Shaw High School - Outside

"Maybe she can tell us if this is legit. I'm going to see if I can find her." Natasha says.

"Hey, I'll come with you." Rufus speaks up.

"Why?" Natasha asks, then shrugs. "You know what fine, whatever, let's go."


Shaw High School - Near Theatre

"Hail the king!" Dwayne repeats after the others.

"We'll show you next time. Don't tell anyone, okay?" Hemani says. Dwayne nods in agreement.

"Okay kids, let's go." Angie puts a stop to the banter.

"You three, you're going back to class." The stranger says as she beckons the kids the follow. Elliot, and Hemani walks after the woman as they wave goodbye to the others.

"See you, again." Viktor jogs up to Ivy and the others. He bids his farewell before running after his friends.

It didn't take long before Angie and the kids find Edward inside the school. The soldier's holding a lunch plate in one hand while talking to stranger.

"Mmhm. Sure."

The woman he's talking to doesn't seem to be interested in the conversation.

"There they are." When she spots the children in the hallway she quickly points her hand.

"Hi kiddos." The soldier turns around.

"Thanks for-" When he looks over the woman is already walking away.

"They shared some food with us." Edward toss a pack of crackers to each of the kids. Mina manage to catch hers in time while Dwayne fumbles it and had to pick it up off the ground.

"Did they give ya any trouble?" He asks. For a moment Ivy can feel Angie's staring her down.

The name 'Chelsea' sounds vaguely familiar, though not familiar enough for Trisha to spend any effort thinking about it. She waves goodbye to the pair as they leave to look for her, intending to ask them about what they find out later on.Mary's response leaves her stunned for a moment, unsure of what to make of her laughter, something Trisha is not sure she has ever heard before. She moves in closer as Mary speaks, so she is almost pressed against her side. "Ain't that where he just left to?" She glances over her shoulder, before turning back to stare down at the ground, her brow furrowed seriously in contemplation.
"What if we went the way they did, but in secret?"
In a hushed voice, Trisha leans in even closer and elaborates.
"I don't wanna fight his fights, but we might as well know what's goin' on."

Shaw High School - Outside

Half way through the entrance, Rufus stops abruptly. "I change my mind!" He exclaims as he turns and walks back towards the group.

"Uh!?..." Natasha throws her hands in the air.

"Trisha is brilliant! I support that idea, I'm on board!" He says.

"Hmm!" Mary's eyebrows rise at Trisha's suggestion. The prospect is so interesting to her that, for the moment, she doesn't even notice the girl moving into her personal space.

"I like that idea, Trisha," she says thoughtfully. "Except...it would be bad if they noticed us. They already know they're walking into an ambush, but they don't know who their enemy is. We already gave a poor impression when we first met these people. If they see us spying on them, they may think we're the same people who killed Leo's men."

She frowns and crosses her arms. Her voice drops to near a whisper, as if she's talking to herself. "Damn, I do like that idea, though."

Ivy caught the pack of crackers. "No trouble at all." Things may not have gone according to plan, but in the end a bit of quick thinking salvaged the situation before it became a complete disaster. Snacking on the salty treat, the girl was content. "What should we do now?"

She turns to look at Rufus in shock as he comes rushing back to join the group.
"What, really?"
Her confused face slips into a smile as she decides to take the compliment at face value.
"Thanks, I guess. Ain't never been called "brilliant" before." She continues to look back at him, as if distracted, until Mary says her name."Huh?" She snaps to attention, quickly turning back around to focus on her. Praise from a boy is nice and all, but when Mary says something is a good idea, she means it.
Riding the wave of confidence, Trisha does not hesitate in sharing her ideas.
"Well, they want us to go get stuff from the city anyways, right? What's to say we wasn't just on the way there? We'd be doin' what they said to."

Shaw High School - Inside

"That's up to you kiddos." Edward answers.

"I want to see the roof!" Mina exclaims.

"I still want to see their library." Says Dwayne. "I also kind of want to see the classroom. Hemani said there's other kids here."

Shaw High School - Outside

"Okay, if we want to do this we need to know where they're going." Natasha walks back towards the group. She looks to Mary. "Did they tell you where they're going? If they didn't, I can go inside and poke around."

"That depends," Mary says. "They may want us to go scavenge a specific location, which may not be close to where Leo and the others are going. Natasha's right, too - we don't know where Leo is going, but we may be able to find out. It must be written down somewhere."

She glances over her shoulder at the school before turning back to the group. "That still doesn't change the fact that, if they see us, they may assume we're allied with the group he's trying to kill. We probably don't want to give that impression."

"The library sounds good," Ivy answered after a moment of contemplation. It had been awhile since she'd done any reading. The only books she'd seen in weeks had been a Bible and an 'adult' book that had been swiftly confiscated. "There should be plenty of time for us to check out everything."

"It's not like I don't wanna go snoop," Trisha follows Mary's lead and looks back at the school, though her gaze lingers a lot longer. The longer she goes without stepping inside, the more intruiging it becomes.
Despite her curiosity, the desire to snoop around is not Trisha's top priority. She lowers her voice, hopefully quiet enough that Ashley cannot hear her.
"But Ash needs someplace safe to rest. She won't go in the school, but i dunno how long she can keep goin'."
She leans in close to Mary once again. "That lady says we can have a house, but I don't wanna leave nobody nowhere if they're gonna say we're makin' trouble."

Shaw High School - Hallway

"Alright kiddo, let's go see 'em books." Edward says, leading the group to the library on the second floor.

"Books are dumb." Mina murmurs and follows the soldier.

==================================================

The group arrives at the second floor library. Before they could enter, a few curious inhabitant of the community stops to greet the group. Some of them seemed wary of seeing strangers walking around in the hallway. However, at the sight of Ivy and the other kids their hostility fades.

Without further obstacles, the group enters the library. This area is quite large, filled with rows and rows of books, divided into sections by various categories. Most of these books are dusty, but otherwise undamaged. Unlike the other places they've been to so far, this place looks to be deserted and unused.

A lone teenage girl sits quietly in the corner of the library. She appears to be enthralled by the book she's holding in her hands.

"Hmm, books." Edward says. He plucks a book off the shelf, flips through all the pages with a single stroke before tossing it back to the shelf.

Dwayne jogs off to the science section and disappeared in between the shelves.

Mina wanders off. She looks to be curious about the library's structure rather than the knowledge it offers.

Ahhh. Libraries. It had been so long since Ivy had seen one. Back before...well, everything happened, her parents used to take her to the library every week for story time. She'd always enjoyed sitting in a circle with the other kids, being read tall tales of fantasy and adventure. Judging by the poor upkeep of this room though, she doubted that the school's current inhabitants do that. Passing through the rows of bookshelves, she made for the fiction section.

I wonder if they have Tintin...
This message was last edited by the player at 12:34, Sun 13 June 2021.

"Fine, then," Mary says, holding up a hand. "Let's split our efforts. I'll go and talk to Gabriella about the scavenging job. While I'm doing that, Natasha, you can look into where Leo is headed. Trisha, you can ask about someplace that Ashley can recover - they don't think we're making trouble yet, and they won't unless we screw up. In fact..."

Hands moving to her chest, she removes the Shaw High School pin and holds it out to Trisha. "I don't know how much trust people put in these pins. They're not selective with them. It might help you get a house or something where we can get some rest."

She glances at Ashley, a hint of a smirk placing at the corner of her mouth. "Maybe you can update your captain's log."

As Mary puts her hand up and starts to give instructions, Trisha pulls away from her and stands at attention. She nods along as everyone is told where they should go, making an effort to show she is listening and paying attention.
At this, Trisha looks away sheepishly, automatically assuming it to be a warning about her behaviour specifically. She looks up again to see Mary grabbing at something on her chest. Her eyes light up as the pin is held out to her, and she hesitates a moment before reaching out to take it.

She holds the pin in her hand and stares at it, barely listening to the rest of what is being said. The badge itself and what it represents to the school could not mean any less to her, but the fact that Mary had chosen to give it her, over anybody else, shows a level of trust and respect Trisha has never before been given by an authority figure.

"I won't screw up, I promise." She finally pulls her eyes off the pin and looks at Mary. She looks determined and serious, though she struggles to conceal her smile as she puts the pin on the collar of her jacket. With a spring in her steps, she rejoins Ashley.
"You up for another walk? I wanna go talk to that lady again, but you gotta tell me what her name was." She cracks a smile. "I don't want 'em to know I'm a dumbass just yet."

Shaw High School - Outside

"Yeah, I'm on it." Natasha turns to look at Rufus. "You still coming?"

"Yep." Rufus answers, following Natasha into the school.

Trisha recognizes the badge to be the same one she saw on Marcus earlier today. Given the context, it does make sense for people from the school to own this badge.


Shaw High School - Library

It didn't take long before Ivy finds the book she was looking for, thanks to whoever spent the time organizing these books in their rightful places. Though the book Ivy holds in her hand is not without damage. Someone decided that it was funny to give Tintin a thin curly mustache, and an eyepatch for the dog with a Sharpie.


Before she could enjoy her new found book, Ivy smell a faint stench of cigarettes coming from somewhere in the library.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:45, Fri 18 June 2021.

"Don't make promises like that," Mary grumbles, but the sentiment seems to express general pessimism rather than being directed at Trisha specifically. If anything, she gives Rufus's back a doubtful look as they enter the school. She hasn't known him for very long and she still doesn't know what to make of him or his capabilities.

Still, worrying about unknowns won't get anything done. Mary enters the school and looks for Gabriella.

Ivy clicked her tongue in frustration as she saw the book's cover. What kind of monster vandalizes a Tintin book?! She could only hope that they didn't give a similar treatment to the inside. Still, at least she got what she was looking for. And it was an issue she hadn't read yet, even! A rare treat in these trying times.

As she shuffled over to one of the comfy reading chairs to settle in with her new book, a foul stench assaulted her senses. It was a smell that she'd become more familiar with since the monsters came than she ever cared to. Cigarettes. Who the hell is smoking inside a library? Can't they do that outside? Pinching her nose shut, the girl began to search the room for the perpetrator.

Shaw High School - Second Floor

Mary return to the school once more and undergone through the same protocol of relinquishing her weapons at the door. It didn't take long before Mary finds Rufus and Natasha on her way to Gabriella. From the little time they had before Mary arrived, they managed to tracked down Gabriella in the hallway. It looks like the duo were already speaking with the woman.

"Hi Mary, decided not to join Leo I see?" The woman says with a faint smile.


Shaw High School - Library

Ivy followed the foul scent to its source. She heard muffled giggles and snorts from the one of the more secluded aisles in the back of the library. They don't have sight of her yet and seemed to be occupied with whatever they're doing.

In the adjacent aisle Ivy noticed Dwayne peeking through the row of books, spying on those whom are presumably smoking.


Shaw High School - Outside

After learning the name of the woman who greeted the group at their arrival, Trisha proceeds to approach the woman.

"Hello." Erica greets Trisha. "You look like you have more questions." She says.
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:35, Fri 09 July 2021.

Ivy slowed her gait, hoping to muffle her footsteps as she approached the sounds of mischief coming from the next aisle over. It sounded like some folks were up to no good. The meddlesome young girl could respect a bit of troublemaking. But smoking in a library? That's just beyond the pale. Removing a book from the shelf, she peered through the newly made gap to catch a glimpse of these miscreants.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:49, Wed 30 June 2021.

Shaw High School - Library

Ivy crept up closer to the source of the cigarette stench. She sees a group of teenagers that's about five or six years older than her huddled in a semi circle. Best she could tell, there are five of them. One of the two guys is holding a lit cigarette in between his fingers.

"Guys, watch this." He inhaled deeply through the other end of the cigarette and held still. The others watched with anticipation. The teenager raised three of his fingers and count down silently. Right before he expelled a heavy cloud of smoke, he turned to face one of the teenage girls.

"Oh my god! You jerk!" The girl waved away the smoke with her hand, giggling with the others.

"My turn." One of the taller girls reached for the cigarette.

"Hey wait... kid! I see you." The other teenage boy called out. They all looked at the direction of the little girl.

"Is that a see-gar-red? How'd you do that thing with the smoke? Do it again!" Mina asks.

"Yeah, its pretty cool huh? You wanna learn how to do it?" The teenager boy offered.

"No," Mary says, shaking her head. "We all talked it over and decided it was too...suicidal. I've taken enough ill-advised risks for my own group. I'm not going to start doing it for people I've known for less than a day."

She pauses. "No offense intended. Leo said I could talk to you about a scavenging job. Can you tell me the details?"

"Erica! Hi!" Trisha runs up to greet Erica with a smile. "It's me again.""I do!" She replies brightly. "My boss talked to your boss and now we're gonna stay and help you guys for a bit."
Still smiling, she glances to Ashley for a moment while she pauses, giving her friend a look that says 'Play along!'
"So Mary put us in charge of findin' out where we can stay. I got this now, so it's pretty much official."
She tugs on her collar, showing off the pin with an overly cocky flourish. "So how many people do you got out at them houses you was talkin' about? Are they far from here?"

Oh great. What the hell did Mina think she was doing? There was a very real possibility of her taking the first step down a very dark path if someone didn't intervene. Letting out a sigh of frustration, Ivy stepped out of her hiding place and fixed a glare on the other girl. "Mina. No."

Shaw High School - Outside

Erica chuckles when Trisha flash her school badge. "Yes, I think it is official. Why don't I have someone show you where you can stay?" She turns to the side and shouts. "Nathan!" Erica waves at a teenage boy in the distance.

Trisha sees a young boy with a rather majestic mohawk jogging over. He is armed with a rifle, and dressed in similar equipment like Leo's assault team. He looks to be around Ashley's age.

"Yeah?" Nathan asks.

"Could you find a place for these two ladies and their friends? Somewhere not too far." Erica says.

"But I-" His objection is cut short when Erica rests her hand no his shoulder.

"I know. Can you do this for me?" She asks again. The boy looks down, disappointed.

"...Okay." He replies and turns to Trisha and Ashley. "You guys armed? Ready to go?"

(!) NPC Compendium updated.


Shaw High School - Mary

Gabriella expels a defeated sigh. "I don't blame you for backing out, its probably better we don't get you guys involved." She claps her hand. "Anyway, let me show your friends the borders of our territory then we can talk about that scavenge hunt." She nods at Natasha and Rufus.

"Come on, in here. Let me show you guys the map." Gabriella opens the door leading to the room where Mary last saw Leo and the others holding some sort of meeting. This appears to be their designated conference room.

"Maps are nice." Rufus comments as he walks past Gabriella by the door.

"Yes..." Natasha squints at Rufus from behind. "Yeah, yes- They are." She briskly walks after Rufus.

"Feel free to join us Mary." Gabriella kicks a rubber door stop, lodging it underneath the door to keep it open. She proceeds to the center of the room where a large map is laid bare on a conference table.

Shaw High School - Library

"Oh look, more kids." One of the teenage girl rolls her eyes.

"I wasn't gonna do nothin'!" Mina announces.

"If you say so." The teenage boy huffs on the cigarette and let out a cloud of smoke like before. He turns to Ivy and Mina with a toothy smile. "You're missing out."

The annoyed looking teenager girl straightens up and walks by the two kids. "Aren't you two supposed to be in class with Ms. May?" She crosses her arms. "You kids ditching?" She stares down at Ivy.

"Sure." She answers, only half as enthused as she had been only seconds before. As Erica turns to call over somebody else, Trisha gives Ashley a worried glance. She takes note that Erica very quickly avoids answering any of her questions properly.

She looks back over as Nathan approaches, and almost has to double take at the sight of him. Her eyes light up as she stares in wonder at the boy's hair.
"Damn, that is so cool!" She mumbles to Ashley, watching as Erica speaks with Nathan. "Yeah pretty much ready, I think." Trisha replies cheerfully, placing a hand on her hip where her handgun is tucked under her belt. "Where's we headed to?"