7573/The Black Eyed Children

The Black Eyed Children
Date of Scene:	07 October 2021
Location:	Happy Harbor
Synopsis:	Happy Harbor is visited by the Black Eyed Children.
Cast of Characters:	Morrigan MacIntyre, Madison Evans, Albert Rothstein, Sam Wilson, Tara Tsabedze

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Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
The year is flying by and Fall has settled in nicely. Happy Harbor is fully into the Autumn vibes and Halloween preparations are full tilt now in the town. Because it looked like the sort of place to celebrate Halloween religiously in the campy sort of way. Nothing untoward usually happens here unless the High School gets a little rowdy with their visitors, but no one has come knocking in that regard since the trip to Malta to get back the students and other children that had been taken.

Tonight though the area seems...off? The waxing crescent moon is obscured by clouds overhead and there is the smell of rain on the wind. A few leaves skitter across the grounds of Happy Harbor High School's front entrance and sprawling front grounds.

Madison Evans has posed:
    Madison had been at a classmate's house, working on a group project. They'd been trying to kill two birds with one stone - make an amazing presentation for their English class, and some Halloween costumes at the same time. They were doing a book report on A Game of Thrones, and so were putting together the best costumes they could jury rig for it. Maddie was even trying to make a paper machine dragonet. With her dragon needing to dry, she wishes her classmate goodnight, and goes outside to retrieve her bike, leading it out to the street before she hops on - riding it towards the school and past it on her way back to her own apartment.

Albert Rothstein has posed:
Albert Rothstein has been working late the past few nights with some prep for decorations for the school. He finds himself at the school shop putting the final touches on some decorations. He is heading out towards the front of the school, with a large basket of stuff in front of him.

Sam Wilson has posed:
    The past couple of months, Sam has been doing the telework thing pretty much exclusively due to unspecified family issues back home in Louisiana. But he's here now, late in the evening because his office needed a very thorough clean-out after being gone so long. Including restocking the drinks and snacks he keeps on-hand for anyone that drops by and needs something--you'd be surprised how often low blood sugar or an empty stomach can be a driving force behind emotional distress.

    That's all taken care of now, though, and getting some Halloween decorations is the next task on his to-do list, but getting his in-office schedule updated on his office door was more important.

    He's out front of the school now, hands tucked into the pockets of his jacket as he heads towards his car. One of the kids on the track team runs by and calls out "Hey, Mr. Wilson! Long time no see!"

    Sam waves back. "Hey Sean! Watch out!" And thankfully Sean turns around just in time to dodge out of the way of a traffic pole that he very nearly ran into. "Eyes forward!" Sam calls out after him, laughing, and Sean laughs too as he waves goodbye and takes the next turn.

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
It's probably not weird to see kids out on their own. Especially when they're coming and going to school. Though there are some cases where children being out alone is not a good thing.

Sam and Albert might notice the little blonde haired girl standing down at the end of the walk that leads to the school parking lots. Madison might notice the little boy that's standing off to the side of the road with his back turned to her.

A fine drizzle starts to dribble from the sky as the blonde children stand their motionless, their backs turned towards the people that might observe them. They are garbed in all black and look fairly conservative in the clothing that they wear.

A chill wind howls softly across the parking lot, dragging and scraping leaves with it to add a particularly creepy effect.

Madison Evans has posed:
    Madison's gaze goes to the unfamiliar boy just as it starts to drizzle, puzzled curiosity on her features soon replaced by annoyance. "Aww man!" She'd been trying to beat the rain!
    Why was that little kid out so late, though? It takes her a moment to realize she's biking while looking over her shoulder, and she quickly turns her face forward again, to realize she's veered a little closer to the sidewalk than she'd intended. "On your left!" she calls to Sam in a cautionary tone.
    Once she's managed to avoid the collision, she turns her bike back around to head over towards the kid.
    "Hey. Hey, um... buddy? Shouldn't you be like... home right now? It's raining and everything!"

Albert Rothstein has posed:
Albert Rothstein will move to set his basket of stuff down where it should be ok, and the giant of a man will look over to the kid a moment, looking about to see if he sees the adult or older kid who the kid might be with. He does not approach the kid yet, cause while it is a bit odd behavior it is not to far out there, so he watches for now.

Sam Wilson has posed:
    Sam's the kind of guy who has what you would call situational awareness. Growing up when and where he did, then joining the military, then becoming a super hero--those sorts of experiences pretty much demand that you do if you want to survive. So he's noticed the big guy, and he's heard the bicycle approaching along the way behind him, and then there's a little kid.

    Who probably shouldn't be out tonight, by themselves. He's doing the same thing Albert is, scouting around for a parent or older sibling or someone, all while he easily side-steps Madison. "Hey, you okay?" he calls out after her, unbothered by the near-miss.

    He's kind of used to those.

    While he continues walking, already headed in the same direction as the unattended girl, Sam pulls out his phone.

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
The wind picks up a little, sending leaves dancing in a spiral as Madison walks towards the elementary aged boy that's just standing by himself. The area around Sam and Albert gets the same treatment as they approach or stop to observe the little girl.

The sliver of the moon starts to become visible, casting a ghoulish glow to the ground below and that lights up the pale flesh of the children.

Then they start to slowly turn, as if in tune with each other. A little jerk of their heads as they do. There is the glint of something dark red that's smeared across their chins, but that's not what is the most striking.

Their big black eyes, much like the hollow void of a shark or a doll regard those that they turn to with a look that is absent of all emotion or warmth. The feet start to turn as well, twisting their forms around as they do.

Madison Evans has posed:
    "Hey. Umm, hi... little dude," Madison greets the boy uncertainly, her gaze going from the red smear, to the inky black eyes, and back to the red smear again. Maybe the kid's a mutant? "Are those, umm, contacts? For Halloween?" she asks. "It's pretty cool. But it's getting dark out here, and it's raining - how about I walk with you back to your house?" She's stopped her back - but she remains seated on it, the bike leaning to its left, with her left leg planted on the floor.

Albert Rothstein has posed:
Albert Rothstein will look about and since Sam is headed towards the boy. Albert does make his way a bit closer to Madison. This is odd, and it could easily be some kids tricks, or some such, but Al wants to make sure if it is not the student he has seen in the halls is ok. He does take a moment to look out over the sports field to see if anything is out there.

Sam Wilson has posed:
    Red flag number one: huh, kind of creepy, the way the kid's moving. Red flag number two: wait, is that blood? Red flag number three: eyes. No eyes? This isn't good.

    But Sam's a counselor. His nature is to care, so he tries not to make assumptions. They could have the X-gene, or be a metahuman. So, like Madison, he tries talking first.

    "Hey, kiddo," he says. He's kept a good amount of distance between them, wary, but that doesn't come across at all in his tone. It's definitely the Mr.-Wilson-the-school-counselor voice he's using right now. "Are you out here alone? Is there someone I could call, like your mom or dad?"

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
The little boy with the big black eyes shifts closer to Madison, a bit of a humorless coming to his lips as he does. This pulls his lips back from sharp little teeth that are covered in blood as well. "Hungry." he whispers as he takes a step back from Madison and the bike. There's a tree line not far from them.

The little girl in front of Sam does much the same, a whisper on the wind and then she starts to shuffle backwards, never letting her gaze wander from him.

The definitely thought folks were food.

Madison Evans has posed:
    "I, uhh, we could go to Big Belly Burgers?" Madison suggests, pushing herself backwards in a sort of hopping shuffle on her left leg. Once she's far enough back, she pushes herself forward again, steering to the side and away from the child, to circle towards the middle of the street. "Hey! Did anyone lose a creepy little boy!" she calls out into the night. I mean - it could still be some sort of misunderstanding? Or prank? Or something? ...right?
    Little boys don't actually drink people's blood or canabalize school girls. Right?

Albert Rothstein has posed:
Albert Rothstein will step forward frowning and uses his best teacher voice. "Pardon me son, whats your name, and where are your parents?" He asks, and will move to bring himself between the kid and Madison

Sam Wilson has posed:
    Look, Sam has seen a whole gamut of odd things in his time. But this is up there, and he has a second or two where internally he's fighting against the alarms that are blaring in his head. Still, she's just a kid, and he has a responsibility--morally and legally--to help. "Hey, it's okay. I know people that can help--they can get you something to eat and help you find your way back home, alright?"

    Of course Sam has the contact info for a few of the local social workers in his phone, and he scrolls down to the first one and hits dial.

    He lifts his phone to his ear and holds out a hand as the little girl starts walking away. "You don't have to run. It's okay!"

Tara Tsabedze has posed:
Although it was late, Tara had just finished up some paper work in her office and was headed out to go home for the night. It was later than she had planned, so she was walking as a brisk pace, but with her long legs she'd be to the end of the walk in no time at all.

Those planned changed as she emerged moved along the pathway, spotting Madison and Albert first, then Sam near by, she takes a moment to breath through her nose and mouth at the same time and one brow lifts. It was only after that she noticed the smaller children, a boy and girl.

Moving up to slowly toward Madison and Albert she offers a quiet, "Is everything alright?" with a moderate East African accent. She doesn't want to spook the two children, and she is a rather obvious predator type, so she will linger back and wonder why the children have animal blood on them.

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
The black eyed children aren't human. That much is for sure. They don't blink. They don't really seem to breathe and it's starting to rain harder. The blood on their little pale faces is starting to be washed away as the make their way towards the treeline. There is a car that comes zooming by, flashing it's headlights at those that are too close to the road and a horn honk follows.

They don't see the creepy children apparently, or if they do they continue going right on past. Not today, Satan!

It's the little boy that disappears into the darkness like a shadow bleeding into ink. Then the little girl stutters and starts to fade away as well.

Apparently they were off to find easier prey.

Madison Evans has posed:
    "Okay. What the frick was that?!" Madison says - riding her bike in circles - and looking like she's ready to take off if the situation warrents it - after swerving to make sure she's well clear of the car that zips past. "That was like... some weird Halloween prank. Right? Like- their big brothers put them up to it or something, right? And they're waiting over there in the trees for them?" That's the most logical assumption. Isn't it? And logical matters. Doesn't it?
    Sure, little 'Jedi.' Sure.

Albert Rothstein has posed:
Albert Rothstein stands there and says "I know the joke is the coach is a drunk, but I don't drink, what was that?" He looks over to Madison "You ok? Sam, you see anything over there?

Sam Wilson has posed:
    Someone picks up on the other end of the line and Sam has to apologize for bothering them, so it takes him a moment before he can answer. "Gone, as far as I can see," he calls out, but he's still looking, peering into the tree line.

    Not much his normal human vision can see, between the dark and the rain. He starts to backtrack towards the others, shaking his head as he goes.

    "I was only gone a couple of months, but apparently that's enough for me to lose my resistance to the weird stuff that happens in this city." His hands go back into his pockets and his shoulders hunch up, against the damp and the chill in the air. "I'll send a notification out to the rest of the staff, let them know to keep an eye out." He nods to Albert, and then looks at both Madisan and Tara. "Do any of you need a ride somewhere? My car can fit four if I shuffle a few boxes of paperwork into the trunk." Though he does pause as he looks towards Albert. "Might be a bit cramped, but we can make it work, I'm sure."

Tara Tsabedze has posed:
The large African feline shifts her weight slightly, both brows raising at the disappearance of the children, but more at the fact that she felt nothing from it. If anything of a mystical or magical nature took place, she would have felt it and there was nothing.

"There was nothing of a mystical nature to them," she offers quietly to whomever might be interested or listening. "But they did not smell human at all. A very distinct scent, one I could likely track if not for the rain."

Looking now toward Sam, water rolling over her fur as if it was resistant, only her clothing seemed to be effected. "I love the rain, but thank you for the offer."

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
The rain is picking up, washing the smell of old blood away and things that go with it. This might have been some kind of well played prank, but none of the children smelled human and none of them look old enough to go to the high school.

Or they just had a run in with the infamous Black Eyed Children.

Which is probably the most likely answer.

Madison Evans has posed:
    "Umm. I guess I wouldn't mind a ride - but I'd have to park my bike at the school, I suppose." Which means leaving it to get rained on. Yuck.
    "...if they weren't human, thugh, what were they?" she asks with bafflement. She waits for the nurses's reply, while shooting looks towards Sam with some puzzlement. Then she openlystares at him for a moment, the wheels in her head turning. Isn't he...? shouldn't she...? Wasn't he...? "OH! You're Haw- no. OH! FALCON! ...right?"

Albert Rothstein has posed:
Albert Rothstein looks over and says "I got my car but thanks, if you need anything let me know, I am going to put a few things up and keep an eye out for a bit before I go." He tells the others. Want to make sure all the kids are off campus before I head."

Tara Tsabedze has posed:
Despite the rain, Tara looks up into the night sky at the moon peeking out from the clouds every once in a while, then looks back to Madison, Albert and Sam.

"Madison, I will take your bike into my office for the night so it does not get stolen," she offers. "You can get it tomorrow after classes."

Sam Wilson has posed:
    Once both Albert and Tara announce that they're staying behind, Sam nods. "Okay. I'll get--Madison, right?--" He waits for confirmation, though this is interrupted by Madison recognizing him. And this prompts Sam to shake his head, but he's smiling. "You can call me Sam or Mr. Wilson. No codenames for me while I'm here, I'm just one of the school counselors."

    He looks back to the other staff members. "I'll get Madison home and then send out that email. Let me know if anything happens--I live in Manhattan but I can get back over here quick, if I need to." Then he waves Madison over as he tips his head towards the parking lot. "I have a spare blanket in the car that you can use while I drive you home."