As Madame Saru met the green eyed gaze of Drake, she felt a flush suffuse her body. Damn, why must my body give me away each time, she thought. She quickly moved her hand to retrieve her own drink, hoping she might hide her blush behind it.<br/><br/>Or perhaps at least excuse it, given how much alcohol she had just consumed. Not enough to get her drunk, surely, for she could handle quite a bit. But enough to send her blood racing. Yes, that was it. It wasn't due to the man just a mere foot or two away from her. No, not at all.<br/><br/>Meeting his gaze once more as she put down her drink, she flushed yet again at his words. All of it, she thought...oh my! As if to banish the images that suddenly floated through her mind, she shook her head slightly. Get it together, woman!<br/><br/>She sighed lightly as he mentioned the malfunctioning device. Lowering her gaze for a moment in frustration, barely able to focus on his words as his eyes kept piercing her. Trying to plaster a smile upon her face and hide behind it, she looked into his eyes once more before answering him, unsure of what she saw there.<br/><br/>"I've been well, but slightly stressed. Things could be going better here at the Carnival, and I've been working hard to make it so, so you can imagine my dismay when the device stopped working properly." Sighing once more, she looked down at her hands, and unclenched them, smoothing out her dress meaningfully.<br/><br/>"So...Yes, I realize it should not malfunction at all, however, that's exactly what it seems to be doing. I've tried everything, and it's just not working properly." Lowering her voice, as she could hear herself becoming slightly strident, she continued. "I took it out the other day, as I had need to locate one of my employees that has gone missing, and I could not find him...at all! Normally, should something have happened, it would have at least found the body, but nothing! Not even a trace of him."<br/><br/>Adjusting in her seat slightly, she placed her feet upon the ground, pulling her dress down as she had inadvertently uncovered her thigh for a second.