Balancing on one wounded wing

[magelet_daine]

In the strange and miraculously large Grant Park, across the street from the Conrad Hotel, a Rift opens. It's only open for a moment, and it brings a waft of an ocean breeze through it in the short time it exist

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[amuseamused]

Jennifer Rose is out for another walk. Having discovered the joys of off-campus coffee shops, walks are definitely part of her daily routine.

Just like the other people in the area, Jennifer Rose stares when the Rift opens, but that's because she's never seen one before. For some reason, she expected more sparkles. Once the animals scatter though, she notices the girl looks rather confused.

Deciding that the girl hardly looks dangerous, Jennifer Rose walks over. "Excuse me, but you look a bit lost. Do you want some help?"

[magelet_daine]

Daine whirls around and attempts a smile. She's not sure whether or not this girl is a friend, after all, but she'd like to stay optimistic. "Ah, yes, I... I'm not entirely sure where I am. I was near Pirate's Swoop, to visit Lady Alanna?"

She's hoping desperately that this girl can tell her how to get there from... wherever this is.

[amuseamused]

Oh, dear. That was definitely a rift. Or maybe a teleport from England. Jennifer Rose's knowledge of geography isn't that detailed. And do teleports exist? She isn't sure.

"I, ah, don't think that's possible from here. I'm pretty sure you just came through a rift, you see, and those are one-way only. I think you're in a different world now."

[magelet_daine]

"I... but how is that even possible?" she asks, starting to sound a little nervous. "There... there must be a way back, though. If there's a way here, there's a way back, and... Numair and Kit and Cloud, they'll be worried about me!"

Despite the fact that she sent them off, the closer animals move a bit closer. She's upset, they want to fix it.

We can mob her! a squirrel supplies.

No, Daine tells them silently. It's not her fault, she's trying to help. Stay put.

[changingtheodds]

Ruvin was in her room, being a dog. It's reassuring, in its own way, which she feels she should be disturbed by, but the simple logic of her breed--I am large. I will protect--is a welcome respite from the uncertainty of being human.

She's curled into a ball on the bed, half-asleep, when the SUN arrives in Chicago. It hits her like a kick to the ribs and she's squirming out the door and running for the basement lift before Daine's surprise and worry hit her at a conscious level. The lift takes TOO LONG. People take TOO LONG to need it. She whines and paws at the doors, getting a grin from the blue-haired angel sharing the ride with her.

"Need a piss, love?"

Ruvin bolts out the doors as soon as they open, shoves her way past a surprised couple coming into the hotel, and dodges cars to get across the street. There.

Suddenly she is shy. That's the human in her, wallowing under her doggy need be near this girl, help, comfort. She whines and crouches, not moving any closer but definitely not moving away.

[magelet_daine]

Daine spots the dog and smiles, though she tilts her head curiously. This dog has a strange feeling. She's People, but she almost feels two-legger as well. Daine smiles and crouches down, reaching out a hand.

It's all right, she says silently, in the mind-to-mind language of the People. I won't hurt you. You're a good dog.

[changingtheodds]

There's a moment of tension between human ego and dog instinct--at the gentle touch of Daine's words against her mind, dog instinct wins. Humanity is going to take a backseat in this conversation.

Ruvin inches forward, snuffling at Daine's hand. Her tail practically pinwheels in enthusiasm. You are... strange. You came through the Rift?

She sneezes. Smell of it on you.

[magelet_daine]

I suppose so, Daine responds, politely reaching up to scratch Ruvin behind the ears. After all, she's a good dog. She deserves a scritching. I'm not sure what the Rift is, though.

Daine hesitates for a moment, afraid that what she's about to ask might be rude, but she's never had to ask it before. I don't suppose... well, you feel a little like a two-legger. Why is that?

[cyfor]

Cy was looking for her marble again. It has to be somewhere in the leaves of Grant Park, she has decided--now if she could only figure out where. She's scattered the ones around the fountain far and wide, and is now criss-crossing the space around it.

Then Daine shows up, and her marble is temporarily forgotten in a mad rush toward the shiny new thing that has landed in Cy's world. She skids into the clearing where Daine appeared, just in time to see the birds take off.

"Mine!" She chirps, leaping after a slower pigeon. She misses, of course, but it was worth a try.

[magelet_daine]

Daine doesn't quite register that she's heard Cy's voice audibly, and steps forward to quickly scoop the kitten up with one hand. "Stop that, you," she says sternly. "He's bigger than you, and you should be better behaved. Didn't your mother teach you any manners?"

[cyfor]

Cy flails a bit, then fixes Daine with a look of utmost innocence. "What's manners, precious?"

[magelet_daine]

And now Daine notices that the cat is actually talking, and nearly drops her in shock. She doesn't, of course, she just gapes. "You... You can speak," she says. "I mean, you can speak like a two-legger. How do you..."

Then she frowns a bit. "What's on your head, little one?"

[curtainfalling]

Revan's still hanging out in Grant Park when Daine walks through the Rift. She's never been one to leave a new Wanderer without trying to explain things to them. She still remembers her own confusion when she arrived, and how nervous she was as well.

Given this last fact, Revan approaches the girl very carefully. The fact that she's apparently talking to a group of animals is mildly unnerving, but she shoves that aside for the moment. "Hello?" She says, tentatively. "You okay?"

[magelet_daine]

Daine looks over at the woman and gives a tight smile. "I... Yes, I'm just a bit lost, apparently. I was travelling towards Pirate's Swoop? On the coast?"

One of the squirrels runs past Revan and hides behind Daine's legs, chittering a bit. She feels like a predator, it tells Daine. Don't let her get behind you, she'll eat you!

I'm sure she won't, Daine replies, a bit amused, but she stays wary. Animals are good judges of character, she's found.

[curtainfalling]

Revan won't eat her! That would be wrong. Instead she arches an eyebrow at Daine. "Pirate's Swoop?" she repeats, slowly. "I don't think I've heard of it. This is Chicago, Illinois." She's trying to avoid simply "ambushing" Daine with the news about the Rift. It might be a bit much to handle at first. Besides, she's still trying to figure out how best to phrase the news. Words are occasionally hard to come by.

[magelet_daine]

Well, better to be ambushed than to not know for too long. Daine frowns and purses her lips. "That's what the birds said. I've never heard of a city called Chicago. And a city this size..." she gestures helplessly. "I'm certain I would have at least heard of it. It's too cool to be the south of Carthak... is this the other side of the Roof of the World?"

Hey, it's the best idea she can come up with.

One of the squirrels decides to be braver than the rest, and scampers out from behind Daine's legs briefly to chitter angrily at Revan. You can't eat her! She's People, we won't let you!

"Oh for goodness' sake, she's not going to eat me," Daine says aloud in exasperation. "Now stop being rude."

The squirrel, still muttering to himself, runs back behind Daine's legs, glaring as darkly as a squirrel can from the relative safety. Clearly he is not pleased by being told off.

[beanshield]

Bean is hanging out in Grant Park again, as she's coming to love it there. She doesn't see Daine come through the Rift, but she does notice the sudden conglomeration of birds. Potato perks up and starts wagging his tail, suddenly looking quite animated--something Bean rarely sees in him, Potato with all his quietness and rigidity.

She makes her way over to the flock of birds and notices the girl. She watches for a few minutes, a smile slowly blossoming over her face. Finally she steps forward, Potato at her side.

"You can talk to animals! How nifty! I always knew animals could talk and such, but it's the sort of thing, you know, how do you learn a language like that? Since there's no real cipher or anything and it would be hard to get tutors. Although that would be something, wouldn't it, like, dogs and lizards holding classes to teach humans how to talk to them and such. ANd, um, I'm rambling! Sorry."

[magelet_daine]

Daine looks up and is... well, initially a bit distracted by Bean's hair. She has never seen hair that colour. But as Bean keeps talking, Daine giggles a bit.

"It's a sort of magic, is all," she says. "And they can understand humans pretty well, they just don't bother paying attention most of the time. Or they don't know exactly what the words mean."

She smiles at Potato as well. Hello! she says to him. Your human's very... colourful. Was she born like that?

[beanshield]

Bean positively beams. "Really? I've only met a handful of people with magic powers or anything like that. I mean, for the longest time I thought I was the only one. But this city feels really strange, like it's humming and all. Um. Have you lived here long?"

Potato's tail wags harder, and he's staring at Daine with the sort of puppy-like reverence he usually reserves for Bean.

She puts colors in her fur, he explains. Human-puppies do silly things like that.

[magelet_daine]

Two-leggers are often silly, Daine agrees with Potato.

"Um... Well, I've never... actually been here before," Daine explains slowly. "The squirrels said it was someplace called 'Chicago'?" She grimaces as she glances around. "This is... very different from my home. And I'm not quite sure how I got here..."