23:43 <Crion> Did Lauren spend the night? 23:44 <VoxPVoxD> Yeah. Stewart was probably up before her (he can never sleep much past dawn when he drinks). 23:46 <Crion> Then depending whether he's in his bedroom or at his PC, Stewart will hear either her phone buzz on the nightstand (surely he has one; and a boxspring; and a bedframe) or hear the sound of his hex box receiving an IM. 23:46 <Crion> If he's between, both. 23:47 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart hears both; he's sitting on the couch checking his phone. He doesn't like rolling out of bed and going right to the computer. Since only one of those devices is his, that's the one he checks. 23:48 <Crion> QUOTH|THE|BITTER|WIND: <'STEWART READER,' KNOWN OTHERWISE AS 'CRITICALMASS:'> 23:48 <Crion> From the bedroom, Lauren grumble-shouts. "Stewart. Check your computer." 23:48 <Crion> <Assuming direct control.> 23:48 <VoxPVoxD> "On it," he calls. 23:49 <Crion> <Good morning, Stewart. Say hello to Lauren for me.> 23:50 <Crion> *QUOTH|THE|STEWARD|KING: <'STEWART READER,' KNOWN OTHERWISE AS 'CRITICALMASS:'> 23:51 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "Kingsley says hi." 23:52 <VoxPVoxD> Wait. How did he know she spent the night? ...this doesn't trouble Stewart much. Probably just a reasonable assumption. 23:52 <Crion> She makes an irritated growling noise, and then there's sound suspiciously like her slamming her phone down on the bedside table. 23:53 <Crion> <Santander and I should like to have a talk.> 23:53 <Crion> <In private.> 23:53 <VoxPVoxD> ... <when?> 23:55 <Crion> <About lunch. What would you prefer we order in?> 23:57 <VoxPVoxD> <a deli or something is fine. BLT. down at the office?> 23:57 <Crion> <Indubitably.> 23:58 <VoxPVoxD> <ok! call it 1?> 23:59 <Crion> <Indeed. Tell Lauren she has the week, if she wants, it barring emergencies.> 23:59 <VoxPVoxD> <thank you. see you then> 00:00 <VoxPVoxD> You know, say what you will about the professional conspirator and schemer Robert Kingsley; he's a damn good boss. 00:00 <Crion> The account logs out. 00:01 <Crion> When Stewart emerges, Lauren is in the kitchen wearing a t-shirt that's long, but not THAT long. 00:02 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart's face is flushed when he sees her, perhaps from residual alcohol. "Hey, Kingsley called me down to the office for a lunch meeting with him and Santander. He says you can take the week off, barring IT emergencies." 00:03 <Crion> She's putting on tea, without asking. At that, she crosses her arms. "Him and Santander, huh?" 00:05 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart comes up behind her, holding her by the waist and swaying gently while they both look at the kettle. They never did get to dance last night. "Yeah. I've never actually seen them in the same room before. Think I should wear my suit?" 00:05 <Crion> "Mmmmmmmmm." 00:07 <Crion> "How well does it fit?" 00:07 <Crion> "Theirs are gonna be tailored." 00:09 <VoxPVoxD> "So's mine. I figured, I'm making money, I've got a hot girlfriend... clothes gotta fit, right?" 00:09 <Crion> She giggles and turns towards him in his arms. "Then wear the suit. In fact...let's go get dressed." 00:10 <Crion> It's awhile before the kettle's off. 00:10 <Crion> When does Stewart roll into the garage? 00:13 <VoxPVoxD> About 12:45. He was budgeting time for 12:30 but he underestimated the number of showers he was gonna have to take. The suit is navy-colored and makes him look very sharp. His dad would like him like this. As long as he kept his mouth shut. 00:14 <Crion> Well, he's someone else's problem now. 00:14 <VoxPVoxD> ...yeah. 00:15 <Crion> The garage is dark, but this time the bellhop is upright and tips his cap. The elevator opens with a merry ding, door closing neatly, and ferries him up to the 27th floor as soon as his finger touches the button. 00:15 <VoxPVoxD> "Afternoon," says Stewart to the empty elevator. Just in case. 00:20 <Crion> There's an old-school LED display -- the ones with the very simple red-bulb numbers -- above the door, with the room for two full characters, and when it passes floor 12, instead of floor 13, it displays :) 00:20 <Crion> Then 14, then 15, and so on. 00:21 <Crion> The doors open on...not an empty reception desk? 00:21 <VoxPVoxD> Aww. LEDs are cute. 00:21 <VoxPVoxD> What the? 00:23 <Crion> There's a changeling sitting there, but she's not using the computers. Stewart's seen her before, but only once. Her face is drawn and pensive, pinched around the lips, eyes expressive but focused. A Beast, in the Mien of a bird; the Mask has her light, agile, and fragile, in a blouse and jeans. 00:24 <Crion> She's mulling over...a note? Something. 00:25 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart's eyes narrow very briefly, but he's smiling and his voice is present as he walks up, offering her Glamour for a song. "Hi! Stewart Reader. I've got a 1 o'clock?" 00:25 <VoxPVoxD> *pleasant 00:26 <Crion> Cormorant -- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYsfFJT3cBc After this there's calm upon the sea; broken waves can't ever damage me. Broken seems a solemn bird, but when she sings she's always heard. 00:26 <Crion> She looks up sharply. "Conference room. Take a right. Left afore the Mainer's office. Big glass thing." 00:26 <Crion> "Have fun." 00:29 <Crion> As he passes, she gets up to leave. 00:30 <VoxPVoxD> Wait, was she just there to send him that way? No, that can't-- whatever. Stewart follows directions to the conference room. 00:31 <Crion> The law office is eerily empty as usual. It's actually quite difficult to imagine what this place looks like bustling, at this point. 00:32 <VoxPVoxD> Are all the desks empty? Does it look like people ever work here? 00:33 <Crion> The conference room is a long rectangle against the far wall of the floor, and both of the long walls -- facing the hallway and facing the city -- are plate glass floor-to-ceiling windows. The short walls...are also full glass? But they're mirrors. You look in one, you see the room behind you...except for the other short wall, which is black. Then you turn around and look at the 'black' wall, 00:33 <Crion> and IT'S a mirror...except the first wall that's now behind you is black. 00:34 <Crion> The desks look used, but almost like...life-sized dollhouse furniture? 00:35 <Crion> Like someone took some giant tweezers and put that box of Kleenex on the desk just so. 00:35 <Crion> Maybe that's paranoia. 00:36 <Crion> Kingsley and Santander are inside. Alone. 00:36 <Crion> Together. 00:37 <VoxPVoxD> They've got each other, and that's a lot for love~ Stewart will open the door, slowly, without knocking. 00:39 <Crion> Kingsley beckons him forward, eyeing him. Well, his suit. Kingsley is in his usual tie-less three-piece, while Santander is wearing what looks like a suit-jacket...trenchcoat? With a vest, chain-and-pocketwatch, and white shirt under it, with a simply incredibly vibrant violet tie. 00:40 <Crion> "Stewart. Hello." 00:40 <Crion> To Santander: "Next time I'm showing up in sweatpants. Write it down." 00:41 <Crion> There is an assortment of incredible sandwiches on offer. 00:41 <VoxPVoxD> "King. Lord Sage. Sandwiches." Stewart greets each in turn. 00:42 <Crion> It appears they ordered five; both men have selected their own, leaving three for Stewart's perusal. They all fit his specifications, but have varying amounts of mayonaisse/mustard. Next to them sit six strips of bacon, in case he wishes to add more to any of them. 00:43 <Crion> The default seems to be two strips, broken in half. 00:43 <Crion> There is also a pitcher of iced tea. 00:44 <VoxPVoxD> That's fine, a BLT is really more about the tomato than the bacon. Stewart takes the one which has a roughly even amount of mustard and mayo, which he thinks of as the Squirtle sandwich. Pours himself a glass of iced tea. Sits down. 00:46 <Crion> Kingsley nods again and takes a big bite out of his own sandwich, which seems to be a Reuben. There's already a bite out of Santander's, which is a BLT, but heavy on the bacon. 00:47 <Crion> Kingsley realizes that now he can't speak for a moment, frowns while chewing, and points at Santander, who says: "STEWA--" 00:47 <Crion> "Stewart." 00:47 <Crion> A cough. 00:47 <Crion> "You have done...exemplary work." 00:47 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart sips his iced tea, waiting to eat until one of them starts an in-his-opinion-inevitable monologue. "Thank you." 00:49 <Crion> "We have some questions, and, OF COURSE! Concerns. But not in the customer service sense." 00:49 <Crion> Kingsley has finished his bite, and touches his mouth with a cloth napkin. Those are, of course, available for Stewart as well. "You've met a lot of shitkickers in the past two weeks." 00:50 <Crion> "Jesuit had to pull you out of a bad bind. I don't like that. Not because of anything you did, but because of what I didn't do." 00:53 <Crion> He waves the sandwich around. "I didn't hear about the thing with Sobriety--" 00:53 <Crion> Santander: "Society." 00:53 <Crion> Kingsley: "I'll say his name however I fuckin' want." 00:54 <Crion> "I didn't hear about it until after it happened. It occurs to me that's probably because I wasn't checking in, and didn't know you'd gone to the goblin market and picked up...that fuckin' thing." 00:54 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "The Book of Things Strange and Wondrous, you mean?" 00:55 <Crion> Kingsley: "Yep." 00:55 <Crion> "Don't get me wrong, great purchase. Worth whatever you paid, unless it'll kill everyone you love." 00:55 <Crion> "But, things like that, they tend to make psychotic wizards tetchy." 00:55 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "I'm sorry, I should've reported in that I'd taken in a token that powerful." 00:55 <Crion> "Especially ones obsessed with Fate." 00:56 <Crion> Santander: "DO NOT APOLOGIZE!" 00:56 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart blinks. 00:57 <Crion> The lord sage's tie...flashes? "Gaining power for the freehold is virtuous! Humiliating the willworker Society is virtuous! Putting the willworkers we DO like in a position where you can access their librarium upon demand...is virtuous!" 00:58 <Crion> Kingsley: "'Librarium' isn't even proper Latin. Okay, it IS, but not for--" 00:58 <Crion> Santander: "I AM CORRECT." 00:58 <Crion> Kingsley takes another bite of his sandwich. 00:59 <Crion> Has Stewart touched his food? 00:59 <VoxPVoxD> Not really, yet. 01:04 <Crion> Kingsley finishes his bite and puts his sandwich. "It's been a busy time, is the point. I wanted to sit down and sort through that business, see what we can do. Decompress." 01:04 <VoxPVoxD> He'll take a bite after saying, "Like, there are risks I'm prepared to undertake on my own behalf, for the sake of protecting the freehold and expanding the knowledge of the Court. But bystanders were in danger. Women were tortured." 01:04 <Crion> Santander: "NO ONE IS JUDGING!" 01:04 <Crion> Kingsley: "Christ, Santander." 01:05 <Crion> Kingsley: "We have no problem with how you handled the situation. It's unfortunate you were put in it in the first place, and we'll be doing what we can to make sure it doesn't happen again." 01:05 <Crion> He pauses. "But it will." 01:05 <Crion> "That's just how this goes." 01:05 <Crion> "Eventually, it will." 01:07 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "I guess that's a conversation I need to have with Lauren, then." 01:08 <Crion> Santander, snatching an unattended piece of bacon from the plate instead of eating his sandwich: "Mmmmmhrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrmmm." 01:08 <VoxPVoxD> This is a good sandwich. 01:11 <Crion> Kingsley meets Stewarts eyes, and the wind kicks up a bit, and there's leaves on the corners of his vision, and the King of Autumn's eyes seem to sink back into his skull. "Do right by her." 01:12 <Crion> Then the room snaps back. "Or end it quickly." 01:12 <Crion> "I'm not going to try to dictate courtiers' personal lives." 01:14 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart presses his lips together and wipes his hands over his plate. "Do you think it's possible?" 01:14 <VoxPVoxD> "To be in this line of work and do right by someone?" 01:15 <Crion> Kingsley: "Absolutely." 01:15 <Crion> "That doesn't mean it will end well. That's not in your control. Or hers, or mine, or anyone's." 01:15 <Crion> "And nothing ever really ends well." 01:15 <Crion> Santander chuckles. 01:16 <Crion> Kinglsey avoids giving him a look. 01:16 <Crion> "But yes, you can do it." 01:17 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "We've got a month before the Sky Mother's Huntsman reconstitutes." 01:18 <Crion> Santander: "I have SUGGESTIONS about that. For afterwards!" 01:18 <Crion> Now he takes another bite of the sandwich. 01:20 <Crion> Kingsley: "We'll handle that. There are signs and signals; we can know with...some degree of certainty, when it comes back. And I'm sure you'll be on top of it. What I want to talk about here are two things, one of improbable but incredible importance, and one just downright important." 01:21 <Crion> "The first: you had a night out with Father Jesse." 01:21 <Crion> "He...disclosed...that he used his, ah. Word. On you." 01:21 <Crion> Kingsley leans forward: "Did you experience time loss?" 01:21 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "Oh, yeah. That wasn't really a big deal, it was just like, stop and start. He didn't make me do anything messed up." 01:22 <VoxPVoxD> "No time loss to speak of." 01:22 <VoxPVoxD> "The whole thing was maybe thirty seconds." 01:22 <Crion> Kingsley ignores the first bit, but leans back comfortably when Stewart answers the question. "Good, good. I like Father Jesse. But...one must be vigilant, when it comes to powers like his." 01:24 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "I understand. Is the power of compulsion common among vampires?" 01:24 <Crion> "If you ever enter his company, or any vampire's company, and leave it unable to account for any length of time -- a blankness there, you'll know it when you feel it, when you focus on it -- come immediately to this building, call us, and then lock yourself in the Mainer's office." 01:24 <Crion> Santander: "Too common!" 01:25 <Crion> "They toy with minds in ways which degrade their own." 01:25 <Crion> He snatches up another piece of bacon. 01:25 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "Is there a lot of precedent for that happening? That level of abuse. It seems like the Court and the Freehold are on really good terms, you know, considering." 01:26 <Crion> Kingsley, curtly: "Yes." 01:26 <Crion> "Next, and more important, order of business." 01:27 <VoxPVoxD> Nodding, eating, listening. 01:28 <Crion> "The Mistress of the High House." 01:29 <VoxPVoxD> No longer nodding or eating. 01:29 <Crion> Kingsleys takes another bite. Santander jumps in here. "The report, Stewart, was vague." 01:29 <Crion> "On the specific matter of this creature. 01:29 <Crion> "We should like to know what was discussed, and what, if anything, was promised." 01:29 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "I'm happy to provide clarity. I might've skipped some details in my haste to report." 01:29 <Crion> "Even in prospective terms. Possibly unsealed." 01:32 <VoxPVoxD> "We'd just caught up with Loser outside the Loyalist Hollow. There was some friction over how long it took us to respond, tempers were running a little hot. Then we hear this sound. Something cracking, and trumpets. Come to find out the Mistress had breached the Hollow, and was growing trees *through* the Loyalists. Two of them were already dead when we got there. We watched Proctor die." 01:32 <VoxPVoxD> "The Mistress of the High House turns to us, and goes, 'You must be Peter's friends!'." 01:32 <Crion> Santander narrows his eyes and scribbles something down on a napkin with a piece of thin charcoal he seems to have summoned from nowhere. 01:33 <Crion> Kingsley pinches the bridge of his nose. "Montgomery, of course." 01:33 <VoxPVoxD> "Right." 01:34 <VoxPVoxD> "The fourth Loyalist runs in from a side room, with her chainsaw. The Mistress entangles her. She says she's not here to hurt anyone who wasn't hunting 'her Peter'." 01:34 <Crion> Kingsley hisses, while Santander leans forward. 01:36 <VoxPVoxD> "The tree's spreading over - K.I.L.L. is the name she gave - and she's absolutely stuck in place. So are we, but not physically. It was like someone snapped the dial off of the Common Crown contract to freeze someone in place with fear. None of us could move. Some of us weren't taking it well." 01:36 <Crion> Santander, more reserved than usual: "What was she like." 01:37 <VoxPVoxD> "Then the Mistress turns to us like, 'You're the heroes. So I want your help. What should I do with her?'. Her being K- the last Loyalist." 01:37 <Crion> "The Keeper." 01:41 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "She presented as a tall woman, blonde hair, a little past shoulder-length. Stunningly beautiful. Eyes of green fire. She had kind of a high-society accent? Very upbeat - smiley, optimistic. Perky." 01:43 <Crion> Santander: "And what were her stakes?" 01:43 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "She tips on a Taylor Swift track - Miss Americana and the Heartbreak Prince." 01:43 <VoxPVoxD> "Stakes?" 01:43 <Crion> "That is to say: why was she there? Did she have any other involvement than this Montgomery boy? Did she mention anything else? Any other Keepers? Any other reasons she might have had to murder a sect of Loyalists?" 01:44 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "She seemed totally fixed on Peter, and on punishing people who hurt Peter. Like, you know... like she loved him. I got the impression their Durance took the shape of, of a romantic relationship." 01:46 <Crion> Kingsley: "I was afraid of this. Wasn't I afraid of this, Santander?" 01:46 <Crion> Santander, mildly, picking up another piece of bacon. "You were. I still don't think it's as dire as you do." 01:47 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "Anyway, like I reported, at this point she had us vote on whether or not to spare the last Loyalist. The vote went 4-1-1 in favor of saving her. I voted to save her because Loser did, and Loser was the only one of us who knew her at all." 01:49 <Crion> Kingsley, frowning: "How kind of it." 01:49 <Crion> Santander, between crunches: "Her." 01:49 <VoxPVoxD> "Then looks sort... bashful? Like she'd have looked if she realized she was talking too loud in a room that suddenly went quiet. Then she gives us the message she wants us to pass on, that she wants him to come home. Bt only if he wants. She was *very* pointed that we not coerce him in any way." 01:49 <Crion> Kingsley: "Fine. Her." 01:49 <VoxPVoxD> "Then she's like, 'next time we meet, let's not use Contracts, okay?'." 01:50 <VoxPVoxD> "An actual, to-the-Wyrd promise. I sealed it myself." 01:50 <Crion> Both men straighten up. Almost at the same time: "What?" 01:50 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "Totally unsolicited. We could still barely speak." 01:50 <Crion> Santander looks amused bordering on delighted; Kingsley looks shocked bordering on horrified. 01:51 <Crion> Kingsley swivels to Santander, and to his court wizard: "Why would she do that." 01:51 <VoxPVoxD> "So... what do you know about the Mistress? You seemed familiar with her already." 01:51 <Crion> Santander: "I don't know." 01:51 <VoxPVoxD> "Does she have a history in the Freehold?" 01:51 <Crion> Kingsley: "She swore an oath. Why would she swear an oath?" 01:51 <Crion> Santander: "I don't know!" 01:52 <Crion> The lord sage snatches up his sandwich. "But isn't it INTERESTING?" 01:52 <Crion> Then he takes a big bite. 01:52 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart eats too. 01:52 <Crion> Kingsley shakes his head. He turns back to Stewart. "We're...aware." 01:52 <Crion> "Of this creature." 01:53 <Crion> "And unfortunately, nothing you've said is out of line with what we've heard." 01:53 <VoxPVoxD> "What would have made it fortunate?" 01:53 <Crion> "This is just the first time someone from this Freehold has encountered her personally." 01:53 <Crion> Kingsley sighs. "Look." 01:54 <Crion> "My concerns about the Mistress of the High House are two-fold. On the first level, my worry is that she is playing some long game and baiting you into a situation that will redound to her favor, will permit her to kidnap Peter Montgomery again, and will permit her to sell you back to your Keepers for money on the nail." 01:55 <Crion> "My second, far graver worry, is that she is completely and totally sincere." 01:56 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "How do you tell the difference between a Keeper who's sincere and a Keeper who's lethally committed to their bit?" 01:57 <Crion> "That she didn't abuse Peter Montgomery, in the traditional sense. That she didn't kidnap him. That he came with her of his own volition, that she let him leave of his own volition, and she has done the same so far all of her victims -- and that this is why there were Loyalists waiting to jump on him as soon as he left. They knew there was an easy mark coming, even if he was just fae-touched." 01:57 <Crion> Kingsley raises two fingers. "That presents two problems, that theory. One is philosophical, one is existential. The philosophical one first. Santander?" 02:00 <Crion> The wizard straightens and puts down the crust of his sandwich. "Ah. Yes. If Peter Montgomery went into Arcadia of his own free will, and LEFT Arcadia of his own free will, how then is he one of us? He should be, as noted, a fae-touched, as he did not have to claw his way through the Thorns. HOWEVER! Our model here is skewed, because by his own story, Peter Montgomery was immediately set upon 02:00 <Crion> as he left the High House by Loyalists in wait, and had to run through the Thorns of the Hedge! So: he did undergo our rite of passage...but he did NOT do so escaping from his Keeper! This leaves us in an epistemic quandry, regarding what we truly know of the Thorns and their intent as coupled to a Keeper!" 02:02 <VoxPVoxD> 'Fae-touched'. Heh heh. 02:04 <Crion> Kingsley waves a hand. "And that's fascinated, but it's not what I care about." He leans forward. "Do you understand the damage that would be done to our society if someone even floated the idea of a Keeper that wasn't abusive? Do you understand how badly that would break everything we believe in? It's unacceptable. We cannot permit the idea to take even a whisper of a root. So much of 02:04 <Crion> our abuse was based on lies and manipulation -- so much! -- and so much of our solidarity is based on the idea that Keepers are an absolute evil. That there is utterly no wiggle room, no conversation to be had. A changeling that came to this court telling use about his Keeper openly like this -- like you have -- would have been exiled or executed as a Loyalist. Montgomery, it appears, is 02:04 <Crion> smarter. Or hopefully, the Mistress is lying." 02:04 <Crion> "But." 02:04 <Crion> "If she's not." 02:04 <Crion> "She must die, and Montgomery must die." 02:05 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart finishes his sandwich quietly. 02:06 <VoxPVoxD> "Why tell me that? I'm no assassin." 02:08 <Crion> Kingsley's face breaks into a smile and he leans back. "To see how you'd take it." 02:10 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "So did I pass?" 02:10 <Crion> "Yes. You're uncomfortable with the idea of killing Montgomery. Good. It shouldn't be necessary. Of course, it will be, if he wants to defend his...woman...but that is a bridge we can cross when we've built it." His face straightens again. "I was not joking about the Keeper." 02:11 <Crion> "The idea of a 'good Keeper' in our society is utterly unacceptable." 02:11 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "Even a totally benign Keeper is still an alien being with unfathomable power and no impulse control." 02:11 <Crion> Santander: "That doesn't make them particularly special." 02:12 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "She could work parking at the Belvedere." 02:12 <Crion> Santander laughs at that, and picks up another piece of bacon. 02:13 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "So obviously the biggest problem with killing the Mistress is killing her. Keepers are very strong. But if that was the only problem, you wouldn't need to float this balloon." 02:13 <VoxPVoxD> "Who do you expect opposition from?" 02:13 <Crion> Kingsley steeples his fingers and frowns. "I do not endorse the notion that she is what she claims to be. I merely wish to underline: if that is so -- even if she is actually a genuinely kind and generous creature, somehow -- she must die." 02:14 <Crion> Santander laughs again, around a mouth of bacon: "Whatever comes looking for her, of course!" 02:14 <VoxPVoxD> "Comes looking for her?" 02:14 <Crion> Kingsley: "Those Loyalists weren't hers." 02:15 <VoxPVoxD> "Ah." 02:15 <VoxPVoxD> "Yeah, I hadn't... really considered that they must still have patronage." 02:15 <Crion> Santander: "Now, you say to yourself: Ah! The Keepers, they will solve this problem for us themselves!" 02:15 <Crion> The lord sage swallows the last of the bacon. "But it never really works that way. If she falls to them, they will...take up her markers." 02:16 <Crion> "And now we have a traditional Keeper hunting Peter Montgomery, of the Spring Court." 02:16 <Crion> "With all that entails." 02:16 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart, dryly: "Well, in that case it sounds like the simplest thing to do is just to kill every Keeper." 02:17 <Crion> Santander, mildly: "The werewolves had an idea for something like that once. Spirit nukes..." 02:18 <Crion> He picks up his sandwich again. "Bad idea. Not worth dwelling on." 02:18 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "Did Loser have anything for you on Proctor's real patron?" 02:19 <Crion> Kingsley grimaces. "She did. We're still...processing. You'll know when we're sure." 02:20 <Crion> He sips his own iced tea. "Oh, and you're going to be sworn to secrecy for the proceedings in this room today. This is an oath of acknowledgment, not one of intent. Meaning you can't talk about anything we discussed here, but you can act on it." 02:21 <Crion> "Lauren will understand." 02:21 <Crion> "She's been in this room eating sandwiches before." 02:22 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart draws in a breath: "Okay." 02:22 <VoxPVoxD> "I'm more worried about the Wherehouse than Lauren. Keeping this a secret from her is one thing, she's still Autumn. She still swore our oaths." 02:23 <VoxPVoxD> "None of the others did. Some of them don't even like you. If I'm acting on this information and meet opposition from them, what am I supposed to do?" 02:23 <Crion> There's the smell of leaves and a gust. It's sealed between the three of them. 02:23 <Crion> Kingsley: "You're supposed to lie." 02:23 <Crion> "And live with it." 02:24 <Crion> "Welcome to the Court of Secrets." 02:24 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "There are ways of outing lies, though. Cupid's Arrow, that one goblin contract, shit, just... I'm actually just not a good liar." 02:25 <VoxPVoxD> "I don't have any, what's the word. Tradecraft." 02:25 <Crion> Kingsley: "You should get some. But in the most mercenary sense, getting caught in a lie doesn't violate your oath, does it?" 02:25 <Crion> "It just makes me angry." 02:27 <Crion> "And while sworn oaths are quite useful, I prefer social pressure to it, if we're being honest. It's easier to predict. It's easier to heal, but it can hurt more." 02:28 <VoxPVoxD> "Speaking of angry, I was told that Langford List reacted to the news about Loser with, uh. The word used was 'wall-punchingly'." 02:30 <Crion> Kingsley leans back. "He'll get over it. Or he'll punch me and we'll have diplomatic incident." 02:30 <Crion> "I'm not concerned either way." 02:30 <Crion> "I like Langford, and I respect Langford, but Langford doesn't run this shop." 02:35 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart nods. "Okay. So is the plan just to wait? What should I be doing?" 02:36 <Crion> Santander: "The plan, sadly, is always to wait." 02:37 <Crion> The door to the conference room opens, and Gerald saunters in. 02:37 <Crion> "Hey, Stewart." 02:37 <VoxPVoxD> "Hey, Gerald." 02:37 <Crion> He picks up one of the other sandwiches and plops down a few chairs away. "Don't mind if I do." 02:39 <Crion> Kingsley: "Hello, Gerald. Yes, Stewart. For now, wait. Develop contacts, develop yourself. Take advantage of that book. Get familiar with the Hedge and working in it. You have things on your plate besides a rogue Keeper, I believe." 02:39 <Crion> Santander: "Yes! This Huntsman business." 02:43 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "I've got some leverage through the Book. I don't fully understand the nature of Huntsmen, though. Are they, like... minor Keepers?" 02:44 <Crion> Santander: "No! And yes. A Keeper has stolen their heart, and fashioned them into a weapon, and replaced their desires with the Keeper's own. They are, in a way, victims. But in a much more significant way, they are violence." 02:44 <Crion> "A fox-hunt." 02:44 <Crion> "There is the fox, and there are the dogs, and there are the men in perfect clothes on horseback." 02:44 <Crion> "The Huntsmen are the dogs." 02:45 <Crion> Gerald: "That big guy in The Sidereal was...the third?" 02:45 <Crion> Kingsley: "Yes, the third." 02:46 <Crion> Gerald: "The third of these ones I've been around for. They iterate." 02:46 <Crion> "They get worse." 02:46 <Crion> "But it's possible they can get better." 02:46 <Crion> "Not that I've seen that, mind." Gerald takes another big bite. 02:46 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "So the way you kill a Huntsman is by destroying their heart, right?" 02:46 <Crion> Santander: "IT IS!" 02:47 <VoxPVoxD> "What if you just, like..." 02:47 <VoxPVoxD> "Give it back." 02:47 <VoxPVoxD> "It would overwrite the piece of the Title that's animating them, right?" 02:47 <Crion> Gerald finishes chewing. "Like I said. Possible they can get better." 02:48 <Crion> Santander: "Indeed...though they have to want it back. Perhaps all do! But handing a heart back to a killing machine -- literal or figurative -- can get complicated." 02:48 <Crion> "IT INVOLVES--" 02:48 <Crion> Gerald: "Dream shit." 02:48 <Crion> Santander: "Damn it, man!" 02:48 <VoxPVoxD> Gerald is a really indispensable part of these guy's dynamic. 02:51 <Crion> He finishes his sandwich and looks at Stewart, pointing at the last remaining one. Stewart want it, or...? 02:52 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart waves it off. All his. 02:52 <Crion> Gerald chows down. He's actually still sweating; maybe he just came from the gym he has to spend 2 hours a day at to maintain that body 02:52 <Crion> . 02:53 <VoxPVoxD> He thought Gerald being in vastly better shape than Kingsley was funny. Then he met Stu. 02:54 <Crion> It's still kinda funny. 02:54 <VoxPVoxD> Yeah... 02:54 <VoxPVoxD> "What does dream shit entail?" 02:56 <Crion> Robert and Gerald Kingsley at the same time: "Nothing good." 02:56 <Crion> Santander: "An adventure!" 02:58 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart turns to Santander. "Tell me more." 03:00 <Crion> The wizard grins, munching on another piece of bacon. Did he steal one from a sandwich? "What do you know about the Gates of Ivory and Horn?" 03:05 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "The Gate of Ivory is how you enter a dream as a dreamer. The Gate of Horn is a way to enter a dream bodily through the Hedge." 03:10 <Crion> Santander nods sagely. "And neither of those will matter until you encounter the Huntsman in the Hedge, and cajole or convince it to permit you to return the heart. Or even find it! I have been told that this Huntsman did not murder the bouncers at your nightclub, with our friendly vampires and werewolves and etcetera?" 03:16 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "Nope. Just bumps and bruises." 03:16 <VoxPVoxD> "Big bumps and bruises, mind." 03:16 <VoxPVoxD> "But that thing was *strong*." 03:16 <VoxPVoxD> "It could have done more damage." 03:17 <Crion> "Good!" says the lord sage, ignoring the qualifiers. "A Huntsman may act with some semblance of humanity -- say, only brushing aside bouncers rather than splattering them outright -- when in vague proximity to its heart. That means that it is possible that Lauren Ipsum's Keeper was either lazy or busy, and hid the heart in the dreams of a nearby mortal, rather than forcing you to dream-trek 03:17 <Crion> across the planet." 03:19 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "Define 'proximity'. Do you mean, in Baltimore, in the club, in the Mid-Atlantic...?" 03:22 <Crion> Grinning: "No idea!" 03:22 <Crion> "Hopefully, the city." 03:23 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "So I'm looking for... I assume the presence of the heart affects their dreams?" 03:25 <VoxPVoxD> "So like, hope they have a therapist or something or else I just start, fuckin, hiking down a Dreaming Road until I see a cyber-post-apocalypse?" 03:27 <Crion> Santander: "Mmmmmmm. Yes, perhaps. It's really too bad you haven't made any friends who know anything about dreams. Or magic." 03:27 <Crion> "Of course, the Freehold DOES have a dreaming specialist..." 03:28 <Crion> Gerald sighs. 03:28 <VoxPVoxD> Innocently: "Who is it?" 03:28 <Crion> Kingsley: "John of the Falls." 03:29 <VoxPVoxD> "What's John's deal?" 03:29 <Crion> "He is...technically...of this court." 03:29 <Crion> Gerald: "He's a fucking psycho, is what his deal is." 03:29 <Crion> Santander: "That's unfair, Gerald." 03:29 <VoxPVoxD> "'Psycho' is kind of a board word for our purposes." 03:29 <VoxPVoxD> *broad 03:30 <Crion> "John of the Falls is chaste and pure, as a matter of his singular religion. He is, however, quite insane." 03:30 <Crion> "One too many times through the gates." 03:30 <Crion> Kingsley: "Or a dozen. Or two." 03:30 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "Can't distinguish dreams from reality?" 03:31 <Crion> Gerald: "Something like that." 03:32 <Crion> Kingsley: "Wait until a sunny day to contact him." 03:32 <Crion> "And don't go alone." 03:32 <Crion> "I'll make the arrangements, and forward the address when I get it." 03:33 <VoxPVoxD> "How not alone? Like, am I bringing witnesses or backup?" 03:33 <Crion> Santander: "Yes." 03:33 <VoxPVoxD> "Ah." 03:33 <Crion> Kingsley: "It's not John you'll need protection from. ...Probably." 03:34 <VoxPVoxD> "I can tell the Wherehouse about John, right?" 03:35 <Crion> Kingsley nods. "The oath ended when Gerald walked in." 03:35 <Crion> "Well, its remit." 03:35 <Crion> Gerald groans. "You assholes." 03:35 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "Yeah, I just wasn't sure if there was another layer protecting John from the Freehold or vice-versa." 03:36 <Crion> Gerald: "Oh no, we all know who he is. We just don't invite him to parties." 03:36 <VoxPVoxD> "Autumn is a Court of specialists, I've been told." 03:37 <VoxPVoxD> "And most of us specialize in not going outside." 03:37 <Crion> The fetch grins around a quarter of a sandwich. Then: "Well, it's like the horror movies say. You'd best believe in specialists, because they believe in you." 03:38 <Crion> Kingsley: "Actually, I think it would be, 'you'd best believe in specialist stories, because you're in one.'" 03:38 <Crion> Gerald: "Whatever, Bob." 03:41 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "Okay. So I'm waiting for word on an address for John of the Falls." 03:41 <VoxPVoxD> More waiting. 03:41 <Crion> Kingsley: "Ehhhh. The address isn't really the problem. It's the letting him know you're coming. It should only--" 03:41 <Crion> Santander: "IT WILL ONLY BE A DAY OR TWO!" 03:42 <Crion> Kingsley: "Yes. Thank you." 03:42 <Crion> Gerald finishes the second sandwich and takes his feet down. 03:42 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "What should I be doing while I'm waiting?" 03:43 <VoxPVoxD> There's that old restless Stewart the other three men will remember, notable now mainly for highlighting his relative absence. "What else can I be doing?" 03:43 <Crion> Kingsley: "Good lord, young man." 03:44 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "Well, fucking, YOU try just sitting around waiting for a phone call with shit like this hanging over the head of someone you love!" 03:44 <Crion> Gerald: "Well, he's not satisfied helping hunt down a vampire serial killer, holding the fort against a Huntsman, bringing a deep cover asset in from the cold and doing it all while making our IT girl swoon--" 03:45 <Crion> Kingsley, coldly: "I have." 03:45 <Crion> Gerald grimaces. 03:45 <VoxPVoxD> "Was it fun?" 03:45 <Crion> Kingsley: "Do you think it's meant to be?" 03:45 <Crion> "One thing you need to understand very clearly, and I want to be quitespecific on this, is that fun is no longer a part of your professional dossier." 03:46 <VoxPVoxD> "No." Quieter: "No. I'm sorry. I just... having work to do helps me focus." 03:47 <Crion> "If you worry about your woman, good. You should. That is healthy. Keep her close...without alienating her. But do not confuse activity for purpose." 03:49 <Crion> Gerald: "I think he's had enough. I certainly have. Good sandwiches." 03:49 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart bristles a little at 'your woman', but no vocal objection surfaces. "You're right. I'm sorry." 03:52 <Crion> Kingsley relaxes. "Speaking against me in this room doesn't require an apology. Never got one from this guy, so why should I from anyone else." Santander shrugs. 03:52 <Crion> A pause. "Very little of what you do here, for Autumn, will require apology." 03:52 <Crion> "But if you choose to give it, we won't stop you." 03:53 <Crion> "Anyway." He stands. 03:53 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart stands too. 03:53 <Crion> Santander has been standing the whole time, of course. Gerald hauls himself to his feet. 03:54 <Crion> "Good work out there, Stewart," Kingsley says, shaking his hand if he takes the offer. "You're doing well. Very well." 03:55 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart shakes the King's hand. "Thank you." Stewart knows he's doing well. But the urge remains to do better. 03:56 <Crion> Kingsley: "We'll be in touch with John of the Falls's address when we're sure he'll know you're coming. I'd offer you leftovers, but my brother ate them all. Gerald, see Stewart out?" 03:56 <Crion> Gerald nods. 03:57 <Crion> Kingsley nods to Stewart. "Good afternoon." 03:57 <Crion> Santander: "FAREWELL!" 03:57 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart says goodbye and leaves with Gerald. "So how's Stu doing?" 03:58 <Crion> Gerald grins and puts his hands in his jacket pockets. "He's good, he's good. He's...ah. This is gonna sound weird." 03:58 <Crion> "He seems a lot more like me than you." 03:59 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "You mean cause he's jacked?" 03:59 <Crion> The grin widens a bit. "That, and he really takes to guns." 04:00 <Crion> "I've wondered if that's a fetch thing, right? If we just do better with machines because...well." 04:00 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "I don't think he's fond of machines, generally. Because of the Keeper. I figure if he likes guns it's just because he's a red-blooded American man. Which I am... not." 04:02 <Crion> Gerald: "Maybe so. Nevertheless, he could explain to me pressure in a firehose and he's a good hand with a rifle. Which is some red-blooded American man shit too, I guess." 04:02 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "He could be in a truck commercial." 04:03 <VoxPVoxD> "I'm glad he's doing well. I was worried he wouldn't take to it. Sort of... this stuff." 04:03 <Crion> "Indeed." Gerald pauses. "Here's the thing: he thinks he can contact you...mind-to-mind. He tried it once before but you were asleep, so he got your dream. Wouldn't discuss the contents, don't worry." 04:04 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart flinches. Man that is just inevitably setting up an awkward sex dream situation. 04:04 <Crion> "He doesn't want to try it again without your consent. I told him to ask you when he was ready. I assume he hasn't yet. You ah, probably haven't been online much, the past couple days." 04:04 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "Yeah, no, I haven't. I'm off work tonight too." 04:05 <Crion> Gerald nods. "Well, that kind of...psychic link, I guess, it's normal. Bob and I have it, both ways. You can have it with him if you want it, and he seems decent enough that if you don't want it you don't have to have it. But it is something you need to work at to keep." 04:06 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "What does working at it entail?" 04:10 <Crion> Gerald: "Mutual understanding, feeling each other out, time spent together. Or brute-forcing your way into the other guy's head, but. That's not really good for comity." 04:13 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "Right. So, uh, speaking of Stu taking to guns. I feel like... I don't know. Like when the Huntsman kicked the door down, I couldn't really do anything but get in front of Lauren. That was fine, cause you guys were there, but if we're going *looking*, and also just if something happens again with Society or whatever... I don't want to be a liability." 04:14 <Crion> Gerald: "I've seen you with a gun, remember. I know you're uncomfortable with them. You can become comfortable with them -- over time -- if you want to. But you also have contracts." 04:15 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "They're not great for fighting, though. Or at least, they're not great for using in a fight instead of fighting." 04:15 <VoxPVoxD> "I know Autumn's Fury but it's *so* messy and *so* high-collateral..." 04:16 <Crion> Gerald mulls that over. "There's a range we could go out to. Both of you. Might have to pretend to be twins for a minute or two, but it's owned by an old half-blind dumbass who doesn't ask questions." 04:16 <Crion> "So if we go at the right time, range to ourselves." 04:17 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "That sounds good. I don't know if I have the stomach for it, but, I gotta try something. I can't afford to be helpless." 04:17 <VoxPVoxD> "Also... what gym do you go to?" 04:19 <Crion> "Locally-owned place called Cutty's. A boxing gym. Some hardcases there but you show up and you train and it's good. We could try it for you, but maybe I'd suggest the UMBC gym. We can get you enrolled on the books and a student ID, maybe the kids there are more your thing." 04:20 <VoxPVoxD> "Is Cutty's in the city?" 04:20 <Crion> "Southeast precinct." 04:23 <VoxPVoxD> Stewart: "Yeah, that's a lot closer to my place." Closer to Lauren's. Further from Maura's. 04:23 <Crion> He shrugs. "If you want, I can come down there the first few times with you. Or you can do it on your own." 04:23 <VoxPVoxD> "That'd be cool. I don't want to put you out though." 04:24 <Crion> He grins. "I'm there just about every day." 04:24 <Crion> Looks it, too. 04:24 <VoxPVoxD> "I believe you." 04:24 <Crion> They've just about reached the elevator. Anything else? 04:25 <VoxPVoxD> No. Stewart's got a lot to think about. 04:25 <VoxPVoxD> And even, blissfully, things to do. 04:25 <Crion> Gerald will call the elevator for him then, and leave him to it.