Liana Skye
Location: Spade Queen Country Club
Phase: Evening Phase
Date: 09.09.1994 (FRI)
Weather: Rain
"Laphroaig 30 years old. A very fine choice from Mr. Hawthorn."
Ferguson's answer came with a hint of a smile and a nod towards the other man, who simply chuckled and raised his glass in return. After taking a sip, both of them reached out for a cookie each, washing down the liquid with some hand-baked goodness. Hawthorn especially looked pleasantly surprised, though he hid the expression quite quickly - though the way he reached out for a second helping almost immediately spoke volumes of his opinion. Scottie, on the other hand, nibbled a bit as if enjoying the collision of two very different tastes, before lifting up his glass once more.
"A bit of a basket of dried fruits, this one. Taste is on the velvet-side, while the smoke is very subtle - a dry wood if anything. There's a certain sense of a forest floor, if anything, along with hint of tobacco and leather. The finish takes a long time, leaving something akin to dark chocolate on the tip of one's tongue," Ferguson explained. "All in all, well worth it's price. And considering this is a country club, the price was surprisingly reasonable. Especially for a blend of darker flavours such as this one."
"Well, what he said. You've got more of a head for fancy words, eh, agent?" Hawthorne chuckled in response, taking a quick swig. "Me, I just like the taste. That's all I can really say."
That made Ferguson raise an eyebrow.
"Oh? But considering the refined way you're tasting it, I'd say this isn't your first rodeo when it comes to expensive whiskeys," he retorted. "Something of a secret connoisseur, perhaps?"
Hawthorn grimaced a little bit, shrugged, and popped a third cookie in his mouth.
"--- Eh. Maybe, in a way. You see, I'm not the type to run my mouth, but I've experienced a thing or two back in the day," he replied vaguely. "Had to learn a bit or two about expensive alcohol while I was at it. Call it more of a learned instinct than anything else."
The silver fox of an older man smiled quietly and bowed his head, as if accepting that there was to be no prodding further into this matter. So, instead, he turned his attention back to Liana, who had taken a seat at the table as well.
"Still, this is quite the spread you've brought us, my dear," the agent started, not noticing how Hawthorn's eyebrows shot towards his hairline at the last two words. "Compliments to the chef, and compliments to this 'Aunt Dorothy' as well for letting you borrow her kitchen and ingredients. I have to say that once I'm finished with this glass, I'd be more than willing to partake in some tea as well. Another sort of warmth besides from the burn of whiskey on a cold evening like this may be just what the doctor ordered."
Hawthorn snorted.
"Yeah, my dear," he replied, pressing the term a little. "That aunt of yours is certainly nice, letting you use her kitchen like that. Hopefully you didn't sign up for more busywork in return."
He took a swig from the glass, and for a moment, a frown passed by his face.
"For example, looking after some rotten stray that just drags everyone down with him."
It was quite clear who he was alluding to.
Prushka
Location: Big Boy's Gas Station
Phase: Evening Phase
Date: 09.09.1994 (FRI)
Weather: Rain
There was a slightly amused hum that came from the other end of the line.
"... Sure, I'll do my best. I'll come up with a bit of a care-package and send it your way. Might be a bit hard to get my hands on VHS tapes over here at the States but uh... I'll do my best," Robert answered. "Though I did catch up on thanks to few of my pen-pals. Not to spoil anything, but the guy Domon is looking for might be closer than you think~"
The way he worded it sounded more of a fellow nerd teasing another with potential spoilers, a way of speaking that was far closer to Darwin's real personality than how he had previously spoken. However, for him to switch tracks back to this so quickly... perhaps he was still playing up the role he needed to. Perhaps whoever was listening on them had paid closer attention thanks to the questions that were asked, and now it was time to throw up a proper smoke-screen to obfuscate their tracks.
Or perhaps he had meant something else with that? It was hard to say...
"There was this one show, 3x3 Eyes, but I'm not sure if it'd be up your alley..." Robert continued with that teasing tone. "I mean, it can be a bit scary!"
He chuckled lightly, easing the tension in the air with that familiar sound.
"In any case, I'll check what I have and send them your way. If I'm fast it might even arrive by Sunday morning, who knows? In any case, I should probably get back to work - need to finish that report and all. I'll talk to you later, alright?" Darwin then continued. "Still... it was nice to hear from you. W-while it might have been just a short while, at the same time it almost feels like you've been gone forever. Guess that just how it goes when you're used to someone being around all the time, hah!"
Prushka could practically see the momentary, gentle smile that spread to the man's face.
"Hang in there, Prushka and remember - if you've got troubles, you can always give me a call, alright? Talk to you soon."
With that, the call finally came to a close, and what was left was the tone at the end of the line, along with the rain falling like heavy lead onto the pavement of the gas station's yard. Seeing that Prushka had finished up, Xandra - who had been waiting at the sidelines - got up and walked over to the smaller girl, hands in her pockets. While she had been amused easlier by the antics she could overhear, now her expression was nothing if not serious.
"Trouble?" The silver-haired girl asked, lifting an eyebrow.
Hisa Momoi
Location: McLampet Manor - Study
Phase: Evening Phase
Date: 09.09.1994 (FRI)
Weather: Rain
"Oh gosh, no worries about that! I don't, uh, really head out of the third floor that much, so I've got my own tea set right here!"
Saying that, the red-eyed girl walked over to one of the cabinets with glass doors, and spread her arms as if showcasing a new car. There, indeed, was a rather expensive-looking porcelain tea set that was practically waiting to be used. Smiling happily from ear to ear, the strange girl started piling it out of the cabinet onto one of the larger tables in the study, one flanked by multiple armchairs. That being said, it was still a bit of a mystery where she was going to make the tea, or where these alleged cookies were being held...
No, it took a moment, but soon Hisa realized the truth of the matter. This floor... it wasn't just a study. Over there, she saw a door that must have led to a decently-sized bathroom. That small corridor seemingly led to a kitchen with all the necessary things, and over there... wasn't that a half-open door, showing a bedroom with a canopy beyond the doorway?
This wasn't just a room - as had been the possibility, this was practically another house hidden within the manor, and taking up most of the third floor.
[We'll, uh... we'll keep an eye out for things here, at least for now,] Pyry replied within Hisa's mind, sounding just as confused as the girl was. [Sakura said she's gonna go keep an eye out for Josie, while I'll make sure Gradient doesn't wander off. We'll be close-by though, so if anything happens, just alarm us.]
It sounded almost like the boy was being wary of the stranger, to the point of not even knowing how he should handle her.
"But I see!" The sound of the girl's lilting voice drew Hisa from her thoughts. "Gosh, I thought that mysterious clue would have gotten some of the students hurrying this way, I tried to make it seem exciting like a treasure map and everything..."
Her voice echoed from the kitchen, where the girl was filling up a tea kettle and setting it onto the stove-top. At the same time, she was rummaging through the cupboards, looking for both cookies and various teas. There was Darjeeling, Twinings, Chamomile, Jasmine... just about all sorts of teas, and judging by the packaging, they weren't exactly the cheap kind. The variety of flavours was actually a bit too much, especially considering that this was (probably) the girl's personal stash. Still, she gestured towards Hisa for her to choose what she wanted to drink.
"Still, I'm glad someone came! Honestly, I was dying to speak with at least one of you! You wouldn't believe how repetitive the books even in a massive study like this one can get, and it's not as if ordering new ones out here in the sticks is easy either," the girl continued happily, chatting away with quite the speed."Not to mention you were curious enough to come here without any hints! Oh gosh, could it be? Are you a fellow mystery lover? D-do you like detective novels too? Oh, I have so many good ones I could show you...!"
The further Hisa watched and listened to this strange girl, the more she got the feeling that this meeting had opened up the verbal floodgates of someone who wasn't that talkative normally. Or rather, the sheer excitement she, for some reason, felt about meeting a total stranger in her house at late evening had made her giddy to the point that it all just translated into non-stop chatting.
... This girl didn't get out much, did she?
"Oh, golly - I forgot my manners, didn't I!"
Suddenly interjecting herself, the girl slapped her forehead and turned towards Hisa.
"I forgot to introduce myself completely! So sorry, you must take me for a complete dunderhead," she spoke, before suddenly snapping into attention. "Ahem! Well then..."
Then, for some reason... the girl bent her back forward, taking on a hunched-over stance. Not only that, but she threw her arm in front of her, like she was holding a cloak which she was using to shield her face. Hisa was, for a moment, reminded of those old monster movies that Angelica used to love, and most particularly...
"Behold! For I am the terror of the night, the infamous McLampet vampire...!"
For some reason, she was suddenly mimicking a very unconvincing eastern European accent.
"--- Allene McLampet!"
... Huh?
Alexstrasza Lockhart
Location: Road's End - Streets
Phase: Evening Phase
Date: 09.09.1994 (FRI)
Weather: Rain
"You know, some people are the type that won't make time for themselves unless you force them. That is, they just keep going and going, losing themselves in work or whatever else to drown out whatever's eating them. They won't have time to just sit, kick back and relax... and if you wanna have heart-to-heart with someone like that, you'll get nowhere by waiting."
Travis said this while leaning back on the bench, putting his hands behind his head and lazing about in a manner that was more in-line with his thuggish persona than what he had revealed earlier today. Stephanie, gazing at this perfect example of a "lazy bum", decided that there was something funny about the gesture - going as far as to imitate him perfectly. So now Alexstrasza found herself with two people lounging about, gazing up at the ever-present rain.
"And I get the feeling Miss Ponytail's exactly that type of person. So, if you wanna have a chat with her, make some time with her. Just, I dunno... walk up to her and chat? Sometimes it's as simple as that," the boy continued... before shooting a teasing smirk towards the blonde girl. "Unless, of course... you're too scared to do so?"
His voice was practically egging her on, challenging her with its mere tone.
"Oh, and sure. While hair colour is one thing, it's not like there's Italians around here growing in the trees," Travis added. "So chances are that those two, your friend and this jerk of a woman, have something to do with each other. I'd be willing to bet top dollar on that."
This conversation, the gently rain hitting the awning above them and peppering the streets with the fresh smell of nature, the general atmosphere of a late evening in a small town where nobody was around... in all honesty, it was the type of peaceful that was almost alien to Alexstrasza Lockhart. For her, moments like these were so rare that they practically never happened from where she was coming from. That in the first place was strange and new. But more than that...
For some reason, it felt as if Travis was starting to feel comfortable in her company - just taking her peculiar personality in stride and not bothering to argue about every little thing.
That, perhaps, was the weirdest thing about this all.
[Ha-ha-ha~! Hate to interrupt this cute moment you two have going on, but...]
Suddenly, Potemkin's voice rang out clearly in Alexstrasza's head.
[In case you haven't noticed and you've got your nose full of the scent of Mr. Thug-Life over there, it's time to clear up those sinuses right now,] the shadow cackled, before, just for a second, her tone became more serious. [... There's a smell of fresh blood wafting in with the rain. And it's coming from somewhere close by. My guess is...]
There was a pause.
[... The back-alleys behind the store.]
Elise Pelltier
Location: Pinefall High Campus
Phase: Evening Phase
Date: 09.09.1994 (FRI)
Weather: Rain
What stared back at Elise through that pale reflection in her mind... was herself.
Surely, it was different. Surely, there were differences. Surely, it could be differentiated.
Yet, undoubtedly, that reflection was... she herself.
Just as Elise Marie Pelltier was outside the window, staring in, the pale reflection was inside the building, staring out at her. Just like she, it was reaching out with its hand, and at the place where the two touched, nothing but the cold, hard surface of the glass separating them could be felt. The blue eyes met the green ones, and the green eyes met the blue ones. In a sense, that reflection itself could have been viewed as a mockery, but the more she saw it, the more Elise had this unneasy, unnerving feeling in her gut... there was something dreadfully natural about that look. Like it had been just as right as her own appearance, like it had been---
"How am I feeling, girl?"
LBJ's voice was her own, borrowed from her instead of the mental growling that it usually used.
"This world is not a loop, girl - it's a spiral. I can feel it in my bones. With every step, we come closer and closer to the edge of the abyss from where there is no return. Something is coming, and we do not know it. It's in the sky, it's in the ground, it's in the air we breathe. It's as if we all have been prepared for this moment, chess pieces set upon the table, and our movements are the movements of those pieces on that board," the demon spoke. "But just as we are the knight on the left, as opposed to the knight on the right that is the saintess, there - on the opposite side of the table - lies the knight in black. And we are on a collision course. Something is coming, girl... something is hunting us, and we are hunting something. We just don't know it yet."
The blue eyes narrowed, and their stare hardened. For a moment, shadows moved within the store and veiled the reflection, wrapping it up in darkness. Yet even so, Elise was able to see those azure eyes staring a hole through her head.
What did they want? What were they after?
"... I feel fear. My original purpose, what I am, has been changed by what this place is. The fact that I can fret over such a matter just shows how much of me has changed. Emotions wriggling under the surface, burrowing themselves in me... they're everywhere, and somehow, they've managed to break through what is pure and untouchable - me. A thought is not colored by emotion, yet here we are," the demon continued. "But more than that... more than my fear of what is happening to me, and confusion as to what the emotion even is... I fear for something else."
The hand touching the mirror reached forward, and caught a hold of Elise's hand - grasping it tightly, almost painfully.
"You're too weak. As you are, you can't weather the oncoming storm. Whatever's coming will glass the ground and scorch the sky, and we will be unable to stop it. As you are now... and as I am now."
A nasty grin spread to the face of the blonde reflection.
For some reason, a mild headache was starting to form at the back of Elise's mind.
"----- If it were Elise-Marie Pelltier before we became what we are, she would have been able to stand against that enemy. But... you don't even remember her properly, do you? Of what she was? Of how she was? Why she was sent to subjugate a demon with only a handful of inquisitors... why she was among the survivors... why Father Milani would personally look after her..."
The headache grew.
"Human mind is so quick to rationalize away all the little inconsistencies in one's reality, isn't it?"
The hand of the demon grasped harder.
"When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known."
The demon spoke out a verse.