Golden Trio

bailey_icon.png raleigh_icon.png zan_icon.png

Where: Slingin' Ink

When: August 23, 2012; Afternoon

What: Raleigh and Bailey are talking about a possible tattoo design then Zan arrives and they find out Bailey is invited to the same conference.

It's a nice, hot day in Las Vegas, and people are out and about, enjoying the weather. And who can blame them? It's beautiful out. Bailey, not having work at the moment, has decided to check out the work place of the woman she met at the mall the other day. After a little time, she finds her way to the address that was written down for her.
Wearing a pair of slightly tattered blue jeans and a simple white tank top with simple heels, she opens the door to Slingin' Ink. She lazily gazes about to see what the store has to show.

While it may be hot outside the shop, inside, it's a cool 80 degrees. More than comfortable for Raleigh who sits behind the glass counter, working on a sketch in her sketchbook. As the door opens the the little bell rings signaling a new arrival, she looks up from her work and offers a smile as she sees the woman, immediately recognizing her. "Hey. Welcome to Slingin' Ink." She says as she closes her book and stands up from the stool she was sitting on. "Coming in for some work?" She asks as she slips around the counter to greet the woman.

A little smile inches across Bailey's face, looking toward Raleigh. "Hey there." She continues to look around for a moment before her attention concludes back on the other woman. "Not sure 'bout getting work done today. I ain't been able to wiggle out some fancy assed comps for you yet. But I thought I'd come around and check out your place just for good measure." She raises an eyebrow. "And I thought that, maybe, I'd at least talk to you about ideas I got for a tattoo." She shrugs a little.

Raleigh smiles and nods as she lets out a soft chuckle. "Well, that's alright. When you get them, we can fit you in and get your work done." She says with a smile before she moves over towards the woman to offer an extended hand. "Feel free to take a look around." She says before she motions to the mini-fridge. "Are you thirsty? I got water, juice or soda." She smiles and slips her hands into her pants pockets as she tilts her head at the mention of the ideas. "Yeah, totally. I don't have an appointment for a few more hours so we can sit down and I can start to sketch up some of your ideas and see what you think?"

"Well…" Bailey starts slowly. "I wouldn't mind a water, thanks." She gives a nod to that. "I've got a few ideas flowing through my head. I've wondered about getting a tattoo for a while, so, you know, it has given me time to think." She looks around. "I guess we should take a seat, huh? Might be a bit more comfortable than standing around." She grins.

Raleigh chuckles and nods. "Sure." She motions to the futon. "Have a seat and let me get my sketch book." She says before she heads to the fridge to grab a bottle of water from it and then picks up her leather bound sketch book before she moves to join the woman on the futon, offering her the bottle of water and then opens up her sketch book to a fresh page.

Heading over to said futon, Bailey sits down and smiles. "Nice place you got here." She compliments. "Been past a few tattoo places, not all of 'em are nice, let me tell ya!" She rolls her eyes. "It's like some people just don't care, you know?" Taking the water, nodding in thanks, she opens it and takes a little sip. "So, here's what I'm thinkin'. I'm thinkin' of like…well, I've got a few ideas. One is a lightening bolt striking a shattering light bulb."

Raleigh nods her head as she listens to Bailey's idea and starts to do a rough sketch on the pad. "Do you want the clouds too or just the bolt and bulb?" She asks as she sketches. "Also, did you have an idea of where you wanted to put this? If so, I can give you a rough idea of how big it should be."

Raleigh nods her head as she listens to Bailey's idea and starts to do a rough sketch on the pad. "Do you want the clouds too or just the bolt and bulb?" She asks as she sketches. "Also, did you have an idea of where you wanted to put this? If so, I can give you a rough idea of how big it should be." She continues to work on the rough draft as she speaks, getting the basic shapes down before going in and adding details and shading.

"A cloud would be pretty cool, yeah." Bailey nods in affirmation, after a moment of thought. "I'm considering my back for this. I might get other tattoos in the future that are smaller, and I might as well leave the smaller body parts, like arms and feet and…well, you get the point. Save those for the smaller ones." She smiles.

While the two women discuss tat work and design ideas, the door opens to admit another body into the shop. This one is male, however, and dressed in jeans and a t-shirt, a hand gripping the strap that hangs off his shoulder and ends in a heavily laden backpack. And as Zan lets himself in, he doesn't approach the two at work, but lingers near the entrance, brows lifted a bit and gaze wandering over the decor.

Raleigh thinks for a moment as she pauses to consider the location of the tattoo and the design. "Well, we could put the cloud at the shoulder level and the bulb at the mid-back. Did you have any other ideas that you'd want to add into the scene?" She asks before the door opens again and the bell rings to signify another customer. She looks up again and smiles as she sees Zan. "Hey, Zan. Come on in. Welcome to Slingin' Ink." She says with a soft chuckle before she looks to Bailey. "Excuse me a moment." She says before she stands and offers the woman her book to check out what she's done so far on her design. She moves over towards Zan and smiles. "What can I do for you?"

"That could work, totally." Bailey nods in agreement to the placements. "Well, this might sound unusual, but maybe a thought bubble coming up from the shattering bulb? Just a thought…ha! Get it? Thought bubble, thought?" She shakes her head at her own, terrible almost-but-not-really joke. She looks over to the door at the sound of it opening. She tilts her head in curiousity. "Hey…you're the guy from the mall the other day, aren't you?" She holds her tongue, deciding not mention the words 'lover's quarrel'. "So, Zan's the name, huh?" She gives Raleigh a little nod of understanding.

"Hey," Zan answers, hand not occupied with keeping his pack in place dropping into his hip pocket. "Uh…" A look takes in Bailey as well, and he draws up a shoulder as a shrug. "Yeah. Zan. Caldecott." He pauses to watch the woman still seated for a moment or two longer. "Nothing, really. I guess. If you're busy with work. Just had a question about the invitation you got. It can wait."

Raleigh thinks about Bailey's idea and chuckles. "That could work. I'll see what I can do with it." She offers before looks back to Zan, chuckling at Bailey's mention of the mall. She remains silent as Zan introduces himself before she shakes her head at his comment to her about the invitation. "Oh, no. Come on in. You want something to drink?" She asks motioning towards the mini-fridge. "I actually wanted to talk to you about that. I did some research on the conference and I also found an envelope in the larger one I got. Did you find that too?"

"Caldecott. Like the mayor!" Bailey may not know much about what goes on in the world of politics, but she knows names at least. And when you're in jail a few times, you hear people complaining about those in power as well. Not that it was ever for her, to complain about the mayor. "I'm Bailey, by the way. Bailey Lincoln. Like the president. No relation, just so you know. I get people asking me that sometimes." She eyes Zan over. She looks strangely between Raleigh and Zan. "Conference? Envelopes inside larger envelopes? Ha. Well, that's a funny coinkydink…if that." She mutters.

"Exactly like the mayor," Zan replies somewhat distractedly, "since the mayor's my dad." He's giving Raleigh a sort of odd look, which might be cause for the distraction, but he nods to her question. He pulls his pack around to fish out the envelope with the pass and included letter of sponsorship for another attempt at analyzing it. "Yeah. You being sponsored?" That odd look passes to Bailey after a beat, though his brows start to push upward. "You, too?"

Raleigh smiles and nods as he moves to the fridge. "You want water, juice or a soda, Zan?" She asks, getting herself a bottle of orange juice from the fridge before she looks to Bailey, an eyebrow raised slightly. "You got a pass too?" She asks before she looks to Zan. "Yeah. I'm being sponsored by some government agency. I'm being put in room 307." She adds after a moment.

"Yeah, it's strange. I was at work, I just went to warn this couple that it was about their time to get married at the chapel, and when I got back to my desk…BAM! There it was. Couldn't have been gone for more than a minute or so. It's weird." Bailey says, eyebrows furrowed, taking a sip of her water. "Just some random government agency sponsoring me. I don't even know what this event is for!"

The envelope goes unopened, though its in hand, momentarily forgotten while Zan stares at Bailey. "Weird's a bit of an understatement," he mutters with a glance toward Raleigh. He pulls his pack higher up onto his shoulder then opens the envelope for far from the first time to look at the enclosed letter. "Yeah, some agency… my dad might know more about it. Huh… You got Coke in there?" That's directed at the artist in almost an afterthought, as he folds the paperwork back into the envelope. "You see anyone there that shouldn't have been, Bailey?"

Raleigh nods her head and pulls out a bottle of coke and tosses it to Zan. "Heads up." She says before she closes the fridge. "Well, I did some research on the thing and apparently it's a very restricted conference held by some company called General Dynamics. It's suppose to be for government agency reps, military officials and the like. We've got clearance for the conference for the whole thing, but the date is for a day when they're talking about Airborne/Satcom/Terrestrial Networks, Data Encryption and Communications." She says before she opens her juice and takes a drink. "Either of you know anything about that stuff?"

A snort emits from Bailey. "I know jack squat about that stuff! And why I'd be invited to and given clearance for an event that's reserved for military and government types is well beyond me!" She shakes her head in amazement. "But hell, I'll go. I'm interested to see what's gonna happen. See why I've been chosen to be there." Though her mind does wander for a short moment. "Any idea why either of you were invited?"

"I'm just a film student," Zan says, shaking his head. He catches the can, but it remains unopened for the moment. "Unless it's good research material. But what little I managed to find of it… definitely doesn't sound like the kind of place you'd find aspiring directors." Though the topic matter does give him some pause, wondering just what has fallen into his hands this time. "Bailey, did you see anyone in the chapel besides the usual bride-groom and officiate types?"

Raleigh shakes her head as she looks to Bailey as she asks her question. "No. I'm just an artist. I don't really see how it's anything related to what's at the conference. I don't have a clue why I was even invited, but it's good to know that I'm going to know some people there." She says with a smirk. "I won't feel so out of place, just don't think I have anything appropriate to wear." She then looks to Bailey at Zan's words, waiting for the answer as well.

"This is so weird!" Bailey sighs. She looks to Zan and shakes her head. "Nah. Didn't see nobody out of the ordinary. Just the normal people. Plus those waiting out in reception. Whoever it was must've been fast…or invisible." She raises a thoughtful eyebrow. She turns to Raleigh and says, "You know…if you want something kinda, you know, 'business' to wear, I've got a few things I could throw your way. Mostly 'business casual'. Need 'em for work. If you want to wear something like that to this."

"Invisible?" Zan frowns slightly, just a flicker of consideration before he shakes his head. He works his pack around to push the envelope back inside. "Bit far fetched, someone invisible delivering a letter." But not impossible, he knows. His gaze ticks between Raleigh and Bailey as the conversation turns to dress for the event, and he takes the moment to crack open his soda can and take a drink.

Raleigh smiles to Bailey and nods. "That'd be great. It'd save my ass some money so I wouldn't go out and buy something myself." She says before she takes a drink from her juice. She then looks back towards Zan and thinks for a moment. "I'm really curious as to why we all were invited. Do you know anyone who got a pass?"

"Invisible. Hey now, more things far fetched than that have happened." At least Bailey there have been, but she's not about to say that it's an assumption. Because she's self assured like that. "Look, however we all got these letters, and for whatever reason, I think it's worth checking it out. I'm curious as all hell and they're gonna face a gal who can spit off questions a mile a minute." She grins. "You ain't faced someone who can talk your ear off 'til you're faced with a latina with an attitude!"

"You're telling me," Zan can't help but quip at Bailey. It sounds amused, if darkly. But he shakes it off and shakes his head again. "No. No one I know has gotten anything like it. I also haven't had any luck finding anything that looks like that guy from the bus and I'm pretty much out of footage to look over." Except maybe any security footage from the barbecues his family has hosted. The idea of it crosses his mind as he looks aside. "If I could get my hands on those tapes…"

Raleigh nods in agreement with Bailey. "I think it's worth checking out as well. If anything, it's a free hotel stay and a glimpse into what the government is doing." She says with a shrug. "Maybe I'll get some ideas for some tattoos." She chuckles softly before she looks to Zan as he mentions some tapes. "Which tapes? The tapes from the bus?" She asks. "Couldn't your dad get those tapes for you?"

A deep breath is taken and let out slowly by Bailey. "I'm gonna head off. I got some stuff I gotta get done. But keep me posted if you guys ever find anything more about this, before it happens. I'd very much like to know." She nods, standing. "See ya'll around, if not at the conference." She smiles softly.

"The bus," Zan asks, confused. But only for a moment, then he shakes his head. "I'd never get those," he answers. "Dad wouldn't agree to it. But the footage that we should have of the Memorial Day and July Fourth barbecues I might be able to get." It's a slim chance, but possible if he presents it right. He looks at Bailey when she excuses herself, giving a nod. "Yeah. Oh, wait. Raleigh and I are going to meet up there before we go inside, if you want to join us."

Raleigh frowns a bit at Zan's mention of not being able to get the bus tapes. "That's too bad." She says before she looks to Bailey as she excuses herself. "Okay. Thanks again for the outfit, I'll call you sometime to pick it up. I'll also get to work on the tattoo design for you so you can take a look on it." She says before she looks back to Zan as he mentions meeting up before the conference. "Yeah. You should meet us before the conference."

A little smile is given to both of them by Bailey. "Yeah, sure. I'll meet up with ya'll before the conference. And then we'll march in there, the golden trio." She gives them a wink. "See ya'll soon." She offers them both a little finger wave before heading out. It seems she's still got a bit of a limp to her walk, as she did in the mall.

Zan shakes his head, gaze ticking back to Raleigh. "Golden trio. Anyway. You mentioned General Dynamics? Did you try to find anything on them? Or on the sponsors that we all apparently have." He twists around slightly to manipulate his backpack again, pulling out the envelope, a notebook, and pencil. The name of the company is written down before he looks up at the artist once more.

Raleigh looks to Zan and smiles, chuckling at the golden trio comment as she slightly shakes her head. She moves over to the futon and takes a seat, closing her sketch book and sets it aside. "I haven't been able to find anything on them other than what's on their website. I don't know how to hack or anything, so I only get what's on Google. Same with the agency that sponsored me."

"I'll do some searching tonight," Zan offers. He opens the envelope enough to look at the name of the sponsor, which is written down as well after the peek. "I might see something you missed. Though, I wonder if the city interwebs have anything useful." He scratches at the back of his head with the eraser end of his pencil, frowning faintly at the names he's written. "And try to get my hands on that security footage." That'll be a task, he's sure.

Raleigh nods her head. "I'll see if there's anything else I can find out that I might have missed as well. Hopefully we can get an idea of what's going on and why we were invited before we actually go there." He takes a drink from her juice before she speaks again. "If I find anything else, I'll give you a call."

"Awesome." Zan shoves his things back into his pack and pulls the zipper closed. In that way of college and even high school students, he manages the feat without risking his can of Coke. "I should get going then. Get my homework done for the month before I try asking my dad for anything."

Raleigh nods her head and checks the time. "Yeah. I gotta finish up the design for my next appointment. Feel free to come back anytime you want to get some work done or get a new hole put in you." She says with a smile. "I'll give you the family and friends discount." She says with a chuckle as she stands from her seat and sets the juice and her sketchbook down on the glass counter.

"I'll think about it," Zan answers as he turns for the door. He pauses long enough to pull the other strap onto his free shoulder, balancing the weight of books a little more evenly. "Thanks for the drink," he calls back before pushing through the door and stepping back out into the Vegas heat.


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