Where The Weird Things Are
2/16/2009
01:43 PM
Logfile from GarouMUSH.
Currently the moon is in the waning Half Moon phase (54% full).
It is currently 13:40 Pacific Time on Mon Feb 16 2009.
Currently in Saint Claire, it is partly sunny. The temperature is 42 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celsius). The wind is currently coming in from the southeast at 3 mph. The barometric pressure reading is 29.67 and falling, and the relative humidity is 82 percent. The dewpoint is 37 degrees Fahrenheit (2 degrees Celsius.)
Tenement Building - Ground Floor(#2451RJ)
The ground floor of the apartment building is taken up mainly by the lobby, an open space with the front doors at one end and the (nonfunctional) elevator and the door leading to the stairwell at the other. The floor is covered in black and white tile in a checkerboard pattern, and the walls have been painted a neutral grey shade. Some attempt has been made to make this place more hospitable, as an old, sagging couch, an equally old and sagging armchair, and two wooden chairs have been set up in a rough semi-circle around a somewhat splintery old coffee table, facing toward the front doors and positioned so as not to interfere with any traffic moving between there and the stairs.
To the right of the main doors are mailboxes for building residents, and off to the left is the doorway into a cramped rental office (currently empty, its doorframe badly askew), and other doors that lead to the building's large laundry room.
Contents:
Morrison
Vagabond
Riley
Obvious exits:
Stairs Super's Apartment Out
It's a nice, lazy sort of Monday afternoon, at least for those who don't have conventional jobs. Sunlight is peeking through the blinds where it can, the sound of cars whizzing by is constant, and the occasional distant (or not so distant) shout or police siren is completely routine in this neighborhood.
The heater in the tenement building is notorious for its willingness to operate in any sort of reliable capacity - and for this very reason, Riley's taking full advantage of the direct sunlight, resting with his back to the wall just underneath one of the windows. A moleskine journal lays closed on his lap as he dozes in the sun, snug in his black hoodie.
As a man with a rather unconventional job, Morrison is just letting himself in the front door. Himself and a friend, apparently, as he holds the door open for the much younger female walking with him. For the moment, the dozing Riley isn't noticed as the kin's attention is on the door.
Yi follows in after Morrison, being that female also with an unconventional job of her own. "So if you're going to be going anywhere that you might want some aid in, you shouldn't hesitate..." comes the Gnawer's words in mid-conversation.
The sound of the door opening doesn't do a lot to stir Riley - at least initially. The conversation does the trick, though, at least stirring him enough for him to readjust his weight slightly. Slight as it may have been, it's enough to finally send his journal sliding off of his lap - that causes him to open his eyes, glance down, and yawn himself awake. He peers blankly over at Morrison and Yi, eyes barely comprehending in their first moments of wakefulness.
Outside, the general, downtown clamor continues unabated. A horn honks several streets down. Someone in a nearby tenement has their bass turned up way, way too loud. Shortly after the Walker kin and Gnawer enter and the door closes, if someone were watching the security camera monitors in the office, they might notice that the one over the front door abruptly goes blue-black, with sunlight still peeking in at the edges.
[Vagabond pages: Monitors are out of your line of vision since they're in the office, but! With that kind've perception, you probably hear a sort of cloth rubbing against metal noise, from right outside. It's real quiet.]
"Thanks, China Moon," the older man says in response, "There's always something to hunt down, I'm sure I could find some excuse to drag you off on a working vacation." The book dropping get's Morrison's attention and he looks over at Riley, "Sleepin' on the job, eh, son?"
Yi may not be in the right line of sight for the monitors, but the drop of the book gets her attention and she's alert. It's then that her head tilts slightly to a side and the Gnawer turns more fully towards the space behind her from the door to the outside. "Do you hear that?" she asks Morrison, not quite addressing of Riley.
Blearily rubbing at his eyes, Riley pauses to pull back the first inch or two of his left sleeve, peering down at his watch before squinting and shaking his head, "Eu-wha? I mean... no, I'm not scheduled right now." He blinks over to look at Yi for just a moment before he scoops up his book and rises, stretching. "You're with her, eh? Mmph. Wish you were the HVAC guy. Freezing."
On that last 'ing' of Riley's sentence, the doorbell announces itself. LOUDLY. DING-DONG.
[Vagabond pages: More extremely muffled noises. The doorbell, something cloth drops to the ground, very very soft footsteps, but definitely footsteps, moving /away/. Fast.
You paged Vagabond with 'Sprinting away fast?'.
Vagabond pages: Yeah.]
"Hear what?" Morrison asks of Yi. "You gotta narrow it down, darlin', the old man's hearing's been long gone," he adds with a touch of teasing self-depreciation. He gives a nod to Riley, but before he can get a word out, there's that bell. He lets out a grunt and points a thumb that way. "Maybe that's your guy," he drawls out.
Yi is about to answer Morrison with something more specific when the doorbell rings. She frowns mildly, looking around and then shrugs. "I thought I heard something. Sounded like clothes. Rubbing," comes her reply after a beat. Rather than wait for Riley to wake up some more, though, she turns and heads back to the door to open it a crack.
"My guy?" Riley queries blankly, a look of utter confusion clear on his face before it's wiped away in an instant as recognition dawns. "/Oh/. HVAC? That was wishful thinking. I don't think we actually /called/ an--" He cuts himself off as Yi strides back to the door. "Right. Anyway." He clears his throat, tucking the small journal into an internal pocket of his sweatshirt.
Yi gets a nice view of the front step. There's no one standing there that she can see, but she /can/ see the corner of a pizza box and the edge of what looks to be an old, dirty, faded blue towel.
Morrison lets out a low chuckle for Riley's words, "Need some coffee there, sport?" He looks back to Yi, though, when she moves to answer the door. "Well, don't leave us in suspense, darlin'..."
"Mmn." Riley nods his apparent agreement to the man's words, turning his head and yawning into his shoulder. He offers an almost apologetic shrug of his shoulders. "Slow day. Maybe not a bad plan."
The towel and pizza box are eyed curiously, then Yi opens up the door a little more to pick up both items. "Did you order pizza?" she asks in general, slipping back inside with a closing of the door behind her. The box she holds out for someone else to take.
It's a Dominos Pizza box at that; the contents are warm, smell very fresh, and Yi can even see a little lick of steam curling up from the box before she brings it into the (comparatively) much warmer interior. It's also a large pizza. Hurrah! The towel itself is nothing special. Just faded, dirty, and blue.
"Not here," Riley returns, voice slightly restrained in his interactions with the fostern. "Did someone just leave it? I dunno, maybe someone upstairs did the whole 'online ordering' thing. Not like them to just ditch the box, though." He sniffs, "Talk about lazy."
The kin reaches to take that pizza from Yi, smirking lightly as he does, "Never met a Gnawer who could turn down free pizza..." He even takes a peek inside the box to see what kind it is. "Didn't even wait for a tip, now /that's/ bizarre behavior. Unless the folks in here have got the delivery boys trained to fear whoever opens the door."
Riley helpfully adds, "You can even include the tip online. Is there a receipt?"
"Like the Ninja Turtles?" Yi asks with a tilt of her head, glancing at the towel to see what special part it might play. But seeing as it's just an ordinary seeming towel, she shoves an end of it into her jacket pocket and focuses more on the free pizza. "I never said I was going to turn down free pizza," she tells Morrison with a wry glance and a reach of her hand in for a slice. "Who's upstairs who wants pizza, then?" No one'll miss one slice, right?
As Morrison opens the box--oh, it /does/ smell good--he finds a large, meat-lovers, deep dish pizza waiting for him. Among...other things. On top of each slice, laid ever so carefully and pressed slightly into the grease and cheese, is a one dollar bill. And directly in the center is a tiny, round plastic mirror. /Cheap/ too, like the type you might find at a dollar store.
On the underside of the box lid, written in black marker, is written: 'Keep the change! :)'
Riley looks unimpressed as the fostern and the kin start after the pizza, briefly folding his arms in exasperation. "That's cold." He's not positioned to see the pizza.
Morrison tilts his head at what he finds inside there, one brow arching in bemusement. "Hey, Yi... what'd'ya make of this?" He flips the lid open wider to reveal the cash, mirror and writing to the room at large.
Jack shoulders open the stairwell door, looking all sorts of irritated as he roughly shrugs on his jacket as he heads down. The philodox just looks strained, like he hasn't gotten much sleep, and the undercurrents of rage run hot, and he's angled toward the door. "Who the hell was just fucking with th'cameras?" It's gruff and not so much accusatory, though his gaze does cut over those gathered.
Yi is busy peering at the oddly baked pie, hand hovering over a slice (and maybe the dollar bill). The inside cover gets a glance. "Keep the... keep the change?" Her eye travels back down to the pizza and her hand withdraws, sans slice. As Jack comes down, she answers him. "Whoever it is, they are long gone now." A beat. "Pizza?"
That melts any signs of disapproval from Riley's features - instead, it's replaced with an arched brow as he closes to get a more thorough look at the pizza, and the message written on the box. He looks doubtfully down at the greasy dollar bills, and the mirror in the center. "Um." Is all he can manage.
Looking up as Jack comes down, Morrison lifts a shoulder at the question, but looks back to Yi, "You guys can peek over, right? A mirror seems like a pretty big hint to me." He looks over at Riley, chuckling, "Took the word right out've my mouth."
"Y'didn't see anything?" Jack seems disgruntled, though the offer of pizza makes him pause and look over to the box with a passing glance that catches and lingers at the mirror and all, a brow pulling upward. "--the hell?" Morrison's statement gets a glance and acknowledgement, and though he doesn't make a move yet toward the box, he doesn't disagree.
Yi tsks a little as she mutters, "Ruin a fine free pizza with money. Do you know where those bills have been?" However, she answers Jack with a slight nod. "I heard someone running I think, but they were gone after I opened the door." Her hand reaches back over again, this one to plucky the mirror out of the pizza. "Good idea," she notes at Morrison. Holding the mirror up and ignoring some of those grease spots, she focuses a little on the reflection of her face.
[Vagabond pages: What you can see of the umbral side (and it's not much) looks nice and clean, really. Particularly so for this neighborhood, but then, it's the Walker's home turf. Fresh webs, as you might expect, probably a roach spirit skuttling by.]
Riley glances between Morrison, and Yi, and sends an apologetic shrug in Jack's direction, shaking his head. "I was catching forty til now, so, uh. Nope." Yi picking up the mirror has Riley nodding his head in obvious agreement, and (rather than use the greasy pizza mirror) he flips out his iPod and turns it to the mirror-finished side, intent on tagging along.
"She's the one who noticed anything. Nothing out of the ordinary that I saw. Besides the US Mint pizza." Morrison looks over at Yi as she takes that mirror, and to Riley when he readies his, content to lean back and hold up the wall. And the pizza.
Jack still seems entirely dubious, a dour look given over toward the door, as though contemplating going outside anyway. "Someone tossed somethin' over the camera outside," he grumbles, a glance cast over toward Yi.
Yi stands by the ground floor couch arm's reach from Morrison, peering at her face in a somewhat greasy hand-held mirror that was plucked from the center of the mysteriously originated Domino's pizza. Not actually reaching but merely peeking, Yi blinks a couple of times once she's done peering through to the other side of the Gauntlet. Her hand lowers the small mirror and she engages in a small inspection of the mirror itself just in case. "Nothing weird there either. Just the usual." It takes a couple extra moments to come back to the Realm at a more fully attentive level. And that's when she comes to realize Jack's grump, tugging out the towel she'd stuffed into her pocket to pass over.
Yi's conclusive statement has Riley blinking his eyes away from the mirrorized surface, and coloring slightly in the process. He silently flips his iPod back into his front pocket, clearing his throat intently. "Yeah." He adds, attempting to sound authoratative.
A knock sounds on the door, and a familiar face mocks the camera for a moment before Tim subsides and waits.
"You guys pick on some New Moons or something? Prank wars, something like that?" Morrison looks over at the knock, but only looks slightly amused, "If that's the delivery boy, tell him he lost his chance for a tip."
Jack takes the towel from Yi with a arch of a brow, but before he can reply, Tim knocks at the door; he tenses a bit at it, though something nearly immediately settles him, and he takes the step or two over to unlock the door and let Tim inside. "You didn't d'liver a pizza, did you?" That question is directed rather dryly to the ragabash, though he just seems to be a bit lacking in humor this evening.
The door from the stairwell opens, and a shabbily dressed black girl comes out. She speaks with a heavy Bayou accent. "Hello, excuse me, I hear somet'ing from upstairs?" She looks around at the faces, unfamiliar ones.
[look Amaryllis (homid)]
Amaryllis is a teenaged girl with very dark skin. She's about average height and with a heavyset build, hidden under layers of mismatched clothing. A faded grey sweatshirt, denim jacket, and blue gypsy skirt in poor condition are all adorned with various odd bits of string and metal and cloth, attached seemingly at random. She wears exceedingly long and dangling earrings. Her accent is distinct, a heavy Cajun sound. She wears her hair in long and exceedingly tight tiny braids, all woven together into one more elaborate pattern which sometimes changes from one day to the next.
"I don't deliver pizza, I eat it," Tim informs Jack, and takes a drag from a freshly lit kretek as he steps inside. He gives Yi a nod of deference, and glancs at Riley and Morrison with curiosity. The young girl's appearence stalls anything he might have been about to say to them, though, and he turns his interest to her instead.
Riley glances about, and takes a few steps back towards his window, a small frown developing on his flustered features. He coughs once, and quietly takes his seat again, taking in the sun. "Just missin' the kitchen sink."
Yi relinquishes the towel easily, using it as a little bit of a cue to again, start to reach for a free slice with a smirk at Morrison. But she's foiled again when there's a knock at the door and Amaryllis calls over. The Gnawer looks up and lets out a huff of breath. "Well I can think of one thing we can do with this, and that is as Tim suggests. Eat it." Waving all closer, she makes a motion of being the first to pluck out one slice of money pizza from the box in Morrison's hand.
The pizza smells good, looks good, and best of all, it's fresh. Of course, there's a dollar bill lying on each slice, which means, unless someone is fond of paper, they'll have to pull it off before they can chow down. Inside the box is a cheerful message: 'Keep the change :)'
Morrison nods his head in greeting to Tim, but his gaze moves back to Yi, "You first. There's anything funny of this pizza, I don't want to be the one to give it a test run." He looks over as the girl enters, and looks around at others in the room before the older man clears his throat, "I guess now'd be a good time to pass around the introductions."
Jack just eyes the box for a moment, seemingly content to wait for Yi, too. He even goes into his pocket for his cigarettes, towel still in his free hand, though he doesn't light one quite yet. Morrison gets a sidelong glance, though his attention, too, lingers on the girl for a moment or two. However, he does take that as a prompt, and just says, "Jack Moore, Fallout. Cliath, Walker, Philodox." Blessedly brief, and he props a cigarette on his lip and lights it, apparently content to let the others explain.
Amaryllis looks a bit taken aback as everyone stares at her, but manages to figure out what they're looking for. "Amaryllis, like de flower. Tee-urge cub of de Rat. Under de protection of Kaz. Why is de money on de pizza?" From across the room, she has good eyesight.
Tim gestures at Yi and says, "Brilliant woamn," with a healthy dose of solicitousness. He doesn't partake of the pizza, though he does lean over to sniff at it a little before shrugging. He looks at Morrison, Amaryllis, and then Riley. "Tim. Packmate of Jack's here. New Moon from Owl's Tribe. Cliath." The girl's question is answered with a shrug, and then, "Someone's idea of a joke. It's clean, at least as far as I can tell."
Riley doesn't take his eyes from his iPod - at least, not initially. His attention gradually turns over to Tim, and he carefully nods, "Nice to meet ya. Riley Larson. Glass Walker Cliath. I bash rags."
Yi slides off the greasy dollar bill to lightly drape over her hand and blows across the pizza slice a couple of times in preparation to have a bite. And she's just about to, too, but Amaryllis' introduction makes her pause. "A Gnawer cub?" She glances to the Walkers in silent question, but then shrugs. "Yi Runs-the-Gauntlet. Second ranked no-moon also of Rat's children," she supplies with an interested eyeing in Amaryllis' direction that's followed by a large bite out of the pizza slice.
Riley gets comfortable against the sunlit window, burrowing down slightly into his drawn hoodie, and lapses into silence. Before long, he's napping again.
On the other side of the dollar bill that Yi lays across her hand, written across Washington's face in the same, neat lettering and with the same black marker as the words on the inside of the pizza box, is the word 'Regan'.
"Ah, well, don't I feel like the odd man out. Jack Morrison, Walker Kinfolk," he says with a crooked grin. "Good to meet you boys, and you, too, little lady," the last said to Amaryllis, of course.
Jack is mostly eyeing Yi's progression with the pizza as she removes the dollar bill, but he's not at an angle to pick up more than a mark or two. A brow lifts, but he only shrugs a shoulder at Yi's glance to him, as though to say he doesn't know much about it.
Amaryllis listens to the various introductions, paying particular attention to Yi. "Nice to meet you all." She walks over towards the pizza, quite curious. "Why would someone even do dis? Are we supposed to eat de dollars?"
Tim nods at Riley and Amaryllis, but raises his eyebrows at Morrison. "Really." He gives the Kin a much more thorough once-over, and blows a smoke ring. "From out of town?" A wary eye for the marked money, and he comments, "Dunno about you but I don't plan on touching it. Not after that ink's been on it."
Yi doesn't spot that word until she's gotten down a bite. When she does spot the ink, though, she looks puzzledly at it and then to the rest of the pizza. "Oh a little ink won't hurt," she remarks as she proceeds to reach over and pick out the rest of the dollars in a counterclockwise fashion. "Haven't you ever heard that phrase about putting money where your mouth is? It can't be that bad." Of course, picking out all the dollars means she's got to touch every slice. The dollars though, she hands over to Amaryllis with a brief, "Hold these for me?"
Morrison gives Yi a sidelong glance at her little pun, but he seems mostly amused, "Being stuck in the woods all that time was not kind on you, China Moon." He looks back over at Tim, though, nodding his head. "Came up from Dry Thunder down in Arizona to clear up a little business. Turns out it's been a little more delicate than your average fomori infestation... Been working with the boss lady here."
The next dollar Yi plucks has nothing written on it, front or back. The one after that, however, has a series of four numbers. The next is also blank. The next has 'Garcia' written across the top. Then another blank. The second to last dollar contains nothing so much as a big, neat 'E' marking Washington's face. The last is blank.
"Dry Thunder, yeah?" Tim asks, smiling now. "My neck of the woods. I'm from the Den originally..." His animation over that topic dies as he sees the name written on the reverse of one of the bills. "Garcia." He frowns a little, then shakes it off with another drag from his cigarette. "Anyways. Good to see a neighbor." A quiet grunt is all that answers Yi's pun, and its accompanied by another concerned look for the money.
Jack finds a spot on the wall to lean on, watching the dollar bills pulled off with a small amount of interest, though his expression remains faintly dubious. He does look over toward Tim, though. "Y'know someone named Garcia? Not that it ain't exactly a common name."
Amaryllis collects the bills at Yi's request. "Uh. Dere is a Garcia's pizza place on Regan avenue. Not far from one of de shelters, de Regan Hope Project. Can I have a slice, Mistress Yi?" she asks politely.
Yi belatedly gives Morrison a puzzled look for his comment, but the marked and unmarked bills really get the better of her. "I don't understand..." she admits faintly. The request from Amaryllis though, is honored with a plucking up of the box from Morrison's hands to free them and a holding out of the pie to the cub. In exchange for the money. "I think everyone knows a Garcia, but there is only one Garcia's pizza. Whoever it is, though, should have been better not to send this message in a Dominoes box."
[OOC> Vagabond: Those who recognize Garcia's Pizza, may also realize the four numbers are the street address. :)]
"Ah, the Phoenix crowd. Pass through there often enough when I'm down that way. Sort of travel up and down between there and here." Morrison gives Yi a nod of thanks as she takes the pizza, and he moves a step back to lean against the wall himself. "But, out of everywhere I've been, I gotta say, this sept sees some of the /weirdest/ goings on."
"No argument outta me there," Tim says with a smirk. He blows out a breath and points at Amaryllis with the clove. "Right. I mean yeah, I know a Garcia here in town, actually, but I knew a few in Phoenix and LA too. But, Regan, and then pizza, and then Garcia?" He takes a drag and looks thoughtful. "So those numbers, then...last four of a phone number maybe?"
"Or an address," Jack replies in a somewhat flat voice, not moving from his place against the wall and gesturing at Amaryllis a bit at her observation. A drag is taken, smoke is exhaled, and he just says, "More th'question is /who/ th'hell decided to drop by."
Amaryllis hands the not-insignificant sum back to Yi in exchange for a slice of delicious, greasy pizza. She doesn't mind if there's 'ink stains' in the least, and bites right in.
Yi reviews the bills over, her formerly bitten slice stuck in her mouth as she does. After a bit of shuffling of the bills around and around, she puts them together. The four numbers, then E, then Regan, then Garcia. She glances up at the others, brows lifting.
"Well," Morrison says as Yi puts the bills together, "Looks like there's your address. As far as clues go, this one's a little Scooby Doo for me..." He looks over at Jack, "Only one way to answer that seems to be to head over to Garcia's and ask if anything weird's been going on over there. Like did they redesign their boxes."
Tim mmmms quietly. "E? As in, when an address is 5555 E or whatever?" He runs a hand through his hair. "Well, it's not the best area of town and not the worst. Why not just write it down for us on a piece of paper, though?" The pizza gets another dubious look, and he continues to abstain from it, instead turning to look at Morrison. "So you'll be around for a bit? If so there's someone who could stand to meet you, I think."
Jack grunts an acknowledgement to Morrison, looking over to the dollar bills. "'cause a piece of paper ain't as 'interesting'," he says, wryly. "Now, yea, address, so what's the deal with the mirror?"
Amaryllis quietly finishes eating her pizza slice. Obviously, free food is the priority here.
"E is for East," Yi muses aloud on that, now that she's gotten down a few more bites of pizza. She smirks at Morrison and then folds the bills down into her pocket. "The mirror? What about the towel? They must have put the towel over the camera outside. And that means they saw the camera outside. Maybe there is a scent on it?" she suggests.
"Yeah, the giver wouldn't have a group of moderately intelligent people standing around a pizza box in a tenement lobby if he'd just written it down," Morrison remarks with dry humor. At Tim's question, he looks down at Yi, as if checking with her before he looks back to the Strider, "Yeah, should be around a while longer." He does looks curious at who this person he could stand to meet is, but the question isn't voiced.
"Well either they want us to shave more, or, it's a suggestion we check the Umbra around there," Tim says with a touch of irritation in his voice. "Let's face it, no one puts 'clues' like this at a place like this, with a mirror, and doesn't know who we are." He doesn't sound very happy about *that*, and as he speaks takes a partial seat on one arm of the couch. "She's Kin to your folks, actually," he tells Morrison. "You got a phone number or a business card I can get from you?"
Jack takes a drag off the cigarette, considering. "Could be /one/'ve us being stupid," he notes to Tim, with a shake of his head. And, lofting the towel, the philodox merely offers it out, mostly neutrally. "Maybe," he grants, but he doesn't seem in a hurry to shift- hey, he does have a lit cigarette, and all. "Means they knew about th'cameras, too. So. I'm guessin' some ragabash, really."
Amaryllis looks a little skeptical. "I do not know much, but dis is most lot of trouble to go to, for sending a message. And I know we have many enemies. It could be de trap."
Yi flips the lid of the pizza box shut seeing as there isn't anyone else looking to snag a piece. "Maybe, maybe, maybe," says the fostern with a shake of her head at the towel. She's not going to sniff this one. "The bunch of you can Scooby Doo your Tenement security here if you'd like, but I will go see what is going on at this address. Trap? Not a trap? We won't know unless we go. Here." She passes the pizza over to the cub in the box. "Don't eat it all, now. Remember to save some for the roaches and the rats. And Mouse."
"You need a suit and a briefcase before you get business cards," Morrison says dryly as he pats the pockets of his coat. He finds a pen in this fashion, and digs out a folded up piece of paper. He checks what's already written on there - supply list - and deems it expendable, as he flips it over to jot down his name and number. Arizona number, Tucson aera code. "There ya go," he says to Tim as he passes it over. "Call anytime." He looks over at Yi a crooked smile coming to his face, "You're not leaving me out of /this/ one, China Moon. I'm coming with."
"Didn't say it had to be one with your name on it," Tim tells Morrison with a sly grin. So saying, he takes out a business card for a DJ from Phoenix, and on he reverse is another Phoenix area code phone number. "My cell's on the back." He rolls his eyes at Jack, and offers out his clove to be held in exchange for the towel. "Fine. Here. Don't smoke it for me either. I'll join y'all, if you want a little backup."
Jack trades clove for towel, and snorts. "I'm stayin' here. I ain't going to be useful dealin' with people, 'specially since it's the fuckin' half." He glances over to Tim. "I'll check over the cameras, lemme know if you guys find anything."
Amaryllis takes the pizza with a nod. "I will not be greedy. I don't t'ink I am allowed to go anywhere unsafe yet, I have not yet finished learning de transformations. Good luck wit' your hunting."
Yi clears off her hands, which gives her a chance to gesture to Tim and Morrison. "Two would be good. Extra eyes and ears," she thinks aloud. A small smile is directed at the cub. "Stay safe yourself, Flower. And I will be back." That said, she nods to Jack on his comment about checking cameras and turns to head out. "Are we taking your car?" she asks Morrison as she goes.
Morrison nods over to Jack and then to Amaryllis, but his attention moves back to Tim and Yi. "Always room for another ragabash," he says before he nods to her question. "Yep, we sure are."
"One second, Yi-rhya, let me just have a sniff at...this..." He promptly shifts down into lupus, which leaves the towel on the floor under one of his paws. He sniffs at it tentatively at first, then a little more thoroughly. and finally snorts violently, as if to clear his nose. He shifts back up, taking the rag as he goes and handing it over again for his cigarette. "Dumpster. And a bunch of other crap--nothing specific."
Jack once again trades clove for towel, though he drops the towel for now on a nearby table. "Figures," he replies, and then gives the three a half-assed mock-salute with the cigarette. "G'luck." And then, he heads back toward the office to check the cameras.
Amaryllis retreats back into a corner, sliding another slice of the pizza from the box to chew on.
Yi waits at that door for Tim's decision and report. Her mouth corners twist in a small smile and she nods slowly. "Well then. Let's go thank someone for the free pizza and fun," she says a little /too/ cheerily, opening up the door and ushering the others out.
"Yup. Did you no good," Morrison mutters indulgently as he moves to exit as ushered.
[Then, At Garcia's Pizza...]
Garcia's is turning good business by the time the trio reach the pizza parlor on East Regan. The place is neatly packed with all sorts of patrons--a few families, a large group of teenagers, some of whom are busy playing away on the arcade games, quite a few single customers scattered about. The staff are looking a little harried, and there's a line leading up to the counter.
Morrison finds the car a parking spot before the trio climbs out onto the sidewalk. He looks around a bit before spotting the parlor. "How'd you kids want to handle this?" Seems he's open to ideas.
"Quiet night," Tim comments in a dry tone of voice, eyeing the crowded parlor. He looks askance at Yi, clearly waiting on her lead.
Yi squints out of the window of the car, pondering on that question. "Too bad we didn't bring the box. But it was Domino's anyway," she murmurs. She looks back to the pair, nodding to them both. "Let me look over to the other side, and see if there is something. Keep an eye out for strange people writing on money." Drawing out the greasy edged mirror from the pizza, she goes a little peek over to the other side on this side of town.
[Vagabond pages: You get a little glimpse of what passes for the pizza parlor on the other side. It's a mere ghost of a building, half a frame with only a few, thick webs (centered mostly around where the arcade games are. You can see movement inside, though no real details.]
"Alright, I'll go loiter inside. You guys have a preference for toppings?" Morrison seems to be kidding there, but he moves to enter the parlor. He does, in fact, stand in line, but he's got an eye out for anything standing out.
Tim calls out to Jack as he goes, "No cow," then sits back and waits for Yi to indicate what she's seen.
Nothing seems too terribly out of the ordinary inside, though given the crowd that's gathered, small things can be easily missed. Morrison can hear the staff shouting orders to each other in the back now and then, but most of it sounds perfectly friendly, and they're likely only shouting because the noise level inside the parlor is incredible.
Yi focuses for long spans of moments, sitting there in the car and staring at herself (and beyond). When she comes back to the Realm side, her head shakes as if to clear. "I still do not see anything odd," she says to the Strider beside her. "We should have a look around outside. I'll check the trashcans and see if there is anything... you look for anyone suspicious. OK?" In the meantime, she's already getting out.
"Got it," Morrison says to the specifications on toppings, but otherwise, he lets the other two go about their business unhindered. Waiting his turn and watching, he pays closer attention to those seated in the cafe than to the workers or those in line. Someone gave himself the dull job.
Tim nods in understanding. "Sure thing, Yi-rhya." He waits for her to get out and move away, though, and then also slides out of the car. The action of starting to people-watch is masked in part by lighting a kretek and taking a moment to enjoy it. His attentiveness doesn't waver as he goes, though.
For all the activity inside Garcia's, outside is pretty much what one might expect. People going in, people coming out. Pedestrian traffic is rather normal for a Monday evening. As for the garbage cans, trash must have been picked up today. There's very little in them as compared to how full they usually are. But for all of this, neither Yi, nor Tim, nor Morrison spot anything that would attract attention as being unusual.
Yi goes dumpster diving like a true Gnawer, looking about for what she can by the light of her lighter. Seeing as the results are few, though, the Bone Gnawer returns to Morrison's vehicle (with care not to get back in it) to continue looking rather puzzled. Several moments are taken to look up and down the street, just to check the addresses of the buildings nearby. "There wasn't anything," she says to Tim. "Maybe it really is another pulling a prank. I mean... the Odeon is also covered in money. Could it be the same ones?" She frowns.
Tim rejoins Yi and blows out a breath in irritation. He continues scanning, and asks, "What if the reason whoever did this did it, was to bring us here and get a better look at us?" in a low voice. "It's an old trick--give someone something utterly nonsense, just to get them in the open where you can really have a good look." He gives her a sideways glance. "The Odeon too? Any writing on it?"
When Morrison gets to take his turn at the counter, he makes casual conversation with the workers. Busy day, huh? Looking forward to closing time? Oh yeah, he's Mister Cordial, he is. "Must be one of those days, huh? A pal'o mine mentioned that his delivery from here was dropped off before he even had a chance to tip the guy. Was sort of hopin' to correct that oversight..." he says, fishingly.
The person on the other side of the register (a young man with spiky, heavily gelled hair), is chatty enough as Morrison makes small talk, but at the mention of the delivery, he gives Morrison a strange look. "Um." The boy glances over his shoulder toward the kitchen, then back. "From us?"
"If that were truth, then we had better wave," Yi replies to the Strider. She leans against Morrison's car, looking down at her feet in thought. "No writing," she adds in explanation. "Just change. Lots and lots of change. It's /everywhere/. Olga wanted to keep the lobby the way it was... so you should drop by and see some time, maybe." Her head shakes a little and she folds her arms. Then, looking up to Tim, she points out, "If there is something you're not telling me about something going on..."
A little caught off guard, Tim blinks and tips his head at Yi. "Something going on--with, what, the Odeon? Or this?" He looks around and shakes his head. "I have *no* idea what this could be about. So many crazy damned things going on lately, I guess it could be any one of them." He runs a hand through his hair. "I had a couple questions for Olga, actually, so hopefully I can catch her there."
"I'm pretty sure he said here," Morrison note to the worker, his brow furrowing. "You guys deliver to Bridge Street and that area?" Poor old man, he seems so confused.
"Um," the boy says again. Now he's looking a little flustered. "Yeah, sometimes. Uh. But there weren't any deliveries to Bridge Street today. Maybe your friend got some other place? We get lotsa people looking for some other pizza place sometimes."
Yi gestures with a hand to make a sort of all-encompassing circle. "I mean if you have heard anything strange going on in the city in general," she replies to the ragabash. "But yes, maybe you could come by and see what's become of the Odeon." She pauses for a thought. "But /no/ touching the rats," comes her qualifying statement. Her gaze then moves back towards the inside of the parlor, trying to peer at what's going on within.
"A *lot* of odd things have been going on, but," Tim looks around again, "nothing like this. No problem about the rats, won't even look at--" He glances down at one of his jacket pockets and tugs out his phone. His eyes narrow a little at the number, then with an uncertain glance at Yi, he opens it and answers. "This is Tim."
"Oh. Heh. Maybe I heard him wrong. Sorry about that," Morrison says to the employee before he turns to head for the parlor exit. Sans pizza. Upon exiting, though, there's no attempt to hide his irritation.
Yi frowns slightly with the phone call, looking curiously towards the phone. Her head naturally quirks just so, as if she were discreetly attempting to eavesdrop, but Morrison's exit gets her attention next and she stands from leaning on his car. "Anything?" she asks him anyway.
Whatever the person on the other end is saying is at first surprising, and then, amusing, because Tim stands there blinking a little, and then his lips twitch in an almost-smile. "I figured it was so you could watch us flail a little," he says presently, amusement coloring his voice. He gives Yi a much more serious look than the tone suggests. "Just wish I'd figured that out *before* we got all the way out here. And give the guy some credit," now he turns as Morrison walks up, and distinctly says, "he's only my grandpa with a really early start." He bobs his eyebrows at Morrison illustratively. "So why *did* you send us on a little escapade?"
Morrison shakes his head at Yi's question, "Zilch. Wild goose chase. You know, this isn't my usual thing. Usually it's find bad thing. Kill bad thing." He looks over at Tim, his irritation rolling away to be, at least for the moment, replaced with amusement, "I dunno, kid. I've spent a /lot/ of time in Phoenix over the years..."
Yi must be the only one who's left a little confused still, as she looks back between Tim and Morrison and stares intently for the punchline of an inside joke.
Tim stifles a laugh at Morrison's comment, listening closely to his phone. "I gotcha," he says eventually. "Although next time, you could just leave a voicemail and we can have tea or something." He glances at Yi, then asks, "I assume this wasn't your only paper trail? You been making some 'change' elsewhere?" The emphasis on the word change is difficult to miss.
Morrison gives Yi a shrug of his shoulders, "I'm as lost as you are. At least until Little Timmy here gets to explaining." But, even so, he doesn't seem to be in a hurry about it.
Yi sniffs once, glimpsing between the pair. At Tim's emphasizing word, she perks up. Not so randomly, she pulls out the marked bills that had been written on and looks from them towards the pizza parlor in a thoughtful manner.
"Fun, right." Tim looks disappointed with whatever answer he gets to his question about change, and shrugs to Yi in an 'I tried' way. "Maybe, but it could be something else. We'll talk about it later--or, talk to Mama K. Anything else, or can I go explain myself?" He gives Morrison a mildly amused look for the name.
When Yi looks toward the parlor, Morrison follows her gaze, then moves to open the passenger side of his car to pop open the glove box. He pulls out a bag of Peanut M'n'Ms which he passes her way, keeping and ear out on Tim's conversation.
Yi's attraction pops to a side when Morrison pulls out the M&Ms. Her eyes glitter towards the bag, then look hopeful at the Walker kin.
"Shouldn't be tough to get some help." Tim pauses, then finally says, "Thanks," and hangs up. He hits a few buttons on his keypad to store the number, then closes the phone. "That, was a very tricky woman named Rajani," he says to Morrison and Yi, giving the M&Ms a curious look, "who thinks Morrison is too infirm to be ordering pizza." He indicates the car with a gesture. "This could take some explaining."
Morrison does, indeed, push that bag of candy into Yi's hand with a sort of fond amusement. It's Tim that brings back a more serious look, his eyebrow arching as he repeats one word, "...'Infirm'?" Grumpgrump. He leaves the passenger door open for them to climb in, as he rounds the car for the driver's side.
Yi bites back much of her inner glee and carefully stores the bag away into an inner pocket somewhere. Though, not without slipping one of the candies out to pop into her mouth. Chewing away, she gives Tim the eye as she remarks, "The man is /far/ from infirm. But if that makes her underestimate him, all the better," she says with a glance back into the parlor. "Is this... Rajani... inside?"
In an attempt (albeit not a good one) to soothe Morrison, Tim says, "Who knows, maybe compared to her we're both ancient history, so she can't tell the differences." Looking around, he makes a face and shakes his head. "I doubt it, really. She's pretty cagey. I'm sure she's nearby, since she could definitely see us, but she's pretty damned good at staying...unseen." As an after-thought, he adds, "I don't mean we need to leave, just it'll be easier if I can talk plain in the car."
Poor guy. Morrison does not look terribly soothed, but he does get himself into the driver's seat. "You two getting in or what?" He says to the pair of Ragabash, irritation back in his tone.
Yi gets in from that tone, sliding in and trying not to sound too disturbed when Tim explains about this unseen character. She looks apologetic to Morrison and offers, with an unwrinkling of the peanut M&Ms, some of the candy back.
Tim climbs into the car, giving Morrison an apologetic look, and despite the relative safety it provides from snooping he keeps his voice low when he starts to explain. "Kaz-rhya and I met her a little while ago. She's here hunting a pretty nasty personal enemy. And she's not one of us." An undercurrent of distrust is audible in his voice for a moment. "She's a fox-shifter. Apparently pretty decent in the Shadow, and willing to help us find out about problems since a few of us are helping her out with hers. She was very...*eloquently* trying to lead us to a new hotspot." He looks out the car windows, generally scanning the area. "She said there's some nastiness building up around here in the Shadow. One stronger one and a whole lot of little ones, and she'd keep an eye on it until we could get people out here to clean it up." His eyes go distant, and he winces, muttering, "Well, she's not lying about there being Corruptor around here, anyways," he mutters.
"It's the city, son," Morrison says, as far as the Wyrm is concerned. He lifts a hand to Yi's offer, shaking his head although the offer itself seems to have eased his mood some. "Fox-shifter, though... wow. Heard the tales, never seen one myself." After musing on that for a moment or two, he looks between the two, "I could cover this side, just in case anything comes to mess around in the Realm while the forces are in the Shadow."
Yi's eyes look like they're going to jump out of her head as Tim reveals the explanation. If she was of few words before, she's speechless now. Her half-chewed M&M, once she resumes chewing, gets rolled around as much as her brows do tugging and relaxing and furrowing once more. The fostern looks through the windows of the vehicle towards the outside. "If it means fighting the Wyrm's evil, then she has found the right bunch to help as far as muscle power." She even nods towards Morrison, very inclusive of that power from the kin. "What else did she say? Why did she bring us out here?"
"It's stronger here right now than I'm used to," Tim says to Morrison, shaking his head. "I'm guessing, to let us know where this hotspot was, and, so we could scout it if we wanted, and then bring some folks back. She seemed to think we'd need to get some help." He's quiet briefly, his eyes distracted. "Quentin said he can check and see whose territory it is, in case we need to alert someone. And, he says hi, he'll be back in the city as soon as his arm grows back." That last bit is said with a wry smile.
"She surely did," Morrison says to Yi with a crooked smile. "Quentin's lost an arm? Damn shame. You can tell him I have it on good authority that the Fianna booze is great for taking the edge off while it's regrowing. If you all know anyone who can pull off that trick."
Looking worriedly back at Morrison for a moment, Yi turns back to Tim and remarks, "Check whose territory...? This is the Wyrm. The Wyrm won't wait for whoever is supposed to be 'supervising'." Her gaze narrows a touch and she looks back out the window. "I'll help with scouting this area as well. If I can get enough information of what to look for, Morrison and I can take some turns." She looks back at the Walker kin. "Right?"
Tim nods at Yi, careful to keep his eyes averted. His tone and his posture are entirely defferential, and everything he days carries the attitude of a suggestion. "I don't know how far I trust her, but, Rajani indicated that she could keep tabs on it while we got help. Which should give us enough time to at least make some attempt at figuring out whose backyard we're in--if anyone's--so we wind up rocking too many boats. We can scout it right now, but the way she described it, going in without backup'll be dangerous."
"And," he adds, "Quentin needs to find a Kin tattoo artist. His new arm is naked."
"Hey, Yi, listen to him. What happened to 'respect the territory of another'? Should let them know what's happening on their ground. But," Morrison says to the both of them, "She's also right in that we shouldn't lapse in the scouting. She and I can do shifts, just in case this foxy lady isn't all goodness and light." His gaze focuses back on Tim with those last words, and he gets a sort of crooked smile, "Tell him I'll see what I can conjure up in that regard."
Yi nods slowly, although she takes in a breath and tries to sound reassuring as she says, "I'll ask Grandmother Rui maybe if she's heard anything about this too. To have a Kitsune come all the way here in search of an agent of the Corrupter... surely there must be something to be said of the origins." Her finger digs into the bag of M&Ms to pick out one more, and then she puts it away. "Well when you find whoever's territory this is, you can tell them this is my city too," she adds, her smile a little fox-like in turn. "Morrison, maybe you want to get some equipment to help? I'll take first watch. And keep an eye out for Kinfolk tattoo artists."
"He appreciates it," Tim tells Morrison with a grin. "Don't know if Nathan's cleared for this kind of thing yet--he's one of you, actually," that's for Morrison, "but if so he could help you out this side. And I'm happy to take turns with you, Yi-rhya, so you can get some time to look into our New Friend." He gives her a crooked smile at the mention of whose city it is. "Got no argument from me there."
"You want to take something from the trunk, if you're taking first watch? I'll make sure it's all stocked before I come to relieve you. Say, six hours from now?" He looks back at Tim, giving him a nod. "You come back in twelve hours. I'll be ready for some sleep by then. And this Nathan, if he's capable, he's welcome. If he's not capable, then he isn't. That's my one rule."
Yi gives two shakes of her head and makes her way out of the car. The door's open and she's got her legs out as she says, "Have everything I need already. Even money for pizza. But, I will call you if I think of anything." And with that she gets out of the car, turns and leans back in to tell the pair of men, "Don't misbehave now. I'll expect you two to be back when you say you'll be."
Tim nods at Yi. "I'll be here." Looking unsure if it'll be an acceptable answer for Morrison, he says, "He's Dies Ultimae. They've got a few of them in Phoenix. He certainly *seems* capable, but how about you get a chance to meet him on your first off-shift. He should be around the Tenement."
"Ah, so he's a /crazy/ motherfucker," the older man says, but it doesn't sound /entirely/ insulting. "Sorry for the language," Morrison adds in Yi's direction before he looks back to Tim, "I'll see about running into him. The more eyes, the better. Alright, so we've got a game plan. Yi? You ready to pinch hit while Tim and I set things up for this?"
Yi intertwines her fingers together and does a quick stretch. The language doesn't seem to bother her in the slightest. The mention of Dies Ultimae doesn't get a reaction either, except for an odd look telling of her utter lack of familiarity with that group. However, the fostern simply doesn't ask and instead nods to the pair within the car. "I'll see you two later. Thanks for the M&Ms," she says in her departing note. And with that, turns to start walking a little ways away.
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