Hansel and Gretel

[Swift]

This thread is for those players listed here.

Fairy tales are at their core cautionary stories we tell our children to frighten them into doing what is right or safe. They talk about terrors that haunt the woods so children do not wander off to be eaten by a wolf or killed by a bandit. They speak of strangers wishing to do harm to warn our children that the world is a dangerous place and that not everyone will be kind or honest. They teach us basic lessons: do not wander alone at night, do not talk to strangers, make sure someone always knows where you are. But somehow in the past century these stories have changed, and everything turns out alright. The stories end with everyone safe and the bad guys defeated, or often even repentant. And we grow up and we forget what meager lessons these modern fairy tales still possess.

But the lessons are still valid. When we forget, we become vulnerable. There are no longer wolves waiting to eat us at night, but predators still stalk us. People rarely encounter bandits along abandoned roads, but every night people are mugged in the city streets. Strangers are no longer uncommon, we pass them every day, and while we still don't trust them, they rarely mean us harm. But people can still get lost in the woods and chased by predators, even if those woods are made of steel trees and concrete ground cover. There are still things hiding in the dark that should frighten us to death.

For one young girl, these things are very real. And they are chasing her. If they catch her, they will eat her. And so she runs. The girl is young, no more than 19 years old. She runs blindly forward, clearly terrified, blonde hair fluttering behind her. She does not see the passing street signs or the monstrous vehicles swerving to barely miss hitting her. She is too busy wiping muddy tears from her dirt-encrusted face and glancing back over her shoulder at whatever it is that's chasing her. She does not notice as the greys and blacks and whites of the city suddenly fade to the browns and yellows of dead grass and gravel paths. She doesn't care. She just keeps running, directly toward a small group of afternoon park goers walking, sitting, or just milling about near a decorative gingerbread house.

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[Smudge]

Smudge adjusted the patch that covered his left eye as he sat on the park bench and watched the general public milling by in their usual grey lives. If only they could understand there was more to this world than the barriers they, and only they, imposed on themselves. If only they knew there was a way out, something in everyone's life that was worth dying for. Shit, he'd learnt the hard way.

Although, Smudge had to admit that the Gingerbread house did look good. Authentic, even. Hell, the homeless Ogre would have gone and given it a lick if he thought it was actually made of gingerbread. Saliva began to build in his mouth at the thought and Smudge grunted as his hand pulled out a small wrapped item. Carefully unwrapping it to reveal a chunk of cheese, quite strong by the smell of it, Smudge broke off fairly generous corner and plopped it into his mouth before wrapping the remainder and slipping it back in his pocket.

He loved the taste of strong foods. Even here, Smudge knew the hotdog seller was not far away and that the woman on the next bench along had a meatball sub for her lunch. He was really hoping she couldn't eat it all and drop it in the trashcan beside him.

But then a movement caught Smudge's attention and he turned to witness the girl running through the park at some speed. Surely, a little too fast for an afternoon jog so either she was running from something lawful or running from something less-than-lawful. Either way, she had piqued Smudge's interest and he gripped his guitar case firmly as he stood and slowly began to follow her route, looking behind to see whether he could make out anyone trailing her.

Even if it did mean he'd miss out on a free lunch.

  

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2011-12-16 11:31:47		Smudge rolls 5 to Perception (10 Again)		4, 7, 9, 9, 7		2 successes

[Penguin]

Sitting on the grass Kelly ignores the small group of people that have recently gathered around her as she focuses on playing an eerily beautiful tune on her violin. As she finishes up her song she looks into her open violin case before her, seeing only a handful of change she sighs at the cheapness of her current audience and decides to try her luck elsewhere.


Once she returns her instrument to it's case she puts it in her messenger back and walks away from the slightly disappointed crowd. scanning the park as she walks for a potentially more profitable location.

  1 success

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2011-12-16 14:20:28		Kelly rolls 6 to Wits +Composure (10 Again)		2, 7, 4, 7, 8, 7		1 success

That is when she sees the girl. It's obvious she is in trouble so Kelly moves to follow the girl from a distance looking back wondering what could have this girl so terrified.

[Mary Lee]

It was the first time she'd walked anywhere that wasn't necessary to her survival (food, money, back to her apartment) in a while. Her paled skin makes it more evident that she's been dodging the sun adamantly of late, and she slouches in her jacket as though the winter wind were a bizarre torture for someone used to indoor heating. But maybe, just maybe, she'd find something inspiring to get her out of her current stagnant pool.

  Looking Around

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2011-12-16 22:19:27		Mary Lee rolls 5 to Perception (Wits+Composure) (10 Again)		10, 2, 4, 8, 4, 3		2 successes

And seeing someone apparently running for her life in the middle of the day seemed like something that might lead to something that might just be inspiring, so she couldn't help but follow suit. Not as quickly, because for some reason her strict regimen of fast food and candy in front of the TV hadn't worked out her glutes very well, but she was definitely trying to keep an eye on her.

[Swift]

The girl does not seem to see Danny as he steps closer to her and she keeps glancing over her shoulder as if watching for pursuit. No one seems to be following her, however. In fact, most people are actively ignoring her odd flight. In her seeming blindness she does not react to Danny's presence and careens into him at full tilt. She doesn't have much mass to her, but her velocity makes the impact more than it would seem. When she runs into the man, though, it's as if all of her desire to run flees with her momentum and she falls to the ground.

As if by reflex she curls up, knees to her chest and arms around her legs. It is a position designed to make one small, unnoticeable as well as protecting her from severe harm. She begins weeping into her knees, mumbling to herself. "...don't know what to do.......can't stop her......can't help........"

The rest of the crowd is quickly dispersing. Most people are belligerently ignoring the girl and a few gawk but do nothing to help. No one approaches in pursuit.

[Smudge]

As Smudge watched, he saw the girl collide with the Wizened and raised his eyebrow as he deftly spun to avoid ending up flat on his ass. The Ogre couldn't help but smirk for some reason, a tingling in his brain, the same kind that goes off whenever he hears the 5-0 nearby.

It usually meant trouble.

As Smudge reached them both, he kept a tight grip on the guitar case, and looked from Danny to the girl. "What's with all the tears, honey?" he said before glaring at the gawkers, daring them to get involved. As he did so, he couldn't help but cough up a healthy cloud of smog.