Tobias (civilian) tries to deal music in an alleyway to Nathan (civi), which Lucius (Nu), Soren (clef), & Silas (clef) witnesses. Rachel & Aren (Elecs) meet in Mark (civi)'s bookstore to discuss gang history.
Michael (clef) sees Rye (Nu) crash his bike outside the clock shop where Gareth (civi) works.
Lawrence was silent for a time or two, his eyes unnaturally cold as he observed the little quarrel dissipate, especially when positioned next to a serviceable smile that he readily beamed to anyone who passed him by, and to those who thanked him. Once they almost all cleared out, he stooped down and collected a couple of the fallen books. It was around the same time that he was approached by a young man (@Vardoger ), whom he had crossed at the counter earlier, attempting to place a call to...the security, perhaps.
"Oh, I'm sure it is." Lawrence replied, passing the young man the stack of books he had already picked up from the floor. Though sarcasm was absent in his tone, there was an existing intent in there to mock the young man who spoke to him. He did not miss a beat, however, to let the implications sink in, and continued, "Then I should be off, shouldn't I?" He tugged back his sleeve, revealing a simple digital watch on his wrist, and peered at the time. "Almost time for me to go get some takeaways for lunch and dinner too." He drew back his sleeve and extracted his shades from his breast pocket. He cast one more look at the young man, a warm, practiced smile of a civil servant, an empty promise of reassurance, before slipping the shades on and drawing his coat over his shoulders.
He was accosted, on his way out, by one of those present in the squabble earlier, a pretty young lady (@Shavynel ) with brown hair and eyes that reminded him of some of his colleagues': impenetrable. He always joked he was partial to that type though it earned him cold glares more than anything else. This one was so young, perhaps a decade younger than he was, and yet bore so much...hostility. What was with today's youth?
Despite her insistence, Lawrence did not take up the lady's offer to speak to him about the events in the library, and was honestly doubting that she was going to return after speaking to her 'friend'. So he decided he ought to leave. Lunch awaited him, which was far more important. Clasping his hands behind him, he strode out of the building. Once out in fresh air, he took in a deep breath and exhaled in a sigh of both exasperation and exhaustion, and placed the puzzle pieces together mentally.
No one thanked Clef officers. No one appreciated their existence here in this town. Just a noose that gripped the citizens, tightening constantly at any slight movement. He rubbed his temples, and started to walk. He wondered just how much more the lady would have tried to play him like a fiddle if she'd known he was not just some beat cop. Perhaps she wouldn't even have tried if she knew. Shaking his head, he dismissed that thought. At least there was an attempt. He moved on to the next line of logic. The hurried way they had dispersed, the fact that one of their informants was amongst them, it didn't exactly take a genius to work out the logical conclusion.
He paused outside a Chinese restaurant that he had frequented for the past few weeks already. He cleaned out the last thoughts of the events in the library. This could wait. His need to eat, however, could not. Putting back his smile for the nice lady behind the cashier, whose thick accent he could barely understand, he pushed open the door and entered.
Lawrence makes himself scarce from the scene, but is able to put two and two together like a real boy. He also acts pretty passive-aggressive because being otherwise would be a sign of weakness. He goes to buy Chinese takeaways because he's hungry.
This just isn't my day. The usually cheery Jett was downcast and distracted, and boy did it show. He'd hardly slept thinking about Aren's inevitable beat-in. Rae asked him and Nadia to do it this time, and he guessed it was a good sign because it meant she trusted him, but the memory of his own initiation was still vibrant and raw. He'd swaggered over to his assailants, adrenaline setting his nerves jangling, and his knees weak with fear. Spots blotted out his surroundings and agony screeched up his spine, every instinct he had telling him to run, to cry out, to do something; anything to make the humiliation stop. And now he had to inflict that pain on Aren. Rachel's words rang through his skull, over and over again. Creation comes with a cost. He knew just how high that cost could be.
That was how he ended up smacking a mug this morning in an attempt to turn his alarm off, spilling lukewarm tea all over the carpet. Rubbing his eyes and finger-combing his hair, he dressed hastily and tried to clear his mind. It was a balmy day from what he could see from the window of his flat, and a bike ride would wake him up. Once he was on the move it'd be all smiles…well, that's what he hoped, you can't knock a guy for being optimistic. Unfortunately he turned left at the junction forgetting he was late for work- there was no time to visit HQ like he'd intended. That meant he'd have to take a detour past the library in order to get to the Mean Bean faster, and as he cycled past he couldn't help but notice Rae, as elegant as ever the furrow of irritation between her brows. Lotario must've sent her, but wait a second…isn't that where Ryan works? Awesome, about time we got some action around here. Firing off a quick text with a Cheshire smile, he rode towards the café, savouring the feeling of the breeze ruffling his dishevelled hair.
"Sorry Mister Black, won't happen again, I swear." He mumbled, barely audible over the door chime.
"Just wipe the tables J."
Mr Black was a misery, but quiet as the grave, and today that suited Jett just fine. Tying his apron around his waist, he sighed and surveyed the room critically, cloth in hand. It was going to take a Herculean effort to focus on work today.
Rachel cautiously pushed open the library's doors, not certain if she would find Alex hanging around outside. She half expected it, considering how her day had gone. Running into four Nus, all at the same place and in the same hour, struck her paranoid mind as suspicious. Rachel glanced around, and when there was no immediate sign of danger, finally stepped outside. Rather than finding a moment to collect herself, however, Rachel's attention was immediately drawn to a girl who spiritedly pointed out the blood coming from her nose.
"It's fine," she said dismissively, bothered over the attention. As she watched the girl dig into her purse for a first aid kit, a sense that she knew the young girl overcame Rachel. Was she the daughter of some important official? Part of a class she'd presented to? Surely if they did know each other, the girl would have said something by now, Rachel mused. Still, she couldn't shake the feeling she was forgetting something important. Not wanting to risk appearing rude just in case, Rachel stood patiently. While she waited, one of the library doors gently opened behind them, and Amara joined them outside.
Rachel regarded her suspiciously. She didn't know the woman very well, having only interacted with her a few times in passing, but her demeanor always stood out among the brasher NuMetal crowd. Since she was alone and thus unlikely to be a threat, Rachel simply stared over the top of her hand. When Amara produced some baby wipes and tissues from her own purse--what was it with Nus and children, Rachel thought--she snapped up couple baby wipes and a few tissues. As she started to doctor her face, trying to swipe as much of the blood off as she could from below her nose, Amara began talking.
"No kidding," Rachel tersely agreed with her assessment over Rye punching her. Not wanting to involve yet another outsider in the details of the dispute, Rachel fixated on the task of rolling and inserting the tissues into her nostrils. She'd just finished placing the second tissue when Amara suggested Rachel leave. She gave the woman an indignant look. "Like I'd be here on my own time?"
Rachel roughly stuffed both the used and unused wipes into the little plastic baggie Amara had been thoughtfully holding for her trash. Rachel then wiped her still bloody palm on her black skirt, hoping to communicate that Amara's helpfulness was unwelcome. She hadn't asked for her help. She hadn't asked for anyone's help. She'd started her work day, hopeful to avoid any serious confrontation. Now she was part of not just one, but two spectacles, courtesy of Rye. The last thing Rachel wanted to hear was what some lemming of his thought was "best" for her.
Again the library doors swung open, with Nadia emerging from them. A small sense of relief came over Rachel, who was saved from continuing the conversation. As Nadia took control of the situation, Rachel gratefully accepted the icepack she pilfered from the civilian girl's first aid kit, and held it to one side of her face. Once the others had been shoo'ed, Rachel motioned for Nadia to follow her out to her car and listened to the younger woman rant, her nerves probably still recovering from the adrenaline rush much like Rae's.
"I'll live. Worse things could've happened," said Rachel, recalling the close brush with the law that had just happened. Had anyone not minded their mouth, they could have all been in deep shit.
As they reached her car, Rachel realized she'd left all her belongings in the presentation room--everything, including her keys. She cursed under her breath, and then knelt next to her car in order to look at her face in the sideview mirror. Rachel lifted the ice pack from her face, grimaced at what she saw, and then immediately replaced the ice pack. "He's fucking lost his mind. Starting physical shit, not even noticing there's a goddamn clef around. You'd think he'd have learned something by now. He can't protect them, he could hardly protect himself!"
Resentment rang through Rachel's voice. For the briefest moment, her anger gave way to sadness, but then it rose again with a righteous purpose.
"Might need you tomorrow night. I'm doing an interview later today, nose be damned," she stated as she stood back up. "We'll see how things go. But assuming they go well, after we initiate him, I have an idea for the rookie's first task."
Rachel exits the library. She runs into a girl she swears is familiar, and the girl offers to help Rae by getting out her first aid kit. Amara joins them, and while Rachel is standoffish, she accepts the tissues and wipes. Rae becomes angered when Amara suggests she leaves, so she rebuffs her kindness through rejecting anymore wipes and uses her skirt instead. Nadia enters, the other two girls leave, and Rae talks to Nadia. She assures her that she'll be okay, but she's still angry over what Rye had done. She refers back to when he'd originally ran into trouble with the law five years back (around the same time as when Nausicaa broke up), and then mentions she will be looking into them initiating a new recruit. Rachel hints that she has an idea for the new recruit's first mission.
And just like that, the Clef was gone. Ryan's fake smile turned to pursed lips which thinned to a line. It was almost too easy. Should he be worried? Growing paranoid, his right hand went to scratch the back of his blond mess of hair.
"Excuse me? Um... "
Rye flinched, jumping at the voice. He'd spaced out, watching the clef leave. This new person jerked him back into reality again, and he turned to face her, his eyes narrowing at her rudeness.
Typical, he thought. A girl who thinks her time is more important than anybody else's.
He was still a little shaken from the encounter with Rachel. His negative feelings toward her still boiled, and though he'd put a lid on it long enough to deal with officer Faulkner, it had not gone away completely.
Rachel was the symbol of everything bad that had ever happened in his life. He was fairly certain she'd ratted him out close to six years ago. And for what reason? He never knew. He didn't care why anymore. But it was nonstop shit since then. Questioned, interrogated, a kangaroo court, and prison for a year. The only reason he got through it all was his brother, the lawyer who represented him.
It was thanks to him that Ryan had gone through everything without being reformed. His brother had sacrificed his career to make it happen. And how did Rye repay him? By going right back to the gangs. That was it for Ryan. He would never be able to get out of anything again. One small slip up and he'd probably be dead on the street instead of put through the system again. His flesh and blood was gone, unwilling to be associated with him since his arrest. His gang was his only family now. The only thing he really had left.
And to see Rachel... It inflicted so many feelings in him that he just lost himself every time. Today could've been a shit-show. The clef could've recognized him, he could've been fired from his job, so many things...
All because he couldn't control his own trauma, all that trauma that flared up when Rachel was around. He remembered a time he'd liked looking at her. Now, all he could see was himself, hurting, for no reason other than her greed.
He swallowed, closing his eyes for a long time as he leaned his neck back and inhaled, trying to calm himself.
"Yes. Sorry," he finally said, going back to customer service mode. He opened his eyes and began treating the girl before him like a normal person who had absolutely nothing to do with any of his current stress. "I'll take care of you at the desk."
He surveyed the damage in the children's aisle briefly, making a mental note to clean it up later, and then turned back to the desk. Walking behind it, he sat down in his chair, only to see that the turn-in of Alex's books still sat on the computer screen, incomplete. He twisted his lips briefly, cancelled the transaction, and pushed her books away, telling himself he'd take care of that right after this girl's check out.
"Do you have a library card?" he asked, looking up, and finally noticing what books she had put on the counter.
All of them were about gangs. He cocked his head slightly, a curiosity panging at him. "Research for a school project?"
A bunch of exposition about Rye's past and how Rachel is the symbol for everything bad in his life. After the clef leaves, he answers Leena (@CaribbeanGirl )'s request for assistance, leads her to the desk, cancels out Alex's incomplete book return and asks Leena if she has a library card and if the gang books are for a school project.
As she followed the man to his desk, Leena surveyed the chaos in the Children's section. It was a mess all around; books were scattered around and some chairs were dropped on the floor. She could not believed that the Clef let them get away so easily, if it were anywhere else they would have been arrested for disturbance of the peace and vandalism. 'Maybe this people had connections somewhere...If only my parents had a friend with that kind of power, they could have been able to save my brother.'Leena pondered on those thoughts until a question snapped her out of it.
"Do you have a library card?" Nodding her response, she started to dig through her bad for her wallet. "Um...Yes, I have it right here, give me one second."Fishing her wallet out of her bag, she opened and looked for her library card. As she was taking it out, a small picture fell out of her wallet onto the counter right in front of the librarian. It was a picture of her deceased brother holding her when she was a baby. At the same time, she heard a question regarding her choices of books and saw the man tilting his head in curiosity, not having noticed the picture in front of him.
"Research for a school project?" Upon hearing the question, Leena's hand went up to scratch the back of her head and let out a nervous chuckle. "Well, to be completely honest is more like a personal project..." As she said those words, Leena reached her hand to take the small picture of herself and her brother. She did not want to lose it, since it was the only one she had of them together. However, she hesitated since she didn't want to just reach over the counter and seem like she was about to do something weird. Not having any other choice, she decided to ask the man for it. "Sorry but, can you give me that picture there in front of you? It is very important to me and I don't want to lose it."With her hand outstretched, Leena waited anxiously for the picture to be returned to her.
Leena followed Ryan ( @Vardoger ) to his desk and after placing her books on the counter, she did a quick survey of the chaos left in the Children's section. Before she could check out the books, Ryan asked her for her library card. As she was taking it out, a picture flew out of her wallet and landed in front of Ryan yet, he didn't notice. Not wanting to seem more rude on her part by just reaching over the counter to get it herself, she decided to ask Ryan to give back to her.
Rye was already interested when she said it was a personal project. He was thinking of ways to potentially get a new recruit when he noticed her hand reaching across the desk. His eyes followed the direction of her hand to the photo that had fallen over to his side. She recoiled her hand slightly and decided she would ask for it back instead.
"No probl..." he began, reaching down for the photo. But he recognized the boy in the picture and his green eyes immediately welled up and he froze, staring at the memento.
It was Neo. One of his best friends. They used to play guitar together. But when Ryan was put away, Neo got caught in the crossfire. When Rye finally got out of prison, he had to be told secondhand that Neo wasn't so lucky. Rye had never been able to say goodbye.
The 27 year old sniffed, blinking, and quickly gave the photo back, looking away from the girl while he focused on taking her library card and checking out the books as fast as possible.
When he got to the last book, he put in an extra slip, grabbing a pen and scribbling something on it before putting it in the slot with the other due date slips.
He shoved the books in her direction after he'd completed the whole task in record time. "You'll have to check what the due date is on the slip," he grumbled, trying to push her out of the library.
He made sure she got her card back, and then without even waiting for her to leave, he abandoned his station to go to the staff bathroom. When he went to turn the knob, however, it was locked. He jiggled it a bit.
A faint voice finally proclaimed, "It's going to be a while!"
It was July. Well that answers that question, he thought to himself, a heavy sigh leaving him before he wiped his eyes with the long sleeve of his button up shirt.
Pinching the bridge of his nose between his eyes, he lifted his head and took a few deep breaths. Somewhere in between rage and despair, he could calm himself enough to continue on with the day. Shaking his head, he went back to the children's section and began to straighten up the aisle, hoping it would calm his mind.
All the gangbangers seemed to had left, and the kids were being surprisingly well behaved. He put the books away and righted the chairs. When he was finished, he remembered Alex's books, and went back to the desk to restart the process of checking them in, pre-dating the returns so she would not have any late fees.
Soon enough, it was time for the library to close, and he had somehow managed to keep everything together and not be arrested or fired. With true luck, July wouldn't even know anything had happened at all if she had been in the bathroom the whole time.
He prepped everything for closing and once everyone was gone, he locked up with July and waved goodbye before yanking out his bike and making his way to the warehouse at the far edge of town that currently served as NuMetal HQ.
The note he'd scribbled on the card to Leena was Neo. Tonight. and the address.
Rye checks the books out for Leena (@CaribbeanGirl ) quickly after freezing up at the photo of her brother, who used to be Rye's best friend. He writes the nu HQ address with a small note to her in one of the return slips and rushes her out.
The head librarian appears to have been in the bathroom for the gang war, Rye clean sup the kid's aisle and returns Alex's overdue books, then locks up the library and gets on his bike to go to numetal HQ
Her travel to HQ had gone by smoothly, and when she first arrived there, only a couple other people were present due to the early hour. Thinking briefly on what she wanted to practice, Alex decided on practicing her saxophone and later, when someone who plays guitar comes, she will switch to her drum set. Practicing the drums was nice, but she always preferred to serve as the background for someone else when it came to playing the drums. Set the beat, but not be the lead.
As the few hours passed, she mostly kept practicing different sounds. Even though she knew how to play different songs and instrumentals on her saxophone, there was no such thing as too much practice, especially when she enjoyed the music she was playing so much and the people around did not seem to mind either.
When the night arrived, and HQ was fuller, Alex decided to stop practicing and instead play a song she knew well. One from the older times, that spoke of better times, and one that she felt was a source of inspiration. While she played on the saxophone, she invited a couple of NuMetal members who she knew were good singers to sing along to the tune.
After the song was finished, Alex took a breather and clapped out of the enjoyment of hearing the singing, something several other members did as well. A couple of minutes later she begun to play another instrumental tune. Closing her eyes, she allowed herself to become engulfed by the good feeling the music gave her.
Noticing the man's frozen state as he looked at the picture, Leena's face formed a frown that quickly changed into curiosity. 'Did he knew my brother?'As she saw recognition go through his face, she thought asking him about it. However, before she got the chance to ask him, he quickly gave it back and proceeded to check out her books in a super fast pace. She noticed that he was avoiding looking at her and that made her more suspicious of him.
'He definitely knows something about my brother...'But again, before she could say or ask him anything, the man shoved the books in her direction and practically dismissed her. "You'll have to check what the due date is on the slip." As she took the books and watched the man walk away not even giving a glance back, Leena's eyes narrowed. 'I'm going to find out what he knows even if is the last thing I do...'
She was about to follow him, but the voice in the intercom stopped her. "The library is about to close in five minutes. Please proceed to finish all transactions as quickly as possible." Knowing that she did not have much time, she decided to let it be for the time being. Determined to come back another day, Leena took her things and left the library.
As she walked to her small apartment located near her work place, she decided to take a look at the due date slips. Being a punctual person, she never likes being late to appointments or returning borrowed things. Taking the last book in her hand and opening it to the last page, she could see different slips for all the different books. Yet something was amiss. She only took out five books, but there were six due dates slips. 'Hm...it has to be a mistake.' Taking the extra slip out, her eyes immediately widened at the note scribbled in it.
Neo. Tonight.
Seeing her bothers name written in the slip, took her by surprise; even though, minutes ago she was certain that the man knew something. 'I guess that text message was not a waste of time after all..'Noticing an address written on the slip, she quickly folded it and shoved it inside her bag.
She knew it was risky, going to an address provided by someone she doesn't even knows. Yet, remembering that look of recognition on that man's face upon seeing her brother, she knew she couldn't let the opportunity of finding the truth about her brothers death, pass as if it was nothing.
'I'll be there tonight and not matter what happens, I will find the truth.' With her mind set on going to the address scribbled on the slip, she hurried her way to her apartment to leave the books and change.
Upon seeing Ryan's (@Vardoger ) reaction towards her brothers picture, Leena become suspicious of him and thinks that he knew her brother. However, before she got a chance to questioned him, he leaves and the library announces that its about to close. Determined to go back when she has more time, she takes her things and leaves. As she walks towards her apartment she notices that she has an extra due date slip and taking a look at it, she is surprised to see her brother's nickname on the card and an address. Deciding to investigates, she goes to her apartment to leave the books and change.
When the crowd dissipated Fritz surveyed the wreckage that they left in their wake with a disapproving click of his tongue. He made his way out from his hiding spot, picking up the closet carelessly abused picture book his examined it closely before checking his watch. He had another hour before the presentation was over and it was time to g back to school. With another click of his tongue he began to pick up the other books that were strewn across the floor one by one; thoughtfully starring at each and everyone of them before finding there designated places and tucking them in gently. His father was a complete and other slobs with no respect for organization so cleaning up after people had been ingrained into his mind at a very young age.
With half of his brain focusing on his cleaning the other half focused in on the Librarian and the young teen he was talking to. Mindlessly he took in and stored the information to be analysed on a later date, not caring that it probably wasn't important because what if it was important. The most important information could hide in the plainest of conversations, meaning that Fritz could never miss out on anything in fear of missing it.
Summery: When everyone leaves the children section Fritz begins to clean up the mess out of habit. As he does so he tries to eavesdrop on on the librarian ( @Vardoger ) and the young teen ( @CaribbeanGirl )
Aren finished buttoning his dress shirt - the last item of his uniform. He got into his shoes and threw a backpack over his shoulder before walking out the door and locking it. He went down the stairs, reaching the ground floor in a minute or so. Just as he was about to leave the building an old lady walked in carrying a ton of bags that looked way too heavy for her old hands to carry so Aren offered his help. Together they climbed back to the fourth floor where he gave his goodbyes and moved on.
Aren walked to work every day as he wasn't able to afford a car, at least not without raising any suspicions. However he did consider buying a bike, which would save him a lot of time he could use tracking down gangs or planning their down fall. But he'd need to save up some money for that too. Aren frowned, a face he seemed to be doing a lot lately, as he saw one of his past neighbors drive past. It had hardly been days, but he already missed his spoiled life so much. Living and working in a dump felt like a waste of time, every little step he had to take just to attend to his natural human's needs could've been spent on something important that would help the whole country instead. But now he was stuck, stuck in the shoes of some uncivilized pig that didn't care for much more than its own well-being. Aren's predicament was simply disgusting.
When Aren finally reached the bar he almost got trampled over by his co-worker. It seemed the woman was in a hurry to switch for some upcoming date from what he managed to gather in her non-stop chatter. Then the manager called him over to nudge him in all the wrong ways and it was generally stressful until he finally hid behind the counter. There he quietly scrubbed the glasses clean with much more attention than necessary. Though, even that didn't last for long as people started gathering and pushing him for drinks.
Summary:[spoili]Aren travels to work and starts his shift sulking all the while[/spoili]
The rude and certainly ungrateful behavior did not phase her as much as it probably should have. At least, as much as it should have had she been a normal person. Two years amongst Rye and his people had given her a little thicker of a skin, but not by much. She had been determined to remain compassionate and warm if she could through everything. Of course, the music helped with that. How could it not?
Still, Amara was patient and gave Rachel as many Kleenex and wet wipes as she needed, and took the rubbish from her aptly, careful to not let any of it fall on the sidewalk. Always following the rules, at least on the outside. Inside, she knew that it was probably going to get her called for a report. An explanation of what was going on. What had gotten so damn out of hand that it boiled over into the library. She found a waste bin, and tossed the bag away when Nadia came outside as well.
"I hope you both have a nice day," she said with a genuine smile. "It was nice to meet you."
That was genuine as well. Amara wanted to make friends with them, and she waved as she turned to head back to her home, if only to drop things off and leave the car behind. She always took public transportation to the warehouse, not wanting the car to be followed. She left her child-rearing bag at home, and headed out to a bus stop, getting on when the right bus rolled around. She then got off a few blocks from the warehouse, making certain nobody was following her while she walked around a bit.
Her fear that someone would follow her, a clef that did not know how deep she was, was always there at the back of her mind. If they saw her talking to one of them in a friendly fashion so close to the headquarters, that would be it for her. Then she would have to hide her flute forever, keep it away from prying eyes. Or possibly lose it. That was an unacceptable risk. Amara would rather be paranoid and careful than lose it all.
Amara is still ridiculously nice to Rachel and Nadia and leaves them be to take her car and her bag home. She then takes public transportation to the edge of town and heads for the NuMetal headquarters. She's still outside for possible interaction.
It took him about two hours to get to the warehouse, and he was biking pretty quickly. Much of it was offroading, taking shortcuts to get to the completely out-of-the-way structure faster. The trip was calming in and of itself. The peddling allowed him to exercise his stresses of the day out and clear his mind.
Once he got to NuMetal HQ, an abandoned metal storehouse in the middle of nowhere, he jumped off his mountain bike and walked it around to lean it against the side of the building, able to hear the ending of a song being sung and some clapping.
Rye waited a minute or so outside for them to stop before opening the door, quietly walking in and making his way to the far end of the warehouse, where there was a makeshift office. The building had been set up for a massive empty area to the far left, where most people usually hung out in chairs, couches, bean bags, at some tables, and with just miscellaneous stuff strewn about everywhere - typical of any sort of teen hangout, really. Everything then turned to several metal shelves which stored much of NuMetal's product: various small instruments, tons of electronics and associated accessories, harddrives, and the like. Many of the shelves were empty or nearly so, making it painfully obvious the inventory was running low and Ryan needed to get his act together to organize another jack soon.
The far right, where his office was, had a bunch of file cabinets, makeshift lockers, cots, and walls made out of curtains. This was an area for people to "live" in a pinch. But the warehouse did not have running water, and hardly had steady electricity (there were several generators though) so not many people actually utilized the area to the far right.
The NuMetals were mobile, and the location of the warehouse would change every year or so. Because of this, everything inside was painfully temporary. Most of the inside structures were erected by members when they first take over the buildings, Rye's office being an example of such.
Rye always had an office. Sometimes he'd get fancy and put up soundproofing, but most of the time he just made sure it was located at the complete opposite side of the building from where all the action happened. It's not that he didn't like music - he did, certainly - but he had always been very protective of his quiet time, as well. Maybe it was just ingrained in his blood, being a native Musician, or maybe it had to do with a closely guarded secret of his.
When he got to his office, a room that still had papers all over the floor and desk from last night, he plopped in his office chair with a groan, a love/hate response with gang work overcoming him. He had no idea what to do for a jack, and was semi-confident yesterday's unproductiveness would become today's.
After a few minutes of grumbling to himself and shuffling papers around, even booting up the computer but not actually bothering to log in, his green eyes wandered over to the far corner of the office where his guitar was leaning.
The 27 year old let out a light sigh through his nose, tilting his head, swallowing, and pushed himself out of the chair. The guitar hadn't been played in a long time. Weeks, easily. Walking over to it, he grabbed it by the neck and carried it outside, grabbing a chair on the way out.
Setting himself up outside the door, he slipped his head underneath the shoulder strap and sat down in the chair he placed. He frowned to himself and lightly plucked a few strings in no particular pattern, barely making any noise at all. He continued to strum a few notes idly while he watched the road for any late comers, specifically the girl he'd given the note to at the library.
After a few minutes, he began to tune the guitar, wondering if she'd even see the note or come at all.
Ryan biked to the warehouse.
Warehouse layout: Left, open area, center to right, lots of shelves of product going bare, and far right, small living area and his office, which goes to to think about another jack to get more product.
But he decides to procrastinate and instead walks outside the warehouse, tuning his guitar in a chair outside the door waiting for Leena (@CaribbeanGirl ) while he watches the sun set.
As soon as she got to her apartment, Leena placed the books on a small coffee table in her living room and made her way towards her room, to change. It was a small apartment, having only one bedroom with an adjacent bathroom and an open kitchen next to her living room. It certainly wasn't her parents house, but it still felt like home. More so, because it was isolated, and she was able to play the small guitar that she smuggled out of her brother's room back then, before the Clefs took everything of his and destroyed it. No one knew or suspected anything, since she was just a kid back then, and that was her advantage.
Not wanting to dwell so much in the past, she hastily changed into more comfortable clothes. The thought of not knowing what she would encounter made her nervous, and while putting her clothes on, her hands shook with anticipation. Trying not to think about it, she quickly put on a black, sleeveless turtleneck, a pair of blue jeans, and a pair of black converse, and finished her simple look with a loose ponytail.
Once finished, Leena took her bag, the keys to her apartment and with a big sigh locked everything up before making her way towards the address written in the slip. She walked in a hurried pace, her mind going over the pros and cons of her decision. She was taking a risk by going to a place she didn't know, asked by someone she didn't know. However, like the saying goes, "Curiosity killed the cat." and to say she was just curious was an understatement. Something inside of her was convinced that she would find some answers; that the person who wrote the note knew something. And she was going to find out what.
I walk a lonely road
The only one that I have ever known
Don't know where it goes
But it's home to me and I walk alone
I walk this empty street
On the Boulevard of Broken Dreams
Where the city sleeps
And I'm the only one and I walk alone
I walk alone
I walk alone
I walk alone
I walk a...
My shadow's the only one that walks beside me
My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me
'Til then I walk alone...
After walking a couple of blocks, taking two buses and turning on a few corners, Leena started to hear something in the distance. It was like a small sharp sound, it bothered her, yet it was not painful. She could not placed it where, but she was sure that she had heard the sound before. While trying to find out why it was familiar, Leena kept walking in the direction of the sound. However, after a couple of steps, she came to an abrupt stop as the memories flooded her mind.
'Leena, I am going to play this for you. It's a little toy that I bought and it's pretty cool. It might be uncomfortable, but I know you will get used to it.' Leena's eyes watered at the memory of her brother, playing the guitar for her. She remembered all the times that she used to leave his room, crying because she wasn't able to stand the shrill sounds that came of the instrument. But, like Neo said, she became used to it and he even taught her a few tunes. Yet, she still was not able to hear what those notes really sounded like.
Shaking the memories away, she hurried over to where the sound was coming from. As she got closer, the sound became more uncomfortable and a bit more painful, however that did not stopped her. She soon stopped across a warehouse that looked as if it was abandoned, if weren't for the man sitting in front of the entrance playing the source of the unpleasant sound.
My shadow's the only one that walks beside me My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me 'Til then I walk alone
Crossing the street towards the man, she took out the slip where the address and note was written. 'Neo. Tonight... Tonight I find out the truth.'As soon as she stood in front of the man, she let the note fall in his lap and quickly crossed her arms. And with narrowed eyes, she waited for his response.
After Leena changed her outfit, she made her way towards the address that Ryan(@Vardoger ) wrote for her. AS she got closer, she started to hear a very uncomfortable, sharp sound that for some reason was familiar to her. After a couple of seconds, Leena remembered her brother playing the guitar for her and Leena recognized the sound. Soon, she was across the warehouse and noticed that Ryan was playing her favorite instrument and quickly made her way towards him. Determined to find the truth she let the note fall on Ryan's lap and with narrowed eyes, she waited for his reaction.
When Leena approached, Ryan lightly slapped the guitar body a couple times while he looked up to her judgemental face.
"You're Leena, right? Your brother talked a lot about you."
Rye and Neo had discussions about Leena occasionally. He didn't have a problem with Neo spreading music around, as long as he was careful not to get caught. But he and Rachel both agreed to not get kids while they were so young involved in gangs. Neo realized the same, despite being a little distraught that he couldn't bring Leena to visit with the rest of Nausicaa at times.
Rye supposed it all worked out in the end. While he was dealing with his own problems, Neo was put to death. If his sister had been involved too, Rye would've likely never forgiven himself.
"How old are you now?" He put the guitar down, leaning it up against the exterior of the warehouse and stood up, offering his hand to her in a handshake- his knuckles still a little discolored from punching Rachel earlier.
"I'm Rye, by the way."
Summary: [spoili] Rye puts the guitar down, stands up and introduces himself to Leena (@CaribeeanGirl ) outside NuMetal HQ[/spoili]
"Tch," the derision escaped unchecked. "Let him run himself into the ground," Nadia suggested, missing or perhaps ignoring Rachel's dip in mood by simply filling in with her own anger. "And if he needs help, well, that's the one thing I'll help him with," she promised. It wasn't a secret, really, that Nadia blamed the rift in Nausicaa largely on Rye. Some said it was Rae. Some said it was complicated and refused to pin specific blame. But Nadia had been around enough to pin it on Rye. If he'd only seen clearly -- didn't treat it like a game, but like reality instead, they wouldn't have ended up like this. And it seemed only too clear that he still treated it like a game.
She leaned against the car, looking back at the library. The officer (Lawrence Faulkner, she reminded herself before she could forget) had turned down her witness story, which struck her as a little weird. Maybe her first read on him was wrong. He had stepped in, there was no ignoring that, but conveniently had stepped out again. Maybe he was the sort that could be convinced. Or maybe he was already in Rye's pocket, ready to hear any story Rye concocted, but given Rye's actions, that didn't seem quite plausible either. And then there was Fritz, who just seemed off, but compared to the Clef? Hardly a threat. So long as there wasn't a conveniently authority nearby when she finally did sock it to him for being an utter waste of space.
The point was, she didn't have to go back to this library. There was the option of going to the other one even if it was out of the way. It clearly had been a mistake to think proximity equated to ease. Besides, her closet (it was hard to call it a room given all it fit was her bed with just enough room to side things from under it) was on the way, and that would allow her to change into something less blood-stained. And on top of that, Mean Bean would be on the way back to the office, and, hell, it never hurt to sugar up the partners with another cup of coffee.
"Rookie?" Nadia parroted, drawing herself back to the present. She was far from enthused about the idea of a new member. Rookies were unknowns, had a tendency to be fidgety, were generally more excitable than reliable, and there was no real reason to trust them. Maybe she ought to empathize a little more having been through the whole process herself. Then again, no. She'd been through it with Rye and Ki and Alex, and they'd all turn their backs on her. And if none of that had meant anything for them, there was absolutely no reason for her to be friendly with rookies. "Well, whatever. Just tell me where you need me." Nadia might have pressed for more details if they hadn't been standing in a public parking lot. Sure, they'd shrugged off the unnecessary attention, but it still felt wrong to discuss anything more.
Nadia pushed off the car in a move to leave. Rae was on her feet, talking just fine. And even if Rae could beg off the rest of the day, Nadia could not. "Will I see you later, though?" she asked, wondering if the interview would take all of Rae's evening or if their leader would end up back at HQ later.
Summary: [spoili] Nadia accompanies Rae back to her car, contemplating the weird characters she met at the library (Lawrence Faulkner and Fritz). She promises Rae her time and asks if she'll see Rae at the HQ later in the day before making to leave (probably to her place, the other library, and through Mean Bean for coffee).[/spoili]
Olympia | civilian possibly seeking NuMetal membership
Olympia had a fairly uneventful day. She had slept in and missed her morning classes. She cursed herself out for being lazy and got ready for the next class, which wouldn't be for a while. A nagging voice at the back of her mind told her "just skip this one too, you need a day off." But unless she were more convinced, she would attend the class.
Since Olympia had time, she wanted to do something to pass it by. She wasn't going to stick around her dingy house, but she also couldn't go to her usual library either. She knew kids often made field trips around this time, and they tended to be loud. She didn't mind loud, but the library atmosphere wasn't the proper place for it and it made Olympia highly uncomfortable. She decided to get coffee instead, and she'd probably need it since she was going to stay up late to make up any work she had missed. She made her way to the nearest coffee place, which happened to be the Mean Bean. There, she overheard rumors of a fight that happened in the library she frequented and was glad she didn't go.
Summary: Olympia sleeps in and misses classes. She decides to go to the next one. Until then she decides to get coffee at the Mean Bean.
A bit more time passed and Alex saw Ryan arriving at the warehouse shortly after the last song had ended. She allowed someone else to take the stage, walking towards his office to thank him for earlier. She placed her hand on the handle but decided to wait a moment, thinking that the way he entered the place quietly seemed slightly off. There was no reason he wouldn't let the gang, his family, know that he has arrived, unless there was something else occupying his mind.
Walking to the locked locker which contained her drum kit, she unlocked it and placed the saxophone in, taking her time to ensure everything was properly placed as she did. A couple of minutes after she was done and all the instruments were properly set in place, Alex still stood next to the locker, seemingly looking at a bunch of music sheets, when in fact her gaze constantly moved towards Ryan's office door. She didn't want to bother him when he was arranging things that regarded the gang, and preferred waiting for whenever he came to join the others. What soon happened, however, caught her off guard.
Ryan walked out of the office with the guitar in his hands, and then out the warehouse door. What was he thinking, going outside of their safe haven like this? Even if it wasn't a heavily patrolled area, that was still an incredibly risky move.
It took her a few minutes to realize she was standing, one of her sheet notebooks on the floors, and she was staring at the warehouse door for no reason. Everyone were too occupied with the current song to notice, so she quickly arranged her stuff back in the locker before closing and securing it. Looking at the warehouse door, she walked to it, deciding to go talk to Ryan about this foolish move.
After approaching the door, she opened it and quickly walked out, closing it behind her to ensure not more than a glimpse of the song was heard. Spotting Ryan's legs, She let her mouth open wide "What do you think you are doing Rye, going out with a guitar like tha-" She stopped speaking upon realizing there was someone else next to him, and he was offering his hand to that person "Oh, sorry. I'll just go back inside. Talk to me when you get back In Rye." She said and moved to grab the handle of the warehouse door.
Leena raised her eyebrows in wonder upon hearing her name pronounce by the unknown man. However, she was not surprised that her brother talked about her, since Neo would talked about his friends to her, often.
"How old are you now? I'm Rye, by the way."
As Ryan stood up and placed his guitar against the wall, Leena felt her heart speed up. She was in an unknown place with a man that just introduced himself, and she didn't know she could trust. Yet, she hesitantly decided to shake the man's arm and answer his question. "I'm nineteen and I guess I don't need to tell you my name since my brother made it his mission that everybody knew it. Mostly because he gave it to me..."
Leena let out a nervous chuckle after rambling on about her name. It was one of her habits when nervous, to spurt out words or memories about herself, yet she was able to compose herself quickly. "...But, um..I don't think that finding out how old I am, is not why you invited me here... Just like finding out your name was not my reason for coming."
Leena was anxious to start asking and prodding for answers, but before she could start asking away, someone interrupted them. A brunette woman walked out of the building seemingly looking for the man standing in front of her. "What do you think you are doing Rye, going out with a guitar like tha.--- Oh, sorry. I'll just go back inside. Talk to me when you get back In Rye..."
With a curious glance towards the brunette, Leena uncrossed her arms and waited for Ryan's answer to the girl.
Upon meeting Rye the librarian again (@Vardoger ), who knew her name, she was intrigued. And a bit nervous, too, since her brother apparently talked a lot about her.. She was in an unknown place but she knew that in that place is where she would be able to find the truth. However, before she could ask questions another female (@Nim ) appear but upon noticing her presence, she decided to go back inside,
Rye chuckled as he shook Leena's hand. "Yeah, he wouldn't shut up about it."
His laugh got cut short when Alex came out, ready to chastise him about his open guitar. They were in the middle of nowhere, it didn't matter too much. Still, he had been rather careless today. Maybe he just wasn't with it.
That didn't matter however, as he was able to quickly segue the conversation when Alex interrupted herself. "No Alex, Stay, please! This is Leena," he said, releasing the handshake and motioning from Alex to Leena and back again. "You know, Neo's little sister?" he turned to Alex, lowering his voice a bit. "I was thinking maybe we could get her in tonight."
He turned to Leena, "I mean if you wanted, of course. I just assumed, with all the books about gangs and stuff, that that's what you wanted. Do you know how it works already?"
He turned again to Alex as his hand motioned in Leena's direction while he talked about her, "She was at the library today, checking out a bunch of gang books."
tl;dr: [spoili]Dialogue. Rye introduces Alex to Leena and suggests an initiation tonight. @CaribbeanGirl@Nim [/spoili]
Jett | Electronica Member Shutting the door with a satisfying clunk, Jett ran a hand through his hair, now heavy with sweat from working beside the steaming coffee machines, and inhaled a lingering breath of the warm air. At least he was earning a little cash today, even if it wasn't as entertaining as usual. Tipping his weight back and forth on the balls of his feet, he chewed his lower lip before deciding to send another text: "Did you find what you were looking for?". He slumped against the wall of the Mean Bean with a sigh. Only two more hours, then he could head over to HQ and talk to Rachel. That ought to cheer him up! He dialled Rae's number and counted the dial tones…beep beep…beep beep…at five rings it went to voicemail, and a heavy feeling of loneliness settled into his chest as he gave up on talking to the one person who might understand his anxiety about the beat-in.
Jett set down his j-cloth and surveyed the café. It was quiet, with only a couple of college students staring glassy-eyed over fresh lattes at their laptops, textbooks strewn across the tables with technicolour scribbles covering diagrams he didn't care to interpret. It was a small café, it used to be an office block, and the broad windows and granite worktop of the helpdesk remained, but that didn't affect the homely atmosphere. Most of the customers were regulars, people who'd drop by for a mocha after a long day at the office, students tapping away at their devices hard at work or at least pretending to be, and even a few lads who'd buy Iron Bru so they could get away with lounging around the front, smoking and laughing. Jett was broken from his reverie by the door chime, as a familiar face stormed purposefully into the room. "Hey Nadia, how's it shakin'?" he grinned, and leaned against the worktop.
It took him about two hours to get to the warehouse, and he was biking pretty quickly. Much of it was offroading, taking shortcuts to get to the completely out-of-the-way structure faster. The trip was calming in and of itself. The peddling allowed him to exercise his stresses of the day out and clear his mind.