[Changeling] A Gathering of Mists IC

[Raz_Fox]

"I am not--" Bile rises, hackles rise, the anger supressed one time too many boils up at the back of the eyeballs, nails cut into something almost a real palm. Sides ache where the boot connects, where night slides against a pale moon-shirt: focus. The next breath is cold, the frustrated grunt of a woman who knows it would make a scene if she slapped a cad, the seller who really needs this buyer.

"I am a person, Miss Namine. And only as loyal as the next person." No more begging for treats, no more obeying and quick at it. "But I used to use Excel 97. For schedules. I... was a few semesters away from my degree." Don't think about the person who has your face, probably has a degree and an office and a boyfriend and a family who loves her. Just don't.

[Thanqol]

Originally Posted by PhoeKun

Kalina is quiet, lost in the moment. It seems to her that the world she's stepped into is many times more terrifying, more magical, and more powerful than the one she's spent her... could it have possibly been her entire life? She stands there, numbly. Hardly seeing or sensing or responding, until she feels a new hand upon her shoulder.

She turns her head, half listens to Charlotte's rambling and semi incoherent explanation. Request? Whatever. Her words about Stephanie. She turns away again, watching Marchande for the telltale and predictable clenching up that always followed the mention of dogs. Her eyes shift briefly to the doubtlessly ancient Namine, and her head hangs. To think that only a few hours ago, things seemed so promising...

"I'll... return. Please wait for me a little longer."

Down the stairs. Out the door. Rose stands outside and watches.

Alright. Stay on the job. Focus. You can turn this into a win.

Stephanie stepped off the roof.

The spiderweb of shadows burst from her mind, catching her near-weightless form and landing her feet delicately on the ground.

One of these days that won't work and then you'll have to think really fast, Steph.

Act normal. "We're not going to go to the nearest station - those guys are on the take and they'll just pocket the cash," said Stephanie to Rose, moving to a walk, keeping her mind on the plan, not looking around. "We're going down to Kimball street. Captain McCurtis there is a good guy and an old friend of mine."

[Anarion]

Originally Posted by Raz_Fox

"I am not--" Bile rises, hackles rise, the anger supressed one time too many boils up at the back of the eyeballs, nails cut into something almost a real palm. Sides ache where the boot connects, where night slides against a pale moon-shirt: focus. The next breath is cold, the frustrated grunt of a woman who knows it would make a scene if she slapped a cad, the seller who really needs this buyer.

"I am a person, Miss Namine. And only as loyal as the next person." No more begging for treats, no more obeying and quick at it. "But I used to use Excel 97. For schedules. I... was a few semesters away from my degree." Don't think about the person who has your face, probably has a degree and an office and a boyfriend and a family who loves her. Just don't.

"Ooh, and a bark too. I bet it's worse than your bite dear, you look far too pretty to me to really have any fangs." *She chuckles, a dry harsh sound.* "You might want to work on that as well. Having such an obvious button, especially one that any changeling you meet is going to comment on is a...liability. But one that can't be helped I suppose.

Now, I think we can set you up properly. Any college training is so rare these days, so many taken young. How does middle management as a banker sound to you? You'd get a small apartment near city hall. Not the greatest area of town, but cheaper and you wouldn't need a car. The job would be 9-5, but I'm sure that whatever magic you have should make it easy."

Originally Posted by Thanqol

Act normal. "We're not going to go to the nearest station - those guys are on the take and they'll just pocket the cash," said Stephanie to Rose, moving to a walk, keeping her mind on the plan, not looking around. "We're going down to Kimball street. Captain McCurtis there is a good guy and an old friend of mine."

There aren't too many people out in this area at night. It's slightly off the main streets, and not that much around. It occurs to you that if captain McCurtis is on duty tonight, he must have missed all the fireworks.

[PhoeKun]

Kalina holds back a sigh when Stephanie makes her grand entrance and steps forward, plan in hand.

"...You've been thinking about this."

It's kind of like praise, right? She forces a smile as well.

[Thanqol]

"I just know this part of town," Stephanie said, trying to disabuse Rose of the notion that she properly thought about anything.

It wasn't long before they closed on Kimball street. She took a breath, noting escape points (not many, police stations were inconvenient like that) "I've got kind of a plan? I haven't seen McCurtis since I was was twelve and I don't know if he remembers me -"

He'd been the officer who'd told her about her parents. He'd been nice.

[Raz_Fox]

Marchande diplomatically ignores the reminder that she needs to control herself - really, she's expected to just heel and obey after God knows how long being treated like a dog - and cuts straight to the point. "I appreciate the offer, but. Can you get me anything involving sales?"

[PhoeKun]

"Well? What's the plan you kind of have, then? I would like to hear it."

Her voice carries a tiny hint of sarcasm. Truthfully, she believed that Stephanie has a plan about as much as she believes in the kindness of strangers, but if there is something she could do to help... well, isn't that why she came?

[Thanqol]

"We-eeeelll, I'm sort of figuring to show off a little bit, and try and twist him into getting me a proper job. Sort of make the impression that it's better for me to be working for the law than the street?" Stephanie said.

She knew she'd dismissed the cop idea before, but she really didn't have any better ideas.

[Anarion]

Originally Posted by Thanqol

"I just know this part of town,"

Despite Stephanie's claims, the police station was actually on Eddy street, not Kimball. It wasn't far from Namine's place, however, and it didn't take them long to find it.

Luckily for Stephanie, the man she remembered as Officer McCurtis was indeed on duty this evening. The intervening years hadn't been especially kind to him. He had already had a little salt and pepper in his hair when Stephanie was 12, but now it was nearly all salt. He had a bushy white mustache to match, and a portly belly that was almost surely the result of having one too many beers with his meals.

He looked up when the two of them came inside and asked, in a relatively friendly tone, "Can I help you two ladies with something?" Stephanie and Rose notice that his mustache waggles as he talks, like a small broom sweeping his mouth.

[Thanqol]

Well, that was easy. Stephanie had been planning an elaborate patter to get past his secretary but everyone must be out or something.

"Hi," said Stephanie, sitting down without waiting for invitation. "Look... Uh, I did something kind of bad. And I'm sorry, because it's not me - I was just desperate and it turns out that it's the only thing I'm good at. I stole something," Stephanie put a single wallet on the table. "Can you take this back and get it back to it's owner? Everything's in there, promise."

[Anarion]

Officer McCurtis looks up from his desk and looks over Stephanie more carefully. "Well, young lady, it's not every day the thieves just walk into the police station and turn themselves in. It must be my magnetic personality." He moves as if to chuckle, but thinks better of it and instead fixes a stern look on Stephanie. "*Ahem* Now, why don't you sit down for a minute, miss. Your friend can join you too. I think we should chat a bit before you go running off into the night." He stands up and walks over to them, gesturing to a few chairs in the main room. He seems to want a more informal conversation, not an imposing officer looming over them at the main desk.

[Thanqol]

"Sure thing," said Stephanie obediently, following instructions.

[Anarion]

"Now then. Why don't you tell me why you stole that wallet? It's a misdemeanor, and you could get in serious trouble for doing that. Even if you have a change of heart later, I bet someone is really upset and looking all over for it."

[Thanqol]

"Because I have no money, no job and no home," said Stephanie, seemingly at ease with the concepts. "My friends don't either. I was just trying to be useful because it's the only thing I really can do."

[Anarion]

The officer looked strained. "Young lady, you're not giving me a very good reason to let you leave here. What you're telling me is that if I take this wallet and let you walk out, you're just going to spend the night on the street? I'm glad you felt guilty and turned in this wallet, but if that's the life you have, how do I know that you won't steal again? With the number of repeat offenders we get, it only gets easier after the first time."

[Thanqol]

"Yeah... about that," said Stephanie, putting the second wallet on the table.

[Anarion]

Officer McCurtis just groans. "Young lady, is there some reason you want to be arrested?"

[Thanqol]

"I don't want to be arrested!" Stephanie protested, "This is a serious problem and I want to stop! I just need a real job where I can do something useful."

[Anarion]

"Right. But you haven't found one up to now." He sighs again, heavily. "Well, you did the right thing coming here. Maybe I can help. What kind of job are you looking for?"

[Thanqol]

"Exactly," said Stephanie, pleased that he was getting it. "And, well... Thing is that I'm good at crime. I mean, I stole those -" and here she waved a sleeve, sending what seemed like an unending tide of wallets out onto the table. "- and all these in less than forty minutes this evening. I know how to pick locks and climb walls and not be seen. I don't know how I can make a honest living out of those skills. Oh, this one's yours," she said, picking one wallet out of the pile and handing it across to him.

[Anarion]

His eyes bug out more than a little, and when Stephanie pulls out his own wallet, he immediately reaches to check his back pocket. "How did you?" The mustache seems to be quivering up and down and Stephanie imagines that it would work really well on a street cleaning car.

He gets a bit stern. "Young lady, if you stole more than $1,000, it is grand theft and you could spend 3 years in jail for this. Do you even realize that?"

[PhoeKun]

Kalina watches impassively, sitting in the offered chair while Stephanie and Officer McCurtis talk this out. It seems to be going rather well, until... well, until that happens.

Rose sighs, leans forward, and buries her head in her hands.

[Thanqol]

Originally Posted by Anarion

His eyes bug out more than a little, and when Stephanie pulls out his own wallet, he immediately reaches to check his back pocket. "How did you?" The mustache seems to be quivering up and down and Stephanie imagines that it would work really well on a street cleaning car.

He gets a bit stern. "Young lady, if you stole more than $1,000, it is grand theft and you could spend 3 years in jail for this. Do you even realize that?"

"There's way less than that in there," said Stephanie. "And I'm giving it back. I didn't have to come in here, I didn't have to give these back, I know it's wrong, I want to change, so you can stop threatening me about it."

[Anarion]

"I'm not!" He bites back his shout and instead says in a calm voice. "I'm not threatening you. I could lose my job if I report a grand theft and don't arrest the person who committed it. If you're here to change, what exactly do you expect me to do for you? And while we're at it, what's her story?" That last bit he asks while gesturing at Rose.

[PhoeKun]

"...My story isn't important. I'm a friend. I'm here to support her while she does the right thing. She and I have had... a very difficult time of things, much more than I am going to explain to you. Today, we finally got a chance to make things better. All she is looking for, and all I am looking to help her with, is a chance to do that right."

Rose sits up and straightens her back, rising up to full height, although she does not leave her seat.

[Thanqol]

Originally Posted by Anarion

"I'm not!" He bites back his shout and instead says in a calm voice. "I'm not threatening you. I could lose my job if I report a grand theft and don't arrest the person who committed it. If you're here to change, what exactly do you expect me to do for you? And while we're at it, what's her story?" That last bit he asks while gesturing at Rose.

"Well, yeah, what she said" said Stephanie after Rose's bit. "Yeah, what I need to do is give these back. What I want to do is get a job on the right side of the law, but I've got no education and no qualifications other than being really good at stealing stuff - so I was really hoping there'd be something I could do in law enforcement or something where I could do something worthwhile,"

It was possible to spot the point where Stephanie ran out of plan when she got three 'somethings' into one sentence.

[Anarion]

"Well, you did show a certain amount of...skill...this evening." He checks his wallet again to make sure that it's still there. "And you do seem to have someone that cares about your well-being." Looks at Rose. "Perhaps I could give you a recommendation for the police academy? There are a lot of scholarships for people that are willing to serve their community. You'd have to study hard every day, and then most cops start out doing paperwork and just a regular beat for a few years before you can become a detective, but if you work really hard and put your nose to the grindstone, you could serve this fair city."

[Thanqol]

"Wow, I didn't even have to show you the thing where I walk on walls!" said Stephanie. "That sounds great - but I don't exactly have a place to stay or any money to keep me afloat through that, is that okay?"

Paperwork, enh, she was confident that she could blitz the physical section so hard that they'd want her doing anything else.

[Anarion]

Originally Posted by Thanqol

"Wow, I didn't even have to show you the thing where I walk on walls!" said Stephanie. "That sounds great - but I don't exactly have a place to stay or any money to keep me afloat through that, is that okay?"

Paperwork, enh, she was confident that she could blitz the physical section so hard that they'd want her doing anything else.

"Well, if we can get you a scholarship, they'll take care of your living and all that. There's some cheap housing in the Mission District and it's not far from the academy. If you don't have anywhere to go tonight, I can call a homeless shelter and see what I can do for you. I'm off work tomorrow, but if you come in on Wednesday, we can go over all the paperwork. How does that sound?"

[Thanqol]

Originally Posted by Anarion

"Well, if we can get you a scholarship, they'll take care of your living and all that. There's some cheap housing in the Mission District and it's not far from the academy. If you don't have anywhere to go tonight, I can call a homeless shelter and see what I can do for you. I'm off work tomorrow, but if you come in on Wednesday, we can go over all the paperwork. How does that sound?"

"I think I have a place where I can stay tonight, but everything else sounds really good!" Stephanie said. "Uh, I really don't like direct sunlight though, I'm really really sensitive to it, so is it possible to do as much as possible at night?"