[OPEN: PLOT] KIDNAPPED BY VAMPIRES?!

[reticence]

There aren’t many narrow, dark alleyways in Richmond -- but there are some.

Lancelot only needs to walk down one to get in trouble.

He’s cutting through between houses on his way back from Tesco. He hadn’t meant to be long, just needed some fresh milk and a loaf of bread for next week, so he’s only dressed in a light t-shirt and some cut-offs. The air is still warm even this late, and he’s distracted -- half tapping his phone awake every so often wondering if he should say something. Faolan doesn’t normally stand him up, but it has been difficult lately. Then again what if something happened? Should he check? He doesn’t want to be clingy, after all…

His senses prickle, telling him something is happening, and he barely gets enough time to turn around before something is being swung at him. There’s a soft clack as his phone hits the ground and skitters away into someone’s front garden, and bread and milk get dumped unceremoniously into someone’s bin before the vampires vanish away.

All the lights are on in his flat, music still softly cycling through his library, but anyone who hops the fence into his back garden will realise Lily is pacing the kitchen all alone.

*************************************

Faolan is a man dedicated to his job, dedicated to his cause, and dedicated to finding an answer when a challenge presents itself to him. Which is why, when confronted with the issue of what to do about Raymond, he finds himself struggling with the dilemma. Of course the vampire is a maniac, a danger to the public, but he is also currently faction leader for Islington, which means that by proxy, he is creating a danger through his vampires as well.

It gives him a lot to think about, which is exactly what he's doing, going over various reports of vampire activity from the past month, taking note of the steady incline of injury or homicide at the hands of the Islington vampires, and correlating it with the changes in policy that the vampires have enacted since then. He's not sure exactly what he's looking for, but he knows he'll find it if he just looks hard enough. And in fact, he's looking so hard that he works straight through the time that he'd arranged to meet up with Lancelot, and a good hour beyond that point before he realizes what he's done and leaps to his feet to track down his mobile with a curse.

Lancelot's mobile rings out with no response and Faolan curses again before shooting him a quick text to apologize for himself. And then another to ask if he'd rather reschedule. While Faolan waits for a response he checks the time and clears up his desk for the night. Putting away the reports and locking them up in the bottom drawer of his desk. Grabbing his phone and impatiently waiting for a response as he slips on his jacket and jogs downstairs to the main floor.

Ten minutes pass and he tries calling again. The phone rings out. Faolan wonders whether Lancelot had just gone to bed at this point, but it's early yet. Maybe he's left it on vibrate? He calls a few more times in succession, all of them ringing out to voicemail. He leaves one, as he heads out to the train station, deciding he might as well head to Lancelot's flat to apologize for himself, if nothing else. Sending another text, asking him if he's alright with that. Waiting for a response as he makes the trip that never comes.

By the time Faolan's made it to Lancelot's neighborhood, he's made his way through feeling guilty, then angry at himself, then angry at Lancelot for reacting this way, then working his way increasingly through a state of concern. He's pulled far more stupid stunts than missing a planned get-together with Lancelot, and the other man had never purposely stopped talking to him then. He tries to reason out what might have happened, maybe he had a headache, maybe he'd gone to bed, but the fact is that until Faolan knows for certain he can't help but feel an increasing amount of dread building up within him.

A feeling that does nothing to dissipate as Faolan reaches the other man's flat to find the lights on, the doors locked, music quietly seeping through from the stereo, and no response to the door. Not even when he rings the bell several times. The fact that he can hear Lily pacing inside concerns him even more, to the point where he decides to pop over to Lancelot's neighbor's to beg the key off of her (on the pretense that he'd lost the one he'd been given, which earned him a wary once-over but he'd been over enough to be recognizable at this point, for better or worse).

It doesn't take long for Faolan to determine that he isn't home. Nor does it take him long to determine that there's more at play than the other man being angry at him at this point. Whatever Lancelot might be feeling about Faolan after he'd skipped out on him that night, Lancelot would never leave Lily alone like this.

After three hours, sitting in the other man's flat with his dog, calling his mobile with no response, Faolan knows without a doubt that something is wrong. That Lancelot is missing. And come hell or high water, he will find him, he will find who did this, and he will make them pay.

((ooc: there are three threads below -- feel free to tag into one or more as you like! planning for this plot began here, but if you hadn't tagged into that please don't let that stop you from participating in this plot! LET'S RESCUE LANCELOT YOU GUYS!!))

Comments

[reticence]

Faolan appreciates the gesture, even if he hasn't had many people offer to hold his hand in such a way before and it makes him feel a little awkward because of that as well. He nods slightly, though a frown forms on his face as he does.

"I suppose that it's worth a try. Honestly though, the closest thing that I can think of him using for a calendar might have been on his phone. But I haven't been able to find that in his flat," he explains. "He must have had it with him."

[anniesgonemad]

Sometimes all people really needed was something simple like having their hand held.

"Check his computer, he probably has a copy of it there. Phones and computers sync like that now, don't they?" She keeps her expression neutral, calm. Sometimes talking through things like this brought about new answers.

Sometimes, Annie was actually decent at people.

[reticence]

Faolan blinks slightly, wondering why he hadn't thought of that, but then again honestly knowing why. He's thinking this is vampires. Checking the man's computer really won't give him the answer to where they've taken him. But seeing as that he has no proof, she's right.

"It's worth a try," he says. "I'm not sure that I know his password, but. I figure it will be easy to guess." Lancelot really loves his dog, after all. And with any luck, the other man is like the rest of the population these days with their passwords already saved to autofill into their browsers once they've visited a site. He's sure Lancelot will forgive him for the invasion of privacy, considering.

"It's back at his flat, but. I've still got the key to get in," Faolan explains.

[anniesgonemad]

"We should go, then." Let the shifters take care of tracking, they can do it the old fashioned way. Or, non smelly way. One of the two.

"D'you want me to call for a cab?"

[reticence]

Faolan looks across his desk at her for a long moment, uncertain as to what the two of them might be able to accomplish without the aid of certain supernatural abilities that neither of them possess. But searching the flat for clues, Lancelot's computer, it's better than sitting here waiting. So after a moment he nods.

"I... If you wouldn't mind?" They could take the train of course but a taxi would be a much more private and therefore enjoyable way of traveling about. He'd even offer to pay, even if he has a sneaking suspicion that she might turn the offer down.

[anniesgonemad]

Annie's not sure what they can accomplish, either. But every little bit helps, and giving Faolan something to do rather than sitting around and twiddling his thumbs is paramount. She remembers how useless she felt, after the attacks. She'd been rendered non-verbal, unable to help in any way, shape, or form. And that only made her feel worse about surviving.

"Not at all," she tells him, and she's using a mobile app to call for a cab. She'll also pay for it. Her family had more than enough money to spare a few quid for a cab ride.

[reticence]

Faolan moves to stand and gather his things. "It's not too far," he says. "It shouldn't take too long to get there." The cab shouldn't be too expensive. Faolan would feel bad if it were. He, unlike Annie, has decidedly not a lot of money to his name, although a fair amount more now from his positions as Guardian and Head of Hillingdon than he did as mere hunter and PI.

"I hope you don't mind dogs," he adds. "Lily will be there. She's a good dog, though. She won't be any bother, I promise."

[anniesgonemad]

Annie shakes her head. "No- I'm good with animals. I, ah, have a cat." Marlo was pretty maintenance, all things considered. One of the reasons Annie was so good with her.

Annie moves to stand. "The cab will be here shortly, tracker says." She gestures at her phone. "let me get my purse and I can meet you in the front hall? Uhm. If that's okay." She was never one for giving orders.

[reticence]

Faolan nods slightly. "It's fine. Thank you," he adds, because he feels that he should. She shouldn't be the one giving the orders, after all. It's not her fault that Faolan's life is so complicated. Not her fault the fact that Faolan has feelings for the Head of the Guardians that might go a little above and beyond the levels of friendship, and that is why it's so difficult to get himself to think rationally about this situation.

He lets her leave to gather her things and tries to take a moment to steady himself. If that should happen to have included a swallow of the decanter of whiskey that he keeps in his office that is neither here nor there. He makes his way down the stairs to wait for her to meet him in the front hall.

[anniesgonemad]

"Of course," she tells him, before leaving the room.

It doesn't take her too long to round up her purse, and a few other items she's wondering if they may come in handy. She's in the foyer by the time Faolan arrives, still wearing her light cardigan despite the August heat. Hopefully Lance had air-conditioning.

"Alright- the, ah, the cab's here. I just got the text." She holds up her phone so Faolan can see, before she gestures for him to follow her outside.

Annie doesn't talk until they're both secure inside the cab. "Alright, where're we going?"

[reticence]

Faolan glances down at the phone as she shows it to him before following her out. Slipping into the back of it with her before looking to her at her question and then at the driver. Giving him Lancelot's address in Richmond and then sitting back in his seat and letting the cab start to take them to their destination.

They're about halfway into the drive before Faolan really turns to her and says, slightly self-consciously, "Thank you. For... For volunteering to help me like this."

[anniesgonemad]

Annie's happy to sit in silence, looking out the window as the two of them ride through the streets. Faolan's voice gets her to look up, her brow softening.

"Oh. No- don't thank me. I just, ah- I like to help. When I can." Hopefully now was one of those times.

[reticence]

"Well, thank you then. For helping," Faolan says. And turns back to the window to keep looking out it for the rest of the journey, just as he had done before. Probably in more awkward a silence he had had before, but that is neither here nor there.

Once the cab arrives at Lancelot's address, Faolan awkwardly stands by and lets Annie handle the bill, feeling as though he should be arguing but not really having the heart to do so. Instead turning to make his way up the path and dig the spare keys out of his pocket to unlock the door as she steps up to join him.

"Watch out for Lily," he says, as he opens the door and starts to let them in. "I can't say for certain how she'll take to having a stranger in the house. But we certainly don't want to let her out, if we can help it." He doesn't need two missing cases on his hands.

[anniesgonemad]

Annie doesn't care that Faolan doesn't argue about the cab fair. She's more than happy to hand over the money to their cabbie, and a decent tip. When that's all done, she quickly hops into line with Faolan, following his lead.

"Okay, I'm good with animals," she says, not adding that she'd housed a friendly stray for a bit a month previously. She'd offered her grandmother's home up to Sirius, given that he was a wanted criminal, and a wanted shifter. Certainly no one would think to look for him there.

"I have a cat." Is actually what she said instead.

[reticence]

Faolan glances at her, noting the slight pause in her explanation but not questioning it. She's reassured him that she's okay with dogs, and Lily's hardly a handful. She's just nervous and no doubt wondering why all these people are coming home but none of them are Lancelot.

Carefully opening the door, Faolan beckons her inside, closing the door carefully behind him. True to form, a fluffy white ghost pads out from around the corner of the kitchen where she'd been soaking up what coolness she could get from the floor there and regards the pair of them carefully. Offering Faolan a hesitant wag as he steps forward and gently strokes her head to reassure her.

"She's hardly a guard dog," Faolan reassures Annie in turn. No matter what Lancelot might say on the matter.

[anniesgonemad]

Annie gasps, but not in horror as Lily comes around the corner. "She's beautiful," Annie coos, and drops to one knee to better meet the curious pup.

"Hi, Lily. I'm Annie- it's okay, I'm a friend." Lily regards Annie carefully, then decides yes, this friend can pet her now. In fact, please pet her. Pets. With a smile, she pets Lily's head. "Oh, what a good dog." They were supposed to be looking for clues. But there's a dog here, and the dog is important.

[reticence]

Lily seems to be enjoying the attention, and Annie likewise to enjoy giving it, so Faolan doesn't interrupt for a long moment. Lily has been through enough in the last day or so after all. He waits patiently while Annie showers the appropriate amount of scritches on the dog before offering, "I'll get his laptop."

He steps away, giving her time to acquaint herself with her space as he crosses the room to fetch Lancelot's laptop and set it out on the coffee table opposite the futon. Flipping it open and turning it on. Sighing softly as the screen comes up password locked. It would be too much to ask that he'd left it on and unsecured when he disappeared, now wouldn't it. Faolan sits forward, staring at the screen and steepling his fingers before himself as he thinks of what the other man's passwords might be.

[anniesgonemad]

When Faolan gets the laptop, Annie finishes up her appropriate amount of scritches before moving to join him on the couch. She leans forward to look at the screen, frowning at the locked screen.

"Does it have a hint option?" She gestures at the screen. "Otherwise..." she was no hacker, at all, and they would arrive at some sort of dead end. She couldn't think of anyone in Hillingdon that would be able to help them, either.

[reticence]

"I don't know," he replies, as he boots it up and waits for the sign-in. Shaking his head once the sign-in appears and offers no option for a hint. He glances over at Lily, giving her a steady assessing look, as though she might be able to give him the answer. Maybe she will. "It's got to be something to do with her, knowing him. If we can just get the right combination..." He sits forward and, just in case, types 'Lily' into the password line.

Which fails, of course, but it can't be too far off from that, honestly. Lancelot wouldn't have anticipated people trying to hack into his laptop, and certainly not people who knew him. He taps at the keys in thought. 'Lilydog'? No luck there either. He frowns and keeps trying, cycling through as many combinations of Lily and logical other words and numbers as he can think of -- the year Lancelot was born, the year it is now, all numbers 1-9, and all combinations of Lily, those numbers, and dog. Grateful that Lancelot doesn't have the computer set up to lock him out as he does this.

It's after sitting back and thinking a moment that a thought comes to him and, with the quick check that he has his dates right, he types in 'Lily2015'. And nearly cries in relief when it works. "Oh thank god," he says, as he watches icons starting to fill the screen, running a hand across his face as he does.