Owner	Pose
Cael Becker	A day of fruitless searching at libraries and newspapers has Cael on edge - and she retreats to the Velvet Room for a drink, for once without her dog in tow. While there, she pulls out her phone, sending out a quick text. It simply says 'Having a drink in the VR.' I guess that passes for an invitation, in Cael's mind?     Regardless of how it's recieved, she continues to sip her rye whiskey - her eyes closed for the moment, and her shoulders hunched.     She hates research. Especially when it goes no where.
Mercy Thompson	Mercy on the other hand has been busy. Lots of work, which is a good thing! That's how she makes rent and buys parts for projects and stuff. She even had gone ahead and made a big double batch of brownies. She has a pair of glass latch lidded contains, one lid reads 'NUTS!' the other reads, obviously, 'no nuts.'     She struggles a bit with the door before arriving in the main doorway. She doesn't even have to try and find where Cael is. The woman making a direct line for where her full moon sister is sitting. "Hey Cael. How you holding up?" The two things of brownies set down between the women.
Cael Becker	"Mercy - hey. Guess you wanted that drink, eh? What'll you have?" Cael eyes the wall of bottles, a thoughtful frown on her features as she tries to remember what liquor, is in which bottle. The High Priestess was her usual go to - but some of the others... hrm.     "I've been alright, I guess. A little less... jumpy, I guess? With the moon being less full. If only that were my only problem right now, though," she admits with a small, wry smile. "How're you?" she asks.     Then she eyes the brownies before adding, "First pizza - now baked goods?"
Mercy Thompson	"Not so much with the alcohol," admits Mercy. "But sounded like you may need company. Can you still get drunk? I know most werewolves can't really. I mean unless they buy out a liquor store first." Mercy almost feels bad to say how good things have been. "Met some colorful people, almost got mugged one night, but that turned out okay really."     Mercy can't help but laugh. "Well the pizza was my dinner and was an unintentional offering. I tend to bake semi often. I made extra cuz when I saw green eyed Jon he was talking to a new girl Jessica. Seemed she maybe could use some chocolate therapy. Why don't you tell me what's up with you though?"
Cael Becker	"...getting mugged is okay?" Cael asks in a dry voice. "Been a while since anyone tried to mug me. And I seem to still be able to get drunk..." She smirks slightly, and takes a drink from her glass while pondering how honest to be in her response. Hell. Who would believe it anyways?     "Old, nameless horrors are trying to claw their way into reality and have started attacking people through their dreams. Jon made a bargain with one to have enough power to defeat another one of them - and apparently I'm left. Plus, I think a friend got eaten by one of the horrors and replaced - but I'm the only one who noticed. So, you know. ...the usual."
Mercy Thompson	"Well getting mugged would suck, since I had the weeks deposits for the store. But it was almost. Five guys went to circle up on me but Supergirl of all people showed up. We chatted on to the way after the bank and scaring off the thugs." Mercy does admit, "after she left getting attention on me was less then great so I sort of bolted." TMercy goes quiet and just looks at Cael for a long slow beat. Listening to the woman's words, replaying them as they were said and doing her best to try and smell if this is a joke. "Who do you think got replaced, and why would Jon think a deal is ever a good thing with something like this?"
Cael Becker	"Well - that was fortunate," Cael replies wryly. After another sip of whiskey, she helps herself to one of the brownies - with nuts, tearing off little pieces to pop into her mouth to take a bite.     "Well. ...one of them was using its powers to force them to attack and kill me," Cael explains, "unless they gave into it. Instead of giving in to //that// one... Jon made a deal with another one that is much less intelligent - supposedly." From the faint frown on her lips, she's not exactly pleased about it.     She tears at the brownie again, popping another piece in her mouth before she asks, "The woman - who teleported me away after the full moon... What do you remember her looking like?"
Mercy Thompson	"I only passed her twice. Once that first night I showed up. She didn't even look at me really. And I freely admit it was a brief encounter and I was still doing with my first unexpected arrival here," Mercy motions to the blue room all around them.     She shrugs and says, "and for the time she picked you up. Again I felt the magic in the air, but I was more worried about you and not crashing the van. I do not think we've ever even spoken really."
Cael Becker	"Yeah, but- ...what do you remember her looking like?" Cael asks.     Maybe - if she hasn't seen Rien since the change - maybe someone who hasn't seen the //new// Rien will remember the //old// Rien. Maybe that'll be the proof she needs. Her fingers tighten on the glass she holds, waiting tensely for a response - almost afraid to hope.
Mercy Thompson	"Cael. I don't remember clearly, sorry. She walked past me as I walked in. She smelled... sick and sad. That and drunk. I use my nose almost more then my eyes." She holds up her hand some for tall, "maybe this tall? I doubt I could pick her out of a lineup. Not unless I smelled her or felt her magic again really. Sorry." Mercy offers her best apologetic shrug to this line of questioning.
Cael Becker	Cael's stomach begins to sink at the height Mercy shows - but she persists regardless. She was stubborn by nature, and she had to try. She had to find //some// sort of proof that she was right.     ...and the rest of the world was wrong. It's a tall order.     "Do you remember - was her hair light or dark?" It's a strange question - a strange sort of insistence, but there you have it.
Mercy Thompson	Mercy can tell this is important to Cael. But Mercy isn't a trained cup or PI and wasn't exactly on her 'a-game' when she fell into the Velvet Room the first time. Or at her best when driving a scared were after her first full moon together and not slept well. "Dark I think? I really don't know Cael. It be like me asking you to remember the smell of the person in my office before you showed up. Basically no contact, no context." Mercy wants to help but the intensity and focus on this is harshing the coyote's good mood and has her wondering. Should she be worried about Cael and her curse?
Cael Becker	"Fuck," Cael says quietly - but with feeling. Clearly, that wasn't the answer she wanted. "...Jon and Chas think something changed my memory - which is... the logical assumption, but I can't- They want me to just get over it, and accept that... I'm wrong. And everyone else is right - and that makes sense but-" She lets out a frustrated sound.     "Anyways. The brownies arre good."
Mercy Thompson	"So do what I do. Be stubborn, tell them to bite their own tails and find proof," which is the best advice Mercy can give. She has too little information and 'elder' or 'outer gods' or whatever they were are above her pay grade. "Glad you like them. I got them to share with people here. Seemed the least I can do." Looking for more topic change, "oh! Thanks for that check. It will help out a lot."
Cael Becker	"Well. Jon was helping me look for //some// sort of proof but- we couldn't find anything. We spent the whole day hitting libraries, and newspapers, and- any photo of a blonde woman he found, he showed to me, just in case, but- none of them. Not a one..." Cael finishes off the whiskey to focus on the brownie before she adds, "So I guess I need to figure out my next step. Maybe there's some... musuems with WWII artefacts I can examine. Figure out who has the best collection of original WWII photography..." She's really resting her hat on the WWII angle.     "Only time I tried to bake - the cookies came out flat, and burnt, and I burned my arm on the top of the oven."
Mercy Thompson	Mercy reaches over to tap the bottle. "That's not going to help your case. Either solving it or convincing others." She really doesn't understand the situation fully or how to give better advice then that. "Lots of things can mess up our memories if we aren't careful. But I've been that one woman in a room who was not effected by what everyone else remembers. One of my 'gifts," says Mercy. Complete with finger quotes.     Could be a few things for flat cookies. Usually though it means you mixed up an ingredient or something."
Cael Becker	"This... is just de-stressing," Cael counters simply, tapping her empty glass. She continues to tear off little pieces of brownie to eat, however, a few crumbs falling off to litter the bar's surface. "I'm not giving up - I just... If the museums don't pan out, I have to figure out where to go from there. And I'm not sure what all Rien did with her life between World War II and... //now.//" You know. It's only seventy years of uncertainty. "If I need magic to prove I'm right - I wouldn't know how to do that."
Mercy Thompson	"If you need information on the past, look for a P.I. maybe? I hired one about that woman that came to my shop saying she smelled dog. If you need magic, I'd look for a witch or someone like that. Talk to them, they got to be available somewhere." Mercy goes on to explain, "if you think it's something with the group that goes here, maybe check the doors or keys. That and go to someone outside the group. There has to be lots of options with all the wildness in the world."     Mercy will stand up and stretch a bit. "I got to be up early, Cael. If you need help you can call me. Enjoy the brownnies, and when you feel better and more focused we should do a real talk about the full moon and your tattoo." R
Cael Becker	"I was a police officer - and I still work for the FBI. It's just- everything I've found so far has proven me wrong, so... I can find out more about her past, but whether it leads to anything that proves my memories true..." That's the question.     And cael might not even //be// right. She knows that, even if it was hard to come to terms with. "I- honestly, there's part of me that wants to be wrong. The whole thing's... complicated."     At the mention of the moon at her tattoo, she gives a nod of her head then adds, "Yeah... We'll do that. And- if you ever have any other expenses on my account... I can cover them. It's the least I can do, you know? For your help."
Mercy Thompson	"Sounds really big and complicated," agrees Mercy. She reaches out to put a hand on the back of Cael's forearm. "Don't hurt your self and cover your tail. If you want to talk werewolf type stuff. I'll be there to help."     Mercy just doesn't have the detail to deal with elder gods at all. "I'll let you know. Right now I'm working on some cars and projects, meeting new people. Maybe even getting a friend or two. I'll see you around okay?"
Cael Becker	"I'm not going anywhere. Uh - thanks for the brownies," Cael adds. She flashes Mercy a brief smile, watching her go... And then pours herself another whiskey. Tonight she can get drunk. Why not?