1408/Ghostly Vibes

Ghostly Vibes
Date of Scene:	11 July 2017
Location:	Unknown
Synopsis:	Summary needed
Cast of Characters:	Wu, Sublime

---

Wu has posed:
    Ghost stories are a dime a dozen in old wrecks of neighbourhoods. Especially when the old wrecks are stuffed to the gills with people from the "Old Country" who may not yet have quite shaken off their superstitions to join the modern, "enlightened" era. Doubly so when sailors abound, some of the most superstitious people on the planet this side of sportball players.
    And of course sometimes the ghost stories are true.
    This is what brings Alice out at night in her new stomping grounds: rumours of a ghostly presence that glows and walks through walls and has a horrible visage and can make itself a hundred feet tall.
    Ghost stories also tend to exaggerate.
    Alice waits patiently in the darkened half-submerged entrance, lurking in the shadows as she observes, her pendant of Guanyin clutched in her hands as she surveys the streets from her vantage point.

Sublime has posed:
    It does take a bit of patience. There are some street people who wander by, even a pickup full of workers apparently just heading home from the bar, blasting a country western tune at max volume. The streets get quieter as the night gets longer, and the streetlights come up.

    Then, her patience is finally rewards. She spots a flash of white, first in one alley. Then, a minute later, in the alley on the OTHER side of the building where she just saw it. If it stays on course, there's another alley she knows is a dead end that pushes up against a small maze of old cargo containers from the docks nearby, many having been there long enough to rust in place.

Wu has posed:
    Time to leap into action. Or, in this case, slowly saunter into it. Timing is everything. Alice steps out of concealment, startling the PTSD-tortured vet who was just bedding down nearby. "Sorry," she whispers apologetically. Then tosses a fiver at him, wincing internally.
    Down the alley she walks, as if she just happens to be there by coincidence. Just ... walking down an unlit alley. That's a dead end. OK, that's a hard sell.
    Still, it's the story she's got and she'll tough it out. She waits for the glow to appear.

Sublime has posed:
    There's no real warning, or sense of a ghost, before a young woman comes wobbling through the wall. As in she just...walks right out of it. She's got that practiced walk of someone who knows just how much she might have drunk, but with the experience of knowing how to get where she's going without falling over. She does pause for a moment, resting her hand on her forehead for a moment. She's dressed very informally...a white top with the word Potato (for some reason) stretched across her chest. Not exactly party girl clothes, but definitely higher end stuff. There's also a small round messenger's satchel looking case, maybe a foot and a half long and a few inches across, that's sealed up and hanging off her shoulder.

    She winces a bit, then reaches back into the wall, sticking out the tip of her tongue a bit in concentration as she feels around, then pokes her head back inside...then pulls out a backpack. It...clinks, a bit. There's what looks like a scrap of fabric hanging out of the top, and while it seems to be quite full, she hefts it one handed fairly easily, bicep flexing. Definitely not a soft rave girl, whatever she is. She hasn't noticed you yet, from the look of it.

Wu has posed:
    Alice clears her throat.
    "Good evening. As a duly designated representative of Gotham City, in my capacity as a duly deputized visiting officer, I order you to cease any and all supernatural activity and return forthwith to your place of origin or to the nearest convenient parallel dimension."
    Tight smile.
    "Only you're not actually supernatural, are you?"
    The voice is gentle enough, but gentle like the proverbial velvet glove over the core of iron.
    "What, precisely, is it that you think you are doing miss?..."
    Alice isn't making any moves for weaponry, nor taking any martial stance. There's no physical threat at all. Just a face of stone.

Sublime has posed:
    The girl jumps, spinning around...in the process forgetting that she's got the bag, so she promptly starts to overbalance, one foot wobbling behind her, before it suddenly comes down. Hard. A little cloud of dust rising from the impact. Too hard?

    She blinks owlishly, then grins. "Good evening occifer, how are you? I'm jusht...walking. Y'know...cuz it's a nice night out..." She slowly sets the bag down behind her, trying to keep it behind her body. "Are you a ghoshbushter?" she says, looking Alice over slowly. "Cuz ya don't got the underoos....." She pauses, frowning. "No...the thingee. That you wear over your clothes. The thing!" She pauses, taking a deep breath. Great job Rachel. Straight into a cop. She knew she shouldn't have had that third mimosa. She takes on an expression of perfect innocence, as best she can. "I mean, ish under your suit thingee, that's cool too. Ghost? Nawwww..."

Wu has posed:
    Despite actually QUOTING the movie, Alice doesn't seem to be getting the reference.
    "I wouldn't exactly call me a ghostbuster," she muses. "Most ghosts are harmless and don't deserve the reputation they have."
    She takes a brief step to the side to get another look at the bag Sublime is hiding.
    "Of course," she adds slowly, "most ghosts are stealing things. Please tell me that you're not. Or that if you are you'll stop now and put back the goods. The paperwork for a visiting officer bringing in a local is horrendous. I'm able to do it--quite well, actually--but I'd rather not." Again that tight smile. It's not inhuman, but its hard. It barely reaches the eyes, and then only briefly.
    "I have more important fish to fry than--no offense--young women..." That's offensive!? "...with more desire for things than ability to pay for them." OK, there's the offense.
    She extends her hand. "Here, let me help you up. And I will be very, very disappointed if you try anything."

Sublime has posed:
    Rachel siiidesteps, trying to keep it behind her and herself between it and Alice. "Ghost steal things? Those bastards!" she says, eyes widening. She's not very good at it, as the bag is fairly big. That looks like some sort of fancy party dress poking out. It still has the tag.

    She seems to be shaking off some of her drunkeness, possibly because of a bit of adrenaline running through her body. "Hmmm. Oooookay.." she says, as Alice reaches for her.

    Then steps forward slightly as Alice's hand goes right through her hand and....well, is now in her chest. "....EEEEEEEE! I'M BEING MOLESTED!" Though really it looks more like she's about to do a Kali-Mar heart rip than anything else. Some serious lungs on that girl though!

Wu has posed:
    Alice makes Marge Simpson noises (though if pressed would deny knowing who Marge Simpson is).
    "Really? This is how you want it to play out?" Her voice goes cold and hollow, like something from the grave. "So be it."
    Prayer beads of jade and obsidian wrapped around her arm four times suddenly flare with light, filling the alleyway with cold, blue-tainted, eye-hurtinglight.
    "Do you want to be dispelled, my little ghost?" she continues in the hollow voice, her eyes focused into nothingness. "You would not like where you're sent."

Sublime has posed:
    Rachel blinks a bit. Well. She wasn't expecting that. Usually they at least freak out a LITTLE at that! Ghost hunters apparently are not bothered by such things. She jumps back reflexively at the glow, then mmmphs, slitting her eyes as she puts her hands behind her back, putting a little distance between her and the glowing prayer beads, her eyes squinting at the sudden light. "...pretty sure I'd have to actually be dead for that." she says conversationally. Jeez, can't even let a girl get in a little shopping. Do you know how hard it is to get this season's summer line at this point?!?

     She sighs. She doesn't really need a rap sheet at this point. "...fine..." She says, grudgingly as she reaches back to snag the bag, then tosses it to land in front of Alice. "I found it. I would have brought it somewhere. SEcurity or stuff..." she says, resisting the urge to scowl. Man, it took her HOURS of going through a warehouse for that.

Wu has posed:
    The glow vanishes at once. Alice picks up the bag. Now the smile is friendly and reaches the eyes. The eyes twinkling with a bit of mischief.
    "First thing you learn when fighting the supernatural: the non-supernatural can't tell the difference between a light charm and a dispel hex." The laugh is very politely stifled after only a short time.
    "Look, I'm Alice. How about we just go somewhere to eat and we talk, OK? I was serious about having far bigger fish to fry than you, but I'm also serious about other things. Someone like you? You're going to see things I can't. I can make that somewhat worth your while."
    A small shrug.
    "My budget for this isn't that big, but I have other ways of payment should it come to that. These charms and hexes don't work for only me if I make 'em right."

Sublime has posed:
    Rachel folds her arms, still squinting at Alice a bit. The alcoholic fog has lifted, a bit, though she's still aware she is perhaps not at her best. "...stupid magic." she mutters, then frowns a bit. "...seriously. You want to...what, make me a contact of yours?" she says after a moment, loking like she's thinking it over. "And you'll just..kinda forget about mysterious backpacks which I'm sure I know nothing about."

Wu has posed:
    Alice winces at that. "I will overlook this ONE," she says. "The ONE that I just found on the ground here and will turn in. It would be best if I didn't find any more."
    Now the Marge Simpson disapproval expression.
    "What this means in practical terms is try to keep it to a dull roar and out of my sight. I'm not naive nor stupid." The expression softens. "But yes, the word you're looking for is 'informant' and that's what I'm offering. It's not a huge budget I've got, as I said, but I do have other ways of paying that ... well, that the GCPD doesn't have to know about. Believe me, you will encounter trouble with the supernatural the way you move about. I am useful to have in the corner when that happens."

Sublime has posed:
    Rachel mmms, then nods slowly. "...alright." Hey, it's money. She can't really turn it down, especially since she won't be able to fence any of that stuff she, ah, found tonight. She has bills to pay...and people who are depending on her to pull her weight. "...alright." she says after a moment, still a little wary. She steps forward cautiously and offers her hand. "...I don't know about ghosts, but there are maybe things that would be helpful you could give that'll come up." she says slowly.

Wu has posed:
    "Ghosts. Demons. Magicians. Demonic magicians. Magical ghosts. The undead."
    Alice smiles mysteriously.
    "Pretty much all the same to me. Along with ogres, goblins, trolls and other of their ilk. The only thing I really can't help you with is stuff that is blatantly illegal ... for reasons I trust you'll understand."
    She shakes the proffered hand. "Now let's get something to eat. There's a 24-hour baozi place around the corner here. I don't know why, but I'm thankful for it because it's about the best food you're going to get at this time of night." She surreptitiously checks her wallet before continuing, with a nod. "My treat."

Sublime has posed:
    The other woman raises her brows more and more, the longer the list gets. "...trolls, really?" she says, unsure if she's pulling her leg now. Her grip is strong, and she actually holds Alice's hand for a moment, her cool blue eyes meeting the other woman's gaze. Her hand feels...odd. Hard. It's almost like she's shaking hands with a warm marble statue. "...don't make me regret this." she says slowly, then releases her hand. She has to...trust someone, right? Everyone can't be working for them. God she hopes so.

    She frowns, rubbing the back of her neck, then mms. "...okay. What's baozi, though?" she asks, ready to follow after her.

Wu has posed:
    "Yes. Trolls. They're ... nasty. And a baozi is perfection in hand-held food. It's like a bun filled with things: vegetables, meats, sweet things. You'll see."
    Alice purses her lips a moment at Sub's statement. "I don't know what kinds of things you'll regret," she muses, "but I will promise to deal as openly and as honestly as I know how, within the limits of this badge's constraints."
    She flips the lapel of her vest to show the silver GCPD deputization badge.
    "Which means," she continues, "that I really can't help you in illegal ventures and, indeed, am sworn to prevent them." She holds up the bag. "Thankfully you're not involved in anything like that," she says sternly. "But outside of that I will not abuse trust like so many people do with informants. I believe in relationships, not power dynamics."

Sublime has posed:
    The girl sighs. "Yeah, yeah, no stepping over the law." she says, waving it off. "Fine, I get it. I don't know if I can get much to tell you. Yet. I'm...new here too." she admits after a moment.

    "...Alice, huh? Wouldn't have guessed you for an Alice. I'm Rachel." she offers, as a further olive branch.

    And then her stomach decides to rumble. Loudly.

    She swallows a bit, looking up and away. "...I guess baozi sounds okay then." she says, in the maybe disinterested but not really disinterested at all way that only a teen can pull off at times.

Wu has posed:
    "Like everything interesting in life, it's complicated," Alice says of her name. "You could go also by my old-fashioned formal title or the snappier modern one I made up when I took up the ... when I had the job thrust on me. Or you could call me Detective Gulliver. There's many names in everybody's life. Yours, here and now, to me, is Rachel. You have others."
    It's not a question.
    With that she guides Sublime to the all-night-baozi-shack, smoothly bantering with the owner in Cantonese as she selects a wide variety of the strange-looking buns pulled out of steamers. "You don't mind, do you? I just grabbed two of each. Note how they're shaped differently at the top where they're pinched together. That's how you tell them apart."

Sublime has posed:
    Rachel mmphs, as she's starting to realize she reaaaally should have given a non de plume here and made something up. Well...probably they won't track her by the name. It's not like she's going to put this in a report. Right?

    "Everybody does." she says, agreeably, but not offering more than that. She watches curiously. "Okay...so...which is which?" she asks finally. "Is this like a pork bun thing?" She glances at Alice, looking a bit bemused, but apparently trusting her to guide her through this strange new world of filled buns.

Wu has posed:
    "Therein lies one of the lessons of the mysteries of life, Rachel," Alice says. "Each baozi maker has his own scheme for marking them. It's like a little language of its own. It usually has some kind of logic, but you have to know the answer to understand the question. Very Chan, really."
    She eyes the steamers placed between them.
    "Now see that one with a corn kernel at the peak? That's probably going to be the sweet corn paste. The barbeque pork ones will ... I'm going to guess it's the elongated ones with the folds."
    She takes one of each of those and opens them up enough to see the insides. And is right.
    "And I know this because ... I've eaten here before and learned his language!"
    She covers her mouth as she laughs lightly. "But try them all. They're all really quite good. And most of them will be nutritious too. That's what's wonderful about these: cheap, filling, nutritious."

Sublime has posed:
    Rachel watches, then rolls her eyes a bit when Alice reveals the trick. "So not magic after all...." she says, snagging one of the pork ones first. She's pretty sure she likes that one, and...well, she's hungrier than she'd like to admit. Rent being more important than food sometimes.

    So "So, you're like..visiting here? In Gotham?" she says, managing it around a mouthful of pork bun.

Wu has posed:
    "I'm on long-term loan from the Hong Kong Police Department," Alice says between mouthfuls of her own. She's eating slower and more from companionship than hunger it seems. "It happens every so often that police departments get the idea in their head that they can learn from each other's techniques. So some hapless fool who's upset her superiors gets sent half a world away to 'foster improved relations'."
    The smile belies the cynicism of the words.
    "Of course sometimes said superiors make a mistake and send someone who's actually interested in it. The punishment aspect loses a lot of its bite when that happens."
    

Sublime has posed:
"Damn, yeah. You must have REALLY pissed someone off to send you to Gotham." the young woman agrees, polishing off the first bun and going back for another, a corn one this time. "So...you wanted to visit here? Why?" she says, frowning. "I mean...Gotham's police force doesn't have the best rep, ya know?"

Wu has posed:
    "Important people to my other line of work live here or nearby," Alice says. "And there's big stuff happening that I need to be on top of. I was already thinking of taking a leave of absence. I was ... fortunate. I'm here and I'm getting paid for it."
    She pauses.
    "Uh ... how are you on chili pepper?" she asks suddenly, as Rachel takes a bite. "Because that... too late. Pickled mustard leaves. Laced with chili and garlic."

Sublime has posed:
    It takes a moment to really have it hit her, before she makes a muffled 'murk!' noise, then swallows, before hurriedly going for a glass of water. "You said it was corn!" she manages after she chugs down most of the glass, then sighs in relief. "...wow, that like, could have killed me or somethin'! Give a girla little more warning..." she says.

    But she doesn't stop eating it. Food is food! "So, you're more a...what, ghost hunter, ghost whisperer?" she asks, after another good drink of water.

Wu has posed:
    Alice sighs and pinches the bridge of her nose. "I ... oh my."
    She actually reddens visibly.
    "My official, old title, is 'The August Wu of the Coral Island'." She holds up her hands in a defensive, pushing-away gesture. "That's not what I go by. That's what my mother went by. And her mother before her and so on for all eternity..." Brief mutter. "...or so it seems..." She continues, her voice normal. "I just go by The Wu when working in my other capacity. We're ... uh ... well ... the magical protectors of Hong Kong and affiliated islands."

Sublime has posed:
    A blonde brow arches at that. "Seriously." she says, pursing her lips. "So like...you're this ancient family of magical warriors? That's got to be heavy..." Rachel says slowly. She looks like she's not going to question it at the moment...something about the way Alice says it convinces her she at least believes it, as far as I can tell.

Wu has posed:
    Alice presses her lips together. "Yes. Seriously," she says. She doesn't sound happy about it. "It kind of messed things up, though, but ..." She sighs. "The magic goes where it wants to go. When my mother was killed it came to me. I had the mantle all of a sudden."
    She snorts and laughs. "But I'm stubborn. I wanted to be a cop like my dad, so I did. Magic be damned." She tilts her head. "Thing is, magic is stubborn too. So now I have two full-time jobs."

Sublime has posed:
    The other woman just watches Alice for a moment, then smiles faintly. "Frustrating." she offers, as well as snagging another pork baozi.

    She just turns it over in her hands for a moment, her face going a little blank. Like her dad. Her real one. Thanks for passing on your genes and putting me on the target list of a incredibly evil black ops organization that wants to harvest me for shits and giggles.

    She closes her eyes, inhaling. It's over, you're gone, and the others are safe. She takes a big bite of the bun, trying to cover it, chewing quickly and swallowing. "One job you want to do, one job you have to do, huh?"

Wu has posed:
    "More like the other happens to me whether I want it to or not. It's easier to just do it when it shows up than to fight it and find yourself facing something ever bigger."
    She points at one of the trays. "That's called 'yellow milk bao'. It's made from soy paste, sugar, and a kind of a custardy thing. Very sweet. And that other one with the black thing at the meeting point? That's basically osmanthus and sugar."
    "Somehow," she continues, voice changing, "I think you understand the notion of being forced into things. You don't strike me as ... well ... someone who finds bags because it's what you want to do. Family? Need to provide?"

Sublime has posed:
    Rachel finishes the bun she's working on, swallowing, then finishing off her water. She doesn't look up for a moment, a little shiver of fear running through her. No. She can't risk it. They'll find them. They'll find her, and they'll use her to find the others. "...I can't talk about that." she says after a moment. The paranoia is just too ingrained for her to talk about that. At least, on a first meeting.

    She inhales, then stands up, looking down at Alice steadily. "...thank you for the meal. And...the other stuff."

Wu has posed:
    "I understand," Alice says gently. "I really do. There's scary things in the world and sometimes it takes a while to know where to turn."
    A card practically materializes in her hand. It is not a GCPD one. It just says 'Alice' and has a phone number. And a scrawl of symbols of unrecognized provenance.
    "Call me if you need me, or if you have any information you think might interest me," she says. "And someday maybe we can exorcise whatever demon has you."

Wu has posed:
    Alice stands up from the table, leaving the card before Rachel and walking away. "Sleep well, Rachel," she says over her shoulder as she passes into the darkness.