Cor laughed softly with Nora at Bit’s reaction and ignored the other Siren until she walked away. “I know the type.” he said though he was more referring to himself when he was Black Light. As Cor he was a little uncomfortable with excessive flirting but as his alter ego… he pretty much had, or pretended to have, no inhibitions. “Don’t worry about her. It takes more than that to interest me.” he assured Nora… and it was true.
"She might come for you again," Nora said bluntly, but before she, or Bit, could do anything else, a voice cut through the crowd.
"Nora! Nora, where are you? Nora's the new owner. Nora, get up here and introduce yourself!"
Nora sighed. The voice belonged to Skye, one of the few staff members who wasn't a former Siren, but with her curves and her face, she definitely could have been. Nora loathed her with a passion.
With a sigh, Nora turned around and walked up on the stairs that led to Castor's former nook, now Nora's office, going one step higher than Skye and hefting a smile onto her face.
"Welcome back," she said in what she tended to call her Siren voice, a clear, sugar-sweet, somewhat seductive tone. "I have five words for you: Eat, drink, and have fun!"
The crowd cheered and, with that, a dance beat pounded through the club. Skye smiled sweetly at Nora, who smiled just as sweetly back before stepping back down the stairs and heading to where Bit and Cor were as fast as she could.
Cor had just opened his mouth to thank her for the warning when the Siren lookalike called Nora up to make a speech. He briefly wondered if this was the same thing that the other flirty Siren had wanted… but he decided it didn't matter as he watched her, thankfully, short speech. While he applauded loudly with the rest of the crowd, there was a small frown on his face. It didn't last long when Nora made her way back towards him and her Bit. “You sure know how to work a crowd.” he complimented once she was close enough.
"I'd like to see you spend a couple hundred cycles with Castor and not know how to," she told him, noticing his frown. "Did Bit behave?"
Yes.
“Fair enough.” Cor chuckled softly, waving off her concern. “Bit was fine. Nothing happened while you were speaking.”
"Really?" She raised her eyebrows skeptically at Bit. "Now that's a first."
Cor chuckled and shook his head. “I know I don't know I don't know your Bit very well… but I'm starting to think that some of the mischief is made up or exaggerated.” he smiled softly.
No, Bit said, and Nora concurred.
"You haven't seen it when…" She blinked suddenly. When it was with Kaira. Bit and Kaira had been an inseparable pair, causing perfect chaos wherever they went and then being in the thick of it. Kaira had always exaggerated their adventures, and Nora had, somewhat subconsciously, taken up the torch.
"They're a little exaggerated," she admitted. "But always based on fact."
Yes.
Cor raised a brow slightly at the change in tone but he recognized enough not to push for information on a personal topic. So he just nodded in acceptance. “Makes sense.” he smirked faintly. “I almost hope I get to see one of those little… adventures one day. Though hopefully not at the club.” he amended with a chuckle.
Nora smiled for a moment. "Should we get a drink?"
“Sure. A drink sounds good.” Cor smiled a little more.
Nora carved a way through the surrounding programs towards the bar. "I'll take some energy. Something light."
"Coming right up," said the bartender, grabbing a bottle. "And for your friend?"
“I’ll have the same. Thank you.” he answered, not planning to get too drunk too quickly tonight.
The bartender gave them two glasses of energy; Nora sipped hers.
It wasn't long before Astra wafted up to them and took a seat next to Cor, batting her eyelashes playfully at him.
"Can I get you anything?" the bartender asked her.
"I'll have whatever he's having." She smiled sideways at him. Nora wanted to retch. She'd seen Astra do this a million times, and it still made her sick. The girl was desperate.
Cor let out a soft sigh of annoyance when Astra sided up to him. He was familiar with this tactic and knew the best way to deal with it was to ignore the person. Though he was always a little curious why some thought that ordering the same drink as the “target” was supposed to be flirty… even if he'd used that same trick a couple of times.
Nora was vaguely amused. Astra wasn't someone who liked a chase; if Cor ignored her, she would turn her attention to her text target in a few minutes.
Swirling her drink, she watched Astra frown and accept her drink. Then she spotted Nora, and a poisonously sweet smile appeared on her face.
Cor took a long slow sip of his drink, determined to keep ignoring the flirtatious Siren. Though he did notice that… unpleasant smile and he couldn't help but feel nervous about it.
"Nora, Nora, Nora." Astra's voice was smooth and beautiful, a tone that could seduce anyone. "Have you found yourself a boy toy?" She put her elbow on the counter and propped her chin in her hand, blinking slowly. "I would never have thought that you of all programs would have made such a catch."
Nora ignored her, though she was seething inside; Bit, however, bobbed adamantly up and down in the air. No.
(Idea)
Cor’s eyes widened in surprise at the term, choking on his drink, his ears burning as he blushed furiously. “Excuse me?” he said with a harsh glare at Astra. “If that was supposed to be a compliment, then you failed on that since I don't take to being called a “boy toy” nicely. And second, correct me if I'm wrong on this, Nora is your boss… so I would think a little respect for her wouldn't be out of line.” he said firmly. “Now if you don't mind, I would like to enjoy my time at this club and finish my drink in peace.”
(What's your idea?)
Astra looked taken aback for a split second, and then let out a loud, raucous laugh. "Feisty! Oh, I like this one! What's your name, darling? Ditch Nora and come with me. I'll show you a good time."
"Your pay's docked," Nora said idly, stirring her drink. "Leave us alone or I'll fire you."
Astra sniffed loudly and sat up. "I'll leave if I get to take this one with me."
"Astra, I am not Castor or Gem. I will not tolerate your manipulation. Go find someone else to chase."
Astra let out a small hm that was clearly supposed to convey amusement, but at Nora's icy glare, her poisonously sweet smile appeared again and she stood up. "If that's how you'll have it… boss."
With that, she melted into the crowd; Nora breathed a sigh of relief.
(Astra or Skye, one of the two, is the leader of the Iris gang. They hire Black Light to do some data stuff, but he has no idea of their intentions because it seems pretty harmless. Astra/Skye ends up being a program designed to hijack other programs and steal their data, which is why Iris is known for discjackings and why Astra/Skye flirts with everyone. By absorbing others' data, Astra/Skye plans to become the most powerful program on the Grid because they will have as many functions as possible.)
(😳😮… I LOVE IT!!!! It's shocking but I think it's brilliant!!)
Cor couldn't help but growl at the infuriating Siren, biting back several curses both at himself and at Astra. He knew better than to say so much to a woman like that no matter how much she got under his skin. Though he was impressed how Nora handled her. “Thanks…” he said gratefully before taking a huge gulp of his drink. “I’m sorry to say this, but I don't think I can stand that woman.” he admitted.