2020-04-12 - A Cozy of Warlocks

It's a warm spring evening with a few clouds but since things have warmed up, there have been more visitors in the shop as tourist season draws nigh in about another month or so, most likely. Elias is seated behind the counter, though he's not working, per se. He's more just typing away on his laptop while the couple of clerks who are working actually take care of things. Sometimes they ask him questions and he answers, but otherwise he seems to be just hanging out.

Sparrow could be just another customer, the way the familiar rhythm of the bell chiming above the door and one of the clerk's issuing a prompt greeting plays out, but then she veers directly toward the counter. Not without some signaled explanation to the quirks, pointing to Elias to let them know where she's heading, that she's not in any immediate need of their assistance in pestering their boss. She's got that well in hand all on her own. The muted hues of her dark jeans and grey tee--sporting a large white hamsa on the front--are complemented by a vibrant green jacket, a similar shade dusting her eyes, her lips kept pale to help those peepers pop. Dropping her elbows on the counter close to Elias, she wonders, "Whatcha working on?"

"New book," Elias says without looking up, knowing that voice well enough not to need to, though his lips quirk into a smile as he continues typing. "No deadline on this one, though. I finished the other one in March." He glances up then as he finishes off whatever thought he needed to get down before it escaped, and saves the file. His eyes flicker over her outfit and the green at her eyes and he gives her a nod, "I like the color." He then pulls himself up from his seat and stows away his laptop, coming out from behind the counter to lean against it near her. "Social call? Looking for a book? Secret warlock business?"

"Impressive," Sparrow croons for that March completion of the previous project. It even sounds sincere, the blonde entirely aware that she isn't capable of that kind of creativity-on-demand. When she catches that Elias is looking her over, she straightens from the natural slouch that comes with counter-leaning without actually pushing back up, a little shift of her shoulders presenting the the look. And though she doesn't chirp any thanks for the compliment about her color choice, there's still a brightening of her smile to express that appreciation. The single-elbow pivot she performs when he gets up leaves her facing him when he comes around the counter while still feigning indolence she probably doesn't actually possess. "Secret warlock business," comes with delightedly widened eyes which promptly roll upward playfully when she adds, lower, "Or maybe random make-outs. Ya know. Whichever. Or both."

"Impressive would have been getting it done early, not on time," Elias laughs just a little bit and shrugs his shoulders, clearly happy with the outcome either way. He leans in then, and says, "Well, if it's secret warlock business, we can always head upstairs." He nods toward the loft, which isn't entirely private, but at least isn't right in front of the customers downstairs and the clerks. "If you just want to make out," Elias says, his lips near hers as he trails off. Doesn't seem like any relocation is required for that. One brow lofts, quizzically, a playful smile on his lips.

Sparrow might wanna object to that logic about what qualifies as impressive, her head tipping off to the side like she's winding up some additional praise, but she knows when to back off. Like when making out's on the table. Offered the opportunity, she doesn't pass it up, closing that little bit of distance left between their lips without any inkling of angst over whether she should or shouldn't. She smells like lilacs today, like lilacs and leather and the lush greenness of spring and the plump plums of late summer, that olfactory tease leaving her lips seeming that much sweeter. Straightening, she steps in to deepen the liplock, to let one hand gently alight on his chest with a threat--promise?--of more, a shared shamelessness that assures she could put on a proper show. But. Well. She draws back just enough to murmur, "Upstairs," against his lips agreeably, offering only a tease for their ambushed audience.

Elias's dark eyes sparkle with amusement when she looks like she's going to say more but doesn't. And then one arm slips lightly around her waist as she leans in, and his lips press to hers without hesitation. He breathes in the scent of lilacs and leather and lushness, and lingers in it. His own scent is light, the fresh touch of citrus and the spice of cinnamon, likely just the soap that he uses and nothing more. When she draws back a little he nods, though takes one more kiss from her lips before stepping back and catching her hand in his to draw her with him toward the stairs. "Hold my calls, ladies. Terribly secret and important business to address." The two high school students at the counter roll their eyes. They're more than used to his antics at this point, and continue on with what they're doing. An older woman shopping a rack nearby gives him a vaguely disgusted look, probably both for the announcement and the PDA, but goes back to her shopping.

Sparrow keeps close to the counter as Elias starts toward the stairs, letting their arms stretch out between them while she watches him. When she finally starts after him, well before it actually gets uncomfortable, she catches that look from the customer and, despite the awful inclination to blow a kiss her way, flashes an apologetic smile instead, exercising some version of the manners her parents instilled in her not so terribly long ago. Even after they've crested the steps to the loft, she keeps hold of his hand, stepping in close to press a quick kiss to his shoulder, to murmur, "Feel like that's gotta be our official commencement ritual for all Secret Warlock Business. Scandalizing some random somebody."

Elias isn't moving terribly fast, so it's not like he would actually drag her if she didn't come along, either. But he chuckles when she comes up behind him and kisses his shoulder. He glances at her over said shoulder and says, "That does seem an appropriately warlock way to get things underway." He makes his way over toward the lounge area and sprawls comfortably onto the couch. The metaphysical/occult section is rarely inhabited, which makes it the perfect place for lounging, and thus he does, pulling her down with him. "So, Agent P. What business do we have to discuss today?"

Sparrow offers no resistance to either Elias or gravity, sinking into a spot right beside him, though she does bring a knee up first to tuck against his hip as she settles in sideways, facing him. All the better for conversation. And admiring his undeniable gorgeousness. "So," she starts, that syllable on its own for a moment while she picks her intro. "Not sure if I mentioned that I went to this psychedelics conference in February, but. Attended a talk about oneirogens while I was there. Plants that, uh. Facilitate dreaming and enhance the REM state and all that. And I've been thinking since about maybe seeing how they might interact with Dreams here. If it might give us some control or. I dunno. Something." A gross undersummarization of everything she's been thinking about in the intervening weeks, but she adds, "Dante's been, like. Super-helpful. Good sounding board. Kinda accidentally, but."

Elias's smile quirks a little at that 'So', and one brow lifts, as he waits to hear what will follow. Then he nods slightly, remembering her mentioning that she was going to a conference, "You mentioned it, but then I never heard about it afterward." He's quiet then as she continues on, nodding just a bit. "Has he?" he asks, when she mentions Dante being a helpful sounding board.

"It was..." Sparrow draws in a breath, holding it for a couple of seconds while she considers. "Amazing. Absolutely amazing. And just as exhausting. I just--" Came home and crashed into a profound depression that kept her social energy low even before she started playing support system for a few other friends? She doesn't voice that, but the weight of it plays across her features, not at all apologetic, but certainly aware of how much time she lost to that downswing. "But yeah." She shrugs all that off and pushes forward, back on topic. "Crossed paths at the library a while back, and. He had a lot of good feedback about methodology and things to consider and all that. Don't know that he's up for the delve, but pretty sure he's on board to review my work and keep poking holes in it." Which is what all good science needs. Anyway! "Do you know if it's possible to just... will yourself into Dreams? Rather than... waiting for them to just happen to you?"

Elias crosses one ankle over the other and sets his feet up on the coffee table in front of him, listening. There's a small nod when she kind of trails off, and a twitch of a smile. He gets it. Even if he doesn't know all the details. Then he nods again when she mentions having crossed paths at the library. "Well, that's constructive," he says, of the feedback that Dante is providing to her. Though when she asks if it's possible to will yourself into a Dream, he shakes his head. "Not that I've ever experienced personally, or heard of from others. I suppose if one drew enough attention to themselves through use of their abilities, then they might get sucked into one purposefully, though the consequences would likely be.. unpleasant."

"See," Sparrow begins, but it's just a placeholder while she gathers her thoughts. "Bax--" Does he know Grant by that name? "Agent B. He, uh. He's pretty sure it's possible. Not sure how much I believe him. Not because I think he'd make that shit up, but more because. Well. Yeah, I suspect it's more just that Dreams happen to him more frequently as a general rule, so. Hard to gauge how much of that is intention versus coincidence, ya know? And I really don't want to use the signal flare method. Kinda negates the whole control thing. So." This comes with a nod, just the briefest pause. "First step is to see if there are techniques we can use to cross over on our own. Bax thinks maybe there are certain places where it's more likely to happen, but I'd rather start from a place of safety and branch out from there. If we have to. Depending on how initial tests and methods go."

Elias vaguely recognizes Agent B, and seems to nod when he hears that name, encouraging her to go on. He gives a little hand-wobble when she mentions him experiencing more Dreams than others, as though that's not a particular indicator of anything, but that's about all the interruption that he makes. "Alright," he says when she finishes. "No reason not to try to see if it can be done. We can open doorways into the Veil and out again. Perhaps there's a way to open up doorways in and out of Dreams as well. I'm in if you need help with testing."

There's the chime of the bell below, and the sound of footsteps. Joe's got the windblown, faintly sunburnt look of someone who's just spent the day on the water - even his stride has that faint roll to it. Only in t-shirt and jeans and boots, warm enough that he doesn't have even a light jacket on. He heads for his usual haunts in SF, as if to see what might've come in.

Sparrow likes the word alright. It's one of her favorites. Her expression perks optimistically as soon as Elias speaks it, brilliance breaking across her features when the confirmation comes that he's in. "Yes. Definitely." Needs help testing. "I'm pulling together a few people. You, Agent B. A, uh. Another prolific dreamer who, uh." Her head cants. "You remember the viking who got your body for a bit?" That's a perfectly normal question here in Gray Harbor! "His brother. Beautiful blue eyes." But that's not what she's talking about, right? She takes a second to find her focus again, long enough to hear the bell below if not actually express any curiosity in it. From upstairs, their voices can certainly be heard, even if the substance doesn't carry all that well, tone and cadence more readily caught across the fairly open distance. "Dante to handle review. Maybe Cris? I feel like I gotta at least mention this to him."

Again, more to that thought that she just pushes on past, jumping back to, "Do you think it's maybe a matter of distance or destination? When it comes to doors, I mean. How do you even do that? I don't. Shit." Nevermind the internal fault. It'll self-correct in a second.

There are a number of customers in the shop today, though they are mainly on the lower level, milling about and doing their shopping. There are a couple of highschool aged clerks up at the front who are checking out those who have brought up their purchases and are answering questions in between.

Sprawled on the couch in the second floor loft, Elias is conversing with Sparrow who sits there with him. He laughs a little when she asks if he remembers the viking. "The one that I kissed at your party? Yes, I remember him well. And he has a brother?" One brow ticks upward at that, and his smile is amused. But he continues on, leaving that for the time being. He shrugs a shoulder when she mentions Cris, apparently deferring to her on that topic in particular. "The doors to the Veil? They open into the area of the Veil near where you are. It just doesn't need to be where a particular thin point is where others can walk back and forth freely. I suspect with Dreams it might be different, more dependent on intent, since Dreams aren't, so far as I'm aware, strictly connected to anything in reality.. though I suppose going to a place that you can get to in a Dream in the material world might give you some kind of edge, but that's purely a guess on my part. I have nothing to back it up."

The creak of steps on the stairs, and Joe emerges, a few paperbacks tucked under his arm. He's got that bright-eyed, somewhat inward-turned look, as if still attending to half-heard distant music, but he grins when he spots the pair of them. A little lift of his brows, as if to make sure he's not intruding, glancing between them. "Hey," he says, amiably.

Elias glances up when he sees someone coming up to the loft and he gives the man a nod in greeting. "Evening," he says to him with an easy smile. "How's it going?" He glances toward the books under the man's arm and asks, "Find everything you were looking for?"

The way Sparrow's eyes go wide as she breathes in at that he has a brother provides a does he ever without a single syllable spoken. By the time Elias is working around to theorizing about Dream Doors, her gaze has gone a bit distant, still wide-eyed but decidedly thoughtful, the gears turning in her brain damned near visible behind her brown eyes. "Theory," she corrects when he says guess, gaze refocusing on the warlock. "Theory. One that merits some testing, right?"

When the stairs creak, she looks thattaway, too early to catch Joe on the first pass which requires a second when his greeting comes. Her, "Hey!" is bright, delighted, and she straightens from her slight slouch to turn just a tiny bit toward the stares. "Do you two know each other? Joe's fantastic. And Elias?" She gives her brows a playful waggle in Joe's direction, a conspiratorial stage-whisper noting, "Warlock number one. Master to my apprentice." Then, with a gesture toward Joe, she explains to Elias, "The Sith who will one day kill me. Theoretically. Not that I'mma let him. But he's totally got the force lightning thing down."

The blue gaze darts between them, before settling on Sparrow. "I think we have, before," he says, sounding tentative. "Here?" Back to Elias. Then the grin broadens, and he raises his free hand to waggle his fingers....and of course, there's the momentary appearance of little blue-white arcs of electricity between them. So very proud of his stupid people trick. "Only when you decide to reject the dark and turn to the light," he assures her. "Then I'll have to take you down." A bob of his head for Elias. "Good to see you again."

"Sure," Elias says when Sparrow mentions that it is a theory and merits testing, though the way he says it indicates he still considers it more of a guess than a theory at this point. But he's willing to go along on this scientific adventure. He shakes his head a bit when Sparrow asks if they know one another. "We've met in passing, but haven't really had the opportunity to get acquainted." He turns his attention to Joseph then and looks him over. "I'd prefer if you didn't force lightning my apprentice. But you know, do what you gotta." He flashes Sparrow a sidelong grin and a wink. "Nice to see you. Grab a seat?" He nods toward the other chairs and couch in the little lounge in the middle of the occult section.

"Like I got the discipline for that," Sparrow lies effortlessly, contentedly conflating chaos with passion. She totally could go Jedi if she weren't into the whole feeling things thing. She teases a sweet, "Not my kink," to Elias when he wobbles on her potential electrocution, brows arched unevenly as if she might suddenly be wondering where it might land on the spectrum of his interests. Not that she studies him all that long, brown-eyed attention quickly bouncing back to Joe as she explains, "We were talking dreams. I've got some, uh." The thought is interrupted by her phone going off, the muffled chiming of the very start of a song rising from her jacket pocket. She keeps going as she pulls out her phone to look at it. "Theories I wanna maybe test. Dunno if you've had any, mm. Ya know. Way too real dreams around here? But." She holds up her phone and explains, "Little sister. I'mma take this. Feel free to get the making out started without me." But she's already wandering off.

"Definitely not mine," Joe affirms....and there's something behind the grin, for just a moment. Memory. But he sits, easily enough. "I've had several," he tells Sparrow. "Well, been in several. From what I understand, they can maybe form around a nucleus of a person's idea - maybe specifically someone with the Shine? Like, first one I was in was Godzilla themed, and it was a child who kind of....began it? Guided it? Just a li'l kid with monster toys, but there we were. Roen was there, and he figured it out, if I remember right."

Then one of her comments registers, and his brows climb towards his hairline. "Making out," he echoes, amused.

"Not into electricity, no, not mine either," Elias says with amusement, shaking ihs head as Sparrow goes off to take her call and then looking back over toward Joseph. He tilts his head just a bit when Joseph talks about one of the Dreams and the child who seemed to originate it. He nods his head slightly. "They can come from anywhere, really, it seems. Some may seem more tied to one psyche than another but.. I've seen a vast variety." He chuckles when Sparrow's parting comment registers with Joseph and he says, "Not obligatory."

Sparrow doesn't get terribly far, that first, "Hey, Zee," followed by a couple, "Uh huhs," and at least one patient, "Dovey?" A giggled, "Yep," sounds like it's meant to be more, quickly cut off, just like the hurried, "Love you too!" doesn't seem to land. The blonde stands there blinking at her phone for a second, smiling down at the device. And then it's shoved back in her pocket, and she turns back toward the lounge she'd left behind to reclaim her seat next to Elias. This time, she uses the couch properly, both feet on the floor, which leaves her nearly hip-to-hip with the shop-owner, no problem whatsoever taking up some of his personal space. That's not what her quietly murmured, "Sorry bout that," is for.

The sailor's still sitting in his chair, looking at Elias. "I've talked to her," a nod for Sparrow, a few times, "About Dreams. About....trying to do it more deliberately, with more control, than it seems most appear with. I've not had a spontaneous incident alone, but I imagine that's a matter of time." He seems outwardly matter of fact, but.....behind the calm surface, there's something else. Excitement, maybe? Even....glee, if that isn't beyond the pale.

"Oh, I've had plenty of them alone," Elias says as he props his chin on his hand, elbow on the arm of the couch. When Sparrow returns and settles into his space, he lets his arm drape around her shoulders comfortably, drawing her in a little closer. "Never forgiven," he murmurs back to her. "Never." Then his attention flicker back to Joseph. "Not sure how exactly to do that. But then, it's not something that I've tried to do. I end up in them often enough without making an effort at it. But... it's something worth knowing."

Sparrow chirps a cheerful, "Meanie," at the unforgiving Elias, otherwise accepting this eternal imbalance, this wrong that can never ever righted between them. As she catches up on the actual conversation, she nods to the both of them and says, "I mean. That's what I'm hoping to find out, right?" With a slight tilt of her head, she corrects, "We?" curiously, getting used to the thought of getting this idea out of her own head and into the hands of a team. "I've got a little more digging to do and a couple more people to talk with, but should be ready to start running through some initial experiments within the next few weeks. Starting maybe with just intention. Maybe some lucid dreaming techniques. Move onto the oneirogens." There's a wobble of one hand, shallow, a suggestion that she'll adapt the experiment as they go. "Looking like maybe... half-dozen or so? With varying degrees of experience. So."

"Well, I'm still interested," Joe says, firmly. "For all that I don't really have much experience with it at all." He settles back in the chair, a comfortable half-sprawl, arm draped over the chair's arm. "Lucid dreaming sounds like a good idea. I like the idea of being able to wrest control from...Them, if we can. Be able to turn the tables." Still that gleam in the back of the blue eyes.

"Well, the very nature of a Dream is that you're actually there, in the flesh, and in control of yourself, but if you think that you're going to get control over the Dreamscape from them?" Elias says with a little bit of a squint. "That may be a bit on the ambitious side. Not impossible, but.. these are some pretty powerful beings that no one's actually ever faced head on so far as I'm aware. I definitely believe we can control the dreamscape of our own dreams, and we can definitely use our Glimmer within the Dream to influence, but control over the Dream itself? I'd be deeply shocked and impressed if someone was able to achieve that."

"See. That's what gets me," Sparrow starts on the wake of Elias' reply to Joe, brow knitting pensively. "We call it the Dreamscape. We say we're in Dreams, that we're dreaming, right? And I get that we're bodily there. Like." She pulls a face that indicates there's some personal experience here. "I get it, but. If it is some sort of dream state or if we need to be in some sort of dream state to get there? Maybe mundane techniques or oneirogenic substances might help it along. Somehow. Gonna test the getting there part first. Then maybe if it helps influence anything once we get there. I?" She looks between them, the pitch of her brows quite serious. "Have zero intention of facing any big bads. At all. I don't wanna attract too much attention at all. I just want the people I love to be able to maybe sleep a little safer. Which means understanding what's happening better."

Joe clicks his tongue, at that. "What kinna beings?" he asks, bluntly. "I feel like there's a whole....bestiary of intelligences, of beings, across the Veil, and in Dreams. Y'all know anything definite about 'em?" he wonders.

There's a certain fidgetiness to the long fingers, as if he were dying for a smoke. "I mean, are they separate beings, or only reflections of whatever we bring with us? And....well," He squares his shoulders a little, "Why not? Humans are dreamers, too, right? But yeah, bein' able to come and go as we please'd go a long way...."

"There are various beings within the Dreams and the Veil, though those that inhabit the Veil seem to be a little more consistent and persistent, much like the Veil itself, than those of the Dream. I'm not even sure how to categorize what one might encounter in Dreams themselves, since they are more.. alien in general, but the Dark Men are the eaters of nightmare. They feed on the negative emotions, the fear, hate, jealousy, spite, and other negative emotions. We are, by our very nature, more delicious to them because our Glimmer adds extra fuel to these emotions, and they work to further their agenda of generating these emotions through their agents," Elias says as he gestures a little bit with one hand. "No one's ever seen them, themselves, so there's no real telling what they look like. Though there are those that do their work for them, like the crew of that play that was in town last year. And of course, how we use our abilities influences whether we draw positive or negative attention from them."

Sparrow's definitely not the expert here. Nowhere near. She calls herself apprentice for a reason, and so she's glad when Elias fields Joe's questions so readily, her young age showing more than it usually does when she pays such earnest attention to what he's saying. She angles a look toward Elias without quite managing to look at him directly, not while she's snugged so comfortably close. And not that said closeness seems to translate into anything more than comfort in one another's company, her hands kept to herself while they all talk.

Other than a wry smirk at the word alien referring to dream creatures, having taken on literal aliens in dreams with Elias, her expression doesn't much shift otherwise until that last bit, curiosity creasing her features. "How we use them?" she wonders. "I'm not sure I follow."

He's clearly intrigued Joe with that statement, as well. The sailor's peering at him, lips thinned out into a sort of grim line. "I hadn't heard that, either," he says, quietly. "What d'you mean? And how do we know the Dark Men exist, if we don't see them directly? But they have humans that work for them, somehow? Is it like....." His gaze wanders for a moment. "Like possession?"

"Well, consider that they want to proliferate all that is negative emotion-wise, so if you are using your abilities to cause pain, to bring more of their will into the world, to further their agendas, then they're more likely to turn a blind eye to it," Elias says to Sparrow in explanation. "Some of those who killed during the attack by the theatre folk actually felt.. good, afterward, unbothered by nightmares and the Dark Men. Why? Because they ultimately fed them, even if they were trapped in an impossible situation. If you try to stop them, heal others, use your powers for the benefit of others, you're not really creating the fuel they feed on." He then says to Joe, "Because their agents have spoken of them. And I don't know if it's like possession. Since we don't knwo that we've ever seen one, they could very well be present or have possessed someone and we wouldn't really know. There's no current way, as far as I am aware, to confirm. But yes, there are people who work for them, Veil creatures, and human beings alike."

Sparrow lets out a quiet little, "Oh," right around the cause pain part of Elias' explanation, his meaning clicking pretty early on. Duh, Phil. It's round about the healing part that her expression sinks, that her weight slumps in against him ust a little more heavily. "That's a shitty system." Understatement of the year. Her gaze shifts back to Joe as the second answer is offered up, appending, "Kinda like the Emperor in the Old Republic. Before TOR went all weird with that. Coulda been anything, ya know? The dead specter of a power no one's seen in forever, but everyone's too chicken shit to fuck with?"

"Sounds more like Warhammer, to me," Joe asides to Sparrow, "I mean, what I know of theology in 40K, which it's been a long ass time since I interacted with that fictional universe in any way." He scratches at his jaw with a fingernail.

But then he's looking at Elias again. "Makes sense, now that you put it like that. They're gonna lean on you to cause pain. Like violence and cruelty are an infection that benefits them....." He looks almost musing, for a second. "Any way to tell when They're driving, if it isn't real obvious? I had....they did something like that to someone I'm close to. Had him striking out at those close to him."

Elias nods to Sparrow, "It is a pretty shitty system. It means we have the tools to use to help people, and to make our lives easier, but every time that we do, we're drawing unwanted attention from beings that want to make us suffer and then feed on it. And conversely, we get put into situations where doing the wrong thing, the thing that kills, or hurts, or otherwise scars others, is what gains us their favor, or at least doesn't gain their attention." He shakes his head at Joseph and says, "No idea. I mean, I don't know if it works like possession where they take over someone or anything like that, or if their agents can do that, or if it's just the nature of some Veil creatures that can do that. I'm afraid I don't have the answer to that one."

Sparrow lifts her hands from her lap to form them into a heart shape over her chest as she smiles over at Joe for his relentless geekery, always full of susprising depths and unexpected twists. Her hands drop before her expression does, smile dissipating when he asks about Them driving, already starting to get where he's going before he gets there. There's no mistaking that she knows the situation he means. Or, well, thinks she does. What she's pieced together. What she knows on her own. Frowning faintly, she lets her head fall against Elias' shoulder and mutters, "Maybe it's best just to not," though that idea's live for all of two seconds before she appends, "Not that they care if we don't. I wasn't doing anything when stuff started going weird for me. And AJ. Fuck. What they've done to AJ. And Bax. And--" She tips a nod to Joe. That someone close. Softer, she adds, "Jens. I just want some semblance of safety. I can't send everyone off to out of state university like Zelie."

"That's kinna my goal as well. I mean, Rosencrantz is all about defying them, and that's great...but how? Like, what can we do to get any control of the situation, whether it's here in this world when They show up or past the Veil or in a dream? Because I'll tell you, I popped through a hole in the Veil and where I ended up was the scariest place I ever been, and I been in a firefight in Afghanistan bleedin' out, before." His tone is frank. "And yeah, it doesn't sound like it's somethin' you can at all dodge if you live here. Only permanent solution's gettin' the hell out of dodge."

Elias nods and says, "Well, the experiments that we will do will tell us if we can get into them, and then perhaps from that we can try and figure out ways of resisting going into them. That's one way of protecting ourselves. But I guess we'll have to see what study and experimentation brings." He runs his fingers through his hair, brushing them through the longish strands and pulling them away from his face, dark eyes seeming a little bit distant for a moment.

"Figure there are pretty much just two kinds of people in Gray Harbor," Sparrow muses quietly. "Those of us with roots here that we can't rightly just dig up or cut off, and." She tips a hand toward Joe, though the arch of her eyebrows indicates inquiry, like she's taking a guess here. "Those looking for a thin spot. Seeking this out in particular for some reason or another. Adventure or redemption or. Whatever." Head tipped toward Elias again, cheek to shoulder, she looks up at him and teases gently, "Warlock Club gets dark. Thinking maybe we need some Buck the Fuck Up rituals."

".....Warlock Club?" It's the humor he seizes on, gratefully. "More like three kinds, 'cause some got both, I'd say," he offers, sitting up in his chair, again. "And how would you do a Buck the Fuck Up ritual?" he wonders. Shaking his head, just a little, as if to clear it.

Elias raises a brow at Sparrow and smiles at her in amusement, "It surprises you that Warlocks get dark?" His tone is teasing, though and he rests his cheek against her hair when her head rests against his shoulder once more. "I'm not sure what a Buck the Fuck Up ritual would entail. I'm guessing lots of alcohol, and perhaps some party games. Twister on a giant Ouija Board?" He shrugs the shoulder that Sparrow's head is not resting on and then grins over at Joe, "I think there's probably a few kinds of people, but yes, there are those of us who are from here and who have ties here, and reasons to stay even with the danger."

"I mean. There's dark and then there's dark." Not that Sparrow's inclined to elaborate on whatever distinction she might be drawing, though Joe might gather that it's not entirely arbitrary from her impish expression, clearly something running through her head unexpressed. There's a shallow nod for alcohol, another for party games. But then there's option C. "Ouija Board Twister," is spoken with near-reverence and wide eyes. There might be some twisty, tangly divination in the not-too-distant future. How soon to the next full moon? All she has to share in regards to Joe's follow-up to her assessment is, "Hybrids don't get their own category." Beat. "And this is Warlock Club." Though she scrunches her nose right away. "Club's weird. Do warlocks have covens?"

The idea of Ouija board Twister has Joe breaking into soundless, wheezing laughter. No mere snicker, either, but the real deal, hard enough to have him put a hand on his ribs. "What's that look for?" he finally asks her, wiping at his eyes with the flick of a hand. "I 'magine so. Or maybe 'cabal' is the collective noun for warlocks. I dunno."

He bobs his head at Elias, settles back into that comfortably boneless sprawl again. And he's not even on the good drugs today.

"Pretty sure we can call ourselves whatever we want. Warlock Coven works for me, or Cabal.. Conclave, Clutch, Covy? Cozy? A cozy of warlocks?" Now he's just being silly. But then there's a voice calling to him from downstairs.

"Elias? Can you come down a sec? Lise needs your help," comes the voice of one of the clerks.

Craning his neck to look over his shoulder, he glances toward the counter where Lise seems to have a couple of customers milling about. With a sigh, he pulls himself to his feet. "At least she didn't call me Mr. Weber this time," is his only comment before he says, "My fans beckon. Carry on. I'll be back when the crisis is averted." And with that, he's slipping off down the steps to deal with whatever work emergency there is to be dealt with.

Sparrow's smile goes all the brighter for that quiet laughter from Joe. Yep. Definitely gonna have to happen now. Of course, the question that follows gets a wide-eyed what look? sorta look that says she knows exactly what look he means but is very happy to pretend she doesn't. Her eyes light up at the suggestion of cabal and again at conclave, but it's cozy that has her giggling and nodding as she tells Elias, "I am totally feeling cozy." Of course, the arm draped over her shoulder helps that along. When the clerk calls up, though, she quiets kinda like somebody's mom called from the kitchen to tell the kids to settle down now. She blows a kiss to Elias when he's on his feet, easy warmth in that wordless goodbye.

And then all her attention is on Joe, her smile steadily back in place like all the gloomy talk about the rigged system had never shaken it loose in the first place. "So. Welcome to the cozy. How've you been, handsome?"

"Cozy," he says. "Makes it sound like it's something you knit," His tone is only amused. "I feel like in that case, it's magic that'd involve a lot of fleece blankets. Me? I'm all right. How 'bout you?" he wonders. A glance back at his pile of paperbacks - more Cherryh, Emma Bull, Gibson, Effinger. Settling down in the chair in a very comfortable slouch, stretching long legs out before him.

With a hand curled around to indicate herself, pointing loosely with four fingers instead of one, Sparrow informs Joseph that she's, "Pro at blanket forts. Definitely one of my warlock superpowers." Oddly? It's kinda hard to tell if she's teasing there, this weird thread of sincerity woven through her tone, something serious in her eyes. Like maybe she really believes in that particular kind of magic. When her hand drops, her shoulder lifts, a lazy kinda shrug just as uneven as her current posture, still slightly listing toward the space Elias had occupied just a moment ago. "But yeah. I'm good. Long as I don't get too in my own head, which. I mean. That's kinda the trouble with this whole project. That it's both personal and cerebral, so. Get all twisted up in overthinking and worrying and." She rolls her eyes at herself. "I dunno. It's sometimes hard to remember why when I start stacking up the why nots."

"What is the why, then?" he wonders, lifting his brows at her, promptingly. "But yeah, I imagine so. It's....." He rubs at his own forehead with the heel of his palm, as if to press away tension. "It's easy to do. Hard to be objective here. Something about this place, these things...with all these alien forces in the mix...."

"And all our friends and loved ones tangled up in it?" Despite the arch of one dark brow toward far fairer hair, there doesn't seem to be any actual question there. Instead, Sparrow notes, "I patched up Itzhak. When Javier wasn't himself. And I'm sitting here wondering why I didn't get any retribution for that, but oh right. I was all sortsa tasty then." But she cuts herself off, waves a hand dismissively as her eyes roll. No real point in retreading those terrible few weeks. Better to actually answer the question, brown eyes seeking out blue as she explains, "We're trying to glean some understanding about how Dreams work so that maybe we can protect ourselves and those we care about from that nonsense and-or exercise a little more control when that nonsense happens to us anyway. Figuring out how to just nope out? I want that."