On Holiday

[Molly Black]

"You would be, yes..", Molly teased.

Oh, the positively horrible things Molly had to endure in her line of work. With a grin, she turned and rested her hands on Tonyh's shoulder's. Firstly because, it was just too tempting to not to enjoy herself for a change. Things had been entirely too stressful for far too long. She was too young to feel as old as she did. Secondly, because the line of her pale arms also did wonders for blocking her mouth from being read, and her words were spoken to include a radius of only two.

"Thanks, you'll find I'm surprisingly adaptive." It was a touch more crowded than Molly had accounted for, but that was not necessarily a bad thing.

She let Tonyh do the leading, navigating around the other dancers, while she lead the conversation, beginning with more information regarding who she was. What she could do, and would be doing just as soon as she was able. About how having an investor to get her started could benefit them both. It was like she had said, she wanted to expand. Business had been good before and she had only been a waitress, helping Mu and then Spenny run things for the restaurant and Bliss. All the while farming all kinds of information, and then figuring out how to make it look like it had come from anywhere but her. The city was big, she had a person for just about everything, and a whole lot of eyes. What she did not presently have was the capital to do it the right way. There was potential, but no credits to make it happen quickly. She knew all the people that she could get a loan from and yeah, no thanks. She was girly, maybe a bit frivolous, but not stupid. That being said, Molly fully expected Tonyh to have some conditions on how and when he expected to have his investment repaid, if they came to terms.

[Tonyh Vankar]

"Adaptability is too often underrated," he commented with a smile, for he had seen too many people go to their downfall because they didn't know how to handle change. As they began dancing, he naturally led and kept the rhythm, adjusting his steps to the music, all the while listening to what she was telling him. She had definitely been thinking about her project for a long time and considered many angles. She was organized and definitely had street credits, something he valued. Of course he dealt with people who were in different spheres, but he preferred pragmatic people.

He mused on all that she was sharing, taking mental inventory of what he could get out of the investment. While he was a fair business partner, he wasn't a doormat. Once Molly had finished and they had danced a full other song, he began speaking, adjusting his tone and stance to continue keeping the conversation as a two-person audience. He was willing to put in a five to seven years window for payback. It was a partial gamble, but he also knew that you didn't just establish yourself in the blink of an eye no matter how well you knew the business. Shall Molly make a fortune earlier, she was welcome to pay him back before the deadline obviously. He wasn't keen on charging any interest for the reimbursement, and was more interested in a blanket 2% of Molly's benefits. Short term, it paid less, but long term, it would likely be a stronger pay-off, and an incentive for their partnership to last.

He didn't beat around the bush and told Molly that what he was most interested in was the access to her network, and any relevant info that could allow him to expand his other business in Cloud City, whether with locals, or visitors.

[Molly Black]

Molly had been impressed with Tonyh already, but after their little impromptu business dance, she had even more respect for him. He knew his stuff, that was obvious. The terms he offered were not only fair, they were pretty damn favorable. She was not going to get a bigger slice, or a better deal from any other source. Excitedly, her heart did a little pitter-patter. She was so stinking close to getting the credits she needed to open the Cloud 9, Molly could practically smell the nerf filets..

"Oh, you will definitely have access to all my goodies, including my network. Think of me as the cheery receptionist for bigger scarier people. And, just know that most of them like me, so I can probably get you some equally reasonable help from their dazzling array of services.."

[Tonyh Vankar]

"Most cheery receptionists aren't as dangerous as I bet you can be," Tonyh observed, not joking despite his amenable grin. For what he had picked on Molly so far, he doubted that she was defenseless. She seemed resourceful and with a solid head on her shoulders. That was why he was willing to invest and take a chance on her, regardless of how recently they had met. He knew value when he saw it. And he had been looking for a good angle to develop his business on Cloud City. She was looking for an investor. It was a very good deal.

"That's good. Solidifying a good customer base is important. Expanding it is crucial." Pondering on the money she needed, he paused for a moment. "Once you have the cash, how long before you're ready to open?"

[Molly Black]

Molly Black, dangerous? She stopped and considered that for a moment before laughing, as they moved through a splash of light. Maybe in another life, in this one the scariest card she had to play was 'Call for Xel Naga'.

"Expanding is the plan. All over the city.", she promised.

Considering how much work she had ahead of her, not to mention the upgrades, the ordering, the hiring! Since she had thrown every single 'staff' member the hell out of there, Molly had no one. Maybe she could persuade the chef from the Cloud Dance away, put those crab-stuffed cream puffs on the menu for good.

"I'm not going to lie to you Tonyh, there's a lot of work ahead first, but it shouldn't take too long. The Cloud 9 Bar & Grill has good bones, she just needs a little TLC, you know?" Like me.. "I'm eager to get the place open and get paying back your investment already.. I don't like to owe people, so I really appreciate this."

[Tonyh Vankar]

Danger came in many shapes and forms, and Molly's resourcefulness was a definite marker. Tonyh knew how to recognize that. He noted how his remark caught her off guard, but he stood by his observation. He grinned when she confirmed her plan to expand. "Perfect, this is what I like to hear," he responded without hesitation.

He was pleased to see she took some time to ponder the time table, despite how she had exposed her project in solid enough details. She wanted to get the job done and knew what she was dealing with. "We can figure out the details next week, but I'm thinking 300,000 for starters, by the end of the week. I will be able to provide the next two funding installments - same amount - in three...." He pondered, tracking what transactions he had upcoming. "And five weeks. So you will have all the funding in less than two months, so you should be able to get started right away."

[Molly Black]

"That's.. perfect." Molly wanted to stop dancing with Tonyh, only long enough to stop and do her own uncontrolled version of a happy dance, spinning around like mad and bouncing about.. If she knew him better, she'd have hugged him. Dancing was one thing, one did not pounce upon ones investor. Not until after the shit was signed anyways.

This was going to save her ass, yes, but it was also going to give her a damn nice hand to play.

"Please don't turn out to be a creep. I'd be real sore about having to question my instincts.", she teased.

[Tonyh Vankar]

Tonyh had expected that the time table and financial installments would suit Molly, but her joyful reaction comforted him all the more. He had a very good feeling about this deal, and it would serve them both tremendously. "I can say the same," he replied with a grin. He had thought it would take much longer for him to set a foot in the business door on Cloud City. Every once in a while, fate smiled upon him, as his daughter was a testimony to. He had learned that fate worked in mysterious ways. While he was no religious person, on the contrary, he knew that certain things happened when you least expect them.

He laughed dryly at Molly's teasing. He couldn't blame her to say that. "I have way more interesting things to do than being a creep, so you will be fine."