alderwitch

Janus heaved a long suffering sigh, fixing Kam with a look as their cavalier attitude dropped away. "You do," Janus said, bluntly. "It bothers you unduly which is why I'm here to help. Not with the relationship troubles - mercy, no. I shan't be falling into the trap of offering advice save to say you really ought to talk to your twin. You'll feel better and honestly, she'll understand more than you are giving her credit for. You'll certainly feel better for having someone you feel comfortable talking to. You're tetchy because you've found yourself in a quandary that your moral compass is failing you on. That's when one talks to friends." Janus stretched, finally breaking their too intent gaze. "As for me, I'll help you cover for your extra curricular activities as you are bad at it. Let me know what evenings that you need an alibi for and I shall endeavor to provide one."

Janus made a rude noise before they laughed. "Phht, please spare me the burden of the crown speech. Not only am I more than familiar enough with exactly what comes of being the second born of a royal line, I have been a guest at your court often enough to know exactly how much you enjoy your life. You view your position as a responsibility to serve, as well you should. No, I imagine this mostly has to do with your sister's lack of discretion about her identity and thus, yours." Janus arched one perfect rose tinted brow and added after a frankly dramatic pause, "Americans can be awfully touchy about monarchies. She doesn't know that you're a prince, I'd wager. Dreadfully awkward to bring that up after a certain point. It looks a little to close to deceit, I fear."

Unholy amusement lit Janus gaze and, like the warrior they were, Janus struck with lightning speed, "So it is a girl. Fascinating. But which girl?" Kam's refusal to even look at Janus let alone reply was as amusing as it was clever. The best way to keep secrets was refusing to engage. Unfortunately for Kam, not engaging with a Danger who was being deliberately bating was not the easiest task. Janus tapped one elegant finger to the bow of their lips. "One of the students here? Hmm... Possible but unlikely. There's a handful of whom might absolutely give you a wrenched knee during a bit of good natured wrestling but its unlikely that you wouldn't be still enjoying a bit of fussing over your well being. You certainly wouldn't need to be slipping into your dorm room like a thief in the night. Also, you lack a certain amount of duplicitous required to carry off a secret liaison while pretending ignorance in class during the day. Just not your style. Your twin doesn't know anything about what you've been up to which means you think she might not approve, or at least understand. Given your immediate swift defense, I can assume you've already developed a tendre so it isn't a question of the girl's unsuitable nature. You're not worried about your sister meeting the girl so perhaps... you're worried about the girl meeting your sister?"

" 'Spoopy' ," Sofi declared finally before covering her eyes with her hands to try and ease the headache forming from having her gaze forced away from the building every few seconds. "It's like trying to look at one of those hidden pictures. You know, the ones where you have to let your eyes cross just a little and then the picture changes?" She nudged Lou with one elbow - or tried to, her hands were still over her eyes so it wasn't the most coordinated of efforts. "Lemme just let my eyes stop trying to cross and I'll see what it does to video recordings. Mess 'em up, I guess. Whatcha think, Alice? Wanna go see what happens when you touch it? You wanna touch it? I'll touch it. I bet it'll feel super weird. Maybe cause motion sickness. You know, that whole discordance between visual and tactile sensations? I almost never barf. I don't mind." That wasn't entirely true. Sofi almost never got motion sick from video games but she couldn't hold her liquor worth a damn.

Stealth: 24

With Àjàṣorò's hand on their arm, Janus took the lead, winding them through shops and through knots of crowds in what seemed like a random pattern but was careful to catch as many eyes as possible. Leaning in, Janus murmured softly, "When we get to the street musician, I'm going to spin you, alright?" Despite Janus' teasing about making a scene, Janus had no desire to create a minor scandal. Impromptu dancing would have plenty of eyes on their princess and was exactly the sort of nonsense that one would expect of one of the Dangers. True to their word, Janus doubled back and when they reached the spot in front of the street musician, cheerfully piping a tune on his atenteben, Janus caught Àjàṣorò's hand and deftly spun her into the music in a move designed to maximize the flair of her skirts. Janus pulled lightly, offering a stunning smile as they asked in a voice designed to carry, "I don't suppose you'd let me lead, princess?"

"Monseieur le Comte," Talya said, offering the same slow, almost playful smile that she'd offered the man in his prime. Neither her features nor posture betrayed anything but casual warmth as she offered her hand for the man to bow over. Her gaze flicked briefly from the older man towards the auction itself. "Dare I hope that you are finally selling that Carravagio? I would love to add it to my collection. I know it has great sentimental value for you but it's truly priceless. It would look stunning on my wall." Talya retrieved her hand, sliding it through Jack's arm once more with easy familiarity. While Talya did have an expansive art collection, most of it actually was on loan to a variety of museums. Their home was far more likely to be adorned with children's art or at least decorations that could withstand a lively, young family. She tipped her head towards Jack to explain, "The Comte was little more than a youth in the 1940s. His first great theft was right at the end of the War from a bunker that held some of the collection of the Kaiser Fredrich Museum. I've been trying to get the Portrait of a Courtesan from him for decades now. I had resigned myself to stealing it from one of your descendants, du Destin. It'll look lovely next to the replique of Gervex's Rolla that I picked that up at Sotheby's last year." Truth sprinkled with lies. It was a painting that Talya genuinely did want to have in her possession but she wasn't about to steal from the Comte's grieving family. It was, however, exactly the sort of verbal barb he would expect from Bombshell.

Do you need any rolls from me? Stealth check to join Kam after KO'ing the guard?

Janus rolled lazily upright, long legs stretched out in a deceptively casual pose. Kam had an advantage over most people in knowing not to underestimate the Danger. Janus got a lot of mileage over people not looking far past a pretty face. "Who says I don't have any entertainment?" Janus drawled, their accent thickening deliberately. Cutting their violet gaze over to Kam, it was clear exactly what Janus thought their entertainment for the evening was. Nothing quite like a bored Danger to make everyone else's life just that much harder. Janus gaze swung from Kam's face to his slight limp. Fortunately, Janus was not exactly the type to insist going to the school nurse over every little thing. After judging the injury as non-serious, Janus' attention swung back to Kam's face. "Misjudged a step and slipped off the roof, then? That's your story? It's terrible. If you're going to start breaking rules, you're going to have to learn to lie better. That's perhaps a half step up from 'my dog ate it'. The teachers will never buy it. Your sister would never buy it." Janus' gaze cut away artfully, taking great interest in their nails. "Fortunately for you, I may be willing to aid your slide into debauchery. I am fairly certain that my family legacy requires that I aid rule breaking in the efforts of... what's the phrase... 'getting some?' " Janus was almost never crass, something Kam generally knew about his friend though Janus was banking on exhaustion and tension ensuring that Kam missed that he was being obviously baited. Janus already knew that it had to be something more than hormonal to coax Kam away from campus. Janus just wanted the ammunition to confirm it.

July 23, 2019: Late O'Clock at night (morning?) Janus Danger There were many common rooms, and certainly one closer to the dorm room that Janus shared with Veronica but this one had the advantage of line of sight to the door of Kam's dorm room. Janus was bored. Frightfully bored any time that they weren't training at the Espadas dojo but finding out exactly what could encourage Kam - the most rule abiding person that Janus may have ever met - to break curfew. Janus was almost entirely certain that it was a girl at this point. They'd been back for less than a week for the late summer session and by Janus' count, this was the third time that the prince had snuck out. Really, it was a time honored Claremont tradition to sneak out and do a bit of vigilante work on the side... just not one that Janus thought Kam would take part in. They were pleasantly surprised to be proven wrong. Janus stretched out on the couch, long legs dangling over the arm and absently scrolling through the phone while they waited. It wouldn't be long now. Janus bit back a yawn. Being tired through classes in the morning was absolutely worth it. When the window creaked open, Janus shifted to eye the Red Lynx from their position dangling upside down on the couch. "Welcome to the hallowed fraternity of Claremont rule breakers, your highness. So, who is she?"

"Easy enough," Janus agreed with a shrug, falling back into step with Veronica. Janus arched one brow high and offered to their cousin, "I'll play the 'new to this strange dimension' Danger, shall I? Nudge me if there's something you want me to ask endless questions about." Janus had long ago realized that playing dumb was often a useful tool as a cavalier attitude and a pretty face often gave the impression of mediocre intelligence, especially when Janus let their accent thicken. As they started to draw a slight crowd, Janus offered a wide smile, thickening their slight Dakanan accent and slowing their words as if the language wasn't as easy as English for the teenager. "Hello! Hello! Oooh, what a lovely lantern. Veronica, how does this work?" Janus asked as their steps slowed to let the royal twins go first. Taking blatant advantage of their anachronistic manner of dress and the reputation of being 'that' Danger, Janus pointed at the high tech lighting lining the main street. Janus' gaze twinkled with unrepentant mirth as Veronica was going to have to pretend to explain technology to their cousin from Fortuna. "Magic?"

"Not very. It's not a well run operation but they're well armed. Better guns and more skilled than those two in the parking lot." Robin explained with a jerk of her chin towards the guard in question. "I'll go clear the one guard. You take a look in the shop through the windows and get a feel for how many we're dealing with. I'd rather take the coke out of the equation. If we take out the whole gang, it'll lead to a vacuum in this section of the Fens which means an uptick in violence inevitably." Robin's voice was weary. Without waiting for an agreement, she dropped down into the scrapyard nearly silent and surprisingly hard to see for all that she wore jeans and a jacket. Despite her casual clothes, she blended into the shadows seamlessly.

Erik was treated to Talya's low husky laughter and the tension leaching from her shoulders. The red of her lipstick was still bright and unsmudged as she leaned in to press a butterfly light kiss against the corner of his mouth as she murmured. "I do love you, Erik Espadas." "I have never been bored when we're spending the evening together. I don't expect for that to change tonight," Talya replied, a slow smile curving her lips. She leaned into Erik's embrace and he heard the faint chime of metal on metal before she revealed a pair of handcuffs produced from somewhere inside her costume. Dangling them from one finger, Talya twirled them around playfully. "If the party gets truly boring, I'm sure we can find a more pleasant way to pass the time."

"Thank you, Grandfather," Janus said. The lean teenager had been sitting on the seat, waiting for the others to jump. Unlike the other three, Janus didn't bother to check their chute or verify that they were ready to leap from the plane. Once it was Janus' turn, they simply swung the pack into place with lackadaisical movements and clipped the harness in place with a few brief movements. Ace was certainly familiar enough with Danger manners to read the difference between 'not worried' and 'not caring'. Unfortunately at least one of his familial wards had begun to develop the unfortunate Danger 'not really caring if one lives or dies' manner of dealing with feelings. Janus lifted two fingers to their temple and gave Ace a little salute before falling backwards out of the plane. Janus spread their limbs wide, enjoying the moments of free fall before flipping around to pull their chute. Janus pulled the cord perhaps dangerously low and hit the ground at high enough velocity to need to roll with the impact. Janus bounced up quickly enough, shaking the chute and harness loose before dutifully starting to bundle it up in order to follow the others.

Edited - Durf Bombshell Add 1 PP to Skills: Skills: 140R = 35PP Acrobatics 13 (+20) Skill Mastery Bluff 13 (+20) Skill Mastery Disable Device 13 (+15) Skill Mastery Disguise 13 (+20) Skill Mastery Escape Artist 13 (+20) Skill Mastery Gather Information 3 (+10) Skill Mastery Investigate 5 (+7) Language 5 (English [Native], French, German, Polish, Russian, Spanish) Notice 8 (+10) Perform (singing) 5 (+12) Search 8 (+10) Skill Mastery Sense Motive 8 (+10) Slight of Hand 8 (+15) Stealth 13 (+20) Skill Mastery Add 4 PP to Feats under Benefits Feats: 31 PPBenefit: Wealth 3, Status: Fame, Status: Veteran (British Forces; DBE), Alternate Identity x 2

Fortunately, Kam's mask hid his gaze and it honestly didn't occur to Robin that he might appreciate anything beyond her form. She nodded agreeably and took Kam at his word. Without much of a pause, Robin swung herself up, bouncing easily from ledge to ledge until she was balanced easily on the roof ledge. As soon as Kam joined her, she leapt for the next ledge. Her footfalls were near silent as she raced across the rooftops, bouncing from roofline to roofline with ease. Although she glanced back to make sure that Red Lynx was keeping up, once it was clear that the young man could match her bruising pace, Robin let herself fly. It had been too long since she'd had a reason to race across the rooftops with the wind tossing her dark curls back from her face. All too soon, Robin's sneakers hit the rooftop that looked down into the scrap yard. It was on the edge of the Fens and although nominally was a scrap yard, everyone knew that it housed a chop shop. Robin dropped down to a loose limbed crouch and pointed out the dimly lit yard. "The royals work out of this place. Most of the gangs in the Fens don't have delusions of grandeur but King likes to dress his men up to be themed like playing cards. He aspires to be a B-list villain someday."

"Huang," Phantom chided at the show of too sharp teeth. Smiling might be a friendly gesture for humans but all of Taylor's offspring seemed to take after their sire in that regard. Unfortunately, the distaste for Olympians, Taylor knew she was entirely to blame for. "My son, Ouroboros, as well as my apprentice." Taylor explained, nudging the teenager towards Burt in a less than subtle manner. "I appreciate the olives. Please, do enjoy the festivities. I apologize that the invitation was addressed to your former teacher while she's on a, ah, sabbatical. I wanted to make certain that all of Eldritch's contacts were invited but I fear that some of his records and notes were not the easiest to parse." Her gaze swung to Aquaria at her arrival as well as the teens heading over to speak with the Deep One. Phantom bit back a faint sigh, signaling one of the ghosts to keep a close eye lest anyone encourage Aquaria to start summoning her particular gods in the middle of a party. This is why I don't leave the Sanctum. "Dead Head, no, it hasn't been that long. I fear it's a long story. Don't listen to Huang's version, he'll give you some nonsense about time travel." Taylor shook her head. She didn't have the time to explain how her one offspring became two in a short enough manner for the party. She turned her smile over at Abby and her school friends, "Hex, have you happened to meet Arcana? She's a very promising young practitioner. Hello, Masque, Veronica. Veronica, how's your Uncle Ace?"

Robin dropped three stories without blinking an eye at the distance. She landed neatly on the other man. Her weight drove him to the ground, one hand clamped over his mouth so that he'd not even utter a sound. With methodical precision, Robin bounced his skull against the concrete just hard enough to render him unconscious and no more. The Red Lynx caught her movement to check his pulse as well as the small grimace when the smooth metal of her hand touched his throat. It was the first time Robin had looked awkward as she shifted to check his pulse with her left hand - the one that was still flesh and bone instead. Checking Red Lynx's as well, Robin nodded once before she pulled out zipties from her pockets. Within moments, she'd trussed up both men and tossing one over each shoulder, lugged them out to the street where she attached them to the light post. Around one's neck, she clipped a sign, scrawled with the sharpie in her pocket on a stray piece of cardboard, 'We robbed the vet's office. Please call the police when found.' At the bottom, Robin doodled the symbol she wore on her costume and then nodded back towards the building. "Fastest way to the scrap yard is across the rooftops."

"I'm not sure at all, honestly," Talya sighed, picking up the black domino mask that she'd worn for many years. The choice to wear her own costume from the sixties was a strategic one but not without its own ghosts. She glanced down, those long lashes hiding her gaze for a moment as she looked at the mask. After a long moment, Talya twirled it in her hands and glanced up. "But I don't know how to stop being Natalya Browning, Erik. I can kill her, I suppose, but I've done it enough times that no one will believe it or expect it to stick. Walking that line between light and dark... I've done it so long. It's the one thing that I bring the team that no one else can but it has a price." Those red lips quirked in a smile that held no humor. "Everything does, I suppose. I don't want to drag anyone else into the shadows with me but it's a lonely road. Yes, I think about stepping off it but..." Her shoulders moved in an expressive shrug. She didn't need to verbalize those worries aloud, really. Erik well knew what it was like to have worries that kept you up at night. "... But what if tonight we get information that helps someone. Or next week? Or the week after that?"

Does a 14 hit? I can use an HP if it doesn't.

Well, at the moment, Taylor is solid but she does flicker in and out of Prime as she goes incorporeal (which she still tends to when startled). She is, unsurprisingly, very magical! I've always talked about her power like eldritch lightning, big flashes of white arcs of pure power, like the streaks of light across the void. She's not human anymore and doesn't have a lot of the typical scents and smells of a human. She's something else that isn't quite like anything on this plane except for her children who share that connection to their native plane.

"Me! Me! I get!" "Mummy! Emily's gonna open the door! She's not s'posed to!! Tell her 'no'. Bad, Emmy! Bad!" That voice was still the soft high pitched lisp of a child but older than Emily's certainly. Mia, most likely. "Emmy, no! Don't--" Talya's clipped tones meant that the dojo was empty of anyone that wasn't family though doubtless her disguise was still in place but she wasn't bothering to smooth out the crisp cadence of her natural accent. That was followed by an outraged squeal as the child in question was caught up by her mum. Taking advantage of the chaos that was his sisters, Terry stretched up to open the door. Mona was greeted by a blonde cherub wearing a patch over one eye. The little boy offered Mona an angelic smile. He was a charmer, that was certain. "Hullo!" Terry chirped brightly. In the background, Mona could see one of his mothers holding a squalling Emily on one hip as she tried to settle the small family squabble. Terry beamed up at Mona and thrust his arms up to be picked up. He turned his head to examine the trunk with great interest though he had to stretch to manage it out of his good eye. "Presents?" Talya twisted her head at Terry's cheerful interest and sighed. "Help!" Talya requested, her voice carrying deeper into the house. The thread of laughter told anyone listening that it was usual chaos rather than any trouble. "I need back up. I'm out of hands. Do come in, Mona. We were about to let these little hellions run some energy off in the dojo. I think Erik's moving around mats. Min? Dearheart, Mona's arrived. Terry, don't pester Mona for presents before she's even set things down." Terry pouted, his lower lip thrusting out before he tipped his head back with a sly look at Mona. "Hugs?"

The Harris Family Farm was not normally the kind of farm to rent out it’s barn and pasture for a wedding. It was a working orchard after all, but for today no crews moved through the trees about the business of the farm. Today, at long last, the youngest scion of the Harris family was finally to be wed and where better than the farm where he and his bride had spent many happy if too brief summers in their youth. The old barn had been emptied of its equipment, fresh hay laid on the floor and rustic tables and chairs brought in and dressed in classic country chic. Strings of looping LED lights coiled the pillars and rafters of the barn and the center was cleared with ahastily buts sturdily constructed plywood floor to serve for dancing in the midst of it all. Under the old oak in the pasture stood an arch of multi hued roses that looked grown in place, it helped to have talented friends after all and one made all sorts of new acquaintances teaching in a school for the ‘gifted’ such as Nicholson. Benches draped with gauzy linen were arrayed for the small group of friends and family in attendance. Mike stood nervously at the altar in a bespoke tuxedo that managed not to constrict his broad shoulders. He pulled his glasses from his face and absently cleaned them just to keep his hands busy as he waited, tucking them in a pocket with some trepidation instead of returning them to the bridge of his nose. He didn’t need them of course and he knew fully from the chiding voice in the back of his mind his young bride wanted to see his eyes today. *** A few weeks earlier Mike sat over his Saturday breakfast while he waited for Alex to come down from the room they shared going over his prepared speech in his head. Doubtless unintentionally echoing it in her own mind despite his intent to do this verbally and face to face. He looked up as she floated down the central column in her brightly colored dressing gown and smiled as he stood and pulled a seat for her. “Ah Alex?” he nervously began, “I’ve been thinking … and uh well…” he broke off losing his train of thought and looking down to the table where he had cleverly tucked his notecards under his plate. He hadn't had a chance to take advantage however before Alex let out a musical laugh, “Oh Mike, I agree of course!” She sprung up wrapping her arms around his neck to nuzzle his jaw catching his thoughts before he’d even had time to form words, “And yes a small ceremony at your Grandparents farm would be perfect. *** The music started up the soft tones swelling as the first groomsman and bridesmaid began their march up the aisle. It wasn’t a large wedding party. Erin was Alex’s maid of honor and Mark was Mike’s best man. That made up the entire wedding party and there were only family and very close friends on the guest list. Alex didn’t wear white and she didn’t wear a veil. Her bright red curls were pinned up with barrettes that sparkled and caught the light, tossing off brilliant rainbows along the barn roof but none of those matched her smile. The sweetheart gown that Alex wore started at the neckline in a blushing pink but the skirts turned from deeper pinks and reds to the midnight of a sunset. It might have been a modern trend of dip-dying the hems into ombre but no one who knew Alex was surprised that she’d found a way to wear all the bright colors for her wedding. Alex beamed at Mike when she handed over her bouquet and slipped her small hands into his much larger ones. The words their officiant said were lovely but really didn’t matter. It was clear that the groom and bride communicated silently through their personal psychic rapport in addition to offering their vows when prompted. Alex’s smile was brilliant as Mike slipped the simple band on her slender finger. It had taken all of Alex’s considerable resources to find a material that was almost as hearty as Mike’s impervious skin but she’d managed with a little bit of help. The band she slipped on Mike’s finger was duller than gold but Alex was reasonably confident that it would survive the majority of Mike’s adventures without having to be replaced. The ceremony was both short and sweet before they were presented as Mr. and Mrs. Albright to their nearest and dearest.

"Damn," Robin breathed out, her voice little more than a whisper of sound. "The Royals work out of the scrap yard but they're low end. They must have gotten their hands on coke and want to turn a profit. That'll lead to in fighting which is bad news. I know where the royals hang out though. We'll drop these guys so they don't get up to any trouble and go take the drugs from the scrapyard before they can hit the market." She glanced over at the Red Lynx to see if he was following. The vigilante seemed to know a great deal but clearly wasn't used to this type of crime. Robin paused and then explained. "So once cocaine gets into the US, it goes through a lot of hands and each person who gets their hands on it will cut it and resell it, diluting the drug and increasing their profits. So if you buy a kilo raw at around thirty thousand dollars, you cut that at a one to one and resell it. Then you've sold two kilos, diluted for a profit. Then, if that person resells it, they'll add something else and cut it again. Then it gets sold to users on the street. Jules Kahn is a low end thug with ambitions to move in on the Skulls and their dealing in the south side of the Fens. A turf war will be bloody with a lot of collateral damage."

Robin shrugged. She was well aware that most people had trouble understanding her loyalty to the little neighborhood. It had a lot of crimes and a lot of problems but it was Robin's home. Really, it was the last connection she had to the family that she'd lost. "It's my home and these are my people. If I don't help them, who will?" Robin said simply as she straightened and slammed the trunk shut once more, leaving the stolen supplies inside. "Come on. Clarence will be calling the disturbance into the cops. They'll come get the car." Robin waved at the older man, peering out from the dirty window of the small motel's office and smiled when he waved back. Robin locked her camera in the trunk of her own car along with the guns and evidence that she'd taken for her own records. She fished her battered jacket out of her back seat and shrugged it on over her shoulders. It wasn't the original one that she'd worn as Nighthawk but she'd picked it up second hand and already patched several bullet holes in the thin leather. Assuming that the Red Lynx would follow, Robin broke into an easy jog towards the nearest building and leapt and swung herself up until she perched on the roof ledge. Crouched on the ledge, Robin waved a hand towards the Fens. "This was probably their initiation. They're not locals but a couple of the gangs are always looking for new blood. They'll give them a small job like this that's not critical if it gets screwed up. You look pretty quick and nimble. How good are you at tracking in an urban environment? Those guys aren't going to get far on foot. Easiest thing to do is shadow them to where the real problems are."