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Aaron called Lux from his hospital land line to say that he and Mei and made bail and that he needed help getting out of the hospital. He needs a change of clothes and probably a ride. Taking SEPTA in his condition would not be fun. By the time either Anneliese or Lux arrive, Aaron is sitting on the edge of the bed in a hospital gown, looking groggy and badly in need of a shower. No matter how much sponge bathing you do, it isn't actually clean. He's wearing his loaner kippah and is once more turning the pages of the Tanakh for lack of better to do.
Getting a ride is a bit iffier, but Lux certainly can handle getting a change of clothes. They show up not long after, slipping into the room--this time not invisible! They flash Aaron a soft smile, stepping over to kiss him on the cheek. "Hey. Did Mei get her own ride home? How is she doing?"
Annie is not wearing her scrubs today, since she isn't needing to sneak in, but a pair of black jeans and light green teeshirt, with a rainbow magen david and "B'Tzelem Elohim" in Hebrew on. She enters the hospital room a few minutes after Lux. She doesn't have a change of clothes for Aaron, or a ride, technically, but she can handle calling an Uber for them.
"Mei's getting some testing before she gets released, last I heard," Aaron explains, "but she's got my number and knows to reach out the second she's discharged so we can arrange a pick up for her. I've asked the Sisterhood over at Rodeph Sholom to see if they couldn't arrange a ride for her. Getting out of here without getting mobbed by the press is going to be a trick. I can give a statement, but my lawyer's made it clear I'm supposed to keep my mouth shut. And I have a hard time doing that when someone is pointing a camera at me asking me what I think." To put it mildly. He offers Anneliese a weak grin, "I like your shirt."
Lux nods a bit, then puffs out a breath. "Well--we can try to sneak you out a side exit or something. Not sure there's much we can do about it, at this point." Lux sets the backpack down on the bed beside him, pulling out clothes. They'd gone for comfort over style, since he's still likely sore. T-shirt, hoodie, underwear, socks, and whatever comfy looking pants they could find in Aaron's closet that isn't just sweatpants. "We'll have to call for an Uber, unless you mind me calling in a favor and riding with a stranger."
"I can get us into the staff parking area, if that will help," Annie offers. "I do not have a car, though, but I can call an Uber." She glances at Lux. "Is this a stranger to me, or just to Aaron?"
"An Uber driver might try to cash in on the ride, if you get my meaning. No offense to any Uber drivers in earshot. If you have people that you trust that can help us out, here, then I trust those people." Aaron carefully rises from his seat on the hospital bed. Thanks to Little Fox's magic, he doesn't hurt but that doesn't necessarily mean his body is 100% functional, either. He wobbles a little and begins shuffling uncertainly towards the restroom, taking his clothes from Lux along the way. "I'll try to be quick." He shuts the door behind himself.
Lux gives Aaron a worried look as he wobbles, then looks to Annie. "Stranger to you, pretty sure, unless you hang out with any other street artists." Lux pulls out their phone to tap at the screen.
"Not so much, no." Annie glances at Lux. "Should I be asking what you screwed up?"
Lux hesitates, glancing up from the phone. "...A personal promise I shouldn't have made in the first place. I'm working on fixing it."
"All right. Just as long as it is not to our community." Annie's fairly sure Aaron can't hear them, but better safe than sorry.
Lux shakes their head. "No. Not to the community. It was shitty, but I'm not... some traitor."
This is when the hospital staff brings Mei back in. She's actually in her street clothes, having gotten changed before the staff decided they wanted to do a couple of tests to be sure she was good to be released. One of her eyes is still mostly swollen shut where a bean bag round hit her in the cheekbone, but she's walking on her own and doesn't look too bad, overall.
When she comes in and finds Annie and Lux there she stops, then she smiles weakly. "Hi again," she says before going over to her bed to start collecting the random assortment of books with puzzles and similar things that someone brought her in the night, while Aaron was sleeping.
Aaron misses out on all the hot changeling goss by dint of trying to put on his clothes while still battered. No pain, just a body that doesn't seem inclined to cooperate the way it usually does. He shuffles out, wearing his HUC hoodie and a pair of khakis. Not the best look for a release from the hospital photo, should there be one. But at least he's comfy. He leans in the doorway of the bathroom, not keen to sit down again now that he's been standing. "Mei, you're back! Good. Then we can all get the heck out of here."
"Sounds like a plan." Annie nods. "Mei, did you have a ride arranged already?" She helps the other woman pack the various entertainments into a bag.
Lux flashes a relieved smile to see Mei walking around. "Hey. How are you feeling?" Aaron gets a once over as he returns as well, though alas not oogling, just concerned.
"Nope," Mei says as finishes gathering up her things. "No plans at the moment. I was trying to figure out what I was going to do about that, too, since my phone's battery died while it was out of my possession, and of course my cash and my fare pass disappeared from my wallet." She answers Lux's question with, "like I want to be anywhere else but here. Honestly, I thought I was going to be here at least a few more days."
"I still haven't gotten my wallet back. The cops haven't given me back anything yet. Had to turn over my passport, too." Aaron seems amused by that particular aspect of all of this more than angry, though. "I wish I could say I was looking forward to this, but honestly? This is the start of the real work. I'll be lucky to come out of this with any one of my jobs in tact. We'll see, though." Apparently the looming possibility of a prison sentence hasn't occurred to him, really. "I think either the staff parking or the emergency room exit would be the way to go. The press are gaggled out front, right?"
"They are, yes. I can get us into the staff parking, though, if you want to direct your friend there, Lux?" Annie glances around. "Got everything? Is that a hospital copy of the Tanakh?"
Lux nods to Mei, then gives Aaron a lingering tense look. "...We'll work it out, Aaron." Lux doesn't sound 100% confident, but they do sound angry as fuck that this is happening. And angry can get a lot done. "Staff parking works. I'm calling in a friend to give us a ride. It's not gonna be the most comfortable ride, but I trust them."
"They'll pull my license if I get convicted of the charges they've set, but if that happens that will be the least of my worries," Mei says with a tone of subdued resignation, like she's pretty sure that's what's going to happen. "I don't really care how comfortable the ride is, I just want to get out of this place. The closer I get to leaving, the less patience I have for being here."
"I'm with Mei. It's not that long of a ride to my place, anyway." Aaron shoulders out of the bathroom doorway and gestures to the Tanakh, "The hospital chaplain got that for me. I'm not sure from where. I think under the circumstances it would be good if we left it for him to collect. I'm not the only observant Jew they'll see today, I'm sure." He gestures towards the exit, "Shall we? When is your friend going to show, Lux?"
Annie nods, turning towards the door. "Are you good to take care of yourself around the home and whatnot, Mei? We can arrange assistance, if you need it."
"On their way. Should only be a few minutes. Lets get you two out of here." Lux shoulders their backpack, then heads for the door. They pause to peek out into the hallway, checking that the coast is clear of any lurking reporters before leading them out. Though once out they let Annie lead the way to the staff parking lot.
When they get there... there's a van that is pulling up. It looks pretty dinged up, and the sides are covered in spray painted graffiti. Lux waves at the driver, then darts around to the back of the van to tug open the doors and help Aaron and Mei inside. It is, indeed, not very comfortable--but there's at least room for everyone to sit. You just got to scoot around the stacks of paint cans and art supplies.
"I'll be fine," Mei says with a slight shrug, partly due to a lack of enthusiasm for much of anything right now, and partly because even if she doesn't hurt, she's still injured and things aren't working so great, especially where she badly bruised. Which includes her shoulders and upper back.
Tucking her things under her arm she follows Lux and Annie's lead. She tries to act as natural as she can under the circumstances, not like someone trying to sneak out the back door, but it's only once they're in the van that she lets out a sigh of relief and closes her eyes. "I still feel like I'm getting away with something, being allowed to just walk out of there." Comfort doesn't seem to matter to her too much.
Operation: Smuggle Kugel. It's not quite Mission Impossible, more like Mission Improbable. Aaron keeps his head down and his eyes lowered, and has probably never been more happy to have a plain black kippah on rather than his usual rainbow attention grabber. The hospital staff are their usual selves, wrapped up in their work. And it just so happens that as they cross the main corridor on the ground floor, leading towards the staff parking, the two plainclothes reporters speaking animatedly to one of the admissions staff are too involved in mansplaining to pay attention to their quarry sneaking right past them.
Only once they're in the van, does Aaron regain his usual demeanor. "Let's go."
Annie also relaxes slightly once they're in the van. "Do you have someone taking care of Chewda, Aaron?"
Lux nods, then leans over to talk to the driver, giving him Aaron's address. The engine putters a moment before they start off, away from the hospital. Lux settles in to sit beside Aaron, puffing out a breath of relief. "I've been taking care of him. He's been good, but misses Aaron."
Usually it would be like really weird if, as the door on the van was closing, a fox dragging a backpack between its little sharp teeth jumped into said van.
Okay, it's still probably really weird.
"I miss him, too. I'm probably going to need you to watch him for a few more days, until I can move around the apartment more easily." Aaron, once Lux is seated beside him, takes one of Lux's hands in both of his own and holds it tightly. Not quite 'life raft in the ocean' tight, but close. But then the strangest thing happened.
"There's a fox. Loose in the hospital."
There's a short pause, during which Aaron and Fox can sense the flare of a nimbus around Mei, and then she says to the fox, "is that you?" Because honestly at this point any animal doing strange things, she's probably just going to assume it's Little Fox. Also, she apparently figured out how to talk with animals since the last time that Little Fox saw her, so that's possibly good!
Annie blinks, uncertainly. "You can talk to the fox now, Mei? What does it say?"
Lux smiles softly at Aaron, squeezing his hand. "He's at my place right now, but I'll bring him by later so you can say hi. But... yeah, no offense but--you need to be taking it easy. Not chasing him around. I don't mind at all. He's been a perfect little gentleman."
Lux blinks as the fox dives into the van--but after the moment of being startled, their surprise passes. "That's probably Little Fox. Uh... She was the dog that came to visit you the other day?" A beat pause, as Mei seems to know her--so they look to Aaron and Annie instead. "She can turn into animals."
That is of course WHISPERED to them, because oops, the driver is probably normal.
Gekkering is a heck of a sound, the little rapid chattering sound which can mean fight or playtime! but right now means Yes, hello, it's me! There were too many news vans but no one looks at foxes. She drags her bag into a more comfortable spot in the foot well and sidles over to look at Aaron and then at Mei. Once you're home, we'll sort the rest of this. It's not healthy for me to keep you from feeling pain for too long.
Aaron cannot speak fox. Not that he's aware of, anyway. The fact that he seems totally comfortable with the idea that foxes can talk and be strange magic wielding people has a lot to do with the past seventy two hours being very strange, indeed. He just sighs and slumps into Lux, letting his head come to rest on their shoulder. Lorge Aaron is going to be Smol for a little while, here, thank you. At least until they get where they're going.
"Almost everyone can talk to a fox, if they can talk," Mei answers to Annie with a faint, crooked smile. "You just have to look at the fox and make words. The real trick is having a fox understand what you're talking about and then talk back." She turns to listen to Fox, nods like she understands, and agrees. "I think that sounds like a good idea."
"Well, yes, but." Annie shrugs. "I did not realise you were able to have it understand." She glances at Lux. "Is she one of us?"
Lux's face softens as they watch Aaron. Their lips press briefly to his temple, arm lifting to wrap around him to hold gently, careful of his wounds. The other still holding onto his hand.
Their head shakes to Annie. "No. But I'll leave it to them to explain what they're comfortable with, when we get to Aaron's place."
The ride is bumpy, but not very long--some time later the van is pulling up in front of Aaron's apartment, the engine puttering to a stop.
"If the Little Fox is doing this here like this, it mean she's probably not worried about you two knowing about her. So I'm going to figure it's okay to say. She's a person that can turn into a fox." All of this is technically true, and all of it is about the extent of how Aaron can think to explain it right now. "She's looking out for us. For Mei and me, in specific, I mean. And maybe more Mei than me. But. She doesn't mean anyone any harm." His voice is quiet and tired, but also full of his usual trust and confidence.
Lux talked to a fox and didn't have any especial talents for talking to a fox! The little animal gekkers on, much quietly than normal. I'm assuming she is one of us, and then a glance at Annie. Hm, maybe that wasn't so smart of me. Good thing it worked out in my favor.
Famous last Orphan of Proteus words.
The fox blinks wide-eyed at Anneliese, and then squirms around in the car to bump her head against, in turn, Lux and Aaron, before leaning her head on Mei's lap. Yes, these are my students, I picked them, they are mine. Unless they pick another teacher, then that's okay. But someone is looking out for them. Chatty.
"I honestly have no idea," Mei says to the Fox, and then she looks up at Lux and Annie and says, "I know both of you, to varying degrees, but I'll have to admit to feeling like I'm kind of out of the loop. Right now that applies to a lot of things, but..." she shrugs. "Never mind. It can wait." She closes her eyes and idly scratches the fox's ears, not saying too much in front of whoever is driving this van. Who apparently doesn't mind having a fox in the van cackling like a crazy thing.
Look. Artists are weirdos. Probably not that big of a deal.
Annie seems entirely comfortable with the idea of foxes who can speak Human. Even if she can't understand this specific Fox, right now. "We can talk more later, yes."
Lux gives Mei an apologetic look. "We can answer some questions soon."
Once the van comes to a stop Lux carefully disengages from Aaron, squeezing his hand before moving to open the door and help them all out, pausing long enough to thank the driver--then inside the apartment building, and finally up to Aaron's apartment. They have apparently found a spare key somewhere. ...Or not. Hostile Take Over also works. Either way, they get inside, and Lux fusses Aaron over to the couch to sit down. "Anyone want something to drink or something?"
Fox shoves her backpack toward Mei's hands and makes the student carry said backpack. It's a rough time, being Fox's apprentice. You gotta carry the backpack. Tough tasks. There's a wash of incredibly powerful petrichor and the scent of broken greenery, and then Fox doesn't show up on any recording devices, just in case there are cameras that could see a fox running up the stairs into the apartment. Water would be great. Mei, please put my bag in the bathroom. I don't care about naked, but some people do.
Aaron's apartment is in a run down block of south philly apartment buildings. It was probably cutting edge in 1972, but now it's showing its age. The furnishings, however, speak of an affluent or at least comfortable lifestyle, where furnishings and technology are chosen on the basis of quality and durability over low cost. There are lots and lots of Judaica in the apartment, if you know what you're looking at. He could clearly afford to live elsewhere. He chooses to live here for whatever reason.
Aaron slumps down onto the couch and takes a moment to rest himself. He is going to want a shower very soon, but. For now? Rest. "I heard Krasner's opened an investigation. That's something, I guess."
When they arrive Mei gathers up the things she brought with her from the hospital, which are mostly the things that Little Fox brought her the night before, and then slings the backpack onto her shoulder before following everyone else inside. "I'm sure we know how far that will go," Mei says a bit cynically as she heads toward the bathroom, which she steps into for long enough to put the bag down inside the door, and then she returns. "I'm sure he'll make it look like he's taking things seriously, and then little it all sweep under the rug like usual. Could I get some water for me and for the Fox, Lux?"
"Water for me too, please." Not that Lux has ever seen Annie drink anything else. "There is a lot of media attention on this one, so it might actually go further than usual. The pigs are furious about it, of course. They have even stopped enforcing parking tickets, which I am sure we will all miss." Sarcasm? Annie? Never.
Lux gives Mei a faint frown. "Yeah. The badge numbers and identities of the cops got leaked too," Lux says, heading for the kitchen to get glasses of ice water to set out for them all--and for Aaron, even though he didn't ask for one. "And there's been a lot of public outcry over this. It's all over the internet. Hopefully there will be enough public pressure that they can't just sweep this under the rug... at least not too easily."
The fox skitters into the bathroom, and a moment later a woman's voice calls from inside the bathroom: "I'm going to wash, because no one wants to smell me right now, I've been out all night! Then I'll fix you both right up." The sound of the shower starting, and then she calls through the door in an addendum: "I hope no one hurts their families. With the rate of domestic abuse statistically speaking... they really don't need anything else shitty to deal with."
"I need to stay like this," Aaron states with a glance aside to the woman who was a fox but is still a fox, just a woman. "I'm a public figure. If I turn up suddenly right as rain, it weakens our case. It will make people suspicious. You saved my life, and I'm grateful for that. For everything everyone has done. But believe me when I say I've felt worse. And for more selfish causes than this one. They're going to see what they did to me on my terms. I just need my lawyer, some cameras, and a microphone." His position staked out, Aaron reaches for the ice water. At least it's not ice chips. "Can I get one of these with vodka, hold the ice water?"
"I'm not a public figure," Mei says as she takes water and goes to find a place to sit down. Well, flop down. She looks exhausted, even if she's not in pain. "I should probably still not just suddenly be fine anyway, just for the association with Aaron and the fact that it might cause problems. Especially if this whole situation is all over the news, which it seems to be. A lot of the worst of it is fine. Some tylenol and I'm sure I'll deal." She takes a drink and closes her eyes. "Can someone please tell me what 'one of us' means in this context, with Lux and Anneliese? I think before we all talk too much, we should figure out where we're all at. Maybe that should wait for Fox to come back."
Annie takes a sip of her water, then glances at Mei. "I can take away your exhaustion, if you want. You have to consent, though, and it will not fix the damage that was done."
"Unfortunately... I gotta agree with Aaron. You need to keep at least some of your injuries so they can be seen on camera. So they can't say you're downplaying all this." Lux eyes Aaron. "Are you on any meds that alchohol would react badly with?"
Lux looks to Mei, then takes a deep breath. "Fox already knows what I am. And we're... well." Lux runs a hand over their head, lips pursing. A glance to Annie, before looking back to the baby mages. "So, like, it seems like you all have your own... secret society of magic people. Mages? We do, too. But we're not like you. Uh. Do either of you know anything about the Fair Folk? Yeah, like, fairies. Fae."
There's a big sigh from inside the bathroom, and Fox groans. "Okay yeah." The last thing she likes to think about is politics, apparently. Politics get in the way of experiences, in her experience. "I'm still holding the thing that keeps you all from hurting until you're better. You were really bad. And then you can have your dog, who misses you and does not understand what is going on, only that he can't have you near." The water of the shower overtakes any other muttering words, and there's a wonderful, content feeling, like looking into the eyes of a faithful friend canine, and the strong scent of petrichor, for those with Mage Sight.
Aaron is a wee tiny baby mage. And he has wee tiny baby mage abilities. There's a brief flare of his nimbus, visible to Awakened eyes, at least. A corona of white light shimmering about him which gradually fades away. He grasps his Magen David necklace in the midst of this, shutting his eyes as his lips move through a language unfamiliar to all but Anneliese. When his eyes open he assures Lux, "Not any more."
"I mean, I've heard legends," Mei says as she leans her head back. "I've never seen much in the way of sign that they were real things, but that's true of a lot of things that I'm pretty sure are real, like ghosts."
Annie glances at Aaron for a moment. "Your medications should not be strong enough to prevent you drinking alcohol in any case, but I would still recommend limiting it, at least for now." She stands, moving over to Mei. "Are you okay with me taking your exhaustion away, Mei?"
Lux nods, trusting Aaron to know his own body even if they can't sense the magic. They head into the kitchen to dig around for a bottle of vodka, pouring a glass and wandering back to offer it out to the Obribabe.
"They're real," Lux says with a grimace towards Mei. "They're real and they're awful. It's..." They hesitate then, then shake their head. "It's not something a lot of us like talking about. But--we're Changelings. People who were taken and... changed to their whims, to suit whatever purpose they wanted us to fill. But we escaped, made new lives, and we watch each other's backs. But we're still... not human anymore."
Lux hesitates, then frowns at Aaron. "I lied to you, a little, about my past. But I couldn't... just tell you the truth, then. I'm sorry."
Aaron scratches at his jaw, his days of stubble making him look particularly rugged at the moment. He's the kind of hirsuit Jewish guy that has a five o'clock shadow by lunch time. So at this point, he could found a 90's boy band, honestly. Or launch a folk punk label, maybe. Lux's hesitation and apology earn them an understanding and forgiving smile. His head shakes, "You didn't lie to me. You told me you couldn't talk about it. And I trusted you. And I still trust you. You don't owe me every truth about you, Lux. Just the ones you want to share." Fairies aren't so much in his wheelhouse. The Talmud is pretty vocal about a lot of weird stuff. Fairies? Less so. Still. "That's a disturbing thing to hear, though. After what we've been through, especially."
scrub SCRUB scrub SCRUB showers are an EXPERIENCE okay
And then the water ends, and a moment later there's a rather wet shaking sound... followed by a small voice saying "oh, right."
Then there's rather more towel-oriented sounds. Probably also towel-on-wall sounds.
"Sure," Mei answers with a slight nod of her head. "Thanks, Anneliese. I'm not sure how much of my exhaustion is physical and how much is mental, but any little bit will help." She opens her eyes and looks up at the other woman, smiles, and then looks at Lux. "I'd say that sounds kind of unbelievable, but I punched angels and fought with the forces of darkness the other day while the sky split open over head, my entire body is different than it was when I woke up two days ago, and now I can just watch someone's Netflix stream in my head, so I guess nothing makes sense any more."
She glances toward the bathroom, briefly displays a well-needed smile, and then turns her attention back to the conversation.
Annie nods, putting her hands on Mei's shoulders and concentrating briefly, as her Mantle flares. For a moment, the klezmer music that always seems to accompany her is joined by a voice in song, before it fades into the background again. "For what it is worth, I have not told either of you any untruths, per se. Merely lies of omission." She glances at Aaron. "I really am an orphan, and I really was born in Germany, or what is now Germany, at least. Just not only twenty-odd years ago."
Aaron gets a relieved and grateful smile in return. "Thanks..." They shrug at Mei. "It's all pretty crazy, yeah. I didn't know you guys existed before a week ago, though, so... yeah. Lots of weird shit out there." They move to settle down on the couch beside Aaron, slumping down with an exhale out. They glance to Annie, then snort suddenly in amusement, flashing Aaron a grin. "Oh yeah! I'm actually older than you, I think. So you're not robbing the craddle after all."
Of all the comments Lux could have made, it's the last one that has Aaron blushing clear to his ears. There is no hiding how much he is blushing. There is no way to play off the extent of said blush. His eyes go momentarily wide as his face plays at being a mood ring for a few moments, and then he manages what, for him, is the absolute bleeding edge of ribald impolite humor, "Does that mean I have to call you daddy, or...?"
It's official. Lux is a bad influence. Aaron looks to Anneliese next, his eyebrows creeping up. "That's a story I'd like to hear, I think. You must carry so many memories with you. Of the customs. The melodies. The traditions." Because of course Aaron is thinking about Judaism this whole time. Aaron then perks his head up to squint at Mei, "Your head gets NetFlix? Sheesh. I'm stuck watching 6ABC."
The woman who comes out of the bathroom is in the process of pulling on a t-shirt when she does so, because there's only so much propriety an Orphan can be expected to observe in a given day. Fox is -- in this form -- a tiny, wiry woman, all made of lean muscle, and now she's got on ratty-but-clean jeans and a tank top. There's a flash of a tattoo when she pulls the shirt on, an old coin of some sort, and then she pads out to look for a place to sit down. Realizes she's forgotten her backpack. Goes back to get it.
"The world gets more fantastically weird every day," she affirms, returning from the bathroom and looking for a place to sit.
Mei makes a soft groan of relief when Annie takes away most of her exhaustion. "Thank you," she says. "I don't know how I can sleep for most of two days and still be so utterly exhausted, but I guess the answers are healing and stress." She bursts out in laughter at Aaron's joke. "Now I'm definitely sure the world's not the same one I remember. Have you tried tuning into the wifi?" she suggests to Aaron. "I can't pick a show, but usually someone at the hospital was watching something interesting." When Fox comes back in she asks, "how much is it okay for us to tell people, and to who? What's going to happen if we tell too much?"
"I will tell you about them, sometime, I promise. Now that I am able to do so safely." She glances at Fox at Mei's question. "And how informed are you about people on Lux and my side of the fence?"
Lux lets out a snort-chuff of amusement, their grin turning impish. "No! Oh, fuck no." A beat pause, then a smirk. "At least not in public." With a light pat-pat at his arm. They're clearly just joking, but taking great amusement from Aaron's reaction. Very much a bad influence.
They sober as the conversation shifts to Annie's past, seeming to catch on what is being touched upon here. Definitely not a joking matter. They give a soft smile to her, before looking over to Fox, curious about the answer to Mei's question.
"I would genuinely enjoy that." Aaron is clearly not speaking lightly on the topic. He's made a life out of the study and practice of his faith, and Annie is a walking time capsule from a community that, sadly, probably no longer exists. This is an opportunity you dream of but can never actually imagine coming to pass. And yet! He falls silent to look to Little Fox. Because, yeah. Curious.
A glass of ice water gets grabbed, and Fox chugs half of it straight off, then chatters her sharp vulpine teeth together -- nope, those are definitely not human teeth, Fox, put some of your Legacy Attainment use back, that's too much -- and then picks a spot on a couch to curl up on. All the better if it's in contact with a person she knows. Literally, she curls up, like one could imagine the tail primly being tucked around her.
"Normal people, like, 'the unenlightened'? Absolutely nothing. You have to hide everything you are from them. There are some people out there who can do little tricks, what some of us call 'Low Magic,' which is I think what you could do before, from what I remember of you talking in the hospital?" And now it's Business Fox. For all that she's a scampering cute agent of chaos, she's also an incredibly powerful Awakened shaman, and that settles on her shoulders like a mantle. "And a lot of them are hungry for knowledge, but you -- can't tell them anything. Anything. You have to hide what you can do. It's like the number one rule of our society. It's sort of butts if you ask me, but I'm from a group of people who predate this whole ridiculous Diamond shenanigans. Well, two groups, really, but that's a much longer story."
She drags the fingers of one hand through her wet black hair, pushing it back from her face. "For people like -- I'm sorry, I know what you are and I don't know your name? You can call me Fox or Naika -- " to Anneliese "And Lux, it's really a judgement call. How much do you trust the individual in question, are they going to hurt the whole of the tribe, et cetera. It's not against the law -- and Rabbi, you think the Talmud is a life study, wait until you get an eyeful of the Silver Laws, hoo boy -- but you can get in trouble if your actions cause diplomatic incidents. Be smart, basically."
"As for what'll happen to you? Well, if you make a mistake, there are people who will clean up the mistake and make the problems disappear. The first time. And then ... if you become the problem... especially if it's repeated and flagrant breaches that could bring danger to all of us... well."
"That's when the people whose job it is to make problems disappear will make you disappear."
That last bit actually makes Fox look briefly wistful, and then she smiles lopsidedly. "But you have to really flagrantly fuck up, or be trying to hurt people by your actions, for that to happen. Which is why Apprentices have Masters. Your Master will be responsible for you until you're considered educated enough to stand on your own. Until you know enough of the language and the laws to read them on your own and go through your bar magevah, basically."
Infodump! Mei, fortunately, has quite a memory, so she pretty much just starts taking all of that info in and filing it away into whatever compartments in her mind it needs to be put into for long term storage. "Oh, we sort of skipped right past all of the introductions, didn't we?" she says. "Anneliese, Fox. Fox, Anneliese. It's apparently a small world, where most of us happened to know each other for reasons unrelated to all of the business the last few days."
"...that is an awful pun, Fox. I approve. And it is Annie to my friends, by the way." Annie smiles slightly. "Our community-" she gestures at herself and Lux "-tends to be somewhat less systematic than needing a lifetime to study the law, but we have similar rules. Especially since telling people like you used to be-" she looks at both Aaron and Mei here "-can endanger them, and us, significantly."
Lux watches Fox curiously, taking all of this in with intrigue. Then a soft snort, at the end. "Bar magevah..." They wave a hand to Annie. "Yeah, we value secrecy too. Normal people especially can't know about us. It... lights them up like a beacon for Them. They become far more likely to be taken and kidnapped to the fae realms. And makes it more likely for Them to find us again. So... just... don't."
"What I'm getting from all of this is that before I used to worry about right wing reactionaries, regressive taxation, gentrification, poor minority health outcomes, gun violence, civil rights, and the welfare of the public, and now I can tack on Maleficent and the mage cops?" Aaron catches his face in his hands for several moments and just sort of stares down at the coffee table. It's a lot to take in. Mind you, he's taking it all in fairly well. It's just a whole new set of headaches that he's only now realizing he needs to be worried about. "I don't have a master. This is the first I'm hearing of it. Maybe I should go where they told me to go. I'm sort of... not looking forward to that. I imagine they're going to want me focusing on everything but beating this charge. And I can't afford to let everyone down like that. I need to... we need to stay focused on winning our days in court. On justice for the victims. I can't be learning a whole new set of rules and lessons and things right now. Right?" Aaron looks to Fox at that last question.
"Annie," agrees Fox, apparently the sort of person to declare friendship directly. She shoots a small smile aside at Anneliese then. "Thank you, I saved up all my best Jewish jokes to entertain the other MOT who are having a shitty week." A small swallow of ice water, because she did just do a lot of talking and infodumping, and Fox sets her glass aside. On a coaster. She's a wild thing, not a heathen.
"I don't give away other people's secrets," Fox answers Lux in reassurance, turning her green-and-gold eyes over to the Bright One briefly, and then she fixes Aaron with a long gaze. "Yes, that is exactly what I'm telling you. Great power, great responsibility. Welcome to being Spider-Man. Nothing comes without its price, least of all magic." Her look isn't unsympathetic, merely practical.
"Of course it's the first you're hearing it. You literally just got out of the hospital. This is the first conversation I could have with you when you weren't pumped full of morphine and I wasn't being a therapy dog because I don't exactly look like part of someone's legal team, do I?" The smile she offers has all those sharp teeth in it, but it's kind. "And the answer to that is that a) I already basically peed a virtual circle around you two until you could make another choice, if you want to make another choice, so you're protected until then because I took responsibility for you on a temporary basis, so legally speaking, I'm your Master and b) how fast you go in your studies is up to you. If you want to focus on beating this charge and taking care of what you need to do, then that's up to you."
"But you'll be under someone else's wing for a lot longer if that's all you focus on. So." She folds her small hand over her knee. "The other side of it, which you are not seeing, perhaps, is that you also get an entirely new community who is focused on your success and your health. The health of the whole community. Did you think you got out of the hospital and out of handcuffs so fast on the basis of your own reputation and your charming wit alone?" The chiding is gentle, and full of good humor. "No. You got out of the hospital because this new community has already folded its arms around you, and worked with the community you already had. That community is there to support you. We won't let you get overwhelmed, and our considerable resources are here to help you."
"And don't call them 'mage cops.' Unlike the human cops, the Guardians of the Veil are on the same side we are. Also they hate that."
"I guess I should change my business cards," Mei laughs out softly. "Partly because it doesn't seem to be accurate any more, since I can't do the things I used to be able to, and partly because it sounds like someone might get mad at me if they figure out how I've been selling myself to the world in my professional life." Once again, the infodump mostly just gets filed away in her head. She seems to be taking a lot of this in stride. In fact, the next thing she says is, "I can probably stop carrying gloves around everywhere, too." That seems to cheer her up a little bit.
Annie shrugs slightly. "I do not know these Guardians of the Veil from Adam, but as far as my side of the fence is concerned? Psychics like you used to be can do what they want. They are not at any greater risk of attracting Their attention than anyone else who is not in on it."
Lux frowns sympathetically at Aaron, hand lifting to rub slowly along his back in a hopefully comforting way. "Yeah, you shouldn't have to worry about the Gentry, at least. I wouldn't have told you if I thought it'd put you at more risk."
"I'm human," Aaron protests. As thought he's not keen to have his humanity estranged from him by dint of achieving a higher level of understanding. "Anyway. I guess I'll go present myself to the powers that be-- as soon as I figure out who the heck those people are --and see what they want done with me. If my studies suffer because I'm dealing with this whole mess, then so be it. I'm not turning my back on the movement just because I can." He could have done that at any point, really.
"You are human. But I don't think you're the kind of human that the, uh, Gentry? Regard as human-sized torture snacks anymore." Uh, thanks for that, Fox. She rests her hand on her knee, absently drumming her fingers against it, and there's a sort of frustrated look that slides across her face briefly. "I know who those people are, and it's my job to take you, so, you don't have to figure that out. That's what I mean by 'avail yourself of the community that you're part of now,' Aaron." Beat. "No one's asking you to turn your back on the movement. Quite the opposite. What I'm telling you is that if you avail yourself of the help and support that is here for you, you should be able to balance both of the things that are important to you. It'll be work, but that doesn't seem to be something you're averse to."
And then a glance to Mei. "... what is on your business cards?"
Lux grimaces at Fox's comment about torture snacks. "Erm. Yeah. Sorry, you are human, babe. I didn't mean... I just meant you're not... as controllable now, so they're not going to bother with you." Then Lux falls quiet. (Sorry to jump pose order, but going afk for a bit as well, so if you get back before me skip me too)
Mei shifts to one side to pull her wallet out of her back pocket, slides a business card out, and then leans forward to offer it to Fox. For one thing it has her name on it, which itself is probably not the best, since she just handed Little Fox her Sympathetic Name, but it also says "Psychic Private Investigator" on it.
"What's the word that we use for people who aren't like us," her finger's motion includes her, Aaron, and Fox, "or you," she indicates Annie and Lux. "Unempowered? Ordinary people? There has to be some kind of word for that, right?"
"I do not know if your lot have a specific term-" she glances at Fox "-but my community tends to use mortal, when speaking English. Which is not the greatest, I know." Annie sighs.
The grimace earns Lux a vague shrug and a half-apologetic smile. "Laughter instead of tears. We're ones for black humor." She takes the card and looks at it for a long moment. "Okay, so, first lesson. Don't hand another Mage your actual factual name anymore," Fox offers, passing the card back. "That name has power. Connections. It's going to be harder for someone like the well-known Rabbi over here, but you... you'll need to pick a couple new names."
She rubs a hand over her face. "Normal. Mortals. Uh. Officially in the laws? Unenlightened. Unawakened. Sleepers." Puff. "Sleepers is best, I think."
"Wait. So I need a super hero secret identity?" Aaron Cohen and his massive comic book collection does not make this sound like a complaint. He has been waiting for this moment his entire life, in fact. He very nearly pumps a fist about it. "Can I wear a mask? Are there capes?" Aaron then asides to Lux, "I need your help picking the cutest of my undies to wear over my pants from now on. This is going to be great." That last bit was probably a joke, yes. "But seriously. I have to pick a super secret name?"
Lux breaks their silence with an amused exhaled huff. "I... have a feeling Fox doesn't mean dressing up as a super hero, Aaron. But... I mean, not going to turn down helping you pick out cute underwear?"
Mei takes the card back and laughs at Aaron's commentary on the secret names, but she gives Fox a shrewd look at the talk about names having power, and the need for a new one, as she tucks the business card and then her wallet away. She's an attentive student, even when not asking unending questions, but this time she has one. "Am I going to have to stop using my old name entirely? I picked this one out and I'm kind of fond of it."
Annie blinks at that, arching an eyebrow at Mei briefly before glancing at Fox. "Does "Sleepers" extend to everyone who isn't a mage, or is there a separate term for people who know about you but aren't necessarily of you?"
Aaron's antics make Fox laugh out loud. It's a bright, sharp sound, just like gekkering and normal human laughter had a baby and sent it out merrily into the world. "Actually quite like that. You'll pick a name that means something to you, it'll be your Formal Name. A bit like your Hebrew name, actually? The one you get called within our society. And then sort of an in-between name, one that people call you familiarly. And ... that name? You treat it a little more like Gandalf talking to Frodo about the One Ring. Keep it secret, keep it safe."
Her attention turns to Mei, now. "I mean, I did. No one knows the name that isn't Naika or Little Fox. But you have to do what's at your level of comfort." And she chews her lower lip with her sharp teeth. "But you definitely can't do that thing anymore. 'Psychic detective' is just not gonna fly. You'll have a Guardian nose up your butt tomorrow." Lastly, to Annie. "... no, you're not a Sleeper. Technically, legally, the term for you all is 'Sleepwalker.' Which also covers some humans who exist in a sort of ... limbo. They aren't us, but they're not ... not us."
"Yeah, me neither. But a guy can dream, Lux." Aaron was mostly trying to keep the mood light, it seems. Unless...? His eyes light up a little when Fox affirms it is a bit like a super hero name. And also his secret identity at the same time. That's weird. "So more like reverse James Bond?" Aaron shops this pop culture reference around to see if anyone's biting, then shrugs his shoulders again. "I've wanted a shower for two days. So. I'm going to go do that. I think I can wrap my head around all of this a little later. Or. Read a book about it, or something." He caaaarefully pushes himself back up off the couch and begins his awkward waddle for the bathroom, via the bedroom to fetch a change of clothes.
Lux watches Aaron waddle off with concern, but stays where they are on the couch. Their legs tuck up against their chest, arms crossing over their knees as they look back to the others.
"Does that mean we're supposed to be 'woke'?" Mei asks dubiously, because the idea of a whole society of people going around calling themselves woke just kind of rubs the wrong way. "Because my experience has often been that the people who call themselves that the most are definitely not the best examples of the word." She watches Aaron head toward the bathroom. "Fuck, a shower really does sound great. I might have to go claim that next. What I really want is to run a hot bath and soak in that for like 6 hours, though."
Annie definitely doesn't bite on Aaron's pop culture reference. But she probably has the best excuse not to, given the givens. She glances at Fox. "So, um. Which is your formal name and which is the day-to-day? Or is the answer "both of them"?"
A deep breath in, and Fox presses her lips together. "No, you're not 'woke,' you're 'awake.' There's a difference. You are literally ... your eyes are open to things to which they were once closed. 'Woke' is a silly term, and the people who think they are, aren't." And then Naika leans back. "Neither one of those is my formal name. My formal name has a lot of titles that go with it, though not so many as others. I tore my life apart and started it over to make a life which suited me better."
Aaron is in the shower. One can tell this because there is water running, and he's humming to himself. Because he lives alone most of the time and has no idea just how loud it is in the living room when he does that. He has a nice baritone, though. And he likes Pina Coladas and getting caught in the rain.
Lux grimaces at the idea of a whole society calling themselves woke, but looks relieved when Fox explains that's not the case. Then... Aaron is singing in the shower and Lux gets distracted just... looking over and staring at the door, lips curled into a fond, amused grin.
"Good," Mei says when it's confirmed that mages do not, as a society, call themselves 'woke'. "I would have had to say 'no thank you' and give it back if that's the way things were." She turns to look toward the bathroom for a few seconds before she just starts quietly laughing. Something about the situation is just too much. She's in her rabbi's house, after getting arrested for punching cops with him, after literally wrestling with angels, after spending two days in the hospital, and he's singing in the shower while she sits in the living room.
She starts laughing, and then the laughter turns into a choking sob, and instead of just laughing she's also trying not to cry. No more of the sort of filing things away with cool detachment. She has emotions, and they've finally caught up to her. "Fuck," she says as she rubs her unswollen eye with the heel of her hand. "Sorry."
"It is fine, Mei. You have had a long few days." Annie reaches into her bag for a tissue, passing it to the other woman. "Would you like a hug?"
"I'm afraid you can't just give it back, kiddo. You're in for the ride now, strap in and hang on. Good news is that it isn't as bad as you though." Fox turns and flashes a sharp-toothed grin at the bathroom door. "Well, that scans," she comments, and stretches her arms up above her head. Then Mei starts snuffling, and Fox -- like Annie -- offers hugs. Being an Orphan, she does it by just opening her arms.
"You don't need to be sorry for your feelings. Feelings are experiences, too."
Lux frowns at Mei, brows knitting with concern. They start to slide over, also likely to offer hugs--but not wanting to overcrowd or overwhelm, Lux hangs back instead, just giving her a look of understanding. "Nothing to be sorry for. Crying is... more than understandable right now?"
Once the shower has run its course, Aaron spends a bit of time toweling off and finally steps back out of the bathroom. He ducks into the bedroom to fish around in his kippah drawer for another one he might wear in place of his treasured rainbow kippah. It's not as flashy. It's orange, with Gritty's googly eyes on the back of it. It'll do for now, at least. He comes waddling back out in his bare feet, wearing sweat pants and a t-shirt. His visible bruises are in the 'sickly yellow, rot purple' stage of disgusting. So the healing is well apace. He rejoins the group, homes in on what's happening, and finds a seat near to Lux again with a concerned look sent Mei's way.
Mei reaches for the tissue and uses it to dab at the eye that's not mostly swollen shut first, and then more gently at the other one. "I'm happy for hugs," she says after she's done that, and she holds her arms out, willing to accept them from whoever wants to give them. "Pretty much everything I knew about my life is..." She pauses to take a couple of deep breaths, trying not to break down. "I have no idea what I'm going to do, how I'm going to get by, and I'm worrying about what some secret society of wizards calls themselves."
"Taking refuge in the small details is perfectly normal." Annie's voice is gentle, as she gives Mei the offered hug. "I am sure Fox has ideas for how you can support yourself, after this."
"The brain focuses on what it can control," answers Fox, who actually doesn't know much about Mind at all, because Thyrsus tend to not be the greatest at it. "Ummm... I mean I send all of the money I get and make to Rainbow Railroad, and I sleep wherever I feel like, so I'm not the best person for mundane support ideas, but we'll think of something." Once one hug is over, another one is on the way, from Fox, who gives big squish-hugs with rocking from side to side.
Lux flashes Aaron a soft smile as he returns. Then when Fox's hug is over, Lux also moves over to give Mei a gentle squeeze. "Things will work out. Maybe once you meet more of the other Mage people, they can help you too. That's what we do--we have system in place to support people and help them rebuild our lives. There's gonna be a bunch of people who help you. So--for now, just focus on yourself and... getting your head right. You can worry about the future later."
"Mei," Aaron begins, scooting away from Lux, but just so that he can reach out and rest a hand on Mei's knee lightly. "You heard what Little Fox said. We've apparently got another community to look out for us now. And the congregation won't let you go by the wayside, either. Nor will I, or will any of your friends. We'll get through this. Your tears are justified, don't mistake me. But the last thing you should be worrying about right now is how you're going to get by. You'll get by because of you. Same as always."
Mei is definitely one of those people who's not great at accepting help. She'll accept hugs, sure. But help? That harder. "I suppose," she says with a shrug, as hugging finishes. "I'll figure it out. One thing at a time, right?" She takes a deep breath, dabs at her eyes again, takes another breath. "Okay. So... what do we do next?"
"We focus on winning the case," Annie says quietly. "I know you have already made contact with a lawyer, and I am sure your new community will provide what help they can with that." She glances at Fox for confirmation. "None of us are going to abandon you, Mei."
"This is really a day-by-day sort of thing at this stage," Fox says quietly. "But -- I'll put in for a meeting with the Councilor for your Path, and your job right now is -- winning the case, yes. Figuring out what you can already do. Get your hands around that. Money is... a lie. Honestly, it's the most pernicious lie humanity ever made up. Lies have power, don't get me wrong. But it's a lie. Community, that's real."
"And... I guess if anyone asks who's looking out for you, for now, I should probably -- give you all that information."
Lux nods in agreement, slipping away to sit on the couch again. They offer Mei a smile, then look over to Aaron. "I should probably go get Chewie and make sure he gets a good walk before it gets too late. Are you going to be okay? Do you want me to come back to spend the night, or want some time alone? Anything you need?" A beat pause, and their fingers snap. "Shit--I forgot. Here." Lux digs into their hoodie pocket to dig out a shiny new phone, handing it over to Aaron. "This is yours. So you don't have to just use your brain."
"Lux," Aaron says a little taken aback. He's touched, clearly. "I'll pay you back as soon as I can, I promise. Thank you so much." He'll have to update the SIM card, but that's a phone call, really. He sets the phone aside for the moment to look up to his enbyfriend, "As much as I would absolutely love for you to spend the night, you've been through a lot with this yourself. You also need support. And I can't be the one to give that to you as I am right now. So. Go take care of my baby, and talk to Mearcstapa and Jack and let them take care of you tonight. They'd be doing me a favor if they did." Aaron looks aside to Fox and Mei, then back to Lux, "I should probably put on my Friday Night best and go and meet the people I need to meet, anyway."
Mei laughs a little bitterly. "There's not really much for me to do with the case, is there? Not right now, anyway. I just wait and hope that my lawyer is as good as all of us hope she is. Most of that's ultimately out of my hands. I feel more like I need to do something, but..." she nods at Fox. "Those all sound like things I can do, at least. As for the rest... I'm so used to offers of help coming with so many strings attached that they're worse than the original problem. That's how it always worked for me, growing up." She gives Aaron's words a nod. "I take it that's a polite suggestion that we should go somewhere else? I understand."
Annie glances from Aaron to Mei, then nods, standing. "Do you want me to call you an Uber, Mei, or is that something you can do with your mind now?"
"Oh--I didn't buy it. Ms. Mori did. She said she put it as a business expense since she kinda has to talk to you and all, so... I wouldn't worry about it." Lux smiles, then blinks, also looking a little surprised at him. And touched. "Oh... Um, alright. If you're sure. But please call me if you need anything, okay? Take care of yourself." Lux leans in to kiss his cheek, then stands. "Good seeing you all. Mei, same offer to you--call me if you need anything." They smile at the group, then politely see themself out.
Rolling to her bare feet, Fox picks up her backpack. "I think that's 'we should go sniff out the Bossbrimos'." Pause. "That's actually a very clever joke, but none of you get it yet." She huffs softly. "Please send me pictures of Chewie, who is best boy, thank you Lux." Her chin chucks up toward Anneliese, and she offers, "I will give you my phone number. I'm sure you have your own healers, but if there's a need, I'm a person to call. Among other things."
"See you, Lux. Have a good night." She shifts forward in her seat and then slowly rises to her feet with a groan. "When the pain is gone, it's easy to forget how fucked up I am right now. Sitting down for a while made me whole body decide it just wanted to stay there forever." With a shake of the head she tells Annie, "my phone's dead, so some help there would be welcome. I'll charge it when I get home. Hopefully the cops didn't just break it out of spite."
"We do. I am one of them. Just not very skilled at it. Yet." Annie smiles at Fox, taking down her phone number when provided. And then sending a text, just to verify she has it right. Then calls Mei an Uber. "Do you want me to wait with you till it arrives?"
Aaron rises to his feet again and steps away to go find some slip ons, and to change out of sweats and a t-shirt. Nothing fancy. Functional khakis and a pullover for the t-shirt. He grabs his go-bag, gingerly bringing it to his shoulder where he might have otherwise flung it. He's taking it easy on the old flesh prison at present. Apparently he's ready to head out, himself. "Mei could probably use to visit her home, yeah. I'm happy to take the detour. She's been through the same misery as me."
"Don't worry about that," snorts Fox. "I'll fix your phone if it's broken." And with that, she's ready to fuss her way out to looking after Mei and taking the kids to meet with the shiny hats. "Thank you both," she adds as a final addendum to Anneliese and Lux.
"Thank you, Annie," Mei says as she steps closer to her and offers a very ginger hug. "I think I'm going to have some other company, so you don't have to wait if you've got places to be. I appreciate your help, though. I can't really say how much it means."
"Yes," Aaron concurs with the others, "You have repaid every kindness I have ever done you, if that was ever a concern. I am so, so grateful for your help." The attempt to convey the message seems wholly sincere. Then he's asking Mei, "You know, we probably could have charged it with our brains." There's a note of 'why didn't we think of that' about the statement.
"It needed to be done, and I was capable of doing it, so." Annie returns Mei's hug gently, before releasing the other woman. "I will get out of your hair for now, though. Let me know if you need anything?"
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