[Nightmares]
Dice: 6 d10 TN6 (2, 5, 7, 8, 8, 9) ( success x 4 )
Aidan[also nightmares]
Dice: 6 d10 TN6 (1, 2, 4, 9, 9, 10) ( success x 3 )
Steel[Also, as we're 'working'... ]
Dice: 8 d10 TN6 (1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 5, 6) ( success x 1 )
SteelSummer is in full flow, and so are the streams of people passing through the shopping precinct. People come and go in search of food, coffee, shopping, or simply passing through on their way elsewhere. It’s a warm, pleasant day. The sun is out and those who aren’t tied into the suit-and-tie uniform that their gainful employment demands are showing more and more skin, trying to develop that tan that the fashion magazines tell them that they should.
Sheeple, really. People who follow the same routine, think what they’re told to think, drink the brand of cola that they’re told to, working towards their little white picket fence, perfect wife, and 2.4 children, even if there’s something that niggles away in the backs of their mind that this isn’t really what they want.
But the crowds can be advantageous to certain people. Those who prefer to blend into the crowd, a faceless blur in a sea of faces. The sun, and the extra skin on display, gives added distraction to the marks. Middle-aged men work well – their surreptitious glances at the youthful cleavage in easy view means that they don’t pay much attention when someone remarkably unmemorable happens to bump into them. Faces aren’t noticed, the lack of a certain weight in a certain pocket isn’t picked up on until later when there’s something to pay for or an ID card to dig out.
The pickings are slim, though. A short, thin female fishes a ten dollar note out of a wallet before slipping it quietly into a trash can. It’s better than a kick in the teeth, but she’s had better hauls. Maybe it’s just time to take a break. After picking up a coffee from a stand, she finds an unoccupied bench to settle onto and just watch the people passing by for a while. The hood of her top is slipped down, revealing dyed black hair and pale skin. Black combats and boots finish the look. Apparently someone didn’t get the message about goths being out of fashion these days.
Aidan[perc - Intuitive - + awareness]
Dice: 7 d10 TN6 (1, 2, 3, 7, 7, 8, 8) ( success x 4 ) [Doubling Tens]
Aidan[*sad*]
AidanThe world has always been different to Aidan; at least he thinks it has. There are blanks in his mind, things that hide away memories about himself. He can only assume, then, that this had always been the way it was. Ah but did it matter?
He had no desire to buy things. Aidan didn't really understand the need to collect anyhow. He always had just enough to get by, clothing wise, and enough supplies to create his art when he needed it. Besides, Aidan believed in meaningful relationships, and if a shirt didn't want to come home with you, it shouldn't be forced. He was here because he had followed the wind, and the wind had whispered softly of fun things and people. Then it went on its way. Wind spirits were like that. They were flippant and whimsical, most of the time, so one couldn't expect to talk long with them.
But we digress. Aidan was wandering, as he often did, with a bit of a bounce and a smile. He hummed some song he heard somewhere, though he couldn't recall where or what it was. It was hot, but Aidan had a tendency to flip social convention on its head and... and well wear a long sleeve. It was light fabric of course, probably hand knitted some time ago, but it was long sleeve none the less, and extended past his own hands. It hung loose enough that his collar bone showed and it was a mercy that it hadn't fallen off his frame; Aidan could never properly size his shirts. It was only his jeans that were worn appropriate to his shape, and his sneakers, which of course were used and worn from walking. He had nothing else.
Aidan found himself pausing near a planter, blinking at the greenery that rested inside. "Oh?" He said, as if he understood every word...and maybe he did, maybe he didn't. He leaned in, pushing a few leaves out of the way. "Oh right! This?" And he plucked a dry leaf from the poor thing and smiled brightly. "All better! Right?" Aidan pressed it against his nose. "Smells nice though."
He never minded the people. Aidan understood how odd he was, and how that tended to translate to all the people around him; sometimes though, he forgot. He straightened and stepped from the plant, walking past the benches with no particular goal in mind. He wasn't here to shop after all, just wander.
Steel[Per+Aware?]
Dice: 5 d10 TN6 (2, 3, 5, 8, 10) ( success x 2 )
SteelThe crowd in the mall is fairly tasteless, no particular edge of emotion powering it. So it’s easy to notice when a little extra something doesn’t quite blend in. Something sprightly and enchanting – almost other-worldy? Something less than ordinary, more than the mundanity of the background blur.
It takes a short while of watching people before she starts to narrow down its owner. A young, thin thing talking to… Is he really talking to the plant? Oh, good grief, like the plant really cares about a dead leaf. There had been thoughts that maybe she should try to reach out to the local Awakened, but maybe this isn’t the best of choices. Assuming that this isn’t some elaborate Technocracy plant, anyway.
So for now she sips her coffee and watches him.
[Because we’re trying not to be obvious, Man+Sub?]
Dice: 6 d10 TN6 (2, 5, 6, 6, 7, 10) ( success x 4 )
Aidan[Do I sees you seeing me?]
Dice: 7 d10 TN6 (1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 7, 10) ( success x 4 )
AidanAidan was...Aidan was like a faerie, someone might say. The way his resonance played, tossed and tugged at the part of each person that sung their desires. It didn't need to know what those were, it only needed to make one feel as if it did. But bounced in a way; it bounced in a playful way that said whatever 'it' was, it had no ill intentions, but merely wanted to dance... or run.. or play games. His resonance sung of magical forests and glowing creatures that sang and dance without a care. Aidan was very much like that. He never seemed to notice the terrible things in the world, or he found the silver lining in them.
Aidan laughed. He laughed and he turned just a little and dropped his eyes down. "Hello." And his smile was bright and warm. Sunshine, someone might call it. It felt like that..inviting, pleasant. But he was smiling at something near his feet, and then reaching a hand down to grasp at something, something small, and holding it gently. "I did...thank you." He says. To most people, Aidan is just another person off his meds, or tamed enough that he's not a 'danger' to them. Still odd. Still strange. but he doesn't notice.
There is a feeling he has in the back of his mind, of being watched. He can feel the eyes perhaps, feel the person keeping watch, but Aidan doesn't see them, doesn't find them in the crowd. It's not unusual afterall.
ElijahHe was running out of vests.
One couldn't be sure that this was even possible, but it was true. Elijah was running out of vests. Specifically, he was running out of vests and things that went with vests. Which was a terrifying notion when one thinks about the sheer volume of clothing Elijah must own in order to successfully fill up two closets at two different locations, but it was true. He was running out of things that were business casual and then running out of things that he found even remotely interesting because… well… who could really find business casual interesting? Elijah had a palpable disdain for polos, a strange feeling of irritation that came when he tried to pick out cargo pants, and an irrational distaste for being asked to wear chucks or vans.
He was particular about shoes. He was particular about a lot of things, the least of which was making certain that he- in all of his longish haired and lanky glory- was not mistaken for someone who could even remotely come close to skateboarding. He's taken one too many face plants. Seen one too many curbs from close up that he does not want to entertain the idea that he might end up down there for awhile.
Today's search yielded little results, but he did happen to emerge victorious with a couple vinyl records, a DVD, and three books on ancient Egypt. He had to get something that would be even remotely helpful, or maybe he was just interested because Egypt seemed interesting, or maybe still there is a chance that Elijah actually picked up his phone and checked messages on something. Whatever the case, he was walking, had a powerful need for something that rounded to being food. Attire was comfortable, but warm- because let's face it, Elijah Poirot wears way too damn many clothes. Jeans, some three-quarter length half button up thing for a shirt, a vest (because where else will he put his pocket watch?), and about half a dozen bracelets on one arm.
Oh, yeah, and a necklace he couldn't take off that was tucked into his shirt because Jenn tied knots really, really well.
SteelSteel peeks over, puzzled. There’s apparently someone there that he’s speaking to, but it’s nothing obvious. Certainly not a person, and he doesn’t seem to be wearing one of those little ear pieces that make perfectly sane people look like they’re talking to themselves as they walk down the street. None of that, and so? Maybe it’s drugs, or a lack of meds, or something else. Either way, he doesn’t exactly come across as the most… sane person on first impressions.
On the other hand, it doesn’t seem like she’s been spotted either. There may be a little looking around, but nothing focussed and searching. This time, at least, she seems to be passing without notice. For now.
And suddenly it seems to be raining Awakened. Another resonance, another Mage. This time she takes a moment to pull up her hood before looking through the crowd again. The moment helps to mask her features, make her a little more anonymous in case she needs to vanish again. Again, she scans the crowd to locate the source while she takes another sip of coffee.
AidanElijah and his vests. Elijah wasn't exactly subtle, at least o Aidan, and he wasn't hiding. He was clearly there, holding things he had bought and Aidan...Aidan could sense him of course. He pushed himself on his toes, looking for the signature he felt near him, still holding onto to...whatever it was he was holding onto. Then he half knelt and smiled to the uh...air.. "I think I see him!" He let go of the invisible thing and began a small jog towards Elijah, who may or may not be privy to his existence.
He weaved, as needed, then vaulted himself at the shopping Eli with a "Eli!" To follow it. "We've been looking for you!"
Elijah[Am I completely oblivious to the presence of other magical people? Per+aware]
Dice: 7 d10 TN6 (1, 1, 3, 5, 5, 8, 9) ( success x 2 )
ElijahHe is clueless. Sure, he picks up that tiny feeling of enchantment and the sense of something on the back of his neck that was like some darling little far creature in the woods, but he is completely oblivious to the idea that there were any other people around that weren't Aidan. There is a sound he hears, one that accompanies Aidan like little footsteps and perhaps a sigh. Little people. Little dead people specifically. He liked crowds, liked the sound, liked how you could get lost in the sensory input and pretend like the people reflecting into the shadow lands were just… regular people.
Maybe they liked that. He wasn't sure.
There was the sound of his name, and his brows rose and Elijah transferred the bag from one arm to the other (books about ancient Egypt don't come in reasonable sizes. They only come in why is this so freaking huge and it's just about lower Egypt? Fuck! (It's a very specific, but very common size. One can also buy boxes of Cheerios by the same measurement.)) "Hey, princess," he said with a grin, "and Aidan. Who is most assuredly not a princess."
A beat.
"Been looking for me long?"
SteelThe strange one, maybe talking to ghosts and plants and bugs, shoots off with a target in mind. A target, it turns out, with more to it – to him – than meets the sleeping eye. A target who is the new source of resonance in the mall, and another one that he’s unfamiliar with. She doesn’t yet have much in the way of knowing contact with the other Awakened in the city, but she’s beginning to get the feel for some of those who are around. Most she’s gone unnoticed by – the way she likes it, for now. One she’d come up against and left – was allowed to leave – but that one, on later thought, was less likely to be a threat to her than the other. The one in the park, who’d attacked without warning. She begins to get angry again as her thoughts wander, balling her free hand into a fist before she catches herself and makes it relax.
Well, I know how she feels and I won’t be letting that happen again.
Now, though, there are these two. One who Steel was close to writing off as someone to contact, another that she knew nothing about. One way to start working out that little problem, and getting a better feel for him. Steel stands and starts to wander in their general direction, following the ebb and flow of the groups of people passing by. Getting close enough to listen, she finds a shop window to stare into. Or, at least, stare study the reflection and the two people talking.
[Just drifting, nothing to see here… Manip+Stealth]
Dice: 9 d10 TN6 (2, 4, 5, 6, 6, 7, 7, 7, 10) ( success x 6 )
AidanAidan is confused by this. "Why? Why am I not a princess?" The concept of gender roles has apparently slipped past him. He pauses close to Eli and lets his eyes drop to the books. "Oh! You have new friends!" He sounded delighted, exceptionally so.
"No." They hadn't been looking for him at all really. Aidan lightly scratched at his neck. "We were just going to explore but then you showed up! And now we're together. She was my guide. To find you when I came." Aidan looked down and smiled warmly. "I guess we're just meant to be together. I like having friends."
He hasn't picked up on Steel yet, hasn't noticed that she tends to be around wherever he is. Aidan laughed warmly. "Or maybe you can't get away from us Eli."
ElijahSincerely, if he knew what he was missing, he would kick himself. Would roll over on his face and lament to the stars how did I become so blind? But, the fact of the matter was this: Elijah Poirot was outclassed when it came to noticing Steel. The young man with the detective's name was just not on his game when it came to the powers of observation at that juncture. So, there he was, bag in hand and posture comfortable, just conversing with the black-haired young man standing with him.
"Princess is a gendered term? The male equivalent is prince, but there isn't a gender neutral royal offspring term," which, given that this is a modern age, Elijah wonders if that is something people need to work on. Aidan's eyes drop to the books and Elijah perks up immediately from instruction mode- and let's face it, he could explain any number of things about modern society that Aidan didn't get. He was comfortable with that- into a frame of thought that was decidedly more excited. The bag gets set down, and one of the books- heavy and having the slightest scent of decaying paper and ink to it- gets pulled out and opened up.
"I wanted to look some things up about ancient Egypt and I realized I don't have any starting point for knowledge about ancient Egypt, except fro some of the things I talked to Kalen about but I really wanted a gigantic primer on the history of- anyway, I wanted to know more to make some things make sense in a broader cultural context," he said, flipped through the pages, "they have an entire chapter on the Rosetta stone."
SteelOh, Elijah, not as blind as you’d think. This is something practiced, something that came naturally. Maybe not as naturally as some other things, but still good enough to evade casual attention. Add to that the way the world just seems to overlook her most of the time… At least until she does something stupid to draw attention to herself, which is a habit she tries to avoid developing.
The conversation gets going in earnest, and there are fragments that might be useful to know. Someone named Kalen who seems to know things. Egypt might be trendy enough for this to simply be idle academic interest, or there’s the possibility for something more going on. Awakened have hobbies, but they also tend to get involved in things that bite back.
There’s still coffee, so she takes another sip. And keeps on listening.
AidanAidan blinked, a little confused. "What if I want to be a princess? You get to wear tiaras right? They're sparkly and pretty! I heard they have a really bad attitude though sometimes. Really vain. I've never met one though! They're probably just really proud of how they look! What do princes get to wear? Oh wait! You can be a prince!"
Aidan looked to the book Elijah had, and then he tilted his head a little, scratching at his hair. "Why don't you just ask them? The people who were there? You could travel to Egypt and ask them what it was like. They'd probably tell you. They'd probably like being asked! Oh oh.. you could ask the lion statues too. I bet they see everything." To Aidan, asking the direct source of information made far more sense, but then, he wasn't much of a book worm; he spent most of his time talking to the things people read about, or at least, talking to things that had been there longer, even if he didn't always understand them...
"What's...the Rosetta stone? Is it red? No no! Is it a stone that is a rose?"
Elijah"You can wear a tiara if you damn well please, regardless of whether or not your royalty. Jenn's got a tiara somewhere, she was in one of those school-sponsored popularity contests and placed third. She was the representative for the art class, which was technically also a club," he said, conversational and still flipping through the book. He gets to the page about the Rosetta stone, the chapter that starts it all and there is a look of delight in those bright green eyes. He settles in a little closer to Aidan, a little conspiratorial, "anyway, it's a fucking badass tiara and there may or may not be pictures of me wearing it on Instragram."
There totally were pictures of him wearing a tiara on instagram.
"Traveling to Egypt is kind of cost and time prohibitive," he said with a laugh, "I've got my passport, but I don't speak… I think it's Arabic? I don't think they speak Koptic there, at least not regularly- anyway. It's easier right now to load up on books and soak it in. The Rosetta Stone is what enabled people to be able to decipher what the ancient Egyptians wrote, it was basically like the equivalent of microwave instructions that come in three languages… if microwave instructions were culturally significant. It's basically a gigantic carved stone."
A beat, he flips through, "I don't know off the top of my head if it's marble or limestone or sandstone…"
SteelThe first guy she’d spotted, well. Downright strange. He seems harmless, but then appearances can be deceiving. Hadn’t she used that to her own advantage before, after all? And all of them – the Awakened – had the potential to be much, much more than they physically appeared. There were ways of working that didn’t end up with the world fighting back too much, but when the necessity was there? Well, explosions can be made to look coincidental.
The other guy, though, sounded a lot more interesting. Cost being a limit? Then either he isn’t a fan of black suits and mirrored shades, he’s too far down the pecking order to take advantage of the perks she assumed they could get, or this is an extra-curricular activity. It’s too early to tell. Too early to know if it’s worth the risk of letting down her guard for a bit.
Time will tell.
Aidan"Jenn has a tiara?" There was something about his tone that made it sound like a child who was just given the keys to the candy factory. "You'd look good in a tiara! I think anyway." Aidan flashed him a bright smile. "Really! Is it just diamonds or are there different colors? I like tigers eye. It's fierce. Rawr." He gave a mock claw in the air and giggle to himself.
"Wouldn't they speak ancient egyptian?" Aidan's brows furrowed slowly. "Why would they speak Arabic? Wait did they speak that back then?" He scratched his head again. "Oh! I bet you could find a way to talk to them normally. Or make pictures or... or maybe they can show you places that are important!"
"So the stone is a translator? Does it just tell them what it means? " Aidan blinked and canted his head. "Microwave instructions..Oh I think I get it now. I think. Maybe? Yes! I get it now. It's like having one of those rings the cereal gives you because it likes you."
Elijah"It's mostly just those little fake diamonds? A lot of glass and crystal but it's made out of freaking titanium, which I thought was kinda badass. The thing is freaking impossible to break," as though they had tried to put the tiara to the test. Couldn't even coax it into a wobbly semi circle. We digress.
He starts to meander, picking the bag back up and halfway precariously perching the book in one hand, and he makes his way slowly to a nearby window to look at what might be there. Elijah didn't have a shopping problem, wasn't prone to impulse buying- or, rather, was very good at convincing himself whatever it was that he was buying wasn't an impulse buy and therefore needed to come home with him. This is how you end up with three books on ancient Egypt, ladies and gentlemen.
"I think if I were to show up in Egypt I'd get eaten alive by tourist traps and get robbed and I'd end up having to ask very politely to have someone come and fly me back home on account of being stranded in a country where I don't speak the language. Basically, I'd just be bracing for disaster. And languages morph and develop and change over time depending upon a number of factors, like who is ruling and who is conquering and what's going on politically. And some languages end up dying out over time." A shrug, "it's a thing."
"Anyway," he drops his voice and converses in more conspiratorial, quiet tones. Slips in and is a little more in Aidan's space than he was before, "not everyone has the luxury or opportunity to talk to things directly, so that's why things like the Rosetta stone are hugely significant. Being able to interact with the actual, like, spiritual manifestation of things is generally considered the exception instead of the rule."
DanTall guy, lanky. Somewhere north of 25, and actually north of 30, thank you very much. Happens to the best of us, happens to all of us if we're lucky enough. Black skinny jeans and a button-down short-sleeved plaid shirt. No bow-tie tonight. The button-down is open a the collar. Arms full of tattoos, from the edge of his wrists until they disappear beneath the sleeve of the short-sleeve shirt, colorful work, deliberate and deliberately chosen.
Exits a little hole in the wall, frowning at the display on his phone, lighting a cigarette.
Doesn't normally smoke except when she smokes, but, well.
Sometimes you just need a vice.
Steel
Ever since coming to this city, Steel had pretty much kept herself to herself. Oh, she’d been out and had contact with people at the most superficial level, but no real contact. Nothing more than some very tense, stressed minutes while she got away anyway. It had been relatively easy the last time she’d tried this. But that was before she knew about who – and what – was out there, and generally best left far, far away.
There comes a need to make new connections, but there are various issues surrounding trust to get over first. Otherwise it would simply be a case of saying ‘hi’ and letting her own resonance flare out to mingle and merge with theirs. No, she needs to know more about this guy before she risks coming out in the open. She doesn’t exactly have the resources to search official files, doesn’t have the contacts in the city (yet) to ask around and see what people have to say.
Which leaves a possibly riskier approach. Steel pushes away from the window and turns to walk, a route which just happens to pass by Elijah and Aidan. She seems to stumble on something and bumps into Elijah, muttering some kind of apology. The voice, for as long as it lingers in memory, sounds vaguely English.
[Dex+Larceny, I’ll have your wallet please, Elijah. Pickpocketing spec, Larceny aptitude. Which I completely forgot about earlier, still not used to this character's dicings.]
Dice: 8 d10 TN5 (1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 4, 5, 7) ( success x 3 ) [Doubling Tens] [WP]
Elijah[Per+alert=6 - 3 (damn you, arcane!)= 3, diff 6]
Dice: 3 d10 TN6 (1, 4, 5) ( botch x 1 ) [Doubling Tens]
Aidan[Perc + alertness? Totally just a trip right miss? 7-3= 4 dice]
Dice: 4 d10 TN6 (5, 5, 7, 9) ( success x 2 )
Aidan"Did she name it? Sometimes things like to be named. It makes them special." Or maybe Aidan just liked to name them and he was convinced they liked it. But Aidan moves with Elijah no, lifting his hand sup to wrap around behind his neck, his elbows hanging down against his chest. He hummed when they moved, even whe Elijah talked. When they stopped at a window, Aidan beamed. "Oh that's pretty!" He said with a smile, dropping his hands and leaning against the glass. He pressed his palms against it. "I wonder what the pattern is for that. " He squinted his eyes, pressed his nose against the glass."Oh. So you should learn the language then. Leanr the language and visit. Then you'll learn what you need to learn from the people who lived there right? I bet if you ask someone real nice, they'll teach it to you." And someone really meant someone that wasn't necessarily corporeal to everyone else.
Aidan's head jerked up and he looked away from Elijah momentarily. But then he realized he was talking to him and Aidan turned his attention back. "huh?"
"Oh! I forgot." A small laugh escaped him, as if it were just some tiny joke between the two of them. Sometimes he really did forget that people couldn't 'see things.'
Now Aidan notices Steel bump into Elijah, even tries to give her a smile to show it's alright. "That's OK." He says it almost on behalf of Elijah. But he doesn't notice the wallet grab. It's all innocent to him. But then...wasn't most things?
ElijahAll he knows, at that juncture, is that he ran into an English woman who had a voice that was sort of highish lowish mezzo soprano alto coloratura feeling to it. Who had hair that was… uh… something. She had clothes on!e remembered very distinctly that she had clothes on, and he responded to the apology with a- "hey, no problem-"
but he's walking, you see. He's walking and there was someone who was presumably attractive shaped and had a lovely accent and he was thinking about something and about to explain something to Aidan and all was well and fine and dandy-
But he kept walking. And was heedless of the fact that he was walking into a store from with a giant glass window. A floor-to-ceiling glass window that was polished and primed and perfect and probably should have had some tape on it or an X or something that would indicate that people need to stop walking at some point.
Elijah did not.
The next thing he knows, there is a hollow clang and a reverberation and he has sprawled, flat on his ass, in front of a giant glass storefront. Now, carefully adorned with an Elijah-shaped set of prints where he'd run flat into it.
DanHe lights that smoke. Inhales, long and raw and slow. One hand with the cigarette, the other - rough fingers, broad palm - around the screen in his hand. Turns his blond head and gives a faint smirk goodbye to friends leaving the bar - not for a smoke but, for good. Words are exchanged, and there would be a fistbump but he has both hands occupied. Straightens all-at-once when Elijah walks right into a picture window. Considers stubbing out the cigarette and heading over to help but sees the kid with them.
Figures they're on a date.
Wonders if he oughtta suggest Elijah check the kid's ID before sleeping with him.
Thinks better of going over to see if Elijlah is okay since that other kid is there.'
SteelSteel had planned on just walking away, blending into the faceless crowd and going through the wallet carefully, away from any other prying eyes who might wonder where she happened to come across a wallet of a young man who she most definitely didn’t look like or was in any way related to. Although it’s surprising the things that you can ‘’just happen” to find that others have unintentionally dropped.
There’s a noise – some noises - just behind her, though. Not the kind of noise that comes with having been made, that kind of noise tended to involve a lot more shouting and running and calling for the police. So it creates a pause, just long enough to look back over her shoulder at what she was about to leave behind. She sees the young man sprawled on the ground and the oily marks that his skin had left on the plate glass window, and she laughs. Just the once, but it’s been so long since she last did it and it felt good to just enjoy that fleeting moment. And it is fleeting because she needs to vanish before he tries to pay for something, notices what’s missing, and tries to patch together what had happened.
And so she fades from view, and most likely from memory.
Steel[Sorry that was slow, didn't spot it was my go]
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