head_psychic

Randy did not, at all, expect this to be a huge deal.

Then again, that's who Randy is. He's not a "huge deal" kind of guy. He prefers to keep things intimate, with his friends and loved ones. Going to the Tammy Awards last year about gave him a heart attack and he only did that because he thought it would be fun for Haley. This was different, because his family was still back East, but he couldn't turn down something that someone had put so much time into.

He was even slightly uncomfortable that they'd had to take Brendan's brand new Subaru SUV to help haul the gear for the band, and the extra bodies. His cousin and his friend that made up Binary were coming, along with all the band equipment, plus Tara, Brendan and Brendan's sort of girlfriend Deanna. And that was really all he needed to be happy. He just hoped this wouldn't involve a bunch of people he didn't know or some crazy thing happening, because that would be awkward.

Climbing out of the SUV, he fixed his collar. He wasn't quite sure how to dress, knowing he wanted to look good but also knowing he had to play, so he had gone for a purple dress shirt, and black slacks, but he'd left the suit jacket at home and loosened the collar a little. Once he'd helped the guys set up all the gear, he went to find Shawn.

"Hey," he said, offering a smile and a handshake. "I just wanted to thank you for doing all this. It really wasn't necessary but it means a lot that you care."

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"Randy!"

Shawn jumped from the stage where he had been... trying out if it could deal with jumping up and down for safety purposes only... and ran over to greet the 'star' of the evening. "I felt that someone of high importance and with a very nice haircut was about to enter this building and it's even a nicer surprise to see that it is you!"

Shaking his hand eagerly he grins broadly, his already good mood and boyish excitement growing, because now all of this starts getting more real, more 'it's happening'. "Had a good trip? Want a drink? Ready to rock? There is a small room backstage where you can put your stuff. I made a little star with your name. You know, like in the movies. It's on the door! I'm not sure if the sticky tape will keep it there for long though."

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Randy just laughs at Shawn's enthusiasm, because he's never seen anyone quite this excited. Especially not over him. He's not really that interesting, at least he doesn't think so.

"I don't drink, Shawn, but I'll grab a bottle of water at some point. I'll walk back and put my stuff down once I'm sure we've got all the gear set up and everything works all right," he replies, smiling a little. "I can't wait to get out there, I haven't had a chance to play in awhile," he admits.

A chuckle. "Trip was fine. I brought a couple of friends that I can introduce you to. Tara's here, somewhere, and Brendan and Deanna..." He doesn't know where his friends are but they'll find him when they're done doing whatever it is they're doing. He nervously rubs the back of his neck. "Tell me this isn't going to be like a huge deal."

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"A huge deal? Oh no." Shawn shakes his head. "It's just a party. For you! To have a good time, to... to have fun, alright? So don't think too much, I don't want any worry-vibes anywhere in this room. Look..."

Shawn waves around the room. "This is a nice bar. And you like to play. Rest is organized by your friendly psychic detective agency. So everything's perfect, right? No need to worry!"

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As soon as he walks through the door and finds that the lights are turned up full - far too bright for a bar that is actually in the process of doing business - he knows that he is early. It's embarassing that he couldn't judge how long it would take to arrive, that even though he knew he would be early he had nothing better to do than set out anyway.

He should probably check the divorce papers tomorrow and see where it says that his wife was getting his social life as well. God. First he goes fishing with Spencer's dad, now he's going to a party for Spencer's friend...

There are dirty, growling sounds of feedback in the air, then a bright screech cuts across it, making him wince. A sound check. He glances down at his suit and tie. This is a stupid mistake. Turning on his heel, he reaches for the door. The night will be better spent performing thorough weapon maintenance. Again.

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"I'll be okay." I think. Randy didn't want to upset Shawn, so he just shook his head. "I just can't remember the last time I was at a party. And you know, it's a musician thing...you want to do really well every time you go out there. Even the best of us get nerves." He normally didn't, for some odd reason, unless he ended up performing at someplace like Verizon Hall. Then he would probably faint. "You've just gotta remember who you're talking to. I'm a homebody who'd rather spend a night in with his friends than go clubbing. Although, my sister, were she here, she'd disagree."

A soft laugh. "Are you sure that I can't help with anything? It's the least I can do."

(OOC: Don't mind him, he'll be perfectly fine as long as he's not beset with anything too crazy. He's very much a PG-rated, down to earth kinda guy, so if space aliens land on the roof or a fight breaks out or something, he might flip out, but otherwise? He'll be just fine.)

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Which is the exact moment that Tara is walking in the door, from getting some of her stuff out of the back of Brendan's SUV. She almost walks right into him.

"Oh, gosh. I'm so sorry. Are you okay?" she asks, looking adorable as ever.

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Shawn quickly shakes his head. "Oh no. You just do your sound check thingy and make sure everything on stage is bright and shiny and I'll say hi to the guests and take care of everything else. I think that is the best and fairest way of splitting things up."

He grins. "Besides, that way we prevent getting in each other's way. That once happened back when I still organized things and it included a wedding cake and lots of cursing."

(ooc: That's good to know because Shawn is SUCH an unpredictable muse...)

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"Oh, gosh." Randy can imagine that in his head and somehow, he's sure Brendan probably has a story like that. The two of them would get along famously, if Brendan wasn't parking the car at the moment. Randy's glad that his friend decided to come, if only because Bren and Deanna are still trying to spend some time together. So at least he was able to give them that opportunity. Of course, now that he thinks about it, he misses his sister, and his mom...

Yep. He's a homebody.

He smiles slightly, sort of subconsciously itching to get his guitar back up to spec and get on stage. "Just yell if you change your mind," he says, unfailingly polite as ever. "I mean, we're just messing around with stuff. To be honest, I'm really excited. I haven't played with the band in about...a year, I don't think."

(OOC: Yeah, I've always tried to keep Randy from getting too far off his canon. So this kinda stuff is cool, but he has a lot of trouble rationalizing like, sci-fi or anything sort of 'out of his neighborhood'. When Tara married Bond, he couldn't get his brain around it for a week.)

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Instantly, his hands reach out to steady himself or to catch the person he almost walked in to. He's centimeters away from them when he stops himself, realising that there's no need for the instinctual reaction as neither of them have fallen. One hand awkwardly travels up to scratch the back of his head, while he forces the other to his hip.

"I'm fine. I'm sorry. I was just..." he pauses and actually looks at the woman he nearly crashed into. He knows its not Juliet, but...

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"Oh, no. It was completely my fault. I wasn't paying attention, I'm so concerned with trying to get everything out of the car." Tara tucks her hair behind her ear, nervous habit in full force as she flashes him one of her trademark winning smiles. She's genuinely happy for Randy, and she can't wait to get to meet some of her friends. "I'm just a little overexcited. There's this guy I'm absolutely dying to meet and Shawn promised he'd be here."

A pause, realizing she sounds slightly stupid, and stopping herself. "I'm Tara. Nice to meet you."

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"A year?" Shawn repeats. "Then it's about time! Oh, I will totally yell if I need you. It will come straight from the heart. And my lungs. But now the stage needs you."

Before he can leave to start the soundcheck Shawn holds him back once more. "Hey, what's the first song you're gonna play? So I can announce you!"

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Randy has to think on this. They went over the set list in the car, but the 'oh my god this is a huge party' shock sort of blanked his brain for a minute. After a moment, he remembers, and he chuckles.

"It's called 'Satellites,'" he says. "It's one of ours."

Of course, they'll get to the Styx covers later.

Then he heads off to go make sure all of his equipment is in pristine condition. If anyone is looking for him, once all that is done, they'll find him backstage in the dressing room Shawn has set up for him, just taking a long moment to himself, tuning his guitar.

Some things never change.

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He can't help smiling; she seems to have a sweet personality, and it's nice to have a pretty girl smile at him. The hand on his hip slips casually into his pocket, hopefully making him look a little more laidback, more at ease in his surroundings.

"I'm Carlton." His other hand drops down to offer to Tara to shake. "Nice to meet you too. I believe we spoke briefly a while ago?"

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"Satellites!" Shawn yells after him. "Got it! Catch you later! It's gonna be awesome!"

Right.

Back to the preparations!

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She's more than pleased and gives him an honest, firm handshake. Though she's off duty there's no mistaking the behaviors of a detective, even one that's a rookie who may be trying a little too hard.

"We did!" she said. "I was hoping you'd be here. I'm the one who kind of pestered Randy into asking Shawn..." She pauses. Wow, that's an interesting sentence. "If you'd be here. I'd love to sit down and really get a chance to talk to you."

Of course, she realizes where they are at the moment.

"But I totally don't want to keep you from anything if you're busy," she says honestly.

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r-vecchio.livejournal.com

Ray's highly unimpressed. He's dressed to the T and for what? To come to a party, for a guy he doesn't even know, and probably get voodoo-whammied by that psycho Shawn. Oh, this is so not his kind of evening.

Women, however, now, they can make a night out bareable if the rest of the company isn't up to scratch. And with a fake psychic, some guy in a suit who looks suspiciously like a Fed, and some really bad soundchecking, the company definitely doesn't reach Ray's high standards.

Women it is, then. Or rather...woman. Over there. Talking to Fed guy.

Ray strides over, straightening his cuffs as he goes and nods in the vague direction of Fed Guy. Or Waiter Guy as he'd prefer to call him. "Hey," he bellows, "somebody promise me free drinks? I'm still waitin'. And heeeey," his voice deepens a little and he sends the woman a charming sideways glance. "I'm here. Fake psychic dude kept his promise. So," he grins, turning his back on Waiter/Fed Guy and placing himself firmly between him and the only woman in the room. "You've been dying to meet me, huh?"

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Tara isn't impressed. Though she might still be a little wet behind the ears when it comes to detective work, she can get touchy. And this would definitely be one of those times. The smile on her lips dies almost instantly.

"I wasn't speaking to you, sir," she says, her voice calm and level. "I was talking to him," with a nod of her head in Lassiter's direction. "So if you'll excuse us."

She's starting to wonder just who Shawn invited to this party.

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sleepswithlove.livejournal.com

Psyche really was not one to pass up a party. Especially not one that was hosted by a friend.

She walked through the doors and looked around in amazement. Mortal bars always struck her as organized chaos.

It took a minute to adjust to the fact that whoever was on stage singing was doing an atrocious rendition of I Will Survive. She hoped they weren't going to be the only ones performing, she would be hard pressed to stay if they were.

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prince-of-la.livejournal.com

Brendan has finally found a parking space and wrangled his way inside. More importantly, he's there with the woman of his dreams.

As usual, the architect who has a million bucks looks like a million. Jeans, a dress shirt and a suit jacket, dress casual but he's comfortable. Deanna is sitting next to him and he finds it hard to take his eyes off her, but forces himself to do it so he doesn't faint. She's beautiful, with her short dark hair and her easy smile, and he's easily distracted.

He wants to set things right with her and give a relationship a real try. And he wants to support his best friend. And if that means borrowing his car and driving all the way up to Santa Barbara, so be it. He doesn't know anybody else, but who cares? It's a party!

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A smile spreads slow and slightly smuggly over Lassiter's face, he has to lift his hand as if he were wiping his mouth to cover it. Side steping around the guy in the Armani suit, (which looks old and worn, like he'd been jumping into dumpsters whilst wearing it and it's had to go for dry cleaning several times too often), he turns to him briefly and lets his hand drop away so the rude, overly confident man can see his smile. Then he turns back to Tara.

"Perhaps I can help you if there's anything else to get out of the car?"

He'd been debating whether to go or not before they'd been interupted. This young lady actually wanted to talk with him. It was flattering, he'd been stupid to leave and go home to an empty house now.

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"I think we got everything out, but I suppose it can't hurt to check," Tara agrees, acting as if everything is fine. She has no desire to be more confrontational than she has to, so the offered exit is the perfect opportunity to get away from the situation.

She still has Brendan's keys to his Forester in her pocket, so she digs them out and holds the door for him. Once they're outside, she shakes her head. She doesn't like fighting and every time she gets involved in one she always feels a little bit weird.

"That was strange," she admits. "Shawn said he was inviting a lot of people to the party...I'm hoping not too many and not too much like that." But she gives him a small smile. She honestly is glad he turned up.

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Shawn, walking around from time to time to check if everything is going well without putting too much effort in it - because this was fun and it was working by itself anyway - keeps a steady attention to the door. He's the host of the party after all and even though Randy's the secret star he thinks it's his responsibility to say hi and how are you doing and are you a candidate for Randy's lap dance?

So when Psyche walks through the door he spots her almost instantly. Turning on his heels with a squeal of glee he hurries over. "It's Psych-ee!" he grins before pulling her into an enthusiastic hug. "You know, with that name I should make you our official mascot!"

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