(Mirror Maze) Chasing Reflections

Nana parked her van a few blocks from Funderland, it would only draw unwanted attention in an amusement park's lot anyway. She dressed professionally, any dissonance with the frivolity of her surroundings far less important than assurance she would be taken seriously despite any apparent frailty. Especially with her mask, still hardened from the travel, making her seem a particularly brittle woman. She adjusted her sunglasses on her equally small, otherwise unadorned, face and let the click of her heels set a calming rhythm for her to focus on as she followed the park's signs to the Maze of Mirrors.

Once found, she waited outside, setting her hands down into her pockets to keep from fidgeting openly. She stood by the door and tried to keep her sweeping gaze discreet. With Winter, one never knew where they'd pop up and she didn't need to add a jump scare, accidental or not, to her nagging fears about meeting two strangers in a strange Freehold.

Glamorous Bookkeeping

The Sun Banisher lurked among the mirrors, hiding between the panels, and stepping past the woman when she wasn't looking at him. It was his job to watch. It was also a bit of a voyeuristic thrill. The thought of reshaping his body to mimic her own crossed his mind, but no. Not this time.

He moved up ahead, placing a Post-It note upon a seemingly randomly chosen mirror. The message read:

"Hi, I'm John. Follow the Post-It notes and we'll meet face to face."

As promised, there were notes stuck to specific mirrors leading Nana to a private room.

A sweep to the left found nothing, in returning her gaze to the right there was suddenly the neon swatch of Post-It on one of the mirrors deeper in. She rolled her shoulders, trying to shake the unsettling feeling of being watched by the unseen, but took off her sunglasses and strode forward. If there's a clown in here, I swear ...

She peeled the note free and after reading looked up, facing her own hellish reflection no glamour could hide from herself. She traced a finger across one of the deep lines of her face that, Mask or Mien, represented years and yet more vital things lost. The bite of sorrow billowed off of her as she turned and followed the trail of notes, sticking each one atop the last.

She couldn't stop herself from reaching out and testing the break in the mirrors that showed an empty room to prove that it wasn't just another trick of the light. When her fingers didn't bounce off glass she stepped inside, folding the Post-It stack in on itself and pocketing it. As much as being stuck inside of a little box within a maze she wasn't sure she could make it back out of again brought up painful memories, she at least knew she was in the right place.

The scent of coffee might as well have been a lure as much of an indicator that she was on the right path. The door was open and brightly lit. A silver skinned man without definition to his face sat at a table with wooden chairs. He waved to her. Before him sat a cup of coffee, "Would you like a cup?"

The Dancer took far longer than she expected to get from one end of town to the other. Perhaps she should have just invited her to the Note, but the Fairest hadn't a clue on what this was about. Either way, Sasha was concerned about what she'd said. Diana wasn't present at the last event, and surely she would have been if things were okay. Yet, she may have also just came to the Freehold and the Onyx did own a business outside of Funderland.

Either way, the Winter's mind was whirling considering the recent chain of events. The smell of coffee lured her to the door, and she just opened the door. Her mantle would send a chill to anyone that wasn't used to it. The Dancer's white blouse was flowing over the fitted jeans. She had white sandles on that matched the blouse, and she took down her sunglasses slightly as she walked in to reveal her violet eyes. "Sorry, John, traffic was awful." The door was barely open, so if Diana had been in the same room, she wouldn't have seen her.

She didn't hesitate at John's offer. "No." She strode forward to stand across from him at the table, hands purposefully taken out of her pockets and folded in front. "Makes the hand unsteady," she at least explained.

She instinctively took a step back as the door was opened towards her when the Fairest Queen entered into the room, not surprised to be overlooked. Her eyes darted over the woman, examining those flawless features with a dissecting gaze. They're so casual here -- she couldn't tell if it was a Winter trick to put her off guard or genuine. She also couldn't decide which made her more uncomfortable.

She gently cleared her throat, not wanting to spook the woman -- much anyway. "Ms. Collins then, yes? I appreciate your time and apologize for the pretense. I didn't entirely believe that my contacts weren't playing some prank when I heard about this Freehold's unique location." She let her mask drop then, revealing her snatched back skin and flickering Mantle. Her pursed lips didn't move, but there was a kind of forced smile as the line of her unnaturally uniform teeth was exposed from how her Mien drew her features tight against her bones. "Please, call me Nana." She held out her withered hand with the hint of black thread wriggling from under her nails.

John shrugged, "No worries, Boss." He flashed a smile to Sasha. He leaned back in his chair sipping on the cup of coffee. "Nice to meet you Nana." Now it was time to keep his mouth shut. Nana had business with Sasha.

When the violet eyes fully saw the woman who had called upon her, Sasha was curious as to why she did not call on her own Court. Whatever the reason, she was concerned and that is why she'd asked John to join. Extending her hand to the Wizened, her own was cold but strong. "Lovely to meet you Nana. And this is John, my Sunbanisher." Warmly smiling to her fellow Winter.

The Fairest had nothing to say about the location. She wasn't given a choice in the matter, despite she was the most Veteran member of the Freehold. "Yes, it is a very unique location." Nodding in agreement. The woman reminded her of someone who was once in the Freehold, perhaps not as old though. That could too be a deception, as some Changelings didn't want certain secrets out unless they were forced to do so.

"I don't want to assume, so I will just come out and ask. Did you just recently arrive to Sacramento?" The whole way over, the Dancer had pondered how to ask something. Luck with words was not on her side today, so she just decided to ask. "I have no issue with coming to me first. I was just curious as to why you had not contacted the Director or sought out another Autumn or whatnot?" The Onyx asked with warmth in her voice and a soft smile. While waiting for the answer, the Dancer gracefully moved about to pour herself from coffee and have a seat.

ooc

Fair warning, I will most likely not be posting again until Friday due to the funeral.

Her shoulders gave a small jump as John said her name. Despite just having been looking at him, between the way Sasha pulled attention and he dipped under it, she had nearly forgotten he was in the room. It was more disquieting than embarrassing, the pair quite the wintry mix. Her own firm grip met Sasha's and she gave a nod. "Yes, it's a treat." Her voice dry, though not actively sarcastic or dismissive. The writhing threads from the sides of her nails lengthened and seem drawn towards the life in the Fairest's touch before drawing back again once the contact ended.

"Indeed, a few nights ago actually." She pulled out a chair for herself and sat down, making sure to keep them both in her field of vision this time. "I had been serving in the Ashen Court of New York's Fortress of Coins prior. There were some, let's say -- needlessly aggressive personalities that I found tiresome to depend upon and the Freehold is overcrowded besides. I thought it better to make a change for myself than foist it upon others." At least those were the most pleasant of her reasons for making the shift.

She hooked her ankles together, legs demurely set at an angle while hands now rested atop one another on the table. "It's my understanding that the Director is relatively new to both the position and the Freehold, comparatively anyway. I feel much more comfortable making contact with the most --" and she wanted to choose her words carefully, "Seasoned members first."

"As for my own court, if I'd known of any suitable contacts then I would have." She admitted with a kind of small huff from her mild irritation at the situation her court was in. "It's part of what drew me to Sacramento in particular. I was told that Autumn's been struggling somewhat with little membership and even less leadership. I heard that the previous Queen left and, while I have no aspirations for such a position myself, I wanted to lend what aid I could in being sure that the proper cycle of the seasons remains intact. If not for our own kind's sake, then for the mortals that could be equally at risk from a weakened circle."

Her head tilted as she looked between the two of them. "Have things changed in that respect any? I have always respected Winter's clear-eyed take on matters." Her even toned voice stating it plainly and without any overt attempt at flattery. "I'd welcome any assessment you'd feel comfortable sharing. Spring and Summer's idealism is empowering, but I'm more accustomed to handling harsh truths. I believe that a problem can only be solved once it is accurately addressed. I would hope that our courts might come to speak openly with one another as a result -- as naive a dream as that might be."

ooc

No worries, appreciate the heads-up though. Take all the time you need <3