Personal Effects

[Eden Jones]

Eden walks over to the sheriff, shifts her tea to her left hand and shakes the sheriff's hand. "Always happy to work with you, Sheriff. We could use the help."

[Owle Isohos]

Kelsey hadn't been talking to much of anyone. She'd sat quietly, head buried in her notes, trying to do the one thing she could- put together the information she had. When the Sheriff came in to the diner, though, she stood and moved towards him, her expression unreadable.

"Yeah, we could use your help. And I'm glad you're offering it."

There was no smile on her face. None of her usual friendliness towards him. But she was talking to him, and that was something. Kelsey struggled for a moment, wrestling the words she wanted to say.

"We need to talk. You and I, I mean. I want to work with you, but...we need to talk."

[Sheriff Winters]

The Sheriff slowly nods, meeting Kelsey's gaze.

"Alright then... Let's talk, can I get you some coffee?"

Winters makes a motion for Kelsey to follow him to the lunch counter, out of range of hearing but still within eyeshot of the group.

[Owle Isohos]

Kelsey nodded, not trusting her voice, and followed the Sherriff over.

[Nixon]

Hartighan nods to the Sheriff, but lets the others take the lead on speaking with the Sheriff.
Hart waits on Victor's response.

Other than that, he sits and listens to the others.
(I don't believe anyone has spoken to me, so I'll remain silent, and sitting next to Victor)

With nothing further added. Hartighan grabs his bags and gets into an SUV outside... heading for Nile's home.

See you all in the spring.
-h

[Owle Isohos]

For what seemed a long time, Kelsey spoke to the Sheriff. Whatever they talked about must have been an emotional subject for both of them. At one point, the investigator put a comforting hand on the Sheriff's back as he gripped the counter for support. Not long after, she drew her hand back, staring up at him in stunned silence. Whatever she said once she recovered her voice made Brandon Winters take a step back from her.

After a brief exchange the medic appeared to calm herself, and some of her old familiarity with him crept back into her body language. In the end, the two seemed to reconcile. Kelsey shook Winters' hand firmly, and while she still didn't smile, there was sympathy in her eyes as she bid him farewell.

Then she headed out of the diner, head down, needing time to process before she spoke to anyone else.

[vVv]

victor is dreaming.

dust kicking up from the ground all around them on the dark road, a moonless night like the first, the Hollow Men just materialize from all around them, in impossible numbers.. the crack of nile's gun, the vague form of hartighan's mad whirling dance of bloodshed barely visible in the deep, deep gloom.. there are too many for her to fend off at once, and they sweep over and around victor and her employer like a coal-black tidal wave, just an ocean of strange dark eyes, emotionless stares. she can't see or hear nile and hartighan anymore.. blindly, helplessly lashing out against the seething mass of bodies, she feels a series of *crunches*, across one thigh, an elbow, an ankle, a wrist.. her bones breaking in so many places she begins to lose count, and a red miasma envelops her in hungry serenity as, with a final bash to the ribs, victor loses consciousness entirely..

she awakens slowly, mistily, in the twilight gloom of the forest. it is warm, dew sparkling on the branches and the undergrowth, and a gentle rocking sensation grips her.. as victor slowly comes to wakefulness, she realizes someone is carrying her. she tilts her head up to look upon the visage of her saviour - it is the Dusk King himself! he walks with eyes straight ahead, lightly as if she weighs nothing at all, a calmly determined expression upon his face.

after what seems like an eternity of walking (it reminds her vaguely of some other journey, some other time, though she can't quite clearly catch the thought), they come to a clearing in the forest, surrounded by beautiful shimmering lanterns in the trees, and the Dusk King sets victor down upon a little nest of soft, soft grass and leaves, like a bird's downy bed.

she can make out the faces of many fey circling the clearing, just beyond the treeline, watching silently. there is a great aura of reverence in the air.

"now", intones the Dusk King, in a rich, resounding voice which echoes through the silent forest, "my strong and noble victor, one of my own, it is time to fulfill your destiny."

and as she looks up at him in helpless awe, still paralyzed by her wounds, and the fey watch soundlessly from their ring of shadows all around, he pulls an ornate, darkly glimmering obsidian dagger from his belt, and plunges it directly into victor's beating heart.

victor awakens with a start, head jerking up from its resting place on top of pandora's knapsack. a film of sticky drool coats the entire right side of her face, more of it congealing in the folds of the knapsack.

"oh, great," she mutters disgustedly, feeling ornery and somewhat jolted by the horrible visions. victor looks up to see madrigus staring at her intently, a slightly mad look in his eyes that causes an uncomfortable chill to run down her spine, just for a moment. (vic, calm down. it's your friend. you're okay.)

she then turns her head to find hartighan sitting patiently by her side, and her lingering sensations of fear falls away.

"you're alive!" she cries out, and hugs the demon enthusiastically, "you guys, i just had the craziest dream.."

and, eager to exorcise the horror of the experience, victor proceeds to wind the strange tale out to anyone who's listening.