August 2 2007

Who: Regan & Kurt
Where: Spruce Street
When: Late/Early

It was late as Kurt's boots moved quietly over the sidewalk. Or early, depending on your perspective. He guessed it was round one-thirty or two a.m. He hadn't been able to sleep, laying awake on Natalya's small couch, long legs positioned sort of awkwardly. Trying to mull over what his position was now. Where he fit into the grand scheme of things. It was a lot to try and work out in the dark, and he'd always felt better when he was moving anyway. So he silently got up, dressed, and left the house behind. He walked with his hands tucked into his pockets, awareness working on auto-pilot as he replayed Natalya's reaction to him over and over in his head.

Regan was having an unlucky night. She despised Marquette simply for the fact that every person she'd come into contact with thus far was an insane vampire, or a human yet not human bastard with a sidekick who was in desperate need of a bath. Amusement was no longer an emotion thumping inside of her. And the streets were quiet now, being in the earliest morning hours. The sun would rise and she would fall asleep nearly starved, seeping her energy and weakening her defenses. Walking briskly down the street, she felt her hair whip around her face in the breeze, her heels clicking on the sidewalk as anger surged within her. And then she saw him. A rather tall man, hands in his pockets, his head lowered.

Melancholy, she thought immediately, resisting the urge to smile in relief. If she had learned anything tonight it was to not jump to the assumption that her intended meal was human. Pausing, she quickly dredged up a few tears and leaned her foot back to break the heel from her shoes. Reaching down, she pulled both of them off and tossed the broken heel into the yard next to her. "Excuse me," she called, her full lips dropping into a dramatic frown when he started. "I'm terribly sorry to startle you, but," A well timed sniff had her pausing, "I have no idea where I am. Do you have a phone I could borrow?"

who: eli and syn
where: eli's
when: late

"Hush little baby, don't say a word... Mama's gonna buy you a mockingbird..."

Eli's eyes opened wide as the first strains of the song filtered through his head. Mama. He sat up immediately, looking around the room in confusion. Where was this? This wasn't home. This wasn't the attic. Where was his mother?

"Climb out the window, Eli," his mother whispered in his head, her tone sweet-gentle. "I'm near. Come to me, sweetheart."

Who: Olivia
When: Late night
Where: Trowbridge Park

"Are you kidding me?" Olivia asked, turning away from the window of the beat up Chevy to glare at the driver. They had stopped in the middle of nowhere, at least to Olivia, with nothing but residential houses lining the street. The young man who Olivia had aptly named Hoodlum #4 merely shrugged, leaning against the other window, his baseball cap tilted to the side as he smirked.

"Got places to go, sugar. This is as far as I take you."

Olivia released a sound of disgust and wrenched the door open. "No one says sugar anymore, asshole." She slammed the door shut, clutching her bag and jacket against her chest as the Chevy took off, tires squealing along the pavement. She would have picked up a rock and thrown it at the ugly car had she not had her hands full. Instead she yelled a few choice expletives before resigning herself to the fact that she was stuck.

She stood on the darkened sidewalk, staring directly into a darkened park. Trowbridge Park, she thought, reading the sign. Lovely.

Who: Mathias and Caleb
Where: Roadside bar, 50 miles from Marquette
When: Night

Several hours, fifty odd miles, a shower and change, one fake ID and two beers later found Caleb and Mathias sitting in a booth in the back of a smoky roadside bar with the remains of a basket of fries and some buffalo wings between them. Mathias looked, as always, the picture of relaxation and calm as he sprawled out across his side of the booth, beer in one hand, cigarette in the other, as though they hadn't been in a messy fight earlier on in the day. He'd been as good as his word - taking his brother well out of town, before they'd found a motel to properly clean up in. That done, he threw together a fake ID for Caleb from bits he had in his bag (in Mathias' world, there were times when it was very useful to not be known as 'Mathias Lockwood' for a while) and whilst it wasn't great, it would stand up to a glance in the shitty, poorly lit bar they were in. As long as Caleb didn't actually do anything like try and order his own drinks. Which he wasn't doing anyhow, because tonight was on Mathias.

Who: Isaac and Jamie
When: night
Where: on the phone

After getting off the phone with Thom, Isaac had stalled. He'd eaten dinner, he'd played some video games. He'd dicked around on the bass for a little while. All the while, he was pretending to ignore the phone, and the fact that he'd called himself out on this already. He'd known he was probably going to pussy out. After all, calling a girl two nights in a row that you hardly knew and who had stated a few times now that she didn't date -- pointedly -- was a bit ... off, wasn't it? It wasn't good, he knew that much. It reeked of desperation and lame-itude, so ... he'd wait. Tomorrow, he'd call her tomorrow. Humming to himself and not at all satisfied with this decision, Isaac played along to the Chevelle song that came on his playlist.

Little did Isaac know, he didn't have to worry at all. Jamie was calling him.

She was still in a horribly good mood from Caleb's visit earlier, despite the fact they'd done nothing but flirt back and forth and yell at each other. Yeah, she was weird. So while one of his CDs played (Earshot this time), she curled up on her bed, snuggled under her blanket, and called Isaac's number. She still needed to know the party details, after all, and where Thom lived so she could drop in on a practice session one day.

On the eleven o'clock news, there's reports of a break in in town, where a girl's room was targeted by vandals. Anyone with information pertaining to the incident is encouraged to contact the Marquette police department.

Who: Thom and Leija
Where: On the phone
When: Around 8pm-ish

Thom didn't call her straight away after he got off the phone with Isaac. Instead he worked on the piece he'd been playing with whilst talking to his friend, messing around a little until it was a definite tune - on a whim making it totally a piano piece, rather than writing it for the guitar. He'd overlay a rhythm over the top of it at some point, leave the baseline up to Isaac, though he could already almost hear it in his head. It'd be good - almost up to instrumental quality if lyrics didn't appear at some point. It could definitely hold its own.

And through it all, the phone had been sitting just in his line of sight, there in the corner of his vision, until he couldn't actually ignore it any more. He grabbed the handset and slid down to sit on the floor, back against the wall, in between the keyboard and his electric guitar on its stand as he rooted in his pocket for her number and dialled, listening to the phone ring.

Who: Thom and Isaac
When: early evening
Where: on the phone!

Isaac had talked to David. He'd also called the other guys in the band already, then called David back and was now ready to call Thom to relay The Plan. He flopped backwards onto his bed, the ever-present music playing in the background -- it was Clutch tonight, hard and funky -- and listened to his cell phone ring Thom's number. Gigs were always exciting, but he was already feeling that Need To Buckle Down sort of pressure. They had to get ready, which meant all the practice they could squeeze into the next few days.

Thom had actually half been expecting Isaac to call - after all, he'd left that hang up earlier on in the day. That said, it took him a few to pick up, since he was down in the basement, already practising. Talking to Leija had got him in the mood for stretching his fingers on his keyboard - he almost never used the piano upstairs any more. It didn't feel right - far too staid and boring. It was a mindset thing. He'd been in the middle of a random bit of jazz, just messing around really, when Isaac called and he eventually picked up. "My man - tell me you have a when and where for me," he greeted, skipping the 'hello', as per usual.

Who: Evan and Regan, then Seven
When: After dark
Where: Trowbridge Park

Who: Isaac and Lullaby
When: late afternoon
Where: Front St.

Lullaby was out walking to The Spot. She could have gone to a different store, but she liked the spot, and it got her outside for a little while. So she was walking up Front, lost in her own little world. Front was less busy than Third, and so it was making her feel weirdly safer. Which was utterly stupid, but that was how she felt. She was trying to make herself do things and behave normally, thus the walk. That and an all consuming need for Ben and Jerry's, but that was nothing new. Her leg kind of hurt, but the bandages were hidden by her skirt. She would much rather walk it off or whatever than hide in her room.

Isaac was out walking too, because he could think better when he walked. He tended to get things done more efficiently. Which was weird, but there it was. Currently he was swapping phone calls with David and the other guys in the band, trying to get something solid worked out. He never called Thom until everything was settled, that was just what he did. He was the organizer. "Nah, man, I don't think we'll have to play anywhere past midn--" His roaming eyes caught sight of a familiar short-haired girl. Oh! Someone else to ask! "Lullaby!" Isaac shouted, unmindful of Tyler's ear on the other side. Der. "Oh sorry dude, lemme call you back, okay?" He hung up and started to jog across the street in her direction.

Today I wanted to rip my brother's head off. Seriously. Watch it spin backwards with a look of shock, then pop right off onto the floor. Lucky for him, I can't do it, because he's fucking gone. And he took Caleb with him. Course, if they were here, I wouldn't have this problem.

Who: Billy and Liadán
Where: Wild Cathedral
When: Afternoon

'Sometime after two' had ended up, in the end, being around four, but Billy hadn't changed his mind. He'd lain awake and thought about it half the night but he was certain. For once he wanted the world to see what he could see - to stop looking at nothing, talking to people nobody else could see. He walked into Wild Cathedral and headed straight for the counter.

Liadán had been in one of the back rooms, but at the sound of the bells out front she headed down the hall and out the door to the lobby. "Hey, you came back." she greeted, nodding her head as she stepped behind the counter. She'd figured this one would. "I have your art."

who: kaysen and charlotte
where: kaysen's yard
when: afternoon

Kaysen was sitting in her front yard, staring at the stuff she'd gotten today. At total, weird random, which she was still trying to figure out. It was nice stuff, actually, better stuff than she currently had. Part of the reason she didn't wear anything right now was because her pads and shit were pretty poor quality. And now she had...stuff. From no one. Yeah. To say she was a little weirded out would be a total understatement. So she was kind of eyeing the equipment like she thought they might explode at any moment.

After exploring the house and at least setting up her furniture in her room, Charlotte could officially say that she approved of the inside of her new home as well. She would have preferred the bedroom on the ground floor, but her mother had refused - saying that if she allowed it, Charlotte would climb out her window in the middle of the night to talk to raccoons and bunnies. Which was probably true. So she accepted this compromise, knowing she got one of the bigger bedrooms anyway, and happily unpacked while trying not to wonder what being winked at by Isaac meant. In the search for the box with her favorite bedding in it, Charlotte realized it was probably one of the boxes still in the UHaul still parked in front of the house. So down she went to fetch it, pausing at the back of the truck when she saw a girl in front of Isaac's house. That must be his sister. Kay... Kaysen? Is that right? Should I introduce myself? She felt unsure of herself, but in the end forced herself to shyly cross the road. "Um... hello."

Who: Thom and Leija
When: afternoon
Where: Woodridge Ave, and around

Leija was bound and determined to learn this town before school started. She was going to do it, whether her father really wanted her wandering around or not. She was a valkyrie, for fuck's sake, she got called to the most dangerous corners of the world almost daily, she thought she could handle what Marquette had to throw at her. Nevermind that no one could see her when she was in those places. That wasn't the point. She had wings of fire. So, after an argument that kind of went nowhere, she'd huffed out of the house, earbuds firmly in her ears. She shouldn't be mad at him, really, he just worried about her, but it was so stifling. Even after the adventure (ha) she'd had with Caleb the night before, she felt like she was suffocating. So Leija just started to walk, glowering at the sidewalk in front of her and not paying the least bit of attention to where she was really going.

Thom was heading home, guitar in its case slung over his shoulder. And today he was making a point to avoid anywhere that Kaysen could possibly be. A damn point! That involved him taking a completely different way home and no he wasn't going to just happen to turn down there. Because that wouldn't be avoiding, that would be happening to go in precisely the right direction, dammit! In disgust with himself, he determinedly turned round and walked the other way, knowing it would take him twice as long to get home - but he wouldn't see Kaysen! Result! Of course, he didn't actually expect his sudden turn to mean that he walked headlong into the girl coming the other way, but...

Dorian

Mathias

who: caleb and mathias
where: the middle of damn nowhere
when: fiveish on

Caleb came walking in the door at almost five on the dot, which was weird. And he'd had to take off from Jamie's, but oh well, it wasn't like he hadn't been there long. Either way, he had seen the note from Mathias to be home by five...so...whatever. If his brother was going to be making some kind of an effort, he was at least going to give him a shot. Or something, whatever, he was home. On time. He opened up the door and came inside, noting Mathias in the living room. "I'm here." he greeted. Hello was overrated.

Mathias was lounged over one of the chairs, a leg hooked over the arm as he slouched, looking indecently relaxed and totally at home. He pushed himself up though as Caleb walked in, grabbing his ratty holdall from where it'd been sitting at the base of the armchair. He was actually impressed - he'd expected his brother to be late. "Come on then kid, let's go," he said - also forgoing the 'hello' as he walked straight past his brother, out the door and down to the curb, where there was now parked a newish second-hand car. It had a few scratches on the paintwork, but the engine was good and Mathias didn't go for outwardly flashy - preferring something reliable and with a bit of extra kick under the hood.

Caleb quirked an eyebrow but then turned and followed Mathias out. "Where are we going, and...when did you get a car?" he asked, dropping down the stairs after the elder Lockwood. "You weren't exactly forthcoming with information in your note." he added.

Who: Isaac and Charlotte.
When: Early afternoon.
Where: E Ridge Street.

Moving had turned out to be a lot more excitement than Charlotte had anticipated. There were trees and wildlife everywhere! Charlotte had lived in a nice house in a nice neighborhood with a big back yard, but nothing like this! Charlotte had been constantly freaking out since they got off the ferry and realized she would be living in an area like this. "Oh my God, oh my God! Mom! Mom! Is that our house? There are raccoons! I can hear them! Mom!"

Isadora's reply had been something to the effect of 'don't use foul language', of course, but that was okay! They'd pulled into the driveway and Charlotte couldn't scramble out of the car fast enough, full of pent up energy from the long, fifteen hour drive. Of course, most of that energy was going to go into unpacking and unloading the moving truck that pulled up in front of the house, but that was okay. After running around the inside of the house for a few minutes, she emerged into her new front yard, ready to happily haul boxes for however long it took.

who: Caleb and Jamie
where: her house
when: 1:20 to 4:30 PM

Okay, it was now past 'a little after one'. Vagueness was bad; she'd learned her lesson and from now on she was giving set times to all appointments. Especially involving boys. Especially boys she was crushing on. Especially when said 'appointment' was after a previous engagement involving feeding two other boys. Yep, hobag. Apparently it was a disease, and she'd caught it from Chrissy.

Jamie slowed to a more comfortable walk as she neared her house, and bit back a groan. If the figure on her porch was any indication, it looked like Caleb had beaten her home. Crap. I thought boys were supposed to play it cool and come late. What happened to that?

Who: Thom and Isaac, then Thom, Isaac and Jamie
Where: Under Thom's tree in the park
When: Midday

He'd left it a day, avoiding the park totally yesterday, but he'd figured it'd be safe to go back today. A thought that had given Thom pause. 'Safe' - he'd laughed at that. What was he worried about doing? Giving the girl who didn't date the wrong impression? Actually, yes, possibly - he didn't want her to think that he was keen, or anything. Not that she would, because she didn't date and so there wasn't a possibility that. Or would she? If he turned up - but he'd said that he was there most days, so that was only a problem if she turned up. And if she turned up, what did that mean? If anything - and it probably didn't mean anything, because she didn't...

There was a whole circle on non-answerable questions there, all of which were stupid, because nothing was leading anywhere. She didn't date, he didn't even really know if he'd be interested anyway, since he'd only met the girl once and he was far from being the kind of person who made judgments based on that - insta-crushing was Isaac's territory, after all. And so Thom had turned up mid-morning, with his guitar and a book, having put no more effort into his appearance than he normally would and he'd lost himself in his music - which had successfully calmed the nightmare of questions that battled in his head with the other nightmare of Kaysen - neither of which even made it to the surface to show outwardly anyhow.

Caleb,

Mathias

who: lee and lulu
where: lee's kitchen
when: early morning

Cecille had been a big one for the kitchen as the heart of the home, and so if ever somebody was to come into the house that was exactly where they were likely to find her little brother. Lee liked it in there, it was a brighter room, and so much more lived in than anywhere else he knew; and it was where he always started his mornings.

Even when his head was completely killing him. Lee had woken up about thirty minutes earlier and his brain had apparently resented it like all hell. He was just thankful Journey wasn't around to see him rubbing his temples and willing the pain pills he'd taken soon as he woke up to work better, faster. A cup of coffee rested in front of him, busy going quite cold, but he ignored it for the most part. It was getting better and it'd be fine in a minute, fine in a minute, fine in a minu--- damn. That had been the front door opening and closing. Lee tugged his hand down from the side of his head and blinked as Lullaby entered the room.

"Morning, Lullaby," he greeted her, smiling all the same at the sight of her. Journey's best friend always brightened up things, irregardless of their root cause.

Who: Tensiel
Where: Lockwood's Residence.
When: 5:00 a.m.

Angling her head until she could see a little of the sky through the window, Tensiel worked out the time. An hour until dawn, at least. She'd been awake for a while, just lying on her back with her eyes closed, trying to think. Her head hurt from thinking so much, but her heart hurt worse - of course. And Tensiel wasn't used to heartache. But she had been lying there, enduring it, trying to think of what to do about it. She was so much more tired now than she ever had been, and felt so much more alone - somehow - even though she had company. Good company. People she cared about, and who she didn't want to risk hurting.

In the end she decided there was nothing else she could do, not feeling like this.