[b]Holly Gabrielle Baless[/b]

It was a beautiful wintry day-most wintry days were, of course, as they were drawing close to [i]Christmas[/i]. Having already knocked a large chunk of her shopping out of the way-let alone decked the halls with holly (how apt), wreathes, and lights, one could very accurately say Holly was positively brimming with the Christmas spirit. Being too old to enjoy the myth of Santa Claus any longer, she took it upon herself to find Christmas magic wherever she could-and she was certainly finding it. Bundled up in a plush, puffy pink jacket and a scarf-and, of course, a Santa hat to keep her ears warm [i]and[/i] festive, Holly set out to...

Hm. What was she going out to do? She had no real plans today. There was the Christmas Fair later, which would certainly be delightful, but she had a few hours to spare until then. Hours! Whole hours of free time. Holly was rather unaccustomed to this-the majority of her time was usually spent either at a desk studying or doing some project somewhere-soup kitchens, youth groups, any number of altruistic endeavors. She overtaxed herself pretty regularly, but it never seemed to really to get to her. Holly was one of the most annoying types of people in existence: an unshakable optimist.

Whistling "Jingle Bells", she walked down the street, a wide, beaming smile greeting everyone she passed. More than a few curious stares were thrown her way, as the residents of Black Fall weren't typically used to such...pep...but it didn't rattle Holly. Hm. There were any number of shops and stores she could go into, true, but Holly had burned through most of this month's allowance already (there were so many presents to be bought!) and, while she was sure her lovely parents would give her more if she needed it, she didn't think it prudent. Christmas was around the corner-she could wait. Holly's spirit was shaken a bit when she saw the NEST takedown site-men in horrible black armor, toting around rifles plain as day and dragging people off into trucks. Holly pursed her lips and shook her head disapprovingly. What drove people to do such things? Was there really any amount of money in a bank vault that was worth it? Or any high that was that enjoyable? Holly could not fathom the thought processes of men like the ones they were dragging into the back of the NEST van, and that was okay with her. To Holly, there was only one type of riches she was interested in acquiring it, and it couldn't be found in any bank. 

A brisk chill cut through Holly's many layers of jackets-despite her best efforts to bundle up, she was a small-framed girl, and staying warm got tricky in these cold spells-and sent a shiver dancing down her spine and tingling up her toes. Curling her arms around herself, Holly closed her eyes for a mere moment and took a deep breath in, reaching within herself, to the well of warmth and fire that she seemed to be able to find no matter how dark and cold it became outside. A giddy feeling overtook her-one she was used to by now but nonetheless enjoyed-and a sensation of warmth billowed out to her extremities, staving off the cold. Holly had no need to truly ignite-it would be such a gaudy thing, here in this crowded street corner-and the Lord did say one was not to pray in the street corners, but rather in the confines of one's one room. No, she would not be showing off her talents-because they were not hers to show off. Reinvigorated, and scarcely aware of the cold, the only hint of Holly's minute usage of her power was the scarcest of glow on her skin-a barely, truly barely, visible flicker of light above her head. In the sunlight in the midst of the city, it would certainly be difficult to detect-which was fine with Holly, as she had no desire to quarrel with NEST. Or anyone, really! There were so many better things one could do than quarrel or argue. So many!

Holly stopped at a street corner, humming to herself as she looked around. What to do, what to do. In a city full of the supernatural, one would think that boring days were few and far between. Unfortunately, Little Miss Baless was something of a workaholic, and she was lost as to things to do. Perhaps, she mused, something would just come along her way and surprise her. Life had a knack for throwing serendipity after serendipity at her-something Holly attributed to the Lord, something others attributed to luck, and something NEST attributed to her powers. Who was right was anyone's guess. There was a lovely little coffee shop somewhere close-the Mean Bean Cafe, was it? Hm. She couldn't remember the name. They had hot chocolate, didn't they? Surely they did. It would be silly for a coffee place to not have hot chocolate. She could go there...but Holly couldn't for the life of her remember just where the coffee shop was. Hm. 

Standing at a crossroads and totally unaware of the symbolism, Holly mused over her choices, smiling gently, humming softly. Her Santa hat flopped a bit in the December breeze, but stayed pretty securely on her head. And to those passing by really close, there was just a hint of warmth and energy-of life-that one might feel sitting in a favorite chair by the fire, or remember from opening presents on Christmas morning,or feel in the embrace of a favorite pet. Then, throwing her fortunes to the winds and going off a whim, she decided to mosey on northwards-unknowingly heading straight for the Mean Bean Cafe. Funny how things just seemed to play out for Holly like that.

[b]Selena Wodan Chilver[/b]

No reception. Not a single bar.

Ah. It was beautiful. Selena tucked the phone into her pocket-she slid it into the little pocket over her breast in her windbreaker-and ran her hands down her sides, double-checking for everything. Knife at her side, bow slung over her shoulder. She left the .357 at home-Selena wasn't a hundred percent clear on Pennsylvania's gun laws yet, ya know, and figured NEST was the sort who would love to take down a meta toting around illegal weapons. Selena mused briefly on the perks of being an outlaw-she could wear a bandana-mask, rob banks, knock over trains...eh. Probably not worth it.

Probably.

Selena walked quietly through the woods, ears primed for any noise (the scurrying of squirrels across a branch to her right) and eyes flickering around in front of her, picking up (hoof-prints half-hidden underneath that leaf over there) traces of the woods around her. Selena did hate that this was over-she tried to get a walk in the woods in pretty much daily, and aimed to go hunting at least once a week or so. It annoyed the ever-loving HELL out of Eva, but she figured her little sister would just have to learn to live with it. Nothing wrong with killing an animal if you were going to treat it with respect. Nothing at all. Selena broke the treeline and continued walking towards her house, boots falling silent on the familiar grassy path. It wasn't too cold out, but there was a bit of a chill-enough for Selena to wiggle her toes every few minutes to keep the blood pumping. She drew her hands out of her pocket for a moment and raised her hand to the horizon. Oh, she had plenty of time before sunset. Plenty of time.

Selena then passed through the normal rituals of "getting ready to go do public things in the outside world". Showering without messing up her dreads (after double checking to make sure no one was home, Carrie Underwood karaoke was a go), then the usual teethbrushing, deodorant-applying, hair-oiling, clothes-finding (the latter being particularly difficult, as Selena's room could've merited FEMA intervention and was generally considered impossible to navigate). She wriggled into a pair of jeans ([i]Ah, my ass looks great[/i]) and then threw on a simple long-sleeved brown shirt, putting on another layer or two above that. She slid her feet back into the same pair of boots she had been trekking in earlier-beat up old things, scarred and scuffed up, but undeniably reliable. Selena cinched her leather belt on tight and double-checked herself in the mirror to make sure she hadn't missed something totally obvious. 

Shit! She forgot underwear. Damnit!

The process began anew.

Somewhat later than originally planned, Selena walked out the front door, closing and locking it behind her. Why'd she lock the door? Honestly if somebody broke in, Selena would just be excited. Finding them wouldn't be too tough, and then she could have a lovely little ass-kicking session. But, hey, 'tis the Season. She figured she'd wait until after Santa brought her presents to get herself firmly put on the naughty list. Selena walked over to the driveway, staring at the love of her life. Smooth. Sleek. Gentle curves. God it was beautiful. Selena hopped onto her motorcycle, slipping on her gloves and letting the engine warm up. She neglected a helmet because-first off, c'mon, it's Selena. If she gets in a crash, she's not gonna need a helmet-but the pavement she lands on had better be wearing one. Beyond that, trying to do dreads and a helmet just generally didn't end super well. She tied her hair back and tucked it in under her jacket so she wouldn't have it flying all over the place like Medusa when it was humid outside. At the last moment, Selena remembered her cell phone. She hopped off the bike and jogged back inside (she took the stairs three at a time) and found it in no time, sending a quick text to Eva-[i]Hey I'm heading into town. Don't know where you are or what you're doing. Message me if you wanna do something[/i]. Back on the saddle. Rolling her neck around, Selena braced herself for the biting cold, knocked the kickstand back and rolled out onto the main road.

The air was absolutely fucking freezing, but it felt great. It felt alive. Selena was within the Black Fall city limits faster than could be deemed responsible and slowed to a speed less likely to get her pulled over. Time to play. Now, what the hell was there to do in this city? Eying her surroundings for something excited, Selena idled around, waiting for something to jump out at her. Hopefully not literally.