Six

A frown creased her face.
"Such a gallant offer, I am sure, my jester. But it does not go with my outfit does it?" She ran her hands suggestively down the lenght of the red leather.
"Such a naughty boy you are to tease ze poor countessa!"

There was a creak and a crash from the kitchens. Reinforcements of dust roiled into rank to replace what had already been stirred.

Faint bickering continued as the voices' owners drew closer.

"...still a shadesbedamned liberty, Weft. You do not go around attacking people..."

"But I do. You survived. Cease whining."

"...without cause, I keep telling you. I am not trying to steal Lance. How many times? I'm not into cattin' celestials! But no, you gotta go and char my fur to prove some stupid machismo thing..."

"You bore me, Baskerville. Do you know something? I can't stand boring people. Don't be a boring person."

Emerging from the door behind the counter, Weft straightened his sunglasses and surveyed the room lazily.

"Miss me?" he said.

"..."

That was the sound that collectively Lance, Lucifer and Amber were all making. It lasted for a few moments.

"I KNEW IIIIIIIT!" Amber squealed suddenly, bouncing off Lance and attempting a flying glomp at Weft. She missed her target though and ended up clinging to his arm instead, and practically crawling up to his shoulder. She then started babbling a whole lot of incoherent nonsense at him at a very high volume.

Lucifer's attention flickered towards Weft, but he kept his gaze on the near-drunken Jaina. He was mentally tying together what he'd seen outside the Inn and other factors. The result was not looking good.

"Here, Ms Jaina, let me assist you to your feet," He said, extending his hand a little closer towards the woman on the floor. One can't let oneself be distracted from making a good impression, after all. Although one CAN think about recent events whilst one deals with less important business.

Lance, meanwhile, was just sitting on the floor looking like someone had just pulled a fish out of their pants in front of him.

Weft steeled himself.

"OH MY GOD I JUST KNOW YOU TWO ARE SO RIGHT FOR EACH OTHER BUT LIKE YOU SO NEED TO HAVE A THREESOME OR SOMETHING SQUEEEEE OH MY GOD THAT WOULD BE SO HOT HEY HEY CAN I TAKE PICTURES PLEASE!?" the girl was saying.

"Whoa. Whoa." He put a hand on her head to try to stop the crawling upwards. "Pictures, my soul. I keep telling the damned angel, I do NOT like that lovey-dovey stuff in public, unless he wants to atone in private."

"Dude, TMI," Baskerville choked.

"And. Right for each other? I'm not looking to settle down just yet, missy. My job takes me off and about all the time. I can't stand being tied down," Weft pronounced, "whereas, of course, Lance rather likes it."

Sebbie grinned shamelessly and shook the empty bottle perhaps a bit mournfully immediately after that. "Okay. I'm ready to die now," he said to no-one in particular. "Oh, and in the dark, nobody can tell, right? Red is black, silver is black, yep, everything is black."

If Agueda's grip had tightened on Carnil's shoulder, it had nothing to do with the noises continuing to sound from the roof.

She'd felt a tilt.

She hadn't been sure at first, but as Weft had entered the room she'd almost been tapped-in automatically.

She hadn't seen or heard him enter, but she had known he was there and had quietly listened from then on.

A religious type, obviously. Ah, yes... the force was strict with this one. That much was certain.

He must have been a very naughty boy. Agueda liked that. But what of his connection the angel?

Ah...

She tried not to look too upset and turned to face him, keeping on hand lightly on Carnil's shoulder. She let her hair fall over her ears and brush across her face, smiling a smile which she hoped conveyed that if he ever got bored of binding down the celestial one, or indeed felt the need to be converted on that front, she'd happily help him out.

Jaina struggled to her feet, leaning heavily on Lucifer's proffered hand. She winced at Amber's joyful shriek. "I think," Jaina said sluggishly, "that I have been portalling too much, and it made my strength" -- she pronounced it "strengff" -- "go poofgone." She then nodded her head sagely, mumbled something inaudible, and pretended to trip directly into Lucifer's pectoral region.

Jaina's motion sent a small breeze through the room, which ruffled Lance's hair. The kitten noticed and was immediately enthralled. She sauntered up beside Lance, grown-up as could be. Mai stood very still for just a moment, then hunkered down with her little tail wiggling, and --

JUMP-GRAB-MISS-CLAW!

Something - presumably it - made a whole lot of noise as it moved with heavy steps through the attic. How it had gotten there was easily answered - the chimney was still scattered around the roof and the sides of the building.

And then, from the hole left by a naughty little jester (presently drunk), appeared a something long and dark and limp that shook a bit.

It was a pony tail.

A top knot.

-- OMG OMG it moves wanna catch it!

Mai's eyes assumed that demented look that only a kitten can really pull off. They widened and darted slightly, following the movements of the magic dancing ponytail. She lunged, but the tempting tresses were too far off.

The kitten climbed the bar once again, ignoring Lance now that a more delectable target had shown, and prepared a new leap. Mai's spine, all the way down her skinny tail, nearly hummed with her anticipation.

She ran her approach, took off, and snared. This time her claws actually stuck in something. The new experience confused Mai mightily, so she just dug in and clung.

The sooty ponytail twitched - and then it was sucked up into the attic in one smooth motion.

When the motion stopped, Serpentine stared at Mai like he'd been struck by lightning. The look on his face was purely "what the hell?" from chin to hairline. He blinked a few times, even tilted his head a bit... and generally resumed the dumbfounded confusion.

Not that he had anything against cats. It was just that he smelled like a bird, which, considering the fact that he had blue soot-covered wings that were folded very awkwardly. Cats used to look at him, look deeper than his skin and then consider him a tad bit too large for their convenience.

A kitten, though?

"Hmm," he said. And blinked.

Mai blinked back. He smelled like something that should be catchable and edible. She'd caught him, sort of, but he was a mite big to munch on. She tilted her head too and stared.

Then she forgot why she was confused and poked his hair again. This sent it moving again, which made her pouncy again. It all served to entertain Mai very cheaply, if nothing else.

Serpentine managed to look slightly amused despite the fact that he was fully aware of how humiliatingly humorous the situation was. Regardless, he doubted a kitten could harm him apart from his sullen pride, and then again, he wasn't too sure if he could quite get her off without hurting her. He had Ethicks. Only, they very much depended on the situation.

He yawned and moved to the lip of the hole again, before descending carefully.

Soot fell on the floor with him.

Meanwhile, Micah was trying to get down from the sill. Agueda hadn't seen him yet, and it was worth braving the dust to make sure she didn't. Besides, there were a few not-quite-empty bottles behind the bar that looked yummy.

He edged towards the ledge and peered over. Not a long drop by anyone's standards, but it still took him a while to jump, and even then he'd had his eyes closed and slipped with a loud 'FRELL!'.

Izzy had followed the puddy around until it had disappeared into the roof. Shortly after she heard obscenities eminating from Micah's corner. She sighed, rolled her eyes and headed over to see what the problem was.

When she reached the back of the bar, Micah was already lapping up a small puddle of fruity-smelling liquid.

Within forty minutes, they were both flat on their backs, complimenting each other grossly between hiccups.

Iseea coughed delicately at the cloud of soot produced when the latest visitor to the inn dropped in.

"Oooo, daaahling! What an adorable leettle pooussy!"

She poked her companion.
"Do not you love an adorable leetle pooussy?"

Sebastian gaped drunkenly. "Depends on w-"

Wait. That hadn't sounded right. "Sure," he relented and coughed as well.

"Do I know you?" Serpentine asked, staring at Sebbie like someone stares at a bug. (Slightly upwards, but so what?)

"I shouldn't think so," the swashbuckler mumbled, as a sudden idea popped in his head. Hmm. Muscle-bound brute... oh, he was a bit too scarred to look handsome despite the quite nice facial bone structure, but... "But do show some respect to the lady," a tipsy Sebastian said. "Don't you know who this is?"

Serpentine didn't have to think for long. "No?"

"'zzactly."

"Mriiiaooowh," added somebody behind the Countessa. Because of the somebody's height, this comment was delivered around knee level.

It, he or she resembled somewhat a raccoon, if a raccoon were to ditch the bandit's mask, had access to reddish-brown fur dye, and was a lot cuter. There was a tail. It had reddish and dark-brown ringlets. There were ears. They were fluffy and white. There were little toeties. They were kyoot.

There was a voice. "Mriiiaaerh," it said.

Iseea turned at the sound and smiled.
"Ah ha! Yet another shows their adorable face here. Why we are suddenly most popular, are we not?"
She tsk'd.
Loudly.
It was a tsk that spoke volumes.
It was a noise that wondered outloud where the inn keeper had run off to and why there was suddenly a large hole in the roof and unattended guests everywhere.
"Mriiiaooowh to you, daahling"

She turned back to Serpentine and offered her hand, palm down in that fashion ladies use when they expect the hand to be kissed, not shaken. Her gaze swept over him, lingering a bit before she purred "charmed, I'm sure, daahling." No one could quite be sure if they actually heard it of course, but the unspoken "Daahling! You are a beeg one, are you not?" clung in the air around Iseea like a vapor.

"Kya!" spoke the reddish coon-type.

Then it made a swarming movement and was quite suddenly atop Sebastian's shoulder, though it was not quite apparent what had happened in that little instant between floor and scarfhood.

Bede blinked charmingly. It looked like he was smiling.

Sebastian considered putting out the lights behind his eyes. He was seeing animals. "Pssht. You think I'm that easy, don't you."

The sooty Serpentine on the other hand, furrowed his brow and looked at Countessa with the message I'm not stupid, I'm slow imprinted in the the stare. "Really sorry. No. Really."

He had never really caught the gist of being polite to high nobility. Except maybe his own kind. ("G'day! How's hunting?" "Damn good. Did you hear? Old Man Platehead married his daughter off to some twit in Ascension." "What? What?! This is wrong! She wanted me! This calls for vengeance!" "But hunting first." "Ah, naturally. Priorities." "What was the deal with her wanting you, anyway?" "Umm..." "Oh, I see... hehehe. Nudgenudge!" "Oy. I oughta...")

Somehow he got the impression he was doing something wrong. You couldn't live among humans and not pick up on a few patterns in their behaviour...

The little fox-red creature snuggled closer, seeming (a) not at all like a black and white cat and (b) shamelessly unapologetic for such an incursion on Sebbie's personal space.

Noticing the braid, he sniffed it and gave a soft "wah". This somehow managed to imply that Bede knew he was easy.