Posts: 420
Threads: 69
Joined: May 2013
Reputation:
31
People on TV talk about missing people and illegal activity in diners all the time. Hell - people on TV talk about vampires and werewolves and shit in the hallways of three-story high schools and nobody pays any attention. Hiding in plain sight is better than hiding in the dark sometimes. The Man mounts security cameras in places deviants are likely to do shady shit.
Most of what Alicia can claim to know about clandestine operations she learned from watching television.
All Alicia can do to show receipt of the information Grace has brought to the table is to nod and chew a thumbnail. It's weird to hear someone refer to her father by his first name. Weirder still to hear she couldn't find anything about him. She keeps her mouth shut to do anything other than order the waffles she'd had her eyes on before she even walked in and a cup of coffee.
Once the waitress has gone on her way Alicia clears her throat.
"Why don't the lower-level guys know anything?" she asks. "If he's that dangerous wouldn't you want people to... I don't know, know? You couldn't find anything?" Rein it in, Alicia. Here comes the water and coffee. There goes the waitress again. "I'm sorry. Thank you, for looking. When're you going to talk to that other guy?"
Look. I have school. And RP. And all my other time is taken up by sheer, unreasoning panic. I don't have time for Reddit.
-- ixphaelaeon
Posts: 352
Threads: 79
Joined: Jul 2013
Reputation:
24
Oh yes. Water. It gets ignored, but Grace smiles at the waitress in a kind of polite-but-anxious way. It's a smile that says 'thank you, but please get the fuck out.'
"All they had on him was some note about his name and his Tradition. Everything else had been wiped clean. And I'm going to be talking to Elly from Three-Mile Island whenever I can get an hour free, and whenever he picks up his phone, which may not happen for a while."
Grace takes one of the napkins and starts to shred it, like her fingers itch for something to do, and this isn't the time to break out her phone or computer. So. Napkin.
"It's a long, stupid story, but it goes to show how Mages are much like little children no matter how wise they get, not even excluding myself from that statement. But I have this... message drop? It's for the Mages of Denver to communicate about threats. Well, Elijah used it to communicate about you and your... problems. To everyone. When I found out how dangerous it might be to have that lying around, I went and removed all mention of you from his message and kind of sort of chewed him out. Now I have probably 3 people in town who are upset about that and who want to do everything from make me eat shrooms and talk about my feelings to kick me in the crotch. And I have no idea what Eleanor wants to do to me, which is fucking fantastic.
So, to sum it up, if you meet a Mage in Denver, they probably know all about it. I'm sorry. Also, if you want in to the whole secret network, let me know. Not everyone wants to sign up, and that's okay."
Posts: 420
Threads: 69
Joined: May 2013
Reputation:
31
Sometimes no news is good news. Alicia does not know how to react to hearing that whatever they have on him has been wiped so she picks up her coffee and stares at the oiliness on the surface and the steam rising up off of it and breathes that in. Swallows down whatever her next question was going to be. Nothing else for her to ask.
Which brings us to Grace's confession. The secret network and the people who want to chew her out and the people who've chewed out Elijah. What Elijah's told everyone. She frowns and she thinks back to a conversation she had the past weekend. How it was Kalen knew to tell Elijah not to go rushing off to rescue her father.
At least she lets Grace finish. Her anxiety and her anger are contained things. She's getting better at not exploding the instant the catalyst introduces itself to her system.
"... he told everyone what I told him?" That puts the nail in the did he have permission coffin. Alicia sighs and rummages through her handbag until she finds a rumpled five-dollar note and tosses it on the table. Slides out of her seat. "Yeah. That's fucking fantastic, alright."
She doesn't bother with a farewell. She doesn't need one to walk away from the table.
Look. I have school. And RP. And all my other time is taken up by sheer, unreasoning panic. I don't have time for Reddit.
-- ixphaelaeon
Posts: 352
Threads: 79
Joined: Jul 2013
Reputation:
24
A bit after Alicia leaves, she'll receive a text. Grace doesn't even expect a response. Alicia can read it when she's of a mind to, can reply if she wants.
I know it probably doesn't mean much, but remember why he did it, okay? He was afraid for you and he wanted to help.
We do stupid things all the time for the right reasons. Someday it might be you doing the stupid thing.