A Bizarre New World, Chapter One: Cat’s In The Cradle

[Yun Lao]

OOC: No response to John bumping into her?

OOC: Apologies, I somehow missed your post. If you want, just assume Debra addressed both John and Jinny when it came to her question.

[Jcogginsa]

Her eyes widened and she instinctively dug her right canine into her thumb in thought. It was clear that she was on the verge of panicking, muttering a small mantra under her breath, "ohnoohnoohnoohnoohnoohnoohnonononono..." Just as it seemed that she was on the verge of a panic attack, she snapped out of it, "Jinny, I need you to gather your siblings and meet me in the garden later tonight. There's something they're not telling you."

With that, Debra walked away, anxiety-riddened.

John watched Debra walk away in his characteristic silence, then turned to Jinny, to see how she was responding.

[Tami]

Her eyes widened and she instinctively dug her right canine into her thumb in thought. It was clear that she was on the verge of panicking, muttering a small mantra under her breath, "ohnoohnoohnoohnoohnoohnoohnonononono..." Just as it seemed that she was on the verge of a panic attack, she snapped out of it, "Jinny, I need you to gather your siblings and meet me in the garden later tonight. There's something they're not telling you."

With that, Debra walked away, anxiety-riddened.

John watched Debra walk away in his characteristic silence, then turned to Jinny, to see how she was responding.

As Debra left, Jinny looked over at John, "I'd say she's really upset about this. We might as well meet her, by later tonight I assume she means after dinner. John, can I count on you to back me up? Getting this group to do anything together could prove to be difficult."

[Jcogginsa]

As Debra left, Jinny looked over at John, "I'd say she's really upset about this. We might as well meet her, by later tonight I assume she means after dinner. John, can I count on you to back me up? Getting this group to do anything together could prove to be difficult."

"You can count on me, Jinny. I'll be there." John said firmly, "She told as to gather all of our siblings for this. How do you suppose we should do that? Or do you think we should only get a few?"

[Tami]

"You can count on me, Jinny. I'll be there." John said firmly, "She told as to gather all of our siblings for this. How do you suppose we should do that? Or do you think we should only get a few?"

"Beats me. I don't know all of them well enough to figure out how to do this, and there may be some who..." Jinny struggled momentarily with the words, "probably wouldn't listen to me even if the building was on fire and I was the only one who knew the only safe exit."

"The best way to do it is, I guess, just to be honest with them. If they don't show up, we can always share what Debra tells us later. I just hope this doesn't turn into another wild ride. It would be nice to have one peaceful night before setting out on papa Johannes' quest."

"We might as well head to the dining hall."

[bruceleegreyhulk]

As Boris looks for the gaming room, he stops and ponders for a moment ( Hmm, maybe I check on Debra to see how she's doing.)

Boris then decides to go look for Debra.

[grampagen]

Vivian's list was short, but extremely specific:

Attachment 110125

Once handed over, she turned toward the dining hall... clearly in an attempt to scarper off with all the steak before anyone else had a chance and yet...



"I'd rather not speak of it much, myself... home... so consider this the Last Word until its necessary I say more; but yes. That is her name yes, supposed daughter of the Moon." Vivian replied, with an dismissive gesture aimed at, seemingly, Moonchild herself. "As for the need for sustenance? Impact did it. No idea why, of course everyone has their theories. Doesn't matter, end result is still the same regardless of the cause, yea? Weald feeds on you, mind, body... soul if its on you to believe such. Grows strong on you." The woman trailed off a moment before chuckling, mostly to herself but for a moment it seemed she found some amusement at the notion of plants growing strong on meat. "Why do you think Johannes had to literally wrestle with the transplants? It wasn't simply because they wanted a hug from dear old dad."

Maybe it'd be best if she burned down that garden... Eh. Debra had been nice, if strange and she seemed to like it. No sense taking away her happiness. Was in short supply, anymore.

"Anything else?" Vivian asked Suzie. "Better make it good, Last Word and all."

Absently, Suzie tilt her head the other way, visibly vexed at Vivian's tone. Contrary to the way she'd carried herself so far, whether on the bus or flinging herself forward to the Cattail Grill heedless of what had happened to the town of Driftwood, her being somewhat evasive when the subject of her hometown came up had caught her rather off-guard.

"Last Word...?" She repeated in a mutter. "Oh, um..."

Clearing her throat, she continued.

"Given the meteorite in the midst of it all, it seems we'd have to be on alert for things besides the forest itself, like? I won't pry about Moonchild, but would there be anybody else there possessed of strange abilities, Stands...or rather, 'Ghost Puppies', as it were?"

"In any case, if that is all for questions, then it is getting late and we have much to do tomorrow. Once those doors unlock, you will find dinner ready in the dining room. Also, there will be a staff member on each side of the door with a piece of paper. I suggest filling it out with the essentials you'll need for this journey and turning it to the staff."

As they made their way to the exit of the conference room, Suzie looked at the paper and found herself at a loss. They'd gone from danger, into sanctuary, then were preparing to go back into danger once more.

Middle of the summer on the East Coast of America, what's more, it'll be in the thick of the Weald...

"...I'm not overly hungry, perhaps I might take supper in a bit later," Suzie said. Much of the sustenance for her pale, willowy frame today had been contained in the coffee thermos she'd purchased while in town.

"Mr. Joestar had procured samples from the SIZ, I was wondering if the Foundation had any records of them someplace in the study?"

There was the garden, of course, as Vivian had noted, but at this juncture Suzie had feared overgrowth would be the least of their problems.

[Cthulhu_of_R'lyeh]

Absently, Suzie tilt her head the other way, visibly vexed at Vivian's tone. Contrary to the way she'd carried herself so far, whether on the bus or flinging herself forward to the Cattail Grill heedless of what had happened to the town of Driftwood, her being somewhat evasive when the subject of her hometown came up had caught her rather off-guard.

"Last Word...?" She repeated in a mutter. "Oh, um..."

Clearing her throat, she continued.

"Given the meteorite in the midst of it all, it seems we'd have to be on alert for things besides the forest itself, like? I won't pry about Moonchild, but would there be anybody else there possessed of strange abilities, Stands...or rather, 'Ghost Puppies', as it were?"

Vivian's demeanor visibly shifted, evasiveness turning to outright concern. "Asked a difficult question... but I do what I can to provide as straightforward an answer as I can muster." .. if such was even possible.

"The Impact changed things. Know I've said that a time or few in regards to the Weald... the flora... but to say the fauna was undisturbed is certainly not true. As much as Miguel disbelieves, Magic is more than parlor tricks in and around Salem. Perhaps the best advice I can give you or anyone, is to keep your head down and don't accept a fucking thing from anyone that appears suddenly." She spoke far and away different from her usual cadence now, low, slow, and void of her usual effervescence.

"As affable as the people are to commerce and outside goods. Remember what I told you. The Weald provides..." if it wasn't the motto it should be, "but that doesn't mean it's enough for some. Understand my meaning?"

[Yun Lao]

As Boris looks for the gaming room, he stops and ponders for a moment ( Hmm, maybe I check on Debra to see how she's doing.)

Boris then decides to go look for Debra.

Boris would find Debra speaking to Domo further down the hall towards the library, her distraught features haven't yet to leave her since the reading. Domo remained as impassive as ever, despite their conversation appearing to be somewhat heated. Boris would have to get closer if he wanted to eavesdrop, however.

[grampagen]

Vivian's demeanor visibly shifted, evasiveness turning to outright concern. "Asked a difficult question... but I do what I can to provide as straightforward an answer as I can muster." .. if such was even possible.

"The Impact changed things. Know I've said that a time or few in regards to the Weald... the flora... but to say the fauna was undisturbed is certainly not true. As much as Miguel disbelieves, Magic is more than parlor tricks in and around Salem. Perhaps the best advice I can give you or anyone, is to keep your head down and don't accept a fucking thing from anyone that appears suddenly." She spoke far and away different from her usual cadence now, low, slow, and void of her usual effervescence.

"As affable as the people are to commerce and outside goods. Remember what I told you. The Weald provides..." if it wasn't the motto it should be, "but that doesn't mean it's enough for some. Understand my meaning?"

Leading at the outset that this answer would be somewhat conditional, Suzie nodded silently.

She's never been shy to offer an opinion before... Was this secrecy withholding something like Lucy and her desertion of the OSS? Regardless, whatever the case, I'm sure she must have had her reasons.

"Aye, the Weald provides," she repeated. What it provided, certainly, was more than something horticultural from the sounds of it. Yet with her half-sister's concluding words, Suzie's mental picture of wild trees resolved into something more, as if Vivian had placed an adjacent puzzle piece into a half-formed image. "But not everything is completely rootbound. Will do to keep an eye out for strangers and strange creatures. We're already in the thick of one lifetime contract after all.""

And certainly, if the Speedwagon Foundation was making moves, they wouldn't be the only interested parties. The mention of magic - and the side-eye to Miguel, again - with such serious cadence was enough to indicate that there were phenomena there just as strange as Stands.

What have they done to get this Ms. Moonchild as a contact?

"...thanks for hearing me out," Suzie added hastily, "I think I'll look into whether...Mr. Joestar had any information. Even if the lot of us may have to rely on you, I'll do what I can to keep from being a burden."

[Jcogginsa]

"Beats me. I don't know all of them well enough to figure out how to do this, and there may be some who..." Jinny struggled momentarily with the words, "probably wouldn't listen to me even if the building was on fire and I was the only one who knew the only safe exit."

"The best way to do it is, I guess, just to be honest with them. If they don't show up, we can always share what Debra tells us later. I just hope this doesn't turn into another wild ride. It would be nice to have one peaceful night before setting out on papa Johannes' quest."

"We might as well head to the dining hall."

"Sounds like a good idea to me"

[Tami]

"Sounds like a good idea to me"

As they walk to the dining room...

"What impression did you have of Johannes? Do you think this quest of ours will actually result in curing Night Fever?"

[bruceleegreyhulk]

Boris would find Debra speaking to Domo further down the hall towards the library, her distraught features haven't yet to leave her since the reading. Domo remained as impassive as ever, despite their conversation appearing to be somewhat heated. Boris would have to get closer if he wanted to eavesdrop, however.

Boris gets closer to eavesdrop. Boris notices the slight sound his footsteps are making. ( I have been an assassin, but I was just average at best. My granduncle would never make this much noise with his footsteps,) Boris thought.

( He's a first-class assassin, his footsteps would be as silent as a wind,) Boris thought.

[Jcogginsa]

As they walk to the dining room...

"What impression did you have of Johannes? Do you think this quest of ours will actually result in curing Night Fever?"

"He seemed genuine to me. I don't know if this quest will actually cure Night Fever...but I think he thought it would. "

[Tami]

"He seemed genuine to me. I don't know if this quest will actually cure Night Fever...but I think he thought it would. "

"Yeah, well if it does I guess it will be worth it. I just can't figure out why, after all these years no one else has gone after the fragments. No matter how crazy the impact zones are, there are always people crazy enough to venture inside." Jinny thought on this, "There are some things that don't quite add up, but I can't quite put my finger on what's bothering me."

Her tone then shifted slightly, "John, where did you say you came from? Where is your home?"