House Calls

[Hood]

"Heh. Never know where you'll set down roots. Hell, tell me five years ago I'd be living in Moscow, I'da laughed."
He shrugged slightly, glancing at the papers she had pulled out, eyeing the contents with a disinterested air. The evidence was pretty much overwhelming; she was Atharim. But was this all some sort of ridiculous test, or did she actually have amnesia? If it were a movie, it'd be painfully cliche. But real life...real life was stranger then any movie could be.

"Maybe you're an author. Researching a book. The next Tolkien? Seem to recall he went fuckin' ridiculously overboard on the background info for his books. Kinda like what you've done here."
He would have to get ahold of some of their people and send them her way. They would want to bring her back into the fold before she gave away anything. Of course, there was always the question of just what they would do with her. Nurse her back to health, or just kill her and be done with it?

He tossed the papers back onto the table then knelt to start remedying the next chair in the set. "This sort of stuff never was my cup of tea. Real world is crazy enough without having to go readin' about monsters and magic in a book. But I'll ask around."
Probably send Rune this girls' way. The two would probably get along fine. Both American. Young. Weird fashion sense.

[Aurora]

Aurora smiled as the started fixing the salad. Everything was going well. She hadn't screwed up dinner yet. She laughed at the thought of being an author.

"An author? I doubt seriously. I think there would be a computer with my writing, or even a journal with my own words. I haven't found anything yet."
And then a random fact came to her, she chuckled to herself. "Did you know that a good share of authors in the horror genre weren't exactly authors?"
It really was an odd thing to say, but she couldn't remember where she'd heard it from. "Some of them were part of some cult or another that hunted monsters."
A monster hunter, why not. Aurora laughed. "But hey my memory is shot, so I'm probably making it up."


Aurora finished with the salad and put the bowl on the table. She grinned at the second fixed chair and laughed. "Well aren't you Mr. Fix-it."
The country fried steaks were done and she even managed to make a nice white pepper gravy to go with it, she served up two plates and took John one and sat down in the newly fixed chair. It still wobbled, but that was livable, at least it wouldn't collapse under her weight now. "Bon Apetit. I hope it tastes as good as it smells. Seems the inconsequential things come back easier than the big things. I wish my wallet was of more help. There are no saved numbers, not a single contact listed. No Mom or Dad, no names of any sort. And everything on the wallet other than my ident card is just a garbled mess. I must be a paranoid soul."
She laughed. "And here I am rambling to a stranger about the oddities of my life. So much for paranoia. I'll stop now. Thank you for the company, I don't mean to put this on you. You don't have to make an inquires on my part. I'll figure it out. I'm pretty sure I always do."
To shut herself up Aurora quickly stuff a piece of the steak into her mouth and chewed excessively slowly.


Edited by Aurora, Sep 30 2014, 07:42 AM.

[Nox]

Nox sat on his bed staring at the name on his wallet. He'd been staring at it for days. He was afraid to call it for so many reasons. He hadn't even called Aria back to finish their conversation. He had so many questions, but he had to do this first, he had to know what happened to his sister. Her name rang in his head. He felt sorrow and loss, he felt anger too, he wished his memories were back completely. They'd trickled in at a much steadier rate than before he'd met Aria in the tunnels.

Her name stared back at him. Nox tossed the wallet on the bed and flopped backwards. He wasn't afraid of rejection, he'd never been afraid of that, a girl doesn't like you then oh well, her loss. But he doubted himself with his sister. His own sister could hate him. He clearly had his moments, he could have made friends with Oriena and Giovanni, but he chose not to, chose to be the person he enjoyed being. Bas and Pyotr liked him, even Yasmina had liked him. Aria was friendly enough, but he had a feeling she was like that with everyone. Life on the road hadn't been easy. Hunting monsters.

He hungered for another hunt, but his body still hurt from the last one. He'd gone to the gym every day since meeting Pyotr and Bas, he saw some improvements, but he still ached. His body was still healing from the crash. He even kept an appointment back at the hospital. Rave reviews. He played off the aches and pains as normal wear and tear, they gave him some pain meds which he promptly flushed down the toilet. Of all the memories that had to come to him was finding his father lying dead surrounded by meds and beer cans. He wasn't going to follow suit. He refused to die like his father, a weak drunk who could have been so much more. No he wasn't bitter.

But it wasn't just the physical pain that hurt, it was all the emotional shit that the memories brought with it. Nox knew he and Aurora were not overly close for a while there, the power brought them closer together but still they fought. But damn he wished he knew where she was now, he was lost without her.

He grabbed his wallet and pressed "Call". The phone rang, he fought the urge to hang up. The other side picked up and Nox's heart jumped in his throat.

[Aurora]

Aurora's phone rang. She nearly jumped out of her skin when it did. It rang, for the first time since she'd woken up. The number was from the United States. But no caller id. It was disheartening. But it rang.

Aurora quickly chewed and swallowed before answering the call. She answered tentatively "Hello?"
On the other end there was silence, well not complete silence, she could hear breathing on the other end. She asked again. "Hello? Can I help you?"


A voice she knew she should know answered. "Aurora?"


"Yes. Do I know you?"
Someone knew her? Aurora's heart raced. Who was he, did she know him.

The voice answered as if he were unsure. "I was hoping you would know. I was in a plane crash, I don't remember much from before then. It's slowly coming back."


Aurora jumped out of her chair with excitement, the chair fell backwards with a crash. "Everything alright over there?"


Aurora nodded emphatically. "I was too."


He gave a sigh of relief. "Where are you, we need to talk."


Aurora sent her coordinates over her phone to the number he'd given. "I sent you where I am."
And then she hung up. Aurora looked at the John with a big grin. I just may find out who I am. But what if I don't really know this man. What if he wants to hurt me, what if I was running away from him? Aurora's mind raced with questions. Panic started to set in. Her grin faded to a frown and Aurora rushed to her things and started packing, near oblivious to her guest. She was paranoid, and she knew she probably had every right to be.

Aurora start throwing things into her suit case, she didn't care how the were packed, she wanted out of here now. She didn't want to see him, not now, maybe someplace in public, someplace where she could get away. Here was no good. "I need to get out of her. I can't believe I just gave my location to some strange man over the phone. I'm such a fool."

[Hood]

He seemed disinterested as her phone rang and she answered. Quietly working on the next wobbly chair, he was of course listening closely to the conversation she had; he could just barely make out what the unknown male voice was saying, especially as the pair grew more excited over their apparently shared history.

Another amnesia person, who had her number? An amnesia-ridden Atharim, receiving a call from another amnesia-ridden man? Just what the hell was going on with this girl? He set the chair down as she hung up, standing and brushing his hands off as she started scrambling to pack her things, then fixed her with an annoyed stare. Women made no sense.

"You're worried that you gave your address to a stranger, over the phone, who was in the same plane crash as you. You remember that I'm a total fucking stranger who you just cooked a meal for, and is fixing your chairs, right? So what the hell is the issue, kid? Sit the hell down, eat your damn supper, and let's see what this guy wants."
He didn't bother paying any further attention to her, and set the fixed chair in front of the plate she had set for him.

"Unless your amnesiac mystery boy rolls in with a pack of goons at his back, I assure you, you've got nothing to worry about. So either you pack your shit and run, avoiding a chance to learn something about yourself, or you sit the hell down and eat."
He pulled his archaic cellphone, and sent a text to one of his Atharim contacts, with a discreetly taken photo of Aurora.

[Aurora]

He was right, but rationality wasn't part of the picture. Aurora sat down, she'd finish dinner, but she wasn't going to stay longer. If the mystery man showed up before then well, she'd deal. But something told her, nagged at her, her paranoia was in full swing.

She took a bite and shrugged. When finished chewing, Aurora explained"You may be a stranger, but one I saw, heard and got a feeling for BEFORE I asked you over. This voice is just that a voice. My gut says I don't want to see him. I'm pretty sure I live by what my gut says. So if I don't listen now I wouldn't be me anymore than I was five minutes ago before he called."


Aurora took another bite and chewed slowly thinking. Her thoughts raced. If he had her number this whole time, why hadn't he called. That made her worry even more. "I can't meet with him today. I'm not ready. I just can't. There is a reason why he didn't call before. Something feels off. I feel I don't want to see him. I have no idea what's wrong, but he upsets me right now."


It was a bag of mixed emotions. Yes, she wanted to know know, but why had he waited nearly so long to call, he clearly had her number. Who was he?

Aurora smiled. "I think I will do some homework and then I'll see him."
Aurora finished the steak she hadn't realized she'd nearly engulfed it whole. "I'm sorry you were here for this. Not an ideal meeting. I'm not normally so wishy-wasy"


((OOC: I don't want Nox and Aurora to meet just yet. You can take her to HQ, and have her meet with Aria up there, while Nox is busy. Or just let her go, or send some other Atharim contact after her later. Either way, I'm not ready for them to meet. Aurora needs to find her voice without Nox before I throw her in with him, he'll overpower the personality.))


Edited by Aurora, Oct 14 2014, 09:09 AM.

[Hood]

He let the poor girl ramble on as he ate, not really bothering to say anything or commit so much as a grunt to indicate he was paying attention. She was worried, a hint of paranoia that probably lent itself to her being Atharim rather then a confused writer, and it was just one more tick in the box in favor of his suspicion that that was exactly what she was. Coincidences in life were fine and dandy, but he wasn't about to second guess his suspicions on her. She was Atharim, and it was damnably confusing that they hadn't come looking for her after the crash that had taken her memory.

Although he didn't waste time talking, he still hardly finished eating ahead of her; he was a fast eater, a matter of habit brought on by past necessity and training. "Well, if you can't meet with him, I suppose I could try introducing you to someone who knows a bit about all that stuff you've apparently been writing about. See if maybe they can jog your memory any."


He would contact some of his Atharim handlers (that's what they liked to think of themselves as, in regards to how they worked with Hood), but would try to make sure it was in a setting they controlled. If the girl's memory was permanently gone, there was little point in the Atharim trying to bring her back in. And in turn, if it were permanently gone, she was no threat to exposing their organization. He was curious to see how they would deal with one of their own children laid lame.

[Aurora]

Aurora smiled. "That would be useful."
She smiled at the thought of writing a book. Maybe she was writing a book, but where was the manuscript, and why come to Moscow for the book? Either way he might be able to help. He might not.

He didn't appear to have a wallet, one of those old fashioned cell phone deals, less traceable, Aurora started to wonder what this man did. But right now it didn't matter. She jotted down her name and number on a blank page in the journal she had open, and tore it out.

"Well, John, this is how you or your friends can contact me. I'd do it the more modern way, but it seems you don't have that convience."
She grinned at him, she was poking fun at him, and hoped he took it that way. Some people could take offense to it, and she hoped he wasn't one of them.

"I hope dinner was at least passable."
She held out her hand. "It's been a pleasure, and I do hope to see you again, maybe when I don't have strange phone callers trying to knock on my door."

[Hood]

Hood pushed back his chair and stood, brushing his hands together to clear away any traces of food, then collected his empty plate and deposited on the counter near the sink. Her sudden paranoia about the unknown caller further justified his suspicion; the evidence was pretty stacked in favour of her being Atharim, but he always liked to keep his bases covered.

He grinned and accepted the scrap of paper, neatly folding it and tucking it into the fold of his cellphone. It was getting harder to find such disposable old flip-phones these days, but they were durable and cheap. And they didn't contain his entire life in one easily hacked gadget.

"What can I say kid. I'm not a fan of this high-tech shit."
He gestured vaguely towards her Wallet, but his grin hinted maybe there was more to it then that. "You can fry up a mean spread. Best country fried steak I've had since I came to Russia."
Which wasn't necessarily saying much; it was probably the first country fried steak he'd had since coming to Russia, after all.

He collected his jacket and draped his shemagh around his shoulder again, letting it hang loose, "Alright. I'll get ahold of you later today. Keep your schedule open for tomorrow."
He drew a card and held it out to her. It wasn't a Pervaya Security card, but rather his own personal one; a means by which she could contact him.

And with that, he took his leave. He entertained the idea of following her for a bit, but decided not to. He had his own business to take care of, and babysitting Atharim agents just wasn't his top priority for the day. Not that he'd leave her hanging. He'd just pass the responsibility to her own people.