Note: Reviews make me SQUEE! ^_^
The Damocles Solution 8.
Time stopped for Janine after getting the temperature of the car back to normal. Now that it was possible to do things without shivering, she was able to relax and amuse herself again by listening to some of her favorite tunes on the portable radio. Luckily for her, the station was on a long commercial-free segment, and she was thrilled to snap her fingers to one song after another with very little input from either the DJ or commercials. Who listens to that stuff anyway? She thought.
The tunes rolled by, and the DJ announced that this time, they'd have to stop to break for some important announcements. "Ya know we love ya folks, but we gotta do this or our station is outta business!" he said, almost answering Janine's thoughts.
She turned her mouth down, perturbed. Yeah, yeah yeah. Well, that was a pretty long segment anyway, coulda been worse! she thought. At least they didn't play the same song fifty times in a row like they usually do…I get sick of pop songs pretty fast when that happens.
"Janine?…Janine!" prompted a muffled bass voice at her right.
Just as soon as she was ready to tune in again, she heard a loud rap at the window along with her name right aside her. Shocked by the sudden intrusion of reality, she snapped her head to the side…and there was Egon, ready to open the door. She never even noticed they were stopped.
He stepped back, away from the window…and she sat, wide-eyed, at the gorgeous hotel she could now see the car was parked in front of.
"Woooooooow….." she breathed to herself as he reached for the handle. "Dr. Venkman would never be able to give me enough of a raise to cover somethin' like this!" She frowned in realization. "Not like I don't deserve it, though."
Egon opened the door for her, and once again, she had to focus. Oh yeah, gotta get outta here. She turned off her radio, brought her headphones down around her neck, and laughed at her own distraction, saying "oops" softly to herself. She stepped out when the door was opened for her.
He closed the door. He already had all their things from the car unpacked, impatient to wait for the very busy hotel staff. He e He Hslung his sportcoat over a shoulder, and commenced waiting, along with Janine, for the escort employees and valet, all very preoccupied with other guests.
Janine couldn't resist gawking at the beautiful architecture of the hotel while they waited. "This is just…gorgeous. Is the dinner in here?"
"Yes. The dining hall is on the second floor, our rooms are on the fourth." Said Egon dryly as he flipped his wrist around to look at his watch, unimpressed by the extravagance of their surroundings.
"Doctor Egon Spengler!" a soft-voiced, scholarly elderly gentleman exclaimed in a cheery tone, approaching Egon with bounding steps, hand outstretched.
"Mr. Baranov. Pleasure to meet you," said Egon, taking his hand and returning a firm, formal handshake. "I would like to express my uncomparable gratitude for accomodating my rather difficult requests for this occasion."
Baranov put his hands in his pockets, frowning off Egon's remark. "Nonsense." His smile was warm, sincere, and infectious. Janine already considered him a wonderful host; he made her feel at home, regardless of how out-of-place she now felt. "It is an honor to have you at EPIC's yearly meeting. Your experiences with the paranormal, and the machinery along with it, are unparalleled by anyone in the world, and I hope you won't mind the many minds that will be eager to seek out your consultation."
Egon smiled…genuinely. "Small price to pay for your extensive graciousness."
Baranov turned to Janine. "And who, may I ask, is this lovely young lady?"
"Oh! Miss Janine Melnitz. Secretary," she answered, as Baranov reached over to her, and to her surprise, lifted her hand, giving the back of it a most chivalrous kiss.
"Wonderful to meet you!"
She grinned unabashedly. "Pleasure is all mine, sir."
He continued to hold her hand. "I hope you enjoy your stay, Miss Melnitz. I also hope that you'll walk out of dinner tomorrow not being able to eat another spoonful." He released her hand, said a final "good day!" and hurried toward the hotel.
Janine couldn't help but touch her fingers to her face girlishly. "Oh my gawd, he's so sweet!"
"He also, from what I understand, works closely with the military regarding Area 51," added Egon confidentially.
The hotel employees arrived, and Egon handed the valet the keys. The attendants took their things, after receiving a stern warning from him to handle Janine's signed books carefully. His concern made Janine stop for a second and consider forgiving him for his outburst at the firehouse, but she quickly squelched that idea, as painful as it was to do so, and decided that it wasn't time for her to do that quite yet.
They walked toward the grand marble stairs, and into the elegant foyer, Janine remaining in constant amazement at the hotel's beauty, taking in everything from the plush carpets to the crystalline chandeliers that hung suspended high above their heads…and this was just the foyer!
"Wow," answered Janine. "I can just imagine all the neat things the guests here would know about!" Avoiding eye contact with Egon, she couldn't help but add, "I should make my way around the tables at dinner so I can pick up a few smart things."
Egon's brow contracted. He seemed uncomfortable. "Janine, have you ever read about Damocles' sword?"
She turned to him, interested. "Damocles' sword? Izzat some kinda new big-hair metal group or somethin'?"
"Uh…no," he answered, taken aback for a second. "Ancient Greek literature. You might want to learn about Cicero's story about Damocles. I think it will teach you more about this meeting than anything else you could possibly learn at dinner."
"Hmmm," was her only answer. "Cicero. Damocles." She brought a finger to her mouth in thought. Where am I gonna learn about that all the way out HERE?