runs: (considering all that)
Kitty ([personal profile] runs) wrote in [community profile] cityofhex2016-11-02 07:49 pm

[open & closed] We walk these streets, but not alone

1. Open (Nov 4th)

There is a very basic problem that occurs to Kitty towards the end of her first day in Hex, around the time when the candy from the night before runs out: She has no currency on her that would be accepted here, no place to return to in the evening where she will find food, and no way of finding work that she could earn some money with. Even if there is something that she could do to earn money, she wouldn't know what it would be and how to get to do it.

She resorts to shoplifting that evening, but that really only helps for one meal and smuggling food out of a shop is not that easy when you're young and thus turn people's head just by being in the store alone and not in the candy section.

No. She needs to find something better to do. So that night, she can be found out in the streets where there are bars, or even just shady looking backalleys, hoping to find someone who passed out from alcohol and still has their wallet on them. Or who can't resist her searching hands for other reasons, she isn't picky (and doesn't even think to call an ambulance or police because that just wouldn't even be an option back home). It takes all night, and doesn't turn up with much, but she has a few bucks in the morning, enough to last her for a few days. But she's tired, and it was a pretty tedious search with more than one disappointment and one or two unpleasant almost-encounters.

Still, the money doesn't last her long and thus she's out on the nightly streets again a few days later. She almost squeals in excitement when the first limp body that she finds still has its wallet, creepy as the corpse is. Because that is what it is, she notices. It isn't even the lack of breathing that tips her off, it is the unnatural lack of essence. As if someone forcibly removed it... Her head shoots up and she jumps to her feet and dive under some garbage bags that are piled up behind her, just in time as a woman turns the corner. She can hear the woman curse about children (?) and then some shuffling and rustling, and when everything is finally quiet again and she crawls out from under the garbage bags, only enough to peer down the street, stinking and shaken, the corpse is gone.

If nobody finds her there, she will quickly retreat then - not to any specific location, just to somewhere else, further away from the bars, and once a quiet corner is found, sit down there and try to catch her breath. "Drek," she whispers and closes her eyes for a moment. "Drek."


2. closed to Ryoji (Nov 5th)

Kitty is a busy bee during her first week in Hex. Aside from trying to figure out how to eat, she also tries to learn more about two people: Corwin and Ryoji. The former because something is just seriously wrong with that guy, and the latter because ...well, he gave her her phone number and is local. He might be a very useful contact, but she wants to know more about him before she uses this.

It doesn't take her long to find him - knowing that he is a college student helps a lot. She follows him for two days - mostly in her cat shape - before she finally decides that he might be eccentric, but safe enough and calls him. She'll just let the phone ring until he answers, no matter how long that takes.


3. closed to NPCs (Okt 31)

She's been around for a few hours, joining other children while trick-and-treating, and thinks that she has a decent enough grasp on the concept. It's for children that still have early bedtimes and need to be attended by an adult.

So seeing a group of children who are still out and about and who don't have an adult with them, a good while after she has parted with her second group and watched the trick-and-treaters vanish from the street gives her pause and makes her halt her steps just after stepping around the corner to watch them.

Sure, she's still out and about without an adult herself, but that's different. What are they doing here?
dangerouslyinlove: (Ryoji [Not sure about this])

[personal profile] dangerouslyinlove 2016-11-06 01:23 am (UTC)(link)
"Still don't have it." Sorry kiddo. Wifi is a thing, bodyware is not. Get used to it.

Ryoji can't even remember all those letters, like, two seconds after she says them. "No? They are people who are killed by vampires and then given a vampire's blood to turn them into one." He's pretty sure that's how vampires do that. (It involves death, he's at least more aware of that part.)
modmachine: (Default)

[personal profile] modmachine 2016-11-06 02:33 am (UTC)(link)
They nod at her and all reach into their pockets; the fistfuls of candy they pull out to show her can't possibly fit in there without making massive bulges, but then again, the glitter bomb would probably have had trouble fitting, too. It was easily the size of Kitty's apple.
dangerouslyinlove: (Ryoji [Not sure about this])

[personal profile] dangerouslyinlove 2016-11-06 03:33 pm (UTC)(link)
Ryoji screws up his face, thinking, "Nosferatu and ghouls sound kind of familiar?" he says, "I can't tell you why, though. None of the rest of those ring a bell, though. Sorry." Looks like they're dealing with completely different things. "...I don't understand how everything is so different where you're from. How did you even get here?"
dangerouslyinlove: (Ryoji [Whoops])

[personal profile] dangerouslyinlove 2016-11-06 03:59 pm (UTC)(link)
That explains pretty much nothing, but it's not really her fault. It's pretty hard to picture, but... it would be a really weird thing to lie about. "This is so weird..." Ryoji sighs, "Um. Well, do you have more questions about everything here?" Since apparently you might really need it.
dangerouslyinlove: (Ryoji [Not sure about this])

[personal profile] dangerouslyinlove 2016-11-06 04:38 pm (UTC)(link)
"Yeah, they should... unless that means something different where you're from." He's not taking any chance. "I mean, you might since you're not from here, and I'm sure the vampires and people who live for longer than normal humans do something tricky to make them not look suspicious on records and such, but..." This is kind of nitty-gritty thing he knows almost nothing about.
dangerouslyinlove: (Ryoji [Not sure about this])

[personal profile] dangerouslyinlove 2016-11-07 01:30 am (UTC)(link)
Under that specification, Ryoji nods. "Yeah. All 'humans' are legal and official, unless they came here without the right stuff I guess, and that's what most people pretend to be even if they're not. I guess it's different for you, then." This time he's not outright asking her to explain it if she doesn't want. He has a feeling there's a lot about her home that's different and he's not sure he'd be able to keep track of it all.
dangerouslyinlove: (Ryoji [Whoops])

[personal profile] dangerouslyinlove 2016-11-07 11:36 pm (UTC)(link)
"Not all of them are legal and official jobs." He can think of a great many that aren't, actually.
dangerouslyinlove: (Ryoji [Invitation])

[personal profile] dangerouslyinlove 2016-11-09 01:48 am (UTC)(link)
"Stealing things. Selling stuff that isn't legal. Things like that." He's getting a feeling he might know why she's asking...
Edited 2016-11-09 01:48 (UTC)
dangerouslyinlove: (Ryoji [Whoops])

[personal profile] dangerouslyinlove 2016-11-12 05:09 pm (UTC)(link)
He doesn't know what do with you, small child. "I mean, there are probably other things... what kind of things are you thinking of?"
dangerouslyinlove: (Ryoji [Whoops])

[personal profile] dangerouslyinlove 2016-11-12 07:55 pm (UTC)(link)
Now Ryoji is incredibly worried about her. "Uh... no, not really. Unless the mafia count, but I'm pretty sure they only do most of those things in the movies." Or maybe secret agents, but that's not really an 'easily accessible' market by pretty much any definition. Still, Ryoji isn't stupid so he thinks he sees what she's getting at. "...Is that what you used to do, back home?"
dangerouslyinlove: (Ryoji [Not sure about this])

[personal profile] dangerouslyinlove 2016-11-13 02:30 am (UTC)(link)
"...How old are you?" He... supposes she could look younger than he is, but that sounds like a kind of dangerous job for someone her age. Which doesn't mean he doesn't believe her, he does and it would kind of explain a lot, but it raises some other questions too.

"But... no, nothing like that really exists here, that I know about. And a lot of places aren't likely to actual hire someone that looks your age, if nothing else." ...She might have to just steal, which is not really a thing he wants to encourage but...
dangerouslyinlove: (Ryoji [Not sure about this])

[personal profile] dangerouslyinlove 2016-11-13 05:45 pm (UTC)(link)
"Probably?" This is really not helping Ryoji's peace of mind over her life, ok.

Ryoji hums, having to think over that a little bit. "...A lot. Most," he says, sighing, "You might be able to get a job delivering newspapers or something simple like that, but most other places that would even consider hiring you would be illegal and not at all safe."

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