stop! ghost time (open post)

[warmheartedly]

JULY 21; COFFEERS' SHOP (LATE AFTERNOON)

Clara doesn't always snoop around the city and sometimes her work isn't always needed in the school. Sometimes she likes to stay in the shop. Sometimes she enjoys listening to idle conversation of the customers, not really listening in on them, that'll be rude, but nonetheless enjoying the buzz of activity the shop has during their busiest hours.

And sometimes that isn't enough. That's when she goes over and pokes around the lost and found box, seeing what's there and if anything is something that belongs to a current patron she can give back to without them looking. It's there that she finds a pair of marigold gloves during her search and about them draws her to them... Naturally she reaches out to and concentrates a bit to have a goodish grasp of it to see if there's a nametag anywhere when she notices a peculiar thing:

It feels... solid under her touch, real and tangible without the strange numbness to her fingertips she's become accustomed to at this rate. It takes her a second to realise what this means. She can touch them! She can hold them! She can do it with ease, most importantly of all.

Oh, what an exciting day for her as she mutters one little apology under her breath and zips off to the back of the shop with her new item. Already she has a little million ideas for them popping into mind, the excitement of the discovery along with the possibilities just enough to drown out her guilt for taking something out of the lost and found box that isn't hers.

JULY 25; AROUND THE CITY (ALL DAY)

After the last few days of activity, Clara decides it's time to be both proactive and to use her gloves to her advantage.

She'll now be found in areas that she usually doesn't snoop around in her attempts to glean information: The darker parts of the city, the seedier alleyways of the town, and etc. She'll peek through windows and go through walls, doing her best to stay invisible and quiet as a mouse while going through things with a newfound ease thanks to her gloves. (When she can bear the itching for long as she can, of course. Goodness do they chafe her skin.)

From Haringey to Hackney to Waltham Forest and then some, she'll be exploring and peeping into a lot of people today if she can. It's risky but she does her best. If she's to be a good observer of information, she needs to dig deep and hope she finds some things out, see what's going on in the heart of the city.

[ OOC: Or make your own scenario in your comment! Prose and brackets welcomed! A note, though, is that only one person can step in to help Clara get rid of the medium that she'll run into on July 25.]

Comments

[warmheartedly]

What. She looks at Maera with surprise, brow furrowing as she looks back down at the gloves. Her friend likes to joke but not this much.

"You can't." Really? This is interesting to know. Maybe that's why no one's touched them in the lost and found box. How can you get something if you can't get a hold of it? "Huh. I guess either a very interesting fae made this or another person did it themselves. It's a lot of magic to use up on a pair of gloves."

She's starting to believe the idea that there maybe there's a set out there. "Do you know anything similar to these? Or anyone who would make these sort of things? For any reason."

[goroesi]

"Gosh, Clara, I've got no idea," she says a little sadly, shaking her head. This is something totally new to her. "But I'll ask around, alright?"

After a bit of a pause, she shifts from one foot to another and asks, "do you really think a fae made it? Because if it is fae-made... well, there's nothing stopping me from learning a bunch of magic so that I can try to make a whole ghost outfit for you." She's got no idea how hard it'll be, but then, Maera's always been a little naive,

[warmheartedly]

The prospect of Maera making her a whole set of clothes for her so she had better contact with the world is a sweet one. She smiles, grateful for the offer, and looks very touched.

"Of course a fae could have done this! Possibly. I mean only fae like you and the others are powerful enough to do these sorts of things." She can't imagine a witch doing it. What would they benefit from it besides a good grade on a strangely specific thesis of theirs somewhere in a school like Redbright?

[goroesi]

She laughs a little, clasping her hands together. "I don't think I'm that powerful. But I can work on it!" She's been intending on practicing anyway - now she just has a concrete goal to work towards.

"It must be nice to feel things again, though, isn't it? Kind of like how it's nice to go back to one Realm after spending a lot of time in another."

[warmheartedly]

"It is! Being able to feel more than just my hands would be amazing but thank you no matter what. It means a lot to me that you'll try." For a silly old ghost like her when she had a lot of important things to do, she bets. "I wish I could repay you somehow."

She thinks about it and an almost mischievous look is on her face. "Maybe we can work together to pull a prank on someone you've been hoping to prank for a while? With your brains and my ghosting plus the gloves? We can do something."

Something hilarious. And something that won't get them into too much trouble of course.

[goroesi]

"You know, I was hoping you'd say something like that," Maera says with a grin, though her expression becomes thoughtful as she begins to seriously consider the prank. "There's no one I'd really want to prank who wouldn't see you. Which is a pity, because there's this fae called Akane who makes me want to punch things. Specifically her face. You know I don't get angry at people usually, but she just gets on all of my nerves."

[warmheartedly]

"--Akane."

That name is familiar but she can't quite put her finger on it. It's been a busy few weeks the past month with her job but something about that name rings a distant bell. Maybe because she's worried after hearing what Maera has to say. "My goodness. Sounds like she's quite a character if she gets you this angry. I can never imagine you doing something like that without a cause."

[goroesi]

"She's just-- stuck-up and rude and one of those people who thinks they can judge love when they haven't even experienced it, and--" Maera stops abruptly and squeezes her eyes shut. After counting slowly to ten under her breath, she shakes her head and opens her eyes again. "She just irritates me. A lot."

[warmheartedly]

""Goodness." Clara places the uncovered hand over her mouth, looking concerned. "Sounds like she said something quite awful to have you this irritated."

Upset comes to mind but no. That's too strong a word. Irritated. That's it. "Well! If that happens again, you let me know and I'll give her a peace of my mind. No one is going to annoy my friends like this."

[goroesi]

"I knew I could count on you." Which brings a little bit of a smile back to Maera's face. "It's just irritating, you know. It's not even her words that bother me - it's that I've gotten my temper very much under control and she's threatening that."

[warmheartedly]

"I've known you far longer than anyone else I've met here in London so far," she tells her friend confidently, "and I know for certain is this: You'll be able to do it, keeping her from getting the best of you. You've always been able to do anything if you put your mind to it."

It's what made Clara admire her friend so much in the past, looking up to the girl when she was still young herself. "I'm sorry she's being so awful to you. I don't understand why others can be so... so... so like that. If that makes any sense."

[goroesi]

"Well, if you think I can, then I have to keep myself under control. I can't let you down, of all people." Maera's smile is more real now, and though she can't reach out to clasp Clara's hand like she might have years ago, she hopes there's enough warmth in her voice to make up for it.

"It makes sense. I get why Mom fell in love with Dad at times like this. I love fae, of course, but they can be so... I don't know. Humans are more kind without needing reason for it."

[warmheartedly]

Now, more than ever, she's happy that she has the ghost gloves on her. One of them at least. It allows her to hold a dear friend's hand without trouble, without fear she'll literally slip right through her touch and loss the moment.

Definitely going to keep them if this happens often enough.

"I hope it isn't harsh to suggest but maybe the word is calculating for the rest of the fae." Clara wrinkles her nose and shakes her head. "No; that's too harsh. Perhaps the best way to describe it is... is... oh! I feel so out of depth with all of this half the time but knowing the others, especially you, are part of it makes it all worth it."

[goroesi]

"No, you're right. Humans have a-- sorry, most humans have a certain time span for their life, right? So they want to be good. Most of them, at least. Like, they want to look back when they're old and say, yeah, I was good. But fae don't have that. So they're less motivated towards goodness."

The little speech seems to take a lot out of her, and she's frowning to herself by the time she finishes. "Not that I don't love the fae. But- you can love something and acknowledge the truth of it as well, I think."

[warmheartedly]

"Life expectancy, yes." She had lived well above what was expected of hers and is having at the moment a-- What's the term Magra's friend uses for his video game? A plus one bonus. "We might as well make the most of what we have and being so mean takes a lot of energy in my opinion."

Fae, from what she's gathered from past talks and understandings, have all the time in the world and then some. "I'm sure you're not alone on this, Maera. Out there is a fae or ten or think just the same! It's only a matter of meeting them since the world is quite big and we all have lives to play out."

[goroesi]

"I'll keep that in mind. Really." It's as close to a promise as she can get. "And in the meantime, I'll be looking out for people who know more about ghost stuff like these gloves."

[warmheartedly]

Clara is about to say something, a reassurance of some sort perhaps, when a shout from outside -- CLARENCE, THAT'S THE THIRD TIME! -- all but interrupts her train of thoughts by reminding her where she and Maera are.

Somewhere they shouldn't be in.

"I think it's time we get going. I would hate for you to get in trouble if Cindy or Johnson found you in here." Talking to herself too. "It was wonderful seeing you again, Maera. I really am glad you got to be the first person to see these."

[goroesi]

Maera jumps a little at the sound of the voice, then laughs. "You're sweet, Clara. I'll drop by again soon, alright? Don't get into too much trouble with those gloves without me." The usual tone of mischief has returned to her expression, but she's just trying to hide how pensive she's actually feeling.

[warmheartedly]

Believing Maera is okay, Clara smiles back and nods in agreement while puts back on her gloves so she can open the door sneakily to let her friend out. "I promise to try and keep myself out of trouble! I don't want to do anything mischievous if you're not there to appreciate it."

[goroesi]

"Perfect response. I knew I could count on you." She heads to the door with Clara, hurrying out as soon as its opened for her. "I'll see you around soon! At the very latest, at the Lammas party, alright?"

[warmheartedly]

"The one at the beach." She looks a bit nervous thanks to the destination but she smiles away her concerns and nods. The least she can do for Maera and the others is to try. "We'll see! It does sound exciting!"

And it'll be nice to get away from the bustle here for a bit. She dodges a passing barista grumbling under her breath and she sees the busy nature of the coffee shop means it's time for her to leave for a bit to give the employees some peace. Smiling at Maera for one last time, she gives a cheerful wave goodbye before quickly phasing through the wall to head somewhere else.