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xp_logs(backdated) A request to hone a new skill has Alani and Felicia spending time at the Russian Tea Room together.
The request had been spur of the moment, all things considered, but there was no denying the excitement as Alani watched a couple be escorted to their table idly, head tilting just a tad before she caught herself. "Oh, that's probably not what I should be doing, right? Staring?" Her eyes met Felicia's, brows raising slightly in question, as a sheepish smile spread across her lips. “Or is there a better way to watch, like out of the corner of the eye?” Around them the soft conversations of the Russian Tea Room’s lunch crowd drifted, and the slight feeling that she was out of place.
“Staring may not be the best way, no. But most people here are looking for a little bit of attention. You have a buffer,” Felicia said over the rim of her teacup, a peek of red. "No one comes to high tea here except as a tourist or to be seen. Watch in reflections, or by not watching at all, and merely listening. Smelling in this case, by his heavy dose of Tom Ford."
"So that's what that is, can't say I'm in love." Nose wrinkling, she stuck out her tongue a touch in an over exaggerated disgust before nodding demurely, eyes searching under her lowered lashes for something that reflected. "Do I at least seem like a tourist?" She joked, the edges of her lips curling back up, though again her eyebrows began to knit as she focused.
Felicia chuckled quietly, low and barely heard. "To everyone but me, yes. Tourist," she soothed, taking a demure sip. "There are some mirrors behind the bar behind me on my right. The bottles are in the way but you can get a few decent angles to help your memory. How about you try to tell me the colours of dress on each brunette woman against the long window?"
“Perfect, then I’m doing something right. Oh," she turned her attention as directed, smile fully on her face again as she focused. Puffing out her breath, she did her best to relax her features, to look both unassuming and unattentive, as she counted then compiled. "Black, blue, red, another black, aaaaand, if we're counting the dishwater blonde at the edge, a third black. If we're not, pretend I didn't say that?" Her eyes flew back to Felicia, chewing at her bottom lip lightly to alleviate some anxiety at being wrong.
"Nicely done," Felicia praised, setting her teacup down softly. "And I appreciate you not mentioning the dye job in pink, you're too sweet."
Her cheeks flushed, chin raising slightly in pleasure, though, at the mention, her eyes darted to the woman in pink. Oh, she hadn't even noticed her, but, well. She nodded, refusing to let a blunder color something she truly had been proud of. "Well, I am trying to learn from the best."
Felicia gave her a little nudge under the table, trying not to grin. "Maybe not the best, but I /am/ very, very good and really like compliments so," she said, shrugging to hide the twitch of her mouth. "And besides, I tried out modesty before. Those two minutes did not suit me."
Alani couldn't stop herself from laughing, teeth flashing for a moment before she raised her napkin to her mouth. Still, her eyes shone before she dropped them and took a small sip of her tea. "Well, I'm going to believe that you endured those two minutes brilliantly and with your head held high." When a waiter brushed past, skirting out of the way of a patron, she looked away from her friend for a moment to survey the movements. When she spoke again, her voice had dropped a touch. "Very important," the word practically rolled her eyes for her, though she didn't dare, "customers? You said to be seen, I think, You would tell me if I'm missing seeing something, right darling?"
"I'm not one of those mean teachers who gives trick questions. Not on the first lesson anyway," Felicia reassured her calmly, but she watched as another server walking in the opposite direction made the same side step, giving the patron a wide berth. She quirked her head slightly to the side, looking back at the tea biscuits. "I do think you may have found something fun, though, if accidentally."
"Mmm, I'm a master of accidentally finding things." And while it was said with her normal sunshiney voice, smile playing at her lips, she was surprised that she was actually right. She'd only thought the waiters were giving all customers the same distance, but a slow can showed she'd been wrong. Her eyes brightened in an almost wide-eyed wonder as she looked back to Fi. "Ohhh, do you know them?"
"I don't," Felicia admitted, before giving her friend a sly smile. "But how about we find out?"
The request had been spur of the moment, all things considered, but there was no denying the excitement as Alani watched a couple be escorted to their table idly, head tilting just a tad before she caught herself. "Oh, that's probably not what I should be doing, right? Staring?" Her eyes met Felicia's, brows raising slightly in question, as a sheepish smile spread across her lips. “Or is there a better way to watch, like out of the corner of the eye?” Around them the soft conversations of the Russian Tea Room’s lunch crowd drifted, and the slight feeling that she was out of place.
“Staring may not be the best way, no. But most people here are looking for a little bit of attention. You have a buffer,” Felicia said over the rim of her teacup, a peek of red. "No one comes to high tea here except as a tourist or to be seen. Watch in reflections, or by not watching at all, and merely listening. Smelling in this case, by his heavy dose of Tom Ford."
"So that's what that is, can't say I'm in love." Nose wrinkling, she stuck out her tongue a touch in an over exaggerated disgust before nodding demurely, eyes searching under her lowered lashes for something that reflected. "Do I at least seem like a tourist?" She joked, the edges of her lips curling back up, though again her eyebrows began to knit as she focused.
Felicia chuckled quietly, low and barely heard. "To everyone but me, yes. Tourist," she soothed, taking a demure sip. "There are some mirrors behind the bar behind me on my right. The bottles are in the way but you can get a few decent angles to help your memory. How about you try to tell me the colours of dress on each brunette woman against the long window?"
“Perfect, then I’m doing something right. Oh," she turned her attention as directed, smile fully on her face again as she focused. Puffing out her breath, she did her best to relax her features, to look both unassuming and unattentive, as she counted then compiled. "Black, blue, red, another black, aaaaand, if we're counting the dishwater blonde at the edge, a third black. If we're not, pretend I didn't say that?" Her eyes flew back to Felicia, chewing at her bottom lip lightly to alleviate some anxiety at being wrong.
"Nicely done," Felicia praised, setting her teacup down softly. "And I appreciate you not mentioning the dye job in pink, you're too sweet."
Her cheeks flushed, chin raising slightly in pleasure, though, at the mention, her eyes darted to the woman in pink. Oh, she hadn't even noticed her, but, well. She nodded, refusing to let a blunder color something she truly had been proud of. "Well, I am trying to learn from the best."
Felicia gave her a little nudge under the table, trying not to grin. "Maybe not the best, but I /am/ very, very good and really like compliments so," she said, shrugging to hide the twitch of her mouth. "And besides, I tried out modesty before. Those two minutes did not suit me."
Alani couldn't stop herself from laughing, teeth flashing for a moment before she raised her napkin to her mouth. Still, her eyes shone before she dropped them and took a small sip of her tea. "Well, I'm going to believe that you endured those two minutes brilliantly and with your head held high." When a waiter brushed past, skirting out of the way of a patron, she looked away from her friend for a moment to survey the movements. When she spoke again, her voice had dropped a touch. "Very important," the word practically rolled her eyes for her, though she didn't dare, "customers? You said to be seen, I think, You would tell me if I'm missing seeing something, right darling?"
"I'm not one of those mean teachers who gives trick questions. Not on the first lesson anyway," Felicia reassured her calmly, but she watched as another server walking in the opposite direction made the same side step, giving the patron a wide berth. She quirked her head slightly to the side, looking back at the tea biscuits. "I do think you may have found something fun, though, if accidentally."
"Mmm, I'm a master of accidentally finding things." And while it was said with her normal sunshiney voice, smile playing at her lips, she was surprised that she was actually right. She'd only thought the waiters were giving all customers the same distance, but a slow can showed she'd been wrong. Her eyes brightened in an almost wide-eyed wonder as she looked back to Fi. "Ohhh, do you know them?"
"I don't," Felicia admitted, before giving her friend a sly smile. "But how about we find out?"
