After dinner activities. Most folks have them. Including Joey. And his seems to involve pacing, a lot. He has his hands clasped behind his back, and his eyes on the ground as he walks between pews.

Well, it's not after dinner for Bernie yet, but activities she has nonetheless. The current one appears to be opening the doors, and glancing around inside as her eyes adjust to the light difference. Spotting Joey, she breaks into a triumphant grin. "Ha! Fin'ly." She steps inside and closes the door behind her before strolling toward the other Ragabash. "Hey. 'sup?"

Joey is heading Bernie's way, and the Gnawer lifts his head as the girl Raggie comes by. His brow is furrowed in concentration, but he does give her a nod. "Finally what?" he asks, altogether curious.

"Finally caught up with ya," Bernie replies, dropping into the nearest pew, "Checked that pool hall, an' here earlier, an', y'know, random places, but, anyway, found ya now."

Joey doesn't sit down. The tension in his frame pretty much says he doesn't feel like it. He leans against the back of the pew in front of Bernie. "I wander, a lot," he explains. "But, what's up, girl?"

Bernie grins, pulling her legs up indian-style, and leans forward conspiratorially. "I," she announces in a low tone, "have a cunning plan." She straightens again, and glances around. "So, okay. It's about th' bones."

Joey looks almost relieved. "Good," he says. "I've had the plans for a few days, from Kaz, and I've been looking at ways in, and we have til what, Thursday?"

Bernie nods. "Thursday night is the banquet. It's not so much we gotta do it by then as it's a good opening..." She pulls her backpack into her lap and pulls out a notepad, looking over some notes. "Okay, so, starting with th' basic idea of th' thing here... theft is s'picious. I mean, it's hard t' fence bones, for one thing. People will wonder, who wants these things outta th' public eye, an' why? So I thought: kidnapping. Hold 'em for ransom. Everyone understand money as a motive." She pauses, glancing over to him.

Joey gives the girl a wry look. "Like I don't know that," he quips. "Okay, I'm following you. We hold them for ransom, and mysteriously lose them along the way?"

Bernie laughs. "I know you know that, I'm jus' 'splainin' th' reasonin', here. An', yeah, if we hafta. But, even better, get th' money, make th' exchange, but give 'em back th' kina bones they mostly =think= they have. Th' short nosed bear kind. That'd be th' ideal, y'know? Only, we still got some problems t' handle, even if we snatch 'em an' never give 'em back..." She gnaws lightly on her lower lip. "...anyway, I'm workin' on alla that still. But, I went an' got an interview with onea th' researchers, an' I found out some stuff that oughta be useful..."

Joey perks up, listening. "So we have some...bogus bones to give to these folks, when and if they give us the money? And what did you find?"

"Well, no, we don't, but I gotta vague idea where t' find some... though I dunno for sure it'll work. Anyway, so. They're hopin' t' get maximum security for th' banquet itself, so we prolly don' wanna do it then. They keep it all locked up tight in th' basement of th' museum, at th' moment, I unnerstand... th' girl I talked to, who works on it, she can't even go there without th' main guy's permission. But. She said, transportin' them to an' from th' banquet, that's prolly jus' gonna be her an' th' Doctor an' other non-security type people. So I think that's when we wanna strike. Now, on th' way =to= would be cooler, 'cause if we did it sneaky enough, they might not even notice 'til they unveil th' bones an' find a ransom note instead. Nice an' cinematic. But, on th' way back they might be less careful, bein' all relieved if things went well, an' all. Either way I think, we wanna get it done as unobtrusively as possible. Yeah?"

Joey lets out a breath, thinking fast. "Well, how can we be sure it's just those three? How many in total?" he pushes himself away from the pew, pacing again. "I really don't want to throw down with them, or I'm trying not to, but we'd need to distract them, and keep the Veil intact."

"We can't," Bernie replies, making a face a bit, "...because, I'm pretty sure they don't have it all arranged for sure, yet. But that's what she thought, at least. An' bein' pushy about security an' stuff... well, steppin' too far outta kid-reporter character, bad for th' cover. So." She sighs, running a hand through her hair. "We definitely don't wanna hurt anyone if we c'n avoid it, 'specially if we do th' ransom, 'cause they'll hunt =hard= if people're hurt or killed. An' I'm already rackin' my brain t' figure out how t' collect an' use a ransom without gettin' fingered as it is. 'cause, damn, that'd be a nice li'l side effect, cash flow. Very helpful. ...anyway." She sighs again, "...th' girl I talked to... well, we gotta do more than just steal th' bones. They got DNA tests, she's done sketches... an' they're good, I suspect... I heard they may even have plaster casts. So. We gotta lotta work to do. Oh, an' they sent bits to th' Smithsonian an' th' University of Washington, for carbon dating..." A shake of her head. "We got a =lot= t' deal with."

Joey sighs, thinking. "Ok, we should make contact with the Walkers, see if they don't have people inside those places. Might be able to help. As for the rest, the only thing I can think of is Kaz getting her friend at the school to shut down the security systems, and just going in for a destruction run on the whole nine yards, as soon as possible."

Bernie drums her fingers lightly on her pad, thinking. "That might be a good idea... with th' Walkers, I mean... we should maybe check on th' Chain first, though, we might have people there ourselves, y'know? Frankweilers..." she says musingly, turning the new thought over in her mind. "An' major destruction's an option, def'nitely, but... well. T'me, that oughta be our last resort, 'cause it says: there's somethin' here someone doesn't wantcha t' see, t' know. My =ideal= solution'd have them jus' find, hey, yeah, it =is= a short-nosed bear. Enda story. Too bad we can't magically change DNA an' shit." She rambles a little, eyes focused slightly into another plane, it seems like, as she thinks.

Joey shakes his head, again. "I know there are warpers around, but that would mean changing shit from two thousand miles away, and I'm not sure if they can really go that far."

Bernie drums her fingers again. "...well," she says, slowly, "if they could change shit =here=, an' we could find contacts t' get th' stuff at th' other places t' go missing..." She nibbles her bottom lip again. "Though, th' Voice said, substituting DNA would be harder'n... altering their test results..." This last comes even more slowly, giving the definite impression that possible ideas might be forming.

Joey lifts his eyes. "Altering the test results can be done, I'm betting. But, what does the Voice want from us?"

Bernie stretches a bit. "Th' Voice," she replies, "wants us t' elminate th' spirits under Osprey Circle, stay outta th' Oriental Regency restaurant, an' maybe a favour t' be named later. But we don't need him t' alter th' results -- he implied he couldn' do that anyhow. But if we got r'placement bones, =I= c'n work electrophoresis... we could switch th' results..." She gnaws her lower lip. "Th' girl who did it th' first time, though. She knows it came out close t' wolf DNA. She thinks it's maybe a missing link b'tween carnivore an' omnivore. An' she has those sketches. Man." She winces a little, "...I really, really don't want us t' hafta kill her or somethin'."

Joey winces. "this shit gets real deep, real fast. Ok, the first thing needed to be done is find bones we can switch them with, right?"

Bernie nods. "She said, there are skeletons of arctodus simus in museums 'round here, an' in California..." Another pause, as she tilts her head. "Well. Th' Voice said, th' head is kinda like a wolf, an' th' pelvis isn't. I won'er which bones they took th' DNA from t' test? We =could= jus' find random bones from a couple animals, that look like th' ones they have... well, they'd hafta be about th' same age too, like, a thousand, I think..."

Joey starts pacing again, slamming a fist into the opposite palm. "Shit...I have no idea of about half of what you just said, and...just no clue..."

Bernie takes a deep breath, rubbing her temples a bit. "...well. First, what I said was, they got skeletons of those bears in various museums, some 'round here. Then, I was thinkin', well, we don' hafta use th' bears, maybe, or at least not th' whole skeleton... jus' cobble one t'gether from bits an' pieces of other animals. Like, a wolf skull," she considers Crinos anatomy a moment, "maybe the pelvis of a bear... but, all those bones would hafta be about a thousand years old, an' if they took the DNA from a bone that didn' match up..." She sighs again, frustrated. "There's so fucking many vectors.

Joey plops down on the pew, drained. "Tell me about it. Just...well, I wonder if we gotta look at time, too."

Bernie nods. "Yeah. Time's of th' essence, an' allat shit..." Her eyes narrow a tad, "an' gee, we'd have so much more if Leda hadn' said she was gonna handle it an' then left it for us t' deal with after all. But whatever." She pushes a curl back behind her ear. "...Okay. Well. We don' hafta have th' bones t' give =back= until after they agree t' give us th' ransom. So that, at least, we c'n hold on. Stealin' 'em an' workin' out how t' ask for th' ransom, that we gotta figure out right away." She bites her lip again, then grins evilly. "Now, if, durin' th' nice several hours long banquet, somea us could go to th' school an' destroy all th' research so far... oh, yes. That'd tie in nicely. Incentive for them t' buy 'em back... a'ight, this might work..." She trails off, there, thinking hard, and starts scribbling on a fresh piece of paper in the notebook.

Joey jumps up. "And, if they try to go back to the site where they dug up the bones, see if we can't get Garou to hang around, and let the Curse take care of it? Now, during that fancy schmancy dinner thing, I'd go for the lab, and I wish we could get people /at/ the banquet itself, for interference."

Bernie nods, thinking. "It's a hunnerd bucks a plate. So. Fangs, maybe Walkers? Prolly they could afford that. An' have, like, clothing that's appropriate." She taps her pen on the paper. "So. We still gotta grab th' bones, preferably in transit on th' way there, I think? Then, or meanwhile, we gotta have the security systems off... Kaz mentioned some gift called Jam Tech, maybe that'd do it? If we could find someone with it. Or, I think that's somethin' Th' Voice c'n do, if we take his offer." More consideration. "Gotta talk t' Kaz. An' with systems off, we c'n take in a small team, an' destroy all th' research so far. An' steal Ling's sketchbook, I hope. Might hafta do that separate... wonder where she lives?" A quick note... probably to find out.

Joey thinks quickly. "Well, I dunno who Ling is, and Elan knows Jam Tech, and maybe we need to get two teams together for all of this.

Bernie says, "Ling's th' grad student researcher girl I interviewed. Th' one who did th' DNA testing. An' kickass, then, we c'n ask Elan if he c'n use it t' fix things. An' yeah. We need a kidnapping team -- I think that's you -- anna fuck shit up team, which I think's me, since I know more 'bout what there is t' break an' where it oughta be." She nibbles her lip. "Far as distraction t' take it? Maybe we c'n set up a nice demonstration for 'em t' run into. Like, maybe th' classic burnin' cross with signs saying how they're evil for messin' with God's will or, some shit." A few more notes. "...then we c'n figure out how to r'place th' bones after, but if we do a good enough destruction job, we c'n just snatch some that look kina close from somewhere an' use those." Another pause, and, "...maybe if we do have someone t' make th' sent away bits get lost, they'll know of some spare parts, too."

Joey hmmms. "And I was about to say I know more folks who can break things...damn."

"Well," Bernie points out, "everyone we know c'n break things. It ain't rocket science. Plus, Ling's prolly a transporter, an' she knows what I look like an' shit. I really shouldn't be th' thief, this time."

Joey ahs softly. "Ok, good point. We send word out. I need a parade route, I guess, and find where we can head them off, and who wants to come with me, before the banquet."

Bernie nods. "Jus'... make sure it's =subtle=. We don't want 'em t' know it's happened until they unveil. An' 'course I'll make ya th' note t' replace 'em with, soon as I figure out just what t' ask for, an' all. An' I'll find a li'l Brute Squad, an' talk t' Elan 'bout Jam Tech..." She considers. "I mostly want people with Blur, I think, just in case we have trouble with the security, or anythin'." Another moment of consideration, "...maybe we shouldn't oughta steal 'em 'til the trip back, after all. Seems like maybe less could go wrong, even if it =wouldn't= be nearly as cool as if stealin' 'em on th' way went right."

Joey hmmms. "Well, all right. What say if folks break things beforehand, and during the dinner, then regroup with us afterwards? These dinners could go on and on, especially with folks with money."

Bernie shakes her head, "...not b'forehand, just durin'. Beforehand, they'll be there... plus, it'd make 'em nervous an' careful, when we want 'em sloppy. If we do it after, we might even wanna try an' make th' actual dinner go as smoothly as possible, so they're lulled inta a false sensa security an' all..."

Joey nods quickly. "Of course. That's a nice-sized time window, to boot."

Bernie nods. "I figure, we oughta have at =least= an hour or two t' work... prolly more like two t' three. Oh, but I'll hafta get those plans from ya, t' figure out th' best way t' work it..."

Joey beats feet down to the basement, quickly coming up with the plans in hand. "Ok, here ya go." He paces around. "Now, how do I distract folks after the thing to take the bones? I won't even have to deal with the crowd, if they go out through the back, right?"

Bernie nods. "Right," she agrees, "they're not gonna =want= t' carry 'em through th' crowd..." She pauses, thoughtfully. "Okay. There's gonna be security at th' place, max if they c'n get it, so here's my thought... they're not gonna =walk= there, I bet, they'll hafta take a car or somethin'. So. If someone watches t' see what they arrive in, we c'n assume they'll leave in it, too. Then you c'n wait in it, blurred in a corner or somethin', until they bring th' bones =back=, an' take 'em then. Maybe cohorts can come over an' distract 'em with questions or even askin' for autographs while you switch th' bones an' note an' get out. Thought?" She takes the plans, and glances them over.

Joey nods, agreeing with this. "And how big are these bones we're talking about?"

Bernie runs a hand through her curls, and gives Joey a wry smile. "Haven't seen 'em, but... crinos size, fair t' assume. Just th' bones, at least, an' prolly not th' whole skeleton, either, but. Biggish."

Joey leans against the pew, and sighs. "well, I was hoping for different, but we gotta take what we get, you know?"

Bernie nods. "Bring a nice big duffle or somethin'. An', I guess... set sentries all 'round th' place several hours b'fore hand, t' be sure y'know which vehicle it is."

Joey nods again. "Can be done. Can I borrow Kaz for it, since you need sneaky types, and she ain't?"

Bernie gnaws her lip a little, and nods. "You might ask Chia, too. He's 'bout th' most distracting guy I ever met." A quick grin.

Joey gives Bernie a sly, wolfish grin. "He was next," he says.

Bernie considers. "I'm prolly gonna ask Max an' Divinity an' maybe th' Timinator, an' Yi if she's about...." She pauses. "Matt'd be good 'cept he can't blur, 'course. So maybe not."

Joey hmms. "Maybe send Matt with my group, if he ain't working? I'm gonna talk to Kaz, then Collin, then Junior'n Luke."

Bernie pauses, and blinks, then laughs. "I prolly shouldn't use nicknames for this, huh? Chia's Nevada. Divinity's Collin."

Joey ahs softly. "Well, Collin's pack has that name, starts with Chia..."

"Oh, yeah?" Bernie asks, tilting her head, "...funkalicious. Well. Anyway. Thought I'd ask him, seein' as he's qualified for my end."

Joey hmms, rubbing his chin. "Prolly," he admits. "Junior might be able to ask the guys some questions to get them talking, as he's all into books. Just, one short Raggie might not be enough, no matter how many distracting folks I have with me."

Bernie considers. "Well, you just gotta get 'em in th' bag an' outta sight. Then th' others c'n help with movin' 'em somewhere safe." She considers. "...plus, I s'pose you could consider doin' it Glabro, long's you're Blurred anyhow? Or which bit're you worried 'bout?"

Joey hmmms. "Wondering how far Blur goes, sometimes. And would a bag I was holding blur with me."

Bernie ponders. "I dunno. I guess... we could check? I would think it would, or else people'd, like, see things floating an' notice ya... I dunno, doesn't make sense t' me." She shrugs. "We could always test it, I guess?"

Joey nods. "We'll do that."

Bernie nods. "So, you try it sometime t'night or t'marra, somewhere 'round here, an' I'll say I see ya if I happen t' see ya. Sound like a good test?" She stretches, and starts packing things up. "...anyhow I oughta go catch Kaz an' maybe Elan an', y'know, other folks, try an' get stuff set up." She stands, sliding her backpack on, and grins. "An' I'll getcha th' note by Thursday lunch, 'course." With that, she tosses off a casual little salute, and starts toward the door.

Joey sits down, with a whole new mess of things to think about. "Catch you later?"

Bernie grins, turning briefly. "Well. Not 'f I catch you first, I guess. Yeah, I'll check ya soon. Later!" The door opens, then swings shut again, and she's gone.