[center][img]http://i.imgur.com/ZSTKEEG.png[/img]
[color=f7941d][h1]And Autumn Page[/h1][/color]
 
[h3][color=5ffb17]Tuesday Morning[/color][/h3][/center]
       	Talia groaned and slammed her fist down on her alarm clock. She let her hand slide off it and hang at the side of her bed. She grumbled into the pillow, the bed shifting beside her as McMuffin readjusted himself after the disturbance of the alarm.
       	She groaned as she heard Ronaldo’s usual holler from the floor, before he jumped onto the covers and walked across her back. She stole a glance at the clock, then shoved her face back in the pillow with further grumblings about mornings and work.
        Forcing herself up, she stretched, the action feline. She plopped back down and looked to the cats, McMuffin curled into a ball of fuzz and Ronaldo just laying down to clean himself.
        She had spent a good portion of the night--at least, as long as her powers would let her--trying to convince the cats that the addition of a dog to their family would be a good idea, but they refused to bite. She had thought about adopting Kalik anyway, but then there was always the issue of the landlord.
        With a sigh, she rolled out of bed, untangled herself from her cocoon of blankets, and groggily drug herself to the kitchen area to make a pot of coffee, McMuffin in her shadow.
	After quickly getting ready for her day, she said her farewells to her dear friends, and headed out the door. As she neared the bottom of the apartment stairs, her phone went off in her purse, making her jump. She glanced around the empty stairwell, then pulled out her phone.
	[color=5ffb17]“Hey, Eliza,”[/color] she greeted, exiting the building. [color=5ffb17]“What’s up?”[/color]
	“T.J.! Good. Glad I caught you.” The relief in the girl’s voice was almost palpable. “I know it’s short notice, but there’s been a mistake with the schedules. There’re too many people working this morning.”
	[color=5ffb17]“Meaning?”[/color]
	“Meaning it looks like you get a three-day weekend this week, and one day next week.”
	[color=5ffb17]“Oh!”[/color] Her mind went to Kalik. [color=5ffb17]“Sounds perfect.”[/color]
	“Great. Bye!”
	The phone disconnected as Talia’s shift manager hung up.
	[color=5ffb17][i]Hope they have room for an extra volunteer today,[/i][/color] she thought, and hurried on her way to the shelter, pausing only to give her car a quick glance in debate, then deciding to go on foot.
	When she arrived at the shelter, Talia greeted Laura’s surprised look with a friendly wave. [color=5ffb17]“Got the day off,”[/color] she told the woman, who stood once more behind the counter. [color=5ffb17]“Got room for one more on the staff today?”[/color]
	Laura smiled and shook her head. “You know, most people sleep in their days off.” The woman looked to Talia. “Derek just called in sick. Go get changed.” She gestured to the door to the lockers with a nod.
	[color=5ffb17]“How’s Kalik?”[/color] Talia asked, making her way to the door.
	“Kalik?” Laura’s brows knitted in confusion for a second, “Oh, the husky-mix. He’s fine. On edge, but he’s been a good boy, for the most part.”
	[color=5ffb17]“Good.”[/color] Talia offered a quick smile.
	“Mind if I put you on desk duty, though, once you’ve said hello to your friend?”
	Talia’s shoulders slumped slightly, but her expression did not waver. [color=5ffb17]“Sure, that’s fine.”[/color] With that, she hurried to the locker rooms and quickly switched shirts before returning to the entrance room to mann the desk.
	In walked a woman with red hair, that was pulled up into a bun. She seemed to be looking at her phone for a moment, and then looked up at Talia and smiled. [color=f7941d]“Hi, I’m looking for Talia Jones? Do you happen to know if she’s volunteering today?”[/color] She smiled a bit a Talia.
	Talia looked at the woman for a moment, wondering how the woman knew her. [color=5ffb17]“Yeah, I’m Talia. How can I help you?”[/color]
	[color=f7941d]“My name is Autumn Page, and I represent some people that are very interested in getting to know you. Is there someplace we can talk in private? Also, I saw some very interesting looking dogs that I may be interested in.”[/color] She held out her hand to Talia in greeting.
	Suspicion entered Talia’s gaze at the woman’s words. [color=5ffb17][i]Interested to know me?[/i][/color]
	Regardless, she took Autumn’s hand and shook it. [color=5ffb17]“Sure,[/color]” she answered slowly. [color=5ffb17]“Do you know the names or breed of the dogs you were interested in?”[/color]
	[color=f7941d]“There was one that showed up yesterday under the rescued tab. I know he’s not for adoption yet, but I wanted to see him. His name is Kalik, husky-mix.”[/color] There seemed to be a sparkle in Autumn’s eye as their hands shook. There was also a rather strange looking ear cuff on the woman’s left ear.
	Talia inhaled as Autumn said the dog’s name. So, someone was already looking at him.
	[color=5ffb17][i]Why wouldn’t they?[/i][/color] she scolded herself. [color=5ffb17][i] He’s a beautiful dog.[/i][/color]
	[color=5ffb17]“That can be arranged.”[/color] She forced her smile to broaden. [color=5ffb17]“But know he can be a bit temperamental yet. Follow me.”[/color] Talia stepped out from behind the counter, gestured to a door near the side of the room with a window at its top, and went toward it, pausing to be sure Autumn followed, which she did.
	On the other side of the door, a smaller, circular room waited, a long bench in its center and a few chairs sitting against the walls. Three other doors with rectangular slits for windows lined the walls.
	Talia peered into the window of the first one, checking that it was empty, then pulled the door open.
	[color=5ffb17]“These are our visiting rooms.”[/color] Talia looked to Autumn, holding the door open for her. [color=5ffb17]“If you want to wait in here, I’ll bring Kalik out. We can talk more then.”[/color]
	[color=f7941d]“Thank you. I’ll wait here.”[/color] Autumn happily took a seat and looked around the room and pulled out her phone again. [color=f7941d]“Sorry, boss wondering where I am.”[/color]
	[color=5ffb17]“That’s fine. But I’d suggest putting it on silent. The ringtone might startle Kalik.”[/color] With that, she turned and went back into the main room, both doors closing behind her.
	She went to the kennels and, taking a moment to try talking Kalik back into his collar with a few stern looks and a tone she hoped he would understand, she managed to get a leash on the dog and led him back to the visiting room.
	The dog trotted obediently beside her, his ears twitching and perking at every sound.
	[color=5ffb17]“Here we are,”[/color] she said, more to the dog than the waiting woman as she and Kalik entered the visiting room.
	A couple metal-and-plastic chairs sat against the wall, and a dog bed sat in one corner with a few squeaky toys inside. A counter spanned the wall beside the door, a couple empty terrariums sitting on it, and cabinets were mounted to the wall above.
	[color=5ffb17]“Kalik,”[/color] Talia knelt down in front of Kalik and took the leash off, [color=5ffb17]“I’d like you to meet Autumn.”[/color] She glanced to the woman. [color=5ffb17]“May I call you Autumn?”[/color]
	[color=f7941d]“Please do. Hello Kalik, aren't you a pretty boy?”[/color] Autumn held out her hand to let Kalik sniff, as if knowing that just touching him right off the bat was a bad idea. [color=f7941d]“So, I’m assuming that it is just the three of us that can hear what is going on in here, yes?”[/color] She said, waiting for approval to pet.
	The dog’s ears flattened slightly as Autumn reached toward him. Kalik gave Talia a quick glance. At her small nod, Kalik sniffed at Autumn’s hand before gently nudging her fingers.
	[color=5ffb17]“Yeah,”[/color] Talia answered, her earlier suspicion returning as she gently ruffled the fur on Kalik’s back.
	Autumn smiled and gently patted Kalik on the snout and then went about to scratch gently behind his ears. [color=f7941d]“Talia, I will be frank with you. I represent an agency that works with people like you, people with psychic talents. We want to offer you a job, if that would interest you.”[/color] She looked at Talia, waiting to see the woman’s response.
	As Autumn petted Kalik, Talia stood and went to one of the cupboards labeled “Treats.” She froze as Autumn called out her abilities. 
Talia’s gaze darkened. She contemplated playing dumb, but something told her that that would be a waste of breath.
	[color=5ffb17]“What, like the government?”[/color] she asked flatly without turning from the cabinet. Her parents had warned her about the government time and again. The last thing she wanted was to become sort of lab rat, both literally and figuratively.
	Kalik pulled his head from Autumn’s hand and looked to Talia at her tone. He went to her and sat beside her, his gaze almost questioning.
	Talia looked to Kalik and grabbed a treat from a jar before shutting the cabinet door harder than she intended. The sound startled Kalik, and the dog jumped back with a surprised bark, then growled up at the cabinet.
	[color=5ffb17]“Sorry,”[/color] she muttered to the dog, carefully offering him the treat in apology.
	[color=f7941d]“Not the government, but I don’t blame you for thinking that. Wouldn’t be the first time. This is more of something in the private sector.”[/color] She looked at Kalik and then at Talia. [color=f7941d]“You want to calm him down? I know you can do it.”[/color] She cocked her head and smiled at Talia. 
	Talia turned her gaze to Autumn and return the woman’s smile with a frown. Kalik refused the treat, instead looking between Talia and Autumn before, picking up on Talia’s mood, he growled at Autumn.
	[color=5ffb17]“Depends. What ‘private sector’ are we talking about, and what do you do, [i]exactly?[/i]”[/color] Talia held a hand out to Kalik nevertheless to keep him from attacking if he chose to act. The dog glanced to her hand, and took a slight step back.
	[color=f7941d]“The kind that really doesn’t have ties to the Government. We do work with them however, to assure the rights of those with psychic powers, as well as grant those who are fleeing their countries due to said powers a place of asylum. As for what we do, we help other psychics, in one way or another. Learn about their talents, help them if they’re facing some sort of issue, legal or not, as well as help those who wish to hide hide. We also wish to help human/ psychic interactions, and keep blood shed and collateral damage to a minimum. I know this is rather sudden and out of the blue, but I’m going to be frank with you. There is a group of people out there that do not agree with us, for some reason. They actively seek out other psychics and brainwash them, turning them into their little puppets. We do not know their end goal, and that is what scares us the most. They have proven they are not afraid to take any risks, or even spare any mercy when seeking someone. I am reaching out because your talents are useful, and we want to make sure we got to you before they did. They have already done some very high-risk thing this week alone, and quite honestly, that frightens me.”[/color] Autumn did indeed look frightened, like she had seen something she rather forget. 
	[color=f7941d]“We would be willing to help you relocate if you did join us, but if not, we can still help keep you out of others radar, if you wish.”[/color]
	Talia took a deep breath, searching Autumn’s face for any misgivings. Finding none, her expression softened slightly and she knelt down to Kalik’s level, momentarily ignoring Autumn as her mind tried to process the woman’s words.
	[color=5ffb17]“Kalik,”[/color] she said as evenly as she could, making the dog look to her. [color=5ffb17]“Easy, boy.”[/color] She extended her open hand to him, and offered him the treat once more with the other. After a moment, Kalik tentatively took it, the bone-shaped biscuit providing a one-bite snack for him.
	[color=5ffb17]“What kind of job, exactly, is it you’re offering me here?”[/color] Talia crossed her arms and leaned against the counter, trying to portray a sense of ease to keep Kalik calm.
	The dog remained tense, his head turning to keep both women in his sight.
	Autumn seemed to pause for a moment in thought. [color=f7941d]“Well given your talents, we could use you as a field agent. However, what you ultimately do in Sector X is up to you. We are aware the name is terrible, just roll with it,”[/color] she said with chuckle. She coughed and seemed to become serious again. [color=f7941d]“Also, given your secondary talent, you could be quite useful when we have situations involving animals like that cutie there.”[/color]
	Talia looked to Kalik a long moment, not wanting to meet Autumn’s eyes. This woman knew quite a bit about her powers. An unnerving amount. And if [i]she[/i] knew what she could do…
	[color=5ffb17][i]Who else does?[/i][/color] Talia bit her lower lip as Kalik looked back to her and cocked his head slightly.
	She ran her hand gently down his head and neck as she looked back to Autumn. [color=5ffb17]“Can I have the evening to think on it?”[/color]
	[color=f7941d]“Of course you may. Here is my number and e-mail for when you make a decision.”[/color] Autumn reached into her purse, dug around for a moment, and then pulled out a card and handed it to Talia. [color=f7941d]“I do plan to be in town for at least another day or so while you think it over.”[/color]
	[color=5ffb17]“Great. Thanks.”[/color] Talia pushed from the counter and took the card. She turned it over in her hand, giving it only a quick look, then put it in her pocket and grabbed the leash from where she had placed it earlier on the counter. [color=5ffb17]“If we’re done here…”[/color] she let her words trail off as Kalik let her attach the leash to his collar.
	[color=f7941d]“I suppose we are. I’m sorry if I gave a bad first impression. It has been a rough week. I do hope that this cutie finds a good home. It was nice to meet you, Miss Jones. Have a good day.”[/color]
Talia only nodded and watched as Autumn stood up and went to leave, giving one last look at Kalik before walking out the door.