(PRP) Coffee Date

[Cayce]

At times, a call for help is never heard and the suffering wither slowly, invisibly, slowly collapsing beneath the weight of their troubles until not even their crumpled remains are deigned notice by society.

Fortunately, this is not one of those times. Colorful flyers have sprung up around the freehold, appearing like the vibrant floral wrath of a guerrilla gardener, assaulting the stern demeanor of Summer with echoes of Spring's joy and whimsy. At least on the surface. For those of potent curiosity or sharp eyes, the flyers are simply the facade for something far different. At first glance the flyers seem to be talking about a support group for lost love, but upon a second glance the flyers appear to be talking about one specific love in particular, and one that is not entirely lost.

It seems that one Mirabelle (the culprit behind the flyers), has come to Sacramento in pursuit of her true love, one that might slip through her desperately grasping fingers without the aid of those have known what it's like to be Lost.

The promise of a reward is even woven surreptitiously (and vaguely) into the flyer, clearly intended to entice those who might have less than charitable hearts to attend upon Mirabelle's request.

Those who are interested by this colorful call for aid notice that the flyers ask all those who might be willing to lend assistance to meet the fair damsel at the Blue Note and hear the story of her woes so that they might help her find a remedy. True to the flyers' words, Mirabelle is found in the sorrowful club, nursing a drink in a booth. She is not hard to spot. As the flyers described, a blue choker rings her neck, one that is made of intricately woven, blue flowered vines. Clearly it is a piece of Hedge Raiment, betraying the wearer's nature despite her lack of apparent mien. Nevertheless, the rest of her appearance is not unworthy of note. Her hair is black as a raven's wing and her eyes dark as coal. Her skin is pale and smooth as an ermine's fur, and her flush lips red as the ripest of fruit. A hint of joy enters her eyes when she spots fellow lost, and she waves gaily to any approaching her table.

"Hello!" she says enthusiastically. "You must have seen the flyers, that's so wonderful! I'm Mirabelle, as you might have guessed. Won't you have a seat? Or something to drink? It's the least I can do."

Mirabelle has hardened her mask. The air around her smells sweet and a tad fruity, reminding those present of Spring

[Degnar]

-1 Glamour to harden Mask

While walking around the city, Degnar had spotted some of the strange flyers. He wasn't exactly sure of what they meant, but he thought it was perhaps best if he'd investigate further. After all, the flyers had invited folks to join this Mirabelle woman at the Blue Note, which happened to be his Court's new hangout spot. Thus, he felt a certain responsibility for checking things out and make sure this stranger didn't have something nefarious in mind. The Darkling headed in the direction of the jazz club, and because old habits die hard, he invoked some of his faerie magic to cover his tracks.

Its not paranoia when They are really out to get you.

Shortly after arriving at the Blue Note, the Tunnelgrub took a quick look around the place in hopes of finding the one he was looking for. Spotting a woman by the bar, Degnar figured that it had to be her, even if she didn't look the part. Hmm, maybe she's just being careful, he thought to himself, since he had the habit of hardening his Mask most of the time anyway. Upon closer inspection, the Darkling spotted the hedgespun choker, which confirmed his suspicions about the woman. Dragging his duffel bag a few inches off the ground, the Darkling headed in her direction.

"Hello," he said as he approached the bar, giving the woman a little nod. As the woman offered a seat and a drink, Degnar shrugged to himself and sat down next to her. I won't refuse free booze, the thought to himself, since Mirabelle had offered. "Sure, I'll have a cider," he said in his usual monotone voice. "I'm Degnar by the way."

  1 suxx for Nevertread, not sure if its day or night...but the -1 wouldn't make a difference!

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2014-08-13 10:21:31		Degnar rolls 6 to Int+Wyrd for "Nevertread" (catch met) (10 Again)		1, 5, 9, 1, 2, 7		1 success

[Terri Nutkins]

The flyers had given Terri pause as she had been out and about around the Freehold. The vibrant nature of such things struck her of being belonging to Spring certainly and as she read one, the Beast couldn't help but feel a pang of regret at her own marriage. Weddings were a naturally magical time, and true love hard to find. Seemed like the perfect concoction for some good deeds.

Not having been to the Blue Note since her return, Terri certainly remembered the place as Maxine's, and prior to that the Empty Orchestra. It had had a history all of its own, and had been the focal point for the Freehold's interests in one way or another. Now it seemed it could be the start of something new.

Before arriving, Terri ensured to hide her fae mien, something else that she had slowly grown accustomed to. The last thing she needed was to be picked up by some Privateer or Loyalist on the lookout for an easy catch, or to walk into an ambush.

Wearing a simple pair of jeans, simple black ballet pumps and a white tee, Terri entered with her purse over her shoulder. The way she figured it, if she needed to get changed, it wouldn't take long to do so. She pretty much knew most of the fashion boutiques in the city. In her purse however was her trusty slingshot, her Aspersorium and raiment gloves. Simple things that could come in handy.

Spotting the one who had posted the flyers by the choker she wore, Terri bounded over not long after Degnar. "Nice to meet you, I'm Terri," the redhead replied with a friendly grin, sliding onto a seat. She offered a nod to Degnar, not really surprised to see the Darkling back. He seemed the survivable sort. "How're you keeping, Degnar?"

With the opportunity of a drink, Terri nodded. "Thanks, I'll take an orange juice and lemonade." Was she being a little cagey, unsure of the current climate around the Freehold. Perhaps rightly so.

As she received her drink, delicate fingers encircling the glass, Terri smiled. "So, true love? A good cause as any to help."

[Tally Benoit]

Tally is walking into the Blue Note seeking a coffee along with meeting the person behind the flyers, she's wearing a faded red T-Shirt sporting an image of a dragon breathing fire at a knight on a horse plus jeans and black runners. As she enters, she notices Terri along with Darkling she recalls from the Summer Coronation. Without a second thought, she walks over to the table, greeting those already about it.

"Hello, how have you guys been?" She asks the group with a warm smile. "Might if I join you?"

[Morgan Bellanar]

And it seems that Morgan was being fashionably late as everybody else was inside already. She too had seen the pretty flyers pleading for help. It was hard not too see them or the tell-tale signs of Lost messages. Her first instinct had been the usual: run to help. It was just how her mind worked. Besides, she liked the Blue Note, it was a nice place.

The distance that had to be covered gave her time to think and worry. That meant despite arriving well before the others, she'd watched the Blue Note from across the street. Nothing happened until the others arrived. Morgan figured it was safe enough with a former Dread Lady present. Terri's presence also meant there was somewhere with practical knowledge of romance, so the raccoon didn't need to offer any woo-ing advice. That was good.

Morgan was therefore at the tail end of the group and the introductions. If this Mirabelle failed to notice the short Beast, it'd not surprise the raccoon at all. She raised and waved a hand in greeting, "H-hi-hi-salutations folks, heh. N-nice to see familiar visages and-and greetings new Mirabelle, heh. Oh, r-right, I am Morgan, heh, hello."

She then focused upon Terri and gave a slight bow, "Glad to see-spot you doing bonus-better," before finally looking back and forth between Degnar and Sam Hain. "Uh? W-weren't we j-j-just here?"

[Cayce]

"Not at all, everyone's just arrived," Mirabelle replied to Tessa, waving her towards the most open side of the booth. Which, really, wasn't all that open, the booth already holding six changelings.

"Well, why don't we all scoot together a bit more?" she suggested after considering the situation for a moment. "I'm sure we can all fit as long as no one has a problem with things being a bit more cozy. We will be talking about love, after all." A warm smile blossomed on those red lips, and then Mirabelle signaled Degnar to slide over closer to her so there would be more room.

While everyone was getting situated, a waitress drifted over, seeing that there was finally some business to be had during the slow pre-dinner hours, and the company of Lost's foreign hostess delivered their orders. Fortunately for Sam, it seemed that Yeungling was indeed on the menu. The Blue Note was certainly well stocked when it came to the beverages used to drown one's sorrows.

The orders now in, and the waitress having departed, Mirabelle turned back to the assembled Lost. "I can't tell you all how glad I am that you all came. I was so worried that no one would come, but here you all are! It's so amazing, I just," she trailed off into a small sniffle, and a hand shot up to deftly brush away the beginnings of a tear. "Sorry, I'm sorry," she mumbled, brushing at her eye a few more times. "I've just been so beyond myself lately. I'm usually far more put together, but seeing all these beautiful faces sitting here, I'm just so glad." Her smile returned, appearing all the more beautiful below her now glistening eyes. "Even if you don't think my cause is as worthy as Terri does, I'm still so thankful that you've come to hear what I have to say. There aren't many who I've confided in, and there are even fewer who have actually listened. Maybe it's just that the company of strangers is sometimes what we actually need. I don't know. I'm sorry, I shouldn't be boring you all with my rambling," she said, waving a hand as though chasing her old words away.

"I'll just try and say everything very bluntly, if you all don't mind. I'm afraid it won't make any sense otherwise. Matters of the heart can be so confusing when they're put to words. That's why poets are so amazing, aren't they? Oh, I'm sorry, there I go again." She sighed, and slumped down into her seat. "The fact is, I need your help. My true love is in Sacramento right now, for a wedding. The trouble is, his plus one is some other woman, someone who doesn't deserve him, and I don't know how I can make him see that, or how I can remind him of what we once had. We were dating, you see, before I was, well, forced away, but he's moved on since then. And it doesn't help that that thing that filled in for me was such a terror," she explained a touch of anger appearing in her voice. "It's so horrible! Not only has he moved on, but his memory of our time has been tainted on top of it all. Ruined by something that he thinks was me. It's not so hard to forget about everything that They've done to me when I was over there, not really, but I just can't escape until I fix everything that They've messed up here. Until I get back everything that I've lost."

Eyes shimmering with tears look back up, seeking a glimmer of understanding in the gaze's of her fellow Lost.

Any potential newcomers to the thread, please see this.

[Degnar]

"Alright," said Degnar in response to Terri, offering the redheaded Steepescrambler a nod. He was going to ask her the same in response, but he figured that the fact that she was there and had survived the attack was proof that she wasn't doing all that bad herself. At least that's what he thought, but then again, many aspects of common courtesy were unknown to the Darkling. As others arrived, he simply offered nods in their direction. Most were familiar faces, with the exception of the last arrival.

Things were getting a little crowded, which didn't exactly make him any less uncomfortable in the situation. Much to the contrary, the Tunnelgrub became slightly more reserved, if that was even possible. As Mirabelle gestured for him to get closer to her, Degnar hesitated for a brief moment but eventually gave in. After all, he did not want to show the others his discomfort with how things were going so far. That was not Winter's way. Doing his best to hide how he truly felt, the Darkling slid closer to Mirabelle.

As the woman began to speak, he turned his attention to her, listening closely to her story. At times he felt a little lost, unsure of what she was saying. Degnar had known some folks who liked to talk a lot, but Mirabelle seemed to talk even more than them. He did his best to remain focused on her, even if his attention was drawn elsewhere at times. The Darkling definitely felt a little out of his element, not knowing anything about love; whether it was true or false. As far as he could tell, Mirabelle was simply unable to move on. Her tale was filled with sorrow, which would've made for a tasty snack if she were a mere human. But why was she trying to hold on to something that was clearly lost at this point?

Perhaps that's why Degnar didn't really get Spring. To him, it sounded like this Mirabelle chick just wanted to put her own desire above that of others. She didn't care for what her ex felt, or how ruining the upcoming wedding would affect his current fiance. To him, she sounded a bit selfish, but then again, selfishness was not a foreign concept to him. After all, one had to be somewhat selfish in order to follow the Ice Law to the letter. Still, the Tunnelgrub was not sure how he would be able to help this woman with her predicament. Surely they could create enough of a distraction to delay the wedding, or even take the fiance out of the picture if it came down to it. But how the hell were they going to convince the guy to take Mirabelle back? From the sounds of it, her Fetch had certainly put an end to any hope of that ever happening.

What have I gotten myself into?

[Morgan Bellanar]

Morgan had little trouble squeezing in beside others. She knew how to take up little room, it was a good hiding skill. She didn't mind, she knew the folks here and they were mostly nice. Plus Morgan could get out. Chicago had taught her many lessons, like how to scramble out of booths via the tabletop.

After the waitress left, Morgan focused upon Mirabelle. Her look started out as wary scrutiny before she chuckled. Smiling she quipped in at her usual rapid-fire pace: "Cert-sure folks-here-eh-heard w-worse amble-rambling, heh." Mirabelle's rambling didn't seem too bad to the raccoon.

Whatever amusement she felt faltered. This was not good. It was a very delicate situation that'd be difficult to navigate for those with the social graces to do so. The raccoon was not among the those. Carry a package through rush hour on foot across town? No problem. Carousing with a bunch of college idiots? Sure, bars were her thing. Resolve a love triangle with a long Lost love and an evil twin?

Morgan couldn't help but wince at the thought. How the Hell do you convince someone that you had an evil twin? And not sound psycho without the twin? Given some fetches were killing machines, having said twin was NOT a solution. Tell him the truth? That would require proof...like...like...ensorcelling him? The raccoon narrowed her eyes at the thought. Letting mortals see them was not to be done lightly.

Nor did she entirely trust this Mirabelle to be messing with the man's mind.

And what of the other woman? The raccoon had no idea what to do here. She wasn't good at people-love stuff. Morgan's head darted around the table. She really hoped someone had a idea for this. Preferably with a minimum of violence, property damage, or heartbreak.

"S-s-sorry-sympathy for you. I, uh-heh-heh, n-not too s-sure how well m-my skill sets h-help here. I-I-I like help fix this, uh...people stuff? B-but Imma lozz better at sneak-trick insides then-then I am at people." Morgan didn't want to mention knife throwing. Just in case this woman wanted to try turning the love triangle into a love line.