2022-01-31 - Spywear and Cocoa

"Oh dear."

That's Gail's voice, echoing out from the kitchen. "Oh - no do stop that. No, I don't want that either."

Whatever is happening to her is distinctly NOT what she wants to happen. "Oh oh - no no no . Stop. Gabby!!"

Gail calls out to Gabriella with that tone of 'I need you right now young woman!' The old woman stands beside the table with the phone Gabriella gave her in front of her with the screen flashing with pop-up ads.

The younger blonde Leigh lady was tucked in her bedroom and if we are honest, she was probably reading a book. Her life is so exciting. The cries from her grandmother cause her to swing her legs around and start for the kitchen.

"Are you alrigh..." The words die on her lips as she looks at Gail and slowly towards the phone. A slow twitch of her lips. Nope. She's not going to laugh.

"You requested me?"

"Make it stop --- whatever it is doing. I received a message that I had won a cruise and so I clicked on it," and there's now a hand wave that the phone. Yes, Gail is the perfect target for a senior citizen scammer. Her daughters should have been more atune to this kind of thing happening.

"Why is it doing that? I am quite happy to send them the wire transfer."

Gabriella opens her eyes wide. Oh no. OH NO. A soft sigh leaves her lips. "Granny, it's not a real thing. These people are lying to you

Gabriella opens her eyes wide. Oh no. OH NO. A soft sigh leaves her lips. "Granny, it's not a real thing. These people are lying to you. I know it's hard to figure out, but they really are just trying to take your money." There is quick thoughts of maybe getting her a flip phone without all the tech. Just a text, phone sort of phone.

Honest, it would keep Gail from clicking on links - until a scammer gets her phone number and starts robocalling.

"Now why would they be trying to take my money and give me a cruise? Really, that doesn't make sense." Gail called for help though, and so she pushes the phone towards Gabriella to hopefully encourage her to make all the flashing pop-ups go away.

Gabriella nods her head. "I know that it..." Pause. "The prince for Nigeria..." Then a look towards Gail for a longer moment. A shake of her head as she offers. "I know that it is hard to understand, but you didn't really win a cruise. What drawing did you put your name in to win it?" She's typing away on the phone and deleting things rather quickly. Then pulling up the phone browser to start deleting cookies.

"See, that's the strangest thing, I don't recall ever entering but, well." Gail shrugs her shoulders. Good people get rewarded with good things, right? She just takes it in stride.

Except that Gabriella is saying she didn't and the woman frowns. "Well. It is no loss then. Thank you. It started flashing and there was nothing I could do. "

Gabriella nods her head. "It does that. If you click a link. They are sometimes getting your personal information." She smiles towards Gail warmly and offers, "Maybe we should start you off with a flip phone and then work up to the smartphone. We can go over all the buttons and everything until it's comfortable." She says this as sweetly as she can manage not to offend. "I mean, they really just want to be able to call you and text." She pushes her hair from her face. "So anymore elves show up?"

"I do miss people just calling on the house phone." Gail replies, pointing towards the phone on the wall. It even has a cord - god only knows how long the woman has had the device. At least a decade, and probably more. They use to make things that LASTED.

"Oh, no no. I haven't been using my abilities much lately, and so the veil hasn't made much of a move." She reaches up and rubs at one of her hips. "The cold always makes it harder to walk, so I've been staying in."

Gabriella wrinkles up her nose. "It's so cold. I didn't even expect this." She has been living in warm states the past twenty years. Then she smiles a bit. "Have people come to visit? Should I encourage them to?" Her eyes slide around the area. "I've only had Garrett over for New Years and Benji stopped by a week or so ago." There is a shake of her head. "OH! I finally figured out a job."

"It's the wet really," Gail replies, taking her shawl and wrapping it a bit more firmly about her. "Hot Cocoa." She announces, and moves to start making her words into reality. It's clear from her limp that her hip IS hurting though. She just moves more stiffly. Usually she's a pretty spry granny.

"Oh, a few. That dear Ravn stops by every few days to chat, and those two ladies next door came by to ask about some family lore. And I have you love - oh, a job? Tell me about it." That's an order!

Gabriella is silent for a moment and then she nods her head to that. "Well that's good. I'm glad you have others beyond me. I tend to hole up in my room a lot. Oh, I'm going to be working for the police department as a consultant for now. I think the idea is that I'm around for the police that might suffer from the attacks that happen. Then to help profile criminals. Javier hired me, but I have to do a shooting exam first."

"Ah, PTSD then?" Gail asks, more than moderately familiar with the diagnosis as her own husband suffered after his return from Vietnam. "I am glad that Mr. de la Vega is looking out for his men, there are so many who never receive help."

Gail's hot chocolate isn't the yucky powered stuff. There is milked poured into a sauce pan to heat up as she goes to fetch the chocolate and begin shaving it down. She has a huge block JUST for this purpose.

Gabriella watches her grandmother and it's almost like tension the flees her being with it. "I'm also going to work at HOPE for free for those needing counseling, but I figured I should come up with something that supplies me with funds as well. I'm sure they have psychologist on payroll already. I just thought it would be a good place to try and he was willing to let me try it out. We will see if it sticks or not."

"That is good work - both of it. As for a psychologist... I am unsure. Gray Harbor is a small town, it wouldn't surprise me that most have to travel to Seattle, Portland, or Olympia for treatment. I spent many hours on the road to get Roland what he needed." GAil, shaking her head at the state of mental health care in America. ALAS. "If it doesn't stick I am sure you will think of something else."

Gabriella nods her head. "Well, I'm offering sessions for free." Like a good dealer of mental health, first hit is free. "If you know anyone that has need to talk." There is a pause. "You know the town right? Do you know Perdita Leontes and Benjamin Martin, by chance?"

"Hum... the first just from casual acquaintance, but Benjamin, yes. He has come and done housework here. Seems like a nice young man, hard working. Is there work that needs done?" Usually Gail keeps up on the repairs her house needs, but it's possible that Gabby has noticed something more.

Gabriella shakes her head to that. "No, we went out a date.. two dates.." There is some confusion there. As if she's not sure that one is a date or not. Then she offers lightly. "He took me to the casino. It was nice. I lost all his money."

"Ah well, you could date someone less ideal." Gail replies, not judging Gabriella's choice of partners, the location though, has the old woman casting a frown at Gabriella. "That place if a pit of evil love. They'll take what you are and reduce you to nothing."

Gabriella lofts her brows up to her hairline at that one. "The casino? We went for dinner and a set amount to lose. I'm sure he meant to win it and I could have..." If she used her powers in that. "Why is the casino bad? Is it like normal casino bad or like.. Gray Harbor bad?"

SIGH, as Gail dumps the chocolate into the warmed milk and begins to stir. "Not the casino itself, but gambling. You risk your soul engaging in it. Thankfully few of my friends have been caught in the allure of winning, but it goes poorly for those who do."

Gabby wanted to know the tale of a friend of Gail's who's marriage ended when it came out that her husband had massive gambling debts, right? Hopefully yes, because Gail'll tell it.

Sure! Gabby is down for a good tale. "Oh, I don't like gambling my money." The main point is it was Ben's money. "What happened to your friends though? I mean, did it really take her soul?" Gail might not understand tech, but Gabby doesn't really understand the Veil.

"Of a sort," Gail replies, drawing no distinction between what the Veil does and what is normal human folly. "After her divorce she feel upon harder times, began drinking, then drugs, and eventually died of an overdose. It all began with the gambling though - and spiraled from there."

Gabriella lofts her brows again to this. "I mean, it's hard for an addictive personality. The vices are never really healed or mended. They are just transferred. An addict is always an addict. They just switch their vice. Some do it to exercise. Or to organizing or.. other healthy outlets. I'm sorry to hear about your friend though."

Gail is not an addictive personality, so she doesn't have much understanding of this. A small shake of her head. "It is one of the sad events in life I'm afraid." She mixes the chocolate and asks, "Get the Vanilla for me will you please?"

Gabriella comes up to her socked feet and moves to get the vanilla. "Do you like living here or .. did you prefer to live away from the chaos of it? I mean everyone gives the get out speech, but..." She looks around the house that isn't the house her grandmother once lived in.

"I do wish they would stop giving that speech," Gail replies pertly, not bothering to measure. "Those who are not suited for Gray Harbor will eventually leave. The Veil is neither evil nor good, it simply is. We should be doing more to assist those who come, rather than scaring them away. I am happy to be back. Gray Harbor is a piece of me, and well, I missed your grandfather."

Gabriella blinks slowly. It's that last part that has her looking around the area. Nope, really looking at it. However she holds herself perfectly fine and calm. She's just easy that way. Calm. Everything is calm. "You miss him? As in he's still around?"

"No, of course not. Sometimes the Veil will include him but it usually brings me more joy to see him than pain to lose him again, so it seems they gave up that particular tactic." Whoever 'they' are goes unsaid. "But his grave is up at the church."

Gabriella nods her head to that. "I just know that sometimes people are haunted by others that.." She shakes her head to that. A moment where her brows lower. "I find the veil to be fascinating, but also really deadly. You know it's true what they say, if you die in your dreams..." Right hot chocolate.

"Yes, you die in reality too." Gail finishes for her, just as she decides that the hot chocolate is ready to be poured out into mugs and enjoyed. "But really, you could die crossing the street. If an ancient god does it, the outcome is no different."

Then they'll go to really talking about hot chocolate because Gray Harbor is fucking weird, okay?