Stealing All The Forks

Kalen Holliday
[How awake are we?]

Dice: 7 d10 TN7 (2, 2, 4, 5, 5, 7, 7) ( success x 2 )

Kalen Holliday
[And how distracted by Resonance are we?]

Dice: 7 d10 TN6 (1, 3, 5, 6, 8, 8, 9) ( success x 4 )

Alexander
[Ooh yeah, Awareness and stuff]

Dice: 4 d10 TN6 (2, 3, 7, 9) ( success x 2 )

Danny
(How aware is Danny?)

Dice: 6 d10 TN6 (2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 10) ( success x 2 )

Kalen Holliday
Kalen is sprawled in his new favorite office, which is to say that he is lounging over a cracked vinyl booth, repaired in places with layers of duct tape.  He's drawing looks, though whether that's because he's got just a brush of something shimmery on his eyelids and looks extra ghost-pale in all black, or because he's working on a laptop with an actual newspaper is anyone's guess.

He has coffee too.  And, look, this is endlessly refilled diner coffee. He's drinking it without complaint.  Not that there is anyone to complain to, really.  But Dany has heard him talk about proper coffee and Alexander has seen him make proper coffee.  Of course, Alexander has also seen him here.

He does not have pie at the moment.  Only coffee.  And work.

Alexander
Coffee.  Work.  And now Alexander.

He’d swung by Alyssa’s place, on the off-chance she was in.  She knows rather more about spirits than he does, and he wants to ask about the ones he’d seen around the Black Orchid.  The kind of things that it’s best not to chat about over the phone – Grace would be so proud at his level or paranoia.

Not entirely surprisingly, she had been out.  But Kalen’s resonance had been felt on the ride past, and coffee and pie are good reasons to meet up with a friend.  So if he’s paying attention, there will be the sound of a motorbike approaching, parking and the engine dying away outside, along with the feel of an oncoming ice age.  So he arrives through the diner door, helmet in one hand.  A quick conversation with the bored-looking waitress and he slides into the other side of the booth with a cup of dark, possibly stewed, filter coffee.

“Hey.”

There may be pie to follow.  After all, there were plenty of other flavours they hadn’t gotten around to trying yet.

Danny
*Danny was..... lost.... And not for the first time in his life probably.  Somehow the route he'd intended to take had ended up with him here... in probably what could be safely described as "no man's land" as far as the city were concerned.

New housing mingling with old, sometimes dangerous... that would also mean there were mean dogs chained up in yards and groups of people collecting in places.  Figuring that this might well be the safest part of the entire area, he stopped outside the diner and parked up, then frowned as he looked around.

Going into the diner though, he didn't seem overly bothered, or was that merely his outer confidence?  Some times it was easier to just use his resonance like a shield, spark, spark spark spark... but at other times it attracted people like flies.

Today Danny would be wearing what was commonly known as something unremarkable. It wasn't cold as such outside, but he didn't want to take chances.

That newly done ink was carefully sheathed in his shabby chic combat boots, the tops of which were stuffed with the bottoms of a pair of faded blue skinny jeans. the chain for his wallet was attached to the belt he wore to keep them up. .  A black shirt spattered with what looked like scratches of purple sat on his torso and over that he had a black leather vest, undone with leather ties down the side seams.  Over which was his leather jacket itself.

He walked up to the bar after a quick and surreptitious look around without making eye contact with anyone in particular. But he was already alerted to the presence of Kalen, so hard to ignore that particular man and his swirling mass that heralded a storm. Then there was frozen waste that was Alexander. He didn't have the option of anything....... apart from yeah, that'd do. He rested his hand on the bar and smiled just  a little to the girl.* Uh... Coke, full fat with.... *he frowned and then nodded as he chose.* A cheeseburger with everything,  fries, oh and one of those icecream soda's on the side.  *He pulled out his wallet and handed out the notes for her, then turned again to look and see who else was there.  On the hand that put the wallet away there was a ring today, a big silver thing with a square top to it.*

Kalen Holliday
Oh.  Look.  The cosmos hates productivity.  Not surprising.

And seems as interested in smushing him together with Danny as Sera...?  Perhaps slightly more surprising.

He debates, momentarily, the wisdom of slipping under the table and over to Alexander's side, but flopping on Alexander for comedy may have to wait for summer.  He wasn't lying the other day.  He does hate to be cold.  So he unsprawls a little and nudges the things he has spread over the table into a corner so he's taking up something more like a reasonable amount of space.

"Hey, Alce," he says to Alexander.  "I think our strange habits of random confluence may soon be the only thing keeping this place in business.  It sure as hell isn't the coffee."  He curls up against the wall, regards Alexander with a kind of laziness that indicates he must already have run his threat assessments on Danny.  "How are you?"

Alexander
“I’m good.  Carrying on, y’know?  How about you?”  Alexander looks up from watching Kalen rearrange his things on the table to really look at him.  It wasn’t so long ago that he had to be almost kidnapped to get out and do something vaguely normal with other people.  There’s concern for how his friend is doing now.

Alexander holds the coffee cup between both hands, elbows resting on the edge of the booth table, looking over the top of the cup at Kalen.  There’s the occasional glance at the newcomer.  “You know him?”  he asks quietly.  Because he doesn’t, and there’s a slight tension in his posture at the table.  Nothing blatant, but something Kalen would notice.

Hopefully this won’t involve brawling in a back alley.  Again.

[And why not, Per+Awarempathy because dice are fun]

Dice: 4 d10 TN6 (1, 3, 4, 8) ( success x 1 )

Danny
*He got his drink then made his way over to the table, slipping in to perch on the seat next to Kalen after choosing him to be the lesser of the two evils.* Well now... ain't this just great... *He set his drink down and gave Alexander an upnod briefly, then eyed that alleged coffee substance they were drinking.* That stuff'll kill ya....   *Yeah, from the king of the redbull shine.*

Hannah
It wouldn't seem like it, but Hannah liked to have adventures. When the sun was out, and the shadows dissipated, she was more adventurous than ever. It was easiest, of course, when Victor was with her; everything was easier when Victor was with her.

Hannah liked coffee. She especially liked it because it made her more social sometimes, and it sometimes made the sounds go away.

You can do it. The soft voice muttered to her. See? Victor will help you.

Hannah was not easy to miss. She might have otherwise been a normal girl except that something was a bit wrong with her. "Yes, this is a good place." She said, her head tucked a little, hair hanging around her face. She wore a green cotton scarf wrapped around her throat, one bit hanging over her chest and the other over her back. Despite the weather, she wore a light fabric, loose long sleeve grey shirt with a another loose blue tank overtop, sporting some faded animal image on it. She wore a skirt, deep blue stockings and a pair of simple black shoes. With her was a retriever with a head haltie, and a vest laying over his back with the 'SERVICE DOG' listen in bold.

Hannah slipped in, a messenger at her side, and paused to assess exactly how to function in this diner; they were all different.

Kalen Holliday
"Mmmmmm...we've met.  Serafine somehow convinced me I should go on a date with him.  I'll report back on that train wreck after it happens.  Possibly by showing up at your place at four am with a bottle of whiskey."

He glances at Danny as he settles into the booth.  "Don't get too excited.  I think there's an unspoken somber and faded ambiance rule.  And don't you drink paint thinner or something?"

He returns his attention to Alexander.  "Alce, this is Danny."  He smiles faintly and glances back to Danny, waves at Alexander.  "Alexander."

And then his attention shifts again, this time toward Hannah.  Who is that?  Is she a threat?  What is off about her?

[Awarepathy at Hannah because being weird in Kalen's presence means you get studied.  At least until he's determined if you're dangerous.]

Dice: 7 d10 TN6 (1, 1, 2, 5, 6, 8, 8) ( success x 3 )

Alexander
There’s a faint smile when Kalen explains that Sera’s set them up on a date.  “I’ll make sure there’s some ice in the freezer and some clean shot glasses standing by.  I thought you and Ian were...  Dating?”

Danny walks over and the only available place to sit was next to Kalen.  Alexander looks up at the stranger as his destination becomes obvious and gives no indication that he’s going to budge up to make space.  Until he gets comfortable with the guy, he wants to be able to leave.  Not that there’s any indication that that’s going to happen either.  He does return the nod, though, and adds a “Hi,” when Kalen introduces him.  It may not be the warmest of welcomes, and his resonance doesn’t help, but it’s not hostile as such.  Just... wary.

Then?  His attention turns towards the Hannah as well.  He remembers some of the mages who had been around for longer talking about how there had been a sudden influx of newcomers around the time that he arrived and Awakened.  It looks like the floodgates have opened again.   Kalen’s attention on her flags her as a stranger.  Someone to be watched.

Alexander
[And because we're looking for threats, Per+Alert at Hannah]

Dice: 6 d10 TN6 (1, 1, 3, 3, 4, 5) ( fail )

Danny
*He nodded again to Alce, then grinned before glancing at Kalen.* They don't have my particular brand of poison on the shelf so.. *he shrugged one shoulder and then frowned as he saw Hannah, leaning slightly closer to Kalen and adding Alex into it.*

Be nice... I think she's.... I dunno, broken some how. She went off at me last night, something to do with Red. Seems real skittish, but you'll see. Ian talked to her a bit. after Sera calmed her down, I don't know what set her off but she was huddling and  curling up in the corner on the pavement outside a restaurant. *he picked up his drink and took a long sip of the near black engine cleaner his eyes finally moving from Hannah to Alexander again.*

Danny
(Don't wait for Hannah, her player is doing stuff and will post intermittently.)

Hannah
She lowers her eyes even further to avoid noticing any attention she might be getting. You need to sit. Hannah nodded slowly to herself. "First step. First step is find a place." You can do it. They're looking. You can do it.

Hannah took in a deep breath and slowly stepped forward, trying to put as much space as she could between herself and the other diners. The light was soothing in itself. No monsters here, not yet. "The smell is different."

Hannah found her way to a seat, a booth away from others, and she slid right in easily. Victor, the dog, sat on the outside. For his obedience, she stroked his head. "Good. Good." The bag was set on the seat. "Stay." And she let go of his leash to pull books from her bag and set them out on the table. "No. I know it does, but...."

Kalen Holliday
Kalen...well...almost chokes on nothing at all when Alexander suggests that maybe Kalen and Ian might be dating.  "No.  No."  He shakes his head.  "Not...no.  We...no.  Not even sleeping together anymore.  That whole...coma thing got...intense and then just...yeah.  No."

He listens to Danny, glances at Hannah, and nods.  "Right.  I'll try to be gentle.  That...always works so well."  Sure it does.  He is perfectly capable of it with Sera.  Grace.  You know...people he knows.

He looks back to Alexander and smiles.  "I was thinking we could use a place to hang out, you know, before formal formal introductions, with people who are just getting to know the city, and I was thinking maybe my place.  I mean...it has decent security.  Even if we accidentally bring home something awful.  And there isn't much we can't replace if we decide to burn it down."

Alexander
Kalen’s response about Ian is only half-heard and Danny isn’t so much forgotten about as ignored for the moment.  His attention is on Hannah.  There’s something very not right about her – the way she’s reacting to them, the way she tries to hide away from everyone else in the place, avoids making eye contact.  Everything about her screams that she’s up to something.

He glances at Kalen but doesn’t return the smile.  “Have you added a secret tunnel out of the place?  You might be able to stop them getting in, but they can stop you getting out too.”  His gaze returns to the booth and as much of Hannah as he can see.

She’s got to be up to something...

Danny
*He couldn't help but listen to that idea and found himself nodding to it. Then piped up.*

Your place? *he turned to look at Kalen for a moment, not commenting on the whole relationship thing.* Sounds good.

*Then he sets his hand on the table, the one with the switch ring on it and pushes himself out of the seat, slowly making his way over like one might approach a skittish horse or something, well.... that's how he thought of it anyhow. When he was at the end of the booth he leaned on the edge of the seat facing her.* Hey.... You doing okay today?  That's a nice dog you got there... I won't make a fuss of him, he's working.



Kalen Holliday
He watches Alexander and Danny, then Hannah again for a few seconds.

"Mmmmmm...well.  Grace won't have advanced escape tunnel plans anytime soon.  Soon enough, yes, but for the immediate future...point.  Still.  There aren't a lot of options."  He sighs, and then reaches all the way across the table to touch Alexander's shoulder.  "Hey.  I'm not sure what's going on there, but I think she might be less skittish if we don't look at her like she's about to summon demons, huh?  I mean, I know.  Me.  Social anything.  Just a theory...."

He does watch, though not particularly intently, as Danny speaks with Hannah.  But unless something changes...she doesn't seem like much of a threat.  Not to him, anyway.  He does frown, just a little.

"Unless you see something I don't.  But...if there's anything to worry about there in any immediate sense...I missed it."

Hannah
It was less his voice and more his shadow that seemed to alert her to his presence. Hannah had set a textbook on the table and had her notebook opened, a green pen sitting on the pages. Her eyes shifted to Danny, though never fully up, just enough to notice who he is...and slowly.

"I know who it is." She muttered. "I remember!" She hissed into the booth, then looked back towards Danny. Her lips pursed into a thin line and she dropped her eyes. "...Yes." She forced out. "But they're crying again. No one hears them, but carries them everywhere. "

Her chin shifted, her attention moving to the dog, a hand placed on his head. "Victor. He's Victor."

Danny
*He smiles, even moving to a slow and easy half crouch to allow the men behind him a better view of Hannah.* He's a good one, looks clever too. I bet he's smart.  *Then he looked at Hannah again.*

You know, if you want to, you can come over and sit nearer to us. We ain't gonna bite you none...  *he leans a bit closer to her but only as far as the edge of the table.* Kalen, the guy with the laptop, he's a friend of Sera's. You met her last night, she wore those spikey boots?

Alexander
He watches as Danny gets up and moves over to the other booth, wary.  On edge.  Waiting for something to happen, even if he just can’t put his finger on what it is that’s wrong.  It’s just something in her manner, the way she moves, the way she acts...  The same inkling when he’s watching someone who he just knows is about to do something illegal.  It’s a sense he’s come to trust.

Unless you see something I don’t.  He nods slowly, still watching the other booth.  “I can’t tell you what, but there’s something that’s just not right about her.”  He glaces at Kalen with a faint smile.  “Well, more than usually not right when it’s one of us.”

Hannah
Maria always told her she should try to make friends. It was the hardest thing to do sometimes, but she should do it. Hannah smiled warmly. "He is. He really likes food. More than me." She's feeling much better. Some days are clearer than others. Some days she can't get the words out right. Victor always helps.

Then her smile slowly faltered and she lifted her eyes to look towards the other two. She was clearly looking at them, but she made sure not to meet their faces. "Sera?" Her lips tightened. "The woman with the half head?" Oh she remembered the shoes. She never forgets something like that. Or Danny's jacket, or Ian's coat.

Her eyes drop to her lap, considering the offer being made. A small nod came from her. "Ok." Because she should make friends, and she knew Danny..and Sera. And Ian. And the woman they were with, the one who gave her the bracelet that held the sun.

Hannah moved, picking up the leash after stuffing her books in her bag. "Stand, Victor." The dog rose, tail giving a slow wag as she slipped out of th ebook with her goods.

Kalen Holliday
"Well.  She does seem strange, but as far as I can tell...it's just because she's so skittish.  She doesn't seem to mean anyone any harm."  He stretches himself back out over the full length of the booth with Danny gone.  Like a cat that has to take up all of the available space.  "And if we haven't heard anything from Ian or Serafine...they're good with people, or at least understanding them."

He tracks Danny and Hannah, but it's much less of a thing that seems to concern him.  He does not turn those eyes on her the way he did the day he met Danny.  Alexander was spared that, but only because Kalen was distracted by the Avatar storm and then Alexander was saving Sera so...he never really got that look.

"She might need our help.  Denver is a bit like the island of misfit toys sometimes.  Which is cool.  I doubt anywhere else would have kept me.  But...maybe she just needs to be here too."  And then Hannah is moving and Kalen does not curl back up but slides under the table and then up on Alexander's side, leaving Alexander the outside because only one of them probably cares much about being pinned right now.  And that leaves Hannah having to deal with being next to neither of them.

He reaches over to close the laptop, not that the mapping program is precisely classified, and pulls not the laptop but his coffee to his new side of the table.  "Everything will be fine, Alce.  If nothing else, because we make it so."  He murmurs, and he sounds so relaxed, so perfectly sure of that.  Sometimes it's hard to reconcile all the moments of Kalen.  Because they get so damned contradictory.

Danny
There you go.  Its okay...  I'll move into the corner that way you can keep Victor with you.. that okay? And you can go any time.. It's all good. *he kept his voice calm and steady.*

See? *he grins and gets comfortable, hauling his drink over to where he would be sitting now without disturbing Kalens stuff too much.*

Hannah
Hannah followed, and when she sat in the booth, she made sure to keep enough distance between her and Danny that she wouldn't rub her elbow into his, or any part of her arm really. The dog took up the space on the outside of the booth at her side. The bag? She set it between her and Danny, setting up that obvious barrier.

Her hand reached out to stroke the dog gently as she kept her head down enough that she wasn't making eye contact with the two across from her. "I know." She said, feeling the tension between ehrself and the others. And what does one do now? Maria would say that people talk to one another.

"Do you like cake?"

Alexander
Kalen gets a slightly strange look from Alexander when he says Ian is good with people.  Sera, absolutely?  But that guy?  Admittedly their first meeting was less than stellar.  The second involved guns and swords and corrupted nature spirits.  The third?  Ok, maybe the guy isn’t a complete dick.  Maybe.  And he was, at least, concerned about Sky...

Hannah and Danny – and Victor – start making their way over from the other booth.  Quietly, before they get close enough to hear, he tells Kalen, “I don’t trust her.  Really.”  He gets another odd look at Everything will be fine...  and the conviction behind it.  The man can be more human than he ever realises before swinging back into... something else.  He considers the two approaching and makes a decision.  He stands.

For a few seconds, Kalen gets his complete attention – trying to reinforce his opinion that something’s just not right.  “You be careful.”  The moment passes and he looks at the others as they slide into the booth.  “Have a good day.”  His gaze passes over the other two as he turns towards the exit and, leaving a couple of notes on the counter for the barely-touched coffee, heads out into the street.

[Thanks for the scene – I go to take drugs and pass out on the couch.]

Danny
(Okay. feel better soon hun)

Kalen Holliday
Kalen nods to Alexander and then let the two people coming to the table have his attention.  He sprawls back out again once Alexander is gone.  No threats here.  Sure.  Except...they are Mages.  Not all of them have to be able to move to be dangerous.

"They have fourteen kinds of pie," Kalen says.  "So naturally I have yet to try the cake."  He says this as though it makes perfect sense.  Logical deductions.  Totally.

"I'm Kalen."  He does not reach across the table, he leaves her her space.  Or keeps his.  Something.

Danny
I lurve cake. *he grins and takes another sip of that drink, just as the burger was brought over with his fries and the icecream float to go with it.  He picks out a chip and dips it in some BBQ sauce before munching on it. Before he shifts Kalens stuff carefully and without getting grease on them to set them on the laptop and push them towards Kalen, towards safety.*  So, what's your name then? I don't think we got introduced properly last night. And you didn't say it earlier when you mentioned Victors.

Hannah
"Pie?" There's a perk to her voice."PIE?" Oh she likes pie. "Cake is good.It has good shape. Smooth. Smooth on the top, round."

When Danny's food came, Hannah made an obvious attempt to put distance between herself and it. She wouldn't touch the place or so much as look at it.  What she did do, was steal a fry from his food, one that hadn't been touching the burger.

"Hannah. I'm Hannah. I forget. I always forget. Names. They wander away sometimes. I forget to look for them."

Kalen Holliday
"Uh-huh."  Kalen says, in response to the information supplied about the shape of cake.  He doesn't seem to find that half as odd as one might expect.

"I like the shape of blackberries.  Still round.  Still smooth in places.  But, you know, also interesting."

Danny
*He didn't miss the fact she stole food from his plate, just glanced at Kalen and nodded subtly. He moved the plate just a little, turning it so that she could help herself a bit more to the chips.*  You know what I find fascinating? Beehives. How the hell do those little fellas figure their tube things? They're all the same! Everywhere!!

Hannah
"Not the hair. The shape. Not the hair." She grabbed another fry, not seeming to realize or understand that she was taking Danny's food.

She blinked, glancing to the side at Danny and trying to avoid looking at the burger. "Scent. Bees smell. Bees use smell and direction and the sun to know where they're going. When bees come back from an adventure, they dance for the bees to show them where to go for honey. They use angle to the sun, and scent to say that the flower is this way and that way, even though sometimes they get it wrong." She moved her hands to her scarf, smoothing the fabric out as she talked. "Did you ever talk to a bee? They're really nice."

Kalen Holliday
Kalen takes a breath.  Yeah.  Denver.  Island of misfit toys.  Opinion...definitely not revised.

"I...no.  Never had the occasion to converse with any bees."  He still seems fine with the conversation.  But then, he doesn't really do normal conversation either.  "Dancing's cool though."

Danny
Well fancy that... I never knew that... Colour me impressed as all hell right now. *He nodded glancing at Hannah before he picked up the burger carefully and moved it the napkin so she could just go ahead with the plate unmolested.  Then he got up close and personal, taking the first bite and enjoying it.*

Dancing... *he nodded and swallowed.* One of the most primal things there is, goes right back to the beat.  I never knew bee's knew how to boogie though.

Hannah
Her voice elevates as she picks up another fry, putting it between her lips. "They do! They do they do! And they're real nice if youdon't..." She made a motion with her fingers as if squeezing or touching something. "They like pollen. Lots of pollen. So you give them flowers. But only the right flowers because if you give them the wrong flowers they won't like you that much, course it's ahrd to know the right flowers because they see different patterns and we don't see them." She just...talked, not so mindful of their presence. Hannah shifted in her seat, wiggling slightly out of her seat. "See? See they dance like this.." And she wiggled her butt, taking a few steps forward, then turning around and making a figure 8, meeting back at the beginning and wiggling as she stepped forward again. "And they vibrate their wings like this.." She shoot her arms out to her side, despite being in a diner, and maybe getting in someone's way. She has to dance the bee dance!

Lena Reilly
[[Per+Aware for magedar!  Spec: Uncanny Instincts]]

Dice: 7 d10 TN6 (2, 2, 3, 3, 5, 6, 9, 10, 10) ( success x 4 ) Re-rolls: 2

Lena Reilly
A nice, pleasant and fairly warm day in Denver usually means that Lena's out and about.  The DJ is far from the most social of mages, at least among the Awakened community itself, but she does enjoy being out with the sun on her face and people milling about her.  It's one thing to not engage people much, but the ability to watch life exist in a chaotic, beautiful clash around her is something that Lena can't often avoid.

Of course, that might be easier if she wasn't caught up in her own world.  But in this case, as happens sometimes, she absolutely is.  Finding Lena without music in her ears is a true rarity, and sometimes she's inspired.  That usually means that she's dancing as she walks, and that's the case now.  She's in a state of motion, her shoulders swaying a little and her hands twisting and turning as she walks down the street and toward the diner.  What she's dancing to is hard to guess; her earbuds are in and not loud enough to be heard outside of them.  But she's caught up in the moment and however people around her may be reacting to it...well, that's their problem.

As she passes in front of the diner, she picks up a familiar Resonance.  That heavy storm is hard to miss, after all.  She quirks a smile and, without missing a beat, hip-checks her way through the door.  Her hair is free and loose, falling over her shoulders and the "In Love With the DJ"-emblazoned tank top that she's wearing.  A pair of jeans and comfortable sandals completes the look, and she finally opens her eyes (funny how she wasn't running into anything) when she gets in, her sight falling on Kalen and the other two.  With a smile and nod, she starts to make her way over there.

Kalen Holliday
"Well.  I do generally refrain from petting bees.  I find that's best for all...."  He watches Hannah start a bee dance in the diner.  Huh.

"...for all involved.  Why don't we sit back down?  Tell me more about the flowers.  What kind of flowers do bees like?  How do I figure that out?  Do they like different ones, different bees?  Different flowers at different times?  I would hate to bring the wrong ones."

And then there is Lena, and he is moving to not take up an entire bench of the booth again so she can sit somewhere without pulling up any chairs and possibly displacing any dogs.

Danny
*Danny could've laughed watching the girl waaggle her trunk around like that, but then just as the smile began to broaden... Kalen spoke and he frankly, could've just hugged him there and then, the guy was trying.  He was really honest to god trying and that made such a difference. It helped him to relax more and he didn't worry about eating now,  Then Lena was coming closer and he turned his head to look at her as he took another bite of the burger.* Bee's are cool... *he managed before he continued to eat and swallow.* Little funk masters.

Hannah
[am packing up to head home.. keep going! BBS]

Lena Reilly
Hannah's bee dance draws an amused smile, but she's not one to complain or deride someone for dancing after all, is she?  She pulls the earbuds out and puts her iPod into her pocket, giving Kalen a smile.

"Hey, you.  It's been a little while...how are you?"

So as not to make them feel left out, she looks at the other side of the table and smiles to the both of the people she doesn't know.  "Hello."  She doesn't just sit down...that's never been her thing.  Some people have personal bubbles and she knows Kalen be okay with it, but joining a table without being invited is still a thing for her.

Kalen Holliday
"Hey, Hummingbird.  Join us.  We're talking about bees.  Sometimes with demonstrations of bees dancing.  Right now, though, picking out flowers for bees.  Apparently not just any flower will do.  If you pick the right flowers though, bees will like you.  Apparently they appreciate attention to detail.  Or, at least, to their desires.  Making them shockingly human."

He smiles.  "Our resident bee whisperer is Hannah, that's Danny."  He waves at each of them absently.  "This is Lena."

Danny
*He lifted his left hand and waved his fingers in a brief curl. Then picked up his drink again to take a sip.* Hey Lena..

*He would've offered introductions, but Kalen took care of that. He wore just his face today, not working so there was no need to have put his eyeliner on... besides, really? Was it safe to wear it during the day all the time? Probably not.*

You look familiar, do I know you?

Lena Reilly
She can't help but shiver a little when bees are mentioned.  She's not bee-phobic or anything, but it was a bee (of sorts) that got her into the whole Hydra mess.  Still, she puts on a smile.  "Not my favorite insects, but they have their charms.  Nice to meet you Danny, Hannah."

No hand extended to the two of them.  Just a little wave of fingers.  When Danny asks if he knows her, she smiles a bit.  "Maybe.  I DJ for a lot of the clubs around here.  Did it in New York and a few other cities as well.  I go by DJ Halcyon.  You're familiar to me too, actually.  Do you hit up a lot of clubs?"

Kalen Holliday
Kalen settles back against the corner of the booth.  He takes a sip of coffee and makes only a tiny grimace, then sets it back down.   He seems content to just let Danny and Lena figure out how they know each other for the moment.

He watches the three of them quietly.  He is curious about all of them, after all.

Danny
*That newly done ink was carefully sheathed in his shabby chic combat boots, the tops of which were stuffed with the bottoms of a pair of faded blue skinny jeans. the chain for his wallet was attached to the belt he wore to keep them up. .  A black shirt spattered with what looked like scratches of purple sat on his torso and over that he had a black leather vest, undone with leather ties down the side seams.  Over which was his leather jacket itself.*

Ahh.. yeah.. *He smiled lopsidedly and shrugged one shoulder again.*  Drothe.. *he supplied the name. Now it made sense, rock guitarist/singer, a good one too by all accounts, an ax-man with lightning riffs and fingers that danced down the fret-board; and now he was here in Denver. Not LA.* It'll be good to hear a set some time.

Lena Reilly
It clicks when he lists his stage name, and she smiles.  "Ooh, right.  I've heard of you.  Very cool...well, welcome to Denver.  From one music professional to another, it's a good place for us.  We have a pretty fantastic music scene here."

She turns her gaze back to Kalen, shifting her weight from one foot to the other.  "So what's new?  Have I missed anything exciting as of late?"

Hannah
Hannah slipped into her seat, doing her best not to bump into Victor as he laid on the floor near her. Her hands slipped to her scarf, smoothing the fabric a bit shyly as she looked to her lap. Her head hung, letting the hair slide around her face. Hannah reached over to slip a fry from Danny's plate, munching it like a rabbit.

They all talked, and Hannah reached into her bag to pull out her book. Her feet curled up into the booth, the bound object being placed against her knees. She was crowded, at least by the seat and the table, but it felt secure.  Lena had said hi, and Hannah lifted a hand as a method of greeting, and let it drop.

Kalen Holliday
"Mmmmmmmmm...I will definitely have to catch you up.  Probably nothing will actually explode in the near future."  He smiles.  "We can hope, at least."

He glances at Danny.  "Mmmmmmmm...don't be confused.  Not all the people you meet around me are musicians or dancers or DJs or something."

Danny
*His eyes moved to Kalen as he spoke then grinned.* Yeah, I figured....  *then he turned his attention to Hannah as she sat back down.* So, which bee's like what flowers then Hannah?

Lena Reilly
"Well, hopefully not."  She chuckles and finally moves to take a seat, leaving some space between her and Kalen.  She settles comfortably in, looking to the two newcomers as Danny asks about bees and what flowers they like.  It's not something in which she has any area of expertise and she's more interested in getting to know the two than offering her opinion, anyway.

She has a certain amount of ease in her posture as she settles in, although that's only to a point.  She's never been particularly comfortable when there are a lot of new people around.  Large crowds and one-on-one are both fine for her.  Crises...also fine.  When it comes to small groups that she doesn't know very well, that's a different situation.

Hannah
"Basil, mint, watermelon, melon, oregano, chives, berries, clovers, lilacs, bee's balm..." She focused on the book in front of her, turning to the appropriate page for an examination of old architecture. "Tulips, sunflowers, maple trees, black locust, sumacs, tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, black-eyed susans, golden-rods, pumpkins..."

"Mostly wildflowers, and flowering plants that have long blooming cycles. The last bee to give me words loved blueberries." She shifted a little in her seat,turning a page as she focused hard on the words. She reached over, absently, to steal another fry.

Kalen Holliday
Kalen just nods. "Blueberries, huh?  I have a friend who makes fantastic blueberry scones.  Do you want some cake?  Because at some point Danny is going to run out of fries.  We wouldn't want him to be hungry, would we?"

He glances at Lena and smiles, "Things are mostly good, considering.  I've just been playing with some ideas, and considering one of our last conversations, I think maybe you'll have thoughts.  That's all."

Danny
*He was still tucking into the burger but leaving the fries for Hannah to munch down, taking his time as he enjoyed it, it wasn't terrible, but well, it was okay. It did the job. Hannah and her seemingly endless list of plant made his eye brows rise up slowly and he turned his head to look at her for a long moment, then he nodded after just making a sound.* Mmmhmm.

*Then his eyes lifted to look at the other two at the table, pausing from time to time he took a suck of the drink he had beside the plate, then reached over and nudged the plate of chips a little closer to Hannah. All in all, he was far more relaxed as he sat and got to know the people around him. Kalen wasn't talking, which was fine, it was almost possible he was  prone to silences he'd begun to realise. As if he needed time to adjust to what ever impulse he had in his head. Don't push... he'd been told repeatedly, so that's not what he tried to do, not trying to force an effort from the other guy.

When he'd finished his burger he pushed took another drink of the coke he'd ordered and leaned back in his seat, resting his shoulders back against the cushions. His right hand and it's longer black nails lifting as he wiped the corners of his mouth on the napkin.*

No I'm good. *He chuckles.* But if you want cake or pie, let me know.

Lena Reilly
"What, because I've always exhibited such great judgment in the past?"  She says it with a bit of a grin.  Kalen's one of the people with whom Lena is fully comfortable in Denver.  They had their rocky start but that was due to outside factors and once they got to know each other, Lena warmed to him.  It's like she said once before (abbreviated version): Kalen 101 is What a dick.  Kalen 201?  I’ll kill you if you hurt him.

She's joking in this little bit of self-deprecation though.  She has her insecurities, but this moment doesn't involve them.  "Yeah, absolutely.  Any time you want to pass anything by me, you know that I'm game."

She turns her attention to Danny for a moment.  "So what brings you to Denver anyway?  Just a waystation, or something more permanent."

Hannah
"No. No no. Not bread. Blueberries. She liked blueberries. Not scones. Scones not flowers."

"Pie." She said it even before Kalen and Danny had even really finished. "Pie. Not bad color pie. No bad color pie. No." She shook her head slowly, hair sliding around her face as she did, reaching up to grab another fry again, stuffing it in her mouth one munch at a time. "Three. Three pieces. "

Danny
*He had to consider the question and the surroundings, then he shrugged one shoulder a bit again.*

Mostly?  Learning.. *he nods, making eye contact with her for a minute before he looked away again.*  trying to figure a few things out, get my head around a few things... *That was right, be vague and hope for the best, it was easier this way it sort of left a few things out but... he couldn't help that. Then he caught up with what Hannah had said and nodded.*

Right, so... uh....... *Then he blinked in surprise again and chuckled.* You want three peices of pie?

Kalen Holliday
"Well.  You know.  I can't speak to that.  I do know you have absolutely no problem telling me things you'd like me to do when I haven't asked, so I assume you'll tell me them definitely when I do."  He only sounds amused.

That doesn't really change at Hannah's pronouncement.  "Yeah?  What colors are good colors?  Do the colors have to match?  Should they all be the same color?"

Lena Reilly
She knows the point that Kalen's talking about; she remembers it well.  It was during that point in which everything was a haze for her, but it was also the first time in Denver that she willingly got close to someone in a physical capacity.

She smiles a bit...not at the memory, but just at Kalen's reference of it.  It's a reserved smile, amused but not ebullient.  "In all fairness, I was a completely mindfucked mess at that moment."  She might expound further, but her gaze quickly shifts across the table and she lets it drop.

"But yeah, I'll give you feedback, no problem."

Hannah
"Three."

She didn't need to elaborate did she? Three was just the best number. She reached into her bag for her green pen, ruffling her hand around. "Mr green..." Her legs dropped and she leaned over the bag to look inside, stuffing her head in it as if they would give her a better view. "Shh...I didn't. Its there. I know it is. I put it there. You saw me. "

"Good colors are good colors. Bad colors are bad colors. All same is not good. Bees don't like all same. Deer don't like all same. All same is not good colors." Hannah's book, forgotten now, slumped to the floor with a thud as she now focused all of her attention on her bag. The service job jumped a little, then rolled on his side. He stretched his nose out to sniff at the noise maker.

"Where is it? Did I forget again?"

Grace
[Awareness/Perception = resonance detection!]

Dice: 5 d10 TN6 (3, 7, 7, 8, 9) ( success x 4 )

Danny
*He nodded and reached for a table menu then handed it to Hannah.* Well, take a look and decide.  *No, he didn't want to fall foul of the girl losing it again with this matter and hang up she had with colours. Part of him was curious about which ones were bad, which were good and even more, why they were bad and good.   The conversation between Kalen and Lena made him a little bit curious but he didn't pry on that either. Somethings were best left un-asked... besides, he could imagine just judging from the reaction last night.  Still, the girl was now rummaging around in her bag to try and find what she needed.

He shifted in the seat and reached into his pocket for his phone, sliding  his thumb over the lit up screen before hitting the side switch to turn the screen off again, then he put it away, He looked at Lena once more..* So, what about you? Why're you in Denver and not in NYC holding your own with the DJs up there?

Grace
East Colfax is a rough street to put it mildly. It also houses a warehouse full of high-and-low-tech Etheric toys, and Kalen's new favorite place to obtain pie. So it cannot be all bad. Just mostly rotten.

Mostly rotten is still enough of a reason to watch out. And by this, we mean that Grace is not walking into the diner with her eyes firmly planted into her cell phone. She is at least paying some attention. And that means she gets to experience the the full flood of 'here be Mages' that is a sparkling, stormy, growing, dying beat. She looks over to the table.

Oh, so it's going to be one of those days. Like, a 60-40 chance of doom and monsters. That's what it means when they congregate like this, right?

Her eyes roll at the universe's perverse jests. Ha ha, universe, I am on to you.

Today, Grace is dressed in jeans, sneakers, and a grey turtleneck jacket. Does she ever dress in any other fashion? Not by her own free will, she doesn't.

In any case, she walks over, puts on a happy countenance. Hey, it might not rain vampires today. The sun hasn't set yet, right?

"Hey," she says, to everyone. Apparently someone is a woman of few words today.

Lena Reilly
She goes to answer Danny, but her cell phone rings.  She frowns and looks at it.

"Sorry guys, I have to take this call.  It was nice meeting you Danny, Hannah."

She slips up out of the seat and makes her way to leave.

[[Thanks for the scene, guys!  Getting a little crowded for me.]]

Danny
(Okay, see you later thanks as well)

Kalen Holliday
Kalen frowns a little, watching Hannah.  But she'll find whatever she wants or not and Danny is offering her a menu.  Presumably she can pick out things in the proper colors.

Deep breath, Holliday.  This is totally easy to fix.  You just need a Master of the Ars Mentis.  No big deal.  Just find one and figure out what they want in return for helping you and this won't even be a thing.  What's the worst they could ask?

"Ah.  Hi, Kit.  This is Danny and Hannah."

"I'll call you," he says to Lena.  "Take care."

Hannah
She purse he rlips, pulling her head out of the bag and lifting it, spilling the contents onto the table, regardless of where it all landed. Pens, pencils, notebooks, the shiny bracelet, paperclips that were bent out of shape. Erasers, pen caps that had been chewed on, a small bag of dog treats, a chew toy...

"Where is it?" Her voice lifted. "Sh! Shut up. I know! I didn't mean to! I really didn't!" Now she was running her hands through the things she had dumped until finally, her hands found the green pen. Hannah let out a slow and steady sigh as she hugged it. "Thought I lost you."

Another long sigh and she was glancing towards Grace through the strands of her hair, letting her eyes cast down as she pluckd the menu from Danny' hands. "That one." She picked a blueberry pie. "Three."

The dog next to her, with SERVICE DOG on his vest, lifted his head up as he detected the bag, and Hannah opened it, pulling out a few treats to hand to him. "Good. You're so good Victor." Her voice raising, but not in panic this time.

Danny
*He nodded to Lena as she went, then watched as Grace approached.* Hey Grace.

*In the meantime he was keeping an eye on what Hannah was up to, some how just felt kind of responsible around her. Which was fucked up, specially considering he'd just spent the past two or three years living out of the back of a car, motel hopping and touring. He watched with a frown appearing on his face as Hannah seemed to begin to get more anxious, then breathed out softly when she found what was was looking for.  Then motioned to the waitress for service, placing the order for three portions of the blueberry pie.*

Serafíne
Awareness.

Dice: 7 d10 TN5 (2, 3, 3, 4, 4, 7, 8) ( success x 2 )

Serafíne
"It's like - "  Sera is explaining something to Richard with a protracted precision.  Smiling around the words, laughing at the way they get themselves made somehow, somewhere, some way within the frame of her body.  She's explaining something to Richard while she's pushing open the door, hands skimming the glass frame, her golden head canted strangely as if she were listening to something no one else can hear.

"It's like - it's like - "

Which may be true.  She's stoned.  Pupils dilated, the black devouring the blue, though beyond the most intense of her hallucinations, which were more disturbing this trip than they usually might be.  Somehow though she's come down, and calmed down, and slipped into this phase where she feels both voluble and cocooned.

Meeting Richard a bit earlier was a coincidence.  Perhaps they smoked a joint.  Perhaps she then suggested that they go someplace for pie.  ("Chicken pot pie.")  Oh Sera, you're so clever.

And eating seems like a good idea.  She's looking, well, just a touch thin these days.

"Oooooh, Kalen's here."  To Richard, turning back to him as he comes in after.  "Fuck, I forgot what I was saying."

Grace
"Bye, er, Lena..." Grace says, trailing off when she realizes that the reason Lena's leaving is a phone call, and she probably won't even be heard.

But then, she starts paying more attention to the table's current residents, and glances to Kalen -- a silent communication of 'wtf'. Hannah, darling, you do not broadcast to the world that you hear voices like that. It's a great way to get involuntarily committed.

Then again, this is East Colfax. Everyone on this street has probably seen it before and couldn't care less.

"Yeah, I've met Danny. He bought me a gelato coffee thing," Grace says. "It was good."

The telltale ringing of Kalen's cell phone signals his abrupt departure. Everyone is getting calls today, it seems. [OOC: Ix is internet-troubled right now, so Kalen's going awaaaaay]

Serafíne
(Well, uh. nix the Kalen bit from my post, whatever.)

Richard
They did, in fact, smoke a joint.  And now Richard is ambling along in Serafine's wake, feeling very tall and very mellow.  Which is unsurprising, because he is, in fact, both very tall and very mellow at the moment.  "I forgot what you were saying too," he laughs, because it is true, and because it is humorous.  To him, anyway.  He reaches over her to open the door wider, drawing himself up, taking a deep breath.

"Chicken pot pie," he muses.  "I like turkey better.  Hey, wasn't that -- " well; doesn't matter, he's left.  "Do you know that girl?"

Him being the recently-departed Kalen.  That girl being his table-mate.  Obviously.  It is not quite cold outside, but Richard has a light jacket on anyway, which he shrugs out of now.  Beneath: buttondown shirt, jeans.  Nice quality.  Muted colors.  It's autumn, after all.

Hannah
With her green pen triumphantly in hand, and the dog treats slowly slipped back in her bag, she leans under the table to grab the book that had fallen, pulling it in her lap. Hannah bites her lower lip, no chews on it, as she she scribbles in her book, nodding her head. "Yes yes, that's right. I know that's right. You -don't- have to remind me."



Danny
*He motioned for the seat that was now empty across from both him and Hannah to be taken if they wanted to. Smiling at them as he did so.* This is Hannah.



Serafíne
Richard must feel especially tall when he's walking in Sera's wake today.  She's not wearing heels, just her Docs, so the extraordinarily tall swimmer is more than a foot taller than Sera herself.  She has paired opaque thigh-high stockings that resolve around her thighs in a silhouette motify of a Parisian skyline with her combat boots and cut-off denim shorts today, along with a men's tuxedo jacket that seems several sizes too large, the sleeves all rolled up, over, you know, a little black and pink bra.

"Her."  Sera is turning back to Richard, smiling now, aware of how her mouth curls, thinking strangely about the limits of her cheeks and what a strange thing lips are.  "And her and also him."

Confirming, you see, this small note of triumph in her voice as she glances back and up at him.  "I know fucking everyone."  No sign of the darkness that might've slipped its arms around her half-way through the joint, not anymore, not now.  "C'mon.  I'll introduce you.  Maybe you met Grace at Hawksley's birthday party?"

Grace
Grace slides into a chair at the table. The waitress didn't notice she was there, which isn't much of a shock really. So it's time to drag the mundane's attention away from the muttering girl and onto the one who can't be noticed.

She prods the waitress with a pointy tip of the menu. "I'll have blackberry. Cobbler, pie, I don't care. Oh, and ice cream. And a water. Thanks so much!"

Big bright smile. Please be distracted. Please don't notice the 'schizophrenic'. Yeah, Grace has heard of that before. Sometimes, with their kind, the voices are really real.

Richard
"I'm starting to think you do," Richard admits.  He gives Grace a second, considering glance.  "Maybe I did.  I don't know.  Too many people and too many drinks."

They're there: Grace's table, where Grace herself has just sat down.  Now she's attended by two rather unusual individuals.  Richard is, as previously mentioned, enormously tall; quite lean.  He manages to be golden, hair and skin and everything, even as the days shorten.  And then there is Serafine, who even in flats(!) manages to look ... well.  Out of the ordinary.  Sometimes Richard wonders how she dresses herself in the mornings.  Hers is a fashion quite beyond even his gallic sensibilities.

Danny
Hey Sera..  How are things today?  *Danny by contrast was dark with long black hair and mahogany brown eyes, lithe in form and shorter easily than Richard by a country mile, but taller than Sera.  He smiled again at the pair of them before picking up his coke to finish it, then finally make a start on the sickening mess in the other glass. What was once an icecream float, was now a cloudy..... thing... He stirred it with a straw thought to mix it further then began to drink it, his eyes drifting to Grace as she ordered.*

Hannah
People. People keep appearing and Hannah curls more into herself, trying to shrink in her space on the booth, using the book to try and hide behind.  Her eyes slipped from one to the next, trying to decide if whatever was happening was worthy of escape.

As Grace took a seat, Hannah quickly reached out for what objects remained on the table from her bag, and began to shove them back in quickly. "I was thinking the same. You're right. Better to." The book was snapped shut and shoved into her bag. Hannah slid out of the booth slowly, picking up the leash to the service dog hanging by her. The idea of giving a wave or a goodbye hadn't crossed her mind. Instead, she pulled her bag on her shoulders and with a few words, squirmed her way out of the diner.

Serafíne
"Graaaaaaace."

So, yeah.  They amble or maybe rock up to the diner booth and Sera plants her hands on the end and Hannah picks herself up and squeezes out or whatever.  Too many people: whatever.  Sera's dark (dark) eyes flick upward to meet Hannah's.  This glance down at the service dog and a supple shift of her slender hips out of Hannah's way as the other woman makes her escape.

"Danny.  This is Richard."  Sera tips her chin up up up and her head back back back in a way that makes her long hair much, much longer.  Oh, neat.  Feel how long it is, wriggling all down her spine.  Confidentially, leaning in as if she were telling everyone a remarkable secret, all sotto voce, "He's a giant!  A nice one though.  We're kind of stoned."

Richard
"Danny.  Grace."  Richard nods at them, sort of lazy-loose, as he drags a chair out and drops easily into it.  "Oh.  Mind if I sit?"

Danny
*The corner of his mouth lifted in amusement as he took in Sera's state. He chuckled softly with a shake of his head then holds his index finger and thumb apart a fraction.*

Just a little bit, I think you can do better than that...  *Then his eyes slid to Richard, then went up, up up.... before nodding in agreement.* He looks like one!

Hey man.. *he lifts a hand in greeting to Richard.* No come on in... Get comfortable.

Grace
This is not an uncommon thing to happen to Grace, that she arrives, and suddenly everyone needs to be elsewhere.

"Oh, well, see you, Hannah."

Graaaaaaaaace.

Truthfully, she knew Sera was around. Around about somewhere. It's hard to mistake that sensation of her, that feeling of being on the verge. Grace bends her head down over the back of her chair, to look at Sera and the giant upside-down.

"Seraaaaaaaaa," she says, and there is an upside-down smile to go with it. "When aren't you stoned?"

There is also a little wave for Richard in there somewhere.

Serafíne
"I'm actually," Sera clarifies to Danny, and she does it leaning-forward, her tattooed hands on the chipped tabletop, her thumb framed by mica that catch and pull the tracers of light through the corners of her vision.  Ooooh, hands.  Something about her manner makes it seem ever-so-confidential, like she's sharing secrets, but everyone within earshot can hear her.  "more than a little bit stoned. "

Then, a mild and still somehow beatific little half-smile at Grace.  "You remember Richard from Hawksley's party.  He was on the couch."

The one on her lawn.

The one that showed up on her lawn.

Back to Danny, see - "They got it on Craiglist."

The couch, she means.  Not that he has any fucking idea what the hell the creature is talking about.  Sera reaches across the table, then - somehow despite her rather negligible height, she still seems to have rather long limbs, and snags  a couple menus from where they are clipped with the napkins and salt and pepper.  Hands one to Richard to peruse and starts her own review.  Though she finds it rather hard to focus on words and pages when there are remarkable things happening in her peripheral vision.

Serafíne
When aren't you stoned? with an upside down smile.  That question might be rhetorical but Sera looks up from her menu at Grace long enough to answer it.  "When I'm fast.  ing."

Which she kind of is now, though obviously not from, you know, drugs.

Tarrin Rasvelg
The one joy in his life is riding. There's something about roaring his motorcycle down a road that feels freeing. It's probably the concentration he needs, or the fact that no one is going to interrupt his moment, or it might just be that he can let his instincts take over.

He's paused at a light when he sees the impala. A car like that isn't something you see often, particularly not the dark blue one. Tarrin takes the option to meet up with its owner, and glides his ride over to park. The purr of the crockrocket comes to a close and he slides off, making his way into the diner as the helmet is brought to his side.

A leather jacket to keep away the wind is worn with a simple pair of jeans and a pair of boots. The 'sides' of his hair were turned into small braids and allowed to swoop back with the rest of the blonde locks. He didn't need to be invited; he knew Grace and Danny.

Danny
*He had to chuckle, he just didn't have a choice in that. It was happening before he could stop himself. Shaking his head a little to go with it. Then he smiled again at Sera.* Ahh, right...  *he nodded sagely to that, remembering vaguely the last time he got wasted on a beach in LA, then the events after it with another chuckle.* Least you're having fun with it... *he lifted one hand to trace patterns in the air before Sera's eyes, his nails were black on that hand, shorter than the other one as he fanned out his fingers, opening his hand then closed it slowly before he repeated the process.  If in doubt, play with the stoner, add to the visuals.

Then his attention was taken by Tarrin appearing in the door and the sound of the bike that went with it.  His hand was still raised, still fanning and curling up his fingers then opening them into the fan again even as his eyes remained fixed on Tarrin, now that was  nice distraction and he slid over in the seat once more making room for the man.*

Richard
Richard -- menu in hand, looking for chicken pot pie -- looks up as he catches motion out of the corner of his eye.  It's Danny.  He's wiggling his fingers around.  Richard frowns.  Under the table, he nudges Serafine's shoe with his own.

"Is that guy casting on you?"  To the tune of, is that guy bothering you?

Grace
"I do remember Richard, though we didn't really meet meet," she says, then rights herself again. "I'm Grace. We should have a talk. We should all have a talk. Except Sera. Sera knows Ginger."

Oh, if only Grace knew how well Sera knows Ginger. It's the voice, see? All in the voice.

"I'd rather not talk about it in public, but you know. Sometime."

Serafíne
That nudge ensnares Sera's attention.  She's sitting there with her forearms braced against the edge of the booth and a menu in hand and Richard's searching for pot pies and Sera is - yes - fascinated by the way tracers of light smear in the wake of Danny's hand as he moves, such that she cannot quite unstick herself.  But then: Richard, his foot against hers, and she breathes in and turns her head all sharp and fixes him with a look that takes far too long to achieve the final degree of focus, but what the hell.

She is: smiling, so wide that she looks more than a little bit haunted.

But what the hell, don't we all?

"No," to Richard.  "He's not.  I think he's trying to give me something to look at.  Fuck if I know."  Then Sera is nodding, agreement with Grace.  "Ginger is Grace's phone sex line.  You guys should totally talk.  Some time.  She's very private too so.  You can say anything."

Tarrin Rasvelg
[forgot.. awareness]

Dice: 6 d10 TN6 (1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 9) ( success x 2 )

Richard
"Richard," was his answer to Grace, some moments past.  The introductions are short and sweet.  Or at least: short.

"I thought Ginger was -- " Richard begins, but then stops.  Penny drops.  He smirks.  "Oh, funny.  Well," he flips his menu around, slides it over toward Serafine, taps with a finger.  "I found the pot pie.  Want to get two to-go?"

Tarrin Rasvelg
He slides in next to Danny, unzipping the jacket and sitting it behind him. "Hey Danny." He gives the guy a small nod, then one to Grace. "I have a package on the way for you. Don't let me forget." And then of course, there was Richard and Sera, two people he didn't know. He might have greeted them normally except...well at least Sera didn't look all the way there.

Danny
*No, he wasn't doing anything like that. It was merely one cultist playing with another's senses the way they always did. And he'd hope that some day Sera would do the same for him.

Then Tarrin was there, and he found it hard to move away from him again.   The smile on his face growing even more, but eventually he shifted to give Tarrin just a touch more room, reluctantly though.* I won't let you forget... Is it... car related? *he lifted his other hand, the right to rest the elbow on the table and then leaned his chin on the upturned palm just staring for a while at the blonde beside him.*  Have you met Sera and Richard?

Grace
Oh. Sera. Grace's eyes open a touch wider, and her face starts tinging toward the red spectrum. Her phone sex line. Like she's some kind of telephone-based madam.

"A package? What? You bought something for me?" she says, and at least it's something to say that's not about Ginger.

Serafíne
So Tarrin.  Hi Tarrin.  Sera flashes him a peace sign with her left hand.  Which also, quite incidentally, shows off the tattoos on her fingers and palm: scissors, the blades on the index and middle finger, the handles on the palm, one handle turning into or being consumed by a shark, whose tail curls down her wrist.  And, the impression of script edging her palms.

Then back to Richard, "Yeah, let's get them to go.  We've got Oktoberfest and still have some of that summer shandy left back at the house.  So you get to be in whatever season you want.  No more tyranny of time.  C'mon."

And just like that she is unseating herself, reaching over to pull Grace closer for a brief, intimate little drop of a kiss on the crown of Grace's head.

"See you guys."

Tarrin Rasvelg
Tarrin looks between Grace and Danny for a moment, letting his lips curl into a small smile. "Yours..." He looks at Danny. "Is already in. And yes, it's car related." And to Grace he turned to give her a small nod. "Don't get excited. It's nothing big."

Finally he focuses on the other two. "No." Whatever semblance of smile he had having vanished. "Tarrin." The tattoos along her palms aren't ignored or unnoticed.

Danny
Yeah.. .seeya... *he drifted his eyes back to Sera with that smile.* Have fun with it.

*Then he was turning his gaze to the conversation and back to Tarrin as Grace and he spoke.*

OOooh... *He couldn't help that grin growing wider.* Oil and... *Yeah, now the grin was growing like the cheshire cats from Alice in wonderland... he just kept that smile and sighed softly.*

Richard
"Catch you later, Grace.  Nice meeting you, Danny.  Tarrin.  We'll talk more next time, all right?"

He rises in Serafine's wake, like waves in sequence.  Menus in hand, they head over to give kitchen their order.  For a while they can be seen loitering around the waiting area, Serafine talking, Richard listening, Serafine animated, Richard subdued and smiling.  Eventually their food arrives.  Eventually they head out the way they came, and are gone.

In their wake, the air seems a little staler.  A little less alive.

Serafíne
(Thanks for the scene guys!  Bed for me.  :D)

Danny
(laters Sera)

Richard
[i am heading off soonishly myself!  thanks!]

Grace
Sera pulls at her, kisses her head, and despite the discomfort of being that close to someone, Grace allows it. Smiles even. This is the way of Sera, and let it be said that Sera is the only person in Denver who could rightfully get away with this.

"Goodbye," she says, always saying goodbye.

"Oil and what?" There's an in-joke in this somewhere, and currently Grace is not in. She may just be the target of the joke. It's been known to happen.

Tarrin Rasvelg
And then there were three. Tarrin lifted a brow slowly. "Am I that scary?"

He shakes his head a little, flagging down the waitress for a cup of coffee. That same brow remained perched and Tarrin looked to Danny and then slowly to Grace. "Mechanics? Tools? Cars?" When he looked to Danny again, he rolled a shoulder in a shrug, brushing it off perhaps. "I can repair that gasket before it gets worse."

Danny
*He was just enjoying his own private thoughts, seemingly unaware of his having said anything at all.... that smile still stuck on his face.  But then he registered what Tarrin said and... what he'd said.... the blush started from somewhere in his shirt, then his throat, then up to his face and the grin became somewhat different as he cleared his throat slightly and turned his attention to Grace again.*

Excuse me? *And finally yeah, the words made sense... he nodded.* Okay... good. Thanks.  Yeah, tomorrow?  *Then he added.* No you're not scary...  Not at all.

Grace
Oh! They're just talking about car-things. Right.

The waitress Tarrin finds has been hovering around carrying a blackberry cobbler and water and having trouble locating the person who ordered it. Grace grabs at the plate. "That's mine. I've got the blackberry."

"I'm probably the scary one," Grace says. "I tend to ward people off. Or just annoy them off. A great talent, really."

Tarrin Rasvelg
"Don't have a fever or anything, do you?" He eyes Danny for a moment, and then gives him a slow nod. "Yeah if you have the time. Bring it by, I'll get it together."

"You, Grace?" His attention shifting to her, and inwardly finding the waitress issue amusing. "With your charm? Hard to believe. You're more amusing to hang around, not so much annoying. Special taste, maybe, but not annoying."

Danny
*He nods at the words.* No, I'm fine.  Just been a long day and not much sleep, so now I'm getting just that little bit spacey... *he smiles.* Coffee.... I'll drop by some place and get coffee then that'll be me. Done.

*He looks over the pie then his eyes drift up to Grace again.* it's lack of understanding that causes fear of the unknown, people should be a little bit kinder to each other some times.

Kalen Holliday
And back wanders Kalen.  Just in time to steal a bite of Grace's pie.  Which he does pretty much the second he resettles at the booth, whether or not he has to steal Grace's fork to do it.

"Sorry," he says absently.  "That was my priest."  He smiles, and it is the same kind of warm smile Sera can get get from him.  "He says hi, by the way, Kit."

"Hello again," he says to Tarrin, and that smile changes into something brighter but also less intimate.  And then his eyes sweep over all of them.  "Did I miss anything interesting?"

Grace
"You haven't gotten pissed off at me yet, Tarrin," she says, as though it's an inevitability.

"Tell him hi back," she says to Kalen, seemily quite unconcerned about the fork-stealing or pie-stealing going on. Thing about it is, she doesn't really see it as stealing so much as sharing. Obviously there is a bit of a disconnect here, if Grace thinks she is so poor with people and yet is close enough to Kalen for him to just swoop in and share a dessert.

"You missed Sera. So that was interesting. Also I think I ran off Hannah. Somehow. There are no world-ending terrors here, though."

Tarrin Rasvelg
Tarrin watches Danny for a moment and then gives a slow nod. "Probably best."

He gave a small nod to Kalen as he returned. "Now we can meet properly, or as properly as anyone else." At least Kalen didn't seem stoned, or out of his mind. Bonus points for that.

"Somehow I doubt you'll do that, Grace. Having a difficult time creating a scenario that results in being angry at you...unless you steal all my silverware without replacing it. You just don't touch a man's silverware." Humor, not his strong point...at least not obvious humor.

Danny
*He groaned softly as his phone went off with a short alarm burst that sounded like a guitar laughing, just one more thing. Then he slowly got to his feet with his hands on the table and put his feet on the couch to being climbing behind Taran to get out of the booth.* Nope... you just stay.... there...

*he was now behind him and had another odd moment of that need to clear his throat softly, but the moment passed as he slide out of the booth and set his feet onto the floor.*

I'm going to head off to that land of sleep... *He does a half hearted salute as he turns to say good bye to Kalen and Grace.* Take care... *then he turned his eyes back to Tarrin.* And you... I will see tomorrow....

*now didn't that sound like a threat, or a promise or something.* I'll call when I finally surface.

Danny
*He made his way out, heading to the Impala and let himself in, soon enough Rainbow was blasting out into the evening of the city, and Danny was gone.*

Kalen Holliday
Kalen waves to Danny, "Night."

He turns his attention back to Grace.  "That one...I wouldn't worry about spooking.  I get the impression much of the world does that."  There is a whisper of something gentle in his voice, but whether it's meant for Grace or Hannah is hard to guess.  "But no world-ending terrors is definitely good.  I'm not entirely sure I've recovered from the last ones yet."

Grace
"You don't?" Grace says, and turns a side-eye to Kalen. "You hear that? You can't touch my fork ever again. Stupid rules."

She huffs, and spears some blackberry cobbler with her fork. Stolen back.

"Yeah, I know what you mean about the recovery shit. Why can't they just let us take our trip to Australia in peace? Every week it's something else. And we can't go visit any kangaroos. The world would stop."

Tarrin Rasvelg
Oh well, he's climbed around by the lankier one, trying to keep his place while he maneuvers around. As Danny wanders off, he lifts a hand in a mock wave. "Drive safe." Given the state of tired he was in...

Tarrin looked back to the other two, his coffee finally making it. After doctoring it up with cream, and no sugar, he took a slow sip of it, using the cup to hide the small smirk he had. "Why kangaroos?" Because of everything they've said, that's what interests him more. Why kangaroos...

Kalen Holliday
"No.  It protects only the forks of men."  He tries to keep a straight face to go with his lecture tone.  "I can take as much of your silverware as I want.  But mine...mine is protected by rules.  Probably written in Latin.  Rules written in Latin are more official.  Sumerian is very official, but some of those rules are outdated, you see."

He turns to Tarrin, and again, his expression loses some of the softness.  Gains brightness.  "No idea.  She picked the kangaroos.  I'm baffled."

Grace
Grace narrows her eyes at Kalen, "This is so unfair. Old Latin rules about silverware? I'm going to take all your forks now. And your spoons. You will just have to deal."

There is blackberry cobbler to be had. And she has some, with a kind of wonder on her face that some restaurant on East Colfax has cobbler like this.

"And penguins," she says, mouth full. "Penguins are cool."

Ian
Diners in East Colfax weren't exactly the kind of haunt where one would expect to find Ian. And true to form, he wasn't there because he'd had a craving for coffee or pie or breakfast-for-dinner. He walked in behind a pretty brunette, who made her way confidently over to the counter and flagged down one of the servers. She had a light accent - something British. And she smiled, all warmth and charm, when the waiter approached to take her order.

She asked for two slices of pie (one cherry, one chocolate peanut butter silk) to go. Neither of them were for Ian, who paused as he stepped through the door to glance at the mages gathered around one of the tables. He nodded to Grace and Kalen, smirking lightly, but didn't immediately attempt to approach their table. Instead he fell in beside the woman he'd arrived with, leaning back on his elbows as he murmured something which she evidently found amusing.

Tarrin Rasvelg
"Though if it was written prior to 1960, it really only means white men. Because latin rules are racist like that." He used his cup as a mild form of a gesture, to make his point. "But not his knives?  You'll take his forks and spoons, but leave him the dangerous silverware?"

"So no kangaroos for you?" He lifted a brow at Kalen. "Let me guess..." His brows furrowed as if he were concentrating, trying to visualize Kalen and some creature together. "Koalas?"

"I don't think you're going to find penguins in Australia, Grace."

Kalen Holliday
"Oh," Kalen says with a laugh.  "She's not worried about that.  She knows all about my tendency to fall under buildings and into comas.  I'm more likely to trip and stab myself than to get her.  I'll have to like call Alexander and beg him to go get my silverware for me.  Or, more likely, refuse to admit I need help getting it back and just buy more."  He rolls his eyes.  "Which someone will undoubtedly also steal.  On principal.  She hates rules."

He mock-glares at Grace.  "You had best do something interesting with all the silverware you hoard."

It is only after that he looks away, meets Ian's eyes for all of a second, and nods.

Grace
"Linus Torvalds found penguins in Australia. He was pecked by one. And it was so cute he made it the penguin mascot for Linux," Grace says, chewing. "So. Cute. They're called fairy penguins."

Her head raises up at the impression of a large jungle cat, mysterious and graceful. Ahh, Ian is here.

Sometimes, people feel like snow or cold or ice, and it's hard to place them amongst all the other icy beings that flock to Denver (and with Denver's white-capped mountains it's not hard to guess why). And then there's people like Ian, people like Eleanor, people who cannot be mistaken.

"I'll let you borrow some. If you ask nicely," she says to Kalen. "And I wouldn't take his knives, because he might need them to slay vampires or something. I'm not cruel."

Ian
It was always a little awkward when one ran into a group of acquaintances from one social sphere while spending time with someone from another. Kalen and Grace, and to a lesser extend Tarrin (who'd only met him briefly) knew a different piece of Ian than the woman standing beside him at the counter. Ian might have introduced her, or he might not have. Ultimately he never got the chance, because shortly after they arrived, her phone buzzed.

As the woman spoke to whoever was on the other end of the line, her expression shifted to one of frustrated concern. She dropped her voice to a low register, speaking quietly with her face turned away from Ian.

After a minute, she hung up the call. By then her order had arrived, and she paid with a sigh. "I have to go. I'm so sorry."

Whatever Ian's response to this development, he kept his reactions carefully schooled. There was a soft shake of his head, and a faint lift of his shoulders. "It's fine. We'll reschedule."

"Oh, am I someone you actually schedule time for now?" A lift of amusement touched her eyes for a moment, but she didn't wait for a reply. "I'll call you tomorrow." She leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. Something soft and lingering. Then she grabbed her food and made her way outside, leaving Ian behind.

To stay, or to go? That was the question. Ian glanced over at the mages' table consideringly, then finally walked over and pulled up a chair. "How are you all this evening?"

Tarrin Rasvelg
"Huh. Penguins. In Australia. Well, you'd know. I stand corrected." Tarrin set the coffee cup down, finally letting his own attention slide to Ian and the woman he was with.

"Fall under buildings?" His attention shifted back to Kalen, giving him a slightly quizzical look. "You're accident prone, and related to green witches. Well, I guess that's a good thing to know." He sat back in his seat. "Computers operate under rules...or am I wrong there too?"

As Ian joined, he gave a small drop of his chin to him. "Alive."

Kalen Holliday
"Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit."  His eyes roll.  "Werewolves.  If I'm using silverware on anything, it won't be vampires.  We have chairs for tha-"  His eyes light up and he grins.  "We need to figure out a werewolf thing for the Halloween party!!!"

"Not bad," Kalen says to Ian.  He looks like he's running on more caffeine than sleep, but that's hardly he unusual.  He seems...maybe not great, but Ian hasn't seen that since the night they got dragged into an alternate reality.  He does seem both present and amused.

"Oh...it's never accidental.  I attract an entirely different kind of trouble."

Grace
"Every rule can be broken, especially the ones that involve computers," there's a little smirk there. Breaking all the laws of computing and bending them to her will is kind of her everything. And when you consider the universe to be a computer...

"Eating cobbler," she asserts to Ian. "How are you? How do you feel about werewolf pinatas? But what would we fill them with? Moon pies?"

Ian
There was a temporary air to the way that Ian sat down with them. He flipped the chair backwards and leaned forward to rest his arms atop it, glancing between their faces. Kalen and Grace were on one side of the booth, with Tarrin on the other. Ian could have slid in beside the Hollow One, but he didn't. Instead he made his own space there at the end of the table.

He asked how everyone was doing. Alive, Tarrin said. Not bad, Kalen added. Eating cobbler, Grace concluded.

"So I see," Ian responded. Grace asked about werewolf pinatas, and Ian just... raised an eyebrow. "Let me guess, you're having a Halloween party."

Tarrin Rasvelg
"Hm." He made a small sound, crossing his arms over his chest as he, mostly, listened to the group. "Color my intrigued. Grace has a thing for tiny spoons and caffeinated ice cream, you attract a 'different kind' of trouble." Tarrin glanced to Ian. "And what's your special skill?

Otherwise he was mostly quiet. Now and then he'd take a small drink of his coffee. Whatever affairs they were talking about were their own.

Kalen Holliday
"We already are having vampire pi atas," Kalen says with a sigh.  But then he smiles again and his eyes light up as he looks over at Ian.  "We are attaching those ridiculous gummy hearts to them.  And then having at them with stakes.  You'll hate it.  You should come.  I promise at least the bar won't be there to be ironic."

Tarrin barely gets a glance when he sums up his interest based on that list.

Grace
"Maybe you should go as a werewolf. So I can steal your silverware to protect you from it," Grace says, and eats some cobbler. Somehow, she only ever manages to eat sugary insubstantial meals lately. It's time for more ramen.

"Ian's special skill is that he could probably leap up on to the back of my chair and balance on it. If, you know, the chair were more firmly affixed to the floor. He did that to me in a park once and it was so cool."

Ian
Tarrin asked Ian what his special skill was, and Ian looked at him with this slow-curling wry amusement. The look was heavy with implication. He could have found a lot of different ways to answer that question.

In the end, Grace offered an answer for him. Ian exhaled a quiet huff of breath - this small hint of almost-laughter. Then he added, "That's one, anyway. You'll have to get to know me to figure out the rest."

As for Kalen's party, Ian shot him a look that mixed amusement and skepticism. "I'll think about it."

Tarrin Rasvelg
There wasn't much he could offer to their party plans. Traditionalists had their own things they did (he figured they were as such) that didn't often include those who tried to keep out of the weirdness. That was alright by him. When Grace spoke he glanced to her, lifting a brow at the prospect. He might have even said something except that Ian's comment interrupted just close enough to make him laugh just a little. "I'll keep that in mind."

And that was largely the extent of his butting in. He was content to sit there, drink his coffee, and observe; Grace was always entertainment enough.

Kalen Holliday
"Huh.  I suppose I will need a costume, won't I?"  One might think he had given no thought to a costume.  Those people...probably hadn't had Kalen appear where they were trying to work to present them with an elaborate costume and pronounce they were going to carnivale.

He nods in response to Ian.  Another night perhaps, he may have kept playing.  Said something about always being serious about the bar.  But he is tired, so Ian gets a nod and a half smile.

Grace
"Were-lion?" Grace suggests. "I'll still steal your silverware."

"I don't know what I'm going as. Last year I didn't get to try out the whole Annoia, Goddess of Things that Get Stuck in the Drawer thing. I was... yeah."

Last year, around this time, world-ending terror arrived in Denver. Nobody knows just how close Denver came to becoming the epicenter of an Ebola outbreak that would make the latest horrifying news headlines look like the sniffles.

Ian
Ian could have just as easily been classified as an outsider himself. And yet here he was, being invited to a Halloween party, in spite of his stubborn avoidance of group activities (threesomes and impromptu games of soccer aside.) But Kalen could be hard to say no to when he had a mind to be charming.

"You should go 70's glam rock. Glitter. Platform boots. The whole deal."

Grace went from werewolves to werelions, and Ian very pointedly did not make any comments about werecats.

Tarrin Rasvelg
The hour was growing late, even for him. He slipped into his wallet to slide out a few dollars and set it on the table to handle the coffee. "Nice meeting." He gave a small nod to Kalen, then shifted his attention to the group as a whole. "Enjoy your night."

He slipped out of the booth, grabbing his jacket and sliding it on, grabbing his helmet as he headed back out to his bike. Was a nice little break in his routine.

Tarrin Rasvelg
[Night guys! Ty!]

Kalen Holliday
Kalen laughs softly at the suggestion he go 70s glam rock.  "Mmmmmmmmm...I do like glitter.  Perhaps."  But there is a kind of weight to that amusement that suggests he might actually do it.  "I've already been a lion, so werelions are out.  At least for a bit."

"Night," he says to Tarrin.

Grace
"True. And I have been a fox. So I cannot be one anymore," she says, eats her blackberries and sugar. That's all that's really left in her bowl.

"There will also be a bonfire and marshmallows," Grace says, to Ian. "We will try not to set anything important on fire."

Ian
Ian slid his chair aside to give Tarrin space to slip out of the booth. Kalen gave serious consideration to Ian's costume suggestion, while Grace mentioned bonfires and marshmallows.

"It's not a real Halloween party unless someone has to call the fire department."

Ian grinned as he stood up. "I'm need to head home." (Presumably he'd been about to go do something other than head home not all that many minutes ago, but plans changed.) "See you guys later."

And, with that? He followed Tarrin out the door.

Ian
[Edit: "I need to head home."]

Kalen Holliday
Kalen huffs at that pronouncement, then nods.  "Good night."

He glances at Grace.  "Home to pick out party favors?"

[Translate as: Fade before some people fall asleep mid-post.....]

Grace
"I have some wood filament. We can make 3d printed stakes with people's names on them," Grace says, grins. "Though maybe not names. That might be too telling... hmm."

[And faaaade!]