Man in a gray suit

[Isabel Burrows] Isabel carefully picked her way passed all the people on the sidewalk tonight - heading to bars, resturants and clubs. She had been on her way to a club.. until the incident happened, that was.

Now, the previously well put together Isabel looked like she'd gotten beaten up - a few scrapes here, a bruise there on her arm.. and dried blood trailing down her neck from somewhere in her hairline. Her hair looked well done, save for the matting of blood. She wore a black strapless dress and a pair of heels. People avoided the bloodied woman as she headed down the street.

Isa's phone was retrieved from her purse.. and she dialed Emily's number. She had no idea what had just happened.. but maybe her friend would.

[Emily Littleton] Emily's evening has been surprisingly calm by contrast. Isabel's friend from Vienna (though neither of them are Austrian) is making dinner, doing homework, plotting a birthday cake for a dear friend. These are meditatively quiet, solo activities. When her cell rings, she picks it up, thumbs the Call button and tucks it between her ear and shoulder.

"Emily."

There are quiet sounds in the background: running water, something simmering on the stove, a fan pushing air around the small space in which she lives.

[Isabel Burrows] "Em..? It's Isa.. something happened tonight.. I don't know what it was.. but.. it.. uh.. it involved something magic-ish. Do you have a few minutes to talk? I'm so confused.."

[Emily Littleton] The background sounds quieted. Running water stopped, whatever was simmering on the stove was turned off so it could be safely forgotten. The fan continued.

"Sure, Isa," Emily says, and she keeps her tone neutral. It's concerned but not alarm. Steady. Solid. It says you can trust me and everything will be okay without being placating or condescending.

"I was just making dinner. Do you want to come over? It's just pasta & vegetables..." She downplays it, because that's safer than upselling. "I'll give you my address."

[Isabel Burrows] "Yeah.. I think it's best if we talk about it in person.." She sighed on the other end of the phone.. I'll be over.." Isabel then hung up the phone.

Fifteen or twenty minutes later, there was a knock upon Emily's door.. or at the buzzer, whichever it happened to be. She hadn't stopped home - she hadn't stopped even at McDonalds to clean herself up.. she didn't need anyone calling the paramedics. she just needed to talk.

[Emily Littleton] Emily's flat is on the top story of a brick faced walk-up in Lake View. It's not a nice building, but it's nicer than some. It's certainly not the style of home that Isabel has been accustomed to. The downstairs door yields to any pressure at all, swings open and lets her in without requiring her to ring the bell. It keeps nothing out but the wind. She has to forgo the lift, as Emily's building Super is less vigilant than most and the lift that was broken last February is still out of service. Emily's apartment, 3F, is near the end of the hallway.

Isabel knocks.

Emily answers shortly there after. The door swings open, revealing Emily who wears jeans and a tank top (there are the faintest echoes of pink lines criss-crossing her left shoulder now, noticeable only because they failed to take any sort of summer tan). Whatever small smile she wore damped, immediately, when she saw her friend in such a state. It did not rise to alarm, but the jovial undertones were lost.

"... Come on in," she says, stepping out of the doorway.

The flat itself is unremarkable. There's a wooden rocking chair, lovingly restored, in the living room. Keeping it company are a pair of bookshelves. Outlined in blue painters tape is the impression of a future or fallen sofa. Very CSI. Very Emily.

Emily ushers her onward, to the small dinette with its four chairs, and her small kitchen space. This is cheerier. There are flowers on the table, the smell of fresh herbs and liltly wilted summer vegetables. It is clean, neat, ordered.

The elder girl gestures to the table and chairs, wanders into the kitchen to get a clean towel, dampens it with water from the faucet. She offers it to Isabel, but will just as readily help the other girl clean the blood from her face, her hairline. There's something almost protective in this, a side Isa's not seen from Emily before.

[Isabel Burrows] The sofa outline in tape on the floor brought her attention back out of her own problems.. and into the present. She even smiled slightly. "Hey Emily.. thanks for being home.."

She allowed herself to be lead to the table.. and before she sat, she slipped off her heels - she'd walked far to long in them today as it was. Isabel took the offered towel and very gently attempted to remove the dried blood stains from her skin.

"Thank you.. " There was a brief pause before she began. "I was walking to a Club tonight.. nothing was different than normal. And then.. I turned a corner and everyone was gone. Everyone. No people, no cars.. nothing. Just silence. And then I saw this man in a gray suit standing by an alley.."

[Emily Littleton] "Anytime," she says, and there's surety underlying it. There's comfort to find and take in her presence. It's a nice change; it shows how much she's grown. While Isabel talks, Emily gets her friend a glass of water. Brings it to the table, sets it in front of the other girl.

She's listening, intently, and the darkness of her blue eyes never leaves Isabel's form. It could be uncomfortable, except that Emily was clearly on her side, here. Clearly looking to understand, protect, and inform.

"Do you remember anything about him in particular? Or what happened next?"

[Isabel Burrows] She nodded - indicating that she did remember what happened.. and she continued on. "He said he couldn't say where we were.. or why.. but he suggested I continue on to my destination, to find out if what.. I.. was supposed to find.. was there? Something like that.. we went into the club - it was still empty. I had this overwhelming fear hit me.. like everything that I'm terrified of was all wrapped up into one and shoved at me all at once. His demeanor changed then.. he started talking about my Dad.. and how I was worthless without other people."

A small beat.. "And he wanted to know why I didn't use any magic to figure out what was going on.. I explained to him that I didn't know how.. and he seemed disappointed."

"He became threatening.. and that feeling of being so scared continued.. I wanted to flee, and when I tried, he was upset.. he said the only way to leave was to admit that I was nothing with out other people.. so - I.. was so scared, I did."

She paused long enough to take a sip of water.. "I woke up on the sidewalk then.. like this - my head hurt.. and I found a coin of some sort with no markings on it in my purse.. and a note proclaiming me worthless.. I don't know what happened .."

[Emily Littleton] "I wonder how he knew about your father..." Emily mused. It's a thoughtful thing; it creases her brow and purses her lips for a moment.

"You're not worthless, Isa. First off, I hope you know this. Whatever this was, it's not about whether or not you're worthy." This is firm. She reaches across the table to rest a hand on Isabel's arm. It's warm, comforting, calm.

"Do you mind if I call someone to come over and talk to you?" Emily asks, after thinking about this for a bit. "I'll check out your head, make sure you're okay, but I'd like you to talk to Ashley about this -- do you remember her, from the cafe? She's pretty solid with this stuff."

There's a smile here, warm and reassuring. As if Emily won't pick up her cell and make that call if Isa happens to say no. (Though she might. She might just wait til the other girl was calmer.)

[Isabel Burrows] "Something happened to me.. and I don't know what it was.. or how I could have stopped it. I felt like I was invaded.." She sniffled some.. and wiped a small tear with a napkin. It was such a bizzare feeling of helplessness.. she just didn't know what to do with it.

"Head wounds just bleed a lot.. I'm sure it's ok.. no one even stopped to check on me - it must not have been too bad of a fall.. but.. ok. And.. yes.. you can call Ashley.."

[Emily Littleton] "People can be assholes," she tells Isabel, but not with any enmity. It's not uncommon, here, for strangers to walk right by someone bleeding on a street corner. It was a sad state, but not surprising. "We'll figure out what happened, love. Okay? I'll get you something to eat, and make some calls."

Emily rose from the table to collect her cellphone, and eyed her friend (can we call each other that after so many years) with a worried expression. She found Ashley's number in her phone and pressed send, then went about putting together a modest portion of food for Isabel. She'd have to make dinner stretch, with the calls she was about to make.

"Hey, Ashley?" Emily says, when the call goes through. "Do you have a moment?" Always a leading question with this apprentice. "Do you remember Isabel? She's here, at my place. If you've the time, could you drop by and have a chat with her? I'm not sure what happened, but it sounds like someone pushed their way into her head..."

There's a note of worry there.

And once the phone call to the Adept wraps up, there's another answerphone message left for a particular Lake View denizen. "Hey, Owen? It's Emily. If you're free there's a little meetup at my place. A friend of mine had some trouble. Ash's coming over to help. Just though you should know. Cheers."

Never a dull day.

[Ashley McGowen] Never a dull day, indeed. Emily caught Ashley in the middle of something, to judge by the Hermetic's slightly rushed tone when she answers. It slows, focuses, as she realizes that Emily might actually need help (do you have a moment is always a bad, bad sign). "It's Emily, someone needs some help," she informs whoever she's with, and then says, "Yeah, Emily. I'll be over in...give me a half-hour?"

She has to walk, of course, say goodbye...whatever else she was doing. If she had a car, such calls might go faster. Or maybe they wouldn't - city traffic can be terrible.

So the Hermetic sets off for Emily's after grabbing necessary instruments.

[Isabel Burrows] "Emily.. it's ok.. I'm not hungry - I ate before I went out. Thank you though.. you eat, it's ok. I appreciate the water.." Isabel seemed instantly calmer - it was just nice to get the story off of her chest - now someone else knew.. someone else who knew about this magic stuff.

"Is it ok if I use your bathroom to clean up a little.. before your friends arrive?" She'd wait just long enough for the expected answer of 'no problem.. or go ahead' before she stood and wandered towards the bathroom barefooted.

[Emily Littleton] "Not at all," she says, and indicates the door that leads to the wash room. Really, there are only two doors that Isabel hasn't been through already, and one stands slightly ajar and leads to a room far to big to be her bathroom.

"When you're through, I'd like to check on your head, if that's okay with you. I know it's just a bump, but I'd feel better." A smile, softer here. She doesn't mention that she's got yet another ranking mage on speed dial if she needs to ask after concussions, or their reasonable treatment. It's the sort of thing Emily thinks about, though.

She sets the plate down at Isa's place once the other girl leaves for the washroom. Just in case she's hungry later. While Isa's busy, she finds her godfather's prayer beads and leaves them, incidentally, on the far edge of the table, within arm's reach should she need her Prime focus.

[Emily Littleton] Somewhere in there, Emily affirmed "Half an hour's fine. Thank you," to Ashley.

That gave Isabel time to gather herself. Gave Emily time to check up on a few things. Half an hour was a good block of time, not too short, not too long.

[Isabel Burrows] A short while later, Isabel returned. Her hair was down, and wet - she'd apparently decided to wash the blood out in the sink.. and then proceed to clean up after herself. She looked moderately more put together - less disheveled now.. save for the wet hair.

She smiled lightly and ran a hand through her hair - making sure it didn't drip on her floor. Isabel then reseated herself at the kitchen table.

[Emily Littleton] [Life 1: base dif 4, -1 practiced]
Dice Rolled:[ 2 d10 ] 1, 10 (Failure at target 3)

[Ashley McGowen] It takes a little longer than a half hour for Ashley to show up, but not too much longer. Emily's front door is still broken; she knows this, so she just walks right in and up to the girl's apartment. There are three short little raps; Ashley isn't the sort of friend who just walks into her friends' houses, even when she's been called over, when they expect her to be there. She has to be invited inside.

The Hermetic waits, tucking her hands in the pockets of her jeans while she does. It was raining again today. The storms really haven't stopped. So her hair is matted down, dripping with moisture, and she's wiping one of her cheeks off on the shoulder of her T-shirt while she stands there. It doesn't help much: her shirt is wet too.

Still, Ashley is used to these things. The woman walks everywhere, and that means that she's gotten accustomed to rainy days. Enjoys them, even.

[Emily Littleton] [Life 1: Really now. base dif 4, re-rolling +1, -1 practiced. +WP]
Dice Rolled:[ 2 d10 ] 5, 6 (Success x 3 at target 4) [WP]

[Emily Littleton] When the Singer-to-be heard the sink running, she wandered into the bedroom to get the other girl a towel. She knocked, once, on the bathroom door, then draped the towel over the doorknob if Isa didn't open the door to take it herself.

Somewhere in the middle of this process, Emily decided she'd best put the kettle on. Not only because Ashley was coming over, and Ashley liked tea, but because tea was a quiet ritual and it might make her stop chewing on the inside edge of her lip.

"You look like you feel a bit better," she said to Isabel, handing over a thin elastic band in case she wanted to pull her damp hair back somehow. "I put the kettle on. I can make coffee if you'd rather, but Ashley and I usually take tea."

All of this is done calmly, with a sense of poise that Emily is borrowing from the more experienced magi she knows. It would do no good to worry Isa, now. It would just make some things more difficult.

Emily doesn't ask, this once, before she stretches her senses out, takes stock of the living world around her in a much more acute manner than her mundane senses alone. Her fingertips find the pulse point at her wrist, while she studies the other girl for a long moment. There's a building sense of Emily's own resonance, the Reverence intrinsic to her pattern now. It enfolds her, elevates this small space to something more than a half-empty flat.

She studies the way the girl's eyes track, checks her movements against what she remembers of Isa's balance and mannerisms. When she's seen what she needs to, she lessens the intimacy of that moment with a question: "You don't have a concussion, right? You know your own birthday?" To which Isa will likely reply with rolled eyes and a humoring response.

There's a knock at the door.

"Ah, that must be Ashley," Emily says, and goes to welcome the Adept in. "Hey... come on... in."

The Deacon is dripping wet.

"Do you... want a towel, too? I put the kettle on." Emily strings the thoughts together, as if there's no oddity to it.

[Isabel Burrows] The towel had been found.. and appropraitely used. "I do feel a bit better.. thank you. Tea is lovely - but water is ok too.. ideally, liquor would be best - that's what I had been waiting for all day.." She grinned slightly.

"I think I'm ok.. Seriously Emily.. I was out for.. a few seconds.. max. I feel ok other than having a splitting headache.. and yeah, I know when my birthday is.. " She laughed quietly. "Thank you for the concern.."

Then the knock at the door. Isabel went quiet as her gaze shifted towards the front door. Just Ashely.. that's right.. she was coming over.

[Ashley McGowen] "Hi, Emily." The deacon is dripping wet, and before she steps inside, she nods to Emily when the girl asks if she'd like a towel. Ashley, too, has wood floors; she has sympathy for anyone that tries to keep theirs in good shape. (It means they extend the courtesy back when they come calling at her apartment.)

When Emily extends the towel toward her, she accepts it, drying her hair and her arms first before she steps through the door and inside. She pulls off her shoes inside the entrance - or, well, she peels them off, wiggles them away from her foot. Chucks aren't the best shoes to have worn when it's raining outside. Her socks, too, get pulled away. Her feet and the cuffs of her pants are dried before she makes her way into the main room, rubbing at her hair again, leaving it tousled and standing on end.

"Hi, Isabel," she says, glancing toward the girl, newly Awakened still, after she's mostly dry. A little more situated. Her clothes are still damp, but it isn't bad enough to do more than make her mildly uncomfortable. They'll dry.

"So what happened?"

[Emily Littleton] "Isabel was telling me that she ran into someone on the way to a Club tonight, a man in a gray suit. At the end of an alley. Just as she came upon him, the crowds thinned out -- there wasn't anyone in sight." Emily summarizes, because it's sometimes easier that way. She has a good grasp on how to pass information to Ashley at this point. It makes the process go more smoothly, or merely sharpens the Deacon's questions.

"He got her aside somehow, into an abandoned club," Emily's tone doesn't judgment here, whatever her thoughts may be. "Where his demeanor changed. He challenged her on her fears -- brought up things no stranger could know, unless they were particularly lucky at their guesses." Plenty of rich girls had daddy issues, but it was unlikely they'd get singled out as a torment device by an absolute stranger.

"She woke up outside, with some bruises and a bloody temple -- did I miss anything, Isa?" Emily asks. It sounds almost clinical, the way that Emily reports this to Ashley, but it doesn't lessen her concern. "I've checked her life pattern. She's not got a concussion, or anything I'd have to call Ashton for."

By now they've wandered back toward Emily's modest dining table. She leaves Ashley with Isabel, wanders into the kitchen. "Jasmine green okay with everyone?"

[Isabel Burrows] A hand rose in greeting.. Quietly enough she spoke. "Hi Ashley." Isabel looked a little haggard.. but better than she did upon arrival to the apartment.

At one point, she pipped up, filling in information. "No.. the crowd was completely gone as I rounded the corner. Like suddenly I was dropped into.. a dream. Nothing was gradual about it. One minute I'm on the busy street.. and the next, I'm alone.. with this older man down the way."

"And.. after I woke up, I found a note.. and a piece of metal in the shape of coin in my purse - so I know it was real.."

[Ashley McGowen] Ashley listens to this account, her blue eyes intent first on Isabel and then on Emily as the Chorister-to-be gives her the rundown on what happened. Muscles in Ashley's jaw tighten from the moment 'a man in a gray suit' is mentioned.

"That's fine," Ashley says, of Emily's tea selection, but it's a little distracted. A little strained. Because there's then, "Emily, did you notice anyone around when Isabel got here? Isabel, do you know whether you were followed?"

Ashley has a quick mind: quick and sharp, and right now it's racing, reaching possible conclusions about what might have just happened. Plant, is one of the options she's considered. Whatever it is, she doesn't like it.

"What did the note say?"

[Isabel Burrows] The selection of tea just got a nod.. anything would be fine.

"I don't think I was followed.. no one seemed to pay much attention to the bloody girl wandering down the street.. What I do remember about the man is.. the appearance wasn't what he showed me. He was something else entirely."

"I should have kept the note.. I threw it away I was so upset. As well as the coin. But the note said.. You are nothing without someone else. So, become something."

[Emily Littleton] Ashley's jaw tightened. Emily's hand stilled -- it had been reaching for the cupboard, to draw down one of the glass canisters of tea. Instead it came back to her middle, to rest on her hip while she frowned.

"It was just her, but honestly? I didn't look outside. There could have been someone outside of the building." A pause, and then the Chorister-to-be's frown shifted to a rueful expression. "Or inside -- the downstairs door is still broken."

[Ashley McGowen] "-Fuck,-" Ashley spits, and the Hermetic is already pacing toward the window to look out like some kind of caged animal, to glance up and down the street. As though whatever she is worried about might be easily sighted; it won't. This is just for her own reassurance, as though she was expecting someone to be lurking right outside.

The note Isabel was given doesn't seem to be reassuring her. And she will turn her attention to the girl, to whatever was done to her Mind, in a moment.

But right now, the only thought in her head is making sure that this is, in fact, a secure location. Ashley reaches beneath the collar of her shirt for the chain that hangs there, bound at either end by pieces of leather. Her index finger hooks through the glass link, and there's a surge of Hunger as she rends space, looking through it for the sign of other Wills.

[Correspondence 2, Prime 1. Lookin' around. Diff 5, -1 for focus.]
Dice Rolled:[ 4 d10 ] 4, 5, 9, 10 (Success x 4 at target 4)

[Isabel Burrows] ... "Should I be much more worried about this than I already am?" She glanced between the two of them. They seemed to have a lot of insight that she lacked..

[Emily Littleton] [Subterfuge: Yeah, that's not terrifying in the slightest, Ms. Adept. You freaking out doesn't bug me at all.]
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 2, 4, 5, 10, 10, 10 (Success x 3 at target 6)

[Emily Littleton] On a good day, Ashley's resonance is intense and overwhelming. In this small space (caged was an apt description), it could steal your breath away. Emily drew a slow, careful breath as the waves of Hunger, Unyielding, washed over her, amplied her natural longing for the dinner she'd prepared. The Singer-to-be's eyes close for a moment, and then she goes back to getting tea together for the three of them.

She quietly wishes her other voicemail had found its mark as well, but that's purely self-serving in this moment.

"Maybe," Emily tells Isabel as she measures out the tea. Pours the water over it. "Let's see what Ashley finds before we worry overmuch about it." Emily gathers three mugs and brings them to the table with her teapot. There's nothing in her countenance that speaks to precisely how upsetting Ashley's reaction is to her.

Gotta stay calm. She's not the newest member of the group anymore.

"Not everyone you meet, that can do what we can, is going to be nice. Or helpful. Or even good-natured." It's an easy explanation, gentled away from the truth of what Emily wanted to say. "Would you pour tea for us?"

It gave the other girl something to do, to focus on beyond the rising resonance and worry.

[Isabel Burrows] "Uh.. sure.." Isabel looked a little skeptical as she stood and set about pouring tea for the three of them. After a moment.. she looked up. "He said his name was Richter.. I think.. if it helps?"

She got the vibe that not everything was entirely cool.. but nothing tipped her off yet that this could be a really big deal..

[Ashley McGowen] For a few seconds, that's all there is. Racing Hunger, relentless, the touch of her Will like some kind of predator looking for other threats (or for prey - does it care which? even a threat is, in the end.)

There is no trace of another Will, but Ashley knows that it doesn't mean there's nothing to find. It doesn't mean the place isn't under surveillance; they might have sent someone unAwakened to do the job. They do these things, grayfaces. So her hand falls away and she looks back at her shoulder at the other two, stepping away from the window.

She's angry. That much is communicated. "The person who picked Isabel up might have been a Technocrat," she says, more to Emily, but there is a brief glance toward Isabel too as she speaks. "In which case, there's a high likelihood that she was followed and they let her go purposefully. We haven't really heard a lot from them in the city, but they did that kind of shit during the Ascension War."

Ashley Woke just as the War was ending. She doesn't have first hand experience, the way some of her older colleagues do. But it was recent enough, and she has been Awakened long enough, to know plenty of people who fought. To wonder if maybe the Technocracy will get tired of the cold ceasefire they have right now, the war of attrition.

"But I don't sense anyone Awakened outside. Which doesn't mean there's no one there, but it's a good sign."

[Emily Littleton] This word Technocrat doesn't likely mean much to Isabel, but it clearly means something to the other two women in Emily's flat. Emily, who has been calm, who has been carefully collected and confident and composed -- she tosses Ashley a look that said so much more than a simple curse would could elucidate.

She had been learning quite a few things from Owen -- dark, meaningful glances; brooding; possibly even some magic, too. The girl just nods, once. Then twice. Then scrubs a hand over her face and finally speaks.

"Okay." It's all she says at first. Okay, so my apartment's been compromised. Okay, so my friend is being tracked by the 'Crats. Okay, so we don't really know and all of this is starting to give me a headache.

"I'm going to get the excedrin from the washroom. When I get back, we can figure out what that means. Since I'm sure hurrying out of here in a threesome looking for safer ground is precisely the wrong idea." A weak smile, for Ashley. She does cut a look back to Isabel, who's suddenly being talked around. It's uncomfortable, Emily knows.

"I'll explain what I know later, Isa. For now, assume Technocrat always means danger. Be wary, and be alert if you across mention of them again." And do whatever Ashley tells you to.

[Isabel Burrows] It was rather uncomfortable, being talked about.. being talked around. She'd poured the tea and just retook her seat. It seemed best to try to make herself small.. - maybe they'd forget about her? It seemed like she'd caused some sort of danger to Emily.. at least that's what she gathered with the being followed part.. and for that, she felt horrible.

Quielty she muttered over her tea.. "I'm sorry Emily.. I shouldn't have come here.. I didn't know."

Was that an appropriate answer? Maybe - she wasn't sure. All of this worried her some, but it worried the pair of them much more..

[Ashley McGowen] "Don't apologize," Ashley says. Spits it, really, the same way she spat the curse, because she's still angry. It's not at Isabel, but the poor girl in her current state might certainly think so. "You didn't know."

Which is part of why she suspects Technocrats: if -she- were one of them and wanted to scope out a chantry, picking a brand new member, a newly Awakened mage who doesn't know anything yet, would certainly be the approach she would take. But the truth is that right now, they don't know. So when Emily says she needs some Excedrin, she just gets a terse nod as Ashley raises both of her hands and runs them back through her damp hair, leaving it in further disarray.

Her eyes rove toward the tea when Isabel pours it, as she catches the scent, and something flickers behind their bright blue. As though it's made her remember something, something that might not be as unpleasant as present circumstances. After a few seconds, her chest thins, a deep sigh that isn't heard so much as seen in the way she just deflates. As though breathing out her irritation, or attempting to.

"All right. Isabel, I'm going to make sure it didn't fuck with you too much, or leave anything behind. This won't be pleasant, but I'm not going to hurt you."

[Emily Littleton] "None of that," Emily tells her firmly, but not without compassion. She looks for, meets and holds the other girl's gaze for a long moment. "You didn't know, so it wasn't wanton. You did nothing wrong, Isabel."

This, too, was a familiar moment, recast from the opposite perspective. Emily remembers, all too clearly, standing in Owen's apartment. Shaking. Holding an imbued weapon and reeking of Nephandi taint. These are the moments all Apprentices seem to have; the ones that shape their paths and their road to Ascension. It's never easy.

"And it's probably better you came here than anywhere else. My lease is up soon, and I've the least to move of any of us," she added, with a wry twist to her smile. It was gentle, and patient. Emily could at least offer her that.

She waits until Ashley-the-Deacon stands down a little, deflates, becomes just a bit easier to deal with once more. Until it is safe (more or less) to leave the two of them alone for a moment.

She's not gone long. And she never closes the washroom door. Emily is back before Ashley's Will starts to rise again. She's standing behind Isabel's chair, with her hand on the other girl's shoulder. I'm right here, that touch says. I'm not going to leave your side. Because what comes next? Is anything but gentle. It's anything but calm. Emily knows, and this is the only surety she can offer, just now.

[Isabel Burrows] "Uh.. ok.. I'm gonna trust you, Ashley.." She had no idea what to expect - but.. after what happened today.. it was likely worth the risk to have people she though she could trust try to figure it out.."

[Ashley McGowen] The Hermetic steps away from the window, walks back over, closer to Isabel. She doesn't need to be this close in order to do what she's going to do, but it is, perhaps, the sort of thing a person does without being fully aware of it: she wouldn't stand across the room if she were talking to Isabel, trying to have a one-on-one conversation with her. She doesn't stand there in order to peer into her Mind, either.

She doesn't say anything else. The necklace is still pulled free, lying over the collar of her shirt, and after a few seconds she reaches up and grasps the iron link.

What happens next is, indeed, as unpleasant as Ashley had warned it would be. Isabel has never had another presence in her mind before: up until now, it's likely she wouldn't even have imagined it possible. It's like having some part of her, some part that she can't fully articulate, being grasped between a pair of jaws, pressing but never snapping shut; it's like having a wall to that part of herself that is -her- overrun by some kind of host, relentless.

And once there, Ashley is looking, filtering through thoughts. Isabel can't protect hers, but for what it's worth, the Hermetic isn't prying: she's looking for what's pertinent. Looking for the traces of a foreign Will and whether anything has been altered or placed there that isn't the girl's own. Looking for, besides, her memories of the event.

[Mind 3, -1 for focus, -2 for applicable resonance Entropic: Hungry. Spending WP.]
Dice Rolled:[ 4 d10 ] 4, 6, 9, 10 (Success x 5 at target 3) [WP]

[Isabel Burrows] Sure - she'd been warned it wasn't going to be pleasant. But, she'd closed her eyes.. and taken a few deep breaths to ready herself whatever was going to happen. But really - nothing could have prepared her for the open deluge into her mind.

She felt it invade. And all she could think was.. get out! Wait wait.. this was for good, no matter how awful it felt. God, was she going to end up crying for a second time today?

[Emily Littleton] [Awareness as Empathy: You okay, Isa? Because this is hard to deal, yo. I know. I've been there.]
Dice Rolled:[ 5 d10 ] 2, 2, 2, 5, 8 (Success x 1 at target 6)

[Isabel Burrows] {Mmm.. today sucks! She's ok.. but a little messed up!}
to Emily Littleton

[Emily Littleton] Emily's hand never leaves her shoulder. It doesn't tighten, doesn't bear down. It's just a warm, steady presence. She knows what this is like, having another Mage -- having Ashley of all the other mages -- rummage through your mental space. And Ashley's Will is only that much stronger now. Emily sucks in a shallow breath, holds it as the Adpet crosses that mental threshold, pulls forward what she needs to know.

She watches, from where she stands. Watches that this ingress doesn't go too long, that there's nothing too pained or discomfitted in her friend. Emily doesn't know that Isabel wants to push Ashley out -- the thought hadn't crossed her mind when she'd been in a similar situation -- but she can see the play of emotion on the younger woman's features. Tonight, she couldn't read them for what they were. Perhaps it was too close.

After what feels like long enough, Emily clears her throat quietly. She doesn't say "Ashley, that's enough." She doesn't need to. If the Adept doesn't pull out of the younger mage's mind, Emily will speak up. They're just shy of that moment, now. Standing at the precipice. The Singer-to-be is tense, save for the hand on Isabel's shoulder. She is watchful (protective [concerned]).

"Isa? You okay?" she asks, when the swell of Hunger finally begins to slake. Only after she gets a reply, has the newly Awakened girl meet her eyes for a moment, only then will she turn back to the Adept and ask "What did you find?"

[Ashley McGowen] This: it wasn't what Ashley was expecting. Isabel gets a sense of confusion as that Hungry presence roots through memories, grasps a few as though tasting them, devouring them and drawing them into itself (not quite - Isabel still -has- them, you see) and that confusion is -her- confusion but not. Mind magic is intimate, and that is, perhaps, the most unnerving thing about this entire experience: Ashley might as well be a stranger, and here Isabel is with every private thought she's ever had potentially laid bare.

Ashley's presence recedes without further digging, though. Without ripping all of those private things away. Isabel can feel it when it does, and seconds later, the Hermetic's hand falls away from her necklace. Whether that's because Emily cleared her throat, or restraint on Ashley's part (whether she might have taken every single thing she could, if the Chorister-to-be weren't there), that's hard to tell.

She doesn't ask whether Isabel's all right. She glances toward the girl, once, without much apparent sympathy. She doesn't need to read Isabel's expression to know that the girl wanted to push her out, that she wanted to cry; she felt all of it.

She just declines to speak on it. What is there for her to say, really?

"It was a spirit, or something like one," she tells Emily. "Not a Technocrat or another mage. It didn't leave anything, but it definitely did fuck with her head."

[Isabel Burrows] Out out out! She didn't say it - but it was a shout enough internally. And there.. in the back of her mind was the thought that if Ashley could get into her mind.. then perhaps she did have the ability to push her out. The only reason she didn't try was because she knew they were concerned about what happened.. and it was important they could figure it out. Especially if she'd just endangered the two of them.

Isabel drew a sharp breath in as the grip on her mind was released.. it felt like a weight was lifted - like she again had control. But - for a second time today - she felt invaded. Perhaps even violated.

Dark lashes opened again after a small sigh. Her gaze met Emily's.. and she nodded in response. She was ok. At least she thought she might be.

[Emily Littleton] "Oh," Emily says, blandly and without amusement. Spirits ranked right up there with Technocrats in Emily's book, after the Edom experience. But? Spirits didn't require her to move house. (It's the little blessings, really.)

Isabel meets her eyes, and there's the edge of argument in them -- the drive to push Ashley out, the indignance of having had someone else's thoughts rub up against your own. Emily is quietly pleased by this, but says nothing of the sort just now. Instead she nods, and lets her hand slip off Isabel's shoulder.

"Eat something," she suggests. "Even just a few bites. It helps." This is said softly, and out of concern not command. It helped to ground oneself after the oddities their world presented. And the food was right in front of her.

Now Emily takes up her tea, carries it around the table to her seat. She toes the leg of the chair to slide it away from the table and settles down into it.

"That's still upsetting," Emily says, now. Now that the threat level has started to fade and they wouldn't be stealing away from her apartment in the dead of night, worrying after being stalked by men in suits of varying shades of black-and-white. "You can stay here, tonight, if you like, Isa," Emily says, then cuts a look back to Ashley. "That's reasonable, right? It's unlikely anything will come here, looking after her, yes?"

Emily had no practical magical experience with Spirits. That sphere was a void for her.

"And thank you, Ashley," she says, seriously. With a gravity than makes it sound genuine and weighty.

[Ashley McGowen] Ashley felt that urge to fight her and push her out, and the glance she gives Isabel when it sinks in is also something vaguely pleased. The girl didn't just submit, accept the presence of another Will there and taking whatever it wanted.

For all that, though, it's fortunate that Isabel did not try to fight Ashley. The Hermetic is an Adept, and there are not many Adepts in the world. They aren't exceedingly rare, but rare enough that there's a handful in most cities at best. One in this city. They're powerful, they are close to becoming One with their Avatars, and most of them do not take well to being denied what they want. Isabel made the choice to give instead of having it forcefully taken from her, and that's something.

"You're welcome," she says to Emily. She reaches up and tucks the necklace back beneath the collar of her shirt.

"I'm glad you contacted me. I'll alert people. It might just be a one-time thing, since...spirits do that sometimes, for whatever reasons they have. But there's no way to know."

[Isabel Burrows] Ugh.. food.. she wasn't hungry in the least - but.. she took a few bites as instructed. They both knew better than she did - at least in these matters - so she'd let them lead how this would go.

"If it comes back.. can I stop it?" She spoke up after a moment of letting the two Mages talk.. and think.

[Emily Littleton] Ashley is an Adept, and to some extent Emily knows what this means. She understands the difference between an Initiate (which she'll be soon) and an Apprentice (which she was [is] not long ago), and from there to Disciple as well. Adept is not something she's wrapped her head around fully, just yet, but she's noticed the change in Ashley. They'd talked about it; how it made the other mage more Whole, how she's vibrant and thriving again.

"I left a message for Owen," Emily says, but whether she wants Ashley to follow up with her mentor (friend) or plans to do it herself is left unclear. There's a softness to the other Singer's name when Emily speaks it, but that has been a long time coming and may not immediately strike either woman as strange.

"I know very little about Spirits, Isa," Emily tells her. Perhaps it's not comforting to hear, but it is honest. She sips from her tea, sets it on the table, idly lets the fingers of one hand trace around the rim of her cup. "Whenever something like this happens to me, I find Owen -- or Ashley, or Kage, or someone I trust to have a keener perspective. Or someone on speed dial who might know more yet."

There's a small, almost apologetic look tossed to the Adept now. And then another glance for the newly Awakened Apprentice. This is sympathetic, and dimly worried.

[Ashley McGowen] "I also don't know very much about spirits." And here, a frown, something darkening her expression: Gregor knew a lot about spirits. She relied on the Dreamspeaker for all of those things, for understanding where she was weak, because that's what one does in a cabal. She's still feeling his loss, for pragmatic purposes at least. (Emotionally, too, but she doesn't talk about that.)

"But I know people who do. I don't know whether it's going to come back here, but I'm not far away if it does. Neither is Kage." Or Owen, she thinks, though she's unsure of whether the Chorister is still staying at the church or not.

"I don't know exactly what it wanted from you, either," Ashley adds, with a glance toward Isabel as the girl takes a few bites of what Emily set in front of her. "Sometimes, I think that's all they want...to shake people up, take a few things. I guess they feed off of emotional responses sometimes or something? I don't completely get it."

She reaches for a cup of tea, cooling where it is, and breathes in the steam. Doesn't sip from it yet. Her work's done, but she's not about to let it go to waste.

[Isabel Burrows] "I didn't know who else to call. That's why I called you when I realized that something strange happened. I suppose I could have tried Nathan? I think he might have given me his number. I didn't mean to trouble you guys. I just didn't know what else to do.."

It was suddenly very clear to her that she didn't really have anyone to rely on. She had intended just to ignore all of the recent strange developments and let her life move on. Perhaps this proved that she couldn't do that.

"Thank you for the offer of letting me stay, Emily - but I couldn't possibly impose on you any further. My flat isn't too far from here.. " A slight shake of her head. "And thank you, Ashley.. for making sure it didn't do terrible things to me.. " Well, besides mess up her self confidence something fierce..

[Ashley McGowen] [Lalala...]
Dice Rolled:[ 8 d10 ] 3, 3, 3, 4, 4, 7, 9, 9 (Success x 3 at target 6)

[Emily Littleton] "Ahhhh..." There's a warning edge to Emily's tone. She likes Nathan, well enough, all things considered. But. (There is always a but.) "Probably not the best thing to take to Nathan, Spirits."

Emily is thinking about a particular episode, at the Chantry. And another, in the Park. Oh, hell, more or less about the entire Spring. Nathan didn't like Spirits much. That much she'd gathered.

"It's not an imposition. I crashed on people's couches several times when this was all pretty new." On Owen's a handful of times. On Jarod's before that (okay, not on Jarod's -couch- but who's counting?). "If having someone else around will help, then stay. Please."

She offers the other girl a warm smile. It's encouraging. Welcoming. Now that the immanent danger had passed, Emily could go back to being a friend and offering safe haven. "Though this is a good time to bring up something. Isa, you and I are what we call Apprentices. Fairly new, with a lot of questions, and somewhat uncertain about how all of this works. Ashley was rather insistent with me that I find a mentor, and for all that I like to think I can handle things on my own -- it has helped immensely."

This is the mentor speech. The you need one section. Paragraph because I said so. It's in the same book as the pick a tradition speech. About three chapters before the Cabals And You! sidebar. Emily had them memorized for how often she heard them.

"Would you be interested in finding a teacher you could work with?"

[Ashley McGowen] "Don't -apologize,-" Ashley says again, a little clipped as she glances toward Isabel. There's a flicker of irritation in her expression, but it goes largely unvoiced, mainly because Ashley reminds herself of how young the girl is, how new. It isn't much of an excuse, but she's making a visible effort at restraint.

Emily, who has seen Ashley's temper before and heard her berate people for less, recognizes it for the restraint it is. "You did what you had to do."

Emily then brings up the possibility of finding Isabel a mentor, mentions that it would be a good thing for the other girl to do. Clearly, she's learned. The Chorister-to-be gets a smirk as the Hermetic takes a long swallow from the cup of tea.

Another, and then she's walking over to put the cup in the sink, then making her way back to the door so that she can get her shoes. She's had to sit through, and make, this speech plenty of times herself, and she's happy to leave it to someone else for once.

[Isabel Burrows] "It's ok.. really. Sleeping in my own bed would probably be best.. Em." Her shoes were under the table where she sat.. and seeing that Ashely was leaving - she took it as her que to leave as well. Quietly enough she slid her heels back on.

Yes - she'd heard the find a tradition speech before.. but it was back when someone just told her what she was. Picking one was still a bit of a odd concept. Wasn't there some sort of course guide or something that she could thumb through and pick one? How do you pick when the options are as clear a mud?

"After today.. I think a mentor would be a good idea. Someone who could help me stop this from happening again?"

[Emily Littleton] That burr in Ashley's voice draws Emily's attention, momentarily, away from her tea and her old-time friend. It's a warning shot, one Isa's unlikely to notice for what it is. Emily does. She sips at her tea again and lets it pass.

"Alright," Emily says, letting the offer fall away as Isabel's confident (or passing her of as confident) enough to wander home after all. She rises, when Ashley starts toward the door and Isabel slips into her shoes. It's possible (probable) that Isa wouldn't deign to stay anyway, after she found out that Emily's bed is a (very comfortable) futon on the floor.

"Someone to help you when new things find you -- because next time it won't be this, it will be something else you've never fathomed before. Sometimes to step between you and that danger, and sometimes to explain it. We'll ask around at the Chantry and see if anyone's willing to take a student. See if you fit well enough with any of them."

She looks to Ashley for confirmation of this plan, but the Adept is dealing with her water-logged Chucks. She hadn't missed the smirk, no, but she wasn't dignifying it with an eye-roll just now.

[Emily Littleton] ((Edit: or passing *herself *off as confident ...))

[Ashley McGowen] Ashley is fighting with her still-wet socks before the water-logged Chucks, a prolonged battle with her footwear that has her hopping on one foot near the door before she decides that it might be better to preserve her dignity and sit down while she does this. The Hermetic falls to the ground with a thud, wrestling one sock onto her foot. Savagely.

"It might be better to have her talk around and see who she fits with, first," Ashley says to Emily, a little distracted. "But getting an idea of who might be interested in an apprentice first would help. Have someone take her on temporarily, maybe, until she has a better picture of who is who and what is what."

She isn't sure how to handle these things, really: there was her father, and then there was the Order of Hermes, and the Order picked her up when she was brought before the council in Boston. Chicago is far less organized.

Time to change that.

[Isabel Burrows] Isabel stood, now with shoes on.. just in time to watch Ashley fall rather ungracefully while attempting to put her own socks and shoes on. She glanced between the mages. They were doing it again - talking about her, yet around her. She might as well not be here for this..

She did pipe up as she passed the outline of the couch again.. "Em.. do you want a couch? I have an extra." Well, that wasn't entirely true - but she was looking for an excuse to buy a different one..

[Emily Littleton] Thud. Ashley hits the floor with enough resonance that Emily's downstairs neighbors likely paused, looked up worriedly, and then went about their evenings again. She's about to comment when --

"You have an extra couch?" Emily asked. One eyebrow went up, one scooched down. Her mouth turned into a funny squiggle. Okay, it wasn't that bad, but the look she tossed the other Apprentice was one of abject confusion.

Before she remembered that Isabel was from an entirely different world. In Emily's world, it was unlikely she would ever have surplus furniture just lying about, waiting to be gifted to needy (materialistically challenged) friends.

"Ah, I mean, that would be nice. Thank you." Her manners caught up with her somewhat belatedly. "I've been meaning to get one. Now that Greg's coming to visit I pretty much have to, or I'll be sleeping on the floor all week."

This has derailed the mentor talk. The politely checking with Ashley as to Chantry protocols. It's quite a nonsequitur. From thoughts worthy of the Chantry message board to do you want a couch.

Emily reached up to rub at the back of her neck. She hadn't taken the headache meds, yet, and the evening was wearing on her. "Sometime soon, we'll head for the Chantry, Isa. I'm sorry if it feels like we've been talking over your head a bit, just now. Ashley's in charge of the house; anyone who's brought there needs to be cleared with her first." This should explain a bit of it. That, and, well, Emily doesn't know that much more than the newcomer. She's still an apprentice herself.

[Isabel Burrows] "I'll have the movers call you to set up a time, ok?" While the CSI like outline of the couch was cute - it wasn't very pratical. Everyone needed a couch.. and.. it was a topic she could safely talk about without her head thinking it might explode. "It's pretty comfy, actually.. good enough for sleeping if you had to." The young woman smiled a bit more.. and continued to head towards the door. She'd offere Ashley a hand up if she still needed it.

[Ashley McGowen] Ashley turns an idle ear to the conversation they're having about the couch, which isn't particularly interesting for the Adept beyond: oh, I won't have to sit at the kitchen table anymore. Now I have -options.-

She takes the hand that's offered to help her up, after she's managed to wiggle her feet into each shoe and tie them. It took Herculean effort, that. She lets Isabel tug her to her feet, thanks her, and then looks up at the two apprentices.

"See you both. I'll have a word for you if I find out more about what's going on. Isabel, Emily can show you to the chantry when you're ready, you have my clearance."

[Isabel Burrows] "Thanks.." Isabel spoke quietly enough. "Good night you two.. I think this day has made me overly tired.. I should head home."
{Night guys.. I gotta run! Sleep well! Thanks!!

[Emily Littleton] Well, Let's not get ahead of ourselves, here. For Ashley to really have options, Emily would need to find a coffee table as well. Somewhere to set their tea while they were talking. That was altogether too much new furniture for one week, especially with threatening (idly) to find her another chair. God forbid Emily someday find herself with a fully furnished flat.

"Sure, Isa. I can be here pretty much anytime, so whatever works best for you," she says. Movers! Well, that's a little like bribing the guys from Good Will to lug something upstairs for little payment beyond cookies and a smile. Hmm.

"Take care, both of you, and have a good night." She finds herself wrapping their partings into the same breath. Isa wanders off first, leaving Emily to cast Ashley a small look. She stops short of thanking the Adept again. Lest she hit that burred tone and irritated look herself. "I'm telling you, one of these days I will call for something other than work..."

Wishful thinking. Emily was still holding to it.