Summary:A God, A Witch And A Godling tangle with a spirit fox. What could possible go wrong? Log Info:Storyteller: None |
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It's not that everything in New York happens in Central Park though it certainly can feel that way. The portions of it that are open to the public are well used during the day but it is evening now. It's cold. It's a little bit damp. And it's a weekday, so many people are going home to get dinner, spend time with loved ones, entertain themselves and then turn in to be ready for tomorrow.
It's probably a good thing, all things considered. Because it means that there isn't anyone in the immediate area of a particular copse of trees off one of the jogging paths when the sound of a length of chain hitting a tree splits the silence.
"Get back here you little… grrr…" A glowing fox bursts through the undergrowth, grinning madly as a tall, well built man in a long coat runs behind him and stoops to pick up a length of iron chain with glowing sigils hovering over it. He starts swinging it in the air above his head. "I swear to various gods, do not make me come over there and get you."
The glowing fox bows in a playful manner about twenty feet away and then runs off again.
"HEY! THIS ISN'T A GAME YOU…"
You know what's fun? Drinking is fun. Especially if you pregame with a little day drinking. Maybe a touch of morning drinking, you know, hair of the dog for the night drinking you had been doing the day before. And so it goes. Hod is currently enjoying a bit of the evening drinking, which is like all the other drinkings, but a touch more acceptable in public so long as one doesn't get carried away. The nondescript bottle in his hand tilts up to his lips, the shadow cast by his arm convenitently falling over the label obscuring it's details from view. He tilts his head to the side, hearing the sounds of the cursing man and what sounds like a small dog.
Hod sighs, "This is why I avoid the Village." he mutters softly.
'ding ding'
That's the sound of bike bell coming along path towards the glowing fox. "What the …" Keiko Kurita has to swerve to miss the creature that dashes across the path in front of her. Swerves right into a tree and buckles her wheel.
"You … again…" she growls, picking herself up off the ground and staring Koa. "Why is it, each time I see you …." absently, she rubs her arm and winces a little.
Illyana Rasputina certainly isn't jogging along the trail, though she has been walking along it. With a little wicker basket held in the crook of her elbow and a pair of cutting shears in her other hand. She's been peering at one of the plants with a frown on her lips and consulting a small book beneath one of the lamps that light the way. It might make for a rather charming image, were she some cute little old lady with a shawl or something. Instead, she looks like an escapee from a heavy metal band. With a cute little basket that has some cuttings.
The blonde's head comes up at the sound of complaining in time to watch the odd goings on which precipitates the crash. *flip* She closes the little book and tucks it and her cutting shears away in her basket as she turns the full of her attention to t he fox and its games.
The Fox runs a circle around Keiko while Koa spins the chain above his head. It's still got sigils glowing. It's… very obviously not a normal chain and for that matter Koa also has sigils and markings glowing about an inch above his left arm.
"Me, yes. Fancy seeing you again Keiko." Koa does not, however, throw the chain. Because, you know, it's heavy chain and he might hit Keiko.
After a few circles the fox breaks for Hod and snatches his cane.
"No! You put that back you-" The words that follow next are all in ancient greek but Hod at least will understand them. They are not flattering.
Cane in mouth the spirit bolts toward the blonde under the lamp. Koa throws again and with good aim but the fox just teleports two feet to the right and continues on it's way.
"Nnnnnggghhh…" It is not a pleased sound Koa makes. He walks over to Keiko to try to help her pick her bike up. "Sorry, both of you." Does the blind guy even know his cane is gone?
"You didn't tell me you had pets too…" Keiko grumbles. The wheel is buckled, she's going to be pushing the bike when she leaves, it's going to be a very uncomfortable ride otherwise.
"Do you need help finding it? Or will it come back to you eventually?" Nonetheless, the dusky skinned woman rummages in her bag and pulls out some cheese. "I don't know if this will work, but I can sometimes coax Bella back.
Oh yeah, she really thinks the glowing fox is a pet.
Hod's head snaps around as the cane is snatched from his loose grip, and his lips pull back from his teeth in a snarl. When the man swears in ancient Greek, Hod responds in the same tongue, his words cutting the air like razors as he pushes himself to his feet and barely even sways a little. "Give. It. Back." he hisses.
My it's chilly out today… what with that suddenly brisk breeze and all.
Illyana Rasputina continues to watch with what one of her former classmates liked to call her 'resting witch face'. There's not much of a ripple to her expression despite the glowing fox and the teleporting. Her gaze does shift down to watch the fox as it prances towards her, arching a brow at it. Cheeky critter.
It is cheeky yes. It is after all a fox. Hod's explosion in ancient greek has Koa's head turning. There are not many people who know that language like that. Sure it's not exactly a secret but the number of people who study ancient greek well enough to take a stab at using it in dayh to day life are limited basically to classicists and archeologists.
And this dude, apparently.
"It's not a pet." Koa mutters wincing at the condition of the bike. "Sorry about your bike. We'll get that taken care of. It's more of a soon-to-be-inmate" That's clearly a threat but the fox spirit despite the threats manages to slide itself behind Illyana and use her as a human(ish) shield. It peeks out. Tail wags.
"Seriously drop it. You've broke her bicycle and stolen a blind man's cane. You're not funny, I don't think she thinks you're funny either." Koa looks up to the visibly unimpressed blonde. "Sorry, miss."
Wait, what is that she's got with the book and the clippings?
The Fox drops the cane behind Illyana and moves off to the handle end again like he might let someone come pick it up… or he might try grabbing it and bolting again. No sense of self preservation perhaps?
"It looks like one." Keiko mutters, leaning the frame of her bike against the tree. "I'll have it fixed up when I get home. What do you mean inmate?"
It's hard to ignore the magic in the air, the woman rubs her arm again. "That's not just you, is it?" She asks cryptically. "And your pet just wants to play. You should let it."
OK, it's stolen that poor man's cane, but it's kind of funny. Will the blonde try to get the cane?
Hod inhales through his nose slowly, "Give." he says, and that time it's in Babylonian, "It." basic Latin so likely less impressive, "Back." that one was in a form of Min-Nan long since passed from memory. And then he begins stalking towards the fox… sort of. A bit to the left of it, and he's not entirely walking a /straight/ line so much as a slightly wobbly one.
Illyana Rasputina turns slightly, blonde hair falling over one shoulder as she looks at the fox. She doesn't quite give her back to the trio of strangers but her features are obscured. Her eyes shift to glowing white amidst the dark makeup around her eyes and her teeth lengthen info fangs as she tells the fox "Boo." while at the same time moving to put one of her heavy boots down on the cane to hold it to the ground.
To those with extrasensory senses, they might pick up the ripple of demonic energies that rides the eerie chill wind.
"It's a fox. This is what they do." Koa mutters to Keiko. "Granted this one is especially troublesome. And has been for a little bit. Seriously though, you don't have to, you know, pay for that. I'll get the wheel replaced… you wouldn't have broke it if it weren't for that annoying thing."
The fox bows as Hod starts to walk forward. Well. Walk sideways/crabwise. Koa is mildly concerned that the blind man is going to run into something or stumble over or… well, generally plotz.
He does not, though and when the fox yips and scampers back, tail and fur fluffing out he quirks a brow.
"Well well…" He says angling out to the side and… there goes the chain again. This time it hits the fox and wraps around it. "Gotcha!"
There's a heavy sigh from the Fox. "You're all no fun." It's a slightly petulant complaint in a voice that is very, very reminiscent of Michael Caine.
"That's enough out of you." Koa responds. Watching as Illyana secures the walking stick for Hod. "Thanks miss. And sorry about him, sir."
"No that's not just me. I think that's at least HIM…" Koa says sotto vocce, nodding his head at Hod. That's part of the reason for the 'sir'. One must be polite in these circumstances
"It's a fox. They like to play …" Keiko murmurs, eyes widening at Hods meandering path up the errrr path. "She's got the right idea though …" there's a nod to Illyana when she steps on the cane.
"Oooooh. Nice voice. Where are you from, little one?" Keiko's seen that chain in action and she thinks the small creature will disappear anytime now.
"Nicely done…" that's to Illy. Hod - just gets eyed.
Hod stumbles a bit more left then straight ahead and appears to be headed for one of the iron caged trash cans that dot the occasional path in the Park, "I am not-" that's Spanish… with a Tijiuana accent, "not-" some form of French? "not drunk!" he pauses in his stumble walk, looks around, "Wait. No one said drunk, did they?" he asks the air. "Well fuck." and sits down in the grass, perhaps a little harder then he meant to. At least all of that last part was in English, some slightly European accent mixed in there. "Where's my stick?"
With the foxy… fox secured, Illyana steps back and leans down to collect Hod's cane. "I've been told that. More than once." The blonde says in a dry manner. Twirling the cane a bit to shift her grip, Illyana steps towards the sitting Hod and offers the cane out handle-first to the apparently-drunk man. Still with the little basket slung in the crook of her elbow.
The blonde's pale gaze stays on Koa and the fox, interested even if her expression is neutral.
"Dublin." The Fox replies to Keiko. "Maybe I should go back there so Mister Kill-Joy over here doesn't ruin all of my fun."
"You were about to get squished there Kilkenny, I saved your life."
"I feel sooooooo saved." The fox does not disappear but it can't seem to get loose despite the fact that one would think that it could wiggle out of ordinary chains with no lock.
Koa shifts himself so he can look at Hod, Illyana and Keiko all at the same time. "No, no one said drunk… except you. Is it me or did it get a little colder out here?" Sort of… unseasonably. If Illyana is looking at him with interest he glances briefly to Keiko when she spins the staff as if to say 'did you see that too?' Defintiely she seems to know what she's doing. Also…
"I don't think I've ever seen anyone bring empty picnic baskets to Central Park to fill them up…" If Keiko hadn't noticed the book and shears and basket with clippings… she might now. Koa just called attention to it.
"He wasn't going to squish me. He's drunk." The fox protests.
Koa sighs.
"Dublin hmmm? Seems to be a Irish theme this week. Is it just coincidence or what?"
Drunk? Keiko looks at Koa, he's the one with the languages. The only thing that Hod said she remotely understood was I am not. "No, Sir, you didn't say drunk but I think you said a lot of other things. Are you alright? Do you need assistance?"
Yes, Illyana does seem to know what she's doing, the polynesian woman makes a note to keep her distance. As to the basket and the book "It's New York, I've seen people do strange things since I've been here."
Hod lifts a hand with a single finger extended, "And blind." he points out, adding to the fox's arguement, "But I /still/ would have found you." and he turns his head to stare right at the spirit, "Eventually." which frankly just sounds ominous. He reaches out and snags up the cane without apparently needing to see where it was or feel about in the air for it. "I'm fine." pause. "Be fine." pause. "I'm drunk." he finally admits. "Little bit." holds out a forefinger and thumb about a centimeter apart. He ignores any talk of the um… chilly breezes or whatever. He'd shiftyeye… but he can't.
When Hod reaches for his cane, Illyana holds onto it and he feels the resistance of that hold for just a moment. And then she lets it go. The sitting man gets a long, considering look before she responds to Koa's comment. And I haven't seen anyone antagonizing talking foxes here before. I'd say you're the stranger fellow.
Hod is given another long look by the blonde. "Would you like a hand up?" When most people say something like that, there's a sense of kindness. When Illyana says it, it's more like she's stating a fact. She also didn't ask if wanted help.
"But clip the grass?" Koa asks to Keiko. And she does have what seem to be grass clippings? Maybe they're flowers or something. He hasn't looked too closely and while he would ordinarily he's also trying to figure out Hod and doesn't want to get smacked by the staff twirling blonde. Or kicked. Those are some mean looking boots.
The fox freezes when Hod looks right at him. "Oh. Ahem. Forgive me sir I din't immediately recognize you."
Koa gives him a look. That's… much more polite than he usually is. "You gonna behave?"
"Yeah."
The chain loosens and Koa starts pulling it back into a coil.
Illyana's comment gets a sigh. "I do kind of like that pain in the ass. Which is why I try to keep him from breaking people's bikes and stealing their sticks."
Now the fox sighs and walks over to Keiko. "Sorry miss. Can I make it up to you?"
"You make a lot of assumptions." Keiko says quietly to Koa. It's loud enough for the others to hear, just not brash or bold. She does look more closely at Illyana's basket "People take samples of things around here all the time. Might be an experiment or maybe it just fills her boat."
Looking directly at the unnerving blonde, Keiko considers a moment "So is grass you're collecting? Or something else? I'm no botanist."
"A little bit drunk doesn't sound like much fun. You should try a lot. I know a good pub not far from here." She says to Hod. She frowns as the Fox seems to recognise him. "Who is he?" beat "Who are you?" Direct. And perhaps slightly rude.
"Let me guess…" the polite fox draws her attention "… if you're not his pet, he's yours?"
Hod's hand extends upwards in the general direction of Illyana's voice, wavering about as if searching for the profered hand up, "Well can't blame you there. Then again, not being recognized is half the point." he makes a face, "Most of the time." He plants the silver capped butt of the cane on the ground and uses it to help lever himself upward. "Anyone seen my drunk?" pause. "Drank?" pause. "Drink?" His smile is a wry thing, "Me? No one important. Not anymore."
Illyana Rasputina reaches her free hand, the one that doesn't have the basket dangling from it, out to catch Hod's swaying hand in a firm grip. She doesn't really try to pull him up, but offers the resistance that he can pull himself up.
"I'm not clipping _grass_." The blonde says with mild annoyance. "I'm pretty sure you use a lawnmower to do that. I'm clipping plants." Only after Hod seems to be steady on his feet and lets her hand go does she reach in to pull out the little book and thumb through it. "I think this is red-twigged shadbrush." She scowls down at the pages, squinting a bit since she's moved a bit away from the lamp that lights the path. "Or is it a Bilberry…"
The Fox's ears perk up when Keiko suggests that Koa might belong to him rather than the othe way around. Koa glares. "Don't you even think about it Kilkenny."
The fox's ears flop. Well one goes down. The other stays perked.
"Spoilsport." He mutters in that almost dainty Michael Caine voice.
He walks beside Keiko putting her between himself and Koa and also himself and Illyana. She's skeeery. "He's always like this too."
"Shut UP, Kilkenny!." Koa hisses pinching the bridge of his nose. "You're NoOne, eh? I seem to remember someone saying that to a cyclops once." Koa pauses. "Didn't work out well for the cyclops. Your drink is on the bench still, though."
There's another pause and Keiko's question gets a quirked brow. "Are you… looking for one of those two things specifically?"
Beat. "It's Bilberry, by the way. There's a shadbrush over there."
"Are you sure you aren't?" Keiko smirks at Koa, ruffling the glowing fox's upright ear. "You'll have to me how you came to hook up with him." That's to the Fox. The small polynesian looking woman seems to be content to talk about Koa like he's not there.
Sort of.
"Are you gardener?" she quirks an eyebrow "I thought you were an archaeologist."
That Illyana is looking for clippings is interesting though. "Without assuming, are you … studying?" she finds Hods drink and takes it to him. "I guess that's a no on the drink.
Hod snorts at Koa, "How lucky for me I'm one eye short of being a cyclops." he points out, "Means I'm safe I'd wager." when the drink is returned to him he takes three attempts to pluck it up and raise it to his lips, swallowing the remaining contents in short order, "Drink? Naw." he wriggles the empty bottle at Keiko, or actually a bit behind her where she was when she was talking a moment ago, "I got plenty." the bottle in question appears to be empty.
He turns away from the group, cutting away at a right angle, "You kids keep your silly spirits under control, stealing blind men's canes… not civilized is what that is. Half a mind to tell you all to get off my lawn…" he's still muttering to himself as he walks away, more or less in the direction of Midtown… or Lennox Hill… now back towards Midtown…
Illyana Rasputina mmms to herself as Koa says it's Bilberry, thumbing back another few pages before digging around in her basket again to come up with a pen where she makes a mark.
The blonde is still looking at the page when Keiko asks if she's a gardener. There's a pause and then Illyana lifts her head. And then one brow. She leans forward a bit to look down at herself, in her metal-band-reject attire, and then looks back at Keiko. "You're really not good at this game, are you?" The dry humor is somewhat mocking. The question of if she's studying gets a shrug of one shoulder. "In a manner of speaking."
Hod's departure gets a glance from the icy blonde, but she doesn't try to help him. Or hinder him. Or even make with the polite goodbye sort of stuff.
Koa does not point out that Central Park is technically the City's lawn. One does not mouth off to beings that are whatever he is. He isn't quite sure what the man is - and didn't get a name - but he is something with power. That much was plainly visible. And not the kind of power that Keiko has where it's hidden when she's not doing her thing.
The heavy metal look IS kind of odd. The Fox decides he's going to sit on Keiko's shoes as Koa tries to ignore him in the perhaps futile hopes that he won't cause any more trouble.
Kilkenny is batting at Keiko's shoelaces.
"So you're gathering specific kinds of plants then? That you don't want to just get from a nursery?"
Which… makes perfect sense to Koa. But depending on, oh, the english skills of the other two might not make much sense to THEM.
"I don't play games." Keiko answers honestly. "Well. I don't play games often." Maybe Illyana's mocking is lost on her. Or maybe she's just good at hiding things.
Crouching down to pat Kilkenny again, Keiko keeps her eyes on the other two. "What do plants have to do with children? I thought there were child labour laws in America…" Clearly she's confused.
"Because one has remarkably less people than the other." Illyana's words aren't aggressive, though her dry manner might make one think she's being snide. "Or at least, did." Putting her things back in the little wicker basket she shifts it from the crook of her arm to hold in a more normal grip and heads back towards the path.
Kilkenny arches his back and does finally get off Kieko's shoes, though he DOES remain in easy petting range.
"She's a bit of a witch." He says to the other two.
Koa rolls his eyes. "Just because she didn't fall for your vulpine charms doesn't make her a witch."
"I can't think of any OTHER reason to prefer, say, cats to foxes."
"Alright you. Git." Koa shoo's the spirit and looks up the path the blonde is headed up. Witch? Well. It's certainly possible that she is, there's lots of magic he can't just see unless it's being used, but… it's just plants. Really wearid, shoestring budget horticulture, probably. He didn't get a good look at the book.
"Do you want me to help you with that bike?" He says finally. Koa looks like he's ready to leave but he'll finish cleaning up the mess here, which includes the bike that is now inoperable.
"Labor laws… what… oh, NO! Not that kind of Nursery. You don't seriously think I was suggesting she have toddlers get the plants for her, do you?" Keiko's english is remarkably good so, no Koa didn't pick that the reference might be an issue.
"It's America. All sorts of strange things …" Keiko gestures vaguely.
"I think you're being dismissed…" Keiko stands and watches the blonde. There'd been people … where she came from … that used plants to do things. That leaves her a little unsettled. "Witch?" Maybe. That's a term the woman knows.
"And how are you going to help me? I need to get it home and repair it. If I don't need to stop by the bike shop." A final ruffle to the foxes ears before she gets her bike and hoists it up.
That wheel ain't going turn as it is.
Illyana Rasputina heads down the jogging path at a leisurely pace, swinging the basket at her side as she starts to whistle in the quiet dark. The sound grows fainter and fainter until there is only shadows.
"I figured I'd get you to a shop and help you pay for it." Since again this is his fault. Koa kasts one more look over his shoulder at the whistling. It's been an odd evening. He's had a possible Keter class entity in the park, a blind one at that, and a woman in heavy metal garb gathering plants. One who didn't seem fazed by glowing fox spirits or… slightly unsettling blind drunk men.
This… may bear looking into later. For now though, he's got a busted bike to try to see to.
The group breaks up and goes their separate ways, leaving only a grinning fox spirit sitting on the path, grinning in a self satisfied fashion before he too fades from sight and disappears.