On the Edge of the Unknown (Open to 2) – Afternoon

It had started earlier that morning directly after she had the meeting with the strange woman and the even stranger like cat man at the food court. While at first the encountered left her reeling with joy and excitement about what was theorized, the more time ticked on the more the excitement began to disappear and become a sinking feeling in her stomach. She wasn’t sure what it was that changed her mood or caused the feeling deep inside of her, but there was definite something there that made her feel uneasy. Was it fear of the unknown? Of the idea that by the end of today everything would be changed and everyone around her would become some form of processed data scattered all over the place? While she loved the idea of change and definitely wasn’t afraid of unknown, there was something that didn’t sit right with the young woman about the particular information she heard.

Something that made her uneasy every time she closed her eyes and saw the mischievous face of the one that had provided the information to her.

She didn’t think it was a lie what he said, but at the same time she wonder if what he was saying was possible. Could something that earth shattering actually occur?….And if so what sort of power would kick that off? The cat had mentioned others gathered here for this event, but who those other people were he didn’t say. Nor did he say how or if they could potentially impact this reveal. Hmmm…maybe that Touko lady would get her the promised information and help with this unknown variable that was making her sick the more she pondered it.

Maybe she was just stressing herself out to prepare for something bad rather than good. Over thinking perhaps due to having time to spare....

With a sigh, dark colored eyes would reopen as the woman looked over the edge of railing of the dock she stood on watching people rush to and from the ferry they rode from the “mainland” to the island where the Aquaspace Museum resided. As she watched the happy people go back and forth oblivious to anything except fun and the excitement that came with the potential first glimpses of something amazing, she wondered if she too would’ve been like that had she not met the cat-boy and heard what she heard.

Would she be that oblivious to it all? Content to just go the event that was about to happen?

Dark eyes would drift to the waters below as she leaned forward to watch the waves. Maybe and maybe not. It was hard to say now that everything had occurred. All she knew was at this moment she was having seconds thoughts about sticking around or not. On one hand she wanted…no needed more information, but on the other she wasn’t sure if she was prepared to see if the theory posed was real or not. Did she even want a change as big as the cat theory suggested? Did she want to become processed or whatever?

She honestly didn’t know and it was that indecision that kept her glued to her spot watching the waters and thinking as she let the afternoon pass by.

She continued to stay in her spot leaned against the rail lost in her thoughts as her eyes watched the shifting waves. Between the soft slosh of water against solid rock and the motion of the water, she was slowly being lulled from her unease into a small trance that turned the chaotic sounds of people around her into a gentle hum. Letting her mind settle into this peace, she would continue to watch the water feeling her eyes get heavy and maybe. just maybe she might’ve taken sleep’s offer to close her eyes and simply not think for the moment; however, just at that moment, a voice disrupted the peace.

“Did you lost something in the waters, missy? Have you seen a ghost... Or a demon?

Eh? Calabus would blink as she pulled herself out of the trance as she heard the young voice come from somewhere behind her. Turning slightly, she would look around until her eyes landed on a cute little kid with a head full of red hair. It was an odd color to see for sure and perhaps it was that odd hair color that made him catch her interest. Or maybe it was that cute behind smile on his face that she simply could not resist smiling back to that did it. Whatever the case was the older woman was now focused on the other as she gave him a small shake of the head.

“Just my sanity,” she would respond to his first question as she leaned her head against her arms watching him with a light smile. “Say, what is your name and are your parents alright with you speaking to me?” she would ask the other before falling silent once more to see if he would answer. Whether he answered or not, she would let a second more of silence pass as she simply observed the other. He had mentioned something that caught her interest earlier and so like the curious creature she was she would poke at said interest.

“Neh, you asked if I saw a ghost or demon… Why do you ask? Have you seen one?” she asked kind of curious just what the kid said. After all, kids had the wildest imaginations no, so why not pry to see what his mind came up with?

“If you take the words literally, then yes. Sanity is in your head; however, even if it is locked up there, it can still be lost. Sometimes it can be lost due to events in life and other times it can be lost by something causing the brain to get injured. However, my words are a saying that is used when too many confusing thoughts are going through the brain. The thoughts are like a messy knot, hard to unite and understand. As a result, my logic is destroyed and the sanity lost. See?” The young woman would try to explain to the kid the wording; however, as she finished she wondered if maybe she had just confused the kid even more. Regardless of what happened there, the young woman would nod her head at the second response.

“Hello Liam. It is a pleasure to meet you. My name is Calabus,” she would say her tones remaining light and amused as she watched the kid. In time, dark colored eyes would drift in the direction the other pointed and after careful scanning the young woman would find the couple in the distance that seemed to look over to where they were occasionally. From there dark eyes would drift back to the kid.

“Oho? Is that so? Well, I had best be a good girl to so I won’t get in trouble, huh?” she would say as she turned to fully face the child as she leaned against the rail with an amused smirk on her face. “As for being dangerous, well I haven’t exactly tried to eat children before, so I think you’re safe from harm,” she would say, her tone playful as she grinned at the other. What? She couldn’t help, but to play. This kid was adorable and his words even more fascinating. The situation became even more intriguing when the kid answered her question.

To his words, Calabus would tilt her head at him before pushing off the rail and leaning forwards so that she was eye level with the kid.

“Well now. It seems that strangeness is surrounding us both today then,” she would say. “Did the Man in the Hole give you a name or a description of who he was looking for?” she would ask quite curious about this new development. Sure, kids could be creative and maybe from an observer’s standpoint, Calabus could be seen as simply humoring a kid’s imagination. However, this was not why she asked her questions at all. No, she wanted to see if the Man in the Hole had anything to do with Kitty. If so then things had just become more interesting, hadn’t they? In any case, whatever came out of that was unknown for shortly after this the couple from before came out of the crowd.

As the kid straightened up his own posture, Calabus would stand back up as she looked over at the pair before her, an easy smile crossing her face as she observed them.

“Oh, he is no problem at all. I like a creative mind. It always shows big possibilities for the future,” she would say with a light chuckle as she shook her head. “But listen to me ramble. Forgive me. My name is Calabus,” she would bow to the pair. Keeping her head bowed, she would continue. “It is a pleasure to meet you both. May I have your names?”

The girl looked up at the pair from her bowed position with a smirk on her face. She had a hunch about who these two were; however, instead of blurting out her hunch right off the bat, she would let them introduce themselves on their own if they chose to do so.

(We didn’t forget you.)

Calabus would let out a small snort of amusement as she watched the kid mull over the words. She didn’t expect him to get it, but it was interesting watching the cogs in his brain turn before he came to his own conclusion of the situation.

“Something like that,” she would respond back to the kid in amused tones before her eyes were drifting up to meet the eyes of the woman and man that had come over. As the male introduced himself and his wife, Calabus would take note of the odd names and stash them away for her own purposes later as a few things were confirmed by the introduction.

Between the names and what she knew of this family, she understood that she was dealing with folk growing to be some strong hitters in the business world. Already the parents were perfect and their kid while a bit out of the box was being developed into a fine young man. And would you look at that. This perfect family could even bow in unison! How very amusing.

Despite what she had confirmed or the entertainment the family provided, Calabus would only give a respectful nod back before watching once more as the family interacted. This time the interaction was between mother and son. While at first it seemed that Eir was going to stop the conversation that wanted to happen, it appeared the mother was not as strong willed when it came to the tricks that innocent ones played to get there way. It was a cute game, but nothing Calabus commented on as she looked at the woman.

“Oh! That I very kind of you. I love a good story,” she would say as she clasped her hands in front of her and gave a big grin that came off comical rather than threatening. She was being overdramatic, playing with the adults that seemed to be very concerned about their child bothering her; however, the information junkie was never bothered when something juicy was before her.

When the young boy continued, the young woman would tilt her head at this information. A green haired girl that was like a shark and a dark haired woman that was an ice princess? Just what were these two women to a man in a manhole? And how did they tie into Kitty? She would ponder this a bit before she was distracted as she heard the girlfriend comment. Calabus would giggle lightly at this as she kept herself leveled with the child.

“Maybe he was trying to figure which one he liked better, a shark or a princess. Quite frankly, I would choose a princes over a shark. It would be safer that way,” she said as she used her hands to mimic a shark eating someone her mood remaining playful despite the serious subject. “Did the man tell you why he was looking for these women? Or perhaps something else strange?”

Calabus’s playful nature and grin did not diminish in any fashion as things more or less seemed to fall right into her hands. The mother had given permission for her child to cut loose and the kid himself ate up the all too sweet smile and in turn, opened up to the woman.

“I would have to agree. One is indeed enough,” she would say with a nod easily playing off the kid’s words. Did she expect him to understand her and the true meaning behind the words? No, but even so the kid’s reaction was enough to make the information gatherer want to play, so she did.

As she did her impression of a shark with her hands, the man made demon couldn’t help, but grin with pleasure at the laughter that followed. See! This is why she loved kids. At least they were easy to entertain and much more appreciative of a game than adults were…and Calabus always devoured appreciation given.

In any case, the amused woman would ask her question and when the child responded back. She would hold one hand up over her mouth as she giggled at the impression. Oh, this one was a doll! She wondered how a particular demon back home would react to him, but alas the kid was too young, so she couldn’t exactly test that limit there, but that was okay. At least she was getting more information.

“Oho? Dangerous are they?” Calabus would say as she stood up a bit straighter folding her arms as she continued to watch the other with a grin. Now that was interesting. A man warning a child to avoid two strange women? Well….Kitty did mention there were others here, so did that mean these two were part of this mysterious reveal? She would push the thought back in her head as she smirked at the kids words.

“Well, they could’ve found out and maybe that is why one seems more scary than the other. Let’s hope they didn’t come here to fight over the man,” she would say as she leaned forward and whispered the words as if they were a big secret. She was playing naturally and had no clue what it all meant. Had no clue how close her words were to the actual truth.  In any case she continued to play along. She didn’t seem to mind at all the behavior that was being expressed by the child or his father. No. As deep green eyes looked up at the woman, she would find that amusement rested in them.

In any case, her eyes would drift back to the boy as he continued to speaking. To these last words the woman would nod as her grin softened lightly.

“He might not be as crazy as you think,” she said to other. “Spirits of all sort exist in this world; however, in order to see them you have to be nice to them and believe they are there. If you don’t they won’t appear to you,” Calabus said giving the kiddy version of what it took to get spirits to show themselves for real. Honestly there was more to it than that, but why complicate the matter hm?

Calabus’s would watch the kid quite amused with the way things turned out. He reacted beautifully to her play and while at first she would be delighted and tempted to play even more, a strange look from the father caused her eyes to narrow slightly as she kept her grin. Oho? Did he have something to say?

No? He was going to think instead? Alright then. She could play some more then. Her eyes would look back at the boy briefly passing over the mother as she did so. It seemed the woman was watching her, but as long as neither parent did anything to stop her the girl would not stop her mischief. After all, she liked testing the limits, so let’s see how far they would let her go. In any case, her focus would return to the kid fully as he spoke about the man and his warning.

To the kid’s words, she would fold her arms as her smile faded and a frown of thought came to her face.

“What a strange fellow. I wonder why he wouldn’t explain such warnings,” she would say more to herself than anyone around her as she looked across out at the water for a bit. This day it was getting stranger and stranger. She didn’t think she wanted to stay here much longer, but if she left she would miss something big….What to do?

…

The girl would debate for a moment longer before her attention turned back to the kid and the playing resumed. As the kid leaned forward and whispered back in turn, Calabus's smirk would only grow.

“Maybe, but then again maybe he was trying to find them to keep them from meeting at all. Perhaps his plan was to escape with one of the princesses, so he wouldn’t have to face the trouble he caused by having two,” the young woman would say in a whisper still. She didn’t seem to be bothered by what she was saying or the fact that the conversation may be over the kid’s head...and probably not something to his parents' liking. She was enjoying this so she would continue to play as long as she was allowed to.

In any case, once the whispering was over, she would straighten back up as the subject switched to a different sort of subject. When the mother intervened and gave her that all too familiar look and even tried to counter what she said with some form of superstition, Calabus smile faded a bit.

“Heh. So you too brush them off as fantasy?” Calabus would sigh lightly as she shook her head. “Ah well. Guess I am the odd one here then,” she would say as she watched the mother. “Fairytales go after kids not spirits hiding around waiting to scare them. No spirits are much too clever for that sort of game,” she would tell the woman her voice a bit stern showing that perhaps even if she did sound crazy, she was firm in her belief of the other side, spirits, demons, and what not.

“Besides as Laim said, you don’t have to be afraid of most of them. And to be honest, I think some would even bow to his courage,” Calabus said as she nodded approvingly at the behavior from the kid. Sure the parents may have found the whole ordeal amusing or weird, but maybe that courageous nature of the boy would come in handy one day...at least that is what Calabus thought anyway.

Calabus was ever aware of what was going on around her, her sharp eyes and senses picking up on cues given by the parents on where a line was stepped over. So far she seemed to be on the safe end of the stick. Neither parent seemed interfere with the woman talk, so the young lady took it as a sign to continue the play.

As she refocused on the child, she would chuckle lightly at his conclusion and nod. “That is certainly a sound conclusion,” she would say leaving the topic at that. A child’s eyes could only see one outcome most of the time unless they were exposed to such matters at younger ages. He was quite right in assuming that there were some things adults understood better than children; however, she wouldn’t let the conversation go that far. No that subject would be left for the parents to handle. After all, the kid was their beautiful egg to mold. All she was here for was a bit of fun.

...And it seemed that fun would have to end here unless she wanted to be snapped at of course. While the father seemed chilled about this, Calabus could feel the piercing gaze of the mother even though she had not been looking at her at the time. Well, well. It appeared her observations of parents were correct. The female was typically the more protective one, except in rare cases...like her own where both parents could be equally protective. While it was tempting to push buttons, the growing hacker would back off this time. It wasn’t time to burn bridges, yet. Besides, she was quite curious to keep up with this child’s growth. His personality and spirit intrigued her making her wonder where he would land on the chest board. Would he be her competition in the future? It was a curious thought that she could only entertain if the standing between herself and this family remained more or less good.

Dark eyes would drift up to the mother after a moment of time had passed. Calabus would give her what appeared to be apologetic nod. It was a simple nod that only a mature individual would understand if they could read simple gesture well. It was a submissive sign, letting the woman know she meant no harm by her play and would not push it any further; however, she would tilt her head at the woman’s next words.

She was quiet for a moment as she met the piercing gaze with an narrowed gaze of her own that held mischief and amusement in it. You could teach a person every myth and legend the world had to offer, but nothing prepared the world for actually confronting them. Oh, there was many ways this could’ve ended for the woman; however, instead of making a fuss, Calabus would give the woman a grin.

“Well then. He should be quite prepared to face on them should they decide to approach him,” she would say her voice not really holding hostility, but still not exactly super friendly. The woman had stepped on a nerve for sure, but the reasoning behind this, Calabus would leave in the dark for now. Whatever happened from there would be up to the woman as far as Calabus was concerned.

When the woman seemed to calm and become more prideful, Calabus would fully relax once more as she smirked.

“Pride of the family, huh? Well, I expect to hear great things in the future about him,” the young woman would say before she was shifting in her position a bit.

“Well then, my lady, sir, Liam. It was a pleasure meeting you all; however, I must unfortunately bid you all farewell. I do hope we can meet again,” she would say before she proceeded to move off. A few steps past the family, she would pause and turn back to the trio.

“If you are ever in town find the Butterfly Inn and Bathhouse. I’ll be sure to treat you to something nice to make up for this day,” she would say and then bowing politely she would turn around again and make her way into the crowds, vanishing like a ghost.

~Exit unless stopped~