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 ~~
 ====== Chapter 2 ======
-===== Friday October 22nd, 2010 =====
 //Game was 9/7/19. A bit scattered, as the PCs were in different locations the entire game.//
-==== The Botanica ====
-Anita has a busy afternoon at the botanica, and gets no time to herself. However, her cash register is full, so she’s not complaining. She keeps her ear to the ground and learns that the main topic of conversation is Silas Black – and he’s definitely polarizing. His detractors decry another white mobster shooting brown kids, but his supporters argue that he’s actively cleaning up the streets. At 5 o’clock, Peter arrives in plain clothes with two pizzas; he guesses Anita didn’t have time for lunch and comments, “And besides, you’ve had a shitty day.” Anita happily grabs some pizza as her customers treat Peter as part of the store.
-When the botanica hits a lull, Peter and Anita talk about tonight. They plan on going below as normal, but only stick to the hallway. The krewe has yet to cross the river into the Lower Depths, and Peter ascribes it to a mental block from Erika Cook’s disappearance a year ago. Anita agrees and Peter muses, “Hell, we should bring your other friends with us if we want to cross the river.” Anita snorts, and doubts they’d be able to get William into the Underworld.
-==== The Internet is Not (Only) for Porn ====
-At the Troy household, Josh refines his internet search to look for Elisa Mae Curran. He finds multiple social media accounts, the standard Facebook/Twitter/Tumblr tryptic but also Instagram, LiveJournal, and SnapChat. All her accounts were extremely active until three weeks ago; her last posts were on Saturday October 2nd. He finds a URL buried in her LiveJournal and follows it after performing the usual safety checks, although the site doesn’t come up in a Google search. Josh risks it anyway, and finds himself redirected to a private YouTube channel. The channel has several uploaded videos, each purporting to show supernatural activity, and he realizes he’s stumbled across a Network 0 channel.
-He checks the various comments and finds nothing new within the past three weeks. Scrolling through the comments, he finds two users that seem to carry the candle. He soon realizes one user – Medusa89 – is Elisa Mae herself. The other user is Tybalt3413, so he sends that user a message asking for an update on users not posting recently. He then realizes he got into the private channel without any authentication, and quickly surmises that he has already given permission. He groans when he checks his assigned username and finds it to be CuteButt217; February 17th is his birthday.
-Further digging reveals that Elisa Mae and her family come from Northampton, and her parents still live in town. They have money and Elisa Mae went to a private school, otherwise Josh would have known who she was. Josh then gets a message back from Tybalt3413 asking, //“You’re on? Where’s everyone else?”// Josh hesitates before typing, //“They got too close to whatever they were searching for.”// He hits Send and then checks the local news. He finds nothing about the double homicide at Smith College, and assumes the NPD is keeping it under wraps to preserve the investigation while the college wants to keep admissions up. However, the Hampshire Gazette is sniffing around.
-Josh does more backtracking and finds the police logs for October 3rd, which includes calls from Smith College campus. Although no codes are attached to the calls, it’s pretty clear something happened that both parties seem keen to cover up. Josh forwards the link to the logs to Tybalt3413. He does some more searching and winces when he finds Angie Nakamura’s screenname: SushiGirl. He finds a link to a story about the discovery of Angie’s body, although it is scant on details. He also forwards this to Tybalt3413 as well, and comments, //“Deepest condolences.”//
-He gets a reply: //“What about Medusa89?”// Josh scrolls through the videos and finds one marked, ‘Vampires’ which he links in his reply. He adds, //“They turned her and used her against SushiGirl.”// A few seconds later, someone starts scrubbing the channel clean. Josh sends another message: //“If you’re the one deleting, stay safe. Reach out if you need to.”// He watches the videos vanish, but spots one marked ‘Veltis.’ He manages to copy it before it goes down, and reads the three comments: //“FAAAAAKE!!!!”//, //“DAAAAAMN!!1!!”//, and //“Fuck Noho.”// He watches the video, which is a grainy shot into Leta’s apartment. The video shows a tiny Veltis scuttling across the floor – and then shapeshifting into a massive Veltis as he waddles into the kitchen.
-==== Burger King and Tommy Guns ====
-Meanwhile, Abby, Leta, Veltis and William walk into Burger King – and Veltis is in human form – T-shirt, kilt, crocs, and all. They order their food and get free upgrades to milkshakes thanks to Veltis. They settle in to eat, and William looks around and acknowledges to himself that this is very strange. Mick calls Leta and asks sarcastically, //“So you have a valley girl impression?”// Leta feigns innocence for a few minutes before referencing //Stand By Me//. Mick growls, //“Oh, God damn you. Which apartment?”// Leta smiles triumphantly and relies, “137, number 3.” Mick sighs and asks where she is; Leta replies, “Abby and I took Grandpa out for Burger King.”
-She also adds the badge number Veltis saw, and Mick goes completely silent for a moment. He then says quietly, //“He’s supposed to be my backup. What do I need to know?”// Leta looks around to make sure no one is listening, and then quickly lays it out. Mick curses and mutters, //“I’m going to keep this line open.”// Leta hears the squawk of a radio and Mick’s voice, //“Dispatch, on scene for the possible 10-80. Backup not on-site, requesting additional unis.”// She then hears dispatch reply, //“Copy that, ETA 10 minutes.”// Mick replies, //“10-4,”// and then Leta hears a gunshot and the sound of a phone hitting the ground!
-Leta yells, “Car! Car! Car!” and the others grab their milkshakes and bolt out of Burger King. They dive into the car and Abby swings around the Burger King and plows left onto King Street! They hear the crunch of metal and Veltis mutters, “I wasn’t expecting to go like this.” However, Abby wasn’t hit, although she caused at least two accidents in her wake. She shoots down King Street and takes a sharp right onto Bridge Street, again causing massive traffic disruptions. She zooms under I-91, swings into the parking lot of the Drozdal Funeral Home across the street from the complex, and kills the engine. They all hear gunshots and see people fleeing to their cars, so they scramble out of Abby’s car and run across Damon Road!
-The four hunters manage to not get run over, and they run to the building. They hear more gunshots from behind the building, so William takes the lead and moves quickly to the right side of the building, with the others following in his wake. Veltis hisses to William, “Gun?” William realizes he left his firearm at home and whispers back, “Yes, please.” Veltis groans but reaches under his kilt to grab a firearm from his pocket realm. He grabs the first gun he finds and pills out a fully loaded Tommy gun from the 1920s! He hands it to William, who stares at it, completely flabbergasted for a second. He then shrugs and continues forward with the weapon in hand.
-William crouches at the corner of the building and risks a careful peek around. There is a small parking lot and cluster of dumpsters behind the stores, and then the embankment leading up to I-91. Mick is slumped against the dumpsters, using them for cover, but is clearly nursing a wound to his arm. Someone is firing from the back door, and since the door opens inward, they are using said door for cover. William estimates it’s about fifty feet from the corner to that door, and Leta hisses, “Should we split up?” William considers options for a split-second and then nods. Abby stays with him while Leta and Veltis fall back to flank the shooter.
-Veltis switches the phones to tactical mode, thus looping in only the cell members present. They find a side door to the building and swiftly jimmy it open. They slip into a tiny hallway that circles the sides and rear of the building; it’s hot and reeks of decomposition. Outside, Mick fires his pistol at the door but misses; Leta uses the distraction to scurry up the hallway with Veltis. They peer around the corner to see Anna’s partner, clad only in boxers, with his service pistol out. He spots them, but fires back at Mick out of reflex. He hits Mick again in the arm, causing Mick to drop his service weapon. William braces himself at the corner and aims the Tommy gun at the door. He opens fire, spraying bullets and shredding the door! The shooter stumbles back, bleeding from several lacerations, while Mick gapes openly at William and clearly wants to play with the Tommy gun. He slips deeper into his cover.
-Inside, Veltis pulls a second firearm out from his kilt and fires in one smooth motion – which is impressive, as he pulled out a loaded musket! The shooter falls backwards, bleeding from another wound, when Leta charges in and drives her fist into his chin! The shooter collapses, unconscious, and Leta yells, “He’s down!” They all hear sirens approaching, so they bolt, perform a quick check on Mick, and then circle the building and merge seamlessly with the rest of the fleeing crowd; Veltis shifts from incubus to giant rat to tiny rat and into Leta’s pocket mid-stride before anyone sees him.
-The four hunters safely reach Abby’s Saturn and get inside as the SWAT team rolls up. Abby manages to slip into the traffic heading towards King Street, but William spots a 2001 blue Ford truck that triggers his instincts. Leta spots it as well – and recognizes Anna Bell behind the wheel! Abby obligingly slips in behind the pickup truck, and they pass Polly on her way to the shooting; she does a double take when she sees them. The Ford pickup suddenly shoots forward, weaving through traffic and barrels straight out into the intersection of Damon Road and King Street! Unfortunately for Anna, she shoots right in front of a certain big red pickup truck that clips her! William groans as Abby comes to a stop at the red light; he immediately recognizes Isabelle, Richard MacLeod’s truck!((Andee played MacLeod briefly))
-==== MacLeod's Terrible, No-Good, Very Bad Day ====
-MacLeod was on his way to bring Vandernoot a milkshake when the blue pickup blew through a red light and he swerved, but clipped the back fender. To his astonishment, a dead body popped up from the bed of the pickup truck briefly, and then the pickup speeds up Bridge Road. MacLeod hits his radio and snaps, “Possible 10-80, blue pickup, eastbound on Bridge Road. MacLeod in pursuit!” He hits his sirens and zooms up Bridge Street! As he nears the pickup truck, he sees the corpse pop up again and radios, “Confirmed 10-80!”
-The pickup executes a sharp right onto Cook Avenue, but MacLeod guns the engine and twists the wheel, coming up on the grass and shooting across the lawn to cut off the pickup! The pickup fishtails and slams into a tree! MacLeod watches as two corpses with Y-incisions fly up and radios, “Confirmed two 10-80s, suspect crashed.” He gets out and approaches, trying to figure out what the hell is going on, when Abby passes Cook Avenue without stopping. Seeing MacLeod stepping out with a gun in one hand and a milkshake in the other, William sighs and mutters, “If he’s here, she’s upset.” Abby nods and ways, “I’ll bring you home.”
-==== Meeting Ray ====
-At 5:30, Josh’s phone rings. He answers it, and a pubescent voice on the other end asks, //“Is this… CuteButt217?”// Josh replies, “That’s the name I was given,” but notes the caller’s age. The caller identifies himself as Tybalt3413 and asks to meet; Josh agrees. Tybalt3413 then says, //“You pick the place, everywhere I know is compromised.”// Josh offers his home, but Tybalt3413 admits, //“I only have your number.”// Josh is willing to go somewhere public, so Tybalt3413 offers, //“Pulaski Park, fifteen minutes?”// Josh agrees, but then Tybalt3413 asks, //“Wait, how will I know you?”// They eventually decide to send selfies at the same time, and Josh gets a picture of a 16-year-old kid with bad acne. He tells Tyalt413, “Just call me Jay,” and ends the call. He texts the cell and then gets into his car.
-Josh makes it downtown without too much trouble and parks. He gets out and walks to Pulaski Park, a tiny strip containing drugs, hobos, and trash. Tybaslt3413 rides up on a bicycle a moment later, and Josh gets a good look at him. He’s wearing designer clothes and has a very nice bike, and Josh mutters, “Aw, cupcakes,” when he realizes the truth: this kid is related to Elisa Mae Curran. The kid freezes when he sees Josh, but Josh pulls out a bottled water and hands it to him. The kid accepts it, and shakily identifies himself as Ray. Josh replies softly, “I’m so sorry,” and Ray twitches, clearly on the verge of a breakdown. Josh escorts him out of the park to the steps of the Academy of Music, where they sit on the steps.
-Ray asks hoarsely, “She’s a monster now, isn’t she?” Josh nods silently and then Ray breaks down completely, howling with grief and sobbing.((More ‘emotes.’ See also: //Star Trek: Solstice.//)) Josh holds him for a bit, until he senses it’s time to let go. Several local people eye him warily until they recognize him and give him space. Ray sobs, “Angie, Elisa, and Brad. Oh god, Angie’s dead!” He takes a rattling breath and whimpers, “How do I tell Mom and Dad our sister is dead?” Josh advises, “Don’t. That’s not on you. She may walk up to your house after dark. You can’t put your parents in the middle of that. I have friends who can help you, family and others who carry the candle.”
-Ray nods miserably and mumbles, “I need to get out of Noho.” Josh manages to get clarification hat the teenager just wants to leave for a little bit, and then he calls Anita. She answers, //“What’s up, hot pants?”// Josh carefully explains the situation using euphemisms, and asks if he can bring down a “candle-adjacent kid.” Anita readily agrees, and Josh asks Ray if a trip to Springfield would work, and does he have a favorite comfort food? Ray nods and then hesitantly asks, “Can we stop at Friendly’s?” Anita overhears and immediately demands a cookies & cream milkshake. Josh agrees, and ends the call. He walks Ray back to his Ford Explorer and loads the kid’s bike into the back. He then drives Ray to Friendly’s, where he picks up a few pints of ice cream and the requested milkshake, and then he hits the road for Springfield.
-~~META:
-title = Hunt 28: Chapter 2
-~~
-====== Chapter 2 ======
 ===== Friday October 22nd, 2010 =====
-//Game was 9/7/19. A bit scattered, as the PCs were in different locations the entire game.//
 ==== The Botanica ====
-[[wod:hunter:pcs:anita|Anita]] has a busy afternoon at the botanica, and gets no time to herself. However, her cash register is full, so she’s not complaining. She keeps her ear to the ground and learns that the main topic of conversation is [[wod:npcs:black]] – and he’s definitely polarizing. His detractors decry another white mobster shooting brown kids, but his supporters argue that he’s actively cleaning up the streets. At 5 o’clock, [[wod:geist:pcs:peter|Peter]] arrives in plain clothes with two pizzas; he guesses Anita didn’t have time for lunch and comments, “And besides, you’ve had a shitty day.” Anita happily grabs some pizza as her customers treat Peter as part of the store.
+[[wod:hunter:pcs:anita|Anita]] has a busy afternoon at the botanica, and gets no time to herself. However, her cash register is full, so she’s not complaining. She keeps her ear to the ground and learns that the main topic of conversation is [[wod:characters:black]] – and he’s definitely polarizing. His detractors decry another white mobster shooting brown kids, but his supporters argue that he’s actively cleaning up the streets. At 5 o’clock, [[wod:geist:pcs:peter|Peter]] arrives in plain clothes with two pizzas; he guesses Anita didn’t have time for lunch and comments, “And besides, you’ve had a shitty day.” Anita happily grabs some pizza as her customers treat Peter as part of the store.
 When the botanica hits a lull, Peter and Anita talk about tonight. They plan on going below as normal, but only stick to the hallway. The krewe has yet to cross the river into the Lower Depths, and Peter ascribes it to a mental block from [[wod:geist:pcs:erika]]’s disappearance a year ago. Anita agrees and Peter muses, “Hell, we should bring your other friends with us if we want to cross the river.” Anita snorts, and doubts they’d be able to get William into the Underworld.
 ==== The Internet is Not (Only) for Porn ====
-At the Troy household, [[wod:hunter:pcs:josh|Josh]] refines his internet search to look for [[wod:npcs:elisa|Elisa Mae Curran]]. He finds multiple social media accounts, the standard Facebook/Twitter/Tumblr tryptic but also Instagram, LiveJournal, and SnapChat. All her accounts were extremely active until three weeks ago; her last posts were on Saturday October 2nd. He finds a URL buried in her LiveJournal and follows it after performing the usual safety checks, although the site doesn’t come up in a Google search. Josh risks it anyway, and finds himself redirected to a private YouTube channel. The channel has several uploaded videos, each purporting to show supernatural activity, and he realizes he’s stumbled across a [[wod:groups:network0|Network 0]] channel.
+At the Troy household, [[wod:hunter:pcs:josh|Josh]] refines his internet search to look for [[wod:characters:elisa|Elisa Mae Curran]]. He finds multiple social media accounts, the standard Facebook/Twitter/Tumblr tryptic but also Instagram, LiveJournal, and SnapChat. All her accounts were extremely active until three weeks ago; her last posts were on Saturday October 2nd. He finds a URL buried in her LiveJournal and follows it after performing the usual safety checks, although the site doesn’t come up in a Google search. Josh risks it anyway, and finds himself redirected to a private YouTube channel. The channel has several uploaded videos, each purporting to show supernatural activity, and he realizes he’s stumbled across a [[wod:characters:groups:network0|Network 0]] channel.
-He checks the various comments and finds nothing new within the past three weeks. Scrolling through the comments, he finds two users that seem to carry the candle. He soon realizes one user – Medusa89 – is Elisa Mae herself. The other user is [[wod:npcs:ray|Tybalt3413]], so he sends that user a message asking for an update on users not posting recently. He then realizes he got into the private channel without any authentication, and quickly surmises that he has already given permission. He groans when he checks his assigned username and finds it to be CuteButt217; February 17th is his birthday.
+He checks the various comments and finds nothing new within the past three weeks. Scrolling through the comments, he finds two users that seem to carry the candle. He soon realizes one user – Medusa89 – is Elisa Mae herself. The other user is [[wod:characters:ray|Tybalt3413]], so he sends that user a message asking for an update on users not posting recently. He then realizes he got into the private channel without any authentication, and quickly surmises that he has already given permission. He groans when he checks his assigned username and finds it to be CuteButt217; February 17th is his birthday.
 Further digging reveals that Elisa Mae and her family come from Northampton, and her parents still live in town. They have money and Elisa Mae went to a private school, otherwise Josh would have known who she was. Josh then gets a message back from Tybalt3413 asking, //“You’re on? Where’s everyone else?”// Josh hesitates before typing, //“They got too close to whatever they were searching for.”// He hits Send and then checks the local news. He finds nothing about the double homicide at Smith College, and assumes the NPD is keeping it under wraps to preserve the investigation while the college wants to keep admissions up. However, the Hampshire Gazette is sniffing around.
@@ Line 72: / Line 19: @@
 Josh does more backtracking and finds the police logs for October 3rd, which includes calls from Smith College campus. Although no codes are attached to the calls, it’s pretty clear something happened that both parties seem keen to cover up. Josh forwards the link to the logs to Tybalt3413. He does some more searching and winces when he finds Angie Nakamura’s screenname: SushiGirl. He finds a link to a story about the discovery of Angie’s body, although it is scant on details. He also forwards this to Tybalt3413 as well, and comments, //“Deepest condolences.”//
-He gets a reply: //“What about Medusa89?”// Josh scrolls through the videos and finds one marked, ‘Vampires’ which he links in his reply. He adds, //“They turned her and used her against SushiGirl.”// A few seconds later, someone starts scrubbing the channel clean. Josh sends another message: //“If you’re the one deleting, stay safe. Reach out if you need to.”// He watches the videos vanish, but spots one marked ‘[[wod:npcs:veltis|Veltis]].’ He manages to copy it before it goes down, and reads the three comments: //“FAAAAAKE!!!!”//, //“DAAAAAMN!!1!!”//, and //“Fuck Noho.”// He watches the video, which is a grainy shot into [[wod:hunter:pcs:leta|Leta]]’s apartment. The video shows a tiny Veltis scuttling across the floor – and then shapeshifting into a massive Veltis as he waddles into the kitchen.
+He gets a reply: //“What about Medusa89?”// Josh scrolls through the videos and finds one marked, ‘Vampires’ which he links in his reply. He adds, //“They turned her and used her against SushiGirl.”// A few seconds later, someone starts scrubbing the channel clean. Josh sends another message: //“If you’re the one deleting, stay safe. Reach out if you need to.”// He watches the videos vanish, but spots one marked ‘[[wod:characters:veltis|Veltis]].’ He manages to copy it before it goes down, and reads the three comments: //“FAAAAAKE!!!!”//, //“DAAAAAMN!!1!!”//, and //“Fuck Noho.”// He watches the video, which is a grainy shot into [[wod:hunter:pcs:leta|Leta]]’s apartment. The video shows a tiny Veltis scuttling across the floor – and then shapeshifting into a massive Veltis as he waddles into the kitchen.
 ==== Burger King and Tommy Guns ====
-Meanwhile, [[wod:npcs:abby|Abby]], Leta, Veltis and [[wod:hunter:pcs:william|William]] walk into Burger King – and Veltis is in human form – T-shirt, kilt, crocs, and all. They order their food and get free upgrades to milkshakes thanks to Veltis. They settle in to eat, and William looks around and acknowledges to himself that this is very strange. [[wod:npcs:mick|Mick]] calls Leta and asks sarcastically, //“So you have a valley girl impression?”// Leta feigns innocence for a few minutes before referencing //Stand By Me//. Mick growls, //“Oh, God damn you. Which apartment?”// Leta smiles triumphantly and relies, “137, number 3.” Mick sighs and asks where she is; Leta replies, “Abby and I took Grandpa out for Burger King.”
+Meanwhile, [[wod:characters:abby|Abby]], Leta, Veltis and [[wod:hunter:pcs:william|William]] walk into Burger King – and Veltis is in human form – T-shirt, kilt, crocs, and all. They order their food and get free upgrades to milkshakes thanks to Veltis. They settle in to eat, and William looks around and acknowledges to himself that this is very strange. [[wod:characters:mick|Mick]] calls Leta and asks sarcastically, //“So you have a valley girl impression?”// Leta feigns innocence for a few minutes before referencing //Stand By Me//. Mick growls, //“Oh, God damn you. Which apartment?”// Leta smiles triumphantly and relies, “137, number 3.” Mick sighs and asks where she is; Leta replies, “Abby and I took Grandpa out for Burger King.”
 She also adds the badge number Veltis saw, and Mick goes completely silent for a moment. He then says quietly, //“He’s supposed to be my backup. What do I need to know?”// Leta looks around to make sure no one is listening, and then quickly lays it out. Mick curses and mutters, //“I’m going to keep this line open.”// Leta hears the squawk of a radio and Mick’s voice, //“Dispatch, on scene for the possible 10-80. Backup not on-site, requesting additional unis.”// She then hears dispatch reply, //“Copy that, ETA 10 minutes.”// Mick replies, //“10-4,”// and then Leta hears a gunshot and the sound of a phone hitting the ground!
@@ Line 89: / Line 36: @@
 Inside, Veltis pulls a second firearm out from his kilt and fires in one smooth motion – which is impressive, as he pulled out a loaded musket! The shooter falls backwards, bleeding from another wound, when Leta charges in and drives her fist into his chin! The shooter collapses, unconscious, and Leta yells, “He’s down!” They all hear sirens approaching, so they bolt, perform a quick check on Mick, and then circle the building and merge seamlessly with the rest of the fleeing crowd; Veltis shifts from incubus to giant rat to tiny rat and into Leta’s pocket mid-stride before anyone sees him.
-The four hunters safely reach Abby’s Saturn and get inside as the SWAT team rolls up. Abby manages to slip into the traffic heading towards King Street, but William spots a 2001 blue Ford truck that triggers his instincts. Leta spots it as well – and recognizes [[wod:npcs:anna|Anna Bell]] behind the wheel! Abby obligingly slips in behind the pickup truck, and they pass Polly on her way to the shooting; she does a double take when she sees them. The Ford pickup suddenly shoots forward, weaving through traffic and barrels straight out into the intersection of Damon Road and King Street! Unfortunately for Anna, she shoots right in front of a certain big red pickup truck that clips her! William groans as Abby comes to a stop at the red light; he immediately recognizes Isabelle, [[wod:hunter84:pcs:macleod]]’s truck!(([[players:andee]] played [[wod:hunter84:pcs:macleod|MacLeod]] briefly))
+The four hunters safely reach Abby’s Saturn and get inside as the SWAT team rolls up. Abby manages to slip into the traffic heading towards King Street, but William spots a 2001 blue Ford truck that triggers his instincts. Leta spots it as well – and recognizes [[wod:characters:anna|Anna Bell]] behind the wheel! Abby obligingly slips in behind the pickup truck, and they pass Polly on her way to the shooting; she does a double take when she sees them. The Ford pickup suddenly shoots forward, weaving through traffic and barrels straight out into the intersection of Damon Road and King Street! Unfortunately for Anna, she shoots right in front of a certain big red pickup truck that clips her! William groans as Abby comes to a stop at the red light; he immediately recognizes Isabelle, [[wod:hunter84:pcs:macleod]]’s truck!(([[players:andee]] played [[wod:hunter84:pcs:macleod|MacLeod]] briefly))
 ==== MacLeod's Terrible, No-Good, Very Bad Day ====
@@ Line 101: / Line 48: @@
 Josh makes it downtown without too much trouble and parks. He gets out and walks to Pulaski Park, a tiny strip containing drugs, hobos, and trash. Tybaslt3413 rides up on a bicycle a moment later, and Josh gets a good look at him. He’s wearing designer clothes and has a very nice bike, and Josh mutters, “Aw, cupcakes,” when he realizes the truth: this kid is related to Elisa Mae Curran. The kid freezes when he sees Josh, but Josh pulls out a bottled water and hands it to him. The kid accepts it, and shakily identifies himself as Ray. Josh replies softly, “I’m so sorry,” and Ray twitches, clearly on the verge of a breakdown. Josh escorts him out of the park to the steps of the Academy of Music, where they sit on the steps.
-Ray asks hoarsely, “She’s a monster now, isn’t she?” Josh nods silently and then Ray breaks down completely, howling with grief and sobbing. ((More ‘emotes.’ See also: //Star Trek: Solstice.//)) Josh holds him for a bit, until he senses it’s time to let go. Several local people eye him warily until they recognize him and give him space. Ray sobs, “Angie, Elisa, and Brad. Oh god, Angie’s dead!” He takes a rattling breath and whimpers, “How do I tell Mom and Dad our sister is dead?” Josh advises, “Don’t. That’s not on you. She may walk up to your house after dark. You can’t put your parents in the middle of that. I have friends who can help you, family and others who carry the candle.”
+Ray asks hoarsely, “She’s a monster now, isn’t she?” Josh nods silently and then Ray breaks down completely, howling with grief and sobbing. ((More ‘emotes.’ See also: //[[trek:solstice:start|Star Trek: Solstice]]//)) Josh holds him for a bit, until he senses it’s time to let go. Several local people eye him warily until they recognize him and give him space. Ray sobs, “Angie, Elisa, and Brad. Oh god, Angie’s dead!” He takes a rattling breath and whimpers, “How do I tell Mom and Dad our sister is dead?” Josh advises, “Don’t. That’s not on you. She may walk up to your house after dark. You can’t put your parents in the middle of that. I have friends who can help you, family and others who carry the candle.”
 Ray nods miserably and mumbles, “I need to get out of Noho.” Josh manages to get clarification hat the teenager just wants to leave for a little bit, and then he calls Anita. She answers, //“What’s up, hot pants?”// Josh carefully explains the situation using euphemisms, and asks if he can bring down a “candle-adjacent kid.” Anita readily agrees, and Josh asks Ray if a trip to Springfield would work, and does he have a favorite comfort food? Ray nods and then hesitantly asks, “Can we stop at Friendly’s?” Anita overhears and immediately demands a cookies & cream milkshake. Josh agrees, and ends the call. He walks Ray back to his Ford Explorer and loads the kid’s bike into the back. He then drives Ray to Friendly’s, where he picks up a few pints of ice cream and the requested milkshake, and then he hits the road for Springfield.
 ==== Anita's Home for Random Gringos ====
-Josh arrives at the botanica just before 7 o’clock, which is closing time. He walks in with Ray and the ice cream; the last few customers eye him before recognizing him – and then the elderly Latinas see Ray in distress and surround him, making concerned clucking noises in Spanish. [[wod:npcs:abuela|Abuela]] marches [[wod:npcs:adela|Del]] in just at 7 o’clock, but stops when she sees Josh and Ray. Anita rings up her last customers and Ray stares awestruck at Del. Del doesn’t even see Ray, but eyes Josh happily. Josh ignores Del, sets up the ice cream, and reheats the leftover pizza. He then introduces Ray and explains, “He’s had a rough day and needs some support. Family issues.” Ray shakily admits he has a younger brother, [[wod:npcs:dean|Dean]], who is ten.
+Josh arrives at the botanica just before 7 o’clock, which is closing time. He walks in with Ray and the ice cream; the last few customers eye him before recognizing him – and then the elderly Latinas see Ray in distress and surround him, making concerned clucking noises in Spanish. [[wod:characters:abuela|Abuela]] marches [[wod:characters:adela|Del]] in just at 7 o’clock, but stops when she sees Josh and Ray. Anita rings up her last customers and Ray stares awestruck at Del. Del doesn’t even see Ray, but eyes Josh happily. Josh ignores Del, sets up the ice cream, and reheats the leftover pizza. He then introduces Ray and explains, “He’s had a rough day and needs some support. Family issues.” Ray shakily admits he has a younger brother, [[wod:characters:dean|Dean]], who is ten.
-Abuela asks Josh in Spanish, “What happened?” Josh replies, also in Spanish, “He got some very bad news and is trying to cope.” Anita tosses her sister a deck of cards and tells her to play Go Fish with Ray. Del grumbles but complies. Abuela smiles coldly and asks Josh, “Where’s good to hide a body? Preferably Del-shaped?” Caught totally off guard, Josh stammers, “Um, the Holyoke canals?” Anita grabs Josh and herds him to a quiet corner of the store. He asks, “You first? Me first?” Anita shrugs and lays it out: her brother joining the Night Watch, them going after Silas Black, them all dying save for [[wod:npcs:carlos|Carlos]], and the demand for protection money. She summarizes, “I got all the sense in my family.”
+Abuela asks Josh in Spanish, “What happened?” Josh replies, also in Spanish, “He got some very bad news and is trying to cope.” Anita tosses her sister a deck of cards and tells her to play Go Fish with Ray. Del grumbles but complies. Abuela smiles coldly and asks Josh, “Where’s good to hide a body? Preferably Del-shaped?” Caught totally off guard, Josh stammers, “Um, the Holyoke canals?” Anita grabs Josh and herds him to a quiet corner of the store. He asks, “You first? Me first?” Anita shrugs and lays it out: her brother joining the Night Watch, them going after Silas Black, them all dying save for [[wod:characters:carlos|Carlos]], and the demand for protection money. She summarizes, “I got all the sense in my family.”
 Josh asks if there’s anything he can do. Anita shakes her head and replies, “Still working on it.” Josh then quietly explains Network 0, and admits, “They got footage of Veltis changing sizes.” Anita swears as Josh explains the connection between Ray and his now-undead sister Elisa Mae. He admits he can relate on some level and shares a little about his dead sister [[wod:hunter:pcs:serena|Serena]]. Anita mutters something about Josh being a golden retriever puppy, but Josh shrugs, agrees, and tries to connect all the dots from today.

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