savetheearth | I wear a demeanor made of bright pretty things [Semi-Open]

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I wear a demeanor made of bright pretty things [Semi-Open]

Who: Julien and whoever decided to come with him! See the plot post.
Where: The Locke City Reservoir, maybe an hour's drive west of the city center. It's a fair-sized lake surrounded by forest, with a shoreline that is mostly inclined gravel. It's not suited to canoeing or camping and isn't a recreation site, but the area isn't exactly off limits either.
When: Sunday the 11th! Forwards-dated slightly.
What: Finding the source of the contaminated water.

[This is three threads. Please, PM or plurk me if you have questions or concerns. I'm

Joysweeper.

Thread one is pre-reservoir on the tenth - as part of the handwaved preparations Julien wants to see if people actually can sneak, so asked some of the volunteers to meet him in a park. This is specifically set up so Julien can meet Alex and Nick in separate threads, but if anyone else wants to meet/talk casually with him, even if they're not going on to the next two threads, feel free!

Thread two is finding the site and Julien deciding to stake it out. His plan is for some quieter people to be investigating with him, a bunch of more combat-oriented ones hanging back in the woods, and a few people even farther back at the cars, but he doesn't really have authority. Feel free to have people from any group mingle and kill time together, especially if it's been a while since he decides to wait.

Thread three is the tanker full of pink goop showing up, a few hours after thread two started. You're fully welcome to have a character who was in thread two decide to leave and not be there for three! This is kind of in the middle of nowhere but waiting is boring.]

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People were really going to let him be in charge? ...really? Fuck.

Well if Julien was going to do that, he wanted things to be somewhat organized. This could be a trap or a picnic, and he didn't want anyone coming who couldn't handle themselves if things went horribly wrong. That was why he'd wanted to meet with some of the volunteers and set up do do so in Freedom Park, just to see if they really could go quietly. On Saturday he sat on a bench with sunglasses protecting his oversensitive eyes, going over the... call to help him, or whatever it was. [Handwaved, but the main post looks like this.]

...He knew full well that if someone insisted, really insisted, he'd probably let them go anyway, even if they weren't really suited. Why was he in charge again?

There was an official road to the reservoir, and there was a back road that came close enough on the opposite end. They'd drove in on the latter, and left the cars pointed roadwards in case this all went horribly wrong.

Deer had trampled some rough trails through the woods around the water, and a strip of unmowed grass and brush separated the woods from the gravel shore. That was a bit of a relief. There was some cover, and people could move through the forest. It also might mean unseen traps or leaving someone behind if it all went horribly wrong, so Julien still had things to worry about.

To his exceedingly inhuman eyes the water was cloudy with that same shade he'd noticed in the processed water, but clearer here. He'd gone around the edge of the lake - getting distracted by tiny fruits and insect life particularly ticks - until he'd found a spot near the road where the color was strongest, staining the gravel. A heavy vehicle had backed up through the grass and poured something in. Not once, but several times. After some time studying the grass and the gravel and remembering how the weather had gone for the past week or so, Julien came to the conclusion that a vehicle came through here every couple of days.

And it was just about due for another visit.

He got on the network and reported to the... people who'd come along. "It should be today or tomorrow, I'm going to settle in and wait a bit. If nothing happens by evening, just... go home, I guess. But I want to set up Aeron's camera and train it on this. I guess put it in a tree? Any of you a good climber?"

Julien was too antsy to want to talk much as he settled in. Perhaps the people who'd come with him were a different story.

It was a muggy day, but there was an intermittent breeze and plenty of shade. Dragonflies skimmed the surface of the water. Butterflies and bees attended to flowers in the long grass. Birds chattered in alarm at people moving too close to them, and otherwise sang.

And at around four or five in the afternoon, a tanker came down the official road and began to laboriously turn and back, beeping, through the flattened grass and to the water's edge.

"Hey, eyes guy. I'm here to talk about going to the place!"

Talking enthusiastically enough to practically be shouting totally won't disqualify her from the sneaking mission if she's vague about it, right?

Either way, a redhead with a spring in her step arrives in a dress that's probably not really suited for anything more outdoorsy than a picnic, and she's not terribly subtle about it. Have fun dashing her dreams of being a spy.

This wasn't the first time that Nick'd met up with someone off the network, or even the first time he'd done so in a park. But this time, there was an actual reason for it, and he had someone he trusted who knew where he was going and was ready to back him up. Which meant he was a lot more confident as he looked for the person he was supposed to meet up with. He hadn't even disguised himself, beyond wearing clothes that he didn't normally wear.

When he spotted a man with blue hair sitting on a bench, Nick couldn't help but smile. Less than a month ago, Nick'd been in almost the exact same position - wearing sunglasses and sitting on a bench in the park, waiting for someone from the network to meet up with him.

Nick didn't look directly at him as he headed over, sitting down on the bench as though he was just another park-goer, looking for a place to sit. "Planning some investigative photography?"

Oh, no, he hoped she had a less energetic setting too. Still, Julien grinned and raised his feet a little so he could rock forwards off the bench and get to standing.

He did love meeting people, after all.

"Hello! Sounds like you're talking to me! C'mon, we can talk as we walk."

Julien had difficulty being outside in the sun these days. It was easy to get overwhelmed by the sights - dark sunglasses helped reduce the intensity and complexity of the colors, but he knew when summer was over it would get harder and harder to excuse wearing such dark lenses. So despite the brightness, from time to time Julien let them slip down the bridge of his nose so he could see around them.

As someone approached him he leaned back casually and crossed his legs at the ankle, wondering. He smiled as he was addressed and turned towards the stranger as if only then looking at him. "Hello! I've been thinking about it, yeah! I guess you're here to see me?"

Yeah, plenty of people probably weren't happy that he was here. Especially when he'd insisted that he belonged with the fighters. But he wanted to be here, sneaking wasn't his strong point, and thanks to these Pulses, he knew his way around a sword. Any fuss over him would not be appreciated.

Getting the sword he now had strapped over his back had taken some convincing, too. It would really be helpful if his Pulses would actually give him one, since it was pretty clear they'd already primed him for it. Then he wouldn't have to go through this hassle. Though he did kind of wonder how he'd manage to hide something like that from Granny.

Well. That was a thought for another time.

As it was, he had decent cover -- behind a large tree, low to the ground. His eyes remained sharply focused in the direction of the reservoir just in case there was trouble. If anyone thought he were just a child at play, or not taking this seriously, they would find themselves sorely mistaken. This was no game and he knew it.

Hajime was also with the fighters, though he appeared to be totally unarmed. His weird belt was visible in preparation for assuming his horrible bug monster form should the need arise, but otherwise, it looked as though he'd shown up totally unprepared. Just some guy in a weird belt who was casually leaning against another tree and trying very, very hard not to show his nerves at possibly having to fight as a bug-monster.

But no matter how much more prepared Toushirou may have looked in comparison, he was still just a kid. A kid getting into the thick of things just didn't sit well with Hajime, regained talent or no. "You're ready for this, then?" Not that he's quite able to hide his skepticism at a kid being there.

Fred doesn't look so... no, let's be honest, he looks like hell. Like he hasn't been eating or sleeping well, or paying a lot of attention to grooming (though he's clean, at least).

He also looks intensely focused. Like he can just see or hear straight through the trees and see whatever he needs to, if he concentrates enough. He can't, of course, but he looks like he's trying. He does not, one might note, look like he'd appreciate being talked to, but surely that's not really the case.

Oh, and one more thing: he's not letting go of his sword. Part of that is that it didn't come with a scabbard, but part of it is that he wants to be ready. Ready, he tells himself, to kill whatever Thunder people or monsters there may be. (Not that he's ever actually killed anything more than a bug, but he'd like to think he can do it.) He's got the point safely grounded, so it's not a danger to the rest of the group, but no matter how he moves or fidgets (when he does) he keeps at least one hand on the hilt.

Aria's dressed fairly practically for this: jeans, sneakers, and a dark green shirt, eschewing her usual bright reds. Her hair's also braided back and out of her way. Despite her typically cheerful manner still being in place, she's actually pretty damn good at staying quiet when she wants to, and seems to know a thing or two about how and where to step without making a lot of noise.

And when he asks for good climbers, she'd immediately answered. Climbing? Climbig trees? Hello, the way in which she'd spent most of her childhood. Aria had texted an affirmative to the journal post, and therefore later on can be found climbing a tree fairly easily and then going back down with equal efficiency, dropping down from the lowest branch.

She's more than willing to speak to or introduce herself to anyone.

You wouldn't want to see her less energetic setting. Trust me.

"Good, good! I'm already taking time out of a busy schedule here, but I couldn't just sit back and read about this stuff anymore, you know?" she said, drawing up next to the man. Student? How old was he, anyway?

"So first of all, where are we going and when?" she asked.

Oh, Toushirou had seen the 'bug-form' before; he wasn't fool enough to think that Hajime had come unprepared. He wasn't paying too much attention to how Hajime was carrying himself, but he did catch the skeptical tone of voice.

A brief, mildly irritated glance back before going back to watching for trouble. "I'm fine."

Honestly. He'd been in the Dead District that night. He'd been in the mine that day. And he'd made it out all right both times. With some help, sure, but he hadn't been a liability. He wouldn't be one here, either.

Alex was also wearing sunglasses! To protect his regular eyes, though.

Pinpointing Julien wasn't terribly difficult -- he did have blue hair, after all. Alex made a point to theatrically slide into the bench seat opposite him, arms spread out as he somehow managed to squeeze himself between the tiny space separating the seat and the table without losing his balance.

Upon sitting, he rested his elbows on the table and folded his hands together.

"So. Looks like we got the sunglasses part down."

Despite evidence to the contrary, Alex did take the investigation seriously. He was just being... Alex about it.

Julien was twenty-four, but he tended to be mistaken for younger. Partly it was his attitude, partly it was hereditary, but it wasn't uncommon for people to assume he was in his late teens.

"Well, I understand the sentiment! I mean, I feel it too, that's why I wanted to do this." He headed down one of the groomed paths away from the handful of people around, thumbs hooked into his pockets. He was trying not to stare, not that it would have been terribly visible if he'd given in. People still looked strange. "That would be the city reservoir, out west a ways. Still in range! I think. Or it'd be a short trip. And I want to set out tomorrow, but uh... I want to share my expectations, here."

People looked different these days. It was still offputting, but Julien had stopped flinching at the sight and hardly ever had to tell himself to get over it anymore. Anyway, it took a moment to recognize Alex. There was something odder than usual... Julien fought not to stare and gave in. Even aside from the sunglasses he could see things he wasn't directly looking at clearly, these days, and no one was the wiser.

Meanwhile he took a similar tone. "It's a good sign! Air of mystery and all that. Perfect for covert operations." Yes, he was fully aware that he was not at all covert here. "Hello to you, too!"

Lowering his voice a little Julien said, "So honestly I'm trying not to have expectations here, but it could be another trap, or it could be just going out there and coming back. I don't want anyone counting on either."

He untangled his fingers and pressed his palms against the table. "Oh, believe you me, I'm ready for a trap-- well. The possibility. I don't know how lucky we'll be if this turns out to be one, too, but! Crossing my fingers."

And he did cross his fingers.

Emmanuel drove in with Julien, wearing an old pair of jeans and a dark shirt. This time he came prepared, with a 24 pack of bottled water in the trunk, a small backpack, first aid kit, bug spray, granola bars, and a flashlight with extra batteries. (plus a hard case to protect his new phone.) He also wrapped the surprisingly sharp blade of his silver knife with a kitchen towel and stuck it in his back pocket.

"I can give someone a boost," he offered. The combat skill he gained in the mine aside, he wasn't too confident in his agility off the ground.

Julien watched her drop back to the ground, wrestling down the desire to climb up himself and check the positioning - he wasn't a great climber, and from here it had looked fine, anyway.

"Nice," he said a bit tightly. Hair covered, in strictly utilitarian and non-flashy clothing, and generally worried by being sort of in charge, his own cheerful manner was somewhat squashed.

"Fingers crossed. I'm half convinced it will be nothing, eventually we'll get a camera up and leave and people will bitch about how I wasted their time, and later I'll have to somehow get someone to take me out there again to get the camera back, and I'd want backup for that, too..."

Julien smiled crookedly. "Which would be better than if there were police or hairy things lying in wait, sure! Man, I don't know what's going to be out there."

There was a vague sense of relief when it's confirmed that this was the guy that Nick's looking for. He'd been pretty sure, but still, there was a little more security in hearing a favorable response.

"Yeah," he said, turning towards the other man as well. "I'm Nick. I figured this might be the kind of thing to ask about in person. You can really see whatever's making the water do this?"

Julien was reasonably sure no one was close enough to overhear them. Lip-reading... well, he was capable of watching several things at once, he'd make a note on if they were being studied. So, he smiled. "Julien! Pleased to meet you, and yeah that makes sense."

"I can. It's a lot harder to see than the fluoride, but it's there all right... I see a lot of things I couldn't, before. Guess it's a trade-off."

He made a noise that sounded suspiciously like "ehhhhhhhnnn" and said, "Let's hope for the best and plan for the worst, yeah? Having clear escape routes is the most important thing. God bless Google maps, huh?"

Kairi, on the other hand, made sure she was rested before coming to this... so she's a little concerned that he looks so worn down. But that's not exactly something you'd want to open a conversation with someone. So she approaches Fred with a friendly smile, though is kind of wondering where he got an actual sword.

"Here there... what's your name? I'm Kairi."

By this point, Neku was incredibly bored. He was probably not the only person present who'd pulled out his phone to try and pass the time. He was about to catch a ride with the next person who left when they hear something, and Neku looks out from the group hiding spot to see it. Unfortunately, they were a bit out of range for mind-reading... should he try to get closer?

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I wear a demeanor made of bright pretty things [Semi-Open]

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Open | Combat group

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Also open, also combat

open | sneaky people

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Open | arrival and/or sneaky people

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Open/whoever is there I guess?