Archive World of Darkness: The Academy - Off to Mother's We Go [Complete]

[Tatiana di Jadzian]

Sean nodded, willingly believing her lie - he didn't have much room to talk after his own episode, his eyes still a little red.

"That Frida, she's a weird one. Everything just seems to roll off - Vanessa and my sisters are already packing? They sure aren't wasting time," Sean sighed, stilled pained that it seemed most of his family was abandoning him, even if they didn't particularly like him.

"Well, I guess we should check on Frida and make sure she isn't... well, whatever." Sean gave an uncertain shrug, then slowly started leading Lorelei and Ryan back to the house.

Sean looked down on Lorelei walking close beside him, then turned his gaze away to look over the extensive yard, hiding the faint colour in his cheeks.

"I went out back to... vent." Sean's voice was steady, but there was a bite at the end, embarrassed by his mindless tantrum. "I meant to call my dad, but...ended up... redecorating my old room."

[Ryan Jackson]

Ryan smirked into the darkness, "Remind me not to ask you for help with my place, or when I move, or when anybody else moves." He didn't expect to get a laugh and he didn't much care either way, this whole situation reminded him of his parents, to a degree anyway. To Ryan it seemed the chief differences between he and Sean were that Ryan's folks had stopped caring for him because he was a fuckup, Sean's mother anyway just had a chip on her shoulder; a mighty big one given the hell she was putting her son through. Ryan set his jaw against the memory of his own parents' disapproval, he'd been sent to Dalton what felt like a lifetime ago and all but left there, disowned by his family in every way but the legal sense.

[Tatiana di Jadzian]

"Yeah, well, as long as I don't suffer another life-changing shock, I should be fine to help out." It was a weak joke, but Sean smiled anyway, even if he had to force it - he had little enough to smile about.

Sean led Lorelei and Ryan back to the main hallway and Frida. Cocking his head, he heard the sounds of Vena and his sisters upstairs, then excused himself to the rest of his fellow students.

Sean moved deeper into the house, and entered a study, closing the door behind him. He took out his cellphone and stared at it. After a long, dithering moment, he dialed his dad once more.

"Pick up... "

[Dawn OOC]

The three women came back down the stairs, carrying very little with them. They looked to have a favorite keepsake or, in Savannah's case, a toy. There was nothing electronic in their hands. Vena alone carried a massive bag; a tuft of fur could be seen in the opening. "We are ready," she said, her eyes roving over the group. Her eyes settled on Frida, then bounced away.

"Perhaps you mean to speak with only good intentions," Cassandra said, "but you should think - how can a body built to replicate itself can replicate with another? And if you dare to suggest that I and my sister were fathered by a man, it will go poorly for you."

"There is no need for that," Vena said sharply. "We know what we are, and who we are. Come girls, we will wait in the car." Her head high, she swept out of the house, followed by Cassandra and Savannah. Only the youngest looked unsure as they strode out.

Meanwhile, in the study, Sean was listening to, "Hi, you've reached Dean Cassidy-"

"And Candi Fairview!"

"-and Candi. Please leave a message, we're either out or in bed."

"Or somewhere more interesting!" There was a pleased yelp and then a giggle, and after that only the beep telling Sean to leave a message.

[Tatiana di Jadzian]

Sean grunted and slmost threw his cellphone through the window when he got the answering machine, again, then ground his teeth when he heard Candi's bimbo-ish voice on the message.

Fine, fuck it!

"Hey, Dad, hope you get this message and not Candi, else I'm gonna sound fuckin' insane. It's Harvest-time again at Dalton, and guess who's first up? Oh, and not that you care, but Vanessa - Vena - and the girls are goin' back home, through the Door, tonight. And one more thing, what the fuck did you do to make me a - Beep!" Sean cursed, the rest of his message cut-off.

Sean stomped back to the main hall, whatever he had done elsewhere obviously not mollifying his mood. He looked around, seeing no sign of his mother or sisters. Ryan pointed to the door, still slightly ajar - his fellow class-mates could see his lips writhe in a swallowed swear.

"Not wastin' any time are they? Well, let's not keep the Queen and the Princesses waiting." He got the door and waved Lorelei, Frida, and Ryan through.

[Frida Ricci]

Frida watched in silence as the women left. She let Lorelei and Ryan pass through, then she turned to Sean as she left through the door.

"You know, I made a promise to deliver the message, and nothing more. We don't need to escort them back to Dalton - I'm sure they can make their own way back, without our assistance. I am not convinced that your father did anything to you. Your youngest sister seems less sure of her mother's rightness than the oldest, and perhaps that means she was fathered the same as you. Or perhaps only that she has a heart, like your mother once appeared to."

She shrugged slightly, looking a little apologetic. It was the most emotion he'd ever seen the eerie young woman convey, which meant the situation must be bothering her quite deeply.

[Tatiana di Jadzian]

Sean listened to the strangely disconnected girl, then shook his head.

"We may not have to escort them back, but I want to. I want to see where they are going and what type of place it is. And I want to make sure Savannah - and I guess, Cassandra - know the key to get back, if they don't end up liking it. What is the key, anyway?" Sean made no mention to who sired who how and the look in his tempestuous eyes said he didn't want to talk about it.

Sean followed Frida out of the house, then closed the door. When he looked back, he saw his sisters enter the four-car garage. Sighing, he walked down the front steps and helped Lorelei and Frida back into his jeep. As he brought the Wrangler back to life and began to pull around the U-shaped drive, one of the garage doors opened and a new, black Lexus pulled out.

[Frida Ricci]

Frida nodded quietly in understanding, and as they walked back towards the jeep with Lorelei, she answered his question.

"The key to our world is a white feather, and a piece of paper with thoughts written on it. It does seem appropriate, actually. So I would send your sisters with that knowledge, just in case living with Amazons doesn't suit their constitution."

She climbed carefully into the Jeep, and waited patiently, her role in this whole escapade apparently at an end.

[Ryan Jackson]

Ryan climbed back into the car, folding his long legs into the small vehicle with a grunt. "Did you get ahold of your dad?" he asked as Sean climbed behind the wheel, "Is he part of this madness too?"

[Tatiana di Jadzian]

Sean gave Frida a nod, "Thanks, Frida," then ran back into the house. A minute later, he came back out, a down pillow in either hand. "Just in case they need feathers," he said, throwing the pillows into the back of the Jeep.

Sean was pulling up to the gate when Ryan asked about his Dad. Sean grunted and everyone could feel the dark cloud around him. "No, I didn't. He's with Candi."

[Ryan Jackson]

Ryan laughed, "Dude, your step mom is named Candi? Is is spelled with an 'i' at the end too? I mean, how much more a stripper name could it be, right?" Ryan completely missed the anger or pain in Sean's voice as he spoke of his father.

[Tatiana di Jadzian]

The black Lexus behind him honked the horn with impatience, Sean grinding his teeth at the sound and Ryan's tone. With abrupt acceleration, he pulled onto the street and began the hour and a half trip back to the Dalton Academy, trailed by three women who planned on going through the Door.

"She's not my step-mom! She's my Dad's girlfriend," Sean growled as he drove down from Hightop and headed for the highway. "Her full name is Candace Fairview, but she insists on being called 'Candi'. And yes, it's spelt with a fuckin' 'i' too. I think she is a stripper... or maybe a porn-star. No way are those tits real."

Sean quickly glanced at Lorelei beside him, his face going red. "Er, sorry," he said, a crooked, guilty smile on his face.

[Ryan Jackson]

From the backseat Ryan said quietly, "Sorry man, I just ... it's so typical you know, and all this crazy shit tonight and the past few days. I couldn't help but laugh."

[Lorelei]

Lorelei turned to regard Ryan icily for a moment, her elfin features limned in the pale, cold light of the dashboard controls. She shook her head, her lips pursed in a disparaging frown before returning her attention to Sean.

"It's all right. It is difficult to imagine how hard this must be for you. Even forgetting for a moment that you are a new student at the Academy, everyone's lives have become considerably more... complicated, recently. I would be more concerned if you didn't react at all."

[Tatiana di Jadzian]

Sean gave Lorelei a quick, grateful smile, the darkness and street lights casting alternating beams of shadow and light across his face. "Thanks, Lorelei. I usually have a better hold on my temper, but these last few days..." Sean trailed off, his eyes back on the road, then gave a short bark of dark humour.

"I don't really blame you for laughing, Ryan. WIth everything going on, I'd think it was a joke too, if I wasn't living it." The troubled jock snorted. "Seems like all the women in my life are trouble." Sean sent Lorelei a glance out of the corner of his eye, barely noticeable. Maybe, my luck will change. And if it doesn't, well, it couldn't possibly hurt worst.

The conversion among the three Daltonites was subdued as Sean drove down the highway, the black Lexus riding his tail, nearly invisible and uncomfortably close in the darkness.

The clock on the dash flashed 12:00am as Sean entered the limits of Estes Park. He speed dropped, hesitant, barely going the speed limit, as he began to fully realize that he might never see his sisters and mother again.

And he wasn't sure what he felt.

[Dawn OOC]

He was given little time to consider. Estes Park is a small town and soon they were back on the dark roads, pushing on to Dalton. When they arrived, the school was as dark and still as ever. Sean entered the gate code and got both cars through. Sean apprehensively watched his mother park her car and his sisters get out.

Vena stalked toward the group getting out of Sean's car. "Here," she said, tossing Frida the keys. "I won't need that where I'm going." Turning, the three woman began to walk toward Lancaster.

Suddenly, Savannah turned and raced back. Sean thought she might hug him for a moment, but she stopped short of that. "When I've learned about being Chideran, I'll come back and show you, too, ok?" Her young face was earnest, and there was no doubt that she meant it, in this moment. Then she turned and raced after her mother and sister, disappearing into the night with them.

Click to reveal..

I'm done with this; you can continue to talk amongst yourselves for as long as you want.

[Tatiana di Jadzian]

When Vena had turned his way, keys in hand, he had been about to raise his own hand to catch them when she tossed them to Frida. Sean's expression was nonplussed, his powerful shoulders slumping when Vena didn't even look his way.

He had been about to turn away and head for Mars when Savannah came running back, and he braced himself for a hug that never came. He listened to her offer, then nodded, a half smile on his face - for a moment looking at her open face, he could once again see the girl he knew before the divorce, when they all lived together in Whistler.

Before he had a chance to respond though, Savannah ran back after their sister and mother. She never saw his outstretched arm or heard his soft reply, "I'd like that, and I'd like to see you again, Sav... Sis."

[Frida Ricci]

Frida was quiet for a long moment, watching the girl run off. Then she stepped forward to Sean, holding the keys out quietly to him.

"Here - these should go to you, I think."

She studied him quietly, looking up into his dark gaze with her own.

[Tatiana di Jadzian]

Only after Savannah vanished into the darkness did Sean turn to face Frida. He looked at the keys for a long moment, his fingers twitching as if he wanted to grab them, then he shook his head. Finally, he took the keys.

"You have a car?" he asked the weird girl as he looked down at the keyring, working the carkey off. He almost missed Frida's small, precise shake of the head. He stretched his hand over Frida's and dropped the carkeys in. "Then keep it. I want to earn whatever Vena gives me." The smile Sean gave her was bleak, but determined. "I might have to ask you for a ride though, if the Wrangler goes kaput."

Sean's glance at the new Lexus was full of longing - he was a sixteen year-old boy and obvious would have loved a new car. But his expression was resolute, desperately firm in trying to hold to his conviction to earn what he was given.

[Frida Ricci]

Frida looked down at the keys in her hand for a moment, then glanced up at Sean. She studied him, as if she was staring past whatever she was seeing on the outside, and going straight for his soul. After a long, uncomfortable moment, she nodded briskly and closed her delicate artist's fingers around the keys. Her clipped British accent was understanding as she slipped the keys into her purse.

"Very well then, Sean. Do let me know when you feel you've earned it, won't you? I'll keep it for you till then, if you'd like."

With that, she turned and headed back towards Lancaster, low heels clicking quietly against the concrete of the sidewalk.