[Juliet's arrival in the bar.]

[doctorjuliet]

To take and use the phrase a woman walked into a bar in actual, strong-intended conversation had the immediate tendency to result in adamant laughter, and yet in this case it was the without-questioned truth. Walking into the bar was the very thing she had done, though without immediate knowledge or consequence aware as to what might result. All

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[yourtieisugly]

Rain came down outside in sheets. Blankets. Expensive Austrian comforters. Even at the end of the universe (or the interior of the Earth, House hadn't decided which was more likely) the weatherman still got it wrong. He came in, shaking the rain out of his collar, scrubbing his fingers over the crown of his head. His breath fogged, then disappeared as he stepped over the warm threshold.

Behind him, the world went soundless. It was like a vacuum seal had flapped over the entrance and, thwip!, all that was left in the universe was the bar, its patrons, and the peripatetic jukebox in the corner.

'Some new faces here. House is interested as long as they prove interesting. He drops into one of the naugahyde booths toward the back of the bar and hangs his cane on the edge of the table. The sleeves of his coat are sodden. He slides out of them and balls the whole thing up on the cushion beside him. 'Medical file under his arm that might be a legitimate case -- or just a way to avoid conversation.

[doctorjuliet]

It wasn't the man that caught her eye - at least not in the tall, dark stranger kind of fashion. Make no mistake, he certainly was tall, and dark could contribute to the look on his face, but that wasn't what had taken the edge of Juliet's awareness and tugged hard onto it, insisting that she take notice.

The medical file took care of that. In fact, it took a firm and hard grasp hold of her and caused her head to turn and follow its progress as if by some kind of maddeningly insistent means. Were she to believe at all in the paranormal she might have wondered if it were the effect of some kind of spirit's insistence - but Juliet held too firmly to the practical for those kinds of thoughts.

Her eyes followed the stranger's moving gait, enough to bring her to turn around in her own booth to continue. At the waist she was twisted but not impossibly so, if anything more casually and with her arm across the booth's back.

[yourtieisugly]

Mothers never had eyes in the back of their heads as House had eyes in his. He felt for sure he was being watched -- studied -- and his antennae immediately went up. 'Woman sitting at a booth not too far away, trying to be inconspicuous. Now that notice had been noticed, it was time to parse out the reason. He actually checked the bottoms of his shoes to make sure he hadn't trailed mud in with him. Nope. 'Soles were clean. He put his feet back onto the floor with a squidge.

Half his focus was on the file and the other half was participating in a covert ops mission involving the blonde across the room. Observation kicked in like a reflex.

Her hair, worn in loose plaits about her shoulders, was completely dry. She hadn't been outside since before three o'clock, when the rain started. Her hands (what he could see of them) were small but purposeful, with long fingers and nails that were cut short across the tops. So, he thought, she's either a surgeon or a cellist. After a second, he decided on surgeon. Nails cut short to prevent

[doctorjuliet]

It almost felt like some kind of dance, without any kind of contact whatsoever. Juliet had danced before, when her now former husband had been the kind of man who wanted to dance and charm her with a pleasant (or so she thought) smile that she had carried close to her for years to come. But now this was something else, something different and intellectual, of an entirely different nature.

Juliet didn't mind it at all.

She rose from her seat, leaving behind the booth but taking the glass where it was cradled in her hand, wrapped in cool, capable fingers. When she crossed the bar's interior it was effortless, even with a comfortable cadence, as if she'd done this before.

Which, of course, she hadn't.

[findaconstant]

Dan isn't sure why he's here, either - he never is - especially since he has no business with Harold, today...

But there he is, at the bar.

And then there's Juliet. He almost doesn't recognize her, but then some little announcement goes off in the back of his mind. He turns to face her, blinking. "Juliet?"

Please pardon his disbelief. As far as he knows, she's still on the Island.

[doctorjuliet]

Hearing her name of course made her lift her head, but the voice was unfamiliar. Juliet had never seen this man before, and yet he was looking at her as if - at the very least - they had exchanged pleasantries on more than one occasion.

But I would remember. Wouldn't I?

"Yes?" Her voice was friendly, open enough, but there was curiosity in her eyes.

[findaconstant]

He's not the best at reading people, but he's not that bad at reading expressions. Juliet almost doesn't look like she recognizes him...

Something's not right, here. Dan tilts his head just slightly in silent question, then smiles a crooked little smile. "Hey."

[doctorjuliet]

What was going on? Juliet was very good with faces, far better than she was appearing to be now. If she had met this man before she would have remembered him - wouldn't she? Could this be the one rare time that she didn't remember a face?

"Hi," she said, now her tone more thoughtful than it had been before. "I'm sorry, do I..have we met?"