Tiger Blood Campfire, Sunday Afternoon

[whenshewasnice]

Natalie was pacing around the firepit outside her bouncy castle. In a slightly ill-fitting 1920s style frock. This had not even remotely been her plan for the afternoon. But plans changed, especially when Fandom got involved.

Like she'd intended to, Natalie had brought her stuff over to the campsite early. Then she'd gone back to the dorms and gotten Mr. Moxy, and brought him with her into town. The plan had been to let him roam around the Boards for awhile, while she met up with Jim there to fulfill her promise of a private piano concert of a sort. But of course, they'd gotten there early, before Jim. And of course, Mox had chased out a gremlin from somewhere behind a curtain, and before she'd known it, it had stuck its venomy teeth right into her calf.

So long story short, now she thought her name was Myrtle, and she was pacing around the firepit outside the bouncy castle, in a slightly ill-fitting 1920s style frock which she'd grabbed from the costume racks at the Boards before coming here (and a flapper-ish headband, and some nice red lipstick), and was wringing her hands because she'd promised her boss, Mr. Moxy of Moxy Pictures (... who was still roaming the Boards, whoops), that she would acquire the refreshments for tonight's party in honor of Mr. Fairbanks, and she was waiting for her supplier to show up.

"Come on, Jack."

[ooc: Open! And up early for timezones and stuff. Nat now thinks she's more or less Myrtle, a Prohibition era Hollywood secretary from the short film Bitter Orange. Starring her PB opposite Alec's 20-year reunion PB. So we had to do something with that. Also, the Boards and Jim both modded with kind permission.]

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[nottrivial]

Alec had been on his way to his own campfire, suitcase of black clothing in hand, when a stinging pain in his right ankle suddenly distracted him from where he was going and what he was doing for just long enough for the gremlin saliva properties to take effect.

And while that wasn't quite enough time to grow a mustache, it did leave Alec -- well, strictly speaking it was Jack now -- enough time to change into a suit and tie (normally reserved for dances rather than secret booze deliveries to flappers) and comb his hair before making a beeline for Myrtle's house (read: Natalie's campfire).

He didn't knock, just strode on in with his suitcase raised.

"Hello, Myrtle."

[whenshewasnice]

The fact that there wouldn't have even been anything to knock on was probably pretty inconsequential when Natalie thought she could see the Hollywoodland sign all lit up in the preserve.

Hallucinations were so fun.

She turned at the sound of his voice, immediately starting for him. Well, his suitcase. Whatever. "Jack, finally."

[nottrivial]

"Eager to see me, aren't you?" he noted, a note of playful smugness in his voice. Swinging the suitcase perhaps a touch more loosely than he might have if there had really been a bottle of liquor inside, he asked, "Where do you want it?"

[whenshewasnice]

She smiled at him, but it was a little less authentic than some might have hoped. This was serious business! "Just here is fine," she said, gesturing at... one of the logs around the campfire.

As if it was a table.

[nottrivial]

"You sure are keen to get your hands on this," Jack observed leisurely even as he set the suitcase down on the log, laying both hands on top of the case to stop Myrtle from opening it right away. "What's your hurry?"

It wasn't any of his business, but why not drag this out?

[whenshewasnice]

Myrtle sat down on the log anyway, her own hand on the case too. In case it might disappear otherwise. "I need it for the party. Last minute bash for Mr. Fairbanks ––" She just barely didn't roll her eyes, although she pouted a bit in a discontent fashion. "–– and my boss's cellar is as dry as powder."

Damn you, Prohibition.

[nottrivial]

"So he put Susie Secretary on the case," Jack said with a knowing smirk. Typical Myrtle to hop right to a task, no matter how tricky and illegal.

[whenshewasnice]

Hey, she was going places! You didn't go places if you weren't willing to take chances. Like dealing with second-rate shady characters from the underworld. "Who else?" she asked. "It's funny, he won't give me the assistant director job, says it's too much for a woman, yet he has no qualms with me fraternizing with criminals."

Hm. She half smirked at him when she said that.

[nottrivial]

"Criminals?" Jack repeated with a smirk of his own that turned into a more genuine smile. "Shucks."

Maybe don't take that as a compliment, Jack.

[whenshewasnice]

It wasn't. But hey, Alec was going to love that, right? "I don't mind it," she said, sliding her hand along the top of his suitcase in a way that was really almost half flirting (Natalie was not going to like that later), "I suppose I'll miss running errands when I'm someone important."

[nottrivial]

Oh, he was going to be so delighted.

"You sure are confident that'll happen," Jack said, but there was a note of fondness in his tone to go with the teasing. "Just don't get so important you don't need to fraternize with criminals anymore."

[whenshewasnice]

Myrtle shrugged her shoulders. "Maybe the criminals I fraternize with will go straight," she replied airily.

That was going to be funny later. Maybe.

[nottrivial]

It already was! You know, if you were, uh, not Alec or Natalie.

"Stranger things have happened," Jack granted lazily, then added, "But I wouldn't count on it."

Anyway, he was convinced that Myrtle had a thing for bad boys. He was probably mistaken there.

[whenshewasnice]

He was probably mistaken about a lot of things when it came to Myrtle, really.

"Anyway," she said, with another little shrug, tightening her fingers around the edge of the suitcase, "let's have a look."

[nottrivial]

"Ah-ah-ah," Jack said swiftly, not lifting up his hand. "You got the cash?"

[whenshewasnice]

Sigh. She reached into her glittery purse – also stolen from the prop stash at the theater – before holding out the money, all rolled up tight.

"Two hundred."

That... that was a rolled up flyer for the Boards' performance of Petey Sci-Fi/i>, Natalie.

[nottrivial]

Jack seemed to find the flyer cash acceptable after some inspection. He released the suitcase, undid the buckles, and gestured toward it for Myrtle's perusal.

It was full of neatly folded black clothes and a stele, though to the hallucinating eye it probably looked empty. Either way, there was no gin to be found.

[whenshewasnice]

At that, Myrtle smiled a little wider for him, turning the suitcase so she could pop it open to find...

Nothing.

She looked up, eyebrows raised, smile gone. "What is this? There's no gin in this case, Jack."

[nottrivial]

Jack, who had been leisurely smoothing down his hair while eyeing himself in an invisible mirror, turned back around to face her. "Nope," he confirmed. "I'm fresh out."

[whenshewasnice]

Myrtle got up, mostly so she could put her hands on her hips in accusatory manner. That was a thing.

"You said you had it."

[nottrivial]

"I said I'd get it," Jack corrected her, looking amused by her annoyance.

That was pretty much how his face looked today, though. It was what made him look so different from normal Alec.

[whenshewasnice]

Yeah, that was something Natalie was going to find fascinating later. Assuming she could even vaguely remember what she'd actually been seeing, instead of what she'd thought she was seeing.

But Myrtle was not pleased by this turn of events. There was a little more that was accusatory about her now than just hand placement. She stepped closed. "You double-crossing scoundrel."

But her pout was adorable.

[pursuedthestars]

Jim didn't get stood up. It just didn't happen but today? Today, it happened. When he'd gotten to The Boards, he'd found Natalie's cat but no Natalie.

So, he'd waited. And waited. And started talking to the damn cat even. When he realized that Natalie wasn't gonna show, he picked up Moxy and headed back to the campsite.

And that's where he saw her, looking perfectly okay which meant she'd just stood him up for no good reason.

"You forget we had plans today?" he asked, still cradling the cat in his arms.

[nottrivial]

"Now, don't get so riled up," Jack chided, and yes, he did appreciate her pout. "I'll go for it directly. You just sit tight and try not to miss me too much."

Jack thought he was charming. He waggled his eyebrows at Myrtle, just to make it really clear how very charming he thought he was. Then he turned toward the 'door.'

[whenshewasnice]

Myrtle glared a little bit at his back and considered admonishing him not to ruin this for her, but let him go without another word.

Then she got back to her pacing.