“Well...Alright.  Let’s get it over with.”  Jareth sat down, nearly tripping over his own feet on the way, and rolled up his sleeve for her.  He’d not wanted to let go of her hand, but managed to do so all the same.  Amuné waited quietly.  The Seer had carefully noted the path, and the various other turns along the way, and now was looking around the infirmary.  She’d been afraid of such places once, many years ago.  Even now they reminded her of things she’d rather not think of.  She’d been a child then, just a child, but that hadn’t made any difference.

The young woman drew herself out of those thoughts with a mental shake.  Jareth had fallen hard for the other lady, she could tell.  He had that look, and he was being awkward as only a pretty girl made him.  Amuné turned away to hide a smile.

---

EARLIER

Cera had sent him outside while she did a few final things at the end of her shift.  When she emerged from the restaurant, she flashed him a smile.  “Sorry for the wait.  You ready?  My ride’s around the corner.”  She took the stairs in twos, putting on her sunglasses before she was out from under the overhang.  The vampire lead the way to a parking lot with a handful of cars, more now that the restaurant was starting to get busy, and opened the door of a burgundy pickup that sported a couple places where dents had been inexpertly repaired.  She pulled her seat up so she could stuff the case she was carrying behind it, then shoved it back into place and slid behind the wheel.  “The Tart’s a decent place, for what it is.  That is to say, somewhere they don’t ask questions and don’t much care what you do.”  She shifted into gear and drove out of the lot.

The place was several miles away, and the neighborhood was old and working on run-down.  Overgrown lots, untrimmed grass, boarded up windows and the occasional sag in a building, it was a place that had seen a larger population once, and then fallen into disrepair as people and money found other places to be.  The layout of the streets bordered on ridiculous.  More than once Cera had to go a street over or around a block to reach an intersection where she could turn the way she wanted to go.  “Word to the wise, don’t try driving around here without a map until you know it.  You’ll end up completely turned around.”

At last she reached their destination.  The buzzing neon sign said “Starlight”, but only four of the letters were lit, and one of those flickered occasionally.  “Here we are, cutie.  Remember, cash or check, and try not to get caught poking your nose into things.  Someone might decide it looks tasty and take a bite.”  She gave him a wink.  “Somehow I don’t think you need any help here, but I’ll stick around if you want me to.  Or let me know when you’d like me to show up tomorrow.  I’d rather be inside eleven to one, but I’ll forgo that if you ask nice~”

(([@TheMinorFall] off to bed, but if there's a post when I wake up I'll try to reply either before work, or as soon as I get there.  <3))