Devil's Tower

Who: Shadow and Libby
What: Chatting?
When: Thursday afternoon
Where: The Library

It was a cloudy day, but it was warm, and at least it wasn't raining. Since Shadow had decided to venture out again, she'd though it might. Somehow she just didn't have the best luck with the weather. It had been incredibly nice though and she'd enjoyed the short walk from the apartments to the library. She was starting to believe that maybe spring really was here at last, summer no longer a distant and elusive dream but a promise just on the horizon.

She had some time to spare so she was planning to spend a couple hours hunting through the library. Gradually she was hunting down and studying every medical book she could find, from the simplest first aid manuals to dense textbooks that she barely understood sometimes. The medical journals were often of the most practical use, so that's where she was going to start her search today. After that she might poke around for a good novel too. It had been too long since she last picked up anything new and fun to read.

Shadow had an ulterior motive for visiting the library as well. She was hoping to run into Libby. They didn't get to talk all that often, considering how close together they lived, but Shadow enjoyed spending time with Libby. After returning from her wanderings the librarian had a perspective on things that was very similar to Shadow's own, and they both seemed to understand the art of silence just as well as the art of conversation, not something that was all that common. Since meeting Libby's half-sister, Gemini, earlier in the week, she was interested to hear how that was going and to hear her side of things.

Entering the library, Shadow peered around, the same way she always did, amazed and grateful that this repository of knowledge was still standing. The farm and the power plant were great, but this might actually be the town's greatest treasure.

Who: Gemini and Anyone she runs into.
When: Early Monday Morning
Where: Wolf territory, wandering south
What: needs timeout of the awkward climate of the house.
Status: COMPLETE

Gemini sighed as she tucked her note to Libby, telling her she was going out for some air, on her pillow, where she guessed it was most likely to be found. Then she tucked a piece of leather she was working on into the bag of tools hanging from her shoulder and silently navigated her way through the tension that was so thick in the house. She checked to be sure that Callum was still out in the backyard, leaning on the wide door frame to watch him as he lounged on the newly painted purple deck. Sigh

The house was so... awkward... not that she neccessarily wanted to break open the giant can of worms that was her and Libby's relationship, but would it help if they just cleared the air? Got all the crap out of the way and sat down and talked about their past and their father? Gemini straightened and walked out of the house, into the rain and the cold. Libby hadn't really spoken to her since that first day. She had gotten her settled in to her very luxurious (at least to Gemini's standards) new bedroom and then told her to help herself to the kitchen and the bathroom. She had smiled lightly when she passed Gemini in the halls. She had not, however, spoken one word besides a murmered "good morning" or "hey". Gemini didn't know what to do...

She walked through the mostly clear streets, not really paying attention to her whereabouts, only knowing that she was wandering south towards rougher looking buildings and emptier streets. All she really saw was the haze in front of her eyes, the memories of those first earth-rattling minutes in the Sundance Library. So much shock and anger an confusion in such a short period of time. Vaguely, Gemini wondered what Libby was thinking... if she had really and truely explained the situation to Wolf yet. How would he take it? Knowing that Gemini was just the "Mistress's Daughter", just "One of HIS"... She shuddered. How would she ever fit in here? But Lord, she wanted to fit in here... She really wanted to fit in here...

Sighing, Gemini looked up, past the edge of her thoughts and let the heavy, early morning rain, pelt her face and wash away the worry lines. She loved the rain. Loved how it swept away dirt and grime and sins in one wash of heavenly water. Thinking how she would love for the rain to wash away the tension in the house as easily as it washed away the tension in her muscles, Gemini sat back in the shadowy doorway of a sturdy, hospital looking building and pulled the scrap of leather out of her bag. She was humming slightly to herself, an old Nat King Cole melody, and working the rough spots out of the dark tan hide, when she first heard the footsteps approaching her hideaway.

Who: Pan, NPC drifter, NPC Fox and Shadow
What: Pan stops by Shadow's to give her the gift he promised her (and have some company).
Where: The Outskirts and Shadow's apartment
When: Thursday mid-morning

Pan awoke that morning with the chills and a rather stiff body. He sat up with a yawn that sounded more like a whimper, an arm slid down his chest to lay across his waist. He looked down at the young drifter who'd shared his bed last night, if a few blankets on the ground could be called a bed. Pan had been to the outskirts only a few times before and it had never been for pleasant reasons. He pinched the end of the drifter's coat sleeve with his thumb and fore-finger and lifting the boy's arm he slipped out from under the arm and the blankets. He couldn't believe the kid didn't wake up. All the drifters Pan had been with before had practically slept with their eyes open, if they even stayed with Pan that long.

He slipped his boots on and dug in the mess of covers for his many layers of jackets and shirts. When he left the River Runners the night before he'd put on as many of his clothes as he could. Granted he didn't have many clothes, but what he did have hadn't all fit into his bag. It wasn't too chilly in the empty warehouse but it was cold enough for Pan. After he'd properly dressed he went to find where they'd hid their belongings for the night in the corner of the warehouse. He threw his own bag over his shoulder and re-hid the kid's things. Pan was not a thief.

He walked back to the makeshift bed and crouched beside the fire. The coals were still a candy-orange underneath and so Pan built it back up with what wood they had laying around.

"You're up already, want something to eat? I have something more left in my bag." The drifter, Pan hadn't even asked his name, sat up on the pile of blankets.

"No, no thanks love but I've got something to do today." That something was to deliver Shadow the gift he'd made her for helping Gypsy those many months ago. His heart ached at the thought of it, the thought of leaving his tribe. He stood and pulled on his holy and fingerless gloves and threw the drifter what he could muster of a smile before he turned to leave.

“But we- I haven’t given you anything yet!”

Pan didn’t look back but called over his shoulder, “And you don’t have to.”

( It was Fox who Pan once again found at the edge of Wolf territory. )

Who Griffin and Shadow
What Making a delivery
When Afternoon
Where Shadow's place
Status Incomplete

With Christmas come and gone, it was right back to work for Griffin. The weather had turned slightly warmer, and enough snow had melted that it was no longer too dangerous for her to get in to town. The Feathers weren't hte only ones that could benefit from her knowledge. Now that she could get out, she planned to make deleveries to a few other tribes. First on her list were the Wolves. It wasn't that she was playing favorites or anything, but she did have at least one good friend over there. One good friend that she hadn't seen since the first blizzard of the year. She'd spent plenty of time with the same people, or by herself. She was ready for a fresh face.

She'd bundled up in some of her warmest clothes, packed a bag of a few of her most recent mixes, and climbed down out of her treehouse. There were several trails already crisscrossing through the powder. It was easy enough to find one that cut toward the stables. Griffin chatted with a few of her fellow tribemates who were also down with the horses. Since it was possible, she wasn't the only one who was heading out. Saddling her horse, she started picking her way toward town. Aside from the fact that it was still fairly cold, and the sun wasn't exactly shining, it wasn't a bad day to be outside. At least it wasn't snowing.

It took her awhile to get into Sundance. There was just enough snow on the ground that it was slow going. Griffin was just happy to be out of the house. She sang to herself as she rode, keeping an eye on the ground and steering her horse around the deepest snow drifts. The sun still hadn't peeked through the clouds by the time she got to town. From there, the ride to Shadow's apartment went a lot quicker. The Wolves had cleared off some of the major streets in their territory. There were even a few of them out and about, who watched her warily until they saw who it was. Griffin was well known throughout the tribes. She made it her business to touch base with all the of the tribes.

Griffin tied off her horse in front of the Wolve's apartments and unloaded her saddle bags. She'd brought as much with her as she thought she could spare. The Wolves were better off than some. At least they had someone who had a grasp of medicine. Some tribes didn't even have that. If Shadow was at home or at work, she'd be easy to find. But she decided to check the med center first, since it was closer. She knocked once before she pushed the door open, calling out before she just barged in. "'ello 'ello? Anybody home?"

Who: Pan and Shadow, possibly Gypsy too?
What: Pan takes a long walk to find some help for Gypsy
Where: The Sundance Apartments, maybe the River Runners camp too?
When: Sunday sometime around mid-morning

Pan had left the old farmhouse early that morning to get a head start on the long walk ahead of him. Gypsy had requested of him that he find her a doctor. Seeing as he was part of the River Runners he knew a thing of two about the members of other tribes even if he did not know the members himself. It seemed as though every other tribe had a medic except for themselves, which was sad really because it left them to rely on favors and trades for such things.

Pan knew that Azrael had a hand in medicine but they were already so indebted to the Mountain Lions, and what with the grain situation Pan didn’t think it was a good idea to ask for more. So it was the Wolves that he sought, simply because they were closer than the Feathers and he knew that Wolf had a soft spot for Gypsy, so perhaps he could convince their medic to come.

He layered up as much as he could stand and reluctantly clad his bare feet in a pair of Doc Marten’s he found in the communal coat closet of the farmhouse. He walked along Highway 90 along the edges of Mountain Lion turf. There were still the rotting bodies of cars strewn this way and that along the road but there was more than enough space for him to be able to pick his way through. He shivered inside his tattered brown pea-coat. Oh how he hated the cold, but it was for Gypsy and he figured he could tolerate it. The walk was long and the surroundings quiet with the kind of stillness that only snow can bring to a place. He mused at how white everything was, how clean, crisp and clear the world looked when it snowed. What a joke.

The walk was lonely, long and cold which eventually brought forth a song from his lips. Lucy remember the smell of that fall? The fires of fungus and the rotting leaves. I fell off the wagon… Through shivers he sang to himself and the small group of deer he came upon when he reached the city limits. into your arms! As he left the highway and walked down one of the smaller city streets he saw a figure standing a few blocks ahead of him, no doubt a guard at the edge of Wolf territory. into this long month of Sundays! His voice and the crunch of snow beneath his boots were the only sounds in the alley, if the guard had yelled something at him he hadn‘t heard. He flipped the long tassel of his snow cap back over his shoulder, fancying himself in a musical as he danced down the road towards the guard.

( tra la la! )

Who: Bishop and Shadow.
What: Time for a check-up.
When: Mid-morning.
Where: Wolf's living room.
Rating: TBD.

Never having to go through another week like the current one would make Bishop one step closer to dying a happy old woman. Mainly because it was a miracle that she'd made it through the last few days without gasping out her last breath. Life threatening situations were way more fun in the movies. When it actually came down to fleeing for survival, it wasn't as amusing, nor as easy, as entertainment used to make it look. In fact, it was in no way amusing, or easy. There were still loud noises and adreneline rushes, but there was also blood loss, and freezing weather. The people that you were running to for help weren't always friendly. Overall, she liked the Disney versions better. In those, the dark haired girl staring out the window wondering just how she'd gotten in to that mess wouldn't have been sporting a throbbing stab wound, just like the handsome prince wouldn't have been an scruffy ex-con man. Somewhere along the line, someone should have sued Disney, for giving people unrealistic expectations about life, love, and survival.

Drawing her knees up to her chest, Bishop sighed. Then again, the handsome prince was probably a buffle brained idiot with no sense of humor. Did he know how to make the princess laugh? And could she take a joke? Or was she too caught up in being all distressed? Come to think of it, why wasn't the princess woman enough to save her own damn self? Maybe she didn't like the Disney version better, if all the characters were such losers. With a half smile, she shook her head. Why in the hell was she comparing her current dire situation to children's movies? She really had started to lose it. Putting all that out of her mind, she nudged the curtain aside to get a better look at the worsening weather. There was a part of her that was very, very happy that her and Jace didn't have to wait out the coming storm in that badly insulated storage building. It might even have been worth putting up with all the hostile strangers. If nothing else, she'd gotten a number of hot showers out of the deal. Now all she needed was for her arm to be back to functioning normally, and she'd be all back to...well, not normal, since that hardly ever applied. But at least she'd be back to herself.

On a more happy note, they'd finally managed to find clothes that actually fit her. The jeans and shirt that she wore on that day were even in pretty good condition. That didn't make them any more comfortable, since they weren't her clothes, but she appriciated the thought. Settling deeper in to the chair, she glanced around. Somehow, she'd managed to snag a bit of alone time. She and Jace rarely seperated, either out of sheer paranoia, or because they were always headed to the same place. It was almost odd for him not to be in the room. For a second, she was even more uncomfortable. Not that she was worried about what kind of trouble he might get in to when she was't there to keep an eye on him or anything. She was just used to him being in the immediate area. Shrugging, then wincing because she pulled at her wound, she told herself to relax. Per usual, she ignored herself, and just kept staring out the window.

[COMPLETE]

Who: Libby and anybody/everybody!
What: Library Winter Slumber Party
When: Early Tuesday Evening
Where: Sundance Library

The shelves looked nice enough to the untrained eye; everything had been righted and the books put back up somewhat close to where they belonged. with her arrival Saturday, Libby really did not have all that much time to set her beloveds in their proper order, but the fact that they were off the floor gave her some comfort. With that task out of the way, she had spent the day shoving desks and chairs against the walls to make enough room on the upper floor for everyone to congregate, or at least enough room for the attendees to establish little territories to keep some stability. To say Libby felt nervous would have been a great understatement. She was eager to bring all the tribes together, but knew such a thing would not happen easily. Who could guess what would happen that evening, or if anybody besides her own tribe would show up.

Though she had requested that everyone bring their own provisions and sleeping materials, Libby had gathered what extra blankets, pillows, and food she could get. With winter already upon them (and it wasn't looking too bright either), they had to be careful not to be too lenient with their rationing. Then again, how could she expect the other tribes to trust the Wolves if they were stingy with their own supplies? For their little world to remain safe, everyone would need to cooperate. It would only take one weak link to destroy everything they had built.

Rolling up the sleeves of her cream turtleneck sweater, she made a simple sign on a white piece of paper, which read, "All are welcome!" and stuck it to the glass of the front door to the library. Then, with an old shawl wrapped around her shoulders, Libby paced the rows of bookshelves, reorganizing the books into their proper order, and waited for her guests to arrive. "If tempers raged and a fight broke out, at least the activity would keep everybody warm should the heating fail," her queer sense of humor pointed out. That was a main point, after all: work together, keep warm.

Who: Otter & Shadow
What: Fetching a medic
Where: Where she's holed up
When: After this

Otter had left the drifters in an unused house. It wasn't really great in the coldest months because there was a draft you couldn't manage to keep out of the place due to damage to the windows. Still, it was likely much better than wherever they'd been holed up and it was definitely better than where he'd found them. Once he'd left them Otter had jogged over to Shadow's. Jace didn't look like he was at his best but Bishop looked about ready to drop at any moment. He'd remained calm whilst with them but he wasn't stupid enough to not realize efficiency was imperative.

Luckily, Shadow wasn't too far off so it'd be easy enough for Otter to get to her. The problem came with convincing someone to help a drifter. Otter was just this side of stupid when it came to trusting people. He gave them the benefit of the doubt and was generally of the opinion that everyone deserved a chance to prove they were worth that trust. Many others did not share his view. It was dangerous to trust people but how would they ever have anything but ridiculous fighting and squabbling if they didn't learn to trust and be worthy of that trust? Well, hopefully Shadow would see the importance of helping someone over whether or not they should be trusted. It's not like he'd leave her alone with the drifters and it wasn't like he'd leave the drifters unwatched after either. Otter had a protective streak a mile wide, after all. From their state they likely weren't going anywhere unless they crawled there anyway.

Who: Darla and Open
Where: Wolf territory
When: Wednesday evening
Why: Avoiding Otter means she takes her chances on the dark empty streets.

It wasn't really much like Darla to stray far from the farm, there was comfort to be found in knowing she was never too far from her own home. Sometimes she forgot that she used to call the city 'home'...well not so much home as a place to stay, the fact that she was still hiding from her probably angry (mountain lion) ex boyfriend was yet another reason she never really went to the city alone, you never knew who you could bump into. She had a feeling the other tribe members had no interest in her unless they had heard about the switching of sides during the first big fight...then they might want her maimed...or dead if they were being dramatic.

It wasn't really much like Darla to be wandering around in the dark of the night, even before the virus and the end of the world struck, she was afraid of the dark still to this day even though she knew terrible things could happen in broad daylight too. As she wandered to the beginning on the Sundance apartments she remembered why she had taken the third pair of socks out of her drawer and she bit her lip as he teeth started to chatter. There were no lights on tonight, obviously power was still out and it made it all the harder to see where she was going, but the sky was clear and the stars helped strangely to create a bluey black sheen over the world. The town looked at peace...if still a little creepy.

Darla kicked at pebbles cluttering the path as she plodded down slowly listening carefully for any other sound that wasn't her own, paranoia was probably going to set in soon and send her running in the direction she thought Nova and Wolf's house was banging on the door and demanding to be let in. She knew when that happened they would be firing questions as to why she was here, truth was she was avoiding Otter, but not for the most obvious of reasons. No for once Darla was embarrassed, they hadn't really spoken about her apology since that night in the gym and she was trying to prolong that. She sighed to herself as she kicked yet another pebble, walking past countless dark windows and wandering to herself when exactly she was going to knock on a door and ask to be let in. That was providing no one found her before, friend or foe.