living just to keep going, going just to be sane, all the while not knowing, it's such a shame

[afallenstar]

Who: Anna Milton and Sharon Carter, Fun Ghoul (and potential other House 5 occupants), Kenzi, Galen, Jesse, Meg and River Tam [semi-open, see notes]
What: Angel Proofing, Supernatural Training and General Shenanigans
Where: House 3, House 5, House 11, House 16, House 20.
When: Days 46-49
Notes: This is a bit of a catch-all log for a lot of things I want to do, so I don't spam with loads of closed entries. If you want to nab yourself some sweet sweet Anna CR, shoot me a PM and you can have a thread too!

Comments

HOUSE 3 - Sharon Carter - Day 46; evening

[afallenstar]

She's polite enough to call ahead before she makes her way to Sharon's, none of that random appearing in the kitchen this time around. It's pretty clear that she's concerned, but she's doing a good job at remaining composed. It's not going to help anyone if she starts panicking about things, after all.

She knocks quickly at the door, a few things brought with her. There's a copy of the banishing sigil, along with a decent sized container full of...well, salt. It might seem bizarre, but don't worry Sharon - she'll explain everything.

[agentx13]

It doesn't take her long to open the door, casting one tired look at the ceiling camera that's she's once again taken a hammer to. How long will it be before the hammers are taken away?

She opens the door and relaxes when she sees Anna, the closest thing she has to a friend in this town outside the Doctor, Logan, and- and did the Avengers count?

"Anna." She moves aside to let her inside. She glances at the things Anna has brought, but to all appearances, it doesn't seem that Sharon has seen them at all.

[afallenstar]

"Sharon, hi." She gives her a quick smile as she walks in, drumming her fingers lightly against the container for a moment or two before looking around the room. It's pretty much all business she's come to visit for, but that doesn't mean she can't take a moment to check on how things are going.

"How's things? Do I need to remotivate you any time soon, or have you still got that fighting spirit?" Her comment comes with a slightly teasing grin, and she sets her things down on the table before slipping her hands into her pocket. "I know you can handle yourself, but I thought you might want a few tips and tricks for how to deal with the people from my neck of the woods. Just in case."

And by just in case she means 'just in case any of my siblings decide to take their less than fuzzy feelings towards me out on any of my friends', but she isn't likely to say that in so many words.

[agentx13]

Sharon glances around at the mess, but she doesn't look particularly ashamed. She and the Doctor have been conducting experiments - mostly the Doctor - and she's come to find the mess comforting than anything else now. A sign that someone else is around and she isn't alone in the house. Well, alone except for a bunch of creepy scientist kidnappers. The only time it bothers her is when she wants something only to find the Doctor has already taken it apart.

She holds up a hand in appeasement. "I'm good. No slapping necessary." As Anna continues, Sharon smiles. She wasn't entirely sure what to expect when Anna had walked in, and she doesn't know how Anna expected her to react to it, but the reality of the situation is that she's pleased. She'll get to learn about another universe, learn how to deal with some people beings from that universe, and most importantly, she'll be able to feel - however temporarily - as if she's actually doing something.

"Teach me, teacher."

[afallenstar]

"Now that's the attitude." Serious trip or not, she still grins lightly. She likes Sharon, and not just because she's one of the few people around here that know her true nature. She likes how much easier everything is with Sharon, how she doesn't have to sit down and explain how dangerous these people are. She's willing to learn, without turning it into a power contest. Thank Dad for that.

"First thing's first: salt. It sounds weird, I know, but a salt line will keep demons out. Put it along the bottom of your door and along the entirety of your window sill at night, and that's one thing you can check off your list as not being able to get in. Demons possess human bodies, so if you're ever unsure, say 'Christo'. Flinch at the name of God, sounds like a bad joke but what works works."

And now she's just going to take a moment to see how Sharon is taking all of that. Anna's world is vastly different from hers, after all. It's understandable if it's a lot to take in.

HOUSE 20 - Jesse/Galen/Kenzi - Day 46; evening

[afallenstar]

Anna is far less polite with the residents of House 20 than she was with Sharon. She doesn't call ahead, doesn't even go for the front door. She just appears in the attic the way she's done quite a few times now, and heads down into the house without announcement. Sorry guys, she's just...kind of driven by this need to make sure the people from her world can't kill the people here that she likes, that's all.

So Anna heads down into the house, pausing a moment before looking around, and it occurs to her then that she should probably announce her presence somehow.

"Kenzi, Galen, Jesse?" Nice and loud, so that everyone around can hear. She keeps walking as she calls for them, making her way down to the kitchen. It's a pretty good spot to find someone, and even if they're not there she can at least wait until they get home. "I have some things to show you."

HOUSE 5 - Fun Ghoul (&co?) - Day 47; afternoon

[afallenstar]

If there's some small benefit to him knowing that she's not totally human, it's that she can afford to be a lot less subtle. She's not quite at the stage of appearing in front of him just yet, but she doesn't waste time with walking over and knocking.

See, it's occurred to Anna that maybe a banishing sigil won't cut it. It'll help get rid of them in the short term, sure, send them some place (and Anna still doesn't know how that'll work here, so it's risky) but it doesn't solve much. He still won't know how to fight them, how to fight demons or how to get ahold of her if things do go south. A sigil doesn't seem like enough, hence her rather abrupt appearance just inside the front door of the house.

"Ghoul, you around?" Probably should have checked before you arrived, Anna. "Want to learn how to be not-dead for longer?"

[goodluckkobra]

"Ghoul's not here right now, but his prettier housemate it." Kobra pops his head out of his room to find the source of the voice of what is clearly a beautiful woman.

He recognizes her from the Christmas party and from the time she couldn't talk. He doesn't know much about her, but he does remember Ghoul getting kind of frisky with her.

"I like not dying" A pause. "How'd you get in?"

[afallenstar]

And this is an excellent example of reasons to call ahead. Anna hasn't exactly got a logical answer to that, after all. She pauses for a moment, looks behind her and then quickly shrugs.

"Front door?" It's worth trying at least, it's not like there's spare keys floating around for these buildings after all. Besides, moving swiftly onwards might actually help her out in this case, so she smiles and steps forward. "I was going to show Ghoul some of this stuff, but if he's not around- want to know how to fight the weird things from my world?"

[goodluckkobra]

He glances towards the front door. "Hey! Hey, assholes, lock the door next time!"

Smiling at her, he drops the volume. "Sorry, just next time it could be like some evil dick and not Ghoul's... uh... you know he has crabs, right?" He gives her an apologetic look. "'Cause, like, someone should probably warn you, girl."

[afallenstar]

Okay, that certainly makes things a lot easier. She tries not to look too relieved though, just nods and slips her hands in her pockets. Kobra, you can shout until her ears bleed, so long as you don't suspect her of how she actually got inside.

"Hey, makes sense," she shrugs, but when he continues a side of Anna comes out that people don't very often see - she actually gets pretty awkward. With a soft laugh and another small shrug, she rubs a hand against the back of her neck as she looks around. "Well, I don't think I'm 'his', but you know. Thanks for the heads up? I guess?"

HOUSE 16 - Meg Masters - Day 48; morning

[afallenstar]

She's been putting this off, but it's probably about time she gets it done. Anna waits until she's fairly sure that Castiel isn't around - she can't feel him there, so unless he's deliberately hiding himself from her somehow, she is quite sure that her brother isn't inside.

All polite and non-intrusive, she knocks on the door before folding her arms over her chest as she waits for Meg to answer. There's a few reasons she's here, and a good part of it is to discuss the situation with Crowley being present, but mostly, she just needs to apologise. Apologise, and also try to suss out just how much of a threat she may or may not be to people here.

...People meaning Castiel, mostly.

[foundacause]

Ooooh! Visitors! How exciting. Of course, unless it is Crowley and a pack of hellhounds, Meg is going to assume it isn't for her. And when she opens the door to find her number one fan standing on the other side, she arches a brow, folding her arms across her chest in return.

"Feathers isn't in right now. You want me to tell him you called? I could get him to pop in later - literally."

[afallenstar]

"If I was after Castiel I would have made sure he was home." It might sound a little short, but it's said with as much of a good nature as Anna can muster up these days. She's definitely preoccupied, but after a moment where she glances back at the space behind her, she offers Meg a brief smile. "It's actually you I'm after. Can I come in?"

See, whoever thought angels couldn't be polite clearly hadn't met Anna. In all fairness, some of the more subtle human nuances like, say, personal space are a lot easier to pick up on when you've actually lived as a human for twenty five years, but even so. She's a little more considerate of these things than most. "I have a few things I wanted to discuss with you, you see."

[foundacause]

And already they are off to a catty start. Meg shrugs and steps back from the door so Anna can enter. Sure, letting an angel in is probably suicidal, but she has her blade and she has been practising the banishing sigil Cas taught her, so she isn't completely unarmed. "Suit yourself."

She turns to head to the living room, pausing to straighten up one of the hotels on the Monopoly board. "So, what did the Feather Brigade want to talk to a lowly little demon whore about?"

[afallenstar]

"Not the words I'd use..."

She sighs as she folds her arms over her chest, looking idly around the room for a moment or two before bringing her focus back to Meg. She is seriously trying here, all personal feelings aside. That said, even they aren't as bad as her initial reaction. Now it's more the generalised mistrust she has for the people of her world in general. It's barely even about the demon thing any more.

"I'm here about Crowley. Word is, you know him better than most. I want to know how much of a threat he is, whether we need to start planning for him to make a move. And I need to know that you're going to help me keep Cas safe."

Which, in the end, is the real reason she's talking to Meg about him and not someone else. There's enough angels here to take down one demon, 'King of Hell' or not, but that would require a unified force, and angels aren't so good at moving past their issues. On their own, Anna has no idea how powerful this guy is. She needs to know that he'll be safe.

HOUSE 11 - River Tam - Day 48; evening

[afallenstar]

Anna doesn't spend an awful lot of time in the house, but when she does it's never very interesting. Right now she's sitting in her room, more specifically on the windowsill, and there's a marked lack of enthusiasm as she flicks through the pages of the book in her hand.

It doesn't last long. She sighs and stands, tosses it on the bed idly and stretches for a moment. There's a moment where she stops by the wall, checks the sigil that she already has painted on the wall in waiting for any damage, then she moves back to the windowsill. She just sits, because there's not much else to do. God knows she's got enough on her mind at the minute, and for a fraction of a second that shows. She's just so tired, with a millenia of memories and a hell of a lot of things to be concerned about here.

Maybe it would be easier to come out, as it were. It would make things simpler, sure, but whether or not it would achieve anything more than frustration en masse when people realise she isn't any more helpful as an angel than a human, well that seems more than likely right now.

[enchangement]

There's something about house eleven. Something that sounds soft but tastes...like something old, ancient, covered in the dust of eons. Like what River imagines an old church would feel like, filled with the thoughts and prayers of the believers and the non-believers, the sinners and the stumbling saints (she hasn't investigated the one in Cape Kore at all).

So she climbs inside, finding an empty attic and empty rooms, until suddenly one is not empty, and it startles River so badly that she freezes in place.

Slowly, eventually, River moves silently through the rest of the house, hovering on the other side of Anna's bedroom door. A spiral that descends into itself, into darkness, into nothing. What thinks with the emptiness of forever, River wonders, and are they actively dangerous or just something to be awed?

[afallenstar]

It's a clear testament to how distracted Anna is that she doesn't notice River's presence at first. She moved around the room just as quietly, lost in her thoughts and the more recent revelations that she's had. It's not been a good week, that's for sure.

She does realise though, eventually. She stops in her slow pace around the room and pauses, turns to look at the door. After a moment she makes a slow approach, rests her hand lightly on the wood and just waits a moment. Whoever is on the other side of the door, they're human. Anna knows that much for certain. She closes her eyes for a moment and just waits.

They don't get visitors to the house very often, after all. It's a rare occurrence that anyone other than her and Gabriel walk around in there, let alone someone unknown to her. She can't possibly imagine why anyone would want to creep around in the house that spends most of its time empty, but perhaps that's exactly why. After a moment though, she clears her throat quietly.

"You can come in."

[enchangement]

River almost bolts. That is how strange this all is to her, to be snuck up upon instead of the one doing the sneaking. To be found out instead of observing from a close but safe distance. She manages a few steps back, silently shifting her weight from foot to foot in time with her own heartbeat in her ears.

But she shouldn't run. She shouldn't be afraid of things that confuse her - isn't that the downfall of ignorance? To be afraid, to run when there is nothing to run from and to stand, still, shocked when running is the best idea?

Yes. So. River returns to the door and turns the knob. Stares at Anna for a moment. "There's a collection of you who don't sleep." Don't instead of cannot.

[afallenstar]

It's bizarre to see someone else in the house. Gabriel has brought people over at one point or another, she's fairly sure, but Anna has barely even told people where she lives let alone had any 'visitors' as such. River standing in the doorway is foreign to her, but she offers the girl a friendly smile all the same and takes a step away from the door.

"There's not enough hours in the day, who has the spare time to waste on sleeping these days?" It's said with a good-natured laugh, but the question has her somewhat nervous. She's never met this strange girl after all, how would she know that they don't sleep here.

She settles back down on the edge of her bed, sitting carefully before fixing her gaze back on River carefully. She looks harmless enough, but Anna knows better than to judge on appearances. Most people would assume that she isn't a threat either on first judgement. She's going to tread carefully with this one, that's for sure. "What makes you think we don't sleep, anyway?"

HOUSE 20 - Clint - Day 48/49; night

[afallenstar]

There's something very important that she has to tell Galen right now, which is why Anna is repeating her habit of appearing in the attic of House 20. Unfortunately, she's really not prepared for anyone to actually be living there. She doesn't make any subtlety in her entrance. There's a sound of flapping wings, and then without warning a red headed woman is standing in the middle of the attic.

It takes her a moment to even notice that there's someone else there. She's not expecting anyone, so she doesn't notice him until she's already started to move. She glances at the person in the attic, expecting one of the residents she already knows, and as soon as she realises it's not any of the three she's friends with - well, she just straight up freezes.

It's about as deer in the headlights as anyone can look. She's been caught, well and truly, and there's no way she can pass this off.

[greatatboats]

He met a colorful group of people that all tried to offer him answers, but not a single one of them made any sense to him. Not even Stark and his endless hot air routine. None of this made any sense to Clint. Kidnapped by assholes and the scariest part of it all was being carted off by some pint sized girl with crazy eyes. Least she gave him a place to stay and he couldn't be too upset about that. A place to rest his head was going to be important and having the attic made him feel safer. High ground was his safety blanket. He felt safer higher up. That was just an old staple from his acrobat days. Being up there never phased him much. It still made him more at ease even now in his forties.

He wasn't expecting visitors and certainly not the type to appear out of thin air. The flapping is the reason he had his bow lifted and an arrow drawn back. Before he lets her talk he's already fired the arrow. She's the one that entered into his domain without a goddamn warning or a heads up. She could be one of the kidnappers for all he knew. He was just taking precautions. He coulda aimed higher and taken her out. He went for the leg.

"You don't start tellin' me who you are and I'll make your other leg match." He's already got another arrow drawn back and he's ready to fire at her. He's not at all good with personal space invasion.

[afallenstar]

Anna has done remarkably well at playing human. Pretty much spot on, in fact. There's all of four people in the whole town that know who she is, and they've all been very deliberate revelation choices. She's weighed up her options, sorted through the pros and cons and made a conscious decision to let said people know that she's not all that she appears to be.

This? Well, this kind of shot that plan to hell.

Anna flinches when the arrow goes through her leg, and she quickly looks down to inspect the damage done. It's sort of uncomfortable, and it certainly won't be a permanent issue, but she doesn't much want to give that away just yet. She frowns, winces as she yanks the thing out and then holds her hands up quickly. Universal peace sign, Clint. Please don't shoot her again.

"Okay, calm down. Give me a second, okay?" She tosses the arrow on the floor, towards him as she rests her weight on the other leg. She's trying to keep some of her cards close to her chest here, and that starts with not healing herself immediately. It's not the most pleasant experience, but she's at a bit of a loss here. "I'm not here for you. I didn't even know you'd be here. That's...kind of the point, actually."

She eyes him carefully for a moment or two, hands still very much where he can see them, then glances backwards before awkwardly hopping. It might not exactly hurt the way a wound like this should, but that doesn't mean that it's any easier to walk on. "Who are you, anyway?"

[greatatboats]

Universal peace sign? How about a universe get the fuck out of my attic sign? That's him pulling the string back tighter and trying his hardest not to let that arrow fly directly into her face. Intruders are a big deal in his world. Usually when someone was intruding into your world it was Stark trying to be a dick or it was someone who wanted to slit your throat in the middle of the night. Clint wasn't about to let the second one be the case in this new town. None of these people could be who they said---so he was extra careful about who he let into his area.

Who said Clint wasn't calm? Just because he's threatening to shoot her with a second arrow doesn't make him calm? Clint's probably the calmest person in this room right now. He's not one to panic, but he is one to keep the odds in his favor when a stranger appears out of the blue. Plus she did sorta pull that arrow out of her leg a little too quick for his taste. Something's not right and it's got him antsy in the worst way. That calm may be fading a touch.

"What's that mean? You were hoping to get the drop on my new friends down there?" He wasn't a hundred percent sure if he liked Kenzi, but if he had to kill a ginger chick to keep her safe then so be it. She could always grow on him a little later. "Wrong answer." Yeah. He's shot her with the second arrow in her other leg. He said tell him who you are, but Anna danced around that didn't she? Not a great plan.

He's already gotten to his feet and the arrow nock is in place pressed against the string as he draws it back. "What's your name or the third one goes through your neck?"