Prologue

     The early sunlight slipped through the slats of the blinds, softly illuminating the pretty 16 year old who slept.  Unfortunately, Buffy Summers' sleep was fitful.  A frown on her pretty face, the sleeping girl shifted uncomfortably.

     A madcap series of images flashed in Buffy's dream:  A heavy old leather-bound tome bearing the word "Vampyr", and a simple cross laid beside it...the sun setting against a skyline of Victorian buildings...a moss-covered marble angel in an old cemetery, backlit by the sunset...a quartet of black vampires offering the sinister variant of the "toothy grin"...robed men chanting around a candle-lit altar...Buffy staring into a bathroom mirror that smiled mockingly back at her...an older man's taunting laughter...an open grave...a dirge-like voice angrily shouting, "Hell is coming!"...a door leading into an aged, shadowy chamber--Buffy walks toward it against her will, then the sensation of something grabbing her...


...and then, Buffy woke up.

A gentle knock at the door.  Joyce Summers peeked around the door. With a warm smile on her face, Buffy's mother asked, "Buffy?  Honey, are you awake?  Today's the start of your new life!"

The words offered optimistic reassurrance.  Perhaps underneath that was a little guarded worry?

Buffy moaned and shoved her pillow over her head. From beneath it, Joyce could hear a muttered: "...five more minutes..."

Buffy did not want to get up, she did not want to dream about creepy old books and dusty old dudes who got their rocks off by drinking blood and wearing clothes better suited to the Spanish Inquisition. Ugh, so tacky. Plus, a new school was also on the top of the list of things Buffy was not looking forward to. The awkward stares, not knowing, well, anyone.

Plus, there was always the chance she could be dressing out of style, which ranked up there as super embarrassing.

Buffy sighed and curled herself into a ball.

"Five more minutes..."

"Breakfast is on the table, Buffy.  I'll drop you off at your school."  Joyce noticed the resistance, but answered in her "Mom's Resolve" voice.  It wasn't over-the-top autocratic terror, just warm, maternal common sense.

School was today, Buffy was going, end of discussion--with warm hugs & pancakes on top!

Buffy removed the pillow slowly from her head and looked at her mother.

"Pancakes?"

Buffy sighed, then stepped out of bed, looking at her disheveled self in the mirror. Ugh, so much work to do. Shower, and makeup, and clothes, and then, food. Buffy hugged her mother, then immediately walked into the bathroom and turned the shower on as hot as she could stand. She stood there brushing her teeth as the mirror fogged up from the steam of the shower. Buffy spat out the toothpaste and rinsed, noticing the mirror had fogged over completely. She wiped away a streak so she could see her eyes...

And she flashed back to the dream she had. Well, nightmare, really. And those men and that book. Buffy wiped away the fog so she could see her whole face. She breathed deep, trying to shake that nightmare out of her head, before stepping in to the shower.

It took her about fifteen minutes to get ready and look, to Buffy's lofty teenage girl standards, good. It was also a record of world proportions, but hey, a girl had to take what she could get. Buffy made her way downstairs, seating herself at the table where the pancakes were waiting.

"You know the 'Rule'--they don't have calories if we eat them together!"  Joyce teased Buffy with a smile. "I hope you enjoy them, dear."

A half hour later...

Joyce Summers' SUV pulled up beside the curb of East 37th street.  "We're here."  Joyce looked hopeful and worried at once; although she knew Buffy was a strong, capable young woman, Buffy was still her little girl!

And her little school was starting school in a strange place, half-way through the last semester of her sophomore year...

"You'll do fine, Buffy.  Think of this as--a fresh start!  A brand new beginning, slate wiped clean.  This can work.  I know it's going to work."  With that said, Joyce reached out and quickly hugged Buffy.

"I know, I know!  No 'Public Displays of Momness'...have a good day, honey!"

Buffy's view from the car was filled by the Ambrose Jepson Academy of The Arts.  A stately, 3-story red brick building dating back to the early 20th Century loomed ahead.  Surrounded by oak trees covered in Spanish moss, the school suggested "Old South" charm.



Outside, students gradually poured through the doors.  Buffy saw well-groomed and well-dressed kids traveling in small clusters to start their day.  They all laughed, teased, argued, gossipped...and more than a few stared at the unfamiliar girl leaving the unfamiliar truck.

OOC:

Players, here's your chance to jump into the game!

Chan was not a morning a person and today was no exception. Normally she got a ride a little later with her Mom, but she had an early meeting today. That meant an early morning ride into school with her brother, something she tried to avoid if at all humanely possible. Darius liked to get to school way too early so he could go and work out, Chan on the other hand had just found herself a nice place to draw while she waited for School to start.

She took a sip coffee from her thermos and continued working on the sketch she had spent most of the morning on. The picture which was slowly starting to take form, was a knight fighting an Ogre and getting smushed.

Phaeton was not so much a car as a science project.  It was Melissa's pride and joy and only she and her best friend Garrett were allowed to ride in it.  It knew this of course.  Today, Melissa drove to Garrett's house and waited for him to be ready.

Then she drove him to school, with some loud Trip Hop blaring out of Phaeton's speakers for their mutual enjoyment and the discomfiture of the upstanding citizens of Savannah.  Today, her hair was orange, in honor of the autumn leaves.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:26, Mon 23 Nov 2009.

BJ slid out of her car, a classic 67 Shelby, and 'beeped' the alarm on it. The muscle car had been her graduation gift from her father at her college graduation. Along with more than a few subtle comments from mom about grandchildren and time running out, she reminded herself with a smirk.

Still, she reminded herself as she opened the trunk to pull out her bag of gym gear, the car was definitely 'the coach's' car. She slammed the trunk shut and headed towards her office beside the gym. Good thing about being the coach was office hours were a LOT longer than most since she didn't have a class right off the bat or a home room to deal with. Downside was she had to do the inspection of the facilities to ensure the janitorial staff had been keeping the showers clean.

"Yay, it's monday again." She said to herself with a chuckle.

Buffy shouldered her backpack and took a deep breath before walking towards the school. Buffy didn't know anyone, and it just felt insanely weird and almost scary walking into a new place. She sighed and made her way towards the building, looking around, trying to see what the other kids were like, and what the deal was.

Yay, being the new kid was oh so much fun...

Clive was pacing around his classroom, looking through the syllabus that was helpfully provided to him by the last teacher. He was dressed very much how you'd expect an artist to dress, stylish without a sense of where he was exactly.

Teaching school in America. The dream of every British artist of the last fifty years. And all this because the bloody Slayer decided to come here and her last Watcher lost track of her.

He looked up at the clock above the door, waiting for his first students to come in for the day. Waiting with the sort of patience reserved for small children.

Unlike most students, save his less-than willing tag-along-little-sister, Darius was indeed willfully awake at the butt-crack hours of pre-dawn this morning. By 0545, Darius was running laps on the track, the silenced-tunes from his Sony Sport Discman helping to clear his mind and set the pace. By 0610 (and 5 miles worth of laps later) he was in the gym pumping irons courtesy of the janatorial arrangement he'd struck long ago to ensure early access any day of the week he desired. A select few of his teammates usually showed up around 0630 to put in a partial pre-school work out of their own. By 0645, Darius was showered and ready to face the day.

Today he'd packed his favorite black jeans, and a white top with a stylized gray logo. All label-wear, and pristine. In fact, the seams of his jeans almost looked like they were freshly pressed. He wore the newest pair of Jordans, with protective covers and all still in place. A small silver hoop hangs confidently from his ear, and a set of his grandfathers old dog tags is around his neck (unseen beneath his shirt).

With his workout behind him, Darius makes a point of swinging by where he knew he'd find his little sister. He doesn't say anything, or go out of his way to move over and talk to her. He was just keeping tabs, and ensuring she hadn't opted to cut class or get swept up by any of the schools rougher crowds. Darius wasn't a big fan of leaving his sister alone in the empty school first thing in the morning, so checking up on her as a reflexive action. More for his own sake than hers... but he'd never admit that to her or anyone else. That done, Darius makes his way through the halls~ Meeting and greeting as befits his station.

Gracie was not a big morning person but could if she had too. She did normally get up and go for a run in the morning to stay in shape.  She did not care if it was a little dark, she figured she could take care of herself. She then went home, got ready and headed to school.

She drives into the school parking lot in her old mustang and parks. She loved driving with the top down. She gets out and grabs her backpack looking around. She knew people would be looking at her, she was a popular cheerleader. She just grins at her admires and heads into school. She has on a white tanktop and tight black jeans with high heels. She loved the way they click as she walks.

The Ambrose Jepson Academy of The Arts was an experimental private school opened three years earlier.  At the end of the 1980's, Ambrose Jepson IV moved to Savannah from Charleston, SC.  According to local gossip, Ambrose was the long-estranged cousin to the more famous Jepsons who'd founded a well-known art museum.  Intent on establishing his own reputation, Ambrose researched the success of the Savannah College of Art & Design.

Hiring the best team of advertisers, educators, and financiers available, Jepson established a private school intended to groom the next generation of prodigies.  He bought an old high school building in the Historic District, helping locate the school to a new building further in-town.  The school followed a progressive model based loosely on the philosophies of Maria Montessori, Abraham Maslow, and other child/human-centered thinkers.  Students participated in planning their own education.

A three-point G.P.A. was required for admission.  Students were expected to participate in some aspect of the Arts programs--auditioning for the Savannah Youth Choral Society, auditioning for a play, working for the school paper, or participating in the annual talent show.  A mandatory service program also required students to donate 10 community service hours every school year.  The Acadmey was quickly gaining a formidable reputation for turning out promising artists, athletes, and thinkers.

A woman approached Buffy with her own "Klik-Klak" of heels resounding on the sidewalk.  She looked like she was in her early 30's, African-American, attractive.  Her hair fell in a soft wave of copper and gold.  The woman wore a butter-colored blouse  that complimented her caramel complexion over a cream-colored skirt with sensible heels.

"Miss Summers?  Good morning, you must be Buffy!"  The woman greeted Buffy with a brilliant smile.  "I am Miss Williams; I believe I met your mother at your orientation.  If you'll come with me, you'll make a stop by the Assistant Dean's office.

Then--come to Room 207.  I'm teaching your English Literature course."  Promptly turning on her heel, Miss Williams led Buffy through the throng of arriving students.  They all stole glances or even stared; who was the new girl?  As they walked, Miss Williams told Buffy the essentials about the school:  a little bit of history, which wings held which classes, and other such small talk.

All too soon, they reached the office.  "When you're finished, come on to class.  We've a busy year ahead, and I don't abide tardiness!"  A polished smile in place, Miss Williams said, "Good luck, Buffy."

Before Buffy even entered the office, Miss Williams walked back outside.  She stopped where she'd seen a girl sketching beside a tree.  Miss Williams stood over Chan.  "Good morning, Chan!  A new student is joining our class this morning, and I think she might need a friendly guide.  Someone who knows her way around campus."

The way Miss Williams said it strongly implied it wasn't a request.  "Her name is Buffy Summers.  You should find her at Mrs. Van Tiel's office."  Before Chan could reply, Miss Williams took off.  With a backward wave, she added, "I'll see you in class shortly!"

Chan stopped her drawing and mournfully closed her sketchbook, before looking up at Miss Williams. Despite all the free time she had earlier this morning, she still wasn't quite finished, and she was more than a little annoyed at being interrupted. "Good morning." She called after the departing teacher.

She had another couple gulps of Coffee and closed up her thermos. She was a little accident prone at times, especially in the morning, so she always tried to be careful with her morning caffienation. With a soft groan she awkwardly rose to her feet and put away her sketch book and thermos, double checking to make sure the lid was tight. More than one project had been ruined, and she didn't want to add to the list.

Once she had everything packed away, she made her way to the office. She wasn't sure exactly why she had been picked to show the new girl around, but it probably wouldn't be too bad. At least she wasn't going to be late to class today, that was something at least.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:40, Tue 24 Nov 2009.

Buffy didn't even manage to get a word out as the teacher, Ms. Williams, whirlwinded her through the halls of the school, explaining things. Buffy also noticed the, like, bajillion stares she'd gotten as Ms. Williams led her to Assistant Dean's office. Buffy took a breath, turned around to thank Ms. Williams, only to find that the teacher had determinedly disappeared.

_{"...thanks?..."}

Buffy took a deep breath, then walked up to the office door and knocked.

Mrs. Cecilia Van Tiel sat at her desk, looking up when Buffy knocked.  "Yes, may I help you?"  She was in her 40's, sensibly dressed in a way that screamed "No Nonsense".

Buffy opened the door, stepped inside, then shut the door again. Whew, wow, nerves were running high now. Ugh, new schools sucked so much.

"I, uh, hi. Ms. Williams told me that I should see you. I'm a new student...Buffy Summers?"

All Buffy could think right now was: Please don't say anything stupid to the dean, please don't say anything stupid to the dean.

"Ah.  Yes."  The Assistant Dean glanced at her planner, then back at Buffy.  On her desk, in plain view, was a thick file labeled "Summers, Buffy Anne".   "Please take a seat."

The older woman's lips turned up in a tight smile.  "Welcome to the Ambrose Jepson Academy of The Arts, Buffy.  I've been reading your file this morning, and I must say it was quite...colorful."  Though the words were pleasant, a slight shift in tone said she'd found the file's notes anything BUT pleasant.

"Buffy, I'm going to speak very frankly with you.  Savannah is not like Los Angeles.  You'll probably find that Savannah is quieter than Los Angeles.  One might even use words such as 'staid', 'conservative', and 'slow-paced'.  While we have gangs here, they fear our police, not the other way around.

Educators in Savannah believe that school facilities are places for learning, rather than impromptu bonfires."  Mrs. Van Tiel's eyebrow rose in a sharp arch.

Great. Day one, and already she'd managed to earn the ire of an administrator, but then, it's not like she could tell her why she'd set the gym on fire. Buffy nodded, she'd left that all behind in Los Angeles. It could stay that way for all she cared. Buffy did her best to give Mrs. Van Tiel a winning smile.

"I'm, uh, looking forward to the chance to put that all behind me. Really."

Mrs. Van Tiel gave a terse nod.  She closed the file and laced her fingers together.  "How fortunate for you that I'm a believer in second chances. By all means, please think of this as an opportunity for...redemption. It is most certainly in your interest to not prove me wrong."

Her cold blue eyes locked on Buffy's.  "Am I making myself clear, Buffy?"  With a smile full of matriarchal authority, Mrs. Van Tiel spoke on with a slight Southern drawl.  "Of course, you should find several opportunities to seek more productive outlets for your energy.

At the Academy, our students work rigorously to improve themselves artistically, intellectually, physically, and socially.  You must maintain a minimum 3.0 grade average to remain enrolled.  Students are expected to participate in at least one aspect of community arts this year.  I hear the annual talent show could use a few more acts!"  At that, Mrs. Van Tiel smiled slyly.

"Oh yes--you and your mother are expected to contribute 10 hours of community service on behalf of the Academy.  Your mother may fulfill that requirement by participating in Student/Parent/Teacher councils, of course."

Finally, Mrs. Van Tiel stopped.  "Are there any questions?  If not, you'd best be along to class now.  After all, an aspect of civic responsibility is showing respect for other people's time!  Good luck this year, Miss Summers--I'm expecting a great deal from you!"  The Assistant Dean stood and shook Buffy's hand, before gesturing to the door.

Buffy held up her hand, making the "oK" sign with it.

"Crystal clear."

Buffy was then whirlwinded again as the assistant Dean reminded her of the GPA requirement and the civil service that was expected. Buffy sighed inwardly. How. Lame. On the outside, though, she kept a smile, right up until she was ushered out of the office.

Buffy breathed a huge sigh of relief, then, looked around, realizing she had to get to class. Being new was awkward enough. Being late meant you were stared at even more. Buffy hurried off.

In her rush, Buffy nearly bowled over Chan, who'd just arrived to greet the new student...

Chan nearly fell over, as she somehow managed to avoid the new student. She had been day dreaming again, and hadn't even noticed the new girl until she was right on top of her.

"Ummm, Buffy." She smiled encouragingly. "Hi, I'm Chan. I've been asked to show you around a little and make sure that you can find your classes, that sort of thing." She continued to smile, trying to hide her nervousness.

Buffy was instantly in apology mode, as, so far, today had gone just so splendidly. And then, the girl was not only cool about it, but she was here to help Buffy?

About time somebody up there put the breaks on the whole "Ensure Buffy never has a good school day again" plan. Buffy smiled apologetically to Chan.

"Sorry, thanks, and that sounds absolutely wonderful."

Chan grinned her relief, noticing that Buffy was just as nervous as she was. A new school was never an easy thing, and starting in the middle of a semester couldn't make things any easier. "Alright, we better try and make sure that we make first period in time. Otherwise we might get detention, and I imagine that you'll want to avoid that on your first day." She stared blankly at Buffy for a second. "Did I mention we both had Lit first period with Ms. Williams?"

BJ finished up her initial look over of the locker rooms, gym and her office. She sat down with a sigh as she put up her sneaker clad feet as her own custom coffee machine coughed up a cuppa of her brew. She looked over office and the gym it looked out on.

"Not too bad for the 'new girl' on campus." She told herself as she heard the bell rang. First year working as a teacher er.. coach and she already had her own office. She unlocked her desk and opened her laptop to look over her class and team schedule.

"I don't think so, but I say we get there before we're late. I just got out from meeting the dean and something tells me she wouldn't like it if we were late."

Buffy sighed and prepared to follow Chan to where ever the class was. At least there was potential for friendliness?

Today, Melba's hair was orange.  It was not the natural orangey colour with which some humans are unfortunately cursed, oh no... this orange would not have looked out of place on a fruit or a Dutch soccer fan.

She knew she was attracting attention as she waddled proudly to her seat, shimmying and shimmering as she waddled into the classroom.  She sat down next to Garrett and smiled a winning smile.  "Once more unto the breech dear friends once more", she said, "Or we'll close the wall up with our English (lit) dead."

Chan nodded, and headed off towards first period. "I've never really had any trouble with the Dean, but I imagine that it would be a smart idea to stay on her good side." Sure she got detention from time to time, but she had managed to avoid any real sort of trouble. Her only real problem was that she simply wasn't a morning person, and that she enjoyed sleeping in a little too much. "I have however got detention more than once from Ms. Williams, so either way it's a good idea."

Gracie walks into Algabra class and finds a seat. She just has to wait to get though her classes so she can go to practice. She loves it when everyone watches them, she loves to show off after all. She smiles at the teacher as she gets out her books.

Scott got to school, as usual, at the last second. Pulling into the parking lot and finding a space with practiced ease he got out of his van, grabbed his stuff, and jogged his way to the school. Checking his schedule for the classroom number he made his way to Algebra and sat down in the back.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:35, Sun 29 Nov 2009.

As Darius moves through the halls, his pack of teammates and friends diminishes. With each classroom he passes another member or three drift off, leaving for their respective First Period classes. The Pace Darius has chosen is a leisurely one, he knows full well precisely how long it will take to get to English Lit. He had no need to rush, getting a good seat wouldn't be an issue.

By the time he's passing through the mathematics wing, he's all but alone anymore. No one is actively talking to him, and his own attentions are drifting. His eyes linger on each classroom he passes. Peaking through still-open doors for any faces of interest he might have somehow missed in his morning rounds. Their were quite a few obviously, so many friends to see and First Day Back Chaos...

Buffy nodded and took a breath, and then, sheepishly looked back at Chan.

"So, uh, yeah, lead the way..."

Buffy had completely forgotten, for a moment, that she was the newbie here.

After Darius arrived, the teacher Buffy met earlier rose from her desk and closed the door.  She returned to the front of the class with an easy stride.  "Good morning, class.  Please put your homework on your desks.  Darius will collect it."

With a cool smile, she watched the students with a discerning eye.  Most of her pupils readily presented their assignments.  One or two started the period with an empty desk.  Miss Williams didn't make a spectacle of it.  Instead, she simply said with a tilted eyebrow, "Ah.  It looks as though I'll have company for lunch today."

Once Darius completed his task, Miss Williams accepted the papers with a nod.  "Thank you, Darius.  If you'll hand this to our new addition."  She handed a substantially thick syllabus to Darius for Buffy's reading pleasure.

"Class, we have a new student joining us this morning.  Miss Summers, if you could please stand and introduce yourself?  Please tell us a little about yourself."

Meanwhile, Gracie & Scott experienced the timeless pleasure of solving word problems.  Mr. Greenberg picked up where he'd left off at the end of the last class.  With no shortage of zeal, he wrote examples of word problems on the board.  The "if two trains left opposite points 15 minutes apart, and one traveled at 85 mph" scenario seemed like sheer joy compared to Mr. Greenberg's experiments in mathematical madness!

In her office, Coach Cordova heard a man clear his throat.  "Coach Cordova, do you have a moment?"

BJ looks up from her own 'homework', a small paper on historical precedents of the supreme court and how it shaped the evolution of due process. Being coach meant little actual paperwork for the most part.

"Sure, what can I do for you Mr..." She lets him fill in the name.

"Of course Ma'am." Darius responds, already moving to do as bidden.

Darius spares somewhat sympathetic glances towards the students who failed to produce the assignments, knowing full well that he'd likewise be sharing a lunch period with them all as a result. Luckily such instances of remedial homework sessions weren't frequent enough to impact Darius' lunch circle status over much. When he stops by Chan's desk he barely spares her a glance, knowing well she'd have her assignment in hand.

When Buffy Summers is called upon to introduce herself, Darius spares yet another sort of sympathetic glance. Likely the pretty little blonde would be making this very same introduction many times today.

A handsome man in his early 50's stood in the door.  "Ambrose Jepson."  The dean of the Academy answered with a bemused smile and a twinkle in his eyes.  "I'm sorry we didn't have the opportunity to meet before today.  The educational administrator's conference at Cornell demanded most of my attention.

Since I've been back, I've heard nothing but glowing reports of your work.  I wanted to meet the coach who's single-handedly kept our Athletics program a going concern!"

"Oh no problem sir, I'm happy to help out. Not like a coach is a hard job at the school. I have to check the bathrooms, make sure the nurse is notified and the first aid kit is stocked. The rest of it is coordinating events with the various sports authorities." She grins as she saves her paper. "The school is pretty good about my continuing education bit."

"Well, I've always found that investing in our faculty typically resulted in strong returns from our students!"  Ambrose laughed politely.  "Speaking of coordinating events, I'm glad you brought up our programs."

The sudden onset of thoughtfulness in Jepson promised delegation of a task.  "Ever since the untimely passing of Coach Bennett, our girls' teams have languished a little.  Soccer season is right around the corner and we're up against St. Matthews and that damned Bulloch Academy again!  I'd like you to start rebuilding the girls' soccer team.  Recruit prospective players, arrange the physicals, and screen for the best players.

Oh yes.  If you could send me the results of the physicals, I would appreciate it.  I need the results for one of the state boards."

Chan made it into class with a few moments to spare and took a seat in the middle of the classroom. She hoped that Buffy would be okay, as at this point she wasn't going to be able to be a whole lot of help, at least Buffy didn't have any homework due. Provided a seat was open near her desk, Chan motioned for Buffy to join her, after all she was probably only student that Buffy had even talked to, and couldn't hurt to have a friendly face around.

She got out her homework, and handed it to Darius as he walked by. It was still a little weird seeing her brother as the TA of the class, but she was mostly used to it by now. While she waited for class to start up properly Chan went back to her sketchpad, hoping to steal a few minutes of work.

"I'll carbon copy you the data when I send it to the boards. I got flyers printed out for  the team announcement. Coach Bennet left a MASSIVE collection of video footage on our rival teams and notes on the rival coach's favored game plans." She pulled out another folder. "I looked over the incoming students to size up who might be able to play and interested. I got a few options already. A former cheerleader from California." She looks over the folders. "A Bunny..no. Buffy Summers. Quite the athlete from the looks of it."

In reply to Big Bad (msg #38):

Scott copied down the notes verbatim from the board. He'd probably end up doing the homework at the last minute like always. Scott wasn't an idiot per se, he just didn't see the point in schooling the only reason he was here was  because of his parentws so he just coasted along. As Mr. Greenberg is about to finish his train problem Scott says loudly. "How long does Superman have to stop both trains?"

Immediately, several students burst into laughter.  Mr. Greenberg's full cheeks flushed pink.  Visibly flustered, the teacher glared at Scott.  With a world-weary sigh, Mr. Greenberg snatched a pad off his desk.

"Apparently not even the Man of Steel will act quickly enough to stop the trains and escort you to the Assistant Dean's office!"  The Math teacher hastily wrote a note with strokes that seemed like quick stabs.  Ripping it off, he smiled cruelly.

Mr. Greenberg held it out.  "Take this to Mrs. Van Tiel's office--and make sure you arrive sometime before lunch period this time!"  Scott knew the drill; disruption wasn't tolerated at that school.  The teachers simply referred unruly pupils to Mrs. Van Tiel or Mr. Jepson.

OOC:

Scott, roll 1d10 plus Perception and Notice, please.
This message was last edited by the GM at 06:10, Mon 30 Nov 2009.

Scott takes the note with a "Yes sir." before heading out the door. "Hardass" he muttered as he headed down the hallway at a lazy pace.

OOC: rolled a 6 boss.

The halls were empty.  By now, all the students were in class and any teachers without a class spent their time in the faculty lounge or an office.  Scott's foot-steps sounded off the old tiles.  The trip to the Dean's office was a walk downstairs, and to the other end of the school.  Just long enough for a smoke break.

Soon, Scott reached downstairs.  The Boy's room would be unoccupied.  However, before Scott could reach it, he turned a corner and felt strong hands grab his arm!

Scott was reaching for his ciggarettes as the hand grabbed him. spinning around he attempted to pull his arms free at his attackers thuumbs. "Hey what the hell man?!

Scott managed to yank free, and reared back his arm, ready to fight!  At least until he saw who'd grabbed him:  Jason Jenkins, fellow football player, life-long pal, and "partner in crime".  Jason pointed and laughed at Scott.  "Ha!  You were so freaked out!"

Behind Jason, the door to the school basement was propped open.  Jason scanned the hall.  "What's up?  Are you on the 'Bathroom Pass' plan or on your way to Van Tiel?"

"Dude I so would have decked you." Scott looks behiind Jason to see if theres anyone behind him. "ON my way to Van Tiel, Greenberg apparently born a grouchy old man who loves math way too much. How bout you? smugglin somethin into the basement?"

Covering his mouth with his hand, Jason snickered.  "Bro, you gotta SEE what it's in the basement!"  The tall, lanky boy quickly ducked into the door.  He lingered only long enough to beckon Scott along.

"Come on.  Blow off Van Tiel.  It's not like she's gonna kick you out as long as your grandma's paying for you to stay!"  Then, Jason went into the basement...

Scott looked over his shoulder as if checking to see if he's being watched. "Alright lets see whatever fountain of awesome you've found in the basement. Better not be another Hobo sleepin down there the last one rank." He  gestured with his arm for Jason to lead the way.

Gracie just sits in class and giggles as Scott makes his comments and how the teacher reacts. She can't understand how people get so upset about little things like math problems. She can does these in her sleep and just wants to get the day over with.

Buffy was about to take the seat Chan offered, getting ready to sink into the relative obscurity that the beginning of a generic english class would provide. She smiled at Chan and placed her bookbag down. This was good! It would let her get into the swing of things before-



A-ya...perfect. Buffy could feel the eyes of every student shift towards her as she bit her lower lip. Buffy could have sworn Ms. Williams had punctuated the words 'new student'. Slowly, Buffy looked around the room and gave a cautious smile. God, this was so embarrassing...she couldn't think of anything witty or funny to end her brief period of hell that was an introduction. For some reason, Lt. Horatio Caine popped into her head, but this was not CSI: Miami...and Buffy didn't have a pair of shades or a good one-liner. Instead:

"I...uh, hi everyone. I'm Buffy."

'Ugh, nice job, Summers, way to win over the crowd...'

Blushing, Buffy sat down quickly, praying Ms. Williams would swoop in for the save and move the class along.
This message was last edited by the player at 07:25, Tue 01 Dec 2009.

"Thank you, Buffy."  Miss Williams directed Buffy to take her seat.  Next, she smiled meaningfully at her class.  "I know all of you will do your parts to help Buffy become properly acquainted with the Academy."  The linger of her stare suggested that the remainder of the quarter would go very poorly for them if they didn't.

Leaving the class to ponder her "recommendation", Miss Williams walked back to her podium.  She flipped open her lesson planner.  "Everyone please put your desks into a circle.  Open your texts to where we left off with Beowulf.  Melba, would you please resume the discussion where we stopped yesterday?"

Melba spoke up.  "Yes Miss.  I still contend that the protagonist is not Beowulf but Grendel, or rather Grendel's mother.  It's a tragic tale of a poor monster, persecuted at school by those who are smarter than him, or perhaps not as pretty.  Beowulf is a school bully, and Grendel's mother is just behaving as any mother would when she finds her child is being so treated by his schoolfriends."

Miss Williams paused to consider Melba's answer.  Giving a single, thoughtful nod, she slowly took a seat in a chair at the head of the circle.  "An unusual way of looking at it, Melba.  Taking that analogy a step further, do you think that Beowulf might stand in for the emerging Christian church, with Grendel's family representing the old pagan ways?"

While awaiting the girl's reply, she silently marked a note in her Attendance roll:  Garrett Ashcroft--Absent.

"Dude, it's not another hobo!"  A wide grin in place, Jason led Scott downstairs.  The building which housed the Academy dated back to the beginning of the 20th Century.

Old unpainted brick wall housed the basement.  Rows of shelves, equipment, and odd knick-knacks lined the floor.  Except for about six small windows scattered around the basement, there was no natural light. Only a few light bulbs hung from the ceiling, casting an occasional spot of baleful light on the floor.

The kids only ever came down to the basement for smoke breaks--or "work detail" for detention.  Jason guided Scott through the makeshift labyrinth of metal and junk.  When the taller boy turned a final corner, Scott saw that what captured the boy's attention was most ceratinly NOT a sleeping hobo!

Darius leans casually on the rooms AC/Heating unit, examining the various papers he'd collected from the students. He's using a plain wooden clipboard to hold them on, while making notations and corrections with his green pen. his notes and corrections would of course be analyzed later by Miss Williams and her own pattened red pen. This pre-grading made her job easier in some respects, and also demonstrated his own learning of the process.

His casual attention to the discussion becomes more attentive the moment the teacher compares the story to the Christian Church and the Old Faith correlations. He'd used that same argument himself when he had been a student in this class (which amused him to no end to see the Teacher herself having adopted), and one of his classmates had labeled him a zealot. Luckily Miss Williams saw the points he was trying to make despite his inadvertant insults to the wiccan.

A pretty girl smiled coyly at Jason and Scott.  Her skin was like smooth cocoa, her full lips looked temptingly kissable.  She wore a camouflage tank top and hooded sweat-shirt over jeans and sneakers.  Thick black hair puffed wildly.  She wore a gold chain ending in gold letters that read "LOVE".

The girl wasn't a student at Jepson; Scott knew that much.  She gave Scott an appraising once-over.  An appreciative smile spread over her face.  The girl's smile widened into a pleased grin.  "Hey baby."
This message was last edited by the player at 03:02, Wed 02 Dec 2009.

Melba shrugged.  "That's a possible interpretation certainly, but I find that makes it less universal, tying it down to specifics that require a hobbling of the text.  As it is, the poem speaks to universal values of times of transition.  Beowulf could as easily represent, say, the Anglo-Saxons coming to a new land and Grendel's family the indigenous population."  Melba doesn't raise any parallel with the Americas, because she thinks it's too obvious, instead she suggests, "Or Beowulf could represent the Serbs and Grendel the Bosnians.  Perhaps it's a tale of ethnic cleansing."

In reply to Jane Campus (msg #62):

No Freakin way. Scott gave the gitrl his own appraising once over before giving her a roguish grin. "Hey there." He replied taking a glance Jason before returning his gazze to the gorgeus chick in front of him. In the back of Scott's mind were questions like where did Jason find this girl and what she was doing in the school basement, these questions were secondary to other thoughts however. "Name's Scott, and you are..?"

Miss Williams smiled to herself.  "Yet, wasn't one of these transitions the shift from the old religions to the new Christianity?  After all, many scholars note that Beowulf likely began as oral tradition, but was first recorded by Christians.  Wouldn't that demonstrate an inherent conflict of the cultural transitions?

Still, I think your sociopolitical commentary could certainly apply.  The Anglo-Saxons essentially appropriated Danish myths.  That's certainly one way of looking at it.  Still, I can't help but return to a certain detail:  Grendel and his mother were descendants of Cain.  According to the 'Cain Tradition', when Cain was cast out by God, he slept with fallen angels and sired a race of monsters."

Turning her eye to another student, Miss Williams fixed her gaze on the newest pupil.  "What do you think about this, Buffy?"
This message was last edited by the player at 20:57, Wed 02 Dec 2009.

"I'm Gabrielle."  Her lips drew slowly into an impish grin.  "Do you go here?  You don't look like the usual soft, rich white boys who go to Jepson."

Ambrose raised eyebrows at that name.  "Ah, yes.  The new transfer.  What else have you read about our new student?  From what I've seen, the girl was trouble at her former school!"

The dean shook his head.  "I'm all in favor of new blood in our athletics program--provided it's not bad blood.  Besides, it's come to my atention that a certain Miss Gracie Lynn Dupree has her eye on a team slot.  I don't know how she'll take to the unexpected competition!"

"I would say that a good extracurricular activity could keep her occupied." She pointed out. "And in her defense she was a really GOOD cheerleader."

Ambrose clucked his tongue.  "...and apparently an exceptional arsonist!  Well, I hope you're right, Miss Cordova.  I'm not generally one to admit children with behavioral problems, but Miss Summers had a voucher from two reputable sources.  I've allowed her on a probationary basis."

Jepson added, "I'm counting on you to help steer Miss Summers in the right direction."  The school dean politely nodded, leaving the coach with that thought.  "Good day, Miss Cordova."

"Well sir," BJ says as she gets up and flips her hair out of her face, she had been twirling it as she considered her paper. "I know I was given to .. outrageous actions as a child. Of course, I'm a military brat. We tend to be.. outgoing. Ms. Summers is a smart athletic girl who simply needs ... focus. Keeping her running up and down the field might go a long way towards that. And feel free to call me B.J."

She offers her hand. "Glad to finally meet you by the way, not many schools of this standing would hire someone sight unseen."

Buffy blushed, not expecting to be put on the spot again so soon after surviving the proverbial firing squad. Buffy thought for a moment, trying to come up with answer that was showing she was trying.

"I...I think it's interesting how open to interpretation Beowulf is. I mean, it seems that even though it's now recorded and been made into a movie and stuff, that the history of oral tradition still kind of carries on today in how things alter with the versions..."

Wow, Buffy, way to sound like an utter moron

Buffy was really hoping that what she'd said somehow made sense to Miss Williams, because that was pretty much what Buffy thought, and was what she had to offer. Besides, it seemed like Melba had things under control pretty well...

Note to self: Read Beowulf to catch up...
This message was last edited by the player at 08:12, Thu 03 Dec 2009.

In reply to Jane Campus (msg #66):

Scott grinned mischievously at the babe in front of him. "I'm the resident badass every school needs one, its a very new program."

Gabrielle laughed at Scott's bravado.  "Oh really?  I bet you a straight 'A' student, huh?"  Her dark eyes seemed lit with mirth as she laughed.  She seemed to ignore Jason, clearly drawn immediately to Sott.

"I bet you're the head of the class when it comes to playin' hooky!"  Gabrielle teased Scott, but her chiding was gentle, seemingly intended to make him prove his interest.

Suddenly, two other black girls stood beside Scott & Jason.

Meanwhile, Miss Williams brought the first half of discussion group to a close.  "One of the themes of Beowulf is kinship.  In Beowulf's world, when a friend or family member was killed, his surviving family undertook great lengths to avenge him.

Class, I want you to break up into discussion small groups of four.  I want you to discuss the themes of violence and revenge in this epic poem.  What do you think of Beowulf's actions against Grendel?  Do you think what he did was honorable?  Discuss this among yourselves; then, we'll get back together and share your conclusions."

OOC:  Today, the part of Garrett will be played by your Director!

IC:

As the class broke into groups, the door opened quietly.  A slender boy of 15 attempted to slink quietly into the room.  Garrett Ashcroft flushed a bright pink when he saw Miss Williams.  He offered Melba a sheepish smile.

Garrett's hair was dyed a black so dark it was almost blue.  He wore a black "Serial Killer" brand t-shirt showing Travis Bickle from Taxi Driver over skinny jeans and Converses.  A studded belt wrapped his slim waist.  Garrett slumped into a seat next to Melba.

"Hi, Mel.  What did I miss?"

"Nutt'n" drawled Melba, "We're discussing kinship doubleyou are tee Beowulf.  It's like totally Ismael Kadare, I guess.  Kinship brings obligations of revenge.  Good job my family don't go in that sort of thing, else I'd be forced to nuke Germany."

In reply to Jane Campus (msg #73):

Scott grins taht roguish smile of his. "You could say that." He looks around as two girls came out of nowhere. "Where wer you two hidin? Thes friends of yours?" He asks the girl before looking to Jason to see if he should be concerned.

Gabrielle's eyes held laughter.  "Yeah, baby.  These are my girlfriends--Latasha & Neesey."  The girls giggled and moved closer to Jason.

"You don't mind, do you?  You wants to party, right?"  Gabrielle practically cooed, trailing a single, well-painted fingernail down Scott's arm.

Garret sat down with his books and said,
"Can't choose your family....
I'd do way more for you then any of them.... I'd cheer if someone got them... or something.

So what's next then Jungian shadow studies?"

Melba giggled and said to Garrett,  "Kagemusha maybe?  Nah, I dunno where we're supposed to take it, I guess we just talk."

Garrett looked to his best friend with a cynical eye and said,
"Can't we just actively plot revenge like kids from the big cities instead?" then rolled his eyes and sighed.

Mella shrugged. "Why not our parents?"

Scene Change

Eventually, the English class ended and a new one began.  The classes flowed seamlessly into one another for the established students.  For Buffy, the day crawled at a tedious pace that seemed like a rigorous test of every social skill she possessed.  Southerners, she noticed, talked a lot and seemingly always with a smile.  A story that could have been told in 15 seconds in Los Angeles or New York required a few minutes in Savannah.

Even weirder, the kids of Ambrose Jepson Academy actually seemed to like school...and books...and *gasp* homework.  Lunchtime couldn't come fast enough, but, thankfully, it eventually came.

Meanwhile, Gracie Lynn noticed that Scott had never returned from the Vice Principal's office...


OOC:

Lunch time!  The school has a few options.  A cafeteria with actually decent food.  Also, since it's downtown, there are actually restaurants in walking distance and everyone gets an hour break.

Commence roleplay, get to know one another...

With a thick spiral notebook under his arm, and a pen tucked neatly behind his ear Darius coasts the hallways. Greetings here, high-fives there, and a promise to hang out this weekend after the game, all knocked out before reaching his little sisters locker.

Darius always made a habit of seeing if Chan wanted to skip off campus for lunch with him before leaving.

Chan returned to her locker to drop off her various text books and school supplies. The morning had gone quickly and she had checked on Buffy from time to time, to make sure that the new girl knew where to go for her classes and started getting settled in general.

She didn't notice Darius right away, and was only a little startled when she suddenly noticed him. She had mostly expected him to show up at some point, so she wasn't exactly surprised to see him. She grabbed her sketch book, and her purse nodding to Darius. "Sure, but I'm supposed to be showing this new girl around, do you mind if she tags along?" She sounded quite a bit more awake then when he had last seen her, and almost her normal perky self.

"If she's with you, I'm cool with it." Darius responds smoothly. "I'm going to swing by my locker quick, and I'll meet you at the 4Runner?" Darius says pushing off the locker with a smile and beginning to move away. "You were awake enough to remember where we parked right?" He adds teasingly.

Chan closed her locker, and gave a spin to the lock. She stuck her tongue out at her brothers retreating form, of course she remembered where they had parked, she hadn't been that asleep. Of course without the coffee that might have been another story, but mornings without coffee were a thing of the past.

She went looking for Buffy, heading in the direction of her last class. She figured that the new girl was either lost somewhere in between her last class and her locker.

Buffy sighed. She'd mainly made it through unscathed. She'd shut her mouth, ducked her head, and tried to take as many notes as she could. All the learning was really starting to make her head spin, actually. Buffy then managed to make to her locker to switch out books.

And now it was time for lunch. Yes! Buffy was psyched...except, now she had to try and find Chan. She looked around her, but the hallways all seemed the same. And all Labyrinth like...

"Crap..."

Buffy was praying Chan would find her.

After a couple minutes of searching Chan was able to locate Buffy. It wasn't really all that hard to pick out the new girl, especially as the hallways started to thin. She was right about her hunch of finding her between her last class and her locker. "Buffy, over here." She called from across the hall, waving at the new girl.

She guided Buffy back to her locker, and gave her a minute to put all of her stuff away, and get anything she needed for lunch. "I'm going to lunch with my brother, he's trying to make up for waking me up in the middle of the night. I swear the amount of delight he takes in mornings is unnatural, and can't be healthy. You're welcome to join us if you like."

Meanwhile, Ms. Williams sought out one particular student.  More than a few students cleared a path for the formidable English instructor.  She paid little regard to the wide berth created by those students.  All that mattered was finding a certain pupil.

Luckily, Ms. Williams didn't need to scour all the floors to find Darius.  Spotting him leaving the lockers, she stopped him in his tracks.  "Excuse me, Darius.  While you're on lunch break, may I request your assistance with a task?  I would go myself, but Dean Jepson is having the faculty assemble for a lunch meeting."

The words were a request, but the tone carried a sense of entitlement.  More like an "order phrased as a request".

Hey Ms. Williams. Darius greets, flicking a quick glance at his watch. "Sure. I need to jet off campus for lunch though, big brother stuff and all that." Darius slyly explains so that she'll know he is leaving grounds, favor or not. What's the task?"

"Then you'll be thankful to know that the item I need is only one block from Mrs. Wilkes' Dining Room.  If you've room in your car, then Buffy Summers can accompany you and your sister.  She'll become acquainted with the culinary delights of Savannah--and, frankly, the girl looks like she needs a good meal."

Ms. Williams handed a note written on a Post-It tab.  "Go to the address listed and pick up that text.  I need it for...supplementary material...for the class.  Present this note to Mr. Gabriel Booke.  He'll be charging it to my account, so there's no need to carry any money."


She paused, then frowned slightly.  "You only have an hour, Darius.  I'll write an excuse note for an extra 10 minutes, but not a minute more!"
This message was last edited by the player at 10:26, Sat 16 Jan 2016.

Buffy's head swiveled and she gave a smile. It was a relief to see a familiar face in this sea of...uh, unfamiliar faces? Buffy made a mental note to look up a word that was the opposite of the exact word she thought. She looked at Chan.



Buffy nodded her head in agreement. Eating with somebody else beat the heck out of eating by herself. Besides, didn't Mom say to make new friends?

Gee, thanks Mom.

"Lunch sounds absolutely wonderful to me."

Chan gave Buffy a bright smile. "Alright, we're supposed to meet my brother at his truck. He'll probably waiting for us..." A mischievous grin flashed on Chan's face. "He's pretty much always waiting for me, so he should be used to it by now. It's a shame that I didn't make him wait longer this morning, another hour or two of sleep would have been awesome." She led Buffy to her brothers truck, fully expecting him to be waiting for them impatiently.

"Lunch" said Melba.  "Lunch first, education second.  You know me Garrett, I'm Hunnngwwwy".  She made her way to the cafeteria, with Garrett in tow (if he'll come) and fills her plate with deliciousness before making her way to their usual table.

BJ came into the cafeteria with her usual small mix of fruit and 'po boy' style sandwich. This one was a mound of sweetened ham sliced thin and mixed with sliced cheese. She sat off to one side as the 'cafeteria' monitor for the day. She had a fairly busy morning with 2 classes in the gym and making sure that no one was up to 'mischief'

Darius nods, accepting the note. "You got it. He grins in spite of the admonition, hed gotten ten extra minutes. She must have been pleased with his execution of her lesson plans in class earlier.

Darius double times it to his locker, he had to pick up his Varsity jacket. Southern heat or not, he never left school without it.

True to form, Darius is in the 4Runner wiyh the engine running by the time Chan and Buffy exit the school. To his sisters no doubt amazement he didnt have any teammates or cheerleaders tagging along.

Gracie is walking along outside and sees Darius in his 4runner. She can't wait to see him on the field while she is doing her cheerleading thing. "Hi Darius, are you going out to get some lunch? I really need something" she has on a nice tank top and a mini skirt.

"Hey Gracie. Darius responds, his cheeks tightening around his smile in what might have passed for s blush for a paler complection. "Taking Chan and the new girl off grounds for some grub. Picking up a book for the English prof while we're out... Have plenty of seating space... if you'd like to join us?" The invitation flows smoothly, despite the increased pulse rate as Darius struggles to keep his eyes properly trained on Gracies face. Luckily, he's adept in the arts, and his reputation as a 'good guy' holds true.

Buffy flashed a knowing smile, and quietly followed Chan towards the truck. Buffy wasn't normally so subdued, but she was trying to make friends before she did tons of talking. Buffy gave a wave to Darius as the two girls approached his car, figuring it was the friendly thing to do.

"So where's lunch being gotten?"

Chan rolled her eyes, and made a soft coughing sound as she noticed her brothers reaction to the pretty cheerleader. They had been so close to having a nice, quiet lunch, and now it would be anything but that. She didn't so much mind having to share her brother with Cheerleaders or his Jockish friends, but sometimes it grated on her a little, at least she had the new girl to keep her company. "I'm not really sure where we'll end up, there's quite a few places around here. Don't worry you'll figure it all out eventually, until then just flash a vapid smile and everything will be fine."

Hey Buffy. Darius snaps his attention to the more conservatively attired Buffy. His breathing evens out noticeably. "Mrs. Wilkes' Dining is our limited choice today, Need to pick up a book for the English prof... and she's only granting us a ten minute bump pass for our hour lunch break. By the time he's done speaking, Darius realizes he'd rambled a bit and caught himself staring into Buffy's eyes.

What the heck is with me today!? He silently berrates himself, and stares now intently at his steering wheel. All aboard? He prompts hitting the power door locks.

Gracie looks at Darius "I would love to" she says excitedly. "Anything is better then cafeteria food" She looks at Chan and the new girl "Hi, I am Gracie Lynn." she knew Chan probably didn't like her here, she was not a sports type. Maybe they could get to know each other, she was Darius's sister after all.

She climbs into the front passenger seat, figuring Chan would like to seat with her new friend. She looked back at the new girl "So, where did you come from?"

Buffy smiled at Gracie's question. She'd been wondering how the ice breaking was going to go down.

"Los Angeles. Is where I'm from..."

Smooth, Summers, real smooth...

Buffy tried another smile and looked at Gracie.

"So what's there to do around here?"

As soon as everyone is aboard, Darius guides his fancy SUV out of the parking lot. Inside the interior was all soft leathers, and digital readouts. Top notch, every feature one could ask for in the given year. He pays attention to the road, and to the conversation, and to the faint music barely heard from the stereo (which had been turned deliberately low to allow said conversations).

His first stop was the bookstore, business before pleasure. Food could be gotten to go in a pinch.

Gracie looks at Buffy "Wow, that a big move, from West coast to East. And Savanah is is nothing like L.A. I was there once for a cheerleading compitition, which we won of course." she grins broadly.

"There is a lots of tourist stuff and some good clubs. I love to go out dancing. We can show you only the best spots of course. There is water stuff too, as we are on the coast, but I guess you know how to do all of the water sports."

Chan smiled vapidly at Gracie when she looked at her, and climbed up into the back seat. Once she had her seat belt on she pulled out her sketchbook, and went back to work on her drawing. She was just starting to work on coloring the Ogre, and worked with quick and practiced strokes of her pencil. She was content not to add to the conversation, and nodded and smiled briefly if anyone said anything to her. When they reached their destination, she followed her brother into to the shop, more out of curiosity than anything else.

"So Garrett", asked Melba, wiping the last of an enormous repast from her lips. "What mischief do you think we could get up to in the next twenty minutes or so?"

Buffy smiled. Water sports. That was something Buffy really didn’t have too much time for in Los Angeles. There had been...other things that had preoccupied her. Cheerleading though, that was something she’d done once upon a time.

Buffy zoned back in when Gracie mentioned good clubs and dancing. These were things Buffy could enjoy.

“Clubs and dancing is something I’m more familiar with. Water sports, not so much. Didn’t do that alot, had other stuff going on, you know?”

Buffy followed Darius and Chan out of the car when they pulled up to their first stop.

Sandwiched in between a small hardware store and a corner grocery in Telfair Square, an unassuming storefront concealed what was probably the most famous bookstore in Chatham County, Georgia, if not in the entire state. Well-maintained gold paint on the door read simply, "Bell & Booke, MSS. Est. 1806." The two lines below showed signs of having been altered over the years as one owner or another left their half the business to a descendent, and stated, "Mr. G. Booke & Ms. C. Bell, Props."

The store specialized in used and rare manuscripts, and was especially well-known for Mr. Booke's capacious memory, nearly limitless contacts, and his possession of some literally invaluable properties including the 1887 Beeton's Christmas Annual, a 1543 edition of De revolutionibus orbium coelestium (reputed to be the copy owened by Johannes Kepler and Tycho Brahe), and a copy of Action Comics #1. In the last decade or so, since the current Mr. Booke had taken over, a small section of new (neither used nor rare) books had entered and grown.

On any given afternoon (the store never opened before noon except by prior appointment with a customer), sounds of classic jazz would fill the space, which every visitor remarked seemed so much larger once inside the door than it did from the street. Either Mr. Booke or Ms. Bell was present between noon and late night, seven days a week.

At present, a small, hand-lettered sign hung next to the cash register reading, "Help wanted, part-time. Please enquire with Ms. Bell."
This message was last edited by unknown at 03:38, Wed 13 Apr 2011.

Darius leads the cadre of students into the bookstore, the professors hand written note held firmly and ready to be dispensed immediately. He looks around the store in a quick sweep. He'd never really visited the place, and was very out of his element. When he needed to stuy, it was the schools library or the public library. He didn't make a habit of buying books...

As his gaze sweeps fully around, he catches Gracies eyes again and almost blushes. Luckily, pigment is on his side, and the blush goes unnoticed as he averts away from the sudden (yet seeming minutes long) eye contact... looking for someone who might be an employee.

For lack of anyone obvious, he makes a decision and strides confidently towards the cash register.

Darius Simmons, man of action.

As the crew comes in the doorway, the 1957 Cannonball Adderley recording of "Stella by Starlight" fills the shop. As they get a few feet past the door, the entire gang is taken in by how much larger the store seems inside than out, including a mezzanine level that wasn't readily apparent from the street. The placement of the furniture blocks lines of sight for more than a few feet in any direction, unless you happen to be looking up.

Just as Darius starts to head for the counter, a middle-aged-looking man in casual chinos and dark red polo reaches the edge of the mezzanine balcony. "I thought I heard the chime. Give me just a moment; I'll be right down." Oddly, none of the students could recall hearing anything resembling a bell or chime of any sort.

A minute or two later, he emerges from the door at the back side of the counter. "Welcome to Bell & Booke. What can I help you with?"

Edit: Added a sentence at the end of paragraph 2.
This message was last edited by unknown at 01:01, Mon 24 May 2010.

Chan hadn't ever been in this particular book store, and took a chance to get acquainted with the selection of books to be found. Unlike her brother, she was completely in her element in a place like this. Her taste in books was pretty eclectic as she was perfectly happy reading on a great variety of subjects. For pleasure she preferred fantasy or science fiction, not including her obsession with any sort of graphic novel, though she found the occasional romance novel as a guilty pleasure.

PM

Darius held a note for a special order on behalf of Ms. Williams.  It was folded in half and the message nearly incomprehensible to her young assistant:

"Dear Mr. Booke,

I require your assistance in procuring a supplemental text for my 'World Lit" course.  If you have these items, I need the following:  The Wisdom of The Horned God and An Unabridged History of Yatuk Dinoih.

Sincerely,

Ms. Emmanuelle Williams."

Chan continued to browse, content to let Darius take care of his business for Ms. Williams.

Still riding the sleight adrenaline high from the fleeting moments before, Darius clears his throat and speaks as the note is examined by Booke.

"Just running an errand for Ms. Williams, as I'm sure her note suggests. She asked me to swing by on our lunch break, since your shop is so close to where we were headed." Though the words might not have been confident, his tone and bearing were all confidence. This was no Football Field or Basket Ball Court... but Darius was not shy, and had that innate spark of confidence born of a natural leader.

The sheer range of literary wonders on Booke's shelves drew in Chan with irresistible pull.  She passed by an interesting Minoan statuette of a fertility goddess to browse.  Several titles caught her eye, including an original printing of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

To Buffy & Gracie Lynne, the place likely just reeked of dust and old books.  Buffy even felt a strange sense of deja vu as she stood in Booke's establishment...

Chan's eyes lit up as she slowly browsed the shelves. She was quite surprised at the quality of books to be found here, and wondered why she had never heard of the place before. A place like this was probably a haven for all sorts of books that one couldn't find elsewhere. She would definitely have something interesting to share with her limited circle of friends.

She glanced up at her brother and Mr. Brooke, just to check to see how much longer her brother was going to be. At least that was her plan until she got a decent look at the shopkeeper, and a cold chill ran through her. His face seemed to sparkle like a scene from one of her Manga's, and she couldn't help but stare at him.

Then she blinked and everything seemed normal again, and she wondered if perhaps she had just imagined the whole thing. After all it wasn't like people really sparkled, and the entire thing had been odd. Still she couldn't help but stare.

Chan's eyes also swept over a book called An Introduction to The Left-Handed Path.

It took her a second to realize exactly what the book was. It seemed innocent enough from it's spine, but something seemed off about the title. She felt foolish when she remembered that it was often used in Manga and Anime to denote some sort of black magic, not that she really believed in that stuff, but it did seem out of place. She looked around to see if she could find any more books with similarly odd titles, or blatant occult references.

Peering past the rims of his spectacles, Booke examined the note and nodded. "It seems Emmanuelle -- pardon me, Ms. Williams -- may be adding something about the Celts to your World Literature this year. I've got a copy of the first, but will need a few days to procure the second. Give me a moment."

He wanders back through the stacks, quickly lost to sight. He emerges a few moments later with a blue leather-bound volume, a man with stag's horns sitting in front of a cauldron embossed into the leather on the front cover. A small piece of personalized stationery is tucked into the cover, with only the shop's name and address visible. Should any of the students open it, the note reads:

Emmanuelle --

The second title you desire will require a few phone calls, and possibly the redemption of a favor or two. The monetary prices of both volumes, and any favors redeemed, will be added to your account on Friday. Should you change your mind before then, have your protegee return them intact and unread.

Caitlin says hello, and wonders whether you know a drummer who would be able to play with her at the Ashland on Thursday next.


-- GB

Walking past Chan as she replaces the Introduction to the Left-Hand Path, Booke remarks quietly,
This message was last edited by unknown at 12:57, Tue 25 May 2010.

Buffy took in the place and wrinkled her nose. The smell of dusty old books, and just books in general, weren't really Buffy's thing. Add that to the weird feeling she was getting...

'Whoa, deja vu, much?'

Buffy shook her head and smiled, staying near the entrance of the store. She didn't feel a compulsion to explore this place, and she hoped they finished up soon...

Gracie walked around the store looking at everything. It felt so odd and she had no idea why. She looked at some of the weird titles and wondered what the hell would be in some of these books. The whole dusty thing did nothing for her except maybe to make her sneeze.

After Gabriel's whispered remark, Chan indeed saw books of similar motif.  Several titles were "New Age" works by notable authors like Sylvia Browne, while others sounded like "How-To's" on Wicca, such as Zsuszana Budapest's Grandmother Moon or Starhawk's The Spiral Path.  A few she even recognized from her own secret collection at home.

However, one title in particular again caught Chan's eye.  A slender, leather-bound book that looked older than the shop sat tucked between heavy tomes on African-American folk art and a Civil War encyclopedia:  A Conversation with Evangeline Abbott: The Memoirs & Scandals of A Southern Witch.

Likewise, Gracie spotted several bizarre titles which may have seemed confusing to the unitiated.  One particular was Bestiae Obscurum.  The book's spine depicted an unusual symbol of a cat's head--or a hairy devil, depending on one's perspective.

To Buffy, the faint scent of dust from the books teased her allergies.  Between the lush local flora and dust, one might wonder what horrors Savannah held for her nose.  Meanwhile, Darius saw books which surely would have SCANDALIZED his conservative father.  A few even may have left him with a powerful urge to get to the First African Baptist Church (or any other nearby) for a "spiritual purgative".

As the students complete their wait, Mr. Booke hand the leather-bound volume back to Darius. "I've only one of the two volumes she's requested in stock, but am working on the other one. I know your time is limited, so I'll not distract you from your lunch any longer."

Catching a glimpse of Buffy as she leaves, he gives a quiet nod of recognition, but does not say anything.

By the time Booke returns with the one book in hand, Darius is feeling more than a little uncomfortable. He'd been unable to not look about while they waited himself, and wondered how on earth a great teacher like Ms. Williams had felt shopping in a store that sold such vile and sinful titles was worthy of any sort of patronage... even if they also sold prefectly legit titles and subjects. Excuses flood his mind, maybe they were the only local suppliers of some hard to find novels or out of print materials.

When he accepts the blue leather bound book from Booke, his eyes linger on the cover... and he finds himself second guessing the excuses he'd thought up; Second guessing also his faith in Ms. Williams. A cold shiver runs down his spine as his hand wraps about the leather binding, and he quickly pulls the book to his side.

He shakes his head, dispelling his thoughts. Clearly the store was making him paranoid. Ms. Williams wouldn't have sent innocent students into a nest of sin to retrieve anything malicious. "Thank you sir, I'll convey your message to Ms. Williams." He turns, ready to leave and lead the others out into the blessed sunlight and away from the stifeling and vile contents of the store... turning once outside to ensure everyone had followed him out before turning his mind and attentions towards lunch.

Buffy felt the dust starting to affect her. She was feeling just a touch light-headed. She let out a breath and began to make her way out of the store, figuring she'd wait outside for the others.

As she left, she caught saw the man who owned the store give her a small nod. Without thinking, she tossed him a small wave of her hand before exiting.

She got outside and shook her head, it had felt natural to do that, but why? It wasn't like she knew him...

Buffy shrugged and waited for the others once she saw Darius leave the store...

Gracie looks at the odd book named Bestiae Obscurum. She picks it up and opens, wondering what is inside. What kind of place is this?

Then she hears Darius leaving and puts the book back and quickly follows him out. "Hey, wait for me." She sure as hell does not want to get left here.

PM

Chan wasn't really surprised to find so many interesting titles here. She wasn't actually interested in reading up on black magic, well not really, just mildly curious about it. To her it seemed pretty clear that things weren't quite as they appeared to be, but she couldn't quite place her finger on it. Sure she got a creepy vibe from the place, but it was full of some very interesting finds, so she might actually come back to look at the place later.

She put down the book she was glancing at, and followed Darius out of the store. They still had more important things to deal with, namely lunch.

As finally even his sister has exited the library, Darius nods reassuringly to himself. "Wow." He mutters with a shake of his head and forced smile.

"So, lunch?" He asks, knowing that everyone should be happy for the distraction from the creep-vibe, and hungry to boot. He'll take a quick glance at his FOSIL watch and verify the current time. If time permits walking, he'll lead off immediately. If not, back into the 4Runner and away they'll go once everyone is in.

Buffy nodded. She was glad to be out of that musty, dusty store and back in something...modern.

"Lunch sounds like a plan..."

Gracie Lynn walks out shivering "That was a really, really sick book" she is so glad to be out of there. She wonders what other weird stuff is in there.

"Oh, ya. lets get lunch" She figures it will take her mind off of that book.

107 West Jones Street

On a typical weekday morning, a line gathers outside the famed boarding house opened in 1943 by Selma Wilkes.  The beloved establishment offers a traditional "boarding house" dining room stocked with delicious Southern cooking.  Perfect strangers sit beside one another to enjoy a repast consisting of Southern fare like fried chicken, sweet potatoes, okra, and buttery biscuits!

Luckily for the gang, the line seemed a little smaller that morning.  Although far from dead, they didn't enter a line going around the block.  Within a few minutes, they were sat beside an older tourist couple who clearly ate up the "local flavor".

Enticing aromas filled their nostrils, undoubtedly whetting their already-challenged appetites.  Buffy would also discover an essential truth about Savannah--the locals did NOT fear the calories!

With the disturbing tome safely tucked away into his Timberland backpack, Darius seems far more at ease again. Already the mouth watering aroma's of good food were banishing the mood their errand had set. "You'll have to bring her back sometime, when the crowds are thicker, and time allows for a more involved sampeling of the menu!" He offers towards his sister, obviously talking about Buffy who he didn't doubt was already overwhelmed by the experience as it is.

He checks his watch, anc counts off a quick schedule in his mind for when they need to be wrapped up and back in the car by in order to make it back to school within the window of time granted. His eyes drift between the delicious foods around him, and occasionally dart quick glances at Gracie when he can casually cover them up should she catch him in the act.

Gracie walks in and looks over the food. "Hmm, this stuff looks so good. I am really going to have to exercise a lot to work this off." She looks at Darius "What, we just getting something to go?" she was hoping to sit and enjoy the food and let Buffy try some real southern cooking but Darius was driving so he set the schedule.

Meanwhile, at school, Melba vacuums a plate of lovely deliciousness at the weirdo-geek table.  The weirdos avoided her because of her fearsome intelligence.  The geeks avoided her because she was... well... weird.

So she sat with Garrett, explaining general relativity in monosyllables and drawing a schematic for the Tully-Ulam device on a napkin.

Darius offers the beauty a grin. "Nah, we've got twenty minutes or so... we should be good." His eyes flick away again quickly, and he opts to ensure fried chicken makes it onto his plate.

Chan nodded slowly, still preoccupied with thoughts of their visit to the bookstore. She hadn't ever got that sort of creepy vibe that she felt there, and the glowing red eyes, just couldn't have been real. It was probably just her mind playing tricks on her after having had her sleep so rudely interrupted. "Ya we'll have to do this again sometime." She still wasn't particularly happy about Gracie tagging along, but it wasn't any worse than one of the other football jocks.

Gracie orders some spicey chicken and fries with a coke. "That book store was really creepy. I can't imagine ever going back there but I have to admit I am curious about what was creeping me out"

"The place was just unwholesome. I'm all for Mom and Pop shops, especially ones with history... but I'm of the oppinion it must have been the only option to get this... book." Darius shares, somewhat trying to defend the teacher while still disapproving of the store she'd sent them to.

Buffy's eyes widened when she saw the deep-fried cuisine Mrs. Wilkes offered.  The entire spread ominously said, "DIET THREAT".  Yet, she couldn't quite overcome the watering of the mouth when the delicious aromas hit.  "Wow.  You guys sure like Chicken-Fried Goodness on, like, everything!"

Smiling sheepishly, she accepted small portions.  "It's kinda quaint. With the old fashioned picnic table and 'family dining'.  Gotta admit, it's actually kinda cute!"  Then, Buffy nibbled a bite of a chicken wing that almost looked as big as Darius' fist!

Darius scrunches his eyebrows at buffy over a mouthful of his own finger-licking-goodness, not sure where he stands with the words quaint, old fashoned, and cute, being attached to one of his favorite places to eat outside of his mom's kitchen. Still, it wasn't like she was disliking it... she just needed to get used to the way of things apparently.

Meanwhile, back at the school...

As Melba scarfed a loaded baked potato in less than three bites, the school's maintenance chief approached her table.  He was a weary looking man with steel-gray hair and a thick moustache.  His uniform looked appropriately functional and full of servile connotation at once.  An eyebrow that looked quite accustomed to wry arching rose at the sight of Melba's "generous repast".  A glimmer of disapproval at the girl's eating habits flashed quickly, likely chased away by thoughts of the reprimand her parents would induce in the administrators.

In mercurial fashion, the expression changed instantly to one of a hidden appeal.  Mr. Joe (as the kids called him) sighed and approached Melba with a look she'd seen on many occasion.  "A-hem.  Um, could you...y'know?"  Mr. Joe cocked his head to the side.

Despite the hinted request for "discretion", the entire school from Dean to the newest pupil knew that Mr. Joe frequently asked Melba for help with engineering questions which he couldn't resolve himself.  It often saved time and the expense of new equipment or, worse--outside help.

Melba wiped cheese, coleslaw and other substances from her lips, destroying the schematic diagram of the hydrogen bomb in the process.  She smiled at Mr Joe and said, "Excuse me a moment, Garrett, there's a dear."  Then after a beat she added, "I wouldn't be at all surprised Mr Joe. What's on your mind?"

Somewhat sheepishly, Joe said, "The generator in the basement's acting up again.  Jurrell called out--again--and I need someone to hold the flashlight so I can repair it."  Under his breath, he added, _{"That trick you performed on the alarm system...do you think you could show me how to do that on the basement generator?  Jepson's been on my case about that for the last three days!"}

"Hmm.  Seems like someone's trying to avoid becoming a budget cut," Garrett said oh-so-innocently.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:00, Sun 18 July 2010.

"Andiamo", said Melba, and to Garrett, "Wanna come along?"

Garrett fiddled with his plate for a second.  Go watch Melba simultaneously humiliate school staff by showing his shortcomings or finish lunch & fend off the jackasses on the football team?  "Decisions, decisions!"

Where Melba's food hadn't stood a chance, Garrett's went largely untouched.  Small bits picked at best.  Sneering at the cafeteria food, Garrett shoved it away.  "I've taken enough risks with the cafeteria food today!  Off to the basement, kids!"  His lanky form hopped up, nearly towering over Melba.

Melba stood up and grinned.  "We can help, I'm sure."

"I can't believe we're STILL having problems with this thing!"  Joe griped as he led Melba & Garrett through the basement.  Old unpainted brick wall housed the basement.  Rows of shelves, equipment, and odd knick-knacks lined the floor.  Except for about six small windows scattered around the basement, there was no natural light. Only a few light bulbs hung from the ceiling, casting an occasional spot of baleful light on the floor.

The kids only ever came down to the basement for smoke breaks--or "work detail" for detention.  Joe guided the kids through the makeshift labyrinth of metal and junk.  His flashlight began dimming, likely the result of dying batteries.  "Aw, you gotta be kidding!"  Joe whapped the flashlight to wrest more light from it.


OOC:

Perception + Notice check -2, please.

Melba sighed when the flashlight began to dim.  "I hate coincidences", she said.

10:45, Today: Melba Ellenberger rolled 11 using 1d10+6. Perception + Notice.

BJ watched as Melba and company slinked out of the cafeteria as she finished off her salad and nibbled on the apple slices and blood orange she had in her bag. Idly she wondered what system Joe was asking help for this time. She was the unofficial 'caf-monitor' so she couldn't sneak after them to check up on things.

If she did she was sure some 'Biff' or 'Bambi' would institute some trouble for a less popular student.

Melba's eyes naturally followed the flashlight's beam.  The beam passed over a shelf and ended toward the floor.  As Melba's eyes went down, she noticed what lay in the beam: a pair of Adidas sneakers poking up from the floor.

"Joe", said Melba, "Bring the beam back a bit.  Garrett, check out those shoes  Are there feet in them?"

"Uh-uh!"  Garrett shook his head defiantly.  "If you wanna Nancy Drew it that bad, YOU check out the shoes!"

Melba sighed... "Your torch went out, just when I saw what I hope is a pair of sneakers, AND the generator went out.  Right let's move back a few yards, carefully... and see if your torch goes back on... Scientific method see? Now be careful... one step, two steps, three steps... is it working?"

Stepping back only highlighted what was attached to the foot: a young male body!  The corpse lay prone on the dank basement floor.  The failing beam of the flashlight only further accentuated the body's pallor.  A closer glimpse showed a familiar face...Scott Brown.  On his neck, two small, ugly red puncture wounds.

Garrett unleashed the girliest scream--joined immediately by Joe's terrified wail!


OOC:

Make a Fear Check, Melba!  You're at a -1 penalty, since this is your first body!

"Looks like a dead body to me", said Melba.  "Oh, it's Scott.  Better call les Flics.  Let's get into the light."  She was as good as her word, moving back until she could get a signal and dial 911.

09:20, Today: Melba Ellenberger rolled 12 using 1d10+2. Fear Check (Will -1?).

When Darius parked his truck, he & his passengers returned to a chaotic scene.  Several squad cars from the Savannah Police Department lined outside an entrance that led directly to the boiler room.  Students and teachers filed out of the building, more than a few casting curious--or disturbed--glances back.  The yellow tape associated with a murder scene was being carried inside.

Melba, Garrett, and Joe The Maintenance Man all stood with a plainclothes detective.  Miss Williams and Coach Cordova weren't far away.  Upstairs, the dean slowly drew his drapes closed...

Melba told the cop everythign she knew, how she'd last seen Scott early this morning.  How Joe often asked her to help with electrical problems.  She described how the three of them had found the body after Joe had fetched her from the Canteen because of an electrical problem.  She said that she didn't think it was a snakebite unless it was a cobra, but it looked more like the bite of a brown recluse spider, but about forty times the size.

After that, she took a deep breath and asked, "Do you mind if I shut up now?"

The investigating detective frowned at that.  "Brown recluse?  There's no necrotizing of the flesh near the wound."  He appeared to scribble a note in a pad.  T

"Can you think of any problems the victim might have had with anyone?  Any recent fights, maybe fooling around with someone's girl?  Had you heard anyone threaten the victim?"

Not far away, Miss Williams saw Darius, Chan, Gracie Lynn, and Buffy return.  She cast a worried glance their way.  "Coach, we'd better intercept them. That's all I need, Mr. Simmons paying a 'social call' to bless the faculty out for letting his children near a murder scene!"

The woman gracefully strode over the grass toward the small group.  "School is canceled for the rest of the day.  We're letting the students go home."

Melba shrugged, "He was a jock.  The jocks'll know better than me but he was pretty much a nice guy so I can't see why.  Sorry I get widows and brown recluses mixed up."

"What the...?" Are the only two words out of Darius' mouth as he pulls up to the scene (as closely as is possible anyway). "Gone for a minute, and it looks like the world fell apart." He turns off the 4Runner's ignition, and watches the scene for only a moment before choosing the optimal path to get to where the detectives were questioning classmates, without drawing attention and allowing for the best opportunity to evesdrop. "I'm going to see what I can overhear..." He flashes the girls his most playful grin, then sprints off along his intended course.

BJ sighed as she got up, taking her boxes to tuck them in her carry bag.

"Okay, I'll work the looky loos, you get the kids involved off to one side. I'm sure the dean will want to talk to them." BJ said as she started making the rounds, banishing the onlookers back to class and the interior of the school.

Garrett squirmed at the questions.  Eyes lowered, he tried his level best to avoid the detective's intensive gaze.  In fact, he was quite content to let Melba handle the "Q & A".

He frowned when he saw the small group return.  To Garrett, they were mostly faces he occasionally saw in classes.  Just that moment, though, Garrett thought he would have gladly been hanging with them instead of the police.

Chan tucked her sketch pad into her purse, and grinned conspiratorially at her brother. She was just as interested in finding out exactly what was going on, in an otherwise already weird day. Hopefully it was nothing too serious, maybe vandalism or something. "Just don't get yourself into any trouble, you tend be a little stand outish around here." People tended to notice Darius, while they tended to forget that she existed entirely, not that it was always a bad thing. Not today anyways.

She followed several steps behind her brother, and kept her ears sharp for any news. With something like this everyone was bound to be talking, sure there would be a whole lot of hearsay, but maybe she could still overhear something.

Buffy looked around as everyone seemed to split off. What in the world was going on here? She wasn't really sure what the heck she was going to do, so she just followed Chan quietly. It wasn't normally what Buffy did, but she was already out of her element, and now this.

Weird.

She followed Chan as closely as she could, also keeping her ears open for anything particularly interesting...

Melba just wasn't USED to dealing with the police obviously.  It's "OFFICER", not "orifice".

09:41, Today: Melba Ellenberger rolled 6 using 1d10+5. Willpower + Influence (-1 for Nerd).

"A-hem."  The office interrupted Melba.  "If you or your friend remember anything else, call me.  Here's my number."  The office handed her a plain business card with the detective's name and business number.  He also recorded any appropriate contact information before rejoining his uniformed comrades.

While that happened, Chan slipped through the crowd with a soft swish of her skirt.  Consistent with her expectations, nobody paid much attention.  Oh, she was pretty enough, but so were many other girls at Ambrose Jepson.  Staying low-key allowed Chan to eavesdrop on tasty morsels of gossip:  "And that fat brain who always hangs around that weird gay-acting kid saw Scott Brown's body in the basement!  Someone said there were weird bite marks on his neck!

Y'all really think it was a brown recluse?"  Chan barely had time to process that before she ran into Coach Cordova.

Meanwhile, Darius narrowly evaded Miss Williams and Coach Cordova.  True to "Quarterback Form", he ducked low where needed, dodged between people to avoid being seen, and dashed just fast enough to slip past any troublesome authority figures.  The star athlete rounded a corner just in time to see that the new girl, Buffy, had beaten him to the basement door...

Melba wandered over to an area vaguely close to where the other kids were gathered, although not walking up to anyone and starting a conversation.  She guessed she wasn't going to have to.

Buffy had split off from Chan at some point or another, or maybe the simple fact of the matter was that she'd lost Buffy? Buffy pursed her lips and made her way to the area that seemed to be avoided.

The basement. It was the place that people were, consciously or unconsciously, shying away from. Interesting. Buffy made her way towards it only to find Darius two steps behind her.

"I guess we're thinking the same thing..."

Darius catches himself watching a blonde girls backside distractedly. A moment later he realizes that it's owner is apparently going for the same destination as him... and only then does he tear his adolecent mind out from the gutter long enough to realize that those legs belong to none other than the friend of his sister. The new girl, Buffy Summers. He hadn't even noticed her vanishing act from his SUV, and had figured she's stick close with Chan.

"Fancy meeting you here." Darius said in tandem with Buffy's own greeting, a grin lights upon his face as the two speak at the same time. He bobs his head in agreement, his pigment concealing the soft blush that might have appeared were he of paler complexion. "Yeah, my curiosity is piqued." He admits, picking up his pace to ensure he gets to the doors first. Sneaking about or not, the Southern-Gentleman routine was hard-wired into him... and he'd open that door for Buffy (and even let her enter first, despite any potential danger) without thinking twice.

"Emmanuel, I'm going to check to make sure we don't have any strays checking the body out. Last thing we need is this body showing up on Facebook or MySpace,okay?" BJ says with a grin as she shoos a few stray students off before they can slip by.

Through sheer dumb luck, Buffy and Darius found their descent unimpeded.  Apparently, the techs and cops on the scene had been required upstairs, or just needed a smoke break for all they knew!  The air cooled by a small handful of degrees as they descended the stairs.  Only the weak halogen glow of failing light bulbs provided any lit.

Although Darius had been down in the basement many times to pull sports equipment from storage, it somehow seemed different now.  Maybe a murder made one look at a familiar old place in a different way?  They reached the basement and saw tell-tale yellow tape.  The police tape provided a path of sorts to the body--which Darius recognized as one Scott Brown, casual athlete and frequent "ne'er-do-well".

Scott's eyes stared sightless at the ceiling.  His normally tan skin was now pallid.  A look of mixed horror and bliss froze his face.  What was Scott doing down in the basement anyway?  More importantly, what was down there that could have done that to a strong athlete?

"Oh God." Darius says, his hand rising to cover his mouth. Fingers curl into a fist, as he fights to maintain his composure. Acquaintence and dead body or not, he would NOT loose his lunch in front of the pretty new girl.

"Ah Scott. Oh, man. Shouldn't they have closed his eyes or something?" He asks, trying to push through the shock. He tries to distract himself by wondering who in school Scott might have pissed off (lately) that was physically capable of taking him in a fight... let alone having the capacity to have killed him, even if accidentally.

Buffy stayed quiet and frowned. This all seemed...well, extremely familiar to her. Why? Because she knew what was going on here. She saw Darius' reaction and winced herself. Death, especially something like this, was never easy to be around. Buffy turned away from the body, checking the surrounding area for anything strange out of place.

Vampires liked cold, dark places.

Lairs...

On a primal level, the Slayer felt an instinctive trace of "vampire" in the basement.  They were long gone, but she knew from that neck-ruffling "tingle" Slayers were said to feel around the undead that one had recently left.  Several yards beyond the body, a storage shelf along the wall caught her eye...

Gracie got out of the car and was shocked by what seemed to be going on. She was just stunned that the quiet place they had left had descended into this. She just stared as she walked around in a daze till she noticed Darious gone. She taps Chan on the shoulder "Did you see where your brother went?"

BJ steps out of the shadows of the doorway and clears her throat nosily.

"This is a crime scene kids, not the cafeteria. So, I think you need to head back out." She holds out a hand. "After I check your phones and any other devices with cameras in them please."

Buffy nodded to herself and took a deep breath. She tapped Darius on the shoulder, and pointed towards the storage shelf, to let him know where she was going. Buffy closed her eyes, let out the breath, and walked slowly over to the shelf. She wasn't sure what she was going to find, but there were no guarantees about anything...

While the Coach called out, Buffy sidled off toward the shelf.  It was one of those work room affairs, lots of metal screwed together for workshop storage.  Between the storage shelves and the assorted junk on them, she guessed it might have weighed about 400 pounds altogether.

Funny, then, the scrapes indented into the concrete floor from where the shelf had been shoved out.  Like someone had just pushed it as casually as one might open a door.  Buffy thought she might have seen an old door behind that shelf...

Chan nodded and motioned passed the ever watchful teacher. "He managed to slip by before the teachers got smart, I think Buffy went with him..." Ever since they went to the old book store, nothing had felt quite right. She had been willing to pass it off as a bit of one time freakiness, but events were starting to make that impossible. "I feel like something bigger is going on here, and definitely strange... Darius will fill us in when he gets back. Maybe we should go to class?" She spoke quietly not wanting to alert B.J as to her brothers mischief.

When Darius snaps around at Ms. Cordova's appearance, it wasn't with startlement. It was with adrenaline driven reaction. He wasn't trained in anything cookey like Martial Arts, but he was an athlete. A true natural, so when he turned it was pure reflex to drop into a low well balanced stance, and have his hands at the ready. Once his mind registers it's just the teacher, he relaxes visibly and lets out an audible sigh. "Yes Ma'am" He replies, dutifully looking sullen for having been caught in an area that should have been off limits. Please don't give me detention for this. I need to get topside, There's a killer on the loose and Chan is up there! rages his inner monologue as he passes over his white iphone4. Few peole in the country could boast having one so early outside of apple's elite circles... Darius had been more than happy to cough up a pretty penny to the right people to ensure he'd been in that small group of privelaged few.

Ms. Cordova would find no pictures, video, or text... Darius had been too intent on discerning what was going on. Too distracted by trying to maintain a macho faccade for the new girl, and too shocked that the victim had been somone he'd known; Someone who was more than able when it came to handeling himself in a tight situation. Who did you piss off Scott?

"I'll take a look at this, you should have it back by the start of gym class." BJ says as she turns off the phone and tucks it way. "Ms. Summers, I think you need to hand over your phone and come out as well." She says as she pointedly looks in the direction of the school's 'potential problem child'.

"This is not where you need to be is it?"

"We were, uh... looking to grab a football. Buffy and I were going to work on my passing after school today. Before practice." Darius tries, though the lie doesn't settle easily on his tongue. He points in the direction of the nearby sports equipment locker.

He couldn't help but try and go to Buffy's rescue, it was in his nature (and he'd be sure to ask God for forgiveness later). Hopefully Buffy would back his play. His good looks and reputation for being a good kid should in theory work in his favor, but he'd never really had to call on those assets in this fashion. He genuinely was a good kid, and lived up to that reputation.

At least I didn't drag Gracie, or worse Chan, into this mess. Hopefully Buffy doesn't hold this against me... (Never mind that she'd been on her way here of her own volition, Darius was all about taking responsibility).

"Then I, er. I saw Scott." His voice drops very quiet at the mention of Scott's name. They hadn't been friends, but Darius knew him. That was more than sufficient to help him justify his discomfort. "Do you know what happened?" He asks of the teacher, hoping maybe she'll have something to help him understand.

Gracie grinned at Chan and whispered "He is good at that. I can't wait to hear what he found. It has to be something for the cops to be here." she looks around and sighs. "I think your right. I guess we should go to class" she looks to see if anyone else is going to class.

Miss Williams put her hands on the girls' arms.  "Chan...Gracie Lynn...classes are canceled for the rest of the day.  After the police ask a few questions, you're all free to go home."

It suddenly occurred to Emmanuelle that Chan might face a challenge there.  She peered over the campus for any sign of Darius.  Worried, she locked eyes with the girls.  "Chan, where is Darius?"
This message was last edited by the player at 11:35, Thu 10 Dec 2015.

Buffy froze up as it registered that a teacher had called down after them. She committed what she could to memory before about-facing, pulling out her own iPhone4 (not a white one like Darius' special one). She hadn't thought to take pictures, and was now thinking that would have been a good idea.

Still, nothing on it.

"Yeah, I was interested, and Darius was cool enough to try and help me."

Buffy put a hand to her mouth, using the same reaction that Darius had when he saw the body. She put her hand over her mouth and tried to feign being absolutely horrified.

"We didn't know...that..."

She let her words trail off...

"You'll get yours in class as well Ms. Summers, I hope that your last school's opinion doesn't come back to haunt you. I noticed before your.. troubles, you were a cheerleader and some talent as a gymnast. I hope you'll try out for some school activities, it always looks good on your college applications." BJ said as she tucked the phones away, making note to have the school's IT director/computer science teacher look them over to make sure the two kids hadn't shot or sent any footage of the body as she looks around the room carefully.

"Now, I think you two need to get to class before the police take interest in your.. interest."

Chan looked down and shuffled her feet awkwardly. She'd never been a very good liar, and tended give away pretty much anything with but a glance. Which was why she tried to be as honest as she possibly could be. Unfortunately that wouldn't serve Darius very well around now. "That's too bad, I was looking forward to art..." She shrugged at the mention of Darius. "I would try one of his over muscled friends, they tend to be able to keep better track of him. One moment I was sketching on my pad, the next he was gone. If you find him, tell him to give me a call."

Darius resists the urge to argue with Ms. Cordova. He wanted to explain the situation, make it seem less sinister than her own interpretation had made it sound. He remembers an adage of his fathers right then, that Perception is Everything. Even if the duo had been here for such an innocent purpose as the one he'd tried to lend... they would appear to be snooping where they had no right to be snooping. No excuses or sinful lies would ever cover that up. So he shoulders his backpack, then pulls a pad of post-it notes from the side pocket. He writes his passkey down, and hands it over as well. "You'll need this to check the phone. Apple's pretty solid on the whole security thing on the iphones. I can change it later after you've seen we literally did nothing but stand here and gawk in shock before your arrival." He says, respectfully but confidently. That was all he'd done, and there would be nothing on his phone to find save for some incriminating texts to his buddies about how hot Gracie had looked in a particularly nice sundress a few weeks prior), or the two or three that he'd recieved that afternoon when some of his teammates had seen the pretty new blonde girl climbing into his 4Runner. He hadn't said anything, but the implications were there that he might have already talked about her with some of his classmates.

Darius wasn't a big 'dater', and had been single for a few months actually... but popularity and good looks tended to lend friends to always be trying to push him in such directions regardless. His mother was also an incessent voice on the subject.

No reason she'd ever need to reveal any that. He tells himself, trusting in the discretion of his teacher.

"I have to look into the reputation of the school as well as the students Darius, you know that. I don't have a choice in the matter, you two are interfering with an active crime scene. If I don't do this, the dean would have my head if the police ask what you were doing down here. So, now.. I'll see the both of you in my class later. I should have your phones checked by then. I suggestion you move on to your next class now though."

Gracie looks at Miss Williams "Oh, I am not sure where he went off to. I am sure we will find him. I guess that also mean that means practice is canceled?" She has no problem lying, she does it only when she has too but she has to protect Darious.

Gracie looks at Chan "Come on, lets see if he can find and thne we can get a ride home with him. No use in hanging around school if nothing is going on."

Soon, the combined efforts of Miss Williams and Coach Cordova see the teens reunited.  As an added bonus, they get a little extra "quality time" with Melba and Garrett!  BJ quickly learns that school is canceled--the students free to leave after the police ask the necessary questions.

A joyous hour and a half later passed.  The kids were free to go home or move along as they saw fit.  Unfortunately, BJ had custody of the confiscated cellphones until the next day's Gym class.  So much for Buffy & Darius' social life that night!

They were free to leave...although Buffy may have had her own ideas about returning to investigate that door...


OOC:

We'll go from here!

Chan didn't really mind having to wait around while the police took care of things. She had her sketch pad and supplies, so it wasn't really wasted time or anything. It gave her a chance to try and process what she had seen at the book store, which of course meant that she had to draw it. She spent the most time on the figures sinister burning eyes. In some ways it reminded her of something straight out of a comic book, which probably meant that she had just been seeing things. She had read quite a few lately, one of which had been downright creepy.

From time to time she popped out her cell to answer a text, or post a comment on her website, every aspiring artist needed one. Quite happy that she hadn't lost her own phone. She imagined that it would be driving Darius crazy after a few hours.

Once they free to go, she turned to Darius. "So we planning on going home now? Or should we do something? Mall maybe?" She had no idea what really people did in this sort of situation. It's not like the school closed because of some sort police thing.

Garrett welcomed the release from police questioning--and school--with no shortage of gratitude.  "Wow.  That was the most fun I haven't had in awhile!"

A dyed-black eyebrow rose.  "Wanna swing by Home Run Video and see if the last chapter of Scott Pilgrim finally came in?  Maybe we can rent the last copy of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo before that crazy old lady swoops down and snatches it up in her talons?"

Melba nodded...  "Okay, Video first, THEN Pizza, and only THEN do we consider going home to watch it, and to eat icecream from Tubby's."

Darius was likewise at a loss. His schedule was usually quite crammed, and an unexpected burst of free-time like this was certainly unanticipated. With classes canceled, practice surely would be as well. There was a dead student. Assemblies, talks, conseling sessions... many classes would likely fall skipped in the near future accordingly. What a mess.

"Well, We could hit the mall... then swing out to Vinnies. Mom and Dad will be late tonight, as usual.

"You ladies interested, or did you need a ride anywhere?" Darius diverts the question back onto the girls to see if they had any thoughts on the issue. without a phone his social networking capabilities were slim until he got back to his backpack in the 4Runner.

Gracie hung out waiting as the police questioned everyonel. She talked to the other cheerleaders about what they might do but they all had something to do. When Darious came back out, she walked over to him.

"Well, I fine with anything. My parents are out of town and I got the run of the house. I am good with the mall and Vinnies. I got no plans with practice canceled"

Buffy sighed as she sat in the grass near the school, staring at the door. She wanted to know what was behind that shelf. If it was a nest...

Buffy groaned, why did she even have to know what vampires were?! Why couldn't that act she put on for the teacher be real?!

Buffy huffed and crossed her arms, still staring at the door. The teacher still had her phone too. Buffy noted to herself that that didn't matter due to the fact that she didn't really know anyone here anyways.

So Buffy sat, waiting for her opportunity to get back inside that door. Despite wanting to leave everything else behind with her old life...well, she didn't want to deal with vamps. Cut the head off at the source, right?

So, broodingly and phoneless, she waited...

Chan shrugged, their parents were normally quite busy, so that wasn't anything new. She stifled a yawn and looked around suddenly. "Looks like Buffy disappeared, I guess that means that she's had enough for one day." She'd been planning on inviting her home for dinner, but that would have to wait for another day. "Mall sounds good then, maybe I can get some inspiration from window shopping. I still haven't decided on my next project."

Once more, Darius filled his 4Runner with pretty girls--yeah, yeah, so one of them was his kid sister.  Buffy, Chan, and Gracie piled into the truck.  With the "early pardon" from Miss Williams, Darius took off until he hit Whitaker.  The 4Runner drove down the busy one-way street to connect with the even busier Victory Drive.

One left turn later, Darius caught a right on the equally busy Abercorn Drive.  The truck hit the first of the "Afternoon Rush", which typically started around 3pm.  They drove until arriving at Oglethorpe Mall, the newer of the two which Savannah boasted.  The sprawling 2-story mall offered a variety of shopping to meet nearly every need:  a GAP, American Eagle, Belk, RadioShack, and Barnes & Noble among several notable chains.

Buffy didn't see anything at Oglethorpe Mall that the discriminating Valley Girl wouldn't find at any given Los Angeles mall.  The offerings were decent enough, but nothing TOO unusual or out of the way, beyond a few interesting Hot Topic items.  Gracie & Darius saw several fellow athletes near the food court.  Chan found refuge at Barnes in the "Graphic Novels/Manga" section.


Meanwhile, Melba drove Garrett to Home Run Video, an eclectic-if-sleazy video & comics shop that harbored a notorious "Back Room" that catered to adult tastes.  A thin, homely, and inexcusably surly clerk eyed them as they lingered in the comics section.  A variety of colorful, glossy titles peeked out from crowded shelves in a very crowded store.  Melba saw the offending "old woman" in question eyeing the new arrivals shelves.

With astonishing speed for an, *ahem*, "big-boned girl", she sped to the shelf and snatched up The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.  Much to the consternation of the woman known among regulars for taking the last copy of hot, limited release new arrivals, naturally.  Luckily, Garrett found that coveted copy of Scott Pilgrim, plus one of Gail Simone's collected Wonder Woman runs.  Even better, the old sleaze who owned the store wasn't there to leer greedily at him!

While the kids shopped at their stores of choice, one Bonita Jean Cordova indulged a little "shopping" of her own.  Unlike the kids, the coach avoided the mall in favor of more "out-of-the-way" shops.  She needed special items that wouldn't be found at Bath & Body Works...

Sometime around dusk, everyone UNDER the age of 18 finished shopping and headed back downtown.  Perhaps Melba & Garrett were surprised to see Darius, Chan, Buffy, & Gracie at Vinnie-Van-Go-Go's?  The spring night was reasonably enjoyable and the pizza smelled amazing!  White plastic "patio table and chair" sets lined the celebrated pizzeria inside and out.  The kids could eat near the or enjoy a spot in cafe-style seating outside.  On the westernmost end of City Market, Vinnie's was on Bryan Street, just off Montgomery Drive, facing Franklin Square and the First African Baptist Church.

Across the market was Belford's Seafood, a slightly more upscale restaurant.  Tubby's Candy & Ice Cream shop was right next door. The sweet smell of homemade chocolates and turtles wafted toward Vinnie's, enough to overwhelm the senses when mingled with the delicious smells from the pizza oven.

OOC:

Roleplay a little bit.  You can all stick with your cliques or inter-mingle.

Buffy had sat there brooding until she'd realized that she would probably want a ride home. The door would have to wait until she could find a time to go back and investigate.

A time when the place wasn't swarming with cops and teachers.

Buffy let herself enjoy the mall, staring at several cute band t-shirts in Hot Topic, and a couple of other things as well. It wasn't overall the best thing she'd ever seen, but the mall was...quaint. Buffy stayed relatively quiet and just followed the others until they all ended up at a pizza place.

Melba grinned to Garrett... "Come on, we're out of school, let's at least say hello to the others."

She took a seat on one of the other tables.  "Hi guys", she said, "I'm Melba, I think we all go to the same school or somethin'.  This here's Garrett.  I'm sure you've noticed him.  Everybody does."

Chan always enjoyed her trips to the mall, for her it was a nice relaxing place to spend the afternoon. Normally she had a system, she started with clothes, then moved onto games, and finally to manga. She liked saving the best for last normally, and tended to get through the other parts quickly, unless she was starting a project, then she spent more time on the clothes or art supplies depending. She picked up a few manga, and got herself a new sketchpad and some pencils. Her old pad still wasn't full, but it was always good to have a backup.

Once they headed for Pizza, Chan her nose firmly planted in one of her latest acquisitions. It wasn't that she was being antisocial, more that she was still a little uncomfortable with the company, and didn't know what to do or say. Besides she did have research to do, in her own way she thought of it as home work. She glanced up and smiled when she noticed Melba and Garett. "Umh... Hello, haven't we had a couple classes together?"

Darius knew where to go in the mall for the optimal liklihood of running into teammates and friends... and the only reason he hesitated as long as he did before doing so, was because of the company he was in. With his sister, and two of the hottest girls the state had to offer on hand... what smart man wouldn't want to linger and be seen with them. It helped that they were girls of substance, placing them both firmly on his radar as potential interests (beyond the obvious distractions).

Still, the demands of Team Captain and Mr. Popular were many... and eventually he made contact with his crew... and was greeted with many a smile and fist bump from his friends as he arrived.

As the crew thinned out, Darius took the opportunity for a fashionable splitting of his own~ Suggesting that Chan, Buffy, and Gracie join him for some Pizza... which brings his perspective back to the here and now. With a rather mannish sized bite of pizza in his mouth, Darius is saved the butchery of names he would have used to greet Melba and Garret. He'd noticed them both before sure enough, but they weren't exactly household names for him and he'd thought it was Zelda and Barry. Luckily, food had been there for him, along with Melba's enthusiastic greeting. Chans follow-up response even allowed him to just smile, and nod.

"Noticed you two having some one on one time with the cops when we got back from lunch... any chance you know more than the average classmate?" He queries, careful not to name drop the victim. He was still working through that he actually knew someone that had died... and wasn't ready to try and use his name in casual conversation. Plus, he wasn't sure if it had even been publicly announced yet. Some might have eased into the topic, but that wasn't Darius' nature. Smooth, confident, and bold. Subtlety was not on the list.

Gracie had followed Darius and found some of the other cheerleaders hanging out with the other jocks. She talked with them, discussing some different cheers and moves. She kept looking over at Darius, hoping to get him alone to see if he would say anything about he saw in the school. She was so curious but did not want to say anything around anyone else.

When Darius suggested to get pizza, she was thrilled with that. She was getting hungry. She walked over with him when she saw the two geeks. Well, at least one geek.

She smiles at Melbe "Hi, I am sure you know me, I am Gracie Lynn, a cheerleader"

Darius coughs an asided The Cheerleader, with a laugh.

"Hi Chan", she said.  "Yeah, English I think.  Dull or what?  Romeo and Juliet, when we coulda been doing Venus in Furs."

"Saw the body", said Melba to Darius.  "Told 'em I thought it was a widow, but it wasn't.  Looked like he'd been stabbed in the throat with a carving fork but not a lot of blood.  Something shorted out the lights as well, but not just those on the mains.  Torch went dead as well just after we saw his shoe... wish I knew how they did that, it'd be awesome."

"Yeah, know ya Gracie.  Melba, s'ere's Garrett but you know him, everybody does.".

Graicie looks at Melba and then to Darious. "There was a body down there? Who died? Did you know who it was?" she wanted to know everything. No wonder the cops were all over the place and questioning everyone. Could a student have done it.

"Scott Brown." Darius responds quickly, if discreetly. He'd gotten over the initial shock, but he was still not ready for it to become a gossip thing... despite having been the one to have brought it up in the first place.

The impossible happened, and Jocks^TM mingled with Geeks^TM. Garrett waved listlessly at Darius and Buffy.  Gracie's self-aggrandizing introduction resulted in a discreet "uck."

Garrett watched Melba with a "Why are we doing this again" look.  However, he considerably warmed up when he saw Chan.  She'd always been nice enough, even though they didn't really know each other.  "I liked your sketches of the undines and sylphs last quarter," he said shyly.
This message was last edited by the GM at 11:45, Thu 10 Dec 2015.

Chan turned a sickly shade of green at the mention of a corpse, and made a soft strangled choking sound. "Really... How does now look like a good time to talk about dead bodies... Why couldn't you have waited for just a few minutes, until after we were finished, or better yet started even?" Her appetite thoroughly killed, Chan pushed her plate into the middle of the table. She took a sip of her drink and glared at Darius, deciding that it was best just to blame him for it.

She sighed and turned to Garrett shaking her head. "They turned out really nice. I'm planning on doing a painting along the same themes, I just haven't got around to it yet. I always have way more ideas than time." She did her best to pointedly ignore the others and the conversation they were having.

Melba blushed and apologised.  "I'm sorry Gracie, I have an unquenchable appetite and forget that others don't.  So, maybe switch to sports... what about those Cubs eh? World series in their first season and then nothing for a hundred years.  I reckon they'd lose gate revenue if they ever won anything.  Hey, maybe they'll give me a trial."

Gracie looks at Garret and does not say anything and then looks at Melba "That’s all right. We do eat you know. As far as sports is concerned, ya.  I guess they could even use your help."

She looks back to Darious "What the hell did it look like happened? How could he be dead?" She was shocked anyone died at the school, beside being bored to death, that is.

"Not sure. We didn't get much of a look before Ms. Cordova caught us snooping... Not even enough time to try and grab a picture, not the she believed this enough to let us keep our phones." Darius responds. He was a little bitter that he hadn't gotten his phone back in light of classes being cancelled, but could understand (despite that his integrity was being questioned). "Whoever, or whatever, happened... I don't know. Scott was sufficiently skilled, even played on a few teams last year. No way it was some accident."

Buffy stayed quiet and watched the interactions at the table. There was an interesting amount of tension, particularly concerning the dead body. Buffy figured the wiser thing to do would be to continue sipping her drink and let Darius do the talking, since he didn't seem to mind too much.

She tossed a quick wave towards Garrett, and then focused back in on the conversation at hand...

Melba didn't say much more, mainly because she didn't believe her best guess as to what happened.  There was no necrosis around the wound so if it was a snake or spider, it was fricking enormous and worse, if it was a snake it was somethign like a twenty foot Pit Viper (and if that was the case, then she probably wouldn't be helping with the school's electronics for a while - but then, she'd never heard of one more than about 5 foot).

"I suppose I could still keep kosher-ish if I had a vegetarian Pizza so I'll have a quatro fromaggi... nah, make it otto fromaggi."

Dusk cast a cerulean veil over the city of Savannah.  Far away in the west, the last vestiges of sunlight illuminated the horizon.  In the east, night fell over the city.  A tattooed and pierced waitress in black "Vinny Van Go Go's" tee and cut off shorts ran the orders to the tables.  Nearly every cafe table was filled, with chatter coming from a fully-occupied interior bar.  The hostess kept a wait on seats--new arrivals waited for a call in the City Market area.

The Market was alive and full of energy!  Both locals and tourists enjoyed the popular collection of restaurants, art galleries, shops, and live music.  A blues band played one block over near the downtown Wild Wings.  The fresh aroma of baking pizzas fairly teased the kids!  Darius and Melba's mouths watered in eager anticipation!

Across at Frankllin Square, a quintet of teenaged girls sashayed through the historic site.  They were all pretty, African-American, and dressed in a stylish mix of "girly" and "urban". A few homeless men parted like a human sea before their coming.

Their leader was a statuesque beauty with a flawless complexion.  Her hair was straight and framed her head in an artful arrangement of spiky strands.  She wore a gray belly tee over black camo pants and designer sneakers.  When the girls neared Vinny's, they all noticed Darius and whispered excitedly among themselves.  The leader of the pack actually noticed Chan first.  She gave a nod and a laconic smile.

A server with hair dyed colors not found in nature--namely, blue & pink county fair cotton candy--stopped by with two large trays.  "Otto Frimagi and a Supreme."  She set down the pizzas on separate stands atop the table.

A spinach salad went down in front of whoever had placed that order.  The server stared over quirky glasses frame.  "Do you guys need refills?  Is there anything I can get for you?"

"Love your hair", said Melba, her own being flame-red with gold highlights today, "My this looks delicious ", and then there was no more talking for a while as it had been replaced by obscene gorging as if Melba had been transofrmed into a monstrous eating machine by the presence of Pizza.

Chan felt her mouth go dry as she made eye contact with the pretty girl. Only she didn't have the face of a girl but that of some sort of nighmarish monster. Complete with large yellows and fangs that would make most dogs jealous, it was certainly an intimidating site. Suddenly Chan very much wanted to be locked away safe in her room, and not out on a crowded patio.

She jabbed Darius in the ribs several times until she got his attention. When he finally started paying attention to her again she stopped jabbing him and spoke in a low voice motioning towards the girlie gang. "There's something seriously wrong going on here. Those girls are real bad news..."

08:35, Today: Chan Simmons rolled 15 using 1d10+6. Fear Check Wp doubled.

Darius tears away from the small talk he'd been actively trying to engage Buffy and Gracie in. He'd noted the crew of girls, but hadn't paid them much attention beyond noting the giggling. At his sisters insisten poking and whispered advice, he gives them a more attentive look. None of them jumped out as familiar about them... nor menacing in any way. They all looked like perfectly normal teen girls to him. "Chin up sis. Most packs of teenage girls are bad news... Ignore them, I'm sure they'll mosey on about their business."

That said Darius grabs up a slice himself and turns his eyes back to the delicious pair of women at the table with him... despite the tragedies of the day, Darius couldn't help but be thankful for all the quality time with Gracie and now Buffy he'd scored.

Gracie glanced over at the girls but then ignored them. She didn't care about them. She was just glad to get some pizza and relax. It had been a really weird day. She stands close to Darius. She agrees with Darius as she starts to eat a piece of pizza. "Chan, ignore them. Their nothing I am sure"

Buffy looked up from her slice of pizza to observe the girls Chan was referring to. She heard Gracie comment on them, but by then, Buffy was focused on the pack of girls entirely.

Something about the whole situation didn't feel right, but then, after today's events, maybe her ability to judge such things was off?

The girls strutted through City Market as if they owned the popular tourist venue.  Their laughter carried through the market; perhaps the laughter held a mocking edge?  They stopped in front of an upscale cafe called Tappas.

Buffy saw the pretty "leader" guide them toward a lone teenager who'd been hanging out alone.  The boy was probably 15 or 16, fairly non-descript.  Nobody she'd pay attention to even once, much less twice.  The pretty black girls slowly circled the boy as they teased him with flirty remarks.

At first, the boy was somewhat wary of the unexpected attention.  Then, wariness was replaced by incredulousness.  Anyone watching saw pretty girls competing for the attention of an average boy.  Casual observers also saw astonished, immeasurable gratitude and excitement on his face.

This carried on for several minutes.  Eventually, the lead girl stood in unison with her peers.  They began walking away, and the boy's face fell so hard that Buffy thought it might crack the market square.  However, as the girls left, their leader crooked a beckoning finger at the boy--who hastily followed.

Soon, they all headed south on Jefferson Street and out of Buffy's sight...

Melba didn't look up until she'd finished the pizza and noticed the girls disappearing with a boy even Melba would barely have looked at once.  She blushed for no reason anybody could discern (unless they were telepathic) and wiped sauce from the corner of her mouth, frowning slightly.

Darius pays the scene little mind. He'd had his own fair share in such emotional-games that the popular kids like to play at times, and assumed the girls were just off to have a laugh at his expense now that they'd egged him on so dramatically. There was a reason he avoided knowing kids like that.

So rather than remark or even consider interceding, Darius continues chowing down on the pizza, silently slurping his soda, and maintaining small-talk with the lovely ladies at his own table.

Chan had a little more experience with this sort of thing than her brother did. Sure she'd had to put up with the occasional teasing and such, but things never really got too far out of hand. Some of her friends weren't nearly so lucky, and she'd seen first hand what sort of cruel fun those sorts of girls could have.

She still wasn't sure about what exactly it was that she'd seen, but it seemed to reason that it meant something bad was about to happen. Most likely to the boy that was sure to be their entertainment. "Something really bad is going to happen to that guy. Those girls are like a pack of Hyena's looking for the weakest Gazelle to torture for their amusement." Her appetite was ruined anyways, so she may as well step in. She doubted that the girls would do anything too terrible with a witness. Pushing her plate away she got up and followed the group of girls. She strongly suspected that Darius would follow, as he was that sort of guy.

Something bad, yeah that was it.  Melba wobbled to her feet.  "I need exercise after that", she said and moved after Chan.  "Coming Garrett?" she threw the words over her shoulder.

Darius watches his sister rush off to the young mans rescue, then as Melba leaps to join he realizes that his little sister has started a movement... and one that was likely to spread as wildfire through the small crew. "Crap. Looks like a Goonies moment." He laughs at his own bad analogy, as he pulls out his wallet and throws down sufficient cash plus tip to cover their orders. "May as well get a good deed out of the way. Ladies?" He asks/invites Buffy and Gracie as he stands up with intent to shadow behind his sister. He had every intention of following his little sister, despite firm belief that she was more than capable of handeling the situation... even if she might doubt it herself.

Gracie had not really watched the girls, they were beneath her. She had finished her pizza and was just sipping her drink when everyone started getting up. She sighed, it was just like Chan to do something like this, what was the worst that could happen.

"Sure, I will tag along. What could happen" she got up and walked with Darius. She didn't mind a little walk, it wasn't like they had any better plans.

Buffy shook her head as the others got up and began to move. She didn't like this one bit. Sighing, she stretched and followed after the others, looking around for some kind of weapon. She was less than enthused by the boy's willing response to such a strange ploy, but hey, she supposed that was any desperate guy.

Without a word, still looking for improvisable weapons, Buffy followed the others.

Buffy trailed her newfound friends, undoubtedly as worried for their safety as for the hapless geek picked up by the girl-gang.  Chan left first, followed by Melba and Garrett, trailed by a concerned Darius and Gracie Lynn.  People milled happily through the City Market.

Night now fully fallen, Savannah suddenly seemed a little less romantic.  The night air held an undertone of acidic gases from the city buses and cars.  A slight humidity hinted at what torture lay ahead in the summer.  The laughter of the girls ahead held a subtle, sinister edge to it.

Along the way, Buffy saw wooden benches lining the market.  The back supports were thick planks, but nothing even a beginning Slayer couldn't rip off as an improvised weapon.  A crude stake was there for Buffy's taking.

The girls led the boy away from City Market, hitting the less-bustling Montgomery Steet...

Melba noticed Buffy lagging back a little but had no idea why.  She lagged back herself and said to Buffy, "I think it's only his pride at stake, but watch out for snakes.  Something killed the jock in the school."

Despite the concern for his sister, and by proxy the hapless uy being pulled onwards by the small gaggle of women, Darius is pretty easy going on the walk. He always enjoyed the cooler temperatures of night, and found the moonlight to be more to his liking than that of the glaring sun. He always preformed better at night games to boot.

With Buffy having fallen back a bit, Darius continues small talk with Gracie as he maintains a pace that keeps Chan in sight. The small chat is fluent, and not forced... but the rhythm with which he tries to keep talking against any impending silences is just another indication of his attraction towards the cheerleader walking next him.

Gracie walks along, not really paying attention to the girls, thinking its not like they will do much to the poor smuck. Its his stupid fault for going along with them. She pays attention to Darius, talking to him about what ever come to mind.  She knows as long as he is there, they are safe, who in their right mind would fool with him.

Buffy nodded to Melba, hearing her. She didn't like the way this night had taken an ominous turn. It was creepy, and she had been hoping to avoid this kind of stuff.

Really.

"Hey...'scuse me one sec..."

Buffy made her way over to one of the benches. She felt it was time to grab that weapon...

Chan kept the same pace as she followed the girls and their fun. She hoped that nothing to bad would happen to the guy before they caught up. Maybe some humiliation of some sort or another, or a beating from one of the boyfriends, but nothing much more serious than that.

Buffy easily outraced her new friends through City Market.  The Slayer discreetly one-punched a slat on a bench.  Voila, instant stake!  Using the crowd for cover, Buffy sped toward the alleys.

The Slayer arrived first, finding the girls crowding around their "catch".  Darius led the group and wasn't far behind Buffy.  However, he nearly took them left, when they should have gone right.  Only Chan's last-second hunch steered them in the right direction.

Soon, they caught up with Buffy.  What they saw confused them at first.  The girl-pack circled the boy they'd picked up.  The young man whimpered piteously, his eyes closed tight, his breath coming in short and rapid huffs.

The confident girl who'd led her "gang" hovered over him.  Her head was bent low, as if kissing his neck.  However, when she pulled away, what she left wasn't a hickey.  Blood smeared her lips, obviously drawn from the dribbling punctures on the boy's neck.

Her head swiveled, turning to see who'd interrupted her snack.  Baleful yellow eyes nearly shone in the dark.  A furrowed brow made deep by unnatural ridges glared hotly.  Her throat rumbled in a growl no human throat should have ever made.

"You've stepped into the wrong alley, white girl," she said to Buffy, clearly ignoring the others.  "Walk away now if you don't want your lily-white ass dredged from the river!"

Buffy narrowed her eyes, pulling her makeshift stake from behind her back. She had been praying to avoid this. She didn't want to fight vampires or things that went bump in the night. She wanted to worry about being popular, about who would ask her to the prom...

C'est la vie.

"That is really inappropriate, you know? Especially for someone who's about to be dust."

Buffy brandished the weapon and looked around her, also hoping she could successfully take on this chick and her little posse.

"Oooh.  You're fronting pretty hard for a cheerleader with a stick."  The vampire flashed a tooth grin at Buffy.  "Oh.  I get it.

You think you're a Vampire Slayer.  Oh, that's funny!"  She chuckled softly, her undead cronies joining in the titters.

"Skinny lil' bitch think she a Slayer!"

The lead vampire thrust the boy away from her like a package of Charmin toilet paper.  "Here.  The doctor says I need more Iron in my diet!"  The lithe vampire began circling Buffy with tooth and claw, the Slayer's new friends watching in confusion...

Buffy shook her head.

"Unfortunately for you, fang face, I don't think. I am."

Ugh, she'd been fighting SO HARD to avoid this! Why was she rushing headlong into it, now? Buffy whirled the stake in her hand and gestured at Gabrielle.

"Bring it."

She couldn't help it, her high school self would not allow this woman to taunt her the way she was...

Melba began, at least mentally, taking notes.  In her head, she erased the words 'giant snakes' and added in its place, 'vampires'.  She smiled as the mystery solved itself, and her smile widened at the two-for-one solution of the Buffy mystery.

'Vampire Slayer' she half muttered, half whispered to Garrett.  'kewl'.

Gracie ran right behind Darius and looked at the scene in front of her. What the heck is going on? What are those girls doing? What do they mean vampires and killers? "WHATS GOING ON?" she is disgusted and scared to hell. She is thinking she should turn and run but can't leave Darius or Chin.

Darius looks at the scene with more confusion than he's ever felt in his life. A man of action, who can juke, spin, sprint, or pass without thinking when men twice his size are heading at him full kilt... hesitates.

At least, comparatively. To the others, it likely looks like he doesn't pause in the least before rushing forward to stand beside Buffy. He doesn't have a stake, or even know that these girls are anything other than psycho-meth-b*tches.

"Back off. I'm not keen on hitting girls, but so help me... you're done hurting that boy." He promises.

Buffy was kind of glad for Darius' stand with her, as she heard the others catch up in the background, but...these were vamps. Buffy looked sideways at Darius.

"Darius, be very careful...these aren't ordinary crazy chicks..."

Buffy whirled the stake again anxiously, waiting to see what Gabrielle was going to do. She just wanted to dust this bitch and get on with her night...

Melba considered rushing in in mock outrage, and throwing her not-inconsiderable weight around for as many as three nanoseconds.  After rejecting that option, she observed carefully, making sure that next time, she would know how to kill vampires and as far as practicable, be prepared.

11:48, Today: Melba Ellenberger rolled 14 using 1d10+6. Perception + notice how to fight vamps.

Gracie walks up beside Darius. She stood in her cheerleader pose. She was ready to back up Darius if she had too.

The leader chuckled in a soft laugh that seemed perversely pleasant coming from that monstrous face.  "Oooh, look, girls.  The Slayer's got some Slayerettes!"  Her baleful yellow eyes swept the group with a mirthful gleam.

"I don't know, Gabrielle, but DAMN if she don't run with one fine young brother!"  A round of approving whoops accompanied the "appraisal" of Darius.  The girl gang looked at Darius as if he were something good to eat.

"Yes.  I wouldn't mind a date with that one!  I'll share the fat white chick and keep him for myself!"  Then, they REALLY looked at Melba as if she were something good to eat!  Not unlike the way a fox might eyeball a hen.

"There's one piece of business we need to take care of first, ladies.  Slayers are fabled to live extraordinarily short lives.  Why don't we see about helping this one reach her expiration date?"

At that point, the one called Gabrielle reached behind her neck. She pulled a knife seemingly from out of nowhere that looked less like "knife" and more like "short sword".

"Let's dance, Slayer!"  Then, the vampire called "Gabrielle" rushed Buffy with an expert sword thrust!

OOC:

It's RUMBLE TIME!  Buffy, don't forget your rolls!

Gabrielle first, then Buffy, followed by She-Vamps & Darius for Initiative!  Everyone else last!  :p

Catching up with the girls hadn't been too hard. Sure it had been a bit of a run, and Chan had never been much of track and field sort, so she was a little out of breath by the time she made it into the alleyway. When she had caught her breath she stood starring in disbelief at the assorted yellow eyed monsters. It was exactly what she seen when she glimpsed at them from the Pizza place. Her first instinct was to run, but she wasn't about to leave Darius alone with some obviously homicidal sorts. What would she tell their parents if something bad happened to him...

For lack of a post from Gabrielle or the others, I'm putting up a Darius post awhile. :-P

Dearius cheeks flush a sleight chesnut-flavor of brown, in better lighting one might have even noticed. It was somewhat disturbing to be so whooped at and looked at in such a manner... and on the other hand, he was being looked at like that in front of a girl he made a regular habit of trying to impress. Darius is still dealing with that cognitive dissonance when the sword swipe angles towards buffy. Not knowing what else to do, he jukes left before coming back in a diving tackeling motion~ Trying to take Gabrielle out from the side in a football styled tackle before she can bring her weapon to bear on Buffy.

"Once word gets around that I've killed the Slayer, I'll rule the Southeastern seaboard!"  Gabrielle thrust her sword at Buffy, intending to skewer the Slayer!  Darius attempted to tackle the alpha-vamp.  However, the pretty vampire side-stepped him with a smile.  To add insult to embarrassment, she shoved her foot into his backside and sent the star athlete sprawling!

Meanwhile Gabrielle's gang rushed Buffy's friends.  They didn't attack, instead opting to hem in the human teens.  The undead girls heckled and teased them, playing "Cat & Mouse" with the kids.


OOC:

Buffy, you need to beat a 17!

Everyone else vs. a 14 to avoid being grabbed!

(ooc- Did I need to tie a 14 or beat it? Gracie Lynn DuPree rolled 14 using 1d10+8. avoid grab. )

(23:42, Today: Buffy Summers rolled 21 using 1d10+11. Avoid being skewered by sword.)

Buffy yelled out as Darius was sent flying. She'd tried to warn him! She inhaled as she managed to avoid Gabrielle's thrust of a sword towards her. She whirled the stake yet again, feeling a surge of adrenaline course through her body, her muscles responding. She rushed forward, thrusting the stake at Gabrielle's heart, trying to end this as quickly as possible. There was ALSO the benefit of a sword not being as effective in close range...


PM to GM :P

Unfortunately, Gabrielle raised her sword in a motion that seemed faster than the eye.  The sword parried the stake, and the Slayer and Vampire stood eye-to-eye.  "Oh, you're good, Slayer!  You're the first person in nearly 30 years to get that close to my heart!"

Buffy smirked a bit. So this wasn't going to be easy...wonderful. She didn't have time to worry about the others right now, she had to focus on this she-bitch with a sword. Buffy could only pray that the others could hold their own long enough.

"I'm shocked you think you still have one..."

Buffy glared into the vampire's eyes before swinging with a vicious uppercut with her free hand. She might as well try and hit first...and hardest.

Incongruously, Melba was able to move so that the vampire's attempt to grab her failed.  She wobbled away like an athletic jelly.

11:35, Today: Melba Ellenberger rolled 14 using 1d10+4. avoid grab.

Garrett had always failed at cat and mouse. It felt like years of being bullied would give him some kind of advantage in the running away department. He scrambled, but a she-vamp was too fast. He had enough time to think "Oh sh-", then she was on him.

01:31, Yesterday: Garrett Ashcroft rolled 13 using 1d10+5. avoid grab.

Darius' attempt to valiantly tackle the would-be assailant is met with naught but air... followed by an abrupt and completely unexpected, face-first, collision with the street. To add cruelty to the mix, his momentum is sufficient to skid roughly and placing him firmly in a thin puddle of street-sludge. Not only is his skin abrased, but his shirt is ruined and he's wet to boot.

Embarrassed, and surprised, or not... Darius wasn't one to lay down on the job. In sports you knew, you got up quick and you got back in the game. That's just the nature of the beast. Sometimes you miss, and sometimes you get hit.

End of the day, no one won a game laying on the ground feeling bad about themselves!

To that end, muscles flex and propel Darius back up and onto his feet in a right quick hurry, he spins around to see where the knife-wielding psychopath had gone.

A voluptuous she-vamp fell upon Garrett with delighted laughter.  "Ooh, look what I caught!  A pretty white boy snack!"  Her gang-mates laughed uproariously.  "Aw, he's too skinny!  You're just gonna be hungry again!"

Melba watched the vampire clutch her best friend.  Her mercurial mind raced through every piece of vampire lore she'd ever absorbed from film, literature, and comics.  Vampires could be killed (as far as she knew) by: fire, staking, decapitation, and sunlight.  Could any of that help Garrett, though?

Darius recovered and saw the situation:  Buffy squaring off against Gabrielle in a deadly ballet of sword vs. stake.  He didn't have time to wonder where she'd gotten her weapon, or how she managed to keep up with an inhuman killing machine.  All he knew was that his sister, his friends, two geeks from school, and the new hot chick were in trouble.

Meanwhile, Buffy narrowly evaded a swift sword stroke by Gabrielle. The alpha vamp laughed merrily.  "Slayer, you're the most fun I've had in a long time!  I'm almost sorry that I'm going to kill you!"

OOC:

Buffy, you're up for Initiative.  Vamps next, followed by Darius, then the others.

"I wish I could say the same, fangface." Buffy snarled and stabbed her stake once again at Gabrielle, doing her best to finish this fight quickly. She didn't want an all out brawl, she wanted to be able to help her new friends.

Plus, she suspected, there was going to have to be a conversation...provided any of them survived.

Today: Buffy Summers rolled 15 using 1d10+8. Attempting to stake Gabrielle.

Chan nimbly ducked out of the fanged freaks way, and did her best to keep away from the rest of them. Until now she had never put much thought in exactly how useless she was when things got violent. Of course she'd never expected that she'd need to know anything about defending herself. Still homicidal extras from anime seemed to trying to butcher them with a sword.

She winced when she saw Darian go headfirst into the pavement, suddenly no longer content to simply wait for someone else to try and grab her. She fished into her purse quickly, pulling out the first she find and throwing it at the vamp that had tried to grab her.

OOC: Sorry for my absence, didn't notice that there were new posts right away.

00:04, Today: Chan Simmons rolled 15 using 1d10+5 with rolls of 10. Dex + Acrobatics.

00:21, Today: Chan Simmons rolled 11 using 1d10+4 with rolls of 7. Ineffectual Attack.

Blocks away

"Control, this is Sentry. We have Subs in the vicinity, with Freshmen in the field." The view through the view finder showed the scene in the alley in tight green clarity. The warm glows of the living not doing too well against the near room temp Subs they were fighting. "Request permission to .. inter Subs."

"Sentry..this is Control. Internment allowed. Good hunting. R&D wants video telemetry uploaded to assess your ammunition impact on Sub."


"Engaging scope telemetry, uploading. Taking the shot."

The muffled crack of the augmented rifle was barely heard from where the operative was at. By the time the modified round arrived at it's target, the bullet would be nearly two seconds ahead of the sound of it's arrival.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:33, Sun 27 Mar 2011.

Gabrielle's grin only grew wider when Buffy just barely missed her.  "No, no, Slayer! I shan't make it that easy for you!"  Although the Southern dialect remained, the vampire's speech slipped into an archaic formality.  Melba and Chan noticed that quirk, but the others were too busy scrambling or trying to fight.

Buffy adeptly avoided her intended skewering by Gabrielle.  Darius saw the petite blonde show off moves that would rival Uma Thurman's Bride: ducking underneath stabs, parrying blade thrusts, returning her own stabs that kept the Alpha She-Vamp on her toes, throwing expert punches that would kayo any ordinary human.  The Vampire Slayer certainly didn't lack in talent or power, she was solely edged out by her quarry's experience.

While this happened, Chan drew out a glass bottle of perfume.  She hurled it at the nearest vamp, who caught it easily.  "Aw, is that for me?  Look, y'all, I got some Wal-Mart perfume!  At least I won't have to eat another sales girl for a while!"

The chunky vamp held Garrett in a headlock. "C'mere, sugar!"  She drew the slender boy's head closer--whether for a bite or a kiss, only she knew!

Then, an unexpected player entered the field.  A masked soldier(?) took meticulous aim.  A gloved hand pulled a trigger when the moment was right.  A muffled shot rang.  Gabrielle looked up, and cursed when Buffy slashed her ribs with the stake!

The she-vamp holding Garrett clutched her head and cried out in pain.  Gabrielle's gang looked around in confusion.  They all turned to their leader for their next cue.  "Time to dip, home-girls."  Gabrielle shoved Buffy backward.  She shook a finger, as if scolding a naughty child.

"Not fair bringing in snipers, Slayer!  I'll have to bring my own for our rematch!"  Then, the vamps took to the alleys, tearing off in different directions.

"Fire", said Melba, "Sunlight, stakes and decapitation.  Anything else?"  She took a can of hairspray from her handbag and said, "Guess I better start smoking.  If these things are around, it might be good for my health."

Gracie is just shocked by it all as she looked around "Darius, are you alright?" She runs over to him. She looks at Chan to make sure she was all right.

"Chan, did they hurt you at all?" where those really vampires? She couldn't beleive it but it seemed true.

Darius is about to assure Gracie that he in fact, just fine... and is barely able to hold back the questions rushing through his mind. Then his sisters name is dropped, and it all fades away. Well, not all. Gracie nabs huge points in Darius' book for thinking of his sister. He berrates himself mentally, having been so caught up in trying to play hero that he'd completely left her unprotected.

"Chan?!" Darius prompts, his sister to respond to Gracie faster so that he'd know she was alright. Nothing else was really important until that answer was cleared either.

"Oh my God, Oh MY GOD! Did you see- wha? She was going to eat me... and then... she didn't have a face-" Garrett squealed the rest of his rantings too high pitched for anyone to make out except for Melba, and she'd probably only nod.

Garrett scrambled to his feet, tripping on his own shoe as he flung himself at Melba. "What's gooiing oooon?! Who were those people and why did they try to take a bite out of me??" He stood in front of her favoring his right arm, pressing it tenderly where a fresh scrape had burst his almost pallid complexion.

He looked around with general disgust.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:00, Mon 28 Mar 2011.

Surprisingly, a fight in an alley drew little attention.  No shop owners investigated a potential disruption of business.  No onlookers found themselves diverted by a mass rumble.  No police officers investigated a qualified disturbance of the peace.

Only one person acknowledged the fracas.  A disheveled older man stumbled into the alley's mouth.  He approached Garrett, Melba, and Gracie Lynn smelling like cheap liquor, body odor, and stale urine.  "Hey kids.  Do you have fifty cents I could borrow?  My daughter's having a baby at the hospital and I need bus money to get across town!"

Control. Sentry. Sub took .50 cal round with minimal impact. Tell Walsh her Ironwood blows."

Sentry. Control. Maintain comm discipline. What is your loadout. Switch to alternate rounds. Keep locals in mind. Maintain upload of scope data.

Control. Sentry. Only other option that will work on Subs is Willy-Pete.

The commando slides a hand into a pouch and pulled out a round with a red band on the casing. Sliding the bolt into place the sniper lined up a second shot, deciding on showing 'the natives' someone was watching as a gloved thumb slips up to turn on the laser designator to highlight the next target.

Drawing the light bead over each open 'sub' in turn, the sniper finishes up by firing the tracer round into the wall behind the vampires where it exploded in a fiery burst.

The message was simple.

I can see you. I can kill you.

Melba wrapped her ample arms around Garret and stroked his hair, whispering aloud, "Don't worry, they're vampires.  It's what they do, and they said that new girl was a slayer - whatever that is - so I guess she knows ways to kill them."  Briefly she turned to offer two quarters to the homeless man.  "Fifty cents?  Here you go, take it or leave it."

Things were beginning to make a whole lot more sense to Chan, and the more they did, the more she wanted to freak out. Everyone knew that vampires weren't real, yet inexorably they seemed to really exist. Even worse, somehow she'd known that something was off about the girls. That was perhaps even scarier than the terrible truth they had all just learned, other than Buffy it seemed. It also made her wonder even more about the proprietor of the bookstore that they had visited at lunch. If she'd somehow known about the vampires, than she'd probably seen something in him too.

She shuddered and shook her head in response to Gracie's question. She hadn't been hurt or anything, but she was most definitely not okay. Too many illusions had been shattered today for her to feel anything but terrified. If the others hadn't been around she would have just gotten herself killed, or worse. She checked Darius over, and once she was sure that he was okay she hugged him carefully trying not to get mud all over her. "I just want to go home..." She said quivering with fear now that everything was over. At the time things hadn't seemed so bad because she'd just been reacting, now that she could think about it she was having a hard time keeping things together.

".........

.........

Thanks."

The homeless muttered as he palmed the quarters.  He turned to Darius and Buffy, the same neediness in his eyes.  "What about you?  Got fifty cents so I can ride the bus?  Maybe so I can get a Coke, too..."

Melba frowned at the homeless guy then and asked, "Are you a vampire too?"  Then to Garrett she said, "Maybe they don't all want blood.  Maybe some want money."

"Vampire?"

Pause.

"Damn, girl.  What the hell have you been drinkin'?"

Darius removes the hand that he'd subconsciously placed lightly on Gracie's arm as he'd waited for Chans response... and seeing that she's phycically well enough he returns the sibling huge, thanking God (even whispering as such) that she was ok.

Over her head he finally takes the opportunity to look to the others.

How things had gotten here were beyond him... but the suggestions were sound, sure enough. "Yeah. Let's get you home." He says meaningfully.

Another look is given. "Gracie?" He asks, wordlessly inviting her to join the pair... then on second thought. "Actually. Everyone. Let's go, I'll get you all home." He adds with assertiveness. Sure it might start out a little crammed, but the 4Runner would provide sufficient room to give everyone rides safely home.

Darius seems oblivious to the homeless guy, and more intent on getting everyone (especially his sister) well and clear of this strange acid-trip-like experience. Yeah. They must have spiked our drinks or something back at the Pizza place. I feel ok to drive though. Must have worn off?

Buffy stared after Gabrielle and her fleeing pack of vampires. There was the issue of what was clearly a nest of them, as well as who the mysterious sniper was who'd saved the day...

And there was also probably some explaining to do. Buffy unconsciously whirled her stake in her hand yet again, ignoring her classmates who were picking themselves up after the dust-up. Buffy just stood there, breathing slowly. It had been a long time since she'd had to do anything that demanding. Not even athletics. She sighed softly to herself and turned to face her peers in time to hear Darius.

"Home sounds good. If there's not enough room in your car, I'll walk."

Buffy was sure that, out of all them, she'd probably be safest on her own.

Gracie grins, she is glad that everyone is alright. She looks at Darius "Oh, sure. I can go with you if you want. I will be fine. I am still wondering what the hell those girls were. How can vampires be real?"

She looks at Buffy "No one should go home alone"

Vampires? Likely some PCP junkies or something. They likely arranged to have a hallucinagin laced into our sodas or something. Just having fun with us. Yeah.

"Ok, let's go everyone. We'll make room. It's a big vehicle... there might not be seatbelts enough, but we'll make it work." Darius moves to take the lead in ensuring everyone begins moving away from the scene where it had all unfolded. Best to put distance between themselves and the event, both physically and mentally. Easier to put it away and forget it ever happened.

He strode forward, banishing his own fears and imaginings. He had to be strong, he had to be solid. They'd draw strength from that. Just like the Team during crunch time. Keep them moving. Keep them distracted.

"Plus, did we pay? They likely think we dined and dashed back there. Can't even call them, because I have to wait until tomorrow to get my phone back." He prattles a bit, trying to stear topics away from the insanity and back towards the mundane.

Garrett composed himself, as Mel ran a hand through his hair. Blood stained his hand from the cut on his arm. He clucked his tongue at the sore spot and looked at the others. That new bouncy blond girl had ninja reflexes, from what he had seen pinned beneath that snarly, bite-y woman who was either way too kinky or trying to taste his insides. Whoever that girl was, bouncy blond being a “Slayer”—or whatever—probably explained it.

Garrett barely saw the homeless man who milked Melba for change until she said he was probably the money-wanting vamp-type. “If that vampire just wanted my money,” he said pointing to the side of his neck the she-vamp had tried to munch, “then next time I’ll just throw my wallet and they can buy all the stupid liquor they want.” He arched a drawn-black eyebrow and folded his arms.

He looked at Melba, “Wait, so we’re just going to go home after that like it was just a near-death rumble during football practice in an alley?” His question was loud enough to be heard by the whole group; mostly he targeted the bouncy blond war machine. Garrett took a step in her direction to get her attention.  He squinted his eyes and pursed his lips, “What’s going on here? What’s a Slayer?”

Buffy paused and looked at Gracie and Darius. She stared. Seriously? PCP druggies? Did they not notice the inhuman strength? The horribly disfigured and fanged faces? Buffy heard Garrett speak up and nodded her head. At least someone wasn't going to ignore this...well, she didn't plan on it, but...



Buffy closed her eyes. Of course, this. Great. She turned to him.

"It's exactly like it sounds."

Buffy hefted the stake for emphasis.

"I put the sharp end through a vampire, they go poof, day is saved. Yay."

She looked around, her face saying she didn't really want to talk about it, but Buffy also knew the inevitable tide of questions was coming...

Chan was already starting feel like she was losing her mind, and suddenly seeing Buffy enshrouded in an aura of red certainly wasn't helping any. On the one hand the 'Slayer' had probably helped things from being a lot worse than they were, but on the other hand nothing strange had happened until after she met Buffy. Not being sure exactly what to do, Chan simply rubbed her eyes and looked away hoping that her eyes were simply playing tricks on her, and then decided that she really hadn't seen what she thought she had. "Vampires aren't real outside the realm of fantasy, they aren't. They can't be." She said sounding an awful like she was trying to convince herself. It was far more comforting to think that she was losing her mind than it was to believe that monsters actually existed.

She fished her cell out of her purse and handed it to Darian. "You can use mine... It would be a shame if we couldn't go back again..."

Melba sighed.  "Obviously they're real, we just need to separate the real from the fantasy, niet wahr?" To Garrett she said, "Okay, so maybe we don't just go home, then what?  We need to consider, work out sttrategies, whatever, but (a) why reinvent the wheel when Buffy here is already riding a Harley..? and (b) neither of us is exactly Zorro."

Darius was on the verge of accepting his sisters phone, still trying to herd everyone... until he watches Melba and Garret succumb to Buffy's words. In his mind, Darius hears the imaginary sounds of a nine engine train crash. He'd lost too much momentum, and everything was spiraling.

"It doesn't matter if Vampires are real. Darius snorts. It wasn't so difficult to believe, even if he was convinced that's not what he'd seen. At least he hoped not. They were biblically real. Demons too. So why shouldn't they be real?

"What matters is that we just went through a bit of tauma, and standing around discussing it in the streets won't do anyone any good. Firing off fifty million questions at Buffy won't help either Zoro." This last he adds for the sake of Melba or Garret no doubt. "Give the girl some space. Give the whole scene some space. Everyone just breathe.

"We'll all go home, and relax. Think about this if you must. Decide what's important. Then... tomorrow maybe, if you still NEED to overanalyze what just happened... maybe we should all gather and talk about it." Apparently Darius was willing to concede whatever at this point in order to expedite getting everyone safely home and off the streets. He vainly hopes that by morning everyone will be willing to dismiss it all, and focus on the good and forget about their nightmarish encounter.

Of course, he believed that about as much as he believed a PCP Junkie could juke light lightning.

Gracie normally agreed with Darius but he seemed to be just trying to blank it out. "Darius. We need to talk about this. Something really weird just happened and I could use a drink and not a soda but something stronger. I don't want to ever see those things again but if they are real, I want to know about them."

Unseen by the group, another observed their conversation.  Clive Whitlock discreetly shoved a polished wooden stake back into his coat pocket.  He listened quietly from the shadows.  Vampires in Savannah.  It looks like they were right, after all!  Special attention was paid to Buffy.

Hmm.  She's here, too.  Silently, almost like a shadow himself, Clive slipped away.  He smiled to himself, wondering what tomorrow would bring...

Buffy looked around the group. There was definitely wavering back and forth on issues that needed to be discussed. But not here and not now. Buffy felt the adrenaline draining from her, leaving in its place a longing for sleep. Buffy just wanted to leave today behind her. She wanted to just curl up in bed and pretend it never happened.

But, she knew that it did, and that they all now had to be on alert...because they'd pissed off quite a few fanged faces tonight. She looked at Darius.

"I'm with you. Home could be good. We can talk about this tomorrow...somewhere private..."

They didn't want to risk any vampire or vampire wannabes hearing them. Or worse, fellow classmates hearing them and ridiculing them for being crazy.

The next day

Another school day came and the classes seemed to drag.  One thought loomed obsessively in the kids' minds: talking about what happened.  Eventually, lunch time finally arrived.

Surprisingly, Chan found the private spot they needed: the art studio on the West end of the "Fine Arts" building.  The art teachers would likely hit the Gryphon Tea Room or the downtown branch of "A Taste of India".  Chan had near unlimited access for her art projects.

Which meant a relative hour of privacy!


OOC:

Process what happened.  One quick scene, followed by a surprise "Stinger", and we'll call it an Episode!

"So", asked Melba.  "What's the skinny?  They're vampires whether that's Le Fanu's opiates on legs, Stoker's evil undead immortals, Martin's predatory aliens, Mattheson's infected or Anne Rice's poor misunderstood blood junkies.  So what does that mean?  How do we kill 'em and how do we recognise 'em?"

Gracie walks into the art room. She had never done anything artistic but then she was like a piece of art, wasn't she? She was not sure she wanted to be here but something told her she should.

She looks at Melba "So, you want to know everything, don't you? You mean you have not researched it all yet?"

Melba shrugged in a manner reminiscent of jello.  "Of course I want to know everything.  I haven't researched it because I assume most of the published sources are rinddreck, each author makes a point of saying the others are all wrong.  I'm guessing that Buffy, on the other hand, knows."

Chan already had her head in a sketchpad when everyone arrived, and only looked up to wave at Darius. She sketched the vamp leader as she had appeared during the fight. It still seemed completely unreal to Chan and she fervently wanted to believe what they'd seen was a lie. However the truth was slowly seeping back in, and she wondered exactly how she had known how much trouble the kid in. "I think that we can rule out friendly vampires entirely. It reminds me more of the old myths than anything modern." She said without even looking up.

Darius had showed up late. Even the prospect of meeting Gracie and walking to the meeting with her hadn't proven motivation enough to get him headed in the right direction early enough to be on time (or even close to it).

By the time he arrives, begrudgingly, the conversation already seems to be underway. The star athlete wears a frown, and even though he returns his sisters wave and moves to lean against the wall by Gracie... it's clear he's not too happy about being there for the meeting. Likely he was there with the strict purpose of ensuring his little sister didn't caught up in some sort of cult nonsense. Mom and dad would kill me if that happened...

Buffy walked in shortly after Darius. She walked in with a very cautious look on her face, though inside she felt like she was walking towards a firing squad. It was one thing to argue about the reality after they'd just been attacked. It was another to have this kind of discussion now when the others had gone home and had a chance to rationalize things.

It wasn't vampires, it couldn't be. They don't exist!

'If only...' Buffy wistfully shook the thought away as she took a seat on a table and looked around at the others. She wasn't quite sure what to say...or if she should even say anything to start this little pow-wow...

"I don't know any thing about vampires to know what might be myth or not and I really didn't care before. So, could it really be true, I mean really, how could they exist and the press not be reporting it, they find out everything else" she could tell Darius didn't want to be here but was, probably for Chan. She knew how he felt for his little sister and she would protect her also.

"Two scenarios..." suggested Melba.  "One: we try to explain it away, look for logical explanations and they come and hunt us down, eat the likes of me and turn the cute ones like Garrett into more vampires (unless they're Martin-vampires in which case that's impossible).  Two: we believe they're vampires and it turns out they're some new kind of sorority and we end up looking like idiots.  Now, for myself, I prefer looking like an idiot to being dead.  What about the rest of you?"