Envy's Duplex, The Hegemony Compound, Brazil, Saturday

[whenshewasnice]

There'd been a lot of portaling back and forth between Toronto and Brazil, lately. Kid Chameleon was getting pretty large. Physically. Stephanie Nordegraf had joined up some time ago to play bass, but now Envy had recruited a guy called Cole to take over the drums because he was actually good (and, shut up Stephen, he was actually an okay guy, too), so she'd shifted Scott to bass because Stephanie was taking up bongos and viola.

It was most efficient that way. She wanted the band to really get known. And she wasn't sure why Scott seemed to have a problem with that.

She wasn't sure about a lot of things to do with Scott, these days.

And there was the thing where she wasn't sure whether Jim was alive or not.

So, her mood had not been the best for a while. The piano probably been had been kind of a related impulse buy. To soothe her brain. Something she felt like she deserved. Like she'd earned it by now. (There was a pack of cigarettes on top of it. Those were... yeah. Not exactly a reward.) She was sitting at the piano now, playing some melody or other. Trying to get herself out of her head.

[ooc: NFB, but open!]

Comments

[lockestheway]

"If you want to, go ahead," Peter said. "I feel like I haven't been on the receiving end of one of those in at least a century."

He crossed his legs and brought his coffee up to his mouth again.

[whenshewasnice]

Well, Envy could deliver. Which was probably just another sign of his special status with her. She inhaled deeply, then exhaled it as a deep, unimpressed sigh.

"I can also do variations on this theme."

Her sighs were versatile.

[lockestheway]

"It's the singer thing," Peter said. "Great breath control."

He wanted to figure out what was up with her, but, well. Peter.

[whenshewasnice]

"True."

And she was going to show off another one. This one was... different. Breathier. Kind of more more bed appropriate. A sigh with the kind of tone she would later use to intimidate Scott.

When in doubt, go a little inappropriate.

"Like that."

[lockestheway]

Peter bit back a comment about how Virlomi might've been better armed with that rather than Baby's First Kiss for... oh, so many reasons.

Instead he raised his eyebrows. "You're really expanding the old repertoire," he said. "I feel faint."

[whenshewasnice]

Envy would only have agreed. She was also learning to wield her sexuality like a weapon. Amongst other things.

"Good," she said. "After all, you are alone in my quarters while I'm less than fully dressed."

[lockestheway]

"You're right," Peter said, "I should've come here with a chaperone."

[whenshewasnice]

Envy crossed her legs at the knee and rested her hands on them. "Afraid you might succumb to my wiles, Wiggin?"

[lockestheway]

"I'll never be able to recover if anyone finds out my Chief of Staff made me swoon," Peter said, amused. "Completely discredited."

Even if he had sneaked a peek at her legs again. Sigh.

[whenshewasnice]

This time that had been the intended effect. Don't ask why.

"Then it's probably in your best interest to keep me happy so no one finds out."

[lockestheway]

"Blackmail," Peter said, shaking his head. "Now I know I've fallen far. Fine, Envy, what are your demands? I'll make sure to look very pained."

[whenshewasnice]

"I don't think anything where you look pained will be bribe enough."

She held back a statement she could have amended at the end of that. And he should be glad. Probably.

[lockestheway]

Peter took a sip of his coffee. "Then we're at an impasse."

[whenshewasnice]

"Terrible." She didn't sound too serious. She sipped her own coffee. "You'd think your negotiation skills would be better by now."

[lockestheway]

"Oh, they are," Peter said, smiling a little. "But in terms of poker faces, steel nerves and brain, you're a category unto yourself."

[whenshewasnice]

"Flatterer," Envy replied, faintly amused, as she got to her feet. (Legs.) "Always works."

[lockestheway]

"It's not usually my favorite tactic," Peter said. He considered his coffee. "But whatever works, right?"

He wasn't sure what they were doing here, exactly. But it was nice.

Besides, it wasn't anything he hadn't said to her in earnest before.

[whenshewasnice]

Envy was rarely sure what she was doing these days when it wasn't directly related to politics or... actually, even her band business worked more like politics, these days. She ruled a tiny, tiny empire.

"Truth be told, I don't let myself get swayed on anything important," she noted, before downing the rest of her coffee. "But for the less important, flattery works sometimes."

She brushed her free hand absently over his shoulder on her way past him towards the kitchen.

"Or sexual favours."

[lockestheway]

Peter pulled a face. "That's more than I wanted to know about you and whatshisface."

He knew Scott's name perfectly well by now.

[whenshewasnice]

"Wasn't talking about Scott," Envy called back.

[lockestheway]

And now Peter was squinting after her. "Should I ask?"

[whenshewasnice]

"If this confuses you then no, probably not."

She put the empty coffee cup down on the kitchen counter.

[lockestheway]

"Ah, our old friend, 'deliberately vague'," said Peter, who didn't sound particularly annoyed with it. He was used to it. "How's the band?"

[whenshewasnice]

'Deliberately vague' was still better than 'my game didn't take so now I'm shutting you down'.

"It's fine," she replied. "Minor disagreements about the scope of what we're doing, but it's moving forward."

[lockestheway]

Well, Peter.

"What's your vision of that scope?" he asked.