Sally meets the Hare

Characters in this scene: Hare, Sally (SummerStroll)

Editors Note: viceVersailes is Sally (SummerStroll)'s player - anytime you see them speaking, that is who is being played.

Hare — 02/22/2021

SummerStroll finds herself in a field off a beaten road. The moon is high in the sky, full and bright, and to the distance is the city, Dallas. The skyscrapers are bright with an electric glow, and she can hear the city, even from here, the sounds of cars, of people. A gentle breeze blows across the field in waves. The Hare stands in the center, wearing a mask. The mask looks old and wooden, and of shoddy craftsmanship - like a child had made it. It's stark white. "SummerStroll? It's the Hare. Thanks for coming on short notice." He waves.

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

If Hare has had much fantasy-fiction experience, the woman before him suits the description of a Tolkien-esque Elf. Sunburnt skin closer to bronze than beige, harsh features and an athletic build that catches the moonlight with unnaturally strong contrast- parts in light fully-lit, parts in shadow completely black. She sparkles a bit, though he can't tell if its glitter or just sweat. She's resting her right hand on a shepard's crook and her left on the hilt of a rusty sword, a leather-bound tome under her sword-arm. She looks at him, eyes a sunny-green from lid to lid, no pupil or white. She blinks, and her eyes are unexceptional. "G'day mate. Call me Sally, and no trouble for the notice. I don't mind an excuse to travel."

Hare — 02/22/2021

"Cool. Sally, then," he nods, watching her. "I'd tell you my name, but I'm supposed to be careful. Let's stick with Hare for now, if that's OK?" His eyes dart to the sword, and then to the book - bound in leather, "Is that it? It seems like it's something I should have read by now. I appreciate you giving me a copy. You said it was your mom's?"

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

Sally rolls it down her arm and into the palm of her hand with a thump. "Yup. She never Awakened herself, but she and it are why I'm alive today. Took it with her when she escaped my grandmother, gave it to me before the bitch could catch her again." She starts flipping through pages. It settles pretty quickly on one toward the back, which- judging by the spine- has seen a lot of visit. "It'll tell you the basics, from Awakening to Sight to the three big rituals, plus some sundry details on Others you might meet and how to handle them properly. Bit rude though, very Practitioner-superiority tone. Don't take it at its opinion." She extends it toward Hare. "It's yours if you use it right. Use the knowledge to keep people safe, help out those in need, make yourself better."

Hare — 02/22/2021

The Hare takes it, "Yeah, I try to do that when I can," he nods, pulling a backpack from his shoulder and unzipping it. "Sorry to hear your grandmother is or was being a bitch. Family issues are something I can understand, unfortunately." He sighs, placing the book in his backpack. "I figured it would be a bit practitioner-y. I don't have access to a lot of books on the practice, but the stuff I've found or traded for is pretty...well, it doesn't paint the best picture. I'm hoping OMO attracts a different kind of practitioner." He says, zipping up his backpack. "Hopefully this'll fill in some of the gaps I'm missing. Or, give me a direction of where I should be heading." "The Abyss is scary. Why are you heading there?"

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

Sally gives Hare a matronly smile, a bit rueful. "I think I mentioned that job from Lord Grey to you? He's paying me to head down and try to break some godlings and a fallen Demesne before the Abyss can claim it and it all starts coming back meaner. A right-bitch controlled the whole escapade, one Stella Lawson Meyers. I'm doing my part to make sure she never wreaks havoc again."

Hare — 02/22/2021

The Hare nods. "Yeah, you did - a few others told me to be careful around him. Sounds tough. What'd she do?"

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

"I'm a bit foggy on the details, but it was 'towns on fire, Innocents dying, several weeks to capture and multiple distinct battlefields' level of chaos. Grey was summoned to Hunt her, with a capital H. A good bite of the OMO folk joined in, and I'm still not sure if they successfuly took *her* down, or just her Demesne- a website called 'Freak Parade?' She collected internet godlings called Nex Machina there, and they hurt a lot of people."

Hare — 02/22/2021

"Damn, sounds nasty," he says - and for a moment, his eyes glow bright with Sight. "You're doing a good thing, then. Or, I guess you're hoping you do," he shuffles through his pockets, before pulling out a crumpled white rose. "I know you said, well, I know there wasn't any expectation of payment. Or, I didn't think there would be," he says, "But, I can give you this. If you tear off the petals, as you make your way to where your going, you'll have a safe path back." He extends a hand. "If you want it. It might help in the Abyss."

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

Sally's eyebrows go *way* up. "Now that *is* a gift. One more contingency to the pile, I'll gladly accept. Thank you, Hare." She looks at him quizzically for a moment. "I understand there's a lot you can't talk about." She seems to be leading up to a question.

Hare — 02/22/2021

"I'll let you know if you ask something I can't or won't answer."

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

"Is there anything you want to talk about, and can, but don't have anyone to talk to about the topic? Do you have a confidant to keep your opinions company?"

Hare — 02/22/2021

The Hare is silent for a moment, thinking. "I have a few Others I can talk to, openly. Some things they don't know or want to talk about, though. Like binding. Or some of this more practitioner stuff. Things I need to know if -," he pauses, looking over his shoulder, "If I'm supposed to do my job." "You mentioned a school, before. If you come back from the Abyss, you'll start it?"

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

"I'll see if I can help with some things." Sally gives Hare a searching look, then starts scanning the field's ground. She seems to find what she's looking for, and strikes at a large rock with the base of her crook. Like a waterfall in reverse, it rises upward in a shower of gold sparks, transforming into a chair. She gives another rock the same treatment, sits down in one, and offers him the other. "Sit, it's not a trap. I'm held by our oath."

Hare — 02/22/2021

The Hare tenses at the show of practice and, for a moment, seems more hare than human. He seems to relax at the mention of their oath, nodding, moving to sit on the chair. "Help is appreciated."

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

"As to the school, it's only a fancy at the moment. That thing I was too cagey to share online? I'm claiming my Demesne, and I intend to hold the school there. I was reminiscing on the memory of my mentor, and I realised that it's what he'd want me to do." She gives something between a groan and a sigh, and it makes her seem much older. "Binding's fucked. I can tell you how it works, the basics, but I can't say I do it the regular way often myself. Unless hitting something until it stops fighting you counts as binding, in which case I'm an expert."

Hare — 02/22/2021

"I don't want to bind, from what I've seen it's -," he shakes his head, sadly, "It's not something I want to be using. Even knowing the basics would be an improvement. And if there's a way to undo another practitioner's bindings, even better."

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

Sally cracks open a toothy grin, and the force at which she changes expression is a bit startling. "Oh, *breaking* bindings, now that's much more noble." She counts off the methods of binding on her fingers. "There's positive, negative, and hallowing. Positive binding, you use stuff the victim's got an affinity with to hold them in place. Inoffensive, sometimes seen as a compliment. Shit-easy to break though, anything that's got power to spare can say "oh, this jewelery is less valuable than the rest," "oh, this sword is lain half a degree further to the right than the others," and break right through. Trick is making sure they don't want to. Negative, it's the opposite- use stuff they hate. Ring of flowers for goblins, fire for a wood spirit, mud, grime and porn for the haughtier fae. Makes enemies right-quick, much harder to break. Lastly, hallows are homes. You make it so the subject wants to stay there. Same effect your bed has on you after a rough night- it's hard to leave, because why would you want to? Usually less circles and more containers, or buildings, or the spiritual inside of an object. Hallows generally suit only the subject you made the spot for, though. A faerie will appreciate a porta-potty hallow much less than a goblin. Questions?"

Hare — 02/22/2021

"That all makes sense. I've helped prepare hallows before, but I didn't know it was a type of binding." He says, before asking, "You learned all of this in Essentials?"

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

"Some of it's in there. More than I've said, frankly. It's got the details on how to make them happen, and that's a much longer explanation. Breaking bindings, though, that's barely mentioned."

Hare — 02/22/2021

"But you can teach me how to do that?"

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

"It's not easy, but I know more than some." Sally's gesturing with her crook like a drunk would with a bottle. "Breaking them open is usually too hard. If it's able to contain something more powerful than you, you probably can't do anymore than the thing inside can- that is to say, nothing the binder doesn't want you to. Coordinated efforts can work, though- pushing from either side of the same line can see it snap, but that can be a waste of energy or lead to you breaking through and running into each other." She leans in toward Hare conspiratorially, with the same broad grin as earlier. "No, what I'd recommend is *usurpation* or *subterfuge."*

Hare — 02/22/2021

The Hare nods, listening.

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

"Usurpation, that's when you make the binding your own. It's less overpowering it and more taking it over from the inside. If there isn't anything stopping you, scribbling new symbols onto the diagram is a good example- you can just add lines and runes until the delicate machine becomes nonsense and it breaks down. There's a trick with glamour that lets you do something similar, but if there's a contingency in the design, you'll trip it. If you can flood the location of the binding with spirits and power that's on your side, you can use that authority to usurp the binding as well- it's on your land after all. Another method is beating the binder bad enough that they cede control, which you can then promptly release altogether." Sally taps at the ground with her crook again. A flower, very much out of season, springs from it. "See that? If I wrap a diagram in a circle of flowers, I can spread those flowers into the diagram, disrupt the line work and break it down. Encircle the circle, claim authority. I'm confident it doesn't have to be flowers."

Hare — 02/22/2021

"Yeah, yeah, I get that," he says, nodding, more excited now. "I'm good with the spirits. Generally. So, this sounds like a good plan. And, more than what I expected," he turns to look at the moon, before back at Sally. "This was great, Sally, but I think I have to go. It's late. The rose should help you get back home, when you're in the Abyss. I hope your trip goes well."

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

Sally seems genuinely disappointed. “You can’t stay a while longer? I have more I’ll gladly share. Or perhaps I could come with you for a while? I haven’t been in a human city for more than a year, I’ll confess.”

Hare — 02/22/2021

"Oh, uh," the Hare looks back up to the moon, "A bit, I guess. I don't think I can take you back to my city and I don't know Dallas *that* well. What sorts of things have you been missing about human cities?"

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

She cackles. “Gods, people? Not having to dig into pleasantries looking for traps? Fast food makes me sick, but sometimes you need to smell grime and pollution to recognise how good clean air is.” She looks down at her clothes, gamberson and half-plate. “Plus, I could wear clothes. Denim is in, right?” That same shower of gold sparks runs across her armour, and she’s wearing a 2000’s era denim jeans and jacket.

Hare — 02/22/2021

The Hare laughs, "I think you'd be surprised how tricky people can be," he says, "but Fae are probably trickier. Or, so I've been told." His tone suggests a bit a smirk behind the mask. "And, sure, but not like that. I think I've seen similar outfits in old magazines. Usually people just do the jeans, and maybe a white tee," he gestures at his own outfit, jeans, a white shirt, and a grey hoodie. "I think most people - well, at least *I* prefer simplicity. Easy. Comfortable, that sort of thing. Think cotton, if it helps." He thinks for a moment, "There are a few diners near by. Some of the grosser ones lead out into the Warrens, if you aren't careful. We could try one of them, if you aren't too worried? Easier for me to eat at places like those, with the mask on, anyway."

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

Sally shakes her head at the mention of food. “Can’t eat Earth Food anymore, regrettably. Doesn’t go down right. I can drink though!” Her eyes go wide, and she stares Hare down. “Can... can we go to a ‘Star-bucks’?” She carefully enunciates the syllables, evidently thinking it’s two words.

Hare — 02/22/2021

The Hare nods, "Yeah, that's easy. Most places are closed now, but I might be able to work something out." He pulls out keys and clicks - and a car appears, or, if Sally is particularly observant, was always there. Spirits of Shadow and Silence flitter off into the night, revealing a banged up gray Subaru. "You're ok with me driving us?" The Hare asks, jumping into the driver's seat.

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

She nods, in that way that a person that’s pretending to be comfortable in an uncomfortable situation does. It doesn’t seem to have been Hare’s practice that bothered her, though. “Yeah, yeah sure! Cars, I know those. They have some in Dark Fall, y’know.”

Hare — 02/22/2021

"Cool," he says, turning the keys into the ignition. It takes a few tries. "You have, like, horses? Or, I guess you just turn into a bird or sunbeam or whatever to get where you need to go." The lights come on with a startling intensity before he dims, them, and then off they go.

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

Sally’s grabbed onto the seat and overhead handle and is pushing her legs into either side of the legroom, trying to pin herself in space. “Horses, sometimes. Particularly energetic sheep, also, that are sometimes turned into horses. Birds and Light beams, absolutely.” She writhes in places, and says stiffly, “I usually just walk.”

Hare — 02/22/2021

The Hare...doesn't drive well. The stops are hard, the turns are sharp, and he seems to find every bump on the road. Eventually, they find themselves at a Starbucks - or what looks like one, anyway. Only the Drive-Thru seems to be on. "This is as close as you'll get to a Starbucks, at this hour, anyway. Some poor dude got stuck in a rut and ended up more spirit because of the pattern of his work. Innocents avoid this place, but the coffee's good, usually. Sometimes you get weird things." He pulls up to the speaker, and a cracked voice echoes through the microphone. "Hi, welcome to Starbucks, can I take your order?"

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

“Can I have whatever your favourite thing to make is!?” Sally yells.

Hare — 02/22/2021

"My favorite....?" The voice echoes, breaking up into static, before responding with, "Please pull up to the drive-thru window. That'll be 4.99." "I've got it," the Hare says, pulling out a five from his dashboard. They pull up to the window - it's open, but no one's there - and a small ceramic cup waits for them on the window. "Huh," he says, carefully giving Sally the cup. "Not sure what that is. Maybe don't drink it, immediately. Whenever I get weird stuff, I usually check with some friends beforehand." He crumples up the fiver and tosses it through the window.

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

She takes the cup reverently. “Glamour should let me warm it up later, I can wait. Definitely best to heed the local’s warnings,” she says pointedly, like a mother trying to make something mundane a teaching moment.

Hare — 02/22/2021

He drives carefully back to the meadow. He lowers the window, looking over the field for a moment. "Is there anyone I should leave you? I probably should be heading back now."

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

“This’ll do fine. Shame I couldn’t tell you about the subterfuge anti-binding method, that’s the best one. Was distracted by the drive and the city, sorry.”

Hare — 02/22/2021

"No worries. Save some stuff, and we can exchange more next time we meet."

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

She climbs out of the car like a spider out of a cage. She releases a huff, the glamour rolling back to reveal the armour beneath. She gives Hare a wry smile. “Till next time then.”

Hare — 02/22/2021

"Bye, then," he says, and drives off, leaving Sally in the empty field under a full moon.

viceVersailes — 02/22/2021

She stands there for a moment, cup in her left hand and crook in her right. “Note to Self; still bad with cars.” Her eyes turn that lid-to-lid green again, and as she turns to walk away from the city, she walks *down,* a staircase of leaves and branches appearing in the earth. The entrance to the Faerie closes behind her, leaving no sign behind but the cup’s steam, quickly dispersed into the night air.