I will not bow, I will not break | June Catchall

[lasergrenades]

Characters: Pepper Potts, Devin Parker and you!
Date: Throughout June
Location: Keeliai
Situation: Pepper is busy with police work, Devin is being Devin.
Warnings/Rating: Mentions of blood because vampire. Others will be added as needed.


A. [Pepper] KPD | Throughout June | Open

Pepper is busy. Very, very busy. After the attacks, she seems to spend more time away from home than ever. She can't just go full tilt the whole time on her own, though. There's a department to run and people are turning to them for assistance, so when she's not helping with recovery she's organizing shifts and crews and coordinating logistics with some of the gangs that have called a truce and offered their help, as well as other groups across the city.

She doesn't sleep as much as she probably should, and it may occasionally be possible to spot her snoozing at her desk.

B. [Pepper] Jade Dojo | Early June | Bakura

Despite positively throwing herself into work, Pepper still made a point to visit the dojo when she could manage it. The last week in May and the first week of June don't give her much time to practice, but she would drop by to see Bakura and maybe help with weapons maintenance if she was there around sunset. There had been enough scolding attempts that Pepper had in fact gotten a few hours of sleep every night, but at some point even that wasn't enough. She reached the dojo a bit after dark, intent on curling up next to her favorite thief and unwinding over dinner, but only made it as far as the couch before she fell asleep almost immediately.

C. [Devin] Water Sector | June 1 | Heather

While Devin was not exactly thrilled by the arrangement that he'd made with Heather, but having multiple donors in a city where Foreigners have a tendency to vanish at the drop of a hat is the smart choice. There are a great many things and a great many people more important than his ego. The Healers Guild seemed the safest place for the experiment, and after an initial taste test doesn't send him careening into a frenzy, he's satisfied that her blood will do.

As requested, Devin goes to meet with her not long after. Unlike their previous meeting he's not quite so composed; there's something wild at the edges of him, and a sharpness in his gaze when he spots her and crosses to where she's sitting.

D. [Devin] Metal Sector | Mid June | Open

Keeliai isn't huge, but it's large enough that it's going to take some time for Devin to learn every street and alleyway. The act of memorization gives him something to do when he'd not at the police headquarters and keeps him busy enough that he doesn't stay at the Hotel much. Eventually, he'll move out, but he needs enough money for things like furniture. The Metal Sector has his interest currently, and the vampire winds up and down each street, occasionally stopping to take notes in a small journal. He looks pensive most of the time, and can usually be convinced to chat.

E. [Pepper] Turtle's Head | Mid June | Valdis/Gene

So, the past month or so has kind of sucked, and Pepper rarely found herself needing peace and quiet but... well, she needed some now. Jade Dojo and Bakura usually fit the bill there, but the serenity that the turtle's head offered was tempting enough that she took a hike out there a few times. Pepper brought her deck with her, as had become her custom, and was working with Vee to summon her in a smaller size. It wasn't too difficult, but getting into a habit of it seemed like a smart idea. The ka also consented to sit with Pepper after a certain point, sans much of her armor, and discuss deck orientation and strategies, remarking that the calm of the turtle was evident to her as well. It was a little easier to breathe here.

F. [Devin] Sky Sector | Early June | Valdis

In anticipation of her home becoming a potential cultist target, Devin had warded Valdis' house so that only she could come and go. Recent events - namely Valdis getting mildly possessed - suggested that having access to her home in the event of a similar emergency might be wise. The sword, Revelations, could have been useful to assist her and instead he ended up warding her into a room at the Healers Guild (although that might have been necessary anyway). All told, it's made him realize that he might want to alter the wards at her house somewhat; Devin has zero interest in handling Revelations ever again, but he can't deny that if he needs to use it, he ought to be able to reach it.

The vampire arrived at Valdis' house a little before sunset and knocked sharply on her door to announce his presence.

G. [Pepper] Earth Sector | Early June | Raine

Pepper has been working really hard since the attacks, and has had to be reminded to slow down (which she doesn't always listen to), and she knows that Raine and the other healers undoubtedly have been going near non-stop as well. Raine in particular has a way of spreading herself thin at times like these. So, if Pepper is going to get nudged by those around her to take a break, she's going to pass the nagging on. It's not as though she hasn't already made a habit of appearing at Raine's apartment or work with treats in hand, and today is much the same. The difference this time is that some of her tiredness is showing, even though she's smiling broadly when she knocks on Raine's door.

OOC note: let me know if you want a specific starter or add your own!

Comments

[redlightgreenlight]

Valdis lifted her eyes from the book to fix him with a curiously blank gaze. Then her attention dropped back to the words on the page.

"Remind me to never piss you off."

[annihilist]

Devin offered her a sharp smile. "I always knew you were smart." He turned back to the door frame. "I don't play games when it comes to vampires. They'll take lives without a care unless put in their place, at least where I come from."

[redlightgreenlight]

Valdis rolled her eyes, "For the penalty of sin is death," she muttered, then continued at a normal volume, "Sounds like Vampires and Hellhounds are more similar than I would like."

[annihilist]

"Please tell me that's adopted from Romans as the Hellhound motto." It would be grimly amusing, given the latter half of that verse. "Why do you find our similarities unsettling? Too many bastards out and about in the universe?"

[redlightgreenlight]

"It is..."

Her eyes moved down the page, taking in every word as she thought about an answer to his question.

"You may be a Vampire, and I may be a Hellhound, but we are not like our brethren. The hounds see themselves as superior to every other species. Humans especially. They hunt without remorse, because they don't have a conscious to guide them, only instinct and the pack. "

[annihilist]

"An apt selection."

Devin didn't reply immediately to the latter. He was both like and unlike the vampires of his world - he refused to treat humans with brutality, or like lesser beings, but he didn't deny being a monster, either. She wasn't wrong, though; their species displayed similar attributes.

"That doesn't explain why it bothers you," he pointed out.

[redlightgreenlight]

"A God who claims to love those created in his image, also allowed the creation of beings who would destroy them. Aren't demons bad enough without Hounds and Vampires added to the mix?"

She flipped another page.

"At least they don't both exist in the same world."

[annihilist]

"Many of those demons used to be angels," Devin reminded her. "And loving one's creation does not always mean coddling it. Neither your God nor mine seems all that interested or capable of interfering so directly, in any case. The Spirit is fond of reminding me that things are more complicated than I'm able to understand, being bound to a physical shell," the vampire scoffed.

[redlightgreenlight]

Valdis hummed softly for a few moments.

"He's left the protection of humanity to the Angels and they can't even protect their fledglings, so I'm honestly surprised that the Demons haven't done more damage."

[annihilist]

"Immortal beings have very little to lose by playing the long game. It all depends on their end goal." He leaned back from the frame, tilting his head as he looked over his work. "They may not be a united force, either, which is likely to everyone's benefit."

[redlightgreenlight]

"They've been playing that game for thousands of years...but their races are far older than mine, so I suppose time doesn't apply."

She released a short laugh.

"If the Demons were organized, then the world would be doomed. Lucifer mostly leaves them to their own devices and petty arguments."

[annihilist]

"How fortunate for us," Devin agreed dryly. "Though it does beg the question of why he allows them to remain in that state. It's the sort of thing that tickles the hind brain, like a mouse that knows it's hunted by a cat." He sounded almost approving.

[redlightgreenlight]

"The question there is, who is the cat and who is the mouse?"

A page turns.

"Perhaps he fears that one of his sons or daughters will overthrow them if they worked together. Or maybe he likes the chaos. Or perhaps he simply doesn't care."

[annihilist]

"Only time will tell."

And Devin had the sinking feeling that he was going to be around to see it, much to his dread. He didn't want to live that long. Hopefully, Valdis was paying more attention to the book than his emotions.

"It's going to take me a little while to finish this; I won't be offended if you prefer the company of your book."

[redlightgreenlight]

Dread. A different feeling than she usually experienced from the foreigners. She opted to not comment, simply stood and walked back into her living room. There was always something to glean from their conversations, but she'd have to think about what he'd said and put it all together later.