2023.05.20 Making Friends in Chula Vista

2023.05.20 Making Friends in Chula Vista
Sark wanders around Chula Vista and meets two new people
IC Date	05.20.23
Players	Selene, Sark, Mary
Location	Chula Vista - Lady of the Lakes
Spheres	Mage Bygone

Mary is up at the bar. She has a half eaten salad next to her and is browing an old iphone.

Sark apparently has taken it upon himself to go out wandering again, hands clasped behind his back as he ducks inside. Pausing by the door to look around like a tourist that's never seen the location before, he arches one brow, then finally approaches the bar at a slow walk. The bartender gives him a scrutinizing look like 'I dare you to try to order alcohol', to which Sark offers a brilliant smile and chirps, "Could I have a mug of hot tea? Herbal if you have it, otherwise black is fine." With that order made, he shifts his attention to Mary and wiggles his fingers at her, lowering his voice, "Hello!"

Mary looks to see who is getting the glare. She give him a once over then grnis as he looks back. "Hi there," she cheerfully replies.

As the bartender toddles off to find a mug and some hot water, Sark finds a stool to slide onto and takes a second to stretch his neck, before finally leaning on the bar, "I haven't been in here berore...it looks nice at least, but is the food good?"

Mary looks at her salad then shrugs and laughs. "This was good. My first time in too. Some folks I ran into suggested it. So far so good!" She even does a thumbs up.

Sark leans over a little to glance at the remains of the salad and rumbles a little in amusement, "I end up getting drawn in by snacks...if you have been to Caught in Amber, they have these lovely stuffed, deep-fried mushrooms that Im a little obsessed over." When the bartender finally returns with his mug and a little saucer of milk and some sweetner, Sark offers a chirpy thank you and adds, "Could I see a menu as well?"

Mary listens. Thinks. Shrugs. "I don't know that place. I'll keep an eye out. Is it near?" she picks a little more at the salad but does not seem to terribly hungry. She puts her phone face down on the bar as this chatting seems to be turning into a conversation.

Sark considers for a moment, "Its not that far I dont think? Definitely not a quick walk away...Prospect's kinda fuckin huge like that, but something to keep in mind the next time you're wandering around? A friend of mine owns the place so you might see her there from time to time. Caressa?"

The idea that he hasn't introduced himself registers at that moment, and his mug is set down so he can offer a hand in greeting, "Sarkesian...but just Sark is fine."

Mary turns to face you and listens. She is smiling right up until you mention the owner. "Oh. Well. I'll check it out." Which does not sound at all sincere. A 'we will keep your resume on file' sort of tone. She leans to shake hands. She smiles again but again it falters as she starts to stare at your hand. And forgets to get it go.

Sark is observant enough to catch the reaction to the name, but doesn't press the point at the moment - just something filed away to possibly ask about at another time. The more pressing concern is how she doesn't let go of his hand right away...something that seems to amuse him more than anything else. Instead he murmurs, "I promise I had a shower this morning if you were considering taking a closer look."

Mary flushes red and drops your hand. "Oh, no no." she giggles. A bit nervous. And rubs her eyes. "Oh. Mary." She waves. "I forgot to say that. Nice to meet you."

Sark grins brightly, showing a few teeth at the reaction while he watches her eyes for a few more moments. He bobs his head a little and murmurs, "Very nice to meet you, Mary." There's just a moment's pause, before he offers, "I promise, Im nothing you need to be afraid of. Unless you're secretly a very very bad person, which I dont think that's the case." With that said, he retrieves his mug and takes a sip, rumbling his approval at the taste.

Mary looks at you more closely now. Wary? Uncertain? Definitely uncertain. and then she realizes she's not talking. "Well my parents disowned me. So depends who you ask."

Sark tilts his head at that revelation and smiles a little more, "Parents do stupid shit all of the time. My father fucked my mother and fled and I never saw him, so its probably better for everyone that we dont give a shit what our parents think of us, yes?" He winks at that, "What matters is what YOU are doing with your life. Can YOU say you do good things for yourself and the people around you?"

Mary blinks at the swearing. "Oh. Well I go to school. so ... so far I haven't done much. What is it you do?"

Sark takes another sip of his tea and sets the mug down, warming his hands on it while he lisens, "Do you mind if I ask what you are studying for in school?" A little bit more of a smile and he offers, "I own a ranch offshore a little north of here. We breed Shetland Ponies and Friesians and have some other livestock to keep the place running."

Selene comes in from Chula Vista - The Lakes

Sark is just sitting at the bar nursing a big mug of hot tea, chatting with Mary, as a quick set for Selene.

Mary is at the bar chatting with Sark. Trying to stare at him and figure something out with out trying to look like she's giving him the evil eye. "Hm? What? Oh ... " And now she's embarassed. "Theology. So ... nothing much useful. You own an island?"

Selene enters the Lady of the Lakes with company in tow... A woman possessed of black and white hair, whose mere presence seems to bring with it a sense of peculiarity. Not 'wrongness' per se... Just the kind of unfamiliarity that some people 'just' tend to have.

You know the kind.

They make their wa yp to the bar, sitting just in time for the bartender to come over to them with a jovial greeting. With that greeting exchanged, they're offered... Free drinks? As the two women settle into idle sitting... No chatter, no nothing beside the redhead taking out a phone to tap out a few texts.

She looks kinda' tired. But that's probably expected.

Sark mms and nods, "Well, it was sorta gifted to me by the previous owner who decided she was sick of this city and wasnt coming back. I promised to take good care of all of the animals. Of course, now most of the horses are spoiled because I always carry carrots with me when I go walking the pastures." He grins a little again and takes another sip of his tea, allowing his attention to shift for a moment to look at the two new arrivals, and offer them a wiggle of the fingers of one hand.

Mary opens her mouth. She stops and turns to see who/what sark is looking out. She leans a little away from the pair and then looks back to him. "Gifted? You were GIFTED an island?"

Selene turns her attention towards the pair at that...

"There's alot of rich, influenial people in the Prospect Bay Area... Especially in Prospect. Not to mention the island out in the middle of nowhere that nobody uses until they do. Doesn't surprise me that soemone just had one on hand in a palce like Prospect. It WAS Prospect, right?" She asks curiously, tilting her head to Sark.

Sark mmms softly and nods his head, "Well, she didnt have any relatives and was sure if she sold it off, someone would start exploiting the animals. I hired a property manager to handle running the place since I am no good at all with paperwork, and Im sure I would have pissed off a tax collector and lost the place by now if I hadn't." There's a pause, then he adds to include Selene, "Well, associated with Prospect. Its a 30 minute ferry ride from the harbor, so KINDA in sight, but not very."

Mary turns when the woman chimes in. For a little bit she looks back and forth. The gifting of an island is taking a minute to process. "Oh. Well." Wheel in the head churn. "Wow. Good for you I guess?"

"Well... I was gifted this restaurant, so I suppose I can't exactly say that I didn't also have a welathy benefactor. This restaurant, along with her home." Selene starts, turning just in time for her bottle of Guinness to arrive. Her companion does not have alcohol... Instead, she has a rare steak, which she eats as approrpriate with a knife and fork rather than, no doubt, how her nature would have her do it.

"That 'is' good for you though. An island sounds like it has minimal responsibilities compared to a restaurant... Mrs. Grey left alot of paperwork for me to handle and I 'suck' at paperwork."

Sark gives Mary another considering look, like he might have wanted to press a question or two, but bites his tongue for the time being. Instead he tries to offer her a reassuring smile, before shifting his gaze to Selene to listen to her. A soft chuckle escapes him at her description, followed by a negative shake of his head, "I would not understand the first thing I needed to do to run a restaurant. Caring for animals and getting them to not be afraid of me sounds much, much calmer." With that said, he offers Selene and her friend a hand, "Pleased to meet you. IM Sark...and if you havent already met her, this is Mary."

Mary pivots now to look at Selene. And back and forth. She keeps looking at the two of you in turn. "Uh, hi," is her eloquent reply to being introduced. "Wow. A pub and an island? I gotta get some better friends."

"Well, first and foremost you'd have to know how to make the government happy via taxes... THEN you'd need to figure out how to convince the staff that you're worth listening to.

"I think you're worth listenin' ta'." The blonde bartender woman says.

"Thanks, Mindy. Thanks alot. Now convince Donny and it'll all be good and I won't have to argue about the menu like I'm deaf blind and dumb." She shakes her head, loosing a sigh of quiet exhaustion as she looks back to the others.

"Then there's tha matter of the 'other' stuff I was left in charge of... But I won't get into that besides to say it's utterly enchanting the amount of work someone can just... LEAVE you with. But uh, hey Sark and Mary." She concludes with a nod.

"Animals are afraid of you? Like, why? Just shit luck with the vibe lottery?

Sark eews softly at the mention of 'taxes' and shakes his head, "THAT is why I have a property manager. Someone who's actually good with that stuff and can keep them away from me and my things." He DOES grin a little at the comment about the amount of things that could be dumped on a person, then rolls his shoulder at the idea of animals being afraid of him, "Animals are very good about picking up on what you have under the skin, so you can look cute and very inoffensive on the surface, but they pick up wierdness? Its all over. So it took a lot of work...and a lot of carrot bribes."

Mary eyes Sark again as he talks about weirdness. Like closely. Sort of tuning things out. And then suddenly realizes she is being rude and tries to laugh it off.

"I ought to consider a property manager so that i might focus on other things, but Mrs. Grey would kill me." Selene says with a tired sigh as she takes a long sip of her Guiness. THat aside, she lowers it and says...

"I'm Selene Leahmnach, by the by... And this is Chrysanthemum, my bodyguard. I own the Lady of the Lakes here and heav a majority share in stewardship of Otay Lake... All by way of inheritance. Fortunately unfortunately as it is. I was sort'a a protege to Lyra Grey. Bigshot business woman."

Sark grins at Selene's commentary and sagely nods, "Stella has saved me a great mount of stress and has been amazing with the paperwork. So good she kinda....well, tends to start trying to mother other aspects of my life, so we occassionally have amusing discussions about just how far she can go." He pauses, then bows his head at both women, "Pleasure to meet you both then...my first time here, but the tea is good!"

He shifts his attention again to look back at Mary and smiles a little more, before lowering his voice, "You know, if there's something you want to ask me privately, I dont bite."

Mary shakes her head and laughs. She turns quite red. "Oh no, no. Sorry. Just ... " Trails off and shakes her head. "Nothing. Don't mind me. Stella is your manager?"

"The tea was something Mrs. Grey figured out herself... She was always good with herbal blends. That protein shake sold by Raise Devlin? She engineered that. Completely herbal with no additives whatsoever, yet it does nearly twice the work of a standard shake... God, she made that thing years ago." Selene explains, Raise Devlin meing the (fame 4) UFC heavyweight champion... Once. Maybe twice.

"Pleasure to meet you too. I can't say I've heard the name 'Stella' before though... Has she been around only a short time? or am I that out of touch with what goes on in Prospect?"

Sark mmms and nods at both women, "Stella Green. She occassionally comes out to Prospect to shop or spend time with her girlfriend out clubbing. I have discovered I cannot dance to save my life, so I tend to not accompany them to the club anymore..." He just seems overly amused at that idea, while taking another sip of his tea. Mary is given one more curious look, then apparently he decides to leave the subject alone for the time being.

"Girlfriend?" Selene asks, giving a slight grin towards Sark. "Gotcha. Someone with some kinda' culture. i thought it might of been the old owner of Feather of Maat come back or something... And I was gonna say that's a pretty good financier you've gotten. Really good with numbers, she was."

Sark laughs and shakes his head, "No, she's rather young and very smart. Im rather in her debt. Her girlfriend is pretty neat as well, though I think she likes being more of the rebel type....which works just fine for me."

"Well, that's good... Sounds like they balance eachother out. It's good to have someone that balances you out around. Good for them." Selene says, as she looks down at Chrysanthemum's murdered and empty plate... THe vegetable garnish, of course, untouched and cast aside.

"So, I have to ask. What is it that brings you to Chula Vista? It must be pretty out of the way for someone that lvies out on an island. It's, what... 30 miles south of Prospect proper or something like that? Could it i have just been that you heard about the tea?"

Sark slowly rolls a shoulder, "I wander around a lot, and Stella likes finding new places to visit, so I suggested we take a short trip out here to look around for the day. Prospect, you start to see predictably the same things and a thirty minute drive is not much of an investment to see several new things, right?"

Selene grins. "Guess it's not. How've you bee finding the place? Had a chance to check out Otay, if you'd into hiking? Alot more to it than just the greenway for the non-hikers. Whooooole forest on that mountainside that's got all sorts of great trees to look at."

A forest in southern california. Probably just a Prospect area thing.

"There's also a couple bars around town... Gay bar if that's your kinda' thing. Bayside Park if normie stuff by the sea's your kinda' thing... Couple restaurants... Yeah. We got alot to see down here for a city of this size."

Sark takes a long drink from his mug while he listens to Selene's description of some of the sights, nodding slowly when he sets it down, "We just got in a few hours ago so this is really the first place I wandered into. Stella SHOULD be here shortly unless she found too much stuff to buy across the way." He pauses and chuckles, "I'll make a list so even if I dont get to them today, I'll come back for them another day..."

Selene laughs! "Oh, there's definitely a problem with that! Too much stuff to buy, I mean. Far too much stuff to buy. Main street's a nightmare for that kind of thing." She shakes her head there, spinning her half emtpeid beer glass between her fingers... Chrysta just seems to kinda... Be there. Leaning against the counter with an elbow up and her attention elsewhere.

"But today was a group trip, huh? Awesome. I was gonna say, it MUST have been given the commute's not really a lonely one."

Sark nods slowly, "If Im headed to somewhere new, she tends to not like letting me out of her sight. Probably afraid Im going to spend too much money somewhere, and make her life much harder. Like I said, a bit of a mother instinct." He winks at that, eyeing Chrysanthemum for a moment, before looking back at Selene, "I dont think I've met someone in person with a bodyguard. Do you have a problem with people trying to hurt you?"

Selene considers that question for a moment... Like it's kind of coming as a surprise. She parts her lips, closes them, and finally responds...

"I was left her by Mrs. Grey." She says candidly, "Mrs Grey needed her for that particular reason... And there are always people out there who might find a reason to hurt somebody. Chrysanthemum being here is a food deterrent to that kinda' person, so I'm okay with that." Chrysanthemum then says, her voice unaccented and butter smoooth...

"I change hands in the family, apparently. Sometimes I watch the children. Sometimes I watch the Master of the house... As I do at this particular moment."

Selene adds- "She means that she sometimes hangs around other people when... You know, I don't need or want her around."

Sark chuckles softly at that and bows his head at Chrysanthemum, "Understandable. A guard is not always needed at a specific point, but can easily be leveraged for something more vulnerable. Even if its really protecting that person from themselves. HOpefully at least it has led to an interesting life."

With that said, he eyes Selene again, "If you dont mind my being nosy...master of the house?"

"Uhm... Lyra Grey left me in charge." She starts, Chrysanthemum settling back down to neutrality.

"THat makes me the master of the house... Weeping Willow Manor, and the parts of Chula Vista over with Mrs. Grey had financial... Interests... In." She kind of struggles with mentioning financial interests- meaning that it's absoltutely NOT just financial interests, and NOT just Weeping Willow.

"And something called Circle of the Grey Moon. It's... Just some witchy stuff. Wine moms and the like, really."

It is not wine moms and stuff.

Sark ahas! "Congratulations then...well, at least, I HOPE congratulations. Sometimes, inheriting a dynasty can be a nightmare." He smiles a little more at the mentioning of 'witchy stuff' and rolls a shoulder, "Hey, if someone getting tanked on wine and dressing ogth but isnt actually bending reality...and they are happy and not hurting anyone? You go on with your bad self. Now, drunk and bending reality? Gimme a little more room to give YOU a little more room."

"Well... Some of them do. I will too, some day, at least that's what I'm told. I'm also told that I'll do it w-" Selene pauses, regarding Sark with a moment of obvious curiosity as she goyas and spills the beans all over the hardwood floor. She tilts her head at him... Clearly trying, and failing, to notice somethiong or another that might away whatever it was those strangely fascinating eyes sought.

"...You know about that kind of thing? Is this... Suddenly an empty basement conversation?"

Sark smiles JUST a little more at the sudden halt to Selene's conversation, and takes a moment to empty his mug and rumble his approval at the last taste. WHen he sets it down, he tilts his head to regard Selene, then Crysanthemum again, "That would depend on if you wanted to finish that thought...and if you had a spare empty basement. Doesnt sound like something we would want to all cram into a linin closet for...I mean, you both are fantastically pretty but claustrophobia is not my thing."

Selene snrks... "We won't need anything like a linen closet. The basement is bigger than it looks... We've had alot of people down there at once, afterall, three is no big deal. I believe the seating capacity is thirteen, with standing room for dozens and dozens more if need be. It was... Originally going to be a kind of emeting room. but when Mrs. Grey decided that the north wasn't worth her time. She emptied the shelves and had them all moved elsewhere." She plucks up her beer then, rising from her seat and regarding Sark with that same curiosity as before.

"If you wanna follow us down, there, we can... Or we can just sit back down and keep on with the casual conversation instead of, like... Going any further."

Sark rumbles again and nods at the explanation, murmuring, "Fair enough!" He takes a moment to rummage for a couple of bills and tucks them under his mug to tip the bartender before sliding from his stool. Clasping his hands behind his back, he bounces a little on the balls of his feet and smiles brightly, "Lead the way and I am happy to trail after..."

Selene has left.

Lady of the Lakes - Basement

Selene leads the two of them away... Through the thin daytime throng, past the tweed hat clad gangsters who gives Selene a hearty wave as she passes by, and down into the basement...

There's few places in the world that deserve to be painted grey... But this place, in its emptiness, certainly ought.

The space is larger than it has a right to be. Lined with shelf upon shelf which stands empty, save for the cobwebs spun by time and insect that have managed to find their way down here into the few nooks and crannies that they might... The room is faintly lit by glowing candles. A place where a portrait might have stood once now stands empty, showing nothing but the hooks which held it there to perhaps finalize the places utter emptiness...

Save for the brilliantly kept table in the center.

Large and lacquered well, the tbale posseses tthirteen chairs around it... With the head of the table, infront of that empty portrait's home, being dar larger than the rest.

"...Very empty." Selene says matter of factly, as she explains. "This was once the headquarters of the Circle of the Grey Moon... A place where Mrs. Grey would meet with northern liaisons, until she ultimately decided that it wasn't worth the time OR the effort. The north was decidedly against fighting the ascension war... Which is primarily what the Circle of the Grey Moon is about, and why Chrysanthemum was left here to protect me."

As she speaks, she makes her way not to the head of the table... But rather, sits within the chair to its left. Not its right. Chrysanthemum too sits next to the woman, silent and close-eyed.

"...She instead made the new space where all of this stuff is stored a place specifically for the Circle. Really cagey about the north, if that wasn't clear from my constant repetition of it."

Sark follows along with his hands clasped behind his back, no sense of wariness on him at all, more like a kid following Willy Wonka along into the chocolate factory, instead. He slows down once they've made it into the room, sloooowly turning around to take it all in. His steps deviate to approach one of the many bookshelves, craning his head in closer to see what the spines of each reveal, while he listens.

When she trails off, he keeps his voice down, "When you say 'the north' do you mean Prospect? Or much further north in the state? I mentioned a Mage's name to miss Mary and she looked like she bit onto a lemon, so I am aware I might be caught in the middle of something, and would prefer not to take sides."

"I mean Prospect." She says, "The Prospect Traditions were very clear once with Mrs. Grey that they did not wish for the formation of a Traditions Council, and they wanted nothing to do with the Ascension war. Practically threatened her, if her story's correct... Though I expect some if it is as likely to be spite as it is legitimate." Selene says, canting her head to the side. "There's no animosity there between me and them, at least. I'm me. Not Lyra... Not that a hedge witch has nearly as much sway on her own as the master of nine turned archmage might have..." She grumbles to herself for a moment, looking away from him at the empty room with a gentle sigh.

"If you don't wanna take sides against the Technocracy or Nephandi, that's your choice. Nephandi are wehat we deal with primarily down here... So close to Mexico. For some reason, Tijuana's a hotspot for their kind."

Sark stifles a laugh, "Oh. Nono. I just meant taking sides between you traditional types." He finally turns to face Selene again and nods, "I am...aware that some of the Prospect mages rub people the wrong way, and that's regrettable, but I want to make sure it is understood that just because I know them...I am not taking sides with them against anyone they get into a fight with either. The one incident so far being a marauder that was going to kill my friend, so I set him on fire." He pauses there to look around the room then back to her and smiles a little more, "So you do not wield the kind of power tha the rest of them do, then? A different kind, persay?"

"Oh! Well, if that's it, then fine. I don't really see it as a side... We're all on the same one, as long as we don't wear black suits and mirrorshades or flay children in our free time." Selene says passively, tilting her head to the side at the mention of the conflagration...

"I'm... A hedge witch." She starts somewhat regrettably, "Not a very capable one... Yet. But Mrs. Grey has left me every piece of material she ever owned... All the knowledge. All the magick. Linear and Dynamick... It's all in my possession to learn from. My ability, of course, limited only by my willingness to push. So no, I don't wield the same power as they do... But I've been put in a leadership above them regardless. I'm interested, though... You say 'them.' Are you not one of them then? As in, one of the awakened..?"

Sark smiles, "I tend to watch my step and my words around reality benders. You wield a great amount of power, more than your mortal shell can safely contain, and some of you end up destroying yourselves before you master it. So my tendency is to not be standing right next to you when you do it." He winks at that and smiles a little more, letting that hang for a moment.

"Awakened? No, I am not Awakened. I was never asleep, though most of my relatives have given up on this realm and fled to the Umbra or the far Astral realms, expecting this one to become unlivable as humans continue the way they are going. SOME of us are trying to divert that course." He glances up at the ceiling, perhaps to judge how much room he has, before explaining, "I am something else from the mythical age, when monsters and wild beasts roamed the world and humans had not quite been able to map the world and make it start to adhere to their definition of what reality is. My name is Sarkesian the Gilded..."

Selene stares at Sark in disbelief for a moment... But something about his words, it would seem, happen to hit her in the way that she can't see them as anything but unrealistic.

"...Well, you wouldn't be the first from the mythic age that I've known." Selene calmly says, "I've met a unicorn once. Eliora... And a Murdchann too, by the name of Duibheasa, who I live with." She trails off again, idly tapping her fingertips on the tabletop... Her beer is mostly untouched and, idly...

Chrysta's kinda sorta got a couple bugs flying aroudnher.

"Don't mind Chrysta... She's, uhm... A spirit of the Wyld. Bound by Lyra ages ago for the purpose of protection. That part was true. But you're really something from back then..? What manner of thing 'are' you if it's not too mucyh to ask, with a name like that?"

Sark seems to brighten a little when Selene mentions Eliora, almost a wistful sigh, "Its been so long since I've met a unicorn. Just gorgeous creatures. I could sit and watch them all day, and probably annoy the shit out of them doing it." He takes in a deep breath and sighs, distracted for a few seconds before her question snaps him back to the present.

"Well, I dont want to wreck your basement, but I do have a smaller size of myself I can use to demonstrate, as long as we are sure the door is latched and noone 'normal' can come in..." With that said, he takes a moment to allow his form to unravel into a mass of gold fog that reshapes itself into something much smaller, about the size of a cat. Wings unlimbered, he lands on the table and shakes himself out like as if straightening his scales. Sitting his butt down, the tail wraps itself around his feet as he sits up, and chirps in a higher pitched voice, "I created this form for visiting the faeries, but here works as well. My birth form is large enough I am afraid I might destroy your table or punch a hole in your cieling with my head."

Selene just looked at you.

Selene blinks.

And blinks some more.

And blinks EVEN more...

"Holy GOODNESS you are SO ADORABLE?!" She exlamasks, getting up to look over Sark like some kind of cat that had just walked into the room... Not at all what she did to Miriel's cat. Not at all.

"That... That makes so much sense. Sarkesian the gilded... Golden scales... God they ARE golden. I can only imagine what you must look like in your full grandeur... Really, I can only dream about it. And I just might have, given the way the astral works in mysterious dreamy ways." She lets out a teensy laugh after getting enough of a look before ultimately settling herself back down in her chair.

"I appreciate the restraint, for what it's worth... It would be hard to explain to the clientele, let alone the contractors, what exactly put a massive hole in the floor from the basement that doesn't officially exist... We're lucky, at least, that this place falls into the range of the Curtain. Serious ward that Lyra put together... Presents scrying and other things of the sort." She clears her throat, regarding him curiously.

"...Nobody normal can come in here... Special door. I don't know if you noticed me whisper something as I touched it. 'Sith co nem', as it were. Sky to earth, or eath to sky... One of the two. Mrs. Grey set it."

Sark dances a little on his forelegs as he listens to her reaction, chuckling under his breath, "I have discovered that most consider this MUCH less threatening than my full self, so maybe I will use this more often when in the presence of no normals." He falls quiet to listen to the rest of her explanation, and bobs his little head, "I do not come all the way out to Chula Vista very often, but you are welcome at Windstorm Island when you would like to visit, just text me before you come by so I can be sure noone else is there that does not want to be seen. Perhaps there are ways I can help you with what you are doing down here..."

"I... Frankly, need to avoid being seen by certain people as well." Selene admits, "The cartel believes that I'm dead... Because, well... For a little minute, I was. Lyra brought me back with her magic because my spirit lingered behind long enough for them to get my body to her to ressurect... And I'm glad that they did. Because if they didn't, my body would have been buried and I would have NO way back into it, I expect." She mentions, looking VERY avoidant about it... But pushing through the topic in spite of it.

"If they know that I'm alive... I expect that the cartel pressure on Chula Vista might just pick back up in a way I'm COMPLETELY unprepared for." She settles, there... Remembering that she has a ber which she picks up, and quickly chugs a quarter of what remains.

No wince no nothin... Fuckin' welsh woman.

"But hey, this form of yours is probably good for that, I agree! This way if anyone DOES sneak in anywhere, you can... Idunno, scamper off under a table or something. Right? What's Windstorm island like? IT SOUNDS like some kind of video game location to be honest with you... But I'm curious about it."

Sark furrows his brow a little as she describes, tilting his head, "That sounds rather challenging. I do not suppose you can just change your appearance, can you? Otherwise it sounds like you might be always having to hide." She mentions hiding from unwanted eyes and he bobs his head again, "I have a couple of tricks to get myself out of sight if I have to, they are just...costly to do, so to speak. Windstorm Island is about 30 minutes north of Prospect, on a ferry. Very large crescent shaped island that has the ranch on it. Lots of big open fields and far enough from the mainland that I do not have to worry about commuter flights overhead or pleasure yachts getting close."

Selene grins just a touch... "As longa as I stay in Chula Vista, the boys in tweed and the girls in lace tend to look out for me... Another gift of Mrs. grey's. Really... She left me a fuck of alot more than I honestly know what to do with- but luckily, alot of it I don't have to understand. The boys? I just keep the taps filled and the food good and they're ready to go to the death for me if they have to." She sips her beer again, looking at Chrysta...

"Though Crysta tends to be able to deal with most of those kinds of problems before they have a chance to escalate... And, speaking of problems..." She trails off for a moment, considering how best to start...

"I'm guessing that you'd like to be left out of the front line nonsense going on down here... Right? Because we are, quite literally, sitting on the front line as we speak."

Sark mmms, "I am not a fighter. I am a healer and a protector. I can back you up if you find yourself backed into a corner and need something to shield yourself with...and if you are hurt, I can heal just about anything save for limbs getting cut off. I...CAN be effective against other mages...as I said, when one threatened my friend, I turned a Marauder into a bonfire, but its usually better if you dont depend on me attacking...considering I am also restrained by perception like you and yours are. No flying overhead with scales out, and all of that."

"...That must be a hell of a life to have to live." Selene observes, "But me? I'm not quite worried about perception just yet. I can float a pencil or a knfie just fine without a sleeper batting a metaphysical eye, and without the scourge ripping into my soul." Called something else, of course.

"But I get it... i won't ask you to do anything of the sort, but if the need's great and peopple get hurt, I may ask for you to come by. Is that acceptable to you?"

Sark flutters his wings a little and smiles, "I do not mind wearing the human suit all of the time. People tend to dismiss teenagers, so it lets me be friendly and noone cares, and I can see up close how good or bad people are." He pauses at the question and bobs his head, "That is absolutley acceptable. In return, I may occassionally be searching for specific trinkets and things, and may ask you for help or at least just to keep an eye out...." Aha, so he DOES have a pile of shinies somewhere...

Selene grins...

"Do we have to come up with some kind of contract between us to dictate which shinies are ours and which are yours? Because we can totally do that in writing some time. Bound by blood, once I'm good enough to make that happen even." She snickers just alittle at the idea, settling back into her seat with ease. Chrysta is, by now... Mostly bugs. Wyld spirit. You can't live with 'em, can't live without em.

Then she's human.

"At least in terms of the now? I'm okay with the arrangement we've got here... In fact, I think it's the most advantageous thing for either of us that we could have possibly come up with." She nods matter of factly.

"So... Consider yourself an ally of the Circle, Sarkesian. With shiny stipulations."

Sark laughs a little at the suggestion and winks a little green eye, "If I find something I like very much that you have your eyes on....we can negotiate. I am not unreasonable, even if being greedy is a well known flaw, hmm?" He stands up on all fours to shake himself out and chirps, "I will leave you my number. Text me back so I have yours, and any time you are bored and would like a visit, let me know, hmm? Maybe I can introduce you to Stella next time."