undergrounds | Whisper the prayer of transformation.

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Whisper the prayer of transformation.

A- Returning to London , the tub

She waited with both great apprehension and joy for her release out of the hospital. Ten years and Alice was already making a list of the things she'd go see. She wanted to see the parks she used to play in, the old ports she would visit, and Hyde Park was on the top of her list. She was practically shaking with excitement when she was waiting patiently for her release. The doctors had given her a slew of medication -- not a surprise. Anti-psychotics, benzodiazepines, SSRIs, and some to help her sleep at night. All of them with a big, bulky folder of directions, phone numbers, and other sort of paperwork with names and such. When she first entered care, she barely spoke a word, and now that she was being let go, Alice barely spoke a word, again. No goodbyes offered, even if nurses, patients, and doctors tried with her, Alice tore out of the hospital without a second look.

She was free again.

Hyde Park was quite a distance away -- she'd have to take public transportation to get there. And, of course, to get a cup of tea on the way there, since her medication often made her feel sluggish. As soon as Alice is out in the real world again, her reaction isn't that of joy and there is no running about. The world is much bigger than she remembered and much more frightening. Alice had left it, deeply shaken. She couldn't really greet anyone on the way back to the subway or anywhere else. She kept her head low, awkwardly rubbing her cheek or combing her hair, all odd little tidbits of hers when she was nervous.

She was terrified. Alice thought to herself what she could possibly be thinking. Upon getting on the old routes her family used to take to the coven (which, by now, Alice had memorized), she took it up to the assigned housing, with only a bag of clothing and her things, nervously teetering away on the train, with her old stuffed rabbit firmly in her arms. Alice was eighteen years old, but her skittish disposition and short, malnourished stature surely presented her as someone much younger and the stuffed rabbit didn't help. She looks like a child and acts the part, ducking her head as people passed by her. While the idea of looking at others filled her with dread, her mind was racing with thoughts and visions.

Today could be an off day.

B - Redbright Institute, because Alice is lost

Two days after her initial release, Alice secluded herself to sleeping in a bed of her own, with no round the clock check ups from doctors. She slept tightly with her rabbit -- but decided that the bed wasn't enough halfway through the night and took to under the bed. When she awoke, Alice was combing through notes and drawings -- clues to her past and where to go. She was obsessed with remembering these things, the jittery little thing kept them in a notebook, pieces of papers popping out of pages. Redbright Institute. Now she remembered, that was one place her father worked at, one place she knew would give her clues to where to go and what to do.

The world was still very much bigger than she thought, so stepping upon the campus isn't what she expected. It was bigger than she remembered and very foreign. And Alice spent a good time pacing about outside, carrying her rabbit firmly in her arms until she worked up the courage to speak.

Sort of.

She probably hadn't spoken a full sentence in months, so her matter of speech was strange, almost monotone and low. Sucking in a breath, the small, Alice tried to ask for help and where to go -- no one helped her, she jumped into this without thinking.

"Sorry," She mutters, keeping her head low and her rabbit close to her chest. She wasn't this meek, she nearly forgot how to interact with others. "I'm lost? Help?"

If that even worked, if she could formulate a sentence, but talking to others again was so difficult.

C - Coffer's Shop

It is not a coffee shop she's familiar with; her father had a penchant for the fancy coffee shops, in which he met some of his colleagues there, or, according to her older sister, he goofed off at them, playing chess with others. Tea sounds nice -- it sounds great. Upon entering the shop, Alice takes a sigh of relief that it's not busy. Still clutching her rabbit in one hand, Alice fumbles with her side bag, feeling around for the coin purse -- she stuck some money in there, she's not sure how much.

What she does remember is the smaller pleasures helped a lot, but ordering tea was proving to be a difficult feat, especially for a girl who was struggling just to talk to others. One step, just one step that was recommended in therapy to deal with social anxiety. She watches how others order and what they do, standing at the counter before she steps up bravely and orders tea.

Just plain chamomile, since anything caffeinated will rile her. As soon as she gets it, Alice nearly runs over a patron, whisking herself to a nice, quiet corner.

"Sorry," She mutters lowly, keeping her rabbit and cup of tea gripped tightly in her hands before she continues.

D - Wildcard!

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Sirius had made his way up to the front, and managed to snag a muffin and some tea. It wasn't much but enough to keep him going for a little while. He'd actually managed to scrounge up some money to pay, so things were going well (especially since the barista he'd been counting on wasn't there today.)

He slides into the other seat, across from Alice.

"Hope you don't mind me sharing the table for a bit."

She was daydreaming by the time he had gotten back and Sirius sitting down across from her nearly startles her as she's pulled back into reality. Taking a breath, Alice decides to permit it, for her sake of easing back into social settings.

"No, sir," Maybe he could use the company, she thinks. Alice is eighteen years old and seems to sink into a child-like demeanor, despite herself.

"Do you close by?" She finds herself blurting out her curiosity, nearly hiding behind her mug as she tried to sip tea that was likely a little too hot to drink at the moment.

"Thanks," Sirius replies, somewhat distracted as he eagerly digs into his muffin.

"Huh? Oh, not really. I mean, it's a bit of a walk." It's partly a lie since he currently has no fixed address, But he's been sticking around the area for a while. Probably more than he should be.

Alice would be inclined to believe that lie -- she has no reason not to. She's under the assumption that he knows the area well enough. She wonders if she'd be lucky enough if she fished around for more information about the local populace.

Perhaps more than human. But, years in a hospital, Alice comes back to reality that humans weren't kind to witches and she paid dearly for it. Looking somberly to her cup, Alice nods.

She has no reason to pry. "Oh, uhm," Alice drums her fingers on the table, "Ah, I don't think you can help me, it wouldn't be fair to ask you. What is your name, sir?"

"Well, you won't really know until you ask," Sirius replies. And if he can help, it would be one small way to improve his reputation. Not that many would see it, but even if one person thought better of him it was better than none.

"I'm Sirius. What about you?"

"Alice Liddell."

She hasn't heard of anyone named "Sirius" -- it's a curious name, and there would have been a joke in there if Alice wasn't such a cynical girl. She doesn't even know how to approach the subject. He could be a normal human and wouldn't know anything about witches and vampires. And if she was asking a normal human, she would be opening herself up for discrimination.

Yet, he was right, she wouldn't know until she asked. "So, then, this is a good area, I take it? Nothing unusual? Nothing strange?"

Hopefully, that would be enough to just fish something out.

"Nope, it's a pretty normal area, as far as I can tell. Quiet. I mean, unless you count the ghost that haunts this place, but she's pretty friendly."

It was a local myth after all, and her shop, so it wouldn't be out of place to bring her up. And the territory was part of Redbright, which made it rather safe. At least, hostilities weren't tolerated.

"Yes, I've heard about her," If there was ghosts, then maybe-

She drums her fingers on the table, swinging her feet gently as she sat on her chair. Alice has to take a sip of tea before she asks another question.

"Just ghosts? Nothing else that goes bump in the night?" Well, she could have been a bit more eloquent about it.

"Not really around these parts," Sirius replies, his voice low and his attention on his muffin. "I mean, they're around but Harrow's a Redbright territory. No hostilities."

He glances up to get her reaction.

Her reaction is, surprisingly calm, for all of her anxiety she displayed earlier. Calculating and a little aloof.

No hostile in Redbright territory. Alice is almost tempted to comment that it hasn't stopped hostiles from attacking members of Redbright. He may still be human and may not be familiar with her kind, "Ah," She pretends to force a smile, "I'm glad."

Not really, but he doesn't need to know that. Alice wants to know where they are and prying for information is so difficult and may have tact she doesn't possess.

"It's been so long, I don't remember much of it -- ten years. I heard some areas were terrible, but I hardly recall which ones. I'm in public housing, I'm a little afraid I'll be in a bad area."

"I'm not the best person to ask. I've been out of the city for a while as well, so I'm still trying to figure things out. Plus there's been a lot of territory changing hands recently."

More than he remembers anyway, but his memory is one that can't really be relied upon.

"I might be able to help if you don't mind telling me where you're living."

Not that he'd use it for nefarious purposes either.

"They sent me to housing in Stratford," Alice hopes that he doesn't ask about what sort of housing; she doesn't want to explain it's housing for people like her, ones who have been hospitalized and treated for mental illness. "I would hope that it doesn't have problems like that."

She thinks innocently enough of it; she doesn't think anyone would follow her. She's boring and vampires don't roam during the day. He mentioned "territories", so there may be hope yet.

Sirius nods, trying to remember exactly where Stratford was. He has something of a mental map of London, but it's not the most reliable. Especially with the way the landscape's changing.

"I think that's werewolf territory," he mutters, more to himself than anyone else. Although they usually kept to themselves, or at least they did when Sirius was familiar with them, way back when.

Werewolf territory. Alice would have never guessed that werewolves lived there. It was fitting, now that she thought about it, with the word "lunacy" and people like her staying in that assisted housing. She stares at him for nearly a minute before she takes a breath and decides to fish more.

"You know about them," That was good, he wasn't going to judge her off the bat for being a witch. Alice wouldn't say it out loud, she eagerly turned to her bag, pulling out an old book, a basic book of anointed witchcraft before she slides it back in. She wanted to be discreet as possible saying that she was a witch.

"The last people that knew that about me thought of me as insane." Institutionalized, but she wouldn't get into details. "I want to find more of them and stop them from hurting others. Werewolves are good, aren't they? They don't get along with vampires."

Hell, if they were natural enemy of vampires, Alice would be very happy.

Sirius nods, though he doesn't reveal that he's a shapeshifter. He's been very careful about that and while he has a healthy respect for most witches, he doesn't trust them easily. Not that he'll let on to that, since he doesn't even know if Alice is Midnight or Daybreak, and another witch ally is always useful.

"It's true that they don't, but werewolves are just like any other group, they've got their good and bad sides, and I don't mean what happens at a full moon." He smiles at his own wit.

"Sorry they thought that of you though." Whoever they were.

"It's alright, I manage," Barely. Still, it's enough to make her feel a little more relaxed that he's mentioned werewolves to her. He doesn't seem like another witch -- or maybe he is. Either way, it's a welcoming thing that he comes from the same world as her and her parents, in a way.

"I would much rather deal with anything but vampires," She confesses softly, "I'm glad, thank you. Even if you think it's not enough, it's enough for me."

"I don't blame you, if I'm being honest." As a shapeshifter, he's never been fond of vampires, but at the same time, he's done his best to become more open with his thoughts. There had to be a few okay vampires out there, after all. "And I'm glad I was able to help, at least a little."

She wouldn't think vampires of any sort were good people, just because of the association of the vampire that hurt Alice's family. She doesn't remember his face, she does remember how desperate her sister was to get away from him.

And other terrible things. "It does, I don't remember much of anything, I can start with what I know."

Mapping out territories, taking notes about vampires and going from there. "May I have your name, sir?"

"You have amnesia or something? I've already given it," Sirius teases, offering a small smile and leaning on the table.

That's right, he did, didn't he? A slight flush crosses her cheek. "N- no," Alice shook her head. She didn't want to admit that sometimes with her problems and medication that she was forgetful.

Though, lately, it was starting to get bad, "I was- no, it slipped my mind. I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it," Sirius replies. "Feel free to look up if you need anything. I can usually be found around this area, or nearby."

He moves around a lot to avoid being recognized or noticed.

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Whisper the prayer of transformation.

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mun's fault too.

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