forward to the past?

[singindemonhq]

Later on Sunday, June 15th, entered in Journal belatedly.

As we passed through the outskirts of Sunnydale it became increasingly clear that this was not the town that I'd known. If we hadn't learned the date while picking up supplies I'd have thought we'd gone back in time.

I have a good eye for detail and some of the houses looked different. A very old drystone wall had replaced the worn fencing near the candy store and the street crossing was in the wrong place.

We were potentially in trouble. We may have lost track of time while lost in Arkadia, but in the end that didn't make much difference. We'd finally got out of there fast, with a bunch of natives chasing us. But in this dimension it was the last night of the full moon, and Erynne is a were-wolf.

I'd had a base at an old theater that was so far outside Sunnydale that it was almost in the next town. When we realised the date we decided to go there. We bought some some meat on the way. I saw more and more changes as we went.

My portable computer-extension seemed to be working, but no longer picked up from the main machine. That made me decide to that it just wasn't safe to try to use the theater-base.

If that base existed in this dimension there might be another operative in charge there.

The moment that thought struck me I turned the car and was heading out of town, fast. Erynne tried to give me an argument about that and I kept right on going.

I wasn't even sure how to explain - for one thing, she seemed to think we'd be safe if he was another version of me! I'd put off telling her too much for too long - and now it was likely to be too late.

Erynne callin' me a Justice Demon and a Truthsinger and so on is all very well, but I'm a Quaverel Field Operative and I'm an empath - I know what the clients feel.

The musical mojo I use to make them own to the feelings can give them a chance to sort their problems out, but it usually hurts them and it can barbeque them. There are people who want to die, too.

I don't judge them or dish out justice. They do that themselves.

I'm doubt it if many Justice Demons do judge - a Vengeance Demon may get into it if you blame someone else. There are other kinds of demon if you blame yourself.

Operatives get into certain patterns of mind and behaviour in those kind of jobs, unless they spend a lot of downtime with those who don't live that way. Some of the Vengeance girls are notorious for never thinking of anything else. They'll tell you about their best efforts every chance they get.

If I had to face another operative in a dimension that he'd be regarding as his field of operations, I wanted to be sure that I was at full strength, not tired by portal travel.

I've had some bad moments in Sunnydale. Some of them were while trying to get us out of town in that battered car, racing against moonrise, fast as feasible without drawing police attention - if Erynne was in a cell with humans when the moon came up things would get ... complicated...

It wasn't the best time to be shouting about power bases at a were-wolf with pre-moonrise tension! She seemed to be judging the risk by what she's seen of me - but I'd been stranded in a hell-dimension that was full of Wicca and worse, with no backup, looking for allies - and I'd been trying to impress her anyway.

Being a working operative on a gig, with a power base, a proper set-up and a way home - that's different. I still don't believe that she realizes how different.

Comments

[blood--moon.livejournal.com]

Everything's different here; even before we
saw much of the town, I could tell that.
The Sunnydale I'd known was most of the way to
deserted, and dying. This one is so crowded
the air's humming with voices,heartbeats...

When Sweet mentioned the possibility of an
alternate reality--well, that made sense,
but then...does that mean, there are still
Harbingers--or Turok-Han--here? The town clearly
wasn't destroyed!

*glances up*
We've got maybe half an hour to sunset. We don't
have time to face off with a possibly
hostile demon. Need to find someplace that can
be locked up-- wait! There! *spots abandoned barn*
*Sweet hits the brakes*
*Gets out of the Caddy, runs into barn,
holding trank gun, packets of meat*
*Turns quickly, bolts the door from inside*
*calls out*
It's empty, Sweet--you can smoke in all right,
but if you're going to, hurry up--aaahh!
*drops to her knees, gasping*
*you smoke in*
*throws you the trank gun*

[singindemonhq.livejournal.com]

*Smokes in and soldifies. Catches trank gun one-handed while moving quickly up a ladder leading up to a kind of second storey. That proves to be a shelf the size of a room, piled with straw. A disturbed barn-owl ghosts silently away into the deepening twilight.

Pushes the ladder away so that it falls clear of you, looking away from the changes taking place below. Gestures, there is now a futon in a corner of the lowest level, and another spread across half the top floor. Lies down, opens pack and starts nibbling candy while looking at the local newspaper. Starts singing softly while reading...*

[blood--moon.livejournal.com]

*shakes herself*
*rises to feet, looking around*
*moves over to door*
*pushes at it, growling*
*turns, hears Sweet's voice*

*comes to stand directly beneath loft*
...? *puzzled* ...what? smells ...like
pack?
*yips softly, watching you*

[singindemonhq.livejournal.com]

S *turns page of newspaper* This isn't the dimension we started out from, I don't know if we'd be able to stay here.

*Looks down at Erynne as wolf*

I suppose I'll have to tell you in the morning...

*singing to self, absently, almost humming*


I claim I just wander around having fun,
In my role, I can live life on the run.

I'm just passing through,
I hear what you sing,
(You have to sing true,
I don't feel a thing.)

You sing what you feel,
You learn what's in there,
(My side of the deal,
I don't have to care.)

[blood--moon.livejournal.com]

*ears prick up*
*sits, listening*
*Sweet pauses*
*whimpers unhappily, looks up to see if
you're still there*

[singindemonhq.livejournal.com]

*looks down at you, concerned by the sound.
Puts finger on paper*

They're reporting something called a "Woman's Institute" meeting and nothing even happened
there.I think it's one of those things where
they sing about cake mix...

*Sings while reading*

I'm here for the play,
my job is the show,
(I just smoke away,
you're left when I go)

Now I'm caught in a world,
that I didn't choose,
(I've been here too long,
What I build here I'll lose.)

[blood--moon.livejournal.com]

*lies back, relaxing*
*tail thumps against dusty floor
*lifts head, hearing change in your voice*
? No blood...no fear...why sadness?
*whines, concerned*

[singindemonhq.livejournal.com]

*Looks down at you again, for a moment*
You must get so bored here - maybe you'd even have been bored in Sunnydale if your clan had moved in.

All this sort of thing will be easier if .... when ...we get to Quaverel. The portals can't stay down much longer. It'll all be sorted out....


Being alone,
can be a gain,
(too much alone,
is a world of pain.)

They left me here,
I shouldn't doubt,
I have no fear,
I'll be called out,

I'll get back home,
that's what I'd chose,
(I'm too much alone,
what I build here, I'll lose.)

(Everything dies,
memories are pain,
happiness is,
never caring again.)

*Catches himself, looking down at Erynne and casting a mojo.There is nothing to indicate that she could have understood but he snaps newspaper shut*

Even the kid had more sense than that. I'll smoke around in the morning and see if we know any of the people here