#vitalphenomena: kennedy.

[choicescreen]

@vitalphenomena

a purposefully slow sip is taken, another hard-to-beat habit of appearing human. it would be entirely unbecoming to guzzle the stuff, anyway, even if he did love the bubbles, the taste as it went down, the warmth it left in his belly.

"anthony serves every meal as if it were the last supper. don't let him discourage you. let me know what you think."

[gildedlife]

‘ wearying. ’ he answers too readily and embarrasses with it, his chin and gaze jumping back up like he’s startled himself and wants to head his dramatics off at the pass. he narrows his eyes to wrinkling before the smile comes, which is as good an indication as any that it’s somewhat forced.

it’s for her, this warmth. he doesn’t mind if she knows it. she deserves to have an effort made.

‘ i was very good at it before, ’ he says, scratching his eyebrow and looking at the floor, as if too focused on recalling this memory to take in any more complex visual information. ‘ i suppose that isn’t something to boast about, coming from insurance. to a decent person, no less. ’ he cuts—he’s arrived. he can see the james of yesteryear. ‘ i was good. ’

SHE LIKES HIS LEVITY, HIS CHARISMA. Her whole body is close to his, companionably so. The lack of distance means she can tell when he pulls away, when he no longer wants to meet her eye. She tries all the same to look at him, to smile.

His questions are short but impossible. The weight of his conflict suddenly feels heavy on her own shoulders. "Nobody really sells their soul anymore," she says back, just as soft and kind, if anything at all. "How's it, really?"

[synsationss]

SEND ME 'PLOTS PLEASE' AND I'LL THROW MY HIGH EDIBLE IDEAS AT YOU

Status: Open

@vitalphenomena said: Plots Please

– Kennedy St Clair/Isabella Cauley/Cynthia Masami/Leonel: Kennedy and Isabella paired together would be able to take down the United States governent do you hear me!? These two would be an unstoppable force together, I can see them being college buddies and reuniting later on in life through a case both of them have crossed paths on. As for Cynthia, I can see her going to Kennedy for help once she realizes the slick shit Leonel is doing in her lab and because of this, if she chooses to help cyn or give into Leonel's bribes, her standing with the club can either be a very good one or a very bad one (Ask Isabella how being on the bad side feels).

– Hanna/Hanz/Naomi/Calvin: Okay so boom; Hanz and Naomi grew up together as close friends and Naomi's mother is a former Broadway actress turned drama professor, so they were always around that type of stuff and involved in that community growing up. I don't think it would be a stretch at all for them to have come across Hanna in their adolescent and take her under their wings and bring her along for their crazy antics. Plus, their dynamics as they get older and caught up in the stuff at Synsations would be interesting to explore! As for Calvin, I think he would enjoy her company at the club opposed to be around rough people 24/7. I can see him going out of his way in between meal preps to go sit and talk with her about any and everything.

– Veronica/Arturo: Both rich, spoiled, entitled, bougie kids enough said. I can definitely see these two being in the same circle and honestly I wouldn't be surprised if he was apart of the same messy friend group she was. These two can just be rich spoiled brats together and maybe one day Veronica might accidently get kidnapped as cartel leverage if we're feeling spicy.

– The Harrises/Cynthia: I'm digging this whole laboratory with test subjects storyline and I'm willing to make a whole alternate universe with my muses and yours if you really wanna break down the lore to me one day lmao. But I put Cynthia as a main point of interest because she's literally a scientist who works in a lab and I know she would get attached and be motherly towards the subjects and might even help them escape.

– Mckenzie Knight/Scout: Look, the reason Scout's background is so shrouded in mystery and the reason she goes by Scout and not her actual name is because she ran away from a religious doomsday cult that she was born and raised into. It would be interesting if these two were in the same cult together and crossed paths somehow.

– Clara/Delfoy: They're both messy club promoters, I can see them being rivals and constantly trying to outdo and get more clout than the other one. Also, Delfoy would definitely steal her ideas as his own.

[brutlist]

" well shoot , darlin . " he says , alternating his cant from one foot , to the other . " now i gotta kill you . "

She looks just as shocked! "I've been recording this entire conversation."

[choicescreen]

"mm."

means yes. means tread carefully. she doesn't look like the kind who would needle him about the events from four years prior, though he can never be too careful. these days, cases rarely stay entirely within the borders of their countries.

"you can sit." he fidgets a little in his seat. "if you want. nobody's sitting there." english still feels clumsy in his mouth. he feels he must explain, or talk to overcompensate, to show that he is capable at carrying a conversation in it. "i am on break."

"—sorry. I'm not used to dropping formalities so quickly. Jeongje, then." Straight to business: "I needed a little favor, and I thought it'd be best if I came by and asked in person."

[dxsole]

[text: the girl that gets it] 🥹🥹🥹 [text: the girl that gets it] well i mean [text: the girl that gets it] you work for all those organizations i rally n do art for [text: the girl that gets it] i am but the mouthpiece [text: the girl that gets it] because i'm gifted and i know things [text: the girl that gets it] unlike the fucking irs that doesn't know SQUAT [text: the girl that gets it] of course i need money [text: the girl that gets it] i'm a starving artist [text: the girl that gets it] especially the starving part beCAUSE MY NACHOS [text: the girl that gets it] ARE ON [text: the girl that gets it] THE FLOOR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[text: the girl that gets it] what

[text: the girl that gets it] I drop my nachos and now you're not my friend???

[text: the girl that gets it] WHAT IS HAPPENING

[text: the girl that gets it] is it bc I'm in trouble with the IRS 🥺🥺🥺

[text: the girl that gets it] IT'S NOT!!! THEIR BUSINESS!!! I DON'T WANT TO TELL THEM!!!

[text: the girl that gets it] I don't own anything, I make my own clothes, I just wanted my nachjoss and nooww we re noot frie. Nds s????

[choicescreen]

an unstoppable couple. he quite likes that. she might be laying it on a little thick, but he's never paid any attention to that. he likes her, sorel likes everyone, and he likes to a little thick.

"no, i'm afraid not. i leave most culinary pursuits to anthony. al-though—" he lifts his champagne flute, "i do consider myself a bit of a sommelier." silently, he cheers her, before putting away the rest of his drink.

as if cued, anthony arrives with the bottle for refills. he's large, imposing, black hair slick with pomade and skin smelling of aftershave and cologne. "frankly, bit is an understatement," he teases, voice low and measured. "refill, ms. st. clair? i hope you're enjoying your meal."

"Alright, alright," Kennedy agrees, laughing softly. She doesn't take much convincing—someone with more education and professional experience than most people ever even dream of already has a healthily-sized ego, most of the time. Kennedy St. Clair is, ultimately, no exception. If you twist her arm into speaking fondly of herself, well, she supposes she has no other choice...

"But you really are—you really are something else, both of you. I've been to plenty of dinner parties," a subtle flex that she doesn't realize is a flex, "But this is very special. And so, so delicious."

She returns to her food, as if to emphasize its quality.

After chewing and swallowing a few bites, her attention returns to her oh-so attentive companion.

"Do you cook, too? I bet you're unstoppable, together." In the kitchen and out of it.

[choicescreen]

they—vampires, collectively—have always been fascinated by humanity. it has been so long since sorel visibly found himself aging, of course, but the admiration pulses as if he'd always taken part in the blood. it's why he finds it so hard to believe, so dastardly, that a small minority has managed to become iconic in their fairytales and superstitions, used to frighten and warn.

it also saddens him to see kennedy reduce herself to a corporate nobody. the compliment soon after gives him an excuse to preen, to fiddle with the silk at his neck, but he hasn't forgotten.

"well, thank you, my dear, but i'm not that special." if this were some choreographed comedy, the other patrons would stop what they're doing and stare. it isn't like sorel to deny his uniqueness. "long as you're in my presence—" there's a flair to the word, flattered, "you aren't to talk about yourself in such a way. hardly an appropriate dinner conversation, don't you think?

"I won't, I won't," Kennedy assures Sorel, chuckling softly. "Whatever you say—you know—I'm following your lead here." She shifts uncomfortably, continues sipping at her champagne. She should really know more about this process. Is champagne organic? Why is she so worried about that right now?

Sorel leans in; Kennedy remains rigid. "You're bad," Kennedy laughs, because the dirty joke can remain unspoken but still be made known. She sobers a little bit, considers Sorel's next point.

"Of course I'm not. I'm a—I'm basically a corporate nobody. It's a miracle I'm in your presence."

[choicescreen]

sorel grins, as he often does. "you musn't let him know you think of his cooking as michelin worthy. he'll get a big head." it's an exaggerated misrepresentation of a man who isn't present to defend himself. a man he loves very much, he excuses, so he doesn't come undone.

he leans in a few inches, like sharing a secret. "to match those big hands of his." and other body parts. that's a cheeky reference to save for gilda, julian, bird.

"oh, come now. do you honestly believe that you're not special?"

WHAT IS THAT EVEN SUPPOSED TO MEAN, THE LAST SUPPER? Is Anthony supposed to be Jesus? Who's Judas? Judas feels like a necessary part of the metaphor.

Kennedy is woefully out of her depth, and prone to overthinking. She laughs nervously, sips timidly at her champagne. She finds herself suppressing a similar impulse to chug the stuff; it's rare someone else's alcohol selection caters to her palate so perfectly.

"I'm hardly a—I mean, I've had Michelin star food, but lots of people have. I'm really not special," she insists.

[gildedlife]

james hums in response, not quite pensively enough for the seriousness of the question. he’s relieved by her surrender of the notion, though it had been pleasant, in retrospect, to stir such a selfless and steadfastly helpful reaction in another. these are stories for dinner parties, not legal action. so he’s learned.

‘ what if it does? ’ he asks, not unkindly, and discovers that he means it. does she know? could she tell him? he idly traces the patterns in the handle of his cane, eyes following to avoid kennedy catching something revealing, should he fail to keep his tone light. ‘ i’ve sold my soul to this. ’

I'M JUST NOT TRYING TO USE YOU. It is so refreshing, so kind, so simple. Kennedy doesn't even waste the time on allowing insecurity to cause her to fret: why doesn't he want to use me? Why aren't I good enough, smart enough, capable enough for people to want to take advantage of me? It just feels good to be respected.

"A few more decades?" she balks at the concept. "I think you've got your hands around a patience I just can't understand." She wonders aloud, "What if it burns you out?"

[gildedlife]

‘ you are very useful. ’ though he speaks in earnest, he can feel his old theatrics coiling around the statement, making it more difficult to trust. he pulls himself back in—no hands, no head movements—and delivers the second half a little too far in the other direction: with an honesty so raw it makes him sound defeated. ‘ i’m just not trying to use you. ’

his answering smile goes tight around the eyes. ‘ i’ve made it this long without thinking of taking action. what’s a few more decades, hm? ’

KENNEDY HAS THIS UNFORTUNATE HABIT SOME OTHER PEOPLE OF HER INTELLECT AND OCCASIONAL SOCIAL AWKWARDNESS POSSESS: thinking they already have come to the correct conclusion, they kind of make shit up in their heads to get there and move along to the I'm right part of the conversation.

Kennedy smiles brightly, unmoved by James's confusion. "It's okay if you were," she says. She reaches out to brush her hand against his, then lowers it to cross her arms around herself.

"I'm just telling you, it would be just as a friend, if I were to advise you in any way. About—well. About anything you'd probably think to come to me with." With conspiratorial self deprecation, she leans forward to whisper, "I'm not very useful."

[brutlist]

he feigns a gasp . " no one would believe you . "

"I guess you don't really care about all of the ways you could be sued or locked up for that."

[gildedlife]

james blinks and takes a moment to backtrack, suspecting he’s missed an important part of a conversation he’d thought he was performing by rote. did he slip up and reveal something too honest? is he so unaccustomed to being heard in this way that there’s a discordance between them—her determined, him resigned?

‘ sorry? ’ his movement had been arrested mid-gesticulation, so his hand still hangs there. he furrows his brow. ‘ i’d never thought to— i assure you, i wasn’t angling for counsel. ’

@gildedlife

"I'm not that kind of lawyer," she explains, patient but tired, strung out but still kind. She doesn't know how to be anything else, when it comes to men she feels the—sickening! Nauseating! Society-compelled-her-to!—urge to impress a nice-enough, successful-enough man. Their relationship—friendship!—is still so new that she can't shake the habit.

"But I'd be willing to help, in any way that I can. Just as a friend."

[brutlist]

oh please . " tell that to the thirteen year old i pay to hack into stuff . "

AS AMUSED (AND PLEASED) AS SHE IS, "That is literally the entire point."