(IC) Once Upon a Night in New Orleans CTL

[Bennosuke]

Chapter 1 Prelude

"Let the wild rumpus start!

Oh please don't go - We'll eat you up - We Love you so!"
-Maurice Sendak, Where the Wild Things Are


"Time and again I tell myself,
I'll stay clean tonight,
But the little green wheels are following me,
Oh no, not again...
My mother says to get things done,
You better not mess with Major Tom."
-David Bowie, Ashes to Ashes


"And what costumes shall the poor girl wear,
To all tomorrow's parties?
-The Velvet Underground

The impossibly large castle doors slammed shut behind Sarah and Shade, echoing in the massive stone hallway. Piles of treasures and trinkets littered the flagstone entrance, towering over the Changelings and casting long shadows in the light of the torches that hung on the walls. A harp played somewhere down the hall, but the instrument and its player were obscured by the mountains of junk, some going all the way to the ceiling, and together creating a maze like series of passages in the castle entrance. The music was slow and asynchronous, loping in and out of any identifiable rhythm, but somehow so familiar.

There was no life that either Sarah or Shade could appreciate from deeper within the castle. The only movement was the shifting of the long shadows created by the nearby torches. But suddenly from deep within the hallway came the familiar cackle, like a million silver and bronze bells tied together and thrown down an endless stairwell.

They had escaped Her! Sarah and Shade had escaped this place and made it back to the real world. They had been safe in New Orleans.

And yet, here the two were, back in Arcadia, back in the clutches of The Fickle Princess' Every Desire! "Welcome back my little ducklings," the familiar and terrible voice called from deep within the hallway, "come to me!" Somewhere nearby was their captor. Maybe only a few yards away, or just behind the nearest heap of stolen RC cars and gold coins She lurked. Somehow The Princess had found a way to bring them back to her.

(OOC: Feel free to act/react as you please, but also please give me a Resolve + Composure roll)

[Haval]

Sarah found herself baring her teeth towards the voice. She had an urge to growl at it which was a ridiculous habit she tried to avoid whenever possible. It wasn't as if she could bite the Princess' throat out. It would have been like trying to fight God.

She had thought about the possibility of this happening a lot since she got back. What was to stop someone like the Princess from reaching out and taking her back whenever she felt like it. Just because her Keeper had tired of her before didn't mean she was likely to stay that way forever. Nothing since she had followed Shade through the Mirror actually mattered. For all she knew none of it had even been real. It only pleased the evil bitch to dangle the prospect of freedom before them only to snatch it away.

Eventually, she manage to let out a panicked 'Alex. How are we here?' She's trying to be quiet without knowing if it would do any good. 'Can we hide?' Maybe there was a way out of the hallway.


Resolve 2 + Composure 3
[roll0]

[Hemnon]

Alex felt as if ice blood had literally run ice cold at the sight of a certain someone he'd not wanted to see again for the rest of his life. The nightmares is more than enough, thank you very much!

He turned his head towards Sarah and his expression was clearly one of pure, absolute terror!
His eyes then flickered around, searching for any way to do some portalling the HELL out of here, and failing that, he was even considering ditching Sarah and do some Helldiving straight back to the Mortal World, but that was the absolute last-ditch option tho.
Bloody damn it all to hell! He'd finally felt a sense of actually truely being free from that thrice-damned silver thread the Princess Bitch herself had kept leashed to him at all times!

"I have no idea!?" He replied to Sarah, his Mein all kinds of unruly, roiling whisps of darkness flitting from his form.
"Can we even portal out of Arcadia!? I only know it's possible from the Hedge.... are doorways here actually doorways!?" He voiced out in a low, hissing tone.


Resolve 3 + Composure 2
[roll0]

[Bennosuke]

Alex's mind raced as he studied the space around him. The massive and ornate double doors that had slammed shut behind him and Sarah just moments ago were gone! How was that possible? How had they gotten here?

But as he studied the room, Shade began to pick up on a number of incongruities. Sarah did not look like she had during their durance, but more like herself in New Orleans, and looking down at himself, he had not fully reverted back either! None of this made sense. His mind kept racing back to the question of how had they gotten here, and then something clicked into place. This was a dream! Somehow, he and Sarah were sharing a nightmare!

"Oh little ducklings," The Monster called, her voice starting to come closer as her high heels clacked and echoed on the flagstone, "come back to me little ducklings. I need your help with a little something."

[Haval]

Sarah is almost whispering as the voice comes closer. 'Didn't even know how to do that the first time I was here. Maybe it works as long as she's not watching too closely.'

She is panicked enough that she'll look for somewhere to hide among all the junk. Even a darkened area would work. Or she would just move as far away from that voice as she could. Even if it was pointless to hide in here there was no point in making it easy for the Princess. Maybe she inconvenience her enough that she would eventually get bored and wander off.


Looking for somewhere to hide because she failed the first roll

Dexterity 2 +Stealth 2 + Skill Specialty: Stealth (Moving in Darkness) if there's enough shadows for it to be appropriate
[roll0]
Rolling the specialty dice separately in case it doesn't count
[roll1]

[Bennosuke]

Perhaps to Shade's amusement, Sarah finds a way to slip into the shadows, disappearing almost completely from view. Even as she fades from sight, the sound of the Fae's bejeweled heels grows closer and closer.

(OOC: Sarah gets an exceptional success. I will give her a +3 on her next roll if it would benefit from her being hidden)

[Hemnon]

Alex narrowed is eyes.... and then burst out laughing - he just couldn't help himself!
"This is a dream! We... Sarah we are sharing a Dream! We look like we ARE, not like we WERE..." His mind was raising by now. Had they somehow passed through the Gates of Ivory and ended up in the same dream? And now that he realized it was a dream.... could they truely be hurt here if it's their own minds? He'd felt nothing try to intrude so it was a lot more plausible that he'd ended up in the shared dream OUTSIDE his own mind. He shouldn't be a mortal mind either, because he'd need an active permission for that to even happen...
For now Alex just stood his ground. This was a dream, not real and until he could think it all through, he wasn't gonna go for his fear-response.

(if possible, Alex will be quickly reviewing what could cause him to be sharing a dream with Sarah without either of them having entered the other's dreamscape so to speak. On top of that for it to happen in the mortal world - that's a lot more curious.)

[Haval]

Sarah will peer out and try and get a look at the Princess, if only to better judge the direction she was moving in. To Alex in a panicked whisper, 'And if you're wrong?' She didn't usually remember her dreams about Arcadia, but when she did she was usually less human looking. 'And if it's a dream why are you even here? Or am I imagining you?'

[Bennosuke]

Just a few more clopping steps, and then The Fickle Princess rounded a pile of barbie dolls and uncut diamonds. She was as strikingly beautiful as ever. A tall, fair skinned woman with lithe figure, shimmering red hair, and a flowing pink crepe and silk ballroom gown. Her hair was braided, tucked behind a tiara of gold and silver and emeralds. And as always, The Princess' face was hidden behind a porcelain mask, painted with a cherube sweet smiling human face. But under the mask, black void eyes stared out at Alex, as she reached her arms out to him as if for an embrace. "Finally you have come back to me," she sighed, her voice like the tinkling of bells, "I missed you so much! I realized just now much I needed you when you left. Come back to me and be mine!" She was walking towards Alex. Dream or not, The Princess was very very real. Memories of captivity, abuse, slavery all raced through Shade's mind.

[Haval]

While the Princess was distracted with Alex Sarah will look for the heaviest and most unstable looking pile of junk and give it a push. With any luck there was an actual car balanced up on one of these mounds. It would only slow the Princess down but she had to do something.

To Alex, 'Run you dummy.' She did not think this was a dream.

[Hemnon]

Alex literally flipped the Princess the Bird before heading straight for the darkest of shadows, and if need be, willing to make use of his Seeming's blessing and literally melt into that dark shadowy patch of.... well, shadow.

The Princess Bitch did not have a leash on him anymore after all and he was not gonna put that back on him - especially not a mere dream-version of her.

[Bennosuke]

Sarah finds herself standing behind a tower of old video game consoles, stacks of baseball cards, ornate and ancient looking tribal dresses, and a number of Greek marble bust statues, piled up to the ceiling, unsteady and leaning. She pushes with all her might, and the tower quickly folds over, the heavy busts and boxes of electronics falling down hard onto the head of The Princess. The ex-Keeper shrieks as she brings her long slender arms up as if to stop the wave of odds and ends from collapsing upon her. But her scream is silenced as The Princes disappears under the onslaught of falling treasures.

Alex runs as he was directed, and keeping to his namesake, disappears into the shadows.

(OOC: Please give me an appropriate stealth roll. Sarah's WP is now 4/5, updated in the character box. What is Sarah going to do before The Princess digs herself out?)

[Haval]

Well, now she knows I'm here. Sarah would like to take a moment to capitalise on the Princess' current state but has no wish to get that close. Instead she'll turn and run in the opposite direction from where ever the Princess had come from. Did the hallway have a main door? Did it have windows? Maybe there were staircases to other parts of the house. If she was really lucky she could find somewhere to try portaling out of here. Even the middle of the Hedge would be preferable. She will not look back.

[Bennosuke]

The Princess had come from deep within the castle, where as Alex and Sarah had come in through the double doors that were now locked behind them (had they really come into the castle... or had they just appeared here?). So Sarah darted down a side passage, weaving between walkways created by the mounds of horded treasure. Shade had simply appeared in the shadows, leaving Sarah all alone! The path led to one of the side walls of the main entrance (why did nothing look familiar?). This corner of the hall was less well lit, and the treasures here had clearly been left alone for a long time. Dust clung to everything. Anything of fabric or organic material was moldering. A door appeared in the wall, a big red arched door framed in shining bronze. Near the door was also a stairwell that appeared to lead down into the cellar. Alternatively, Sarah could simply push on, further into the main hallway!

From back by the entrance The Princes could be heard shrieking, "How dare you little ducks! How dare you disobey me! I have been waiting for you! I need you! Come back to me!" Shade was close enough to witness The Princess pulling herself from the toppled mountain of treasure, and watched as she materialized a giant butterfly net into her hands. The thread of the net appeared to be made of the thinnest strands of gossamer.

[Hemnon]

Alex would use that momentary temper tantrum to slide with the shadows, away as well, taking to Sarah's trail as soon as it was possible. To fight, or even try to use a contract that affected a True Fae target.... well, he would be insane if he thought that was even possible to TRY. Much rather he sought to use what he had and could do, in order to avoid being noticed to begin with!


Gonna use Cloak of Night contract - and since my character dresses in dark clothing, is already in shadow, etc. the Contract's Loophole should be applicable. I'd like to add in Sarah as well even thought she is out of sight, since nothing is stipulated about her needing to be right there with him, just that she is in what is a shadowey part. If not possible, then Alex will just use it on himself to gain that extra bonus die to Stealth Rolls, and won't loose it even if attracting attention due to being a Darkling and all.

And here's the Stealth Roll to sneak out through the doors as well as get away from this nightmarish creature that seemed an almost perfect phantom of the real Princess.
I'd guess it's a Dexterity-based roll in this case since it's about moving without catching notice while the big temper tantrum was going on.

Dex 2 + Stealth 4 + Cloak of Night 1 = 7 Dice.
[roll0]

[Haval]

Sarah has the mad idea that she could find someone to help her amidst all the junk. Maybe a bazooka. But at the moment she's too busy keeping her footing to look properly until she gets to the door. Going downstairs seemed like a risk if there was no other way out, although the Princess would have to know she was down there first. Then there was Alex who she could hardly leave behind.

The door was the obvious way out here. She had to at least see if it still worked. She didn't exactly understand how Portaling worked at the best of times. Something about how the Hedge was really everywhere so you could slip into it by asking the universe nicely. 'If anyone out there's actually listening please open this door to somewhere better and I'll owe you a favour.' Then she'll try the door to see if it opened onto the Hedge. If she's successful she won't go through it yet. Maybe leaving open this obvious escape route without actually going through it might encourage the Princess to go looking for them in the Hedge.

[Bennosuke]

The Wyrd abides. Shade not only fades into the shadows, but he becomes the darkness in the corners of the room. Leaking into the black, Shade watches as Sarah flees, finding the nearby door and stairwell.

The Princess' high heels begin clacking down the flagstone drawing closer and closer. Sarah whispers to the door, promising her favors to Fate and anyone who might help her. There is a dull clunk as a bolt pulls from behind the door. A moment later, the door swings open. The Princess' foot falls draw even closer. A pale glowing light fills the frame of the opening wooden door; like the static glow of an old antenna dependent television. "Come back you stupid duckies!" The Princess' voice is now frantic, angry, no longer musical, "I will wring your necks and break your ankles if you don't come back to me!"

(OOC: I am assuming Sarah is going to dive in, but will let you decide Haval. Also, what is Shade going to do now, is he going to rush to follow?)

[Hemnon]

The Wyrd abides. Shade not only fades into the shadows, but he becomes the darkness in the corners of the room. Leaking into the black, Shade watches as Sarah flees, finding the nearby door and stairwell.

The Princess' high heels begin clacking down the flagstone drawing closer and closer. Sarah whispers to the door, promising her favors to Fate and anyone who might help her. There is a dull clunk as a bolt pulls from behind the door. A moment later, the door swings open. The Princess' foot falls draw even closer. A pale glowing light fills the frame of the opening wooden door; like the static glow of an old antenna dependent television. "Come back you stupid duckies!" The Princess' voice is now frantic, angry, no longer musical, "I will wring your necks and break your ankles if you don't come back to me!"

(OOC: I am assuming Sarah is going to dive in, but will let you decide Haval. Also, what is Shade going to do now, is he going to rush to follow?)

Alex was very much 'hauling ass' as some would call it, going straight for Sarah's portaling if it's obvious enough for him, if need be taking full sprint the moment he was out of sight of miss-angry-princess. Even if this was a dream, he wasn't gonna go and get caught by his Former Keeper. Real or merely a construct made up of his or Sarah's nightmares.

[Haval]

While she listens to the Princess get ever closer Sarah will try to work out if Alex was actually nearby She had had some experience of this by now. She couldn't see where he was but she could sometimes hear his footsteps. In a place like this maybe she could make out his passage as he moved through the Princess' junk. 'Alex? ... You better still be here.'

[Bennosuke]

The Princess comes racing into view, the cartoonishly oversized butterfly net held overhead as if it were a mighty sword. She was moving too fast for her high heels, almost as if she were floating, moving as fast as an accelerating car! Alex races from his hiding place, joining Sarah as the two head straight for the door, The Princess gaining on them. The staticky television glow of the doorway grows brighter and brighter as the two Changelings get closer, finally diving head first through the door and slamming it behind them just as the Princess' net comes whizzing down!!!

************************************************** ***********************

The alarm clocks in Sarah and Alex's apartment all go off at the same time, rousing the two Lost from their dream. It is midnight, marking the passage into October 1st. Torrents of rainfall thundered on the windows besides Shade and Sarah's beds, creating a jumpy rhythm section to the clanging tolls of the old grandfather clock. It was the clock that Shade had bought at the Tumbledown Market and had placed in the living room.

Inside, it is warm and humid. The is was well lit and coseley furnished, despite the warping floorboards and creaking stairs.

Suddenly, the alarm clocks, the grandfather clock and the rain all fall silent. It is as if time freezes for a moment in the Motley's apartment. The old rotary phone by the apartment entrance begins to ring, actual bells alarming rather than an electronic sound. But the old rotary phone is just a show piece, it's not even hooked up to a land line! The chimes of the phone are then joined by every radiator in the house suddenly activating, sounding off with hisses and a series of deep plunking noises all over the building. Then the windows blow out; every single window of the apartment! Shattering one after the next like a series of bombs, glass flies out from the apartment's windows.

Then there is a sudden shriek that echoes all over the house. It starts distant and distorted, a woman's voice growing louder and louder and slowly sharper as if drawing near. Then there is an explosion in the bathroom, more shattering glass. Suddenly the girl's screams are inside the Motley's home, fully in focus and coming from the bathroom as something large and meaty lands with a thud on the bathroom floor.

[Haval]

Sarah wakes with a gasp and reflexively fumbles for her alarm to shut it up even as it seemed to do the job itself. Anything that was going on in the house could wait a moment while she calmed down.

Between the Princess and the prospect of whatever might be in the Hedge she was prepared for a fight and it'll take her a moment to calm down and pay attention. Was this actually happening? It wasn't like she remembered much of what the Hedge was like when they escaped. Or there was always the chance that the Princess had got her hands on them before they went through the door. She'd like to think she wouldn't be back in New Orleans in that case. Surely the Princess would do something much worse.

Eventually she's collected herself enough to stumble out of bed to put on a robe, 'What the hell is happening? Who is screaming?' She'll have to worry about the dream later. First things first, what was going on in their bathroom.

[Bennosuke]

Shrieks coming from the bathroom. A girl's voice. "Help me! Oh god, he's after me! Help, please someone!"

[Haval]

Hearing that Sarah will rush over to the bathroom. It was always possible that some mortal had managed to break in, but from the sound of the woman's entrance this was something more unusual.

[Bennosuke]

As Sarah rushes to the bathroom, the girl's screams grow louder; filled with anguish and terror. Rounding the corner and stepping into the room, Sarah sees that the bathroom floor is a mess of shattered glass and small crimson pools of blood. Sprawled out over the mess is another Changeling, though it takes a few moments to recognize her.

She is young, maybe in her late teens. Her mask shows a voluptuous girl with shoulder length hair that may at one point have been dyed a bright green but has now faded to an off bleached color, dressed in a black hoodie, pink skirt and shredded black and green stockings. Behind the mask, you can see two vulpine ears poking through her hair and a long fluffy red tail matted with blood poking out from her skirt. The girl's thick makeup his heavily smeared, and there are a multitude of small cuts on her face and hands.

For a moment, Sarah is not sure she recognize the young woman.

(OOC: An Int + Politics/Streetwise would help Sarah recognize the girl, with additional dice for Court Goodwill for any Night Revelers Court)

[Haval]

Sarah grimaces at the state of the bathroom. I'm not cleaning that up. She'll cross her arms and glare at the girl. She didn't seem like a threat and looked like she was having a bad time of it, but Sarah still wasn't happy to see this girl in her bathroom in the middle of the night. 'What are you doing in my house?'

[Bennosuke]

After a moment, Sarah realizes that she recognizes the girl on the bathroom floor. She is Kitsune, a member of The Makers Court of the Night Revelers. To be trite, Kitsune only knew the girl from the gossip about her sexual promiscuity in the Changeling community.

She was sprawled on the floor her grey eyes wide and undiscerning, as she shifted on the crunching glass to curl her knees into the embrace of her bleeding arms. Though the bathroom window was blown out, the glass on the ground smeared in Kitsune's blood was clearly the shattered bathroom mirror which normally hung over the sink. Moans and sobs were pouring out of the girl's mouth, and she stared at Reggie without any recognition.

[Haval]

Seeing who it was and how she seemed to have got here Sarah is sympathetic up to a point. She could see the attraction of behaving like Kitsune did but Sarah preferred to be a bit more careful on those occasions when she felt like behaving that way herself. Even a mortal man could cause problems if you weren't prepared for them. Still, no one deserved this.

Sarah will kneel down so she's on the girl's level. Gently, 'Hey...hey...Kitsune...you're safe here...there's no one chasing you.'. If Kitsune doesn't flinch away Sarah will tentatively give her a hug.

[Bennosuke]

When Sarah kneels down next to the girl, Kitsune shrieks and puts her hands up as if to defend herself. "No!", she cries, her words quickly slipping into nonsense babble. She shrimps farther into the corner of the bathroom, and pulls herself into a seated position with her knees hugged to her chest. Glass crunches with her shifting weight, and her bloody palms stain her colorful leggings. "Oh God", she cries, "Oh god". Her eyes are both locked on Sarah, but focused on something far away, glazed and terrified.

(OOC: A successful social roll as we discussed in the OOC thread is going to be beneficial here)

[Haval]

Sarah will brush the glass away and sit down on the bathroom floor with her legs curled under her. 'Sorry, I won't get too close.' She'll keep her arms by her sides and try not to make any sudden movements. 'See...you're safe here. Do you want to tell me what happened? Tell me who did this and we can talk about what we can do about it.'

[Bennosuke]

As Sarah speaks, Kitsune slowly begins to gather herself. Her screams subside to mere whimpers, and she pushes up against the porcelain bathtub to sit herself up, knees hugged to chest as she looks at Sarah. "Am I... am I safe?" Kitsune asks, smearing blood across her face as she uses a torn up forearm to wipe away a streak of tears. Even before Sarah can reply, she adds, "Oh god. Look what I've done to your bathroom. I'm so sorry." This seems to upset the girl and she begins to whimper louder as she fights back the urge to sob.

[Haval]

Sarah will smile at Kitsune to try and reassure her. 'Well I'm not going to hurt you. Don't worry about the mirror. I've lived with worse. Let's take it out on whoever was chasing you shall we.' Sarah will offer the girl a roll of toilet paper if she wanted to blow her nose. 'Did you break the mirror so they couldn't follow you out here? That's smart. But whoever was chasing you doesn't get to treat people like this. I know a few Hobgoblins who owe me a favour. Maybe I can see what I can do to mess with this person you were seeing.'

[Bennosuke]

Sarah will smile at Kitsune to try and reassure her. 'Well I'm not going to hurt you. Don't worry about the mirror. I've lived with worse. Let's take it out on whoever was chasing you shall we.'

The girl's eyes quickly dart to the space above the sink where the mirror once hung. The tiles unstained in this space create a bright shadow where the mirror used to be.


Sarah will offer the girl a roll of toilet paper if she wanted to blow her nose. 'Did you break the mirror so they couldn't follow you out here? That's smart. But whoever was chasing you doesn't get to treat people like this. I know a few Hobgoblins who owe me a favour. Maybe I can see what I can do to mess with this person you were seeing.'

She accepts the tissue paper, but instead begins to blot at the quickly drying blood on her hands and forearms, even going so far as to put pressure on some of the still flowing lacerations. She shakes her head in the negative and replies, "No, the mirror just... exploded when I came through. Thank god. He was gaining on me." She catches herself, and then purses her lips as if trying to zip them shut.

[Haval]

She accepts the tissue paper, but instead begins to blot at the quickly drying blood on her hands and forearms, even going so far as to put pressure on some of the still flowing lacerations. She shakes her head in the negative and replies, "No, the mirror just... exploded when I came through. Thank god. He was gaining on me." She catches herself, and then purses her lips as if trying to zip them shut.

'Who was gaining on you?' Sarah doesn't want to push Kitsune too hard, but still. 'If he's willing to chase you into a mirror then he's probably doing this to other women. Maybe he deserves to get a reputation.'

[Bennosuke]

The question makes Kitsune sit bolt upright. Her eyes go wide with terror. "I... I can't tell you. It's not safe." She leans forward onto all fours, trying to push herself to her knees, but as she starts to stand one of her knees buckles, and she's forced onto her forearms, crunching more glass under her weight. She winces, then manages to add, "I should really go. I might have put you in major danger just by what I've done. I'm so sorry."

[Haval]

Sarah smiled ruefully, 'Is anywhere safe.' Even if she had been dreaming she assumed the Princess was still out there somewhere. But unless Kitsune was going to elaborate she didn't see any reason to be worried about some angry boyfriend.

Sarah will scramble to her feet and offer a hand to help Kitsune up. 'It's ok if you don't want to talk about it, but what are the chances that he knows that you're here? You're welcome to stay awhile and get cleaned up. Or take the sofa if you want.'

[Bennosuke]

Sarah's question seems to give Kitsune true pause. Her choking sobs almost instantly silent, she bows her head in a moment's thought, before looking up and shaking her head. "No, nowhere is ever truly safe," she says somberly, her eyes darting momentarily to the blown out window as if something caught her eye.

But after a moment of reassuring herself, Kitsune turns back to Sarah and says, "You are very kind, but I don't think I can stay here. It is not safe for me, and it will likely only drag you into further danger." This time Kitsune is fully able to bring herself to her feet with a wince, and she begins to lumber towards the door, one hand holding the opposite shoulder as if it might be injured. "I should go," she says with dead seriousness.

[Haval]

Sarah will follow Kitsune's glance towards the window and wondered for a moment if she she would actually see something watching her. She had felt like that a lot when she first got back to New Orleans. She tried not to think such things these days, but it made her wonder how long Kitsune had herself been back.

'If I ever had reason to flee through a mirror into someone else's house I'd like to think that the people there would give me a break. So the offer stands if you ever need it.' Sarah wasn't sure how seriously to take Kitsune's warnings given that she wouldn't give details.

[Hemnon]

Alex more or less stumbled upstairs to Sarah and the 'visitor', groaning a little from having bumped into a wall, still half asleep by the time he'd heard Kitsune crash through the mirror upstairs and managed to get out of bed... well, fall straight out of bed - His bedsheets having more or less gotten tangled around him.

He was rubbing his forehead as he finally reached the upstairs and the two talking ladies. "ermph... what in the hell is going on.... who is she?" Alex said rather grumpily, even his Darkling visage had a look of exhausted-but-forced-awake look to it. His Mask mirroring that quite excellently.

[Haval]

Sarah wonders how much of Alex's apparent tiredness was due to the dream, but that would have to wait.

She'll introduce Alex. 'Kitsune's having some problems. Someone's chasing her. Seems to me that an ******* like that deserves to get a reputation in case they do that to someone else.' Sarah is unwilling to push the girl if she didn't want to talk about it, but that didn't mean she didn't want to know.

To Kitsune,'Do you at least have friends you can stay with?'

[Hemnon]

Alex just rubbed his groggy eyes, trying to keep focused on Sarah's words.
"Umph, oke... um.... how'd she end up here... in a bathroom, with an exploded mirror?"
Alex just didn't seem like he was near enough awake or rested to handle this, and clearly looked like he needed to go sleep some more and if Sarah could handle all this, then she was more than welcome.

[Haval]

"Umph, oke... um.... how'd she end up here... in a bathroom, with an exploded mirror?"

'She said she came through it. Which means I think that she was lucky not to end up somewhere worse.'

[Bennosuke]

Kitsune moves back away from Alex when he appears, clearly unsure of who she can trust. Her body language softens though as the two changelings convers. Kitsune's head moves back and forth as she listens, but in response to Sarah's question about friends she replies, "I mean... probably... but where uh, where are we?"

[Haval]

Kitsune moves back away from Alex when he appears, clearly unsure of who she can trust. Her body language softens though as the two changelings convers. Kitsune's head moves back and forth as she listens, but in response to Sarah's question about friends she replies, "I mean... probably... but where uh, where are we?"

Sarah will give their address. 'Still in New Orleans at least. You need to borrow a phone?'

[Bennosuke]

"It's okay, I should have my cellphone," the girls says as a hand reflexively moves to a stockinged leg, perhaps searching for a nonexistent pocket. Shocked realization spreads across Kitsune's face, her mouth opening into a small o. She begins desperately patting her hoodie but finds nothing. "Oh no," gasps Kitsune, "I left my jacket with him!" She brings a hand to her mouth and begins to reflexively chew at one of her nails. After a moment's thought she says, "I... I think I have one friend I should see, but I don't think it is safe to call. I should probably just go; try to get to her house as soon as possible." She does her best to push past Sarah and Alex and get into the hallway.

[Hemnon]

Alex just more or less stumbles out of the way as soon as Kitsune tries to get past him. He's still way to bleary-eyed and groggy to do much else.
"Should... Should we stop her, or something?" He asked in Sarah's direction.

[Haval]

Sarah grimaces in sympathy, 'Well as long as he doesn't have your password.' Even as she says this Sarah wonders if that's true. Assuming Kitsune's Ex was another Changeling maybe he could get into her phone anyway with enough motivation.


"Should... Should we stop her, or something?" He asked in Sarah's direction.

'Yeah, probably.' She'll touch Kitsune lightly on the shoulder to get her to stop. 'Kitsune, if you really want to leave I'm not going to stop you, but I don't want to hear about something bad happening to you later because I didn't do anything. Let one of us come with you, or at least let me call you a cab.' Sarah would prefer the first option if only so she didn't have to follow the girl without her knowledge. But either way, after that dream she didn't expect anymore sleep tonight.

[Bennosuke]

Kitsune bristles initially at Sarah's touch, but she relaxes quickly. She turns back to Sarah and Alex and says, "Sorry. I... I don't want to seem unappreciative. I realize I kind of, well barged in uninvited, and managed to smash your mirror up." She blushes and gives Sarah an awkward apologetic shrug. "I just... I think I've gotten into something very bad, and I don't want to get more people in trouble. But, if you want to, I could probably use the company on the trip. I'd be heading down to Magazine Street, so it wouldn't be the most convenient trip," she says, though there is a certain scared pleading in her eyes.

[Hemnon]

Alex just rubbed his face once more and looked from Kitsune and back Sarah. "Can it wait until morning? Walking around in the middle of the... whatever the time is right now, might only catch more attention."

[Haval]

Sarah will turn to Kitsune, 'Alex has a point. You're welcome to stay a while if you want. Tomorrow they'll be more traffic on the roads if you really think your man will be looking for you.' From the look on Kitsune's face Sarah doesn't think that'd be enough. What was she involved in? 'If you are really set on going now, I can come with you in the cab. Just give me a minute to put some clothes on.'

Assuming Kitsune didn't look like she was going to try and leave anyway Sarah will gesture to Alex so they can talk somewhere in private. 'I'm worried about her, but you don't need to come if you don't want to. I have to check though, were we having the same dream earlier? Of her evil highness?' Sarah will watch Alex's face closely for his reaction as she would really prefer to ignore the whole thing.

[Bennosuke]

Kitsune sets her shoulders back, her ears perking straight up. "You are both very kind, and trust me I wish I could rest... but if I wait too long, I'll be found. I need to leave this city as soon as possible, and I think I have a friend who can get me out without a trace. You don't have to come with me if you don't want, but I would like to leave NOW!" She says this last part with almost a growl, her lips almost curling back, showing sharper, more canine like teeth. Remembering their durance, Changelings never like to be restrained!

[Haval]

Kitsune sets her shoulders back, her ears perking straight up. "You are both very kind, and trust me I wish I could rest... but if I wait too long, I'll be found. I need to leave this city as soon as possible, and I think I have a friend who can get me out without a trace. You don't have to come with me if you don't want, but I would like to leave NOW!" She says this last part with almost a growl, her lips almost curling back, showing sharper, more canine like teeth. Remembering their durance, Changelings never like to be restrained!

Sarah suppresses the urge to show her own teeth in response. She didn't take offense. Kitsune wasn't a threat to her but part of her couldn't help but see that as a challenge. 'If your man ever wants to come here and argue with me he's welcome to try. Sounds like someone should.' Sarah thought she might even enjoy that. 'But for your sake lets go find your friend.'

After talking to Alex she'll quickly put on whatever clothing she'd been wearing yesterday and will call Kitsune a cab.

[Hemnon]

Alex just grumbled a bit and did the best he could to clear up his head a bit - splashing some water onto his face and such, before getting dressed and joined Sarah and Kitsune.
"Very well then.... Let's go. If we see an open coffee shop I need to order a quick cup tho. I am barely functional as is." Alex said with a sour expression, his Mein clearly looking like lazy smoke whisp barely able to lift from his shadow-form.

[Bennosuke]

It is not hard to order a ride using the latest rideshare app. Kitsune gives Sarah an address on Magazine street, that looks a little familiar. The ride is uneventful, and it is when the car pulls up to their destination that Sarah realizes why she recognized the address.

The driver pulls up in front of a shuttered storefront. In the window are several mannequins in finely tailored suits, though it is a little dark to fully appreciate the craftsmanship. In gold print is a picture of a loom with lettering wrapped around it reading, "Annie's Bespoke Old Fashioned Tailoring". The building is a squat brick two story building right on Magazine street between a barber shop and a deli boasting the best Po'Boys in town.

Both Sarah and Alex knew Annie, who was a member of the Tumbledown Market Freehold. Some called her "The Black Widow", and for good reason. Though her mask was that of a late thirties Asian woman, with a round face and shoulder length straight black hair, her Mein reveals four segmented spider legs, and a string of obsidian compound eyes across her forehead. As her name implied, Annie was known for being somewhat cold, reserved, even aloof. She had shown slight warmth to Sarah, but Shade had gotten the distinct impression that Annie had hated his guts for some reason...

Stepping out of the car, Kitsune says, "Well, here we are!" There was significant unease in the girl's voice. The shop was dark, and for some reason, all the lamps on this part of Magazine street seemed to be out. It was close to 1AM at this point.

[Haval]

Sarah didn't need Alex's help but appreciated him coming with them anyway. 'Maybe her friend has coffee.' For her part she's tired but not as tired as she'd likely be tomorrow if she didn't get some sleep.

In the taxi she'll keep a look out for anyone that was still up at this hour. Just in case anyone looked like they were taking too much of an interest. Perhaps it wasn't likely that anyone could find Kitsune this quickly but she seemed to believe it.


Stepping out of the car, Kitsune says, "Well, here we are!" There was significant unease in the girl's voice. The shop was dark, and for some reason, all the lamps on this part of Magazine street seemed to be out. It was close to 1AM at this point.

'Hey, do you know Annie? Small world.' Sarah had had some clothes made here before once she had learnt to relax around Annie. Initially Sarah had found Annie's appearance disturbing as if she might end up as food if she got too close, but it was hard not to be sympathetic. No one would choose to look like that.

[Bennosuke]

Kitsune nods her head 'yes' a grave expression still on her face. "I think she's the only one who can get me out of here safe," she says, though her feet remain planted to the ground at the far side of the curb. Then suddenly as if taken by surprise, Kitsune asks, "You don't think we were followed, right?"

[Hemnon]

Alex made an extremely sour face upon the realization that it was Creepy Annie, as he'd gotten used to call her mentally, that they were going to. The fact that all the light was out in this area of town was just extra spooky. Especially with that dream fresh in mind.
"Creepy Annie, creepy street, creepy lights-out... no coffee." He grumbled and cast his gaze around, his natural 'flight instinct' was screaming at him that something just felt.... WRONG. Of course he might just be getting paranoid tho.

[Haval]

Then suddenly as if taken by surprise, Kitsune asks, "You don't think we were followed, right?"

Sarah will look around to see if there was anyone else on Magazine Street. It probably wasn't late enough for New Orleans to be completely empty.'No one that I've seen, but let's get inside anyway. Do you think Annie's still awake?' Normally Sarah would consider it rude to enter someone's house without calling first, but in this case she'd have to make an exception. She'll go to try the door.

[Bennosuke]

Seeing no one, Sarah and Shade step up to the storefront's locked door, Kitsune following right behind them, her eyes darting side to side. On a piece of card attached to the door's buzzer is written, "Apartment". On the side of the building, all appreciate the rusty looking fire escape that one could also potentially climb.

[Haval]

Sarah looks at the fire escape with some trepidation. 'We could probably get in that way.' She had faith in Alex's capacity to get into places even if they were locked. 'But if it was me I wouldn't want anyone coming into my house uninvited in the middle of the night. I wouldn't want there to be any misunderstandings.'

[Bennosuke]

Sarah hits the buzzer. There is an electronic ring, which dies the moment her finger releases the buzzer. The speaker dies out and there is no reply for a long moment. Just when Sarah might hit the buzzer again or perhaps decide to start looking for another way in, the speaker releases a soft static noise, followed by a woman's voice. "Who is it?" she says, her voice edged with tired frustration.

[Hemnon]

Alex had turned his back to Kitsune and Sarah to keep a watchful eye at... well, ANYTHING else than the door that Kitsune and Sarah had their focus on. He was still feeling extremely paranoid about the whole situation.

[Haval]

Frustrated was better then angry, 'Annie it's Sarah, you made me that suit.' There had been a period when Sarah had been looking for a job among the mortals. The skirt suit Annie had made her had been designed to accommodate Sarah's tail without looking like that's what it was doing. Sarah could rely on the Mask to deal with that sort of thing for her, but it often left her having to restrain her tail to fit around whatever she was wearing. 'I would have texted you first, but it's a bit of an emergency. Kitsune's here with us and says she needs your help.' Sarah will wave the girl over to the speaker.

[Bennosuke]

Looking around, the only thing that Shade notices is that a number of shops and buildings have begun decorating for Halloween. A grinning face leers at Shade from a shop window in the form of a jack-o-lantern, and orange and black streamers line a number of shop windows. It was October 1st now, after all; or at least it had been since midnight, when all this strangeness started. This of course meant a number of things for The Changeling community; the month would be littered with a number of celebrations and ritualized events, and it meant the appearance of Halloween Street...

"Oh, well... um hold on a moment," Annie's voice comes through the static sounding a little confused, "I'll be right down."

Yellow light washes over the street from a second floor window above where the three Changelings stand. Kitsune steps forward, pressing close to Sarah and whispers, "Thank you. I'm so sorry about this, but I really appreciate it." After a few more minutes the lights come on in the storefront, and from the glass shop window Annie can be seen crossing the room. She has short black hair cut almost in a bob. Her face is round, her dark eyes (human and insectoid) seem to shine like onyxes in the shop light. A cold, concerned expression plays on her face. She is dressed in a dark blue terrycloth bathrobe, which covers her otherwise naked chest and hangs down to her knees. Two shiny black segmented limbs creep out from under the lapel of the bathrobe, resting over her shoulders and bending down the front to pull the robe tight to her chest.

She crosses the shop with purpose, in one hand a large silver key ring with over a dozen bronze colored keys. She makes no eye contact with any of the three waiting, and when she gets to the door she begins a long and complicated process of removing bolt after lock after chain. Annie swings the door open, standing in the frame as if she were guarding it's entrance. "What is going on here?" she asks coldly, her voice tinkling like the sound of gold coins dropping one at a time into an ever growing pile.

"Annie I'm so sorry," Kitsune blurts, "I just, I can't tell you everything, but I need your help. I need to leave New Orleans and I need to do it tonight."

Annie's eyes study Kitsune, then Sarah, then Shade, before finally scanning the street itself. She says, "Come in," to Kitsune, stepping aside.

[Haval]

Sarah will whisper back, 'Don't worry about it.' Before Annie opens the door she'll say to Alex, 'It's probably ok. She likes me...I think?'

She will follow Kitsune into Annie's store unless stopped. If anyone was watching it might be better to be off the street.

[Bennosuke]

Annie allows Shade and Sarah to follow Kitsune into the shop. The moment all three are through the doorway, Annie does one last scan of the street before aggressively closing the door and beginning the long and noisy process of locking up again. As she works, Annie orders over her shoulder, "Upstairs, now."

The storefront itself is rather simply and elegantly decorated. A few mannequins stand by the window or around the shop, wearing finely tailored sports coats with stylishly chosen ties, pocket squares and other decorations of elegance. Two large wooden tables display an assortment of ties and button down shirts, and there is a mirrored corner of the shop where one could imagine a man would stand for his suit fitting. Shelves line one wall, filled to the brim with booklets of fabric swatches.

Kitsune bypasses all of this, going straight for the doorway in the back of the shop leading to the stairwell.

(OOC: Will give players the choice of following suit, or if they want to investigate/interact with anything.)

[Hemnon]

Alex just did as told - in no mood what so ever to be arguementive or anything like that.
As soon as he got upstairs he'd merely find something to sit on and just rub at his face.

[Haval]

Sarah has been here before, albeit not at this time of night. After a glance at the store front she'll follow Kitsune up the stairs.

[Bennosuke]

Alex and Sarah follow Kitsune up the stairs, stepping into a quaintly decorated but spacious apartment. Walking into the living room, Kitsune collapses on the grey sectional sofa, carelessly smearing a bit of maroon blood from a forearm on the upholstery.

Annie comes marching into the room a few moments later, her gait stiffened by seething frustration. She gives a nod and says, "Sarah, Shade," before walking past them and sitting down next to Kitsune. One of her spidery appendages reaches out to lovingly stroke back a lock of Kitsune's hair. Audibly pushing her frustration down, and ignoring the other two in the room she says, "Okay dear, tell me what's going on."

Kitsune glances at Sarah and Shade nervously, and then repeats what she has said over and over again tonight. "I'm sorry, but I don't think it's a good idea for me to tell you. I... I'm in danger, and you will be safer the less you know." She gives Annie a pathetic grin, and then breaks out into sobs as she leans forward to wrap her arms around Annie and bury her face in the spider woman's chest. Between sobs, Kitsune manages, "I was... hoping you could... well if you could... get me through the Hedge."

"Of course dear, of course," Annie says, her voice softening and taking a comforting maternal tone, "Of course I will help you. Shhhh, shhh, it will be okay." Looking up from her friend, Annie throws Alex and Sarah a questioning glance as if to say, "Anything else you want to add?"

[Haval]

Sarah will nod thoughtfully at the first part. If Kitsune was somehow over reacting then it wouldn't matter anyway. If not it was better that they didn't know where she was going. The second part though, 'If you're sure it's safe enough to travel through.' The Hedge wasn't safe, but maybe Annie knew what she was doing.

'If you're expecting someone to come looking, what about Annie? I don't intend to tell anyone, but what if someone comes round here asking questions?'

[Hemnon]

Alex just shook his head. It wasn't his place to meddle in this and Sarah had talked with Kitsune a lot more (comparatively speaking) than he himself had.

[Bennosuke]

Sarah will nod thoughtfully at the first part. If Kitsune was somehow over reacting then it wouldn't matter anyway. If not it was better that they didn't know where she was going. The second part though, 'If you're sure it's safe enough to travel through.' The Hedge wasn't safe, but maybe Annie knew what she was doing.

"We'll be fine," Annie says flatly, almost rolling her eyes at Sarah's concern. After a moment's thought she adds, "Though I don't think it is a wise idea to bring you all along; we'll safer if we can move quickly, which means the fewer feet to trip me up the better." She says this all very matter o'factly, without accusation or judgment.


'If you're expecting someone to come looking, what about Annie? I don't intend to tell anyone, but what if someone comes round here asking questions?'

Annie lets go of Kitsune, who has mostly stopped crying. She crosses halfway between Kitsune and where Sarah and Shade stand. She replies, "That is a good point, which is probably why you two should lead now." Annie's face becomes a mask of stern warning. She adds, "And don't tell anyone anything. You're certain no one followed you here?"

[Haval]

"We'll be fine," Annie says flatly, almost rolling her eyes at Sarah's concern. After a moment's thought she adds, "Though I don't think it is a wise idea to bring you all along; we'll safer if we can move quickly, which means the fewer feet to trip me up the better." She says this all very matter o'factly, without accusation or judgment.

Sarah grins at this attitude, 'You're confident. I don't have a problem with that though. I'd prefer to stay out of the wilder parts of the Hedge unless I have a really good reason to go there.' The trip out of Arcadia had been more then enough, at least from what she remembered of it.


Annie lets go of Kitsune, who has mostly stopped crying. She crosses halfway between Kitsune and where Sarah and Shade stand. She replies, "That is a good point, which is probably why you two should lead now." Annie's face becomes a mask of stern warning. She adds, "And don't tell anyone anything. You're certain no one followed you here?"

Sarah will get up from the chair arm she'd been sitting on, 'As certain as I can be without knowing what to look for.' Given enough time, she wondered whether she could have got Kitsune to give her more details about what she was afraid of, but it was too late for that now. 'I wouldn't have much to tell, but I'm not talking to anyone who chases women through mirrors in the middle of the night. If anyone actually comes to speak to me, I will enjoy telling them I've never seen you.' Sarah is very serious about that.

Before they leave she'll speak to Kitsune, 'I can't say I'm not curious about whatever this is, given you're willing to leave town over it, but I'll leave it for now. If you ever feel able to come back let me know. Take care of yourself.'

[Hemnon]

Alex just shrugged and did a 'zip' at the mouth. "Saw what? I haven't seen anything, have you - Sarah?" He asked with a knowing glance.
"I've been in bed all night." He kept going. Sure it was ironically said for a reason. To make sure that it's understood that HE also understands.

[Bennosuke]

Hey guys, my sincere apology for the delay. The last few days really kicked my butt at work and at home. Things are fine. Thank you for your patience.


Sarah grins at this attitude, 'You're confident. I don't have a problem with that though. I'd prefer to stay out of the wilder parts of the Hedge unless I have a really good reason to go there.' The trip out of Arcadia had been more then enough, at least from what she remembered of it.

Annie seems unamused by Sarah's comment, replying flatly, "I uh, run a Hedge navigation service for those who can afford it. We'll be fine." Kitsune gives Sarah a small affirmative nod to this.



Before they leave she'll speak to Kitsune, 'I can't say I'm not curious about whatever this is, given you're willing to leave town over it, but I'll leave it for now. If you ever feel able to come back let me know. Take care of yourself.'

At this, Kitsune fully leaves Annie's embrace moving close to Sarah and Shade, even indicating that they should approach so that she can whisper to them. With dead seriousness Kitsune says, "I... I can't tell you everything. I don't want to put you in too much danger. But I also don't think I can fully stay quiet either." She glances back at Annie apologetically, though she is clearly speaking loud enough for the woman to overhear. Kitsune continues, "Just... well you know The Hallow's Eve Contract; the one that is supposed to keep us all safe in New Orleans from The Gentry?" Kitsune swallows hard, as if her throat were as dry as the desert. "It's... well it's something terrible. That's all I can say," she finishes. If Sarah or Shade ask any further questions trying to get more out of her, Kitsune simply shakes her head and keeps her mouth shut.

[Hemnon]

Alex raised that proverbial eyebrow in a 'are you serious?' expression, at Kitsune.
"Oooooo-kay. You SERIOUS about that? It sounds like some tinfoil hat conspiratory theory.... although we were all caught by actual fairies at one time, so I guess conspiracies very much has a root in truth. But, bad how? Just a ruse to-... you know what, never mind... I don't think I want to know more about this." Alex said and seemed both insanely curious (and tired), but also very reluctant at wanting to hear more. Curiosity killed the cat after all.

[Bennosuke]

"Trust me," Kitsune says with sudden fury, lips pulled back to show a muzzle full of canine fangs, lupine ears pointed forward, "I am dead serious." Annie actually steps forward as if to get ready to put herself between Kitsune and Shade. Still on alert, Kitsune adds, "Just trust me, that I know what I am talking about."

[Haval]

Alex just shrugged and did a 'zip' at the mouth. "Saw what? I haven't seen anything, have you - Sarah?" He asked with a knowing glance.

'Well I don't get out of bed at this time of night for just anyone.'

Sarah nods at Annie's explanation. She's impressed. Annie didn't seem like the type to make that sort of claim unless she meant it.

The Contract was why Sarah hadn't even tried to leave New Orleans yet. Not everyone who did bothered to come back, and it wasn't always clear whether they had chosen to move on or if something had happened to them. 'But it works...doesn't it?' Sarah says quietly to herself. What could be so terrible about the Contract anyway? Kitsune didn't sound like she was paranoid. She'll honour the girl's request not to ask any further questions.


Bennosuke - No worries. I can wait.

[Hemnon]

'Well I don't get out of bed at this time of night for just anyone.'

Sarah nods at Annie's explanation. She's impressed. Annie didn't seem like the type to make that sort of claim unless she meant it.

The Contract was why Sarah hadn't even tried to leave New Orleans yet. Not everyone who did bothered to come back, and it wasn't always clear whether they had chosen to move on or if something had happened to them. 'But it works...doesn't it?' Sarah says quietly to herself. What could be so terrible about the Contract anyway? Kitsune didn't sound like she was paranoid. She'll honour the girl's request not to ask any further questions.


Bennosuke - No worries. I can wait.


Alex smiled ruefully. "Me neither.... but if the contract works, then that means it's very encompassing in terms of specifics and letter-of-the-word focused. But what's the cost to keep such a contract active? I mean if the contract would continue if, say, I had to die for it then no - I would say it's not worth it working when I have to die. If it's like Child-sacrifices like ever-horror-fairy-tale ever, I would also doubt it's value. We know of Changelings that does not live here, which still avoid the whole Gentry." He said with a very exhausted expression, clearly his mind was wandering right now.

[Bennosuke]

"It works," Kitsune says with a hint of defeat in her voice, "it's just...". But no matter how long anyone waits, Kitsune never finishes the thought.

[Haval]

We know of Changelings that does not live here, which still avoid the whole Gentry.[/COLOR]" He said with a very exhausted expression, clearly his mind was wandering right now.

'It's the looking over your shoulder that would get me. You wouldn't be able to relax ...ever.' New Orleans was entertaining, but even if it was a village in the middle of nowhere it would have had the Contract going for it. This was the most Sarah had ever spent thinking about it. It was better to believe people when they told you it worked.

To Kitsune, 'Don't worry about it. Whatever it is hasn't bothered me so far.' Which didn't mean it would stay like that. 'You might want to get on. Just in case.'

[Bennosuke]

Annie steps forward at Sarah's statement. She says, "Very well then, unless you have any further business here tonight, I am going to ask that you leave. When you go down the stairs, take the back door out, rather than going back through the shop, and please be discrete on your trip back." She places a human hand on Kitsune's shoulder, but keeps her eyes on Sarah and Shade.

[Haval]

Sarah glances at Alex. After that she's even more curious, but doesn't want to keep Kitsune any longer. To Annie, 'I'll be careful.'

[Hemnon]

Alex gave a nod to Kitsune and Annie as he got up.
"We'll take our leave then... maybe get some actual sleep. Come Sarah." He said and went for the door and walked straight for the front door when he saw it and exited after taking a peek through the peephole/window/whatever else is available to take a look at what might be outside.

[Haval]

'What are the chances that there's someone out there watching for us already?" Sarah is genuinely asking. 'Or is it more that the fewer people who see us leave the better.' Under the circumstances, she wonders about the wisdom of taking that taxi.

[Hemnon]

'What are the chances that there's someone out there watching for us already?" Sarah is genuinely asking. 'Or is it more that the fewer people who see us leave the better.' Under the circumstances, she wonders about the wisdom of taking that taxi.

Alex was about to mention his dream and that even his nightmares that thrice-damned 'princess' was still haunting him...

"Better safe than sorry..." he muttered.

[Bennosuke]

Peaking through the front door, and peering through the storefront windows, Shade sees no signs of any life outside, magical or otherwise. But of course, both Shade and Sarah were experienced enough to know that you could not always simply trust your eyes.

(OOC: So... do you two go out the back then, and how are you getting home?)

[Haval]

If neither of them see anything obvious Sarah will shrug and ease the door open. She'll talk quietly in case Kitsune was still in earshot. 'If she's exaggerating or somehow wrong what does it matter? She was seeing the wrong man and he was a violent ******** to her, but what can he do to us? Even if if someone comes to see us at some point at least we'll know what we're dealing with.'

Sarah is still glancing outside as she does this. There was always someone out walking their dog or whatever. 'If it's something more and they're capable of finding us this quickly why not just come inside for a chat anyway. Annie isn't that scary.'

'We stick to the backstreets and see if anyone's really taking an interest. Or we just nip into the hedge a second to speed things up.'

[Bennosuke]

Sarah and Shade make the long trek back to The French Quarter from Magazine street. At this time of night the streets are near empty, though the occasional apartment shines light down on the street, music playing dreamily in the distance. Many of the apartment and shops are already putting up decorations for Halloween, and many of the trees lining the sidewalk have leaves turning yellow and orange. Despite everything that has happened, there is a quiet peacefulness to the streets of New Orleans, and in sticking to "the right neighborhood streets" the duo are able to avoid any threat of being held up or put at risk.

However, the magic of the early morning peace is disrupted as the two approach their apartment. Coming around the side of the building, Sarah and Shade can almost instantly tell that something is "off". Though no window has been disrupted, and the door has been left closed; someone has triggered the alarm system that the two had installed when they first moved in together. As part of the security system being triggered, all the lights have turned on, casting a white light on the small yard and the surrounding sidewalks. And when the two try the front door, it opens immediately, even though it had been left locked.

(OOC: Haval's two successes on the Perception check...)

Concerned, Sarah immediately begins scanning the streets, and her attention catches on a pair of gleaming yellow eyes about two blocks away. The thought floats into her mind that the eyes are somehow "reptilian", but the moment she begins staring the eyes wink out, as the suddenly materialized shadow silhouette appears out of movement; turning and rushing away.

[Haval]

On the way back Sarah is starting to relax. After the unpleasantness of the dream and whatever seemed to be going on with Kitsune it was easier to have an excuse to not worry about it. She quite liked walking in New Orleans at night. The mortals weren't a danger to her even if they might be that to each other. She was fairly sure no one was watching either. Between her dog's ears and the eyes that Arcadia had left her with it was difficult for her not to see a problem coming, even when she sometimes wished she could switch that off.

The sight of the house was an unpleasant surprise. 'Did someone break in?' Was this a coincidence? Sarah was more angry then panicked. How dare anyone, human or Changeling come into her house like this. She bares her teeth without really thinking. Seeing the ...lizard?...she's about to attract Alex's attention to it, but then it chooses to run away. 'Hey!' Hard to look innocent when you were running away from a burglary. Sarah will brake into a run. She wasn't exactly dressed for this, but if this thing had broken in she would like to have words with it.


So foot chase? Don't expect this to work but I did take Angry for the Thread. Sarah has Speed 12 as a Beast but I suppose that means she can't do long distance.

Stamina 2 + Athletics 1
[roll0]

10 again rolled in the ooc

[Hemnon]

Alex quickly noticed what Sarah had spotted and suddenly dashed after... and not really knowing what else to do, he gave chase alongside with her.
"This night *huff-puff* sucks, SO MUCH!" He uttered mid-sprint with a sour tone.

Guess I'll roll some stamina+atheltics as well.
[roll0]

EDIT: so that's an extra 10 and a 2, rolled in OOC. so a total of 3 successes.

[Bennosuke]

The moment Sarah and Shade start to give chase, the far off figure begins to break into a light run, hustling down the street away from its pursuers.

Okay, so we are starting a chase, and in such situations I always like to use full ruleset so it is going to be a race to 10 successes. I guess we are starting with Stm + Athletics roll, so here is the fleeing person's roll [roll0], I never give NPCs 10 again but feel free to just repeat your main roll as a 10 again roll. Sarah and Shade will not get to pool successes, but have the advantage that each one gets to roll, increasing their chances. Unfortunately, I am going to have to double post this to take us into the second round of the chase as I have to see my roll results.

Fleeing individual 2 successes
Shade 3 successes
Sarah 2 successes

[Bennosuke]

Despite his complaints, Shade began to gain on the fleeing figure. As he drew slightly closer, it appeared to Shade that the person he was chasing was tall and of all things dressed in a trench coat, like a hard boiled detective from an old black and white movie. The man turned the corner, racing out of the French Quarter and into the Treme, a predominately African American neighborhood that had still not fully recovered from Katrina. They said Jazz was born in the Treme, but most tourists and white locals were start enough to not go wandering into The Treme after dark.

The streets here were slightly narrower (still wide by most suburban standards) lined with squat rundown town houses, many of which were boarded up and leaning to the side. The fleeing figure began darting into the allies between properties, disappearing so that only the sound of footfalls could be chased.


Next roll is going to Dex + Streetwise please. Target's roll [roll0]

[Haval]

Sarah could only wheeze out a laugh in response to Alex as she starts to fall behind him. She had the urge to revert to her old habits and assume a more comfortable shape to chase someone with.


Dex 2 + Streetwise 1
[roll0]

[Hemnon]

Alex had no time to keep a focus on Sarah, but rather the TARGET for now, so he just kept his momentum, speeding away to catch up and hopefully somehow pacify the... whatever the heck was running away from Sarah and himself.

Stamina+Atheltics
[roll0]

And in case of 10s, here's some extra rolls.
[roll1]

EDIT: That's Two successes in total.

[Bennosuke]

Alright, so at the end of the second round of the chase we have:
Fleeing individual: 3 successes
Shade: 5 successes
Sarah: 4 successes

@Hemnon: The roll requested was Dex + Streetwise. Each round will be a different roll request based on the terrain and chase scenario. Fortunately, Shade's Dex + Streetwise pool was still 4d10.



Shade and Sarah chase after the fleeing figure, squeezing between buildings till the alley stops at what should be a dead end. The figure stands before the two in the dark alley, a wide and muscular frame in the dark. Shade and Sarah are now close enough to catch sight of a long reptilian snout peaking out from between two yellow eyes. This was a Changeling, his Mein simultaneously giving way to a man's face.

Cornered, the man turns and pushes hard through a rotted wooden door at the end of the alley, shattering it and disappearing into the dark. The door was in an industrial looking two story building of concrete, and Shade and Sarah race inside after the fleeing Lost. Foot falls echo in the stairwell as they follow him up two flights of stairs and onto the building's rooftop. Gaining on the man they follow him across the roof, where without stopping, the man in the trench coat takes a running leap onto the adjacent building's shingled roof. He lands hard, going to a knee before recovering and racing across the side of the building's slanted crown.

And the next roll will be Str + Athletics please to represent the chase of jumping from rooftop to rooftop. His roll [roll0]

[Hemnon]

Alex hit the proverbial breaks - he had no interest in taking a chance at jumping over a rooftop. So he skidded to a halt and just cursed out loud.
Instead he'd frustratedly kick up a minor fuzz before shrugging and hoping that Sarah could handle this from here...
He merely just went back down to safe, flat ground and grumbled a little... before he decided to head back home. He had an idea of using his reflections of the past contract to take a peek or two at what had been going on a good 10 minutes prior to he and Sarah reaching home. But for now, he'd just wait out Sarah's return at home.

[Haval]

Sarah had a hard time believing the break in was a coincidence, but had to wonder if she'd managed to upset anyone recently. The lizard in the trench coat was certainly not someone she recognised. If this was the man who had been chasing Kitsune earlier tonight how he found their house so quickly?

'Who is this guy?' she says out loud as she pulls up at the roof's edge. Even if someone was chasing you why would you want to go to the trouble of jumping from roof to roof in the middle of the night? The drop over the edge was easily enough to cause her to think twice about following. Fortunately she didn't have to. She could tell Alex agreed, 'See if there's anything missing.' There was no point in Alex falling off a roof either.

Sarah will extend her arms just so and focus her mind on what she wanted her body to do. If she'd learnt anything from Arcadia it was that shape was just a matter of opinion, and she was thankfully better at this then she used to be. Changing by vigorously flapping her arms was not something she wanted to do in front of people. Shapeshifting was always comfortable, as even as a bird it felt familiar. Still, the initial feeling of her body being compressed and her bones changing shape wasn't exactly fun.

After a moment, a black feathered hawk will take off from where Sarah had been standing and will go after the lizard.


So two Glamour spent on this

[Bennosuke]

Sarah is now down to 7/10 Glam, reflected in her OOC character box.

After round three we have:
Fleeing lizard: 6 successes
Shade: out
Sarah: 6 successes

The fleeing man in the trench coat moves from roof to roof, barely stumbling or losing a step. But Sarah takes to the air, her body shifting into that of a beautiful hawk, feathers shimmering in the streetlight. She gives her prey no moment's rest, sparing herself the exertion and wasted seconds in exhausting acrobatics.

So instead the lizard-man stops at the ledge of triangle roofed home, and lowers himself down to the ground. After dropping hard to a knee, he rises, and begins to run down the street, checking over his shoulder to monitor Sarah's progress.

ooh, this is getting close. Please give me Stamina + Athletics again to represent the grueling nature of this continued chase! [roll0]

********************************************

Finding himself alone on the roof, Shade takes his time to get back down to the street, and wind his way through the empty and greying streets of the Treme. He returns to his and Sarah's apartment, where the door is still open, and begins to explore inside.

(OOC: Please give me Wits + Investigation to peruse the apartment for clues)

[Haval]

While Sarah had mixed feelings about her ability to change her shape, it was hard not to enjoy flying. The hawk was large enough that cats and other birds didn't tend to bother her. The main drawback was that the longer she stayed like this the more appealing she started to find the idea of hunting and eating mice. Even if they were as delicious as they sometimes appeared it was a line she was trying not to cross.

She'll beat her wings enough to keep pace with Mr Lizard, but she'll let the wind do most of the work for her. Maybe she could get ahead of him.

Stamina + Athletics rolled in the ooc - 1 success

[Bennosuke]

After round four we have:
Fleeing lizard: 7 successes
Sarah: 8 successes

Despite the calm night air, Sarah continues to close the distance on the fleeing lizard-man. The gentle night's air caressed her feathers, buoyed her wings. If she were just a little lower she would likely be within talon's reach of the man in the trench coat now. Sarah could hear him growling in frustration as he fled. Sarah even caught a good look at the man's face as he looked over his shoulder; his long alligator snout covered in dark green scales, his yellow lizard eyes.

Sarah was chasing the man South through the Treme. But suddenly the road began to narrow, almost unnaturally, turning within the span of a few feet from a suburban road into a narrow dirt road. The sidewalk was suddenly lined with jack-o-lanterns of amazing sizes and details, and the houses on this street were larger and more spaced out. The houses on this street seemed to vary from palatial mansions befitting the best parts of the Garden District, to run down derelicts that would be the perfect setting of any haunted house novel. There was magic in the air here. This was very very not normal.

So give me an Int + Occult roll first, and add any successes to a Stamina + Occult roll for your chase. I

[roll0] for the lizard man

EDIT: Lizard man's final is 11 successes. You will need to beat this total to catch him.

[Haval]

Seeing Mr Lizard, or should that be Mr Alligator, turn to watch her approach Sarah let's out a delighted laugh that comes out through her beak as a triumphant shriek. He was close enough that she could probably land on his shoulders if she wanted. What any mortals in earshot might think of this she has no idea. She is too focused on her prey to be paying any attention to their surroundings.

[Bennosuke]

This must be Halloween street, Sarah realized, as she followed the lizard man onto the strange street. People (...well Changelings really) said that Halloween Street appeared in New Orleans during the month of October, and was a sign of not only the upcoming holiday, but the renewal of the covenant between the Lost community with The Crescent City through the Hallow's Eve Contract. Sarah had heard that Halloween Street was a place of Glamour but was not truly part of the Hedge, nor Arcadia.

Archaic looking lamp posts shone a glowing yellow light from dripping candles onto the street. The ghoulish pumpkin faces leered out from their rows in front of grassy lawns and tawny gardens. Even the most decrepit looking houses on the block had at least one light on in the attic, and Sarah could swear she was seeing strange and inhuman silhouettes peering out at her from their windows.

Finding the softest gale of wind, Sarah found herself gaining on her prey. With the distance closing, she was able to descend. Her shriek causes the lizard man to peer back suddenly, and when he does his foot apparently hits a snag in the sidewalk, and he flips forward fast, smacking hard into the ground.

[Haval]

Once she worked out where she was Sarah is apprehensive. She had the view that it was better to avoid places like this or Louis Armstrong Park where she wasn't quite sure what the rules were, but now she was here maybe it was too late to worry about that now.

As Mr Alligator trips Sarah will beat her wings to slow down and then turn back into herself. She'll crouch over the other Changeling's legs in a bid to keep him from getting up. She's still angry with this guy but will pause to look around her. If there were things watching, they were free to do that as long as they didn't get any closer.

Eventually she'll prod the man in the leg with one of her foreclaws to get his attention. She's not trying to hurt him but maybe an Alligator man would barely notice it anyway. 'You. What were you doing in my house?' She's talking quieter then she had thought she would. Maybe on this street she should try and avoid attracting attention. 'Don't try to deny it. I don't think you'd have come down here otherwise if you weren't desperate to get away.'


Want to look out for anything more dangerous then this guy
Wits 3 + Composure 3 + Acute Senses merit wyrd 1
[roll0]

Sarah needs to pay two more glamour to shift back, which I only realised after I started this

[Bennosuke]

As Sarah crouches over her downed prey, she quickly glances around the street. Again, no one is out on the street, but she gets the sense that eyes are watching her from the windows of every house on the block. Then far away she hears it, a faint chanting in the sing-song voices of children, "Trick or treat, trick or treat, give me something good to eat, "over and over again. Sarah can't tell if the hundreds of voices are coming from the houses, or just ringing in the streets, though the singing seems far off, almost distorted maybe.

(OOC: One success)


Eventually she'll prod the man in the leg with one of her foreclaws to get his attention. She's not trying to hurt him but maybe an Alligator man would barely notice it anyway. 'You. What were you doing in my house?' She's talking quieter then she had thought she would. Maybe on this street she should try and avoid attracting attention. 'Don't try to deny it. I don't think you'd have come down here otherwise if you weren't desperate to get away.'

"Get off me," the alligator man growls slightly girlish voice dripping with indignation, "I was just doing my job!" He will get up if Sarah allows him to, but does not fight hard against her. "Do you know who I am," he asks, one clawed reptilian hand reaching for the breast pocket of his jacket.

I have now deducted two more Glam from Sarah's character box, sapping her down to 5.

[Haval]

Sarah is creeped out by whatever was singing, but for the moment it at least didn't seem to be coming any closer. It would be better to get this over with quickly though.

She does not get off the alligator, instead she'll lean forward and yank whatever was in his jacket pocket off him. 'Your job? You break into houses for a living?' Sarah is somewhat confused, although given the work she occasionally did with Alex she can't be completely indignant about that. 'And clearly I don't know who you are. Was there a meeting I was supposed to go to?' Aside from friends and anyone associated with the Market, Sarah has avoided paying much attention to the details of Changeling society in New Orleans. If they were famous enough to have a reputation she assumed she'd hear of them eventually.

[Bennosuke]

Assuming Sarah has made no move to stop him, the man with the alligator face reaches into his jacket and removes a badge pinned to a leather wallet. The badge is silver, shining like mercury in the street's lantern light. Embossed on it is a shield divided into four quadrants, each with the symbol of one of the four Freeholds of New Orleans. "Maybe this clarify things," he says smugly, a grin spreading on his toothy crocodile lips.

(OOC: Please give me Int + the higher of Politics or Occult +2)

[Haval]

Sarah finds his manner irritating, 'What, are you some sort of cop? Or did you find that in a different house that you broke into?' The identification didn't really prove anything, but even if it did Sarah does not want to give him the satisfaction of seeming to be intimidated.

rolled in the ooc - 1 success

[Bennosuke]

It takes Sarah just a moment to process what she was looking at. She had never seen a badge like this in her life; in fact, very few Changelings in New Orleans had! She did not recognize the crest on this symbol of office, but after a moment something clicked into place in her brain.

Sarah had heard rumors of a Gestapo-esque order of Lost secret police who served the four Freeholds of New Orleans. Friends and other local Changelings often whispered behind closed doors of the "Security Ministry of New Orleans", most often after one too many cups of Goblin Punch. With The True Fae unable to enter the city, The Security Ministry was an easy scapegoat/boogie man to help explain away when a fellow Lost went missing without a word. They got black bagged by the Ministry man! But that was just local urban legend, right?

Pushing Sarah off of him so that he could rise, the man said, "My name is Typhon... and perhaps I should be asking the questions around here. Sarah, of the Court of Barter, right?" He grins at her, reptilian lips pulling back to show a snout filled with curved pointed teeth.

[Haval]

Sarah is confused enough to allow herself to be pushed off the man's legs. If the ministry really existed that would explain why this guy was in their house so quickly. Was Kitsune right to have been worried?

She glares at Typhon, 'That's right. But you already knew that?' If she was still mortal there was probably something she could do here. Maybe call a lawyer? 'Must be hard to be a secret policeman when no one is certain you really exist? Let's say I take you and your little badge seriously. Why did you break into my house?'

[Bennosuke]

Sarah's confidence only causes the man's grin to widen. In reply to her question he asks, "Well, why do you think Miss Sarah?" He raises an eyebrow, staring at her with yellow reptilian slitted eyes. "That was quiet a mess in your bathroom, I might add. Sure was a lot of blood... like everywhere," he adds, savoring the words, almost jeering.

[Haval]

Sarah will maintain eye contact and try to look innocent, 'Oh that.' She didn't see any reason to tell this man anything even if he didn't believe her. 'Pigeon came in through the bathroom window. Smashed the mirror and everything. Hell of a mess.' No one who had a good reason for it would behave like he was behaving.


Fast Talk?
Manipulation 3 + Subterfuge 2 + Willpower (3 dice)
[roll0]

[Bennosuke]

By the way the man's lizard-eyes sort of bulge, it kind of seems like he buys Sarah's lie. He even mutters a surprised, "Huh," before narrowing his eyes again. "So you're saying a Wanted Changeling who goes by Kitsune was not somehow responsible?" He places the badge back in his pocket and scowls at Sarah.

(OOC: For your success, if Sarah says "no", he might actually believe her)

[Haval]

"So you're saying a Wanted Changeling who goes by Kitsune was not somehow responsible?"


'Who?' Sarah continues to try and look innocent. 'What happened?'


Well I don't believe that, but let's keep going.

[Bennosuke]

The man just throws up his hands and rolls his eyes in a gesture that suggests, well I give up then. He runs a long pink forked tongue over his crocodile lips then says, "Fine. Well, we have reason to believe she was at your house. She is considered very dangerous, and I was simply investigating." He scowls at Sarah, and then as an afterthought adds, "My name is Typhon, by the way. And any help you can offer would be appreciated."

[Haval]

'See that wasn't so hard was it. Next time call first. If you are who you say you are I assume you already have ways of finding out my number.' Sarah will smile cynically at him. She's not sure whether to believe him but certainly doesn't trust him.'If someone was in my house while we we're out I'd like to know about it as well.'

[Bennosuke]

As far as Sarah can tell, Typhon may be speaking the truth, though she didn't buy what he was saying about her being dangerous.

Typhon scowls at Sarah and replies, "Call first? And what if you were trying to hide the fugitive. What if she had come to you for help? How could I trust you to be honest?" He shakes his head in distaste. "Besides, I was going to come by in the morning to... interview you and your housemate," he adds, almost as an afterthought.

As the two are talking, the chanting, "Trick or treat! Trick or treat!" is getting louder. Out of the corner of her eyes Sarah sees shadows dart across the lit windows of the nearby houses, and if she really focuses, its is almost like reflective animal eyes are staring out at her from the grassy yards. Seeming to sense it too, Typhon's gaze shifts nervously this way and that across Halloween Street.

[Haval]

"Call first? And what if you were trying to hide the fugitive. What if she had come to you for help? How could I trust you to be honest?"

How indeed 'Well at least you didn't get me out of bed. I'd be even more upset with you then I am at the moment.' Sarah wondered who this man actually reported to. Was there any way she could make a complaint. 'Shade wasn't in the mood to be jumping across any rooftops tonight. When I see him I'll pass on your regards.' She consciously doesn't use Alex's real name on the off-chance that Typhon doesn't already know it.


As the two are talking, the chanting, "Trick or treat! Trick or treat!" is getting louder. Out of the corner of her eyes Sarah sees shadows dart across the lit windows of the nearby houses, and if she really focuses, its is almost like reflective animal eyes are staring out at her from the grassy yards. Seeming to sense it too, Typhon's gaze shifts nervously this way and that across Halloween Street.

Sarah will look around to see if anything was actually getting closer. There's a low growl building in the back of her throat. 'I really wish you hadn't come down here. Do you happen to know what those things are?'

[Bennosuke]

As far as Sarah can see, there is nothing approaching. But the sense of rising foreboding is hard to ignore. The chanting is not so much as getting louder, as it is becoming more overwhelming. And everywhere Sarah looks it feels like there are eyes staring out at her.

"Halloween people," Typhon replies with nervous disgust. He checks over his shoulder then says, "Probably should be going. I'll come by in the morning and we can... continue our conversation." He throws his hands into the pockets of his trench coat and attempts to pass Sarah on the sidewalk.

Assuming Sarah does not stop him, he will simply walk off of Halloween Street, and into the night.

[Haval]

Halloween people? 'That just raises more questions.' Sarah notes Typhon's own nervousness. She'd like to argue more about the need to have the interview at all, but doesn't want to stick around in case those things decided to get any closer. Given how she had felt when she followed Typhon off the roof his claim to be police had wrongfooted her.

Sarah is too distracted by the need to watch the shadows to physically stop him leaving, but she'll eventually call after him, 'Hey. Who is your boss anyway? Who do you report to? She's honestly curious if he'll answer that.

After he replies Sarah will concentrate on getting out of Halloween street.

[Bennosuke]

From the darkness, in reply, all Sarah gets is the sound of Typhon's laughter.

She follows after him, both perhaps to get him to answer, but also just to leave the strangeness of Halloween Street. The street lights somehow dim, making it feel like Sarah is desperately stumbling through a shadow; memories of being chased through the Hedge. Anxiety begins to pique, but before full on panic sets in, Sarah's foot hits a snag in the pavement and she nearly goes tumbling over.

When she finally rights herself, Sarah finds herself panting, covered in sweat, and standing right outside her apartment.

[Haval]

From the darkness, in reply, all Sarah gets is the sound of Typhon's laughter.

'You know, you're not really giving me a reason to care what you think.' Sarah calls after him. Maybe she could find out where he lived and see how he liked being treated like this, but she didn't think she could do that herself without being noticed. In the meantime the oddness of Halloween Street was enough to deal with. At least in the Hedge she had a rough idea of what the rules were.

As Sarah finds herself unexpectedly outside the house she wonders if she managed to make it back here by instinct or was she spat out by something that chose to let her go but which could easily have chosen not to. She'll wipe the sweat out of her eyes and look around carefully before fumbling for keys. Everything looked normal didn't it?

Inside the house she'll look around to assess the damage from Typhon's break-in. Was the door even something that they could still close and lock? If this was a movie she might expect the whole house to have been turned over. Sarah was messy but not that messy. Eventually she'll go looking to see if her housemate was still awake, 'Alex, he's a bloody cop. Unless he's a very good liar anyway. Said he was looking for a 'dangerous fugitive', whatever the hell that's supposed to mean. Did he break anything while he was in here?' As well as any mess Sarah is largely worried about whether her laptop was still here. It wasn't as if it would be easy to replace it.


Will pause for a moment if Hemnon needs time. Sarah will assess the damage and see if Typhon took anything while he was here.

[Bennosuke]

While she waits for Alex's reply, Sarah begins to move about the house, looking for signs of Typhon's forced entry. To her surprise, the place looks exactly as she had left it... which is perhaps just as odd. If she had not caught Typhon outside her house, the door open, Sarah would likely never have known anyone had been in while they were gone.

Of course, Sarah knew better than to trust that nothing had happened.

Otherwise, the only thing of note Sarah finds is that the upstairs bathroom still badly needs to be cleaned. There are still shards of broken glass, and congealing puddles of blood all over the tiled floor.

[Haval]

Sarah assumed Typhon could have got into the house in any number of ways. The really impressive thing was that he had managed to find out where Kitsune had got to so quickly. If he could do that what else was he capable of? She is resolved to put the word out in the market as soon as possible in case anyone there knew anything concrete about Typhon or his organisation. She could hardly believe that most of the people there would be friendly to the local gestapo.

In the bathroom she really doesn't want to clean up the mess when it's still the middle of the night, but will settle for sweeping up as much of the glass on the floor as possible.

[Hemnon]

Alex had begun to clean up a little by the time Sarah had returned home - although his energy levels were seriously subdued and it was quite clear he was more or less on 'automatic' right now.
"Cop...? oh you mean changeling-type cop, yes? not the regular human police? Strange... also breaking in where they aren't invited - that seems rather, rude. To say the least. I guess not everyone accepts and respects the boundary of homes...."

Alex just looked around in the bathroom and shrugged. "I have no idea what's broken by him and what was broken by... well ya know, the whole accident here."

By now, Alex had mostly gotten the bloody patches and whatnot dealt with - water+soap scrubbing and some bleaching afterwards.... It stung his eyes horribly, the bleach vapours, but at least there was no more blood-smeared spots all over the bathroom.

"I wouldn't trust someone's credentials, who broke into someone's home, violated the basic sanctity of Home, didn't even so much as try to contact us first in any way shape or form... and who RAN after being discovered. Had he been smart, he'd have just stood his ground, raised that badge and stated who he was and why he was there... It just makes it all the more suspicious that he ran away. His badge of office and a professional attitude would have worked a lot better to brush over why he'd entered our home without as much as getting basic permission. It smells fishy to me."
Alex's overtired brain was chugging along into deeper paranoia, but the kind that seemed validated by the whole night itself so far.

[Haval]

Sarah will sigh and sit down on the edge of the bath. 'You ever hear about the Security Ministry? The ones that get blamed whenever one of us goes missing despite no one really being sure that they exist? If there's really a group doing that sort of thing I feel like breaking into people's homes is something they probably do all the time. The Rules are for other people.' Sarah wonders how easy would it be to actively keep other Changelings out.

'You're right though. If he's supposed to be the Gestapo why didn't he bring some goons along with him? Are they short-handed?' She grins at Shade, 'If he's just some guy who found a shiny badge in the market we could always push him just to see what happened. He said he's coming back tomorrow morning to interview both of us. Maybe we should just sleep in?' Sarah finds the idea of inconveniencing Typhon appealing. 'Even if he claims to have authority to act as he pleases I don't see why we should care. It's not like the Market has a King or a Queen that we have to answer to.'

'But he said he was looking for Kitsune specifically. Who doesn't seem like the dangerous type. Given how scared she was maybe she was worried that someone like that was going to come looking. If we hadn't of gone with her maybe he would have shown up at the house and knocked first.' She gestures towards the mess, 'I told him that a bird managed to get in here and bled everywhere. I don't know if he believed me but he didn't try to throw a blackbag over my head at least.'

[Bennosuke]

'You ever hear about the Security Ministry? The ones that get blamed whenever one of us goes missing despite no one really being sure that they exist? If there's really a group doing that sort of thing I feel like breaking into people's homes is something they probably do all the time. The Rules are for other people.' Sarah wonders how easy would it be to actively keep other Changelings out.

Alex had heard of The Security Ministry, he thought; but they were just a myth, a boogey man the Lost of New Orleans used to scare each other and explain away missing Changelings. They were some secret police that came and black bagged Changelings who got out of line.

(OOC: Assuming you two are still discussing, but please let me know if you want to move on)

[Hemnon]

(Finally able to post again!)

Alex just nodded with a very 'I wish I did not know' attitude. "With knuckleheads like that? Yeah, I would have doubted it if not for the fact there's clear evidence for him working for those frakheads." He replied with a still exhausted expression.

"Quite true, This is also still America first, for me. It's a Changeling Refuge SECOND. I might be seen as odd for thinking that, but that's how it is for me. So if they begin going full on facist on us... then something is rotten with the powerstructure."
Alex snickered a bit at the whole 'bird' excuse. "Well, you've technically not lied if you look at it from the perspective that certain english versions of our language has 'bird' mean a girl"

[Haval]

Sarah sniggers, 'Would he believe I was English the whole time? Or maybe she never gave us her name. Sorry officer, it's not my fault you forgot to ask any follow up questions.'

'**** it. Let's play it by ear and see what happens. I'd like to think we wouldn't be the only ones to object to this sort of treatment.'

[Bennosuke]

Act 1 Scene i

“Things need not have happened to be true. Tales and dreams are the shadow-truths that will endure when mere facts are dust and ashes, and forgot.”
― Neil Gaiman, Sandman


A bargain is in its very essence a hostile transaction; do not all men try to abate the price of all they buy? I contend that a bargain even between brethren is a declaration of war.
-Lord Byron


Alex and Sarah finish talking and quickly return to bed. Though sleep might not return quickly after all the night's excitement, it is mercifully a dreamless slumber. But when the two awake they both find themselves languid, feet dragging and head heavy and aching. As only a Changeling might, they agree that a feast of Glamour is needed this morning to refuel and refresh, and so the two set out for The French Market.

Located at the northern end of The French Quarter, in a long row of stalls and shops running along the water, The French Market is already a bustling hub of tourists, locals and restauranteurs. Bodies push against each other as they fight to get to their favorite local seafood peddler, or to get the best bargain on a head of lettuce. The air crackles with the sweet smell of greed, the need for a good deal, the need to get the best deal, or get one over on your fellow man. Hawkers call out to you as you push by, every once in a while a granny pushes by with her elbows out in an attempt to cut you off from getting to her favorite stall. The tourists are easiest to pick out, those most afraid to enter the fray, most passive as they float along with the flowing current of market-goers.

There are plenty of opportunities to harvest Glamour here, all it would take is the right mark...

(OOC: Let's start with describing how you want your character to go about harvesting glamour, and I will let you suggest the pool for your proposed hunt... unless you want me to tell you what to roll. )

[Haval]

Sarah moves through the French Market with the relative ease born of practice. However busy it was here the Goblin Market was often busier. At least here it was unlikely to be dangerous. She's in a hurry so she hasn't really bothered dressing well, but it wasn't usually that hard to find someone to feed off of anyway. As with the Goblin Market and her part in the Court of Barter, she generally likes to browse the various stalls and talk to the various vendors to assess their trustworthiness. She typically tries to find the most nakedly greedy vendors first. In the Goblin Market she might try to keep an eye on people like that so she could steer the more naive customers away from them when she could. Here, their mortal equivalents weren't nearly as much of a threat.



Wits 3 + Empathy 2 + Empathy (Lies) 1
[roll0]

If 10 again, rolled a 9 in the ooc

[Bennosuke]

As Sarah moves down the stalls, she eyes a white woman in the offensively stereotypical garb of a comic book gypsy, working a shop called "Miss Jessy's Rare and Exquisite Oriental Spices". The stall is lined with little zip lock baggies filled with dried out spices, each one being sold for twenty dollars or more. Miss Jessy calls out to potential customers in a clearly unauthentic "country Cajun" accent, as if she were some witch doctor from the bayou, and as Sarah passes by she watches as the hawker ropes in a naïve tourist, who shells out way too much money for a baggie of what is clearly not Persian saffron. Miss Jenny locks eyes with Sarah, and invites the woman to come "experience" the healing powers of her oh so rare spices.

(OOC: I count three successes, which will lead four Glamour harvested since we are using Sarah's favored "emotion". But we will roleplay through the harvesting. And as far as 10 agains go, feel free to just roll a second dice pool for your 10 again at the same time you make your primary roll, if it saves you the time. I'll just copy and paste the original roll's brackets into a second line for 10-again, if that works for you.)

[Hemnon]

Alex broke away from Sarah so seek a harvest more to his own appreciations - specifically he was looking out for anyone in a heated discussion over favors owed or 'pay when is owed first' sort of ripe, peaks of emotion.
He was just as well-travelled in walking amongst humans as Sarah, perhaps with an even more natural avoidance of hitting into any of them, for those that would notice it, his passing held a distant hint of a tolling bell, along with a sensation of dry-mouthed anticipation.


Don't really know what to use here, it'd be something related to blending into the masses so as to not let his harvestable target or whomever was near them, notice his presence beyond a basic 'extra on a TV set' level of attention.

I'd guess wits and stealth will work here? It's about using his wits to know just how to blend in - and stealth because he's trying to remain hidden from anything beyond a cursory glance at him.
All in all I get 6 dice to roll with.
[roll0]

In case of 10s - [roll1]

[Haval]

Sarah will try to adopt a pose of wide eyed innocence before going to talk to 'Miss Jessy', 'Sure I'll try anything once. I love this sort of thing. Where does it come from?'

[Bennosuke]

As Shade moves down the long row of stalls, he passes by a dingy looking produce stand, where a sallow looking woman in a dirty T-shirt and torn jean shorts is pleading with the stall owner. She holds a small bag of apples, which she has clutched to her chest. She is standing close to the stall owner, a man with lined face and spikey grey stubble. His greasy silver hair is tied back in a pony tail, and he's got aviator sunglasses and cowboy boots, even though it is not bright out, nor is he a cowboy. The woman is speaking in a forced whisper, "Please Chuck, I know I still owe you from last week, but all I got is three dollars." Chuck sneers at the girl, but doesn't say anything, so she continues, "I've got a son to feed Chuck. Please! I swear I'll pay you back."

Shade can feel the man reveling in the woman's discomfort. He can taste the woman's desperation, the emotion thickening and crystalizing into Glamour... though it is perhaps not his preferred flavor.

(OOC: Shade will be able to harvest 1 glamour for his roll, but I will give you a second Glamour if Shade intercedes in some way into the scene to change or heighten the emotion he is harvesting)

***********************************************

Miss Jenny grins at Sarah's reply, her lips parting to show several teeth capped with gold fillings. "Oh all over dear," Miss Jenny says, throwing a warm meaty arm over Sarah's shoulder, "like this here Sumac, which is shipped directly to me from a remote mountain city in Nepal." She plucks a baggie off of a shelf to hold before her "prey". The dark powder in the baggie looks like ground black pepper, and Miss Jenny holds the parcel before Sarah, just out of reach. "The medicine man who prepares this for me uses it to cure his villagers of illness, and it can be sprinkled into the tea of an unrequited love... if you are looking to get their attention." She speaks in a heavy, laughably theatrical accent, clearly doing her best to play the mystic sage. She continues, "It is quiet a rare and special Sumac, and because I can feel the goodness of your aura, I would be happy to sell it to you for the reduced price of say... fifty dollars."

Sarah can feel the raw greed coming off of Miss Jenny as strongly as she can feel the damp spot from the woman's armpit growing on her shoulder. The growing glamour was intoxicating, invigorating.

[Haval]

Sarah lets out a happy smile that isn't even that forced now she knows shes come to the right place. 'Nepal. Oh I love the mountains I've always wanted to go.' The pepper did all that. If Sarah wasn't invested in playing a part here it would have made her laugh. 'There must be something to it or why else would it have survived that long. Do you have any more of it? I have some friends that might be interested as well. If it works it's really just an investment.'

[Bennosuke]

Miss Jenny's eyes go wide momentarily as she begins to count her potential earnings. "Oh yes," she says hastily, "I do have a few more baggies." She clasps her hands together, before turning from Sarah to go rummage in an antique wooden chest. She begins humming "When the Saints go Marching In" to herself, flipping through unlabeled baggies of black powder. Looking up she asks, "How much would you be looking to purchase?" She smiles a big, hungry, greedy grin, and Sarah can feel as the air grows heavier and spicier with Glamour.

[Haval]

Sarah wondered how far she could push this, but will make a show of thinking about it. 'Oh, let's say ten bags should do it. Daddy's business is doing well.' She'll pat down her pockets, 'I don't think I have that kind of cash on me at the moment though. I should be coming back through here later if you'll still be around.' Perhaps she should have dressed up for this to make the portrayal of a wealthy tourist more convincing. With any luck 'Miss Jessy' would be too distracted to care.


I'm going to see if I can avoid paying for anything.

If I need a roll to help make it plausible
Wits 3 + Subterfuge 2
[roll0]

Any 10s
[roll1]

[Bennosuke]

The expression of wide-eyed thirsty greed grows more and more exaggerated on Miss Jenny's face as Sarah keeps talking, until Sarah mentions having no money. The hawker's brown eyes fall, and Sarah can see sudden disappointment flash on her face. But Miss Jenny recovers quickly, the mask of a smile returning to her face. She hands the baggy over to Sarah and speaks slowly, seeming to be fighting with her disappointment. "Take this bag dear," she says, trying her best to maintain her winning smile, "as a show of my generosity and good faith. Come back with the rest of your money and I will happily sell you the rest." As if as an afterthought she adds, "And I also take credit card if that will be more convenient. I so do look forward to hearing how beneficial this Sumac is for you dear! And let me give you my email address in case you want to make an extra special order." She begins to scribble out an address on a piece of paper for Sarah.

(OOC: After applying Composure and negative modifier for trying to walk away with ten bags of product, Sarah gets one success and is able to walk away with a baggy of Sumac without having to pay for it.)

The ground rusty brown powder appears course inside the bag, and very dry.