February 6, 2008

At Huggy Bear’s Vintage Clothing

She examined that balcony and found a raven feather. It occurred to her that it might have been a harpy, a flying fey that was half woman and half bird. She also knew that some harpies were also witches. Walter suspected the goth girl.

Kyna prepared a sympathetic tracking spell using a piece of the dressmaker’s dummy as the focus. She kept the feather to use as a backup. When prepared, she cast the spell.  Ely warmed up the car.  There was tug on the feather.  They left the shop and followed the directions from the car.  Walter received a text from Zoe that her shift had ended, so they detoured to the diner and picked her up.

Following the Trail

Following the directions Kyna gave him, Ely got pulled over by the police.  Kyna wrestled with the feather to keep it from flying away.  Zoe tried to help her, but it looked odd.  The officer inspected his license and registration, and then had him step out of the car.  Ely convinced him that his friends were trying to get him arrested.  The officer had him perform a sobriety test, and then gave him a warning.

A little while later, the feather started to vibrate.  Kyna suggested getting out to walk.  They were in Arlington, and could  not find a parking place.  There was a garage nearby, but they would keep a record of them being there.  Kyna, Zoe and Walter got out of the car, and Ely continued on until he found a parking spot.

The feather tugged toward a highrise office building at the top of the hill:  Castle Security, the alarm company.  The door was locked.  They went around the side of the building.  There were cameras everywhere.  They went around a corner and Kyna cast a veil to make them indistinct for five minutes.

Ely passed through the loading dock wall into a stairwell and went down and found an emergency door.  He called Walter and they considered having Kyna disable the electrics.   Zoe thought there might be a sensor on the door itself as well as the alarm.  

Kyna opened a portal to the Nevernever and got a headache.   Zoe went through and Walter and Kyna followed.  There were purple plants and orange ferns with plaid squirrels.  Zoe started walking off.  Walter grabbed her.  Kyna opened the portal.  Zoe ran in the other direction, but reconsidered  when a squirrel  said she looked tasty.  They exited the portal into the building as the glamor faded.

They climbed up 10 flights and rested 5 minutes.  Then they climbed 10 more and Walter collapsed from exhaustion.    Walter transformed into cat form.  The feather led to the outside roof access door.  Ely went through the wall onto the gravel roof.  He did not see anything in the immediate vacinity.  There was machinery in the center and it was dark.    He knocked on the door.

Kyna opened another portal.  Walter grabbed Zoe’s arm and pulled her through.  The plaid squirrel said “welcome back.”  Zoe and Walter wanted to go after it.  Kyna ordered them to go through.  Walter let go of Zoe and leapt through.  Kyna demanded that Zoe go through and then followed and closed the portal, but not before the human-sized squirrel got through.

Fighting the Plaid Squirrel

Kyna gathered magic and confronted the squirrel.  Walter pounced at it, but it dodged.  Ely attacked with a cast iron skillet, but missed.  The squirrel told Kyna to calm down as he only wanted Zoe.  Kyna was not swayed.  Zoe asked why he wanted her.  The squirrel said because she was tasty.

Kyna through a wall of force, but the squirrel avoided it.  Walter leapt when he was distracted and bounced off.   Kyna noticed that the squirrel sparkled a little.  The squirrel commanded Zoe to come with him.  She resisted.  Ely attacked with the skillet again and missed.  Zoe attacked and missed.

Kyna blasted a gust of wind into the squirrel’s face and distracted him as Walter leapt.  He scratched the squirrel’s coat.  The squirrel compelled Zoe and she resisted again.  Ely interposed between Zoe and the squirrel and said that Zoe was poisoned bait for the harpy.  The squirrel was suspicious.   He tried to compel Zoe to tell the truth.  She said she was laced with iron.

Kyra was annoyed and frustrated and channeled her irritation and threw a force ball at the squirrel.  It exploded in garbage-smelling confetti, some of which hit Zoe.

Enter the Harpy

“Are you  through yet???”  The harpy had watched the battle and was amused.  She was perched on the air conditioner.    She said that Huggy Bear owed him for a  bet on Super Bowl 3 in 1966.  It was a $10 bet,  compounded to $17 million and change.  Ely offered to buy the debt from her.   She said everyone needed a pimping suit.  Zoe asked to see one.

As they were talking, Kyna approached, but was obvious.  While the harpy was distracted, Walter pounced and leapt right through her.  Kyra figured out that she was using a communication spell and was somewhere else on the roof.   Walter sought her out.

Ely attempted to persuade the harpy to wager something else.  The harpy offered to arm wrestle, but Zoe knew that she was strong.  Kyna tried to find her, but could not see the harpy.  Walter sniffed her out  and located the harpy in the air conditioner beneath the illusion.  He walked around behind it.  Zoe challenged the harpy to arm wrestle, but it refused because the squirrel had her marked.

Walter found a door to the elevator shaft in the back of the unit…

The Group

  • Zoe Kallas – waitress at grandparents’ diner in Arlington; journalism graduate looking for a real journalism job. (Changling who has no clue, mother was fey of Summer Court)
  • Ely Vantide – debt collector – all kinds of debt. (Emissary of Power for a Dragon)
  • Kyna Quinlan – wizard of Irish descent. New to the White Council. Muscle for Ely.
  • Walter Ballard – were-leopard and therapist to the Supernatural.