Make it Rain (January 2021)
BEAR
You'd heard the term when the cat's away, the mice will play, right? Well, with Judax taking off to track Aurumy down, that left Club Malice in the capable hands of Bear and Zeke...and the veteran, booty clapping butt cheeks of Candice. The two entities were kept separate but equal with or without the boss around, I assure you.
With the queen bee up on stage shaking her thorax and bringing all the boys to the yard and what not, it had been a largely uneventful evening. The usual drunk or two, maybe one who got just a little bit too handsy without paying the proper velvet rope toll in VIP, but otherwise, all was calm and Bear was...well...bored, admittedly.
MARY
The door of club Malice swung open; Mary emerged, pushing through the smoke that lingered within the air, wearing her infamous leather coat with the collar flipped up. Matching that black leather jacket was a pair of leather ( or latex ) pants that clung to the woman in all the right places. After all, she always said she had the best-looking ass in the galaxy, so why not flaunt it?
Her gaze watched Candice for a moment as she weaved her way through the lingering patrons. Passing by a waitress, Mary took the liberty to reach down and swing an open palm against the waitress's exposed asscheek, spinning around to take a few steps back towards the bar. Her attention on the waitress, who was surprised and glared at Mary. The bounty hunter smirked, holding her hands up in a defensive manner, blew the woman a kiss before she turned back around. The woman wasn't at all shy when it came to flirting with either sex. As long as their species were compatible with hers, it did not matter. Mary was a lover and a fighter.
Climbing onto one of the stools, she'd toss a credstick towards the bartender, "Turn this to paper, eh?" She asked, nodding down at the stick. The woman was planning to make it rain up in this bitch. ( Maybe even a lap dance too.)
While she was waiting for her paper, she'd tap her nail against the counter, bobbing her head lightly to the beat, while she looked around, only to have her gaze fall upon a familiar face looking glum. Grinning, she'd snag her paper from the bartender, nodding a 'thanks' before hopping off the stool to approach, reaching out to sock him in the arm as a friendly gesture, "Well, isn't it Smokey." She announced herself, "Sex dolls weren't cutting it?" Mary asked with that shit-eating grin.
BEAR
Zeke was on the jump before Bear was, at least as far as initial, corrective measures were concerned. Both bouncers had ears that were finely tuned to the sound of ass cheeks being smacked that had not properly adorned a dancer's g-string with the appropriate amount of paper credits first. "Hey! Pay THEN play!" The gargantuan reptile hissed at Mary, making Baron laugh and roll his eyes...but not enough to warrant looking up from his station checking IDs and collecting cover charges at the door.
At least not until he heard a familiar voice. The use of the quippy pet name Smokey left no room for doubt, and even if it had, the sassy inside joke that came shortly thereafter had Bear groaning in social AGONY even before he stood up from his chair and had Zeke sit down in his place. "Well aren't you quite contrary," the bodyguard snorted derisively, proving he could play on words--names--just as easily as she. Rubbing his arm and laughing as she socked him, make no mistake, he pulled no punches (literally) and jabbed her right back. "You knew this is my regular gig: I prefer THIS kind of silicone to any other," he gestured to a HEAVILY implanted alien woman as she walked past. "How you been, Mare? It's been a minute--you here because you missed me, or just in need of some A grade T&A?"
MARY
Mary smirked, bowing her head slightly, gladly accepting his assumption of her. "That I am." Hands were shoved into the pockets of her leather jacket, as she leaned up against the wall beside Bear as he continued to check I.D's. She even would peer past his shoulder to get a glance at various IDs. "Oh that's totally fake." She mumbled, eyeing the holder of the ID whose face went white. The woman smirked, chuckling, allowing Bear or his reptilian friend take care of the rest.
Taking a breath in, as if she was breathing in something she enjoyed, she would glance around. "Hangin'." She'd respond, giving him a side glance as she leaned in closer, "Why, you offerin' a dance? I got paper."" She asked, looking him over with a quirked eyebrow, biting her lower lip before she pulled back and shrugged. "Dunno, bored? Got a hankerin' for some artificial TLC?" Her gaze lingered upon a passion android whose implants were... worthy of a head shake. "Sometimes I wonder if I'm in the wrong biz." She mumbled, shaking her head once more before she would elbow Bear. "Whatabout you? Livin' the dream?"
BEAR
Baron blinked as Mary pointed out what she believed to be a fake ID that he'd been presented with at the door. Snapping to attention and narrowing his eyes at the Tungler before him, he held the ID out for its supposed owner to review and--calmy and cooly as ever--asked the club's potential guest to recite his last name for him. And when alien was unable to produce the quintessential schleck-sound common to Tungler surnames, the bouncer rolled his eyes and reached over to activate that holoskin deactivator they had installed behind the security podium. With its projected disguise peeled away, Bear rolled his eyes and sighed at the ragamuffin insectoid who stood there trembling after being outed. "Bulgwicki, honestly! How much did that fake ID and holoskin set you back trying to sneak in here? JUST PAY YOUR DAMN TAB AND I WILL LET YOU IN AGAIN.
"Nice catch. Zeke, add this scan and all associated data to the book, would you? I'm gonna take my lunch," Bear clapped the reptilian on the back, and was given a questioning (perhaps even scrutinizing or judgmental) look as his fellow bodyguard chose to spend his break time with some...unknown human woman? People talked, especially on Laverna, and even more so here at the club. Word would undoubtedly get back to Judax.
Gesturing for Mary to follow him to the bar, even though she'd acquired her own drink only moments ago, Bear proved a consummate professional (at least while on the clock) and ordered himself ONLY a carbonated beverage--something akin to root beer, but FAR more sharp in that sassafras fragrance--to sip on as they sat and surveyed the stages together. However, where Zeke's opinion had been conveyed with only his eyes, Candice, even while working, had no problem using her mouth to let Baron know how she felt about the company he was keeping tonight. "Honey, you barkin' up the wrong tree. You got any idea how much stardust the boss gotta stuff him full of to get him to climb up here and shake a tailfeather?" O-oh. Oh no. Candice no. Please don't tell Mary about that. Not only his very serious drug addiction, but also that he'd gone and made a fool of himself that one night when Judax had insisted he put his money where his mouth was and work the pole rather than the podium he was usually stationed at.
"Hey Candice, Mary here says she's in the wrong business. How about you focus on that a minute, huh?" Baron tried to redirect the attention to where its output was on two equally big female personalities. "Restin' bitch face ain't somethin' that'll pay the bills. Don't sweat it, babe, I got the same affliction dealin' with some'a these..." Candice took a minute to stomp the fingers of one patron trying to steal the tips she had littered on the floor, who Zeke promptly threw out thereafter. "Got plenty'a other goods to offer the ladies 'n gents, how about you sugar? Scale of 1 to 10, what you rate your T&A?" Self-scoring one's assets was...kind of a double-edged sword. You score too high and you're a narcissist, you score too low and you're insecure. Which end of the spectrum did Mary fall on?
Sluuuuuuuuurp, Bear drank his space sarsaparilla loudly, obviously intrigued.
MARY
"Yeah, Wicki! What Smokey said!" She chimed up, adding her two cents where it wasn't needed, nor asked for. But it was her find. Let her join in. She smirked, watching as the impostor walk away defeated. "How much he runnin' back?" Mary asked, mainly to keep up the small talk (she could give two shits about the bugs debt.) The bounty hunter fell silent, her attention falling to her fingernails, picking away at any dirt and grime that found their way beneath while Bear spoke to Zeke. It was only when Bear spoke up and gestured for her to follow when she pushed off the wall she idled at and followed.
The look Zeke gave Bear hadn't gone unnoticed by Mary, causing herself to narrow her eyes curiously. But it was the words of Candice that caused the woman to slowly spin on her stool to face Bear. "Really? Anyone have pics?? Video?? SOMETHING?" She mused, eyeing her Mercenary friend quietly. Two things she picked up from that sentence; a potential drug addiction - which was something she wasn't about to judge on. Everyone had their vices. Gotta survive somehow these days. "Gimme a sec' just picturin' Bear up there shaking his tailfeather." She grinned before chuckling, finding the image that developed in her head rather humorous. "Oh, Smokey. I'm sure you worked that pole hard." She added, giving him a pat on the back.
Turning back towards the stage, while resting up against the counter, she eyed Candice when she spoke, posing a question while jiggling her titties. "My T&A? " She asked, before she would sit up and look down at her own breasts that were covered by the gray tank-top she was wearing beneath the leather jacket. "No one's ever complained." She remarked, reaching up to give herself a grope or two as if she was really analyzing them before reaching over to grab Bear's free hand to press his palm into her breast, allowing him to be the judge. "I'd say an eight. They're perky, soft, enough to grab and most importantly,* real*​. Right?" She stated with a smirk before she would hop off the stool, knowing the majority of workers here were enhanced​ in some way. Oh, Mary knew what she was doing; she was confident in her body image, but mainly she wanted to get a ruse out of Bear - Maybe even cause him to choke on his beverage
"As for my ass?" She asked, lifting her leather jacket up over her latex clad ass, looking over her shoulder, AT Bear. "Whatd'ya think? A fucking ten, right?" She asked, giving her own ass cheek a whap, grinning, watching his reaction. When it came to her ass, she had no shame in giving herself a ten.
BEAR
"Twelve large, last time I checked," Bear disclosed to Mary under his breath, keeping his eyes narrowed until Bulgwicki had walk-of-shamed himself out of sight.
As Candice dimed him out in regards to that one coked out night on stage, a threatening index finger was pointed around at the rest of Club Malice's cast and crew. "Don't anyone even THINK about it," he threatened, and the moth woman laughed and then made a less-than-subtle gesture to Mary as if to say we'll talk later. There HAD to be security cam footage SOMEWHERE, after all.
Leave it to a consummate professional (and Judax's bottom bitch) to be able to carry on a conversation with a prospect while continuing to work and make it rain paper credits, even while her attention was decidedly NOT on the patrons she was performing for. (If anything, this only seemed to drive them MORE crazy, as if they NOW needed to shell out even MORE space cash to get her feelers pointed back at them and not Mary.)
Bear's eyes went wide, however, as Mary took his hand and placed it over the assets in need of judging, as if COMPLETELY natural in order to have an unbiased opinion. PFFT, as if he could be impartial with her! "EIGHT IS FAIR!" The poor bastard practically hollered before yanking away his hand as though burned (by her sheer hotness, harharhar). He'd make a point to shove his hands into his pockets when she gave a perfect ten to her posterior, as if ensuring that he would not be asked to judge that as well.
However, upon doing so, he realized he had pocketed some paper credits a patron had given HIM earlier...and decided that he'd start her off right. "Here, Mare, tip jar 101 is to never leave an empty cup." Proving he could be cheeky too, he cooked her at the belt loop with a finger and tucked the bill into her waistband. "Well? Are we gonna have an on-the-spot, trial-by-fire interview right now or what?"
MARY
Mary nodded, gesturing between herself and Candice with an index finger as if to silently acknowledge the stripper's own quiet gesture. If there was one thing we know: Mary would DEFINITELY want to see this footage of Bear coked off his ass, stripping his ass off. Just the thought alone made the woman snicker quietly to herself.
The more Bear and Mary 'hung' out together, the more she'd wanted to get a rise out of him. His reaction was more than she hoped and it brought out a laugh from Mary, allowing the traumatized Bear to yank his hand from her grip and ultimately her breast. His assumption had her bobbing her head slightly, mulling over his rating. "Eight?" Pause. "Works for me." She assured, shrugging her leather jacket back to its regular resting place.
Looking over her shoulder towards Bear, she arched an eyebrow as he spoke up. Mary watched him, eyeing him as he reached over to stick a few paper credits into her waistband. The merc smirked, giving that five-star ass a small shake in front of Bear, before she'd reach to pull the credits from her waistband, "Thanks, dollface." She cooed, winking, reaching out to poke Bear in the nose just as she returned to her stool, slamming some creds onto the counter, "Whiskey... and get Smokey here another one of his kid drinks. Mama's rich tonight." She stated, gesturing to Bear with a smirk.
Taking her drink, she'd sip it, letting out a grunt, shaking her head. "Whoa now. You'd like that wouldn't you?" She quipped, eyeing Bear curiously. "Me workin' here so you eye my ass all damn night." The woman accused Bear, feigning shock, but that sarcasm betrayed any attempt at acting offended. Another sip was taken, releasing a sharp inhale through her teeth, "Besides... I can't kill anyone here, so that's a con." She stated, as if she was weighing her options, but in reality, she couldn't objectify herself in such a way. Believe it or not, Mary had standards!
BEAR
"Fuckin' EXCUSE you! It ain't a kid drink without a BENDY straw, obviously. Listen, Cogsfellow, if she's paying n' callin' it a kid's drink, it better come with a bendy straw." The beefcake of a bodyguard scoffed, unscrupulous in the way he SLUUUUUUURPED that effervescent, licorice-flavored delight down when he was actually provided the requested addendum to his beverage by the bartender robot behind the counter. "Everything tastes better through a bendy straw, Mare, and you can quote me on that," the man insisted cooly and without an ounce of shame.
Popping and smacking his lips, all it would take is Bear getting distracted once by Mary shaking what her mama gave her and the end result was his dumb ass blindly chasing that same bendy straw around the rim of the glass as it clinked ice cubes out of the way in order to evade his tongue, which was stuck out and searching for him. (Google Demetri Martin's stand-up comedy bit on straws and ice cubes, it'll make you laugh, I guarantee it.) "You definitely can't kill anyone here. I mean...well, you can, but it's generally frowned upon and just...I mean, if you're gonna, do it on a day where I'm off work so I don't have to clean it up, right Candice?" The moth had gone back to doing her thing on stage, seeing as Mary didn't seem to be ACTIVELY pursuing a career outside of her mercenary work in that very moment, but rather seemed content just shooting the shit with Baron.
MARY
Shaking her head, she'd wave a finger at the bartender, retorting Bear's words. "Nah, no no. One of those.. fuckin'--" Pause, fingers snapping together, furrowing her eyebrows as she was trying to remember the word. "--crazy straws! BENDY ones are for pussies." Mary smirked, giving Bear a side glance as she'd pay for the drinks.
Taking hers, she'd nurse it, taking a sharp inhale through gritted teeth, plopping heavily back onto the stool beside Bear. "Generally frowned upon? You make it fucking sound as if it's at your discretion if you want to do something about it. " She asked, arching an eyebrow at his choice of words, shrugging. "Noted. But I'm good - wouldn't want to CONSTANTLY distract you from working." The bounty hunter responded into the rim of her glass, taking another sip.
It was in that moment, she remembered something and reached out to give the security guard a small smack with the back of her hand. "Mmm!" She'd announce, turning to face him to lean in and whisper, "I may have a job, if you're interested." She started, tilting her head to catch his gaze, wondering if he was interested before she continued.
BEAR
Bear could resist T&A all day long while on the clock, but damn if Mary didn't throw him for an absolute, almost child-like delight over the upgrade from bendy to crazy straw. Or, at least, she WOULD have, had they been sat at the soda fountain counter of Edie's Sweeties and not a bar at the club on Laverna. Yeah, not exactly a place where you could share a root beer float, guys, sorry. The bartender, sure to disappoint them both, seemed to get sick of their shenanigans, even in his programmable sentience, and sighed heavily, draping a wipe rag over his shoulder and fulfilling the bare MINIMUM customer service by putting a can of soda down on the bar to serve as Baron's ONLY refill. See? Even robots got sick of the hospitality industry.
Disappointed, but not altogether surprised, Bear shrugged, leaned back against the bar, and cracked open his soda, slurping it with quenched satisfaction. But then Mary piqued his interest AGAIN, and had him hruff-hruffing his throat clear of carbonation and sitting forward with perked ears at the mention of yet another job she was willing to cut him in on. "Oh yeah?" the bouncer asked curiously, only to grimace and hesitate, before asking for clarification before just blindly accepting to help her out: "You got me gun shy after those twins, Mare, why don't you give me the job description first and if it ain't too sleezy of a target, I'll go fifty-fifty with ya." Hah! Big talk coming from the bouncer of a strip club. And that wasn't even the most presumptuous thing! Since when had they become 50/50 partners?! He'd only gotten 40% from their apprehension of said twins.
MARY
Shooting a small glare at the robot, she'd shake her head, "Clearly the bartender has NO TASTE." She'd state, raising her voice at the last bit, before bringing her attention back down towards her drink, taking another sip, enjoying the burn, before clearing her throat. Eying Bear, she snickered. "Whaaat? You mean you DIDN'T like getting a blowjob from a sex doll??" Mary asked, a TAD LOUDER than she should have, feigning shock, before shaking her head in disappointment, before holding her hand up, nodding. "Alright, alright. Well, it's more of a sneak in, grab an item and sneak out type thing." She said dismissively, before continuing. "The Sapphire Hotel. Zerg Dextler, or whoever - no idea who the fuck that is, but the person who hired me wants some artifact stolen - something about losing it in a bet or some shit." She stated, taking another sip before looking back towards Bear,
"The point is, I need a date, thought of you... and yeah. They'll be free booze and food, but ya gotta dress up. Look all fancy 'n shit." She reminded him. "I already have an invitation. Just gotta grab and go. Should be simple." Finishing off her drink, she would push it away from her, signaling that she's done. "So? You in, Smokey?"
BEAR
Baron grimaced as practically every head in the place, patron and staff alike, turned expectantly towards Mary, as though needing further context to what she'd practically YELLED in regards to their last, unfortunate assignment together. "Have I mentioned you're the absolute worst?" Bear hissed and pinched Mary's thigh rather mercilessly beneath the bartop.
Drinking from the can the bartender had provided him (with absolutely NO showmanship whatsoever, mind you), the bouncer considered any and all possible complications to the details of the job as his friend recounted them. "I swear, if cons were any better at cards, we'd be out of work seventy-five percent of the time." He rolled his eyes at the mention of wagered stakes being so high that it required stealing back what had been bet in the first place.
"Sounds simple enough. I've got a tux somewhere..." It took a moment, but Bear seemed to grimace after realizing something internally about the last time he wore said tux. Had Mary caught his pained expression? She had a penchant for playfully rubbing salt in his wounds, so this should be no great exception if so. "I'm in. You had me at free booze and food." A joke, of course--she ACTUALLY had him quite a few words earlier than that.
MARY
Mary bit back that cheeky grin, shrugging, "A couple of times, yes. Yet here you are..." She pointed out, eyes narrowing curiously as she looked him over briefly. Reaching up, she'd use her index finger to tap against her temple, "Annd that's why I don't play cards. Horrible poker face." The hunter mused, scrunching up her nose briefly, giving the bar a quick glance, only to catch the tail end of his grimace at the mention of a tux.
"Riiight, probably ancient. Here." Pulling out of her pocket, was a credstick. Tossing onto the counter, she'd nod towards it. "That should cover a new tux." She stated, clearing her throat, she would rise from the stool. Grinning, she'd reach out to pat him on the shoulder, "Of course I did." She mused. After all who WOULD pass up free booze and food? "It's a date then." Mary added, smirking, before shaking her head, clearly not serious on her assumption of calling it a date. "The party isn't for a few days, so it'll give you time to prepare, I'll meet you at the bar in the lobby of the hotel at seven sharp."
Shoving her hands within her pockets, "I'll let you get back to work, Smokey. Try not to miss me too much, hmm?" Teasing, shooting a wink his way, she'd turn to take her leave. "See ya around, Bear."
BEAR
"Apparently I have no poker face either," the bouncer laughed as the mercenary tossed him a credstick to cover the cost of a new tuxedo. He tossed it immediately right back at her. "I know you said it's a date, but I think I'm more comfortable going dutch on work expenses," Bear joked with Mary, insisting he'd cover the costs required to dress up and look the part she wanted him to play as her arm candy for the night.
"If I'm anything, I'm punctual," Baron assured his partner in crime, before following her to stand and shove his hands in his own pockets. Mary's winking remark had the old dog grinning wryly. "Gee, I'll sure try," Bear clutched his chest as though her departure would surely tear a hole straight through him. "See ya 'round, Mare."
BEAR
You'd heard the term when the cat's away, the mice will play, right? Well, with Judax taking off to track Aurumy down, that left Club Malice in the capable hands of Bear and Zeke...and the veteran, booty clapping butt cheeks of Candice. The two entities were kept separate but equal with or without the boss around, I assure you.
With the queen bee up on stage shaking her thorax and bringing all the boys to the yard and what not, it had been a largely uneventful evening. The usual drunk or two, maybe one who got just a little bit too handsy without paying the proper velvet rope toll in VIP, but otherwise, all was calm and Bear was...well...bored, admittedly.
MARY
The door of club Malice swung open; Mary emerged, pushing through the smoke that lingered within the air, wearing her infamous leather coat with the collar flipped up. Matching that black leather jacket was a pair of leather ( or latex ) pants that clung to the woman in all the right places. After all, she always said she had the best-looking ass in the galaxy, so why not flaunt it?
Her gaze watched Candice for a moment as she weaved her way through the lingering patrons. Passing by a waitress, Mary took the liberty to reach down and swing an open palm against the waitress's exposed asscheek, spinning around to take a few steps back towards the bar. Her attention on the waitress, who was surprised and glared at Mary. The bounty hunter smirked, holding her hands up in a defensive manner, blew the woman a kiss before she turned back around. The woman wasn't at all shy when it came to flirting with either sex. As long as their species were compatible with hers, it did not matter. Mary was a lover and a fighter.
Climbing onto one of the stools, she'd toss a credstick towards the bartender, "Turn this to paper, eh?" She asked, nodding down at the stick. The woman was planning to make it rain up in this bitch. ( Maybe even a lap dance too.)
While she was waiting for her paper, she'd tap her nail against the counter, bobbing her head lightly to the beat, while she looked around, only to have her gaze fall upon a familiar face looking glum. Grinning, she'd snag her paper from the bartender, nodding a 'thanks' before hopping off the stool to approach, reaching out to sock him in the arm as a friendly gesture, "Well, isn't it Smokey." She announced herself, "Sex dolls weren't cutting it?" Mary asked with that shit-eating grin.
BEAR
Zeke was on the jump before Bear was, at least as far as initial, corrective measures were concerned. Both bouncers had ears that were finely tuned to the sound of ass cheeks being smacked that had not properly adorned a dancer's g-string with the appropriate amount of paper credits first. "Hey! Pay THEN play!" The gargantuan reptile hissed at Mary, making Baron laugh and roll his eyes...but not enough to warrant looking up from his station checking IDs and collecting cover charges at the door.
At least not until he heard a familiar voice. The use of the quippy pet name Smokey left no room for doubt, and even if it had, the sassy inside joke that came shortly thereafter had Bear groaning in social AGONY even before he stood up from his chair and had Zeke sit down in his place. "Well aren't you quite contrary," the bodyguard snorted derisively, proving he could play on words--names--just as easily as she. Rubbing his arm and laughing as she socked him, make no mistake, he pulled no punches (literally) and jabbed her right back. "You knew this is my regular gig: I prefer THIS kind of silicone to any other," he gestured to a HEAVILY implanted alien woman as she walked past. "How you been, Mare? It's been a minute--you here because you missed me, or just in need of some A grade T&A?"
MARY
Mary smirked, bowing her head slightly, gladly accepting his assumption of her. "That I am." Hands were shoved into the pockets of her leather jacket, as she leaned up against the wall beside Bear as he continued to check I.D's. She even would peer past his shoulder to get a glance at various IDs. "Oh that's totally fake." She mumbled, eyeing the holder of the ID whose face went white. The woman smirked, chuckling, allowing Bear or his reptilian friend take care of the rest.
Taking a breath in, as if she was breathing in something she enjoyed, she would glance around. "Hangin'." She'd respond, giving him a side glance as she leaned in closer, "Why, you offerin' a dance? I got paper."" She asked, looking him over with a quirked eyebrow, biting her lower lip before she pulled back and shrugged. "Dunno, bored? Got a hankerin' for some artificial TLC?" Her gaze lingered upon a passion android whose implants were... worthy of a head shake. "Sometimes I wonder if I'm in the wrong biz." She mumbled, shaking her head once more before she would elbow Bear. "Whatabout you? Livin' the dream?"
BEAR
Baron blinked as Mary pointed out what she believed to be a fake ID that he'd been presented with at the door. Snapping to attention and narrowing his eyes at the Tungler before him, he held the ID out for its supposed owner to review and--calmy and cooly as ever--asked the club's potential guest to recite his last name for him. And when alien was unable to produce the quintessential schleck-sound common to Tungler surnames, the bouncer rolled his eyes and reached over to activate that holoskin deactivator they had installed behind the security podium. With its projected disguise peeled away, Bear rolled his eyes and sighed at the ragamuffin insectoid who stood there trembling after being outed. "Bulgwicki, honestly! How much did that fake ID and holoskin set you back trying to sneak in here? JUST PAY YOUR DAMN TAB AND I WILL LET YOU IN AGAIN.
"Nice catch. Zeke, add this scan and all associated data to the book, would you? I'm gonna take my lunch," Bear clapped the reptilian on the back, and was given a questioning (perhaps even scrutinizing or judgmental) look as his fellow bodyguard chose to spend his break time with some...unknown human woman? People talked, especially on Laverna, and even more so here at the club. Word would undoubtedly get back to Judax.
Gesturing for Mary to follow him to the bar, even though she'd acquired her own drink only moments ago, Bear proved a consummate professional (at least while on the clock) and ordered himself ONLY a carbonated beverage--something akin to root beer, but FAR more sharp in that sassafras fragrance--to sip on as they sat and surveyed the stages together. However, where Zeke's opinion had been conveyed with only his eyes, Candice, even while working, had no problem using her mouth to let Baron know how she felt about the company he was keeping tonight. "Honey, you barkin' up the wrong tree. You got any idea how much stardust the boss gotta stuff him full of to get him to climb up here and shake a tailfeather?" O-oh. Oh no. Candice no. Please don't tell Mary about that. Not only his very serious drug addiction, but also that he'd gone and made a fool of himself that one night when Judax had insisted he put his money where his mouth was and work the pole rather than the podium he was usually stationed at.
"Hey Candice, Mary here says she's in the wrong business. How about you focus on that a minute, huh?" Baron tried to redirect the attention to where its output was on two equally big female personalities. "Restin' bitch face ain't somethin' that'll pay the bills. Don't sweat it, babe, I got the same affliction dealin' with some'a these..." Candice took a minute to stomp the fingers of one patron trying to steal the tips she had littered on the floor, who Zeke promptly threw out thereafter. "Got plenty'a other goods to offer the ladies 'n gents, how about you sugar? Scale of 1 to 10, what you rate your T&A?" Self-scoring one's assets was...kind of a double-edged sword. You score too high and you're a narcissist, you score too low and you're insecure. Which end of the spectrum did Mary fall on?
Sluuuuuuuuurp, Bear drank his space sarsaparilla loudly, obviously intrigued.
MARY
"Yeah, Wicki! What Smokey said!" She chimed up, adding her two cents where it wasn't needed, nor asked for. But it was her find. Let her join in. She smirked, watching as the impostor walk away defeated. "How much he runnin' back?" Mary asked, mainly to keep up the small talk (she could give two shits about the bugs debt.) The bounty hunter fell silent, her attention falling to her fingernails, picking away at any dirt and grime that found their way beneath while Bear spoke to Zeke. It was only when Bear spoke up and gestured for her to follow when she pushed off the wall she idled at and followed.
The look Zeke gave Bear hadn't gone unnoticed by Mary, causing herself to narrow her eyes curiously. But it was the words of Candice that caused the woman to slowly spin on her stool to face Bear. "Really? Anyone have pics?? Video?? SOMETHING?" She mused, eyeing her Mercenary friend quietly. Two things she picked up from that sentence; a potential drug addiction - which was something she wasn't about to judge on. Everyone had their vices. Gotta survive somehow these days. "Gimme a sec' just picturin' Bear up there shaking his tailfeather." She grinned before chuckling, finding the image that developed in her head rather humorous. "Oh, Smokey. I'm sure you worked that pole hard." She added, giving him a pat on the back.
Turning back towards the stage, while resting up against the counter, she eyed Candice when she spoke, posing a question while jiggling her titties. "My T&A? " She asked, before she would sit up and look down at her own breasts that were covered by the gray tank-top she was wearing beneath the leather jacket. "No one's ever complained." She remarked, reaching up to give herself a grope or two as if she was really analyzing them before reaching over to grab Bear's free hand to press his palm into her breast, allowing him to be the judge. "I'd say an eight. They're perky, soft, enough to grab and most importantly,* real*​. Right?" She stated with a smirk before she would hop off the stool, knowing the majority of workers here were enhanced​ in some way. Oh, Mary knew what she was doing; she was confident in her body image, but mainly she wanted to get a ruse out of Bear - Maybe even cause him to choke on his beverage
"As for my ass?" She asked, lifting her leather jacket up over her latex clad ass, looking over her shoulder, AT Bear. "Whatd'ya think? A fucking ten, right?" She asked, giving her own ass cheek a whap, grinning, watching his reaction. When it came to her ass, she had no shame in giving herself a ten.
BEAR
"Twelve large, last time I checked," Bear disclosed to Mary under his breath, keeping his eyes narrowed until Bulgwicki had walk-of-shamed himself out of sight.
As Candice dimed him out in regards to that one coked out night on stage, a threatening index finger was pointed around at the rest of Club Malice's cast and crew. "Don't anyone even THINK about it," he threatened, and the moth woman laughed and then made a less-than-subtle gesture to Mary as if to say we'll talk later. There HAD to be security cam footage SOMEWHERE, after all.
Leave it to a consummate professional (and Judax's bottom bitch) to be able to carry on a conversation with a prospect while continuing to work and make it rain paper credits, even while her attention was decidedly NOT on the patrons she was performing for. (If anything, this only seemed to drive them MORE crazy, as if they NOW needed to shell out even MORE space cash to get her feelers pointed back at them and not Mary.)
Bear's eyes went wide, however, as Mary took his hand and placed it over the assets in need of judging, as if COMPLETELY natural in order to have an unbiased opinion. PFFT, as if he could be impartial with her! "EIGHT IS FAIR!" The poor bastard practically hollered before yanking away his hand as though burned (by her sheer hotness, harharhar). He'd make a point to shove his hands into his pockets when she gave a perfect ten to her posterior, as if ensuring that he would not be asked to judge that as well.
However, upon doing so, he realized he had pocketed some paper credits a patron had given HIM earlier...and decided that he'd start her off right. "Here, Mare, tip jar 101 is to never leave an empty cup." Proving he could be cheeky too, he cooked her at the belt loop with a finger and tucked the bill into her waistband. "Well? Are we gonna have an on-the-spot, trial-by-fire interview right now or what?"
MARY
Mary nodded, gesturing between herself and Candice with an index finger as if to silently acknowledge the stripper's own quiet gesture. If there was one thing we know: Mary would DEFINITELY want to see this footage of Bear coked off his ass, stripping his ass off. Just the thought alone made the woman snicker quietly to herself.
The more Bear and Mary 'hung' out together, the more she'd wanted to get a rise out of him. His reaction was more than she hoped and it brought out a laugh from Mary, allowing the traumatized Bear to yank his hand from her grip and ultimately her breast. His assumption had her bobbing her head slightly, mulling over his rating. "Eight?" Pause. "Works for me." She assured, shrugging her leather jacket back to its regular resting place.
Looking over her shoulder towards Bear, she arched an eyebrow as he spoke up. Mary watched him, eyeing him as he reached over to stick a few paper credits into her waistband. The merc smirked, giving that five-star ass a small shake in front of Bear, before she'd reach to pull the credits from her waistband, "Thanks, dollface." She cooed, winking, reaching out to poke Bear in the nose just as she returned to her stool, slamming some creds onto the counter, "Whiskey... and get Smokey here another one of his kid drinks. Mama's rich tonight." She stated, gesturing to Bear with a smirk.
Taking her drink, she'd sip it, letting out a grunt, shaking her head. "Whoa now. You'd like that wouldn't you?" She quipped, eyeing Bear curiously. "Me workin' here so you eye my ass all damn night." The woman accused Bear, feigning shock, but that sarcasm betrayed any attempt at acting offended. Another sip was taken, releasing a sharp inhale through her teeth, "Besides... I can't kill anyone here, so that's a con." She stated, as if she was weighing her options, but in reality, she couldn't objectify herself in such a way. Believe it or not, Mary had standards!
BEAR
"Fuckin' EXCUSE you! It ain't a kid drink without a BENDY straw, obviously. Listen, Cogsfellow, if she's paying n' callin' it a kid's drink, it better come with a bendy straw." The beefcake of a bodyguard scoffed, unscrupulous in the way he SLUUUUUUURPED that effervescent, licorice-flavored delight down when he was actually provided the requested addendum to his beverage by the bartender robot behind the counter. "Everything tastes better through a bendy straw, Mare, and you can quote me on that," the man insisted cooly and without an ounce of shame.
Popping and smacking his lips, all it would take is Bear getting distracted once by Mary shaking what her mama gave her and the end result was his dumb ass blindly chasing that same bendy straw around the rim of the glass as it clinked ice cubes out of the way in order to evade his tongue, which was stuck out and searching for him. (Google Demetri Martin's stand-up comedy bit on straws and ice cubes, it'll make you laugh, I guarantee it.) "You definitely can't kill anyone here. I mean...well, you can, but it's generally frowned upon and just...I mean, if you're gonna, do it on a day where I'm off work so I don't have to clean it up, right Candice?" The moth had gone back to doing her thing on stage, seeing as Mary didn't seem to be ACTIVELY pursuing a career outside of her mercenary work in that very moment, but rather seemed content just shooting the shit with Baron.
MARY
Shaking her head, she'd wave a finger at the bartender, retorting Bear's words. "Nah, no no. One of those.. fuckin'--" Pause, fingers snapping together, furrowing her eyebrows as she was trying to remember the word. "--crazy straws! BENDY ones are for pussies." Mary smirked, giving Bear a side glance as she'd pay for the drinks.
Taking hers, she'd nurse it, taking a sharp inhale through gritted teeth, plopping heavily back onto the stool beside Bear. "Generally frowned upon? You make it fucking sound as if it's at your discretion if you want to do something about it. " She asked, arching an eyebrow at his choice of words, shrugging. "Noted. But I'm good - wouldn't want to CONSTANTLY distract you from working." The bounty hunter responded into the rim of her glass, taking another sip.
It was in that moment, she remembered something and reached out to give the security guard a small smack with the back of her hand. "Mmm!" She'd announce, turning to face him to lean in and whisper, "I may have a job, if you're interested." She started, tilting her head to catch his gaze, wondering if he was interested before she continued.
BEAR
Bear could resist T&A all day long while on the clock, but damn if Mary didn't throw him for an absolute, almost child-like delight over the upgrade from bendy to crazy straw. Or, at least, she WOULD have, had they been sat at the soda fountain counter of Edie's Sweeties and not a bar at the club on Laverna. Yeah, not exactly a place where you could share a root beer float, guys, sorry. The bartender, sure to disappoint them both, seemed to get sick of their shenanigans, even in his programmable sentience, and sighed heavily, draping a wipe rag over his shoulder and fulfilling the bare MINIMUM customer service by putting a can of soda down on the bar to serve as Baron's ONLY refill. See? Even robots got sick of the hospitality industry.
Disappointed, but not altogether surprised, Bear shrugged, leaned back against the bar, and cracked open his soda, slurping it with quenched satisfaction. But then Mary piqued his interest AGAIN, and had him hruff-hruffing his throat clear of carbonation and sitting forward with perked ears at the mention of yet another job she was willing to cut him in on. "Oh yeah?" the bouncer asked curiously, only to grimace and hesitate, before asking for clarification before just blindly accepting to help her out: "You got me gun shy after those twins, Mare, why don't you give me the job description first and if it ain't too sleezy of a target, I'll go fifty-fifty with ya." Hah! Big talk coming from the bouncer of a strip club. And that wasn't even the most presumptuous thing! Since when had they become 50/50 partners?! He'd only gotten 40% from their apprehension of said twins.
MARY
Shooting a small glare at the robot, she'd shake her head, "Clearly the bartender has NO TASTE." She'd state, raising her voice at the last bit, before bringing her attention back down towards her drink, taking another sip, enjoying the burn, before clearing her throat. Eying Bear, she snickered. "Whaaat? You mean you DIDN'T like getting a blowjob from a sex doll??" Mary asked, a TAD LOUDER than she should have, feigning shock, before shaking her head in disappointment, before holding her hand up, nodding. "Alright, alright. Well, it's more of a sneak in, grab an item and sneak out type thing." She said dismissively, before continuing. "The Sapphire Hotel. Zerg Dextler, or whoever - no idea who the fuck that is, but the person who hired me wants some artifact stolen - something about losing it in a bet or some shit." She stated, taking another sip before looking back towards Bear,
"The point is, I need a date, thought of you... and yeah. They'll be free booze and food, but ya gotta dress up. Look all fancy 'n shit." She reminded him. "I already have an invitation. Just gotta grab and go. Should be simple." Finishing off her drink, she would push it away from her, signaling that she's done. "So? You in, Smokey?"
BEAR
Baron grimaced as practically every head in the place, patron and staff alike, turned expectantly towards Mary, as though needing further context to what she'd practically YELLED in regards to their last, unfortunate assignment together. "Have I mentioned you're the absolute worst?" Bear hissed and pinched Mary's thigh rather mercilessly beneath the bartop.
Drinking from the can the bartender had provided him (with absolutely NO showmanship whatsoever, mind you), the bouncer considered any and all possible complications to the details of the job as his friend recounted them. "I swear, if cons were any better at cards, we'd be out of work seventy-five percent of the time." He rolled his eyes at the mention of wagered stakes being so high that it required stealing back what had been bet in the first place.
"Sounds simple enough. I've got a tux somewhere..." It took a moment, but Bear seemed to grimace after realizing something internally about the last time he wore said tux. Had Mary caught his pained expression? She had a penchant for playfully rubbing salt in his wounds, so this should be no great exception if so. "I'm in. You had me at free booze and food." A joke, of course--she ACTUALLY had him quite a few words earlier than that.
MARY
Mary bit back that cheeky grin, shrugging, "A couple of times, yes. Yet here you are..." She pointed out, eyes narrowing curiously as she looked him over briefly. Reaching up, she'd use her index finger to tap against her temple, "Annd that's why I don't play cards. Horrible poker face." The hunter mused, scrunching up her nose briefly, giving the bar a quick glance, only to catch the tail end of his grimace at the mention of a tux.
"Riiight, probably ancient. Here." Pulling out of her pocket, was a credstick. Tossing onto the counter, she'd nod towards it. "That should cover a new tux." She stated, clearing her throat, she would rise from the stool. Grinning, she'd reach out to pat him on the shoulder, "Of course I did." She mused. After all who WOULD pass up free booze and food? "It's a date then." Mary added, smirking, before shaking her head, clearly not serious on her assumption of calling it a date. "The party isn't for a few days, so it'll give you time to prepare, I'll meet you at the bar in the lobby of the hotel at seven sharp."
Shoving her hands within her pockets, "I'll let you get back to work, Smokey. Try not to miss me too much, hmm?" Teasing, shooting a wink his way, she'd turn to take her leave. "See ya around, Bear."
BEAR
"Apparently I have no poker face either," the bouncer laughed as the mercenary tossed him a credstick to cover the cost of a new tuxedo. He tossed it immediately right back at her. "I know you said it's a date, but I think I'm more comfortable going dutch on work expenses," Bear joked with Mary, insisting he'd cover the costs required to dress up and look the part she wanted him to play as her arm candy for the night.
"If I'm anything, I'm punctual," Baron assured his partner in crime, before following her to stand and shove his hands in his own pockets. Mary's winking remark had the old dog grinning wryly. "Gee, I'll sure try," Bear clutched his chest as though her departure would surely tear a hole straight through him. "See ya 'round, Mare."
