly well where 90% of all souls go
when the host bites the dust. "Well, okay. No more about ghosts. Are you ready for opening
night?"
Daimon . o O ( A Yeats quote - we are all immortal souls tied to dying animals. )
Tania cheers up. "Definitely."
Daimon says "All done with lessons?"
Tania pauses, going still. Slowly she says, "Well, there's always more to learn, you know."
Daimon says "Well, I'd think you'd be done if you were opening! You'll be professional."
Daimon leans forward on the table. "So tell me something about the Opera. The music."
Tania gives him a big-eyed look. "What do you want to know?"
Daimon gets a manic grin. "Anything about the music. The hidden subliminal messages."
Daimon . o O ( Should I fuck her for a score? )
Tania blinks. "Oh, there aren't any of those. It's just, well, music. Vaguely Puccini."
Tania . o O ( Is there time before your meeting with Liz? :) )
Daimon says "There are always subliminal messages in music."
Daimon looks at his watch. Well, we can eat fast....
At about this moment, Symphonic noises begin wafting from the direction of the Opera House.
Demiurge says "Per roll, please."
Daimon squeezes down unnaturally hard on his sandwich, knuckles turning white.
<
You paged Daimon with 'That bit was someone going Celestial, and that bit was a Celestial fight
starting...'.
Tania reaches across to pat Daimon's hand. "Is anything the matter? You look all tense."
Daimon says "I just realized something, that's all."
Tania asks, "What did you realise?"
Daimon says "Just that I left something behind in LA. Nothing important."
Tania says, "Oh. Right." She withdraws her hand.
Daimon says "So anyway.... nervous?"
Tania considers. "A bit, but then you have to be a bit nervous, don't you? Are you ever nervous?"
Daimon says "Me? Nah, not any more. I was a long time ago, and then I realized that the only
person who ever notices all the flaws in a performance was me. I've gotten used to it, actually,
over the years."
Tania nods, eventually. "I guess so. Maybe when I'm as successful as you are."
Daimon says "I'm not as successful as you think. I still work pretty small stages, and I write
scripts to supplement my income, mostly."
Tania waves a hand. "Yes, but people know you. You get people saying, "Get me Daimon
Lightner and get him now!""
Daimon laughs out loud, and almost chokes on his sandwich.
Hitherby . o O ( Asmodeus, for example. )
Daimon says "No they don't. They put my name in a pool with other guys, and go out to bid on
screenplays."
Daimon . o O ( No shit, Sherlock. )
Tania looks disappointed. "I thought it was much more glamorous."
Demiurge . o O ( Heh. Heh. Heh. )
Daimon says "Hollywood is mostly hard work, to tell you the truth. And a lot of My Agent will
call Your Agent, and Our Agents will Have Lunch."
Tania sighs. "Welcome to the real world, I guess."
Daimon says "I think the agents end up having alot of lunch. And Noshing. I end calling up mine
at parties and asking him to tell me my mantra."
Tania blinks. "You're Buddhist?"
Daimon laughs. "No, that's a joke from Annie Hall. Jeff Goldblum makes a very short cameo in
Paul Simon's house out in California, and he's on the phone going, 'I've forgotten my mantra'."
Tania blushes. "Oh. Right."
Daimon says "So that's it. That's Hollywood. My agent gets me contracts, puts me on planes, and
zip. Off I go."
Tania nods. A fair number of sandwiches have vanished. "And that's why you're here now?"
Daimon says "No, I'm here looking for friends."
Tania says, intelligently, "Oh, right."
Daimon says "Yeah. You know, when I went out to Hollywood, I was originally going to be a
musician. I was hoping to cut an LP."
She blinks. "What sort of music?"
Daimon says "Classical Guitar. Can you believe it? I came out of the Harvard theater group, and
wanted to play professional classical guitar. But I couldn't get anyone to buy a demo tape, so I
ended up bartending and playing bass in a band on the weekends. I was in a place that had a stand
up open mike night, and the rest is pretty much history."
Tania listens, and nods. "That's very neat. And it is so wonderful that you just happened to run
into the job that was perfect for you."
Daimon says "Yeah, what luck. I got picked up by an agency, and like I said, it's all agents from
there. But I'm still pretty big in music."
Daimon drinks a little drink.
Tania grins happily, and drinks some of her concoction.
Daimon says "Hey, I am interested in your Opera. Is it, maybe, possible that I could sneak a peek
at the score? To look for subliminal messages and all that."
Tania looks hesitant, then shrugs. "I guess I can't see why not. It's got my scribbling on it, but I
don't think that matters, does it?"
Daimon says "Nah, not at all."
You paged Daimon with 'At this point, the Celestial ruckus ends.'.
Daimon . o O ( Jesus Christ on a Foam Rubber Sponge, they had a good time. )
Tania reaches into her bag, hunts, and brings out an A4-sized score, with many pencil markings
and highlightings on it. It's a vocal score.
Daimon . o O ( SCORE! Who is da MAN? I am DA MAN. )
Daimon . o O ( Worship me, baby. )
Daimon takes the score from Tania, says, "Thanks," and starts looking it over.
Tania sips her coffee, and watches Daimon, twitching at times as he presumably looks at some
part she sings.
It's in standard English, and the music looks quite reasonable, if Puccini-esque. Plotline is:
Daimon takes a nice, long, deep, LOOK at the score.
Daimon can even roll Artistry to pick up them subliminal messages.
Demiurge | Plotline for Fiat Justitia: Young man lives in region tyrannised by despotic overlord,
and falls in love with said overlord's innocent daughter. When her eyes are opened to her father's
injustice, she joins her lover and the countryfolk in rebellion. Her lover is captured, but she
releases him from imprisonment and defies her father openly. He appeals to Heaven to witness
his daughter's betrayal and lack of virtue, and is struck down by a convenient heart attack while
praying for thunderbolts. The villagers cheer the lovers, who resolve to govern justly.
Demiurge says "There don't seem to be any subliminal messages."
Daimon says "Anything weird?"
Daimon says "Strange keys, weird progressions, anything?"
Demiurge says "No, not really."
Daimon decides this is Really Weird. There should be SOMETHING if this was Celestial made.
Demiurge says "Though you do notice that Tania's scribbled stuff around the lead soprano part
almost as much as she has around the chorus that she's actually singing in."
Daimon says "Anything funky about the lead soprano part?"
Demiurge says "Not really, though it gets a lot of good solo stuff."
Daimon sees there there is an angel (young man) and a demon (young woman). Er... guessing,
he gets her to go Renegade from the bad guy (Asmodeus?). The angel is captured, the demoness
releases him, and they get away. Kind of dumb, really.
Daimon takes one last look at the music. Does it transfigure itself mysteriously into a clue?
Demiurge says "Alas, it does not mysteriously transfigure into a clue."
Daimon says "Damn."
Daimon passes the music back. "Very challenging."
Tania grins, and tucks it back in her bag. "It's been wonderful rehearsing."
Daimon says "Hey, is it possible I could get in to see your mysterious teacher who has been
helping you along before the curtain goes up?"
Daimon tries this one more time.
Her face seems to close up, and she shakes her head. "I'm sorry. He wouldn't like it. I really
shouldn't have told you about him in the first place."
Daimon says "That's really strange. You would think a teacher would want his music heard all
over the world."
Daimon pokes her in the Need.
Her eyes go wistful. "Well, when I'm famous, then perhaps he won't mind. He's old, anyhow."
This with the sublime confidence of the twenties.
Daimon is a wise man. Or a wise guy. "If he's old, this opera may be his last chance to really get
out his musical style. You would think he would really WANT to talk to everyone who is really
interested in him, as a fellow musician.
She blinks. "He didn't _write_ the opera. He's just teaching me. His own music's kind of strange,
but he likes it."
Daimon says "Well, tell me about his music. Do you have any samples of it?"
Daimon leans forward. "If I could see some, I PROMISE not to tell anyone. I'm gonna be gone
in a few days anyway."
She hesitates for a long moment.
Daimon says "I'll be _across the country_. He won't ever know."
Tania says, "Well... I could hum you a bit of the thing I'm learning. Just a bit. But you'd have to
promise not to tell anyone else about it."
Daimon says "Oh definitely. Cross my heart, hope to die."
Daimon gives a Big Friendly Grin.
Tania frowns. "I mean really promise. This is important, to him and me. He didn't have to teach
me."
Daimon . o O ( Ah shit. )
Daimon says "I swear to you, Tania, I won't repeat the music I hear from you anywhere, to
anyone."
Daimon . o O ( But I can DESCRIBE it... )
Tania nods, relieved. "Thanks." She leans forward across the table, and begins to hum.
Daimon listens
Demiurge says "Daimon, make an Int roll. It's going to be at a penalty, I warn you."
Daimon says "Oh boy. Can I blow a point or two of essence to help it along?"
Demiurge says "Okay."
Daimon says "Two points I blow. Zing. I figure, the Angels are beating up on the Bad Guys."
Daimon now has 5. Erg.
<
Demiurge says "Wow."
Demiurge says "You make it."
Daimon giggles wildly.
Daimon gets da goods.
Demiurge says "Daimon, the stuff she's humming sounds very, very vaguely like Enochian. It
reminds you, faintly, of the sort of music that usually goes with the Song of Thunder when used
by the less-experienced who have to sing it as well as Sing it."
Demiurge says "Not definitely. But you can hear similarities."
Daimon asks, "Is this going to be sung during the Opera?"
Tania shakes her head. "No, this is just stuff he teaches me."
Daimon says "When were you going to sing this? Just during lessons?"
Tania blinks. "Oh, yes. He's been training me to sing it. I'm a lot better than I used to be."
Daimon . o O ( Gee, is the violinist a Celestial. WHY I THINK SO! )
Daimon says "But when did he want you to sing this? I'm just curious."
Tania shrugs. "I'm not sure. He's never really said. Most of the time we're practising normal stuff,
you know?"
Daimon says "It's just very... odd."
Daimon thinks WAIT A SECOND.
Daimon blinks.
Daimon oogs.
Daimon . o O ( Oh, bad. )
Demiurge . o O ( I love the sound of players theorising and coming to conclusions and making
connections )
Daimon . o O ( Oh, oh, bad. )
Tania finishes off her coffee, a bit nervously.
Daimon says "So your teacher has only been around a month?"
Pat . o O ( I may have met this man. Sort of. )
Tania says, "Oh, no. He's been in the orchestra for _years_."
Daimon . o O ( He ain't a man, Habbalah. )
Daimon says "But he's just started teaching? How long have you been taking lessons from him?"
Tania is getting visibly more uncomfortable. "Almost a year now."
Daimon says "Okay, one last question, and I promise I'll drop it. How long has he been teaching
you that particular song?"
Pat . o O ( He is now. )
Daimon . o O ( So which piece is the Artifact? )
Tania hesitates, her face going mulish. "I wish you weren't so curious. I half wish I hadn't started
talking about this at all."
Daimon says "Well, I heard something quite a bit like it when I was at college, and actually played
something like it once. I'm wondering if maybe I studied with him once. You know, that would
be fantastic, meeting an old Professor."
Daimon lies like the wind.
Tania frowns. "Well, look, tell you what. I'll go and tell him your name and who you are, and see
if he remembers you, and if so, then I'll ask if you can come by. How's that?"
Daimon decides, hell with it, he'll take a chance.
Daimon says "Sure, that sounds great."
Tania nods, smiling again.
Daimon has a hell of a role, and hope it holds up.
Tania says, "This has been so cool. But I've got to get back or I'll miss things. Could we..." she
hesitates. "Could we lunch again? Or something?"
Daimon says "Sure, we can lunch again."
Daimon says "I'm fairly sure I'll be in town another day."
Tania grins happily. "Cool. Can you give me a lift back to the theatre? If you're busy, I can bus
or something..."
Daimon says "No, I can drive you back. No sweat."
Daimon , of course, picks up the tab.
Daimon is a total gentleman.
Tania is agreeable, cheerful, and generally admiring.
Daimon will return Tania to the Opera, hopefully around 2pm.
Daimon says "If not, I have time to burn."
Demiurge says "It's about then when you get there."
Demiurge says "She attempts a kiss on the cheek."
Daimon will take her face in his hands and give her one deep, solid, breathtaking kiss.
Daimon likes having hooks.
Demiurge says "That's definitely a hook/2. :)"
Daimon adds it to his growing collection.
Demiurge says "Tania heads into the opera house, waving. Several of her other friends are clearly
teasing her as they go in with her."
Daimon really really doesn't want to enter the opera house.
Daimon will happily wait for Liz out in his car.
---