Log:Dressing with Confidence

The Madness of David Flyte 2020/02/25 	 Radical|Connor Grimm

36

In preparation for the Vurig show, Grimm has set up a trial run to get Connor more at ease. She sent a text to his non-Professor phone to avoid any potential questions down the line. <> It has all the trappings of a great misadventure.

Connor replies back << Sure, that sounds good. Thanks. >>

That went easier than Grimm thought. She figured she'd have to do some cajoling to get him to go through with it. She arranges a time with him, and in the early evening well before the show starts, Gabrielle knocks on his front door.

Connor opens the door and smiles. "C'mon in." He lets her in, and then closes the door.

Grimm steps in with a smile. She's dressed pretty much like she usually is. Leather jacket, black band tank top this time, and tight black jeans with slashes down the front to reveal fishnets underneath. The difference is she has some wedge heel leather boots that lace up to just below her knee, plus some straps and buckles. "So, Dr. Duran...have you had any time to research the look you want to try tonight?" she grins slyly.

Connor chuckles. "I...was leaning toward cheating, and wearing my costume?" He shrugs, "It's...black leather. Well, and kevlar."

Grimm smirks playfully. "Could be a bit cheating. You planning on wearing the mask, too? You do seem more comfortable in it."

Connor nods. "Well...I would kind of have to, I think. After all, the coat is kind of distinctive. If someone saw it, it woudln't take a genius to put two and two together."

"And if you wear it, people will think Radical is attending." Gabrielle rubs her chin and smiles thoughtfully. "I could alter the look of it a bit. Temporarily. Change the colors, maybe a bit of the style. I could even alter you a little, if you're self conscious. After all, you wouldn't want questions to be asked about you going to a show with one of your students, right?"

Connor takes a deep breath and thinks about it. "No, that's okay. I think the public setting makes it okay. It's not like we're having a candlelit dinner out someplace."

Grimm chuckles. "Are candlelit dinners actually a thing?" she grins. "So, then, we could go without the mask. Get some guyliner on you. After all, you can't wear the mask at the Vurig concert, right?"

Connor furrows his brow, "Guyliner? What the heck is that?" As Grimm takes a closer look, it's also clear that Connor's wearing contacts.

Grimm laughs a little, but tries not to. "Eyeliner. On guys."

Grimm notices the faint lines of the contacts. It doesn't quite surprise her. "If it'd irritate your eyes, I could just use a little magic to make it look like you have it." She looks up to his hair. "And we need to do something about that."

Connor runs his hand through his hair, "What's wrong with my hair? What do you recommend changing?"

"It's too neat," Grimm opines. "Maybe get some pomade and rough it up a bit."

Connor chuckles. "Umm...okay." He still looks a little confused, but it's clear that she's tossing out ideas he hadn't considered at all.

Grimm reaches to take Connor by his upper arm. "Come on, we'll try some things on. Where do you have a full length mirror?" she asks with a smile. She's excited to help Connor discover himself and loosen up. "Oh, but first, and the most important step....we need to pre-game. Pour yourself whatever it is you drank that gave you the confidence to text me and call me out on being a bi--you know what I was."

Connor raises a brow. "I'm not going to drink that much today." He pauses as they head to the kitchen. "I...am sorry for the way that I lost control that night. I really am. I know you just want me to try to loosen up a bit, and I'll have some, but I'm not going to get that drunk."

Connor pulls out a bottle of scotch from a cabinet in the kitchen, and he pours some for himself. And then he offers to pour some for Grimm.

"Well, you got to drink something to start loosening up. How much did you have to drink that night?" Grimm asks, fully in enabler mode and wanting to be helpful and encouraging. She's prepared to obliterate his doubts and fears. A change for the bringer of nightmares.

As he apologizes, Gabrielle only offers up a reassuring smile. "It's fine. I think I needed to be checked. I'm sorry my lying got you so upset. And hey, look at us now! So even if you get that drunk, I don't think there's any serious beef between us now, so...relax a little." She accepts the offering. "Sure, I'll have some. The whole point of these places isn't to be sober. It's to let go."

Connor nods and smiles. "I'll be honest. I don't remember how much I drank. Way more than I should have." He nods and pours some for Grimm as well. As he sips his drink, he says, "I think you're on to something, though. I have a level of confidence when I'm wearing the mask. Or...well, in a classroom. But the latter is really just...well, feeling like an authority. The mask kind of helps get past some of the social anxieties I have."

Grimm accepts his drink. "I'm really sorry I hurt you so bad that you felt you had to." She's apologized before, and she still means it. The guilt is still there, though she's trying to remain positive. "Think of your look tonight as a costume that gives you authority. I mean, that's why everyone dresses up at these clubs. They dress to the nines. I'm going to change before we head out, too."

Connor chuckles. "I...figured you already were ready to go, based on how you're dressed."

Grimm chuckles. "What? No. Well, I'd still fit in, but if you end up going in your suit, I may as well match the theme. And if you're wearing the mask, well...that has a whole other connotation in some of these venues," she adds the last suggestively. "It would definitely give you a type of authority. Just not the type you're probably aiming for."

Connor chuckles. "Fetish related, I'm sure. I'm not THAT naive." He finishes his drink and sets the glass on the counter.

Grimm laughs, a big smile on her face. "Okay, whew. I'm glad I didn't have to explain that." She takes a big sip of her drink after that, anyway, and finishes her drink. "Okay, let's see what we have to work with."

Connor chuckles and says, "Oh...I'm sorry. I should have made you explain that awkwardly to me."

Grimm chuckles at that and fixes a grin at him. "Give me another drink, and I will! And you'll be so sorry you made me do it," she winks.

Connor laughs, "I'm not going to call your bluff on that one. I'm not feeling that brave."

Gabrielle smiles and retorts playfully, "Maybe once the alcohol's hit, or another drink or three. You see, when a man and a woman, or a woman and a woman, or a man and a man trust each other very much," she begins, the trails off laughing. "Anyway, let's start working on your look. Did you do any research? Anyone whose look you think you'd like to emulate?"

Connor shakes his head, "I'm afraid not, no. No one in particular."

"Alright, so...let's go with varying levels." Gabrielle leans against the counter and waves her hand over to an empty space before them. The air riples briefly before an illusion of Connor in lieu of a mirror. Only he's wearing a faded black t-shirt, dark jeans, black ankle high boots, and a black leather motorcycle jacket. His hair is styled in a purposely messy look. The guyliner is...there? It's not real eyeliner per say. Just that his eyes look a bit darker and his lashline a bit thicker, which actually makes him look a bit tougher. "So, this is like a beginner look. You'd fit in well enough."

Connor smiles. "I do have a full mirror, if you want to use that." He looks at his image curiously. "Huh." He turns a bit to get a sidelong view.

"Well, this way it's 3D and you don't have to keep getting changed, right?" Grimm offers. "Unless...it makes you uncomfortable?"

Connor smiles. "No...this is probably better." He pauses and then adds, "I used to use the mirror to contact Antherion. So...it might feel a little uncomfortable actually using it."

"Whoa. Heavy," Gabrielle says. Then she gets a smile that says she has a good bad idea. "We should smash that mirror and replace it with a new one," she suggests enthusiastically.

Connor takes a deep breath. "Oh...no. Definitely not. You know the superstition about that? There's some truth to it."

"Hah, okay, so maybe donate it when you do your spring cleaning," Gabrielle shrugs. She looks back to the illusion. With a thought, another Connor appears next to the first. This one is wearing the kevlar suit and outfit for Radical, minus the mask. Same messy hair and darker eyes. It makes him look a little dangerous. "I could still help disguise the outfit so it doesn't look exactly like it normally does," she offers. "I could change how you physically look, too, if you don't want to be recognized."

Connor doesn't bother trying to see through the illusion. He knows it's an illusion, after all. "I think...the first look works. It probably would be wise to avoid any possible connection to the Radical persona."

The one in the Radical suit vanishes, back to one illusion. "Anything you want to change with this look? Sunglasses? Tattoos? Different hair?" Gabrielle offers. "I assume when we see Vurig, you'll want to look closer to yourself, but tonight, you can be whoever you want to be, remember? Think of it as...hmm. Halloween, maybe!"

Connor chuckles. "Sunglasses inside always make me think the person's an idiot. Or blind." He narrows his eyes and looks at the image. "A tattoo, I think."

Grimm laughs at his call on sunglasses. "Sunglasses indoors is just hiding that you're tired. I did it sometimes in my first class with you. You saw through it pretty quick, though," she recalls. She rubs her hands together and smiles as he gets adventurous. "Awesome. Where do you want it, and what do you want it to look like?"

Connor rubs his chin. "Visible tattoos on the neck or face...I've never been a fan of. Probably my arm. Little else is likely to be visible, right? And I think a geometric pattern of some kind."

Connor chuckles. "I'm not going to make you draw the Euler line in a triangle. So...just something generic and geometric."

"Ooof, face and neck tattoos are so....just no in my book. Maybe the neck if it's temporary," Gabrielle opines. She does grin at the geometric pattern. She waves her hand as she steps up to the illusion, the motorcycle jacket disappearing to show the arms. Since she hasn't really seen Connor with short sleeves before, she seems to have been a bit generous with the muscle definition. Not overly so. "So how about...here," she points towards the inside of his lower arm. A geometric pattern blossoms across the skin, interlocking triangles with different shadings to give the illusion of 3D planes. "Or...down here?" She asks as his lower arm gets a full sleeve of a hexagonal pattern, but with some color gradients going from faded to more saturated the further up it goes along the arm.

Connor smiles. "Hmm. Go with the hexagons, I think. Very nice."

Grimm smiles, the triangular tattoo vanishing and leaving the hexagons behind. "Any other touches or accessories you want? You get to try this on once we're ready. You're kind of inspiring me to go the temporary tattoo look, too."

Connor chuckles. "I figured you had a real tattoo someplace." He looks at his arms. "I'm...not quite that muscular. But I appreciate the guess on your part."

"Believe it or not, I was a good girl before I was changed. The piercings came after," Gabrielle smirks. She smiles apologetically at him pointing out her error. "Ah, well, I haven't really seen you in anything but dress shirts and coats. Sorry if I took some liberties," she smiles. The illusion of Connor loses a bit of muscle definition, but not too much.

Connor smiles. "If you thought I was more ripped than I actually am, I'm going to take it as a compliment."

Grimm smiles. "Well, you always did seem rather imposing as the Cartesian and Radical. I just assumed a bit," she grins. "So...ready to try it on for yourself?" she asks as she motions to the current look and outfit on the illusory double.

Grimm adds as a note as she raises a finger, "I won't change your musculature or anything like that. Unless you want me to."

Connor chuckles. "Well, I do know a martial art which you've seen me use. I can see why you might think that." He looks at the image again, "Sure, I'm ready."

"And I did watch you punch out Dr. Fogg, so...I thought I was more on the money than I was," Gabrielle smiles in amusement. She studies the illusion one more time to make notes on all the alterations, then turns to Connor. The illusion turns into black smoke and drifts over and around Connor as his clothes and hair styling begin to morph to match the look. His wrist tickles a bit as the tattoo spreads across his skin. Nothing hurts, though. By the end, he looks like his mirror double, but with his own musculature. Gabrielle takes a step back to examine her handiwork. She purses her lips, then gives a nod of approval and a smile.

Connor looks more wiry than bulky. "Mmm....nice. I should learn to do that. Eventually." He chuckles quietly.

"It's a useful little trick for a quick change," Gabrielle says as she plants her hands on her hips. "You'd probably want to work on a way to summon your gear to you if you can."

Connor nods. "Or I need to learn more magic so I don't have to rely on the gear so much."

Gabrielle begins to change a bit. Her hair looks more styled, makeup more on point, longer lashes, even fuller lips, or maybe that's just the nude-shaded pink lipstick that's appearing that makes them look that way. She looks even prettier than usual, and a little bit dangerous. Her right arm from the shoulder down to the back of her hand becomes covered with a monochromatic tattoo of decorative designs, with spiraling tentacles interspersed. "There's that, too. Nothing wrong with relying on gear, either," she smiles.

Connor whistles quietly as he sees the changes. "Very nice."

"Thanks. You're looking quite fine yourself," Gabrielle smiles and does a hair toss. "Alright, we're dressed to kill. You feeling more confident yet? Ready to go out there?"

Connor chuckles. "Confident is...one of the things I'm feeling right now. Sure, I'm ready to go."

Gabrielle claps her hands together once at the win. "Great! And if that starts to dip, we hit the bar, got it?" she grins. "Alright, let's go!"

It's a quick trip to Bar Sinister with the help of some magic. They arrive just around the corner. It's a short line to get in and show IDs before they get inside the loud venue. The place is dark, with a lot of red lighting. There's at least three bars that they can see, and a large stage and open dance floor. There's seating areas around the edges, and a stairway up to the second level.

Connor chuckles and says to Grimm, "Picked a place with a dance floor?"

Grimm flashes a smile at Connor. "They all have dance floors. It's just a matter of if there's room to actually dance. When the main act comes on, I'm sure everyone's going to crowd the stage and floor," she leans close to his ear for him to hear her over the music.

So far, no strange looks at Connor.

Connor takes a deep breath and looks around. "I feel...pretty good. Thank you." He smiles. "Definitely feeling more confident, at least."

But there is someone giving him a look over. One of a pair of ladies is smiling and checking Connor out. Her brown hair is shoulder length, with the sides french braided up and back into a faux mohawk. Dark eye makeup and red lipstick. She's sporting a floral shoulder tattoo and is wearing visible beneath her fishnet top.

"See, what'd I say? It's about the look and fitting in. If I went to an academic conference dressed like I am now, I'd be lacking confidence in myself," Gabrielle comments aside to him as she looks around the venue, checking up at the balcony area.

Connor does notice the looks he gets. He gives her a smile, but then turns his attention back to Grimm. "I may have to get that tattoo after all."

Grimm raises a brow and smiles. "You mean you're thinking of getting permanent ink?" she says with a happy note of surprise and respect in her voice.

Connor nods. "I'm thinking about it, yeah. But we'll see." He chuckles.

"Well, I can let you keep that one. Let you try it out for size and see if it growns on you," Gabrielle winks. "Or try different ones until you're happy. Maybe try a sacred geometry one next?" she suggests with a hopeful smile.

Connor smiles. "Hmm...maybe. Let me think about it. It's an interesting idea."

Grimm gives a soft chuckle and smiles. "Well, we got through the first obstacle: The front door. And you're already considering a permanent tattoo. Another win!" The band song ends and goes with something a bit faster and more energetic. Some people start moving to the music, but there's not much full out dancing. More bobbing in time with the rhythm, or nodding heads, tapping feet, and drinking.

Gabrielle smiles slyly. Even though her back is to the girl giving eyes to Connor, she can sense it. "You want to try talking to that girl at the bar? Or is that something you don't think you'll need to worry about at the Vurig show?"

Connor shrugs and smiles. "I'm not really looking for a girlfriend at the moment. Or even a hookup. So...I think I'm not going to worry about it." He chuckles, "I'd also feel a little like a fraud, you know?"

"Well, I was more thinking practice so you may still have a chance to land your time wife. If that hasn't been somehow messed up by what happened. Y'know, a certain someone diving in the way and altering the future because a butterfly flapped its wings," Gabrielle comments lightly, leaning against a support pillar and trying to make a friendly jest, though she doesn't think enough on her choice of words. "You? Why? Do you know how many of these people are accountants? Teachers? Business men?"

Connor chuckles. "I was doing fine with making a connection with Elizabeth as things were, I thought. Though I do hope that Laurel's actions didn't make things more difficult." He looks around as she mentions what some of these people might do for jobs. "I have no idea. I figured very few."

"Well, yeah, only a few," Grimm admits. "But they're out there! And you're just getting accustomed to things. You're feeling...new." Better than feeling like a fraud. She smiles encouragingly. "I can't make you feel like you're not a fraud without doing something you wouldn't want me to do to you. Even if it was meant to help. So the next best thing is...time for another drink," she grins. "Hopefully Elizabeth didn't mind someone throwing themselves at her past husband. Future-past husband? I dunno!"

Connor chuckles, "Fine. Another drink works. I'll buy. And don't overthink the stuff with Elizabeth. It is what it is."

Grimm chuckles as she pushes off from the pillar and walks with Connor towards the bar. "Hey, I'm just rooting for you. And thanks. I'll have a whiskey sour. This place doesn't tend to do many fancy drinks."

Connor nods and orders a whiskey sour for Grimm and a beer for himself. "So you picked a mixed drink anyway." He chuckles and gives her the drink after it shows up on the bar in front of him.

"In only the narrowest of definitions. I think they just put sweet and sour mix with some whiskey in places like this," Grimm grins and accepts the drink, sipping it. "Mmmm. See, no egg whites."

Connor grins, "Reminds me of one time I asked for a White Russian at a bar that basically just served beer. The bartender really gave me a weird look at the time."

Grimm laughs a bit at that. "One time, I made the mistake of asking for a mai tai at a dive bar. Pretty much the same reaction. I didn't know the Hacker's Rage wasn't that sort of place!"

Connor chuckles. "I missed hte name of the band. Who are they?"

Grimm looks over to the stage. "Them? I think they're Deeds of Assault," she says as she sips her drink. "Haunted Remains is supposed to be playing next. I kind of dig them."

Connor nods. "What kind of music do they play? Kind of like this band?"

"A bit more symphonic. A touch of goth and metal. Different energy. More....ragey and forlorn? Kind of hard to put it in a box," Gabrielle grins. She has to half-yell over the music to be heard. "Not quite Vurig stylings, but the crowd won't be much different." A guy in full leather walks past them and she stares. "Okay, maybe a little different!" she changes her tunes and drinks her cocktail.

Connor nods and notices Grimm's gaze. "More Goth, then?" He glances over toward the woman who was looking him over earlier to try to see which band she's likely there to see.

"Yeah, definitely more goth," Gabrielle says, looking back to the stage.

The woman looks more like she's in to rock, metal, maybe a bit of punk. She's stirring her red drink with a stirring straw, catching Connor's gaze and flashing a smile. Uh oh, she looks like she might be heading over as she steps away from the bar.

Connor says to Grimm, "Looks like we'll see how it goes shortly anyway." He then looks over toward the approaching woman and gives her a smile.

Grimm looks up at Connor, confused for a moment until she senses the approach. "Oh! Right," she tries to keep it down and grins. She turns to pay attention to the band to look like she's not with Connor.

The woman smiles back with a flirty smile. "You a fan?" she asks, purposely keeping it open ended.

Connor smiles. "Not yet. But what I've heard so far, I like. How about you?"

"I like them, but I'm here for Dead Winter. They're playing later," the woman says over the music. "I'm Mari, by the way."

Connor leans in to say in her ear, so he can be heard over the music, "Nice to meet you. I'm Connor."

Mari is all smiles. "Nice to meet you, good lookin'. Don't think I didn't see you looking earlier."

Grimm is watching the band and drinking when someone she apparently knows comes up to say hello. They great each other with a big hug. "Hey, Blake! Long time no see!" she says.

Connor smiles at Mari, "Oh...I was definitely looking. You're very striking."

That gets Mari to smile more. "You here to see anyone in particular?"

Connor shakes his head, "Nope. I'm not really familiar with either band. But I had heard good things, so I figured I'd check them out."

"Mmmm. I think you'll like them," Mari suggests. "Darkness Between the Stars is playing tomorrow night at the House of Vipers. It's going to be good," she says as she gazes into his eyes pointedly.

Connor does take a moment to turn on his magic sight. Something about the name of the band and the look makes him wonder. "Not familiar with them either. Similar style of music as the band tonight?"

"A bit darker and edgier. I have a spare ticket. My girlfriend can't go." Mari steps a little closer as she faintly moves with the music. "They've been touring and have a few gigs in town. They're kind of more...storytelling in their songs, I guess? Their album is a conceptual narrative about the end of the world or something. Really gothic."

Connor thinks about it. "Is their music based on David Flyte's writing?"

While thinking on it, Connor does recall that Darkness Between the Stars was the last of David Flyte's trilogy.

Mari smiles. "Oh? You don't know the band, but you know the reference? Are you a fan of the author?" She draws closer. Connor can't sense any magic on her.

Connor shrugs and smiles. "Not a huge fan of his writing, but I'm familiar with his work. I've met him once, too. I take it you're a fan of the books?"

"You met him? That's so arid. I couldn't put them down. They were creepy. I like being scared," Mari smiles in a flirtatious manner. "Do you like being scared?" she asks sensually as she reaches out to try and put a hand on his chest.

Connor smiles. "Honestly? Not usually, no. But it's nice sometimes. It's a reminder you're alive." He doesn't try to stop her.

Mari lays her palm on Connor's chest lightly, just feeling him up a bit while there's only a little space left between them. "You should join me at tomorrow's show. There's buzz that it's supposed to be something special."

Connor nods. "You know what? I think I'll be there. You've...made me curious." He was going to use the word 'piqued', but thought better of it.

"Great. It's a date. I'll meet you in the line. 10pm? I'll have the extra ticket with me," Mari smiles.

Connor smiles, "Sounds good. Thanks. I appreciate it."

Mari's hand draws down a bit against him. "You're welcome." She glances over her shoulder to a table with bottle service. There's a few people lounging there, but with the lighting, it's hard to see them. She looks back to him. "Would you like to join our table? Great seats, and a nice view," she says, but her eyes are on Connor and not the stage.

Connor thinks about it. "Sure, I can join you for a bit." He smiles. "Lead the way." He makes sure to keep his magic sight up to look at the people at hte table with Mari.

No magic in that area that Connor can see. Mari goes for a daring move, attempting to lead by hooking a finger in one of the front belt loops of his pants as a lead to drag him over with her to the table if he'll let her.

Gabrielle's still talking with her friend and has been moved a little further from the whole exchange due to the crowd and her friend. Another friend comes up too as Blake waves him over, and Grimm greets them with a hug and a surprised exclamation.

Connor chuckles as she leads him over to the table. He doesn't try to stop her. He does glance back at Grimm, but figures she's nearby if it turns out there's an issue.

The disguise is working perfectly! They've accepted Connor as one of their own! The table service area has a small round table for drinks and a bottle of Grey Gosling vodka. There's a plush U shaped sectional couch with a view of the stage. Most of the couch spots are taken, and it's a tight fit, but there's room for Connor and Mari between some of the people. Mari sits down and pulls Connor in next to her cozily.

Connor is fairly tall. So he ends up with an arm on the couch, behind Mari. He's still feeling cautious, so he keeps his magic sight active. It's not that tiring to maintain it, thankfully.

One of the girls leans over to Mari. "Who's your friend?" she asks with a smile.

"This is Connor!" Mari answers as she releases the loop of his belt, then her hand does rest on his upper leg.

"Connor?" the friend asks and looks up to him, smiling and seeing what her friend has caught. This friend has shoulder length blonde hair with dark roots, dark purple eyeshadow and lavender lipstick. She's wearing a white, low cut tank top that looks like it used to be a t-shirt before she did some purposeful cutting and tearing to turn it into a tank top. Her jeans ride very low on her hips. She grabs one of the unused glasses and fills it up before offering it to Mari.

Mari then turns and offers it to Connor.

Connor takes the glass and smiles. "Thanks." He says to the other woman, "Yeah, that's right. Nice to meet you."

"I'm Deanna," Mari's friend says as she introduces herself, sitting back after delivering the shot of vodka. "Oooo, he's fine, Mari."

Connor blinks. He's definitely not used to people talking about him like that. But it's a good feeling. Maybe he can learn to pull this look off without magic.

Mari laughs at Deanna as if she's pointing out the obvious. "Back off, Deanna, I saw him first. He's coming to the show tomorrow since Roxy ghosted me."

Connor smiles, "Deanna, are you a fan of the band playing tomorrow?"

"I like some of their stuff," Deanna says casually as she sips a cosmo. "Have you been to one of their shows before?"

Connor shakes his head, "No, I haven't. I'm familiar with the books, but not the band. What are their shows like?"

Mari pipes up enthusiastically, "It's got a lot of production along with the music. Stage effects, lighting. Total spectacle."

Connor nods, "Concept albums for the most part, I bet?"

Deanna rolls her eyes. "Mari's been getting super into their stuff lately," she tries to explain away Mari's enthusiasm.

Mari isn't deterred by Deanna's attitude. "Yeah, you have to listen to the songs in order. The whole album tells a story, starting with The End Begins in Twilight and going through to the final song, The Great Destroyer."

The guy with Deanna who hasn't really been to vocal goes, "Nah, nah, you missed the unreleased b-side. You gotta check out SongCloud, but the actual last song was supposed to be Nothingness Pervades."

Connor looks to the guy, "What's the last one about?"

Mari looks surprised and excited as she asks Deanna's guy, "Wait, so it was supposed to be the last long instead of The Great Destroyer?"

The guy says, "It's supposed to come after The Great Destroyer. It was cut from the album by the studio or something, so the band released it for free. It's just instrumental. Kind of slow. Haunting. Somber. Just doesn't fit their style, man." He's wearing a buttoned up military-style gothy black shirt, with pleated chest pockets, shoulder epaulettes, and fitted black jeans with biker boots.

Connor furrows his brow, "I wonder why they cut it from the album? That's odd. Did you like it?"

"It was weird, man. A lot of like...noise at first. Kind of buzzes in your head. Sort of depressing, but it gets in your head," the guy opines.

Mari is literally on the edge of her seat. "Lamea** studios. Will they perform it tomorrow?"

The guy merely shrugs. "I dunno. I gotta work tomorrow, so I didn't get a ticket."

Connor chuckles quietly. "I...bet they do." He finally takes a sip of his drink, but he doesn't down it.

Deanna sighs. "I may stay for the first part of the show. I suppose to meet up with AJ later."

Mari leans back by Connor. "You got to at least stay for Deepshadow Demise. C'mon, Dee," she tries to guilt Deanna.

"Uuuuggh. Fine," Deanna makes a suffering noise. "You'll have Connor to keep you company for the show. Maybe after, too," she grins at Mari.

Mari considers it a victory all around, and looks to Connor with a smile at his comment. "Killer. I can't wait! I'm going to see if I can find the B-side tonight. Unless...something else occupies me," she adds the last suggestively while gazing into Connor's eyes.

Connor smiles and leans in to say in Mari's ear, "Can't tonight. I have someplace I need to be after the show. I'll see you tomorrow, though."

Mari leans in to listen, placing a hand on Connor's knee. She pouts. "Awww, okay. I'll just have to wait for tomorrow night to get occupied, then," she says in a flirty tone.

Gabrielle winds down talking with her friends. She looks around the club as she moves faintly along with the beat, smiling whenever she spots a cute guy. One of her smiles is aimed at Connor as her gaze passes, but then she tracks back and realizes she forgot how different he looked. Now at least having found him, she very quickly tries to turn back to talk with her friends.

Connor has managed to not say the wrong thing, at least. Which is good. He hangs out with Mari to listen to the band, intending to catch up with Grimm again after the show.

The disguise and the act work! Mari and crew are none the wiser throughout the night. Grimm keeps track of Connor in case he needs help, but it turns out, he was able to fit in just fine with the right attire.

As last call for drinks is made and the last act starts to wind down, Deanna and her man--who goes by Poe--head home, leaving Mari to flirt with Connor until the club starts to wind down to close.

Mari's had a few drinks by now, and smiles as she gets up from the couch. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow, Connor," she says, then offers to exchange numbers. "Text me when you get there."

Connor smiles. "Sounds good." He does exchange numbers with her. Why the heck not? "I'll see you there."

"Great. I can't wait," Mari purrs as she begins to walk away. She does take the opportunity to drag her nails over Connor's leg as she passes before she heads out of the club to hail a Ryde home.

Grimm hugs goodbye to her friends once she notices Connor's alone, then heads over to him with a big grin on her face. "Sooooo. That looked like it went well."

Connor nods to Grimm, and looks to make sure that Mari left before he says to her, "Yeah, it did. It went really well. You did a great job." He smiles. "But...I also found out about something that might be worth investigating. Ther'es a band based on Flyte's writing playing tomorrow night. I'm going with Mari, the woman I was with most of hte evening. But...she mentioned that they're going to do something 'special'. So...I'd like to go with my gear."

"Me? I didn't do anything. That was all you," Gabrielle smiles. "You looks pretty comfortable. In the dark, I almost mistook you for someone else before I remembered." She doesn't admit she was briefly checking him out before she remembered, though he may have caught that look.

She grins slyly. "Already got a date? Damn, okay, maybe I -should- take credit for that," she winks. Though she gets more serious after. "There's a band that follows his style? Weird. I'm sure your gear would fit in. Do you need me to alter its appearance a little or do anything to help..." she leans in to whisper, "...y'know, avoid a connection being made?"

Connor nods, "Yeah, modifying the appearance a little would be good. Just in case Flyte's involved. He'd know me by sight." He chuckles. "By the way, I saw you check me out. You forgot what I looked like, didn't you?"

"Uhh," Gabrielle blushes. She tries to think of a lie, but realizes it's taking too long and her guilt is evident. "It was dark. I thought you were someone else at first," she rubs the back of her neck.

Connor laughs and smiles. "Well, I think you did disguise me in a way you find attractive. So...clearly you did a good job, right?"

Grimm coughs into her closed fist once. "Well, it's what I know," she chuckles. "I wasn't the only one who liked the look, though," she grins.

Connor smiles. "True. Not sure what to do about that long term...but...well, I'll worry about that tomorrow, I guess?"

"Yeah, that's tomorrow's problem. I'll work with you on the outfit changes before you have to go," Gabrielle offers. "If you think it might require your gear, do you think you should have backup?"

Connor nods. "I think...it might be helpful, yeah. Maybe I'm just being overly cautious, but Flyte is out of the asylum."

Grimm takes a deep breath at that. "Yeah. That has me a bit freaked out. But at least the book was destroyed, right?"

Connor nods. "Yeah, it was. So he won't be able to reuse it."

"Good," Gabrielle smiles with relief. "Well, it's late. I should get you back home," she offers, since she teleported them there. "We should probably head out a block or two before teleporting so it doesn't give you away."

Connor nods. "Sounds good.

Next: Log:Foiled Lunch Schemes