Alexstrasza Lockhart
Location: End's Mercy Hospital
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast
Potemkin cackled.
"A-ha-ha-ha-ha~! Well, if it pleases you, oh Master And Commander, I shall do my very best to have my shriek of death reach you when a particularly strong breath from a passing nurse makes me keel over and die~!" the monochrome girl replied and took a deep, sarcastic bow. "I would like to remind you of course, oh most widest one, that I have no abilities whatsoever, so expecting me to defend this fair maiden's honor is a dream that shall never come true."
Putting her hands on her hip, the creature then took a look at Cesarina - who stared back a little confused - and smirked.
"... Well, I guess I do have a knack for running away. Survival is far better than fighting, anyways."
At the very least the creature seemed to be in a good enough mood to help out... if this truly could be called "helping out".
Cesarina, on the other hand, smiled reassuringly at Alexstrasza now, clearly having realized that her friend wasn't exactly fond of the idea of leaving her alone. That being said, it was also clear that the heiress was adamant about her decision, and firmly believed that Alexstrasza was needed elsewhere much more than just sitting around in a hospital room doing nothing.
"Do not say it like it's the last time we'll see each other. I'll be here only a day or two more, and after that, I'll be right as rain again! This sort of stuff is an old hat for me, after all," the girl said. "A weekly thing, almost. Or monthly. Well, nevertheless, it is nothing to worry about overmuch. And if you really grow restless, you can always use a phone at school to call me here - the nurses can transfer the call to this room, after all."
She nodded towards the white phone that hung on the wall.
"Still, while I am stuck in bed, it is up to you to do th legwork for both of us. Whatever's really going on... it is not something we can ignore, even if one of us is bedridden. And if you can truly communicate via Potemkin here, you can pass on any information to me - I can try to help out by thinking," Cesarina said, then giggled a bit. "God knows I am not in the shape to do anything else at the moment. That being said..."
Having realized that her friend was holding something in her hands, Cesarina raised her eyebrows.
"What have you got there?"
Indeed. What did Alexstrasza have?
A photograph. A simple, old, black-and-white polaroid photograph that had been folded and opened many times, to the point that the user had put a protective plastic sleeve over it. In other words, it must have been precious to him. Something he carried with him wherever he went.
And as the girl opened up the photograph...
... Huh.
The boy in the photo... even Alexstrasza recognized that almost hauntingly intense, robotic glare. That had to be Devon. But the young woman?
The woman in that photograph...
... She looked vaguely familiar too, didn't she?
Liana Skye & Colt Davin
Location: Spade Queen Country Club - Lobby
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994
Weather: Overcast
"Uunn-ngyah!"
The first sound that properly broke the silence of the lobby was, in the end, the sound of Sierra Pinkerton suddenly finding her "pillow" gone from underneath her and promptly bonking her head against the surface of the leather couch. The young girl flailed a bit, clearly somewhere between a dream and reality, before her one good eye shot open and she stared upwards with a look of confusion... only to immediately relax a bit when she saw Liana's face.
It was then that she realized her own position, sprawled on the couch with both the vampire and the older girl gazing down at her.
As was expected, the promptly flushed a bit red and hurried to sit up properly, trying to straighten out the wrinkles in her clothes as she did.
"A-ah, oh, um... g-good morning, you two. It seems the night has p-passed, hasn't it!" Sierra spoke out, maybe a bit louder than she intended. "I-I'm very sorry for imposing on you like that, I didn't even realize when I had fallen asleep, and---"
Hawthorn's cackling cut her off, and the expression on the young girl's face quickly turned into a pout.
"H-hey, what are you laughing at! Stop it this instant!"
Despite Sierra's protests, the older man did no such thing. Instead, he stood up from the couch as well and started putting on his long leather coat.
"Just getting my laughs on for today, princess - that's all," Hawthorn said, before glancing at Liana. "Anyways, can you look after her while you do cook and stuff? I got few things I wanna check out before I clock out. Nothing major, and I'll try to stay within yelling distance. Shouldn't take too long either."
He gestured vaguely towards the second floor.
"Oh, and... keep an eye out for that one too, okay?"
The last words were said with a more hushed voice, and Hawthorn's gaze focused onto Vier Wolff, who had also woken up... and was promptly leaving the building while the others were still talking.
"W-wait, don't you dare run away after making fun of me!" Sierra continued to complain in the background, not noticing the massive cowlick she had acquired during the night's rest, which made her anger even more goofy than usual. "I may be a bit out of it because I've just woken up, but I know when I've been insulted, you brute!"
Meanwhile, not too far away, it seemed that Sierra's little outburst had awoken someone else.
Namely, Cathie Walker.
The flame-haired girl let out a groan and started to stir, her eyes fluttering open as she blearily took in the overcast morning scenery that greeted her. She then proceeded to let out a tiny yawn that was almost like a squeak and lifted her hands, rubbing her eyes in a rather childish way. From there the girl switched to stretching, finally lifting her head from her resting place and spreading her arms so she could pop her back at the same time... and managed to bonk Colt on the side of his head while she did so.
Clearly the early morning made her reactions slower as well, as Cathie managed to smack her lips multiple times and watch the lobby with slight confusion before it even registered to her that she had hit something. Looking somewhat curious, she looked beside her... and saw Colt there. For a moment Cathie sat there, staring at his face... and then she snorted, a slight grin rising to her groggy face.
"Uh, sorry 'bout that. Didn't mean to slug you," the girl said, her voice sounding a bit out of it. "Oh and g'morning. Guess we both survived the night, huh? Not sure if I expected that, what with all the weirdness happening."
Naturally, Cathie's eyes were then drawn lower, towards the shoulder she had been using as a pillow... and the drool-stain she had left on Colt's shirt. She blinked at it, taking her moment to realize it was her fault, and when she did... she grimaced.
"Oh, shoot - didn't mean to slobber all over your clothes," the girl said and clicked her tongue. "Here, lemme see if I can..."
She took the sleeve of her sweater and tried to wipe off the worst of the stain, not making much progress no matter the effort. Eventually she just gave up and sighed.
"Uh... yeah, that ain't gonna work. Hold on, I think I need some coffee in me before I do anything else," she said with a giggle and flashed another tired grin at Colt. "Brain no work 100% this early, yeah?"
Vier Wolff
Location: Spade Queen Country Club - Outside
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994
Weather: Overcast
As Vier exited the country club, overcast skies and the hint of more rain in the future greeted her.
It was like being stuck in an eternal autumn.
And indeed, she more or less was.
Giving the front yard a quick once-over, it was almost like last night's trials and trauma had been nothing but a bad dream. But once you looked closer, small signs started to pop up here and there. All the footprints in the muddy grass. The carefully-maintained rosebushes that had been stepped on and uprooted. The lack of vehicles (aside from theirs) at the parking lot. It was all there to tell that yes, despite how much one could have wanted last night to be a nightmare, it had been all too real. And now they would have to tangle with the aftermath, and whatever that meant for the whole group.
As Vier's eyes scanned the perimeter, she saw that Ferguson was out by the gates, speaking into that dictating machine of his. The agent noticed her as well, and gave her a nod as a greeting before turning around and continuing whatever he was doing. Perhaps it was best to leave him alone - lest his eccentric ways pull Vier into whatever strange he was up to now.
Instead, Vier started to continue with her patrol around the building, and as she rounded the corner to the west... she started hearing noises.
Well, music to be more precise.
It seemed that Zane was listening to radio while he was working at the shack nearby, repairing the phonelines. That much Vier could guess, considering the metal shutter was once more open, and the boy was nowhere to be seen - aside from clear electric light coming from inside. But outside of the building?
Well, there was someone there too.
Leaning against the wall, gazing quietly at the scenery around her.
At least, until she noticed Vier.
".................."
Fyrtio said nothing, nor did she give a gesture or a greeting.
Instead, her single eye just locked onto Vier, as if she was watching what she was up to.
Hisa Momoi
Location: Pinefall High Dormitory - Kitchen
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast
"......"
Sakura was quiet as she slowly picked up the strange metal emblem from the table and let her eyes take in its details - both the symbol and the name that could be found there. She then turned the thing around, inspecting it from multiple angles, before finally turning it back around so she could read the name there one more time. And then once more. And once more. And every time she did, the frown on her face got stronger and stronger. Finally the older girl placed the emblem gently back on the table and turned her eyes back to Hisa... and worry was clear on her face.
"... Well. That's... honestly, I don't know what to say. Other than that I take it you don't believe that to be a coincidence?" Sakura asked, glancing back at the emblem. "Yeah, I mean... when has anything been a coincidence in this town, right? Especially since... since from what you're saying, that's not the only thing about those two that catches attention, huh? Hmm..."
The brunette went quiet, rubbing her chin and gazing down at the item in question with a deep frown on her face. It was hard to say what was going through her mind, but for once, Sakura actually let her usual disguise of a bubbly girl much younger than she actually was fall away. Instead, the sharpness in her gaze denoted some of the wisdom that had come with age.
And when she finally opened her mouth once more, she reached out and put her hand on Hisa's shoulder, squeezing it lightly.
"--- Still, whatever that means, just keep your mind strong and your wits about you. Coincidence or no, it's not something that you should let shake your determination, right?" Sakura said. "And if you ever need someone to talk to... well, I suppose you have quite a few who are more than happy to listen, but just know that I'm here too. I know a little what it's like to come face-to-face with nasty surprises like that."
Letting go of Hisa's shoulder, the girl leaned backwards in her choice and took another sip of her tea, enjoying the taste and letting it calm her down once more. After all, right now there was not much either of them could do about this, aside from merely talking and exchanging ideas and theories.
And speaking of which...
"But I think you're right. Thule or no, whoever these people are, they seem to be heavily connected with this. And the fact that they have connection to both organization certainly muddies the waters. I could throw out a few possibilities, like the man being a double-agent, this all being a ploy of some sort, or that he was even attempting trickery, but... it's impossible to say, right? Not without more information," Sakura continued, clicking her tongue. "If anything, a good place to start would be finding someone who would know about Thule Society and what sort of people they are - or if they're even real. Or, well, if the original was - you get the idea."
Sakura smiled a little.
Almost mischievously.
"And speaking of finding something, well... if you don't want to challenge the umeboshi at your breakfast, I do have a little something that I've saved for a rainy day... but you have to promise me you don't tell anyone about them - especially milady," Sakura said, wiggling her eyebrows. "They're a bit of a guilty pleasure, so having her find out about them would cause... trouble, I feel."
The older girl then nodded towards the upper cabinets of the kitchen.
"Top shelf, behind the bag of unhusked almonds - that's where I keep the good stuff," Sakura said, flashing her pearly whites as she grinned. "--- By which I mean a jar of dried kumquats with sugar coating."
John Dove
Location: Pinefall High Dormitory – Souma Nubatama’s Bedroom (Room 109)
Phase: Morning Phase
Date: 10.09.1994 (SAT)
Weather: Overcast
"... That is simple. I am nothing."
The answer was spoken in an almost monotone voice, far-removed from the previous slightly cheerful, almost lilting tone that the one-eyed boy had used. He walked over to the rack and took his towel, thoroughly drying his body without missing a spot. It was during that moment that John was able to observe that weirdly enough, aside from his hair, Souma Nubatama was... practically hairless. And not just in that way. His thighs, his arms, his chest, his back... it was all smooth, glistening, hairless. An effect that could hardly be just his physical make-up. Did he seriously shave of all his body hair aside from his hair?
And if he did, what did that say about him?
"'Souma Nubatama' is an abstraction. Something illusory, created by the people around him. Observed by others, who then proceed to think this is what Souma Nubatama is. But it's not. What is mistaken for cause and effect, motivation and result, is nothing but a whim. Well, most of the time. A random act by the entity they've taken to calling Souma Nubatama," the boy proceeded to explain as he walked out of the shower, dry and naked, and made his way to the single wardrobe in the room. "I will not throw you to the wolves, nor am I a wolf myself. But neither do I have any reason to help you. Do you know why?"
Souma opened up the doors of the wardrobe and soon enough, he was pulling on a pair of clean, white, well-fitting Calvin Kleins... of the exact same make and type as the ones he had been wearing before he had taken a shower. As John looked within the wardrobe, to his surprise (or perhaps not), he saw that it was just as empty and spartan as rest of the room. There were just few black tracksuits, what appeared to be a man's yukata of similar colours, and... well. At least a dozen pair of black leather gloves, each set neatly into their own part of the shelf.
Once he had put on his underwear, Souma immediately picked out one of the glove-pairs, and put them on.
"I have no imagination. So in all honesty, I can't think of why I'd help you - or hinder you. It's as simple as that. Perhaps a bit disappointing," the young man spoke. "No interests. No hobbies. Barely anything I really excel at. I don't care about art, I can't immerse myself in books, TV is just noise to me... and if I am quite honest."
He smirked as he glanced back towards the radio.
"I don't even like music. I just know I should listen to it."
Having said that, he started putting on his clothes - but not one of his tracksuits. Instead, he started to put on the black yukata, almost like a man putting on his Sunday best, despite the fact that it was still Saturday.
"But, if it's simply information you want, I can prodive that. I know things I've seen. Or heard. Maybe those will be of use to you, maybe they won't. To me, it's just information," Souma continued. "You seem to care about what's happening, so I can indulge you in that regard - even though I personally don't. For me, existence is always like this. One frozen moment that flows from one end to another. It's all the same, all the time."
Finally, Souma Nubatama turned around, and stood before John in his weekend clothes.
"Though, coming back to what you said before... I actually met the Mothman in the past. I think."