RP:Suit Up

Part of the Hour of Wolves Arc

Part of the The Dust Up In Cenril Arc

Summary: Hudson tells Alvina while he's prepping for some land development meeting that he's 1) going to a club to sniff out who is selling / manufacturing Red Dirt in Frostmaw and 2) going to a fundraiser for some classmate of his that is running for Mayor in Cenril. Alvina is soothed by his honesty, downplaying the danger and down to party with Hudson's former prep school classmate.

The Landon Estate

Hudson and Alvina are having a lazy weekend morning. Nobody's had a meltdown yet. The girls are fed and playing with toys in the hall outside of the master bedroom. Advantages to twins: sometimes, they entertain one another. You still have to check on them every few minutes, but you can also get a lot accomplished. Hudson is in a suit and bending in front of Alvina's vanity mirror to tie a tie. "I'm pretty annoyed I could only get this meeting on a Saturday," he complains to Alvina, who is lying on the bed on her stomach, flipping through a magazine. He's talking about a meeting to buy some land, on which he wants to develop mixed use housing. He adjusts the knot on his tie, which is baby pink and has miniature leaping horses printed on it. "I need to hire someone else, like another alchemist, I feel like I'm doing too much at work. Like with my actual work and then this stuff, it's just going to be a lot." Satisfied with the suit situation, he moves away from the vanity and in so doing steps barefooted on something like the Hollow version of a wooden, oversized/age-appropriate lego. He makes a strangled noise and winces, mouth-open, before limping onto the mattress beside Alvina. "We shouldn't have bought them those, they're like secret bombs all over the house," he says, rubbing the underside of his foot. "Babe." He glances back at her, and he decides to double down on seeking her attention, since she is completely ignoring him/engrossed in reading cool tips about what guys really like or whatever. He plants a hand on her backside. "Babe. Are you trying to seduce me?" he demands accusingly. (Pretty far from it, but that's the point.) "I'm like trying to go to a work meeting here and I see you playing hard to get..."

Alvina makes some disinterested noise when he talks. Uh huh, meetings are a drag, yep she gets it. Boring to be legit. Yada yada. It’s when he makes a deflating noise after stepping on the combo lego / Lincoln log in the floor that he gains most of her attention. “Nice tie,” She says, even though she’s seen it before. She likes it, it suits him and he ties them on his own. It’s a flattering skill that not all men have. She can’t remember seeing anyone else in her whole life tie a tie. So, there’s that. The magazine article she’s reading is some 35 ways to tell if you are pregnant before getting a positive test. Most of it’s mumbo jumbo women’s intuition or sensitivity. If the alignment of the stars are just right, and you hold your legs up at this odd angle, you’ll know type of bs. She’s not buying into it but it attracted her attention because of recent conversation topics. She’s also impressed he’s actually doing this legit land owning thing. It had come off as a passing topic never to be heard of again but he’s getting all dressed up to do it so it must be real. When he cups her backside, she shots him a warning glare. “Is it working?” she asks, leaning a little heavier into her arms to attract his attention. She waits until he’s looking to swat his shoulder with the magazine. “You could get a lot of work done if you stayed?” Alvina suggested, scrunching her face in the most seductive expression since the beginning of time. She rolls onto her back and spreads out like a beached starfish. “Why do you love work so much more than me?” She complained, rolling back over when he tries to grab her.

Actually, Hudson had expected Alvina to grunt dismissively, and so is pleasantly surprised when she plays into the joke and grants him a favorable view. This lasts about a second before she begins behaving in a decidedly unseductive manner. Right. "Hmmm," he says, reaching for her and being swatted for his efforts. "I don't love work more than you," he tells her. "If you were listening, instead of reading a magazine article about I don't even know what, I was just complaining about how I am annoyed I'm working on a Saturday which means I'd rather be spending the day with you, and your..." He considers her. "...sweatpants and..." He reaches to catch her ankle, sliding his hand along her calf. He cants his head this way and that, as if indecisive, "hmm, only mildly prickly legs." He is quick to withdraw his hand as she's swatting him away. "You're still well within The Range, babe," he says, with affection. He bends to pick up the lego before someone else steps on it (probably him, again). "Before I go I got two things to talk to you about. Number one. Want to go to a political fundraiser benefit?" he asks her. "Like next ... I'll get the date. A buddy of mine from prep school is thinking about a run for mayor. It's black tie, so we have to be fancy, like capital F, shave-your-legs Fancy."

Alvina quirks her brow at him in an offended way. "You don't think I know how to shave? I'm not an animal." She huffs, listening to this description of a possible date night. It's a little exciting, rubbing elbows with important people. That's the one benefit of Hudson's questionable job; He gets to know everyone. When she gets her ankles back, she rubs them defensively. Mildly prickly. What did he expect?! They only stay smooth for a few hours at best. The curse of a woman. Maybe she should invest in waxing. He'd like that, she bet, throwing the magazine in his face about the article she's reading. "Important spiritual discovery," She informs him, studying him again in his suit. He was pretty cute, why is he leaving her? "How long are you going to be gone? I was thinking we might hit the grocery and have a celebratory family cook out now that we are all moved and settled." Mostly settled. There were still a few boxes to sort that had been moved from the old place in Larket. All things they couldn't live without; these legos included. "How do you know -everyone-? It's scary, like a super power." Her prickly legs shift off the side of the bed and she regards him with careful consideration. "You should hire another alchemist." Oh heck, she'd been listening. "So you can spend more time on the upside of things and maybe fade into the shadows. People can learn your associates and their faces and we can just reap the rewards of your organizational skills. Do you need me to buy a tweed suit and show off properties?" She holds her arms out, mimicking a tea cup. "Oh you'll just love this...it's perfect..." Her shrill voice cuts through the bedroom, trailed by laughter.

Hudson is hit in the chest by Alvina's woman magazine and opens it to read, one eyebrow cocked, "'Moodiness is an early symptom of pregnancy.' Hmmmm." He continues flipping through the magazine, lets her pose her query about how long he'll be gone. "I dunno, a couple of hours," he guesses. She's talking about how he knows everyone, acting the realtor, and he's halfway listening and perusing a list of 70 or so odd tips to make your man love you, etc. "Some of these, Alvina... I mean. 'Position plants around the bed and surprise him in a leopard print outfit to get in touch with your animal sides!'" he reads. "Please no," he says, glancing at her. He's heard her, but he resumes reading from the magazine. "Oh, wow. 'Surprise him at work wearing only a red cloak.' Wow, well, that's a little racist, though also... I don't know." He tosses the magazine onto Alvina's lap. "So, yeah, I should hire more staff," he continues, "And we'll go to the fundraiser. Second item, before we forget, there's this competitor I have to look into at some sort of night club in Frostmaw. I'm bringing Meri because she knows people and has magic skills, I'll let you know when we go do it. I just don't want you to be uncomfortable, because, you know, Meri and night club and...?"

Alvina huffs at him, moving to take the magazine away. She'd read that whole article and that was NOT in there. "You are just jealous you don't get to wear the leopard suit." She curls her fingers into faux paws and purrs at him. What is this nonsense of red riding hood cosplays? Would he not be into that? Maybe she wasn't sensitive enough to pick up on the subtle racism involved. She accepts the magazine and her eyes bulge when Hudson mentions Meri and a nightclub. "Sooooooo" Elongated vowels always mean trouble, "You aren't going to be making out with her or anything like that?" She looks at him earnestly, like she's just checking for her own paranoid reasons and will accept his answer with very little protesting. She will however try to pull him down on the bed so he can crawl into his lap and seek physical reassurance that she's still the Queen here. "No funny business?" She asks, very straight faced without being accusatory. "I trust you if you say it's for work but if I find out otherwise, I'm taking that thing away from you." She gestures dramatically down.

Hudson is trying something new for a change, which is telling Alvina in advance of something rather than playing catch up in case she finds out. He looks at her, making eye contact as she asks this question. "Nope, nothing of the sort," he tells her, letting her crawl into his lap. He puts his arms around her and kisses her repeatedly but noisily on the side of the head. This had worked out reasonably well. They're not fighting, and she's giving him the green light to do this work thing. So he had downplayed how potentially dangerous it is, but she doesn't need to worry about that, right? Right. "No funny business at all, swear on the girls, by all means make your threats if that makes you feel more comfortable." He moves the curtain of her hair over her opposite shoulder and holds his lips to the nape of her neck. "OK actually, you have to get off my lap, or I'm going to be late to my meeting," he says, after like five seconds of this. "Up up, woman." He pats her backside, like a horseback rider digging in his spurs. Once she's complied, he gets up himself and, after putting the lego piece down next to Alvina's hair ties, looks for the lint roller. He sat on the bed, so there's a million cat hairs on his suit. "I wish I were going to the club with you, though, even though we'd be like the lame parents in a room full of drunk 22 year olds."

"I'd drink half a cocktail and try to dance on the bar," she predicts of their imaginary bar outing while scrambling off his lap. That's what happens when you have kids and stop drinking as much. The lint roller was in the master bathroom, she fetches it to roll the cat hair off his butt. "Okay," she says, meaning he's clear to advance on the retail scene without errant cat hairs to ruin his rump reputation. "I'm glad you told me," she said, standing on her tip toes to kiss his cheek. It admittedly did make her feel better, even if he left out some of the dangerous bits. She knew where he was, who he was with, what he was doing (to a degree). It felt more like a legit job too, where he could come home and complain about what he did all day without it being some massive secret. She felt 'let in' to his secret life and it soothed her, even if he was going with some beautiful woman. "It does make me more comfortable," she adds about the threats. "All these people probably think you're some scary guy but you take orders from cute babies and some lady you buy jewelry." Meaning her, obviously. The ‘jewelry’ aka engagement ring gleamed off her metallic finger, catching sun and spilling it on his suit. "Maybe you should take me to the club disguised as some disco ball." She offers, twirling for comedic effect.

Hudson endures the de-catting of his backside, it's appreciated. Some excited noises issue from the hall, and then the cat herself darts into the room and hides under the bed. That happens a lot these days. He smiles into the kiss Alvina presses on his cheek, and then snorts at what she says next, her 'comfort' with threatening him, and also her appraisal of his work persona. "Make you more comfortable or…?" he asks ambiguously, leaning back to look out the hall at his daughters. They've gotten the wooden legos everywhere and built nothing. "Some lady I buy jewelry," he repeats with a scoff in his voice, to show that he's listening and not just creeping on the lego activity in the hall. He reaches to stir a hand against Alvina's back, since she's standing near. "I think you mean the future Ms. Landon, I hear if you don't listen to her, she castrates you," his attention swivels back to her and he grins for effect. "If I could take you to the club, I would, but it's not, like, a WAGs activity." ... But really, mostly, he'd worry about her being there. He squeezes her backside, to soften the blow, insert comedy, etc. "Also you'd be too distracting," he says, refreshing his grin. He releases her and checks his reflection in the mirror one more time. He'd cut himself shaving but that seems to have stopped for good. "Have you even ever been to that sort of place?" he asks her, putting on his blazer. "Like 'the club' club, not a... book club."

Alvina can't help but fall for that perfect little trap Hudson laid out for her. Mrs. Landon. How fluid. "It really rolls off the tongue," she adds before laughing at the castration bit. "Only the males," but she's smiling and blushing. It's gross, how quickly she forgets being tearful and pensive. "I've never been to a club, no. Book club.." She mumbles, just as Harper throws her giraffe at them and immediately explodes into tears over its absence. Alvina picks it up and jogs it three feet down the hall to Harper, who is happily trying to melt two Legos together with her mind and sheer force of will. It's cute. "If you want later I can put on nothing but a Cape and make some.. scared sounds in your general direction?" Alvina laughs, Luna pats her leg as she passes. "Oh thank you honey, see Luna approves." Alvina leans in close, pretending to straighten Hudson's tie. "You know it might even help with that little problem we've been having..." She adds, smirking at his bewildered expression. What problem? "That whole... Extra baby problem?" She quirks her brow, not originally interested in paying attention to him until he had to leave, in the classic role of all women everywhere.

"Yeah, clubbing doesn't seem your speed," says Hudson, observing the sudden appearance of the giraffe and an even more sudden shift in emotions from the eldest of the twins. He grimaces as Alvina continues the conversation in literal front of their children. He holds still for her to pretend-straighten his tie. "Oh, you know I love it when you're a little racist, baby," he remarks in the conspiratorial tone of couples everywhere, palming her backside for good measure to punctuate the joke. He glances out to the hallway. "You know, one day, they're going to start repeating the weird things we say to each other," he adds on a more serious note. She seems unfazed, seizes the moment to pivot and mentions a 'problem.' Confused, at first, Hudson squints at her, emits a thoughtful hmmm at the base of his throat. "IIiiiiiiIiii thought we didn't know the answer to that," he lifts his eyebrows. "You got something you wanna tell me? Right before I'm about to walk out the door?"

Alvina blinked. “We don’t but it wouldn’t hurt to give it a shot, just in case?” The flirty momentum of the comment was lost when Hudson makes it serious. Ugh, boy I swear. “And what does this mean? Clubbing isn’t my speed? I can dance very well, I’ll have you know.” But it doesn’t make sense for her to go out and do shots when one shot is too much probably. She looks down at the girls, embarrassed that she’d said anything near them. “Shh, they can hear you.” Before laughing and kissing his neck. Leaning down, she picked up Luna, who giggled and sloppily kissed her hand before thumping it into Hudson’s cheek. “We are still working on blowing kisses…” Alvina says, disappointed but also melting on the inside because how cute are their daughters oh my gosh. “I’m only flirting with you, please don’t worry about it?” She arched her brow and put Luna back down to play with the blocks, but she’s tugging on Hudson’s empty shoes and their laces instead with chubby baby fingers.

"I see that. How convenient, she digs me when I'm not home," observes Hudson about Alvina in a dry tone. He kisses the air after Luna's hand as it draws away. She, being a baby, seems delighted by this, and he then kisses her noisily on the cheek directly, waving at her as Alvina sets her back down. No doubt she'll resume scattering legos about their bedroom imminently. "I'm not worried," says Hudson, as Alvina is quick to avoid planting false hopes. He nudges his sneaker away from Luna, before she pulls the laces out entirely. She scoots closer, so it's sort of a futile effort. He's still in socks, he'll put on some dress shoes on his way out. Speaking of. He tears his gaze away from Luna to look at Alvina. Harper's been quiet, which... could mean she's eating toilet paper, or something, probably. It's her mother's problem, whatever it is. "Back in a couple hours," he says to Alvina, kissing her briskly on the mouth and stepping around his daughter to get going.

Alvina grins like Luna when Hudson moves to kiss her. His girls, all wrapped around his pinky finger. Falling over themselves when he kisses them. Such love, much adore. "Harper noooo..." Hudson will hear Alvina complain before he's out of the house. She did find the toilet paper. How annoying.