Katrinka's Dating Service

The man was flirting with her! Normally Katrinka took it with grace and redirected attentions elsewhere. Sometimes she even flirted back when it was harmless enough. But this one she wasn't sure if she wanted to laugh about it or find somewhere to hide for the evening.

Instead, he managed to pique her curiosity. It was so hard to resist a good gamble, and he did make it sound interesting.

"Hmm. I don't know about gambling..." she pretended to give it deep thought, including the exaggerated frown before she shrugged her shoulders. "I think I have courage enough for one little bet. What do you have in mind, Mister Bathis?"
 
"Fantastic." Brandon answered as he lightly rubbed his chin with his thumb. "How about something small, and safe like.... If you can find a match for me with your next choice... I you do, I'll pay you three thousand for your dating service. However... if you're wrong... I want to take you out for dinner." Grabbing his glass, he took another sip of his drink, and smiled slightly.

"Now tell me that either of those results don't catch your attention, because the latter is certainly reward enough for me. And yes, Miss Carrel. I am in fact serious about the wager."
 
Catching her attention might have been an understatement. Katrinka had many very interesting offers before, but this one was confusing. She wasn't sure if he really wanted to meet someone nice or if it was an elaborate scheme to get her on a date. He did get points for effort!

All of those thoughts were plain on her face, from shock to confusion to consideration and finally that mischevious grin of a woman who had made a clever decision.

"You forget that I am the best match-maker in Washington. It's a deal then! The perfect woman for Brandon Bathis, this should really be a piece of cake."
 
"You forget that I am the best match-maker in Washington. It's a deal then! The perfect woman for Brandon Bathis, this should really be a piece of cake."

"Then it was money well spent, I must admit, but we shall see." Brandon mused aloud to her as well as himself, and took another drink of his scotch. "Might I ask if you happen to have a favorite restaurant? In case I win of course... No pressure intended." Brandon obviously seemed pleased with himself. He came to the function specifically for the purpose of asking Katrinka out, however when this unique opportunity presented itself... he just couldn't pass it up.

"Any ideas that come to mind? And I promise that I will give the lady my utmost attention, and best attempt. I wouldn't stoop to rigging the bet, Ma'am." The man seemed genuine with his words, and it would be apparent to Katrinka, that he was a man who kept his word.
 
"No rigging, huh?" Katrinka's teasing smirk suggested that she might not believe him, but was giving the benefit of the doubt. The hard part would be finding a woman that could keep up with him. And she only had one shot left to do it!

"There is a place called Palisade in Seattle that I've never had a chance to try. It's a little far from here, but if you're willing to pay three thousand dollars for a match made in heaven, I think you can afford the gas money for a really great place, right? Someone told me they server Australia banana prawns. I'm not even sure what a banana prawn is!" If she lost, she intend to take advantage of a good evening. She had been wanting to try Palisade for months, but was always so busy with work.

Grr! Work! Perfect match... this time it was serious business. "No nurses and no blonds, what do you think about actresses or women with parrots?"
 
"None what so over." He said. "I believe I've heard of that place... it's been in the news lately. Quite expensive..., but I guess that's the price I go for spouting off at the mouth saying things like "three thousand", no? Hahaha." Brandon was certainly pleased that he'd gotten Katrinka thinking on the idea. That proved to him that she was at least comfortable with pondering the situation. ~A step in the right direction.~

"I dated an actress once. Well she was up and coming, but did have talent. I certainly wouldn't be apposed to the idea. As for a lady and her parrot... That's an odd combination, but I'd imagine that her, and her parrot would both be great at conversation. Or one would get annoying. Either way, one's bound to be a character." Brandon said with a chuckle.
 
"I see... More fun with the parrot than the woman." she responded with a cheeky grin. There was no harm in hassling him a bit. Every little tidbit he said would help find the right girl.

"Hmm. How about... A boxer that collects dolls. Oh wait, do you dance at all?" That was relevant to her interests. Er, to her match making interests. Katrinka had stopped watching him now to watching her clients. She couldn't forget that she had an entire room full of people to keep an eye on. But so far it seemed the evening was moving smooth enough with constant meddling.

"...or palm reading, what do you think about that? One of the guests reads fortunes just by looking at your hands. I think that's kind of interesting."
 
Brandon smiled at her jab, and only took another sip of his drink. "A boxer that collects dolls? I... uh, no. I doubt that'd be my type, but yes. I do like to dance, and I'm told that I'm remarkable good at it as well." Setting his glass down, Brandon watched Katrinka as she went to work with multitasking. She was certainly dedicated, and that spoke well of her character to him.

"Palm reading? I personally don't believe in the practice, but I am fascinated my myth and legends. Probably due to my bookish nature at times. Perhaps you know of someone who's dedicated? Dedicated to something... a purpose?"
 
Sean was all smiles, he felt like he may have been coming off as too mpressed by his new friend, but he did not care. IT was impossible for him to wipe the smile frm his face, she was beautiful, and had definitely hit home with Sean. He was about to ask a question when she fell out of her seat. Sean was watching with a stunned look that was bordering on a laugh attack. It was so funny to see her hit the floor like that, he had to slightly bite his tongue to keep from laughing. After she got up Mouthed the words I'm sorry, then took off towards the DJ, to request a song sean figured.

It looked like it was about to be Grindin' time, Sean quickly shot down his drink, feeling the loosing effects of the alcohol warm his body nicely. The next thing he knew, he was being pulled by April onto the floor. As " Blah Blah Blah" By Ke$ha came on, April pulled sean closer. He compensated by placing his hands on her hips and pulling her even closer still, the music was loud and Sean got caught in the moment, moving his hips in time with hers.
 
April smiled widely as she felt Sean's hands find their way to her hips as they moved closer together, her movements in time with his. She extended one of her arms and placed her wrist on his shoulder, grinding up against him. Her other arm swung behind her, moving along to the beat of the music. As they grinded together April looked up and smiled at Sean, bashfully turning her gaze away before turning back and making eye contact. As she got more into it she turned around and kept grinding up against him, which she was sure looked ridiculous with their height difference. As she moved to the music she looked around the room, to see who was paying attention to them, wishing that there were more people dancing.

"You're really cute." April shot over her shoulder, yelling above the music as it played. She blushed and turned her head back, continuing the grinding.
 
"You're hinting at me again, Brandon Bathis." She liked that tone of his voice. He was cute an- Wait no! She's supposed to be finding his match, not thinking about one of her own clients! That had wrong plastered all over it. Katrinka had went down that road once or twice before and it was so much more trouble than it was worth.

Still, she couldn't help but cast a lopsided grin at him before she was watching the crowd again.

"What sort of myths and legends are you so fascinated by? I've heard a million stories about local stories here in Elswen. About the Novellino sisters being witches or- Oh! There's this morning radio show I love listening to, where these people call in with their stories. Last weekend this man said goblins had moved in to his basement and he caught them stealing the socks of his dryer. I spent the entire week trying to figure out why goblins would want socks."
 
"Well now. Aren't we a tad conceited? There are plenty of pleasant, and respectable women in the world as well as in this establishment." Brandon finished, and took another drink from his glass. "But yes, I am hinting to you." He smiled slightly before leaning back some, and adjusting his tie. He couldn't help but enjoy her resilience. It was very refreshing, and spoke greatly of her awareness. Besides... he was enjoying the sound of voice, and even if his plans went south, he would be fortunate enough to listen to the music at his ears as they talked.

"Well I must admit that I'm not to familiar with Urban Myths. I'm much more of a history buff so anything regarding the supernatural is quite to my liking. I guess you could say that I want to believe in the mysterious, and fantastic."
 
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He had given her a teasing tweak and she responded with a quick flick at his shoulder with her fingers. Plenty of pleasant respectable women indeed! His tie adjusting only ended up making it more crooked than it was before. So like any good dating consultant, Katrinka reached out with both hands to straighten it the proper way. And loosen it up a bit! He didn't need to look so formal. Mr. Bathis seemed more the type to like a relaxed lady. She would keep that in mind!

"It is more exciting with the possibility of ghosts and other things. ...until things start going sour. I like to watch those movies with the killer curses and demons and things, but in the back of my mind I'm always plotting where I'm going to run and hide if I ever saw one for real. I suppose it's kind of ridiculous, but I always thought you can kill a serial killer that's coming after you, but there's not much you can do against a ghost."

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"There's never anything to fear other than fear itself. I know it's cliche, but even the scariest of things in life can lose their scariness if you look at it in the right light. Have you ever read the Zykan tales of Ghosts from ancient Jhul? The believed that ghosts were both benevolent, and evil spirits. When someone would meet them, they would instantly know the spirits intent. If it was a good spirit, it would help you with a crucial moment in your life. Now if it were evil, it would do the opposite, but all one had to do was close its eyes, and the spirit, good or evil would simply fade away. Never to bother the person again."

Brandon took another drink, and ran his thumb across the side of the glass as he begin speaking again "That's an idea of what fascinates me. Quite a nice idea too. Being able to control your fate at some point albeit with a little help. Perhaps its related to guardian angels, fairy godmothers, and the like." He laughed softly at that.

"And truth be told... I thought the tie was a bit much, but don't get the chance to wear one all that often. Should I lose it?" Brandon lightly fingered the knot, and chewed on his lip. He knew once he got the thing off he'd be hard pressed to remember how to tie the damn knot.
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"No, the tie is fine. A loose tie is very handsome on you." Katrinka pulled his hand away from the knot before he went fussing with it. She had just gotten it the way she liked it. Er, the way that looked the nicest.

"I do prefer the idea of controlling your own fate. Destiny and Meant To Be's make for amazing stories, but there wouldn't be much reason to have free will if the choices we made didn't matter. I like to think of myself as a fairy god mother." she added with a cheeky grin. "This business is filled with people that are so sure they can never find someone, and I try to remind them that they're not ever going to if they keep saying things like that. They have to choose to try and not be afraid to fail. ...Which I suppose you could say I should choose not to be afraid of ghosts..."

Katrinka had talked herself in to a circle and must have realized it, because now she was tapping her chin with a finger while she tried to figure out where exactly she had been going with the conversation. "I can't remember how we got on this topic. Honestly, I should be trying to find you a date and introducing you to people, not taking up your time and money."
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"Well... thank you Katrinka. That is very kind of your to say." Brandon answered while lightly rubbing his neck. "I'd be a fool if I didn't say that dress makes you look celestial... if tonight had been the first time I'd bumped into you... it would certainly be enough for me. I'm feeling the fuchsia." He winked, and then grinned as he slightly averted his eyes.

"I can't remember how we got on this topic. Honestly, I should be trying to find you a date and introducing you to people, not taking up your time and money."

"Oh I remember. I was doing my best to make you forget about trying to match me with a lady, and you were resisting my every advance. Quite impressive actually. Though either way, this night has been well worth the time, and money. I hope to invest more time though. Time tends to give way to greater rewards."
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Celestial. There was a compliment she had never heard before! It had her dumbstruck for a few moments, until she realized it and then she was praying her face wasn't as red as it felt.

Katrinka cleared her throat. "You are an incorrigible flirt, aren't you. Devious too. But a bet isn't really a bet unless I give it a shot." She matched his grin with a devious smile. By now she was so tempted to throw her hands up and say he won. He had been so charming, to spend more time with him was sounding nice indeed. But she wasn't the sort of girl to give up without putting some effort in to it!

"Therefore... I pick..." Katrinka held up a finger scanning the crowd before she finally pointed at a woman across the room. "Her! Abigail Westwood! A veterinarian and the sweetest woman I have ever met. If you don't make it with her, I think you might be doomed." Of course, Abigail was a good 40 years his senior. Katrinka wasn't lying about the woman being sweet and being a perfect match... if he was a few years older.
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"You are an incorrigible flirt, aren't you. Devious too. But a bet isn't really a bet unless I give it a shot."

"I'm rather poor when it comes to speaking to women actually. I don't know what it is, but for some reason, I can just talk to you. It feels right... like it was supposed to just happen, and there's no need to plan what I say. I like that feeling."

"Therefore... I pick... Her! Abigail Westwood! A veterinarian and the sweetest woman I have ever met. If you don't make it with her, I think you might be doomed."

"Abigail Westwood? I believe I remember her..." Brandon lightly rubbed his forehead a moment as he thought. "Oh yes! Now I remember. She was the lady who helped me when Zeke accidentally got sick from scrounging chocolate from somewhere." He turned to look at Katrinka, and smiled slightly. "Well... you certainly are good, Katrinka... Now if only I were a little older, I think I might have lost this bet. I believe I can accept my victory?" He grinned, and took a small sip from his glass.
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"I can't believe you've actually met her before! How many people have you met prior to showing up tonight?" Katrinka had some good arguments in mind for why he should go over there and talk to the older woman. But she was a little more baffled by him seeming to know her already.

"Wait, never mind, I figured it out." She had snapped her fingers when it came to her. "Zeke is your dog! For a moment there I thought you might have been lurking around trying to investigate all of my clients while charming me." The lopsided grin she wore showed that she was kidding... but the thought did cross her mind for a split second. Not everyone that came to the service had the best intentions and she did try to weed them out before they got to far. Besides, it would just plain suck if he was playing her for a fool.

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"Yes, Zeke's one of my dogs. Five month old Malamute. My other dog is a Pitbull Terrier named JD. I found them both at an animal shelter. It was love at first sight with the two, and oddly enough... they were paired in the same kennel. I think they were both together before being rescued. I'm not sure why they ended up there, but from what I heard, it something to do with malnutrition. Terrible thing... but that's been fixed. They'll probably get fat with how I spoil them haha."

Finishing his drink, Brandon set his glass down, and stood up from his stool. "All this sitting is making me feel all rusty. Might I bother you a bit more tonight, and ask for a dance? I can tell that you've got an eye for characteristics, and I think I've got an idea that you're also a very talented dancer as well." He asked while holding his hand out to Katrinka.
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