002 - will you walk into my parlor said the spider to the fly

[neclectus]

Who| Timaeus and you!
What| Ingratiating yourself. Or not.
Where| It's a choose your own adventure! Three locales inside :D
When| After his network post, before the Crowning ceremony
Warnings/Notes| Timmy's a giant creep of the Nice Guy variety. But you already knew that.


PENTHOUSE:
Timaeus's penthouse is large and lavish as you might imagine. To gain entry you will need to use the intercom outside- unless you are one of his very favourite people and he's given you the code. (His code, of course, changes every time he falls out with a friend.) The interior is decorated in a mishmash of styles, though Timaeus tends to favour extensive use of fine dark woods and marble. He owns several old curiosities and has an ever expanding collection of modern conveniences, gadgets and luxuries for the sake of luxury.

OFFICE:
The office you will have seen before on the network. It is white and spacious, with surprisingly minimalist décor- though this is all thrown off by the various models of Nadir Yachting Company boats, interior representations and the like. To gain access here all you have to do is make an appointment with his secretary or turn up and wait. The offices are within walking distance of the lake shore, where Timaeus's personal sailing yacht is moored.

A WILD TRIBUTE APPEARS:
Timaeus does most of his shopping through proxy, but he can occasionally be found being fitted for new clothes, or sampling the latest technological gadget, fastest car, and so on. While he'll be more responsive to people he already knows, as long as he's approached in the right way it's likely he'll be open to a conversation at least.

Comments

[gruesome]

"Stone would be better, but I do not think it would be a problem, one way or the other." He still wasn't certain what the floor of the one in Bete Noire had been - he hadn't known about concrete or cement yet, then. "But it is important that there are no windows, and it can be made dark."

[neclectus]

He nodded. "No windows at all- it's all below ground. We're currently enlarging it, so one end is really rather unfinished I'm afraid- but we can turn the lights out. Will we have any light at all, or will I be completely blind?"

[gruesome]

"If you'd like a light, bring one, so long as there is no flame." Some couldn't quite control his shudder at the word, though he tried. "It is made for touch, though."

[neclectus]

Timaeus noted Some's discomfort quietly, but made no mention of it, useful information though it was. He made a quick mental note: no candles.

"Oh, I see. No, I think I would like to experience it as you do. I'm sure if I get too afraid of the dark that the light on my watch should be enough. Ah- excuse me a second--"
He paused, moving over to his desk to tap a message through to his secretary before offering Some a wide smile. "Shall I show you there? We can simply ride the elevator down."

[gruesome]

He rallied more or less immediately, trying to hide that he'd had the reaction at all.

"Yes, I'd like to see it, so I can know how many stones I will need. I saw the shore as I came in... I think that would be the best place for me to find them, if it is allowed?"

[neclectus]

"Oh, certainly- yes, of course," he reassured him brightly- as if Some had little reason to worry that anything he wanted to do would be forbidden. It was a pleasant little fantasy. "Here, this way."

He led Some back to the elevator, joining him in it and pressing the lowest button with a smile. "You can have anything you need, my friend. I simply feel privileged to be sharing in the experience."

[gruesome]

Some didn't like elevators much more than he liked the bright environs of Timaeus's office. He put two hands on one of the walls as they began to move, swallowing. "I told you, I think, that my mother was a story-teller- a very good one. She could make a 'walk that filled half our cave, and had little twists in the story you could follow, if you wanted to learn more about a person or a place or a happening."

[neclectus]

"She sounds really very ingenious," Timaeus told him, deciding that perhaps the best way to deal with Some's discomfort was to distract him. It wouldn't take them too long to descend, after all.
"I suppose you probably remember some of her stories with absolutely perfect clarity- will you be replicating one for me?"

[gruesome]

"Just the shorter ones," he admitted, a little solemnly. "I'll be building the story of the First Some for you - it was always the one I knew best."

[neclectus]

"The first one?" he asked, curiously- pausing as the elevator came to a stop and the doors slid open, revealing a spacious but unfinished basement, lit weaklywith a string of bulbs hanging off temporary hooks driven into one wall. "My apologies. I didn't realise it was a title- I thought it was your personal name."

[gruesome]

"Title and spell," he said with a nod, lowering the gray shawl in the lower light. "And name too. I gave up my own name, Mennet, to wear it.

"And I think this space will work." He left Timaeus's side to explore the floor a little, pacing a space when he found one big enough, running his forefeet over the floor to feel how smooth it was. Too smooth, really - he would have preferred a concavity. But it could be made to work. "Yes... here." He stretched out, gesturing a circle a little more than twelve feet wide. "I will need sand enough to cover this to the depth of- one foot- a human foot, and I will need to bring in six forty-eights of stone and- may I use bone?" he asked, turning his upper body completely around to face Timaeus again.

[neclectus]

"Oh, of course," he agreed, expansively. "Anything you'd like. Some things I have't a clue where you'd find, of course, but I'm sure you can work something out with my people. I must admit, I'm intrigued to hear the story, once it's ready. Perhaps I should restrain myself from asking too much about this Some title of yours so as not to spoil the surprise?"

[gruesome]

Some smiled, both jaws dropping slightly in a friendly display of teeth. "Maybe. I will try to have this done before the next arena, though I cannot promise, if it takes a while to get some of the parts."

Though if he delayed, he wondered, perhaps he could ensure that the Capitol would bring him back, even with Ele overshadowing him.

[neclectus]

"Of course, of course. Naturally, I'll have my staff notified that you are to be allowed access to the basement whenever you require it," Timaeus assured him airily. "Please, feel free to come and go as you please. If you need anything from me my secretary knows where to find me- and there's the network, of course."

[gruesome]

Staff and secretaries; all a little formal for Some's comfort, but he just smiled, nodding.

"Should I let you know when I am working, if you want to watch?"

[neclectus]

"Yes, please do. I really am very curious- though I might be too busy to oversee all the time. Business really has picked up since the party- all thanks to you and your fellow tributes. Would you like some more time here? I really should get back to the office, but I detected-- well, you seemed a little uncomfortable. The light, I think?"

[gruesome]

"Ah... I will find the way to turn it out when it's only me down here. More, it is meeting new people. I never quite know what they have read about me now, you see?"

He shrugged, the gesture both sheepish and human. "Perhaps you could let them know that I am harmless?"