I am flesh and I am bone | April Catchall

[lasergrenades]

Characters: Pepper Potts, Devin Parker, and you!
Date: Throughout April
Location: Jade Dojo, Sky Sector, all over Keeliai.
Situation: Pepper's living her life, and Devin is getting dumped into Keeliai a little maimed.
Warnings/Rating: Possible mention of murder and probably blood, specific warnings in headers.


A. [Pepper] Jade Dojo | Backdated to end of March | Heather

As promised, Pepper got up early and made her way to the dojo at a time that was unusual for her. She normally trained in the afternoons, so this was a big change of pace. There was no guarantee that she and Heather would make good partners, but it would be interesting to try. It would also give her a chance to get a read on Heather, since Pepper hadn't interacted with her much before now. She hung up her jacket and pulled a set of long, thin cloth wraps and began to circle them around her hands; once they were secured, Pepper began to warm up, keeping an eye out for Heather's arrival.

B. [Pepper] House Spicy Iron Dragon | Early April | Gene

The weather is getting almost reasonable, and on one of the days where it's a bit sunnier, Pepper goes out into the backyard and does some practice summoning. She's getting better at it, and higher level monsters are slowly getting easier to summon, but she still has pretty strict limits. That doesn't diminish her determination - if anything, it makes her push harder. Vee is there, too, standing off to the side with less armor on, observing. Pepper will occasionally speak to her like her ka has said something, although the creature's lips never move.

C. [Pepper] KPD | Throughout April | Open

The new Guild system has definitely stirred things up in the city, and there's a rash of thefts hitting Foreigners that suggests it's systematic. The destruction of the spirit houses is also concerning, although fortunately it doesn't seem to be escalating badly. Pepper is pretty busy, spending a lot of time out on patrols and talking with kedan as well as Foreigners to see if they have any information. Busy or not, she's in a good mood most of the time if anyone bumps into her.

D. [Devin; CW: burns, possibly blood] Healer's Guild | April 5 | Raine

The ground is a lot smoother than he expects. There's a ringing in his ears and he can tell he’d be dead if he hadn’t known what was coming. As it is, his back is charred from the explosion. It was a small price to pay for getting the hunters and the dossier out. He can feel them start to heal, but his wounds must be worse than he thought – someone is saying something, putting a hand on his shoulder and Devin can only lay there, stunned. The person sounds worried, and Devin tries to tell them he'll be fine, to leave him here. To run. It doesn't come out particularly coherently.

Whoever it is doesn't listen, and two sets of strong arms are lifting him off the ground to a standing position, which he couldn’t have managed himself. This is bad, that he can't orient himself properly or see straight. At some point, he must have lost consciousness, because next he opens his eyes he's being led into a building and there's a flurry of activity that ends with him face-down on a gurney.

"I can't stay here," Devin mutters, trying to get out of the bed, but the hands keep pushing him back down. Devin is stronger, though, and he stumbles vertical again, searching for a door. "I don't need your help."

E. [Devin; CW: blood] Thoughout Keeliai | Throughout April | Open

As soon as Devin is fully recovered, he gets out into the city. The situation has him on edge, the fact that his agency has been violated again setting a semi-permanent frown on his face. Devin is familiar with a few different planes of existence, so the idea of Keeliai isn't something he outright rejects. After a week or two, he accepts that he's stuck. From what Devin can tell, he's the only one of his kind here.

That should have been something of a relief, Devin reflects, but it also meant that he's adrift without purpose. What is he supposed to do with himself? Almost all of his energy back home had been spent hunting. Devin can't remember the last time he took a vacation.

Long story short, Devin is not in a good mood most of the month, somewhere between lost and agitated. He does need to find a way to live, though, so when he's not at the Hotel (which he hopes he won't have to stay at for an extended time) he's wandering around and observing, taking in every detail he can, and looking for a niche to fit in.

F. [Devin] Turtle's Head | Mid April | Open

The rumors of the serenity of being near Tu Vishan's beak are appealing amidst the turmoil of Devin's arrival and the impending problem of finding a food source has him troubled enough that he hikes out there one day. The sight of it, actually getting confirmation of what it is he'd standing on, is grounding and the calming influence of a being so much greater than him is familiar in a way. At least this trip doesn't come with a migraine. He spends a few hours there, mostly standing at the shell's edge and staring out at the sea, thinking through his options.

(OOC: Let me know if you want a specific starter or feel free to write your own adventure!)

Comments

B

[wrathfulkhan]

It's no secret that Gene feels a little...weird about having Vee around, and watching Pepper summon is also pretty weird. He likes that she has a new talent to hone and someone new to confide in, but can't she just reply to the voices in her head silently like a normal person?

He stands out back, quietly watching, not sure if she's even aware of his presence. Even if she's not, her ka probably is.

[lasergrenades]

Something distinctly different that Gene may notice is that Pepper is more focused than average, and even her movements are calmer and more purposeful when she's holding a summon. The Duelist Gauntlet is on her right hand. Shadow magic takes a lot of concentration, so indeed she's not the one that detects Gene first since he's out of her field of view. Vee glances at him for several seconds before inclining her head.

When the summon fades, Vee finally alerts her that Gene is there, and Pepper turns with a grin. She looks a little tired. "Hey! Keeping an eye on me?"

[wrathfulkhan]

He inclines his head back at Vee, not sure what to make of this acknowledgment.

"Yeah," he says when Pepper grins. At least she seems happy. "You seem to be pretty happy with this. I'm glad. I was about to suggest you take up knitting," he says, a teasing edge to his voice.

That's rich, coming from Gene, who needs a hobby more than anyone. No, brooding is not a hobby.

[lasergrenades]

Pepper giggles. "Oh my god, me knitting. I'd probably end up breaking the needles and tangling the yarn so badly it could never be undone," she replies, looking up at Vee. The corner of the ka's mouth are turned up at the idea.

"And yeah, I'm really happy. It's super cool, getting to do magic," Pepper adds, wiggling the fingers of her gloved hand. "A little limited, but Vee makes up for a lot of it."

F-ish

[redlightgreenlight]

Valdis hadn't seen this particular individual at the Turtle's head before, and his intrusion of her mediation might have bothered her more if it weren't for the unusual nature of his essence. She slowly uncrosses her legs and pulls out of her own mind in order to focus on it more closely. There's almost nothing there, almost like he lacks a soul entirely, except she can still sense it, barely, and alongside it...something else. He isn't human, he doesn't hold the same sense of life that most do, but he doesn't feel quite dead either.

"You're a complicated one, aren't you?" She says softly, not looking over at him.

Fiiiiiish

[annihilist]

Devin was aware of the woman's presence, but hadn't seen the point in disturbing her; it would invite conversation, which wasn't what he was after by being here. It seemed that she would be the one disturbing him, when she finally spoke.

He spared her a glance and then set his gaze back on the ocean, the corner of a smirk turning up his mouth. "You'll have to be more specific. Most people are complicated in one way or another, even if only on a cellular level."

Fishy fish fish

[redlightgreenlight]

"Hmm," She hummed, but kept her gaze on the ocean, "Your soul is different, it's not with you in the same way the rest of our souls are, but still tied to you. And you aren't...alone, the way most people are."

She smirked now, "Its very subtle though, I don't think anyone else will notice. What isn't subtle is the fact that you are brooding and perhaps a bit agitated. Not that I blame you. And I can't actually decide...are you dead?"

[annihilist]

It took a small effort of will to keep his expression unchanged, clasping his hands behind his back to distract her eye from any tension. Her insight was unwelcome, but the woman did not appear to be threatening.

"By human standards, yes. No heartbeat." Devin turned slightly, raising an eyebrow. "You have an unusual sense of perception, although it may want a little fine tuning. I'm fairly certain I left my soul behind when I came here, seeing as it never resided within me in the first place."

E - early April!

[flowrite]

Fai spends most of his time at the Midnight Hotel, between his job in the kitchen and the fact that he and Kurogane haven't yet made the effort to find their own place. He also tries to be friendly to everyone and loves to chat, so he's got a fair idea of who's living in the Hotel at any given point. It doesn't take him long to feel the presence of someone else like him. Another vampire.

It's a sickening feeling at first, dread and fear and wrongness. Fai doesn't pursue it immediately. Whoever it is doesn't feel exactly the way he does, the way Kamui and Subaru did, so surely there's some difference in their kind between dimensions. He can't jump to conclusions here, but... it wouldn't hurt to be cautious.

That decision pretty much flies out the window the next day, when Fai is flouncing through the lobby of the Hotel, grinning and laughing and thinking about something else entirely, and smacks right into six feet and two inches of muscular vampire.

The blond is tall himself, only a couple inches shorter than the other man, but he's willowy to the point of being skinny and he sort of bounces off the unknown vampire's chest. Too surprised to react properly, his stomach twisting itself in knots at that eerily similar yet very wrong presence, he's probably just going to fall backward and land on his skinny ass on the floor.

"Oh!"

[annihilist]

Devin's signal for identifying other vampires is the lack of a heartbeat in an otherwise living body, so he doesn't sense Fai in that way. He does sense when Fai is about to run into him, but lacks the time to correct his course and they end up colliding.

Before Fai hits the ground, though, Devin reaches out and grabs him, keeping him upright. His hold is firm, strong enough that he could probably lift Fai easily, but not tight enough to hurt the other man.

"Is this how they say 'hello' where you come from?" Devin inquires, raising an eyebrow and quirking a smile. "It's rather abrupt."

[flowrite]

Oh hell. He had to go and be gorgeous too.

Fai isn't completely swept off his feet, but it sure looks that way from the outside. His one good eye widens and his mouth drops open, and he even blushes at the other man's question. When he's firmly back on his feet again he doesn't quite step away just yet; suddenly grinning, he reaches out with one hand to brush lightly at the other's chest a little, as if bumping into him had somehow managed to scuff his rescuer's shirt.

"Sorry about that, handsome," he croons, his heart racing for an entirely different reason (shit shit shit). "I'll do my best to warn you before I throw myself at you next time~"

[annihilist]

Well, that is absolutely not the reaction that Devin is anticipating. He releases the other man after a moment, once he's steady on his feet again. The Brit is a little bemused by the immediate flirting, but he rolls with it.

"I'll probably catch you, warning or no," Devin replies, making no move to put more distance between them. He's done this dance before, many times. "And there's no need to apologize. It was an accident, and I've had far less pleasant introductions."

A!

[celticromanstone]

Heather is running a little behind. Her last client of the night had overstayed his welcome. She's sure that somewhere, there's a nagging wife for him to go back to, but she's not going to play that role for him. Ever.

Walking into the dojo, she's at least dressed for a workout. She spots the young woman that had offered to spar with her and begins limbering up. "Sorry I'm late, darling." She doesn't offer an explanation as to why. Just the apology.

[lasergrenades]

Pepper's not terribly worried about the timing, so the look she gives Heather is more bemusement about the continued use of the pet name than anything else. Maybe it's just her thing.

"No biggie," she says, shrugging and then stretching her arms over her head. "I'm not in a rush. When's the last time you sparred hand-to-hand?"

[celticromanstone]

Heather doesn't learn Mortals names. She can't. They're too fleeting, too ephemeral. It's just something that she's come to live with.

"Hand to hand? Gods, it's been... a while." About thirty years or so. She's always more focused on her sword skills than anything else. She probably shouldn't be, but it's a hazard of using the sword to protect her life.

She shakes out one leg and then the other. "So why don't you lead this session, hm?"

[lasergrenades]

Heather doesn't look that old for it to be an indescribable number of years, but Pepper has learned that looks can be deceiving, here. Bakura and Valdis are prime examples.

She's been helping out at the dojo some lately, so this might be a good use for the teaching skills she's been developing.

"Okay. Show me your stance," Pepper requests, flexing her fingers against the wraps. "Did you do more with upper body or did you include kicks and knee strikes?"

C

[commandandcontrol]

Sonja tracks down Pepper at the KPD headquarters.

"Hi, Pepper-" Sonja seems a little distracted, and she's rubbing her wrist nervously.

"I had some questions about just like... how to report things. Like... stolen property." That made it sound serious. "Maybe it's not worth your time, it was just a bracelet..."

[lasergrenades]

Pepper looks up with a smile when she hears Sonja, although her expression turns more concerned when the young woman appears distracted, maybe even edgy.

"Hey, stolen property is stolen property, and it's not like we come here with a lot of possessions," she remarks. Foreigners usually only had the clothes on their back, and had to build up from there. "I'm sorry to hear it got taken - just double checking, you're sure it was stolen rather than it fell off somewhere?"

Even as she's asking, Pepper is up and searching for a short set of forms for Sonja to fill out, including a description of the bracelet in question, it's value, and the situation in which is disappeared, if Sonja recalls it. It takes another moment to find a clipboard and a working pen.

"Here, sit down," Pepper offers, gesturing to the chair next to her desk.

[commandandcontrol]

"It was something I got in Ioa Elanag, actually. Some time after we left, it fused shut and I had to have it cut off. It was in a drawer in my house, and I know I put it there-"

She knows she did, she remembers these things. "But it's gone."

She sits down and takes the form in hand, scanning it over before starting to fill it out.

E. hohoho

[wolfishflame]

Aly's out and about! Now that she's accepted with much resignation (and mild, quiet tantruming) that she's stuck here, she's decided that she might as well explore.

Ooh, look, a fire fountain!

She sits on the edge of it, and holds her hand over the surface. There's no heat rising, so, because her impulse control is garbage, she sticks her hand in it. It's like water.

"Nice."

She sits there, just people-watching for a little. It makes her happier to think this place is familiar in some ways; a little like Linali, especially the Metal Sector with its tall buildings. All the kedan are slightly alien, but not in a way that makes her taste pennies, like faeries are around. They just remind her of Otherside people. It's nice.

A guy who looks like a Foreigner walks nearby with an obvious case of the grumpus. "Hey!" she calls out to him, trying to get his attention, and smiles. "Cheer up, emo kid."

Ehehehehe

[annihilist]

Devin turns at the 'greeting', mostly because it's distinctive and he's had someone say the same not so long ago. And indeed, it's the young woman from the network. He gives half a mind to ignoring her and carrying on, but he has no specific destination in mind at the moment and she'd probably follow him.

"You're not my supervisor, Tim," he tells her once he's near enough. "And I haven't been a kid for over a century."

[wolfishflame]

Devin's right - she probably would follow him. Because she doesn't like being ignored.

When he calls her 'Tim', she beams. It's the vampire from the network! "I could be," she says. "You don't know that, I can pull rank on whomever I choose." Aly, you don't have a rank. Shut up. "Besides, being an emo kid isn't dependent on age. You can be two thousand years old and still be an emo kid."

D | seriously, Devin

[ruinsprofessor]

"The more you struggle, the worse you're making your injuries," Raine says sharply, though apparently he's delirious enough he-- what? Isn't feeling the pain? Thinks he'll heal instantly?

Well, that last isn't entirely out of the question, but all the same Raine doesn't like the way those burns look. "Even if you have an advanced healing factor, letting me help will make it easier for you. You can stay here, and you will." He's a mess. She's going to do something about it. Figuring out where he came from, or why he thinks he's above healing like an average mortal, can wait for when there are fewer burns and bleeding.

Look, we've established he's a bit of an idiot sometimes

[annihilist]

He is absolutely feeling the pain, he's just very good at ignoring it, for the most part. Either that or his nerve endings have been destroyed by the fire. There are still people trying to hold him up, but Devin's attention is drawn to a woman with white hair.

That's odd enough for the vampire to stop and blink at her, just to check that he's not hallucinating. When he's fairly certain he isn't, and he's processed what she said, he musters up a lopsided smirk despite his injuries.

"Aren't you a little short to be giving me orders?" Devin mumbles at her, inadvertently leaning on one of the kedan that's recaptured his arm. They start trying to lead him back to the bed, and though he doesn't exactly go willingly, he doesn't strike out at anyone either. "You should just let me go. It's not safe."

He has no idea where he is.

"sometimes"

[ruinsprofessor]

"My height has nothing to do with it," Raine snaps back, but she draws herself up nevertheless, reflexive. "I will not be letting you go until I'm assured of your healing. If you're concerned on some danger from your home, it is not here; you've come somewhere else. If you believe there is some danger here, there are also ample protectors."

She nods to her apprentice, who's going to continue trying to get Devin actually horizontal, so Raine can look at him without him thrashing about. "Now lay down, and let me see. I'm a healer; I can help you."

Honestly. Some people's stubbornness.