(Untitled)

[bloody_awful]

Oi oi oi! Wot's all this then? It's a bloke walking into a bar, that's what. He's in shirtsleeves with sweatstains under his armpits, his tie pulled down, his sleeves rolled up, and his trenchcoat carried over one arm

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[hadyougoing]

[ooc: okay, uh, I don't know if this is a HORRIBLE IDEA or not ...]

Ava is on her lunch break.

And, since she has teleportation privileges from hell, that means she can avoid being spotted using the door when she's suppoooosed to be bound.

Therefore: The girl in the blouse and skirt and sensible sneakers steps out of the bathroom instead, looking a little dazed as she adjusts her silvery headband.

Her expression blossoms into a bright smile when she sees Constantine.

"Ooh, pretty!" she says.

... Without apparent irony.

[bloody_awful]

[ooc: horrible how? Fun, yes!]

John wrinkles his nose. He smells... Hell. In fact, he says, "Oh hell."

He turns to face the young woman. With a sigh, he lights a cigarette and says, "Yeah, I'm a beauty, ain't I?"

[hadyougoing]

Ava usually does a pretty good job scrubbing out the various smells, but it is pretty touch and go. Not to mention febrezing yourself starts to get just a little conspicuous ...

"Well, I mostly meant the flowers," she says, apologetic. (Pretending not to get sarcasm can occasionally be hilarious.)

And adds quickly, "But I think it's a good look! It's very ... I was gonna say Hawaiian but then you have a thing ...?"

She gestures to her own forehead.

[bloody_awful]

Oh, John could smell Hell in a bunch of roses. It's not Ava's fault at all.

"India," he says bluntly. He gives her a slow look up and down. "Something I can help you with, miss?"

Milliways rules say, No Business In The Bar, but that doesn't mean John has to be chummy with every demonic chippy who crosses his path.

[ooc: what does Ava perceive off John? What do you know about John and his canon?]

[bloody_awful]

[ooc: John has demon blood. His magic is not demonic, although it's rather gray shading towards black. He usually kills and/or banishes demons, but he's, er, been known to have sex with them as well. Or do them favors so they'll be in his debt. Or both. He's a complicated boy.]

[hadyougoing]

Ava returns the look approximately in kind, smiling faintly.

"No," she says.

"Sorry. I was just--"

Beat.

"What were you doing in India?" It looks like a wedding!

[bloody_awful]

John looks at her blandly and says, "Killed a demon. What were you doing in Hell?"

[hadyougoing]

Ava blinks.

And laughs, running a hand through her hair.

"You're quick on the draw," she approves, surprised.

[bloody_awful]

"You're quick or you're dead, I find," John replies, equally blandly. He takes a long, calm draw on his cigarette. "Just like to know who I'm dealing with, is all."

[hadyougoing]

Sometimes, Ava finds, you're quick and you're dead.

"Well ... I'm just an intern," she replies pleasantly.

"Answering phones, making copies, filing, notating the screams of the vengeful ... occasionally taking out demon clowns."

She pulls a thin metal chain from her blouse, revealing that it is strung with red rubber noses.

"Is killing demons like your job, or more of a hobby?"

[bloody_awful]

After a moment, John laughs. "Demon clowns, is it? Good one! The fewer of those around the better. As for me, that's a good question, I guess. I don't know what you'd call it for me." He pauses, smiles at a thought, and takes a drag on his cigarette before reciting:

"Only where love and need are one,
And the work is play for mortal stakes,
Is the deed ever really done
For Heaven and the future's sakes"

[hadyougoing]

"They're so creepy," Ava says, eyes wide and urgent, before the recitation causes her to blink.

(She's nearby, but not within grabbing distance-- last time she hung out with somebody even vaguely demony at the Bar, she nearly got razor-bladed in the neck.)

"... I guess so," she agrees, in cheerful incomprehension.

But there is something about it that grabs her:

"'Play for mortal stakes' ... huh."