Rowan rubbed her hands together, a hint of a smile on her face. "I am going to go absolutely wild. You wanna help?" She tilted her head at Kain, who shook his. "No thanks, I have a new case and I'll just do a breakdown of that. Some fraud and murder, pretty basic stuff but'll seem impressive." Kain was quite proud of his work.
(hnng how would you like me to jump in, Starlight? Also, does France still exist? since that's where Marce is from and if it doesn't exist, I have a problem– also if it does exist, what are relations like between France and London?)
(France can exist, and London could have allies pretty easily-France could be one of them. Idk I wasn't much thinking about that stuff lol. And maybe one of your characters could have a question about the gallery showing? Idk.)
(Alright, thanks! Lol. Alright!)
Henry walked into the gallery, examining it for any tiny flaw that could put a whole wrench in the works. He examined the hors d'oeuvres, each of the boarder's presentations for anything potentially dangerous and ended up amending over half of them for safety's sake. He had the servants dust and deal with every single little thing that needed taking care of. The next few hours would be a lot, but it would be worth it.
(does the Society still take in people that need help?)
(Yeah, always!)
(alright! Because I figure that's why Marce would go to them. Victor would go because ~curiousity~ and also nowhere else to go. So I think I'll introduce Vic now, if that's alright?)
(Yeah!)
(alright!)
Victor Frankenstein squinted up at the building in front of him. There was to be some sort of gallery showing here, supposedly, and he had questions to ask. He ducked inside, adjusting his long coat as he did. He looked around, lips faintly pursed. He had no idea what he was doing here; but he couldn't go back to Geneva. Not after how his own actions had torn his family apart. His mistakes. His Creation.
Another man was walking into the building, he was tall, and handsome, ethereally so, and his demeanor was that of a cat's, calculating and precise. He carried a briefcase, overflowing with legal work and looking battered as it could get without breaking. He turned to Victor, giving him a quick once-over out of suspicion, and then introduced himself. "Gray, Dorian Gray. What is your business here?" he asked, as if making friendly conversation.
Victor blinked. "I…had heard that the Society takes in…strays." he said slowly. Victor himself was not short, but Dorian was still taller than him. He took in a slow breath. "I was wondering if I would be able to stay. Not necessarily forever, but…maybe for a while."
"Hmm, you'd have to talk to Henry about that one. Haven't seen the old chap in a while, I'll take you to him." Dorian suggested kindly, but not out of kindness, more out of a sense of tired responsibility. He lead Victor down the halls and into the gallery, where he'd guessed Henry would be. And the man was.
"Dorian! It's been too long!" Henry said, practically making heart-eyes at the man.
"Ah, Henry. We have a new potential boarder. Also, Utterson wanted this delivered to you, he said it was about some will of yours, I didn't catch the details. Preparing for death this young?"
"There's been a sickness going around London, you know." Henry blushed, a little embarrassed by Dorian's demeanor. "Now, what is your name, Mr…."
"Frankenstein." Victor replied, hoping that the news of his family hadn't spread here yet. He didn't want to have to field questions about them just yet. Them or Clerval. "Victor Frankenstein." he looked tired; dark smudges beneath his eyes and a slightly slouched posture, looking like he was about to fall asleep on his feet.
"Mr. Frankenstein. Lovely name, if I do say so myself. Which I do," he laughed at his own joke. He had to keep up a cheerful demeanor, or what would become of his society?
"Ooh, who's the Byronic pretty-boy?" Hyde giggled, gleefully in the back of Henry's mind.
"He said his name was Victor. Hush, Dorian's here. We haven't seen him in so long!" the other Jekyll squeaked.
He cocked his head faintly. "I…thank you?" he replied slowly, a little bit confused and unsure how precisely he should respond. "I'm afraid I didn't catch your name."
"Dr. Henry Jekyll, at your service. I run this little organization, and Dorian here handles the funding. Speaking of, Dorian, do you plan on staying for the gallery tonight?" Henry asked.
"Ooh, someone's clingy. Don't want our widdle Dowian leaving so soon."
"I can and will strangle you. I'll do it, don't test me."
"Violence from Mr Goody-Good?"
"That's Doctor to you, Mr Hyde. How can you become so evil you lose your degrees?"
The gallery was bustling, and noisy, and crowded. Henry needed out.
"Why don't we take this to my office?" Jekyll asked, voice strained a little bit.
Victor nodded a little bit, carrying his bag by his side. "I see." at the question, he shrugged faintly. "I don't see why not. Lead the way?" he ran a hand through his hair, making it even more messy. He had brushed it this morning, but his wavy locks refused to cooperate even on the best of days.
"Fantastic, it's just up the way." he pointed, traversing the room and then the stairs into his office. "Now, Mr. Frankenstein, what brings you here in the first place?" he asked, laying out his work and Utterson's-or Dorian's, if could have belonged to either-briefcase on the table. "You seem tired, I implore you to sit! Now, then, where were we? Ah, yes, what brings you here?"
Victor cautiously sat down, studying Henry for a moment. "I…don't really have anywhere else to go." he replied slowly. "It's…complicated and personal, as to why, but I really don't have anywhere else." he was indeed tired, and he had a sneaking suspicion that he was catching ill again.
"Most of our boarders like their histories to remain confidential, you wouldn't be the first. However, we do like to do background checks around here. There are people who do not wish for our society to remain standing, and, well… a brief account of your history would be helpful. Otherwise, I'll have to do more digging than I'd really prefer." he explained.
Victor hesitated. "I…created something that I should not have, and it…hurt the people that I care about." He replied slowly, looking away. His hands tightened a little bit, and he chewed on his lip.
"I'm going to need a little more detail than that," he chuckled. "Hey, if you aren't ready to tell me, it's okay. Just tell me where you're from, any family or friends you'd have us contact, just so we know who you are. Everything will be fine, alright?" he said consolingly.
"Wooow, way to console the guy. I mean, look at him, he's practically shaking in his boots!" Edward let out his trademark mocking laugh.
He shook his head a little bit. "I'm from Geneva. I attended a school for science but failed to earn my doctorate. I…only have one brother left. I can give you his name and address if you need it, but he thinks I'm dead so I'm not contacting him again." He said simply.
"Frankenstein, Victoooor…. from…. Genevaaa…." Henry hummed as he wrote down everything Victor had given him. "No, I don't think we'll be needing to contact your brother. If you're dead to him, it's probably for a reason. I'll set you up with a room and a boarder's pass so everyone knows you're staying here. Is there anything you'd be needing? Clothes, books, lab supplies?"
Victor nodded a little bit. "Uhm… I've got clothes and such, I've got them in my bag, but maybe…I don't know. I'll read anything I can get my hands on. Access to a lab would be nice; I can make a list f things I want or need."