fandomtownies | Outside Needful Things, From Noon Forwards

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Outside Needful Things, From Noon Forwards

The fog was thick and black by the time anyone reached Leland Gaunt's humble storefront. What they might notice was that the doors and windows were all boarded over, and a very important sign was hanging out front:

YOU SAY HELLO
AND I SAY GOODBYE GOODBYE GOODBYE
I DON'T KNOW WHY YOU SAY HELLO
I SAY GOODBYE

Needful Things was closed. But please, do not let that stop you from having a lovely time around it.

(This post is for Fighters to show up and get fierce, and Recovery to try (and fail) to get to Gaunt, and Recovery to fight the Fighters, and anyone who wants to drop in so they can fail at talking sense into any of the other teams, or just get in on the smackdown, or what have you. No OCD, just go crazy. Have fun!

PS: the sign is canon, and as a huge Beatles fan, I COULD NOT RESIST keeping it in.)

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Anders barely noticed the fog as he came up on the shop. Nothing mattered except protecting his precious phylactery. (And if there'd been a moment in there where it glinted a bit less brightly, it was forgotten almost as soon as it came.)

He took a sentry pose outside the shop, pacing back and forth with staff in hand -- and, as always these days, with the phylactery worn on chain around his neck.

[OOC: Open to fighters or people who want to try and fail to talk reason into him.

Hanna had heard the call, and been deeply upset that anyone would hurt Mr. Gaunt. Suiting up with knives, gun, a make-shift bow, and a bat at hand, she'd dragged herself (and the box with her record player and album) down to the store, ready to defend him against anyone who tried to hurt him.

They finally knew something about the person responsible for this whole mess. Atton wasn't stupid enough to just storm inside, but you bet your ass he was making it down to this store as soon as the news broke. Electromesh on, lightsaber in one gloved hand.

Of course, he had to deactivate said lightsaber as soon as he got there. "...Okay, why in space are all you people here?"

That was not said to anyone in particular. It might have even just been rhetorical. Something needed to be said, that was all.

"Protecting him," Rinoa said, her voice nearly reverent on the subject of Gaunt. "From those who would harm him. From the likes of you."

Conversely, her tone suggested that Atton was something she found on the bottom of her shoe.

(FLEEING SHORTLY but couldn't resist, SP okay?)

Well, lucky for her that Atton was more or less used to people talking to him like that.

A lot.

"Look, if there's anyone who needs protecting here, from what I gather, it's you from him," he said conversationally. "I mean, not that that hero worship thing you're doing isn't adorable."

Lucky for her as long as she was okay with extra snark, anyway.

[[ sp is always fine!! ]]

She was dating someone who once told his best friend to go talk to a wall. Rinoa handled snark just fine.

"I don't need protecting from anyone," she said. "I'm a Sorceress. I'm not sure what he is, but he's powerful. And powerful beings tend to frighten those who aren't, and they gang up on you."

"Powerful beings also have a habit of turning into megalomaniacs who think they're the prime authority on what the galaxy wants or needs, if we're going to get into the big picture," Atton said, pulling a face.

He might be an - ugh - Jedi now, but his stance on that hadn't changed, thanks.

"Getting smaller-picture, your mr. Gaunt is bad news. Nobody ever tell you to stick with the devil you know?"

"Big picture," Rinoa said, "some of us powerful beings aren't going to turn into crazed megalomaniacs, and we're sick of being detained just because someone else is afraid of what we might possibly one day do."

That still bothered her. It wasn't her fault she was a Sorceress, and for them to freeze her indefinitely just because other Sorceresses had gone bad was not even remotely fair, or nice.

"He's not a devil," she added, with a frown. "He sold me something important, and I did him a favor. And now I'm doing another one."

Because he understood her. They were the same. Knights betrayed, but you could trust other Sorceresses, and Gaunt was close enough to count.

"Yeah, yeah, cry me a damn river," he said. "I'm a Jedi, I don't need a lecture on how bad powered people have it, because hey, here's a thing: people who don't have powers are a whole lot squishier than we are."

... But getting off track, there.

Atton took a breath. "But that aside," he said, "Whatever he did for you, whatever he gave you, it's doing you the opposite of good. And then apparently he laid a huge mind whammy on you, it looks like."

That was the kind of thing that left a guy like him roaming the galaxy with a giant self-loathing boomerang bigot problem for years.

"I know what it's like when someone's inside my mind," Rinoa said, rolling her eyes. "I've been possessed before. No one is in here."

Things weren't the same as they had been, but that was because her eyes had been opened.

(At least she thought so. Rinoa had only ever experienced direct possession, not the subtleties of mind-whammies.)

"He gave me information," she said. "An old book that can tell me who I am. I've been looking my whole life for this, and he didn't even charge me."

He'd only asked a favor. And such a minor favor at that.

Atton had worked ten years to turn his brain into a durasteel fortress telepaths couldn't break into or manipulate. He knew mind whammies, and so the only real response he could give to that was wrinkling his nose.

"Yeah, no one is definitely home," he muttered under his breath. "Look, if a deal sounds too good to be true, it's usually a con. And this looks like a pretty big con to me. But hey, if your Gaunt is squeaky-clean, why can't we go have a chat?"

Gaunt didn't want to talk to you, Atton.

Edited 2015-03-26 05:39 (UTC)

Jessica had been on patrol when the fog rolled in. She was still on patrol when she came across a shop with a bunch of people apparently looking for a fight. The patrol was officially over when her spider-sense indicated that whatever was happening was dangerous.

She held her badge up. "Okay, I'm gonna need some answers. What's going on here? What's up with the fog? And why couldn't any of this wait two days? It would have been nice to get through a week on the job without something happening."

[OOC: Pinging in, but I can't do much until after work.]

That didn't sound like a threat, so Rinoa was going to answer her.

"Men are coming to destroy this shopkeeper," she said, setting her chin. "Many of them. I'm not going to allow that to happen, and it seems they have the same idea."

A quick nod acknowledged the others here. She didn't trust anyone right now, but if they were here to guard Gaunt, that was good enough.

"If you're here for justice, then help us. He's done nothing wrong."

(fleeing AFK myself, will return pings later, let's hope our un-availability lines up neatly?)

Edited 2015-03-24 19:31 (UTC)

Okay, this paranoia about destroying and random mobilization and the whole picture was backing up Jessica's instincts that there was something super sketchy going on. But she wasn't going to escalate things here. Not yet anyway.

"Why are people coming to destroy the shopkeeper?" Jessica asked. "I've only been on the job for a week, so it's possible I'm missing something. Does it have something to do with the fog, or is that more wacky Fandom weather?"

Considering the fights she'd had with animals recently and the current state of vegetation, she was guessing no. Things were unnaturally unnatural.

"I don't know what's going on with the fog," Rinoa said. She'd noticed it, which was more than she could say for the rest of what was going on. "He's powerful, and that frightens people. Mob justice doesn't have to have logic to it. They tried to freeze me in space, once."

'They' being the people of Esthar. Not that Jessica would have the least idea what Rinoa was talking about.

Rinoa had been sitting in the Magic Box's back room when she heard it: a cry, rippling through her mind.

Help me.

Of course he was in danger. He was too powerful not to be. People didn't like that, and they tended to outnumber you.

She hadn't bothered to walk here, not when she could sprout wings and fly. Might as well let the power out, especially if she'd be needed as back-up.

Anyone trying to get to Leland Gaunt would have to go through her, first, and good luck with that.

(FLEEING FOR WORK can ping later!)

Like the others, Allie had answered the call for help.

The good news was, she no longer had her sword. The bad? She still had vampire speed and strength, as well as a sharp set of fangs.

"Hey, bestie!" Navaan said, waving. "Woo-hooo! Hey! Over here!" She bounded merrily over to Allie and gave her a fangy grin. "What's going on? You look even less fun than usual!"

And that was saying something.

"Go away," Allie snarled.

Navaan just shook her head sadly. "This is why you need to get laid. All this stress and negative feelings can't be good for anyone. Trust me, I'm a doctor."

She did! And it was awesome! Unfortunately this stupid charm was making her cranky.

"You're nuts is what you are."

"Keep it up and I won't write you a prescription for sex," Navaan chided. "Penicillin, yes, you big siffy, but not getting laid."

She frowned. Something seemed different about Allie. Something seemed off.

"Where's your sword?"

Allie could handle that on her own, thank you very much!

"Lucky for you, not here." And if Allie still felt a pang at it's loss, she would deal with it.

"Wanna borrow mine?" Navaan asked, hoisting her doctor bag in front of her and starting to dig through it. Stethoscope, spider in a jar, acorn, gauze, dildo...what was that? Oh, huh, poison. "Gimme a sec, I know it's in here."

Even under the influence of curse, Allie still had to eyeroll at Navaan.

Then she followed it up with a shriek of rage and tried to tackle her.

Fortunately, Navaan got her sword up in time.

Unfortunately, it was the same sword she'd made out of glitter and cardboard to use against the fun god.

Which mostly meant that the sword was crumpling and Navaan was going down with a shriek of her own.

Allie followed her down and tried to get in a good punch or two, all the while yelling "Seriously?"

"Seriously, me? There's something seriously wrong with you!" Navaan yelled back, not even trying to turn this fight sexy.

...Much.

She was also trying to get a few punches in. And kicks. And maybe a bite or two, too. Unlike most things Navaan pretended to, she actually knew how to fight. And she fought dirty.

You mean like with hair pulling? Allie might be a vampire now, but she'd grown up as a street rat. She was doing all the grabbing, pulling, and scratching she could.

Pffft. Navaan had grown up in a nest of vampires and had been dispatched to lure unsuspecting men into the woods so they could be eaten.

BRING IT STREET RAT.

"I'm pretty sure there is something seriously wrong with your brain, you crazy bint!" Navaan shouted. "I might not give you the friendship bracelets I made!"

"Like I'd want a friendship bracelet from you?" She followed that up with a sharp head butt towards Navaan's nose.

"Now you're just deliberately trying to be hurtful!" Navaan retorted, tilting her head slightly to take the blow to her chin. ~~who did she look like? Gorgon?~~

Using that dexterity she normally displayed in more fun kinds of bouts, Navaan thrust upwards with her hips, trying to dislodge Allie, using a hand to try to yank her hair at the same tie. "Stop turning your anger outward against others and let me help you!"

Navaan didn't get any supernatural distress calls. Navaan hadn't even realized there was a new store here. Navaan had just decided to take advantage of the thick fog and wander outside during the ostensible 'day'.

"Oooh, what's going on here?" she asked. "Is it violence? I love violence!"

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Outside Needful Things, From Noon Forwards

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