Chariots of Fire Are On Their Way

[hellfire_empath]

The American Museum of Natural History was set ablaze with lights and the mingling scents of exotic flowers perfumed the cool evening air. Brooke Wyngarde had put a lot of blood, sweat, and tears into arranging for this soirée, and she was going to be damned if anyone was going to ruin it for her. After all, this was to welcome Stephanie Shaw da Silva and Marcelo Alencar da Silva back to Manhattan and, most importantly, receive them as a newly wedded couple.

Thus, Brooke had pulled out all the stops. Everyone who was anyone who knew the Shaws or the da Silvas had been invited (though Brooke had also dutifully chopped some of the more unsavory names off of her list). The food was a delightful blend of American-Brazilian-Spanish fusion. The cocktails were some of the most popular ones from Brazil, and only the finest Spanish wines were served. The music was live, big band-style stuff, because this was not some hideous high school Kiss on the Lips party. 

Brooke herself, being the hostess of the event, may have gone just a tad bit overglam when it came to her look for the night, but then she was certain that she was going to be gracing many a society page the next morning.

She needed to look great, and she certainly did as she stood next to the entrance of the Arthur Ross Terrace, receiving guests for the cocktail hour which would precede that night's dinner, directing them towards the guest sign-in book, the gift table, and everything else. 

She hoped, she prayed, that everything that night went off without a hitch.

After all, the supervillains only crash the weddings of the A-List superheroes, right? 

Comments

[sonoflongshot]

Aiden poured another glass of wine and set it on the bar for one guest. We went to make a mixed drink for another. He didn't have to pick out his clothing. He had his bartender's clothing supplied to him.

"Third date?" He raised an eyebrow as he grabbed bottles.

"Bar's quiet except for thirsty guests."

[i_can_hit_that]

Quinn was stationed on the roof of the building as the music inside would play having with his senses. As it was, he could almost hear it loud and clear from his vantage point. He had his rifle close at hand. Nika briefed them on the bounty on their customer. If there was another sharp-shooter in the area, Quinn would need to catch him.

"Sharp-shot in position. Do they have deviled eggs? I love deviled eggs." he joked as he kept an eye on the people coming and going.

[symkarian_princess]

Nika felt her eye starting to twitch. She casually rubbed it in the hopes of making it stop.

"This is business. Attention away from baubles and on people. Let's hope it stays quiet. Food will be provided when the guests get seated for dinner. I'll put in a request for deviled eggs on the roof."

[shadeblossom]

Hana hadn't known Nika was dating anyone, let alone one of her employees. She bet that made office life interesting! A giggle escaped before she could contain it. Her poor niece.

But, ewww, what...?

"Deviled eggs?" Hana repeated in disbelief. "Deviled eggs are Satan's boogers, Quinn. Don't eat Satan's boogers, Quinn."

[pussyfootaround]

"I concur with Hana here," Felicity said. "But you should try the crab cake with the herb remoulade. Possibly one of the best things on the menu," she added. As much as Felicity was her father's daughter - she did enjoy her share of beer and hot dogs - she'd also developed her mother's taste for the finer things in life.

"I'm sure our esteemed boss won't mind if I steal some of those, right?"

[sonoflongshot]

"Hmm." Aiden noted his aunt avoiding the question entirely. He would talk to her later.

He finished up one order and moved onto the next. He glanced over the room as he pulled out bottles to make the drinks.

"Well, looks like the roof guy gets two more portions of deviled eggs besides his own."

[i_can_hit_that]

"Deviled eggs are made of win. I have questions about those who don't like them." Quinn teased, keeping his eye on the action inside. He wanted to text Tina right now but there wasn't any time. He wondered if she'd get an invite to this shindig.

She'd fit right in.

He missed her but he contented himself with the idea of taking her to dinner at someplace fancy in the near future.

[symkarian_princess]

Nika had just managed to get her eye to stop twitching. Her pleasant smiles to possible customers worked better without eye twitches. She had a small conversation with some party-goer before getting back on the team communicator.

"Take some crab cakes if you want. Quinn will have his Deviled boog-eggs. Any people pinging as suspicious? Outside of Felicity, of course."

[pussyfootaround]

"Suspicious? Me?" Felicity hissed in mock annoyance. "How dare you, boss? Have you seen how tight my outfit is? There's no way I could possibly sneak out of here with anything." Well, that, and she'd left her special Pym Particle gun at home.

"But no, nothing suspicious here. At least, nothing that I can see." Felicity's eyes swept over the crowd. "Although there's a woman here who very wrongly is under the impression that she's wearing real freshwater pearls."

[shadeblossom]

"Nothing so far. Except Quinn, but I'll fix him up with real cooking some day. His egg fixation makes me sad." And a little grossed out. Oh well. Boys were weird. Lord knows her two were.

"I'm gonna give the main room another circuit and then take a spin around the ballroom. See how things look in there."

[sonoflongshot]

"No requests for drinks spiked with anything weird like blood. Though there's this old lady who keeps coming around to order a drink and stare over the bar at my butt." He glanced to the left. The woman in question was throwing back her drink like she was a sailor on shore leave.

"She may pass out under a ficus at this rate though."

[molecana]

Somewhere outside, the newest and least trustworthy employee of SSI had one eye on Fin, and the other on the jewelry of the guests that passed by. She wriggled her upper body slightly, trying to surreptitiously adjust her bra strap.

"Yo. They got any of them little melon balls wit' the ham wrapped around them in there? I like those."

[ngm_adults]

Fin tilted his head a bit. His fin was not as tall as normal since he was not in angry strength mode. He was also decked out in a tux tailored to fit his massive frame.

"I want some of those, too."

[molecana]

Gina blinked. A man with good taste!

She wondered how he felt about monster trucks.

[pussyfootaround]

"Mmm. More crab cakes for me," Felicity purred. "Heads up, a vampiric stripper just appeared in front of the newlyweds. They seem surprised - and not in a happy way." Felicity eyed Selene from where she stood. "Great figure, though. Meow."

[symkarian_princess]

Nika pulled up short on her circuit of the room. Her eyes narrowed a little. She shook her head slightly. Now was not the time.

"Who's closest?" Nika tried to look through the crowd to spot the woman. And possibly wished she had a gun to shoot her in the head.

[i_can_hit_that]

"Give me the word, Boss Lady, and I'll handle it." Quinn said, sighting on the vampire stripper woman. He magnified his sight and lined up a shot.

[shadeblossom]

"I can get there quick, if you need me to." There were shadows a-plenty to duck through. It might startle a guest or two, but they'd get over it.

Personally, she didn't see the same appeal of the woman that Felicity seemed to, but then again, Hana's tastes ran toward dark and muscular.

[sonoflongshot]

"I'm still behind a bar, but I can think real hard at someone who scares the crap out of that woman. That interloper attacked the school once." He turned back to the bar with a cheesy grin and two bottles in hand. He could kind of see the woman through the crowd. But he had a drink to work on until Nika told him to move.

[molecana]

"I didn't think they had strippers at this kinda party."

Gina yawned and cracked her neck. Whoever was closest, it wasn't her.

"Maybe beer pong later? Whaddaya think?"

[pussyfootaround]

"Let's hold for a moment," Felicity replied. "No one's attacking, and it doesn't look like anyone's being attacked. No one seems to be very pleased, though." She started moving towards Selene and the others. "The conversation seems civil enough. Kinda wonder who her surgeon is, though. She definitely carries older than she looks." She quirked up an eyebrow. "Though Aiden's thinking hard idea might not be too unfortunate."

[symkarian_princess]

Nika couldn't exactly see the grouping from where she was at. She reined in a huffed breath. She listened to the intel from the van.

"Felicity's our eyes on the situation. Lisa's figuring out who moved our cameras." Not that either of the Wild Pack leaders had a hunch about the magic that had been used. "Quinn, stay ready but try not to shoot into a crowded room. Hana, prep to move through shadows on Felicity's word. Aiden, contact your person to ask for help. Fin and Gina, keep the outside secure while we handle this."

She paused. "People of age can play beer pong at the embassy later if they so desire."