Post by dexter on Sept 21, 2009 0:31:04 GMT -5
Kovu:
Kovu had a long rest. Exhausted from the morphing the night before. Kovu woke up feeling refreshed and energized. He felt kinda out of place, since he only knew Matt. He decided to get acquainted. He headed down the stairs and into the kitchen.
Matt:Matt opened the door to his room and made his way out. Shopping had been done when he'd brought Kovu to the Huant, so they were still fairly good though he'd need to make a new trip now that they had eight people around the Haunt. He'd probably need to be the one making the trip, or he could send Cam or Kovu if someone kept and eye on them as back up.
He spotted Kovu in the kitchen when he reached it. "I hope you slept a little better last night than you have recently. I wish the accommodations for yeerk screening were a little kinder, but usually only when the person proves to be free. It's a necessary evil though I suppose."
Kovu:Kovu laughed "Well I suppose it would be better with a TV in there" Kovu stretched and sat down in a chair. "So who else is here, it can't hurt to learn names" Kovu looked around in curiosity. He had barely seen the place, he had just stayed in the storage room, then gone out to the deck to morph. He didn't really have a chance to look around.
Aubrey:"Woo!" Aubrey heaved herself out of the pull of the ocean, bending down briefly to grab her surfboard. The water surged and pushed around her legs, cold water splashing up against her with each step towards shore. Once she felt the cool wet sand beneath her, she jogged forward until her feet hit dry sand. She stopped, setting her surfboard down then abruptly sitting down, out of breath.
She squeezed some of the salt water from her hair, untangling it by brushing her fingers through it. Next was the surfboard leash, and she pulled open the Velcro strap attaching her to the board. A cold wind blew across her shivering body, and goosebumps rose along her arms and legs. Winter was approaching soon, making the air chilly, but it didn't seem to bother her enough to stop her from surfing during the day. Resting her surfboard against her hip, she walked the distance from the beach to the Haunt, sliding her surfboard down below the hammock.
The Haunt was getting crowded now. Aubrey had been forced to move outside onto the hammock to sleep, kept company by the sea and the cold. Not that it really bothered her, exactly, as she enjoyed being outside. But as winter came along, it became a little more unpleasant, and being so exposed all the time felt strange.
She paused before entering the Haunt, wringing out her wet hair one more time and shaking her arms and legs free of water drops. She didn't really want to use her blanket as a towel, so she decided to head inside for a drink and a towel. Rubbing her cold hands together, she entered the Haunt.
Immediately, she heard the sound of voices. One was distinctly Matt, and the other had to be one of the new recruits. Creeping by the kitchen and leaving a trail of water drops on the carpet, she disappeared down the hallway to steal a towel from the bathroom. Then she reappeared again, her wetsuit dry and a towel tucked under her arm. Her hair, tangled and messy, was still dripping water.
"G'day everyone," She said lightly, smiling at the two of them. How many new members were there now? It seemed like ever since Matt had found her in the store, he couldn't come back from shopping without finding a new person. Maybe he went shopping for recruits. A smile tugged at her lips, and she moved to grab a glass and fill it with water from the facet. She was trying not to look guilty, as she had spent some of her time out on the ocean as a sea lion. She couldn't resist.
Vyvyan:A mynah bird fluttered into the open window of the kitchen; strangely, the screen of said window had been unhooked from the frame. The bird was holding a piece of mylar in its beak, setting it down when it landed on the back of a kitchen chair. Looking up from the treasure as it noticed the glimmer of Kovu’s watch, the bird noticed the new member.
<Hallo, when did you get here?> Vyvyan sounded cheerful, ruffling its feathers and beginning to preen idly. <Or are you recently confirmed?> Fluttering onto the chair, Vyvyan began to demorph, taking its time. There was no hurry.
Still devoid of a morphing suit (Jullian had yet to take Vyvyan’s measurements), the street rat wore a thin, long-sleeved shirt and a pair of dancer’s leggings. As its feathers turned to skin and dreadlocks, Vyvyan hummed to itself. It had stayed true to its word, memorising every page in every book in the Haunt. As well, Vyvyan had commited itself to learning every nuance of morphing. It had a need to know, as well as a determination to prove itself better than what (Vyvyan perceived) was everyone’s opinion of it.
When it was human again, Vyvyan stood and held out a hand to Kovu. ‘I am Vyvyan,’ it said with a charming smile. There was no clue as to what gender Vyvyan was, not even in its voice or name. There were curves that could have been female, on its chest, but there were curves that could have been male, at its hips.
Jullian:Jullian came up from the basement looking disgruntled. Three new members! Three. He prided himself on being a bit of a miracle worker when it came to cloth but even he wasn't god. Where was he supposed to get the fabric to fit them all? And of course he was expected to.
He walked into the kitchen, a cloth ruler tangled around his neck and arms and small bits of fabric stuck in his hair, which was going every which way and was dusty to boot. "Alright, that's it Matt. No more new people." He had been trying to cut a wing pattern out of the little silver/white fabric they had left but now he tossed it in the garbage angrily. It was useless, there just wasn't enough.
Haven taken out his anger at the cloth by discarding it he looked up and took stock of who was actually in the room. "Oh, sorry, I'm Jullian," he said, holding his hand out to Kovu. I don't mean to imply that I'm not happy you're here, I am. I'm just a little," he shrugged, "never mind. I'll find some cloth somehow."
His mind wandered away, plans for obtaining the materials he would need flooding his head and his words faded as his attention drifted.
Matt:Wow.... Matt had hardly gotten the chance to say anything to Kovu when Aubrey, Vyvyan, and Jullian had turned up. That left Cam, Lizzie, and Kat. The Haunt was starting to get really crowded, to the point that Aubrey had started sleeping on the hammock that Rian had hung on the porch and left there when he'd moved to Las Vegas. The words spilled around the room, everyone introducing themselves to Kovu.
Ok. Lets take this slowly. "Well Kovu, looks like everyone else is going to be showing up on their own so I'll just let them introduce themselves to you. You're the eighth person to join the faction so there's three others besides everyone in the room." He turned quickly to Jullian, showing how quickly his mind could switch tracks, probably a good thing in battles and it seemed more and more often he treated life like it was one big battle.
"Jullian, as far as anymore members I can guarantee you there won't be more because we have no more room in this base. Aubrey is sleeping on the porch in a hammock and Vyvyan is sleeping on the couch because that's the only way we can fit the eight people we have here. If you want we need someone to make a shopping trip and I could just as easily get the fabric you needed. Possibly you could sneak along with me. I've never tried this idea, but your dingo could possibly pass as a seeing eye dog and that would get you into the store to help me pick the stuff out."
Jullian:Matt's idea was decidedly less risky than everything running through Jullian's head. In fact it was less risky than what he and Ember had done the first time.
"That sounds great Matt because without it we don't have enough fabric to make everyone suits and I don't know about you, " he said looking at Kovu and Vyvyn, "but I don't want you guys to have to run around in tights. It's not the best look, only some of us can pull it off."
He sat down at one of the kitchen counters and pulled a box of cereal open over to him that had been left on the counter. "So where are you from Kovu? And how did Matt find you?"
Kovu:'Kovu was only sightly overwhelmed. He carefully studied each of the people around him. He didn't mean to but it was a force of habit. The blond seemed OK, besides the fact that she looked a bit guilty. Vyvyan was a strange person. Kovu couldn't tell whether it was a guy or a girl. Julian seemed strange, for some reason, something seemed off about him.
Kovu shook his head and answered the question "well I was living on the streets for a long time. I was pickpocketing a Controller so I could buy some food. I forgot to check to see if anyone was looking, and Matt saw me. I guess he figured I wasn't a Yeerk, so he approached me." Kovu turned to the blond "I'm not sure I caught your name, you are?"
Vyvyan:Vyvyan’s eyes lit as Kovu explained his origin, and it burst into one of its rare grins. ‘You’re a pickpocket!’ It said, eyes glinting in happiness at finding a fellow. ‘Really! O, we’re going to be great friends, old thing!’
A laugh of delight bubbled up in Vyvyan’s throat. Another thief! Another denizen of the street! O frabjous day! It shot a triumphant, smug little look at Aubrey. Hah! Take that, you spoilt little harpy!
Aubrey:"Hey Jullian." Aubrey smiled to Jullian as he entered, sipping from her glass of water and piling the towel on one of the counters. Aubrey was a little out of breath from her surfing, so she was leaning against the counter and trying to catch her breath. It had been awhile since she had actually exercised any, and she felt a little out of shape. She would have to do some more exercise, she couldn't stand just lying around and not doing anything.
She listened to the conversation going on, her eyes widening at the mention that there were eight people in the faction. This place felt too tiny for so many people. Her blue eyes shifted to Kovu, listening to his story about how he was recruited. She hadn't seen much of this person for the three days he had been tied up. Or the other person. But the more, the merrier right?
"Oop, sorry. I'm Aubrey. Nice to meet you, friend," She said, her voice tinged with a slight Australian accent. She gave him a big, warm smile, finishing off the last of her water.
Kovu:Kovu quietly aknowledged Audrey. He also showed a sign of friendship toward Vyvyan. Then kovu overheard Julians conversation. "Wait a minute, I know where you can go, there is this large fabric staore on the south side of town. Not alot of controllers go there, and it's pretty easy to grab some stuff. "
"The security is terrible, I went there to get all my clothes." Kovu looked around, begging for a sign of acceptance. He turned toward Jullian. "Well, how about it? Are you up for a store robbery?"
Jullian:"Do we have to say robbery? Can't we just say borrowing in the name of humanity?" Jullian still didn't feel right about stealing which is why he was finding it a little odd that they now had two thieves in the house. And he guessed that this one would be taking Stevert's place in the attic and maybe Vyvyn would get the other. Or maybe there was a room free now. He wasn't actually sure who was where at the moment.
Vyvyn, Kovu and the other new guy could share the attic if Jullian could get a room. But wait, no, Lizzie had taken Rian's old room and Kat had Ember's so that was out. Aubrey was on the hammock outside so where would Kovu sleep? This place really wasn't set up to hold this many people.
Maybe more hammocks. He liked hammocks, if he could make one...
He had gotten lost in his own thoughts again. With a start he said, "um, the store sounds really cool. Unfortunately far away but cool. Still, I suppose we can make a day trip out of it and show you how we get around the city when we have to. Maybe we can even visit Union on the way back. They are always in need of fabric and they have some pretty cool stuff to trade if you want."
"Do you know about Union?"
Kovu:Kovu took a second to respond "No you lost me." Kovu laughed a bit as he though about a bunch of resistance forces going to a government agency. "Yeah the store is pretty far but there is a small road going to it, we could get a heavier morph to carry it" Kovu paced in silence, deep in thought.
Finnaly he said "I don't know if we can go to the Union carrying a bunch of Fabric, even less so if we get a morph to carry it for us" Kovu looked into space, trying to judge a way where this could all work. Finnaly his senses returned to him. "Oh yah, what is the Union anyway?"
Matt:Matt followed all of this. Stealing wasn't exactly the safest way to get things, but it was basically what they did all the time if you counted salvaging from run down stores and the fact that they weren't really controllers which meant they shouldn't be getting their food free like they were. Still, aside from that everything seemed to be going well so far. Kovu seemed to be getting along and Vyvyan may have finally found an Animorph he would feel understood him some. That was hard for any of the others to do.
"Union is an underground city of free humans in what used to be Union Station, hence it's name. We have... a connection there. Several really." He very pointedly didn't say who the connections were, who Tess was. After a few visits to Union Matt had begun to realize he was at least getting a crush on his old friend and he was attempting to avoid letting his members know. He wasn't entirely sure how they'd feel about him dating a YPM controller. Besides that he didn't even know if Tess had similar feelings for him. Get it off your mind now! You don't want to start getting lost in though or they'll know something is up.
Kovu:Matthew seemed almost hesitant to talk about the Union. Kovu took a mental note of this and got back on topic. "Ok if we need fabric, we are going to have to go get it, the only question is when?" Kovu looked around at everyone he had met so far. They all seemed great, but Kovu was unsure of them. He noticed odd behaviors that said each of them had something to hide.
"Well, are we going to do this or not?" He looked at Matt, then at Jullian. He wondered what each of them would think. He waited patiently while each of them thought about the situation.
Jullian:"We could carry enough back if Matt carried it. Or we could rig some sort of back pack and our dog morphs could carry it and then we can travel in the tunnels the whole way. We should really stop by," he said not looking at Matt. Matt and Tess were trying very hard to hide the fact that they liked each other but he was pretty sure it was obvious to everyone but them. Then again, wasn't it always.
He had decided that Tess was better than a puppy for Matt's mental health and tried to find any excuse to drag Matt to Union that he could so that Matt wouldn't have to come up with any by himself. Ok, so he was being a nosy matchmaker, but it was working. He thought.
"Besides, a lot of us haven't seen Union yet. I don't think Kat has been there, or Vyvyn. They should get to visit. And if all of us go we'll definitely have enough people to carry stuff. And at least we'll be walking through subway tunnels instead of sewer tunnels." He turned to Kovu and Vyvyn. "Sewers, it is one of the more glamourous parts of our job."
Kovu:Kovu knew something connected Matt with the Union, he would have to ask Jullian later. He seemed to have already figured it out. "So subway it is?" Kovu stared at Matt, studying him. There was something, or someone at the Union that was important to Matt. Kovu was going to find out.
Now all we had to do was wait for the order to leave. "So Matt, should we wait for the others, or should we just leave without them?" The other members hadn't shown up yet. Hmph, probobly sleeping Kovu thought. Kovu stared at Matt waiting for an order.
Matt:It's like he knows... then again he knows just about everything else that goes on in my head because I tell him. The one thing I keep a secret he figures out on his own. Well, it didn't look like Matt was going to get out of going to Union. Looked like another visit with Tess... which had actually gotten to be kind of awkward all things considered. She didn't know how he felt and it wasn't like he had the guts to tell her. Funny that the Animorphs leader of L.A. was scared of saying three words to a girl.
"If I morph my horse we can just my saddle. I'll need someone to lead me since the tunnels can get kinda dark and that would make the horse skittish. The dogs would work better, but we'd still need a demorph stop if we're going all the way across town." And a demorph stop meant Union. If I didn't know better I'd swear Jullian was playing matchmaker.... actually, that fits him.
Kat:The sun was up and morning was upon the LA factions hideaway. Voices drifted from the kitchen, announcing that people were awake, but Kat was not one of them. The coyote was a good morph for patrolling at night, and that was just what Kat had been doing most of the night. Kat hadn't even bothered to look at the clock when she'd switched off with one of the others.
The bed sheets were twisted from the constant movement of Kat's body as she fought to get comfortable in the night, tossing and turning. It hadn't been a good evening when it came to sleeping. Upsetting dreams haunted her and kept her from getting any sound rest, and now her stomach was rumbling, scolding her for not grabbing anything to eat after her shift. It was pangs of hunger that finally resulted in the opening of the eighteen year old's soft gray eyes. With an irritated groan, she struggled to free herself from the sheets and stumbled onto the floor.
The door to Kat's room opened without much sound as she rubbed her eyes a bit and entered the hallway, listening to the sounds of her faction mate's not far off in the distance. Her fingers ran through her hair to smooth it out and rid it of a few knots, knowing it probably looked a mess. In a matter of moments she had entered the kitchen with a yawn, dressed in her purple "Say Anything" t-shirt and a pair of loose pants she'd acquired after her arrival. She caught sight of Jullian and Matt, then Aubrey with her wet hair, Vyvyan, and finally one of their newest members whose name was Kovu according to what she's learned from Matt.
"Hey..." She mumbled, her usual tone lacking energy.
Vyvyan:
((OOC: Aubreymun, I read that surfers get seawater in their sinuses because of how long they’re out in the water, and that it drains at weird times. If you’re a surfer, I’m curious to know more about this phenomenon.))
Vyvyan laughed at Jullian’s protest. ‘Stealing,’ it said, with a grin. ‘Lifting, Nicking, Robbing, Larceny. Let’s go to the Garment District, I’m sure there’s far more selection there.’
After the suggestion, Vyvyan waited on the conversation to die down, still close to Kovu. A fellow thief…Vyvyan wanted to get him alone, talk shop with him. But Vyvyan was patient. Vyvyan would wait.
‘Sewers?’ Vyvyan gave Jullian a look of disbelief. ‘Well of course, the sewers. The abandoned underground is far more useful, as well. Though underground is not a place I fancy being, with the earthquakes looming every second.’ Vyvyan looked at them all quizzically—just how many of them were native, anyway? A city underground? That was courting death…but ah, only the insane would go there, and the Yeerks did not consider themselves insane. Perhaps therein lay the cleverness.
Kovu:
Kovu smiled, sure enough it was a theif, and a theif to be reckoned with. Kovu moved foward, placed his hand on Vyvyan's shoulder and squeezed. Not enough to hurt of course, but enough to get the message accross that there was something else to it. "However I truly think that this Union is the best option. The longer we're below ground and away from Yeerk forces the better" Kovu released his grip and smiled at Vyvyan. He preyed that it would uunderstand. The only one who had seemed to figure out what was wrong with Matt was Julian. Kovu would have to speak with him later.
Kovu turned toward the stranger. Forggetting his manners (the little of them he had) he had not spoke to her. She had addresed him with mild uninterest, as ifshe was too tired to really pay attention. "Sorry I'm Kovu I guess you figured I'm the new guy around here, and you are?" He waited, hoping for a response.
Kat:
"I'm Kat." She tried to sound a bit more energetic as she made her way to the counter, but she didn't succeed. "What's everyone talking about?" All she'd caught was bits about the underground City Matt, Jullian, Aubrey, and Stevert had discovered. It sounded like they were planning something.
Opening the cabinet above her, Kat pulled out a loaf of bread, planning to make some toast for herself. She popped two pieces into the toaster, grabbed some butter, then leaned against the counter and waited. Her gray eyes flickered over each face in the kitchen.
Matt:((Nosey Kovu. It's bad enough Jullian is playing matchmaker. I don't need the whole faction finding out Matt for a YPM controller who used to be one of his best friends... or so goes the background I created.))
"The plan thus far is doing something to get fabric for Jullian making morphing suits for the new members," Matt said to Kat. "We apparently ran out of the supplies Jullian and Ember got back when we first made the original suits." Kat had been part of the group back when the L.A. uniform morphing suits had first been made. She and Steve had actually just joined the faction and Bane had just been starting his screening process. That seemed like so long ago to Matt, but it had really only been around six or so months. It was amazing how much had happened in that time.
"Apparently there's a store Kovu knows of that doesn't have the greatest security, but it's on the other side of the city so we're probably making a day trip out of it which means a demorph stop at Union as Jullian pointed out." Turning to Kovu he said, "And don't mind how tired Kat is. She has a right to be seeing as she had one of the later patrol shifts last night. I don't figure she's gotten as much sleep as she'd like." Keeping track of things around the Haunt was... surprisingly easy now that Matt had been doing it for as long as he had.
He glanced around quick, somewhat wanting to get out of here so he didn't have to keep discussing the visit to Union which was obviously awkward no matter how much he tried to hide it. Just morph horse or jackal and go for a run. Clear my head and not be thinking about Tess or her red hair and grey eyes... I think I'm hopelessly head over heels for that girl.
Vyvyan
Vyvyan pursed its lips, folding thin arms. 'I still think the garment district is what our young Jullian needs....' it muttered.
At Kovu's touch, Vyvyan felt its scalp prickle in unexpected bashfulness. Confused, it looked away, wandering over to the cupboards and getting out some ingredients. Eggs, milk, spices... Vyvyan had stolen spices one by one, flitting down to the nearest grocery store. So far it had acquired a premixed canister of sweet spices, a canister of italian spices, and then it had stopped, after finding out about seed packets and herbs in one of the other books in the Haunt.
'Pass the bread, Miss Kat,' Vyvyan said politely--though there was something missing in its voice, when it spoke to the girls in the Haunt. Empty politeness, as though Vyvyan would rather not speak to them at all.
Jullian:
"Morning Kat," Jullian said as the young woman came into the room. She had relieved him somewhere around midnight and she looked like she hadn't slept much. "We're headed out to Union. Want to come?"
He finished eating the cereal and dusted his hands off. The cereal was his favorite, Raisin Brand, and no one in the Haunt seemed to like it as much as him so he often found himself finishing off boxes by himself. This box was almost done too but Matt had just brought back more supplies so he was in good shape for the future.
"If we are going to get all the way to the store and back we should probably head out pretty soon." He looked at Vyvyan, "maybe we can hit up the garment district another time." His eyes were open and friendly but they hadn't missed Vyvyan's reaction to Kovu. Maybe he would have even more matchmaking to do in the future. Of course if he did he would be doing it in spite of his jealousy. First thing first though would be to find out more about Kovu but that could wait until another day.
"Are we ready?"
Matt:
"I'm ready whenever the two of you are," Matt said. "Well...." He made his way over into the kitchen and grabbed a package of Poptarts which he proceeded to open and wolf one down. He stuck the package containing the other into a plastic bag and then into the pocket-belt on his morphing suit. "Now I'm ready." He hadn't had breakfast, but often ate on the go and sometimes skipped meals all together. It was a wonder Jullian hadn't decided that, as Matt's second, it was his job to remind the L.A. leader to eat with the habits Matt had sometimes.
"So, who's going. I understand Kovu and Jullian are as well as me. Anyone else?" He was moving down the hall towards his room to grab the saddlebags off his saddle as he spoke. If you stuck the straps to hold it onto the horse over the backs of the jackal and dingo morphs the could use those to carry the fabric back and that would allow for quite a supply.
He came back into the room with the bags in his hands, "For those that I know are going I'm probably going to use my jackal morph. Jullian, if no one else goes you should use your dingo so you can carry the other saddlebags. Kovu should use his magpie rather than the squirrel monkey for traveling into town since he'll be able to keep up with the others that way better."
Aubrey:
((Vyvyan: Yes, what about it o.o? BTW all, supposedly Sophie--Aubrey's friend from Union--has joined LA too. She's part of a storyline. Just as a heads up.))
"Hey Kat," Aubrey said cheerfully. She had finished the last of her water, and was listening to the conversation between the faction members. It sounded like it would be fun to go along with them all, but Aubrey didn't have any reason to visit Union anymore, if they were going there. Sophie had come along with after the last mission, and after three days to make sure she was truly free, she had been given the power to morph. She was probably still sleeping by this time, which is one of the reason why Aubrey had gone surfing alone. That, and she needed to clear her head.
"I'll probably stick around here while you guys go out," Aubrey said. She had a dog morph that could probably help carry bags, but Aubrey wasn't really up for watching Matt bat eyelashes at Tess the whole time. She hadn't told anybody--well maybe Sophie, but she was Aubrey's best friend, after all--that she maybe, sort of, had a little crush on Matt. Either way, she still wanted to spend some more time with Sophie. It felt like they had a mountain of things to discuss since they had been separated.
Aubrey dumped the glass into the sink, then stretched her aching arms. Her hair was dry by this time, falling across her shoulders and back. She moved to the refrigerator and grabbed a fresh apple to snack on, rubbing her palm on its smooth surface. "Have fun." She nodded to Kovu, smiling lightly. "And nice to meet you, welcome to the faction."
Kovu:
((Kovu's not nosey, he is just good at reading people, a usefull skill when sneaking around with stollen goods, you don't want to be around suspicious controllers now do you?))
Kovu released his grip he looked around, he realized his action had been taken the wrong way. He shuffled his feet uncomfortably. He poured himself a glass of juice and gulped it down. He stared around at his new teamates, it was odd, they had so much to hide from each other. Kovu was almost confused, he had never expected there to be such a web of hidden agendas here. He wondered how the group would function in a real fight, and if the group really even trusted each other.
Julian seemed alright, though he knew what was going on with Msatt, Kovu would have to figurew this out. Kovu acknowledged Kat with slight amusement, wondering how one could be so nonchalant about a new member. Vyvyan was still a confusing person, Kovu decided it was a girl, and left the issue at that. "Well I'm ready to go, is anyone else going to go?"
Vyvvyan:
'Some of us would like to eat a proper meal, first.' Vyvyan's words were decidedly snarky, but it smirked at Matt as it started making French toast. 'I would be perfectly ready after that.' Vyvyan didn't bother adding it was useless to do anything with an empty stomach--they'd figure it out in time, if they paid attention, that is. Telling them certainly wouldn't do anything, as they'd never felt that hungry in their lives.
Soaking the bread in the mix of egg, milk and spices, Vyvyan got down a large plate, syrup and soon enough a pile of French toast was growing on said plate.
Kovu:Kovu smiled as Vyvyan prepared its meal, hE knew exactly how it felt, he had barely been able to contain himself when he found out he could get three meals a day. Now that it mentioned it, Kovu was quite hungry as well. He stood up and poured himself some cereal. He quietly crunched on his breakfast while waiting for a response from Kat.
Kovu was glad as to who was going so far. Matt, the first person he met, at least someone he could talk to. Julian, who probobly knew what Matt was so nervous about, someone Kovu could ask. Of course, Vyvyan, a fellow theif, someone he could relate to. Now there was only one member present, who might or might not go.
Kat:Kat had passed Vyvyan the bread when asked, ignoring the element that her voice seemed to lack when speaking to her. when her toast popped up, she began to butter it as she listened to everyone talk about a shopping trip and a stop at the union. She had yet to see the place, and though she was curious about it, she was unsure if she really wanted to go with everyone.
She was still tired, and didn't real feel like she was in the best of moods for a mission, but she did need to get around to seeing the union. "Yea.. I'll go." Kat said quietly as she put the knife in the sink and began to munch on her toast. She did want to sleep more, but in a way she had a feeling that wouldn't happen even if she did go back to bed.
Matt:Matt, realizing the truth of Vyvayn's words slowly took the second poptart out and started to eat it. He might have something else too so long as he was waiting. It was kind of stupid to go running out to do a mission without eating first. He would have payed for it later. Might as well prevent that now.
"True. We'll go once everyone is done eating and ready then," he said. Kat, Vyvyan, Jullian, Kovu, and Matthew it seemed would be the crew going shopping. Me, two experienced members, and two newer members. That works for me.
There was also another reason to wait. The sooner they left the sooner they'd make their stop in Union. He was trying to avoid the workings of his matchmaker, second in command. Trying to avoid making a fool of himself by turning into a blushing school boy as soon as he saw Tess. God.... I've got to stop doing that.
Once everyone was ready they morphed and Matt lead the way into town and towards the opposite side of the city.
((OOC: Ok. I know this is a crappy end, but since we've already continued it in Shop Til You Drop so we needed to wrap this one up.))
Kovu had a long rest. Exhausted from the morphing the night before. Kovu woke up feeling refreshed and energized. He felt kinda out of place, since he only knew Matt. He decided to get acquainted. He headed down the stairs and into the kitchen.
Matt:Matt opened the door to his room and made his way out. Shopping had been done when he'd brought Kovu to the Huant, so they were still fairly good though he'd need to make a new trip now that they had eight people around the Haunt. He'd probably need to be the one making the trip, or he could send Cam or Kovu if someone kept and eye on them as back up.
He spotted Kovu in the kitchen when he reached it. "I hope you slept a little better last night than you have recently. I wish the accommodations for yeerk screening were a little kinder, but usually only when the person proves to be free. It's a necessary evil though I suppose."
Kovu:Kovu laughed "Well I suppose it would be better with a TV in there" Kovu stretched and sat down in a chair. "So who else is here, it can't hurt to learn names" Kovu looked around in curiosity. He had barely seen the place, he had just stayed in the storage room, then gone out to the deck to morph. He didn't really have a chance to look around.
Aubrey:"Woo!" Aubrey heaved herself out of the pull of the ocean, bending down briefly to grab her surfboard. The water surged and pushed around her legs, cold water splashing up against her with each step towards shore. Once she felt the cool wet sand beneath her, she jogged forward until her feet hit dry sand. She stopped, setting her surfboard down then abruptly sitting down, out of breath.
She squeezed some of the salt water from her hair, untangling it by brushing her fingers through it. Next was the surfboard leash, and she pulled open the Velcro strap attaching her to the board. A cold wind blew across her shivering body, and goosebumps rose along her arms and legs. Winter was approaching soon, making the air chilly, but it didn't seem to bother her enough to stop her from surfing during the day. Resting her surfboard against her hip, she walked the distance from the beach to the Haunt, sliding her surfboard down below the hammock.
The Haunt was getting crowded now. Aubrey had been forced to move outside onto the hammock to sleep, kept company by the sea and the cold. Not that it really bothered her, exactly, as she enjoyed being outside. But as winter came along, it became a little more unpleasant, and being so exposed all the time felt strange.
She paused before entering the Haunt, wringing out her wet hair one more time and shaking her arms and legs free of water drops. She didn't really want to use her blanket as a towel, so she decided to head inside for a drink and a towel. Rubbing her cold hands together, she entered the Haunt.
Immediately, she heard the sound of voices. One was distinctly Matt, and the other had to be one of the new recruits. Creeping by the kitchen and leaving a trail of water drops on the carpet, she disappeared down the hallway to steal a towel from the bathroom. Then she reappeared again, her wetsuit dry and a towel tucked under her arm. Her hair, tangled and messy, was still dripping water.
"G'day everyone," She said lightly, smiling at the two of them. How many new members were there now? It seemed like ever since Matt had found her in the store, he couldn't come back from shopping without finding a new person. Maybe he went shopping for recruits. A smile tugged at her lips, and she moved to grab a glass and fill it with water from the facet. She was trying not to look guilty, as she had spent some of her time out on the ocean as a sea lion. She couldn't resist.
Vyvyan:A mynah bird fluttered into the open window of the kitchen; strangely, the screen of said window had been unhooked from the frame. The bird was holding a piece of mylar in its beak, setting it down when it landed on the back of a kitchen chair. Looking up from the treasure as it noticed the glimmer of Kovu’s watch, the bird noticed the new member.
<Hallo, when did you get here?> Vyvyan sounded cheerful, ruffling its feathers and beginning to preen idly. <Or are you recently confirmed?> Fluttering onto the chair, Vyvyan began to demorph, taking its time. There was no hurry.
Still devoid of a morphing suit (Jullian had yet to take Vyvyan’s measurements), the street rat wore a thin, long-sleeved shirt and a pair of dancer’s leggings. As its feathers turned to skin and dreadlocks, Vyvyan hummed to itself. It had stayed true to its word, memorising every page in every book in the Haunt. As well, Vyvyan had commited itself to learning every nuance of morphing. It had a need to know, as well as a determination to prove itself better than what (Vyvyan perceived) was everyone’s opinion of it.
When it was human again, Vyvyan stood and held out a hand to Kovu. ‘I am Vyvyan,’ it said with a charming smile. There was no clue as to what gender Vyvyan was, not even in its voice or name. There were curves that could have been female, on its chest, but there were curves that could have been male, at its hips.
Jullian:Jullian came up from the basement looking disgruntled. Three new members! Three. He prided himself on being a bit of a miracle worker when it came to cloth but even he wasn't god. Where was he supposed to get the fabric to fit them all? And of course he was expected to.
He walked into the kitchen, a cloth ruler tangled around his neck and arms and small bits of fabric stuck in his hair, which was going every which way and was dusty to boot. "Alright, that's it Matt. No more new people." He had been trying to cut a wing pattern out of the little silver/white fabric they had left but now he tossed it in the garbage angrily. It was useless, there just wasn't enough.
Haven taken out his anger at the cloth by discarding it he looked up and took stock of who was actually in the room. "Oh, sorry, I'm Jullian," he said, holding his hand out to Kovu. I don't mean to imply that I'm not happy you're here, I am. I'm just a little," he shrugged, "never mind. I'll find some cloth somehow."
His mind wandered away, plans for obtaining the materials he would need flooding his head and his words faded as his attention drifted.
Matt:Wow.... Matt had hardly gotten the chance to say anything to Kovu when Aubrey, Vyvyan, and Jullian had turned up. That left Cam, Lizzie, and Kat. The Haunt was starting to get really crowded, to the point that Aubrey had started sleeping on the hammock that Rian had hung on the porch and left there when he'd moved to Las Vegas. The words spilled around the room, everyone introducing themselves to Kovu.
Ok. Lets take this slowly. "Well Kovu, looks like everyone else is going to be showing up on their own so I'll just let them introduce themselves to you. You're the eighth person to join the faction so there's three others besides everyone in the room." He turned quickly to Jullian, showing how quickly his mind could switch tracks, probably a good thing in battles and it seemed more and more often he treated life like it was one big battle.
"Jullian, as far as anymore members I can guarantee you there won't be more because we have no more room in this base. Aubrey is sleeping on the porch in a hammock and Vyvyan is sleeping on the couch because that's the only way we can fit the eight people we have here. If you want we need someone to make a shopping trip and I could just as easily get the fabric you needed. Possibly you could sneak along with me. I've never tried this idea, but your dingo could possibly pass as a seeing eye dog and that would get you into the store to help me pick the stuff out."
Jullian:Matt's idea was decidedly less risky than everything running through Jullian's head. In fact it was less risky than what he and Ember had done the first time.
"That sounds great Matt because without it we don't have enough fabric to make everyone suits and I don't know about you, " he said looking at Kovu and Vyvyn, "but I don't want you guys to have to run around in tights. It's not the best look, only some of us can pull it off."
He sat down at one of the kitchen counters and pulled a box of cereal open over to him that had been left on the counter. "So where are you from Kovu? And how did Matt find you?"
Kovu:'Kovu was only sightly overwhelmed. He carefully studied each of the people around him. He didn't mean to but it was a force of habit. The blond seemed OK, besides the fact that she looked a bit guilty. Vyvyan was a strange person. Kovu couldn't tell whether it was a guy or a girl. Julian seemed strange, for some reason, something seemed off about him.
Kovu shook his head and answered the question "well I was living on the streets for a long time. I was pickpocketing a Controller so I could buy some food. I forgot to check to see if anyone was looking, and Matt saw me. I guess he figured I wasn't a Yeerk, so he approached me." Kovu turned to the blond "I'm not sure I caught your name, you are?"
Vyvyan:Vyvyan’s eyes lit as Kovu explained his origin, and it burst into one of its rare grins. ‘You’re a pickpocket!’ It said, eyes glinting in happiness at finding a fellow. ‘Really! O, we’re going to be great friends, old thing!’
A laugh of delight bubbled up in Vyvyan’s throat. Another thief! Another denizen of the street! O frabjous day! It shot a triumphant, smug little look at Aubrey. Hah! Take that, you spoilt little harpy!
Aubrey:"Hey Jullian." Aubrey smiled to Jullian as he entered, sipping from her glass of water and piling the towel on one of the counters. Aubrey was a little out of breath from her surfing, so she was leaning against the counter and trying to catch her breath. It had been awhile since she had actually exercised any, and she felt a little out of shape. She would have to do some more exercise, she couldn't stand just lying around and not doing anything.
She listened to the conversation going on, her eyes widening at the mention that there were eight people in the faction. This place felt too tiny for so many people. Her blue eyes shifted to Kovu, listening to his story about how he was recruited. She hadn't seen much of this person for the three days he had been tied up. Or the other person. But the more, the merrier right?
"Oop, sorry. I'm Aubrey. Nice to meet you, friend," She said, her voice tinged with a slight Australian accent. She gave him a big, warm smile, finishing off the last of her water.
Kovu:Kovu quietly aknowledged Audrey. He also showed a sign of friendship toward Vyvyan. Then kovu overheard Julians conversation. "Wait a minute, I know where you can go, there is this large fabric staore on the south side of town. Not alot of controllers go there, and it's pretty easy to grab some stuff. "
"The security is terrible, I went there to get all my clothes." Kovu looked around, begging for a sign of acceptance. He turned toward Jullian. "Well, how about it? Are you up for a store robbery?"
Jullian:"Do we have to say robbery? Can't we just say borrowing in the name of humanity?" Jullian still didn't feel right about stealing which is why he was finding it a little odd that they now had two thieves in the house. And he guessed that this one would be taking Stevert's place in the attic and maybe Vyvyn would get the other. Or maybe there was a room free now. He wasn't actually sure who was where at the moment.
Vyvyn, Kovu and the other new guy could share the attic if Jullian could get a room. But wait, no, Lizzie had taken Rian's old room and Kat had Ember's so that was out. Aubrey was on the hammock outside so where would Kovu sleep? This place really wasn't set up to hold this many people.
Maybe more hammocks. He liked hammocks, if he could make one...
He had gotten lost in his own thoughts again. With a start he said, "um, the store sounds really cool. Unfortunately far away but cool. Still, I suppose we can make a day trip out of it and show you how we get around the city when we have to. Maybe we can even visit Union on the way back. They are always in need of fabric and they have some pretty cool stuff to trade if you want."
"Do you know about Union?"
Kovu:Kovu took a second to respond "No you lost me." Kovu laughed a bit as he though about a bunch of resistance forces going to a government agency. "Yeah the store is pretty far but there is a small road going to it, we could get a heavier morph to carry it" Kovu paced in silence, deep in thought.
Finnaly he said "I don't know if we can go to the Union carrying a bunch of Fabric, even less so if we get a morph to carry it for us" Kovu looked into space, trying to judge a way where this could all work. Finnaly his senses returned to him. "Oh yah, what is the Union anyway?"
Matt:Matt followed all of this. Stealing wasn't exactly the safest way to get things, but it was basically what they did all the time if you counted salvaging from run down stores and the fact that they weren't really controllers which meant they shouldn't be getting their food free like they were. Still, aside from that everything seemed to be going well so far. Kovu seemed to be getting along and Vyvyan may have finally found an Animorph he would feel understood him some. That was hard for any of the others to do.
"Union is an underground city of free humans in what used to be Union Station, hence it's name. We have... a connection there. Several really." He very pointedly didn't say who the connections were, who Tess was. After a few visits to Union Matt had begun to realize he was at least getting a crush on his old friend and he was attempting to avoid letting his members know. He wasn't entirely sure how they'd feel about him dating a YPM controller. Besides that he didn't even know if Tess had similar feelings for him. Get it off your mind now! You don't want to start getting lost in though or they'll know something is up.
Kovu:Matthew seemed almost hesitant to talk about the Union. Kovu took a mental note of this and got back on topic. "Ok if we need fabric, we are going to have to go get it, the only question is when?" Kovu looked around at everyone he had met so far. They all seemed great, but Kovu was unsure of them. He noticed odd behaviors that said each of them had something to hide.
"Well, are we going to do this or not?" He looked at Matt, then at Jullian. He wondered what each of them would think. He waited patiently while each of them thought about the situation.
Jullian:"We could carry enough back if Matt carried it. Or we could rig some sort of back pack and our dog morphs could carry it and then we can travel in the tunnels the whole way. We should really stop by," he said not looking at Matt. Matt and Tess were trying very hard to hide the fact that they liked each other but he was pretty sure it was obvious to everyone but them. Then again, wasn't it always.
He had decided that Tess was better than a puppy for Matt's mental health and tried to find any excuse to drag Matt to Union that he could so that Matt wouldn't have to come up with any by himself. Ok, so he was being a nosy matchmaker, but it was working. He thought.
"Besides, a lot of us haven't seen Union yet. I don't think Kat has been there, or Vyvyn. They should get to visit. And if all of us go we'll definitely have enough people to carry stuff. And at least we'll be walking through subway tunnels instead of sewer tunnels." He turned to Kovu and Vyvyn. "Sewers, it is one of the more glamourous parts of our job."
Kovu:Kovu knew something connected Matt with the Union, he would have to ask Jullian later. He seemed to have already figured it out. "So subway it is?" Kovu stared at Matt, studying him. There was something, or someone at the Union that was important to Matt. Kovu was going to find out.
Now all we had to do was wait for the order to leave. "So Matt, should we wait for the others, or should we just leave without them?" The other members hadn't shown up yet. Hmph, probobly sleeping Kovu thought. Kovu stared at Matt waiting for an order.
Matt:It's like he knows... then again he knows just about everything else that goes on in my head because I tell him. The one thing I keep a secret he figures out on his own. Well, it didn't look like Matt was going to get out of going to Union. Looked like another visit with Tess... which had actually gotten to be kind of awkward all things considered. She didn't know how he felt and it wasn't like he had the guts to tell her. Funny that the Animorphs leader of L.A. was scared of saying three words to a girl.
"If I morph my horse we can just my saddle. I'll need someone to lead me since the tunnels can get kinda dark and that would make the horse skittish. The dogs would work better, but we'd still need a demorph stop if we're going all the way across town." And a demorph stop meant Union. If I didn't know better I'd swear Jullian was playing matchmaker.... actually, that fits him.
Kat:The sun was up and morning was upon the LA factions hideaway. Voices drifted from the kitchen, announcing that people were awake, but Kat was not one of them. The coyote was a good morph for patrolling at night, and that was just what Kat had been doing most of the night. Kat hadn't even bothered to look at the clock when she'd switched off with one of the others.
The bed sheets were twisted from the constant movement of Kat's body as she fought to get comfortable in the night, tossing and turning. It hadn't been a good evening when it came to sleeping. Upsetting dreams haunted her and kept her from getting any sound rest, and now her stomach was rumbling, scolding her for not grabbing anything to eat after her shift. It was pangs of hunger that finally resulted in the opening of the eighteen year old's soft gray eyes. With an irritated groan, she struggled to free herself from the sheets and stumbled onto the floor.
The door to Kat's room opened without much sound as she rubbed her eyes a bit and entered the hallway, listening to the sounds of her faction mate's not far off in the distance. Her fingers ran through her hair to smooth it out and rid it of a few knots, knowing it probably looked a mess. In a matter of moments she had entered the kitchen with a yawn, dressed in her purple "Say Anything" t-shirt and a pair of loose pants she'd acquired after her arrival. She caught sight of Jullian and Matt, then Aubrey with her wet hair, Vyvyan, and finally one of their newest members whose name was Kovu according to what she's learned from Matt.
"Hey..." She mumbled, her usual tone lacking energy.
Vyvyan:
((OOC: Aubreymun, I read that surfers get seawater in their sinuses because of how long they’re out in the water, and that it drains at weird times. If you’re a surfer, I’m curious to know more about this phenomenon.))
Vyvyan laughed at Jullian’s protest. ‘Stealing,’ it said, with a grin. ‘Lifting, Nicking, Robbing, Larceny. Let’s go to the Garment District, I’m sure there’s far more selection there.’
After the suggestion, Vyvyan waited on the conversation to die down, still close to Kovu. A fellow thief…Vyvyan wanted to get him alone, talk shop with him. But Vyvyan was patient. Vyvyan would wait.
‘Sewers?’ Vyvyan gave Jullian a look of disbelief. ‘Well of course, the sewers. The abandoned underground is far more useful, as well. Though underground is not a place I fancy being, with the earthquakes looming every second.’ Vyvyan looked at them all quizzically—just how many of them were native, anyway? A city underground? That was courting death…but ah, only the insane would go there, and the Yeerks did not consider themselves insane. Perhaps therein lay the cleverness.
Kovu:
Kovu smiled, sure enough it was a theif, and a theif to be reckoned with. Kovu moved foward, placed his hand on Vyvyan's shoulder and squeezed. Not enough to hurt of course, but enough to get the message accross that there was something else to it. "However I truly think that this Union is the best option. The longer we're below ground and away from Yeerk forces the better" Kovu released his grip and smiled at Vyvyan. He preyed that it would uunderstand. The only one who had seemed to figure out what was wrong with Matt was Julian. Kovu would have to speak with him later.
Kovu turned toward the stranger. Forggetting his manners (the little of them he had) he had not spoke to her. She had addresed him with mild uninterest, as ifshe was too tired to really pay attention. "Sorry I'm Kovu I guess you figured I'm the new guy around here, and you are?" He waited, hoping for a response.
Kat:
"I'm Kat." She tried to sound a bit more energetic as she made her way to the counter, but she didn't succeed. "What's everyone talking about?" All she'd caught was bits about the underground City Matt, Jullian, Aubrey, and Stevert had discovered. It sounded like they were planning something.
Opening the cabinet above her, Kat pulled out a loaf of bread, planning to make some toast for herself. She popped two pieces into the toaster, grabbed some butter, then leaned against the counter and waited. Her gray eyes flickered over each face in the kitchen.
Matt:((Nosey Kovu. It's bad enough Jullian is playing matchmaker. I don't need the whole faction finding out Matt for a YPM controller who used to be one of his best friends... or so goes the background I created.))
"The plan thus far is doing something to get fabric for Jullian making morphing suits for the new members," Matt said to Kat. "We apparently ran out of the supplies Jullian and Ember got back when we first made the original suits." Kat had been part of the group back when the L.A. uniform morphing suits had first been made. She and Steve had actually just joined the faction and Bane had just been starting his screening process. That seemed like so long ago to Matt, but it had really only been around six or so months. It was amazing how much had happened in that time.
"Apparently there's a store Kovu knows of that doesn't have the greatest security, but it's on the other side of the city so we're probably making a day trip out of it which means a demorph stop at Union as Jullian pointed out." Turning to Kovu he said, "And don't mind how tired Kat is. She has a right to be seeing as she had one of the later patrol shifts last night. I don't figure she's gotten as much sleep as she'd like." Keeping track of things around the Haunt was... surprisingly easy now that Matt had been doing it for as long as he had.
He glanced around quick, somewhat wanting to get out of here so he didn't have to keep discussing the visit to Union which was obviously awkward no matter how much he tried to hide it. Just morph horse or jackal and go for a run. Clear my head and not be thinking about Tess or her red hair and grey eyes... I think I'm hopelessly head over heels for that girl.
Vyvyan
Vyvyan pursed its lips, folding thin arms. 'I still think the garment district is what our young Jullian needs....' it muttered.
At Kovu's touch, Vyvyan felt its scalp prickle in unexpected bashfulness. Confused, it looked away, wandering over to the cupboards and getting out some ingredients. Eggs, milk, spices... Vyvyan had stolen spices one by one, flitting down to the nearest grocery store. So far it had acquired a premixed canister of sweet spices, a canister of italian spices, and then it had stopped, after finding out about seed packets and herbs in one of the other books in the Haunt.
'Pass the bread, Miss Kat,' Vyvyan said politely--though there was something missing in its voice, when it spoke to the girls in the Haunt. Empty politeness, as though Vyvyan would rather not speak to them at all.
Jullian:
"Morning Kat," Jullian said as the young woman came into the room. She had relieved him somewhere around midnight and she looked like she hadn't slept much. "We're headed out to Union. Want to come?"
He finished eating the cereal and dusted his hands off. The cereal was his favorite, Raisin Brand, and no one in the Haunt seemed to like it as much as him so he often found himself finishing off boxes by himself. This box was almost done too but Matt had just brought back more supplies so he was in good shape for the future.
"If we are going to get all the way to the store and back we should probably head out pretty soon." He looked at Vyvyan, "maybe we can hit up the garment district another time." His eyes were open and friendly but they hadn't missed Vyvyan's reaction to Kovu. Maybe he would have even more matchmaking to do in the future. Of course if he did he would be doing it in spite of his jealousy. First thing first though would be to find out more about Kovu but that could wait until another day.
"Are we ready?"
Matt:
"I'm ready whenever the two of you are," Matt said. "Well...." He made his way over into the kitchen and grabbed a package of Poptarts which he proceeded to open and wolf one down. He stuck the package containing the other into a plastic bag and then into the pocket-belt on his morphing suit. "Now I'm ready." He hadn't had breakfast, but often ate on the go and sometimes skipped meals all together. It was a wonder Jullian hadn't decided that, as Matt's second, it was his job to remind the L.A. leader to eat with the habits Matt had sometimes.
"So, who's going. I understand Kovu and Jullian are as well as me. Anyone else?" He was moving down the hall towards his room to grab the saddlebags off his saddle as he spoke. If you stuck the straps to hold it onto the horse over the backs of the jackal and dingo morphs the could use those to carry the fabric back and that would allow for quite a supply.
He came back into the room with the bags in his hands, "For those that I know are going I'm probably going to use my jackal morph. Jullian, if no one else goes you should use your dingo so you can carry the other saddlebags. Kovu should use his magpie rather than the squirrel monkey for traveling into town since he'll be able to keep up with the others that way better."
Aubrey:
((Vyvyan: Yes, what about it o.o? BTW all, supposedly Sophie--Aubrey's friend from Union--has joined LA too. She's part of a storyline. Just as a heads up.))
"Hey Kat," Aubrey said cheerfully. She had finished the last of her water, and was listening to the conversation between the faction members. It sounded like it would be fun to go along with them all, but Aubrey didn't have any reason to visit Union anymore, if they were going there. Sophie had come along with after the last mission, and after three days to make sure she was truly free, she had been given the power to morph. She was probably still sleeping by this time, which is one of the reason why Aubrey had gone surfing alone. That, and she needed to clear her head.
"I'll probably stick around here while you guys go out," Aubrey said. She had a dog morph that could probably help carry bags, but Aubrey wasn't really up for watching Matt bat eyelashes at Tess the whole time. She hadn't told anybody--well maybe Sophie, but she was Aubrey's best friend, after all--that she maybe, sort of, had a little crush on Matt. Either way, she still wanted to spend some more time with Sophie. It felt like they had a mountain of things to discuss since they had been separated.
Aubrey dumped the glass into the sink, then stretched her aching arms. Her hair was dry by this time, falling across her shoulders and back. She moved to the refrigerator and grabbed a fresh apple to snack on, rubbing her palm on its smooth surface. "Have fun." She nodded to Kovu, smiling lightly. "And nice to meet you, welcome to the faction."
Kovu:
((Kovu's not nosey, he is just good at reading people, a usefull skill when sneaking around with stollen goods, you don't want to be around suspicious controllers now do you?))
Kovu released his grip he looked around, he realized his action had been taken the wrong way. He shuffled his feet uncomfortably. He poured himself a glass of juice and gulped it down. He stared around at his new teamates, it was odd, they had so much to hide from each other. Kovu was almost confused, he had never expected there to be such a web of hidden agendas here. He wondered how the group would function in a real fight, and if the group really even trusted each other.
Julian seemed alright, though he knew what was going on with Msatt, Kovu would have to figurew this out. Kovu acknowledged Kat with slight amusement, wondering how one could be so nonchalant about a new member. Vyvyan was still a confusing person, Kovu decided it was a girl, and left the issue at that. "Well I'm ready to go, is anyone else going to go?"
Vyvvyan:
'Some of us would like to eat a proper meal, first.' Vyvyan's words were decidedly snarky, but it smirked at Matt as it started making French toast. 'I would be perfectly ready after that.' Vyvyan didn't bother adding it was useless to do anything with an empty stomach--they'd figure it out in time, if they paid attention, that is. Telling them certainly wouldn't do anything, as they'd never felt that hungry in their lives.
Soaking the bread in the mix of egg, milk and spices, Vyvyan got down a large plate, syrup and soon enough a pile of French toast was growing on said plate.
Kovu:Kovu smiled as Vyvyan prepared its meal, hE knew exactly how it felt, he had barely been able to contain himself when he found out he could get three meals a day. Now that it mentioned it, Kovu was quite hungry as well. He stood up and poured himself some cereal. He quietly crunched on his breakfast while waiting for a response from Kat.
Kovu was glad as to who was going so far. Matt, the first person he met, at least someone he could talk to. Julian, who probobly knew what Matt was so nervous about, someone Kovu could ask. Of course, Vyvyan, a fellow theif, someone he could relate to. Now there was only one member present, who might or might not go.
Kat:Kat had passed Vyvyan the bread when asked, ignoring the element that her voice seemed to lack when speaking to her. when her toast popped up, she began to butter it as she listened to everyone talk about a shopping trip and a stop at the union. She had yet to see the place, and though she was curious about it, she was unsure if she really wanted to go with everyone.
She was still tired, and didn't real feel like she was in the best of moods for a mission, but she did need to get around to seeing the union. "Yea.. I'll go." Kat said quietly as she put the knife in the sink and began to munch on her toast. She did want to sleep more, but in a way she had a feeling that wouldn't happen even if she did go back to bed.
Matt:Matt, realizing the truth of Vyvayn's words slowly took the second poptart out and started to eat it. He might have something else too so long as he was waiting. It was kind of stupid to go running out to do a mission without eating first. He would have payed for it later. Might as well prevent that now.
"True. We'll go once everyone is done eating and ready then," he said. Kat, Vyvyan, Jullian, Kovu, and Matthew it seemed would be the crew going shopping. Me, two experienced members, and two newer members. That works for me.
There was also another reason to wait. The sooner they left the sooner they'd make their stop in Union. He was trying to avoid the workings of his matchmaker, second in command. Trying to avoid making a fool of himself by turning into a blushing school boy as soon as he saw Tess. God.... I've got to stop doing that.
Once everyone was ready they morphed and Matt lead the way into town and towards the opposite side of the city.
((OOC: Ok. I know this is a crappy end, but since we've already continued it in Shop Til You Drop so we needed to wrap this one up.))