Bangkok! Oriental setting - and the city don't know what the city is getting...

[chesspolitik]

There was no better way to drift off into dreamland than in the arms of his beloved Lex after a full day of chess, cajoling Aeneas to drop the pieces he'd stolen and all of the other things that made up his daily routine, or so Anatoly thought. His life before Tabula Rasa seemed a distant memory; he truly could not remember a time he'd been happier. He was where he wanted to be at long last.

All too soon, the sun hit his eyes and he groaned in protest, muttering under his breath. He rolled over, pressing his face into his companion's shoulder and slinging an arm around his waist. It took a few moments for his sleep-addled brain to realize the body next to him was much smaller and softer than it should have been.

At first, he was inclined to pass it off as the island working its cruel trickery again, but something felt off. Lex, whether he was a man or woman, had a scent that was uniquely his. This scent... this scent was not his and yet it was haunting familiar.

He opened his eyes and gasped in horror. He'd gone to sleep on Tabula Rasa and woken up in his hotel in Bangkok. Every detail was just as he remembered, from the appallingly patterned wallpaper to the ostentatious plush carpeting. And there, by his side, was not the man he'd come to know and grown to love, but the woman he'd loved and lost and left - Florence Vassy.

Comments

[capable-of.livejournal.com]

"You could say that yes." Lex had followed Trumper's train of thought and just smiled amicably. It was still the Cold War and Trumper's ego aside, it was an easy assumption to make. But of course, Lex already had an answer prepared so he continued easily, as if without thought. "I'm a press agent." If anything, arriving with Trumper would aid in his cover, since he'd yet to figure out how he was going to get into the studio without a press badge. Arriving with one of the subjects of the hour would no doubt negate that detail.

[whohasambition.livejournal.com]

"A reporter!" Freddie replied brightly. Walter had kept him away from the reporters to avoid any of the bad press he'd gotten in Merano and so he could look the more secure player after Sergievsky bombed his interview today. Which was a guarantee, if what Walter told him was right. But of course, keeping him away from the reporters only made him more eager to talk to one. He leaned towards the other man, getting in Lex's personal space as if it was his right. "Then aren't you lucky I offered to share your cab. I promise, your in for a real treat when we get to the studio. And..." Then he reached out with one hand and set it on Lex's knee, slowly moving it upward. "perhaps I can interest you in a...private...interview later?"

[capable-of.livejournal.com]

Lex could only raise an eyebrow and give Trumper a slight smile. As much as it repulsed him, he added a bit of invitation into his look so Trumper wouldn't be offended when he stopped the hand's journey north. "I'm sure we can arrange something." Even if Anatoly didn't know who he was, Lex had a feeling Trumper wouldn't want anything to do with him once they got the studio and Lex enacted his plan.

[whohasambition.livejournal.com]

That was good enough for Freddie and he sat back once again, pleased with himself, though he kept their legs touching. "It'll be an experience you won't forget." He bragged, already sure of that.

[capable-of.livejournal.com]

"Oh I have no doubt about it." Lex replied agreeably, though his smile took on a bit of an inner smirk. No, he doubted Trumper wouldn't forget today, not for a very long time. Then, as the cab slowed down, Lex said, "I believe we're here."