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Take Me Out To the Ball Game Again!

Aishe happily kicked back her feet, resting them up on her little folding chaise lounge chair. Sas delighted to see that the summer series of minor league games included several night games, specifically because of Nachton's reputation for wild nightlife. It hadn't taken much to persuade Kem to go in with her for season tickets. She wasn't much for sports but she enjoyed baseball when she was actually in the stadium watching it, and Nachton's stadium, like many, had a lovely hillside area without bleachers where you could bring your own chairs and picnics and such. Kem, harboring a natural dislike of contact sports, was all for baseball.

This was the second game they'd come to in as many weeks, so she already considered their season passes to be money well-spent. The game hadn't started yet, and Aishe was busy unpacking their small cooler of treats while Kem had gone in search of refreshing frosty beverages. It was clear and warm out, and in all a wonderful night for baseball.

Pak was supposed to meet them, or so she'd said, and Aishe was looking forward to it. She hadn't seen the witty little Thai in a while now, and she knew Kem hadn't either, in spite of the constant stream of emails the two exchanged during the work day... work night.

More people were streaming in, setting up chairs, tables in some cases or merely blankets; some with picnic baskets or coolers, some without. Aishe smiled. It was the perfect night for relaxing at a game.

((ooc: Please feel free to crash, we guarantee absolutely no plot-furthering, no significant philosophizing, and most likely a great deal of sarcasm, acerbic wit, and possibly some food-throwing. Bring your own damn chair!!))

Cyrus 17 years ago
Listening to Fallon speak quietly to Ana made him realize something strange. Well strange to him as he normally wouldn't care but for some reason it struck him tonight. Looking at all the quiet people he realize that at least three were Evenhet, which meant they could be empaths. Great. He sat there feeling the need to kill people and he wondered why it was so quiet.

With a slightly chagrined look on his face he apologized to Kem and Aishe.


"My apologies if my foul mood is disturbing anyone. I can leave if need be."

Somehow he had even managed to quiet Dawn, though perhaps she was just really into this ball game. Taking a long swig of his beer he figured it may be best to finish up quickly and head out in light of his current effect on the group.
Pakpao 17 years ago
Pak stood respectfully for the anthem but she didn't sing. It wasn't that she wasn't patriotic, but well she was (had been? What ever) an illegal alien and besides that home would always be Siam.

Before the anthem she'd herd some ranting in Chinese, she thought. Might not have been but she was fairly certain, not that it was any of her business, so she let it go and flopped back into her chair.


"Play ball... "

Patience was a virtue, as proven by the will power that it took to sit through the ceremonial first pitch, some pitcher warm up, and more.

She debated helping that first pitch, it wasn't in play and wouldn't effect the out come of the game. However, it was far enough away that, despite her best effort, she couldn't get her mind around it. It might have gotten a bit of a nudge but you'd never be able to tell.

Tired of this plaything she quipped,


"You know I think all this is just a ploy to hike up peanut and beer sales. I mean how much of it is really necessary?"Â?

Not that she'd finished her beer but it was the principle of the thing.

She somewhat grinned at Cyrus.


"Some how I don't think we're going to chase away the man who brought the bar. You might as well stick around and enjoy the game."Â?
Montana 17 years ago
Leaning over to listen to her vampire friend, Ana nodded emphatically in response to Fallon's question. She thought she heard a note of desperation in her friend's voice, something she'd only heard once or twice before. "Of course, Fallon," she whispered very lowly. "It's Joey's monthly camping trip, so I'm free for a couple days."

She didn't remember when she'd decided to start calling it that, but it was as good an answer - for not having gotten any - as any other.

Winking at her friend, she leaned up and looked at Cyrus. "You have to stay! Or at least I gently request. Everybody needs to stick together for the family's first ball game!"

They were, weren't they? Close friends entwined on many levels, some a bit deeper under the sheets than others. Some known in passing, others hundred-plus-year acquaintances. Maybe a kooky uncle or motormouthed aunt, but still... a family. It gave Ana a strange but welcome thrill to realize she cared for most of the people sitting with her at the ol' ball game. Or if she did not yet, she wished to eventually.
Aishe 17 years ago
Aishe shook her head at Cyrus. "I certainly don't think you should leave unless business requires it. What you need is some greasy popcorn, a cold salty hot dog... or is it the other way around? Either way... what are friends for if not for help you get rid of a bad mood?"

She raised her soda to him and took a long slurping sip through the straw, intentionally noisy. The noise blended in with the crowd around them, but she grinned at Cyrus anyhow.

Turning to Pak in mock astonishment she opened her eyes wide. "It's all necessary! You just can't have baseball without the accompanying... well, stuff."

She turned to Kem for assistance, hoping he'd back her up on that one.
Kem`Raaisu 17 years ago
Kem was having a great time lounging. Enough so that he warting to consider taking it up professionally. Still, while it was tempting to float off into no-man's land, he was keeping a keen ear on conversation. Cyrus' suggestion that he should leave had him raising his eyebrows and nodding in agreement with Aishe.

"It's no use, they'll keep you here anyhow. Trust me, I'm foul mood central. Best you learn to grin and bear it, and you might be surprised."

It was the best advice he could give; after all, he'd been talked down from his fair share of ledges. "If you leave you'll be in a bad mood and miss all the fun. You may as well not lose on both counts."

Pak and Aishe's byplay didn't go over his head, either. Aishe was looking to him for support, so he simply reached down next to his chair, without looking at either woman, and held up an enormous styrofoam hand in Nachton's colors with the index finger raised in a "#1" gesture. He couldn't quite bring himself to scream something obnoxious like the rest of the crowd, but that should be enough to state his opinion on the matter.

Stuff, indeed. Of course they needed stuff!
Dawn Ratana 17 years ago
Wrinkling her nose, she frowned at Cyrus.

"Noway man! Baseball's like one'a them moralimperitivz or sumthin!"

Pointing at Aishe and nodding emphatically, Dawn started offering things from the collection to Cyrus in rapid succession.

"You know something'll cheer you up! How's'bout peanuts! Nutty goodness! Hot dog if you're a roasted weenieman! Pretzel for th'salt! Beer f'r th'washdown! Crackerjack for...for the...holy shit, they still make these?"

Tearing open a box, she dumped the contents out into a tray and grabbed the prize. Looking at the thin slip of plastic, she read the instuctions. Placing it on the palm of her hand and sheilding herself from the breeze, she watched as it flipped its tail.

"Ooooo...the wonderous divinitory wishfish thingie! It tells me I'm energetic and vibrant! Who's next!"

Pushing it toward Alec, she didn't wait to confirm that he'd taken it, she just moved over next to Kem.

"Aw, man! You gotta holla when you throw the finger up! Like this! GODDAMN BATTER COULDN'T HIT THE BALL IF HE WERE STRADDLING THE PLATE AND THE PITCHER WAS AIMING FOR HIM! NO HITTER! WOOO! See, like that."

Grabbing a handful of Cracker Jacks, she put them into her mouth and promptly spit them out. Under her voice, she said

"Nope, still don't like them."
Alec Devereaux 17 years ago
A bit curious about Cyrus' business, Alec let it wash over him. He didn't know Chinese, so there was no point in trying to figure it out. His languages were all too different. There was no disguising his irritation, though. And Fallon's discomfort.

Wondering about the neediness present in her voice as Ana offered to stay with her, he wondered just how much he'd missed in everyone's development while training new groups for Simon's Army. He still didn't know many of them all that well, despite the general comfort they provided and the fun they'd had together. Was that friendship? Enjoying each other's company without judging them on their actions? Or was it finding comfort in the proximity of others, like Fallon? Or was it meaningful conversation? Or was it simply the act of sharing, the one thing all of the ideas had in common? The dictionary hadn't helped much - according to American Heritage, he either had two friends, the entirety of the Clan, or everyone he'd ever had a conversation with. That wasn't especially helpful, so he'd sought a new definition, and sharing willingly was the closest he could get.

Watching Dawn's antics brought a smile to his face, reminding him of a friend long gone. His reminiscence was broken by the sudden presentation of a plastic fish, which fluttered in the air a moment before he carefully snatched it, preventing it from blowing away in the slight breeze. Looking at it, and the instructions next to it, he figured why not. Removing his left glove, he placed the fish carefully on the palm, where it did nothing at all. Waiting a few moments longer, the fish still did nothing. Looking at the instructions, he frowned.


"Well, apparently I'm dead. How disconcerting."

Slipping his glove back on, he offered the fish to Aishe.

"Your turn."
Fallon 17 years ago
WAIT! What was that? Cyrus was worried about his mood disturbing the others? Posh! Fallon knew most of the people they were in the company of, well enough, to know none of them would want to see Cyrus leave.

And even putting aside her wishes to remain, if he truly did need to go now, so he could get ready for his trip, she would understand, and accompany him without hesitation.

But if his reasons for getting ready to leave were based solely on his need to observe some good manners, Fallon would try her best to talk him out of it.

As it turned out, everyone else reacted exactly as she had expected, and hoped they would, and she couldn't help but smile.


"See there baby? No one wants you to leave." Her tone was a little more whiny than she really cared for it to be, but she hoped if her husband wasn't going to listen to her, he'd listen to Pakpao, Ana, Aishe, Kem, and Dawn!

Glancing over to Alec, to see why he didn't speak up, she was struck by the absurdity of his statement, coupled with the look on his face as he gazed at the little toy, and she laughed. It was most inappropriate, she knew, but her nerves seemed to be extra raw and explosive at the moment, and as a result some of her actions seemed to have taken on their own lives.

Covering her mouth, and now assuming a look something akin to terror, Fallon twisted herself back to face Cyrus, and studied his face.

Before she'd married Ted, things between them seemed good. Yet the second the ink was dry on their marriage license, everything began to change. Is this what all marriages were destined to be for her? Now that she and Cyrus were married, was he going to change, and become someone else too? She would have never imagined such a thing was possible, and yet here he was, acting totally unlike she'd ever seen him act before.


"There has to be more going on here than a simple trip to China; however, I'll take your word that we'll talk more about it when we get home. But please Cyrus, won't you try to relax and have a little fun with me and our friends, until its absolutely necessary for you to go?"

Taking his hands in hers, beer and all, Fallon tried to draw him out of his self imposed funk. Oblivious to everyone but Cyrus, Fallon was trying everything in her power to see that her husband reconsidered, and had a good time. Between the two of them, she rarely got the opportunity to really contribute much to their relationship, so now that she thought she might have a chance, she just needed to make sure she didn't make a fool of herself, and fail in her attempt.
If he didn't change his mind, and did end up leaving merely because he erroneously thought he was ruining someone's evening, then Fallon would have failed.
Cyrus 17 years ago
Of them all, Kem spoke exactly of the dilemma Cyrus faced. He would just be miserable elsewhere and since he was already here he may as well stay. Perhaps none of them were empaths despite being Evenhet. Bowing his head to them all he decided to stay.

Dawn's behavior cheered him up slightly as he watched her flit from one thing to the next with blinding speed. He had no idea what she pulled out of the box of candy looking popcorn. His sharp eyes saw the plastic fish shaped object but he was still boggled. Why would someone put plastic in a box of food, what was dawn talking about and why did she just toss it to Alec?

Watching Alec with it and his subsequent comment made Cyrus quirk up a half smile. Fallon's laugh mostly masked his quiet comment.
"Aren't we all?"

Mentally he shook the confusion from his observations and leaned over to kiss Fallon. She asked him so sweetly to stay and he knew that his leaving would be hard on her. While he felt bad for the necessity of their separation there was just no avoiding it. Rather than dwell on it he tried to enjoy the evening as Fallon asked.

"Ok Kitten, I will try."

His thumb gently stroked the back of her hand. Cyrus was torn between keeping her in suspense and ruining her evening. Though with her nature he hoped she could enjoy the evening with the knowledge of his reasons for leaving. Sighing he quietly tried to explain.

"Earlier tonight I received a call from the estate caretaker in China. He told me that there was a poacher in the jungle. The call just now was to inform me that three of the clouded leopards have been killed. I have to go stop this. The jungle is under my protection."

Running a hand through his hair he cursed at the fates for bringing this calamity into their lives. It was a sign of the times he supposed. People now did not respect spirits or the supernatural. All he had to do before was to maim the hunters to get them to tell stories of the super leopard who protected the jungle. Taking a big swallow of his beer he lamented mentally of the loss of those simpler times.
Aishe 17 years ago
As Alec held the little red fish out to her Aishe took one last sip of her soda and held out her hand to receive it. Peering at it curiously, she watched with a growing smile as the fish immediately began to curl at the head and tail. With her other hand she held up the little instruction paper and gave a soft laugh.

"Your magical fish says I'm in love!" she said to Dawn, who was standing right next to Kem now. She peered around the Anantya to waggle her eyebrows suggestively at the silver-haired vampire, who was looking at Dawn with a strange expression of mixed shock and admiration.

To Alec, she shook her head. "You'd think I'd have gotten the same result. Maybe I'm still juicy."

Letting Kem deal with Dawn she tossed the fish over to Pak. "Your turn!"
Pakpao 17 years ago
Incoming! Dawn’s behavior had distracted her and the next thing she knew she was being attacked. What ever it was it was going to hit her in the face. Without thinking about it Pak grabbed the what ever it was with her mind and stopped it just short of it hitting her in the face and held it there for a blink of an eye. Just long enough for her to process that holding things in midair in public was a bad idea and letting it drop into her lap.

Irritated at having a faux fish hurled at her face without adequate warning she launched into a brief but violent tirade in Siamese. It wasn’t terribly original, but certainly not suitable for children. Getting that out of her system she gingerly held the fish by its tail.


“What is it and why am I holding it?”
Aishe 17 years ago
Aishe grimaced slightly as the fish threatened to hit Pak in the face, but the woman's reflexes were fairly good and she managed to stop it in time, letting it drop immediately afterward. Fortunately most of the crowd were focused on the game, and between Dawn and Kem, Pak was fairly well-hidden. Aishe didn't think the minor slip-up was very noticeable at all.

She held the instruction paper out to Pak.
"Mood fish," she said with a grin. "Hold it in your palm and it'll tell your fortune or something like that."

With an innocent expression she pointed at Alec. "It says he's dead. Not very nice, if you ask me."
Kem`Raaisu 17 years ago
Kem was slightly taken aback by dawn's sudden and rather vigorous display of energy... but he had to admit, she had it all over them on the enthusiastic heckling. With an oversized-foam-hand salute, he offered the big #1 finger to her.

"I think this has finally found its rightful owner," he said with a grin. "Heckling like that deserves a prize."

He didn't get a chance to say anything further before something small and red flew past his eyes and nearly hit Pak in the face. Predictably, she let loose a stream of Siamese which would have made a sailor blush in spite of its lack of creativity.

"I'm pretty sure that's illegal in at least 45 states," he informed her wryly. "Though you might want to double-check on Alabama."

Peering curiously at the fish as Aishe explained its use, he nodded at Pak. "Go for it, let's see what it says."
Alec Devereaux 17 years ago
Grinning, Alec stood up, stretching.

"Well, I'm going to go double check my pulse in private, make sure the fish is wrong...I'll be back shortly."

Smiling at the ongoing antics of the plastic toy, he slipped back away from the group. He hadn't seen any coffee in the park, but he had a hankering, and was pretty sure no one would mind the beverage. Besides, he somewhat missed the point of the game. Smacking a small ball and running in circles seemed pretty arbitrary, and though it trained hand eye coordination, he didn't understand the game's emergence in an historical context.

((Alec out briefly))
Pakpao 17 years ago
"Mood fish? You're kidding right?"Â?

Pak looked at the fish quite dubiously now. She didn't do mood anything, what the hell was the point of being blessed with the gift of subterfuge if one was simply handed a rubbery toy that gave it all away. Holding it in the palm of her hand she leaned over it and poked it experimentally the tail curled up and she smoothed it down. It curled up again, although less convincingly this time and she smoothed it down and this time it stay down. Pak scowled slightly not sure if she was pleased it was no behaving itself or if she should be worried she broke it.

"I think I killed it."Â?

Satisfied the fish hadn't given her mood away she rolled her eyes at Kem. Her language wasn't what you'd have called 'appropriate' in fact it had been quite horrible but no one else' ears has been singed by the profanity.

"It's legal in Alabama, Kentucky, West Virginia, California, Maine and Minnesota. I think I may owe some one here a fine but if this were Florida I could be arrested. Which, aside from my tendency to sun burn is one more reason to avoid that lovely appendage to the United States."Â?

Feeling slightly smug she tossed the potentially broken fish in the general direction of Fallon, not that her aim was too good.

"Stupid fish, not very aerodynamic are they?"Â?

((OOC... fish up for grabs it was a BAD toss)
Fallon 17 years ago
Cyrus' touch was comforting, but his words were not. Her heart ached to hear of the killings, and she immediately tensed to think her babies might be in danger.

"Oh Cyrus, you don't think whoever is doing this would come here and harm the kittens, do you?"

It was pretty far fetched, but Fallon still new little about how far Cyrus' reputation, and business holding extended. If it was indeed a poacher in China, she felt safe, but if there was any possibility this person, or persons had some vendetta against her Cyrus...

Needing more than the simple feel of his hand on hers, Fallon moved to sit on the ground between Cyrus' legs, and pulled his hands to wrap aroung her shoulders. She rested her arms on the tops of his thighs, and tried to transmit her love to him through those simple touches.

Concentrating on her husband and his tribulations, Fallon still managed to be a little aware of the goings on around her. She had seen the fish floating about, but hadn't heard really what it was all about. However, when she felt something light on the top of her head, she reached up and patted her hair. Her hand came down with the funny fish and she looked at it a little blankly.

Before she had a chance to examine the toy further, it wiggled a bit on her palm, and then, caught up on a breeze, it fluttered into the air. Fallon leaned forward to try and catch it, but was unsuccessful. She watched as it fluttered towards Ana, then leaned her head back to rest on Cyrus. With him leaving so soon, she wanted to take advantage of their short time together.
Montana 17 years ago
"That's probably why they stick to subaquatic environs, Pak. They would make horrible flappy-byes."

The little tchotchke fell on her lap and she picked it up and held it solidly in her palm. "I wonder what the color for 'content because of with family' is."

She focused one at a time on her ballgame companions and reclined on her chair a bit, taking in the game. Though she felt minutely confused about all the action and the reactions of some of the crowd she felt genuinely welcome. Though her guesstimate of being the only human of the lot of them was probably not far from the mark, she didn't feel at all worried.

Just... just right.
Cyrus 17 years ago
Fallon's question made him smile. The sad truth behind the killings was that superstition sometimes got the better of people. Cyrus simply had to reinforce his own mystic legend to fight back. Lightly he stroked her hair.

"No love, they are simply deluded hunters intent on selling rare animal parts for profit. The kittens are safe."

Having his mate comfort him as well as herself, allowed him to relax slightly and garner what enjoyment he could from the evening. Watching the others inspect the toy Dawn had produced was amusing. Aishe seemed to think it was cute apparently while Pakpao was not so inclined. It was interesting to know that others in the group shared his telekinetic talent. Though the display was not long lasting and most people were facinated by the game in front of them. Any humans watching nearby would simply assume it hit her in the nose and dropped from there.

The string of cursing was interesting. He had not heard that language in quite a long time. His brow arched at the inventive invectives. The brief urge to cover Fallon's ears made him smile, unless he taught her, she had no idea what the Evenhet was saying. The byplay between Kem and Pakpao was also interesting, they must have been friends for a great while he thought.

After a moment the toy went sailing through the air again. He watched as it landed lightly upon his Kitten's head. Before he could brush it off she patted her head and found it. Looking over her shoulder he realize he was not interested in the toy's reaction to anyone but Fallon. The little thing wiggled about before being swept up on the wind.

Ana's reaction was nice. The young human seemed quite content to be surrounded by vampires, even if they were friendly. Cyrus tried to remember to invite the girl over more often as she and Fallon had such a good friendship.

The sound of wood striking something brought his attention up and he watched the game continue in front of them, unmoved by their drama or fun. Life did continue and he was home here. He should make the best of it.
Montana 17 years ago
Ana set the little fish on the brim of her drink, and looked around her trying to find a travelling snack vendor.

"If anyone sees the hot dog guy, could you grab me one or two? No mustard please?" she asked no one in particular.

Her allergic handicap hadn't been something she'd needed to really dwell on much recently. The near limitless assortment of home-cooked meals she and Joey had been sharing had been as far away from problematic as possible. She was glad, just the same, that she'd taught Aishe, Fallon, Suki and Kem how to use her epi kit.
Aishe 17 years ago
Aishe was caught up in the game a bit and didn't notice where the little fish went after Pak held it. She was a bit concerned that Nachton seemed to be on uneven ground already; the New York team had scored a run in the very first inning. Just one, however, and they only had one runner on base.

Intent as she was on the game, she still caught Ana's question, and in an effort to be helpful and/or useful, figured that was one request she could certainly fill.

Hopping up from her chair she said, "I'll make a foray out this time. Anyone else want anything?"

Besides, a hot dog sounded great... and there was a guy wandering around with spools of cotton candy as well. It was a weak spot... but so yummy. Especially the blue stuff!