Catrina’s Saturday morning odd encounter(Catrina)
Date: 2025-06-28 07:54
(Catrina’s Saturday morning odd encounter(Catrina):Catrina)
[Sat Jun 28 2025]
On Elm Street/span>/spanmorning/span>/span65F(18C) degrees, and the sky is covered by dark grey stormclouds. The mist is heaviest At Maple and Sidney/span>/span(Your target and their allies stumble upon a supernatural black market auction where dangerous artifacts and enslaved creatures are being sold. They must decide whether to bid, steal, or shut down the operation – but the auctioneer has powerful protections and every attendee has their own agenda.)
The morning sun that rises above the buildings of New Haven is as bright as always.
How bright that may be? That’s not to speak of.
On the street, people, either still waking up, just readying for sleep, or already wide awake, go about their business. The smells of salt off the distant water mixes with the coffee and something sweet from one of the many shops opening to cater to the morning people. The sounds of vehicles, including one, a bike that is likely rapidly approaching where Kurt stands just outside his door, mingle with shouts, laughs, and the occasional distant crack of a gun shot. Completely normal.
Except, its not really, and, just as Eloa would be passing, a blur passes in front of her bike, detaching from across the street and rushing past Kurt, the snap of fabric cracking through the air beside Kurt’s face.
Kurt rushes outside his door, checking himself as he moves. Keys, check. Wallet, check. Pants, check. Random biker, che- Wait.
As the vampire finishes closing his door, he comes up short as the rapidly moving bike snaps past his face… Most likely, either scraping the fence at the edge of his property, or running parallel to it. Either way, Kurt’s only real response is to pause, blink, and process.
Zipping down Elm street, Eloa looks amazing. Her long chestnut hair is flowing in the breeze. Her body is low in in what looks like gym wear and the crouched position on the bike definitely shows off her ass in those form fitting tights. She’s off to pick up something before meeting someone or something and…”Whoa!” She cries out as something darts infront of her bike towards Kurt. She /was/ slowing because she noticed the vampire coming out of his front door just slight at the edge of her vision but if that thing was slow at all, she’ll probably run over it.
The figure that had sped by in front of Eloa was, fortunately, fast enough to avoid getting hit.
They slip around the side of Kurt’s house, out of view for now, as Eloa’s bike skids hard to a stop in front of Kurt. A small weight lands on Kurt’s foot, just in time as everything comes to a halt, Eloa’s bike, the person’s running (mainly because they’re no longer in view), and all abnormal sudden movements, though Eloa may have just scared the sleep out of a few people walking by. A few shouts of: “Watch where your going lady!” And “Your going to kill someone like that!” float on the breeze as people scatter, leaving this bit of street temporarily cleared of most people.
If Kurt were to look down, the item that had so recently found a new home comfortably on his toes could be identified as a small metal card, dense enough, it seems, to have been felt through shoes.
Kurt lets the casual chaos unfold around him, before finally taking stock of what all just happened. Flashing Eloa a grin, he quirks a bemused brow, “I knew you were eager to see me, Eloa, but you don’t have to go throwing yourself into traffic in the process, hm?” Glancing down, he hums thoughtfully, before crouching down to pick up the small, but weighty, metal card, holding it in front of him to read.
Skidding to a stop and leaving a bit of burn marks on the ground, the normally shy latina gives off a whole string of curses in portugese, something about mum’s dog’s bitch having breakfast late or something if one understood the language. Eloa lets out a puff of air as she looks over at Kurt, blushing slightly at his words, “Eloa was trying to get something done /before/ seeing Kurt. Is no think someone want suicide infront of Eloa bike infront of Kurt house.” The woman blows a few locks of her curls from her face and sits up straighter on the bike. “What they deliver?”
Engraved into the card is an address, along with a small symbol, something that looks like a diamond outline surrounding an eye. One which almost seems to watch Kurt as he looks at the card.
Right about this time, the sound of running footsteps heralds a rather flustered figure bursting from an alleyway, the one from which the strange runner had just emerged from, and, running at full speed, a small form sprints across the street, before Catrina skids to a breathless halt on the curb, hands clutching at her side as she crumples in to catch her breath.
Kurt opens his mouth to respond to Eloa, before Catrina comes sprinting out of the alleyway. With a soft laugh, he raises a brow, “Madam CSO. I’d say pleasure to see you here under any other circumstance, but, and I mean this with nothing but the utmost of respect… What, in the cinnamon toasted fuck, just happened?”
Blinking those lashes over those doe like eyes, Eloa flashes a bright smile when she sees Catrina, “Miss Catrina. You back in town?” She asks as she parks her bike, turning off it to bring her long over the seat. Dressed in those skin tight tights today and what appears to be just an exercise bra, Eloa is also glowing a bit… probably a safety feature so people avoid her on the bike? Or just forgot to turn off the moon glow under her skin. It’s hard to tell.
Sadly for Eloa and Kurt, they are left to wait for a moment as Catrina catches her breath. But then, once she has, she pushes up, plastering a smile on that is completely ruined by her hair sticking to her forehead from sweat. “Elie! And…” She looks at Kurt for a moment, and there’s a flicker of recognition, but nothing more. “You are… the new… Whisper… Kurt? I think? Oh nevermind! Its… err, wonderful to see you both here! Did you by chance see a guy in all black with a really ugly mask run by here?”
In the glow of Eloa’s skin, the card seems to shift in Kurt’s palm, though, that can’t be can it? It certainly doesn’t feel any different…
Kurt presses his lips into a thin line, shaking his head. “I can’t say I have… But, shortly before you came bursting out of the alleyway there, this,” He pauses, holding up the card, “Landed on my foot. It has, quite frankly, no business being here, an-” He cuts off, leaning in to more closely inspect the card. “And it… Hm. Any case, would this be what you were looking for?”
“Eloa only see rabbit dart past. Is maybe man in mask? Is maybe demon that came into world yesterday? Hard tell.” The latina admits as she stops infront of them, her breathing quite quick and Kurt can probably appreciate her pulse beating quite fast at her throat from the excitement. Reaching up, Eloa runs her hand through her hair, spilling it over her shoulder as she looks down at the card.
Taking a quick look at the card, Catrina starts to shake her head, until her eyes land on the symbol. “N—actually… yes. That’s perfect!” Reaching out, Catrina pokes the symbol. “How odd… You said this just… landed on your foot?”
Glancing to Eloa, Catrina nods absently. “You probably wouldn’t see much… it was fast. Like, really fast.”
Again the card seems to almost shift, and this time, Kurt can feel it in his hand. Metal moving. Folding inward and pinching along the edges almost imperceptibly.
Kurt chuckles, nodding once. His gaze remains focused on Catrina as he speaks, idly spinning the card between his fingers. “It did, after your… What I can assume was your ‘man in a mask’ ran past. It’s-” He glances down again as the feeling returns, this time being able to put a name to it, “It’s not… Normal. It’s moving, of it’s own volition. Metal shifting against metal, folding into itself.”
Still glowing, Eloa looks down at the symbol on the card with no recognition in her face at all. She hugs her arms a little although with the sun up it’s getting warm quite quickly. A curious glance is cast towards Kurt, “No glitter.” She tells him disappointedly as she turns back to see Catrina has to say about it.
“It would be…” Catrina murmurs, poking the symbol again. Then, stepping back, she turns between the two. “That…” A motion toward the card. “Is a key. Well, it will ‘be’ a key, eventually. Right now its just the address of the lock.” Taking a deep breath and then letting it out, Catrina explains further. “That card shows the address of a black market. One that I needed access to. But I couldn’t catch the deliverer.”
Kurt nods sharply, extending the hand bearing the card towards Catrina, evidently meaning for her to take it. “Orders then, ma’am?”
Lifting an eyebrow at the way Kurt is focusing and speaking to Catrina, Eloa gives Catrina a small frown, “Eloa investigating drug trade at school for Matias so maybe good idea go…..” She frowns at her phone, “Actually Eloa need dash. You guys have fun!”
“Well. Ideally…” Then she pauses, her own phone pinging audibly as she throws a glance after the woman. And with a long exhale, she nods. “Ideally, we can get to the location ‘before’ the key explodes.”
Kurt pauses for a beat, before nodding, gesturing towards his car. “Well, no time like the present, then. Off we get.”
Following after Kurt’s gesture, Catrina moves to the vehicle, waiting for Kurt before getting inside.
The trip isn’t long, the address only a few blocks away, before Kurt can see what looks like an everyday garage sale set up along the side of the street. But, the address does say that whatever the pair are looking for, is here.
Sitting inside the open garage is an elderly woman, rocking slowly in an antique looking rocking chair, fingers moving with surprising nimbleness as she sews a pair of jeans.
The wares on sale appear to be your ordinary household objects, a lamp, a chair, a doll or two, some clothing, a few dishes. And in the far corner, a towering wardrobe made of solid oak wood stands against a wall.
Kurt pulls up smoothly in front of the address, launching himself out of the driver seat in order to open the door for Catrina. Evidently, he’s of the mind that lower rank equals glorified chauffeur. Regardless, as they step out of the car and into the apparent garage sale, he lets out a soft sigh, dropping his voice low enough for only Catrina to hear. “If that’s a completely normal wardrobe, I’ll eat my hat.” Sure as anything, he keeps his gaze on the card in his hand, watching it as the pair walk closer to the piece of furniture.
Slipping out of the car, Catrina turns to inspect the sale, giving Kurt a nod for his troubles of opening her door.
“Think it will take us to Narnia?” Catrina asks Kurt as they near the enormous piece. The doors of the wardrobe are carved with a winding pattern of strange symbols, one of which is the eye on the card. And just like on the card, it seems to watch as they grow closer.
The card has continued to shift, growing longer, ridges appearing on the edge, and, by now, it looks more like a key than a card.
Kurt lets a humorless smile dance across his lips as he approaches, holding the ‘keycard’ (Heh) up to the wardrobe, trying to line to short end up with the keyhole. “If lion Jesus starts his bullshit, mark my words, I’ll have a new coat before lunchtime.”
The keyhole in question is rather ornate, carved to look like the open mouth of a lion, with the eye staring out in place of its right eye, though the left is completely normal. And, as Kurt tries to line up the key-card…
It won’t fit. Kurt could easily tell that immediately. Its just too irregular in its ridges. Even as the card begins to settle firmly into the shape of a long, thick key, it still won’t go into that lock.
Kurt presses his lips into a thin line, brows raising ever so slightly. “Well, call me surprised…” After a moments pause, a soft sigh escapes him. Turning to the knitting woman, he raises a brow, “Ma’am… You wouldn’t happen to know a thing or two about this key, would you? I think I speak for myself and my friend here, both, when I say we’d very much appreciate your assistance.”
The old woman, previously engrossed in her work, looks up at Kurt, though her eyes are just…. slightly off. Her gaze doesn’t settle on Kurt as much as it settles near him. Her eyes are completely, eerily blank, even as she smiles kindly in Kurt’s direction. “A key, dear? I was wondering when you’d ask. Bring it here, then. And no more of that whispering. Its rather impolite don’t you think?” A gnarled hand reaches out towards Kurt, motioning the pair closer even as her eyes continue to never quite land directly on either Catrina or Kurt, though they do follow their general movements.
Kurt lets out a soft laugh, “If it’s any consolation, ma’am, given the nature of this town, at times, I was entirely expecting you to sprout bat wings and try to tear my spine out.” With that, he strolls over at a leisurely pace, extending a hand to pass the keycard to the woman.
The key settles into the woman’s hand, and she inspects it with probing fingers, a few crooked, but still white, teeth showing as she grins. “Bat wings? No no dear, my days of tearing out spines ended about two centuries ago… And you don’t have time to be worrying about that. You should be pushing for that eye, dear.” A gnarled finger points at the wardrobe as she extends the key back out at Kurt. “Do say hi to Dante for me, would you? Its been so long since he’s come around. Tell him that Mel isn’t too old for everything.” A croaking laugh escapes the woman as she goes back to her sewing. If she’s Mel, that statement might not be true, given her appearance. But, then again, age can be deceiving when it comes to the supernatural….
Kurt opens his mouth to respond, but instead just chuckles, taking the key and nodding thankfully. “I’ll let him know if I see him, ma’am. Again, truly, thank you.” With that, he turns to the wardrobe, this time holding the key up to the eye, pressing it against the wood(?) of the wardrobe.
The key clicks against the wood, and Catrina watches closely as again… nothing. The laughter continues from behind, and, at length, the woman cuts in with “The wardrobe, dear. Push it.”
The key has grown a little warmer in Kurt’s hand. Its not quite painful, but definitely noticeable.
Kurt blinks once, then again, before letting out a quiet groan, “It’s to be one of those days, then.” With that, he follows up, just pushing the wardrobe open.
The wardrobe swings open, revealing a few railings in the top, along with a hard wooden back. However, the wardrobe is just a little… shallow? From the looks of it, it should be much deeper. And there, in the center of the back wall, a small hook sits. Its so out of place, with no others on that wall. It sticks out like a sore thumb. Behind them, the woman sniffs. “Well! That’ll do it in a pinch…” The click of wood on concrete and the creak of the rocking chair announces her movements, and, if one were to look, she would be seen collecting some more torn old jeans to stitch.
Kurt leans in for a closer inspection of the hook, holding the key up to it. Evidently, a bit of pride has crept into the man, as he refuses to ask the old woman(?) for help again. A nudge here, a pull on the hook there. He’s trying, at least.
The woman continues to snicker from behind the pair, and Catrina continues to watch Kurt’s progress. The key doesn’t look like it would fit anywhere on the hook, but, when pulled, the hook does shift ever so slightly to either side, and the wall moves just a little with it.
Kurt lets out a quiet sigh. Of course, the one time it’s not an overly-complicated, arcane solution. Just a normal fake-back to a wardrobe. Stepping back, he gives the hook a sharp yank, evidently trying to pop the false back out with it.
The hook jerks hard, and, if Kurt isn’t careful, he may find himself on the floor. While it doesn’t come loose, what it does do is slide to the right, allowing for an opening to be seen…
And just beyond that opening, a metal door, with an intricate lock.
Catrina reaches out a hand to try and steady Kurt, though her eyes are on that sliver of door. “There!” She says brightly. “Excellently done Kurt!”
The woman snorts from behind them.
Kurt chuckles, steadying himself, before shooting a look towards the old woman. “In my defense… Like I said. Bat wings and spinal re-arrangements.” And, with that, key hopefully goes in lock, and the two can proceed on with their merry misadventures.
With a pleasant ‘click’ the key slides perfectly into the lock. The door swings open easily, and from behind, the woman calls out a much too cheery “Have a nice day dears! And do tell my sweet Kalae that Mel misses her!”
That last remark has Catrina turning sharply, but then…
The door slams sharply behind the two. And they are looking out onto the street just outside Kurt’s house. Car in place. Just as it had been. Except, now, in the place of the key, a small gem is falling down through the air, to land on Kurt’s foot.
And this time, it is very much so something he can feel, with the weight of a brick being dropped on one’s toe. The gem itself is a perfectly cut sphere, glowing with a strange, violet light in its very center. And once it lands on its unfortunate victim, it rolls a little bit, coming to rest innocently against Kurt’s toes, right at the tip of his shoe.
Kurt mutters a curse under his breath as the heavy weight comes crashing down on his toes. But, nevertheless, he glances around, seeing… Well that doesn’t make any damn sense. Leaning down, he scoops up the amethyst sphere, holding it up to the light, before turning to Catrina. “Well… What now?”
Turning to Kurt from staring at the door, Catrina inhales slowly. “Well… That is the item my Sponsor wanted from the market.” Her lips press together. “But I don’t know how that woman knew her. Her name, I mean.” Extending a hand, she prods the gem lightly. “Thank you, for your help in retrieving it. I think… I think we paid for it in the way of Fae. Or demons. I’m not really certain.”
Kurt presses his lips into a thin line. “If I were a gambling man, Madam CSO, I’d wager on the latter. Dante is… Just one of those names, hm?”
“Kalae. Its the first part of her name.” Catrina clarifies. “Dante… I have no idea.” She takes in a deep breath. “And I’d rather not find out.”