Currently the moon is in the waning Half Moon phase (47% full).
Currently in Saint Claire, it is clear outside. The temperature is 73 degrees Fahrenheit (22 degrees Celsius). The wind is currently coming in from the northeast at 6 mph. The barometric pressure reading is 29.96 and steady, and the relative humidity is 41 percent. The dewpoint is 48 degrees Fahrenheit (8 degrees Celsius.)
It is currently 20:51 Pacific Time on Mon Sep 10 2001.
Walker Safe House(#2832RAJL)
This small tenement building is a work that any interior decorator would be proud of. The building is somehow filled with light and space, despite the fact that the room is far from large. Mirrored surfaces and lush green potted plants are much in evidence - jarring only slightly with the video cameras that perch unobtrusively in various locations. A small sign on the wall lists the number of apartments upstairs as eight, though there are no names next to the apartment numbers. A very thick door leads downstairs, with no visible method of being opened - except a keypad next to it. A monitor is perched above the entrance, showing images from the hidden camera that watches the outside of the building.
The lobby branches off into what appears to be a small recreation room; for use only by residents and their guests. Much like the rest of the building, mirrors are prominent. There is a pool table set up in one half of the room, along with a small fridge for storing drinks and a cabinet for snackables. The remainder is dominated by a large home theater system, with an incredibly expensive-looking couch in front of it. The couch nearly screams out, 'Don't spill anything'. For those who might, there are also two matching side-chairs, and a bean-bag on the floor - far too close to the television to be good for anyone's eyes.
Rina and John sit crosslegged in front of the TV, /way/ too close; the high-speed techno can be heard out in the lobby. The screen is split, each half showing the back of a snowboarder in bright-colored duds, surfing the white waves on a high-tech racecourse.
"Yes!" Rina whispers, as she successfully does a mid-jump trick and manages to land without wiping out.
John just looks grim. His little man isn't doing what it's told. How dare he.
Dizzy comes down the stairs and into the rec room. "Hey guys," she says, announcing herself, "John, I've got a question for you."
John's eyes are glued to the screen. "Friggin' buttons are too small." he grunts absently, as his big-headed snow-boarding avatar goes *foomph*. "What?"
"Wwwwwipeout!" Rina murmurs comically, eyes on the screen. The finish line is up ahead--and she adds insult to injury by pulling another trick, a board-grab, jumping right before the finish line. The music turns triumphal, and the on-screen character--a girl with brightly dyed dreadlocks--does a fist-pumping gesture and turns around. Her electronic voice says, "Oh, yeah! Kicked your *ass*, dude!"
Dizzy leans up in the doorway, watching the two and grinning. "Is that thing with Corey's punishment still going on? I mean... did you still want me to think of one?"
John's eyes stray to the kinswoman by his side, and he raises an eyebrow at her, before looking to Dizzy. "Thought of anything, yet?"
Rina's expression shifts from the flush of victory, toward seriousness, as she looks away from the screen. She frowns a little, glancing to John.
Dizzy nods, "Yeah. I've got two potential ideas, depending, like, on how you want to go about it. One, he'll be highly embarressed. The other, may be more of a learning experience."
John leans over and whispers something into Rina's ear, then leans back and jerks his head towards the screen. "Pick a different level this time. Something... with fewer obstacles." He looks back to Dizzy. "Lemme hear both."
Rina smiles, glancing over at Diz. "Nah," she says. "I wanna listen." She leaves the game controller in her lap, where both hands rest; her elbows lean on her knees.
"Okay," Dizzy says, standing up straight now. Visably proud of her ideas. "Both of them involve an indeterminate length of time, which you can set. The first is to have him dress up in women's clothes, all of the time. Now that we can go out and such, that should be pretty humiliating. The other is to have him stay in lupus form. That way he'll have a learning experience during the punishment. It'll, like, keep him away from doing anything with his computer, which he is fond of, so it is a punishment as well."
Rina raises her eyebrows, and frowns thoughtfully.
John looks to Rina. "Hmm." Seems to be about it. "I think a combination of both. Maybe a doggie sailor's uniform. Not dedicated. That way, if he shifts, it'll tear. And we'll know about it." He smiles faintly. "Oh, and now that we've got a half-moon hanging around on a full-time basis, we can just test him, later. And if he /has/ done something to take it off, or shifted, I'll just kick the shit out of him or something." He shrugs. "Old failsafe."
Dizzy is quite pleased that John like the idea, she claps a little, quietly. This way he'll sort of be punished for the comment way back when they first went to the caern. She makes a mental note to rub this in his face later. "There you go. I'm assuming this meets your standards, then?"
John inclines his head, smiling a little. He looks from Rina to the video game in front of him for a moment, then back to Dizzy. "Yeah. You can go tell him. I trust that you'll break it to him... gently."
The familiar whirring that occurs when someone comes into view of the front door camera occurs a moment before the door is unlocked and opened by Roger. Stepping inside he makes sure all is nice and locked tight behind him before looking about. Noticing people here and all he just shrugs and steps up to see what is currently happening.
Dizzy shrugs, a wild look in her eye and a grin on her face. "Sure, gently. I can do that." She giggles as she passes Roger by, heading for the stairs.
Rina glances toward the doorway, and her eyes narrow slightly; she gives Roger a little nod. "Hey."
Roger returns said little nod back to Rina and offers Dizzy a quick look as she heads by. "Dizzy." he says as she advances up the stairs.
John's look to Roger is a lot warmer than Rina's. "Hey. Met the new Walker, yet?"
Dizzy turns around, clasping her hands behind her back and smiling. "Yes, Rhya?"
Roger barely looks the cub over as he says, "Just try to acknowledge your elders and not pass by them without so much as a nod or a wave, eh?" With that friendly chastisment, and it was actually quite friendly, he looks back to John and shakes his head. "New? No... can't say that I have. Useful?"
Roach Motel: Bachelor Pad(#2483RAFJh)
Well-furnished and high-tech, this apartment is clearly inhabited by people who know how to blend the city life and the good life. Everything is set up for maximum efficiency. The end-tables beside the grey over-stuffed sofa are placed just perfectly, bearing coasters to encourage visitors not to ruin the finish.
A person sitting at one of the three computer desks would have no trouble rolling around the room in his black leather office chair. One might even suppose that the computer desks are intended to be the focal point of the living room; the desks are identical but for the machines they house. First, we have a small black laptop, the remainder of the desk empty but for a stack of Audio CD's. To the right of that, a desk with a stack of books where a tower might stand and a pad of paper instead of a keyboard. The desk to the far right imprisons a large, menacing black PC tower, its fans ever emitting an eerie mechanical hum, a hypnotic buzz that suggests malevolent intent.
To the right of the blindingly clean kitchen stocked with a plethora of gadgets and foods packaged for convenience, a short hallway leads to the bedrooms and the bathroom.
Dizzy heads up the stairs and over to Corey's appartment. She knocks on the door and takes a step back, trying to stop grinning and failing.
There's faint sounds of movement, then a highly audible THUMP, followed by a low groan. "Okay, who will I have the pleasure of hurting for waking me out of a perfectly good dream?"
"It's Diz," she announces herself with a giggle. "I bring important news from the big kahuna."
The door opens slowly, and Corey -- lacking a shirt, and in a pair of black sweat pants -- looks myopically out at his cubmate. "Since when are you a Galliard?" he asks, only reflexively humorous.
Dizzy gives up her quest to keep a straight face and flat out grins widely as possible. "Oh, belive me, this is a New Moon task. You might want to sit down, though, so I can, like, get a running start if need be."
Corey looks blearily puzzled. "Running start?" Cudgeling his brain to come up with a reason for this, he merely gestures Diz inside for now. "Just... what's going on?"
Dizzy steps in quickly. "Remeber how I told you John asked me to come up with a punishment for you?" She says nothing more than that, seeing how fast the younger cub will realize what is going on.
Dizzy isn't far wrong. Once the other ragabash is in, Corey closes and locks the door. "Sheeyit. Is that still on? I'd thought that had been dropped already..."
"Yeah, well, I just didn't want him getting mad for not saying anything. Personally I thought the, you know, woods thing was punishment enough." She pauses to give dramatic effect, before continuing, "But then I remembered that I owed you one."
"I owe Hops several. How about you give it to him and we'll call it a night?" Deadpan delivery, without a trace of hope that the offer's taken. "Fine. So what're you planning?"
"Actually, what I had planned was pretty tame, compared to what John decided on," Dizzy admits, without a drop of sheepishness. "Apparently you'll be spending a lot of time in lupus, wearing a little sailor uniform. You know, like the type old ladies put their puppies in."
Corey blinks once. Twice. A grand total of three times, now. "Umm. Make me?"
Dizzy puts up a hand to her mouth to keep from laughing. "It'll look soooo kyoot on you. I dunno for how long, though. You'll have to talk to John for all the dirty details."
Corey smiles. It's not a nice smile. "Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't this supposed to be /your/ doing? I mean, so far John's told /you/ to come up with something, and yet you say /he/ gave the idea to you. So, I suppose the implementation is up to you. Which brings me back to the question, how are /you/ going to make me?"
Dizzy frowns at Corey and looks at him sternly, crossing her arms. "I had two ideas. One was you to wear dresses, the other was to have you stay as a wolf. He just put the two together. And /I/ am not making you do anything, he is. I'm just up here to tell you, warn you, what have you."
Corey raises an eyebrow. "You still didn't put them together yourself, and you still can't implement it yourself. Face it, you failed." The words are aggressive, but the tone is dubious.
Dizzy shakes her head, "You're grasping for straws, Core. Though, if you want help directing the anger and embarressment, I can help with that too. I have a whole list of people who need a little ragabash 'attention.'"
"FUCK! All right!" He's loud enough to wake the dead, now. "I just want to know, before anything happens, what's Hops getting for his part in the deal, and it BETTER be good."
Dizzy shrugs, giving Corey a blank look. "I haven't a clue. Maybe the same thing? All I was supposed to do was come up with one for you. You'd have to talk to John about that."
Corey growls as he undoes the locks and flings the door open. "OUT!" comes the exasperated command. "I will talk to John about it, later." When he drags Corey bodily out into the hall for this, the younger raggie means.
Dizzy walks out, just slow enough to be annoying to the obviously agitated male cub. "Have fun," she ads.
Hallway(#3407RJL)
The narrow stairwell leads up to a brightly lit hallway, with four doors along the sides, each door equipped with a small one-way peephole and a number. Several small security cameras are mounted near the ceiling. On the far end of the hall hangs a full-length mirror in a simple wooden frame.
Dizzy comes out of the boys' room, a small grin gracing her face. As the door closes, she breaks out into a huge grin. "Oh my god," she says under her breath.
Sophia peers out of the door to the girls' apartment, eyes wide. So much noise... what could be going on? Only about an inch of her face is visible.
Dizzy mock tiptoes over to Sophia. "Hey," she wispers, "Wanna hear something hilarious?"
Sophia blinks a few times, and raises her eyebrows. She steps out of the doorway, opening it as she goes and using it as a shield. Her posture is notably canine for one walking on two feet; head ducked low, watching warily.
Roach Motel: Bachelorette Pad(#4128RAJ$)
Small, but inviting, this little apartment is clearly dwelling of a person who spends a lot of time at home. The sitting area has a reclining chair with heating, massage, and built in stereo speakers. The sofa is big enough to fit two comfortably. The home entertainment center is overloaded with scores of books. Titles like "Rescuing the Bible From Middle America" or "Zarathustra: Modernism in Antiquity" can be seen here, along with dozens of dime-store paperbacks. Though the TV set and all its accompanying equipment take up quite as much space as the books, the electronics are somewhat dwarfed by the quantity of reading material. A fine writing table and a computer desk are crowded in, the computer powered up and humming softly. Two swivelling office chairs sit nearby, at attention. The walls are decorated with nature scenes, among them a well-rendered image of a pack of wolves howling at a full moon.
The kitchen looks as if it might never have been cooked in. A small microwave on the counter is still blinking "12:00", no one having bothered to set the clock. Beside it is an electric can opener. The only evidence of use is a single glass in the stainless steel sink and a few fast-food bags in the trashcan. The sole decoration on the refrigerator is a postcard bearing a photograph of a monstrous, grimy power plant with "Come to Hanford!" printed on the bottom in fluorescent green.
Through a door opposite the kitchen, the tiny bedroom looks slightly more lived-in. On top of a black particle-board dresser sit a hairbrush, a few hair-ties, and several plastic hairclips, along with a small pile of cheap costume jewelry. A frame designed to hold several of snapshots is hung squarely on the wall. One bed is made, a bright yellow bedspread bravely trying to cheer up the room. Another is made half-heartedly, the bedspread just carelessly tossed over the top, as if to humor someone.
Dizzy walks into the appartment, she can hardly contain herself. "Okay. Did I ever tell you that John asked me to come up with a punishment for Corey? For the whole gunshots prank that he pulled on John? Well, I told my idea to John, and now Corey is going to have to go around in lupus all of the time, wearing a little sailor suit." She grins widely, "Whatd'ya think?"
Sophia's eyebrows lift so high they look as if they might fly away. A wide grin spreads across her face, and she giggles quietly. "You're bad," she points out softly, shaking her head.
"That new guy, what's-his-name-Frisco, is a philodox too, so if he manages to get it off without damaging it and puts it back on when John checks on him, they'll be able to tell if he lies about wearing it all of the time. It was such a great idea. Sort of gets him back for the whole strap-on thing, too."
Sophia laughs silently and walks over to the couch, curling up on it in a neat little ball. "So... did everyone hold together while I was gone? Everyone's still who I remember?" she asks, voice still low.
Dizzy flops onto one of the chairs and grins at the ceiling, "Things sure were boring without you. I got to go into the Umbra for the first time. Getting some training from a Gnawer by the name of Yi. Corey's been okay. Hops is still a dick, though. We went for a walk in the park and he straight out talked to me as if I were a person." She shakes her fist in the air at an invisible Hops. "Oh, and we've got free roam again, and I can start taking classes again at SCCU. Only part time, though." She looks down and smiles at her roommate, glad that she's back, "How was the woods?"
Sophia's eyes fix on Dizzy's and she smiles. "Uneventful. Very, very quiet." After a moment, she frowns and tilts her head, looking at the carpet. "Uh... why don't you want Hops treating you like a person?"
Dizzy blinks, a tad confused, "When I'm in wolf form? So we keep the veil, you know. He was responding to what I was telling him and everything. I eventually just got fed up and we left the park."
Sophia shrugs and half smiles, nodding. "Yeah... some people talk to dogs, but they don't usually reply. People probably just thought he was off his rocker, if it's any consolation. People see what they want to see."
Dizzy shrugs, "I wouldn't mind if the carted him off to a mad house, personally. It's been nice and peaceful around here now that he's staying elsewhere."
Sophia frowns and hugs her knees. "I wish you wouldn't talk about him like that. Hopefully you hold your peace around people of other tribes, at least?"
Dizzy leans back again, "I got into a little tiff with Kit and some Gaian. After I tried to make peace with her too. The guy tried to sell me some drugs in McDonalds and when I turned him down, he started all up saying that I wasn't showing my elders respect. Fuck that. They took me outside to beat me up, but I was able to stall them until John and Roger arrived."
Sophia blinks several times in rapid succession. "You're changing the subject."
"Oh, I thought that was what you were talking about." Dizzy bobs her head from side to side. "I don't really talk to people in other tribes, expecially not about sensitive stuff around here. Sometimes I go to the farmhouse... brought Corey there the other day."
Sophia shakes her head. "No... I mean, I don't like the idea of you badmouthing a tribesmate in front of others. It makes the whole tribe look bad; first because they'll think Jon's a crackhead, second because they'll think you're a gossip, and third because they'll think the tribe isn't a high enough priority for you to hold your tongue. Do you see how Tobin and Jervis act? Does that make you admire or respect Silver Fangs?"
"Mostly they just complain about elders not being around, which I can sympathize with. But nah, I don't talk about Jon with them. He's pretty low on my shit-list. More pressing matters to deal with and such."
Sophia shrugs, holding her knees close. "They're always at each others' throats. It's pathetic, annoying, and childish. I mean... we do that too. But not in front of outsiders. Anyway... back to what you were saying before? You got in a fight with a Child of Gaia who tried to sell you drugs? And Kit didn't back you up?"
"No, she didn't," Dizzy says, thoroughly disgusted with that whole situation, "Right after I had made peace with her, too. I went out of my way to be nice to her. And I didn't get in a fight with the guy, he just started saying that I was a horrid cub because I wasn't showing him 'proper respect' and we were, like, in public in McDonalds. Fuck that. When among normal people, I'm just another normal person too. Protect the fucking veil."
Sophia shakes her head and looks at the ground. "That's a shameful way for an elder to behave, but unfortunately he's right about that he deserves respect. But again, he shouldn't have said it in public. He should have dragged you out of the restaurant and then chewed your ass. But that's not the point. How come you were on bad terms with Kit in the first place? Not on my behalf, I hope? I thought I'd told you that she and I worked that out..."
"Nah, Kit and I have our own shit," the new moon explains. "Back when Jeremy was threatening to leave after you two broke up, she was strutting around here, saying everything was going on because of her. When I said something to the contrary, she pulled a fucking knife on me. Can you belive that? That girl is pee ess why psycho."
Sophia raises her eyebrows and shrugs. "Ok... so then what? She and the druggee... who was this, by the way?"
Dizzy shrugs, "I have no idea. He knew Alicia though, or at least seemed to. She was pointing out the other garou around to him."
Sophia's eyes widen. "Ok... so a friend of mine and a friend of Alicia's ganged up on you in Mickey Dee's. The tried to make you take drugs, and then yelled at you when you wouldn't take them, and then they mentioned Garou stuff in front of normals, right there in the restaurant?"
"Okay, now _that_ sounds weird," Dizzy says, sitting up, "At least, when you say it like that. And he was just trying to sell me pot, not force me to do it or anything. And the garou stuff was wispered in close quarters, and then outside. Some lady came to my rescue, too. She offered to call the cops before John and Roger arrived."
Sophia's mouth wrinkles up and she glares at an offensive spot on the floor. "Well... I /guess/ being a pothead isn't against the litany, but... I dunno. It just doesn't seem right. Anyway. So I'm guessing you bitched the guy out though, right?"
"I told him I wasn't interested. I haven't done that since highschool and I'll be damned if I go back," Dizzy informs her roommate.
Sophia nods, like this much is obvious. There's a hint of pride in her eyes; she's glad her roommate is this wise. "Only, you bitched, right? As in, raised your voice, maybe told him to go fuck himself or something?"
Dizzy nods, grinning. "Yeah. Though, I didn't really yell until he sat on my poor car, trying to stop me from getting away so Kit could beat me up. The alarm went off and everything. I told him to go fuck himself and that's when the lady came up, asking if I needed her to call the police."
Sophia nods again. All of this is finally starting to make sense. "Ok. I get it now. So then Johna and Roger came to save you? How did you get ahold of them, and what did they do once they got there?"
"Well, it had gotten pretty late, and I guess they had come to look for me." Dizzy stands and heads for the kitchen, "Once they got there they locked the place down and took charge. Sorted everything out and everyone left on their way."
Sophia sighs, relieved. "I want that guy's name. Let me know, if you find out? He sounds like a sneaky bastard, and I'd like to not turn my back to him, if you know what I mean."
"Yeah," Dizzy says, opening the fridge and peering in. "I'll ask Alicia or something. If you meet some weird, tall, pothead in tie-dyed that's a Coggie, it's probably him." She closes the fridge door, disgusted. "I'm going to have to make a trip to the store."
Stores... what an odd concept. Sophia hasn't been into a place of business in ages. "Yeah," she remarks, growing quiet.
"Not tonight though," Dizzy observes, "It's getting late." She adds, heading for the linen closet, "I think I'm going to take a shower before bed."
Sophia stretches out on the couch and falls asleep without another word.