Dreams of Doors and Roads [Gardens of Oneiromancy]

[Yu Jie]

Nalani Appleblossom


Stepping over an errant pile of notebooks as she followed Gareth into the apartment, Nalani felt the edge of a binding coil hook onto the hem of her jeans. She laughed while she untangled the bit of wire. This was another reason she liked visiting Gareth. She felt at home in his place, particularly since they both seemed to run their places on the "pilot" system. If you have things and nowhere to put them, you just kind of "pile it" here and there.


"Whatever kind of tea you have is fine with me." She sounded so amused at his scurrying around.


Finding a seat on the humpbacked couch (where did he find this monstrosity?) she moved another stack of papers aside on the coffee table. Now there was enough room for her to set the still-warm sack of muffins down. She was already looking forward to having the banana nut one. They always made it so nice and moist at that bakery. "Hey, I hope you don't mind that I dropped by unannounced." It was a joke, of course. She hardly ever called in advance. More likely to follow whims than plans, Nalani often just showed up at someone's doorstep when the mood stuck her. If they weren't home, then she at least killed some time.


Idly, she flipped through his papers while she waited for him to return. Scribblings about history, most likely. Not exactly her forte, but she did admire how Gareth could get so absorbed in it.


"Oh, by the way, I was over at the The Station earlier," she called out loud enough for him to hear. Flip, flip, flip. If she wrote half as much as Gareth did, her hand would cramp up to the point where she wouldn't be able to play her violin. "I ran into Aisling." Well, no one really ran into Aisling. She always seemed to find you.

 

[morethanadream]

Gareth Hughes


"Oh, Aisling. She's well, I hope? And her associate too." If associate were the right word for 'someone who rides on your shoulder and brazenly pinches the sugar'. Others might admire Eucalyptus'forthright behaviour, but at the table?! Aunt Kitty wouldn't have stood for it, let's leave it at that...


He brought a tray out and set it down across some newspapers. He'd gone through them yesterday, looking for anything out of the ordinary, and now was only keeping them for the puzzle page, should he have a spare five minutes.


"Lapsang Souchong," he beamed, indicating the pot. "You know, I have a friend back in New York who has a ghost. You wouldn't know he was there, except for catching this aroma at odd times. He was alright, for a ghost, just wanted to keep the place in order - it was a tea warehouse, before it was made into housing. 'Cantor and Co.' I believe it was."


Gareth trailed off, setting out the plates for the muffins, two cups, a sugar dish, a small jug of milk, a squeezy bottle of lemon juice - "I can never remember to buy fresh lemons I'm afraid, but this is just as good" - and finally a plate of french fancies, treats he'd bought from the goblin market on his last visit. The tiny cakes were perfectly safe, though had unusual flavours - the violet ones made enough sense, but buttercup and daisy? Still, flowers were the least outlandish ingrediants one could find being used in market food, and the icing was sweet and dissolved in the mouth so who could complain?


Gareth picked out a bran muffin and began breaking small pieces off the side and ate slowly. "Oh yes, how is Aisling?" he asked, catching back up with his original train of thought. He poured Nalani's cup, then his own, and looked thoughtful as he sipped his tea.

 

[Yu Jie]

Nalani Appleblossom


"Thank you." She reached for the teacup with practiced ease.


"Associate?" She paused between stirring sugar into her tea and adding a tiny squeeze of lemon into it. Nalani watched the lemon-like plastic bottle slowly pop back into shape. "Oh wait, you mean the little sugar thief that likes pretending it's a stole?" She grinned, her spoon tinkling against the inside of the cup as she stirred. "I thought you meant Able Al at first." She took a good sip of her tea, the aroma bringing back memories of tea time on her parents' yacht. "Aisling seems fine, though I'm guessing that either she or one of the Family will be contacting you soon. I saw her chatting up Sam while I was having breakfast. That was after she had a little talk with me."


And despite having just had a good amount to eat at The Station, Nalani tore into the banana nut muffin with gusto. Small bite-sized pieces of the nutty bread disappeared one by one at a brisk pace. Her svelte appearance disguised a fast metabolism, making her quite the neat little eating machine. "Great tea, Gareth. It reminds me of my father. He very much liked Lapsang Souchong and Darjeeling. My mother was more of a coffee person." It was a rare moment when Nalani shared anything about her past. A good day indeed.


"You know, I've never actually met a ghost, much less one that smells like tea. Sad that the warehouse isn't there anymore. Do you think your friend is still there?"

 

[morethanadream]

Gareth Hughes


"Oh, Max will be there until the place falls into the sea, I imagine. He's very settled in his ways. I get the occasional letter from him, now and again. He keeps me updated on the phantom in his parlour. Or perhaps it's the phantom's parlour, and he's the guest," Gareth chuckled.


"I've not met many ghosts but... well..." Gareth set his cup down and put a hand to his chin, rubbing his beard. His expression turned quite serious. "Ghosts are a lot like us, the ones I've seen. They're people whose circumstances have changed very suddenly, and some of them take to it like a kite on a strong wind and they soar, and some of them get whipped around and tangled up in themselves.... Maybe that's just something I read, I can't remember." Gareth's posture loosened up. As he'd been speaking his shoulders had tensed up, and now he seemed to be exhaling it all away.


"Of course if you want to know about ghosts, you should ask Jason Black. He really knows what he's doing - I picked up the knack from my old mentor, and even then I'm just a dabbler."


He takes a sip of tea, pauses, then drops three sugar cubes in and tops the cup up with milk. The smoky, golden tea becomes more subdued, more mellow. He takes another tentative sip - carefully keeping the cup as steady as he can, since it's full to the brim - and seems satisfied now. He changes his mind a lot, about the most trivial of things. He's not erratic - usually - but it's a notable feature of his.


"It's good you remember your family. I'm not always sure the people I remember are really who I think they are. They're not always the same people. I'd give....." he starts, but abruptly changes direction, his thoughts flickering to the small, carefully written and delicately folded note in the tin box in his desk. The one he would probably never send. He banished those thoughts from his mind and started again. "Aisling will be contacting me? Nothing too ominious, I hope. I keep wondering when the catch for joining the Family will come up. You hear such odd things about what the members of the other Orders have to do to get in - and to stay in."

 

[Yu Jie]

Nalani Appleblossom


"I know what you mean." People often aren't who you think they are. Her family even more so. Even before she was taken there was her vision of her parents, one fashioned of hopes and wishes, and there was the reality of who they really were. Any trace of the laughter she rarely indulged in fled swiftly, leaving a small crease between her brows. She didn't like dwelling on them, specially not now. Maybe one of those buttercup fancies could distract her. Reaching for one, she bit into the delicate little petit four, but the summer sweetness of butter and sunshine went largely unnoticed. "Mmm. Good." Force of habit made her polite.


"Aisling gave me a small task to do, just the Pledge of Horn and Bone. I suspect she'll have you do something similar." She set the half-eaten sugary treat back down on her plate, the ruffled paper crinkling slightly. "Funny that you mentioned the catch. I was thinking of that myself when she sat down with me." The darkling touched her thumb to each of her fingers, those twig thin digits so long and flexible. "I suppose we'll find out in good time."


"And between now and then, maybe I will get around to chatting with Jason. I'd like hear a bit more about ghosts sometime." When she sipped her tea once more, she intentionally blocked out the memory of her father.

 

[Hyrune]

To West


One short tram ride later (sans weird couple, in your case, not that you'd know anything about that), you'll find yourself on campus. However, how do you plan on finding the wandering stargazer..?

 

[Ly North]

West


Once on campus West began to realize his plan may have been... short sighted. Sure he'd met Sam a few times but where would he be now? West sighed to himself and looked wearily around campus.


"Ok West, all you have to do is get a person to agree to something completely insane..." he starts off towards... whatever's in that direction... in search of... people.... "yep, I'm so fired."

 

[Chaka]

Sam


Sam emerged from the Drop Inn, feeling pretty pleased with himself. Sam my man, you just make it look easy. Heading along a tree-lined path past the library on his way back toward the tram, he noticed someone who very distinctly did not belong on campus. He seemed to be looking for someone.


"West! What brings you out here?"

 

[Ly North]

West


West grinned as Sam hailed him. It wasn't too often is poorly planned endevors went as expected. For the moment he was surprised it worked at all.


"Just who I was looking for. Listen, i need you t' help me get a dream."

 

[Chaka]

Sam


Sam nods. "Let me guess. Our beloved parents have ordered you to find someone by tonight, right? I literally just picked somebody up. But I'm curious. Why do you need my help?"

 

[Ly North]

West


West looked himself over as the first part of his response, making the proceedure inflated.


"I'm as subtle as a hand grenade... besides I figured you'd get a cute one and I was hopin' to do the same." West grins at the thought.


"So, can you help me? I'd rather not be arrested again this month... week..."

 

[Hyrune]

To Gareth


Ringing. Ringing.


Your phone.

 

[Hyrune]

To Sam and West


Well, ye're on a college campus, so there's quite a few marks to choose from. When you think about it, it's both a boon and a curse that Aisling remained as vague as she was in this task. On the one hand, you're free to choose whoever you want, but on the other, if she'd said "an African American male in his early thirties, single, non-smoker", it would have simultaneously made the job harder and easier. And when you think about it, freedom of choice means little with a task such as this; there's no real onus on you to actively interact with the person (in the waking world, at least), and even if you do pick out someone you'd like to know and meet, their...physical paramaters, so to speak, are no indication of their mental state.


...all that jargon aside, time to go human-shopping. Just within spitting distance of you are a few likely candidates; there's a girl with russet coloured hair walking by at a quick, almost nervous pace, petite and dressed all in red, a little bookish; a pale, hooded young man with two piercings you can see listening to his headphones, bobbing his head to music and oblivious to the world; an older man, perhaps a professor, bespectacled with deep worry lines across his tanned face; a late twenties waif of a thing with her hair tied back in a long ponytail and a tattoo of a cross on her exposed right shoulder; and finally another young woman with honey coloured hair held back in an elegant French braid rummaging through her handbag, cellphone playing the latest trendy tune somewhere deep within its recesses.

 

[Chaka]

Sam


Sam scans his surroundings, noting the likely marks. "Alright, then. Pick your target and we'll see what we can arrange."

 

[Ly North]

West


West nods to Sam and points briefly at the one with the books... its a campus and I'm expecting anyone to notice "the one with the books". He also made a note that a thuggish looking hood pointing at one already nervous student could possibly be detrimental over all.


"How 'bout her?"

 

[morethanadream]

Gareth Hughes


Gareth jumps up out of his seat and rummages around in his bag, digging down to the bottom in search of his phone. It rings a few times, and at last he finds it. He puts it to his ear.


"Hello? Sorry, I couldn't find my phone. Hello?"

 

[Hyrune]

To Gareth


"Wooooah, no need to panic there son!" Laughter booms down the line like a freight train on a collision course with your inner ear. "This is Al here, Able Al!"


As if it could be anyone else. You might need to start holding the phone a little farther away from your ear. "How're you doing today?" he asks, finally recovering from his apparent fit of mirth (again, all too characteristic of the powerful Broadback, but there are worse personality traits to have).

 

[morethanadream]

Gareth Hughes


"Hello Al," he began, perching on the arm of his chair, one hand holding his phone in the air, the other rubbing his rough chin. "I'm well. Had a late night, I was giving a tutoring session last night. Business is good - I'm starting to think the orange paper was a mistake, I don't want too many calls!"

 

[Hyrune]

To Gareth


“Far too eye-catching; you have my commiserations, haha! Still, nothing you can’t handle, I’m sure.â€


Hissing – oh, he’s inhaling through his teeth, you can just imagine his expression now. “Unfortunately, and I know you’re not gonna like it, but I’m about to add a greater burden to your workload. Orders from the higher-ups, gotta pass it along down the line. You might even have heard about it already.†You hear a rustling of paper; checking a list, maybe?


He’ll proceed to fill you in on the situation, outlining what you’ll need to do and the timeline. “Just pick out some likely chap or gal and give them a pleasant night’s sleep for the next while. It’ll be a learning experience for all of us! And hey, if you need any help, don’t hsitate to give me a call, y’hear?â€

 

[Yu Jie]

Nalani Appleblossom


Hearing Al's voice quite clearly through Gareth's phone, she motions to her host, pointing towards the door and mouthing, "I've got to get going. Catch you later." With a smile and a wave, she let herself out leaving a small fluttering of snowflakes in her wake.

 

[Chaka]

Sam


Sam nods, thoughtfully. "She seems as good as anybody. Got anything in mind?"

 

[Hyrune]

To Nalani


You're on Gareth's doorstep, a few streets east of campus, and a brief tram ride from the centre of town. Where to?

 

[Ly North]

West


"Well yeah, I was gonna walk over there introduce myself as a local supernatural being who wants to watch over her dreams in exchange for a good dose of emotional energy. Something tells me that won't go well..." west nods. "I got nothing."

 

[Chaka]

Sam


Sam grins broadly. "Oddly enough, that's what I did. You just gotta make it in to a joke. Get her laughing, get on her good side, and then if you're lucky she'll shake hands out of amusement if nothing else. It's worth a try."

 

[Ly North]

West


West nods and starts over to her trting to seem casual. While getting closer he desperately tries to come up with a way to break conversation all he could come up with is "wich do you carry, pepper spray or a tazer?". Before long he realised he was standing in front of her like a dear... ok more like a wolf in headlights.


"I... uh..." he glances over at Sam. "Nice day?" He tries his best at a casual smile.