Chapter 402: The Meet and Greet

Mason paused as the elevator dinged to his hotel suite. Sometimes he felt like he'd worked out everything with his girls, then other times he realized how complicated it was. Or that things and people could change.

Making a woman happy wasn't like buying a couch and having the couch problem solved. It evolved. It demanded constant attention. Attention Mason didn't have at the best of times, and the apocalypse wasn't the best of times.

All he could do was his best. And of course rely on Haley to pick up the slack. But Carl was wrong—Mason deserved her, and she deserved him. They needed each other, brought different strengths to help round out the other.

Naya was his wife through circumstance, and he saw plenty of opportunity for growth there. But Haley was his wife by choice.

He stepped out expecting to find his girls all sleeping, maybe a sign on the bedroom that said 'No Masons'. Instead he found a female jungle of scent and sound. Perfume and some kind of spray, scented soaps and the smell of singed hair.

"Yes I’m fixin’ to. And no I don't remember what it's called," he heard Becky say, clearly exasperated. "If I remembered I'd have already teleported one. It's the thing that you...you know, hook it in. Like this."

Rosa froze as Mason stepped into the living room. Her hair was in curlers, her face slathered with something green. She had a push-up bra that showed enough cleavage to make women hate her, and a pair of black panties held up by strings. Mason' eyes went up and down her body, and she held up a hand.

"No. It's only been..." Rosa turned and called towards the others in the bathrooms. "He's back! How much time do we have left?"

"I don't remember signing anything." Mason came forward with a grin, and Rosa backed away and shook her head.

"This took me thirty minutes. If you ruin my hair I'll spit in your breakfast. The next potion I give you will be acid."

"I heal."

He came forward until she'd backed into the wall, then slid a finger down her side until she shivered, moving closer to those strings...

Haley cleared her throat from the hall, her hands on her hips. She looked totally ready, her long blonde hair smoothed around her shoulders, a dark dress tight over her curves, a slit up one thigh.

Mason's eyes couldn't decide where to land. He kept his fingers moving against Rosa's skin as he watched Haley's eyes narrow.

"If you think you're helping..."

"Not until after," she said. "We're going to mingle. And dance. We're going to look nice and friendly and show everyone the man behind the 'warlord'. Because then maybe we can get you more players some day. And technically we have two more hours. You agreed."

Mason took his hand off Rosa with a sigh.

"Well hurry up. And I assume you have some kind of..."

Haley summoned another suit on a hangar in her right hand. It was a bit brown, and Mason had never worn a brown suit in his life.

"It'll go well with your eyes," she explained. "And there's shoes. Now go get dressed. That bathroom is yours." She gestured, then held out a hand to Rosa like waving over a kidnap victim in an exchange. The Mexican bolted, shrieking as Mason slapped her ass. But he took his stupid suit and shoes, then went and showered.

Haley had set out all kinds of oils and shampoos and deoderants and possibly cologne, and he used a little. But it all felt so ridiculous after the months of blood and brutality. Not to mention he could just turn on Gaia's Blessing and show whatever chemicals was in those bottles how it was done.

Then he heard a soft knock on the door. Lexi opened it with a naughty grin and a glance back, then stepped inside wearing a towel.

"I figured," she whispered, "they're pretty busy. And if we were really fast. Or...I think my jaw's recovered." She looked him up and down and put her hands behind her back as she swayed back and forth.

Mason crossed the bathroom and kissed her, soft lips instantly taking his tongue.

"Alexis Swinton!” Haley yelled through the door. “We have a pact!"

Lexi moaned in frustration. She mouthed 'sorry' before vanishing out the door, leaving Mason more than a little turned on. But he couldn't help but grin.

Haley was right, of course, they needed to make full use of this 'meet and greet' to make as many friends and allies as possible. It was the only chance Mason would have, probably, to be seen by the eastern civilians. To show them he wasn't the boogeyman.

He finished getting ready, then went out and waited on a couch scratching Streak until the girls were all finally prepared.

"OK," Haley said, Mason's half-closed eyes shooting open. "How do we look?"

He stood and took in the four beautiful women that were all his, standing a bit awkwardly in a line.

"I'm takin' these off as soon as we get there," Becky said, lifting a heeled shoe and looking at it like she'd stepped in shit.

Mason grinned and resisted the urge to get closer, amazed at the transformation of the usually make-up less, comfort-clothes wearing farm girl into a superhero out on the town. She'd always been fit, but even her upper body was getting some visible muscles now, made obvious in a strapless dress.

"You can do flying somersaults," Rosa said. "I think you can handle some heels for a night."

Rosa and Lexi were in almost matching red colored dresses, though they wore them very differently. Rosa dripped pure sex, her lips painted the same color, her dark hair up and curled, big hoops dangling from both ears, her curves the stuff of young men's dreams.

Lexi looked ready for a charity gala. She had a jacket covering her arms, far less cleavage, heels with half the size. She was still absolutely stunning, but she was obviously trying to attract far less attention. Mason shook his head.

"You all look incredible. But I'm not sure I'll make any friends. The men will hate me. And the women will hate you."

Haley grinned. "They've already seen you with Lexi. So she's your date. I'm your assistant. Becky and Rosa are going 'single'. The eastern men probably can't talk, so I'm thinking if they get approached, it'll be western stragglers. Maybe from the south."

"Clever," Mason said, then winced. "Except for the fact I might end up wanting to kill them."

"We'll be with the other Sanctuary girls," Becky said, rolling her eyes. "They'll probly be the ones gettin' hit on. We're just there to see what's shakin'."

"Jesus," Mason said, coming forward a little now. "She doesn't even know, does she?"

"Know what?" Becky kicked her foot like she was trying to shake off her heel again and sighed. Haley grinned and put her head on Becky's shoulder, and Mason did his best to trail a hand over every girl before shaking his head.

"Just try not to break any hearts, alright? Or make me break any faces. I'm not kidding." He looked at a grinning Rosa in particular, then made a dramatic show of scooping an arm through Lexi's, then Haley on the other side. "Shall we?

* * *

The 'Meet and Greet' had its own wing of the hotel, in a kind of art gallery ending at a giant auditorium.

"My God," Haley said, staring at the art as they walked through with a growing crowd. "I think it's a re-creation. It's like we're in the Louvre."

Mason couldn't give two shits about French art, so he kept his mouth shut. As expected he was attracting considerable stares, but it didn't bother him quite as badly. Still, he wished he had Streak beside him growling at people. The whining wolf had eventually agreed to stay in the room.

Once or twice he caught sight of a player he'd fought in the tournament. Most turned away, actively avoiding his eyes, but an Eastern European type gave him a respectful nod. Mason hardly remembered any of his fights or the people's powers, but he always remembered how they'd died.

This man had asked for no quarter, and gone without a hint of fear. Mason returned the nod.

The auditorium was filled with tables and chairs on one side, an obvious dance floor on the other. The sound and light was somehow split in half. As they stepped across the currently empty dance floor, there was a quiet but obvious techno kind of beat in mostly darkness. But the moment they crossed to the tables, the light was brighter and the music something like a classical score.

"Please, honored Founder," said a system servant as Mason entered with Lexi and Haley. "Follow me to your table."

Mason saw they'd been arranged by Houses. So much for forced mingling around the dinner table. Apparently any socializing was going to have to come from specific effort.

None of his people were wearing 'system uniforms' anymore, any he saw they’d dressed more or less appropriately for a high end affair. He assumed Haley had either helped or at least communicated expectations, and Mason supposed all the civilians had been out shopping at the bazaar pretty much non-stop for the past three days.

He missed the simplicity of being half naked and covered in mud and blood.

"Great and honored Founder," said a familiar voice, and Mason turned to find a smiling Blake.

He'd always cleaned up ridiculously well, and with his blonde hair and blue eyes he looked like some Disney prince. Or possibly a Nazi's Ubermensch.

"May we have the undeserved, and noble privilege of seating ourselves with your esteemed and..."

"Shut up. For Christ's sake. Yes."

Becky and Rosa waved and went to sit at a different table as the 'single' girls they were. Mason helped Haley and Lexi sit, then gestured for the system servant to get more chairs for Blake's trio.

It simply looked at the table and transformed it into a slightly bigger set up. Mason shook his head, then saw Haley thanking it quietly before it left.

Annie sat beside Blake looking supremely uncomfortable, and apparently also holding his hand. Even Seul-ki looked a bit less neutral than usual, as if she'd rather not be here at all.

Blake took a good long minute to praise how beautiful Haley and Lexi were, how lucky and oafish Mason was. They all summoned themselves some drinks and tried to glance around at their table neighbors, not seeing much besides their own people.

At least Mason wasn't being stared at. Blake leaned in and lowered his voice.

"I'm thinking later we have a big, loud fight. Then I go and make nice with our eastern friends. What do you think?"

Mason frowned, thinking it was probably a good move. Except for the fact he didn’t want to. And would suck at it.

"I can't trick anyone. You'll actually have to piss me off."

Blake leaned back with what could only be described as twinkling eyes. He looked like a child who'd been handed the key to a candy store. Mason rolled his eyes as Blake cracked his knuckles.

"That's a tall order. But I’m sure I'll think of something."