Quote Originally Posted by Morty View Post
[Tempest Row]

"I can provide you with another face in a few ways," the King replies, his demeanor businesslike. This is a deal, and he knows deals very well. "I can lend you aid to change your shape. But there needs to be a story that comes with it. We fey shape ourselves by shaping stories. I could let you turn into a darker aspect of yourself that carries my blessing, a dangerous carrion-bird."
[Tempest Row]

"...When you say 'carrion-bird', exactly how literal are you being?" Klaus asks, seeing a flaw with this arrangement. "Do you mean a raven, an unusually large raven, or a raven-man? Those all have very different implications and applications." He smiles. "And one should know better than to walk into a deal with that kind of ambiguity in the terms."

Quote Originally Posted by Reinholdt View Post
[Misty Velvet]

Raven mostly just looks confused. She doesn't seem to have remembered that part of Rose's story at all. After a moment she glances back at the establishment then to Rose and something kinda clicks? "It's not a strip club, just a dance joint. I know, stupid name. Don't worry, we'll change it now that we own it. I'm thinking the Black Hole. Or maybe the Empty Void."

Raven pulls her hand back to her umbrella. She can't keep their 'customers' waiting in suspense any longer with the mecha-zombies already inside so Raven elects to waltz inside and hopes that Rose will follow on her own accord. Raven nods just slightly to the mecha-zombie holding the door open for the catgirl. Once inside, she speaks in a booming, commanding tone full of confidence and gusto.

"GREETINGS Peasants! Your beloved and evil Empress Ebondark has chosen your establishment to host music for me and my girlfriend to listen to for our amusement! Be honored!" The place has fallen relatively silent, even the dj having cut the music to listen to this proclamation. The people within look rough, big, and it's a guarantee that all of them are carrying weapons of some sort. Not the kind to be cowed by this small, overly dressed catgirl's demands. The only thing drawing hesitation from the crowd are those mecha-zombies. There's an uncertainty as to how dangerous those things are, and if they're particularly infectious should someone get bit.

"... Did you not hear me?! Clear the floor and put on my music!" Raven says, stamping her foot with a huff. One of the braver souls, a muscular sort, starts to approach, but he's reaching behind his back for something and Rose may see the large knife he's pulling out of the sheath. It seems he intends to meet her demand with one of his own and light the fuse on this whole situation.
[Misty Velvet]

It takes Rose a little to see what Raven's intentions are. She thought a dozen zombies might have been a strangely large entourage to bring to a dance club, but maybe that was just how Raven liked to do things; with a large "friend group" to help keep her safe. But looking around, it looked more like a small-scale invasion force... she had planned for the event that "give us your club!" was met with resistance, which she could then put down terminally.

Maybe. They did look to be ever-so-slightly outnumbered, but then, the zombies were stronger than they looked, as Rose had seen firsthand. That factored in, it might be a fairly even fight.

Or a massacre. One side wasn't going to be dissuaded by casualties, at least. If things came to blows, there was going to be at least a dozen corpses on the floor before the night was out. And that number might include her or Raven.

Rose considers what it would take to stop that bloodbath from occurring. Or, for that matter, if she should stop it from occurring. Raven probably had sufficient force to protect herself. And what were a few clubbers next to the mission?

...A lot, actually.

Besides, if getting close to a supervillainess didn't give Rose the power to stop tragedies like these, what was even the point?

Rose steps forward and mutters into the brave-but-maybe-slightly-overconfrontational guy's ear. "Hey, there. Easy, buddy. It's all part of the act." Then she steps forward and addresses the club-goers at large.

"That's right, PEASANTS!" She sneers, imitating Raven's rather arrogant entrance. "Clear the floor! You don't dare refuse the wills of the Emperess and her Queen!" She smiles haughtily. "Unless one of you insolent peons thinks he can match our skills, here and now, on the dance floor!" She snaps her fingers at the DJ. "Music, serf! Music!"

She backs toward Raven, hoping her own declaration had changed the rules of engagement enough to turn this back into a situation where knives didn't need to be drawn. She wasn't a conqueror, she was a very enthusiastic dancer with a persona.

...Hopefully, that wouldn't also cost her what progress she'd made with Raven. If this didn't end in a bloodbath, she might be upset. She might be anyway, for having control of the encounter snatched away from her. The next few seconds are going to be tense, that much is certain.