somanyadjectives | fifty shades of stefan } { but his number came up and he was gone with the draft [1942]

After leaving New Orleans, without his brother, Stefan mostly sets about the task of blending in with the allied forces. He isn't bad at it - he's had many years of practice after all, and while none of them are a substitute for Damon, who knows him better than anyone, and had actually seen like he wanted to make amends and move forward instead of being trapped in the past, it's enough. It's being out among people and not feeling the need to manipulate or destroy them.

He feels like he's starting to feel like a person again. It's been a long time since he's felt something like that so he's trying to revel in it as much as he can - though not too much. Too much indulgence might make him forget the dangers that come when he forgets restraint and he never wants to become that person again.

He does, however, make frequent use of the various bars and officer's clubs that they visit on their way to ship out, hanging out and drinking with his friends and applauding loudly when the talent (usually girls) hits the stage in full swing. Most of the time the acts pass without notice, but one night he's in the middle of a bourbon when a very familiar voice takes the stage. His head picks up almost instantly, turning towards he stage with wide eyes as he takes her in.

"Diana?"

[Continued here]

Threaded | Flat

The USO wasn't too thrilled with Diana. Her routines were too 'suggestive,' they told her. But that didn't matter. It was easier for her to do her work performing in less official venues. Really, it was the same routine from the 1920s, going to bars and clubs while she moved dhampir from one checkpoint to the next. But with the added bonus of boosting troop morale. Because Diana and the Order fully supported the war effort. In a way they never had before. This was a different sort of American war. For the first time, to Diana's mind, it truly felt like it was about justice and doing the right thing.

Which was a strange thing to think about a war. Admittedly, Diana wasn't too fond of the killing aspect of doing the right thing.

That evening, she was actually doing the show just for fun. There weren't any kids to move, which meant she could get a little indulgent. The last song of her set was Night and Day and she was flirting mercilessly with the boys in the front row. Mostly sailors, which worked out nicely, since she was wearing a very, very skimpy, sequined version of a sailor's uniform.

"Night and day, under the hide of me
There's an oh, such a hungry burning inside of me
And its torment won't be through
Till you let me spend life makin' love to you
Day and night, night and day!"

Whistles and catcalls practically drowned out the final notes, but she didn't care. She loved it. "Well, boys," she said, "that's the last of it. But before I go, how about a parting kiss?" The men were screaming. Diana reached into her pocket and pulled out a small, plush heart with white lace all around the edge. It was soaked in her perfume, a toasted almond scent. "Whichever one of you wins my heart, come up here!" And with that, she turned around and tossed the heart over her shoulder like a bouquet.

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