[Boy]
He'd been running, pushing himself as hard as he could go, and yet it wasn't enough. There was something missing. It was plain enough for anyone to notice. They just had to look at the way he stopped suddenly in the middle of everything. Stopped running just to stand under the sun, let the sweat drip from his pinched furrowed brow, and shake his head.
The 17 year old Alpha was, perhaps, the only person to go out for a run in almost-eighty degree weather and become frustrated by the result.
[Elle Connolly]
to Boy, Nessa
(Mind another?)
[Nessa]
She had travelled on a number of paces before noticing the, well, boy from the Brotherhood. Garou, but not one she knew more than as a relatively nice person.
Probably.
Long as she didn't piss him off.
Three fingers wiggle at him in a silent hello, or perhaps she chases away a fly. He is not on her list of allowed conversants.
[Nessa]
to Boy, Elle Connolly
(do not mind BUT i am slow posting, warning, am cleaning.)
[Boy]
to Elle Connolly, Nessa
(Not at all. Come on in.)
[Elle Connolly]
"Move!" The Eurasian teen is yelling as he's running and as he's knocking down random pedestrians. In his furious pace he is loud - in both voice and step. In one hand he's clinging to a bag, in the other he clutches a beaded heavy wooden necklace with a small statue like object hanging from it.
At one end of the park, a car waits. It's engine idles quietly as the driver waits impatiently, fingers tapping in quiet time to the song playing on the radio. None of this, of course, can be seen or heard by anyone on the street ....his windows are opened only a crack and they're tinted a smoky shade of black.
Behind the young Eurasian is a woman. Average in height but lean of build. She's not dressed for such activities - her slacks are too crisp and neat, her silk muscle shirt clinging to the sleek form of her runner's body. She doesn't scream, she doesn't waste the energy. She also manages to avert spots of people clogging up the jogging path she's on.
"Move!!!!" He yells again as a thirty something jogger is shoved on her rear. Oddly, he doesn't bother to look back to see if the dark haired woman is still behind him. By the way he's running he seems certain that she is.
[Nessa]
(Sorry, just got called into work! See you!)
[Boy]
His eyes look up at the odd motion, and in particular at the lack of certain fingers. He's seen that before, seen her before. The fact that he can't quite place it leaves only one guess in his mind.
Brotherhood.
The sudden hustle of someone pushing through the crowd catches his attention in the next instant. He hesitates, glancing at the teenager, and then the woman after him. He uses that hesitation to make up his mind and in the next moment he's running again. Straight toward the teen.
Now the running felt much better.
[Elle Connolly]
There's not much distance left between the teen, the car and the woman behind him. The young man she's chasing has speed on his side, but the woman seems to own a decent amount of endurance to even the odds.
Likely, it doesn't take Boy very long to catch up. They weren't very far from him when they foot chase began. Elle's calves begin to burn, her throat feels like it's on fire, but despite this she pushes herself far beyond what the Asian teen had expected.
His mistake is looking back.
Because he sees her ... and another teen running after him.
His feet become entangled and he stumbles, sending his thin lightly muscled form sprawling and skidding onto the paved jogging path.
[Boy]
to Elle Connolly
(Oh, if you want me to roll for any of this, just let me know. Sorry, should have asked before.)
[Elle Connolly]
to Boy
(Not at all! Something like this is freeform fine with me :) )
[Boy]
His eyes widen as their pray stumbles suddenly, but instead of abating his chase it only feeds into it. He dives, full bodied, pouncing on the fallen teen elbow first.
He'd likely have the wind knocked out of him.
He'd likely have a few broken ribs.
He'd like scream.
And if he screamed, the dark hair Boy that had injected himself into this chase for no apparent reason would likely come up smiling a little.
[Elle Connolly]
The Eurasian does scream as his skin is peeled back as it scrapes along the rough pavement. The elbow from Boy pushes the breath out of his lungs and he rolls to try and right himself and find his footing.
The man in the car hesitates. The engine revs then falls back to idling. Elle draws to a stop next to the tangle of Boy and the other teen. He's still clinging to both the beaded necklace and the paper bag. He's also speaking in quick spurts of Japanese. Moving quick as lightning, the now bleeding teen is using his forearms and elbows and head and feet to try and get Boy off of him.
Eleanor doesn't bother to pile onto the fray. She doesn't cry or exclaim her eternal gratitude to the other young man. Her chest draws up and down in quick breaths of air, the white silky muscle shirt has begun to cling to her upper body from the sweat now trailing down her throat and brow.
Now, the man in the car opens his door spotting his friend - and the items in said friends hands - are down and caught. He yells in Japanese and slaps the roof of his tricked out Nissan. Eleanor's eyes fall on him warily as the teen valiantly tries to make his great escape.
[Boy]
He caught quite a few licks in the struggle. An elbow to his chin, a kick in the gut. The asian kids fists thumped noisily against the ribcage of the lean teenager on top of him. Still, he did not relent. He answered struggle with struggle, thumping fist with thumping fist. It wasn't until the Asian made good with a headbutt and Boy's teeth washed over with his own blood that he turned vicious. He ignored the scrapping fists and grasped the asian kid's head on both sides, pulling it toward him and slamming it down on the ground several times.
By now their scrap had simultaneously chased off those scared of the sudden violence, and attracted a crowd eager to gawk at the spectacle. "Somebody call the cops!" someone had screamed. It wouldn't be hard to imagine that someone had done just that.
[Elle Connolly]
When Elle approaches the tangle of young men she is careful to place the heel of her boot precisely on the Eurasian's wrist. The heel is not stiletto by any means, but it's a heel nonetheless and pressed against the veins and bone of the young mans wrists it is likely painful. The man howls and has no choice but to release the wooden necklace from his grasp. The beads look hand carved, the statue hanging from it is that of a woman, heavy with child.
From the car there's more yelling in Japanese, though this time they are accompanied by the poppop...poppoppop of semi-automatic fire from the area of the car. To boy it is probably odd to see a woman attempt to protect him. But, that is what she does. With one fluid movement her body shifts to be in front of his. In the panic the Asian flees, having broken free of both Boy and Elle, and is sprinting toward the car.
She has the necklace in one hand and her body is covering the teens in a way that likely looks awkward.
Somewhere, blocks away, the sound of sirens drawing closer can be heard.
[Boy]
People scream and scatter, and Boy also dives, making himself small and releasing the asian.
"What? What are you doing?" He says to the strange woman shielding him from potential gunfire. And even as the car screeches away and sirens approach, he's glaring at her. He looks half confused, half pissed as hell.
[Elle Connolly]
She is just as confused as Boy. Her tan cheeks are flushed red and as the car screeches away her grip on the beaded necklace remains firm. Removing herself from his bubble of personal space, blue eyes roam over his face and posture.
"Making sure you didn't get shot?" She says, though the inflection in her voice makes the statement come out as more of a question.
[Boy]
"And what if you got shot?" He says, standing and wiping at the blood from his lip. His head tosses around at the chaos they'd played a part in creating, and then upward toward an unseen horizon as he listened for which directions the sirens were coming from.
"C'mon." he says sternly, and starts moving in the opposite direction.
[Elle Connolly]
The car burns rubber peeling away from the park's curb. Horns honk like crazy as it skids away. Meanwhile, the sirens wail louder, louder. When he asks her what if she got shot she almost looks like the idea is just absurd. As if she considered herself untouchable.
"I didn't." She says, and when he tells her to c'mon she follows suit. Standing up from the ground she falls into step beside Boy, the knees of her neatly pressed slacks torn and ruined. The necklace is slid into her pocket.
[Boy]
Boy just glares at her for a moment, but keeps moving in a pace just short of a trot.
"So what was that all about anyway? That guy rip you off?"
[Wendy Berber]
*Terrible buses. Never ran on any sort of schedule. Why post a schedule if you have no intention of abiding by it, even a little! She's wandering back into the park, fully intent on tossing herself like a huffy rag doll into the nearest bench she s- was that...Boy? Boy and a pretty stranger. Wendy tilts her head, slowing up in front of them, and raising a hand in an awkward hello.* um... hi?
[Elle Connolly]
Her body - bones, muscles and joints - are not as resilient and sturdy as Boy's but despite the ache in her knees Elle does not complain or limp or overcompensate with the other leg. He glares at her and for a moment she is uneasy and she's not sure exactly why.
His question lingers between the two of them for a moment before she answers.
"Yes." She says, casting a glance toward the young man. "I own a store. He robbed me." She pauses, not bothering to look back as the sirens begin to close in on the entrance to the park where the man with the gun had been.
"And thank you." She hesitates for a moment, "For stopping him and helping me." At Wendy's approach, Elle simply smiles. In her mid-twenties, she's at least 8 or 10 years older than the teen at her side.
[Elle Connolly]
to Boy, Wendy Berber
Neat! My character done got approved :-D I'm gonna log out and back in.BRB in a flash.
[Boy]
He doesn't look too happy, but Wendy's seen him in worse moods. She likely knows by now that the seriousness in his face and the stern tone in which he says 'Walk with us.' doesn't necesarily mean there's something wrong.
The converging police cars on the other hand...
[Wendy Berber]
*Wendy can't be more than a teen herself, six feet of gangly limbs and strange angles. Every inch of her clumsy and uncertain. She curves her lips into a ghost of a smile for Elle, before blinking owlishly through coke bottle glasses at Boy. He orders her to walk with them, and she falls into step on the other side of him without thinking to argue.* Um.. whats going on? Did someone get m-mugged?
[Boy]
to Elle Connolly, Wendy Berber
((I've gotta run like...nowish...but I kinda like the idea of continuing this. Just a couple more posts from me for right now, then you guys might have to play around me))
[Elle Connolly]
She is very much attentive to the both of them, her body like one huge receptive nerve. Rather than letting the already irritated Boy carry the weight of the whole conversation regarding their current situation, Elle speaks with a sort of impish smile.
"A man back there, he stole a few items from my antique shop..." Her voice is smooth, lacking any hint of geographical residence prior to Chicago.
[Boy]
Eventually they'd gotten far enough away from the sirens, and by attracting as little attention as possible, for Boy to relax.
Except for the fact that he stopped glowering at everything, it didn't show much.
"Your shop anywhere around here? Lead the way."
[Wendy Berber]
Oh?! *Wendy looks over her shoulder at the commotion, spindly fingers fussing with the red and yellow ribbons that are pinned around her wrists. She nearly trips, not looking where she's going, catching herself on Boy's arm with an apologetic smile. The police cars likely were making him nervous. Her fingers close on his wrist a moment in a shy friendly squeeze, before she looks to Elle expectantly.* an Antique s-shop? N-neat.
[Elle Connolly]
There's a moment of hesitation in her step that likely only the most perceptive would catch. It's as if she would like very much to say no, but obviously cannot. She nods, obliging, and quietly leads the way. They don't walk more than a half of a mile.
The shop is locked up, she takes a moment to unlock and allow the pair entry. It isn't much, but it smells of age and artifacts and knowledge buried under secrets. "Yeah..." She says to Wendy hesitantly. "Are you interested in them?" She asks, her eyes following Boy all the while.
[Wendy Berber]
*She nods, tucking shaggy black hair behind her ears and looking around, head ducked nervously. As though being in the store was a terrible imposition.* I do, um.. I work at J-James Rare and Odd um, used books. We get um, antique books in, from t-time to time. I like things with a s-story to them.
[Elle Connolly]
The shop is stacked ceiling high with bookshelves, there are boxes in the back behind the counter still waiting to be unpacked. In cases there are amulets and stones and jewels beside coins both old and gold.
"We just opened a week ago..." She says, walking to the counter and sliding the necklace of hand carved wooden beads from her pocket. "What's your favorite book?" She asks Wendy while bending, squatting in front of a floor safe in which the necklace in her hand goes.
[Wendy Berber]
Oh um. I like the um, the originals of M. Tvllivs Cicero. He was um, so caustic. But the orignal Virgil is ALso um, pretty good. And p-pretty well anything on the occult. *Wendy can't help drifting away to the book cases, touching books with shy reverence. She looks over her shoulder as Boy stands, spaced out. Ah well. Uktena do that.* A swallow as she watches Elle put the necklace away.* How did he, um, get in the shop?
[Elle Connolly]
"I had the door open..." She says as she drops shut the floor safe door. "Airing it out a little..." It's said with an apologetic smile as she too keeps a very careful watch on the teenage boy in her shop. Elle is average in height, attractive enough, with pale blue eyes and a full, wide mouth. She moves with a fluid grace and carries herself with a hefty amount of confidence.
"Both of those are great..." She says, moving to a bookshelf nearer the counter that holds a large amount of cheaper paperbacks. From one shelf she pulls out a book by Joseph Campbell, The Hero with a Thousand Faces. "This is a very good read..." Turning she hands the book to Wendy with a smile still on her face.
[Wendy Berber]
Oh hye! I know this book! *She holds it, turning it over to read the back, voice a little more confident on the subject of literature.* Um, this C-Campell... He was a student of Carl Jung. this is all about the idea of the um, the Mono-myth. Right? *The tall spindly teenager looks to Boy, quirking a short lived smile. Fond.* This is a good book. Um, how much Miss?
[Boy]
((Here I am!))
[Elle Connolly]
"Yeah..." She nods, "That's about right. It's a great book really..." Her smile is drawn up on one side of her mouth leaving it uneven and crooked. Her eyes shift to Boy and then back to Wendy. "Nooo...on the house." it's said as she waves Wendy off with one hand.
"I want you to have it. From one lover of literature to another." Her fingers push back through her caramel colored hair as she spares a glance for the front door. "Thirsty?" She asks them both.
[Elle Connolly]
(yay! :) )
[Boy]
It was a little unnerving how quiet he could be when he wanted to. Boy wandered through the stacks allowing the two to chat and converse about books he's never read and a few names he's only just heard of. Compared to the previous violence he was serene here. At ease almost, except for the sort of predetory heat that would wash over them whenever he caught a glance of either between stacks and shelves.
Eventually he rejoins them, still marvelling at the antique store. When he speaks it sounds considerably less gruff than before.
"So...who's kin are you?"
[Wendy Berber]
Oh, well um. *She tucks hair behind her ear and ducks her head, sallow skin turning a little pink.* Thanks. Thank you. *Boy speaks, and Wendy's eyes go wide, chin tilting up to get a better look at Elle.* Oh!
[Elle Connolly]
For a Uktena her shop could cause them to lose themselves within all of the items for days. She wasn't Uktena and it had that same sort of effect on her. At Boy's pointed question she attempts to level a gaze on the teenager and falls short. Her eyes resting somewhere close to his nose or lips.
"Fianna." She says quietly with only the faintest of smiles. "And you?" The question is directed at both Boy and Wendy.
[Boy]
"My name's Boy. I'm called Brother of the Lost. Uktena. This is Wendy." His head tilts to the side to indicate the skinny tower of awkward in the glasses who was clearly several inches taller than he was.
"My mate."
[Elle Connolly]
Her eyes flicker to Wendy to gauge her reaction at Boy's words. They remain there for just a moment before they travel back to Boy. The smile on her face never waivers. "It's a pleasure Boy ...Wendy...my name is Eleanor Connolly, most people just call me Elle."
[Wendy Berber]
*Wendy gives a shy smile at the introduction, just slightly pinker than she had been before the books and introductions started. She extends a spindly hand.* Um g-glasswalker kin. Nice to um, meet you.
[Boy]
Boy doesn't move to shake hands. He's still wandering, in a way, and fades back and forth between the shelves.
"You're gonna want to meet Hatchet." He says as he goes down one aisle and then corrects himself with "Actually, you won't." as he comes up the other end.
"But you ought to. You can find him at the Brotherhood. Its uh...well you go down the street with that meat shop and...its a few blocks from...Mm. Wendy, you think you can show her where it is one of these days?"
[Elle Connolly]
She does extend her hand to Wendy and shakes it lightly before releasing it. She's listening to boy and tracking his footsteps around her shop. "I met Imogen Slaughter." She says, pausing to look at the walls of books and trinkets around them. "She mentioned the Brotherhood as well. I told her I would drop off my information ... I'm sure this ...Hatchet...person is too busy to be bothered with introductions."
[Wendy Berber]
*Wendy's handshake is like grabbing a clammy sack of twigs. Only the twigs try to grab you back. Her hand slips back to her side, to tug anxiously at an oversized men's dress-shirt. Her brow pinched together at the name. Eleanor "Elle" Connolly? She'd heard that before, and not in a positive context. Thin lips quirk into a frown as the uncertain kin darts her eyes to Boy and back.* um.. yeah. I c-can do that whenever you'd l-like Miss C-Conolly. *Wendy seems to take up less space than she did before, as though she's shrinking into herself and will any moment - poof - disappear entirely. She looks for Boy between the shelves.* You should s-still talk to um, Hatchet maybe. He won't be t-too busy for a n-new kin. I don't t-think.
[Boy]
"Maybe. But Wendy's right. You ought to meet him anyway. So that thing that guy stole. Is it valuable or something?"
[Callie]
to Boy, Elle Connolly, Wendy Berber
((open scene?))
[Boy]
to Callie, Elle Connolly, Wendy Berber
((In essence, yeah. They're in an antique shop around the park.))
[Callie]
to Boy, Elle Connolly, Wendy Berber
((ah, never mind then. can't think of any sensible reason for Callie to go into an antiques shop))
[Elle Connolly]
Elle is quite perceptive, and she picks up on Wendy's withdrawing. She listens to the girls advice and then nods in response, not mentioning or otherwise seeming to take note of Wendy's reaction to her name. "I probably should. I just don't want to be a hindrance to ....them." She pauses, her smile turning apologetic. "Him I mean."
Boy's question draws her eyes back his way wholly. The pale blue of them like two clear blue ocean pools. "Very." She pauses though, eying Boy for a moment. "You'll appreciate this though I think..." And she goes back to the floor safe, removes the necklace, and lays it on the glass countertop. She speaks, waiting for Boy to come closer.
"This is probably from around 7000 or 6000 BC..." Her french manicured, short fingernails move over the small carved statue of a pregnant woman's naked form, arms holding her belly, her head missing.
[Wendy Berber]
Oh w-wow. *Whatever apprehension Wendy had felt at the drop of the girl's name has been suddenly overtaken with scholarly curiosity. She stoops her thin frame to look at the little statue.* Its a m-mother goddess... But um, from which culture? *Ink blue eyes flick up to Elle shyly.*
[Boy]
Boy does come closer to look, but he remains quiet. His eyes flick from Wendy, to Elle, and as expected they linger on the necklace.
[Elle Connolly]
"An old European Vinca culture...near Romania. She was the goddess of fertility..." Her fingers ghost over the carved protruding belly on the statue. "There would have been a jewel here....to represent the unborn child. The promise of life..."
Her eyes flicker to the both of them before looking back at the necklace. "I can only imagine how much this would fetch on the black market...which is probably why he tried to steal it...."
[Wendy Berber]
Oh wow.. *Wendy breathes again, blinking at the statue. Her fingers flex at her sides, but she doesn't touch.* Thats t-terrible. But sh-shouldn't it be in a mu-museum?
[Boy]
He glances at Wendy when she mentions meauseums, and then his brows knit together a bit.
"How did you get it?"
[Elle Connolly]
Her eyes lift slightly and find Wendy through a curtain of dark long eyelashes. "Hmm..." She says, her fingers smoothing lightly over the wooden carved beads. "What would they do with it?" She asks, the question more rhetorical than genuine. "Lock it up...charge a fee to see it...put it in some corny exhibit for a few months before storing it away again?" Her eyes shift to Boy then and she smiles slightly.
"I bought it." She says, her attention focused on the young man. "Near Romania."
[Wendy Berber]
*Wendy purses her lips and frowns.* But.. you're going to s-sell it.. right?
[Boy]
He looks genuinely interested in the answer the Wendy's question, and in a move that was perhaps cliche, he crosses his arms while waiting to hear it.
[Elle Connolly]
"No." She says with a shake of her head. "Not this." She touches it one last time before pulling herself away from the item all together. Noting Boy's posture she shakes her head once again and says, "No...this one is going to go to someone who truly appreciates it. Who won't lock it away and forget about it until they find it cataloged somewhere..."
[Wendy Berber]
*Wendy brightens a little. Glad that its not just another item for resale. She picks at her sleeve, suddenly feeling a little silly.* S-Sorry.
[Boy]
"I should go. You gonna stay?" The last bit directed at Wendy."
[Elle Connolly]
"I need to be going too..." She says apologetically. "I need a shower and to get out of these clothes." Her eyes flicker to Wendy. "Hey ...it's okay...I do sell things...it's the nature of the business...but somethings shouldn't be sold ...this is one of them." She smiles, and starts to walk them to the door.
[Wendy Berber]
Um, n-no. I, I'll come home with you. I think. I don't work until, um. later. *She murmurs to her mate, smiling uneasily to Elle.*
He'd been running, pushing himself as hard as he could go, and yet it wasn't enough. There was something missing. It was plain enough for anyone to notice. They just had to look at the way he stopped suddenly in the middle of everything. Stopped running just to stand under the sun, let the sweat drip from his pinched furrowed brow, and shake his head.
The 17 year old Alpha was, perhaps, the only person to go out for a run in almost-eighty degree weather and become frustrated by the result.
[Elle Connolly]
to Boy, Nessa
(Mind another?)
[Nessa]
She had travelled on a number of paces before noticing the, well, boy from the Brotherhood. Garou, but not one she knew more than as a relatively nice person.
Probably.
Long as she didn't piss him off.
Three fingers wiggle at him in a silent hello, or perhaps she chases away a fly. He is not on her list of allowed conversants.
[Nessa]
to Boy, Elle Connolly
(do not mind BUT i am slow posting, warning, am cleaning.)
[Boy]
to Elle Connolly, Nessa
(Not at all. Come on in.)
[Elle Connolly]
"Move!" The Eurasian teen is yelling as he's running and as he's knocking down random pedestrians. In his furious pace he is loud - in both voice and step. In one hand he's clinging to a bag, in the other he clutches a beaded heavy wooden necklace with a small statue like object hanging from it.
At one end of the park, a car waits. It's engine idles quietly as the driver waits impatiently, fingers tapping in quiet time to the song playing on the radio. None of this, of course, can be seen or heard by anyone on the street ....his windows are opened only a crack and they're tinted a smoky shade of black.
Behind the young Eurasian is a woman. Average in height but lean of build. She's not dressed for such activities - her slacks are too crisp and neat, her silk muscle shirt clinging to the sleek form of her runner's body. She doesn't scream, she doesn't waste the energy. She also manages to avert spots of people clogging up the jogging path she's on.
"Move!!!!" He yells again as a thirty something jogger is shoved on her rear. Oddly, he doesn't bother to look back to see if the dark haired woman is still behind him. By the way he's running he seems certain that she is.
[Nessa]
(Sorry, just got called into work! See you!)
[Boy]
His eyes look up at the odd motion, and in particular at the lack of certain fingers. He's seen that before, seen her before. The fact that he can't quite place it leaves only one guess in his mind.
Brotherhood.
The sudden hustle of someone pushing through the crowd catches his attention in the next instant. He hesitates, glancing at the teenager, and then the woman after him. He uses that hesitation to make up his mind and in the next moment he's running again. Straight toward the teen.
Now the running felt much better.
[Elle Connolly]
There's not much distance left between the teen, the car and the woman behind him. The young man she's chasing has speed on his side, but the woman seems to own a decent amount of endurance to even the odds.
Likely, it doesn't take Boy very long to catch up. They weren't very far from him when they foot chase began. Elle's calves begin to burn, her throat feels like it's on fire, but despite this she pushes herself far beyond what the Asian teen had expected.
His mistake is looking back.
Because he sees her ... and another teen running after him.
His feet become entangled and he stumbles, sending his thin lightly muscled form sprawling and skidding onto the paved jogging path.
[Boy]
to Elle Connolly
(Oh, if you want me to roll for any of this, just let me know. Sorry, should have asked before.)
[Elle Connolly]
to Boy
(Not at all! Something like this is freeform fine with me :) )
[Boy]
His eyes widen as their pray stumbles suddenly, but instead of abating his chase it only feeds into it. He dives, full bodied, pouncing on the fallen teen elbow first.
He'd likely have the wind knocked out of him.
He'd likely have a few broken ribs.
He'd like scream.
And if he screamed, the dark hair Boy that had injected himself into this chase for no apparent reason would likely come up smiling a little.
[Elle Connolly]
The Eurasian does scream as his skin is peeled back as it scrapes along the rough pavement. The elbow from Boy pushes the breath out of his lungs and he rolls to try and right himself and find his footing.
The man in the car hesitates. The engine revs then falls back to idling. Elle draws to a stop next to the tangle of Boy and the other teen. He's still clinging to both the beaded necklace and the paper bag. He's also speaking in quick spurts of Japanese. Moving quick as lightning, the now bleeding teen is using his forearms and elbows and head and feet to try and get Boy off of him.
Eleanor doesn't bother to pile onto the fray. She doesn't cry or exclaim her eternal gratitude to the other young man. Her chest draws up and down in quick breaths of air, the white silky muscle shirt has begun to cling to her upper body from the sweat now trailing down her throat and brow.
Now, the man in the car opens his door spotting his friend - and the items in said friends hands - are down and caught. He yells in Japanese and slaps the roof of his tricked out Nissan. Eleanor's eyes fall on him warily as the teen valiantly tries to make his great escape.
[Boy]
He caught quite a few licks in the struggle. An elbow to his chin, a kick in the gut. The asian kids fists thumped noisily against the ribcage of the lean teenager on top of him. Still, he did not relent. He answered struggle with struggle, thumping fist with thumping fist. It wasn't until the Asian made good with a headbutt and Boy's teeth washed over with his own blood that he turned vicious. He ignored the scrapping fists and grasped the asian kid's head on both sides, pulling it toward him and slamming it down on the ground several times.
By now their scrap had simultaneously chased off those scared of the sudden violence, and attracted a crowd eager to gawk at the spectacle. "Somebody call the cops!" someone had screamed. It wouldn't be hard to imagine that someone had done just that.
[Elle Connolly]
When Elle approaches the tangle of young men she is careful to place the heel of her boot precisely on the Eurasian's wrist. The heel is not stiletto by any means, but it's a heel nonetheless and pressed against the veins and bone of the young mans wrists it is likely painful. The man howls and has no choice but to release the wooden necklace from his grasp. The beads look hand carved, the statue hanging from it is that of a woman, heavy with child.
From the car there's more yelling in Japanese, though this time they are accompanied by the poppop...poppoppop of semi-automatic fire from the area of the car. To boy it is probably odd to see a woman attempt to protect him. But, that is what she does. With one fluid movement her body shifts to be in front of his. In the panic the Asian flees, having broken free of both Boy and Elle, and is sprinting toward the car.
She has the necklace in one hand and her body is covering the teens in a way that likely looks awkward.
Somewhere, blocks away, the sound of sirens drawing closer can be heard.
[Boy]
People scream and scatter, and Boy also dives, making himself small and releasing the asian.
"What? What are you doing?" He says to the strange woman shielding him from potential gunfire. And even as the car screeches away and sirens approach, he's glaring at her. He looks half confused, half pissed as hell.
[Elle Connolly]
She is just as confused as Boy. Her tan cheeks are flushed red and as the car screeches away her grip on the beaded necklace remains firm. Removing herself from his bubble of personal space, blue eyes roam over his face and posture.
"Making sure you didn't get shot?" She says, though the inflection in her voice makes the statement come out as more of a question.
[Boy]
"And what if you got shot?" He says, standing and wiping at the blood from his lip. His head tosses around at the chaos they'd played a part in creating, and then upward toward an unseen horizon as he listened for which directions the sirens were coming from.
"C'mon." he says sternly, and starts moving in the opposite direction.
[Elle Connolly]
The car burns rubber peeling away from the park's curb. Horns honk like crazy as it skids away. Meanwhile, the sirens wail louder, louder. When he asks her what if she got shot she almost looks like the idea is just absurd. As if she considered herself untouchable.
"I didn't." She says, and when he tells her to c'mon she follows suit. Standing up from the ground she falls into step beside Boy, the knees of her neatly pressed slacks torn and ruined. The necklace is slid into her pocket.
[Boy]
Boy just glares at her for a moment, but keeps moving in a pace just short of a trot.
"So what was that all about anyway? That guy rip you off?"
[Wendy Berber]
*Terrible buses. Never ran on any sort of schedule. Why post a schedule if you have no intention of abiding by it, even a little! She's wandering back into the park, fully intent on tossing herself like a huffy rag doll into the nearest bench she s- was that...Boy? Boy and a pretty stranger. Wendy tilts her head, slowing up in front of them, and raising a hand in an awkward hello.* um... hi?
[Elle Connolly]
Her body - bones, muscles and joints - are not as resilient and sturdy as Boy's but despite the ache in her knees Elle does not complain or limp or overcompensate with the other leg. He glares at her and for a moment she is uneasy and she's not sure exactly why.
His question lingers between the two of them for a moment before she answers.
"Yes." She says, casting a glance toward the young man. "I own a store. He robbed me." She pauses, not bothering to look back as the sirens begin to close in on the entrance to the park where the man with the gun had been.
"And thank you." She hesitates for a moment, "For stopping him and helping me." At Wendy's approach, Elle simply smiles. In her mid-twenties, she's at least 8 or 10 years older than the teen at her side.
[Elle Connolly]
to Boy, Wendy Berber
Neat! My character done got approved :-D I'm gonna log out and back in.BRB in a flash.
[Boy]
He doesn't look too happy, but Wendy's seen him in worse moods. She likely knows by now that the seriousness in his face and the stern tone in which he says 'Walk with us.' doesn't necesarily mean there's something wrong.
The converging police cars on the other hand...
[Wendy Berber]
*Wendy can't be more than a teen herself, six feet of gangly limbs and strange angles. Every inch of her clumsy and uncertain. She curves her lips into a ghost of a smile for Elle, before blinking owlishly through coke bottle glasses at Boy. He orders her to walk with them, and she falls into step on the other side of him without thinking to argue.* Um.. whats going on? Did someone get m-mugged?
[Boy]
to Elle Connolly, Wendy Berber
((I've gotta run like...nowish...but I kinda like the idea of continuing this. Just a couple more posts from me for right now, then you guys might have to play around me))
[Elle Connolly]
She is very much attentive to the both of them, her body like one huge receptive nerve. Rather than letting the already irritated Boy carry the weight of the whole conversation regarding their current situation, Elle speaks with a sort of impish smile.
"A man back there, he stole a few items from my antique shop..." Her voice is smooth, lacking any hint of geographical residence prior to Chicago.
[Boy]
Eventually they'd gotten far enough away from the sirens, and by attracting as little attention as possible, for Boy to relax.
Except for the fact that he stopped glowering at everything, it didn't show much.
"Your shop anywhere around here? Lead the way."
[Wendy Berber]
Oh?! *Wendy looks over her shoulder at the commotion, spindly fingers fussing with the red and yellow ribbons that are pinned around her wrists. She nearly trips, not looking where she's going, catching herself on Boy's arm with an apologetic smile. The police cars likely were making him nervous. Her fingers close on his wrist a moment in a shy friendly squeeze, before she looks to Elle expectantly.* an Antique s-shop? N-neat.
[Elle Connolly]
There's a moment of hesitation in her step that likely only the most perceptive would catch. It's as if she would like very much to say no, but obviously cannot. She nods, obliging, and quietly leads the way. They don't walk more than a half of a mile.
The shop is locked up, she takes a moment to unlock and allow the pair entry. It isn't much, but it smells of age and artifacts and knowledge buried under secrets. "Yeah..." She says to Wendy hesitantly. "Are you interested in them?" She asks, her eyes following Boy all the while.
[Wendy Berber]
*She nods, tucking shaggy black hair behind her ears and looking around, head ducked nervously. As though being in the store was a terrible imposition.* I do, um.. I work at J-James Rare and Odd um, used books. We get um, antique books in, from t-time to time. I like things with a s-story to them.
[Elle Connolly]
The shop is stacked ceiling high with bookshelves, there are boxes in the back behind the counter still waiting to be unpacked. In cases there are amulets and stones and jewels beside coins both old and gold.
"We just opened a week ago..." She says, walking to the counter and sliding the necklace of hand carved wooden beads from her pocket. "What's your favorite book?" She asks Wendy while bending, squatting in front of a floor safe in which the necklace in her hand goes.
[Wendy Berber]
Oh um. I like the um, the originals of M. Tvllivs Cicero. He was um, so caustic. But the orignal Virgil is ALso um, pretty good. And p-pretty well anything on the occult. *Wendy can't help drifting away to the book cases, touching books with shy reverence. She looks over her shoulder as Boy stands, spaced out. Ah well. Uktena do that.* A swallow as she watches Elle put the necklace away.* How did he, um, get in the shop?
[Elle Connolly]
"I had the door open..." She says as she drops shut the floor safe door. "Airing it out a little..." It's said with an apologetic smile as she too keeps a very careful watch on the teenage boy in her shop. Elle is average in height, attractive enough, with pale blue eyes and a full, wide mouth. She moves with a fluid grace and carries herself with a hefty amount of confidence.
"Both of those are great..." She says, moving to a bookshelf nearer the counter that holds a large amount of cheaper paperbacks. From one shelf she pulls out a book by Joseph Campbell, The Hero with a Thousand Faces. "This is a very good read..." Turning she hands the book to Wendy with a smile still on her face.
[Wendy Berber]
Oh hye! I know this book! *She holds it, turning it over to read the back, voice a little more confident on the subject of literature.* Um, this C-Campell... He was a student of Carl Jung. this is all about the idea of the um, the Mono-myth. Right? *The tall spindly teenager looks to Boy, quirking a short lived smile. Fond.* This is a good book. Um, how much Miss?
[Boy]
((Here I am!))
[Elle Connolly]
"Yeah..." She nods, "That's about right. It's a great book really..." Her smile is drawn up on one side of her mouth leaving it uneven and crooked. Her eyes shift to Boy and then back to Wendy. "Nooo...on the house." it's said as she waves Wendy off with one hand.
"I want you to have it. From one lover of literature to another." Her fingers push back through her caramel colored hair as she spares a glance for the front door. "Thirsty?" She asks them both.
[Elle Connolly]
(yay! :) )
[Boy]
It was a little unnerving how quiet he could be when he wanted to. Boy wandered through the stacks allowing the two to chat and converse about books he's never read and a few names he's only just heard of. Compared to the previous violence he was serene here. At ease almost, except for the sort of predetory heat that would wash over them whenever he caught a glance of either between stacks and shelves.
Eventually he rejoins them, still marvelling at the antique store. When he speaks it sounds considerably less gruff than before.
"So...who's kin are you?"
[Wendy Berber]
Oh, well um. *She tucks hair behind her ear and ducks her head, sallow skin turning a little pink.* Thanks. Thank you. *Boy speaks, and Wendy's eyes go wide, chin tilting up to get a better look at Elle.* Oh!
[Elle Connolly]
For a Uktena her shop could cause them to lose themselves within all of the items for days. She wasn't Uktena and it had that same sort of effect on her. At Boy's pointed question she attempts to level a gaze on the teenager and falls short. Her eyes resting somewhere close to his nose or lips.
"Fianna." She says quietly with only the faintest of smiles. "And you?" The question is directed at both Boy and Wendy.
[Boy]
"My name's Boy. I'm called Brother of the Lost. Uktena. This is Wendy." His head tilts to the side to indicate the skinny tower of awkward in the glasses who was clearly several inches taller than he was.
"My mate."
[Elle Connolly]
Her eyes flicker to Wendy to gauge her reaction at Boy's words. They remain there for just a moment before they travel back to Boy. The smile on her face never waivers. "It's a pleasure Boy ...Wendy...my name is Eleanor Connolly, most people just call me Elle."
[Wendy Berber]
*Wendy gives a shy smile at the introduction, just slightly pinker than she had been before the books and introductions started. She extends a spindly hand.* Um g-glasswalker kin. Nice to um, meet you.
[Boy]
Boy doesn't move to shake hands. He's still wandering, in a way, and fades back and forth between the shelves.
"You're gonna want to meet Hatchet." He says as he goes down one aisle and then corrects himself with "Actually, you won't." as he comes up the other end.
"But you ought to. You can find him at the Brotherhood. Its uh...well you go down the street with that meat shop and...its a few blocks from...Mm. Wendy, you think you can show her where it is one of these days?"
[Elle Connolly]
She does extend her hand to Wendy and shakes it lightly before releasing it. She's listening to boy and tracking his footsteps around her shop. "I met Imogen Slaughter." She says, pausing to look at the walls of books and trinkets around them. "She mentioned the Brotherhood as well. I told her I would drop off my information ... I'm sure this ...Hatchet...person is too busy to be bothered with introductions."
[Wendy Berber]
*Wendy's handshake is like grabbing a clammy sack of twigs. Only the twigs try to grab you back. Her hand slips back to her side, to tug anxiously at an oversized men's dress-shirt. Her brow pinched together at the name. Eleanor "Elle" Connolly? She'd heard that before, and not in a positive context. Thin lips quirk into a frown as the uncertain kin darts her eyes to Boy and back.* um.. yeah. I c-can do that whenever you'd l-like Miss C-Conolly. *Wendy seems to take up less space than she did before, as though she's shrinking into herself and will any moment - poof - disappear entirely. She looks for Boy between the shelves.* You should s-still talk to um, Hatchet maybe. He won't be t-too busy for a n-new kin. I don't t-think.
[Boy]
"Maybe. But Wendy's right. You ought to meet him anyway. So that thing that guy stole. Is it valuable or something?"
[Callie]
to Boy, Elle Connolly, Wendy Berber
((open scene?))
[Boy]
to Callie, Elle Connolly, Wendy Berber
((In essence, yeah. They're in an antique shop around the park.))
[Callie]
to Boy, Elle Connolly, Wendy Berber
((ah, never mind then. can't think of any sensible reason for Callie to go into an antiques shop))
[Elle Connolly]
Elle is quite perceptive, and she picks up on Wendy's withdrawing. She listens to the girls advice and then nods in response, not mentioning or otherwise seeming to take note of Wendy's reaction to her name. "I probably should. I just don't want to be a hindrance to ....them." She pauses, her smile turning apologetic. "Him I mean."
Boy's question draws her eyes back his way wholly. The pale blue of them like two clear blue ocean pools. "Very." She pauses though, eying Boy for a moment. "You'll appreciate this though I think..." And she goes back to the floor safe, removes the necklace, and lays it on the glass countertop. She speaks, waiting for Boy to come closer.
"This is probably from around 7000 or 6000 BC..." Her french manicured, short fingernails move over the small carved statue of a pregnant woman's naked form, arms holding her belly, her head missing.
[Wendy Berber]
Oh w-wow. *Whatever apprehension Wendy had felt at the drop of the girl's name has been suddenly overtaken with scholarly curiosity. She stoops her thin frame to look at the little statue.* Its a m-mother goddess... But um, from which culture? *Ink blue eyes flick up to Elle shyly.*
[Boy]
Boy does come closer to look, but he remains quiet. His eyes flick from Wendy, to Elle, and as expected they linger on the necklace.
[Elle Connolly]
"An old European Vinca culture...near Romania. She was the goddess of fertility..." Her fingers ghost over the carved protruding belly on the statue. "There would have been a jewel here....to represent the unborn child. The promise of life..."
Her eyes flicker to the both of them before looking back at the necklace. "I can only imagine how much this would fetch on the black market...which is probably why he tried to steal it...."
[Wendy Berber]
Oh wow.. *Wendy breathes again, blinking at the statue. Her fingers flex at her sides, but she doesn't touch.* Thats t-terrible. But sh-shouldn't it be in a mu-museum?
[Boy]
He glances at Wendy when she mentions meauseums, and then his brows knit together a bit.
"How did you get it?"
[Elle Connolly]
Her eyes lift slightly and find Wendy through a curtain of dark long eyelashes. "Hmm..." She says, her fingers smoothing lightly over the wooden carved beads. "What would they do with it?" She asks, the question more rhetorical than genuine. "Lock it up...charge a fee to see it...put it in some corny exhibit for a few months before storing it away again?" Her eyes shift to Boy then and she smiles slightly.
"I bought it." She says, her attention focused on the young man. "Near Romania."
[Wendy Berber]
*Wendy purses her lips and frowns.* But.. you're going to s-sell it.. right?
[Boy]
He looks genuinely interested in the answer the Wendy's question, and in a move that was perhaps cliche, he crosses his arms while waiting to hear it.
[Elle Connolly]
"No." She says with a shake of her head. "Not this." She touches it one last time before pulling herself away from the item all together. Noting Boy's posture she shakes her head once again and says, "No...this one is going to go to someone who truly appreciates it. Who won't lock it away and forget about it until they find it cataloged somewhere..."
[Wendy Berber]
*Wendy brightens a little. Glad that its not just another item for resale. She picks at her sleeve, suddenly feeling a little silly.* S-Sorry.
[Boy]
"I should go. You gonna stay?" The last bit directed at Wendy."
[Elle Connolly]
"I need to be going too..." She says apologetically. "I need a shower and to get out of these clothes." Her eyes flicker to Wendy. "Hey ...it's okay...I do sell things...it's the nature of the business...but somethings shouldn't be sold ...this is one of them." She smiles, and starts to walk them to the door.
[Wendy Berber]
Um, n-no. I, I'll come home with you. I think. I don't work until, um. later. *She murmurs to her mate, smiling uneasily to Elle.*
