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Having arranged a time to speak privately with Alex, Eyrgjafa has provided the younger vampire with the address for her home in Lansdale, given the topic. Light can be seen around the closed curtains of the front room, while a purple Prius sits in the driveway.
Alex arrives on foot, coming up the drive as she lets Obfuscate slip away. She's dressed nicely, in a dress that ends just above her knees and pumps, a fitted jacket and makeup on. It's like she's making an effort to look like a professional, in short. She gives a firm knock on the door when she reaches it, shifts the weight of her always-present laptop bag on her shoulder, and waits for an answer.
Eyrgjafa answers the door after only a couple of minutes. She's also dressed nicely, though unlike Alex has gone for a blouse and skirt over a dress. "Evening, Alex. Please, come in. How've you been?" The usual social niceties. There are scattered signs Eyrgjafa's not the only inhabitant of the house - a raincoat that looks too small for her on a hook by the door for one, a few carefully painted miniatures and some oddly shaped dice on the coffee table for another.
Alex smiles as she steps inside, and she looks a little relieved to be off the street and behind a closed door. "Hi Eyrgjafa, thank you for having me over. I've been..." she pulls a bit of a face. "Not great, really, but for different reasons than the kinds of things I've talked to you about before. Just some trouble going on in other parts of my life, with people I care about, and worry about." Her eyes catch the minis and dice and she asks, "do you play RPGs? Or do you live with someone who does?" She sounds pleasantly surprised, if anything.
"Live with someone who does." Eyrgjafa says, smiling slightly. "Do you mind if I ask what the trouble in other parts of your life is about?" She moves over to the seating area, choosing an armchair for herself, sitting with one leg crossed over the other at the knee.
Alex slides her bag off of her shoulder and follows Eyrgjafa over to the seating, where she takes a spot for herself and puts the bag down at her feet. "Have you ever tried it?" she asks. "It's fun, especially if you're in a creative group. I don't really want to get into the other details, though. A friend of mine's dealing with some harassment, essentially. How have you been?"
"I haven't, no. What does it involve?" Eyrgjafa seems sincerely curious, rather than just making conversation. "I've been good, for the most part, thank you. Studying. Trying to come up with a solution to our Rihat problem."
"Imagination," Alex answers with a laugh. "It's playing pretend, with rules and guidelines that help everyone stay on the same page about what they're doing, what the structure of the narrative is, and what they're capable of. You make a character, so do the other players, and then you tell the story together of the adventures the characters go on." Her smile mostly vanishes at mention of Rihat. "I usually keep myself Obfuscated when I'm out and about, but with someone preying on young vampires, possibly him, I've made an effort to be extra sure about that."
"That's a much clearer explanation than Mina ever gave, so thanks," Eyrgjafa admits, smiling slightly. "Good to know. I'm out of the age range whoever it is is targeting, but maintaining safety is always important." She considers Alex for a moment. "Not that that's what you wanted this meeting to discuss, of course. You mentioned wanting to know what joining the Ordo actually entails?"
"Mina's the one who plays?" Alex asks curiously. "I haven't played since... before. But it's fun, you should give it a try some time." She glances away, across the room, and then back at Eyrgjafa. "I did mention that. At this point I don't think any of the options are a fit for me, so I'm ready to make some decisions. I don't want to do so without knowing what exactly would be expected of me as a member, or what I'd have to do to join."
"She is, yes." Eyrgjafa chews on her lip briefly. "Agreeing to keep our secrets, which is something you're familiar with doing, I have no doubt. Finding a tutor in the Coils, which is something I can help you with, but will depend on what you want to focus on. Attending our next Caucus, to be formally sworn into the Covenant before the other Dragons."
"Coils?" Alex asks, because she doesn't know the details of what that actually means. "I'm fine with keeping secrets. Signing NDA's is pretty much standard practice in my line of work, since it involves breaking into places and seeing things I shouldn't, otherwise."
"The divisions of the Ordo's studies and acquired knowledge. The Coil of the Blood is a popular choice everywhere, to my knowledge, since it can enable you to need to feed less often. Among other, more esoteric, things."
"Interesting," Alex says, leaning forward a little. "When is the next Caucus likely to be? Am I going to have plenty of time to consider this decision, or is that a weekly thing?"
"No, it's monthly. The next one is on [date]." Because we have enough Ordo characters that actually scheduling a Caucus would be a pain. Eyrgjafa matches the lean, assessing Alex carefully. "There are Coils that assist in maintaining one's connection to humanity, as well. Some less popular than others."
"I'm going to have to find out what all my options are there, and what they'll do for me, but those both sound intriguing," Alex says with a smile. "I would like to join the Ordo Dracul, at this point. I guess it just comes down to finding out where to be, and when, and going from there."
"For now, our Chapterhouse is at [location]. We're looking at getting a new one, but that's a lengthy process." Eyrgjafa shrugs. "I'm the Convenor for Philadelphia, so one of my jobs is organising the Caucuses, but I'll make sure someone is available to meet you and make sure you know where to go." She pauses, then. "Do you have any other questions, at this point?"
Alex lets out a long breath. "Not at the moment," she says. "I suppose on that front I just wait for the time to come." The nosferatu offers a smile. "Thank you for your guidance and patience with me through this process. I do have something else I'd like to get your thoughts on, while we're talking."
Eyrgjafa blinks. "Okay? What is it?"
"I'm thinking of trying to organize a support group for young vampires," Alex says with a smile. "I know that you probably don't fall into the demographic any more, but I was just... curious about your thoughts on the topic, I guess? Especially for those of us who didn't get to choose this life, and had it thrust on us instead. There seem to be quite a few of us."
"It's been more than a hundred years since my Embrace, so no, I probably don't," Eyrgjafa chuckles. "That does seem a good idea, though. Have you talked to Anthony Washington? It sounds like the kind of thing that'd overlap well with BL76, so he might be interested in supporting you getting it running."
"I suppose that does raise the question of what part of the idea is the most important," Alex says, like talking about this is helping her make the ideas a little more concrete. "If someone's not a young vampire, but is still struggling with what was done to them, should they be able to come and find support, too? Probably. Maybe I'll start with young vampires and see how people feel about expanding from there." She shakes her head. "I haven't talked with him yet. I was going to start out talking to the kindred I think might be interested in joining, among the ones I know."
"Fair enough. I have a copy of the info pack on BL76 around here somewhere, if you're interested in it." Eyrgjafa shrugs slightly. "Who were you planning to talk to about joining, if you don't mind my asking?"
Alex answers the question with a smile. "I... don't think I should actually answer that, mostly because I'm not sure how much of what some people said to me was in confidence, and things they don't want to have getting out. I hope you understand? But there have been enough people that I've felt like the idea has genuine merit."
"Fair enough," Eyrgjafa returns the smile. "If you need help finding a space for it to meet, let me know?"
"Thanks, I may need some help with that," Alex says with a laugh. "I'm still living at the Bellevue. At some point I need to go find an actual apartment or house or something, but that will come in due course."
Eyrgjafa nods. "I'd suggest a house, if only so you know you can modify it to fit your needs, but an apartment with blackout curtains should serve well enough. If you're worried about the legal stuff, I'd recommend talking to Okorafor & Kan, they handle a lot of it for our community."
"I'm going to have to talk to them in either case," Alex says with a sudden wince. "My legal identity is a missing person still, as of about four and a half years ago. If I start trying to buy a house or rent an apartment in that name, it's going to cause a lot of problems."
"Right, yeah, I can see how that would be an issue," Eyrgjafa admits, wincing in turn. "Things were so much simpler when I arrived here, but then that was entirely paperwork, not dealing with modern technology."
"I suspect it's a lot harder, with how much data gets gathered on everyone now," Alex agrees with a wince. "I could probably do a lot to build a false identity for myself that way, but there are probably a lot of aspects to it I'd never think of. Hence, the need to go ask some professionals."
"They are very experienced at it," Eyrgjafa nods. "Including making sure you know what your background is actually meant to be, for the identity you're using." She pauses, then, considering Alex briefly. "Do you have any other questions for me, while you're here?"
"I don't think I do, but I'm grateful for you opening your house to me," Alex says with a smile. "I'll make sure to show up whenever I need to for the caucus meeting, so I can learn the secret handshake or whatever." She stands up and grabs her bag. "I should get out of your hair, though. It was good to see you."
Eyrgjafa chuckles quietly. "Less secret handshake, more complicated titles that're meaningless to outsiders. Ours actually serve a purpose, though, which is more than can be said for most secret societies." She stands as well. "Pleasure talking to you too, Alex. I'll walk you out."
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